Composite Fingerprints Research Articles

Assessing the sources of sediment transported in gully systems using a fingerprinting approach: An example from South-east China

Eroded sediment is an important feature of permanent gully's development; however, obtaining the specific characteristics of the sediment transport in the gully can be difficult. Thus, a composite fingerprinting technique, incorporating uncertainty analysis, has been employed to investigate the mean relative contribution of sediment sources in permanent gullies. In this study, 31 tracers were measured at 62 different sampling sites from three layers of a gully wall [surface layer (SL), sandy soil layer (SSL), and semi-weathering rock layer (SWL)] and 36 sediment samples from the slumping deposit and alluvial fan of the gullies. The sediment source tracing procedure was therefore used to assess the relative contribution of each source. The mean relative contribution from the SL to the sediment of the slumping deposit is higher in the active gully (G1), and is relatively lower in the potentially stable (G2) and stable gullies (G3); thus there was no obvious gully bank retreat in G2 and G3. In different places of the G1 alluvial fan, the mean relative contribution of the SL, SSL and SWL ranged from 9–11, 36–43 and 46–55%, respectively. However, the sediment contribution of the SL increased in G2 and G3 due to the changes in the erosion type. The mean relative contributions of the SL were 33±5 (G2) and 30±3% (G3). These findings have important implications for the establishment of a scientific basis for permanent gully sediment transport management and control policies.

Liquid chromatographic fingerprints and profiles of polyphenolic compounds applied to the chemometric characterization and classification of beers

In this paper, liquid chromatography with UV-vis detection was used to generate compositional fingerprints of beers to be exploited for characterization and classification purposes.

Influence of wall-rock alteration and fluid mixing mechanisms in the chemistry of thermal fluids and mud-pool sediments at Caldeiras da Ribeira Grande (S. Miguel Island, Azores)

The Caldeiras da Ribeira Grande site is placed at the north-eastern side of the Ribeira Grande geothermal system (S. Miguel Island) and includes a fumarolic field with multiple discharge points, closely associated with a mud pool. The major discharge is artificially confined to a tank, also fed by a cold (≈19 °C) spring water, allowing the accumulation of diluted thermal fluid and mud. In the open fumarole site placed to the NE of the tank another persistent thermal fluid discharge can be observed, whose temperature (70 °C), pH (≈2–3) and electrical conductivity (185.4–3,300 μS/cm) values, as well as major element contents, are within ranges bracketed by measurements performed at the same site over time. Despite of differences imposed by inhomogeneous dilution processes within tank, the compositional fingerprints of both thermal fluids are similar, pointing to a common origin. Variations in Br, Mo, W, Nb, Sn and Sb contents are minimal, but the thermal fluid discharging at the open fumarole site reveals concentrations above 100 μg/l in Zn, Ti, Mn, Rb, Y, Ce and Nd and up to 11 μg/l in As, Hg and Pb. The chondrite-normalised REE patterns are equivalent to those usually reported for acid, SO4 2−-bearing geothermal fluids and the available data show that the fluid chemistry strongly depends on the alteration experienced by the hosting volcanic rocks. This alteration led to relative [Hg, S, Ag, Cu, ±Ge] enrichments, but a significant part of the [K, Na, Ca, Mn, Mg, Zn, Co, ±W ± REE] original rock contents was carried out by the modified fluid. Kaolinite and alunite(-jarosite), besides fine-grained relics of K-feldspar and quartz, are the fundamental components of the mud forming the boiling pool or the mounts accumulated in tank. This mineralogical similarity is consistent with bulk chemical compositions and differences in concentration rarely exceed 1.5–2 times for the large majority of the elements analysed. Some compositional features displayed by thermal fluids and coexisting muds are sensitive to pH and Eh variations, reflecting also changes in fluid/rock reaction paths due to variations in acid steam production/composition and relative proportion of steam subjected to condensation. These chemical features can be used as proxies to monitor the Ribeira Grande geothermal system, provided that adequate time series data exist for pertinent parameters in representative sampling sites.

