Water resources assessment of the Sapello River

The Sapello River originates in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains in San Miguel County of northern New Mexico and flows east for 27.3 miles to Watrous, NM where it joins the Mora river. The Mora River is a tributary to the Canadian River. The Sapello River was the subject of an intensive three week study by the Water Resources 573, Field Methods class from the University of New Mexico in May and June, 2008. The main objective of the study was to conduct a stream assessment of the Sapello River that will serve as a baseline for future work.https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/wr_fmr/1001/thumbnail.jp

Water resources assessment in the greater Rio Casas Grandes Watershed

The Rio Casas Grandes watershed is located in northern Chihuahua, Mexico, on the eastern flank of the Sierra Madres. Like all arid desert regions, this watershed faces problems related to a lack of fresh water. Increasing populations, agriculture, and industry create a challenge to water managers and users in the watershed. Water shortages from drought combined with increased use have caused decreases in water tables as well as increases in the number of fallow fields in the lower reaches of the watershed. Poor land management practices combined with water shortages have the potential to threaten the livelihood of communities within this watershed. Students in the University of New Mexico\u27s (UNM) Water Resources Program (WRP) field course studied the greater Rio Casas Grandes watershed with a focus on the Rio Piedras Verdes sub-watershed. This course was designed for students to apply their knowledge and understanding of water resource issues to the water issues in the greater Rio Casas Grandes watershed. Due to the lack of quantitative data in the area, various types of quantitative field methods were performed to create a baseline of riparian health, water quality, and hydrology data. Interviews were conducted with professionals, academics, and farmers to provide first hand perspectives of the history, land use, and resource management within the Rio Casas Grandes watershed. The primary objectives for this course were to identify the water resource challenges in the Rio Casas Grandes watershed through both quantitative and qualitative assessments. Historical water use patterns, political, and cultural constraints were identified, along with the quantitative information needed to improve water management. Water quality of the region was assessed and water management practices of the Rio Casas Grandes watershed were compared with those of New Mexico.https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/wr_fmr/1000/thumbnail.jp

Water resources assessment of the Mora River

During the second week of June 2009, the UNM Masters of Water Resources students, staff, and collaborators studied the Mora River watershed by measuring flows and water quality characteristics at over 20 surface water sites in the watershed. The main objective of the study was to conduct a river assessment of the Mora River and its corresponding acequia systems. It is expected that this report will serve as a baseline for future research on the hydrology, water quality, and to a lesser extent, the socioeconomic characteristics of the river and its watershed. The Mora River watershed drains 1,476 square miles and is located on the eastern slopes of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains in northeastern New Mexico, originating in mountains with elevations over 12,000 feet above sea level. The Mora River then flows eastward onto the eastern plains of New Mexico, draining into the successively larger Canadian and Arkansas Rivers, which ultimately make confluence with the Mississippi. Approximately 47 acequias, or irrigation ditches, intersect the Mora River and its tributaries throughout the watershed. The principal source of water supply in the watershed is surface water, and most is used for agricultural activities consisting of irrigation and livestock watering. Drinking water is supplied almost entirely by ground water although there are reports of a few homesteads that use water from acequias or adjacent streams for domestic use. Measurements and site descriptions were recorded either on New Mexico Environment Department Surface Water Quality Bureau data sheets or in notebooks, following the EPAs Environmental Monitoring Assessment Program (EMAP) protocol. Data was collected and analyzed concerning the hydrology, geomorphology, riparian vegetation, human impacts, benthic macroinvertebrates, and water quality at five segments of the Mora River, and 19 tributaries and acequias. This assessment found that generally high quality conditions of the river and riparian environment. This conclusion was supported by the type and diversity of benthic macroinvertebrates, by channel geomorphic criteria, and by water quality measurements. However, it is recognized that this assessment was done near the peak of spring runoff; it is likely that low flow conditions later in the summer will present environmental stresses to the system. In this regard, the nearly complete diversion of the Mora River for agricultural use as it passes through the Mora Valley was noted. Much of this water is returned to the river at the eastern end of the valley and has measurably increased concentrations of plant nutrients including nitrogen and phosphorous species that may result in eutrophic impacts. Recommendations are included for further studies to quantify stream flows and diversions in the watershed to gain a better understanding of water use. Information is also needed on the seasonal concentrations of chemical constituents in the river and its tributaries to understand the impact of development, especially that associated with non-residential vacation homes and potential development of coal bed methane.https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/wr_fmr/1002/thumbnail.jp

Water resources assessment of the Cimarron River and evaluation of water quality characteristics at the Maxwell National Wildlife Refuge

