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At least 217 records · Page 12

Stirred-Reactor Coupon Analysis: An International Round Robin Study

The objective of this task was to determine the precision of the SRCA technique when used to determine the dilute condition corrosion rate. To this end, an interlaboratory round robin study was conducted per the instructions in ASTM Practice E691 to measure the precision with which the SRCA test method can be conducted. Twelve independent labs from eleven different institutions each evaluated four glass compositions in three different conditions. The ASTM procedures recommend at least 6 labs participate in a round robin testing the same 3 materials in the same conditions to determine precision. In this case, 12 labs each performed 12 independent tests. This was only possible thanks to the multi-glass testing capability of the SRCA test. A total of 108 duplicate pairs were used to calculate the repeatability of the tests, with the same glass tested in the same vessel, producing as identical conditions as possible for the replicates. These test results were quite tightly clustered, with a median difference from the average value of the pair of only 2.9%. Based on the calculations outlined in ASTM E177-20 and a measured standard deviation of 4.74%, the intralaboratory repeatability limit (r) was calculated to be within 13.3% of the expected value with 95% confidence level. The reproducibility limit (R) of the test was examined using all 277 data points from the round robin. Because of the differences in dissolution rates due to pH variability and intrinsically for the 12 conditions tested, the reproducibility limits for each condition and overall were calculated from the percent relative residual value for each test. The SRCA test is expected to be reproducible within 64% of the expected value with a 95% confidence level.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

Lignin-Derived Chemicals from Pulping Liquors: Cooperative Research and Development CRADA Number CRD-17-00714 (Final Report)

National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has developed a robust portfolio for lignin valorization using a “biological funneling” approach, which adopts a microbial process to convert the inherent heterogeneity of lignin-rich streams into single high-value products. In parallel, Sustainable Fiber Technologies (SFT) has developed a proprietary, high-pH process to convert non-woody biomass into valuable pulp for myriad biomaterial applications. Therefore, by combining the expertise of both SFT and NREL, this project aimed to valorize co-products from an industrial pulping process of non-woody feedstocks. A detailed analytical characterization of an SFT pulping stream was used to aid the development of a bench-scale separations strategy to isolate a mixture of low molecular weight compounds, and ultimately to aid in bioreactor cultivations used to produce polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) biopolymers at titers, rates, and yields necessary for moving towards commercialization.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Effect of Anoxic Iron Corrosion on WIPP Brine Geochemistry FY23 Final Report (U)

A 280-day study was completed to evaluate the effect of zero-valent iron (Fe 0 ) on the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) brine geochemistry under anticipated reducing conditions. Hydrogen (H 2 ) gas is expected to be present in the repository after closure due to the anoxic corrosion of a vast quantity of iron contained in the waste forms disposed at WIPP; therefore, a background argon atmosphere containing H 2 was chosen for this study. WIPP groundwater brine pH and E h will impact the mobility and fate of plutonium within the repository. Modeling and laboratory results for Castile WIPP brine indicate that equilibrium E h values relative to the standard hydrogen electrode (SHE) are 40 mV more reducing (i.e., more negative) than those for Salado WIPP brine (-480 mV vs. -440 mV, respectively) because of the higher pH of the Castile brine (pH 9.3 for Castile vs. pH 8.8 for Salado). The E h and pH data were corrected for the effects of high ionic strength. The experimental results for both brines are consistent with thermodynamic predictions using OLI Systems' Mixed Solvent Electrolyte chemical equilibrium model. The measured and corrected pH and E h data from this study are provided in Table ES-1 and Table ES-2, respectively.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

A Rapid Method for Detecting Normal or Modified Plant and Algal Carbonic Anhydrase Activity Using Saccharomyces cerevisiae

