Partial pressure of carbon dioxide along the Transatlantic section from 7 November till 19 December 2000

Along a transatlantic section from 57°N to 60°S that was carried out from November 7 till December 19, 2000 on board R/V Horizont II concentrations of CO2 were measured in the near-water layer of the air and differences between partial pressures in water and air in various climatic zones were calculated. It was shown that variations of CO2 concentrations in the near-water layer of air and those of values of water-air partial pressure difference were from 324x10**-6 to 426x10**-6 and from 150x10**-6 to 100x10**-6 atm, respectively. Maximum value of CO2 partial pressure in air in the near-water layer (426x10**-6 atm) was noted at 45°-47°N; minimum of 324x10**-6 atm was found in Antarctica at 59°S. During measurenents maximum value of CO2 partial pressure difference in water and air (150 x10**-6) was observed at 45°-48°N; maximum flux in this case was directed from the atmosphere to water. Maximum value of CO2 partial pressure difference in water and air for flux directed from the ocean to air (100 x10**-6) was observed at 59°-60°S. Comparison of calculated values of partial pressure difference in water and air with previous data points to more intense exchange of CO2 between the ocean and atmosphere during the survey period was considered. According to values of CO2 partial pressure difference in air and water as compared to 1975, exchange intensity in the Northern Hemisphere (absorption from the atmosphere) increased. A well-pronounced latitudinal effect of distribution of CO2 partial pressure in air was observed. Along the route variations in CO2 concentrations in zones of water divergence and convergence were registered.

Rare earth and other element contents in surface layer bottom sediments and ferromanganese nodules along the Transatlantic profile

Behavior of rare earth elements (REE) and Th is studied along the Transatlantic transect at 22°N. It is shown that both REE and Th contents relative to Al (the most lithogenic element) increase toward the pelagic region. The increasing trend becomes more complicated due to variations in content of biogenic calcium carbonate that acts as a diluting component in sediments. REE composition varies symmetrically relative to the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR) emphasizing weak hydrothermal influence on sediments of the ridge axis, although the well-known criteria for hydrothermal contribution, such as Al/(Al+Mn+Fe) and (Fe+Mn)/Ti, do not reach critical values. Variations in REE content and composition allowed to distinguish the following five sediment zones in the transect: (I) terrigenous sediments of the Nares abyssal plain; (II) pelagic sediments of the North American Basin; (III) carbonate ooze of the MAR axis; (IV) pelagic sediments of the Canary Basin; and (V) terrigenous clay and calcareous mud of the African continental slope and slope base. Ferromanganese nodules of the hydrogenous type with extremely high Ce (up to 1801 ppm) and Th (up to 138 ppm) contents occur in pelagic sediments. It is ascertained that P, REE, and Th contents depend on Fe content in Atlantic sediments. Therefore, one can suggest that only minor amount of phosphorus is bound with bone debris. Low concentration of bone debris phosphorus is a result of relatively high sedimentation rates in the Atlantic Ocean, as compared with those in pelagic regions of the Pacific Ocean.

Carbon isotopes, hydrography, and nutrients measured at hydrographic stations from a transatlantic section near 40° N

14C concentrations, as well as 14C, hydrographic and nutrient data are reported for 5 hydrographic stations that form a transatlantic section near 40° N ("Meteor" cruise no. 23, 1971). Precision (for 14C ± 0.3 ? or better) and comparability with literature data are specified. A planned intercomparison with the US GEOSECS program within the Newfoundland Basin deep water failed because of variability of water characteristics. The observed 14C values decrease from about Delta 14C = + 80 ? at the surface to -70 ? at 2000 m depth. Deeper down, the values west of the Midatlantic Ridge remain similar, whereas those east of the ridge decrease further, to about - 110 ?. It is shown that bomb-14C is prominent down to about 1500 m depth. Beyond this depth the bomb 14C component is small and is negligible in the eastern basin below 2800 m. On the basis of the 14C-tritium correlation, the distribution of natural 14C below about 1500 m depth is derived from the observations. In the deep and bottom water east of the ridge the 14C-salinity relationship seemingly is non-linear. Contrary to expectation, the 14C concentration in the bottom water is not lower than found on an US GEOSECS station near 10° N. Apparently, lateral concentration differences in the Northeast Atlantic bottom water as well as nonlinearity of the 14C-salinity relationship at 40° N do not exceed 10 ? in Delta 14C.

