Water Composition (water + composition)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Effect of water composition on phosphorus concentration in runoff and water-soluble phosphate in two grassland soils

EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SOIL SCIENCE, Issue 2 2006
M. Schärer
Summary Many irrigation experiments determine phosphorus (P) losses from soil. Often, these studies cannot be compared, because the irrigation water was not characterized. We used calcium-rich tap water and deionized water to investigate the influence of water composition on P concentrations in induced runoff. We irrigated two grassland sites: one acid and one calcareous. Less P was measured in runoff from tap water irrigation than from deionized water, especially for the acid soil. Batch experiments confirmed the findings of the field experiments. Tap water decreased water-soluble phosphate and increased calcium in the solid phase. This interaction increased with decreasing soil:water ratio. Water of low ionic strength gave results comparable to rainwater. Our findings demonstrate that solution chemistry and the soil:water ratio can strongly influence the availability of P for transport. We recommend that P tests or irrigation experiments should use water resembling that of the system of interest. Irrigation experiments aiming to simulate P losses by surface runoff should be carried out with water having a composition comparable to rainwater. [source]


Cubic-plus-association equation of state for water-containing mixtures: Is "cross association" necessary?

AICHE JOURNAL, Issue 7 2009
Zhidong Li
Abstract We have recently proposed an accurate version of the cubic-plus-association (CPA) equation of state (EOS) for water-containing mixtures which combines the Peng-Robinson equation (PR) for the physical interactions and the thermodynamic perturbation theory for the hydrogen bonding of water molecules. Despite the significant improvement, the water composition in the nonaqueous phase is systematically underestimated for some systems where the nonwater species are methane and ethane at very high pressures, unsaturated hydrocarbons, CO2, and H2S. We attribute the deficiency to the neglect of the "cross association" between water and those nonwater molecules. In this work, the accuracy is drastically improved by treating methane, ethane, unsaturated hydrocarbons, CO2 and H2S as "pseudo-associating" components and describing the cross association with water in the framework of the perturbation theory. It is shown that the cross association is more significant for the nonaqueous phase. In addition to binary mixtures, reliable predictions are achieved for H2O/C1/CO2/H2S quaternary mixture in two and three phases. © 2009 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2009 [source]


Matrimid®/MgO mixed matrix membranes for pervaporation

AICHE JOURNAL, Issue 7 2007
Lan Ying Jiang
Abstract For the first time, porous Magnesium oxide (MgO) particles have been applied to generate mixed matrix membranes (MMM) for the dehydration of iso-propanol by pervaporation. A modified membrane fabrication procedure has been developed to prepare membranes with higher separation efficiency. FESEM and DSC characterizations confirm that the MMMs produced have intimate polymer/particle interface; the nanosize crystallites on MgO surface may interfere with the polymer chain packing and induce chains rigidification upon the particle surface. It is observed that Matrimid®/MgO MMMs generally have higher selectivity, but lower permeability relative to the neat Matrimid® dense membrane. The highest selectivity is obtained with MMM containing 15 wt. % MgO. The selective sorption and diffusion of water in the MgO particles, and the polymer/particle interface properties combine to lead to the earlier phenomena. The investigation on the effect of feed water composition on the pervaporation performance reveals that the addition of MgO can show the selectivity-enhancing effects if the feed water concentration is lower than 30 wt. %. In the dehydration of isopropanol aqueous solution with 10 wt. % water, the selectivity of the MMMs is around 2,000, which is more than twice of 900 of neat polymeric membrane. This makes MMMs extremely suitable for breaking the azeotrops of water/iso-propanol. Gas permeation tests are also conducted using O2 and N2 to determine the microscopic structure of the MMMs, and to investigate the relationship between pervaporation and gas separation performance. © 2007 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2007 [source]


Trophic state, fish community and intensive production of salmonids in Alicura Reservoir (Patagonia, Argentina)

