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Mixed Layer (mixed + layer)
Kinds of Mixed Layer Selected AbstractsHigh vertical and low horizontal diversity of Prochlorococcus ecotypes in the Mediterranean Sea in summerFEMS MICROBIOLOGY ECOLOGY, Issue 2 2007Laurence Garczarek Abstract Natural populations of the marine cyanobacterium Prochlorococcus exist as two main ecotypes, inhabiting different layers of the ocean's photic zone. These so-called high light- (HL-) and low light (LL-) adapted ecotypes are both physiologically and genetically distinct. HL strains can be separated into two major clades (HLI and HLII), whereas LL strains are more diverse. Here, we used several molecular techniques to study the genetic diversity of natural Prochlorococcus populations during the Prosope cruise in the Mediterranean Sea in the summer of 1999. Using a dot blot hybridization technique, we found that HLI was the dominant HL group and was confined to the upper mixed layer. In contrast, LL ecotypes were only found below the thermocline. Secondly, a restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis of PCR-amplified pcb genes (encoding the major light-harvesting proteins of Prochlorococcus) suggested that there were at least four genetically different ecotypes, occupying distinct but overlapping light niches in the photic zone. At comparable depths, similar banding patterns were observed throughout the sampled area, suggesting a horizontal homogenization of ecotypes. Nevertheless, environmental pcb gene sequences retrieved from different depths at two stations proved all different at the nucleotide level, suggesting a large genetic microdiversity within those ecotypes. [source] Bacteria in the cold deep-sea benthic boundary layer and sediment,water interface of the NE AtlanticFEMS MICROBIOLOGY ECOLOGY, Issue 2 2000Carol Turley Abstract This is a short review of the current understanding of the role of microorganisms in the biogeochemistry in the deep-sea benthic boundary layer (BBL) and sediment,water interface (SWI) of the NE Atlantic, the gaps in our knowledge and some suggestions of future directions. The BBL is the layer of water, often tens of meters thick, adjacent to the sea bed and with homogenous properties of temperature and salinity, which sometimes contains resuspended detrital particles. The SWI is the bioreactive interface between the water column and the upper 1 cm of sediment and can include a large layer of detrital material composed of aggregates that have sedimented from the upper mixed layer of the ocean. This material is biologically transformed, over a wide range of time scales, eventually forming the sedimentary record. To understand the microbial ecology of deep-sea bacteria, we need to appreciate the food supply in the upper ocean, its packaging, passage and transformation during the delivery to the sea bed, the seasonality of variability of the supply and the environmental conditions under which the deep-sea bacteria grow. We also need to put into a microbial context recent geochemical findings of vast reservoirs of intrinsically labile organic material sorped onto sediments. These may well become desorped, and once again available to microorganisms, during resuspension events caused by deep ocean currents. As biotechnologists apply their tools in the deep oceans in search of unique bacteria, an increasing knowledge and understanding of the natural processes undertaken and environmental conditions experienced by deep-sea bacteria will facilitate this exploitation. [source] The importance of episodic weather events to the ecosystem of the Bering Sea shelfFISHERIES OCEANOGRAPHY, Issue 2 2005NICHOLAS A. BOND Abstract Climate variability on decadal time scales is generally recognized to influence high-latitude marine populations. Our recent work in studying air,sea interactions in the Bering Sea suggests that interannual to decadal climate variability is important through its modulation of the frequencies and magnitudes of weather events on intraseasonal time scales. We hypothesize that it is these weather events that directly impact the marine ecosystem of the Bering Sea shelf. The linkages between the event-scale weather and the ecosystem are illustrated with three examples: walleye pollock (Theragra chalcogramma), Tanner crabs (Chionoecetes bairdi), and coccolithophorid phytoplankton (Emiliania huxleyi). We hypothesize that the strong recruitment of walleye pollock that occurred in 1978, 1982, and 1996 can be attributed in part due to the seasonably strong storms that occurred in the early summer of those years. These storms caused greater than normal mixing of nutrients into the euphotic zone which presumably led to sustained primary productivity after the spring bloom and, possibly, enhanced prey concentrations for pollock larvae and their competitors. Recruitment of Tanner crab was particularly strong for the 1981 and 1984 year-classes. These