Non-tariff barriers, integration and the transatlantic economy

We examine the potential impact of TTIP through trade-cost reductions, applying a mix of econometric and computational methods to develop estimates of the benefits (and costs) for the EU, United States, and third countries. Econometric results point to an approximate 80% growth in bilateral trade with an ambitious trade agreement. However, at the same time, computable general equilibrium (CGE) estimates highlight distributional impacts across countries and factors not evident from econometrics alone. Translated through our CGE framework, while bilateral trade increases roughly 80%, there is a fall of about 2.5% in trade with the rest of the world in our central case. The estimated gains in annual consumption range between 1% and 2.25% for the United States and EU, respectively. A purely discriminatory agreement would harm most countries outside the agreement, while the direction of third-country effects hinges critically on whether NTB reductions end up being discriminatory or not. Within the United States and EU, while labour gains across skill categories, the impact on farmers is mixed.

La electrodinámica de cables espaciales

Se discuten los fundamentos que subyacen en la concepción y en las aplicaciones de un cable espacial, o tether. Si el cable es metálico y órbita en un planeta con ionosfera y campo magnético propio —la Tierra misma, o uno de los grandes planetas exteriores-, su movimiento genera una fuerza electromotriz por el mismo proceso de inducción magnética de un simple generador eléctrico, y el circuito conductor se "cierra" a través del plasma ionosférico. Se analiza el problema técnico central al que se enfrentan los tethers electrodinámicos de potencia: cómo establecer un buen contacto eléctrico entre el cable y la rarificada ionosfera. Se discute una reciente solución al problema.

Análisis teórico de la variación aleatoria de los esfuerzos de montaje de los cables en los puentes atirantados

