Method and apparatus for high-efficiency direct contact condensation

DOEpatents

Bharathan, D.; Parent, Y.; Hassani, A.V.

1999-07-20

A direct contact condenser having a downward vapor flow chamber and an upward vapor flow chamber, wherein each of the vapor flow chambers includes a plurality of cooling liquid supplying pipes and a vapor-liquid contact medium disposed thereunder to facilitate contact and direct heat exchange between the vapor and cooling liquid. The contact medium includes a plurality of sheets arranged to form vertical interleaved channels or passageways for the vapor and cooling liquid streams. The upward vapor flow chamber also includes a second set of cooling liquid supplying pipes disposed beneath the vapor-liquid contact medium which operate intermittently in response to a pressure differential within the upward vapor flow chamber. The condenser further includes separate wells for collecting condensate and cooling liquid from each of the vapor flow chambers. In alternate embodiments, the condenser includes a cross-current flow chamber and an upward flow chamber, a plurality of upward flow chambers, or a single upward flow chamber. The method of use of the direct contact condenser of this invention includes passing a vapor stream sequentially through the downward and upward vapor flow chambers, where the vapor is condensed as a result of heat exchange with the cooling liquid in the contact medium. The concentration of noncondensable gases in the resulting condensate-liquid mixtures can be minimized by controlling the partial pressure of the vapor, which depends in part upon the geometry of the vapor-liquid contact medium. In another aspect of this invention, the physical and chemical performance of a direct contact condenser can be predicted based on the vapor and coolant compositions, the condensation conditions, and the geometric properties of the contact medium. 39 figs.

Method and apparatus for high-efficiency direct contact condensation

DOEpatents

Bharathan, Desikan; Parent, Yves; Hassani, A. Vahab

1999-01-01

A direct contact condenser having a downward vapor flow chamber and an upward vapor flow chamber, wherein each of the vapor flow chambers includes a plurality of cooling liquid supplying pipes and a vapor-liquid contact medium disposed thereunder to facilitate contact and direct heat exchange between the vapor and cooling liquid. The contact medium includes a plurality of sheets arranged to form vertical interleaved channels or passageways for the vapor and cooling liquid streams. The upward vapor flow chamber also includes a second set of cooling liquid supplying pipes disposed beneath the vapor-liquid contact medium which operate intermittently in response to a pressure differential within the upward vapor flow chamber. The condenser further includes separate wells for collecting condensate and cooling liquid from each of the vapor flow chambers. In alternate embodiments, the condenser includes a cross-current flow chamber and an upward flow chamber, a plurality of upward flow chambers, or a single upward flow chamber. The method of use of the direct contact condenser of this invention includes passing a vapor stream sequentially through the downward and upward vapor flow chambers, where the vapor is condensed as a result of heat exchange with the cooling liquid in the contact medium. The concentration of noncondensable gases in the resulting condensate-liquid mixtures can be minimized by controlling the partial pressure of the vapor, which depends in part upon the geometry of the vapor-liquid contact medium. In another aspect of this invention, the physical and chemical performance of a direct contact condenser can be predicted based on the vapor and coolant compositions, the condensation conditions. and the geometric properties of the contact medium.

Experimental study on heat transfer to supercritical water flowing through tubes

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

Zhao, M.; Gu, H.; Cheng, X.

2012-07-01

A test facility named SWAMUP (Supercritical Water Multi-Purpose Loop) has been constructed in Shanghai Jiao Tong Univ. to investigate heat transfer and pressure drop through tubes and rod bundles. SWAMUP is a closed loop with operating pressure up to 30 MPa, outlet-water temperature up to 550 deg. C, and mass flow rate up to 5 t/h. In this paper, experimental study has been carried out on heat transfer of supercritical water flowing vertically through tubes (ID=7.6 and 10 mm). A large number of test points in tubes has been obtained with a wide range of heat flux (200-1500 kw/m{sup 2})more » and mass flux (450-2000 kg/m{sup 2}s). Test results showed that heat transfer deterioration (HTD) caused by buoyancy effect only appears in upward flow and HTD caused by acceleration effect appears both in upward flow and downward flow. The heat transfer coefficients (HTC) produced in tube tests were compared with existing heat transfer correlations. (authors)« less

Quantifying Hydrate Formation in Gas-rich Environments Using the Method of Characteristics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

You, K.; Flemings, P. B.; DiCarlo, D. A.

2015-12-01

Methane hydrates hold a vast amount of methane globally, and have huge energy potential. Methane hydrates in gas-rich environments are the most promising production targets. We develop a one-dimensional analytical solution based on the method of characteristics to explore hydrate formation in such environments (Figure 1). Our solution shows that hydrate saturation is constant with time and space in a homogeneous system. Hydrate saturation is controlled by the initial thermodynamic condition of the system, and changed by the gas fractional flow. Hydrate saturation increases with the initial distance from the hydrate phase boundary. Different gas fractional flows behind the hydrate solidification front lead to different gas saturations at the hydrate solidification front. The higher the gas saturation at the front, the less the volume available to be filled by hydrate, and hence the lower the hydrate saturation. The gas fractional flow depends on the relative permeability curves, and the forces that drive the flow. Viscous forces (the drive for flow induced from liquid pressure gradient) dominate the flow, and hydrate saturation is independent on the gas supply rates and the flow directions at high gas supply rates. Hydrate saturation can be estimated as one minus the ratio of the initial to equilibrium salinity. Gravity forces (the drive for flow induced from the gravity) dominate the flow, and hydrate saturation depends on the flow rates and the flow directions at low gas supply rates. Hydrate saturation is highest for upward flow, and lowest for downward flow. Hydrate saturation decreases with the flow rate for upward flow, and increases with the flow rate for downward flow. This analytical solution illuminates how hydrate is formed by gas (methane, CO2, ethane, propane) flowing into brine-saturated sediments at both the laboratory and geological scales (Figure 1). It provides an approach to generalize the understanding of hydrate solidification in gas-rich environments, although complicated numerical models have been developed previously. Examples of gas expulsion into hydrate stability zones and the associated hydrate formation in both laboratory and geological scales, and CO2 sequestration into CO2-hydrates near the seafloor and under the permafrost will be presented.

The mechanics of gravitaxis in Paramecium.

PubMed

Roberts, A M

2010-12-15

An analysis of swimming patterns in the ciliate Paramecium shows that the ability to swim preferentially upwards (negative gravitaxis) is primarily the result of upwardly curving trajectories. The trajectory characteristics are consistent with those produced by mechanical orientation. Cell profile measurements from microscope images suggest that the characteristic front-rear body asymmetry accounts for the observed orientation rates. Gravikinesis may result from interactions between the propelling cilia and the sedimentary flow around the cell, and it seems unlikely that an internal physiological gravity receptor exists in Paramecium.

Void fraction development in gas-liquid flow after a U-bend in a vertically upwards serpentine-configuration large-diameter pipe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Almabrok, Almabrok A.; Aliyu, Aliyu M.; Baba, Yahaya D.; Lao, Liyun; Yeung, Hoi

2018-01-01

We investigate the effect of a return U-bend on flow behaviour in the vertical upward section of a large-diameter pipe. A wire mesh sensor was employed to study the void fraction distributions at axial distances of 5, 28 and 47 pipe diameters after the upstream bottom bend. The study found that, the bottom bend has considerable impacts on up-flow behaviour. In all conditions, centrifugal action causes appreciable misdistribution in the adjacent straight section. Plots from WMS measurements show that flow asymmetry significantly reduces along the axis at L/D = 47. Regime maps generated from three axial locations showed that, in addition to bubbly, intermittent and annular flows, oscillatory flow occurred particularly when gas and liquid flow rates were relatively low. At this position, mean void fractions were in agreement with those from other large-pipe studies, and comparisons were made with existing void fraction correlations. Among the correlations surveyed, drift flux-type correlations were found to give the best predictive results.

Mixed Convection Blowoff Limits as a Function of Oxygen Concentration and Upward Forced Stretch Rate for Burning Pmma Rods of Various Sizes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Marcum, Jeremy W.; Ferkul, Paul V.; Olson, Sandra L.

2017-01-01

Normal gravity flame blowoff limits in an axisymmetric pmma rod geometry in upward axial stagnation flow are compared with microgravity Burning and Suppression of Solids II (BASS-II) results recently obtained aboard the International Space Station. This testing utilized the same BASS-II concurrent rod geometry, but with the addition of normal gravity buoyant flow. Cast polymethylmethacrylate (pmma) rods of diameters ranging from 0.635 cm to 3.81 cm were burned at oxygen concentrations ranging from 14 to 18 by volume. The forced flow velocity where blowoff occurred was determined for each rod size and oxygen concentration. These blowoff limits compare favorably with the BASS-II results when the buoyant stretch is included and the flow is corrected by considering the blockage factor of the fuel. From these results, the normal gravity blowoff boundary for this axisymmetric rod geometry is determined to be linear, with oxygen concentration directly proportional to flow speed. We describe a new normal gravity upward flame spread test method which extrapolates the linear blowoff boundary to the zero stretch limit to resolve microgravity flammability limits, something current methods cannot do. This new test method can improve spacecraft fire safety for future exploration missions by providing a tractable way to obtain good estimates of material flammability in low gravity.

Impact of capillary rise and recirculation on simulated crop yields

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kroes, Joop; Supit, Iwan; van Dam, Jos; van Walsum, Paul; Mulder, Martin

2018-05-01

Upward soil water flow is a vital supply of water to crops. The purpose of this study is to determine if upward flow and recirculated percolation water can be quantified separately, and to determine the contribution of capillary rise and recirculated water to crop yield and groundwater recharge. Therefore, we performed impact analyses of various soil water flow regimes on grass, maize and potato yields in the Dutch delta. Flow regimes are characterized by soil composition and groundwater depth and derived from a national soil database. The intermittent occurrence of upward flow and its influence on crop growth are simulated with the combined SWAP-WOFOST model using various boundary conditions. Case studies and model experiments are used to illustrate the impact of upward flow on yield and crop growth. This impact is clearly present in situations with relatively shallow groundwater levels (85 % of the Netherlands), where capillary rise is a well-known source of upward flow; but also in free-draining situations the impact of upward flow is considerable. In the latter case recirculated percolation water is the flow source. To make this impact explicit we implemented a synthetic modelling option that stops upward flow from reaching the root zone, without inhibiting percolation. Such a hypothetically moisture-stressed situation compared to a natural one in the presence of shallow groundwater shows mean yield reductions for grassland, maize and potatoes of respectively 26, 3 and 14 % or respectively about 3.7, 0.3 and 1.5 t dry matter per hectare. About half of the withheld water behind these yield effects comes from recirculated percolation water as occurs in free-drainage conditions and the other half comes from increased upward capillary rise. Soil water and crop growth modelling should consider both capillary rise from groundwater and recirculation of percolation water as this improves the accuracy of yield simulations. This also improves the accuracy of the simulated groundwater recharge: neglecting these processes causes overestimates of 17 % for grassland and 46 % for potatoes, or 63 and 34 mm yr-1, respectively.

Use of temperature profiles beneath streams to determine rates of vertical ground-water flow and vertical hydraulic conductivity

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lapham, Wayne W.

1989-01-01

The use of temperature profiles beneath streams to determine rates of vertical ground-water flow and effective vertical hydraulic conductivity of sediments was evaluated at three field sites by use of a model that numerically solves the partial differential equation governing simultaneous vertical flow of fluid and heat in the Earth. The field sites are located in Hardwick and New Braintree, Mass., and in Dover, N.J. In New England, stream temperature varies from about 0 to 25 ?C (degrees Celsius) during the year. This stream-temperature fluctuation causes ground-water temperatures beneath streams to fluctuate by more than 0.1 ?C during a year to a depth of about 35 ft (feet) in fine-grained sediments and to a depth of about 50 ft in coarse-grained sediments, if ground-water velocity is 0 ft/d (foot per day). Upward flow decreases the depth affected by stream-temperature fluctuation, and downward flow increases the depth. At the site in Hardwick, Mass., ground-water flow was upward at a rate of less than 0.01 ft/d. The maximum effective vertical hydraulic conductivity of the sediments underlying this site is 0.1 ft/d. Ground-water velocities determined at three locations at the site in New Braintree, Mass., where ground water discharges naturally from the underlying aquifer to the Ware River, ranged from 0.10 to 0.20 ft/d upward. The effective vertical hydraulic conductivity of the sediments underlying this site ranged from 2.4 to 17.1 ft/d. Ground-water velocities determined at three locations at the Dover, N.J., site, where infiltration from the Rockaway River into the underlying sediments occurs because of pumping, were 1.5 ft/d downward. The effective vertical hydraulic conductivity of the sediments underlying this site ranged from 2.2 to 2.5 ft/d. Independent estimates of velocity at two of the three sites are in general agreement with the velocities determined using temperature profiles. The estimates of velocities and conductivities derived from the temperature measurements generally fall within the ranges of expected rates of flow in, and conductivities of, the sediments encountered at the test sites. Application of the method at the three test sites demonstrates the feasibility of using the method to determine the rate of ground-water flow between a stream and underlying sediments and the effective vertical hydraulic conductivity of the sediments.

Evidence for ion heat flux in the light ion polar wind

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Biddle, A. P.; Moore, T. E.; Chappell, C. R.

1985-01-01

Cold flowing hydrogen and helium ions have been observed using the retarding ion mass spectrometer on board the Dynamics Explorer 1 spacecraft in the dayside magnetosphere at subauroral latitudes. The ions show a marked flux asymmetry with respect to the relative wind direction. The observed data are fitted by a model of drifting Maxwellian distributions perturbed by a first order-Spritzer-Haerm heat flux distribution function. It is shown that both ion species are supersonic just equatorward of the auroral zone at L = 14, and the shape of asymmetry and direction of the asymmetry are consistent with the presence of an upward heat flux. At L = 6, both species evolve smoothly into warmer subsonic upward flows with downward heat fluxes. In the case of subsonic flows the downward heat flux implies a significant heat source at higher altitudes. Spin curves of the spectrometer count rate versus the spin phase angle are provided.

Kinematics and dynamics of salt movement driven by sub-salt normal faulting and supra-salt sediment accumulation - combined analogue experiments and analytical calculations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Warsitzka, Michael; Kukowski, Nina; Kley, Jonas

2017-04-01

In extensional sedimentary basins, the movement of ductile salt is mainly controlled by the vertical displacement of the salt layer, differential loading due to syn-kinematic deposition, and tectonic shearing at the top and the base of the salt layer. During basement normal faulting, salt either tends to flow downward to the basin centre driven by its own weight or it is squeezed upward due to differential loading. In analogue experiments and analytical models, we address the interplay between normal faulting of the sub-salt basement, compaction and density inversion of the supra-salt cover and the kinematic response of the ductile salt layer. The analogue experiments consist of a ductile substratum (silicone putty) beneath a denser cover layer (sand mixture). Both layers are displaced by normal faults mimicked through a downward moving block within the rigid base of the experimental apparatus and the resulting flow patterns in the ductile layer are monitored and analysed. In the computational models using an analytical approximative solution of the Navier-Stokes equation, the steady-state flow velocity in an idealized natural salt layer is calculated in order to evaluate how flow patterns observed in the analogue experiments can be translated to nature. The analytical calculations provide estimations of the prevailing direction and velocity of salt flow above a sub-salt normal fault. The results of both modelling approaches show that under most geological conditions salt moves downwards to the hanging wall side as long as vertical offset and compaction of the cover layer are small. As soon as an effective average density of the cover is exceeded, the direction of the flow velocity reverses and the viscous material is squeezed towards the elevated footwall side. The analytical models reveal that upward flow occurs even if the average density of the overburden does not exceed the density of salt. By testing various scenarios with different layer thicknesses, displacement rate or lithological parameters of the cover, our models suggest that the reversal of material flow usually requires vertical displacements between 700 and 2000 m. The transition from downward to upward flow occurs at smaller fault displacements, if the initial overburden thickness and the overburden density are high and if sedimentation rate keeps pace with the displacement rate of the sub-salt normal fault.

Modeling solute transport in a heterogeneous unsaturated porous medium under dynamic boundary conditions on different spatial scales

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cremer, Clemens; Neuweiler, Insa; Bechtold, Michel

2013-04-01

Understanding transport of solutes/contaminants through unsaturated soil in the shallow subsurface is vital to assess groundwater quality, nutrient cycling or to plan remediation projects. Alternating precipitation and evaporation conditions causing upward and downward flux with differing flow paths, changes in saturation and related structural heterogeneity make the description of transport in the unsaturated zone near the soil-surface a complex problem. Preferential flow paths strongly depend, among other things, on the saturation of a medium. Recent studies (e.g. Bechtold et al., 2011) showed lateral flow and solute transport during evaporation conditions (upward flux) in vertically layered sand columns. Results revealed that during evaporation water and solute are redistributed laterally from coarse to fine media deeper in the soil, and towards zones of lowest hydraulic head near to the soil surface. These zones at the surface can be coarse or fine grained depending on saturation status and evaporation flux. However, if boundary conditions are reversed and precipitation is applied, the flow field is not reversed in the same manner, resulting in entirely different transport patterns for downward and upward flow. Therefore, considering net-flow rates alone is misleading when describing transport in the shallow unsaturated zone. In this contribution, we analyze transport of a solute in the shallow subsurface to assess effects resulting from the superposition of heterogeneous soil structures and dynamic flow conditions on various spatial scales. Two-dimensional numerical simulations of unsaturated flow and transport in heterogeneous porous media under changing boundary conditions are carried out using a finite-volume code coupled to a particle tracking algorithm to quantify solute transport and leaching rates. In order to validate numerical simulations, results are qualitatively compared to those of a physical experiment (Bechtold et al., 2011). Numerical simulations differ in lateral scale reaching from 0.2 m to 1.5 m, while the height of the domain is kept constant to 1.5m. Strong material heterogeneity is realized through vertical layers of coarse and fine sand. Both materials remain permanently under liquid-flow-dominated ('stage1') evaporation conditions. Spatial moments as well as the dilution index (Kitanidis, 1994) are used for quantification of transport behaviour. Results show that, while all simulations led to anomalous transport, infiltration-evaporation cycles lead to faster solute leaching rates than solely infiltration at the same net-infiltration rate in both homogeneous and heterogeneous media. Flow and transport-paths significantly differed between infiltration and evaporation, resulting in lateral water fluxes and hence lateral solute transport. Variation of the width of the model domain shows faster leaching rates for domains with small horizontal extent.

Pressure regulator

DOEpatents

Ebeling, Jr., Robert W.; Weaver, Robert B.

1979-01-01

The pressure within a pressurized flow reactor operated under harsh environmental conditions is controlled by establishing and maintaining a fluidized bed of uniformly sized granular material of selected density by passing the gas from the reactor upwardly therethrough at a rate sufficient to fluidize the bed and varying the height of the bed by adding granular material thereto or removing granular material therefrom to adjust the backpressure on the flow reactor.

Ion Escape from the Ionosphere of Titan

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hartle, R.; Sittler, E.; Lipatov, A.

2008-01-01

Ions have been observed to flow away from Titan along its induced magnetic tail by the Plasma Science Instrument (PLS) on Voyager 1 and the Cassini Plasma Spectrometer (CAPS) on Cassini. In both cases, the ions have been inferred to be of ionospheric origin. Recent plasma measurements made at another unmagnetized body, Venus, have also observed similar flow in its magnetic tail. Much earlier, the possibility of such flow was inferred when ionospheric measurements made from the Pioneer Venus Orbiter (PVO) were used to derive upward flow and acceleration of H(+), D(+) and O(+) within the nightside ionosphere of Venus. The measurements revealed that the polarization electric field in the ionosphere produced the principal upward force on these light ions. The resulting vertical flow of H(+) and D(+) was found to be the dominant escape mechanism of hydrogen and deuterium, corresponding to loss rates consistent with large oceans in early Venus. Other electrodynamic forces were unimportant because the plasma beta in the nightside ionosphere of Venus is much greater than one. Although the plasma beta is also greater than one on Titan, ion acceleration is expected to be more complex, especially because the subsolar point and the subflow points can be 180 degrees apart. Following what we learned at Venus, upward acceleration of light ions by the polarization electric field opposing gravity in the ionosphere of Titan will be described. Additional electrodynamic forces resulting from the interaction of Saturn's magnetosphere with Titan's ionosphere will be examined using a recent hybrid model.

Upward And Downward Flame Spreading And Extinction In Partial Gravity Environments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sacksteder, Kurt R.; Feier, Ioan I.; Ferkul, Paul V.; Kumar, Amit; T'ien, James S.

2003-01-01

The premise of this research effort has been to begin exploring the gap in the literature between studies of material flammability and flame spread phenomena in normal-gravity and those conducted in the microgravity environment, with or without forced flows. From a fundamental point of view, flame spreading in upward (concurrent) buoyant flow is considerably different from concurrent forced flow. The flow accelerates throughout the length of the buoyant flame bringing the streamlines and the flame closer to the fuel surface and strengthening the interaction between the flame and fuel. Forced flows are diverted around the flame and away from the fuel surface, except where the flow might be constrained by a finite duct. The differences may be most clearly felt as the atmospheric conditions, viz. pressure or oxygen content, approach the flammability limit. From a more practical point of view, flame spreading and material flammability behavior have not been studied under the partial gravity conditions that are the natural state in space exploration destinations such as the Moon and Mars. This effort constitutes the beginning of the research needed to engineer fire safety provisions for such future missions. In this program we have performed partial-gravity experiments (from 0.1 to 1 g/g(sub Earth)) considering both upward and downward flame spread over thin solid fuels aboard the NASA KC-135 aircraft. In those tests, the atmospheric pressure and the fuel sample width were varied. Steady flame spread rates and approximate extinction boundaries were determined. Flame images were recorded using video cameras and two-dimensional fuel surface temperature distributions were determined using an IR camera. These results are available, and complement our earlier work in downward spread in partial gravity varying oxygen content. In conjunction with the experiment, three-dimensional models of flame spreading in buoyant flow have been developed. Some of the computed results on upward spreading have been presented. A derivative three-dimensional model of downward spreading has been developed. It is currently being used to evaluate the standard limiting oxygen index (LOI) measuring device and its potential performance in different gravity levels.

Morphodynamics of Travertine Dam/Waterfall Growth due to the Interaction of Biological Activity, Water Flow and Limestone Emplacement

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Izumi, N.; Parker, G.

2012-12-01

Plitvice Lakes in Croatia are characterized by a step-like train of lakes and waterfalls. The waterfalls are located at the crests of naturally-emplaced dams. The top of each dam grows upward at the rate of a few millimeters per year. It is thought that the upward growth of these dams is caused by the interaction of water flow and biological activity, resulting in the precipitation of dissolved limestone. Dam evolution is initiated by the growth of mosses that favor swift, shallow water. Bacteria that inhabit the roots of the moss excrete solid limestone (travertine) from the water. The limestone fossilizes the moss, and then more moss grows on top of the travertine deposit. In this way, the natural dam can grow over to 10 m high, impounding the water behind it to form a lake. We propose a simple model to explain the formation of natural limestone dams by the interaction between water flow and biologically-mediated travertine deposition. We assume for simplicity that light is the only factor determining the growth of moss, which is then colonized by travertine-emplacing bacteria. We also assume that the water is saturated with dissolved limestone, so that the process is not limited by limestone availability. Photosynthesis, and thus the growth rate of moss are crudely approximated as decreasing linearly with depth. We employ the shallow water equations to describe water flow over the dam. In order to obtain a profile of permanent form for a dam migrating upward and downstream at constant speed, we solve the problem in a moving coordinate system. When water flows over the dam, it is accelerated in the streamwise direction, and the water surface forms a backwater curve. The flow regime changes from Froude-subcritical to Froude-supercritical at a point slightly downstream of the crest of the dam. Farther downstream, the flow attains a threshold velocity beyond which moss is detached. This threshold point defines the downstream end of the active part of the dam. The analysis provides a first-order morphodynamic model of natural dam/waterfall evolution.

Aquifer-test data and borehole flow test results from monitoring well 16P52 at the South Trend development area number 1, McKinley County, New Mexico

USGS Publications Warehouse

Stevens, Ken

1984-01-01

Mobil Oil Corporation personnel have designated at least four sandstone intervals, A-D (top to bottom), on the single-point resistivity logs of wells drilled in the South Trend Development Area. This report presents time-drawdown data reported by Mobil Oil Corporation from singly (A or B or C or D sandstone interval) and multiply (A, B, C, and D sandstone Intervals) completed wells for the August 16-17, 1982 aquifer test at the South Trend Development Area Site 1. This report also describes the results of flowmeter and brine-injection tests by the U.S. Geological Survey in monitoring well 16P52. Well 16P52 is open to sandstone intervals A, B, C, and D. On July 26, 1982, water was injected at a rate of 1.43 cubic feet per minute above the A sandstone interval in well 16P52. Based on flowmeter data, the calculated rates of flow were 1.23 cubic feet per minute between the A and B sandstone intervals, 0.63 cubic foot per minute between the B and C sandstone intervals, and less than 0.17 cubic foot per minute between the C and D sandstone intervals. Based upon brine-slug-injection tests conducted during August 1982, the calculated flow rates between sandstone intervals A and B are as follows: 0.01 cubic foot per minute upward flow (B to A) about 5 hours after pumping began for the aquifer test; 0.004 cubic foot per minute upward flow (B to A) about 21 hours after pumping began; and 0.0 cubic foot per minute about 46 hours after the pump was turned off. All other brine-slug-injection tests measured no flow.

In situ quantification of spatial and temporal variability of hyporheic exchange in static and mobile gravel-bed rivers

USGS Publications Warehouse

Rosenberry, Donald O.; Klos, P. Zion; Neal, Andrew

2012-01-01

Seepage meters modified for use in flowing water were used to directly measure rates of exchange between surface and subsurface water in a gravel- and cobble bed river in western Pennsylvania, USA (Allegheny River, Q mean = 190 m 3/s) and a sand- and gravel-bed river in Colorado, USA (South Platte River, Q mean = 9??7 m 3/s). Study reaches at the Allegheny River were located downstream from a dam. The bed was stable with moss, algae, and river grass present in many locations. Median seepage was + 0??28 m/d and seepage was highly variable among measurement locations. Upward and downward seepage greatly exceeded the median seepage rate, ranging from + 2??26 (upward) to - 3??76 (downward) m/d. At the South Platte River site, substantial local-scale bed topography as well as mobile bedforms resulted in spatial and temporal variability in seepage greatly in exceedence of the median groundwater discharge rate of 0??24 m/d. Both upward and downward seepage were recorded along every transect across the river with rates ranging from + 2??37 to - 3??40 m/d. Despite a stable bed, which commonly facilitates clogging by fine-grained or organic sediments, seepage rates at the Allegheny River were not reduced relative to those at the South Platte River. Seepage rate and direction depended primarily on measurement position relative to local- and meso-scale bed topography at both rivers. Hydraulic gradients were small at nearly all seepage-measurement locations and commonly were not a good indicator of seepage rate or direction. Therefore, measuring hydraulic gradient and hydraulic conductivity at in-stream piezometers may be misleading if used to determine seepage flux across the sediment-water interface. Such a method assumes that flow between the well screen and sediment-water interface is vertical, which appears to be a poor assumption in coarse-grained hyporheic settings.

Three-Dimensional Upward Flame Spreading in Partial-Gravity Buoyant Flows

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sacksteder, Kurt R.; Feier, Ioan I.; Shih, Hsin-Yi; T'ien, James S.

2001-01-01

Reduced-gravity environments have been used to establish low-speed, purely forced flows for both opposed- and concurrent-flow flame spread studies. Altenkirch's group obtained spacebased experimental results and developed unsteady, two-dimensional numerical simulations of opposed-flow flame spread including gas-phase radiation, primarily away from the flammability limit for thin fuels, but including observations of thick fuel quenching in quiescent environments. T'ien's group contributed some early flame spreading results for thin fuels both in opposed flow and concurrent flow regimes, with more focus on near-limit conditions. T'ien's group also developed two- and three-dimensional numerical simulations of concurrent-flow flame spread incorporating gas-phase radiative models, including predictions of a radiatively-induced quenching limit reached in very low-speed air flows. Radiative quenching has been subsequently observed in other studies of combustion in very low-speed flows including other flame spread investigations, droplet combustion and homogeneous diffusion flames, and is the subject of several contemporary studies reported in this workshop. Using NASA aircraft flying partial-gravity "parabolic" trajectories, flame spreading in purely buoyant, opposed-flow (downward burning) has been studied. These results indicated increases in flame spread rates and enhanced flammability (lower limiting atmospheric oxygen content) as gravity levels were reduced from normal Earth gravity, and were consistent with earlier data obtained by Altenkirch using a centrifuge. In this work, experimental results and a three-dimensional numerical simulation of upward flame spreading in variable partial-gravity environments were obtained including some effects of reduced pressure and variable sample width. The simulation provides physical insight for interpreting the experimental results and shows the intrinsic 3-D nature of buoyant, upward flame spreading. This study is intended to link the evolving understanding of flame spreading in purely-forced flows to the purely-buoyant flow environment, particularly in the concurrent flow regime; provide additional insight into the existence of steady flame spread in concurrent flows; and stimulate direct comparisons between opposed- and concurrent-flow flame spread. Additionally, this effort is intended to provide direct practical understanding applicable to fire protection planning for the habitable facilities in partial gravity environments of anticipated Lunar and Martian explorations.

Flow reversal and thermal limit in a heated rectangular channel

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

Cheng, L.Y.; Tichler, P.R.; Yang, B.W.

The thermal limit in a vertical rectangular channel was determined in a series of experiments whereby the internal coolant underwent a change in flow direction from forced downflow to upward natural circulation. The tests were designed to simulate the flow reversal transient in the High Flux Beam Reactor. A number of parameters were varied in the flow reversal experiments to examine their effects on the thermal limit. Among the parameters varied were the rate of flow coastdown, inlet subcooling, water level in the upper plenum, bypass ratio (ratio of initial flow through the heated section to initial flow through themore » bypass orifice), and single- verses double-sided heating.« less

Respiration and the watershed of spinal CSF flow in humans.

PubMed

Dreha-Kulaczewski, Steffi; Konopka, Mareen; Joseph, Arun A; Kollmeier, Jost; Merboldt, Klaus-Dietmar; Ludwig, Hans-Christoph; Gärtner, Jutta; Frahm, Jens

2018-04-04

The dynamics of human CSF in brain and upper spinal canal are regulated by inspiration and connected to the venous system through associated pressure changes. Upward CSF flow into the head during inspiration counterbalances venous flow out of the brain. Here, we investigated CSF motion along the spinal canal by real-time phase-contrast flow MRI at high spatial and temporal resolution. Results reveal a watershed of spinal CSF dynamics which divides flow behavior at about the level of the heart. While forced inspiration prompts upward surge of CSF flow volumes in the entire spinal canal, ensuing expiration leads to pronounced downward CSF flow, but only in the lower canal. The resulting pattern of net flow volumes during forced respiration yields upward CSF motion in the upper and downward flow in the lower spinal canal. These observations most likely reflect closely coupled CSF and venous systems as both large caval veins and their anastomosing vertebral plexus react to respiration-induced pressure changes.

An experimental study of the transient regime to fluidized chimney in a granular medium

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Philippe, Pierre; Mena, Sarah; Brunier-Coulin, Florian; Curtis, Jennifer

2017-06-01

Localized fluidization within a granular packing along an almost cylindrical chimney is observed when an upward fluid-flow, injected through a small port diameter, exceeds a critical flow-rate. Once this threshold reached, a fluidized area is first initiated in the close vicinity of the injection hole before gradually growing upward to the top surface of the granular layer. In this work, we present an experimental investigation specifically dedicated to the kinetics of chimney fluidization in an immersed granular bed. Two different transient regimes are identified depending on wether the expansion of the fluidized area is rather fast and regular, reaching the final chimney state typically in less than 10 seconds, or, on the contrary, slow and very progressively accelerated, giving rise to transient duration up to 1 hour or even more. Some systematic investigations allow to propose several empirical scaling relations for the kinetics of chimney fluidization in the fast regular regime.

Two-phase gas-liquid flow characteristics inside a plate heat exchanger

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

Nilpueng, Kitti; Wongwises, Somchai

In the present study, the air-water two-phase flow characteristics including flow pattern and pressure drop inside a plate heat exchanger are experimentally investigated. A plate heat exchanger with single pass under the condition of counter flow is operated for the experiment. Three stainless steel commercial plates with a corrugated sinusoidal shape of unsymmetrical chevron angles of 55 and 10 are utilized for the pressure drop measurement. A transparent plate having the same configuration as the stainless steel plates is cast and used as a cover plate in order to observe the flow pattern inside the plate heat exchanger. The air-watermore » mixture flow which is used as a cold stream is tested in vertical downward and upward flow. The results from the present experiment show that the annular-liquid bridge flow pattern appeared in both upward and downward flows. However, the bubbly flow pattern and the slug flow pattern are only found in upward flow and downward flow, respectively. The variation of the water and air velocity has a significant effect on the two-phase pressure drop. Based on the present data, a two-phase multiplier correlation is proposed for practical application. (author)« less

Sweeping Jet Actuator in a Quiescent Environment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Koklu, Mehti; Melton, Latunia P.

2013-01-01

This study presents a detailed analysis of a sweeping jet (fluidic oscillator) actuator. The sweeping jet actuator promises to be a viable flow control actuator candidate due to its simple, no moving part structure and its high momentum, spatially oscillating flow output. Hot-wire anemometer and particle image velocimetry measurements were carried out with an emphasis on understanding the actuator flow field in a quiescent environment. The time averaged, fluctuating, and instantaneous velocity measurements are provided. A modified actuator concept that incorporates high-speed solenoid valves to control the frequency of oscillation enabled phase averaged measurements of the oscillating jet. These measurements reveal that in a given oscillation cycle, the oscillating jet spends more time on each of the Coanda surfaces. In addition, the modified actuator generates four different types of flow fields, namely: a non oscillating downward jet, a non oscillating upward jet, a non oscillating straight jet, and an oscillating jet. The switching from an upward jet to a downward jet is accomplished by providing a single pulse from the solenoid valve. Once the flow is switched, the flow stays there until another pulse is received. The oscillating jet is compared with a non oscillating straight jet, which is a typical planar turbulent jet. The results indicate that the oscillating jet has a higher (5 times) spreading rate, more flow entrainment, and higher velocity fluctuations (equal to the mean velocity).

Granular compaction by fluidization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tariot, Alexis; Gauthier, Georges; Gondret, Philippe

2017-06-01

How to arrange a packing of spheres is a scientific question that aroused many fundamental works since a long time from Kepler's conjecture to Edward's theory (S. F. Edwards and R.B.S Oakeshott. Theory of powders. Physica A, 157: 1080-1090, 1989), where the role traditionally played by the energy in statistical problems is replaced by the volume for athermal grains. We present experimental results on the compaction of a granular pile immersed in a viscous fluid when submited to a continuous or bursting upward flow. An initial fluidized bed leads to a well reproduced initial loose packing by the settling of grains when the high enough continuous upward flow is turned off. When the upward flow is then turned on again, we record the dynamical evolution of the bed packing. For a low enough continuous upward flow, below the critical velocity of fluidization, a slow compaction dynamics is observed. Strikingly, a slow compaction can be also observed in the case of "fluidization taps" with bursts of fluid velocity higher than the critical fluidization velocity. The different compaction dynamics is discussed when varying the different control parameters of these "fluidization taps".

ADIABATIC DISPERSED TWO-PHASE FLOW: FURTHER RESULTS ON THE INFLUENCE OF PHYSICAL PROPERTIES ON PRESSURE DROP AND FILM THICKNESS. Topical Report No. 6

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

Casagrande, I.; Cravarolo, L.; Hassid, A.

1963-05-01

A discussion is given of the experimental data obtained at CISE on two- phase adiabatic flow under the following conditions: vertical upward (dispersed regime) flow; circular conduit (15 to 25 mm diameter); gaseous phase argon or nitrogen; liquid phase water or ethyl alcohol-water solution (,90% by wt. of alcohol); gas fiow rate of 15 to 82 g/ cm/sup 2/; liquid flow rate of 20 to 208 g/ cm/sup 2/ sec; temperature of 18 to 20 deg C; pressure of up to approximates 22 kg/cm/sup 2/. The measured quantities are pressure drop and liquid film thickness on the wall of themore » conduit. The pressure loss and film flow rate are evaluated. The experimental data are discussed and the influence of surface tension and gas and liquid viscosity investigated. A simple relationship for the pressure loss over a wide range of experimental conditions in adiabatic dispersed regime is given. (auth)« less

Numerical simulation of flow in deep open boreholes in a coastal freshwater lens, Pearl Harbor Aquifer, O‘ahu, Hawai‘i

USGS Publications Warehouse

Rotzoll, Kolja

2012-01-01

The Pearl Harbor aquifer in southern O‘ahu is one of the most important sources of freshwater in Hawai‘i. A thick freshwater lens overlays brackish and saltwater in this coastal aquifer. Salinity profiles collected from uncased deep monitor wells (DMWs) commonly are used to monitor freshwater-lens thickness. However, vertical flow in DMWs can cause the measured salinity to differ from salinity in the adjacent aquifer or in an aquifer without a DWM. Substantial borehole flow and displacement of salinity in DMWs over several hundred feet have been observed in the Pearl Harbor aquifer. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of borehole flow on measured salinity profiles from DMWs. A numerical modeling approach incorporated aquifer hydraulic characteristics and recharge and withdrawal rates representative of the Pearl Harbor aquifer. Borehole flow caused by vertical hydraulic gradients associated with both the natural regional flow system and groundwater withdrawals was simulated. Model results indicate that, with all other factors being equal, greater withdrawal rates, closer withdrawal locations, or higher hydraulic conductivities of the well cause greater borehole flow and displacement of salinity in the well. Borehole flow caused by the natural groundwater-flow system is five orders of magnitude greater than vertical flow in a homogeneous aquifer, and borehole-flow directions are consistent with the regional flow system: downward flow in inland recharge areas and upward flow in coastal discharge areas. Displacement of salinity inside the DMWs associated with the regional groundwater-flow system ranges from less than 1 to 220 ft, depending on the location and assumed hydraulic conductivity of the well. For example, upward displacements of the 2 percent and 50 percent salinity depths in a well in the coastal discharge part of the flow system are 17 and 4.4 ft, respectively, and the average salinity difference between aquifer and borehole is 0.65 percent seawater salinity. Groundwater withdrawals and drawdowns generally occur at shallow depths in the freshwater system with respect to the depth of the DMW and cause upward flow in the DMW. Simulated groundwater withdrawal of 4.3 million gallons per day that is 100 ft from a DMW causes thirty times more borehole flow than borehole flow that is induced by the regional flow field alone. The displacement of the 2 percent borehole salinity depth increases from 17 to 33 ft, and the average salinity difference between aquifer and borehole is 0.85 percent seawater salinity. Peak borehole flow caused by local groundwater withdrawal near DMWs is directly proportional to the pumping rate in the nearby production well. Increasing groundwater withdrawal to 16.7 million gallons per day increases upward displacement of the 50 percent salinity depth (midpoint of the transition zone) from 4.6 to 77 ft, and the average salinity difference between aquifer and borehole is 1.4 percent seawater salinity. Simulated groundwater withdrawal that is 3,000 ft away from DMWs causes less borehole flow and salinity displacements than nearby withdrawal. Simulated effects of groundwater withdrawal from a horizontal shaft and withdrawal from a vertical well in a homogeneous aquifer were similar. Generally, the 50 percent salinity depths are less affected by borehole flow than the 2 percent salinity depths. Hence, measured salinity profiles are useful for calibration of regional numerical models despite borehole-flow effects. Commonly, a 1 percent error in salinity is acceptable in numerical modeling studies. Incorporation of heterogeneity in the model is necessary to simulate long vertical steps observed in salinity profiles in southern O‘ahu. A thick zone of low aquifer hydraulic conductivity limits exchange of water between aquifer and well and creates a long vertical step in the salinity profile. A heterogeneous basalt-aquifer scenario simulates observed vertical salinity steps and borehole flow that is consistent with measured borehole flow from DMWs in southern O‘ahu. However, inclusion of local-scale heterogeneities in regional models generally is not warranted.

Stably stratified canopy flow in complex terrain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xu, X.; Yi, C.; Kutter, E.

2015-07-01

Stably stratified canopy flow in complex terrain has been considered a difficult condition for measuring net ecosystem-atmosphere exchanges of carbon, water vapor, and energy. A long-standing advection error in eddy-flux measurements is caused by stably stratified canopy flow. Such a condition with strong thermal gradient and less turbulent air is also difficult for modeling. To understand the challenging atmospheric condition for eddy-flux measurements, we use the renormalized group (RNG) k-ϵ turbulence model to investigate the main characteristics of stably stratified canopy flows in complex terrain. In this two-dimensional simulation, we imposed persistent constant heat flux at ground surface and linearly increasing cooling rate in the upper-canopy layer, vertically varying dissipative force from canopy drag elements, buoyancy forcing induced from thermal stratification and the hill terrain. These strong boundary effects keep nonlinearity in the two-dimensional Navier-Stokes equations high enough to generate turbulent behavior. The fundamental characteristics of nighttime canopy flow over complex terrain measured by the small number of available multi-tower advection experiments can be reproduced by this numerical simulation, such as (1) unstable layer in the canopy and super-stable layers associated with flow decoupling in deep canopy and near the top of canopy; (2) sub-canopy drainage flow and drainage flow near the top of canopy in calm night; (3) upward momentum transfer in canopy, downward heat transfer in upper canopy and upward heat transfer in deep canopy; and (4) large buoyancy suppression and weak shear production in strong stability.

Characteristics of air-water upward intermittent flows with surfactant additive in a pipeline-riser system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gao, Meng-chen; Xu, Jing-yu

2018-04-01

The effect of the surfactant additive on the upward intermittent flows in a pipeline-riser system is studied experimentally, in a 3 m long horizontal pipe connected to a Perspex pipe of 2.0 m long and 25 mm in diameter, inclined to the horizontal plane by 7°, followed by the vertical PVC riser of 3.5 m high and 25 mm in diameter, operating at the atmospheric end pressure. Based on the analysis of the pressure signal and the visual observation of the riser, it is shown that the additive of surfactant to the carrying liquid makes bubbles smaller in size but much larger in number in the upward intermittent flows. In addition, the additive of surfactant to a two-phase flow does not have a significant impact on the in-situ gas fraction, the pressure drop and the frequency of the liquid slug, but it reduces significantly the velocity of the liquid slug. When the superficial liquid velocity is set, an exponential relationship between the dimensionless velocity of the liquid slug and the Webber number can be obtained. These results might be used for estimating the characteristic parameters of the upward intermittent flow based upon the input operating conditions.

Salt flow direction and velocity during subsalt normal faulting and syn-kinematic sedimentation—implications from analytical calculations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Warsitzka, M.; Kukowski, N.; Kley, J.

2018-04-01

Salt flow induced by subsalt normal faulting is mainly controlled by tilting of the salt layer, the amount of differential loading due to syn-kinematic deposition, and tectonic shearing at the top or the base of the salt layer. Our study addresses the first two mechanisms and aims to examine salt flow patterns above a continuously moving subsalt normal fault and beneath a syn-kinematic minibasin. In such a setting, salt either tends to flow down towards the basin centre driven by its own weight or is squeezed up towards the footwall side owing to loading differences between the minibasin and the region above the footwall block. Applying isostatic balancing in analytical models, we calculated the steady-state flow velocity in a salt layer. This procedure gives insights into (1) the minimum vertical offset required for upward flow to occur, (2) the magnitude of the flow velocity, and (3) the average density of the supra-salt cover layer at the point at which upward flow starts. In a sensitivity study, we examined how the point of flow reversal and the velocity patterns are influenced by changes of the salt and cover layer thickness, the geometry of the cover flexure, the dip of the subsalt fault, compaction parameters of the supra-salt cover, the salt viscosity and the salt density. Our model results reveal that in most geological scenarios, salt flow above a continuously displacing subsalt normal fault goes through an early phase of downward flow. At sufficiently high fault offset in the range of 700-2600 m, salt is later squeezed upward towards the footwall side. This flow reversal occurs at smaller vertical fault displacement, if the thickness of the pre-kinematic layer is larger, the sedimentation rate of the syn-kinematic cover is higher, the compaction coefficient of cover sediments (i.e. the density increase with depth) is larger or the average density of the salt is lower. Other geometrical parameters such as the width of the cover monocline, the dip of the basement fault or the thickness of the salt layer have no significant influence on the point of reversal, but modify the velocity of the salt flow.

Characterising Dynamic Instability in High Water-Cut Oil-Water Flows Using High-Resolution Microwave Sensor Signals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Weixin; Jin, Ningde; Han, Yunfeng; Ma, Jing

2018-06-01

In the present study, multi-scale entropy algorithm was used to characterise the complex flow phenomena of turbulent droplets in high water-cut oil-water two-phase flow. First, we compared multi-scale weighted permutation entropy (MWPE), multi-scale approximate entropy (MAE), multi-scale sample entropy (MSE) and multi-scale complexity measure (MCM) for typical nonlinear systems. The results show that MWPE presents satisfied variability with scale and anti-noise ability. Accordingly, we conducted an experiment of vertical upward oil-water two-phase flow with high water-cut and collected the signals of a high-resolution microwave resonant sensor, based on which two indexes, the entropy rate and mean value of MWPE, were extracted. Besides, the effects of total flow rate and water-cut on these two indexes were analysed. Our researches show that MWPE is an effective method to uncover the dynamic instability of oil-water two-phase flow with high water-cut.

Suspended-Bed Reactor preliminary design, /sup 233/U--/sup 232/Th cycle. Final report (revised)

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

Karam, R.A.; Alapour, A.; Lee, C.C.

1977-11-01

The preliminary design Suspended-Bed Reactor is described. Coated particles about 2 mm in diameter are used as the fuel. The coatings consist of three layers: (1) low density pyrolytic graphite, 70 ..mu.. thick, (2) silicon carbide pressure vessel, 30 ..mu.. thick, and (3) ZrC layer, 50 ..mu.. thick, to protect the pressure vessel from moisture and oxygen. The fuel kernel can be either uranium-thorium dicarbide or metal. The coated particles are suspended by helium gas (coolant) in a cluster of pressurized tubes. The upward flow of helium fluidizes the coated particles. As the flow rate increases, the bed of particlesmore » is lifted upward to the core section. The particles are restrained at the upper end of the core by a suitable screen. The overall particle density in the core is just enough for criticality condition. Should the helium flow cease, the bed in the core section will collapse, and the particles will flow downward into the section where the increased physical spacings among the tubes brings about a safe shutdown. By immersing this section of the tubes in a large graphite block to serve as a heat sink, dissipation of decay heat becomes manageable. This eliminates the need for emergency core cooling systems.« less

Experimental investigation on the heat transfer characteristics and flow pattern in vertical narrow channels heated from one side

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Lihao; Li, Gang; Tao, Leren

2016-07-01

Experimental investigation for the flow boiling of water in a vertical rectangular channel was conducted to reveal the boiling heat transfer mechanism and flow patterns map aspects. The onset of nucleate boiling went upward with the increasing of the working fluid mass flow rate or the decreasing of the inlet working fluid temperature. As the vapour quality was increased, the local heat transfer coefficient increased first, then decreased, followed by various flow patterns. The test data from other researchers had a similar pattern transition for the bubble-slug flow and the slug-annular flow. Flow pattern transition model analysis was performed to make the comparison with current test data. The slug-annular and churn-annular transition models showed a close trend with current data except that the vapor phase superficial velocity of flow pattern transition was much higher than that of experimental data.

Numerical investigation of deep-crust behavior under lithospheric extension

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Korchinski, Megan; Rey, Patrice F.; Mondy, Luke; Teyssier, Christian; Whitney, Donna L.

2018-02-01

What are the conditions under which lithospheric extension drives exhumation of the deep orogenic crust during the formation of gneiss domes? The mechanical link between extension of shallow crust and flow of deep crust is investigated using two-dimensional numerical experiments of lithospheric extension in which the crust is 60 km thick and the deep-crust viscosity and density parameter space is explored. Results indicate that the style of extension of the shallow crust and the path, magnitude, and rate of flow of deep crust are dynamically linked through the deep-crust viscosity, with density playing an important role in experiments with a high-viscosity deep crust. Three main groups of domes are defined based on their mechanisms of exhumation across the viscosity-density parameter space. In the first group (low-viscosity, low-density deep crust), domes develop by lateral and upward flow of the deep crust at km m.y-1 velocity rates (i.e. rate of experiment boundary extension). In this case, extension in the shallow crust is localized on a single interface, and the deep crust traverses the entire thickness of the crust to the Earth's near-surface in 5 m.y. This high exhuming power relies on the dynamic feedback between the flow of deep crust and the localization of extension in the shallow crust. The second group (intermediate-viscosity, low-density deep crust) has less exhuming power because the stronger deep crust flows less readily and instead accommodates more uniform extension, which imparts distributed extension to the shallow crust. The third group represents the upper limits of viscosity and density for the deep crust; in this case the low buoyancy of the deep crust results in localized thinning of the crust with large upward motion of the Moho and lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary. These numerical experiments test the exhuming power of the deep crust in the formation of extensional gneiss domes.

Prediction of slug-to-annular flow pattern transition (STA) for reducing the risk of gas-lift instabilities and effective gas/liquid transport from low-pressure reservoirs

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

Toma, P.R.; Vargas, E.; Kuru, E.

Flow-pattern instabilities have frequently been observed in both conventional gas-lifting and unloading operations of water and oil in low-pressure gas and coalbed reservoirs. This paper identifies the slug-to-annular flow-pattern transition (STA) during upward gas/liquid transportation as a potential cause of flow instability in these operations. It is recommended that the slug-flow pattern be used mainly to minimize the pressure drop and gas compression work associated with gas-lifting large volumes of oil and water. Conversely, the annular flow pattern should be used during the unloading operation to produce gas with relatively small amounts of water and condensate. New and efficient artificialmore » lifting strategies are required to transport the liquid out of the depleted gas or coalbed reservoir level to the surface. This paper presents held data and laboratory measurements supporting the hypothesis that STA significantly contributes to flow instabilities and should therefore be avoided in upward gas/liquid transportation operations. Laboratory high-speed measurements of flow-pressure components under a broad range of gas-injection rates including STA have also been included to illustrate the onset of large STA-related flow-pressure oscillations. The latter body of data provides important insights into gas deliquification mechanisms and identifies potential solutions for improved gas-lifting and unloading procedures. A comparison of laboratory data with existing STA models was performed first. Selected models were then numerically tested in field situations. Effective field strategies for avoiding STA occurrence in marginal and new (offshore) field applications (i.e.. through the use of a slug or annular flow pattern regimen from the bottomhole to wellhead levels) are discussed.« less

Velocity of mist droplets and suspending gas imaged separately

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kuethe, Dean O.; McBride, Amber; Altobelli, Stephen A.

2012-03-01

Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Images (MRIs) of the velocity of water droplets and velocity of the suspending gas, hexafluoroethane, are presented for a vertical and horizontal mist pipe flow. In the vertical flow, the upward velocity of the droplets is clearly slower than the upward velocity of the gas. The average droplet size calculated from the average falling velocity in the upward flow is larger than the average droplet size of mist drawn from the top of the pipe measured with a multi-stage aerosol impactor. Vertical flow concentrates larger particles because they have a longer transit time through the pipe. In the horizontal flow there is a gravity-driven circulation with high-velocity mist in the lower portion of the pipe and low-velocity gas in the upper portion. MRI has the advantages that it can image both phases and that it is unperturbed by optical opacity. A drawback is that the droplet phase of mist is difficult to image because of low average spin density and because the signal from water coalesced on the pipe walls is high. To our knowledge these are the first NMR images of mist.

A comprehensive mechanistic model for upward two-phase flow in wellbores

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

Sylvester, N.D.; Sarica, C.; Shoham, O.

1994-05-01

A comprehensive model is formulated to predict the flow behavior for upward two-phase flow. This model is composed of a model for flow-pattern prediction and a set of independent mechanistic models for predicting such flow characteristics as holdup and pressure drop in bubble, slug, and annular flow. The comprehensive model is evaluated by using a well data bank made up of 1,712 well cases covering a wide variety of field data. Model performance is also compared with six commonly used empirical correlations and the Hasan-Kabir mechanistic model. Overall model performance is in good agreement with the data. In comparison withmore » other methods, the comprehensive model performed the best.« less

Impacts of shape and height of upstream roof on airflow and pollutant dispersion inside an urban street canyon.

PubMed

Huang, Yuan-Dong; He, Wen-Rong; Kim, Chang-Nyung

2015-02-01

A two-dimensional numerical model for simulating flow and pollutant dispersion in an urban street canyon is firstly developed using the FLUENT code and then validated against the wind tunnel results. After this, the flow field and pollutant dispersion inside an urban street canyon with aspect ratio W/H = 1 are examined numerically considering five different shapes (vaulted, trapezoidal, slanted, upward wedged, and downward wedged roofs) as well as three different roof height to building height ratios (Z H /H = 1/6, 1/3, and 1/2) for the upstream building roof. The results obtained reveal that the shape and height of an upstream roof have significant influences on flow pattern and pollutant distribution in an urban canyon. A large single clockwise vortex is generated in the canyon for the vaulted upstream roof at Z H /H = 1/6, 1/3, and 1/2, the trapezoidal and downward wedged roofs at Z H /H = 1/6 and 1/3, and the slanted and upward wedged roofs at Z H /H = 1/6, while a main clockwise vortex and a secondary counterclockwise vortex are established for the trapezoidal and downward wedged roofs at Z H /H = 1/2 and the slanted and upward wedged roofs at Z H /H = 1/3 and 1/2. In the one-vortex flow regime, the clockwise vortex moves upward and grows in size with increasing upstream roof height for the vaulted, trapezoidal, and downward wedged roofs. In the two-vortex flow regime, the size and rotational velocity of both upper clockwise and lower counterclockwise vortices increase with the upstream roof height for the slanted and upward wedged roofs. At Z H /H = 1/6, the pollution levels in the canyon are close among all the upstream roof shapes studied. At Z H /H = 1/3, the pollution levels in the canyon for the upward wedged roof and slanted roof are much higher than those for the vaulted, trapezoidal, and downward wedged roofs. At Z H /H = 1/2, the lowest pollution level appears in the canyon for the vaulted upstream roof, while the highest pollution level occurs in the canyon for the upward wedged roof.

How does natural groundwater flow affect CO2 dissolution in saline aquifers?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rosenzweig, R.; Michel-Meyer, I.; Tsinober, A.; Shavit, U.

2017-12-01

The dissolution of supercritical CO2 in aquifer brine is one of the most important trapping mechanisms in CO2 geological storage. Diffusion-limited dissolution is a very slow process. However, since the CO2-rich water is slightly denser than the CO2-free water, when CO2-free water is overlaid by heavier CO2-rich water, convective instability results in fingers of dense CO2-rich water that propagate downwards, causing CO2-unsaturated water to move upwards. This convection process significantly accelerates the dissolution rate of CO2 into the aquifer water.Most previous works have neglected the effect of natural groundwater flow and assumed it has no effect on the dissolution dynamics. However, it was found that in some of the saline aquifers groundwater flow rate, although small, is not zero. In this research, we study the effect of groundwater flow on dissolution by performing laboratory experiments in a bead pack cell using a mixture of methanol and ethylene-glycol as a CO2 analog while varying the water horizontal flow rate. We find that water horizontal flow decreases the number of fingers, their wavelength and their propagation velocity. When testing high water flow rates, no fingers were developed and the dissolution process was entirely diffusive. The effect of water flow on the dissolution rate did not show a clear picture. When increasing the horizontal flow rate the convective dissolution flux slightly decreased and then increased again. It seems that the combination of density-driven flow, water horizontal flow, mechanical dispersion and molecular diffusion affect the dissolution rate in a complex and non-monotonic manner. These intriguing dynamics should be further studied to understand their effect on dissolution trapping.

Biofiltration of air polluted with toluene under steady-state conditions: Experimental observations

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

Kiared, K.; Fundenberger, B.; Brzezinski, R.

1997-11-01

In this study, the authors describe the removal of toluene vapors in a pilot scale biofilter. Biofiltration tests have been performed in a column fed upward with contaminated air at ambient conditions. The column was packed with a mixture of conditioned biomass and structuring agent on which a mixed microbial population of four selected strains was immobilized and then formed a biolayer. The biofilter was operated under various inlet-airstream toluene concentrations and flow rates of the contaminated airstream. Based on the present measurements, the biofilter proved effective in removing toluene at rates up to 165 g/h {center_dot} m{sup 3} ofmore » packing. The effect of some design and operation parameters (concentration of nutrients solution, presence of xylene, gas flow rate, pressure drop, temperature, etc.) are reported.« less

Multi-Scale Long-Range Magnitude and Sign Correlations in Vertical Upward Oil-Gas-Water Three-Phase Flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, An; Jin, Ning-de; Ren, Ying-yu; Zhu, Lei; Yang, Xia

2016-01-01

In this article we apply an approach to identify the oil-gas-water three-phase flow patterns in vertical upwards 20 mm inner-diameter pipe based on the conductance fluctuating signals. We use the approach to analyse the signals with long-range correlations by decomposing the signal increment series into magnitude and sign series and extracting their scaling properties. We find that the magnitude series relates to nonlinear properties of the original time series, whereas the sign series relates to the linear properties. The research shows that the oil-gas-water three-phase flows (slug flow, churn flow, bubble flow) can be classified by a combination of scaling exponents of magnitude and sign series. This study provides a new way of characterising linear and nonlinear properties embedded in oil-gas-water three-phase flows.

The effect of reduced gravity on cryogenic nitrogen boiling and pipe chilldown.

PubMed

Darr, Samuel; Dong, Jun; Glikin, Neil; Hartwig, Jason; Majumdar, Alok; Leclair, Andre; Chung, Jacob

2016-01-01

Manned deep space exploration will require cryogenic in-space propulsion. Yet, accurate prediction of cryogenic pipe flow boiling heat transfer is lacking, due to the absence of a cohesive reduced gravity data set covering the expected flow and thermodynamic parameter ranges needed to validate cryogenic two-phase heat transfer models. This work provides a wide range of cryogenic chilldown data aboard an aircraft flying parabolic trajectories to simulate reduced gravity. Liquid nitrogen is used to quench a 1.27 cm diameter tube from room temperature. The pressure, temperature, flow rate, and inlet conditions are reported from 10 tests covering liquid Reynolds number from 2,000 to 80,000 and pressures from 80 to 810 kPa. Corresponding terrestrial gravity tests were performed in upward, downward, and horizontal flow configurations to identify gravity and flow direction effects on chilldown. Film boiling heat transfer was lessened by up to 25% in reduced gravity, resulting in longer time and more liquid to quench the pipe to liquid temperatures. Heat transfer was enhanced by increasing the flow rate, and differences between reduced and terrestrial gravity diminished at high flow rates. The new data set will enable the development of accurate and robust heat transfer models of cryogenic pipe chilldown in reduced gravity.

The effect of reduced gravity on cryogenic nitrogen boiling and pipe chilldown

PubMed Central

Darr, Samuel; Dong, Jun; Glikin, Neil; Hartwig, Jason; Majumdar, Alok; Leclair, Andre; Chung, Jacob

2016-01-01

Manned deep space exploration will require cryogenic in-space propulsion. Yet, accurate prediction of cryogenic pipe flow boiling heat transfer is lacking, due to the absence of a cohesive reduced gravity data set covering the expected flow and thermodynamic parameter ranges needed to validate cryogenic two-phase heat transfer models. This work provides a wide range of cryogenic chilldown data aboard an aircraft flying parabolic trajectories to simulate reduced gravity. Liquid nitrogen is used to quench a 1.27 cm diameter tube from room temperature. The pressure, temperature, flow rate, and inlet conditions are reported from 10 tests covering liquid Reynolds number from 2,000 to 80,000 and pressures from 80 to 810 kPa. Corresponding terrestrial gravity tests were performed in upward, downward, and horizontal flow configurations to identify gravity and flow direction effects on chilldown. Film boiling heat transfer was lessened by up to 25% in reduced gravity, resulting in longer time and more liquid to quench the pipe to liquid temperatures. Heat transfer was enhanced by increasing the flow rate, and differences between reduced and terrestrial gravity diminished at high flow rates. The new data set will enable the development of accurate and robust heat transfer models of cryogenic pipe chilldown in reduced gravity. PMID:28725740

CO2 hydrate formation and dissociation in cooled porous media: a potential technology for CO2 capture and storage.

PubMed

Yang, Mingjun; Song, Yongchen; Jiang, Lanlan; Zhu, Ningjun; Liu, Yu; Zhao, Yuechao; Dou, Binlin; Li, Qingping

2013-09-03

The purpose of this study was to investigate the hydrate formation and dissociation with CO2 flowing through cooled porous media at different flow rates, pressures, temperatures, and flow directions. CO2 hydrate saturation was quantified using the mean intensity of water. The experimental results showed that the hydrate block appeared frequently, and it could be avoided by stopping CO2 flooding early. Hydrate formed rapidly as the temperature was set to 274.15 or 275.15 K, but the hydrate formation delayed when it was 276.15 K. The flow rate was an important parameter for hydrate formation; a too high or too low rate was not suitable for CO2 hydration formation. A low operating pressure was also unacceptable. The gravity made hydrate form easily in the vertically upward flow direction. The pore water of the second cycle converted to hydrate more completely than that of the first cycle, which was a proof of the hydrate "memory effect". When the pressure was equal to atmospheric pressure, hydrate did not dissociate rapidly and abundantly, and a long time or reduplicate depressurization should be used in industrial application.

Evaluation of borehole geophysical logs and hydraulic tests, phase III, at AIW Frank/Mid-County Mustang Superfund Site, Chester County, Pennsylvania

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sloto, Ronald A.

2001-01-01

Borehole geophysical logs, heatpulse-flowmeter measurements, and aquifer-isolation tests were used to characterize the ground-water-flow system at the AIW Frank/Mid-County Mustang Superfund Site. The site is underlain by fractured carbonate rocks. Caliper, natural-gamma, single-point-resistance, fluid-resistivity, and fluid-temperature logs were run in six wells, and an acoustic borehole televiewer and borehole deviation log was run in one well. The direction and rate of borehole-fluid movement was measured with a high-resolution heatpulse flowmeter for both nonpumping and pumping conditions in four wells. The heatpulse-flowmeter measurements showed flow within the borehole during nonpumping conditions in three of the four wells tested. Flow rates up to 1.4 gallons per minute were measured. Flow was upward in one well and both upward and downward in two wells. Aquifer-isolation (packer) tests were conducted in four wells to determine depth-discrete specific capacity values, to obtain depth-discrete water samples, and to determine the effect of pumping an individual fracture or fracture zone in one well on water levels in nearby wells. Water-level data collected during aquifer-isolation tests were consistent with and confirmed interpretations of borehole geophysical logs and heatpulse-flowmeter measurements. Seven of the 13 fractures identified as water-producing or water-receiving zones by borehole geophysical methods produced water at a rate equal to or greater than 7.5 gallons per minute when isolated and pumped. The specific capacities of isolated fractures range over three orders of magnitude, from 0.005 to 7.1 gallons per minute per foot. Vertical distribution of specific capacity between land surface and 298 feet below land surface is not related to depth. The four highest specific capacities, in descending order, are at depths of 174-198, 90-92, 118-119, and 34-37 feet below land surface.

Canopy Flow Analysis Reveals the Advantage of Size in the Oldest Communities of Multicellular Eukaryotes

PubMed Central

Ghisalberti, Marco; Gold, David A.; Laflamme, Marc; Clapham, Matthew E.; Narbonne, Guy M.; Summons, Roger E.; Johnston, David T.; Jacobs, David K.

2015-01-01

Summary At Mistaken Point, Newfoundland, Canada, rangeomorph “fronds” dominate the earliest (579–565 million years ago) fossil communities of large (0.1 to 2 m height) multicellular benthic eukaryotes. They lived in low-flow environments, fueled by uptake [1–3] of dissolved reactants (osmotrophy). However, prokaryotes are effective osmotrophs, and the advantage of taller eukaryotic osmotrophs in this deepwater community context has not been addressed. We reconstructed flow-velocity profiles and vertical mixing using canopy flow models appropriate to the densities of the observed communities. Further modeling of processes at organismal surfaces documents increasing uptake with height in the community as a function of thinning of the diffusive boundary layer with increased velocity. The velocity profile, produced by canopy flow in the community, generates this advantage of upward growth. Alternative models of upward growth advantage based on redox/resource gradients fail, given the efficiency of vertical mixing. In benthic communities of osmotrophs of sufficient density, access to flow in low-flow settings provides an advantage to taller architecture, providing a selectional driver for communities of tall eukaryotes in contexts where phototropism cannot contribute to upward growth. These Ediacaran deep-sea fossils were preserved during the increasing oxygenation prior to the Cambrian radiation of animals and likely represent an important phase in the ecological and evolutionary transition to more complex eukaryotic forms. PMID:24462003

Enhancement of Condensation Heat Transfer by Counter-Corrent Wavy Flow in a Vertical Tube

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Teranishi, Tsunenobu; Ozawa, Takanori; Takimoto, Akira

As a basic research for the development of a high-performance and environment-friendly thermal energy recovery system, detailed experiments have been conducted to investigate the mechanism of the enhancement of condensation heat transfer by the counter-current moist air flow in a vertical tube. From the results of visual observation of the phenomena by using a high-speed video recorder and the measurement of condensate rate respectively from an upper and a bottom end of a cooled tube, in which various humidity vapor of air and water flowed upward or downward, the dynamic behavior of liquid film condensed on cooled surface and moist air flow was classified into four distinctive patterns in quality and quantity. Further, the effect of the scale and the operating condition such as the diameter and the length of tube, the vapor concentration and the moist air temperature, on the condensation rate of counter-current wavy flow was clarified in relation to the pattern and condition of occurrence of the wavy flow of liquid film and flooding due to the shear forces between the interface of liquid and moist air flow.

Gas-liquid Phase Distribution and Void Fraction Measurements Using the MRI

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Daidzic, N. E.; Schmidt, E.; Hasan, M. M.; Altobelli, S.

2004-01-01

We used a permanent-magnet MRI system to estimate the integral and spatially- and/or temporally-resolved void-fraction distributions and flow patterns in gas-liquid two-phase flows. Air was introduced at the bottom of the stagnant liquid column using an accurate and programmable syringe pump. Air flow rates were varied between 1 and 200 ml/min. The cylindrical non-conducting test tube in which two-phase flow was measured was placed in a 2.67 kGauss MRI with MRT spectrometer/imager. Roughly linear relationship has been obtained for the integral void-fraction, obtained by volume-averaging of the spatially-resolved signals, and the air flow rate in upward direction. The time-averaged spatially-resolved void fraction has also been obtained for the quasi-steady flow of air in a stagnant liquid column. No great accuracy is claimed as this was an exploratory proof-of-concept type of experiment. Preliminary results show that MRI a non-invasive and non-intrusive experimental technique can indeed provide a wealth of different qualitative and quantitative data and is especially well suited for averaged transport processes in adiabatic and diabatic multi-phase and/or multi-component flows.

Direct evidence for two-stage (bimodal) acceleration of ionospheric ions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klumpar, D. M.; Peterson, W. K.; Shelley, E. G.

1984-12-01

Energetic ion composition spectrometer data gathered on hybrid conical ion distributions by the Dynamics Explorer 1 in the topside ionosphere are reported. The observed ion distributions were field-aligned and upward flowing, with energies up to 5 keV. Increases in ion energy were accompanied by a departure from field-alignment and a cone patterned upward flow, with the apex in the auroral field lines and the cone angle widening upward as the energy increased. Both transverse and parallel accelerations were imparted to the ions, with the transverse heating occurring in a 5000 km extent region centered at 18,000 km altitude. A bi-Maxwellian distribution, a temperature of 1.2 keV and a 260 eV parallel temperature were found at the top of the region.

The Slug and Churn Turbulence Characteristics of Oil-Gas-Water Flows in a Vertical Small Pipe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Weixin; Han, Yunfeng; Wang, Dayang; Zhao, An; Jin, Ningde

2017-08-01

The intention of the present study was to investigate the slug and churn turbulence characteristics of a vertical upward oil-gas-water three-phase flow. We firstly carried out a vertical upward oil-gas-water three-phase flow experiment in a 20-mm inner diameter (ID) pipe to measure the fluctuating signals of a rotating electric field conductance sensor under different flow patterns. Afterwards, typical flow patterns were identified with the aid of the texture structures in a cross recurrence plot. Recurrence quantitative analysis and multi-scale cross entropy (MSCE) algorithms were applied to investigate the turbulence characteristics of slug and churn flows with the varying flow parameters. The results suggest that with cross nonlinear analysis, the underlying dynamic characteristics in the evolution from slug to churn flow can be well understood. The present study provides a novel perspective for the analysis of the spatial-temporal evolution instability and complexity in oil-gas-water three-phase flow.

The effect of paleotopography on lithic distribution and facies associations of small volume ignimbrites: the WTT Cupa (Roccamonfina volcano, Italy)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Giordano, Guido

1998-12-01

The distribution of lithic clasts within two trachytic, small volume, pumiceous ignimbrites are described from the Quaternary `White Trachytic Tuff Cupa' formation of Roccamonfina volcano, Italy. The ignimbrites show a downslope grading of lithics, with a maximum size where there is a major break in the volcano's slope, rather than at proximal locations. This is also the location where ignimbrites are thickest and most massive. The break in slope is interpreted to have reduced flow capacity and velocity, increasing the sedimentation rate, so that massive ignimbrite formed by hindered settling sedimentation. Ignimbrite Cc, exhibits no vertical grading of lithics, though it does show downslope grading with maximum size at the major break in slope and a rapid decrease further downslope. Ignimbrite Cc thins away from the break in slope, and shows an upward fining of the grain size within the topmost few decimeters of the unit. The ignimbrite is stratified proximally, and grades to massive facies at the break in slope, and distally to stratified facies with numerous inverse-graded beds. The simplest mechanism accounting for these downslope variations is progressive aggradation from a quasi-steady, nonuniform pyroclastic density current. The changes in deposit thickness and facies are interpreted to record downcurrent changes in sedimentation rate. The upward fining reflects waning flow. Inversely graded, bedded depositional facies in distal areas is interpreted to reflect flow unsteadiness and a decrease in suspended sediment load. Ignimbrite Cd shows vertical, as well as downslope grading of lithics. This characteristic, coupled with the widespread massive facies of the deposit and the tabular unit geometry are features that can be reconciled with both the debris flow/plug analogy for pyroclastic flows ( Sparks, 1976) and the progressive aggradation model ( Branney and Kokelaar, 1992). However, none of them appears to satisfy completely the field evidences, implying that when dealing with massive ignimbrites, other evidence than lithic grading needs to be presented to better understand the related transport and depositional processes.

Identification of the Upward Movement of Human CSF In Vivo and its Relation to the Brain Venous System.

PubMed

Dreha-Kulaczewski, Steffi; Joseph, Arun A; Merboldt, Klaus-Dietmar; Ludwig, Hans-Christoph; Gärtner, Jutta; Frahm, Jens

2017-03-01

CSF flux is involved in the pathophysiology of neurodegenerative diseases and cognitive impairment after traumatic brain injury, all hallmarked by the accumulation of cellular metabolic waste. Its effective disposal via various CSF routes has been demonstrated in animal models. In contrast, the CSF dynamics in humans are still poorly understood. Using novel real-time MRI, forced inspiration has been identified recently as a main driving force of CSF flow in the human brain. Exploiting technical advances toward real-time phase-contrast MRI, the current work analyzed directions, velocities, and volumes of human CSF flow within the brain aqueduct as part of the internal ventricular system and in the spinal canal during respiratory cycles. A consistent upward CSF movement toward the brain in response to forced inspiration was seen in all subjects at the aqueduct, in 11/12 subjects at thoracic level 2, and in 4/12 subjects at thoracic level 5. Concomitant analyses of CSF dynamics and cerebral venous blood flow, that is, in epidural veins at cervical level 3, uniquely demonstrated CSF and venous flow to be closely communicating cerebral fluid systems in which inspiration-induced downward flow of venous blood due to reduced intrathoracic pressure is counterbalanced by an upward movement of CSF. The results extend our understanding of human CSF flux and open important clinical implications, including concepts for drug delivery and new classifications and therapeutic options for various forms of hydrocephalus and idiopathic intracranial hypertension. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Effective disposal of brain cellular waste products via CSF has been demonstrated repeatedly in animal models. However, CSF dynamics in humans are still poorly understood. A novel quantitative real-time MRI technique yielded in vivo CSF flow directions, velocities, and volumes in the human brain and upper spinal canal. CSF moved upward toward the head in response to forced inspiration. Concomitant analysis of brain venous blood flow indicated that CSF and venous flux act as closely communicating systems. The finding of a human CSF-venous network with upward CSF net movement opens new clinical concepts for drug delivery and new classifications and therapeutic options for various forms of hydrocephalus and ideopathic intracranial hypertension. Copyright © 2017 the authors 0270-6474/17/372395-08$15.00/0.

Deep arid system hydrodynamics 1. Equilibrium states and response times in thick desert vadose zones

USGS Publications Warehouse

Walvoord, Michelle Ann; Plummer, Mitchell A.; Phillips, Fred M.; Wolfsberg, Andrew V.

2002-01-01

Quantifying moisture fluxes through deep desert soils remains difficult because of the small magnitude of the fluxes and the lack of a comprehensive model to describe flow and transport through such dry material. A particular challenge for such a model is reproducing both observed matric potential and chloride profiles. We propose a conceptual model for flow in desert vadose zones that includes isothermal and nonisothermal vapor transport and the role of desert vegetation in supporting a net upward moisture flux below the root zone. Numerical simulations incorporating this conceptual model match typical matric potential and chloride profiles. The modeling approach thereby reconciles the paradox between the recognized importance of plants, upward driving forces, and vapor flow processes in desert vadose zones and the inadequacy of the downward‐only liquid flow assumption of the conventional chloride mass balance approach. Our work shows that water transport in thick desert vadose zones at steady state is usually dominated by upward vapor flow and that long response times, of the order of 104–105 years, are required to equilibrate to existing arid surface conditions. Simulation results indicate that most thick desert vadose zones have been locked in slow drying transients that began in response to a climate shift and establishment of desert vegetation many thousands of years ago.

Multi-Scale Morphological Analysis of Conductance Signals in Vertical Upward Gas-Liquid Two-Phase Flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lian, Enyang; Ren, Yingyu; Han, Yunfeng; Liu, Weixin; Jin, Ningde; Zhao, Junying

2016-11-01

The multi-scale analysis is an important method for detecting nonlinear systems. In this study, we carry out experiments and measure the fluctuation signals from a rotating electric field conductance sensor with eight electrodes. We first use a recurrence plot to recognise flow patterns in vertical upward gas-liquid two-phase pipe flow from measured signals. Then we apply a multi-scale morphological analysis based on the first-order difference scatter plot to investigate the signals captured from the vertical upward gas-liquid two-phase flow loop test. We find that the invariant scaling exponent extracted from the multi-scale first-order difference scatter plot with the bisector of the second-fourth quadrant as the reference line is sensitive to the inhomogeneous distribution characteristics of the flow structure, and the variation trend of the exponent is helpful to understand the process of breakup and coalescence of the gas phase. In addition, we explore the dynamic mechanism influencing the inhomogeneous distribution of the gas phase in terms of adaptive optimal kernel time-frequency representation. The research indicates that the system energy is a factor influencing the distribution of the gas phase and the multi-scale morphological analysis based on the first-order difference scatter plot is an effective method for indicating the inhomogeneous distribution of the gas phase in gas-liquid two-phase flow.

Numerical Experiments on the Role of the Lower Crust in the Development of Extension-driven Gneiss Domes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Korchinski, M.; Rey, P. F.; Teyssier, C. P.; Mondy, L. S.; Whitney, D.

2016-12-01

Flow of orogenic crust is a critical geodynamic process in the chemical and physical evolution of continents. Deeply sourced rocks are transported to the near surface within gneiss domes, which are ubiquitous features in orogens and extensional regions. Exhumation of material within a gneiss dome can occur as the result of tectonic stresses, where material moves into space previously occupied by the shallow crust as the result of extension localized along a detachment system. Gravitationally driven flow may also contribute to exhumation. This research addresses how physical parameters (density, viscosity) of the deep crust (base of brittle crust to Moho) impact (1) the localization of extension in the shallow crust, and (2) the flow of deep crust by tectonic and non-tectonic stresses. We present 2D numerical experiments in which the density (2900-3100 kg m-3) and viscosity (1e19-1e21 Pa s) of the deep crust are systematically varied. Lateral and vertical transport of deep crustal rocks toward the gneiss dome occurs across the entire parameter space. A low viscosity deep crust yields localized extension in the upper crust and crustal-scale upward flow; this case produces the highest exhumation. A high viscosity deep crust results in distributed thinning of the upper crust, which suppresses upward mass transport. The density of the deep crust has only a second-order effect on the shallow crust extension regime. We capture the flow field generated after the cessation of extension to evaluate mass transport that is not driven by tectonic stresses. Upward transport of material within the gneiss dome is present across the entire parameter space. In the case of a low-viscosity deep crust, horizontal flow occurs adjacent to the dome above the Moho; this flow is an order of magnitude higher than that within the dome. Density variations do not drastically alter the flow field in the low viscosity lower crust. However, a high density and high viscosity deep crust results in boudinage of the whole crust, which generates significant upward flow from the buoyant asthenosphere.

Genesis and shape of natural solution cavities within salt deposits

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gechter, Daniel; Huggenberger, Peter; Ackerer, Philippe; Waber, H. Niklaus

2008-11-01

Since the genesis and shape of natural deep-seated cavities within a salt body are insufficiently understood, the current study tries to shed some light on this topic. To this end, freshwater was pumped slowly through a horizontal borehole in rock salt cores. Owing to fast halite dissolution kinetics, high solubility, and slow inflow rate, halite dissolution took place only in the inflow of the rock salt cylinder. The shape of the created cavities is an approximately symmetrical half cone with a horizontal base facing upward. A conceptual model is presented that is inspired by the experimental results and based on theoretical hydraulic-geochemical considerations, as well as on field observations. It proposes that triangular prism or conically shaped cavities develop within salt under confined conditions, where aggressive water flows upward along a fracture/conduit from an insoluble aquifer into the soluble stratum. Such cavity enlargements may cause land subsidence and structure collapse.

Geohydrology of the Stockton Formation and cross-contamination through open boreholes, Hatboro Borough and Warminster Township, Pennsylvania

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sloto, R.A.; Macchiaroli, Paola; Towle, M.T.

1996-01-01

The study area consists of a 9-square-mile area underlain by sedimentary rocks of the middle arkose member of the Stockton Formation of Upper Triassic age. In the Hatboro area, the Stockton Formation strikes approximately N. 65 degrees E. and dps approximately 9 degrees NW. The rocks are chiefly arkosic sandstone and siltstone. Rocks of the Stocton Formation form a complex, heterogeneous, multiaquifer system consisting of a series of gently dipping lithologic units with different hydraulic properties. Most ground water in the unweathered zone moves through a network of interconnecting secondary openigns-fractures, bedding plans, and joints. Ground water is unconfined in the shallower part of the aquifer and semiconfined or confined in the deeper part of the aquifer. Nearly all deep wells in the Stockton Formation are open to several water-bearing zones and are multiaquifer wells. Each water-bearing zone usually has a different hydraulic head. Where differences in hydraulic head exist between water-bearing zones, water in the well bore flows under nonpumping conditions in the direction of decreasing head. Determination of the potential for borehole flow was based on caliper, natural-gamma, single- point-resistance, fluid-resistivity, and (or) fluid-temperature logs that were run in 162 boreholes 31 to 655 feet deep. The direction and rate of borehole-fluid movement were determined in 83 boreholes by the bring-tracing method and in 10 boreholes by use of a heat-pulse flowmeter. Borehole flow was measurable in 65 of the 93 boreholes (70 percent). Fluid movement at rates up to 17 gallons per minute was measured. Downward flow was measured in 36 boreholes, and upward flow was measured in 23 boreholes, not including those boreholes in which two directions of flow were measured. Both upward and downward vertical flow was measured in six boreholes; these boreholes are 396 to 470 feet deep and were among the deepest boreholes logged. Fluid movement was upward in the upper part of the borehole and downward in the lower part of the borehole in two boreholes. Fluid movement wad downward in the upper part of the borehole and upward in the lower part of the borehole in three boreholes. Groung-water contamination by volatile organic compounds (VOC's) is widespread in the study area. Detectable concentrations of VOC's were present in water samples from 24 wells sampled in Hatboro Brough and in water samples for 10 of 14 wells (71 percent) samples in Warminster Township. Samples of borehole flow from nine boreholes in the industrial area of Hatboro were collected for laboratory analysis to estimate the quantity of VOC's in borehole flow. Downward flow was measured in all of these boreholes. Concentrations of TCE, TCA, and 1,1-DCE as great at 5,800, 1,400 and 260 micrograms per liter, respectively, show that some water moving downward in the aquifer through these open boreholes is highly contaminated and that open boreholes may contribute substantially to ground-water contamination. An estimated 14.7 gallons per year of VOC's were moving downward through the nine open boreholes sampled from the contaminated, upper part of the aquifer to the lower part, which is tapped by public supply wells. Borehole geophysical logs were used as a guide to design and construct monitor-well networks at three National Priorities List sites in the area. An open borehole was dirlled, and a suite of geophysical logs was run. Interpretation of geophysical logs enabled the identification of water-bearing zones that produce and receive water; these are zones that should not be connected. From the logs, discrete intervals to be monitored were selected. In the Stockton Formation, the same water-bearing zone may not be intersected in adjacent boreholes, especially if it is a vertical fracture with a diffident magnetic orientation than that of the adjacent boreholes. In most areas of the stockton Formation, depth of water-bearing zones in an are

CHIMNEY FOR BOILING WATER REACTOR

DOEpatents

Petrick, M.