Ascribing soil erosion types for sediment yield using composite fingerprinting technique

Soil erosion and eroded sediment are serious threats to sound land management. However, less attention has been given to quantifying the importance of different soil erosion features based on appropriate control measures that could be designated. Accordingly, this research was planned to quantify the contribution of potential sediment sources, i.e. sheet, rill and gully erosion, in Idelo watershed in Zanjan Province, Iran, using composite fingerprinting. Toward this aim, 16 geochemical and organic tracers were detected in sediment sources and sediment deposited at the outlet. The results of applying the composite fingerprinting technique, with a relative error of 16%, showed that sheet, rill and gully sources contributed 56%, 44% and 0%, respectively, to sediment yield. It was also apparent from the results that the composite fingerprinting approach could be successfully utilized to assess the provenance of sediment deposited at the main outlet of the study watershed by soil erosion type.Editor Z.W. Kundzewicz

Geochemical fingerprint of the primary magma composition in the marine tephras originated from the Baegdusan and Ulleung volcanoes

The intraplate Baegdusan (Changbai) and Ulleung volcanoes located on the border of China, North Korea, and East/Japan Sea, respectively, have been explained by appeals to both hotspots and asthenospheric mantle upwelling (wet plume) caused by the stagnant Pacific plate. To understand the origin of the Baegdusan and Ulleung volcanism, we performed geochemical analyses on the tephra deposits in the East/Japan Sea basins originating from the Baegdusan and Ulleung volcanoes. The volcanic glass in the tephra from the Baegdusan and Ulleung volcanoes ranged from alkaline trachyte to peralkaline rhyolite and from phonolite to trachyte, respectively. The tephra from the two intraplate volcanoes showed highly enriched incompatible elements, such as Tb, Nb, Hf, and Ta, distinct from those of the ordinary arc volcanoes of the Japanese islands. The straddle distribution of the Th/Yb and Ta/Yb ratios of the tephra deposits from the Baegdusan volcano may originate from the alkali basaltic magma resulting from mixing between the wet plume from the stagnant Pacific plate in the transition zone and the overlying shallow asthenospheric mantle. In contrast, the deposits from the Ulleung volcano show a minor contribution of the stagnant slab to the basaltic magma, implying either partial melting of a more enriched mantle, smaller degrees of partial melting of a garnet-bearing mantle source, or a combination of both processes as the magma genesis. Our study indicated that the Baegdusan and Ulleung volcanoes have different magma sources and evolutionary histories.

The use of visible and near-infrared reflectance measurements for identifying the source of suspended sediment in rivers and comparison with geochemical fingerprinting

Visible and near-infrared (Vis-NIR) reflectance measurements may be an alternative technique to identify suspended sediment sources in streams of headwater catchments. In this study, we examined if Vis-NIR reflectance measurements are capable of estimating sediment source contributions to sediment yield and compared this technique with a more conventional (i.e. geochemical) technique. Two headwater catchments in Ethiopia, Unta (2,052 ha) and Desera (1,657 ha), were analysed with the same techniques in order to find similarities and differences in the results obtained. The first technique used Vis-NIR spectral analysis as a fingerprint, using a partial least squares regression model. The second technique was a quantitative composite fingerprinting technique using geochemical analysis of source materials and suspended sediment samples. As a comparison, the partial least squares model was also used on the geochemical data. In August and September 2009, 30 soil samples of three different land uses (landslides, croplands, and grazing lands) and 21 suspended sediment samples at the catchment outlet were collected. Source samples were sieved to <63 μm. Geochemical analyses consisted of total element concentrations, percentage carbon, percentage nitrogen, and atom percentage 15N and δ13C. Reflectance measurements were taken on dried source samples with a spectrometer. Neither technique was able to predict the contributions of the three land use types; they could only distinguish between landslide and topsoil material. The agreement between the results of both techniques was significant for the Unta catchment (R 2 = 0.80) but not for the Desera catchment (R 2 = 0.39). The uncertainty of the technique using Vis-NIR reflectance measurements was slightly higher than with the geochemical approach. Both techniques revealed that topsoil erosion played an important role during storm runoff discharges. Using the partial least squares model for the geochemical data revealed that uncertainty can differ greatly when using other statistical techniques. The quantitative composite fingerprinting technique using spectral signatures from both source and suspended sediment samples was able to quantify the contribution of two source materials (landslides and topsoil). It provided a faster and more cost effective alternative to the conventional geochemical procedure.

