Sample records for abstract trace gas

  1. Leveraging Semantic Labels for Multi-level Abstraction in Medical Process Mining and Trace Comparison.

    PubMed

    Leonardi, Giorgio; Striani, Manuel; Quaglini, Silvana; Cavallini, Anna; Montani, Stefania

    2018-05-21

    Many medical information systems record data about the executed process instances in the form of an event log. In this paper, we present a framework, able to convert actions in the event log into higher level concepts, at different levels of abstraction, on the basis of domain knowledge. Abstracted traces are then provided as an input to trace comparison and semantic process discovery. Our abstraction mechanism is able to manage non trivial situations, such as interleaved actions or delays between two actions that abstract to the same concept. Trace comparison resorts to a similarity metric able to take into account abstraction phase penalties, and to deal with quantitative and qualitative temporal constraints in abstracted traces. As for process discovery, we rely on classical algorithms embedded in the framework ProM, made semantic by the capability of abstracting the actions on the basis of their conceptual meaning. The approach has been tested in stroke care, where we adopted abstraction and trace comparison to cluster event logs of different stroke units, to highlight (in)correct behavior, abstracting from details. We also provide process discovery results, showing how the abstraction mechanism allows to obtain stroke process models more easily interpretable by neurologists. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  2. Trace Gas Analyzer (TGA) program

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1977-01-01

    The design, fabrication, and test of a breadboard trace gas analyzer (TGA) is documented. The TGA is a gas chromatograph/mass spectrometer system. The gas chromatograph subsystem employs a recirculating hydrogen carrier gas. The recirculation feature minimizes the requirement for transport and storage of large volumes of carrier gas during a mission. The silver-palladium hydrogen separator which permits the removal of the carrier gas and its reuse also decreases vacuum requirements for the mass spectrometer since the mass spectrometer vacuum system need handle only the very low sample pressure, not sample plus carrier. System performance was evaluated with a representative group of compounds.

  3. Ethylene Trace-gas Techniques for High-speed Flows

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Davis, David O.; Reichert, Bruce A.

    1994-01-01

    Three applications of the ethylene trace-gas technique to high-speed flows are described: flow-field tracking, air-to-air mixing, and bleed mass-flow measurement. The technique involves injecting a non-reacting gas (ethylene) into the flow field and measuring the concentration distribution in a downstream plane. From the distributions, information about flow development, mixing, and mass-flow rates can be dtermined. The trace-gas apparatus and special considerations for use in high-speed flow are discussed. A description of each application, including uncertainty estimates is followed by a demonstrative example.

  4. Sampling and analysis of natural gas trace constituents

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Attari, A.; Chao, S.

    1993-09-01

    Major and minor components of natural gas are routinely analyzed by gas chromatography (GC), using a thermal conductivity (TC). The best results obtained by these methods can report no better than 0.01 mole percent of each measured component. Even the extended method of analysis by flame ionization detector (FID) can only improve on the detection limit of hydrocarbons. The gas industry needs better information on all trace constituents of natural gas, whether native or inadvertently added during gas processing that may adversely influence the operation of equipment or the safety of the consumer. The presence of arsenic and mercury inmore » some gas deposits have now been documented in international literature as causing not only human toxicity but also damaging to the field equipment. Yet, no standard methods of sampling and analysis exist to provide this much needed information. In this paper the authors report the results of a three-year program to develop an extensive array of sampling and analysis methods for speciation and measurement of trace constituents of natural gas. A cryogenic sampler operating at near 200 K ({minus}99 F) and at pipeline pressures up to 12.4 {times} 10{sup 6}Pa (1800 psig) has been developed to preconcentrate and recover all trace constituents with boiling points above butanes. Specific analytical methods have been developed for speciating and measurement of many trace components (corresponding to US EPA air toxics) by GC-AED and GC-MS, and for determining various target compounds by other techniques. Moisture, oxygen and sulfur contents are measured on site using dedicated field instruments. Arsenic, mercury and radon are sampled by specific solid sorbents for subsequent laboratory analysis.« less

  5. Photoacoustic Spectroscopy with Quantum Cascade Lasers for Trace Gas Detection

    PubMed Central

    Elia, Angela; Di Franco, Cinzia; Lugarà, Pietro Mario; Scamarcio, Gaetano

    2006-01-01

    Various applications, such as pollution monitoring, toxic-gas detection, non invasive medical diagnostics and industrial process control, require sensitive and selective detection of gas traces with concentrations in the parts in 109 (ppb) and sub-ppb range. The recent development of quantum-cascade lasers (QCLs) has given a new aspect to infrared laser-based trace gas sensors. In particular, single mode distributed feedback QCLs are attractive spectroscopic sources because of their excellent properties in terms of narrow linewidth, average power and room temperature operation. In combination with these laser sources, photoacoustic spectroscopy offers the advantage of high sensitivity and selectivity, compact sensor platform, fast time-response and user friendly operation. This paper reports recent developments on quantum cascade laser-based photoacoustic spectroscopy for trace gas detection. In particular, different applications of a photoacoustic trace gas sensor employing a longitudinal resonant cell with a detection limit on the order of hundred ppb of ozone and ammonia are discussed. We also report two QC laser-based photoacoustic sensors for the detection of nitric oxide, for environmental pollution monitoring and medical diagnostics, and hexamethyldisilazane, for applications in semiconductor manufacturing process.

  6. Linking genes to ecosystem trace gas fluxes in a large-scale model system

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Meredith, L. K.; Cueva, A.; Volkmann, T. H. M.; Sengupta, A.; Troch, P. A.

    2017-12-01

    Soil microorganisms mediate biogeochemical cycles through biosphere-atmosphere gas exchange with significant impact on atmospheric trace gas composition. Improving process-based understanding of these microbial populations and linking their genomic potential to the ecosystem-scale is a challenge, particularly in soil systems, which are heterogeneous in biodiversity, chemistry, and structure. In oligotrophic systems, such as the Landscape Evolution Observatory (LEO) at Biosphere 2, atmospheric trace gas scavenging may supply critical metabolic needs to microbial communities, thereby promoting tight linkages between microbial genomics and trace gas utilization. This large-scale model system of three initially homogenous and highly instrumented hillslopes facilitates high temporal resolution characterization of subsurface trace gas fluxes at hundreds of sampling points, making LEO an ideal location to study microbe-mediated trace gas fluxes from the gene to ecosystem scales. Specifically, we focus on the metabolism of ubiquitous atmospheric reduced trace gases hydrogen (H2), carbon monoxide (CO), and methane (CH4), which may have wide-reaching impacts on microbial community establishment, survival, and function. Additionally, microbial activity on LEO may facilitate weathering of the basalt matrix, which can be studied with trace gas measurements of carbonyl sulfide (COS/OCS) and carbon dioxide (O-isotopes in CO2), and presents an additional opportunity for gene to ecosystem study. This work will present initial measurements of this suite of trace gases to characterize soil microbial metabolic activity, as well as links between spatial and temporal variability of microbe-mediated trace gas fluxes in LEO and their relation to genomic-based characterization of microbial community structure (phylogenetic amplicons) and genetic potential (metagenomics). Results from the LEO model system will help build understanding of the importance of atmospheric inputs to

  7. Trace gas emissions from nursery crop production using different fertilizer methods

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Increased trace gas emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide (N2O) are widely believed to be a primary cause of global warming. Agriculture is a large contributor to these emissions; however, its role in climate change is unique in that it can act as a source of trace gas ...

  8. Hollow Waveguide Gas Sensor for Mid-Infrared Trace Gas Analysis

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Kim, S; Young, C; Chan, J

    2007-07-12

    A hollow waveguide mid-infrared gas sensor operating from 1000 cm{sup -1} to 4000 cm{sup -1} has been developed, optimized, and its performance characterized by combining a FT-IR spectrometer with Ag/Ag-halide hollow core optical fibers. The hollow core waveguide simultaneously serves as a light guide and miniature gas cell. CH{sub 4} was used as test analyte during exponential dilution experiments for accurate determination of the achievable limit of detection (LOD). It is shown that the optimized integration of an optical gas sensor module with FT-IR spectroscopy provides trace sensitivity at the few hundreds of parts-per-billion concentration range (ppb, v/v) for CH{submore » 4}.« less

  9. Trace gas absorption spectroscopy using laser difference-frequency spectrometer for environmental application

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Chen, W.; Cazier, F.; Boucher, D.; Tittel, F. K.; Davies, P. B.

    2001-01-01

    A widely tunable infrared spectrometer based on difference frequency generation (DFG) has been developed for organic trace gas detection by laser absorption spectroscopy. On-line measurements of concentration of various hydrocarbons, such as acetylene, benzene, and ethylene, were investigated using high-resolution DFG trace gas spectroscopy for highly sensitive detection.

  10. The Reanalysis for Stratospheric Trace-gas Studies

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Pawson, Steven; Li, Shuhua

    2002-01-01

    In order to re-examine trace gas transport in the middle atmosphere for the period May 1991 until April 1995, a "reanalysis" is being performed using an up-to-date version of the DAO's "GEOS" assimilation system. The Reanalysis for Stratospheric Trace-gas Studies (ReSTS) is intended to provide state-of-the-art estimates of the atmosphere during a period when the Upper Atmospheric Research Satellite provided a high density of trace-gas observations, and when the aerosol loading from the eruption of Mount Pinatubo contaminated the lower stratosphere, at the same time performing a natural tracer transport experiment. This study will present the first results from ReSTS, focussing on the improvements over the meteorological analyses produced by the then-operational GEOS-1 data assimilation system; emphasis will be placed on the improved representations of physical processes between GEOS-1 and the current GEOS-4 systems, highlighting the transport properties of the datasets. Alongside the production of a comprehensive atmospheric dataset, important components of ReSTS include performing sensitivity studies to the formulation of the assimilation system (including the representation of physical processes in the GCM, such as feedbacks between ozone/aerosols and meteorology) and to the inclusion of additional data types (including limb-sounding temperature data alongside the TOVS observations). Impacts of some of these factors on the analyzed meteorology and transport will be discussed. Of particular interest are attempts to determine the relative importance of various steps in the assimilation process to the quality of the final analyses.

  11. DISCOVER-AQ Aircraft insitu TraceGas Data (ICT)

    Atmospheric Science Data Center

    2018-03-28

    DISCOVER-AQ Aircraft insitu TraceGas Data (ICT) Project Title:  N/A Platform:  NASA ... Relevant Documents:  DISCOVER-AQ - Airborne Science Data for Atmospheric Composition DISCOVER-AQ - NASA Earth ...

  12. Operational trace gas column observations from GOME-2 on MetOp

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Valks, Pieter; Hao, Nan; Pinardi, Gaia; Hedelt, Pascal; Liu, Song; Van Roozendael, Michel; De Smedt, Isabelle; Theys, Nicolas; Koukouli, MariLiza; Balis, Dimitris

    2017-04-01

    This contribution focuses on the operational GOME-2 trace gas column products developed in the framework of EUMETSAT's Satellite Application Facility on Atmospheric Composition Monitoring (AC-SAF). We present an overview of the retrieval algorithms for ozone, OClO, NO2, SO2 and formaldehyde, and we show examples of various applications such as air quality and climate monitoring, using observations from the GOME-2 instruments on MetOp-A and MetOp-B. Total ozone and the minor trace gas columns from GOME-2 are retrieved with the latest version 4.8 of the GOME Data Processor (GDP), which uses an optimized Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy (DOAS) algorithm, with air mass factor conversions based on the LIDORT model. Improved total and tropospheric NO2 columns are retrieved in the visible wavelength region between 425 and 497 nm. SO2 emissions from volcanic and anthropogenic sources can be measured by GOME-2 using the UV wavelength region around 320 nm. For formaldehyde, an optimal DOAS fitting window around 335 nm has been determined for GOME-2. The GOME-2 trace gas columns have reached the operational EUMETSAT product status, and are available to the users in near real time (within two hours after sensing by GOME-2). The use of trace gas observations from the GOME-2 instruments on MetOp-A and MetOp-B for air quality purposed will be illustrated, e.g. for South-East Asia and Europe. Furthermore, comparisons of the GOME-2 satellite observations with ground-based measurements will be shown. Finally, the use of GOME-2 trace-gas column data in the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) will be presented.

  13. Effects of fertilizer placement on trace gas emissions from nursery container production

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Increased trace gas emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide (N2O) are widely believed to be a primary cause of global warming. Agriculture is a large contributor to these emissions; however, its role in climate change is unique in that it can act as a source of trace gas ...

  14. Selected Translated Abstracts of Chinese-Language Climate Change Publications

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Cushman, R.M.; Burtis, M.D.

    1999-05-01

    This report contains English-translated abstracts of important Chinese-language literature concerning global climate change for the years 1995-1998. This body of literature includes the topics of adaptation, ancient climate change, climate variation, the East Asia monsoon, historical climate change, impacts, modeling, and radiation and trace-gas emissions. In addition to the biological citations and abstracts translated into English, this report presents the original citations and abstracts in Chinese. Author and title indexes are included to assist the reader in locating abstracts of particular interest.

  15. Effects of fertilizer placement on trace gas emissions from container-grown plant production

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Increased trace gas emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide (N2O) are widely believed to be a primary cause of global warming. Agriculture is a large contributor to these emissions; however, its role in climate change is unique in that it can act as a source of trace gas ...

  16. Trace gas detection in hyperspectral imagery using the wavelet packet subspace

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Salvador, Mark A. Z.

    This dissertation describes research into a new remote sensing method to detect trace gases in hyperspectral and ultra-spectral data. This new method is based on the wavelet packet transform. It attempts to improve both the computational tractability and the detection of trace gases in airborne and spaceborne spectral imagery. Atmospheric trace gas research supports various Earth science disciplines to include climatology, vulcanology, pollution monitoring, natural disasters, and intelligence and military applications. Hyperspectral and ultra-spectral data significantly increases the data glut of existing Earth science data sets. Spaceborne spectral data in particular significantly increases spectral resolution while performing daily global collections of the earth. Application of the wavelet packet transform to the spectral space of hyperspectral and ultra-spectral imagery data potentially improves remote sensing detection algorithms. It also facilities the parallelization of these methods for high performance computing. This research seeks two science goals, (1) developing a new spectral imagery detection algorithm, and (2) facilitating the parallelization of trace gas detection in spectral imagery data.

  17. Beat frequency quartz-enhanced photoacoustic spectroscopy for fast and calibration-free continuous trace-gas monitoring

    PubMed Central

    Wu, Hongpeng; Dong, Lei; Zheng, Huadan; Yu, Yajun; Ma, Weiguang; Zhang, Lei; Yin, Wangbao; Xiao, Liantuan; Jia, Suotang; Tittel, Frank K.

    2017-01-01

    Quartz-enhanced photoacoustic spectroscopy (QEPAS) is a sensitive gas detection technique which requires frequent calibration and has a long response time. Here we report beat frequency (BF) QEPAS that can be used for ultra-sensitive calibration-free trace-gas detection and fast spectral scan applications. The resonance frequency and Q-factor of the quartz tuning fork (QTF) as well as the trace-gas concentration can be obtained simultaneously by detecting the beat frequency signal generated when the transient response signal of the QTF is demodulated at its non-resonance frequency. Hence, BF-QEPAS avoids a calibration process and permits continuous monitoring of a targeted trace gas. Three semiconductor lasers were selected as the excitation source to verify the performance of the BF-QEPAS technique. The BF-QEPAS method is capable of measuring lower trace-gas concentration levels with shorter averaging times as compared to conventional PAS and QEPAS techniques and determines the electrical QTF parameters precisely. PMID:28561065

  18. Trace Gas Retrievals from the GeoTASO Aircraft Instrument

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nowlan, C. R.; Liu, X.; Leitch, J. W.; Liu, C.; Gonzalez Abad, G.; Chance, K.; Cole, J.; Delker, T.; Good, W. S.; Murcray, F.; Ruppert, L.; Soo, D.; Loughner, C.; Follette-Cook, M. B.; Janz, S. J.; Kowalewski, M. G.; Pickering, K. E.; Zoogman, P.; Al-Saadi, J. A.

    2015-12-01

    The Geostationary Trace gas and Aerosol Sensor Optimization (GeoTASO) instrument is a passive remote sensing instrument capable of making 2-D measurements of trace gases and aerosols from aircraft. The instrument measures backscattered UV and visible radiation, allowing the retrieval of trace gas amounts below the aircraft at horizontal resolutions on the order of 250 m x 250 m. GeoTASO was originally developed under NASA's Instrument Incubator Program as a test-bed instrument for the Geostationary Coastal and Air Pollution Events (GEO-CAPE) decadal survey mission, and is now also part of risk reduction for the upcoming Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution (TEMPO) and Geostationary Environment Monitoring Spectrometer (GEMS) geostationary satellite missions. We present spatially resolved observations of ozone, nitrogen dioxide, formaldehyde and sulfur dioxide over urban areas and power plants from flights during the DISCOVER-AQ field campaigns in Texas and Colorado, as well as comparisons with observations made by ground-based Pandora spectrometers, in situ monitoring instruments and other aircraft instruments deployed during these campaigns. These measurements at various times of day are providing a very useful data set for testing and improving TEMPO and GEMS retrieval algorithms, as well as demonstrating prototype validation strategies.

  19. Scaling up in the face of uncertainty - controls on trace gas fluxes in heterogeneous landscapes (Invited)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bernhardt, E. S.; Helton, A. M.; Morse, J. L.; Poole, G. C.

    2013-12-01

    Wetlands are the dominant natural source of methane to the global atmosphere and can be important sites of either N2O emission or consumption. Changes in the spatial extent or inundation frequency and duration may lead to substantial shifts in the contribution of wetland ecosystems to global CH4 and N2O emissions. Trace gases are produced at the scale of individual microbes, each of which respond dynamically to the local availability of electron donors and acceptors. Within landscape patches, substrate supply and redox conditions are strongly controlled by variation in water table elevation and vertical hydrologic exchange. At the landscape scale, lateral exchange between patches and the extent and duration of inundation. Accurate estimates of trace gas emissions from wetlands are hard to estimate given the dynamic patterns of redox potential within the soil column and across the landscape that redistribute electron donors and acceptors both vertically and laterally. In five years of trace gas flux measurement and modeling at TOWER, a 440 ha restored wetland in coastal NC, we have developed both simulation and statistical models to estimate landscape level trace gas fluxes. Yet, because trace gas emissions are highly variable in both time and space, our qualitative and quantitative attempts at upscaling trace gas emissions typically generate estimates with extremely high uncertainty. In this talk we will explore the challenges inherent to the estimation of landscape scale trace gas fluxes at the scale of our individual ecosystem as well as the difficulties in extrapolating across multiple ecosystem studies.

  20. Chirped Laser Dispersion Spectroscopy for Remote Open-Path Trace-Gas Sensing

    PubMed Central

    Nikodem, Michal; Wysocki, Gerard

    2012-01-01

    In this paper we present a prototype instrument for remote open-path detection of nitrous oxide. The sensor is based on a 4.53 μm quantum cascade laser and uses the chirped laser dispersion spectroscopy (CLaDS) technique for molecular concentration measurements. To the best of our knowledge this is the first demonstration of open-path laser-based trace-gas detection using a molecular dispersion measurement. The prototype sensor achieves a detection limit down to the single-ppbv level and exhibits excellent stability and robustness. The instrument characterization, field deployment performance, and the advantages of applying dispersion sensing to sensitive trace-gas detection in a remote open-path configuration are presented. PMID:23443389

  1. Chirped laser dispersion spectroscopy for remote open-path trace-gas sensing.

    PubMed

    Nikodem, Michal; Wysocki, Gerard

    2012-11-28

    In this paper we present a prototype instrument for remote open-path detection of nitrous oxide. The sensor is based on a 4.53 μm quantum cascade laser and uses the chirped laser dispersion spectroscopy (CLaDS) technique for molecular concentration measurements. To the best of our knowledge this is the first demonstration of open-path laser-based trace-gas detection using a molecular dispersion measurement. The prototype sensor achieves a detection limit down to the single-ppbv level and exhibits excellent stability and robustness. The instrument characterization, field deployment performance, and the advantages of applying dispersion sensing to sensitive trace-gas detection in a remote open-path configuration are presented.

  2. Determining trace gas flux from container-grown woody ornamentals

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    In recent years, anthropogenic climate change and its effects on the global environment has garnered significant attention from the scientific community. Increased trace gas emissions (CO2, CH4, and N2O) are widely believed to be the driving force behind global warming. Agriculture is a large contri...

  3. Trace gas emissions from the marine biosphere.

    PubMed

    Liss, Peter S

    2007-07-15

    A wide variety of trace gases (e.g. dimethyl sulphide, organohalogens, ammonia, non-methane and oxygenated hydrocarbons, volatile oxygenated organics and nitrous oxide) are formed in marine waters by biological and photochemical processes. This leads in many, but not all, cases to supersaturation of the water relative to marine air concentrations and a net flux of trace gas to the atmosphere. Since the gases are often in their reduced forms in the water, once in the atmosphere they are subject to oxidation by photolysis or radical attack to form chemically reactive species that can affect the oxidizing capacity of the air. They can also lead to the formation of new particles or the growth of existing ones that can then contribute to both direct and indirect (via the formation of cloud condensation nuclei) aerosol effects on climate. These cycles are discussed with respect to their impacts on the chemistry of the atmosphere, climate and human health. This whole topic was the subject of an extensive review (Nightingale & Liss 2003 In Treatise in geochemistry (eds H. D. Holland & K. K. Turekian), pp. 49-81) and what will be attempted here is a brief update of the earlier paper. There is no attempt to be comprehensive either in terms of gases covered or to give a complete review of all the recent literature. It is a personal view of recent advances both from my own research group as well as significant work from others. Questions raised at the meeting 'Trace gas biogeochemistry and global change' are dealt with at appropriate places in the text (rather than at the end of the piece). Discussion of each of the gases or group of gases is given in the following separate sections.

  4. Direct analysis of ultra-trace semiconductor gas by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry coupled with gas to particle conversion-gas exchange technique.

    PubMed

    Ohata, Masaki; Sakurai, Hiromu; Nishiguchi, Kohei; Utani, Keisuke; Günther, Detlef

    2015-09-03

    An inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICPMS) coupled with gas to particle conversion-gas exchange technique was applied to the direct analysis of ultra-trace semiconductor gas in ambient air. The ultra-trace semiconductor gases such as arsine (AsH3) and phosphine (PH3) were converted to particles by reaction with ozone (O3) and ammonia (NH3) gases within a gas to particle conversion device (GPD). The converted particles were directly introduced and measured by ICPMS through a gas exchange device (GED), which could penetrate the particles as well as exchange to Ar from either non-reacted gases such as an air or remaining gases of O3 and NH3. The particle size distribution of converted particles was measured by scanning mobility particle sizer (SMPS) and the results supported the elucidation of particle agglomeration between the particle converted from semiconductor gas and the particle of ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3) which was produced as major particle in GPD. Stable time-resolved signals from AsH3 and PH3 in air were obtained by GPD-GED-ICPMS with continuous gas introduction; however, the slightly larger fluctuation, which could be due to the ionization fluctuation of particles in ICP, was observed compared to that of metal carbonyl gas in Ar introduced directly into ICPMS. The linear regression lines were obtained and the limits of detection (LODs) of 1.5 pL L(-1) and 2.4 nL L(-1) for AsH3 and PH3, respectively, were estimated. Since these LODs revealed sufficiently lower values than the measurement concentrations required from semiconductor industry such as 0.5 nL L(-1) and 30 nL L(-1) for AsH3 and PH3, respectively, the GPD-GED-ICPMS could be useful for direct and high sensitive analysis of ultra-trace semiconductor gas in air. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  5. Dual-wavelength quantum cascade laser for trace gas spectroscopy

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Jágerská, J.; Tuzson, B.; Mangold, M.

    2014-10-20

    We demonstrate a sequentially operating dual-wavelength quantum cascade laser with electrically separated laser sections, emitting single-mode at 5.25 and 6.25 μm. Based on a single waveguide ridge, this laser represents a considerable asset to optical sensing and trace gas spectroscopy, as it allows probing multiple gas species with spectrally distant absorption features using conventional optical setups without any beam combining optics. The laser capability was demonstrated in simultaneous NO and NO{sub 2} detection, reaching sub-ppb detection limits and selectivity comparable to conventional high-end spectroscopic systems.

  6. A photoacoustic spectrometer for trace gas detection

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Telles, E. M.; Bezerra, E.; Scalabrin, A.

    2005-06-01

    A high-resolution external laser photoacoustic spectrometer has been developed for trace gas detection with absorption transitions in coincidence with CO2 laser emission lines (9,2-10,9 μm: 920-1086 cm-1). The CO2 laser operates in 90 CW lines with power of up to 15 W. A PC-controlled step motor can tune the laser lines. The resonance frequency of first longitudinal mode of the photoacoustic cell is at 1600 Hz. The cell Q-factor and cell constant are measured close to 50 and 28 mVcmW-1, respectively. The spectrometer has been tested in preliminary studies to analyze the absorption transitions of ozone (O_3). The ethylene (C_2H_4) from papaya fruit is also investigated using N2 as carrier gas at a constant flow rate.

  7. Chamber measurement of surface-atmosphere trace gas exchange: Numerical evaluation of dependence on soil, interfacial layer, and source/sink properties

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hutchinson, G. L.; Livingston, G. P.; Healy, R. W.; Striegl, R. G.

    2000-04-01

    We employed a three-dimensional finite difference gas diffusion model to simulate the performance of chambers used to measure surface-atmosphere trace gas exchange. We found that systematic errors often result from conventional chamber design and deployment protocols, as well as key assumptions behind the estimation of trace gas exchange rates from observed concentration data. Specifically, our simulations showed that (1) when a chamber significantly alters atmospheric mixing processes operating near the soil surface, it also nearly instantaneously enhances or suppresses the postdeployment gas exchange rate, (2) any change resulting in greater soil gas diffusivity, or greater partitioning of the diffusing gas to solid or liquid soil fractions, increases the potential for chamber-induced measurement error, and (3) all such errors are independent of the magnitude, kinetics, and/or distribution of trace gas sources, but greater for trace gas sinks with the same initial absolute flux. Finally, and most importantly, we found that our results apply to steady state as well as non-steady-state chambers, because the slow rate of gas diffusion in soil inhibits recovery of the former from their initial non-steady-state condition. Over a range of representative conditions, the error in steady state chamber estimates of the trace gas flux varied from -30 to +32%, while estimates computed by linear regression from non-steady-state chamber concentrations were 2 to 31% too small. Although such errors are relatively small in comparison to the temporal and spatial variability characteristic of trace gas exchange, they bias the summary statistics for each experiment as well as larger scale trace gas flux estimates based on them.

  8. Trace gas emissions from chaparral and boreal forest fires

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Cofer, Wesley R., III; Levine, Joel S.; Sebacher, Daniel I.; Winstead, Edward L.; Riggan, Philip J.; Stocks, Brian J.; Brass, James A.; Ambrosia, Vincent G.

    1989-01-01

    Using smoke samples collected during low-level helicopter flights, the mixing ratios of CO2, CO, CH4, total nonmethane hydrocarbons, H2, and N2O over burning chaparral in southern California and over a burning boreal forest site in northern Ontario, Canada, were determined. Carbon dioxide-normalized emission ratios were determined for each trace gas for conditions of flaming, mixed, and smoldering combustion. The emission ratios for these trace gases were found to be highest for the smoldering combustion, generally thought to be the least efficient combustion stage. However, high emission ratios for these gases could be also produced during very vigorous flaming combustion.

  9. [Remote sensing of atmospheric trace gas by airborne passive FTIR].

    PubMed

    Gao, Min-quang; Liu, Wen-qing; Zhang, Tian-shu; Liu, Jian-guo; Lu, Yi-huai; Wang, Ya-ping; Xu, Liang; Zhu, Jun; Chen, Jun

    2006-12-01

    The present article describes the details of aviatic measurement for remote sensing trace gases in atmosphere under various surface backgrounds with airborne passive FTIR. The passive down viewing and remote sensing technique used in the experiment is discussed. The method of acquiring atmospheric trace gases infrared characteristic spectra in complicated background and the algorithm of concentration retrieval are discussed. The concentrations of CO and N2O of boundary-layer atmosphere in experimental region below 1000 m are analyzed quantitatively. This measurement technique and the data analysis method, which does not require a previously measured background spectrum, allow fast and mobile remote detection and identification of atmosphere trace gas in large area, and also can be used for urgent monitoring of pollution accidental breakout.

  10. Miniature Tunable Laser Spectrometer for Detection of a Trace Gas

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Christensen, Lance E. (Inventor)

    2017-01-01

    An open-path laser spectrometer (OPLS) for measuring a concentration of a trace gas, the OPLS including an open-path multi-pass analysis region including a first mirror, a second mirror at a distance and orientation from the first mirror, and a support structure for locating the mirrors, a laser coupled to the analysis region and configured to emit light of a wavelength range and to enable a plurality of reflections of the emitted light between the mirrors, a detector coupled to the analysis region and configured to detect a portion of the emitted light impinging on the detector and to generate a corresponding signal, and an electronic system coupled to the laser and the detector, and configured to adjust the wavelength range of the emitted light from the laser based on the generated signal, and to measure the concentration of the trace gas based on the generated signal.

  11. Miniature Trace Gas Detector Based on Microfabricated Optical Resonators

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Aveline, David C.; Yu, Nan; Thompson, Robert J.; Strekalov, Dmitry V.

    2013-01-01

    While a variety of techniques exist to monitor trace gases, methods relying on absorption of laser light are the most commonly used in terrestrial applications. Cavity-enhanced absorption techniques typically use high-reflectivity mirrors to form a resonant cavity, inside of which a sample gas can be analyzed. The effective absorption length is augmented by the cavity's high quality factor, or Q, because the light reflects many times between the mirrors. The sensitivity of such mirror-based sensors scales with size, generally making them somewhat bulky in volume. Also, specialized coatings for the high-reflectivity mirrors have limited bandwidth (typically just a few nanometers), and the delicate mirror surfaces can easily be degraded by dust or chemical films. As a highly sensitive and compact alternative, JPL is developing a novel trace gas sensor based on a monolithic optical resonator structure that has been modified such that a gas sample can be directly injected into the cavity. This device concept combines ultra-high Q optical whispering gallery mode resonators (WGMR) with microfabrication technology used in the semiconductor industry. For direct access to the optical mode inside a resonator, material can be precisely milled from its perimeter, creating an open gap within the WGMR. Within this open notch, the full optical mode of the resonator can be accessed. While this modification may limit the obtainable Q, calculations show that the reduction is not significant enough to outweigh its utility for trace gas detection. The notch can be milled from the high- Q crystalline WGMR with a focused ion beam (FIB) instrument with resolution much finer than an optical wavelength, thereby minimizing scattering losses and preserving the optical quality. Initial experimental demonstrations have shown that these opened cavities still support high-Q whispering gallery modes. This technology could provide ultrasensitive detection of a variety of molecular species in an

  12. Trace Gas Retrievals from the GeoTASO Aircraft Instrument During the DISCOVER-AQ Campaigns

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nowlan, C. R.; Liu, X.; Leitch, J. W.; Liu, C.; Gonzalez Abad, G.; Chance, K.; Delker, T.; Good, W. S.; Murcray, F.; Ruppert, L.; Kaptchen, P. F.; Loughner, C.; Follette-Cook, M. B.; Pickering, K. E.

    2014-12-01

    The Geostationary Trace gas and Aerosol Sensor Optimization (GeoTASO) instrument is a recently-developed passive remote sensing instrument capable of making 2-D measurements of trace gases from aircraft. GeoTASO was developed under NASA's Instrument Incubator program and is a test-bed instrument for the Geostationary Coastal and Air Pollution Events (GEO-CAPE) decadal survey and the upcoming Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution (TEMPO) satellite missions. The instrument collects spectra of backscattered UV-visible radiation for the detection of tropospheric trace gases such as NO2, ozone, formaldehyde and SO2. GeoTASO flew on the NASA HU-25C Falcon aircraft during the 2013 (Texas) and 2014 (Colorado) DISCOVER-AQ field campaigns, making satellite-analog measurements of trace gases at a spatial resolution of approximately 500x500 m over urban areas, power plants and other industrial sources of pollution. We present the GeoTASO retrieval algorithms, trace gas measurement results, and validation comparisons with ground-based observations and other aircraft instruments during these campaigns.

  13. Anatomy of a cluster IDP. Part 2: Noble gas abundances, trace element geochemistry, isotopic abundances, and trace organic chemistry of several fragments from L2008#5

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Thomas, K. L.; Clemett, S. J.; Flynn, G. J.; Keller, L. P.; Mckay, David S.; Messenger, S.; Nier, A. O.; Schlutter, D. J.; Sutton, S. R.; Walker, R. M.

    1994-01-01

    The topics discussed include the following: noble gas content and release temperatures; trace element abundances; heating summary of cluster fragments; isotopic measurements; and trace organic chemistry.

  14. Chamber measurement of surface-atmosphere trace gas exchange--Numerical evaluation of dependence on soil interfacial layer, and source/sink products

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Hutchinson, G.L.; Livingston, G.P.; Healy, R.W.; Striegl, Robert G.

    2000-01-01

    We employed a three-dimensional finite difference gas diffusion model to simulate the performance of chambers used to measure surface-atmosphere tace gas exchange. We found that systematic errors often result from conventional chamber design and deployment protocols, as well as key assumptions behind the estimation of trace gas exchange rates from observed concentration data. Specifically, our simulationshowed that (1) when a chamber significantly alters atmospheric mixing processes operating near the soil surface, it also nearly instantaneously enhances or suppresses the postdeployment gas exchange rate, (2) any change resulting in greater soil gas diffusivity, or greater partitioning of the diffusing gas to solid or liquid soil fractions, increases the potential for chamber-induced measurement error, and (3) all such errors are independent of the magnitude, kinetics, and/or distribution of trace gas sources, but greater for trace gas sinks with the same initial absolute flux. Finally, and most importantly, we found that our results apply to steady state as well as non-steady-state chambers, because the slow rate of gas diffusion in soil inhibits recovery of the former from their initial non-steady-state condition. Over a range of representative conditions, the error in steady state chamber estimates of the trace gas flux varied from -30 to +32%, while estimates computed by linear regression from non-steadystate chamber concentrations were 2 to 31% too small. Although such errors are relatively small in comparison to the temporal and spatial variability characteristic of trace gas exchange, they bias the summary statistics for each experiment as well as larger scale trace gas flux estimates based on them.

  15. Enabling chip-scale trace gas sensing systems with silicon photonics

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Green, William

    Tunable laser trace-gas spectroscopy has been effectively used in both environmental and medical applications, for its sensitivity and specificity. We’ll describe how contemporary silicon photonics manufacturing and assembly are leveraged for a cost-effective miniaturized spectroscopic sensor platform, and outline uses in fugitive methane emissions monitoring.

  16. Irrigation and fertilizer placement effects on trace gas emissions from an ornamental crop

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Agriculture is a large contributor of trace gas emissions and much of the work on reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions has focused on row crops, pastures, forestry, and animal production systems; however, little emphasis has been placed on specialty crop industries such as horticulture. A horticu...

  17. An experimental trace gas investigation of fluid transport and mixing in a circular-to-rectangular transition duct

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Reichert, B. A.; Hingst, W. R.; Okiishi, T. H.

    1991-01-01

    An ethylene trace gas technique was used to map out fluid transport and mixing within a circular to rectangular transition duct. Ethylene gas was injected at several points in a cross stream plane upstream of the transition duct. Ethylene concentration contours were determined at several cross stream measurement planes spaced axially within the duct. The flow involved a uniform inlet flow at a Mach number level of 0.5. Statistical analyses were used to quantitatively interpret the trace gas results. Also, trace gas data were considered along with aerodynamic and surface flow visualization results to ascertain transition duct flow phenomena. Convection of wall boundary layer fluid by vortices produced regions of high total pressure loss in the duct. The physical extent of these high loss regions is governed by turbulent diffusion.

  18. Seasonal Trace Gas Dynamics on Minerotrophic Fen Peatlands in NE-Germany

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Giebels, Michael; Beyer, Madlen; Augustin, Jürgen; Minke, Merten; Juszczak, Radoszlav; Serba, Tomasz

    2010-05-01

    In Germany more than 99 % of fens have lost their carbon and nutrient sink function due to heavy drainage and agricultural land use especially during the last decades and thus resulted in compression and heavy peat loss (CHARMAN 2002; JOOSTEN & CLARKE 2002; SUCCOW & JOOSTEN 2001; AUGUSTIN et al. 1996; KUNTZE 1993). Therefore fen peatlands play an important part (4-5 %) in the national anthropogenic trace gas budget. But only a small part of drained and agricultural used fens in NE Germany can be restored. Knowledge of the influence of land use to trace gas exchange is important for mitigation of the climate impact of the anthropogenic peatland use. We study carbon exchanges of several fen peatland use areas between soil and atmosphere at different sites in NE-Germany. Our research covers peatlands of supposed strongly climate forcing land use (cornfield and intensive pasture) and of probably less forcing, alternative types (meadow and extensive pasture) as well as rewetted (formerly drained) areas and near-natural sites like a low-degraded fen and a wetted alder woodland. We measured trace gas fluxes with manual and automatic chambers in periodic routines since spring 2007. The used chamber technique bases on DROESLER (2005). In total we now do research at 22 sites situated in 5 different locations covering agricultural, varying states of rewetted and near-natural treatments. We present results of at least 2 years of measurements and show significant differences in their annual trace gas balances depending on the genesis of the observed sites and the seasonal dynamics. Crosswise comparison of different site treatments combined with the seasonal environmental observations give good hints for the identification of main flux driving parameters. That is that a reduced intensity in land use as a supposed mitigating treatment did not show the expected effect, though a normal meadow treatment surprisingly resulted in the lowest balances in both years. For implementing a

  19. Formaldehyde in Absorption: Tracing Molecular Gas in Early-Type Galaxies

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dollhopf, Niklaus M.; Donovan Meyer, Jennifer

    2016-01-01

    Early-Type Galaxies (ETGs) have been long-classified as the red, ellipsoidal branch of the classic Hubble tuning fork diagram of galactic structure. In part with this classification, ETGs are thought to be molecular and atomic gas-poor with little to no recent star formation. However, recent efforts have questioned this ingrained classification. Most notably, the ATLAS3D survey of 260 ETGs within ~40 Mpc found 22% contain CO, a common tracer for molecular gas. The presence of cold molecular gas also implies the possibility for current star formation within these galaxies. Simulations do not accurately predict the recent observations and further studies are necessary to understand the mechanisms of ETGs.CO traces molecular gas starting at densities of ~102 cm-3, which makes it a good tracer of bulk molecular gas, but does little to constrain the possible locations of star formation within the cores of dense molecular gas clouds. Formaldehyde (H2CO) traces molecular gas on the order of ~104 cm-3, providing a further constraint on the location of star-forming gas, while being simple enough to possibly be abundant in gas-poor ETGs. In cold molecular clouds at or above ~104 cm-3 densities, the structure of formaldehyde enables a phenomenon in which rotational transitions have excitation temperatures driven below the temperature of the cosmic microwave background (CMB), ~2.7 K. Because the CMB radiates isotropically, formaldehyde can be observed in absorption, independent of distance, as a tracer of moderately-dense molecular clouds and star formation.This novel observation technique of formaldehyde was incorporated for observations of twelve CO-detected ETGs from the ATLAS3D sample, including NGC 4710 and PGC 8815, to investigate the presence of cold molecular gas, and possible star formation, in ETGs. We present images from the Very Large Array, used in its C-array configuration, of the J = 11,0 - 11,1 transition of formaldehyde towards these sources. We report our

  20. Trace gas emissions from biomass burning in tropical Australian savannas

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Hurst, D.F.; Griffith, D.W.T.; Cook, G.D.

    1994-08-20

    The trace gas emissions of biomass burning was measured during the 1991 and 1992 dry seasons (April through October) at the Kapalga Research Station in Kakadu National Park, Northern Territory, Australia. Over 100 smoke samples from savannah fires were collected, from the ground and from aircraft flying at 50 to 700 meters above the fires. The samples were analyzed for carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrous oxides, and other carbon and nitrogen compounds using gas phase Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, matrix isolation FTIR spectroscopy, and chemiluminescence techniques. This paper describes the results of the gas analyses and discusses the potentialmore » impacts of these gases on regional atmospheric chemistry.49 refs., 4 figs., 7 tabs.« less

  1. Ultrasensitive, self-calibrated cavity ring-down spectrometer for quantitative trace gas analysis.

    PubMed

    Chen, Bing; Sun, Yu R; Zhou, Ze-Yi; Chen, Jian; Liu, An-Wen; Hu, Shui-Ming

    2014-11-10

    A cavity ring-down spectrometer is built for trace gas detection using telecom distributed feedback (DFB) diode lasers. The longitudinal modes of the ring-down cavity are used as frequency markers without active-locking either the laser or the high-finesse cavity. A control scheme is applied to scan the DFB laser frequency, matching the cavity modes one by one in sequence and resulting in a correct index at each recorded spectral data point, which allows us to calibrate the spectrum with a relative frequency precision of 0.06 MHz. Besides the frequency precision of the spectrometer, a sensitivity (noise-equivalent absorption) of 4×10-11  cm-1  Hz-1/2 has also been demonstrated. A minimum detectable absorption coefficient of 5×10-12  cm-1 has been obtained by averaging about 100 spectra recorded in 2  h. The quantitative accuracy is tested by measuring the CO2 concentrations in N2 samples prepared by the gravimetric method, and the relative deviation is less than 0.3%. The trace detection capability is demonstrated by detecting CO2 of ppbv-level concentrations in a high-purity nitrogen gas sample. Simple structure, high sensitivity, and good accuracy make the instrument very suitable for quantitative trace gas analysis.

  2. Airborne mapping of Seoul's atmosphere: Trace gas measurements from GeoTASO during KORUS-AQ

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nowlan, C. R.; Al-Saadi, J. A.; Castellanos, P.; Chance, K.; Gonzalez Abad, G.; Janz, S. J.; Judd, L.; Kowalewski, M. G.; Liu, X.

    2017-12-01

    The Geostationary Trace gas and Aerosol Sensor Optimization (GeoTASO) instrument is a pushbroom airborne remote sensing instrument capable of making measurements of air quality and ocean color using backscattered UV and visible light. GeoTASO is an airborne test-bed for the upcoming Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution (TEMPO) and Geostationary Environment Monitoring Spectrometer (GEMS) geostationary satellite missions, which will measure air quality over North America and Asia, respectively. GeoTASO also acts as a satellite analogue during field campaigns. GeoTASO flew on the NASA Langley Research Center UC-12 aircraft during the Korea-United States Air Quality Study in May-June 2016, collecting spectra over South Korea during 30 flights over 19 flight days. These observations can be used to derive 2-D maps of tropospheric trace gases including ozone, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, formaldehyde, nitrous acid and glyoxal below the aircraft at spatial resolutions between 250 m x 250 m and 1 km x 1 km, depending on the gas. We present spatially resolved trace gas retrievals over Seoul and its surrounding industrial regions, and comparisons with correlative satellite and campaign data.

  3. Determining trace gas efflux from container production of woody nursery crops

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    In recent years, climate change and its effects on the global environment has garnered significant attention from the scientific community. Increased trace gas emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) are widely believed to be the driving force behind global warming. ...

  4. Development of new method of δ13C measurement for trace hydrocarbons in natural gas using solid phase micro-extraction coupled to gas chromatography isotope ratio mass spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Li, Zhongping; Wang, Xibin; Li, Liwu; Zhang, Mingjie; Tao, Mingxin; Xing, Lantian; Cao, Chunhui; Xia, Yanqing

    2014-11-01

    Compound specific isotope analysis (CSIA) of normal-level hydrocarbons (C 1 -C 4 ) in natural gas is often successfully used in natural gas origin identification and classification, but little progress so far has been made for trace level hydrocarbons (C 5 -C 14 ) in natural gas. In this study, we developed a method for rapid analysis of carbon isotopic ratios for trace hydrocarbons in natural gas samples. This method can be described as a combined approach characterized by solid phase micro-extraction (SPME) technique coupled to gas chromatography isotope ratio mass spectrometry (GC/IRMS). In this study, the CAR-PDMS fiber was chosen as the SPME adsorptive material after comparative experiments with other four fibers, and the parameters, including equilibration time, extraction temperature and desorption time, for efficient extraction of trace hydrocarbons were systematically optimized. The results showed the carbon isotopic fractionation was not observed as a function of equilibration time and extraction temperature. And the δ 13 C signatures determined by SPME-GC/IRMS were in good agreement with the known δ 13 C values of C 5 -C 14 measured by GC-IRMS, and the accuracy is generally within ±0.5‰. Five natural gas samples were analyzed using this method, and the δ 13 C values for C 5 -C 14 components were obtained with satisfied repeatability. The SPME-GC/IRMS approach fitted with CAR-PDMS fiber is well suited for the preconcentration of trace hydrocarbons and provides so far the most reliable carbon isotopic analysis for trace compounds in natural gas. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  5. Nitrogen trace gas emissions from a riparian ecosystem in southern Appalachia

    Treesearch

    John T. Walker; Christopher D. Geron; James M. Vose; Wayne T. Swank

    2002-01-01

    In this paper, we present two years of seasonal nitric oxide (NO), ammonia (NH3), and nitrous oxide (N2O) trace gas fluxes measured in a recovering riparian zone with cattle excluded and adjacent riparian zone grazed by cattle. In the recovering riparian zone, average NO, NH3, and N

  6. Improvement and validation of trace gas retrieval from ACAM aircraft observation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liu, C.; Liu, X.; Kowalewski, M. G.; Janz, S. J.; Gonzalez Abad, G.; Pickering, K. E.; Chance, K.; Lamsal, L. N.

    2014-12-01

    The ACAM (Airborne Compact Atmospheric Mapper) instrument, flown on board the NASA UC-12 aircraft during the DISCOVER-AQ (Deriving Information on Surface Conditions from Column and Vertically Resolved Observations Relevant to Air Quality) campaigns, was designed to provide remote sensing observations of tropospheric and boundary layer pollutants and help understand some of the most important pollutants that directly affect the health of the population. In this study, slant column densities (SCD) of trace gases (O3, NO2, HCHO) are retrieved from ACAM measurements during the Baltimore-Washington D.C. 2011 campaign by the Basic Optical Absorption Spectroscopy (BOAS) trace gas fitting algorithm using a nonlinear least-squares (NLLS) inversion technique, and then are converted to vertical column densities (VCDs) using the Air Mass Factors (AMF) calculated with the VLIDORT (Vector Linearized Discrete Ordinate Radiative Transfer) model and CMAQ (Community Multi-scale Air Quality) model simulations of trace gas profiles. For surface treatment in the AMF, we use high-resolution MODIS climatological BRDF product (Bidirectional Reflectance Distribution Function) at 470 nm for NO2, and use high-resolution surface albedo derived by combining MODIS and OMI albedo databases for HCHO and O3. We validate ACAM results with coincident ground-based PANDORA, aircraft (P3B) spiral and satellite (OMI) measurements and find out generally good agreement especially for NO2 and O3

  7. Online Continuous Trace Process Analytics Using Multiplexing Gas Chromatography.

    PubMed

    Wunsch, Marco R; Lehnig, Rudolf; Trapp, Oliver

    2017-04-04

    The analysis of impurities at a trace level in chemical products, nutrition additives, and drugs is highly important to guarantee safe products suitable for consumption. However, trace analysis in the presence of a dominating component can be a challenging task because of noncompatible linear detection ranges or strong signal overlap that suppresses the signal of interest. Here, we developed a technique for quantitative analysis using multiplexing gas chromatography (mpGC) for continuous and completely automated process trace analytics exemplified for the analysis of a CO 2 stream in a production plant for detection of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and the three structural isomers of xylene (BTEX) in the concentration range of 0-10 ppb. Additional minor components are methane and methanol with concentrations up to 100 ppm. The sample is injected up to 512 times according to a pseudorandom binary sequence (PRBS) with a mean frequency of 0.1 Hz into a gas chromatograph equipped with a flame ionization detector (FID). A superimposed chromatogram is recorded which is deconvoluted into an averaged chromatogram with Hadamard transformation. Novel algorithms to maintain the data acquisition rate of the detector by application of Hadamard transformation and to suppress correlation noise induced by components with much higher concentrations than the target substances are shown. Compared to conventional GC-FID, the signal-to-noise ratio has been increased by a factor of 10 with mpGC-FID. Correspondingly, the detection limits for BTEX in CO 2 have been lowered from 10 to 1 ppb each. This has been achieved despite the presence of detectable components (methane and methanol) with a concentration about 1000 times higher than the target substances. The robustness and reliability of mpGC has been proven in a two-month field test in a chemical production plant.

  8. Strong spatial variability in trace gas dynamics following experimental drought in a humid tropical forest

    Treesearch

    Tana Wood; W. L. Silver

    2012-01-01

    [1] Soil moisture is a key driver of biogeochemical processes in terrestrial ecosystems, strongly affecting carbon (C) and nutrient availability as well as trace gas production and consumption in soils. Models predict increasing drought frequency in tropical forest ecosystems, which could feed back on future climate change directly via effects on trace gasdynamics and...

  9. Critical issues in trace gas biogeochemistry and global change.

    PubMed

    Beerling, David J; Nicholas Hewitt, C; Pyle, John A; Raven, John A

    2007-07-15

    The atmospheric composition of trace gases and aerosols is determined by the emission of compounds from the marine and terrestrial biospheres, anthropogenic sources and their chemistry and deposition processes. Biogenic emissions depend upon physiological processes and climate, and the atmospheric chemistry is governed by climate and feedbacks involving greenhouse gases themselves. Understanding and predicting the biogeochemistry of trace gases in past, present and future climates therefore demands an interdisciplinary approach integrating across physiology, atmospheric chemistry, physics and meteorology. Here, we highlight critical issues raised by recent findings in all of these key areas to provide a framework for better understanding the past and possible future evolution of the atmosphere. Incorporating recent experimental and observational findings, especially the influence of CO2 on trace gas emissions from marine algae and terrestrial plants, into earth system models remains a major research priority. As we move towards this goal, archives of the concentration and isotopes of N2O and CH4 from polar ice cores extending back over 650,000 years will provide a valuable benchmark for evaluating such models. In the Pre-Quaternary, synthesis of theoretical modelling with geochemical and palaeontological evidence is also uncovering the roles played by trace gases in episodes of abrupt climatic warming and ozone depletion. Finally, observations and palaeorecords across a range of timescales allow assessment of the Earth's climate sensitivity, a metric influencing our ability to decide what constitutes 'dangerous' climate change.

  10. Temperature Programmed Desorption of Quench-condensed Krypton and Acetone in Air; Selective Concentration of Ultra-trace Gas Components.

    PubMed

    Suzuki, Taku T; Sakaguchi, Isao

    2016-01-01

    Selective concentration of ultra-trace components in air-like gases has an important application in analyzing volatile organic compounds in the gas. In the present study, we examined quench-condensation of the sample gas on a ZnO substrate below 50 K followed by temperature programmed desorption (TPD) (low temperature TPD) as a selective gas concentration technique. We studied two specific gases in the normal air; krypton as an inert gas and acetone as a reactive gas. We evaluated the relationship between the operating condition of low temperature TPD and the lowest detection limit. In the case of krypton, we observed the selective concentration by exposing at 6 K followed by thermal desorption at about 60 K. On the other hand, no selectivity appeared for acetone although trace acetone was successfully concentrated. This is likely due to the solvent effect by a major component in the air, which is suggested to be water. We suggest that pre-condensation to remove the water component may improve the selectivity in the trace acetone analysis by low temperature TPD.

  11. Effect of persistent trace compounds in landfill gas on engine performance during energy recovery: a case study.

    PubMed

    Sevimoğlu, Orhan; Tansel, Berrin

    2013-01-01

    Performances of gas engines operated with landfill gas (LFG) are affected by the impurities in the LFG, reducing the economic viability of energy recovery. The purpose of this study was to characterize the trace compounds in the LFG at the Odayeri Landfill, Istanbul, Turkey which is used for energy recovery. Composite gas samples were collected and analyzed for trace compounds (hydrocarbons, siloxanes, and volatile halogenated hydrocarbons) over a 3-year period. Trace compounds entering the gas engines, their impact on the engine performance were evaluated. The operational problems included deposit formation in the combustion chamber, turbocharger, and intercooler of engine before the scheduled maintenance times. High levels of hydrogen sulfide, as well as chlorinated and fluorinated compounds cause corrosion of the engine parts and decrease life of the engine oils. Persistence of siloxanes results in deposit formation, increasing engine maintenance costs. Pretreatment of LFG is necessary to protect the engines at the waste-to-energy facilities with persistence levels of siloxanes and volatile halogenated hydrocarbons. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. Trace gas emissions from burning Florida wetlands

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cofer, Wesley R.; Levine, Joel S.; Winstead, Edward L.; Lebel, Peter J.; Koller, Albert M.; Hinkle, C. Ross

    1990-02-01

    Measurements of biomass burn-produced trace gases are presented that were obtained using a helicopter at low altitudes above burning Florida wetlands on November 9, 1987, and from both helicopter and light-aircraft samplings on November 7, 1988. Carbon dioxide (CO2) normalized emission ratios (ΔX/ΔCO2; V/V; where X is trace gas) for carbon monoxide (CO), hydrogen (H2), methane (CH4), total nonmethane hydrocarbons (TNMHC), and nitrous oxide (N2O) were obtained over burning graminoid wetlands consisting primarily of Spartina bakeri and Juncus roemerianus. Some interspersed scrub oak (Quercus spp) and saw palmetto (Screnoa repens) were also burned. No significant differences were observed in the emission ratios determined for these gases from samples collected over flaming, mixed, and smoldering phases of combustion during the 1987 fire. Combustion-categorized differences in emission ratios were small for the 1988 fire. Combustion efficiency was relatively good (low emission ratios for reduced gases) for both fires. We believe that the consistently low emission ratios were a unique result of graminoid wetlands fires, in which the grasses and rushes (both small-size fuels) burned rapidly down to standing water and were quickly extinguished. Consequently, the efficiency of the combustion was good and the amount and duration of smoldering combustion was greatly diminished.

  13. Gas chromatographic analysis of trace impurities in chlorine trifluoride.

    PubMed

    Laurens, J B; Swinley, J M; de Coning, J P

    2000-03-24

    The gas chromatographic determination of trace gaseous impurities in highly reactive fluorinated gaseous matrices presents unique requirements to both equipment and techniques. Especially problematic are the gases normally present in ambient air namely oxygen and nitrogen. Analysing these gases at the low microl/l (ppm) level requires special equipment and this publication describes a custom-designed system utilising backflush column switching to protect the columns and detectors. A thermal conductivity detector with nickel filaments was used to determine ppm levels of impurities in ClF3.

  14. Trace gas fluxes from a northern mixed-grass prairie interseeded with alfalfa

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    The role of legumes in improving soil fertility, forage quantity and quality is well established, however what is less clear is the extent that the nitrogen fixed by legumes may drive increased trace gas emissions. A chronosequence study in native prairie that had been interseed with the legume alfa...

  15. From biota to chemistry and climate: towards a comprehensive description of trace gas exchange between the biosphere and atmosphere

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Arneth, A.; Sitch, S.; Bondeau, A.; Butterbach-Bahl, K.; Foster, P.; Gedney, N.; de Noblet-Ducoudré, N.; Prentice, I. C.; Sanderson, M.; Thonicke, K.; Wania, R.; Zaehle, S.

    2010-01-01

    Exchange of non-CO2 trace gases between the land surface and the atmosphere plays an important role in atmospheric chemistry and climate. Recent studies have highlighted its importance for interpretation of glacial-interglacial ice-core records, the simulation of the pre-industrial and present atmosphere, and the potential for large climate-chemistry and climate-aerosol feedbacks in the coming century. However, spatial and temporal variations in trace gas emissions and the magnitude of future feedbacks are a major source of uncertainty in atmospheric chemistry, air quality and climate science. To reduce such uncertainties Dynamic Global Vegetation Models (DGVMs) are currently being expanded to mechanistically represent processes relevant to non-CO2 trace gas exchange between land biota and the atmosphere. In this paper we present a review of important non-CO2 trace gas emissions, the state-of-the-art in DGVM modelling of processes regulating these emissions, identify key uncertainties for global scale model applications, and discuss a methodology for model integration and evaluation.

  16. From biota to chemistry and climate: towards a comprehensive description of trace gas exchange between the biosphere and atmosphere

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Arneth, A.; Sitch, S.; Bondeau, A.; Butterbach-Bahl, K.; Foster, P.; Gedney, N.; de Noblet-Ducoudré, N.; Prentice, I. C.; Sanderson, M.; Thonicke, K.; Wania, R.; Zaehle, S.

    2009-07-01

    Exchange of non-CO2 trace gases between the land surface and the atmosphere plays an important role in atmospheric chemistry and climate. Recent studies have highlighted its importance for interpretation of glacial-interglacial ice-core records, the simulation of the pre-industrial and present atmosphere, and the potential for large climate-chemistry and climate-aerosol feedbacks in the coming century. However, spatial and temporal variations in trace gas emissions and the magnitude of future feedbacks are a major source of uncertainty in atmospheric chemistry, air quality and climate science. To reduce such uncertainties Dynamic Global Vegetation Models (DGVMs) are currently being expanded to mechanistically represent processes relevant to non-CO2 trace gas exchange between land biota and the atmosphere. In this paper we present a review of important non-CO2 trace gas emissions, the state-of-the-art in DGVM modelling of processes regulating these emissions, identify key uncertainties for global scale model applications, and discuss a methodology for model integration and evaluation.

  17. Trace gas retrieval for limb DOAS under changing atmospheric conditions: The X-gas scaling method vs optimal estimation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hueneke, Tilman; Grossmann, Katja; Knecht, Matthias; Raecke, Rasmus; Stutz, Jochen; Werner, Bodo; Pfeilsticker, Klaus

    2016-04-01

    Changing atmospheric conditions during DOAS measurements from fast moving aircraft platforms pose a challenge for trace gas retrievals. Traditional inversion techniques to retrieve trace gas concentrations from limb scattered UV/vis spectroscopy, like optimal estimation, require a-priori information on Mie extinction (e.g., aerosol concentration and cloud cover) and albedo, which determine the atmospheric radiative transfer. In contrast to satellite applications, cloud filters can not be applied because they would strongly reduce the usable amount of expensively gathered measurement data. In contrast to ground-based MAX-DOAS applications, an aerosol retrieval based on O4 is not able to constrain the radiative transfer in air-borne applications due to the rapidly decreasing amount of O4 with altitude. Furthermore, the assumption of a constant cloud cover is not valid for fast moving aircrafts, thus requiring 2D or even 3D treatment of the radiative transfer. Therefore, traditional techniques are not applicable for most of the data gathered by fast moving aircraft platforms. In order to circumvent these limitations, we have been developing the so-called X-gas scaling method. By utilising a proxy gas X (e.g. O3, O4, …), whose concentration is either a priori known or simultaneously in-situ measured as well as remotely measured, an effective absorption length for the target gas is inferred. In this presentation, we discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the novel approach along with some sample cases. A particular strength of the X-gas scaling method is its insensitivity towards the aerosol abundance and cloud cover as well as wavelength dependent effects, whereas its sensitivity towards the profiles of both gases requires a priori information on their shapes.

  18. Retrieval of trace gas concentrations over Summit Station, Greenland using moderate-resolution spectral infrared radiances

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bahramvash Shams, S.; Walden, V. P.; Turner, D. D.

    2017-12-01

    Measurements of trace gases at high temporal resolution are important for understanding variations and trends at high latitudes. Trace gases over Greenland can be influenced by both long-range transport from pollution sources as well as local chemical processes. Satellite retrievals are an important data source in the polar regions, but accurate ground-based measurements are needed for proper validation, especially in data sparse regions. A moderate-resolution (0.5 cm-1) Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (FTIR), the Polar Atmospheric Emitted Radiance Interferometer (P-AERI), has been operated at Summit Station, Greenland as part of the ICECAPS project since 2010. In this study, trace gas concentrations, including ozone, nitrous oxide, and methane are retrieved using different optimal estimation retrieval codes. We first present results of retrieved gases using synthetic spectra (from a radiative transfer model) that mimic P-AERI measurements to evaluate systematic errors in the inverse models. We also retrieve time series of trace gas concentrations during periods of clear skies over Summit. We investigate the amount of vertical information that can be obtained with moderate resolution spectra for each of the trace gases, and also the impact of the seasonal variation of atmospheric water vapor on the retrievals. Data from surface observations and ozonesondes obtained by the NOAA Global Monitoring Division are used to improve the retrievals and as validation.

  19. Analysis of trace impurities in neon by a customized gas chromatography.

    PubMed

    Yin, Min Kyo; Lim, Jeong Sik; Moon, Dong Min; Lee, Gae Ho; Lee, Jeongsoon

    2016-09-09

    Excimer lasers, widely used in the semiconductor industry, are crucial for analyzing the purity of premix laser gases for the purpose of controlling stable laser output power. In this study, we designed a system for analyzing impurities in pure neon (Ne) base gas by customized GC. Impurities in pure neon (H2 and He), which cannot be analyzed at the sub-μmol/mol level using commercial GC detectors, were analyzed by a customized pulsed-discharge Ne ionization detector (PDNeD) and a pressurized injection thermal conductivity detector using Ne as the carrier gas (Pres. Inj. Ne-TCD). From the results, trace species in Ne were identified with the following detection limits: H2, 0.378μmol/mol; O2, 0.119μmol/mol; CH4, 0.880μmol/mol; CO, 0.263μmol/mol; CO2, 0.162μmol/mol (PDNeD); and He, 0.190μmol/mol (Pres. Inj. Ne-TCD). This PDNeD and pressurized injection Ne-TCD technique thus developed permit the quantification of trace impurities present in high-purity Ne. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  20. Gas adsorption and desorption effects on high pressure small volume cylinders and their relevance to atmospheric trace gas analysis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Satar, Ece; Nyfeler, Peter; Pascale, Céline; Niederhauser, Bernhard; Leuenberger, Markus

    2017-04-01

    Long term atmospheric monitoring of trace gases requires great attention to precision and accuracy of the measurement setups. For globally integrated and well established greenhouse gas observation networks, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has set recommended compatibility goals within the framework of its Global Atmosphere Watch (GAW) Programme [1]. To achieve these challenging limits, the measurement systems are regularly calibrated with standard gases of known composition. Therefore, the stability of the primary and secondary gas standards over time is an essential issue. Past studies have explained the small instabilities in high pressure standard gas cylinders through leakage, diffusion, regulator effects, gravimetric fractionation and surface processes [2, 3]. The latter include adsorption/desorption, which are functions of temperature, pressure and surface properties. For high pressure standard gas mixtures used in atmospheric trace gas analysis, there exists only a limited amount of data and few attempts to quantify the surface processes [4, 5]. Specifically, we have designed a high pressure measurement chamber to investigate trace gases and their affinity for adsorption on different surfaces over various temperature and pressure ranges. Here, we focus on measurements of CO2, CH4 and CO using a cavity ring down spectroscopy analyzer and quantify the concentration changes due to adsorption/desorption. In this study, the first results from these prototype cylinders of steel and aluminum will be presented. References [1] World Meteorological Organization (WMO), Global Atmosphere Watch.(GAW): Report No. 229, 18th WMO/IAEA Meeting on Carbon Dioxide, Other Greenhouse Gases and Related Tracers Measurement Techniques (GGMT-2015), 2016. [2] Keeling, R. F., Manning, A. C., Paplawsky, W. J., and Cox, A. C.: On the long-term stability of reference gases for atmospheric O2 /N2 and CO2 measurements, Tellus B, 59, 10.3402/tellusb.v59i1.16964, 2007. [3

  1. Research on fiber-optic cantilever-enhanced photoacoustic spectroscopy for trace gas detection

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chen, Ke; Zhou, Xinlei; Gong, Zhenfeng; Yu, Shaochen; Qu, Chao; Guo, Min; Yu, Qingxu

    2018-01-01

    We demonstrate a new scheme of cantilever-enhanced photoacoustic spectroscopy, combining a sensitivity-improved fiber-optic cantilever acoustic sensor with a tunable high-power fiber laser, for trace gas detection. The Fabry-Perot interferometer based cantilever acoustic sensor has advantages such as high sensitivity, small size, easy to install and immune to electromagnetic. Tunable erbium-doped fiber ring laser with an erbium-doped fiber amplifier is used as the light source for acoustic excitation. In order to improve the sensitivity for photoacoustic signal detection, a first-order longitudinal resonant photoacoustic cell with the resonant frequency of 1624 Hz and a large size cantilever with the first resonant frequency of 1687 Hz are designed. The size of the cantilever is 2.1 mm×1 mm, and the thickness is 10 μm. With the wavelength modulation spectrum and second-harmonic detection methods, trace ammonia (NH3) has been measured. The gas detection limits (signal-to-noise ratio = 1) near the wavelength of 1522.5 nm is achieved to be 3 ppb.

  2. Methane Trace-Gas Sensing Enabled by Silicon Photonic Integration

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Green, William

    Fugitive methane leaks occurring during extraction at typical natural gas wells have an adverse environmental impact due to the methane’s large radiative forcing, in addition to reducing the producer’s overall efficiency and cost. Mitigation of these concerns can benefit from cost-effective sensor nodes, performing reliable, rapid and continuous tracking of methane emissions. The efficacy of laser spectroscopy has been widely demonstrated in both environmental and medical applications due to its sensitivity and specificity to the target analyte. However, the present cost and lack of manufacturing scalability of traditional free-space optical systems can limit their viability for deployment in economical wide-areamore » sensor networks. This presentation will review the development and performance of a cost-effective silicon photonic trace gas sensing platform that leverages silicon photonic waveguide and packaging technologies to perform on-chip evanescent field spectroscopy of methane.« less

  3. Analysis of volatile organic compounds. [trace amounts of organic volatiles in gas samples

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Zlatkis, A. (Inventor)

    1977-01-01

    An apparatus and method are described for reproducibly analyzing trace amounts of a large number of organic volatiles existing in a gas sample. Direct injection of the trapped volatiles into a cryogenic percolum provides a sharply defined plug. Applications of the method include: (1) analyzing the headspace gas of body fluids and comparing a profile of the organic volatiles with standard profiles for the detection and monitoring of disease; (2) analyzing the headspace gas of foods and beverages and comparing the profile with standard profiles to monitor and control flavor and aroma; and (3) analyses for determining the organic pollutants in air or water samples.

  4. Tracing gas and magnetic field with dust : lessons from Planck & Herschel

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Guillet, Vincent

    2015-08-01

    Dust emission is a powerful tool to measure the gas mass. Its polarization also traces the magnetic field structure. With the Planck and Herschel multi-wavelength observations, we are now able to trace the gas and magnetic field over the full sky, with a large spectrum of scales, and up to high optical depths. But a question arises : is dust a reliable tracer ?I will present the statistical properties of the dust polarized emission as observed by Planck HFI over the full sky, and show how this compares to ancillary measures of starlight polarization in the optical, and to MHD simulations. I will distinguish between what is related to the 3D structure of the magnetic field, and what is related to dust (alignement efficiency, grain shape). I will show that the main features of dust polarization observed by Planck can be explained by the magnetic field structure on the line of sight, without any need for a variation of dust alignment efficiency up to an Av of 5 to 10. Dust polarization is therefore a good and reliable tracer of the magnetic field, at least at moderate extinction.I will also discuss the caveats in deriving the gas mass or dust extinction from a fit to the dust spectral energy distribution : 1) the dust far-infrared opacity is not uniform but varies accross the diffuse ISM, and increases inside star-forming regions; 2) Radiation transfer effects must be taken into account at high optical depths. I will present estimates for the systematic errors that are made when these effects are ignored.

  5. Understanding Biogenic and Anthropogenic Trace Gas Variations Measured Near Cool, CA in June 2010

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Klein, B. Z.; Flowers, B. A.; Gorkowski, K.; Dubey, M. K.; Knighton, W. B.; Floerchinger, C.; Herndon, S. C.; Fast, J. D.; Zaveri, R. A.

    2011-12-01

    Trace gas signatures produced by forested and urban areas differ greatly. Forested areas are dominated by gases produced during photosynthesis and respiration: CO2 and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) including terpenes and isoprene. Urban areas are heavily influenced by vehicle exhaust emissions and have elevated levels of CO, NOx and aromatic hydrocarbons such as benzene. Ozone is produced as a byproduct of both of these sources; it is produced when NOx from urban areas reacts with either anthropogenic or biogenic hydrocarbons. The Carbonaceous Aerosol and Radiative Effects Study (CARES) campaign was conducted during June 2010, in part to observe the evolution of urban air masses as they mix into rural locations and to better understand anthropogenic-biogenic photochemical interactions. The campaign included two ground-based sampling sites, one in Sacramento, CA (T0) and one downwind, approximately 70km NE, rurally located near Cool, CA (T1). In situ measurements of CO2, CO, O3, NO and multiple different VOCs were performed at the T1 site during the study, and are analyzed here to gain insights into the chemistry and transport of these trace gases. Comparisons between these trace gases coupled with transport modeling is used to delineate biogenic and anthropogenic sources. Additionally, comparisons between trace gases produced predominately by biogenic sources provide valuable information on how meteorology affects their production. Two atmospheric models (HYSPLIT back-trajectories and WRF forecasts) are used to predict transport episodes, where polluted air masses from the Sacramento or more distant San Francisco areas are transported to Cool. The two models display significant overlap for eleven different transport episodes during the study period. Both models also agree on two transport-free multiple-day periods. By examining the periods during which the models are in agreement, we are able to characterize with high certainty the trace gas signatures of local

  6. Trace gas and particulate emissions from biomass burning in temperate ecosystems

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Cofer, Wesley R., III; Levine, Joel S.; Winstead, Edward L.; Stocks, Brian J.

    1991-01-01

    Emissions measured from fires in graminoid wetlands, Mediterranean chaparrals, and boreal forests, suggest that such ecosystemic parameters as fuel size influence combustion emissions in ways that are broadly predictable. The degree of predictability is most noticeable when wetland fire-related results are compared with boreal forest emissions; the inorganic fraction of the particulate emissions is close in composition irrespective of the ecosystem. It is found that both aerosol and trace gas emissions are influenced by the phase of combustion.

  7. Nanofiber-net-binary structured membranes for highly sensitive detection of trace HCl gas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Xianfeng; Wang, Jialin; Si, Yang; Ding, Bin; Yu, Jianyong; Sun, Gang; Luo, Wenjing; Zheng, Gang

    2012-11-01

    This work describes the detection of trace hydrogen chloride (HCl) gas through analyses of the resonance frequency signal from quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) sensors coated with polyaniline (PANI) functionalized polyamide 6 (PA 6) (PANI-PA 6) nanofiber-net-binary (NNB) structured membranes. The PA 6 NNB substrate comprising nanofibers and spider-web-like nano-nets fabricated by a versatile electro-spinning/netting (ESN) process offered an ideal interface for the uniform PANI functionalization and enhanced sensing performance. Benefiting from the large specific surface area, high porosity, and strong adhesive force to the QCM electrode of the PANI-PA 6 NNB membranes, the developed HCl-selective sensors exhibited a rapid response, good reproducibility and stability, and low detection limit (7 ppb) at room temperature. Additionally, the PANI-PA 6 NNB sensing membranes presented visible color changes upon cycled exposure to HCl and ammonia, suggesting their potential application in the development of colorimetric sensors. The PANI-PA 6 NNB coated QCM sensors are considered to be a promising candidate for trace HCl gas detection in practical applications.

  8. External cavity tunable quantum cascade lasers and their applications to trace gas monitoring.

    PubMed

    Rao, Gottipaty N; Karpf, Andreas

    2011-02-01

    Since the first quantum cascade laser (QCL) was demonstrated approximately 16 years ago, we have witnessed an explosion of interesting developments in QCL technology and QCL-based trace gas sensors. QCLs operate in the mid-IR region (3-24 μm) and can directly access the rotational vibrational bands of most molecular species and, therefore, are ideally suited for trace gas detection with high specificity and sensitivity. These sensors have applications in a wide range of fields, including environmental monitoring, atmospheric chemistry, medical diagnostics, homeland security, detection of explosive compounds, and industrial process control, to name a few. Tunable external cavity (EC)-QCLs in particular offer narrow linewidths, wide ranges of tunability, and stable power outputs, which open up new possibilities for sensor development. These features allow for the simultaneous detection of multiple species and the study of large molecules, free radicals, ions, and reaction kinetics. In this article, we review the current status of EC-QCLs and sensor developments based on them and speculate on possible future developments.

  9. Status of GeoTASO Trace Gas Data Analysis for the KORUS-AQ Campaign

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Janz, S. J.; Nowlan, C. R.; Lamsal, L. N.; Kowalewski, M. G.; Judd, L. M.; Wang, J.

    2017-12-01

    The Geostationary Trace gas and Aerosol Sensor Optimization (GeoTASO) instrument measures spectrally resolved backscattered solar radiation at high spatial resolution. The instrument completed 30 sorties on board the NASA LaRC UC-12 aircraft during the KORUS-AQ deployment in May-June of 2016. GeoTASO collects spatially resolved spectra with sufficient sensitivity to retrieve column amounts of the trace gas molecules NO2, SO2, H2CO, O3, and C2H2O2 as well as aerosol products. Typical product retrievals are done in 250 m2 bins with multiple overpasses of key ground sites, allowing for detailed spatio-temporal analysis. Flight patterns consisted of both contiguous overlapping grid patterns to simulate satellite observational strategies in support of future geostationary satellite algorithm development, and "race-track" sampling to perform calibration and validation with the in-situ DC-8 platform as well as ground based assets. We will summarize the status of the radiance data set as well as ongoing analysis from our co-Investigators.

