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At least 271 records · Page 15

Sensitivity of Seawater Oxygen Isotopes to Climatic and Tectonic Boundary Conditions in an Early Paleogene Simulation with GISS ModelE-R

An isotope-enabled ocean-atmosphere general circulation model (GISS ModelE -R) is used to estimate the spatial gradients of the oxygen isotopic composition of seawater (delta O-18(sub sw), where delta is the deviation from a known reference material in per mil) during the early Paleogene (45.65 Ma). Understanding the response of delta O-18(sub sw) to changes in climatic and tectonic boundary conditions is important because records of carbonate delta O-18 document changes in hydrology, as well as changes in temperature and global ice -volume. We present results from an early Paleogene configuration of ModelE -R which indicate that spatial gradients of surface ocean delta O-18(sub sw) during this period could have been significantly different to those in the modern ocean. The differences inferred from ModelE -R are sufficient to change early Paleogene sea surface temperature estimates derived from primary carbonate delta O-18 signatures by more than +/-2 C in large areas of the ocean. In the North Atlantic, Indian, and Southern Oceans, the differences in d18Osw inferred from our simulation with ModelE -R are in direct contrast with those from another d18O ]tracing model study which used different, but equally plausible, early Paleogene boundary conditions. The large differences in delta O-18(sub sw) between preindustrial and early Paleogene simulations, and between models, emphasizes the sensitivity of d18Osw to climatic and tectonic boundary conditions. For this reason, absolute estimates of Eocene/ Paleocene temperature derived from carbonate delta O-18 alone are likely to have larger uncertainties than are usually assumed.

Roberts, Christopher D.↗

The Effect of Europa and Enceladus Analog Seawater Composition on Isotopic Measurements of Volatile CO2

Science goals for icy ocean worlds missions include characterizing the chemical compositionof the surface and interior using remote sensing and in situ techniques. The next class of flightmass spectrometers for these missions will obtain compositional identifications and isotope ratiomeasurements of volatiles evolved from the ice surface (exosphere) and plumes. These massspectra will be combined with data from other flight instruments to infer the composition of theinterior from volatiles. To ensure accurate interpretation of these measurements, it is critical toverify whether the fundamental assumption that volatiles observed in icy ocean world exospheresor plumes will be a direct reflection of the sub-ice ocean. The present study evaluates whether isotopologues from an initial CO2 gas fractionate by interacting with seawater (brine) of varyingsalt composition and concentration. δ13CCO2 are affected by the pH of the brine and subsequentspeciation of {CO2}, where {CO2} represents the combination of CO2, H2CO3, HCO3-, and CO32-.{CO2} for low pH brines hypothesized for Europa will preferentially speciate as CO2. Analyzedδ13CCO2 for low pH brines are within error of the original δ13CCO2, demonstrating that volatile CO2in a low pH system will be a direct reflection of the original CO2. However, Europa’s radiativeenvironment and rapid depressurization due to plume ejection may impose fractionation effects.In contrast, high pH systems relevant to Enceladus or a more alkaline Europa are expected toform all carbonate species, while favoring speciation as HCO3-. High pH brines in theseexperiments include both an original CO2 gas and an isotopically distinct HCO3- (from NaHCO3salt). These alkaline experiments demonstrate that δ13CCO2 values are highly variable, and dependon the concentration of the dominant carbonate species, (Na)HCO3-. Mass balance estimatesindicate that measured δ13CCO2 is a thermodynamically predictable mixture of both carbonsources, suggesting that measurements of δ13C at Enceladus would directly reflect of the sourcesof CO2 and carbonate buffering in the ocean. δ18O measurements for CO2 interacting with KCland MgCl2 follow established models for δ18O-ionic strength. CO2 interacting with MgSO4,Na2SO4, and NaCl demonstrate an offset from established δ18O-ionic strength models dependingon the concentration of initial CO2. These results suggest that current predictive models for δ18Oin brines need to be resolved for changing concentrations of CO2

Ocean Worlds↗

Model for Dielectric Constant of Seawater based on L-band Measurements with Conductivity by Definition

This article reports an improvement in the model for the dielectric constant of seawater used to fit laboratory measurements of the dielectric constant at the L-band. The new model (dielectric constant as a function of salinity, temperature, and frequency) is based on the response of a polar molecule proposed by Debye and fits the same measurement as reported in earlier work but uses a functional form for conductivity, σ(S,T) , that is given by the definition of salinity. The new version of this model fits the data well and has the advantages that the relaxation time constant is allowed to be a function of temperature and salinity and is well behaved when extrapolated to high salinities.