δ18O and δD variations in some volcanic lakes on the Cameroon Volcanic Line (West-Africa): generating isotopic baseline data for volcano monitoring and surveillance in Cameroon

Based on geo-anthropological and geochemical studies, catastrophes similar to the unprecedented gas explosions in the mid-1980s from the Cameroonian k iller lakes Nyos and Monoun, might occur in any of the 37 other lakes located along the Cameroon Volcanic Line (CVL). Because people could suffer loss and desolation from predictable catastrophes in the future, monitoring/surveillance policies must be established. Due to their location, crater lakes integrate the geochemical processes that develop in the Earth’s crust due to magmatic activities. Therefore, monitoring the surface manifestations of those deep seated and/or hydrothermal processes might reveal increases/decreases in magmatic activities. The anomalous changes in a volcanic lake induced by mixing with exogenous fluids that have a specific δ 18 O and δD compositional fingerprint (magmatic, metamorphic, etc .) could be utilized to predict volcanic hazards. If the steady state of a lake environment and the external and intrinsic parameters that control its hydrodynamics are clearly identified and reasonably understood, the anomalous evolutionary processes that compromise its stability can be identified. This study attempts to collect the δ 18 O and δD data from 17 Cameroonian lakes to help establish a volcano-related monitoring/surveillance network. This work identifies the processes that control the isotopic composition of the lakes and assesses the intra-/inter- and spatial δ 18 O/δD variations. Almost all of the lakes contain meteoric water. These lakes are mostly isotopically stratified; epilimnia is generally more positive than the hypolimnia. However, although the rainfall is gradually depleted in heavy isotopes when moving from the South to the North due to the latitude effect , the lakes become more enriched (0.6‰/100 km) due to evaporation. The evaluated impact of several parameters on the isotopic variation suggests that the hydrological setting may play an important, albeit not preeminent, role relative to the other factors. Consequently, the interplay between climatology, phytogeography, hydrology and morphometry might help shape the isotopic composition of the lakes.

Himalayan detrital chromian spinels and timing of Indus-Yarlung ophiolite erosion

The geochemistry of detrital chromian spinels is commonly used to discriminate provenance from different tectonic settings of mafic and ultramafic igneous rocks. Detrital spinels in Cenozoic foreland-basin successions fed from the Himalaya Orogen were assertively interpreted as sourced from the ophiolitic rocks of the Indus-Yarlung suture zone. This study compares the geochemistry of detrital Cr-spinels from the Tethys Himalaya passive margin and Cretaceous Xigaze forearc successions with those from the Indus-Yarlung ophiolites. Cr-spinels in the Indus-Yarlung ophiolites have low TiO2 (mostly < 0.2%) and high Al2O3 (10–48%). Detrital Cr-spinels from the Tethyan Himalaya have instead high TiO2 (mostly > 0.2%) and low Al2O3 (mainly 6–23%), indicating a rift-related basaltic origin. Detrital Cr-spinels from the Xigaze forearc basin have either low TiO2 (mostly < 0.2%) and low Al2O3 (4–34%), suggesting provenance from a supra-subduction-zone peridotite, or high TiO2 (> 1.0%), indicating intra-plate basaltic origin. Compositional fingerprints of detrital Cr-spinels from Lower Eocene foreland-basin strata in the central-eastern Himalaya indicate provenance from the Lhasa Block without input from the Indus-Yarlung ophiolites. Only Cr-spinels from the Lower Eocene foreland-basin strata in the north-western Himalaya and the Upper Eocene–Lower Miocene remnant-ocean turbidites of the Bengal basin are mostly ophiolite-derived. The Indus-Yarlung ophiolites were thus emplaced and exposed to erosion since the Early Eocene (> 50 Ma) in the NW Himalaya, but only subsequently (50–38 Ma) in the eastern Himalaya.

