Using a model of the acidification process of rain, the authors calculate and analyze the effects and contributions of a below-cloud aerosol in its different concentrations and acidities on the pH and ion components of rain under the conditions of different concentrations of pollution gases. The results show that the aerosol has an acidification or alkalization effect on the rain which changes the pHs of rain and aerosol. As acidifying pollution gas concentrations (SO[sub 2]), HNO[sub 3] are low, the acid aerosol has important effects on the pH and H+ of rain, but as the gas concentrations are high, the acid aerosol has very little effect. The alkalizing aerosol makes the pH of rain increase by between 0.3 and 0.5 and neutralizes about 60%of H[sup +] in the rain. As alkalizing pollution gas NH[sub 3] exists, the acid ...
A section of the northern margin of the Guineo-Congolian rain forest of the Central African Republic is studied to determine to what extent deforestation is evolving. Three sites are presented to highlight the diversity in local environmental settings at the northern margin of the closed equatorial rain forest: the contiguous equatorial rain forest, the boundary between the closed rain forest and the grasslands, and a predominantly secondary grassland environment. Proven image processing procedures for determining land cover and vegetation vigor were applied to Landsat MSS data to determine land cover characteristics and identify alterations in land cover that indicate potentially degraded forest environments. Land cover was independently assessed using spectral signatures determined from a statistical clustering routine. The images presented and image analyses contribute insights ...
This brief paper is an introduction to the concept of designing residential warm air furnaces without combustion chambers. This is possible since some small burners do not require the thermal support of a combustion chamber to complete the combustion process.
The collision of the Earth with extra-terrestrial ice-volatile bodies is proposed as a mechanism to produce rapid changes in the geologic record. These bodies would be analogs of the ice satellites found for the Jovian planets and suspected for comets and certain low density bodies in the Asteroid belt. Five generic end-members are postulated: (1) water ice; (2) dry ice: carbon-carbon dioxide rich, (3) oceanic (chloride) ice; (4) sulfur-rich ice; (5) ammonia hydrate-rich ice; and (6) clathrate: methane-rich ice. Due to the volatile nature of these bodies, evidence for their impact with the Earth would be subtle and probably best reflected geochemically or in the fossil record. Actual boloids impacting the Earth may have a variable composition, generally some admixture with water ice. However for discussion purposes, only the effects of a dominant component will be treated. The general geological effects of such collisions, as a function of the dominant component would be: (1) rapid sea ...
The warm caliber rolling was experimented using the AZ31 magnesium alloy round bar of 20 mm in diameter machined from cast ingot materials. In warm caliber rolling in final size of 10 mm in diameter at 623 K via 8passes, each width-spreading, the change of each microstructure, X-ray analysis of final texture and final mechanical properties were investigated. Microstructure, texture and mechanical properties of warm caliber rolled round bar at 473 K via latter 4passes were compared with those at 623 K consistently. Obtained results are as follows: (1) The width-spreading in caliber rolling of round bar is relatively large, compared with that in flat rolling of the flat bar. The largeness of width-spreading of round bar makes the shape control of cross section difficult, and causes the cracks around the free surface. (2) Finer microstructure and inclined c axis of hexagonal lattice of 10 degrees to vertical direction of the ...
Ultrafine grained steels with different carbon contents were produced through warm caliber rolling and evaluated for their stress-strain behavior along with the reduction in area. It was found that the reduction in area-tensile strength balance is far better than the conventional ferrite+pearlite steels and even superior to bainitic steels for all materials tested in the present study.
The registration of secondary cosmic ray neutrons is a convenient tool for the investigation of primary cosmic ray variations and for meteorological effects as well. At present a large network of neutron monitors exists, aiming at studies of cosmic ray variations which are related to interplanetary conditions and geomagnetic activity. At the same time cosmic ray variations may be related to some atmospheric processes. In this connection, using the data from two neutron monitors (a standard and a lead free one), a gamma detector from Moscow station and lead free neutron monitor at BEO Moussala, we studied the correlations between rain flows and neutron flux. In this study we used daily averages on the basis of 10 min data for the neutron flux, corrected for barometric pressure and data from local meteo-stations. The preliminary analysis indicates a correlation between rain flows and neutron flux in several cases. To explain ...
The effect of warm rolling under various conditions on the microstructure and mechanical property was investigated using an AZ31 Mg alloy sheet. Several processing parameters such as initial thickness, thickness reduction by a single pass rolling, rolling temperature, roll speed, and roll temperature were varied to elicit an optimum condition for the warm rolling process of AZ31 Mg alloy. Microstructure and mechanical properties were measured for specimens subjected to rolling experiments of various conditions. Warm rolling of 30% thickness reduction per pass was possible without any side-crack at temperatures as low as 200 C under the roll speed of 30 m/min. The initial microstructure before rolling was the mixed one consisting of partially recrystallized and cast structures. Grain refinement was found to occur actively during the warm rolling, producing a very ...
Field-grown snap bean plants were treated with simulated acidic rain applied either alone or in combination with ambient rain and the effects on growth and yield were determined. In plots where ambient rain was excluded, a retractable canopy was activated to shield the crop. Four levels of acidity at pH values of 5.0, 4.2, 3.4 and 2.6 were applied in four replicate treatments and the experiment was conducted in two successive years (1981 and 1982). In plots that received only simulated rain, yield was not adversely affected by acidic rain; in 1981, a positive linear relationship was present between acidity of simulated rain and yield, but in 1981, no effect was found. In contrast, in plots that received both simulated and ambient rain, a negative linear relationship between acidity in simulated rain and yield was ...
Effects of rolling conditions on warm deep drawability of cast magnesium alloy that were hot rolled after roll strip casting were investigated to ascertain the feasibility of twin-roll strip casting process of AZ31B magnesium alloy. Hot rolling and heat treatment conditions were changed to examine which conditions were appropriate for producing AZ31B wrought magnesium alloys after strip casting process. Microscopic observation of the crystals of the manufactured wrought magnesium alloys was performed. It has been found that a limiting drawing ratio of 2.7 was possible in a warm deep drawing test of the cast magnesium alloy sheets after being hot rolled. (orig.)
...global warming um ? know he's been right into our our ...who was a little bit about global warming and cooling ...global warming ...america uh we can help ? global warming and reduce the demand for electricity and and ...now means that those who immediately combat global warming ? ...global warming ...global warming ...global warming by ...we ? in terms of the contribution to global warming is a small i mean anything else ...global warming and ...among scientists are speaking out about global warming the only thing they really talk about a year to ...the other factors that affect global warming and i i just feel that ...problem of global warming would have to ...global warming ...global ...
In recent years, the influences of acid rain such as the acidification of lake water, on bio-system by the heavy metals from effluent of soils with acid rain and also on the structural materials of buildings are seriously discussed. Sulfur and nitrogen that are contained in fossil fuels are released into the atmosphere by the fuel combustion as their oxides dissolve in rain drops as sulfite and nitrous ions, where they are further oxidized into sulfate and nitrate ions These ions lower the pH of rain water resulting so-called acid rain. Therefore, it is important to accurately determine these ions in rain water for the investigation of reality of acid rain. However, it is not easy to accurately determine these ions, especially for sulfite ions in rain water, since they are quickly oxidized by the catalytic action of ...
As concern regarding global environmental problems such as the greenhouse effect and acid rain has increased, so too has the demand for commercially viable solar cells as a clean energy source. Interest in amorphous silicon (a-Si) solar cells has been particularly high, due to their low cost. Technological developments in the field of a-Si solar cells are discussed from the viewpoints of fabrication process, materials, and cell structures. Various applications and systems that take advantage of the a-Si solar cell are then introduced. Finally, future prospects are mentioned
Ultratrace analysis of mercury in rain water has been investigated, including recovery of ionic mercury with the addition of acids, treatment and storage and stability studies of mercury in rain water. Recovery of ionic mercury from rain water samples increased with increased acid concentrations and increased substantially with UV-irradiation. Recovery of ionic mercury in the presence of different acids was compared. Treatment studies of rain water for the analysis of total mercury were done using different decomposition methods. More than 20% of the total mercury was found in rain water residue after filtration through 0.45 ..mu..m membrane filters. Methylmercury (MM) content in filtered and unfiltered rain water however was nearly the same. On long term storage of rain water without acids at pH = 2.0 and 4.5 loss of total mercury occurred, ...
... Top Ten Things You Need to Know About Global Warming and a note about why there is so ... create your own unit on climate change and global warming."...
The Global Warming International Center (GWIC) is the international body disseminating information on global warming science and policy, serving both governamental, non-governamental ... ...
...that the term global warming is actually misleading because ...global warming here ...a global warming of point seven four degrees in a hundred-years ...
The present situation of the researches that have been made for predicting the process and range of diffusion of warm drain is reviewed. This review is divided into eight sections. The first section deals with the present situation of warm drain from power plants. For the establishment of drainage standard, there are many difficult problems to be solved because water temperature differs in its nature from other regulation items. In the second section, the process of diffusion and cooling of warm drain is explained. The third section deals with the diffusion characteristics of warm drain in Japanese coastal sea due to water temperature. Two types of diffusion are known. One is dominant irregular current, and the other is periodical reciprocating stream. The fourth section deals with the methods of prediction of diffusion. Research methods and simulation models ...
Humic acids are primarily a result of the microbiological degradation of surrounding vegetation and animal decay and enter surface waters through rain water run-off from the surrounding land. This often gives rise to large seasonal variations, high concentrations in the wet season and lower concentrations in the dry season. Alone humic acid is just a colour problem but when present in conventional treatment processes like chlorination, carcinogenic by-products like trihalomethane and haloacetic acid are formed. This, in addition to the demand for clean potable drinking water, has sparked extensive research into alternative processes for the production of drinking water from various natural/industrial sources. One of the major areas of focus in these studies is the use of membranes in micro...
Kawasaki Steel has constructed many facilities for 15 years to produce cold rolled products and galvanized products in Mizushima Works and Chiba Works. To efficiently and stably produce high and uniform quality products, various new control methods have been developed and applied to these new facilities. Especially, temperature control in a continuous annealing line, zinc coating control in a continuous galvanizing line or paint coating control in a multi-purpose coating line and tension control to achieve stable processing are the most advanced technologies and are introduced in this paper. (author)
...of global warming ? ...coal has created a global warming of temperatures ...that global warming is real and that we have changed the world ...the global warming possibly ten degrees that have ? ...
...global warming problem became undeniable ...as global warming are a number also review they world energy ...global warming temperatures on the models and people take what's called ...? story combat global warming conservation ...
Wetlands can potentially sequester vast amounts of carbon. However, over 50% of wetlands globally have been degraded or lost. Restoration of wetland systems may therefore result in increased sequestration of carbon. Preliminary results of our investigations into atmospheric carbon sequestration by restored coastal wetlands indicate that carbon can be sequestered in substantial quantities in the first 2-50 years after restoration of natural hydrology and sediment accretion processes.
Peculiarities of metastable #beta#-solid solution decmposition in titanium alloy VT30 in the process of isothermal ageing in the range 500-650 deg C are investigated. Using the methods of transmittion electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction analysis, etc., it is shown that in the case of alloy quenching from the temperature below the point of complete polymorphous transformation (T_t_._t_.), as well as after warm rolling the course of subsequent decomposition of solid solution can be consierably complicated.
...global warming is going on we're gonna start to see that ...global warming ...offset the trend of global warming due to greenhouse gases so we gotta get this ...global warming ...the timing and just exactly how global warming will be feedback ...problem with global warming and that the increasing greenhouse gases substantially ...
There are a number of propagation issues that need further investigation for efficient system planning for EHF communication systems. Especially needed are better cloud and rain characterizations. A method for estimating one of the rain induced effects of interest, outage duration, is presented.
Background and AimsThere has been little previous work on the toughness of the laminae of monocots in tropical lowland rain forest (TLRF) despite the potential importance of greater...Full Text Available
The solubility behavior of solid residues from the heat treatment of domestic rubbish was examined by simulated precipitation in laboratory lysimeters. The precipitation corresponded to the average amount of rain in West Germany and was applied at different time periods. Specific soil characteristics, the value of k/sub f/ and the water retention capacity was determined in this way. In parallel with the lysimeter flood ions, extraction (by batch process) was done, in order to find the maximum solubility of the materials used. It was found that for pyrolysis residues from reactor temperatures of 450/sup 0/ to 1000/sup 0/C, a greater solubility was measured than for slag from combustion. The eluates from these residues gave information about the degree of contamination or on the solubility of the measured parameters and materials in organoleptic, physical, organic and inorganic examinations. The concentrations of harmful substances in the eluates ...
Three independent studies have been conducted for assessing the impact of rocket launches on the earth`s environment. These studies have addressed issues of acid rain in the troposphere, ozone depletion in the stratosphere, toxicity of chemical rocket exhaust products, and the potential impact on global warming from carbon dioxide emissions from rocket launches. Local, regional, and global impact assessments were examined and compared with both natural sources and anthropogenic sources of known atmospheric pollutants with the following conclusions: (1) Neither solid nor liquid rocket launches have a significant impact on the earth`s global environment, and there is no real significant difference between the two. (2) Regional and local atmospheric impacts are more significant than global impacts, but quickly return to normal background conditions within a few hours after launch. And (3) vastly increased space launch activities equivalent to 50 ...
The role played by planetary boundary layer (PBL) in the development and evolution of a severe convective storm is studied by means of meso-scale modeling and surface and upper air observations. The severe convective precipitation event that occurred on 14 September 1999 in the northeast of the Iberian Peninsula was simulated by means of the mesoscale model MM5 (version 3) using three different PBL schemes. The numerical results show a large impact of the PBL schemes on the precipitation fields associated to the convective storm. The schemes are based on different physical assumptions: the nonlocal first order medium-range forecast (MRF) and blackadar (BLA) scheme and the local, one-and-a-half order ETA scheme. Surface and radar observations are used to validate the model results. The comparison focuses on three aspects: the evolution, the spatial distribution and the 24-h accumulated precipitation. The comparison with rain gauge observations shows that the MRF, ...
...in your blue fuller says global warming summit on the top general information ...this because a lot of times when we talk about global warming and climate change we really focus on the ice ...site ? one organization is called global warming one-on-one and it's run by ...can actually go to global warming one-on-one and and ...something to ? slow global warming but sometimes you feel alone so the big deal if i changed my life ...
Nitrite was measured in atmospheric liquid phase samples between 1998 and 2005 to investigate the heterogeneous formation of nitrous acid in the lower atmosphere, as well as to assess the quality of water recovered from dew. The samples were collected during ground-based cloud field experiments at different German mountain sites (Brocken, Schmucke, and Hohenpeissenberg) and at a site south of the Bordeaux urban area (France). Concentrations found in Bordeaux dew samples (up to 2800 ?gl-1) are comparable to those found elsewhere in urban fog and dew water and considerably higher than those detected in cloud water or rain. Particulate nitrite (and nitrate) as well as HNO2 (HNO3) data in air masses from a foothill site of Mt. Schmucke, before involved in cloud processing, are also presented. In clouds at Mt. Brocken, both the interstitial HNO2 gas and the aqueous phase nitrite concentration have been measured simultaneous. Significant deviations ...
Estimates of global warming during the mid-Piacenzian Age of the Pliocene Epoch suggest temperatures were 2 degrees C greater than today. ... million years approaches this level of warming. PRISM/Global Warmin...
...march and my hope is that global warming because i believe it is real and i believe we have ...global warming ...system of energy which does not produce the global warming guess they should be here ? ...
Direct electric heating by passing an electrical current directly through a bed of adsorbent may prove to be an efficient means of regenerating activated charcoal in continuous and batch adsorption processes. Obvious advantages of this type of regeneration are its almost complete lack of inertia, which makes it possible to reduce the number and dimensions of the adsorbers, and its highly efficient use of energy due to the small number of steps in the conversion of the energy, as well as the reduction of heat losses involved in warming the structure and making up for losses to the surroundings. The authors consider the kinetics of direct electric heating of a stationary bed of activated charcoal not containing adsorbed substances.
As a counter measure to protect against global warming, the development of CO{sub 2} recovery technology from fossil fuel power plant flue gas has continued. MEA processes are widely used for CO{sub 2} recovery from combustion flue gas in average use etc. However, if we consider power plant scale CO{sub 2} recovery, the biggest theme is the reduction of energy needed to recover CO{sub 2}. The paper focuses on sterically hindered amines and a new absorber packing. Also optimum steam system analysis results are indicated. 1 ref., 16 figs., 3 tabs.
Information about the greenhouse effect, the role of greenhouse gases in global climate change, levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, and references....
...policy issues global warming global climate change ? there's a famous hockey ...global warming the greatest hopes for betray them and kind of forgotten ...
Is global warming contributing to amphibian declines and extinctions by promoting outbreaks of the chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis? Analyzing patterns ... ...
Plastic formability of cast magnesium alloy that were hot rolled after roll strip casting was investigated to ascertain the feasibility of semi-solid strip casting process of AZ31B magnesium alloy. Hot rolling and heat treatment conditions were changed to examine which conditions were appropriate for producing AZ31B wrought magnesium alloys after strip casting process. Microscopic observation of the crystals of the manufactured wrought magnesium alloys was performed. It has been found that a limiting drawing ratio of 2.7 was possible in a warm deep drawing test of the cast magnesium alloy sheets after being hot rolled. (orig.)
There are certain factors to take into account when determining the suitability of a healthy house site. Power lines, agricultural spraying, vehicle exhaust, and industrial pollution are all potential sources of indoor air contamination. It is recommended that a environmental assessment be done to determine whether there are specific sources of contamination. Good drainage is required. The surrounding landscaping should be open and sunlit, and with low maintenance requirements. Decks and fences made from pressure-treated or chemical treated lumber should be avoided. One of the early decisions in the design process is the choice of the structural system. The key with all foundation types is to control moisture, whether from rain, from the ground, or the condensation of moisture from the air with cooling. The construction frame is sealed away from the occupants by the air/vapor barrier, so only in extreme cases is it essential to use alternatives ...
This video of GOES satellite imagery was created from data compiled March 8 through 16, 2010. It shows flooding rains from a Nor'easter that soaked the U.S. Northeast.
The Taiwan Strait is an important channel in the west Pacific Ocean transporting water and chemical constituents between the East China Sea and the South China Sea. Due to its complex bottom topography, alternating monsoon forcing and conjunction of several current systems [such as the Zhejiang-Fujian (Zhe-Min) Coastal Current, the Kuroshio intrusion and the extension of the South China Sea Warm Current], the physical and biogeochemical processes and ecosystem dynamics in the Taiwan Strait vary significantly both in space and in time. Our recent interdisciplinary studies, combining in situ and remote sensing observations with numerical modeling, allow us to address several important issues concerning the Taiwan Strait. The temporal and spatial variation of circulation in the Taiwan Strait ...
Stainless steel is pickled in pickling bath with the sulfuric acid and a mixture of hydrofluoric acid and nitric acid. Suitable equipment based on speedy and accurate chemical analysis for actual production lines has not been developed yet. The concentration of sulfuric acid can be analyzed by using the neutralization titration method. As a method of analyzing hydrofluoric acid in the mixed acid, the iron-acetylacetone complex discoloration absorbance method was adopted. For the concentration, of nitric acid, the method of subtracting the concentration of hydrofluoric acid from the total mixed acid amounts obtained by neutralization titration is adopted. Furthermore, the iron-salicylic acid complex absorbance method is adopted as a method of analyzing the iron content. By adopting these methods, the fully automated analyzer is developed. Completing analysis work can be shortened to 40 minutes by automated sampling from the acid pipes. The fully automated acid supply and exhaust system ...
This report reviews Nova Scotia's initiatives in support of the Canada-Nova Scotia Acid Rain Reduction Agreement. In addition to discussing sodium dioxide emmisions and potential impacts, the report comments on new developments and initiatives to address other emerging air quality issues.
With the increase of cross-Strait economic activity, the interaction between Taiwanese business people and the Chinese government has gradually changed. As Taiwanese investment grew in volume, so did the number and frequency of contacts between the parties; a more institutionalised form regulating these contacts was established as a result. Nowadays Taiwanese businessmen have become an identifiable factor in Chinese governmental policy implementation; the process also has far-reaching implications. This paper argues that Taiwanese capital has become a Chinese governmental security asset and examines the importance of this factor when discussing conventional government/business interaction. This paper concludes that a superior national interest guides the warm welcome given by the Chinese g...
The application of multi-objective genetic algorithms for green building design in two phases were presented in order to better help designers in the decision-making process. The purpose is to minimize two conflicting criteria: the life-cycle cost and the life-cycle environmental impact. Environmental impact criteria examined include energy and non-energy natural resources, global warming, and acidification. Variables focus on building envelope-related parameters. The application of multi-objective genetic algorithms is divided into two phases. The first phase intends to help designers in understanding the trade-off relationship between the two conflicting criteria. The second phase intends to refine the performance region that is of the designer's interest. The results after the two-phase application of the multi objective genetic algorithm were then presented. 13 refs., 4 tabs., 3 figs.
In the study, wind data from the Comprehensive Ocean-Atmosphere Data Set (COADS) are used to determine atmospheric circulation changes which are empirically associated with the air temperature changes. Some understanding of the natural processes which produce climate change is anticipated from the study of these associations. Systematic changes of wind in US coastal regions with periods of climate warming and cooling suggest circulation changes, in addition to carbon dioxide-controlled radiation effects, could produce the climate changes indicated by air temperature. A statistical procedure for analyses of COADS was used to determine decade-period vector wind-field differences from the COADS record period. The statistical procedure for these analyses is explained and the wind differences are compared to summaries of mid-Atlantic coast island-station observations.
Abstract Global mean temperature is predicted to increase by 2 7 C and precipitation to change across the globe by the end of this century. To quantify climate effects on ecosystem processes, a number of climate change experiments have been established around the world in various ecosystems. Despite these efforts, general responses of terrestrial ecosystems to changes in temperature and precipitation, and especially to their combined effects, remain unclear. We used meta analysis to synthesize ecosystem level responses to warming, altered precipitation, and their combination. We focused on plant growth and ecosystem carbon (C) balance, including biomass, net primary production (NPP), respiration, net ecosystem exchange (NEE), and ecosystem photosynthesis, synthesizing results from 85 studi...
This study serves to investigate the uptake of POPs in the different trophic levels (scrapers, collectors, predators, shredders) of macroinvertebrate communities sampled from a glacial and a non-glacial stream in the Italian Alps. The presented results show that the contaminant concentrations in glacial communities are generally higher compared to those from non-glacial catchments, highlighting the importance of glaciers as temporary sinks of atmospherically transported pollutants. Moreover, the data also suggests that in mountain systems snow plays an important role in influencing macroinvertebrate contamination. The main chemical uptake process to the macroinvertebrates is considered to be bioconcentration from water, as similar contaminant profiles were observed between the different trophic levels. The role of biomagnification/bioaccumulation is thought to be absent or negligible. The enrichment of chemicals observed in the predators is likely to be related to ...
Diurnal and seasonal thermal constancy, a greatly delayed seasonal temperature maximum, and summer cool and winter warm conditions characterize the stream environment below a deep-release dam in Colorado. Low diversity index and equitability values and changes in macroinvertebrate species composition may result from failure of the temperature regime to provide the thermal stimuli essential for various life-cycle phenomena. It is hypothesized that the following sublethal effects, directly or indirectly resulting from the modified temperature regime, may further alter macroinvertebrate community structure: reduction of niche overlap and a shift toward an equilibrium community as a consequence of reduced environmental fluctuation; more intense competition associated with greater productivity; elimination of major invertebrate predators; and failure of the limited temperature range to provide optimal temperatures for various physiological ...
Policy makers are turning to market-based mechanisms to engender innovative ways of reducing polluting air emissions. As with any emerging market, environmental policies must be carefully crafted so that the institutions and incentives needed to form working markets are developed. Attention must be paid to creating avenues for communities and other 'non-moneyed' or unorganised interests to be involved in the new market processes. This paper proposes a strategy to create sustainable, community-based methods to reduce polluting air emissions within the context of market-based incentive programs. By enabling communities to effectively participate in environmental solutions, they will truly be able to 'think globally, act locally'. (author)
Cheap air conditioning from oceanic temperature differences is a possible new competitor for coal in coastal regions. Coal suppliers planning expansion in growing economies need to be aware of the possibilities and limitations of this new competitor. Ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC) used to be uneconomic but the National Energy Laboratory of Hawaii (NELH) has developed a very economic method of utilising the temperature difference between warm ocean surface and cold deep ocean to generate energy for air conditioning. The article outlines the process and mentions demonstrations of OTEC technology to produce electricity and air conditioning at a site in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. Indonesia and India have viable sites for OTEC installations, and NELH is working with Madras State on a project to construct a commercial OTEC plant in India. 2 photos.
...same sort of handle ? religious that we have on global warming or energy policy or ...other words my claim is that we need to study religion the way we study global warming and all the other really serious phenomena on this planet ...
Most analyses of the alternative strategies used by utilities to comply with Title IV requirements have focused on factors directly related to controlling sulfur dioxide (SO{sub 2}) emissions. However, utilities must meet a number of additional environmental requirements at the same tune they comply with the acid rain program. To illuminate the potential synergies and conflicts that might exist between the other regulatory mandates and the acid rain program, a thorough examination of all the various programs and their interrelationships must be conducted. This paper reviews the environmental mandates that utilities will have to plan to meet in the next decade concurrently with the acid rain program, and it analyzes the interactions among the various programs to identify potential synergies and conflicts.
hicle [UUV (essentially, a small ex- ploratory submarine robot)] of a type that has been deployed in large numbers in research pertaining to global warm- ...
The build-up of frost on unit cooler surfaces, if not periodically cleared, will eventually cause impairment of the unit's performance, eventually rendering it useless. Thus it is necessary, in spaces below freezing, to provide an external supply of heat to warm the unit sufficiently to melt the frost and remove it. In large central-plant-type systems the most common method employed for supplying heat is from the high-pressure side of the refrigeration system, referred to as hot gas defrost. Although the heat thus captured for use in melting frost would otherwise be rejected external to the system, the defrosting process is not free of cost. There are significant losses associated with the process the magnitude of which have not heretofore been fully identified. This paper looks at the heat and mass transfer and fluid flow mechanisms involved in the hot gas defrost process in large commercial ...
...prediction of involvement and saying hasta la vista to global warming and also be a celebrating president obama ...too late to save our planet from the perils of global warming ? john f. kennedy once said ...grandchildren and say we did little to stop the advance of global warming ? we will make a difference ...
LEDF(Large Equipment Dismantling Facility) is the solid waste processing technology development facility that carries out high-volume reduction and low dosage processing. The high-volume reduction processing of the high dose {alpha}-waste configured with combustible waste, pvc and rubber, spent ion exchange resin, and noncombustible waste have been planned the incinerating and melting facility using the in-can type high frequency induction heating in LEDF. This test is intended to clarify the design data. It was confirmed that the incinerating and melting performance, molten solid properties and exhaust gas processing performance with pilot testing equipment and bench scale equipment. The result of this test are as follows. 1. Processing speed is 6.7 kg/h for the combustible waste, 13.0 kg/h for the ion exchange resin, and 30.0 kg/h for the noncombustible waste. For above optimum ...
