Effects of temperature change on water discharge, and sediment and nutrient loading in the lower Pearl River basin based on SWAT modelling

National Natural Science Foundation of China [U0633002, 30670385]

Impacts of socio-economic factors on sediment yield in the Upper Yangtze River

In recent years, the role of human activities in changing sediment yield has become more apparent for the construction of hydraulic engineering and water conservation projections in the Upper Yangtze River, but it has not been evaluated at the macro scale. Taking Sichuan Province and Chongqing City as an example, this paper studies the relationship between socio-economic factors and sediment yield in the Upper Yangtze River based on section data in 1989 and 2007. The results show that sediment yield is significantly correlated with population density and cultivated area, in which the former appears to be more closely related to sediment yield. Moreover, in the relation of sediment yield vs. population density, a critical value of population density exists, below which the sediment yield increases with the increase of population density and over which the sediment yield increases with the decrease of population density. The phenomenon essentially reflects the influence of natural factors, such as topography, precipitation and soil property, and some human activities on sediment yield. The region with a higher population density than critical value is located in the east of the study area and is characterized by plains, hills and low mountains, whereas the opposite is located in the west and characterized by middle and high mountains. In the eastern region, more people live on the lands with a low slope where regional soil erosion is slight; therefore, sediment yield is negatively related with population density. In contrast, in the western region, the population tends to aggregate in the areas with abundant soil and water resources which usually lead to a higher intensity of natural erosion, and in turn, high-intensity agricultural practices in these areas may further strengthen local soil erosion. It is also found that population tends to move from the areas with bad environment and high sediment yield to the areas with more comfortable environment and less sediment yield. The natural factors have greater influence on sediment yield of western region than that of eastern region. Generally, the natural factors play a dominant role on sediment yield in the Upper Yangtze River.

Diagnostic experiments for transport mechanisms of suspended sediment discharged from the Yellow River in the Bohai Sea

Five diagnostic experiments with a 3D baroclinic hydrodynamic and sediment transport model ECOMSED in couple with the third generation wave model SWAN and the Grant-Madsen bottom boundary layer model driven by the monthly sediment load of the Yellow River, were conducted to separately diagnose effects of different hydrodynamic factors on transport of suspended sediment discharged from the Yellow River in the Bohai Sea. Both transport and spatio-temporal distribution of suspended sediment concentration in the Bohai Sea were numerially simulated. It could be concluded that suspended sediment discharged from the Yellow River cannot be delivered in long distance under the condition of tidal current. Almost all of sediments from the Yellow River are deposited outside the delta under the condition of wind-driven current, and only very small of them are transported faraway. On the basis of wind forcing, sediments from the Yellow River are mainly transported north-northwestward, and others which are first delivered to the Laizhou Bay are continuously moved northward. An obvious 3D structure characteristic of sediment transport is produced in the wind-driven and tide-induced residual circulation condition. Transport patterns at all layers are generally consistent with circulation structure, but there is apparent deviation between the depth-averaged sediment flux and the circulation structure. The phase of temporal variation of sediment concentration is consistent with that of the bottom shear stress, both of which are proved to have a ten-day cycle in wave and current condition.

Nanocomposite multilayer film of preyssler-type polyoxometalates with fine tunable electrocatalytic activities

Through layer-by-layer (LBL) assembly technique, iron oxide (Fe3O4) nanoparticles coated by poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride) (PDDA) and Preyssler-type polyoxometalates (NH4)(14)NaP5W30O110.31H(2)O (P5W30) were alternately deposited on quartz and ITO substrates, and 4-aminobenzoic acid modified glassy carbon electrodes. Thus-prepared multilayer films were characterized by UV-visible spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and cyclic voltammetry. It was proved that the multilayer films are uniform and stable. And the electrocatalytic activities of the multilayer films can be fine-tuned by adjusting the assembly conditions in the LBL assembly process, such as the pH of the assembly solution. The multilayer films fabricated from P5W30 solutions dissolved in 0.1 M H2SO4 exhibit high electrocatalytic response and sensitivity toward the reduction of two substrates of important analytical interests, HNO2 and IO3- whereas the films assembled with P5W30 solutions dissolved in 1.0 M H2SO4 show remarkable electrocatalytic activity for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Furthermore, the electrocatalytic properties of the HER of the latter film can be obtained from the former film upon exposure to 1.0 M H2SO4 for several hours.