During the second week of June 2010, the UNM Masters of Water Resources students, staff, and collaborators studied the Cimarron River watershed from its head waters above Eagle Nest Lake to its confluence with the Canadian River near Taylor Springs, NM, and the Maxwell National Wildlife Refuge(NWR)near Maxwell, NM. The investigation included measuring flows and water quality characteristics at 34 surface water sites in the two study areas. The main objectives of the study were to conduct a river assessment of the Cimarron River and evaluate water quality characteristics and playa lake sediment chemistry at the Maxwell NWR. It is expected that this report will serve as a basis for future research on the hydrology, water quality, and to a lesser extent, the socioeconomic characteristics of the river and its watershed and the Maxwell NWR. The report is divided into two sections, the first section describes the work done on the Cimarron River watershed and the second section describes work done at the Maxwell NWR. The Cimarron River watershed drains 1,032 square miles and is located on the eastern slopes of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains in northeastern New Mexico, originating in mountains with elevations over 12,000 feet above sea level. The Cimarron River then flows eastward onto the eastern plains of New Mexico, draining into the successively larger Canadian and Arkansas Rivers, which ultimately flow into the Mississippi River. The principal source of water supply in the watershed is surface water, and most is used for agricultural activities consisting of irrigation and livestock watering. Drinking water is supplied almost entirely by ground water except for the communities of Cimarron, Miami and Springer. Raton, located outside of the watershed, also supplements its drinking water supply with surface water from the Cimarron watershed. Six reaches of the Cimarron River and one reach of Rayado Creek were subjected to intensive evaluation using EPAs Environmental Monitoring Assessment Program (EMAP) protocol. Data was collected and analyzed concerning the hydrology, geomorphology, riparian vegetation, human impacts, benthic macroinvertebrates, and water quality. In addition, flow measurements and water quality samples were taken at 24 other locations within the basin. This assessment found generally high quality conditions of the river and riparian environment throughout the Cimarron River. This conclusion was supported by the type and diversity of benthic macroinvertebrates, by channel geomorphic criteria, and by water quality measurements. Electrical conductivity, an indirect measure of salinity, was found to increase as the river flows onto the eastern plains; the source was not identified. The water in the river is hard and is dominated by calcium, magnesium and sulfate ions. It is recognized that this assessment was done near the peak of spring runoff; it is likely that low flow conditions later in the summer will present environmental stresses to the system. Low but measurable concentrations of nitrates were found throughout the watershed with the highest concentrations occurring in samples collected near a residential area and golf course in Cieneguilla Creek near the town of Angel Fire. Recommendations are included for further studies to quantify stream flows and diversions in the watershed to gain a better understanding of water use. Information is also needed on the 7 seasonal concentrations of chemical constituents in the river and its tributaries to understand the impact of development, especially that associated with non-residential vacation homes and potential development of coal bed methane. The water quality in lakes and irrigation ditches at the Maxwell NWR was of generally high quality and dominated by calcium, magnesium and sulfate salts. Salt crust collected on the surface of a dry playa lake contained high concentrations of calcium, magnesium, sodium, and sulfate ions. Slightly elevated selenium concentrations were detected in sediment samples collected from a playa lake at the refuge. However, selenium concentrations in lake water and irrigation ditch samples were less than 1 μg/L.https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/wr_fmr/1004/thumbnail.jp

Severe combined immune deficiency syndrome

Objective: To determine the clinico-demographic features and laboratory parameters of children with severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID). Study Design: Case series. Place and Duration of Study: Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, the Aga Khan University, Karachi, from July 2006 to July 2011. Methodology: Thirteen infants who were discharged with a diagnosis of SCID were inducted in the study. Their clinicodemographic features and laboratory parameters were determined. Descriptive statistics has been used for computing frequency and percentage. Results: The median age at diagnosis was five months; 5 infants presented within 3 months of life. Three-fourth (77%) were males. Most of the infants were severely malnourished (85%) at the time of presentation. More than two-thirds (69%) were products of consanguineous marriages. All subjects had severe lymphopenia {absolute lymphocyte count (ALC) ranging between 170 – 2280} and low T and B lymphocyte counts. Conclusion: SCID should be considered in infants presenting with severe and recurrent infections. Low ALC (\u3c 2500/mm3), is a reliable diagnostic feature of SCID. These infants should be promptly referred to a facility where stem cell transplant can be done

Natural trace element salinization of the Jemez River, New Mexico by geothermal springs and major tributaries