  10. Modelling Metamorphism by Abstract Interpretation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dalla Preda, Mila; Giacobazzi, Roberto; Debray, Saumya; Coogan, Kevin; Townsend, Gregg M.

    Metamorphic malware apply semantics-preserving transformations to their own code in order to foil detection systems based on signature matching. In this paper we consider the problem of automatically extract metamorphic signatures from these malware. We introduce a semantics for self-modifying code, later called phase semantics, and prove its correctness by showing that it is an abstract interpretation of the standard trace semantics. Phase semantics precisely models the metamorphic code behavior by providing a set of traces of programs which correspond to the possible evolutions of the metamorphic code during execution. We show that metamorphic signatures can be automatically extracted by abstract interpretation of the phase semantics, and that regular metamorphism can be modelled as finite state automata abstraction of the phase semantics.

  11. Infrared laser spectroscopic trace gas sensing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sigrist, Markus

    2016-04-01

    -lived species like nitrous acid (HONO) with a QCL-based QEPAS system where the small gas sampling volume and hence short gas residence time are of particular importance [3]. A true analysis of gas mixtures has been performed with a widely tunable DFG system in a medical application that could also be adapted to atmospheric species [4]. It is demonstrated that a laser-based narrowband system with broad tunability combined with an appropriate detection scheme is feasible for the chemical analysis of multi-component gas mixtures even with an a priori unknown composition. Most recent examples will further confirm the great potential of infrared laser-based devices for trace species sensing. References 1. D. Marinov and M.W. Sigrist: "Monitoring of road-traffic emission with mobile photoacoustic system", Photochem. and Photobiol. Sciences 2, 774-778 (2003) 2. J.M. Rey, M. Fill, F. Felder and M.W. Sigrist: "Broadly tunable mid-infrared VECSEL for multiple components hydrocarbons gas sensing", Appl. Phys. B 117, 935-939 (2014) 3. H. Yi, R. Maamary, X. Gao, M.W. Sigrist, E. Fertein, and W. Chen: "Short-lived species detection of nitrous acid by external-cavity quantum cascade laser based quartz-enhanced photoacoustic absorption spectroscopy", Appl. Phys. Lett. 106, 101109 (2015) 4. M. Gianella and M.W. Sigrist: "Chemical Analysis of Surgical Smoke by Infrared Laser Spectroscopy", Appl. Phys. B 109, 485-496 (2012)

  12. Atmospheric trace gas analysis using matrix isolation-Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Griffith, David W. T.; Schuster, Gerhard

    1987-03-01

    A novel cryogenic sampling method combining the matrix isolation technique with FTIR spectroscopy has been developed for atmospheric trace gas analysis. It is applicable to a wide range of molecules with detection limits typically in the 10-50 ppt range. The method is described along with some measurements of N2O, CFCl3, CF2Cl2, OCS, CS2, SO2 and PAN from samples collected at ground level and from an aircraft between 9 and 14 km.

  13. Fiber-ring laser-based intracavity photoacoustic spectroscopy for trace gas sensing.

    PubMed

    Wang, Qiang; Wang, Zhen; Chang, Jun; Ren, Wei

    2017-06-01

    We demonstrated a novel trace gas sensing method based on fiber-ring laser intracavity photoacoustic spectroscopy. This spectroscopic technique is a merging of photoacoustic spectroscopy (PAS) with a fiber-ring cavity for sensitive and all-fiber gas detection. A transmission-type PAS gas cell (resonant frequency f0=2.68  kHz) was placed inside the fiber-ring laser to fully utilize the intracavity laser power. The PAS signal was excited by modulating the laser wavelength at f0/2 using a custom-made fiber Bragg grating-based modulator. We used this spectroscopic technique to detect acetylene (C2H2) at 1531.6 nm as a proof of principle. With a low Q-factor (4.9) of the PAS cell, our sensor achieved a good linear response (R2=0.996) to C2H2 concentration and a minimum detection limit of 390 ppbv at 2-s response time.

  14. Constraining Gas Diffusivity-Soil Water Content Relationships in Forest Soils Using Surface Chamber Fluxes and Depth Profiles of Multiple Trace Gases

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dore, J. E.; Kaiser, K.; Seybold, E. C.; McGlynn, B. L.

    2012-12-01

    Forest soils are sources of carbon dioxide (CO2) to the atmosphere and can act as either sources or sinks of methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O), depending on redox conditions and other factors. Soil moisture is an important control on microbial activity, redox conditions and gas diffusivity. Direct chamber measurements of soil-air CO2 fluxes are facilitated by the availability of sensitive, portable infrared sensors; however, corresponding CH4 and N2O fluxes typically require the collection of time-course physical samples from the chamber with subsequent analyses by gas chromatography (GC). Vertical profiles of soil gas concentrations may also be used to derive CH4 and N2O fluxes by the gradient method; this method requires much less time and many fewer GC samples than the direct chamber method, but requires that effective soil gas diffusivities are known. In practice, soil gas diffusivity is often difficult to accurately estimate using a modeling approach. In our study, we apply both the chamber and gradient methods to estimate soil trace gas fluxes across a complex Rocky Mountain forested watershed in central Montana. We combine chamber flux measurements of CO2 (by infrared sensor) and CH4 and N2O (by GC) with co-located soil gas profiles to determine effective diffusivity in soil for each gas simultaneously, over-determining the diffusion equations and providing constraints on both the chamber and gradient methodologies. We then relate these soil gas diffusivities to soil type and volumetric water content in an effort to arrive at empirical parameterizations that may be used to estimate gas diffusivities across the watershed, thereby facilitating more accurate, frequent and widespread gradient-based measurements of trace gas fluxes across our study system. Our empirical approach to constraining soil gas diffusivity is well suited for trace gas flux studies over complex landscapes in general.

  15. ANALYSIS OF TRACE-LEVEL ORGANIC COMBUSTION PROCESS EMISSIONS USING NOVEL MULTIDIMENSIONAL GAS CHROMATOGRAPHY-MASS SPECTROMETRY PROCEDURES

    EPA Science Inventory

    The paper discusses the analysis of trace-level organic combustion process emissions using novel multidimensional gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (MDGC-MS) procedures. It outlines the application of the technique through the analyses of various incinerator effluent and produ...

  16. Gas dispersion concentration of trace inorganic contaminants from fuel gas and analysis using head-column field-amplified sample stacking capillary electrophoresis.

    PubMed

    Yang, Jianmin; Li, Hai-Fang; Li, Meilan; Lin, Jin-Ming

    2012-08-21

    The presence of inorganic elements in fuel gas generally accelerates the corrosion and depletion of materials used in the fuel gas industry, and even leads to serious accidents. For identification of existing trace inorganic contaminants in fuel gas in a portable way, a highly efficient gas-liquid sampling collection system based on gas dispersion concentration is introduced in this work. Using the constructed dual path gas-liquid collection setup, inorganic cations and anions were simultaneously collected from real liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and analyzed by capillary electrophoresis (CE) with indirect UV absorbance detection. The head-column field-amplified sample stacking technique was applied to improve the detection limits to 2-25 ng mL(-1). The developed collection and analytical methods have successfully determined existing inorganic contaminants in a real LPG sample in the range of 4.59-138.69 μg m(-3). The recoveries of cations and anions with spiked LPG samples were between 83.98 and 105.63%, and the relative standard deviations (RSDs) were less than 7.19%.

  17. Towards the interaction between calcium carbide and water during gas-chromatographic determination of trace moisture in ultra-high purity ammonia.

    PubMed

    Trubyanov, Maxim M; Mochalov, Georgy M; Suvorov, Sergey S; Puzanov, Egor S; Petukhov, Anton N; Vorotyntsev, Ilya V; Vorotyntsev, Vladimir M

    2018-07-27

    The current study focuses on the processes involved during the flow conversion of water into acetylene in a calcium carbide reaction cell for the trace moisture analysis of ammonia by reaction gas chromatography. The factors negatively affecting the reproducibility and the accuracy of the measurements are suggested and discussed. The intramolecular reaction of the HOCaCCH intermediate was found to be a side reaction producing background acetylene during the contact of wet ammonia gas with calcium carbide. The presence of the HOCaCCH intermediate among the reaction products is confirmed by an FTIR spectral study of calcium carbide powder exposed to wet gas. The side reaction kinetics is evaluated experimentally and its influence on the results of the gas chromatographic measurements is discussed in relation to the determination of the optimal operating parameters for ammonia analysis. The reaction gas chromatography method for the trace moisture measurements in an ammonia matrix was experimentally compared to an FTIR long-path length gas cell technique to evaluate the accuracy limitations and the resource intensity. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  18. Application of a broadly tunable SG-DBR QCL for multi-species trace gas spectroscopy.

    PubMed

    Diba, Abdou S; Xie, Feng; Gross, Barry; Hughes, Lawrence C; Zah, Chung-en; Moshary, Fred

    2015-10-19

    Feasibility of using a mid-Infrared tunable sampled-grating distributed Bragg reflectors quantum cascade laser for high resolution multicomponent trace gas spectroscopy is demonstrated. By controlling the driving currents to the front and back sections of the laser, we were able to tune a pulsed 4.55 µm laser over a frequency range a of 30 cm(-1) with high resolution, accuracy and repeatability. The laser was applied to absorption spectroscopy of ambient and reduced pressure (150 Torr) air in a 205 meters multi-pass Herriott cell, and by using standard LSQ fitting to a spectral database of these trace gases (HITRAN), the concentrations of nitrous oxide, carbon monoxide, and water vapor were retrieved.

  19. Modeling impacts of management on carbon sequestration and trace gas emissions in forested wetland ecosystems

    Treesearch

    Changsheng Li; Jianbo Cui

    2004-01-01

    A process- based model, Wetland-DNDC, was modified to enhance its capacity to predict the impacts of management practices on carbon sequestration in and trace gas emissions from forested wetland ecosystems. The modifications included parameterization of management practices fe.g., forest harvest, chopping, burning, water management, fertilization, and tree planting),...

  20. LBA-ECO TG-07 Soil Trace Gas Flux and Root Mortality, Tapajos National Forest

    Treesearch

    R.K. Varner; M.M. Keller

    2009-01-01

    This data set reports the results of an experiment that tested the short-term effects of root mortality on the soil-atmosphere fluxes of nitrous oxide, nitric oxide, methane, and carbon dioxide in a tropical evergreen forest. Weekly trace gas fluxes are provided for treatment and control plots on sand and clay tropical forest soils in two comma separated ASCII files....

  1. Trace analysis in the food and beverage industry by capillary gas chromatography: system performance and maintenance.

    PubMed

    Hayes, M A

    1988-04-01

    Gas chromatography (GC) is the most widely used analytical technique in the food and beverage industry. This paper addresses the problems of sample preparation and system maintenance to ensure the most sensitive, durable, and efficient results for trace analysis by GC in this industry.

  2. Stratospheric Trace Gas Composition Studies Utilizing in situ Cryogenic, Whole-Air Sampling Methods.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1981-03-10

    C A FORSBERG, R V PIERI UNCLASSIFIED AFGL-TR-81-0071 NLEEEE..EEEEEEllllllu *Inaggol/numln ElhElhEEEEEEEI lllllllhhl , O \\ Stratospheric Trace Gas...GRANT NUJMBERr4; Charles A. Forsberg Robert V. Pieri , Capt., USAF Gerard A. Faucher B PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME AND ADDRESS IS. PROGRAM ELEMENT...launch site. 1 (Received for publication 10 March 1981) 1. Gallagher, C.(C., and Pieri , R. V. (1976) Cryogenic, Whole-Air Sampl1r and Program for

  3. Elevated gas flux and trace metal degassing from the 2014-2015 fissure eruption at the Bárðarbunga volcanic system, Iceland

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gauthier, Pierre-Jean; Sigmarsson, Olgeir; Gouhier, Mathieu; Haddadi, Baptiste; Moune, Séverine

    2016-03-01

    The 2014 Bárðarbunga rifting event in Iceland resulted in a 6-month long eruption at Holuhraun. This eruption was characterized by high lava discharge rate and significant gas emission. The SO2 flux for the first 3 months was measured with satellite sensors and the petrologic method. High-resolution time series of the satellite data give 1200 kg/s that concurs with 1050 kg/s obtained from melt inclusion minus degassed lava sulfur contents scaled to the mass of magma produced. A high-purity gas sample, with elevated S/Cl due to limited chlorine degassing, reveals a similar degassing pattern of trace metals as observed at Kīlauea (Hawai'i) and Erta Ale (Ethiopia). This suggests a common degassing mechanism at mantle plume-related volcanoes. The trace metal fluxes, calculated from trace element to sulfur ratios in the gas sample and scaled to the sulfur dioxide flux, are 1-2 orders of magnitude stronger at Holuhraun than Kīlauea and Erta Ale. In contrast, volcanoes at convergent margins (Etna and Stromboli, Italy) have 1-2 orders of magnitude higher trace element fluxes, most likely caused by abundant chlorine degassing. This emphasizes the importance of metal degassing as chlorine species. Short-lived disequilibria between radon daughters, 210Pb-210Bi-210Po measured in the gas, suggest degassing of a continuously replenished magma batch beneath the eruption site. Earlier and deep degassing phase of carbon dioxide and polonium is inferred from low (210Po/210Pb) in the gas, consistent with magma transfer rate of 0.75 m/s.

  4. Trace Gas Trends in the Stratosphere: 1991-2005

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Elkins, J. W.; Moore, F. L.; Dutton, G. S.; Hurst, D. F.; Ray, E. A.; Montzka, S. A.; Butler, J. H.; Fahey, D. W.; Hall, B. H.; Atlas, E.; Wofsy, S. C.; Romashkin, P. A.

    2005-05-01

    The first NOAA airborne gas chromatograph measured chlorofluorocarbon-11 (CFC-11) and CFC-113 during the Arctic Airborne Stratospheric Experiment in 1991-1992. In 1994, we added nitrous oxide (N2O), sulfur hexafluoride (SF6), CFC-12, halon-1211, methyl chloroform, carbon tetrachloride, methane, and hydrogen. NOAA scientists have since operated five airborne gas chromatographs on NASA airborne platforms, including the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) balloon gondola and ER-2, WB-57F, DC-8, and NASA Altair Unmanned Air Vehicle (UAV) aircraft. Using these in situ measurements and tracer-tracer correlations from flask observations for the unmeasured halogen species (HCFCs and methyl halides including methyl chloride and bromide), we have estimated trends of total chlorine and bromine in the stratosphere. The determination of inorganic equivalent chlorine (Cl + 45*Br) requires the trend of tropospheric equivalent chlorine and the mean age of the parcel of stratospheric air. In general, there is good agreement between the mean age of the air mass calculations using carbon dioxide and SF6, except for regions of extreme down welling of mesospheric air where SF6 is consumed. Tropospheric trends of the methyl halides have been compiled against stable standards. We operated a airborne gas chromatograph on the Sage 3 Ozone Loss Validation Experiment (SOLVE-II) mission from Kiruna, Sweden during 2002. It measured the major HCFCs and methyl halides, so that these compounds do not have to be estimated from tracer-tracer correlations in the future. In 2005, we have added a new lightweight airborne instrument (<25 kg) that can measure CFC-11, CFC-12, halon-1211, SF6, N2O, and ozone. This instrument can operate on small or UAV aircraft and will be used for Aura satellite validation. This presentation will show trends for selected trace gases and our estimates of total equivalent chlorine stratospheric trends since 1991.

  5. LBA-ECO TG-07 Trace Gas Fluxes, Undisturbed and Logged Sites, Para, Brazil: 2000-2002

    Treesearch

    M.M. Keller; R.K. Varner; J.D. Dias; H.S. Silva; P.M. Crill; Jr. de Oliveira; G.P. Asner

    2009-01-01

    Trace gas fluxes of carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and nitric oxide were measured manually at undisturbed and logged forest sites in the Tapajos National Forest, near Santarem, Para, Brazil. Manual measurements were made approximately weekly at both the undisturbed and logged sites. Fluxes from clay and sand soils were completed at the undisturbed sites....

  6. Applications of Kalman filtering to real-time trace gas concentration measurements

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Leleux, D. P.; Claps, R.; Chen, W.; Tittel, F. K.; Harman, T. L.

    2002-01-01

    A Kalman filtering technique is applied to the simultaneous detection of NH3 and CO2 with a diode-laser-based sensor operating at 1.53 micrometers. This technique is developed for improving the sensitivity and precision of trace gas concentration levels based on direct overtone laser absorption spectroscopy in the presence of various sensor noise sources. Filter performance is demonstrated to be adaptive to real-time noise and data statistics. Additionally, filter operation is successfully performed with dynamic ranges differing by three orders of magnitude. Details of Kalman filter theory applied to the acquired spectroscopic data are discussed. The effectiveness of this technique is evaluated by performing NH3 and CO2 concentration measurements and utilizing it to monitor varying ammonia and carbon dioxide levels in a bioreactor for water reprocessing, located at the NASA-Johnson Space Center. Results indicate a sensitivity enhancement of six times, in terms of improved minimum detectable absorption by the gas sensor.

  7. Herschel Galactic plane survey of ionized gas traced by [NII

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yildiz, Umut; Goldsmith, Paul; Pineda, Jorge; Langer, William

    2015-01-01

    Far infrared and sub-/millimeter atomic & ionic fine structure and molecular rotational lines are powerful tracers of star formation on both Galactic and extragalactic scales. Although CO lines trace cool to moderately warm molecular gas, ionized carbon [CII] produces the strongest lines, which arise from almost all reasonably warm (T>50 K) parts of the ISM. However, [CII] alone cannot distinguish highly ionized gas from weakly ionized gas. [NII] plays a significant role in star formation as it is produced only in ionized regions; in [HII] regions as well as diffuse ionized gas. The ionization potential of nitrogen (14.5 eV) is greater than that of hydrogen (13.6 eV), therefore the ionized nitrogen [NII] lines reflect the effects of massive stars, with possible enhancement from X-ray and shock heating from the surroundings. Two far-infrared 122 um and 205 um [NII] fine structure spectral lines are targeted via Photodetector Array Camera and Spectrometer (PACS) onboard Herschel Space Observatory. The sample consists of 149 line-of-sight (LOS) positions in the Galactic plane. These positions overlap with the [CII] 158 um observations obtained with the GOT C+ survey. With a reasonable assumption that the emission from both 122 um and 205 um lines originate in the same gas; [NII] 122/205 um line ratio indicates the a good measure of the electron density of each of the LOS positions. [NII] detections are mainly toward the Galactic center direction and the [NII] electron densities are found between 7-50 cm^-3, which is enhanced WIM (Warm Ionized Medium). WIM densities are expected to be much lower (~1 cm-3), therefore non-detections toward the opposite side of the Galactic Center shows abundant of this gas. The pixel to pixel variation of the emission within a single Herschel pointing is relatively small, which is interpreted as the [NII] emission comes from an extended gas. It is important to quantify what fraction of [CII] emission arises in the ionized gas. Thus, with

  8. Variations in soil N cycling and trace gas emissions in wet tropical forests.

    PubMed

    Holtgrieve, Gordon W; Jewett, Peter K; Matson, Pamela A

    2006-01-01

    We used a previously described precipitation gradient in a tropical montane ecosystem of Hawai'i to evaluate how changes in mean annual precipitation (MAP) affect the processes resulting in the loss of N via trace gases. We evaluated three Hawaiian forests ranging from 2200 to 4050 mm year-1 MAP with constant temperature, parent material, ecosystem age, and vegetation. In situ fluxes of N2O and NO, soil inorganic nitrogen pools (NH4+ and NO3-), net nitrification, and net mineralization were quantified four times over 2 years. In addition, we performed 15N-labeling experiments to partition sources of N2O between nitrification and denitrification, along with assays of nitrification potential and denitrification enzyme activity (DEA). Mean NO and N2O emissions were highest at the mesic end of the gradient (8.7+/-4.6 and 1.1+/-0.3 ng N cm-2 h-1, respectively) and total oxidized N emitted decreased with increased MAP. At the wettest site, mean trace gas fluxes were at or below detection limit (trace gas flux from soil through soil redox conditions and the supply of electron donors and acceptors.

  9. Long-term Operation of an External Cavity Quantum Cascade Laser-based Trace-gas Sensor for Building Air Monitoring

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Phillips, Mark C.; Craig, Ian M.

    2013-11-03

    We analyze the long-term performance and stability of a trace-gas sensor based on an external cavity quantum cascade laser using data collected over a one-year period in a building air monitoring application.

  10. Large and small UAS for trace gas measurements in climate change studies

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Elkins, J. W.; Moore, F. L.; Hintsa, E. J.; D'Amore, P.; Dutton, G. S.; Nance, J. D.; Hall, B. D.; Gao, R. S.

    2014-12-01

    NOAA and CIRES scientists have used Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) for the measurement of trace gases involved in climate change since 2005, including both high altitude-long endurance (HALE UAS: NASA Altair & Global Hawk) and 1-m wingspan, small UAS (sUAS: SkyWisp, Aero). These gases include nitrous oxide (N2O), sulfur hexafluoride (SF6), methane (CH4), ozone (O3), carbon monoxide (CO), hydrogen (H2), and water vapor (H2O). In particular, atmospheric N2O is the third strongest greenhouse gas (326 parts-per-billion, ppb) and is the largest increasing stratospheric ozone depleting gas in terms of future emissions (~4 Tg N2O-N yr-1), primarily from fertilizer use. Atmospheric SF6, another potent greenhouse gas, is present globally at 8.2 parts-per-trillion (ppt) and growing at a rate of 0.25 ppt yr-1, and is used primarily in electrical power distribution. It is an excellent indicator of transport timescales (e.g., mean age) in the troposphere and stratosphere, because of its source distribution (~95% emitted in NH), long atmospheric lifetime (~600-3200 yr), and large relative atmospheric growth rate (~3%). We have developed atmospheric instrumentation for HALE platforms using a two-channel gas chromatograph with an ozone photometer and a water vapor tunable diode laser spectrometer. We are currently investigating a sUAS glider (SkyWisp) for balloon-assisted high altitude flights (30 km) and propeller driven sUAS (Aero) as a test bed for a new autopilot (Pixhawk, 3DRobotics). Our motivation for utilizing this autopilot is a low cost, open source autopilot alternative that can be used to return AirCore samples from high altitude balloons for quick laboratory analysis. The goal is a monitoring program to understand transport changes as a result of climate change during different seasons at many locations from a balloon-borne package (Moore et al., BAMS, pp. 147-155, Jan. 2014). The glider version of our open source autopilot system is also being considered for a

  11. Quantitative Detection of Trace Explosive Vapors by Programmed Temperature Desorption Gas Chromatography-Electron Capture Detector

    PubMed Central

    Field, Christopher R.; Lubrano, Adam; Woytowitz, Morgan; Giordano, Braden C.; Rose-Pehrsson, Susan L.

    2014-01-01

    The direct liquid deposition of solution standards onto sorbent-filled thermal desorption tubes is used for the quantitative analysis of trace explosive vapor samples. The direct liquid deposition method yields a higher fidelity between the analysis of vapor samples and the analysis of solution standards than using separate injection methods for vapors and solutions, i.e., samples collected on vapor collection tubes and standards prepared in solution vials. Additionally, the method can account for instrumentation losses, which makes it ideal for minimizing variability and quantitative trace chemical detection. Gas chromatography with an electron capture detector is an instrumentation configuration sensitive to nitro-energetics, such as TNT and RDX, due to their relatively high electron affinity. However, vapor quantitation of these compounds is difficult without viable vapor standards. Thus, we eliminate the requirement for vapor standards by combining the sensitivity of the instrumentation with a direct liquid deposition protocol to analyze trace explosive vapor samples. PMID:25145416

  12. Quantitative detection of trace explosive vapors by programmed temperature desorption gas chromatography-electron capture detector.

    PubMed

    Field, Christopher R; Lubrano, Adam; Woytowitz, Morgan; Giordano, Braden C; Rose-Pehrsson, Susan L

    2014-07-25

    The direct liquid deposition of solution standards onto sorbent-filled thermal desorption tubes is used for the quantitative analysis of trace explosive vapor samples. The direct liquid deposition method yields a higher fidelity between the analysis of vapor samples and the analysis of solution standards than using separate injection methods for vapors and solutions, i.e., samples collected on vapor collection tubes and standards prepared in solution vials. Additionally, the method can account for instrumentation losses, which makes it ideal for minimizing variability and quantitative trace chemical detection. Gas chromatography with an electron capture detector is an instrumentation configuration sensitive to nitro-energetics, such as TNT and RDX, due to their relatively high electron affinity. However, vapor quantitation of these compounds is difficult without viable vapor standards. Thus, we eliminate the requirement for vapor standards by combining the sensitivity of the instrumentation with a direct liquid deposition protocol to analyze trace explosive vapor samples.

  13. Application of acoustic micro-resonators in quartz-enhanced photoacoustic spectroscopy for trace gas analysis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zheng, Huadan; Dong, Lei; Wu, Hongpeng; Yin, Xukun; Xiao, Liantuan; Jia, Suotang; Curl, Robert F.; Tittel, Frank K.

    2018-01-01

    During the past 15 years since the first report of quartz enhanced photoacoustic spectroscopy (QEPAS), QEPAS has become one of the leading optical techniques for trace chemical gas sensing. This paper is a review of the current state-of-the art of QEPAS. QEPAS based spectrophones with different acoustic micro-resonators (AmR) configurations employing both standard quartz tuning forks (QTFs) and custom-made QTFs are summarized and discussed in detail.

  14. Satellite Observations of Trace Gases and Their Application for Studying Air Quality Near Oil and Gas Operations

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kollonige, D. E.; Thompson, A. M.; Nichols, M.; Fasnacht, Z.; Martins, D. K.; Dickerson, R. R.

    2014-12-01

    The increase in the natural gas component of the energy sector has led many state and local municipalities to begin regulation of emissions from the oil and natural gas operators with air quality (AQ) as a concern. "Top-down" measurements of trace gases in the air above wells complement "bottom-up" inventories, used by EPA and AQ stakeholders, through a more accurate depiction of regional variability of methane and other species near and downwind of oil and gas operations. Satellite observations of methane, nitrogen dioxide, formaldehyde, ozone, and other carbon gases enhance the spatial and temporal coverage of the data needed to demonstrate any long-term impacts from shale gas development. As part of a NASA AQAST (Air Quality Applied Sciences Team) project, we are evaluating satellite measurements of trace gases in regions with oil and gas operations for their application as a "top-down" constraint. For validation of the satellite instruments' sensitivities to emitted gases, we focus on regions where the DISCOVER-AQ (Deriving Information on Surface Conditions from Column and Vertically Resolved Observations Relevant to Air Quality) campaign deployed with ground and aircraft measurements, including, Maryland (2011), California and Texas (2013), and Colorado (2014). We compare vertical distributions of methane and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) nearby and downwind of oil and gas wells to locate any regional differences during the campaign time periods. This allows for better characterization of the satellite observations and their limitations for application in air quality studies in similar environments. Taking advantage of current EOS-era satellites' data records, we also analyze methane anomalies and gas correlations in the free troposphere from 2005 to present to identify trends for basins with oil and gas extraction sites and their influence on background concentrations downwind of wells. In most regions with oil and gas activity, we see continually

  15. Carbohydrate profiling of bacteria by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and their trace detection in complex matrices by gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Fox, A

    1999-05-28

    Bacterial cellular polysaccharides are composed of a variety of sugar monomers. These sugars serve as chemical markers to identify specific species or genera or to determine their physiological status. Some of these markers can also be used for trace detection of bacteria or their constituents in complex clinical or environmental matrices. Analyses are performed, in our hands, employing hydrolysis followed by the alditol acetate derivatization procedure. Substantial improvements have been made to sample preparation including simplification and computer-controlled automation. For characterization of whole cell bacterial hydrolysates, sugars are analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Simple chromatograms are generated using selected ion monitoring (SIM). Using total ion GC-MS, sugars can be readily identified. In more complex clinical and environmental samples, markers for bacteria are present at sufficiently low concentrations that more advanced instrumentation, gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS-MS), is preferred for optimal analysis. Using multiple reaction monitoring, MS-MS is used (replacing more conventional SIM) to ignore extraneous chromatographic peaks. Triple quadrupole and ion trap GC-MS-MS instruments have both been used successfully. Absolute chemical identification of sugar markers at trace levels is achieved, using MS-MS, by the product spectrum.

  16. Design and application of a mobile ground-based observatory for continuous measurements of atmospheric trace gas and criteria pollutant species

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bush, S. E.; Hopkins, F. M.; Randerson, J. T.; Lai, C.-T.; Ehleringer, J. R.

    2015-08-01

    Ground-based measurements of atmospheric trace gas species and criteria pollutants are essential for understanding emissions dynamics across space and time. Gas composition in the lower 50 m of the atmosphere has the greatest direct impacts on human health as well as ecosystem processes; hence data at this level are necessary for addressing carbon-cycle- and public-health-related questions. However, such surface data are generally associated with stationary measurement towers, where spatial representation is limited due to the high cost of establishing and maintaining an extensive network of measurement stations. We describe here a compact mobile laboratory equipped to provide high-precision, high-frequency, continuous, on-road synchronous measurements of CO2, CO, CH4, H2O, NOx, O3, aerosol, meteorological, and geospatial position data. The mobile laboratory has been deployed across the western USA. In addition to describing the vehicle and its capacity, we present data that illustrate the use of the laboratory as a powerful tool for investigating the spatial structure of urban trace gas emissions and criteria pollutants at spatial scales ranging from single streets to whole ecosystem and regional scales. We assess the magnitude of known point sources of CH4 and also identify fugitive urban CH4 emissions. We illustrate how such a mobile laboratory can be used to better understand emissions dynamics and quantify emissions ratios associated with trace gas emissions from wildfire incidents. Lastly, we discuss additional mobile laboratory applications in health and urban metabolism.

  17. Design and application of a mobile ground-based observatory for continuous measurements of atmospheric trace-gas and criteria pollutant species

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bush, S. E.; Hopkins, F. M.; Randerson, J. T.; Lai, C.-T.; Ehleringer, J. R.

    2015-01-01

    Ground-based measurements of atmospheric trace gas species and criteria pollutants are essential for understanding emissions dynamics across space and time. Gas composition in the surface 50 m has the greatest direct impacts on human health as well as ecosystem processes, hence data at this level is necessary for addressing carbon cycle and public health related questions. However, such surface data are generally associated with stationary measurement towers, where spatial representation is limited due to the high cost of establishing and maintaining an extensive network of measurement stations. We describe here a compact mobile laboratory equipped to provide high-precision, high-frequency, continuous, on-road synchronous measurements of CO2, CO, CH4, H2O, NOx, O3, aerosol, meteorological, and geospatial position data. The mobile laboratory has been deployed across the western USA. In addition to describing the vehicle and its capacity, we present data that illustrate the use of the laboratory as a powerful tool for investigating the spatial structure of urban trace gas emissions and criteria pollutants at spatial scales ranging from single streets to whole ecosystem and regional scales. We identify fugitive urban CH4 emissions and assess the magnitude of CH4 emissions from known point sources. We illustrate how such a mobile laboratory can be used to better understand emissions dynamics and quantify emissions ratios associated with trace gas emissions from wildfire incidents. Lastly, we discuss additional mobile laboratory applications in health and urban metabolism.

  18. The Impact of ENSO on Trace Gas Composition in the Upper Troposphere to Lower Stratosphere

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Oman, Luke; Douglass, Anne; Ziemke, Jerry; Waugh, Darryn Warwick

    2016-01-01

    The El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is the dominant mode of interannual variability in the tropical troposphere and its effects extend well into the stratosphere. Its impact on atmospheric dynamics and chemistry cause important changes to trace gas constituent distributions. A comprehensive suite of satellite observations, reanalyses, and chemistry climate model simulations are illuminating our understanding of processes like ENSO. Analyses of more than a decade of observations from NASAs Aura and Aqua satellites, combined with simulations from the Goddard Earth Observing System Chemistry-Climate Model (GEOSCCM) and other Chemistry Climate Modeling Initiative (CCMI) models, and the Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications, version 2 (MERRA-2) reanalysis have provided key insights into the response of atmospheric composition to ENSO. While we will primarily focus on ozone and water vapor responses in the upper troposphere to lower stratosphere, the effects of ENSO ripple through many important trace gas species throughout the atmosphere. The very large 2015-2016 El Nino event provides an opportunity to closely examine these impacts with unprecedented observational breadth. An improved quantification of natural climate variations, like those from ENSO, is needed to detect and quantify anthropogenic climate changes.

  19. The analysis of tire rubber traces collected after braking incidents using Pyrolysis-GasChromatography/Mass Spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Sarkissian, Garry

    2007-09-01

    Automobile tire marks can routinely be found at the scenes of crime, particularly hit-and-run accidents and are left on road surfaces because of sudden braking or the wheels spinning. The tire marks are left due to the friction between the tire rubber and the solid road surface, and do not always demonstrate the tire tread pattern. However, the tire mark will contain traces of the tire. In this study, Pyrolysis Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry was used to analyze 12 tires from different manufacturer's and their traces collected after braking incidents. Tire marks were left on a conglomerate road surface with sudden braking. The samples were pyrolysed without removal of contaminant in a micro-furnace type pyrolyser. Quantitative and qualitative analysis were performed on all the samples. All 12 samples were distinguished from each other. Each of the tire traces were identified as coming from there original source.

  20. ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter Instrument Modelling Approach to Streamline Science Operations

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Munoz Fernandez, Michela; Frew, David; Ashman, Michael; Cardesin Moinelo, Alejandro; Garcia Beteta, Juan Jose; Geiger, Bernhard; Metcalfe, Leo; Nespoli, Federico; Muniz Solaz, Carlos

    2018-05-01

    ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) science operations activities are centralised at ESAC's Science Operations Centre (SOC). The SOC receives the inputs from the principal investigators (PIs) in order to implement and deliver the spacecraft pointing requests and instrument timelines to the Mission Operations Centre (MOC). The high number of orbits per planning cycle has made it necessary to abstract the planning interactions between the SOC and the PI teams at the observation level. This paper describes the modelling approach we have conducted for TGOís instruments to streamline science operations. We have created dynamic observation types that scale to adapt to the conditions specified by the PI teams including observation timing, and pointing block parameters calculated from observation geometry. This approach is considered and improvement with respect to previous missions where the generation of the observation pointing and commanding requests was performed manually by the instrument teams. Automation software assists us to effectively handle the high density of planned orbits with increasing volume of scientific data and to successfully meet opportunistic scientific goals and objectives. Our planning tool combines the instrument observation definition files provided by the PIs together with the flight dynamics products to generate the Pointing Requests and the instrument timeline (ITL). The ITL contains all the validated commands at the TC sequence level and computes the resource envelopes (data rate, power, data volume) within the constraints. At the SOC, our main goal is to maximise the science output while minimising the number of iterations among the teams, ensuring that the timeline does not violate the state transitions allowed in the Mission Operations Rules and Constraints Document.

  1. Internal Versus External DSLs for Trace Analysis: Extended Abstract

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Barringer, Howard; Havelund, Klaus

    2011-01-01

    This tutorial explores the design and implementation issues arising in the development of domain-specific languages for trace analysis. It introduces the audience to the general concepts underlying such special-purpose languages building upon the authors' own experiences in developing both external domain specific languages and systems, such as EAGLE, HAWK, RULER and LOGSCOPE, and the more recent internal domain-specific language and system TRACECONTRACT within the SCALA language.

  2. Relationships between energy release, fuel mass loss, and trace gas and aerosol emissions during laboratory biomass fires

    Treesearch

    Patrick H. Freeborn; Martin J. Wooster; Wei Min Hao; Cecily A. Nordgren Ryan; Stephen P. Baker; Charles Ichoku

    2008-01-01

    Forty-four small-scale experimental fires were conducted in a combustion chamber to examine the relationship between biomass consumption, smoke production, convective energy release, and middle infrared (MIR) measurements of fire radiative energy (FRE). Fuel bed weights, trace gas and aerosol particle concentrations, stack flow rate and temperature, and concurrent...

  3. Investigation of mesoscale trace gas distributions across an Arctic tropopause fold affected by gravity wave activity

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Woiwode, Wolfgang; Oelhaf, Hermann; Dörnbrack, Andreas; Bramberger, Martina; Diekmann, Christopher; Friedl-Vallon, Felix; Höpfner, Michael; Hoor, Peter; Johansson, Sören; Krause, Jens; Kunkel, Daniel; Orphal, Johannes; Preusse, Peter; Ruhnke, Roland; Schlage, Romy; Schröter, Jennifer; Sinnhuber, Björn-Martin; Ungermann, Jörn; Zahn, Andreas

    2017-04-01

    Tropopause folds are known of enabling efficient exchange of trace constituents between the stratosphere and troposphere. In particular, the modification of the vertical distributions of radiatively important H2O and other reactive trace gases associated with tropopause folds is relevant for accurate model simulations of the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere composition. During the POLSTRACC/GW-LCYCLE/SALSA flight on 12 January 2016, the HALO (High Altitude LOng range) aircraft crossed twice an extended tropopause fold in the vicinity of the Arctic polar vortex. At the same time, the ECMWF operational analysis shows that the meteorological scenario probed above Italy was accompanied by wide-spread gravity wave activity induced by north-westerly winds. Using high spectral resolution limb-observations by the GLORIA (Gimballed Limb Observer for Radiance Imaging of the Atmosphere) spectrometer aboard HALO and associated observations, we investigate the vertical distributions of H2O, O3, temperature, and associated parameters across the tropopause fold. In combination with a high-resolution simulation by the ICON-ART (ICOsahedral Nonhydrostatic- Aerosol and Reactive Trace gases) model, we search for indications for irreversible trace gas exchange between the stratosphere and troposphere and the potential influence of gravity waves.

  4. Trace gas transport out of the Indian Summer Monsoon

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tomsche, Laura; Pozzer, Andrea; Zimmermann, Peter; Parchatka, Uwe; Fischer, Horst

    2016-04-01

    The trace gas transport out of the Indian summer monsoon was investigated during the aircraft campaign OMO (Oxidation Mechanism Observations) with the German research aircraft HALO (High Altitude and Long Range Research Aircraft) in July/August 2015. HALO was based at Paphos/Cyprus and also on Gan/Maledives. Flights took place over the Mediterranean Sea, the Arabian Peninsula and the Arabian Sea. In this work the focus is on the distribution of carbon monoxide (CO) and methane (CH4) in the upper troposphere. They were measured with the laser absorption spectrometer TRISTAR on board of HALO. During the Indian summer monsoon strong convection takes place over India and the Bay of Bengal. In this area the population is high accompanied by many emission sources e.g. wetlands and cultivation of rice. Consequently the boundary layer is polluted containing high concentrations of trace gases like methane and carbon monoxide. Due to vertical transport these polluted air masses are lifted to the upper troposphere. Here they circulate with the so called Asian monsoon anticyclone. In the upper troposphere polluted air masses lead to a change in the chemical composition thus influence the chemical processes. Furthermore the anticyclone spreads the polluted air masses over a larger area. Thus the outflow of the anticyclone in the upper troposphere leads to higher concentrations of trace gases over the Arabian Sea, the Arabian Peninsula and also over the eastern part of North Africa and the eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea. During OMO higher concentrations of methane and carbon monoxide were detected at altitudes between 11km and 15km. The highest measured concentrations of carbon monoxide and methane were observed over Oman. The CO concentration in the outflow of the monsoon exceeds background levels by 10-15ppb. However the enhancement in the concentration is not obviously connected to the monsoon due to the natural variability in the troposphere. The enhancement in the

  5. Airborne tunable diode laser spectrometer for trace-gas measurement in the lower stratosphere

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Podolske, James; Loewenstein, Max

    1993-01-01

    This paper describes the airborne tunable laser absorption spectrometer, a tunable diode laser instrument designed for in situ trace-gas measurement in the lower stratosphere from an ER-2 high-altitude research aircraft. Laser-wavelength modulation and second-harmonic detection are employed to achieve the required constituent detection sensitivity. The airborne tunable laser absorption spectrometer was used in two polar ozone campaigns, the Airborne Antarctic Ozone Experiment and the Airborne Arctic Stratospheric Expedition, and measured nitrous oxide with a response time of 1 s and an accuracy not greater than 10 percent.

  6. ExoMars 2016 Trace Gas Orbiter and Mars Express Coordinated Science Operations Planning

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cardesin Moinelo, Alejandro; Geiger, Bernhard; Costa, Marc; Breitfellner, Michel; Castillo, Manuel; Marin Yaseli de la Parra, Julia; Martin, Patrick; Merritt, Donald R.; Grotheer, Emmanuel; Aberasturi Vega, Miriam; Ashman, Mike; Frew, David; Garcia Beteta, Juan Jose; Metcalfe, Leo; Muñoz, Claudio; Muñoz, Michela; Titov, Dimitri; Svedhem, Hakan

    2018-05-01

    In this contribution we focus on the science opportunity analysis between the Mars Express and the ExoMars 2016 Trace Gas Orbiter missions and the observations that can be combined to improve the scientific outcome of both missions. In particular we will describe the long term analysis of geometrical conditions that allow for coordinated science observations for solar occultation and nadir pointing. We will provide details on the calculations and results for simultaneous and quasi-simultaneous opportunities, taking into account the observation requirements of the instruments and the operational requirements for feasibility checks.

  7. Design and application of a mobile ground-based observatory for continuous measurements of atmospheric trace gas and criteria pollutant species

    DOE PAGES

    Bush, S. E.; Hopkins, F. M.; Randerson, J. T.; ...

    2015-08-26

    Ground-based measurements of atmospheric trace gas species and criteria pollutants are essential for understanding emissions dynamics across space and time. Gas composition in the lower 50 m of the atmosphere has the greatest direct impacts on human health as well as ecosystem processes; hence data at this level are necessary for addressing carbon-cycle- and public-health-related questions. However, such surface data are generally associated with stationary measurement towers, where spatial representation is limited due to the high cost of establishing and maintaining an extensive network of measurement stations. We describe here a compact mobile laboratory equipped to provide high-precision, high-frequency, continuous,more » on-road synchronous measurements of CO 2, CO, CH 4, H 2O, NO x, O 3, aerosol, meteorological, and geospatial position data. The mobile laboratory has been deployed across the western USA. In addition to describing the vehicle and its capacity, we present data that illustrate the use of the laboratory as a powerful tool for investigating the spatial structure of urban trace gas emissions and criteria pollutants at spatial scales ranging from single streets to whole ecosystem and regional scales. We assess the magnitude of known point sources of CH 4 and also identify fugitive urban CH 4 emissions. We illustrate how such a mobile laboratory can be used to better understand emissions dynamics and quantify emissions ratios associated with trace gas emissions from wildfire incidents. Lastly, we discuss additional mobile laboratory applications in health and urban metabolism.« less

  8. Design and application of a mobile ground-based observatory for continuous measurements of atmospheric trace gas and criteria pollutant species

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Bush, S. E.; Hopkins, F. M.; Randerson, J. T.

    Ground-based measurements of atmospheric trace gas species and criteria pollutants are essential for understanding emissions dynamics across space and time. Gas composition in the lower 50 m of the atmosphere has the greatest direct impacts on human health as well as ecosystem processes; hence data at this level are necessary for addressing carbon-cycle- and public-health-related questions. However, such surface data are generally associated with stationary measurement towers, where spatial representation is limited due to the high cost of establishing and maintaining an extensive network of measurement stations. We describe here a compact mobile laboratory equipped to provide high-precision, high-frequency, continuous,more » on-road synchronous measurements of CO 2, CO, CH 4, H 2O, NO x, O 3, aerosol, meteorological, and geospatial position data. The mobile laboratory has been deployed across the western USA. In addition to describing the vehicle and its capacity, we present data that illustrate the use of the laboratory as a powerful tool for investigating the spatial structure of urban trace gas emissions and criteria pollutants at spatial scales ranging from single streets to whole ecosystem and regional scales. We assess the magnitude of known point sources of CH 4 and also identify fugitive urban CH 4 emissions. We illustrate how such a mobile laboratory can be used to better understand emissions dynamics and quantify emissions ratios associated with trace gas emissions from wildfire incidents. Lastly, we discuss additional mobile laboratory applications in health and urban metabolism.« less

  9. Multi-species trace gas sensing with dual-wavelength QCLs

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hundt, P. Morten; Tuzson, Béla; Aseev, Oleg; Liu, Chang; Scheidegger, Philipp; Looser, Herbert; Kapsalidis, Filippos; Shahmohammadi, Mehran; Faist, Jérôme; Emmenegger, Lukas

    2018-06-01

    Instrumentation for environmental monitoring of gaseous pollutants and greenhouse gases tends to be complex, expensive, and energy demanding, because every compound measured relies on a specific analytical technique. This work demonstrates an alternative approach based on mid-infrared laser absorption spectroscopy with dual-wavelength quantum cascade lasers (QCLs). The combination of two dual- and one single-DFB QCL yields high-precision measurements of CO (0.08 ppb), CO2 (100 ppb), NH3 (0.02 ppb), NO (0.4 ppb), NO2 (0.1 ppb), N2O (0.045 ppb), and O3 (0.11 ppb) simultaneously in a compact setup (45 × 45 cm2). The lasers are driven time-multiplexed in intermittent continuous wave mode with a repetition rate of 1 kHz. The individual spectra are real-time averaged (1 s) by an FPGA-based data acquisition system. The instrument was assessed for environmental monitoring and benchmarked with reference instrumentation to demonstrate its potential for compact multi-species trace gas sensing.

  10. Expected trace gas and aerosol retrieval accuracy of the Geostationary Environment Monitoring Spectrometer

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jeong, U.; Kim, J.; Liu, X.; Lee, K. H.; Chance, K.; Song, C. H.

    2015-12-01

    The predicted accuracy of the trace gases and aerosol retrievals from the geostationary environment monitoring spectrometer (GEMS) was investigated. The GEMS is one of the first sensors to monitor NO2, SO2, HCHO, O3, and aerosols onboard geostationary earth orbit (GEO) over Asia. Since the GEMS is not launched yet, the simulated measurements and its precision were used in this study. The random and systematic component of the measurement error was estimated based on the instrument design. The atmospheric profiles were obtained from Model for Ozone And Related chemical Tracers (MOZART) simulations and surface reflectances were obtained from climatology of OMI Lambertian equivalent reflectance. The uncertainties of the GEMS trace gas and aerosol products were estimated based on the OE method using the atmospheric profile and surface reflectance. Most of the estimated uncertainties of NO2, HCHO, stratospheric and total O3 products satisfied the user's requirements with sufficient margin. However, about 26% of the estimated uncertainties of SO2 and about 30% of the estimated uncertainties of tropospheric O3 do not meet the required precision. Particularly the estimated uncertainty of SO2 is high in winter, when the emission is strong in East Asia. Further efforts are necessary in order to improve the retrieval accuracy of SO2 and tropospheric O3 in order to reach the scientific goal of GEMS. Random measurement error of GEMS was important for the NO2, SO2, and HCHO retrieval, while both the random and systematic measurement errors were important for the O3 retrievals. The degree of freedom for signal of tropospheric O3 was 0.8 ± 0.2 and that for stratospheric O3 was 2.9 ± 0.5. The estimated uncertainties of the aerosol retrieval from GEMS measurements were predicted to be lower than the required precision for the SZA range of the trace gas retrievals.

  11. Proton transfer reaction mass spectrometry: on-line trace gas analysis at the ppb level

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hansel, A.; Jordan, A.; Holzinger, R.; Prazeller, P.; Vogel, W.; Lindinger, W.

    1995-11-01

    A system for trace gas analysis using proton transfer reaction mass spectrometry (PTR-MS) has been developed which allows for on-line measurements of components with concentrations as low as 1 ppb. The method is based on reactions of H3O+ ions, which perform non-dissociative proton transfer to most of the common organic trace constituents but do not react with any of the components present in clean air. Examples of analysis of breath taken from smokers and non-smokers as well as from patients suffering from cirrhosis of the liver, and of air in buildings as well as of ambient air taken at a road crossing demonstrate the wide range of applicability of this method. An enhanced level of acetonitrile in the breath is a most suitable indicator that a person is a smoker. Enhanced levels of propanol strongly indicate that a person has a severe liver deficiency.

  12. U.S. Geological Survey Trace Elements and related reports through 1953

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Wallace, Jane H.; Blatcher, Virginia K.; Smith, Harriet B.

    1954-01-01

    separately under the state. Major subjects are listed separately in the index and also where appropriate under states. Analytical methods and subjects related to analytical research are listed under Analytical Methods and Research, but not separately throughout the index. Most mineralogic studies are included under the heading Mineralogy, but are not necessarily listed according to location. Part IV is a finding list of authors. The words “with” and “and” are used to indicate seniority of authorship. For example, a listing of Jones and Brown indicates that Jones is the senior author. A listing of Jones with Brown indicates that Brown is the senior author. In both parts III and IV all Trace Elements reports are listed, as well as other related reports that have not been issued as Trace Elements reports. The following standard abbreviations have been used: TEI, Trace Elements Investigations report; TEM, Trace Elements Memorandum report; P, Professional Paper; B, Bulletin; C, Circular; J, Journal; OF, open file; TIS, Technical Information Service release; NSA, Nuclear Science Abstracts; QM, Quadrangle Map Series; and OM, Oil and Gas map or Mineral Investigations map or report.

  13. Use of external cavity quantum cascade laser compliance voltage in real-time trace gas sensing of multiple chemicals

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Phillips, Mark C.; Taubman, Matthew S.; Kriesel, Jason M.

    2015-02-08

    We describe a prototype trace gas sensor designed for real-time detection of multiple chemicals. The sensor uses an external cavity quantum cascade laser (ECQCL) swept over its tuning range of 940-1075 cm-1 (9.30-10.7 µm) at a 10 Hz repetition rate.

  14. Trace Gas Measurements on Mars and Earth Using Optical Parametric Generation

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Numata, Kenji; Haris, Riris; Li, Steve; Sun, Xiaoli; Abshire, James Brice

    2010-01-01

    Trace gases and their isotopic ratios in planetary atmospheres offer important but subtle clues as to the origins of a planet's atmosphere, hydrology, geology, and potential for biology. An orbiting laser remote sensing instrument is capable of measuring trace gases on a global scale with unprecedented accuracy, and higher spatial resolution that can be obtained by passive instruments. We have developed an active sensing instrument for the remote measurement of trace gases in planetary atmospheres (including Earth). The technique uses widely tunable, seeded optical parametric generation (OPG) to measure methane, CO2, water vapor, and other trace gases in the near and mid-infrared spectral regions. Methane is a strong greenhouse gas on Earth and it is also a potential biogenic marker on Mars and other planets. Methane in the Earth's atmosphere survives for a shorter time than CO2 but its impact on climate change can be larger than CO2. Methane levels have remained relatively constant over the last decade around 1.78 parts per million (ppm) but recent observations indicate that methane levels may be on the rise. Increasing methane concentrations may trigger a positive feedback loop and a subsequent runaway greenhouse effect, where increasing temperatures result in increasing methane levels. The NRC Decadal Survey recognized the importance of global observations of greenhouse gases and called for simultaneous CH4, CO, and CO2 measurements but also underlined the technological limitations for these observations. For Mars, methane measurements are of great interest because of its potential as a strong biogenic marker. A remote sensing instrument that can measure day and night over all seasons and latitudes can identify and localize sources of biogenic gas plumes produced by subsurface chemistry or biology, and aid in the search for extra-terrestrial life. It can identify the dynamics of methane generation over time and latitude and identify future lander mission sites

  15. A Lagrangian View of Stratospheric Trace Gas Distributions

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Schoeberl, M. R.; Sparling, L.; Dessler, A.; Jackman, C. H.; Fleming, E. L.

    1998-01-01

    As a result of photochemistry, some relationship between the stratospheric age-of-air and the amount of tracer contained within an air sample is expected. The existence of such a relationship allows inferences about transport history to be made from observations of chemical tracers. This paper lays down the conceptual foundations for the relationship between age and tracer amount, developed within a Lagrangian framework. In general, the photochemical loss depends not only on the age of the parcel but also on its path. We show that under the "average path approximation" that the path variations are less important than parcel age. The average path approximation then allows us to develop a formal relationship between the age spectrum and the tracer spectrum. Using the relation between the tracer and age spectra, tracer-tracer correlations can be interpreted as resulting from mixing which connects parts of the single path photochemistry curve, which is formed purely from the action of photochemistry on an irreducible parcel. This geometric interpretation of mixing gives rise to constraints on trace gas correlations, and explains why some observations are do not fall on rapid mixing curves. This effect is seen in the ATMOS observations.

  16. Nitrogen trace gas fluxes from a semiarid subtropical savanna under woody legume encroachment

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Soper, Fiona M.; Boutton, Thomas W.; Groffman, Peter M.; Sparks, Jed P.

    2016-05-01

    Savanna ecosystems are a major source of nitrogen (N) trace gases that influence air quality and climate. These systems are experiencing widespread encroachment by woody plants, frequently associated with large increases in soil N, with no consensus on implications for trace gas emissions. We investigated the impact of encroachment by N-fixing tree Prosopis glandulosa on total reactive N gas flux (Nt = NO + N2O + NOy + NH3) from south Texas savanna soils over 2 years. Contrary to expectations, upland Prosopis groves did not have greater Nt fluxes than adjacent unencroached grasslands. However, abiotic conditions (temperature, rainfall, and topography) were strong drivers. Emissions from moist, low-lying Prosopis playas were up to 3 times higher than from Prosopis uplands. Though NO dominated emissions, NH3 and NOy (non-NO oxidized N) comprised 12-16% of the total summer N flux (up to 7.9 µg N m-2 h-1). Flux responses to soil wetting were temperature dependent for NO, NH3, and NOy: a 15 mm rainfall event increased flux 3-fold to 22-fold after 24 h in summer but had no effect in winter. Repeated soil wetting reduced N flux responses, indicating substrate depletion as a likely control. Rapid (<1 min) increases in NO emissions following wetting of dry soils suggested that abiotic chemodenitrification contributes to pulse emissions. We conclude that temperature and wetting dynamics, rather than encroachment, are primary drivers of N flux from these upland savannas, with implications for future emission patterns under altered precipitation regimes.

  17. Derivatization in gas chromatographic determination of phenol and aniline traces in aqueous media

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gruzdev, I. V.; Zenkevich, I. G.; Kondratenok, B. M.

    2015-06-01

    Substituted anilines and phenols are the most common hydrophilic organic environmental toxicants. The principles of gas chromatographic determination of trace amounts of these compounds in aqueous media at concentrations <=0.1 μg litre-1 based on synthesis of their derivatives (derivatization) directly in the aqueous phase are considered. Conversion of relatively hydrophilic analytes into more hydrophobic derivatives makes it possible to achieve such low detection limits and optimize the protocols of extractive preconcentration and selective chromatographic detection. Among the known reactions, this condition is best met by electrophilic halogenation of compounds at the aromatic moiety. The bibliography includes 177 references.

  18. Moisture and substrate availability constrain soil trace gas fluxes in an eastern Amazonian regrowth forest

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Vasconcelos, Steel S.; Zarin, Daniel J.; Capanu, Marinela; Littell, Ramon; Davidson, Eric A.; Ishida, Francoise Y.; Santos, Elisana B.; Araújo, Maristela M.; AragãO, DéBora V.; Rangel-Vasconcelos, LíVia G. T.; de Assis Oliveira, Francisco; McDowell, William H.; de Carvalho, Claudio José R.

    2004-06-01

    Changes in land-use and climate are likely to alter moisture and substrate availability in tropical forest soils, but quantitative assessment of the role of resource constraints as regulators of soil trace gas fluxes is rather limited. The primary objective of this study was to quantify the effects of moisture and substrate availability on soil trace gas fluxes in an Amazonian regrowth forest. We measured the efflux of carbon dioxide (CO2), nitric oxide (NO), nitrous oxide (N2O), and methane (CH4) from soil in response to two experimental manipulations. In the first, we increased soil moisture availability during the dry season by irrigation; in the second, we decreased substrate availability by continuous removal of aboveground litter. In the absence of irrigation, soil CO2 efflux decreased during the dry season while irrigation maintained soil CO2 efflux levels similar to the wet season. Large variations in soil CO2 efflux consistent with a significant moisture constraint on respiration were observed in response to soil wet-up and dry-down events. Annual soil C efflux for irrigated plots was 27 and 13% higher than for control plots in 2001 and 2002, respectively. Litter removal significantly reduced soil CO2 efflux; annual soil C efflux in 2002 was 28% lower for litter removal plots compared to control plots. The annual soil C efflux:litterfall C ratio for the control treatment (4.0-5.2) was consistent with previously reported values for regrowth forests that indicate a relatively large belowground C allocation. In general, fluxes of N2O and CH4 were higher during the wet season and both fluxes increased during dry-season irrigation. There was no seasonal effect on NO fluxes. Litter removal had no significant impact on N oxide or CH4 emissions. Net soil nitrification did not respond to dry-season irrigation, but was somewhat reduced by litter removal. Overall, these results demonstrate significant soil moisture and substrate constraints on soil trace gas

  19. ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) Science Ground Segment (SGS)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Metcalfe, L.; Aberasturi, M.; Alonso, E.; Álvarez, R.; Ashman, M.; Barbarisi, I.; Brumfitt, J.; Cardesín, A.; Coia, D.; Costa, M.; Fernández, R.; Frew, D.; Gallegos, J.; García Beteta, J. J.; Geiger, B.; Heather, D.; Lim, T.; Martin, P.; Muñoz Crego, C.; Muñoz Fernandez, M.; Villacorta, A.; Svedhem, H.

    2018-06-01

    The ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) Science Ground Segment (SGS), comprised of payload Instrument Team, ESA and Russian operational centres, is responsible for planning the science operations of the TGO mission and for the generation and archiving of the scientific data products to levels meeting the scientific aims and criteria specified by the ESA Project Scientist as advised by the Science Working Team (SWT). The ExoMars SGS builds extensively upon tools and experience acquired through earlier ESA planetary missions like Mars and Venus Express, and Rosetta, but also is breaking ground in various respects toward the science operations of future missions like BepiColombo or JUICE. A productive interaction with the Russian partners in the mission facilitates broad and effective collaboration. This paper describes the global organisation and operation of the SGS, with reference to its principal systems, interfaces and operational processes.

  20. The Environmental Measurements Laboratory's Stratospheric Radionuclide (RANDAB) and Trace Gas (TRACDAB) Databases

    DOE Data Explorer

    Leifer, Robert [Environmental Measurements Lab. (EML), New York, NY (United States); Chan, Nita [Environmental Measurements Lab. (EML), New York, NY (United States)

    1997-01-01

    RANDAB represents the worlds largest collection of stratospheric and upper tropospheric radionuclide data. The database contains results of measurements made from 1957 to 1983 during the ASHCAN, STARDUST, AIRSTREAM, and High Altitude Sampling Program (HASP) projects. More than 20,000 filters were collected during this period and analyzed for approximately 40 different radionuclides. All of the available data characterizing each filter are included in RANDAB. RANDAB offers gas samples characterizing the tritium, radon and 14CO2 concentration in stratospheric air. Only a limited amount of data is available for radon because of analytical and sampling problems. The tritium data were provided graciously by Dr. Allen Mason of Los Alamos Laboratory and Dr. H. G. Oslund of the Tritium Laboratory, University of Miami. The second database, TRACDAB, contains more than 1000 stratospheric trace gas measurements for the period 1974 to 1983. These samples were collected during Project AIRSTREAM. During the years 1974 to 1976, the samples were analyzed at EML. Subsequently, Washington State University (1976-1979) and the Oregon Graduate Institute for Science & Technology (formerly the Oregon Graduate Center 1980-1983) were under contract to EML to analyze AIRSTREAM gas samples. During the period 1974-1983, 980 gas samples were analyzed for one or more of the following gases CCl3F, CCl2F2, CCl4, CH3CCl3, SF6, N20, CO2, CH4, and carbonyl sulfide (COS). To learn more about the naming of halocarbons (CFCs, HFCs, HCFCs, and halons), go to http://cdiac.ess-dive.lbl.gov/pns/cfcinfo.html.

  1. Trace Gas Measurements from the GeoTASO and GCAS Airborne Instruments: An Instrument and Algorithm Test-Bed for Air Quality Observations from Geostationary Orbit

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nowlan, C. R.; Liu, X.; Janz, S. J.; Leitch, J. W.; Al-Saadi, J. A.; Chance, K.; Cole, J.; Delker, T.; Follette-Cook, M. B.; Gonzalez Abad, G.; Good, W. S.; Kowalewski, M. G.; Loughner, C.; Pickering, K. E.; Ruppert, L.; Soo, D.; Szykman, J.; Valin, L.; Zoogman, P.

    2016-12-01

    The Geostationary Trace gas and Aerosol Sensor Optimization (GeoTASO) and the GEO-CAPE Airborne Simulator (GCAS) instruments are pushbroom sensors capable of making remote sensing measurements of air quality and ocean color. Originally developed as test-bed instruments for the Geostationary Coastal and Air Pollution Events (GEO-CAPE) decadal survey, these instruments are now also part of risk reduction for the upcoming Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution (TEMPO) and Geostationary Environment Monitoring Spectrometer (GEMS) geostationary satellite missions, and will provide validation capabilities after the satellite instruments are in orbit. GeoTASO and GCAS flew on two different aircraft in their first intensive air quality field campaigns during the DISCOVER-AQ missions over Texas in 2013 and Colorado in 2014. GeoTASO was also deployed in 2016 during the KORUS-AQ field campaign to make measurements of trace gases and aerosols over Korea. GeoTASO and GCAS collect spectra of backscattered solar radiation in the UV and visible that can be used to derive 2-D maps of trace gas columns below the aircraft at spatial resolutions on the order of 250 x 500 m. We present spatially resolved maps of trace gas retrievals of ozone, nitrogen dioxide, formaldehyde and sulfur dioxide over urban areas and power plants from flights during the field campaigns, and comparisons with data from ground-based spectrometers, in situ monitoring instruments, and satellites.

  2. Assessing the ability to derive rates of polar middle-atmospheric descent using trace gas measurements from remote sensors

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ryan, Niall J.; Kinnison, Douglas E.; Garcia, Rolando R.; Hoffmann, Christoph G.; Palm, Mathias; Raffalski, Uwe; Notholt, Justus

    2018-02-01

    We investigate the reliability of using trace gas measurements from remote sensing instruments to infer polar atmospheric descent rates during winter within 46-86 km altitude. Using output from the Specified Dynamics Whole Atmosphere Community Climate Model (SD-WACCM) between 2008 and 2014, tendencies of carbon monoxide (CO) volume mixing ratios (VMRs) are used to assess a common assumption of dominant vertical advection of tracers during polar winter. The results show that dynamical processes other than vertical advection are not negligible, meaning that the transport rates derived from trace gas measurements do not represent the mean descent of the atmosphere. The relative importance of vertical advection is lessened, and exceeded by other processes, during periods directly before and after a sudden stratospheric warming, mainly due to an increase in eddy transport. It was also found that CO chemistry cannot be ignored in the mesosphere due to the night-time layer of OH at approximately 80 km altitude. CO VMR profiles from the Kiruna Microwave Radiometer and the Microwave Limb Sounder were compared to SD-WACCM output, and show good agreement on daily and seasonal timescales. SD-WACCM CO profiles are combined with the CO tendencies to estimate errors involved in calculating the mean descent of the atmosphere from remote sensing measurements. The results indicate errors on the same scale as the calculated descent rates, and that the method is prone to a misinterpretation of the direction of air motion. The true rate of atmospheric descent is seen to be masked by processes, other than vertical advection, that affect CO. We suggest an alternative definition of the rate calculated using remote sensing measurements: not as the mean descent of the atmosphere, but as an effective rate of vertical transport for the trace gas under observation.

  3. The value and limitations of global air-sampling networks for improving our understanding trace gas behavior

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Montzka, S. A.

    2016-12-01

    Measurements from global surface-based air sampling networks provide a fundamental understanding of how and why concentrations of long-lived trace gases are changing over time. Results from these networks are used to quantify trace-gas concentrations and their time-dependent changes on global and smaller scales, and thus provide a means to quantify emission rates, loss frequencies, and mixing processes. Substantial advances in measurement and sampling technologies and the ability of these programs to create and maintain reliable gas standards mean that spatial concentration gradients and time-dependent changes are often very reliably measured. The presence of multiple independent networks allows an assessment of this reliability. Furthermore, recent global `snap-shot' surveys (e.g., HIPPO and ATom) and ongoing atmospheric profiling programs help us assess the ability of surface-based data to describe concentration distributions throughout most of the atmosphere ( 80% of its mass). In this overview talk, I'll explore the usefulness and limitations of existing long-term, ongoing sampling network programs and their advantages and disadvantages for characterizing concentrations on global and regional scales, and how recent advances (and short-term sampling programs) help us assess the accuracy of the surface networks to provide estimates of source and sink magnitudes, and inter-annual variability in both.

  4. Study of solvent sublation for concentration of trace phthalate esters in plastic beverage packaging and analysis by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Chang, Lin; Bi, Pengyu; Li, Xiaochen; Wei, Yun

    2015-06-15

    A novel trace analytical method based on solvent sublation (SS) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was developed for the trace determination of twenty-two phthalate esters (PAEs) from plastic beverage packaging. In the solvent sublation section, the effects of solution pH, NaCl concentration, nitrogen flow rate, and sublation time on the sublation efficiency were investigated in detail, and the optimal conditions were obtained. The trace PAEs migrated from plastic beverage packaging to food simulants were separated and concentrated by solvent sublation, and then the trace target compounds in the concentrated solution were analyzed by GC-MS. According to the European Union Regulation, the food simulants including distilled water for the normal beverages and acetic acid solution (3%) for the acetic beverage of yogurt were prepared for migration tests. The trace analysis method showed good linearity, low limits of detection (LODs) of 1.6-183.5 ng/L, and satisfied recoveries (67.3-113.7%). Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. Gas trace detection with cavity enhanced absorption spectroscopy: a review of its process in the field

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liu, Siqi; Luo, Zhifu; Tan, Zhongqi; Long, Xingwu

    2016-11-01

    Cavity-enhanced absorption spectroscopy (CEAS) is a technology in which the intracavity absorption is deduced from the intensity of light transmitted by the high finesse optical cavity. Then the samples' parameters, such as their species, concentration and absorption cross section, would be detection. It was first proposed and demonstrated by Engeln R. [1] and O'Keefe[2] in 1998. This technology has extraordinary detection sensitivity, high resolution and good practicability, so it is used in many fields , such as clinical medicine, gas detection and basic physics research. In this paper, we focus on the use of gas trace detection, including the advance of CEAS over the past twenty years, the newest research progresses, and the prediction of this technology's development direction in the future.

  6. Latest developments for low-power infrared laser-based trace gas sensors for sensor networks

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    So, Stephen; Thomazy, David; Wang, Wen; Marchat, Oscar; Wysocki, Gerard

    2011-09-01

    Academic and industrial researchers require ultra-low power, compact laser based trace-gas sensor systems for the most demanding environmental and space-borne applications. Here the latest results from research projects addressing these applications will be discussed: 1) an ultra-compact CO2 sensor based on a continuous wave quantum cascade laser, 2) an ultra-sensitive Faraday rotation spectrometer for O2 detection, 3) a fully ruggedized compact and low-power laser spectrometer, and 4) a novel non-paraxial nonthin multipass cell. Preliminary tests and projection for performance of future sensors based on this technology is presented.

  7. Measurement of trace impurities in ultra pure hydrogen and deuterium at the parts-per-billion level using gas chromatography

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ganzha, V.; Ivshin, K.; Kammel, P.; Kravchenko, P.; Kravtsov, P.; Petitjean, C.; Trofimov, V.; Vasilyev, A.; Vorobyov, A.; Vznuzdaev, M.; Wauters, F.

    2018-02-01

    A series of muon experiments at the Paul Scherrer Institute in Switzerland deploy ultra-pure hydrogen active targets. A new gas impurity analysis technique was developed, based on conventional gas chromatography, with the capability to measure part-per-billion (ppb) traces of nitrogen and oxygen in hydrogen and deuterium. Key ingredients are a cryogenic admixture accumulation, a directly connected sampling system and a dedicated calibration setup. The dependence of the measured concentration on the sample volume was investigated, confirming that all impurities from the sample gas are collected in the accumulation column and measured with the gas chromatograph. The system was calibrated utilizing dynamic dilution of admixtures into the gas flow down to sub-ppb level concentrations. The total amount of impurities accumulated in the purification system during a three month long experimental run was measured and agreed well with the calculated amount based on the measured concentrations in the flow.

  8. Is there still a TRACE of trace?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    McClelland, James; Mirman, Daniel; Holt, Lori

    2003-04-01

    According to the TRACE model [McClelland and Elman, Cogn. Psychol. 18, 1-86 (1986)], speech recognition is an interactive activation process involving the integrated use of top-down (lexical) and bottom-up (acoustic) information. Although it is widely accepted that there are lexical influences on speech perception, there has been a disagreement over their exact nature. Two contested predictions of TRACE are that (a) lexical influences should delay or inhibit recognition of phonemes not consistent with lexical information and (b) a lexical influence on the identification of one phoneme can trigger compensation for co-articulation, affecting the identification of other phonemes. Others [Norris, McQueen, and Cutler, BBS 23, 299-370 (2000)] have argued that the predicted effects do not occur, taking this to support an alternative to the TRACE model in which lexical influences do not affect perception, but only a post-perceptual identification process. We re-examine the evidence on these points along with the recent finding that lexical information may lead to a lasting adjustment of category boundaries [McQueen, Norris, and Cutler, Psychonomics Abstract 255 (2001)]. Our analysis indicates that the existing evidence is completely consistent with TRACE, and we suggest additional research that will be necessary to resolve unanswered questions.

  9. Rn-222 tracing and stable isotope measurements of biogenic gas fluxes from methane saturated sediments

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Martens, Christopher S.; Green, C. D.; Blair, Neal; Chanton, J. P.

    1985-01-01

    Transport of reduced biogenic gases from anoxic sediments and soils to the atmosphere can be quantitatively studied through measurement of radon-222/radium-226 disequilibrium. In previous work, seasonal variations in biogenic gas transport mechanisms, net fluxes and overall composition were documented. Now presented are direct field measurements of radon-222 activity in gases exiting organic rich sediments which show their usefulness for tracing of the stripping of dissolved biogenic gases from within the sediment column and transport via bubble ebullition. Methane is depleted in deuterium during the summer as compared with winter months and is in general lighter than in most marine sediments signaling the probable importance of acetate as an important precursor molecule. The significant seasonal isotopic variations observed illustrate the importance of understanding mechanisms and rates of biogenic gas production in order to interpret observed tropospheric isotopic data.

  10. Development of data processing, interpretation and analysis system for the remote sensing of trace atmospheric gas species

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Casas, Joseph C.; Saylor, Mary S.; Kindle, Earl C.

    1987-01-01

    The major emphasis is on the advancement of remote sensing technology. In particular, the gas filter correlation radiometer (GFCR) technique was applied to the measurement of trace gas species, such as carbon monoxide (CO), from airborne and Earth orbiting platforms. Through a series of low altitude aircraft flights, high altitude aircraft flights, and orbiting space platform flights, data were collected and analyzed, culminating in the first global map of carbon monoxide concentration in the middle troposphere and stratosphere. The four major areas of this remote sensing program, known as the Measurement of Air Pollution from Satellites (MAPS) experiment, are: (1) data acquisition, (2) data processing, analysis, and interpretation algorithms, (3) data display techniques, and (4) information processing.

  11. Mid-Infrared Trace Gas Sensor Technology Based on Intracavity Quartz-Enhanced Photoacoustic Spectroscopy.

    PubMed

    Wojtas, Jacek; Gluszek, Aleksander; Hudzikowski, Arkadiusz; Tittel, Frank K

    2017-03-04

    The application of compact inexpensive trace gas sensor technology to a mid-infrared nitric oxide (NO) detectoion using intracavity quartz-enhanced photoacoustic spectroscopy (I-QEPAS) is reported. A minimum detection limit of 4.8 ppbv within a 30 ms integration time was demonstrated by using a room-temperature, continuous-wave, distributed-feedback quantum cascade laser (QCL) emitting at 5.263 µm (1900.08 cm -1 ) and a new compact design of a high-finesse bow-tie optical cavity with an integrated resonant quartz tuning fork (QTF). The optimum configuration of the bow-tie cavity was simulated using custom software. Measurements were performed with a wavelength modulation scheme (WM) using a 2f detection procedure.

  12. Mid-Infrared Trace Gas Sensor Technology Based on Intracavity Quartz-Enhanced Photoacoustic Spectroscopy

    PubMed Central

    Wojtas, Jacek; Gluszek, Aleksander; Hudzikowski, Arkadiusz; Tittel, Frank K.

    2017-01-01

    The application of compact inexpensive trace gas sensor technology to a mid-infrared nitric oxide (NO) detectoion using intracavity quartz-enhanced photoacoustic spectroscopy (I-QEPAS) is reported. A minimum detection limit of 4.8 ppbv within a 30 ms integration time was demonstrated by using a room-temperature, continuous-wave, distributed-feedback quantum cascade laser (QCL) emitting at 5.263 µm (1900.08 cm−1) and a new compact design of a high-finesse bow-tie optical cavity with an integrated resonant quartz tuning fork (QTF). The optimum configuration of the bow-tie cavity was simulated using custom software. Measurements were performed with a wavelength modulation scheme (WM) using a 2f detection procedure. PMID:28273836

  13. Global Estimates of Trace Gas Fluxes Affected by Land Use Change and Irrigation of Major Crops

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ojima, D. S.; del Grosso, S.; Parton, W. J.; Keough, C.