Background: In North America and Europe, 80% of invasive skin cancers are basal cell carcinoma while 20% are squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). In contrast, African studies reveal a preponderance...Full Text Available
... 12, 2007 | Rate It Distribution and Variety of Equatorial Rain Forest , The http://www.esd.ornl.gov/projects/qen/rainfo.html (3 votes) an in depth examination of ecological patterns in rainforests from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory Added: Mar. 17, 2001 ...
time as well, due to the complex patterns of air movement taking place within cumulus clouds. ...... cumulative distribution of XPD, for rain and ice-particle induced ...... CCIR (1986f), Attenuation by Hydrometeors, In Particular ...
BackgroundAn earlier study showed that a week of yoga practice was useful in stress management after a natural calamity. Due to heavy rain and a rift on the banks of the Kosi river,...Full Text Available
Jan 15, 2004 ... thought I would have a difficult time working with. ...... they were absolutely right, because everybody said it rained cats and dogs on the orbit ...... We know that in the military. You can ask any military ...
retrieve detailed aerosol and cloud particle size distribution and shape ...... but on rain types, and hydrometeor characteristics. ..... of ice streams, decreasing sea ice cover in the Arctic, poleward movement of forest cover, and ...
Typhoons Aere (2004) and Matsa (2005) caused high nephelometric turbidity in the Shihmen reservoir in northern Taiwan, jeopardizing the operation of the reservoir for several days, and ultimately impacting the living conditions and economy of the downstream residents. The torrential rains caused landslides and debris flows in upland areas, and flowed into riverbeds, likely contributing significantly to the suspended sediment yields in the reservoir. This investigation elucidates how upland landslides affect sediment attributes in the reservoir basin. Study methods including field observations, spatial analysis in GIS and aerial photo interpretation are adopted to trace the sediment sources and contributing factors to the landslide. Torrential rains induced landslides and debris-flows uplan...
Magnesium alloys have replaced resins as a material for the components of electronic products such as cell phone and notebook personal computer mainly, because of their lightness and rigidity. Thin walls, a complicated shape, and high appearance quality are all needed in the external parts. Die-casting and injection molding are the main method of manufacturing magnesium alloy parts. The optimal cast conditions and mold design have been investigated in order that a few defects such as surface cracks and mold cavities in casting parts would be reduced. Instead of cast, plastic forming technologies such as warm drawing and hot forging have been developed to form thinner walls and less defects. Plastic formability of magnesium alloy in hot working is dependent on a grain size of material. The material with fine grains has advantage of being formed at high strain rate. The characteristics of forming processes of magnesium parts for Japanese home ...
The Cryocycling of Energetic Materials Project is sponsored by the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on advanced munition technologies. This MOU is an agreement between the Department of Energy and the Department of Defense (Office of Munitions) that facilitates the development of technologies of mutual interest to the two Departments. The cryocycling project is one of several that focus on demilitarization aspects of conventional weapons and weapon systems. During FY94 the project pursued the development of analytical and numerical models that can be used to describe and optimize the cryocycling process for preparing energetic materials for recycle and reuse. In addition, the demilitarization stockpile of the Department of Defense was analyzed to identify candidate munitions for the process, and pilot scale cryocycling operations were begun at an industrial contractor. When a material is cryocycled, it is repeatedly subjected to cycles of ...
ObjectivesThe specific objectives of the research are to: 1. Determine the concentrations of N2O, NO and NO2 in tropical coastal waters in relation to nutrients and salinities. 2. Determine, with excess nitrate present, the potential for nitrate reduction and denitrification in sediments along tropical estuaries, and whether NO, NO2, N2O, N2 or NH4+ are significant products. 3. Establish the balance between denitrification, nitrate ammonification and anammox in tropical estuarine sediments, relative to [continued...]DescriptionThe coastal zone is extremely important in the biogeochemical processes which control the natural cycle of elements of the Earth. In particular, the coastal zone contributes significantly to the nitrogen cycle, removing nitrogen washed in from the land by rivers and so reducing its fertilizing impact on the coastal seas. However, these removal processes, driven by microorganisms, also contribute to the formation of ...
Using discrete air sampling, values of {delta}{sup 13}C and {delta}{sup 18}O in atmospheric CO{sub 2}, as well as its concentration, were measured in a forest in the central part of the main island of Japan during the period from June 1994 to June 1996 to examine the biospheric contribution to their temporal variations. {delta}{sup 13}C shows a prominent diurnal variation with high values in the daytime and low values in the nighttime, especially during the warm season. {delta}{sup 13}C also vary seasonally, showing a maximum in summer and a minimum in spring. The diurnal and seasonal variations of {delta}{sup 13}C are opposite in phase with those of the CO{sub 2} concentration. The rate of change in {delta}{sup 13}C with respect to the CO{sub 2} concentration is found to be approximately -0.005 per mille/ppmv. This suggests that the diurnal and seasonal variations of the CO{sub 2} concentration are produced primarily by diurnally- and seasonally-dependent ...
It has been understood that production of hydrogen from fossil and carbonaceous fuels with reduced CO{sub 2} emission to the atmosphere is key to the production of hydrogen-rich fuels for mitigating the CO{sub 2} greenhouse gas climate change problem. The conventional methods of hydrogen production from fossil fuels (coal, oil, gas and biomass) include steam reforming and water gas shift mainly of natural gas (SRM). In order to suppress CO{sub 2} emission from the steam reforming process, CO{sub 2} must be concentrated and sequestered either in or under the ocean or underground (in aquifers, or depleted oil or gas wells). Up to about 40% of the energy is lost in this process. An alternative process is the pyrolysis or the thermal decomposition of methane, natural gas (TDM) to hydrogen and carbon. The carbon can either be sequestered or sold on the market as a materials commodity or used as a fuel at a later date under less ...
Statements about the dynamic processes of uptake, transport, and deposition of Ca and Mg in norway spruce and Scots pine are made in this paper. Concerning the storage of these elements it is shown that there are great differences in their functional importance in cell metabolism. There is evidence that the role of Mg in enzyme and protein metabolism is of far greater significance for the understanding of Mg-deficiency symptoms than its function as the central atom of the chlorophyll complexes. In regard to the transport and especially to the incorporation of Ca into the needles differences between species were evident, expressing the special status of pine among the gymnosperms. With increasing needle age an accumulation of Ca-oxalate crystals, which are physiologically inert, could be proved for the studied conifers. This was interpreted as a 'detoxication' from surplus Ca to hold constant the level of the physiologically active fraction. Accordingly, the low ...
Once again Brazil faces the possibility of an electricity shortage in the near future. The low level of rain and the consequent reduction of hydroelectric reservoirs (hydroelectric energy represents almost 80% the total Brazilian electricity generation) led to the dispatch of thermal plants based on natural gas and/or fuel oil. However, the recent crisis regarding the Bolivian natural gas supply to Brazil increased the risk of a shortage of this energy source. Hence, the uncertainty of the electricity supply scenario is pushing the electricity prices up in the near future. A possible alternative to increase the electricity supply is the maximization of the electricity surplus in sugarcane mills. Back in 1970's and 1980's, cogeneration plants in sugarcane mills were primarily designed to consume all bagasse, and produce steam and electricity to the process. The plants used medium pressure steam boilers (21 bar and 300 deg C) ...
The study of tropospheric kinetics underlies global change because key greenhouse gases are photochemically active. Modeling of tropospheric chemistry on a global scale is essential because some indirect greenhouse gases are short-lived and interact in a non-linear fashion. It is also extremely challenging, however; the global change grid is extensive in both the physical and temporal domains, and critical lower atmospheric species include the organics and their oxidized derivatives, which are numerous. Several types of optimization may be incorporated into kinetics modules to enhance their ability to simulate the complete lower atmospheric gas phase chemical system. (1) The photochemical integrator can be accelerated by avoiding matrix and iterative solutions and by establishing families. Accuracy and mass conservation are sacrificed in the absence of iteration, but atom balancing is restorable post hoc. (2) Chemistry can be arranged upon the massive grid to exploit parallel ...
The advent of light metal alloys and advanced materials (polymer, composites, etc.) have brought the possibility of achieving important energy reductions into the full life cycle of these materials, especially in transportation applications. 1 These materials have gained acceptance in the aerospace industry but use of light metal alloys needs to gain wider acceptance in other commercial transportation areas. Among the main reasons for the relatively low use of these materials are the lack of manufacturability, insufficient mechanical properties, and increased material costs due to processing inefficiencies. Considering the enormous potential energy savings associated with the use of light metal alloys and advanced materials in transportation, there is a need to identify R&D opportunities in the fields of materials fabrication and forming aimed at developing materials with high specific mechanical properties combined with energy efficient ...
Three agricultural applications in a specially designed greenhouse solar system functioning as a multi-purpose solar air collector for crop production and curing/drying processes are examined. An automated hydroponic crop production system is proposed for the greenhouse solar system. Design criteria of the proposed system and its utilization of solar energy for root-zone warming are presented and discussed. Based upon limited testing of the hydroponic system considered, hydroponic production of greenhouse crops is believed reasonable to complement the year-round use of the greenhouse solar system. The hardware/software design features of a microcomputer-based control system applied in the greenhouse solar barn are presented and discussed. On-line management and utilization of incident solar energy by the microcomputer system are investigated for both the greenhouse and tobacco curing/drying modes of operation. The design approach considered for ...
A life cycle assessment was performed to quantify the non-renewable (fossil) energy use and global warming potential (GWP) in electricity generation from a typical gas fired combined cycle power plant in Singapore. The cost of electricity generation was estimated using a life cycle cost analysis (LCCA) tool. The life cycle assessment (LCA) of a 367.5 MW gas fired combined cycle power plant operating in Singapore revealed that hidden processes consume about 8% additional energy in addition to the fuel embedded energy, and the hidden GWP is about 18%. The natural gas consumed during the operational phase accounted for 82% of the life cycle cost of electricity generation. An empirical relation between plant efficiency and life cycle energy use and GWP in addition to a scenario for electricity cost with varying gas prices and plant efficiency have been established.
A life cycle assessment was performed to quantify the non-renewable (fossil) energy use and global warming potential (GWP) in electricity generation from a typical gas fired combined cycle power plant in Singapore. The cost of electricity generation was estimated using a life cycle cost analysis (LCCA) tool. The life cycle assessment (LCA) of a 367.5 MW gas fired combined cycle power plant operating in Singapore revealed that hidden processes consume about 8% additional energy in addition to the fuel embedded energy, and the hidden GWP is about 18%. The natural gas consumed during the operational phase accounted for 82% of the life cycle cost of electricity generation. An empirical relation between plant efficiency and life cycle energy use and GWP in addition to a scenario for electricity cost with varying gas prices and plant efficiency have been established.
Magnesium is known to have poor formability at room temperature, mainly attributed to its hexagonal lattice structure. This paper presents the findings generated from development of warm forming to produce thin-walled magnesium components. Finite element analysis was conducted to evaluate the formability of the material and the simulated results were compared to the tensile results and product formability. Tensile tests were used to verify the formability of the sheet metal at difference temperatures. The process parameters considered in the feasibility study were forming temperature, in the range of 28 C to 300 C and magnesium sheet (AZ31B-H24) thickness, in the range of 0.4 mm to 1 mm. Magnesium hand phone covers of a thickness down to 0.4 mm have been successfully produced. The feasible forming temperature was found to be between 200 C and 250 C. Metallographic examination shows evident of recrystallisation when the magnesium sheets are ...
North Dakota Concrete Products Company uses a steam curing process that accelerates the concrete curing so that 28-day strength is obtained within 24 hours. The cost of energy required to accomplish this is significant, amounting to approximately $80,000 in 1980. The present boilers are oil fired. Recently, fuel oil prices have increased substantially. Further, supply shortages in the past have threatened plant production. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the economic feasibility of using deep formation warm water as an alternative energy source. A water-to-water heat pump system to replace the existing boiler system was investigated. TPI, Inc. economic and engineering findings for this particular potential geothermal application are disclosed. The operating cost savings of the geothermal system over the operating costs of the existing oilfired system would be insufficient to provide an acceptable rate of return on the investment at ...
The working hypothesis of the research was that the soil of boreal forests is a large carbon store and the amount of C is still increasing in young soils, like in the forest soils of Finland, which makes these soils important sinks for atmospheric CO{sub 2}. Since the processes defining the soil C balance, primary production of plants and decomposition, are dependent on environmental factors and site properties, it was assumed that the organic carbon pool in the soil is also dependent on the same factors. The soil C store is therefore likely to change in response to climatic warming. The aim of this research was to estimate the C balance of forest soil in Finland and predict changes in the balance in response to changes in climatic conditions. To achieve the aim (1) intensive empirical experimentation on the density of C in different pools in the soil and on fluxes between the pools was done was done, (2) the effect of site fertility and ...
Ti-10V-2Fe-3Al is high strength, metastable beta titanium alloy developed by the Timet Division, Titanium Metals Corporation of America for enhanced forgeability and excellent mechanical property combinations, including deep hardening characteristics. Ti-10-2-3 has been the subject of intense thermomechanical processing (TMP) development and reduction to commercial practice for the full range of open die, closed-die and precision forged products utilized in aerospace and other applications. With commercially proven TMP, Ti-10-2-3 forgings provide a range of strength-fracture toughness combinations from 180 Ksi (1,240 MPa) minimum U.T.S. to 140 Ksi (965 MPa) minimum U.T.S with commensurate fracture toughness. With optimal TMP and these strength-toughness combinations, Ti-10-2-3 forgings are found provide superior smooth and notched fatigue properties critical to aerospace applications over incumbent alpha-beta alloys. The alloy retains 80 percent of its room ...
There is now a scientific consensus that current rates of accumulation of greenhouses gases in the atmosphere will result in significant global warming and climate change. These changes are likely to have important impacts on a wide range of human activities and the natural environment. There has now been a considerable weight of literature published on the impacts of global warming, much of it very recent. This report seeks to summarise the important results, to analyse the uncertainties and to make a preliminary analysis of the feasibility of monetarising these environmental costs. The impacts of global warming are divided into ten major categories: agriculture, forests and forestry, terrestrial ecosystems and biodiversity, hydrology and water resources, sea level rise and coastal zones, energy, infrastructure/transport/industry, human health and air quality, oceans, and cryospheric impacts. The results of major summary ...
Jan 5, 2004 ... Even if dinosaurs were cold-blooded, in the Mesozoic Era (when dinosaurs roamed the Earth), Antarctica was warm enough to have them. ...
Abstract A large remaining source of uncertainty in global model predictions of future climate is how ecosystem carbon (C) cycle feedbacks to climate change. We conducted a field manipulative experiment of warming and nitrogen (N) addition in a temperate steppe in northern China during two contrasting hydrological growing seasons in 2006 [wet with total precipitation 11.2% above the long-term mean (348 mm)] and 2007 (dry with total precipitation 46.7% below the long-term mean). Irrespective of strong intra- and interannual variations in ecosystem C fluxes, responses of ecosystem C fluxes to warming and N addition did not change between the two growing seasons, suggesting independence of warming and N responses of net ecosystem C exchange (NEE) upon hydrological variations in the temperate ...
We briefly review capabilities and requirements for future instrumentation in UV- and X-ray astronomy that can contribute to advancing our understanding of the diffuse, highly ionised intergalactic medium.
12 kind of environmental samples such as soil, underground water, seawater, etc. around the Nuclear Power Plants(NPP) and surface seawater around the Korea peninsula were sampled, For the samples of rain, pine-needle, air, seawater, underground water, chinese cabbage, grain of rice and milk sampled around NPP, and surface seawater and rain sampled all around country, tritium concentration was measured, The tritium concentration in the tap water and the gamma activity in the domestic and imported beef that were sampled at ward in the large city in Korea(Seoul, Pusan, Taegu, Taejun, Inchun, Kwangju) were analyzed for the meat and drinking waters. As the results of analyzing, tritium concentration in rain and tap water were very low all around country, but a little higher around the NPP than general surrounding. At the Wolsung NPP, tritium concentration was descend according to distance from the stack. Tritium activity of ...
The project is described, the motivation for the research and the microclimate is defined in relation to both building physics research and applications. Air temperatur, air humidity, solar radiation and air velocity are briefly considered, whilst driving rain and long-wave radiation are described in more detail. Convective heat transfer and surface coefficients are discussed, although they are not microclimatic factors, merely resulting from combinations of such factors. They are included as they are important in relation to transfer of heat and moisture at the surface of the building envelope. Driving rain measurement is the main area of interest, including development of measurement equipment. Long-wave irradiation is measured and compared with empirical formulae from the literature. Window convection heat transfer is another main area of interest. Nocturnal convective heat transfer from a double pane glazing is studied and measurement ...
In this work the calculation of the average precipitation in the Quito River basin, state of Choco, Colombia, is presents through diverse techniques, among which are those suggested by Thiessen and those based on the isohyets analysis, in order to select the one appropriate to quantification of rainwater available to the basin. Also included is an estimation of the error with which the average precipitation in the zone studied is fraught when measured, by means of the methodology proposed by Gandin (1970) and Kagan (WMO, 1966), which at the same time allows to evaluate the representativeness of each one of the stations that make up the rain gauge network in the area. The study concludes with a calculation of the hydrologic balance for the Quito river basin based on the pilot procedure suggested in the UNESCO publication on the study of the South America hydrologic balance, from which the great contribution of rainfall to a greatly enhanced run-off may be ...
The article surveys studies into the global warming which have found that the OECD countries are responsible for less than half of the total registered warming. Calculation and analysis methods for estimating the global contributions from the blocks of OECD, Africa/America/Middle East, Asia and former Soviet Union/Eastern Europe are presented. The results and some pollution abatement measures are discussed.
Warm-intermediate inflationary universe models in the context of braneworld cosmologies, are studied. This study is done in the weak and strong dissipative regimes. We find that, the scalar potentials and dissipation coefficients in terms of the scalar field, evolves as type-power-law and powers of logarithms, respectively. General conditions required for these models to be realizable are derived and discussed. We also study the scalar and tensor perturbations for each regime. We use recent astronomical observations to constraint the parameters appearing in the braneworld models.
The 1.7 billion pounds of benzene produced each year in the US provide one measure of its utility. At the same time, there are a number of environmental reasons for avoiding the use of benzene in chemical manufacture. Perhaps most compelling: benzene is a potent carcinogen. Scrutiny of many of the chemicals derived from benzene reveals that each molecule contains at least one oxygen atom while benzene completely lacks oxygen atoms. Introduction of oxygen to make up for this lack can require processes that are environmentally problematic. One of the steps used to introduce oxygen atoms during manufacture of adipic acid, a component of Nylon 66, is responsible for 10% of the annual global increase in atmospheric nitrous oxide. This by-product is a causative agent of atmospheric ozone depletion and has been implicated in global warming. With support from EPA and the National Science Foundation, alternative manufacturing ...
At COP3 in 1997, an agreement was made to the innovative technical development/promotion by international cooperation, and the promotion of transfer of environmental technology to developing countries. Under the agreement, a feasibility study of international cooperation was made, and especially a study was conducted of the utilization/development of solar energy by the innovative solar thermochemical process. The main reason for global warming is emissions of a large amount of CO2 caused by the direct combustion of fossil fuels. Therefore, a CO2 recycle system taken up in the study enables a more substantial decline in CO2 emission (kg/kWh) per unit generation than the conventional thermal power system by composing solar methanol or solar dimethyl ether using fossil fuels including coal, water, CO2, etc. as raw materials and using solar energy as heat source, and by using this as fuel (solar fuel). CO2 can be reduced by 13% to 14% by ...
A new metastable beta titanium alloy, Beta-CEZ, has been developed by CEZUS. This alloy was designed for use at moderate temperatures up to 450 C (840 F). Alloy requirements also included high mechanical strength, high fracture toughness and improved creep resistance as compared to existing beta alloys. The understanding of the relationships between processing/microstructure/mechanical properties in the alloy may lead to applications of such promising material in current and future airplanes. In this study, a combination of several forging routes, which included through-transus, hot-die and warm-die forging, with subsequent heat treatments were selected in order to evaluate the microstructure-mechanical property relationships. It was found that the recrystallized prior beta grain boundary alpha, characteristic of the through-transus forging process, lead to an improved tensile-fracture toughness balance. The size of the ...
There may be circumstances when a sector has to be partially or totally warmed-up to temperatures above 80 K, that is when thermal dilatation starts to play a role. Some equipment have been identify as presenting a risk, like the non-conform "plug-in" modules in the arcs. Because of motion induced by thermal dilatation, the electrical (ElQA) quality control may also have to be done again after cool-down. The main reason identified so far for partial warm-up is the required maintenance of the cooling towers and the cryogenics plants. There is also the request from the vacuum group to periodically warm-up the beam screen to temperatures in the 100 K region to release and pump-out the gas crysorbed on the surface of the beam screen. Observed and expected temperature conditions and statistics on failures of PIMs in sectors which have been warmed-up will be presented in this contribution. Methods to detect ...
... The colored background is an isopleth map showing change in sulfate concentrations as measured by the CASTNET rural air quality monitoring network , leading to significant improvements in air quality and human health. Wet sulfate deposition decreased 43 percent in the Northeast and 44 percent in the ...
Activities and results are reported of a project to investigate the application of remote sensing technology developed for the LACIE, AgRISTARS, Forestry and other NASA remote sensing projects for the environmental monitoring of strip mining, industrial pollution, and acid rain. Following a remote sensing workshop for EPA personnel, the EOD clustering algorithm CLASSY was selected for evaluation by EPA as a possible candidate technology. LANDSAT data acquired for a North Dakota test sight was clustered in order to compare CLASSY with other algorithms.
A series of meteorological and tracer experiments, was conducted during May and June 1984 over the 20-km wide /O/resund strait between Denmark and Sweden for the purpose of studying atmospheric dispersion processes over cold water and warm land surfaces and providing the data needed to evaluate meso-scale models in a coastal environment. In concert with these objectives the data from these experiments have been used as part of a continuing effort to evaluate the capability of the three-dimensional MATHEW/ADPIC (M/A) atmospheric dispersion models to simulate pollutant transport and diffusion characteristics of the atmospheric during a wide variety of meteorological conditions. Since previous studies have focused primarily on M/A model evaluations over rolling and complex terrain at inland sites, the /O/resund experiments provide a unique opportunity to evaluate the models in a coastal environment. The M/A models are used by the Atmospheric ...
A solid-state precipitation process was used to prepare superconducting tapes containing an A15 phase, V/sub 3/Ga or Nb/sub 3/Al, in a ductile niobium or vanadium containing BCC matrix. Ingots weighing as large as 30 to 50 gms of V-(14 approx. 19 at. %) Ga and Nb-(13 approx. 22 at. %) Al were prepared by arc-melting, homogenized, quenched, warm-rolled over 99% into tape, and aged at temperatures in the range 600/sup 0/C to 1000/sup 0/C to precipitate the superconducting A15 phase. The features demonstrated by the process are very attractive for practical applications. In the V-Ga system, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) studies revealed the A15 precipitates in an elongated form. However, for the Nb-Al samples, deformed and aged at 750/sup 0/C, TEM studies revealed A15 precipitation in fine equi-axed particles which formed as a semi-continuous network over sub-grain boundaries formed by the recovery of ...
Verapamil administered before treatment, but not after treatment, had a beneficial effect on a 90-minute warm ischemia-reperfusion rat liver injury model. The possible activation of proteases converting...Full Text Available
For the last four years, scientists at the USDA, Agricultural Research Service, Northern Plains Agricultural Research Laboratory have been searching for alternative soil and crop management practices to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase carbon and nitrogen sequestration. ¿If we can redu...
There is general consensus that climate change has contributed to the observed decline, and extinction, of many amphibian species throughout the world. ... ...
The rapid progress of industrialization and urbanization due to economic growth and concentration of social function in the urban areas in Japan have had an adverse effect on the urban environment. In most cities, it has become evident that the increase in energy consumption is causing environmental problems, including a temperature rise in the urban atmosphere (urban heat island) and air pollution. This paper reports the results of field observations and three dimensional simulations of the urban heat island using a three-dimensional modelling vorticity-velocity vector potential formation, in the Tokyo metropolitan area. According to the simulation for urban warming in the study area for the year 2031, the maximum temperature of a summer evening (18:00) would exceed 43 degrees celsius, indicating that Tokyo would no longer be comfortable for its inhabitants. It is concluded that in the near future, the problem of the urban heat island will become a more important ...
Climate change-induced sea-level rise will have a disproportionate effect along the Gulf Coast shoreline for a number of reasons. This document describes ... ...
The 12 GeV upgrade at Jefferson Lab has identified two new large spectrometers as Physics detectors for the project. The first is a 7.5 Gev/c 35 m-sr. spectrometer that requires a pair of identical Combined Function Superconducting Magnets (CFSM) that can simultaneously produce 1.5 T dipole fields and 4.5 T/m quadrupole fields inside a warm bore of 120cm. The second is an 11 GeV/c 2 m-sr. spectrometer that requires a CFSM that simultaneously produces a dipole field of 4.0 T and a quadruple field of 3.0 T/m in a 60 cm warm bore. Magnetic designs using TOSCA 3D have been performed to realize the magnetic requirements, provide 3d fields for optics analysis and produce field and force information for the engineering feasibility of the magnets. A two-sector cos( theta )/cos(2 theta ) design with a low nominal current density, warm bore and warm iron design has been selected and analyzed. These low current ...
Most Vega-like stars have far-infrared excess (60micron or longward in IRAS, ISO, or Spitzer MIPS bands) and contain cold dust (~ 4% of the stars in nearby young stellar associations.
BackgroundBlood sampling through heel lancing is the most common invasive painful procedure performed on newborn infants.Case PresentationWe report...Full Text Available
Two researchers, Tom Goreau of the Discovery Laboratory in Jamaica and Raymond Hayes of Howard University, claim that they have evidence that nearly clinches the temperature connection to the bleached corals in the Caribbean and that the coral bleaching is an indication of Greenhouse warming. The incidents of scattered bleaching of corals, which have been reported for decades, are increasing in both intensity and frequency. The researchers based their theory on increased temperature of the seas measured by satellites. However, some other scientists feel that the satellites measure the temperature of only the top few millimeters of the water and that since corals lie on reefs perhaps 60 to 100 feet below the ocean surface, the elevated temperatures are not significant.
The summertime tropical cyclogenesis rate per unit area in the eastern Pacific ocean is arguably higher than in any other location in the world. Many if not most of these cyclones form from African easterly waves which cross Central America into the Pacific. Of order 25% of these waves intensify into cyclones. A significant fraction of east Pacific tropical cyclones undergoes landfall on the Mexican coast. Those which do not, generally dissipate over cold ocean waters north of the east Pacific intertropical convergence zone, often not far from land. The layer of warm ocean water which supports the development of east Pacific cyclones is unusually shallow and is structured by anticyclonic vortices which form by various processes and propagate slowly to the west. These vortices locally deepen the oceanic mixed layer and support stronger convection than their surroundings, possibly promoting cyclogenesis and cyclone intensification. Cyclones ...
An experimental approach has been performed to ascertain the effectiveness of semi-solid strip casting using a horizontal twin roll caster. The demand for light-weight products with high strength has grown recently due to the rapid development of automobile and aircraft technology. One key to such development has been utilization of magnesium alloys, which can potentially reduce the total product weight. However, the problems of utilizing magnesium alloys are still mainly related to high manufacturing cost. One of the solutions to this problem is to develop magnesium casting-rolling technology in order to produce magnesium sheet products at competitive cost for commercial applications. In this experiment, magnesium alloy AZ31B was used to ascertain the effectiveness of semi-solid roll strip casting for producing magnesium alloy sheets. The temperature of the molten magnesium, and the roll speeds of the upper and lower rolls, (which could be changed independently), were varied to find ...