The use of composite fingerprints to quantify sediment sources in a wildfire impacted landscape, Alberta, Canada

There is increasing global concern regarding the impacts of large scale land disturbance by wildfire on a wide range of water and related ecological services. This study explores the impact of the 2003 Lost Creek wildfire in the Crowsnest River basin, Alberta, Canada on regional scale sediment sources using a tracing approach. A composite geochemical fingerprinting procedure was used to apportion the sediment efflux among three key spatial sediment sources: 1) unburned (reference) 2) burned and 3) burned sub-basins that were subsequently salvage logged. Spatial sediment sources were characterized by collecting time-integrated suspended sediment samples using passive devices during the entire ice free periods in 2009 and 2010. The tracing procedure combines the Kruskal–Wallis H-test, principal component analysis and genetic-algorithm driven discriminant function analysis for source discrimination. Source apportionment was based on a numerical mass balance model deployed within a Monte Carlo framework incorporating both local optimization and global (genetic algorithm) optimization. The mean relative frequency-weighted average median inputs from the three spatial source units were estimated to be 17% (inter-quartile uncertainty range 0–32%) from the reference areas, 45% (inter-quartile uncertainty range 25–65%) from the burned areas and 38% (inter-quartile uncertainty range 14–59%) from the burned–salvage logged areas. High sediment inputs from burned and the burned–salvage logged areas, representing spatial source units 2 and 3, reflect the lasting effects of forest canopy and forest floor organic matter disturbance during the 2003 wildfire including increased runoff and sediment availability related to high terrestrial erosion, streamside mass wasting and river bank collapse. The results demonstrate the impact of wildfire and incremental pressures associated with salvage logging on catchment spatial sediment sources in higher elevation Montane regions where forest growth and vegetation recovery are relatively slow.