    2005-12-01

    Cropland conversions have altered many fertile regions of the earth and have modified the biogeochemical and hydrological cycling in these regions. These croplands are significant sources of N trace gas emissions however, the extent of changing trace gas emission due to land management changes and irrigation need further analysis. We use the DAYCENT biogeochemical model which is a daily time step version of the CENTURY model. DAYCENT simulates fluxes of N2O between croplands and the atmosphere for major crop types, and allows for a dynamic representation of GHG fluxes that accounts for environmental conditions, soil characteristics, climate, specific crop qualities, and fertilizer and irrigation management practices. DAYCENT is applied to all world cropland regions. Global datasets of weather, soils, native vegetation and cropping fractions were mapped to an approximate 2° x 2° resolution. Non-spatial data (such as planting date and fertilizer application rates) were assigned as point values for each region (i.e. country), and were assumed to be similar within crop types across the region. Three major crops were simulated (corn, wheat and soybeans) under both irrigated and non-irrigated conditions. Results indicate that N2O emission for maize and soy bean increase between 3 to 10%, where as wheat emission decline by about 1% when irrigated systems are compared to non-irrigated systems.

  14. The Atmospheric Chemistry Suite (ACS) of Three Spectrometers for the ExoMars 2016 Trace Gas Orbiter

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Korablev, O.; Montmessin, F.; Trokhimovskiy, A.; Fedorova, A. A.; Shakun, A. V.; Grigoriev, A. V.; Moshkin, B. E.; Ignatiev, N. I.; Forget, F.; Lefèvre, F.; Anufreychik, K.; Dzuban, I.; Ivanov, Y. S.; Kalinnikov, Y. K.; Kozlova, T. O.; Kungurov, A.; Makarov, V.; Martynovich, F.; Maslov, I.; Merzlyakov, D.; Moiseev, P. P.; Nikolskiy, Y.; Patrakeev, A.; Patsaev, D.; Santos-Skripko, A.; Sazonov, O.; Semena, N.; Semenov, A.; Shashkin, V.; Sidorov, A.; Stepanov, A. V.; Stupin, I.; Timonin, D.; Titov, A. Y.; Viktorov, A.; Zharkov, A.; Altieri, F.; Arnold, G.; Belyaev, D. A.; Bertaux, J. L.; Betsis, D. S.; Duxbury, N.; Encrenaz, T.; Fouchet, T.; Gérard, J.-C.; Grassi, D.; Guerlet, S.; Hartogh, P.; Kasaba, Y.; Khatuntsev, I.; Krasnopolsky, V. A.; Kuzmin, R. O.; Lellouch, E.; Lopez-Valverde, M. A.; Luginin, M.; Määttänen, A.; Marcq, E.; Martin Torres, J.; Medvedev, A. S.; Millour, E.; Olsen, K. S.; Patel, M. R.; Quantin-Nataf, C.; Rodin, A. V.; Shematovich, V. I.; Thomas, I.; Thomas, N.; Vazquez, L.; Vincendon, M.; Wilquet, V.; Wilson, C. F.; Zasova, L. V.; Zelenyi, L. M.; Zorzano, M. P.

    2018-02-01

    The Atmospheric Chemistry Suite (ACS) package is an element of the Russian contribution to the ESA-Roscosmos ExoMars 2016 Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) mission. ACS consists of three separate infrared spectrometers, sharing common mechanical, electrical, and thermal interfaces. This ensemble of spectrometers has been designed and developed in response to the Trace Gas Orbiter mission objectives that specifically address the requirement of high sensitivity instruments to enable the unambiguous detection of trace gases of potential geophysical or biological interest. For this reason, ACS embarks a set of instruments achieving simultaneously very high accuracy (ppt level), very high resolving power (>10,000) and large spectral coverage (0.7 to 17 μm—the visible to thermal infrared range). The near-infrared (NIR) channel is a versatile spectrometer covering the 0.7-1.6 μm spectral range with a resolving power of ˜20,000. NIR employs the combination of an echelle grating with an AOTF (Acousto-Optical Tunable Filter) as diffraction order selector. This channel will be mainly operated in solar occultation and nadir, and can also perform limb observations. The scientific goals of NIR are the measurements of water vapor, aerosols, and dayside or night side airglows. The mid-infrared (MIR) channel is a cross-dispersion echelle instrument dedicated to solar occultation measurements in the 2.2-4.4 μm range. MIR achieves a resolving power of >50,000. It has been designed to accomplish the most sensitive measurements ever of the trace gases present in the Martian atmosphere. The thermal-infrared channel (TIRVIM) is a 2-inch double pendulum Fourier-transform spectrometer encompassing the spectral range of 1.7-17 μm with apodized resolution varying from 0.2 to 1.3 cm-1. TIRVIM is primarily dedicated to profiling temperature from the surface up to ˜60 km and to monitor aerosol abundance in nadir. TIRVIM also has a limb and solar occultation capability. The technical concept of

  15. Gaseous trace impurity analyzer and method

    DOEpatents

    Edwards, Jr., David; Schneider, William

    1980-01-01

    Simple apparatus for analyzing trace impurities in a gas, such as helium or hydrogen, comprises means for drawing a measured volume of the gas as sample into a heated zone. A segregable portion of the zone is then chilled to condense trace impurities in the gas in the chilled portion. The gas sample is evacuated from the heated zone including the chilled portion. Finally, the chilled portion is warmed to vaporize the condensed impurities in the order of their boiling points. As the temperature of the chilled portion rises, pressure will develop in the evacuated, heated zone by the vaporization of an impurity. The temperature at which the pressure increase occurs identifies that impurity and the pressure increase attained until the vaporization of the next impurity causes a further pressure increase is a measure of the quantity of the preceding impurity.

  16. Mercury in the Arctic tundra snowpack: temporal and spatial concentration patterns and trace gas exchanges

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Agnan, Yannick; Douglas, Thomas A.; Helmig, Detlev; Hueber, Jacques; Obrist, Daniel

    2018-06-01

    In the Arctic, the snowpack forms the major interface between atmospheric and terrestrial cycling of mercury (Hg), a global pollutant. We investigated Hg dynamics in an interior Arctic tundra snowpack in northern Alaska during two winter seasons. Using a snow tower system to monitor Hg trace gas exchange, we observed consistent concentration declines of gaseous elemental Hg (Hg0gas) from the atmosphere to the snowpack to soils. The snowpack itself was unlikely a direct sink for atmospheric Hg0gas. In addition, there was no evidence of photochemical reduction of HgII to Hg0gas in the tundra snowpack, with the exception of short periods during late winter in the uppermost snow layer. The patterns in this interior Arctic snowpack thus differ substantially from observations in Arctic coastal and temperate snowpacks. We consistently measured low concentrations of both total and dissolved Hg in snowpack throughout the two seasons. Chemical tracers showed that Hg was mainly associated with local mineral dust and regional marine sea spray inputs. Mass balance calculations show that the snowpack represents a small reservoir of Hg, resulting in low inputs during snowmelt. Taken together, the results from this study suggest that interior Arctic snowpacks are negligible sources of Hg to the Arctic.

  17. Trace gas fluxes from intensively managed rice and soybean fields across three growing seasons in the Brazilian Amazon

    Treesearch

    R.C. Oliveira Junior; Michael Keller; P. Crill; T. Beldini; J. Van Haren; P. Camargo

    2015-01-01

    The emission of gases that may potentially intensify the greenhouse effect has received special attention due to their ability to raise global temperatures and possibly modify conditions for life on earth. The objectives of this study were the quantification of trace gas flux (N2O, CO2 and CH4) in soils of the lower Amazon basin that are planted with rice and soybean,...

  18. Measuring trace gas emission from multi-distributed sources using vertical radial plume mapping (VRPM) and backward Lagrangian stochastic (bLS) techniques

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Two micrometeorological techniques for measuring trace gas emission rates from distributed area sources were evaluated using a variety of synthetic area sources. The accuracy of the vertical radial plume mapping (VRPM) and the backward Lagrangian (bLS) techniques with an open-path optical spectrosco...

  19. Tropospheric chemistry over the lower Great Plains of the United States. 2. Trace gas profiles and distributions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Luke, Winston T.; Dickerson, Russell R.; Ryan, William F.; Pickering, Kenneth E.; Nunnermacker, Linda J.

    1992-12-01

    Convective clouds and thunderstorms redistribute air pollutants vertically, and by altering the chemistry and radiative balance of the upper troposphere, these local actions can have global consequences. To study these effects, measurements of trace gases ozone, O3, carbon monoxide, CO, and odd nitrogen were made aboard the NCAR Sabreliner on 18 flights over the southern Great Plains during June 1985. To demonstrate chemical changes induced by vertical motions in the atmosphere and to facilitate comparison with computer model calculations, these data were categorized according to synoptic flow patterns. Part 1 of this two-part paper details the alternating pulses of polar and maritime air masses that dominate the vertical mixing in this region. In this paper, trace gas measurements are presented as altitude profiles (0-12 km) with statistical distributions of mixing ratios for each species in each flow pattern. The polar flow regime is characterized by northwesterly winds, subsiding air, and convective stability. Concentrations of CO and total odd nitrogen (NOy) are relatively high in the shallow planetary boundary layer (PBL) but decrease rapidly with altitude. Ozone, on the other hand, is uniformly distributed, suggesting limited photochemical production; in fact, nitric oxide, NO, mixing ratios fell below 10 ppt (parts per 1012 by volume) in the midtroposphere. The maritime regime is characterized by southerly surface winds, convective instability, and a deep PBL; uniformly high concentrations of trace gases were found up to 4 km on one flight. Severe storms occur in maritime flow, especially when capped by a dry layer, and they transport large amounts of CO, O3, and NOy into the upper troposphere. Median NO levels at high altitude exceeded 300 ppt. Lightning produces spikes of NO (but not CO) with mixing ratios sometimes exceeding 1000 ppt. This flow pattern tends to leave the midtroposphere relatively clean with concentrations of trace gases similar to those

  20. A Miniaturized QEPAS Trace Gas Sensor with a 3D-Printed Acoustic Detection Module.

    PubMed

    Yang, Xiaotao; Xiao, Youhong; Ma, Yufei; He, Ying; Tittel, Frank K

    2017-07-31

    A 3D printing technique was introduced to a quartz-enhanced photoacoustic spectroscopy (QEPAS) sensor and is reported for the first time. The acoustic detection module (ADM) was designed and fabricated using the 3D printing technique and the ADM volume was compressed significantly. Furthermore, a small grin lens was used for laser focusing and facilitated the beam adjustment in the 3D-printed ADM. A quartz tuning fork (QTF) with a low resonance frequency of 30.72 kHz was used as the acoustic wave transducer and acetylene (C₂H₂) was chosen as the analyte. The reported miniaturized QEPAS trace gas sensor is useful in actual sensor applications.

  1. Finding Feasible Abstract Counter-Examples

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Pasareanu, Corina S.; Dwyer, Matthew B.; Visser, Willem; Clancy, Daniel (Technical Monitor)

    2002-01-01

    A strength of model checking is its ability to automate the detection of subtle system errors and produce traces that exhibit those errors. Given the high computational cost of model checking most researchers advocate the use of aggressive property-preserving abstractions. Unfortunately, the more aggressively a system is abstracted the more infeasible behavior it will have. Thus, while abstraction enables efficient model checking it also threatens the usefulness of model checking as a defect detection tool, since it may be difficult to determine whether a counter-example is feasible and hence worth developer time to analyze. We have explored several strategies for addressing this problem by extending an explicit-state model checker, Java PathFinder (JPF), to search for and analyze counter-examples in the presence of abstractions. We demonstrate that these techniques effectively preserve the defect detection ability of model checking in the presence of aggressive abstraction by applying them to check properties of several abstracted multi-threaded Java programs. These new capabilities are not specific to JPF and can be easily adapted to other model checking frameworks; we describe how this was done for the Bandera toolset.

  2. Land use change effects on trace gas fluxes in the forest margins of Central Sulawesi, Indonesia

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Veldkamp, Edzo; Purbopuspito, Joko; Corre, Marife D.; Brumme, Rainer; Murdiyarso, Daniel

    2008-06-01

    Land use changes and land use intensification are considered important processes contributing to the increasing concentrations of the greenhouse gases nitrous oxide (N2O) and methane (CH4) and of nitric oxide (NO), a precursor of ozone. Studies on the effects of land use changes and land use intensification on soil trace gas emissions were mostly conducted in Latin America and only very few in Asia. Here we present results from Central Sulawesi where profound changes in land use and cultivation practices take place: traditional agricultural practices like shifting cultivation and slash-and-burn agriculture are replaced by permanent cultivation systems and introduction of income-generating cash crops like cacao. Our results showed that N2O emissions were higher from cacao agroforestry (35 ± 10 μg N m-2 h-1) than maize (9 ± 2 μg N m-2 h-1), whereas intermediate rates were observed from secondary forests (25 ± 11 μg N m-2 h-1). NO emissions did not differ among land use systems, ranging from 12 ± 2 μg N m-2 h-1 for cacao agroforestry and secondary forest to 18 ± 2 μg N m-2 h-1 for maize. CH4 uptake was higher for maize (-30 ± 4 μg C m-2 h-1) than cacao agroforestry (-18 ± 2 μg C m-2 h-1) and intermediate rates were measured from secondary forests (-25 ± 4 μg C m-2 h-1). Combining these data with results from other studies in this area, we present chronosequence effects of land use change on trace gas emissions from natural forest, through maize cultivation, to cacao agroforestry (with or without fertilizer). Compared to the original forests, this typical land use change in the study area clearly led to higher N2O emissions and lower CH4 uptake with age of cacao agroforestry systems. We conclude that this common land use sequence in the area combined with the increasing use of fertilizer will strongly increase soil trace gas emissions. We suggest that the future hot spot regions of high N2O (and to a lesser extend NO) emissions in the tropics are those

  3. Tracing kinematic (mis)alignments in CALIFA merging galaxies. Stellar and ionized gas kinematic orientations at every merger stage

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Barrera-Ballesteros, J. K.; García-Lorenzo, B.; Falcón-Barroso, J.; van de Ven, G.; Lyubenova, M.; Wild, V.; Méndez-Abreu, J.; Sánchez, S. F.; Marquez, I.; Masegosa, J.; Monreal-Ibero, A.; Ziegler, B.; del Olmo, A.; Verdes-Montenegro, L.; García-Benito, R.; Husemann, B.; Mast, D.; Kehrig, C.; Iglesias-Paramo, J.; Marino, R. A.; Aguerri, J. A. L.; Walcher, C. J.; Vílchez, J. M.; Bomans, D. J.; Cortijo-Ferrero, C.; González Delgado, R. M.; Bland-Hawthorn, J.; McIntosh, D. H.; Bekeraitė, S.

    2015-10-01

    We present spatially resolved stellar and/or ionized gas kinematic properties for a sample of 103 interacting galaxies, tracing all merger stages: close companions, pairs with morphological signatures of interaction, and coalesced merger remnants. In order to distinguish kinematic properties caused by a merger event from those driven by internal processes, we compare our galaxies with a control sample of 80 non-interacting galaxies. We measure for both the stellar and the ionized gas components the major (projected) kinematic position angles (PAkin, approaching and receding) directly from the velocity distributions with no assumptions on the internal motions. This method also allow us to derive the deviations of the kinematic PAs from a straight line (δPAkin). We find that around half of the interacting objects show morpho-kinematic PA misalignments that cannot be found in the control sample. In particular, we observe those misalignments in galaxies with morphological signatures of interaction. On the other hand, thelevel of alignment between the approaching and receding sides for both samples is similar, with most of the galaxies displaying small misalignments. Radial deviations of the kinematic PA orientation from a straight line in the stellar component measured by δPAkin are large for both samples. However, for a large fraction of interacting galaxies the ionized gas δPAkin is larger than the typical values derived from isolated galaxies (48%), indicating that this parameter is a good indicator to trace the impact of interaction and mergers in the internal motions of galaxies. By comparing the stellar and ionized gas kinematic PA, we find that 42% (28/66) of the interacting galaxies have misalignments larger than 16°, compared to 10% from the control sample. Our results show the impact of interactions in the motion of stellar and ionized gas as well as the wide the variety of their spatially resolved kinematic distributions. This study also provides a local

  4. Measuring Trace Hydrocarbons in Silanes

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Lesser, L. A.

    1984-01-01

    Technique rapid and uses standard analytical equipment. Silane gas containing traces of hydrocarbons injected into carrier gas of moist nitrogen having about 0.2 percent water vapor. Carrier, water and silane pass through short column packed with powdered sodium hydroxide which combines moisture and silane to form nonvolatile sodium silicate. Carrier gas free of silane but containing nonreactive hydrocarbons, pass to silica-gel column where chromatographic separation takes place. Hydrocarbons measured by FID.

  5. Investigations of the Mars Upper Atmosphere with ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    López-Valverde, Miguel A.; Gerard, Jean-Claude; González-Galindo, Francisco; Vandaele, Ann-Carine; Thomas, Ian; Korablev, Oleg; Ignatiev, Nikolai; Fedorova, Anna; Montmessin, Franck; Määttänen, Anni; Guilbon, Sabrina; Lefevre, Franck; Patel, Manish R.; Jiménez-Monferrer, Sergio; García-Comas, Maya; Cardesin, Alejandro; Wilson, Colin F.; Clancy, R. T.; Kleinböhl, Armin; McCleese, Daniel J.; Kass, David M.; Schneider, Nick M.; Chaffin, Michael S.; López-Moreno, José Juan; Rodríguez, Julio

    2018-02-01

    The Martian mesosphere and thermosphere, the region above about 60 km, is not the primary target of the ExoMars 2016 mission but its Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) can explore it and address many interesting issues, either in-situ during the aerobraking period or remotely during the regular mission. In the aerobraking phase TGO peeks into thermospheric densities and temperatures, in a broad range of latitudes and during a long continuous period. TGO carries two instruments designed for the detection of trace species, NOMAD and ACS, which will use the solar occultation technique. Their regular sounding at the terminator up to very high altitudes in many different molecular bands will represent the first time that an extensive and precise dataset of densities and hopefully temperatures are obtained at those altitudes and local times on Mars. But there are additional capabilities in TGO for studying the upper atmosphere of Mars, and we review them briefly. Our simulations suggest that airglow emissions from the UV to the IR might be observed outside the terminator. If eventually confirmed from orbit, they would supply new information about atmospheric dynamics and variability. However, their optimal exploitation requires a special spacecraft pointing, currently not considered in the regular operations but feasible in our opinion. We discuss the synergy between the TGO instruments, specially the wide spectral range achieved by combining them. We also encourage coordinated operations with other Mars-observing missions capable of supplying simultaneous measurements of its upper atmosphere.

  6. ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter provides atmospheric data during Aerobraking into its final orbit

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Svedhem, Hakan; Vago, Jorge L.; Bruinsma, Sean; Müller-Wodarg, Ingo; ExoMars 2016 Team

    2017-10-01

    After the arrival of the Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) at Mars on 19 October 2016 a number of initial orbit change manoeuvres were executed and the spacecraft was put in an orbit with a 24 hour period and 74 degrees inclination. The spacecraft and its four instruments were thoroughly checked out after arrival and a few measurements and images were taken in November 2016 and in Feb-March 2017. The solar occultation observations have however not yet been possible due to lack of the proper geometry.On 15 March a long period of aerobraking to reach the final 400km semi-circular frozen orbit (370x430km, with a fixed pericentre latitude). This orbit is optimised for the payload observations and for the communication relay with the ExoMars Rover, due to arrive in 2021.The aerobraking is proceeding well and the final orbit is expected to be reached in April 2018. A large data set is being acquired for the upper atmosphere of Mars, from the limit of the sensitivity of the accelerometer, down to lowest altitude of the aerobraking at about 105km. Initial analysis has shown a highly variable atmosphere with a slightly lower density then predicted by existing models. Until the time of the abstract writing no dust storms have been observed.The ExoMars programme is a joint activity by the European Space Agency(ESA) and ROSCOSMOS, Russia. ESA is providing the TGO spacecraft and Schiaparelli (EDM) and two of the TGO instruments and ROSCOSMOS is providing the Proton launcher and the other two TGO instruments. After the arrival of the ExoMars 2020 mission, consisting of a Rover and a Surface platform also launched by a Proton rocket, the TGO will handle the communication between the Earth and the Rover and Surface Platform through its (NASA provided) UHF communication system.

  7. [Quartz-enhanced photoacoustic spectroscopy trace gas detection system based on the Fabry-Perot demodulation].

    PubMed

    Lin, Cheng; Zhu, Yong; Wei, Wei; Zhang, Jie; Tian, Li; Xu, Zu-Wen

    2013-05-01

    An all-optical quartz-enhanced photoacoustic spectroscopy system, based on the F-P demodulation, for trace gas detection in the open environment was proposed. In quartz-enhanced photoacoustic spectroscopy (QEPAS), an optical fiber Fabry-Perot method was used to replace the conventional electronic demodulation method. The photoacoustic signal was obtained by demodulating the variation of the Fabry-Perot cavity between the quartz tuning fork side and the fiber face. An experimental system was setup. The experiment for detection of water vapour in the open environment was carried on. A normalized noise equivalent absorption coefficient of 2.80 x 10(-7) cm(-1) x W x Hz(-1/2) was achieved. The result demonstrated that the sensitivity of the all-optical quartz-enhanced photoacoustic spectroscopy system is about 2.6 times higher than that of the conventional QEPAS system. The all-optical quartz-enhanced photoacoustic spectroscopy system is immune to electromagnetic interference, safe in flammable and explosive gas detection, suitable for high temperature and high humidity environments and realizable for long distance, multi-point and network sensing.

  8. Coupled-Circulation-Chemistry Studies with the Finite-Volume CCM: Trace Gas Transport in the Tropopause Region

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Pawson, Steven; Lin, Shian-Jiann; Rood, Richard B.; Nebuda, Sharon; Nielsen, J. Eric; Douglass, Anne R.

    2000-01-01

    A joint project between the Data Assimilation Office at NASA GSFC and NCAR involves linking the physical packages from the Community Climate Model (CCM) with the flux-form semi-Lagrangian dynamical core developed by Lin and Rood in the DAO. A further development of this model includes the implementation of a chemical package developed by Douglass and colleagues in the Atmospheric Chemistry and Dynamics Branch at NASA GSFC. Results from this coupled dynamics-radiation-chemistry model will be presented, focussing on trace gas transport in the tropopause region.

  9. Implementation of Cloud Retrievals for Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer (TES) Atmospheric Retrievals: Part 1. Description and Characterization of Errors on Trace Gas Retrievals

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kulawik, Susan S.; Worden, John; Eldering, Annmarie; Bowman, Kevin; Gunson, Michael; Osterman, Gregory B.; Zhang, Lin; Clough, Shepard A.; Shephard, Mark W.; Beer, Reinhard

    2006-01-01

    We develop an approach to estimate and characterize trace gas retrievals in the presence of clouds in high spectral measurements of upwelling radiance in the infrared spectral region (650-2260/cm). The radiance contribution of clouds is parameterized in terms of a set of frequency-dependent nonscattering optical depths and a cloud height. These cloud parameters are retrieved jointly with surface temperature, emissivity, atmospheric temperature, and trace gases such as ozone from spectral data. We demonstrate the application of this approach using data from the Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer (TES) and test data simulated with a scattering radiative transfer model. We show the value of this approach in that it results in accurate estimates of errors for trace gas retrievals, and the retrieved values improve over the initial guess for a wide range of cloud conditions. Comparisons are made between TES retrievals of ozone, temperature, and water to model fields from the Global Modeling and Assimilation Office (GMAO), temperature retrievals from the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS), tropospheric ozone columns from the Goddard Earth Observing System (GEOS) GEOS-Chem, and ozone retrievals from the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS). In each of these cases, this cloud retrieval approach does not introduce observable biases into TES retrievals.

  10. Geometric calibration of Colour and Stereo Surface Imaging System of ESA's Trace Gas Orbiter

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tulyakov, Stepan; Ivanov, Anton; Thomas, Nicolas; Roloff, Victoria; Pommerol, Antoine; Cremonese, Gabriele; Weigel, Thomas; Fleuret, Francois

    2018-01-01

    There are many geometric calibration methods for "standard" cameras. These methods, however, cannot be used for the calibration of telescopes with large focal lengths and complex off-axis optics. Moreover, specialized calibration methods for the telescopes are scarce in literature. We describe the calibration method that we developed for the Colour and Stereo Surface Imaging System (CaSSIS) telescope, on board of the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO). Although our method is described in the context of CaSSIS, with camera-specific experiments, it is general and can be applied to other telescopes. We further encourage re-use of the proposed method by making our calibration code and data available on-line.

  11. The Pasamonte unequilibrated eucrite: Pyroxene REE systematic and major-, minor-, and trace-element zoning. [Abstract only

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Pun, A.; Papike, J. J.

    1994-01-01

    We are evaluating the trace-element concentrations in the pyroxenes of Pasamonte. Pasamonte is a characteristic member of the main group eucrites, and has recently been redescribed as a polymict eucrite. Our Pasamonte sample contained eucritic clasts with textures ranging from subophitic to moderately coarse-grained. This study concentrates on pyroxenes from an unequilibrated, coarse-grained eucrite clast. Major-, minor-, and trace-element analyses were measured for zoned pyroxenes in the eucritic clast of Pasamonte. The major- and minor-element zoning traverses were measured using the JEOL 733 electron probe with an Oxford-Link imaging/analysis system. Complemenatry trace elements were then measured for the core and rim of each of the grains by SIMS. The trace elements analyzed consisted of eight REE, Sr, Y, and Zr. These analyses were performed on a Cameca 4f ion probe. The results of the CI chondrite normalized (average CI trace-element analyses for several grains and the major- and minor-element zoning patterns from a single pyroxene grain are given. The Eu abundance in the cores of the pyroxenes represents the detection limit and therefore the (-Eu) anomaly is a minimum. Major- and minor-element patterns are typical for igneous zoning. Pyroxene cores are Mg enriched, whereas the rims are enriched in Fe and Ca. Also, Ti and Mn are found to increase, while Cr and Al generally decrease in core-to-rim traverses. The cores of the pyroxenes are more depleted in the Rare Earth Elements (REE) than the rims. Using the minor- and trace-element concentrations of bulk Pasamonte and the minor- and trace-element concentrations from the cores of the pyroxenes in Pasamonte measured in this study, we calculated partition coefficients between pyroxene and melt. This calculation assumes that bulk Pasamonte is representative of a melt composition.

  12. Airborne In-Situ Trace Gas Measurements of Multiple Wildfires in California (2013-2014)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Iraci, L. T.; Yates, E. L.; Tanaka, T.; Roby, M.; Gore, W.; Clements, C. B.; Lareau, N.; Ambrosia, V. G.; Quayle, B.; Schroeder, W.

    2014-12-01

    Biomass burning emissions are an important source of a wide range of trace gases and particles that can impact local, regional and global air quality, climate forcing, biogeochemical cycles and human health. In the western US, wildfires dominate over prescribed fires, contributing to atmospheric trace gas budgets and regional and local air pollution. Limited sampling of emissions from wildfires means western US emission estimates rely largely on data from prescribed fires, which may not be a suitable proxy for wildfire emissions. We report here in-situ measurements of carbon dioxide, methane, ozone and water vapor from the plumes of a variety of wildfires sampled in California in the fire seasons of 2013 and 2014. Included in the analysis are the Rim Fire (August - October 2013, near Yosemite National Park), the Morgan Fire (September 2013, near Clayton, CA), and the El Portal Fire (July - August 2014, in Yosemite National Park), among others. When possible, fires were sampled on multiple days. Emission ratios and estimated emission factors will be presented and discussed in the context of fuel composition, plume structure, and fire phase. Correlations of plume chemical composition to MODIS/VIIRS Fire Radiative Power (FRP) and other remote sensing information will be explored. Furthermore, the role of plumes in delivery of enhanced ozone concentrations to downwind municipalities will be discussed.

  13. Trace gas composition in the Asian summer monsoon anticyclone: a case study based on aircraft observations and model simulations

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gottschaldt, Klaus-D.; Schlager, Hans; Baumann, Robert; Bozem, Heiko; Eyring, Veronika; Hoor, Peter; Jöckel, Patrick; Jurkat, Tina; Voigt, Christiane; Zahn, Andreas; Ziereis, Helmut

    2017-05-01

    We present in situ measurements of the trace gas composition of the upper tropospheric (UT) Asian summer monsoon anticyclone (ASMA) performed with the High Altitude and Long Range Research Aircraft (HALO) in the frame of the Earth System Model Validation (ESMVal) campaign. Air masses with enhanced O3 mixing ratios were encountered after entering the ASMA at its southern edge at about 150 hPa on 18 September 2012. This is in contrast to the presumption that the anticyclone's interior is dominated by recently uplifted air with low O3 in the monsoon season. We also observed enhanced CO and HCl in the ASMA, which are tracers for boundary layer pollution and tropopause layer (TL) air or stratospheric in-mixing respectively. In addition, reactive nitrogen was enhanced in the ASMA. Along the HALO flight track across the ASMA boundary, strong gradients of these tracers separate anticyclonic from outside air. Lagrangian trajectory calculations using HYSPLIT show that HALO sampled a filament of UT air three times, which included air masses uplifted from the lower or mid-troposphere north of the Bay of Bengal. The trace gas gradients between UT and uplifted air masses were preserved during transport within a belt of streamlines fringing the central part of the anticyclone (fringe), but are smaller than the gradients across the ASMA boundary. Our data represent the first in situ observations across the southern part and downstream of the eastern ASMA flank. Back-trajectories starting at the flight track furthermore indicate that HALO transected the ASMA where it was just splitting into a Tibetan and an Iranian part. The O3-rich filament is diverted from the fringe towards the interior of the original anticyclone, and is at least partially bound to become part of the new Iranian eddy. A simulation with the ECHAM/MESSy Atmospheric Chemistry (EMAC) model is found to reproduce the observations reasonably well. It shows that O3-rich air is entrained by the outer streamlines of the

  14. Next Generation Offline Approaches to Trace Gas-Phase Organic Compound Speciation: Sample Collection and Analysis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sheu, R.; Marcotte, A.; Khare, P.; Ditto, J.; Charan, S.; Gentner, D. R.

    2017-12-01

    Intermediate-volatility and semi-volatile organic compounds (I/SVOCs) are major precursors to secondary organic aerosol, and contribute to tropospheric ozone formation. Their wide volatility range, chemical complexity, behavior in analytical systems, and trace concentrations present numerous hurdles to characterization. We present an integrated sampling-to-analysis system for the collection and offline analysis of trace gas-phase organic compounds with the goal of preserving and recovering analytes throughout sample collection, transport, storage, and thermal desorption for accurate analysis. Custom multi-bed adsorbent tubes are used to collect samples for offline analysis by advanced analytical detectors. The analytical instrumentation comprises an automated thermal desorption system that introduces analytes from the adsorbent tubes into a gas chromatograph, which is coupled with an electron ionization mass spectrometer (GC-EIMS) and other detectors. In order to optimize the collection and recovery for a wide range of analyte volatility and functionalization, we evaluated a variety of commercially-available materials, including Res-Sil beads, quartz wool, glass beads, Tenax TA, and silica gel. Key properties for optimization include inertness, versatile chemical capture, minimal affinity for water, and minimal artifacts or degradation byproducts; these properties were assessed with a diverse mix of traditionally-measured and functionalized analytes. Along with a focus on material selection, we provide recommendations spanning the entire sampling-and-analysis process to improve the accuracy of future comprehensive I/SVOC measurements, including oxygenated and other functionalized I/SVOCs. We demonstrate the performance of our system by providing results on speciated VOCs-SVOCs from indoor, outdoor, and chamber studies that establish the utility of our protocols and pave the way for precise laboratory characterization via a mix of detection methods.

  15. Trace gas retrievals from Airborne Compact Atmospheric Mapper (ACAM) observations during the 2011 DISCOVER-AQ flight campaign

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liu, X.; Kowalewski, M. G.; Janz, S. J.; Bhartia, P. K.; Chance, K.; Krotkov, N. A.; Pickering, K. E.; Crawford, J. H.

    2011-12-01

    The DISCOVER-AQ (Deriving Information on Surface Conditions from Column and Vertically Resolved Observations Relevant to Air Quality) mission has just finished its first flight campaign in the Baltimore-Washington D.C. area in July 2011. The ACAM, flown on board the NASA UC-12 aircraft, includes two spectrographs covering the spectral region 304-900 nm and a high-definition video camera, and is expected to provide column measurements of several important air quality trace gases and aerosols for the DISCOVER-AQ mission. The quick look results for NO2 have been shown to very useful in capturing the strong spatiotemporal variability of NO2. Preliminary fitting of UV/Visible spectra has shown that ACAM measurements have adequate signal to noise ratio to measure the trace gases O2, NO2, HCHO, and maybe SO2 and CHOCHO, at individual pixel resolution, although a great deal of effort is needed to improve the instrument calibration and derive proper reference spectrum for retrieving absolute trace gas column densities. In this study, we present analysis of ACAM instrument calibration including slit function, wavelength registration, and radiometric calibration for both nadir-viewing and zenith-sky measurements. Based on this analysis, an irradiance reference spectrum at ACAM resolution will be derived from a high-resolution reference spectrum with additional correction to account for instrument calibration. Using the derived reference spectrum and/or the measured zenith sky measurements, we will perform non-linear least squares fitting to investigate the retrievals of slant column densities of these trace gases from ACAM measurements, and also use an optimal estimation based algorithm including full radiative transfer calculations to derive the vertical column densities of these trace gases. The initial results will be compared with available in-situ and ground-based measurements taken during the DISCOVER-AQ campaign.

  16. Simultaneous Photoacoustic and Photopyroelectric Detection of Trace Gas Emissions from Some Plant Parts and Their Related Essential Oils in a Combined Detection Cell

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Abu-Taha, M. I.; Abu-Teir, M. M.; Al-Jamal, A. J.; Eideh, H.

    The aim of this work was to establish the feasibility of the combined photoacoustic (PA) and photopyroelectric (PPE) detection of the vapours emitted from essential oils and their corresponding uncrushed leaves or flowers. Gas traces of jasmine (Jessamine (Jasminum)), mint (Mentha arvensis L.) and Damask rose (Rosa damascena Miller) and their essential oils were tested using a combined cell fitted with both a photopyroelectric film (PVDF) and a microphone in conjunction with a pulsed wideband infrared source (PWBS) source. Infrared PA and PPE absorbances were obtained simultaneously at room temperatures with excellent reproducibility and high signal-to-noise ratios. Significant similarities found between the PA and PPE spectra of the trace gas emissions of plant parts, i.e., flowers or leaves and their related essential oils show the good correlation of their emissions and that both effects are initiated by the same absorbing molecules.

  17. Deep ALMA imaging of the merger NGC 1614. Is CO tracing a massive inflow of non-starforming gas?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    König, S.; Aalto, S.; Muller, S.; Gallagher, J. S.; Beswick, R. J.; Xu, C. K.; Evans, A.

    2016-10-01

    Aims: Observations of the molecular gas over scales of ~0.5 to several kpc provide crucial information on how molecular gas moves through galaxies, especially in mergers and interacting systems, where it ultimately reaches the galaxy center, accumulates, and feeds nuclear activity. Studying the processes involved in the gas transport is one of the important steps forward to understand galaxy evolution. Methods: 12CO, 13CO, and C18O 1-0 high-sensitivity ALMA observations (~4'' × 2'') were used to assess the properties of the large-scale molecular gas reservoir and its connection to the circumnuclear molecular ring in the merger NGC 1614. Specifically, the role of excitation and abundances were studied in this context. We also observed the molecular gas high-density tracers CN and CS. Results: The spatial distributions of the detected 12CO 1-0 and 13CO 1-0 emission show significant differences. 12CO traces the large-scale molecular gas reservoir, which is associated with a dust lane that harbors infalling gas, and extends into the southern tidal tails. 13CO emission is for the first time detected in the large-scale dust lane. In contrast to 12CO, its line emission peaks between the dust lane and the circumnuclear molecular ring. A 12CO-to-13CO 1-0 intensity ratio map shows high values in the ring region (~30) that are typical for the centers of luminous galaxy mergers and even more extreme values in the dust lane (>45). Surprisingly, we do not detect C18O emission in NGC 1614, but we do observe gas emitting the high-density tracers CN and CS. Conclusions: We find that the 12CO-to-13CO 1-0 line ratio in NGC 1614 changes from >45 in the 2 kpc dust lane to ~30 in the starburst nucleus. This drop in ratio with decreasing radius is consistent with the molecular gas in the dust lane being kept in a diffuse, unbound state while it is being funneled toward the nucleus. This also explains why there are no (or very faint) signs of star formation in the dust lane, despite its

  18. Oil and gas exploration system and method for detecting trace amounts of hydrocarbon gases in the atmosphere

    DOEpatents

    Wamsley, Paula R.; Weimer, Carl S.; Nelson, Loren D.; O'Brien, Martin J.

    2003-01-01

    An oil and gas exploration system and method for land and airborne operations, the system and method used for locating subsurface hydrocarbon deposits based upon a remote detection of trace amounts of gases in the atmosphere. The detection of one or more target gases in the atmosphere is used to indicate a possible subsurface oil and gas deposit. By mapping a plurality of gas targets over a selected survey area, the survey area can be analyzed for measurable concentration anomalies. The anomalies are interpreted along with other exploration data to evaluate the value of an underground deposit. The system includes a differential absorption lidar (DIAL) system with a spectroscopic grade laser light and a light detector. The laser light is continuously tunable in a mid-infrared range, 2 to 5 micrometers, for choosing appropriate wavelengths to measure different gases and avoid absorption bands of interference gases. The laser light has sufficient optical energy to measure atmospheric concentrations of a gas over a path as long as a mile and greater. The detection of the gas is based on optical absorption measurements at specific wavelengths in the open atmosphere. Light that is detected using the light detector contains an absorption signature acquired as the light travels through the atmosphere from the laser source and back to the light detector. The absorption signature of each gas is processed and then analyzed to determine if a potential anomaly exists.

  19. [A trace methane gas sensor using mid-infrared quantum cascaded laser at 7.5 microm].

    PubMed

    Chen, Chen; Dang, Jing-Min; Huang, Jian-Qiang; Yang, Yue; Wang, Yi-Ding

    2012-11-01

    Presented is a compact instrument developed for in situ high-stable and sensitive continuous measurement of trace gases in air, with results shown for ambient methane (CH4) concentration accurate, real-time and in-situ. This instrument takes advantage of recent technology in thermoelectrically cooling (TEC) pulsed Fabry-Perot (FP) quantum cascaded laser (QCL) driving in a pulse mode operating at 7.5 microm ambient temperature to cover a fundamental spectral absorption band near v4 of CH4. A high quality Liquid Nitrogen (LN) cooled Mercury Cadmium Telluride (HgCdTe) mid-infrared (MIR) detector is used along with a total reflection coated gold ellipsoid mirror offering 20 cm single pass optical absorption in an open-path cell to achieve stability of 5.2 x 10(-3) under experimental condition of 200 micromol x mol(-1) measured ambient CH4. The instrument integrated software via time discriminating electronics technology to control QCL provides continuous quantitative trace gas measurements without calibration. The results show that the instrument can be applied to field measurements of gases of environmental concern. Additional, operator could substitute a QCL operating at a different wavelength to measure other gases.

  20. Film Cooling Flow Effects on Post-Combustor Trace Chemistry

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Wey, Thomas; Liu, Nan-Suey

    2003-01-01

    Film cooling injection is widely applied in the thermal design of turbomachinery, as it contributes to achieve higher operating temperature conditions of modern gas turbines, and to meet the requirements for reliability and life cycles. It is a significant part of the high-pressure turbine system. The film cooling injection, however, interacts with the main flow and is susceptible to have an influence on the aerodynamic performance of the cooled components, and through that may cause a penalty on the overall efficiency of the gas turbine. The main reasons are the loss of total pressure resulting from mixing the cooling air with mainstream and the reduction of the gas stagnation temperature at the exit of the combustion chamber to a lower value at the exit of nozzle guide vane. In addition, the impact of the injected air on the evolution of the trace species of the hot gas is not yet quite clear. This work computationally investigates the film cooling influence on post-combustor trace chemistry, as trace species in aircraft exhaust affect climate and ozone.

  1. Measurements of trace contaminants in closed-type plant cultivation chambers

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tani, A.; Kiyota, M.; Aiga, I.; Nitta, K.; Tako, Y.; Ashida, A.; Otsubo, K.; Saito, T.

    Trace contaminants generated in closed facilities can cause abnormal plant growth. We present measurement data of trace contaminants released from soils, plants, and construction materials. We mainly used two closed chambers, a Closed-type Plant and Mushroom Cultivation Chamber (PMCC) and Closed-type Plant Cultivation Equipment (CPCE). Although trace gas budgets from soils obtained in this experiment are only one example, the results indicate that the budgets of trace gases, as well as CO_2 and O_2, change greatly with the degree of soil maturation and are dependent on the kind of substances in the soil. Both in the PMCC and in the CPCE, trace gases such as dioctyl phthalate (DOP), dibutyl phthalate (DBP), toluene and xylene were detected. These gases seemed to be released from various materials used in the construction of these chambers. The degree of increase in these trace gas levels was dependent on the relationship between chamber capacity and plant quantity. Results of trace gas measurement in the PMCC, in which lettuce and shiitake mushroom were cultivated, showed that ethylene was released both from lettuce and from the mushroom culture bed. The release rates were about 90 ng bed^-1 h^-1 for the shiitake mushroom culture bed (volume is 1700 cm^3) and 4.1 ~ 17.3 ng dm^-2h^-1 (leaf area basis) for lettuce. Higher ethylene release rates per plant and per unit leaf area were observed in mature plants than in young plants.

  2. Characterization of potential EC flux underestimation of "sticky" trace gas species

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Neftel, Albrecht; Hensen, Arjan; Ibrom, Andreas; Ammann, Christof; Voglmeier, Karl; Brümmer, Christian

    2017-04-01

    Eddy covariance (EC) flux measurements of "sticky" trace gas species are affected of damping of high frequency variations of the gas concentration. Several approaches have been developed to correct for this effect (see e.g. Ibrom et al., 2007, Ammann et al., 2006). These approaches have in common that the spectral properties of the scalar are compared with the sonic temperature deduced from the Sonic anemometer data that is only marginally damped. A main difference between the two method is that one uses power spectra, while the other is based on co-spectra of the gas concentration with the vertical wind speed. NH3 fluxes used in the analysis stem from two field experiments: a) Posieux intercomparison October 2015: NH3 emissions of a grazed pasture measured with Eddy Covariance using an Aerodyne quantum cascade laser and with a horizontal gradient measurement using MiniDOAS systems (Sintermann et al., 2016) in conjunction with a dispersion model. b) Dronten experiment June 2016 in the Netherlands: NH3 emissions from two manured circles within 40m diameters have been determined with four different approaches (Eddy Covariance, Integrated Horizontal Flux approach, horizontal gradients and plume measurements). Despite correction with standard methods, turbulent NH3 flux measurements with the eddy covariance method seem still be underestimated when, e.g., compared to flux estimated using gradient methods. We discuss possible correction algorithms and how such underestimations can be recognized in the usual case, where no alternative flux estimation methods are available. References: Ammann, C., Brunner, A., Spirig, C., and Neftel, A. 2006: Technical note: Water vapour concentration and flux measurements with PTR-MS, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 6, 4643-4651 Ibrom, A., Dellwik, E., Jensen, N.O., Flyvbjerg, H. and Pilegaard, K., 2007. Strong low-pass filtering effects on water vapour flux measurements with closed-path eddy correlation systems. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology

  3. Comparative Model Evaluation Studies of Biogenic Trace Gas Fluxes in Tropical Forests

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Potter, C. S.; Peterson, David L. (Technical Monitor)

    1997-01-01

    Simulation modeling can play a number of important roles in large-scale ecosystem studies, including synthesis of patterns and changes in carbon and nutrient cycling dynamics, scaling up to regional estimates, and formulation of testable hypotheses for process studies. Recent comparative studies have shown that ecosystem models of soil trace gas exchange with the atmosphere are evolving into several distinct simulation approaches. Different levels of detail exist among process models in the treatment of physical controls on ecosystem nutrient fluxes and organic substrate transformations leading to gas emissions. These differences are is in part from distinct objectives of scaling and extrapolation. Parameter requirements for initialization scalings, boundary conditions, and time-series driven therefore vary among ecosystem simulation models, such that the design of field experiments for integration with modeling should consider a consolidated series of measurements that will satisfy most of the various model requirements. For example, variables that provide information on soil moisture holding capacity, moisture retention characteristics, potential evapotranspiration and drainage rates, and rooting depth appear to be of the first order in model evaluation trials for tropical moist forest ecosystems. The amount and nutrient content of labile organic matter in the soil, based on accurate plant production estimates, are also key parameters that determine emission model response. Based on comparative model results, it is possible to construct a preliminary evaluation matrix along categories of key diagnostic parameters and temporal domains. Nevertheless, as large-scale studied are planned, it is notable that few existing models age designed to simulate transient states of ecosystem change, a feature which will be essential for assessment of anthropogenic disturbance on regional gas budgets, and effects of long-term climate variability on biosphere-atmosphere exchange.

  4. Tuning fork enhanced interferometric photoacoustic spectroscopy: a new method for trace gas analysis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Köhring, M.; Pohlkötter, A.; Willer, U.; Angelmahr, M.; Schade, W.

    2011-01-01

    A photoacoustic trace gas sensor based on an optical read-out method of a quartz tuning fork is shown. Instead of conventional piezoelectric signal read-out, as applied in well-known quartz-enhanced photoacoustic spectroscopy (QEPAS), an interferometric read-out method for measurement of the tuning fork's oscillation is presented. To demonstrate the potential of the optical read-out of tuning forks in photoacoustics, a comparison between the performances of a sensor with interferometric read-out and conventional QEPAS with piezoelectric read-out is reported. The two sensors show similar characteristics. The detection limit (L) for the optical read-out is determined to be L opt=(2598±84) ppm (1 σ) compared to L elec=(2579±78) ppm (1 σ) for piezoelectric read-out. In both cases the detection limit is defined by the thermal noise of the tuning fork.

  5. Quartz enhanced photoacoustic spectroscopy based trace gas sensors using different quartz tuning forks.

    PubMed

    Ma, Yufei; Yu, Guang; Zhang, Jingbo; Yu, Xin; Sun, Rui; Tittel, Frank K

    2015-03-27

    A sensitive trace gas sensor platform based on quartz-enhanced photoacoustic spectroscopy (QEPAS) is reported. A 1.395 μm continuous wave (CW), distributed feedback pigtailed diode laser was used as the excitation source and H2O was selected as the target analyte. Two kinds of quartz tuning forks (QTFs) with a resonant frequency (f0) of 30.72 kHz and 38 kHz were employed for the first time as an acoustic wave transducer, respectively for QEPAS instead of a standard QTF with a f0 of 32.768 kHz. The QEPAS sensor performance using the three different QTFs was experimentally investigated and theoretically analyzed. A minimum detection limit of 5.9 ppmv and 4.3 ppmv was achieved for f0 of 32.768 kHz and 30.72 kHz, respectively.

  6. Third LDEF Post-Retrieval Symposium Abstracts

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Levine, Arlene S. (Compiler)

    1993-01-01

    This volume is a compilation of abstracts submitted to the Third Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) Post-Retrieval Symposium. The abstracts represent the data analysis of the 57 experiments flown on the LDEF. The experiments include materials, coatings, thermal systems, power and propulsion, science (cosmic ray, interstellar gas, heavy ions, micrometeoroid, etc.), electronics, optics, and life science.

  7. MODELING THE EFFECTS OF CLIMATE AND LAND USE CHANGE ON CARBON AND TRACE GAS BUDGETS OVER THE AMAZON REGION USING NASA SATELLITE PRODUCTS

    EPA Science Inventory

    As part of the LBA-ECO Phase III synthesis efforts for remote sensing and predictive modeling of Amazon carbon, water, and trace gas fluxes, we are evaluating results from the regional ecosystem model called NASA-CASA (Carnegie-Ames Stanford Approach). The NASA-CASA model has bee...

  8. Trace Elements in Hair from Tanzanian Children: Effect of Dietary Factor (abstract)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mohammed, Najat K.; Spyrou, Nicholas M.

    2009-04-01

    Trace elements in certain amounts are essential for childrens' health, because they are present in tissues participating in metabolic reactions of organisms. Deficiency of the essential elements may result in malnutrition, impaired body immunity, and poor resistance to disease. These conditions might be enhanced against a background of additional adverse environmental factors such as toxic elements. The analysis of elements in childrens' hair will give information on the deficiency of essential elements and excess of toxic elements in relation to their diet. In this study, 141 hair samples from children (girls and boys) living in two regions of Tanzanian mainland (Dar es Salaam and Moshi) and the island of Zanzibar have been analysed for trace elements in relation to food consumption habits. The analysis was carried out using long and short irradiation instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA) of the Nuclear Physics Institute at Rez, Czech Republic. Arithmetic and geometric means with their respective standard deviations are presented for 19 elements. Subgroups were formed according to age, gender, and geographic regions from which the samples were collected. Differences in concentrations for the groups and with other childhood populations were explored and discussed.

  9. Trace gas measurements during aircraft flights in the tropopause region over Europe and North Africa

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schmidt, M.; Borchers, R.; Fabian, P.; Flentje, G.; Matthews, W. A.; Szabo, A.; Lal, S.

    During aircraft flights in May 1981 from Munich (40 deg N) to north of the Spitsbergen Islands (82 deg N) and to Monrovia, Liberia (6 deg N), air samples were obtained in the altitude range of 8 to 11 km and during the ascents and descents near the airports. These samples have been analyzed for the trace gas mixing ratios of CH4, CO and N2O. The results of these analyses are presented and discussed. The results provide new evidence of tropospheric-stratospheric exchange events in the vicinity of the subpolar and subtropical tropopause foldings and possibly show a case of transport of CO-enriched air in the upper troposphere above the North Atlantic Ocean.

  10. Mobile Platforms for Continuous Spatial Measurements of Urban Trace Gases and Criteria Pollutants

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Fasoli, B.; Mitchell, L.; Bares, R.; Crosman, E.; Bush, S. E.; Horel, J.; Lin, J. C.; Bowling, D. R.; Ehleringer, J. R.

    2015-12-01

    Surface-based observations of atmospheric trace gases and criteria pollutants provide critical data on how emissions and pollutant concentrations vary over time. However, traditional stationary measurement sites only quantify concentrations at a single point in space, limiting our ability to understand spatial patterns. Using trace gas instrumentation capable of making continuous high-frequency (~1s) measurements, we have developed mobile platforms to complement stationary observation sites in order to better constrain the heterogeneity and complexities of urban emissions. These compact trace gas and criteria pollutant measurement systems are capable of precisely measuring CO2, CH4 PM2.5, O3, NOx, and several meteorological parameters on TRAX, Salt Lake City's light-rail system, and in a van-based mobile laboratory. Using case study observations, we discuss mobile measurement methodologies and the practical applications of mobile trace gas sampling platforms.

  11. Changes in Trace Gas Nitrogen Emissions as a Response to Ecosystem Type Conversion in a Semi-Arid Climate.

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Andrews, H.; Eberwein, J. R.; Jenerette, D.

    2016-12-01

    As humans continue to introduce exotic plants and to alter climate and fire regimes in semi-arid ecosystems, many plant communities have begun to shift from perennial forbs and shrubs to annual grasses with different functional traits. Shifts in plant types are also associated with shifts in microclimate, microbial activity, and litter inputs, all of which contribute to the efficiency of nitrogen processing and the magnitude of trace gas emissions (NOx and N2O), which are increasingly important fluxes in water-limited systems. Here, we explored how changes in plant litter impact trace gas emissions, asking the question: How does conversion from a native shrubland to exotic grassland ecosystem alter NOx and N2O fluxes in a semi-arid climate? We posed two hypotheses to explain the impacts of different types of litter on soils disturbed by exotic grasses and those that were still considered shrublands: 1.) Soils that have undergone conversion by exotic grasses release higher amounts of NOx and N2O than do those of unconverted shrublands, due to disruptions of native plant and soil processes by exotic grasses, and 2.) Because litter of exotic grasses has lower C:N than that of shrubs, litter inputs from exotic grasses will increase NOx and N2O emissions from soils more than will litter inputs from shrubs. As a preliminary study, we experimentally wetted mesocosms in a laboratory incubation containing converted and unconverted soils that had been mixed with no litter or either exotic grass or coastal sage scrub (CSS) litter. We measured N2O fluxes from mesocosms over a 48-hour period. 24 hours after wetting, samples with grass litter produced higher amounts of N2O than those with CSS litter; similarly, converted soils produced higher amounts of N2O than unconverted soils. These two effects combined resulted in exotic grassland conditions (converted soils with exotic grass litter) producing 10 times the amount of N2O as those containing native shrubland conditions

  12. Pivotal roles of phyllosphere microorganisms at the interface between plant functioning and atmospheric trace gas dynamics

    PubMed Central

    Bringel, Françoise; Couée, Ivan

    2015-01-01

    The phyllosphere, which lato sensu consists of the aerial parts of plants, and therefore primarily, of the set of photosynthetic leaves, is one of the most prevalent microbial habitats on earth. Phyllosphere microbiota are related to original and specific processes at the interface between plants, microorganisms and the atmosphere. Recent –omics studies have opened fascinating opportunities for characterizing the spatio-temporal structure of phyllosphere microbial communities in relation with structural, functional, and ecological properties of host plants, and with physico-chemical properties of the environment, such as climate dynamics and trace gas composition of the surrounding atmosphere. This review will analyze recent advances, especially those resulting from environmental genomics, and how this novel knowledge has revealed the extent of the ecosystemic impact of the phyllosphere at the interface between plants and atmosphere. Highlights • The phyllosphere is one of the most prevalent microbial habitats on earth. • Phyllosphere microbiota colonize extreme, stressful, and changing environments. • Plants, phyllosphere microbiota and the atmosphere present a dynamic continuum. • Phyllosphere microbiota interact with the dynamics of volatile organic compounds and atmospheric trace gasses. PMID:26052316

  13. Application of copper sulfate pentahydrate as an ammonia removal reagent for the determination of trace impurities in ammonia by gas chromatography.

    PubMed

    Aomura, Yoko; Kobayashi, Yoshihiko; Miyazawa, Yuzuru; Shimizu, Hideharu

    2010-03-12

    Rapid analysis of trace permanent gas impurities in high purity ammonia gas for the microelectronics industry is described, using a gas chromatograph equipped with a phtoionization detector. Our system incorporates a reactive precolumn in combination with the analytical column to remove the ammonia matrix peak that otherwise would complicate the measurements due to baseline fluctuations and loss of analytes. The performance of 21 precolumn candidate materials was evaluated. Copper sulfate pentahydrate (CuSO(4).5H(2)O) was shown to selectively react with ammonia at room temperature and atmospheric column pressures, without affecting the hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, methane or carbon monoxide peak areas. To prevent loss of trace carbon dioxide, an additional boron trioxide reactant layer was inserted above the copper sulfate pentahydrate bed in the reactive precolumn. Using the combined materials, calibration curves for carbon dioxide proved to be equivalent in both ammonia and helium matrix gases. These curves were equivalent in both matrix gases. The quantitative performance of the system was also evaluated. Peak repeatabilities, based on eight injections, were in the range of 4.1-8.2% relative standard deviation; and detection limits were 6.9 ppb for H(2), 1.8 ppb for O(2), 1.6 ppb for N(2), 6.4 ppb for CH(4), 13 ppb for CO, and 5.4 ppb for CO(2). Copyright (c) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  14. Correcting for trace gas absorption when retrieving aerosol optical depth from satellite observations of reflected shortwave radiation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Patadia, Falguni; Levy, Robert C.; Mattoo, Shana

    2018-06-01

    Retrieving aerosol optical depth (AOD) from top-of-atmosphere (TOA) satellite-measured radiance requires separating the aerosol signal from the total observed signal. Total TOA radiance includes signal from the underlying surface and from atmospheric constituents such as aerosols, clouds and gases. Multispectral retrieval algorithms, such as the dark-target (DT) algorithm that operates upon the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS, on board Terra and Aqua satellites) and Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS, on board Suomi-NPP) sensors, use wavelength bands in window regions. However, while small, the gas absorptions in these bands are non-negligible and require correction. In this paper, we use the High-resolution TRANsmission (HITRAN) database and Line-By-Line Radiative Transfer Model (LBLRTM) to derive consistent gas corrections for both MODIS and VIIRS wavelength bands. Absorptions from H2O, CO2 and O3 are considered, as well as other trace gases. Even though MODIS and VIIRS bands are similar, they are different enough that applying MODIS-specific gas corrections to VIIRS observations results in an underestimate of global mean AOD (by 0.01), but with much larger regional AOD biases of up to 0.07. As recent studies have been attempting to create a long-term data record by joining multiple satellite data sets, including MODIS and VIIRS, the consistency of gas correction has become even more crucial.

  15. Nitrogen dioxide observations from the Geostationary Trace gas and Aerosol Sensor Optimization (GeoTASO) airborne instrument: Retrieval algorithm and measurements during DISCOVER-AQ Texas 2013

    EPA Science Inventory

    The Geostationary Trace gas and Aerosol Sensor Optimization (GeoTASO) airborne instrument is a test bed for upcoming air quality satellite instruments that will measure backscattered ultraviolet, visible and near-infrared light from geostationary orbit. GeoTASO flew on the NASA F...

  16. Variability of trace gas concentrations over Asian region: satellite observations vs model

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sheel, Varun; Richter, Andreas; Srivastava, Shuchita; Lal, Shyam

    2012-07-01

    Nitrogen dioxide (NO_2) and Carbon Monoxide (CO) play a key role in the chemistry of the tropospheric ozone and are emitted mainly by anthropogenic processes. These emissions have been increasing over Asia over the past few years due to rapid economic growth and yet there are very few systematic ground based observations of these species over this region. We have analysed ten years of data from space borne instruments: Global Ozone Monitoring Experiment (GOME), SCanning Imaging Absorption spectroMeter for Atmospheric CHartographY (SCIAMACHY) and Measurements of Pollution in the Troposphere (MOPITT), which have been measuring the tropospheric abundance of these trace gases. We have examined trends over the period 1996-2008 in NO_2 and CO over a few Indian regions where high economic growth in the present decade is likely to see increased emissions for these species. However, even the highest growth rate of these species seen in the present study, is less when compared with similar polluted regions of China, where a much more rapid increase has been observed. In order to understand the trends and variability in atmospheric trace gas concentrations, one must take into account changes in emissions and transport. Only by assessing the relevance of each of these factors will it be possible to predict future changes with reasonable confidence. To this effect we have used a global chemical transport model, MOZART, to simulate concentrations of NO_2 and CO using the POET (European) and REAS (Asian) emission inventories. These are compared with satellite measurements to study seasonal variations and the discrepancies are discussed. The combined uncertainties of the emission inventory and retrieval of the satellite data could be contributing factors to the discrepancies. It may be thus worthwhile to develop emission inventories for India at a higher resolution to include local level activity data.

  17. Atmospheric Trace Gas Abundances and Stable Isotope Ratios via IR-LIF

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Blake, Geoffrey A.

    2004-01-01

    studies form the necessary precursors to the development of compact, lightweight stable isotope/trace gas sensors for future planetary missions.

  18. Trace gas variability within the Asian monsoon anticyclone on intraseasonal and interannual timescales

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nützel, Matthias; Dameris, Martin; Fierli, Federico; Stiller, Gabriele; Garny, Hella; Jöckel, Patrick

    2016-04-01

    The Asian monsoon and the associated monsoon anticyclone have the potential of substantially influencing the composition of the UTLS (upper troposphere/lower stratosphere) and hence global climate. Here we study the variability of the Asian summer monsoon anticyclone in the UTLS on intraseasonal and interannual timescales using results from long term simulations performed with the CCM EMAC (ECHAM5/MESSy Atmospheric Chemistry). In particular, we focus on specified dynamics simulations (Newtonian relaxation to ERA-Interim data) covering the period 1980-2013, which have been performed within the ESCiMo (Earth System Chemistry integrated Modelling) project (Jöckel et al., GMDD, 2015). Our main focus lies on variability of the anticyclone's strength (in terms of potential vorticity, geopotential and circulation) and variability in trace gas signatures (O3, H2O) within the anticyclone. To support our findings, we also include observations from satellites (MIPAS, MLS). Our work is linked to the EU StratoClim campaign in 2016.

  19. Digital Architecture for a Trace Gas Sensor Platform

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Gonzales, Paula; Casias, Miguel; Vakhtin, Andrei; Pilgrim, Jeffrey

    2012-01-01

    A digital architecture has been implemented for a trace gas sensor platform, as a companion to standard analog control electronics, which accommodates optical absorption whose fractional absorbance equivalent would result in excess error if assumed to be linear. In cases where the absorption (1-transmission) is not equivalent to the fractional absorbance within a few percent error, it is necessary to accommodate the actual measured absorption while reporting the measured concentration of a target analyte with reasonable accuracy. This requires incorporation of programmable intelligence into the sensor platform so that flexible interpretation of the acquired data may be accomplished. Several different digital component architectures were tested and implemented. Commercial off-the-shelf digital electronics including data acquisition cards (DAQs), complex programmable logic devices (CPLDs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), and microcontrollers have been used to achieve the desired outcome. The most completely integrated architecture achieved during the project used the CPLD along with a microcontroller. The CPLD provides the initial digital demodulation of the raw sensor signal, and then communicates over a parallel communications interface with a microcontroller. The microcontroller analyzes the digital signal from the CPLD, and applies a non-linear correction obtained through extensive data analysis at the various relevant EVA operating pressures. The microcontroller then presents the quantitatively accurate carbon dioxide partial pressure regardless of optical density. This technique could extend the linear dynamic range of typical absorption spectrometers, particularly those whose low end noise equivalent absorbance is below one-part-in-100,000. In the EVA application, it allows introduction of a path-length-enhancing architecture whose optical interference effects are well understood and quantified without sacrificing the dynamic range that allows

  20. Experimental and numerical test of the micrometeorological mass difference technique for the measurement of trace gas emissions from small plots.

    PubMed

    Magliulo, Vincenzo; Alterio, Giovanni; Peressotti, Alessandro

    2004-05-01

    Micrometeorological methods for measuring fluxes of gases between the land surface and the atmosphere are non-invasive: in fact, they do not interfere with natural processes of gas exchange. The Micrometeorological Mass Difference (MMD) approach can be used for many environmental monitoring purposes, such as to measure methane and carbon dioxide emission from landfills, methane production by grazing animals, trace gas emission from waste products and from agricultural soils, photosynthesis, and transpiration of plant canopies. The purpose of this study is to adapt the MMD technique, originally developed in Australia, to monitor CO2 and trace gases exchange rate at the plot level. Comparison of different treatments in replicated experiments requires plots of few rather than tens of meters. The tests reported here were performed on a square area (4 m x 4 m) in the meteorological field of the experimental farm of CNR-ISAFOM located in Vitulazio, province of Caserta, Italy (40 degrees 07' N, 14 degrees 50' E, 25 m above sea level) and consisted of the release of pure CO2 at different rates (1.7, 1.3, 0.6 L min(-1)) from a single source on the ground in the center of the experimental area and the consequent measurement of the environmental variables (wind speed and direction, CO2 concentration) at different times at four heights (up to 1.2 m) in order to compute the mass balance according to MMD technique. Measured flow rates well accounted for the mass of CO2 released. A flow underestimation occurred when wind speed dropped below 1.5 m s(-1), in accord with the previous findings obtained in Australia: this happened because anemometers can stall at low speeds, and their measurements are unreliable and because of significant loss of mass from the top of the apparatus. The experimental results were compared with outputs of Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) simulations. The commercial CFD package Fluent was used to evaluate performances and sources of errors. According to

  1. Radon 222 tracing of soil and forest canopy trace gas exchange in an open canopy boreal forest

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Ussler, William, III; Chanton, Jeffrey P.; Kelley, Cheryl A.; Martens, Christopher S.

    1994-01-01

    A set of continuous, high-resolution atmospheric radon (Rn-222) concentration time series and radon soil flux measurements were acquired during the summer of 1990 at a micrometeorological tower site 13 km northwest of Schefferville, Quebec, Canada. The tower was located in a dry upland, open-canopy lichen-spruce woodland. For the period July 23 to August 1, 1990, the mean radon soil flux was 41.1 +/- 4.8 Bq m(exp -2)/h. Radon surface flux from the two end-member forest floor cover types (lichen mat and bare soil) were 38.8 +/- 5.1 and 61.8 +/- 15.6 Bq m(exp -2)/h, respectively. Average total forest canopy resistances computed using a simple 'flux box' model for radon exchange between the forest canopy and the overlying atmosphere range from 0.47 +/- 0.24 s cm(exp -1) to 2.65 +/- 1.61 cm(exp -1) for daytime hours (0900-1700 LT) and from 3.44 +/- 0.91 s cm(exp -1) to 10.55 +/- 7.16 s cm(exp -1) for nighttime hours (2000-0600) for the period July 23 to August 6, 1990. Continuous radon profiling of canopy atmospheres is a suitable approach for determining rates of biosphere/atmosphere trace gas exchange for remote field sites where daily equipment maintenance is not possible. where daily equipment maintenance is not possible.

  2. Use of external cavity quantum cascade laser compliance voltage in real-time trace gas sensing of multiple chemicals

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Phillips, Mark C.; Taubman, Matthew S.; Kriesel, Jason

    2015-01-01

    We describe a prototype trace gas sensor designed for real-time detection of multiple chemicals. The sensor uses an external cavity quantum cascade laser (ECQCL) swept over its tuning range of 940-1075 cm-1 (9.30-10.7 μm) at a 10 Hz repetition rate. The sensor was designed for operation in multiple modes, including gas sensing within a multi-pass Heriott cell and intracavity absorption sensing using the ECQCL compliance voltage. In addition, the ECQCL compliance voltage was used to reduce effects of long-term drifts in the ECQCL output power. The sensor was characterized for noise, drift, and detection of chemicals including ammonia, methanol, ethanol, isopropanol, Freon- 134a, Freon-152a, and diisopropyl methylphosphonate (DIMP). We also present use of the sensor for mobile detection of ammonia downwind of cattle facilities, in which concentrations were recorded at 1-s intervals.

  3. Concerning the measurement of atmospheric trace gas fluxes with open- and closed-path eddy covariance systems: The density terms and spectral attenuation [Chapter 7

    Treesearch

    W. J. Massman

    2004-01-01

    Atmospheric trace gas fluxes measured with an eddy covariance sensor that detects a constituent's density fluctuations within the in situ air need to include terms resulting from concurrent heat and moisture fluxes, the so called 'density' or 'WPL corrections' (Webb et al. 1980). The theory behind these additional terms is well established. But...

  4. Trace desulfurization. [DOE patent application

    DOEpatents

    Chen, H.L.; Stevens, C.G.

    A method for reducing a trace concentration of sulfur-containing compounds in a gas stream from about one part in 10/sup 4/ to about one part in 10/sup 7/. The method includes the steps of irradiating the gas stream with an energy source which has a central emission frequency chosen to substantially match a wavelength of energy absorption of the sulfur-containing compounds and of subsequently contacting the gas stream with a reactive surface which includes a reactant selected from elemental metals and metal oxides so that metallic sulfur-containing compounds are formed. The reduction in concentration allows the gas stream to be processed in certain reactions having catalysts which would otherwise be poisoned by the sulfur-containing compounds.

  5. Aerosol, Cloud and Trace Gas Observations Derived from Airborne Hyperspectral Radiance and Direct Beam Measurements in Recent Field Campaigns

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Redemann, J.; Flynn, C. J.; Shinozuka, Y.; Kacenelenbogen, M.; Segal-Rosenheimer, M.; LeBlanc, S.; Russell, P. B.; Livingston, J. M.; Schmid, B.; Dunagan, S. E.; hide

    2014-01-01

    The AERONET (AErosol RObotic NETwork) ground-based suite of sunphotometers provides measurements of spectral aerosol optical depth (AOD), precipitable water and spectral sky radiance, which can be inverted to retrieve aerosol microphysical properties that are critical to assessments of aerosol-climate interactions. Because of data quality criteria and sampling constraints, there are significant limitations to the temporal and spatial coverage of AERONET data and their representativeness for global aerosol conditions. The 4STAR (Spectrometer for Sky-Scanning, Sun-Tracking Atmospheric Research) instrument, jointly developed by NASA Ames and PNNL with NASA Goddard collaboration, combines airborne sun tracking and AERONET-like sky scanning with spectroscopic detection. Being an airborne instrument, 4STAR has the potential to fill gaps in the AERONET data set. Dunagan et al. [2013] present results establishing the performance of the instrument, along with calibration, engineering flight test, and preliminary scientific field data. The 4STAR instrument operated successfully in the SEAC4RS [Studies of Emissions and Atmospheric Composition, Clouds and Climate Coupling by Regional Surveys] experiment in Aug./Sep. 2013 aboard the NASA DC-8 and in the DoE [Department of Energy]-sponsored TCAP [Two Column Aerosol Project, July 2012 & Feb. 2013] experiment aboard the DoE G-1 aircraft (Shinozuka et al., 2013), and acquired a wealth of data in support of mission objectives on all SEAC4RS and TCAP research flights. 4STAR provided direct beam measurements of hyperspectral AOD, columnar trace gas retrievals (H2O, O3, NO2; Segal-Rosenheimer et al., 2014), and the first ever airborne hyperspectral sky radiance scans, which can be inverted to yield the same products as AERONET ground-based observations. In addition, 4STAR measured zenith radiances underneath cloud decks for retrievals of cloud optical depth and effective diameter. In this presentation, we provide an overview of the new

  6. Simultaneous removal of SO2 and trace SeO2 from flue gas: effect of SO2 on selenium capture and kinetics study.

    PubMed

    Li, Yuzhong; Tong, Huiling; Zhuo, Yuqun; Wang, Shujuan; Xu, Xuchang

    2006-12-15

    Sulfur dioxide (SO2) and trace elements are all pollutants derived from coal combustion. This study relates to the simultaneous removal of SO2 and trace selenium dioxide (SeO2) from flue gas by calcium oxide (CaO) adsorption in the moderate temperature range, especially the effect of SO2 presence on selenium capture. Experiments performed on a thermogravimetric analyzer (TGA) can reach the following conclusions. When the CaO conversion is relatively low and the reaction rate is controlled by chemical kinetics, the SO2 presence does not affect the selenium capture. When the CaO conversion is very high and the reaction rate is controlled by product layer diffusion, the SO2 presence and the product layer diffusion resistance jointly reduce the selenium capture. On the basis of the kinetics study, a method to estimate the trace selenium removal efficiency using kinetic parameters and the sulfur removal efficiency is developed.

  7. Parameterization retrieval of trace gas volume mixing ratios from Airborne MAX-DOAS

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dix, Barbara; Koenig, Theodore K.; Volkamer, Rainer

    2016-11-01

    We present a parameterization retrieval of volume mixing ratios (VMRs) from differential slant column density (dSCD) measurements by Airborne Multi-AXis Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy (AMAX-DOAS). The method makes use of the fact that horizontally recorded limb spectra (elevation angle 0°) are strongly sensitive to the atmospheric layer at instrument altitude. These limb spectra are analyzed using reference spectra that largely cancel out column contributions from above and below the instrument, so that the resulting limb dSCDs, i.e., the column integrated concentration with respect to a reference spectrum, are almost exclusively sensitive to the atmospheric layers around instrument altitude. The conversion of limb dSCDs into VMRs is then realized by calculating box air mass factors (Box-AMFs) for a Rayleigh atmosphere and applying a scaling factor constrained by O4 dSCDs to account for aerosol extinction. An iterative VMR retrieval scheme corrects for trace gas profile shape effects. Benefits of this method are (1) a fast conversion that only requires the computation of Box-AMFs in a Rayleigh atmosphere; (2) neither local aerosol extinction nor the slant column density in the DOAS reference (SCDref) needs to be known; and (3) VMRs can be retrieved for every measurement point along a flight track, thus increasing statistics and adding flexibility to capture concentration gradients. Sensitivity studies are performed for bromine monoxide (BrO), iodine monoxide (IO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2), using (1) simulated dSCD data for different trace gas and aerosol profiles and (2) field measurements from the Tropical Ocean tRoposphere Exchange of Reactive halogen species and Oxygenated VOC (TORERO) field experiment. For simulated data in a Rayleigh atmosphere, the agreement between the VMR from the parameterization method (VMRpara) and the true VMR (VMRtrue) is excellent for all trace gases. Offsets, slopes and R2 values for the linear fit of VMRpara over

  8. Parameterization retrieval of trace gas volume mixing ratios from Airborne MAX-DOAS

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Dix, Barbara; Koenig, Theodore K.; Volkamer, Rainer

    We present a parameterization retrieval of volume mixing ratios (VMRs) from differential slant column density (dSCD) measurements by Airborne Multi-AXis Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy (AMAX-DOAS). The method makes use of the fact that horizontally recorded limb spectra (elevation angle 0°) are strongly sensitive to the atmospheric layer at instrument altitude. These limb spectra are analyzed using reference spectra that largely cancel out column contributions from above and below the instrument, so that the resulting limb dSCDs, i.e., the column integrated concentration with respect to a reference spectrum, are almost exclusively sensitive to the atmospheric layers around instrument altitude. The conversionmore » of limb dSCDs into VMRs is then realized by calculating box air mass factors (Box-AMFs) for a Rayleigh atmosphere and applying a scaling factor constrained by O 4 dSCDs to account for aerosol extinction. An iterative VMR retrieval scheme corrects for trace gas profile shape effects. Benefits of this method are (1) a fast conversion that only requires the computation of Box-AMFs in a Rayleigh atmosphere; (2) neither local aerosol extinction nor the slant column density in the DOAS reference (SCD ref) needs to be known; and (3) VMRs can be retrieved for every measurement point along a flight track, thus increasing statistics and adding flexibility to capture concentration gradients. Sensitivity studies are performed for bromine monoxide (BrO), iodine monoxide (IO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO 2), using (1) simulated dSCD data for different trace gas and aerosol profiles and (2) field measurements from the Tropical Ocean tRoposphere Exchange of Reactive halogen species and Oxygenated VOC (TORERO) field experiment. For simulated data in a Rayleigh atmosphere, the agreement between the VMR from the parameterization method (VMR para) and the true VMR (VMR true) is excellent for all trace gases. Offsets, slopes and R 2 values for the linear fit

  9. Parameterization retrieval of trace gas volume mixing ratios from Airborne MAX-DOAS

    DOE PAGES

    Dix, Barbara; Koenig, Theodore K.; Volkamer, Rainer

    2016-11-28

    We present a parameterization retrieval of volume mixing ratios (VMRs) from differential slant column density (dSCD) measurements by Airborne Multi-AXis Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy (AMAX-DOAS). The method makes use of the fact that horizontally recorded limb spectra (elevation angle 0°) are strongly sensitive to the atmospheric layer at instrument altitude. These limb spectra are analyzed using reference spectra that largely cancel out column contributions from above and below the instrument, so that the resulting limb dSCDs, i.e., the column integrated concentration with respect to a reference spectrum, are almost exclusively sensitive to the atmospheric layers around instrument altitude. The conversionmore » of limb dSCDs into VMRs is then realized by calculating box air mass factors (Box-AMFs) for a Rayleigh atmosphere and applying a scaling factor constrained by O 4 dSCDs to account for aerosol extinction. An iterative VMR retrieval scheme corrects for trace gas profile shape effects. Benefits of this method are (1) a fast conversion that only requires the computation of Box-AMFs in a Rayleigh atmosphere; (2) neither local aerosol extinction nor the slant column density in the DOAS reference (SCD ref) needs to be known; and (3) VMRs can be retrieved for every measurement point along a flight track, thus increasing statistics and adding flexibility to capture concentration gradients. Sensitivity studies are performed for bromine monoxide (BrO), iodine monoxide (IO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO 2), using (1) simulated dSCD data for different trace gas and aerosol profiles and (2) field measurements from the Tropical Ocean tRoposphere Exchange of Reactive halogen species and Oxygenated VOC (TORERO) field experiment. For simulated data in a Rayleigh atmosphere, the agreement between the VMR from the parameterization method (VMR para) and the true VMR (VMR true) is excellent for all trace gases. Offsets, slopes and R 2 values for the linear fit

  10. Persistence of the dominant soil phylum Acidobacteria by trace gas scavenging

    PubMed Central

    Greening, Chris; Carere, Carlo R.; Rushton-Green, Rowena; Harold, Liam K.; Hards, Kiel; Taylor, Matthew C.; Morales, Sergio E.; Stott, Matthew B.; Cook, Gregory M.

