Ice Towers Research Articles

Fountain scheduling strategies for improving water-use efficiency of artificial ice reservoirs (Ice stupas)

Artificial ice reservoirs (AIRs), also called ice stupas, are a climate-change adaptation strategy developed in the Indian Himalayas (Ladakh). With this technology, otherwise unused stream/spring water is stored in large ice towers during the winter. The surplus melt water generated in spring is used to satisfy irrigation water demands. Recent studies have shown that, during AIR construction, over 75% of the water sprayed is lost. In order to reduce these water losses, different fountain scheduling strategies implemented on two AIRs under identical weather conditions were compared. In one scheduling strategy, the fountain was operated manually (non-scheduled fountain) whereas in another it was operated via an automation system (scheduled fountain). The automation system computed recommended discharge rates using real-time meterological input and location metadata. Scheduled fountains produced similar ice volume while consuming one-tenth of the water the non-scheduled fountain used. Simulations converting non-scheduled fountains into scheduled fountains showed a threefold improvement in water-use efficiency. Overall, these results show that automated fountain water supply management can increase water-use efficiency of AIRs and reduce their maintenance without compromising their meltwater production.

Ice Towers May Hold Promise—and Water—for Some Cold, Dry Places

A new study that cues into the formation of ice cones for storing glacial meltwater reveals how the structures can be built more efficiently and which climatic conditions work best.

Developing of the method for optimizing the performance of architecture-independent hardware platforms

The object of research is the Raspberry Pi single-board computer. The work examines the optimization of architecture-independent hardware platforms using its example. The research is based on an integrated scientific approach based on a system-analytical, structural-functional, empirical and typological approach. It is emphasized that the entire Raspberry Pi line uses APM-architecture processors. The genesis of Raspberry Pi is given, the parameters of the last build are determined. It is noted that the latest version is dated November 2020. It is equipped with wireless WiFi and Bluetooth modules (2×USB 3.0 and 1×USB 2.0 ports type A, 5.0, BLE), which expand the boundaries of mini-PC application in the field of Ethernet technologies and has a frequency of 1.8 GHz. The appearance of one of the popular Raspberry Pi B+boards has been formed, with the separation of the main blocks. The basic principles of improving the performance of the Raspberry Pi single board computer are determined, each of which is based on a specific mechanism. The first is the addition of ZRAM as a compressed random access memory block device. The principle of ZRAM operation is described, the mechanism for activating ZRAM on the Raspberry Pi is given. To improve the performance of the Raspberry Pi single board computer, the use of an NVMe disk is justified. It is emphasized that the NVMe disk is reliable and has a high data transfer rate. Connecting it to the Raspberry Pi single board computer is the optimal solution to improve performance. The tuning sequence is presented, the numerical result of the NVMe disk operation based on the Raspberry Pi single-board computer is proposed. It is proposed, as a principle to improve performance, the installation of an ICE Tower CPU based on Raspberry Pi. It is noted that the ICE Tower CPU is a cooling system that is designed to cool the Raspberry Pi. The principles of tuning ICE Tower CPU and the result of fluctuations in temperature components using the rpi-monitor are described. As part of the study, performance improvements were obtained from 26 % to 34 %, which is mainly in line with the expected theoretical improvement of 34 %.

Structural performance under solar radiation of the 30.5-meter-high Flamenco Ice Tower

Structural performance under solar radiation for structures in ice or ice composite is of vital importance. In this paper, the performance of the 30.5-meter-high Flamenco Ice Tower is numerically studied in detail. To carry out this research, material properties of ice composite are first studied based on different types of tests. Subsequently, structural performance of the ice tower under solar radiation is analyzed in ABAQUS. Through this research, the simulation method for structural performance of shell structures in ice composite is tested to be successful, which will contribute to the future development and applications of ice structures.