years had periods of prominent east wind anomalies along the Alaska Peninsula during the previous winter. Such winds promote flow through Unimak Pass, and hence an enhanced flux of nutrient-rich water onto the shelf. This mechanism may have ultimately resulted in favorable feeding conditions for Tanner crab larvae. Finally, an unprecedented coccolithophorid bloom occurred over the Bering Sea shelf in the summer of 1997. This summer featured lighter winds and greater insolation than usual after a spring that included a very strong May storm. This combination brought about a warm, nutrient-poor upper mixed layer by mid-summer. This provided a competitive advantage for coccolithophorid phytoplankton in 1997 and to a lesser extent in 1998. Unusually high concentrations of coccolithophores persisted for the following two years although physical environmental conditions did not remain favorable. While slow variations in the overall aspects of the physical environment may be important for setting the stage, we propose that the significant multi-year adjustments in the marine ecosystem of the Bering Sea shelf are more directly caused by major air,sea interaction events on intraseasonal time scales. [source] The effects of diel changes in circulation and mixing on the longitudinal distribution of phytoplankton in a canyon-shaped Mediterranean reservoirFRESHWATER BIOLOGY, Issue 9 2010JAVIER VIDAL Summary 1. The near-surface distribution of phytoplankton cells along the thalweg of a canyon-shaped reservoir (El Gergal, southern Spain) during two surveys is described and interpreted as the result of time-varying large-scale circulation patterns, vertical mixing processes and the physiological capacity of algal cells to regulate its position in the water column. 2. Vertical gradients of chlorophyll-a concentration developed in the water column during the day but disappeared at night, as a result of the shoaling and deepening of the diurnal mixed layer (dml). The changes in the depth of the dml are largely controlled in El Gergal by convectively driven mixing processes. The longitudinal circulation changes, in turn, as a result of weak and diurnal land-sea breezes. The distribution of algal cells was patchy at all times but did not change during any of the surveys. 3. An expression is proposed to estimate time scales for the development of horizontal patchiness TP based on simple concepts of transport. It is shown that TP is in the order of a week, indicating that horizontal patchiness does not respond immediately to hourly changes in the controlling factors. The magnitude of TP, though, depends on how the vertical distribution of chlorophyll-a and longitudinal currents change on subdiurnal time scales. In particular, TP is sensitive to the lag existing between the momentum and heat fluxes through the free surface, driving circulation and vertical mixing. [source] Phytoplankton production and growth rate in Lake Tanganyika: evidence of a decline in primary productivity in recent decadesFRESHWATER BIOLOGY, Issue 11 2007STEPHANE STENUITE Summary 1. This study focused on phytoplankton production in Lake Tanganyika. We provide new estimates of daily and annual primary production, as well as growth rates of phytoplankton, and we compare them with values published in former studies. 2. Chlorophyll- a (chl- a) in the mixed layer ranged from 5 to 120 mg chl- a m,2 and varied significantly between rainy and dry seasons. Particulate organic carbon concentrations were significantly higher in the south basin (with 196 and 166 mg C m,3 in the dry and the rainy season, respectively) than in the north basin (112 and 109 mg C m,3, respectively). 3. Carbon : phosphorus (C : P) ratios varied according to season. Phosphorus limitation seemed to occur more frequently than nitrogen limitation, especially during the rainy season. Severe P deficiencies were rare. 4. Measured particulate daily primary production ranged from 110 to 1410 mg C m,2 day,1; seasonal contrasts were well marked in the north basin, but less in the south basin, where primary production peaks occurred also in the rainy season. Estimates of annual primary production, based on daily primary production calculated from chl- a and water transparency, gave values lower than those reported in previous studies. Picophytoplankton accounted on average for 56% of total particulate production in the south basin during the wet season of 2003. 5. Phytoplankton growth rates, calculated from primary production, ranged from 0.055 to 0.282 day,1; these are lower than previously published values for Lake Tanganyika. [source] Photoheterotrophy and light-dependent uptake of organic and organic nitrogenous compounds by Planktothrix rubescens under low irradianceFRESHWATER BIOLOGY, Issue 10 2003Tatiana Zotina Summary 1. Planktothrix rubescens is the dominant photoautotrophic organism in Lake Zürich, a prealpine, deep, mesotrophic freshwater lake with an oxic hypolimnion. Over long periods of the year, P. rubescens accumulates at the metalimnion and growth occurs in situ at irradiance near the photosynthesis compensation point. Experiments were conducted to evaluate the contribution of photoheterotrophy, heterotrophy and light-dependent uptake of nitrogenous organic compounds to the carbon and nitrogen budget of this cyanobacterium under conditions of restricted availability of light quanta. 