809 research outputs found
The dissolution of olivine added to soil: Implications for enhanced weathering
Chemical weathering of silicate minerals consumes atmospheric CO2 and is a fundamental component of geochemical cycles and of the climate system on long timescales. Artificial acceleration of such weathering (âenhanced weatheringâ) has recently been proposed as a method of mitigating anthropogenic climate change, by adding fine-grained silicate materials to continental surfaces. The efficacy of such intervention in the carbon cycle strongly depends on the mineral dissolution rates that occur, but these rates remain uncertain. Dissolution rates determined from catchment scale investigations are generally several orders of magnitude slower than those predicted from kinetic information derived from laboratory studies. Here we present results from laboratory flow-through dissolution experiments which seek to bridge this observational discrepancy by using columns of soil returned to the laboratory from a field site. We constrain the dissolution rate of olivine added to the top of one of these columns, while maintaining much of the complexity inherent in the soil environment. Continual addition of water to the top of the soil columns, and analysis of elemental composition of waters exiting at the base was conducted for a period of five months, and the solid and leachable composition of the soils was also assessed before and after the experiments. Chemical results indicate clear release of Mg2+ from the dissolution of olivine and, by comparison with a control case, allow the rate of olivine dissolution to be estimated between 10â16.4 and 10â15.5 moles(Mg) cmâ2 sâ1. Measurements also allow secondary mineral formation in the soil to be assessed, and suggest that no significant secondary uptake of Mg2+ has occurred. The olivine dissolution rates are intermediate between those of pure laboratory and field studies and provide a useful constraint on weathering processes in natural environments, such as during soil profile deepening or the addition of mineral dust or volcanic ash to soils surfaces. The dissolution rates also provide critical information for the assessment of enhanced weathering including the expected surface-area and energy requirements
Ambient levels and dry deposition fluxes of mercury to Lakes Huron, Erie and St. Clair
Ambient concentrations and dry deposition fluxes of Hg in the gas and particle phase to Lakes St. Clair, Erie and Huron were estimated with a hybrid receptor-deposition model (HRD). The ambient gas and particulate phase Hg concentrations were predicted to vary by a factor of 12 to 18 during the transport of air masses traversing the lakes. The ensemble average deposition fluxes of fine particle Hg ranged from 7 pg/m 2 -h to 15.3 pg/m 2 -h over Lake St. Clair, 0.5 to 4.2 pg/m 2 -h over Lake Huron and 5.1 to 20.6 pg/m 2 -h over Lake Erie. The deposition flux of coarse particle Hg was in the range of 50 to 84 pg/m 2 -h over Lake St. Clair, 4.7 to 24.2 pg/m 2 -h over Lake Huron and 5.1 to 20.6 pg/m 2 -h over Lake Erie. Gaseous Hg volatilized at a rate of 0.21 to 0.52 ng/m 2 -h from Lake Huron and 0.13 to 0.36 from Lake Erie. Gas phase Hg was deposited at a rate of 5.9 ng/m 2 -h and/or volatilized at a rate of 0.5 ng/m 2 -h from Lake St. Clair depending upon the location of the sampling site used in the HRD model. The effect of meteorological conditions, particle size distributions and type and location of the sampling sites played an important role in the transfer of atmospheric Hg to and/or from the lakes.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/43911/1/11270_2005_Article_BF01189666.pd
Measurement of W Polarisation at LEP
The three different helicity states of W bosons produced in the reaction e+
e- -> W+ W- -> l nu q q~ at LEP are studied using leptonic and hadronic W
decays. Data at centre-of-mass energies \sqrt s = 183-209 GeV are used to
measure the polarisation of W bosons, and its dependence on the W boson
production angle. The fraction of longitudinally polarised W bosons is measured
to be 0.218 \pm 0.027 \pm 0.016 where the first uncertainty is statistical and
the second systematic, in agreement with the Standard Model expectation
Search for Anomalous Couplings in the Higgs Sector at LEP
Anomalous couplings of the Higgs boson are searched for through the processes
e^+ e^- -> H gamma, e^+ e^- -> e^+ e^- H and e^+ e^- -> HZ. The mass range 70
GeV < m_H < 190 GeV is explored using 602 pb^-1 of integrated luminosity
collected with the L3 detector at LEP at centre-of-mass energies
