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Steady-State Dilution and Mixing-Controlled Reactions in Three-Dimensional Heterogeneous Porous

Das Projekt "Steady-State Dilution and Mixing-Controlled Reactions in Three-Dimensional Heterogeneous Porous" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen, Zentrum für Angewandte Geowissenschaften (ZAG), Arbeitsgruppe Hydrogeology durchgeführt. Understanding transport of contaminants is fundamental for the management of groundwater re-sources and the implementation of remedial strategies. In particular, mixing processes in saturated porous media play a pivotal role in determining the fate and transport of chemicals released in the subsurface. In fact, many abiotic and biological reactions in contaminated aquifers are limited by the availability of reaction partners. Under steady-state flow and transport conditions, dissolved reactants come into contact only through transverse mixing. In homogeneous porous media, transverse mixing is determined by diffusion and pore-scale dispersion, while in heterogeneous formations these local mixing processes are enhanced. Recent studies investigated the enhancement of transverse mixing due to the presence of heterogeneities in two-dimensional systems. Here, mixing enhancement can solely be attributed to flow focusing within high-permeability inclusions. In the proposed work, we will investigate mixing processes in three dimensions using high-resolution laboratory bench-scale experiments and advanced modeling techniques. The objective of the proposed research is to quantitatively assess how 3-D heterogeneity and anisotropy of hydraulic conductivity affect mixing processes via (i) flow focusing and de-focusing, (ii) increase of the plume surface, (iii) twisting and intertwining of streamlines and (iv) compound-specific diffusive/dispersive properties of the solute species undergoing transport. The results of the experimental and modeling investigation will allow us to identify effective large-scale parameters useful for a correct description of conservative and reactive mixing at field scales allowing to explain discrepancies between field observations, bench-scale experiments and current stochastic theory.

Water and global Change (WATCH)

Das Projekt "Water and global Change (WATCH)" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Potsdam-Institut für Klimafolgenforschung e.V. durchgeführt. Der globale Wasserkreislauf ist ein integraler Teil des Erdsystems. Er spielt eine zentrale Rolle in der globalen atmosphärischen Zirkulation, kontrolliert den globalen Energiekreislauf (mittels der latenten Wärme) und hat einen starken Einfluss auf die Kreisläufe von Kohlenstoff, Nährstoffen und Sedimenten. Global gesehen ist das Angebot an Frischwasser bei weitem größer als die menschlichen Bedürfnisse. Allerdings ist davon auszugehen, dass gegen Ende des 21. Jahrhunderts diese Bedürfnisse die gleiche Größenordnung erreichen werden wie das gesamte verfügbare Wasser. Für diverse Regionen jedoch übersteigt der Wasserbedarf (u.a. für die Landwirtschaft sowie die Nutzung in der Industrie und in den Haushalten) schon heute das regionale Angebot. Ansteigende CO2-Konzentrationen und Temperaturen führen zu einer Intensivierung des globalen Wasserkreislaufs und somit zu einem generellen Anstieg von Niederschlag, Abfluss und Verdunstung. Obwohl die Vorhersagen von zukünftigen Niederschlagsänderungen relativ unsicher sind, gibt es deutliche Hinweise, dass einige Regionen, wie z.B. der Mittelmeerraum, mit einer Abnahme des Niederschlags zu rechnen haben, während in einigen äquatornahen Regionen, wie z.B. Indien und der Sahelzone, der Niederschlag zunehmen wird. Hinzu kommt, dass sich auch jahreszeitliche Verläufe ändern könnten, die neue und manchmal auch unerwartete Probleme und Schäden verursachen können. Eine Intensivierung des Wasserkreislaufs bedeutet wahrscheinlich auch einen Anstieg in dessen Extremen, d.h. vor allem Überschwemmungen und Dürren. Es gibt Vermutungen, dass sich auch die interannuale Variabilität erhöhen wird und zwar einhergehend mit einer Intensivierung der El Nino und NAO-Zyklen, was zu mehr Dürren und großskaligen Hochwassersituationen führen würde. Diese Zyklen sind globale Phänomene, die diverse Regionen gleichzeitig beeinflussen, wenngleich dies oft auf verschiedene Art und Weise passiert.