Watershed sediment source identification: tools, approaches, and case studies

Many of us who have watched a stream turn turbid during a rainstorm have often wondered—where is all that sediment coming from? Geomorphologists, engineers, and environmental scientists have thought about this question for decades and have placed understanding sediment sources under the general framework of sediment budgets. This framework which examines not only sediment sources but the storage, transport, and delivery of sediment has been used to understand surficial processes, as well as address management concerns as they relate to stream turbidity and surface-water quality. Traditional tools used in sediment budgets have included field measurements of erosion, storage and transport rates, photogrammetric analysis, and modeling. The relationship between soil erosion and sediment yield at the watershed outlet has been long identified as a major research need (Walling 1983) and is still a poorly understood or misunderstood component of fluvial sediment transport (Kinnell 2004). In recent decades, sediment fingerprinting approaches using the geochemical and physical properties of sediment to determine sediment sources have become increasingly popular. This special issue on Watershed Sediment Source Identification, for the Journal of Soils and Sediments was produced as a result of a special session convened at the Association of American Geographers (AAG) 2012 annual meeting in New York City, NY, USA. The session was entitled “Watershed Sediment Source Identification” and brought together leading experts in the field of sediment sourcing. As a result of the AAG session, the Journal of Soils and Sediments offered to have the session and a few other papers on the same topic published as a special issue in the journal. This special issue reflects contributions from 29 researchers discussing sediment sourcing results from studies in Africa, Asia, Europe, and North America where settings range from urban to agricultural to forested. Sediment source assessment is not only important to our understanding of sediment dynamics in fluvial systems but is increasingly becoming an important management tool. The papers in this special issue reflect a range of studies that address both topics. Studies emphasize traditional field approaches to determine sediment yields and sources (Davis and Sims 2013; Zhu 2013) as well as the use of the sediment fingerprinting approach to determine significant sediment sources (Dutton et al. 2013; Gellis and Noe 2013; Huisman et al. 2013; Koiter et al. 2013; Mckinley et al. 2013; Voli et al. 2013). Several papers highlight site-specific methods and approaches to streamline the sediment fingerprinting approach into a practical management tool. Other papers relate findings from sediment fingerprinting to hydrologic conditions, and caution users on over-interpreting the sediment fingerprinting results. Walling (2013), in the opening paper, provides a history on the sediment fingerprinting approach and illustrates how publications on the subject have increased exponentially since the 1970s. A review of these publications indicate that many studies have used sediment fingerprinting to determine sediment sources as a means to improve our understanding of erosion and sediment delivery processes. Other papers use sediment fingerprinting as a management tool. Walling (2013) lists key advances in the sediment fingerprinting approach over the last 30 years that include the use of multiple or composite fingerprints, statistical tests and models, size and organic correction factors, increased source and target assessments, and improved estimates of uncertainty. Given these advances in the sediment A. C. Gellis (*) U.S. Geological Survey, 5522 Research Park Drive, Baltimore, MD 21228, USA e-mail: agellis@usgs.gov

Sediment provenance in the Shudu Lake basin, northwest Yunnan Province, China, as revealed by composite fingerprinting

Composite fingerprinting represents an effective method of reconstructing sediment-source changes in remote areas where long-term hydrological and sediment accretion records do not exist. A ca. 50-year record of sediment deposition was determined for a small catchment at Shudu, situated in northwest Yunnan Province, China. Woodland, pasture, shrubland and channel bank material are identified as the most likely sediment sources and this was confirmed using a composite sediment fingerprinting approach. Based on the findings of the fingerprinting technique, variations in the geochemical signature associated with lacustrine sediment deposits indicate that 49.2 % of the total catchment sediment yield over an approximate 50-year period originated from channel banks. In contrast, 19.2 % originated from pasture, 18.6 % originated from shrubland, and 13 % from woodland. The relative contributions of eroded sediment from both woodland and shrubland have generally remained stable over the period investigated, whereas the contribution of material from pasture has increased over recent decades. This is tentatively attributed to increased grazing pressure, which is probably due to increased stocking densities which have gradually exceeded the carrying capacity and regenerative capabilities of the available grassland.

Sediments in urban river basins: Identification of sediment sources within the Lago Paranoá catchment, Brasilia DF, Brazil – using the fingerprint approach

The development of effective sediment management strategies is a key requirement in tropical areas with fast urban development, like Brasilia DF, Brazil, because of the limited resources available. Accurate identification and management of sediment sources areas, however, is hampered by the dearth of reliable information on the primary sources of sediment. Few studies have attempted to quantify the source of sediment within fast urbanizing, mixed used, tropical catchments. In this study, statistically verified composite fingerprints and a multivariate mixing model have been used to identify the main land use specific sources of sediment deposited in the artificial Lago Paranoá, Central Brazil. Because of the variability of urban land use types within the Lago Paranoá sub-catchments, the fingerprinting approach was additionally undertaking for the Riacho Fundo sub-catchment. The main contributions from individual source types (i.e. surface materials from residential areas, constructions sites, road deposited sediment, cultivated areas, pasture, farm tracks, woodland and natural gullies) varied between the whole catchment and the Riacho Fundo sub-catchment, reflecting the different proportions of land uses. The sediments deposited in the silting zones of the Lago Paranoá originate largely from urban sources (85±4%). Areas with (semi-) natural vegetation and natural gullies contribute 10±2% of the sediment yield. Agricultural sites have only a minor sediment contribution of about 5±4% within the whole catchment. Within the Riacho Fundo sub-catchment there is a significant contribution from urban (53±4%) source, such as residential areas with semi-detached housings (42±3%) with unpaved roads (12±3%) and construction sites (20±3%) and agricultural areas (31±2%). The relative contribution from land use specific sources to the sediment deposition in the silting zone of the Lago Paranoá demonstrated that most of the sediment is derived from sites with high anthropogenic impact.

