Dissolved major and trace elements in meteoric depositions on the flanks of Mt. Etna (Italy): the impact of volcanic activity on the environment

In the framework of the “Save the Etna World” research project, which investigates the impact of the volcanic activity on the surrounding environment, three bulk collectors were deployed on the flank of the Mt. Etna volcano to collect the meteoric depositions. The sampling sites were at distances between 5.5 and 13 km from the summit vents of the volcano on its eastern flank, that is the most exposed to the volcanic plume due to the high-altitude prevailing winds direction. The sites were selected in order to have a gradient of exposition with respect to the volcanic emissions, the most exposed being CIT, the intermediate ILI and the least NIC. Samples were collected monthly from July 2017 to July 2018 and analysed for major ions and for a large suite of trace elements. The influence of volcanic emissions is evidenced by the low pH of the collected depositions in the most exposed site, showing values mostly below 3.5 and never exceeding 5.72. The lowest values are related to high fluoride, chloride and sulfate concentrations in the collected water, deriving from the acid gases (HF, HCl and SO2) of the volcanic plume. The other two sites show pH values in range from 3.95 to 7.21. While the lowest values indicate a lower but significant volcanic influence, the highest values can be related to the dissolution of geogenic (mainly carbonate) particulate of local or regional (Saharan) origin. The latter process is evidenced by high concentrations of Ca and HCO3 in the samples with the highest pHs. Trace elements show almost all higher concentrations in the most exposed site. Highly volatile elements like Pb, Te and Tl, which are known to have strong enrichment factors in volcanic plumes with respect to the average upper crust composition, are found at CIT at concentrations always at least one order of magnitude higher than at NIC. Also lithophile elements like Si, Al, Ti and Fe are sometimes strongly enriched at CIT deriving from the interaction of the acid gases of the plume with the occasionally emitted volcanic ash. These new results confirm the importance of meteoric deposition as main carrier of volcanogenic elements to earth’s surface. “Etna World” is a fascinating natural laboratory, and the study of atmospheric depositions in this peculiar environment allows to understand better the general processes that influence the cycles of trace metals. Furthermore, the quantitative estimation of both emission and deposition of volcanogenic elements is a key factor for complementary studies on the geochemical mobility of trace elements and their distribution between atmosphere, soils, vegetation, and lastly, animals and humans in active volcanic areas

Magmatic Signature in Submarine Hydrothermal Fluids Vented Offshore Ventotene and Zannone Islands (Pontine Archipelago, Central Italy)

Geochemical investigations carried out on submarine hydrothermal fluids vented offshore the Pontine Islands (Tyrrhenian Sea) revealed the existence of gas vents to the W of Zannone Island and SW of Ventotene Island. The geochemical features of the CO2-rich gas samples show a clear mantle-derived signature with3He/4He of 3.72-3.75 Ra and 1.33 Ra at Zannone and Ventotene, respectively. Gas geochemistry denotes how CO2-rich gases undergo fractionation processes due to CO2dissolution to a variable extent favoring enrichment in the less soluble gas species, i.e., CH4, N2, and He. The carbon isotope composition of CO2, expressed asδ13C vs. V-PDB, ranges from -0.71 and -6.16‰ at Zannone to 1.93‰ at Ventotene. Preliminary geothermometric and geobarometric estimations indicate equilibrium temperatures in the range of 150-200°C at Zannone and >200°C at Ventotene besides H2O pressures in the range of 5 bar and 20 bar at Zannone and Ventotene, respectively. Although the latest volcanic activity at the Pontine Archipelago is dated Middle Pleistocene, the combination of the new geochemical information along with geothermometric estimations indicates that cooling magmas are likely releasing enough thermal energy to form an efficient hydrothermal system

Hazard Scenarios Related to Submarine Volcanic-Hydrothermal Activity and Advanced Monitoring Strategies: A Study Case from the Panarea Volcanic Group (Aeolian Islands, Italy)

Geohazards associated to submarine hydrothermal systems still represent a tricky enigma to face and solve for the scientific community. The poor knowledge of a submarine environment, the rare and scarce monitoring activities, and the expensive and sometimes complicated logistics are the main problems to deal with. The submarine low-energy explosion, which occurred last November 3, 2002, off the volcanic island of Panarea, highlighted the absence of any hazard scenario to be used to manage the volcanic crisis. The "unrest" of the volcanic activity was triggered by a sudden input of deep magmatic fluids, which caused boiling water at the sea surface with a massive CO2 release besides changes in the fluids' geochemistry. That event dramatically pushed scientists to develop new methods to monitor the seafloor venting activity. Coupling the information from geochemical investigations and data collected during the unrest of volcanic activity, we were able to (a) develop theoretical models to gain a better insight on the submarine hydrothermal system and its relationships with the local volcanic and tectonic structures and (b) to develop a preliminary submarine volcanic hazard assessment connected to the Panarea system (Aeolian Islands). In order to mitigate the potential submarine volcanic hazard, three different scenarios are described here: (1) ordinary hydrothermal venting, (2) gas burst, and (3) volcanic eruption. The experience carried out at Panarea demonstrates that the best way to face any submarine volcanic-hydrothermal hazard is to improve the collection of data in near real-time mode by multidisciplinary seafloor observatories and to combine it with periodical sampling activity

Flexibility Services to Minimize the Electricity Production from Fossil Fuels. A Case Study in a Mediterranean Small Island