Forest dynamics following windthrow in 10 forest districts in Bavaria

Das Projekt "Forest dynamics following windthrow in 10 forest districts in Bavaria" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Technische Universität München, Fachgebiet Geobotanik durchgeführt. The storms Vivian and Wiebke, that crossed Central Europe in early spring 1990 (26.2. to 1.3. 1990) destroyed many forest stands in Bavaria. In order to obtain information about the development of natural and planted tree regeneration and vegetation development following windthrow more than fifty permanent observation plots were established in the more heavily affected forest regions of Bavaria. The first record took place in 1991, the second in 1995, and the third in 2000. Data of the development of ground layer vegetation and tree regeneration were recorded together with information on site conditions and structure of the stands. Final analysis of the data will start after finishing the year 2000-record.

Role of geomagnetic field in atmospheric escape from Earth

Das Projekt "Role of geomagnetic field in atmospheric escape from Earth" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft durchgeführt. The geomagnetic field prevents the Earth from having its atmosphere swept away by the solar wind. But due to the partial ionization of the upper atmosphere by the sun's short-wavelength radiation electrodynamic forces can move the charged particles upward, against gravity, along open field lines. Already in the early space age it was recognized that considerable amounts of ionospheric ions populate the magnetosphere. In this study we will investigate the acceleration mechanisms of the up-welling ions at source regions altitude. For the first time the role of the neutral particles in the thermosphere are also included in the considerations. For our studies we will make use of data from the satellites CHAMP (400km), GRACE (500km) and DMSP (830km). The space observations shall be augmented by suitable EISCAT radar measurements. As a result the total rates of the different out-flow regions, polar cap, cusp, and auroral region will be quantified and their dependence on geophysical conditions determined.

AURORa - Investigation of the Radar Backscatter of Rain Impinging on the Ocean Surface

Das Projekt "AURORa - Investigation of the Radar Backscatter of Rain Impinging on the Ocean Surface" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Universität Hamburg, Zentrum für Meeres- und Klimaforschung, Institut für Meereskunde (IfM) durchgeführt. Over land, observations of rain rates are more or less operational. To obtain information about precipitation at the coastal zones, weather radars are used. However, over the oceans, especially away from the main shipping routes, no direct precipitation measurements are performed. In these regions, satellite data can provide information about precipitation events. Satellites deploying passive and active microwave sensors can operate independently of cloud cover and time of day. Passive microwave sensors give crude estimates of rain rates over large areas but cannot resolve small-scale rain events of short duration as are often observed in the tropics, for example. Active microwave sensors with high resolutions, such as synthetic aperture radars can provide more reliable information. Though the effect of rain on the atmosphere is a very topical area of research, the radar backscattering mechanisms at the water surface during rain events combined with wind are still not well understood. The purpose of this project is to investigate the radar backscattering from the water surface in the presence of rain and wind in order to interpret satellite radar data produced by active microwave sensors. Furthermore, the results should be embedded into models of the radar backscattering from the water surface to allow for estimating rain rates by using satellite data. Research topics: Rain impinging on a water surfaces generates splash products including crowns, cavities, stalks and secondary drops, which do not propagate, and ring waves and subsurface turbulence. We are investigating this phenomena at the wind-wave tank of the University of Hamburg. The tank is fitted with an artificial rain simulator of 2.3 m2 area mounted 4.5 m over the water surface. Rain drops of 2.1 and 2.9 mm in diameter with rain rates up to 100 mm/h have been produced. Wind with speeds 10 m/s and monomolecular slicks act on the water surface. The influence of the rain on the water surface is measured with a resistance type wire gauge, a two dimensional laser slope gauge and an coherent 9.8 GHz (x band) continuous wave scatterometer operating at VV-, HH- and HV-polarization. The influence of rain below the water surface is measured with colored raindrops which are observed with a video camera to investigate the turbulent motion and the depth of the mixed layer. At the North Sea Port of Buesum in Germany, a scatterometer operating at all polarizations and five frequencies will be mounted during summer of this year. The radar backscatter of the sea surface during rain events will be measured in combination with meteorological observations. With help of these measurements, existing radar backscatter models of the water surface will be improved for the presence of rain events. To validate the improved models, ERS-2 SAR-images will be compared with weather radar data.