    2015-01-01

    The majority of microbial cells in global soils exist in a spectrum of dormant states. However, the metabolic processes that enable them to survive environmental challenges, such as nutrient-limitation, remain to be elucidated. In this work, we demonstrate that energy-starved cultures of Pyrinomonas methylaliphatogenes, an aerobic heterotrophic acidobacterium isolated from New Zealand volcanic soils, persist by scavenging the picomolar concentrations of H2 distributed throughout the atmosphere. Following the transition from exponential to stationary phase due to glucose limitation, the bacterium up-regulates by fourfold the expression of an eight-gene operon encoding an actinobacteria-type H2-uptake [NiFe]-hydrogenase. Whole-cells of the organism consume atmospheric H2 in a first-order kinetic process. Hydrogen oxidation occurred most rapidly under oxic conditions and was weakly associated with the cell membrane. We propose that atmospheric H2 scavenging serves as a mechanism to sustain the respiratory chain of P. methylaliphatogenes when organic electron donors are scarce. As the first observation of H2 oxidation to our knowledge in the Acidobacteria, the second most dominant soil phylum, this work identifies new sinks in the biogeochemical H2 cycle and suggests that trace gas oxidation may be a general mechanism for microbial persistence. PMID:26240343

  11. Land-Use Change, Soil Process and Trace Gas Fluxes in the Brazilian Amazon Basin

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Melillo, Jerry M.; Steudler, Paul A.

    1997-01-01

    We measured changes in key soil processes and the fluxes of CO2, CH4 and N2O associated with the conversion of tropical rainforest to pasture in Rondonia, a state in the southwest Amazon that has experienced rapid deforestation, primarily for cattle ranching, since the late 1970s. These measurements provide a comprehensive quantitative picture of the nature of surface soil element stocks, C and nutrient dynamics, and trace gas fluxes between soils and the atmosphere during the entire sequence of land-use change from the initial cutting and burning of native forest, through planting and establishment of pasture grass and ending with very old continuously-pastured land. All of our work is done in cooperation with Brazilian scientists at the Centro de Energia Nuclear na Agricultura (CENA) through an extant official bi-lateral agreement between the Marine Biological Laboratory and the University of Sao Paulo, CENA's parent institution.

  12. Simultaneous multi-laser, multi-species trace-level sensing of gas mixtures by rapidly swept continuous-wave cavity-ringdown spectroscopy.

    PubMed

    He, Yabai; Kan, Ruifeng; Englich, Florian V; Liu, Wenqing; Orr, Brian J

    2010-09-13

    The greenhouse-gas molecules CO(2), CH(4), and H(2)O are detected in air within a few ms by a novel cavity-ringdown laser-absorption spectroscopy technique using a rapidly swept optical cavity and multi-wavelength coherent radiation from a set of pre-tuned near-infrared diode lasers. The performance of various types of tunable diode laser, on which this technique depends, is evaluated. Our instrument is both sensitive and compact, as needed for reliable environmental monitoring with high absolute accuracy to detect trace concentrations of greenhouse gases in outdoor air.

  13. Open Path Trace Gas Laser Sensors for UAV Deployment

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shadman, S.; Mchale, L.; Rose, C.; Yalin, A.

    2015-12-01

    Novel trace gas sensors based on open-path Cavity Ring-down Spectroscopy (CRDS) are being developed to enable remote and mobile deployments including on small unmanned aerial systems (UAS). Relative to established closed-path CRDS instruments, the use of open-path configurations allows removal of the bulky and power hungry vacuum and flow system, potentially enabling lightweight and low power instruments with high sensitivity. However, open path operation introduces new challenges including the need to maintain mirror cleanliness, mitigation of particle optical effects, and the need to measure spectral features that are relatively broad. The present submission details open-path CRDS instruments for ammonia and methane and their planned use in UAS studies. The ammonia sensor uses a quantum cascade laser at 10.3 mm in a configuration in which the laser frequency is continuously swept and a trigger circuit and acousto-optic modulator (AOM) extinguish the light when the laser is resonant with the cavity. Ring-down signals are measured with a two-stage thermoelectrically cooled MCT photodetector. The cavity mirrors have reflectivity of 0.9995 and a noise equivalent absorption of 1.5 ppb Hz-1/2 was demonstrated. A first version of the methane sensor operated at 1.7um with a telecom diode laser while the current version operates at 3.6 um with an interband cascade laser (stronger absorption). We have performed validation measurements against known standards for both sensors. Compact optical assemblies are being developed for UAS deployment. For example, the methane sensor head will have target mass of <4 kg and power draw <40 W. A compact single board computer and DAQ system is being designed for sensor control and signal processing with target mass <1 kg and power draw <10 W. The sensor size and power parameters are suitable for UAS deployment on both fixed wing and rotor style UAS. We plan to deploy the methane sensor to measure leakage and emission of methane from

  14. Climate-chemical interactions and effects of changing atmospheric trace gases

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Ramanathan, V.; Callis, L.; Cess, R.; Hansen, J.; Isaksen, I.

    1987-01-01

    The paper considers trace gas-climate effects including the greenhouse effect of polyatomic trace gases, the nature of the radiative-chemical interactions, and radiative-dynamical interactions in the stratosphere, and the role of these effects in governing stratospheric climate change. Special consideration is given to recent developments in the investigations of the role of oceans in governing the transient climate responses, and a time-dependent estimate of the potential trace gas warming from the preindustrial era to the early 21st century. The importance of interacting modeling and observational efforts is emphasized. One of the problems remaining on the observational front is the lack of certainty in current estimates of the rate of growth of CO, O3, and NOx; the primary challenge is the design of a strategy that will minimize the sampling errors.

  15. Gas-Grain Simulation Facility: Fundamental studies of particle formation and interactions. Volume 2: Abstracts, candidate experiments and feasibility study

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Fogleman, Guy (Editor); Huntington, Judith L. (Editor); Schwartz, Deborah E. (Editor); Fonda, Mark L. (Editor)

    1989-01-01

    An overview of the Gas-Grain Simulation Facility (GGSF) project and its current status is provided. The proceedings of the Gas-Grain Simulation Facility Experiments Workshop are recorded. The goal of the workshop was to define experiments for the GGSF--a small particle microgravity research facility. The workshop addressed the opportunity for performing, in Earth orbit, a wide variety of experiments that involve single small particles (grains) or clouds of particles. Twenty experiments from the fields of exobiology, planetary science, astrophysics, atmospheric science, biology, physics, and chemistry were described at the workshop and are outlined in Volume 2. Each experiment description included specific scientific objectives, an outline of the experimental procedure, and the anticipated GGSF performance requirements. Since these experiments represent the types of studies that will ultimately be proposed for the facility, they will be used to define the general science requirements of the GGSF. Also included in the second volume is a physics feasibility study and abstracts of example Gas-Grain Simulation Facility experiments and related experiments in progress.

  16. Intercomparison of infrared cavity leak-out spectroscopy and gas chromatography-flame ionization for trace analysis of ethane.

    PubMed

    Thelen, Sven; Miekisch, Wolfram; Halmer, Daniel; Schubert, Jochen; Hering, Peter; Mürtz, Manfred

    2008-04-15

    Comparison of two different methods for the measurement of ethane at the parts-per-billion (ppb) level is reported. We used cavity leak-out spectroscopy (CALOS) in the 3 microm wavelength region and gas chromatography-flame ionization detection (GC-FID) for the analysis of various gas samples containing ethane fractions in synthetic air. Intraday and interday reproducibilities were studied. Intercomparing the results of two series involving seven samples with ethane mixing ratios ranging from 0.5 to 100 ppb, we found a reasonable agreement between both methods. The scatter plot of GC-FID data versus CALOS data yields a linear regression slope of 1.07 +/- 0.03. Furthermore, some of the ethane mixtures were checked over the course of 1 year, which proved the long-term stability of the ethane mixing ratio. We conclude that CALOS shows equivalent ethane analysis precision compared to GC-FID, with the significant advantage of a much higher time resolution (<1 s) since there is no requirement for sample preconcentration. This opens new analytical possibilities, e.g., for real-time monitoring of ethane traces in exhaled human breath.

  17. Second LDEF Post-Retrieval Symposium Abstracts

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Levine, Arlene S. (Compiler)

    1992-01-01

    These abstracts from the symposium represent the data analysis of the 57 experiments flown on the LDEF. The experiments include materials, coatings, thermal systems, power and propulsion, science, (cosmic ray, interstellar gas, heavy ions, micrometeoroids, etc.), electronics, optics, and life science.

  18. Measurements of reactive trace gases and variable O3 formation rates in some South Carolina biomass burning plumes

    Treesearch

    S. K. Akagi; R. J. Yokelson; I. R. Burling; S. Meinardi; I. Simpson; D. R. Blake; G. R. McMeeking; A. Sullivan; T. Lee; S. Kreidenweis; S. Urbanski; J. Reardon; D. W. T. Griffith; T. J. Johnson; D. R. Weise

    2013-01-01

    In October-November 2011 we measured trace gas emission factors from seven prescribed fires in South Carolina (SC), US, using two Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (FTIR) systems and whole air sampling (WAS) into canisters followed by gas- 5 chromatographic analysis. A total of 97 trace gas species were quantified from both airborne and ground-based sampling...

  19. Interannual Variability in Soil Trace Gas (CO2, N2O, NO) Fluxes and Analysis of Controllers

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Potter, C.; Klooster, S.; Peterson, David L. (Technical Monitor)

    1997-01-01

    Interannual variability in flux rates of biogenic trace gases must be quantified in order to understand the differences between short-term trends and actual long-term change in biosphere-atmosphere interactions. We simulated interannual patterns (1983-1988) of global trace gas fluxes from soils using the NASA Ames model version of CASA (Carnegie-Ames-Stanford Approach) in a transient simulation mode. This ecosystem model has been recalibrated for simulations driven by satellite vegetation index data from the NOAA Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) over the mid-1980s. The predicted interannual pattern of soil heterotropic CO2 emissions indicates that relatively large increases in global carbon flux from soils occurred about three years following the strong El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) event of 1983. Results for the years 1986 and 1987 showed an annual increment of +1 Pg (1015 g) C-CO2 emitted from soils, which tended to dampen the estimated global increase in net ecosystem production with about a two year lag period relative to plant carbon fixation. Zonal discrimination of model results implies that 80-90 percent of the yearly positive increments in soil CO2 emission during 1986-87 were attributable to soil organic matter decomposition in the low-latitudes (between 30 N and 30 S). Soils of the northern middle-latitude zone (between 30 N and 60 N) accounted for the residual of these annual increments. Total annual emissions of nitrogen trace gases (N2O and NO) from soils were estimated to vary from 2-4 percent over the time period modeled, a level of variability which is consistent with predicted interannual fluctuations in global soil CO2 fluxes. Interannual variability of precipitation in tropical and subtropical zones (30 N to 20 S appeared to drive the dynamic inverse relationship between higher annual emissions of NO versus emissions of N2O. Global mean emission rates from natural (heterotrophic) soil sources over the period modeled (1983

  20. Adsorption and Detection of Hazardous Trace Gases by Metal-Organic Frameworks.

    PubMed

    Woellner, Michelle; Hausdorf, Steffen; Klein, Nicole; Mueller, Philipp; Smith, Martin W; Kaskel, Stefan

    2018-06-19

    The quest for advanced designer adsorbents for air filtration and monitoring hazardous trace gases has recently been more and more driven by the need to ensure clean air in indoor, outdoor, and industrial environments. How to increase safety with regard to personal protection in the event of hazardous gas exposure is a critical question for an ever-growing population spending most of their lifetime indoors, but is also crucial for the chemical industry in order to protect future generations of employees from potential hazards. Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are already quite advanced and promising in terms of capacity and specific affinity to overcome limitations of current adsorbent materials for trace and toxic gas adsorption. Due to their advantageous features (e.g., high specific surface area, catalytic activity, tailorable pore sizes, structural diversity, and range of chemical and physical properties), MOFs offer a high potential as adsorbents for air filtration and monitoring of hazardous trace gases. Three advanced topics are considered here, in applying MOFs for selective adsorption: (i) toxic gas adsorption toward filtration for respiratory protection as well as indoor and cabin air, (ii) enrichment of hazardous gases using MOFs, and (iii) MOFs as sensors for toxic trace gases and explosives. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  1. Development, Application, and Transition of Aerosol and Trace Gas Products Derived from Next-Generation Satellite Observations to Operations

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Berndt, Emily; Naeger, Aaron; Zavodsky, Bradley; McGrath, Kevin; LaFontaine, Frank

    2016-01-01

    NASA Short-term Prediction Research and Transition (SPoRT) Center has a history of successfully transitioning unique observations and research capabilities to the operational weather community to improve short-term forecasts. SPoRTstrives to bridge the gap between research and operations by maintaining interactive partnerships with end users to develop products that match specific forecast challenges, provide training, and assess the products in the operational environment. This presentation focuses on recent product development, application, and transition of aerosol and trace gas products to operations for specific forecasting applications. Recent activities relating to the SPoRT ozone products, aerosol optical depth composite product, sulfur dioxide, and aerosol index products are discussed.

  2. ANALYSIS AND SYNTHESIS OF TRACE GAS FLUXES. (R824993)

    EPA Science Inventory

    The perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Concl...

  3. A True Eddy Accumulation - Eddy Covariance hybrid for measurements of turbulent trace gas fluxes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Siebicke, Lukas

    2016-04-01

    sampling system closely reproduced dynamics of simulated TEA-TM fluxes. In conclusion this study introduces a new approach to trace gas flux measurements using transient-mode true eddy accumulation. First TEA-TM CO2 fluxes compared favorably with side-by-side EC fluxes, in agreement with our previous experiments comparing discrete TEA to EC. True eddy accumulation has thus potential for measuring turbulent fluxes of a range of atmospheric tracers using slow response analyzers.

  4. Trace-Element Concentrations in Northwest Africa 032

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Korotev, R. L.; Jolliff, B. L.; Wang, A.; Gillis, J. J.; Haskin, L. A.; Fagan, T. J.; Taylor, G. J.; Keil, K.

    2001-01-01

    Trace-element concentrations (INAA) are presented for four samples of the NWA 032 lunar meteorite. The mare basalt has a moderately high Th concentration (1.9 ppm) and a higher Th/REE ratio than any other known mare basalt. Additional information is contained in the original extended abstract.

  5. Regional trace gas monitoring simplified - A linear retrieval scheme for carbon monoxide from hyperspectral soundings

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Smith, N.; Huang, A.; Weisz, E.; Annegarn, H. J.

    2011-12-01

    The Fast Linear Inversion Trace gas System (FLITS) is designed to retrieve tropospheric total column trace gas densities [molec.cm-2] from space-borne hyperspectral infrared soundings. The objective to develop a new retrieval scheme was motivated by the need for near real-time air quality monitoring at high spatial resolution. We present a case study of FLITS carbon monoxide (CO) retrievals from daytime (descending orbit) Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI) measurements that have a 0.5 cm-1 spectral resolution and 12 km footprint at nadir. The standard Level 2 IASI CO retrieval product (COL2) is available in near real-time but is spatially averaged over 2 x 2 pixels, or 50 x 50 km, and thus more suitable for global analysis. The study region is Southern Africa (south of the equator) for the period 28-31 August 2008. An atmospheric background estimate is obtained from a chemical transport model, emissivity from regional measurements and surface temperature (ST) from space-borne retrievals. The CO background error is set to 10%. FLITS retrieves CO by assuming a simple linear relationship between the IASI measurements and background estimate of the atmosphere and surface parameters. This differs from the COL2 algorithm that treats CO retrieval as a moderately non-linear problem. When compared to COL2, the FLITS retrievals display similar trends in distribution and transport of CO over time with the advantage of an improved spatial resolution (single-pixel). The value of the averaging kernel (A) is consistently above 0.5 and indicates that FLITS retrievals have a stable dependence on the measurement. This stability is achieved through careful channel selection in the strongest CO absorption lines (2050-2225 cm-1) and joint retrieval with skin temperature (IASI sensitivity to CO is highly correlated with ST), thus no spatial averaging is necessary. We conclude that the simplicity and stability of FLITS make it useful first as a research tool, i.e. the

  6. Measurements of reactive trace gases and variable O3 formation rates in some South Carolina biomass burning plumes [Discussions

    Treesearch

    S. K. Akagi; R. J. Yokelson; I. R. Burling; S. Meinardi; I. Simpson; D. R. Blake; G. R. McMeeking; A. Sullivan; T. Lee; S. Kreidenweis; S. Urbanski; J. Reardon; D. W. T. Griffith; T. J. Johnson; D. R. Weise

    2012-01-01

    In October–November 2011 we measured trace gas emission factors from seven prescribed fires in South Carolina (SC), US, using two Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (FTIR) systems and whole air sampling (WAS) into canisters followed by gas-chromatographic analysis. A total of 97 trace gas species were quantified from both airborne and ground-based sampling...

  7. Molecular hydrogen formation on interstellar PAHs through Eley-Rideal abstraction reactions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Foley, Nolan; Cazaux, S.; Egorov, D.; Boschman, L. M. P. V.; Hoekstra, R.; Schlathölter, T.

    2018-06-01

    We present experimental data on H2 formation processes on gas-phase polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) cations. This process was studied by exposing coronene radical cations, confined in a radio-frequency ion trap, to gas phase H atoms. Sequential attachment of up to 23 hydrogen atoms has been observed. Exposure to atomic D instead of H allows one to distinguish attachment from competing abstraction reactions, as the latter now leave a unique fingerprint in the measured mass spectra. Modeling of the experimental results using realistic cross sections and barriers for attachment and abstraction yield a 1:2 ratio of abstraction to attachment cross sections. The strong contribution of abstraction indicates that H2 formation on interstellar PAH cations is an order of magnitude more relevant than previously thought.

  8. Computation and analysis of backward ray-tracing in aero-optics flow fields.

    PubMed

    Xu, Liang; Xue, Deting; Lv, Xiaoyi

    2018-01-08

    A backward ray-tracing method is proposed for aero-optics simulation. Different from forward tracing, the backward tracing direction is from the internal sensor to the distant target. Along this direction, the tracing in turn goes through the internal gas region, the aero-optics flow field, and the freestream. The coordinate value, the density, and the refractive index are calculated at each tracing step. A stopping criterion is developed to ensure the tracing stops at the outer edge of the aero-optics flow field. As a demonstration, the analysis is carried out for a typical blunt nosed vehicle. The backward tracing method and stopping criterion greatly simplify the ray-tracing computations in the aero-optics flow field, and they can be extended to our active laser illumination aero-optics study because of the reciprocity principle.

  9. Polar Vortex Dynamics During Spring and Fall Diagnosed Using ATMOS Trace Gas Observation

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Manney, G.; Michelsen, H.; Santee, M.; Gunson, M.; Irion, F.; Roche, A.; Livesey, N.

    1999-01-01

    Trace gases measured by the Atmospheric Trace Molecule Spectroscopy (ATMOS) instrument during the Mar/Apr 1992(AT-1), Apr 1993(AT-2), and Nov 1994(AT-3) space-shuttle missions have been mapped into equivalent latitude/potential temperature (EqL/0) coordinates.

  10. An Ultra-Trace Analysis Technique for SF6 Using Gas Chromatography with Negative Ion Chemical Ionization Mass Spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Jong, Edmund C; Macek, Paul V; Perera, Inoka E; Luxbacher, Kray D; McNair, Harold M

    2015-07-01

    Sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) is widely used as a tracer gas because of its detectability at low concentrations. This attribute of SF6 allows the quantification of both small-scale flows, such as leakage, and large-scale flows, such as atmospheric currents. SF6's high detection sensitivity also facilitates greater usage efficiency and lower operating cost for tracer deployments by reducing quantity requirements. The detectability of SF6 is produced by its high molecular electronegativity. This property provides a high potential for negative ion formation through electron capture thus naturally translating to selective detection using negative ion chemical ionization mass spectrometry (NCI-MS). This paper investigates the potential of using gas chromatography (GC) with NCI-MS for the detection of SF6. The experimental parameters for an ultra-trace SF6 detection method utilizing minimal customizations of the analytical instrument are detailed. A method for the detection of parts per trillion (ppt) level concentrations of SF6 for the purpose of underground ventilation tracer gas analysis was successfully developed in this study. The method utilized a Shimadzu gas chromatography with negative ion chemical ionization mass spectrometry system equipped with an Agilent J&W HP-porous layer open tubular column coated with an alumina oxide (Al2O3) S column. The method detection limit (MDL) analysis as defined by the Environmental Protection Agency of the tracer data showed the method MDL to be 5.2 ppt. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  11. The Atmosphere of Crystal Cave: Understanding Sources and Sinks of Trace Gases

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jarnot, A. W.; Hughes, S.; Blake, D. R.

    2016-12-01

    The atmospheric chemistry of cave systems has not been previously studied in depth; however, cave systems are prime locations to study potential sources and sinks for trace gas pollutants. Relatively constant temperatures, humidity, minimal air flow, and lack of sunlight create a stable environment that allows for biogeochemical processes to go on uninterrupted for extended periods of time. Carbonyl sulfide (OCS) is one of the main contributors to air pollution globally, but many OCS sinks are not fully understood. A preliminary analysis of cave air from Crystal Cave in Sequoia National Park yielded OCS concentrations of 35.2 ± 0.7 pptv, approximately 16 times lower than the average concentration of 568 ± 8 pptv measured outside of the cave. In addition, the concentrations of several other trace gases such as alpha-pinene and methyl bromide were found to be abnormally low (10.5 ± 0.3 pptv inside and 387 ± 8 pptv for alpha-pinene, and 387 ± 8 pptv inside and 11.1 ± 0.4 pptv outside for methyl bromide). The cave air was found to be well-mixed as the concentrations of long lived halocarbons such as CFC-12 were similar inside and outside of the cave (545 ± 5 pptv and 538 ± 4 pptv, respectively). This indicates that there may be one or more factors causing the cave to act a sink for several trace gas species. Further sampling and analysis of the atmosphere in the cave is required to draw any concrete conclusions about the unique environment presented here. The information gathered will help elucidate mechanisms for trace gas degradation, which could yield information about global trace gas budgets and their effect on global air quality.

  12. U.S. Geological Survey Trace Elements and related reports through 1954

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Smith, Harriet G. Brown; Blatcher, Virginia K.

    1955-01-01

    This report supersedes TEI-400, "U.S. Geological Survey Trace Elements and related reports through 1953." Part I is a numerical list of U.S. Geological Survey Trace Elements Investigations and Memorandum reports. This part lists not only reports (followed by a date) that have been transmitted to the U.S> Atomic Energy Commission, but also reports in preparation (followed by an asterisk) for which tentative titles were available on December 31, 1954. If a report, or portion of a report, has been published, the fact is indicated by the abbreviation of the medium of publication. (See also Part II.) Part II is a reference guide to Trace Elements and related reports that are available to the public (this part supersedes Part I of Bulletin 1019-B). These reports are grouped according to the type of publication or release. If a report, or portion of the report, has been published in more than one form, appropriate cross-references are given to indicate the other forms of publication. Abstracts published in Nuclear Science Abstracts are not included in Part II; however, if the abstract of a Trace Elements report has been published in NSA, the fact is indicated in Part I. Publications in process on December 31, 1954, are designated by an asterisk. Part III is a finding list of states, areas, and subjects and supersedes Part II of Bulletin 1019-B. It is based on information derived mostly from the titles of reports and, where titles are of general nature, from a cursory review of the reports. This list is not a complete index of the information given in Trace Elements and related reports, but is designed to find subjects of major interest, Because of the numerous entries for Colorado and Utah, information has been listed by counties and, where possible, by subject under these states. Other states have county listings only if a county is included in the title of a report; otherwise, area may be listed separately under the state. Major subjects are listed separately in the

  13. Cryogenic foam insulation: Abstracted publications

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Williamson, F. R.

    1977-01-01

    A group of documents were chosen and abstracted which contain information on the properties of foam materials and on the use of foams as thermal insulation at cryogenic temperatures. The properties include thermal properties, mechanical properties, and compatibility properties with oxygen and other cryogenic fluids. Uses of foams include applications as thermal insulation for spacecraft propellant tanks, and for liquefied natural gas storage tanks and pipelines.

  14. Multi-species trace gas analysis with dual-wavelength quantum cascade laser

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jágerská, Jana; Tuzson, Béla; Looser, Herbert; Jouy, Pierre; Hugi, Andreas; Mangold, Markus; Soltic, Patrik; Faist, Jérôme; Emmenegger, Lukas

    2015-04-01

    ). [2] J. Jágerská, P. Jouy, A. Hugi, B. Tuzson, H. Looser, M. Mangold, M. Beck, L. Emmenegger, and J. Faist, 'Dual-wavelength quantum cascade laser for trace gas spectroscopy,' Applied Physics Letters 105, 161109-161109-4 (2014).

  15. CO2 lidar for measurements of trace gases and wind velocities

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hess, R. V.

    1982-01-01

    CO2 lidar systems technology and signal processing requirements relevant to measurement needs and sensitivity are discussed. Doppler processing is similar to microwave radar, with signal reception controlled by a computer capable of both direct and heterodyne operations. Trace gas concentrations have been obtained with the NASA DIAL system, and trace gas transport has been determined with Doppler lidar measurements for wind velocity and turbulence. High vertical resolution measurement of trace gases, wind velocity, and turbulence are most important in the planetary boundary layer and in regions between the PBL and the lower stratosphere. Shear measurements are critical for airport operational safety. A sensitivity analysis for heterodyne detection with the DIAL system and for short pulses using a Doppler lidar system is presented. The development of transient injection locking techniques, as well as frequency stability by reducing chirp and catalytic control of closed cycle CO2 laser chemistry, is described.

  16. Analysis of trace contaminants in hot gas streams using time-weighted average solid-phase microextraction: proof of concept.

    PubMed

    Woolcock, Patrick J; Koziel, Jacek A; Cai, Lingshuang; Johnston, Patrick A; Brown, Robert C

    2013-03-15

    Time-weighted average (TWA) passive sampling using solid-phase microextraction (SPME) and gas chromatography was investigated as a new method of collecting, identifying and quantifying contaminants in process gas streams. Unlike previous TWA-SPME techniques using the retracted fiber configuration (fiber within needle) to monitor ambient conditions or relatively stagnant gases, this method was developed for fast-moving process gas streams at temperatures approaching 300 °C. The goal was to develop a consistent and reliable method of analyzing low concentrations of contaminants in hot gas streams without performing time-consuming exhaustive extraction with a slipstream. This work in particular aims to quantify trace tar compounds found in a syngas stream generated from biomass gasification. This paper evaluates the concept of retracted SPME at high temperatures by testing the three essential requirements for TWA passive sampling: (1) zero-sink assumption, (2) consistent and reliable response by the sampling device to changing concentrations, and (3) equal concentrations in the bulk gas stream relative to the face of the fiber syringe opening. Results indicated the method can accurately predict gas stream concentrations at elevated temperatures. Evidence was also discovered to validate the existence of a second boundary layer within the fiber during the adsorption/absorption process. This limits the technique to operating within reasonable mass loadings and loading rates, established by appropriate sampling depths and times for concentrations of interest. A limit of quantification for the benzene model tar system was estimated at 0.02 g m(-3) (8 ppm) with a limit of detection of 0.5 mg m(-3) (200 ppb). Using the appropriate conditions, the technique was applied to a pilot-scale fluidized-bed gasifier to verify its feasibility. Results from this test were in good agreement with literature and prior pilot plant operation, indicating the new method can measure low

  17. Trace metal mapping by laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Kaiser, Jozef; Novotny, Dr. Karel; Hrdlicka, A

    2012-01-01

    Abstract: Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) is a sensitive optical technique capable of fast multi-elemental analysis of solid, gaseous and liquid samples. The potential applications of lasers for spectrochemical analysis were developed shortly after its invention; however the massive development of LIBS is connected with the availability of powerful pulsed laser sources. Since the late 80s of 20th century LIBS dominated the analytical atomic spectroscopy scene and its application are developed continuously. Here we review the utilization of LIBS for trace elements mapping in different matrices. The main emphasis is on trace metal mapping in biological samples.

  18. Simultaneous removal of SO2 and trace As2O3 from flue gas: mechanism, kinetics study, and effect of main gases on arsenic capture.

    PubMed

    Li, Yuzhong; Tong, Huiling; Zhuo, Yuqun; Li, Yan; Xu, Xuchang

    2007-04-15

    Sulfur dioxide (SO2) and trace elements are pollutants derived from coal combustion. This study focuses on the simultaneous removal of S02 and trace arsenic oxide (As2O3) from flue gas by calcium oxide (CaO) adsorption in the moderate temperature range. Experiments have been performed on a thermogravimetric analyzer (TGA). The interaction mechanism between As2O3 and CaO is studied via XRD detection. Calcium arsenate [Ca3(AsO4)2] is found to be the reaction product in the range of 600-1000 degrees C. The ability of CaO to absorb As2O3 increases with the increasing temperature over the range of 400-1000 degrees C. Through kinetics analysis, it has been found that the rate constant of arsenate reaction is much higher than that of sulfate reaction. SO2 presence does not affect the trace arsenic capture either in the initial reaction stage when CaO conversion is relatively low or in the later stage when CaO conversion is very high. The product of sulfate reaction, CaS04, is proven to be able to absorb As2O3. The coexisting CO2 does not weaken the trace arsenic capture either.

  19. A wide field-of-view imaging DOAS instrument for continuous trace gas mapping from aircraft

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schönhardt, A.; Altube, P.; Gerilowski, K.; Krautwurst, S.; Hartmann, J.; Meier, A. C.; Richter, A.; Burrows, J. P.

    2014-04-01

    For the purpose of trace gas measurements and pollution mapping, the Airborne imaging DOAS instrument for Measurements of Atmospheric Pollution (AirMAP) has been developed, characterised and successfully operated from aircraft. From the observations with the AirMAP instrument nitrogen dioxide (NO2) columns were retrieved. A major benefit of the pushbroom imaging instrument is the spatially continuous, gap-free measurement sequence independent of flight altitude, a valuable characteristic for mapping purposes. This is made possible by the use of a frame-transfer detector. With a wide-angle entrance objective, a broad field-of-view across track of around 48° is achieved, leading to a swath width of about the same size as the flight altitude. The use of fibre coupled light intake optics with sorted light fibres allows flexible positioning within the aircraft and retains the very good imaging capabilities. The measurements yield ground spatial resolutions below 100 m. From a maximum of 35 individual viewing directions (lines of sight, LOS) represented by 35 single fibres, the number of viewing directions is adapted to each situation by averaging according to signal-to-noise or spatial resolution requirements. Exploitation of all the viewing directions yields observations at 30 m spatial resolution, making the instrument a suitable tool for mapping trace gas point sources and small scale variability. For accurate spatial mapping the position and aircraft attitude are taken into account using the Attitude and Heading Reference System of the aircraft. A first demonstration mission using AirMAP was undertaken. In June 2011, AirMAP has been operated on the AWI Polar-5 aircraft in the framework of the AIRMETH2011 campaign. During a flight above a medium sized coal-fired power plant in North-West Germany, AirMAP clearly detects the emission plume downwind from the exhaust stack, with NO2 vertical columns around 2 × 1016 molecules cm-2 in the plume center. The emission

  20. A compact high resolution ion mobility spectrometer for fast trace gas analysis.

    PubMed

    Kirk, Ansgar T; Allers, Maria; Cochems, Philipp; Langejuergen, Jens; Zimmermann, Stefan

    2013-09-21

    Drift tube ion mobility spectrometers (IMS) are widely used for fast trace gas detection in air, but portable compact systems are typically very limited in their resolving power. Decreasing the initial ion packet width improves the resolution, but is generally associated with a reduced signal-to-noise-ratio (SNR) due to the lower number of ions injected into the drift region. In this paper, we present a refined theory of IMS operation which employs a combined approach for the analysis of the ion drift and the subsequent amplification to predict both the resolution and the SNR of the measured ion current peak. This theoretical analysis shows that the SNR is not a function of the initial ion packet width, meaning that compact drift tube IMS with both very high resolution and extremely low limits of detection can be designed. Based on these implications, an optimized combination of a compact drift tube with a length of just 10 cm and a transimpedance amplifier has been constructed with a resolution of 183 measured for the positive reactant ion peak (RIP(+)), which is sufficient to e.g. separate the RIP(+) from the protonated acetone monomer, even though their drift times only differ by a factor of 1.007. Furthermore, the limits of detection (LODs) for acetone are 180 pptv within 1 s of averaging time and 580 pptv within only 100 ms.

  1. Trace explosives sensor testbed (TESTbed)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Collins, Greg E.; Malito, Michael P.; Tamanaha, Cy R.; Hammond, Mark H.; Giordano, Braden C.; Lubrano, Adam L.; Field, Christopher R.; Rogers, Duane A.; Jeffries, Russell A.; Colton, Richard J.; Rose-Pehrsson, Susan L.

    2017-03-01

    A novel vapor delivery testbed, referred to as the Trace Explosives Sensor Testbed, or TESTbed, is demonstrated that is amenable to both high- and low-volatility explosives vapors including nitromethane, nitroglycerine, ethylene glycol dinitrate, triacetone triperoxide, 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene, pentaerythritol tetranitrate, and hexahydro-1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazine. The TESTbed incorporates a six-port dual-line manifold system allowing for rapid actuation between a dedicated clean air source and a trace explosives vapor source. Explosives and explosives-related vapors can be sourced through a number of means including gas cylinders, permeation tube ovens, dynamic headspace chambers, and a Pneumatically Modulated Liquid Delivery System coupled to a perfluoroalkoxy total-consumption microflow nebulizer. Key features of the TESTbed include continuous and pulseless control of trace vapor concentrations with wide dynamic range of concentration generation, six sampling ports with reproducible vapor profile outputs, limited low-volatility explosives adsorption to the manifold surface, temperature and humidity control of the vapor stream, and a graphical user interface for system operation and testing protocol implementation.

  2. TRACE GAS CONCENTRATIONS IN SMALL STREAMS OF THE GEORGIA PIEDMONT

    EPA Science Inventory

    Seventeen headwater watersheds within the SFBR watershed ranging from 0.5 to 3.4 km2 were selected. We have been monitoring concentrations of the trace gases nitrous oxide, methane, and carbon dioxide, and other parameters (T, conductivity, dissolved oxygen, pH, nutrients, flow r...

  3. Technical and Scientific Aspects of the JET Trace-Tritium Experimental Campaign

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Jones, T.T.C.; Brennan, D; Pearce, R.J.H.

    The JET Trace Tritium (TTE) programme marked the first use of tritium in experiments under the managerial control of UKAEA, which operates the JET Facility on behalf of EFDA. The introduction of tritium into the plasma by gas fuelling and neutral beam injection, even in trace quantities, required the mobilisation of gram-quantities of tritium gas from the Active Gas Handling System (AGHS) product storage units into the supply lines connected to the torus gas valve and the neutral beam injectors. All systems for DT gas handling, recovery and reprocessing were therefore recommissioned and operating procedures re-established, involving extensive operations staffmore » training. The validation of Key Safety Related Equipment (KSRE) is described with reference to specific examples. The differences between requirements for TTE and full DT operations are shown to be relatively small. The scientific motivation for TTE, such as the possibility to obtain high-quality measurements in key areas such as fuel-ion transport and fast ion dynamics, is described, and the re-establishment and development of JET's 14MeV neutron diagnostic capability for TTE and future DT campaigns are outlined. Some scientific highlights from the TTE campaign are presented.« less

  4. Sources and sinks of trace gases in Amazonia and the Cerrado

    Treesearch

    M.M.C. Bustamante; Michael Keller; D.A. Silva

    2009-01-01

    Data for trace gas fluxes (NOx, N2O, and CH4) from the Amazon and cerrado region are presented with focus on the processes of production and consumption of these trace gases in soils and how they may be changed because of land use changes in both regions. Fluxes are controlled by seaonality, soil moisture, soil texture, topography, and fine-root dynamics. Compared to...

  5. Cloud draft structure and trace gas transport

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Scala, John R.; Tao, Wei-Kuo; Thompson, Anne M.; Simpson, Joanne; Garstang, Michael; Pickering, Kenneth E.; Browell, Edward V.; Sachse, Glen W.; Gregory, Gerald L.; Torres, Arnold L.

    1990-01-01

    During the second Amazon Boundary Layer Experiment (ABLE 2B), meteorological observations, chemical measurements, and model simulations are utilized in order to interpret convective cloud draft structure and to analyze its role in transport and vertical distribution of trace gases. One-dimensional photochemical model results suggest that the observed poststorm changes in ozone concentration can be attributed to convective transports rather than photochemical production and the results of a two-dimensional time-dependent cloud model simulation are presented for the May 6, 1987 squall system. The mesoscale convective system exhibited evidence of significant midlevel detrainment in addition to transports to anvil heights. Chemical measurements of O3 and CO obtained in the convective environment are used to predict photochemical production within the troposphere and to corroborate the cloud model results.

  6. 21 CFR 868.5430 - Gas-scavenging apparatus.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Gas-scavenging apparatus. 868.5430 Section 868...) MEDICAL DEVICES ANESTHESIOLOGY DEVICES Therapeutic Devices § 868.5430 Gas-scavenging apparatus. (a) Identification. A gas-scavenging apparatus is a device intended to collect excess anesthetic, analgesic, or trace...

  7. 21 CFR 868.5430 - Gas-scavenging apparatus.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Gas-scavenging apparatus. 868.5430 Section 868...) MEDICAL DEVICES ANESTHESIOLOGY DEVICES Therapeutic Devices § 868.5430 Gas-scavenging apparatus. (a) Identification. A gas-scavenging apparatus is a device intended to collect excess anesthetic, analgesic, or trace...

  8. Real-time trace gas sensor using a multimode diode laser and multiple-line integrated cavity enhanced absorption spectroscopy.

    PubMed

    Karpf, Andreas; Rao, Gottipaty N

    2015-07-01

    We describe and demonstrate a highly sensitive trace gas sensor based on a simplified design that is capable of measuring sub-ppb concentrations of NO2 in tens of milliseconds. The sensor makes use of a relatively inexpensive Fabry-Perot diode laser to conduct off-axis cavity enhanced spectroscopy. The broad frequency range of a multimode Fabry-Perot diode laser spans a large number of absorption lines, thereby removing the need for a single-frequency tunable laser source. The use of cavity enhanced absorption spectroscopy enhances the sensitivity of the sensor by providing a pathlength on the order of 1 km in a small volume. Off-axis alignment excites a large number of cavity modes simultaneously, thereby reducing the sensor's susceptibility to vibration. Multiple-line integrated absorption spectroscopy (where one integrates the absorption spectra over a large number of rovibronic transitions of the molecular species) further improves the sensitivity of detection. Relatively high laser power (∼400  mW) is used to compensate for the low coupling efficiency of a broad linewidth laser to the optical cavity. The approach was demonstrated using a 407 nm diode laser to detect trace quantities of NO2 in zero air. Sensitivities of 750 ppt, 110 ppt, and 65 ppt were achieved using integration times of 50 ms, 5 s, and 20 s respectively.

  9. Spark discharge trace element detection system

    DOEpatents

    Adler-Golden, Steven; Bernstein, Lawrence S.; Bien, Fritz

    1988-01-01

    A spark discharge trace element detection system is provided which includes a spark chamber including a pair of electrodes for receiving a sample of gas to be analyzed at no greater than atmospheric pressure. A voltage is provided across the electrodes for generating a spark in the sample. The intensity of the emitted radiation in at least one primary selected narrow band of the radiation is detected. Each primary band corresponds to an element to be detected in the gas. The intensity of the emission in each detected primary band is integrated during the afterglow time interval of the spark emission and a signal representative of the integrated intensity of the emission in each selected primary bond is utilized to determine the concentration of the corresponding element in the gas.

  10. Spark discharge trace element detection system

    DOEpatents

    Adler-Golden, S.; Bernstein, L.S.; Bien, F.

    1988-08-23

    A spark discharge trace element detection system is provided which includes a spark chamber including a pair of electrodes for receiving a sample of gas to be analyzed at no greater than atmospheric pressure. A voltage is provided across the electrodes for generating a spark in the sample. The intensity of the emitted radiation in at least one primary selected narrow band of the radiation is detected. Each primary band corresponds to an element to be detected in the gas. The intensity of the emission in each detected primary band is integrated during the afterglow time interval of the spark emission and a signal representative of the integrated intensity of the emission in each selected primary bond is utilized to determine the concentration of the corresponding element in the gas. 12 figs.

  11. Comparison of CAM-Chem with Trace Gas Measurements from Airborne Field Campaigns from 2009-2016.

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schauffler, S.; Atlas, E. L.; Kinnison, D. E.; Lamarque, J. F.; Saiz-Lopez, A.; Navarro, M. A.; Donets, V.; Blake, D. R.; Blake, N. J.

    2016-12-01

    Trace gas measurements collected during seven field campaigns, two with multiple deployments, will be compared with the NCAR CAM-Chem model to evaluate the model performance over multiple years. The campaigns include HIPPO (2009-2011) pole to pole observations in the Pacific on the NSF/NCAR GV over multiple seasons; SEAC4RS (Aug./Sept., 2013) in the central and southern U.S. and western Gulf of Mexico on the NASA ER-2 and DC8; ATTREX (2011-2015) on the NASA Global Hawk over multiple seasons and locations; CONTRAST (Jan/Feb, 2014) in the western Pacific on the NSF/NCAR GV; VIRGAS (Oct., 2015) in the south central US and western Gulf of Mexico on the NASA WB-57; ORCAS (Jan/Feb, 2016) over the southern ocean on the NSF/NCAR GV; and POSIDON (Oct, 2016) in the western Pacific on the NASA WB-57. We will focus on along the flight tracks comparisons with the model and will also examine comparisons of vertical distributions and various tracer-tracer correlations.

  12. Oxidation of contaminative methane traces with radio-frequency discharge

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Flamm, D. L.; Wydeven, T. L.

    1976-01-01

    An 11.8 MHz glow discharge was used to oxidize trace levels of methane in oxygen. The concentration of methane can be reduced by three orders of magnitude. The effects of power (0-400 W), flow rate (10-1000 cc-STP/min) and concentration (70-8000 ppm) were investigated at pressures ranging from 50 torr to almost 1 atm. No organic reaction products were detected in the treated gas stream. The process may prove useful for the removal of atmospheric trace contaminants at ambient pressure.

  13. The Independence of Neutral and Ionized Gas Outflows in Low-z Galaxies

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bae, Hyun-Jin; Woo, Jong-Hak

    2018-02-01

    Using a large sample of emission line galaxies selected from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, we investigate the kinematics of the neutral gas in the interstellar medium (ISM) based on the Na I λλ5890,5896 (Na D) doublet absorption line. By removing the Na D contribution from stellar atmospheres, we isolate the line profile of the Na D excess, which represents the neutral gas in the ISM. The kinematics traced by the Na D excess show high velocity and velocity dispersion for a fraction of galaxies, indicating the presence of neutral gas outflows. We find that the kinematics measured from the Na D excess are similar between AGNs and star-forming galaxies. Moreover, by comparing the kinematics traced by the Na D excess and those by the [O III] λ5007 line taken from Woo et al., which traces ionized outflows driven by AGNs, we find no correlation between them. These results demonstrate that the neutral gas in the ISM traced by the Na D excess and the ionized gas traced by [O III] are kinematically independent, and AGNs have no impact on the neutral gas outflows. In contrast to [O III], we find that the measured line-of-sight velocity shift and velocity dispersion of the Na D excess increase for more face-on galaxies due to the projection effect, supporting that Na D outflows are radially driven (i.e., perpendicular to the major axis of galaxies), presumably due to star formation.

  14. An overview of the flight campaign for the GAUGE project: airborne greenhouse gas (and other complementary trace gas) measurements around and over the UK between April 2014 and May 2015

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Allen, Grant; Pitt, Joseph; Le Breton, Michael; Percival, Carl; Bannan, Thomas; O'Doherty, Simon; Manning, Alistair; Rigby, Matt; Gannesan, Anita; Mead, Mohammed; Bauguitte, Stephane; Lee, James; Wenger, Angelina; Palmer, Paul

    2016-04-01

    This work highlights data measured during flights by the UK Facility for Airborne Atmospheric Measurement (FAAM) as part of the Greenhouse gAs UK and Global Emissions (GAUGE) campaign. A total of 17 flights (85 flight-hours) have been conducted so far around the UK mainland and Ireland to sample precision in situ CH4, CO2, N2O (and other trace gas) concentrations and meteorological parameters at altitudes up to 9500m throughout the period April 2014 to May 2015. Airborne remote sensing retrievals of greenhouse gas total columns have also been calculated using the Manchester Airborne Retrieval Scheme for the UK Met Office ARIES high resolution FTIR instrument. This airborne dataset represents a mapped climatology and a series of case studies from which to assess top-down bulk-net-flux snapshots for regions of the UK, and provides for evaluation of inverse modelling approaches that challenge bottom-up inventories, satellite remote sensing measurements, and assessment of model transport uncertainty. In this paper, we shall describe the instrumentation on the FAAM aircraft and provide a diary of GAUGE FAAM flights (and data highlights) to date; and discuss selected flights of interest to studies such as those above with a focus of net mass flux evaluation.

  15. Imaging trace gases in volcanic plumes with Fabry Perot Interferometers

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kuhn, Jonas; Platt, Ulrich; Bobrowski, Nicole; Lübcke, Peter; Wagner, Thomas

    2017-04-01

    Within the last decades, progress in remote sensing of atmospheric trace gases revealed many important insights into physical and chemical processes in volcanic plumes. In particular, their evolution could be studied in more detail than by traditional in-situ techniques. A major limitation of standard techniques for volcanic trace gas remote sensing (e.g. Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy, DOAS) is the constraint of the measurement to a single viewing direction since they use dispersive spectroscopy with a high spectral resolution. Imaging DOAS-type approaches can overcome this limitation, but become very time consuming (of the order of minutes to record a single image) and often cannot match the timescales of the processes of interest for volcanic gas measurements (occurring at the order of seconds). Spatially resolved imaging observations with high time resolution for volcanic sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions became possible with the introduction of the SO2-Camera. Reducing the spectral resolution to two spectral channels (using interference filters) that are matched to the SO2 absorption spectrum, the SO2-Camera is able to record full frame SO2 slant column density distributions at a temporal resolution on the order of < 1s. This for instance allows for studying variations in SO2 fluxes on very short time scales and applying them in magma dynamics models. However, the currently employed SO2-Camera technique is limited to SO2 detection and, due to its coarse spectral resolution, has a limited spectral selectivity. This limits its application to very specific, infrequently found measurement conditions. Here we present a new approach, based on matching the transmission profile of Fabry Perot Interferometers (FPIs) to periodic spectral absorption features of trace gases. The FPI's transmission spectrum is chosen to achieve a high correlation with the spectral absorption of the trace gas, allowing a high selectivity and sensitivity with still using only a

  16. ERP Modulation during Observation of Abstract Paintings by Franz Kline

    PubMed Central

    Sbriscia-Fioretti, Beatrice; Berchio, Cristina; Freedberg, David; Gallese, Vittorio; Umiltà, Maria Alessandra

    2013-01-01

    The aim of this study was to test the involvement of sensorimotor cortical circuits during the beholding of the static consequences of hand gestures devoid of any meaning.In order to verify this hypothesis we performed an EEG experiment presenting to participants images of abstract works of art with marked traces of brushstrokes. The EEG data were analyzed by using Event Related Potentials (ERPs). We aimed to demonstrate a direct involvement of sensorimotor cortical circuits during the beholding of these selected works of abstract art. The stimuli consisted of three different abstract black and white paintings by Franz Kline. Results verified our experimental hypothesis showing the activation of premotor and motor cortical areas during stimuli observation. In addition, abstract works of art observation elicited the activation of reward-related orbitofrontal areas, and cognitive categorization-related prefrontal areas. The cortical sensorimotor activation is a fundamental neurophysiological demonstration of the direct involvement of the cortical motor system in perception of static meaningless images belonging to abstract art. These results support the role of embodied simulation of artist’s gestures in the perception of works of art. PMID:24130693

  17. Low-Power Architecture for an Optical Life Gas Analyzer

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Pilgrim, Jeffrey; Vakhtin, Andrei

    2012-01-01

    Analog and digital electronic control architecture has been combined with an operating methodology for an optical trace gas sensor platform that allows very low power consumption while providing four independent gas measurements in essentially real time, as well as a user interface and digital data storage and output. The implemented design eliminates the cross-talk between the measurement channels while maximizing the sensitivity, selectivity, and dynamic range for each measured gas. The combination provides for battery operation on a simple camcorder battery for as long as eight hours. The custom, compact, rugged, self-contained design specifically targets applications of optical major constituent and trace gas detection for multiple gases using multiple lasers and photodetectors in an integrated package.

  18. Interaction of nickel-based SOFC anodes with trace contaminants from coal-derived synthesis gas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hackett, Gregory Allen

    New and efficient methods of producing electrical energy from natural resources have become an important topic for researchers. Integrated gasification and fuel cell (IGFC) systems offer a fuel-flexible, high-efficiency method of energy generation. Specifically, in coal gasification processes, coal can be changed into a high-quality gaseous fuel suitable for feeding solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs). However, trace species found in coal synthesis gas (syngas) may have a deleterious effect on the performance of nickel-based SOFC anodes. Generally, the cost of removing these species down to parts per million (ppm) levels is high. The purpose of this research is to determine the highest amount of contaminant that results in a low rate (˜1% per 1000 h) of cell performance degradation, allowing the SOFC to produce usable power for 40,000 hours. The cell performance degradation rate was determined for benzene, naphthalene, and mercury-doped syngas based on species concentration. Experimental data are fitted with degradation models to predict cell lifetime behavior. From these results, the minimum coal syngas cleanup required for these trace materials is determined. It is found that for a final cell voltage of 0.6 V, naphthalene and benzene must be cleaned to 360 ppm and less than 150 ppm, respectively. No additional cleaning is required for mercury beyond established environmental standards. Additionally, a detailed attack and recovery mechanism is proposed for the hydrocarbon species and their interaction with the fuel cell. This mechanism is proposed by considering the type of degradation models predicted and how carbon would interact with the Ni-YSZ anode to justify those models. The mechanism postulates that carbon is diffusing into the nickel structure, creating a metal solution. Once the nickel is saturated, the carbon begins to deposit on the nickel surface, reducing the electrode active area. The formation of metal solutions and the deposition of carbon results in

  19. High power, widely tunable, mode-hop free, continuous wave external cavity quantum cascade laser for multi-species trace gas detection

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Centeno, R.; Marchenko, D.; Mandon, J.

    We present a high power, widely tunable, continuous wave external cavity quantum cascade laser designed for infrared vibrational spectroscopy of molecules exhibiting broadband and single line absorption features. The laser source exhibits single mode operation with a tunability up to 303 cm{sup −1} (∼24% of the center wavelength) at 8 μm, with a maximum optical output power of 200 mW. In combination with off-axis integrated output spectroscopy, trace-gas detection of broadband absorption gases such as acetone was performed and a noise equivalent absorption sensitivity of 3.7 × 10{sup −8 }cm{sup −1 }Hz{sup −1/2} was obtained.

  20. A wide field-of-view imaging DOAS instrument for two-dimensional trace gas mapping from aircraft

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schönhardt, A.; Altube, P.; Gerilowski, K.; Krautwurst, S.; Hartmann, J.; Meier, A. C.; Richter, A.; Burrows, J. P.

    2015-12-01

    The Airborne imaging differential optical absorption spectroscopy (DOAS) instrument for Measurements of Atmospheric Pollution (AirMAP) has been developed for the purpose of trace gas measurements and pollution mapping. The instrument has been characterized and successfully operated from aircraft. Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) columns were retrieved from the AirMAP observations. A major benefit of the push-broom imaging instrument is the spatially continuous, gap-free measurement sequence independent of flight altitude, a valuable characteristic for mapping purposes. This is made possible by the use of a charge coupled device (CCD) frame-transfer detector. A broad field of view across track of around 48° is achieved with wide-angle entrance optics. This leads to a swath width of about the same size as the flight altitude. The use of fibre coupled light intake optics with sorted light fibres allows flexible instrument positioning within the aircraft and retains the very good imaging capabilities. The measurements yield ground spatial resolutions below 100 m depending on flight altitude. The number of viewing directions is chosen from a maximum of 35 individual viewing directions (lines of sight, LOS) represented by 35 individual fibres. The selection is adapted to each situation by averaging according to signal-to-noise or spatial resolution requirements. Observations at 30 m spatial resolution are obtained when flying at 1000 m altitude and making use of all 35 viewing directions. This makes the instrument a suitable tool for mapping trace gas point sources and small-scale variability. The position and aircraft attitude are taken into account for accurate spatial mapping using the Attitude and Heading Reference System of the aircraft. A first demonstration mission using AirMAP was undertaken in June 2011. AirMAP was operated on the AWI Polar-5 aircraft in the framework of the AIRMETH-2011 campaign. During a flight above a medium-sized coal-fired power plant in north

  1. Photoacoustic Techniques for Trace Gas Sensing Based on Semiconductor Laser Sources

    PubMed Central

    Elia, Angela; Lugarà, Pietro Mario; Di Franco, Cinzia; Spagnolo, Vincenzo

    2009-01-01

    The paper provides an overview on the use of photoacoustic sensors based on semiconductor laser sources for the detection of trace gases. We review the results obtained using standard, differential and quartz enhanced photoacoustic techniques. PMID:22303143

  2. Method for detecting trace impurities in gases

    DOEpatents

    Freund, Samuel M.; Maier, II, William B.; Holland, Redus F.; Beattie, Willard H.

    1981-01-01

    A technique for considerably improving the sensitivity and specificity of infrared spectrometry as applied to quantitative determination of trace impurities in various carrier or solvent gases is presented. A gas to be examined for impurities is liquefied and infrared absorption spectra of the liquid are obtained. Spectral simplification and number densities of impurities in the optical path are substantially higher than are obtainable in similar gas-phase analyses. Carbon dioxide impurity (.about.2 ppm) present in commercial Xe and ppm levels of Freon 12 and vinyl chloride added to liquefied air are used to illustrate the method.

  3. Method for detecting trace impurities in gases

    DOEpatents

    Freund, S.M.; Maier, W.B. II; Holland, R.F.; Beattie, W.H.

    A technique for considerably improving the sensitivity and specificity of infrared spectrometry as applied to quantitative determination of trace impurities in various carrier or solvent gases is presented. A gas to be examined for impurities is liquefied and infrared absorption spectra of the liquid are obtained. Spectral simplification and number densities of impurities in the optical path are substantially higher than are obtainable in similar gas-phase analyses. Carbon dioxide impurity (approx. 2 ppM) present in commercial Xe and ppM levels of Freon 12 and vinyl chloride added to liquefied air are used to illustrate the method.

  4. Products of random matrices from fixed trace and induced Ginibre ensembles

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Akemann, Gernot; Cikovic, Milan

    2018-05-01

    We investigate the microcanonical version of the complex induced Ginibre ensemble, by introducing a fixed trace constraint for its second moment. Like for the canonical Ginibre ensemble, its complex eigenvalues can be interpreted as a two-dimensional Coulomb gas, which are now subject to a constraint and a modified, collective confining potential. Despite the lack of determinantal structure in this fixed trace ensemble, we compute all its density correlation functions at finite matrix size and compare to a fixed trace ensemble of normal matrices, representing a different Coulomb gas. Our main tool of investigation is the Laplace transform, that maps back the fixed trace to the induced Ginibre ensemble. Products of random matrices have been used to study the Lyapunov and stability exponents for chaotic dynamical systems, where the latter are based on the complex eigenvalues of the product matrix. Because little is known about the universality of the eigenvalue distribution of such product matrices, we then study the product of m induced Ginibre matrices with a fixed trace constraint—which are clearly non-Gaussian—and M  ‑  m such Ginibre matrices without constraint. Using an m-fold inverse Laplace transform, we obtain a concise result for the spectral density of such a mixed product matrix at finite matrix size, for arbitrary fixed m and M. Very recently local and global universality was proven by the authors and their coworker for a more general, single elliptic fixed trace ensemble in the bulk of the spectrum. Here, we argue that the spectral density of mixed products is in the same universality class as the product of M independent induced Ginibre ensembles.

  5. Chemical Properties, Decomposition, and Methane Production of Tertiary Relict Plant Litters: Implications for Atmospheric Trace Gas Production in the Early Tertiary

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yavitt, J. B.; Bartella, T. M.; Williams, C. J.

    2006-12-01

    Throughout the early Tertiary (ca. 65-38 Ma) Taxodiaceae-dominated (redwood) wetland forests occupied the high latitudes and were circumpolar in their distribution. Many of these forests had high standing biomass with moderate primary productivity. The geographic extent and amount of Tertiary coals and fossil forests throughout Arctic Canada suggests large areas of wetland forests that may have cycled substantial quantities of carbon, particularly methane until they were replaced by cold tolerant Pinus, Picea, and Larix following climatic cooling associated with the Terminal Eocene Event. To test this hypothesis we compared physiochemical properties, decomposition, and trace gas production of litter from extant Metasequoia, Pinus, Picea, and Larix. Initial results from plantation-grown trees indicate Metasequoia litter is a better source of labile organic substrate than pinaceous litter. Metasequoia litter contained the least lignin and highest amounts of water-soluble compounds of the four litter types studied. Analysis of the lignin structure using cupric oxide oxidation indicates that Metasequoia lignin is enriched in 4'-hydroxyacetophenone and 4'- Hydroxy-3'-methoxyacetophenone relative to the pinaceous litter. In a 12-month decomposition study using litterbags, average litter mass loss was greater for Metasequoia litter (62%) compared to the pinaceous species (50%). Moreover, Metasequoia litter incubated under anoxic conditions produced nearly twice as much CO2 (ca. 4.2 umol/g.day) and CH4 (2.1 umol/g.day) as the pinaceous litter (2.4 umol/g.day for CO2; 1.2 umol/g.day for CH4). Our results support the idea of greater decomposability and palatability of Metasequoia litter as compared to Larix, Picea, or Pinus. Provided that the biochemical properties of Metasequoia have remained relatively stable through geologic time, it appears that early Tertiary Metasequoia-dominated wetland forests may have had higher microbial driven trace gas production than the

  6. The Colour and Stereo Surface Imaging System (CaSSIS) for the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Thomas, N.; Cremonese, G.; Ziethe, R.; Gerber, M.; Brändli, M.; Bruno, G.; Erismann, M.; Gambicorti, L.; Gerber, T.; Ghose, K.; Gruber, M.; Gubler, P.; Mischler, H.; Jost, J.; Piazza, D.; Pommerol, A.; Rieder, M.; Roloff, V.; Servonet, A.; Trottmann, W.; Uthaicharoenpong, T.; Zimmermann, C.; Vernani, D.; Johnson, M.; Pelò, E.; Weigel, T.; Viertl, J.; De Roux, N.; Lochmatter, P.; Sutter, G.; Casciello, A.; Hausner, T.; Ficai Veltroni, I.; Da Deppo, V.; Orleanski, P.; Nowosielski, W.; Zawistowski, T.; Szalai, S.; Sodor, B.; Tulyakov, S.; Troznai, G.; Banaskiewicz, M.; Bridges, J.C.; Byrne, S.; Debei, S.; El-Maarry, M. R.; Hauber, E.; Hansen, C.J.; Ivanov, A.; Keszthelyil, L.; Kirk, Randolph L.; Kuzmin, R.; Mangold, N.; Marinangeli, L.; Markiewicz, W. J.; Massironi, M.; McEwen, A.S.; Okubo, Chris H.; Tornabene, L.L.; Wajer, P.; Wray, J.J.

    2017-01-01

    The Colour and Stereo Surface Imaging System (CaSSIS) is the main imaging system onboard the European Space Agency’s ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) which was launched on 14 March 2016. CaSSIS is intended to acquire moderately high resolution (4.6 m/pixel) targeted images of Mars at a rate of 10–20 images per day from a roughly circular orbit 400 km above the surface. Each image can be acquired in up to four colours and stereo capability is foreseen by the use of a novel rotation mechanism. A typical product from one image acquisition will be a 9.5 km×∼45 km">9.5 km×∼45 km9.5 km×∼45 km swath in full colour and stereo in one over-flight of the target thereby reducing atmospheric influences inherent in stereo and colour products from previous high resolution imagers. This paper describes the instrument including several novel technical solutions required to achieve the scientific requirements.

  7. Low-temperature headspace-trap gas chromatography with mass spectrometry for the determination of trace volatile compounds from the fruit of Lycium barbarum L.

    PubMed

    Chen, Fangjiao; Su, Yue; Zhang, Fang; Guo, Yinlong

    2015-02-01

    The total saccharides content of Lycium barbarum L. is very high, and a high temperature would result in saccharide decomposition and the emergence of a large amount of water. Moreover, the volatile compounds from the fruit of L. barbarum L. are rather low in concentration. Hence, it is difficult for a conventional headspace method to study the volatile compounds from the fruit of L. barbarum L. Since headspace-trap gas chromatography with mass spectrometry is an excellent method for trace analysis, a headspace-trap gas chromatography with mass spectrometry method based on low-temperature (30°C) enrichment and multiple headspace extraction was developed to explore the volatile compounds from the fruit of L. barbarum L. The headspace of the sample was extracted in 17 cycles at 30°C. Each time, the compounds extracted were concentrated in the trap (Tenax TA and Tenax GR, 1:1). Finally, all the volatile compounds were delivered into the gas chromatograph after thermal desorption. With the method described above, a total of 57 compounds were identified. The identification was completed by mass spectral search, retention index, and accurate mass measurement. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  8. Thermal oxidation synthesis hollow MoO{sub 3} microspheres and their applications in lithium storage and gas-sensing

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Zhao, Xinyu; School of Petrochemical Engineering, Shenyang University of Technology, Liaoyang 111003; Cao, Minhua, E-mail: caomh@bit.edu.cn

    2013-06-01

    Graphical abstract: MoO{sub 3} hollow microspheres were synthesized via a facile and template-free solvothermal route and subsequent heat treatment in air. The MoO{sub 3} hollow microspheres exhibit an improved lithium storage and gas-sensing performance. Highlights: ► Hollow MoO{sub 3} microspheres were synthesized by thermal oxidation of hollow MoO{sub 2}. ► The MoO{sub 3} hollow microspheres have a relatively high specific surface area. ► The MoO{sub 3} hollow microspheres exhibit improved lithium storage performance. ► The MoO{sub 3} hollow microspheres show good responses to ammonia gas. - Abstract: In this paper, MoO{sub 3} hollow microspheres were synthesized via a facile andmore » template-free solvothermal route and subsequent heat treatment in air. The MoO{sub 3} hollow microspheres have a relatively high specific surface area, and with such a feature, the as-synthesized MoO{sub 3} hollow microspheres have potential applications in Li-ion battery and gas-sensor. When tested as a Li-storage anode material, the MoO{sub 3} hollow microspheres show a higher discharge capacity of 1377.1 mA h g{sup −1} in the first discharge and a high reversible capacity of 780 mA h g{sup −1} after 100 cycles at a rate of 1 C. Furthermore, as a gas sensing material, the MoO{sub 3} hollow microspheres exhibit an improved sensitivity and short response/recovery time to trace levels of ammonia gas.« less

  9. Trace conditioning in insects—keep the trace!

    PubMed Central

    Dylla, Kristina V.; Galili, Dana S.; Szyszka, Paul; Lüdke, Alja

    2013-01-01

    Trace conditioning is a form of associative learning that can be induced by presenting a conditioned stimulus (CS) and an unconditioned stimulus (US) following each other, but separated by a temporal gap. This gap distinguishes trace conditioning from classical delay conditioning, where the CS and US overlap. To bridge the temporal gap between both stimuli and to form an association between CS and US in trace conditioning, the brain must keep a neural representation of the CS after its termination—a stimulus trace. Behavioral and physiological studies on trace and delay conditioning revealed similarities between the two forms of learning, like similar memory decay and similar odor identity perception in invertebrates. On the other hand differences were reported also, like the requirement of distinct brain structures in vertebrates or disparities in molecular mechanisms in both vertebrates and invertebrates. For example, in commonly used vertebrate conditioning paradigms the hippocampus is necessary for trace but not for delay conditioning, and Drosophila delay conditioning requires the Rutabaga adenylyl cyclase (Rut-AC), which is dispensable in trace conditioning. It is still unknown how the brain encodes CS traces and how they are associated with a US in trace conditioning. Insects serve as powerful models to address the mechanisms underlying trace conditioning, due to their simple brain anatomy, behavioral accessibility and established methods of genetic interference. In this review we summarize the recent progress in insect trace conditioning on the behavioral and physiological level and emphasize similarities and differences compared to delay conditioning. Moreover, we examine proposed molecular and computational models and reassess different experimental approaches used for trace conditioning. PMID:23986710

  10. A Virgo Environmental Survey Tracing Ionised Gas Emission (VESTIGE). I. Introduction to the survey

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Boselli, A.; Fossati, M.; Ferrarese, L.; Boissier, S.; Consolandi, G.; Longobardi, A.; Amram, P.; Balogh, M.; Barmby, P.; Boquien, M.; Boulanger, F.; Braine, J.; Buat, V.; Burgarella, D.; Combes, F.; Contini, T.; Cortese, L.; Côté, P.; Côté, S.; Cuillandre, J. C.; Drissen, L.; Epinat, B.; Fumagalli, M.; Gallagher, S.; Gavazzi, G.; Gomez-Lopez, J.; Gwyn, S.; Harris, W.; Hensler, G.; Koribalski, B.; Marcelin, M.; McConnachie, A.; Miville-Deschenes, M. A.; Navarro, J.; Patton, D.; Peng, E. W.; Plana, H.; Prantzos, N.; Robert, C.; Roediger, J.; Roehlly, Y.; Russeil, D.; Salome, P.; Sanchez-Janssen, R.; Serra, P.; Spekkens, K.; Sun, M.; Taylor, J.; Tonnesen, S.; Vollmer, B.; Willis, J.; Wozniak, H.; Burdullis, T.; Devost, D.; Mahoney, B.; Manset, N.; Petric, A.; Prunet, S.; Withington, K.

    2018-06-01

    The Virgo Environmental Survey Tracing Ionised Gas Emission (VESTIGE) is a blind narrow-band (NB) Hα+[NII] imaging survey carried out with MegaCam at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope. The survey covers the whole Virgo cluster region from its core to one virial radius (104 deg2). The sensitivity of the survey is of f(Hα) 4 × 10-17 erg s-1 cm-2 (5σ detection limit) for point sources and Σ(Hα) 2 × 10-18 erg s-1 cm-2 arcsec-2 (1σ detection limit at 3 arcsec resolution) for extended sources, making VESTIGE the deepest and largest blind NB survey of a nearby cluster. This paper presents the survey in all its technical aspects, including the survey design, the observing strategy, the achieved sensitivity in both the NB Hα+[NII] and in the broad-band r filter used for the stellar continuum subtraction, the data reduction, calibration, and products, as well as its status after the first observing semester. We briefly describe the Hα properties of galaxies located in a 4 × 1 deg2 strip in the core of the cluster north of M87, where several extended tails of ionised gas are detected. This paper also lists the main scientific motivations for VESTIGE, which include the study of the effects of the environment on galaxy evolution, the fate of the stripped gas in cluster objects, the star formation process in nearby galaxies of different type and stellar mass, the determination of the Hα luminosity function and of the Hα scaling relations down to 106 M⊙ stellar mass objects, and the reconstruction of the dynamical structure of the Virgo cluster. This unique set of data will also be used to study the HII luminosity function in hundreds of galaxies, the diffuse Hα+[NII] emission of the Milky Way at high Galactic latitude, and the properties of emission line galaxies at high redshift. Based on observations obtained with MegaPrime/MegaCam, a joint project of CFHT and CEA/DAPNIA, at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope (CFHT) which is operated by the National Research

  11. An automated multidimensional preparative gas chromatographic system for isolation and enrichment of trace amounts of xenon from ambient air.

    PubMed

    Larson, Tuula; Östman, Conny; Colmsjö, Anders

    2011-04-01

    The monitoring of radioactive xenon isotopes is one of the principal methods for the detection of nuclear explosions in order to identify clandestine nuclear testing. In this work, a miniaturized, multiple-oven, six-column, preparative gas chromatograph was constructed in order to isolate trace quantities of radioactive xenon isotopes from ambient air, utilizing nitrogen as the carrier gas. The multidimensional chromatograph comprised preparative stainless steel columns packed with molecular sieves, activated carbon, and synthetic carbon adsorbents (e.g., Anasorb®-747 and Carbosphere®). A combination of purification techniques--ambient adsorption, thermal desorption, back-flushing, thermal focusing, and heart cutting--was selectively optimized to produce a well-defined xenon peak that facilitated reproducible heart cutting and accurate quantification. The chromatographic purification of a sample requires approximately 4 h and provides complete separation of xenon from potentially interfering components (such as water vapor, methane, carbon dioxide, and radon) with recovery and accuracy close to 100%. The preparative enrichment process isolates and concentrates a highly purified xenon gas fraction that is suitable for subsequent ultra-low-level γ-, ß/γ-spectroscopic or high-resolution mass spectrometric measurement (e.g., to monitor the gaseous fission products of nuclear explosions at remote locations). The Xenon Processing Unit is a free-standing, relatively lightweight, and transportable system that can be interfaced to a variety of sampling and detection systems. It has a relatively inexpensive, rugged, and compact modular (19-inch rack) design that provides easy access to all parts for maintenance and has a low power requirement.

  12. The Search for Efficiency in Arboreal Ray Tracing Applications

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    van Leeuwen, M.; Disney, M.; Chen, J. M.; Gomez-Dans, J.; Kelbe, D.; van Aardt, J. A.; Lewis, P.

    2016-12-01

    Forest structure significantly impacts a range of abiotic conditions, including humidity and the radiation regime, all of which affect the rate of net and gross primary productivity. Current forest productivity models typically consider abstract media to represent the transfer of radiation within the canopy. Examples include the representation forest structure via a layered canopy model, where leaf area and inclination angles are stratified with canopy depth, or as turbid media where leaves are randomly distributed within space or within confined geometric solids such as blocks, spheres or cones. While these abstract models are known to produce accurate estimates of primary productivity at the stand level, their limited geometric resolution restricts applicability at fine spatial scales, such as the cell, leaf or shoot levels, thereby not addressing the full potential of assimilation of data from laboratory and field measurements with that of remote sensing technology. Recent research efforts have explored the use of laser scanning to capture detailed tree morphology at millimeter accuracy. These data can subsequently be used to combine ray tracing with primary productivity models, providing an ability to explore trade-offs among different morphological traits or assimilate data from spatial scales, spanning the leaf- to the stand level. Ray tracing has a major advantage of allowing the most accurate structural description of the canopy, and can directly exploit new 3D structural measurements, e.g., from laser scanning. However, the biggest limitation of ray tracing models is their high computational cost, which currently limits their use for large-scale applications. In this talk, we explore ways to more efficiently exploit ray tracing simulations and capture this information in a readily computable form for future evaluation, thus potentially enabling large-scale first-principles forest growth modelling applications.

