Modeling heat transfer in a shallow heterogeneous aquifer in Northeast Italy

embargoed_20250421Le misure distribuite di temperatura raccolte con la fibra ottica nei pozzi del sito sperimentale di Settolo (Valdobbiadene - TV) hanno rivelato una risposta eterogenea del campo di temperature della falda acquifera alle forzanti esterne, la quale si è dimostrata un valido strumento per l'identificazione di strutture del terreno caratterizzate da permeabilità differenti. L'introduzione di questi dati nella calibrazione di un modello tridimensionale che accoppia il moto dell'acqua e il trasporto di calore ha prodotto un campo plausibile di conducibilità idraulica satura, coerente con l'analisi preliminare, sebbene i risultati della validazione, significativi in termini di carico idraulico, non abbiano ancora portato a miglioramenti soddisfacenti del campo di temperature simulato.The fiber-optic distributed temperature data collected in the wellfield of the Settolo experimental site (Valdobbiadene - TV) revealed a heterogeneous response of the aquifer's temperature field to the external forcings, which proved to be a valuable tool for detecting soil structures characterized by different permeabilities. Including these data in the calibration of a tridimensional model coupling water flow and heat transport led to a plausible saturated hydraulic conductivity field, coherent with the preliminary analysis, even though the improvement in the direct simulation outcomes, significant for the hydraulic head, is still unsatisfactory for the temperature field

Adaptive Consensus-Based Reference Generation for the Regulation of Open-Channel Networks

This paper deals with water management over open-channel networks (OCNs) subject to water height imbalance. The OCN is modeled by means of graph theoretic tools and a regulation scheme is designed basing on an outer reference generation loop for the whole OCN and a set of local controllers. Specifically, it is devised a fully distributed adaptive consensus-based algorithm within the discrete-time domain capable of: 1) generating a suitable tracking reference that stabilizes the water increments over the underlying network at a common level; 2) coping with general flow constraints related to each channel of the considered system. This iterative procedure is derived by solving a guidance problem that guarantees to steer the regulated network - represented as a closed-loop system - while satisfying requirements (1) and (2), provided that a suitable design for the local feedback law controlling each channel flow is already available. The proposed solution converges exponentially fast towards the average consensus thanks to a Metropolis-Hastings design of the network parameters without violating the imposed constraints over time. In addition, numerical results are reported to support the theoretical findings, and the performance of the developed algorithm is discussed in the context of a realistic scenario

Fiber optics passive monitoring of groundwater temperature reveals three-dimensional structures in heterogeneous aquifers

Abstract Alluvial aquifers often exhibit highly conductive embedded formations that can act as preferential pathways for the transport of solutes. In this context, a detailed subsurface characterization becomes crucial for an effective monitoring of groundwater quality and early detection of contaminants. However, small-scale heterogeneities are seldom detected by traditional nondestructive investigations. Heat propagation in porous media can be a relatively inexpensive tracer for groundwater flow, potentially offering valuable information in various applications. In this study, we applied passive Fiber Optics Distributed Temperature Sensing (FO-DTS) to a group of observation wells in a highly heterogeneous phreatic aquifer to uncover structures with different hydraulic conductivity, relying on their response to temperature fluctuations triggered by natural and anthropogenic forcings. A comprehensive data analysis approach, combining statistical methods and physics-based numerical modeling, allowed for a three-dimensional characterization of the subsurface at the experimental site with unprecedentedly high resolution

Preliminary dosimetric analysis of DOTA-folate radiopharmaceutical radiolabelled with 47Sc produced through natV(p,x)47Sc cyclotron irradiation

