Earth Sciences Commons^™

Remote Sensing And Ground-Based Weather Forcing Data Analysis For Streamflow Simulation, José Alberto Infante Corona, Tarendra Lakhankar, Soni M. Pradhanang, Reza Khanbilvardi

Publications and Research

Hydrological simulation, based on weather inputs and the physical characterization of the watershed, is a suitable approach to predict the corresponding streamflow. This work, carried out on four different watersheds, analyzed the impacts of using three different meteorological data inputs in the same model to compare the model’s accuracy when simulated and observed streamflow are compared. Meteorological data from the Daily Global Historical Climatology Network (GHCN-D), National Land Data Assimilation Systems (NLDAS) and the National Operation Hydrological Remote Sensing Center’s Interactive Snow Information (NOHRSC-ISI) were used as an input into the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) hydrological model and …

Sedimentology Of The Upper Scotland Formation (Eocene), Barbados, Krishna Mahabir, Nazrul I. Khandaker, Jay P. Persaud, Stanley Schleifer

Publications and Research

Representative samples collected from the Lower Scotland Formation (Eocene) outcropping in northeastern Barbados were investigated in conjunction with overall facies distribution and stratigraphic and sedimentological characteristics to interpret depositional environment and provenance of the fine-grained clastics. The Lower Scotland Formation is, for the most part, a fine-grained clastic-dominated sequence with occasional thin intercalations of gypsum, ironstone, and kaolinite. Distinctive deep-water-facies have been well-documented in dark gray shale units containing load cast, flutes, grooves and prods. In addition, turbiditic brown sandstone with a sharp erosive base and pelagic caps also characterize the base of the formation. Notable marine fauna observed include …

Carbon And Nitrogen Dynamics From Slow Pools Of Soil Organic Matter In A Temperate Forest: Pyrogenic Organic Matter And And Root Litter, Fernanda Dos Santos

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Soil organic matter (SOM) is the dominant reservoir of organic carbon (OC) in terrestrial ecosystems, storing approximately three times the size of the C pool in the atmosphere. In temperate forests, a major fraction of the SOM consists of slowly decaying soil organic C (SOC) pools. While slowly cycling C pools constitute a large reservoir of stable C in soils, the dominant environmental factors controlling this C pool remain unresolved. This research investigates two significant, but poorly characterized slowly decaying C pools: fine root litter (< 2mm) and thermally altered plant biomass (pyrogenic organic matter, PyOM). Specifically, I used compound-specific stable isotope analysis (¹³C and ¹⁵N) as my main methodological approach to examine the (1) …

Paleoecology Of Late Cretaceous Methane Cold-Seeps Of The Pierre Shale, South Dakota, Kimberly Cynthia Handle

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Most investigations of ancient methane seeps focus on either the geologic or paleontological aspects of these extreme environments. In contrast, this thesis encompasses both disciplines to evaluate the paleoecology of these systems with greater detail than previously published either within the Western Interior Basin or elsewhere. This thesis addresses the following questions: 1) Are the changes in mineralogy of a seep discernable and predictable as a seep shifts from a clay-based environment to a carbonate-based environment? 2) What are the foundation organism(s) of Late Cretaceous methane cold-seeps? 3) Is there a correlation to the mineralogic changes and shifts in community …

The Interaction Between Arsenic And Struvite During Coprecipitation And Adsorption Processes, Ning Ma

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The formation of struvite, MgNH4PO4*6H2O (MAP), from wastes is one of the methods that can be used to recover P from wastes efficiently. However, since there are usually toxic components in the wastes, like arsenic (As), the possibility of having toxic contaminants in MAP is a big concern. So, the interaction between As and MAP during coprecipitation (CPT) and adsorption (ADS) processes were studied at pH 8-11. MAP precipitated without As at pH 8-11 was also characterized.