In recent years, researchers have attempted to improve photosynthesis by introducing components from cyanobacterial and algal CO2-concentrating mechanisms (CCMs) into terrestrial C3 plants. For these attempts to succeed, we need to understand the CCM components in more detail, especially carbonic anhydrase (CA) and bicarbonate (HCO3−) transporters. Heterologous complementation systems capable of detecting carbonic anhydrase activity (i.e., catalysis of the pH-dependent interconversion between CO2 and HCO3−) or active HCO3− transport can be of great value in the process of introducing CCM components into terrestrial C3 plants. In this study, we generated a Saccharomyces cerevisiae CA knock-out (ΔNCE103 or ΔCA) that has a high-CO2-dependent phenotype (5% (v/v) CO2 in air). CAs produce HCO3− for anaplerotic pathways in S. cerevisiae; therefore, the unavailability of HCO3− for neutral lipid biosynthesis is a limitation for the growth of ΔCA in ambient levels of CO2 (0.04% (v/v) CO2 in air). ΔCA can be complemented for growth at ambient levels of CO2 by expressing a CA from human red blood cells. ΔCA was also successfully complemented for growth at ambient levels of CO2 through the expression of CAs from Chlamydomonas reinhardtii and Arabidopsis thaliana. The ΔCA strain is also useful for investigating the activity of modified CAs, allowing for quick screening of modified CAs before putting them into the plants. CA activity in the complemented ΔCA strains can be probed using the Wilbur–Anderson assay and by isotope exchange membrane-inlet mass spectrometry (MIMS). Other potential uses for this new ΔCA-based screening system are also discussed.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

Investigation of potential causes of production limiting fouling within SWPF due to mercury solids formation during pH swings within the SWPF process

The Salt Waste Processing Facility (SWPF) goal to investigate the use a high sodium Salt Batch 5 Qualification sample as the radioactive salt solution for mixing tests meant to evaluate the propensity for solids formation between the 5.6 M sodium clarified salt solution (CSS) and scrub solutions (0.05 M HNO 3 and 0.025 M NaOH solutions) during pH changes has been completed at SRNL. The key results and conclusions from this investigation to evaluate the propensity for solids formation between CSS and scrub solutions because of pH fluctuations include the following: None of the 8 test matrices, involving the mixing/titrating of scrub solution with CSS and vice versa, showed any visible evidence for the formation of solids with pH changes. The average turbidity measurements for these 8 tests, excluding test 7, was 21.6 ± 0.4 NTU. This average turbidity value is within 2 sigma of the baseline turbidity value of 20.5 NTU for the CSS only without added scrub solutions. However, only in test 7, which involved the titrating of CSS into dilute nitric acid scrub solution (0.05 M HNO 3 solution), was a small measurable change in the turbidity of the mixture observed at 31.9 ºC. On the other hand, the equivalent test (instantaneous addition of CSS into 0.05 M HNO 3 ) gave an average turbidity measurement value of 21.6 ± 0.6 NTU at a temperature of 24.0 ºC. This difference in turbidity measurement has been attributed to either instrument performance errors or the effect of temperature. It is recommended that these CSS and scrub solution mixing tests be performed with corresponding simulant solutions in a non-radioactive environment. A simulant environment will aid in the full integration of a pH and turbidity meter equipment with the experimental set up. A new detection method, preferable a laser-based method, may be needed in detecting and confirming the precipitation of fine particulates at the right blending times and pH fluctuations in the solution mixtures. On the other hand, the differing free OH concentrations (~2 M in CSS), H + concentrations (0.05 M HNO 3 ) for the titrants and the bulk solutions, may make it almost impossible to observe a neutral pH or a pH in the range of 7-9, where the potential for solids formation is maximized and leads to possible precipitation of minerals like aluminum hydroxides.