sqrt(s)=189-209 GeV. The Higgs decay channels H -> ffbar, H -> gamma gamma, H
-> Z\gamma and H -> WW^(*) are considered and no evidence is found for
anomalous Higgs production or decay. Limits on the anomalous couplings d, db,
Delta(g1z), Delta(kappa_gamma) and xi^2 are derived as well as limits on the H
-> gamma gamma and H -> Z gamma decay rates
Measurement of W Polarisation at LEP
The three different helicity states of W bosons produced in the reaction e+
e- -> W+ W- -> l nu q q~ at LEP are studied using leptonic and hadronic W
decays. Data at centre-of-mass energies \sqrt s = 183-209 GeV are used to
measure the polarisation of W bosons, and its dependence on the W boson
production angle. The fraction of longitudinally polarised W bosons is measured
to be 0.218 \pm 0.027 \pm 0.016 where the first uncertainty is statistical and
the second systematic, in agreement with the Standard Model expectation
Bose-Einstein Correlations of Neutral and Charged Pions in Hadronic Z Decays
Bose-Einstein correlations of both neutral and like-sign charged pion pairs
are measured in a sample of 2 million hadronic Z decays collected with the L3
detector at LEP. The analysis is performed in the four-momentum difference
range 300 MeV < Q < 2 GeV. The radius of the neutral pion source is found to be
smaller than that of charged pions. This result is in qualitative agreement
with the string fragmentation model
Z Boson Pair-Production at LEP
Events stemming from the pair-production of Z bosons in e^+e^- collisions are
studied using 217.4 pb^-1 of data collected with the L3 detector at
centre-of-mass energies from 200 GeV up to 209 GeV. The special case of events
with b quarks is also investigated.
Combining these events with those collected at lower centre-of-mass energies,
the Standard Model predictions for the production mechanism are verified. In
addition, limits are set on anomalous couplings of neutral gauge bosons and on
effects of extra space dimensions
Neutral-Current Four-Fermion Production in e+e- Interactions at LEP
Neutral-current four-fermion production, e+e- -> ffff is studied in 0.7/fb of
data collected with the L3 detector at LEP at centre-of-mass energies
root(s)=183-209GeV. Four final states are considered: qqvv, qqll, llll and
llvv, where l denotes either an electron or a muon. Their cross sections are
measured and found to agree with the Standard Model predictions. In addition,
the e+e- -> Zgamma* -> ffff process is studied and its total cross section at
the average centre-of-mass energy 196.6GeV is found to be 0.29 +/- 0.05 +/-
0.03 pb, where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second systematic,
in agreement with the Standard Model prediction of 0.22 pb. Finally, the mass
spectra of the qqll final states are analysed to search for the possible
production of a new neutral heavy particle, for which no evidence is found
Measurement of Exclusive rho+rho- Production in Mid-Virtuality Two-Photon Interactions and Study of the gamma gamma* -> rho rho Process at LEP
Exclusive rho+rho- production in two-photon collisions between a quasi-real
photon, gamma, and a mid-virtuality photon, gamma*, is studied with data
collected at LEP at centre-of-mass energies root(s)=183-209GeV with a total
integrated luminosity of 684.8pb^-1. The cross section of the gamma gamma* ->
rho+ rho- process is determined as a function of the photon virtuality, Q^2,
and the two-photon centre-of-mass energy, W_gg, in the kinematic region:
0.2GeV^2 < Q^2 <0.85GeV^2 and 1.1GeV < W_gg < 3GeV. These results, together
with previous L3 measurements of rho0 rho0 and rho+ rho- production, allow a
study of the gamma gamma* -> rho rho process over the Q^2-region 0.2GeV^2 < Q^2
< 30 GeV^2
Measurement of the Running of the Electromagnetic Coupling at Large Momentum-Transfer at LEP
The evolution of the electromagnetic coupling, alpha, in the
momentum-transfer range 1800GeV^2 < -Q^2 < 21600GeV^2 is studied with about
40000 Bhabha-scattering events collected with the L3 detector at LEP at
centre-of-mass energies 189-209GeV. The running of alpha is parametrised as:
alpha(Q^2) = alpha_0/(1-C Delta alpha(Q^2)), where alpha_0=\alpha(Q^2=0) is the
fine-structure constant and C=1 corresponds to the evolution expected in QED. A
fit to the differential cross section of the e+e- ->e+e- process for scattering
angles in the range |cos theta|<0.9 excludes the hypothesis of a constant value
of alpha, C=0, and validates the QED prediction with the result: C = 1.05 +/-
0.07 +/- 0.14, where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second
systematic
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