47Sc is one of the most promising theranostic radionuclides, thanks to its low energy \u3b3-ray emission (159 keV), suitable for SPECT imaging and its intense \u3b2-emission, useful for tumor treatment. Despite promising preclinical results, the translation of 47Sc-therapeutic agents to the clinic is hampered by its limited availability. Among different47Sc-production routes currently being investigated, the recently reported natV(p,x)47Sc reaction has proved to be of particular interest, thanks to the low-cost and easy availability on the market ofnatV material and the diffusion of medium energy proton cyclotrons. However, the cross section of this specific nuclear reaction is quite low and small amounts of Sc-contaminants are co-produced at energies EP 64 45 MeV, namely48Sc and46Sc. The main concern with these Sc-contaminants is their contribution to the patient absorbed dose. For such a reason, the absorbed dose contributions to healthy organs and the effective dose contributions by the three radioisotopes,48Sc,47Sc and46Sc, were evaluated using DOTA-folate conjugate (cm10) as an example of radiopharmaceutical product. Considering as acceptable the limits of 99% for the radionuclidic purity and 10% for the contribution of radioactive Sc-contaminants to the total effective dose after 47Sc-cm10 injection, it was obtained that proton beam energies below 35 MeV must be used to produce47Sc through irradiation of anatV target

Hunter-gatherers across the great Adriatic-Po region during the Last Glacial Maximum: Environmental and cultural dynamics

During the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM, 30 to 16.5 ka ago), the Great Adriatic-Po Region (GAPR) was deeply affected by the spread of glaciers from the Alps to the southern foreland and by the dropping of the sea level to ~ -120 m amsl. The combination of these two events triggered the aggradation of the Great Po Plain (GPP), a vast flat area between the Alpine chain, the Italian Peninsula and the north-western Balkan Peninsula, physically and ecologically featured through a range of palaeogeographic and palaeoecological conditions. The low-elevated Prealpine sectors and the Alpine foothills supported more extensive forest stands, due to increased orographic rainfall. These were open boreal forests which persisted throughout the LGM, while open woodlands, steppes, semideserts and wetlands occupied the lowlands. A complex ecogradient, including both an Alpine and a continental timberline, is documented by the fossil records at the NE Alpine border, with a larch-pine forest-steppe belt, in contact with steppes and loess areas extending in the plain, on the dry extreme of the gradient. Still, edaphic wetlands occupied the waterlogged silty soils in the lowlands. Other areas, marked by active geodynamic processes, supported semideserts, i.e. grooves of xerophytic herbs and shrubs. Enhanced aridity and the development of deflation areas, prompted the accretion of loess cover at the northern and southern margins of the GPP. Fauna recorded the gradual disappearance of mammoth, woolly rhino and giant deer, together with cave bear. Gravettian and Epigravettian hunter-gatherer groups inhabited the GPP, although their presence and settlement dynamics at the margins and across this region has long been questioned. As a matter of fact, a handful of archaeological sites composes a patchy record of the peopling of the plain itself. At the northern rim of the GAPR, characterized by a well-developed karst region, several caves and rock shelters record the presence of hunters of bisons and horses at the margins of the GPP and ibexes and cave bears in some hilly landscapes. Nonetheless, evidence of contacts across this area is provided by the exploitation of chert sources and by stylistic and technical similarities in the lithic industries. The work resumes the currently available multidisciplinary data and adds new petroarchaeological evidence for reconstructing the settlement dynamics of the Gravettian - Epigravettian hunter-gatherers in this vast region up to the early Late Glacial, when the Prealpine and the Apennine foothills, along with the Dinarids, were persistently settled

Scenari di ricostruzione delle interazioni uomo-ambiente-clima in Lombardia (N-Italia) dal Paleolitico medio all’età del Ferro

This contribution aims to provide an updated and concise overview of the main events and developments characterising the interaction between human communities and their environment in Lombardy (Northern Italy) between the Middle Paleolithic and the Late Iron Age (60,000 to 2,100 years cal BP). Within the above defined geographic and chronological context, our main goal is to highlight and summarise the role of natural factors in the development of human history, both over the long durée and within defined periods. We provide a short history of the ecosystems and socio-ecological systems in Lombardy, for which – thanks to the contribution of several research groups and scholars active in the region – we analyse specific key issues. These analyses are facilitated by chronostratigraphic tables and GIS-based cartography, and introduced by an overview of the climatic changes that affected Alpine and Po Plain landscapes across the Last Glaciation and subsequent Late Glacial times, up to the shortlasting events which influenced the development of Holocene civilisations. The structure and significance of the issues introduced in the overview will be discussed by individual research groups working within this study are