Long-term atmospheric emissions for the Coal Oil Point natural marine hydrocarbon seep field, offshore California

In this study, we present a novel approach for assessing nearshore seepage atmospheric emissions through modeling of air quality station data, specifically a Gaussian plume inversion model. A total of 3 decades of air quality station meteorology and total hydrocarbon concentration, THC, data were analyzed to study emissions from the Coal Oil Point marine seep field offshore California. THC in the seep field directions was significantly elevated and Gaussian with respect to wind direction, θ. An inversion model of the seep field, θ-resolved anomaly, THC′(θ)-derived atmospheric emissions is given. The model inversion is for the far field, which was satisfied by gridding the sonar seepage and treating each grid cell as a separate Gaussian plume. This assumption was validated by offshore in situ data that showed major seep area plumes were Gaussian. Plume total carbon, TC (TC = THC + carbon dioxide, CO2, + carbon monoxide), 18 % was CO2 and 82 % was THC; 85 % of THC was CH4. These compositions were similar to the seabed composition, demonstrating efficient vertical plume transport of dissolved seep gases. Air samples also measured atmospheric alkane plume composition. The inversion model used observed winds and derived the 3-decade-average (1990–2021) field-wide atmospheric emissions of 83 400 ± 12 000 m3 THC d−1 (27 Gg THC yr−1 based on 19.6 g mol−1 for THC). Based on a 50 : 50 air-to-seawater partitioning, this implies seabed emissions of 167 000 m3 THC d−1. Based on atmospheric plume composition, C1–C6 alkane emissions were 19, 1.3, 2.5, 2.2, 1.1, and 0.15 Gg yr−1, respectively. The spatially averaged CH4 emissions over the ∼ 6.3 km2 of 25 × 25 m2 bins with sonar values above noise were 5.7 µM m−2 s−1. The approach can be extended to derive emissions from other dispersed sources such as landfills, industrial sites, or terrestrial seepage if source locations are constrained spatially.

The Gas and Aerosol Phase Composition of Smoke Plumes From The 2019-2020 Black Summer Bushfires and Potential Implications For Human Health

The 2019-2020 Australian bushfire season was historically large, long, and intense. Smoke from fires burning in southeast Australia blanketed population centres for weeks to months. This study reports the chemical composition in the gas and aerosol phase of aged plumes measured near Wollongong, NSW in early 2020. Enhancement ratios to CO are presented for thirteen species. Plume composition is largely similar to that measured in fresh smoke during previous studies. It is hoped enhancement ratios reported here will assist in plume modelling of landscape scale fires and allow concentration estimates of infrequently measured atmospheric pollutants at monitoring stations. The relative toxicological contribution of species present in the plumes was determined for dilute plume exposure at the measurement site and for concentrated plumes at a heavily impacted population centre case study location. Similar results were determined for both sites. Respirable particles, formaldehyde and acrolein were found to contribute significantly to the toxicological loading, with respirable particles contributing approximately half of the loading. This is a reminder to consider not only the toxicological contributions of particles when studying health impacts of bushfire smoke exposure.

Long-Term Atmospheric Emissions for the Coal Oil Point Natural Marine Hydrocarbon Seep Field, Offshore California

In this study, we present a novel approach for assessing nearshore seepage atmospheric emissions through modeling of air quality station data, specifically, a Gaussian plume inversion model. Three decades of air quality station meteorology and total hydrocarbon concentration, THC, data were analysed to study emissions from the Coal Oil Point marine seep field offshore California. THC in the seep field directions was significantly elevated and Gaussian with respect to wind direction, θ. An inversion model of the seep field anomaly, THC’(θ), derived atmospheric emissions. The model inversion is for the far field, which was satisfied by gridding the sonar seepage and treating each grid cell as a separate Gaussian plume. This assumption was validated by offshore in situ offshore data that showed major seep area plumes were Gaussian. Plume air sample THC was 85 % methane, CH4, and 20 % carbon dioxide, CO2, similar to seabed composition, demonstrating efficient vertical plume transport of dissolved seep gases. Air samples also measured atmospheric alkane plume composition. The inversion model used observed winds and derived the three-decade-average (1990–2021) field-wide atmospheric emissions of 83,500 ± 12,000 m3 THC day−1. Based on a 50:50 air to seawater partitioning, this implies seabed emissions of 167,000 m3 THC dy−1. Based on atmospheric plume composition, C1-C6 alkane emissions were 19, 1.3, 2.5, 2.2, 1.1, and 0.15 Gg yr−1, respectively. The approach can be extended to derive emissions from other dispersed sources such as landfills, industrial sites, or terrestrial seepage if source locations are constrained spatially.