  13. Trace gas emissions from burning Florida wetlands

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Cofer, Wesley R., III; Levine, Joel S.; Lebel, Peter J.; Winstead, Edward L.; Koller, Albert M., Jr.; Hinkle, C. Ross

    1990-01-01

    Measurements of biomass burn-produced trace gases were obtained using a helicopter at low altitudes above burning Florida wetlands on November 9, 1987, and from both helicopter and light-aircraft samplings on November 7, 1988. Carbon dioxide normalized emission ratios for carbon monoxide, hydrogen, methane, total nonmethane hydrocarbons, and nitrous oxide were obtained over burning graminoid wetlands consisting primarily of Spartina bakeri and Juncus roemerianus. Some interspersed scrub oak and saw palmetto were also burned. No significant differences were observed in the emission ratios determined for these gases from samples collected over flaming, mixed, and smoldering phases of combustion during the 1987 fire. Combustion-categorized differences in emission ratios were small for the 1988 fire. Combustion efficiency was relatively good (low emission ratios for reduced gases) for both fires. It is believed that the consistently low emission ratios were a unique result of graminoid wetlands fires, in which the grasses and rushes burned rapidly down to standing water and were quickly extinguished. Consequently, the efficiency of the combustion was good and the amount and duration of smoldering combustion was greatly deminished.

  14. Batch methods for enriching trace impurities in hydrogen gas for their further analysis

    DOEpatents

    Ahmed, Shabbir; Lee, Sheldon H.D.; Kumar, Romesh; Papdias, Dionissios D.

    2014-07-15

    Provided herein are batch methods and devices for enriching trace quantities of impurities in gaseous mixtures, such as hydrogen fuel. The methods and devices rely on concentrating impurities using hydrogen transport membranes wherein the time period for concentrating the sample is calculated on the basis of optimized membrane characteristics, comprising its thickness and permeance, with optimization of temperature, and wherein the enrichment of trace impurities is proportional to the pressure ratio P.sub.hi/P.sub.lo and the volume ratio V.sub.1/V.sub.2, with following detection of the impurities using commonly-available detection methods.

  15. Manipulations of soil microbiota for C sequestration and mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions in managed systems

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Soil microbes dominate processes that regulate soil trace gas emissions and soil C and N dynamics. Intensive management in agroecosystems provides unique opportunities to assess the effectiveness of microbial manipulations to enhance soil C retention and reduce trace gas emissions. While reduced til...

  16. Diagnostics for a waste processing plasma arc furnace (invited) (abstract)a)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Woskov, P. P.

    1995-01-01

    Maintaining the quality of our environment has become an important goal of society. As part of this goal new technologies are being sought to clean up hazardous waste sites and to treat ongoing waste streams. A 1 MW pilot scale dc graphite electrode plasma arc furnace (Mark II) has been constructed at MIT under a joint program among Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL), MIT, and Electro-Pyrolysis, Inc. (EPI)c) for the remediation of buried wastes in the DOE complex. A key part of this program is the development of new and improved diagnostics to study, monitor, and control the entire waste remediation process for the optimization of this technology and to safeguard the environment. Continuous, real time diagnostics are needed for a variety of the waste process parameters. These parameters include internal furnace temperatures, slag fill levels, trace metals content in the off-gas stream, off-gas molecular content, feed and slag characterization, and off-gas particulate size, density, and velocity distributions. Diagnostics are currently being tested at MIT for the first three parameters. An active millimeter-wave radiometer with a novel, rotatable graphite waveguide/mirror antenna system has been implemented on Mark II for the measurement of surface emission and emissivity which can be used to determine internal furnace temperatures and fill levels. A microwave torch plasma is being evaluated for use as a excitation source in the furnace off-gas stream for continuous atomic emission spectroscopy of trace metals. These diagnostics should find applicability not only to waste remediation, but also to other high temperature processes such as incinerators, power plants, and steel plants.

  17. Mid-infrared trace gas detection using continuous-wave difference frequency generation in periodically poled RbTiOAsO4

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Chen, W.; Mouret, G.; Boucher, D.; Tittel, F. K.

    2001-01-01

    A tunable mid-infrared continuous-wave (cw) spectroscopic source in the 3.4-4.5 micrometers region is reported, based on difference frequency generation (DFG) in a quasi-phase-matched periodically poled RbTiOAsO4 (PPRTA) crystal. DFG power levels of 10 microW were generated at approximately 4 micrometers in a 20-mm long PPRTA crystal by mixing two cw single-frequency Ti:Al2O3 lasers operating near 713 nm and 871 nm, respectively, using a laser pump power of 300 mW. A quasi-phase-matched infrared wavelength-tuning bandwidth (FWHM) of 12 cm-1 and a temperature tuning rate of 1.02 cm-1/degree C were achieved. Experimental details regarding the feasibility of trace gas detection based on absorption spectroscopy of CO2 in ambient air using this DFG radiation source are also described.

  18. Heat Pipe Technology: A bibliography with abstracts

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1974-01-01

    This bibliography lists 149 references with abstracts and 47 patents dealing with applications of heat pipe technology. Topics covered include: heat exchangers for heat recovery; electrical and electronic equipment cooling; temperature control of spacecraft; cryosurgery; cryogenic, cooling; nuclear reactor heat transfer; solar collectors; laser mirror cooling; laser vapor cavitites; cooling of permafrost; snow melting; thermal diodes variable conductance; artery gas venting; and venting; and gravity assisted pipes.

  19. The SPIRIT airborne instrument: a three-channel infrared absorption spectrometer with quantum cascade lasers for in situ atmospheric trace-gas measurements

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Catoire, Valéry; Robert, Claude; Chartier, Michel; Jacquet, Patrick; Guimbaud, Christophe; Krysztofiak, Gisèle

    2017-09-01

    An infrared absorption spectrometer called SPIRIT (SPectromètre Infra-Rouge In situ Toute altitude) has been developed for airborne measurements of trace gases in the troposphere. At least three different trace gases can be measured simultaneously every 1.6 s using the coupling of a single Robert multipass optical cell with three Quantum Cascade Lasers (QCLs), easily interchangeable to select species depending on the scientific objectives. Absorptions of the mid-infrared radiations by the species in the cell at reduced pressure (<40 hPa), with path lengths adjustable up to 167.78 m, are quantified using an HgCdTe photodetector cooled by Stirling cycle. The performances of the instrument are assessed: a linearity with a coefficient of determination R 2 > 0.979 for the instrument response is found for CO, CH4, and NO2 volume mixing ratios under typical tropospheric conditions. In-flight comparisons with calibrated gas mixtures allow to show no instrumental drift correlated with atmospheric pressure and temperature changes (when vertical profiling) and to estimate the overall uncertainties in the measurements of CO, CH4, and NO2 to be 0.9, 22, and 0.5 ppbv, respectively. In-flight precision (1 σ) for these species at 1.6 s sampling is 0.3, 5, and 0.3 ppbv, respectively.

  20. Determination of siloxanes and VOC in landfill gas and sewage gas by canister sampling and GC-MS/AES analysis

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Schweigkofler, M.; Niessner, R.

    1999-10-15

    Biogases such as landfill gas and sewage gas undergo a combustion process which is generating electric energy. Since several trace compounds such as siloxanes (also halogenated and sulfur compounds) are known to cause severe problems to these gas combustion engines, they are of particular interest. In this work, a new technique for sampling, identification, and quantification of siloxanes and volatile organic carbon (VOC) in landfill gas and sewage gas is presented. After sample collection using evacuated stainless steel canisters biogas was analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry/atomic emission spectroscopy (GC-MS/AES). Using gas canisters, the sampling process was simplified (no vacuum pumpmore » needed), and multiple analysis was possible. The simultaneous application of MSD and AED allowed a rapid screening of silicon compounds in the complex biogases. Individual substances were identified independently both by MSD analysis and by determination of their elemental constitution. Quantification of trace compounds was achieved using a 30 component external standard containing siloxanes, organochlorine and organosulfur compounds, alkanes, terpenes, and aromatic compounds. Precision, linearity, and detection limits have been studied. In real samples, concentrations of silicon containing compounds (trimethylsilanol, hexamethyldisiloxane, octamethyltrisiloxane, decamethyltetrasiloxane, hexamethylcyclotrisiloxane, octamethylcyclotetrasilioxane, decamethylcyclopentasiloxane, and dodecamethylcyclohexasiloxane) in the mg/m{sub 3} range have been observed.« less

  1. Retrieval of Vertical Aerosol and Trace Gas Distributions from Polarization Sensitive Multi-Axis Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy (MAX-DOAS)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tirpitz, Jan-Lukas; Friess, Udo; Platt, Ulrich

    2017-04-01

    An accurate knowledge of the vertical distribution of trace gases and aerosols is crucial for our understanding of the chemical and dynamical processes in the lower troposphere. Their accurate determination is typically only possible by means of laborious and expensive airborne in-situ measurements but in the recent decades, numerous promising ground-based remote sensing approaches have been developed. One of them is to infer vertical distributions from "Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy" (DOAS) measurements. DOAS is a technique to analyze UV- and visible radiation spectra of direct or scattered sunlight, which delivers information on different atmospheric parameters, integrated over the light path from space to the instrument. An appropriate set of DOAS measurements, recorded under different viewing directions (Multi-Axis DOAS) and thus different light path geometries, provides information on the atmospheric state. The vertical profiles of aerosol properties and trace gas concentrations can be retrieved from such a set by numerical inversion techniques, incorporating radiative transfer models. The information content of measured data is rarely sufficient for a well-constrained retrieval, particularly for atmospheric layers above 1 km. We showed in first simulations that, apart from spectral properties, the polarization state of skylight is likely to provide a significant amount of additional information on the atmospheric state and thus to enhance retrieval quality. We present first simulations, expectations and ideas on how to implement and characterize a polarization sensitive Multi-Axis DOAS instrument and a corresponding profile retrieval algorithm.

  2. An Eye-Tracking Study of Learning from Science Text with Concrete and Abstract Illustrations

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mason, Lucia; Pluchino, Patrik; Tornatora, Maria Caterina; Ariasi, Nicola

    2013-01-01

    This study investigated the online process of reading and the offline learning from an illustrated science text. The authors examined the effects of using a concrete or abstract picture to illustrate a text and adopted eye-tracking methodology to trace text and picture processing. They randomly assigned 59 eleventh-grade students to 3 reading…

  3. Long term aerosol and trace gas measurements in Central Amazonia

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Artaxo, Paulo; Barbosa, Henrique M. J.; Ferreira de Brito, Joel; Carbone, Samara; Rizzo, Luciana V.; Andreae, Meinrat O.; Martin, Scot T.

    2016-04-01

    The central region of the Amazonian forest is a pristine region in terms of aerosol and trace gases concentrations. In the wet season, Amazonia is actually one of the cleanest continental region we can observe on Earth. A long term observational program started 20 years ago, and show important features of this pristine region. Several sites were used, between then ATTO (Amazon Tall Tower Observatory) and ZF2 ecological research site, both 70-150 Km North of Manaus, receiving air masses that traveled over 1500 km of pristine tropical forests. The sites are GAW regional monitoring stations. Aerosol chemical composition (OC/EC and trace elements) is being analysed using filters for fine (PM2.5) and coarse mode aerosol as well as Aerodyne ACSM (Aerosol Chemical Speciation Monitors). VOCs are measured using PTR-MS, while CO, O3 and CO2 are routinely measured. Aerosol absorption is being studied with AE33 aethalometers and MAAP (Multi Angle Absorption Photometers). Aerosol light scattering are being measured at several wavelengths using TSI and Ecotech nephelometers. Aerosol size distribution is determined using scanning mobility particle sizer at each site. Lidars measure the aerosol column up to 12 Km providing the vertical profile of aerosol extinction. The aerosol column is measures using AERONET sun photometers. In the wet season, organic aerosol comprises 75-85% of fine aerosol, and sulfate and nitrate concentrations are very low (1-3 percent). Aerosols are dominated by biogenic primary particles as well as SOA from biogenic precursors. Black carbon in the wet season accounts for 5-9% of fine mode aerosol. Ozone in the wet season peaks at 10-12 ppb at the middle of the day, while carbon monoxide averages at 50-80 ppb. Aerosol optical thickness (AOT) is a low 0.05 to 0.1 at 550 nm in the wet season. Sahara dust transport events sporadically enhance the concentration of soil dust aerosols and black carbon. In the dry season (August-December), long range transported

  4. Topical index and bibliography of U.S. Geological Survey Trace Elements and related reports

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Curtis, Diane; Houser, Shirley S.

    1952-01-01

    Part 1, the topical index, lists the titles of reports prepared from 1941 to December 1952, in conjunction with the Geological Survey's program of uranium and other elements of related interest. It includes not only completed Trace Elements reports and those now in preparation, but also Survey publications, publications by Survey personnel in scientific journals, and open-fie releases. The titles are grouped topically under the headings listed in the table of contents. Entries in each category are listed alphabetically, by author, and numbered consecutively. Many of the reports have been cross-indexed, where appropriate. The classification of the Trace Elements reports, insofar as it is known, has been indicated after the title of the report. The classification of some of the earlier Trace Elements reports is uncertain. The Geological Survey does not have additional copies of most of the reports listed, but copies of some of the completed reports can be loaned on request to organizations officially cooperating with the Atomic Energy Commission. Many Trace Elements reports have been made available to the public, either by open-file release, reproduction by Technical Information Service, Oak Ridge (referred to as TIS), by publication as a Geological Survey circular or bulletin or by a publication in a scientific journal. This information is given, following the title of the report. If the abstract of a Trace Element report has been published in Nuclear Science Abstracts, it is noted by the initials NSA following the title of the report. Part 2 is a reference guide to information on the Trace Elements program that is available to the public. This information is categorized according to the type of publication or release.

  5. Anisotropic ray trace

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lam, Wai Sze Tiffany

    throughout the stressed optical component and its effects on the point spread function and modulation transfer function for different incident polarizations. The anisotropic extension of the P matrix also applies to other anisotropic optical components, such as anisotropic diffractive optical elements and anisotropic thin films. It systematically keeps track of polarization transformation in 3D global Cartesian coordinates of a ray propagating through series of anisotropic and isotropic optical components with arbitrary orientations. The polarization ray tracing calculus with this generalized P matrix provides a powerful tool for optical ray trace and allows comprehensive analysis of complex optical system. (Abstract shortened by UMI.).

  6. Predicting Juno Evidence for a Solid Methane Gas Hydrate Jupiter J. Ackerman Abstract

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ackerman, J. A., Jr.

    2016-12-01

    Predicting Juno Evidence for a Solid Methane Gas Hydrate Jupiter J. Ackerman AbstractDeuterium enhancements of 1010 observed in LDNs and heavy elements detected by the Galileo probe (C, O, S, Ar, Kr and Xe) suggest the giant planets accreted slow and cold from snowflakes and dust at their current orbits, forming frozen, highly deuterated Methane Gas Hydrate (d=0.9) bodies, together comprising > 300 earth masses of water. Jupiter also incorporated most of the heavy elements in the nascent solar system as dust grains (d=1.33). A recent (6,000 years BP) high energy impact on heavily deuterated Jupiter triggered a massive nuclear fusion explosion which ejected the Galilean moons, initiating a flaming plasma plume originally extending 2 x106 km, beyond Callisto. The rapidly rotating plume produced the physical differences observed on the Galilean moons and the remainder condensed ejecting millions of asteroids similar to 67P as it slowly diminished over 5000 years. The fusion reaction has diminished to d + p > 3He+ + γ, but is still producing Jupiter's atmospheric temperature excess, >5x1017 watts, and driving the multiple zonal wind vortices constrained below by Jupiter's solid surface. The mass being ejected by the plume measurably slowed the rotation of the giant Jupiter up until 1937. The highly energetic 3He+ ions from the fusion reaction that exit Jupiter through the Great Red Spot were sensed by Ulysses, Cassini and Galileo at distances greater than 11 Jupiter radii, with the period of Jupiter's rotation. The Juno JEDI particle detector will measure the speed and density of the 3He+ 'blizzard' exiting the GRS, for which there is no other explanation. The Micro Wave Radiometer (MWR) system will confirm the hot vortex extending below the cloud tops from the fusion reaction on the surface westward to the Great Red Spot at 22o S latitude, due to its estimated 115 degree longitudinal extent. The high intensity of the 3He+ particulate radiation at 4000 km directly

  7. A Virgo Environmental Survey Tracing Ionised Gas Emission (VESTIGE). II. Constraining the quenching time in the stripped galaxy NGC 4330

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Fossati, M.; Mendel, J. T.; Boselli, A.; Cuillandre, J. C.; Vollmer, B.; Boissier, S.; Consolandi, G.; Ferrarese, L.; Gwyn, S.; Amram, P.; Boquien, M.; Buat, V.; Burgarella, D.; Cortese, L.; Côté, P.; Côté, S.; Durrell, P.; Fumagalli, M.; Gavazzi, G.; Gomez-Lopez, J.; Hensler, G.; Koribalski, B.; Longobardi, A.; Peng, E. W.; Roediger, J.; Sun, M.; Toloba, E.

    2018-06-01

    The Virgo Environmental Survey Tracing Ionised Gas Emission (VESTIGE) is a blind narrow-band Hα + [NII] imaging survey carried out with MegaCam at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope. During pilot observations taken in the spring of 2016 we observed NGC 4330, an intermediate mass (M* ≃ 109.8 M⊙) edge-on star forming spiral currently falling into the core of the Virgo cluster. While previous Hα observations showed a clumpy complex of ionised gas knots outside the galaxy disc, new deep observations revealed a low surface brightness 10 kpc tail exhibiting a peculiar filamentary structure. The filaments are remarkably parallel to one another and clearly indicate the direction of motion of the galaxy in the Virgo potential. Motivated by the detection of these features which indicate ongoing gas stripping, we collected literature photometry in 15 bands from the far-UV to the far-IR and deep optical long-slit spectroscopy using the FORS2 instrument at the ESO Very Large Telescope. Using a newly developed Monte Carlo code that jointly fits spectroscopy and photometry, we reconstructed the star formation histories in apertures along the major axis of the galaxy. Our results have been validated against the output of CIGALE, a fitting code which has been previously used for similar studies. We found a clear outside-in gradient with radius of the time when the quenching event started: the outermost radii were stripped 500 Myr ago, while the stripping reached the inner 5 kpc from the centre in the last 100 Myr. Regions at even smaller radii are currently still forming stars fueled by the presence of HI and H2 gas. When compared to statistical studies of the quenching timescales in the local Universe we find that ram pressure stripping of the cold gas is an effective mechanism to reduce the transformation times for galaxies falling into massive clusters. Future systematic studies of all the active galaxies observed by VESTIGE in the Virgo cluster will extend these results

  8. Soluble trace elements and total mercury in Arctic Alaskan snow

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Snyder-Conn, E.; Garbarino, J.R.; Hoffman, G.L.; Oelkers, A.

    1997-01-01

    Ultraclean field and laboratory procedures were used to examine trace element concentrations in northern Alaskan snow. Sixteen soluble trace elements and total mercury were determined in snow core samples representing the annual snowfall deposited during the 1993-94 season at two sites in the Prudhoe Bay oil field and nine sites in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (Arctic NWR). Results indicate there were two distinct point sources for trace elements in the Prudhoe Bay oil field - a source associated with oil and gas production and a source associated with municipal solid-waste incineration. Soluble trace element concentrations measured in snow from the Arctic NWR resembled concentrations of trace elements measured elsewhere in the Arctic using clean sample-collection and processing techniques and were consistent with deposition resulting from widespread arctic atmospheric contamination. With the exception of elements associated with sea salts, there were no orographic or east-west trends observed in the Arctic NWR data, nor were there any detectable influences from the Prudhoe Bay oil field, probably because of the predominant easterly and northeasterly winds on the North Slope of Alaska. However, regression analysis on latitude suggested significant south-to-north increases in selected trace element concentrations, many of which appear unrelated to the sea salt contribution.

  9. Low-temperature gas from marine shales: wet gas to dry gas over experimental time.

    PubMed

    Mango, Frank D; Jarvie, Daniel M

    2009-11-09

    Marine shales exhibit unusual behavior at low temperatures under anoxic gas flow. They generate catalytic gas 300 degrees below thermal cracking temperatures, discontinuously in aperiodic episodes, and lose these properties on exposure to trace amounts of oxygen. Here we report a surprising reversal in hydrocarbon generation. Heavy hydrocarbons are formed before light hydrocarbons resulting in wet gas at the onset of generation grading to dryer gas over time. The effect is moderate under gas flow and substantial in closed reactions. In sequential closed reactions at 100 degrees C, gas from a Cretaceous Mowry shale progresses from predominately heavy hydrocarbons (66% C5, 2% C1) to predominantly light hydrocarbons (56% C1, 8% C5), the opposite of that expected from desorption of preexisting hydrocarbons. Differences in catalyst substrate composition explain these dynamics. Gas flow should carry heavier hydrocarbons to catalytic sites, in contrast to static conditions where catalytic sites are limited to in-place hydrocarbons. In-place hydrocarbons and their products should become lighter with conversion thus generating lighter hydrocarbon over time, consistent with our experimental results. We recognize the similarities between low-temperature gas generation reported here and the natural progression of wet gas to dry gas over geologic time. There is now substantial evidence for natural catalytic activity in source rocks. Natural gas at thermodynamic equilibrium and the results reported here add to that evidence. Natural catalysis provides a plausible and unique explanation for the origin and evolution of gas in sedimentary basins.

  10. EMISSIONS INVENTORY OF PM 2.5 TRACE ELEMENTS ACROSS THE U.S.

    EPA Science Inventory

    This abstract describes work done to speciate PM2.5 emissions into emissions of trace metals to enable concentrations of metal species to be predicted by air quality models. Methods are described and initial results are presented. A technique for validating the resul...

  11. Trace gas emissions from a mid-latitude prescribed chaparral fire

    Treesearch

    Wesley R. Cofer; Joel S. Levine; Philip J. Riggan; Daniel I. Sebacher; Edward L. Winstead; Shaw Edwin F.; James A. Brass; Vincent. G. Ambrosia

    1988-01-01

    Gas samples were collected in smoke plumes over the San Dimas Experimental Forest during a 400-acre prescribed chaparral fire on December 12, 1986. A helicopter was used to collect gas samples over areas of vigorous flaming combustion and over areas of mixed stages (vigorous/transitional/smoldering) of combustion. Sampling was conducted at altitudes as low as 35 m and...

  12. Epiphytic cryptogams as a source of bioaerosols and trace gases

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ruckteschler, Nina; Hrabe de Angelis, Isabella; Zartman, Charles E.; Araùjo, Alessandro; Pöschl, Ulrich; Manzi, Antonio O.; Andreae, Meinrat O.; Pöhlker, Christopher; Weber, Bettina

    2016-04-01

    Cryptogamic covers comprise (cyano-)bacteria, algae, lichens, bryophytes, fungi, and archaea in varying proportions. These organisms do not form flowers, but reproduce by spores or cell cleavage with these reproductive units being dispersed via the atmosphere. As so-called poikilohydric organisms they are unable to regulate their water content, and their physiological activity pattern mainly follows the external water conditions. We hypothesize, that both spore dispersal and the release of trace gases are governed by the moisture patterns of these organisms and thus they could have a greater impact on the atmosphere than previously thought. In order to test this hypothesis, we initiated experiments at the study site Amazonian Tall Tower Observatory (ATTO) in September 2014. We installed microclimate sensors in epiphytic cryptogams at four different heights of a tree to monitor the activity patterns of these organisms. Self-developed moisture probes are used to analyze the water status of the organisms accompanied by light and temperature sensors. The continuously logged data are linked to ongoing measurements of trace gases and particulate bioaerosols to analyze these for the relevance of cryptogams. Here, we are particularly interested in diurnal cycles of coarse mode particles and the atmospheric abundance of fine potassium-rich particles from a currently unknown biogenic source. Based upon the results of this field study we also investigate the bioaerosol and trace gas release patterns of cryptogamic covers under controlled conditions. With this combined approach of field and laboratory experiments we aim to disclose the role of cryptogamic covers in bioaerosol and trace gas release patterns in the Amazonian rainforest.

  13. Seasonal Variations in Titan's Stratosphere Observed with Cassini/CIRS: Temperature, Trace Molecular Gas and Aerosol Mixing Ratio Profiles

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Vinatier, S.; Bezard, B.; Anderson, C. M.; Coustenis, A.; Teanby, N.

    2012-01-01

    Titan's northern spring equinox occurred in August 2009. General Circulation Models (e.g. Lebonnois et al., 2012) predict strong modifications of the global circulation in this period, with formation of two circulation cells instead of the pole-to-pole cell that occurred during northern winter. This winter single cell, which had its descending branch at the north pole, was at the origin of the enrichment of molecular abundances and high stratopause temperatures observed by Cassini/CIRS at high northern latitudes (e.g. Achterberg et al., 2011, Coustenis et al., 2010, Teanby et al., 2008, Vinatier et al., 2010). The predicted dynamical seasonal variations after the equinox have strong impact on the spatial distributions of trace gas, temperature and aerosol abundances. We will present here an analysis of CIRS limb-geometry datasets acquired in 2010 and 2011 that we used to monitor the seasonal evolution of the vertical profiles of temperature, molecular (C2H2, C2H6, HCN, ..) and aerosol abundances.

  14. Tracking Oxidation During Transport of Trace Gases in Air from the Northern to Southern Hemisphere

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Montzka, S. A.; Moore, F. L.; Atlas, E. L.; Parrish, D. D.; Miller, B. R.; Sweeney, C.; McKain, K.; Hall, B. D.; Siso, C.; Crotwell, M.; Hintsa, E. J.; Elkins, J. W.; Blake, D. R.; Barletta, B.; Meinardi, S.; Claxton, T.; Hossaini, R.

    2017-12-01

    Trace gas mole fractions contain the imprint of recent influences on an air mass such as sources, transport, and oxidation. Covariations among the many gases measured from flasks during ATom and HIPPO, and from the ongoing NOAA cooperative air sampling program enable recent influences to be identified from a wide range of sources including industrial activity, biomass burning, emissions from wetlands, and uptake by terrestrial ecosystems. In this work we explore the evolution of trace gas concentrations owing to atmospheric oxidation as air masses pass through the tropics, the atmospheric region with the highest concentrations of the hydroxyl radical. Variations in C2-C5 hydrocarbon concentrations downwind of source regions provide a measure of photochemical ageing in an air mass since emission, but they become less useful when tracking photochemical ageing as air is transported from the NH into the SH owing to their low mixing ratios, lifetimes that are very short relative to transport times, non-industrial sources in the tropics (e.g., biomass burning), and southern hemispheric sources. Instead, we consider a range of trace gases and trace gas pairs that provide a measure of photochemical processing as air transits the tropics. To be useful in this analysis, these trace gases would have lifetimes comparable to interhemispheric transport times, emissions arising from only the NH at constant relative magnitudes, and concentrations sufficient to allow precise and accurate measurements in both hemispheres. Some anthropogenically-emitted chlorinated hydrocarbons meet these requirements and have been measured during ATom, HIPPO, and from NOAA's ongoing surface sampling efforts. Consideration of these results and their implications for tracking photochemical processing in air as it is transported across the tropics will be presented.

  15. Further developments in oxidation of methane traces with radiofrequency discharge

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Flamm, D. L.; Wydeven, T. J.

    1977-01-01

    The radiofrequency discharge, previously shown to oxidize trace levels of methane in oxygen, was studied with contaminated air at 50, 600, and 760 torr. As with oxygen, the concentration of methane traces could be reduced by several orders of magnitude, and no organic reaction products were detected in the effluent; however, substantial concentrations of NOx (0.1-6%) were formed during treatment. The concentration of NOx was decreased by using a large diameter electrode. There is evidence that the process will oxidize N2 and NO as well as organic impurities in oxygen or oxygen/inert gas atmospheres.

  16. USSR and Eastern Europe Scientific Abstracts, Physics and Mathematics, No. 29

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1976-11-03

    USSR CALCULATION OF THE FIELD AMPLITUDE WHEN RAYS ARE REFLECTED FROM A CURVED BOUNDARY IN A MEDIUM Moscow AKUSTICHESKIY ZHURNAL in Russian Vol 22, No...4, Jul/Aug 76 pp 616-617 manuscript received 17 Oct 75 [Abstract] It is shown that when calculating fields by ray tracing in a three-dimensional...waves from the ocean surface and bottom. References 4: 2 Russian, 2 Western. 1/1 USSR UDC: 534.29 YESIPOV, I. B., ZVEREV, V. A., KALACHEV, A

  17. Abstracts of papers presented at the Eleventh International Laser Radar Conference

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1982-01-01

    Abstracts of 39 papers discuss measurements of properties from the Earth's ocean surface to the mesosphere, made with techniques ranging from elastic and inelastic scattering to Doppler shifts and differential absorption. Topics covered include: (1) middle atmospheric measurements; (2) meteorological parameters: temperature, density, humidity; (3) trace gases by Raman and DIAL techniques; (4) techniques and technology; (5) plume dispersion; (6) boundary layer dynamics; (7) wind measurements; visibility and aerosol properties; and (9) multiple scattering, clouds, and hydrometers.

  18. Psychicones: Visual Traces of the Soul in Late Nineteenth-Century Fluidic Photography

    PubMed Central

    Pethes, Nicolas

    2016-01-01

    The article discusses attempts to visualise the soul on photographic plates at the end of the nineteenth century, as conducted by the French physician Hippolyte Baraduc in Paris. Although Baraduc refers to earlier experiments on fluidic photography in his book on The Human Soul (1896) and is usually mentioned as a precursor to parapsychological thought photography of the twentieth century, his work is presented as a genuine attempt at photographic soul-catching. Rather than producing mimetic representations of thoughts and imaginations, Baraduc claims to present the vital radiation of the psyche itself and therefore calls the images he produces psychicones. The article first discusses the difference between this method of soul photography and other kinds of occult media technologies of the time, emphasising the significance of its non-mimetic, abstract character: since the soul itself was considered an abstract entity, abstract traces seemed all the more convincing to the contemporary audience. Secondly, the article shows how the technological agency of photography allowed Baraduc’s psychicones to be tied into related discourses in medicine and psychology. Insofar as the photographic plates displayed actual visual traces, Baraduc and his followers no longer considered hallucinations illusionary and pathological but emphasised the physical reality and normality of imagination. Yet, the greatest influence of soul photography was not on science but on art. As the third part of the paper argues, the abstract shapes on Baraduc’s plates provided inspiration for contemporary avant-garde aesthetics, for example, Kandinsky’s abstract paintings and the random streams of consciousness in surrealistic literature. PMID:27292323

  19. Psychicones: Visual Traces of the Soul in Late Nineteenth-Century Fluidic Photography.

    PubMed

    Pethes, Nicolas

    2016-07-01

    The article discusses attempts to visualise the soul on photographic plates at the end of the nineteenth century, as conducted by the French physician Hippolyte Baraduc in Paris. Although Baraduc refers to earlier experiments on fluidic photography in his book on The Human Soul (1896) and is usually mentioned as a precursor to parapsychological thought photography of the twentieth century, his work is presented as a genuine attempt at photographic soul-catching. Rather than producing mimetic representations of thoughts and imaginations, Baraduc claims to present the vital radiation of the psyche itself and therefore calls the images he produces psychicones. The article first discusses the difference between this method of soul photography and other kinds of occult media technologies of the time, emphasising the significance of its non-mimetic, abstract character: since the soul itself was considered an abstract entity, abstract traces seemed all the more convincing to the contemporary audience. Secondly, the article shows how the technological agency of photography allowed Baraduc's psychicones to be tied into related discourses in medicine and psychology. Insofar as the photographic plates displayed actual visual traces, Baraduc and his followers no longer considered hallucinations illusionary and pathological but emphasised the physical reality and normality of imagination. Yet, the greatest influence of soul photography was not on science but on art. As the third part of the paper argues, the abstract shapes on Baraduc's plates provided inspiration for contemporary avant-garde aesthetics, for example, Kandinsky's abstract paintings and the random streams of consciousness in surrealistic literature.

  20. Gas monitoring onboard ISS using FTIR spectroscopy

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gisi, Michael; Stettner, Armin; Seurig, Roland; Honne, Atle; Witt, Johannes; Rebeyre, Pierre

    2017-06-01

    In the confined, enclosed environment of a spacecraft, the air quality must be monitored continuously in order to safeguard the crew's health. For this reason, OHB builds the ANITA2 (Analysing Interferometer for Ambient Air) technology demonstrator for trace gas monitoring onboard the International Space Station (ISS). The measurement principle of ANITA2 is based on the Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) technology with dedicated gas analysis software from the Norwegian partner SINTEF. This combination proved to provide high sensitivity, accuracy and precision for parallel measurements of 33 trace gases simultaneously onboard ISS by the precursor instrument ANITA1. The paper gives a technical overview about the opto-mechanical components of ANITA2, such as the interferometer, the reference Laser, the infrared source and the gas cell design and a quick overview about the gas analysis. ANITA2 is very well suited for measuring gas concentrations specifically but not limited to usage onboard spacecraft, as no consumables are required and measurements are performed autonomously. ANITA2 is a programme under the contract of the European Space Agency, and the air quality monitoring system is a stepping stone into the future, as a precursor system for manned exploration missions.

  1. Areal-averaged trace gas emission rates from long-range open-path measurements in stable boundary layer conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schäfer, K.; Grant, R. H.; Emeis, S.; Raabe, A.; von der Heide, C.; Schmid, H. P.

    2012-07-01

    Measurements of land-surface emission rates of greenhouse and other gases at large spatial scales (10 000 m2) are needed to assess the spatial distribution of emissions. This can be readily done using spatial-integrating micro-meteorological methods like flux-gradient methods which were evaluated for determining land-surface emission rates of trace gases under stable boundary layers. Non-intrusive path-integrating measurements are utilized. Successful application of a flux-gradient method requires confidence in the gradients of trace gas concentration and wind, and in the applicability of boundary-layer turbulence theory; consequently the procedures to qualify measurements that can be used to determine the flux is critical. While there is relatively high confidence in flux measurements made under unstable atmospheres with mean winds greater than 1 m s-1, there is greater uncertainty in flux measurements made under free convective or stable conditions. The study of N2O emissions of flat grassland and NH3 emissions from a cattle lagoon involves quality-assured determinations of fluxes under low wind, stable or night-time atmospheric conditions when the continuous "steady-state" turbulence of the surface boundary layer breaks down and the layer has intermittent turbulence. Results indicate that following the Monin-Obukhov similarity theory (MOST) flux-gradient methods that assume a log-linear profile of the wind speed and concentration gradient incorrectly determine vertical profiles and thus flux in the stable boundary layer. An alternative approach is considered on the basis of turbulent diffusivity, i.e. the measured friction velocity as well as height gradients of horizontal wind speeds and concentrations without MOST correction for stability. It is shown that this is the most accurate of the flux-gradient methods under stable conditions.

  2. Fluorine atom abstraction by Si(100). I. Experimental

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tate, M. R.; Gosalvez-Blanco, D.; Pullman, D. P.; Tsekouras, A. A.; Li, Y. L.; Yang, J. J.; Laughlin, K. B.; Eckman, S. C.; Bertino, M. F.; Ceyer, S. T.

    1999-08-01

    In the interaction of low energy F2 with Si(100) at 250 K, a dissociative chemisorption mechanism called atom abstraction is identified in which only one of the F atoms is adsorbed while the other F atom is scattered into the gas phase. The dynamics of atom abstraction are characterized via time-of-flight measurements of the scattered F atoms. The F atoms are translationally hyperthermal but only carry a small fraction (˜3%) of the tremendous exothermicity of the reaction. The angular distribution of F atoms is unusually broad for the product of an exothermic reaction. These results suggest an "attractive" interaction potential between F2 and the Si dangling bond with a transition state that is not constrained geometrically. These results are in disagreement with the results of theoretical investigations implying that the available potential energy surfaces are inadequate to describe the dynamics of this gas-surface interaction. In addition to single atom abstraction, two atom adsorption, a mechanism analogous to classic dissociative chemisorption in which both F atoms are adsorbed onto the surface, is also observed. The absolute probability of the three scattering channels (single atom abstraction, two atom adsorption, and unreactive scattering) for an incident F2 are determined as a function of F2 exposure. The fluorine coverage is determined by integrating the reaction probabilities over F2 exposure, and the reaction probabilities are recast as a function of fluorine coverage. Two atom adsorption is the dominant channel [P2=0.83±0.03(95%, N=9)] in the limit of zero coverage and decays monotonically to zero. Single atom abstraction is the minor channel (P1=0.13±0.03) at low coverage but increases to a maximum (P1=0.35±0.08) at about 0.5 monolayer (ML) coverage before decaying to zero. The reaction ceases at 0.94±0.11(95%, N=9) ML. Thermal desorption and helium diffraction confirm that the dangling bonds are the abstraction and adsorption sites. No Si lattice

  3. Dense Gas, Dynamical Equilibrium Pressure, and Star Formation in Nearby Star-forming Galaxies

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gallagher, Molly J.; Leroy, Adam K.; Bigiel, Frank; Cormier, Diane; Jiménez-Donaire, María J.; Ostriker, Eve; Usero, Antonio; Bolatto, Alberto D.; García-Burillo, Santiago; Hughes, Annie; Kepley, Amanda A.; Krumholz, Mark; Meidt, Sharon E.; Meier, David S.; Murphy, Eric J.; Pety, Jérôme; Rosolowsky, Erik; Schinnerer, Eva; Schruba, Andreas; Walter, Fabian

    2018-05-01

    We use new ALMA observations to investigate the connection between dense gas fraction, star formation rate (SFR), and local environment across the inner region of four local galaxies showing a wide range of molecular gas depletion times. We map HCN (1–0), HCO+ (1–0), CS (2–1), 13CO (1–0), and C18O (1–0) across the inner few kiloparsecs of each target. We combine these data with short-spacing information from the IRAM large program EMPIRE, archival CO maps, tracers of stellar structure and recent star formation, and recent HCN surveys by Bigiel et al. and Usero et al. We test the degree to which changes in the dense gas fraction drive changes in the SFR. {I}HCN}/{I}CO} (tracing the dense gas fraction) correlates strongly with I CO (tracing molecular gas surface density), stellar surface density, and dynamical equilibrium pressure, P DE. Therefore, {I}HCN}/{I}CO} becomes very low and HCN becomes very faint at large galactocentric radii, where ratios as low as {I}HCN}/{I}CO}∼ 0.01 become common. The apparent ability of dense gas to form stars, {{{Σ }}}SFR}/{{{Σ }}}dense} (where Σdense is traced by the HCN intensity and the star formation rate is traced by a combination of Hα and 24 μm emission), also depends on environment. {{{Σ }}}SFR}/{{{Σ }}}dense} decreases in regions of high gas surface density, high stellar surface density, and high P DE. Statistically, these correlations between environment and both {{{Σ }}}SFR}/{{{Σ }}}dense} and {I}HCN}/{I}CO} are stronger than that between apparent dense gas fraction ({I}HCN}/{I}CO}) and the apparent molecular gas star formation efficiency {{{Σ }}}SFR}/{{{Σ }}}mol}. We show that these results are not specific to HCN.

  4. Trace element emissions from spontaneous combustion of gob piles in coal mines, Shanxi, China

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Zhao, Y.; Zhang, Jiahua; Chou, C.-L.; Li, Y.; Wang, Z.; Ge, Y.; Zheng, C.

    2008-01-01

    The emissions of potentially hazardous trace elements from spontaneous combustion of gob piles from coal mining in Shanxi Province, China, have been studied. More than ninety samples of solid waste from gob piles in Shanxi were collected and the contents of twenty potentially hazardous trace elements (Be, F, V, Cr, Mn, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Se, Mo, Cd, Sn, Sb, Hg, Tl, Pb, Th, and U) in these samples were determined. Trace element contents in solid waste samples showed wide ranges. As compared with the upper continental crust, the solid waste samples are significantly enriched in Se (20x) and Tl (12x) and are moderately enriched in F, As, Mo, Sn, Sb, Hg, Th, and U (2-5x). The solid waste samples are depleted in V, Cr, Mn, Co, Ni, Cu, and Zn. The solid waste samples are enriched in F, V, Mn, Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Sb, Th, and U as compared with the Shanxi coals. Most trace elements are higher in the clinker than in the unburnt solid waste except F, Sn, and Hg. Trace element abundances are related to the ash content and composition of the samples. The content of F is negatively correlated with the ash content, while Pb is positively correlated with the ash. The concentrations of As, Mn, Zn, and Cd are highly positively correlated with Fe2O3 in the solid waste. The As content increases with increasing sulfur content in the solid waste. The trace element emissions are calculated for mass balance. The emission factors of trace elements during the spontaneous combustion of the gobs are determined and the trace element concentrations in the flue gas from the spontaneous combustion of solid waste are calculated. More than a half of F, Se, Hg and Pb are released to the atmosphere during spontaneous combustion. Some trace element concentrations in flue gas are higher than the national emission standards. Thus, gob piles from coal mining pose a serious environmental problem. ?? 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  5. Assessing snow extent data sets over North America to inform and improve trace gas retrievals from solar backscatter

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cooper, Matthew J.; Martin, Randall V.; Lyapustin, Alexei I.; McLinden, Chris A.

    2018-05-01

    Accurate representation of surface reflectivity is essential to tropospheric trace gas retrievals from solar backscatter observations. Surface snow cover presents a significant challenge due to its variability and thus snow-covered scenes are often omitted from retrieval data sets; however, the high reflectance of snow is potentially advantageous for trace gas retrievals. We first examine the implications of surface snow on retrievals from the upcoming TEMPO geostationary instrument for North America. We use a radiative transfer model to examine how an increase in surface reflectivity due to snow cover changes the sensitivity of satellite retrievals to NO2 in the lower troposphere. We find that a substantial fraction (> 50 %) of the TEMPO field of regard can be snow covered in January and that the average sensitivity to the tropospheric NO2 column substantially increases (doubles) when the surface is snow covered.We then evaluate seven existing satellite-derived or reanalysis snow extent products against ground station observations over North America to assess their capability of informing surface conditions for TEMPO retrievals. The Interactive Multisensor Snow and Ice Mapping System (IMS) had the best agreement with ground observations (accuracy of 93 %, precision of 87 %, recall of 83 %). Multiangle Implementation of Atmospheric Correction (MAIAC) retrievals of MODIS-observed radiances had high precision (90 % for Aqua and Terra), but underestimated the presence of snow (recall of 74 % for Aqua, 75 % for Terra). MAIAC generally outperforms the standard MODIS products (precision of 51 %, recall of 43 % for Aqua; precision of 69 %, recall of 45 % for Terra). The Near-real-time Ice and Snow Extent (NISE) product had good precision (83 %) but missed a significant number of snow-covered pixels (recall of 45 %). The Canadian Meteorological Centre (CMC) Daily Snow Depth Analysis Data set had strong performance metrics (accuracy of 91 %, precision of 79 %, recall of 82

  6. Design and Testing of Trace Contaminant Injection and Monitoring Systems

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Broerman, Craig D.; Sweterlitsch, Jeff

    2009-01-01

    In support of the Carbon dioxide And Moisture Removal Amine Swing-bed (CAMRAS) testing, a contaminant injection system as well as a contaminant monitoring system has been developed by the Johnson Space Center Air Revitalization Systems (JSC-ARS) team. The contaminant injection system has been designed to provide trace level concentrations of contaminants generated by humans in a closed environment during space flight missions. The contaminant injection system continuously injects contaminants from three gas cylinders, two liquid reservoirs and three permeation ovens. The contaminant monitoring system has been designed to provide real time gas analysis with accurate flow, humidity and gas concentration measurements for collection during test. The contaminant monitoring system consists of an analytical real time gas analyzer, a carbon monoxide sensor, and an analyzer for ammonia and water vapor.

  7. Trace analysis of multi-class pesticide residues in Chinese medicinal health wines using gas chromatography with electron capture detection

    PubMed Central

    Kong, Wei-Jun; Liu, Qiu-Tao; Kong, Dan-Dan; Liu, Qian-Zhen; Ma, Xin-Ping; Yang, Mei-Hua

    2016-01-01

    A method is described for multi-residue, high-throughput determination of trace levels of 22 organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) and 5 pyrethroid pesticides (PYPs) in Chinese medicinal (CM) health wines using a QuEChERS (quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe) based extraction method and gas chromatography-electron capture detection (GC-ECD). Several parameters were optimized to improve preparation and separation time while still maintaining high sensitivity. Validation tests of spiked samples showed good linearities for 27 pesticides (R = 0.9909–0.9996) over wide concentration ranges. Limits of detection (LODs) and quantification (LOQs) were measured at ng/L levels, 0.06–2 ng/L and 0.2–6 ng/L for OCPs and 0.02–3 ng/L and 0.06–7 ng/L for PYPs, respectively. Inter- and intra-day precision tests showed variations of 0.65–9.89% for OCPs and 0.98–13.99% for PYPs, respectively. Average recoveries were in the range of 47.74–120.31%, with relative standard deviations below 20%. The developed method was then applied to analyze 80 CM wine samples. Beta-BHC (Benzene hexachloride) was the most frequently detected pesticide at concentration levels of 5.67–31.55 mg/L, followed by delta-BHC, trans-chlordane, gamma-BHC, and alpha-BHC. The validated method is simple and economical, with adequate sensitivity for trace levels of multi-class pesticides. It could be adopted by laboratories for this and other types of complex matrices analysis. PMID:26883080

  8. Trace analysis of multi-class pesticide residues in Chinese medicinal health wines using gas chromatography with electron capture detection

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kong, Wei-Jun; Liu, Qiu-Tao; Kong, Dan-Dan; Liu, Qian-Zhen; Ma, Xin-Ping; Yang, Mei-Hua

    2016-02-01

    A method is described for multi-residue, high-throughput determination of trace levels of 22 organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) and 5 pyrethroid pesticides (PYPs) in Chinese medicinal (CM) health wines using a QuEChERS (quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe) based extraction method and gas chromatography-electron capture detection (GC-ECD). Several parameters were optimized to improve preparation and separation time while still maintaining high sensitivity. Validation tests of spiked samples showed good linearities for 27 pesticides (R = 0.9909-0.9996) over wide concentration ranges. Limits of detection (LODs) and quantification (LOQs) were measured at ng/L levels, 0.06-2 ng/L and 0.2-6 ng/L for OCPs and 0.02-3 ng/L and 0.06-7 ng/L for PYPs, respectively. Inter- and intra-day precision tests showed variations of 0.65-9.89% for OCPs and 0.98-13.99% for PYPs, respectively. Average recoveries were in the range of 47.74-120.31%, with relative standard deviations below 20%. The developed method was then applied to analyze 80 CM wine samples. Beta-BHC (Benzene hexachloride) was the most frequently detected pesticide at concentration levels of 5.67-31.55 mg/L, followed by delta-BHC, trans-chlordane, gamma-BHC, and alpha-BHC. The validated method is simple and economical, with adequate sensitivity for trace levels of multi-class pesticides. It could be adopted by laboratories for this and other types of complex matrices analysis.

  9. Comparison of MAX-DOAS profiling algorithms during CINDI-2 - Part 2: trace gases

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hendrick, Francois; Friess, Udo; Tirpitz, Lukas; Apituley, Arnoud; Van Roozendael, Michel; Kreher, Karin; Richter, Andreas; Wagner, Thomas

    2017-04-01

    The second Cabauw Intercomparison campaign for Nitrogen Dioxide measuring Instruments (CINDI-2) took place at the Cabauw Experimental Site for Atmospheric Research (CESAR; Utrecht area, The Netherlands) from 25 August until 7 October 2016. CINDI-2 was aiming at assessing the consistency of MAX-DOAS slant column density measurements of tropospheric species (NO2, HCHO, O3, and O4) relevant for the validation of future ESA atmospheric Sentinel missions, through coordinated operation of a large number of DOAS and MAXDOAS instruments from all over the world. An important objective of the campaign was to study the relationship between remote-sensing column and profile measurements of the above species and collocated reference ancillary observations. For this purpose, the CINDI-2 Profiling Task Team (CPTT) was created, involving 22 groups performing aerosol and trace gas vertical profile inversion using dedicated MAX-DOAS profiling algorithms, as well as the teams responsible for ancillary profile and surface concentration measurements (NO2 analysers, NO2 sondes, NO2 and Raman LIDARs, CAPS, Long-Path DOAS, sunphotometer, nephelometer, etc). The main purpose of the CPTT is to assess the consistency of the different profiling tools for retrieving aerosol extinction and trace gas vertical profiles through comparison exercises using commonly defined settings and to validate the retrievals with correlative observations. In this presentation, we give an overview of the MAX-DOAS vertical profile comparison results, focusing on NO2 and HCHO, the aerosol retrievals being presented in a companion abstract led by U. Frieß. The performance of the different algorithms is investigated with respect to the various sky and weather conditions and aerosol loadings encountered during the campaign. The consistency between optimal-estimation-based and parameterized profiling tools is also evaluated for these different conditions, together with the level of agreement with available NO2 and

  10. Uncovering the effects of Arundo invasion & forest restoration on riparian soils: Plant controls on microbial processes & trace gas flux in a California watershed

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dowdy, K. L.; Dudley, T.; Schimel, J.

    2016-12-01

    The opportunistic reed Arundo donax has invaded riparian zones in many California watersheds, altering hydrological and ecological processes. There have been intense efforts to restore these watersheds to native vegetation. How the shifts in communities—native to invaded to restored—affect soil conditions and processes, however, remains unclear. Because riparian zones are hotspots of nutrient cycling and greenhouse gas flux, it is critical to understand how plant community composition (and associated litter contributions) governs riparian biogeochemistry. How do organic matter inputs in invaded and restored plant communities alter soil microbial processes and trace gas dynamics? In this study, we use laboratory incubations to compare microbial cycling of C and nitrogen (N) and trace gas flux between the soils and litter of the invasive Arundo and three native riparian species: Populus tricocarpa, Salix laevigata, and Baccharis salicifolia (or, black cotton wood, red willow, and mulefat). Soils beneath Arundo and Salix produced CO2 at a similar rate ( 250 ug CO2 g dry soil-1 hour-1), while Populus and Baccharis produced less ( 170 ug CO2 g dry soil-1 hour-1). All soils consumed CH4; however, Arundo soils consumed more than native-restored species, which consumed similar quantities (-0.013 CH4 g dry soil-1 hour-1 in Arundo vs. -0.009 CH4 g dry soil-1 hour-1 in native). Arundo soils also produced less N2O (0.02 ug N2O g dry soil-1 hour-1) than all native species ( 0.09 ug N2O g dry soil-1 hour-1). Arundo contributed far less litter inputs than native-restored species, as Arundo leaves senesce and remain on the stalk; furthermore, Arundo litter has been shown to have a higher C:N (40.2) than Salix and Baccharis (30.9). Greater CH4 consumption and lower N2O production in Arundo soils may be the result of enhanced porosity compared to restored soils, leading to more aeration and less methanogenesis and denitrification, or it may be that there is lower N availability

  11. Trace gas detection from fermentation processes in apples; an intercomparison study between proton-transfer-reaction mass spectrometry and laser photoacoustics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Boamfa, E. I.; Steeghs, M. M. L.; Cristescu, S. M.; Harren, F. J. M.

    2004-12-01

    A custom-built proton-transfer-reaction mass spectrometry (PTR-MS) instrument was used to monitor the emission of various compounds (aldehydes, alcohols, acids, acetates and C-6 compounds) related to fermentation, aroma and flavour, released by four apple cultivars (Elstar, Jonaglod, Granny Smith and Pink Lady) under short anaerobic (24 h) and post-anaerobic conditions. The novel feature of our instrument is the new design of the collisional dissociation chamber, which separates the high pressure in the drift tube (2 mbar) from the high vacuum pressure in the detection region (10-6 mbar). The geometry of this chamber was changed and a second turbo pump was added to reduce the influence of collisional loss of ions, background signals and cluster ions, which facilitates the interpretation of the mass spectra and increases the signal intensity at the mass of the original protonated compound. With this system, detection limits of similar magnitude to the ones reported in literature are reached. An intercomparison study between PTR-MS and a CO laser-based photoacoustic trace gas detector is presented. The alcoholic fermentation products (acetaldehyde and ethanol) from young rice plants were simultaneously monitored by both methods. A very good agreement was observed for acetaldehyde production. The photoacoustic detector showed about two times lower ethanol concentration as compared to PTR-MS, caused by memory effects due to sticking of compounds to the walls of the nylon tube used to transport the trace gases to the detector.

  12. NASA GTE TRACE-P Augmentation

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Sandholm, Scott; Conners, Vickie (Technical Monitor)

    2005-01-01

    There were three major tasks and objectives that the Tropospheric Trace Gas and Airborne Measurement Group's (TTGAMG) worked on for different aspects of this grant: 1) Migrate the data acquisition system from HP-UX to Linux, thus reducing future costs as the result of software and operating system (OS) upgrades and improving upon usability as membership in the group changes; 2) Rework the Optical Parametric Oscillator (OPO) cavities. These are the OPOs that are integral to the Georgia Institute of Technology Airborne Laser Induced Fluorescent Experiment (GITALIFE) that the TTGAMG flew on TRACE-P. The objective was to improve upon optimizing the pump laser energy and narrowing the linewidth of the UV wavelength generated by the OPOs; 3) Improve and expand the interactive website on http://tmbk2.eas.gatech.edu by adding 3-D graphing, improve the response time for Joe Surfer Dude, improve performance, usability, and expand the database. If I were to assign a letter grade to each of the above tasks, I would give the TTGAMG two Bs and an A to the tasks listed above.

  13. The airborne mass spectrometer AIMS - Part 2: Measurements of trace gases with stratospheric or tropospheric origin in the UTLS

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jurkat, Tina; Kaufmann, Stefan; Voigt, Christiane; Schäuble, Dominik; Jeßberger, Philipp; Ziereis, Helmut

    2016-04-01

    Understanding the role of climate-sensitive trace gas variabilities in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere region (UTLS) and their impact on its radiative budget requires accurate measurements. The composition of the UTLS is governed by transport and chemistry of stratospheric and tropospheric constituents, such as chlorine, nitrogen oxide and sulfur compounds. The Atmospheric chemical Ionization Mass Spectrometer AIMS has been developed to accurately measure a set of these constituents on aircraft by means of chemical ionization. Here we present a setup using SF5- reagent ions for the simultaneous measurement of trace gas concentrations of HCl, HNO3 and SO2 in the pptv to ppmv (10-12 to 10-6 mol mol-1) range with in-flight and online calibration called AIMS-TG (Atmospheric chemical Ionization Mass Spectrometer for measurements of trace gases). Part 1 of this paper (Kaufmann et al., 2016) reports on the UTLS water vapor measurements with the AIMS-H2O configuration. The instrument can be flexibly switched between two configurations depending on the scientific objective of the mission. For AIMS-TG, a custom-made gas discharge ion source has been developed for generation of reagent ions that selectively react with HCl, HNO3, SO2 and HONO. HNO3 and HCl are routinely calibrated in-flight using permeation devices; SO2 is continuously calibrated during flight adding an isotopically labeled 34SO2 standard. In addition, we report on trace gas measurements of HONO, which is sensitive to the reaction with SF5-. The detection limit for the various trace gases is in the low 10 pptv range at a 1 s time resolution with an overall uncertainty of the measurement of the order of 20 %. AIMS has been integrated and successfully operated on the DLR research aircraft Falcon and HALO (High Altitude LOng range research aircraft). As an example, measurements conducted during the TACTS/ESMVal (Transport and Composition of the LMS/UT and Earth System Model Validation) mission with

  14. A Novel Low-Power, High-Performance, Zero-Maintenance Closed-Path Trace Gas Eddy Covariance System with No Water Vapor Dilution or Spectroscopic Corrections

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sargent, S.; Somers, J. M.

    2015-12-01

    Trace-gas eddy covariance flux measurement can be made with open-path or closed-path analyzers. Traditional closed-path trace-gas analyzers use multipass absorption cells that behave as mixing volumes, requiring high sample flow rates to achieve useful frequency response. The high sample flow rate and the need to keep the multipass cell extremely clean dictates the use of a fine-pore filter that may clog quickly. A large-capacity filter cannot be used because it would degrade the EC system frequency response. The high flow rate also requires a powerful vacuum pump, which will typically consume on the order of 1000 W. The analyzer must measure water vapor for spectroscopic and dilution corrections. Open-path analyzers are available for methane, but not for nitrous oxide. The currently available methane analyzers have low power consumption, but are very large. Their large size degrades frequency response and disturbs the air flow near the sonic anemometer. They require significant maintenance to keep the exposed multipass optical surfaces clean. Water vapor measurements for dilution and spectroscopic corrections require a separate water vapor analyzer. A new closed-path eddy covariance system for measuring nitrous oxide or methane fluxes provides an elegant solution. The analyzer (TGA200A, Campbell Scientific, Inc.) uses a thermoelectrically-cooled interband cascade laser. Its small sample-cell volume and unique sample-cell configuration (200 ml, 1.5 m single pass) provide excellent frequency response with a low-power scroll pump (240 W). A new single-tube Nafion® dryer removes most of the water vapor, and attenuates fluctuations in the residual water vapor. Finally, a vortex intake assembly eliminates the need for an intake filter without adding volume that would degrade system frequency response. Laboratory testing shows the system attenuates the water vapor dilution term by more than 99% and achieves a half-power band width of 3.5 Hz.

  15. Long-term anaerobic digestion of food waste stabilized by trace elements

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Zhang Lei, E-mail: wxzyfx@yahoo.com; Jahng, Deokjin, E-mail: djahng@mju.ac.kr

    Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Korean food waste was found to contain low level of trace elements. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Stable anaerobic digestion of food waste was achieved by adding trace elements. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Iron played an important role in anaerobic digestion of food waste. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Cobalt addition further enhanced the process performance in the presence of iron. - Abstract: The purpose of this study was to examine if long-term anaerobic digestion of food waste in a semi-continuous single-stage reactor could be stabilized by supplementing trace elements. Contrary to the failure of anaerobic digestion of food waste alone, stable anaerobic digestion of food waste was achievedmore » for 368 days by supplementing trace elements. Under the conditions of OLR (organic loading rates) of 2.19-6.64 g VS (volatile solid)/L day and 20-30 days of HRT (hydraulic retention time), a high methane yield (352-450 mL CH{sub 4}/g VS{sub added}) was obtained, and no significant accumulation of volatile fatty acids was observed. The subsequent investigation on effects of individual trace elements (Co, Fe, Mo and Ni) showed that iron was essential for maintaining stable methane production. These results proved that the food waste used in this study was deficient in trace elements.« less

  16. The airborne mass spectrometer AIMS - Part 2: Measurements of trace gases with stratospheric or tropospheric origin in the UTLS

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jurkat, T.; Kaufmann, S.; Voigt, C.; Schäuble, D.; Jeßberger, P.; Ziereis, H.

    2015-12-01

    Understanding the role of climate-sensitive trace gas variabilities in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere region (UTLS) and their impact on its radiative budget requires accurate measurements. The composition of the UTLS is governed by transport and chemistry of stratospheric and tropospheric constituents, such as chlorine, nitrogen oxide and sulphur components. The Airborne chemical Ionization Mass Spectrometer AIMS has been developed to accurately measure a set of these constituents on aircraft by means of chemical ionization. Here we present a setup using chemical ionization with SF5- reagent ions for the simultaneous measurement of trace gas concentrations in the pptv to ppmv (10-12 to 10-6 mol mol-1) range of HCl, HNO3 and SO2 with in-flight and online calibration called AIMS-TG. Part 1 of this paper (Kaufmann et al., 2015) reports on the UTLS water vapour measurements with the AIMS-H2O configuration. The instrument can be flexibly switched between two configurations depending on the scientific objective of the mission. For AIMS-TG, a custom-made gas discharge ion source has been developed generating a characteristic ionization scheme. HNO3 and HCl are routinely calibrated in-flight using permeation devices, SO2 is permanently calibrated during flight adding an isotopically labelled 34SO2 standard. In addition, we report on trace gas measurements of HONO which is sensitive to the reaction with SF5-. The detection limit for the various trace gases is in the low ten pptv range at a 1 s time resolution with an overall uncertainty of the measurement in the order of 20 %. AIMS has been integrated and successfully operated on the DLR research aircraft Falcon and HALO. Exemplarily, measurements conducted during the TACTS/ESMVal mission with HALO in 2012 are presented, focusing on a classification of tropospheric and stratospheric influences in the UTLS region. Comparison of AIMS measurements with other measurement techniques allow to draw a comprehensive

  17. Orthopyroxene as a recorder of primitive achondrite petrogenesis: Major-, minor-, and trace-element systematics of orthopyroxene in Lodran. [Abstract only

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Papike, J. J.; Spilde, M. N.; Fowler, G. W.; Shearer, C. K.

    1994-01-01

    Considerable attention has been paid recently to the primitive achondrites because they may form a link between chondrites and more differentiated achondrite meteorites. A recent paper by Miyamoto and Takeda addresses the thermal history of lodranites Yamato 74357 and MAC 88177 as inferred from chemical zoning of pyroxene and olivine determined by electron microprobe analyses. Their results suggested that interstitial melt was present and then extracted. We have taken the analysis of Lodran-type meteorites one step further by incorporating the techniques of Electromagnetic Pulse/Wavelength Dispersive Spectroscopy (EMP/WDS) compositional imaging and scanning ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS) analysis. Orthopyroxene in Lodran is strongly zoned in CaO, Al2O3, TiO2, and Cr2O3 within the last 10-30 microns from the grain boundaries. The rims are reversely zoned in Mg-Fe, exhibiting Mg enrichment, and compositions change from a fairly uniform Wo3En94 within the grains to Wo1En96 at the rims. CaO drops from 1.6 to 0.6 wt% and Al2O3, TiO2, and Cr2O3 exhibit similar depletions. MnO is fairly uniform throughout the grains at around 0.5 wt%. Olivine is also reversely zoned with respect to not only grain boundaries but also to fractures within the grains, giving many olivine grains a complex, patchy zoning pattern. Some of the core-rim trace-element systematics for orthopyroxene are illustrated. Because of the rather narrow zoned rims in Lodran orthopyroxene and the low trace-element abundances, it is difficult to clearly resolve the trace-element systematics. Nevertheless it is evident that the cores are enriched in the incompatible trace elements Ce, Nd, Dy, Er, Yb, Y, and Zr relative to the rims.

  18. An abstract approach to evaporation models in rarefied gas dynamics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Greenberg, W.; van der Mee, C. V. M.

    1984-03-01

    Strong evaporation models involving 1D stationary problems with linear self-adjoint collision operators and solutions in abstract Hilbert spaces are investigated analytically. An efficient algorithm for locating the transition from existence to nonexistence of solutions is developed and applied to the 1D and 3D BGK model equations and the 3D BGK model in moment form, demonstrating the nonexistence of stationary evaporation states with supersonic drift velocities. Applications to similar models in electron and phonon transport, radiative transfer, and neutron transport are suggested.

  19. Submicron aerosol and trace gas composition near Manaus as observed during GoAmazon2014/5

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ferreira De Brito, J.; Wurm, F.; Liu, Y.; de Sá, S. S.; Carbone, S.; Rizzo, L. V.; Cirino, G. G.; Barbosa, H. M.; Souza, R. A. F. D.; Martin, S. T.; Artaxo, P.

    2014-12-01

    The Amazon Basin, during the wet season, has one of the lowest aerosol concentrations worldwide, with air masses covering thousands of kilometers of pristine forest with negligible human impact. The atmosphere in such regions is strongly coupled with the biosphere through primary biological aerosols, biogenic salts and secondary aerosols from oxidation of biogenic VOCs. The natural environment is strongly modified nearby urbanized areas, in particular Manaus, a city of nearly two million people. The urban pollution plume has high concentrations of oxides of nitrogen and sulfur, carbon monoxide, particle concentrations, and soot, among other pollutants, strongly contrasting with the clean air masses reaching the city. Such unique location provides the ideal laboratory to study the isolated urban emission, as well the pristine environment by perturbing it in a relatively known fashion. The GoAmazon experiment was designed with these questions in mind, combining remote sensing, in situand airborne measurements. This manuscript describes the measurements currently taking place at the T2 site, near Manaus, frequently impacted by relatively fresh emissions from the city. This presentation focuses on aerosol properties and trace gas composition at the T2 site. PM1 mass concentration from March up to July 2014 has been observed to be dominated by organics (1.51 μg m-3), followed by BC (0.83 μg m-3), SO4 (0.17 μg m-3), NO3 (0.08 μg m-3) and NH4 (0.06 μg m-3). Mean aerosol number concentration was 3600 cm-3, with a mean geometric diameter of 70 nm. As for the trace gases, initial estimates of isoprene average ambient concentration is 0.95 ppb, whereas MVK+MACR has been estimated to be 0.76 ppb. Average mixing ratios of toluene, benzene and C8 aromatics were 0.31 ppb, 0.16 ppb and 0.15 ppb, respectively, correlating relatively well with markers of anthropogenic activities, such as BC. Such measurements will carry on throughout GoAmazon 2014/5, providing a unique dataset

  20. Trace gas and particle emissions from open biomass burning in Mexico

    Treesearch

    R. J. Yokelson; I. R. Burling; Shawn Urbanski; E. L. Atlas; K. Adachi; P. R. Buseck; C. Wiedinmyer; S. K. Akagi; D. W. Toohey; C. E. Wold

    2011-01-01

    We report airborne measurements of emission factors (EF) for trace gases and PM2.5 made in southern Mexico in March of 2006 on 6 crop residue fires, 3 tropical dry forest fires, 8 savanna fires, 1 garbage fire, and 7 mountain pine-oak forest fires. The savanna fire EF were measured early in the local dry season and when compared to EF measured late in the African dry...

  1. GAS METERING PUMP

    DOEpatents

    George, C.M.

    1957-12-31

    A liquid piston gas pump is described, capable of pumping minute amounts of gas in accurately measurable quantities. The pump consists of a flanged cylindrical regulating chamber and a mercury filled bellows. Sealed to the ABSTRACTS regulating chamber is a value and having a gas inlet and outlet, the inlet being connected by a helical channel to the bellows. A gravity check valve is in the gas outlet, so the gas passes through the inlet and the helical channel to the bellows where the pumping action as well as the metering is accomplished by the actuation of the mercury filled bellows. The gas then flows through the check valve and outlet to any associated apparatus.

  2. Compact Laser Multi-gas Spectral Sensors for Spacecraft Systems

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Tittel, Frank K.

    1997-01-01

    The objective of this research effort has been the development of a new gas sensor technology to meet NASA requirements for spacecraft and space station human life support systems for sensitive selective and real time detection of trace gas species in the mid-infrared spectral region.

  3. Sensitive Multi-Species Emissions Monitoring: Infrared Laser-Based Detection of Trace-Level Contaminants

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Steill, Jeffrey D.; Huang, Haifeng; Hoops, Alexandra A.

    This report summarizes our development of spectroscopic chemical analysis techniques and spectral modeling for trace-gas measurements of highly-regulated low-concentration species present in flue gas emissions from utility coal boilers such as HCl under conditions of high humidity. Detailed spectral modeling of the spectroscopy of HCl and other important combustion and atmospheric species such as H 2 O, CO 2 , N 2 O, NO 2 , SO 2 , and CH 4 demonstrates that IR-laser spectroscopy is a sensitive multi-component analysis strategy. Experimental measurements from techniques based on IR laser spectroscopy are presented that demonstrate sub-ppm sensitivity levels to thesemore » species. Photoacoustic infrared spectroscopy is used to detect and quantify HCl at ppm levels with extremely high signal-to-noise even under conditions of high relative humidity. Additionally, cavity ring-down IR spectroscopy is used to achieve an extremely high sensitivity to combustion trace gases in this spectral region; ppm level CH 4 is one demonstrated example. The importance of spectral resolution in the sensitivity of a trace-gas measurement is examined by spectral modeling in the mid- and near-IR, and efforts to improve measurement resolution through novel instrument development are described. While previous project reports focused on benefits and complexities of the dual-etalon cavity ring-down infrared spectrometer, here details on steps taken to implement this unique and potentially revolutionary instrument are described. This report also illustrates and critiques the general strategy of IR- laser photodetection of trace gases leading to the conclusion that mid-IR laser spectroscopy techniques provide a promising basis for further instrument development and implementation that will enable cost-effective sensitive detection of multiple key contaminant species simultaneously.« less

  4. Reversal electron attachment ionizer for detection of trace species

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Bernius, Mark T. (Inventor); Chutjian, Ara (Inventor)

    1990-01-01

    An in-line reversal electron, high-current ionizer capable of focusing a beam of electrons to a reversal region and executing a reversal of said electrons, such that the electrons possess zero kinetic energy at the point of reversal, may be used to produce both negative and positive ions. A sample gas is introduced at the point of electron reversal for low energy electron-(sample gas) molecule attachment with high efficiency. The attachment process produces negative ions from the sample gas, which includes species present in trace (minute) amounts. These ions are extracted efficiently and directed to a mass analyzer where they may be detected and identified. The generation and detection of positive ions is accomplished in a similar fashion with minimal adjustment to potentials applied to the apparatus.

  5. Reversal electron attachment ionizer for detection of trace species

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Bernius, Mark T. (Inventor); Chutjian, Ara (Inventor)

    1989-01-01

    An in-line reversal electron, high-current ionizer capable of focusing a beam of electrons to a reversal region and executing a reversal of the electrons, such that the electrons possess zero kinetic energy at the point of reversal, may be used to produce both negative and positive ions. A sample gas is introduced at the point of electron reversal for low energy electron-(sample gas) molecule attachment with high efficiency. The attachment process produces negative ions from the sample gas, which includes species present in trace (minute) amounts. These ions are extracted efficiently and directed to a mass analyzer where they may be detected and identified. The generation and detection of positive ions is accomplished in a similar fashion with minimal adjustment to potentials applied to the apparatus.

  6. The Pillars of Creation revisited with MUSE: gas kinematics and high-mass stellar feedback traced by optical spectroscopy

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    McLeod, A. F.; Dale, J. E.; Ginsburg, A.; Ercolano, B.; Gritschneder, M.; Ramsay, S.; Testi, L.

    2015-06-01

    Integral field unit (IFU) data of the iconic Pillars of Creation in M16 are presented. The ionization structure of the pillars was studied in great detail over almost the entire visible wavelength range, and maps of the relevant physical parameters, e.g. extinction, electron density, electron temperature, line-of-sight velocity of the ionized and neutral gas are shown. In agreement with previous authors, we find that the pillar tips are being ionized and photoevaporated by the massive members of the nearby cluster NGC 6611. They display a stratified ionization structure where the emission lines peak in a descending order according to their ionization energies. The IFU data allowed us to analyse the kinematics of the photoevaporative flow in terms of the stratified ionization structure, and we find that, in agreement with simulations, the photoevaporative flow is traced by a blueshift in the position-velocity profile. The gas kinematics and ionization structure have allowed us to produce a sketch of the 3D geometry of the Pillars, positioning the pillars with respect to the ionizing cluster stars. We use a novel method to detect a previously unknown bipolar outflow at the tip of the middle pillar and suggest that it has an embedded protostar as its driving source. Furthermore we identify a candidate outflow in the leftmost pillar. With the derived physical parameters and ionic abundances, we estimate a mass-loss rate due to the photoevaporative flow of 70 M⊙ Myr-1 which yields an expected lifetime of approximately 3 Myr.

  7. Flow immune photoacoustic sensor for real-time and fast sampling of trace gases

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Petersen, Jan C.; Balslev-Harder, David; Pelevic, Nikola; Brusch, Anders; Persijn, Stefan; Lassen, Mikael

    2018-02-01

    A photoacoustic (PA) sensor for fast and real-time gas sensing is demonstrated. The PA cell has been designed for flow noise immunity using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis. PA measurements were conducted at different flow rates by exciting molecular C-H stretch vibrational bands of hexane (C6H14) in clean air at 2950cm-1 (3.38 μm) with a custom made mid-infrared interband cascade laser (ICL). The PA sensor will contribute to solve a major problem in a number of industries using compressed air by the detection of oil contaminants in high purity compressed air. We observe a (1σ, standard deviation) sensitivity of 0.4 +/-0.1 ppb (nmol/mol) for hexane in clean air at flow rates up to 2 L/min, corresponding to a normalized noise equivalent absorption (NNEA) coefficient of 2.5×10-9 W cm-1 Hz1/2, thus demonstrating high sensitivity and fast and real-time gas analysis. The PA sensor is not limited to molecules with C-H stretching modes, but can be tailored to measure any trace gas by simply changing the excitation wavelength (i.e. the laser source) making it useful for many different applications where fast and sensitive trace gas measurements are needed.

  8. Analysis of Trace Gas Mixtures Using an External Cavity Quantum Cascade Laser Sensor

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Phillips, Mark C.; Taubman, Matthew S.; Brumfield, Brian E.

    2015-07-01

    We measure and analyze mixtures of trace gases at ppb-ppm levels using an external cavity quantum cascade laser sensor with a 1-second response time. Accurate spectral fits are obtained in the presence of overlapping spectra.

