Advanced biochemical processes for geothermal brines current developments

A research program at Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) which deals with the development and application of processes for the treatment of geothermal brines and sludges has led to the identification and design of cost-efficient and environmentally friendly treatment methodology. Initially the primary goal of the processing was to convert geothermal wastes into disposable materials whose chemical composition would satisfy environmental regulations. An expansion of the R&D effort allowed to identify a combination of biochemical and chemical processes which became a basis for the development of a technology for the treatment of geothermal brines and sludges. The new technology satisfies environmental regulatory requirements and concurrently converts the geothermal brines and sludges into commercially promising products. Because the chemical composition of geothermal wastes depends on the type of the resource and therefore differs, the emerging technology has to be also flexible so that it can be readily modified to suit the needs of a particular type of resource. Recent conceptional designs for the processing of hypersaline and low salinity brines and sludges will be discussed

Patch size as a niche dimension: Aquatic insects behaviorally partition enemy-free space across gradients of patch size

© 2019 by University of Chicago. Positive correlation of species richness with area is ubiquitous in nature, but the processes driving that relationship, as well as those constraining typical patterns, remain elusive. Patch size variation is pervasive in natural systems, and it is thus critical to understand how variation in patch size, as well as its potential interaction with factors like predation and isolation, affects community assembly. We crossed patch quality (fish presence/absence) with patch size to the examine effects of quality, size, and their interaction on colonization by aquatic insects. Overall, beetles favored small, fishless patches, but individual species sorted across patch size while hemipterans aggregated into large, fishless patches, producing sorting between Coleoptera and Hemiptera. Both patch size and predation risk generated significant variation in community structure and diversity. Patch size preferences for the 14 most abundant species and preeminence of species turnover in patterns of β-diversity reinforce patch size as a driver of regional species sorting via habitat selection. Species sorting at the immigration stage plays a critical role in community assembly. Identifying patch size as a component of perceived quality establishes patch size as a critical niche dimension and alters our view of its role in assembly dynamics and the maintenance of local and regional diversity

Advanced biochemical processes for geothermal brines: Current developments

A research program at Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) which deals with the development and application of processes for the treatment of geothermal brines and sludges has led to the identification and design of cost-efficient and environmentally friendly treatment methodology. Initially the primary goal of the processing was to convert geothermal wastes into disposable materials whose chemical composition would satisfy environmental regulations. An expansion of the r and D effort identified a combination of biochemical and chemical processes which became the basis for the development of a technology for the treatment of geothermal brines and sludges. The new technology satisfies environmental regulatory requirements and concurrently converts the geothermal brines and sludges into commercially promising products. Because the chemical composition of geothermal wastes depends on the type of the resource, the emerging technology has to be flexible so that it can be readily modified to suit the needs of a particular type of resource. Recent conceptional designs for the processing of hypersaline and low salinity brines and sludges will be discussed

Induced biochemical interactions in immature and biodegraded heavy crude oils

Studies in which selective chemical markers have been used to explore the mechanisms by which biocatalysts interact with heavy crude oils have shown that the biochemical reactions follow distinct trends. The term biocatalyst refers to a group of extremophilic microorganisms which, under the experimental conditions used, interact with heavy crude oils to (1) cause a redistribution of hydrocarbons, (2) cause chemical changes in oil fractions containing sulfur compounds and lower the sulfur content, (3) decrease organic nitrogen content, and (4) decrease the concentration of trace metals. Current data indicate that the overall effect is due to simultaneous reactions yielding products with relatively higher concentration of saturates and lower concentrations of aromatics and resins. The compositional changes depend on the microbial species and the chemistry of the crudes. Economic analysis of a potential technology based on the available data indicate that such a technology, used in a pre-refinery mode, may be cost efficient and promising. In the present paper, the background of oil biocatalysis and some recent results will be discussed

Data from: Patch size as a niche dimension: aquatic insects behaviorally partition enemy-free space across gradients of patch size

Positive correlation of species richness with area is ubiquitous in nature, but the processes driving that relationship, and those constraining typical patterns, remain elusive. Patch size variation is pervasive in natural systems, and thus it is critical to understand how variation in patch size, as well as its potential interaction with factors like predation and isolation, affect community assembly. We crossed patch quality (fish presence/absence) with patch size to examine effects of quality, size, and their interaction on colonization by aquatic insects. Overall, beetles favored small, fishless patches, but individual species sorted across patch size, while hemipterans aggregated into large, fishless patches, producing sorting between Coleoptera and Hemiptera. Both size and predation risk generated significant variation in community structure and diversity. Patch size preferences for the 14 most abundant species, and pre-eminence of species turnover in patterns of beta-diversity, reinforce patch size as a driver of regional species sorting via habitat selection. Species sorting at the immigration stage plays a critical role in community assembly. Identifying patch size as a component of perceived quality establishes patch size as a critical niche dimension, and alters our view of its role in assembly dynamics, and the maintenance of local and regional diversity