This report covers the technical effort through February, 1989. This effort was directed towards the technology associated with the development of a large scale, long pulse DF-CO{sub 2} chemical laser. Optics damage studies performed under Task 1 assessed damage thresholds for diamond-turned salt windows. Task 2 is a multi-faceted task involving the use of PHOCL-50 for laser gain measurements, LTI experiments, and detector testing by LANL personnel. To support these latter tests, PHOCL-50 was upgraded with Boeing funding to incorporate a full aperture outcoupler that increased its energy output by over a factor of 3, to a full kilojoule. The PHOCL-50 carbon block calorimeter was also recalibrated and compared with the LANL Scientech meter. Cloud clearing studies under Task 3 initially concentrated on delivering a Boeing built Cloud Simulation Facility to LANL, and currently involves design of a Cold Cloud Simulation Facility. A Boeing IRAD funded theoretical study on cold cloud ...
Anthropogenic sulfate aerosol, together with particles from biomass burning, may significantly reduce the climatic warming due to man-made greenhouse gases. The radiative forcing of aerosol particles is based on their ability to scatter and absorb solar radiation (direct effect), and on their influences on cloud albedos and lifetimes (indirect effect). The direct aerosol effect depends strongly on the size, number and chemical composition of particles, being greatest for particles of 0.1-1 {mu}m in diameter. The indirect aerosol effect is dictated by the number of particles being able to act as cloud condensation nuclei (CCN). For sulfate particles, the minimum CCN size in tropospheric clouds is of the order of 0.05-0.2 {mu}m. To improve aerosol parameterizations in future climate models, it is required that (1) both primary and secondary sources of various particle types will be characterized at a greater accuracy, and (2) the influences of various atmospheric ...
Fully fluorinated compounds (perfluoro compounds) represent a class of chemicals which include many extremely inert species-inert to both chemical reaction and photodissociation. Well known examples include SF6 and the perfluorocarbons (PFCs) CF_4 and Teflon. SF_6 is used industrially in electrical switch gear and as an atmospheric tracer. CF_4 and C_2F_6 are released into the atmosphere as a by-product of aluminum manufacture. Several perfluoro compounds have been proposed as substitutes for the ozone-destroying Freons and halons; proposed substitutes include SF_6, c-C_4F_8, C_5F_1_2, and C_6F_1_4. These chemicals were chosen in part because they do not harm the stratospheric ozone layer and were therefore considered environmentally friendly. Recently, Ravishankara et al. reported that perfluoro compounds have significant global warming potential (GWP), contributing to the greenhouse effect due to strong infrared absorption. The perfluoro compounds have ...
Throughout much of the 1980s, deforestation in Brazil eliminated more than 15,000 square kilometers (9000 square miles) per year. That pace has only increased through the 90s and into the 21st century. Brazil is also home to more than a quarter of Earths tropical forests. Considering that the band of lush green that circles the globe through many equatorial nations is fundamental to the overall health of the whole planets environment, careful monitoring of forest health in the tropics is essential. Tropical forests act as major carbon sinks, places where ambient carbon dioxide in the atmosphere can be absorbed by growing things and sequestered for years. Definitive evidence shows that excess carbon dioxide can contribute to the greenhouse effect and speed global warming. Similarly, tropical forests also act as a primary producer of oxygen. In the respiration process that absorbs gaseous carbon dioxide, trees and other plants give off oxygen. It ...
The basic feature in the functional ecology of any mire ecosystem is retardation of the effective decay of organic material resulting in a conspicuous accumulation of plant debris as peat overtime. The carbon accumulation process is slow, and climatic change may have an impact on the carbon cycle of peatlands, therefore, it has been of interest to study the rate of carbon accumulation by geological methods from dated peat strata. The approach is hampered by several facts. First, the mires vary enormously as to their vegetation and hydrology and hence their production and decay properties. It follows that a great number of study sites are needed. Second, the peat in mires expands both vertically and laterally, and this requires a spatial reconstruction of carbon accumulation within a mire basin. Third, simple geological methods cannot account for the actual rate of carbon accumulation in peat, and finally, an additional carbon sink in the mire ecosystems can be the ...
This report presents and discusses results from Task 5 of the study ''Fate of Mercury in Synthetic Gypsum Used for Wallboard Production,'' performed at a full-scale commercial wallboard plant. Synthetic gypsum produced by wet flue gas desulfurization (FGD) systems on coal-fired power plants is commonly used in the manufacture of wallboard. The FGD process is used to control the sulfur dioxide emissions which would result in acid rain if not controlled. This practice has long benefited the environment by recycling the FGD gypsum byproduct, which is becoming available in increasing quantities, decreasing the need to landfill this material, and increasing the sustainable design of the wallboard product. However, new concerns have arisen as recent mercury control strategies developed for power plants involve the capture of mercury in FGD systems. The objective of this study is to determine whether any mercury is ...
Many Asian countries have experienced rapid economic growth during recent years and this trend is expected to continue. The economic growth is accompanied by increasing energy demand, with coal as the dominant energy source. For the first time a model has been specifically developed and applied for integrated assessment of future SO{sub 2} emissions in Asia. The report deals with the RAINS-ASIA model developed in Norway offering an opportunity to assess sulphur deposition and ecosystem protection levels resulting from different energy pathways and different emission control strategies. The cost of various control strategies are also provided. During the project an impressive database has been collected for the region (23 countries, 94 subregions and 355 large point sources). This was made possible through dedicated work by the project team, in close collaboration with scientific and technical institutions in several Asian countries. A further development of the ...
This is the annual report of the Radiological and Environmental Division of the Argonne National Laboratory for 1982. Studies of the effects of ozone on crop growth and yield have been carried out by the Terrestrial Ecology Group for winter wheat and for sorghum. The Microcosms for Acid Rain Studies (MARS) facility was completed in the early summer. Controlled investigations of plant and soil responses in acid rain were initiated with crop plants grown in two different midwestern soil types. The Transuranics Group has found that the solubility and adsorptive behavior of plutonium previously observed at fallout concentrations in natural waters (approx. 10/sup -16/ to 10/sup -18/ M) is applicable at plutonium concentrations as high as 10/sup -8/ M. The Lake Michigan eutrophication model has been adapted to operation in a Monte Carlo mode. Simulations based on yearly phosphorus loadings and winter conditions were selected at random from prescribed ...
The analysis described demonstrates the use of benefit/cost sensitivity analysis in examining the wide range of potential damages and savings associated with converting oil-fired electric utility boilers to burn coal in Florida. This model, for the first time incorporates, in quantitative terms, environmental economic externalities into a benefit/cost ratio sensitivity analysis framework. Five different dose-response estimates of morbidity and mortality costs, property devaluation, and willing-to-pay estimates are used in combination with four acid rain dose-response models to estimate the net present worth of externality costs. The model estimates the net present worth of benefits by incorporating into a dynamic framework all relevant construction, O + M, and fuel costs of converting an electrical generation facility from using oil to coal. These benefits of fuel savings are then weighted against various combinations of externality costs associated with increased ...
A measurement of environmental radioactivity in Tokyo was started from 1974. We have been executing fixed time and fixed point observation since 1983 in Tokyo continuously. Measurement item is rain water, airborne dust, activated sludge at sewage treatment plants and external dose rate. Measurement data from 1983 to 1995 is reported in this paper. Moreover, we have been carried out the measurement of radon concentration in air from 1988 to 1991 in different types of residental buildings. The measurement results of rain water, airborne dust, external dose rate were approximately a background level respectively except for the Chernobyl nuclear power plant accident. Radionuclides used as radiopharmaceuticals were detected in the activated sludge at every sewage treatment plant but its concentration was lower than concentration limit in Japan. From a result of radon concentration measurements, there were no place which exceeds a radon concentration ...
A field experiment was conducted during 2004 and 2005 at the research farm of Central Institute of Medicinal And Aromatic Plants, Lucknow located at 26.5^o N 80.5^o E and 120m above the mean sea level to study the effect of harvesting stage and cutting height on growth, yield and quality of Indian basil. The objective of this study was to increase the essential oil yield of Indian basil without adverse effect on quality by taking two harvests through manipulating harvesting stage and cutting height and to increase the land and rain water utilization efficiency under rain fed condition. The treatments consisted of four stages of first harvest (40, 60, 80 and 100 days after transplanting (DAT)) and three cutting height (0, 7.5 and 15.0cm above ground level). The Indian basil (Ocimum basilicu...
Emissions of nitric oxide from soils of equatorial rain forest were measured in the Dimonika Natural Park (4 degrees 30'S, 12 degrees 30'E) in the Mayombe Forest in Congo. Three research campaigns were carried out in June and July 1991 and in February 1992. Fluxes were measured by dynamic chamber techniques using a chemiluminescence instrument Scintrex LMA3. NO fluxes measured on natural soils are in between 5 and 17x10[sup 9] molecules cm[sup -2]s[sup -1]; they are of the same order of magnitude as those observed in similar tropical forest media. Soil treatment experiments show that the auto-decomposition of HNO[sub 2] in these acid soils (pH 4) (chemodenitrification) is a potentially important cause of nitric oxide production in this type of ecosystem. Nitrous acid comes from autotrophic nitrification all the year around, and also from biological denitrification, shown by N[sub 2]O emissions, during the rainy season. The regulation of NO release ...
The passivation of low carbon steel was studied in aqueous solution of 0.5M Na[sub 2]SO[sub 4]+0.001M NaHSO[sub 3] (pH 3.5, 6.5 and 8.5) which can be considered as a model of acid rain. The used conversion electron Moessbauer spectroscopy (CEMS) with the complementary electrochemical investigations proved that the sulfite ions induce pitting corrosion at pH 3.5 and 6.5, while the measurements showed much weaker pitting at pH 8.5. The compositions and thicknesses of the passive films formed during the electrochemical treatments are determined from the CEM spectra. Only [gamma]-FeOOH was found on the surface of the samples at pH 6.5 and 8.5. Nevertheless, at pH 3.5 the sextet belonging to Fe[sub 3]C appears in the spectra, and also FeSO[sub 4].H[sub 2]O could be detected in low concentration. (orig.).
Ontario's Countdown Acid Rain program was formulated in 1985 and placed an annual SO{sub 2} emissions cap of 885 kilotonnes over the province from 1994. Caps were placed on emissions from the Inco nickel/copper smelter in Sudbury, the Falconbridge nickel/copper smelter in Sudbury, the Algoma iron ore sintering plant in Wawa, and Ontario Hydro fossil-fuel plants province-wide. Semi-annual reports are required of the companies, with the 6th report outlining the final planning phase and the 7th and later reports outlining implementation progress. This document summarizes the contents of the 7th set of reports and the responses of the government review team to each company's efforts. All companies have begun implementing abatement plans outlined in the final planning phase reports of December 1988 at a rapid pace and are generally on track in controlling emissions. However, all 4 company reports lack the necessary detail for a complete review of the ...
Complementary electrochemical, spectrophotometric and electron microsopic investigations were made in addition to the conversion electron Moessbauer spectroscopic (CEMS) measurements to learn more about the mechanism of corrosion of low carbon steel samples in aqueous sulfate and sulfite containing sulfate solutions (pH 3.5, 6.5 and 8.5). Passivation of iron in pure sulfate solution was studied in detail in earlier papers. In the present work, we used a solution containing both sulfate and sulfite anions to obtain more information about the effect of acid rain on low carbon steel samples. The compositions and thicknesses of the passive films formed due to the electrochemical treatments were determined from the CEM spectra. [gamma]-FeOOH was found in each case on the surface of the samples; nevertheless, at pH 3.5 the sextet belonging to Fe[sub 3]C appears in the CEM spectra, and also FeSO[sub 4] . H[sub 2]O was detected in low concentration after the shortest ...
This article briefly comments on some stumbling-blocks to climatic change modelling accuracy - in assessments of the greenhouse effect, 25% (missing link) of atmospheric carbon dioxide absorption is still unaccounted for; 1989 World Bank estimates of the Amazon rain forest deforestation rate have since proven to be inaccurate; there are difficulties in assessing the movement of the earth's crust relative to variations in sea level; and different studies vary in results relative to global temperature measurement and trend assessment. The need for an assessment of the economic impacts of increased atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide is also pointed out.
The solar powered electric vehicle race began in Arlington, Texas on June 20, 1993 and finished 7 days later in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Thirty four teams from Universities across the United States and Puerto Rico completed the race out of thirty six entries. The race demonstrated the viability of sunlight powered vehicles as the better average daily speeds were in excess of 50 miles an hour. Even in the rain, most average speeds were in excess of 15 miles an hour. Analyzed results, photographs, and project details are included. (GHH)
The C isotopic composition of CH4 emissions are strongly influenced by the pathway of CH4 formation. Contrary to data from other freshwater systems, soil gas and surface flux measurements made in the tropical rain forests of Puerto Rico strongly suggest that CH4 produced in these environments was derived from CO2 reduction, rather than from acetate consumption. This study explored the effects of bacterial competition for acetate, pH, and soil structure on the pathways of CH4 formation in tropical rain forest soils. Our goal was to test two principal hypotheses: (1) ferric iron-reducing bacteria out-competed methanogens for acetate, resulting in greater CO2 reduction rather than aceticlastic methanogenesis, and (2) the low pH of tropical rain forest soils favors CO2 reduction rather than aceticlastic methanogenesis. In addition, this study also investigated the effect of destroying soil aggregate structure on the pathways ...
Carbon isotope discrimination (?(13) C) is considered a useful indicator for indirect selection of grain yield (GY) in cereals. Therefore, it is important to evaluate the genetic variation in ?(13) C and its relationship with GY. A doubled haploid (DH) population derived from a cross of two common wheat varieties, Hanxuan 10 (H10) and Lumai 14 (L14), was phenotyped for ?(13) C in the flag leaf, GY and yield associated traits in two trials contrasted by water availability, specifically, rain-fed and irrigated. Quantitative trait loci (QTLs) were identified by single locus and two locus QTL analyses. QTLs for ?(13) C were located on chromosomes 1A, 2B, 3B, 5A, 7A and 7B, and QTLs for other traits on all chromosomes except 1A, 4D, 5A, 5B and 6D. The population selected for high ?(13) C had an increased frequency of QTL for high ?(13) C, GY and number of spikes per plant (NSP) when grown under rain-fed conditions and only for high ?(13) C and NSP ...
The phenomenon of global warming, its causes and implications for the future, and the relationship between global warming and the depletion of the ozone layer are discussed. The Shindell model of the greenhouse effect, which is responsible for planetary warming, also contributes to the high altitude thinning of the ozone layer. While greenhouse gas emissions contribute to retaining infrared radiation, thus warming the surface of the earth, their effect is reduced at stratospheric altitudes resulting in reduced temperatures in this region. At this altitude temperatures can reach minus 90 degrees C, creating a whirlwind effect, with ice crystals forming at the heart of the vortex, causing the surface to accelerate chemical reactions which in turn leads to destruction of ozone. Although since the signing of the Montreal Protocol in 1987 the industrialized countries have significantly reduced their ...
Because Spitzer is an Earth-trailing orbit, losing about 0.1 AU/yr, it is excellently located to perform microlens parallax observations toward the Magellanic Clouds (LMC/SMC) and the Galactic bulge. These yield the so-called ``projected velocity'' of the lens, which can distinguish statistically among different populations. A few such measurements toward the LMC/SMC would reveal the nature of the lenses being detected in this direction (dark halo objects, or ordinary LMC/SMC stars). Cool Spitzer has already made one such measurement of a (rare) bright red-clump source, but warm (presumably less oversubscribed) Spitzer could devote the extra time required to obtain microlens parallaxes for the more common, but fainter, turnoff sources. Warm Spitzer could observe bulge microlenses for 38 days per year, which would permit up to 24 microlens parallaxes per year. This would yield interesting information on the disk mass function, particularly old ...
The spectre of major climate change caused by the greenhouse effect has generated intensive research, heated scientific debate and a concerted international effort to draft agreements for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. This report of Scientific Perspectives on the greenhouse problem explains the technical issues in the debate in language readily understandable to the non-specialist. The inherent complexities of attempts to simulate the earth's climate are explained, particularly with regard to the effects of clouds and the circulation of the oceans, which together represent the largest factors of uncertainty in current global warming forecasts. Results of the search for the 'greenhouse signal' in existing climate records aredescribed in chapter 3 (part two). Chapter 5 (part two) develops a projection of 21st-century warming based on relatively firm evidence of the earth's actual response to known increases in greenhouse gas ...
The Muon Ionization Cooling Experiment (MICE) focusing solenoid magnets focus the muon beam within the MICE cooling channel on a liquid or solid absorber that is within the warm bore of solenoid. The focusing magnet has a warm bore of 470 mm. his magnet consists of two coils 210-mm long that is separated by an aluminum mandrel that is 200 mm long. Each of the coils has its own leads. The coils may be operated in either the non-flip mode (solenoid mode with both coils at the same polarity) or the lip mode (quadrupole focusing mode where both coils are at opposite polarity). This report describes the focusing solenoid magnet design that will be built by the vendor. The progress on the construction of the first of the focusing magnets will also be discussed in this report. Ultimately three of these magnets will be built. These magnets will be cooled using a pair 1.5 W (at 4.2 K) pulse tube coolers.
An ultrafine-grained ferrite/cementite (UGF/C) steel with a local high density of cementite particles was fabricated through caliber-warm-rolling followed by annealing and resulted in a bimodal-sized microstructure. The characteristic bimodal-sized microstructure was attributed to the original ferrite-pearlite structure and cementite spacing, and reflected the original ferrite-pearlite structure. The smaller-sized clusters corresponded to the former pearlite regions and the larger-sized clusters to the proeutectoid ferrite regions. The cementite particles naturally localized within the former pearlite region. Most of the ferrite coarsening did not occur until the cementite particle spacing reached a critical value. The UGF/C microstructure with a bimodal grain size showed a yield strength ...
The Warm-Hot Intergalactic Medium (WHIM) arises from shock-heated gas collapsing in large-scale filaments and probably harbours a substantial fraction of the baryons in the local Universe. Absorption-line measurements in the ultraviolet (UV) and in the X-ray band currently represent the best method to study the WHIM at low redshifts. We here describe the physical properties of the WHIM and the concepts behind WHIM absorption line measurements of H I and high ions such as O VI, O VII, and O VIII in the far-ultraviolet and X-ray band. We review results of recent WHIM absorption line studies carried out with UV and X-ray satellites such as FUSE, HST, Chandra, and XMM-Newton and discuss their implications for our knowledge of the WHIM.
Background: While Borneo's forests are globally recognised for their diverse vegetation many regions remain uncharacterised. Aims: We examine the tree community in one hectare of lowland (hill) forest near the Malinau River. Methods: We objectively sited a 1-ha plot in primary forest. All stems over 30 cm girth were measured and identified. Results: Stem basal area was typical for Asian rain forests, but the numbers of stems (759) and species (205) were high. The most abundant species were Gluta wallichii, Cleistanthus bakonensis and Lithocarpus cantleyanus, while those contributing most to basal area were Shorea venulosa, Dipterocarpus lowii and Calophyllum lowii. Dipterocarpaceae was the dominant family amongst the largest stems and contributes a third of stand basal area (11.5 m2). Thir...
The conference was organized to bring together scientific and business people from Canada, United States, and Mexico to foster the protection and improvement of the environment and to promote sustainable development in the three NAFTA countries. The sessions are international cooperation and partnerships (panel discussion), markets, market access, economic instruments, venture and capital growth, economic instruments versus regulations, international financial institutions, partnerships and networks, government support programs (panel), acid rain, stratospheric ozone, smog and ground level ozone, innovative measurement methods, hazardous air pollutants, respirable fine particulates, climate change prevention technologies, pollution prevention technologies, indoor air technology, and posters. Selected papers have been abstracted separately.
A stratigraphic and geochemical study of alpine soils, which formed in later Pleistocene (late glacial) and Neoglacial deposits in the Wind River Mountains of western Wyoming, indicates that these soils are affected by air-fall in flux of inorganic pollutants. Arsenic, bromine and antimony appear to have been deposited in surface soils by incorporation of aeolian materials which were presumably transported by winds from industrial sources, including coal-burning operations. As vanadium was not found in surface soils at concentrations above site-specific background levels, oil-fired energy generating stations were not found to be significant sources of surface soil pollution in the region. Acid-rain effects were not observed in the soils. (author) 32 refs.; 2 figs.; 3 tabs.
Combined sewer overflows (CSOs) have been recognised as one of the serious sources of pollution to the water environment during rain events, although field surveys to investigate the effect of their magnitude and duration on receiving waters have been very limited. The fates of enteric viruses (norovirus G1, G2, enteroviruses) and coliforms were determined in the wastewater treatment plant on a fine day and on a rainy day. Not all microorganisms were reduced in the primary treatment, but were reduced in the secondary treatment. Occurrences of enteric viruses and levels of coliforms were surveyed in the receiving coastal area after a CSO event, with the profiles of the enteric viruses in the coastal seawater being almost at the same positive ratio for 4 d after the CSO event. PMID:15318519
This paper assesses farming eco-efficiency using Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) techniques. Eco-efficiency scores at both farm and environmental pressure-specific levels are computed for a sample of Spanish farmers operating in the rain-fed agricultural system of Campos County. The determinants of eco-efficiency are then studied using truncated regression and bootstrapping techniques. We contribute to previous literature in this field of research by including information on slacks in the assessment of the potential environmental pressure reductions in a DEA framework. Our results reveal that farmers are quite eco-inefficient, with very few differences emerging among specific environmental pressures. Moreover, eco-inefficiency is closely related to technical inefficiencies in the managemen...
The sampling is described for radionuclide X-ray fluorescence analysis. Aerosols are captured with various filter materials whose properties are summed up in the table. Fine dispersed solid and liquid particles and gaseous admixtures may be captured by bubbling air through a suitable absorption solution. The concentration of small amounts of impurities from large volumes of air is done by adsorbing impurities on surfactants, e.g., activated charcoal, silica gel, etc. Aerosols may be captured using an electrostatic precipitator and aerosol fractions may be separated with a cascade impactor. Water sampling differs by the water source, i.e., ground water, surface water, rain or waste water. Soil samples are taken by probes. (ES).
Possibility for using a sodium iodide scintillator as a reference signal source is considered. Experimental data on studying the performance of a gamma thickness gage with an additional scintillator are given. Results of experimental investigations of a thickness gage dummy proved practical expediency of the principle being considered. It is established, in particular, that the device is ready to operate without warm-up with a constant sensitivity, the deviation not exceeding 0.5%, in the ambient temperature range of 15-25 deg C.
This is an inquiry-based module created specifically for use with the PhET simulation Geometric Optics. It includes a lesson plan for teaching about convex lenses, step-by-step student directions, and a set of Power Point "clicker" questions for use as warm-up questions or informal assessment. This resource is part of a larger collection of interactive Java simulations for students of physics, developed by the Physics Education Technology project at the University of Colorado.
Mitsubishi Research Institute has analyzed the energy demand of a typical Japanese city, Yokohama, as well as the distribution of fossil-energy flow, and the final consumption by sectors. It has evaluated the effectiveness of various energy conservation measures, (e.g., cogeneration, electric cars, insulation,...) in countering the global warming trend. This study defines a viable methodology which may be utilized, in the future, in examining the effectiveness of environmental policies. (TEC). 1 tab., 4 figs.
This report presents the methodology and the results from the modelling of an open repository for spent nuclear fuel in Laxemar. Specifically, the present work analyses the hydrological effects of the planned repository during the construction and operational phases when it is open, i.e. air-filled, and hence may cause a disturbance of the hydrological conditions in the surroundings. The numerical modelling is based on the SDM-Site Laxemar MIKE SHE model. The modelling was divided into three steps. The first step was to update the SDM-Site Laxemar model with a new hydrogeological bedrock model. The other main updates were an increase of the depth of the MIKE SHE model domain, enhanced vertical computational resolution and that the drainage of the Aespoe Hard Rock Laboratory was included in the model. The resulting model was used to simulate undisturbed natural conditions. The next step was to describe the open repository conditions, using Laxemar layout D2, by implementing the access ...
In Pakistan, the agricultural sector is the largest water user with 95%, leaving only marginal quantities for households and industry. On one hand, agriculture is a very important sector in Pakistan's economic development, contributing about 23 % to the national GDP -but industry contributes slightly more using only about 2 % of the available water resources. As Pakistan faces a growing problem of water shortage, significant achievements in water conservation have to be materialized, predominantly on the agricultural sector. There is scope for a higher degree of efficiency in water use, as water losses, namely in irrigation, are still rather high. There is another good reason for water conservation in agriculture: Over-irrigation results in rising water tables and increased soil salinity, which has reduced Pakistan's agricultural output during the last 2 decades by nearly 25%. Water conservation measures can be divided into (1) measures which are only applicable under ...
Tritium occurs in nature in trace amounts, but its concentration is changing due to natural and artificial sources. Studies focusing on natural tritium have to take into account the effect of artificial sources. Also, the impact of tritium is an important issue in environmental protection, e.g. in connection with the emissions from nuclear power plants. The present work focuses on the rain washout of tritium emitted from the Paks nuclear power plant in Hungary. Rainwater collectors were placed around the plant and after a period of precipitation, rainwater was collected and analysed for tritium content. Samples were analysed using low-level liquid scintillation counting, with some also subject to the more accurate "3He ingrowth method. The results clearly show the trace of the tritium plume emitted from the plant; however, values are only about one order of magnitude higher than environmental background levels. A washout model was devised to estimate the ...
Leading abstract. The goals of the Norwegian Academy of Technological Sciences (NTVA) are to promote research, education and development within technological and related sciences, for the benefit of the Norwegian society and for the development of Norwegian industry. Future energy policy and Global climate change are major issues in the Norwegian discussion today. The answers given have great influence on our industry and involve huge technological challenges. In the current situation NTVA wishes to contribute to the development of new technology. In 1998 the Norwegian Academy of Technological Sciences organized the seminar ''Do We Understand Global Climate Change''. NTVA have now followed this up with a seminar on the Energy System, one of the major sources of manmade greenhouse gases. The world's demand for energy increases with improvements in our standards of living. The cleaning of emissions from production ...
We outline to the community the value of a Magellanic Clouds Survey that consists of three components: I) a complete-area, high resolution, multi-band UV-near-IR broadband survey; II) a narrowband survey in 7 key nebular filters to cover a statistically significant sample of representative HII regions and a large-area, contiguous survey of the diffuse, warm ISM; and III) a comprehensive FUV spectroscopic survey of 1300 early-type stars. The science areas enabled by such a dataset are as follows: A) assessment of massive star feedback in both HII regions and the diffuse, warm ISM; B) completion of a comprehensive study of the 30 Doradus giant extragalactic HII region (GEHR); C) development and quantitative parameterization of stellar clustering properties; D) extensive FUV studies of early-type stellar atmospheres and their energy distributions; and E) similarly extensive FUV absorption-line studies of molecular cloud structure and ISM ...
ObjectivesThe overall scientific aim of this project is, through development of an appropriate numerical modelling tool, to identify and investigate the mechanisms that control the current observed rapid thinning and acceleration of Greenland outlet glaciers and to investigate their likely future behaviour in the context of climate warming. This aim is addressed through the four major specific objectives below. These objectives build on each and therefore the order of priority is driven by the order in wh [continued...]DescriptionCurrently, the Greenland ice sheet is undergoing rapid changes in the coastal regions which have been attributed to a general warming trend to the regions climate over the last decade. Several of the narrow and fast flowing outlet glaciers that drain the ice sheet into the sea are observed to have accelerated their flow and thinned. For instance, Jakobshavn Isbrae on the West coast of Greenland has almost doubled its ...
