Environmental Chemistry Commons^™

Wildfire Emissions In The Context Of Global Change And The Implications For Mercury Pollution, Aditya Kumar

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Wildfires are episodic disturbances that exert a significant influence on the Earth system. They emit substantial amounts of atmospheric pollutants, which can impact atmospheric chemistry/composition and the Earth’s climate at the global and regional scales. This work presents a collection of studies aimed at better estimating wildfire emissions of atmospheric pollutants, quantifying their impacts on remote ecosystems and determining the implications of 2000s-2050s global environmental change (land use/land cover, climate) for wildfire emissions following the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) A1B socioeconomic scenario.

A global fire emissions model is developed to compile global wildfire emission inventories for major atmospheric …

Significance Of A Non-Thermal Plasma Treatment On Ldpe Biodegradation With Pseudomonas Aeruginosa, Laurence Scally, Miroslav Gulan, Lars Weigang, Vladimir Milosavljević, Patrick J. Cullen

Articles

The use of plastics has spanned across almost all aspects of day to day life. Although their uses are invaluable, they contribute to the generation of a lot of waste products that end up in the environment and end up polluting natural habitats such as forests and the ocean. By treating low-density polyethylene (LDPE) samples with non-thermal plasma in ambient air and with an addition of ≈4% CO2, the biodegradation of the samples can be increased due to an increase in oxidative species causing better cell adhesion and acceptance on the polymer sample surface. It was, however, found that the …

Evaluation Of Heavy- And Medium-Duty On-Road Vehicle Emissions In California's South Coast Air Basin, Molly J. Haugen, Gary A. Bishop, Arvind Thiruvengadam, Daniel K. Carder

Fuel Efficiency Automobile Test Publications

Emission measurements were collected from heavy-duty (HDVs) and medium-duty vehicles (MDVs) at the Peralta weigh station long-term measurement site near Anaheim, CA in 2017. Two Fuel Efficiency Automobile Test units sampled elevated and ground-level exhaust vehicles totaling 2,315 measurements. HDVs (1844 measurements) exhibited historical reductions in fuel specific oxides of nitrogen (NO_x) from the 2008 measurements (55%) with increased use of exhaust gas recirculation and selective catalytic reduction systems. However, as these technologies have aged, the in-use benefits have declined. Infrared %opacity measurements of tailpipe soot decreased 14% since 2012 with increased diesel particulate filter (DPF) use, DPF …

Revisit Lynwood, Ca: On-Road Remote Sensing Of Automobile Emissions In The Lynwood, Ca: 2018, Gary A. Bishop

Fuel Efficiency Automobile Test Publications

No abstract provided.

Investigate The Durability Of Diesel Engine Emission Controls, Gary A. Bishop, Molly J. Haugen

Fuel Efficiency Automobile Test Publications

No abstract provided.

On-Road Remote Sensing Of Automobile Emissions In The Tulsa Area: Fall 2017, Gary A. Bishop

Fuel Efficiency Automobile Test Publications

No abstract provided.

On-Road Remote Sensing Of Heavy And Medium-Duty Trucks At The Peralta Weigh Station In The South Coast Air Basin: Spring 2017, Molly J. Haugen, Gary A. Bishop

Fuel Efficiency Automobile Test Publications

No abstract provided.

Evaluation Of Emissions Benefits Of Federal Reformulated Gasoline Versus Conventional Gasoline, Gary A. Bishop, S. Kent Hoekman, Amber Broch

Fuel Efficiency Automobile Test Publications

No abstract provided.

On-Road Remote Sensing Of Automobile Emissions In The Denver Area: Winter 2017, Gary A. Bishop, Molly J. Haugen

Fuel Efficiency Automobile Test Publications

No abstract provided.