1961-08-01

A boiling-water reactor is described which has vertical fuel-containing channels for forming steam from water. Risers above the channels increase the head of water radially outward, whereby water is moved upward through the channels with greater force. The risers are concentric and the radial width of the space between them is somewhat small. There is a relatively low rate of flow of water up through the radially outer fuel-containing channels, with which the space between the risers is in communication. (AE C)

Water-quality characteristics and trend analyses for the Tongue, Powder, Cheyenne, and Belle Fourche River drainage basins, Wyoming and Montana, for selected periods, water years 1991 through 2010

USGS Publications Warehouse

Clark, Melanie L.

2012-01-01

The Powder River structural basin in northeastern Wyoming and southeastern Montana is an area of ongoing coalbed natural gas (CBNG) development. Waters produced during CBNG development are managed with a variety of techniques, including surface impoundments and discharges into stream drainages. The interaction of CBNG-produced waters with the atmosphere and the semiarid soils of the Powder River structural basin can affect water chemistry in several ways. Specific conductance and sodium adsorption ratios (SAR) of CBNG-produced waters that are discharged to streams have been of particular concern because they have the potential to affect the use of the water for irrigation. Water-quality monitoring has been conducted since 2001 at main-stem and tributary sites in the Tongue, Powder, Cheyenne, and Belle Fourche River drainage basins in response to concerns about CBNG effects. A study was conducted to summarize characteristics of stream-water quality for water years 2001–10 (October 1, 2000, to September 30, 2010) and examine trends in specific conductance, SAR, and primary constituents that contribute to specific conductance and SAR for changes through time (water years 1991–2010) that may have occurred as a result of CBNG development. Specific conductance and SAR are the focus characteristics of this report. Dissolved calcium, magnesium, and sodium, which are primary contributors to specific conductance and SAR, as well as dissolved alkalinity, chloride, and sulfate, which are other primary contributors to specific conductance, also are described. Stream-water quality in the Tongue, Powder, Cheyenne, and Belle Fourche River drainage basins was variable during water years 2001–10, in part because of variations in streamflow. In general, annual runoff was less than average during water years 2001–06 and near or above average during water years 2007–10. Stream water of the Tongue River had the smallest specific conductance values, sodium adsorption ratios, and major ion concentrations of the main-stem streams. Sites in the Tongue River drainage basin typically had the smallest range of specific conductance and SAR values. The water chemistry of sites in the Powder River drainage basin generally was the most variable as a result of diverse characteristics of that basin. Plains tributaries in the Powder River drainage basin had the largest range of specific conductance and SAR values, in part due to the many tributaries that receive CBNG-produced waters. Trends were analyzed using the seasonal Kendall test with flow-adjusted concentrations to determine changes to water quality through time at sites in the Tongue, Powder, Cheyenne, and Belle Fourche River drainage basins. Trends were evaluated for water years 2001–10 for 17 sites, which generally were on the main-stem streams and primary tributaries. Trends were evaluated for water years 2005–10 for 26 sites to increase the spatial coverage of sites. Trends were evaluated for water years 1991–2010 for eight sites to include water-quality data collected prior to widespread CBNG development and expand the temporal context of trends. Consistent patterns were not observed in trend results for water years 2001–10 for flow-adjusted specific conductance and SAR values in the Tongue, Powder, and Belle Fourche River drainage basins. Significant (p-values less than 0.05) upward trends in flow-adjusted specific conductance values were determined for 3 sites, a downward trend was determined for 1 site, and no significant (p-value greater than 0.05) trends were determined for 13 sites. One of the sites with a significant upward trend was the Tongue River at the Wyoming-Montana State line. No trend in flow-adjusted specific conductance values was determined for the Powder River at Moorhead, Mont. Significant upward trends in flow-adjusted SAR values were determined for 2 sites and no significant trends were determined for 15 sites. No trends in flow-adjusted SAR values were determined for the Tongue River at the Wyoming-Montana State line or for the Powder River at Moorhead, Mont. One of the sites with a significant upward trend in flow-adjusted SAR values was the Powder River at Arvada, Wyo. For water years 2005–10, significant upward trends in flow-adjusted specific conductance values were determined no significant trends were determined for 13 sites. A significant upward trend was determined for flow-adjusted specific conductance values for the Tongue River at the Wyoming-Montana State line. No trend in flow-adjusted specific conductance values was determined for the Powder River at Moorhead, Mont. Significant upward trends in flow-adjusted SAR values were determined for 4 sites, downward trends were determined for 5 sites, and no significant trend was determined for 17 sites. No trends in flow-adjusted SAR values were determined for the Tongue River at the Wyoming-Montana State line or for the Powder River at Moorhead, Mont. Results of the seasonal Kendall test applied to flow-adjusted specific conductance values for water years 1991–2010 indicated no significant trend for eight sites in the Tongue, Powder, and Belle Fourche River drainage basins. No significant trend in flow-adjusted specific conductance was determined for the Tongue River at the Wyoming-Montana State line or the Powder River at Moorhead, Mont. Results of the seasonal Kendall test applied to flow-adjusted SAR values for water years 1991–2010 indicated an upward trend for one site and no significant trend for four sites in the Powder and Belle Fourche River drainage basins. The significant upward trend in flow-adjusted SAR values was determined for the Powder River at Arvada, Wyo., for water years 1991–2010. Results indicate that CBNG development in the Powder River structural basin may have contributed to some trends, such as the upward trend in flow-adjusted SAR for the Powder River at Arvada, Wyo., for water years 1991–2010. An upward trend in flow-adjusted alkalinity concentrations for water years 2001–10 also was determined for the Powder River at Arvada, Wyo. Trend results are consistent with changes that can occur from the addition of sodium and bicarbonate associated with CBNG-produced waters to the Powder River. Upward trends in constituents at other sites, including the Belle Fourche River, may be the result of declining CBNG development, indicating that CBNG-produced waters may have had a dilution effect on some streams. The factors affecting other trends could not be determined because multiple factors could have been affecting the stream-water quality or because trends were observed at sites upstream from CBNG development that may have affected water-quality trends at sites downstream.

Origin and emplacement of the andesite of Burroughs Mountain, a zoned, large-volume lava flow at Mount Rainier, Washington, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

Stockstill, K.R.; Vogel, T.A.; Sisson, T.W.

2002-01-01

Burroughs Mountain, situated at the northeast foot of Mount Rainier, WA, exposes a large-volume (3.4 km3) andesitic lava flow, up to 350 m thick and extending 11 km in length. Two sampling traverses from flow base to eroded top, over vertical sections of 245 and 300 m, show that the flow consists of a felsic lower unit (100 m thick) overlain sharply by a more mafic upper unit. The mafic upper unit is chemically zoned, becoming slightly more evolved upward; the lower unit is heterogeneous and unzoned. The lower unit is also more phenocryst-rich and locally contains inclusions of quenched basaltic andesite magma that are absent from the upper unit. Widespread, vuggy, gabbronorite-to-diorite inclusions may be fragments of shallow cumulates, exhumed from the Mount Rainier magmatic system. Chemically heterogeneous block-and-ash-flow deposits that conformably underlie the lava flow were the earliest products of the eruptive episode. The felsic-mafic-felsic progression in lava composition resulted from partial evacuation of a vertically-zoned magma reservoir, in which either (1) average depth of withdrawal increased, then decreased, during eruption, perhaps due to variations in effusion rate, or (2) magmatic recharge stimulated ascent of a plume that brought less evolved magma to shallow levels at an intermediate stage of the eruption. Pre-eruptive zonation resulted from combined crystallization- differentiation and intrusion(s) of less evolved magma into the partly crystallized resident magma body. The zoned lava flow at Burroughs Mountain shows that, at times, Mount Rainier's magmatic system has developed relatively large, shallow reservoirs that, despite complex recharge events, were capable of developing a felsic-upward compositional zonation similar to that inferred from large ash-flow sheets and other zoned lava flows. ?? 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

African-American women's Upward Economic Mobility and Small for Gestational Age Births: A Population-Based Study.

PubMed

Collins, James W; Mariani, Allison; Rankin, Kristin

2018-03-01

Background The relationship between African-American women's upward economic mobility and small for gestational age (weight for gestational < 10th percentile, SGA) rates is incompletely understood. Objective To ascertain the extent to which African-American women's upward economic mobility from early-life impoverishment is coupled with reduced SGA rates. Methods Stratified and multilevel logistic regression analyses were completed on the Illinois transgenerational dataset of African-American infants (1989-1991) and their Chicago-born mothers (1956-1976) with linked U.S. census income information. Results Impoverished-born (defined as lowest quartile of neighborhood income distribution) African-American women (n = 4891) who remained impoverished by the time of delivery had a SGA rate of 19.7%. Individuals who achieved low (n = 5827), modest (n = 2254), or high (n = 732) upward economic mobility by adulthood had lower SGA rates of 17.2, 14.8, and 13.7%, respectively; RR = 0.9 (0.8-0.9), 0.8 (0.7-0.8), and 0.7 (0.6-0.8), respectively. In adjusted (controlling for traditional individual-level risk factors) multilevel regression models, there was a decreasing linear trend in SGA rates with increasing levels of upward economic mobility; the adjusted RR of SGA birth for impoverished-born African-American women who experienced low, modest, of high (compared to no) upward mobility equaled 0.95 (0.91, 0.99), 0.90 (0.83, 0.98), and 0.86 (0.75, 0.98), respectively, p < 0.05. Conclusions African-American women's upward economic mobility from early-life residence in poor urban communities is associated with lower SGA rates independent of adulthood risk status.

Parametric Analysis of the feasibility of low-temperature geothermal heat recovery in sedimentary basins

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tomac, I.; Caulk, R.

2016-12-01

The current study explored the feasibility of heat recovery through the installation of heat exchangers in abandoned oil and gas wells. Finite Element Methods (FEM) were employed to determine the effects of various site specific parameters on production fluid temperature. Specifically, the study parameterized depth of well, subsurface temperature gradient, sedimentary rock conductivity, and flow rate. Results show that greater well depth is associated with greater heat flow, with the greatest returns occurring between depths of 1.5 km and 7 km. Beyond 7 km, the rate of return decreases due to a non-linear increase of heat flow combined with a continued linear increase of pumping cost. One cause for the drop of heat flow was the loss of heat as the fluid travels from depth to the surface. Further analyses demonstrated the benefit of an alternative heat exchanger configuration characterized by thermally insulated sections of the upward heat exchanger. These simulations predict production fluid temperature gains between 5 - 10 oC, which may be suitable for geothermal heat pump applications.

The role of unsteady effusion rates on inflation in long-lived lava flow fields

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rader, E.; Vanderkluysen, L.; Clarke, A.

2017-11-01

The emission of volcanic gases and particles can have global and lasting environmental effects, but their timing, tempo, and duration can be problematic to quantify for ancient eruptions where real-time measurements are absent. Lava flows, for example, may be long-lasting, and their impact is controlled by the rate, tempo, and vigor of effusion. These factors are currently difficult to derive from the geologic record but can have large implications for the atmospheric impact of an eruption. We conducted a set of analogue experiments on lava flow inflation aiming at connecting lava morphologies preserved in the rock record to eruption tempo and dynamics through pulsating effusion rates. Inflation, a process where molten material is injected beneath the crust of an active lava flow and lifts it upwards, is a common phenomenon in basaltic volcanic systems. This mechanism requires three components: a) a coherent, insulating crust; b) a wide-spread molten core; and c) pressure built up beneath the crust from a sustained supply of molten material. Inflation can result in a lava flow growing tens of meters thick, even in flow fields that expand hundreds of square kilometers. It has been documented that rapid effusion rates tend to create channels and tubes, isolating the active part of the flow from the stagnant part, while slow effusion rates may cause crust to form quickly and seize up, forcing lava to overtop the crust. However, the conditions that allow for inflation of large flow fields have not previously been evaluated in terms of effusion rate. By using PEG 600 wax and a programmable pump, we observe how, by pulsating effusion rate, inflation occurs even in very low viscosity basaltic eruptions. We show that observations from inflating Hawaiian lava flows correlate well with experimental data and indicate that instantaneous effusion rates may have been 3 times higher than average effusion rates during the emplacement of the 23 January 1988 flow at Kīlauea (Hawai'i). The identification of a causal relationship between pulsating effusion rates and inflation may have implications for eruption tempo in the largest inflated flows: flood basalts.

Stereoscopic particle image velocimetry investigations of the mixed convection exchange flow through a horizontal vent

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Varrall, Kevin; Pretrel, Hugues; Vaux, Samuel; Vauquelin, Olivier

2017-10-01

The exchange flow through a horizontal vent linking two compartments (one above the other) is studied experimentally. This exchange is here governed by both the buoyant natural effect due to the temperature difference of the fluids in both compartments, and the effect of a (forced) mechanical ventilation applied in the lower compartment. Such a configuration leads to uni- or bi-directional flows through the vent. In the experiments, buoyancy is induced in the lower compartment thanks to an electrical resistor. The forced ventilation is applied in exhaust or supply modes and three different values of the vent area. To estimate both velocity fields and flow rates at the vent, measurements are realized at thermal steady state, flush the vent in the upper compartment using stereoscopic particle image velocimetry (SPIV), which is original for this kind of flow. The SPIV measurements allows the area occupied by both upward and downward flows to be determined.

Self-sculpting of a dissolvable body due to gravitational convection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Davies Wykes, Megan S.; Huang, Jinzi Mac; Hajjar, George A.; Ristroph, Leif

2018-04-01

Natural sculpting processes such as erosion or dissolution often yield universal shapes that bear no imprint or memory of the initial conditions. Here we conduct laboratory experiments aimed at assessing the shape dynamics and role of memory for the simple case of a dissolvable boundary immersed in a fluid. Though no external flow is imposed, dissolution and consequent density differences lead to gravitational convective flows that in turn strongly affect local dissolving rates and shape changes, and we identify two distinct behaviors. A flat boundary dissolving from its lower surface tends to retain its overall shape (an example of near perfect memory) while bearing small-scale pits that reflect complex near-body flows. A boundary dissolving from its upper surface tends to erase its initial shape and form an upward spike structure that sharpens indefinitely. We propose an explanation for these different outcomes based on observations of the coupled shape dynamics, concentration fields, and flows.

Particle separator

DOEpatents

Hendricks, Charles D.

1990-01-01

Method and apparatus (10) are provided for separating and classifying particles (48,50,56) by dispersing the particles within a fluid (52) that is upwardly flowing within a cone-shaped pipe (12) that has its large end (20) above its small end (18). Particles of similar size and shape (48,50) migrate to individual levels (A,B) within the flowing fluid. As the fluid is deflected by a plate (42) at the top end of the pipe (12), the smallest particles are collected on a shelf-like flange (40). Ever larger particles are collected as the flow rate of the fluid is increased. To prevent particle sticking on the walls (14) of the pipe (12), additional fluid is caused to flow into the pipe (12) through holes (68) that are specifically provided for that purpose. Sticking is further prevented by high frequency vibrators (70) that are positioned on the apparatus (10).

Field-aligned Currents Induced by Electrostatic Polarization at the Ionosphere: Application to the Poleward Boundary Intensification (PBI) of Auroral Emission

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ohtani, S.; Yoshikawa, A.

2016-12-01

Although the field-aligned currents (Birkeland currents) are generally considered to be driven by magnetospheric processes, it is possible that some field-aligned currents are locally induced in the ionosphere in the presence of sharp conductance gradient. In this presentation we shall discuss the poleward boundary intensification (PBI) of auroral emission as an example effect of such electrostatic polarization. The observations show that the PBIs are very often preceded by the fast polar cap convection approaching the nightside auroral oval. We propose that the ionospheric currents driven by the associated electric field diverges/converges at the poleward boundary of the auroral oval as the background ionospheric conductance changes sharply in space, and they close with field-aligned currents. The associated upward field-aligned current is accompanied by electron precipitation, which may cause auroral emission as observed as PBIs. We test this idea by modeling the ionosphere as a slab-shaped enhancement of conductance and the polar cap flow channel as a pair of upward and downward FACs. The results show that (i) a pair of upward and downward FACs is induced at the poleward boundary when the front of the polar cap flow channel approaches the auroral oval; (ii) the upward FAC extends westward much wider in longitude than the flow channel; (iii) the peak FAC density is significantly larger than the incident FAC; and (iv) the induced upward and downward FACs are distributed almost symmetrically in longitude, indicating that the Pedersen polarization dominates the Hall polarization. These results are consistent with some general characteristics of PBIs, which are rather difficult to explain if the PBIs are the ionospheric manefestation of distant reconnection as often suggested.

Numerical investigations of solute transport in bimodal porous media under dynamic boundary conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cremer, Clemens; Neuweiler, Insa; Bechtold, Michel; Vanderborght, Jan

2016-04-01

Quantification of flow and solute transport in the shallow subsurface adjacent to the atmosphere is decisive to prevent groundwater pollution and conserve groundwater quality, to develop successful remediation strategies and to understand nutrient cycling. In nature, due to erratic precipitation-evaporation patterns, soil moisture content and related hydraulic conductivity in the vadose zone are not only variable in space but also in time. Flow directions and flow paths locally change between precipitation and evaporation periods. This makes the identification and description of solute transport processes in the vadose zone a complex problem. Recent studies (Lehmann and Or, 2009; Bechtold et al., 2011a) focused on the investigation of upward transport of solutes during evaporation in heterogeneous soil columns, where heterogeneity was introduced by a sharp vertical material interface between two types of sand. Lateral solute transport through the interface in both (lateral) directions was observed at different depths of the investigated soil columns. Following recent approaches, we conduct two-dimensional numerical simulations in a similar setup which is composed of two sands with a sharp vertical material interface. The investigation is broadened from the sole evaporation to combined precipitation-evaporation cycles in order to quantify transport processes resulting from the combined effects of heterogeneous soil structure and dynamic flow conditions. Simulations are performed with a coupled finite volume and random walk particle tracking algorithm (Ippisch et al., 2006; Bechtold et al., 2011b). By comparing scenarios with cyclic boundary conditions and stationary counterparts with the same net flow rate, we found that duration and intensity of precipitation and evaporation periods potentially have an influence on lateral redistribution of solutes and thus leaching rates. Whether or not dynamic boundary conditions lead to significant deviations in the transport behavior depends on the magnitude of the flow rates and hydraulic conductivity curves of the materials. Based on the unsaturated hydraulic conductivity at the intersection point of conductivity curves, we are able to define an estimate of flow rates at which the dynamic of the upper boundary condition significantly alters preferential flow paths through the system. If flow rates are low, with regard to the materials hydraulic conductivity at the intersection point, the influence of dynamic boundary conditions is small. If flow rates are in the range of the unsaturated hydraulic conductivity at intersection, solute is trapped in the fine material during upwards transport, which results in a more pronounced tailing. For flow rates exceeding the intersection conductivity, a redistribution at the soil surface can occur. References: Bechtold, M., S. Haber-Pohlmeier, J. Vanderborght, A. Pohlmeier, T.P.A. Ferré and H. Veerecken. 2011a. Near-surface solute redistribution during evaporation. Geophys. Res. Lett., 38, L17404, doi:10.1029/2011GL048147. Bechtold, M., J. Vanderborght, O. Ippisch and H. Vereecken. 2011b. Efficient random walk particle tracking algorithm for advective dispersive transport in media with discontinuous dispersion coefficients and water contents. Water Resour. Res., 47, W10526, doi: 10.1029/2010WR010267. Ippisch O., H.-J. Vogel and P. Bastian. 2006. Validity limits fort he van Genuchten-Mualem model and implications for parameter estimation and numerical simulation. Adv. Water Resour., 29, 1780-1789, doi: 10.1016/j.advwateres.2005.12.011. Lehmann, P. and D. Or. 2009. Evaporation and capillary coupling across vertical textural contrasts in porous media. Phys. Rev. E, 80, 046318, doi:10.1103/PhysRevE.80.046318.

Enhanced mobility of non aqueous phase liquid (NAPL) during drying of wet sand

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Govindarajan, Dhivakar; Deshpande, Abhijit P.; Raghunathan, Ravikrishna

2018-02-01

Enhanced upward mobility of a non aqueous phase liquid (NAPL) present in wet sand during natural drying, and in the absence of any external pressure gradients, is reported for the first time. This mobility was significantly higher than that expected from capillary rise. Experiments were performed in a glass column with a small layer of NAPL-saturated sand trapped between two layers of water-saturated sand. Drying of the wet sand was induced by flow of air across the top surface of the wet sand. The upward movement of the NAPL, in the direction of water transport, commenced when the drying effect reached the location of the NAPL and continued as long as there was significant water evaporation in the vicinity of NAPL, indicating a clear correlation between the NAPL rise and water evaporation. The magnitude and the rate of NAPL rise was measured at different water evaporation rates, different initial locations of the NAPL, different grain size of the sand and the type of NAPL (on the basis of different NAPL-glass contact angle, viscosity and density). A positive correlation was observed between average rate of NAPL rise and the water evaporation while a negative correlation was obtained between the average NAPL rise rate and the NAPL properties of contact angle, viscosity and density. There was no significant correlation of average NAPL rise rate with variation of sand grain size between 0.1 to 0.5 mm. Based on these observations and on previous studies reported in the literature, two possible mechanisms are hypothesized -a) the effect of the spreading coefficient resulting in the wetting of NAPL on the water films created and b) a moving water film due to evaporation that "drags" the NAPL upwards. The NAPL rise reported in this paper has implications in fate and transport of chemicals in NAPL contaminated porous media such as soils and exposed dredged sediment material, which are subjected to varying water saturation levels due to drying and rewetting.

Disturbance of the inclined inserting-type sand fence to wind-sand flow fields and its sand control characteristics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cheng, Jian-jun; Lei, Jia-qiang; Li, Sheng-yu; Wang, Hai-feng

2016-06-01

The inclined inserting-type sand fence is a novel sand retaining wall adopted along the Lanxin High-Speed Railway II in Xinjiang for controlling and blocking sand movement. To verify the effectiveness of the new fence structure for sand prevention, a wind tunnel test was used for flow field test simulation of the sand fence. The results indicate that the inclined inserting-type sand fence was able to deflect the flow of the sand and was able to easily form an upward slant acceleration zone on the leeward side of the sand fence. As shown by the percentage change in sand collection rates on the windward side and the leeward side of the sand fence, the sand flux per unit area at 4 m height in the slant upward direction increased on the leeward side of the inclined inserting-type sand fence. By comparing the flow fields, this site is an acceleration zone, which also reaffirms the correspondence of wind-sand flow fields with the spatial distribution characteristic of the wind-carried sand motion. The field sand collection data indicates that under the effects of the inclined inserting-type sand fence, the sandy air currents passing in front and behind the sand fence not only changed in quality, but the grain composition and particle size also significantly changed, suggesting that the inclined inserting-type sand fence has a sorting and filtering effect on the sandy air currents that passed through. The fence retained coarse particulates on the windward side and fine particulates within the shade of the wind on the leeward side.

Landfill gas distribution at the base of passive methane oxidation biosystems: Transient state analysis of several configurations.

PubMed

Ahoughalandari, Bahar; Cabral, Alexandre R

2017-11-01

The design process of passive methane oxidation biosystems needs to include design criteria that account for the effect of unsaturated hydraulic behavior on landfill gas migration, in particular, restrictions to landfill gas flow due to the capillary barrier effect, which can greatly affect methane oxidation rates. This paper reports the results of numerical simulations performed to assess the landfill gas flow behavior of several passive methane oxidation biosystems. The concepts of these biosystems were inspired by selected configurations found in the technical literature. We adopted the length of unrestricted gas migration (LUGM) as the main design criterion in this assessment. LUGM is defined as the length along the interface between the methane oxidation and gas distribution layers, where the pores of the methane oxidation layer material can be considered blocked for all practical purposes. High values of LUGM indicate that landfill gas can flow easily across this interface. Low values of LUGM indicate greater chances of having preferential upward flow and, consequently, finding hotspots on the surface. Deficient designs may result in the occurrence of hotspots. One of the designs evaluated included an alternative to a concept recently proposed where the interface between the methane oxidation and gas distribution layers was jagged (in the form of a see-saw). The idea behind this ingenious concept is to prevent blockage of air-filled pores in the upper areas of the jagged segments. The results of the simulations revealed the extent of the capability of the different scenarios to provide unrestricted and conveniently distributed upward landfill gas flow. They also stress the importance of incorporating an appropriate design criterion in the selection of the methane oxidation layer materials and the geometrical form of passive biosystems. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Episodic kinematics in continental rifts modulated by changes in mantle melt fraction.

PubMed

Lamb, Simon; Moore, James D P; Smith, Euan; Stern, Tim

2017-07-05

Oceanic crust is created by the extraction of molten rock from underlying mantle at the seafloor 'spreading centres' found between diverging tectonic plates. Modelling studies have suggested that mantle melting can occur through decompression as the mantle flows upwards beneath spreading centres, but direct observation of this process is difficult beneath the oceans. Continental rifts, however-which are also associated with mantle melt production-are amenable to detailed measurements of their short-term kinematics using geodetic techniques. Here we show that such data can provide evidence for an upwelling mantle flow, as well as information on the dimensions and timescale of mantle melting. For North Island, New Zealand, around ten years of campaign and continuous GPS measurements in the continental rift system known as the Taupo volcanic zone reveal that it is extending at a rate of 6-15 millimetres per year. However, a roughly 70-kilometre-long segment of the rift axis is associated with strong horizontal contraction and rapid subsidence, and is flanked by regions of extension and uplift. These features fit a simple model that involves flexure of an elastic upper crust, which is pulled downwards or pushed upwards along the rift axis by a driving force located at a depth greater than 15 kilometres. We propose that flexure is caused by melt-induced episodic changes in the vertical flow forces that are generated by upwelling mantle beneath the rift axis, triggering a transient lower-crustal flow. A drop in the melt fraction owing to melt extraction raises the mantle flow viscosity and drives subsidence, whereas melt accumulation reduces viscosity and allows uplift-processes that are also likely to occur in oceanic spreading centres.

Modeling of water lighting process and calculation of the reactor-clarifier to improve energy efficiency

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Skolubovich, Yuriy; Skolubovich, Aleksandr; Voitov, Evgeniy; Soppa, Mikhail; Chirkunov, Yuriy

2017-10-01

The article considers the current questions of technological modeling and calculation of the new facility for cleaning natural waters, the clarifier reactor for the optimal operating mode, which was developed in Novosibirsk State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering (SibSTRIN). A calculation technique based on well-known dependences of hydraulics is presented. A calculation example of a structure on experimental data is considered. The maximum possible rate of ascending flow of purified water was determined, based on the 24 hour clarification cycle. The fractional composition of the contact mass was determined with minimal expansion of contact mass layer, which ensured the elimination of stagnant zones. The clarification cycle duration was clarified by the parameters of technological modeling by recalculating maximum possible upward flow rate of clarified water. The thickness of the contact mass layer was determined. Likewise, clarification reactors can be calculated for any other lightening conditions.

Influence of capillary barrier effect on biogas distribution at the base of passive methane oxidation biosystems: Parametric study.

PubMed

Ahoughalandari, Bahar; Cabral, Alexandre R

2017-05-01

The efficiency of methane oxidation in passive methane oxidation biosystems (PMOBs) is influenced by, among other things, the intensity and distribution of the CH 4 loading at the base of the methane oxidation layer (MOL). Both the intensity and distribution are affected by the capillary barrier that results from the superposition of the two materials constituting the PMOB, namely the MOL and the gas distribution layer (GDL). The effect of capillary barriers on the unsaturated flow of water has been well documented in the literature. However, its effect on gas flow through PMOBs is still poorly documented. In this study, sets of numerical simulations were performed to evaluate the effect of unsaturated hydraulic characteristics of the MOL material on the value and distribution of moisture and hence, the ease and uniformity in the distribution of the upward flow of biogas along the GDL-MOL interface. The unsaturated hydraulic parameters of the materials used to construct the experimental field plot at the St-Nicephore landfill (Quebec, Canada) were adopted to build the reference simulation of the parametric study. The behavior of the upward flow of biogas for this particular material was analyzed based on its gas intrinsic permeability function, which was obtained in the laboratory. The parameters that most influenced the distribution and the ease of biogas flow at the base of the MOL were the saturated hydraulic conductivity and pore size distribution of the MOL material, whose effects were intensified as the slope of the interface increased. The effect of initial dry density was also assessed herein. Selection of the MOL material must be made bearing in mind that these three parameters are key in the effort to prevent unwanted restriction in the upward flow of biogas, which may result in the redirection of biogas towards the top of the slope, leading to high CH 4 fluxes (hotspots). In a well-designed PMOB, upward flow of biogas across the GDL-MOL interface is unrestricted and moisture distribution is uniform. This paper tries to show how to obtain this. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Microfluidic rectifier based on poly(dimethylsiloxane) membrane and its application to a micropump

PubMed Central

Wang, Yao-Nan; Tsai, Chien-Hsiung; Fu, Lung-Ming; Lin Liou, Lung-Kai

2013-01-01

A microfluidic rectifier incorporating an obstructed microchannel and a PDMS membrane is proposed. During forward flow, the membrane deflects in the upward direction; thereby allowing the fluid to pass over the obstacle. Conversely, during reverse flow, the membrane seals against the obstacle, thereby closing the channel and preventing flow. It is shown that the proposed device can operate over a wide pressure range by increasing or decreasing the membrane thickness as required. A microfluidic pump is realized by integrating the rectifier with a simple stepper motor mechanism. The experimental results show that the pump can achieve a vertical left height of more than 2 m. Moreover, it is shown that a maximum flow rate of 6.3 ml/min can be obtained given a membrane thickness of 200 μm and a motor velocity of 80 rpm. In other words, the proposed microfluidic rectifier not only provides an effective means of preventing reverse flow but also permits the realization of a highly efficient microfluidic pump. PMID:24404051

Microfluidic rectifier based on poly(dimethylsiloxane) membrane and its application to a micropump.

PubMed

Wang, Yao-Nan; Tsai, Chien-Hsiung; Fu, Lung-Ming; Lin Liou, Lung-Kai

2013-01-01

A microfluidic rectifier incorporating an obstructed microchannel and a PDMS membrane is proposed. During forward flow, the membrane deflects in the upward direction; thereby allowing the fluid to pass over the obstacle. Conversely, during reverse flow, the membrane seals against the obstacle, thereby closing the channel and preventing flow. It is shown that the proposed device can operate over a wide pressure range by increasing or decreasing the membrane thickness as required. A microfluidic pump is realized by integrating the rectifier with a simple stepper motor mechanism. The experimental results show that the pump can achieve a vertical left height of more than 2 m. Moreover, it is shown that a maximum flow rate of 6.3 ml/min can be obtained given a membrane thickness of 200 μm and a motor velocity of 80 rpm. In other words, the proposed microfluidic rectifier not only provides an effective means of preventing reverse flow but also permits the realization of a highly efficient microfluidic pump.

Visualization of a vortex flow in a rotating tank

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kawano, Yosuke

Flow structures of a vortex in a rotating tank were studied employing tracer method. The velocity measurements were made by photographing the motions of small polystyrene particles and analyzing strobo flash light pictures. The vortex flow is confined to a cylindrical region which is composed of a spiral upward flow in the center surrounded by an annular downward flow.

The impact of fluid advection on gas hydrate stability: Investigations at sites of methane seepage offshore Costa Rica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crutchley, G. J.; Klaeschen, D.; Planert, L.; Bialas, J.; Berndt, C.; Papenberg, C.; Hensen, C.; Hornbach, M. J.; Krastel, S.; Brueckmann, W.

2014-09-01

Fluid flow through marine sediments drives a wide range of processes, from gas hydrate formation and dissociation, to seafloor methane seepage including the development of chemosynthetic ecosystems, and ocean acidification. Here, we present new seismic data that reveal the 3D nature of focused fluid flow beneath two mound structures on the seafloor offshore Costa Rica. These mounds have formed as a result of ongoing seepage of methane-rich fluids. We show the spatial impact of advective heat flow on gas hydrate stability due to the channelled ascent of warm fluids towards the seafloor. The base of gas hydrate stability (BGHS) imaged in the seismic data constrains peak heat flow values to ∼60 mW m and ∼70 mW m beneath two separate seep sites known as Mound 11 and Mound 12, respectively. The initiation of pronounced fluid flow towards these structures was likely controlled by fault networks that acted as efficient pathways for warm fluids ascending from depth. Through the gas hydrate stability zone, fluid flow has been focused through vertical conduits that we suggest developed as migrating fluids generated their own secondary permeability by fracturing strata as they forced their way upwards towards the seafloor. We show that Mound 11 and Mound 12 (about 1 km apart on the seafloor) are sustained by independent fluid flow systems through the hydrate system, and that fluid flow rates across the BGHS are probably similar beneath both mounds. 2D seismic data suggest that these two flow systems might merge at approximately 1 km depth, i.e. much deeper than the BGHS. This study provides a new level of detail and understanding of how channelled, anomalously-high fluid flow towards the seafloor influences gas hydrate stability. Thus, gas hydrate systems have good potential for quantifying the upward flow of subduction system fluids to seafloor seep sites, since the fluids have to interact with and leave their mark on the hydrate system before reaching the seafloor.

Upward Flame Spread Over Thin Solids in Partial Gravity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Feier, I. I.; Shih, H. Y.; Sacksteder, K. R.; Tien, J. S.

2001-01-01

The effects of partial-gravity, reduced pressure, and sample width on upward flame spread over a thin cellulose fuel were studied experimentally and the results were compared to a numerical flame spread simulation. Fuel samples 1-cm, 2-cm, and 4-cm wide were burned in air at reduced pressures of 0.2 to 0.4 atmospheres in simulated gravity environments of 0.1-G, 0.16-G (Lunar), and 0.38-G (Martian) onboard the NASA KC-135 aircraft and in normal-gravity tests. Observed steady flame propagation speeds and pyrolysis lengths were approximately proportional to the gravity level. Flames spread more quickly and were longer with the wider samples and the variations with gravity and pressure increased with sample width. A numerical simulation of upward flame spread was developed including three-dimensional Navier-Stokes equations, one-step Arrhenius kinetics for the gas phase flame and for the solid surface decomposition, and a fuel-surface radiative loss. The model provides detailed structure of flame temperatures, the flow field interactions with the flame, and the solid fuel mass disappearance. The simulation agrees with experimental flame spread rates and their dependence on gravity level but predicts a wider flammable region than found by experiment. Some unique three-dimensional flame features are demonstrated in the model results.

Coupled Thermo-Hydro-Chemical (THC) Modeling of Hypogene Karst Evolution in a Prototype Mountain Hydrologic System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chaudhuri, A.; Rajaram, H.; Viswanathan, H. S.; Zyvoloski, G.

2011-12-01

Hypogene karst systems are believed to develop when water flowing upward against the geothermal gradient dissolves limestone as it cools. We present a comprehensive THC model incorporating time-evolving fluid flow, heat transfer, buoyancy effects, multi-component reactive transport and aperture/permeability change to investigate the origin of hypogene karst systems. Our model incorporates the temperature and pressure dependence of the solubility and dissolution kinetics of calcite. It also allows for rigorous representation of temperature-dependent fluid density and its influence on buoyancy forces at various stages of karstification. The model is applied to investigate karstification over geological time scales in a prototype mountain hydrologic system. In this system, a high water table maintained by mountain recharge, drives flow downward through the country rock and upward via a high-permeability fault/fracture. The pressure boundary conditions are maintained constant in time. The fluid flux through the fracture remains nearly constant even though the fracture aperture and permeability increase by dissolution, largely because the permeability of the country rock is not altered significantly due to slower dissolution rates. However, karstification by fracture dissolution is not impeded even though the fluid flux stays nearly constant. Forced and buoyant convection effects arise due to the increased permeability of the evolving fracture system. Since in reality the aperture varies significantly within the fracture plane, the initial fracture aperture is modeled as a heterogeneous random field. In such a heterogeneous aperture field, the water initially flows at a significant rate mainly through preferential flow paths connecting the relatively large aperture zones. Dissolution is more prominent at early time along these flow paths, and the aperture grows faster within these paths. With time, the aperture within small sub-regions of these preferential flow paths grows to a point where the permeability is large enough for the onset of buoyant convection. As a result, a multitude of buoyant convection cells form that take on a two-dimensional (2D) maze-like appearance, which could represent a 2D analog of the three-dimensional (3D) mazework pattern widely thought to be characteristic of hypogene cave systems. Although computational limitations limited us to 2D, we suggest that similar process interactions in a 3D network of fractures and faults could produce a 3D mazework.

The Influence of Upward Groundwater between Joints on the Stability and the Behavior of Dip Slope Failures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weng, C. H.; Lin, M. L.; Hsieh, P. C.

2016-12-01

In recent years, landslides have attracted much attention in the engineering field in Taiwan. As previous studies, landslides are induced by earthquakes, rainfall, and groundwater. That groundwater flows into upper layer through vertical joints, upward groundwater, erodes the slope and reduces its stability. Nevertheless, in the literature, the impact of upward groundwater to the location of sliding surface and the behaviors of dip slope failure has not be investigated. In this study, physical model tests with water flow inclinometers are used to investigate the kinematics of dip slope failures under various conditions and to identify the failure modes of specimens (Fig. 1). Besides, the mechanics of one landslide case owing to upward groundwater is studied by numerical simulation. In the physical tests, the effects of upward groundwater on slope stability are investigated with different angles of inclinometers, different position of joints on specimens and different locations of upward seepage. The test results suggest that the upward water pressure becomes lower when the number of joints increases. As the water pressure increases to 3.8 times the weight of one block of the specimen, the block will slide. Another, when the specimen is covered by one granular content layer (see Fig. 2), the failure surface tends to develop at the granular content layer, and its kinematics is similar to debris slide; when the clay seam is below of the specimen, the translational slide occurs along the bottom of the blocks. Moreover, one dip slope case, Taiwan's National Highway No. 3 landslide event, are studied by numerical simulation. According to the results, some points are concluded: water pressure makes tension cracks on the top of the vertical joints on weathered sandstones; with anchor attenuation, the sandstone moves downslope, which makes the shear strain of the slope toe region increases (see Fig. 3). If friction angle of the slope decreases, the slide surface occurs along the weak surface, and it develops to the toe of the slope.

Application of carbonate cyclostratigraphy and borehole geophysics to delineate porosity and preferential flow in the karst limestone of the Biscayne aquifer, SE Florida

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cunningham, K.J.; Renken, R.A.; Wacker, M.A.; Zygnerski, M.R.; Robinson, E.; Shapiro, A.M.; Wingard, G.L.

2006-01-01

Combined analyses of cores, borehole geophysical logs, and cyclostratigraphy produced a new conceptual hydrogeologic framework for the triple-porosity (matrix, touching-vug, and conduit porosity) karst limestone of the Biscayne aquifer in a 0.65 km2 study area, SE Florida. Vertical lithofacies successions, which have recurrent stacking patterns, fit within high-frequency cycles. We define three ideal high-frequency cycles as: (1) upward-shallowing subtidal cycles, (2) upward-shallowing paralic cycles, and (3) aggradational subtidal cycles. Digital optical borehole images, tracers, and flow meters indicate that there is a predictable vertical pattern of porosity and permeability within the three ideal cycles, because the distribution of porosity and permeability is related to lithofacies. Stratiform zones of high permeability commonly occur just above flooding surfaces in the lower part of upward-shallowing subtidal and paralic cycles, forming preferential groundwater flow zones. Aggradational subtidal cycles are either mostly high-permeability zones or leaky, low-permeability units. In the study area, groundwater flow within stratiform high-permeability zones is through a secondary pore system of touching-vug porosity principally related to molds of burrows and pelecypods and to interburrow vugs. Movement of a dye-tracer pulse observed using a borehole fluid-temperature tool during a conservative tracer test indicates heterogeneous permeability. Advective movement of the tracer appears to be most concentrated within a thin stratiform flow zone contained within the lower part of a high-frequency cycle, indicating a distinctly high relative permeability for this zone. Borehole flow-meter measurements corroborate the relatively high permeability of the flow zone. Identification and mapping of such high-permeability flow zones is crucial to conceptualization of karst groundwater flow within a cyclostratigraphic framework. Many karst aquifers are included in cyclic platform carbonates. Clearly, a cyclostratigraphic approach that translates carbonate aquifer heterogeneity into a consistent framework of correlative units will improve simulation of karst groundwater flow. ?? 2006 Geological Society of America.

On shapes and motion of an elongated bubble in downward liquid pipe flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fershtman, A.; Babin, V.; Barnea, D.; Shemer, L.

2017-11-01

In stagnant liquid, or in a steady upward liquid pipe flow, an elongated (Taylor) bubble has a symmetric shape. The translational velocity of the bubble is determined by buoyancy and the liquid velocity profile ahead of it. In downward flow, however, the symmetry of the bubble nose can be lost. Taylor bubble motion in downward flow is important in numerous applications such as chemical plants and cooling systems that often contain countercurrent gas-liquid flow. In the present study, the relation between the Taylor bubble shape and its translational velocity is investigated experimentally in a vertical pipe for various downward liquid flow rates. At higher downward velocities, the bubble may be forced by the background flow to propagate downward against buoyancy. In order to include those cases as well in our experimental analysis, the bubbles were initially injected into stagnant liquid, whereas the downward flow was initiated at a later stage. This experimental procedure allowed us to identify three distinct modes of translational velocities for a given downward background liquid flow; each velocity corresponds to a different bubble shape. Hydrodynamic mechanisms that govern the transition between the modes observed in the present study are discussed.

Photoreactor with self-contained photocatalyst recapture

DOEpatents

Gering, Kevin L.

2004-12-07

A system for the continuous use and recapture of a catalyst in liquid, comprising: a generally vertical reactor having a reaction zone with generally downwardly flowing liquid, and a catalyst recovery chamber adjacent the reaction zone containing a catalyst consisting of buoyant particles. The liquid in the reaction zone flows downward at a rate which exceeds the speed of upward buoyant migration of catalyst particles in the liquid, whereby catalyst particles introduced into the liquid in the reaction zone are drawn downward with the liquid. A slow flow velocity flotation chamber disposed below the reaction zone is configured to recapture the catalyst particles and allow them to float back into the catalyst recovery chamber for recycling into the reaction zone, rather than being swept downstream. A novel 3-dimensionally adjustable solar reflector directs light into the reaction zone to induce desired photocatalytic reactions within the liquid in the reaction zone.

An experimental study of the nonlinear dynamic phenomenon known as wing rock

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Arena, A. S., Jr.; Nelson, R. C.; Schiff, L. B.

1990-01-01

An experimental investigation into the physical phenomena associated with limit cycle wing rock on slender delta wings has been conducted. The model used was a slender flat plate delta wing with 80-deg leading edge sweep. The investigation concentrated on three main areas: motion characteristics obtained from time history plots, static and dynamic flow visualization of vortex position, and static and dynamic flow visualization of vortex breakdown. The flow visualization studies are correlated with model motion to determine the relationship between vortex position and vortex breakdown with the dynamic rolling moments. Dynamic roll moment coefficient curves reveal rate-dependent hysteresis, which drives the motion. Vortex position correlated with time and model motion show a time lag in the normal position of the upward moving wing vortex. This time lag may be the mechanism responsible for the hysteresis. Vortex breakdown is shown to have a damping effect on the motion.

Instrumental record of debris flow initiation during natural rainfall: Implications for modeling slope stability

Treesearch

David R. Montgomery; Kevin M. Schmidt; William E. Dietrich; Jim McKean

2009-01-01

The middle of a hillslope hollow in the Oregon Coast Range failed and mobilized as a debris flow during heavy rainfall in November 1996. Automated pressure transducers recorded high spatial variability of pore water pressure within the area that mobilized as a debris flow, which initiated where local upward flow from bedrock developed into overlying colluvium....

A three-dimensional autonomous nonlinear dynamical system modelling equatorial ocean flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ionescu-Kruse, Delia

2018-04-01

We investigate a nonlinear three-dimensional model for equatorial flows, finding exact solutions that capture the most relevant geophysical features: depth-dependent currents, poleward or equatorial surface drift and a vertical mixture of upward and downward motions.

Upward and downward facing high mass flux spray cooling with additives: A novel technique to enhance the heat removal rate at high initial surface temperature

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pati, A. R.; Kumar, A.; Mohapatra, S. S.

2018-06-01

The objective of the current work is to enhance the spray cooling by changing the orientation of the nozzle with different additives (acetone, methanol, ethanol, benzene, n-hexane, tween 20 and salt) in water. The experiments are carried out by upward, downward and both upward and downward facing sprays. The optimization result depicts that the spray produced by upward facing spray gives higher heat flux than the downward facing spray and also cooling by both the upward and downward facing spray simultaneously produces better result than the individual. Further experiments with both upward and downward facing spray by using different coolants reveal that in case of cooling by ethanol (500 ppm) + water mixture, the maximum enhancement of surface heat flux ( 2.57 MW/m2) and cooling rate (204 °C/s) is observed. However, the minimum surface heat flux is achieved in case of methanol (100 ppm) + water due to higher contact angle (710) among all the considered coolants.

Solar Dynamo Driven by Periodic Flow Oscillation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mayr, Hans G.; Hartle, Richard E.; Einaudi, Franco (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

We have proposed that the periodicity of the solar magnetic cycle is determined by wave mean flow interactions analogous to those driving the Quasi Biennial Oscillation in the Earth's atmosphere. Upward propagating gravity waves would produce oscillating flows near the top of the radiation zone that in turn would drive a kinematic dynamo to generate the 22-year solar magnetic cycle. The dynamo we propose is built on a given time independent magnetic field B, which allows us to estimate the time dependent, oscillating components of the magnetic field, (Delta)B. The toroidal magnetic field (Delta)B(sub phi) is directly driven by zonal flow and is relatively large in the source region, (Delta)(sub phi)/B(sub Theta) much greater than 1. Consistent with observations, this field peaks at low latitudes and has opposite polarities in both hemispheres. The oscillating poloidal magnetic field component, (Delta)B(sub Theta), is driven by the meridional circulation, which is difficult to assess without a numerical model that properly accounts for the solar atmosphere dynamics. Scale-analysis suggests that (Delta)B(sub Theta) is small compared to B(sub Theta) in the dynamo region. Relative to B(sub Theta), however, the oscillating magnetic field perturbations are expected to be transported more rapidly upwards in the convection zone to the solar surface. As a result, (Delta)B(sub Theta) (and (Delta)B(sub phi)) should grow relative to B(sub Theta), so that the magnetic fields reverse at the surface as observed. Since the meridional and zonai flow oscillations are out of phase, the poloidal magnetic field peaks during times when the toroidal field reverses direction, which is observed. With the proposed wave driven flow oscillation, the magnitude of the oscillating poloidal magnetic field increases with the mean rotation rate of the fluid. This is consistent with the Bode-Blackett empirical scaling law, which reveals that in massive astrophysical bodies the magnetic moment tends to increase with the angular momentum of the fluid.

Physical and hydrologic properties of outcrop samples from a nonwelded to welded tuff transition, Yucca Mountain, Nevada

USGS Publications Warehouse

Rautman, C.A.; Flint, L.E.; Flint, A.L.; Istok, J.D.

1995-01-01

Quantitative material-property data are needed to describe lateral and vertical spatial variability of physical and hydrologic properties and to model ground-water flow and radionuclide transport at the potential Yucca Mountain nuclear-waste repository site in Nevada. As part of ongoing site characterization studies of Yucca Mountain directed toward this understanding of spatial variability, laboratory measurements of porosity, bull* and particle density, saturated hydraulic conductivity, and sorptivity have been obtained for a set of outcrop samples that form a systematic,two dimensional grid that covers a large exposure of the basal Tiva Canyon Tuff of the Paintbrush Group of Miocene age at Yucca Mountain. The samples form a detailed vertical grid roughly parallel to the transport direction of the parent ash flows, and they exhibit material-property varia- tions in an interval of major lithologic change overlying a potential nuclear-waste repository at Yucca Mountain. The observed changes in hydrologic properties were systematic and consistent with the changes expected for the nonwelded to welded transition at the base of a major ash-flow sequence. Porosity, saturated hydraulic conductivity, and sorptivity decreased upward from the base of the Tiva Canyon Tuff, indicating the progressive compaction of ash- rich volcanic debris and the onset of welding with increased overburden pressure from the accumulating ash-flow sheet. The rate of decrease in the values of these material properties varied with vertical position within the transition interval. In contrast, bulk-density values increased upward, a change that also is consistent with progressive compaction and the onset of welding. Particle-density values remained almost constant throughout the transition interval, probably indicating compositional (chemical) homogeneity.

A Method for Assessing Material Flammability for Micro-Gravity Environments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Steinhaus, T.; Olenick, S. M.; Sifuentes, A.; Long, R. T.; Torero, J. L.

1999-01-01

On a spacecraft, one of the greatest fears during a mission is the outbreak of a fire. Since spacecraft are enclosed spaces and depend highly on technical electronics, a small fire could cause a large amount of damage. NASA uses upward flame spread as a "worst case scenario" evaluation for materials and the Heat and Visible Smoke Release Rates Test to assess the damage potential of a fire. Details of these tests and the protocols followed are provided by the "Flammability, Odor, Offgassing, and Compatibility Requirements and Test Procedures for Materials in Environments that Support Combustion" document. As pointed by Ohlemiller and Villa, the upward flame spread test does not address the effect of external radiation on ignition and spread. External radiation, as that coming from an overheated electrical component, is a plausible fire scenario in a space facility and could result in a reversal of the flammability rankings derived from the upward flame spread test. The "Upward Flame Propagation Test" has been the subject of strong criticism in the last few years. In many cases, theoretical exercises and experimental results have demonstrated the possibility of a reversal in the material flammability rankings from normal to micro-gravity. Furthermore, the need to incorporate information on the effects of external radiation and opposed flame spread when ranking materials based on their potential to burn in micro-gravity has been emphasized. Experiments conducted in a 2.2 second drop tower with an ethane burner in an air cross flow have emphasized that burning at the trailing edge is deterred in micro-gravity due to the decreased oxygen transport. For very low air flow velocities (U<0.005 m/s) the flame envelopes the burner and a slight increase in velocity results in extinction of the trailing edge (U>0.01 m/s). Only for U>0.l m/s extinction is observed at the leading edge (blow-off). Three dimensional numerical calculations performed for thin cellulose centrally ignited with an axisymmetric source have shown that under the presence of a forced flow slower than 0.035 m/s flames spreads only opposing the flow. Extinction is observed at the trailing edge with no concurrent propagation. Experiments conducted by the same authors at the JAMIC 10 second drop tower verified these calculations. Reducing the oxygen supply to the flame also results in a decrease of the Damk6hler number which might lead to extinction. Greyson et al. and Ferkul conducted experiments in micro-gravity (5 second drop tower) with thin paper and observed that at very low flow velocities concurrent flame spread will stop propagating and the flame will reduce in size and extinguish. They noted that quenching differs significantly from blow-off in that the upstream leading edge will remain anchored to the burn out edge.

Nutrient and Suspended-Sediment Trends in the Missouri River Basin, 1993-2003

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sprague, Lori A.; Clark, Melanie L.; Rus, David L.; Zelt, Ronald B.; Flynn, Jennifer L.; Davis, Jerri V.

2007-01-01

Trends in streamflow and concentration of total nitrogen, nitrite plus nitrate, ammonia, total phosphorus, orthophosphorus, and suspended sediment were determined for the period from 1993 to 2003 at selected stream sites in the Missouri River Basin. Flow-adjusted trends in concentration (the trends that would have occurred in the absence of natural changes in streamflow) and non-flow-adjusted trends in concentration (the overall trends resulting from natural and human factors) were determined. In the analysis of flow-adjusted trends, the removal of streamflow as a variable affecting concentration allowed trends caused by other factors such as implementation of best management practices to be identified. In the analysis of non-flow-adjusted trends, the inclusion of any and all factors affecting concentration allowed trends affecting aquatic ecosystems and the status of streams relative to water-quality standards to be identified. Relations between the flow-adjusted and non-flow-adjusted trends and changes in streamflow, nutrient sources, ground-water inputs, and implementation of management practices also were examined to determine the major factors affecting the trends. From 1993 to 2003, widespread downward trends in streamflow indicated that drought conditions from about 2000 to 2003 led to decreasing streamflow throughout much of the Missouri River Basin. Flow-adjusted trends in nitrite plus nitrate and ammonia concentrations were split nearly equally between nonsignificant and downward; at about one-half of the sites, management practices likely were contributing to measurable decreases in concentrations of nitrite plus nitrate and ammonia. Management practices had less of an effect on concentrations of total nitrogen; downward flow-adjusted trends in total nitrogen concentrations occurred at only 2 of 19 sites. The pattern of non-flow-adjusted trends in nitrite plus nitrate concentrations was similar to the pattern of flow-adjusted trends; non-flow-adjusted trends were split nearly equally between nonsignificant and downward. A substantial source of nitrite plus nitrate to these streams likely was ground water; because of the time required for ground water to travel to streams, there may have been a lag time between the implementation of some pollution-control strategies and improvement in stream quality, contributing to the nonsignificant trends in nitrite plus nitrate. There were more sites with downward non-flow-adjusted trends than flow-adjusted trends in both ammonia and total nitrogen concentrations, possibly a result of decreased surface runoff from nonpoint sources associated with the downward trends in streamflow. No strong relations between any of the nitrogen trends and changes in nutrient sources or landscape characteristics were identified. Although there were very few upward trends in nitrogen from 1993 to 2003, there were upward flow-adjusted trends in total phosphorus concentrations at nearly one-half of the sites. At these sites, not only were pollution-control strategies not contributing to measurable decreases in total phosphorus concentrations, there was likely an increase in phosphorus loading on the land surface. There were fewer upward non-flow-adjusted than flow-adjusted trends in total phosphorus concentrations; at the majority of sites, overall total phosphorus concentrations did not change significantly during this period. The preponderance of upward flow-adjusted trends and nonsignificant non-flow-adjusted trends indicates that in some areas of the Missouri River Basin, overall concentrations of total phosphorus would have been higher without the decrease in streamflow and the associated decrease in surface runoff during the study period. During the study period, phosphorus loads from fertilizer generally increased at over one-half of the sites in the basin. Upward flow-adjusted trends were related to increasing fertilizer use in the upstream drainage area, particularly in the 10 percent

Education Dept. to End Controversial Study of Upward Bound

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Field, Kelly

2008-01-01

Yielding to pressure from Congress and grant recipients, the U.S. Education Department has agreed to abandon a controversial evaluation of the Upward Bound (UB) college-preparation program. The study, which began last year, was designed to measure whether Upward Bound would have a bigger impact on college-going rates if it were refocused on…

In-line particle measurement in a recovery boiler using high-speed infrared imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Siikanen, Sami; Miikkulainen, Pasi; Kaarre, Marko; Juuti, Mikko

2012-06-01

Black liquor is the fuel of Kraft recovery boilers. It is sprayed into the furnace of a recovery boiler through splashplate nozzles. The operation of a recovery boiler is largely influenced by the particle size and particle size distribution of black liquor. When entrained by upwards-flowing flue gas flow, small droplet particles may form carry-over and cause the fouling of heat transfer surfaces. Large droplet particles hit the char bed and the walls of the furnace without being dried. In this study, particles of black liquor sprays were imaged using a high-speed infrared camera. Measurements were done in a functional recovery boiler in a pulp mill. Objective was to find a suitable wavelength range and settings such as integration time, frame rate and averaging for the camera.

Flame spread along thermally thick horizontal rods

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Higuera, F. J.

2002-06-01

An analysis is carried out of the spread of a flame along a horizontal solid fuel rod, for which a weak aiding natural convection flow is established in the underside of the rod by the action of the axial gradient of the pressure variation that gravity generates in the warm gas surrounding the flame. The spread rate is determined in the limit of infinitely fast kinetics, taking into account the effect of radiative losses from the solid surface. The effect of a small inclination of the rod is discussed, pointing out a continuous transition between upward and downward flame spread. Flame spread along flat-bottomed solid cylinders, for which the gradient of the hydrostatically generated pressure drives the flow both along and across the direction of flame propagation, is also analysed.

Theoretical analysis of multiphase flow during oil-well drilling by a conservative model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nicolas-Lopez, Ruben

2005-11-01

In order to decrease cost and improve drilling operations is necessary a better understood of the flow mechanisms. Therefore, it was carried out a multiphase conservative model that includes three mass equations and a momentum equation. Also, the measured geothermal gradient is utilized by state equations for estimating physical properties of the phases flowing. The mathematical model is solved by numerical conservative schemes. It is used to analyze the interaction among solid-liquid-gas phases. The circulating system consists as follow, the circulating fluid is pumped downward into the drilling pipe until the bottom of the open hole then it flows through the drill bit, and at this point formation cuttings are incorporated to the circulating fluid and carried upward to the surface. The mixture returns up to the surface by an annular flow area. The real operational conditions are fed to conservative model and the results are matched up to field measurements in several oil wells. Mainly, flow rates, drilling rate, well and tool geometries are data to estimate the profiles of pressure, mixture density, equivalent circulating density, gas fraction and solid carrying capacity. Even though the problem is very complex, the model describes, properly, the hydrodynamics of drilling techniques applied at oil fields. *Authors want to thank to Instituto Mexicano del Petroleo and Petroleos Mexicanos for supporting this research.

Magnetic moment of solar plasma and the Kelvin force: -The driving force of plasma up-flow -

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shibasaki, Kiyoto

2017-04-01

Thermal plasma in the solar atmosphere is magnetized (diamagnetic). The magnetic moment does not disappear by collisions because complete gyration is not a necessary condition to have magnetic moment. Magnetized fluid is subjected to Kelvin force in non-uniform magnetic field. Generally, magnetic field strength decreases upwards in the solar atmosphere, hence the Kelvin force is directed upwards along the field. This force is not included in the fluid treatment of MHD. By adding the Kelvin force to the MHD equation of motion, we can expect temperature dependent plasma flows along the field which are reported by many observations. The temperature dependence of the flow speed is explained by temperature dependence of magnetic moment. From the observed parameters, we can infer physical parameters in the solar atmosphere such as scale length of the magnetic field strength and the friction force acting on the flowing plasma. In case of closed magnetic field lines, loop-top concentration of hot plasma is expected which is frequently observed.

Numerical simulation of spatter formation during fiber laser welding of 5083 aluminum alloy at full penetration condition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Dongsheng; Hua, Xueming; Huang, Lijin; Zhao, Jiang

2018-03-01

The droplet escape condition in laser welding is established in this paper. A three-dimensional numerical model is developed to study the weld pool convection and spatter formation at full penetration during the fiber laser welding of 5083 aluminum alloy. It is found that when laser power is 9 kW, the bottom of the keyhole is dynamically opened and closed. When the bottom of the keyhole is closed, the molten metal at the bottom of the back keyhole wall flows upwards along the fusion line. When the bottom of the keyhole is opened, few spatters can be seen around the keyhole at the top surface, two flow patterns exists in the rear part of the keyhole: a portion of molten metal flows upwards along the fusion line, other portion of molten metal flows to the bottom of the keyhole, which promote the spatter formation at the bottom of the keyhole rear wall.

An investigation on near wall transport characteristics in an adiabatic upward gas-liquid two-phase slug flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zheng, Donghong; Che, Defu

2007-08-01

The near-wall transport characteristics, inclusive of mass transfer coefficient and wall shear stress, which have a great effect on gas-liquid two-phase flow induced internal corrosion of low alloy pipelines in vertical upward oil and gas mixing transport, have been both mechanistically and experimentally investigated in this paper. Based on the analyses on the hydrodynamic characteristics of an upward slug unit, the mass transfer in the near wall can be divided into four zones, Taylor bubble nose zone, falling liquid film zone, Taylor bubble wake zone and the remaining liquid slug zone; the wall shear stress can be divided into two zones, the positive wall shear stress zone associated with the falling liquid film and the negative wall shear stress zone associated with the liquid slug. Based on the conventional mass transfer and wall shear stress characteristics formulas of single phase liquid full-pipe turbulent flow, corrected normalized mass transfer coefficient formula and wall shear stress formula are proposed. The calculated results are in good agreement with the experimental data. The shear stress and the mass transfer coefficient in the near wall zone are increased with the increase of superficial gas velocity and decreased with the increase of superficial liquid velocity. The mass transfer coefficients in the falling liquid film zone and the wake zone of leading Taylor bubble are lager than those in the Taylor bubble nose zone and the remaining liquid slug zone, and the wall shear stress associated falling liquid film is larger than that associated the liquid slug. The mass transfer coefficient is within 10-3 m/s, and the wall shear stress below 103 Pa. It can be concluded that the alternate wall shear stress due to upward gas-liquid slug flow is considered to be the major cause of the corrosion production film fatigue cracking.

How are Inner Hair Cells Stimulated? Evidence for multiple mechanical drives

PubMed Central

Guinan, John J.

2013-01-01

Recent studies indicate that the gap over outer hair cells (OHCs) between the reticular lamina (RL) and the tectorial membrane (TM) varies cyclically during low-frequency sounds. Variation in the RL-TM gap produces radial fluid flow in the gap that can drive inner hair cell (IHC) stereocilia. Analysis of RL-TM gap changes reveals three IHC drives in addition to classic SHEAR. For upward basilar-membrane (BM) motion, IHC stereocilia are deflected in the excitatory direction by SHEAR and OHC-MOTILITY, but in the inhibitory direction by TM-PUSH and CILIA-SLANT. Upward BM motion causes OHC somatic contraction which tilts the RL, compresses the RL-TM gap over IHCs and expands the RL-TM gap over OHCs, thereby producing an outward (away from the IHCs) radial fluid flow which is the OHC-MOTILITY drive. For upward BM motion, the force that moves the TM upward also compresses the RL-TM gap over OHCs causing inward radial flow past IHCs which is the TM-PUSH drive. Motions that produce large tilting of OHC stereocilia squeeze the supra-OHC RL-TM gap and caused inward radial flow past IHCs which is the CILIA-SLANT drive. Combinations of these drives explain: (1) the reversal at high sound levels of auditory nerve (AN) initial peak (ANIP) responses to clicks, and medial olivocochlear (MOC) inhibition of ANIP responses below, but not above, the ANIP reversal, (2) dips and phase reversals in AN responses to tones in cats and chinchillas, (3) hypersensitivity and phase reversals in tuning-curve tails after OHC ablation, and (4) MOC inhibition of tail-frequency AN responses. The OHC-MOTILITY drive provides another mechanism, in addition to BM motion amplification, that uses active processes to enhance the output of the cochlea. The ability of these IHC drives to explain previously anomalous data provides strong, although indirect, evidence that these drives are significant and presents a new view of how the cochlea works at frequencies below 3 kHz. PMID:22959529

Hydraulic fracturing to enhance the remediation of DNAPL in low permeability soils

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

Murdoch, L.; Slack, B.

1996-08-01

Meager rates of fluid flow are a major obstacle to in situ remediation of low permeability soils. This paper describes methods designed to avoid that obstacle by creating fractures and filling them with sand to increase well discharge and change paths of fluid flow in soil. Gently dipping fractures 10 m in maximum dimension and 1 to 2 cm thick can be created in some contaminated soils at depths of a few in or greater. Hydraulic fractures can also be used to create electrically conductive layers or to deliver granules of chemically or biologically active compounds that will degrade contaminantsmore » in place. Benefits of applying hydraulic fractures to DNAPL recovery include rates of fluid recovery, enhancing upward gradients to improve hydrodynamic stabilization, forming flat-lying reactive curtains to intersect compounds moving downward, or improving the performance of electrokinetics intended to recover compounds dissolved in water. 30 refs., 7 figs., 1 tab.« less

Four large-scale field-aligned current systmes in the dayside high-latitude region

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ohtani, S.; Potemra, T. A.; Newell, P.T.; Zanetti, L. J.; Iijima, T.; Watanabe, M.; Blomberg, L. G.; Elphinstone, R. D.; Murphree, J. S.; Yamauchi, M.

1995-01-01

A system of four current sheets of large-scale field-aligned currents (FACs) was discovered in the data set of simultaneous Viking and Defense Meteorological Satellire Program-F7 (DMSP-F7) crossing of the dayside high-latitude region. This paper reports four examples of this system that were observed in the prenoon sector. The flow polarities of FACs are upward, downward, upward, and downward, from equatorward to poleward. The lowest-latitude upward current is flowing mostly in the central plasma sheet (CPS) precipitation region, often overlapping with the boundary plasma sheet (BPS) at its poleward edge, andis interpreted as a region 2 current. The pair of downward and upward FACs in the middle of te structure are collocated with structured electron precipitation. The precipitation of high-energy (greater than 1 keV) electrons is more intense in the lower-latitude downward current sheet. The highest-latitude downward flowing current sheet is located in a weak, low-energy particle precipitation region, suggesting that this current is flowing on open field lines. Simulaneous observations in the postnoon local time sector reveal the standard three-sheet structure of FACs, sometimes described as region 2, region 1, and mantle (referred to the midday region O) currents. A high correlation was found between the occurrence of the four FAC sheet structure and negative interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) B(sub Y). We discuss the FAC structurein terms of three types of convection cells: the merging, viscous, andlobe cells. During strongly negative IMF B(sub Y), two convection reversals exist in the prenoon sector; one is inside the viscous cell, and the other is between the viscous cell and the lobe cell. This structure of convection flow is supported by the Viking electric field and auroral UV image data. Based on the convection pattern, the four FAC sheet structure is interpreted as the latitude overlap of midday and morning FAC systems. We suggest that the for-current sheet structure is common in a certain prenoon localtime sector during strongly negative IMF B(sub Y).

Chloride Transport in Heterogeneous Formation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mukherjee, A.; Holt, R. M.

2017-12-01

The chloride mass balance (CMB) is a commonly-used method for estimating groundwater recharge. Observations of the vertical distribution of pore-water chloride are related to the groundwater infiltration rates (i.e. recharge rates). In CMB method, the chloride distribution is attributed mainly to the assumption of one dimensional piston flow. In many places, however, the vertical distribution of chloride will be influenced by heterogeneity, leading to horizontal movement of infiltrating waters. The impact of heterogeneity will be particularly important when recharge is locally focused. When recharge is focused in an area, horizontal movement of chloride-bearing waters, coupled with upward movement driven by evapotranspiration, may lead to chloride bulges that could be misinterpreted if the CMB method is used to estimate recharge. We numerically simulate chloride transport and evaluate the validity of the CMB method in highly heterogeneous systems. This simulation is conducted for the unsaturated zone of Ogallala, Antlers, and Gatuna (OAG) formations in Andrews County, Texas. A two dimensional finite element model will show the movement of chloride through heterogeneous systems. We expect to see chloride bulges not only close to the surface but also at depths characterized by horizontal or upward movement. A comparative study of focused recharge estimates in this study with available recharge data will be presented.

Flow-pattern identification and nonlinear dynamics of gas-liquid two-phase flow in complex networks.

PubMed

Gao, Zhongke; Jin, Ningde

2009-06-01

The identification of flow pattern is a basic and important issue in multiphase systems. Because of the complexity of phase interaction in gas-liquid two-phase flow, it is difficult to discern its flow pattern objectively. In this paper, we make a systematic study on the vertical upward gas-liquid two-phase flow using complex network. Three unique network construction methods are proposed to build three types of networks, i.e., flow pattern complex network (FPCN), fluid dynamic complex network (FDCN), and fluid structure complex network (FSCN). Through detecting the community structure of FPCN by the community-detection algorithm based on K -mean clustering, useful and interesting results are found which can be used for identifying five vertical upward gas-liquid two-phase flow patterns. To investigate the dynamic characteristics of gas-liquid two-phase flow, we construct 50 FDCNs under different flow conditions, and find that the power-law exponent and the network information entropy, which are sensitive to the flow pattern transition, can both characterize the nonlinear dynamics of gas-liquid two-phase flow. Furthermore, we construct FSCN and demonstrate how network statistic can be used to reveal the fluid structure of gas-liquid two-phase flow. In this paper, from a different perspective, we not only introduce complex network theory to the study of gas-liquid two-phase flow but also indicate that complex network may be a powerful tool for exploring nonlinear time series in practice.

Population dynamics: Social security, markets, and families.

PubMed

Mason, Andrew W; Lee, Ronald D; Lee, Sang-Hyop

2010-07-01

Upward intergenerational flows - from the working ages to old age - are increasing substantially in the advanced industrialized countries and are much larger than in developing countries. Population aging is the most important factor leading to this change. Thus, in the absence of a major demographic shift, e.g., a return to high fertility, an increase in upward flows is inevitable. Even so, three other important factors will influence the magnitudes of upward flows. First, labor income varies at older ages due to differences in average age at retirement, productivity, unemployment, and hours worked. Second, the age patterns of consumption at older ages vary primarily due to differences in spending on health. Third, spending on human capital, i.e., spending child health and education, varies. Human capital spending competes with spending on the elderly, but it also increases the productivity of subsequent generations of workers and the resources available to support consumption in old age. All contemporary societies rely on a variety of institutions and economic mechanisms to shift economic resources from the working ages to the dependent ages - the young and the old. Three institutions dominate intergenerational flows: governments which implement social security, education, and other public transfer programs; markets which are key to the accumulation of assets, e.g., funded pensions and housing; and families which provide economic support to children in all societies and to the elderly in many. The objectives of this paper are, first, to describe how population aging and other changes influence the direction and magnitude of intergenerational flows; and, second, to contrast the institutional approaches to intergenerational flows as they are practiced around the world. The paper relies extensively on National Transfer Accounts, a system for measuring economic flows across age in a manner consistent with the UN System of National Accounts. These accounts are currently being constructed by research teams located in 33 countries on six continents representing wide variations in the level of development, demographics, and policies regarding intergenerational transfers.

Stratigraphic Stacking of Deepmarine Channel Levee Turbidites: Scales of Cyclicity and their Origin. Examples from the Laingsburg Fm. (Karoo, South Africa) and the Rosario Fm. (Baja, Mexico)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kane, I. A.; Hodgson, D.

2009-12-01

Thinning upwards of the turbidite beds that form deepmarine channel levees is a common motif reported from modern and recent levees on the seafloor, from subsurface examples, and from outcropping ancient examples. Because levees are thought to be built by deposition from turbidity currents superelevated over their channel form, the volume and style of overbank deposition are controlled primarily by the relationship between levee height (i.e., thalweg to crest) and flow thickness, determining the amount of overspill. Thus stratigraphic variability of turbidite thickness is explained by some change in either or both of those factors, which may arise autocyclicly or allocyclicly. Variation in the ratio of intra-channel and extra-channel deposition can be an autocyclic stratigraphic response, e.g., in bypass dominated systems, thalweg aggradation may be retarded with respect to levee aggradation, hence as levee relief increases, flows become more confined and, given a relatively narrow range of flow sizes, the volume of overbank flow and deposit thickness decrease with stratigraphic height. However, the same stratigraphic response of the levee may occur due to allocyclic flow magnitude variation, i.e., through decreasing flow magnitude. In both the autocyclic and allocyclic case the stratigraphic response of the levee may be one of thinning upwards, even if the overall system response may be one of progradation (autocyclic bypassing case) or retrogradation (allocyclic decreasing flow magnitude case), with entirely different connotations for sequence stratigraphic interpretation. Here we report examples of different scales of bed thickness cyclicity (both thickening and thinning upward cycles superimposed by smaller scale cycles) within levees of the Rosario Formation, Baja California, Mexico, and from the Laingsburg Formation, Karoo, South Africa, and, together with published examples, discuss criteria for the recognition, and drivers of, autocyclic and allocyclic bed thickness trends.

Population dynamics: Social security, markets, and families

PubMed Central

Lee, Ronald D.; Lee, Sang-Hyop

2015-01-01

Upward intergenerational flows – from the working ages to old age – are increasing substantially in the advanced industrialized countries and are much larger than in developing countries. Population aging is the most important factor leading to this change. Thus, in the absence of a major demographic shift, e.g., a return to high fertility, an increase in upward flows is inevitable. Even so, three other important factors will influence the magnitudes of upward flows. First, labor income varies at older ages due to differences in average age at retirement, productivity, unemployment, and hours worked. Second, the age patterns of consumption at older ages vary primarily due to differences in spending on health. Third, spending on human capital, i.e., spending child health and education, varies. Human capital spending competes with spending on the elderly, but it also increases the productivity of subsequent generations of workers and the resources available to support consumption in old age. All contemporary societies rely on a variety of institutions and economic mechanisms to shift economic resources from the working ages to the dependent ages – the young and the old. Three institutions dominate intergenerational flows: governments which implement social security, education, and other public transfer programs; markets which are key to the accumulation of assets, e.g., funded pensions and housing; and families which provide economic support to children in all societies and to the elderly in many. The objectives of this paper are, first, to describe how population aging and other changes influence the direction and magnitude of intergenerational flows; and, second, to contrast the institutional approaches to intergenerational flows as they are practiced around the world. The paper relies extensively on National Transfer Accounts, a system for measuring economic flows across age in a manner consistent with the UN System of National Accounts. These accounts are currently being constructed by research teams located in 33 countries on six continents representing wide variations in the level of development, demographics, and policies regarding intergenerational transfers. PMID:26316657

Project Hotspot: Linear accumulation rates of late Cenozoic basalt at Kimama, Idaho, and implications for crustal strain and subsidence rates of the central Snake River Plain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rodgers, D. W.; Potter, K. E.; Shervais, J. W.; Champion, D. E.; Duncan, R. A.

2013-12-01

Project Hotspot's Kimama drill hole on the Snake River Plain, Idaho recovered a 1912 m thick section of basalt core that ranges in age from ~700 ka to at least 6.14 Ma, based on five 40Ar/39Ar analyses and twenty paleomagnetic age assignments. Fifty-four flow groups comprising 510 individual flows were defined, yielding an average recurrence interval of ~11,400 years between flows. Age-depth analysis indicate that, over thicknesses >150 m and age spans >500 k.y., accumulation rates were constant at 30 m/100 k.y. The existence and persistence of this linear accumulation rate for greater than 5 m.y. documents an external tectonic control on eruption dynamics. One conceptual model relates accumulation rates to horizontal crustal strain, such that far-field extension rate controls the periodicity of dikes that feed basalt flows. In this model, each of the 54 flow groups would have a deep-seated, relatively wide (1-10m) dike that branches upward into a network of narrow (10-100 cm) dikes feeding individual lava flows. Assuming an east-west lateral lava flow extent of up to 50 km, the Kimama data record a steady-state crustal strain rate of 10-9 to 10-10 y-1. This rate is comparable to modern, decadal strain rates measured with GPS in the adjacent Basin & Range province, but exceeds decadal strain rates of zero measured in the eastern Snake River Plain. Linear accumulation rates also provide insight into basalt subsidence history. In this model, the middle-upper crust subsides due to the added weight of lava flows, the added weight of mid-crustal sills/dikes, and thermal contraction in the wake of the Yellowstone hot spot. Isostatic compensation would occur in the (nearly) molten lower crust. Assuming constant surface elevation and a basalt density of 2.6 g/cm3, the lava flow weight would account for 87% of the burial through time, yielding a steady-state "tectonic" subsidence rate of 4 m/100 k.y. attributed to the driving forces of mid-crustal injection and/or thermal contraction. An even faster tectonic rate is likely, given the evidence for decreasing surface elevation through time. We propose that tectonic subsidence was a necessary condition for maintaining basalt eruption over such a long duration -- it would inhibit the growth of a topographic plateau and maintain an appropriate level of neutral buoyancy for the periodically ascending mantle-derived magma

Reutilisation-extended material flows and circular economy in China.

PubMed

Li, Nan; Zhang, Tianzhu; Liang, Sai

2013-06-01

Circular economy (CE), with its basic principle of Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle, has been determined as the key strategy for the national development plan by the Chinese government. Given the economy-wide material flow analysis (EW-MFA) that leaves the inner flow of resource reutilisation unidentified, the reutilisation-extended EW-MFA is first introduced to evaluate and analyse the material input, solid waste generation, and reutilisation simultaneously. The total amount of comprehensive reutilisation (CR) is divided into three sub-flows, namely, reutilisation, recycle, and reuse. Thus, this model is used to investigate the resource CR in China from 2000 to 2010. China's total amount of CR and its sub-flows, as well as the CR rate, remain to have a general upward trend. By the year 2010, about 60% of the overall solid waste generation had already been reutilised, and more than 20% of the total resource requirement was reutilised resource. Moreover, the growth patterns of the CR sub flows show different characteristics. Interpretations of resource reutilisation-related laws and regulations of CE and the corresponding policy suggestions are proposed based on the results. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

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

Fred J. Molz, III

To better understand longer-term vadose zone transport in southeastern soils, field lysimeter experiments were conducted at the Savannah River Site (SRS) near Aiken, SC, in the 1980s. Each of the three lysimeters analyzed herein contained a filter paper spiked with different Pu solutions, and they were left exposed to natural environmental conditions (including the growth of annual weed grasses) for 11 years. The resulting Pu activity measurements from each lysimeter core showed anomalous activity distributions below the source, with significant migration of Pu above the source. Such results are not explainable by adsorption phenomena alone. A transient variably saturated flowmore » model with root water uptake was developed and coupled to a soil reactive transport model. Somewhat surprisingly, the fully transient analysis showed results nearly identical to those of a much simpler steady flow analysis performed previously. However, all phenomena studied were unable to produce the upward Pu transport observed in the data. This result suggests another transport mechanism such as Pu uptake by roots and upward transport due to transpiration. Thus, the variably saturated flow and reactive transport model was extended to include uptake and transport of Pu within the root xylem, along with computational methodology and results. In the extended model, flow velocity in the soil was driven by precipitation input along with transpiration and drainage. Water uptake by the roots determined the flow velocity in the root xylem, and this along with uptake of Pu in the transpiration stream drove advection and dispersion of the two Pu species in the xylem. During wet periods with high potential evapotranspiration, maximum flow velocities through the xylem would approached 600 cm/hr, orders of magnitude larger that flow velocities in the soil. Values for parameters and the correct conceptual viewpoint for Pu transport in plant xylem was uncertain. This motivated further experiments devoted to Pu uptake by corn roots and xylem transport. Plants were started in wet paper wrapped around each corn seed. When the tap roots were sufficiently long, the seedlings were transplanted to a soil container with the tap root extending out the container bottom. The soil container was then placed over a nutrient solution container, and the solution served as an additional medium for root growth. To conduct an uptake study, a radioactive substance, such as Pu complexed with the bacterial siderophore DFOB, was added to the nutrient solution. After a suitable elapsed time, the corn plant was sacrificed, cut into 10 cm lengths, and the activity distribution measured. Experimental results clarified the basic nature of Pu uptake and transport in corn plants, and resulting simulations suggested that each growing season Pu in the SRS lysimeters would move into the plant shoots and be deposited on the soil surface during the Fall dieback. Subsequent isotope ratio analyses showed that this did happen. OVERALL RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS - (1) Pu transport downward from the source is controlled by advection, dispersion and adsorption, along with surface-mediated REDOX reactions. (2) Hysteresis, extreme root distribution functions, air-content dependent oxidation rate constants, and large evaporation rates from the soil surface were not able to explain the observed upward migration of Pu. (3) Small amounts of Pu uptake by plant roots and translocation in the transpiration stream creates a realistic mechanism for upward Pu migration (4) Realistic xylem cross-sectional areas imply high flow velocities under hot, wet conditions. Such flow velocities produce the correct shape for the observed activity distributions in the top 20 cm of the lysimeter soil. (5) Simulations imply that Pu should have moved into the above-ground grass tissue each year during the duration of the experiments, resulting in an activity residual accumulating on the soil surface. An isotope ratio analysis showed that the observed surface Pu residue was from the buried sources, not atmospheric fallout. (6) The plant experiments indicate a Pu-DFOB velocity in the corn xylem of at least 174 cm/hr, much higher than ionic Pu in soil. Thus, Pu complexation with chelating agents is probably what led to the observed enhanced uptake and mobility in grasses. (7) Plant experiments show that the uptake of Fe-DFOB, Pu-DFOB and the resulting distributions are very similar. This supports the hypothesis that plant and bacterial iron-seeking chemistry mistakes Pu for Fe.« less

A mechanistic model of heat transfer for gas-liquid flow in vertical wellbore annuli.

PubMed

Yin, Bang-Tang; Li, Xiang-Fang; Liu, Gang

2018-01-01

The most prominent aspect of multiphase flow is the variation in the physical distribution of the phases in the flow conduit known as the flow pattern. Several different flow patterns can exist under different flow conditions which have significant effects on liquid holdup, pressure gradient and heat transfer. Gas-liquid two-phase flow in an annulus can be found in a variety of practical situations. In high rate oil and gas production, it may be beneficial to flow fluids vertically through the annulus configuration between well tubing and casing. The flow patterns in annuli are different from pipe flow. There are both casing and tubing liquid films in slug flow and annular flow in the annulus. Multiphase heat transfer depends on the hydrodynamic behavior of the flow. There are very limited research results that can be found in the open literature for multiphase heat transfer in wellbore annuli. A mechanistic model of multiphase heat transfer is developed for different flow patterns of upward gas-liquid flow in vertical annuli. The required local flow parameters are predicted by use of the hydraulic model of steady-state multiphase flow in wellbore annuli recently developed by Yin et al. The modified heat-transfer model for single gas or liquid flow is verified by comparison with Manabe's experimental results. For different flow patterns, it is compared with modified unified Zhang et al. model based on representative diameters.