Aims: The production of saturated organic molecules in hot cores and corinos is not well understood. The standard approach is to assume that, as temperatures heat up during star formation, methanol and other species evaporate from grain surfaces and undergo a warm gas-phase chemistry at 100 K or greater to produce species such as methyl formate, dimethyl ether, and others. But a series of laboratory results shows that protonated ions, typical precursors to final products in ion-molecule schemes, tend to fragment upon dissociative recombination with electrons rather than just ejecting a hydrogen atom. Moreover, the specific proposed reaction to produce protonated methyl formate is now known not to occur at all. Methods: We utilize a gas-grain chemical network to probe the chemistry of the relatively ignored stage of hot core evolution during which the protostar switches on and the temperature of the surrounding gas and dust rises from 10 K to over 100 K. During this ...
A survey has been made in relation with the improvement project intended of energy conservation, and reduction of global warming gas emission at the Bobovdol thermal power plant located in the suburb of Sofia, the capital of the Republic of Bulgaria. The existing Bobovdol power plant having a total capacity of 630 MW with three generators is a coal burning thermal power plant having been used already for 23 to 27 years, hence over-aged. The survey has discussed an improvement project of scrap-and-build type to make the plant a high-efficiency gas combined cycle power plant using gas turbines. The project calls for building 210-MW gas combined power generation facilities having 70-MW gas turbines, one each in three stages in 2007, 2012 and 2017. As a result of the discussions, the fuel consumption reducing rate was found to reach 37.99%, whereas the cumulative energy saving quantity in 41 years will reach 16.37 million tons of fuel oil equivalent. In addition, the ...
There are two major water currents off the coast of Peru in South America. The Humboldt or Peru current travels northwest across latitudes 35/sup 0/S to 6/sup 0/S. To the north, a branch of the equatorial current flows southward down to latitudes 6-7/sup 0/S in normal years. Its warm, less salty water is poor in nutrients and cannot support fishery. In some years, this warm current extends much more southward, down to 12/sup 0/S. This has a catastrophic effect leading to a mass mortality of the anchovies and, in turn, of the guano birds and less production of farm crops. This phenomenon occurs around Christmas (summer in the southern hemisphere) and is, therefore, called El Nino. The main feature of El Nino is to change the sea surface temperature. An abnormal rise in sea surface temperature can give rise to odd air movements which can change the monsoons pattern, even at distant places, profoundly. In the past 26 years, when El Ninos have ...
In this study, the exhaust gas from a common-rail direct injection diesel engine was investigated both upstream and downstream warm-up catalytic converters (WCC). Three different types of ultra-low sulfur fuels (ethanol-diesel blend, ethanol-diesel blend with cetane improver and pure diesel) were tested in this study. The objective of the work was to study the engine performance and the formation of THC (total hydro carbon), CO (carbon monoxide), NO{sub x} (nitrogen oxides), smoke and PM (particulate matters) when using these fuels. THC and CO emissions of the ethanol-diesel blend fuels were slightly increased, and about 50-80% mean conversion efficiencies of THC and CO on catalysts were achieved in the ECE R49 13-mode cycle. Smoke was decreased by more than 42% in the entire ECE 13-mode cycles. From the measurement of scanning mobility particle sizer (SMPS) for the particle size range of 10-385 nm, the total number and total mass of the PM of the ethanol-diesel ...
We have begun the ExploreNEOs project in which we observe some 700 Near-Earth Objects (NEOs) at 3.6 and 4.5 ?m with the Spitzer Space Telescope in its Warm Spitzer mode. From these measurements and catalog optical photometry we derive albedos and diameters of the observed targets. The overall goal of our ExploreNEOs program is to study the history of near-Earth space by deriving the physical properties of a large number of NEOs. In this paper, we describe both the scientific and technical construction of our ExploreNEOs program. We present our observational, photometric, and thermal modeling techniques. We present results from the first 101 targets observed in this program. We find that the distribution of albedos in this first sample is quite broad, probably indicating a wide range of compositions within the NEO population. Many objects smaller than 1 km have high albedos (?>0.35), but few objects larger than 1 km have high albedos. This result is consistent ...
In response to the decisions adopted at the Third Session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (Kyoto conference for the prevention of global warming) of 1997, hybrid vehicles, electric vehicles, and the like are being announced of their completion or placed on the market one after another as low pollution vehicles with CO2 emission to cause global warming reduced. Fuji Electric Co., Ltd., is engaged in the development of a DC-DC converter for hybrid vehicles in cooperation with Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. The product is characterized in (1) that it is small in size and light in weight because a step-down converter and an emergency step-up converter are integrated; (2) that it enjoys a high efficiency rate of 89%; (3) that its service life is long thanks to its design free of aluminum electrolytic capacitors; and (4) that it is provided with various reliability improving features, such as ...
In 1990, 176 million tonnes (mt) of air-traffic fuel was burned, which produced about 550 mt CO{sub 2}, 220 mt water, 3.5 mt NO{sub x} amd 0.18 mt SO{sub 2}. NO{sub x} emissions from air traffic may, by increasing ozone concentrations, be responsible for about 8% of global greenhouse warming. In the stratosphere NO{sub x} from aircraft is partly responsible for ozone depletion. With present technology 500 aircraft in the stratosphere would cause global ozone losses of 20%. Water vapour added by aircraft also contributes to global warming. In the form of ice crystals between 8 to 13 km above sea level, it acts as cirrus clouds. Probably the least damaging cruising altitude for aircraft is 9 km above sea level. Fuel consumption by aircraft is increasing. Air pollution abatement measures include substituting hydrogen fuel for kerosene, developing engines that emit less NO{sub x} and the introduction of internationally negotiated taxes on kerosene. ...
Association rule mining aims to explore large transaction databases for association rules. Classical Association Rule Mining (ARM) model assumes that all items have the same significance without taking their weight into account. It also ignores the difference between the transactions and importance of each and every itemsets. But, the Weighted Association Rule Mining (WARM) does not work on databases with only binary attributes. It makes use of the importance of each itemset and transaction. WARM requires each item to be given weight to reflect their importance to the user. The weights may correspond to special promotions on some products, or the profitability of different items. This research work first focused on a weight assignment based on a directed graph where nodes denote items and links represent association rules. A generalized version of HITS is applied to the graph to rank the items, where all nodes and links are allowed to have ...
This article discusses the proper use of sandy land in China from the viewpoint of ecology. The many low-yield fields in every locality across China include sandy land that is unsuited to the cultivation of grains such as paddy rice, corn and wheat. Separate investigations of the northern plain and the southern coast between 1980 and 1982 demonstrated that sandy land in a warm climatic zone (e.g. Huang He) is suited to peanuts, soybeans and other oil-bearing crops; that forestation can be carried out on sandy land in Inner Mongolia and Xinjiang; and that coastal sandy land has much salinity and is best suited to growing horsetail beefwood. Moreover, the creation of windbreaks along the coasts of southern China has lessened the threat of wind-blown sand which had made rice not worth cultivating on sandy land. It is concluded that different crops can be grown on the sandy soil of China's temperate, warm, semitropical and tropical zones.
The purpose of the project was to evaluate the potential influence of global warming on the Finnish economy and well-being during the next 50 to 100 years. In order to achieve this goal a cost-benefit analysis was conducted which produced a quantitative estimate of the economic and partially non-economic effects of the climate change projected to happen in Finland. The analysis utilised the natural scientific evidence produced by other SILMU projects in partial sector models. Also a broader view of the phenomena and the possibilities for restricting greenhouse gas emissions was briefly discussed and surveyed. Two of the more important side-goals were to develop the methodology for country analysis and study the possibilities for adaptation
Sigma 1) examines ways to reduce the number of breakdowns of pressure-regulating stations and to minimize the energy consumed in warming the gas, 2) determines the optimal gas temperatures upstream from the pressure reduction, and 3) shows the dependence of energy consumption upon the water dewpoint. The method of calculating the optimal input temperature relies on Mollier's diagram. Tables and nomographs for natural gas and water dewpoint at 19/sup 0/F and 580 psi (-7/sup 0/C and 4 MPa) are useful in achieving the desired gas temperatures. Heating the regulators' control valves is important.
During spring and autumn, the total number of amoebae and the number of acanthamoeba species able to grow at 37 degrees C were determined in six thermally polluted factory discharges and the surrounding surface waters. The isolated Acanthamoeba strains were studied for growth in axenic medium, cytopathic effect in Vito cell cultures, and virulence in mice. Although more amoebae were isolated in autumn, the number of Acanthamoeba species was lower than in spring, when the percent of pathogenic strains among the isolates was highest. Higher concentrations of amoebae were found in warm discharges, and more virulent strains occurred in thermal discharges than in surface waters.
The influence of motion of ions and electron temperature on nonlinear one-dimensional plasma waves with velocity close to the speed of light in vacuum investigated. It is shown that although the wavebreaking field weakly depends on mass of ions, the nonlinear relativistic wavelength essentially changes. The nonlinearity leads to the increase of the strong plasma wavelength, while the motion of ions leads to the decrease of the wavelength. Both hydrodynamic approach and kinetic one, based on Vlasov-Poisson equations, are used to investigate the relativistic strong plasma waves in a warm plasma. The existence of relativistic solitons in a thermal plasma is predicted.
... (restricted)] 251-260 Revisiting new variant famine: the case of Swaziland by Scott Naysmith & Alex Waal & Alan Whiteside [Downloadable! (restricted)] 261-269 Food prices and the HIV response: findings from rapid regional assessments in eastern and southern Africa in 2008[InlineMediaObject not available: see fulltext.][InlineMediaObject not available: see fulltext.] by Stuart Gillespie & Paul Jere & John Msuya & Scott Drimie [Downloadable! (restricted)] 271-289 Declining global per capita agricultural production and warming oceans ...
The justification, strategies, and technology options for implementing advanced district heating and cooling systems in the United States are presented. The need for such systems is discussed in terms of global warming, ozone depletion, and the need for a sustainable energy policy. Strategies for implementation are presented in the context of the Public Utilities Regulatory Policies Act and proposed new institutional arrangements. Technology opportunities are highlighted in the areas of advanced block-scale cogeneration, CFC-free chiller technologies, and renewable sources of heating and cooling that are particularly applicable to district systems.
The brain hypothermia treatment is an attractive therapy for the neurologist because of its neuroprotection in hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy patients. The present paper deals with the possibility of controlling the brain and other viscera in different temperatures from the viewpoint of system control. It is theoretically attempted to realize the special brain hypothermia treatment to cool only the head but to warm the body by using the simple apparatus such as the cooling cap, muffler and warming blanket. For this purpose, a biothermal system concerning the temperature difference between the brain and the other thoracico-abdominal viscus is synthesized from the biothermal model of hypothermic patient. The output controllability and the asymptotic stability of the system are examined on the basis of its structure. Then, the maximum temperature difference to be realized is shown dependent on the temperature range of the apparatus and also on ...
This paper reports the estimates concerning the atmospheric carbon dioxide absorption and storage by living plants all over the world. It is necessary to decrease atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations for avoiding global warming. As living plants absorb carbon dioxide by photosynthesis and accumulate carbon in their bodies, they can play an important role to remove atmospheric carbon dioxide. Literatures describing distribution areas, biomass values and net primary productivity (NPP) of forests, marine plants and microorganisms were collected. Examining those data, the biomass and NPP of forests, marine plants and microorganisms can be summarized as follows: (1) Forest biomass and their NPP of the world. The world's forest area is recently estimated as 4 billion hectares, and their biomass is about 400 billion tons of carbon which is equal to 2/3 of the total atmospheric carbon. The NPP of the world's forest is estimated as 25-35 billion tons ...
Repeated exposure to cold air reduces the metabolic response to cold air exposure in man. The purpose of this investigation was to measure the change in resting metabolic rate (RMR) with exposure to 22C air and 4C air during a 12 day period. Four women sat in 22C air for 45 min followed by 45 min in 4C air each day for ten days. The authors measured RMR during a 45 min period in 22C air followed by 45 min in 4C air on four days. All subjects began their morning exposures on a Monday within 2 days of the onset of menses completing the study on a Friday, 12 days later. Subjects dressed in a T-shirt, shorts and cotton socks. During 45 min of exposure to warm air, RMR remained steady at 10% of VO{sub 2peak} on Day 1 and 10% on Day 5. RMR during exposure to warm air significantly increased to 13% of VO{sub 2peak} on Day 8 and remained elevated at 13% on Day 12. During exposure to cold air RMR peaked at 31% of CO{sub 2peak} by the 5th min on Day 1. ...
Preliminary results are presented from a field study to evaluate the relative hydrologic performance of various landfill capping technologies installed by the Los Alamos National Laboratory at Hill Air Force Base, Utah. Four cover designs (two Los Alamos capillary barrier designs, one modified EPA RCRA design, and one conventional design) were installed in large lysimeters instrumented to monitor the fate of natural precipitation between 01 January 1990 and 20 September 1993. After 45 months of study, results showed that the cover designs containing barrier layers were effective in reducing deep percolation as compared to a simple soil cap design. The RCRA cover, incorporating a clay hydraulic barrier, was the most effective of all cover designs in controlling percolation but was not 100% effective. Over 90% of all percolation and barrier lateral flow occurred during the months of February through May of each year, primarily as a result of snow melt, early spring ...
It is well known that if one integrates a Schur function indexed by a partition $\\lambda$ over the symplectic (resp. orthogonal) group, the integral vanishes unless all parts of $\\lambda$ have even multiplicity (resp. all parts of $\\lambda$ are even). In a recent paper of Rains and Vazirani, Macdonald polynomial generalizations of these identities and several others were developed and proved using Hecke algebra techniques. However at $q=0$ (the Hall-Littlewood level), these approaches do not work, although one can obtain the results by taking the appropriate limit. In this paper, we develop a direct approach for dealing with this special case. This technique allows us to prove some identities that were not amenable to the Hecke algebra approach, as well as to explicitly control the nonzero values. Moreover, we are able to generalize some of the identities by introducing extra parameters. This leads us to a finite-dimensional analog of a recent result of Warnaar, ...
The role of atmospheric urea on the biogeochemical cycle of Water Soluble Organic Nitrogen (WSON) in the Eastern Mediterranean was assessed by collecting and analyzing wet and dry deposition samples and size segregated aerosols during a one year period (2006). In rain water volume weighted mean (VWM) concentration of urea was found equal to 5.5mM. In atmospheric particles the average concentration of urea in coarse and fine mode was 0.9+/-1.9nmolNm^-^3 (median 0.0nmolNm^-^3) and 2.2+/-3.0nmolNm^-^3 (median 1.1nmolNm^-^3), respectively. The percentage contribution of urea to WSON fraction was 0% and 20% in coarse and fine particles respectively. On an annual basis 0.81mmolm^-^2 and 1.78mmolm^-^2 of urea were deposited via wet and dry deposition, contributing to WSON by 10% and 11% respectiv...
A continuous, subsurface Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary section, including the boundary clay within an 87 cm thick lignite, has been recovered from a core hole near Wood Mountain, Saskatchewan, Canada. The lignite-encompassed clay layer with geochemical anomaly indicates that peat deposition was continuous across the boundary. Core data indicate that, locally, a pre-boundary, conifer-dominated swamp was abruptly replaced by an angiosperm-dominated, herbaceous wetland. Sudden extermination of the dominant forest elements indicates mass kill at the level of the boundary and supports the theory of extraterrestrial impact accompanied by catastrophic destruction. Devastation of the standing vegetation may have been caused by one or more of the killing agents predicted to have accompanied impact, including freezing temperatures caused by atmospheric dust, acid rain, thermal pulse, and shock waves. There is no evidence supporting wildfires as a killing agent. Vegetational ...
ObjectivesIn the long term, we aim to improve understanding of the relationships between ecosystem services, water resources, food production and poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa. Specifically, we seek to understand how local communities deal with climate-related risk and uncertainty and the opportunities they have - or could have - in shaping adaptation planning around pro-poor, small-scale irrigation and to identify priorities for ecosystem management, particularly in terms of pro-poor water allocation. In [continued...]DescriptionIncreased food production is widely considered to be a fundamental step toward the reduction of poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Although the agricultural sector account for two-thirds of the labour force, SSA is the only region in the world where per capita food production declined over the latter half of the 20th century. It also remains highly vulnerable to extreme climate variability and future climate change as almost all (>95%) food production is ...
The influence of the sulfur dioxide emissions from a large copper smelter in Tacoma, Washington, USA, was studied by measuring the chemical composition of rainwater collected upwind and downwind of the source, before and after permanent closure of the smelter in 1985. Data analysis was based on a statistical model that accounted for variability associated with location of 25 sampling sites within three geographic regions, smelter operation, ten individual rain events observed over 2 years, and measurement uncertainty. After smelter closure, the upwind-downwind differences in mean hydrogen ion and excess sulfate ion concentrations within a 600 km/sup 2/ region extending to 25 km downwind of the source had decreased significantly compared to the pre-closure value. No significant decreases in mean ion concentrations were observed farther downwind in the Seattle, urban area. During five events sampled prior to smelter closure, we estimate that an average of 1.7% (range ...
At Himeji Institute of Technology, the high power microwaves with the peak power of 20 MW, frequency of 12 GHz and pulse duration of 14 ns have been produced with a virtual cathode oscillator (vircator). These high power microwaves offer new applications in various fields. One problem in laser-triggered lightning experiment is the strong attenuation of laser energy by rain, cloud and laser-produced plasma. Microwaves propagate in thundercloud with small loss, and also are able to irradiate much extensive region of targets. In this paper, the fundamental experiment on the air breakdown induced by high power, short pulse microwaves is reported. The experimental setup of the vircator diode for microwave generation is shown. The typical evolution of diode voltage, electron beam current and microwave emission from the top in the course of time is shown. The experimental setup for microwave-induced air breakdown and the experimental procedure are explained. The results ...
...and welcome to ...lab also known as berkeley lab my name is jeff miller and ...and a public affairs i'd like to ? ...but space is science center and ...berkeley albany high school science department and berkeley high school science department and oakland high school science ...be a q. and ...here please use and because we wanna make sure that your questions are here ...heard of also for the latest developments on science and technology ...guy we're going to be any more and more new features i hope ...and change ...thank you ? much and thank you for coming on the welcome to my world of and mayotte science journalist and what i've done for the last almost thirty years ...people about things about which there passionate and national religion tonight and ...people to explain the science and and i asking the question so what ...and ...worldwide and what it does best ? uh ...bench science and turn it into reality what do you scientists and ...uh they take scientific theory and they turn ...
This report summarizes the project implementation and monitoring of all habitat activities that occurred over Fiscal Year 2002 (FY 02). Some of the objectives in the corresponding statement of work for this contract were not completed within FY 02. A description of the progress during FY 02 and reasoning for deviation from the original tasks and timeline are given. OBJECTIVE 1--Provide coordination of all activities, administrative oversight and assist in project implementation and monitoring activities. Administration oversight and coordination of the habitat statement of work, budget, subcontracts and personnel was provided. OBJECTIVE 2--Develop, coordinate, and implement the Hood River Fish Habitat Protection, Restoration, and Monitoring Plan. The Hood River Fish Habitat Protection, Restoration, and Monitoring Plan was completed in 2000 (Coccoli et al., 2000). This document is utilized for many purposes including: drafting the Watershed Action Plan, ranking projects for funding, and ...
Herbivores and pathogens impact the species composition, ecosystem function, and socioeconomic value of forests. Herbivores and pathogens are an integral part of forests, but sometimes produce undesirable effects and a degradation of forest resources. In the United States, a few species of forest pests routinely have significant impacts on up to 20 million ha of forest with economic costs that probably exceed $1 billion/year. Climatic change could alter patterns of disturbance from herbivores and pathogens through: (1) direct effects on the development and survival of herbivores and pathogens; (2) physiological changes in tree defenses; and (3) indirect effects from changes in the abundance of natural enemies (e.g. parasitoids of insect herbivores), mutualists (e.g. insect vectors of tree pathogens), and competitors. Because of their short life cycles, mobility, reproductive potential, and physiological sensitivity to temperature, even modest climate change will have rapid impacts on ...
The need to operate electric vehicles in warm, summer conditions and also provide for long periods of standby in cold climates is a challenging problem for any battery system. All advanced batteries of high specific energy require active cooling systems because adiabatic heating will raise the temperature to a level that is deleterious to cycle life. This cooling requires efficient paths for escape of heat to cooled surfaces; cooling the exterior of modules is insufficient. If a battery is heated by its own energy, and insulated to withstand exposure to a cold climate, only vacuum insulation will afford an appreciable reduction (>10{degrees}C) in the ambient temperature that can be tolerated. Standard insulations are of little use for this purpose because the heat loss rate causes too high a drain on the battery energy even for near-ambient temperature batteries.
Diesel passenger car is superior to gasoline engine car in the fuel economy, but it has some defects to improve: noise, startability, particulate and transient performance, etc. Among these problems, this paper presents particularly transient performance in a diesel engine and clarifies the causes of its decline at lower temperature operation. As the results, it is found that the transient torque at the early stage of acceleration is only 50% at -20/sup 0/C, and that when coolant temperature went up to 20/sup 0/C, the transient torque approaches to that of the warmed up engine. The transient response become worse with retarding the injection timing and with decreasing the engine speed. On the other hand, since the normal response is not obtained despite using high cetane number fuel, main cause of the inferior transient torque is not the poor combustion, but the increase of friction or cooling loss.
A geothermal heat pump (GHP) system with three ground coils was installed in a residence in northern Idaho with a portion of the ground heat exchanger wrapped around the residential septic tank. The septic coil provided a significant portion of the heating for the residence over the heating season. There was no evidence of the septic tank freezing up or failing to properly function. Utilizing a septic tank as a heat source for GHP systems is feasible design option if the septic tank is used on a full-time basis. However, the tank should be surrounded on all sides by a large amount of soil and/or insulated from the ground surface to ensure that ground temperatures near the tank remain warm during the winter.
Diesel power technology has been utilized worldwide, especially in remote regions, because of its low initial capital cost. But it has negative effects on the surrounding environment and causes global warming. On the other hand, depleting oil and fuel resources has made it inevitable to seek alternative/renewable energy resources. In Iran, the cost of fuel is highly subsidized. If Iran removes the fuel subsidy, the cost of diesel fuel would increase and the photovoltaic (PV) or hybrid PV/diesel systems would become more attractive. Hybrid photovoltaic/diesel/battery (PV/diesel/bat) systems which use PV energy, combined with diesel generation power and battery bank storage are an excellent solution to decrease diesel generator costs, pollution, and electrification of remote rural areas. In ...
The thin windows for the Muon Ionization Cooling Experiment (MICE) liquid Absorber will be fabricated from 6061-T6-aluminum. The absorber and vacuum vessel thin windows are 300-mm in diameter and are 180 mm thick at the center. The windows are designed for an internal burst pressure of 0.68 MPa (100 psig) when warm. The MICE experiment design calls for changeable windows on the absorber, so a bolted window design was adopted. Welded windows offer some potential advantages over bolted windows when they are on the absorber itself. This report describes the bolted window and its seal. This report also describes an alternate window that is welded directly to the absorber body. The welded window design presented permits the weld to be ground off and re-welded. This report presents a thermal FEA analysis of the window seal-weld, while the window is being welded. Finally, the results of a test of a welded-window are presented.
The cold effluents (sanitary waste and decontaminated radioactive water) are flocculated with sodium phosphate and pumped through a trickling filter. The average decontamination obtained is about 86% for alpha emittera and 76% for beta emitters. The cool effluents (activity < 10/sup -3/ mu c/ml) can be treated by several methods. Provisions have been made for two successive chemical flocculations eventually followed by an adsorptlon. The warm waste treatment (activity between 10/sup -3/ and 1 mu c/ml) is still in the experimental stage. The following methods are used: evaporation for some chemically contaminated wastes, browncoal filtration for reactor effluents, and a combination of chemical treatment and browncoal adsorption in other cases. (auth)
For an ultrafine grain ferrite/cementite (UGF/C) steel, the Charpy impact energy was measured at temperatures from 373K to 4.2K, and tensile tests were carried out at temperatures between 323K and 77K. For the steel with annealed microstructure, the ductile-to-brittle transition appearance temperature (DBTT) was lower than the Charpy transition temperature (CTT). With increasing annealing time at 873K, the DBTT and the CTT increased, and the DBTT approached the CTT. The DBTT decreased with decreasing effective grain size. The effective grain size correlated to the grain size of the larger grain size peak in the distribution of grains with {100} planes. The annealed microstructures had higher yield strength for equivalent toughness (including upper shelf energy, DBTT and CTT) compared to th...
Specimens of glassy Pd{sub 80}Si{sub 20} were irradiated at temperatures below 100K with 3.5 MeV krypton ions. After irradiation, changes in the sound velocity were measured at 80 K without warm-up by Brillouin scattering. The sound velocity decreased with increasing ion fluence and exponentially approached a saturation value of -4.7%. The change in the shear elastic modulus per unit concentration n of defects was estimated to be d(ln C)/dn = -9.4 to -4.7. The results of the present study are compared with changes in the elastic properties predicted recently by an interstitialcy model for glassy metals, and with the elastic properties of glassy metals after thermal treatment.
High energy consumption and the world population increase will lead to a shrinking use of fossil fuels. The combustion of Fossil fuel leads to the increase of carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere which leads to the probable increase of global warming. Therefore, concerns about carbon dioxide emissions may discourage widespread dependence on fossil fuels and encourage the development and use of renewable energy systems employing a variety of technologies Renewable energy systems have themselves an environmental impact. Land use and material employed are two areas that may have an adverse impact to the positive environmental picture of the renewable energy systems. The objective of this paper is to analyze these impacts with the use of a very powerful tool, the Life Cycle Assessment. (author)
Two of eight differently prepared copper stabilizer samples, previously irradiated in the RTNS-II at LLNL, the IPNS-1 and the BSR at ORNL, have been irradiated to a fluence of 1.33 /times/ 10/sup 22/ n/m/sup 2/ at RTNS-II. During the course of the irradiation the samples were periodically removed (without warming) for measurements of the transverse magnetoresistance and returned for continued irradiation. This experiment extends the range of neutron-irradiation-induced resistivity by a factor of five over the previous experiments. A simple model is developed which reproduces the magnetoresistance results of all the experiments to an accuracy of 2.5%. 13 refs., 6 figs.
Summary Reference to an ancient Hindu picture of a snarling dog may be a convincing enough proof to consider the fact that rabies has been known in the world for the past 50 centuries. Prior to the monumental observation about rabies of Fracastoro in the 16th century, facts and fantasies were intermingled in the study of rabies. In the realm of fantasy, consider the statement of Aristotle (otherwise a great philosopher) that only animals and not humans die of rabies. It took 19 centuries before Fracastoro finally established that infection with rabies is lethal for all warm-blooded beings including humans. The new era of rabies dates from the time of Galtier who isolated the virus and Pasteur who was able to create a somewhat attenuated strain of virus fixe which became the tool of laborat...
