Sediment power sources

We begin by finding the amount of power from the tide, wind, and river flow available to drive sedimentary processes in the Sound. The temporal variability of these power sources is characterized. Next we identify the sediment sources and the processes by which sediment received by the estuary is altered in form. Sediment transport and the stability of sediment deposits is related to the power dissipated in the estuary. Deposition rates and the sediment mass balance of the estuary are examined. Finally, a set of parameters that characterize the estuarine sedimentary system are defined and evaluated. It is suggested that these parameters may be used to compare the sedimentation characteristics of different estuaries. 

Donovan C, Dewan A, Peng HA, Heo D, Beyenal H. Power management system for a 2.5 W remote sensor powered by a sediment microbial fuel ceU. J Power Sources 2011 196 1171-1177. 

Donovan C, Dewan A, Heo D, Lewandowski Z, Beyenal H. Sediment microhial fuel cell powering a suhmersihle ultrasonic receiver new approach to remote monitoring. J Power Sources 2013 233 79-85. 

D.A. Lowy and L.M. Tender, Harvesting energy from the marine sediment-water interface HI. Kinetic activity of quinone- and antimony-based anode materials, /. Power Sources 185, 2008, 70-75. 

Fig. 10.1 Concept of using a sediment MFC as a remote power source on the seafloor either for powering a data coliection device or serving a refueiing station. (Graphic by R. Brennan.)...

In the United States, methane is a major energy source used in many homes for cooking and heating of water and indoor air and water. It is commonly known that some power plants and industries use natural gas as a source of energy for generation of electricity and process heat and that this methane is a fossil fuel obtained from gas wells and transmitted throughout the country by gas pipelines. Most people also know that methane bubbles up from polluted swamps where sedimented plant matter is undergoing decomposition. Because of odors from swamps, and the odor due to natural gas additives, methane is incorrectly considered malodorous. 

The geochemistry of marine sediments is a major source of information about the past environment. Of the many measurements that provide such information, those of the U-series nuclides are unusual in that they inform us about the rate and timescales of processes. Oceanic processes such as sedimentation, productivity, and circulation, typically occur on timescales too short to be assessed using parent-daughter isotope systems such as Rb-Sr or Sm-Nd. So the only radioactive clocks that we can turn to are those provided by cosmogenic nuclides (principally or the U-series nuclides. This makes the U-series nuclides powerful allies in the quest to understand the past ocean-climate system and has led to their widespread application over the last decade. 

---