  9. Level 2 processing for the imaging Fourier transform spectrometer GLORIA: derivation and validation of temperature and trace gas volume mixing ratios from calibrated dynamics mode spectra

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ungermann, J.; Blank, J.; Dick, M.; Ebersoldt, A.; Friedl-Vallon, F.; Giez, A.; Guggenmoser, T.; Höpfner, M.; Jurkat, T.; Kaufmann, M.; Kaufmann, S.; Kleinert, A.; Krämer, M.; Latzko, T.; Oelhaf, H.; Olchewski, F.; Preusse, P.; Rolf, C.; Schillings, J.; Suminska-Ebersoldt, O.; Tan, V.; Thomas, N.; Voigt, C.; Zahn, A.; Zöger, M.; Riese, M.

    2014-12-01

    The Gimballed Limb Observer for Radiance Imaging of the Atmosphere (GLORIA) is an airborne infrared limb-imager combining a two-dimensional infrared detector with a Fourier transform spectrometer. It was operated aboard the new German Gulfstream G550 research aircraft HALO during the Transport And Composition in the upper Troposphere/lowermost Stratosphere (TACTS) and Earth System Model Validation (ESMVAL) campaigns in summer 2012. This paper describes the retrieval of temperature and trace gas (H2O, O3, HNO3) volume mixing ratios from GLORIA dynamics mode spectra. 26 integrated spectral windows are employed in a joint fit to retrieve seven targets using consecutively a fast and an accurate tabulated radiative transfer model. Typical diagnostic quantities are provided including effects of uncertainties in the calibration and horizontal resolution along the line-of-sight. Simultaneous in-situ observations by the BAsic HALO Measurement And Sensor System (BAHAMAS), the Fast In-Situ Stratospheric Hygrometer (FISH), FAIRO, and the Atmospheric chemical Ionization Mass Spectrometer (AIMS) allow a validation of retrieved values for three flights in the upper troposphere/lowermost stratosphere region spanning polar and sub-tropical latitudes. A high correlation is achieved between the remote sensing and the in-situ trace gas data, and discrepancies can to a large fraction be attributed to differences in the probed air masses caused by different sampling characteristics of the instruments. This 1-D processing of GLORIA dynamics mode spectra provides the basis for future tomographic inversions from circular and linear flight paths to better understand selected dynamical processes of the upper troposphere and lowermost stratosphere.

  10. Present Status and Near Term Activities for the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter.

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Svedhem, H.; Vago, J. L.

    2017-12-01

    The ExoMars 2016 mission was launched on a Proton rocket from Baikonur, Kazakhstan, on 14 March 2016 and arrived at Mars on 19 October 2016. The spacecraft is now performing aerobraking to reduce its orbital period from initial post-insertion orbital period of one Sol to the final science orbit with a 2 hours period. The orbital inclination will be 74 degrees. During the aerobraking a wealth of data has been acquired on the state of the atmosphere along the tracks between 140km and the lowest altitude at about 105 km. These data are now being analysed and compared with existing models. In average TGO measures a lower atmospheric density than predicted, but the numbers lay within the expected variability. ExoMars is a joint programme of the European Space Agency (ESA) and Roscosmos, Russia. It consists of the ExoMars 2016 mission with the Trace Gas Orbiter, TGO, and the Entry Descent and Landing Demonstrator, EDM, named Schiaparelli, and the ExoMars 2020 mission, which carries a lander and a rover. The TGO scientific payload consists of four instruments: ACS and NOMAD, both infrared spectrometers for atmospheric measurements in solar occultation mode and in nadir mode, CASSIS, a multichannel camera with stereo imaging capability, and FREND, an epithermal neutron detector to search for subsurface hydrogen (as proxy for water ice and hydrated minerals). The launch mass of the TGO was 3700 kg, including fuel. In addition to its scientific measurements TGO will act as a relay orbiter for NASA's landers on Mars and as from 2021 for the ESA-Roscosmos Rover and Surface Station.

  11. A fiber optic sensor with a metal organic framework as a sensing material for trace levels of water in industrial gases.

    PubMed

    Ohira, Shin-Ichi; Miki, Yusuke; Matsuzaki, Toru; Nakamura, Nao; Sato, Yu-ki; Hirose, Yasuo; Toda, Kei

    2015-07-30

    Industrial gases such as nitrogen, oxygen, argon, and helium are easily contaminated with water during production, transfer and use, because there is a high volume fraction of water in the atmosphere (approximately 1.2% estimated with the average annual atmospheric temperature and relative humidity). Even trace water (<1 parts per million by volume (ppmv) of H2O, dew point < -76 °C) in the industrial gases can cause quality problems in the process such as production of semiconductors. Therefore, it is important to monitor and to control trace water levels in industrial gases at each supplying step, and especially during their use. In the present study, a fiber optic gas sensor was investigated for monitoring trace water levels in industrial gases. The sensor consists of a film containing a metal organic framework (MOF). MOFs are made of metals coordinated to organic ligands, and have mesoscale pores that adsorb gas molecules. When the MOF, copper benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxylate (Cu-BTC), was used as a sensing material, we investigated the color of Cu-BTC with water adsorption changed both in depth and tone. Cu-BTC crystals appeared deep blue in dry gases, and then changed to light blue in wet gases. An optical gas sensor with the Cu-BTC film was developed using a light emitting diode as the light source and a photodiode as the light intensity detector. The sensor showed a reversible response to trace water, did not require heating to remove the adsorbed water molecules. The sample gas flow rate did not affect the sensitivity. The obtained limit of detection was 40 parts per billion by volume (ppbv). The response time for sample gas containing 2.5 ppmvH2O was 23 s. The standard deviation obtained for daily analysis of 1.0 ppmvH2O standard gas over 20 days was 9%. Furthermore, the type of industrial gas did not affect the sensitivity. These properties mean the sensor will be applicable to trace water detection in various industrial gases. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B

  12. Investigating African trace gas sources, vertical transport, and oxidation using IAGOS-CARIBIC measurements between Germany and South Africa between 2009 and 2011

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Thorenz, U. R.; Baker, A. K.; Leedham Elvidge, E. C.; Sauvage, C.; Riede, H.; van Velthoven, P. F. J.; Hermann, M.; Weigelt, A.; Oram, D. E.; Brenninkmeijer, C. A. M.; Zahn, A.; Williams, J.

    2017-06-01

    Between March 2009 and March 2011 a commercial airliner equipped with a custom built measurement container (IAGOS-CARIBIC observatory) conducted 13 flights between South Africa and Germany at 10-12 km altitude, traversing the African continent north-south. In-situ measurements of trace gases (CO, CH4, H2O) and aerosol particles indicated that strong surface sources (like biomass burning) and rapid vertical transport combine to generate maximum concentrations in the latitudinal range between 10°N and 10°S coincident with the inter-tropical convergence zone (ITCZ). Pressurized air samples collected during these flights were subsequently analyzed for a suite of trace gases including C2-C8 non-methane hydrocarbons (NMHC) and halocarbons. These shorter-lived trace gases, originating from both natural and anthropogenic sources, also showed near equatorial maxima highlighting the effectiveness of convective transport in this region. Two source apportionment methods were used to investigate the specific sources of NMHC: positive matrix factorization (PMF), which is used for the first time for NMHC analysis in the upper troposphere (UT), and enhancement ratios to CO. Using the PMF method three characteristic airmass types were identified based on the different trace gas concentrations they obtained: biomass burning, fossil fuel emissions, and "background" air. The first two sources were defined with reference to previously reported surface source characterizations, while the term "background" was given to air masses in which the concentration ratios approached that of the lifetime ratios. Comparison of enhancement ratios between NMHC and CO for the subset of air samples that had experienced recent contact with the planetary boundary layer (PBL) to literature values showed that the burning of savanna and tropical forest is likely the main source of NMHC in the African upper troposphere (10-12 km). Photochemical aging patterns for the samples with PBL contact revealed that

  13. Parametric Trace Slicing

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Rosu, Grigore (Inventor); Chen, Feng (Inventor); Chen, Guo-fang; Wu, Yamei; Meredith, Patrick O. (Inventor)

    2014-01-01

    A program trace is obtained and events of the program trace are traversed. For each event identified in traversing the program trace, a trace slice of which the identified event is a part is identified based on the parameter instance of the identified event. For each trace slice of which the identified event is a part, the identified event is added to an end of a record of the trace slice. These parametric trace slices can be used in a variety of different manners, such as for monitoring, mining, and predicting.

  14. Toward Gas Chemistry in Low Metallicity Starburst Galaxies

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Meier, David S.; Anderson, Crystal N.; Turner, Jean; Ott, Juergen; Beck, Sara C.

    2017-01-01

    Dense gas, which is intimately connected with star formation, is key to understanding star formation. Though challenging to study, dense gas in low metallicity starbursts is important given these system's often extreme star formation and their potential implications for high redshift analogs. High spatial resolution (~50 pc) ALMA observations of several key probes of gas chemistry, including HCN(1-0), HCO+(1-0), CS(2-1), CCH(1-0;3/2-1/2) and SiO(2-1), towards the nearby super star-cluster (SSC) forming, sub-solar metallicity galaxy NGC 5253 are discussed. Dense gas is observed to be extended well beyond the current compact starburst, reaching into the apparently infalling molecular streamer. The faintness of HCN, the standard dense gas tracer, is extreme both in an absolute sense relative to high metallicity starbursts of a similar intensity and in a relative sense, with the HCO+/HCN ratio being one of the most elevated observed. UV-irradiated molecular gas, traced by CCH, is also extended over the mapped region, not being strongly correlated with the SSC. Despite the accretion of molecular gas from the halo and the intense burst of star formation, chemical signatures of shocked gas, traced by SiO (and HNCO), are not obvious. By placing NGC 5253 in context with other local starbursts, like 30 Doradus in the Large Magellanic Clouds and the high metallicity proto-typical starburst NGC 253, it is suggested that a combination of gas excitation and abundance changes associated with the sub solar metallicity may explain these anomalous dense gas properties.

  15. Computational thermo-fluid dynamics contributions to advanced gas turbine engine design

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Graham, R. W.; Adamczyk, J. J.; Rohlik, H. E.

    1984-01-01

    The design practices for the gas turbine are traced throughout history with particular emphasis on the calculational or analytical methods. Three principal components of the gas turbine engine will be considered: namely, the compressor, the combustor and the turbine.

  16. Chemical studies of H chondrites. I - Mobile trace elements and gas retention ages

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Lingner, David W.; Huston, Ted J.; Hutson, Melinda; Lipschutz, Michael E.

    1987-01-01

    Trends for 16 trace elements (Ag, As, Au, Bi, Cd, Co, Cs, Ga, In, K, Rb, Sb, Se, Te, Tl, and Zn), chosen to span a broad geochemical and thermal response range, in 44 H4-6 chondrites, differ widely from those in L4-6 chondrites. In particular, H chondrites classified as heavily shocked petrologically do not necessarily exhibit Ar-40 loss and vice versa. The clear-cut causal relationship between siderophile and mobile element loss with increasing late shock seen in L chondrites is not generally evident in the H group. H chondrite parent material experienced an early high temperature genetic episode that mobilized a substantial proportion of these trace elements so that later thermal episodes resulted in more subtle, collateral fractionations. Mildly shocked L chondrites escaped this early high temperature event, indicating that the two most numerous meteorite groups differ fundamentally in genetic history.

  17. Modeling Microbial Processes in EPIC to Estimate Greenhouse Gas Emissions from soils

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schwab, D. E.; Izaurralde, R. C.; McGill, W. B.; Williams, J. R.; Schmid, E.

    2009-12-01

    Emissions of trace gases (CO2, N2O and CH4) to the atmosphere from managed terrestrial ecosystems have been contributing significantly to the warming of Earth. Trace gas production is dominated by biospheric processes. An improved knowledge of the soil-plant-atmosphere interface is of key importance for understanding trace gas dynamics. In soils, microbial metabolism plays a key role in the release or uptake of trace gases. Here we present work on the biophysical and biogeochemical model EPIC (Environmental Policy/Integrated Climate) to extend its capabilities to simulate CO2 and N2O fluxes in managed and unmanaged ecosystems. Emphasis will be given to recently developed, microbially-based, denitrification and nitrification modules. The soil-atmosphere exchange of trace gases can be measured by using various equipments, but often these measurements exhibit extreme space-time variability. We use hourly time steps to account for the variability induced by small changes in environmental conditions. Soils are often studied as macroscopic systems, although their functions are predominantly controlled at a microscopic level; i.e. the level of the microorganisms. We include these processes to the extent that these are known and can be quantitatively described. We represent soil dynamics mathematically with routines for gas diffusion, Michael Menten processes, electron budgeting and other processes such as uptake and transformations. We hypothesize that maximization of energy capture form scarce substrates using energetic favorable reactions drives evolution and that competitive advantage can result by depriving a competitor from a substrate. This Microbe Model changes concepts of production of N-containing trace gases; it unifies understanding of N oxidation and reduction, predicts production and evolution of trace gases and is consistent with observations of anaerobic ammonium oxidation.

  18. Analysis of trace halocarbon contaminants in ultra high purity helium

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Fewell, Larry L.

    1994-01-01

    This study describes the analysis of ultra high purity helium. Purification studies were conducted and containment removal was effected by the utilization of solid adsorbent purge-trap systems at cryogenic temperatures. Volatile organic compounds in ultra high purity helium were adsorbed on a solid adsorbent-cryogenic trap, and thermally desorbed trace halocarbon and other contaminants were analyzed by combined gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

  19. Origins Space Telescope: Tracing Dark Molecular Gas in the Milky Way

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Narayanan, Desika; Li, Qi; Krumholz, Mark; Dave, Romeel; Origins Space Telescope Science and Technology Definition Team

    2018-01-01

    We present theoretical models for quantifying the fraction of CO-dark molecular gas in galaxies. To do this, we combine novel thermal, chemical, and radiative equilibrium calculations with high-resolution cosmological zoom galaxy formation models. We discuss how this dark molecular gas will be uncovered by the Origins Space Telescope, one of the four science and technology definition studies of NASA Headquarters for the 2020 Astronomy and Astrophysics Decadal survey.

  20. Universal trace pollutant detector for aircraft monitoring of the ozone layer and industrial areas

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Filiouguine, I. V.; Kostiouchenko, S. V.; Koudriavtsev, N. N.

    1994-01-01

    A method of monitoring the trace impurities of nitrogen oxides based on controlling of luminescence of NO molecules excited by nanosecond gas discharge have been developed having pptv-ppbv sensitivity and temporal resolution less than 0.01 s.

  1. Physical properties of CO-dark molecular gas traced by C+

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tang, Ningyu; Li, Di; Heiles, Carl; Wang, Shen; Pan, Zhichen; Wang, Jun-Jie

    2016-09-01

    Context. Neither Hi nor CO emission can reveal a significant quantity of so-called dark gas in the interstellar medium (ISM). It is considered that CO-dark molecular gas (DMG), the molecular gas with no or weak CO emission, dominates dark gas. Determination of physical properties of DMG is critical for understanding ISM evolution. Previous studies of DMG in the Galactic plane are based on assumptions of excitation temperature and volume density. Independent measurements of temperature and volume density are necessary. Aims: We intend to characterize physical properties of DMG in the Galactic plane based on C+ data from the Herschel open time key program, namely Galactic Observations of Terahertz C+ (GOT C+) and Hi narrow self-absorption (HINSA) data from international Hi 21 cm Galactic plane surveys. Methods: We identified DMG clouds with HINSA features by comparing Hi, C+, and CO spectra. We derived the Hi excitation temperature and Hi column density through spectral analysis of HINSA features. The Hi volume density was determined by utilizing the on-the-sky dimension of the cold foreground Hi cloud under the assumption of axial symmetry. The column and volume density of H2 were derived through excitation analysis of C+ emission. The derived parameters were then compared with a chemical evolutionary model. Results: We identified 36 DMG clouds with HINSA features. Based on uncertainty analysis, optical depth of HiτHi of 1 is a reasonable value for most clouds. With the assumption of τHi = 1, these clouds were characterized by excitation temperatures in a range of 20 K to 92 K with a median value of 55 K and volume densities in the range of 6.2 × 101 cm-3 to 1.2 × 103 cm-3 with a median value of 2.3 × 102 cm-3. The fraction of DMG column density in the cloud (fDMG) decreases with increasing excitation temperature following an empirical relation fDMG =-2.1 × 10-3Tex,(τHi = 1) + 1.0. The relation between fDMG and total hydrogen column density NH is given by f

  2. Gas Chromatic Mass Spectrometer

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Wey, Chowen

    1995-01-01

    Gas chromatograph/mass spectrometer (GC/MS) used to measure and identify combustion species present in trace concentration. Advanced extractive diagnostic method measures to parts per billion (PPB), as well as differentiates between different types of hydrocarbons. Applicable for petrochemical, waste incinerator, diesel transporation, and electric utility companies in accurately monitoring types of hydrocarbon emissions generated by fuel combustion, in order to meet stricter environmental requirements. Other potential applications include manufacturing processes requiring precise detection of toxic gaseous chemicals, biomedical applications requiring precise identification of accumulative gaseous species, and gas utility operations requiring high-sensitivity leak detection.

  3. Intercomparison of stratospheric water vapor observed by satellite experiments - Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment II versus Limb Infrared Monitor of the Stratosphere and Atmospheric Trace Molecule Spectroscopy

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Chiou, E. W.; Mccormick, M. P.; Mcmaster, L. R.; Chu, W. P.; Larsen, J. C.; Rind, D.; Oltmans, S.

    1993-01-01

    A comparison is made of the stratospheric water vapor measurements made by the satellite sensors of the Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment II (SAGE II), the Nimbus-7 LIMS, and the Spacelab 3 Atmospheric Trace Molecule Spectroscopy (ATMOS) experiment. It was found that, despite differences in the measurement techniques, sampling bias, and observational periods, the three experiments have disclosed a generally consistent pattern of stratospheric water vapor distribution. The only significant difference occurs at high southern altitudes in May below 18 km, where LIMS measurements were 2-3 ppmv greater than those of SAGE II and ATMOS.

  4. Level 2 processing for the imaging Fourier transform spectrometer GLORIA: derivation and validation of temperature and trace gas volume mixing ratios from calibrated dynamics mode spectra

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ungermann, J.; Blank, J.; Dick, M.; Ebersoldt, A.; Friedl-Vallon, F.; Giez, A.; Guggenmoser, T.; Höpfner, M.; Jurkat, T.; Kaufmann, M.; Kaufmann, S.; Kleinert, A.; Krämer, M.; Latzko, T.; Oelhaf, H.; Olchewski, F.; Preusse, P.; Rolf, C.; Schillings, J.; Suminska-Ebersoldt, O.; Tan, V.; Thomas, N.; Voigt, C.; Zahn, A.; Zöger, M.; Riese, M.

    2015-06-01

    The Gimballed Limb Observer for Radiance Imaging of the Atmosphere (GLORIA) is an airborne infrared limb imager combining a two-dimensional infrared detector with a Fourier transform spectrometer. It was operated aboard the new German Gulfstream G550 High Altitude LOng Range (HALO) research aircraft during the Transport And Composition in the upper Troposphere/lowermost Stratosphere (TACTS) and Earth System Model Validation (ESMVAL) campaigns in summer 2012. This paper describes the retrieval of temperature and trace gas (H2O, O3, HNO3) volume mixing ratios from GLORIA dynamics mode spectra that are spectrally sampled every 0.625 cm-1. A total of 26 integrated spectral windows are employed in a joint fit to retrieve seven targets using consecutively a fast and an accurate tabulated radiative transfer model. Typical diagnostic quantities are provided including effects of uncertainties in the calibration and horizontal resolution along the line of sight. Simultaneous in situ observations by the Basic Halo Measurement and Sensor System (BAHAMAS), the Fast In-situ Stratospheric Hygrometer (FISH), an ozone detector named Fairo, and the Atmospheric chemical Ionization Mass Spectrometer (AIMS) allow a validation of retrieved values for three flights in the upper troposphere/lowermost stratosphere region spanning polar and sub-tropical latitudes. A high correlation is achieved between the remote sensing and the in situ trace gas data, and discrepancies can to a large extent be attributed to differences in the probed air masses caused by different sampling characteristics of the instruments. This 1-D processing of GLORIA dynamics mode spectra provides the basis for future tomographic inversions from circular and linear flight paths to better understand selected dynamical processes of the upper troposphere and lowermost stratosphere.

  5. Preparation of a novel hyperbranched carbosilane-silica hybrid coating for trace amount detection by solid phase microextraction/gas chromatography.

    PubMed

    Chen, Guowen; Li, Wenjie; Zhang, Chen; Zhou, Chuanjian; Feng, Shengyu

    2012-09-21

    Phenyl-ended hyperbranched carbosilane (HBC) is synthesized and immobilized onto the inner wall of a fused silica capillary column using a sol-gel process. The hybrid coating layer formed is used as a stationary phase for gas chromatography (GC) and as an adsorption medium for solid phase microextraction (SPME). Trifluoroacetic acid, as a catalyst in this process, helps produce a homogeneous hybrid coating layer. This result is beneficial for better column chromatographic performances, such as high efficiency and high resolution. Extraction tests using the novel hybrid layer show an extraordinarily large adsorption capacity and specific adsorption behavior for aromatic compounds. A 1 ppm trace level detectability is obtained with the SPME/GC work model when both of the stationary phase and adsorption layer bear a hyperbranched structure. A large amount of phenyl groups and a low viscosity of hyperbranched polymers contribute to these valuable properties, which are important to environment and safety control, wherein detection sensitivity and special adsorption behavior are usually required. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  6. Real-time trace ambient ammonia monitor for haze prevention

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nishimura, Katsumi; Sakaguchi, Yuhei; Crosson, Eric; Wahl, Edward; Rella, Chris

    2007-05-01

    In photolithography, haze prevention is of critical importance to integrated circuit chip manufacturers. Numerous studies have established that the presence of ammonia in the photolithography tool can cause haze to form on optical surfaces resulting in permanent damage to costly deep ultra-violet optics. Ammonia is emitted into wafer fab air by various semiconductor processes including coating steps in the track and CMP. The workers in the clean room also emit a significant amount of ammonia. Chemical filters are typically used to remove airborne contamination from critical locations but their lifetime and coverage cannot offer complete protection. Therefore, constant or periodic monitoring of airborne ammonia at parts-per-trillion (ppt) levels is critical to insure the integrity of the lithography process. Real time monitoring can insure that an accidental ammonia release in the clean room is detected before any optics is damaged. We have developed a transportable, highly accurate, highly specific, real-time trace gas monitor that detects ammonia using Cavity Ring-Down Spectroscopy (CRDS). The trace gas monitor requires no calibration gas standards, and can measure ammonia with 200 ppt sensitivity in five minutes with little or no baseline drift. In addition, the high spectral resolution of CRDS makes the analyzer less susceptible to interference from other gases when compared to other detection methods. In this paper we describe the monitor, focus on its performance, discuss the results of a careful comparison with ion chromatography (IC), and present field data measured inside the aligner and the reticule stocker at a semiconductor fab.

  7. The Noble Gas Fingerprint in a UK Unconventional Gas Reservoir

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    McKavney, Rory; Gilfillan, Stuart; Györe, Domokos; Stuart, Fin

    2016-04-01

    In the last decade, there has been an unprecedented expansion in the development of unconventional hydrocarbon resources. Concerns have arisen about the effect of this new industry on groundwater quality, particularly focussing on hydraulic fracturing, the technique used to increase the permeability of the targeted tight shale formations. Methane contamination of groundwater has been documented in areas of gas production1 but conclusively linking this to fugitive emissions from unconventional hydrocarbon production has been controversial2. A lack of baseline measurements taken before drilling, and the equivocal interpretation of geochemical data hamper the determination of possible contamination. Common techniques for "fingerprinting" gas from discrete sources rely on gas composition and isotopic ratios of elements within hydrocarbons (e.g. δ13CCH4), but the original signatures can be masked by biological and gas transport processes. The noble gases (He, Ne, Ar, Kr, Xe) are inert and controlled only by their physical properties. They exist in trace quantities in natural gases and are sourced from 3 isotopically distinct environments (atmosphere, crust and mantle)3. They are decoupled from the biosphere, and provide a separate toolbox to investigate the numerous sources and migration pathways of natural gases, and have found recent utility in the CCS4 and unconventional gas5 industries. Here we present a brief overview of noble gas data obtained from a new coal bed methane (CBM) field, Central Scotland. We show that the high concentration of helium is an ideal fingerprint for tracing fugitive gas migration to a shallow groundwater. The wells show variation in the noble gas signatures that can be attributed to differences in formation water pumping from the coal seams as the field has been explored for future commercial development. Dewatering the seams alters the gas/water ratio and the degree to which noble gases degas from the formation water. Additionally the

  8. Nitrogen dioxide observations from the Geostationary Trace gas and Aerosol Sensor Optimization (GeoTASO) airborne instrument: Retrieval algorithm and measurements during DISCOVER-AQ Texas 2013

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nowlan, Caroline R.; Liu, Xiong; Leitch, James W.; Chance, Kelly; González Abad, Gonzalo; Liu, Cheng; Zoogman, Peter; Cole, Joshua; Delker, Thomas; Good, William; Murcray, Frank; Ruppert, Lyle; Soo, Daniel; Follette-Cook, Melanie B.; Janz, Scott J.; Kowalewski, Matthew G.; Loughner, Christopher P.; Pickering, Kenneth E.; Herman, Jay R.; Beaver, Melinda R.; Long, Russell W.; Szykman, James J.; Judd, Laura M.; Kelley, Paul; Luke, Winston T.; Ren, Xinrong; Al-Saadi, Jassim A.

    2016-06-01

    The Geostationary Trace gas and Aerosol Sensor Optimization (GeoTASO) airborne instrument is a test bed for upcoming air quality satellite instruments that will measure backscattered ultraviolet, visible and near-infrared light from geostationary orbit. GeoTASO flew on the NASA Falcon aircraft in its first intensive field measurement campaign during the Deriving Information on Surface Conditions from Column and Vertically Resolved Observations Relevant to Air Quality (DISCOVER-AQ) Earth Venture Mission over Houston, Texas, in September 2013. Measurements of backscattered solar radiation between 420 and 465 nm collected on 4 days during the campaign are used to determine slant column amounts of NO2 at 250 m × 250 m spatial resolution with a fitting precision of 2.2 × 1015 moleculescm-2. These slant columns are converted to tropospheric NO2 vertical columns using a radiative transfer model and trace gas profiles from the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) model. Total column NO2 from GeoTASO is well correlated with ground-based Pandora observations (r = 0.90 on the most polluted and cloud-free day of measurements and r = 0.74 overall), with GeoTASO NO2 slightly higher for the most polluted observations. Surface NO2 mixing ratios inferred from GeoTASO using the CMAQ model show good correlation with NO2 measured in situ at the surface during the campaign (r = 0.85). NO2 slant columns from GeoTASO also agree well with preliminary retrievals from the GEO-CAPE Airborne Simulator (GCAS) which flew on the NASA King Air B200 (r = 0.81, slope = 0.91). Enhanced NO2 is resolvable over areas of traffic NOx emissions and near individual petrochemical facilities.

  9. Nitrogen Dioxide Observations from the Geostationary Trace Gas and Aerosol Sensor Optimization (GeoTaso) Airborne Instrument: Retrieval Algorithm and Measurements During DISCOVER-AQ Texas 2013

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Nowlan, Caroline R.; Liu, Xiong; Leitch, James W.; Chance, Kelly; Abad, Gonzalo Gonzalez; Liu, Xiaojun; Zoogman, Peter; Cole, Joshua; Delker, Thomas; Good, William; hide

    2016-01-01

    The Geostationary Trace gas and Aerosol Sensor Optimization (GeoTASO) airborne instrument is a test bed for upcoming air quality satellite instruments that will measure backscattered ultraviolet, visible and near-infrared light from geostationary orbit. GeoTASO flew on the NASA Falcon aircraft in its first intensive field measurement campaign during the Deriving Information on Surface Conditions from Column and Vertically Resolved Observations Relevant to Air Quality (DISCOVER-AQ) Earth Venture Mission over Houston, Texas, in September 2013. Measurements of backscattered solar radiation between 420 and 465 nm collected on 4 days during the campaign are used to determine slant column amounts of NO2 at 250 m x 250 m spatial resolution with a fitting precision of 2.2 x 10(exp 15) molecules/sq cm. These slant columns are converted to tropospheric NO2 vertical columns using a radiative transfer model and trace gas profiles from the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) model. Total column NO2 from GeoTASO is well correlated with ground-based Pandora observations (r = 0.90 on the most polluted and cloud-free day of measurements and r = 0.74 overall), with GeoTASO NO2 slightly higher for the most polluted observations. Surface NO2 mixing ratios inferred from GeoTASO using the CMAQ model show good correlation with NO2 measured in situ at the surface during the campaign (r = 0.85). NO2 slant columns from GeoTASO also agree well with preliminary retrievals from the GEO-CAPE Airborne Simulator (GCAS) which flew on the NASA King Air B200 (r = 0.81, slope = 0.91). Enhanced NO2 is resolvable over areas of traffic NOx emissions and near individual petrochemical facilities.

  10. Abstracts for the Venus Geoscience Tutorial and Venus Geologic Mapping Workshop

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1989-01-01

    Abstracts and tutorial are presented from the workshop. Representative titles are: Geology of Southern Guinevere Planitia, Venus, Based on Analyses of Goldstone Radar Data; Tessera Terrain: Characteristics and Models of Origin; Venus Volcanism; Rate Estimates from Laboratory Studies of Sulfur Gas-Solid Reactions; and A Morphologic Study of Venus Ridge Belts.

  11. The Effect of Mustard Gas on Salivary Trace Metals (Zn, Mn, Cu, Mg, Mo, Sr, Cd, Ca, Pb, Rb)

    PubMed Central

    Zamani Pozveh, Elham; Seif, Ahmad; Ghalayani, Parichehr; Maleki, Abbas; Mottaghi, Ahmad

    2015-01-01

    We have determined and compared trace metals concentration in saliva taken from chemical warfare injures who were under the exposure of mustard gas and healthy subjects by means of inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) for the first time. The influence of preliminary operations on the accuracy of ICP-OES analysis, blood contamination, the number of restored teeth in the mouth, salivary flow rate, and daily variations in trace metals concentration in saliva were also considered. Unstimulated saliva was collected at 10:00–11:00 a.m. from 45 subjects in three equal groups. The first group was composed of 15 healthy subjects (group 1); the second group consisted of 15 subjects who, upon chemical warfare injuries, did not use Salbutamol spray, which they would have normally used on a regular basis (group 2); and the third group contained the same number of patients as the second group, but they had taken their regular medicine (Salbutamol spray; group 3). Our results showed that the concentration of Cu in saliva was significantly increased in the chemical warfare injures compared to healthy subjects, as follows: healthy subjects 15.3± 5.45(p.p.b.), patients (group 2) 45.77±13.65, and patients (Salbutamol spray; group 3) 29 ±8.51 (P <0.02). In contrast, zinc was significantly decreased in the patients, as follows: healthy subjects 37 ± 9.03(p.p.b.), patients (group 2) 12.2 ± 3.56, and patients (Salbutamol spray; group 3) 20.6 ±10.01 (P < 0.01). It is important to note that direct dilution of saliva samples with ultrapure nitric acid showed the optimum ICP-OES outputs. PMID:25965704

  12. Improved aqueous scrubber for collection of soluble atmospheric trace gases

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Cofer, W. R., III; Talbot, R. W.; Collins, V. G.

    1985-01-01

    A new concentration technique for the extraction and enrichment of water-soluble atmospheric trace gases has been developed. The gas scrubbing technique efficiently extracts soluble gases from a large volume flow rate of air sample into a small volume of refluxed trapping solution. The gas scrubber utilizes a small nebulizing nozzle that mixes the incoming air with an aqueous extracting solution to form an air/droplet mist. The mist provides excellent interfacial surface areas for mass transfer. The resulting mist sprays upward through the reaction chamber until it impinges upon a hydrophobic membrane that virtually blocks the passage of droplets but offers little resistance to the existing gas flow. Droplets containing the scrubbed gases coalesce on the membrane and drip back into the reservoir for further refluxing. After a suitable concentration period, the extracting solution containing the analyte can be withdrawn for analysis. The nebulization-reflex concentration technique is more efficient (maximum flow of gas through the minimum volume of extractant) than conventional bubbler/impinger gas extraction techniques and is offered as an alternative method.

  13. Analysis of minerals containing dissolved traces of the fluid phase components water and carbon dioxide

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Freund, Friedemann

    1991-01-01

    Substantial progress has been made towards a better understanding of the dissolution of common gas/fluid phase components, notably H2O and CO2, in minerals. It has been shown that the dissolution mechanisms are significantly more complex than currently believed. By judiciously combining various solid state analytical techniques, convincing evidence was obtained that traces of dissolved gas/fluid phase components undergo, at least in part, a redox conversion by which they split into reduced H2 and and reduced C on one hand and oxidized oxygen, O(-), on the other. Analysis for 2 and C as well as for any organic molecules which may form during the process of co-segregation are still impeded by the omnipresent danger of extraneous contamination. However, the presence of O(-), an unusual oxidized form of oxygen, has been proven beyond a reasonable doubt. The presence of O(-) testifies to the fact that a redox reaction must have taken place in the solid state involving the dissolved traces of gas/fluid phase components. Detailed information on the techniques used and the results obtained are given.

  14. CARBON TRACE GASES IN LAKE AND BEAVER POND ICE NEAR THOMPSON, MANITOBA, CANADA

    EPA Science Inventory

    Concentrations of CO2, CO, and CH4 were measured in beaver pond and lake ice in April 1996 near Thompson, Manitoba to derive information on possible impacts of ice melting on corresponding atmospheric trace gas concentrations. CH4 concentrations in beaver pond and lake ice ranged...

  15. Feeding the fire: tracing the mass-loading of 107 K galactic outflows with O VI absorption

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chisholm, J.; Bordoloi, R.; Rigby, J. R.; Bayliss, M.

    2018-02-01

    Galactic outflows regulate the amount of gas galaxies convert into stars. However, it is difficult to measure the mass outflows remove because they span a large range of temperatures and phases. Here, we study the rest-frame ultraviolet spectrum of a lensed galaxy at z ˜ 2.9 with prominent interstellar absorption lines from O I, tracing neutral gas, up to O VI, tracing transitional phase gas. The O VI profile mimics weak low-ionization profiles at low velocities, and strong saturated profiles at high velocities. These trends indicate that O VI gas is co-spatial with the low-ionization gas. Further, at velocities blueward of -200 km s-1 the column density of the low-ionization outflow rapidly drops while the O VI column density rises, suggesting that O VI is created as the low-ionization gas is destroyed. Photoionization models do not reproduce the observed O VI, but adequately match the low-ionization gas, indicating that the phases have different formation mechanisms. Photoionized outflows are more massive than O VI outflows for most of the observed velocities, although the O VI mass outflow rate exceeds the photoionized outflow at velocities above the galaxy's escape velocity. Therefore, most gas capable of escaping the galaxy is in a hot outflow phase. We suggest that the O VI absorption is a temporary by-product of conduction transferring mass from the photoionized phase to an unobserved hot wind, and discuss how this mass-loading impacts the observed circum-galactic medium.

  16. Measurement techniques for trace metals in coal-plant effluents: A brief review

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Singh, J. J.

    1979-01-01

    The strong features and limitations of techniques for determining trace elements in aerosols emitted from coal plants are discussed. Techniques reviewed include atomic absorption spectroscopy, charged particle scattering and activation, instrumental neutron activation analysis, gas/liquid chromatography, gas chromatographic/mass spectrometric methods, X-ray fluorescence, and charged-particle-induced X-ray emission. The latter two methods are emphasized. They provide simultaneous, sensitive multielement analyses and lend themselves readily to depth profiling. It is recommended that whenever feasible, two or more complementary techniques should be used for analyzing environmental samples.

  17. Resonant photoacoustic detection of NO2 traces with a Q-switched green laser

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Slezak, Verónica; Codnia, Jorge; Peuriot, Alejandro L.; Santiago, Guillermo

    2003-01-01

    Resonant photoacoustic detection of NO2 traces by means of a high repetition pulsed green laser is presented. The resonator is a cylindrical Pyrex glass cell with a measured Q factor 380 for the first radial mode in air at atmospheric pressure. The system is calibrated with known mixtures in dry air and a minimum detectable volume concentration of 50 parts in 109 is obtained (S/N=1). Its sensitivity allows one to detect and quantify NO2 traces in the exhaust gases of cars. Previously, the analysis of gas adsorption and desorption on the walls and of changes in the sample composition is carried out in order to minimize errors in the determination of NO2 content upon application of the extractive method. The efficiency of catalytic converters of several models of automobiles is studied and the NO2 concentration in samples from exhausts of different types of engine (gasoline, diesel, and methane gas) at idling operation are measured.

  18. Identification of tropospheric emissions sources from satellite observations: Synergistic use of HCHO, NO2, and SO2 trace gas measurements

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Marbach, T.; Beirle, S.; Khokhar, F.; Platt, U.

    2005-12-01

    We present case studies for combined HCHO, NO2, and SO2 satellite observations, derived from GOME measurements. Launched on the ERS-2 satellite in April 1995, GOME has already performed continuous operations over 8 years providing global observations of the different trace gases. In this way, satellite observations provide unique opportunities for the identifications of trace gas sources. The satellite HCHO observations provide information concerning the localization of biomass burning (intense source of HCHO). The principal biomass burning areas can be observed in the Amazon basin region and in central Africa Weaker HCHO sources (south east of the United States, northern part of the Amazon basin, and over the African tropical forest), not correlated with biomass burning, could be due to biogenic isoprene emissions. The HCHO data can be compared with NO2 and SO2 results to identify more precisely the tropospheric sources (biomass burning events, human activities, additional sources like volcanic emissions). Biomass burning are important tropospheric sources for both HCHO and NO2. Nevertheless HCHO reflects more precisely the biomass burning as it appears in all biomass burning events. NO2 correlate with HCHO over Africa (grassland fires) but not over Indonesia (forest fires). In south America, an augmentation of the NO2 concentrations can be observed with the fire shift from the forest to grassland vegetation. So there seems to be a dependence between the NO2 emissions during biomass burning and the vegetation type. Other high HCHO, SO2, and NO2 emissions can be correlated with climatic events like the El Nino in 1997, which induced dry conditions in Indonesia causing many forest fires.

  19. Miniaturized hollow fibre assisted liquid-phase microextraction and gas chromatography for determination of trace concentration of sufentanil and alfentanil in biological samples.

    PubMed

    Fakhari, Ali Reza; Tabani, Hadi; Nojavan, Saeed

    2013-07-01

    A simple and highly sensitive method that involves miniaturized hollow fibre assisted liquid-phase microextraction with gas chromatography-flame ionization detector was developed for the determination of trace concentration of sufentanil and alfentanil in biological samples. These drugs were extracted from 5 ml of aqueous solution with pH 10.0 into an organic extracting solvent (1-octanol) impregnated in the pores and lumen of a hollow fibre. After extraction for a prescribed time, 2.0 µl of the extraction solvent was injected directly in to the GC injection port. Under the optimized conditions, (1-octanol as extracting solvent, stirring rate of 700 rpm, 15% (w/v) salt addition, pH 10.0 and 25 min sampling time at 50 °C) large enrichment factors of 535 and 420 were achieved for sufentanil and alfentanil, respectively. Dynamic linear ranges were in the range of 0.05 to 500 ng/ml for sufentanil and 0.1 to 500 ng/ml for alfentanil. Limits of detection 0.01 and 0.02 ng/ml were obtained for sufentanil and alfentanil, respectively. The percent relative intra-day and inter-day standard deviations were found to be less than 8.4% (n = 5). Finally, this method was successfully applied for the separation, preconcentration and determination of trace concentration of sufentanil and alfentanil in plasma and urine samples. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  20. Methodology Used for Gas Analysis and Control of Trace Chemical Contaminants at a Hyperbaric Facility. 1. Gas Sampling

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1988-12-01

    made using a gas sampling valve. All instruments were calibrated using gravimetric standards certified to t 1-2% relative of stated value ( Air Products and Chemicals , Inc ., Allentown...cannister - 985410 7. High Purity Gas Cylinder Regulators - several sources Air Products and Chemicals , Inc . P.O. Box 1536 Washington, DC 20013 (301

  1. Spatial Variability of Trace Gases During DISCOVER-AQ: Planning for Geostationary Observations of Atmospheric Composition

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Follette-Cook, Melanie B.; Pickering, K.; Crawford, J.; Appel, W.; Diskin, G.; Fried, A.; Loughner, C.; Pfister, G.; Weinheimer, A.

    2015-01-01

    Results from an in-depth analysis of trace gas variability in MD indicated that the variability in this region was large enough to be observable by a TEMPO-like instrument. The variability observed in MD is relatively similar to the other three campaigns with a few exceptions: CO variability in CA was much higher than in the other regions; HCHO variability in CA and CO was much lower; MD showed the lowest variability in NO2All model simulations do a reasonable job simulating O3 variability. For CO, the CACO simulations largely under over estimate the variability in the observations. The variability in HCHO is underestimated for every campaign. NO2 variability is slightly overestimated in MD, more so in CO. The TX simulation underestimates the variability in each trace gas. This is most likely due to missing emissions sources (C. Loughner, manuscript in preparation).Future Work: Where reasonable, we will use these model outputs to further explore the resolvability from space of these key trace gases using analyses of tropospheric column amounts relative to satellite precision requirements, similar to Follette-Cook et al. (2015).

  2. TraceContract

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kavelund, Klaus; Barringer, Howard

    2012-01-01

    TraceContract is an API (Application Programming Interface) for trace analysis. A trace is a sequence of events, and can, for example, be generated by a running program, instrumented appropriately to generate events. An event can be any data object. An example of a trace is a log file containing events that a programmer has found important to record during a program execution. Trace - Contract takes as input such a trace together with a specification formulated using the API and reports on any violations of the specification, potentially calling code (reactions) to be executed when violations are detected. The software is developed as an internal DSL (Domain Specific Language) in the Scala programming language. Scala is a relatively new programming language that is specifically convenient for defining such internal DSLs due to a number of language characteristics. This includes Scala s elegant combination of object-oriented and functional programming, a succinct notation, and an advanced type system. The DSL offers a combination of data-parameterized state machines and temporal logic, which is novel. As an extension of Scala, it is a very expressive and convenient log file analysis framework.

  3. Interpretation of Trace Gas Data Using Inverse Methods and Global Chemical Transport Models

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Prinn, Ronald G.

    1997-01-01

    This is a theoretical research project aimed at: (1) development, testing, and refining of inverse methods for determining regional and global transient source and sink strengths for long lived gases important in ozone depletion and climate forcing, (2) utilization of inverse methods to determine these source/sink strengths which use the NCAR/Boulder CCM2-T42 3-D model and a global 3-D Model for Atmospheric Transport and Chemistry (MATCH) which is based on analyzed observed wind fields (developed in collaboration by MIT and NCAR/Boulder), (3) determination of global (and perhaps regional) average hydroxyl radical concentrations using inverse methods with multiple titrating gases, and, (4) computation of the lifetimes and spatially resolved destruction rates of trace gases using 3-D models. Important goals include determination of regional source strengths of methane, nitrous oxide, and other climatically and chemically important biogenic trace gases and also of halocarbons restricted by the Montreal Protocol and its follow-on agreements and hydrohalocarbons used as alternatives to the restricted halocarbons.

  4. Spinel from Apollo 12 Olivine Mare Basalts: Chemical Systematics of Selected Major, Minor, and Trace Elements

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Papike, J. J.; Karner, J. M.; Shearer, C. K.; Spilde, M. N.

    2002-01-01

    Spinels from Apollo 12 Olivine basalts have been studied by Electron and Ion microprobe techniques. The zoning trends of major, minor and trace elements provide new insights into the conditions under which planetary basalts form. Additional information is contained in the original extended abstract.

  5. The ATTA-Hefei Instrument for Radioactive Noble-gas Dating

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hu, S.; Cheng, C.; Cheng, G.; Sun, Y. R.; Tu, L.; Yang, G.

    2013-12-01

    Long-lived noble-gas isotopes 85Kr (10.8 y), 39Ar (269 y) and 81Kr (229 ky) are ideal tracers for dating environmental samples such as groundwater and ice. Together with 14C, these nuclides can be used to cover the whole range of 100-106 y. Atom Trap Trace Analysis (ATTA) is an emerging method for the analysis of these isotopes at an isotopic abundance level as low as 10^-16 [1,2]. The ATTA instrument built in Hefei, China, can determine the isotopic abundances of 85Kr and 81Kr with typically 5-10% accuracy using krypton gas samples of a few micro-liters (STP) krypton gas [3]. The krypton gas sample can be extracted from several liters of air using a distillation-chromatograph setup with a typical efficiency of 85%, while the air sample can be extracted from groundwater or ices. The typical sample size for ATTA measurement is 100L groundwater or 40Kg ices. One such ATTA beamline can handle about 100 samples per year. [1] Chen, C. Y. et al. Ultrasensitive isotope trace analyses with a magneto-optical trap. Science 286, 1139-1141 (1999). [2] Jiang, W. et al. 39Ar detection at the 10-16 isotopic abundance level with atom trap trace analysis. Phys. Rev. Lett. 106, 103001 (2011). [3] Yang, G. -M. et al. Analysis of 85Kr: a comparison at the 10-14 level using micro-liter samples, Sci. Rep. 3, 1596 (2013). Relative uncertainty of the determined 85Kr abundance by the ATTA-Hefei instrument.

  6. Are CO Observations of Interstellar Clouds Tracing the H2?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Federrath, Christoph; Glover, S. C. O.; Klessen, R. S.; Mac Low, M.

    2010-01-01

    Interstellar clouds are commonly observed through the emission of rotational transitions from carbon monoxide (CO). However, the abundance ratio of CO to molecular hydrogen (H2), which is the most abundant molecule in molecular clouds is only about 10-4. This raises the important question of whether the observed CO emission is actually tracing the bulk of the gas in these clouds, and whether it can be used to derive quantities like the total mass of the cloud, the gas density distribution function, the fractal dimension, and the velocity dispersion--size relation. To evaluate the usability and accuracy of CO as a tracer for H2 gas, we generate synthetic observations of hydrodynamical models that include a detailed chemical network to follow the formation and photo-dissociation of H2 and CO. These three-dimensional models of turbulent interstellar cloud formation self-consistently follow the coupled thermal, dynamical and chemical evolution of 32 species, with a particular focus on H2 and CO (Glover et al. 2009). We find that CO primarily traces the dense gas in the clouds, however, with a significant scatter due to turbulent mixing and self-shielding of H2 and CO. The H2 probability distribution function (PDF) is well-described by a log-normal distribution. In contrast, the CO column density PDF has a strongly non-Gaussian low-density wing, not at all consistent with a log-normal distribution. Centroid velocity statistics show that CO is more intermittent than H2, leading to an overestimate of the velocity scaling exponent in the velocity dispersion--size relation. With our systematic comparison of H2 and CO data from the numerical models, we hope to provide a statistical formula to correct for the bias of CO observations. CF acknowledges financial support from a Kade Fellowship of the American Museum of Natural History.

  7. The environmental geochemistry of trace elements and naturally radionuclides in a coal gangue brick-making plant.

    PubMed

    Zhou, Chuncai; Liu, Guijian; Cheng, Siwei; Fang, Ting; Lam, Paul K S

    2014-08-28

    An investigation focused on the transformation and distribution behaviors of trace elements and natural radionuclides around a coal gangue brick plant was conducted. Simultaneous sampling of coal gangue, brick, fly ash and flue gas were implemented. Soil, soybean and earthworm samples around the brick plant were also collected for comprehensive ecological assessment. During the firing process, trace elements were released and redistributed in the brick, fly ash and the flue gas. Elements can be divided into two groups according to their releasing characteristics, high volatile elements (release ratio higher than 30%) are represented by Cd, Cu, Hg, Pb, Se and Sn, which emitted mainly in flue gas that would travel and deposit at the northeast and southwest direction around the brick plant. Cadmium, Ni and Pb are bio-accumulated in the soybean grown on the study area, which indicates potential health impacts in case of human consumption. The high activity of natural radionuclides in the atmosphere around the plant as well as in the made-up bricks will increase the health risk of respiratory system.

  8. The Environmental Geochemistry of Trace Elements and Naturally Radionuclides in a Coal Gangue Brick-Making Plant

    PubMed Central

    Zhou, Chuncai; Liu, Guijian; Cheng, Siwei; Fang, Ting; Lam, Paul K. S.

    2014-01-01

    An investigation focused on the transformation and distribution behaviors of trace elements and natural radionuclides around a coal gangue brick plant was conducted. Simultaneous sampling of coal gangue, brick, fly ash and flue gas were implemented. Soil, soybean and earthworm samples around the brick plant were also collected for comprehensive ecological assessment. During the firing process, trace elements were released and redistributed in the brick, fly ash and the flue gas. Elements can be divided into two groups according to their releasing characteristics, high volatile elements (release ratio higher than 30%) are represented by Cd, Cu, Hg, Pb, Se and Sn, which emitted mainly in flue gas that would travel and deposit at the northeast and southwest direction around the brick plant. Cadmium, Ni and Pb are bio-accumulated in the soybean grown on the study area, which indicates potential health impacts in case of human consumption. The high activity of natural radionuclides in the atmosphere around the plant as well as in the made-up bricks will increase the health risk of respiratory system. PMID:25164252

  9. Winter measurements of trace gas and aerosol composition at a rural site in southern ontario

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Daum, P. H.; Kelly, T. J.; Tanner, R. L.; Tang, X.; Anlauf, K.; Bottenheim, J.; Brice, K. A.; Wiebe, H. A.

    This paper reports the results of continuous measurements of concentrations of trace gas and aerosol species at Powassan, Ontario, a rural location in southern Ontario, from 20 January to 24 February 1984. The measurements included aerosol H + , NH 4+, Na +, Ca 2+ , NO 3-, SO 42- and Cl -, gaseous SO 2, NO, NO' y; ( = NO + NO2 + PAN + HNO3), HNO 3, PAN, and O 3. Average values of concentrations for key species during the project were: SO 2, 7.3 ppb; NO y, 7.5 ppb; HNO 3, 0.85 ppb; O 3, 33 ppb; NH 4+ 1.5 ppb; NO 3-, 0.4 ppb; and SO 42-, 0.9 ppb. Concentrations of primary pollutants (e.g. SO 2) were typically much higher, and concentrations of secondary species (e.g. SO 42-) typically lower, than observed at this location in summer. However, clear-air t- NO 3-/SO 42- ratios averaged 5-10 times higher in winter than in summer which suggests that HNO 3 is a more important source of atmospheric acidity, relative to SO 42- aerosol, in winter than in summer. Pollutant concentrations were highly variable; back trajectory calculations indicate that periods of high concentrations of both primary and secondary species were typically associated with air-mass back trajectories from the southern sectors while periods of low concentrations of secondary species were associated with back trajectories from the north. Comparison of these measurements with those at other locations suggests that concentrations at Powassan were characteristic of those prevailing over a much larger, possibly regional, area.

  10. Nitrogen dioxide observations from the Geostationary Trace ...

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    The Geostationary Trace gas and Aerosol Sensor Optimization (GeoTASO) airborne instrument is a test bed for upcoming air quality satellite instruments that will measure backscattered ultraviolet, visible and near-infrared light from geostationary orbit. GeoTASO flew on the NASA Falcon aircraft in its first intensive field measurement campaign during the Deriving Information on Surface Conditions from Column and Vertically Resolved Observations Relevant to Air Quality (DISCOVER-AQ) Earth Venture Mission over Houston, Texas, in September 2013. Measurements of backscattered solar radiation between 420 and 465 nm collected on 4 days during the campaign are used to determine slant column amounts of NO2 at 250 m  ×  250 m spatial resolution with a fitting precision of 2.2 × 1015 moleculescm−2. These slant columns are converted to tropospheric NO2 vertical columns using a radiative transfer model and trace gas profiles from the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) model. Total column NO2 from GeoTASO is well correlated with ground-based Pandora observations (r = 0.90 on the most polluted and cloud-free day of measurements and r = 0.74 overall), with GeoTASO NO2 slightly higher for the most polluted observations. Surface NO2 mixing ratios inferred from GeoTASO using the CMAQ model show good correlation with NO2 measured in situ at the surface during the campaign (r = 0.85). NO2 slant columns from GeoTASO also agree well with prelim

  11. Lupus Disks with Faint CO Isotopologues: Low Gas/Dust or High Carbon Depletion?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Miotello, Anna

    2017-11-01

    With the advent of ALMA, complete surveys of gas and dust in protoplanetary disks are being carried out in different star forming regions. In particular, continuum emission is used to trace the large (mm-sized) dust grains and CO isotopologues are observed in order to trace the bulk of the gas. The attempt is to simultaneously constrain the gas and dust disk mass as well as the gas/dust mass ratio. In this presentation I will present the Lupus disk survey observations, analyzed with thermo-chemical disk models, including radiative transfer, CO isotope-selective processes and freeze-out. The main result is that CO-based gas masses are very low, often smaller than Jupiter Mass. Moreover, gas/dust mass ratios are much lower than value of 100 found in the ISM, being mainly between 1 and 10. This result can be interpreted either as rapid loss of gas, or as a chemical effect removing carbon from CO and locking it into more complex molecules or in larger bodies. Previous data cannot distinguish between the two scenarios (except for sources with detected HD lines), but new Cycle 4 observations of hydrocarbon lines will be presented and they can help to calibrate CO-based gas masses and to constrain disk gas masses.

  12. TRACE GAS EXCHANGE IN THE COLORADO SHORTGRASS STEPPE UNDER ELEVATED CO2. (R824993)

    EPA Science Inventory

    The perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Concl...

  13. Novel Helmholtz-based photoacoustic sensor for trace gas detection at ppm level using GaInAsSb/GaAlAsSb DFB lasers.

    PubMed

    Mattiello, Mario; Niklès, Marc; Schilt, Stéphane; Thévenaz, Luc; Salhi, Abdelmajid; Barat, David; Vicet, Aurore; Rouillard, Yves; Werner, Ralph; Koeth, Johannes

    2006-04-01

    A new and compact photoacoustic sensor for trace gas detection in the 2-2.5 microm atmospheric window is reported. Both the development of antimonide-based DFB lasers with singlemode emission in this spectral range and a novel design of photoacoustic cell adapted to the characteristics of these lasers are discussed. The laser fabrication was made in two steps. The structure was firstly grown by molecular beam epitaxy then a metallic DFB grating was processed. The photoacoustic cell is based on a Helmholtz resonator that was designed in order to fully benefit from the highly divergent emission of the antimonide laser. An optimized modulation scheme based on wavelength modulation of the laser source combined with second harmonic detection has been implemented for efficient suppression of wall noise. Using a 2211 nm laser, sub-ppm detection limit has been demonstrated for ammonia.

  14. Knudsen cell: Investigations about the uptake of important traces gases on ambient airborne mineral dust

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Horn, Sabrina; Herrmann, Hartmut

    2013-04-01

    Mineral dust constitutes one of the largest mass fractions of natural aerosol. Its emission is estimated between 800 - 2000 Tg/a]. The dust is emitted through sand and dust storms in the arid regions of our planet, in particular by the great desserts such as the Sahara. The complex chemical composition of mineral dust is similar to crust material, because the dust is produced by soil erosion. The main components of mineral dust are SiO2 and Al2O3, whereas the active oxides (Fe2O3, TiO2) show some variety in content due to the dust source region. Mineral dust particles can be transported over several 1000 km and during its transport the surface can be changed by the uptake of water vapor and trace gases. On such modified surfaces homo- and heterogeneous reactions can occur. Trace gas uptakes play an important role in atmospheric chemistry as sinks or sources for several gaseous species. Hence, it is necessary to study these reactions. Among several experimental setups, the Knudsen cell is one of the promising tools to study reactive uptakes from the gas phase and the release of products formed by dust surface-mediated reactions. The Knudsen cell, implemented by Golden et al. in 1975, is a high vacuum flow reactor operating under molecular flow conditions, i.e., gas-wall collisions are highly preferred over gas-gas collisions. Despite several Knudsen cell studies examining the reaction between different traces gases and model dust surfaces constituted of not more than a few components, no measurements utilizing collected ambient mineral dust are done so far. For a better understanding of the chemistry on mineral dust surfaces gas uptake measurements will be done with a Knudsen cell. The first measurements are done with isopropanol on TiO2. Afterwards there are studies with different substrates like, Al2O3 (α- and γ-phase), FeO2, Arizona test dust, air collected mineral dust from the Cap Verde islands. In the beginning SO2, NO2 and HNO3 will be used.

  15. Method and apparatus for detecting and measuring trace impurities in flowing gases

    DOEpatents

    Taylor, Gene W.; Dowdy, Edward J.

    1979-01-01

    Trace impurities in flowing gases may be detected and measured by a dynamic atomic molecular emission spectrograph utilizing as its energy source the energy transfer reactions of metastable species, atomic or molecular, with the impurities in the flowing gas. An electronically metastable species which maintains a stable afterglow is formed and mixed with the flowing gas in a region downstream from and separate from the region in which the metastable species is formed. Impurity levels are determined quantitatively by the measurement of line and/or band intensity as a function of concentration employing emission spectroscopic techniques.

  16. Broadband high-resolution multi-species CARS in gas-filled hollow-core photonic crystal fiber.

    PubMed

    Trabold, Barbara M; Hupfer, Robert J R; Abdolvand, Amir; St J Russell, Philip

    2017-09-01

    We report the use of coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy (CARS) in gas-filled hollow-core photonic crystal fiber (HC-PCF) for trace gas detection. The long optical path-lengths yield a 60 dB increase in the signal level compared with free-space arrangements. This enables a relatively weak supercontinuum (SC) to be used as Stokes seed, along with a ns pump pulse, paving the way for broadband (>4000  cm -1 ) single-shot CARS with an unprecedented resolution of ∼100  MHz. A kagomé-style HC-PCF provides broadband guidance, and, by operating close to the pressure-tunable zero dispersion wavelength, we can ensure simultaneous phase-matching of all gas species. We demonstrate simultaneous measurement of the concentrations of multiple trace gases in a gas sample introduced into the core of the HC-PCF.

  17. Trace Gas Quantification with Small Unmanned Aerial Systems

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schuyler, T. J.; Guzman, M. I.; Bailey, S.; Jacob, J.

    2017-12-01

    Measurements of atmospheric composition are generally performed with advanced instrumentation from ground stations using tall towers and weather balloons or with manned aircraft. Unmanned aerial systems (UAS) are a promising technology for atmospheric monitoring of trace atmospheric gases as they can bridge the gap between the regions of the atmospheric boundary layer measured by ground stations and aircraft. However, in general, the sophisticated instrumentation required for these measurements are heavy, preventing its deployment with small UAS. In order to successfully detect and quantify these gases, sensor packages aboard UAS must be lightweight, have low-power consumption, and possess limits of detection on the ppm scale or below with reasonably fast response times. Thus, a new generation of portable instrument is being developed in this work to meet these requirements employing new sensing packages. The cross sensitivity of these sensors to several gases is examined through laboratory testing of the instrument under variable environmental conditions prior to performing field measurements. Datasets include timestamps with position, temperature, relative humidity, pressure, along with variable mixing ratio values of important greenhouse gases. The work will present an analysis of the results gathered during authorized flights performed during the second CLOUD-MAP§ field campaign held in June 2017. §CLOUD-MAP: Collaboration Leading Operational UAS Development for Meteorology and Atmospheric Physics, a 4-year NSF funded effort.

  18. Volcanic gas

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    McGee, Kenneth A.; Gerlach, Terrance M.

    1995-01-01

    In Roman mythology, Vulcan, the god of fire, was said to have made tools and weapons for the other gods in his workshop at Olympus. Throughout history, volcanoes have frequently been identified with Vulcan and other mythological figures. Scientists now know that the “smoke" from volcanoes, once attributed by poets to be from Vulcan’s forge, is actually volcanic gas naturally released from both active and many inactive volcanoes. The molten rock, or magma, that lies beneath volcanoes and fuels eruptions, contains abundant gases that are released to the surface before, during, and after eruptions. These gases range from relatively benign low-temperature steam to thick hot clouds of choking sulfurous fume jetting from the earth. Water vapor is typically the most abundant volcanic gas, followed by carbon dioxide and sulfur dioxide. Other volcanic gases are hydrogen sulfide, hydrochloric acid, hydrogen, carbon monoxide, hydrofluoric acid, and other trace gases and volatile metals. The concentrations of these gas species can vary considerably from one volcano to the next.

  19. Trace gas and vegetation feedback responses of Alaskan tussock tundra to long-term snow depth manipulations

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ebbs, L. M.; Taneva, L.; Sullivan, P.; Welker, J. M.

    2009-12-01

    Changes in the precipitation and temperature regimes in Northern Alaska are manifesting themselves through shifts in sea ice, vegetation traits, animal migration timing and hydrologic dynamics. Changes in precipitation and soil temperature result in changes in plant mineral nutrition, soil nutrient availability, trace gas exchanges and differential nutrient acquisition strategies by arctic plants. In this study, we report on the extent to which long-term increases in snow depth, along with reductions in snow depth alter the magnitudes and pattern of CO2 exchange, soil properties and vegetation traits. A doubling of snow depth (from ~0.5 to ~1.0m) results in a delay of the growing season by ~ 2 weeks, however, by peak season, the rates of CO2 exchange are 50% higher in areas which had experienced deeper snow depth levels. To the contrary, long-term reductions in snow depth results in accelerated rates of plant phenology, however CO2 exchange rates at peak season are 30% less than those areas under ambient snow cover in the preceding winter. Reduced snow depth areas had the coldest winter soil temperatures while the deeper areas had the warmest winter soil temperatures, which may partially explain the summer CO2 fluxes indirectly via different rates of winter N mineralization and differences in leaf N properties. Our results indicate that shifting fall, winter and spring when snow is the primary form of precipitation, may have profound effects on tussock tundra systems.

  20. NASA Patent Abstracts bibliography: A continuing bibliography. Section 1: Abstracts (supplement 21) Abstracts

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1982-01-01

    Abstracts are cited for 87 patents and applications introduced into the NASA scientific and technical information system during the period of January 1982 through June 1982. Each entry consists of a citation, an abstract, and in mose cases, a key illustration selected from the patent or patent application.

  1. Grounding Abstractness: Abstract Concepts and the Activation of the Mouth

    PubMed Central

    Borghi, Anna M.; Zarcone, Edoardo

    2016-01-01

    One key issue for theories of cognition is how abstract concepts, such as freedom, are represented. According to the WAT (Words As social Tools) proposal, abstract concepts activate both sensorimotor and linguistic/social information, and their acquisition modality involves the linguistic experience more than the acquisition of concrete concepts. We report an experiment in which participants were presented with abstract and concrete definitions followed by concrete and abstract target-words. When the definition and the word matched, participants were required to press a key, either with the hand or with the mouth. Response times and accuracy were recorded. As predicted, we found that abstract definitions and abstract words yielded slower responses and more errors compared to concrete definitions and concrete words. More crucially, there was an interaction between the target-words and the effector used to respond (hand, mouth). While responses with the mouth were overall slower, the advantage of the hand over the mouth responses was more marked with concrete than with abstract concepts. The results are in keeping with grounded and embodied theories of cognition and support the WAT proposal, according to which abstract concepts evoke linguistic-social information, hence activate the mouth. The mechanisms underlying the mouth activation with abstract concepts (re-enactment of acquisition experience, or re-explanation of the word meaning, possibly through inner talk) are discussed. To our knowledge this is the first behavioral study demonstrating with real words that the advantage of the hand over the mouth is more marked with concrete than with abstract concepts, likely because of the activation of linguistic information with abstract concepts. PMID:27777563

  2. Trace anesthetic vapors in hospital operating-room environments

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Choi-Lao, A.T.

    1981-05-01

    This study investigated concentrations of halothane anesthetic vapors in the operating rooms of two hospitals in the Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, area. Air samples, taken by active charcoal tubes and dosimeter badges, were analyzed by a gas chromatographic technique. Readings of 71 samples taken from hospital A and 65 samples from hospital B ranged from 1.0 to 29.4 parts per billion (ppb) for the active period and 0.1 to 3.8 ppb for the inactive period. All samples showed trace concentrations of halothane, but were well below the recommended maximal level.

  3. Trace analysis of impurities in bulk gases by gas chromatography-pulsed discharge helium ionization detection with "heart-cutting" technique.

    PubMed

    Weijun, Yao

    2007-10-12

    A method has been developed for the detection of low-nL/L-level impurities in bulk gases such as H(2), O(2), Ar, N(2), He, methane, ethylene and propylene, respectively. The solution presented here is based upon gas chromatography-pulsed discharge helium ionization detection (GC-PDHID) coupled with three two-position valves, one two-way solenoid valve and four packed columns. During the operation, the moisture and heavy compounds are first back-flushed via a pre-column. Then the trace impurities (except CO(2) which is diverted to a separate analytical column for separation and detection) together with the matrix enter onto a main column, followed by the heart-cut of the impurities onto a longer analytical column for complete separation. Finally the detection is performed by PDHID. This method has been applied to different bulk gases and the applicability of detecting impurities in H(2), Ar, and N(2) are herewith demonstrated. As an example, the resulting detection limit of 100 nL/L and a dynamic range of 100-1000 nL/L have been obtained using an Ar sample containing methane.

  4. Trace Level Determination of Mesityl Oxide and Diacetone Alcohol in Atazanavir Sulfate Drug Substance by a Gas Chromatography Method.

    PubMed

    Raju, K V S N; Pavan Kumar, K S R; Siva Krishna, N; Madhava Reddy, P; Sreenivas, N; Kumar Sharma, Hemant; Himabindu, G; Annapurna, N

    2016-01-01

    A capillary gas chromatography method with a short run time, using a flame ionization detector, has been developed for the quantitative determination of trace level analysis of mesityl oxide and diacetone alcohol in the atazanavir sulfate drug substance. The chromatographic method was achieved on a fused silica capillary column coated with 5% diphenyl and 95% dimethyl polysiloxane stationary phase (Rtx-5, 30 m x 0.53 mm x 5.0 µm). The run time was 20 min employing programmed temperature with a split mode (1:5) and was validated for specificity, sensitivity, precision, linearity, and accuracy. The detection and quantitation limits obtained for mesityl oxide and diacetone alcohol were 5 µg/g and 10 µg/g, respectively, for both of the analytes. The method was found to be linear in the range between 10 µg/g and 150 µg/g with a correlation coefficient greater than 0.999, and the average recoveries obtained in atazanavir sulfate were between 102.0% and 103.7%, respectively, for mesityl oxide and diacetone alcohol. The developed method was found to be robust and rugged. The detailed experimental results are discussed in this research paper.

  5. Trace gas flux from container production of woody landscape plants

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    The agriculture industry is a large source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions which are widely believed to be causing increased global temperatures. Reduction of these emissions has been heavily researched, with most of the work focusing on row crop and animal production sectors. Little attention has...

  6. Compact Multi-Gas Monitor for Life Support Systems Control in Space: Evaluation Under Realistic Environmental Conditions

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Delgado, Jesus; Chullen, Cinda; Mendoza, Edgar

    2014-01-01

    Advanced space life support systems require lightweight, low-power, durable sensors for monitoring critical gas components. A luminescence-based optical flow-through cell to monitor carbon dioxide, oxygen, and humidity has been developed and was demonstrated using bench top instrumentation under environmental conditions relevant to portable life support systems, including initially pure oxygen atmosphere, pressure range from 3.5 to 14.7 psi, temperature range from 50 F to 150 F, and humidity from dry to 100% RH and under liquid water saturation. This paper presents the first compact readout unit for these optical sensors, designed for the volume, power, and weight restrictions of a spacesuit portable Life support system and the analytical characterization of the optical sensors interrogated by the novel optoelectronic system. Trace gas contaminants in a space suit, originating from hardware and material off-gassing and crew member metabolism, are from many chemical families. The result is a gas mix much more complex than the pure oxygen fed into the spacesuit, which may interfere with gas sensor readings. The paper also presents an evaluation of optical sensor performance when exposed to the most significant trace gases reported to be found in spacesuits. The studies were conducted with the spacecraft maximum allowable concentrations for those trace gases and the calculated 8-hr. concentrations resulting from having no trace contaminant control system in the ventilation loop. Finally, a profile of temperature, pressure, humidity, and gas composition for a typical EVA mission has been defined, and the performance of sensors operated repeatedly under simulated EVA mission conditions has been studied.

  7. Hollow fibers for compact infrared gas sensors

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lambrecht, A.; Hartwig, S.; Herbst, J.; Wöllenstein, J.

    2008-02-01

    Hollow fibers can be used for compact infrared gas sensors. The guided light is absorbed by the gas introduced into the hollow core. High sensitivity and a very small sampling volume can be achieved depending on fiber parameters i.e. attenuation, flexibility, and gas exchange rates. Different types of infrared hollow fibers including photonic bandgap fibers were characterized using quantum cascade lasers and thermal radiation sources. Obtained data are compared with available product specifications. Measurements with a compact fiber based ethanol sensor are compared with a system simulation. First results on the detection of trace amounts of the explosive material TATP using hollow fibers and QCL will be shown.

  8. Ultra-sensitive Trace-Water Optical Sensor with In situ- synthesized Metal-Organic Framework in Glass Paper.

    PubMed

    Ohira, Shin-Ichi; Nakamura, Nao; Endo, Masaaki; Miki, Yusuke; Hirose, Yasuo; Toda, Kei

    2018-01-01

    Monitoring of trace water in industrial gases is strongly recommended because contaminants cause serious problems during use, especially in the semiconductor industry. An ultra-sensitive trace-water sensor was developed with an in situ-synthesized metal-organic framework as the sensing material. The sample gas is passed through the sensing membrane and efficiently and rapidly collected by the sensing material in the newly designed gas collection/detection cell. The sensing membrane, glass paper impregnated with copper 1,3,5-benzenetricarboxylate (Cu-BTC), is also newly developed. The amount and density of the sensing material in the sensing membrane must be well balanced to achieve rapid and sensitive responses. In the present study, Cu-BTC was synthesized in situ in glass paper. The developed system gave high sensing performances with a limit of detection (signal/noise ratio = 3) of 9 parts per billion by volume (ppbv) H 2 O and a 90% response time of 86 s for 200 ppbv H 2 O. The reproducibility of the responses within and between lots had relative standard deviations for 500 ppbv H 2 O of 0.8% (n = 10) and 1.5% (n = 3), respectively. The long-term (2 weeks) stability was 7.3% for 400 ppbv H 2 O and one-year continuous monitoring test showed the sensitivity change of <∼3% before and after the study. Furthermore, the system response was in good agreement with the response achieved in cavity ring-down spectroscopy. These performances are sufficient for monitoring trace water in industrial gases. The integrated system with light and gas transparent structure for gas collection/absorbance detection can also be used for other target gases, using specific metal-organic frameworks.

  9. Validation of Global Climatologies of Trace Gases Using NASA Global Tropospheric Experiment (GTE) Data

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Courchaine, Brian; Venable, Jessica C.

    1995-01-01

    Methane is an important trace gas because it is a greenhouse gas that affects the oxidative capacity of the atmosphere. It is produced from biological and anthropogenic sources, and is increasing globally at a rate of approximately 0.6% per year [Climate Change 1992, IPCC]. By using National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/Climate Monitoring and Diagnostics Laboratory (NOAA/CMDL) ground station data, a global climatology of methane values was produced. Unfortunately, because the NOAA/CMDL ground stations are so sparse, the global climatology is low resolution. In order to compensate for this low resolution data, it was compared to in-situ flight data obtained from the NASA Global Tropospheric Experiment (GTE). The smoothed ground station data correlated well with the flight data. Thus, for the first time it is shown that the smoothing process used to make global contours of methane using the ground stations is a plausible way to approximate global atmospheric concentrations of the gas. These verified climatologies can be used for testing large-scale models of chemical production, destruction, and transport. This project develops the groundwork for further research in building global climatologies from sparse ground station data and studying the transport and distribution of trace gases.

  10. Where is OH and Does It Trace the Dark Molecular Gas (DMG)?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Di; Tang, Ningyu; Nguyen, Hiep; Dawson, J. R.; Heiles, Carl; Xu, Duo; Pan, Zhichen; Goldsmith, Paul F.; Gibson, Steven J.; Murray, Claire E.; Robishaw, Tim; McClure-Griffiths, N. M.; Dickey, John; Pineda, Jorge; Stanimirović, Snežana; Bronfman, L.; Troland, Thomas; PRIMO Collaboration

    2018-03-01

    Hydroxyl (OH) is expected to be abundant in diffuse interstellar molecular gas because it forms along with H2 under similar conditions and forms within a similar extinction range. We have analyzed absorption measurements of OH at 1665 MHz and 1667 MHz toward 44 extragalactic continuum sources, together with the J = 1–0 transitions of 12CO, 13CO, and C18O, and the J = 2–1 transition of 12CO. The excitation temperatures of OH were found to follow a modified lognormal distribution f({T}ex})\\propto \\tfrac{1}{\\sqrt{2π }σ }\\exp ≤ft[-\\tfrac{{[{ln}({T}ex})-{ln}(3.4{{K}})]}2}{2{σ }2}\\right], the peak of which is close to the temperature of the Galactic emission background (CMB+synchrotron). In fact, 90% of the OH has excitation temperatures within 2 K of the Galactic background at the same location, providing a plausible explanation for the apparent difficulty of mapping this abundant molecule in emission. The opacities of OH were found to be small and to peak around 0.01. For gas at intermediate extinctions (AV ∼ 0.05–2 mag), the detection rate of OH with a detection limit N(OH) ≃ 1012 cm‑2 is approximately independent of AV. We conclude that OH is abundant in the diffuse molecular gas and OH absorption is a good tracer of “dark molecular gas (DMG).” The measured fraction of DMG depends on the assumed detection threshold of the CO data set. The next generation of highly sensitive low-frequency radio telescopes, such as FAST and SKA, will make feasible the systematic inventory of diffuse molecular gas through decomposing, in velocity, the molecular (e.g., OH and CH) absorption profiles toward background continuum sources with numbers exceeding what is currently available by orders of magnitude.