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Resilience in soil bacterial communities of the boreal forest from one to five years after wildfire across a severity gradient

Wildfires can represent a major disturbance to ecosystems, including soil microbial communities belowground. Furthermore, fire regimes are changing in many parts of the world, altering and often increasing fire severity, frequency, and size. The boreal forest and taiga plains ecoregions of northern Canada are characterized by naturally-occurring stand-replacing wildfires on a 40–350 year basis. We previously studied the effects of wildfire on soil microbial communities one year post-fire across 40 sites, spanning a range of burn severity. Here, we return to the same sites five years post-fire to test a series of hypotheses about the effects of fire on bacterial community composition. We ask questions on two themes: which factors control bacterial community composition during post-fire recovery, and how does the importance of different fire-responsive traits change during post-fire recovery? We find the following: Five years post-fire, vegetation community, moisture regime, pH, total carbon, texture, and burned/unburned all remained significant predictors of bacterial community composition with similar predictive value (R 2 ). Bacterial communities became more similar to unburned sites five years post-fire, across the range of severity, suggesting resilience, while general structure of co-occurrence networks remained similar one and five years post-fire. Fast growth potential, as estimated using predicted 16S rRNA copy numbers, was no longer significantly correlated with burn severity five years post-fire, indicating the importance of this trait for structuring bacterial community composition may be limited to relatively short timescales. Many taxa that were enriched in burned sites one year post-fire remained enriched five years post-fire, although the degree to which they were enriched generally decreased. Specific taxa of interest from the genera Massilia, Blastococcus, and Arthrobacter all remained significantly enriched, suggesting that they may have traits that allow them to continue to flourish in the post-fire environment, such as tolerance to increased pH or ability to degrade pyrogenic organic matter. This hypothesis-based work expands our understanding of the post-fire recovery of soil bacterial communities and raises new hypotheses to test in future studies.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

Solidification of SRPPF Aqueous Recovery Liquid: Process Disruptions

Savannah River National Laboratory has identified a magnesium oxysulfate grout formulation to solidify the liquid effluent from the Savannah River Plutonium Processing Facility (SRPPF) Aqueous Recovery System (ARS). The formulation uses reactive, light burnt MgO, anhydrous MgSO 4 , and dead burnt MgO and provides good mixability, similar density to the original Portland Cement-based mix, and a leachate pH of 9.39, within the assumed Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) brine pH range. The formulation will solidify the effluent using a solid first, lost paddle design, within a 55-gallon drum. A series of seven different process disruptions, or irregular processing during the expected ARS liquid effluent solidification process, were completed to assess the severity of the impact of the process disruption and how the formulation behaves under these conditions. Seven process disruptions were investigated including: No Mixing, Partial Mixing, Compacted/Stratified, Sealed, Overfilled, Underfilled, and Undermixed. The impact on solidification, leachate pH, Er (a Pu/Am surrogate) distribution, and density of the resulting grout were established. Overall, four of the process disruptions, No Mixing, Partial Mixing, Compacted/Stratified, and Overfilled, resulted in basic, unabsorbed liquid that would require additional solidification to be acceptable for WIPP. Most solids generated in this testing met the expected WIPP leachate pH requirements. Solids from the Compacted/Stratified process disruption test, however, produced a leachate pH slightly above the assumed range in the WIPP performance assessment. The distribution of Er for most of the tests was relatively consistent. The No Mixing process disruption test, however, resulted in non-homogeneous Er distribution, indicating that radioactive material would not be evenly distributed throughout this solid’s matrix. The Overfilled test is the only mix with a density slightly below the acceptable value. The Sealed and Overmixed tests produced a solid closest to the standard mix with no unabsorbed liquid, expected leachate pH levels, consistent Er concentrations, and expected density, indicating these process disruptions do not have a negative impact on the final grout form. Based on the other process disruptions, it is critical to have premixed dry materials and a well-defined mixing process to produce a solid, homogeneous magnesium oxysulfate cement, with no unabsorbed liquid. These process disruption tests show that the lack of adequate mixing is fundamental to creating an improperly solidified material that may require remediation.