During CPT process, the MAP was precipitated from a MgCl2-(NH4)2HPO4-NaCl-H2O system spiked with As at an initial pH (pHi) of 8-11. The batch …

Carbon Losses From Pyrolysed And Original Wood In A Forest Soil Under Natural And Increased N Deposition, B. Maestrini, S. Abiven, N. Singh, J. Bird, M. W. I. Schmidt

Publications and Research

Pyrogenic organic matter (PyOM) plays an important role as a stable carbon (C) sink in the soils of terrestrial ecosystems. However, uncertainties remain about in situ turnover rates of fire-derived PyOM in soil, the main processes leading to PyOM-C and nitrogen (N) losses from the soil, and the role of N availability on PyOM cycling in soils. We measured PyOM and native soil organic carbon losses from the soil as carbon dioxide and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) using additions of highly 13C-labelled PyOM (2.03 atom %) and its precursor pinewood during 1 year in a temperate forest soil. The field …

China’S Water Sustainability In The 21st Century: A Climate-Informed Water Risk Assessment Covering Multi-Sector Water Demands, X. Chen, Naresh Devineni, L. Upmanu, Z. Hao, L. Dong, Q. Ju, J. Wang, S. Wang

Publications and Research

China is facing a water resources crisis with growing concerns as to the reliable supply of water for agricultural, industrial and domestic needs. High inter-annual rainfall variability and increasing consumptive use across the country exacerbates the situation further and is a constraint on future development. For water sustainability, it is necessary to examine the differences in water demand and supply and their spatio-temporal distribution in order to quantify the dimensions of the water risk. Here, a detailed quantitative assessment of water risk as measured by the spatial distribution of cumulated deficits for China is presented. Considering daily precipitation and temperature …

Uranium And Radon In Private Bedrock Well Water In Maine: Geospatial Analysis At Two Scales, Qiang Yang, Paul Smitherman, C. T. Hess, Charles W. Culbertson, Robert G. Marvinney, Andrew E. Smith, Yan Zheng

Publications and Research

In greater Augusta of central Maine, 53 out of 1093 (4.8%) private bedrock well water samples from 1534 km2 contained [U] >30 μg/L, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) for drinking water; and 226 out of 786 (29%) samples from 1135 km2 showed [Rn] >4,000 pCi/L (148 Bq/L), the U.S. EPA’s Alternative MCL. Groundwater pH, calcite dissolution and redox condition are factors controlling the distribution of groundwater U but not Rn due to their divergent chemical and hydrological properties. Groundwater U is associated with incompatible elements (S, As, Mo, F, and Cs) in water samples within …

Economic Growth Assumptions In Climate And Energy Policy, Nir Y. Krakauer

Publications and Research

The assumption that the economic growth seen in recent decades will continue has dominated the discussion of future greenhouse gas emissions and the mitigation of and adaptation to climate change. Given that long-term economic growth is uncertain, the impacts of a wide range of growth trajectories should be considered. In particular, slower economic growth would imply that future generations will be relatively less able to invest in emissions controls or adapt to the detrimental impacts of climate change. Taking into consideration the possibility of economic slowdown therefore heightens the urgency of reducing greenhouse gas emissions now by moving to renewable …

Cretaceous-Paleogene Dinoflagellate Biostratigraphy And The Age Of The Clayton Formation, Southeastern Missouri, Usa, Natalie R. Dastas, John A. Chamberlain Jr., Matthew P. Garb

Publications and Research

Sedimentary deposits in Stoddard County, southeastern Missouri, reveal a K-Pg transition sequence represented by the uppermost Maastrichtian Owl Creek Formation and the Paleocene Clayton Formation. The Clayton Formation is characterized by a basal fossiliferous coquinite that contains reworked late Maastrichtian macrofossils. Dinoflagellate biostratigraphy is used to determine the age of the coquinite layer and specifically whether or not it is an end-K tsunamite deposit resulting from the Chicxulub impact event. Results indicate a mixed assemblage of late Maastrichtian and early Danian dinocysts within the basal coquinite of the Clayton Formation. Maastrichtian dinocyst taxa identified are Riculacysta amplexa, Pierceites pentagonus, Phelodinium …

Groundwater Flow Across Spatial Scales: Importance For Climate Modeling, Nir Krakauer, Haibin Li, Ying Fan

Publications and Research

Current regional and global climate models generally do not represent groundwater flow between grid cells as a component of the water budget. We estimate the magnitude of between cell groundwater flow as a function of grid cell size by aggregating results from a numerical model of equilibrium groundwater flow run and validated globally. We find that over a broad range of cell sizes spanning that of state of the art regional and global climate models, mean between cell groundwater flow magnitudes scale with the reciprocal of grid cell length. We also derive this scaling a priori from a simple statistical …