The Jemez River (JR), a tributary of the Rio Grande, is in north-central New Mexico within the Jemez Mountains, which houses the active, high-temperature (≤ 300 oC), liquid-dominated Valles Caldera geothermal system (VC). This work focuses on the northern portion of the JR, spanning a reach from the East Fork JR to the town of San Ysidro. Previous decadal work during low-flow or baseflow conditions (~10-20 cfs) has identified and characterized significant major-solute contributions from two outflow expressions of the VC, Soda Dam Springs and Jemez Hot Springs, and two major tributaries, Rio San Antonio and Rio Guadalupe. There is generally a net ~500-ppm increase from below Soda Dam to the end of the study segment. The distribution of concentrations of twenty-four trace metals from recent Fall 2017 sampling are defined by range from \u27ultra-trace\u27 levels (0.1-1 ppb) to measurements as much as 1 ppm. A set of elements (e.g., As, Li, Rb, Ba, Ti) follows the same downstream behavior of major ions, which is characterized by an increase in concentrations at each inflow and the observed greatest contribution (as much as an order of magnitude) is at Soda Dam. Another group (e.g., U, Al, Fe, Mn, Se) shows complex downstream patterns, which may be a result of non-conservative processes, such as precipitation/dissolution, sorption, and complexation. We attempt to resolve these potential in-stream processes with high-resolution (regular 1-km spacing with interspersed 50-m intervals around sites with complete chemistry) spatial surveys of temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, oxidation-reduction potential, and turbidity

Optimal sintering procedure to fabrication of functionally graded Hydroxyapatite-Titanium

Functionally graded metal-ceramic composite was fabricated by pressure-less sintering. The pure metallic component (Ti) and the pure ceramic component (HA) were located at the ends of a cylindrical specimen. Titanium and-Hydroxyapatite were utilized as a metallic and ceramic layer. The target sample thickness was 6 mm with radius cylindrical 20 mm. The sample was made from the cylindrical type of carbon die consisting of 5 layers. The composition of layers were 100%Titanium; 75 % Titanium +25% HA; 50% Titanium +50% HA; 25% Titanium+75% HA, and 100% Hydroxyapatite. The optimum thermal load mapping was obtained experimentally. The properties of all FGM products were characterized by shrinkage, optical-microscope, energy dispersive spectrometry (EDX) scanning electron microscope (SEM). The grade of the FGM material was proven by comparing amount of shrinkage after sintering. Result from optical micrograph, SEM and EDX indicated that the HA-Ti FGM could be produced successfully by using the optimal sintering procedure that was highlighted in this paper

A model for transaction management in mobile databases

The evolution of mobile computing devices and wireless networks has created a new mobile computing environment. Users equipped with a mobile host can access, retrieve, and process information while in mobility. Laptops become more powerful data processing elements. Traditional transaction model has moved forwarding to mobile transaction. This paper proposed the model with the aims at solving the stated issues. A key requirement in such an environment is to support frequent disconnection of mobile database. Transaction management models for databases, in particular the centralized databases, has long been established. Due to the nature of mobile computers, the traditional transaction management models are no longer appropriate. This paper present a model that implements this framework in an asynchronous and synchronous system

Comparative study of methods for extraction and purification of environmental DNA from high-strength wastewater sludge

DNA extraction from wastewater sludge (COD 50000 and BOD 25000 mg/l) was conducted using nine different methods normally used for environmental samples including a procedure used in this study and the results obtained were compared. The quality of the differently extracted DNAs was subsequently assessed by measuring humic acid concentration, cell lysis efficiency, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification of methanogenic and eubacterial 16S rDNA. The protocol developed in this study was further evaluated by extracting DNA from various high-strength wastewater sludge samples, denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) and fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) analyses. The results revealed that great differences existed among the nine procedures and only a few produced satisfactory results when applied to high-strength wastewater sludge. Thermal shock alone was shown inefficient to disrupt the methanogenic cell wall to release the DNA. The method presented in this study (Procedure 9) is generally recommended because of the low concentration of contaminants and its high efficiency despite its simplicity

Viscous Dissipation Impact on Free Convection Flow of Cu-water Nanofluid in a Circular Enclosure with Porosity Considering Internal Heat Source

In this work, free convection of Cu-water nanofluid in an enclosure by considering internally heat generated in the porous circular cavity and the impacts of viscous dissipation are numerically evaluated by control volume finite element method (CVFEM). The outer and inner sides of the circular porous enclosure are maintained at a fixed temperature while insulating the other two walls. The impacts of diverse effective parameters including the Rayleigh number, viscous dissipation, and nanofluid concentration on features of heat transfer and fluid flow are examined. Moreover, a new correlation for the average Nusselt number is developed according to the study’s active parameters. It can be deduced by the results that the maximum value of the temperature is proportional to the viscous dissipation parameter