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The pH and Potential Dependence of Pb–Catalyzed Electrochemical CO 2 Reduction to Methyl Formate in a Dual Methanol/Water Electrolyte

The conversion of waste CO 2 to value-added chemicals through electrochemical reduction is a promising technology for mitigating climate change while simultaneously providing economic opportunities. The use of non-aqueous solvents like methanol allows for higher CO 2 availability and novel products. In this work, the electrochemistry of CO 2 reduction in acidic methanol catholyte at a Pb working electrode was investigated while using a separate aqueous anolyte to promote a sustainable water oxidation half-reaction. The selectivity among methyl formate (a product unique to reduction of CO 2 in methanol), formic acid, and formate was critically dependent on the catholyte pH, with higher pH conditions leading to formate and low pH favoring methyl formate. Furthermore, the potential dependence of the product distribution in acidic catholyte was also investigated, with a faradaic efficiency for methyl formate as high as 75% measured at -2.0 V vs Ag/AgCl.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Geochemical reactions and alteration of pore architecture in saturated shale after injection of stimulation fluid

Pore architecture regulates fluid flow between unconventional shale reservoir and hydraulically-induced fractures. Imbibition of stimulation fluid may change this architecture and alter hydrocarbon flow. Hydrothermal experiments were conducted at reservoir conditions (125 °C, 45 MPa) to test two hypotheses: 1) Shale, not stimulation fluid, dominates the geochemistry of an unconventional reservoir containing formation water; and 2) Mineral dissolution and precipitation induced by stimulation fluid is transient and manifests across micro-, meso-, and macro-scales of pore architecture. Experiments replicated a shut-in well in the Cretaceous Baxter Shale, Green River Basin, Wyoming USA. Stimulation fluid was injected into one experiment after formation water (I = 0.35 mol/kg, pH = 6.4) and core reacted for 48 days. This novel approach equilibrated rock and formation water and saturated pores with formation water before introducing stimulation fluid. The second experiment served as a control. Trends of aqueous calcium, silica and aluminum in the injection experiment suggest transient dissolution of calcite and feldspar and/or quartz as well as clay and barite precipitation; mineralogic evidence was limited to calcite dissolution and barite precipitation. The rock maintained reducing conditions (Eh = +0.08 to -0.16 V) despite injection of oxidizing stimulation fluid (Eh = 1.1 V). pH of the stimulation fluid-formation water mixture evolved from 2.3 to pre-injection values (~6) within 24 h. The results indicate that mineral dissolution and precipitation manifest in macropores with barely detectable alteration to micro- and mesopores. Formation water or organic matter in pores may have inhibited access of stimulation fluid to micro- and mesopores

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Ab initio electron-two-phonon scattering in GaAs from next-to-leading order perturbation theory

Electron-phonon (e–ph) interactions are usually treated in the lowest order of perturbation theory. Here we derive next-to-leading order e–ph interactions, and compute from first principles the associated electron-two-phonon (2ph) scattering rates. The derivations involve Matsubara sums of two-loop Feynman diagrams, and the numerical calculations are challenging as they involve Brillouin zone integrals over two crystal momenta and depend critically on the intermediate state lifetimes. Using Monte Carlo integration together with a self-consistent update of the intermediate state lifetimes, we compute and converge the 2ph scattering rates, and analyze their energy and temperature dependence. We apply our method to GaAs, a weakly polar semiconductor with dominant optical-mode long-range e–ph interactions. We find that the 2ph scattering rates are as large as nearly half the value of the one-phonon rates, and that including the 2ph processes is necessary to accurately predict the electron mobility in GaAs from first principles.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Storm Water Samples

In the California lndustrial General Permit (IGP) 2014-0057-DWQ for storm water monitoring, effective July 1, 2015, there are 21 contaminants that have been assigned NAL (Numeric Action Level) values, both annual and instantaneous. For annual NALs, an exceedance occurs when the average of all analytical results from all samples taken at a facility during a reporting year for a given parameter exceeds an annual NAL value listed in Table 2 of the General Permit. For instantaneous maximum NALs, an exceedance occurs when two or more analytical results from samples taken for any parameter within a reporting year exceed the instantaneous maximum NAL value (for TSS and O&G), or are outside of the instantaneous maximum NAL range (for pH) listed in Table 2.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