LAKES & RESERVOIRS: RESEARCH AND MANAGEMENT, Issue 4 2001
P. F. Temporetti
Abstract The Governments of the Provinces located in Patagonia, Argentina, promote the intensive breeding of salmonids in the Andean Patagonian region. Although annual production is low (450 ton ha,1 year,1), some effects are significant. Waste produced by salmonid breeding (feed losses, faeces and excretion) increases nutrient and organic matter concentrations, which cause modifications of water quality, sediments and biota. A consequent risk is the elevation of eutrophication levels. Possible changes in water composition, sediments, algae and wild fish populations were studied. Sites affected by fish farming showed increased nutrient concentration, and phytoplankton and periphyton biomass. Chlorophyll a was similar at both sites (affected and unaffected by fish farm sites). Sediments clearly reflect fish farm waste inputs: total phosphorus and organic matter increased 12-fold and fourfold, respectively. The species present in the gill-net catches were the autochthonous Percichthys trucha, Odontesthes hatcheri, Diplomystes viedmensis, and the introduced salmonids Oncorhynchus mykiss, Salmo trutta, Salmo salar sebago and Salvelinus fontinalis. About 50% of the total catch was salmonids. A major portion of the catch per unit weight was composed of rainbow trout, followed by perch. The catch per unit weight obtained for this reservoir agrees with the range of values previously determined (Quiros 1990) for Patagonian reservoirs. Compared with previous studies by Freyre et al. (1991), a variation in catch composition exists. This consists mainly of an increase in the numbers and condition of O. mykiss and a decrease in P. trucha. Presence of fish that escaped from hatcheries, recognizable by their eroded fins, was observed; particularly in a sampling station near the fish cage systems. Variations in catches could be caused by cyclical changes in fish populations (Wooton 1991), by direct and indirect effects of intensive fish farming, or by a combination of both events, and can only be understood through long-term studies of catch variation. [source]


Classification of hydrological regimes of northern floodplain basins (Peace,Athabasca Delta, Canada) from analysis of stable isotopes (,18O, ,2H) and water chemistry

HYDROLOGICAL PROCESSES, Issue 2 2007
Brent B. Wolfe
Abstract We used stable isotopes (,18O and ,2H) and water chemistry to characterize the water balance and hydrolimnological relationships of 57 shallow aquatic basins in the Peace-Athabasca Delta (PAD), northern Alberta, Canada, based on sampling at the end of the 2000 thaw season. Evaporation-to-inflow ratios (E/I) were estimated using an isotope mass-balance model tailored to accommodate basin-specific input water compositions, which provided an effective, first-order, quantitative framework for identifying water balances and associated limnological characteristics spanning three main, previously identified drainage types. Open-drainage basins (E/I < 0·4; n = 5), characterized by low alkalinity, low concentrations of nitrogen, dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and ions, and high minerogenic turbidity, include large, shallow basins that dominate the interior of the PAD and experience frequent or continuous river channel connection. Closed-drainage basins (E/I , 1·0; n = 16), in contrast, possess high alkalinity and high concentrations of nitrogen, DOC, and ions, and low minerogenic turbidity, and are located primarily in the relict and infrequently flooded landscape of the northern Peace sector of the delta. Several basins fall into the restricted-drainage category (0·4 # E/I < 1·0; n = 26) with intermediate water chemistries and are predominant in the southern Athabasca sector, which is subject to active fluviodeltaic processes, including intermittent flooding from riverbank overflow. Integration of isotopic and limnological data also revealed evidence for a new fourth drainage type, mainly located near the large open-drainage lakes that occupy the central portion of the delta but within the Athabasca sector (n = 10). These basins were very shallow (<50 cm deep) at the time of sampling and isotopically depleted, corresponding to E/I characteristic of restricted- and open-drainage conditions. However, they are limnologically similar to closed-drainage basins except for higher conductivity and higher concentrations of Ca2+ and Na+, and lower concentrations of SiO2 and chlorophyll c. These distinct features are due to the overriding influence of recent summer rainfall on the basin water balance and chemistry. The close relationships evident between water balances and limnological conditions suggest that past and future changes in hydrology are likely to be coupled with marked alterations in water chemistry and, hence, the ecology of aquatic environments in the PAD. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]