Success factors in the realization of large ice projects in education

There has been a long tradition in making ice structures, but the development of technical improvements for making ice buildings is a new field with just a handful of researchers. Most of the projects were realized by professors in cooperation with their students as part of their education in architecture and civil engineering. The following professors have realized ice projects in this setting: Heinz Isler realized some experiments since the 1950s; Tsutomu Kokawa created in the past three decades several ice domes in the north of Japan with a span up to 25 m; Lancelot Coar realized a number of fabric formed ice shell structures including fiberglass bars and hanging fabric as a mold for an ice shell in 2011 and in 2015 he produced an fabric-formed ice origami structure in cooperation with MIT (Caitlin Mueller) and VUB (Lars de Laet). Arno Pronk realized several ice projects such as the 2004 artificially cooled igloo, in 2014 and 2015 dome structures with an inflatable mold in Finland and in 2016–2019, an ice dome, several ice towers and a 3D printed gridshell of ice in Harbin (China) as a cooperation between the Universities of Eindhoven & Leuven (Pronk) and Harbin (Wu and Luo). In cooperation between the University of Alberta and Eindhoven two ice beams were realized during a workshop in 2020. In this paper we will present the motivation and learning experiences of students involved in learning-by-doing by realizing one large project in ice. The 2014–2016 projects were evaluated by Sanders and Overtoom; using questionnaires among the participants by mixed cultural teams under extreme conditions. By comparing the results in different situations and cultures we have found common rules for the success of those kinds of educational projects. In this paper we suggest that the synergy among students participating in one main project without a clear individual goal can be very large. The paper will present the success factors for projects to be perceived as a good learning experience.

The 2017–18 design and construction of ice composite structures in Harbin

This paper will focus on the design and construction of two large thin shell structures with ice composites in the winter of 2017–18: the Flamenco Ice Tower and THRICE. Both structures were unique with regard to the application of ice composites. In this paper there will be a special focus on the structural behavior of the fiber-reinforced ice shell and membrane moulding. The ice composite had limited structural capacity and the material was pushed to its limits. Ice can be reinforced by adding (cellulose) fibers such as wood and paper. These fibers make the ice up to three times stronger and increase the ductility, thus creating a reliable building material. This sustainable, fully recyclable building material might be a solution for temporary constructions in cold areas, ice events, the Olympic Winter Games or possibly even Mars missions. HIT in cooperation with IASS Workgroup 21 invited several universities to design and construct architectural ice structures. In this paper the two most interesting structures that have been realized will be described. The technique used might also be interesting for architectural shell structures in other materials such as concrete and polymer composites. The Flamenco Ice Tower was the world record for the largest thin shell structure in ice and achieved the WA design award for most innovative architectural experiment in China.

Ice towers

Ice towers are a phenomenon unique to Mount Erebus, a volcano on Antarctica's Ross Island.

Geothermal point sources identified in a fumarolic ice cave on Erebus volcano, Antarctica using fiber optic distributed temperature sensing

[1] Degassing of CO2 on the flanks of the active Erebus volcano is thought to occur mainly through fumarolic ice caves (FIC) and associated fumarolic ice towers. There is also minor CO2 degassing from isolated areas of warm ground. The mechanism supplying heat and CO2 gas into the FIC is poorly understood. To investigate this system, a fiber optic distributed temperature sensing (DTS) system was deployed in a FIC to obtain temperature measurements every meter. The DTS data reveal that localized gas vents (GV) supply heat to the FIC air mass and are an important component of the FIC microclimate. FIC temperature is anti-correlated with local atmospheric pressure, indicating barometric pumping of the GV. These results enable the use of FIC temperature as a proxy for flank degassing rate on Erebus, and represent the first application of DTS for monitoring an active volcano.

Refinement of the late Quaternary geologic history of Erebus volcano, Antarctica using 40Ar/ 39Ar and 36Cl age determinations

Six new 40Ar/ 39Ar and three cosmogenic 36Cl age determinations provide new insight into the late Quaternary eruptive history of Erebus volcano. Anorthoclase from 3 lava flows on the caldera rim have 40Ar/ 39Ar ages of 23 ± 12, 81 ± 3 and 172 ± 10 ka (all uncertainties 2 σ). The ages confirm the presence of a second, younger, superimposed caldera near the southwestern margin of the summit plateau and show that eruptive activity has occurred in the summit region for 77 ± 13 ka longer than previously thought. Trachyte from “Ice Station” on the eastern flank is 159 ± 2 ka, similar in age to those at Bomb Peak and Aurora Cliffs. The widespread occurrences of trachyte on the eastern flank of Erebus suggest a major previously unrecognized episode of trachytic volcanism. The trachyte lavas are chemically and isotopically distinct from alkaline lavas erupted contemporaneously in the summit region < 5 km away. The three 36Cl ages are the first exposure ages reported for rocks from Erebus volcano. At an assumed erosion rate of 1.5 mm/ka 36Cl cosmogenic ages are 6.0 ± 0.5 ka for the Ice Tower Ridge flow, 4.9 ± 0.4 ka for Lower Hut flow, and 6.5 ± 0.6 ka for the Northeast flow. The 36Cl ages overlap within analytical uncertainty or are slightly younger than 40Ar/ 39Ar ages for these lava flows, and confirm the overall young age (< 25 ka) of the summit lava flows. One interpretation of these uniformly young ages is that older eruptions infilled the topographic depression caused by caldera formation and subsequently was covered by younger lavas.