QSE 04-21-2022 ST-11 Alpha Data Report

In the California Industrial General Permit (IGP) 2014-0057-DWQ for storm water monitoring, effective July 1, 2015, there are 21 contaminants that have been assigned NAL (Numeric Action Level) values, both annual and instantaneous. For annual NALs, an exceedance occurs when the average of all analytical results from all samples taken at a facility during a reporting year for a given parameter exceeds an annual NAL value listed in Table 2 of the General Permit. For instantaneous maximum NALs, an exceedance occurs when two or more analytical results from samples taken for any parameter within a reporting year exceed the instantaneous maximum NAL value (for TSS and O&G), or are outside of the instantaneous maximum NAL range (for pH) listed in Table 2.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Temperature-responsive smart tracers for field-measurement of inter-well thermal evolution: Heterogeneous kinetics and field demonstration

Temperature-responsive smart tracers enable advanced warning of a “premature thermal breakthrough” and may therefore improve reservoir management and reduce financial risk. A successful calculation of inter-well fluid temperatures requires that temperature-dependent kinetics are known, which typically result from homogeneous batch reactor experiments. However, recent meso-scale field experiments at the Altona Field Laboratory involving fluid flow in a discretely-fractured reservoir suggest that silica-fluid interfaces may accelerate hydrolysis kinetics. Here, the Arrhenius parameters of phenyl acetate hydrolysis are investigated under heterogeneous reaction conditions in packed-bed column experiments. The breakthrough curve of the reaction product is compared to an inert reference tracer (carbon-cored nanoparticles). Temperatures experienced during field testing ranging from 10 to 40 °C were studied using a phosphate buffer solution to maintain a near-neutral pH, as found in the reservoir. The empirically-determined pre-exponential factor and activation energy values are subsequently used in a first-order kinetic model to improve calculations of effective reservoir temperatures for these meso-scale field tests. Here, the results suggest that hydrolysis reactions can directly monitor inter-well reservoir temperatures, but only if the influence of solid-fluid interactions are carefully accounted for.

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗

Plant root associated chitinases: structures and functions

Chitinases degrade chitin, a linear homopolymer of β-1,4-linked N-acetyl-D-glucosamine (GlcNAc) residues found in the cell walls of fungi and the exoskeletons of arthropods. They are secreted by the roots into the rhizosphere, a complex and dynamic environment where intense nutrient exchange occurs between plants and microbes. Here we modeled, expressed, purified, and characterized Zea mays and Oryza sativa root chitinases, and the chitinase of a symbiotic bacterium, Chitinophaga oryzae 1303 for their activities with chitin, di-, tri-, and tetra-saccharides and Aspergillus niger, with the goal of determining their role(s) in the rhizosphere and better understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying plant-microbe interactions. We show that Zea mays basic endochitinase (ZmChi19A) and Oryza sativa chitinase (OsChi19A) are from the GH19 chitinase family. The Chitinophaga oryzae 1303 chitinase (CspCh18A) belongs to the GH18 family. The three enzymes have similar apparent K M values of (20-40 µM) for the substrate 4-MU-GlcNAc 3 . They vary in their pH and temperature optima with OsChi19A activity optimal between pH 5–7 and 30–40°C while ZmChi19A and CspCh18A activities were optimal at pH 7-9 and 50–60°C. Modeling and site-directed mutation of ZmChi19A identified the catalytic cleft and the active residues E147 and E169 strategically positioned at ~8.6Å from each other in the folded protein. Cleavage of 4-MU-GlcNAc 3 was unaffected by the absence of the CBD but diminished in the absence of the flexible C-terminal domain. However, unlike for the soluble substrate, the CBD and the newly identified flexible C-terminal domain were vital for inhibiting Aspergillus niger growth. The results are consistent with the involvement of the plant chitinases in defense against pathogens like fungi that have chitin exoskeletons. In summary, we have characterized the functional features and structural domains necessary for the activity of two plant root chitinases that are believed to be involved in plant defense and a bacterial chitinase that, along with the plant chitinases, may participate in nutrient recycling in the rhizosphere.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