Combined sewer overflows, sediment accumulation and element patterns of river bed sediments: a quantitative study based on mixing models of composite fingerprints

Stormwater runoff from urban areas and subsequent stormwater-induced effluents from sewer systems may deteriorate the quality of the receiving water sediments by emitting particulate matter and associated pollutants. However, the relevance of stormwater and combined sewer effluents for the pollution of bed sediments was not yet quantified. Therefore, we applied a multivariate mixing model of composite fingerprints to investigate how much stormwater effluent may contribute to the accumulation of fines and associated pollutants in the bed sediment of the Bode River, Germany. In our study, stormwater and combined sewer effluents contribute about 10 % of the fines accumulated in the bed sediment. As stormwater overflow fines are a major carrier of C, N, P, Cu and Zn, up to 40 % of these pollutants in the bed sediment originate from stormwater effluents. Especially N and Zn have to be seen critically because high nutrient concentrations trigger excessive macrophyte growth within the studied river stretch and Zn contents exceed German sediment quality standards (LAWA 1998) in the bed sediment.

Determining Suitable Fingerprinting Properties for Discrimination of Sediment Sources (Case study: Amrovan and Atary Catchments)

This contribution determines suitable fingerprinting properties for sediment source discrimination within theAmrovan and Atary catchments in Semnan Province, Iran. These catchments are representative of a range of geology formations and should therefore provide a meaningful basis for a general assessment of the degree of sediment source discrimination afforded by a range of fingerprint properties. By field investigation, 10 representative samples were collected from each sediment sources per catchments. Geological formation map was selected as the base of grouping samples. For the case of Amrovan catchment Hezar Dareh, Upper Red and Quaterrnary formations as well as gully walls were selected as the origin of sediments whereas in Atary Catchment karaj, Qum, Upper Red, Hezar Dareh and Quaternary formations were selected as the origin of sediments. The 15 properties selected as a tracer, comprised five groups of fingerprinting properties, including Organic constituents (C, N, P), base cations (Na, K, Ca, Mg), acidextractable metals (Cr, Co), clay minerals (Smectite, Colorite, Illite, Kaolinite) and magnetic properties consisting of Low Frequency Magnetic Susceptibility (XLF) and Frequency Dependent Magnetic Susceptibility (XFD). Several statistical methods were applied to the data including the Kruskal-Wallis, discrimination function analysis (DFA) andmultivariate stepwise selection algorithm. Results indicate that the most powerful individual fingerprint property is organic constituent C, which successfully classifies 70% and 66% of samples in Amrovan and Atary catchmentsrespectively. Composite fingerprints incorporating constituents selected from several groups of properties using astepwise statistical selection procedure consistently provide the most robust discrimination of potential sediment sources. Results show also that organic constituents group of properties is extremely useful for sediment source discrimination in this catchments.

