Optimising the environmental benefits of emission reductions from UK coal- and oil-fired power stations: a critical loads approach

This paper describes a method for determining reductions of SO₂ emissions from coal- and oil-fired power stations, oil refineries and large industrial units in the UK taking into account their pollution potential. The method is based on the use of two gridded data sets: critical loads, which represent the sensitivity of the environment to acid deposition and modelled estimates of total (wet + dry) sulphur deposition for 646 point sources within the UK. An iterative method is used to identify and subsequently reduce emissions from point sources that contribute most to areas of critical loads exceedance. This paper demonstrates how the method may be used to determine an optimal allocation of emissions across the UK which yields the maximum amount of environmental protection per unit of emission.The paper then goes on to consider the changes that will have to take place within the UK power generation industry in order to meet the revised EC Large Combustion Plant Directive which comes into force on 1 January 2008. Particular emphasis is placed upon proposed emissions trading schemes and the environmental implications of allowing trading between stations with high and low pollution potentials. The paper concludes by suggesting that the emissions trading process should take into account the pollution potential of each source, irrespective of whether the proposed emission is within the plant's agreed emission limit. An approach based entirely on minimizing environmental damage rather than one which takes cost into account, as in current integrated assessment modelling, could provide an interesting approach across the rest of Europe.     

A new THOR shoulder design: a comparison with volunteers, the Hybrid III, and THOR NT

OBJECTIVE: Since the shoulders are rarely seriously injured in frontal or oblique collisions, they have been given low priority in the development of frontal impact crash test dummies. The shoulder complex geometry and its kinematics are of vital importance for the overall dummy kinematics. The shoulder complex also influences the risk of the safety belt slipping off the shoulder in oblique forward collisions. The first aim of this study was to develop a new 50th percentile male THOR shoulder design, while the second was to compare the new shoulder, mounted on a THOR NT dummy, with volunteer, THOR NT, and Hybrid III range of motion and stiffness data. The third aim was to test the repeatability of the new shoulder during dynamic testing and to see how the design behaves with respect to belt slippage in a 45 degrees far-side collision. METHODS: The new 50th percentile THOR shoulder design was developed with the aid of a shell model of the seated University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI) 50th percentile male with coordinates for joints and bony landmarks (Schneider et al., 1983). The new shoulder design has human-like bony landmarks for the acromion and coracoid processes. The clavicle curvature and length are also made similar to that of a male human, as is the range of motion in the anterior-posterior, superior-inferior, and medial-lateral directions. The new shoulder design was manufactured and tested under the same conditions that T?rnvall et al. (2005b) used to compare the shoulder range of motion for the volunteers, Hybrid III, and THOR Alpha. The new design was also tested in two dynamic test configurations: the first was a 0 degrees full-frontal test and the second was a 45 degrees far-side test. The dummy tests were conducted with an R-16 seat with a three-point belt, the Delta V was 27.0+/-0.5 km/h and the maximum peak acceleration was approximately 14.6+/-0.5 g for each test. RESULTS: A new shoulder design with geometry close to that of humans was developed to be retrofitted to the THOR NT dummy. The results showed that the range of motion for the new shoulder complex during static loading was larger by at least a factor of three, for the maximum load (200 N/arm), than that of either the Hybrid III or the THOR NT; this means it was more similar to the volunteers' range of motion. It was observed that the THOR NT with the new shoulder did not slide out of the shoulder belt during a far-side collision. The performance of the new shoulder was reasonably repeatable and stable during both the static tests and the sled tests. CONCLUSION: A new shoulder for the THOR NT has been designed and developed, and data from static range of motion tests and sled tests indicate that the new shoulder complex has the potential to function in a more human-like manner on the THOR dummy.     

Postnatal nutrition influences male attractiveness and promotes plasticity in male mating preferences

Poor early-life nutrition could reduce adult reproductive success by negatively affecting traits linked to sexual attractiveness such as song complexity. If so, this might favor strategic mate choice, allowing males with less complex songs to tailor their mating tactics to maximize the reproductive benefits. However, this possibility has been ignored in theoretical and empirical studies. By manipulating the micronutrient content of the diet (e.g., low or high) during the postnatal period of male zebra finches, we show for the first time (1) that males reared on a poor (low) micronutrient diet had less complex songs as adults; (2) that these males, in contrast to the high micronutrient diet group, were more selective in their mating strategies, discriminating against those females most likely to reduce their clutch size when paired with males having less complex songs; and (3) that by following different mating strategies, males reared on the contrasting diets obtained similar reproductive benefits. These results suggest that early-life dietary conditions can induce multiple and long-lasting effects on male and female reproductive traits. Moreover, the results seem to reflect a previously unreported case of adaptive plasticity in mate choice in response to a nutritionally mediated reduction in sexual attractiveness.     

Modelling Water Blending—Sensitivity of Optimal Policies

Water blending is modelled as a combination of a linear program and a stochastic dynamic program. Optimal policies are found for linear and integer-linear formulations using both an expected monetary value and conditional value-at-risk criterion. The sensitivity of these solutions to the discretisation over volume and over time is investigated.     