Los puentes atirantados son una de las tipologías estructurales con mas desarrollo en los últimos años ya que cuentan con un ámbito de aplicación que se ha extendido en gran medida, llegando hasta el rango de luces de más de 1000 m. Por otra parte, para el caso de luces medias, este tipo de puentes aporta unas características resistentes y formales que los hacen muy adecuados en gran número de situaciones. Simultaneamente al importante número de realizaciones llevadas a cabo con esta tipología en los últimos años, se ha producido un gran desarrollo del conocimiento teórico de diferentes aspectos técnicos específicos de estos puentes, tanto a nivel de su comportamiento estructural como de la simulación y mejora de sus procesos constructivos. Estos desarrollos se han producido en gran parte gracias al avance en las capacidad de computación disponible hoy en día con los numerosos y cada vez más sofisticados programas comerciales de cálculo estructural, los cuales permiten la realización de análisis que hasta hace poco tiempo eran muy complicados de desarrollar. Una de las principales características de este tipo de estructuras, además de su elevado hiperestatismo, es la importancia del proceso constructivo, y en concreto del proceso de tesado de los cables, a la hora de conseguir alcanzar una situación final con la estructura en servicio que cumpla los requisitos establecidos a priori. Por este motivo se han llevado a cabo bastantes investigaciones orientadas a la optimización de los axiles a aplicar a los cables en el momento de su colocación y en su situación final. Parte de estos análisis se han centrado en particular en la posible influencia de ciertos parámetros geométricos y mecánicos aleatorios sobre los esfuerzos provocados sobre la estructura. Por otra parte, el propio comportamiento resistente de un tirante introduce ciertas incertidumbres en los formatos de seguridad asociados a los esfuerzos generados sobre ellos, en concreto en relación a la dependencia de estas fuerzas respecto de las cargas permanentes y a su consideración a nivel de coeficientes de seguridad asociados a dichas acciones. En vista de estos aspectos particulares se ha procedido a desarrollar la investigación que se expone a continuación, en la que se ha pretendido obtener un conocimiento adicional de algunos de estos aspectos para así poder contrastar la validez de las hipótesis que hoy en día son establecidas por la normativa vigente. De esta forma el planteamiento adoptado en esta tesis ha sido en primer lugar proponer un método novedoso de introducción de errores aleatorios sobre los esfuerzos o deformaciones de tesado de los cables, de tal manera que se pueda aplicar dicha técnica a distintas tipologías de puentes atirantados. Se pretende con ello conocer la influencia de dichos errores sobre el comportamiento de estas estructuras y valorar la magnitud de las desviaciones finalmente creadas respecto de la situación teórica. Una vez conocida la implicación que supone la aleatoriedad aplicada en la colocación de los tirantes, tanto cualitativa como cuantitativamente, se ha procedido a realizar un análisis de las consecuencias respecto de los formatos de seguridad que de estos datos se deducen. Señalar que esta tesis se ha centrado en el caso concreto de puentes atirantados construidos por voladizos sucesivos y con tableros de hormigón, dado el gran numero de puentes ejecutados con estas características, y con el objetivo de concentrar el estudio realizado en una tipología particular, pero de gran aplicación. Cable-stayed bridges represent one of the most developed structural typologies being used recently as it has a span range that can extend beyond 1000m. Furthermore, when it comes to bridges that span to a medium range we could say their shape and resistance are features that make this kind of bridge suitable for many different applications. Moreover, due to this type of bridge being used newly more extensively it has allowed for a better understanding of the theoretical knowledge of the various technical aspects both at a structural and simulation level in order to improve the constructions process of this type of bridge. Knowledge and development of these bridges can be attributed to the increasing apprehension of I.T. skills and the development of more advanced computer software with regards to structural calculations. The latter can aide more demanding analysis that was previously difficult to ascertain Defining features of this type of structure, besides its hyper static attributes, is the importance of the construction process, namely the cable tensioning process, which determines whether the requirements set out in the construction process will be met once the bridge is finished and traffic loads are applied. This is why much research has been conducted into the optimization of the axial forces to be applied to the cables. Focus, of part of this research, goes into the possible influences of random geometrical and mechanical parametres on the forces applied to the structure. We have therefore proceeded to develop research in which we have tried to gain more in depth knowledge which considers these aspects so that we can validate the hypothesis which are currently established in the regulations Firstly, the purpose of this thesis is to provide a new method to introduce random errors on the forces or deformations of cable tensioning so that this technique can be extended to various models of cable-staying bridges. It is important to highlight that this thesis has focused on cable-stayed bridges built through the balanced cantilever method and with concrete girders and considering there are many actual bridges with these characteristics the research has focused on a specific yet extensively applied method.

A clustering technique for partial discharge and noise sources identification in power cables by means of waveform parameters

On-line partial discharge (PD) measurements have become a common technique for assessing the insulation condition of installed high voltage (HV) insulated cables. When on-line tests are performed in noisy environments, or when more than one source of pulse-shaped signals are present in a cable system, it is difficult to perform accurate diagnoses. In these cases, an adequate selection of the non-conventional measuring technique and the implementation of effective signal processing tools are essential for a correct evaluation of the insulation degradation. Once a specific noise rejection filter is applied, many signals can be identified as potential PD pulses, therefore, a classification tool to discriminate the PD sources involved is required. This paper proposes an efficient method for the classification of PD signals and pulse-type noise interferences measured in power cables with HFCT sensors. By using a signal feature generation algorithm, representative parameters associated to the waveform of each pulse acquired are calculated so that they can be separated in different clusters. The efficiency of the clustering technique proposed is demonstrated through an example with three different PD sources and several pulse-shaped interferences measured simultaneously in a cable system with a high frequency current transformer (HFCT).

The New Financial Regulatory Paradigm: A transatlantic perspective. CEPS Policy Brief No. 287, 21 March 2013

This CEPS Policy Brief reviews key aspects of the new financial paradigm in a transatlantic perspective, focusing on the general approach in EU and US legislation in response to the financial crisis and the G-20 commitments and specifically as regards the extraterritorial implications. Following discussion of the institutional setting, conclusions are offered on what these changes mean in the context of the recently proposed Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership. In comparing the EU and the US efforts in re-engineering their regulatory regimes in response to the financial crisis, the paper finds, with the notable exception of the banking union, serious grounds for concern that the outcome may be an even more fragmented European financial market, access to which for third-country institutions is highly problematic.