2. We used both purified natural populations of P. rubescens from the depth of 9 m and an axenic culture grown under low irradiance at 11 ,mol m,2 s,1 on a light : dark cycle (10 : 14 h) to determine the uptake rates of various amino acids, urea, glucose, fructose, acetate and inorganic carbon. The components were added to artificial lake water in low amounts that simulated the naturally occurring potential concentrations. 3. The uptake rates of acetate and amino acids (glycine, serine, glutamate and aspartate) were strongly enhanced at low irradiance as compared with the dark. However, no difference was observed in the uptake of arginine, which was taken up at high rates under both treatments. The uptake rates of glucose, fructose and urea were very low under all conditions. Similar results were obtained for both axenic P. rubescens and for purified natural populations of P. rubescens that were separated from bacterioplankton and other phytoplankton. 4. Metalimnetic P. rubescens that was stratified at low irradiance for weeks exhibited much higher uptake rates than filaments that were entrained in the deepening surface mixed layer and experienced higher irradiance. The added organic compounds contributed up to 62% to the total carbon uptake of metalimnetic P. rubescens. On the basis of a molar C : N ratio of 4.9, the nitrogen uptake as organic compounds satisfied up to 84% of the nitrogen demand. 5. The experiments indicate that photoheterotrophy and light-dependent uptake of nitrogenous organic compounds may contribute significantly to the carbon and nitrogen budget of filaments at low irradiance typical for growth of P. rubescens in the metalimnion and at the bottom of the surface mixed layer. [source] Morphology Control in Solution-Processed Bulk-Heterojunction Solar Cell MixturesADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS, Issue 19 2009Adam J. Moulé Abstract The efficiency of bulk-heterojunction solar cells is very sensitive to the nanoscale structure of the active layer. In the past, the final morphology in solution-processed devices has been controlled by varying the casting solvent and by curing the layer using heat tempering or solvent soaking. A recipe for making the "best-performing" morphology can be achieved using these steps. This article presents a review of several new techniques that have been developed to control the morphology in polymer/fullerene heterojunction mixtures. The techniques fall into two broad categories. First, the morphology can be controlled by preparing nanoparticle suspensions of one component. The size and shape of the nanoparticles in solution determine the size and shape of the domain in a mixed layer. Second, the morphology can be controlled by adding a secondary solvent or an additive that more strongly affects one component of the mixture during drying. In both cases, the as-cast efficiency of the solar cell is improved with respect to the single-solvent case, which strongly argues that morphology control is an issue that will receive increasing attention in future research. [source] Organic Infrared Upconversion DeviceADVANCED MATERIALS, Issue 20 2010Do Young Kim Novel infrared-to-visible light upconversion devices are demonstrated by fabricating an organic light-emitting diode with an infrared-sensitizing layer. With a SnPc:C60 mixed layer as an infrared absorber and fac-tris(2-phenylpyridinato) iridium (III) (Irppy3) as an emitter, an infrared-to-green up-conversion device is demonstrated under 830-nm irradiation (see figure, ITO=indium tin oxide). The maximum photon-to-photon conversion efficiency is 2.7% at 15V. [source] Causes of variability in the summertime Antarctic boundary-layer climateINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CLIMATOLOGY, Issue 13 2007Dirk van As Abstract A high-resolution one-dimensional atmospheric model is used to assess the contribution of various surface characteristics and external forcings on the structure and dynamics of the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) over the Antarctic Plateau in summer. The reference run simulates the boundary layer over a mildly sloping surface (1.5 m km,1) for a clear sky near the end of the Antarctic summer (31 January-3 February). The ABL depth is approximately 100 m. At night, a low-level jet forms due to the combined effect of katabatic forcing and an inertial oscillation. During the day a convective mixed layer is present. As expected, the ABL is very sensitive to surface slope; a