As lidar technology is able to provide fast data collection at a resolution of meters in an atmospheric volume, it is imperative to promote a modeling counterpart of the lidar capability. This paper describes an integrated capability based on data from a scanning water vapor lidar and a high-resolution hydrodynamic model (HIGRAD) equipped with a visualization routine (VIEWER) that simulates the lidar scanning. The purpose is to better understand the spatial and temporal representativeness of the lidar measurements and, in turn, to extend their utility in studying turbulence fields in the atmospheric boundary layer. Raman lidar water vapor data collected over the Pacific warm pool and the simulations with the HIGRAD code are used for identifying the underlying physics and potential aliasing effects of spatially resolved lidar measurements. This capability also helps improve the trade-off between spatial-temporal resolution and coverage of the lidar measurements.
A method for determining the mobility of hydrogen as a function of temperature in superconducting niobium cavities comprising: 1) heating a cavity under test to remove free hydrogen; 2) introducing hydrogen-3 gas into the cavity; 3) cooling the cavity to allow absorption of hydrogen-3; and 4) measuring the amount of hydrogen-3 by: a) cooling the cavity to about 4.degree. K while flowing a known and regulated amount of inert carrier gas such as argon or helium into the cavity; b) allowing the cavity to warm at a stable rate from 4.degree. K to room temperature as it leaves the chamber; and c) directing the exit gas to an ion chamber radiation detector.
The Moessbauer emission spectrum of "2"4"1Am metal was investigated for influences of radiation self damage. Samples were kept continuously for 230 h at 4.2 K and spectra were taken each 10 to 20 h. No change in f-factor was observed, while the linewidth increased monotonically and reached saturation after approximately 180 h. The original width could be reproduced by a brief warming to room temperature. The increase in width reflects the change in quadrupole interaction due to the creation of lattice defects. The constancy of the f-factor indicates that the basic crystalline structure is retained.
Inverse and direct methods have been used to analyze a large number of borehole temperature logs in order to infer past climatic changes. Results indicate a warming of 1-2[degree]C in eastern and central Canada during the past 150 years. A period of cooling between 500 and 200 years before present, corresponding to the time of the Little Ice Age, has also been identified in the same areas. A regional ground temperature history is estimated for eastern and central Canada from the simultaneous inversion of several temperature logs. The inferred temperature changes appear correlated with the concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide as reported from a Greenland ice core, and agree with existing meteorological and dendrochronological records for the area.
The purpose of this paper is to check up a GPS (global positioning system) impact on scientific research activities of the Geodetic Society of Japan. First, it is mentioned that the conventional geoid-based concept of 'gravity anomaly' should be changed to a new definition, according to the GPS-determined ellipsoidal height system. Secondly, the results of many experiments, which have been made to monitor ocean-plate motions relative to the Japanese island-arcs, demonstrate that GPS is a powerful tool for obtaining temporal changes in horizontal displacement induced by the plate motion. Therefore, it is suggested that terrestrial measurements, such as triangulation and long-range leveling, would be replaced by GPS measurements in near future. Moreover, it is pointed out that GPS geodesy should play an important role in monitoring secular sea level trend due to global warming of the atmosphere and ocean. 19 refs., 4 figs.
Future climate change will likely influence the frequency and intensity of weather extremes. As such events are by definition rare, long records are required to understand their characteristics, drivers, and consequences on ecology and society. Herein we provide a unique perspective on regional-scale temperature extremes over the past millennium, using three tree-ring maximum latewood density (MXD) chronologies from higher elevations in the European Alps. We verify the tree-ring-based extremes using documentary evidences from Switzerland, the Czech Republic, and Central Europe that allowed the identification of 44 summer extremes over the 1550-2003 period. These events include cold temperatures in 1579, 1628, 1675, and 1816, as well as warm ones in 1811 and 2003. Prior to 1550, we provide ...
Recently it is strongly required to reduce energy consumption to cope with the global warming. Since energy consumption in commercial and residential sectors are increasing while industrial sector is almost constant in Japan, policies to lead energy conservation in urban areas is quite important. This study aims at investigating the performance of urban energy systems which install combined heat and power (CHP) as a district heating and cooling (DHC) plant and the influence of CHP on the structure of electric power systems of utilities. The behavior of energy technologies and the possibility of energy conservation are evaluated based on an optimization model with respect to total system cost. Sensitivity analysis of population allocation into urban areas indicates that fossil fuel consumption varies in the range of 10--20% compared with conventional systems.
Through their grazing activities limpets have an important role in controlling macroalgal abundance and as a result the structure and dynamics of rocky shore assemblages. Using two congeneric limpet species, with different biogeographic distributions, and whose ranges are expected to alter with climatic warming, we separated the magnitude of their grazing activity over time and the subsequent consequence for macroalgal growth.The northern/boreal limpet, Patella vulgata (L.), consistently grazed more than the southern/lusitanian limpet, P. depressa (Pennant), particularly during spring and summer when P. depressa was reproductively active. Individuals of Fucus vesiculosus (L.) that settled during this time were able to grow to a size where they escaped the grazing activities of P. depressa,...
We tested two approaches to forecast species distributions while balancing the impact of climate change against the inertia promoted by other influential factors that have been forecast as not changing. Given that mountain species are presumed to be more at risk due to climate warming, we selected an amphibian, a reptile, a bird, and a mammal species present in the Spanish mountains, to model their distributional response to climate change during this century. The climatic forecasts were made according to the general circulation models CGCM2 and ECHAM4 and to the A2 and B2 emission scenarios. We modelled the response of the species to spatial, topographic, human, and climatic variables separately. In our first approach, we compared each of these single-factor models using the Akaike Inform...
Here we present a revision of the fossil record of chitons (Mollusca, Polyplacophora) of Late Pleistocene and Holocene marine deposits of Uruguay and discuss their potential for palaeoenvironmental reconstruction. Chitons were recorded as isolated valves in bivalve- and gastropod-rich assemblages. They are represented by the species Chaetopleura angulata (Spengler), C. isabellei (d'Orbigny), C. asperrima (Gould) and Ischnochiton striolatus (Gray). The last two species are recorded for the first time as fossils not only in Uruguay but also in South America. Exclusively recorded for the Late Pleistocene is the warm water species I. striolatus, whose current southern range limit is located in Santa Catarina, Brazil. Higher temperatures than at present are inferred for the Uruguayan coast duri...
Native plant individuals often persist within communities dominated by exotics but the influence of this exposure on native populations is poorly understood. Selection for traits contributing to competitive ability may lead to native plant populations that are more tolerant of the presence of exotic invaders. In this way, long-term coexistence with an exotic may confer competitive advantages to remnant (experienced) native populations and be potentially beneficial to restoration. In past studies we have documented genetic differentiation within native grass populations exposed to the exotic invader Russian knapweed (Acroptilon repens). Here, we examine populations of a cool-season grass, needle-and-thread (Hesperostipa comata [Trin. & Rupr.]) and a warm season, alkali sacaton (Sporobolus a...
Forest gap models have been used widely in the study of forest dynamics, including predicting long-term succession patterns and assessing the potential impacts of climate change on forest structure and composition. However, little effort is devoted to predict forest dynamics in the high elevation areas, although they have the sensitive response to global climate change. In the present study, based on a modified height-diameter function, we developed a new version (FAREAST-GFSM) of the forest patch model, FAREAST for simulating the changes of subalpine forests. The observed data from the Gongga Mt. Alpine Station were also used to test model precision. With the improved performance of FAREAST-GFSM, we explored the impact of three warming scenarios on subalpine forest on the eastern Tibetan ...
Forests on the Kola Peninsula in Northern Russia grow close to the northern tree line. They are subjected to both natural and anthropogenic stress factors. The Cu-Ni smelter 'Severonikel' (Lat. 67 deg 55'N; Long. 32 deg 57'E) near Monchegorsk is one of the two major sources of sulphur dioxide and heavy metals emissions on the Kola Peninsula. These emissions have caused significant deterioration of the surrounding vegetation. The thesis demonstrates how methods of Remote sensing, ground survey and mathematical modelling can be integrated for monitoring of the smelter's environmental impact on the surrounding vegetation: ground truth data are used for calibration of remote-sensed data, which further serve to verify mathematical models. The study aims were: * to estimate the scale of airborne sulphur pollution from the smelting industry on the Kola Peninsula and its effect on vegetation; * to assess spatial extent of the forest decline in the ...
The mechanisms involved in the glacial inception are still poorly constrained due to a lack of high resolution and cross-dated climate records at various locations. Using air isotopic measurements in the recently drilled NorthGRIP ice core, we show that no evidence exists for stratigraphic disturbance of the climate record of the last glacial inception ({proportional_to}123-100 kyears BP) encompassing Dansgaard-Oeschger events (DO) 25, 24 and 23, even if we lack sufficient resolution to completely rule out disturbance over DO 25. We quantify the rapid surface temperature variability over DO 23 and 24 with associated warmings of 10{+-}2.5 and 16{+-}2.5 C, amplitudes which mimic those observed in full glacial conditions. We use records of {delta}{sup 18}O of O{sub 2} to propose a common timescale for the NorthGRIP and the Antarctic Vostok ice cores, with a maximum uncertainty of 2,500 years, and to examine the interhemispheric sequence of events over this period. ...
Space heating/cooling systems account for approximately 30% of the global energy consumption. Such systems contribute to global warming by emitting 0.39.1011 MWh of heat and 2.9.1010 tons of CO{sub 2}. There is a general understanding that the way to reduce global warming is a more efficient use of energy and increased use of renewable energy in all fields of the society. The poultry industry in the Mid East is an important business. There are e.g. 13000 chicken farms in Syria producing 172,000 ton of meat. This industry employs directly almost 150,000 people. The total investment in chicken farming is 130 BSP. Even though, the annual mean temperature in Syria is {approx}15-18 C the winter temperatures are close to freezing for two months. Since the chickens need a temperature of 21-35 C, depending on age, approximately 168.103 tons of coal (1170 GWh) is consumed for heating these plants. The chicken farms have no cooling systems since ...
The Heavy-Ion Fusion Sciences Virtual National Laboratory is pursuing an approach to target heating experiments in the Warm Dense Matter regime, using spacecharge-dominated ion beams that are simultaneously longitudinally bunched and transversely focused. Longitudinal beam compression by large factors has beendemonstrated in the Neutralized Drift Compression Experiment (NDCX) with controlledramps and forced neutralization. Using an injected 30-mA K+ ion beam with initialkinetic energy 0.3 MeV, axial compression leading to ~;;50-fold current amplification andsimultaneous radial focusing to beam radii of a few mm have led to encouraging energy deposition approaching the intensities required for eV-range target heating experiments. We discuss the status of several improvements to our Neutralized Drift Compression Experiment and associated beam diagnostics that are under development to reach the necessary higher beam intensities, including: (1) greater axial ...
The primary objective of this project is to investigate the effects of global change on the biodiversity of aphid communities in Western Europe. Biodiversity has been examined at 3 levels: total number of species, phenology and reproductive strategy. Data were provided by EXAMINE, the European suction traps network which has been now operating for 35 years. 392 different species have been identified. At each location, total number of species has been regularly increasing, one additional species being caught every 1 or 2 years depending on location. This is due to introduced species but also to warming which favours rare species. No general trend of increasing density has been detected, but phenological earliness of almost all species (annual date of first appearance in suction traps) is strongly correlated with temperature and especially with mean daily temperature (during more or less long periods of time lying principally in February and March) or number of days ...
The Gulf of California represents one of the most productive and unique marginal seas in the world. The mouth of the Gulf captures warm equatorial water while annual wind patterns assure major upwelling of nutrient-rich water leading to a rich marine biota. These conditions have created a wide array of tropical through warm temperate carbonate environments. The most unusual of these environments is located in the La Paz region of Baja California Sur where tropical-subtropical water temperatures and low rainfall have allowed growth of corals, calcareous red algae, and other shelled invertebrates to form a carbonate bank environment. Sampling and mapping transacts in shallow bays north of La Paz and on the adjacent Espiritu Santo island have revealed a full spectrum of subenvironments including mangrove bordered, terrigenous mud dominated coastal zones, which grade into carbonate tidal flats. In addition, single coral heads as well as incipient ...
Negative ions have attractive features as drivers for inertial confinement fusion, because they will avoid electron cloud effects, and could be efficiently photodetached to neutrals after the final focus, which could also be beneficial in heating warm dense matter targets. The halogens have large electron affinities, and thus should be able to produce high current densities of relatively robust negative ions. Recent experiments comparing chlorine beams to argon beams using the same source, extraction optics, and diagnostics have demonstrated that Cl"- beams can be produced with similar emittance to Ar"+ beams, and with about 34 the current density from the same configuration. The observed effective beam temperature of about 13eV, and the similarity of current densities show that negative halogen beams can meet the current density and emittance requirements of heavy ion fusion. The near equivalence of the Cl"- and Cl"++Cl_2"+ current densities reaching the Faraday ...
Deforestation in Brazilian Amazonia in 1990 was releasing approximately 281--282 X 10{sup 6} metric tons (MT) of carbon on conversion to a landscape of agriculture, productive pasture, degraded pasture, secondary forest and regenerated forest in the proportions corresponding to the equilibrium condition implied by current land-use patterns. Emissions are expressed as committed carbon,'' or the carbon released over a period of years as the carbon stock in each hectare deforested approaches a new equilibrium in the landscape that replaces the original forest. To the extent that deforestation rates have remained constant, current releases from the areas deforested in previous years will be equal to the future releases from the areas being cleared now. Considering the quantities of carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, methane, nitrous oxide, NO{sub x} and non-methane hydrocarbons released raises the impact by 22--37%. The relative impact on the greenhouse effect of each gas ...
The effect of aerosol on clouds poses one of the largest uncertainties in estimating the anthropogenic contribution to climate change. Small human-induced perturbations to cloud characteristics via aerosol pathways can create a change in the top-of-atmosphere radiative forcing of hundreds of Wm-2. Here we focus on links between aerosol and deep convective clouds of the Atlantic and Pacific Intertropical Convergence Zones, noting that the aerosol environment in each region is entirely different. The tops of these vertically developed clouds consisting of mostly ice can reach high levels of the atmosphere, overshooting the lower stratosphere and reaching altitudes greater than 16 km. We show a link between aerosol, clouds and the free atmosphere wind profile that can change the magnitude and sign of the overall climate radiative forcing. We find that increased aerosol loading is associated with taller cloud towers and anvils. The taller clouds reach levels of enhanced wind speeds that ...
Pitting corrosion can be considered as a combination of two physical processes: the pit generation process and its depth growth process. Both processes are uncertain and can be modeled by stochastic processes. A model that combines two stochastic processes to describe pitting corrosion was developed. In this model, the pit generation process is represented by the Poisson process, and the pit depth growth process is modeled by the Markov process. The probability distribution of corrosion pit depth and the probability of time-to-failure are derived based upon the combined stochastic processes. Examples of the use of this method in dealing with experimental data also were developed.
Different aspects of overall evaluation of training programmes and processes as well as role of evaluation in the quality assurance process are considered.
This publication describes the modification of the road traffic exhaust emission calculation model LIISA and presents the new calculation results. The model has already established its position as the most important inventory tool for regional road traffic emissions in Finland. The LIISA model calculates road traffic emissions as a whole. The system comprises of three separate models: 1. a model for calculating automobile emissions for the years 2001-2021, 2. a model for calculating emissions backwards for the years 1980-2000, 3. a model for calculating the emissions of motorcycles and mopeds. All three parts have been modified. The LIISA model is one of the submodels of the comprehensive LIPASTO calculation system developed at VTT Building and Transport. The LIPASTO model is an inventory tool for emissions regarding all traffic modes in Finland. The LIPASTO with its submodels will be updated yearly with new mileage and vehicle data. The models itself and their emission factors are ...
A petrographic comparison of Triassic, fluvial sandstones from the Deep River Basin in the eastern piedmont of North Carolina with nearby Holocene stream sands (1) indicates that he Triassic climate was more arid than today's and (2) distinguishes an eastern, more plutonic terrane from a western, more metamorphic source terrane. The paleoclimatic interpretation is based on differences in framework composition between modern and ancient sands of the same grain size, derived from the same rock type, transported similar distances and deposited in similar settings. The Triassic sandstones contain more lithic-fragments but less quartz than otherwise equivalent, modern sand in the Deep River Basin. Feldspar content is more complex, controlled by both source-rock composition and climate. Sand from the more plutonic terrane contains more feldspar and plutonic lithic-fragments than sand from the more metamorphic terrane, which contains more quartz and metamorphic lithic-fragments. This ...
The article deals with the problem of a humidity addition to thermal conductivity, diffusion and latent heat effects in heat transfer through building components. It shows with examples humidity effects for exterior walls with core insulation, with composite insulation system as well as for insulated roof membrane assemblies. From these it can be summarized that - sorption humidity is for today`s construction conditions (good thermal insulation and humidity protection) a suitable reference quantity for the determination of practice-oriented, substance-specific and physically correct humidity additions to the thermal conductivity of hygroscopic components; - diffusion and latent heat effects are in case of good rain imperviousness and low water absorbing capacity of the exterior component layers of secondary importance for transmission heat losses; - an increase in insulating layer thickness in order to improve the thermal insulation is possible without humidity ...
The helium-cooled HTGR (High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor) will take an important position in the global energy strategy. It is expected to supply not only electricity but also high quality thermal energy for various industries and local utilities without exhausting any green house effect gas or acid rain gas. The key R and D issue of the HTGR is economical competitiveness, particularly against light water reactors. Due to the poor heat transfer of the single phase helium, the HTGR's volumetric power density is restricted to tenth of corresponding PWR's value so that increasing the power density by improving heat transfer is strongly desired. The standstill can be broken through by adopting gas-solid suspension medium. Its heat transfer performance is quite excellent. Its heat capacity can be increased drastically without excessive pressurization. Although the thermal radiation is a dominant heat transfer mode in high temperature region, the helium which is ...
The Jurua gas field is the first important hydrocarbon accumulation found in the jungle-covered Solimoes basin. The tectonic framework in this area is characterized by a right-lateral transpressional zone (Jurua structural trend). Hydrocarbon traps are anticlines developed along the upthrown block of a reverse fault. The prospective 2,200-m-thick Paleozoic section is unconformably covered by a 2,800-m-thick pile of Mesozoic and Cenozoic continental sediments. Anomalous concentrations of hydrocarbons (C{sub 2}-C{sub 4}) in soil samples are concordantly aligned with the trace of the reverse fault crossing the gas field, indicating that this feature acted as a conduit for hydrocarbon microseepage. Gas-producing wells are located over a tabular watershed which coincides with the northeast-southwest Jurua structural trend. An unsupervised classification of Landsat MSS data over the gas field area reveals that one spectral class of vegetation is aligned with the Jurua structural trend. Field ...
After the introduction Chapter 2 presents details of the ecological-economic analysis based on the FAO/IIASA agro-ecological zones (AEZ) approach for evaluation of biophysical limitations and agricultural production potentials, and IIASA's Basic Linked System (BLS) for analyzing the world's food economy and trade system. The BLS is a global general equilibrium model system for analyzing agricultural policies and food system prospects in an international setting. BLS views national agricultural systems as embedded in national economies, which interact with each other through trade at the international level. The combination of AEZ and BLS provides an integrated ecological-economic framework for the assessment of the impact of climate change. We consider climate scenarios based on experiments with four General Circulation Models (GCM), and we assess the four basic socioeconomic development pathways and emission scenarios as formulated by the Intergovernmental Panel on ...
The advantages offered by green roofs range from improvement in architectural and landscape aesthetics to reductions in building energy costs. Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) is encouraging sustainable community development through new policies and regulations that promote green roof installation on public and commercial rooftops in Seattle's urban center. An understanding of climate-specific green roof performance is required in order to develop an accurate representation of the stormwater benefits of green roofs. This paper explored the relative importance of green roofs in storm water management and low impact development (LID) in various areas of Seattle. It also examined the relative effectiveness and applicability of green roofs under various conditions and in various parts of the city compared to other LID strategies such as Seattle's natural drainage systems (NDS) designs, swales and ponds, rain gardens, rainwater harvesting, and porous ...
The environmental impacts of uranium mining and milling activities are of great concern in many countries for the last three decades. These impacts range from the creation of massive stockpiles of radioactive and toxic waste rock and sand-like tailings to serious contamination of surface and groundwater with radioactive and toxic pollutants, and releases of conventional, toxic and radioactive air pollutants. Uranium mining is also associated with high concentrations of highly toxic heavy metals, which are a major source of surface and groundwater contamination. Depending upon the hydraulic properties of the fractures involved, contaminated ground water may be transported many miles from its point of origin before feeding into an aquifer. Tailings pond may contaminate the groundwater regime by continuous seepage and leaching of radionuclides and other toxic metals due to interaction of rain water through the tailings ponds. The uranium milling and tailings pond ...
N/C and S/C ratios show only minor differences between asphaltenes and coal on this basis, the asphaltenes continue to appear to be good surrogates for the characterization of organic acid rain precursors in coal. Alkylmethoxythiophene carboxylic acids (ATCA) are detected in all dichromate oxidation products analyzed to date. Relative concentrations of ATCA compounds are directly proportional to the sample`s bulk organic sulfur contents. Concentrations of ATCA compounds in oxidation products decrease upon repeated oxidation. This may indicate that the thiophenic groups tend to be located in external positions on the coal macromolecular structure and a high proportion of them can be stripped away with only one mild oxidation step. If true, this may make industrial-scale removal of organic sulfur easier than expected. Using analytical micropyrolysis-gas chromatography with a sulfur-selective flame photometric detector, it is possible to easily see a full distribution ...
In cold countries, the design of transmission lines and communication networks requires the knowledge of ice loads on conductors. Atmospheric icing is a stochastic phenomenon and therefore probabilistic design is used more and more for structure icing analysis. For strength and reliability assessments, a data base on atmospheric icing is needed to characterize the distributions of ice load and corresponding meteorological parameters. A test site where icing is frequent is used to obtain field data on atmospheric icing. This test site is located on the Mt. Valin, near Chicoutimi, Quebec, Canada. The experimental installation is mainly composed of various instrumented but non-energized test cables, meteorological instruments, a data acquisition system, and a video recorder. Several types of icing events can produce large ice accretions dangerous for land-based structures. They are rime due to in-cloud icing, glaze caused by freezing rain, wet snow, and mixtures of ...
The goal of this paper is to explore how compliance with the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 (CAAA), especially Title IV and emission trading under it, will affect the current relationship between state and federal regulation. It is difficult, with the limited experience we have had under Title IV, to be definitive about or to be a very strong advocate of too many policy positions. What may be most helpful at this point is to identify where the difficult issues in state/federal relations might arise; and then to explore ways in which tensions might be either avoided or resolved. One anticipated conclusion is that a traditional regulatory mindset could be very destructive if applied to this new area of oversight without due sensitivity to what Congress is trying to achieve in Title IV. That concern pervaded the early legislative debates; and it persists today. Title IV presents some unique challenges to state regulators and will require some creative solutions and fresh thinking if the ...
Construction is one of the important industries employing a large number of people on its workforce. A wide range of activities are involved in it. Due to the advent of industrialization and recent developments, this industry is taking a pivotal role for construction of buildings, roads, bridges, and so forth. The workers engaged in this industry are victims of different occupational disorders and psychosocial stresses. In India, they belong to the organized and unorganized sectors. However, data in respect to occupational health and psychosocial stress are scanty in our country. It is true that a sizable number of the workforce is from the unorganized sectors - the working hours are more than the stipulated hours of work - the work place is not proper - the working conditions are non-congenial in most of the cases and involve risk factors. Their wages are also not adequate, making it difficult for them to run their families. The hazards include handling of different materials required ...
The further optimisation and improvement of the efficiency of internal combustion engines require the realisation of new technologies leading to a distinctively faster warm-up behaviour of the coolant and lubricants as well as of the engine components after a cold start. In order to achieve reduced fuel consumption and exhaust gas emissions with the help of heat management, the design criteria of innovative cooling systems need to be reflected and adapted to future requirements. The use of intelligent components within the cooling system, such as the 'Stand Alone Rotary Valve' as a thermostat's substitute or the use of coolant pumps with a rotary valve integrated into the pump's inlet chamber, offer new ways to realise in a decisively quicker and more flexible way the appropriate heating up and cooling down procedures at varying driving conditions. A description of both of the intelligent components for the cooling system is ...
Urinary tract infection (UTI) is a common problem in the female population. Women with diabetes mellitus are possibly at a higher risk. The usual medical therapy for UTI is antibiotic treatment. The aim of this study is to explore strategies employed by diabetic women for prevention and self-treatment of UTI. Forty-two women with diabetes mellitus who had experienced at least one episode of UTI in the last six months were included. Data collection included background information, questions about prevention and self-treatment strategies and a clinical examination to measure maximal urine flow, residual urine, a blood test evaluating diabetic control (HbA1c) and a urine test strip for determination of glucose, leucocytes, nitrite, blood, protein and pH. Thirty-five participants (83.3%) reported changes in daily routines like 'always keeping warm', 'increased fluid intake', 'good personal hygiene' as prevention strategies. Different herb and plant extracts were used ...
The basic idea is to implement Thomson scattering with free electron laser (FEL) radiation at near-solid density plasmas as a diagnostic method which allows the determination of plasma temperatures and densities in the warm dense matter (WDM) regime (free electron density of n{sub e} = 10{sup 21}-10{sup 26} cm{sup -3} with temperatures of several eV). The WDM regime [1] at near-solid density (n{sub e} = 10{sup 21}-10{sup 22} cm{sup -3}) is of special interest because, it is where the transition from an ideal plasma to a degenerate, strongly coupled plasma occurs. A systematic understanding of this largely unknown WDM domain is crucial for the modeling and understanding of contemporary plasma experiments, like laser shock-wave or Z-pinch experiments as well as for inertial confinement fusion (ICF) experiments as the plasma evolution follows its path through this domain.
Today, as a result of increase in oil prices, limited fossil fuel resources, environmental consideration and global warming, the methyl ester fuels have been focused on alternative fuels. Methyl ester fuels can be used more efficiently in low heat rejection engines (LHR), in which the temperature of combustion chamber is increased by creating a thermal barrier. In this study, the piston, cylinder head, exhaust and inlet valves of a diesel engine were coated with the ceramic material Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}-TiO{sub 2} by the plasma spray method. Thus, a thermal barrier was provided for the parts of the combustion chamber with these coatings. The effects of corn oil methyl ester that produced by the transesterification method, and No. D2 fuels' performance and exhaust emissions' rate were studied by using equal in every respect coated and uncoated engines. Tests were performed on the uncoated engine, and then repeated on the coated engine and the results ...
The near infrared (NIR) upgrade to the Robert Stobie Spectrograph (RSS) on the Southern African Large Telescope (SALT), RSS/NIR, extends the spectral coverage of all modes of the visible arm. The RSS/NIR is a low to medium resolution spectrograph with broadband imaging, spectropolarimetric, and Fabry-Perot imaging capabilities. The visible and NIR arms can be used simultaneously to extend spectral coverage from approximately 3200 A to 1.6 um. Both arms utilize high efficiency volume phase holographic gratings via articulating gratings and cameras. The NIR camera is designed around a 2048x2048 HAWAII-2RG detector housed in a cryogenic dewar. The Epps optical design of the camera consists of 6 spherical elements, providing sub-pixel rms image sizes of 7.5 +/- 1.0 um over all wavelengths and field angles. The exact long wavelength cutoff is yet to be determined in a detailed thermal analysis and will depend on the semi-warm instrument cooling scheme. Initial estimates ...