Numerical Simulation of Borehole Flow in Deep Monitor Wells, Pearl Harbor Aquifer, Oahu, Hawaii

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rotzoll, K.; Oki, D. S.; El-Kadi, A. I.

2010-12-01

Salinity profiles collected from uncased deep monitor wells are commonly used to monitor freshwater-lens thickness in coastal aquifers. However, vertical flow in these wells can cause the measured salinity to differ from salinity in the adjacent aquifer. Substantial borehole flow has been observed in uncased wells in the Pearl Harbor aquifer, Oahu, Hawaii. A numerical modeling approach, incorporating aquifer hydraulic characteristics and recharge rates representative of the Pearl Harbor aquifer, was used to evaluate the effects of borehole flow on measured salinity profiles from deep monitor wells. Borehole flow caused by vertical hydraulic gradients associated with the natural regional groundwater-flow system and local groundwater withdrawals was simulated. Model results were used to estimate differences between vertical salinity profiles in deep monitor wells and the adjacent aquifer in areas of downward, horizontal, and upward flow within the regional flow system—for cases with and without nearby pumped wells. Aquifer heterogeneity, represented in the model as layers of contrasting permeability, was incorporated in model scenarios. Results from this study provide insight into the magnitude of the differences between vertical salinity profiles from deep monitor wells and the salinity distributions in the aquifers. These insights are relevant and are critically needed for management and predictive modeling purposes.

Convective Sedimentation of Colloidal Particles in a Bowl.

PubMed

Stiles; Kagan

1999-08-01

A physical model, which regards a colloidal dispersion as a single fluid continuum, is used to investigate cellular convection accompanying gravitational sedimentation in a hemispherical bowl with a thin cylindrical shaft along its vertical axis of symmetry. We have adapted the stream-function-vorticity form of the Navier-Stokes equations to describe momentum conservation in axially symmetric containers. These hydrodynamic equations have been coupled to the mass balance equation for binary hydrodynamic diffusion in the presence of a vertical gravitational field. Using finite-element software we have solved the equations governing coupled diffusive and hydrodynamic flow. A rapidly intensifying horizontal toroidal vortex develops around the axis of the bowl. This vortex is characterized by downward barycentric flow along the curved surface of the bowl and upward flow in the vicinity of its axis. We find that after a short period of time this large-scale cellular convection associated with the curved boundary of the bowl greatly enhances the rate of sedimentation. Copyright 1999 Academic Press.

Observations of Upward Propagating Waves in the Transition Region and Corona above Sunspots

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hou, Zhenyong; Huang, Zhenghua; Xia, Lidong; Li, Bo; Fu, Hui

2018-03-01

We present observations of persistent oscillations of some bright features in the upper-chromosphere/transition region above sunspots taken by IRIS SJ 1400 Å and upward propagating quasi-periodic disturbances along coronal loops rooted in the same region taken by the AIA 171 Å passband. The oscillations of the features are cyclic oscillatory motions without any obvious damping. The amplitudes of the spatial displacements of the oscillations are about 1″. The apparent velocities of the oscillations are comparable to the sound speed in the chromosphere, but the upward motions are slightly larger than that of the downward. The intensity variations can take 24%–53% of the background, suggesting nonlinearity of the oscillations. The FFT power spectra of the oscillations show a dominant peak at a period of about 3 minutes, which is consistent with the omnipresent 3 minute oscillations in sunspots. The amplitudes of the intensity variations of the upward propagating coronal disturbances are 10%–15% of the background. The coronal disturbances have a period of about 3 minutes, and propagate upward along the coronal loops with apparent velocities in a range of 30 ∼ 80 km s‑1. We propose a scenario in which the observed transition region oscillations are powered continuously by upward propagating shocks, and the upward propagating coronal disturbances can be the recurrent plasma flows driven by shocks or responses of degenerated shocks that become slow magnetic-acoustic waves after heating the plasma in the coronal loops at their transition-region bases.

Long-term changes in river system hydrology in Texas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Yiwen; Wurbs, Ralph

2018-06-01

Climate change and human actives are recognized as a topical issue that change long-term water budget, flow-frequency, and storage-frequency characteristics of different river systems. Texas is characterized by extreme hydrologic variability both spatially and temporally. Meanwhile, population and economic growth and accompanying water resources development projects have greatly impacted river flows throughout Texas. The relative effects of climate change, water resources development, water use, and other factors on long-term changes in river flow, reservoir storage, evaporation, water use, and other components of the water budgets of different river basins of Texas have been simulated in this research using the monthly version of the Water Rights Analysis Package (WRAP) modelling system with input databases sets from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) and Texas Water Development Board (TWDB). The results show that long-term changes are minimal from analysis monthly precipitation depths. Evaporation rates vary greatly seasonally and for much of the state appear to have a gradually upward trend. River/reservoir system water budgets and river flow characteristics have changed significantly during the past 75 years in response to water resources development and use.

Toward the modeling of mucus draining from the human lung: role of the geometry of the airway tree

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mauroy, Benjamin; Fausser, Christian; Pelca, Dominique; Merckx, Jacques; Flaud, Patrice

2011-10-01

Mucociliary clearance and cough are the two main natural mucus draining methods in the bronchial tree. If they are affected by a pathology, they can become insufficient or even ineffective, then therapeutic draining of mucus plays a critical role to keep mucus levels in the lungs acceptable. The manipulations of physical therapists are known to be very efficient clinically but they are mostly empirical since the biophysical mechanisms involved in these manipulations have never been studied. We develop in this work a model of mucus clearance in idealized rigid human bronchial trees and focus our study on the interaction between (1) tree geometry, (2) mucus physical properties and (3) amplitude of flow rate in the tree. The mucus is considered as a Bingham fluid (gel-like) which is moved upward in the tree thanks to its viscous interaction with air flow. Our studies point out the important roles played both by the geometry and by the physical properties of mucus (yield stress and viscosity). More particularly, the yield stress has to be overcome to make mucus flow. Air flow rate and yield stress determine the maximal possible mucus thickness in each branch of the tree at equilibrium. This forms a specific distribution of mucus in the tree whose characteristics are strongly related to the multi-scaled structure of the tree. The behavior of any mucus distribution is then dependent on this distribution. Finally, our results indicate that increasing air flow rates ought to be more efficient to drain mucus out of the bronchial tree while minimizing patient discomfort.

Does urban sprawl hold down upward mobility?

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ewing, R.; Hamidi, Shima; Grace, James B.; Wei, Y.

2016-01-01

Contrary to the general perception, the United States has a much more class-bound society than other wealthy countries. The chance of upward mobility for Americans is just half that of the citizens of the Denmark and many other European countries. In addition to other influences, the built environment may contribute to the low rate of upward mobility in the U.S. This study tests the relationship between urban sprawl and upward mobility for commuting zones in the U.S. We examine potential pathways through which sprawl may have an effect on mobility. We use structural equation modeling to account for both direct and indirect effects of sprawl on upward mobility. We find that upward mobility is significantly higher in compact areas than sprawling areas. The direct effect, which we attribute to better job accessibility in more compact commuting zones, is stronger than the indirect effects. Of the indirect effects, only one, through the mediating variable income segregation, is significant.

Sea Butterfly Swimming: Time-resolved Tomographic PIV measurements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Murphy, David; Zheng, Lingxiao; Mittal, Rajat; Webster, Donald; Yen, Jeannette

2011-11-01

The planktonic sea butterfly Limacina helicina swims by flapping its flexible, wing-like parapodia. The appendage stroke kinematics of this shell-bearing pteropod are three-dimensional and likely contain elements of both drag-based (rowing) and lift-based (flapping) propulsion. Unsteady lift-generating mechanisms such as clap-and-fling may also be present. Upstroke and downstroke motions both propel the animal upward and roll it forwards and backwards, resulting in a sawtooth trajectory. We present time-resolved, tomographic PIV measurements of flow generated by free-swimming pteropods (Limacina helicina) moving upwards with average swimming speeds of 5 - 17 mm/s. The pteropods beat their appendages with a stroke frequency of 4 - 5 Hz. With a size range of 1 - 2 mm, the animals filmed in this study operate in a viscous environment with a Reynolds number of 5 to 20. The volumetric flow measurements provide insight into the three dimensional nature of the flow and into the relative importance of drag- and lift-based propulsion at this low Reynolds number. Preliminary results from Navier-Stokes simulations of the flow associated with the swimming of this organism will also be presented.

Ring waves as a mass transport mechanism in air-driven core-annular flows.

PubMed

Camassa, Roberto; Forest, M Gregory; Lee, Long; Ogrosky, H Reed; Olander, Jeffrey

2012-12-01

Air-driven core-annular fluid flows occur in many situations, from lung airways to engineering applications. Here we study, experimentally and theoretically, flows where a viscous liquid film lining the inside of a tube is forced upwards against gravity by turbulent airflow up the center of the tube. We present results on the thickness and mean speed of the film and properties of the interfacial waves that develop from an instability of the air-liquid interface. We derive a long-wave asymptotic model and compare properties of its solutions with those of the experiments. Traveling wave solutions of this long-wave model exhibit evidence of different mass transport regimes: Past a certain threshold, sufficiently large-amplitude waves begin to trap cores of fluid which propagate upward at wave speeds. This theoretical result is then confirmed by a second set of experiments that show evidence of ring waves of annular fluid propagating over the underlying creeping flow. By tuning the parameters of the experiments, the strength of this phenomenon can be adjusted in a way that is predicted qualitatively by the model.

CAPITAL FLOWS, CONSUMPTION BOOMS AND ASSET BUBBLES: A BEHAVIOURAL ALTERNATIVE TO THE SAVINGS GLUT HYPOTHESIS

PubMed Central

Laibson, David; Mollerstrom, Johanna

2012-01-01

Bernanke (2005) hypothesized that a “global savings glut” was causing large trade imbalances. However, we show that the global savings rates did not show a robust upward trend during the relevant period. Moreover, if there had been a global savings glut there should have been a large investment boom in the countries that imported capital. Instead, those countries experienced consumption booms. National asset bubbles explain the international imbalances. The bubbles raised consumption, resulting in large trade deficits. In a sample of 18 OECD countries plus China, movements in home prices alone explain half of the variation in trade deficits. PMID:23750045

Two-phase flow characteristics of liquid nitrogen in vertically upward 0.5 and 1.0 mm micro-tubes: Visualization studies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, P.; Fu, X.

2009-10-01

Application of liquid nitrogen to cooling is widely employed in many fields, such as cooling of the high temperature superconducting devices, cryosurgery and so on, in which liquid nitrogen is generally forced to flow inside very small passages to maintain good thermal performance and stability. In order to have a full understanding of the flow and heat transfer characteristics of liquid nitrogen in micro-tube, high-speed digital photography was employed to acquire the typical two-phase flow patterns of liquid nitrogen in vertically upward micro-tubes of 0.531 and 1.042 mm inner diameters. It was found from the experimental results that the flow patterns were mainly bubbly flow, slug flow, churn flow and annular flow. And the confined bubble flow, mist flow, bubble condensation and flow oscillation were also observed. These flow patterns were characterized in different types of flow regime maps. The surface tension force and the size of the diameter were revealed to be the major factors affecting the flow pattern transitions. It was found that the transition boundaries of the slug/churn flow and churn/annular flow of the present experiment shifted to lower superficial vapor velocity; while the transition boundary of the bubbly/slug flow shifted to higher superficial vapor velocity compared to the results of the room-temperature fluids in the tubes with the similar hydraulic diameters. The corresponding transition boundaries moved to lower superficial velocity when reducing the inner diameter of the micro-tubes. Time-averaged void fraction and heat transfer characteristics for individual flow patterns were presented and special attention was paid to the effect of the diameter on the variation of void fraction.

The Characteristics of Heat Flow in the Ryukyu Trench-Arc-Basin System: Constraints on Thermal Structure and Evolution of the Okinawa Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, L.

2017-12-01

Heat flow is an important constraint to study the thermal structure and evolution in modeling experiments. Based on the surface heat flow map and recent geochemistry results, a 2D transient heat conduction-advection model is used to investigate how the effects of sedimentation rate, magmatic intrusion, extension duration and rate on the surface heat flow distribution of the Okinawa Trough. Surface heat flow distribution map is interpolated based on a data set with 664 measurements in the Ryukyu trench-arc-basin system. The map shows an obviously correspondence between heat flows and tectonic zones, characterized by belts in E-W and blocks in S-N. The heat flow is extremely high and variable in the central Okinawa Trough (COT). The lowest heat values are distributed in the northwest of West Philippine Sea near the Ryukyu Trench. This phenomenon is likely related to increasing hydrothermal circulation of cold water into the upper portion of the incoming plate because of bend-faulting and little sediment coverage. Simulation results show that (1) High sedimentation rate can reduce heat flow by 30-35 % in the southern OT. (2) The sedimentation-corrected heat flow indicates that mantle upwelling occurred in the whole OT. The isotherm of 1000°C reaches to the depth of 19 km in the axil of the COT after 10 Ma. (3) The heat flow can be improved drastically by dyke intrusion along normal faults, but subsequent decreases rapidly about 15% after 0.1 Ma, which indicates the age of dyke intrusion under the Iheya area is younger than 0.5 Ma, and the depth is shallower than 2 km. Moreover, the magma fluid upward migrated along the magma conduits is required for the extremely high heat flow and its Darcy velocity can reach to 9 cm/yr. Based on the distribution of heat flow, we suggest that there is a different evolution model between the central- northern OT and the southern. The time of rifting in the NOT-COT began at 10 Ma with the mean rate of 0.4 cm/yr, while the rifting of the SOT started from 6 Ma with higher rate of 0.6 cm/yr.

Effects of ground-water chemistry and flow on quality of drainflow in the western San Joaquin Valley, California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Fio, John L.; Leighton, David A.

1994-01-01

Chemical and geohydrologic data were used to assess the effects of regional ground-water flow on the quality of on-farm drainflows in a part of the western San Joaquin Valley, California. Shallow ground water beneath farm fields has been enriched in stable isotopes and salts by partial evaporation from the shallow water table and is being displaced by irrigation, drainage, and regional ground-water flow. Ground-water flow is primarily downward in the study area but can flow upward in some down- slope areas. Transitional areas exist between the downward and upward flow zones, where ground water can move substantial horizontal distances (0.3 to 3.6 kilometers) and can require 10 to 90 years to reach the downslope drainage systems. Simulation of ground-water flow to drainage systems indicates that regional ground water contributes to about 11 percent of annual drainflow. Selenium concentrations in ground water and drainwater are affected by geologic source materials, partial evaporation from a shallow water table, drainage-system, and regional ground-water flow. Temporal variability in drainflow quality is affected in part by the distribution of chemical constituents in ground water and the flow paths to the drainage systems. The mass flux of selenium in drainflows, or load, generally is proportional to flow, and reductions in drainflow quantity should reduce selenium loads over the short-term. Uncertain changes in the distribution of ground-water quality make future changes in drainflow quality difficult to quantify.

Development of a nonlocal convective mixing scheme with varying upward mixing rates for use in air quality and chemical transport models.

PubMed

Mihailović, Dragutin T; Alapaty, Kiran; Sakradzija, Mirjana

2008-06-01

Asymmetrical convective non-local scheme (CON) with varying upward mixing rates is developed for simulation of vertical turbulent mixing in the convective boundary layer in air quality and chemical transport models. The upward mixing rate form the surface layer is parameterized using the sensible heat flux and the friction and convective velocities. Upward mixing rates varying with height are scaled with an amount of turbulent kinetic energy in layer, while the downward mixing rates are derived from mass conservation. This scheme provides a less rapid mass transport out of surface layer into other layers than other asymmetrical convective mixing schemes. In this paper, we studied the performance of a nonlocal convective mixing scheme with varying upward mixing in the atmospheric boundary layer and its impact on the concentration of pollutants calculated with chemical and air-quality models. This scheme was additionally compared versus a local eddy-diffusivity scheme (KSC). Simulated concentrations of NO(2) and the nitrate wet deposition by the CON scheme are closer to the observations when compared to those obtained from using the KSC scheme. Concentrations calculated with the CON scheme are in general higher and closer to the observations than those obtained by the KSC scheme (of the order of 15-20%). Nitrate wet deposition calculated with the CON scheme are in general higher and closer to the observations than those obtained by the KSC scheme. To examine the performance of the scheme, simulated and measured concentrations of a pollutant (NO(2)) and nitrate wet deposition was compared for the year 2002. The comparison was made for the whole domain used in simulations performed by the chemical European Monitoring and Evaluation Programme Unified model (version UNI-ACID, rv2.0) where schemes were incorporated.

Benefit of pulsation in soft corals

PubMed Central

Kremien, Maya; Shavit, Uri; Mass, Tali; Genin, Amatzia

2013-01-01

Soft corals of the family Xeniidae exhibit a unique, rhythmic pulsation of their tentacles (Movie S1), first noted by Lamarck nearly 200 y ago. However, the adaptive benefit of this perpetual, energetically costly motion is poorly understood. Using in situ underwater particle image velocimetry, we found that the pulsation motions thrust water upward and enhance mixing across the coral–water boundary layer. The induced upward motion effectively prevents refiltration of water by neighboring polyps, while the intensification of mixing, together with the upward flow, greatly enhances the coral’s photosynthesis. A series of controlled laboratory experiments with the common xeniid coral Heteroxenia fuscescens showed that the net photosynthesis rate during pulsation was up to an order of magnitude higher than during the coral’s resting, nonpulsating state. This enhancement diminished when the concentration of oxygen in the ambient water was artificially raised, indicating that the enhancement of photosynthesis was due to a greater efflux of oxygen from the coral tissues. By lowering the internal oxygen concentration, pulsation alleviates the problem of reduced affinity of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase oxygenase (RuBisCO) to CO2 under conditions of high oxygen concentrations. The photosynthesis–respiration ratio of the pulsating H. fuscescens was markedly higher than the ratios reported for nonpulsating soft and stony corals. Although pulsation is commonly used for locomotion and filtration in marine mobile animals, its occurrence in sessile (bottom-attached) species is limited to members of the ancient phylum Cnidaria, where it is used to accelerate water and enhance physiological processes. PMID:23610420

Benefit of pulsation in soft corals.

PubMed

Kremien, Maya; Shavit, Uri; Mass, Tali; Genin, Amatzia

2013-05-28

Soft corals of the family Xeniidae exhibit a unique, rhythmic pulsation of their tentacles (Movie S1), first noted by Lamarck nearly 200 y ago. However, the adaptive benefit of this perpetual, energetically costly motion is poorly understood. Using in situ underwater particle image velocimetry, we found that the pulsation motions thrust water upward and enhance mixing across the coral-water boundary layer. The induced upward motion effectively prevents refiltration of water by neighboring polyps, while the intensification of mixing, together with the upward flow, greatly enhances the coral's photosynthesis. A series of controlled laboratory experiments with the common xeniid coral Heteroxenia fuscescens showed that the net photosynthesis rate during pulsation was up to an order of magnitude higher than during the coral's resting, nonpulsating state. This enhancement diminished when the concentration of oxygen in the ambient water was artificially raised, indicating that the enhancement of photosynthesis was due to a greater efflux of oxygen from the coral tissues. By lowering the internal oxygen concentration, pulsation alleviates the problem of reduced affinity of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase oxygenase (RuBisCO) to CO2 under conditions of high oxygen concentrations. The photosynthesis-respiration ratio of the pulsating H. fuscescens was markedly higher than the ratios reported for nonpulsating soft and stony corals. Although pulsation is commonly used for locomotion and filtration in marine mobile animals, its occurrence in sessile (bottom-attached) species is limited to members of the ancient phylum Cnidaria, where it is used to accelerate water and enhance physiological processes.

New insights into the origin of ladder dikes: Implications for punctuated growth and crystal accumulation in the Cathedral Peak granodiorite

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wiebe, R. A.; Jellinek, A. M.; Hodge, K. F.

2017-04-01

Ladder dikes are steep tabular bodies, typically a meter or less thick, composed of moderately dipping, concave upward, alternating dark (i.e. schlieren) and light bands oriented roughly perpendicular to the ladder dike margins. These structures occur widely but sparsely in granitic rocks and are found prominently in the Cathedral Peak granodiorite (CPG) of the Tuolumne Intrusive suite. Previous studies have interpreted that ladder dikes form as a result of processes including the downward flow of crystal mush in cracks within strong crystal mush or by upward flow in steep tubes that migrate within a strong crystal mush. Our new observations indicate that ladder dikes formed by downward flow of crystal mush in troughs or valleys, in a manner potentially comparable to trough bands in mafic layered intrusions. Extensions of the schlieren outward and upward away from the ladder dike margins into the host granite demonstrate that the host granite was deposited as mounds on both sides at the same time as the ladder dikes. Ladder dikes, therefore, record lateral flows of crystal mush on a magma chamber floor. Vertical exposures suggest these flows are on the order of ten meters thick. Some steep exposures on granite domes indicate multiple ladder dikes (and flows) over a stratigraphic height of 80-100 m. Later (stratigraphically higher) flows commonly deform and erode the top of an earlier flow, and granitic material rich in K-feldspar megacrysts has locally engulfed large blocks of ladder dikes, demonstrating that the megacrysts were also transported in flows. Flows in the CPG are directed away from the center of the pluton toward the western and eastern margins and apparently spread along a strong crystal mush floor and into a rheologically complex CPG magma. Whereas established dynamical models for spreading (single phase) gravity currents with simple and complex rheologies explain the elongate geometry, spacing and orientation of the tabular bodies, the origin and character of the downward flows required to explain the trough band schlieren structures is challenging. However, an intermittent and progressive deposition of trough bands, consistent with field observations, is potentially explained if the two-phase (crystals and melt) dynamics governing the response of the CPG magma to a new injection are considered.

Liquid uranium alloy-helium fission reactor

DOEpatents

Minkov, V.

1984-06-13

This invention describes a nuclear fission reactor which has a core vessel and at least one tandem heat exchanger vessel coupled therewith across upper and lower passages to define a closed flow loop. Nuclear fuel such as a uranium alloy in its liquid phase fills these vessels and flow passages. Solid control elements in the reactor core vessel are adapted to be adjusted relative to one another to control fission reaction of the liquid fuel therein. Moderator elements in the other vessel and flow passages preclude fission reaction therein. An inert gas such as helium is bubbled upwardly through the heat exchanger vessel operable to move the liquid fuel upwardly therein and unidirectionally around the closed loop and downwardly through the core vessel. This helium gas is further directed to heat conversion means outside of the reactor vessels to utilize the heat from the fission reaction to generate useful output. The nuclear fuel operates in the 1200 to 1800/sup 0/C range, and even higher to 2500/sup 0/C.

Continuous flow electrophoresis: The effect of sample concentration on throughput and resolution in an upward flowing system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jandebeur, T. S.

1980-01-01

The effect of sample concentration on throughput and resolution in a modified continuous particle electrophoresis (CPE) system with flow in an upward direction is investigated. Maximum resolution is achieved at concentrations ranging from 2 x 10 to the 8th power cells/ml to 8 x 10 to the 8th power cells/ml. The widest peak separation is at 2 x 10 to the 8th power cells/ml; however, the sharpest peaks and least overlap between cell populations is at 8 x 10 to the 8th power cells/ml. Apparently as a result of improved electrophoresis cell performance due to coasting the chamber with bovine serum albumin, changing the electrode membranes and rinse, and lowering buffer temperatures, sedimentation effects attending to higher concentrations are diminished. Throughput as measured by recovery of fixed cells is diminished at the concentrations judged most likely to yield satisfactory resolution. The tradeoff appears to be improved recovery/throughput at the expense of resolution.

DNB heat flux on inner side of a vertical pipe in forced flow of liquid hydrogen and liquid nitrogen

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shirai, Yasuyuki; Tatsumoto, Hideki; Shiotsu, Masahiro; Hata, Koichi; Kobayashi, Hiroaki; Naruo, Yoshihiro; Inatani, Yoshifumi

2018-06-01

Heat transfer from inner side of a heated vertical pipe to liquid hydrogen flowing upward was measured at the pressures of 0.4, 0.7 and 1.1 MPa for wide ranges of flow rate and liquid temperature. Nine test heaters with different inner diameters of 3, 4, 6 and 9 mm and the lengths of 50, 100, 150, 200, 250 and 300 mm were used. The DNB (departure from nucleate boiling) heat fluxes in forced flow of liquid hydrogen were measured for various subcoolings and flow velocities at pressures of 0.4, 0.7 and 1.1 MPa. Effect of L/d (ratio of heater length to diameter) was clarified for the range of L / d ⩽ 50 . A new correlation of DNB heat flux was presented based on a simple model and the experimental data. Similar experiments were performed for liquid nitrogen at pressures of 0.5 MPa and 1.0 MPa by using the same experimental system and some of the test heaters. It was confirmed that the new correlation can describe not only the hydrogen data, but also the data of liquid nitrogen.

Self-actuated nuclear reactor shutdown system using induction pump to facilitate sensing of core coolant temperature

DOEpatents

Sievers, Robert K.; Cooper, Martin H.; Tupper, Robert B.

1987-01-01

A self-actuated shutdown system incorporated into a reactivity control assembly in a nuclear reactor includes pumping means for creating an auxiliary downward flow of a portion of the heated coolant exiting from the fuel assemblies disposed adjacent to the control assembly. The shutdown system includes a hollow tubular member which extends through the outlet of the control assembly top nozzle so as to define an outer annular flow channel through the top nozzle outlet separate from an inner flow channel for primary coolant flow through the control assembly. Also, a latching mechanism is disposed in an inner duct of the control assembly and is operable for holding absorber bundles in a raised position in the control assembly and for releasing them to drop them into the core of the reactor for shutdown purposes. The latching mechanism has an inner flow passage extending between and in flow communication with the absorber bundles and the inner flow channel of the top nozzle for accommodating primary coolant flow upwardly through the control assembly. Also, an outer flow passage separate from the inner flow passage extends through the latching mechanism between and in flow communication with the inner duct and the outer flow channel of the top nozzle for accommodating inflow of a portion of the heated coolant from the adjacent fuel assemblies. The latching mechanism contains a magnetic material sensitive to temperature and operable to cause mating or latching together of the components of the latching mechanism when the temperature sensed is below a known temperature and unmating or unlatching thereof when the temperature sensed is above a given temperature. The temperature sensitive magnetic material is positioned in communication with the heated coolant flow through the outer flow passage for directly sensing the temperature thereof. Finally, the pumping means includes a jet induction pump nozzle and diffuser disposed adjacent the bottom nozzle of the control assembly and in flow communication with the inlet thereof. The pump nozzle is operable to create an upward driving flow of primary coolant through the pump diffuser and then to the absorber bundles. The upward driving flow of primary coolant, in turn, creates a suction head within the outer flow channel of the top nozzle and thereby an auxiliary downward flow of the heated coolant portion exiting from the upper end of the adjacent fuel assemblies through the outer flow channel to the pump nozzle via the outer flow passage of the latching mechanism and an annular space between the outer and inner spaced ducts of the control assembly housing. The temperature of the heated coolant exiting from the adjacent fuel assemblies can thereby be sensed directly by the temperature sensitive magnetic material in the latching mechanism.

Impact of slope inclination on salt accumulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nachshon, Uri

2017-04-01

Field measurements indicated on high variability in salt accumulation along natural and cultivated slopes, even for relatively homogeneous soil conditions. It was hypothesised that slope inclination has an impact on the location of salt accumulation along the slope. A set of laboratory experiments and numerical models were used to explore the impact of slope inclination on salt accumulation. It was shown, experimentally, that for conditions of saline water source at the lower boundary of the slope - salt accumulates in low concentrations and homogeneously along the entire slope, for moderate slopes. However, as inclination increases high salt concentrations were observed at the upper parts of the slope, leaving the lower parts of the slope relatively free of salt. The traditional flow and transport models did not predict the experimental observations as they indicated also for the moderate slopes on salt accumulation in the elevated parts of the slope, away of the saline water source. Consequently - a conceptual model was raised to explain the laboratory observations. It was suggested that the interactions between slope angle, evaporation rates, hydraulic conductivity of the medium and distribution of wetness along the slope affect the saline water flow path through the medium. This lead to preferential flow path close to the soil-atmosphere interface for the steep slopes, which leads to constant wash of the salts from the evaporation front upward towards the slope upper parts, whereas for the moderate slopes, flow path is below the soil-atmosphere interface, therefore salt that accumulates at the evaporation front is not being transported upward. Understanding of salt dynamics along slopes is important for agricultural and natural environments, as well as for civil engineering purposes. Better understanding of the salt transport processes along slopes will improve our ability to minimize and to cope with soil salinization processes. The laboratory experiments and the new conceptual model fit the field observations and may explain the high variability of salt accumulation along slopes as observed in the field.

Implications of observed and simulated ambient flow in monitoring wells.

PubMed

Elci, B A; Molz, F J; Waldrop, W R

2001-01-01

A recent paper by Hutchins and Acree (2000) has called attention to ground water sampling bias due to ambient (natural gradient-induced) flows in monitoring wells. Data collected with borehole flowmeters have shown that such ambient flows are ubiquitous in both confined and unconfined aquifers. Developed herein is a detailed three-dimensional model of flow and transport in the vicinity of a fully penetrating monitoring well. The model was used to simulate a measured ambient flow distribution around a test well in a heterogeneous aquifer at the Savannah River Site (SRS) near Aiken, South Carolina. Simulated ambient flows agreed well with measurements. Natural flow was upward, so water entered the well mainly through high K layers in the lower portion of the aquifer and exited through similar layers in the upper portion. The maximum upward discharge in the well was about 0.28 L/min, which implied an induced exchange of 12 m3/month from the bottom half of the aquifer to the upper half. Tracer transport simulations then illustrated how a contaminant located initially in a lower portion of the aquifer was continuously transported into the upper portion and diluted throughout the entire well by in-flowing water. Even after full purging or micropurging, samples from such a well will yield misleading and ambiguous data concerning solute concentrations, location of a contaminant source, and plume geometry. For all of these reasons, use of long-screened monitoring wells should be phased out, unless an appropriate multilevel sampling device prevents vertical flow.

Heat-transfer distributions on biconics at incidence in hypersonic-hypervelocity He, N2, air, and CO2 flows

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Miller, C. G.; Micol, J. R.; Gnoffo, P. A.; Wilder, S. E.

1983-01-01

Laminar heat transfer rates were measured on spherically blunted, 13 deg/7 deg on axis and bent biconics (fore cone bent 7 deg upward relative to aft cone) at hypersonic hypervelocity flow conditions in the Langley Expansion Tube. Freestream velocities from 4.5 to 6.9 km/sec and Mach numbers from 6 to 9 were generated using helium, nitrogen, air, and carbon dioxide test gases, resulting in normal shock density ratios from 4 to 19. Angle of attack, referenced to the axis of the aft cone, was varied from 0 to 20 deg in 4 deg increments. The effect of nose bend, angle of attack, and real gas phenomena on heating distributions are presented along with comparisons of measurement to prediction from a code which solves the three dimensional parabolized Navier-Stokes equations.

Trends in the quality of water in New Jersey streams, water years 1971–2011

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hickman, R. Edward; Hirsch, Robert M.

2017-02-27

In a study conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and the Delaware River Basin Commission, trend tests were conducted on selected water-quality characteristics measured at stations on streams in New Jersey during selected periods over water years 1971‒2011. Tests were conducted on 3 nutrients (total nitrogen, filtered nitrate plus nitrite, and total phosphorus) at 28 water-quality stations. At 4 of these stations, tests were also conducted on 3 measures of major ions (specific conductance, filtered chloride, and total dissolved solids).Two methods were used to identify trends—Weighted Regressions on Time, Discharge, and Season (WRTDS) models and seasonal rank-sum tests. For this report, the use of WRTDS models included the use of the WRTDS Bootstrap Test (WBT). WRTDS models identified trends in flow-normalized annual concentrations and flow-normalized annual fluxes over water years 1980‒2011 and 2000‒11 for each nutrient, filtered chloride, and total dissolved solids. WRTDS models were developed for each nutrient at the 20 or 21 stations at which streamflow was measured or estimated. Trends in nutrient concentration were reported for these stations; trends in nutrient fluxes were reported only for 15–17 of these stations.The results of WRTDS models for water years 1980‒2011 identified more stations with downward trends in concentrations of either total nitrogen or total phosphorus than upward trends. For total nitrogen, there were downward trends at 9 stations and an upward trend at 1 station. For total phosphorus, there were downward trends at 8 stations and an upward trend at 1 station. For filtered nitrate plus nitrite, there were downward trends at 6 stations and upward trends at 6 stations. The result of the trend test in flux for a selected nutrient at a selected station (downward trend, no trend, or upward trend) usually matched the trend result in concentration.Seasonal rank-sum tests, the second method used, identified step trends in water-quality measured in different decades—1970s, 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s. Tests were conducted on all nutrients at 28 stations and on all measures of major ions at the 4 selected stations. Results of seasonal rank-sum tests between the 1980s and the 2000s identified more stations with downward trends in concentrations of total nitrogen (14) than stations with upward trends (2) and more stations with downward trends in concentrations of total phosphorus (18) than stations with upward trends (1).A combined dataset of trend results for concentrations over water years 1980‒2011 was created from the results of the two tests for the period. Results of WRTDS models were included in this combined dataset, if available. Otherwise, the results of the seasonal rank-sum tests between water-quality characteristics measured in the 1980s and 2000s were included.Trend results over water years 1980‒2011 in the combined dataset show that few of the 28 stations had upward trends in concentrations of either total nitrogen or total phosphorus. There were only 2 stations with upward trends in total nitrogen concentration and 1 station with an upward trend in total phosphorus concentration. Results for filtered nitrate plus nitrite show about the same number of stations with upward trends (9) as stations with downward trends (7). Results for all measures of major ions show upward trends at the four stations tested.

Autonomous Ocean Turbulence Measurements From a Moored Upwardly Rising Profiler Based on a Buoyancy-Driven Mechanism

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

Liu, Xiuyan; Luan, Xin; Daniel Deng, Z.

An autonomous Moored Reciprocating Vertical Profiler (MRVP) has been developed and tested for measuring ocean turbulence. The MRVP is designed to combine the advantages of long-term moored measurements at specified depths with those of short-term ship-supported continuous profiling performed at high vertical resolution. The profiler is programmed to repeat vertical motions autonomously along the mooring cable based on a buoyancy-driven mechanism. A sea trial has been conducted in the South China Sea to evaluate the performance of the profiler. The shear probe data are unreliable when the flow past sensors is not sufficiently greater than an estimate of turbulent velocity.more » For 65% of the dataset, turbulence measurements are of high quality and the magnitude of dissipation rates is up to O(10 -10) W kg -1. To minimize the contamination induced by instrument vibration and improve the estimation of turbulent kinetic energy terms, an advanced cross-spectrum algorithm is implemented to the measured shear data. The corrected spectra agrees well with the empirical Nasmyth spectrum, and dissipation rates had averagely decreased a factor of 2 and 8 times lower than the raw spectra. The autonomous MRVP is proven to be a stable platform, and the novel upward measurement provides a new perspective for measuring long-term time series of turbulence mixing.« less

Basal channels on ice shelves

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sergienko, O. V.

2013-09-01

Recent surveys of floating ice shelves associated with Pine Island Glacier (Antarctica) and Petermann Glacier (Greenland) indicate that there are channels incised upward into their bottoms that may serve as the conduits of meltwater outflow from the sub-ice-shelf cavity. The formation of the channels, their evolution over time, and their impact on ice-shelf flow are investigated using a fully-coupled ice-shelf/sub-ice-shelf ocean model. The model simulations suggest that channels may form spontaneously in response to meltwater plume flow initiated at the grounding line if there are relatively high melt rates and if there is transverse to ice-flow variability in ice-shelf thickness. Typical channels formed in the simulations have a width of about 1-3 km and a vertical relief of about 100-200 m. Melt rates and sea-water transport in the channels are significantly higher than on the smooth flat ice bottom between the channels. The melt channels develop through melting, deformation, and advection with ice-shelf flow. Simulations suggest that both steady state and cyclic state solutions are possible depending on conditions along the lateral ice-shelf boundaries. This peculiar dynamics of the system has strong implications on the interpretation of observations. The richness of channel morphology and evolution seen in this study suggests that further observations and theoretical analysis are imperative for understanding ice-shelf behavior in warm oceanic conditions.

Reverse relationship between drought of mid-latitudes in East Asia and Northwest Pacific tropical cyclone genesis frequency in summer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Choi, Jae-Won; Cha, Yumi; Kim, Jeoung-Yun

2016-12-01

This study found that there is a significant negative correlation between summer drought in Korea, China and Japan and the frequency of tropical cyclone (TC) in the subtropical western North Pacific (SWNP) using effective drought index (EDI). The frequency of TCs that affect Korea is low (high) in a year of summer drought (non-drought). As a case study, in 1994 when there is extremely severe summer drought in Korea, there was high frequency of TCs while in 2003 when there was least severe summer drought, the frequency of TCs is the lowest. Changes in the anomalous secondary circulation, namely anomalous upward (downward) flow in the SWNP and anomalous downward (upward) flow in the mid-latitudes of East Asia, are one of the causes of drought (non-drought).

Dike/Drift Interactions

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

E. Gaffiney

2004-11-23

This report presents and documents the model components and analyses that represent potential processes associated with propagation of a magma-filled crack (dike) migrating upward toward the surface, intersection of the dike with repository drifts, flow of magma in the drifts, and post-magma emplacement effects on repository performance. The processes that describe upward migration of a dike and magma flow down the drift are referred to as the dike intrusion submodel. The post-magma emplacement processes are referred to as the post-intrusion submodel. Collectively, these submodels are referred to as a conceptual model for dike/drift interaction. The model components and analyses ofmore » the dike/drift interaction conceptual model provide the technical basis for assessing the potential impacts of an igneous intrusion on repository performance, including those features, events, and processes (FEPs) related to dike/drift interaction (Section 6.1).« less

Hydrologic processes in deep vadose zones in interdrainage arid environments

USGS Publications Warehouse

Walvoord, Michelle Ann; Scanlon, Bridget R.; Hogan, James F.; Phillips, Fred M.; Scanlon, Bridget R.

2004-01-01

A unifying theory for the hydrology of desert vadose zones is particularly timely considering the rising population and water stresses in arid and semiarid regions. Conventional models cannot reconcile the apparent discrepancy between upward flow indicated by hydraulic gradient data and downward flow suggested by environmental tracer data in deep vadose zone profiles. A conceptual model described here explains both hydraulic and tracer data remarkably well by incorporating the hydrologic role of desert plants that encroached former juniper woodland 10 to 15 thousand years ago in the southwestern United States. Vapor transport also plays an important role in redistributing moisture through deep soils, particularly in coarse-grained sediments. Application of the conceptual model to several interdrainage arid settings reproduces measured matric potentials and chloride accumulation by simulating the transition from downward flow to upward flow just below the root zone initiated by climate and vegetation change. Model results indicate a slow hydraulic drying response in deep vadose zones that enables matric potential profiles to be used to distinguish whether precipitation episodically percolated below the root zone or was completely removed via evapotranspiration during the majority of the Holocene. Recharge declined dramatically during the Holocene in interdrainage basin floor settings of arid and semiarid basins. Current flux estimates across the water table in these environmental settings, are on the order of 0.01 to 0.1 mm yr-1 and may be recharge (downward) or discharge (upward) depending on vadose zone characteristics, such as soil texture, geothermal gradient, and water table depth. In summary, diffuse recharge through the basin floor probably contributes only minimally to the total recharge in arid and semiarid basins.

Glaciation and regional groundwater flow in the Fennoscandian shield

USGS Publications Warehouse

Provost, A.M.; Voss, C.I.; Neuzil, C.E.

2012-01-01

Regional-scale groundwater flow modeling of the Fennoscandian shield suggests that groundwater flow can be strongly affected by future climate change and glaciation. We considered variable-density groundwater flow in a 1500-km-long and approximately 10-km-deep cross-section through southern Sweden. Groundwater flow and shield brine transport in the cross-sectional model were analyzed under projected surface conditions for the next 140 ka. Simulations suggest that blockage of recharge and discharge by low-permeability permafrost or cold-based ice causes sinking of brine and consequent freshening of near-surface water in areas of natural discharge. Although recharge of basal meltwater is limited by the requirement that water pressure at the base of the ice sheet not exceed the pressure exerted by the weight of the ice, warm-based ice with basal melting creates a potential for groundwater recharge rates much larger than those of present, ice-free conditions. In the simulations, regional-scale redistribution of recharged water by subsurface flow is minor over the duration of a glacial advance (approximately 10 ka). During glacial retreat, significant upward flow of groundwater may occur below the ice sheet owing to pressure release. If the mechanical loading efficiency of the rocks is high, both subsurface penetration of meltwater during glacial advance and up-flow during glacial retreat are reduced because of loading-induced pressure changes. The maximum rate of groundwater discharge in the simulations occurs at the receding ice margin, and some discharge occurs below incursive postglacial seas. Recharge of basal meltwater could decrease the concentration of dissolved solids significantly below present-day levels at depths of up to several kilometers and may bring oxygenated conditions to an otherwise reducing chemical environment for periods exceeding 10 ka.

Ultrasonic measurements of the bulk flow field in foams

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nauber, Richard; Büttner, Lars; Eckert, Kerstin; Fröhlich, Jochen; Czarske, Jürgen; Heitkam, Sascha

2018-01-01

The flow field of moving foams is relevant for basic research and for the optimization of industrial processes such as froth flotation. However, no adequate measurement technique exists for the local velocity distribution inside the foam bulk. We have investigated the ultrasound Doppler velocimetry (UDV), providing the first two-dimensional, non-invasive velocity measurement technique with an adequate spatial (10 mm ) and temporal resolution (2.5 Hz ) that is applicable to medium scale foam flows. The measurement object is dry aqueous foam flowing upward in a rectangular channel. An array of ultrasound transducers is mounted within the channel, sending pulses along the main flow axis, and receiving echoes from the foam bulk. This results in a temporally and spatially resolved, planar velocity field up to a measurement depth of 200 mm , which is approximately one order of magnitude larger than those of optical techniques. A comparison with optical reference measurements of the surface velocity of the foam allows to validate the UDV results. At 2.5 Hz frame rate an uncertainty below 15 percent and an axial spatial resolution better than 10 mm is found. Therefore, UDV is a suitable tool for monitoring of industrial processes as well as the scientific investigation of three-dimensional foam flows on medium scales.

Sedimentological processes in a scarp-controlled rocky shoreline to upper continental slope environment, as revealed by unusual sedimentary features in the Neogene Coquimbo Formation, north-central Chile

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Le Roux, J. P.; Gómez, Carolina; Fenner, Juliane; Middleton, Heather

2004-03-01

Exceptionally good outcrops of Miocene to Pliocene deposits in the vicinity of submarine Paleozoic basement scarps at Carrizalillo, north of La Serena, reveal a wealth of sedimentary features not commonly observed. The most proximal facies consist of rock fall and coarse-grained debris flow deposits directly abutting the basement wall from which they originated. Angular basement clasts are mixed with well-rounded cobbles, which probably formed as a basal gravel on a wave-cut platform at the beginning of marine flooding, subsequently accumulated at the scarp edge and were incorporated into the debris when the latter collapsed. The poor sorting, inverse grading, and protruding cobbles and boulders are classical debris flow features, with good clast imbrication indicating a laminar shearing action. A medial facies is represented by secondary channels running parallel to the major scarp about 1 km downslope of the first locality. In the largest channel, megaflutes at the base indicate the passage of highly turbulent, nondepositing flows eroding the soft, silty substrate. In the deepest, central part of the channel, a pebbly coquina shows horizontal and trough cross-stratification, with most of the bivalves oriented convex side up. Meter-scale rip-up clasts of the underlying siltstone are also present, indicating turbulent flow with a density sufficiently high to retard settling. The coquina is interpreted as a detachment deposit resulting from a hydroplaning debris flow along the central part of the channel, where the velocity and rate of pore pressure decay were highest. This deposit is overlain by fining upward, massive to horizontally stratified sandstone very similar in texture and composition to the matrix of the debris flow, suggesting its formation by surface transformation and elutriation of the latter. Along the channel margin, a basal centimeter-scale sandstone layer is virtually unaffected by the megaflute topography and clearly represents a subsequent event. It is interpreted as a basal shear carpet driven by the overlying debris flow. Within the shear carpet, a basal friction zone and an overlying collision zone containing a higher concentration of shell hash can be distinguished. The overlying debris flow deposit is represented by massive coquina with scattered, angular to rounded basement clasts. It contains disarticulated bivalves oriented with their concave side up, indicating large-scale upward fluid escape during deposition. A smaller secondary channel shows large rip-up rafts of the underlying substrate. Some rafts appear to have been plucked from the substrate by a process of sand injection from an overriding high-density sandy debris flow, which probably originated during a tsunami. Such clasts can climb upward into a laminar flow by down-current tilting and tumbling. The most distal facies occurs below a second scarp oriented more or less parallel to the present coastline, where finer-grained turbidites onlap and backlap onto the stoss and lee sides of an obstacle formed by eroded boulder conglomerates. The onlap deposits resemble inclined sandy macroforms recently described in submarine canyon settings. They are interbedded with diatom-containing, volcanic ash beds with cross-stratification dipping eastwards and containing deepwater microflora typical of continental upwelling zones.

Brine Migration from a Flooded Salt Mine in the Genesee Valley, Livingston County, New York: Geochemical Modeling and Simulation of Variable-Density Flow

USGS Publications Warehouse

Yager, Richard M.; Misut, Paul E.; Langevin, Christian D.; Parkhurst, David L.

2009-01-01

The Retsof salt mine in upstate New York was flooded from 1994 to 1996 after two roof collapses created rubble chimneys in overlying bedrock that intersected a confined aquifer in glacial sediments. The mine now contains about 60 billion liters of saturated halite brine that is slowly being displaced as the weight of overlying sediments causes the mine cavity to close, a process that could last several hundred years. Saline water was detected in the confined aquifer in 2002, and a brine-mitigation project that includes pumping followed by onsite desalination was implemented in 2006 to prevent further migration of saline water from the collapse area. A study was conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey using geochemical and variable-density flow modeling to determine sources of salinity in the confined aquifer and to assess (1) processes that control movement and mixing of waters in the collapse area, (2) the effect of pumping on salinity, and (3) the potential for anhydrite dissolution and subsequent land subsidence resulting from mixing of waters induced by pumping. The primary source of salinity in the collapse area is halite brine that was displaced from the flooded mine and transported upward by advection and dispersion through the rubble chimneys and surrounding deformation zone. Geochemical and variable-density modeling indicate that salinity in the upper part of the collapse area is partly derived from inflow of saline water from bedrock fracture zones during water-level recovery (January 1996 through August 2006). The lateral diversion of brine into bedrock fracture zones promoted the upward migration of mine water through mixing with lower density waters. The relative contributions of mine water, bedrock water, and aquifer water to the observed salinity profile within the collapse area are controlled by the rates of flow to and from bedrock fracture zones. Variable-density simulations of water-level recovery indicate that saline water has probably not migrated beyond the collapse area, while simulations of pumping indicate that further upward migration of brine and saline water is now prevented by groundwater withdrawals under the brine-mitigation project. Geochemical modeling indicates that additional land subsidence as a result of anhydrite dissolution in the collapse area is not a concern, as long as the rate of brine pumping is less than the rate of upward flow of brine from the flooded mine. The collapse area above the flooded salt mine is within a glacially scoured bedrock valley that is filled with more than 150 meters of glacial drift. A confined aquifer at the bottom of the glacial sediments (referred to as the lower confined aquifer, or LCA) was the source of most of the water that flooded the mine. Two rubble chimneys that formed above the roof collapses in 1994 hydraulically connect the flooded mine to the LCA through 180 meters of sedimentary rock. From 1996 through 2006, water levels in the aquifer system recovered and the brine-displacement rate ranged from 4.4 to 1.6 liters per second, as estimated from land-surface subsidence above the mine. A zone of fracturing within the bedrock (the deformation zone) formed around the rubble chimneys as rock layers sagged toward the mine cavity after the roof collapses. Borehole geophysical surveys have identified three saline-water-bearing fracture zones in the bedrock: at stratigraphic contacts between the Onondaga and Bertie Limestones (O/B-FZ) and the Bertie Limestone and the Camillus Shale (B/C-FZ), and in the Syracuse Formation (Syr-FZ). The only outlets for brine displaced from the mine are through the rubble chimneys, but some of the brine could be diverted laterally into fracture zones in the rocks that lie between the mine and the LCA. Inverse geochemical models developed using PHREEQC indicate that halite brine in the flooded mine is derived from a mixture of freshwater from the LCA (81 percent), saline water from bedrock fracture zones (16 per

Modeling Explosive Eruptions at Kīlauea, Hawai'i

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gonnermann, H. M.; Ferguson, D. J.; Blaser, A. P.; Houghton, B. F.; Plank, T. A.; Hauri, E. H.; Swanson, D. A.

2014-12-01

We have modeled eruptive magma ascent during two explosive eruptions of Kīlauea volcano, Hawai'i. They are the Hawaiian style Kīlauea Iki eruption, 1959, and the subplinian Keanakāko'i eruption, 1650 CE. We have modeled combined magma ascent in the volcanic conduit and exsolution of H2O and CO2 from the erupting magma. To better assess the relative roles of conduit processes and magma chamber, we also coupled conduit flow and magma chamber through mass balance and pressure. We predict magma discharge rates, superficial gas velocities, H2O and CO2 concentrations of the melt, magma chamber pressure, surface deformation, and height of the volcanic jet. Models are in part constrained by H2O and CO2 measured in olivine-hosted melt inclusions and by decompression rates recorded in melt embayment diffusion profiles. We present a parametric analysis, indicating that the pressure within the chamber that fed the subplinian Keanakāko'i eruption was significantly higher than lithostatic pressure. In contrast, chamber pressure for the Hawaiian Kīlauea Iki eruption was close to lithostatic. In both cases the superficial gas velocity, which affects the geometrical distribution of gas-liquid mixtures during upward flow in conduits, may have exceeded values at which bubble coalescence did not affect the flow.

Analysis of the effects of gravity and wall thickness in a model of blood flow through axisymmetric vessels.

PubMed

Payne, S J

2004-11-01

The effects of gravitational forces and wall thickness on the behaviour of a model of blood flow through axisymmetric vessels were studied. The governing fluid dynamic equations were derived from the Navier-Stokes equations for an incompressible fluid and linked to a simple model of the vessel wall. A closed form of the hyperbolic partial differential equations was found, including a significant source term from the gravitational forces. The inclination of the vessel is modelled using a slope parameter that varied between -1 and 1. The wave speed was shown to be related to the wall thickness, and the time to first shock formation was shown to be directly proportional to this thickness. Two non-dimensional parameters were derived for the ratio of gravitational forces to viscous and momentum forces, respectively, and their values were calculated for the different types of vessel found in the human vasculature, showing that gravitational forces were significant in comparison with either viscous or momentum forces for every type of vessel. The steady-state solution of the governing equations showed that gravitational forces cause an increase in area of approximately 5% per metre per unit slope. Numerical simulations of the flow field in the aorta showed that a positive slope causes a velocity pulse to change in amplitude approximately linearly with distance: -4% per metre and +5% per metre for vessels inclined vertically upwards and downwards, respectively, in comparison with only +0.5% for a horizontal vessel. These simulations also showed that the change relative to the zero slope condition in the maximum rate of change of area with distance, which was taken to be a measure of the rate of shock formation, is proportional to both the slope and the wall thickness-to-inner radius ratio, with a constant of proportionality of 1.2. At a ratio of 0.25, typical of that found in human arteries, the distance to shock formation is thus decreased and increased by 30% for vessels inclined vertically downwards and upwards, respectively. Gravity and wall thickness thus have a significant impact on a number of aspects of the fluid and wall behaviour, despite conventionally being neglected.

Subduction obliquity as a prime indicator for geotherm in subduction zone

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Plunder, Alexis; Thieulot, Cédric; van Hinsbergen, Douwe

2016-04-01

The geotherm of a subduction zone is thought to vary as a function of subduction rate and the age of the subducting lithosphere. Along a single subduction zone the rate of subduction can strongly vary due to changes in the angle between the trench and the plate convergence vector, namely the subduction obliquity. This phenomenon is observed all around the Pacific (i.e., Marianna, South America, Aleutian…). However due to observed differences in subducting lithosphere age or lateral convergence rate in nature, the quantification of temperature variation due to obliquity is not obvious. In order to investigate this effect, 3D generic numerical models were carried out using the finite element code ELEFANT. We designed a simplified setup to avoid interaction with other parameters. An ocean/ocean subduction setting was chosen and the domain is represented by a 800 × 300 × 200 km Cartesian box. The trench geometry is prescribed by means of a simple arc-tangent function. Velocity of the subducting lithosphere is prescribed using the analytical solution for corner flow and only the energy conservation equation is solved in the domain. Results are analysed after steady state is reached. First results show that the effect of the trench curvature on the geotherm with respect to the convergence direction is not negligible. A small obliquity yields isotherms which are very slightly deflected upwards where the obliquity is maximum. With an angle of ˜30°, the isotherms are deflected upwards of about 10 kilometres. Strong obliquity (i.e., angles from 60° to almost 90°) reveal extreme effects of the position of the isotherms. Further model will include other parameter as the dip of the slab and convergence rate to highlight their relative influence on the geotherm of subduction zone.

Deep Crustal Melting and the Survival of Continental Crust

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Whitney, D.; Teyssier, C. P.; Rey, P. F.; Korchinski, M.

2017-12-01

Plate convergence involving continental lithosphere leads to crustal melting, which ultimately stabilizes the crust because it drives rapid upward flow of hot deep crust, followed by rapid cooling at shallow levels. Collision drives partial melting during crustal thickening (at 40-75 km) and/or continental subduction (at 75-100 km). These depths are not typically exceeded by crustal rocks that are exhumed in each setting because partial melting significantly decreases viscosity, facilitating upward flow of deep crust. Results from numerical models and nature indicate that deep crust moves laterally and then vertically, crystallizing at depths as shallow as 2 km. Deep crust flows en masse, without significant segregation of melt into magmatic bodies, over 10s of kms of vertical transport. This is a major mechanism by which deep crust is exhumed and is therefore a significant process of heat and mass transfer in continental evolution. The result of vertical flow of deep, partially molten crust is a migmatite dome. When lithosphere is under extension or transtension, the deep crust is solicited by faulting of the brittle upper crust, and the flow of deep crust in migmatite domes traverses nearly the entire thickness of orogenic crust in <10 million years. This cycle of burial, partial melting, rapid ascent, and crystallization/cooling preserves the continents from being recycled into the mantle by convergent tectonic processes over geologic time. Migmatite domes commonly preserve a record of high-T - low-P metamorphism. Domes may also contain rocks or minerals that record high-T - high-P conditions, including high-P metamorphism broadly coeval with host migmatite, evidence for the deep crustal origin of migmatite. There exists a spectrum of domes, from entirely deep-sourced to mixtures of deep and shallow sources. Controlling factors in deep vs. shallow sources are relative densities of crustal layers and rate of extension: fast extension (cm/yr) promotes efficient ascent of deep crust, whereas slow extension (mm/yr) produces significantly less exhumation. Recognition of the importance of migmatite (gneiss) domes as archives of orogenic deep crust is applicable to determining the chemical and physical properties of continental crust, as well as mechanisms and timescales of crustal differentiation.

Climate Warming and Seasonal Precipitation Change Interact to Limit Species Distribution Shifts across Western North America

PubMed Central

Harsch, Melanie A.; HilleRisLambers, Janneke

2016-01-01

Using an extensive network of occurrence records for 293 plant species collected over the past 40 years across a climatically diverse geographic section of western North America, we find that plant species distributions were just as likely to shift upwards (i.e., towards higher elevations) as downward (i.e., towards lower elevations)–despite consistent warming across the study area. Although there was no clear directional response to climate warming across the entire study area, there was significant region- to region- variation in responses (i.e. from as many as 73% to as few as 32% of species shifting upward). To understand the factors that might be controlling region-specific distributional shifts of plant species, we explored the relationship between the direction of change in distribution limits and the nature of recent climate change. We found that the direction that distribution limits shifted was explained by an interaction between the rate of change in local summer temperatures and seasonal precipitation. Specifically, species were more likely to shift upward at their upper elevational limit when minimum temperatures increased and snowfall was unchanging or declined at slower rates (<0.5 mm/year). This suggests that both low temperature and water availability limit upward shifts at upper elevation limits. By contrast, species were more likely to shift upwards at their lower elevation limit when maximum temperatures increased, but also shifted upwards under conditions of cooling temperatures when precipitation decreased. This suggests increased water stress may drive upward shifts at lower elevation limits. Our results suggest that species’ elevational distribution shifts are not predictable by climate warming alone but depend on the interaction between seasonal temperature and precipitation change. PMID:27447834

Features of Upward Positive Leaders Initiated From Towers in Natural Cloud-to-Ground Lightning Based on Simultaneous High-Speed Videos, Measured Currents, and Electric Fields

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Visacro, Silverio; Guimaraes, Miguel; Murta Vale, Maria Helena

2017-12-01

Original simultaneous records of currents, close electric field, and high-speed videos of natural negative cloud-to-ground lightning striking the tower of Morro do Cachimbo Station are used to reveal typical features of upward positive leaders before the attachment, including their initiation and mode of propagation. According to the results, upward positive leaders initiate some hundreds of microseconds prior to the return stroke, while a continuous uprising current of about 4 A and superimposed pulses of a few tens amperes flow along the tower. Upon leader initiation, the electric field measured 50 m away from the tower at ground level is about 60 kV/m. The corresponding average field roughly estimated 0.5 m above the tower top is higher than 0.55 MV/m. As in laboratory experiments, the common propagation mode of upward positive leaders is developing continuously, without steps, from their initiation. Unlike downward negative leaders, upward positive leaders typically do not branch off, though they can bifurcate under the effect of a downward negative leader's secondary branch approaching their lateral surface. The upward positive leader's estimated average two-dimensional propagation speed, in the range of 0.06 × 106 to 0.16 × 106 m/s, has the same order of magnitude as that of downward negative leaders. Apparently, the speed tends to increase just before attachment.

The Glass Floor: Education, Downward Mobility, and Opportunity Hoarding

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reeves, Richard V.; Howard, Kimberly

2013-01-01

From an intergenerational perspective, the U.S. income distribution is sticky at both ends. Affluence and poverty are both partially inherited. Policy and research has focused on upward mobility, especially from the bottom. But relative intergenerational upward mobility is only possible with equivalent rates of downward mobility, where much less…

Testing and Selection of Fire-Resistant Materials for Spacecraft Use

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Friedman, Robert; Jackson, Brian; Olson, Sandra

2000-01-01

Spacecraft fire-safety strategy emphasizes prevention, mostly through the selection of onboard items classified accord- ing to their fire resistance. The principal NASA acceptance tests described in this paper assess the flammability of materials and components under "worst-case" normal-gravity conditions of upward flame spread in controlled-oxygen atmospheres. Tests conducted on the ground, however, cannot duplicate the unique fire characteristics in the nonbuoyant low-gravity environment of orbiting spacecraft. Research shows that flammability an fire-spread rates in low gravity are sensitive to forced convection (ventilation flows) and atmospheric-oxygen concentration. These research results are helping to define new material-screening test methods that will better evaluate material performance in spacecraft.

3-D direct numerical model for failure of non-cohesive granular soils with upward seepage flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fukumoto, Yutaka; Ohtsuka, Satoru

2017-12-01

The paper reports the application of a 3-D direct particle-fluid simulation model to the seepage failure of granular soils. The goal of this study is to numerically capture the process of the failure which is induced by the seepage flow from the micromechanical aspects with no macroscopic assumptions. In order to accomplish this goal, non-cohesive granular assemblies with an upward seepage flow and a variety of pressure gradients are investigated. The motion and the collision of the soil particles are calculated by a soft sphere model, such as the discrete element method, and the flow of the pore fluid is directly solved at a smaller scale than the diameter of the soil particles by the lattice Boltzmann method. By coupling these methods, the interaction between the soil particles and the seepage flow is also considered. As a result of the series of analyses, the numerically predicted value for the critical hydraulic gradient is found to be in good agreement with the theoretical value. In addition, the rapid change in the flow pattern around the critical hydraulic gradient can be microscopically captured. By observing the evolution of the force chains inside the soils, it is demonstrated that the failure process of the contact networks can also be reproduced by the simulation model presented here.

Correlation of Normal Gravity Mixed Convection Blowoff Limits with Microgravity Forced Flow Blowoff Limits

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Marcum, Jeremy W.; Olson, Sandra L.; Ferkul, Paul V.

2016-01-01

The axisymmetric rod geometry in upward axial stagnation flow provides a simple way to measure normal gravity blowoff limits to compare with microgravity Burning and Suppression of Solids - II (BASS-II) results recently obtained aboard the International Space Station. This testing utilized the same BASS-II concurrent rod geometry, but with the addition of normal gravity buoyant flow. Cast polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) rods of diameters ranging from 0.635 cm to 3.81 cm were burned at oxygen concentrations ranging from 14 to 18% by volume. The forced flow velocity where blowoff occurred was determined for each rod size and oxygen concentration. These blowoff limits compare favorably with the BASS-II results when the buoyant stretch is included and the flow is corrected by considering the blockage factor of the fuel. From these results, the normal gravity blowoff boundary for this axisymmetric rod geometry is determined to be linear, with oxygen concentration directly proportional to flow speed. We describe a new normal gravity 'upward flame spread test' method which extrapolates the linear blowoff boundary to the zero stretch limit in order to resolve microgravity flammability limits-something current methods cannot do. This new test method can improve spacecraft fire safety for future exploration missions by providing a tractable way to obtain good estimates of material flammability in low gravity.

Trends in precipitation, streamflow, reservoir pool elevations, and reservoir releases in Arkansas and selected sites in Louisiana, Missouri, and Oklahoma, 1951–2011

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wagner, Daniel M.; Krieger, Joshua D.; Merriman, Katherine R.

2014-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) conducted a statistical analysis of trends in precipitation, streamflow, reservoir pool elevations, and reservoir releases in Arkansas and selected sites in Louisiana, Missouri, and Oklahoma for the period 1951–2011. The Mann-Kendall test was used to test for trends in annual and seasonal precipitation, annual and seasonal streamflows of 42 continuous-record USGS streamflow-gaging stations, annual pool elevations and releases from 16 USACE reservoirs, and annual releases from 11 dams on the Arkansas River. A statistically significant (p≤0.10) upward trend was observed in annual precipitation for the State, with a Sen slope of approximately 0.10 inch per year. Autumn and winter were the only seasons that had statistically significant trends in precipitation. Five of six physiographic sections and six of seven 4-digit hydrologic unit code (HUC) regions in Arkansas had statistically significant upward trends in autumn precipitation, with Sen slopes of approximately 0.06 to 0.10 inch per year. Sixteen sites had statistically significant upward trends in the annual mean daily streamflow and were located on streams that drained regions with statistically significant upward trends in annual precipitation. Expected annual rates of change corresponding to statistically significant trends in annual mean daily streamflows, which ranged from 0.32 to 0.88 percent, were greater than those corresponding to regions with statistically significant upward trends in annual precipitation, which ranged from 0.19 to 0.28 percent, suggesting that the observed trends in regional annual precipitation do not fully account for the observed trends in annual mean daily streamflows. Trends in annual maximum daily streamflows were similar to trends in the annual mean daily streamflows but were only statistically significant at seven sites. There were more statistically significant trends (28 of 42 sites) in the annual minimum daily streamflows than in the annual means or maximums. Statistically significant trends in the annual minimum daily streamflows were upward at 18 sites and downward at 10 sites. Despite autumn being the only season that had statistically significant upward trends in seasonal precipitation, statistically significant upward trends in seasonal mean streamflows occurred in every season but spring. Trends in the annual mean, maximum, and minimum daily pool elevations of USACE reservoirs were consistent between metrics for reservoirs in the White, Arkansas, and Ouachita River watersheds, while trends varied between metrics at DeQueen Lake, Millwood Lake, and Lake Chicot. Most of the statistically significant trends in pool elevation metrics were upward and gradual—Sen slopes were less than 0.37 foot per year—and were likely the result of changes in reservoir regulation plans. Trends in the annual mean and maximum daily releases from USACE reservoirs were generally upward in all HUC regions. There were few statistically significant trends in the annual mean daily releases because the reservoirs are operated to maintain a regulation stage at a downstream site according to guidelines set forth in the regulation plans of the reservoirs. The annual number of low-flow days was both increasing and decreasing for reservoirs in northern Arkansas and southern Missouri and generally increasing for reservoirs in southern Arkansas.

Trends in precipitation and streamflow and changes in stream morphology in the Fountain Creek watershed, Colorado, 1939-99

USGS Publications Warehouse

Stogner, Sr., Robert W.

2000-01-01

The Fountain Creek watershed, located in and along the eastern slope of the Front Range section of the southern Rocky Mountains, drains approximately 930 square miles of parts of Teller, El Paso, and Pueblo Counties in eastern Colorado. Streamflow in the watershed is dominated by spring snowmelt runoff and storm runoff during the summer monsoon season. Flooding during the 1990?s has resulted in increased streambank erosion. Property loss and damage associated with flooding and bank erosion has cost area residents, businesses, utilities, municipalities, and State and Federal agencies millions of dollars. Precipitation (4 stations) and streamflow (6 stations) data, aerial photographs, and channel reconnaissance were used to evaluate trends in precipitation and streamflow and changes in channel morphology. Trends were evaluated for pre-1977, post-1976, and period-of-record time periods. Analysis revealed the lack of trend in total annual and seasonal precipitation during the pre-1977 time period. In general, the analysis also revealed the lack of trend in seasonal precipitation for all except the spring season during the post-1976 time period. Trend analysis revealed a significant upward trend in long-term (period of record) total annual and spring precipitation data, apparently due to a change in total annual precipitation throughout the Fountain Creek watershed. During the pre-1977 time period, precipitation was generally below average; during the post- 1976 time period, total annual precipitation was generally above average. During the post- 1976 time period, an upward trend in total annual and spring precipitation was indicated at two stations. Because two of four stations evaluated had upward trends for the post-1976 period and storms that produce the most precipitation are isolated convection storms, it is plausible that other parts of the watershed had upward precipitation trends that could affect trends in streamflow. Also, because of the isolated nature of convection storms that hit some areas of the watershed and not others, it is difficult to draw strong conclusions on relations between streamflow and precipitation. Trends in annual instantaneous peak streamflow, 70th percentile, 90th percentile, maximum daily-mean streamflow (100th percentile), 7-, 14-, and 30-day high daily-mean stream- flow duration, minimum daily-mean streamflow (0th percentile), 10th percentile, 30th percentile, and 7-, 14-, 30-day low daily-mean streamflow duration were evaluated. In general, instantaneous peak streamflow has not changed significantly at most of the stations evaluated. Trend analysis revealed the lack of a significant upward trend in streamflow at all stations for the pre-1977 time period. Trend tests indicated a significant upward trend in high and low daily-mean streamflow statistics for the post-1976 period. Upward trends in high daily-mean streamflow statistics may be an indication that changes in land use within the watershed have increased the rate and magnitude of runoff. Upward trends in low daily-mean 2 Trends in Precipitation and Streamflow and Changes in Stream Morphology in the Fountain Creek Watershed, Colorado, 1939-99 streamflow statistics may be related to changes in water use and management. An analysis of the relation between streamflow and precipitation indicated that changes in water management have had a marked effect on streamflow. Observable change in channel morphology and changes in distribution and density of vegetation varied with magnitude, duration, and frequency of large streamflow events, and increases in the magnitude and duration of low streamflows. Although more subtle, low stream- flows were an important component of day-to-day channel erosion. Substantial changes in channel morphology were most often associated with infrequent large or catastrophic streamflow events that erode streambed and banks, alter stream course, and deposit large amounts of sediment in the flood plain.

Numerical Model of Hydraulic Fracturing Fluid Transport in the Subsurface with Pressure Transient, Density Effects, and Imbibition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Birdsell, D.; Rajaram, H.; Dempsey, D.; Viswanathan, H.

2014-12-01

Understanding the transport of hydraulic fracturing (HF) fluid that is injected into the deep subsurface for shale gas extraction is important to ensure that shallow drinking water aquifers are not contaminated from an environmental and public health perspective and to understand formation damage from an oil and gas production perspective. Upward pressure gradients, permeable pathways such as faults or improperly abandoned wellbores, and the density contrast of the HF fluid to the surrounding brine encourages upward HF fluid migration. In contrast, the very low shale permeability and the imbibition of water into partially-saturated shale may sequester much of the HF fluid. Using the Finite Element Heat and Mass Transfer Code (FEHM), single-phase flow and transport simulations are performed to quantify how much HF fluid is removed via the wellbore as flowback and produced water and how much reaches overlying aquifers; imbibition is calculated with a semi-analytical one-dimensional solution and treated as a sink term. The travel time for HF fluid to reach the shallow aquifers is highly dependent on the amount of water imbibed and the suction applied to the well. If imbibition rates and suction are small, the pressure transient due to injection and the density contrast allows rapid upward plume migration at early times. The density contrast diminishes considerably within tens to hundreds of years as mixing occurs. We present estimates of HF fluid migration to shallow aquifers during the first 1,000 years after hydraulic fracturing begins for ranges of subsurface properties.

Vertical gas injection into liquid cross-stream beneath horizontal surfaces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, In-Ho; Makiharju, Simo; Lee, Inwon; Perlin, Marc; Ceccio, Steve

2013-11-01

Skin friction drag reduction on flat bottomed ships and barges can be achieved by creating an air layer immediately beneath the horizontal surface. The simplest way of introducing the gas is through circular orifices; however the dynamics of gas injection into liquid cross-streams under horizontal surfaces is not well understood. Experiments were conducted to investigate the development of the gas topology following its vertical injection through a horizontal surface. The liquid cross-flow, orifice diameter and gas flow rate were varied to investigate the effect of different ratios of momentum fluxes. The testing was performed on a 4.3 m long and 0.73 m wide barge model with air injection through a hole in the transparent bottom hull. The incoming boundary layer was measured via a pitot tube. Downstream distance based Reynolds number at the injection location was 5 × 105 through 4 × 106 . To observe the flow topology, still images and video were recorded from above the model (i.e. through the transparent hull), from beneath the bottom facing upward, and from the side at an oblique angle. The transition point of the flow topology was determined and analyzed.

Observations of hydrotectonic stress/strain events at a basement high at the Nicoya outer rise

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tryon, M. D.; Brown, K. M.

2005-12-01

There is substantial and growing evidence from heat flow and coring investigations that the oceanic plate off Costa Rica is highly hydrologically active and that this activity is responsible for one of the most anomalously cold thermal environments encountered in the oceanic environment. Recent work by Fisher, et al. has identified limited regions above certain topographic highs with extremely high heat flows. Pore water profiles from cores above these thinly sedimented basement highs suggest upward flow on the order of ~1 cm/yr. These highs may be the principal regions of out-flow from the basement in this region and, thus, can potentially be used to constrain the general level of hydrologic activity. The nine Chemical and Aqueous Transport (CAT) meters we deployed at one of the highest heatflow sites provide a temporal record of both in-flow and out-flow of aqueous fluids at rates as low as 0.1 mm/yr. Our objective was to provide a direct measurement of long term flow rates to address the following questions: (1) What are the characteristic fluid fluxes at basement highs of the low heat flow region of the northern Costa Rican incoming plate, and (2) is this flow temporally variable? The results of the instrument deployments agree quite closely in general with the coring results in that the background rates are on the order of 1 cm/yr or less. There is, however, considerable detail in the temporal records which suggest small scale tectonic stress transients causing temporary increases in flow rate. While this is certainly not an area of major tectonic activity, the site is located at the top of the outer rise where one would expect bending-related stress and fault reactivation to occur. The CAT meters are capable of detecting minute strain events in the underlying sediments and therefore may be detecting small localized strain events. Two periods of increased flow lasting a few weeks each occur during the 5 month deployment and are indicated on all of the instruments. A few indicate downflow while the others show upflow. This sort of response would be expected during a stress event causing regions of compression and dilation. These results suggest that ridge flank basement highs may be good sites to monitor stress/strain events as well as basement hydrology.

Mechanical energy and power flow of the upper extremity in manual wheelchair propulsion.

PubMed

Guo, Lan-Yuen; Su, Fong-Chin; Wu, Hong-Wen; An, Kai-Nan

2003-02-01

To investigate the characteristics of mechanical energy and power flow of the upper limb during wheelchair propulsion. Mechanical energy and power flow of segments were calculated. Very few studies have taken into account the mechanical energy and power flow of the musculoskeletal system during wheelchair propulsion. Mechanical energy and power flow have proven to be useful tools for investigating locomotion disorders during human gait. Twelve healthy male adults (mean age, 23.5 years) were recruited for this study. Three-dimensional kinematic and kinetic data of the upper extremity were collected during wheelchair propulsion using a Hi-Res Expert Vision system and an instrumented wheel, respectively. During the initiation of the propulsion phase, joint power is generated in the upper arm or is transferred from the trunk downward to the forearm and hand to propel the wheel forward. During terminal propulsion, joint power is transferred upward to the trunk from the forearm and upper arm. The rate of change of mechanical energy and power flow for the forearm and hand have similar patterns, but the upper arm values differ. Joint power plays an important role in energy transfer as well as the energy generated and absorbed by muscles spanning the joints during wheelchair propulsion. Energy and power flow information during wheelchair propulsion allows us to gain a better understanding of the coordination of the movement by the musculoskeletal system.

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.

Lithologic and physicochemical properties and hydraulics of flow in and near the freshwater/saline-water transition zone, San Antonio segment of the Edwards aquifer, south-central Texas, based on water-level and borehole geophysical log data, 1999-2007

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lambert, Rebecca B.; Hunt, Andrew G.; Stanton, Gregory P.; Nyman, Michael B.

2010-01-01

The freshwater zone of the San Antonio segment of the Edwards aquifer in south-central Texas (hereinafter, the Edwards aquifer) is bounded to the south and southeast by a zone of transition from freshwater to saline water (hereinafter, the transition zone). The boundary between the two zones is the freshwater/saline-water interface (hereinafter, the interface), defined as the 1,000-milligrams per liter dissolved solids concentration threshold. This report presents the findings of a study, done by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the San Antonio Water System, to obtain lithologic properties (rock properties associated with known stratigraphic units) and physicochemical properties (fluid conductivity and temperature) and to analyze the hydraulics of flow in and near the transition zone of the Edwards aquifer on the basis of water-level and borehole geophysical log data collected from 15 monitoring wells in four transects during 1999-2007. No identifiable relation between conductivity values from geophysical logs in monitoring wells in all transects and equivalent freshwater heads in the wells at the times the logs were run is evident; and no identifiable relation between conductivity values and vertical flow in the boreholes concurrent with the times the logs were run is evident. The direction of the lateral equivalent freshwater head gradient and thus the potential lateral flow at the interface in the vicinity of the East Uvalde transect fluctuates between into and out of the freshwater zone, depending on recharge and withdrawals. Whether the prevailing direction on average is into or out of the freshwater zone is not clearly indicated. Equivalent freshwater head data do not indicate a prevailing direction of the lateral gradient at the interface in the vicinity of the Tri-County transect. The prevailing direction on average of the lateral gradient and thus potential lateral flow at the interface in the vicinity of the Kyle transect likely is from the transition zone into the freshwater zone. The hypothesis regarding the vertical gradient at the East Uvalde transect, and thus the potential for vertical flow near an interface conceptualized as a surface sloping upward in the direction of the dip of the stratigraphic units, is that the potential for vertical flow fluctuates between into and out of the freshwater zone, depending on recharge and withdrawals. At the Tri-County transect, a downward gradient on the fresh-water side of the interface and an upward gradient on the saline-water side are evidence of opposing potentials that appear to have stabilized the position of the interface over the range of hydrologic conditions that occurred at the times the logs were run. At the Fish Hatchery transect, an upward gradient on the saline-water side of the interface, coupled with the assumption of a sloping interface, implies a vertical gradient from the transition zone into the freshwater zone. This potential for vertical movement of the interface apparently was opposed by the potential (head) on the freshwater side of the interface that kept the interface relatively stable over the range of hydrologic conditions during which the logs were run. The five flow logs for Kyle transect freshwater well KY1 all indicate upward flow that originates from the Glen Rose Limestone, the uppermost unit of the Trinity aquifer; and one log for well KY2 shows upward flow entering the borehole from the Trinity aquifer. These flow data constitute evidence of the potential for flow from the Trinity aquifer into the Edwards aquifer in the vicinity of the Kyle transect. Subsurface temperature data indicate that flow on average is more active, or vigorous, on the freshwater side of the interface than on the saline-water side. A hydraulic connection between the transition zone and the freshwater zone is indicated by similar patterns in the hydrographs of the 15 transect monitoring wells in and near the transition zone and three county index wel

Liquid metal reactor air cooling baffle

DOEpatents

Hunsbedt, Anstein

1994-01-01

A baffle is provided between a relatively hot containment vessel and a relatively cold silo for enhancing air cooling performance. The baffle includes a perforate inner wall positionable outside the containment vessel to define an inner flow riser therebetween, and an imperforate outer wall positionable outside the inner wall to define an outer flow riser therebetween. Apertures in the inner wall allow thermal radiation to pass laterally therethrough to the outer wall, with cooling air flowing upwardly through the inner and outer risers for removing heat.

Liquid metal reactor air cooling baffle

DOEpatents

Hunsbedt, A.

1994-08-16

A baffle is provided between a relatively hot containment vessel and a relatively cold silo for enhancing air cooling performance. The baffle includes a perforate inner wall positionable outside the containment vessel to define an inner flow riser therebetween, and an imperforate outer wall positionable outside the inner wall to define an outer flow riser therebetween. Apertures in the inner wall allow thermal radiation to pass laterally therethrough to the outer wall, with cooling air flowing upwardly through the inner and outer risers for removing heat. 3 figs.

Use of flow-normalization to evaluate nutrient concentration and flux changes in Lake Champlain tributaries, 1990-2009

USGS Publications Warehouse

Medalie, Laura; Hirsch, Robert M.; Archfield, Stacey A.

2012-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey evaluated 20 years of total phosphorus (P) and total nitrogen (N) concentration data for 18 Lake Champlain tributaries using a new statistical method based on weighted regressions to estimate daily concentration and flux histories based on discharge, season, and trend as explanatory variables. The use of all the streamflow discharge values for a given date in the record, in a process called "flow-normalization," removed the year-to-year variation due to streamflow and generated a smooth time series from which trends were calculated. This approach to data analysis can be of great value to evaluations of the success of restoration efforts because it filters out the large random fluctuations in the flux that are due to the temporal variability in streamflow. Results for the full 20 years of record showed a mixture of upward and downward trends for concentrations and yields of P and N. When the record was broken into two 10-year periods, for many tributaries, the more recent period showed a reversal in N from upward to downward trends and a similar reversal or reduction in magnitude of upward trends for P. Some measures of P and N concentrations and yields appear to be related to intensity of agricultural activities, point-source loads of P, or population density. Total flow-normalized P flux aggregated from the monitored tributaries showed a decrease of 30 metric tons per year from 1991 to 2009, which is about 15% of the targeted reduction established by the operational management plan for the Lake Champlain Basin.

Benchmarking variable-density flow in saturated and unsaturated porous media

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guevara Morel, Carlos Roberto; Cremer, Clemens; Graf, Thomas

2015-04-01

In natural environments, fluid density and viscosity can be affected by spatial and temporal variations of solute concentration and/or temperature. These variations can occur, for example, due to salt water intrusion in coastal aquifers, leachate infiltration from waste disposal sites and upconing of saline water from deep aquifers. As a consequence, potentially unstable situations may exist in which a dense fluid overlies a less dense fluid. This situation can produce instabilities that manifest as dense plume fingers that move vertically downwards counterbalanced by vertical upwards flow of the less dense fluid. Resulting free convection increases solute transport rates over large distances and times relative to constant-density flow. Therefore, the understanding of free convection is relevant for the protection of freshwater aquifer systems. The results from a laboratory experiment of saturated and unsaturated variable-density flow and solute transport (Simmons et al., Transp. Porous Medium, 2002) are used as the physical basis to define a mathematical benchmark. The HydroGeoSphere code coupled with PEST are used to estimate the optimal parameter set capable of reproducing the physical model. A grid convergency analysis (in space and time) is also undertaken in order to obtain the adequate spatial and temporal discretizations. The new mathematical benchmark is useful for model comparison and testing of variable-density variably saturated flow in porous media.

Characteristics of transverse hydrogen jet in presence of multi air jets within scramjet combustor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barzegar Gerdroodbary, M.; Fallah, Keivan; Pourmirzaagha, H.

2017-03-01

In this article, three-dimensional simulation is performed to investigate the effects of micro air jets on mixing performances of cascaded hydrogen jets within a scramjet combustor. In order to compare the efficiency of this technique, constant total fuel rate is injected through one, four, eight and sixteen arrays of portholes in a Mach 4.0 crossflow with a fuel global equivalence ratio of 0.5. In this method, micro air jets are released within fuel portholes to augment the penetration in upward direction. Extensive studies were performed by using the Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations with Menter's Shear Stress Transport (SST) turbulence model. Numerical studies on various air and fuel arrangements are done and the mixing rate and penetration are comprehensively investigated. Also, the flow feature of the fuel and air jets for different configuration is revealed. According to the obtained results, the influence of the micro air jets is significant and the presence of micro air jets increases the mixing rate about 116%, 77%, 56% and 41% for single, 4, 8 and 16 multi fuel jets, respectively. The maximum mixing rate of the hydrogen jet is obtained when the air jets are injected within the sixteen multi fuel jets. According to the circulation analysis of the flow for different air and fuel arrangements, it was found that the effects of air jets on flow structure are varied in various conditions and the presence of the micro jet highly intensifies the circulation in the case of 8 and 16 multi fuel jets.