larger slope forces higher wind speeds and a deeper boundary layer. Over a horizontal surface, a nocturnal jet is also found as a result of the inertial oscillation. A modest change in surface albedo alters the mixed-layer temperature and the height and strength of the nocturnal jet considerably. Rotating the large-scale wind relative to the slope direction also has a large impact on ABL depth and structure. The deepest boundary layer and largest wind speed over a northward down-sloping surface are found for an easterly (cross slope) large-scale wind, as is typical for Antarctica. A very shallow ABL with low wind speed is found for the opposite large-scale wind direction. ABL sensitivity to surface roughness was found to be small. For all experiments, the ABL sensitivity is enhanced due to the positive feedback between the cooling of the ABL and katabatic wind speed. Copyright © 2007 Royal Meteorological Society [source] Effect of mating surface on the high temperature wear of 253 MA alloyMATERIALS AND CORROSION/WERKSTOFFE UND KORROSION, Issue 4 2004M. Roy Abstract The wear behaviour of metallic material is influenced by the friction force, which in turn, is governed by the hardness and oxidation kinetics of the mating surface. In view of this, present investigation is undertaken to find the influence of mating surface on the high temperature wear of 253 MA alloy. This alloy is developed for high temperature application. In this work 253 MA alloy is made to slide against two different types of counter face material, namely 100Cr6 steel and PM 1000 alloy, at five different temperatures. 100Cr6 steel gets soften with increase of temperature whereas PM 1000 alloy retains its strength even at high temperature. The friction coefficient and the thickness loss of 253 MA alloy is measured and compared against both variety of mating surfaces as function of temperatures. The morphology of the worn surfaces and the transverse section of the worn surfaces are examined under scanning electron microscope (SEM) to identify the material removal mechanisms. The results showed that the friction coefficient of test material against PM 1000 alloy is around 40% higher than the friction coefficient against 100Cr6 steel. The transverse section of the worn surface showed presence of a transfer layer, mechanically mixed layer and composite layer, which govern the wear behaviour particularly at elevated temperature. The chemical characteristics of these layers are dependent on the test temperature and the counter face material. [source] Impact of Solar Ultraviolet Radiation on Marine Phytoplankton of Patagonia, Argentina,PHOTOCHEMISTRY & PHOTOBIOLOGY, Issue 4 2005E. Walter Helbling ABSTRACT Patagonia area is located in close proximity to the Antarctic ozone "hole" and thus receives enhanced ultraviolet B (UV-B) radiation (280,315 nm) in addition to the normal levels of ultraviolet A (UV-A; 315,400 nm) and photosynthetically available radiation (PAR; 400-700 nm). In marine ecosystems of Patagonia, normal ultraviolet radiation (UVR) levels affect phytoplankton assemblages during the three phases of the annual succession: (1) prebloom season (late summer-fall), (2) bloom season (winter-early spring) and (3) postbloom season (late spring-summer). Small-size cells characterize the pre-and postbloom communities, which have a relatively high photosynthetic inhibition because of high UVR levels during those seasons. During the bloom, characterized by micro-plankton diatoms, photosynthetic inhibition is low because of the low UVR levels reaching the earth's surface during winter; this community, however, is more sensitive to UV-B when inhibition is normalized by irradiance (i.e. biological weighting functions). In situ studies have shown that UVR significantly affects not only photosynthesis but also the DNA molecule, but these negative effects are rapidly reduced in the water column because of the differential attenuation of solar radiation. UVR also affects photosynthesis versus irradiance (P vs E) parameters of some natural phytoplankton assemblages (i.e. during the pre- but not during the postbloom season). However, there is a significant temporal variability of P vs E parameters, which are influenced by the nutrient status of cells and taxonomic composition; taxonomic composition is in turn associated with the stratification conditions (e.g. wind speed and duration). In Patagonia, wind speed is one of the most important variables that conditions the development of the winter bloom by regulating the depth of the upper mixed layer (UML) and hence the mean irradiance received by cells. Studies on the interactive effects of UVR and mixing show that responses of phytoplankton vary according to the taxonomic composition and cell structure of assemblages; therefore cells use UVR if >90% of the euphotic zone is being mixed. In fact, cell size plays a very important role when estimating the impact of UVR on