We have used the SINFONI integral field spectrograph to map the near-infrared K-band emission lines of molecular and ionised hydrogen in the central regions of two cool core galaxy clusters, Abell 2597 and Sersic 159-03. Gas is detected out to 20 kpc from the nuclei of the brightest cluster galaxies and found to be distributed in clumps and filaments around it. The ionised and molecular gas phases trace each other closely in extent and dynamical state. Both gas phases show signs of interaction with the active nucleus. Within the nuclear regions the kinetic luminosity of this gas is found to be somewhat smaller than the current radio luminosity. Outside the nuclear region the gas has a low velocity dispersion and shows smooth velocity gradients. There is no strong correlation between the intensity of the molecular and ionised gas emission and either the radio or X-ray emission. The molecular gas in Abell 2597 and Sersic 159-03 is well described by a gas in local thermal equilibrium ...
An approximate solution was proposed in which a sensitivity analysis by the storage and release of heat was performed for the subject issues and in which an operating method was thereby determined for the equipment constituting the system by means of a linear programming. Accordingly, a heat storage type energy supply system for a district cooling and heating was taken up as a concrete object to be examined. This system consisted of a gas turbine generator, initial power receiving equipment, gas boiler, electric heat pump for ice heat storage, cooling tower, heat exchanger, steam absorbing refrigerating machine, ice heat storage tank, cold and warm water heat storage tank, etc. As a result of comparison between the proposed method and the resolving method, the former showed -0.92 to 2.58% in the increase in the operating cost compared with the latter. A case where the operating cost of the resolving method was sometimes larger than the proposed method was due to ...
In order to materialize the automobile use small direct injection diesel engine (DI), the reduction in both exhaust emission and noise, as studied, was explained in summary. The DI, as excellent in fuel consumption characteristics, was studied to be adopted to the small automobile, with the materialization of small DI to be about 600cc in capacity per cylinder. However the further diminution in dimension had not been materialized yet, because of the aggravation in exhaust emission and vibration noise. Then a single spray DI, characterized by the approximate sphericity in shape of combustion chamber and adoption of cast iron made piston and two-stage spring nozzle, was prototypically made, with optimizing the combustion in characteristics, decreasing HC in exhaust quantity by modifying the injection system, doing also NOx in exhaust quantity by adopting the lag angle at injection time and EGR, modifying the structure to lower the noise, and adopting an air heater to improve the cold ...
Numerical simulations predict that a large number of baryons reside in intergalactic space at temperatures between 10^5-10^7 K. Highly-ionized metals, such as O VII and O VIII, are good tracers of this ``warm-hot intergalactic medium'', or WHIM. For collisionally-ionized gas, the ionization fraction of each ion peaks at some particular temperature (``peak temperatures''), so different ions can therefore trace the IGM at different temperatures. We performed a hydrodynamic simulation to study the metal distributions in the IGM. We then draw random lines-of-sight across the simulated region and synthesize resonance absorption line spectra in a similar way to simulating the Ly-alpha forest. By studying the distribution functions of H- and He-like O, Si and Fe in a collisionally-ionized IGM and comparing with semi-analytic results based on the Press-Schechter formalism, we find: (1) ions with higher peak temperatures (for instance, Fe XXVI) tend to concentrate around ...
Purpose: To obtain a roof slab cooling device capable of retaining cooling performance even in a case of electric power supply stop or failure and effective from economical point of view. Constitution: Atmospheric air is introduced into the cooling chamber of a proof slab and spontaneously passed to a exit pipeway connected to a stack thereby cooling the roof slab. Specifically, atmospheric air entered from the inlet pipeway is introduced to the cooling chamber and absorbs heat generate from the inside of the reactor container. Warmed air is sucked from the exit pipeway and then released into the atmosphere passing through the stack. The air cools the roof slab during circulation due to spontaneous passage and keeps the slab at a low temperature. Since the air is passed spontaneously, no power such as for a blower is required at all and, if the electric power supply should be lost, the cooling power can be maintained as it is to provide a high reliability. Further, ...
Lithium-ion batteries are now considered to be the technology of choice for future hybrid electric and full electric vehicles to address global warming. LiCoO2 has been the most widely used cathode material in commercial lithium-ion batteries. Since LiCoO2 has economic and environmental issues, intensive research has been directed towards the development of alternative low cost, environmentally friendly cathode materials as possible replacement of LiCoO2. Among them, spinel LiNi0.5Mn1.5O4 material is one of the promising and attractive cathode materials for next generation lithium-ion batteries because of its high voltage (4.7V), acceptable stability, and good cycling performance. Research advances in high voltage spinel LiNi0.5Mn1.5O4 are reviewed in this paper. Developments in synthesis,...
The Atmospheric Radiation Monitor (ARM) uninhabited aerospace vehicle (UAV) program aims to develop measurement techniques and instruments suitable for a new class of high altitude, long endurance UAVs while supporting the climate community with valuable data sets. Using the Scaled Composites Proteus aircraft, ARM UAV participated in Mixed-Phase Arctic Cloud Experiment (M-PACE), obtaining unique data to help understand the interaction of clouds with solar and infrared radiation. Many measurements obtained using the Proteus were coincident with in-situ observations made by the UND Citation. Data from M-PACE are needed to understand interactions between clouds, the atmosphere and ocean in the Arctic, critical interactions given large-scale models suggest enhanced warming compared to lower latitudes is occurring.
The effect of longer ice-free periods on the seasonal variation and total annual values of phytoplankton primary production was considered along with the efficiency and productivity of the phytoplankton communities at different water temperatures by constant light. The studied pond, Vasikkalampi, is located in the town Jvyaskyla in central Finland. The pond is slightly eutrophic and its water is used for cooling purposes by a 35 MW thermal powerplant. The cooling water is taken in the middle of the pond and it returns as heated effluent to the northern part, near the surface, about 100 m from the intake pipe. This circulation and warming of the water keeps the pond open throughout the year except during the coldest weeks in the winter when some parts freeze over. The increase of the water temperature was not sufficient to be optimal for photosynthesis in the spring. The phytoplankton biomass starts to increase early in the spring when the zooplankton grazing ...
Current hydrocarbon-based energy systems, current energy consumption and the push towards the utilization of renewable energy sources, fuelled by global warming and the need to reduce atmospheric pollution are discussed. The consequences of climatic change and the obligation of Annex B countries to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions in terms of the Kyoto Protocols are reviewed. The role that renewable energy sources such as hydrogen, solar and wind energy could play in avoiding the most catastrophic consequences of rapidly growing energy consumption and atmospheric pollution in the face of diminishing conventional fossil fuel resources are examined. The focus is on hydrogen energy as a means of storing and transporting primary energy. Some favorable characteristics of hydrogen is its abundance, the fact that it can be produced utilizing renewable or non-renewable sources, and the further fact that its combustion produces three times more energy per unit of mass ...
Natural gas is essential to the world economy. Gas now accounts for almost a quarter of OECD primary energy requirements and is expected to become the second most important fuel in the world in the next decade. Industrial and residential consumers increasingly rely on natural gas to keep their houses warm, their lights on and their factories running. Meanwhile the gas industry itself has entered a new phase. Where gas used to be restricted to regional markets, it is now increasingly traded on a global scale. While gas production and transport requires long-term investment, now it is optimised on a short-term basis. Demand continues to grow, but local gas production has become much more expensive. How should we react? How will demand be satisfied? What changes are required to promote flexibility and trade? What are the implications for gas security, investment and interdependence? At stake is an opportunity to diversify supply and demand - but this goal is ...
The mining and energy industry is under assault today for reasons that have less to do with alleged technical failures and much more to do with ethical complaints about a rate of growth in population that industrial products from mining resources have made possible. The political agendas of Western industrialized nations have been driven during the past quarter century by those whose social philosophy advocates a new ethic of biocentric equality, whereby humans must be forced to being `living as if Nature mattered`. A Green ethic requires that `a violent, plundering humankind` must abandon its alleged rape of the earth and derive its ethical norms from pre-existing ecosystemic harmonies to preserve a fragile and precarious balance existing in Nature. From the perspective of history, there is nothing new about such complaints, current complaints about the use of fossil fuels and pollution from mining, echo similar complaints in past periods. Current Green thinking seeks to impose a ...
The static magnetization of solid "3He contained in sintered copper was measured. The results of the density on the melting curve show that below 5 mK, the magnetization M rises above the Curie-Weiss law extrapolated from high temperature. It reaches a maximum of twice as much as the Curie Weiss law value at temperature Tm, which would be somewhat below 1.25 mK if the system could be warmed up at infinitesimally slow rate. Below Tm, M decreases rapidly to 0.4 of its maximum, then appears to become independent of temperature. The previously reported decrease of specific heat below the Curie-Weiss law value in the range below 4 mK is apparently related to the increase of M in that range. At the low temperature end, apparent decrease of M is due to the fact that there is background magnetization which is out of equilibrium with the thermometer when there is solid "3He in the sample cell. It is suspected that the background signal comes primarily from the nuclear ...
The basic principle of the green building philosophy is to design buildings that consider environmental performance. Residential and commercial buildings in Canada consume about 30 per cent of the total secondary energy use and are responsible for approximately 29 per cent of carbon dioxide equivalent greenhouse gas emissions and many other wastes. An optimization model was developed which minimizes life cycle cost and life cycle environmental impact. The model distinguishes different energy sources and incorporates their impacts, such as resource depletion, global warming and acidification. The model also considers design variables such as window type, orientation, building orientation, window-to-wall ratio, wall type and roof type. The model can be used to identify optimum green building designs for given conditions. The model uses expanded cumulative exergy consumption as the indicator for life cycle environmental performance. As such, it can be simplified by ...
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was approved in 1992 to respond to the worl-wide concern about the warming of the planet. The primary target was the stabilization of the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, in an attempt to reduce to the minimum the degradation of the environment caused by humans. By virtue of the Convention, the Parts2 are committed to reach their objectives in the reduction of the emissions. A Conference of the Parts was stablished to promote the effective application of the Convention. The third Conference of the Parts, celebrated in Kyoto (Japan, 1997) approved, by consensus, the denominated Kyoto Protocol, in which 39 developed countries and countries with economies in transition were committed to reduce their emissions of greenhouse gases between years 2008 and 2012 in a 5.2 global percent with respect to the 1990 levels. Three {sup f}lexibility mechanisms{sup w}ere stablished to help the ...
The thermal regime immediately downstream from bottom release reservoirs is often characterized by reduced diel and seasonal (winter warm/summer cool) conditions. These unusual thermal patterns have often been implicated as a primary factor underlying observed downstream changes in the species composition of aquatic macroinvertebrate communities. The potential mechanisms for selective elimination of benthic species by unusual thermal regimes has been reviewed. Although the effects of temperature on the rate and magnitude of larval growth and development has been included in the list of potential mechanisms, only recently have field studies below dams focused on this interrelationship. This study investigates the overall community structure as well as the seasonal pattern of larval growth and development for several univoltine species of insects in the Delaware River below or near the hypolimnetic discharge of the Cannonsville and Pepeacton dams. These dams, which ...
The Fifteenmile Basin Habitat Improvement Project is an ongoing multi-agency effort to improve habitat in the Fifteenmile drainage and increase production of the depressed wild, winter steelhead run. Cooperating agencies include the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, USDA Forest Service. USDA Soil Conservation Service and Bonneville Power Administration. in consultation with the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife is administering project work on state and private lands and the U.S.D.A. Forest Service is administering project work on National Forest land. Project work on the Forest has been sub-divided into four components; (1) Ramsey Creek, (2) Eightmile Creek, (3) Fifteenmile Creek, and (4) Fivemile Creek. Forest Service activities in the Fifteenmile basin during 1988 involved habitat improvement work on Ramsey Creek, continuation of physical and biological monitoring, collection of spawning survey information, and ...
Water and mud samples were collected from canals and rivers which were adjacent to outlets discharging warm water of 3 power plants in Berlin. Downstream samples from 1 bathing resort were also collected. Free living amoebae were isolated from 138 water and 69 mud samples. From these respectively 156 and 73 strains could be cultured and were administered intranasally to mice for pathogenicity tests. Two Acanthamoeba strains from water and 7 from mud could be reisolated from mouse brain and or lungs, although no pathological disorders could be observed. Five Naegleria strains were negative in mouse inoculation tests. Four Acanthamoeba strains which were positive in mice were cultured at + 45 degrees C; no cytopathogenic effects were observed in tissue cultures. Acanthamoeba infective for mice could also be isolated from samples at low water temperatures. Further investigations have to show, whether changes in virulence of amoebic strains are of significance and ...
There are many factors contributing to the changes taking place within the electric utility industry. The environmental pressures on the industry are substantial and include the global warming issue, hazardous and nuclear waste challenges, air toxicities, and the electromagnetic field controversy. An issue of special concern is deregulation of the industry, which brought with it retail wheeling, wholesale wheeling, transmission access, and market-based pricing, all of which have greatly shaken the industry. The changes are expected to happen quickly. This is quite different from the 31 years it took to deregulate the telecommunications industry, the 15 to 20 years for railroads, the 9 years for the natural gas industry, and the 2 years for the airline industry. Historically there has been a general willingness among the utilites to share information through collaborative research. Research and development is viewed as a cost and not an investment in the electric ...
The need for a hydrogen economy is driven by increasing fuel prices, depleting oil reserves and uncertainty over supplies, and concerns about global warming and environmental pollution. Alternative methods to portable energy sources such as fossil fuels are being developed that are more efficient and carbon-emission-neutral. A prospective method is to produce hydrogen as an energy carrier. This paper presented a study on the degradation of materials under conditions of the sulphur-iodine (SI) thermochemical cycle. The paper provided background information on the study and presented a schematic of the SI cycle. A literature review was presented along with materials selected, such as refractory metals, reactive metals, superalloys, glassy metals, ceramics, cermets, polymers, composites, and coatings. The experimental method was then described. A capsule method was developed to rapidly quantify the decomposition rate of the candidate materials under the target ...
This study determined how well crude and fuel oils burn on water. Objectives were: (1) to measure the burning rates for several oils; (2) to determine whether adding heat improves the oils' combustibility; (3) to identify the conditions necessary to ignite fuels known to be difficult to ignite on ocean waters (e.g., diesel and Bunker C fuel oils); and (4) to evaluate the accuracy of an oil-burning model proposed by Thompson, Dawson, and Goodier (1979). Observations were made about how weathering and the thickness of the oil layer affect the combustion of crude and fuel oils. Nine oils commonly transported on the world's major waterways were tested. Burns were first conducted in Oklahoma under warm-weather conditions (approx. 30/sup 0/C) and later in Ohio under cold-weather conditions (approx. 0/sup 0/C to 10/sup 0/C).
For the removal and recycle of CO2, a global warming gas, utilization of photosynthesis by micro algae is investigated. Formed micro algae are decomposed into CO2, H2O and CH4 again, which does not result in the permanent fixation. For the effective utilization of these micro algae, creation of petroleum alternate energy was tried through the co-liquefaction of micro algae with coal. Were investigated influences of the reaction temperature during the co-liquefaction and influences of catalysts, such as Fe(CO)5-S, Ru(CO)12, and Mo(CO)6-S, which are effective for the coal liquefaction. Micro algae, such as chlorella, spirulina, and littorale, and Yallourn brown coal were tested. It was found that co-liquefaction of micro algae with coal can be successfully proceeded under the same conditions as the liquefaction of coal. The oil yield obtained from the co-liquefaction in the presence of Fe(CO)5-S, an effective catalyst for coal liquefaction, agreed appropriately with ...
Chandra and XMM surveys show that the fraction of obscured AGN decreases rapidly with increasing luminosity. Although this is usually explained by assuming that the covering factor of the central engine is much smaller at luminous QSOs, the exact origin of this effect remains unknown. We perform toy simulations to test whether photo-ionisation of the obscuring screen in the presence of a strong radiation field can reproduce this effect. In particular, we create X-ray spectral simulations using a warm absorber model assuming a range of input column densities and ionization parameters. We fit instead the simulated spectra with a simple cold absorption power-law model that is the standard practice in X-ray surveys. We find that the fraction of absorbed AGN should fall with luminosity as $L^{-0.16\\pm0.03}$ in rough agreement with the observations. Furthermore, this apparent decrease in the obscuring material is consistent with the dependence of the FeK$\\alpha$ ...
The issue of global warming was discussed with particular reference to the changes that may occur in the hydrological regime within the coming decades in response to predicted changes in climate. Flood events for the 2050 time horizon were investigated along with the consequences on water management and dam safety. Dams operated by Hydro-Quebec are used for flood control, water supply, recreational activities and hydroelectricity. As such, the electric utility relies on methods to evaluate the adaptability of current management plans to climate change. This paper presented the results of a study conducted at the Moisie River watershed, located in northern Quebec. The HSAMI hydrologic model was used to evaluate and compare the occurrences where stream flows and water levels exceed critical values in order to assess the effectiveness of management plans in both current and climate change scenarios. The study considered two different approaches on existing and future ...
Mathematical tools are needed to screen out sites where Joule-Thomson cooling is a prohibitive factor for CO{sub 2} geo-sequestration and to design approaches to mitigate the effect. In this paper, a simple analytical solution is developed by invoking steady-state flow and constant thermophysical properties. The analytical solution allows fast evaluation of spatiotemporal temperature fields, resulting from constant-rate CO{sub 2} injection. The applicability of the analytical solution is demonstrated by comparison with non-isothermal simulation results from the reservoir simulator TOUGH2. Analysis confirms that for an injection rate of 3 kg s{sup -1} (0.1 MT yr{sup -1}) into moderately warm (>40 C) and permeable formations (>10{sup -14} m{sup 2} (10 mD)), JTC is unlikely to be a problem for initial reservoir pressures as low as 2 MPa (290 psi).
The aim of this research was to examine the energy equivalents of inputs and output in greenhouse vegetable production in the Antalya province of Turkey. For this purpose, the data for the production of four greenhouse crops (tomato, cucumber, eggplant and pepper) were collected in eighty-eight greenhouse farms by questionnaire. The results revealed that cucumber production was the most energy intensive of among the four crops investigated. Cucumber production consumed a total of 134.77 GJha{sup -1} followed by tomato with 127.32 GJha{sup -1}. The consumption of energy by eggplants and pepper were 98.68 and 80.25 GJha{sup -1}, respectively. The output-input energy ratio for greenhouse tomato, pepper, cucumber and eggplant were estimated to be 1.26, 0.99, 0.76 and 0.61, respectively. This indicated an intensive use of inputs in greenhouse vegetable production not accompanied by increase in the final product. This can lead to problems associated with these inputs such as global ...
... and facilities; the physical processing of materials into products; and processes associated with ... area of bulk silicon prod! uction as wafer material has been omitted, in keeping with current ...
In a process for separating insoluble red mud from Bayer process streams the improvement is described which comprises contacting and mixing a Bayer process stream with a tertiary polyamine having a molecular weight of at least about 10,000 in an amount effective to reduce the iron content thereof.
Adaptive image processing is one of the most important techniques in visual information processing, especially in early vision such as image restoration, filtering, enhancement, and segmentation. This work focuses on applications of advanced CI techniques in image processing applications
Mg-3%Al-1%Zn (AZ31) alloy was subjected to ECAE processing at 523 and 573 K. Microstructure observation and texture analysis were carried out using optical microscope and SEM-EBSD technique in order to investigate the process of microstructural changes including texture development during ECAE processing. Grain refinement during ECAE processing is enhanced by dynamic continuous recrystallization. The texture of the ECAE-processed AZ31 alloy specimens change with ECAE processing temperature, and the textural changes relate to deformation mechanisms that change with ECAE processing temperature. (orig.)
Makeup water is distilled internally in an amine gas treating unit by adding it to the reclaimer used to process a slipstream of lean amine from the stripper.
... Abstract : The beater additive process for manufacturing combustible cartridge cases is superior to the solvent resin, post-impregnation process. ...
Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and histopathology were used to diagnose an articular process synovial myxoma in a dog. On MR images, the tumor was characterized by distortion of the left L1-L2 articular process, widening of the articular process joint, and the presence of a mass contiguous with the synovium of the articular process that displaced the spinal cord. The tumor was T2-hyperintense, T1-hypointense, relative to muscle, and had mild contrast enhancement. The MR features of articular process synovial myxoma may be distinct from other diseases of the articular process joint.
In the presented case study CRS processing was able to improve the overall data quality of the processed lines in terms of signal-to-noise ratio and imaging. The complex geology is causing serious problems in conventional NMO/DMO processing that were solved by CRS processing. Even a depth processing with velocities calculated from CRS attributes gives good results similar to those from PreSDM in terms of the velocity field. Data quality of poststack depth migrated CRS stacks is even better than the image from PreSDM. (orig.)
This document gathers the available presentations (articles and transparencies) given at this annual meeting, the 2007 topic of which was the technological, geopolitical, economical, environmental, societal and development stakes of energy. 1 - technological stakes - which energies for the future: new energies, illusion or solution of the future; the Lorraine region, an energy land: strategies and stakes for a sustainable development; from China to Brazil: understanding the nuclear energy revival; hydroelectric power: renewable and sustainable energy; renewable energies and environment protection: the contribution of biofuels; wind power in Germany between success and contestation; 2 - geopolitical stakes - energy levier of power: the Gulf of Guinea hydrocarbons: between development and geopolitics; the complex evaluation of resources and reserves between technology, market and geopolitics; the new Bakou-Tbilissi-Ceyhan pipeline: what impacts for Turkey and the European Union; 3 - ...
The main conclusion of the study on the title subject is that the impacts of climatic change in the Netherlands are still limited. However, the impacts will be stronger in the next decades and will be even problematic at the end of this century. In this book an overview is given of probable changes in the climate for the Netherlands, danger for flooding in specific areas of the Netherlands, changes of the nature, impacts for agriculture, tourism and recreation, and industry and businesses, and risks for public health. [Dutch] De effecten van klimaatverandering in Nederland zijn nu nog beperkt. Ze zullen echter de komende decennia toenemen, maar pas tegen het eind van deze eeuw problematisch worden. Dat is de hoofdboodschap van de titelstudie. De studie is opgesteld in samenwerking met een reeks instellingen, die zijn verenigd in het Platform Communicatie Klimaatverandering (PCCC). Het klimaat verandert: de zeespiegel stijgt, de afvoeren van de rivieren nemen toe. De natuur reageert al ...
The report gives results of economic evaluations of two processes: the Rockwell International aqueous carbonate process (ACP) and the Wellman-Lord process, the latter applied to a sulfuric acid plant, the Foster Wheeler Resox process, and the Allied Chemical coal reduction proces...
Consol R D is conducting a three-year program to characterize process and product streams from direct coal liquefaction process development projects. The program objectives are two-fold: (1) to obtain and provide appropriate samples of coal liquids for the evaluation of analytical methodology, and (2) to support ongoing DOE-sponsored coal liquefaction process development efforts. The two broad objectives have considerable overlap and together serve to provide a bridge between process development and analytical chemistry.
Consol R D is conducting a three-year program to characterize process and product streams from direct coal liquefaction process development projects. The program objectives are two-field: (1) to obtain and provide appropriate samples of coal liquids for the evaluation of analytical methodology, and (2) to support ongoing DOE-sponsored coal liquefaction process development efforts. The two broad objectives have considerable overlap and together serve to provide a bridge between process development and analytical chemistry.
This book deals specifically with the development of new processes of converting coal into useful chemical feedstocks. The major topic in this volume is the generation of syngas and its catalytic conversion to chemicals via the Fischer-Tropsch synthesis. Describes processes involved in conversion, recent catalytic developments, and the commercially important Sasol process. Also includes chapters on the carbide process and potential of future developments in the field.
Total river discharge in Pakistan in summer season vary from 3 thousand to 34 thousand cusses (100 thousand Cusses to 1,200 thousand Cusses) and can cause tremendous loss to human lives, crops and property, this causes the loss of most of the flood water in the lower Indus plains to the sea. Due to limited capacity of storage at Tarbela and Mangla Dams on river Indus and Jhelum, with virtually no control on Chenab, Ravi and Sutlej, devastating problems are faced between July and October in the event of excessive rainfall in the catchments. Due to enormous amounts of sediments brought in by the feeding rivers, the three major reservoirs -Tarbela, Mangla and Chashma will lose their storage capacity, by 25 % by the end of the year 2010, which will further aggravate the water-availability situation in Pakistan. The quality of water is also deteriorating due to urbanization and industrialization and agricultural developments. On the Environmental Front the main problems are water-logging ...
The growing concern of the population with regards to the problem of atmospheric pollution has induced a change in the role of air quality monitoring networks, especially those monitoring air pollution in large cities which suffer from summer smog. The population is no longer satisfied with real-time measurements but wants to be warmed of high pollutants concentrations in advance. Some countries have been forecasting air pollution, and especially ozone, for a large number of years. Although most of them use statistical models based on the analyses of past conditions which induced high pollution episodes, some predict ozone levels using only their knowledge of the meteorological situation. Nowadays two trends appear regarding ozone forecasting: either very basic statistical methods, such as regression, or more sophisticated ones, such as neural networks. The paper then reviews several behaviours common to most forecasting models: the uncertainly due to the great ...
Nitrogen oxides play a critical role in the chemistry of the atmosphere and indirectly influence global warming through the production of ozone. At Barrow, Alaska, the NOAA long-term surface ozone record indicates an increase of about 2% per year during the summer months. Since NO_x (NO+NO_2) concentrations above about 30 ppt (parts per trillion) result in net ozone production in the presence of sunlight, the authors propose that the observed Barrow surface ozone increase is related to anthropogenic nitrogen oxide emissions. A high-sensitivity chemiluminescent instrument for measurements of nitrogen oxides has been built to test this hypothesis. Measurement campaigns have been conducted during summer 1988 and spring 1989, and are continuing during spring and summer 1990. Periods during which the NOV concentrations measured at the GMCC site were unaffected by local (Barrow) emissions were selected from the data record. Observations during these periods suggest that ...
A decade ago, Lovelock and Whitfield raised the question of how much longer the biosphere can survive on Earth. They pointed out that, despite the current fossil-fuel induced increase in the atmospheric CO[sub 2] concentration, the long-term trend should be in the opposite direction: as increased solar luminosity warms the Earth, silicate rocks should weather more readily, causing atmospheric CO[sub 2] to decrease. In their model, atmospheric CO[sub 2] falls below the critical level for C3 photosynthesis, 150 parts per million (p.p.m.), in only 100 Myr, and this is assumed to mark the demise of the biosphere as a whole. Here, this problem is re-examined using a more elaborate model that includes a more accurate treatment of the greenhouse effect of CO[sub 2] a biologically mediated weathering parameterization, and the realization that C4 photosynthesis can persist to much lower concentrations of atmospheric CO[sub 2] ([lt]10 p.p.m.). It was found that a ...
The aim of this research project, funded jointly by SILMU and by the Agricultural Research Centre of Finland, was to evaluate the possible effects of changes in climate and carbon dioxide concentration on the growth, development and yield of field crops and on crop pests and diseases in Finland. The study focused on two cereal crops (spring wheat and spring barley), a grass species (meadow fescue), some common pathogens of cereals and potato, insect pests of small fruits and nematode risk of potato and sugar beet. The results of this study indicate the following effects on crop production of the `best guess` climate change anticipated for Finland by 2050: A lengthening of the potential growing season of 3-5 weeks. A northward expansion of about 250-500 km in suitability for cereal production. Increased yields of adapted spring cereals. New, longer-season cultivars would benefit from both higher temperatures and elevated CO{sub 2}. Improved potential for the cultivation of ...
