Effects of weathering on metal releases from an engineered deposit for alum shale leaching residues

A pile of ca 15,000 t of crushed alum shale leaching residues from uranium refining was deposited in Ranstad, Sweden, in 1972 as a part of a pilot study of various waste storage concepts. A field study has been performed in order to evaluate the efficiency of the engineered barriers (bentoniteltill or crushed limestone) for the prevention of weathering of the leaching residues and subsequent release of metal rich leachates. The concentration levels of Fe (from pyrite in the alum shale) as well as metals associated with the pyrite (e.g. Cu and Ni) indicate that the weathering of leaching residues underneath the cover has progressed to less than 4 cm in 15 yr. No breakthrough of precipitation is indicated from the composition of the percolation water coming from the deposit. Thus, the weathering rate is reduced by ca 3 orders of magnitude in comparison with leaching residues freely exposed to air and precipitation.     

Transport of volatile chlorinated hydrocarbons in unsaturated aggregated media

Transport of volatile hydrocarbons in soils is largely controlled by interactions of vapours with the liquid and solid phase. Sorption on solids of gaseous or dissolved compounds may be important. Since the contact time between a chemical and a specific sorption site can be rather short, kinetic or mass-transfer resistance effects may be relevant. An existing mathematical model describing advection and diffusion in the gas phase and diffusional transport from the gaseous phase into an intra-aggregate water phase is modified to include linear kinetic sorption on gas-solid and water-solid interfaces. The model accounts for kinetic mass transfer between all three phases in a soil. The solution of the Laplace-transformed equations is inverted numerically. We performed transient column experiments with 1,1,2-Trichloroethane, Trichloroethylene, and Tetrachloroethylene using air-dry solid and water-saturated porous glass beads. The breakthrough curves were calculated based on independently estimated parameters. The model calculations agree well with experimental data. The different transport behaviour of the three compounds in our system primarily depends on Henry's constants.     

Evaluation of water and gas transport in layered soil covers for coal ash deposits: 2d-calculations and impact of a weak zone

A methodology for evaluating the efficiency of a soil cover to reduce water infiltration and gas transport has been adapted for coal ash deposits and two dimensions. A cover consisting of two layers, a tight layer and a protecting layer, is studied. Studied design parameters are primarily the slope and the quality of the tight layer. Simulations show that the slope has a minor impact, while the hydraulic conductivity of the tight layer is shown to be of major importance. The calculations indicate that the hydraulic conductivity of the tight layer should be smaller than 10^?8 m s^?1. However, for longer covers a lower hydraulic conductivity gives overflow indicating that a better lateral drainage must be provided for. This may be obtained by inserting a drainage layer. A negative side-effect, however, is that gas transport may increase due to the lower saturation of the cover. The impact of a high conductivity zone in the tight layer is illustrated with 3D calculations. For example, a weak zone covering 0.5% of the area with a hydraulic conductivity of 10^?7 m s^?1 (10^?9 m s^?1 for the rest of the layer) will increase the total water flow through the bottom by about 25%. The gas transport in such a heterogeneous cover will increase totally by a factor of 1.2 and locally by a factor of 5.     

Characterizing larval swordfish habitat in the western tropical North Atlantic

Swordfish Xiphias gladius (Linnaeus, 1758) are a circumglobal pelagic fish targeted by multiple lucrative fisheries. Determining the distribution of swordfish larvae is important for indicating reproductive activity and understanding the early life history of swordfish. We identify and characterize larval swordfish distributions during peak swordfish spawning throughout the Gulf of Mexico and western Caribbean Sea with generalized additive models (GAMs) using catches of swordfish larvae during ichthyoplankton surveys in April and May of 2010, 2011, and 2012. The best fit GAM, as determined by stepwise, backward Akaike Information Criterion selection, included both physiochemical (temperature at 5 m, sea surface height anomaly (SSHA), eddy kinetic energy (EKE)), temporal (lunar illumination, hour of sampling) and spatial (location) variables, while near surface chlorophyll a concentration residuals remained as a random effect. The highest probability of larval swordfish catch occurred at sub‐surface temperatures, SSHA, and EKE values indicative of boundary currents. Standard lengths of larvae were larger further downstream in the boundary currents, despite high variability in length with location due to multiple spawning locations of swordfish near these currents. Probability of larval swordfish catch also peaked during the crescent and gibbous moons, indicating a lunar periodicity to swordfish spawning. These results suggest that swordfish may spawn during select moon phases near boundary currents that transport their larvae to larval and juvenile habitat including the northern Gulf of Mexico and coastal waters of the southeast United States.     

Modeling wood fiber deformation caused by vapor expansion during steam explosion of wood

Steam explosion is a process used to enhance enzyme penetration and digestibility of wood. Wood chips are processed with high-pressure steam for a limited time, and the bonding between polysaccharides and lignin is weakened. After this processing, the pressure is rapidly reduced to induce steam explosion where the vapor inside a fiber expands and exerts pressure on the fiber walls. This pressure causes fiber deformation and breakage. In this study, fiber deformation caused by vapor expansion was simulated by single wood fibers using finite element modeling. When pressure is applied inside a fiber, it is likely to break from the corner and midway between two adjacent corners. The fiber is modeled with four layers (P, S1, S2, and S3). Although the P, S1, and S3 layers are very thin, they significantly prevent fiber deformation. The fibers with a thin wall and a low micro-fibril angle (MFA) deform more than the fibers with a thick wall and a higher MFA. It was found that the shape of the fiber plays an important role in its deformation. The areas of localized strain are the most likely places for fiber splitting. Essentially, fiber wall damage is more likely to occur in (1) thin-walled fibers, i.e., earlywood, (2) fibers with damaged P and S1 layers, (3) fibers with low MFAs, and (4) fibers with irregular cross-sections. Different chemical pretreatments, fractionation procedures, and selections of raw materials can accordingly be considered to produce easily steam-exploded materials.