Are Climate Model Simulations Useful For Forecasting Precipitation Trends? Hindcast And Synthetic-Data Experiments, Nir Y. Krakauer, Balázs M. Fekete

Publications and Research

Water scientists and managers currently face the question of whether trends in climate variables that affect water supplies and hazards can be anticipated. We investigate to what extent climate model simulations may provide accurate forecasts of future hydrologic nonstationarity in the form of changes in precipitation amount. We compare gridded station observations (GPCC Full Data Product, 1901–2010) and climate model outputs (CMIP5 Historical and RCP8.5 simulations, 1901–2100) in real and syntheticdata hindcast experiments. The hindcast experiments show that imputing precipitation trends based on the climate model mean reduced the root mean square error of precipitation trend estimates for 1961–2010 by …

A Review Of Air–Ice Chemical And Physical Interactions (Aici): Liquids, Quasi-Liquids, And Solids In Snow, T. Bartels-Rausch, H-W Jacobi, T. F. Kahan, J. L. Thomas, E. S. Thomson, J. P. D. Abbatt, M. Ammann, J. R. Blackford, H. Bluhm, Chris Boxe, F. Domine, M. M. Frey, I. Gladich, M. I. Guzmán, D. Heger, Th. Huthwelker, P. Klán, W. F. Kuhs, M. H. Kuo, S. Maus, S. G. Moussa, V. F. Mcneill, J. T. Newberg, J. B. C. Pettersson, M. Roeselová, J. R. Sodeau

Publications and Research

Snow in the environment acts as a host to rich chemistry and provides a matrix for physical exchange of contaminants within the ecosystem. The goal of this review is to summarise the current state of knowledge of physical processes and chemical reactivity in surface snow with relevance to polar regions. It focuses on a description of impurities in distinct compartments present in surface snow, such as snow crystals, grain boundaries, crystal surfaces, and liquid parts. It emphasises the microscopic description of the ice surface and its link with the environment. Distinct differences between the disordered air–ice interface, often termed quasi-liquid …

Simultaneous Adsorption Of 11 Volatile Organic Compounds By An Activated Carbon Made From Polystyrene Sulfonic Acid-Based Organic Salt, Alejandro Smith

Dissertations and Theses

Activated carbon is used in water treatment worldwide due to its ability to adsorb many different contaminants from water. The high adsorption capacity of activated carbon is linked to its high internal surface area and micro/meso- porosity. In this work an activated carbon obtained from polystyrene sulfonic acid-based organic salt was examined to simultaneously adsorb eleven volatile organic compounds from aqueous solution. Adsorption data were modeled with different isotherms to determine the equilibrium adsorptive capacities for these compounds. The performance of the polymer-based activated carbon was then compared with that of a commercial wood-based activated carbon. The results indicate that …

Comparative Phylogeography Of Glassfrogs (Vitreorama) Endemic To The Brazilian Altantic Rainforest, Zoe Spanos

Dissertations and Theses

The Brazilian Atlantic Forest harbors one of the most diverse faunas of the world, including 2-3% of all known vertebrate species. Understanding the role of both climate and landscape in shaping current biodiversity patterns has been the focus of many recent phylogeographic studies. Here I explore multiple factors thought to have impacted the generation of local diversity in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest (AF) using two montane, stream-associated species of glassfrogs – V. eurygnatha and V. uranoscopa. I integrate species distribution modeling, path analysis, and molecular data to test the role of climatic stability, rivers, mountain chains, and geographic distance in …

Brownfield Action: Dissemination Of A Sencer Model Curriculum And The Creation Of A Collaborative Stem Education Network, Peter Bower, Ryan Kelsey, Joseph Liddicoat, Doug M. Thompson, Angelo Lampousis, Bret Bennington, Bess Greenbaum Seewald, Arthur D. Kney, Saugata Datta, Lawrence D. Lemke, Briane Sorice Miccio, Tamara Graham

Publications and Research

Brownfield Action (BA) is a web-based environmental site assessment (ESA) simulation in which students form geotechnical consulting companies and work together to solve problems in environmental forensics. Developed at Barnard College with the Columbia Center for New Media Teaching and Learning, BA has been disseminated to ten colleges, universities, and high schools, resulting in a collaborative network of educators. The experiences of current users are presented describing how they have incorporated the BA curriculum into their courses, as well as how BA affected teaching and learning. The experiences demonstrate that BA can be used in whole or in part, is …