Microbial degradation and impact of Bracken toxin ptaquiloside on microbial communities in soil

The carcinogenic and toxic ptaquiloside (PTA) is a major secondary metabolite in Bracken fern (Pteridium aquilinum (L.) Kuhn) and was hypothesized to influence microbial communities in soil below Bracken stands. Soil and Bracken tissue were sampled at field sites in Denmark (DK) and New Zealand (NZ). PTA contents of 2.1 +/- 0.5 mg g(-1) and 37.0 +/- 8.7 mg g(-1) tissue were measured in Bracken fronds from DK and NZ, respectively. In the two soils the PTA levels were similar (0-5 microg g(-1) soil); a decrease with depth could be discerned in the deeper B and C horizons of the DK soil (weak acid sandy Spodosol), but not in the NZ soil (weak acid loamy Entisol). In the DK soil PTA turnover was predominantly due to microbial degradation (biodegradation); chemical hydrolysis was occurring mainly in the uppermost A horizon where pH was very low (3.4). Microbial activity (basal respiration) and growth ([3H]leucine incorporation assay) increased after PTA exposure, indicating that the Bracken toxin served as a C substrate for the organotrophic microorganisms. On the other hand, there was no apparent impact of PTA on community size as measured by substrate-induced respiration or composition as indicated by community-level physiological profiles. Our results demonstrate that PTA stimulates microbial activity and that microorganisms play a predominant role for rapid PTA degradation in Bracken-impacted soils.     

Silver near municipal wastewater discharges into western Lake Ontario,Canada

Because of the widespread use of silver nanoparticles in commercial products, discharges of municipal wastewater may be a point source of silver in the aquatic environment. We monitored two sites in western Lake Ontario impacted by discharges from wastewater treatment plants serving the City of Toronto. Concentrations of silver were elevated in bottom sediments and suspended sediments collected at the two sites. We also deployed two types of passive samplers in the water column at the two sites, the newly developed Carbon Nanotube Integrative Samplers for monitoring “CNIS-labile” silver and Diffusive Gradient in Thin Film samplers for monitoring “DGT-labile” silver. Results from these passive samplers indicated that the concentrations of silver at the two sites were either below detection limits or were in the ng/L range. In laboratory experiments where the sediments were re-suspended in Milli-Q water, a small proportion of the silver (i.e., <?25%) was labile and partitioned as colloidal or dissolved silver into the liquid phase after agitation. Nanoparticles tentatively identified as silver nanoparticles were detected by single-particle ICP-MS in suspension after agitation of both suspended and bottom sediments. Therefore, there is a need to assess whether silver species, including silver nanoparticles are transported from wastewater treatment plants into sediments in the aquatic environment. This study is unique in focusing on the in situ distribution of silver in natural waters and in sediments that are potentially impacted by urban sources of nanoparticles.     

Contaminants in the coastal karst aquifer system along the Caribbean coast of the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico

Intensive land development as a result of the rapidly growing tourism industry in the “Riviera Maya” region of the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico may result in contamination of groundwater resources that eventually discharge into Caribbean coastal ecosystems. We deployed two types of passive sampling devices into groundwater flowing through cave systems below two communities to evaluate concentrations of contaminants and to indicate the possible sources. Pharmaceuticals and personal care products accumulated in the samplers could only have originated from domestic sewage. PAHs indicated contamination by runoff from highways and other impermeable surfaces and chlorophenoxy herbicides accumulated in samplers deployed near a golf course indicated that pesticide applications to turf are a source of contamination. Prevention and mitigation measures are needed to ensure that expanding development does not impact the marine environment and human health, thus damaging the tourism-based economy of the region.     

Storage of CO2 in saline aquifers: Effects of gravity, viscous, and capillary forces on amount and timing of trapping

CO₂ can be effectively immobilized during CO₂ injection into saline aquifers by residual trapping – also known as capillary trapping – a process resulting from capillary snap-off of isolated CO₂ bubbles. Simulations of CO₂ injection were performed to investigate the interplay of viscous and gravity forces and capillary trapping of CO₂. Results of those simulations show that gas injection processes in which gravitational forces are weak compared to viscous forces (low gravity number N_gv) trap significantly more CO₂ than do flows with strong gravitational forces relative to the viscous forces (high N_gv). The results also indicate that over a wide range of gravity numbers (N_gv), significant fractions of the trapping of CO₂ can occur relatively quickly. The amount of CO₂ that is trapped after injection ceases is demonstrated to correlate with N_gv. For some simulated displacements, effects of capillary pressure and aquifer dip angle on the amount and the rate of trapping are reported. Trapping increases when effects of capillary pressure and aquifer inclination are included in the model. Finally we show that injection schemes such as alternating injection of brine and CO₂ or brine injection after CO₂ injection can also enhance the trapping behavior.