Ground-based remote sensing measurements of CO2 and CH4 using the moon as light source during the polar night

Das Projekt "Ground-based remote sensing measurements of CO2 and CH4 using the moon as light source during the polar night" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Universität Bremen, Institut für Umweltphysik durchgeführt. Throughout the last years measurement techniques have been developed to measure total columns of atmospheric CO2 and CH4 with sufficient precision using the ground-based solar absorption remote sensing spectrometry in the near-infrared spectral region. These observations are internationally organized in the Total Column Carbon Observing Network (TCCON). These observations have been initiated for the satellite validation, because they sample the atmosphere in a similar way as satellites. However, the measurements itself have been found extremely valuable to investigate the sources and sinks of the trace gases, because the interpretation of the ground-based total column data depend to a less extent on assumptions on the vertical mixing in the atmosphere compared to surface in-situ data. We perform such observations at our site in the high Arctic on Spitsbergen (79°N). However, during the polar night from October until mid-March no observations can be performed, because the sun is below the horizon. Since the seasonal cycle of CO2 is largest in the high northern latitudes the lack of total column data for the winter period limits our understanding of the carbon budget. Within this project we plan to modify the measurement and analysis technique to measure the total columns of CO2 and CH4 in the near-infrared using the moon as light source during the polar night. This will allow us to perform observations on +-3 days around full moon, and thus, obtain data throughout the polar night for about three full moon periods. This allows measuring the complete seasonal cycle of total column measurements of CO2 and CH4 in the high Arctic, which is not known so far. Finally, the whole set of data will be compared to the existing in-situ surface data at that site and both data sets, in-situ and total column, will be compared with appropriate models.

DOAS Messungen von der NASA Global Hawk während des NASA-ATTREX Projektes

Das Projekt "DOAS Messungen von der NASA Global Hawk während des NASA-ATTREX Projektes" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Universität Heidelberg, Institut für Umweltphysik durchgeführt. The present project addresses differential optical absorption spectrometry (DOAS) measurements in scanning limb geometry from aboard the unmanned high-flying aircraft NASA Global Hawk (GH). The DOAS measurements are made within the NASA sponsored ATTREX (Airborne Tropical TRopopause EXperiment) project, by a 3 channel (UV/vis/nearer) optical spectrometer financed by NASA, but mostly built in Heidelberg. In fall 2011 and winter 2012/13 successful flights were already successfully performed and the DOAS instrument peformed. Within ATTREX three field campaigns are planned to take place in the Western Pacific (from EAFB, GUAM, and Darwin) in the years 2013 to 2014 (Jan./Feb. 2013, Jan./Feb. 2014 and June/July 2014). The field campaigns comprise about 50 GH sorties with 600 flight hours spent air-borne. Major scientific foci of the NASA-ATTREX project are the photochemistry, the microphysics of aerosols and cloud particles, and air mass transport into and within the tropical tropopause layer (TTL). The DOAS measurements aim to measure the vertical profiles in the TTL of ozone relevant species such as O3, HONO, NO2, C2H2O2, CH2O, O4, BrO, OClO, IO, and OIO, and of some microphysical properties aerosols and clouds, i.e., the particle phase function, Mie scattering extinction coefficient, the ice water path (IWP) and probably the ice water content (IWC). Together with complementary observations made by other instruments aboard the GH, the DOAS measurements may serve to particularily provide new insights into (a) the photochemistry of halogen oxides (OClO, BrO and IO) in the TTL, in particular on the contribution of so called halogenated Very Short Lived Species (VSLS) to the budgets of stratospheric halogens, (b) the impact of lightning produced NOx and HOx (NO2, and HONO) and other of radicals (c.f. CH2O, BrO, IO) to the oxidation capacity of air in the outflow region of deep convection, and (c) to the abundance and micro-physical properties of frozen aerosols and cloud particles in the upper tropical troposphere and TTL.

