Work funded by the grant consisted of a series of experiments designed to elucidate scales and forcing mechanisms of the circulation and water properties within Santa Monica/San Pedro basin. Each experiment consisted of a moored array of roughly 30 current meters, CTD surveys (usually upon deployment and retrieval of the moored array), and satellite imagery. The CROSS moored array was designed primarily to obtain information on cross-shelf and cross-basin coherence scales, vertical coherence scales and the principal forcing mechanisms for the circulation. Several papers are referenced.

Continental Shelf Associates, Inc. (CSA) was contracted to conduct a three-year study of the environmental and health related impacts of produced water and sand discharges from oil and gas operations. Data on naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORM), heavy metals, and hydrocarbons in water, sediment, and biota will be collected and evaluated. Health related impacts will be studied through field collections and analyses of commercially- and recreationally-important fish and shellfish tissues. Additionally, information on seafood catch, consumption, and use patterns for the Gulf of Mexico will be gathered and analyzed. The facilities to be studied will include both offshore and coastal facilities in the Gulf of Mexico. Coastal sites will be additionally studied to determine ecological recovery of impacted wetland and open bay areas. The economic impact of existing and proposed effluent federal and state regulations will also be evaluated. The primary objectives of the project are to increase the base of scientific knowledge concerning (1) the fate and environmental effects of organics, trace metals, and NORM in water, sediment, and biota near several offshore oil and gas facilities; (2) the characteristics of produced water and produced sand discharges as they pertain to organics, trace metals, and NORM variably found in …

During this past quarter we further addressed the question of which species catalyzes removal of sulfur from coal by Bu{sub 3}P.

This was the seventh quarter of the contract. During this quarter we (1) continued the large task of processing the seismic data, (2) collected additional geological information to aid in the interpretation, (3) tied the well log data to the seismic via generation of synthetic seismograms, (4) began integrating regional structural information and fracture trends with our observations of structure in the study area, (5) began constructing a velocity model for time-to-depth conversion and subsequent AVO and raytrace modeling experiments, and (6) completed formulation of some theoretical tools for relating fracture density to observed elastic anisotropy. The study area is located at the southern end of the Powder River Basin in Converse County in east-central Wyoming. It is a low permeability fractured site, with both gas and oil present. Reservoirs are highly compartmentalized due to the low permeabilities, and fractures provide the only practical drainage paths for production. The two formations of interest are: The Niobrara: a fractured shale and limey shale to chalk, which is a reservoir rock, but also its own source rock. The Frontier: a tight sandstone lying directly below the Niobrara, brought into contact with it by an unconformity. A basemap is presented with the seismic …

Work over the past 3 years was directed toward the dynamics of elementary gas phase proton transfer reactions, particularly those of the O{sup {minus}} ion. Such reactions are important in flames. Published work over the past 30 months was concerned with dynamics of reactions of O{sup {minus}} with H{sub 2}O, NH{sub 3}, and HF. Results are enumerated here.

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AQUATECH Systems a business unit of Allied-Signal Inc., proposes to demonstrate the technical viability and cost effectiveness of the SOXAL process a combined SO{sub x}/NO{sub x} control process on a 3 MW equivalent flue gas slip stream from Niagara Mohawk Power Corporation, Dunkirk Steam Station Boiler No. 4, a coal fired boiler. The SOXAL process combines 90+% sulfur dioxide removal from the flue gas using a sodium based scrubbing solution and regeneration of the spent scrubbing liquor using AQUATECH Systems` proprietary bipolar membrane technology. This regeneration step recovers a stream of sulfur dioxide suitable for subsequent processing to salable sulfur or sulfuric acid. Additionally 90+% control of NO{sub x} gases can be achieved in combination with conventional urea/methanol injection of NO{sub 2} gas into the duct. The SOXAL process is applicable to both utility and industrial scale boilers using either high or low sulfur coal. The SOXAL demonstration Program began September 10, 1991 and is approximately 22 months in duration. During the 6 months of scheduled operations period, expected to begin January 1992, data will be collected from the SOXAL system to define: SO{sub 2} and NO{sub x} control efficiencies; Current efficiency for the regeneration unit; Sulfate oxidation in the …

A number of sorbents with alumina-silicate base and sulfur capturing active sites have been developed for simultaneous removal of alkali metal compounds and sulfur dioxide. Current report will focus on bauxite sorbents, which includes experiments on sulfur dioxide absorption, alkali capturing and alkali/sulfur absorption simultaneously by bauxite-based sorbents. The alkali compound used here is sodium chloride. Experiments show an effective adsorption of sulfur or alkali separately, and the combined adsorption of alkali/sulfur. Atomic absorption analysis of reaction products shows that there is a much higher sodium content in the combined reaction products than that of the single reaction of alkali absorption by bauxite. Further X-ray diffraction analysis shows that there is sodium sulfate in the final products of simultaneous reaction, which indicates the formation and then condensation of sodium sulfate in the reaction system.

Sulfur dioxide is one of the major pollutant from coal combustion application and gasification. The capture of sulfur from flue gas with lime has been investigated and proven to be effective. Previous work concluded that the overall conversion of lime is limited by the micro-structure of the particles and reaction temperature. Due to the larger specific volume of product of calcium sulfate than that of the raw sorbent of calcium carbonate, which may cause pore blockage at the pore mouth and increase the diffusion resistance of sulfur dioxide through the product layer, but this pore plugging will not apply to the particle less than 0.01 cm in diameter. The reaction temperature, which determined the chemical reaction kinetics, between 800{degrees}C to 850{degrees}C, is recommended to be the best chemical reaction temperature for sulfur removal by lime. The alkali vapor removal has been the subject of many studies due to the possible application of coal combustion and hot flue gas turbine combined cycle which requires alkali concentration in the flue gas phase of sub parts per billion (ppB) level. But this process will increase the coal utilization efficiency dramatically. Some clay materials such as kaolinite and alumina-silica mixture like bauxite are found …

Document issued by the Office of the Attorney General of Texas in Austin, Texas, providing an interpretation of Texas law. It provides the opinion of the Texas Attorney General, Dan Morales, regarding a legal question submitted for clarification: Construction of Senate Bill 1342, Acts 1993, 73d Leg, ch. 964, which prohibits a school district from contracting with a business entity in which a trustee or his spouse has a "significant interest" (RQ-571)

Letter opinion issued by the Office of the Attorney General of Texas in Austin, Texas, providing an interpretation of Texas law. It provides the opinion of the Texas Attorney General, Dan Morales, regarding a legal question submitted for clarification; Whether a salaried municipal police officer may serve simultaneously as a salaried municipal judge in a different city (ID# 20331)