Temporal heterogeneity of plankton community in Lake Dianchi and its relation to environmental factors

The plankton community in Fubao Bay of Lake Dianchi, a large, shallow and highly polluted freshwater lake in China, was investigated on three dates. First, a total of 76 zooplankton species were identified by morphological characteristics of which 44 were protozoa, 20 rotifer, and 12 crustacean. Then, the plankton community was characterized by using random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) and Polymerase chain reaction denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE) over the time period. Morphological composition, RAPD fingerprints, PCR-DGGE fingerprints, and unweighted pair-group method using arithmetic averages clustering analysis all showed that samples within a season were generally clustered into the same group. The results also revealed that RAPD fingerprints and PCR-DGGE fingerprints were identical to morphological composition in characterizing community similarity. Canonical correspondence analysis based on morphological composition, RAPD fingerprints, and PCR-DGGE fingerprints all suggested that the factors strongly correlated with the first two ordination axes were seasonally different, further suggesting high- temporal heterogeneity in Lake Dianchi. There were close relationships between morphological composition, RAPD and PCR-DGGE fingerprints, and: (1) total nitrogen in summer, (2) total phosphorus in autumn, and (3) BOD5 or NO2-N in winter. Results of this study suggest that molecular techniques are acceptable methods for examining plankton community composition and measuring plankton community responses to stress and perturbation.

Direct detection of peptides and small proteins in fingermarks and determination of sex by MALDI mass spectrometry profiling

Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption Ionisation Mass Spectrometry (MALDI MS) can detect and image a variety of endogenous and exogenous compounds from latent fingermarks. This opportunity potentially provides investigators with both an image for suspect identification and chemical information to be used as additional intelligence. The latter becomes particularly important when the fingermark is distorted or smudged or when the suspect is not a previously convicted offender and therefore their fingerprints are not present in the National Fingerprint Database. One of the desirable pieces of intelligence would be the sex of the suspect from the chemical composition of a fingermark. In this study we show that the direct detection of peptides and proteins from fingermarks by MALDI MS Profiling (MALDI MSP), along with the multivariate modeling of the spectra, enables the determination of sex with 85% accuracy. The chemical analysis of the fingermark composition is expected to additionally provide information on traits such as nutritional habits, drug use or hormonal status.

Development of a novel analytical approach combining the quantification of amino acids, organic acids and glucose using HPLC-UV-Vis and HPLC-MS with screening viaNMR

A simple, rapid, sensitive and selective procedure based on the combination of HPLC-UV-Vis and HPLC-MS has been developed and single laboratory partially validated for the determination of a set of 13 analytes present in a commercially available IVF medium utilising small sample volumes (20–30 mL). The composition fingerprint of the complex sample obtained by NMR spectroscopy in 11 minutes provided identification based on a screening of the metabolomic profile. HPLC-MS allowed the glucose–sodium adduct to be measured accurately and the working and linear ranges achieved were 0.028–0.389 mmol L � 1 with a detection limit of 13 mM. HPLC-UV-Vis allowed accurate concentrations of pyruvic and lactic acids with linear ranges over 0.005–0.1 mmol L � 1 with a limit of detection of 28 mM for pyruvic acid to be determined in 8 minutes, while lactic acid presented a linear range over 0.1–2 mmol L � 1 with a limit of detection of 1.2 mM possible. The use of HPLC-UV-Vis allowed the chromatographic separation of 8 amino acids (aspartate, glutamate, serine, glycine, asparagine, glutamine, alanine, and proline), the dipeptide alanyl-glutamine and taurine previous to a chemical derivatization, providing a total run time of 40 minutes. The method was partially validated to show a linear range of 0.028–0.280 mmol L � 1 with detection limits ranging between 1 and 30 mM. Development of the analytical approach provided determination and quantification of a set of 13 analytes from a very complex sample. Although well established analytical techniques were used here, combinatory methodologies were partially validated for the first time to this purpose. The novelty of the combination of techniques relies on a screening tool and a strategy to the future evaluation and an improved assessment of human embryo viability.