Between Reason and Sensation: Antipodean Artists and Climate Change

The author, drawing on her experience as a New Zealand artist who has collaborated with meteorologists, suggests that artists may enter climate change discourse by translating (or mis-translating) scientific method into sensory affect. She examines three recent art projects from Australasia that draw on natural phenomena: her own Anemocinegraph (2006–2007), Nola Farman's working prototype The Ice Tower (1998) and Out-of-Sync's ongoing on-line project, Talking about the Weather. The author cites Herbert Marcuse's 1972 essay “Nature and Revolution,” which argues that sensation is the process that binds us materially and socially to the world.

Carbon dioxide emissions from fumarolic ice towers, Mount Erebus volcano, Antarctica

Abstract Degassing at Mount Erebus occurs as a plume from a persistent convecting anorthoclase phonolite lava lake, and by flank degassing through warm ground and fumarolic ice towers within the summit caldera. The fumarolic ice towers offer a unique and simple approach to quantifying the flank CO 2 emissions. Carbon dioxide effluxes were determined at openings in the ice towers by measuring the CO 2 concentration, air-flow velocity, and size of the exit orifice. Fluxes ranged from &lt;0.0001 to 0.034 kg s −1 at 43 actively degassing ice towers. Small patches of steaming warm ground contributed 0.010 kg s −1 . The δ 13 C isotopic compositions of the CO 2 samples ranged from −2.1 to −4.7‰, suggesting a magmatic origin for the CO 2 . Fumarolic ice towers allow diffuse degassing to be visually identified, providing a strong advantage in determining the total flux rate of these passive emissions. The estimated output of flank CO 2 degassing is 0.46 kg s −1 (40 Mg d −1 ). Compared with direct airborne measurements of the volcanic plume, passive flank emissions constitute less than 2% of the total volcanic CO 2 budget emitted from Mount Erebus.

95/05178 The ice tower - maximum capacity for the smallest area

95/05178 The ice tower - maximum capacity for the smallest area

Geothermal ice caves on Mt Erebus, Ross Island, Antarctica

Abstract A 400-m-long system of ice caverns forms the subsurface extension of one of the many fumarolic ice towers on the summit plateau of Mt Erebus. The cave system consists of a series of branching loops of passages that average 4 m high and wide and terminates in an ice cavern about 25 m high and wide with a floor about 60 m below the surface. Air temperatures within the cave varied from just below freezing to + 1.4°c. Zones of increased heat flow are considered to control the origin and the geometry of the cave system; the highest ground temperature measured at 15 cm depth was 16.8°c.

Geothermal activity in Victoria Land, Antarctica

Fumarolic ice towers and areas of steaming ground are the only surface manifestations of geothermal activity near the summits of Mounts Melbourne and Erebus, Victoria Land, Antarctica. The distribu...

Fumarolic Activity in Marie Byrd Land, Antarctica

Ice towers, probably formed by recent fumarolic activity, have been found around the summit calderas of two volcanoes in Marie Byrd Land. These active (?) volcanoes lie within a broad belt of Mesozoic intrusion and late Cenozoic extrusion that appears to be part of the circum-Pacific orogenic province.

Fumarolic Activity in Marie Byrd Land, Antarctica

Ice towers, probably formed by recent fumarolic activity, have been found around the summit calderas of two volcanoes in Marie Byrd Land. These active (?) volcanoes lie within a broad belt of Mesozoic intrusion and late Cenozoic extrusion that appears to be part of the circum-Pacific orogenic province.

Fumarolic ice towers on Mount Erebus, Ross Island, Antarctica

Fumarolic ice towers on Mount Erebus, Ross Island, Antarctica

Fumarolic ice towers on Mount Erebus, Ross Island, Antarctica

Fumarolic ice towers on Mount Erebus, Ross Island, Antarctica

Phenomena Occurring in Ice Towers

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