phytoplankton, with large cells being more sensitive when determining photosynthesis inhibition, whereas small cells are more sensitive to DNA damage. Finally, in long-term experiments, it was determined that UVR can shape the diatom community structure in some assemblages of coastal waters, but it is virtually unknown how these changes affect the trophody-namics of marine systems. Future studies should consider the combined effects of UVR on both phytoplankton and grazers to establish potential changes in biodiversity of the area. [source] Damage to DNA in Bacterioplankton: A Model of Damage by Ultraviolet Radiation and its Repair as Influenced by Vertical Mixing ,PHOTOCHEMISTRY & PHOTOBIOLOGY, Issue 1 2000Yannick Huot ABSTRACT A model of UV-induced DNA damage in oceanic bacterioplankton was developed and tested against previously published and novel measurements of cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers (CPD) in surface layers of the ocean. The model describes the effects of solar irradiance, wind-forced mixing of bacterioplankton and optical properties of the water on net DNA damage in the water column. The biological part includes the induction of CPD by UV radiation and repair of this damage through photoreactivation and excision. The modeled damage is compared with measured variability of CPD in the ocean: diel variation in natural bacterioplankton communities at the surface and in vertical profiles under different wind conditions (net damage as influenced by repair and mixing); in situ incubation of natural assemblages of bacterioplankton (damage and repair, no mixing); and in situ incubation of DNA solutions (no repair, no mixing). The model predictions are generally consistent with the measurements, showing similar patterns with depth, time and wind speed. A sensitivity analysis assesses the effect on net DNA damage of varying ozone thickness, colored dissolved organic matter concentration, chlorophyll concentration, wind speed and mixed layer depth. Ozone thickness and mixed layer depth are the most important factors affecting net DNA damage in the mixed layer. From the model, the total amplification factor (TAF; a relative measure of the increase of damage associated with a decrease in ozone thickness) for net DNA damage in the euphotic zone is 1.7, as compared with 2.1,2.2 for irradiance weighted for damage to DNA at the surface. [source] Layer Inversion and Bed Contraction in Down-Flow Binary-Solid Liquid-Fluidized BedsTHE CANADIAN JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL ENGINEERING, Issue 1 2007R. Escudié Abstract Experiments were carried out on downward-flow water-fluidized binary mixture of spheres selected for possible layer inversion. With the two binaries tested (relatively high-density large particles mixed with lower-density smaller particles), only one of the five possible steps of the layer inversion progression was clearly identified for the higher liquid velocities, a mixed layer being observed at the top of the column close to the distributor. This layer manifested a bed contraction so large that its bulk density was lower than those of its constituent mono-components at the same liquid velocity, which determined its location within the column. The voidage of the mixed layer could be predicted with good accuracy (<0.7%) by regression of the Westman packed bed equation with one adjustable parameter. Des expériences ont été menées sur un mélange binaire fluidisé par de l'eau et à écoulement descendant, comprenant des sphères sélectionnées pour une inversion possible des couches. Avec les deux binaires testées (de grosses particules de masse volumique relativement élevée mélangées à de petites particules de faible masse volumique), seulement une des cinq étapes possibles menant à l'inversion des couches est clairement identifiée pour les vitesses de liquide les plus élevées, une couche mixte étant observée dans la partie supérieure de la colonne près du distributeur. Cette couche montre une contraction du lit si grande que sa masse volumique globale est plus faible que celle de ses composants individuels constitutifs à la même vitesse de liquide, ce qui détermine sa position dans la colonne. Le degré de vide de la couche mixte a pu être prédit avec une bonne précision (<0,7%) en effectuant une régression sur l'équation de lit garni de Westman avec un paramètre ajustable. [source] Variance scaling in shallow-cumulus-topped mixed layersTHE QUARTERLY JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL METEOROLOGICAL SOCIETY, Issue 628 2007R. A. J. Neggers Abstract Scaling of thermodynamic variance in shallow-cumulus-topped mixed layers is studied using large-eddy simulation (LES). First, the performance of the top-down scaling (the turbulent flux at mixed-layer top divided by w*) is evaluated for transient shallow-cumulus convection over land. The results indicate that this scaling fails to capture all the variance