The design of multi-carrier energy systems (MES) has become increasingly important in the last decades, due to the need to move towards more efficient, flexible and reliable power systems. In a MES, electricity, heating, cooling, water and other resources interact at various levels, in order to get optimized operation. The aim of this study is to identify the optimal combination of components, their optimal sizes and operating schedule allowing minimizing the annual cost for meeting the energy demand of Pantelleria, a Mediterranean island. Starting from the existing energy system (comprising diesel generators, desalination plant, freshwater storage, heat pumps and domestic hot water storages) the installation of solar resources (photovoltaic and solar thermal) and electrical storage were considered. In this way, the optimal scheduling of storage units injections, water desalination operation and domestic hot water production was deduced. An energy hub model was implemented using MATLAB to represent the problem. All equations in the model are linear functions, and variables are real or integer. Thus, a mixed integer linear programming algorithm was used for the solution of the optimization problem. Results prove that the method allows a strong reduction of operating costs of diesel generators also in the existing configuration

Challenges and Solutions for Designing a COVID-19 Vaccination Hub: A Simulation Approach

It is the intent of the work to support experts in the organization process of Covid-19 vaccination hubs. An approach based on Modelling & Simulation (M&S) is proposed and in particular, a simulation model of a real vaccination hub, located in South of Italy, has been developed. The simulation model recreates, with satisfactory accuracy, the evolution over the time of the real system and it has been used to analyze the system behavior under several operative scenarios. The generation of the alternative operative scenarios comes from the variation of multiple design parameters that affect multiple performance measures. The quantitative evaluation of the effects of the multiple design parameters on the multiple performance measures can be used as starting point to improve processes as well as to plan effectively available resources within vaccination hubs

A framework for self-enforced optimal interaction between connected vehicles

This paper proposes a decision-making framework for Connected Autonomous Vehicle interactions. It provides and justifies algorithms for strategic selection of control references for cruising, platooning and overtaking. The algorithm is based on the trade-off between energy consumption and time. The consequent cooperation opportunities originating from agent heterogeneity are captured by a game-theoretic cooperative-competitive solution concept to provide a computationally feasible, self-enforced, cooperative traffic management framework

Multiple system atrophy is distinguished from idiopathic Parkinson's disease bythe arginine growth hormone stimulation test

Objective: Multiple system atrophy (MSA) may be difficult to distinguish from idiopathic Parkinson’s disease (PD). Our aim was to evaluate the accuracy of the arginine growth hormone (GH) stimulation test in distinguishing between MSA and PD in large populations of patients. Methods: We measured the GH response to arginine in 69 MSA (43 MSAp [parkinsonism as the main motor feature] and 26 MSAc [cerebellar features predominated]) patients, 35 PD patients, and 90 healthy control subjects. We used receiver-operating curve analysis to establish the arginine cutoff value that best differentiated between MSA and PD. Results: The GH response to arginine was significantly lower (p 0.01) in MSA than in either PD patients or control subjects. At a cutoff level of 4g/L, arginine distinguished MSAp from PD with a sensitivity and specificity of 91% and MSAc from PD with a sensitivity of 96% and specificity of 91%. The arginine test had a positive predictive value for MSA of 95%. The GH response to arginine was not affected by disease duration or severity, MSA motor subtype, pyramidal signs, response to dopaminergic therapy, or magnetic resonance imaging findings. Interpretation: The GH response to arginine differentiates MSA from PD with a high diagnostic accuracy. The results suggest an impairment of cholinergic central systems modulating GH release in MSA

The Bortoluzzi Mud Volcano (Ionian Sea, Italy) and its potential for tracking the seismic cycle of active faults

The Ionian Sea in southern Italy is at the center of active interaction and convergence between the Eurasian and African–Adriatic plates in the Mediterranean. This area is seismically active with instrumentally and/or historically recorded Mw > 7:0 earthquakes, and it is affected by recently discovered long strike-slip faults across the active Calabrian accretionary wedge. Many mud volcanoes occur on top of the wedge. A recently discovered one (called the Bortoluzzi Mud Volcano or BMV) was surveyed during the Seismofaults 2017 cruise (May 2017). Bathymetric backscatter surveys, seismic reflection profiles, geochemical and earthquake data, and a gravity core are used here to geologically, geochemically, and geophysically characterize this structure. The BMV is a circular feature ' 22m high and ' 1100m in diameter with steep slopes (up to a dip of 22 ). It sits atop the Calabrian accretionary wedge and a system of flowerlike oblique-slip faults that are probably seismically active as demonstrated by earthquake hypocentral and focal data. Geochemistry of water samples from the seawater column on top of the BMV shows a significant contamination of the bottom waters from saline (evaporite-type) CH4-dominated crustalderived fluids similar to the fluids collected from a mud volcano located on the Calabria mainland over the same accretionary wedge. These results attest to the occurrence of open crustal pathways for fluids through the BMV down to at least the Messinian evaporites at about 3000 m. This evidence is also substantiated by helium isotope ratios and by comparison and contrast with different geochemical data from three seawater columns located over other active faults in the Ionian Sea area. One conclusion is that the BMV may be useful for tracking the seismic cycle of active faults through geochemical monitoring. Due to the widespread diffusion of mud volcanoes in seismically active settings, this study contributes to indicating a future path for the use of mud volcanoes in the monitoring and mitigation of natural hazards.Published1-233SR TERREMOTI - Attività dei CentriJCR Journa