Spatial characterization of acid rain stress in Canadian Shield Lakes

The acidification of lake waters from airborne pollution is of continental proportions both in North America and Europe. A major concern of the acid rain problem is the cumulative ecosystem damage to lakes and forest. The number of lakes affected in northeastern U.S. and on the Canadian Shield is though to be enormous. How seasonal changes in lake transparency are related to annual acidic load was examined. The relationship between variations in lake acidification and ecophysical units was also examined. The utility of Thematic Mapper based observations to measure seasonal changes in the optical transparency in acid lakes was investigated. The potential for this optical response is related to a number of local ecophysical factors with bedrock geology being, perhaps, the most important. Other factors include sulfate deposition, vegetative cover, and terrain drainage/relief. The area of southern Ontario contains a wide variety of geologies from the most acid rain sensitive granite quartzite types to the least sensitive limestone dolomite sediments. Annual sulfate deposition ranges from 1.0 to 4.0 grams/sq m

Spatial characterization of acid rain stress in Canadian Shield Lakes

The lake acidification in Northern Ontario was investigated using LANDSAT TM to sense lake volume reflectance and also to provide important vegetation and terrain characteristics. The purpose of this project was to determine the ability of LANDSAT to assess water quality characteristics associated with lake acidification. Results demonstrate that a remote sensor can discriminate lake clarity based upon reflection. The basic hypothesis is that seasonal and multi-year changes in lake optical transparency are indicative of sensitivity to acidic deposition. In many acid-sensitive lakes optical transparency is controlled by the amount of dissolved organic carbon present. Seasonal changes in the optical transparency of lakes can potentially provide an indication of the stress due to acid deposition and loading

Development of Great Lakes algorithms for the Nimbus-G coastal zone color scanner

A series of experiments in the Great Lakes designed to evaluate the application of the Nimbus G satellite Coastal Zone Color Scanner (CZCS) were conducted. Absorption and scattering measurement data were reduced to obtain a preliminary optical model for the Great Lakes. Available optical models were used in turn to calculate subsurface reflectances for expected concentrations of chlorophyll-a pigment and suspended minerals. Multiple nonlinear regression techniques were used to derive CZCS water quality prediction equations from Great Lakes simulation data. An existing atmospheric model was combined with a water model to provide the necessary simulation data for evaluation of the preliminary CZCS algorithms. A CZCS scanner model was developed which accounts for image distorting scanner and satellite motions. This model was used in turn to generate mapping polynomials that define the transformation from the original image to one configured in a polyconic projection. Four computer programs (FORTRAN IV) for image transformation are presented

Application of airborne infrared technology to monitor building heat loss

The application of airborne infrared technology to the requirements for energy conservation in buildings was studied. Quantitative airborne data of the City of Ypsilanti, Michigan, were collected and processed to identify roof temperatures. A thermal scanner was flown at an altitude of 1,200 feet with two thermal bands 8.2-9.3 micrometers and 10.4-12.5 micrometers recorded by an analog system. Calibration was achieved by standard hot and cold plates. Using a thermal model to interpret ceiling insulation status, environmental factors were found to influence the relation between roof temperature and insulation. These include interior and sky temperatures, roofing materials, and the pitch and orientation of the roof. A follow-up mail survey established the ability to identify insulated and uninsulated houses from the airborne infrared data

How nurses perceive patient suffering

Suffering is a complex and multidimensional experience that is individual in nature and deeply personal. Effecting all aspects of being---physical, psychological/emotional, sociocultural, spiritual---suffering may impact all dimensions of a patient\u27s life. The purpose of this study is to explore nurses\u27 perception of patients who suffer. The study aims to raise the level of awareness of patient suffering for nurses, and thereby serve as a basis for reflecting on the impact of their nursing care on the health of the individual and patient outcomes. A qualitative study explores how a group of eight nurses described suffering in their patients. Themes, which emerge from the narratives given by the nurses, include the effect of suffering on the four aspects of being, the inability to relieve suffering, the importance of presence, and listening to patient\u27s stories

Life Safety and Fire Analysis - Aircraft Hangar

A hangar originally built in 1958 then modified and expanded over the years was evaluated using both the prescriptive requirements and a performance analysis. For the prescriptive analysis the building was evaluated against the 2015 International Building Code and the current NFPA codes and in a few cases the Department of Defense (DoD) Unified Facilities Criteria (UFC). During the prescriptive analysis a few areas were identified that do not meet the current codes due to areas being broken up into separate rooms and hallways and rooms being separated by security doors that only allow unobstructed travel in one direction. These modifications over the years have created a few areas that have a common travel paths and dead ends that exceed the requirements as set forth by NFPA 101 Life safety code. Due to the size of the hangar the notification devices installed do not meet the audibility or illumination requirements. It is recommended that the rotating beacons be installed per the new UFC 4-211-01 requirements. For the performance analysis a pool fire created from jet fuel was ignited both under the aircraft and in the vicinity of an aircraft. The hangar was then evaluated for both life safety by verifying that the available safe egress time (ASET) was greater than the required safe egress time (RSET). The RSET was calculated using both hand calculations and a pathfinder computer model. The ASET was determined using a NIST Fire Dynamic Simulator (FDS). The FDS modeling showed that the ASET was significantly greater than the RSET thus there was no issue with life safety. Asset protection from the fire scenarios chosen was not as promising. For both fire scenarios chosen in the hangar the aircraft suffered some damage. It was also determined from the modeling that the current activation sequence of the high expansion foam (HEF) system, using the sprinkler flow switches to activate the system, would be ineffective due to the delay in activating the sprinklers at the 70-ft ceiling level and the mechanical timer in the flow switch. A better way to activate the HEF system would be using multiple optical flame detectors as now required by UFC 4-211-01

An Experimental Study of Planar Heterogeneous Supersonic Confined Jets

The effects of varying the exit pressure of a supersonic helium jet exhausting coaxially with two parallel supersonic air streams into a constant area duct were investigated. The method used to evaluate the mass entrainment rate was to measure helium molar concentration profiles and mass flux across the duct using a binary gas probe then calculate the mass entrainment into the helium jet. In order to conduct this study a novel binary gas probe was developed which allowed helium concentration and mass flux data to be obtained during continuous traverses across the supersonic flowfield. High exit pressure ratio (EPR) led to improved overall mixing compared to the baseline case with an EPR near unity. The high EPR caused low mass entrainment along the jet shear layers due to high convective Mach numbers and velocity ratios, but the high EPR caused oblique shocks to form which reflected off the duct walls and intersected with the helium jet several times causing significant mass entrainment due to numerous shock-shear layer interactions (SSLIs). A correlation between the vorticity generated during a SSLI and the mass entrainment into the jet was developed

Verification of reflectance models in turbid waters

Inherent optical parameters of very turbid waters were used to evaluate existing water reflectance models. Measured upwelling radiance spectra and Monte Carlo simulations of the radiative transfer equations were compared with results from models based upon two flow, quasi-single scattering, augmented isotropic scattering, and power series approximation. Each model was evaluated for three separate components of upwelling radiance: (1) direct sunlight; (2) diffuse skylight; and (3) internally reflected light. Limitations of existing water reflectance models as applied to turbid waters and possible applications to the extraction of water constituent information are discussed