Case study on the strategy and application of enhancement solutions to improve remediation of soils contaminated with Cu, Pb and Zn by means of electrodialysis

Numerous studies have been conducted with electrochemical removal of heavy metals from spiked kaolinite. Meanwhile, when moving from kaolinite to real soils, new factors must be taken into account—factors influencing, e.g., the buffering capacity of the soil against acidification and the adsorption/desorption processes of the heavy metals. The present study gives some examples where it is necessary to use an enhancement solution to aid desorption of Cu, Zn and Pb during electrodialytic treatment. Dependent on the composition of the pollution, different choices can be made. In the case of a Cu-polluted calcareous soil, ammonia may be used as enhancement solution, due to the formation of charged complexes between ammonia and Cu. Thus, Cu is mobile at high pH when ammonia is added and Cu can be removed without dissolving the calcareous parts. Zn is also mobilized by ammonia, but to a lesser extent than Cu. In the case of Cu, Zn and Pb at the same time, alkaline ammonium citrate may be a solution. It was shown that this enhancement solution could mobilize these three pollutants, but optimization of concentration and pH of the ammonium citrate is still needed. When choosing a remediation scheme for electrochemical treatment of an actual industrially polluted soil, this scheme must be chosen on basis of characterization of soil and pollution combination.     

Protection of marine birds and turtles at St Brandon’s Rock,Indian Ocean,requires conservation of the entire atoll

A survey of seabirds and turtles at St Brandon’s Rock, 400 km north of Mauritius, was undertaken in 2010. We estimated that 1 084 191 seabirds comprising seven breeding species and excluding non-breeders were present at the archipelago and we counted 279 turtle tracks and nesting pits of green turtles Chelonia mydas. Hawksbill turtles Eretmochelys imbricata were also present. Analyses of 30 different islets that make up the atoll showed that the seabird species mostly partitioned their use of islets based on islet size, with four species preferring larger islets and two species preferring smaller islets. Alien species introduced historically are still present and other threats, such as shipwrecks, remain. We propose conservation and other measures that should adequately protect the birds, turtles and coral reef by treating the atoll as a system.     

Honey, I cooled the cods: Modelling the effect of temperature on the structure of Boreal/Arctic fish ecosystems

Historically colder regions of the North Atlantic had fisheries dominated by only a few fish species; principally cod and capelin. Possible population dynamic mechanisms that lead to such dominance are investigated by considering how a charmingly simple published multispecies model of the North Sea would react if the system operated at a lower temperature. The existing model equations were modified to describe temperature effects on growth, fecundity and recruitment and the model was rerun based on typical temperatures for the North Sea and a colder system. The results suggest that total fish biomass in the colder system increases but the community is more vulnerable to a given rate of fishing mortality. In the colder system, within species density dependence is reduced but relative predation rates are higher. Consequently, intermediate-sized species are vulnerable to relatively high levels of predation throughout their life history and tend to be excluded, leading to a system dominated by small and large species. The model helps to explain how temperature may govern coexistence and competitive exclusion in fish communities and accounts for the observed dominance of small and large species in Boreal/Arctic ecosystems.     

Scour below pipelines and around vertical piles due to second-order random waves plus a current

This paper provides a method by which the scour depth below pipelines and around single vertical piles for combined random waves plus current including effects of second-order wave asymmetry can be derived. Here the empirical formulas proposed by Sumer and Fredsøe [1996. Scour below pipelines in combined waves and current. In: Proceedings of the 15th OMAE Conference, Florence, Italy. Vol. 5, ASME, New York, pp. 595–602] for pipelines, and by Sumer and Fredsøe [2002. The mechanics of scour in the marine environment. World Scientific, Singapore] for vertical piles are used together with Stokes second-order wave theory by assuming the basic harmonic wave motion to be a stationary Gaussian narrow-band random process. Comparisons are made with the Sumer and Fredsøe [1996. Scour below pipelines in combined waves and current. In: Proceedings of the 15th OMAE Conference, Florence, Italy. Vol. 5, ASME, New York, pp. 595–602; 2001. Scour around pile in combined waves and current. Journal of Hydraulic Engineering, 127(5), 403–411] data for linear random waves plus current. An example of calculation is also presented.     

Proterozoic fluvial styles: response to changes in accommodation space (Rivieradal sandstones, eastern North Greenland)

Fluvial styles recorded by the uppermost part of the Neoproterozoic ‘Rivieradal sandstones' succession of eastern North Greenland reflect variations in rate of generated accommodation space and possibly climatic changes. Three facies associations, arranged in two genetic sequences, are recognised within the succession. The lower sequence initially records little available accommodation space. A high degree of reworking results in sheet-like, high-energy, bed-load-dominated, braided river deposits lacking recurrent facies patterns. As accommodation space increases upwards through the sequence, reduction in reworking is recorded by the development of fining- and thickening-upward muddy fluvial cycles. Evidence of desiccation or prolonged periods of drought are absent within the deposits and climate was probably relatively humid. Channel deposits in the lower sequence reflect mixed-load, braided fluvial systems with stable channel banks and floodplains, and the gradient appears to have been low to moderate. These features are generally considered favourable for the establishment of meandering river systems, but channels, nevertheless, retained an overall braided character and their deposits show no evidence of meandering. Despite indications of a climatic setting without significant periods of drought sediments indicate that large fluctuations in discharge occurred within the mixed-load streams and this is suggested to be the main cause for the absence of meandering. The swift and rather dramatic response of the fluvial systems to changes in precipitation, probably resulted from rapid runoff rates caused by the absence of vegetation. The upper sequence shows an initial return to shallow, sandy braided river deposition recording little available accommodation space. A subsequent increase in the rate of generated accommodation space is indicated by the presence of alternating sheet sandstones and sand-streaked mudstones with abundant desiccation cracks. The sheet sandstones show evidence of high-energy, unconfined ephemeral fluvial flash-flood deposition, while the mudstones are interpreted to represent muddy floodplain deposits. The change in fluvial style, combined with the widespread evidence of desiccation, suggest an evolution towards a more semi-arid climate in the upper sequence. This climatic change could account for the reduced clastic input seen in the overlying marine succession which culminated in carbonate platform deposition. The present study suggests that even under conditions considered favourable for the formation of meandering streams, these will rarely occur in Proterozoic deposits due to the lacking influence of vegetation. Although meandering deposits cannot be ruled out as having formed in pre-vegetational times, the conditions for their formation appear to have been even more restricted than previously realised.