Tropical High Altitude Clouds and their Impact on Stratospheric Humidity

Das Projekt "Tropical High Altitude Clouds and their Impact on Stratospheric Humidity" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Leibniz-Institut für Troposphärenforschung e.V. durchgeführt. Clouds play a key role in the Earth's climate system by regulation of the incoming and outgoing radiation, chemical and dynamical processes. Ice clouds at high altitudes in the tropics, the so called tropical tropopause layer, are particularly important since this is the main region where air ascends slowly from the troposphere into the dry stratosphere. Thus, these ice clouds affect the stratospheric water vapour content which in itself is a main driver of radiative and chemical processes, e.g. ozone depletion, there. These clouds can either be of convective nature, or occur in convective overshooting cloud turrets, or they form in situ by large scale upwelling and cooling as subvisible cirrus. Although the latter occur frequently, little is known about the exact microphysical formation mechanisms and how they can be maintained. Previous modelling efforts using various different mechanisms, however, have failed to agree with the observed properties. This project aims to improve our knowledge of the impact clouds in the tropical tropopause layer have on stratospheric humidity, by studying their formation, maintenance, and occurrence frequencies.A set of state-of-the-art numerical models will be used to simulate the clouds in the tropical tropopause layer, taking advantage of their particular strengths. These models are the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) Model, the GLObal Model of Aerosol Processes (GLOMAP), and the Australian Community Climate and Earth-System Simulator (ACCESS). First, the questions related to the formation and maintenance of subvisible cirrus will be addressed. In a second step the impact of subvisible cirrus and overshooting convection on the stratospheric humidity will be assessed. Both the direct effects (e.g. injection of ice particles into the stratosphere) and indirect effects (e.g. change in dynamical processes) will be studied. In order to estimate the net effect, occurrence frequencies of both cloud types will be derived from a complementary set of ground based remote sensing observations from the Darwin site and satellite observation from the International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project. The data of airborne in situ measurements which I analyzed during my PhD will help to constrain and test the model simulations. A better understanding of the complex processes related to the clouds in the tropical tropopause layer will improve their representation in numerical models and thus, enhance the quality of model predictions. This will improve our ability to constrain climate predictions due to highly uncertain ice cloud processes. Additionally, knowing the impact of these clouds on stratospheric humidity will enable an improved quantification of their climate impact.

Integrating Cloud Observations from Ground and Space - a Way to Combine Time and Space Information (ICOS)

Das Projekt "Integrating Cloud Observations from Ground and Space - a Way to Combine Time and Space Information (ICOS)" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Universität Köln, Institut für Geophysik und Meteorologie, Bereich Meteorologie, Arbeitsgruppe Integrierte Fernerkundung durchgeführt. Cloud processes remain one of the largest challenges in atmospheric research partly due to a gap in statistically significant observations of cloud macro- and microphysical properties. The most detailed and continuous observations available today come from the combination of state-of-the-art ground-based sensors at a few 'super sites' worldwide. The integrated profiling technique (IPT) developed by the proposers has been established to provide cloud liquid water (LWC) profiles with their error and the associated environmental conditions (temperature, humidity) from a combination of microwave radiometer, cloud radar and ceilometer. Here we propose to extend this method by incorporating satellite observations by Meteosat SEVIRI into the IPT optimal estimation framework for the additional retrieval of cloud microphysics (effective radius, optical thickness) and cloud radiation budget. In addition SEVIRI measurements will be exploited to provide auxiliary information on a) the history of the cloud observed at the super site (lifetime, microphysical development, environment) and b) the representativeness of the cloud for the cloud field around the site. The method will be developed on the basis of existing data sets from observation sites at Cabauw, Lindenberg and AMF/Murg Valley.

Investigation of reactive halogen species in a smog chamber and in the field

Das Projekt "Investigation of reactive halogen species in a smog chamber and in the field" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Universität Heidelberg, Institut für Umweltphysik durchgeführt. The objective of the proposed activities as part of the DFG research group HaloProc is the investigation of Reactive Halogen (RH) chemistry in the atmosphere by Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy. The importance of RH includes the destruction of ozone, change in the chemical balance, increased deposition of toxic compounds (like mercury) and potential indirect effects on global climate. In our laboratory experiments we observed events of 'Bromine Explosion' (auto catalytic release of reactive bromine from salt surfaces - key to ozone destruction) that were strongly dependent on pH and humidity. Our measurements from field campaigns in Namibia/Botsuana, Southern Russia and Mauritania during HaloProc1 showed 1 to 2 orders of magnitude lower BrO and IO levels than expected based on previous observations at salt flats. Environmental conditions might have strong influence, which would be consistent with the smog chamber studies. One of the main questions of the second phase is under which conditions RH activation take place does. It is of great interest whether reactions of chlorine and iodine compounds on salt surfaces are similar to those of bromine, and whether different RH compounds interact with each other. In addition, oxides of nitrogen might be important for their role in the reactivation of RH. Proposed field campaigns in Namibia and South Russia will allow us to investigate the sources, sinks and transformations of RH compounds. This work will be complemented by corresponding smog chamber experiments with measurements of different halogen oxides as well as photochemical model calculations.

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