Viscous free-surface flows on rotating elliptical cylinders

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Weihua; Carvalho, Marcio S.; Kumar, Satish

2017-09-01

The flow of liquid films on rotating discrete objects having complicated cross sections is encountered in coating processes for a broad variety of products. To advance fundamental understanding of this problem, we study viscous free-surface flows on rotating elliptical cylinders by solving the governing equations in a rotating reference frame using the Galerkin finite-element method. Results of our simulations agree well with Hunt's maximum-load condition [Hunt, Numer. Methods Partial Differ. Eqs. 24, 1094 (2008), 10.1002/num.20307], which was obtained in the absence of surface tension and inertia. The simulations are also used to track the transient behavior of the free surface. For O (1 ) cylinder aspect ratios, cylinder rotation results in a droplike liquid bulge hanging on the upward-moving side of the cylinder. This bulge shrinks in size due to surface tension provided that the liquid load is smaller than a critical value, leaving a relatively smooth coating on the cylinder. A decrease in cylinder aspect ratio leads to larger gradients in film thickness, but enhances the rate of bulge shrinkage and thus shortens the time required to obtain a smooth coating. Moreover, with a suitably chosen time-dependent rotation rate, more liquid can be supported by the cylinder relative to the constant-rotation-rate case. For cylinders with even smaller aspect ratios, film rupture and liquid shedding may occur over the cylinder tips, so simultaneous drying and rotation along with the introduction of Marangoni stresses will likely be especially important for obtaining a smooth coating.

The direction of fluid flow during contact metamorphism of siliceous carbonate rocks: new data for the Monzoni and Predazzo aureoles, northern Italy, and a global review

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ferry, John M.; Wing, Boswell A.; Penniston-Dorland, Sarah C.; Rumble, Douglas

2002-03-01

Periclase formed in siliceous dolomitic marbles during contact metamorphism in the Monzoni and Predazzo aureoles, the Dolomites, northern Italy, by infiltration of the carbonate rocks by chemically reactive, H2O-rich fluids at 500 bar and 565-710 °C. The spatial distribution of periclase and oxygen isotope compositions is consistent with reactive fluid flow that was primarily vertical and upward in both aureoles with time-integrated flux ~5,000 and ~300 mol fluid/cm2 rock in the Monzoni and Predazzo aureoles, respectively. The new results for Monzoni and Predazzo are considered along with published studies of 13 other aureoles to draw general conclusions about the direction, amount, and controls on the geometry of reactive fluid flow during contact metamorphism of siliceous carbonate rocks. Flow in 12 aureoles was primarily vertically upward with and without a horizontal component directed away from the pluton. Fluid flow in two of the other three was primarily horizontal, directed from the pluton into the aureole. The direction of flow in the remaining aureole is uncertain. Earlier suggestions that fluid flow is often horizontal, directed toward the pluton, are likely explained by an erroneous assumption that widespread coexisting mineral reactants and products represent arrested prograde decarbonation reactions. With the exception of three samples from one aureole, time-integrated fluid flux was in the range 102-104 mol/cm2. Both the amount and direction of fluid flow are consistent with hydrodynamic models of contact metamorphism. The orientation of bedding and lithologic contacts appears to be the principal control over whether fluid flow was either primarily vertical or horizontal. Other pre-metamorphic structures, including dikes, faults, fold hinges, and fracture zones, served to channel fluid flow as well.

The direction of fluid flow during contact metamorphism of siliceous carbonate rocks: new data for the Monzoni and Predazzo aureoles, northern Italy, and a global review

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ferry, John; Wing, Boswell; Penniston-Dorland, Sarah; Rumble, Douglas

2001-11-01

Periclase formed in siliceous dolomitic marbles during contact metamorphism in the Monzoni and Predazzo aureoles, the Dolomites, northern Italy, by infiltration of the carbonate rocks by chemically reactive, H2O-rich fluids at 500 bar and 565-710 °C. The spatial distribution of periclase and oxygen isotope compositions is consistent with reactive fluid flow that was primarily vertical and upward in both aureoles with time-integrated flux 5,000 and 300 mol fluid/cm2 rock in the Monzoni and Predazzo aureoles, respectively. The new results for Monzoni and Predazzo are considered along with published studies of 13 other aureoles to draw general conclusions about the direction, amount, and controls on the geometry of reactive fluid flow during contact metamorphism of siliceous carbonate rocks. Flow in 12 aureoles was primarily vertically upward with and without a horizontal component directed away from the pluton. Fluid flow in two of the other three was primarily horizontal, directed from the pluton into the aureole. The direction of flow in the remaining aureole is uncertain. Earlier suggestions that fluid flow is often horizontal, directed toward the pluton, are likely explained by an erroneous assumption that widespread coexisting mineral reactants and products represent arrested prograde decarbonation reactions. With the exception of three samples from one aureole, time-integrated fluid flux was in the range 102-104 mol/cm2. Both the amount and direction of fluid flow are consistent with hydrodynamic models of contact metamorphism. The orientation of bedding and lithologic contacts appears to be the principal control over whether fluid flow was either primarily vertical or horizontal. Other pre-metamorphic structures, including dikes, faults, fold hinges, and fracture zones, served to channel fluid flow as well.

Numerical groundwater-flow model of the Minnelusa and Madison hydrogeologic units in the Rapid City area, South Dakota

USGS Publications Warehouse

Putnam, Larry D.; Long, Andrew J.

2009-01-01

The city of Rapid City and other water users in the Rapid City area obtain water supplies from the Minnelusa and Madison aquifers, which are contained in the Minnelusa and Madison hydrogeologic units. A numerical groundwater-flow model of the Minnelusa and Madison hydrogeologic units in the Rapid City area was developed to synthesize estimates of water-budget components and hydraulic properties, and to provide a tool to analyze the effect of additional stress on water-level altitudes within the aquifers and on discharge to springs. This report, prepared in cooperation with the city of Rapid City, documents a numerical groundwater-flow model of the Minnelusa and Madison hydrogeologic units for the 1,000-square-mile study area that includes Rapid City and the surrounding area. Water-table conditions generally exist in outcrop areas of the Minnelusa and Madison hydrogeologic units, which form generally concentric rings that surround the Precambrian core of the uplifted Black Hills. Confined conditions exist east of the water-table areas in the study area. The Minnelusa hydrogeologic unit is 375 to 800 feet (ft) thick in the study area with the more permeable upper part containing predominantly sandstone and the less permeable lower part containing more shale and limestone than the upper part. Shale units in the lower part generally impede flow between the Minnelusa hydrogeologic unit and the underlying Madison hydrogeologic unit; however, fracturing and weathering may result in hydraulic connections in some areas. The Madison hydrogeologic unit is composed of limestone and dolomite that is about 250 to 610 ft thick in the study area, and the upper part contains substantial secondary permeability from solution openings and fractures. Recharge to the Minnelusa and Madison hydrogeologic units is from streamflow loss where streams cross the outcrop and from infiltration of precipitation on the outcrops (areal recharge). MODFLOW-2000, a finite-difference groundwater-flow model, was used to simulate flow in the Minnelusa and Madison hydrogeologic units with five layers. Layer 1 represented the fractured sandstone layers in the upper 250 ft of the Minnelusa hydrogeologic unit, and layer 2 represented the lower part of the Minnelusa hydrogeologic unit. Layer 3 represented the upper 150 ft of the Madison hydrogeologic unit, and layer 4 represented the less permeable lower part. Layer 5 represented an approximation of the underlying Deadwood aquifer to simulate upward flow to the Madison hydrogeologic unit. The finite-difference grid, oriented 23 degrees counterclockwise, included 221 rows and 169 columns with a square cell size of 492.1 ft in the detailed study area that surrounded Rapid City. The northern and southern boundaries for layers 1-4 were represented as no-flow boundaries, and the boundary on the east was represented with head-dependent flow cells. Streamflow recharge was represented with specified-flow cells, and areal recharge to layers 1-4 was represented with a specified-flux boundary. Calibration of the model was accomplished by two simulations: (1) steady-state simulation of average conditions for water years 1988-97 and (2) transient simulations of water years 1988-97 divided into twenty 6-month stress periods. Flow-system components represented in the model include recharge, discharge, and hydraulic properties. The steady-state streamflow recharge rate was 42.2 cubic feet per second (ft3/s), and transient streamflow recharge rates ranged from 14.1 to 102.2 ft3/s. The steady-state areal recharge rate was 20.9 ft3/s, and transient areal recharge rates ranged from 1.1 to 98.4 ft3/s. The upward flow rate from the Deadwood aquifer to the Madison hydrogeologic unit was 6.3 ft3/s. Discharge included springflow, water use, flow to overlying units, and regional outflow. The estimated steady-state springflow of 32.8 ft3/s from seven springs was similar to the simulated springflow of 31.6 ft3/s, which included 20.5 ft3

Development, Calibration and Deployment of an Electromagnetic Flowmeter for Cross-Hole Hydrogeologic Experiments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Slovacek, A. E.; Fisher, A. T.; Kirkwood, W.; Wheat, C. G.; Maughan, T.; Gomes, K.

2011-12-01

We developed an autonomous electromagnetic flowmeter as part of a cross-hole hydrogeologic experiment using subseafloor borehole observatories (CORKs) that penetrate into the volcanic ocean crust. The cylindrical flowmeter is adapted from a conventional industrial tool and hardened for use at water depths up to 6000 m. In addition, the electronics were modified with a new power controller, and a data logger and communication board was added to enable data storage and long-term, autonomous use for up to eight years. The flowmeter generates a magnetic field and measures a voltage gradient that is created across the orifice as water moves through it. This kind of tool is ideally suited for use in the deep sea, particularly for measuring hydrothermal fluids emanating from the ocean crust, because it requires no moving parts, places no obstructions along the flow path, gives total flow volume as well as instantaneous flow rate, and is highly accurate across a large dynamic range, including bi-directional flow. This flowmeter was deployed on a CORK wellhead using an adapter and ring clamp system located above a 4-inch ball valve. The ball valve can be opened to permit flow (from an overpressured formation) out of the CORK and into the overlying ocean. A polyvinyl chloride "chimney" positioned vertically above the flowmeter is instrumented with autonomous temperature loggers to permit an additional estimate of fluid flow rates with time, based on heat loss during fluid ascent, and to facilitate fluid sampling. Calibration of the new flowmeter was completed in two stages: tank testing using a pump at flow rates of 0.5 to 1.2 L/s, and by lowering the flowmeter on a wireline at sea at rates equivalent to 0.5 to 5.2 L/s. A cross plot of apparent and reference flow rates obtained during calibration indicates a highly linear instrument response. Comparison of instantaneous (once per minute) and integrated (total flow) data collected during calibration indicates good agreement, although the instantaneous data tended to be noisy because of irregularity of flow (turbulence). The flowmeter was deployed in Summer 2011 on a CORK installed in IODP Hole 1362B, on the eastern flank of the Juan de Fuca ridge. Once the flowmeter was attached to the wellhead, the underlying ball valve was opened, which allowed overpressured fluids from the permeable ocean crust to flow upward and out of the seafloor at 5 to 10 L/s (estimated rate). Changes in formation fluid pressure resulting from this flow are being monitored in four additional CORKs located 310 to 2320 m away from Hole 1362B, which will allow large-scale, directional assessment of formation properties. The flowmeter is recording data for instantaneous flow rate and total flow once per hour, and will be recovered to permit collection and analysis of experimental data during a servicing visit in Summer 2012.

A morphological study of vertical ionospheric flows in the high-latitude F region

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

Loranc, M.; St.-Maurice, J.P.; Hanson, W.B.

1991-03-01

The authors have studied the vertical bulk ion drift data recorded by the DE 2 satellite between 200 and 1,000 km altitudes. For this data set, they have found that field-aligned ion flows between 100 m s{sup {minus}1} and 3 km s{sup {minus}1} are a common occurence in the high-latitude F region. The flows are predominantly upward near the cusp region and throughout the auroral zone. Strong downward flows of somewhat smaller magnitude are also recorded but mostly over the polar cap. These statements are true for all drift speeds in excess of 50 m s{sup {minus}1} and for allmore » altitudes and magnetic activity levels sampled. The morphology of low-altitude upward flowing ions agrees well with the morphology of outflowing ions, ion beams, and ion conics observed at much higher altitudes, but the low-altitude fluxes are often considerably greater. This suggests that a large fraction of the upflowing ions actually returns to the ionosphere, to be observed as large downward ion fluxes. They propose that upflowing ion events are generated by sudden large changes in the ion temperature below the neutral exobase, where ion frictional heating dominates the ion energy balance. The sudden changes in temperature occur when the horizontal velocity of a convecting field tube increases rapidly in regions like the cusp.« less

Hydrogeology and ground-water flow in the Memphis and Fort Pillow aquifers in the Memphis area, Tennessee

USGS Publications Warehouse

Brahana, J.V.; Broshears, R.E.

2001-01-01

On the basis of known hydrogeology of the Memphis and Fort Pillow aquifers in the Memphis area, a three-layer, finite-difference numerical model was constructed and calibrated as the primary tool to refine understanding of flow in the aquifers. The model was calibrated and tested for accuracy in simulating measured heads for nine periods of transient flow from 1886-1985. Testing and sensitivity analyses indicated that the model accurately simulated observed heads areally as well as through time. The study indicates that the flow system is currently dominated by the distribution of pumping in relation to the distribution of areally variable confining units. Current withdrawal of about 200 million gallons per day has altered the prepumping flow paths, and effectively captured most of the water flowing through the aquifers. Ground-water flow is controlled by the altitude and location of sources of recharge and discharge, and by the hydraulic characteristics of the hydrogeologic units. Leakage between the Fort Pillow aquifer and Memphis aquifer, and between the Memphis aquifer and the water-table aquifers (alluvium and fluvial deposits) is a major component of the hydrologic budget. The study indicates that more than 50 percent of the water withdrawn from the Memphis aquifer in 1980 is derived from vertical leakage across confining units, and the leakage from the shallow aquifer (potential source of contamination) is not uniformly distributed. Simulated leakage was concentrated along the upper reaches of the Wolf and Loosahatchie Rivers, along the upper reaches of Nonconnah Creek, and the surficial aquifer of the Mississippi River alluvial plain. These simulations are supported by the geologic and geophysical evidence suggesting relatively thin or sandy confining units in these general locations. Because water from surficial aquifers is inferior in quality and more susceptible to contamination than water in the deeper aquifers, high rates of leakage to the Memphis aquifer may be cause for concern. A significant component of flow (12 percent) discharging from the Fort Pillow aquifer was calculated as upward leakage to the Memphis aquifer. This upward leakage was generally limited to areas near major pumping centers in the Memphis aquifer, where heads in the Memphis aquifer have been drawn significantly below heads in the Fort Pillow aquifer. Although the Fort Pillow aquifer is not capable of producing as much water as the Memphis aquifer for similar conditions, it is nonetheless a valuable resource throughout the area.

Trends in Hospitalization and Mortality Rates Due to Acute Cardiovascular Disease in Castile and León, 2001 to 2015.

PubMed

López-Messa, Juan B; Andrés-de Llano, Jesús M; López-Fernández, Laura; García-Cruces, Jesús; García-Crespo, Julio; Prieto González, Miryam

2018-02-01

To analyze hospitalization and mortality rates due to acute cardiovascular disease (ACVD). We conducted a cross-sectional study of the hospital discharge database of Castile and León from 2001 to 2015, selecting patients with a principal discharge diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction (AMI), unstable angina, heart failure, or acute ischemic stroke (AIS). Trends in the rates of hospitalization/100 000 inhabitants/y and hospital mortality/1000 hospitalizations/y, overall and by sex, were studied by joinpoint regression analysis. A total of 239 586 ACVD cases (AMI 55 004; unstable angina 15 406; heart failure 111 647; AIS 57 529) were studied. The following statistically significant trends were observed: hospitalization: ACVD, upward from 2001 to 2007 (5.14; 95%CI, 3.5-6.8; P < .005), downward from 2011 to 2015 (3.7; 95%CI, 1.0-6.4; P < .05); unstable angina, downward from 2001 to 2010 (-12.73; 95%CI, -14.8 to -10.6; P < .05); AMI, upward from 2001 to 2003 (15.6; 95%CI, 3.8-28.9; P < .05), downward from 2003 to 2015 (-1.20; 95%CI, -1.8 to -0.6; P < .05); heart failure, upward from 2001 to 2007 (10.70; 95%CI, 8.7-12.8; P < .05), upward from 2007 to 2015 (1.10; 95%CI, 0.1-2.1; P < .05); AIS, upward from 2001 to 2007 (4.44; 95%CI, 2.9-6.0; P < .05). Mortality rates: downward from 2001 to 2015 in ACVD (-1.16; 95%CI, -2.1 to -0.2; P < .05), AMI (-3.37, 95%CI, -4.4 to -2, 3, P < .05), heart failure (-1.25; 95%CI, -2.3 to -0.1; P < .05) and AIS (-1.78; 95%CI, -2.9 to -0.6; P < .05); unstable angina, upward from 2001 to 2007 (24.73; 95%CI, 14.2-36.2; P < .05). The ACVD analyzed showed a rising trend in hospitalization rates from 2001 to 2015, which was especially marked for heart failure, and a decreasing trend in hospital mortality rates, which were similar in men and women. These data point to a stabilization and a decline in hospital mortality, attributable to established prevention measures. Copyright © 2017 Sociedad Española de Cardiología. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Upward-Directed Persuasive Communication and Attribution of Success and Failure toward an Understanding of the Role of Gender.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Andrews, Patricia Hayes

A study was conducted to examine the impact of gender on upward communication (subordinates to superiors) in organizations. It was hypothesized that women would (1) report less self-confidence when approaching a communicative performance situation, (2) rate themselves less successfully following persuasive presentations, and (3) be more likely to…

Experimental study of forced convection heat transfer during upward and downward flow of helium at high pressure and high temperature

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

Francisco Valentin; Narbeh Artoun; Masahiro Kawaji

2015-08-01

Fundamental high pressure/high temperature forced convection experiments have been conducted in support of the development of a Very High Temperature Reactor (VHTR) with a prismatic core. The experiments utilize a high temperature/high pressure gas flow test facility constructed for forced convection and natural circulation experiments. The test section has a single 16.8 mm ID flow channel in a 2.7 m long, 108 mm OD graphite column with four 2.3kW electric heater rods placed symmetrically around the flow channel. This experimental study presents the role of buoyancy forces in enhancing or reducing convection heat transfer for helium at high pressures upmore » to 70 bar and high temperatures up to 873 degrees K. Wall temperatures have been compared among 10 cases covering the inlet Re numbers ranging from 500 to 3,000. Downward flows display higher and lower wall temperatures in the upstream and downstream regions, respectively, than the upward flow cases due to the influence of buoyancy forces. In the entrance region, convection heat transfer is reduced due to buoyancy leading to higher wall temperatures, while in the downstream region, buoyancyinduced mixing causes higher convection heat transfer and lower wall temperatures. However, their influences are reduced as the Reynolds number increases. This experimental study is of specific interest to VHTR design and validation of safety analysis codes.« less

Implementing a conceptual model of physical and chemical soil profile evolution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kirkby, Mike

2017-04-01

When soil profile composition is generalised in terms of the proportion, p, of bedrock remaining (= 1 - depletion ratio), then other soil processes can also be expressed in terms of p, and 'soil depth' described by the integral of (1-p) down to bedrock. Soil profile evolution is expressed as the advance of a sigmoidal weathering front into the critical zone under the action of upward ionic diffusion of weathering products; downward advection of solutes in percolating waters, with loss of (cleanish) water as evapotranspiration and (solute-laden) water as a lateral sub-surface flow increment; and mechanical denudation increment at the surface. Each component responds to the degree of weathering. Percolation is limited by precipitation, evapotranspiration demand and the degree of weathering at each level in the profile which diverts subsurface flow. Mechanical removal rates are considered to broadly increase as weathering proceeds, as grain size and dilation angle decreases. The implication of these assumptions can be examined for steady state profiles, for which observed relationships between mechanical and chemical denudation rates; and between chemical denudation and critical zone depth are reproduced. For non-steady state evolution, these relationships break down, but provide a basis for linking critical zone with hillslope/ landform evolution.

Physical mechanism and numerical simulation of the inception of the lightning upward leader

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

Li Qingmin; Lu Xinchang; Shi Wei

2012-12-15

The upward leader is a key physical process of the leader progression model of lightning shielding. The inception mechanism and criterion of the upward leader need further understanding and clarification. Based on leader discharge theory, this paper proposes the critical electric field intensity of the stable upward leader (CEFISUL) and characterizes it by the valve electric field intensity on the conductor surface, E{sub L}, which is the basis of a new inception criterion for the upward leader. Through numerical simulation under various physical conditions, we verified that E{sub L} is mainly related to the conductor radius, and data fitting yieldsmore » the mathematical expression of E{sub L}. We further establish a computational model for lightning shielding performance of the transmission lines based on the proposed CEFISUL criterion, which reproduces the shielding failure rate of typical UHV transmission lines. The model-based calculation results agree well with the statistical data from on-site operations, which show the effectiveness and validity of the CEFISUL criterion.« less

Slug to churn transition analysis using wire-mesh sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

H. F. Velasco, P.; Ortiz-Vidal, L. E.; Rocha, D. M.; Rodriguez, O. M. H.

2016-06-01

A comparison between some theoretical slug to churn flow-pattern transition models and experimental data is performed. The flow-pattern database considers vertical upward air-water flow at standard temperature and pressure for 50 mm and 32 mm ID pipes. A briefly description of the models and its phenomenology is presented. In general, the performance of the transition models is poor. We found that new experimental studies describing objectively both stable and unstable slug flow-pattern are required. In this sense, the Wire Mesh Sensor (WMS) can assist to that aim. The potential of the WMS is outlined.

Mining review

USGS Publications Warehouse

McCartan, L.; Morse, D.E.; Plunkert, P.A.; Sibley, S.F.

2004-01-01

The average annual growth rate of real gross domestic product (GDP) from the third quarter of 2001 through the second quarter of 2003 in the United States was about 2.6 percent. GDP growth rates in the third and fourth quarters of 2003 were about 8 percent and 4 percent, respectively. The upward trends in many sectors of the U.S. economy in 2003, however, were shared by few of the mineral materials industries. Annual output declined in most nonfuel mining and mineral processing industries, although there was an upward turn toward yearend as prices began to increase.

BORE II

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

Bore II, co-developed by Berkeley Lab researchers Frank Hale, Chin-Fu Tsang, and Christine Doughty, provides vital information for solving water quality and supply problems and for improving remediation of contaminated sites. Termed "hydrophysical logging," this technology is based on the concept of measuring repeated depth profiles of fluid electric conductivity in a borehole that is pumping. As fluid enters the wellbore, its distinct electric conductivity causes peaks in the conductivity log that grow and migrate upward with time. Analysis of the evolution of the peaks enables characterization of groundwater flow distribution more quickly, more cost effectively, and with higher resolutionmore » than ever before. Combining the unique interpretation software Bore II with advanced downhole instrumentation (the hydrophysical logging tool), the method quantifies inflow and outflow locations, their associated flow rates, and the basic water quality parameters of the associated formation waters (e.g., pH, oxidation-reduction potential, temperature). In addition, when applied in conjunction with downhole fluid sampling, Bore II makes possible a complete assessment of contaminant concentration within groundwater.« less

Coupling between Buoyancy Forces and Electroconvective Instability near Ion-Selective Surfaces.

PubMed

Karatay, Elif; Andersen, Mathias Bækbo; Wessling, Matthias; Mani, Ali

2016-05-13

Recent investigations have revealed that ion transport from aqueous electrolytes to ion-selective surfaces is subject to electroconvective instability that stems from coupling of hydrodynamics with electrostatic forces. These systems inherently involve fluid density variation set by salinity gradients. However, the coupling between the buoyancy effects and electroconvective instability has not yet been investigated although a wide range of electrochemical systems are naturally prone to these interplaying effects. In this study we thoroughly examine the interplay of gravitational convection and chaotic electroconvection. Our results reveal that buoyant forces can significantly influence the transport rates, otherwise set by electroconvection, when the Rayleigh number Ra of the system exceeds a value Ra∼1000. We show that buoyancy forces can significantly alter the flow patterns in these systems. When the buoyancy acts in the stabilizing direction, it limits the extent of penetration of electroconvection, but without eliminating it. When the buoyancy destabilizes the flow, it alters the electroconvective patterns by introducing upward and downward fingers of respectively light and heavy fluids.

Experimental Investigation of Jet-Induced Mixing of a Large Liquid Hydrogen Storage Tank

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lin, C. S.; Hasan, M. M.; Vandresar, N. T.

1994-01-01

Experiments have been conducted to investigate the effect of fluid mixing on the depressurization of a large liquid hydrogen storage tank. The test tank is approximately ellipsoidal, having a volume of 4.89 m(exp 3) and an average wall heat flux of 4.2 W/m(exp 2) due to external heat input. A mixer unit was installed near the bottom of the tank to generate an upward directed axial jet flow normal to the liquid-vapor interface. Mixing tests were initiated after achieving thermally stratified conditions in the tank either by the introduction of hydrogen gas into the tank or by self-pressurization due to ambient heat leak through the tank wall. The subcooled liquid jet directed towards the liquid-vapor interface by the mixer induced vapor condensation and caused a reduction in tank pressure. Tests were conducted at two jet submergence depths for jet Reynolds numbers from 80,000 to 495,000 and Richardson numbers from 0.014 to 0.52. Results show that the rate of tank pressure change is controlled by the competing effects of subcooled jet flow and the free convection boundary layer flow due to external tank wall heating. It is shown that existing correlations for mixing time and vapor condensation rate based on small scale tanks may not be applicable to large scale liquid hydrogen systems.

Geochronological and mineralogical constraints on depth of emplacement and ascencion rates of epidote-bearing magmas from northeastern Brazil

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sial, Alcides N.; Vasconcelos, Paulo M.; Ferreira, Valderez P.; Pessoa, Ricardo R.; Brasilino, Roberta G.; Morais Neto, João M.

2008-10-01

Calc-alkalic to high-K calc-alkalic granitoid plutons in the Borborema province, northeastern Brazil, have been studied to constrain depth of emplacement by mineralogical and geological methods and to estimate upward magma transport rate based on partial dissolution of magmatic epidote. Laser-probe incremental heating 40Ar/ 39Ar dating of biotite and hornblende single crystals from the Neoproterozoic Tavares and Brejinho high-K calc-alkalic magmatic epidote (mEp)-bearing plutons reveals age differences of around 60 M.y. between these two minerals in each of these two intrusions. These data suggest solidification at relatively great depth followed by prolonged cooling interval between the closure temperatures of biotite and hornblende. Al-in-hornblende barometry indicates that hornblende in several mEp-bearing plutons in the Transversal Domain of the Borborema province solidified at 5 to 7 kbar, whereas in the Seridó and Macururé terranes, solidification pressures range from 3 to 4 kbar. Partial dissolution of epidote indicates very rapid upward transport. Partial corrosion occurred during 15-35 years (Cachoerinha-Salgueiro terrane), 10-30 years (Alto Pajeú), 15 years (Seridó), and 10 years (Macururé) corresponding to upward transport rates of 450-1300, 650-1050, 1200, and 1800 m/year respectively in these four terranes. Rapid upward magma migration in most cases was probably facilitated by diking simultaneous with regional shearing.

MHD Modelling of Coronal Loops: Injection of High-Speed Chromospheric Flows

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Petralia, A.; Reale, F.; Orlando, S.; Klimchuk, J. A.

2014-01-01

Context. Observations reveal a correspondence between chromospheric type II spicules and bright upward-moving fronts in the corona observed in the extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) band. However, theoretical considerations suggest that these flows are probably not the main source of heating in coronal magnetic loops. Aims. We investigate the propagation of high-speed chromospheric flows into coronal magnetic flux tubes and the possible production of emission in the EUV band. Methods. We simulated the propagation of a dense 104 K chromospheric jet upward along a coronal loop by means of a 2D cylindrical MHD model that includes gravity, radiative losses, thermal conduction, and magnetic induction. The jet propagates in a complete atmosphere including the chromosphere and a tenuous cool (approximately 0.8 MK) corona, linked through a steep transition region. In our reference model, the jet initial speed is 70 km per second, its initial density is 10(exp 11) per cubic centimeter, and the ambient uniform magnetic field is 10 G. We also explored other values of jet speed and density in 1D and different magnetic field values in 2D, as well as the jet propagation in a hotter (approximately 1.5 MK) background loop. Results. While the initial speed of the jet does not allow it to reach the loop apex, a hot shock-front develops ahead of it and travels to the other extreme of the loop. The shock front compresses the coronal plasma and heats it to about 10(exp 6) K. As a result, a bright moving front becomes visible in the 171 Angstrom channel of the SDO/AIA mission. This result generally applies to all the other explored cases, except for the propagation in the hotter loop. Conclusions. For a cool, low-density initial coronal loop, the post-shock plasma ahead of upward chromospheric flows might explain at least part of the observed correspondence between type II spicules and EUV emission excess.

Time-lapse analysis of gravitropism in Ceratodon protonemata

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Young, J. C.; Sack, F. D.

1992-01-01

The tip cell of the protonema of the moss Ceratodon purpureus (Hedw.) Brid. is negatively gravitropic when grown in the dark on supplemented agar. Gravitropism, plastid distribution, and plastid movement were studied in living cells using time-lapse video microscopy and infrared light. A wrong-way (downward) curvature preceded upward curvature and was detected as early as 2 minutes after reorientation. Upward curvature began 30-45 minutes after reorientation to the horizontal. Cell division temporarily reversed upward curvature, but did not inhibit wrong-way curvature. Since significant amyloplast sedimentation always occurred before the start of upward curvature, it is possible that these amyloplasts function as statoliths for upward curvature. However, no significant amyloplast sedimentation occurred before wrong-way curvature. Thus, this early phase of gravitropism cannot require plastid sedimentation for gravity sensing. Most plastids moved within and between zones, and plastid zonation was highly dynamic. Plastids moved toward the apex and toward the base of the cell at rates much slower than cytoplasmic streaming. Despite the dynamic nature of plastid movement and zonation, during upward curvature the distance between sedimented plastids and the apex stayed constant. Time-lapse analysis has revealed intriguing events not readily seen previously using destructive sampling.

Labor Market Structure, Intragenerational Mobility, and Discrimination: Black Male Advancement out of Low-Paying Occupations, 1962-1973

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Power, Marshall I.

1986-01-01

Comparison of intragenerational mobility of black and white men shows the following: (1) black upward mobility is less frequent and more restricted; (2) blacks within the public sector have substantial rates of upward mobility to nonmanagerial positions; and (3) discrimination against blacks in the labor market has not disappeared. (Author/PS)

Hydrology of the coastal sabkhas of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sanford, Ward E.; Wood, Warren W.

2001-01-01

Water fluxes were estimated and a water budget developed for the land surface and a surficial 10-m-deep section of the coastal sabkhas that extend from the city of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, west to the border with Saudi Arabia. The fluxes were estimated on the basis of water levels and hydraulic conductivities measured in wells and evaporation rates measured with a humidity chamber. In contrast with conceptual models proposed in earlier studies, groundwater inflow is estimated to be small, whereas the largest components of the water budget are recharge from rainfall and evaporation from the water table. Estimates within a rectilinear volume of sabkha, defined as 1 m wide by 10 km long by 10 m deep, indicate that about 1 m3/year of water enters and exits by lateral groundwater flow; 40–50 m3/year enters by upward leakage; and 640 m3/year enters by recharge from rainfall. Based on the water and solute fluxes estimated for the upward leakage into the sabkha, 7–8 pore volumes of brine have entered the sabkha from below since the time the sabkha became saturated (7,000 years ago) as a result of the last global sea-level rise.

A new numerical benchmark for variably saturated variable-density flow and transport in porous media

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guevara, Carlos; Graf, Thomas

2016-04-01

In subsurface hydrological systems, spatial and temporal variations in solute concentration and/or temperature may affect fluid density and viscosity. These variations could lead to potentially unstable situations, in which a dense fluid overlies a less dense fluid. These situations could produce instabilities that appear as dense plume fingers migrating downwards counteracted by vertical upwards flow of freshwater (Simmons et al., Transp. Porous Medium, 2002). As a result of unstable variable-density flow, solute transport rates are increased over large distances and times as compared to constant-density flow. The numerical simulation of variable-density flow in saturated and unsaturated media requires corresponding benchmark problems against which a computer model is validated (Diersch and Kolditz, Adv. Water Resour, 2002). Recorded data from a laboratory-scale experiment of variable-density flow and solute transport in saturated and unsaturated porous media (Simmons et al., Transp. Porous Medium, 2002) is used to define a new numerical benchmark. The HydroGeoSphere code (Therrien et al., 2004) coupled with PEST (www.pesthomepage.org) are used to obtain an optimized parameter set capable of adequately representing the data set by Simmons et al., (2002). Fingering in the numerical model is triggered using random hydraulic conductivity fields. Due to the inherent randomness, a large number of simulations were conducted in this study. The optimized benchmark model adequately predicts the plume behavior and the fate of solutes. This benchmark is useful for model verification of variable-density flow problems in saturated and/or unsaturated media.

Analysis of Ballast Water Sampling Port Designs Using Computational Fluid Dynamics

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-02-01

straight, vertical, upward-flowing pipe having a sample port diameter between 1.5 and 2.0 times the basic isokinetic diameter as defined in this report...water, flow modeling, sample port, sample pipe, particle trajectory, isokinetic sampling 18. Distribution Statement This document is available to...2.0 times the basic isokinetic diameter as defined in this report. Sample ports should use ball valves for isolation purposes and diaphragm or

Closed depression topography and Harps soil, revisited

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The Harps soil (Fine-loamy, mixed superactive, mesic Typic Calciaquoll) developed around wetland depressions. The purpose of this study is 1) to delineate surface deposition of carbonates representing Harps soil which results from outward and upward flow around closed depressions, and 2) to relate t...

Method and apparatus for flash evaporation of liquids

DOEpatents

Bharathan, Desikan

1984-01-01

A vertical tube flash evaporator for introducing a superheated liquid into a flash evaporation chamber includes a vertical inlet tube with a flared diffuser portion at its upper outlet end. A plurality of annular screens are positioned in axially spaced-apart relation to each other around the periphery of the vertical tube and below the diffuser portion thereof. The screens are preferably curved upward in a cup-shaped configuration. These flash evaporators are shown in an ocean thermal energy conversion unit designed for generating electric power from differential temperature gradients in ocean water. The method of use of the flash evaporators of this invention includes flowing liquid upwardly through the vertical tube into the diffuser where initial expansion and boiling occurs quite violently and explosively. Unvaporized liquid sheets and drops collide with each other to enhance surface renewal and evaporation properties, and liquid flowing over the outlet end of the diffuser falls onto the curved screens for further surface renewal and evaporation.

Method and apparatus for flash evaporation of liquids

DOEpatents

Bharathan, D.

1984-01-01

A vertical tube flash evaporator for introducing a super-heated liquid into a flash evaporation chamber includes a vertical inlet tube with a flared diffuser portion at its upper outlet end. A plurality of annular screens are positioned in axially spaced-apart relation to each other around the periphery of the vertical tube and below the diffuser portion thereof. The screens are preferably curved upward in a cup-shaped configuration. These flash evaporators are shown in an ocean thermal energy conversion unit designed for generating electric power from differential temperature gradients in ocean water. The method of use of the flash evaporators of this invention includes flowing liquid upwardly through the vertical tube into the diffuser where initial expansion and boiling occurs quite violently and explosively. Unvaporized liquid sheets and drops collide with each other to enhance surface renewal and evaporation properties, and liquid flowing over the outlet end of the diffuser falls onto the curved screens for further surface renewal and evaporation.

Earthquake forewarning — A multidisciplinary challenge from the ground up to space

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Freund, Friedemann

2013-08-01

Most destructive earthquakes nucleate at between 5-7 km and about 35-40 km depth. Before earthquakes, rocks are subjected to increasing stress. Not every stress increase leads to rupture. To understand pre-earthquake phenomena we note that igneous and high-grade metamorphic rocks contain defects which, upon stressing, release defect electrons in the oxygen anion sublattice, known as positive holes. These charge carriers are highly mobile, able to flow out of stressed rocks into surrounding unstressed rocks. They form electric currents, which emit electromagnetic radiation, sometimes in pulses, sometimes sustained. The arrival of positive holes at the ground-air interface can lead to air ionization, often exclusively positive. Ionized air rising upward can lead to cloud condensation. The upward flow of positive ions can lead to instabilities in the mesosphere, to mesospheric lightning, to changes in the Total Electron Content (TEC) at the lower edge of the ionosphere, and electric field turbulences. Advances in deciphering the earthquake process can only be achieved in a broadly multidisciplinary spirit.

Thermal coupling of conjugate ionospheres and the tilt of the earth's magnetic field

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Richards, P. G.; Torr, D. G.

1986-01-01

The effect of thermal coupling and the tilt of the earth's magnetic field on interhemispheric coupling is investigated, and, due to a longitudinal displacement in the conjugate points, it is found that the tilt significantly effects the upward flow of H(+) flux such that the maximum upward flux can occur several hours before local sunrise. Heating from the conjugate atmosphere, which accompanies solar illumination in one hemisphere, produces electron temperatures 1000 K higher in the dark than in the sunlit hemisphere, and the morning upward H(+) fluxes in the dark ionosphere are as large as the daytime fluxes. A strong symmetry is also noted in the overall behavior of the H(+) fluxes due to the differing day lengths at the conjugate points, which are separated by 15 deg in latitude. Electron temperatures in the conjugate hemispheres are found to be strongly coupled above the F region peaks, though in the vicinity of the peaks near 250 km, the coupling is weak during the day and strong during the night.

Trend of heat flow in france: relation with deep structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vasseur, Guy; Nouri, Yamina; Groupe Fluxchaf

1980-06-01

The trend of heat flow over France is discussed using both direct measurements at equilibrium in boreholes and file data. The two types of data are found to be in agreement. They exhibit high heat flow values over the Massif Central and the Vosges. An E-W cross section across the Massif Central allows us to observe the relationship between the high heat flow values, the thinning of the crust and the uprising of the asthenosphere deduced from seismic and gravity measurements. High heat flow values could be explained using a cinematic model where upward convection occurs in the upper mantle for a period of 40 m.y. with a vertical velocity reaching 5 mm/y.

Intensity of Upward Muon Flux Due to Cosmic-Ray Neutrinos Produced in the Atmosphere

DOE R&D Accomplishments Database

Lee, T. D.; Robinson, H.; Schwartz, M.; Cool, R.

1963-06-01

Calculations were performed to determine the upward going muon flux leaving the earth's surface after production by cosmic-ray neutrinos in the crust. Only neutrinos produced in the earth's atmosphere are considered. Rates of the order of one per 100 sq m/day might be expected if an intermediate boson exists and has a mass less than 2 Bev. (auth)

Evaluation of borehole geophysical logs at the Sharon Steel Farrell Works Superfund site, Mercer County, Pennsylvania

USGS Publications Warehouse

McAuley, Steven D.

2004-01-01

On April 14?15, 2003, geophysical logging was conducted in five open-borehole wells in and adjacent to the Sharon Steel Farrell Works Superfund Site, Mercer County, Pa. Geophysical-logging tools used included caliper, natural gamma, single-point resistance, fluid temperature, and heatpulse flowmeter. The logs were used to determine casing depth, locate subsurface fractures, identify water-bearing fractures, and identify and measure direction and rate of vertical flow within the borehole. The results of the geophysical logging were used to determine the placement of borehole screens, which allows monitoring of water levels and sampling of water-bearing zones so that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency can conduct an investigation of contaminant movement in the fractured bedrock. Water-bearing zones were identified in three of five boreholes at depths ranging from 46 to 119 feet below land surface. Borehole MR-3310 (MW03D) showed upward vertical flow from 71 to 74 feet below land surface to a receiving zone at 63-68 feet below land surface, permitting potential movement of ground water, and possibly contaminants, from deep to shallow zones. No vertical flow was measured in the other four boreholes.

Thermospheric neutral density estimates from heater-induced ion up-flow at EISCAT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kosch, Michael; Ogawa, Yasunobu; Yamazaki, Yosuke; Vickers, Hannah; Blagoveshchenskaya, Nataly

We exploit a recently-developed technique to estimate the upper thermospheric neutral density using measurements of ionospheric plasma parameters made by the EISCAT UHF radar during ionospheric modification experiments. Heating the electrons changes the balance between upward plasma pressure gradient and downward gravity, resulting in ion up-flow up to ~200 m/s. This field-aligned flow is retarded by collisions, which is directly related to the neutral density. Whilst the ion up-flow is consistent with the plasma pressure gradient, the estimated thermospheric neutral density depends on the assumed composition, which varies with altitude. Results in the topside ionosphere are presented.

FUEL SUBASSEMBLY CONSTRUCTION FOR RADIAL FLOW IN A NUCLEAR REACTOR

DOEpatents

Treshow, M.

1962-12-25

An assembly of fuel elements for a boiling water reactor arranged for radial flow of the coolant is described. The ingress for the coolant is through a central header tube, perforated with parallel circumferertial rows of openings each having a lip to direct the coolant flow downward. Around the central tube there are a number of equally spaced concentric trays, closely fitiing the central header tube. Cylindrical fuel elements are placed in a regular pattern around the central tube, piercing the trays. A larger tube encloses the arrangement, with space provided for upward flow of coolart beyond the edge of the trays. (AEC)

A comparison of quality of present-day heat flow obtained from BHTs, Horner Plots of Malay Basin

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

Waples, D.W.; Mahadir, R.

1994-07-01

Reconciling temperature data obtained from measurement of single BHT, multiple BHT at a single depth, RFTs, and DSTs, is very difficult. Quality of data varied widely, however DST data were assumed to be most reliable. Data from 87 wells was used in this study, but only 47 wells have DST data. BASINMOD program was used to calculate the present-day heat flow, using measured thermal conductivity and calibrated against the DST data. The heat flows obtained from the DST data were assumed to be correct and representative throughout the basin. Then, heat flows using (1) uncorrected RFT data, (2) multiple BHTmore » data corrected by the Horner plot method, and (3) single BHT values corrected upward by a standard 10% were calculated. All of these three heat-flow populations had identically standard deviations to that for the DST data, but with significantly lower mean values. Correction factors were calculated to give each of the three erroneous populations the same mean value as the DST population. Heat flows calculated from RFT data had to be corrected upward by a factor of 1.12 to be equivalent to DST data; Horner plot data corrected by a factor of 1.18, and single BHT data by a factor of 1.2. These results suggest that present-day subsurface temperatures using RFT, Horner plot, and BHT data are considerably lower than they should be. The authors suspect qualitatively similar results would be found in other areas. Hence, they recommend significant corrections be routinely made until local calibration factors are established.« less

Quantifying exchange between groundwater and surface water in rarely measured organic sediments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rosenberry, D. O.; Cavas, M.; Keith, D.; Gefell, M. J.; Jones, P. M.

2016-12-01

Transfer of water and chemicals between poorly competent organic sediments and surface water in low-energy riverine and lentic settings depends on several factors, including rate and direction of flow, redox state, number and type of benthic invertebrates, and chemical gradients at and near the sediment-water interface. In spite of their commonly large areal extent, direct measurements of flow in soft, organic sediments are rarely made and little is known about flux direction, rate, or heterogeneity. Commonly used monitoring wells are difficult to install and suffer from slow response to changing hydraulic head due to the low permeability of these sediments. Seepage meters can directly quantify seepage flux if several challenges can be overcome. Meters are difficult to install and operate where water is deep, visibility is poor, and the position of the sediment-water interface is not readily apparent. Soft, easily eroded sediment can be displaced during meter installation, creating bypass flow beneath the bottom of the seepage cylinder. Poorly competent sediments often cannot support the weight of the meters; they slowly sink into the bed and displace water inside the seepage cylinder, which leads to the interpretation of large upward flow. Decaying organic material within the sediment generates gas that can displace water and corrupt seepage-meter measurements. Several inexpensive modifications to a standard seepage meter, as well as precautions during installation and operation, can minimize these sources of error. Underwater video cameras can be mounted to the meter to remotely observe sediment disturbance during sensor installation and monitor the stability of the meter insertion depth during the period of deployment. Anchor rods can be driven a meter or more into the sediment until refusal, firmly anchoring the seepage meter at a constant sediment insertion depth. Data collected from modified seepage meters installed in Minnesota and New York demonstrate the importance of quantifying flows in these challenging settings where biogeochemistry is complex and seepage rates commonly have been assumed to be insignificantly small.

Hydrogeologic framework and simulation of shallow ground-water flow in the vicinity of a hazardous-waste landfill near Pinewood, South Carolina

USGS Publications Warehouse

Vroblesky, D.A.

1994-01-01

The geologic units in the vicinity of a hazardous- waste landfill near Pinewood, S.C., were divided into hydrogeologic units on the basis of lithologic and hydrologic characteristics. A quasi-3- dimensional finite-difference ground-water-flow model was constructed to represent the hydrogeologic flamework. The simulation results indicate that if non-reactive constituents were released to the Lang Syne water-bearing zone underlying the central and western pans of the disposal area, the constituents would move in a southwesterly direction at a rate of about one-half to 7 feet per year. Contaminants could move from the Lang Syne water-bearing zone upward to the surficial aquifer, to streams, or to Lake Marion. Although these flow rates indicate that it would require at least 50 years for contaminants to travel between the disposal area and a nearby (400 ft) potential discharge area, the heterogeneity of the site hydrogeology imparts an uncertainty to the conclusion. Faster travel times cannot be ruled out if contamination enters an area having a higher hydraulic conductivity than those determined in this investigation. Faster arrival times at Lake Marion also could result if there are pathways shorter than about 400 feet between contaminated water and an area where it can discharge to the surficial aquifer or to streams. If contaminant releases were to occur on the eastern side of the ground-water mounds, near landfill section II and the southeastern part of land fill section I, initial flow directions would be toward the water-level depression in the eastern part of the facility. Ground water within water- level depression would flow downward, probably to the underlying lower Sawdust Landing water-beating zone. Movement of non-reactive constituents in the tower Sawdust Landing water-bearing zone would be southwestward toward Lake Marion at a rate of about 8 to 20 feet per year. Transport to the lake by this route could require more than 200 years.

CFD Study of Full-Scale Aerobic Bioreactors: Evaluation of Dynamic O2 Distribution, Gas-Liquid Mass Transfer and Reaction

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

Humbird, David; Sitaraman, Hariswaran; Stickel, Jonathan

If advanced biofuels are to measurably displace fossil fuels in the near term, they will have to operate at levels of scale, efficiency, and margin unprecedented in the current biotech industry. For aerobically-grown products in particular, scale-up is complex and the practical size, cost, and operability of extremely large reactors is not well understood. Put simply, the problem of how to attain fuel-class production scales comes down to cost-effective delivery of oxygen at high mass transfer rates and low capital and operating costs. To that end, very large reactor vessels (>500 m3) are proposed in order to achieve favorable economiesmore » of scale. Additionally, techno-economic evaluation indicates that bubble-column reactors are more cost-effective than stirred-tank reactors in many low-viscosity cultures. In order to advance the design of extremely large aerobic bioreactors, we have performed computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations of bubble-column reactors. A multiphase Euler-Euler model is used to explicitly account for the spatial distribution of air (i.e., gas bubbles) in the reactor. Expanding on the existing bioreactor CFD literature (typically focused on the hydrodynamics of bubbly flows), our simulations include interphase mass transfer of oxygen and a simple phenomenological reaction representing the uptake and consumption of dissolved oxygen by submerged cells. The simulations reproduce the expected flow profiles, with net upward flow in the center of column and downward flow near the wall. At high simulated oxygen uptake rates (OUR), oxygen-depleted regions can be observed in the reactor. By increasing the gas flow to enhance mixing and eliminate depleted areas, a maximum oxygen transfer (OTR) rate is obtained as a function of superficial velocity. These insights regarding minimum superficial velocity and maximum reactor size are incorporated into NREL's larger techno-economic models to supplement standard reactor design equations.« less

Huge Super Typhoon Meranti Over Taiwan

Atmospheric Science Data Center

2016-12-30

... 20 meters per second (45 miles per hour) arrow in the key. Hurricanes and typhoons in the Northern Hemisphere rotate counterclockwise due ... from the eye at the storm tops. This is due to the fact that hurricanes draw in moist air at low altitudes, which then flows upwards and ...

Effects of volcano profile on dilute pyroclastic density currents: Numerical simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Doronzo, D. M.; Valentine, G. A.; Dellino, P.; de Tullio, M. D.

2012-04-01

Explosive activity and lava dome collapse at stratovolcanoes can lead to pyroclastic density currents (PDCs; mixtures of volcanic gas, air, and volcanic particles) that produce complex deposits and pose a hazard to surrounding populations. Two-dimensional numerical simulations of dilute PDCs (characterized by a turbulent suspended load and deposition through a bed load) are carried out with the Euler-Lagrange approach of multiphase physics. The fluid phase is modeled as a dusty gas (1.88 kg/m3 dense), and the solid phase is modeled as discrete particles (1 mm, 5 mm, and 10 mm; 1500 kg/m3 dense and irregularly-shaped), which are two-way coupled to the gas, i.e. they affect the fluid turbulence. The initial PDC, which enters a volcano domain 5 km long and 1.9 km high, has the following characteristics: thickness of 200 m, velocity of 20 m/s, temperature of 573 K, turbulence of 5 %, and sediment concentration of 3 % by volume. The actual physics of flow boundary zone is simulated at the PDC base, by monitoring the sediment flux toward the substrate, which acts through the flow boundary zone, and the grain-size distribution. Also, the PDC velocity and dynamic pressure are calculated. The simulations show that PDC transport, deposition, and hazard potential are sensitive to the shape of the volcano slope (profile) down which they flow. In particular, three generic volcano profiles, straight, concave-upward, and convex-upward are focused on. Dilute PDCs that flow down a constant slope gradually decelerate over the simulated run-out distance (5 km in the horizontal direction) due to a combination of sedimentation, which reduces the density of the PDC, and mixing with the atmosphere. However, dilute PDCs down a concave-upward slope accelerate high on the volcano flanks and have less sedimentation until they begin to decelerate over the shallow lower slopes. A convex-upward slope causes dilute PDCs to lose relatively more of their pyroclast load on the upper slopes of a volcano, and although they accelerate as they reach the lower, steeper slopes, the acceleration is reduced because of the upstream loss of pyroclasts (lower density contrast with the atmosphere). The dynamic pressure, a measure of the damage that can be caused by PDCs, reflects these complex relations. Details are found in Valentine et al. (2011). Reference Valentine G.A., Doronzo D.M., Dellino P., de Tullio M.D. (2011), Effects of volcano profile on dilute pyroclastic density currents: Numerical simulations, Geology, 39, 947-950.

Seawater circulation in sediments driven by interactions between seabed topography and fluid density

USGS Publications Warehouse

Konikow, Leonard F.; Akhavan, M.; Langevin, C.D.; Michael, H.A.; Sawyer, A.H.

2013-01-01

Measurements of submarine groundwater discharge (SGD) in coastal areas often show that the saltwater discharge component is substantially greater than the freshwater discharge. Several mechanisms have been proposed to explain these high saltwater discharge values, including saltwater circulation driven by wave and tidal pumping, wave and tidal setup in intertidal areas, currents over bedforms, and density gradients resulting from mixing along the freshwater-saltwater interface. In this study, a new mechanism for saltwater circulation and discharge is proposed and evaluated. The process results from interaction between bedform topography and buoyancy forces, even without flow or current over the bedform. In this mechanism, an inverted salinity (and density) profile in the presence of both a bedform on the seafloor and an upward flow of fresher groundwater from depth induces a downward flow of saline pore water under the troughs and upward flow under the adjacent crest of the bedform. The magnitude and occurrence of the mechanism were tested using numerical methods. The results indicate that this mechanism could drive seawater circulation under a limited range of conditions and contribute 20%–30% of local SGD when and where the process is operative. Bedform shape, hydraulic conductivity, hydraulic head, and salinity at depth in the porous media, aquifer thickness, effective porosity, and hydrodynamic dispersion are among the factors that control the occurrence and magnitude of the circulation of seawater by this mechanism.

Turbulence Measurements from a Moored Platform at Mid-Depth in a Swift Tidal Channel

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hay, Alex; Lueck, Rolf; Wolk, Fabian; McMillan, Justine

2014-05-01

Results are presented from a turbulence experiment with a 3-m long streamlined floatation body, instrumented with velocity shear probes, fast-response thermistors, a 1 MHz Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (AD2CP), and an Acoustic Doppler Velocimeter (ADV). The system was deployed over seven tidal cycles at mid-depth in a 30-m deep tidal channel in the lower Bay of Fundy, Canada. Peak flow speeds exceeded 2 m s-1, and while 10-min time scale average speeds were similar between ebb and flood, the variances were markedly higher during flood. Turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) dissipation rates measured with the shear probes exhibit a pronounced flood/ebb contrast: O(10-4) W kg-1 peak values during flood, but lower by an order of magnitude during ebb. Dissipation rates follow u3 scaling over a wide range of flow speeds between 0.5 and 2.5 m s-1. Below 0.5 m s-1 an asymmetry in the mounting arrangement caused the floatation body to pitch upward, biasing the measured dissipation values high. The ADV on the platform registered mean speed - used to implement Taylor's hypothesis - which was corroborated with the platform-mounted ADCP. Additional ADCPs were also deployed on a nearby bottom pod, sampling at turbulence resolving rates - up to 8 Hz. Comparisons between the shear probe and acoustic estimates of the TKE spectrum and dissipation rate - at comparable depths - are presented.

Summary of Almost 20 Years of Storm Overflight Electric Field, Conductivity, Flash Rates, and Electric Current Statistics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Blakeslee, Richard J.; Mach, Douglas M.; Bateman, Monte J.; Bailey, Jeffrey C.

2011-01-01

We determined total conduction currents and flash rates for around 900 high-altitude aircraft overflights of electrified clouds over 17 years. The overflights include a wide geographical sample of storms over land and ocean, with and without lightning, and with positive (i.e., upward-directed) and negative current. Peak electric field, with lightning transients removed, ranged from -1.0 kV m(sup -1) to 16. kV m(sup -1), with mean (median) of 0.9 kV m(sup -1) (0.29 kV m(sup -1)). Total conductivity at flight altitude ranged from 0.6 pS m(sup -1) to 3.6 pS m(sup -1), with mean and median of 2.2 pS m(sup -1). Peak current densities ranged from -2.0 nA m(sup -2) to 33.0 nA m(sup -2) with mean (median) of 1.9 nA m(sup -2) (0.6 nA m(sup -2)). Total upward current flow from storms in our dataset ranged from -1.3 to 9.4 A. The mean current for storms with lightning is 1.6 A over ocean and 1.0 A over land. The mean current for electrified shower clouds (i.e. electrified storms without lightning) is 0.39 A for ocean and 0.13 A for land. About 78% (43%) of the land (ocean) storms have detectable lightning. Land storms have 2.8 times the mean flash rate as ocean storms (2.2 versus 0.8 flashes min(sup -1), respectively). Approximately 7% of the overflights had negative current. The mean and median currents for positive (negative) polarity storms are 1.0 and 0.35 A (-0.30 and -0.26 A). We found no regional or latitudinal-based patterns in our storm currents, nor support for simple scaling laws between cloud top height and lightning flash rate.

Obseration of flow regime transition in CFB riser using an LDV

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

Yue, Paul C.; Mei, Joseph S.; Shadle, Lawrence J.

2011-01-01

The solids flow in a circulating fluidized bed (CFB) riser is often described to have a core-annular structure. For a given superficial gas velocity, at the initial introduction of solids into a riser a flow structure of dilute upflow regime exists. Continuing to increase the solids flow in the riser transitions the flow structure to the core-annular flow regime. However, with further increase of solids flow a condition is reached, depending on the superficial gas velocity, where all the solids across the riser cross section flow upwards, even those at the wall. When the solids flux, solids fraction and gasmore » velocity are relatively high, such a condition is described as the dense phase suspense upflow (DSU) regime. In this paper we report our observations of these flow regime transitions by using a laser Doppler velocimeter (LDV) to monitor the upward and downward particle flow velocities at and near the riser wall of the National Energy Technology Laboratory’s 30.4 centimeters diameter CFB cold flow model. The particles were high density polyethylene (PPE) spheres with a Sauter mean diameter of 861 micron and a density of 800 kg/m3. Three superficial gas velocities of 6.55 m/s, 10.67 m/s and 13.72 m/s were used in this study. For the case of superficial gas velocity 6.55 m/s, the experimental data show that the transition from dilute upflow to core-annular flow occurred when the solids flux was about 7 kg/m{sup 2}-s and the transition from core-annular flow to dense suspension upflow was about 147 kg/m{sup 2}-s. As the superficial gas velocity was increased to 10.67 m/s the corresponding flow regime transitions were at 34 kg/m{sup 2}-s and 205 kg/m{sup 2}-s, respectively. For the case of superficial gas velocity of 13.72 m/s the data showed no distinct transition of flow regimes. The particles were all upflow for the range of solids fluxes from 10 kg/m{sup 2}-s to 286 kg/m{sup 2}-s.« less

Unmanned Systems Integrated Roadmap, FY2013-2038

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-01-01

29 4.1.7 Sensor Air Drop...Force MQ-1/9 Pilot & Sensor Operator Training Flow ...................................... 106 Figure 39. UAS Training Objectives...the Nation’s 10 years of war wind down, DoD inventories and funding of UGS are expected to decrease in 2014, followed by a gradual upward trend in 2016

Occupational Mobility of Low Income Workers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Slifman, Lawrence

This dissertation is primarily concerned with assessing the impact of changes in the aggregate labor supply-demand balance on the upward occupational mobility of lower income workers. The empirical analysis indicates that the size of inter-occupational flows is cyclically sensitive, given relative wages. As the labor market tightens, the…

Streamflow characteristics and trends in New Jersey, water years 1897-2003

USGS Publications Warehouse

Watson, Kara M.; Reiser, Robert G.; Nieswand, Steven P.; Schopp, Robert D.

2005-01-01

Streamflow statistics were computed for 111 continuous-record streamflow-gaging stations with 20 or more years of continuous record and for 500 low-flow partial-record stations, including 66 gaging stations with less than 20 years of continuous record. Daily mean streamflow data from water year 1897 through water year 2001 were used for the computations at the gaging stations. (The water year is the 12-month period, October 1 through September 30, designated by the calendar year in which it ends). The characteristics presented for the long-term continuous-record stations are daily streamflow, harmonic mean flow, flow frequency, daily flow durations, trend analysis, and streamflow variability. Low-flow statistics for gaging stations with less than 20 years of record and for partial-record stations were estimated by correlating base-flow measurements with daily mean flows at long-term (more than 20 years) continuous-record stations. Instantaneous streamflow measurements through water year 2003 were used to estimate low-flow statistics at the partial-record stations. The characteristics presented for partial-record stations are mean annual flow; harmonic mean flow; and annual and winter low-flow frequency. The annual 1-, 7-, and 30-day low- and high-flow data sets were tested for trends. The results of trend tests for high flows indicate relations between upward trends for high flows and stream regulation, and high flows and development in the basin. The relation between development and low-flow trends does not appear to be as strong as for development and high-flow trends. Monthly, seasonal, and annual precipitation data for selected long-term meteorological stations also were tested for trends to analyze the effects of climate. A significant upward trend in precipitation in northern New Jersey, Climate Division 1 was identified. For Climate Division 2, no general increase in average precipitation was observed. Trend test results indicate that high flows at undeveloped, unregulated sites have not been affected by the increase in average precipitation. The ratio of instantaneous peak flow to 3-day mean flow, ratios of flow duration, ratios of high-flow/low-flow frequency, and coefficient of variation were used to define streamflow variability. Streamflow variability was significantly greater among the group of gaging stations located outside the Coastal Plain than among the group of gaging stations located in the Coastal Plain.

Television Image of a Large Upward Electrical Discharge Above a Thunderstorm System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Franz, R. C.; Nemzek, R. J.; Winckler, J. R.

1990-07-01

An image of an unusual luminous electrical discharge over a thunderstorm 250 kilometers from the observing site has been obtained with a low-light-level television camera. The discharge began at the cloud tops at 14 kilometers and extended into the clear air 20 kilometers higher. The image, which had a duration of less than 30 milliseconds, resembled two jets or fountains and was probably caused by two localized electric charge concentrations at the cloud tops. Large upward discharges may create a hazard for aircraft and rocket launches and, by penetrating into the ionosphere, may initiate whistler waves and other effects on a magnetospheric scale. Such upward electrical discharges may account for unexplained photometric observations of distant lightning events that showed a low rise rate of the luminous pulse and no electromagnetic sferic pulse of the type that accompanies cloud-to-earth lightning strokes. An unusually high rate of such photometric events was recorded during the night of 22 to 23 September 1989 during a storm associated with hurricane Hugo.

Television image of a large upward electrical discharge above a thunderstorm system.

PubMed

Franz, R C; Nemzek, R J; Winckler, J R

1990-07-06

An image of an unusual luminous electrical discharge over a thunderstorm 250 kilometers from the observing site has been obtained with a low-light-level television camera. The discharge began at the cloud tops at 14 kilometers and extended into the clear air 20 kilometers higher. The image, which had a duration of less than 30 milliseconds,resembled two jets or fountains and was probably caused by two localizd electric charge concentrations at the cloud tops. Large upward discharges may create a hazard for aircraft and rocket launches and, by penetrating into the ionosphere, may initiate whistler waves and other effects on a magnetospheric scale. Such upward electrical discharges may account for unexplained photometric observations of distant lightning events that showed a low rise rate of the luminous pulse and no electromagnetic sferic pulse of the type that accompanies cloud-to-earth lightning strokes. An unusually high rate of such photometric events was recorded during the night of 22 to 23 September 1989 during a storm associated with hurricane Hugo.

Premixed Atmosphere and Convection Influences on Flame Inhibition and Combustion (Pacific)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Honda, Linton K.; Ronney, Paul D.

1997-01-01

Flame spread over flat solid fuel beds is a useful paradigm for studying the behavior of more complex two-phase nonpremixed flames. For practical applications, two of the most important elements of flame spreading are the effects of (1) the ambient atmosphere (e.g. pressure and composition) and (2) the flow environment on the spread rate and extinction conditions. Concerning (1), studies of flame spread in vitiated air and non-standard atmospheres such as those found in undersea vessels and spacecraft are particularly important for the assessment of fire hazards in these environments as well as determination of the effectiveness of fire suppressants. Concerning (2), the flow environment may vary widely even when no forced flow is present because of buoyancy effects. Consequently, the goal of this work is to employ microgravity (micro g) experiments to extend previous studies of the effects of ambient atmosphere and the flow environment on flame spread through the use of microgravity (micro g) experiments. Because of the considerable differences between upward (concurrent-flow) and downward (opposed-flow) flame spread at 1g (Williams, 1976, Fernandez-Pello, 1984), in this work both upward and downward 1g spread are tested. Two types of changes to the oxidizing atmosphere are considered in this work. One is the addition of sub-flammability-limit concentrations of a gaseous fuel ('partially premixed' atmospheres). This is of interest because in fires in enclosures, combustion may occur under poorly ventilated conditions, so that oxygen is partially depleted from the air and is replaced by combustible gases such as fuel vapors, H2 or CO. Subsequent fire spread over the solid fuel could occur under conditions of varying oxygen and gaseous fuel content. The potential significance of flame spread under vitiated or partially premixed conditions has been noted previously (Beyler, 1984). The second change is the diluent type, which affects the radiative properties of the mixture as well as the Lewis number (Le) of the reactants in the atmosphere, which for oxygen is defined as the thermal diffusivity of the bulk mixture divided by the mass diffusivity of oxygen into the bulk mixture. Understanding the effect of diluent type is desirable because in some undersea and spaceborne habitations, it is desirable to use diluent gases other than nitrogen. Prior experiments have shown that both radiation (Bhattacharjee and Altenkirch, 1993) and Lewis number (Zhang et al, 1992) effects are important in flame spreading problems.

Convective Instability and Mass Transport of the Diffusion Layer in CO2 Sequestration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Backhaus, S.

2011-12-01

The long-term fate of supercritical (sc) CO2 in saline aquifers is critical to the security of carbon sequestration, an important option for eliminating or reducing the emissions of this most prevalent greenhouse gas. scCO2 is less dense than brine and floats to the top of the aquifer where it is trapped in a metastable state by a geologic feature such as a low permeability cap rock. Dissolution into the underlying brine creates a CO2-brine mixture that is denser than brine, eliminating buoyancy and removing the threat of CO2 escaping back to the atmosphere. If molecular diffusion were the only dissolution mechanism, the CO2 waste stream from a typical large coal-fired electrical power plant may take upward of 10,000 years to no longer pose a threat, however, a convective instability of the dense diffusion boundary layer between the scCO2 and the brine can dramatically increase the dissolution rates, shortening the lifetime of the scCO2 waste pool. We present results of 2D and 3D similitude-correct, laboratory-scale experiments using an analog fluid system. The experiments and flow visualization reveal the onset of the convective instability, the dynamics of the fluid flows during the convective processes, and the long-term mass transfer rates.

Roles of saltcedar (Tamarix spp.) and capillary rise in salinizing a non-flooding terrace on a flow-regulated desert river

USGS Publications Warehouse

Glenn, E.P.; Morino, K.; Nagler, P.L.; Murray, R.S.; Pearlstein, S.; Hultine, K.R.

2012-01-01

Tamarix spp. (saltcedar) secretes salts and has been considered to be a major factor contributing to the salinization of river terraces in western US riparian zones. However, salinization can also occur from the capillary rise of salts from the aquifer into the vadose zone. We investigated the roles of saltcedar and physical factors in salinizing the soil profile of a non-flooding terrace at sites on the Cibola National Wildlife Refuge on the Lower Colorado River, USA. We placed salt traps under and between saltcedar shrubs and estimated the annual deposition rate of salts from saltcedar. These were then compared to the quantities and distribution on of salts in the soil profile. Dense stands of saltcedar deposited 0.159kgm -2yr -1 of salts to the soil surface. If this rate was constant since seasonal flooding ceased in 1938 and all of the salts were retained in the soil profile, they could account for 11.4kgm -2 of salt, about 30% of total salts in the profile today. Eliminating saltcedar would not necessarily reduce salts, because vegetation reduces the upward migration of salts in bulk flow from the aquifer. The densest saltcedar stand had the lowest salt levels in the vadose zone in this study. ?? 2011 Elsevier Ltd.

Brine flow up a borehole caused by pressure perturbation from CO2 storage: Static and dynamic evaluations

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

Birkholzer, J.T.; Nicot, J.-P.; Oldenburg, C.M.

Industrial-scale storage of CO{sub 2} in saline sedimentary basins will cause zones of elevated pressure, larger than the CO{sub 2} plume itself. If permeable conduits (e.g., leaking wells) exist between the injection reservoir and overlying shallow aquifers, brine could be pushed upwards along these conduits and mix with groundwater resources. This paper discusses the potential for such brine leakage to occur in temperature- and salinity-stratified systems. Using static mass-balance calculations as well as dynamic well flow simulations, we evaluate the minimum reservoir pressure that would generate continuous migration of brine up a leaking wellbore into a freshwater aquifer. Since themore » brine invading the well is denser than the initial fluid in the wellbore, continuous flow only occurs if the pressure perturbation in the reservoir is large enough to overcome the increased fluid column weight after full invasion of brine into the well. If the threshold pressure is exceeded, brine flow rates are dependent on various hydraulic (and other) properties, in particular the effective permeability of the wellbore and the magnitude of pressure increase. If brine flow occurs outside of the well casing, e.g., in a permeable fracture zone between the well cement and the formation, the fluid/solute transfer between the migrating fluid and the surrounding rock units can strongly retard brine flow. At the same time, the threshold pressure for continuous flow to occur decreases compared to a case with no fluid/solute transfer.« less

Numerical investigation of saturated upward flow boiling of water in a vertical tube using VOF model: effect of different boundary conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hasanpour, B.; Irandoost, M. S.; Hassani, M.; Kouhikamali, R.

2018-01-01

In this paper a numerical simulation of upward two-phase flow evaporation in a vertical tube has been studied by considering water as working fluid. To this end, the computational fluid dynamic simulations of this system are performed with heat and mass transfer mechanisms due to energy transfer during the phase change interaction near the heat transfer surface. The volume of fluid model in an available Eulerian-Eulerian approach based on finite volume method is utilized and the mass source term in conservation of mass equation is implemented using a user defined function. The characteristics of water flow boiling such as void fraction and heat transfer coefficient distribution are investigated. The main cause of fluctuations on heat transfer coefficient and volume fraction is velocity increment in the vapor phase rather than the liquid phase. The case study of this research including convective heat transfer coefficient and tube diameter are considered as a parametric study. The operating conditions are considered at high pressure in saturation temperature and the physical properties of water are determined by considering system's inlet temperature and pressure in saturation conditions. Good agreement is achieved between the numerical and the experimental values of heat transfer coefficients.

Numerical investigation of saturated upward flow boiling of water in a vertical tube using VOF model: effect of different boundary conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hasanpour, B.; Irandoost, M. S.; Hassani, M.; Kouhikamali, R.

2018-07-01

In this paper a numerical simulation of upward two-phase flow evaporation in a vertical tube has been studied by considering water as working fluid. To this end, the computational fluid dynamic simulations of this system are performed with heat and mass transfer mechanisms due to energy transfer during the phase change interaction near the heat transfer surface. The volume of fluid model in an available Eulerian-Eulerian approach based on finite volume method is utilized and the mass source term in conservation of mass equation is implemented using a user defined function. The characteristics of water flow boiling such as void fraction and heat transfer coefficient distribution are investigated. The main cause of fluctuations on heat transfer coefficient and volume fraction is velocity increment in the vapor phase rather than the liquid phase. The case study of this research including convective heat transfer coefficient and tube diameter are considered as a parametric study. The operating conditions are considered at high pressure in saturation temperature and the physical properties of water are determined by considering system's inlet temperature and pressure in saturation conditions. Good agreement is achieved between the numerical and the experimental values of heat transfer coefficients.

Liquid uranium alloy-helium fission reactor

DOEpatents

Minkov, Vladimir

1986-01-01

This invention teaches a nuclear fission reactor having a core vessel and at least one tandem heat exchanger vessel coupled therewith across upper and lower passages to define a closed flow loop. Nuclear fuel such as a uranium alloy in its liquid phase fills these vessels and flow passages. Solid control elements in the reactor core vessel are adapted to be adjusted relative to one another to control fission reaction of the liquid fuel therein. Moderator elements in the other vessel and flow passages preclude fission reaction therein. An inert gas such as helium is bubbled upwardly through the heat exchanger vessel operable to move the liquid fuel upwardly therein and unidirectionally around the closed loop and downwardly through the core vessel. This helium gas is further directed to heat conversion means outside of the reactor vessels to utilize the heat from the fission reaction to generate useful output. The nuclear fuel operates in the 1200.degree.-1800.degree. C. range, and even higher to 2500.degree. C., limited only by the thermal effectiveness of the structural materials, increasing the efficiency of power generation from the normal 30-35% with 300.degree.-500.degree. C. upper limit temperature to 50-65%. Irradiation of the circulating liquid fuel, as contrasted to only localized irradiation of a solid fuel, provides improved fuel utilization.

Using 14C and 3H to understand groundwater flow and recharge in an aquifer window

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Atkinson, A. P.; Cartwright, I.; Gilfedder, B. S.; Cendón, D. I.; Unland, N. P.; Hofmann, H.

2014-12-01

Knowledge of groundwater residence times and recharge locations is vital to the sustainable management of groundwater resources. Here we investigate groundwater residence times and patterns of recharge in the Gellibrand Valley, southeast Australia, where outcropping aquifer sediments of the Eastern View Formation form an "aquifer window" that may receive diffuse recharge from rainfall and recharge from the Gellibrand River. To determine recharge patterns and groundwater flow paths, environmental isotopes (3H, 14C, δ13C, δ18O, δ2H) are used in conjunction with groundwater geochemistry and continuous monitoring of groundwater elevation and electrical conductivity. The water table fluctuates by 0.9 to 3.7 m annually, implying recharge rates of 90 and 372 mm yr-1. However, residence times of shallow (11 to 29 m) groundwater determined by 14C are between 100 and 10 000 years, 3H activities are negligible in most of the groundwater, and groundwater electrical conductivity remains constant over the period of study. Deeper groundwater with older 14C ages has lower δ18O values than younger, shallower groundwater, which is consistent with it being derived from greater altitudes. The combined geochemistry data indicate that local recharge from precipitation within the valley occurs through the aquifer window, however much of the groundwater in the Gellibrand Valley predominantly originates from the regional recharge zone, the Barongarook High. The Gellibrand Valley is a regional discharge zone with upward head gradients that limits local recharge to the upper 10 m of the aquifer. Additionally, the groundwater head gradients adjacent to the Gellibrand River are generally upwards, implying that it does not recharge the surrounding groundwater and has limited bank storage. 14C ages and Cl concentrations are well correlated and Cl concentrations may be used to provide a first-order estimate of groundwater residence times. Progressively lower chloride concentrations from 10 000 years BP to the present day are interpreted to indicate an increase in recharge rates on the Barongarook High.

Energy mechanics of rock and snow avalanches and the role of fragmentation (invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bartelt, Perry; Buser, Othmar; Glover, James

2014-05-01

The energy mechanics of rock and snow avalanches are traditionally described using a two-step transformation: potential energy is first converted into kinetic energy; kinetic energy is dissipated to heat by frictional processes. If the frictional processes are known, the energy fluxes of avalanches can be calculated completely. The break-up of the released mass, however, introduces several new energy fluxes into the avalanche problem. The first energy is associated with the fragmentation, which generates random particle motions. This is true kinetic energy. Inter-particle interactions (collisions, abrasion, fracture) cause the energy of the random particle motion to dissipate to heat. A constraint on the random motions is the basal boundary. It is at this interface that the dispersive pressure is created by vertical particle motions that are directed upwards into the flow. The integral of the upward particle motions can induce a change in avalanche flow volume and density, depending on the relationship between the weight of the flow and the dispersive pressure. Interestingly, normal pressures will only diverge from hydrostatic when there are changes in flow density. We are therefore confronted with the problem of calculating not only the vertical acceleration of the dispersive pressure, but also the change in vertical acceleration. In this contribution we discuss a method to calculate random particle motions, dispersive pressure and changes in avalanche flow density. These are dependent not only on the absolute mass, but also on the material properties of the disintegrating mass. This becomes particularly interesting when considering the motion of snow and rock avalanches as it allows the prediction of flow regime changes and therefore extreme avalanche run-out potential.

Variations in soil detachment rates after wildfire as a function of soil depth, flow properties, and root properties

USGS Publications Warehouse

Moody, John A.; Nyman, Peter

2013-01-01

Wildfire affects hillslope erosion through increased surface runoff and increased sediment availability, both of which contribute to large post-fire erosion events. Relations between soil detachment rate, soil depth, flow and root properties, and fire impacts are poorly understood and not represented explicitly in commonly used post-fire erosion models. Detachment rates were measured on intact soil cores using a modified tilting flume. The cores were mounted flush with the flume-bed and a measurement was made on the surface of the core. The core was extruded upward, cut off, and another measurement was repeated at a different depth below the original surface of the core. Intact cores were collected from one site burned by the 2010 Fourmile Canyon (FMC) fire in Colorado and from one site burned by the 2010 Pozo fire in California. Each site contained contrasting vegetation and soil types. Additional soil samples were collected alongside the intact cores and were analyzed in the laboratory for soil properties (organic matter, bulk density, particle-size distribution) and for root properties (root density and root-length density). Particle-size distribution and root properties were different between sites, but sites were similar in terms of bulk density and organic matter. Soil detachment rates had similar relations with non-uniform shear stress and non-uniform unit stream power. Detachment rates within single sampling units displayed a relatively weak and inconsistent relation to flow variables. When averaged across all clusters, the detachment rate displayed a linear relation to shear stress, but variability in soil properties meant that the shear stress accounted for only a small proportion of the overall variability in detachment rates (R2 = 0.23; R2 is the coefficient of determination). Detachment rate was related to root-length density in some clusters (R2 values up to 0.91) and unrelated in others (R2 values 2 value improved and the range of exponents became narrower by applying a multivariate regression model where boundary shear stress and root-length density were included as explanatory variables. This suggests that an erodibility parameter which incorporates the effects of both flow and root properties on detachment could improve the representation of sediment availability after wildfire.

A tentative protocol for measurement of radon availability from the ground

USGS Publications Warehouse

Tanner, A.B.

1988-01-01

A procedure is being tested in order to determine its suitability for assessing the intrinsic ability of the ground as a particular site to supply 222Rn to a basement structure to be built on the site. Soil gas is sucked from a borehold probe through an alpha scintillation chamber and flow meter by a pump. The permeability of the soil is calculated from the flow rate and the pressure difference between the atmosphere and the borehold at the intake point. The diffusion coefficient is estimated from the water fraction in the soil pores. The upward migration distance for radon in such soil during one mean life is computed for an arbitrary steady pressure difference. This mean migration distance, multiplied by the measured radon concentration, gives the 'radon availability number'. Measurements at sites of known indoor radon concentration suggest that numbers below 2 kBq ?? m-2 indicate little chance of elevated indoor radon and above 20 kBq ?? m-2 indicate that elevated indoor radon is likely. The range of uncertainty and the point-to-point and seasonal variations to be expected are under investigation.

Coupled discrete element and finite volume solution of two classical soil mechanics problems

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

Chen, Feng; Drumm, Eric; Guiochon, Georges A

One dimensional solutions for the classic critical upward seepage gradient/quick condition and the time rate of consolidation problems are obtained using coupled routines for the finite volume method (FVM) and discrete element method (DEM), and the results compared with the analytical solutions. The two phase flow in a system composed of fluid and solid is simulated with the fluid phase modeled by solving the averaged Navier-Stokes equation using the FVM and the solid phase is modeled using the DEM. A framework is described for the coupling of two open source computer codes: YADE-OpenDEM for the discrete element method and OpenFOAMmore » for the computational fluid dynamics. The particle-fluid interaction is quantified using a semi-empirical relationship proposed by Ergun [12]. The two classical verification problems are used to explore issues encountered when using coupled flow DEM codes, namely, the appropriate time step size for both the fluid and mechanical solution processes, the choice of the viscous damping coefficient, and the number of solid particles per finite fluid volume.« less

Brine Flow Up a Borehole Caused by Pressure Perturbation From CO2 Storage: Static and Dynamic Evaluations

EPA Science Inventory

Industrial-scale storage of CO2 in saline sedimentary basins will cause zones of elevated pressure, larger than the CO2 plume itself. If permeable conduits (e.g., leaking wells) exist between the injection reservoir and overlying shallow aquifers, brine could be pushed upwards al...

Methane production by attached film

DOEpatents

Jewell, William J.

1981-01-01

A method for purifying wastewater of biodegradable organics by converting the organics to methane and carbon dioxide gases is disclosed, characterized by the use of an anaerobic attached film expanded bed reactor for the reaction process. Dilute organic waste material is initially seeded with a heterogeneous anaerobic bacteria population including a methane-producing bacteria. The seeded organic waste material is introduced into the bottom of the expanded bed reactor which includes a particulate support media coated with a polysaccharide film. A low-velocity upward flow of the organic waste material is established through the bed during which the attached bacterial film reacts with the organic material to produce methane and carbon dioxide gases, purified water, and a small amount of residual effluent material. The residual effluent material is filtered by the film as it flows upwardly through the reactor bed. In a preferred embodiment, partially treated effluent material is recycled from the top of the bed to the bottom of the bed for further treatment. The methane and carbon dioxide gases are then separated from the residual effluent material and purified water.

Validation of gravity data from the geopotential field model for subsurface investigation of the Cameroon Volcanic Line (Western Africa)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marcel, Jean; Abate Essi, Jean Marcel; Nouck, Philippe Njandjock; Sanda, Oumarou; Manguelle-Dicoum, Eliézer

2018-03-01

Belonging to the Cameroon Volcanic Line (CVL), the western part of Cameroon is an active volcanic zone with volcanic eruptions and deadly gas emissions. The volcanic flows generally cover areas and bury structural features like faults. Terrestrial gravity surveys can hardly cover entirely this mountainous area due to difficult accessibility. The present work aims to evaluate gravity data derived from the geopotential field model, EGM2008 to investigate the subsurface of the CVL. The methodology involves upward continuation, horizontal gradient, maxima of horizontal gradient-upward continuation combination and Euler deconvolution techniques. The lineaments map inferred from this geopotential field model confirms several known lineaments and reveals new ones covered by lava flows. The known lineaments are interpreted as faults or geological contacts such as the Foumban fault and the Pan-African Belt-Congo craton contact. The lineaments highlighted coupled with the numerous maar lakes identified in this volcanic sector attest of the vulnerability of the CVL where special attention should be given for geohazard prevention.

Transdomes sampling of lower and middle crust

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Teyssier, C. P.; Whitney, D. L.; Roger, F.; Rey, P. F.