The Story Of Ever Diminishing Vehicle Tailpipe Emissions As Observed In The Chicago, Il Area, Gary A. Bishop, Molly J. Haugen

Fuel Efficiency Automobile Test Publications

The University of Denver has collected on-road fuel specific vehicle emissions measurements in the Chicago area since 1989. This nearly 30 year record illustrates the large reductions in light-duty vehicle tailpipe emissions and the remarkable improvements in emissions control durability to maintain low emissions over increasing periods of time. Since 1989 fuel specific carbon monoxide (CO) emissions have been reduced by an order of magnitude and hydrocarbon (HC) emissions by more than a factor of 20. Nitric oxide (NO) emissions have only been collected since 1997 but have seen reductions of 79%. This has increased the skewness of the emissions …

Long-Term Fuel-Specific Nox And Particle Emission Trends For In-Use Heavy-Duty Vehicles In California, Molly J. Haugen, Gary A. Bishop

Fuel Efficiency Automobile Test Publications

Two California heavy-duty fleets have been measured in 2013, 2015 and 2017 using the On-road Heavy-duty Measurement System. The Port of Los Angeles drayage fleet has increased in age by 3.3 model years (4.2 to 7.5 years old) since 2013, with little fleet turnover. Large increases in fuel specific particle emissions (PM) observed in 2015 were reversed in 2017, returning to near 2013 levels, suggesting repairs and or removal of high emitting vehicles. Fuel specific oxides of nitrogen (NO_x) emissions of this fleet have increased and NO_x after-treatment systems do not appear to perform ideally in this …

Testing The Underlying Chemical Principles Of The Biotic Ligand Model (Blm) To Marine Copper Systems: Measuring Copper Speciation Using Fluorescence Quenching, Tara N. Tait, James C. Mcgeer, Scott Smith

Chemistry Faculty Publications

Speciation of copper in marine systems strongly influences the ability of copper to cause toxicity. Natural organic matter (NOM) contains many binding sites which provides a protective effect on copper toxicity. The purpose of this study was to characterize copper binding with NOM using fluorescence quenching techniques. Fluorescence quenching of NOM with copper was performed on nine sea water samples. The resulting stability con- stants and binding capacities were consistent with literature values of marine NOM, show- ing strong binding with log K values from 7.64 to 10.2 and binding capacities ranging from 15 to 3110 nmole mg C ^{−1 …}

Multivariate Statistical Analyses Of Air Pollutants And Meteorology In Chicago During Summers 2010–2012, Katrina Binaku, Martina Schmeling

Chemistry: Faculty Publications and Other Works

Aerosol, trace gas, and meteorological data were collected in Chicago, Illinois during 2010–2012 summer air studies. Ozone, nitrogen oxides, acetate, formate, chloride, nitrate, sulfate, and oxalate concentrations as well as temperature, wind speed, wind direction, and humidity data were explored by both principal component analysis (PCA) and canonical correlation analysis (CCA). Multivariate statistical techniques were applied to uncover existing relationships between meteorology and air pollutant concentrations and also reduce data dimensions.

In PCA, principal components (PC) revealed a relationship of ozone and nitrate concentrations with respect to temperature and humidity, coupled with transport of species from the south in relation …

Tunable Copper Complexes For Sustainable Photocatalysis, David Kline

Posters-at-the-Capitol

Photoredox catalysis has direct applications in sustainable chemistry and thus an immense impact on our environment. With the ability to harness energy directly from the sun to catalyze useful chemical reactions, photocatalysts can help to eliminate the need for harsh reaction conditions and reduce generation of hazardous chemical waste. Photocatalysts based on Earth-abundant metals such as copper have recently emerged as sustainable alternatives to rare-earth metals including iridium and ruthenium, which are no longer required for many photocatalyzed chemical transformations.