The Underwater Behavior of Oil and Gas Jets and Plumes

Exploring how the multiscale interaction between underwater oil and gas plumes and the environment impacts plume composition and trajectory.

Source term estimation for the MARIA research reactor and model of atmospheric dispersion of radionuclides with dry deposition

Source term is the amount of radionuclide activity, measured in becquerels, released to the atmosphere from a nuclear reactor, together with the plume composition, over a specific period. It is the basis of radioprotection-related calculation. Usually, such computations are done using commercial codes; however, they are challenging to be used in the case of the MARIA reactor due to its unique construction. Consequently, there is a need to develop a method that will be able to deliver useful results despite the complicated geometry of the reactor site. Such an approach, based upon the Bateman balance equation, is presented in the article, together with the results of source term calculation for the MARIA reactor. Additionally, atmospheric dispersion of the radionuclides, analysed with the Gauss plume model with dry deposition, is presented.

Trace element emissions during the 2018 Kilauea Lower East Rift Zone eruption

<p>The 2018 eruption on the Lower East Rift Zone of Kilauea volcano, Hawai’i released unprecedented fluxes of gases (>200 kt/d SO<sub>2</sub>) and aerosol into the troposphere [1,2]. The eruption affected air quality across the island and lava flows reached the ocean, forming a halogen-rich plume as lava rapidly boiled and evaporated seawater.</p><p>We present the at-source composition – gas and size-segregated aerosol – of both the magmatic plume (emitted from ‘Fissure 8’, F8) and the lava-seawater interaction plume (ocean entry, OE), including major gas species, and major and trace elements in non-silicate aerosol. Trace metal and metalloid (TMM) emissions during the 2018 eruption were the highest recorded for Kilauea, and the magmatic ‘fingerprint’ of TMMs (X/SO<sub>2</sub> ratios) in the 2018 plume is consistent with measurements made at the summit lava lake in 2008 [3], and with other rift and hotspot volcanoes [4,5].</p><p>We show that the OE plume composition predominantly reflects seawater composition with a small contribution from plagioclase +/- ash. However, elevated concentrations of some TMMs (Bi, Cd, Cu, Zn, Ag) with affinity for Cl-speciation in the gas phase cannot be accounted for by the silicate correction and therefore may derive from degassing of lava in the presence of elevated Cl<sup>-</sup>. In the case of silver and copper, concentrations in the OE plume are elevated above both the F8 plume and seawater.</p><p>At-vent speciation of TMMs in the F8 plume during oxidation (following a correction for ash contributions) was assessed using a Gibbs Energy Minimization algorithm (HSC chemistry, Outotec Research). We also demonstrate the sensitivity of speciation in the plume to the concentration of common ligand-forming elements, chlorine and sulfur. These results could be used as initial conditions in atmospheric reaction models to investigate how plume composition evolves as low-temperature chemistry takes over.</p><p>References:</p><p>[1] Neal C et al. (2019) Science</p><p>[2] Kern C et al. (2019) AGU Fall meeting abstract V43C-0209</p><p>[3] Mather T et al. (2012) GCA 83:292-323</p><p>[4] Zelenzki et al. (2013) Chem Geol 357:95-116</p><p>[5] Gauthier P-J et al. (2016) J Geophys 121:1610-1630</p>