2015-12-01

Migmatite transdomes are formed by lateral and upward flow of partially molten crust in transtension zones (pull-apart structures). In order to understand the flow leading to this type of domes, 3D numerical models were set-up to simulate the general case of an extensional domain located between two strike-slip faults (pull-apart or dilational bridge). Results show that upper crust extension induces flow of the deep, low-viscosity crust, with rapid upward movement of transdome material when extension becomes localized. At this point a rolling hinge detachment allows rapid removal of upper crust. The internal structure of transdomes includes a subvertical high strain zone located beneath the zone of localized upper crust extension; this shear zone separates two elongate subdomes of foliation that show refolded/sheath folds. Lineation tends to be oriented dominantly subhorizontal when the amount of strike-slip motion is greater than the amount of upward flow of dome rocks. Models also predict nearly isothermal decompression of transdome material and rapid transfer of ~50 km deep rocks to the near surface. These model results are compared to the structural and metamorphic history of several transdomes, and in particular the Variscan Montagne Noire dome (French Massif Central) that consists of two domes separated by a complex high strain zone. The Montagne Noire dome contains ~315 Ma eclogite bodies (U-Pb zircon age) that record 1.4 GPa peak pressure. The eclogite bodies are wrapped in highly sheared migmatite that yield 314-310 Ma monazite ages interpreted as the metamorphism and deformation age. Based on these relations we conclude that the Montagne Noire transdome developed a channel of partially molten crust that likely entrained eclogite bodies from the deep crust (~50 km) before ascending to the near-surface. One implication of this work is that the flowing crust was deeply seated in the orogen although it remained a poor recorder of peak pressure of metamorphism. The eclogite bodies entrained in partially molten crust are a reliable marker of channel depth, especially when the ages of eclogite and migmatite are so close, like in the Montagne Noire. This indicates that channels of partially molten rocks are typically developed in the middle to deep orogenic crust (~50 km).

Experimental Bedrock Channel Incision: Scaling, Sculpture and Sediment Transport

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Johnson, J. P.; Whipple, K. X.

2004-12-01

Abrasion by sediment in turbulent flows often sculpts bedrock channels into dramatic forms; quantifying the feedbacks between fluid flow, sediment impacts, and channel morphology is needed to refine models of fluvial incision into bedrock. We present data from laboratory flume experiments funded by the National Center for Earth-Surface Dynamics and conducted at St. Anthony Falls Laboratory, University of Minnesota that show how the spatial and temporal distribution of erosion is strongly coupled to the evolving topography of the bed. These experiments focus on the high Froude number and tool-starved end of parameter space, where bed cover tends to be negligible. Independent variables include flume slope, water flux and sediment flux and size distribution. Sediment moves energetically as bedload, suspended load, or locally transitional between transport modes. Quantitative measurements of the evolving bed topography show that the synthetic brittle "bedrock" in the flume (cured sand-cement mixture) eroded to form narrow incised channels with tight scoops and potholes. The experimental erosional forms are similar in morphology, and sometimes in scale, to those observed in natural bedrock rivers in southeast Utah and other field settings. The experiments demonstrate that both the mean and distribution of measured erosion rates change as the bed topography evolves, even with constant water and sediment discharges. Even starting with a plane bed geometry, erosion and sediment transport very quickly become localized in interconnected topographic lows. Positive feedback develops between the evolving topography and the fluid velocity and sediment transport fields, resulting in the incision of an inner channel. Once formed, the erosion rate in the axis of the inner channel decreases as local bed shear stresses and fluid velocities are reduced by increasing wall drag, and sediment fluxes through the channel but causes less incision (no deposition). Decreasing the sediment flux (all else held equal) causes renewed incision, but of an even narrower inner channel; increasing the sediment flux leads to inner channel deposition. Where erosion is most vigorous, sediment generally moving as saltating bedload becomes locally suspended by upward-directed mean flow. For example, swirling clouds of "bedload" particles are continuously suspended by vortices developed within potholes such that the upward flux of particles out of the potholes balance the total sediment flux through the flume. Potholes spontaneously form where average bed slope and fluid velocities were highest, dramatically accelerating the local erosion rate. Our experimental potholes are smaller in scale but morphologically strikingly similar to many observed in the field, and include features such as corkscrew grooves down the outside walls and a protruding horn at the pothole center. More generally, abrasion becomes focused in places where the flow is spatially accelerated, such as in scoops and bends with high curvature. The knife-edge margins and spatial distribution of erosional forms indicate abrupt transitions in erosional efficiency that are tightly coupled to near-bed fluid flow patterns, which in turn are strongly influenced by the erosional forms themselves. Our experiments suggest that, in highly sculpted bedrock channels, naturally developed bed roughness presents a physical length scale that is important to controlling the interaction between sediment impacts and the bed, rather than a length scale based explicitly on sediment transport and average flow conditions such as the saltation hop length.

Microgravity Flame Spread in Exploration Atmospheres: Pressure, Oxygen, and Velocity Effects on Opposed and Concurrent Flame Spread

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Olson, Sandra L.; Ruff, Gary A.; Fletcher, J. Miller

2008-01-01

Microgravity tests of flammability and flame spread were performed in a low-speed flow tunnel to simulate spacecraft ventilation flows. Three thin fuels were tested for flammability (Ultem 1000 (General Electric Company), 10 mil film, Nomex (Dupont) HT90-40, and Mylar G (Dupont) and one fuel for flame spread testing (Kimwipes (Kimberly-Clark Worldwide, Inc.). The 1g Upward Limiting Oxygen Index (ULOI) and 1g Maximum Oxygen Concentration (MOC) are found to be greater than those in 0g, by up to 4% oxygen mole fraction, meaning that the fuels burned in 0g at lower oxygen concentrations than they did using the NASA Standard 6001 Test 1 protocol. Flame spread tests with Kimwipes were used to develop correlations that capture the effects of flow velocity, oxygen concentration, and pressure on flame spread rate. These correlations were used to determine that over virtually the entire range of spacecraft atmospheres and flow conditions, the opposed spread is faster, especially for normoxic atmospheres. The correlations were also compared with 1g MOC for various materials as a function of pressure and oxygen. The lines of constant opposed flow agreed best with the 1g MOC trends, which indicates that Test 1 limits are essentially dictated by the critical heat flux for ignition. Further evaluation of these and other materials is continuing to better understand the 0g flammability of materials and its effect on the oxygen margin of safety.

Ontogenetic changes in larval swimming and orientation of pre-competent sea urchin Arbacia punctulata in turbulence

PubMed Central

Wheeler, Jeanette D.; Chan, Kit Yu Karen; Anderson, Erik J.; Mullineaux, Lauren S.

2016-01-01

ABSTRACT Many marine organisms have complex life histories, having sessile adults and relying on the planktonic larvae for dispersal. Larvae swim and disperse in a complex fluid environment and the effect of ambient flow on larval behavior could in turn impact their survival and transport. However, to date, most studies on larvae–flow interactions have focused on competent larvae near settlement. We examined the importance of flow on early larval stages by studying how local flow and ontogeny influence swimming behavior in pre-competent larval sea urchins, Arbacia punctulata. We exposed larval urchins to grid-stirred turbulence and recorded their behavior at two stages (4- and 6-armed plutei) in three turbulence regimes. Using particle image velocimetry to quantify and subtract local flow, we tested the hypothesis that larvae respond to turbulence by increasing swimming speed, and that the increase varies with ontogeny. Swimming speed increased with turbulence for both 4- and 6-armed larvae, but their responses differed in terms of vertical swimming velocity. 4-Armed larvae swam most strongly upward in the unforced flow regime, while 6-armed larvae swam most strongly upward in weakly forced flow. Increased turbulence intensity also decreased the relative time that larvae spent in their typical upright orientation. 6-Armed larvae were tilted more frequently in turbulence compared with 4-armed larvae. This observation suggests that as larvae increase in size and add pairs of arms, they are more likely to be passively re-oriented by moving water, rather than being stabilized (by mechanisms associated with increased mass), potentially leading to differential transport. The positive relationship between swimming speed and larval orientation angle suggests that there was also an active response to tilting in turbulence. Our results highlight the importance of turbulence to planktonic larvae, not just during settlement but also in earlier stages through morphology–flow interactions. PMID:27208032

Stratigraphic, sedimentologic, and dendrogeomorphic analyses of rapid floodplain formation along the Rio Grande in Big Bend National Park, Texas

USGS Publications Warehouse

Dean, D.J.; Scott, M.L.; Shafroth, P.B.; Schmidt, J.C.

2011-01-01

The channel of the lower Rio Grande in the Big Bend region rapidly narrows during years of low mean and peak flow. We conducted stratigraphic, sedimentologic, and dendrogeomorphic analyses within two long floodplain trenches to precisely reconstruct the timing and processes of recent floodplain formation. We show that the channel of the Rio Grande narrowed through the oblique and vertical accretion of inset floodplains following channel-widening floods in 1978 and 1990-1991. Vertical accretion occurred at high rates, ranging from 16 to 35 cm/yr. Dendrogeomorphic analyses show that the onset of channel narrowing occurred during low-flow years when channel bars obliquely and vertically accreted fine sediment. This initial stage of accretion occurred by both bedload and suspended-load deposition within the active channel. Vegetation became established on top of these fine-grained deposits during years of low peak flow and stabilized these developing surfaces. Subsequent deposition by moderate floods (between 1.5 and 7 yr recurrence intervals) caused additional accretion at rapid rates. Suspended-sediment deposition was dominant in the upper deposits, resulting in the formation of natural levees at the channel margins and the deposition of horizontally bedded, fining-upward deposits in the floodplain trough. Overall, channel narrowing and floodplain formation occurred through an evolution from active-channel to floodplain depositional processes. High-resolution dendrogeomorphic analyses provide the ability to specifically correlate the flow record to the onset of narrowing, the establishment of riparian vegetation, the formation of natural levees, and ultimately, the conversion of portions of the active channel to floodplains. ?? 2011 Geological Society of America.

Social mobility and health in European countries: Does welfare regime type matter?

PubMed

Campos-Matos, Inês; Kawachi, Ichiro

2015-10-01

Health inequalities pose an important public health challenge in European countries, for which increased social mobility has been suggested as a cause. We sought to describe how the relationship between health inequalities and social mobility varies among welfare regime types in the European region. Data from six rounds of the European Social Survey was analyzed using multilevel statistical techniques, stratified by welfare regime type, including 237,535 individuals from 136 countries. Social mobility among individuals was defined according to the discrepancy between parental and offspring educational attainment. For each welfare regime type, the association between social mobility and self-rated health was examined using odds ratios and risk differences, controlling for parental education. Upwardly mobile individuals had between 23 and 44% lower odds of reporting bad or very bad self-rated health when compared to those who remained stable. On an absolute scale, former USSR countries showed the biggest and only significant differences for upward movement, while Scandinavian countries showed the smallest. Downward social mobility tended to be associated with worse health, but the results were less consistent. Upward social mobility is associated with worse health in all European welfare regime types. However, in Scandinavian countries the association of upward mobility was smaller, suggesting that the Nordic model is more effective in mitigating the impact of social mobility on health and/or of health on mobility. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Thin walled channel

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

Crowther, R.L.; Johansson, E.B.

1988-06-07

A fuel assembly is described comprising fuel rods positioned in a spaced array by upper and lower tie-plates, an open ended flow channel surrounding the array for conducting coolant upward about the fuel rods, the open ended channel having a polygon shaped cross section with flat side sections connected between the corner sections; means separate from the channel connecting the upper and lower tie-plates together and maintaining the fuel rods in spaced array independent of the flow channel, improvement in the flow channel comprising: four corners having a first thickness; four sides having a second and reduced thickness from themore » corner thickness, the sides welded to the corner sections.« less

The controlling effect of viscous dissipation on magma flow in silicic conduits

USGS Publications Warehouse

Mastin, L.G.

2005-01-01

Nearly all volcanic conduit models assume that flow is Newtonian and isothermal. Such models predict that, during high-flux silicic eruptions, gradients in pressure with depth increase upward as magma accelerates and becomes more viscous, leading to extremely low pressure and fragmentation at a depth of kilometers below the surface. In this paper I show that shear heating, also known as viscous dissipation, dramatically reduces the pressure gradient required for flow and concentrates shear in narrow zones along the conduit margin. The reduction in friction may eliminate the zone of low pressure predicted by isothermal models and move the fragmentation level up to the surface.

Velocity and temperature profiles in near-critical nitrogen flowing past a horizontal flat plate

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Simoneau, R. J.

1977-01-01

Boundary layer velocity and temperature profiles were measured for nitrogen near its thermodynamic critical point flowing past a horizontal flat plate. The results were compared measurements made for vertically upward flow. The boundary layer temperatures ranged from below to above the thermodynamic critical temperature. For wall temperatures below the thermodynamic critical temperature there was little variation between the velocity and temperature profiles in three orientations. In all three orientations the point of crossing into the critical temperature region is marked by a significant flattening of the velocity and temperature profiles and also a decrease in heat transfer coefficient.

Corium shield

DOEpatents

McDonald, Douglas B.; Buchholz, Carol E.

1994-01-01

A shield for restricting molten corium from flowing into a water sump disposed in a floor of a containment vessel includes upper and lower walls which extend vertically upwardly and downwardly from the floor for laterally bounding the sump. The upper wall includes a plurality of laterally spaced apart flow channels extending horizontally therethrough, with each channel having a bottom disposed coextensively with the floor for channeling water therefrom into the sump. Each channel has a height and a length predeterminedly selected for allowing heat from the molten corium to dissipate through the upper and lower walls as it flows therethrough for solidifying the molten corium therein to prevent accumulation thereof in the sump.

Statistic characteristics of the gas-liquid flow in a vertical minichannel

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kozulin, I. A.; Kuznetsov, V. V.

2010-03-01

The gas-liquid upward flow was studied in a rectangular minichannel of 1.75×3.8 mm and length of 0.7 m. The experiments were carried out within the range of the gas superficial velocity from 0.1 to 10 m/s and the liquid superficial velocity from 0.07 to 0.7 m/s for the co-current H2O/CO2 flow under the conditions of saturation. The method for the two-beam laser scanning of structure and determination of statistic characteristics of the two-phase flow was worked through. The slug-bubble, slug, transitional, churn, and annular flows were distinguished. The statistics characteristics of liquid and gas phases motion in a minichannel were obtained for the first time including the velocities of phase motion.

The Generation of Barriers to Melt Ascent in the Martian Lithosphere

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schools, Joe W.; Montési, Laurent G. J.

2018-01-01

Planetary mantles can be regarded as an aggregate of two phases: a solid, porous matrix and a liquid melt. Melt travels rapidly upward through the matrix due to its buoyancy. When this melt enters the colder lithosphere, it begins to crystallize. If crystallization happens at a high rate, the newly formed crystals can clog the pore space, reducing its permeability to essentially zero. This zone of zero permeability is the permeability barrier. We use the MELTS family of thermodynamic calculators to determine melt compositions and the crystallization sequence of ascending melt throughout Martian history and simulate the formation of permeability barriers. At lower strain rates (10-17-10-15 s-1) permeability barriers form deep in the lithosphere, possibly contributing to the formation of localized volcanic edifices on the Martian surface once fracturing or thermal erosion enables melt to traverse the lithosphere. Higher strain rates (10-13 s-1) yield shallower permeability barriers, perhaps producing extensive lava flows. Permeability barrier formation is investigated using an anhydrous mantle source or mantle sources that include up to 1,000 ppm H2O. Introducing even small amounts of water (25 ppm H2O) reduces mantle viscosity in a manner similar to increasing the strain rate and results in a shallower barrier than in the anhydrous case. Large amounts of water (1,000 ppm H2O) yield very shallow weak barriers or no barriers at all. The depth of the permeability barrier has evolved through time, likely resulting in a progression in the style of surface volcanism from widespread flows to massive, singular volcanoes.

Reactive-transport modeling of iron diagenesis and associated organic carbon remineralization in a Florida (USA) subterranean estuary

USGS Publications Warehouse

Roy, Moutusi; Martin, Jonathan B.; Smith, Christopher G.; Cable, Jaye E.

2011-01-01

Iron oxides are important terminal electron acceptors for organic carbon (OC) remineralization in subterranean estuaries, particularly where oxygen and nitrate concentrations are low. In Indian River Lagoon, Florida, USA, terrestrial Fe-oxides dissolve at the seaward edge of the seepage face and flow upward into overlying marine sediments where they precipitate as Fe-sulfides. The dissolved Fe concentrations vary by over three orders of magnitude, but Fe-oxide dissolution rates are similar across the 25-m wide seepage face, averaging around 0.21 mg/cm2/yr. The constant dissolution rate, but differing concentrations, indicate Fe dissolution is controlled by a combination of increasing lability of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and slower porewater flow velocities with distance offshore. In contrast, the average rate constants of Fe-sulfide precipitation decrease from 21.9 × 10-8 s-1 to 0.64 × 10-8 s-1 from the shoreline to the seaward edge of the seepage face as more oxygenated surface water circulates through the sediment. The amount of OC remineralized by Fe-oxides varies little across the seepage face, averaging 5.34 × 10-2 mg/cm2/yr. These rates suggest about 3.4 kg of marine DOC was remineralized in a 1-m wide, shore-perpendicular strip of the seepage face as the terrestrial sediments were transgressed over the past 280 years. During this time, about 10 times more marine solid organic carbon (SOC) accumulated in marine sediments than were removed from the underlying terrestrial sediments. Indian River Lagoon thus appears to be a net sink for marine OC.

Investigating turbulent mixing rates and the internal wave field in the Southern Ocean: microstructure and finestructure data from DIMES

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sheen, K.; Naveira-Garabato, A. C.; Brearley, J. A.

2012-04-01

The principal objective of the Diapycnal and Isopycnal Mixing Experiment in the Southern Ocean (DIMES) is to investigate the role of turbulent mixing in mediating the vertical and horizontal transport of water masses, which shape the overturning circulation. Here, microstructure and finestructure data, collected as part of this multi-component experiment, are presented. Direct observations of turbulent energy dissipation rates show that mid-depth diapycnal diffusivities increase progressively from O(10-5 m2s-1) in the Pacific sector of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC) to O(10-4 m2s-1) in the Scotia Sea. Analysis of coincident LADCP and CTD data demonstrates that enhanced turbulent dissipation rates are associated with a more energetic, less inertial internal wave field and increased upward energy propagation. Breaking lee waves, a process enhanced by stronger flow and rougher topography found in the eastern sections, is likely to be a key mechanism in determining the distribution of turbulent mixing in the ACC. Spatially varying discrepancies between the microstructure and finestructure mixing observations indicate regions where wave-wave interaction models break down and internal waves interact with the mean flow. An episodic enhancement of current velocities at 2000 m depth is observed in the northwest Scotia Sea in both LADCP and mooring data. Finestructure analysis indicates that this mid-depth jet has a profound impact of the internal wave field, causing both internal wave reflection and critical layer dissipation.

Determination of Villous Rigidity in the Distal Ileum of the Possum (Trichosurus vulpecula)

PubMed Central

Lim, Yuen Feung; Lentle, Roger G.; Janssen, Patrick W. M.; Williams, Martin A. K.; de Loubens, Clément; Mansel, Bradley W.; Chambers, Paul

2014-01-01

We investigated the passive mechanical properties of villi in ex vivo preparations of sections of the wall of the distal ileum from the brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula) by using a flow cell to impose physiological and supra-physiological levels of shear stress on the tips of villi. We directly determined the stress applied from the magnitude of the local velocities in the stress inducing flow and additionally mapped the patterns of flow around isolated villi by tracking the trajectories of introduced 3 µm microbeads with bright field micro particle image velocimetry (mPIV). Ileal villi were relatively rigid along their entire length (mean 550 µm), and exhibited no noticeable bending even at flow rates that exceeded calculated normal physiological shear stress (>0.5 mPa). However, movement of villus tips indicated that the whole rigid structure of a villus could pivot about the base, likely from laxity at the point of union of the villous shaft with the underlying mucosa. Flow moved upward toward the tip on the upper portions of isolated villi on the surface facing the flow and downward toward the base on the downstream surface. The fluid in sites at distances greater than 150 µm below the villous tips was virtually stagnant indicating that significant convective mixing in the lower intervillous spaces was unlikely. Together the findings indicate that mixing and absorption is likely to be confined to the tips of villi under conditions where the villi and intestinal wall are immobile and is unlikely to be greatly augmented by passive bending of the shafts of villi. PMID:24956476

A Simplified Model for Multiphase Leakage through Faults with Applications for CO2 Storage

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Watson, F. E.; Doster, F.

2017-12-01

In the context of geological CO2 storage, faults in the subsurface could affect storage security by acting as high permeability pathways which allow CO2 to flow upwards and away from the storage formation. To assess the likelihood of leakage through faults and the impacts faults might have on storage security numerical models are required. However, faults are complex geological features, usually consisting of a fault core surrounded by a highly fractured damage zone. A direct representation of these in a numerical model would require very fine grid resolution and would be computationally expensive. Here, we present the development of a reduced complexity model for fault flow using the vertically integrated formulation. This model captures the main features of the flow but does not require us to resolve the vertical dimension, nor the fault in the horizontal dimension, explicitly. It is thus less computationally expensive than full resolution models. Consequently, we can quickly model many realisations for parameter uncertainty studies of CO2 injection into faulted reservoirs. We develop the model based on explicitly simulating local 3D representations of faults for characteristic scenarios using the Matlab Reservoir Simulation Toolbox (MRST). We have assessed the impact of variables such as fault geometry, porosity and permeability on multiphase leakage rates.

Effect of Reynolds number and saturation level on gas diffusion in and out of a superhydrophobic surface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ling, Hangjian; Katz, Joseph; Fu, Matthew; Hultmark, Marcus

2017-12-01

This experimental study investigates the effects of ambient pressure and Reynolds number on the volume of a plastron in a superhydrophobic surface (SHS) due to compression and gas diffusion. The hierarchical SHS consists of nanotextured, ˜100 μm wide spanwise grooves. Microscopic observations measure the time evolution of interface height and contact angle. The water tunnel tests are performed both without flow as well as in transitional and turbulent boundary layers at several Reynolds numbers. Particle image velocimetry is used for estimating the wall shear stress and calculating the momentum thickness for the SHSs under Cassie-Baxter (CB) and Wenzel states as well as a smooth wall at the same conditions. Holographic microscopy is used for determining the wall shear stress directly for one of the CB cases. The mass diffusion rate is calculated from changes to the plastron volume when the liquid is under- or supersaturated. For stationary water, the mass diffusion is slow. With increasing pressure, the interface is initially pinned and then migrates into the groove with high advancing contact angle. Upon subsequent decrease in pressure, the interface migrates upward at a shallow angle and, after being pinned to the tip corner, becomes convex. With flow and exposure to undersaturated liquid, the diffusion-induced wetting also involves pinned and downward migration states, followed by shrinkage of the plastron until it decreases below the resolution limit. The corresponding changes to the velocity profile indicate a transition from slight drag reduction to significant drag increase. In supersaturated water starting at a Wenzel state, a bubble grows from one of the bottom corners until it reaches the other side of the groove. Subsequently, dewetting involves upward migration of the interface, pinning to the tip corners, and formation of a convex interface. The diffusion rate increases with the level of under- or supersaturation and with the Reynolds number. A power law relation, S hΘ 0=0.47 ReΘ0 0.77 , is obtained for the turbulent flow regime using the smooth wall momentum thickness for calculating the Sherwood (S hΘ 0 ) and Reynolds (R eΘ 0 ) numbers. This relation agrees with published diffusion rates for smooth wall turbulent boundary layers. However, the mass diffusion rate is lower than this prediction in the transitional boundary layer. When S hΘ 0 is plotted against the friction Reynolds number (R eτ 0 ) instead, both the transitional and turbulent boundary layer results collapse onto a single power law, S hΘ 0=0.34 Reτ0 0.913 . This trend suggests that turbulent diffusion and wall friction are correlated. The relation between Sherwood number and momentum thickness Reynolds number persists if length scales of the Wenzel state are used instead of those of the smooth wall. However, trends with the friction Reynolds number change slightly.

Insights into the origins of drumbeat earthquakes, periodic low frequency seismicity, and plug degradation from multi-instrument monitoring at Tungurahua volcano, Ecuador, April 2015

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bell, Andrew; Hernandez, Stephen; Gaunt, Elizabeth; Mothes, Patricia; Hidalgo, Silvana; Ruiz, Mario

2016-04-01

Highly-periodic repeating 'drumbeat' earthquakes have been reported from several andesitic and dacitic volcanoes. Physical models for the origin of drumbeat earthquakes incorporate, to different extents, the incremental upward movement of viscous magma. However, the roles played by stick-slip friction, brittle failure, and fluid flow, and the relations between drumbeat earthquakes and other low-frequency seismic signals, remain controversial. Here we report the results of analysis of three weeks of geophysical data recorded during an unrest episode at Tungurahua, an andesitic stratovolcano in Ecuador, during April 2015, by the monitoring network of the Instituto Geofisico of Ecuador. Combined seismic, geodetic, infrasound, and gas monitoring has provided new insights into the origins of periodic low-frequency seismic signals, conduit processes, and the nature of current unrest. Over the three-week period, the relative seismic amplitude (RSAM) correlated closely with short-term deformation rates and gas fluxes. However, the characteristics of the seismic signals, as recorded at a short-period station closest to the summit crater, changed considerably with time. Initially high RSAM and gas fluxes, with modest ash emissions, were associated with continuous and 'pulsed' tremor signals (amplitude modulated, with 30-100 second periods). As activity levels decreased over several days, tremor episodes became increasingly intermittent, and short-lived bursts of low-frequency earthquakes with quasiperiodic inter-event times were observed. Following one day of quiescence, the onset of pronounced low frequency drumbeat earthquakes signalled the resumption of elevated unrest, initially with mean inter-event times of 32 seconds, and later increasing to 74 seconds and longer, with periodicity progressively breaking down over several days. A reduction in RSAM was then followed by one week of persistent, quasiperiodic, longer-duration emergent low-frequency pulses, including 'double events'. The unrest finished with a series of minor explosions and ash emissions, and a reduction in RSAM. None of the seismic events were associated with significant infrasound or ground-coupled acoustic waves. The persistent and steadily evolving periodicity of seismic signals, and contemporaneous inflation-deflation tilt cycle, suggest that incremental upward movement of a viscous magma plug determines the system periodicity, likely controlled by the balance between magma ascent rate, magma compressibility beneath the plug, and resisting forces at the plug margin. However, relations between a range of observations, including waveform similarity, periodicity, and amplitudes of contemporaneous discrete and continuous signals, suggest that the detected seismic signals are predominantly generated by gas flow that is largely decoupled from the magma ascent rate. Signals are generated by both continuous flow through longer-lived pathways, and by gas pulses passing through transient pathways generated by slip at the plug margins. The nature and amplitude of signals is therefore a product of the rate of gas flux and the evolving state of the degassing pathway, controlled in part by degradation and healing of the plug margins.

Summary of Almost 20 Years of Storm Overflight Electric Field, Conductivity, Flash Rate, and Current Statistics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Blakeslee, Richard J.; Mach, Douglas M.; Bateman, Monte J.; Bailey, Jeffrey C.

2011-01-01

We present total conduction (Wilson) currents for more than 1000 high-altitude aircraft overflights of electrified clouds acquired over nearly two decades. The overflights include a wide geographical sample of storms over land and ocean, with and without lightning, and with positive (i.e., upward-directed) and negative current. Peak electric field, with lightning transients removed, ranged from -1.0 kV/m to 16. kV/m, with mean (median) of 0.9 kV/m (0.29 kV/m). Total conductivity at flight altitude ranged from 0.6 pS/m to 3.6 pS/m, with mean and median of 2.2 pS/m. Peak current densities ranged from -2.0 nA m(exp -2) to 33.0 nA m(exp -2) with mean (median) of 1.9 nA m(exp -2) (0.6 nA m(exp -2)). Total upward current flow from storms in our dataset ranged from -1.3 to 9.4 A. The mean current for storms with lightning is 1.7 A over ocean and 1.0 A over land. The mean current for electrified shower clouds (i.e. electrified storms without lightning) is 0.41 A for ocean and 0.13 A for land. About 78% (43%) of the land (ocean) storms have detectable lightning. Land storms have 2.8 times the mean flash rate as ocean storms (2.2 versus 0.8 flashes min-1, respectively). Approximately 7% of the overflights had negative current. The mean and median currents for positive (negative) polarity storms are 1.0 and 0.35 A (-0.30 and -0.26 A). We found no regional or latitudinal-based patterns in our storm currents, nor support for simple scaling laws between cloud top height and lightning flash rate.

EVALUATION OF TIRE-DERIVED FUEL FOR USE IN NITROGEN OXIDE REDUCTION BY REBURNING

EPA Science Inventory

Tire-derived fuel (TDF) was tested in a small-scale (44 kW or 150,000 Btu/hr) combustor to determine its feasibility as a fuel for use in reburning for control of nitrogen oxide (NO). TDF was gravity-fed into upward flowing combustion gases from a primary natural gas flame doped ...

Gas-cooled nuclear reactor

DOEpatents

Peinado, Charles O.; Koutz, Stanley L.

1985-01-01

A gas-cooled nuclear reactor includes a central core located in the lower portion of a prestressed concrete reactor vessel. Primary coolant gas flows upward through the core and into four overlying heat-exchangers wherein stream is generated. During normal operation, the return flow of coolant is between the core and the vessel sidewall to a pair of motor-driven circulators located at about the bottom of the concrete pressure vessel. The circulators repressurize the gas coolant and return it back to the core through passageways in the underlying core structure. If during emergency conditions the primary circulators are no longer functioning, the decay heat is effectively removed from the core by means of natural convection circulation. The hot gas rising through the core exits the top of the shroud of the heat-exchangers and flows radially outward to the sidewall of the concrete pressure vessel. A metal liner covers the entire inside concrete surfaces of the concrete pressure vessel, and cooling tubes are welded to the exterior or concrete side of the metal liner. The gas coolant is in direct contact with the interior surface of the metal liner and transfers its heat through the metal liner to the liquid coolant flowing through the cooling tubes. The cooler gas is more dense and creates a downward convection flow in the region between the core and the sidewall until it reaches the bottom of the concrete pressure vessel when it flows radially inward and up into the core for another pass. Water is forced to flow through the cooling tubes to absorb heat from the core at a sufficient rate to remove enough of the decay heat created in the core to prevent overheating of the core or the vessel.

Morphology-flow interactions lead to stage-selective vertical transport of larval sand dollars in shear flow.

PubMed

Clay, T W; Grünbaum, D

2010-04-01

Many larvae and other plankton have complex and variable morphologies of unknown functional significance. We experimentally and theoretically investigated the functional consequences of the complex morphologies of larval sand dollars, Dendraster excentricus (Eschscholtz), for hydrodynamic interactions between swimming and turbulent water motion. Vertical shearing flows (horizontal gradients of vertical flow) tilt organisms with simple geometries (e.g. spheres, ellipsoids), causing these organisms to move horizontally towards downwelling water and compromising their abilities to swim upwards. A biomechanical model of corresponding hydrodynamic interactions between turbulence-induced shear and the morphologically complex four-, six- and eight-armed stages of sand dollar larvae suggests that the movements of larval morphologies differ quantitatively and qualitatively across stages and shear intensities: at shear levels typical of calm conditions in estuarine and coastal environments, all modeled larval stages moved upward. However, at higher shears, modeled four- and eight-armed larvae moved towards downwelling, whereas six-armed larvae moved towards upwelling. We also experimentally quantified larval movement by tracking larvae swimming in low-intensity shear while simultaneously mapping the surrounding flow fields. Four- and eight-armed larvae moved into downwelling water, but six-armed larvae did not. Both the model and experiments suggest that stage-dependent changes to larval morphology lead to differences in larval movement: four- and eight-armed stages are more prone than the six-armed stage to moving into downwelling water. Our results suggest a mechanism by which differences can arise in the vertical distribution among larval stages. The ability to mitigate or exploit hydrodynamic interactions with shear is a functional consequence that potentially shapes larval evolution and development.

Upper flow regime sheets, lenses and scour fills: Extending the range of architectural elements for fluvial sediment bodies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fielding, Christopher R.

2006-08-01

Fluvial strata dominated internally by sedimentary structures of interpreted upper flow regime origin are moderately common in the rock record, yet their abundance is not appreciated and many examples may go unnoticed. A spectrum of sedimentary structures is recognised, all of which occur over a wide range of scale: 1. cross-bedding with humpback, sigmoidal and ultimately low-angle cross-sectional foreset geometries (interpreted as recording the transition from dune to upper plane bed bedform stability field), 2. planar/flat lamination with parting lineation, characteristic of the upper plane bed phase, 3. flat and low-angle lamination with minor convex-upward elements, characteristic of the transition from upper plane bed to antidune stability fields, 4. convex-upward bedforms, down- and up-palaeocurrent-dipping, low-angle cross-bedding and symmetrical drapes, interpreted as the product of antidunes, and 5. backsets terminating updip against an upstream-dipping erosion surface, interpreted as recording chute and pool conditions. In some fluvial successions, the entirety or substantial portions of channel sandstone bodies may be made up of such structures. These Upper Flow Regime Sheets, Lenses and Scour Fills (UFR) are defined herein as an extension of Miall's [Miall, A.D., 1985. Architectural-element analysis: a new method of facies analysis applied to fluvial deposits. Earth Sci. Rev. 22: 261-308.] Laminated Sand Sheets architectural element. Given the conditions that favour preservation of upper flow regime structures (rapid changes in flow strength), it is suggested that the presence of UFR elements in ancient fluvial successions may indicate sediment accumulation under the influence of a strongly seasonal palaeoclimate that involves a pronounced seasonal peak in precipitation and runoff.

Transport of pesticides and artificial tracers in vertical-flow lab-scale wetlands

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Durst, Romy; Imfeld, Gwenaël.; Lange, Jens

2013-01-01

Wetland systems can be hydrologically connected to a shallow aquifer and intercept upward flow of pesticide-contaminated water during groundwater discharge. However, pesticide transport and attenuation through wetland sediments (WSs) intercepting contaminated water is rarely evaluated quantitatively. The use of artificial tracers to evaluate pesticide transport and associated risks is a fairly new approach that requires evaluation and validation. Here we evaluate during 84 days the transport of two pesticides (i.e., isoproturon (IPU) and metalaxyl (MTX)) and three tracers (i.e., bromide (Br), uranine (UR), and sulforhodamine B (SRB)) in upward vertical-flow vegetated and nonvegetated lab-scale wetlands. The lab-scale wetlands were filled with outdoor WSs and were continuously supplied with tracers and the pesticide-contaminated water. The transport of IPU and UR was characterized by high solute recovery (approximately 80%) and low retardation compared to Br. The detection of desmethylisoproturon in the wetlands indicated IPU degradation. SRB showed larger retardation (>3) and lower recovery (approximately 60%) compared to Br, indicating that sorption controlled SRB transport. MTX was moderately retarded (approximately 1.5), and its load attenuation in the wetland reached 40%. In the vegetated wetland, preferential flow along the roots decreased interactions between solutes and sediments, resulting in larger pesticide and tracer recovery. Our results show that UR and IPU have similar transport characteristics under the tested subsurface-flow conditions, whereas SRB may serve as a proxy for less mobile and more persistent pesticides. Since UR and SRB are not significantly affected by degradation, their use as proxies for fast degrading pollutants may be limited. We anticipate our results to be a starting point for considering artificial tracers for investigating pesticide transport in environments at groundwater/surface-water interfaces.

Time Series Radar Observations of a Growing Lava Dome

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wadge, G.; Macfarlane, D. G.; Odbert, H. M.; James, M. R.; Hole, J. K.; Ryan, G.; Bass, V.; de Angelis, S.; Pinkerton, H.; Robertson, D. A.; Loughlin, S. C.

2007-12-01

Exogenous growth of Peléean lava domes occurs by addition of lava from a central summit vent and mass wasting on the flanks as rockfalls and pyroclastic flows, forming an apron of talus. We observed this process at the Soufrière Hills Volcano, Montserrat between 30 March and 10 April 2006 using a ground-based imaging mm-wave radar, AVTIS, to measure the shape of the dome surface.From a time series of range and intensity measurements at a distance of six kilometres we measured the topographic evolution of the lava dome. The locus of talus deposition moved to the southeast with time and the talus surface grew upwards on average at about 2 metres per day. The AVTIS measurements show an acceleration in lava extrusion rate on 5 April, with a 2-day lag in the equivalent rockfall seismicity record. We account for the budget of lava addition and dispersal during the eleven days of measurements using: AVTIS range measurements to measure the talus growth (7.2 Mm3, 67%), AVTIS range and intensity measurements to measure the summit lava growth (1.7 Mm3, 16%), and rockfall seismicity and visual observations to measure the pyroclastic flow deposits (1.8 Mm3, 17%). This gives an overall dense rock equivalent extrusion rate of about 9.7 m3s-1. These figures demonstrate how efficient non-explosive lava dome growth can be in generating large volumes of primary clastic deposits, and how this process could also reduce the propensity for large hazardous pyroclastic flows. andrews.ac.uk/~mmwave/mmwave/avtis.shtml

Effect of faults on fluid flow and chloride contamination in a carbonate aquifer system

USGS Publications Warehouse

Maslia, M.L.; Prowell, D.C.

1990-01-01

A unified, multidiscipline hypothesis is proposed to explain the anomalous pattern by which chloride has been found in water of the Upper Floridan aquifer in Brunswick, Glynn County, Georgia. Analyses of geophysical, hydraulic, water chemistry, and aquifer test data using the equivalent porous medium (EPM) approach are used to support the hypothesis and to improve further the understanding of the fracture-flow system in this area. Using the data presented herein we show that: (1) four major northeast-southwest trending faults, capable of affecting the flow system of the Upper Floridan aquifer, can be inferred from structural analysis of geophysical data and from regional fault patterns; (2) the proposed faults account for the anomalous northeastward elongation of the potentiometric surface of the Upper Floridan aquifer; (3) the faults breach the nearly impermeable units that confine the Upper Floridan aquifer from below, allowing substantial quantities of water to leak vertically upward; as a result, aquifer transmissivity need not be excessively large (as previously reported) to sustain the heavy, long-term pumpage at Brunswick without developing a steep cone of depression in the potentiometric surface; (4) increased fracturing at the intersection of the faults enhances the development of conduits that allow the upward migration of high-chloride water in response to pumping from the Upper Floridan aquifer; and (5) the anomalous movement of the chloride plume is almost entirely controlled by the faults. ?? 1990.

Spruce colonization at treeline: where do those seeds come from?

PubMed

Piotti, A; Leonardi, S; Piovani, P; Scalfi, M; Menozzi, P

2009-08-01

At treeline, selection by harsh environmental conditions sets an upward limit to arboreal vegetation. Increasing temperatures and the decline of traditional animal raising have favoured an upward shift of treeline in the last decades. These circumstances create a unique opportunity to study the balance of the main forces (selection and gene flow) that drive tree migration. We conducted a parentage analysis sampling and genotyping with five microsatellite markers in all Norway spruce individuals (342 juveniles and 23 adults) found in a recently colonized treeline area (Paneveggio forest, Eastern Alps, Italy). Our goal was to evaluate local reproductive success versus gene flow from the outside. We were able to identify both parents among local adults for only 11.1% of the juveniles. In the gamete pool we sampled, two-thirds were not produced locally. Effective seed dispersal distance distribution was characterized by a peak far from the seed source (mean 344.66 m+/-191.02 s.d.). Reproductive success was skewed, with six local adults that generated almost two-thirds (62.4%) of juveniles with local parents. Our findings indicate that, although a few local adults seem to play an important role in the colonization process at treeline, large levels of gene flow from outside were maintained, suggesting that the potential advantages of local adults (such as local adaptation, proximity to the colonization area, phenological synchrony) did not prevent a large gamete immigration.

Dispersion of Perfluorocarbon Tracers within the Salt Lake Valley during VTMX 2000

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fast, Jerome D.; Allwine, K. Jerry; Dietz, Russell N.; Clawson, Kirk L.; Torcolini, Joel C.

2006-06-01

Six perfluorocarbon tracer experiments were conducted in Salt Lake City, Utah, during October 2000 as part of the Vertical Transport and Mixing (VTMX) field campaign. Four tracers were released at different sites to obtain information on dispersion during stable conditions within down-valley flow, canyon outflow, and interacting circulations in the downtown area. Some of the extensive tracer data that were collected are presented in the context of the meteorological field campaign measurements. Tracer measurements at building-top sites in the downtown area and along the lower slopes of the Wasatch Front indicated that vertical mixing processes transported material up to at least 180 m above the valley floor, although model simulations suggest that tracers were transported upward to much higher elevations. Tracer data provided evidence of downward mixing of canyon outflow, upward mixing within down-valley flow, horizontal transport above the surface stable layer, and transport within horizontal eddies produced by the interaction of canyon and down-valley flows. Although point meteorological measurements are useful in evaluating the forecasts produced by mesoscale models, the tracer data provide valuable information on how the time-varying three-dimensional mean and turbulent motions over urban and valley spatial scales affect dispersion. Although the mean tracer transport predicted by the modeling system employed in this study was qualitatively similar to the measurements, improvements are needed in the treatment of turbulent vertical mixing.

Assessment of hydrogeologic conditions with emphasis on water quality and wastewater injection, southwest Sarasota and West Charlotte counties, Florida

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hutchinson, C.B.

1992-01-01

The 250-square-mile area of southwest Sarasota and west Charlotte Counties is underlain by a complex hydrogeologic system having diverse ground-water quality. The surficial and intermediate aquifer systems and the Upper Floridan aquifer of the Floridan aquifer system contain six separate aquifers, or permeable zones, and have a total thickness of about 2,000 feet. Water in the clastic surficial aquifer system is potable and is tapped by hundreds of shallow, low-yielding supply wells. Water in the mixed clastic and carbonate intermediate aquifer system is potable in the upper part, but in the lower part, because of increasing salinity, it is used primarily for reverse-osmosis desalinization feed water and irrigation. Within the Upper Floridan aquifer, limestone and dolomite of the Suwannee permeable zone are tapped by irrigation and reverse-osmosis supply wells. The underlying, less permeable limestone of the Suwannee-Ocala semiconfining unit generally encompasses the transition zone between freshwater and very saline water. Interbedded limestone and dolomite of the Ocala-Avon Park moderately permeable zone and Avon Park highly permeable zone compose the deep, very saline injection zone. Potential ground-water contamination problems include flooding by storm tides, upward movement of saline water toward pumping centers by natural and induced leakage or through improperly constructed and abandoned wells, and lateral and vertical movement of treated sewage and reverse-osmosis wastewater injected into deep zones. Effects of flooding are evident in coastal areas where vertical layering of fresh and saline waters is observed. Approximately 100 uncontrolled flowing artesian wells that have interaquifer flow rates as high as 350 gallons per minute have been located and scheduled for plugging by the Southwest Florida Water Management District--in an attempt to improve ground-water quality of the shallow aquifers. Because each aquifer or permeable zone has unique head and water-quality characteristics, construction of single-zone wells would eliminate cross-contamination and borehole interflow. Such a program, when combined with the plugging of shallow-cased wells having long open-hole intervals connecting multiple zones, would safeguard ground-water resources in the study area. The study area encompasses seven wastewater injection sites that have a projected capacity for injecting 29 million gallons per day into the zone 1,100 to 2,050 feet below land surface. There are six additional sites within 20 miles. The first well began injecting reverse-osmosis wastewater in 1984, and since then, other wells have been drilled and permitted for injection of treated sewage. A numerical model was used to evaluate injection-well design and potential for movement of injected wastewater within the hydrogeologic framework. The numerical model was used to simulate injection through a representative well at a rate of 1 million gallons per day for 10 years. In this simulation, a convection cell developed around the injection well with the buoyant fresh injectant rising to form a lens within the injection zone below the lower Suwannee-Ocala semiconfining unit. Around an ideal, fully penetrating well cased 50 feet into the injection zone and open from a depth of 1,150 feet to 2,050 feet, simulations show that the injectant moves upward to a depth of 940 feet, forms a lens about 600 feet thick, and spreads radially outward to a distance of about 2,300 feet after 10 years. Comparison simulations of injection through wells having open depth intervals of 1,150 to 1,400 feet and 1,450 to 2,050 feet demonstrate that such changes in well construction have little effect on the areal spread of the injectant lens or the rate of upward movement. Simulations also indicate that reverse-osmosis wastewater injected beneath a supply well field, where water levels above the semiconfining unit are lowered 20 feet by pumping, would move upward after 10 years to a de

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) studies of a miniaturized dissolution system.

PubMed

Frenning, G; Ahnfelt, E; Sjögren, E; Lennernäs, H

2017-04-15

Dissolution testing is an important tool that has applications ranging from fundamental studies of drug-release mechanisms to quality control of the final product. The rate of release of the drug from the delivery system is known to be affected by hydrodynamics. In this study we used computational fluid dynamics to simulate and investigate the hydrodynamics in a novel miniaturized dissolution method for parenteral formulations. The dissolution method is based on a rotating disc system and uses a rotating sample reservoir which is separated from the remaining dissolution medium by a nylon screen. Sample reservoirs of two sizes were investigated (SR6 and SR8) and the hydrodynamic studies were performed at rotation rates of 100, 200 and 400rpm. The overall fluid flow was similar for all investigated cases, with a lateral upward spiraling motion and central downward motion in the form of a vortex to and through the screen. The simulations indicated that the exchange of dissolution medium between the sample reservoir and the remaining release medium was rapid for typical screens, for which almost complete mixing would be expected to occur within less than one minute at 400rpm. The local hydrodynamic conditions in the sample reservoirs depended on their size; SR8 appeared to be relatively more affected than SR6 by the resistance to liquid flow resulting from the screen. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Interactions between gravity waves and cold air outflows in a stably stratified uniform flow

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lin, Yuh-Lang; Wang, Ting-An; Weglarz, Ronald P.

1993-01-01

Interactions between gravity waves and cold air outflows in a stably stratified uniform flow forced by various combinations of prescribed heat sinks and sources are studied using a hydrostatic two-dimensional nonlinear numerical model. The formation time for the development of a stagnation point or reversed flow at the surface is not always directly proportional to the Froude number when wave reflections exist from upper levels. A density current is able to form by the wave-otuflow interaction, even though the Froude number is greater than a critical value. This is the result of the wave-outflow interaction shifting the flow response to a different location in the characteristic parameter space. A density current is able to form or be destroyed due to the wave-outflow interaction between a traveling gravity wave and cold air outflow. This is proved by performing experiments with a steady-state heat sink and an additional transient heat source. In a quiescent fluid, a region of cold air, convergence, and upward motion is formed after the collision between two outflows produced by two prescribed heat sinks. After the collision, the individual cold air outflows lose their own identity and merge into a single, stationary, cold air outflow region. Gravity waves tend to suppress this new stationary cold air outflow after the collision. The region of upward motion associated with the collision is confined to a very shallow layer. In a moving airstream, a density current produced by a heat sink may be suppressed or enhanced nonlinearly by an adjacent heat sink due to the wave-outflow interaction.

Energy Flow Exciting Field-Aligned Current at Substorm Expansion Onset

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ebihara, Y.; Tanaka, T.

2017-12-01

At substorm expansion onset, upward field-aligned currents (FACs) increase abruptly, and a large amount of electromagnetic energy starts to consume in the polar ionosphere. A question arises as to where the energy comes from. Based on the results obtained by the global magnetohydrodynamics simulation, we present energy flow and energy conversion associated with the upward FACs that manifest the onset. Our simulations show that the cusp/mantle region transmits electromagnetic energy to almost the entire region of the magnetosphere when the interplanetary magnetic field is southward. Integral curve of the Poynting flux shows a spiral moving toward the ionosphere, probably suggesting the pathway of electromagnetic energy from the cusp/mantle dynamo to the ionosphere. The near-Earth reconnection initiates three-dimensional redistribution of the magnetosphere. Flow shear in the near-Earth region results in the generation of the near-Earth dynamo and the onset FACs. The onset FACs are responsible to transport the electromagnetic energy toward the Earth. In the near-Earth region, the electromagnetic energy coming from the cusp/mantle dynamo is converted to the kinetic energy (known as bursty bulk flow) and the thermal energy (associated with high-pressure region in the inner magnetosphere). Then, they are converted to the electromagnetic energy associated with the onset FACs. A part of electromagnetic energy is stored in the lobe region during the growth phase. The release of the stored energy, together with the continuously supplied energy from the cusp/mantle dynamo, contributes to the energy supply to the ionosphere during the expansion phase.

Event sand layers suggesting the possibility of tsunami deposits identified in the upper Holocene sequence nearby the Kuwana fault, central Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Niwa, Y.; Sugai, T.; Matsuzaki, H.

2012-12-01

The Kuwana fault is located on coastal area situated on inner part of the Ise Bay, central Japan, which opens to the Nankai Trough. This reverse fault displaces a late Pleistocene terrace surface with 1 to 2 mm/yr of average vertical slip rate, and a topset of delta at several meters, respectively. And, this fault is estimated to have generated two historical earthquakes (the AD 745 Tempyo and the AD 1586 Tensho earthquakes). We identified two event sand layers from upper Holocene sequence on the upthrown side of the Kuwana fault. Upper Holocene deposits in this study area show prograding delta sequence; prodelta mud, delta front sandy silt to sand, and flood plain sand/mud, respectively, from lower to upper. Two sand layers intervene in delta front sandy silt layer, respectively. Lower sand layer (S1) shows upward-coarsening succession, whereas upper sand layer (S2) upward-fining succession. These sand layers contain sharp contact, rip-up crust, and shell fragment, indicating strong stream flow. Radiocarbon ages show that these strong stream flow events occurred between 3000 and 1600 years ago. Decreasing of salinity is estimated from decreasing trend of electrical conductivity (EC) across S1. Based on the possibility that decreasing of salinity can be occurred by shallowing of water depth caused by coseismic uplift, and that S1 can be correlated with previously known faulting event on the Kuwana fault, S1 is considered to be tsunami deposits caused by faulting on the Kuwana fault. On the other hand, S2, which cannot be correlated with previously known faulting events on the Kuwana fault, may be tsunami deposits by ocean-trench earthquake or storm deposits. In the presentation, we will discuss more detail correlation of these sand deposits not only in the upthrown side of the Kuwana fault, but also downthrown side of the fault.

Future Pacific Rim flows and prices of softwood logs, differentiated by grade.

Treesearch

Donald F. Flora; Andrea L. Anderson; Wendy J. McGInnls

1990-01-01

By 2000, prices are expected to rise significantly for medium-grade logs and modestly for low-grade logs. World economic cycles may obscure, however, the upward price trends. Exports from the United States of medium grades are expected to remain stable, while volumes of lower grades are projected to remain level through 1995 and then decline because of competition....

High air volume to low liquid volume aerosol collector

DOEpatents

Masquelier, Donald A.; Milanovich, Fred P.; Willeke, Klaus

2003-01-01

A high air volume to low liquid volume aerosol collector. A high volume flow of aerosol particles is drawn into an annular, centripetal slot in a collector which directs the aerosol flow into a small volume of liquid pool contained is a lower center section of the collector. The annular jet of air impinges into the liquid, imbedding initially airborne particles in the liquid. The liquid in the pool continuously circulates in the lower section of the collector by moving to the center line, then upwardly, and through assistance by a rotating deflector plate passes back into the liquid at the outer area adjacent the impinging air jet which passes upwardly through the liquid pool and through a hollow center of the collector, and is discharged via a side outlet opening. Any liquid droplets escaping with the effluent air are captured by a rotating mist eliminator and moved back toward the liquid pool. The collector includes a sensor assembly for determining, controlling, and maintaining the level of the liquid pool, and includes a lower centrally located valve assembly connected to a liquid reservoir and to an analyzer for analyzing the particles which are impinged into the liquid pool.

The mean and turbulent flow structure of a weak hydraulic jump

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Misra, S. K.; Kirby, J. T.; Brocchini, M.; Veron, F.; Thomas, M.; Kambhamettu, C.

2008-03-01

The turbulent air-water interface and flow structure of a weak, turbulent hydraulic jump are analyzed in detail using particle image velocimetry measurements. The study is motivated by the need to understand the detailed dynamics of turbulence generated in steady spilling breakers and the relative importance of the reverse-flow and breaker shear layer regions with attention to their topology, mean flow, and turbulence structure. The intermittency factor derived from turbulent fluctuations of the air-water interface in the breaker region is found to fit theoretical distributions of turbulent interfaces well. A conditional averaging technique is used to calculate ensemble-averaged properties of the flow. The computed mean velocity field accurately satisfies mass conservation. A thin, curved shear layer oriented parallel to the surface is responsible for most of the turbulence production with the turbulence intensity decaying rapidly away from the toe of the breaker (location of largest surface curvature) with both increasing depth and downstream distance. The reverse-flow region, localized about the ensemble-averaged free surface, is characterized by a weak downslope mean flow and entrainment of water from below. The Reynolds shear stress is negative in the breaker shear layer, which shows that momentum diffuses upward into the shear layer from the flow underneath, and it is positive just below the mean surface indicating a downward flux of momentum from the reverse-flow region into the shear layer. The turbulence structure of the breaker shear layer resembles that of a mixing layer originating from the toe of the breaker, and the streamwise variations of the length scale and growth rate are found to be in good agreement with observed values in typical mixing layers. All evidence suggests that breaking is driven by a surface-parallel adverse pressure gradient and a streamwise flow deceleration at the toe of the breaker. Both effects force the shear layer to thicken rapidly, thereby inducing a sharp free surface curvature change at the toe.

Impact of infection control interventions on rates of Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia in National Health Service acute hospitals, East Midlands, UK, using interrupted time-series analysis.

PubMed

Newitt, S; Myles, P R; Birkin, J A; Maskell, V; Slack, R C B; Nguyen-Van-Tam, J S; Szatkowski, L

2015-05-01

Reducing healthcare-associated infection (HCAI) is a UK national priority. Multiple national and regional interventions aimed at reduction have been implemented in National Health Service acute hospitals, but assessment of their effectiveness is methodologically challenging. To assess the effectiveness of national and regional interventions undertaken between 2004 and 2008 on rates of meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and meticillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA) bacteraemia within acute hospitals in the East Midlands, using interrupted time-series analysis. We used segmented regression to compare rates of MRSA and MSSA bacteraemia in the pre-intervention, implementation, and post-intervention phases for combined intervention packages in eight acute hospitals. Most of the change in MSSA and MRSA rates occurred during the implementation phase. During this phase, there were significant downward trends in MRSA rates for seven of eight acute hospital groups; in four, this was a steeper quarter-on-quarter decline compared with the pre-intervention phase, and, in one, an upward trend in the pre-intervention phase was reversed. Regarding MSSA, there was a significant positive effect in four hospital groups: one upward trend during the pre-intervention phase was reversed, two upward trends plateaued, and in one hospital group an indeterminate trend decreased significantly. However, there were significant increasing trends in quarterly MSSA rates in four hospital groups during the implementation or post-intervention periods. The impact of interventions varied by hospital group but the overall results suggest that national and regional campaigns had a beneficial impact on MRSA and MSSA bacteraemia within the East Midlands. Crown Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Frequency, predictors, and economic impact of upward dose adjustment of infliximab in managed care patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

PubMed

Ollendorf, Daniel A; Massarotti, Elena; Birbara, Charles; Burgess, Somali Misra

2005-06-01

To examine dosing patterns and costs among rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients newly treated with infliximab in a large national health care claims database. Using data from a proprietary database of pharmacy and medical claims for 75 U.S. health plans, RA patients newly treated with infliximab between June 2000 and June 2002 were selected and assigned an .index date. based on the first infusion. A pretreatment period of 6 months was created; patients were also followed for a minimum of 6 months after the initial infusion. Follow-up was allowed to vary beyond this minimum 6 months in order to preserve all available patient data. A maintenance number of infliximab vials was determined as of the second infusion; patients with 1 subsequent increase in vials used or 2 intervals between infusions of <49 days were considered to have had an upward dose adjustment. Differences (i.e., between those with upward dose adjustment and those with no upward dose) in patient characteristics were examined using descriptive statistics. In addition, time to upward dose adjustment and factors influencing its likelihood were analyzed using Kaplan-Meier and Cox proportional hazards techniques. Finally, differences in RA-related and unrelated costs (medication, outpatient, inpatient, and total, expressed in 2003 dollars) were examined using Wilcoxon rank-sum tests and were also stratified by a number of patient characteristics found to differ between the 2 groups. A total of 1,236 patients met all study entry criteria and were included in these analyses. One or more upward dose adjustments were experienced by 61.7% (N=762) of patients during an average of 15 months of follow-up (median =13 months, range=6 to 31 months). The majority (63.3%) of upward dose adjustments were due to increases in the number of billed vials. Median time to upward dose adjustment was 254 days and declined steadily based on year of initiation (from 330 days in 2000 to 224 days in 2002). Factors significantly influencing upward dose adjustment included pretreatment use of leflunomide, comorbid Crohn.s disease, and pretreatment liver function testing. During followup, patients in the upward dose adjustment group used a mean (SD) of 30.28 (20.90) vials of infliximab, compared with 15.90 (14.28) among those not adjusting dose (P<0.001). Annualized (i.e., standardized to a 365-day rate) RA-related costs were higher by more than 50% among patients with upward dose adjustment (SD $22,283 [$20,517] versus $14,425 [$10,828] for those without upward dose adjustment; P<0.001); differences were driven almost entirely by the costs of infliximab itself ($16,336 [$9,490] versus $9,573 [$6,790], P<0.001). In a cohort of managed care members with RA, upward dose adjustment with infliximab was frequent and appeared to occur earlier in the drug therapy in 2002 compared with 2000. Upward dose adjustment was associated with significant increases in drug treatment costs; therefore, payers and providers should consider the impact of current dosing trends when monitoring the use of biologics for autoimmune diseases.

Biotransformation and biodegradation of selected nitroaromatics under anaerobic conditions

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

Razo-Flores, E.; Lettinga, G.; Field, J.A.

The fate of four nitroaromatic compounds (5-nitrosalicylate, 5NSA; 4-nitrobenzoate, 4NBc; 2,4-dinitrotoluene, 2,4DNT; nitrobenzene, NB) was studied in 160 mL laboratory-scale upward-flow anaerobic sludge bed reactors supplied with a mixture of volatile fatty acids and/or glucose as electron donors. All the nitroaromatics were transformed stoichiometrically to their corresponding aromatic amines. After prolonged reactor operation, 5NSA and 4NBc were completely mineralized to CH[sub 4] and CO[sub 2], whereas 2,4DNT was partially transformed to a nonidentified and nondegradable metabolite. Batch nitro-reduction experiments indicated that the position of the nitro group in relation to the other substituents in the aromatic ring plays a keymore » role in the rate of the nitro-group reduction. The results obtained indicate that certain nitroaromatic compounds can be completely mineralized and serve as a carbon and energy source for anaerobic bacteria.« less

Localized Rapid Warming of West Antarctic Subsurface Waters by Remote Winds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Griffies, S. M.; Spence, P.; Holmes, R.; Hogg, A. M.; Stewart, K. D.; England, M. H.

2017-12-01

The largest rates of Antarctic glacial ice mass loss are occurring tothe west of the Antarctica Peninsula in regions where warming ofsubsurface continental shelf waters is also largest. However, thephysical mechanisms responsible for this warming remain unknown. Herewe show how localized changes in coastal winds off East Antarctica canproduce significant subsurface temperature anomalies (>2C) around theentire continent. We demonstrate how coastal-trapped Kelvin wavescommunicate the wind disturbance around the Antarctic coastline. Thewarming is focused on the western flank of the Antarctic Peninsulabecause the anomalous circulation induced by the coastal-trapped wavesis intensified by the steep continental slope there, and because ofthe presence of pre-existing warm subsurface water. Thecoastal-trapped waves leads to an adjustment of the flow that shoalsisotherms and brings warm deep water upwards onto the continentalshelf and closer to the coast. This result demonstrates the uniquevulnerability of the West Antarctic region to a changing climate.

Influence of obstacles on bubbles rising in water-saturated sand

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Poryles, Raphaël; Varas, Germán; Vidal, Valérie

2017-06-01

This work investigates the dynamics of air rising through a water-saturated sand confined in a Hele- Shaw cell in which a circular obstacle is trapped. The air is injected at constant flow rate through a single nozzle at the bottom center of the cell. Without obstacle, in a similar configuration, previous studies pointed out the existence of a fluidized zone generated by the central upward gas motion which entrains two granular convection rolls on its sides. Here, a circular obstacle which diameter is of the order of the central air channel width is trapped at the vertical of the injection nozzle. We analyze the influence of the obstacle location on the size of the fluidized zone and its impact on the morphology of the central air channel. Finally, we quantify the variations of the granular free surface. Two configurations with multiple obstacles are also considered.

Effects of temperature on serrated flows of Al 0.5CoCrCuFeNi high-entropy alloy

DOE PAGES

Chen, Shuying; Xie, Xie; Chen, Bilin; ...

2015-08-14

Compression behavior of the Al 0.5CoCrCuFeNi high-entropy alloy (HEA) was studied at different temperatures from 673 K to 873 K at a low strain rate of 5 x 10 –5/s to investigate the temperature effect on the mechanical properties and serration behavior. The face-centered-cubic (fcc) structure is confirmed at the lower temperature of 673 K and 773 K, and a structure of mixed fcc and body-centered cubic (bcc) is identified at a higher temperature of 873 K after compression tests using high-energy synchrotron x-ray diffraction. As a result, by comparing the stress–strain curves at different temperatures, two opposite directions ofmore » serrations types were found, named upward serrations appearing at 673 K and 773 K and downward serrations at 873 K, which may be due to dynamic strain aging.« less

Field-Aligned Currents in Saturn's Nightside Magnetosphere: Subcorotation and Planetary Period Oscillation Components During Northern Spring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bradley, T. J.; Cowley, S. W. H.; Provan, G.; Hunt, G. J.; Bunce, E. J.; Wharton, S. J.; Alexeev, I. I.; Belenkaya, E. S.; Kalegaev, V. V.; Dougherty, M. K.

2018-05-01

We newly analyze Cassini magnetic field data from the 2012/2013 Saturn northern spring interval of highly inclined orbits and compare them with similar data from late southern summer in 2008, thus providing unique information on the seasonality of the currents that couple momentum between Saturn's ionosphere and magnetosphere. Inferred meridional ionospheric currents in both cases consist of a steady component related to plasma subcorotation, together with the rotating current systems of the northern and southern planetary period oscillations (PPOs). Subcorotation currents during the two intervals show opposite north-south polar region asymmetries, with strong equatorward currents flowing in the summer hemispheres but only weak currents flowing to within a few degrees of the open-closed boundary (OCB) in the winter hemispheres, inferred due to weak polar ionospheric conductivities. Currents peak at 1 MA rad-1 in both hemispheres just equatorward of the open-closed boundary, associated with total downward polar currents 6 MA, then fall across the narrow auroral upward current region to small values at subauroral latitudes. PPO-related currents have a similar form in both summer and winter with principal upward and downward field-aligned currents peaking at 1.25 MA rad-1 being essentially collocated with the auroral upward current and approximately equal in strength. Though northern and southern PPO currents were approximately equal during both intervals, the currents in both hemispheres were dual modulated by both systems during 2012/2013, with approximately half the main current closing in the opposite ionosphere and half cross field in the magnetosphere, while only the northern hemisphere currents were similarly dual modulated in 2008.

Observations and Simulations of Formation of Broad Plasma Depletions Through Merging Process

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Huang, Chao-Song; Retterer, J. M.; Beaujardiere, O. De La; Roddy, P. A.; Hunton, D.E.; Ballenthin, J. O.; Pfaff, Robert F.

2012-01-01

Broad plasma depletions in the equatorial ionosphere near dawn are region in which the plasma density is reduced by 1-3 orders of magnitude over thousands of kilometers in longitude. This phenomenon is observed repeatedly by the Communication/Navigation Outage Forecasting System (C/NOFS) satellite during deep solar minimum. The plasma flow inside the depletion region can be strongly upward. The possible causal mechanism for the formation of broad plasma depletions is that the broad depletions result from merging of multiple equatorial plasma bubbles. The purpose of this study is to demonstrate the feasibility of the merging mechanism with new observations and simulations. We present C/NOFS observations for two cases. A series of plasma bubbles is first detected by C/NOFS over a longitudinal range of 3300-3800 km around midnight. Each of the individual bubbles has a typical width of approx 100 km in longitude, and the upward ion drift velocity inside the bubbles is 200-400 m/s. The plasma bubbles rotate with the Earth to the dawn sector and become broad plasma depletions. The observations clearly show the evolution from multiple plasma bubbles to broad depletions. Large upward plasma flow occurs inside the depletion region over 3800 km in longitude and exists for approx 5 h. We also present the numerical simulations of bubble merging with the physics-based low-latitude ionospheric model. It is found that two separate plasma bubbles join together and form a single, wider bubble. The simulations show that the merging process of plasma bubbles can indeed occur in incompressible ionospheric plasma. The simulation results support the merging mechanism for the formation of broad plasma depletions.

Radiative effects of ozone waves on the Northern Hemisphere polar vortex and its modulation by the QBO

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Silverman, Vered; Harnik, Nili; Matthes, Katja; Lubis, Sandro W.; Wahl, Sebastian

2018-05-01

The radiative effects induced by the zonally asymmetric part of the ozone field have been shown to significantly change the temperature of the NH winter polar cap, and correspondingly the strength of the polar vortex. In this paper, we aim to understand the physical processes behind these effects using the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR)'s Whole Atmosphere Community Climate Model, run with 1960s ozone-depleting substances and greenhouse gases. We find a mid-winter polar vortex influence only when considering the quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) phases separately, since ozone waves affect the vortex in an opposite manner. Specifically, the emergence of a midlatitude QBO signal is delayed by 1-2 months when radiative ozone-wave effects are removed. The influence of ozone waves on the winter polar vortex, via their modulation of shortwave heating, is not obvious, given that shortwave heating is largest during fall, when planetary stratospheric waves are weakest. Using a novel diagnostic of wave 1 temperature amplitude tendencies and a synoptic analysis of upward planetary wave pulses, we are able to show the chain of events that lead from a direct radiative effect on weak early fall upward-propagating planetary waves to a winter polar vortex modulation. We show that an important stage of this amplification is the modulation of individual wave life cycles, which accumulate during fall and early winter, before being amplified by wave-mean flow feedbacks. We find that the evolution of these early winter upward planetary wave pulses and their induced stratospheric zonal mean flow deceleration is qualitatively different between QBO phases, providing a new mechanistic view of the extratropical QBO signal. We further show how these differences result in opposite radiative ozone-wave effects between east and west QBOs.

Measurement of velocities with an acoustic velocity meter, one side-looking and two upward-looking acoustic Doppler current profilers in the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, Romeoville, Illinois

USGS Publications Warehouse

Oberg, Kevin A.; Duncker, James J.

1999-01-01

In 1998, a prototype 300 kHz, side-looking Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP) was deployed in the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal (CSSC) at Romeoville, Illinois. Additionally, two upward-looking ADCP's were deployed in the same acoustic path as the side-looking ADCP and in the reach defined by the upstream and downstream acoustic velocity meter (AVM) paths. All three ADCP's were synchronized to the AVM clock at the gaging station so that data were sampled simultaneously. The three ADCP's were deployed for six weeks measuring flow velocities from 0.0 to 2.5 ft/s. Velocities measured by each ADCP were compared to AVM path velocities and to velocities measured by the other ADCP's.

Kinematic dynamo action in a network of screw motions; application to the core of a fast breeder reactor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Plunian, F.; Marty, P.; Alemany, A.

1999-03-01

Most of the studies concerning the dynamo effect are motivated by astrophysical and geophysical applications. The dynamo effect is also the subject of some experimental studies in fast breeder reactors (FBR) for they contain liquid sodium in motion with magnetic Reynolds numbers larger than unity. In this paper, we are concerned with the flow of sodium inside the core of an FBR, characterized by a strong helicity. The sodium in the core flows through a network of vertical cylinders. In each cylinder assembly, the flow can be approximated by a smooth upwards helical motion with no-slip conditions at the boundary. As the core contains a large number of assemblies, the global flow is considered to be two-dimensionally periodic. We investigate the self-excitation of a two-dimensionally periodic magnetic field using an instability analysis of the induction equation which leads to an eigenvalue problem. Advantage is taken of the flow symmetries to reduce the size of the problem. The growth rate of the magnetic field is found as a function of the flow pitch, the magnetic Reynolds number (Rm) and the vertical magnetic wavenumber (k). An [alpha]-effect is shown to operate for moderate values of Rm, supporting a mean magnetic field. The large-Rm limit is investigated numerically. It is found that [alpha]=O(Rm[minus sign]2/3), which can be explained through appropriate dynamo mechanisms. Either a smooth Ponomarenko or a Roberts type of dynamo is operating in each periodic cell, depending on k. The standard power regime of an industrial FPBR is found to be subcritical.

Hydrology of the coastal springs ground-water basin and adjacent parts of Pasco, Hernando, and Citrus Counties, Florida

USGS Publications Warehouse

Knochenmus, Lari A.; Yobbi, Dann K.

2001-01-01

The coastal springs in Pasco, Hernando, and Citrus Counties, Florida consist of three first-order magnitude springs and numerous smaller springs, which are points of substantial ground-water discharge from the Upper Floridan aquifer. Spring flow is proportional to the water-level altitude in the aquifer and is affected primarily by the magnitude and timing of rainfall. Ground-water levels in 206 Upper Floridan aquifer wells, and surface-water stage, flow, and specific conductance of water from springs at 10 gaging stations were measured to define the hydrologic variability (temporally and spatially) in the Coastal Springs Ground-Water Basin and adjacent parts of Pasco, Hernando, and Citrus Counties. Rainfall at 46 stations and ground-water withdrawals for three counties, were used to calculate water budgets, to evaluate long-term changes in hydrologic conditions, and to evaluate relations among the hydrologic components. Predictive equations to estimate daily spring flow were developed for eight gaging stations using regression techniques. Regression techniques included ordinary least squares and multiple linear regression techniques. The predictive equations indicate that ground-water levels in the Upper Floridan aquifer are directly related to spring flow. At tidally affected gaging stations, spring flow is inversely related to spring-pool altitude. The springs have similar seasonal flow patterns throughout the area. Water-budget analysis provided insight into the relative importance of the hydrologic components expected to influence spring flow. Four water budgets were constructed for small ground-water basins that form the Coastal Springs Ground-Water Basin. Rainfall averaged 55 inches per year and was the only source of inflow to the Basin. The pathways for outflow were evapotranspiration (34 inches per year), runoff by spring flow (8 inches per year), ground-water outflow from upward leakage (11 inches per year), and ground-water withdrawal (2 inches per year). Recharge (rainfall minus evapotranspiration) to the Upper Floridan aquifer consists of vertical leakage through the surficial deposits. Discharge is primarily through springs and diffuse upward leakage that maintains the extensive swamps along the Gulf of Mexico. The ground-water basins had slightly different partitioning of hydrologic components, reflecting variation among the regions. Trends in hydrologic data were identified using nonparametric statistical techniques to infer long-term changes in hydrologic conditions, and yielded mixed results. No trend in rainfall was detected during the past century. No trend in spring flow was detected in 1931-98. Although monotonic trends were not detected, rainfall patterns are naturally variable from month to month and year to year; this variability is reflected in ground-water levels and spring flows. A decreasing trend in ground-water levels was detected in the Weeki Wachee well (1966-98), but the trend was statistically weak. At current ground-water withdrawal rates, there is no discernible affect on ground-water levels and spring flows. Sporadic data records, lack of continuous data, and inconsistent periods of record among the hydrologic components impeded analysis of long-term changes to the hydrologic system and interrelations among components. The ongoing collection of hydrologic data from index sites could provide much needed information to assess the hydrologic factors affecting the quantity and quality of spring flow in the Coastal Springs Ground-Water Basin.

Detection of Accretion X-Rays from QS Vir: Cataclysmic or a Lot of Hot Air?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Matranga, Marco; Drake, Jeremy J.; Kashyap, Vinay; Steeghs, Danny

2012-03-01

An XMM-Newton observation of the nearby "pre-cataclysmic" short-period (P orb = 3.62 hr) binary QS Vir (EC 13471-1258) revealed regular narrow X-ray eclipses when the white dwarf passed behind its M2-4 dwarf companion. The X-ray emission provides a clear signature of mass transfer and accretion onto the white dwarf. The low-resolution XMM-Newton EPIC spectra are consistent with a cooling flow model and indicate an accretion rate of \\dot{M} = 1.7 \\times 10^{-13} \\,M_\\odot yr-1. At 48 pc distant, QS Vir is then the second nearest accreting cataclysmic variable known, with one of the lowest accretion rates found to date for a non-magnetic system. To feed this accretion through a wind would require a wind mass-loss rate of \\dot{M}\\sim 2\\times 10^{-12}\\,M_\\odot yr-1 if the accretion efficiency is of the order of 10%. Consideration of likely mass-loss rates for M dwarfs suggests this is improbably high and pure wind accretion unlikely. A lack of accretion disk signatures also presents some difficulties for direct Roche lobe overflow. We speculate that QS Vir is on the verge of Roche lobe overflow, and that the observed mass transfer could be supplemented by upward chromospheric flows on the M dwarf, analogous to spicules and mottles on the Sun, that escape the Roche surface to be subsequently swept up into the white dwarf Roche lobe. If so, QS Vir would be in a rare evolutionary phase lasting only a million years. The X-ray luminosity of the M dwarf estimated during primary eclipse is LX = 3 × 1028 erg s-1, which is consistent with that of rapidly rotating "saturated" K and M dwarfs.

Hydrogeologic unit flow characterization using transition probability geostatistics.

PubMed

Jones, Norman L; Walker, Justin R; Carle, Steven F

2005-01-01

This paper describes a technique for applying the transition probability geostatistics method for stochastic simulation to a MODFLOW model. Transition probability geostatistics has some advantages over traditional indicator kriging methods including a simpler and more intuitive framework for interpreting geologic relationships and the ability to simulate juxtapositional tendencies such as fining upward sequences. The indicator arrays generated by the transition probability simulation are converted to layer elevation and thickness arrays for use with the new Hydrogeologic Unit Flow package in MODFLOW 2000. This makes it possible to preserve complex heterogeneity while using reasonably sized grids and/or grids with nonuniform cell thicknesses.

Centrifugal contactor with liquid mixing and flow control vanes and method of mixing liquids of different phases

DOEpatents

Jubin, Robert T.; Randolph, John D.

1991-01-01

The invention is directed to a centrifugal contactor for solvent extraction systems. The centrifugal contactor is provided with an annular vertically oriented mixing chamber between the rotor housing and the rotor for mixing process liquids such as the aqueous and organic phases of the solvent extraction process used for nuclear fuel reprocessing. A set of stationary helically disposed vanes carried by the housing is in the lower region of the mixing chamber at a location below the process-liquid inlets for the purpose of urging the liquids in an upward direction toward the inlets and enhancing the mixing of the liquids and mass transfer between the liquids. The upper region of the mixing vessel above the inlets for the process liquids is also provided with a set helically disposed vanes carried by the housing for urging the process liquids in a downward direction when the liquid flow rates through the inlets are relatively high and the liquids contact the vane set in the upper region. The use of these opposing vane sets in the mixing zone maintains the liquid in the mixing zone at suitable levels.

The Broken Belt: Meteorite Concentrations on Stranded Ice

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Harvey, R. P.

2003-01-01

Since the first Antarctic meteorite concentrations were discovered more than 25 years ago, many theories regarding the role of iceflow in the production of meteorite concentrations have been put forward, and most agree on the basic principles. These models suggest that as the East Antarctic icesheet flows toward the margins of the continent, meteorites randomly located within the volume of ice are transported toward the icesheet margin. Where mountains or subsurface obstructions block glacial flow, diversion of ice around or over an obstruction reduces horizontal ice movement rates adjacent to the barriers and creates a vertical (upward) component of movement. If local mechanisms for ice loss (ablation) exist at such sites, an equilibrium surface will develop according to the balance between ice supply and loss, and the cargo of meteorites is exhumed on a blue ice surface. The result is a conceptual conveyor belt bringing meteorite-bearing volumes of ice from the interior of the continent to stagnant or slowmoving surfaces where ice is then lost and a precious cargo is left as a lag deposit. Cassidy et al. provides an excellent overview of how this model has been adapted to several Antarctic stranding surfaces.

The Hartousov Mofette Field in the Cheb Basin, Western Eger Rift (Czech Republic/Europe): a Comperative Geoelectric, Sedimentologic and Soil Gas Study of a Magmatic Diffuse Degassing Structure

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Flechsig, C.; Schuetze, C.; Bussert, R.

2008-12-01

The mofette field of Hartoušov is located in the Cheb Basin, a shallow Neogene intracontinental basin in Central Europe. The north-eastern part of the Cheb Basin is one of the most seismically active regions of Central Europe. Seismic activity in the Cheb Basin has mainly a swarm-like character. The numerous cold CO2 emanations (>99 Vol.% CO2) at the surface of the basin are supposed to be generally connected to the seismic activity and to stem from the upper mantle. The Hartoušov mofette field has been investigated by combining geophysical measurements (geoelectrical resistivity tomography, self potential) with sedimentological studies (grain size, Corg, mineralogy) and soil gas (CO2 flux and CO2 concentration) data. Key question of the research was to evaluate the structural and sedimentological control at a CO2 degassing location. The investigations reveal a positive correlation between areas of high soil gas (CO2) concentration and flux with geophysical anomalies (negative self potential, positive structures of low electrical resistivity) as well as with specific sediment properties (content of pyrite and organic material, occurrence of dispersed pebbles, uplifted clay layer). These features are thought to be directly or indirectly related to the magmatic caused CO2 flow. Soil gas (CO2) measurements indicate areas of high CO2 content to be marked by anomalous vegetation patterns. These anomalies spread out with a linear trend, suggesting a fault control on gas ascent. Places of highest gas flow form small hummocks, with minor depressions on top. Negative geoelectrical self potentials at such locations were interpreted considering as having been caused by a downward movement of the meteoric water balancing the upward CO2 flux. The top of a pre-Quaternary clay-rich unit with a high content of smectite is highest in the location nearest to the mofette showing the most intense CO2 emanation. Most probably the clays form a domal feature below this mofette, as confirmed by the 3-D geoelectric measurements by low electrical resistivities. The driving force behind the updoming of the clays might be the pressure of uprising CO2. Additionally, the more intense swelling of smectite due to higher rates of fluid flow at these locations might also contribute to this phenomenon. Isolated quartz pebbles dispersed in fine-grained sediments could have been transported upward by gas jets bonded to vents during periods or events of intense gas emanation. The model for the sedimentation at the active mofettes has to consider its bonding to deep-seated faults, the presence of sediment deformation structures due to gas pressure, upward transport of sediment particles by gas jets and reducing conditions caused by the magmatic CO2 flux.

Texture Development and Material Flow Behavior During Refill Friction Stir Spot Welding of AlMgSc

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shen, Junjun; Lage, Sara B. M.; Suhuddin, Uceu F. H.; Bolfarini, Claudemiro; dos Santos, Jorge F.

2018-01-01

The microstructural evolution during refill friction stir spot welding of an AlMgSc alloy was studied. The primary texture that developed in all regions, with the exception of the weld center, was determined to be 〈110〉 fibers and interpreted as a simple shear texture with the 〈110〉 direction aligned with the shear direction. The material flow is mainly driven by two components: the simple shear acting on the horizontal plane causing an inward-directed spiral flow and the extrusion acting on the vertical plane causing an upward-directed or downward-directed flow. Under such a complex material flow, the weld center, which is subjected to minimal local strain, is the least recrystallized. In addition to the geometric effects of strain and grain subdivision, thermally activated high-angle grain boundary migration, particularly continuous dynamic recrystallization, drives the formation of refined grains in the stirred zone.

Stability of Boundary Layer Flow.

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-03-01

climato- logical frequency of convection in the North Atlantic, and offered recom- U mendations on the modelling of triggered convection. The current ...support of the current investigation we have carried out several additional calculations of the marine boundary layer with SIGMET. These calculations...In a fixed coordinate system x ( positive eastward), y ( positive northward), and z ( positive vertically upward) the equations are au .U +vE + W+-U

High Upward Fluxes of Formic Acid from a Boreal Forest Canopy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schobesberger, Siegfried; Lopez-Hilifiker, Felipe D.; Taipale, Ditte; Millet, Dylan B.; D'Ambro, Emma L.; Rantala, Pekka; Mammarella, Ivan; Zhou, Putian; Wolfe, Glenn M.; Lee, Ben H.;

Skill in Precipitation Forecasting in the National Weather Service.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Charba, Jerome P.; Klein, William H.

1980-12-01

All known long-term records of forecasting performance for different types of precipitation forecasts in the National Weather Service were examined for relative skill and secular trends in skill. The largest upward trends were achieved by local probability of precipitation (PoP) forecasts for the periods 24-36 h and 36-48 h after 0000 and 1200 GMT. Over the last 13 years, the skill of these forecasts has improved at an average rate of 7.2% per 10-year interval. Over the same period, improvement has been smaller in local PoP skill in the 12-24 h range (2.0% per 10 years) and in the accuracy of "Yea/No" forecasts of measurable precipitation. The overall trend in accuracy of centralized quantitative precipitation forecasts of 0.5 in and 1.0 in has been slightly upward at the 0-24 h range and strongly upward at the 24-48 h range. Most of the improvement in these forecasts has been achieved from the early 1970s to the present. Strong upward accuracy trends in all types of precipitation forecasts within the past eight years are attributed primarily to improvements in numerical and statistical centralized guidance forecasts.The skill and accuracy of both measurable and quantitative precipitation forecasts is 35-55% greater during the cool season than during the warm season. Also, the secular rate of improvement of the cool season precipitation forecasts is 50-110% greater than that of the warm season. This seasonal difference in performance reflects the relative difficulty of forecasting predominantly stratiform precipitation of the cool season and convective precipitation of the warm season.