No Evidence For Trace Metal Limitation On Anaerobic Carbon Mineralization In Three Peatland Soils, Jason K. Keller, Jillian Wade

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Peatlands store roughly one-third of the terrestrial soil carbon and release the potent greenhouse gas methane (CH₄) to the atmosphere, making these wetlands among the most important ecosystems in the global carbon cycle. Despite their importance, the controls of anaerobic decomposition of organic matter to carbon dioxide (CO₂) and CH₄ within peatlands are not well understood. It is known, however, that the enzymes responsible for CH₄ production require cobalt, iron and nickel, and there is a growing appreciation for the potential role of trace metal limitation in anaerobic decomposition. To explore the possibility of …

Hydrogeochemical Investigation Of Recharge Pathways To Intermediate And Regional Groundwater In Cañon De Valle And Technical Area 16, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Brendan W. Brady

Civil Engineering ETDs

In aquifers consisting of fractured or porous igneous rocks, as well as conglomerate and sandstone products of volcanic formations, silicate minerals actively dissolve and precipitate (Eby, 2004; Eriksson, 1985; Drever, 1982). Dissolution of hydrated volcanic glass is also known to influence the character of groundwater to which it is exposed (White et al., 1980). Hydrochemical evolution, within saturated zones of volcanic formations, is modeled here as a means to resolve the sources feeding a perched groundwater zone. By observation of solute mass balances in groundwater, together with rock chemistry, this study characterizes the chemical weathering processes active along recharge pathways …

Wake Up Barren Soil! Improving Enzymatic Function Of Contaminated Soils, Nina M. Goodey

Sustainability Seminar Series

A legacy of industrial use in metropolitan areas has left many soils contaminated with heavy metals and organic compounds. In some impacted soils, contaminants have altered the soils’ properties and ability to function. Soil microorganisms exude enzymes that break down nutrients, helping to nourish microorganisms and plants. Productive soils are often characterized by high enzymatic activities that are needed to convert decaying matter to plant nutrients. In soils where enzymatic function is low or nonexistent, plants may lack nutrients and fail to thrive. This case-study focuses on such a site within Liberty State Park in Jersey City, NJ, a brownfield …

Unmanned Aerial Systems For Monitoring Trace Tropospheric Gases, Travis J. Schuyler, Marcelo I. Guzman

Chemistry Faculty Publications

The emission of greenhouse gases (GHGs) has changed the composition of the atmosphere during the Anthropocene. Accurately documenting the sources and magnitude of GHGs emission is an important undertaking for discriminating the contributions of different processes to radiative forcing. Currently there is no mobile platform that is able to quantify trace gases at altitudes(UASs) can be deployed on-site in minutes and can support the payloads necessary to quantify trace gases. Therefore, current efforts combine the use of UASs available on the civilian market with inexpensively designed analytical systems for monitoring atmospheric trace gases. In this context, this perspective introduces the …

Investigating Potential Pollutant Sources Causing Lack Of Biodiversity In Lytle Creek And Indian Run, Audrey E. Mcgowin, Amira Alsenbel, Harry Mcvey, Lori Williams, Taylor Stuckert

Chemistry Faculty Publications

This report describes the results of research performed with funds from the Sture Fredrik Anliot Grant Fund granted in March 2016 and the Wright State University College of Science and Mathematics. The title of the grant was “Lytle Creek and Indian Run Sediment and Water Pollution Assessment” and its primary aim was to identify and measure pollutants that could be causing a lack of biodiversity in Lytle Creek in Wilmington, OH. The project formed the basis of Amira Alsenbel’s Masters in Chemistry thesis research.

Dietary Transfer Of Heavy Metals In Manatees, E. M. Smith, Dimitri Giarikos, A. Daniels, Amy Hirons

Chemistry and Physics Faculty Proceedings, Presentations, Speeches, Lectures

In recent decades, manatees and dugongs globally have exhibited potentially detrimental levels of a variety of heavy metals in their body tissues. The threatened Florida manatee (Trichechus manatus latirostris), which is a subspecies of the West Indian manatee (Trichechus manatus), has shown corresponding high levels of heavy metals in their blood, skin, liver, and kidneys. As obligate herbivores, these animals rely heavily upon seagrasses as a major component of their diet. Globally, seagrasses at low latitudes have high levels of heavy metals in their tissues. Detrimental levels of heavy metals in Sirenians have not been established …