Denitrifying Bacteria from the Genus Rhodanobacter Dominate Bacterial Communities in the Highly Contaminated Subsurface of a Nuclear Legacy Waste Site

The effect of long-term mixed-waste contamination, particularly uranium and nitrate, on the microbial community in the terrestrial subsurface was investigated at the field scale at the Oak Ridge Integrated Field Research Challenge (ORIFRC) site in Oak Ridge, TN. The abundance, community composition, and distribution of groundwater microorganisms were examined across the site during two seasonal sampling events. At representative locations, subsurface sediment was also examined from two boreholes, one sampled from the most heavily contaminated area of the site and another from an area with low contamination. A suite of DNA- and RNA-based molecular tools were employed for community characterization, including quantitative PCR of rRNA and nitrite reductase genes, community composition fingerprinting analysis, and high-throughput pyrotag sequencing of rRNA genes. The results demonstrate that pH is a major driver of the subsurface microbial community structure and that denitrifying bacteria from the genus Rhodanobacter (class Gammaproteobacteria) dominate at low pH. The relative abundance of bacteria from this genus was positively correlated with lower-pH conditions, and these bacteria were abundant and active in the most highly contaminated areas. Other factors, such as the concentration of nitrogen species, oxygen level, and sampling season, did not appear to strongly influence the distribution of Rhodanobacter bacteria. The results indicate that these organisms are acid-tolerant denitrifiers, well suited to the acidic, nitrate-rich subsurface conditions, and pH is confirmed as a dominant driver of bacterial community structure in this contaminated subsurface environment.

Sediment source tracing in a lowland agricultural catchment in southern England using a modified procedure combining statistical analysis and numerical modelling

Catchment erosion, soil losses and resulting sediment pressures continue to represent cause for concern with respect to the ecological vitality and amenity value of riverine systems, including those in the agricultural catchments of southern England. Given that the sources of fine-grained sediment are typically diffuse in nature, it is essential to adopt a catchment-wide perspective to corresponding management strategies and sediment source tracing procedures have proved useful in assisting such planning. There remains, however, scope for further refining sediment sourcing procedures and on that basis, a recent study in the upper River Kennet (~214km2) catchment in southern England, provided an opportunity for designing and testing a refined statistical procedure for sediment source discrimination with composite fingerprints using Genetic Algorithm (GA)-driven Discriminant Function Analysis, the Kruskal–Wallis H-test and Principal Components Analysis. The revised statistical verification of composite signatures was combined with numerical mass balance modelling using recent refinements including a range of tracer weightings and both local and GA optimisation. Comparison of the local and global optimisation increased confidence in the outputs of local optimisation and the goodness-of-fit for the predicted source contributions using the optimum composite signatures selected from the revised statistical testing ranged from 0.914 to 0.965. Overall relative frequency-weighted average median source type contributions were estimated to be 4% (agricultural topsoils; predicted deviate median inputs 1–19%), 55% (unmetalled farm track surfaces; predicted deviate median inputs 9–91%), 6% (damaged road verges; predicted deviate median inputs 4–42%), 31% (channel banks/subsurface sources; predicted deviate median inputs 5–41%) and 4% (urban street dust; predicted deviate median inputs 0–20%). The study provides further evidence of the importance of eroding farm tacks as a catchment scale sediment source and confirms the utility of tracing for assembling information on sediment inputs from both the agricultural and urban sectors.

Fusing audio-visual fingerprint to detect TV commercial advertisement

Sixty-four percent of consumers believe television advertising still has the greatest impact on them. Therefore, there is a great application to provide accurate and real-time TV advertising identification for government and advertisement providers. As the integration of multi-modal method takes full account of video and audio information, this paper aims to handle composite fingerprinting in a unified framework for advertising identification. The Improved Harris Combining Motion feature which is based on the differences between the adjacent video frames can produce video fingerprint. Meanwhile the proposed FIR filter based Fast Audio Fingerprint is focused on extracting the differences between the equivalent bands from adjacent frames. Moreover, this multi-model framework combines the audio and video fingerprint by weighted manner. Experimental results show that compared with the current methods, both audio and video fingerprint has the advantage of higher discrimination, stronger robustness and lower time complexity. Moreover, multi model fingerprint can enhances the performance of the unique fingerprint.