How does the architecture of a fault system controls magma upward migration through the crust?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Iturrieta, P. C.; Cembrano, J. M.; Stanton-Yonge, A.; Hurtado, D.

2017-12-01

The orientation and relative disposition of adjacent faults locally disrupt the regional stress field, thus enhancing magma flow through previous or newly created favorable conduits. Moreover, the brittle-plastic transition (BPT), due to its stronger rheology, governs the average state of stress of shallower portions of the fault system. Furthermore, the BPT may coincide with the location of transient magma reservoirs, from which dikes can propagate upwards into the upper crust, shaping the inner structure of the volcanic arc. In this work, we examine the stress distribution in strike-slip duplexes with variable geometry, along with the critical fluid overpressure ratio (CFOP), which is the minimum value required for individual faults to fracture in tension. We also determine the stress state disruption of the fault system when a dike is emplaced, to answer open questions such as: what is the nature of favorable pathways for magma to migrate? what is the architecture influence on the feedback between fault system kinematics and magma injection? To this end, we present a 3D coupled hydro-mechanical finite element model of the continental lithosphere, where faults are represented as continuum volumes with an elastic-plastic rheology. Magma flow upon fracturing is modeled through non-linear Stoke's flow, coupling solid and fluid equilibrium. A non-linear sensitivity analysis is performed in function of tectonic, rheology and geometry inputs, to assess which are the first-order factors that governs the nature of dike emplacement. Results show that the CFOP is heterogeneously distributed in the fault system, and within individual fault segments. Minimum values are displayed near fault intersections, where local kinematics superimpose on regional tectonic loading. Furthermore, when magma is transported through a fault segment, the CFOP is now minimized in faults with non-favorable orientations. This suggests that these faults act as transient pathways for magma to continue migrating upwards, which may explain the heterogeneity of seismicity patterns in volcano-tectonic seismic swarms. Likewise, once magma is injected, the consequent disruption of the stress field enhances the slip of faults which are not favorably oriented to the regional tectonic loading.

Deep-level magma dehydration and ascent rates at Mt. Etna (Sicily, Italy)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Armienti, P.; Perinelli, C.; Putirka, K.

2012-04-01

Magma ascent velocity, v (dH/dt; H = depth, t = time),can be determined from ascent rate (dP/dt), and rate of cooling (dT/dt): v= 1/(rgpg) (dP/dT)(dT/dt) where r is magma density, P is pressure, T is temperature and g is the acceleration of gravity. This equation for v provides a key to investigating the relationships between initial ascent rate of magma and the depths of magma dehydration, and v can be calculated using pressure and temperature (P - PH2O - T) estimates from mineral-liquid thermobarometry, and cooling rates inferred from Crystal Size Distribution (CSD) theory. For recent Mt. Etna lava flows, both dP/dT and dT/dt have been well characterized based, respectively, on clinopyroxene thermobarometry, and clinopyroxene CSDs (the latter yields dT/dt = 2x10-6 °C/s). Deep-level (>20 km) magma ascent rates range from practically 0 (where clinopyroxene P - T estimates form a cluster, and so dP/dT ≈ 0), to about 10 m/hr for flows that yield very steep P - T trajectories. Many lava flows at Mt. Etna yield P - T paths that follow a hydrous (about 3% water) clinopyroxene saturation surface, which closely approximates water contents obtained from melt inclusions. Independent assessments of deep level water content yield ascent rates of ~1 m/hr, in agreement with the slowest rates derived for magma effusion or vapor-driven ascent (~0.001 to >0.2 m/s, or 3.6 to 720 m/hr). Changes in P - T slopes, as obtained by pyroxene thermobarometry, indicate an upward acceleration of magma, which may be due to the onset of deep-level magma dehydration linked to the non-ideal behavior of water and CO2 mixtures that induce a deep-level maximum of water loss at P ≈ 0.4 MPa at T ≈ 1200 ° C for a CO2 content >1000ppm. Melt inclusion data on CO2 and H2O contents are successfully reproduced and interpreted in a context of magma dehydration induced by a CO2 flux possibly deriving by decarbonation reaction of the carbonate fraction of the Capo D'Orlando flysch.

Induced-charge electroosmotic trapping of particles.

PubMed

Ren, Yukun; Liu, Weiyu; Jia, Yankai; Tao, Ye; Shao, Jinyou; Ding, Yucheng; Jiang, Hongyuan

2015-05-21

Position-controllable trapping of particles on the surface of a bipolar metal strip by induced-charge electroosmotic (ICEO) flow is presented herein. We demonstrate a nonlinear ICEO slip profile on the electrode surface accounting for stable particle trapping behaviors above the double-layer relaxation frequency, while no trapping occurs in the DC limit as a result of a strong upward fluidic drag induced by a linear ICEO slip profile. By extending an AC-flow field effect transistor from the DC limit to the AC field, we reveal that fixed-potential ICEO exceeding RC charging frequency can adjust the particle trapping position flexibly by generating controllable symmetry breaking in a vortex flow pattern. Our results open up new opportunities to manipulate microscopic objects in modern microfluidic systems by using ICEO.

Mesoscale density variability in the mesosphere and thermosphere: Effects of vertical flow accelerations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Revelle, D. O.

1987-01-01

A mechanistic one dimensional numerical (iteration) model was developed which can be used to simulate specific types of mesoscale atmospheric density (and pressure) variability in the mesosphere and the thermosphere, namely those due to waves and those due to vertical flow accelerations. The model was developed with the idea that it could be used as a supplement to the TGCMs (thermospheric general circulation models) since such models have a very limited ability to model phenomena on small spatial scales. The simplest case to consider was the integration upward through a time averaged, height independent, horizontally divergent flow field. Vertical winds were initialized at the lower boundary using the Ekman pumping theory over flat terrain. The results of the computations are summarized.

Downstream lightening and upward heavying, sorting of sediments of uniform grain size but differing in density

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Viparelli, E.; Solari, L.; Hill, K. M.

2014-12-01

Downstream fining, i.e. the tendency for a gradual decrease in grain size in the downstream direction, has been observed and studied in alluvial rivers and in laboratory flumes. Laboratory experiments and field observations show that the vertical sorting pattern over a small Gilbert delta front is characterized by an upward fining profile, with preferential deposition of coarse particles in the lowermost part of the deposit. The present work is an attempt to answer the following questions. Are there analogous sorting patterns in mixtures of sediment particles having the same grain size but differing density? To investigate this, we performed experiments at the Hydrosystems Laboratory at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. During the experiments a Gilbert delta formed and migrated downstream allowing for the study of transport and sorting processes on the surface and within the deposit. The experimental results show 1) preferential deposition of heavy particles in the upstream part of the deposit associated with a pattern of "downstream lightening"; and 2) a vertical sorting pattern over the delta front characterized by a pattern of "upward heavying" with preferential deposition of light particles in the lowermost part of the deposit. The observed downstream lightening is analogous of the downstream fining with preferential deposition of heavy (coarse) particles in the upstream part of the deposit. The observed upward heavying was unexpected because, considering the particle mass alone, the heavy (coarse) particles should have been preferentially deposited in the lowermost part of the deposit. Further, the application of classical fractional bedload transport relations suggests that in the case of mixtures of particles of uniform size and different densities equal mobility is not approached. We hypothesize that granular physics mechanisms traditionally associated with sheared granular flows may be responsible for the observed upward heavying and for the deviation from equal mobility.

ISUAL-Observed Blue Luminous Events: The Associated Sferics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chou, Jung-Kuang; Hsu, Rue-Ron; Su, Han-Tzong; Chen, Alfred Bing-Chih; Kuo, Cheng-Ling; Huang, Sung-Ming; Chang, Shu-Chun; Peng, Kang-Ming; Wu, Yen-Jung

2018-04-01

The blue luminous events (BLEs) recorded by ISUAL (Imager of Sprites and Upper Atmospheric Lightning) radiate unambiguous middle ultraviolet to blue emissions (230-450 nm) but contain dim red emissions (623-754 nm). The BLE appears to be dot-like on one ISUAL image with an integration time of 29 ms. A few BLEs develop upward into blue jets/starters or type II gigantic jets (GJs). The associated sferics of the BLEs in the extremely low frequency to very low frequency band and in the low-frequency band exhibit similar patterns to the narrow bipolar events (NBEs) identified in the very low frequency and low-frequency band. The ISUAL BLEs are conjectured to be the accompanied light emissions of the NBEs. Both upward and downward propagating current obtained from the associated sferics of the BLEs have been found. The source heights of the six BLEs related to negative NBEs are estimated in the range of 16.2-17.8 km. These six events are suggested to occur between the upper positive charge layer and the negative screen charge layer on the top of the normally electrified thunderstorm. The six blue starters, one blue jet, and one type II GJ are inferred to be positive upward discharges from their associated sferics in the extremely low frequency to very low frequency band. Based on the simultaneous radio and optical observations, a NBE is conjectured to be the initiation discharge with rapidly flowing current within the thunderstorm, while a blue jet/starter or a type II GJ is suggested to be the ensuing discharge with slowly varying current propagating upward from the thunderstorm.

Census Undercount and the Undercount of the Black Population.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nguyen, Phung

1996-01-01

Argues that blacks have been disproportionately undercounted in the census and this undercount has resulted in such biased statistics as proportions of black female-headed households, victimization rates of black males, or crude death rates of blacks. Further, these statistics are biased upward and downward, and together they generate distorted…

Paleozoic fluid history of the Michigan Basin: Evidence from dolomite geochemistry in the Middle Ordovician St. Peter Sandstone

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

Winter, B.L.; Johnson, C.M.; Simo, J.A.

1995-04-03

The isotope (Sr and O) and elemental (Mg, Ca, Mn, Fe, and Sr) compositions of the various dolomites in the Middle Ordovician St. Peter Sandstone in the Michigan Basin are determined and the variations are modeled in terms of fluid-rock interaction or as mixing relations. These geochemical models, combined with the paragenetic sequence of the dolomites and late anhydrite cement, suggest the existence of at least four distinct diagenetic fluids in the St. Peter Sandstone during the paleozoic. Fluid 1 has a composition consistent with a modified older (pre-Middle Ordovician) seawater origin, which indicates that the flow path for thismore » fluid had a major upward component. This fluid resulted in the first and volumetrically most important burial dolomitization event, producing dolomite in both carbonate and quartz sandstone lithofacies in the St. Peter Sandstone. Fluid 2 has a composition consistent with a modified Middle to early Late Ordovician seawater origin, suggesting a major downward component for fluid flow. Fluid 2 produced dolomite cement in the carbonate lithofacies that postdates Fluid 1 dolomite. The composition of Fluid 3 is best interpreted to reflect a heated, deep basinal brine that had previously interacted with the K-feldspar-rich rocks near the Cambrian-Precambrian unconformity in the Michigan Basin, indicating a major upward component for fluid flow. Fluid 3 produced dolomite cement in quartz sandstone lithofacies that postdates Fluid 1 dolomite. Fluid 4 resulted in precipitation of late anhydrite in fractures. The {sup 87}Sr/{sup 86}Sr ratio of the anhydrite is consistent with Fluid 4 originating as a dilute fluid that interacted extensively with Silurian gypsum in the Michigan Basin; this indicates that the flow path of Fluid 4 had a major downward component.« less

Prey handling using whole-body fluid dynamics in batoids.

PubMed

Wilga, Cheryl D; Maia, Anabela; Nauwelaerts, Sandra; Lauder, George V

2012-02-01

Fluid flow generated by body movements is a foraging tactic that has been exploited by many benthic species. In this study, the kinematics and hydrodynamics of prey handling behavior in little skates, Leucoraja erinacea, and round stingrays, Urobatis halleri, are compared using kinematics and particle image velocimetry. Both species use the body to form a tent to constrain the prey with the pectoral fin edges pressed against the substrate. Stingrays then elevate the head, which increases the volume between the body and the substrate to generate suction, while maintaining pectoral fin contact with the substrate. Meanwhile, the tip of the rostrum is curled upwards to create an opening where fluid is drawn under the body, functionally analogous to suction-feeding fishes. Skates also rotate the rostrum upwards although with the open rostral sides and the smaller fin area weaker fluid flow is generated. However, skates also use a rostral strike behavior in which the rostrum is rapidly rotated downwards pushing fluid towards the substrate to potentially stun or uncover prey. Thus, both species use the anterior portion of the body to direct fluid flow to handle prey albeit in different ways, which may be explained by differences in morphology. Rostral stiffness and pectoral fin insertion onto the rostrum differ between skates and rays and this corresponds to behavioral differences in prey handling resulting in distinct fluid flow patterns. The flexible muscular rostrum and greater fin area of stingrays allow more extensive use of suction to handle prey while the stiff cartilaginous rostrum of skates lacking extensive fin insertion is used as a paddle to strike prey as well as to clear away sand cover. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Spatiotemporal changes of freezing/thawing indices and their response to recent climate change on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau from 1980 to 2013

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Tonghua; Qin, Yanhui; Wu, Xiaodong; Li, Ren; Zou, Defu; Xie, Changwei

2018-05-01

The spatial and temporal changes of the ground surface freezing indices (GFIs), ground surface thawing indices (GTIs), air freezing indices (AFIs), and air thawing indices (ATIs) in permafrost and seasonally frozen ground regions of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP) were analyzed based on the daily ground surface and air temperatures from 69 meteorological stations using the Mann-Kendall test and Sen's slope estimate. The spatial patterns of the freezing indices (FIs) and thawing indices (TIs) are nearly negatively correlated. On the annual scale, the GFI and GTI are greater than the AFI and ATI in both permafrost and seasonally frozen ground regions. The marked upward and downward trends have been observed for the time series of TI and FI, respectively, since 1998 on the QTP. Moreover, GFI and AFI decrease more significantly in permafrost regions than in seasonally frozen ground regions; the increasing rate of GTI and ATI in the seasonally frozen ground regions is greater than that in the permafrost regions. In permafrost regions, the downward trend of FI is greater than the upward trend of TI. However, the upward trend of TI shows a more drastic change than the FI in the seasonally frozen ground regions. The results indicate that the warming in the permafrost regions is more pronounced in winter than in the other seasons. The summer warming is more pronounced than the other seasons in the seasonally frozen ground regions. The decreasing rate of AFI and GFI increases as the altitude rises, while they decrease with increasing ATI. The average decreasing rate of GFI is greater than that of the AFI in different altitudinal zones. The greatest decrease of FI occurs in permafrost regions in the hinterland of the QTP, which indicates the dominant winter warming in this region. The downward trend of FI and upward trend of TI are responsible for the reported permafrost degradation on the QTP.

Quantifying morphological changes of cape-related shoals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Paniagua-Arroyave, J. F.; Adams, P. N.; Parra, S. M.; Valle-Levinson, A.

2017-12-01

The rising demand for marine resources has motivated the study of inner shelf transport processes, especially in locations with highly-developed coastlines, endangered-species habitats, and valuable economic resources. These characteristics are found at Cape Canaveral shoals, on the Florida Atlantic coast, where transport dynamics and morphological evolution are not well understood. To study morphological changes at these shoals, two sets of paired upward- and downward-pointing acoustic Doppler current profilers (ADCPs) were deployed in winter 2015-2016. One set was deployed at the inner swale of Shoal E, 20 km southeast of the cape tip in 13 m depth, while the other set was located at the edge of Southeast shoal in 5 m deep. Upward-pointing velocity profiles and suspended particle concentrations were implemented in the Exner equation to quantify instantaneous rates of change in bed elevation. This computation includes changes in sediment concentration and the advection of suspended particles, but does not account for spatial gradients in bed-load fluxes and water velocities. The results of the computation were then compared to bed change rates measured directly by the downward-pointing ADCPs. At the easternmost ridge, quantified bed elevation change rates ranged from -7×10-7 to 4×10-7 m/s, and those at the inner swale ranged from -4×10-7 to 8×10-7 m/s. These values were two orders of magnitude smaller than rates measured by downward-pointing ADCPs. Moreover, the cumulative changes were two orders of magnitude larger at the ridge (-0.33 m, downward, and -0.13, m upward) than at the inner swale (cf. -6×10-3 m, downward, and 3×10-3 m, upward). These values suggest that bedform migration may be occurring at the ridge, that suspended sediments account for up to 30% of total bed changes, and that gradients in bed-load fluxes exert control on morphological change over the shoals. Despite uncertainties related to the ADCP-derived sediment concentrations, these findings provide preliminary evidence about the spatial variability in morphological changes over cape-related shoals.

An Evaluation of Selected Extraordinary Floods in the United States Reported by the U.S. Geological Survey and Implications for Future Advancement of Flood Science

USGS Publications Warehouse

Costa, John E.; Jarrett, Robert D.

2008-01-01

Thirty flood peak discharges determine the envelope curve of maximum floods documented in the United States by the U.S. Geological Survey. These floods occurred from 1927 to 1978 and are extraordinary not just in their magnitude, but in their hydraulic and geomorphic characteristics. The reliability of the computed discharge of these extraordinary floods was reviewed and evaluated using current (2007) best practices. Of the 30 flood peak discharges investigated, only 7 were measured at daily streamflow-gaging stations that existed when the flood occurred, and 23 were measured at miscellaneous (ungaged) sites. Methods used to measure these 30 extraordinary flood peak discharges consisted of 21 slope-area measurements, 2 direct current-meter measurements, 1 culvert measurement, 1 rating-curve extension, and 1 interpolation and rating-curve extension. The remaining four peak discharges were measured using combinations of culvert, slope-area, flow-over-road, and contracted-opening measurements. The method of peak discharge determination for one flood is unknown. Changes to peak discharge or rating are recommended for 20 of the 30 flood peak discharges that were evaluated. Nine floods retained published peak discharges, but their ratings were downgraded. For two floods, both peak discharge and rating were corrected and revised. Peak discharges for five floods that are subject to significant uncertainty due to complex field and hydraulic conditions, were re-rated as estimates. This study resulted in 5 of the 30 peak discharges having revised values greater than about 10 percent different from the original published values. Peak discharges were smaller for three floods (North Fork Hubbard Creek, Texas; El Rancho Arroyo, New Mexico; South Fork Wailua River, Hawaii), and two peak discharges were revised upward (Lahontan Reservoir tributary, Nevada; Bronco Creek, Arizona). Two peak discharges were indeterminate because they were concluded to have been debris flows with peak discharges that were estimated by an inappropriate method (slope-area) (Big Creek near Waynesville, North Carolina; Day Creek near Etiwanda, California). Original field notes and records could not be found for three of the floods, however, some data (copies of original materials, records of reviews) were available for two of these floods. A rating was assigned to each of seven peak discharges that had no rating. Errors identified in the reviews include misidentified flow processes, incorrect drainage areas for very small basins, incorrect latitude and longitude, improper field methods, arithmetic mistakes in hand calculations, omission of measured high flows when developing rating curves, and typographical errors. Common problems include use of two-section slope-area measurements, poor site selection, uncertainties in Manning's n-values, inadequate review, lost data files, and insufficient and inadequately described high-water marks. These floods also highlight the extreme difficulty in making indirect discharge measurements following extraordinary floods. Significantly, none of the indirect measurements are rated better than fair, which indicates the need to improve methodology to estimate peak discharge. Highly unsteady flow and resulting transient hydraulic phenomena, two-dimensional flow patterns, debris flows at streamflow-gaging stations, and the possibility of disconnected flow surfaces are examples of unresolved problems not well handled by current indirect discharge methodology. On the basis of a comprehensive review of 50,000 annual peak discharges and miscellaneous floods in California, problems with individual flood peak discharges would be expected to require a revision of discharge or rating curves at a rate no greater than about 0.10 percent of all floods. Many extraordinary floods create complex flow patterns and processes that cannot be adequately documented with quasi-steady, uniform one-dimensional analyses. These floods are most accura

Does attenuated skin blood flow lower sweat rate and the critical environmental limit for heat balance during severe heat exposure?

PubMed Central

Cramer, Matthew N.; Gagnon, Daniel; Crandall, Craig G.; Jay, Ollie

2016-01-01

Attenuated skin blood flow (SkBF) is often assumed to impair core temperature (Tc) regulation. Profound pharmacologically-induced reductions in SkBF (~85%) lead to impaired sweating but whether the smaller attenuations in SkBF (~20%) more associated with ageing and certain diseases lead to decrements in sweating and maximum heat loss potential is unknown. Seven healthy males (28±4y) completed a 30-min equilibration period at 41°C and a vapour pressure (Pa) of 2.57 kPa followed by incremental steps in Pa of 0.17 kPa every 6-min to 5.95 kPa. Differences in heat loss potential were assessed by identifying the critical vapour pressure (Pcrit) at which an upward inflection in Tc occurred. Three separate treatments elicited changes in plasma volume to achieve three distinct levels of SkBF: control (CON), diuretic-induced iso-osmotic dehydration to lower SkBF (DEH), and continuous saline infusion to maintain SkBF (SAL). Tc, mean skin temperature (Tsk), heart rate, mean laser-Doppler flux (forearm, thigh; LDFmean), mean local sweat rate (forearm, thigh; LSRmean), and metabolic rate were measured. In DEH, a 14.2±5.7% lower plasma volume resulted in a ~20% lower LDFmean (DEH: 139±23, CON: 176±22, SAL: 186±22 PU; P=0.034). However, LSRmean and whole-body sweat losses were unaffected by treatment throughout (P>0.482). Pcrit for Tc was similar between treatments (CON: 5.05±0.30, DEH: 4.93±0.16, SAL: 5.12±0.10 kPa; P=0.166). Further, no differences were observed in the Tsk−Ta gradient, metabolic rate, or changes in Tc (P>0.197). In conclusion, a ~20% reduction in SkBF alters neither sweat rate nor the upper limit for heat loss from the skin during non-encapsulated passive heat stress. PMID:27859929

Experimental investigation of wood combustion in a fixed bed with hot air

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

Markovic, Miladin, E-mail: m.markovic@utwente.nl; Bramer, Eddy A.; Brem, Gerrit

Highlights: • Upward combustion is a new combustion concept with ignition by hot primary air. • Upward combustion has three stages: short drying, rapid devolatilization and char combustion. • Variation of fuel moisture and inert content have little influence on the combustion. • Experimental comparison between conventional and upward combustion is presented. - Abstract: Waste combustion on a grate with energy recovery is an important pillar of municipal solid waste (MSW) management in the Netherlands. In MSW incinerators fresh waste stacked on a grate enters the combustion chamber, heats up by radiation from the flame above the layer and ignitionmore » occurs. Typically, the reaction zone starts at the top of the waste layer and propagates downwards, producing heat for drying and devolatilization of the fresh waste below it until the ignition front reaches the grate. The control of this process is mainly based on empiricism. MSW is a highly inhomogeneous fuel with continuous fluctuating moisture content, heating value and chemical composition. The resulting process fluctuations may cause process control difficulties, fouling and corrosion issues, extra maintenance, and unplanned stops. In the new concept the fuel layer is ignited by means of preheated air (T > 220 °C) from below without any external ignition source. As a result a combustion front will be formed close to the grate and will propagate upwards. That is why this approach is denoted by upward combustion. Experimental research has been carried out in a batch reactor with height of 4.55 m, an inner diameter of 200 mm and a fuel layer height up to 1 m. Due to a high quality two-layer insulation adiabatic conditions can be assumed. The primary air can be preheated up to 350 °C, and the secondary air is distributed via nozzles above the waste layer. During the experiments, temperatures along the height of the reactor, gas composition and total weight decrease are continuously monitored. The influence of the primary air speed, fuel moisture and inert content on the combustion characteristics (ignition rate, combustion rate, ignition front speed and temperature of the reaction zone) is evaluated. The upward combustion concept decouples the drying, devolatilization and burnout phase. In this way the moisture and inert content of the waste have almost no influence on the combustion process. In this paper an experimental comparison between conventional and reversed combustion is presented.« less

Mechanisms Of Saucer-Shaped Sill Emplacement: Insight From Experimental Modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Galland, O.; Planke, S.; Malthe-Sørenssen, A.; Polteau, S.; Svensen, H.; Podladchikov, Y. Y.

2006-12-01

It has been recently demonstrated that magma intrusions in sedimentary basins had a strong impact on petroleum systems. Most of these intrusions are sills, and especially saucer-shaped sills. These features can be observed in many sedimentary basins (i.e. the Karoo basin, South Africa; the Norwegian and North Sea; the Tunguska basin, Siberia; the Neuquén basin in Argentina). The occurrence of such features in so various settings suggests that their emplacement results from fundamental processes. However, the mechanisms that govern their formation remain poorly constrained. Experiments were conducted to simulate the emplacement of saucer-shaped magma intrusions in sedimentary basins. The model rock and magma were fine-grained silica flour and molten vegetable oil, respectively. This modeling technique allows simultaneous simulation of magma emplacement and brittle deformation at a basin scale. For our purpose, we performed our experiments without external deformation. During the experiments, the oil was injected horizontally at constant flow rate within the silica flour. Then the oil initially emplaced in a sill, whereas the surface of the model inflated into a smooth dome. Subsequently, the oil propagated upwards along inclined sheets, finally reaching the surface at the edge of the dome. The resulting geometries of the intrusions were saucer-shaped sills. Then the oil solidified, and the model was cut in serial cross-sections through which the structures of the intrusive body and of the overburden can be observed. In order to constraint the processes governing the emplacement of such features, we performed a parametric study based on a set of experiments in which we systematically varied parameters such as the depth of emplacement and the injection flow rate of the oil. Our results showed that saucer diameters are larger at deeper level of emplacement. Opposite trend was obtained with varying injection flow rates. Based on our results, we conducted a detailed physical analysis that resulted in the definition of a dimensionless parameter that governs the emplacement of saucers.

The auroral current circuit and field-aligned currents observed by FAST

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Elphic, R. C.; Bonnell, J. W.; Strangeway, R. J.; Kepko, L.; Ergun, R. E.; McFadden, J. P.; Carlson, C. W.; Peria, W.; Cattell, C. A.; Klumpar, D.; Shelley, E.; Peterson, W.; Moebius, E.; Kistler, L.; Pfaff, R.

FAST observes signatures of small-scale downward-going current at the edges of the inverted-V regions where the primary (auroral) electrons are found. In the winter pre-midnight auroral zone these downward currents are carried by upward flowing low- and medium-energy (up to several keV) electron beams. FAST instrumentation shows agreement between the current densities inferred from both the electron distributions and gradients in the magnetic field. FAST data taken near apogee (˜4000-km altitude) commonly show downward current magnetic field deflections consistent with the observed upward flux of ˜109 electrons cm-2 s-1, or current densities of several µA m-2. The electron, field-aligned current and electric field signatures indicate the downward currents may be associated with “black aurora” and auroral ionospheric cavities. The field-aligned voltage-current relationship in the downward current region is nonlinear.

Understanding Material Property Impacts on Co-Current Flame Spread: Improving Understanding Crucial for Fire Safety

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ruff, Gary (Technical Monitor); Rangwala, Ali S.; Buckley, Steven G.; Torero, Jose L.

2004-01-01

The prospect of long-term manned space flight brings fresh urgency to the development of an integrated and fundamental approach to the study of material flammability. Currently, NASA uses two tests, the upward flame propagation test and heat and visible smoke release rate test, to assess the flammability properties of materials to be used in space under microgravity conditions. The upward flame propagation test can be considered in the context of the 2-D analysis of Emmons. This solution incorporates material properties by a "mass transfer number", B in the boundary conditions.

Mass Conservation and Inference of Metabolic Networks from High-Throughput Mass Spectrometry Data

PubMed Central

Bandaru, Pradeep; Bansal, Mukesh

2011-01-01

Abstract We present a step towards the metabolome-wide computational inference of cellular metabolic reaction networks from metabolic profiling data, such as mass spectrometry. The reconstruction is based on identification of irreducible statistical interactions among the metabolite activities using the ARACNE reverse-engineering algorithm and on constraining possible metabolic transformations to satisfy the conservation of mass. The resulting algorithms are validated on synthetic data from an abridged computational model of Escherichia coli metabolism. Precision rates upwards of 50% are routinely observed for identification of full metabolic reactions, and recalls upwards of 20% are also seen. PMID:21314454

The 40Ar/39Ar and K/Ar dating of lavas from the Hilo 1-km core hole, Hawaii Scientific Drilling Project

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sharp, W.D.; Turrin, B.D.; Renne, P.R.; Lanphere, M.A.

1996-01-01

Mauna Kea lava flows cored in the HilIo hole range in age from <200 ka to about 400 ka based on 40Ar/39Ar incremental heating and K-Ar analyses of 16 groundmass samples and one coexisting plagioclase. The lavas, all subaerially deposited, include a lower section consisting only of tholeiitic basalts and an upper section of interbedded alkalic, transitional tholeiitic, and tholeiitic basalts. The lower section has yielded predominantly complex, discordant 40Ar/39Ar age spectra that result from mobility of 40Ar and perhaps K, the presence of excess 40Ar, and redistribution of 39Ar by recoil. Comparison of K-Ar ages with 40Ar/39Ar integrated ages indicates that some of these samples have also lost 39Ar. Nevertheless, two plateau ages of 391 ?? 40 and 400 ?? 26 ka from deep in the hole, combined with data from the upper section, show that the tholeiitic section accumulated at an average rate of about 7 to 8 m/kyr and has an mean recurrence interval of 0.5 kyr/flow unit. Samples from the upper section yield relatively precise 40Ar/39Ar plateau and isotope correlation ages of 326 ?? 23, 241 ?? 5, 232 ?? 4, and 199 ?? 9 ka for depths of -415.7 m to -299.2 m. Within their uncertainty, these ages define a linear relationship with depth, with an average accumulation rate of 0.9 m/kyr and an average recurrence interval of 4.8 kyr/flow unit. The top of the Mauna Kea sequence at -280 m must be older than the plateau age of 132 ?? 32 ka, obtained for the basal Mauna Loa flow in the corehole. The upward decrease in lava accumulation rate is a consequence of the decreasing magma supply available to Mauna Kea as it rode the Pacific plate away from its magma source, the Hawaiian mantle plume. The age-depth relation in the core hole may be used to test and refine models that relate the growth of Mauna Kea to the thermal and compositional structure of the mantle plume.

78 FR 18326 - Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment Request; Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-03-26

...; Comment Request; Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math Science Annual Performance Report AGENCY: The Office... considered public records. Title of Collection: Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math Science Annual Performance...) and Upward Bound Math and Science (UBMS) Programs. The Department is requesting a new APR because of...

Effect of Secondary Jet-flow Angle on Performance of Turbine Inter-guide-vane Burner Based on Jet-vortex Flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zheng, Haifei; Tang, Hao; Xu, Xingya; Li, Ming

2014-08-01

Four different secondary airflow angles for the turbine inter-guide-vane burners with trapped vortex cavity were designed. Comparative analysis between combustion performances influenced by the variation of secondary airflow angle was carried out by using numerical simulation method. The turbulence was modeled using the Scale-Adaptive Simulation (SAS) turbulence model. Four cases with different secondary jet-flow angles (-45°, 0°, 30°, 60°) were studied. It was observed that the case with secondary jet-flows at 60° angle directed upwards (1) has good mixing effect; (2) mixing effect is the best although the flow field distributions inside both of the cavity and the main flow passage for the four models are very similar; (3) has complete combustion and symmetric temperature distribution on the exit section of guide vane (X = 70 mm), with uniform temperature distribution, less temperature gradient, and shrank local high temperature regions in the notch located on the guide vane.

Responses of neurons in the medial column of the inferior olive in pigeons to translational and rotational optic flowfields.

PubMed

Winship, I R; Wylie, D R

2001-11-01

The responses of neurons in the medial column of the inferior olive to translational and rotational optic flow were recorded from anaesthetized pigeons. Panoramic translational or rotational flowfields were produced by mechanical devices that projected optic flow patterns onto the walls, ceiling and floor of the room. The axis of rotation/translation could be positioned to any orientation in three-dimensional space such that axis tuning could be determined. Each neuron was assigned a vector representing the axis about/along which the animal would rotate/translate to produce the flowfield that elicited maximal modulation. Both translation-sensitive and rotation-sensitive neurons were found. For neurons responsive to translational optic flow, the preferred axis is described with reference to a standard right-handed coordinate system, where +x, +y and +z represent rightward, upward and forward translation of the animal, respectively (assuming that all recordings were from the right side of the brain). t(+y) neurons were maximally excited in response to a translational optic flowfield that results from self-translation upward along the vertical (y) axis. t(-y) neurons also responded best to translational optic flow along the vertical axis but showed the opposite direction preference. The two remaining groups, t(-x+z) and t(-x-z) neurons, responded best to translational optic flow along horizontal axes that were oriented 45 degrees to the midline. There were two types of neurons responsive to rotational optic flow: rVA neurons preferred rotation about the vertical axis, and rH135c neurons preferred rotation about a horizontal axis at 135 degrees contralateral azimuth. The locations of marking lesions indicated a clear topographical organization of the six response types. In summary, our results reinforce that the olivo-cerebellar system dedicated to the analysis of optic flow is organized according to a reference frame consisting of three approximately orthogonal axes: the vertical axis, and two horizontal axes oriented 45 degrees to either side the midline. Previous research has shown that the eye muscles, vestibular semicircular canals and postural control system all share a similar spatial frame of reference.

Analysis of geophysical logs, at North Penn Area 6 Superfund Site, Lansdale, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania

USGS Publications Warehouse

Conger, Randall W.

1999-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), as part of technical assistance to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), collected borehole geophysical log data in 34 industrial, commercial, and public supply wells and 28 monitor wells at the North Penn Area 6 Superfund Site, in Lansdale, Pa., from August 22, 1995, through August 29, 1997. The wells range in depth from 50 to 1,027 feet below land surface and are drilled in Triassic-age shales and siltstones of the Brunswick Group and Lockatong Formation. The geophysical log data were collected to help describe the hydrogeologic framework in the area and to provide guidance in the reconstruction of the 28 monitor wells drilled during summer 1997. At the time of logging, all wells had open-hole construction. The geophysical logs, caliper, fluid-resistivity, and fluid-temperature, and borehole video logs were used to determine the vertical distribution of water-bearing fractures. Heatpulse-flowmeter measurements were used to determine vertical borehole flow under pumping and nonpumping conditions. The most productive fractures generally could be determined from heatpulse-flowmeter measurements under pumping conditions. Vertical borehole flow was measured under nonpumping conditions in most wells that had more than one water-bearing fracture. Upward flow was measured in 35 wells and probably is a result of natural head differences between fractures in the local ground-water-flow system. Downward flow was measured in 11 wells and commonly indicated differences in hydraulic heads of the fractures caused by nearby pumping. Both upward and downward flow was measured in three wells. No flow was detected in eight wells. Natural-gamma-ray logs were used to estimate the attitude of bedding. Thin shale marker beds, shown as spikes of elevated radioactivity in the natural-gamma logs of some wells throughout the area, enable the determination of bedding-plane orientation from three-point correlations. Generally, the marker beds in and near Lansdale strike about N. 48°-60° E. and dip about 11° NW. Acoustic televiewer logs run in selected boreholes indicate that the attitude of many water-bearing fractures commonly is similar to that of bedding.

An experimental investigation of the effects of spiral angle on the evaporation heat transfer coefficients in microfin tubes with visualization technique

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oh, Se-Yoon

A smooth tube and five microfin tubes were tested, and evaporation heat transfer coefficients were measured and compared for mass fluxes, 50, 100 and 200 kg/m2 s, and heat fluxes, 5, 10 and 20 kW/m 2, with Refrigerant 134a as a working fluid. The evaporation heat transfer coefficients at quality 0.5 were compared among the smooth and five microfin tubes with spiral angles 6, 12, 18, 25 and 44 degrees. The effect of the spiral angle on the heat transfer coefficients was examined. It was found that the optimal spiral angle where the maximum heat transfer coefficient occurs, mainly depends on mass flux. The optimal spiral angle was 18 degrees for G=50 kg/m2 s, and 6 degrees for G=100 and 200 kg/m 2 s. A borescope was used to visualize the flow on the inside wall of test tubes. The purpose was to find out the effect of the grooves on the liquid flow in microfin tubes and to explain the mechanism of heat transfer enhancement. Temperatures on the tube wall were measured at the same axial location as the imaging sensor of the borescope, and were related to the behavior of the liquid flow on the inside wall of the tubes. The liquid flow in the grooves on the wall was found to be the most important factor in enhancing heat transfer coefficients. The liquid flowed upward along the grooves and covered the upper inside wall of the microfin tubes at G=50 kg/m2 s. When heat flux increases, the liquid flow was found at a higher position. Both liquid viscosity and surface tension decrease, when temperature increases. Thus, the lower viscosity at higher heat flux facilitated the upward motion of the liquid flow in the grooves, so that the momentum force as well as the capillary effect was found to push the liquid along the grooves.* *A CD is included with dissertation containing video clips in avi format which can be viewed with media player.

In-flight flow visualization results from the X-29A aircraft at high angles of attack

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Delfrate, John H.; Saltzman, John A.

1992-01-01

Flow visualization techniques were used on the X-29A aircraft at high angles of attack to study the vortical flow off the forebody and the surface flow on the wing and tail. The forebody vortex system was studied because asymmetries in the vortex system were suspected of inducing uncommanded yawing moments at zero sideslip. Smoke enabled visualization of the vortex system and correlation of its orientation with flight yawing moment data. Good agreement was found between vortex system asymmetries and the occurrence of yawing moments. Surface flow on the forward-swept wing of the X-29A was studied using tufts and flow cones. As angle of attack increased, separated flow initiated at the root and spread outboard encompassing the full wing by 30 deg angle of attack. In general, the progression of the separated flow correlated well with subscale model lift data. Surface flow on the vertical tail was also studied using tufts and flow cones. As angle of attack increased, separated flow initiated at the root and spread upward. The area of separated flow on the vertical tail at angles of attack greater than 20 deg correlated well with the marked decrease in aircraft directional stability.

Observed stratospheric downward reflection, and its relation to upward pulses of wave activity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Harnik, N.

2009-04-01

We examine the differences between observed stratospheric vertical wave reflection and wave absorption events, which differ in that the wave induced deceleration remains confined to upper levels in the former. The two types of events signify two types of stratospheric winter dynamics, associated with different downward coupling to the troposphere (Perlwitz and Harnik, 2004). Using time lag composites, we find that the main factor influencing which event will occur is the duration, in time, of the upward pulse of wave activity entering the stratosphere from the troposphere. Short pulses accelerate the flow at their trailing edge in the lower stratosphere while they decelerate it at upper levels, resulting in a vertical shear reversal, and corresponding downward reflection, while long pulses continue decelerating the vortex at progressively lower levels. The confinement of deceleration to upper levels for short wave forcing pulses is also found in an idealized model of an interaction between a planetary wave and the stratospheric vortex, though some aspects of the wave geometry evolution, and thus vertical reflection, are not captured realistically in the model. The results suggest the stratospheric influence on the type of wave interaction, in reality, is indirect - through a possible effect on the duration of upward wave fluxes through the tropopause.

Numerical analysis of seawater circulation in carbonate platforms: II. The dynamic interaction between geothermal and brine reflux circulation

USGS Publications Warehouse

Jones, G.D.; Whitaker, F.F.; Smart, P.L.; Sanford, W.E.

2004-01-01

Density-driven seawater circulation may occur in carbonate platforms due to geothermal heating and / or reflux of water of elevated salinity. In geothermal circulation lateral contrasts in temperature between seawater and platform groundwaters warmed by the geothermal heat flux result in upward convective flow, with colder seawater drawn into the platform at depth. With reflux circulation, platform-top waters concentrated by evaporation flow downward, displacing less dense underlying groundwaters. We have used a variable density groundwater flow model to examine the pattern, magnitude and interaction of these two different circulation mechanisms, for mesosaline platform-top waters (50???) and brines concentrated up to saturation with respect to gypsum (150???) and halite (246???). Geothermal circulation, most active around the platform margin, becomes restricted and eventually shut-off by reflux of brines from the platform interior towards the margin. The persistence of geothermal circulation is dependent on the rate of brine reflux, which is proportional to the concentration of platform-top brines and also critically dependent on the magnitude and distribution of permeability. Low permeability evaporites can severely restrict reflux whereas high permeability units in hydraulic continuity enhance brine transport. Reduction in permeability with depth and anisotropy of permeability (kv < < kh) focuses flow laterally in the shallow subsurface (<1 km), resulting in a horizontally elongated brine plume. Aquifer porosity and dispersivity are relatively minor controls on reflux. Platform brines can entrain surficial seawater when brine generating conditions cease but the platform-top remains submerged, a variant of reflux we term "latent reflux". Brines concentrated up to gypsum saturation have relatively long residence times of at least 100 times the duration of the reflux event. They thus represent a long-term control on post-reflux groundwater circulation, and consequently on the rates and spatial patterns of shallow burial diagenesis, such as dolomitization.

4. (Credit SHR) The McNeil Street Station in 1896, north ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

4. (Credit SHR) The McNeil Street Station in 1896, north elevation. Note the offset filter house on the left, added in 1889-1890 to house four Hyatt upward flow pressure filters. It is adjacent to the high service pump room. (From: Shreveport Times, May 20, 1896, Railroad and Souvenir Edition) - McNeil Street Pumping Station, McNeil Street & Cross Bayou, Shreveport, Caddo Parish, LA

Estimation of Rheological Properties of Viscous Debris Flow Using a Belt Conveyor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hübl, J.; Steinwendtner, H.

2000-09-01

Rheological parameters of viscous debris flows are influenced by a great amount of factors and are therefore extremely difficult to estimate. Because of this uncertainties a belt conveyor (conveyor channel) was constructed to measure flow behaviour and rheological properties of natural debris flow material. The upward movement of the smooth rubberised belt between fixed lateral plastic walls causes a stationary wave relative to these bends. This special experimental design enables to study behaviour of viscous ebris flow material with maximum grain diameters up to 20 mm within several minutes and to hold measuring equipment very simple. The conveyor channel was calibrated first with Xanthan, a natural polysaccharide used as thickener in food technology, whose rheological properties are similar to viscous debris flow material. In a second step natural debris flow material was investigated. Velocities and rheological parameters were measured with varying solid concentration and slope of the channel. In cases where concentration of coarse particles exceed around 15% by volume the conveyor channel obtains an alternative to expensive commercial viscometers for determination of rheological parameters of viscous debris flows.

Flapping, wobbling, and zig-zagging: Tomographic PIV measurements of Antarctic sea butterfly ``flying'' underwater

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Adhikari, D.; Webster, D. R.; Yen, J.

2015-11-01

A portable tomographic PIV technique was used to study the fluid dynamics and kinematics of sea butterflies in Antarctica. Antarctic pteropods (or sea butterflies), which are currently threatened by ocean acidification, swim in seawater with a pair of gelatinous parapodia (or ``wings'') via a unique propulsion mechanism. Both power and recovery strokes propel the organism (1.5 - 5 mm in size) upward in a sawtooth-like trajectory with average speed of 14 - 30 mm/s and pitch the shell forwards-and-backwards at 1.9 - 3 Hz. The pitching motion effectively positions the parapodia such that they stroke downward during both the power and recovery strokes. Reynolds numbers defined for flapping, translating, and pitching (i.e. Ref, ReU, and ReΩ) characterize the motion of the pteropod. For Ref <50, the shell does not pitch and the pteropod swims abnormally. We present a detailed comparison of the volumetric fluid velocity fields induced by pteropods swimming upwards with Ref = 80 and 180. The pteropod at the lower Ref creates an attached shear flow along the parapodia and pushes fluid in a method analogous to a paddle. In contrast, at higher Ref, the flow along the parapodia separates and generates complex vortex structures.

Landfill leachate treatment using a rotating biological contactor and an upward-flow anaerobic sludge bed reactor

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

Castillo, E.; Vergara, M.; Moreno, Y.

2007-07-01

This paper describes the feasibility of an aerobic system (rotating biological contactor, RBC) and a biological anaerobic system (upward-flow anaerobic sludge bed reactor) at small scale for the treatment of a landfill leachate. In the first phase of the aerobic system study, a cyclic-batch RBC system was used to select perforated acetate discs among three different acetate disc configurations. These discs were chosen on the basis of high COD removal (65%) and biological stability. In the second phase, the RBC system (using four stages) was operated continuously at different hydraulic retention times (HRT), at different rotational speeds, and with varyingmore » organic concentrations of the influent leachate (2500-9000 mg L{sup -1}). Forty percent of the total surface area of each perforated disc was submerged in the leachate. A COD removal of about 52% was obtained at an HRT of 24 h and a rotational speed of 6 rpm. For the anaerobic system, the reactor was evaluated with a volumetric organic load of 3273 g-COD m{sup -3} day{sup -1} at an HRT of 54, 44, 39, 24 and 17 h. At these conditions, the system reached COD removal efficiencies of 62%, 61%, 59%, 44% and 24%, respectively.« less

LMFBR fuel assembly design for HCDA fuel dispersal

DOEpatents

Lacko, Robert E.; Tilbrook, Roger W.

1984-01-01

A fuel assembly for a liquid metal fast breeder reactor having an upper axial blanket region disposed in a plurality of zones within the fuel assembly. The characterization of a zone is dependent on the height of the axial blanket region with respect to the active fuel region. The net effect of having a plurality of zones is to establish a dispersal flow path for the molten materials resulting during a core meltdown accident. Upward flowing molten material can escape from the core region and/or fuel assembly without solidifying on the surface of fuel rods due to the heat sink represented by blanket region pellets.

Welded slump-graded sand couplets: evidence for slide generated turbidity currents

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stanley, Daniel Jean

1982-09-01

Some massive channelized strata preserved in the rock record are characterized by a lower slump member which evolves upward to a turbidite. This merging is indicative of probable generation of sediment gravity flows from submarine sliding. Conditions essential for deposition of such sequences are short transport distance between point of failure and depositional site, and an environment likely to retain both facies. Fan valleys are a likely setting for welded couplets: flowing sand, initiated by the sliding event, comes to rest at nearly the same time and position as the slump mass deposited near the base of the valley wall and in the axis proper.

Flammability testing conducted in support of Apollo 13

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Leger, L. J.; Bricker, R. W.

1971-01-01

In support of the Apollo 13 investigation of the oxygen tank failure, flame propagation rates were determined for Teflon insulation in cryogenic and ambient temperature oxygen for upward, downward, and zero g burns. The propagation rates depended heavily on configuration and varied from 4.8 to 10.9 cm/sec for upward one g burns to 0.48 cm/sec for zero g burns. In addition to the flame propagation rates, tests were conducted to determine if Teflon burning in cryogenic oxygen could ignite metals (promoted ignition) with which it came in contact. Tests conducted on various metal alloys used in the oxygen tank indicated that most of the alloys could be ignited by burning Teflon in certain configurations. After the propagation rates and promoted metal ignitions had been evaluated, a test was conducted on a quantity gauge and wire harness used in the oxygen tank to determine if flame propagation to the tank wall was possible. Propagation of the wire bundle after ignition resulted in a catastrophic failure of the test vessel in the area of the quantity gauge.

Transport characteristics of expiratory droplets and droplet nuclei in indoor environments with different ventilation airflow patterns.

PubMed

Wan, M P; Chao, C Y H

2007-06-01

Expiratory droplets and droplet nuclei can be pathogen carriers for airborne diseases. Their transport characteristics were studied in detail in two idealized floor-supply-type ventilation flow patterns: Unidirectional-upward and single-side-floor, using a multiphase numerical model. The model was validated by running interferometric Mie imaging experiments using test droplets with nonvolatile content, which formed droplet nuclei, ultimately, in a class-100 clean-room chamber. By comparing the droplet dispersion and removal characteristics with data of two other ceiling-supply ventilation systems collected from a previous work, deviations from the perfectly mixed ventilation condition were found to exist in various cases to different extent. The unidirectional-upward system was found to be more efficient in removing the smallest droplet nuclei (formed from 1.5 mum droplets) by air extraction, but it became less effective for larger droplets and droplet nuclei. Instead, the single-side-floor system was shown to be more favorable in removing these large droplets and droplet nuclei. In the single-side-floor system, the lateral overall dispersion coefficients for the small droplets and nuclei (initial size

Baroreflex modulation of sympathetic nerve activity to muscle in heat-stressed humans

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cui, Jian; Wilson, Thad E.; Crandall, Craig G.

2002-01-01

To identify whether whole body heating alters arterial baroreflex control of muscle sympathetic nerve activity (MSNA), MSNA and beat-by-beat arterial blood pressure were recorded in seven healthy subjects during acute hypotensive and hypertensive stimuli in both normothermic and heat stress conditions. Whole body heating significantly increased sublingual temperature (P < 0.01), MSNA (P < 0.01), heart rate (P < 0.01), and skin blood flow (P < 0.001), whereas mean arterial blood pressure did not change significantly (P > 0.05). During both normothermic and heat stress conditions, MSNA increased and then decreased significantly when blood pressure was lowered and then raised via intravenous bolus infusions of sodium nitroprusside and phenylephrine HCl, respectively. The slope of the relationship between MSNA and diastolic blood pressure during heat stress (-128.3 +/- 13.9 U x beats(-1) x mmHg(-1)) was similar (P = 0.31) with normothermia (-140.6 +/- 21.1 U x beats(-1) x mmHg(-1)). Moreover, no significant change in the slope of the relationship between heart rate and systolic blood pressure was observed. These data suggest that arterial baroreflex modulation of MSNA and heart rate are not altered by whole body heating, with the exception of an upward shift of these baroreflex curves to accommodate changes in these variables that occur with whole body heating.

Continuous flow electrophoretic separation of proteins and cells from mammalian tissues

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hymer, W. C.; Barlow, Grant H.; Blaisdell, Steven J.; Cleveland, Carolyn; Farrington, Mary Ann; Feldmeier, Mary; Hatfield, J. Michael; Lanham, J. Wayne; Grindeland, Richard; Snyder, Robert S.

1987-01-01

This paper describes an apparatus for continuous flow electrophoresis (CFE), designed to separate macromolecules and cells at conditions of microgravity. In this CFE, buffer flows upward in a 120-cm long flow chamber, which is 16-cm wide x 3.0-mm thick in the microgravity version (and 6-cm wide x 1.5-mm thick in the unit-gravity laboratory version). Ovalbumin and rat serum albumin were separated in space (flight STS-4) with the same resolution of the two proteins achieved at 25 percent total w/v concentration that was obtained in the laboratory at 0.2 percent w/v concentration. Rat anterior pituitary cells, cultured human embryonic kidney cells, and canine Langerhans cells were separated into subpopulations (flight STS-8) more effectively than in unit gravity, with comparable resolution having been achieved at 100 times the concentration possible on earth.

Self-Organizing Fluid Convection Patterns in an en Echelon Fault Array

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Patterson, James W.; Driesner, Thomas; Matthai, Stephan K.

2018-05-01

We present three-dimensional numerical simulations of natural convection in buried, vertical en echelon faults in impermeable host rock. Despite the fractures being hydraulically disconnected, convection within each fracture alters the temperature field in the surrounding host rock, altering convection in neighboring fractures. This leads to self-organization of coherent patterns of upward/downward flow and heating/cooling of the host rock spanning the entire fault array. This "synchronization" effect occurs when fracture spacing is less than the width of convection cells within the fractures, which is controlled by fracture transmissivity (permeability times thickness) and heterogeneity. Narrow fracture spacing and synchronization enhance convective fluid flow within fractures and cause convection to initiate earlier, even lowering the critical transmissivity necessary for convection initiation. Heat flow through the en echelon region, however, is enhanced only in low-transmissivity fractures, while heat flow in high-permeability fractures is reduced due to thermal interference between fractures.

A synchronized particle image velocimetry and infrared thermography technique applied to convective mass transfer in champagne glasses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Beaumont, Fabien; Liger-Belair, Gérard; Bailly, Yannick; Polidori, Guillaume

2016-05-01

In champagne glasses, it was recently suggested that ascending bubble-driven flow patterns should be involved in the release of gaseous carbon dioxide (CO2) and volatile organic compounds. A key assumption was that the higher the velocity of the upward bubble-driven flow patterns in the liquid phase, the higher the volume fluxes of gaseous CO2 desorbing from the supersaturated liquid phase. In the present work, simultaneous monitoring of bubble-driven flow patterns within champagne glasses and gaseous CO2 escaping above the champagne surface was performed, through particle image velocimetry and infrared thermography techniques. Two quite emblematic types of champagne drinking vessels were investigated, namely a long-stemmed flute and a wide coupe. The synchronized use of both techniques proved that the cloud of gaseous CO2 escaping above champagne glasses strongly depends on the mixing flow patterns found in the liquid phase below.

Tuition Edges upward at Private Colleges.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brownstein, Andrew

2001-01-01

Discusses how many private colleges plan to raise tuition for next year by more than the rate of inflation, and more than the increases of recent years. Explores several institutions' reasoning on setting tuition levels. (EV)

An Eulerian two-phase model for steady sheet flow using large-eddy simulation methodology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cheng, Zhen; Hsu, Tian-Jian; Chauchat, Julien

2018-01-01

A three-dimensional Eulerian two-phase flow model for sediment transport in sheet flow conditions is presented. To resolve turbulence and turbulence-sediment interactions, the large-eddy simulation approach is adopted. Specifically, a dynamic Smagorinsky closure is used for the subgrid fluid and sediment stresses, while the subgrid contribution to the drag force is included using a drift velocity model with a similar dynamic procedure. The contribution of sediment stresses due to intergranular interactions is modeled by the kinetic theory of granular flow at low to intermediate sediment concentration, while at high sediment concentration of enduring contact, a phenomenological closure for particle pressure and frictional viscosity is used. The model is validated with a comprehensive high-resolution dataset of unidirectional steady sheet flow (Revil-Baudard et al., 2015, Journal of Fluid Mechanics, 767, 1-30). At a particle Stokes number of about 10, simulation results indicate a reduced von Kármán coefficient of κ ≈ 0.215 obtained from the fluid velocity profile. A fluid turbulence kinetic energy budget analysis further indicates that the drag-induced turbulence dissipation rate is significant in the sheet flow layer, while in the dilute transport layer, the pressure work plays a similar role as the buoyancy dissipation, which is typically used in the single-phase stratified flow formulation. The present model also reproduces the sheet layer thickness and mobile bed roughness similar to measured data. However, the resulting mobile bed roughness is more than two times larger than that predicted by the empirical formulae. Further analysis suggests that through intermittent turbulent motions near the bed, the resolved sediment Reynolds stress plays a major role in the enhancement of mobile bed roughness. Our analysis on near-bed intermittency also suggests that the turbulent ejection motions are highly correlated with the upward sediment suspension flux, while the turbulent sweep events are mostly associated with the downward sediment deposition flux.

Velocimetry using scintillation of a laser beam for a laser-based gas-flux monitor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kagawa, Naoki; Wada, Osami; Koga, Ryuji

1999-05-01

This paper describes a velocimetry system using scintillation of a laser-beam with spatial filters based on sensor arrays for a laser- based gas flux monitor. In the eddy correlation method, gas flux is obtained by mutual relation between the gas density and the flow velocity. The velocimetry system is developed to support the flow velocity monitor portion of the laser-based gas flux monitor with a long span for measurement. In order to sense not only the flow velocity but also the flow direction, two photo diode arrays are arranged with difference of a quarter period of the weighting function between them; the two output signals from the sensor arrays have phase difference of either (pi) /2 or -(pi) /2 depending on the sense of flow direction. In order to obtain the flow velocity and the flow direction instantly, an electronic apparatus built by the authors extracts frequency and phase from crude outputs of the pair of sensors. A feasibility of the velocimetry was confirmed indoors by measurement of the flow- velocity vector of the convection. Measured flow-velocity vector of the upward flow agreed comparatively with results of an ultrasonic anemometer.

Experimental quantification of solute transport through the vadose zone under dynamic boundary conditions with dye tracers and optical methods.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cremer, Clemens; Neuweiler, Insa

2017-04-01

Knowledge of subsurface solute transport processes is vital to investigate e.g. groundwater contamination, nutrient uptake by plant roots and to implement remediation strategies. Beside field measurements and numerical simulations, physical laboratory experiments represent a way to establish process understanding and furthermore validate numerical schemes. Atmospheric forcings, such as erratically varying infiltration and evaporation cycles, subject the shallow subsurface to local and temporal variations in water content and associated hydraulic conductivity of the prevailing porous media. Those variations in material properties can cause flow paths to differ between upward and downward flow periods. Thereby, the unsaturated subsurface presents a highly complicated, dynamic system. Following an extensive systematical numerical investigation of flow and transport through bimodal, unsaturated porous media under dynamic boundary conditions (Cremer et al., 2016), we conduct physical laboratory experiments in a 22 cm x 8 cm x 1 cm flow cell where we introduce structural heterogeneity in the form sharp material interfaces between different porous media. In all experiments, a constant pressure head is implemented at the lower boundary, while cyclic infiltration-evaporation phases are applied at the soil surface. As a reference case a stationary infiltration with a rate corresponding to the cycle-averaged infiltration rate is applied. By initial application of dye tracers, solute transport within the domain is visualized such that transport paths and redistribution processes can be observed in a qualitative manner. Solute leaching is quantified at the bottom outlet, where breakthrough curves are obtained via spectroscopy. Liquid and vapor flow in and out of the domain is obtained from multiple balances. Thereby, the interplay of material structural heterogeneity and alternating flow (transport) directions and flow (transport) paths is investigated. Results show lateral transport through the material interface which differs between the stationary (unilateral) and dynamic cases (bilateral). This qualitative observation is confirmed by breakthrough curves for dynamic experiments which generally show the trend of faster initial breakthrough and increased tailing when compared to stationary infiltration results. Literature Cremer, C.J.M., I. Neuweiler, M. Bechtold, J. Vanderborght (2016): Solute Transport in Heterogeneous Soil with Time-Dependent Boundary Conditions, Vadose Zone Journal 15 (6) DOI: 10.2136/vzj2015.11.0144

The effects of sea level and palaeotopography on lithofacies distribution and geometries in heterozoan carbonates, south-eastern Spain

USGS Publications Warehouse

Johnson, C.L.; Franseen, E.K.; Goldstein, R.H.

2005-01-01

This study utilized three-dimensional exposures to evaluate how sea-level position and palaeotopography control the facies and geometries of heterozoan carbonates. Heterozoan carbonates were deposited on top of a Neogene volcanic substrate characterized by palaeotopographic highs, palaeovalleys, and straits that were formed by subaerial erosion, possibly original volcanic topography, and faults prior to carbonate deposition. The depositional sequence that is the focus of this study (DS1B) consists of 7-10 fining upward cycles that developed in response to relative sea-level fluctuations. A complete cycle has a basal erosion surface overlain by deposits of debrisflows and high-density turbidity currents, which formed during relative sea-level fall. Overlying tractive deposits most likely formed during the lowest relative position of sea level. Overlying these are debrites grading upward to high-density turbidites and low-density turbidites that formed during relative sea-level rise. The tops of the cycles consist of hemipelagic deposits that formed during the highest relative position of sea level. The cycles fine upward because upslope carbonate production decreased as relative sea level rose due to less surface area available for shallow-water carbonate production and partial drowning of substrates. The cycles are dominated by two end-member types of facies associations and stratal geometries that formed in response to fluctuating sea-level position over variable substrate palaeotopography. One end-member is termed 'flank flow cycle' because this type of cycle indicates dominant sediment transport down the flanks of palaeovalleys. Those cycles drape the substrate, have more debrites, high-density turbidites and erosion on palaeovalley flanks, and in general, the lithofacies fine down the palaeovalley flanks into the palaeovalley axes. The second end-member is termed 'axial flow cycle' because it indicates a dominance of sediment transport down the axes of palaeovalleys. Those cycles are characterized by debrites and high-density turbidites in palaeovalley axes, and lap out of strata against the flanks of palaeovalleys. Where and when an axial flow cycle or flank flow cycle developed appears to be related to the intersection of sea level with areas of gentle or steep substrate slopes, during an overall relative rise in sea level. Results from this study provide a model for similar systems that must combine carbonate principles for sediment production, palaeotopographic controls, and physical principles of sediment remobilization into deep water. ?? 2005 International Association of Sedimentologists.

Evaluating Energy Flows Through Jellyfish and Forage Fish and the Effects of Fishing on the Northern Humboldt Current Ecosystem

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chiaverano, L.; Robinson, K. L.; Ruzicka, J.; Quiñones, J.; Tam, J.; Acha, M.; Graham, W. M.; Brodeur, R.; Decker, M. B.; Hernandez, F., Jr.; Leaf, R.; Mianzan, H.; Uye, S. I.

2016-02-01

Increases in the frequency of jellyfish mass occurrences in a number of coastal areas around the globe have intensified concerns that some ecosystems are becoming "jellyfish-dominated". Gelatinous planktivores not only compete with forage fish for food, but also feed on fish eggs and larvae. When jellyfish abundance is high, the fraction of the energy and the efficiency at which it is transferred upwards in the food web are reduced compared with times when fish are dominant. Hence, ecosystems supporting major forage fish fisheries are the most likely to experience fish-to-jellyfish shifts due to the harvest pressure on mid-trophic planktivores. Although forage fish-jellyfish replacement cycles have been detected in recent decades in some productive, coastal ecosystems (e.g. Gulf of Mexico, Northern California Current), jellyfish are typically not included in ecosystem-based fisheries management (EBFM) production models. Here we explored the roles of jellyfish and forage fish as trophic energy transfer pathways to higher trophic levels in the Northern Humboldt Current (NHC) ecosystem, one of the most productive ecosystems in the world. A trophic network model with 33 functional groups was developed using ECOPATH and transformed to an end-to-end model using ECOTRAN techniques to map food web energy flows. Predicted, relative changes in functional group productivity were analyzed in simulations with varying forage fish consumption rates, jellyfish consumption rates, and forage fish harvest rates in a suite of static, alternative-energy-demand scenarios. Our modeling efforts will not only improve EBFM of forage fish and their predators in the NHC ecosystem, but also increase our understanding of trophic interactions between forage fish and large jellyfish, an important, but overlooked component in most ecosystem models to date.

Observations of the eruptions of July 22 and August 7, 1980, at Mount St. Helens, Washington

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hoblitt, Richard P.

1986-01-01

The explosive eruptions of July 22 and August 7, 1980, at Mount St. Helens, Wash., both included multiple eruptive pulses. The beginnings of three of the pulses-two on July 22 and one on August 7-were witnessed and photographed. Each of these three began with a fountain of gases and pyroclasts that collapsed around the vent and generated a pyroclastic density flow. Significant vertical-eruption columns developed only after the density flows were generated. This behavior is attributable to either an increase in the gas content of the eruption jet or a decrease in vent radius with time. An increase in the gas content may have occurred as the vent was cleared (by expulsion of a plug of pyroclasts) or as the eruption began to tap deeper, gas-rich magma after first expelling the upper, gas-depleted part of the magma body. An effective decrease of the vent radius with time may have occurred as the eruption originated from progressively deeper levels in the vent. All of these processes-vent clearing; tapping of deeper, gas-rich magma; and effective decrease in vent radius-probably operated to some extent. A 'relief-valve' mechanism is proposed here to account for the occurrence of multiple eruptive pulses. This mechanism requires that the conduit above the magma body be filled with a bed of pyroclasts, and that the vesiculation rate in the magma body be inadequate to sustain continuous eruption. During a repose interval, vesiculation of the magma body would cause gas to flow upward through the bed of pyroclasts. If the rate at which the magma produced gas exceeded the rate at which gas escaped to the atmosphere, the vertical pressure difference across the bed of pyroclastic debris would increase, as would the gas-flow rate. Eventually a gas-flow rate would be achieved that would suddenly diminish the ability of the bed to maintain a pressure difference between the magma body and the atmosphere. The bed of pyroclasts would then be expelled (that is, the relief valve would open) and an eruption would commence. During the eruption, gas would be lost faster than it could be replaced by vesiculation, so the gas-flow rate in the conduit would decrease. Eventually the gas-flow rate would decrease to a value that would be inadequate to expel pyroclasts, so the conduit would again become choked with pyroclasts (that is, the relief valve would close). Another period of repose would commence. The eruption/repose sequence would be repeated until gas-production rates were inadequate to reopen the valve, either because the depth of the pyroclast bed had become too great, the volatile content of the magma had become too low, or the magma had been expended. A timed sequence of photographs of a pyroclastic density flow on August 7 indicates that, in general, the velocity of the flow front was determined by the underlying topography. Observations and details of the velocity/topography relationship suggest that both pyroclastic flows and pyroclastic surges formed. The following mechanism is consistent with the data. During initial fountain collapse and when the flow passed over steep, irregular terrain, a highly inflated suspension of gases and pyroclasts formed. In this suspension, the pyroclasts underwent rapid differential settling according to size and density; a relatively low-concentration, fine-grained upper phase formed over a relatively high-concentration coarse-grained phase. The low-particle-concentration phase (the pyroclastic surge) was subject to lower internal friction than the basal high-concentration phase (the pyroclastic flow), and so accelerated away from it. The surge advanced until it had deposited so much of its solid fraction that its net density became less than that of the ambient air. At this point it rose convectively off the ground, quickly decelerated, and was overtaken by the pyroclastic flow. The behavior of the flow of August 7 suggests that a pyroclastic density flow probably expands through the ingestion of ai

Oil-Water Flow Investigations using Planar-Laser Induced Fluorescence and Particle Velocimetry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ibarra, Roberto; Matar, Omar K.; Markides, Christos N.

2017-11-01

The study of the complex behaviour of immiscible liquid-liquid flow in pipes requires the implementation of advanced measurement techniques in order to extract detailed in situ information. Laser-based diagnostic techniques allow the extraction of high-resolution space- and time resolve phase and velocity information, which aims to improve the fundamental understanding of these flows and to validate closure relations for advanced multiphase flow models. This work shows a novel simultaneous planar-laser induced fluorescence and particle velocimetry in stratified oil-water flows using two laser light sheets at two different wavelengths for fluids with different refractive indices at horizontal and upward pipe inclinations (<5°) in stratified flow conditions (i.e. separated layers). Complex flow structures are extracted from 2-D instantaneous velocity fields, which are strongly dependent on the pipe inclination at low velocities. The analysis of mean wall-normal velocity profiles and velocity fluctuations suggests the presence of single- and counter-rotating vortices in the azimuthal direction, especially in the oil layer, which can be attributed to the influence of the interfacial waves. Funding from BP, and the TMF Consortium is gratefully acknowledged.

Free-surface flow of liquid oxygen under non-uniform magnetic field

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bao, Shi-Ran; Zhang, Rui-Ping; Wang, Kai; Zhi, Xiao-Qin; Qiu, Li-Min

2017-01-01

The paramagnetic property of oxygen makes it possible to control the two-phase flow at cryogenic temperatures by non-uniform magnetic fields. The free-surface flow of vapor-liquid oxygen in a rectangular channel was numerically studied using the two-dimensional phase field method. The effects of magnetic flux density and inlet velocity on the interface deformation, flow pattern and pressure drop were systematically revealed. The liquid level near the high-magnetic channel center was lifted upward by the inhomogeneous magnetic field. The interface height difference increased almost linearly with the magnetic force. For all inlet velocities, pressure drop under 0.25 T was reduced by 7-9% due to the expanded local cross-sectional area, compared to that without magnetic field. This work demonstrates the effectiveness of employing non-uniform magnetic field to control the free-surface flow of liquid oxygen. This non-contact method may be used for promoting the interface renewal, reducing the flow resistance, and improving the flow uniformity in the cryogenic distillation column, which may provide a potential for enhancing the operating efficiency of cryogenic air separation.

Effects of Forced Air Warming on Airflow around the Operating Table.

PubMed

Shirozu, Kazuhiro; Kai, Tetsuya; Setoguchi, Hidekazu; Ayagaki, Nobuyasu; Hoka, Sumio

2018-01-01

Forced air warming systems are used to maintain body temperature during surgery. Benefits of forced air warming have been established, but the possibility that it may disturb the operating room environment and contribute to surgical site contamination is debated. The direction and speed of forced air warming airflow and the influence of laminar airflow in the operating room have not been reported. In one institutional operating room, we examined changes in airflow speed and direction from a lower-body forced air warming device with sterile drapes mimicking abdominal surgery or total knee arthroplasty, and effects of laminar airflow, using a three-dimensional ultrasonic anemometer. Airflow from forced air warming and effects of laminar airflow were visualized using special smoke and laser light. Forced air warming caused upward airflow (39 cm/s) in the patient head area and a unidirectional convection flow (9 to 14 cm/s) along the ceiling from head to foot. No convection flows were observed around the sides of the operating table. Downward laminar airflow of approximately 40 cm/s counteracted the upward airflow caused by forced air warming and formed downward airflow at 36 to 45 cm/s. Downward airflows (34 to 56 cm/s) flowing diagonally away from the operating table were detected at operating table height in both sides. Airflow caused by forced air warming is well counteracted by downward laminar airflow from the ceiling. Thus it would be less likely to cause surgical field contamination in the presence of sufficient laminar airflow.

High upward fluxes of formic acid from a boreal forest canopy

DOE PAGES

Schobesberger, Siegfried; Lopez-Hilfiker, Felipe D.; Taipale, Ditte; ...

2016-08-14

Eddy covariance fluxes of formic acid, HCOOH, were measured over a boreal forest canopy in spring/summer 2014. The HCOOH fluxes were bidirectional but mostly upward during daytime, in contrast to studies elsewhere that reported mostly downward fluxes. Downward flux episodes were explained well by modeled dry deposition rates. The sum of net observed flux and modeled dry deposition yields an upward “gross flux” of HCOOH, which could not be quantitatively explained by literature estimates of direct vegetative/soil emissions nor by efficient chemical production from other volatile organic compounds, suggesting missing or greatly underestimated HCOOH sources in the boreal ecosystem. Here,more » we implemented a vegetative HCOOH source into the GEOS-Chem chemical transport model to match our derived gross flux and evaluated the updated model against airborne and spaceborne observations. Model biases in the boundary layer were substantially reduced based on this revised treatment, but biases in the free troposphere remain unexplained.« less

An 110 Ma Crocodilian-Bearing Vertebrate Assemblage Preserved Between Basalt Flows on a mid-Pacific Seamount, ODP Site 865, Allison Guyot

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Firth, J. V.; Yancey, T.; Alvarez-Zarikian, C.

2006-12-01

Crocodilian teeth, fish teeth, scales, and bones, and teeth and bones of uncertain affinities occur within a mudstone deposit sandwiched between basalt flows at the base of ODP Hole 865A on Allison Guyot in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Age control from large benthic foraminifers, Sr-isotope stratigraphy, and radiometric ages of the basalt place the age of this assemblage at 110 \\mp 1.2 Ma, or late Aptian/early Albian. This deposit contains the oldest known crocodilian remains in the Pacific Realm. The vertebrate-bearing interval lies within a 30 cm mudstone unit overlying lithified fossiliferous limestone and underlying fossiliferous clayey limestone. The surface of the lithified limestone contains fish scales, vertebrate teeth and bones, and a carapace of the ostracod Cytherella. The lower 17 cm of mudstone is the prime vertebrate-bearing layer. It has a fining-upwards grain size trend, and an upward increase in dark coloration. The sand sized fraction is primarily pelletal glauconite, pyrite and fish debris. Limestone clasts up to several mm in diameter occur through the lower portion, whereas the higher portion contains sand laminae. A pristine 1 cm long crocodilian tooth, along with several smaller crocodilian teeth from this interval, attest to the presence of a saltwater crocodilian within the lagoon of this drowned mid-Pacific atoll. Common and varied fish teeth include both slender forms for piercing and grasping mobile prey and blunt flat-topped forms for crushing and grinding hard-shelled bottom living organisms such as oysters. The crushing teeth resemble those of the modern Black Drum fish, a bottom feeder common in shallow coastal environments. Abundant fish scales include both heavy phosphatic ganoid scales, a type present on many Mesozoic fish, and thin flexible scales of a type present on most modern fish. Some teeth and bone fragments are currently unidentified, and may represent vertebrates other than fish or crocodilians. No calcareous fossils are found within this unit. The lower unit grades upwards into a 5 cm thick black organic mudstone consisting of mostly amorphous organic debris, colonial algae, and smaller amounts of terrestrial spores, carbonized plant debris, and amber. No vertebrate remains are observed within the black mudstone. This unit in turn grades upwards into an 8 cm unit of mudstone with a coarsening-upwards grain size trend. This upper 8 cm unit contains only rare vertebrate remains, but has numerous oyster fragments and abundant, well preserved, articulated ostracod shells. The ostracod assemblage consists entirely of Cytherella (Suborder Platycopina). The entire 30 cm unit contains common pyrite, glauconite, and plant debris, and lacks calcareous fossils except in the uppermost part. This, as well as the occurrence of abundant Cytherella indicate sediment deposition in a restricted marine environment with low oxygen conditions. This discovery represents possibly the only known record of mid-Cretaceous reptilian remains from the mid- Pacific region, and the entire fossil assemblage provides valuable data for understanding the history of biotic migrations across the Cretaceous Pacific oceanic island realm. The intercalations of basalt flows with restricted marine and terrestrial sediments can be found not only in this ODP drill core but in others around the Pacific and shows the possibility of future discoveries of this type by scientific drilling of old seamounts.

Method of feeding particulate material to a fluidized bed

DOEpatents

Borio, Richard W.; Goodstine, Stephen L.

1984-01-01

A centrifugal spreader type feeder that supplies a mixture of particulate limestone and coal to the top of a fluidized bed reactor having a flow of air upward therethrough. Large particles of particulate matter are distributed over the upper surface of the bed to utilize the natural mixing within the bed, while fine particles are adapted to utilize an independent feeder that separates them from the large particles and injects them into the bed.

The Nature of The Propagation of Sea Breeze Fronts in Central California

DTIC Science & Technology

1990-09-01

propagation vector % ith stations in the southern portion of Monterey Bay shows that the front is curved on the mesoscale. 20 Distribution Availabilit of...solar radiation warms the land more than the adjacent water . The resulting temperature contrast produces a slight variation in pressure. The isobaric...surfaces bend upward over the land, producing an upper-level high. The upper-level air flows seaward increasing the surface pressure over the water . The

The perfect ash-storm: large-scale Pyroclastic Density Current experiments reveal highly mobile, self-fluidising and air-cushioned flow transport regime

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lube, G.; Cronin, S. J.; Breard, E.; Valentine, G.; Bursik, M. I.; Hort, M. K.; Freundt, A.

2013-12-01

We report on the first systematic series of large-scale Pyroclastic Density Current (PDC) experiments using the New Zealand PDC Generator, a novel international research facility in Physical Volcanology recently commissioned at Massey University. Repeatable highly energetic and hot PDCs are synthesized by the controlled ';eruption column-collapse' of up to 3500 kg of homogenously aerated Taupo ignimbrite material from a 15 m-elevated hopper onto an instrumented inclined flume. At discharge rates between 250-1300 kg/s and low- to moderate gas injection rates (yielding initial solids concentration of 15-70 vol%) channelized gas-particle mixture flows life-scaled to dense PDCs can be generated. The flow fronts of the currents reach velocities of up to 9.5 m/s over their first 12 m of travel and rapidly develop strong vertical density stratification. The PDCs typically form a highly mobile, <60 cm-thick dense and channel-confined underflow, with an overriding dilute and turbulent ash cloud surge that also laterally escapes the flume boundaries. Depending on the PDC starting conditions underflows with 1-45 vol% solids concentration are formed, while the upper surge contains <<1 vol.% solids. A characteristic feature of the underflow is the occurrence of 'ignitive' front breakouts, producing jetted lobes that accelerate outward from the flow front, initially forming a lobe-cleft structure, followed by segregation downslope into multiple flow pulses. Depending on initial solids concentration and discharge rate, stratified, dune-bedded and inversely graded bedforms are created whose thicknesses are remarkably uniform along the medial to distal runout path characterising highly mobile flow runout. Along with high-speed video footage we present time-series data of basal arrays of load- and gas-pore pressure transducers to characterise the mobile dense underflows. Data shows that the PDCs are comprised of a turbulent coarse-grained and air-ingesting front with particle-solids concentrations of 1-5 vol%. The front shows a brief phase of negative pore pressure due to the entrainment and upward elutriation of ambient air inside this front. It is immediately followed by the fine-ash rich and highly impermeable main flow body. Passage of the flow body is accompanied by strongly increasing pore-pressures of 1-3 kPa that almost fully supports the weight of the entire underflow - depicting flow-induced fluidisation of the main flow part. The remainder of the flow body shows further increases in pore-pressure aside with strong reductions in flow mass. This suggests the occurrence of zones of air-cushions forming at the base of the underflow that largely aid its inviscid runout. This sequence is repeated during arrival and passage of up to three more flow pulses. The low-permeability deposits maintain high internal gas pore pressures for several minutes after emplacement, before sudden deaeration, settling and gas loss is caused by fracturing. Flow-induced fluidisation and basal air-cushioning provide key processes behind the enigmatic long runout behaviour of dense PDCs.

34 CFR 645.12 - What services may regular Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math-Science projects provide?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 34 Education 3 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false What services may regular Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math-Science projects provide? 645.12 Section 645.12 Education Regulations of the Offices of the... services may regular Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math-Science projects provide? Any project assisted...

34 CFR 645.12 - What services may regular Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math-Science projects provide?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 34 Education 3 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false What services may regular Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math-Science projects provide? 645.12 Section 645.12 Education Regulations of the Offices of the... services may regular Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math-Science projects provide? Any project assisted...

34 CFR 645.12 - What services may regular Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math-Science projects provide?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 34 Education 3 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false What services may regular Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math-Science projects provide? 645.12 Section 645.12 Education Regulations of the Offices of the... services may regular Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math-Science projects provide? Any project assisted...

34 CFR 645.12 - What services may regular Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math-Science projects provide?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 34 Education 3 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false What services may regular Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math-Science projects provide? 645.12 Section 645.12 Education Regulations of the Offices of the... services may regular Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math-Science projects provide? Any project assisted...

Field Effects of Buoyancy on Lean Premixed Turbulent Flames

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cheng, R. K.; Dimalanta, R.; Wernet, M. P.; Greenberg, P. S.

2001-01-01

Buoyancy affects the entire flowfield of steady turbulent flames and this aspect of flame buoyancy coupling is largely unexplored by experiments or by theory. Open flames and flames within large confinements are free to expand and interact with the surrounding environment. In addition to fluid and combustion conditions, their aerodynamic flowfields are determined by the flame brush orientation and geometry, wake of the stabilizer, enclosure size, and of course, the gravitational field. Because the flowfield consists mainly of cold reactants (mostly in the nearfield) and hot products (mostly in the farfield), buoyancy effects are manifested in the farfield region. In upward pointing flames, an obvious effect is a favorable axial pressure gradient that accelerates the products thereby increasing the axial aerodynamic stretch rate. Intrinsic to turbulent flows, changes in mean aerodynamic stretch also couple to the fluctuating pressure field. Consequently, buoyancy can influence the turbulence intensities upstream and downstream of the flame. Flame wrinkling process, and heat release rate are also directly affected. This backward coupling mechanism is the so-called elliptic problem. To resolve the field effects of buoyancy would require the solution of three-dimensional non-linear Navier Stokes equations with full specification of the upstream, wall and downstream boundary conditions.

21 CFR 137.200 - Whole wheat flour.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... upward stroke, at the rate of about 150 times per minute. Turn the sieves about one-sixth of a revolution each time in the same direction, after each 25 strokes. Continue shaking for 2 minutes. Weigh the...

21 CFR 137.200 - Whole wheat flour.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... upward stroke, at the rate of about 150 times per minute. Turn the sieves about one-sixth of a revolution each time in the same direction, after each 25 strokes. Continue shaking for 2 minutes. Weigh the...

21 CFR 137.200 - Whole wheat flour.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... upward stroke, at the rate of about 150 times per minute. Turn the sieves about one-sixth of a revolution each time in the same direction, after each 25 strokes. Continue shaking for 2 minutes. Weigh the...

Method of shielding a liquid-metal-cooled reactor

DOEpatents

Sayre, Robert K.

1978-01-01

The primary heat transport system of a nuclear reactor -- particularly for a liquid-metal-cooled fast-breeder reactor -- is shielded and protected from leakage by establishing and maintaining a bed of a powdered oxide closely and completely surrounding all components thereof by passing a gas upwardly therethrough at such a rate as to slightly expand the bed to the extent that the components of the system are able to expand without damage and yet the particles of the bed remain close enough so that the bed acts as a guard vessel for the system. Preferably the gas contains 1 to 10% oxygen and the gas is passed upwardly through the bed at such a rate that the lower portion of the bed is a fixed bed while the upper portion is a fluidized bed, the line of demarcation therebetween being high enough that the fixed bed portion of the bed serves as guard vessel for the system.

Floc size distributions of suspended kaolinite in an advection transport dominated tank: measurements and modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shen, Xiaoteng; Maa, Jerome P.-Y.

2017-11-01

In estuaries and coastal waters, floc size and its statistical distributions of cohesive sediments are of primary importance, due to their effects on the settling velocity and thus deposition rates of cohesive aggregates. The development of a robust flocculation model that includes the predictions of floc size distributions (FSDs), however, is still in a research stage. In this study, a one-dimensional longitudinal (1-DL) flocculation model along a streamtube is developed. This model is based on solving the population balance equation to find the FSDs by using the quadrature method of moments. To validate this model, a laboratory experiment is carried out to produce an advection transport-dominant environment in a cylindrical tank. The flow field is generated by a marine pump mounted at the bottom center, with its outlet facing upward. This setup generates an axially symmetric flow which is measured by an acoustic Doppler velocimeter (ADV). The measurement results provide the hydrodynamic input data required for this 1-DL model. The other measurement results, the FSDs, are acquired by using an automatic underwater camera system and the resulting images are analyzed to validate the predicted FSDs. This study shows that the FSDs as well as their representative sizes can be efficiently and reasonably simulated by this 1-DL model.