  11. Gas: MedlinePlus Health Topic

    MedlinePlus

    ... Foods That May Cause Gas (International Foundation for Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders) ... References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine) Article: Daikenchuto for reducing postoperative ileus in patients ...

  12. Measurement of fine particulate and gas-phase species during the New Year's fireworks 2005 in Mainz, Germany

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Drewnick, Frank; Hings, Silke S.; Curtius, Joachim; Eerdekens, Gunter; Williams, Jonathan

    The chemical composition and chemically resolved size distributions of fine aerosol particles were measured at high time resolution (5 min) with a time-of-flight aerosol mass spectrometer (TOF-AMS) during the New Year's 2005 fireworks in Mainz, central Germany. In addition, particle number concentrations and trace gas concentrations were measured using a condensation particle counter (CPC) and a proton transfer reaction mass spectrometer (PTR-MS). The main non-refractory components of the firework aerosol were potassium, sulfate, total organics and chloride. Increased trace gas mixing ratios of methanol, acetonitrile, acetone and acetaldehyde were observed. Aerosol nitrate and ammonium concentrations were not significantly affected by the fireworks as well as the measured aromatic trace gases. The sub-micron aerosol concentrations peaked about 20 min after midnight with total mass concentrations larger than 600 μg m -3. The trace gas concentrations peaked about 30 min later. Using the sulfur-to-potassium concentration ratio measured in another fireworks aerosol, it was for the first time possible to estimate the relative ionization efficiency of aerosol potassium, measured with the TOF-AMS. Here we found a value of RIE K=2.9.

  13. Aerosol optical properties and trace gas emissions by PAX and OP-FTIR for laboratory-simulated western US wildfires during FIREX

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Selimovic, Vanessa; Yokelson, Robert J.; Warneke, Carsten; Roberts, James M.; de Gouw, Joost; Reardon, James; Griffith, David W. T.

    2018-03-01

    Western wildfires have a major impact on air quality in the US. In the fall of 2016, 107 test fires were burned in the large-scale combustion facility at the US Forest Service Missoula Fire Sciences Laboratory as part of the Fire Influence on Regional and Global Environments Experiment (FIREX). Canopy, litter, duff, dead wood, and other fuel components were burned in combinations that represented realistic fuel complexes for several important western US coniferous and chaparral ecosystems including ponderosa pine, Douglas fir, Engelmann spruce, lodgepole pine, subalpine fir, chamise, and manzanita. In addition, dung, Indonesian peat, and individual coniferous ecosystem fuel components were burned alone to investigate the effects of individual components (e.g., duff) and fuel chemistry on emissions. The smoke emissions were characterized by a large suite of state-of-the-art instruments. In this study we report emission factor (EF, grams of compound emitted per kilogram of fuel burned) measurements in fresh smoke of a diverse suite of critically important trace gases measured using open-path Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (OP-FTIR). We also report aerosol optical properties (absorption EF; single-scattering albedo, SSA; and Ångström absorption exponent, AAE) as well as black carbon (BC) EF measured by photoacoustic extinctiometers (PAXs) at 870 and 401 nm. The average trace gas emissions were similar across the coniferous ecosystems tested and most of the variability observed in emissions could be attributed to differences in the consumption of components such as duff and litter, rather than the dominant tree species. Chaparral fuels produced lower EFs than mixed coniferous fuels for most trace gases except for NOx and acetylene. A careful comparison with available field measurements of wildfires confirms that several methods can be used to extract data representative of real wildfires from the FIREX laboratory fire data. This is especially valuable

  14. Application of ion chemistry and the SIFT technique to the quantitative analysis of trace gases in air and on breath

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Smith, David; Španěl, Patrik

    Our major objective in this paper is to describe a new method we have developed for the analysis of trace gases at partial pressures down to the ppb level in atmospheric air, with special emphasis on the detection and quantification of trace gases on human breath. It involves the use of our selected ion flow tube (Sift) technique which we previously developed and used extensively for the study of gas phase ionic reactions occurring in ionized media such as the terrestrial atmosphere and interstellar gas clouds. Before discussing this analytical technique we describe the results of our very recent Sift and flowing afterglow (FA) studies of the reactions of the H3O+ and OH- ions, of their hydrates H3O+(H2O)1,2,3 and OH- (H2O)1,2, and of NO+ and O2+, with several hydrocarbons and oxygen-bearing organic molecules, studies that are very relevant to our trace gas analytical studies. Then follows a detailed discussion of the application of our Sift technique to trace gas analysis, after which we present some results obtained for the analyses of laboratory air, the breath of a healthy non-smoking person, the breath of a person who regularly smokes cigarettes, the complex vapours emitted by banana and onion, and the molecules present in a butane/air flame. We show how the quantitative analysis of breath can be achieved from only a single exhalation and in real time (the time response of the instrument is only about 20 ms). We also show how the time variation of breath gases over long time periods can be followed, using the decay of ethanol on the breath after the ingestion of distilled liquor as an example, yet simultaneously following several other trace gases including acetone and isoprene which are very easily detected on the breath of all individuals because of their relatively high partial pressures (typically 100 to 1000 ppb). The breath of a smoker is richer in complex molecules, some nitrogen containing organics apparently being very evident at the 5 to 50 ppb level

  15. The potential of on-line continuous leach ICP-MS analysis for linking trace elements to mineralogy

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Roskam, Gerlinde; Verheul, Marc; Moraetis, Daniel; Giannakis, George; van Gaans, Pauline

    2014-05-01

    A set of five soil samples was subjected to an on-line continuous leach inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry experiment, with progressively reactive solvents (0.01M CaCl2, 0.1 M HNO3, 1M HNO3, 4M HNO3) Each sample was packed in a quartz tube (Ø= 1 cm, length 2 cm) and diluted 1:1 with acid washed quartz to prevent clogging. The gas that was produced during the extraction was removed by leading the effluent into a small container, from where the sample was directly pumped into the ICP-MS. 115In was used as an internal standard. Continuous leach experiments have the advantage of real time (every 2 seconds) full elemental analysis. Mineral breakdown reactions can be monitored via the major elements. The trace elements associated with the minerals are monitored simultaneously, thus eliminating the uncertainties of host mineral-trace element combinations in traditional off-line sequential extractions. The continuous leach experimental data are correlated to XRD-results for mineralogy and total elemental concentrations. The soil samples used were collected from different sites in the Koiliaris River watershed, Crete, Greece 1). The selection of the sites was based on variability in bedrock (limestone, metamorphic and alluvial sediments) and current land use (grape farming, olive trees). Soils were sampled at two depths: at the surface and just above the bedrock. No large differences in the major elements between the two depths were measured. To provide background to the on-line sequential data, also total concentrations of the major elements were analysed by XRF and the mineralogy was analysed by XRD. The fraction <2mm was sieved and digested with HF, HClO4 and HNO3 for additional trace element analysis. 1) See related abstract Roskam et al., 2014: REE profiles in continuous leach ICP-MS (CL-ICP-MS) experiments in soil, linked to REE profiles in surface water in the Koiliaris River Critical Zone Observatory (CZO), Crete, Greece.

  16. Speciation, Characterization, And Mobility Of As, Se and Hg In Flue Gas Desulphurization Residues

    EPA Science Inventory

    Flue gas from coal combustion contains significant amounts of volatile toxic trace elements such as arsenic (As), selenium (Se) and mercury (Hg). The capture of these elements in the flue gas desulphurization (FGD) scrubber unit has resulted in generation of a metal-laden residue...

  17. Development of Optical Parametric Amplifier for Lidar Measurements of Trace Gases on Earth and Mars

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Numata, Kenji; Riris, Haris; Li, Steve; Wu, Stewart; Kawa, Stephen R.; Krainak, Michael; Abshire, James

    2011-01-01

    Trace gases in planetary atmospheres offer important clues as to the origins of the planet's hydrology, geology. atmosphere. and potential for biology. Wc report on the development effort of a nanosecond-pulsed optical parametric amplifier (OPA) for remote trace gas measurements for Mars and Earth. The OP A output light is single frequency with high spectral purity and is widely tunable both at 1600 nm and 3300 nm with an optical-optical conversion efficiency of approximately 40%. We demonstrated open-path atmospheric measurements ofCH4 (3291 nm and 1651 nm). CO2 (1573 nm), H20 (1652 nm) with this laser source.

  18. Studies of Trace Gas Chemical Cycles Using Inverse Methods and Global Chemical Transport Models

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Prinn, Ronald G.

    2003-01-01

    We report progress in the first year, and summarize proposed work for the second year of the three-year dynamical-chemical modeling project devoted to: (a) development, testing, and refining of inverse methods for determining regional and global transient source and sink strengths for long lived gases important in ozone depletion and climate forcing, (b) utilization of inverse methods to determine these source/sink strengths using either MATCH (Model for Atmospheric Transport and Chemistry) which is based on analyzed observed wind fields or back-trajectories computed from these wind fields, (c) determination of global (and perhaps regional) average hydroxyl radical concentrations using inverse methods with multiple titrating gases, and (d) computation of the lifetimes and spatially resolved destruction rates of trace gases using 3D models. Important goals include determination of regional source strengths of methane, nitrous oxide, methyl bromide, and other climatically and chemically important biogenic/anthropogenic trace gases and also of halocarbons restricted by the Montreal protocol and its follow-on agreements and hydrohalocarbons now used as alternatives to the restricted halocarbons.

  19. Enhanced spatially-resolved trace analysis using combined SIMS-single-stage AMS

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Grabowski, K. S.; Groopman, E. E.; Fahey, A. J.

    2017-11-01

    Secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) provides spatially resolved trace analysis of solid materials, but can be complicated by unresolved abundant molecular isobars. By adding a 300-kV single-stage accelerator mass spectrometer (SSAMS) as a detector for a Cameca ims 4f SIMS, one can measure more abundant positive ions from the SIMS while removing molecular isobars, thus improving very low abundance trace element and isotope analysis. This paper describes important features and capabilities of such an integrated system at the Naval Research Laboratory using charge state +1 ions. Transmission loss is compared to molecule destruction as gas flow to the molecule-destruction cell increases. As most measurements tolerate more modest abundance sensitivities than for 14C analysis, a lower gas flow is acceptable, so good transmission of 20-50% for ions of interest can be maintained for a broad range of ion masses. This new instrument has measured isotope ratios for uranium, lead, rare earths, and other elements from particulates and localized regions, with molecule destruction enabling the measurement at low SIMS mass resolving power and thus high transmission, as examples will show. This new and world-unique instrument provides improved capabilities for applications in nuclear and other forensics, geochemistry, cosmochemistry, and the development of optical, electronic, multifunctional, and structural materials.

  20. The Influence of Trace Gases Absorption on Differential Ring Cross Sections

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Han, Dong; Zhao, Keyi

    2017-04-01

    The Ring effect refers to the filling in of Fraunhofer lines, which is known as solar absorption lines, caused almost entirely by rotational Raman scattering. The rotational Raman scattering by N2 and O2 in the atmosphere is the main factor that leads to Ring effect. The Ring effect is one significant limitation to the accuracy of the retrieval of trace gas constituents in atmosphere, while using satellite data with Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy technique. In this study, firstly the solar spectrum is convolved with rotational Raman cross sections of atmosphere, which is calculated with rotational Raman cross sections of N2 and O2, divided by the original solar spectrum, with a cubic polynomial subtracted off, to create differential Ring spectrum Ring1. Secondly, the Ring effect for pure Raman scattering of the Fraunhofer spectrum plus the contribution from interference by terrestrial absorption which always comes from a kind of trace gas (e.g., O3) are derived. To allow for more generality, the optically thin term as well as the next term in the expansion for the Beer-Lambert law are calculated.Ring1, Ring2, and Ring3are the Fraunhofer only, 1st terrestrial correction, and 2nd terrestrial correction for DOAS fitting.

  1. Trace Gas Measurements in Nascent, Aged and Cloud-processed Smoke from Africa Savanna Fires by Airborne Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (AFTIR)

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Yokelson, Robert J.; Bertschi, Isaac T.; Christian, Ted J.; Hobbs, Peter V.; Ward, Darold E.; Hao, Wei Min

    2003-01-01

    We measured stable and reactive trace gases with an airborne Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (AFTIR) on the University of Washington Convair-580 research aircraft in August/September 2000 during the SAFARI 2000 dry season campaign in Southern Africa. The measurements included vertical profiles of C02, CO, H20, and CH4 up to 5.5 km on six occasions above instrumented ground sites and below the TERRA satellite and ER-2 high-flying research aircraft. We also measured the trace gas emissions from 10 African savanna fires. Five of these fires featured extensive ground-based fuel characterization, and two were in the humid savanna ecosystem that accounts for most African biomass burning. The major constituents we detected in nascent CH3OOH, HCHO, CH30H, HCN, NH3, HCOOH, and C2H2. These are the first quantitative measurements of the initial emissions of oxygenated volatile organic compounds (OVOC), NH3, and HCN from African savanna fires. On average, we measured 5.3 g/kg of OVOC and 3.6 g/kg of hydrocarbons (including CH4) in the initial emissions from the fires. Thus, the OVOC will have profound, largely unexplored effects on tropical tropospheric chemistry. The HCN emission factor was only weakly dependent on fire type; the average value (0.53 g/kg) is about 20 times that of a previous recommendation. HCN may be useful as a tracer for savanna fires. Delta O3/Delta CO and Delta CH3COO/Delta CO increased to as much as 9% in <1 h of photochemical processing downwind of fires. Direct measurements showed that cloud processing of smoke greatly reduced CH30H, NH3, CH3COOH, SO2, and NO2 levels, but significantly increased HCHO and NO.

  2. Limiting Short-term Noise versus Optical Density in a Direct Absorption Spectrometer for Trace Gas Detection

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jervis, D.

    2016-12-01

    Field-deployable trace gas monitors are important for understanding a multitude of atmospheric processes: from forest photosynthesis and respiration [1], to fugitive methane emissions [2] and satellite measurement validation [3]. Consequently, a detailed knowledge of the performance limitations of these instruments is essential in order to establish reliable datasets. We present the short-term ( >1 Hz) performance of a long-pass direct absorption spectrometer as a function of the optical density of the absorption transition being probed. In particular, we identify fluctuations in the laser intensity as limiting the optical density uncertainty to 4x10-6/√Hz for weak transitions, and noise in the laser drive current as limiting the fractional noise in the optical density to 4x10-5/√Hz for deep transitions. We provide numerical and analytical predictions for both effects, as well as using the understanding of this phenomena to estimate how noise on neighboring strong and weak transitions couple to each other. All measurements were performed using the Aerodyne Research TILDAS Monitor, but are general to any instrument that uses direct absorption spectroscopy as a detection method. Wehr, R., et al. "Seasonality of temperate forest photosynthesis and daytime respiration." Nature 534.7609 (2016): 680-683. Conley, S., et al. "Methane emissions from the 2015 Aliso Canyon blowout in Los Angeles, CA." Science 351.6279 (2016): 1317-1320. Emmons, L. K., et al. "Validation of Measurements of Pollution in the Troposphere (MOPITT) CO retrievals with aircraft in situ profiles." Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 109.D3 (2004).

  3. Gas chromatographic analysis of volatiles in fluid and gas inclusions

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Andrawes, F.; Holzer, G.; Roedder, E.; Gibson, E.K.; Oro, John

    1984-01-01

    Most geological samples and some synthetic materials contain fluid inclusions. These inclusions preserve for us tiny samples of the liquid and/or the gas phase that was present during formation, although in some cases they may have undergone significant changes from the original material. Studies of the current composition of the inclusions provide data on both the original composition and the change since trapping.These inclusions are seldom larger than 1 millimeter in diameter. The composition varies from a single major compound (e.g., water) in a single phase to a very complex mixture in one or more phases. The concentration of some of the compounds present may be at trace levels.We present here some analyses of inclusions in a variety of geological samples, including diamonds. We used a sample crusher and a gas chromatography—mass spectrometry (GC—MS) system to analyze for organic and inorganic volatiles present as major to trace constituents in inclusions. The crusher is a hardened stainless-steel piston cylinder apparatus with tungsten carbide crusing surfaces, and is operated in a pure helium atmosphere at a controlled temperature.Samples ranging from 1 mg to 1 g were crushed and the released volatiles were analyzed using multi-chromatographic columns and detectors, including the sensitive helium ionization detector. Identification of the GC peaks was carried out by GC—MS. This combination of procedures has been shown to provide geochemically useful information on the process involved in the history of the samples analyzed.

  4. Gas chromatographic analysis of volatiles in fluid and gas inclusions.

    PubMed

    Andrawes, F; Holzer, G; Roedder, E; Gibson, E K; Oro, J

    1984-01-01

    Most geological samples and some synthetic materials contain fluid inclusions. These inclusions preserve for us tiny samples of the liquid and/or the gas phase that was present during formation, although in some cases they may have undergone significant changes from the original material. Studies of the current composition of the inclusions provide data on both the original composition and the change since trapping. These conclusions are seldom larger than 1 millimeter in diameter. The composition varies from a single major compound (e.g., water) in a single phase to a very complex mixture in one or more phases. The concentration of some of the compounds present may be at trace levels. We present here some analyses of inclusion on a variety of geological samples, including diamonds. We used a sample crusher and a gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) system to analyze for organic and inorganic volatiles present as major to trace constituents in inclusions. The crusher is a hardened stainless-steel piston cylinder apparatus with tungsten carbide crushing surfaces, and is operated in a pure helium atmosphere at a controlled temperature. Samples ranging from 1 mg to 1 g were crushed and the released volatiles were analyzed using multi-chromatographic columns and detectors, including the sensitive helium ionization detector. Identification of the GC peaks was carried out by GC-MS. This combination of procedures has been shown to provide geochemically useful information on the processes involved in the history of the samples analyzed.

  5. Dangerous gas detection based on infrared video

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ding, Kang; Hong, Hanyu; Huang, Likun

    2018-03-01

    As the gas leak infrared imaging detection technology has significant advantages of high efficiency and remote imaging detection, in order to enhance the detail perception of observers and equivalently improve the detection limit, we propose a new type of gas leak infrared image detection method, which combines background difference methods and multi-frame interval difference method. Compared to the traditional frame methods, the multi-frame interval difference method we proposed can extract a more complete target image. By fusing the background difference image and the multi-frame interval difference image, we can accumulate the information of infrared target image of the gas leak in many aspect. The experiment demonstrate that the completeness of the gas leakage trace information is enhanced significantly, and the real-time detection effect can be achieved.

  6. Neutral Beam Injection in the JET Trace Tritium Experiment

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Surrey, E.; Ciric, D.; Cox, S. J.

    Operation of the JET Neutral Beam Injectors with tritium is described. Supplying the tritium feed via the special electrically grounded gas feed compromised the performance of the up-graded high current triode Positive Ion Neutral Injectors (PINI) due to gas starvation of the source and the methods adopted to ameliorate this effect are described. A total of 362 PINI beam pulses were requested, circulating a total of 4.73g tritium, of which 9.3mg was injected into the torus. Safety considerations required a continuous, cumulative total to be maintained of the mass of tritium adsorbed onto the cryo-pumping panel; a daily limit ofmore » 0.5g was adopted for the Trace Tritium Experiment (TTE). A subsequent clean up phase using 115keV deuterium beams completed the isotopic exchange of components in the beamline.« less

  7. Characterization and calibration of gas sensor systems at ppb level—a versatile test gas generation system

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Leidinger, Martin; Schultealbert, Caroline; Neu, Julian; Schütze, Andreas; Sauerwald, Tilman

    2018-01-01

    This article presents a test gas generation system designed to generate ppb level gas concentrations from gas cylinders. The focus is on permanent gases and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) for applications like indoor and outdoor air quality monitoring or breath analysis. In the design and the setup of the system, several issues regarding handling of trace gas concentrations have been considered, addressed and tested. This concerns not only the active fluidic components (flow controllers, valves), which have been chosen specifically for the task, but also the design of the fluidic tubing regarding dead volumes and delay times, which have been simulated for the chosen setup. Different tubing materials have been tested for their adsorption/desorption characteristics regarding naphthalene, a highly relevant gas for indoor air quality monitoring, which has generated high gas exchange times in a previous gas mixing system due to long time adsorption/desorption effects. Residual gas contaminations of the system and the selected carrier air supply have been detected and quantified using both an analytical method (GC-MS analysis according to ISO 16000-6) and a metal oxide semiconductor gas sensor, which detected a maximum contamination equivalent to 28 ppb of carbon monoxide. A measurement strategy for suppressing even this contamination has been devised, which allows the system to be used for gas sensor and gas sensor system characterization and calibration in the low ppb concentration range.

  8. Numerical Simulations and Diagnostic Studies Relating Meteorology To Atmospheric Chemistry during TRACE-P

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Fuelberg, Henry E.

    2003-01-01

    The Florida State University (FSU) team participated extensively in the pre-mission planning for TRACE-P through meetings, telephone calls, and e-mails. During Spring 2001, Prof. Fuelberg served as DC-8 Mission Meteorologist during the field campaign. He prepared meteorological guidance for each flight of the DC-8 and flew on each mission. After the field phase, FSU prepared various meteorological products, included backward air trajectories, for each flight of the DC-8 and P-3B. These were posted on the FSU and NASA-GTE web sites for use by all the Science Team. During the two-year post mission period, FSU conducted research relating meteorology to atmospheric chemistry during TRACE-P. This led to three journal articles in the Journal of Geophysical Research. FSU personnel were the lead authors on each of these articles. Abstracts of these articles are attached. In addition, the FSU team collaborated with other members of the TRACE-P Science Team to incorporate meteorological factors into their research. A list of publications resulting from these interactions is included.

  9. Accumulation and trace-metal variability of estuarine sediments, St. Bernard delta geomorphic region, Louisiana

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Landrum, K.E.

    1995-10-01

    Prior to government regulation, little monitoring of metal discharges into the canals, bayous, and rivers that drain estuarine systems occured. Discharges of trace-metals by industries and municipalities into surface water bodies are presently regulated through the use of Federal and State mandated permit programs. Resource management of economically important estuarine systems has fostered increasing concern over the accumulation of trace-metal pollutants in water, sediments, and biota from these dynamic areas. The acid-leachable concentrations of fourteen trace-metals were determined for 125 bottom sediment samples and 50 core interval samples by plasma emission analysis. Bottom sediments of the St. Bernard estuarom complexmore » consist predominantly of silty clays and clayey silts derived from the erosion of the St. Bernard lobe of the Mississippi River delta and sediments associated with historic crevasses along the Mississippi River. Within the 2 cm core intervals, trace-metal concentrations of Ba, Cr, Cd, Pb, and Zn increased by 10% to 18% in sediments accumulated within the last 75 years. Trace-metal concentrations from sediments for the study area tend to have greater mean concentrations than Florida estuarine sediments, basinwide and Gulf Coast trace-metal comparisons, sediment geochronology. Rates varied from 0.12 to 0.21 cm/yr. Within the 2 cm core intervals, trace-metal concentrations of Ba, Cr, Cd, Pb, and Zn increased by 10% to 18% in sediments accumulated within the last 75 years. Natural trace-metal variability was examined through the use of an aluminum normalization model based on Florida and Louisiana estuarine sediments, basinwide and Gulf Coast trace-metal comparisons, sediment geochronology, and grain-size corrected data. Elevated concentrations of As, Ba, Cd, Pb, V and Zn were noted from sediments associated with oil and gas drilling and production, sandblasting and shipbuilding, dredging, and stormwater, municipal, and industrial

  10. Soil-atmosphere trace gas exchange from tropical oil palm plantations on peat

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Arn Teh, Yit; Manning, Frances; Zin Zawawi, Norliyana; Hill, Timothy; Chocholek, Melanie; Khoon Kho, Lip

    2015-04-01

    Oil palm is the largest agricultural crop in the tropics, accounting for 13 % of all tropical land cover. Due to its large areal extent, oil palm cultivation may have important implications not only for terrestrial stores of C and N, but may also impact regional and global exchanges of material and energy, including fluxes of trace gases and water vapor. In particular, recent expansion of oil palm into tropical peatlands has raised concerns over enhanced soil C emissions from degradation of peat, and elevated N-gas fluxes linked to N fertilizer application. Here we report our preliminary findings on soil carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) fluxes from a long-term, multi-scale project investigating the C, N and greenhouse gas (GHG) dynamics of oil palm ecosystems established on peat soils in Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo. Flux chamber measurements indicate that soil CO2, CH4 and N2O fluxes averaged 20.0 ± 16.0 Mg CO2-C ha-1 yr-1, 37.4 ± 29.9 kg CH4-C ha-1 yr-1 and 4.7 ± 4.2 g N2O-N ha-1 yr-1, respectively. Soil CO2 fluxes were on par with other drained tropical peatlands; whereas CH4 fluxes exceeded observations from similar study sites elsewhere. Nitrous oxide fluxes were in a similar range to fluxes from other drained tropical peatlands, but lower than emissions from mineral-soil plantations by up to three orders of magnitude. Fluxes of soil CO2 and N2O were spatially stratified, and contingent upon the distribution of plants, deposited harvest residues, and soil moisture. Soil CO2 fluxes were most heavily influenced by the distribution of palms and their roots. On average, autotrophic (root) respiration accounted for approximately 78 % of total soil CO2 flux, and total soil respiration declined steeply away from palms; e.g. soil CO2 fluxes in the immediate 1 m radius around palms were up to 6 times greater than fluxes in inter-palm spaces due to higher densities of roots. Placement of harvest residues played an important - but secondary

  11. TraceContract: A Scala DSL for Trace Analysis

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Barringer, Howard; Havelund, Klaus

    2011-01-01

    In this paper we describe TRACECONTRACT, an API for trace analysis, implemented in the SCALA programming language. We argue that for certain forms of trace analysis the best weapon is a high level programming language augmented with constructs for temporal reasoning. A trace is a sequence of events, which may for example be generated by a running program, instrumented appropriately to generate events. The API supports writing properties in a notation that combines an advanced form of data parameterized state machines with temporal logic. The implementation utilizes SCALA's support for defining internal Domain Specific Languages (DSLs). Furthermore SCALA's combination of object oriented and functional programming features, including partial functions and pattern matching, makes it an ideal host language for such an API.

  12. Adsorptive removal of catalyst poisons from coal gas for methanol synthesis

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Bhatt, B.L.; Golden, T.C.; Hsiung, T.H.

    1991-12-01

    As an integral part of the liquid-phase methanol (LPMEOH) process development program, the present study evaluated adsorptive schemes to remove traces of catalyst poisons such as iron carbonyl, carbonyl sulfide, and hydrogen sulfide from coal gas on a pilot scale. Tests were conducted with coal gas from the Cool Water gasification plant at Daggett, California. Iron carbonyl, carbonyl sulfide, and hydrogen sulfide were effectively removed from the coal gas. The adsorption capacities of Linde H-Y zeolite and Calgon BPL carbon for Fe(CO){sub 5} compared well with previous bench-scale results at similar CO{sub 2} partial pressure. Adsorption of COS by Calgonmore » FCA carbon appeared to be chemical and nonregenerable by thermal treatment in nitrogen. A Cu/Zn catalyst removed H{sub 2}S very effectively. With the adsorption system on-line, a methanol catalyst showed stable activity during 120 h operation, demonstrating the feasibility of adsorptive removal of trace catalyst poisons from the synthesis gas. Mass transfer coefficients were estimated for Fe(CO){sub 5} and COS removal which can be directly used for design and scale up.« less

  13. Assessment of the TRACE Reactor Analysis Code Against Selected PANDA Transient Data

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Zavisca, M.; Ghaderi, M.; Khatib-Rahbar, M.

    2006-07-01

    The TRACE (TRAC/RELAP Advanced Computational Engine) code is an advanced, best-estimate thermal-hydraulic program intended to simulate the transient behavior of light-water reactor systems, using a two-fluid (steam and water, with non-condensable gas), seven-equation representation of the conservation equations and flow-regime dependent constitutive relations in a component-based model with one-, two-, or three-dimensional elements, as well as solid heat structures and logical elements for the control system. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission is currently supporting the development of the TRACE code and its assessment against a variety of experimental data pertinent to existing and evolutionary reactor designs. This paper presents themore » results of TRACE post-test prediction of P-series of experiments (i.e., tests comprising the ISP-42 blind and open phases) conducted at the PANDA large-scale test facility in 1990's. These results show reasonable agreement with the reported test results, indicating good performance of the code and relevant underlying thermal-hydraulic and heat transfer models. (authors)« less

  14. Quantification of Stable Isotope Traces Close to Natural Enrichment in Human Plasma Metabolites Using Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Krämer, Lisa; Jäger, Christian; Trezzi, Jean-Pierre; Jacobs, Doris M; Hiller, Karsten

    2018-02-14

    Currently, changes in metabolic fluxes following consumption of stable isotope-enriched foods are usually limited to the analysis of postprandial kinetics of glucose. Kinetic information on a larger diversity of metabolites is often lacking, mainly due to the marginal percentage of fully isotopically enriched plant material in the administered food product, and hence, an even weaker 13 C enrichment in downstream plasma metabolites. Therefore, we developed an analytical workflow to determine weak 13 C enrichments of diverse plasma metabolites with conventional gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The limit of quantification was increased by optimizing (1) the metabolite extraction from plasma, (2) the GC-MS measurement, and (3) most importantly, the computational data processing. We applied our workflow to study the catabolic dynamics of 13 C-enriched wheat bread in three human subjects. For that purpose, we collected time-resolved human plasma samples at 16 timepoints after the consumption of 13 C-labeled bread and quantified 13 C enrichment of 12 metabolites (glucose, lactate, alanine, glycine, serine, citrate, glutamate, glutamine, valine, isoleucine, tyrosine, and threonine). Based on isotopomer specific analysis, we were able to distinguish catabolic profiles of starch and protein hydrolysis. More generally, our study highlights that conventional GC-MS equipment is sufficient to detect isotope traces below 1% if an appropriate data processing is integrated.

  15. Quantification of Stable Isotope Traces Close to Natural Enrichment in Human Plasma Metabolites Using Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry

    PubMed Central

    Krämer, Lisa; Jäger, Christian; Jacobs, Doris M.; Hiller, Karsten

    2018-01-01

    Currently, changes in metabolic fluxes following consumption of stable isotope-enriched foods are usually limited to the analysis of postprandial kinetics of glucose. Kinetic information on a larger diversity of metabolites is often lacking, mainly due to the marginal percentage of fully isotopically enriched plant material in the administered food product, and hence, an even weaker 13C enrichment in downstream plasma metabolites. Therefore, we developed an analytical workflow to determine weak 13C enrichments of diverse plasma metabolites with conventional gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The limit of quantification was increased by optimizing (1) the metabolite extraction from plasma, (2) the GC-MS measurement, and (3) most importantly, the computational data processing. We applied our workflow to study the catabolic dynamics of 13C-enriched wheat bread in three human subjects. For that purpose, we collected time-resolved human plasma samples at 16 timepoints after the consumption of 13C-labeled bread and quantified 13C enrichment of 12 metabolites (glucose, lactate, alanine, glycine, serine, citrate, glutamate, glutamine, valine, isoleucine, tyrosine, and threonine). Based on isotopomer specific analysis, we were able to distinguish catabolic profiles of starch and protein hydrolysis. More generally, our study highlights that conventional GC-MS equipment is sufficient to detect isotope traces below 1% if an appropriate data processing is integrated. PMID:29443915

  16. The left inferior frontal gyrus: A neural crossroads between abstract and concrete knowledge.

    PubMed

    Della Rosa, Pasquale Anthony; Catricalà, Eleonora; Canini, Matteo; Vigliocco, Gabriella; Cappa, Stefano F

    2018-07-15

    Evidence from both neuropsychology and neuroimaging suggests that different types of information are necessary for representing and processing concrete and abstract word meanings. Both abstract and concrete concepts, however, conjointly rely on perceptual, verbal and contextual knowledge, with abstract concepts characterized by low values of imageability (IMG) (low sensory-motor grounding) and low context availability (CA) (more difficult to contextualize). Imaging studies supporting differences between abstract and concrete concepts show a greater recruitment of the left inferior frontal gyrus (LIFG) for abstract concepts, which has been attributed either to the representation of abstract-specific semantic knowledge or to the request for more executive control than in the case of concrete concepts. We conducted an fMRI study on 27 participants, using a lexical decision task involving both abstract and concrete words, whose IMG and CA values were explicitly modelled in separate parametric analyses. The LIFG was significantly more activated for abstract than for concrete words, and a conjunction analysis showed a common activation for words with low IMG or low CA only in the LIFG, in the same area reported for abstract words. A regional template map of brain activations was then traced for words with low IMG or low CA, and BOLD regional time-series were extracted and correlated with the specific LIFG neural activity elicited for abstract words. The regions associated to low IMG, which were functionally correlated with LIFG, were mainly in the left hemisphere, while those associated with low CA were in the right hemisphere. Finally, in order to reveal which LIFG-related network increased its connectivity with decreases of IMG or CA, we conducted generalized psychophysiological interaction analyses. The connectivity strength values extracted from each region connected with the LIFG were correlated with specific LIFG neural activity for abstract words, and a regression

  17. Stable Isotope Measurements of Carbon Dioxide, Methane, and Hydrogen Sulfide Gas Using Frequency Modulation Spectroscopy

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nowak-Lovato, K.

    2014-12-01

    Seepage from enhanced oil recovery, carbon storage, and natural gas sites can emit trace gases such as carbon dioxide, methane, and hydrogen sulfide. Trace gas emission at these locations demonstrate unique light stable isotope signatures that provide information to enable source identification of the material. Light stable isotope detection through surface monitoring, offers the ability to distinguish between trace gases emitted from sources such as, biological (fertilizers and wastes), mineral (coal or seams), or liquid organic systems (oil and gas reservoirs). To make light stable isotope measurements, we employ the ultra-sensitive technique, frequency modulation spectroscopy (FMS). FMS is an absorption technique with sensitivity enhancements approximately 100-1000x more than standard absorption spectroscopy with the advantage of providing stable isotope signature information. We have developed an integrated in situ (point source) system that measures carbon dioxide, methane and hydrogen sulfide with isotopic resolution and enhanced sensitivity. The in situ instrument involves the continuous collection of air and records the stable isotope ratio for the gas being detected. We have included in-line flask collection points to obtain gas samples for validation of isotopic concentrations using our in-house isotope ratio mass spectroscopy (IRMS). We present calibration curves for each species addressed above to demonstrate the sensitivity and accuracy of the system. We also show field deployment data demonstrating the capabilities of the system in making live dynamic measurements from an active source.

  18. Light Isotopes and Trace Organics Analysis of Mars Samples with Mass Spectrometry

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Mahaffy, P.; Niemann, Hasso (Technical Monitor)

    2001-01-01

    Precision measurement of light isotopes in Mars surface minerals and comparison of this isotopic composition with atmospheric gas and other, well-mixed reservoirs such as surface dust are necessary to understand the history of atmospheric evolution from a possibly warmer and wetter Martian surface to the present state. Atmospheric sources and sinks that set these ratios are volcanism, solar wind sputtering, photochemical processes, and weathering. Measurement of a range of trace organic species with a particular focus on species such as amino acids that are the building blocks of terrestrial life are likewise important to address the questions of prebiotic and present or past biological activity on Mars. The workshop topics "isotopic mineralogy" and "biology and pre-biotic chemistry" will be addressed from the point of view of the capabilities and limitations of insitu mass spectrometry (MS) techniques such as thermally evolved gas analysis (TEGA) and gas chromatography (GC) surface experiments using MS, in both cases, as a final chemical and isotopic composition detector. Insitu experiments using straightforward adaptations of existing space proven hardware can provide a substantial improvement in the precision and accuracy of our present knowledge of isotopic composition both in molecular and atomic species in the atmosphere and those chemically bound in rocks and soils. Likewise, detection of trace organic species with greatly improved sensitivity from the Viking GCMS experiment is possible using gas enrichment techniques. The limits to precision and accuracy of presently feasible insitu techniques compared to laboratory analysis of returned samples will be explored. The insitu techniques are sufficiently powerful that they can provide a high fidelity method of screening samples obtained from a diverse set of surface locations such as the subsurface or the interior of rocks for selection of those that are the most interesting for return to Earth.

  19. A robust and reliable optical trace oxygen sensor

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    McDowell, G. R.; Holmes-Smith, A. S.; Uttamlal, M.; Mitchell, C.; Shannon, P. H.

    2017-05-01

    In applications of nitrogen (N2) generation, industrial gas manufacturing and food packaging there is a need to ensure oxygen (O2) is absent from the environment, even at the lowest concentration levels. Therefore, there has been an increased growth in the development of trace O2 parts per million (ppm) sensors over the past decade to detect and quantify the concentration of molecular O2 in the environment whether it be dissolved or gaseous O2. The majority of commercially available trace O2 sensors are based on electrochemical, zirconia and paramagnetic technologies. Here, the development of a luminescence-based optical trace O2 sensor is presented. Luminescence-based sensing is now regarded as one of the best techniques for the detection and quantification of O2. This is due to the high detection sensitivity, no O2 is consumed and there are a vast array of luminescent indicators and sensing platforms (polymers) that can be selected to suit the desired application. The sensor will be shown to operate from -30 °C to +60 °C in the 0-1000 ppm and/or 0-1200 μbar partial pressure of oxygen (ppO2) range and is equipped with temperature and pressure compensation. The luminescence non-depleting principle, sensor specifications and miniaturized nature offers an attractive alternative to other sensing technologies and advantages over other luminescence-based O2 ppm sensors.

  20. Characterizing Gas Transport in Wetland Soil-Root Systems with Dissolved Gas Tracer Techniques

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Reid, M. C.; Jaffe, P. R.

    2016-12-01

    Soil fluxes of methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), and other biogenic gases depend on coupling between microbial and physiochemical processes within soil media. The importance of plant-mediated transport in wetland CH4 emissions is well known, but a generalized understanding of gas transfer between pore water and root aerenchyma, and how this process competes with biogeochemical production/consumption of gases beyond CH4, is incomplete [1]. A lack of experimental approaches to characterize transport processes in complex soil-water-plant systems at field scale has limited efforts to close this knowledge gap. In this presentation we describe dissolved gas tracer techniques to tease apart effects of transport from simultaneous biochemical reaction on trace gas dynamics in soils. We discuss a push-pull test with helium and sulfur hexafluoride gas tracers to quantify in situ root-mediated gas transfer kinetics in a wetland soil [2]. A Damköhler number analysis is introduced to interpret the results and evaluate the balance between biochemical reaction and root-driven gas transfer in controlling the fate of CH4 and N2O in vegetated wetland soils. We conclude with a brief discussion of other problems in soil gas dynamics that can be addressed with gas tracer approaches. [1] Blagodatsky and Smith 2012. Soil physics meets soil biology: Towards better mechanistic prediction of greenhouse gas emissions from soil. Soil Biology and Biochemistry 47, 78-92. [2] Reid et al. 2015. Dissolved gas dynamics in wetland soils: Root-mediated gas transfer kinetics determind via push-pull tracer tests. Water Resour. Res. 51, doi:10.1002/2014WR016803.

  1. Addition and hydrogen abstraction reactions of an OH radical with 8-oxoguanine

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jena, N. R.; Mishra, P. C.

    2006-05-01

    Addition reaction of an OH radical at the C2, C4, C5 or C8 position of 8-oxoguanine (8OG) and abstraction of its H9 atom by an OH radical were studied using density functional theory (B3LYP) employing 6-31G ∗∗, 6-311++G ∗∗ and AUG-cc-pVDZ basis sets. Solvent effects of aqueous media were treated using the PCM model. It is found that the addition of an OH radical at the C4 position of 8OG would be most favored in both gas phase and aqueous media. These addition and abstraction reactions in aqueous media are both found to be barrierless.

  2. Subtask 4.8 - Fate and Control of Mercury and Trace Elements

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Pavlish, John; Lentz, Nicholas; Martin, Christopher

    2011-12-31

    The Center for Air Toxic Metals® (CATM®) Program at the Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) continues to focus on vital basic and applied research related to the fate, behavior, measurement, and control of trace metals, especially mercury, and the impact that these trace metals have on human health and the environment. For years, the CATM Program has maintained an international perspective, performing research and providing results that apply to both domestic and international audiences, with reports distributed in the United States and abroad. In addition to trace metals, CATM’s research focuses on other related emissions and issues that impactmore » trace metal releases to the environment, such as SO x, NO x, CO 2, ash, and wastewater streams. Of paramount interest and focus has been performing research that continues to enable the power and industrial sectors to operate in an environmentally responsible manner to meet regulatory standards. The research funded by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) through CATM has allowed significant strides to be made to gain a better understanding of trace metals and other emissions, improve sampling and measurement techniques, fill data gaps, address emerging technical issues, and develop/test control technologies that allow industry to cost-effectively meet regulatory standards. The DOE NETL–CATM research specifically focused on the fate and control of mercury and trace elements in power systems that use CO 2 control technologies, such as oxycombustion and gasification systems, which are expected to be among those technologies that will be used to address climate change issues. In addition, research addressed data gaps for systems that use conventional and multipollutant control technologies, such as electrostatic precipitators, selective catalytic reduction units, flue gas desulfurization systems, and flue gas-conditioning methods, to understand mercury

  3. LIDAR technology for measuring trace gases on Mars and Earth

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Riris, H.; Abshire, J. B.; Graham, Allan; Hasselbrack, William; Rodriguez, Mike; Sun, Xiaoli; Weaver, Clark; Mao, Jianping; Kawa, Randy; Li, Steve; Numata, Kenji; Wu, Stewart

    2017-11-01

    Trace gases and their isotopic ratios in planetary atmospheres offer important but subtle clues as to the origins of a planet's atmosphere, hydrology, geology, and potential for biology. An orbiting laser remote sensing instrument is capable of measuring trace gases on a global scale with unprecedented accuracy, and higher spatial resolution that can be obtained by passive instruments. For Earth we have developed laser technique for the remote measurement of the tropospheric CO2, O2, and CH4 concentrations from space. Our goal is to develop a space instrument and mission approach for active CO2 measurements. Our technique uses several on and off-line wavelengths tuned to the CO2 and O2 absorption lines. This exploits the atmospheric pressure broadening of the gas lines to weigh the measurement sensitivity to the atmospheric column below 5 km and maximizes sensitivity to CO2 changes in the boundary layer where variations caused by surface sources and sinks are largest. Simultaneous measurements of O2 column use a selected region in the Oxygen A-band. Laser altimetry and atmospheric backscatter can also be measured simultaneously, which permits determining the surface height and measurements made to thick cloud tops and through aerosol layers. We use the same technique but with a different transmitter at 1.65 um to measure methane concentrations. Methane is also a very important trace gas on earth, and a stronger greenhouse gas than CO2 on a per molecule basis. Accurate, global observations are needed in order to better understand climate change and reduce the uncertainty in the carbon budget. Although carbon dioxide is currently the primary greenhouse gas of interest, methane can have a much larger impact on climate change. Methane levels have remained relatively constant over the last decade but recent observations in the Arctic have indicated that levels may be on the rise due to permafrost thawing. NASA's Decadal Survey underscored the importance of Methane as a

  4. Abstraction and Consolidation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Monaghan, John; Ozmantar, Mehmet Fatih

    2006-01-01

    The framework for this paper is a recently developed theory of abstraction in context. The paper reports on data collected from one student working on tasks concerned with absolute value functions. It examines the relationship between mathematical constructions and abstractions. It argues that an abstraction is a consolidated construction that can…

  5. Trace detection of oxygen--ionic liquids in gas sensor design.

    PubMed

    Baltes, N; Beyle, F; Freiner, S; Geier, F; Joos, M; Pinkwart, K; Rabenecker, P

    2013-11-15

    This paper presents a novel electrochemical membrane sensor on basis of ionic liquids for trace analysis of oxygen in gaseous atmospheres. The faradaic response currents for the reduction of oxygen which were obtained by multiple-potential-step-chronoamperometry could be used for real time detection of oxygen down to concentrations of 30 ppm. The theoretical limit of detection was 5 ppm. The simple, non-expensive sensors varied in electrolyte composition and demonstrated a high sensitivity, a rapid response time and an excellent reproducibility at room temperature. Some of them were continuously used for at least one week and first results promise good long term stability. Voltammetric, impedance and oxygen detection studies at temperatures up to 200 °C (in the presence and absence of humidity and CO2) revealed also the limitations of certain ionic liquids for some electrochemical high temperature applications. Application areas of the developed sensors are control and analysis processes of non oxidative and oxygen free atmospheres. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  6. Traces of ternary relations

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zedam, Lemnaouar; Barkat, Omar; De Baets, Bernard

    2018-05-01

    In this paper, we generalize the notion of traces of a binary relation to the setting of ternary relations. With a given ternary relation, we associate three binary relations: its left, middle and right trace. As in the binary case, these traces facilitate the study and characterization of properties of a ternary relation. Interestingly, the traces themselves turn out to be the greatest solutions of relational inequalities associated with newly introduced compositions of a ternary relation with a binary relation (and vice versa).

  7. Traces of Drosophila Memory

    PubMed Central

    Davis, Ronald L.

    2012-01-01

    Summary Studies using functional cellullar imaging of living flies have identified six memory traces that form in the olfactory nervous system after conditioning with odors. These traces occur in distinct nodes of the olfactory nervous system, form and disappear across different windows of time, and are detected in the imaged neurons as increased calcium influx or synaptic release in response to the conditioned odor. Three traces form at, or near acquisition and co-exist with short-term behavioral memory. One trace forms with a delay after learning and co-exists with intermediate-term behavioral memory. Two traces form many hours after acquisition and co-exist with long-term behavioral memory. The transient memory traces may support behavior across the time-windows of their existence. The experimental approaches for dissecting memory formation in the fly, ranging from the molecular to the systems, make it an ideal system for dissecting the logic by which the nervous system organizes and stores different temporal forms of memory. PMID:21482352

  8. Recent developments on field gas extraction and sample preparation methods for radiokrypton dating of groundwater

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yokochi, Reika

    2016-09-01

    Current and foreseen population growths will lead to an increased demand in freshwater, large quantities of which is stored as groundwater. The ventilation age is crucial to the assessment of groundwater resources, complementing the hydrological model approach based on hydrogeological parameters. Ultra-trace radioactive isotopes of Kr (81 Kr and 85 Kr) possess the ideal physical and chemical properties for groundwater dating. The recent advent of atom trap trace analyses (ATTA) has enabled determination of ultra-trace noble gas radioisotope abundances using 5-10 μ L of pure Kr. Anticipated developments will enable ATTA to analyze radiokrypton isotope abundances at high sample throughput, which necessitates simple and efficient sample preparation techniques that are adaptable to various sample chemistries. Recent developments of field gas extraction devices and simple and rapid Kr separation method at the University of Chicago are presented herein. Two field gas extraction devices optimized for different sampling conditions were recently designed and constructed, aiming at operational simplicity and portability. A newly developed Kr purification system enriches Kr by flowing a sample gas through a moderately cooled (138 K) activated charcoal column, followed by a gentle fractionating desorption. This simple process uses a single adsorbent and separates 99% of the bulk atmospheric gases from Kr without significant loss. The subsequent two stages of gas chromatographic separation and a hot Ti sponge getter further purify the Kr-enriched gas. Abundant CH4 necessitates multiple passages through one of the gas chromatographic separation columns. The presented Kr separation system has a demonstrated capability of extracting Kr with > 90% yield and 99% purity within 75 min from 1.2 to 26.8 L STP of atmospheric air with various concentrations of CH4. The apparatuses have successfully been deployed for sampling in the field and purification of groundwater samples.

  9. Trace gas emissions from a sun and shade grown ornamental crop

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Previous work has begun to establish baseline approximations for greenhouse gas (GHG) (CO2, CH4, and N2O) emissions of several horticultural crops, though much work is still needed to expand contingencies for multiple best management practices. In this study, GHG emissions from one shade-grown speci...

  10. Modeling Coma Gas Jets in Comet Hale-Bopp

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Lederer, S. M.; Campins, H.

    2001-01-01

    We present an analysis of OH, CN, and C2 jets observed in Comet Hale-Bopp. The relative contributions from and composition of the coma gas sources, and the parameters describing the active areas responsible for the gas jets will be discussed. Additional information is contained in the original extended abstract.

  11. Mapping the audit traces of interdisciplinary collaboration: bridging and blending between choreography and cognitive science

    PubMed Central

    Barnard, Philip; deLahunta, Scott

    2017-01-01

    ABSTRACT Two long-term sci–art research projects are described and positioned in the broader conceptual landscape of interdisciplinary collaboration. Both projects were aimed at understanding and augmenting choreographic decision-making and both were grounded in research conducted within a leading contemporary dance company. In each case, the work drew upon methods and theory from the cognitive sciences, and both had a direct impact on the way in which the company made new work. In the synthesis presented here the concept of an audit trace is introduced. Audit traces identify how specific classes of knowledge are used and transformed not only within the arts or sciences but also when arts practice is informed by science or when arts practice informs science. PMID:29308084

  12. Seismic Evidence And Complex Trace Attributes Of Shallow Gas Structures In The Sea Of Marmara

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Aydemir, Seval; Okay, Seda; Cifci, Gunay; Dondurur, Derman; Sorlien, Christopher; Cormier, Marie-Helene

    2015-04-01

    Analysis of multi-channel seismic reflection, sparker and chirp data from Marmara Sea observed various shallow gas indicators including seismic chimneys, bright spots, mud diapirs, pockmarks, and acoustic blanking related to gas accumulations along North Anatolian Fault (NAF) system which branches out towards the west into the in Marmara Sea. Middle branch of the (NAF) is the place where distinct amount of seismic activity has occurred and gas deposits have been observed. This study is also devoted to evaluate the gas related structures with seismic attributes of multichannel seismic reflection data which have been collected at South Marmara shelf. The dataset was collected in September 2013 and July 2014 including nearly 1000 km high Resolution Multichannel Seismic and Chirp data and 967 km Sparker data in the frame of a bilateral TÜBİTAK Project onboard R/V K. Piri Reis. The streamer has 168 or 144 channel and group interval was 6.25 m. The source was 45+45 inch GI gun fired every 12.5 or 25 m producing high-resolution seismic signal between 10-250 Hz frequency bands. The Chirp data was collected with a transducer, which produced acoustic signal between 2.75-6.75 kHz. The source of sparker system was used to 1000 J. The data have been processed using a conventional data processing flow. In addition attributes were applied to final migration sections and than was tried to find gas accumulations with Reflection strength section, instantaneous frequency section and apparent polarity. Reflection strength section has strong reflections (bright spot). Also instantaneous frequency section has low-frequency zone depending on absorption where gas accumulations are expected. Apparent polarity section has negative polarity anamoly due to low acoustic impedance where gas accumulations are expected in sediments. In addition, attributes were coincided with sparker and chirp data where expected shallow gas accumulations.

  13. Growth of a Massive Young Stellar Object Fed by a Gas Flow from a Companion Gas Clump

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Chen, Xi; Shen, Zhiqiang; Ren, Zhiyuan

    We present a Submillimeter Array (SMA) observation toward the young massive double-core system G350.69-0.49. This system consists of a northeast (NE) diffuse gas bubble and a southwest (SW) massive young stellar object (MYSO), both clearly seen in the Spitzer images. The SMA observations reveal a gas flow between the NE bubble and the SW MYSO in a broad velocity range from 5 to 30 km s{sup −1} with respect to the system velocity. The gas flow is well confined within the interval between the two objects and traces a significant mass transfer from the NE gas bubble to the SWmore » massive core. The transfer flow can supply the material accreted onto the SW MYSO at a rate of 4.2×10{sup −4} M{sub ⊙} yr{sup −1}. The whole system therefore suggests a mode for the mass growth in the MYSO from a gas transfer flow launched from its companion gas clump, despite the driving mechanism of the transfer flow not being fully determined from the current data.« less

  14. The penta-prism LTP: A long-trace-profiler with stationary optical head and moving penta prism (abstract)

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Qian, S.; Jark, W.; Takacs, P.Z.

    1995-02-01

    Metrology requirements for optical components for third generation synchrotron sources are taxing the state-of-the-art in manufacturing technology. We have investigated a number of effect sources in a commercial figure measurement instrument, the Long Trace Profiler II (LTP II), and have demonstrated that, with some simple modifications, we can significantly reduce the effect of error sources and improve the accuracy and reliability of the measurement. By keeping the optical head stationary and moving a penta prism along the translation stage, the stability of the optical system is greatly improved, and the remaining error signals can be corrected by a simple referencemore » beam subtraction. We illustrate the performance of the modified system by investigating the distortion produced by gravity on a typical synchrotron mirror and demonstrate the repeatability of the instrument despite relaxed tolerances on the translation stage.« less

  15. Does a Graphical Abstract Bring More Visibility to Your Paper?

    PubMed Central

    Pferschy-Wenzig, Eva-Maria; Pferschy, Ulrich; Wang, Dongdong; Mocan, Andrei; Atanasov, Atanas G.

    2017-01-01

    A graphical abstract (GA) represents a piece of artwork that is intended to summarize the main findings of an article for readers at a single glance. Many publishers currently encourage authors to supplement their articles with GAs, in the hope that such a convenient visual summary will facilitate readers with a clearer outline of papers that are of interest and will result in improved overall visibility of the respective publication. To test this assumption, we statistically compared publications with or without GA published in Molecules between March 2014 and March 2015 with regard to several output parameters reflecting visibility. Contrary to our expectations, manuscripts published without GA performed significantly better in terms of PDF downloads, abstract views, and total citations than manuscripts with GA. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first empirical study on the effectiveness of GA for attracting attention to scientific publications. PMID:27649137

  16. Does a Graphical Abstract Bring More Visibility to Your Paper?

    PubMed

    Pferschy-Wenzig, Eva-Maria; Pferschy, Ulrich; Wang, Dongdong; Mocan, Andrei; Atanasov, Atanas G

    2016-09-18

    A graphical abstract (GA) represents a piece of artwork that is intended to summarize the main findings of an article for readers at a single glance. Many publishers currently encourage authors to supplement their articles with GAs, in the hope that such a convenient visual summary will facilitate readers with a clearer outline of papers that are of interest and will result in improved overall visibility of the respective publication. To test this assumption, we statistically compared publications with or without GA published in Molecules between March 2014 and March 2015 with regard to several output parameters reflecting visibility. Contrary to our expectations, manuscripts published without GA performed significantly better in terms of PDF downloads, abstract views, and total citations than manuscripts with GA. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first empirical study on the effectiveness of GA for attracting attention to scientific publications.

  17. Airborne measurements of NO, NO2, and NO(sub y) as related to NASA's TRACE-A field program

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Bradshaw, John; Sandholm, Scott

    1995-01-01

    The Georgia Tech group's effort on NASA's GTE program and TRACE-A field mission primarily involved analysis and interpretation of the measurement data base obtained during the TRACE-A field campaign. These investigations focused on the distribution of ozone and ozone precursors over the south Atlantic and nearby continental regions of Africa and South Africa. The Transport and Atmospheric Chemistry near the Equator-Atlantic (TRACE-A) Mission was designed with the goal of investigating tropospheric trace gas distributions, sources, and photochemical state over the southern Atlantic. Major scientific issues related to N(x)O(y) tropospheric chemistry addressed in this program included: (1) what controls the tropospheric ozone budget over the southern Atlantic? (2) What are the spatial distributions of CO, CO2, NO, NO2, NO(sub y), O3, NMHC, H2O3, etc. over the southern Atlantic? (3) How does long range transport of long-lived NO(y) compounds affect the more reactive NO(x) budget in southern Atlantic troposphere?

  18. Dating and Tracing Groundwater and Ice with 81Kr and 85Kr

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yang, Guomin; Tong, Amin; Dong, Xize; Gu, Jiqiang; Hu, Shuiming; Jiang, Wei; Lu, Zhengtian; Ritterbusch, Florian

    2017-04-01

    81Kr (half-life 229kyr) is an ideal tracer for old groundwater and ice in the age range of 105 - 106 years. To meet the increasing demands from the earth science community, a new and improved Atom Trap Trace Analysis (ATTA) apparatus is developed at the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC). This instrument is capable of analyzing over 300 samples per year. Each measurement requirs 1-2 uL STP of krypton gas, which can be extracted from 20-40 kg of water. New sampling and purification systems have also been developed at USTC. With the new portable sampling system, the time for on-site sampling is typically less than one hour. The same sampling and atom-trap apparatuses are also used to analyze 85Kr (half-life 11 yr) to trace young groundwater.

  19. Method for Trace Oxygen Detection

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Man, Kim Fung (Inventor); Boumsellek, Said (Inventor); Chutjian, Ara (Inventor)

    1997-01-01

    Trace levels of molecular oxygen are measured by introducing a gas containing the molecular oxygen into a target zone, and impacting the molecular oxygen in the target zone with electrons at the O(-) resonant energy level for dissociative electron attachment to produce O(-) ions. Preferably, the electrons have an energy of about 4 to about 10 eV. The amount of O(-) ions produced is measured, and is correlated with the molecular oxygen content in the target zone. The technique is effective for measuring levels of oxygen below 50 ppb. and even less than 1 ppb. The amount of O(-) can be measured in a quadrupole mass analyzer. Best results are obtained when the electrons have an energy of about 6 to about 8 eV. and preferably about 6.8 eV. The method can be used for other species by selecting the appropriate electron energy level.

  20. First Results from the Herschel and ALMA Spectroscopic Surveys of the SMC: The Relationship between [C II]-bright Gas and CO-bright Gas at Low Metallicity

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jameson, Katherine E.; Bolatto, Alberto D.; Wolfire, Mark; Warren, Steven R.; Herrera-Camus, Rodrigo; Croxall, Kevin; Pellegrini, Eric; Smith, John-David; Rubio, Monica; Indebetouw, Remy; Israel, Frank P.; Meixner, Margaret; Roman-Duval, Julia; van Loon, Jacco Th.; Muller, Erik; Verdugo, Celia; Zinnecker, Hans; Okada, Yoko

    2018-02-01

    The Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) provides the only laboratory to study the structure of molecular gas at high resolution and low metallicity. We present results from the Herschel Spectroscopic Survey of the SMC (HS3), which mapped the key far-IR cooling lines [C II], [O I], [N II], and [O III] in five star-forming regions, and new ALMA 7 m array maps of {}12{CO} and {}13{CO} (2-1) with coverage overlapping four of the five HS3 regions. We detect [C II] and [O I] throughout all of the regions mapped. The data allow us to compare the structure of the molecular clouds and surrounding photodissociation regions using {}13{CO}, {}12{CO}, [C II], and [O I] emission at ≲ 10\\prime\\prime (< 3 pc) scales. We estimate {A}V using far-IR thermal continuum emission from dust and find that the CO/[C II] ratios reach the Milky Way value at high {A}V in the centers of the clouds and fall to ∼ 1/5{--}1/10× the Milky Way value in the outskirts, indicating the presence of translucent molecular gas not traced by bright {}12{CO} emission. We estimate the amount of molecular gas traced by bright [C II] emission at low {A}V and bright {}12{CO} emission at high {A}V. We find that most of the molecular gas is at low {A}V and traced by bright [C II] emission, but that faint {}12{CO} emission appears to extend to where we estimate that the {{{H}}}2-to-H I transition occurs. By converting our {{{H}}}2 gas estimates to a CO-to-{{{H}}}2 conversion factor (X CO), we show that X CO is primarily a function of {A}V, consistent with simulations and models of low-metallicity molecular clouds. Herschel is an ESA space observatory with science instruments provided by European-led Principal Investigator consortia and with important participation from NASA.

  1. Procedures of determining organic trace compounds in municipal sewage sludge-a review.

    PubMed

    Lindholm-Lehto, Petra C; Ahkola, Heidi S J; Knuutinen, Juha S

    2017-02-01

    Sewage sludge is the largest by-product generated during the wastewater treatment process. Since large amounts of sludge are being produced, different ways of disposal have been introduced. One tempting option is to use it as fertilizer in agricultural fields due to its high contents of inorganic nutrients. This, however, can be limited by the amount of trace contaminants in the sewage sludge, containing a variety of microbiological pollutants and pathogens but also inorganic and organic contaminants. The bioavailability and the effects of trace contaminants on the microorganisms of soil are still largely unknown as well as their mixture effects. Therefore, there is a need to analyze the sludge to test its suitability before further use. In this article, a variety of sampling, pretreatment, extraction, and analysis methods have been reviewed. Additionally, different organic trace compounds often found in the sewage sludge and their methods of analysis have been compiled. In addition to traditional Soxhlet extraction, the most common extraction methods of organic contaminants in sludge include ultrasonic extraction (USE), supercritical fluid extraction (SFE), microwave-assisted extraction (MAE), and pressurized liquid extraction (PLE) followed by instrumental analysis based on gas or liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry.

  2. Cavity-Enhanced Quantum-Cascade Laser-Based Instrument for Trace gas Measurements

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Provencal, R.; Gupta, M.; Owano, T.; Baer, D.; Ricci, K.; O'Keefe, A.

    2005-12-01

    An autonomous instrument based on Off-Axis Integrated Cavity Output Spectroscopy has been successfully deployed for measurements of CO in the troposphere and tropopause onboard a NASA DC-8 aircraft. The instrument consists of a measurement cell comprised of two high reflectivity mirrors, a continuous-wave quantum-cascade laser, gas sampling system, control and data acquisition electronics, and data analysis software. The instrument reports CO mixing ratio at a 1-Hz rate based on measured absorption, gas temperature and pressure using Beer's Law. During several flights in May-June 2004 and January 2005 that reached altitudes of 41000 ft, the instrument recorded CO values with a precision of 0.2 ppbv (1-s averaging time). Despite moderate turbulence and measurements of particulate-laden airflows, the instrument operated consistently and did not require any maintenance, mirror cleaning, or optical realignment during the flights. We will also present recent development efforts to extend the instrument's capabilities for the measurements of CH4, N2O and CO in real time.

  3. Estimating regional greenhouse gas fluxes: An uncertainty analysis of planetary boundary layer techniques and bottom-up inventories

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Quantification of regional greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes is essential for establishing mitigation strategies and evaluating their effectiveness. Here, we used multiple top-down approaches and multiple trace gas observations at a tall tower to estimate GHG regional fluxes and evaluate the GHG fluxes de...

  4. Interpreting the sub-linear Kennicutt-Schmidt relationship: the case for diffuse molecular gas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shetty, Rahul; Clark, Paul C.; Klessen, Ralf S.

    2014-08-01

    Recent statistical analysis of two extragalactic observational surveys strongly indicate a sub-linear Kennicutt-Schmidt (KS) relationship between the star formation rate (ΣSFR) and molecular gas surface density (Σmol). Here, we consider the consequences of these results in the context of common assumptions, as well as observational support for a linear relationship between ΣSFR and the surface density of dense gas. If the CO traced gas depletion time (τ_dep^CO) is constant, and if CO only traces star-forming giant molecular clouds (GMCs), then the physical properties of each GMC must vary, such as the volume densities or star formation rates. Another possibility is that the conversion between CO luminosity and Σmol, the XCO factor, differs from cloud-to-cloud. A more straightforward explanation is that CO permeates the hierarchical interstellar medium, including the filaments and lower density regions within which GMCs are embedded. A number of independent observational results support this description, with the diffuse gas comprising at least 30 per cent of the total molecular content. The CO bright diffuse gas can explain the sub-linear KS relationship, and consequently leads to an increasing τ_dep^CO with Σmol. If ΣSFR linearly correlates with the dense gas surface density, a sub-linear KS relationship indicates that the fraction of diffuse gas fdiff grows with Σmol. In galaxies where Σmol falls towards the outer disc, this description suggests that fdiff also decreases radially.

  5. Trace Elements in River Waters

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gaillardet, J.; Viers, J.; Dupré, B.

    2003-12-01

    Trace elements are characterized by concentrations lower than 1 mg L-1 in natural waters. This means that trace elements are not considered when "total dissolved solids" are calculated in rivers, lakes, or groundwaters, because their combined mass is not significant compared to the sum of Na+, K+, Ca2+, Mg2+, H4SiO4, HCO3-, CO32-, SO42-, Cl-, and NO3-. Therefore, most of the elements, except about ten of them, occur at trace levels in natural waters. Being trace elements in natural waters does not necessarily qualify them as trace elements in rocks. For example, aluminum, iron, and titanium are major elements in rocks, but they occur as trace elements in waters, due to their low mobility at the Earth's surface. Conversely, trace elements in rocks such as chlorine and carbon are major elements in waters.The geochemistry of trace elements in river waters, like that of groundwater and seawater, is receiving increasing attention. This growing interest is clearly triggered by the technical advances made in the determination of concentrations at lower levels in water. In particular, the development of inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) has considerably improved our knowledge of trace-element levels in waters since the early 1990s. ICP-MS provides the capability of determining trace elements having isotopes of interest for geochemical dating or tracing, even where their dissolved concentrations are extremely low.The determination of trace elements in natural waters is motivated by a number of issues. Although rare, trace elements in natural systems can play a major role in hydrosystems. This is particularly evident for toxic elements such as aluminum, whose concentrations are related to the abundance of fish in rivers. Many trace elements have been exploited from natural accumulation sites and used over thousands of years by human activities. Trace elements are therefore highly sensitive indexes of human impact from local to global scale. Pollution

  6. Development of and fabrication of high resolution gas chromatographic capillary columns

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Zlatkis, A.

    1982-01-01

    Gas chromatographic columns which are used in the trace gas analyzer (TGA) for the space shuttle are coated with a polyoxyethylene lauryl ether. This stationary phase is of medium polarity and has a temperature limit of 160 C. A polymer for this application which has an improved thermal stability is investigated. The use of fused silica capillary columns with specially bonded phases as well as an introduction system (on column) was also studied.

  7. Trace gas emissions from a mid-latitude prescribed chaparral fire

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Cofer, Wesley R., III; Levine, Joel S.; Sebacher, Daniel I.; Riggan, Philip J.; Winstead, Edward L.; Shaw, Edwin F., Jr.; Brass, James A.; Ambrosia, Vincent G.

    1988-01-01

    Smoke-plume gas samples were collected at altitudes from 35-670 m above the ground over the San Dimas Experimental Forest during a 400-acre prescribed chaparral fire. Mean emission ratios relative to CO2 for CO, H2, CH4, and total nonmethane hydrocarbons were lower than previous values obtained for large biomass-burning field experiments. Comparison of samples from vigorously flaming and mixed stages of combustion revealed little differences in CO2 normalized emission ratios for these gases (except for N2O).

  8. Volcanic gas composition, metal dispersion and deposition during explosive volcanic eruptions on the Moon

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Renggli, C. J.; King, P. L.; Henley, R. W.; Norman, M. D.

    2017-06-01

    The transport of metals in volcanic gases on the Moon differs greatly from their transport on the Earth because metal speciation depends largely on gas composition, temperature, pressure and oxidation state. We present a new thermochemical model for the major and trace element composition of lunar volcanic gas during pyroclastic eruptions of picritic magmas calculated at 200-1500 °C and over 10-9-103 bar. Using published volatile component concentrations in picritic lunar glasses, we have calculated the speciation of major elements (H, O, C, Cl, S and F) in the coexisting volcanic gas as the eruption proceeds. The most abundant gases are CO, H2, H2S, COS and S2, with a transition from predominantly triatomic gases to diatomic gases with increasing temperatures and decreasing pressures. Hydrogen occurs as H2, H2S, H2S2, HCl, and HF, with H2 making up 0.5-0.8 mol fractions of the total H. Water (H2O) concentrations are at trace levels, which implies that H-species other than H2O need to be considered in lunar melts and estimates of the bulk lunar composition. The Cl and S contents of the gas control metal chloride gas species, and sulfide gas and precipitated solid species. We calculate the speciation of trace metals (Zn, Ga, Cu, Pb, Ni, Fe) in the gas phase, and also the pressure and temperature conditions at which solids form from the gas. During initial stages of the eruption, elemental gases are the dominant metal species. As the gas loses heat, chloride and sulfide species become more abundant. Our chemical speciation model is applied to a lunar pyroclastic eruption model with isentropic gas decompression. The relative abundances of the deposited metal-bearing solids with distance from the vent are predicted for slow cooling rates (<5 °C/s). Close to a volcanic vent we predict native metals are deposited, whereas metal sulfides dominate with increasing distance from the vent. Finally, the lunar gas speciation model is compared with the speciation of a H2O-, CO

  9. Higs-instrument: design and demonstration of a high performance gas concentration imager

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Verlaan, A. L.; Klop, W. A.; Visser, H.; van Brug, H.; Human, J.

    2017-09-01

    Climate change and environmental conditions are high on the political agenda of international governments. Laws and regulations are being setup all around the world to improve the air quality and to reduce the impact. The growth of a number of trace gasses, including CO2, Methane and NOx are especially interesting due to their environmental impact. The regulations made are being based on both models and measurements of the trend of those trace gases over the years. Now the regulations are in place also enforcement and therewith measurements become more and more important. Instruments enabling high spectral and spatial resolution as well as high accurate measurements of trace gases are required to deliver the necessary inputs. Nowadays those measurements are usually performed by space based spectrometers. The requirement for high spectral resolution and measurement accuracy significantly increases the size of the instruments. As a result the instrument and satellite becomes very expensive to develop and to launch. Specialized instruments with a small volume and the required performance will offer significant advantages in both cost and performance. Huib's Innovative Gas Sensor (HIGS, named after its inventor Huib Visser), currently being developed at TNO is an instrument that achieves exactly that. Designed to measure only a single gas concentration, opposed to deriving it from a spectrum, it achieves high performance within a small design volume. The instrument enables instantaneous imaging of the gas distribution of the selected gas. An instrument demonstrator has been developed for NO2 detection. Laboratory measurements proved the measurement technique to be successful. An on-sky measurement campaign is in preparation. This paper addresses both the instrument design as well as the demonstrated performances.

  10. Trace Elements Affect Methanogenic Activity and Diversity in Enrichments from Subsurface Coal Bed Produced Water

    PubMed Central

    Ünal, Burcu; Perry, Verlin Ryan; Sheth, Mili; Gomez-Alvarez, Vicente; Chin, Kuk-Jeong; Nüsslein, Klaus

    2012-01-01

    Microbial methane from coal beds accounts for a significant and growing percentage of natural gas worldwide. Our knowledge of physical and geochemical factors regulating methanogenesis is still in its infancy. We hypothesized that in these closed systems, trace elements (as micronutrients) are a limiting factor for methanogenic growth and activity. Trace elements are essential components of enzymes or cofactors of metabolic pathways associated with methanogenesis. This study examined the effects of eight trace elements (iron, nickel, cobalt, molybdenum, zinc, manganese, boron, and copper) on methane production, on mcrA transcript levels, and on methanogenic community structure in enrichment cultures obtained from coal bed methane (CBM) well produced water samples from the Powder River Basin, Wyoming. Methane production was shown to be limited both by a lack of additional trace elements as well as by the addition of an overly concentrated trace element mixture. Addition of trace elements at concentrations optimized for standard media enhanced methane production by 37%. After 7 days of incubation, the levels of mcrA transcripts in enrichment cultures with trace element amendment were much higher than in cultures without amendment. Transcript levels of mcrA correlated positively with elevated rates of methane production in supplemented enrichments (R2 = 0.95). Metabolically active methanogens, identified by clone sequences of mcrA mRNA retrieved from enrichment cultures, were closely related to Methanobacterium subterraneum and Methanobacterium formicicum. Enrichment cultures were dominated by M. subterraneum and had slightly higher predicted methanogenic richness, but less diversity than enrichment cultures without amendments. These results suggest that varying concentrations of trace elements in produced water from different subsurface coal wells may cause changing levels of CBM production and alter the composition of the active methanogenic community. PMID

  11. Reprint Of: Enhanced spatially-resolved trace analysis using combined SIMS-single-stage AMS

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Grabowski, K. S.; Groopman, E. E.; Fahey, A. J.

    2018-01-01

    Secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) provides spatially resolved trace analysis of solid materials, but can be complicated by unresolved abundant molecular isobars. By adding a 300-kV single-stage accelerator mass spectrometer (SSAMS) as a detector for a Cameca ims 4f SIMS, one can measure more abundant positive ions from the SIMS while removing molecular isobars, thus improving very low abundance trace element and isotope analysis. This paper describes important features and capabilities of such an integrated system at the Naval Research Laboratory using charge state +1 ions. Transmission loss is compared to molecule destruction as gas flow to the molecule-destruction cell increases. As most measurements tolerate more modest abundance sensitivities than for 14C analysis, a lower gas flow is acceptable, so good transmission of 20-50% for ions of interest can be maintained for a broad range of ion masses. This new instrument has measured isotope ratios for uranium, lead, rare earths, and other elements from particulates and localized regions, with molecule destruction enabling the measurement at low SIMS mass resolving power and thus high transmission, as examples will show. This new and world-unique instrument provides improved capabilities for applications in nuclear and other forensics, geochemistry, cosmochemistry, and the development of optical, electronic, multifunctional, and structural materials.

  12. Address tracing for parallel machines

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Stunkel, Craig B.; Janssens, Bob; Fuchs, W. Kent

    1991-01-01

    Recently implemented parallel system address-tracing methods based on several metrics are surveyed. The issues specific to collection of traces for both shared and distributed memory parallel computers are highlighted. Five general categories of address-trace collection methods are examined: hardware-captured, interrupt-based, simulation-based, altered microcode-based, and instrumented program-based traces. The problems unique to shared memory and distributed memory multiprocessors are examined separately.