Gold nanoparticles as fine tuners of electrochemical properties of the electrode/solution interface

Recently, a novel approach for preparing SERS and SPR substrates was developed, which indicates a potential application in tailoring the interfacial structure of an electrode surface. In this study, (3-mercaptopropyl)trimethoxysilane (MPTMS) was selected as a polymeric adhesive layer, and a low concentration of colloid Au solution was used to achieve a more accurate control over interface morphology at nanoscale dimensions due to slow self-assembling kinetics of gold nanoparticle's. Subsequent seeding growth of these MPTMS-supported submonolayers of gold nanoparticles in Au3+/NH2OH aqueous solution enlarges particle size and eventually results in the generation of conductive gold films (similar to previous (3-aminopropyl)trimethoxysilane-supported gold films). Such tunable interface structure was evaluated by atomic force microscopy (AFM). Also, ac impedance spectroscopy (ACIS) and cyclic voltammograms were performed to evaluate electrochemical properties of the as-prepared interfaces by using Fe(CN)(6) (3-/4-) couples as a probe. Furthermore, relevant theories of microarray electrodes were introduced into this study to explain the highly tunable electrochemical properties of the as-prepared interfaces. As a result, it is concluded that the electrochemical properties toward Fe(CN)(6) (3-/4-) couples are highly dependent on the active nanoelectrode (nanoparticles) area fraction and nanoparticles are fine-tuners of interfacial properties because the number density. (numbers/unit area) and size of nanoparticles are highly tunable by self-assembling and seeding growth time scale control. This is in agreement with the theoretical expectations for a microarray electrode if a single nanoparticle tethered to a blocking SAM is taken as a nanoelectrode and 2-D nanoparticle assemblies are taken as nanoelectrode arrays.

Distribution of molluscan remains in the sediment of the Chukchi Sea and its vicinity, the Arctic

The result of an analysis of mollusca remains collected from the Chukchi Sea, Beaufort Sea and Bering Sea in the First Chinese National Arctic Research Expedition, from July to September, 1999 is presented. Seventeen species of mollusca have been identified, which belong to two classes: Bivalvia and Gastropoda. The compositions of the mollusca are very simple. According to the distribution pattern two groups may be distinguished among molluscan species. The Pan-Arctic and circumboreal group comprises Nuculana pernula, N.radiata, Nucula bellotii, Astarte montagui, Seripes groenlandicus, Macoma calcarea, M. moesta alaskana, Liocyrna fluctuosa, Mya pseudoarenaria and Turritella polaris. Three species, Cyclocardia crebricostata, Trichotrois coronata and Argobuccinum oregonense are components of the Pan-Arctic and Pacific boreal group. With regard to feeding habits, detritus feeders dominate. There are 7 species of detritus feeders, i.e., Nuculana pernula, N. radiata, Nucula bellotii, Macoma calcarea, M. moesta alaskana, Macoma sp. and Trichotropis coronata. Detritus feeders are dominant with regard to the numbers of species as well as to the frequency of occurrence. Macoma calcarea is the most abundant species.

Vertical distribution of bacterial and archaeal communities along discrete layers of a deep-sea cold sediment sample at the East Pacific Rise (similar to 13 degrees N)

The community structure and vertical distribution of prokaryotes in a deep-sea (ca. 3,191 m) cold sediment sample (ca. 43 cm long) collected at the East Pacific Rise (EPR) similar to 13 degrees N were studied with 16SrDNA-based molecular analyses. Total community DNA was extracted from each of four discrete layers EPRDS-1, -2, -3 and -4 (from top to bottom) and 16S rDNA were amplified by PCR. Cluster analysis of DGGE profiles revealed that the bacterial communities shifted sharply between EPRDS-1 and EPRDS-2 in similarity coefficient at merely 49%. Twenty-three sequences retrieved from DGGE bands fell into 11 groups based on BLAST and bootstrap analysis. The dominant groups in the bacterial communities were Chloroflexi, Gamma proteobacteria, Actinobacterium and unidentified bacteria, with their corresponding percentages varying along discrete layers. Pairwise Fst (F-statistics) values between the archaeal clone libraries indicated that the archaeal communities changed distinctly between EPRDS-2 and EPRDS-3. Sequences from the archaeal libraries were divided to eight groups. Crenarchaea Marine Group I (MGI) was prevalent in EPRDS-1 at 83%, while Uncultured Crenarchaea group II B (UCII B) abounded in EPRDS-4 at 61%. Our results revealed that the vertically stratified distribution of prokaryotic communities might be in response to the geochemical settings and suggested that the sampling area was influenced by hydrothermalism. The copresence of members related to hydrothermalism and cold deep-sea environments in the microbial community indicated that the area might be a transitional region from hydrothermal vents to cold deep-sea sediments.