Resetarits et al. 2019 American Naturalist data

Experimental data on patch size and perceived predation risk

BIOCHEMICAL PROCESSES FOR GEOTHERMAL BRINE TREATMENT

As part of the DOE Geothermal Energy Program, BNL's Advanced Biochemical Processes for Geothermal Brines (ABPGB) project is aimed at the development of cost-efficient and environmentally acceptable technologies for the disposal of geothermal wastes. Extensive chemical studies of high and low salinity brines and precipitates have indicated that in addition to trace quantities of regulated substances, e.g., toxic metals such as arsenic and mercury, there are significant concentrations of valuable metals, including gold, silver and platinum. Further chemical and physical studies of the silica product have also shown that the produced silica is a valuable material with commercial potential. A combined biochemical and chemical technology is being developed which (1) solubilizes, separates, and removes environmentally regulated constituents in geothermal precipitates and brines (2) generates an amorphous silica product which may be used as feedstock for the production of revenue generating materials, (3) recover economically valuable trace metals and salts. Geothermal power resources which utilize low salinity brines and use the Stretford process for hydrogen sulfide abatement generate a contaminated sulfur cake. Combined technology converts such sulfur to a commercial grade sulfur, suitable for agricultural use. The R and D activities at BNL are conducted jointly with industrial parties in an effort focused on field applications

Biochemical processes for geothermal brine treatment

As part of the DOE Geothermal Energy Program, BNL`s Advanced Biochemical Processes for Geothermal Brines (ABPGB) project is aimed at the development of cost-efficient and environmentally acceptable technologies for the disposal of geothermal wastes. Extensive chemical studies of high and low salinity brines and precipitates have indicated that in addition to trace quantities of regulated substances, e.g., toxic metals such as arsenic and mercury, there are significant concentrations of valuable metals, including gold, silver and platinum. Further chemical and physical studies of the silica product have also shown that the produced silica is a valuable material with commercial potential. A combined biochemical and chemical technology is being developed which (1) solubilizes, separates, and removes environmentally regulated constituents in geothermal precipitates and brines, (2) generates an amorphous silica product which may be used as feedstock for the production of revenue generating materials, (3) recover economically valuable trace metals and salts. Geothermal power resources which utilize low salinity brines and use the Stretford process for hydrogen sulfide abatement generate a contaminated sulfur cake. Combined technology converts such sulfur to a commercial grade sulfur, suitable for agricultural use. The R and D activities at BNL are conducted jointly with industrial parties in an effort focused on field applications

Aquatic beetles influence colonization of disparate taxa in small lentic systems

© 2020 The Authors. Ecology and Evolution published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd Structure of natural communities is shaped by both abiotic characteristics and the ongoing processes of community assembly. Important to this process are the habitat selection behaviors and subsequent survival of colonists, both in the context of temporal changes in the abiotic characteristics and priority effects driven by earlier colonists. Aquatic beetles are prevalent in temporary freshwater systems, form speciose assemblages, and are often early colonists of temporary ponds. While beetles have the potential to influence community structure through post-colonization interactions (predation and competition), our goal was to determine whether the presence of beetle assemblages (versus patches without beetles) influences the colonization and oviposition of a diverse group of animals in a naturally colonized experimental landscape. We established mesocosms that either contained existing beetle assemblages or contained no beetles and assessed abundances of subsequent colonists. Treefrogs, Hyla chrysoscelis, and mosquitoes, Culex restuans, both deposited fewer eggs in patches containing beetle assemblages, while two beetles, Copelatus glyphicus and Paracymus, colonized those patches at lower rates. One beetle, Helophorus linearis, colonized patches containing beetle assemblages at higher rates, while two beetles, Berosus infuscatus and Tropisternus lateralis, exhibited no colonization differences between treatments. Overall, there were no differences in the assemblage structure or richness of beetles that colonized patches. Our results illustrate the importance of species-specific habitat selection behavior in determining the species composition of habitat patches, while emphasizing the role of priority effects in influencing patterns of community assembly. Habitat selection in response to abiotic and biotic characteristics of habitat patches can potentially create greater spatiotemporal niche separation among the numerous, often closely related species (phylogenetically and trophically), that can be simultaneously found in similar patches across landscapes