Modeling Paragenesis: Erosion Opposite to Gravity in Cave Channels

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cooper, M. P.; Covington, M. D.

2017-12-01

Sediment plays an important role in bedrock channels, providing both tools and cover that influence patterns of bed erosion. It has also been shown that sediment load influences bedrock channel width, with increased sediment leading to wider channels. A variety of models have been developed to explore these effects. In caves, it is hypothesized that sediments covering the floors of fully flooded channels that are forming beneath the water table (phreatic zone) can force dissolution upwards towards the water table, leading to upward erosion balanced by gradual deposition of sediment within the channel bottom. This strange process is termed paragenesis, and while there are conceptual and experimental models of the process, no prior mathematical models of cave passage evolution has captured these effects. Consequently, there is little quantitative understanding of the processes that drive paragenesis and how they link to the morphology of the cave channels that develop. We adapt a previously developed algorithm for estimating boundary shear stress within channels with free-surface flows to enable calculation of boundary shear stress in pipe-full conditions. This model successfully duplicates scaling relationships in surface channels, and geometries of caves formed in the phreatic zone such as phreatic tubes. Once sediment flux is incorporated the model successfully duplicates the hypothesized processes of paragenetic gallery formation: the cover effect prevents dissolution in the direction of gravity; passages are enlarged upwards reducing the sediment transport capacity; sediment is deposited and the process drives a continuing feedback loop. Simulations reveal that equilibrium paragenetic channel widths scale with both sediment flux and discharge. Unlike in open channel settings, increased sediment load actually narrows paragenetic channels. The cross section evolution model also reveals that the existence of equilibrium widths in such galleries requires erosion to scale with shear stress, suggesting a role of either mechanical erosion or transport limited dissolution. These types of erosion contrast with current numerical models of speleogenesis, where chemically limited dissolution, a process independent of shear stress, is predicted to occur in most turbulent flow settings.

Adaptive population divergence and directional gene flow across steep elevational gradients in a climate‐sensitive mammal

USGS Publications Warehouse

Waterhouse, Matthew D.; Erb, Liesl P.; Beever, Erik; Russello, Michael A.

2018-01-01

The American pika is a thermally sensitive, alpine lagomorph species. Recent climate-associated population extirpations and genetic signatures of reduced population sizes range-wide indicate the viability of this species is sensitive to climate change. To test for potential adaptive responses to climate stress, we sampled pikas along two elevational gradients (each ~470 to 1640 m) and employed three outlier detection methods, BAYESCAN, LFMM, and BAYPASS, to scan for genotype-environment associations in samples genotyped at 30,763 SNP loci. We resolved 173 loci with robust evidence of natural selection detected by either two independent analyses or replicated in both transects. A BLASTN search of these outlier loci revealed several genes associated with metabolic function and oxygen transport, indicating natural selection from thermal stress and hypoxia. We also found evidence of directional gene flow primarily downslope from large high-elevation populations and reduced gene flow at outlier loci, a pattern suggesting potential impediments to the upward elevational movement of adaptive alleles in response to contemporary climate change. Finally, we documented evidence of reduced genetic diversity associated the south-facing transect and an increase in corticosterone stress levels associated with inbreeding. This study suggests the American pika is already undergoing climate-associated natural selection at multiple genomic regions. Further analysis is needed to determine if the rate of climate adaptation in the American pika and other thermally sensitive species will be able to keep pace with rapidly changing climate conditions.

Responses to two-way selection on growth in mass-spawned F1 progeny of Argopecten irradians concentricus (Say)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Hui; Liu, Jin; Li, Yanhong; Zhu, Xiaowen; Liu, Zhigang

2014-03-01

In the present study, the effect of one-generation divergent selection on the growth and survival of the bay scallop ( Argopecten irradians concentricus) was examined to evaluate the efficacy of a selection program currently being carried out in Beibu Bay in the South China Sea. A total of 146 adult scallops were randomly selected from the same cultured population of A. i. concentricus, and divided into two groups in shell length (anterior-posterior measurement): large (4.91-6.02 cm, n=74) and small (3.31-4.18 cm, n=72). At the same time, a control group was also randomly sampled (4.21-4.88 cm, n =80). Mass-spawned F 1 progenies from the three size groups were obtained and reared under identical conditions at all growth phases. The effects of two-way (or upward-downward) selection on fertilization rate, hatching rate, survival rate, daily growth in shell length and body weight were assessed in the three size groups. Results show that significant differences ( P<0.01) were found in hatching rate, survival rate and daily growth of F1 progenies, but not in fertilization rate ( P>0.05), among the three groups. The hatching rate, survival rate and daily growth of the progeny of large-sized parents were greater than those of the control group ( P<0.05), which in turn were larger than those of small-sized group ( P<0.05). Responses to selection by shell length and body weight were 0.32 ± 0.04 cm and 2.18 ± 0.05 g, respectively, for the upward selection, and -0.14 ± 0.03 cm and -2.77 ± 0.06 g, respectively, for the downward selection. The realized heritability estimates of shell length and body weight were 0.38 ± 0.06 cm and 0.22 ± 0.07 g for the upward selection, and 0.24 ± 0.06 cm and 0.37 ± 0.09 g for the downward selection, respectively. The change in growth by bidirectional selection suggests that high genetic variation may be present in the cultured bay scallop population in China.

The rigid shell component for superrotation in planetary atmospheres: Angular momentum budget, mechanical analog and simulation of the spin up process

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mayr, H. G.; Harris, I.

1981-01-01

An analysis of superrotation in the atmosphere of planets, with rotation axis perpendicular to the orbital plane is presented. As the atmosphere expands, Hadley cells develop producing a redistribution of mass and angular momentum. A three dimensional thermally driven zonally symmetric spectral model and Laplace transformation simulate the time evolution of a fluid leading from corotation under globally uniform heating to superrotation under globally nonuniform heating. For high viscosities the rigid shell component of atmospheric superrotation can be understood in analogy with a pirouette. During spin up angular momentum is transferred to the planet. For low iscosities, the process is reversed. A tendency toward geostrophy, combined with increase of surface pressure toward the poles (due to meridional mass transport), induces the atmosphere to subrotate temporarily at lower altitudes. Resultant viscous shear near the surface permits angular momentum to flow from the planet into the atmosphere propagating upwards to produce high altitude superrotation rates.

Combined use of groundwater dating, chemical, and isotopic analyses to resolve the history and fate of nitrate contamination in two agricultural watersheds, Atlantic coastal plain, Maryland

USGS Publications Warehouse

Böhlke, J.K.; Denver, J.M.

1995-01-01

The history and fate of groundwater nitrate (NO3−) contamination were compared in 2 small adjacent agricultural watersheds in the Atlantic coastal plain by combined use of chronologic (CCl2F2, 3H), chemical (dissolved solids, gases), and isotopic (δ15N,δ13C, δ34S) analyses of recharging groundwaters, discharging groundwaters, and surface waters. The results demonstrate the interactive effects of changing agricultural practices, groundwater residence times, and local geologic features on the transfer of NO3− through local flow systems. Recharge dates of groundwaters taken in 1990–1992 from the surficial aquifer in the Chesterville Branch and Morgan Creek watersheds near Locust Grove, Maryland, ranged from pre-1940 to the late 1980’s. When corrected for localized denitrification by use of dissolved gas concentrations, the dated waters provide a 40-year record of the recharge rate of NO3−, which increased in both watersheds by a factor of 3–6, most rapidly in the 1970's. The increase in groundwater NO3− over time was approximately proportional to the documented increase in regional N fertilizer use, and could be accounted for by oxidation and leaching of about 20–35% of the fertilizer N. Groundwaters discharging upward beneath streams in both watersheds had measured recharge dates from pre-1940 to 1975, while chemical data for second-order reaches of the streams indicated average groundwater residence times in the order of 20+ years. At the time of the study, NO3− discharge rates were less than NO3− recharge rates for at least two reasons: (1) discharge of relatively old waters with low initial NO3− concentrations, and (2) local denitrification. In the Chesterville Branch watershed, groundwaters remained oxic throughout much of the surficial aquifer and discharged relatively unaltered to the stream, which had a relatively high NO3−concentration (9–10 mg/L as N). In the Morgan Creek watershed, groundwaters were largely reduced and denitrified before discharging to the stream, which had a relatively low NO3−concentration (2–3 mg/L as N). Chemical and isotopic data indicate that quantitative denitrification occurred within buried calcareous glauconitic marine sediments that are present at relatively shallow depths beneath the Morgan Creek watershed. NO3− removal by forests, wetlands, and shallow organic-rich soils in near-stream environments was largely avoided by groundwaters that followed relatively deep flow paths before converging and discharging rapidly upward to the streams.

Temporal and spatial evolution characteristics of gas-liquid two-phase flow pattern based on image texture spectrum descriptor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Xi-Guo; Jin, Ning-De; Wang, Zhen-Ya; Zhang, Wen-Yin

2009-11-01

The dynamic image information of typical gas-liquid two-phase flow patterns in vertical upward pipe is captured by a highspeed dynamic camera. The texture spectrum descriptor is used to describe the texture characteristics of the processed images whose content is represented in the form of texture spectrum histogram, and four time-varying characteristic parameter indexes which represent image texture structure of different flow patterns are extracted. The study results show that the amplitude fluctuation of texture characteristic parameter indexes of bubble flow is lowest and shows very random complex dynamic behavior; the amplitude fluctuation of slug flow is higher and shows intermittent motion behavior between gas slug and liquid slug, and the amplitude fluctuation of churn flow is the highest and shows better periodicity; the amplitude fluctuation of bubble-slug flow is from low to high and oscillating frequence is higher than that of slug flow, and includes the features of both slug flow and bubble flow; the slug-churn flow loses the periodicity of slug flow and churn flow, and the amplitude fluctuation is high. The results indicate that the image texture characteristic parameter indexes of different flow pattern can reflect the flow characteristics of gas-liquid two-phase flow, which provides a new approach to understand the temporal and spatial evolution of flow pattern dynamics.

Drag reducing properties of microalgal exopolymers.

PubMed

Ramus, J; Kenney, B E; Shaughnessy, E J

1989-01-25

Dilute aqueous solutions of polymers released by marine phytoplankton (microalgae) were shown to effectively reduce drag in capillary pipe flow. Tests were performed in a capillary turbulent flow viscometer which extruded small samples under high pressures. In all, 22 species were screened, and the products of one chlorophyte and four rhodophyte species proved especially effective. The viscoelastic polymers produced by these species delayed the transition from laminar to turbulent flow to significantly higher Re. In general, polymeric regime segments come off the maximum drag reduction asymptote at characteristic retro-onset points, and come to lie approximately parallel to, but displaced upwards from the Prandtl-von Karman line. The delay to transition was shown to be dependent on additive polymer concentration, capillary diameter, and temperature. Ionic concentration, ionic composition, or pH had little effect on drag reducing properties.

Effects of air flow directions on composting process temperature profile

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

Kulcu, Recep; Yaldiz, Osman

2008-07-01

In this study, chicken manure mixed with carnation wastes was composted by using three different air flow directions: R1-sucking (downward), R2-blowing (upward) and R3-mixed. The aim was to find out the most appropriate air flow direction type for composting to provide more homogenous temperature distribution in the reactors. The efficiency of each aeration method was evaluated by monitoring the evolution of parameters such as temperature, moisture content, CO{sub 2} and O{sub 2} ratio in the material and dry material losses. Aeration of the reactors was managed by radial fans. The results showed that R3 resulted in a more homogenous temperaturemore » distribution and high dry material loss throughout the composting process. The most heterogeneous temperature distribution and the lowest dry material loss were obtained in R2.« less

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

Yusa, Y.; Ohsawa, S.; Kitaoka, K.

The central part of Kyushu Island, southwest Japan, is located at the junction of the Southwest Japan Arc and the Ryukyu Arc, where a graben (Beppu-Shimabara Graben) has been formed by the rifting tectonic movement. There are many Quaternary volcanoes and active geo- and hydro-thermal fields within the Graben. The Beppu hydrothermal system extends around the Tsurumi-Garandake volcanoes at the eastern end of the Graben. This report will deal with the hydrothermal system beneath the volcanoes specially focusing on Garandake. Modest or violent fumarolic activities are visible near the summit of Garandake (1045 m in height). The total water(steam) outputmore » is 1.4 kg/s and its heat output 3.8 MW, while the heat output from the ground surface of 5.5 x 10{sup 4} m{sup 2} is 19.5 MW estimated by a heat balance analysis based on infrared radiation measurements (Yuhara et al., 1987). Thus the main process of heat discharge from Garandake, totally 23.3 MW, is the radiation from the ground surface. The geothermal gradient observed in a well drilled near the summit indicates that the large heat output is caused by some special process different from conduction because the heat flow by conduction is estimated to be 0.03 MW, which is very small compared with the observed output. Allis and Yusa (1989) suggested that a two-phase flow system is developed in Garandake. The two-phase flow, steam rising and water failing, acts as a heat pipe, by which a large quantity of (latent) heat can be transported upwards. Applying the theory of two-phase flow (Yusa and Oishi, 1989) to the Garandake system, the upflow rate of steam is estimated to be 10.3 kg/s at 100{degrees}C; the temperature near the ground surface, A part of rising steam (1.4 kg/s) flows out through fumaroles, and the remnant condenses to flow downwards. If the system is vapor-dominated, the intrinsic permeability at the shallow part should be about 1 darcy.« less

Flow Regime Study in a High Density Circulating Fluidized Bed Riser with an Abrupt Exit

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

Mei, J.S.; Shadle, L.J.; Yue, P.C.

2007-01-01

Flow regime study was conducted in a 0.3 m diameter, 15.5 m height circulating fluidized bed (CFB) riser with an abrupt exit at the National Energy Technology Laboratory of the U.S. Department of Energy. Local particle velocities were measured at various radial positions and riser heights using an optical fiber probe. On-line measurement of solid circulating rate was continuously recorded by the Spiral. Glass beads of mean diameter 61 μm and particle density of 2,500 kg/m3 were used as bed material. The CFB riser was operated at various superficial gas velocities ranging from 3 to 7.6 m/s and solid massmore » flux from 20 to 550 kg/m2-s. At a constant riser gas velocity, transition from fast fluidization to dense suspension upflow (DSU) regime started at the bottom of the riser with increasing solid flux. Except at comparatively low riser gas velocity and solid flux, the apparent solid holdup at the top exit region was higher than the middle section of the riser. The solid fraction at this top region could be much higher than 7% under high riser gas velocity and solid mass flux. The local particle velocity showed downward flow near the wall at the top of the riser due to its abrupt exit. This abrupt geometry reflected the solids and, therefore, caused solid particles traveling downward along the wall. However, at location below, but near, the top of the riser the local particle velocities were observed flowing upward at the wall. Therefore, DSU was identified in the upper region of the riser with an abrupt exit while the fully developed region, lower in the riser, was still exhibiting core-annular flow structure. Our data were compared with the flow regime boundaries proposed by Kim et al. [1] for distinguishing the dilute pneumatic transport, fast fluidization, and DSU.« less

Large eddy simulation of fire-induced buoyancy driven plume dispersion in an urban street canyon under perpendicular wind flow.

PubMed

Hu, L H; Huo, R; Yang, D

2009-07-15

The dispersion of fire-induced buoyancy driven plume in and above an idealized street canyon of 18 m (width) x 18 m (height) x 40 m (length) with a wind flow perpendicular to its axis was investigated by Fire Dynamics Simulator (FDS), Large Eddy Simulation (LES). Former studies, such as that by Oka [T.R. Oke, Street design and urban canopy layer climate, Energy Build. 11 (1988) 103-113], Gayev and Savory [Y.A. Gayev, E. Savory, Influence of street obstructions on flow processes within street canyons. J. Wind Eng. Ind. Aerodyn. 82 (1999) 89-103], Xie et al. [S. Xie, Y. Zhang, L. Qi, X. Tang, Spatial distribution of traffic-related pollutant concentrations in street canyons. Atmos. Environ. 37 (2003) 3213-3224], Baker et al. [J. Baker, H. L. Walker, X. M. Cai, A study of the dispersion and transport of reactive pollutants in and above street canyons--a large eddy simulation, Atmos. Environ. 38 (2004) 6883-6892] and Baik et al. [J.-J. Baik, Y.-S. Kang, J.-J. Kim, Modeling reactive pollutant dispersion in an urban street canyon, Atmos. Environ. 41 (2007) 934-949], focus on the flow pattern and pollutant dispersion in the street canyon with no buoyancy effect. Results showed that with the increase of the wind flow velocity, the dispersion pattern of a buoyant plume fell into four regimes. When the wind flow velocity increased up to a certain critical level, the buoyancy driven upward rising plume was re-entrained back into the street canyon. This is a dangerous situation as the harmful fire smoke will accumulate to pollute the environment and thus threaten the safety of the people in the street canyon. This critical re-entrainment wind velocity, as an important parameter to be concerned, was further revealed to increase asymptotically with the heat/buoyancy release rate of the fire.

Supercritical strata in Lower Paleozoic fluvial rocks: a super critical link to upper flow regime processes and preservation in nature

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lowe, David; Arnott, Bill

2015-04-01

Recent experimental work has much improved our understanding of the lithological attributes of open-channel supercritical flow deposits, namely those formed by antidunes, chutes-and-pools and cyclic steps. However their limited documentation in the ancient sedimentary record brings into question details about their geological preservation. Antidune, chute-and-pool and cyclic step deposits are well developed in sandy ephemeral fluvial deposits of the Upper Cambrian - Lower Ordovician Potsdam Group in the Ottawa Embayment of eastern North America. These high energy fluvial strata form dm- to a few m-thick units intercalated within thick, areally expansive successions of sheet sandstones consisting mostly of wind ripple and adhesion stratification with common deflation lags. Collectively these strata record deposition in a semi-arid environment in which rare, episodic high-energy fluvial events accounted for most of the influx of sediment from upland sources. Following deposition, however, extensive aeolian processes reworked the sediment pile, and hence modified profoundly the preserved stratigraphic record. Antidune deposits occur as 0.2 - 1.6 m thick cosets made up of 2 - 15 cm thick lenticular sets of low angle (≤ 20o) cross-stratified, medium- to coarse-grained sandstone bounded by low-angle (5 - 15o) concave-upward scours and, in many cases, capped by low angle (10 - 15o) convex-upwards symmetrical formsets. Chute-and-pool deposits form single sets, 5 - 55 cm thick and 0.6 - 6 m wide, with scoured bases and low to high angle (5 - 25o) sigmoidal cross-strata consisting of medium- to coarse-grained sandstone. Cyclic step deposits consist of trough cross-stratified sets, 20 cm - 1.6 m thick, 2.5 - 12 m long and 7 - 35 m wide, typically forming trains that laterally are erosively juxtaposed at regularly-spaced intervals. They are composed of medium- to coarse-grained sandstone with concave-up, moderate to high angle (15 - 35o) cross-strata with tangential bases that conform to the shape of the basal bounding surface of the set. Antidune and cyclic step deposits are common and fill 0.4 - 1.8 m deep channels, which then are generally overlain by extensive (>1 km) aeolian deflation surfaces. Chute-and-pool strata, however, are rare and only occur as isolated scour-filling sets within unconfined floodplain deposits. Nowhere in outcrop do different kinds of supercritical bedform deposits interfinger or appear related to the same flow event, suggesting that individual packages of supercritical strata were deposited by discreet, rapidly waning flows with little time for incremental growth or deposition under changing flow conditions. The stratal characteristics and geometries of channel-filling antidune and cyclic step cosets in the Potsdam are similar to those produced in steady experimental flows with high rates of aggradation. Similar conditions in the Potsdam were probably attained because the flows were channelized, which also caused the freshly deposited sediment to lie beneath the water table, and hence beneath the effects of extensive post-flood aeolian deflation. Conversely, scour-filling chute-and-pool deposits formed on the floodplain where highly unsteady, erosive and rapidly waning unconfined flows formed isolated, partly-filled, erosively-based, ephemeral structures. Moreover, being formed on the surface of the floodplain subjected these deposits to extensive post-depositional reworking, and as a consequence caused them to be poorly preserved.

Analysis of the Inshore California Current System Off Central California Using Naval Oceanographic Office Survey Data from 1997 to 2002

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-09-01

toward the coast due to upwelling . Acceleration potential on the 26.0 kg/m3 isopycnal showed persistent poleward inshore flow for all cruises and...100 km from shore that divided low offshore and high inshore spiciness. The 26.0 kg/m3 isopycnal sloped upward toward the coast due to upwelling ...8  Figure 3.  The boundary conditions (and the direction convention of the

Refinement of Regional Distance Seismic Moment Tensor and Uncertainty Analysis for Source-Type Identification

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-09-02

release; distribution is unlimited. rock zone which provides a pathway for formation fluids, natural gas and crude oil from deeper strata that are... southeast Louisiana (Figure 21). It is a part of the Gulf Coast salt basin which exhibits many salt structures formed by upward flow of sedimentary salt...primarily, evaporites) on account of low density of salt and overburden pressures caused by younger sedimentary deposits (Beckman and Williamson, 1990

The effects of surface tension on flooding in counter-current two-phase flow in an inclined tube

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

Deendarlianto; Forschungszentrum Dresden-Rossendorf e.V., Institute of Safety Research, P.O. Box 510 119, D-01314 Dresden; Ousaka, Akiharu

2010-10-15

The purpose of the present study is to investigate the effects of surface tension on flooding phenomena in counter-current two-phase flow in an inclined tube. Previous studies by other researchers have shown that surface tension has a stabilizing effect on the falling liquid film under certain conditions and a destabilizing or unclear trend under other conditions. Experimental results are reported herein for air-water systems in which a surfactant has been added to vary the liquid surface tension without altering other liquid properties. The flooding section is a tube of 16 mm in inner diameter and 1.1 m length, inclined atmore » 30-60 from horizontal. The flooding mechanisms were observed by using two high-speed video cameras and by measuring the time variation of liquid hold-up along the test tube. The results show that effects of surface tension are significant. The gas velocity needed to induce flooding is lower for a lower surface tension. There was no upward motion of the air-water interfacial waves upon flooding occurrence, even for lower a surface tension. Observations on the liquid film behavior after flooding occurred suggest that the entrainment of liquid droplets plays an important role in the upward transport of liquid. Finally, an empirical correlation for flooding velocities is proposed that includes functional dependencies on surface tension and tube inclination. (author)« less

Two-stream modeling of plasmaspheric refilling

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Guiter, S. M.; Gombosi, T. I.; Rasmussen, C. E.

1995-01-01

Plasmaspheric refilling on an L = 4 flux tube was studied by using a time-dependent, hydrodynamic plasmaspheric flow model in which the ion streams from the two hemispheres are treated as distinct fluids. In the model the continuity, momentum, and energy equations of a two-ion (O(+) and H(+)), quasi-neutral, currentless plasma are solved along a closed geomagnetic field line; diffusive equilibrium is not assumed. collisions between all stream pairs and with neutral species are included. The model includes a corotating, tilted dipole magnetic field and neutral winds. Ionospheric sources and sinks are accounted for in a self-consistent manner. Electrons are assumed to be heated by photoelectrons. The model flux tube extends from a 200-km altitude in one hemisphere to a 200-km altitude in the other hemisphere. Initially, the upwelling streams pass through each other practically unimpeded. When the streams approach the boundary in the conjugate ionosphere, a shock develops there, which moves upward and dissipates slowly; at about the same time a reverse shock develops in the hemisphere of origin, which moves upward. After about 1 hour, large shocks develop in each stream near the equator; these shocks move toward the equator and downward after crossing the equator. However, these shocks are probably artificial, because counterstreaming flows occur in each H(+) fluid, which the model can only handle by creating shocks.

Geologic constraints to fluid flow in the Jurassic Arab D reservoir, eastern Saudi Arabia

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

Laing, J.E.

1991-08-01

A giant oil field located in eastern Saudi Arabia has produced several billion barrels of 37{degree} API oil from fewer than 100 wells. The Upper Jurassic Arab Formation is the main producing unit, and is made up of a series of upward-shoaling carbonate and anhydrite members. Porous carbonates of the Arab D member make up the principle oil reservoir, and overlying Arab D anhydrite provides the seal. Principal reservoir facies are stromatoporoid-coral and skeletal grainstones. Reservoir drive is currently provided by flank water injection. Despite more than 30 years of flank water injection (1.5 billion bbl) into the northern areamore » of the field, a thick oil column remains in the Arab D reservoir. Geological factors which affect fluid flow in this area are (1) a downdip facies change from permeable skeletal-stromatoporoid limestone to less permeable micritic limestone, (2) vertical permeability barriers resulting from shoaling-upward cycles, (3) a downdip tar mat, (4) dolomite along the flanks in the upper portion of the reservoir, (5) highly permeable intervals within the skeletal-stromatoporoid limestone, and (6) an updip, north to south facies change from predominantly stromatoporoid-coral grainstone to skeletal grainstone. These factors are considered in reservoir modeling, simulation studies, and planning locations for both water injection and producer wells.« less

Field-aligned Poynting flux observations in the high-latitude ionosphere

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gary, J. B.; Heelis, R. A.; Hanson, W. B.; Slavin, J. A.

1994-06-01

We have used data from Dynamics Explorer 2 to investigate the rate of conversion of electromagnetic energy into both thermal and bulk flow particle kinetic energy in the high-latitude ionosphere. The flux tube integrated conversion rate E.J can be determined from spacecraft measurements of the electric and magnetic field vectors by deriving the field-aligned Poynting flux, S∥=S.B0, where B0 is in the direction of the geomagnetic field. Determination of the Poynting flux from satellite observations is critically dependent upon the establishment of accurate values of the fields and is especially sensitive to errors in the baseline (unperturbed) geomagnetic field. We discuss our treatment of the data in some detail, particularly in regard to systematically correcting the measured magnetic field to account for attitude changes and model deficiencies. S∥ can be used to identify the relative strengths of the magnetosphere and thermospheric winds as energy drivers and we present observations demonstrating the dominance of each of these. Dominance of the magnetospheric driver is indicated by S∥ directed into the ionosphere. Electromagnetic energy is delivered to and dissipated within the region. Dominance of the neutral wind requires that the conductivity weighted neutral wind speed in the direction of the ion drift be larger than the ion drift, resulting in observations of an upward directed Poynting flux. Electromagnetic energy is generated within the ionospheric region in this case. We also present observations of a case where the neutral atmosphere motion may be reaching a state of sustained bulk flow velocity as evidenced by very small Poynting flux in the presence of large electric fields.

34 CFR 645.1 - What is the Upward Bound Program?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... the following three types of projects: (1) Regular Upward Bound projects. (2) Upward Bound Math and Science Centers. (3) Veterans Upward Bound projects. (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070a-11 and 1070a-13) ...) The Upward Bound Program provides Federal grants to projects designed to generate in program...

34 CFR 645.1 - What is the Upward Bound Program?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... the following three types of projects: (1) Regular Upward Bound projects. (2) Upward Bound Math and Science Centers. (3) Veterans Upward Bound projects. (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070a-11 and 1070a-13) ...) The Upward Bound Program provides Federal grants to projects designed to generate in program...

34 CFR 645.42 - What are Upward Bound stipends?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... grantee is permitted to provide: (1) For Regular Upward Bound projects and Upward Bound Math and Science... What are Upward Bound stipends? (a) An Upward Bound project may provide stipends for all participants... evidence of satisfactory participation in activities of the project including— (1) Regular attendance; and...

34 CFR 645.42 - What are Upward Bound stipends?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... grantee is permitted to provide: (1) For Regular Upward Bound projects and Upward Bound Math and Science... What are Upward Bound stipends? (a) An Upward Bound project may provide stipends for all participants... evidence of satisfactory participation in activities of the project including— (1) Regular attendance; and...

34 CFR 645.42 - What are Upward Bound stipends?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... grantee is permitted to provide: (1) For Regular Upward Bound projects and Upward Bound Math and Science... What are Upward Bound stipends? (a) An Upward Bound project may provide stipends for all participants... evidence of satisfactory participation in activities of the project including— (1) Regular attendance; and...

34 CFR 645.1 - What is the Upward Bound Program?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... the following three types of projects: (1) Regular Upward Bound projects. (2) Upward Bound Math and Science Centers. (3) Veterans Upward Bound projects. (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070a-11 and 1070a-13) ...) The Upward Bound Program provides Federal grants to projects designed to generate in program...

34 CFR 645.1 - What is the Upward Bound Program?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... the following three types of projects: (1) Regular Upward Bound projects. (2) Upward Bound Math and Science Centers. (3) Veterans Upward Bound projects. (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070a-11 and 1070a-13) ...) The Upward Bound Program provides Federal grants to projects designed to generate in program...

Influence of QBO on stratospheric Kelvin and Mixed Rossby gravity waves in high-top CMIP5 models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Indah Solihah, Karina; Lubis, Sandro W.; Setiawan, Sonni

2018-05-01

It is well established that quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) has a substantial influence on Kelvin and mixed Rossby gravity (MRG) wave activity in the tropical lower stratosphere. In this study, we examined how QBO influences Kelvin and MRG wave activity in the lower stratosphere, based on nine high-top CMIP5 models. The results show that the Kelvin and MRG wave signals are stronger in the models with QBO, and relatively weaker in the models without QBO. The results are consistent with established theory, whereby upward-propagating Kelvin waves occurs more frequently during the easterly QBO phase, while upward-propagating MRG waves occurs during the westerly QBO phase. Without the QBO, the mean flow exhibits a near-zero easterly wind, which prevents the waves from propagating and penetrating into the stratosphere. Our analysis also shows that models with the QBO tend to have more robust signatures (in terms of amplitude and phase speed) of Kelvin and MRG waves.

Volume efficient sodium sulfur battery

DOEpatents

Mikkor, Mati

1980-01-01

In accordance with the teachings of this specification, a sodium sulfur battery is formed as follows. A plurality of box shaped sulfur electrodes are provided, the outer surfaces of which are defined by an electrolyte material. Each of the electrodes have length and width dimensions substantially greater than the thicknesses thereof as well as upwardly facing surface and a downwardly facing surface. An electrode structure is contained in each of the sulfur electrodes. A holding structure is provided for holding the plurality of sulfur electrodes in a stacked condition with the upwardly facing surface of one sulfur electrode in facing relationship to the downwardly facing surface of another sulfur electrode thereabove. A small thickness dimension separates each of the stacked electrodes thereby defining between each pair of sulfur electrodes a volume which receives the sodium reactant. A reservoir is provided for containing sodium. A manifold structure interconnects the volumes between the sulfur electrodes and the reservoir. A metering structure controls the flow of sodium between the reservoir and the manifold structure.

Effects of different shear rates on the attachment and detachment of platelet thrombi.

PubMed

Shi, Xiaofeng; Yang, Jichun; Huang, Jiansong; Long, Zhangbiao; Ruan, Zheng; Xiao, Bing; Xi, Xiaodong

2016-03-01

Thrombosis and hemostasis take place in flowing blood, which generates shear forces. The effect of different shear rates, particularly pathological forces, on platelet thrombus formation remains to be fully elucidated. The present study observed the morphological characteristics and hierarchical structure of thrombi on the collagen surface at a wide range of wall shear rates (WSRs) and examined the underlying mechanisms. Calcein AM‑labeled whole blood was perfused over a collagen‑coated surface at different shear rates set by a Bioflux 200 microfluidic device and the thrombi formed were assessed for area coverage, the height and the hierarchical structure defined by the extent of platelet activation and packing density. The factors that affect thrombus formation were also investigated. Platelet thrombus formation varied under different WSRs, for example, dispersed platelet adhesion mixed with erythrocytes was observed at 125‑250 s(‑1), extensive and thin platelet thrombi were observed at 500‑1,500 s(‑1), and sporadic, thick thrombi were observed at pathological WSRs of 2,500‑5,000 s(‑1), which showed a tendency to be shed. With increasing WSRs, the height of the thrombi showed an increasing linear trend, whereas the total fluorescence intensity and area of the thrombi exhibited a parabolic curve‑like change, with a turning point at a WSR of 2,500 s(‑1). The number of thrombi, the average fluorescence intensity and the area per thrombus showed similar trends, with an initial upwards incline followed by a decline. The thrombi formed at higher WSRs had a thicker shell, which led to a more densely packed core. Platelet thrombus formation under shear‑flow was regulated by the adhesive strength, which was mediated by receptor‑ligand interaction, the platelet deposition induced by shear rates and the detachment by the dynamic force of flow. This resulted in a balance between thrombus attachment, including adhesion and aggregation, and detachment. Collectively, compared with physiological low WSRs, pathological high WSRs caused thicker and more easily shed thrombi with more condensed cores, which was regulated by an attachment‑detachment balance. These results provide novel insights into the properties of thrombus formation on collagen at different WSRs, and offers possible explanations for certain clinical physiopathological phenomena, including physical hemostasis and pathological thrombosis.

Slope effects on the fluid dynamics of a fire spreading across a fuel bed: PIV measurements and OH* chemiluminescence imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Morandini, F.; Silvani, X.; Honoré, D.; Boutin, G.; Susset, A.; Vernet, R.

2014-08-01

Slope is among the most influencing factor affecting the spread of wildfires. A contribution to the understanding of the fluid dynamics of a fire spreading in these terrain conditions is provided in the present paper. Coupled optical diagnostics are used to study the slope effects on the flow induced by a fire at laboratory scale. Optical diagnostics consist of particle image velocimetry, for investigating the 2D (vertical) velocity field of the reacting flow and chemiluminescence imaging, for visualizing the region of spontaneous emission of OH radical occurring during gaseous combustion processes. The coupling of these two techniques allows locating accurately the contour of the reaction zone within the computed velocity field. The series of experiments are performed across a bed of vegetative fuel, under both no-slope and 30° upslope conditions. The increase in the rate of fire spread with increasing slope is attributed to a significant change in fluid dynamics surrounding the flame. For horizontal fire spread, flame fronts exhibit quasi-vertical plume resulting in the buoyancy forces generated by the fire. These buoyancy effects induce an influx of ambient fresh air which is entrained laterally into the fire, equitably from both sides. For upward flame spread, the induced flow is strongly influenced by air entrainment on the burnt side of the fire and fire plume is tilted toward unburned vegetation. A particular attention is paid to the induced air flow ahead of the spreading flame. With increasing the slope angle beyond a threshold, highly dangerous conditions arise because this configuration induces wind blows away from the fire rather than toward it, suggesting the presence of convective heat transfers ahead of the fire front.

Ground water stratification and delivery of nitrate to an incised stream under varying flow conditions.

PubMed

Böhlke, J K; O'Connell, Michael E; Prestegaard, Karen L

2007-01-01

Ground water processes affecting seasonal variations of surface water nitrate concentrations were investigated in an incised first-order stream in an agricultural watershed with a riparian forest in the coastal plain of Maryland. Aquifer characteristics including sediment stratigraphy, geochemistry, and hydraulic properties were examined in combination with chemical and isotopic analyses of ground water, macropore discharge, and stream water. The ground water flow system exhibits vertical stratification of hydraulic properties and redox conditions, with sub-horizontal boundaries that extend beneath the field and adjacent riparian forest. Below the minimum water table position, ground water age gradients indicate low recharge rates (2-5 cm yr(-1)) and long residence times (years to decades), whereas the transient ground water wedge between the maximum and minimum water table positions has a relatively short residence time (months to years), partly because of an upward increase in hydraulic conductivity. Oxygen reduction and denitrification in recharging ground waters are coupled with pyrite oxidation near the minimum water table elevation in a mottled weathering zone in Tertiary marine glauconitic sediments. The incised stream had high nitrate concentrations during high flow conditions when much of the ground water was transmitted rapidly across the riparian zone in a shallow oxic aquifer wedge with abundant outflow macropores, and low nitrate concentrations during low flow conditions when the oxic wedge was smaller and stream discharge was dominated by upwelling from the deeper denitrified parts of the aquifer. Results from this and similar studies illustrate the importance of near-stream geomorphology and subsurface geology as controls of riparian zone function and delivery of nitrate to streams in agricultural watersheds.

Ground water stratification and delivery of nitrate to an incised stream under varying flow conditions

USGS Publications Warehouse

Böhlke, J.K.; O'Connell, M. E.; Prestegaard, K.L.

2007-01-01

Ground water processes affecting seasonal variations of surface water nitrate concentrations were investigated in an incised first-order stream in an agricultural watershed with a riparian forest in the coastal plain of Maryland. Aquifer characteristics including sediment stratigraphy, geochemistry, and hydraulic properties were examined in combination with chemical and isotopic analyses of ground water, macropore discharge, and stream water. The ground water flow system exhibits vertical stratification of hydraulic properties and redox conditions, with sub-horizontal boundaries that extend beneath the field and adjacent riparian forest. Below the minimum water table position, ground water age gradients indicate low recharge rates (2-5 cm yr-1) and long residence times (years to decades), whereas the transient ground water wedge between the maximum and minimum water table positions has a relatively short residence time (months to years), partly because of an upward increase in hydraulic conductivity. Oxygen reduction and denitrification in recharging ground waters are coupled with pyrite oxidation near the minimum water table elevation in a mottled weathering zone in Tertiary marine glauconitic sediments. The incised stream had high nitrate concentrations during high flow conditions when much of the ground water was transmitted rapidly across the riparian zone in a shallow oxic aquifer wedge with abundant outflow macropores, and low nitrate concentrations during low flow conditions when the oxic wedge was smaller and stream discharge was dominated by upwelling from the deeper denitrified parts of the aquifer. Results from this and similar studies illustrate the importance of near-stream geomorphology and subsurface geology as controls of riparian zone function and delivery of nitrate to streams in agricultural watersheds. ?? ASA, CSSA, SSSA.

Glaciation and regional ground-water flow in the Fennoscandian Shield: Site 94

USGS Publications Warehouse

Provost, Alden M.; Voss, Clifford I.; Neuzil, C.E.

1998-01-01

Results from a regional-scale ground-water flow model of the Fennoscandian shield suggest that ground-water flow is strongly affected by surface conditions associated with climatic change and glaciation. The model was used to run a series of numerical simulations of variable-density ground-water flow in a 1500-km-long and approximately 10-km-deep cross-section that passes through southern Sweden. Ground-water flow and shield brine transport in the cross-sectional model are controlled by an assumed time evolution of surface conditions over the next 140 ka. Simulations show that, under periglacial conditions, permafrost may locally or extensively impede the free recharge or discharge of ground water. Below cold-based glacial ice, no recharge or discharge of ground water occurs. Both of these conditions result in the settling of shield brine and consequent freshening of near-surface water in areas of natural discharge blocked by permafrost. The presence of warm-based ice with basal melting creates a potential for ground-water recharge rates much larger than under present, ice-free conditions. Recharging basal meltwater can reach depths of a few kilometers in a few thousand years. The vast majority of recharged water is accommodated through storage in the volume of bedrock below the local area of recharge; regional (lateral) redistribution of recharged water by subsurface flow is minor over the duration of a glacial advance (~10 ka). During glacial retreat, the weight of the ice overlying a given surface location decreases, and significant upward flow of ground water may occur below the ice sheet due to pressure release, despite the continued potential for recharge of basal meltwater. Excess meltwater must exit from below the glacier through subglacial cavities and channels. Subsurface penetration of meltwater during glacial advance and up-flow during glacial retreat are greatest if the loading efficiency of the shield rock is low. The maximum rate of ground-water discharge occurs at the receding ice margin, and some discharge occurs below incursive post-glacial seas. The simulation results suggest that vertical movement of deep shield brines induced by the next few glacial cycles should not increase the concentration of dissolved solids significantly above present-day levels. However, the concentration of dissolved solids should decrease significantly at depths of up to several kilometers during periods of glacial meltwater recharge. The meltwater may reside in the subsurface for periods exceeding 10 ka and may bring oxygenated conditions to an otherwise reducing chemical environment.

Up-down Asymmetries in Speed Perception

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Thompson, Peter; Stone, Leland S.

1997-01-01

We compared speed matches for pairs of stimuli that moved in opposite directions (upward and downward). Stimuli were elliptical patches (2 deg horizontally by 1 deg vertically) of horizontal sinusoidal gratings of spatial. frequency 2 cycles/deg. Two sequential 380 msec reveal presentations were compared. One of each pair of gratings (the standard) moved at 4 Hz (2 deg/sec), the other (the test) moved at a rate determined by a simple up-down staircase. The point of subjectively equal speed was calculated from the average of the last eight reversals. The task was to fixate a central point and to determine which one of the pair appeared to move faster. Eight of 10 observers perceived the upward drifting grating as moving faster than a grating moving downward but otherwise identical. on average (N = 10), when the standard moved downward, it was matched by a test moving upward at 94.7+/-1.7(SE)% of the standard speed, and when the standard moved upward it was matched by a test moving downward at 105.1+/-2.3(SE)% of the standard speed. Extending this paradigm over a range of spatial (1.5 to 13.5 c/d) and temporal (1.5 to 13.5 Hz) frequencies, preliminary results (N = 4) suggest that, under the conditions of our experiment, upward matter is seen as faster than downward for speeds greater than approx.1 deg/sec, but the effect appears to reverse at speeds below approx.1 deg/sec with downward motion perceived as faster. Given that an up-down asymmetry has been observed for the optokinetic response, both perceptual and oculomotor contributions to this phenomenon deserve exploration.

Warming-induced upward migration of the alpine treeline in the Changbai Mountains, northeast China.

PubMed

Du, Haibo; Liu, Jie; Li, Mai-He; Büntgen, Ulf; Yang, Yue; Wang, Lei; Wu, Zhengfang; He, Hong S

2018-03-01

Treeline responses to environmental changes describe an important phenomenon in global change research. Often conflicting results and generally too short observations are, however, still challenging our understanding of climate-induced treeline dynamics. Here, we use a state-of-the-art dendroecological approach to reconstruct long-term changes in the position of the alpine treeline in relation to air temperature at two sides in the Changbai Mountains in northeast China. Over the past 160 years, the treeline increased by around 80 m, a process that can be divided into three phases of different rates and drives. The first phase was mainly influenced by vegetation recovery after an eruption of the Tianchi volcano in 1702. The slowly upward shift in the second phase was consistent with the slowly increasing temperature. The last phase coincided with rapid warming since 1985, and shows with 33 m per 1°C, the most intense upward shift. The spatial distribution and age structure of trees beyond the current treeline confirm the latest, warming-induced upward shift. Our results suggest that the alpine treeline will continue to rise, and that the alpine tundra may disappear if temperatures will increase further. This study not only enhances mechanistic understanding of long-term treeline dynamics, but also highlights the effects of rising temperatures on high-elevation vegetation dynamics. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Quantification of natural vapor fluxes of trichloroethene in the unsaturated zone at Picatinny Arsenal, New Jersey

USGS Publications Warehouse

Smith, James A.; Tisdale, Amy K.; Cho, H. Jean

1996-01-01

The upward flux of trichloroethene (TCE) vapor through the unsaturated zone above a contaminated, water-table aquifer at Picatinny Arsenal, New Jersey, has been studied under natural conditions over a 12-month period. Vertical gas-phase diffusion fluxes were estimated indirectly by measuring the TCE vapor concentration gradient in the unsaturated zone and using Fick's law to calculate the flux. The total gas-phase flux (e.g., the sum of diffusion and advection fluxes) was measured directly with a vertical flux chamber (VFC). In many cases, the upward TCE vapor flux was several orders of magnitude greater than the upward TCE diffusion flux, suggesting that mechanisms other than steady-state vapor diffusion are contributing to the vertical transport of TCE vapors through the unsaturated zone. The measured total flux of TCE vapor from the subsurface to the atmosphere is approximately 50 kg/yr and is comparable in magnitude to the removal rate of TCE from the aquifer by an existing pump-and-treat system and by discharge into a nearby stream. The net upward flux of TCE is reduced significantly during a storm event, presumably due to the mass transfer of TCE from the soil gas to the infiltrating rainwater and its subsequent downward advection. Several potential problems associated with the measurement of total gas-phase fluxes are discussed.

Facies And Bedding Analysis of Deep-Marine, Arc-Related, Sediementary Rocks Cored on International Ocean Drilling Program Expedition 351.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Johnson, K. E.; Marsaglia, K. M.

2015-12-01

The Izu-Bonin-Mariana (IBM) Arc System, south of Japan, hosts a multitude of active and extinct (remnant) arc volcanic sediment sources. Core extracted adjacent to the proto-IBM arc (Kyushu-Palau Ridge; KPR) in the Amami-Sankaku Basin on International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Expedition 351 contains evidence of the variety of sediment sources that have existed in the area as a result of changing tectonic regimes through arc development, backarc basin formation and remnant arc abandonment. Approximately 1000 meters of Eocene to Oligocene volcaniclastic sedimentary rocks were analyzed via shipboard core photos, core descriptions, and thin sections with the intention of understanding the depositional history at this site. These materials contain a crucial record of arc development complementary to the Neogene history preserved in the active reararc (Expedition 350) and compressed whole-arc record in the current forearc (Expedition 352). A database of stratigraphic columns was created to display grain size trends, facies changes, and bedding characteristics. Individual beds (depositional events) were classified using existing and slightly modified classification schemes for muddy, sandy and gravel-rich gravity flow deposits, as well as muddy debris flows and tuffs. Utilizing the deep marine facies classes presented by Pickering et al. (1986), up section changes are apparent. Through time, as the arc developed, facies and bedding types and their proportions change dramatically and relatively abruptly. Following arc initiation facies are primarily mud-rich with intercalated tuffaceous sand. In younger intervals, sand to gravel gravity-flow deposits dominate, becoming more mud-rich. Muddy gravity flow deposits, however, dominate farther upsection. The overall coarsening-upward pattern (Unit III) is consistent with building of the arc edifice. Farther upsection (Unit II) an abrupt fining-upward trend represents the onset of isolation of the KPR as backarc spreading in the Shikoku Basin was initiated. This information will be combined with volcanic provenance and geochemical information from other studies, ultimately creating a deep-marine facies model for intraoceanic arc systems.

New model simulations of the global atmospheric electric circuit driven by thunderstorms and electrified shower clouds: The roles of lightning and sprites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rycroft, Michael J.; Odzimek, Anna; Arnold, Neil F.; Füllekrug, Martin; Kułak, Andrzej; Neubert, Torsten

2007-12-01

Several processes acting below, in and above thunderstorms and in electrified shower clouds drive upward currents which close through the global atmospheric electric circuit. These are all simulated in a novel way using the software package PSpice. A moderate negative cloud-to-ground lightning discharge from the base of a thunderstorm increases the ionospheric potential above the thundercloud by 0.0013%. Assuming the ionosphere to be an equipotential surface, this discharge increases the current flowing in the global circuit and the fair-weather electric field also by 0.0013%. A moderate positive cloud-to-ground lightning discharge from the bottom of a thunderstorm decreases the ionospheric potential by 0.014%. Such a discharge may trigger a sprite, causing the ionospheric potential to decrease by ˜1V. The time scales for the recovery of the ionospheric potential are shown to be ˜250s, which is of the same order as the CR time constant for the global circuit. Knowing the global average rate of lightning discharges, it is found that negative cloud-to-ground discharges increase the ionospheric potential by only ˜4%, and that positive cloud-to-ground discharges reduce it by ˜3%. Thus, overall, lightning contributes only ˜1%—an almost insignificant proportion—to maintaining the high potential of the ionosphere. It is concluded that the net upward current to the ionosphere due to lightning is only ˜20A. Further, it is concluded that conduction and convection currents associated with “batteries” within thunderclouds and electrified shower clouds contribute essentially equally (˜500A each) to maintaining the ionospheric potential.

Turbidite megabeds in an Oceanic Rift Valley recording jokulhlaups of late Pleistocene glacial lakes of the western United States

USGS Publications Warehouse

Zuffa, G.G.; Normark, W.R.; Serra, F.; Brunner, C.A.

2000-01-01

Escanaba Trough is the southernmost segment of the Gorda Ridge and is filled by sandy turbidites locally exceeding 500 m in thickness. New results from Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Sites 1037 and 1038 that include accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) 14C dates and revised petrographic evaluation of the sediment provenance, combined with high-resolution seismic-reflection profiles, provide a lithostratigraphic framework for the turbidite deposits. Three fining-upward units of sandy turbidites from the upper 365 m at ODP Site 1037 can be correlated with sediment recovered at ODP Site 1038 and Deep Sea Drilling Program (DSDP) Site 35. Six AMS 14C ages in the upper 317 m of the sequence at Site 1037 indicate that average deposition rates exceeded 10 m/k.yr. between 32 and 11 ka, with nearly instantaneous deposition of one ~60-m interval of sand. Petrography of the sand beds is consistent with a Columbia River source for the entire sedimentary sequence in Escanaba Trough. High-resolution acoustic stratigraphy shows that the turbidites in the upper 60 m at Site 1037 provide a characteristic sequence of key reflectors that occurs across the floor of the entire Escanaba Trough. Recent mapping of turbidite systems in the northeast Pacific Ocean suggests that the turbidity currents reached the Escanaba Trough along an 1100-km-long pathway from the Columbia River to the west flank of the Gorda Ridge. The age of the upper fining-upward unit of sandy turbidites appears to correspond to the latest Wisconsinan outburst of glacial Lake Missoula. Many of the outbursts, or jokulhlaups, from the glacial lakes probably continued flowing as hyperpycnally generated turbidity currents on entering the sea at the mouth of the Columbia River.

Fluid-assisted melting in a collisional orogen

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Berger, A.; Burri, T.; Engi, M.; Roselle, G. T.

2003-04-01

The Southern Steep Belt (SSB) of the Central Alps is the location of backthrusting during syn- to post-collisional deformation. From its metamorphic evolution and lithological contents the SSB has been interpreted as a tectonic accretion channel (TAC [1]). The central part of the SSB is additionally characterized by anatexites, leucogranitic aplites and pegmatites. Dehydration melting of muscovite is rare but did occurr locally. Moreover, no evidence of dehydration melting of biotite has been formed in that products of incongruent melting reactions (garnet, opx or cordierite) are missing. The melts are mainly produced by the infiltration of an external aqueous fluid. The fluids must have originated from the breakdown of hydrous minerals at temperatures below the water saturated solidus of the quartz-feldspar-system, such that the liberated fluids could not been trapped in the melt. Using the thermal modeling program MELONPIT [2] and assuming that solid fragments ascended in combination with tectonic accreated radioactive material, a complex thermal evolution inside the TAC has been derived. During subduction of the downgoing plate, isotherms were locally inverted, then subsequently relaxed, when subduction slowed down. At the collisional stage a small region develope, where the isotherms were still bent, and where temperatures increased during decompression. Assuming that dehydration reactions were followed by upward flow of fluids released from this region fluid present partial melting was triggered. The flow direction of the fluid was controlled by the pressure gradient and the steeply oriented foliations in the SSB. According to the model, the area of upward flowing fluids should be limited to the SSB. This is consistent with the observed regional distribution of leucosomes derived from in-situ melts. [1] Engi et al. (2001) Geology 29: 1143-1146 [2] Roselle et al. (2002) Am. J. Sci. 302: 381-409

Chromospheric impact of an exploding solar granule

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fischer, C. E.; Bello González, N.; Rezaei, R.

2017-06-01

Context. Observations of multi-wavelength and therefore height-dependent information following events throughout the solar atmosphere and unambiguously assigning a relation between these rapidly evolving layers are rare and difficult to obtain. Yet, they are crucial for our understanding of the physical processes that couple the different regimes in the solar atmosphere. Aims: We characterize the exploding granule event with simultaneous observations of Hinode spectroplarimetric data in the solar photosphere and Hinode broadband Ca II H images combined with Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS) slit spectra. We follow the evolution of an exploding granule and its connectivity throughout the atmosphere and analyze the dynamics of a magnetic element that has been affected by the abnormal granule. Methods: In addition to magnetic flux maps we use a local correlation tracking method to infer the horizontal velocity flows in the photosphere and apply a wavelet analysis on several IRIS chromospheric emission features such as Mg II k2v and Mg II k3 to detect oscillatory phenomena indicating wave propagation. Results: During the vigorous expansion of the abnormal granule we detect radially outward horizontal flows, causing, together with the horizontal flows from the surrounding granules, the magnetic elements in the bordering intergranular lanes to be squeezed and elongated. In reaction to the squeezing, we detect a chromospheric intensity and velocity oscillation pulse which we identify as an upward traveling hot shock front propagating clearly through the IRIS spectral line diagnostics of Mg II h&k. Conclusions: Exploding granules can trigger upward-propagating shock fronts that dissipate in the chromosphere. Movies associated to Figs. A.1 and A.2 are available in electronic form at http://www.aanda.org

Meteor radar observations of vertically propagating low-frequency inertia-gravity waves near the southern polar mesopause region

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, I.-S.; Lee, C.; Kim, J.-H.; Jee, G.; Kim, Y.-H.; Choi, H.-J.; Chun, H.-Y.; Kim, Y. H.

2017-04-01

Vertically propagating low-frequency inertia-gravity waves (IGWs) are retrieved from meteor radar winds observed at King Sejong Station (KSS: 62.22°S, 58.78°W), Antarctica. IGW horizontal winds extracted from temporal band-pass filtering in regular time-height bins show the frequent occurrence of IGWs with the downward phase progression and the counterclockwise rotation of their horizontal wind vectors with time (i.e., upward energy propagation) near the mesopause region throughout the whole year of 2014. The vertical wavelengths of the observed IGWs roughly range from 14 km to more than 20 km, which is consistent with previous observational studies on the mesospheric IGWs over Antarctica. Stokes parameters and rotary spectra computed from the hodographs of the IGW horizontal wind components reveal that the intrinsic frequencies of the upward propagating IGWs are |f|-3|f| with seasonal variations of the relative predominance between |f|-2|f| and 2|f|-3|f|, where f is the Coriolis parameter at KSS. The hodograph analysis also indicates that the N-S propagation is dominant in austral summer, while the NE-SW propagation is pronounced in austral winter. The propagation direction is discussed in relation to the generation of IGWs due to dynamical imbalances occurring in the tropospheric and stratospheric jet flow systems. Ray tracing results indicate that the N-S propagation in summer may be due to the jet flow systems roughly north of KSS and the NE-SW propagation in winter may be either the SW propagation from the jet flow systems northeast of KSS or the NE propagation (around the South Pole) from the south of Australia and Southern Indian and Pacific Oceans.

Recharge to the surficial aquifer system in Lee and Hendry counties, Florida

USGS Publications Warehouse

Krulikas, R.K.; Giese, G.L.

1995-01-01

Protection of ground-water recharge areas against contamination is of great interest in Florida, a State whose population depends heavily on ground water and that is experiencing rapid growth. The Florida Legislature is considering implementation of a tax incentive program to owners of high-rate recharge lands that remain undeveloped. High-rate recharge was arbitrarily set at 10 or more inches per year. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the South Florida Water Management District, conducted a study to investigate the efficacy of several methods for estimating recharge to the surficial aquifer system in southwestern Florida and to map recharge at a scale of 1:100,000. Four maps were constructed at a scale of 1:100,000 for Lee and Hendry Counties, depicting the configuration of the water table of the surficial aquifer system, direction of ground-water flow, general soil characteristics, and recharge rates. Point recharge rates calculated for 25 sites in Lee County from comparisons of chloride concentrations in precipitation and in water from the surficial aquifer system ranged from 0.6 to 9.0 inches per year. Local recharge rates estimated by increases in flow along theoretical flow tubes in the surficial aquifer system were 8.0 inches per year in a part of Lee County and 8.2 inches per year in a part of Hendry County. Information on oxygen isotopes in precipitation and water from the surficial aquifer system was used to verify that the source of chlorides in the aquifer system was from precipitation rather than upward leakage of saline water. Soil maps and general topographic and hydrologic considerations were used with calculated point and local recharge rates to regionalize rates throughout Lee and Hendry Counties. The areas of greatest recharge were found in soils of flatwoods and sloughs, which were assigned estimated recharge rates of 0 to 10 inches per year. Soils of swamps and sloughs were assigned values of 0 to 3.0 inches per year; soils of tidal areas and barrier islands, soils of the Everglades, and soils of sloughs and freshwater marshes were assigned values of 0 to 2.0 inches per year; lastly, soils of manmade areas were assigned values of 0.5 to 1.5 inches per year. Small isolated areas of high-rate recharge (greater than 10 inches per year) might exist in Lee and Hendry Counties, but the maximum rate calculated in this study was 9.0 inches per year. Despite low natural recharge rates, lowering of the water table through pumping or canalization could create a potential for induced recharge in excess of 10 inches per year in parts of Lee and Hendry Counties.

Stratigraphic architecture of a fluvial-lacustrine basin-fill succession at Desolation Canyon, Uinta Basin, Utah: Reference to Walthers’ Law and implications for the petroleum industry

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ford, Grace L.; David R. Pyles,; Dechesne, Marieke

2016-01-01

Two large-scale (member-scale) upward patterns are noted: Waltherian, and non-Waltherian. The upward successions in Waltherian progressions record progradation or retrogradation of a linked fluvial-lacustrine system across the area; whereas the upward successions in non-Waltherian progressions record large-scale changes in the depositional system that are not related to progradation or retrogradation of the ancient lacustrine shoreline. Four Waltherian progressions are noted: 1) the Flagstaff Limestone to lower Wasatch Formation member records the upward transition from lacustrine to fluvial—or shallowing-upward succession; 2) the upper Wasatch to Uteland Butte records the upward transition from fluvial to lacustrine—or a deepening upward succession; 3) the Uteland Butte to Renegade Tongue records the upward transition from lacustrine to fluvial—a shallowing-upward succession; and 4) the Renegade Tongue to Mahogany oil shale interval records the upward transition from fluvial to lacustrine—a deepening upward succession. The two non-Waltherian progressions in the study area are: 1) the lower to middle Wasatch, which records the abrupt shift from low to high net-sand content fluvial system, and 2) the middle to upper Wasatch, which records the abrupt shift from high to intermediate net-sand content fluvial system.

PATTERNS OF FLOWS IN AN INTERMEDIATE PROMINENCE OBSERVED BY HINODE

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

Ahn, Kwangsu; Chae, Jongchul; Cao Wenda

2010-09-20

The investigation of plasma flows in filaments/prominences gives us clues to understanding their magnetic structures. We studied the patterns of flows in an intermediate prominence observed by Hinode/SOT. By examining a time series of H{alpha} images and Ca II H images, we have found horizontal flows in the spine and vertical flows in the barb. Both of these flows have a characteristic speed of 10-20 km s{sup -1}. The horizontal flows displayed counterstreaming. Our detailed investigation revealed that most of the moving fragments in fact reversed direction at the end point of the spine near a footpoint close to themore » associated active region. These returning flows may be one possible explanation of the well-known counterstreaming flows in prominences. In contrast, we have found vertical flows-downward and upward-in the barb. Most of the horizontal flows in the spine seem to switch into vertical flows when they approach the barb, and vice versa. We propose that the net force resulting from a small deviation from magnetohydrostatic equilibrium, where magnetic fields are predominantly horizontal, may drive these patterns of flow. In the prominence studied here, the supposed magnetohydrostatic configuration is characterized by magnetic field lines sagging with angles of 13{sup 0} and 39{sup 0} in the spine and the barb, respectively.« less

The vorticity of Solar photospheric flows on the scale of granulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pevtsov, A. A.

2016-12-01

We employ time sequences of images observed with a G-band filter (λ4305Å) by the Solar Optical Telescope (SOT) on board of Hinode spacecraft at different latitude along solar central meridian to study vorticity of granular flows in quiet Sun areas during deep minimum of solar activity. Using a feature correlation tracking (FCT) technique, we calculate the vorticity of granular-scale flows. Assuming the known pattern of vertical flows (upward in granules and downward in intergranular lanes), we infer the sign of kinetic helicity of these flows. We show that the kinetic helicity of granular flows and intergranular vortices exhibits a weak hemispheric preference, which is in agreement with the action of the Coriolis force. This slight hemispheric sign asymmetry, however, is not statistically significant given large scatter in the average vorticity. The sign of the current helicity density of network magnetic fields computed using full disk vector magnetograms from the Synoptic Optical Long-term Investigations of the Sun (SOLIS) does not show any hemispheric preference. The combination of these two findings suggests that the photospheric dynamo operating on the scale of granular flows is non-helical in nature.

Impacts of the 2004 Indian ocean tsunami on the southwest coasts of Sri Lanka

USGS Publications Warehouse

Morton, Robert A.; Goff, John A.; Nichol, Scott L.

2007-01-01

The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami caused major landscape changes along the southwest coasts of Sri Lanka that were controlled by the flow, natural topography and bathymetry, and anthropogenic modifications of the terrain. Landscape changes included substantial beach erosion and scouring of return-flow channels near the beach, and deposition of sand sheets across the narrow coastal plain. In many areas tsunami deposits also included abundant building rubble due to the extensive destruction of homes and businesses in areas of dense development. Trim lines and flow directions confirmed that shoreline orientation and wave refraction from embayments and rock-anchored headlands locally focused the flow and amplified the inundation. Tsunami deposits were 1 to 36 cm thick but most were less than 25 cm thick. Deposit thickness depended partly on antecedent topography. The deposits were composed of coarse to medium sand organized into a few sets of plane parallel laminae that exhibited overall upward fining and landward thinning trends.

Effect of stable stratification on dispersion within urban street canyons: A large-eddy simulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Xian-Xiang; Britter, Rex; Norford, Leslie K.

2016-11-01

This study employs a validated large-eddy simulation (LES) code with high tempo-spatial resolution to investigate the effect of a stably stratified roughness sublayer (RSL) on scalar transport within an urban street canyon. The major effect of stable stratification on the flow and turbulence inside the street canyon is that the flow slows down in both streamwise and vertical directions, a stagnant area near the street level emerges, and the vertical transport of momentum is weakened. Consequently, the transfer of heat between the street canyon and overlying atmosphere also gets weaker. The pollutant emitted from the street level 'pools' within the lower street canyon, and more pollutant accumulates within the street canyon with increasing stability. Under stable stratification, the dominant mechanism for pollutant transport within the street canyon has changed from ejections (flow carries high-concentration pollutant upward) to unorganized motions (flow carries high-concentration pollutant downward), which is responsible for the much lower dispersion efficiency under stable stratifications.

Effects of Pump Pulsation on Hydrodynamic Properties and Dissolution Profiles in Flow-Through Dissolution Systems (USP 4).

PubMed

Yoshida, Hiroyuki; Kuwana, Akemi; Shibata, Hiroko; Izutsu, Ken-Ichi; Goda, Yukihiro

2016-06-01

To clarify the effects of pump pulsation and flow-through cell (FTC) dissolution system settings on the hydrodynamic properties and dissolution profiles of model formulations. Two FTC systems with different cell temperature control mechanisms were used. Particle image velocimetry (PIV) was used to analyze the hydrodynamic properties of test solutions in the flow-through dissolution test cell. Two pulsation pumps (semi-sine, full-sine) and a non-pulsatile pump were used to study the effects of varied flows on the dissolution profiles of United States Pharmacopeia standard tablets. PIV analysis showed periodic changes in the aligned upward fluid flow throughout the dissolution cell that was designed to reduce the temperature gradient during pump pulsation (0.5 s/pulse). The maximum instantaneous flow from the semi-sine pump was higher than that of the full-sine pump under all conditions. The flow from the semi-sine wave pump showed faster dissolution of salicylic acid and prednisone tablets than those from other pumps. The semi-sine wave pump flow showed similar dissolution profiles in the two FTC systems. Variations in instantaneous fluid flow caused by pump pulsation that meets the requirements of pharmacopoeias are a factor that affects the dissolution profiles of tablets in FTC systems.

Flow behaviour and transitions in surfactant-laden gas-liquid vertical flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zadrazil, Ivan; Chakraborty, Sourojeet; Matar, Omar; Markides, Christos

2016-11-01

The aim of this work is to elucidate the effect of surfactant additives on vertical gas-liquid counter-current pipe flows. Two experimental campaigns were undertaken, one with water and one with a light oil (Exxsol D80) as the liquid phase; in both cases air was used as the gaseous phase. Suitable surfactants were added to the liquid phase up to the critical micelle concentration (CMC); measurements in the absence of additives were also taken, for benchmarking. The experiments were performed in a 32-mm bore and 5-m long vertical pipe, over a range of superficial velocities (liquid: 1 to 7 m/s, gas: 1 to 44 m/s). High-speed axial- and side-view imaging was performed at different lengths along the pipe, together with pressure drop measurements. Flow regime maps were then obtained describing the observed flow behaviour and related phenomena, i.e., downwards/upwards annular flow, flooding, bridging, gas/liquid entrainment, oscillatory film flow, standing waves, climbing films, churn flow and dryout. Comparisons of the air-water and oil-water results will be presented and discussed, along with the role of the surfactants in affecting overall and detailed flow behaviour and transitions; in particular, a possible mechanism underlying the phenomenon of flooding will be presented. EPSRC UK Programme Grant EP/K003976/1.

Performance of a vane driven-gear pump

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Heald, R H

1921-01-01

Given here are the results of a test conducted in a wind tunnel on the performance of a vane-driven gear pump used to pump gasoline upward into a small tank located within the upper wing from which it flows by gravity to the engine carburetor. Information is given on the efficiency of the pump, the head resistance of the vanes, the performance and characteristics of the unit with and without housing about the vanes, the pump performance when motor driven, and resistance and power characteristics.

The tropical experiment of the Stratosphere-Troposphere Exchange Project (STEP) - Science objectives, operations, and summary findings

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Russell, P. B.; Pfister, L.; Selkirk, H. B.

1993-01-01

An overview is presented of the tropical component of STEP. The STEP cooperative experiments are described and summaries are presented of the STEP tropical ER-2 aircraft flights. STEP tropical results on dehydration and transfer and the mechanisms of upward transfer are summarized. Illustrations show flight paths for each sortie on satellite images and on 100 hPa synoptic flow charts, as well as the timing of flights with respect to overall cloudiness in the Australian region.

A Review of Boiling Heat Transfer Processes at High Heat Flux

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-04-01

Hydrogen on Burnout for Water Flowing Vertically Upward in Round Tubes at 2000 psia," WAPD - TH-318, April 1957. 100. Doroschuck, V. E. and Lantsman, F. P...34Forced-Convection Heat Transfer Burnout Studies for Water in Rectangular Channels and Round Tubes at Pressures above 500 psia," USAEC Rept. WAPD ...Volumes in Subcooled Boiling Systems, ASME Paper 58-HT-19, 1958. 264 . Core, T. C. and Sato, K., "Determination of Burnout Limits of Polyphenyl Coolants

Hydraulic mining method

DOEpatents

Huffman, Lester H.; Knoke, Gerald S.

1985-08-20

A method of hydraulically mining an underground pitched mineral vein comprising drilling a vertical borehole through the earth's lithosphere into the vein and drilling a slant borehole along the footwall of the vein to intersect the vertical borehole. Material is removed from the mineral vein by directing a high pressure water jet thereagainst. The resulting slurry of mineral fragments and water flows along the slant borehole into the lower end of the vertical borehole from where it is pumped upwardly through the vertical borehole to the surface.

Method to prevent/mitigate steam explosions in casting pits

DOEpatents

Taleyarkhan, Rusi P.

1996-01-01

Steam explosions can be prevented or mitigated during a metal casting process by the placement of a perforated flooring system in the casting pit. An upward flow of compressed gas through this perforated flooring system is introduced during the casting process to produce a buffer layer between any spilled molten metal and the cooling water in the reservoir. This buffer layer provides a hydrodynamic layer which acts to prevent or mitigate steam explosions resulting from hot, molten metal being spilled into or onto the cooling water.

Potential for water-quality degradation of interconnected aquifers in west-central Florida

USGS Publications Warehouse

Metz, P.A.; Brendle, D.L.

1996-01-01

Thousands of deep artesian wells were drilled into the Upper Floridan aquifer in west-central Florida prior to well-drilling regulations adopted in the 1970's. The wells were usually completed with a short length of casing through the unconsolidated sediments and were left open to multiple aquifers containing water of varying quality. These open boreholes serve as a potential source of water-quality degradation within the aquifers when vertical internal borehole flow is induced by hydraulic-head differences. Thispotential for water-quality degradation exists in west-central Florida where both the intermediate aquifer system and Upper Floridan aquifer exist. Measurements of caliper, temperature, gamma, fluid conductivity, and flow were obtained in 87 wells throughout west-central Florida to determine the occurrence of interaquifer borehole flow between the intermediate aquifer system and the Upper Floridan aquifer. Flow measurements were made using an impeller flowmeter, a heat-pulse flowmeter, and a video camera with an impeller flowmeter attachment. Of the 87 wells measured with the impeller flowmeter, 17 had internal flow which ranged from 10 to 300 gallons per minute. A heat-pulse flowmeter was used in 19 wells in which flow was not detected using the impeller flowmeter. Of these 19 wells, 18 had internal flow which ranged from 0.3 to 10gallons per minute. Additionally, water-quality samples were collected from specific contributing zones in wells that had internal flow. Analysis of geophysical and water-quality data indicates degradation of water quality has occurred from mineralized ground water flowing upward from the Upper Floridan aquifer into the intermediate aquifer system through both uncased boreholes and corroded black-iron well casings. In areas where there is a downward component of flow, data indicate that potable water from the intermediate aquifer system is artificially recharging the Upper Floridan aquifer through open boreholes. A geographical area was defined where there is a potential for water- quality degradation due to improperly cased wells. This area was delineated based on where there is an upward component of ground-water flow and where there is an occurrence of poor-quality water. The delineated area includes parts of Hillsborough, Manatee, Sarasota, Charlotte, De Soto, and Hardee Counties. To prevent further contamination of the aquifers, the Southwest Florida Water Management District began the Quality of Water Improvement Program in 1974 to restore hydrologic conditions altered by improperly constructed wells or deteriorating casings. As of May 1994, more than 3,000 wells have been inspected and approximately 1,350 have been plugged. To minimize interaquifer contamination, existing wells, especially ones with black-iron casing, should be inspected and, if necessary, repaired with new casing or plugged.

Changing healthcare capital-to-labor ratios: evidence and implications for bending the cost curve in Canada and beyond.

PubMed

Nauenberg, Eric

2014-12-01

Healthcare capital-to-labor ratios are examined for the 10 provincial single-payer health care plans across Canada. The data show an increasing trend-particularly during the period 1997-2009 during which the ratio as much as doubled from 3 to 6 %. Multivariate analyses indicate that every percentage point uptick in the rate of increase in this ratio is associated with an uptick in the rate of increase of real per capita provincial government healthcare expenditures by approximately $31 ([Formula: see text] 0.01). While the magnitude of this relationship is not large, it is still substantial enough to warrant notice: every percentage point decrease in the upward trend of the capital-to-labor ratio might be associated with a one percentage point decrease in the upward trend of per capita government healthcare expenditures. An uptick since 1997 in the rate of increase in per capita prescription drug expenditures is also associated with a decline in the trend of increasing per capita healthcare costs. While there has been some recent evidence of a slowing in the rate of health care expenditure increase, it is still unclear whether this reflects just a pause, after which the rate of increase will return to its baseline level, or a long-term shift; therefore, it is important to continue to explore various policy avenues to affect the rate of change going forward.

Microstructural indicators of convection: insights from the Little Minch Sill Complex, Scotland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nicoli, Gautier; Holness, Marian; Neufeld, Jerome; Farr, Robert

2017-04-01

The fluid dynamic behaviour of crystal-bearing magmas is a key parameter to understand the formation of magmatic bodies. There are two opposite views on the subject: Some argue that solidification in intrusive bodies is affected by convection whereas others claim solidification happens in a static environment. A consensus on the question may be reached by carefully studying the grain size distribution in the settled accumulations of cargo crystals. In the absence of significant crystal growth or particle coarsening by agglomeration, settling of a polydisperse crystal load will always result in a fining-upwards sequence in static magmas as well as in convecting environments. If we assume the particle concentration is always sufficiently low to prevent hindered settling, gravitational settling in a static magma leads to the settling of individual crystals at a constant rate determined by their Stokes' velocity. Each size class is deposited at a constant rate, until all the grains of that size class have fallen out of suspension, leading to a well-stratified sequence and the complete disappearance of progressively smaller size classes upwards in the accumulation. In contrast, in a vigorously convecting magma crystals settle when they enter the stagnant basal boundary layer. In a system containing a polydisperse crystal population most of the bigger particles are removed rapidly from the bulk magma, leading to the creation of a fining-upwards sequence on the floor. However, in detail the structure of this fining-upwards sequence is critically different from that created by settling from a stagnant magma, with the gradual phasing out of each size class instead of the abrupt termination of size classes seen in static systems. This provides us with the opportunity to distinguish between settling from static or convecting magma using the spatial variation of grain size in settled accumulations. We focus on the Little Minch Sill Complex in Scotland, which formed from olivine-phyric magma and is characterised by both composite and single-injection bodies with significant accumulation of olivine on their lower margins. Comparison of the fining-upwards sequences in the picrodolerite/crinanite unit of the composite Shiant Isles Main Sill,and related single-injection sills on the Trotternish Peninsula, Skye, illustrate the ability of this method to distinguish between convecting and non-convecting magma bodies.

Flaw-induced plastic-flow dynamics in bulk metallic glasses under tension

PubMed Central

Chen, S. H.; Yue, T. M.; Tsui, C. P.; Chan, K. C.

2016-01-01

Inheriting amorphous atomic structures without crystalline lattices, bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) are known to have superior mechanical properties, such as high strength approaching the ideal value, but are susceptible to catastrophic failures. Understanding the plastic-flow dynamics of BMGs is important for achieving stable plastic flow in order to avoid catastrophic failures, especially under tension, where almost all BMGs demonstrate limited plastic flow with catastrophic failure. Previous findings have shown that the plastic flow of BMGs displays critical dynamics under compression tests, however, the plastic-flow dynamics under tension are still unknown. Here we report that power-law critical dynamics can also be achieved in the plastic flow of tensile BMGs by introducing flaws. Differing from the plastic flow under compression, the flaw-induced plastic flow under tension shows an upward trend in the amplitudes of the load drops with time, resulting in a stable plastic-flow stage with a power-law distribution of the load drop. We found that the flaw-induced plastic flow resulted from the stress gradients around the notch roots, and the stable plastic-flow stage increased with the increase of the stress concentration factor ahead of the notch root. The findings are potentially useful for predicting and avoiding the catastrophic failures in tensile BMGs by tailoring the complex stress fields in practical structural-applications. PMID:27779221

Impact of Ocean Surface Waves on Air-Sea Momentum Flux

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tamura, H.; Drennan, W. M.; Collins, C. O., III; Graber, H. C.

2016-02-01

In this study, we investigated the structure of turbulent air flow over ocean waves. Observations of wind and waves were retrieved by air-sea interaction spar (ASIS) buoys during the shoaling waves experiment (SHOWEX) in Duck, NC in 1999. It is shown that the turbulent velocity spectra and co-spectra for pure wind sea conditions follow the universal forms estimated by Miyake et al [1970]. In the presence of strong swells, the wave boundary layer was extended and the universal spectral scaling of u'w' broke down [Drennan et al, 1999]. On the other hand, the use of the peak wave frequency (fp) to reproduce the "universal spectra" succeeded at explaining the spectral structure of turbulent flow field. The u'w' co-spectra become negative near the fp, which suggests the upward momentum transport (i.e., negative wind stress) induced by ocean waves. Finally, we propose three turbulent flow structures for different wind-wave regimes.

High-speed imaging of traveling waves in a granular material during silo discharge.

PubMed

Börzsönyi, Tamás; Kovács, Zsolt

2011-03-01

We report experimental observations of sound waves in a granular material during resonant silo discharge called silo music. The grain motion was tracked by high-speed imaging while the resonance of the silo was detected by accelerometers and acoustic methods. The grains do not oscillate in phase at neighboring vertical locations, but information propagates upward in this system in the form of sound waves. We show that the wave velocity is not constant throughout the silo but considerably increases toward the lower end of the system, suggesting increased pressure in this region, where the flow changes from cylindrical to converging flow. In the upper part of the silo the wave velocity matches the sound velocity measured in the same material when standing (in the absence of flow). Grain oscillations show a stick-slip character only in the upper part of the silo.

Numerical investigations of the fluid flows at deep oceanic and arctic permafrost-associated gas hydrate deposits

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Frederick, Jennifer Mary

Methane hydrate is an ice-like solid which sequesters large quantities of methane gas within its crystal structure. The source of methane is typically derived from organic matter broken down by thermogenic or biogenic activity. Methane hydrate (or more simply, hydrate) is found around the globe within marine sediments along most continental margins where thermodynamic conditions and methane gas (in excess of local solubility) permit its formation. Hydrate deposits are quite possibly the largest reservoir of fossil fuel on Earth, however, their formation and evolution in response to changing thermodynamic conditions, such as global warming, are poorly understood. Upward fluid flow (relative to the seafloor) is thought to be important for the formation of methane hydrate deposits, which are typically found beneath topographic features on the seafloor. However, one-dimensional models predict downward flow relative to the seafloor in compacting marine sediments. The presence of upward flow in a passive margin setting can be explained by fluid focusing beneath topography when sediments have anisotropic permeability due to sediment bedding layers. Even small slopes (10 degrees) in bedding planes produce upward fluid velocity, with focusing becoming more effective as slopes increase. Additionally, focusing causes high excess pore pressure to develop below topographic highs, promoting high-angle fracturing at the ridge axis. Magnitudes of upward pore fluid velocity are much larger in fractured zones, particularly when the surrounding sediment matrix is anisotropic in permeability. Enhanced flow of methane-bearing fluids from depth provides a simple explanation for preferential accumulation of hydrate under topographic highs. Models of fluid flow at large hydrate provinces can be constrained by measurements of naturally-occurring radioactive tracers. Concentrations of cosmogenic iodine, 129-I, in the pore fluid of marine sediments often indicate that the pore fluid is much older than the host sediment. Old pore fluid age may reflect complex flow patterns, such a fluid focusing, which can cause significant lateral migration as well as regions where downward flow reverses direction and returns toward the seafloor. Longer pathlines can produce pore fluid ages much older than that expected with a one-dimensional compaction model. For steady-state models with geometry representative of Blake Ridge (USA), a well-studied hydrate province, pore fluid ages beneath regions of topography and within fractured zones can be up to 70 Ma old. Results suggest that the measurements of 129-I/127-I reflect a mixture of new and old pore fluid. However, old pore fluid need not originate at great depths. Methane within pore fluids can travel laterally several kilometers, implying an extensive source region around the deposit. Iodine age measurements support the existence of fluid focusing beneath regions of seafloor topography at Blake Ridge, and suggest that the methane source at Blake Ridge is likely shallow. The response of methane hydrate reservoirs to warming is poorly understood. The great depths may protect deep oceanic hydrates from climate change for the time being because transfer of heat by conduction is slow, but warming will eventually be felt albeit in the far future. On the other hand, unique permafrost-associated methane hydrate deposits exist at shallow depths within the sediments of the circum-Arctic continental shelves. Arctic hydrates are thought to be a relict of cold glacial periods, aggrading when sea levels are much lower and shelf sediments are exposed to freezing air temperatures. During interglacial periods, rising sea levels flood the shelf, bringing dramatic warming to the permafrost- and hydrate-bearing sediments. Permafrost-associated methane hydrate deposits have been responding to warming since the last glacial maximum ~18 kaBP as a consequence of these natural glacial cycles. This `experiment,' set into motion by nature itself, allows us a unique opportunity to study the response of methane hydrate deposits to warming. Gas hydrate stability in the Arctic and the permeability of the shelf sediments to gas migration is thought to be closely linked with relict submarine permafrost. Submarine permafrost extent depends on several environmental factors, such as the shelf lithology, sea level variations, mean annual air temperature, ocean bottom water temperature, geothermal heat flux, groundwater hydrology, and the salinity of the pore water. Effects of submarine groundwater discharge, which introduces fresh terrestrial groundwater off-shore, can freshen deep marine sediments and is an important control on the freezing point depression of ice and methane hydrate. While several thermal modeling studies suggest the permafrost layer should still be largely intact near-shore, many recent field studies have reported elevated methane levels in Arctic coastal waters. The permafrost layer is thought to create an impermeable barrier to fluid and gas flow, however, talik formation (unfrozen regions within otherwise continuous permafrost) below paleo-river channels can create permeable pathways for gas migration from depth. This is the first study of its kind to make predictions of the methane gas flux to the water column from the Arctic shelf sediments using a 2D multi-phase fluid flow model. Model results show that the dissociation of methane hydrate deposits through taliks can supersaturate the overlying water column at present-day relative to equilibrium with the atmosphere when taliks are large (> 1 km width) or hydrate saturation is high within hydrate layers (> 50% pore volume). Supersaturated waters likely drive a net flux of methane into the atmosphere, a potent greenhouse gas. Effects of anthropogenic global warming will certainly increase gas venting rates if ocean bottom water temperatures increase, but likely won't have immediately observable impacts due to the long response times.

A century of hydrological variability and trends in the Fraser River Basin

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Déry, Stephen J.; Hernández-Henríquez, Marco A.; Owens, Philip N.; Parkes, Margot W.; Petticrew, Ellen L.