In this paper an analysis will be performed to assess the economical competitiveness of Nuclear Power against other base load technologies. There are several plans to build more nuclear power plants in western countries; these plans are result among other things of the fossil fuel high prices and the concern for the global warming. France started the construction of one EPR at Flamanville in 2007 and at the end of 2008 there were 17 applications before NRC for construction and operation licenses (COL) to build as much as 26 new reactor units in USA, among the designs selected are the US-EPR, APWR, ESBWR, ABWR and AP1000. Currently, there is a lot of uncertainty about what is the overnight cost for a new generation III nuclear power plant and the vendors are not providing too much information. However, it is expected that under the new economy conditions the overnight cost will be between 2500 and 3500 USD/kW, the output electricity power of the units mentioned ...
The research project's objective is to create a decision help for owners of residential buildings for several families regarding the renewal of decentralized heating and warm water preparation systems in the flats. The focus lies on a comparison of the costs of typical systems on the basis of a full cost calculation. This is done by taking into consideration the intentions of residential building companies like the reduction of additional costs to be paid by the tenants (both for social reasons and to make the flats easier to rent), low investment costs, low maintenance costs, energy saving, tenants' claims for comfort and acceptance by the tenants, economical reasons, especially regarding flats fully amortized (activation in the balance sheet). In addition to the quantitative comparison, the advantages and disadvantages of the different systems were also compared to one another from the qualitative point of view. [German] Ziel des ...
The environmental management infrastructure that has evolved in the United States over the last 25 years or so, since {open_quotes}the environment{close_quotes} burst into the national consciousness with events like Love Canal and Earth Day in the early 1970s. Increasingly, U.S. businesses must successfully compete with those of other nations to survive. Organizational re-engineering, cycle-time management, concurrent engineering, and lean manufacturing are just a few examples of corporate efforts to become better global competitors. U.S. environmental management systems, with their various inefficiencies, can hardly be excluded from these improvement initiatives. Businesses must find ways to reduce or control their environmental costs and, where possible, find ways that {open_quotes}environment{close_quotes} can add positive value to their goods and services. Secondly, although considerable progress has been made in some areas, such as the development of cleaner combustion technology, ...
Performance and emissions data were gathered on a normally aspirated single cylinder DI engine with various combinations of ceramic coatings installed. Thin ceramic thermal barrier coatings were applied to the piston crown and bowl, the head and valves, and the cylinder liner. The coated piston and head were run singly and in combination with the cylinder liner to investigate the effects of these different coated surfaces on emissions and performance. Coating the piston crown alone results in generally lower cylinder pressure, lower brake specific fuel consumption and lower NO(x) emission compared to the baseline engine. Soot emission is typically increased below 2000 RPM and decreased above 2000 RPM. Coating the head alone reduces cylinder pressure, but generally increases specific fuel consumption and NO(x) and soot emission. The KIVA-II code was used to model the Hydra engine with the thermal coatings. The computer modeling has led to an understanding of the effect of coating the ...
Lithium-ion batteries are now considered to be the technology of choice for future hybrid electric and full electric vehicles to address global warming. LiCoO{sub 2} has been the most widely used cathode material in commercial lithium-ion batteries. Since LiCoO{sub 2} has economic and environmental issues, intensive research has been directed towards the development of alternative low cost, environmentally friendly cathode materials as possible replacement of LiCoO{sub 2}. Among them, spinel LiNi{sub 0.5}Mn{sub 1.5}O{sub 4} material is one of the promising and attractive cathode materials for next generation lithium-ion batteries because of its high voltage (4.7 V), acceptable stability, and good cycling performance. Research advances in high voltage spinel LiNi{sub 0.5}Mn{sub 1.5}O{sub 4} are reviewed in this paper. Developments in synthesis, structural characterization, effect of doping, and effect of coating are presented. In addition to conventional synthesis ...
Lithium-ion batteries are now considered to be the technology of choice for future hybrid electric and full electric vehicles to address global warming. LiCoO2 has been the most widely used cathode material in commercial lithium-ion batteries. Since LiCoO2 has economic and environmental issues, intensive research has been directed towards the development of alternative low cost, environmentally friendly cathode materials as possible replacement of LiCoO2. Among them, spinel LiNi0.5Mn1.5O4 material is one of the promising and attractive cathode materials for next generation lithium-ion batteries because of its high voltage (4.7 V), acceptable stability, and good cycling performance. Research advances in high voltage spinel LiNi0.5Mn1.5O4 are reviewed in this paper. Developments in synthesis, structural characterization, effect of doping, and effect of coating are presented. In addition to conventional synthesis methods, several alternative synthesis methods are also ...
The purpose of this study was to examine the day-to-day reproducibility and single measurement reliability of peak force, time to half peak force and rate of force development indices of knee extension neuromuscular performance in patients with end-stage renal failure. Eleven self-selected patients (6 men, 5 women) receiving maintenance dialysis (dialysis history 67 +/- 42.8 month) completed 3 inter-day assessment sessions. Each comprised a standardized warm-up and 3 intermittent static maximal voluntary actions of the knee extensors of the preferred limb (45 degrees knee flexion angle [0 degrees = full knee extension]) using a specially-constructed dynamometer. Repeated measures ANOVA of coefficient of variation scores revealed significant differences between indices in their reproducibility across day-to-day trials. Post-hoc comparisons of group mean scores suggested that peak force (6.6 +/- 3.0%) offers significantly greater measurement reproducibility than time ...
The mechanisms of brown adipocyte proliferation and differentiation during cold acclimation (and/or adaptation to hyperphagia) have been studied by quantitative photonic radioautography. (/sup 3/H)thymidine was injected to warm-acclimated (25/sup 0/C) rats and to animals exposed to 5/sup 0/C for 2 days. Samples of interscapular brown adipose tissue were collected for quantitative analysis of mitotic frequencies at various periods of time (4 h-15 days) after the injection of (/sup 3/H)thymidine, the rats being maintained at the temperatures to which they were initially exposed. It was found that cold exposure for 2 days markedly enhanced mitotic activity in endothelial cells, interstitial cells, and brown preadipocytes rather than in fully differentiated brown adipocytes. The total tissue labeling index (percent of labeled nuclei) increased approx.70 times over control values. The authors now report that cellular labeling progressively increased in mature brown ...
Decadal-scale climate variations over the Pacific Ocean and its surroundings are strongly related to the so-called Pacific decadal oscillation (PDO) which is coherent with wintertime climate over North America and Asian monsoon, and have important impacts on marine ecosystems and fisheries. In a near-term climate prediction covering the period up to 2030, we require knowledge of the future state of internal variations in the climate system such as the PDO as well as the global warming signal. We perform sets of ensemble hindcast and forecast experiments using a coupled atmosphere-ocean climate model to examine the predictability of internal variations on decadal timescales, in addition to the response to external forcing due to changes in concentrations of greenhouse gases and aerosols, volcanic activity, and solar cycle variations. Our results highlight that an initialization of the upper-ocean state using historical observations is effective for successful ...
The effect of liquefied natural gas on pollutant emissions was evaluated experimentally with used and new appliances in the laboratory and with appliances installed in residences, targeting information gaps from previous studies. Burner selection targeted available technologies that are projected to comprise the majority of installed appliances over the next decade. Experiments were conducted on 13 cooktop sets, 12 ovens, 5 broiler burners, 5 storage water heaters, 4 forced air furnaces, 1 wall furnace, and 6 tankless water heaters. Air-free concentrations and fuel-based emission factors were determined for carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, nitrogen dioxide, and the number of (predominantly ultrafine) particles over complete burns?including transient effects (device warm-up and intermittent firing of burners) following ignition--and during more stable end-of-burn conditions. Formaldehyde was measured over multi-burn cycles. The baseline fuel was Northern California ...
In order to illustrate morphological features and variations of temperature in the upper thermosphere, we performed numerical simulations with a whole atmosphere general circulation model (GCM) for the solar minimum and geomagnetically quiet conditions in March, June, September, and December. In previous GCMs, tidal effects were imposed at the lower boundaries assuming dominant diurnal and semi-diurnal tidal modes. Since the GCM used in the present study covers all the atmospheric regions, the atmospheric tides with various modes are generated within the GCM. The global temperature distributions obtained from the GCM are in agreement with ones obtained from NRLMSISE-00. In addition, the GCM also represents localised temperature structures which are superimposed on the global day-night distributions. These localised structures, which vary from hour to hour, would be observed as variations with periods of about 2-3 h at a single site. The amplitudes of the 2-3 h variations are ...
IRAM 30m observations reveal that the deeply obscured IR-luminous galaxy NGC4418 has a rich molecular chemistry - including unusually luminous HC3N line emission. We furthermore detect: ortho-H2CO 2-1, 3-2; CN 1-0, 2-1; HCO+, 1-0. 3-2, HCN 3-2, HNC 1-0, 3-2 (and tentatively OCS 12-11). The HCN, HCO+, H2CO and CN line emission can be fitted to densities of n=5 x 10E4 - 10E5 cm-3 and gas temperatures Tk=80-150 K. Both HNC and HC3N are, however, significantly more excited than the other species which requires higher gas densities - or radiative excitation through e.g. mid-IR pumping. The HCN line intensity is fainter than that of HCO+ and HNC for the 3-2 transition, in contrast to previous findings for the 1-0 lines where the HCN emission is the most luminous. We tentatively suggest that the observed molecular line emission is consistent with a young starburst, where the emission can be understood as emerging from dense, warm gas with an additional PDR component. We ...
A link is made in this paper between proposed low energy scenarios for different Western European countries and the amount of pollutants that may result from these scenarios. Air pollutant emissions are calculated for the ten countries for which low energy scenarios are available. These scenarios emphasize stringent energy efficiency, maximizing the use of renewable (other than nuclear) energy, and minimizing the use of fossil fuels. Under these low energy scenarios, the average per capita energy use (year 2030) in the ten countries is estimated as 97 GJ/person, which is a decrease of 38% relative to 1980. Using the energy consumption figures from the low energy scenarios, together with sector- and fuel-specific emission factors from Europe, the resulting emissions of SO_2 , NO_x , and CO_2 were computed. These estimates do not take into account any add-on pollution controls over and above what was in place in 1980, or changes in combustion technology; these would result in still lower ...
Cereal straw, a by-product in the production of agricultural crops, is considered as a potentially large source of energy supply with an estimated value of 47 x 10{sup 18} J worldwide. However, there is some debate regarding the actual amounts of straw which could be removed from arable soils without jeopardizing their quality, as well as the potential trade-offs in the overall straw-to-energy chain compared to the use of fossil energy sources. Here, we used a deterministic model of C and N dynamics in soil-crop systems to simulate the effect of straw removal under various sets of soil, climate and crop management conditions in northeastern France. Model results in terms of nitrate leaching, soil C variations, nitrous oxide and ammonia emissions were subsequently inputted into the life-cycle assessment (LCA) of a particular bio-energy chain in which straw was used to generate heat and power in a plant producing bio-ethanol from wheat grains. Straw removal had little influence on ...
A 100 kW thermal input Two-Stage Gasifier was built at the University of Denmark (DTU). The gasifier consists of an externally heated pyrolysis unit, a down-draft char gasifier, a gas cleaning system and an internal-combustion engine. Between the summer of 1996 and the summer of 1998, 11 tests were made with the gasifier. The gasifier had a total operating time of 278 hours (excluding warming up). The fuel was mainly wood chips, but also briquettes has been used. Four of the tests lasted 50-70 hours, and stable conditions were reached. All the tests were completed without technical problems. The particle sizes and amounts were investigated. The amount of particles depended on the amount of steam led to the gasifier. More than 99% of the particles after the cyclone were soot. The size of the soot particles was mainly between 0.2-0.5 {mu}m. Under normal conditions (biomass:steam = 1:1 (dry mass basis)), the particle load was about 300 mg/Nm{sup 3}. With biomass:steam ...
Outgoing longwave radiation (OLR) and low-level wind fields in the Atlantic and Pacific Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) are dominated by variability on synoptic time scales primarily associated with convectively coupled easterly waves during boreal summer and fall. This study uses spectral filtering of observed OLR data to capture the convective variability coupled to Pacific easterly waves. Filtered OLR is then used to isolate easterly waves in winds, temperature and humidity fields from TAO/TRITON and TAO/EPIC buoys, radiosondes, and gridded reanalysis products. Our analysis shows that while some of the Pacific easterly waves originate in the Atlantic, most of the waves appear to form and strengthen within the Pacific. Pacific easterly waves have wavelengths of 3300-5500 km and phase speeds of 9-13 m s-1. A warm, moist boundary layer is observed ahead of the convective wave, with moisture lofted quickly through the troposphere by deep convection, followed ...
The present paper explains the exhaust sources of and measures against CO2, and possibility of driving the electric cars which utilize the solar energy. In the combustion-related field, the thermal power generation attained to 24.6% which was the largest in exhaust quantity of CO2 on a division-by-division basis in FY 1990. On the consumers' side, four large consumption type industries which are steel, cement, paper, pulp and chemical industries totally occupy 64.2% of the exhaust quantity from all the industries. The emission from the cars occupies 17% of all the traffic-related exhaust quantity. The measures consist of decrease, fixation and absorption, among which the decrease is important. Newly developed electric cars comprise GM's Impact in spring, 1990, Nissan's FEN in 1991 and Tokyo Electric Power's IZA. The IZA is a 1800cc class direct drive system-driven sporty sedan which has been much improved for heightening the performance. Having four ...
For most cells there exists an optimum cooling rate. Both supraoptimal rates and suboptimal rates can be very damaging. The optimal rate varies enormously from less than or equal to 1/sup 0/C/min for mammalian preimplantation embryos to greater than or equal to 800/sup 0/C/min for the human red cell. Death at supraoptimal rates is the result of the formation of intracellular ice and its recrystallization during warming. Intracellular ice occurs when cells are cooled too rapidly to allow them to equilibrate by the osmotic withdrawal of intracellular water. The definition of too rapid depends chiefly on the size of the cell and its permeability to water. Death at suboptimal rates is a consequence of the major alterations in aqueous solutions produced by ice formation. The chief effects are a major reduction in the fraction of the solution remaining unfrozen at a given temperature and a major increase in the solute concentration of that fraction. Presumably, slow ...
Fission-track age of a bentonitized volcanic ash bed occurring in the middle part of Nagrota Formation. Upper Siwalik, north of Uttarbaini, Jammu district, Jammu and Kashmir, has been determined to be 1.6 #+-# 0.2 m.y. B.P. The radiometric age obtained for the sample roughly coincides with the Olduvai Event (1.6-1.8 m.y.). However, the lithological and paleoclimatic changes in the Upper Siwalik success ion are indicated at the contact between Parmandal Sandstone and Nagrota Formation, i.e. about 1100 m below the 1.6 #+-# 0.2 m.y. datum line in this part. Vertebrat e fauna was studied from 16 sites beneath and 12 above the volcanic ash bed to interpret the biological and palaeoenvironmental aspects of the Nagrota Formation. The assemblage represented in the collection is similar to that of the Pinjor Biozone (Villafranchian) and is assigned a probable age ranging from about 2.9 m.y. to 1.0 m.y. B.P. The stratigraphic interval from the base of Nagrota Formation (approx. 2.9 m.y. B.P.) to ...
I present an exact calculation of free-electron-laser (FEL) eigenmodes (fundamental as well as higher order modes) in the exponential-gain regime. These eigenmodes specify transverse profiles and exponential growth rates of the laser field, and they are self-consistent solutions of the coupled Maxwell-Vlasov equations describing the FEL interaction taking into account the effects due to energy spread, emittance and betatron oscillations of the electron beam, and diffraction and guiding of the laser field. The unperturbed electron distribution is assumed to be of Gaussian shape in four dimensional transverse phase space and in the energy variable, but uniform in longitudinal coordinate. The focusing of the electron beam is assumed to be matched to the natural wiggler focusing in both transverse planes. With these assumptions the eigenvalue problem can be reduced to a numerically manageable integral equation and solved exactly with a kernel iteration method. An approximate, but more ...
This third tome about energy systems completes the two previous ones by showing up advanced thermodynamical cycles, in particular having a low environmental impact, and by dealing with two other questions linked with the study of systems with a changing regime operation: - the time management of energy, with the use of thermal and pneumatic storage systems and time simulation (schedule for instance) of systems (solar energy type in particular); - the technological dimensioning and non-nominal regime operation studies. Because this last topic is particularly complex, new functionalities have been implemented mainly by using the external classes mechanism, which allows the user to freely personalize his models. This tome is illustrated with about 50 examples of cycles modelled with Thermoptim software. Content: foreword; 1 - generic external classes; 2 - advanced gas turbine cycles; 3 - evaporation-concentration, mechanical steam compression, desalination, hot gas drying; 4 - cryogenic ...
In addition to dependable starting - even at extreme sub-zero temperatures - the starting behaviour of modern commercial vehicle diesel engines is increasingly being evaluated on the basis of HC emissions in the starting and warm-up phases. To improve their performance in this respect, most small and medium-sized diesel engines (with a capacity of 3 to 12 litres) are therefore equipped with intake air heating systems. As an alternative to high-performance, fuel-burning flame start systems, the automotive industry supplier Beru has now developed a new type of self-regulating electric heating element which not only ensures dependable starting with short heating times but also allows drastic reductions in HC emissions. (orig.) [Deutsch] Das Startverhalten moderner Nutzfahrzeug-Dieselmotoren wird, ergaenzend zum Hauptmerkmal des sicheren Starts auch bei extremen Minustemperaturen, zunehmend anhand der HC-Emission in der Start- und Warmlaufphase beurteilt. Zur ...
We previously reported that the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator-1 (PGC-1) mRNA in rat epitrochlearis muscle was increased after swimming exercise training. In the present study, we demonstrated further that PGC-1 mRNA expression in the epitrochlearis muscle of 4-5-week-old male Sprague-Dawley rats was increased after a 6-h acute bout of low-intensity swimming exercise. With this increase, the expression level was approximately 8-fold of control and immersion group rats that stayed for 6-h in warm water, maintained at the identical temperature of the swimming barrel (35 degrees C) (p<0.01). Second, PGC-1 mRNA expression in the muscle was found to have increased 6-h after 30 10-s tetani contractions were induced by in vitro electrical stimulation. Finally, PGC-1 mRNA expression in the muscle incubated for 18-h with 0.5mM 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide ribonucleoside (AICAR: a 5' AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) activator) was ...
We present sensitive high angular resolution (0.''57-0.''78) SO, SO_2, CO, C_2H_5OH, HC_3N, and HCOCH_2OH line observations at millimeter and submillimeter wavelengths of the young O-type protostar W51 North made with the Submillimeter Array. We report the presence of a large (about 8000 AU) and hot molecular circumstellar disk around this object, which connects the inner dusty disk with the molecular ring or toroid reported recently and confirms the existence of a single bipolar outflow emanating from this object. The molecular emission from the large disk is observed in layers with the transitions characterized by high excitation temperatures in their lower energy states (up to 1512 K) being concentrated closer to the central massive protostar. The molecular emission from those transitions with low or moderate excitation temperatures is found in the outermost parts of the disk and exhibits an inner cavity with an angular size of around 0.''7. We modeled all lines with a local ...
Rhodium (Rh) is a critical component of current automotive three-way catalysts (TWCs), particularly with regard to NO{sub x} and CO conversion at rich and stoichiometric air-fuel ratios (A/F). Rh supported on CeO{sub 2} was active for NO{sub x} and CO conversions but could be deactivated easily by high temperature aging. The cause of the deactivation is ascribed to the sintering of CeO{sub 2}. ZrO{sub 2} incorporation into CeO{sub 2} is reported to have high thermal durability in terms of oxygen storage capacity (OSC). There has been no report showing direct experimental evidence that Rh-loaded on CeO{sub 2}-ZrO{sub 2} mixed oxides induced effects on TWC performance improvement in the actual automotive exhaust. In the present paper, the Rh-CeO{sub 2} interaction contributing to NO{sub x} reduction and the catalytic behavior of Rh-loaded CeO{sub 2}-ZrO{sub 2} mixed oxide is addressed. Incorporating CeO{sub 2}-ZrO{sub 2} into a catalyst offered significant improvement in light-off and ...
The significant and rapid reduction of greenhouse gas emissions is recognized as necessary to mitigate the potential climate effects from global warming. The postcombustion capture (PCC) and storage of carbon dioxide (CO{sub 2}) produced from the use of fossil fuels for electricity generation is a key technology needed to achieve these reductions. The most mature technology for CO{sub 2} capture is reversible chemical absorption into an aqueous amine solution. In this study the results from measurements of the CO{sub 2} absorption capacity of aqueous amine solutions for 76 different amines are presented. Measurements were made using both a novel isothermal gravimetric analysis (IGA) method and a traditional absorption apparatus. Seven amines, consisting of one primary, three secondary, and three tertiary amines, were identified as exhibiting outstanding absorption capacities. Most have a number of structural features in common including steric hindrance and ...
Due to depletion of fossil fuel, bio-fuels have generated a significant interest as an alternative fuel for the future. The use of bio-fuels to fuel gas turbine seems a viable solution for the problems of decreasing fossil-fuel reserves and environmental concerns. Bio-fuels are alternative fuels, made from renewable sources and having environmental benefit. In recent years, the desire for energy independence, foreseen depletion of nonrenewable fuel resources, fluctuating petroleum fuel costs, the necessity of stimulating agriculture based economy, and the reality of climate change have created an interest in the development of bio-fuels. The application of bio-fuels in automobiles and heating applications is increasing day by day. Therefore the use of these fuels in gas turbines would extend this application to aviation field. The impact of costly petroleum-based aviation fuel on the environment is harmful. So the development of alternative fuels in aviation is important and useful. ...
Results are presented from a series of studies conducted at the Department of Energy (DOE) Savannah River Plant (SRP) with the NASA Airborne Oceanographic Lidar (AOL). These studies included a topographic survey of a {approximately}1000 acre lake basin (presently designated L Lake) which had been excavated for use as a cooling pond for L Reactor; a study of the movement of discharged cooling water in Pond C and the warm arm of Par Pond using Rhodamine WT dye as a tag; initial baseline studies of the vegetation cover of the Steel Creek corridor (through which the outflow of L Lake is carried to the Savannah River); and a demonstration of potential forestry applications of the AOL. These investigations were conducted over a 3-day period in June 1985. The AOL is an advanced airborne laser system capable of making temporal or time history measurements of laser backscatter (bathymetry mode) or spectral measurements of laser induced fluorescence from waterborne ...
Vehicle heating requires a substantial amount of energy. Engines in conventional cars produce enough waste heat to provide comfort heating and defogging/defrosting, even under very extreme conditions. Electric vehicles (EVs), however, generate little waste heat. Using battery energy for heating may consume a substantial fraction of the energy storage capacity, reducing the vehicle range, which is one of the most important parameters in determining EV acceptability. Water vapor generated by the vehicle passengers is in large part responsible for the high heating loads existing in vehicles. In cold climates, the generation of water vapor inside the car may result in water condensation on the windows, diminishing visibility. Two strategies are commonly used to avoid condensation on windows: windows are kept warm, and a large amount of ambient air is introduced in the vehicle. Either strategy results in a substantial heating load. These strategies are often used in ...
Contemporary high dimensional biological assays, such as mRNA expression microarrays, regularly involve multiple data processing steps, such as experimental processing, computational processing, sample...Full Text Available
It is shown that a natural consequence of the binary pulsar's evolution is a neutron star collision. Such a collision is expected to eject neutron-rich matter of an r-process character. Taking reasonable estimates for the number of such events over the history of the galaxy, it may be that they account for all of the r-process nuclei.
Laser assisted solar cell metallization processing which is a one step process is examined. The potential advantages of laser disposition techniques for photovoltaic systems are: a high resolution, no photolithography, clean and contamination free, in-situ sintering, and low contact resistance.
As part of its program to provide technology for reducing undesirable environmental impacts of mineral processing operations, the Bureau of Mines developed the citrate process for desulfurizing industrial stack gases that contain from 0.1 to 2 vol pct SO2...
Autism is a pervasive developmental condition, characterized by impairments in non-verbal communication, social relationships and stereotypical patterns of behavior. A large body of evidence suggests that several aspects of face processing are impaired in autism, including anomalies in gaze processing, memory for facial identity and recognition of facial expressions of emotion. In search of neural markers of anomalous face processing in autism, much interest has focused on a network of brain regions that are implicated in social cognition and face processing. In this review, we will focus on three such regions, namely the STS for its role in processing gaze and facial movements, the FFA in face detection and identification and the amygdala in processing facial expressions of emotion. Much evidence suggests that a better understanding of the normal development of ...
The control of gas activity and process technology has developed tremendously over the past two decades. While once considered to be primitive control systems using simple PID loops with thermocouples that were suspect and unable to perform repeatedly and consistently during the arduous process of plasma nitriding and processing, developments in recent years have elevated the control of the process into what might be considered one of the most controllable processes of the latter part of this century. The advent of plasma processing technology has improved control methods by observing and harnessing each of the various process parameters into many different combinations of control systems. Some of these control systems can control the complete function of the process, thus freeing the operator entirely for other duties, ...
In order to reduce the length and to increase the effectiveness of processing, the proposed method for acetic processing of an electric centrifugal well pump calls for covering the pressure line during the curing and periodically starting the pump.
Gasification and hydrogenation are the two basic routes for coal processing. Accounts are given of various low-temperature processes in coal gasification route A: air separation, removal of sour gas by the Rectisol process, liquid nitrogen washing, the material balance and utility consumption of these processes, plus low-temperature gas separation, partial condensation and methane washing. There are also accounts of the low-temperature processes involved in gasification route B: i.e., in the indirect coal liquefaction and direct liquefaction carried out in the Sasol II and III processes. (3 refs.) (In Japanese)
Computation and information processing are among the most fundamental notions in cognitive science. They are also among the most imprecisely discussed. Many cognitive scientists take it for granted that cognition involves computation, information processing, or both ? although others disagree vehemently. Yet different cognitive scientists use ?computation? and ?information processing? to mean different things, sometimes without realizing that they do. In addition, computation and information processing are surrounded by several myths; first and foremost, that they are the same thing. In this paper, we address this unsatisfactory state of affairs by presenting a general and theory-neutral account of computation and information processing. We also apply our framework by analyzing the relatio...
Focussed ion beam (FIB) technology has the advantage of being a maskless process compatible with UHV processing. This makes it attractive for use in in situ processing and has been applied to the fabrication of various mesoscopic structures. The present paper reviews these results whilst putting emphasis on in situ processing by a combined FIB and molecular beam epitaxy system. The typical performance of present FIB systems is also presented. In order to utilize the potential advantages of FIB processing, reduction of damage and improvement of throughput are important, and much effort has been devoted to developing processing techniques which require a reduced dose. The importance of low-energy FIB is discussed. (author).
Focussed ion beam (FIB) technology has the advantage of being a maskless process compatible with UHV processing. This makes it attractive for use in in situ processing and has been applied to the fabrication of various mesoscopic structures. The present paper reviews these results whilst putting emphasis on in situ processing by a combined FIB and molecular beam epitaxy system. The typical performance of present FIB systems is also presented. In order to utilize the potential advantages of FIB processing, reduction of damage and improvement of throughput are important, and much effort has been devoted to developing processing techniques which require a reduced dose. The importance of low-energy FIB is discussed. (author).
The article focusses on operational experience gained with the following items: scrubbing system with oxidation, regenerative gas preheater, blower/fan, aerosol filter, and product processing. (orig./PW).