Studying the Role of a Single Mutation of a Family 11 Glycoside Hydrolase Using High-Resolution X-ray Crystallography

XynII is a family 11 glycoside hydrolase that uses the retaining mechanism for catalysis. In the active site, E177 works as the acid/base and E86 works as the nucleophile. Mutating an uncharged residue (N44) to an acidic residue (D) near E177 decreases the enzyme’s optimal pH by ~ 1.0 unit. D44 was previously suggested to be a second proton carrier for catalysis. To test this hypothesis, we abolished the activity of E177 by mutating it to be Q, and mutated N44 to be D or E. These double mutants have dramatically decreased activities. Our high-resolution crystallographic structures and the microscopic pK a calculations show that D44 has similar position and pK a value during catalysis, indicating that D44 changes electrostatics around E177, which makes it prone to rotate as the acid/base in acidic conditions, thus decreases the pH optimum. Our results could be helpful to design enzymes with different pH optimum.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

The Freundlich isotherm equation best represents phosphate sorption across soil orders and land use types in tropical soils of Puerto Rico

Biomass production in the lowland wet tropical forest is greater than in any other biome, and it is typically limited by soil phosphorus (P) availability. However, the mechanisms involved in the P cycle remain poorly represented in Earth System Models (ESMs). Soil P sorption processes are key in the P cycle and for understanding the extent of P limitation for plant productivity. Currently, a few ESMs include isotherm equations to model these processes. Although the Langmuir equation is widely cited, other isotherm equations may better describe sorption in tropical soils. Here, we use a diverse range of soil samples from Puerto Rico to test the validity of the Langmuir, Freundlich, and Temkin equation. We found that across four soil orders (Inceptisols, Mollisols, Oxisols, Ultisols), and forested and cultivated land use types, the Freundlich equation best represented soil P sorption. Furthermore, the Langmuir and the Temkin equations poorly represent soil P adsorption, especially at low P concentrations. Specifically, the Langmuir equation underestimated soil P adsorption by 40% and the Temkin equation overestimated adsorption by 76%. We also found, as expected, that soil clay content and pH were the most important parameters explaining the variability of the Freundlich (K f ) constant. Greater clay content and lower pH, common in highly weathered Ultisols and Oxisols which are abundant in the tropics, led to greater K f values. Overall, our results suggest that a diversity of soils can prompt underestimation of P sorption when using the Langmuir isotherm, which leads to an overestimation of available P that can have repercussions on ESM predictions of the P cycle and tropical forest productivity.

Earth system models↗

Operando Contactless EFISH Study of the Rate-Determining Step of Light-Driven Water Oxidation on TiO 2 Photoanodes

For many slow solar-fuel-forming reactions, the accumulation of photogenerated minority carriers on the photoelectrode surface leads to light-induced band edge unpinning, affecting the junction properties by decreasing band bending in the semiconductor space charge layer and increasing the driving force of surface reactions in the electric double layer. In this study, we demonstrate a contactless operando electric field-induced second harmonic generation (EFISH) method for measuring the band bending change (δΔΦ SCR L ) on photoelectrodes upon photoexcitation. For ndoped rutile TiO 2 water oxidation photoanodes at pH 7, δΔΦ SCR L increases at more positive potentials or higher illumination power density until it reaches saturation values. We show that under fast mass transport conditions, δΔΦ SCR L is exclusively attributed to the accumulated charged rate-determining species that can be regarded as temporary surface states, and the relationship between the photocurrent and δΔΦ SCR L can be well modeled by assuming that hole trap states function as the reaction center. Kinetic isotope experiments identify proton-coupled electron transfer as the rate-determining step and suggest a possible chemical nature of the key intermediate. We demonstrate that light-induced band edge unpinning is a beneficial feature under high illumination conditions for oxygen evolution reaction on TiO 2 because it maintains the photon-to-current conversion efficiency by enhancing the surface reaction driving force, shedding light on the actual device application.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