L-band↗

Techno-Economic Analysis of Geologically Connected Seawater Air Conditioning (GeoSWAC) Concept for District Cooling at the University of Puerto Rico at Rio Piedras: Preprint

At the University of Puerto Rico at Rio Piedras, a central chilled water plant supplies cooling to several campus buildings, contributing significantly to electricity demand during daytime peak hours, particularly in the summer months. These operational challenges are exacerbated by Puerto Rico's tropical rainforest climate and a power grid vulnerable to frequent disruptions caused by hurricanes and tropical storms. This study presents a techno-economic analysis of the existing chilled water plant serving four representative campus buildings and introduces a conceptual alternative: the Geologically connected Seawater Air Conditioning (GeoSWAC) system. GeoSWAC leverages stable low temperatures of deep ocean water (~1 km depth), hydraulically connected to an inland well, to deliver cooling without the use of vapor-compression refrigeration. Using modeled annual cooling loads and chiller performance data, capital costs, energy consumption, and levelized cost of cooling (LCOC) were evaluated for both systems. While GeoSWAC showed higher capital costs than the chiller-based scenario, operational costs were significantly lower at $26k-$53k annually, resulting in a lower LCOC between $2.3/MWh and $8.2/MWh compared to $30.2/MWh-$33.6/MWh for the chiller scenario. These results suggest that the GeoSWAC system offers a promising, low-energy, and climate-resilient alternative for large-scale cooling in tropical coastal environments, with significant potential to reduce peak electricity demand and improve long-term system reliability.

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗

Study of corrosion of super martensitic stainless steel under alternating current in artificial seawater with electrochemical impedance spectroscopy

The assessment of corrosion requires the use of tools able to quantify the corrosion but often times also qualify it. Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) is a laboratory tool that can provide both qualification and quantification of corrosion. EIS was successfully used to compare the thickness of the corrosion products formed during the application of different alternating current (AC) densities as well as to characterize pitting. When EIS is applied at the open circuit potential, the technique is nondestructive and predicts the corrosion behavior of the electrode. It can also be used at cathodic potentials while still being nondestructive, providing information about the electrode reaction kinetics, diffusion and electrical double layer.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Radioecologycal study of {sup 239/240}Pu in Bangka Island and Muria Peninsula: Determination of {sup 239/240}Pu in marine sediment and seawater as part of baseline data collecting for sitting of candidates of first Indonesia NPP

Radioisotope Pu-239/240 are alpha emitting nuclides important indicators of radioactive contamination of the marine environment. Global fallout is the main source of plutonium in the marine environment. There are very limited study on {sup 239/240}Pu in Indonesia coastal environments. The data of this radioisotopes is needed for baseline data of nuclear power plant (NPP) site candidates both in Bangka Island and Muria Peninsula. Bottom sediments play an important role in radioecological studies of the marine environment because a large proportion of radioactive substances entering the sea is adsorbed over time onto suspended particulate matter and deposited in sediments. Plutonium is particle reactive and deposited in marine sediment. Radioisotope {sup 239/240}Pu was determinated by alpha spectrometry after radiochemical procedure that was performed in both water and marine sediment from Bangka Island and Muria Peninsula. The sediment baseline of concentration {sup 239/240}Pu in Bangka Island and Muria Peninsula were range from 0.013 to 0.021 Bq.kg{sup −1} and 0.018 to 0.024 Bq.kg{sup −1} respectively. The water baseline concentration this isotope were range from 2.73 to 4.05 mBq.m{sup −3} and 2.98 to 4.50 mBq.m{sup −3}.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Selective precipitation of potassium in seawater samples for improving the sensitivity of plain γ-ray spectrometry