in the top half of the mixed layer when shallow cumulus clouds are present. A variance-budget analysis is then performed, to derive a new scaling for the variance at mixed-layer top, which differs from the standard top-down scaling by a factor of one Richardson number. The essential new features of the proposed scaling are that the local vertical gradient is retained and that a balance is assumed between gradient production of variance and removal by transport and dissipation, using an adjustment time-scale given by w*/h. Evaluation against LES for a range of different cases, including a dry convective boundary layer as well as steady-state marine and transient continental shallow cumulus, reveals a data-collapse of the newly-scaled variance, for all hours and all cases in the top half of the mixed layer. The corresponding vertical structure is shown to resemble a power-law function. The results suggest that the structure of variance in the dry convective boundary layer is similar to that in the sub-cloud mixed layer. In transient situations, the scaling reproduces the time-development of variance at sub-cloud mixed-layer top. The new cloud-base variance scale is then further interpreted in the context of statistical cloud schemes, which depend on the variance as the second moment of the associated probability density function. The results suggest that the area fraction of the moist convective thermals uniquely depends on the ratio of cloud-base transition-layer depth to sub-cloud mixed-layer depth. This puts ,valve'- or ventilation-type closures for the cloud-base mass flux in the context of the variance budget for the sub-cloud layer. Copyright © 2007 Royal Meteorological Society [source] Atlantic air,sea interaction and seasonal predictabilityTHE QUARTERLY JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL METEOROLOGICAL SOCIETY, Issue 583 2002M. J. Rodwell Abstract We analyse patterns of North Atlantic air,sea interaction in observations and model output throughout the annual cycle with the dual aims of validating natural variability in climate models, and quantifying seasonal predictability of the atmosphere and of ocean surface temperatures. The Met Office's HadCM3 coupled ocean,atmosphere model is shown to represent well the atmospheric forcing of sea surface temperature (SST) in the North Atlantic region through the action of latent-heat fluxes. Winter ocean temperature anomalies in both observations and model appear to be preserved below the shallow summer mixed layer and to re-emerge in the following autumn. We find observational evidence from the last half of the twentieth century for SST forcing of the atmospheric circulation in the North Atlantic region. Results validate our atmospheric model (HadAM2b) and confirm the levels of potential predictability of the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) that have been found in recent modelling studies. We suggest that the ultimate correlation skill of a winter NAO hindcast in this period is in the range 0.45 to 0.63. Analysis of observational and atmospheric model data from the first half of the twentieth century identifies very little predictability of the winter NAO. We suggest that the change in seasonal predictability is genuine and may be related to the strength of decadal oscillations. The ocean,atmosphere model, which incorporates a different atmospheric component (HadAM3), fails to show a causal link between North Atlantic temperatures and the atmospheric circulation even during periods where low-frequency variability is as strong as in the recent observations. A brief observational investigation suggests that any implied predictability of the winter NAO based on a knowledge of South Atlantic SSTs depends on the existence of secular trends in the data. Tropical Pacific SSTs appear to influence the winter climate of the North Atlantic region, but not via trends in the NAO. © Crown copyright, 2002. [source] Turbulent length-scales in the marine atmospheric mixed layerTHE QUARTERLY JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL METEOROLOGICAL SOCIETY, Issue 566 2000P. Durand Abstract The spectra of turbulence signals can be characterized by several independent scales. To provide a parametrization of these spectra requires knowledge of the relationships between these scales. This paper focuses on three independent scales: the integral scale (which is influenced by the low-frequency behaviour of the spectra); the wavelength of the spectrum peak (which characterizes the energy-containing domain); and the dissipation scale (which is relevant for the inertial subrange). First, we present definitions of these various scales, and the possible relationships between them. The profiles of the scales were computed from airborne measurements made in the atmospheric mixed layer over the open ocean, in a region where horizontal homogeneity can be assumed, at least for several tens of km. Furthermore, the