  13. SolTrace | Concentrating Solar Power | NREL

    Science.gov Websites

    NREL packaged distribution or from source code at the SolTrace open source project website. NREL Publications Support FAQs SolTrace open source project The code uses Monte-Carlo ray-tracing methodology. The -tracing capabilities. With the release of the SolTrace open source project, the software has adopted

  14. 2018 Congress Poster Abstracts

    PubMed

    2018-02-21

    Each abstract has been indexed according to the first author. Abstracts appear as they were submitted and have not undergone editing or the Oncology Nursing Forum’s review process. Only abstracts that will be presented appear here. Poster numbers are subject to change. For updated poster numbers, visit congress.ons.org or check the Congress guide. Data published in abstracts presented at the ONS 43rd Annual Congress are embargoed until the conclusion of the presentation. Coverage and/or distribution of an abstract, poster, or any of its supplemental material to or by the news media, any commercial entity, or individuals, including the authors of said abstract, is strictly prohibited until the embargo is lifted. Promotion of general topics and speakers is encouraged within these guidelines.

  15. Emissions and efficiency performance of industrial-coal-stoker fired boilers: inorganic trace elements and polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbon emissions. Volume 2. [74 inorganic trace elements and 21 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Not Available

    1981-08-01

    This report presents the results of tests for polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and inorganic trace elements in the effluent of eleven coal stoker fired boilers. These data are part of a larger stoker test program whose main objective was to produce information which will increase the ability of the boiler manufacturers to design and fabricate stoker boilers that are an economical and environmentally satisfactory alternative to oil and gas-fired units. The objectives of the SASS testing portion of this program are to determine the organic and inorganic makeup of boiler emissions which cannot be detected by using the standard EPAmore » Method 5 train. SASS tests were conducted in accordance with EPA Level 1 guidelines. Twenty-three SASS tests were run on 11 different coal stoker fired boilers to determine emissions data for 74 inorganic trace elements and 21 PAHs. The emissions of most concern are the suspected carcinogens or the emissions with high probability of being carcinogens. The inorganic trace elements that were investigated and are listed as carcinogens and high probability carcinogens by the Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards are: arsenic, beryllium, cadmium, and nickel. The SASS emissions data are presented in three different sets of units: nonograms per joule of energy input, micrograms per dry standard cubic meter of flue gas sampled, and grams per kilograms of fuel input. To protect the interests of the host boiler facilities, each site has been given a letter designation. A complete description of each unit and all tests run at each site can be found in the corresponding site reports referenced at the end of this report. This report contains a description of the test equipment and procedures, analytical procedures, data reduction techniques, the test data, and a brief description of each facility tested and the coals fired. 4 figures, 16 tables.« less

  16. Direct Analysis of Organic Compounds in Liquid Using a Miniature Photoionization Ion Trap Mass Spectrometer with Pulsed Carrier-Gas Capillary Inlet.

    PubMed

    Lu, Xinqiong; Yu, Quan; Zhang, Qian; Ni, Kai; Qian, Xiang; Tang, Fei; Wang, Xiaohao

    2017-08-01

    A miniature ion trap mass spectrometer with capillary direct sampling and vacuum ultraviolet photoionization source was developed to conduct trace analysis of organic compounds in liquids. Self-aspiration sampling is available where the samples are drawn into the vacuum chamber through a capillary with an extremely low flow rate (less than 1 μL/min), which minimizes sample consumption in each analysis to tens of micrograms. A pulsed gas-assisted inlet was designed and optimized to promote sample transmission in the tube and facilitate the cooling of ions, thereby improving instrument sensitivity. A limit of detection of 2 ppb could be achieved for 2,4-dimethylaniline in a methanol solution. The sampling system described in the present study is specifically suitable for a miniature photoionization ion trap mass spectrometer that can perform rapid and online analysis for liquid samples. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

  17. HST Observations Reveal the Curious Geometry of Circumgalactic Gas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kacprzak, Glenn G.; Muzahid, Sowgat; Churchill, Christopher W.; Nielsen, Nikole M.; Charlton, Jane C.

    2016-06-01

    We have discovered that warm gas flows along galaxy major and minor axes detected out to 200 kpc. Our results are derived from a sample of HST-imaged isolated galaxies with nearby background quasars used to probe their 105K CGM detected in HST/COS UV spectra (traced by OVI absorption). We constrain the geometry of the gas to reside between 20-40 degrees of the projected major axis and within 60 degrees of the projected minor axis, with little-to-no gas found in between. Furthermore, strong absorption systems tend to be found along the minor axes of star-forming galaxies. All of our results are consistent with the current view of the CGM originating from major axis-fed inflows/recycled gas and from minor axis-driven outflows.

  18. HST Observations Reveal the Curious Geometry of Circumgalactic Gas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kacprzak, Glenn G.; Muzahid, Sowgat; Churchill, Christopher W.; Nielsen, Nikole M.; Charlton, Jane C.

    2017-03-01

    We have discovered that warm gas flows along galaxy major and minor axes detected out to 200 kpc. Our results are derived from a sample of HST-imaged isolated galaxies with nearby background quasars used to probe their 105K CGM detected in HST/COS UV spectra (traced by Ovi absorption). We constrain the geometry of the gas to reside between 20-40 degrees of the projected major axis and within 60 degrees of the projected minor axis, with little-to-no gas found in between. Furthermore, strong absorption systems tend to be found along the minor axes of star-forming galaxies. All of our results are consistent with the current view of the CGM originating from major axis-fed inflows/recycled gas and from minor axis-driven outflows.

  19. New Isotopic Tracers for Shale Gas and Hydraulic Fracturing Fluids

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    The combined application of geochemistry, stable isotopes (δ18O, δ2H), strontium isotopes (87Sr/86Sr), boron isotopes (δ11B), and radium isotopes (228Ra/226Ra) provides a unique methodology for tracing and monitoring shale gas and fracking fluids in the environment.

  20. Development of a primary diffusion source of organic vapors for gas analyzer calibration

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lecuna, M.; Demichelis, A.; Sassi, G.; Sassi, M. P.

    2018-03-01

    The generation of reference mixtures of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) at trace levels (10 ppt-10 ppb) is a challenge for both environmental and clinical measurements. The calibration of gas analyzers for trace VOC measurements requires a stable and accurate source of the compound of interest. The dynamic preparation of gas mixtures by diffusion is a suitable method for fulfilling these requirements. The estimation of the uncertainty of the molar fraction of the VOC in the mixture is a key step in the metrological characterization of a dynamic generator. The performance of a dynamic generator was monitored over a wide range of operating conditions. The generation system was simulated by a model developed with computational fluid dynamics and validated against experimental data. The vapor pressure of the VOC was found to be one of the main contributors to the uncertainty of the diffusion rate and its influence at 10-70 kPa was analyzed and discussed. The air buoyancy effect and perturbations due to the weighing duration were studied. The gas carrier flow rate and the amount of liquid in the vial were found to play a role in limiting the diffusion rate. The results of sensitivity analyses were reported through an uncertainty budget for the diffusion rate. The roles of each influence quantity were discussed. A set of criteria to minimize the uncertainty contribution to the primary diffusion source (25 µg min-1) were estimated: carrier gas flow rate higher than 37.7 sml min-1, a maximum VOC liquid mass decrease in the vial of 4.8 g, a minimum residual mass of 1 g and vial weighing times of 1-3 min. With this procedure a limit uncertainty of 0.5% in the diffusion rate can be obtained for VOC mixtures at trace levels (10 ppt-10 ppb), making the developed diffusion vials a primary diffusion source with potential to become a new reference material for trace VOC analysis.

  1. Searching for Faint Traces of CO(2-1) and HCN(4-3) Gas In Debris Disks

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Stafford Lambros, Zachary; Hughes, A. Meredith

    2018-01-01

    The surprising presence of molecular gas in the debris disks around main sequence stars provides an opportunity to study the dissipation of primordial gas and, potentially, the composition of gas in other solar systems. Molecular gas is not expected to survive beyond the pre-main sequence phase, and it is not yet clear whether the gas is a remnant of the primordial protoplanetary material or whether the gas, like the dust, is second-generation material produced by collisional or photodesorption from planetesimals, exocomets, or the icy mantles of dust grains. Here we present two related efforts to characterize the prevalence and properties of gas in debris disks. First, we place the lowest limits to date on the CO emission from an M star debris disk, using 0.3" resolution observations of CO(2-1) emission from the AU Mic system with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA). We place a 3-sigma upper limit on the integrated flux of 0.39 Jy km/s, corresponding to a maximum CO mass of 5e10-6 (Earth Masses) if the gas is in LTE. We also present the results of an ALMA search for HCN(4-3) emission from the prototypical gas-rich debris disk around 49 Ceti at a spatial resolution of 0.3". Despite hosting one of the brightest CO-rich debris disks yet discovered, our observations of 49 Ceti also yield a low upper limit of 0.057 Jy km/s in the HCN line, leaving CO as the only molecule clearly detected in emission from a debris disk. We employ several methods of detecting faint line emission from debris disks, including a model based on Keplerian kinematics as well as a spectral shifting method previously used to detect faint CO emission from the Fomalhaut debris disk, and compare our results.

  2. NOAA Mobile Laboratory Measures Oil and Gas Emissions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kofler, J. D.; Petron, G.; Dube, W. P.; Edwards, P. M.; Brown, S. S.; Geiger, F.; Patrick, L.; Crepinsek, S.; Chen, H.; Miller, B. R.; Montzka, S. A.; Lang, P. M.; Newberger, T.; Higgs, J. A.; Sweeney, C.; Guenther, D.; Karion, A.; Wolter, S.; Williams, J.; Jordan, A.; Tans, P. P.; Schnell, R. C.

    2012-12-01

    A van capable of continuous real time measurements of CH4 , CO2, CO, Water Vapor, Ozone, NO, NO2, Volatile Organic Compounds VOCs including aromatics and other traces gases was driven in the oil and gas fields of the Uintah Basin in northeastern Utah. Compressor Stations, processing plants, oil and gas well heads. Separators, condensate tanks, evaporation pond disposal facilities, holding tanks, hydraulic fracturing sites, gas pipelines and more were studied using the van. The mobile measurements provide a powerful tool to get to the source of the emissions and reveal the unique chemical signature of each of the stages and components of oil and gas production as well as the overall basin and background gas concentrations. In addition to a suite of gas analyzers, the van includes a meteorological system (temperature, humidity, and wind speed and direction), GPS tracking, flask sampling system and a batter power system. Aspects of the vans hardware, sampling methods and operations are discussed along with a few highlights of the measurements.

  3. Using the NAME Lagrangian Particle Dispersion model, and aircraft measurements to assess the accuracy of trace gas emission inventories from the U.K.

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    O'Sullivan, D. A.; Harrison, M.; Ploson, D.; Oram, D.; Reeves, C.

    2007-12-01

    A top-down approach using a combination of aircraft data and atmospheric dispersion modelling has been used to estimate emissions for 24 halogenated trace gases from the United Kingdom. This has been done using data collected during AMPEP/FLUXEX, a U.K based measurement campaign which took place between April and September 2005. The primary objective relating to this work was to make direct airborne measurements of concentration enhancements within the boundary layer arising from anthropogenic pollution events, and then to use mass balance methods to determine an emission flux. This was done by analysing Whole Air Samples (WAS) collected in the boundary layer upwind and downwind of the UK at frequent intervals around the coast using the technique of gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GCMS). Emissions were then calculated using a simple box-model approach and also using NAME (Numerical Atmospheric-dispersion Modelling Environment) which is a Lagrangian particle model using 3 hourly 3D meteorology fields from the Met Office Unified Model. By using such an approach it is also possible to identify the most likely main source regions in the UK for the compounds measured. Among the trace gases studied are many which through their effects on stratospheric ozone, and their large radiative forcing have a direct impact on global climate such as CFC's 11, 12, 113 and 114, HCFC's 21, 22, 141b and 142b, HFC's 134a and 152a, methyl chloroform, methyl bromide and carbon tetrachloride. Also the emissions of some short lived gases with have direct effects on human health, such as tetrachloroethene, and trichloroethene, have been derived. The UK emissions estimates calculated from this experimental and modelling work are compared with bottom-up and other top-down emission inventories for the UK and Europe. It was found that the estimates from this study were often higher than those in bottom-up emission inventories derived from industry. In addition for a number of trace gases

  4. Trace elements in dialysis.

    PubMed

    Filler, Guido; Felder, Sarah

    2014-08-01

    In end-stage chronic kidney disease (CKD), pediatric nephrologists must consider the homeostasis of the multiple water-soluble ions that are influenced by renal replacement therapy (RRT). While certain ions such as potassium and calcium are closely monitored, little is known about the handling of trace elements in pediatric dialysis. RRT may lead to accumulation of toxic trace elements, either due to insufficient elimination or due to contamination, or to excessive removal of essential trace elements. However, trace elements are not routinely monitored in dialysis patients and no mechanism for these deficits or toxicities has been established. This review summarizes the handling of trace elements, with particular attention to pediatric data. The best data describe lead and indicate that there is a higher prevalence of elevated lead (Pb, atomic number 82) levels in children on RRT when compared to adults. Lead is particularly toxic in neurodevelopment and lead levels should therefore be monitored. Monitoring of zinc (Zn, atomic number 30) and selenium (Se, atomic number 34) may be indicated in the monitoring of all pediatric dialysis patients to reduce morbidity from deficiency. Prospective studies evaluating the impact of abnormal trace elements and the possible therapeutic value of intervention are required.

  5. Trace-gas metabolic versatility of the facultative methanotroph Methylocella silvestris.

    PubMed

    Crombie, Andrew T; Murrell, J Colin

    2014-06-05

    The climate-active gas methane is generated both by biological processes and by thermogenic decomposition of fossil organic material, which forms methane and short-chain alkanes, principally ethane, propane and butane. In addition to natural sources, environments are exposed to anthropogenic inputs of all these gases from oil and gas extraction and distribution. The gases provide carbon and/or energy for a diverse range of microorganisms that can metabolize them in both anoxic and oxic zones. Aerobic methanotrophs, which can assimilate methane, have been considered to be entirely distinct from utilizers of short-chain alkanes, and studies of environments exposed to mixtures of methane and multi-carbon alkanes have assumed that disparate groups of microorganisms are responsible for the metabolism of these gases. Here we describe the mechanism by which a single bacterial strain, Methylocella silvestris, can use methane or propane as a carbon and energy source, documenting a methanotroph that can utilize a short-chain alkane as an alternative to methane. Furthermore, during growth on a mixture of these gases, efficient consumption of both gases occurred at the same time. Two soluble di-iron centre monooxygenase (SDIMO) gene clusters were identified and were found to be differentially expressed during bacterial growth on these gases, although both were required for efficient propane utilization. This report of a methanotroph expressing an additional SDIMO that seems to be uniquely involved in short-chain alkane metabolism suggests that such metabolic flexibility may be important in many environments where methane and short-chain alkanes co-occur.

  6. Ultra-trace determination of Persistent Organic Pollutants in Arctic ice using stir bar sorptive extraction and gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Lacorte, S; Quintana, J; Tauler, R; Ventura, F; Tovar-Sánchez, A; Duarte, C M

    2009-12-04

    This study presents the optimization and application of an analytical method based on the use of stir bar sorptive extraction (SBSE) gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC-MS) for the ultra-trace analysis of POPs (Persistent Organic Pollutants) in Arctic ice. In a first step, the mass-spectrometry conditions were optimized to quantify 48 compounds (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, brominated diphenyl ethers, chlorinated biphenyls, and organochlorinated pesticides) at the low pg/L level. In a second step, the performance of this analytical method was evaluated to determine POPs in Arctic cores collected during an oceanographic campaign. Using a calibration range from 1 to 1800 pg/L and by adjusting acquisition parameters, limits of detection at the 0.1-99 and 102-891 pg/L for organohalogenated compounds and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, respectively, were obtained by extracting 200 mL of unfiltered ice water. alpha-hexachlorocyclohexane, DDTs, chlorinated biphenyl congeners 28, 101 and 118 and brominated diphenyl ethers congeners 47 and 99 were detected in ice cores at levels between 0.5 to 258 pg/L. We emphasise the advantages and disadvantages of in situ SBSE in comparison with traditional extraction techniques used to analyze POPs in ice.

  7. Experimental investigations about the effect of trace amount of propane on the formation of mixed hydrates of methane and propane

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cai, W.; Lu, H.; Huang, X.

    2016-12-01

    In natural gas hydrates, some heavy hydrocarbons are always detected in addition to methane. However, it is still not well understood how the trace amount of heavy gas affect the hydrate properties. Intensive studies have been carried out to study the thermodynamic properties and structure types of mixed gases hydrates, but comparatively few investigations have been carried out on the cage occupancies of guest molecules in mixed gases hydrates. For understanding how trace amount of propane affects the formation of mixed methane-propane hydrates, X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, and gas chromatography were applied to the synthesized mixed methane-propane hydrate specimens, to get their structural characteristics (structure type, structural parameters, cage occupancy, etc.) and gas compositions. The mixed methane-propane hydrates were prepared by reacting fine ice powders with various gas mixtures of methane and propane. When the propane content was below 0.4%, the hydrates synthesized were found containing both sI methane hydrate and sII methane-propane hydrate; while the hydrates were found always sII when propane was over certain content. Detail studies about the cage occupancies of propane and methane in sII hydrate revealed that: 1) with the increase in propane content of methane-propane mixture, the occupancy of propane in large cage increased as accompanied with the decrease in methane occupancy in large cage, however the occupancy of methane in small cage didn't experience significant change; 2) temperature and pressure seemed no obvious influence on cage occupancy.

  8. The Keck OSIRIS Nearby AGN Survey: Tracing Inflow within the Central 200 pc of Seyfert Galaxies

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hicks, Erin K. S.; Müller-Sánchez, Francisco; Malkan, Matthew A.; Yu, Po-Chieh

    2016-08-01

    In an effort to identify the fundamental processes driving feeding and feedback in AGN we turn to local Seyfert galaxies and rely on a multi-wavelength approach. With the integral field unit OSIRIS and adaptive optics we characterize the nuclear stars and gas down to scales of 5-30 parsecs in a sample of 40 Seyfert galaxies with the Keck OSIRIS Nearby AGN (KONA) survey. The complex gas kinematics in these near-IR data are interpreted using an integrative approach through comparison with data available at a range of wavelengths. We present first results from the survey with a focus on work aimed at constraining the mechanism(s) driving inflow of material within the central 200 pc. Particularly useful in the identification of inflow mechanisms (e.g. nuclear spiral, external accretion) is spatial correlation of the molecular gas distribution and kinematics with dust features revealed in HST imaging (optical and near-IR). Also informative is comparison with X-ray emission to identify locations likely influenced by interactions with outflows. The stellar kinematics in the sample galaxies (traced by CO bandheads at 2.3 microns) indicate a stellar population within the central few 100 parsecs in circular rotation, and in the majority of the galaxies the molecular gas (traced by H2 emission at 2.1218 microns) is found to have a rotating component co-spatial with the stellar disk. A significant fraction of the galaxies also exhibit kinematic signatures of inflow superimposed on this disk rotation, with inflow driven by secular and non-secular processes identified. We explore statistical trends of the nuclear stellar and molecular gas properties, including primary fueling mechanism, with Seyfert type, AGN luminosity, and host environment with the goal of disentangling which properties are fundamental to the nature of the AGN.

  9. Gas chromatographic/mass spectrometric determination of carbon isotope composition in unpurified samples: methamphetamine example.

    PubMed

    Low, I A; Liu, R H; Legendre, M G; Piotrowski, E G; Furner, R L

    1986-10-01

    A gas chromatograph/quadrupole mass spectrometer system, operated in electron impact/selected ion monitoring mode, is used to determine the intensity ratio of the m/z 59 and the m/z 58 ions of the [C3H8N]+ fragment derived from methamphetamine samples synthesized with varying amounts of 13C-labeled methylamine. Crude products are introduced into the gas chromatograph without prior cleanup. The ratios measured were in excellent agreement with those calculated. A change in 0.25% use of 13C-methylamine is sufficient for product differentiation. The feasibility of using isotope labeling and subsequent mass spectrometric isotope ratio measurement as the basis of a compound tracing mechanism is discussed. Specifically, if methamphetamine samples manufactured from legal sources are asked to incorporate distinct 13C compositions, their sources can be traced when samples are diverted into illegal channels. Samples derived from illicit preparations can also be traced if the manufacturers of a precursor (methylamine in this case) incorporate distinct 13C compositions in their products.

  10. NASA patent abstracts bibliography: A continuing bibliography. Section 1: Abstracts (supplement 08)

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1976-01-01

    This bibliography is issued in two sections; abstracts and indexes. The Abstract Section cites 180 patents and applications for patents introduced into the NASA scientific and technical information system during the period of July 1975 through December 1975. Each entry in the Abstract Section consists of a citation, an abstract, and in most cases, a key illustration selected from the patent or application for patent. The index Section contains entries for 2,905 patents and applications for patent citations covering the period May 1969 through December 1975. The Index Section contains five indexes -- subject, inventor, source, number and accession number.

  11. Opo lidar sounding of trace atmospheric gases in the 3 - 4 μm spectral range

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Romanovskii, Oleg A.; Sadovnikov, Sergey A.; Kharchenko, Olga V.; Yakovlev, Semen V.

    2018-04-01

    The applicability of a KTA crystal-based laser system with optical parametric oscillators (OPO) generation to lidar sounding of the atmosphere in the spectral range 3-4 μm is studied in this work. A technique developed for lidar sounding of trace atmospheric gases (TAG) is based on differential absorption lidar (DIAL) method and differential optical absorption spectroscopy (DOAS). The DIAL-DOAS technique is tested to estimate its efficiency for lidar sounding of atmospheric trace gases. The numerical simulation performed shows that a KTA-based OPO laser is a promising source of radiation for remote DIAL-DOAS sounding of the TAGs under study along surface tropospheric paths. A possibility of using a PD38-03-PR photodiode for the DIAL gas analysis of the atmosphere is shown.

  12. Dynamic technique for measuring adsorption in a gas chromatograph

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Deuel, C. L.; Hultgren, N. W.; Mobert, M. L.

    1973-01-01

    Gas-chromatographic procedure, together with mathematical analysis of adsorption isotherm, allows relative surface areas and adsorptive powers for trace concentrations to be determined in a few minutes. Technique may be used to evaluate relative surface areas of different adsorbates, expressed as volume of adsorbent/gram of adsorbate, and to evaluate their relative adsorptive power.

  13. Irreversible sorption of trace concentrations of perfluorocarboxylic acids to fiber filters used for air sampling

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Arp, Hans Peter H.; Goss, Kai-Uwe

    Due to the apparent environmental omnipresence of perfluorocarboxylic acids (PFAs), an increasing number of researchers are investigating their ambient particle- and gas-phase concentrations. Typically this is done using a high-volume air sampler equipped with Quartz Fiber Filters (QFFs) or Glass Fiber Filters (GFFs) to sample the particle-bound PFAs and downstream sorbents to sample the gas-phase PFAs. This study reports that at trace, ambient concentrations gas-phase PFAs sorb to QFFs and GFFs irreversibly and hardly pass through these filters to the downstream sorbents. As a consequence, it is not possible to distinguish between particle- and gas-phase concentrations, or to distinguish concentrations on different particle size fractions, unless precautions are taken. Failure to take such precautions could have already caused reported data to be misinterpreted. Here it is also reported that deactivating QFFs and GFFs with a silylating agent renders them suitable for sampling PFAs. Based on the presented study, a series of recommendations for air-sampling PFAs are provided.

  14. USSR and Eastern Europe Scientific Abstracts. Engineering and Equipment, Nubmer 28.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1977-02-04

    with a gas of negligibly low density^ The fluid is in a magnetic field with intensity vector H*, a gravitational field ng ( g » 9.81 m/sec , n = the...account. The^axis of symmetry of the vessel is anticollinear to the vector g . Basic equations are presented in a form that is convenient for...REQUIREMENTS OF THE NEW SNiP STANDARD MOSCOW STROITEL’STVO TRUBOPROVODOV No 8, Aug 76, pp 31-33 PROKOF’YEV, V.l., AND KAMERSHTEYN, A. G . Abstract

  15. STRUCTURED MOLECULAR GAS REVEALS GALACTIC SPIRAL ARMS

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Sawada, Tsuyoshi; Hasegawa, Tetsuo; Koda, Jin, E-mail: sawada.tsuyoshi@nao.ac.jp

    We explore the development of structures in molecular gas in the Milky Way by applying the analysis of the brightness distribution function and the brightness distribution index (BDI) in the archival data from the Boston University-Five College Radio Astronomy Observatory {sup 13}CO J = 1-0 Galactic Ring Survey. The BDI measures the fractional contribution of spatially confined bright molecular emission over faint emission extended over large areas. This relative quantity is largely independent of the amount of molecular gas and of any conventional, pre-conceived structures, such as cores, clumps, or giant molecular clouds. The structured molecular gas traced by highermore » BDI is located continuously along the spiral arms in the Milky Way in the longitude-velocity diagram. This clearly indicates that molecular gas changes its structure as it flows through the spiral arms. Although the high-BDI gas generally coincides with H II regions, there is also some high-BDI gas with no/little signature of ongoing star formation. These results support a possible evolutionary sequence in which unstructured, diffuse gas transforms itself into a structured state on encountering the spiral arms, followed by star formation and an eventual return to the unstructured state after the spiral arm passage.« less

  16. Evaluation of trace analyte identification in complex matrices by low-resolution gas chromatography--Mass spectrometry through signal simulation.

    PubMed

    Bettencourt da Silva, Ricardo J N

    2016-04-01

    The identification of trace levels of compounds in complex matrices by conventional low-resolution gas chromatography hyphenated with mass spectrometry is based in the comparison of retention times and abundance ratios of characteristic mass spectrum fragments of analyte peaks from calibrators with sample peaks. Statistically sound criteria for the comparison of these parameters were developed based on the normal distribution of retention times and the simulation of possible non-normal distribution of correlated abundances ratios. The confidence level used to set the statistical maximum and minimum limits of parameters defines the true positive rates of identifications. The false positive rate of identification was estimated from worst-case signal noise models. The estimated true and false positive identifications rate from one retention time and two correlated ratios of three fragments abundances were combined using simple Bayes' statistics to estimate the probability of compound identification being correct designated examination uncertainty. Models of the variation of examination uncertainty with analyte quantity allowed the estimation of the Limit of Examination as the lowest quantity that produced "Extremely strong" evidences of compound presence. User friendly MS-Excel files are made available to allow the easy application of developed approach in routine and research laboratories. The developed approach was successfully applied to the identification of chlorpyrifos-methyl and malathion in QuEChERS method extracts of vegetables with high water content for which the estimated Limit of Examination is 0.14 mg kg(-1) and 0.23 mg kg(-1) respectively. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  17. Impact of the Asian monsoon on the extratropical lower stratosphere: trace gas observations during TACTS over Europe 2012

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Müller, Stefan; Hoor, Peter; Bozem, Heiko; Gute, Ellen; Vogel, Bärbel; Zahn, Andreas; Bönisch, Harald; Keber, Timo; Krämer, Martina; Rolf, Christian; Riese, Martin; Schlager, Hans; Engel, Andreas

    2016-08-01

    The transport of air masses originating from the Asian monsoon anticyclone into the extratropical upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (Ex-UTLS) above potential temperatures Θ = 380 K was identified during the HALO aircraft mission TACTS in August and September 2012. In situ measurements of CO, O3 and N2O during TACTS flight 2 on 30 August 2012 show the irreversible mixing of aged stratospheric air masses with younger (recently transported from the troposphere) ones within the Ex-UTLS. Backward trajectories calculated with the trajectory module of CLaMS indicate that these tropospherically affected air masses originate from the Asian monsoon anticyclone. These air masses are subsequently transported above potential temperatures Θ = 380 K from the monsoon circulation region into the Ex-UTLS, where they subsequently mix with stratospheric air masses. The overall trace gas distribution measured during TACTS shows that this transport pathway had affected the chemical composition of the Ex-UTLS during boreal summer and autumn 2012. This leads to an intensification of the tropospheric influence on the extratropical lower stratosphere with PV > 8 pvu within 3 weeks during the TACTS mission. During the same time period a weakening of the tropospheric influence on the lowermost stratosphere (LMS) is determined. The study shows that the transport of air masses originating from the Asian summer monsoon region within the lower stratosphere affects the change in the chemical composition of the Ex-UTLS over Europe and thus contributes to the flushing of the LMS during summer 2012.

  18. Abstracting Concepts and Methods.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Borko, Harold; Bernier, Charles L.

    This text provides a complete discussion of abstracts--their history, production, organization, publication--and of indexing. Instructions for abstracting are outlined, and standards and criteria for abstracting are stated. Management, automation, and personnel are discussed in terms of possible economies that can be derived from the introduction…

  19. FATE OF TRACE METALS IN A ROTARY KILN INCINERATOR WITH A SINGLE-STAGE IONIZING WET SCRUBBER. VOLUME 1. TECHNICAL RESULTS.

    EPA Science Inventory

    A series of pilot-scale incineration tests was performed at EPA's Incineration Research Facility (IRF) in Jefferson, Arkansas, to evaluate the fate of trace metals fed to a rotary kiln incinerator equipped with an ionizing wet scrubber (IWS) for particulate and acid gas control. ...

  20. THE FATE OF TRACE METALS IN A ROTARY KILN INCINERATOR WITH A SINGLE-STAGE IONIZING WET SCRUBBER - VOLUME II: APPENDICES

    EPA Science Inventory

    A series of pilot-scale incineration tests was performed at EPA's Incineration Research Facility (IRF) in Jefferson, Arkansas, to evaluate the fate of trace metals fed to a rotary kiln incinerator equipped with an ionizing wet scrubber (IWS) for particulate and acid gas control. ...

  1. NASA patent abstracts bibliography: A continuing bibliography. Section 1: Abstracts (supplement 07)

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1975-01-01

    This bibliography is issued in two sections: Section 1 - Abstracts, and Section 2 - Indexes. This issue of the Abstract Section cites 158 patents and applications for patent introduced into the NASA scientific and technical information system during the period of January 1975 through June 1975. Each entry in the Abstract Section consists of a citation, an abstract, and, in most cases, a key illustration selected from the patent or application for patent. This issue of the Index Section contains entries for 2830 patent and application for patent citations covering the period May 1969 through June 1975. The index section contains five indexes -- subject, inventor, source, number and accession number.

  2. NASA patent abstracts bibliography: A continuing bibliography. Section 1: Abstracts (supplement 09)

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1976-01-01

    This bibliography is issued in two sections: Section 1 - Abstracts, and Section 2 - Indexes. This issue of the Abstract Section cites 200 patents and applications for patent introduced into the NASA scientific and technical information system during the period of January 1976 through June 1976. Each entry in the Abstract Section consists of a citation, an abstract, and in most cases, a key illustration selected from the patent or application for patent. This issue of the Index Section contains entries for 2994 patent and application for patent citations covering the period May 1969 through June 1976. The Index Section contains five indexes -- subject, inventor, source, number and accession number.

  3. NASA patent abstracts bibliography: A continuing bibliography. Section 1: Abstracts (supplement 13)

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1978-01-01

    This bibliography is issued in two sections: Section 1 - Abstracts, and Section 2 - Indexes. This issue of the Abstract Section cites 161 patents and applications for patent introduced into the NASA scientific and technical information system during the period January 1978 through June 1978. Each entry consists of a citation, an abstract, and in most cases, a key illustration selected from the patent or application for patent.

  4. A Safe Solution to Dopant Gas Desorption from Metal Surfaces

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nakanoya, Tsutomu; Egami, Maki

    2006-11-01

    TOXICAPTURE™ is used to further minimize trace toxic dopant gas inside cylinder valve outlets, which, over time, may desorb from metal surfaces. When outlet caps or connections to ion source gas cylinders are disconnected in order to perform installations or bottle changes, there always is some risk that toxic fumes resulting from desorption of the metal surface in contact with dopant gas are released in air and inhaled by the operator. TOXICAPTURE™ is a simple and easy solution to reduce this risk that may damage human health or may pollute clean room environment. TOXICAPTURE™ will react with the poison gas vapor to form nontoxic and solid material through irreversible chemical reactions. TOXICAPTURE™ prevents contamination and corrosion on gas contact surfaces of gas pipings, pressure regulators, pneumatic valves, mass flow controllers, and other parts in a gas box. TOXICAPTURE™ is highly effective in shortening the time to achieve high vacuum and in extending the lifetime of devices in the gas box. In this paper, we introduce the structure, functions, reactivity, applications, and effectivity of TOXICAPTURE™.

  5. Aerosol Optical Properties and Trace Gas Emissions From Laboratory-Simulated Western US Wildfires

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Selimovic, V.; Yokelson, R. J.; Warneke, C.; Roberts, J. M.; De Gouw, J. A.; Reardon, J.; Griffith, D. W. T.

    2017-12-01

    Western wildfires have a major impact on air quality in the US. In the fall of 2016, 107 fires were burned in the large-scale combustion facility at the US Forest Service Missoula Fire Sciences Laboratory as part of the Fire Influence on Regional and Global Environments Experiment (FIREX). Canopy, litter, duff, dead wood, and other fuels from various widespread coniferous and chaparral ecosystems were burned in combinations to represent relevant configurations in the field and as pure components to investigate the effects of individual fuels. The smoke emissions were characterized by a large suite of state-of-the-art instruments. In this study we report emission factor (EF, g compound emitted per kg fuel burned) measurements in fresh smoke of a diverse suite of critically-important trace gases measured by open-path Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (OP-FTIR). We also report aerosol optical properties (absorption EF, single scattering albedo (SSA) and Ångström absorption exponent (AAE)) as well as black carbon (BC) EF measured by photoacoustic extinctiometers (PAX) at 870 and 401 nm. A careful comparison with available field measurements of wildfires confirms that representative data can be extracted from the lab fire data. The OP-FTIR data show that ammonia (1.65 g kg-1), acetic acid (2.44 g kg-1), and other trace gases are significant emissions not previously measured for US wildfires. The PAX measurements show that brown carbon (BrC) absorption is most dominant for combustion of duff (AAE 7.13) and rotten wood (AAE 4.60): fuels that are consumed in greater amounts during wildfires than prescribed fires. We confirm that about 86% of the aerosol absorption at 401 nm in typical fresh wildfire smoke is due to BrC.

  6. Tunable photonic cavities for in-situ spectroscopic trace gas detection

    DOEpatents

    Bond, Tiziana; Cole, Garrett; Goddard, Lynford

    2012-11-13

    Compact tunable optical cavities are provided for in-situ NIR spectroscopy. MEMS-tunable VCSEL platforms represents a solid foundation for a new class of compact, sensitive and fiber compatible sensors for fieldable, real-time, multiplexed gas detection systems. Detection limits for gases with NIR cross-sections such as O.sub.2, CH.sub.4, CO.sub.x and NO.sub.x have been predicted to approximately span from 10.sup.ths to 10s of parts per million. Exemplary oxygen detection design and a process for 760 nm continuously tunable VCSELS is provided. This technology enables in-situ self-calibrating platforms with adaptive monitoring by exploiting Photonic FPGAs.

  7. Abstract Interpreters for Free

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Might, Matthew

    In small-step abstract interpretations, the concrete and abstract semantics bear an uncanny resemblance. In this work, we present an analysis-design methodology that both explains and exploits that resemblance. Specifically, we present a two-step method to convert a small-step concrete semantics into a family of sound, computable abstract interpretations. The first step re-factors the concrete state-space to eliminate recursive structure; this refactoring of the state-space simultaneously determines a store-passing-style transformation on the underlying concrete semantics. The second step uses inference rules to generate an abstract state-space and a Galois connection simultaneously. The Galois connection allows the calculation of the "optimal" abstract interpretation. The two-step process is unambiguous, but nondeterministic: at each step, analysis designers face choices. Some of these choices ultimately influence properties such as flow-, field- and context-sensitivity. Thus, under the method, we can give the emergence of these properties a graph-theoretic characterization. To illustrate the method, we systematically abstract the continuation-passing style lambda calculus to arrive at two distinct families of analyses. The first is the well-known k-CFA family of analyses. The second consists of novel "environment-centric" abstract interpretations, none of which appear in the literature on static analysis of higher-order programs.

  8. Fate of hazardous air pollutants in oxygen-fired coal combustion with different flue gas recycling.

    PubMed

    Zhuang, Ye; Pavlish, John H

    2012-04-17

    Experiments were performed to characterize transformation and speciation of hazardous air pollutants (HAPs), including SO(2)/SO(3), NO(x), HCl, particulate matter, mercury, and other trace elements in oxygen-firing bituminous coal with recirculation flue gas (RFG) from 1) an electrostatic precipitator outlet or 2) a wet scrubber outlet. The experimental results showed that oxycombustion with RFG generated a flue gas with less volume and containing HAPs at higher levels, while the actual emissions of HAPs per unit of energy produced were much less than that of air-blown combustion. NO(x) reduction was achieved in oxycombustion because of the elimination of nitrogen and the destruction of NO in the RFG. The elevated SO(2)/SO(3) in flue gas improved sulfur self-retention. SO(3) vapor could reach its dew point in the flue gas with high moisture, which limits the amount of SO(3) vapor in flue gas and possibly induces material corrosion. Most nonvolatile trace elements were less enriched in fly ash in oxycombustion than air-firing because of lower oxycombustion temperatures occurring in the present study. Meanwhile, Hg and Se were found to be enriched on submicrometer fly ash at higher levels in oxy-firing than in air-blown combustion.

  9. Computer ray tracing speeds.

    PubMed

    Robb, P; Pawlowski, B

    1990-05-01

    The results of measuring the ray trace speed and compilation speed of thirty-nine computers in fifty-seven configurations, ranging from personal computers to super computers, are described. A correlation of ray trace speed has been made with the LINPACK benchmark which allows the ray trace speed to be estimated using LINPACK performance data. The results indicate that the latest generation of workstations, using CPUs based on RISC (Reduced Instruction Set Computer) technology, are as fast or faster than mainframe computers in compute-bound situations.

  10. Gas and aerosol fluxes. [emphasizing sulfur, nitrogen, and carbon

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Martens, C. S.

    1980-01-01

    The development of remote sensing techniques to address the global need for accurate distribution and flux determinations of both man made and natural materials which affect the chemical composition of the atmosphere, the heat budget of the Earth, and the depletion, of stratospheric ozone is considered. Specifically, trace gas fluxes, sea salt aerosol production, and the effect of sea surface microlayer on gas and aerosol fluxes are examined. Volatile sulfur, carbon, nitrogen, and halocarbon compounds are discussed including a statement of the problem associated with each compound or group of compounds, a brief summary of current understanding, and suggestions for needed research.

  11. Detection of circumstellar gas associated with GG Tauri

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Skrutskie, M. F.; Snell, R. L.; Strom, K. M.; Strom, S. E.; Edwards, S.; Fukui, Y.; Mizuno, A.; Hayashi, M.; Ohashi, N.

    1993-01-01

    Double-peaked (C-12)O (1-0) emission centered on the young T Tauri star GG Tau possesses a line profile which may be modeled on the assumption that CO emission arises in an extended circumstellar disk. While bounds on the observed gas mass can be estimated on this basis, it is suggested that a large amount of mass could lie within a small and optically thick region, escaping detection due to beam-dilution effects. In addition, CO may no longer accurately trace the gas mass due to its dissociation, or freezing into grains, or due to the locking-up of carbon into more complex molecules.

  12. Paper Abstract Animals

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sutley, Jane

    2010-01-01

    Abstraction is, in effect, a simplification and reduction of shapes with an absence of detail designed to comprise the essence of the more naturalistic images being depicted. Without even intending to, young children consistently create interesting, and sometimes beautiful, abstract compositions. A child's creations, moreover, will always seem to…

  13. Automated Data Abstraction of Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Process Measures for Complete Episodes of Cardiac Arrest Resuscitation.

    PubMed

    Lin, Steve; Turgulov, Anuar; Taher, Ahmed; Buick, Jason E; Byers, Adam; Drennan, Ian R; Hu, Samantha; J Morrison, Laurie

    2016-10-01

    Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) process measures research and quality assurance has traditionally been limited to the first 5 minutes of resuscitation due to significant costs in time, resources, and personnel from manual data abstraction. CPR performance may change over time during prolonged resuscitations, which represents a significant knowledge gap. Moreover, currently available commercial software output of CPR process measures are difficult to analyze. The objective was to develop and validate a software program to help automate the abstraction and transfer of CPR process measures data from electronic defibrillators for complete episodes of cardiac arrest resuscitation. We developed a software program to facilitate and help automate CPR data abstraction and transfer from electronic defibrillators for entire resuscitation episodes. Using an intermediary Extensible Markup Language export file, the automated software transfers CPR process measures data (electrocardiogram [ECG] number, CPR start time, number of ventilations, number of chest compressions, compression rate per minute, compression depth per minute, compression fraction, and end-tidal CO 2 per minute). We performed an internal validation of the software program on 50 randomly selected cardiac arrest cases with resuscitation durations between 15 and 60 minutes. CPR process measures were manually abstracted and transferred independently by two trained data abstractors and by the automated software program, followed by manual interpretation of raw ECG tracings, treatment interventions, and patient events. Error rates and the time needed for data abstraction, transfer, and interpretation were measured for both manual and automated methods, compared to an additional independent reviewer. A total of 9,826 data points were each abstracted by the two abstractors and by the software program. Manual data abstraction resulted in a total of six errors (0.06%) compared to zero errors by the software program

  14. Halocarbons and other trace heteroatomic organic compounds in volcanic gases from Vulcano (Aeolian Islands, Italy)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schwandner, Florian M.; Seward, Terry M.; Giże, Andrew P.; Hall, Keith; Dietrich, Volker J.

    2013-01-01

    Adsorbent-trapped volcanic gases, sublimates and condensates from active vents of the La Fossa crater on the island of Vulcano (Aeolian Islands, Italy) as well as ambient and industrial air were quantitatively analyzed by Short-Path Thermal Desorption-Solid Phase Microextraction-Cryotrapping-Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry (SPTD-SPME-CF-GC-MS). Among the over 200 detected and quantified compounds are alkanes, alkenes, arenes, phenols, aldehydes, carboxylic acids, esters, ketones, nitriles, PAHs and their halogenated, methylated and sulfonated derivatives, as well as various heterocyclic compounds including thiophenes and furans. Most compounds are found at concentrations well above laboratory, ambient air, adsorbent and field blank levels. For some analytes (e.g., CFC-11, CH2Cl2, CH3Br), concentrations are up to several orders of magnitude greater than even mid-latitudinal industrial urban air maxima. Air or laboratory contamination is negligible or absent on the basis of noble gas measurements and their isotopic ratios. The organic compounds are interpreted as the product of abiogenic gas-phase radical reactions. On the basis of isomer abundances, n-alkane distributions and substitution patterns the compounds are thought to have formed by high-temperature (e.g., 900 °C) alkyl free radical reactions and halide electrophilic substitution on arenes, alkanes and alkenes. The apparent abiogenic organic chemistry of volcanic gases may give insights into metal transport processes during the formation and alteration of hydrothermal ore deposits, into the natural volcanic source strength of ozone-depleting atmospheric trace gases (i.e., halocarbons), into possibly sensitive trace gas redox pairs as potential early indicators of subsurface changes on volcanoes in the state of imminent unrest, and into the possible hydrothermal origin of early life on Earth, as indicated by the presence of simple amino acids, nitriles, and alkanoic acids.

  15. A Hollow-Waveguide Gas Correlation Radiometer for Ultra-Precise Column Measurements of Formaldehyde on Mars

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Wilson, Emily L.; Neveu, Marc; Riris, Haris; Georgieva, Elena M.; Heaps, William S.

    2011-01-01

    We present preliminary results in the development of a miniaturized gas correlation radiometer that implements a hollow-core optical fiber (hollow waveguide) gas correlation cell. The substantial reduction in mass and volume of the gas correlation cell makes this technology appropriate for an orbital mission -- capable of pinpointing sources of trace gases in the Martian atmosphere. Here we demonstrate a formaldehyde (H2CO) sensor and report a detection limit equivalent to approximately 30 ppb in the Martian atmosphere. The relative simplicity of the technique allows it to be expanded to measure a range of atmospheric trace gases of interest on Mars such as methane (CH4), water vapour (H2O), deuterated water vapour (HDO), and methanol (CH3OH). Performance of a formaldehyde instrument in a Mars orbit has been simulated assuming a 3 meter long, 1000 micron inner diameter hollow-core fiber gas correlation cell, a 92.8 degree sun-synchronous orbit from 400 km with a horizontal sampling scale of 10 km x 10 km. Initial results indicate that for one second of averaging, a detection limit of 1 ppb is possible.

  16. Analysis of consecutively sampled headspace and liquid fractions by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry.

    PubMed

    Treble, Ronald G; Johnson, Keith E; Xiao, Li; Thompson, Thomas S

    2002-07-01

    An existing gas chromatograph/mass spectrometer (GC/MS) can be used to analyze gas and liquid fractions from the same system within a few minutes. The technique was applied to (a) separate and identify the gaseous components of the products of cracking an alkane, (b) measure trace levels of acetone in ethyl acetate, (c) determine the relative partial pressures over a binary mixture, and (d) identify nine unknown compounds for the purpose of disposal.

  17. On the Information Content of Program Traces

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Frumkin, Michael; Hood, Robert; Yan, Jerry; Saini, Subhash (Technical Monitor)

    1998-01-01

    Program traces are used for analysis of program performance, memory utilization, and communications as well as for program debugging. The trace contains records of execution events generated by monitoring units inserted into the program. The trace size limits the resolution of execution events and restricts the user's ability to analyze the program execution. We present a study of the information content of program traces and develop a coding scheme which reduces the trace size to the limit given by the trace entropy. We apply the coding to the traces of AIMS instrumented programs executed on the IBM SPA and the SCSI Power Challenge and compare it with other coding methods. Our technique shows size of the trace can be reduced by more than a factor of 5.

  18. Composition and Trends of Short-Lived Trace Gases in the UT/LS over Europe Observed by the CARIBIC Aircraft

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Baker, A. K.; Brenninkmeijer, C. A.; Oram, D. E.; O'Sullivan, D. A.; Slemr, F.; Schuck, T. J.

    2009-12-01

    The CARIBIC project (Civil Aircraft for the Regular Investigation of the atmosphere Based on an Instrument Container) involves the monthly deployment of an instrument container equipped to make atmospheric measurements from aboard a commercial airliner, and has operated since 2005 from aboard a Lufthansa Airbus 340-600 . Measurements from the container include in-situ trace gas and aerosol analyses and the collection of aerosol and whole air samples for post-flight laboratory analysis. Measurements made from the sampling flasks include greenhouse gas (GHG), halocarbon and nonmethane hydrocarbon (NMHC) analysis. CARIBIC flights originate in Frankfurt, Germany with routes to India, East Asia, South America, North America and Africa, and typical aircraft cruising altitudes of 10-12km allow for the monitoring of the upper troposphere/lower stratosphere (UT/LS) along these routes. Data collected during the aircraft’s departure from and return to Frankfurt provide a 4 year time series of near-monthly measurements of the composition of the UT/LS above Europe. Here we present a discussion of the composition of short-lived trace gases in the whole air samples collected above Europe during CARIBIC flights. Over 150 air samples were collected between May 2005 and July 2009, or about 4 samples per month. Of the whole air samples collected, about 45% showed influence by stratospheric air (i.e. very low values of GHG, NMHC and halocarbons, elevated O3, high potential vorticity). The remaining samples were representative of the upper troposphere; back trajectories for these samples indicate that a little over half were collected in air masses that had been in the boundary layer within the previous 8 days. The predominant source regions for these samples were the Gulf of Mexico and continental North America. Owing to their wide range of chemical lifetimes and the varying composition of emissions, short-lived trace gases transported to the UT/LS can be useful indicators of source

  19. Visualizing Gas Adsorption on Porous Solids: Four Simple, Effective Demonstrations

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cheung, Ocean

    2014-01-01

    Gas adsorption on porous solids is a topic that is often discussed in an undergraduate chemistry or chemical engineering course. The idea of porosity and gas adsorption on a porous solid is usually discussed with adsorption isotherms recorded using commercially available equipment. This discussion can be rather abstract and can be difficult for…

  20. Ultrasensitive, real-time trace gas detection using a high-power, multimode diode laser and cavity ringdown spectroscopy.

    PubMed

    Karpf, Andreas; Qiao, Yuhao; Rao, Gottipaty N

    2016-06-01

    We present a simplified cavity ringdown (CRD) trace gas detection technique that is insensitive to vibration, and capable of extremely sensitive, real-time absorption measurements. A high-power, multimode Fabry-Perot (FP) diode laser with a broad wavelength range (Δλlaser∼0.6  nm) is used to excite a large number of cavity modes, thereby reducing the detector's susceptibility to vibration and making it well suited for field deployment. When detecting molecular species with broad absorption features (Δλabsorption≫Δλlaser), the laser's broad linewidth removes the need for precision wavelength stabilization. The laser's power and broad linewidth allow the use of on-axis cavity alignment, improving the signal-to-noise ratio while maintaining its vibration insensitivity. The use of an FP diode laser has the added advantages of being inexpensive, compact, and insensitive to vibration. The technique was demonstrated using a 1.1 W (λ=400  nm) diode laser to measure low concentrations of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) in zero air. A sensitivity of 38 parts in 1012 (ppt) was achieved using an integration time of 128 ms; for single-shot detection, 530 ppt sensitivity was demonstrated with a measurement time of 60 μs, which opens the door to sensitive measurements with extremely high temporal resolution; to the best of our knowledge, these are the highest speed measurements of NO2 concentration using CRD spectroscopy. The reduced susceptibility to vibration was demonstrated by introducing small vibrations into the apparatus and observing that there was no measurable effect on the sensitivity of detection.

  1. Modular 3D-Printed Soil Gas Probes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Good, S. P.; Selker, J. S.; Al-Qqaili, F.; Lopez, M.; Kahel, L.

    2016-12-01

    ABSTRACT: Extraction of soil gas is required for a variety of applications in earth sciences and environmental engineering. However, commercially available probes can be costly and are typically limited to a single depth. Here, we present the open-source design and lab testing of a soil gas probe with modular capabilities that allow for the vertical stacking of gas extraction points at different depths in the soil column. The probe modules consist of a 3D printed spacer unit and hydrophobic gas permeable membrane made of high density Polyethylene with pore sizes 20-40 microns. Each of the modular spacer units contain both a gas extraction line and gas input line for the dilution of soil gases if needed. These 2-inch diameter probes can be installed in the field quickly with a hand auger and returned to at any frequency to extract soil gas from desired soil depths. The probes are tested through extraction of soil pore water vapors with distinct stable isotope ratios.

  2. ASTRONAUTICS INFORMATION. Abstracts Vol. III, No. 1. Abstracts 3,082- 3,184

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    None

    1961-01-01

    Abstracts are presented on astronautics. The abstracts are generally restricted to spaceflight and to applicable techniques and data. The publication covers the period of January 1961. 102 references. (J.R.D.)

  3. Interannual variability of trace gases in the subtropical winter stratosphere

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Gray, L.J.; Russell, J.M. III

    1999-04-01

    Measurements of water vapor and methane from the Halogen Occultation Experiment instrument on board the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite are used to study the interannual variability of trace gas distributions in the atmosphere. Particular attention is paid to the mechanisms influencing trace gas distributions in the subtropics. The study highlights the quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) dependence of subtropical tracer distributions more clearly than in previous studies. There is a strong correlation between the equatorial wind QBO and the slope of the tracer isolines in the Northern Hemisphere subtropics, with steeper subtropical isoline slopes in the easterly phase compared with the westerlymore » phase. This is particularly so in the lower stratosphere. Two possible mechanisms for the QBO signal in subtropical isoline slopes are identified: advection by the mean circulation and isentropic mixing. A comparison between the QBO signal in the slope of the tracer isolines and the isentropic tracer gradients is proposed as a method of determining which process is dominant. The authors suggest that the behavior of these two data diagnostics provides a stringent constraint on computer models of the atmosphere. On the basis of these diagnostics three height regions of the subtropical atmosphere are identified. (1) Below 450--500 K isentropic mixing associated with tropospheric disturbances penetrating the lower stratosphere is dominant. (2) In the region 500--750 K the data suggest that advection by the mean meridional circulation is important and that the role of isentropic mixing by eddies is relatively small. (3) Above 750 K isentropic mixing becomes increasingly important with height, and both advection and mixing are influential in determining the subtropical tracer distributions.« less

  4. Horizonal and Vertical Spatial Patterns of Radon and Other Soil-gases Across the El Pilar Fault Trace at Guaraphiche, Edo. Surce (Venezuela)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    LaBrecque, J. J.

    2002-05-01

    Soil-gases (radon, thoron, carbon dioxide and hydrogen) were measured at 63-cm depths along a transect perpendicular to the rupture (fault trace) from the 1997 Caricao earthquake (Mw=6.9) at Guarapiche, state of Sucre (Venezuela). The transect was about 40 meters long with ten sampling points with the spacings was smaller near the rupture. The shapes of the horizontal spatial patterns for radon (Rn-222), thoron (Rn-220) and total radon (Rn-222+Rn-220) were similar; the gas concentrations increased from both ends of the transect toward the rupture where a dip (valley) occurred. Both carbon dioxide and hydrogen gases showed anomalous values at the same sampling points. Twin peaks (anomalies) had been previously reported and suggested that they were due to blockage in the rupture. We have also determined soil-gases from 25-cm to 155-cm depths near the rupture and at the ends of the transect. The results showed that the soil-gas concentrations were not only higher in the upper levels (less than 65-cm) near the fault trace but were similar or greater than the lower levels. Thus, producing the twin peaks when soil-gas sampling was performed at the 65-cm depth. When the sampling was performed at only 45-cm depth the dip over the rupture was much less and the patterns looked more like a broad doublet peak. In conclusion, one can clearly see that not only positive soil-gas anomalies can occur over a fault trace but also negative ones too. 1) This work was partially funded by a research contract from the Venezuelan National Science Foundation (CONICIT Proyecto S1-95000448). 2) Mailing Address: Centro de Quimica, 8424 NW 56th Street, Suite 00204,Miami, Fl 33166 (USA). E-mail jjlabrec@ivic.ve FAX: +58-212-504-1214

  5. Context-sensitive trace inlining for Java.

    PubMed

    Häubl, Christian; Wimmer, Christian; Mössenböck, Hanspeter

    2013-12-01

    Method inlining is one of the most important optimizations in method-based just-in-time (JIT) compilers. It widens the compilation scope and therefore allows optimizing multiple methods as a whole, which increases the performance. However, if method inlining is used too frequently, the compilation time increases and too much machine code is generated. This has negative effects on the performance. Trace-based JIT compilers only compile frequently executed paths, so-called traces, instead of whole methods. This may result in faster compilation, less generated machine code, and better optimized machine code. In the previous work, we implemented a trace recording infrastructure and a trace-based compiler for [Formula: see text], by modifying the Java HotSpot VM. Based on this work, we evaluate the effect of trace inlining on the performance and the amount of generated machine code. Trace inlining has several major advantages when compared to method inlining. First, trace inlining is more selective than method inlining, because only frequently executed paths are inlined. Second, the recorded traces may capture information about virtual calls, which simplify inlining. A third advantage is that trace information is context sensitive so that different method parts can be inlined depending on the specific call site. These advantages allow more aggressive inlining while the amount of generated machine code is still reasonable. We evaluate several inlining heuristics on the benchmark suites DaCapo 9.12 Bach, SPECjbb2005, and SPECjvm2008 and show that our trace-based compiler achieves an up to 51% higher peak performance than the method-based Java HotSpot client compiler. Furthermore, we show that the large compilation scope of our trace-based compiler has a positive effect on other compiler optimizations such as constant folding or null check elimination.

  6. Adapting an Ant Colony Metaphor for Multi-Robot Chemical Plume Tracing

    PubMed Central

    Meng, Qing-Hao; Yang, Wei-Xing; Wang, Yang; Li, Fei; Zeng, Ming

    2012-01-01

    We consider chemical plume tracing (CPT) in time-varying airflow environments using multiple mobile robots. The purpose of CPT is to approach a gas source with a previously unknown location in a given area. Therefore, the CPT could be considered as a dynamic optimization problem in continuous domains. The traditional ant colony optimization (ACO) algorithm has been successfully used for combinatorial optimization problems in discrete domains. To adapt the ant colony metaphor to the multi-robot CPT problem, the two-dimension continuous search area is discretized into grids and the virtual pheromone is updated according to both the gas concentration and wind information. To prevent the adapted ACO algorithm from being prematurely trapped in a local optimum, the upwind surge behavior is adopted by the robots with relatively higher gas concentration in order to explore more areas. The spiral surge (SS) algorithm is also examined for comparison. Experimental results using multiple real robots in two indoor natural ventilated airflow environments show that the proposed CPT method performs better than the SS algorithm. The simulation results for large-scale advection-diffusion plume environments show that the proposed method could also work in outdoor meandering plume environments. PMID:22666056

  7. Adapting an ant colony metaphor for multi-robot chemical plume tracing.

    PubMed

    Meng, Qing-Hao; Yang, Wei-Xing; Wang, Yang; Li, Fei; Zeng, Ming

    2012-01-01

    We consider chemical plume tracing (CPT) in time-varying airflow environments using multiple mobile robots. The purpose of CPT is to approach a gas source with a previously unknown location in a given area. Therefore, the CPT could be considered as a dynamic optimization problem in continuous domains. The traditional ant colony optimization (ACO) algorithm has been successfully used for combinatorial optimization problems in discrete domains. To adapt the ant colony metaphor to the multi-robot CPT problem, the two-dimension continuous search area is discretized into grids and the virtual pheromone is updated according to both the gas concentration and wind information. To prevent the adapted ACO algorithm from being prematurely trapped in a local optimum, the upwind surge behavior is adopted by the robots with relatively higher gas concentration in order to explore more areas. The spiral surge (SS) algorithm is also examined for comparison. Experimental results using multiple real robots in two indoor natural ventilated airflow environments show that the proposed CPT method performs better than the SS algorithm. The simulation results for large-scale advection-diffusion plume environments show that the proposed method could also work in outdoor meandering plume environments.

  8. Laboratory Investigation of Trace Gas Emissions from Biomass Burning on DoD Bases

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Burling, I. R.; Yokelson, R. J.; Griffith, D. W.; Roberts, J. M.; Veres, P. R.; Warneke, C.; Johnson, T. J.

    2009-12-01

    Vegetation representing fuels commonly managed with prescribed fires was collected from five DoD bases and burned under controlled conditions at the USFS Firelab in Missoula, MT. The smoke emissions were measured with a large suite of state-of-the-art instrumentation. Seventy-seven fires were conducted and the smoke composition data will improve DoD land managers’ ability to assess the impact of prescribed fires on local air quality. A key instrument used in the measurement of the gas phase species in smoke was an open-path FTIR (OP-FTIR) spectrometer, built and operated by the Universities of Montana and Wollongong. The OP-FTIR has to date detected and quantified 20 gas phase species - CO2, CO, H2O, N2O, NO2, NO, HONO, NH3, HCl, SO2, CH4, CH3OH, HCHO, HCOOH, C2H2, C2H4, CH3COOH, HCN, propylene and furan. The spectra were analyzed using a non-linear least squares fitting routine that included reference spectra recently acquired at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratories. Preliminary results from the OP-FTIR analysis are reported here. Of particular interest, gas-phase nitrous acid (HONO) was detected simultaneously by the OP-FTIR and negative-ion proton-transfer chemical ionization spectrometer (NI-PT-CIMS), with preliminary fire-integrated molar emission ratios (relative to NOx) ranging from approximately 0.03 to 0.20, depending on the vegetation type. HONO is an important precursor in the production of OH, the primary oxidizing species in the atmosphere. There existed little previous data documenting HONO emissions from either wild or prescribed fires. The non-methane organic emissions were dominated by oxygenated species, which can be further oxidized and thus involved in secondary aerosol formation. Elevated amounts of gas-phase HCl were also detected in the smoke, with the amounts varying depending on location and vegetation type.

  9. Balloon-borne measurements of middle atmosphere aerosols and trace gases in Antarctica

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hofmann, D. J.

    1988-01-01

    This paper reviews data on in situ balloon-borne measurements on stratospheric ozone concentrations and aerosol contents obtained prior to 1986, along with the measurements obtained in 1986 during the National Ozone Expedition. The data indicate that the phenomenon of ozone depletion appears to be shaped spatially and temporally by dynamical stratospheric phenomena. In terms of Antarctic stratospheric research, it appears that the most important problems at the moment involve delineating the springtime ozone depletion through accurate in situ measurements of temperature, trace gas, and particle size (in addition to remote sensing from space).

  10. A measurement system for the atmospheric trace gases CH4 and CO

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Condon, E. P.

    1977-01-01

    A system for measuring ambient clean air levels of the atmospheric trace gases methane and carbon monoxide is described. The analytical method consists of a gas chromatographic technique that incorporates sample preconcentration with catalytic conversion of CO to CH4 and subsequent flame ionization detection of these gases. The system has sufficient sensitivity and repeatability to make the precise measurements required to establish concentration profiles for CO and CH4 in the planetary boundary layer. A discussion of the bottle sampling program being conducted to obtain the samples for the concentration profiles is also presented.

  11. ASTRONAUTICS INFORMATION. ABSTRACTS, VOL. V, NO. 3. Abstracts 5,201- 5,330

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Hardgrove, B.J.; Warren, F.L. comps.

    1962-03-01

    Abstracts of astronautics information covering the period March 1962 are presented. The 129 abstracts cover the subject of spaceflight and applicable data and techniques. Author, subject, and source indexes are included. (M.C.G.)

  12. Check Sample Abstracts.

    PubMed

    Alter, David; Grenache, David G; Bosler, David S; Karcher, Raymond E; Nichols, James; Rajadhyaksha, Aparna; Camelo-Piragua, Sandra; Rauch, Carol; Huddleston, Brent J; Frank, Elizabeth L; Sluss, Patrick M; Lewandrowski, Kent; Eichhorn, John H; Hall, Janet E; Rahman, Saud S; McPherson, Richard A; Kiechle, Frederick L; Hammett-Stabler, Catherine; Pierce, Kristin A; Kloehn, Erica A; Thomas, Patricia A; Walts, Ann E; Madan, Rashna; Schlesinger, Kathie; Nawgiri, Ranjana; Bhutani, Manoop; Kanber, Yonca; Abati, Andrea; Atkins, Kristen A; Farrar, Robert; Gopez, Evelyn Valencerina; Jhala, Darshana; Griffin, Sonya; Jhala, Khushboo; Jhala, Nirag; Bentz, Joel S; Emerson, Lyska; Chadwick, Barbara E; Barroeta, Julieta E; Baloch, Zubair W; Collins, Brian T; Middleton, Owen L; Davis, Gregory G; Haden-Pinneri, Kathryn; Chu, Albert Y; Keylock, Joren B; Ramoso, Robert; Thoene, Cynthia A; Stewart, Donna; Pierce, Arand; Barry, Michelle; Aljinovic, Nika; Gardner, David L; Barry, Michelle; Shields, Lisa B E; Arnold, Jack; Stewart, Donna; Martin, Erica L; Rakow, Rex J; Paddock, Christopher; Zaki, Sherif R; Prahlow, Joseph A; Stewart, Donna; Shields, Lisa B E; Rolf, Cristin M; Falzon, Andrew L; Hudacki, Rachel; Mazzella, Fermina M; Bethel, Melissa; Zarrin-Khameh, Neda; Gresik, M Vicky; Gill, Ryan; Karlon, William; Etzell, Joan; Deftos, Michael; Karlon, William J; Etzell, Joan E; Wang, Endi; Lu, Chuanyi M; Manion, Elizabeth; Rosenthal, Nancy; Wang, Endi; Lu, Chuanyi M; Tang, Patrick; Petric, Martin; Schade, Andrew E; Hall, Geraldine S; Oethinger, Margret; Hall, Geraldine; Picton, Avis R; Hoang, Linda; Imperial, Miguel Ranoa; Kibsey, Pamela; Waites, Ken; Duffy, Lynn; Hall, Geraldine S; Salangsang, Jo-Anne M; Bravo, Lulette Tricia C; Oethinger, Margaret D; Veras, Emanuela; Silva, Elvia; Vicens, Jimena; Silva, Elvio; Keylock, Joren; Hempel, James; Rushing, Elizabeth; Posligua, Lorena E; Deavers, Michael T; Nash, Jason W; Basturk, Olca; Perle, Mary Ann; Greco, Alba; Lee, Peng; Maru, Dipen; Weydert, Jamie Allen; Stevens, Todd M; Brownlee, Noel A; Kemper, April E; Williams, H James; Oliverio, Brock J; Al-Agha, Osama M; Eskue, Kyle L; Newlands, Shawn D; Eltorky, Mahmoud A; Puri, Puja K; Royer, Michael C; Rush, Walter L; Tavora, Fabio; Galvin, Jeffrey R; Franks, Teri J; Carter, James Elliot; Kahn, Andrea Graciela; Lozada Muñoz, Luis R; Houghton, Dan; Land, Kevin J; Nester, Theresa; Gildea, Jacob; Lefkowitz, Jerry; Lacount, Rachel A; Thompson, Hannis W; Refaai, Majed A; Quillen, Karen; Lopez, Ana Ortega; Goldfinger, Dennis; Muram, Talia; Thompson, Hannis

    2009-02-01

    The following abstracts are compiled from Check Sample exercises published in 2008. These peer-reviewed case studies assist laboratory professionals with continuing medical education and are developed in the areas of clinical chemistry, cytopathology, forensic pathology, hematology, microbiology, surgical pathology, and transfusion medicine. Abstracts for all exercises published in the program will appear annually in AJCP.

  13. Manual tracing versus smartphone application (app) tracing: a comparative study.

    PubMed

    Sayar, Gülşilay; Kilinc, Delal Dara

    2017-11-01

    This study aimed to compare the results of conventional manual cephalometric tracing with those acquired with smartphone application cephalometric tracing. The cephalometric radiographs of 55 patients (25 females and 30 males) were traced via the manual and app methods and were subsequently examined with Steiner's analysis. Five skeletal measurements, five dental measurements and two soft tissue measurements were managed based on 21 landmarks. The durations of the performances of the two methods were also compared. SNA (Sella, Nasion, A point angle) and SNB (Sella, Nasion, B point angle) values for the manual method were statistically lower (p < .001) than those for the app method. The ANB value for the manual method was statistically lower than that of app method. L1-NB (°) and upper lip protrusion values for the manual method were statistically higher than those for the app method. Go-GN/SN, U1-NA (°) and U1-NA (mm) values for manual method were statistically lower than those for the app method. No differences between the two methods were found in the L1-NB (mm), occlusal plane to SN, interincisal angle or lower lip protrusion values. Although statistically significant differences were found between the two methods, the cephalometric tracing proceeded faster with the app method than with the manual method.

  14. Program Instrumentation and Trace Analysis

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Havelund, Klaus; Goldberg, Allen; Filman, Robert; Rosu, Grigore; Koga, Dennis (Technical Monitor)

    2002-01-01

    Several attempts have been made recently to apply techniques such as model checking and theorem proving to the analysis of programs. This shall be seen as a current trend to analyze real software systems instead of just their designs. This includes our own effort to develop a model checker for Java, the Java PathFinder 1, one of the very first of its kind in 1998. However, model checking cannot handle very large programs without some kind of abstraction of the program. This paper describes a complementary scalable technique to handle such large programs. Our interest is turned on the observation part of the equation: How much information can be extracted about a program from observing a single execution trace? It is our intention to develop a technology that can be applied automatically and to large full-size applications, with minimal modification to the code. We present a tool, Java PathExplorer (JPaX), for exploring execution traces of Java programs. The tool prioritizes scalability for completeness, and is directed towards detecting errors in programs, not to prove correctness. One core element in JPaX is an instrumentation package that allows to instrument Java byte code files to log various events when executed. The instrumentation is driven by a user provided script that specifies what information to log. Examples of instructions that such a script can contain are: 'report name and arguments of all called methods defined in class C, together with a timestamp'; 'report all updates to all variables'; and 'report all acquisitions and releases of locks'. In more complex instructions one can specify that certain expressions should be evaluated and even that certain code should be executed under various conditions. The instrumentation package can hence be seen as implementing Aspect Oriented Programming for Java in the sense that one can add functionality to a Java program without explicitly changing the code of the original program, but one rather writes an

  15. Gas flow headspace liquid phase microextraction.

    PubMed

    Yang, Cui; Qiu, Jinxue; Ren, Chunyan; Piao, Xiangfan; Li, Xifeng; Wu, Xue; Li, Donghao

    2009-11-06

    There is a trend towards the use of enrichment techniques such as microextraction in the analysis of trace chemicals. Based on the theory of ideal gases, theory of gas chromatography and the original headspace liquid phase microextraction (HS-LPME) technique, a simple gas flow headspace liquid phase microextraction (GF-HS-LPME) technique has been developed, where the extracting gas phase volume is increased using a gas flow. The system is an open system, where an inert gas containing the target compounds flows continuously through a special gas outlet channel (D=1.8mm), and the target compounds are trapped on a solvent microdrop (2.4 microL) hanging on the microsyringe tip, as a result, a high enrichment factor is obtained. The parameters affecting the enrichment factor, such as the gas flow rate, the position of the microdrop, the diameter of the gas outlet channel, the temperatures of the extracting solvent and of the sample, and the extraction time, were systematically optimized for four types of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. The results were compared with results obtained from HS-LPME. Under the optimized conditions (where the extraction time and the volume of the extracting sample vial were fixed at 20min and 10mL, respectively), detection limits (S/N=3) were approximately a factor of 4 lower than those for the original HS-LPME technique. The method was validated by comparison of the GF-HS-LPME and HS-LPME techniques using data for PAHs from environmental sediment samples.

  16. Abstract Datatypes in PVS

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Owre, Sam; Shankar, Natarajan

    1997-01-01

    PVS (Prototype Verification System) is a general-purpose environment for developing specifications and proofs. This document deals primarily with the abstract datatype mechanism in PVS which generates theories containing axioms and definitions for a class of recursive datatypes. The concepts underlying the abstract datatype mechanism are illustrated using ordered binary trees as an example. Binary trees are described by a PVS abstract datatype that is parametric in its value type. The type of ordered binary trees is then presented as a subtype of binary trees where the ordering relation is also taken as a parameter. We define the operations of inserting an element into, and searching for an element in an ordered binary tree; the bulk of the report is devoted to PVS proofs of some useful properties of these operations. These proofs illustrate various approaches to proving properties of abstract datatype operations. They also describe the built-in capabilities of the PVS proof checker for simplifying abstract datatype expressions.

  17. A CO trace gas detection system based on continuous wave DFB-QCL

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dang, Jingmin; Yu, Haiye; Sun, Yujing; Wang, Yiding

    2017-05-01

    A compact and mobile system was demonstrated for the detection of carbon monoxide (CO) at trace level. This system adopted a high-power, continuous wave (CW), distributed feedback quantum cascade laser (DFB-QCL) operating at ∼22 °C as excitation source. Wavelength modulation spectroscopy (WMS) as well as second harmonic detection was used to isolate complex, overlapping spectral absorption features typical of ambient pressures and to achieve excellent specificity and high detection sensitivity. For the selected P(11) absorption line of CO molecule, located at 2099.083 cm-1, a limit of detection (LoD) of 26 ppb by volume (ppbv) at atmospheric pressure was achieved with a 1 s acquisition time. Allan deviation analysis was performed to investigate the long term performance of the CO detection system, and a measurement precision of 3.4 ppbv was observed with an optimal integration time of approximate 114 s, which verified the reliable and robust operation of the developed system.

  18. Modelling abstraction licensing strategies ahead of the UK's water abstraction licensing reform

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Klaar, M. J.

    2012-12-01

    Within England and Wales, river water abstractions are licensed and regulated by the Environment Agency (EA), who uses compliance with the Environmental Flow Indicator (EFI) to ascertain where abstraction may cause undesirable effects on river habitats and species. The EFI is a percentage deviation from natural flow represented using a flow duration curve. The allowable percentage deviation changes with different flows, and also changes depending on an assessment of the sensitivity of the river to changes in flow (Table 1). Within UK abstraction licensing, resource availability is expressed as a surplus or deficit of water resources in relation to the EFI, and utilises the concept of 'hands-off-flows' (HOFs) at the specified flow statistics detailed in Table 1. Use of a HOF system enables abstraction to cease at set flows, but also enables abstraction to occur at periods of time when more water is available. Compliance at low flows (Q95) is used by the EA to determine the hydrological classification and compliance with the Water Framework Directive (WFD) for identifying waterbodies where flow may be causing or contributing to a failure in good ecological status (GES; Table 2). This compliance assessment shows where the scenario flows are below the EFI and by how much, to help target measures for further investigation and assessment. Currently, the EA is reviewing the EFI methodology in order to assess whether or not it can be used within the reformed water abstraction licensing system which is being planned by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) to ensure the licensing system is resilient to the challenges of climate change and population growth, while allowing abstractors to meet their water needs efficiently, and better protect the environment. In order to assess the robustness of the EFI, a simple model has been created which allows a number of abstraction, flow and licensing scenarios to be run to determine WFD compliance using the

  19. Trace Replay and Network Simulation Tool

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Acun, Bilge; Jain, Nikhil; Bhatele, Abhinav

    2015-03-23

    TraceR is a trace reply tool built upon the ROSS-based CODES simulation framework. TraceR can be used for predicting network performances and understanding network behavior by simulating messaging in High Performance Computing applications on interconnection networks.

  20. Trace Replay and Network Simulation Tool

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Jain, Nikhil; Bhatele, Abhinav; Acun, Bilge

    TraceR Is a trace replay tool built upon the ROSS-based CODES simulation framework. TraceR can be used for predicting network performance and understanding network behavior by simulating messaging In High Performance Computing applications on interconnection networks.