An analytical method is presented to reduce the amount of {sup 40}K in sea water samples, in order to lower its interference in γ-ray analysis below 1.4 MeV due to the Compton continuum. Sodium tetraphenylborate was used to successfully precipitate {sup 40}K in the samples. A custom procedure for precipitation of potassium was developed and it was evaluated for its selectivity, reproducibility and efficiency, using conventional analytical techniques such as atomic absorption spectrophotometry and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). This work has shown that the selective precipitation of potassium with sodium tetraphenylborate has led to a decrease of detection limit of radio nuclides such as {sup 238}U, {sup 226}Ra, {sup 228}Ra, {sup 137}Cs, {sup 134}Cs, {sup 133}I, {sup 134}I, {sup 60}Co in γ-analysis. In particular, the detection limit for nuclides with emissions in the energy window energy below 1400 keV is improved by almost one order of magnitude.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Applicability of iron phosphate glass medium for loading NaCl originated from seawater used for cooling the stricken power reactors

As the part of investigation for immobilization of the sludge as one of the radioactive wastes arising from the treatment of contaminated water at Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant, applicability of vitrification method has been evaluated as a candidate technique. The aim of this study is to evaluate the influence of NaCl as one of the main constituents of sludge, on glass formation and glass properties. Two kinds of iron phosphate glass (IPG) media in the xFe{sub 2}O{sub 3}-(100-x)P{sub 2}O{sub 5}, with x=30 and 35 (mol%) were chosen and the glass formation, structure and properties including density, coefficient of thermal expansion, glass transition temperature, onset crystallization temperature and chemical durability of NaCl-loaded IPG were studied. The results are summarized as follows. Sodium chloride, NaCl could be loaded into IPG medium as Na{sub 2}O and Cl contents and their loading ratio could be up to 19 and 15 mol%, respectively. Majority of Cl content of raw material NaCl was thought to be volatilized during glass melting. Loading NaCl into IPG induces to de-polymerize glass network of phosphate chains, leads to decrease both glass transition and onset crystallization temperatures, and to increase coefficient of thermal expansion. NaCl-loaded IPG indicated good chemical durability in case of using 35Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3}- 65P{sub 2}O{sub 5} medium. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

Thermodynamic Studies to Support Extraction of Uranium from Seawater

This milestone report summarizes the data obtained in FY15 on the major task of quantifying the binding strength of amidoxime-related ligands. Thermodynamic studies of the interaction between U(VI) and amidoxime ligand HL III were studied to quantify the binding ability of U(VI) with amidoxime-related ligands and help to select grafting/reaction conditions so that higher yield of preferred amidoxime-related ligands is obtained. Besides the thermodynamic task, structural studies on vanadium complexation with amidoxime ligand were conducted to help understand the extremely strong sorption of vanadium on poly(amidoxime) sorbents. Data processing and summarization of the vanadium system are in progress and will be included in the next milestone report.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

Thermodynamic Studies to Support Extraction of Uranium from Seawater

This milestone report summarizes the data obtained in FY16 on the major task of quantifying the binding strength of amidoxime-related ligands. Thermodynamic studies of the interaction between U(VI) and amidoxime ligand HL III were studied to quantify the binding ability of U(VI) with amidoxime-related ligands and help to select grafting/reaction conditions so that higher yield of preferred amidoxime-related ligands is obtained. Besides the thermodynamic task, structural studies on vanadium complexation with amidoxime ligand were conducted to help understand the extremely strong sorption of vanadium on poly(amidoxime) sorbents. Data processing and summarization of the vanadium system are in progress and will be included in the next milestone report.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

Seawater Compatible Rotary Pump for Wave Energy Conversion

This report summarizes technical work completed by Resolute Marine Energy under Grant Number DE-EE0008385 as a part of the Water Power Technologies Offices sponsored research program by researchers from Resolute Marine and subcontracts of Chesterton, DAA (now known as Engineering USA) and NextRung Technologies.

16 TIDAL AND WAVE POWER↗