diurnal cycle being very weak in this oceanic area, and aircraft moving at high speed through the air mass, stationarity is well verified on the runs, and Taylor's hypothesis may be used. The meteorological conditions correspond to a slightly unstable mixed layer, with weak to moderate winds. In a first part, we analyse the integral scales of various parameters on a 180-km run and demonstrate that these parameters cannot be computed with any soundness from horizontal-wind, temperature and moisture signals, because of the continuous increase in the spectral energy when moving towards lower frequencies. For the same reasons, the spectrum peak and the corresponding wavelength cannot be determined for these parameters. The computation of the integral and energy-containing scale is therefore restricted to the vertical velocity, and to the various covariances. The turbulence field is characterized by a stretching of the eddies along the mean wind direction which results in greater integral and energy-containing scales (but not in greater dissipation scales) when computed for along-wind runs than for the cross-wind runs. The profiles of the various scales increase with altitude and are well defined in the lower half of the mixed layer, but are much more scattered in the upper half. This behaviour is related to the source of turbulence, which lies in the surface buoyancy flux in the lower half of the mixed layer, and comes from higher altitude sources in the upper half. The integral scales have values comparable with those found in previous work, except for parameters related to temperature fluctuations, which have lower values. The ratio of the energy-containing scale to the integral scale, which determines the sharpness of the ,spectral knee', varies considerably from one parameter to another, and sometimes with altitude. This demonstrates that a single unique parametrization cannot be defined for turbulence spectra. As a consequence, the eddy-exchange coefficients, which depend on a characteristic length-scale, should vary from one parameter to another. This would then have to be taken into account in model parametrization based on mixing length-scales. [source] The role of mineralogy, geochemistry and grain size in badland development in Pisticci (Basilicata, southern Italy)EARTH SURFACE PROCESSES AND LANDFORMS, Issue 7 2007V. Summa Abstract Mineralogical, geochemical and grain-size composition of soil and pore-water chemistry parameters were characterized on both eroded (south-facing) and non-eroded (north-facing) clayey-silt slopes in the Basilicata region (southern Italy). Only a few grain-size parameters and clay mineralogy discriminate eroded from non-eroded substrates. Compared with the latter, the former have fractions of over 63 µm and 1,4 µm lower and fractions 4,63 µm higher. Grain-size characters of crusts did not discriminate with respect to substrate. Bulk rock mineralogy was not distinctive, but the clay mineral assemblage shows that the eroded slope is enriched in kaolinite, mixed layers (illite,smectite) and chlorite, whereas illite decreases, although overlaps are common. Chemical data enable discrimination between eroded and non-eroded slopes. pH, SAR (sodium adsorption ratio), TDS (total dissolved salts) and PS (percentage of sodium) are distinctive parameters for both eroded and non-eroded slopes. TDS increases in depth in the non-eroded slope, whereas the maximum TDS is just below the crust in the eroded one. On average, eroded substrates are higher in pH, SAR and PS than non-eroded ones. The ESP (exchangeable sodium percentage) of the eroded slope has a higher value than the non-eroded one. Crusts are less dispersive than eroded substrates, and non-eroded substrates behave as crusts. This suggests that the portion of the slope most severely exposed to weathering tends to stabilize, due to strong decreases in SAR, PS and ESP. Several diagrams reported in the literature show similarly anomalous crust samples on eroded slopes, compared with other samples coming from greater depths on eroded slopes. In the present case study, the exchangeable form of Na characterizes crusts more than the soluble form. This study describes the erosional mechanism, which involves morphological and geographic exposure and climatic elements, as well as grain size, mineralogy, chemistry and exchangeable processes of soils. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Ferromagnetism in [Mn(Cp*)2]+ -Derived Complexes: the "Miraculous" Stacking in [Mn(Cp*)2][Ni(dmit)2]EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF INORGANIC CHEMISTRY, Issue 15 2003Christophe Faulmann Abstract The synthesis and characterisation (X-ray structure and magnetism) of metal complexes (Ni, Au) with the [Mn(Cp*)2]+ cation and the dmit2, and dmid2, ligands are reported. [Mn(Cp*)2][Ni(dmit)2] (1) and [Mn(Cp*)2][Au(dmit)2] (2) exhibit the same structural arrangement, built on stacks of [Ni(dmit)2], pairs separated by two [Mn(Cp*)2]+ cations, showing a ···D+D+A,A,D+D+A,A,··· motif. On the contrary, the dmid2, derivative [Mn(Cp*)2][Ni(dmid)2]·CH3CN (3) exhibits a totally different structure, built on mixed layers composed of one [Ni(dmid)2], unit separated by two [Mn(Cp*)2]+ cations, showing a ···D+D+A,D+D+A,···motif. The layers are separated from each other by perpendicular [Ni(dmid)2], units and solvent molecules. Compound 2 exhibits antiferromagnetic interactions, whereas 1 and 3 exhibit ferromagnetic interactions at low temperature. Moreover, as confirmed by AC and DC magnetic susceptibility measurements, 1 is a ferrimagnet, the first ever derived from a 1,2-bis-dithiolene ligand. The ferromagnetic interactions in 1 and 3 are explained using the McConnell I mechanism. (© Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2003) [source] Variance scaling in shallow-cumulus-topped mixed layersTHE QUARTERLY JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL METEOROLOGICAL SOCIETY, Issue 628 2007R. A. J. Neggers Abstract Scaling of thermodynamic variance in shallow-cumulus-topped mixed layers is studied using large-eddy simulation (LES). First, the performance of the top-down scaling (the turbulent flux at mixed-layer top divided by w*) is evaluated for transient shallow-cumulus convection over land. The results indicate that this scaling fails to capture all the variance in the top half of the mixed layer when shallow cumulus clouds are present. A variance-budget analysis is then performed, to derive a new scaling for the variance at mixed-layer top, which differs from the standard top-down scaling by a factor of one Richardson number. The essential new features of the proposed scaling are that the local vertical gradient is retained and that a balance is assumed between gradient production of variance and removal by transport and dissipation, using an adjustment time-scale given by w*/h. Evaluation against LES for a range of different cases, including a dry convective boundary layer as well as steady-state marine and transient continental shallow cumulus, reveals a data-collapse of the newly-scaled variance, for all hours and all cases in the top half of the mixed layer. The corresponding vertical structure is shown to resemble a power-law function. The results suggest that the structure of variance in the dry convective boundary layer is similar to that in the sub-cloud mixed layer. In transient situations, the scaling reproduces the time-development of variance at sub-cloud mixed-layer top. The new cloud-base variance scale is then further interpreted in the context of statistical cloud schemes, which depend on the variance as the second moment of the associated probability density function. The results suggest that the area fraction of the moist convective thermals uniquely depends on the ratio of cloud-base transition-layer depth to sub-cloud mixed-layer depth. This puts ,valve'- or ventilation-type closures for the cloud-base mass flux in the context of the variance budget for the sub-cloud layer. Copyright © 2007 Royal Meteorological Society [source] New vanadium(IV) and titanium(IV) oxyfluorotellurates(IV): V2Te2O7F2 and TiTeO3F2ACTA CRYSTALLOGRAPHICA SECTION C, Issue 1 2009Jean Paul Laval As part of a continuing study of oxyfluorotellurates(IV), materials likely to present interesting nonlinear optical properties, two new phases, titanium(IV) tellurium(IV) trioxide difluoride, TiTeO3F2, and divanadium(IV) ditellurium(IV) heptaoxide difluoride, V2Te2O7F2, have been characterized and present, respectively, titanium and vanadium in the tetravalent state. The TiTeO3F2 structure is based on linear double rows of TiO3F3 polyhedra sharing vertices. These rows are connected to adjacent rows via two vertices of Te2O5 bipolyhedra. The Te, Ti, one F and two O atoms are on general positions, with one O and F statistically occupying the same site with half-occupancy for each anion. One O and one F occupy sites with .m. symmetry. The V2Te2O7F2 structure consists of zigzag chains of VO4F2 octahedra alternately sharing O,O and F,F edges. These chains are connected via Te2O5 bipolyhedra, forming independent mixed layers. The Te, V, one F and three O atoms are on general positions while one O atom occupies a site of symmetry. In both phases, the electronic lone pair E of the TeIV atom is stereochemically active. A full O/F anionic ordering is observed in V2Te2O7F2, but in TiTeO3F2 one of the six anionic sites is occupied by half oxygen and half fluorine, all the others being strictly ordered. These compounds represent new members of a growing family of oxyfluorotellurates(IV), including the recently characterized members of formula MTeO3F, M being a trivalent cation. As was true for the previous members, they are characterized by an unusually high thermal and chemical stability in relation to the absence of direct Te,F bonds. [source] | |||||||||||||||||||