2012-06-01

This study examines the 1911-2010 variability and trends in annual streamflow at 139 sites across the Fraser River Basin (FRB) of British Columbia (BC), Canada. The Fraser River is the largest Canadian waterway flowing to the Pacific Ocean and is one of the world’s greatest salmon rivers. Our analyses reveal high runoff rates and low interannual variability in alpine and coastal rivers, and low runoff rates and high interannual variability in most streams in BC’s interior. The interannual variability in streamflow is also low in rivers such as the Adams, Chilko, Quesnel and Stuart where the principal salmon runs of the Fraser River occur. A trend analysis shows a spatially coherent signal with increasing interannual variability in streamflow across the FRB in recent decades, most notably in spring and summer. The upward trend in the coefficient of variation in annual runoff coincides with a period of near-normal annual runoff for the Fraser River at Hope. The interannual variability in streamflow is greater in regulated rather than natural systems; however, it is unclear whether it is predominantly flow regulation that leads to these observed differences. Environmental changes such as rising air temperatures, more frequent polarity changes in large-scale climate teleconnections such as El Niño-Southern Oscillation and Pacific Decadal Oscillation, and retreating glaciers may be contributing to the greater range in annual runoff fluctuations across the FRB. This has implications for ecological processes throughout the basin, for example affecting migrating and spawning salmon, a keystone species vital to First Nations communities as well as to commercial and recreational fisheries. To exemplify this linkage between variable flows and biological responses, the unusual FRB runoff anomalies observed in 2010 are discussed in the context of that year’s sockeye salmon run. As the climate continues to warm, greater variability in annual streamflow, and hence in hydrological extremes, may influence ecological processes and human usage throughout the FRB in the 21st century.

The distribution and migration of sodium from a reclaimed upland to a constructed fen peatland in a post-mined oil sands landscape.

PubMed

Kessel, Eric D; Ketcheson, Scott J; Price, Jonathan S

2018-07-15

Post-mine landscape reclamation of the Athabasca Oil Sands Region requires the use of tailings sand, an abundant mine-waste material that often contains large amounts of sodium (Na + ). Due to the mobility of Na + in groundwater and its effects on vegetation, water quality is a concern when incorporating mine waste materials, especially when attempting to construct groundwater-fed peatlands. This research is the first published account of Na + redistribution in groundwater from a constructed tailings sand upland to an adjacent constructed fen peat deposit (Nikanotee Fen). A permeable petroleum coke layer underlying the fen, extending partway into the upland, was important in directing flow and Na + beneath the peat, as designed. Initially, Na + concentration was highest in the tailings sand (average of 232mgL -1 ) and lowest in fen peat (96mgL -1 ). Precipitation-driven recharge to the upland controlled the mass flux of Na from upland to fen, which ranged from 2 to 13tons Na + per year. The mass flux was highest in the driest summer, in part from dry-period flowpaths that direct groundwater with higher concentrations of Na + into the coke layer, and in part because of the high evapotranspiration loss from the fen in dry periods, which induces upward water flow. With the estimated flux rates of 336mmyr -1 , the Na + arrival time to the fen surface was estimated to be between 4 and 11years. Over the four-year study, average Na + concentrations within the fen rooting zone increased from 87 to 200mgL -1 , and in the tailings sand decreased to 196mgL -1 . The planting of more salt-tolerant vegetation in the fen is recommended, given the potential for Na + accumulation. This study shows reclamation designs can use layered flow system to control the rate, pattern, and timing of solute interactions with surface soil systems. Crown Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Use of a Laser Doppler Velocimeter in a Standard Flammability Tube

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Strehlow, R. A.; Flynn, E. M.

1985-01-01

The use of the Laser Doppler Velocimeter, (LDV), to measure the flow associated with the passage of a flame through a standard flammability limit tube (SFLT) was studied. Four major results are presented: (1) it is shown that by using standard ray tracing calculations, the displacement of the LDV volume and the fringe rotation within the experimental error of measurement can be predicted; (2) the flow velocity vector field associated with passage of an upward propagating flame in an SFLT is determined; (3) it is determined that the use of a light interruption technique to track particles is not feasible; and (4) it is shown that a 25 mW laser is adequate for LDV measurements in the Shuttle or Spacelab.

Scale-invariant streamline equations and strings of singular vorticity for perturbed anisotropic solutions of the Navier-Stokes equation

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

Libin, A., E-mail: a_libin@netvision.net.il

2012-12-15

A linear combination of a pair of dual anisotropic decaying Beltrami flows with spatially constant amplitudes (the Trkal solutions) with the same eigenvalue of the curl operator and of a constant velocity orthogonal vector to the Beltrami pair yields a triplet solution of the force-free Navier-Stokes equation. The amplitudes slightly variable in space (large scale perturbations) yield the emergence of a time-dependent phase between the dual Beltrami flows and of the upward velocity, which are unstable at large values of the Reynolds number. They also lead to the formation of large-scale curved prisms of streamlines with edges being the stringsmore » of singular vorticity.« less

Hydrogeologic Unit Flow Characterization Using Transition Probability Geostatistics

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

Jones, N L; Walker, J R; Carle, S F

2003-11-21

This paper describes a technique for applying the transition probability geostatistics method for stochastic simulation to a MODFLOW model. Transition probability geostatistics has several advantages over traditional indicator kriging methods including a simpler and more intuitive framework for interpreting geologic relationships and the ability to simulate juxtapositional tendencies such as fining upwards sequences. The indicator arrays generated by the transition probability simulation are converted to layer elevation and thickness arrays for use with the new Hydrogeologic Unit Flow (HUF) package in MODFLOW 2000. This makes it possible to preserve complex heterogeneity while using reasonably sized grids. An application of themore » technique involving probabilistic capture zone delineation for the Aberjona Aquifer in Woburn, Ma. is included.« less

Problem analysis of geotechnical well drilling in complex environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kasenov, A. K.; Biletskiy, M. T.; Ratov, B. T.; Korotchenko, T. V.

2015-02-01

The article examines primary causes of problems occurring during the drilling of geotechnical wells (injection, production and monitoring wells) for in-situ leaching to extract uranium in South Kazakhstan. Such a drilling problem as hole caving which is basically caused by various chemical and physical factors (hydraulic, mechanical, etc.) has been thoroughly investigated. The analysis of packing causes has revealed that this problem usually occurs because of insufficient amount of drilling mud being associated with small cross section downward flow and relatively large cross section upward flow. This is explained by the fact that when spear bores are used to drill clay rocks, cutting size is usually rather big and there is a risk for clay particles to coagulate.

Vortex-induced suspension of sediment in the surf zone

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Otsuka, Junichi; Saruwatari, Ayumi; Watanabe, Yasunori

2017-12-01

A major mechanism of sediment suspension by organized vortices produced under violent breaking waves in the surf zone was identified through physical and computational experiments. Counter-rotating flows within obliquely descending eddies produced between adjacent primary roller vortices induce transverse convergent near-bed flows, driving bed load transport to form regular patterns of transverse depositions. The deposited sediment is then rapidly ejected by upward carrier flows induced between the vortices. This mechanism of vortex-induced suspension is supported by experimental evidence that coherent sediment clouds are ejected where the obliquely descending eddies reach the sea bed after the breaking wave front has passed. In addition to the effects of settling and turbulent diffusion caused by breaking waves, the effect of the vortex-induced flows was incorporated into a suspension model on the basis of vorticity dynamics and parametric characteristics of transverse flows in breaking waves. The model proposed here reasonably predicts an exponential attenuation of the measured sediment concentration due to violent plunging waves and significantly improves the underprediction of the concentration produced by previous models.

Axially shaped channel and integral flow trippers

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

Crowther, R.L.; Johansson, E.B.; Matzner, B.

1988-06-07

A fuel assembly is described comprising fuel rods positioned in spaced array by upper and lower tie-plates, an open ended flow channel surrounding the array for conducting coolant upward between a lower support plate having coolant communicated thereto to an upper support grid having a steam/water outlet communicated thereto. The flow channel surrounds the array for conducting coolant about the fuel rods. The open ended channel has a polygon shaped cross section with the channel constituting a closed conduit with flat side sections connected at corners to form the enclosed conduit; means separate from the channel for connecting the uppermore » and lower tie-plates together and maintaining the fuel rods in spaced array independent of the flow channel. The improvement in the flow channel comprises tapered side walls. The tapered side walls extend from an average thick cross section adjacent the lower support plate to an average thin cross section adjacent the upper core grid whereby the channel is reduced in thickness adjacent the upper core grid to correspond with the reduced pressure adjacent the upper core grid.« less

Axially shaped channel and integral flow trippers

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

Crowther, R.L. Jr.; Johansson, E.B.; Matzner, B.

1992-02-11

This patent describes a fuel assembly. It comprises: fuel rods positioned in spaced array by upper and lower tie-plates, and open ended flow channel surrounding the array for conducting coolant upward between a lower support plate having coolant communicated thereto to an upper support grid having a steam/water outlet communicated thereto. The flow channel surrounding the array for conducting coolant about the fuel rods; the open ended channel having a polygon shaped cross section with the channel constituting a closed conduit with flat side sections connected at corners to form the enclosed conduit; means separate from the channel for connectingmore » the upper and lower tie-plates together and maintaining the fuel rods in spaced array independent of the flow channel, the improvement in the flow channel comprising tapered side walls, the tapered side walls extending from an average thick cross section adjacent the lower support plate to an average thin cross section adjacent the upper core grid whereby the channel is reduced in thickness adjacent the upper core grid to correspond with the reduced pressure adjacent the upper core grid.« less

Runoff processes in catchments with a small scale topography

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Feyen, H.; Leuenberger, J.; Papritz, A.; Gysi, M.; Flühler, H.; Schleppi, P.

1996-05-01

How do runoff processes influence nitrogen export from forested catchments? To support nitrogen balance studies for three experimental catchments (1500m 2) in the Northern Swiss prealps water flow processes in the two dominating soil types are monitored. Here we present the results for an experimental wetland catchment (1500m 2) and for a delineated sloped soil plot (10m 2), both with a muck humus topsoil. Runoff measurements on both the catchment and the soil plot showed fast reactions of surface and subsurface runoff to rainfall inputs, indicating the dominance of fast-flow paths such as cracks and fissures. Three quarters of the runoff from the soil plot can be attributed to water flow in the gleyic, clayey subsoil, 20% to flow in the humic A horizon and only 5% to surface runoff. The water balance for the wetland catchment was closed. The water balance of the soil plot did not close. Due to vertical upward flow from the saturated subsoil into the upper layers, the surface runoff plus subsurface runoff exceeded the input (precipitation) to the plot.

Numerical analysis of the hydrogeologic controls in a layered coastal aquifer system, Oahu, Hawaii, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

Oki, D.S.; Souza, W.R.; Bolke, E.L.; Bauer, G.R.

1998-01-01

The coastal aquifer system of southern Oahu, Hawaii, USA, consists of highly permeable volcanic aquifers overlain by weathered volcanic rocks and interbedded marine and terrestrial sediments of both high and low permeability. The weathered volcanic rocks and sediments are collectively known as caprock, because they impede the free discharge of groundwater from the underlying volcanic aquifers. A cross-sectional groundwater flow and transport model was used to evaluate the hydrogeologic controls on the regional flow system in southwestern Oahu. Controls considered were: (a) overall caprock hydraulic conductivity; and (b) stratigraphic variations of hydraulic conductivity in the caprock. Within the caprock, variations in hydraulic conductivity, caused by stratigraphy or discontinuities of the stratigraphic units, are a major control on the direction of groundwater flow and the distribution of water levels and salinity. Results of cross-sectional modeling confirm the general groundwater flow pattern that would be expected in a layered coastal system. Ground-water flow is: (a) predominantly upward in the low-permeability sedimentary units; and (b) predominantly horizontal in the high-permeability sedimentary units.

34 CFR 645.32 - How does the Secretary evaluate prior experience?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math and Science Centers PE criteria in paragraph (e)(1)(ii) of this...) Regular Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math and Science Centers. (i) (3 points) Number of participants...

34 CFR 645.32 - How does the Secretary evaluate prior experience?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math and Science Centers PE criteria in paragraph (e)(1)(ii) of this...) Regular Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math and Science Centers. (i) (3 points) Number of participants...

34 CFR 645.32 - How does the Secretary evaluate prior experience?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math and Science Centers PE criteria in paragraph (e)(1)(ii) of this...) Regular Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math and Science Centers. (i) (3 points) Number of participants...

34 CFR 645.32 - How does the Secretary evaluate prior experience?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math and Science Centers PE criteria in paragraph (e)(1)(ii) of this...) Regular Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math and Science Centers. (i) (3 points) Number of participants...

29 CFR 37.4 - What definitions apply to this part?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... (TDDs/TTYs), videotext displays, or other effective means of making aurally delivered materials..., brailled materials, large print materials, or other effective means of making visually delivered materials... employment-related training; (5) Participation in upward mobility programs; (6) Deciding rates of pay or...

29 CFR 37.4 - What definitions apply to this part?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... (TDDs/TTYs), videotext displays, or other effective means of making aurally delivered materials..., brailled materials, large print materials, or other effective means of making visually delivered materials... employment-related training; (5) Participation in upward mobility programs; (6) Deciding rates of pay or...

29 CFR 37.4 - What definitions apply to this part?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... (TDDs/TTYs), videotext displays, or other effective means of making aurally delivered materials..., brailled materials, large print materials, or other effective means of making visually delivered materials... employment-related training; (5) Participation in upward mobility programs; (6) Deciding rates of pay or...

29 CFR 37.4 - What definitions apply to this part?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... (TDDs/TTYs), videotext displays, or other effective means of making aurally delivered materials..., brailled materials, large print materials, or other effective means of making visually delivered materials... employment-related training; (5) Participation in upward mobility programs; (6) Deciding rates of pay or...

Smoldering Combustion Experiments in Microgravity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Walther, David C.; Fernandez-Pello, A. Carlos; Urban, David L.

1997-01-01

The Microgravity Smoldering Combustion (MSC) experiment is part of a study of the smolder characteristics of porous combustible materials in a microgravity environment. Smoldering is a non-flaming form of combustion that takes place in the interior of porous materials and takes place in a number of processes ranging from smoldering of porous insulation materials to high temperature synthesis of metals. The objective of the study is to provide a better understanding of the controlling mechanisms of smolder, both in microgravity and normal-gravity. As with many forms of combustion, gravity affects the availability of oxidizer and transport of heat, and therefore the rate of combustion. Microgravity smolder experiments, in both a quiescent oxidizing environment, and in a forced oxidizing flow have been conducted aboard the NASA Space Shuttle (STS-69 and STS-77 missions) to determine the effect of the ambient oxygen concentration and oxidizer forced flow velocity on smolder combustion in microgravity. The experimental apparatus is contained within the NASA Get Away Special Canister (GAS-CAN) Payload. These two sets of experiments investigate the propagation of smolder along the polyurethane foam sample under both diffusion driven and forced flow driven smoldering. The results of the microgravity experiments are compared with identical ones carried out in normal gravity, and are used to verify present theories of smolder combustion. The results of this study will provide new insights into the smoldering combustion process. Thermocouple histories show that the microgravity smolder reaction temperatures (Ts) and propagation velocities (Us) lie between those of identical normal-gravity upward and downward tests. These observations indicate the effect of buoyancy on the transport of oxidizer to the reaction front.

The delineation and interpretation of the earth's gravity field

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Marsh, Bruce D.

1989-01-01

In an attempt to understand the mechanical interaction of a growing lithosphere containing fracture zones with small and large scale mantle convection, which gives rise to geoid anomalies in oceanic regions, a series of fluid dynamical experiments is in progress to investigate: (1) the influence of lithosphere structure, fluid depth and viscosity field on the onset, scale, and evolution of sublithospheric convection; (2) the role of this convection in determining the rate of growth of lithosphere, especially in light of the flattening of the lithosphere bathymetry and heat flow at late times; and (3) combining the results of both numerical and laboratory experiments to decide the dominate factors in producing geoid anomalies in oceanic regions through the thermo-mechanical interaction of the lithosphere and subjacent mantle. The clear existence of small scale convection associated with a downward propagating solidification front (i.e., the lithosphere) and a larger scale flow associated with a discontinuous upward heat flux (i.e., a fracture zone) has been shown. The flows exist simultaneously and each may have a significant role in deciding the thermal evolution of the lithosphere and in understanding the relation of shallow mantle convection to deep mantle convection. This overall process is reflected in the geoid, gravity, and topographic anomalies in the north-central Pacific. These highly correlated fields of intermediate wavelength (approx. 200 to 2000 km) show isostatic compensation by a thin lithosphere for shorter (less than or equal to approx. 500 km), but not the longer, wavelengths. The ultimate, dynamic origin of this class of anomalies is being investigated.

34 CFR 645.20 - How many applications for an Upward Bound award may an eligible applicant submit?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... Upward Bound project, an Upward Bound Math and Science Center, or a Veterans Upward Bound project... additional application describes a project that serves a different participant population. (b) Each...

Simulated flow of groundwater and brine from a flooded salt mine in Livingston County, New York, and effects of remedial pumping on an overlying aquifer

USGS Publications Warehouse

Yager, Richard M.; Miller, Todd S.; Kappel, William M.; Misut, Paul E.; Langevin, Christian D.; Parkhurst, David L.; deVries, M. Peter

2012-01-01

Two ceiling collapses in the Retsof salt mine near Geneseo in upstate New York in spring 1994 resulted in the upward propagation of two columns of rubble through 600 feet of overlying shale and carbonate bedrock. This upward propagation formed a hydraulic connection between the lower confined aquifer (LCA) and the mine and allowed water from the aquifer and bedrock fracture zones that intersected the rubble columns to flow into the mine at a rate of 18,000 gallons per minute (gal/min) . All salt mining ceased in September 1995, and the mine was completely flooded by January 1996. The flow of water from the lower confined aquifer into the mine caused widespread drawdowns, and water levels in the aquifer declined by as much as 400 feet near the collapse area and by more than 50 feet at wells 7 miles to the north and south. Within 3 to 4 weeks of the collapses, water levels in about a dozen domestic and industrial wells had declined severely, and some wells went dry. Water levels in at least 58 wells in the lower and middle confined aquifers were affected by mine flooding. Groundwater in the upper unconfined aquifer and surface water in streams were unaffected by water-level drawdown, but channels of the Genesee River and Beards Creek were altered by land subsidence related to the mine collapse. Water levels recovered from 1996 through 2006, but the mine is now filled with about 15 billion gallons of saturated halite brine. The weight of the overlying rock and sediment is expected to cause the salt beds to deform and fill the mine cavity during the next several hundred years; this in turn could displace as much as 80 percent of the brine and cause it to move upward through the rubble chimneys, rendering the LCA unusable as a source of water supply. Saline water was detected in the LCA in 2002 but was found to be derived primarily from fractures in the limestone and shale units between the mine and the LCA, rather than from the mine. In September 2006, the mine company began a brine-mitigation project that entailed pumping five wells finished in limestone and shale units within the collapse areas to alter the flow gradient and thereby prevent further movement of brine and saline water into the LCA. The pumped brine was routed to an onsite desalination plant. At the same time, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) began a study in cooperation with the New York State Office of the Attorney General to construct numerical models to analyze the groundwater chemistry and delineate the directions of flow. Specific objectives of the study were to: * Assess the sources of salinity within the collapse area and identify the factors that control the movement and mixing of freshwater, saline waters from fracture zones, and brine; * Evaluate the likelihood that the pumping will induce anhydrite dissolution and lead to continued land subsidence; * Construct variable-density groundwater flow models to predict the effect of remedial pumping on salinity within the LCA; * Evaluate the effectiveness of remedial pumping in preventing the movement of saline water into the LCA; and * Predict the extent of brine migration 8 years after a hypothetical shutdown of all pumping in 2008. This report (1) summarizes the hydrogeologic setting and effects of mine flooding, (2) describes the geochemical and variable-density model simulations and their principal results, (3) discusses the implications of (a) continued pumping and desalination to protect the LCA and (b) a full shutdown of pumping after 2008, and (4) suggests further research that could lead to refinement of model predictions. Additional information may be found in Yager and others (2001 and 2009). These reports can be accessed at http://pubs.usgs.gov/pp/pp1611/ and http://pubs.usgs.gov/pp/pp1767/, respectively. A summary of simulation results can be accessed at http://ny.water.usgs.gov/projects/Coram/seawat/seawat.html.

Occurrence of inter-eruption debris flow and hyperconcentrated flood-flow deposits on Vesuvio volcano, Italy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lirer, L.; Vinci, A.; Alberico, I.; Gifuni, T.; Bellucci, F.; Petrosino, P.; Tinterri, R.

2001-02-01

In the period between AD 79 and AD 472 eruptions, inter-eruption debris flow and hyperconcentrated-flood-flow deposits were deposited in the Somma-Vesuvio areas. These deposits, forming cliffs at the Torre Bassano and Torre Annunziata, were generated by highly erosive floods, whose erosive capacity was enhanced by acceleration due to the steepness of the volcano slopes. In this type of deposits were distinguished five depositional facies (from A to E) outcropping well at Torre Bassano where they are stacked in three fining-upward (FU) sequences, probably representing three forestepping — backstepping episodes in the emplacement area of gravity flows. These five facies from coarse to fine are interpreted to represent the downcurrent evolution of particular composite sediment gravity flows characterized by horizontal segregation of the main grain-size population. The blocking of these highly concentrated composite parent flows would first produce the deposition of the coarse front part to form facies A and then the overriding of this deposit by the bipartite flow, which constitutes the body of the flow. This flow is composed of a highly concentrated basal inertia carpet responsible for the deposition of facies B, C and D and an upper hyperconcentrated flood flow that forms facies E, through traction plus fallout processes, respectively. Finally, the occurrence of "lahar" type events at Somma-Vesuvio region even at present times is discussed.

Spaced planar laminations formed by repetitive basal erosion and resurgence to high-sedimentation-rate regime: new insight from a bedform-like structures and laterally continuous exposures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ishihara, Yoshiro; Yuri, Onishi; Tsuda, Keisuke; Yokokawa, Miwa

2017-04-01

Spaced planar laminations (SPL), or so-called traction carpet deposits, are frequently observed in deposits of sediment gravity flows. Several sedimentation models for a succession of inversely graded units have been suggested from field observations and flume experiments. The formation of the inversely graded unit could be summarized as follows: (1) abrupt sedimentation on freezing of an inversely graded layer, or (2) interruptions in flow causing a freezing of an inversely graded layer at the most basal part of flow. In either case, traction carpets as a bed load overlying the erosive boundary at the base of flow are required. Although some descriptions have reported SPLs forming antidune bedform-like structures and the association of SPLs with structureless massive deposits have not been clearly explained. In this study, we suggest a novel model of SPL formation by repetition of basal erosion and resurgence to high-sedimentation rates, based on detail examinations of SPLs both showing bedform-like structures and lateral extents of hundreds of meters. SPLs were investigated in the Mio-Pliocene Kiyosumi Formation in central Japan and the Miocene Aoshima Formation in southwest Japan. In a turbidite in the Kiyosumi Formation, SPLs show three mound-like structures, suggesting antidune bedforms with wavelengths of about 6 to 7 m. On the upcurrent flanks, SPLs show lenticular cross laminations or pinching out of units; those units do not show clear inverse grading. Rip-up mud clasts and relatively high-angle imbrications are also observed. On the other hand, SPLs on the downcurrent flanks show relatively clear inverse grading and transition downcurrent into a massive structureless bed. In the Aoshima Formation, SPLs with ca. 1 cm unit thickness continue approximately 50 m along a palaeocurrent direction without changes in thickness. These SPLs gradually transition upward into a massive structureless unit. From the observations described above, in addition to descriptions from previous studies, it is suggested that SPLs comprising mound-like bedforms exhibit erosive conditions in the upcurrent flanks and depositional conditions in the downcurrent flanks, whereas SPLs on flat sea-floor extensively maintain their structure. Also, massive structureless beds are observed when erosion did not occur. These facts indicate that SPLs are strongly associated with an erosional process at the base of sediment gravity flows under a supercritical flow condition. The formation of SPLs does not necessary require a traction carpet and they may reflect basal erosion with a lag deposit of fine-grained particles, followed by resurgence to conditions of high sedimentation rates and massive structureless bed deposition. Repetitions of inversely graded units could occur when basal shear stresses are changed by fluctuations of flow depth, such as internal waves in a sediment gravity flow. This model can explain the concurrence of massive structureless beds with SPLs and examples of bedform-like structures without a unit thickness control.

Sources, properties, and energization of auroral particle precipitation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wing, S.; Johnson, J.; Khazanov, G. V.

2017-12-01

The sources of and the physical processes associated with the auroral ion and electron precipitation are studied with DMSP satellites. The electron aurora has been previously classified into three categories: diffuse, monoenergetic, and broadband aurorae. The diffuse auroral electrons can be observed mainly in 22:00 - 09:00 MLT, which coincides much with the spatial distribution of the whistler-mode chorus waves that have been shown to be the predominant mechanism for pitch-angle scattering magnetospheric electrons into the loss cone, but there appears to be a separate population near noon, which may be associated with solar wind particles. The broadband auroral electrons can be found mostly at 22:00 - 02:00 MLT and pre-noon where Alfvén waves, which cause broadband electron acceleration, are observed in the magnetosphere. On the other hand, the monoenergetic auroral electrons can be observed at dusk-midnight sector, pre- and post-noon. The monoenergetic electrons have been previously thought as magnetospheric electrons that have gone through a quasi-static parallel electric field in the upward field-aligned current regions. However, there may be a connection between monoenergetic and broadband electrons in that the low frequency Alfvén wave-electron interaction can result in monoenergetic electron signature. This is consistent with the observations where broadband and monoenergetic electrons are often spatially co-located. Precipitating electrons can ionize the neutrals in the ionosphere, which can travel upward, which can precipitate in the opposite hemisphere or reflected back to the same hemisphere by upward field-aligned potential drop. Either way, the upward flowing electrons can greatly modify the initial precipitating electron population. Substorm processes increase the power of the diffuse, monoenergetic, and broadband electron aurora by 310%, 71%, and 170%, respectively. Substorms energize the ion aurora mainly in the 21:00-05:00 MLT sector. The duration of the substorm cycle for monoenergetic and broadband auroral is 5 hr, but it is larger than 5 hr for diffuse auroral electrons.

The impact of non-isothermal soil moisture transport on evaporation fluxes in a maize cropland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shao, Wei; Coenders-Gerrits, Miriam; Judge, Jasmeet; Zeng, Yijian; Su, Ye

2018-06-01

The process of evaporation interacts with the soil, which has various comprehensive mechanisms. Multiphase flow models solve air, vapour, water, and heat transport equations to simulate non-isothermal soil moisture transport of both liquid water and vapor flow, but are only applied in non-vegetated soils. For (sparsely) vegetated soils often energy balance models are used, however these lack the detailed information on non-isothermal soil moisture transport. In this study we coupled a multiphase flow model with a two-layer energy balance model to study the impact of non-isothermal soil moisture transport on evaporation fluxes (i.e., interception, transpiration, and soil evaporation) for vegetated soils. The proposed model was implemented at an experimental agricultural site in Florida, US, covering an entire maize-growing season (67 days). As the crops grew, transpiration and interception became gradually dominated, while the fraction of soil evaporation dropped from 100% to less than 20%. The mechanisms of soil evaporation vary depending on the soil moisture content. After precipitation the soil moisture content increased, exfiltration of the liquid water flow could transport sufficient water to sustain evaporation from soil, and the soil vapor transport was not significant. However, after a sufficient dry-down period, the soil moisture content significantly reduced, and the soil vapour flow significantly contributed to the upward moisture transport in topmost soil. A sensitivity analysis found that the simulations of moisture content and temperature at the soil surface varied substantially when including the advective (i.e., advection and mechanical dispersion) vapour transport in simulation, including the mechanism of advective vapour transport decreased soil evaporation rate under wet condition, while vice versa under dry condition. The results showed that the formulation of advective soil vapor transport in a soil-vegetation-atmosphere transfer continuum can affect the simulated evaporation fluxes, especially under dry condition.

Consistency between 2D-3D Sediment Transport models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Villaret, Catherine; Jodeau, Magali

2017-04-01

Sediment transport models have been developed and applied by the engineering community to estimate transport rates and morphodynamic bed evolutions in river flows, coastal and estuarine conditions. Environmental modelling systems like the open-source Telemac modelling system include a hierarchy of models from 1D (Mascaret), 2D (Telemac-2D/Sisyphe) and 3D (Telemac-3D/Sedi-3D) and include a wide range of processes to represent sediment flow interactions under more and more complex situations (cohesive, non-cohesive and mixed sediment). Despite some tremendous progresses in the numerical techniques and computing resources, the quality/accuracy of model results mainly depend on the numerous choices and skills of the modeler. In complex situations involving stratification effects, complex geometry, recirculating flows… 2D model assumptions are no longer valid. A full 3D turbulent flow model is then required in order to capture the vertical mixing processes and to represent accurately the coupled flow/sediment distribution. However a number of theoretical and numerical difficulties arise when dealing with sediment transport modelling in 3D which will be high-lighted : (1) Dependency of model results to the vertical grid refinement and choice of boundary conditions and numerical scheme (2) The choice of turbulence model determines also the sediment vertical distribution which is governed by a balance between the downward settling term and upward turbulent diffusion. (3) The use of different numerical schemes for both hydrodynamics (mean and turbulent flow) and sediment transport modelling can lead to some inconsistency including a mismatch in the definition of numerical cells and definition of boundary conditions. We discuss here those present issues and present some detailed comparison between 2D and 3D simulations on a set of validation test cases which are available in the Telemac 7.2 release using both cohesive and non-cohesive sediments.

3D architecture of cyclic-step and antidune deposits in glacigenic subaqueous fan and delta settings: Integrating outcrop and ground-penetrating radar data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lang, Jörg; Sievers, Julian; Loewer, Markus; Igel, Jan; Winsemann, Jutta

2017-12-01

Bedforms related to supercritical flows are increasingly recognised as important constituents of many depositional environments, but outcrop studies are commonly hampered by long bedform wavelengths and complex three-dimensional geometries. We combined outcrop-based facies analysis with ground-penetrating radar (GPR) surveys to analyse the 3D facies architecture of subaqueous ice-contact fan and glacifluvial delta deposits. The studied sedimentary systems were deposited at the margins of the Middle Pleistocene Scandinavian ice sheets in Northern Germany. Glacifluvial Gilbert-type deltas are characterised by steeply dipping foreset beds, comprising cyclic-step deposits, which alternate with antidune deposits. Deposits of cyclic steps consist of lenticular scours infilled by backset cross-stratified pebbly sand and gravel. The GPR sections show that the scour fills form trains along the delta foresets, which can locally be traced for up to 15 m. Perpendicular and oblique to palaeoflow direction, these deposits appear as troughs with concentric or low-angle cross-stratified infills. Downflow transitions from scour fills into sheet-like low-angle cross-stratified or sinusoidally stratified pebbly sand, deposited by antidunes, are common. Cyclic steps and antidunes were deposited by sustained and surge-type supercritical density flows, which were related to hyperpycnal flows, triggered by major meltwater discharge or slope-failure events. Subaqueous ice-contact fan deposits include deposits of progradational scour fills, isolated hydraulic jumps, antidunes and (humpback) dunes. The gravel-rich fan succession consists of vertical stacks of laterally amalgamated pseudo-sheets, indicating deposition by pulses of waning supercritical flows under high aggradation rates. The GPR sections reveal the large-scale architecture of the sand-rich fan succession, which is characterised by lobe elements with basal erosional surfaces associated with scours filled with backsets related to hydraulic jumps, passing upwards and downflow into deposits of antidunes and (humpback) dunes. The recurrent facies architecture of the lobe elements and their prograding and retrograding stacking pattern are interpreted as related to autogenic flow morphodynamics.

A calving law for ice sheet models; Investigating the role of surface melt on dynamics of Greenland outlet glaciers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nick, F. M.; van der Veen, C. J.; Vieli, A.

2008-12-01

alving of icebergs accounts for perhaps as much as half the ice transferred from the Greenland Ice Sheet into the surrounding ocean, and virtually all of the ice loss from the Antarctic Ice Sheet. We have formulated a calving model that can be readily incorporated into time-evolving numerical ice-flow models. Our model is based on downward penetration of water-filled surface crevasses and upward propagation of basal crevasses. A calving event occurs when the depth of the surface crevasse (which increases as melting progresses through the summer) reaches the height of the basal crevasse. Our numerical ice sheet model is able to reproduce observed seasonal changes of Greenland outlet glaciers, such as fluctuations in flow speed and terminus positions. We have applied the model to Helheim Glacier on the east coast, and Petermann Glacier in the northwest. Our model suggests that rapid retreat of the claving front is highly affected by the amplified calving rate due to increasing water level in surface crevasses during warmer summers. Our results show little response to seasonally enhanced basal lubrication from surface melt. This modeling study provides insights into the role of surface and basal hydrology to ice sheet dynamics and on how to incorporate calving in ice sheet models and therefore advances our ability to predict future ice sheet change.

Methane Leakage From Hydrocarbon Wellbores into Overlying Groundwater: Numerical Investigation of the Multiphase Flow Processes Governing Migration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rice, Amy K.; McCray, John E.; Singha, Kamini

2018-04-01

Methane leakage due to compromised hydrocarbon well integrity can lead to impaired groundwater quality. Here we use a three-dimensional, multiphase (vapor and aqueous), multicomponent (methane, water, salt), numerical model (TOUGH2 EOS7C) to investigate hydrogeological conditions that could result in groundwater contamination from natural gas wellbore leakage that migrates upward toward a freshwater aquifer. The conceptual model used for the simulations assumes methane leakage at 20-30 m below groundwater. We perform 180 simulations for a sensitivity analysis, examining (1) multiphase flow parameters related to storage, capillarity, and relative permeability, including porosity (ϕ), initial fluid-phase saturation (SL), and van Genuchten n and α, (2) geostatistical variations in intrinsic permeability (ki), and (3) methane source-zone pressure. Simulated mean ki values are 10-18 and 10-13 m2 with variances of 1 and 5 m4. Simulated source-zone pressures range from just over ambient hydrostatic pressure at the depth of leakage (100 kPa) to the maximum pressure that steel casings are commonly rated to withstand (20,340 kPa). ki, initial SL, ϕ, and van Genuchten's n and α were the most important parameters in determining the volume of methane reaching groundwater during a given time period. Multiphase parameterization of formations underlying freshwater aquifers and overlying hydrocarbon production zones is fundamental to assessing aquifer vulnerability to methane leakage.

Controlled boiling on Enceladus. 2. Model of the liquid-filled cracks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ingersoll, Andrew P.; Nakajima, Miki

2016-07-01

Controlled boiling will occur on Enceladus whenever a long, narrow conduit connects liquid water to the vacuum of space. In a companion paper we focus on the upward flow of the vapor and show how it controls the evaporation rate through backpressure, which arises from friction on the walls. In this paper we focus on the liquid and show how it flows through the conduit up to its level of neutral buoyancy. For an ice shell 20 km thick, the liquid water interface could be 2 km below the surface. We find that the evaporating surface can be narrow. There is no need for a large vapor chamber that acts as a plume source. Freezing on the icy walls and the evaporating surface is avoided if the crack width averaged over the length of the tiger stripes is greater than 1 m and the salinity of the liquid is greater than 20 g kg-1. Controlled boiling plays a crucial role in our model, which makes it different from earlier published models. The liquids on Enceladus are boiling because there is no overburden pressure-the saturation vapor pressure is equal to the total pressure. Salinity plays a crucial role in preventing freezing, and we argue that the subsurface oceans of icy satellites can have water vapor plumes only if their salinities are greater than about 20 g kg-1.

Does attenuated skin blood flow lower sweat rate and the critical environmental limit for heat balance during severe heat exposure?

PubMed

Cramer, Matthew N; Gagnon, Daniel; Crandall, Craig G; Jay, Ollie

2017-02-01

What is the central question of this study? Does attenuated skin blood flow diminish sweating and reduce the critical environmental limit for heat balance, which indicates maximal heat loss potential, during severe heat stress? What is the main finding and its importance? Isosmotic hypovolaemia attenuated skin blood flow by ∼20% but did not result in different sweating rates, mean skin temperatures or critical environmental limits for heat balance compared with control and volume-infusion treatments, suggesting that the lower levels of skin blood flow commonly observed in aged and diseased populations may not diminish maximal whole-body heat dissipation. Attenuated skin blood flow (SkBF) is often assumed to impair core temperature (T c ) regulation. Profound pharmacologically induced reductions in SkBF (∼85%) lead to impaired sweating, but whether the smaller attenuations in SkBF (∼20%) more often associated with ageing and certain diseases lead to decrements in sweating and maximal heat loss potential is unknown. Seven healthy men (28 ± 4 years old) completed a 30 min equilibration period at 41°C and a vapour pressure (P a ) of 2.57 kPa followed by incremental steps in P a of 0.17 kPa every 6 min to 5.95 kPa. Differences in heat loss potential were assessed by identifying the critical vapour pressure (P crit ) at which an upward inflection in T c occurred. The following three separate treatments elicited changes in plasma volume to achieve three distinct levels of SkBF: control (CON); diuretic-induced isosmotic dehydration to lower SkBF (DEH); and continuous saline infusion to maintain SkBF (SAL). The T c , mean skin temperature (T sk ), heart rate, mean laser-Doppler flux (forearm and thigh; LDF mean ), mean local sweat rate (forearm and thigh; LSR mean ) and metabolic rate were measured. In DEH, a 14.2 ± 5.7% lower plasma volume resulted in a ∼20% lower LDF mean in perfusion units (PU) (DEH, 139 ± 23 PU; CON, 176 ± 22 PU; and SAL, 186 ± 22 PU; P = 0.034). However, LSR mean and whole-body sweat losses were unaffected by treatment throughout (P > 0.482). The P crit for T c was similar between treatments (CON, 5.05 ± 0.30 kPa; DEH, 4.93 ± 0.16 kPa; and SAL, 5.12 ± 0.10 kPa; P = 0.166). Furthermore, no differences were observed in the skin-air temperature gradient, metabolic rate or changes in T c (P > 0.197). In conclusion, a ∼20% reduction in SkBF alters neither sweat rate nor the upper limit for heat loss from the skin during non-encapsulated passive heat stress. © 2016 The Authors. Experimental Physiology © 2016 The Physiological Society.

A satellite technique for quantitatively mapping rainfall rates over the oceans

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wilheit, T. T.; Roa, M. S. V.; Chang, T. C.; Rodgers, E. B.; Theon, J. S.

1975-01-01

A theoretical model for calculating microwave radiative transfer in raining atmospheres is developed. These calculations are compared with microwave brightness temperatures at a wavelength of 1.55 cm measured on the Nimbus-5 satellite and rain rates derived from WSR-57 meteorological radar measurements. A specially designed ground based verification experiment was also performed wherein upward viewing microwave brightness temperature measurements at wavelengths of 1.55 cm and 0.81 cm were compared with directly measured rain rates.

Linear and nonlinear instability in vertical counter-current laminar gas-liquid flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schmidt, Patrick; Ó Náraigh, Lennon; Lucquiaud, Mathieu; Valluri, Prashant

2016-04-01

We consider the genesis and dynamics of interfacial instability in vertical gas-liquid flows, using as a model the two-dimensional channel flow of a thin falling film sheared by counter-current gas. The methodology is linear stability theory (Orr-Sommerfeld analysis) together with direct numerical simulation of the two-phase flow in the case of nonlinear disturbances. We investigate the influence of two main flow parameters on the interfacial dynamics, namely the film thickness and pressure drop applied to drive the gas stream. To make contact with existing studies in the literature, the effect of various density contrasts is also examined. Energy budget analyses based on the Orr-Sommerfeld theory reveal various coexisting unstable modes (interfacial, shear, internal) in the case of high density contrasts, which results in mode coalescence and mode competition, but only one dynamically relevant unstable interfacial mode for low density contrast. A study of absolute and convective instability for low density contrast shows that the system is absolutely unstable for all but two narrow regions of the investigated parameter space. Direct numerical simulations of the same system (low density contrast) show that linear theory holds up remarkably well upon the onset of large-amplitude waves as well as the existence of weakly nonlinear waves. For high density contrasts, corresponding more closely to an air-water-type system, linear stability theory is also successful at determining the most-dominant features in the interfacial wave dynamics at early-to-intermediate times. Nevertheless, the short waves selected by the linear theory undergo secondary instability and the wave train is no longer regular but rather exhibits chaotic motion. The same linear stability theory predicts when the direction of travel of the waves changes — from downwards to upwards. We outline the practical implications of this change in terms of loading and flooding. The change in direction of the wave propagation is represented graphically in terms of a flow map based on the liquid and gas flow rates and the prediction carries over to the nonlinear regime with only a small deviation.

Linear and nonlinear instability in vertical counter-current laminar gas-liquid flows

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

Schmidt, Patrick; Lucquiaud, Mathieu; Valluri, Prashant, E-mail: prashant.valluri@ed.ac.uk

We consider the genesis and dynamics of interfacial instability in vertical gas-liquid flows, using as a model the two-dimensional channel flow of a thin falling film sheared by counter-current gas. The methodology is linear stability theory (Orr-Sommerfeld analysis) together with direct numerical simulation of the two-phase flow in the case of nonlinear disturbances. We investigate the influence of two main flow parameters on the interfacial dynamics, namely the film thickness and pressure drop applied to drive the gas stream. To make contact with existing studies in the literature, the effect of various density contrasts is also examined. Energy budget analysesmore » based on the Orr-Sommerfeld theory reveal various coexisting unstable modes (interfacial, shear, internal) in the case of high density contrasts, which results in mode coalescence and mode competition, but only one dynamically relevant unstable interfacial mode for low density contrast. A study of absolute and convective instability for low density contrast shows that the system is absolutely unstable for all but two narrow regions of the investigated parameter space. Direct numerical simulations of the same system (low density contrast) show that linear theory holds up remarkably well upon the onset of large-amplitude waves as well as the existence of weakly nonlinear waves. For high density contrasts, corresponding more closely to an air-water-type system, linear stability theory is also successful at determining the most-dominant features in the interfacial wave dynamics at early-to-intermediate times. Nevertheless, the short waves selected by the linear theory undergo secondary instability and the wave train is no longer regular but rather exhibits chaotic motion. The same linear stability theory predicts when the direction of travel of the waves changes — from downwards to upwards. We outline the practical implications of this change in terms of loading and flooding. The change in direction of the wave propagation is represented graphically in terms of a flow map based on the liquid and gas flow rates and the prediction carries over to the nonlinear regime with only a small deviation.« less

Column formation and hysteresis in a two-fluid tornado

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sharifullin, B. R.; Naumov, I. V.; Herrada, M. A.; Shtern, V. N.

2018-03-01

This experimental and numerical study addresses a flow of water and sunflower oil. This flow is driven by the rotating lid in a sealed vertical cylinder. The experiments were performed in a glass container with a radius of 45 mm and a height of 45 mm with the water volume fraction of 20%. Different densities and immiscibility of liquids provide the stable and sharp interface. At the rest, the interface is flat and horizontal. As the rotation speeds up, a new water-flow cell emerges near the bottom center. This cell expands and occupies almost the entire water domain while the initial water circulation shrinks into a thin layer adjacent to the interface. The water, rising near the container axis, strongly deforms the interface (upward near the axis and downward near the sidewall). A new oil-flow cell emerges above the interface near the axis. This cell disappears as the interface approaches the lid. The water separates from the sidewall, reaches the lid, and forms a column. As the rotation is decreased, the scenario reverses, but the flow states differ from those for the increasing rotation, i.e., a hysteresis is observed. The numerical simulations agree with the experiment and help explain the flow metamorphoses.

Tears of Wine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rathore, Prerana; Sharma, Vivek

`Tears of wine' refer to the rows of wine-drops that spontaneously emerge within a glass of strong wine. Evaporation-driven Marangoni flows near the meniscus of water-alcohol mixtures drive liquid upward forming a thin liquid film, and a rim or ridge forms near the moving contact line. Eventually the rim undergoes an instability forming drops, that roll back into bulk reservoir forming so called tears or legs of wine. Most studies in literature argue the evaporation of more volatile, lower surface tension component (alcohol) results in a concentration-dependent surface tension gradient that drives the climbing flow within the thin film. Though it is well-known that evaporative cooling can create temperature gradients that could provide additional contribution to the climbing flows, the role of thermocapillary flows is less well-understood. Furthermore, the patterns, flows and instabilities that occur near the rim, and determine the size and periodicity of tears, are not well-studied. Using experiments and theory, we visualize and analyze the formation and growth of tears of wine. The sliding drops, released from the rim towards the bulk reservoir, show oscillations and a cascade of fascinating flows that are analyzed for the first time.

Wind tunnel study of a vertical axis wind turbine in a turbulent boundary layer flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rolin, Vincent; Porté-Agel, Fernando

2015-04-01

Vertical axis wind turbines (VAWTs) are in a relatively infant state of development when compared to their cousins the horizontal axis wind turbines. Very few studies have been carried out to characterize the wake flow behind VAWTs, and virtually none to observe the influence of the atmospheric boundary layer. Here we present results from an experiment carried out at the EPFL-WIRE boundary-layer wind tunnel and designed to study the interaction between a turbulent boundary layer flow and a VAWT. Specifically we use stereoscopic particle image velocimetry to observe and quantify the influence of the boundary layer flow on the wake generated by a VAWT, as well as the effect the VAWT has on the boundary layer flow profile downstream. We find that the wake behind the VAWT is strongly asymmetric, due to the varying aerodynamic forces on the blades as they change their position around the rotor. We also find that the wake adds strong turbulence levels to the flow, particularly on the periphery of the wake where vortices and strong velocity gradients are present. The boundary layer is also shown to cause greater momentum to be entrained downwards rather than upwards into the wake.

Flow-driven Assembly of Microcapsule Towers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shum, Henry; Balazs, Anna

2016-11-01

Large populations of the slime mold, Dictyostelium discoideum, are able to aggregate over a surface and collectively form a long, vertical stalk. Inspired by this biological behavior, we develop a synthetic mechanism for assembling tower-like structures using microcapsules as the building blocks. We accomplish this in simulations by generating a fluid flow field that draws microcapsules together along a surface and lifts them up at a central point. We considered a fluid flow generated by the local release of a chemical species from a patch on the surface. The concentration gradient of the diffusing chemical species causes radial diffusioosmotic flow along the solid surface toward the patch. Adhesive interactions keep the microcapsules attached to the surface as they are drawn together above the patch. To build a tower-like structure, some of the microcapsules must detach from the surface but remain attached to the rest of the cluster. The upward directed fluid flow above the patch then draws out the cluster into a tower shape. The final morphology of the aggregate structure depends on the flow field, the adhesive capsule-capsule and capsule-surface interaction strengths, and the sedimentation force on the capsules. Tuning these factors changes the structures that are produced.

The Impact of NCAA Reclassification on Academic Success Rates

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chandler, Jason I.

2014-01-01

Higher education institutions choose to invest in upward reclassification for their athletics program with anticipation of generating increased revenue and exposure for their school; however, this could have a detrimental effect on their student-athletes' academic progress. This study examined the relationship between four classifications of…

Importance of body rotation during the flight of a butterfly.

PubMed

Fei, Yueh-Han John; Yang, Jing-Tang

2016-03-01

In nature the body motion of a butterfly is clearly observed to involve periodic rotation and varied flight modes. The maneuvers of a butterfly in flight are unique. Based on the flight motion of butterflies (Kallima inachus) recorded in free flight, a numerical model of a butterfly is created to study how its flight relates to body pose; the body motion in a simulation is prescribed and tested with varied initial body angle and rotational amplitude. A butterfly rotates its body to control the direction of the vortex rings generated during flapping flight; the flight modes are found to be closely related to the body motion of a butterfly. When the initial body angle increases, the forward displacement decreases, but the upward displacement increases within a stroke. With increased rotational amplitudes, the jet flows generated by a butterfly eject more downward and further enhance the generation of upward force, according to which a butterfly executes a vertical jump at the end of the downstroke. During this jumping stage, the air relative to the butterfly is moving downward; the butterfly pitches up its body to be parallel to the flow and to decrease the projected area so as to avoid further downward force generated. Our results indicate the importance of the body motion of a butterfly in flight. The inspiration of flight controlled with body motion from the flight of a butterfly might yield an alternative way to control future flight vehicles.

Highly ordered molecular rotor matrix on a nanopatterned template: titanyl phthalocyanine molecules on FeO/Pt(111).

PubMed

Lu, Shuangzan; Huang, Min; Qin, Zhihui; Yu, Yinghui; Guo, Qinmin; Cao, Gengyu

2018-08-03

Molecular rotors, motors and gears play important roles in artificial molecular machines, in which rotor and motor matrices are highly desirable for large-scale bottom-up fabrication of molecular machines. Here we demonstrate the fabrication of a highly ordered molecular rotor matrix by depositing nonplanar dipolar titanyl phthalocyanine (TiOPc, C 32 H 16 N 8 OTi) molecules on a Moiré patterned dipolar FeO/Pt(111) substrate. TiOPc molecules with O atoms pointing outwards from the substrate (upward) or towards the substrate (downward) are alternatively adsorbed on the fcc sites by strong lateral confinement. The adsorbed molecules, i.e. two kinds of molecular rotors, show different scanning tunneling microscopy images, thermal stabilities and rotational characteristics. Density functional theory calculations clarify that TiOPc molecules anchoring upwards with high adsorption energies correspond to low-rotational-rate rotors, while those anchoring downwards with low adsorption energies correspond to high-rotational-rate rotors. A robust rotor matrix fully occupied by low-rate rotors is fabricated by depositing molecules on the substrate at elevated temperature. Such a paradigm opens up a promising route to fabricate functional molecular rotor matrices, driven motor matrices and even gear groups on solid substrates.

Late Proterozoic glacially controlled shelf sequences in western Mali (west Africa)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deynoux, M.; Prousti, J. N.; Simon, B.

The Late Proterozoic deposits of the Bakoye Group (500 m) in western Mali constitute a remarkable example of a glacially influenced sedimentary record on an epicratonic platform. They are composed of alternating marine and continental formations which represent accumulation in a basin located in the vicinity of upland areas covered by ice sheets. One of these formations (the Ba4 Formation), which is the focus of this study, is composed of three major units. The basal Unit 1 is made up of carbonaceous coarse to fine grained sandstones which are organized in fining upward sequences and which comprise lenticular diamictite intercalations. This Unit is considered to represent the fore slope gravity flows of a subaqueous ice-cootact fan fed by meltwater streams (≪glacioturbidites≫). Unit 2 is made up of coarse to fine grained sandstones in a highly variable association of facies. This Unit is characterized by the abundance of wave ripples associated with convolute beddings. planar or wavy beddings and tabular or hummocky crossbeddings in a general shallowing upward trend. It also comprises evidence of gravity processes including debris flows and large slumped sandstone bodies. Unit 2 represents the progressive filling of the Ba4 basin and reflects the combined effect of glacially induced eustatism and isostacy during a phase of glacial retreat. The basal part of Unit 3 is made up of a succession (a few meters thick) of conglomerates, diamictites, sandstones, siltstones or carbonates lying on an erosional unconformity marked by periglacial frost wedges. The upper part of Unit 3 is thicker (100-150 m) and onlaps on these basal facies with a succession of sandstone bars exhibiting swaley and hummocky crossbeddings, large cut and fill structures, and planar laminations. Unit 3 is strongly transgressive, the lower shoreface and backshore deposits include algal mats and are onlapped by sand ridges emplaced in a high energy upper to middle shoreface environment. Overall, in tems of sequential stratigraphy, the deposits of the galcial Bakoya Groupe are organized in shallowing upward sequences limited by maximum flooding surfaces of regional extent. One of these sequences (the Ba4 Formation) is subdivided into parasequences generated in relation with local ice sheet fluctuation including glacioisostacy.

High-speed and supersonic upward plasma drifts: multi-instrumental study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Astafyeva, E.; Zakharenkova, I.; Hairston, M. R.; Huba, J.; Coley, W. R.

2017-12-01

Since the pioneering observations by Aggson et al. (1992, JGR, doi: 10.1002/92JA00644), there have been several reports of the occurrence of high-speed (Vz>800 m/s) and supersonic plasma flows in the post-sunset (e.g., Hysell et al., 1994, JGR, doi: 10.1029/94JA00476; Hanson et al., 1997, JGR, doi: 10.1029/96JA03376) and the pre-dawn sector (Astafyeva and Zakharenkova, 2015, GRL, doi:10.1002/2015GL066369). However, despite this observational evidence, these events remain rare and are not well understood. The main issue is to determine the background conditions leading to the occurrence of these high-speed plasma drifts. In this work, we perform a multi-instrumental study of high-speed and supersonic upward plasma drift events/structures. For this purpose, we analyze data from several ground-based and space-borne instruments, including data from the DMSP, Swarm and C/NOFS (IVM instrument) satellites. In addition to the space-borne instruments, we use data from ground-based GPS-receivers and ionosondes to further investigate the background ionosphere conditions, as well as the effects produced by the plasma bubbles and ionospheric irregularities. Besides the observations, we add the SAMI3/ESF modeling results on plasma bubble simulations and high-speed drifts inside plasma bubbles. TIE-GCM runs (from the CCMC, https://ccmc.gsfc.nasa.gov) are used to define the background atmospheric/ionospheric and electrodynamical conditions leading to the occurrence of the high-speed and supersonic plasma drift events. Our search of events with upward plasma drift exceeding 800 m/s in the data of DMSP for the years 2002-2016 shows that such high-speed events are extremely rare. During this period of time, only 6 events were found, two of them occurred during the recovery phase of a geomagnetic storm, while the other four were detected during geomagnetically quiet conditions. Concerning the generation of such events, our preliminary results show that enhanced electric fields are required and that horizontal thermospheric winds play an important role in the occurrence of high-speed plasma flows.

Comparison of upconing under vertical and horizontal wells in freshwater lenses: sand-box experiments and numerical modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stoeckl, Leonard; Stefan, Loeffler; Houben, Georg

2013-04-01

Freshwater lenses on islands and in inland areas are often the primary freshwater resource there. The fragile equilibrium between saline and fresh groundwater can be disrupted by excessive pumping, leading to an upward migration of the saline water underneath the well. Sand-box experiments were conducted to compare the upconing at vertical and horizontal wells pumping from a freshwater lens. Results were then compared to numerical simulations. To simulate the cross-section of an "infinite strip island", an acrylic box with a spacing of 5 cm was filled with coarse sand. After saturating the model with degassed saltwater from bottom to top, freshwater recharge was applied from above. By coloring the infiltrating freshwater with different tracer colors using uranine and indigotine we were able to visualize flow paths during pumping. A horizontal and a vertical well were placed at the left and right side of the symmetric island. Both had equal diameter, screen length, depth of placement, and distance to shore. Three increasing pumping rates were applied to each well successively and the electrical conductivity of the abstracted water was continuously measured using a through-flow cell. Results show that no saltwater entered the wells when pumping at the lowest rate. Still, slight saltwater upconing and a shift of the freshwater divide in the island were observed. At the second rate a clear saltwater breakthrough into the vertical well occurred, while the electrical conductivity remained nearly unchanged in the horizontal well. Applying the third (highest) abstraction rate to each of the wells saltwater entered both wells, exceeding drinking water standards in the vertical well. The described behavior indicates the advantage of horizontal over vertical wells on islands and in coastal zones prone to saltwater up-coning. Numerical simulations show similar patterns, even though deviations exist between the second and the third pumping rate, which are under and overestimated by the numerical simulation, respectively. Further investigations are necessary to investigate the dynamics of pumping from freshwater lenses under the influence of climate change (i.e. sea level rise).

Actively heated high-resolution fiber-optic-distributed temperature sensing to quantify streambed flow dynamics in zones of strong groundwater upwelling

USGS Publications Warehouse

Briggs, Martin A.; Buckley, Sean F.; Bagtzoglou, Amvrossios C.; Werkema, Dale D.; Lane, John W.

2016-01-01

Zones of strong groundwater upwelling to streams enhance thermal stability and moderate thermal extremes, which is particularly important to aquatic ecosystems in a warming climate. Passive thermal tracer methods used to quantify vertical upwelling rates rely on downward conduction of surface temperature signals. However, moderate to high groundwater flux rates (>−1.5 m d−1) restrict downward propagation of diurnal temperature signals, and therefore the applicability of several passive thermal methods. Active streambed heating from within high-resolution fiber-optic temperature sensors (A-HRTS) has the potential to define multidimensional fluid-flux patterns below the extinction depth of surface thermal signals, allowing better quantification and separation of local and regional groundwater discharge. To demonstrate this concept, nine A-HRTS were emplaced vertically into the streambed in a grid with ∼0.40 m lateral spacing at a stream with strong upward vertical flux in Mashpee, Massachusetts, USA. Long-term (8–9 h) heating events were performed to confirm the dominance of vertical flow to the 0.6 m depth, well below the extinction of ambient diurnal signals. To quantify vertical flux, short-term heating events (28 min) were performed at each A-HRTS, and heat-pulse decay over vertical profiles was numerically modeled in radial two dimension (2-D) using SUTRA. Modeled flux values are similar to those obtained with seepage meters, Darcy methods, and analytical modeling of shallow diurnal signals. We also observed repeatable differential heating patterns along the length of vertically oriented sensors that may indicate sediment layering and hyporheic exchange superimposed on regional groundwater discharge.

Laboratory flow experiments for visualizing carbon dioxide-induced, density-driven brine convection

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

Kneafsey, T.; Pruess, K.

2009-09-01

Injection of carbon dioxide (CO{sub 2}) into saline aquifers confined by low-permeability cap rock will result in a layer of CO{sub 2} overlying the brine. Dissolution of CO{sub 2} into the brine increases the brine density, resulting in an unstable situation in which more-dense brine overlies less-dense brine. This gravitational instability could give rise to density-driven convection of the fluid, which is a favorable process of practical interest for CO{sub 2} storage security because it accelerates the transfer of buoyant CO{sub 2} into the aqueous phase, where it is no longer subject to an upward buoyant drive. Laboratory flow visualizationmore » tests in transparent Hele-Shaw cells have been performed to elucidate the processes and rates of this CO{sub 2} solute-driven convection (CSC). Upon introduction of CO{sub 2} into the system, a layer of CO{sub 2}-laden brine forms at the CO{sub 2}-water interface. Subsequently, small convective fingers form, which coalesce, broaden, and penetrate into the test cell. Images and time-series data of finger lengths and wavelengths are presented. Observed CO{sub 2} uptake of the convection system indicates that the CO{sub 2} dissolution rate is approximately constant for each test and is far greater than expected for a diffusion-only scenario. Numerical simulations of our system show good agreement with the experiments for onset time of convection and advancement of convective fingers. There are differences as well, the most prominent being the absence of cell-scale convection in the numerical simulations. This cell-scale convection observed in the experiments is probably initiated by a small temperature gradient induced by the cell illumination.« less

Function-dependent shape characteristics of the human skull.

PubMed

Witzel, U; Preuschoft, H

2002-06-01

Using the FEM-program ANSYS 5.4, we have shaped a model of the human skull in which the flow of forces and the relative location and magnitudes of stresses are investigated. Forces are applied from below through the tooth row of the upper jaw. An ample volume is provided for the transmission of these bite forces upward to the roof of the braincase, where bearings counteract the forces from below. Within this volume, no other morphological features are considered than two cone-shaped orbits and a nasal channel which has a rounded, triangular cross section, extending upward between the orbits. Under loads (= bite forces) acting simultaneously in the directions and relative sizes of realistic bite- and chewing forces, there occurred stress concentrations inside the model which resemble closely the morphological characteristics of the human skull. The most remarkable pathways of stresses correspond to Toldt's and Benninghoff's nasal, zygomatic and pterygoid pillars. Aside from these stress concentrations, stress-free regions become visible at places, where the skull shows excavations: the vaulted palate with canalis incisivus, the canine fossa, superior and inferior orbital fissure, or cavities like the maxillary sinuses and cavum cranii. Behind the posterior molars and the pterygoid, the stresses disappear abruptly, and in the side wall of the nasal cavity a maxillary hiatus remains without stresses. A flow of forces comparable to, but not at the exact position of the zygomatic arch extends from the highly stressed zygomatic bone rearward and upward. In a later step of simulation, somewhat deeper, at the place of the really existing zygomatic arch, a series of small forces was applied, which correspond to the resultant force that is created by the redirection of the pull of the m. masseter into the temporal fascia. This--biologically reasonable--manipulation of the model leads to a reduction of the forces in the zygomatic bone, and to a downward shift of the zygomatic arch and its isolation from the skull's side wall by a deep, stress-free temporal fossa. The similarity between the stress flow in the model and the shape of the skull seems to indicate that the skull, like the bones of the postcranial skeleton, develops its shape in dependence from the mechanic stressing through the process of causal histogenesis. In view of experimental results, the possibility cannot be ruled out, that the safety factors in the skull deviate from those in the postcranial skeleton.

Subsidence of Puna, Hawaii inferred from sulfur content of drilled lava flows

USGS Publications Warehouse

Moore, J.G.; Thomas, D.M.

1988-01-01

Sulfur was analyzed in more than 200 lava samples from five drill holes located on the east rift zone of Kilauea volcano on the island of Hawaii. The sulfur content is a gage of whether lava was erupted subaerially (low sulfur) or erupted subaqueously (high sulfur). Despite considerable variation, sulfur is generally low (less than 0.025%) in the upper part of the holes, begins to increase at a depth of 250-320 m below sea level, and generally reaches a high level (greater than 0.1%) indicative of steady submarine eruption at 330-450 m below sea level. Assuming that the island is subsiding at 2.4 mm/yr, an analysis of these data indicates that part of the variation in sulfur concentration results from past eustatic oscillation of sea level, and that the volcano (at the drill hole site) finally emerged for the last time about 98 ka. The long-term average rate of lava accumulation is roughly 4.4 mm/yr, and upward growth of the volcano at the drill hole area is about 2 mm/yr in excess of subsidence. ?? 1988.

Preparative electrophoresis of cultured human cells: Effect of cell cycle phase

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kunze, M. E.; Todd, P. W.; Goolsby, C. L.; Walker, J. T.

1985-01-01

Human epithelioid T-1E cells were cultured in suspension and subjected to density gradient electrophoresis upward in a vertical column. It is indicated that the most rapidly migrating cells were at the beginning of the cell cycle and the most slowly migrating cells were at the end of the cell cycle. The fastest migrating cells divided 24 hr later than the slowest migrating cells. Colonies developing from slowly migrating cells had twice as many cells during exponential growth as did the most rapidly migrating cells, and the numbers of cells per colony at any time was inversely related to the electrophoretic migration rate. The DNA measurements by fluorescence flow cytometry indicates that the slowest migrating cell populations are enriched in cells that have twice as much DNA as the fastest migrating cells. It is concluded that electrophoretic mobility of these cultured human cells declines steadily through the cell cycle and that the mobility is lowest at the end of G sub 2 phase and highest at the beginning of G sub 1 phase.

The dependence of the strength and thickness of field-aligned currents on solar wind and ionospheric parameters

PubMed Central

Johnson, Jay R.; Wing, Simon

2017-01-01

Sheared plasma flows at the low-latitude boundary layer (LLBL) correlate well with early afternoon auroral arcs and upward field-aligned currents. We present a simple analytic model that relates solar wind and ionospheric parameters to the strength and thickness of field-aligned currents (Λ) in a region of sheared velocity, such as the LLBL. We compare the predictions of the model with DMSP observations and find remarkably good scaling of the upward region 1 currents with solar wind and ionospheric parameters in region located at the boundary layer or open field lines at 1100–1700 magnetic local time. We demonstrate that Λ~nsw−0.5 and Λ ~ L when Λ/L < 5 where L is the auroral electrostatic scale length. The sheared boundary layer thickness (Δm) is inferred to be around 3000 km, which appears to have weak dependence on Vsw. J‖ has dependencies on Δm, Σp, nsw, and Vsw. The analytic model provides a simple way to organize data and to infer boundary layer structures from ionospheric data. PMID:29057194

ST5 Observations of the Imbalance of Region 1 and 2 Field-Aligned Currents and its Implication to Ionospheric Closure Currents

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Le, G.

2008-01-01

A major unsolved question in the physics of ionosphere-magnetosphere coupling is how field-aligned currents (FACs) close. In order to maintain the divergence free condition, overall downward FACs (carried mainly by upward electrons) must eventually balance the overall upward FACs associated with the precipitating electrons through ionospheric Pedersen currents. Although much of the current closure may take place via local Pedersen currents flowing between Region 1 (R1) and Region 2 (R2) FACs, there is a generally an imbalance, i.e., more currents in R1 than in R2, in total currents between them. The net currents may be closed within R1 via cross-polar cap Pedersen currents. In this study, we use the magnetic field observations from Space Technology 5 mission to quantify the imbalance of R1 and R2 currents. We will determine the net R1-R2 currents under various solar wind conditions and discuss the implication of such imbalance to the ionospheric closure currents.

Nonmonotonic trajectories to a partially penetrating well in a semiconfined aquifer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bruggeman, G. A.; Veling, E. J. M.

2006-02-01

The flow path to a partially penetrating well in a semiconfined aquifer with finite thickness can exhibit nonmonotonic behavior. Water particles entering a semiconfined aquifer far away from a well through the confining layer go downward, and closer to the well they move upward, while under certain circumstances they rise so high that they come down again to finally be captured by the well. An approximative problem is solved analytically under the assumptions that the aquifer is of infinite thickness and that the screen may be represented as a point. It is shown that this phenomenon will occur for particular values of parameters Kc/a > 1.283, where a is the position of the point extraction in the aquifer with respect to the top of the aquifer, K is the hydraulic conductivity of the aquifer, and c is the hydraulic resistance of the covering layer. Such upward bending groundwater path lines have ecological implications in the sense that water from far away will come close to the top of the aquifer in the neighborhood of the well.

[The relationship between unemployment rates and lost work time due to sickness absence in an economic recession].

PubMed

López López, J C; Ballesteros Polo, M; Sampere Valero, M; Sacristán Nieto, R; Alguacil García, S; Ruiz Julian, A; Santos Avila, E; García Rubia, S; López Costa, B; Martínez Martínez, J M

Different countries have shown an inverse relationship between unemployment rates (UR) and indicators of sickness absence during periods of economic recession. To evaluate the relationship between indicators of sickness absence and unemployment in Spain during 2009-2015. We obtained incidence and absenteeism rates of non-work related sickness absence (NWSA) from Social Security data, and UR from the National Institute of Statistics. The relationship between indicators of NWSA and UR in the period 2009 to 2015 was graphically described using time trend plots. Scatter plots of NWSA indicators were also made against UR. Finally, we fitted linear regression models. Incidence (IR) and absenteeism rates (AR) of NWSA showed downward trends in 2009-2013 (IR 2009=28.07%, IR 2013=20.41%; AR 2009=2.53% and AR 2013=1.86%), changing to an upward trend up to 2015 (IR 2015=22.52%, AR 2015=2.12%). Unemployment rates trended upward in 2009-2013 (UR 2009=17.86%, UR 2013=26.10%), and then changed to a downward trend through 2015 (UR 2015=22.06%). There was an inverse relationship between UR and NWSA indicators. As in previous international studies, we found an inverse relationship between unemployment rates and indicators of sickness absence in Spain. More detailed studies are needed to evaluate explanatory hypotheses, such as those associated with the effects of discipline, selection and/or changes in the workforce. Copyright belongs to the Societat Catalana de Salut Laboral.

Preliminary evaluation of ground-water flow in Bear Creek Valley, the Oak Ridge Reservation, Tennessee

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bailey, Z.C.

1988-01-01

Bear Creek Valley, Tennessee contains hazardous waste disposal sites where contaminants leach into ground and surface water. Groundwater flow and the potential migration of contaminants is poorly understood. The Valley is underlain by calcareous shale that contains limestone units. Ridges to the north and south are underlain by interbedded sandstones, siltstone and shale, and by massive, siliceous dolomite, respectively. The bedrock, which dips about 45 degrees southeast, is overlain by regolith to a maximum thickness of 80 ft. Observed hydraulic conductivities for the regolith range from 0.01 to 13 ft/day, and for the bedrock, from 0.001 to 11 ft/day. Groundwater flow is probably toward streams and is preferential along strike because of an areal anisotropy in hydraulic conductivity. A cross sectional groundwater flow model was used to test the conceptualized flow system and to help identify areas where additional data are needed. The preliminary model shows a pattern of recharge at both ridges, flow toward the valley, and upward flow that discharges into Bear Creek. Final model values of hydraulic conductivity in the bedrock range from 0.01 to 0.1 ft/day and reflect an areal anisotropy ratio of 1:5. Simulated recharge was 10 inches/year. (USGS)

Variability, trends, and teleconnections of stream flows with large-scale climate signals in the Omo-Ghibe River Basin, Ethiopia.

PubMed

Degefu, Mekonnen Adnew; Bewket, Woldeamlak

2017-04-01

This study assesses variability, trends, and teleconnections of stream flow with large-scale climate signals (global sea surface temperatures (SSTs)) for the Omo-Ghibe River Basin of Ethiopia. Fourteen hydrological indices of variability and extremes were defined from daily stream flow data series and analyzed for two common periods, which are 1972-2006 for 5 stations and 1982-2006 for 15 stations. The Mann-Kendall's test was used to detect trends at 0.05 significance level, and simple correlation analysis was applied to evaluate associations between the selected stream flow indices and SSTs. We found weak and mixed (upward and downward) trend signals for annual and wet (Kiremt) season flows. Indices generated for high-flow (flood) magnitudes showed the same weak trend signals. However, trend tests for flood frequencies and low-flow magnitudes showed little evidences of increasing change. It was also found that El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) are the major anomalies affecting stream flow variability in the Omo-Ghibe Basin. The strongest associations are observed between ENSO/Niño3.4 and the stream flow in August and September, mean Kiremt flow (July-September), and flood frequency (peak over threshold on average three peaks per year (POT3_Fre)). The findings of this study provide a general overview on the long-term stream flow variability and predictability of stream flows for the Omo-Ghibe River Basin.

Nitride-Based Materials for Flexible MEMS Tactile and Flow Sensors in Robotics

PubMed Central

Abels, Claudio; Mastronardi, Vincenzo Mariano; Guido, Francesco; Dattoma, Tommaso; Qualtieri, Antonio; Megill, William M.; De Vittorio, Massimo; Rizzi, Francesco

2017-01-01

The response to different force load ranges and actuation at low energies is of considerable interest for applications of compliant and flexible devices undergoing large deformations. We present a review of technological platforms based on nitride materials (aluminum nitride and silicon nitride) for the microfabrication of a class of flexible micro-electro-mechanical systems. The approach exploits the material stress differences among the constituent layers of nitride-based (AlN/Mo, SixNy/Si and AlN/polyimide) mechanical elements in order to create microstructures, such as upwardly-bent cantilever beams and bowed circular membranes. Piezoresistive properties of nichrome strain gauges and direct piezoelectric properties of aluminum nitride can be exploited for mechanical strain/stress detection. Applications in flow and tactile sensing for robotics are described. PMID:28489040

78 FR 54459 - Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget for...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-09-04

... Upward Bound Math Science Annual Performance Report AGENCY: Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE... Upward Bound Math Science Annual Performance Report. OMB Control Number: 1840-NEW. Type of Review: New... Upward Bound (UB) and Upward Bound Math and Science (UBMS) Programs. The Department is requesting a new...

Privacy Impact Assessment for the TRIO Programs Annual Performance Report (APR) System

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

US Department of Education, 2008

2008-01-01

The TRIO Programs Annual Performance Report (APR) System collects individual student records on individuals served by the following Federal TRIO Programs: Upward Bound (which includes regular Upward Bound (UB), Upward Bound Math-Science (UBMS), and Veterans Upward Bound (VUB)); Student Support Services (SSS); and the Ronald E. McNair Post…

How Upward Moral Comparison Influences Prosocial Behavioral Intention: Examining the Mediating Role of Guilt and the Moderating Role of Moral Identity.

PubMed

Zhang, Heyun; Chen, Sisi; Wang, Rong; Jiang, Jiang; Xu, Yan; Zhao, Huanhuan

2017-01-01

Although it has been shown that exceptional good deeds exert influences on people's prosocial behavior and intention, we have known little about how common moral actions in our daily life. The present study aimed to examine how upward moral comparison influenced prosocial behavioral intention as well as to explore the mediating role of guilt and the moderating role of moral identity in the focal relationship. An experimental study was conducted with 162 Chinese undergraduates (103 women, 59 men) randomly assigned to an upward moral comparison condition, an upward competence comparison condition or a control condition. Results indicated that participants in the upward moral comparison condition experienced higher levels of guilt and exhibited stronger motivation to act prosocially, relative to participants in the other two conditions. That is to say, upward moral comparison induces guilty experience, and then increases people's prosocial behavioral intention. Moreover, we have found that moral identity internalization moderates the upward moral comparison-guilt relationship, and the indirect effect of upward moral comparison on prosocial behavioral intention via guilt. The implications of these findings were discussed.

Dacitic ash-flow sheet near Superior and Globe, Arizona

USGS Publications Warehouse

Peterson, Donald W.

1961-01-01

Remnants of a dacitic ash-flow sheet near Globe, Miama, and Superia, Arizona cover about 100 square miles; before erosion the area covered by the sheet was at least 400 square miles and perhaps as much as 1,500 square miles. Its maximum thickness is about 2,000 feet, its average thickness is about 500 feet, and its original volume was at least 40 cubic miles. It was erupted on an eroded surface with considerable relief. The main part of the deposit was thought by early workers to be a lava flow. Even after the distinctive character of welded tuffs and related rocks was discovered, the nature and origin of this deposit remained dubious because textures did not correspond to those in other welded tuff bodies. Yet a lava flow as silicic as this dacite would be viscous instead of spreading out as an extensive sheet. The purpose of this investigation has been to study the deposit, resolve the inconsistencies, and deduce its origin and history. Five stratigraphic zones are distinguished according to differences in the groundmass. From bottom to top the zones are basal tuff, vitrophyre, brown zone, gray zone, and white zone. The three upper zones are distinguished by colors on fresh surfaces, for each weathers to a similar shade of light reddish brown. Nonwelded basal tuff grades upward into the vitrophyre, which is a highly welded tuff. The brown and gray zones consist of highly welded tuff with a lithoidal groundmass. Degree of welding decreases progressively upward through the gray and the white zones, and the upper white zone is nonwelded. Textures are clearly outlined in the lower part of the brown zone, but upward they become more diffuse because of increasing devitrification. In the white zone, original textures are essentially obliterated, and the groundmass consists of spherulites and microcrystalline intergrowths. The chief groundmass minerals are cristobalite and sanidine, with lesser quartz and plagioclase. Phenocrysts comprise about 40 percent of the rock, and their relative proportions are fairly uniform. Almost three-fourths of the phenocrysts are plagioclase, one-tenth quartz, one-tenth biotite, and the remainder sanidine, magnetite, and hornblende, with accessory sphene, zircon, and appetite. Pumice fragments are nearly equidimensional near the top of the sheet, and downward they become progressively more flattened until they finally disappear. The zones and the pumice fragment flattening ration (ratio of length to height) provide means for recognizing several faults within the sheet. Twelve new chemical analyses are nearly uniform in composition. If named according to chemical composition, the rock would be a quartz latite, but when named according to phenocrysts, it is a dacite. From the field occurrence and the interpretation of relict textures, it is concluded that the deposit is an ash-flow sheet containing large amounts of welded tuff, and that it was emplaced by a type of nuee ardente instead of a lava flow or air-fall shower. The nature of zoning and trend of flattening ratios indicate a series of eruptions in rapid enough succession for the sheet to form a single cooling unit. Except in the lower part of the sheet, original textures were obscured by devitrification and crystallization during cooling. Nearly uniform mineralogy and chemistry suggest a single magnetic source. A nearly circular area, about 3? miles in diameter, of altered dacite and earlier volcanic rocks, bounded by intricately faulted and brecciated older rocks, may be the site of a caldera that represents the source of the eruptions.

Dual-Polarization Radar Observations of Upward Lightning-Producing Storms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lueck, R.; Helsdon, J. H.; Warner, T.

2013-12-01

The Upward Lightning Triggering Study (UPLIGHTS) seeks to determine how upward lightning, which originates from the tips of tall objects, is triggered by nearby flash activity. As a component of this study we analyze standard and dual-polarization weather radar data. The Correlation Coefficient (CC) in particular can be used to identify and quantify the melting layer associated with storms that produce upward lightning. It has been proposed that positive charge generation due to aggregate shedding at the melting layer results in a positive charge region just above the cloud base. This positive charge region may serve as a positive potential well favorable for negative leader propagation, which initiate upward positive leaders from tall objects. We characterize the horizontal coverage, thickness and height of the melting layer in addition to cloud base heights when upward lightning occurs to determine trends and possible threshold criteria relating to upward lightning production. Furthermore, we characterize storm type and morphology using relevant schemes as well as precipitation type using the Hydrometer Classification Algorithm (HCA) for upward lightning-producing storms. Ice-phase hydrometeors have been shown to be a significant factor in thunderstorm electrification. Only a small fraction of storms produce upward lightning, so null cases will be examined and compared as well.

Experimental modeling of gravity underflow in submarine channels

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Islam, Mohammad Ashraful

Active and relic meandering channels are common on the seafloor adjacent to continental margins. These channels and their associated submarine fan deposits are products of the density-driven gravity flows known as turbidity currents. Unlike natural rivers, few attempts have been made to explore the process of channel meandering in the submarine environment. This research focuses on resolving the flow field of submarine channels by conducting experiments in a large laboratory basin. Saline and particulate density flows were studied in a straight channel, a single bend sinuous channel with vertical sidewalls and a multiple-bend sinuous channel with sloping sidewalls. Instantaneous velocities in steady developed currents were measured using 3-component acoustic Doppler velocity probes. Excess fractional density was measured at selected locations by collecting water sample using a siphon rake. Turbulent kinetic energy and Reynolds stress components are derived from the instantaneous velocity data of the straight channel experiments. Structure functions for mean velocity, Reynolds stress and turbulent kinetic energy profiles are derived by fitting normalized data. The normalized Reynolds-averaged velocity shows excellent similarity collapse while the Reynolds-stress and the turbulent kinetic energy profiles display reasonable similarity. Vertical profiles of the turbulent kinetic energy display two peaks separated by a zone of low turbulence; the ratio of the maximum to the depth-averaged turbulent kinetic energy is approximately 1.5. Theoretical profile of turbulent kinetic energy is derived. Comparisons of experimentally and theoretically derived turbulent kinetic energy profiles show reasonable agreement except at the position of velocity maximum where the theoretical profile displays a very small value. Velocity profiles derived from the measurements with confined flow in the single bend channel reveal that channel curvature drives two helical flow cells, one stacked upon the other. The lower cell forms near the channel bed surface and has a circulation pattern similar to fluvial channels where a near-bed flow is directed inward. The other circulation cell forms in the upper part of the gravity flow and has a streamwise vorticity opposite to the lower cell. The lower circulation cell can be reasonably approximated by open channel flow theory. The curvature induced mixing is found to shift the position of the maximum streamwise velocity in the upward direction. Experiments conducted in the multiple-bend channel reveals that the channel side slope does not alter the structure of the secondary flow as long as the flow remains confined within the channel. However, if flow spilling occurs at the channel bend, the lateral convection suppresses the upper circulation cell. The lateral slope promotes high superelevation of the dense-light fluid interface at a channel bend and the current almost entirely separates from the inner bank. Compared with the saline flow, the silt-laden flow has larger thickness and thus easily experiences spilling at the bend apex. The overbank flow approximately follows the pre-bend direction of the in-channel flow. Unlike the flow in the channel with vertical sidewalls, the maximum velocity position does not experience an upward shift. This may be attributed to the highly superelevated current interface. The saline flow experiences little reduction in flow velocity while the velocity of the particulate flow drops significantly in the downstream direction primarily due to in-channel sediment deposit.

Hydrogeologic and water-quality characteristics of the Red River-Winnipeg aquifer northwestern Minnesota

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ruhl, J.F.; Adolphson, D.G.

1986-01-01

Ground water generally flows eastward through the aquifer from North Dakota and discharges upward to wells and to overlying deposits. Yields of wells open to the full thickness of the aquifer range from 100 t 250 gallons per minute. The water is unsuitable for most uses because of the high mineral content. Dissolved-solids concentrations range from about 3,000 milligrams per liter in the eastern part of the aquifer to about 60,000 milligrams per liter in the northwestern corner of Minnesota.

Conversion of raw carbonaceous fuels

DOEpatents

Cooper, John F [Oakland, CA

2007-08-07

Three configurations for an electrochemical cell are utilized to generate electric power from the reaction of oxygen or air with porous plates or particulates of carbon, arranged such that waste heat from the electrochemical cells is allowed to flow upwards through a storage chamber or port containing raw carbonaceous fuel. These configurations allow combining the separate processes of devolatilization, pyrolysis and electrochemical conversion of carbon to electric power into a single unit process, fed with raw fuel and exhausting high BTU gases, electric power, and substantially pure CO.sub.2 during operation.

Blast Wave Experiments at Z

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-06-01

radiation flows upward, it passes though a 1.7-mm high, tapered, 25-μm thick gold wall cone that is filled 20 ± 3 mg/cm3 silica aerogel (SiO2). Above...this cone is a 20 ± 3 mg/cm3 silica aerogel filled, 1-mm high, 2.4-mm inner diameter, 25-μm thick gold wall cylinder. On the cylinder rests a 4-mm...diameter gold platform that supports a higher density (40-60 mg/cm3) silica aerogel . This aerogel is the region where the blast wave forms after