For a process intimately connected to an immense range of physiological processes, the molecular understanding of macroautophagy remains far from complete. Recent large-scale studies, including...Full Text Available
Project methodology, analysis of the occupational and training situation, task analysis process, design process for a systematic training plan specific to the job position are described.
The objective of this project was to develop new photocatalytic or other innovative process chemistry for the treatment of pink water and related contaminated water.
... ge aircraft engines (geae) has taken to development an induction plasma deposition (ipd) processing method for the fabrication of ti6242/sic mmc ...
The study design included an in vivo laboratory study. The objective of the study is to quantify the kinematics of the lumbar spinous processes in asymptomatic patients during un-restricted functional...Full Text Available
... coordinates to allow for multisensor fusion, trajectory ... of an image processing toolkit (iPTK ... effectiveness of data-driven registration processing, spatial ...
Objective:This paper describes the Lamar Soutter Library's process and costs associated with digitizing 300 doctoral dissertations for a newly implemented institutional repository...Full Text Available
A process has been proposed to increase the efficiency of an ideal Otto cycle via a quantum heat engine that has no cooler reservoir. We show that such a process is not feasible.
...Continued) FEDERAL RAILROAD ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION QUALIFICATION AND CERTIFICATION OF LOCOMOTIVE ENGINEERS Dispute Resolution Procedures § 240.405 Processing qualification review petitions. (a)...
This report describes accomplishment of simulations of Pyrochemical Process Operation by using virtual engineering models. The pyrochemical process using molten salt electrorefining would introduce new technologies for new fuels of particle oxide, particle nitride and metallic fuels. This system is a batch treatment system of reprocessing and re-fabrication, which transports products of solid form from a process to next process. As a results, this system needs automated transport system for process operations by robotics. In this study, a simulation code system has been prepared, which provides virtual engineering environment to evaluate the pyrochemical process operation of a batch treatment system using handling robots. And the simulation study has been conducted to evaluate the required system functions, which are the function of handling robots, the ...
This 4.5-year project consisted of routine analytical support to DOE`s direct liquefaction process development effort (the Base Program), and an extensive effort to develop, demonstate, and apply new analytical methods for the characterization of liquefaction process streams (the Participants Program). The objective of the Base Program was to support the on-going DOE direct coal liquefaction process development program. Feed, process, and product samples were used to assess process operations, product quality, and the effects of process variables, and to direct future testing. The primary objective of the Participants Program was to identify and demonstrate analytical methods for use in support of liquefaction process develpment, and in so doing, provide a bridge between process design, development, and operation and ...
A review is presented of the work being carried out around the world on the vitrification of high-level waste. A description is given of the French AVM process, West Germany's research on the Vera, Fips and Pamela processes and the United Kingdom Harvest process. Mention is also made of the Lotes process being developed by Belguim, and of the inactive vitrification plant in Italy, Ivet 1. (U.K.).
Thermodynamic consideration and process calculations at equilibrium conditions showed that processes for separating gas mixtures by partial condensation at low temperatures using turboexpanders have got less energy losses than processes with quasi isobar partial condensation. Compared to the low-pressure parts of condensing steam turbines in turboexpanders less erosion problems are to expected for such separating processes. Separation of liquid in the machine, however, is more difficult withouf additional measures. (orig.).
Two extruded magnesium alloys, AZ31 and AZ61 were selected to evaluate the influence of process parameters on the material forgeability. The processing parameters considered for forging magnesium alloys were: compression load in the range 55 KN to 60 KN and forging temperature, in the range of ambient temperature to 300 C. Uniaxial compression tests were conducted to establish the strain-temperature relationship. The influences of process parameters on the microstructure were also evaluated. (orig.)
The application of photopolymerisation (UV) and electron beams (EB) technologies in radiation rapid cure (PRC) processing is discussed. The chemistry associated with such reactions and the mechanisms of the processes are treated. The occurrence of concurrent grafting to substrate with radiation curing of films is shown to be an advantage in enhancing the properties of certain finished products. The parameters influencing the optimum grafting yield in such PRC processes are discussed. In many applications, the chemistry of such processes combined with the machine, specially for EB is shown. (author).
The application of various signal processing methods to extract energy storage information from plasma diamagnetism sensors occurring during physics experiments on the Tandom Mirror Experiment-Upgrade (TMX-U) is discussed. We show how these processing techniques can be used to decrease the uncertainty in the corresponding sensor measurements. The algorithms suggested are implemented using SIG, an interactive signal processing package developed at LLNL.
The image processing system for the dynamic neutron radiography has been developed. It is based on the hardware subset, composed by the method of the pipe-line and use of algorithm of local statistics. The processing speed per one pixel is shorter than 100 n sec and video-rate processing can be executed on it. Some image processes for improving the quality of the real-time neutron image, noise reduction and contrast stretching would be attempted by the use of this system. (author).
Processes were developed that use lasers as manufacturing tools. These processes were stripping of insulation from cables and wires, machining of quartz, microdrilling and welding of reflective metals, and precision alignment of curved surfaces before machining. A technological basis also was formed which resulted in a process for automatic surface inspection of parts and aided development of machining processes for Kevlar parts.
The Synthoil process for producing heavy desulfurized fuel oil from coal has been under development at Pittsburgh Energy Research Center since 1969. The status of development and technical feasibility of the process are reviewed. This is part of an engineering and economic evaluation based on the conceptual design of a 100,000-bbl/day commercial Synthoil facility. Experimental data are discussed with regard to their adequacy for the formulation of a basis for the process design of such a facility. Potential engineering and equipment problems are analyzed.
Data Qualification (DQ) is a formal, technical process whose objective is to affirm that experimental data are suitable for their intended use. Although it is not possible to develop a fixed recipe for the DQ process to cover all test situations, these general guidelines have been developed for the Nuclear Engineering Section to establish a framework for qualifying data from steady-state processing. These guidelines outline the role of the DQ team providing insight into the planning and conducting of the DQ process.
Contents include: introduction; river systems; physical processes; chemical processes; estuaries and coastal zone; introduction; physical processes; chemical processes; the role of sediments; introduction; the anoxic layer; major-element chemistry; minor-element chemistry; the oxic-anoxic interface; assessment; introduction; analysis of sediments; modelling.
... Author: Radev, Dragomir R. Subjects: natural language processing DeweyClass: 764 Resource type: document Natural Language Processing Research Group Research Group based in the Department of Computer Science, University of Sheffield. Conducts research into natural language analysis topics including data mining/information extraction, dialogue, and semantics. Author: Department of Computer Science, University of Sheffield Subjects: natural language processing DeweyClass: 764 Resource ...
We report Sr, Pd and Ag abundances for a sample of metal-poor field giants and analyze a larger sample of Y, Zr, and Ba abundances. The [Y/Zr] and [Pd/Ag] abundance ratios are similar to those measured for the r-process-rich stars CS 22892-052 and CS 31082-001. The [Pd/Ag] ratio is larger than predicted from the solar-system r-process abundances. The constant[Y/Zr] and [Sr/Y] values in the field stars places strong limits on the contributions of the weak s-process and the main s-process to the light neutron-capture elements. Stars in the globular cluster M 15 possess lower [Y/Zr] values than the field stars. There is a large dispersion in [Y/Ba]. Because the r-process is responsible for the production of the heavy elements in the early Galaxy, these dispersions require varying light-to-heavy ratios in r-process yields.
A process combining dark fermentation and photofermentation for production of hydrogen is interesting due to its potential of producing hydrogen at a high yields. In this study, the hydrogen process is compared to a 2nd generation ethanol process with respect to cost and with the aim of increasing our understanding of the pros and cons and giving a clear picture of the present status of the two processes. The hydrogen production cost was found to be about 20 times higher than the ethanol production cost, 421.7&z.euro;/GJ compared to 19.5&z.euro;/GJ. The main drawbacks of the hydrogen process are its low productivity, low energy efficiency, and the high cost of buffer and base required to control the pH.
Microwave-hydrothermal processing was compared with conventional hydrothermal processing in the crystallization of hematite from 1M ferric nitrate and hydroxyapatite from calcium oxide and phosphoric acid. Microwave-hydrothermal processing led to the crystallization of hematite while convention-hydrothermal process led to the crystallization of a mixture of goethite and hematite under the same temperature conditions. Thus the crystallization of hematite which is the stable iron oxide phase at high temperatures has been catalyzed by microwaves. Microwave-hydrothermal processing also led to highly crystalline hydroxyapatite powders compared to the conventional hydrothermal processing which also points to the catalytic role of microwaves. The microwave induced effects may be attributed to the generation of localized high temperatures at the reaction sites which ...
In this paper a novel method is presented, based on the use of plasma processing, to suppress the transient enhanced diffusion of boron implanted in silicon. We found for silicon samples processed with plasma and subsequently boron implanted that the anomalous diffusion of the dopant atoms at the beginning of the annealing process is almost completely suppressed. This phenomenon is interpreted in terms of capture of the ion beam generated interstitials by the dislocations induced by the plasma processing. At room temperature the dislocations are observed to grow in size after the boron implant, attesting their efficiency as trapping centres for interstitials. Moreover, varying the plasma process conditions we can establish a general relation between the presence of the trapping centres induced by the plasma processing and the suppression of the transient ...
A computer modelling has been developed for the calculation of mass balance of monazite ore break-down by alkali process at Rare Earth Research and Development Center. The process includes the following units : ore digestion by concentrate NaOH, dissolution of digested ore by HCl, uranium and thorium precipitation and crystallization of Na3PO4 which is by-product from this process. The model named RRDCMBP was prepared in Visual Basic language. The modelling program can be run on personal computer and it is interactive and easy to use. User is able to choose any equipment in each unit process and input data to get output of mass balance results. The model could be helpful in the process analysis for the further process adjustment and development.
Magnesium alloys are ideal candidates to benefit from equal channel angular extrusion (ECAE) because of their poor forming characteristics due to a hcp structure. In this study, ECAE processing was applied to ZK31 and AZ31 magnesium alloys under various conditions. The grain size of as-ECAE specimens decreases with decreasing the processing temperature, however, the grain size decreases slightly with increasing number of repetitive processing. Both the tensile strength and 0.2% proof stress of as-ECAE specimens are high when processed at low temperature, but the elongation is high when processed at high temperature. Crystal orientation is different in the two alloys and it also varies according to the processing temperature for the two alloys. The difference of the crystal orientation influences the tensile properties, especially 0.2% proof stress. (orig.)
An ion processing element employing composite media disposed in a porous substrate, for facilitating removal of selected chemical species from a fluid stream. The ion processing element includes a porous fibrous glass substrate impregnated by composite media having one or more active components supported by a matrix material of polyacrylonitrile. The active components are effective in removing, by various mechanisms, one or more constituents from a fluid stream passing through the ion processing element. Due to the porosity and large surface area of both the composite medium and the substrate in which it is disposed, a high degree of contact is achieved between the active component and the fluid stream being processed. Further, the porosity of the matrix material and the substrate facilitates use of the ion processing element in high volume applications where it is desired to ...
The papers collected in this volume were presented at the 4th Colloquium on Process Simulation held at Helsinki University of Technology, Espoo, Finland, June 11-13, 1997. In the more developed industrial nations, the processes for producing chemicals, energy, and materials encounter environmental concern and laws which challenge engineers to develop the processes towards more efficient, economical and safe operation. This necessitates more thorough understanding of the processes and phenomena involved. Formerly, the development of the processes was largely based on trial and error, whereas today, the development of computer performance together with the diversification of modelling software enables simulation of the processes. The increased capacity and possibilities for modelling the processes brought by the improved hardware and software, ...
Appendices to this summary consist of twelve individual status reports that will be available through the National Technical Information Service (NTIS) in the United States and of course limited copies will be available through NATO. The twelve report titles which are appendices to the summary are: (A) Status Report on the Limestone/Sludge Flue Gas Desulfurization Process; (B) Status Report on the Lime/Sludge Flue Gas Desulfurization Process; (C) Status Report on the Double Alkali/Sludge Flue Gas Desulfurization Process; (D) Status Report on the Sea Water Scrubbing Flue Gas Desulfurization Process; (E) Status Report on the Limestone/Gypsum Flue Gas Desulfurization Process; (F) Status Report on the Lime/Gypsum Flue Gas Desulfurization Process; (G) Status Report on the Double Alkali/Gypsum Flue Gas Desulfurization Process; (H) Status Report on ...
This paper presents anew design concept for a gamma irradiation plant for the continuous processing of pumpable liquids. Typical applications of such a plant include: the irradiation vulcanisation of natural latex rubber; disinfection of municipal sewage sludge for agricultural use; sterilisation of liquids in the pharmaceutical and cosmetics industries; industrial processing of bulk liquids The authors describe the design and operation of the latex irradiator now operating on a small production scale in Malaysia and proposed developments. The design allows irradiation processing to be carried out under an inert or other gaseous environment. State-of-the-art computer control system ensures the fully automatic processing operation needed by industrial computers.
The author outlines the special features of several coal liquefaction processes and describes their present stage of development. The following processes are reviewed: the SRC, EDS and H-Coal processes, the new IG process, and the BCL and NEDOL processes. The type of products resulting from coal liquefaction are discussed and explanations given of their yields. Finally, the characteristics of coal liquids are compared with those of petroleum-derived products, and the author outlines the nature of a chemical industry based on coal liquids as feedstocks. 9 references, 4 figures, 6 tables.
This volume contains the papers presented at the 1st International Workshop on "Decentralized Coordination of Distributed Processes", DCDP 2010, held in Amsterdam, The Netherlands on June 10th, 2010 in conjunction with the 5th International Federated Conferences on Distributed Computing Techniques, DisCoTec 2010. The central theme of the workshop is the decentralized coordination of distributed processes. Decentralized: there is no single authority in the network that everything is vulnerable to. Coordinated: processes need to cooperate to achieve meaningful results, potentially in the face of mutual suspicion. Distributed: processes are separated by a potentially unreliable network.
A fundamental and very well studied region of the Erd\\"os-R\\'enyi process is the phase transition at n/2 edges in which a giant component suddenly appears. We examine the process beginning with an initial graph. We further examine the Bohman-Frieze process in which edges between isolated vertices are more likely. While the positions of the phase transitions vary, the three processes belong, roughly speaking, to the same universality class. In particular, the growth of the giant component in the barely supercritical region is linear in all cases.
We show that a stationary IDp process (i.e., an infinitely divisible stationary process without Gaussian part) can be written as the independent sum of four stationary IDp processes, each of them belonging to a different class characterized by its L\\'{e}vy measure. The ergodic properties of each class are, respectively, nonergodicity, weak mixing, mixing of all order and Bernoullicity. To obtain these results, we use the representation of an IDp process as an integral with respect to a Poisson measure, which, more generally, has led us to study basic ergodic properties of these objects.
The heavy crude fraction processing is performed under very high vacuum to minimize thermal cracking which cause coke deposition and damage the equipment. The current tendency is to process heavier oil leading to higher process temperatures and consequently to greater fouling. This situation demands better knowledge fouling process by carbonization. This problem is pronounced in the residual gasoil region of a vacuum distillation unit because it obstructs the recirculation circuits and the spray system with serious environmental and economics implications. This paper review the main correlated published work related to coke generation and fouling and presents a discussion about the works. (author)
Consol R&D is conducting a three-year program to characterize process and product streams from direct coal liquefaction process development projects. The program objectives are two-field: (1) to obtain and provide appropriate samples of coal liquids for the evaluation of analytical methodology, and (2) to support ongoing DOE-sponsored coal liquefaction process development efforts. The two broad objectives have considerable overlap and together serve to provide a bridge between process development and analytical chemistry.
Consol R&D is conducting a three-year program to characterize process and product streams from direct coal liquefaction process development projects. The program objectives are two-fold: (1) to obtain and provide appropriate samples of coal liquids for the evaluation of analytical methodology, and (2) to support ongoing DOE-sponsored coal liquefaction process development efforts. The two broad objectives have considerable overlap and together serve to provide a bridge between process development and analytical chemistry.
System identification is a necessity in control theory. Classical control theory usually considers processes with integer order transfer functions. Real processes are usually of fractional order as opposed to the ideal integral order models. A simple and elegant scheme is presented for approximation of such a real world fractional order process by an ideal integral order model. A population of integral order process models is generated and updated by PSO technique, the fitness function being the sum of squared deviations from the set of observations obtained from the actual fractional order process. Results show that the proposed scheme offers a high degree of accuracy.
The exergy method is used to compare different production processes and various methods for emission abatement with respect to their overall environmental impact. Some ammonium nitrate production processes are studied as examples, because the pollutants (ammonia and ammonium nitrate), emitted from these processes into the air and/or into the water, are really a feedstock and a product from the production process. Therefore, the essential result of the waste flows treatment is the recycling of the pollutants (ammonia and ammonium nitrate) back into the production process, decreasing simultaneously the exergy input and cumulative exergy consumption. (author)
We study a percolation process on the planted binary tree, where clusters freeze as soon as they become larger than some fixed parameter N. We show that as N goes to infinity, the process converges in some sense to the frozen percolation process introduced by Aldous. In particular, our results show that the asymptotic behaviour differs substantially from that on the square lattice, on which a similar process has been studied recently by van den Berg, de Lima and Nolin.
For years, the writing has been on the wall about the impact of climate change on the people, plants, animals, and habitats of Latin America and the Caribbean. Now, day-to-day experiences and eye-witness accounts from leading environmental and development groups are proving predictions to be correct. In the late 1990s, the world's pre-eminent group of climate scientists gathered under the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and predicted a devastating range of impacts, including an increase in the intensity and number of extreme weather events exacerbating natural disasters, forest die-off, melting glaciers, and the drying out of temperate grasslands. The region's huge geographical diversity means that patterns of vulnerability to climate change are extremely varied. It also makes modelling difficult, although this is constantly improving. To avoid misunderstanding, it is important to point out that with or without global warming, ...
The operation of industrial facilities has generally resulted in contamination of the surrounding soils and ground water. A variety of methods have been proposed for the remediation of contaminated sites. This paper presents new process technology that is capable of performing treatment on ground water or soil washing leachates. The process is targeted to treat low levels of radioactivity, organics and heavy metals present in the aqueous solutions, to be easily transported and provide simple operation on-site and provide an effluent that meets the specified discharge quality. The purification process involves sequential chemical treatment and filtration. The paper will describe the development of the technology and review the current progress in its use to remediate contaminated sites at Chalk River. The application of the process technology has demonstrated that the ambitious goal of setting the ...
The operation of industrial facilities has generally resulted in contamination of the surrounding soils and ground water. A variety of methods have been proposed for the remediation of contaminated sites. This paper presents new process technology that is capable of performing treatment on ground water or soil washing leachates. The process is targeted to treat low levels of radioactivity, organics and heavy metals present in the aqueous solutions, to be easily transported and provide simple operation on-site and provide an effluent that meets the specified discharge quality. The purification process involves sequential chemical treatment and filtration. The paper will describe the development of the technology and review the current progress in its use to remediate contaminated sites at Chalk River. The application of the process technology has demonstrated that the ambitious goal of setting the ...
Utilization of microwaves for heating purposes began in the 1940`s. This new form of energy transfer offers many distinct advantages over conventional heating, such as volumetric, fast, direct, selective, instantaneous, and controllable heating. Studies of microwave processing of polymeric materials in the early 1960`s led to a successful industrial application in the rubber industry. Since the mid-1980`s, there has been a great deal of interest in microwave processing of polymeric materials. Technical issues, such as temperature uniformity and control of thermal runaway during processing, were investigated and many successful laboratory scale results were obtained from both fundamental and processing studies. This paper presents a historical perspective of microwave heating in the processing of polymer composites and discusses possible future directions for technology ...
Process residues are generated at both the Rocky Flats Plant (RFP) and the Savannah River Plant (SRP) during aqueous chemical and pyrochemical operations. Frequently, process operations will result in either impure products or produce residues sufficiently contaminated with transuranics to be nondiscardable as waste. Purification and recovery flowsheets for process residues have been developed to generate solutions compatible with subsequent Purex operations and either solid or liquid waste suitable for disposal. The ''scrub alloy'' and the ''anode heel alloy'' are examples of materials generated at RFP which have been processed at SRP using the developed recovery flowsheets. Examples of process residues being generated at SRP for which flowsheets are under development include LECO crucibles and ...
A large portion of the work performed at nuclear power plants follows standardized flow paths. For example, although components on which the maintenance crew works differ from one assignment to the next, all assignments basically follow the same process: requesting, reviewing, planning, scheduling, executing, testing, and documenting the work. In general, the term open-quotes work processclose quotes is used to refer to a standardized sequence of tasks designed within the operational environment of an organization to achieve a specific goal. The predictable nature of work processes suggests that a systematic analysis can be conducted to identify the desirable design of the process and to develop performance measures with respect to the strengths and weaknesses in the process. Furthermore, because of the close relationship of the work process to plant performance and plant safety, it ...
Coal may be used to generate electrical energy by any of several processes, most of which involve combustion or gasification. Combustion in a coal-fired boiler and power generation using a steam-cycle is the conventional conversion method; however total energy conversion efficiencies for this type of process are only slightly over 30%. Integration of a gas-cycle in the process (combined cycle) may increase the total conversion efficiency to 40%. Conversion processes based on gasification offer efficiencies above 50%. H{sub 2}S is the predominant gaseous contaminant in raw coal gas. This process is concerned with the removal of H{sub 2} from coal gas through an electrochemical membrane technology.
An exergy analysis method is presented of the solar multi-effect humidification?dehumidification desalination (HDD) process. Pinch technology is used in the humidification process to determine the maximum possible saturated air temperature and the temperature of water rejected from the unit, and then the dehumidification process to determine the temperature of water leaving from the heat exchanger. The formulae to calculate the exergy of water and saturated air are given. The solar plane collector is used. From exergy analysis, the solar collector has the lowest exergy efficiency; the HDD process has a lower exergy efficiency, and the water rejected has also a large exergy loss. The energy and exergy recovery rate of the desalination process is also lower. The solar multi-effect HDD proces...
The unconventional technologies, currently applied at a certain category of materials, difficult to be processed through usual techniques, have undergone during the last 60 years all the stages, since their discovery to their use on a large scale. They are based on elementary mechanisms which run the processing through classic methods, yet, they use in addition the interconnections of these methods. This leads to a plus in performance by increasing the outcomes precision, reducing the processing time, increasing the quality of the finite product, etc. This performance can be much increased by using the computer and a software product in assisting the human operator in the processing by an unconventional method such as; the electric or electro-chemical erosion, the complex electric-electro-chemical erosion, the processing by a laser fascicle and so on. The present work presents such ...
Electromagnetic forming (EMF) is a forming process that relies on the inductive electromagnetic force to deform metallic workpiece at high speed. Calculation of the electromagnetic force is essential to understand the EMF process. However, accurate calculation requires complex numerical solution, in which the coupling between the electromagnetic process and the deformation of workpiece needs be considered. In this paper, an appropriate formula has been developed to calculate the electromagnetic force in metal work-piece in the sheet EMF process. The effects of the geometric size of coil, the material properties, and the parameters of discharge circuit on electromagnetic force are taken into consideration. Through the formula, the electromagnetic force at different time and in different positions of the workpiece can be predicted. The calculated electromagnetic force and magnetic field are in good ...
This paper presents a hybrid solar desalination process of the multi-effect humidification dehumidification and the basin-type unit. The sketch of the hybrid solar desalination process is given. The solar vacuated tube collector is employed in the desalination system, multi-effect humidification dehumidification desalination (HDD) process is plotted according to pinch technology, and then the water rejected from multi-effect HDD process is reused to desalinate in a basin-type unit further. The gain output ratio (GOR) of this system will rise by 2?3 at least through reusing the rejected water. The research proves that the multi-effect HDD has much room to be improved. A hybrid solar desalination process of the multi-effect humidification dehumidification and the basin-type unit should be no...
System identification refers to estimation of process parameters and is a necessity in control theory. Physical systems usually have varying parameters. For such processes, accurate identification is particularly important. Online identification schemes are also needed for designing adaptive controllers. Real processes are usually of fractional order as opposed to the ideal integral order models. In this paper, we propose a simple and elegant scheme of estimating the parameters for such a fractional order process. A population of process models is generated and updated by particle swarm optimization (PSO) technique, the fitness function being the sum of squared deviations from the actual set of observations. Results show that the proposed scheme offers a high degree of accuracy even when the observations are corrupted to a significant degree. Additional schemes to improve the ...
Statistical design of experiments is widely used among scientists and engineers to understand influential factors in a laboratory or manufacturing process. One of the underlying principles of...Full Text Available
The interactions between biochemical processes and mechanical signaling play important roles during various cellular processes such as wound healing, embryogenesis, metastasis, and cell migration. While...Full Text Available
This Mini-Computer-Assisted Nursing Management System allows nursing to control staffing costs and more effectively relate staffing to patient care requirements. Nursing resources are prospectively...Full Text Available
A schematic diagram of the decision making process for air pollution control equipment for the conversion of a fossil-fired generating unit from oil to coal is presented and explained.
Administrative procedure connecting for licensing new materials or consumer products appropriated to radiosterilization have been performed and explained. Also the organization of irradiation process for attaining the proper result have been described in detail. 4 refs, 1 tab.
BackgroundThe evidence that red and processed meat influences colorectal carcinogenesis was judged convincing in the 2007 World Cancer Research Fund/American Institute of Cancer...Full Text Available
BackgroundLittle is known about the role European patient organisations play in the process of deciding on reimbursement for medicines. Therefore we explore the...Full Text Available
A process is described for covering methane to a higher order hydrocarbon comprising contacting a gaseous reactant consisting of methane with a phosphate-containing catalyst for a sufficient period of time and at an effective temperature to provide the phosphate-containing catalyst consisting essentially of the higher order hydrocarbon. The catalyst is represented by a formula.
Two manufacturing processes have been developed for fabricating PLZT bonded lens assemblies (BLA's) for the USAF EEU-2/P Thermal/Flash Protective Goggle. One process utilizes thin Sylgard spacers which remain in the BLA to establish bond thickness between...
Laser-assisted processing techniques for producing high-quality solar cell metallization patterns are being investigated, developed, and characterized. The tasks comprising these investigations are outlined.
Research programs, presented at the contractor's review meeting on indirect liquefaction, are presented on the following topics: oxygenates (methanol) synthesis; Fischer-Tropsch synthesis; product upgrading; and process support engineering evaluations. A total of 18 reports are included. Individual projects are processed separately for the data bases. (CBS)
An analysis is made of the manner in which the process of primordial black-hole formation and the subsequent accretion of gas depend on the equation of state. On the assumption that the process is spherically symmetric, the problem is solved numerically.
An approach to the calculation of the quantity of heat consumed in the process of coal formation is presented. The variability of this parameter in a coalification series is analyzed using coals from the Kuznetsk and Tunguska Basins as an example.
The author demonstrates through a specific example that it is possible to extract rotational energy from a Kerr source (in principle, of arbitrary size but not turned black) through a reversible process by suitably injecting tachyons. (Auth.).
DOE is supporting the development of several conversion processes that are currently in the pilot plant stage. Each of these processes is described briefly and information given as to contractor, contract, funding, site and current progress. Several support projects are treated similarly. (LTN)
Pestiviruses are positive-strand RNA viruses closely related to human hepatitis C virus. Gene expression of these viruses occurs via translation of a polyprotein, which is further processed by cellular...Full Text Available
...that use the cellulose ether process to manufacture a particular cellulose ether. Cellulose food casing means a cellulose casing, which is manufactured using the viscose process, used in forming meat products (e.g., hot dogs,...