Shallow subsurface heat recycling is a sustainable global space heating alternative.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Benz SA
PROVIDER: S-EPMC9270455 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description:The Atlantis Massif rises 4,000 m above the seafloor near the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and consists of rocks uplifted from Earth's lower crust and upper mantle. Exposure of the mantle rocks to seawater leads to their alteration into serpentinites. These aqueous geochemical reactions, collectively known as the process of serpentinization, are exothermic and are associated with the release of hydrogen gas (H2), methane (CH4), and small organic molecules. The biological consequences of this flux of energy and organic compounds from the Atlantis Massif were explored by International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Expedition 357, which used seabed drills to collect continuous sequences of shallow (<16 m below seafloor) marine serpentinites and mafic assemblages. Here, we report the census of microbial diversity in samples of the drill cores, as measured by environmental 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing. The problem of contamination of subsurface samples was a primary concern during all stages of this project, starting from the initial study design, continuing to the collection of samples from the seafloor, handling the samples shipboard and in the lab, preparing the samples for DNA extraction, and analyzing the DNA sequence data. To distinguish endemic microbial taxa of serpentinite subsurface rocks from seawater residents and other potential contaminants, the distributions of individual 16S rRNA gene sequences among all samples were evaluated, taking into consideration both presence/absence and relative abundances. Our results highlight a few candidate residents of the shallow serpentinite subsurface, including uncultured representatives of the Thermoplasmata, Acidobacteria, Acidimicrobia, and ChloroflexiIMPORTANCE The International Ocean Discovery Program Expedition 357-"Serpentinization and Life"-utilized seabed drills to collect rocks from the oceanic crust. The recovered rock cores represent the shallow serpentinite subsurface of the Atlantis Massif, where reactions between uplifted mantle rocks and water, collectively known as serpentinization, produce environmental conditions that can stimulate biological activity and are thought to be analogous to environments that were prevalent on the early Earth and perhaps other planets. The methodology and results of this project have implications for life detection experiments, including sample return missions, and provide a window into the diversity of microbial communities inhabiting subseafloor serpentinites.
| S-EPMC7237769 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Vertical deformation profiles of subterranean geological formations are conventionally measured by borehole extensometry. Distributed strain sensing (DSS) paired with fiber-optic cables installed in the ground opens up possibilities for acquiring high-resolution static and quasistatic strain profiles of deforming strata, but it is currently limited by reduced data quality due to complicated patterns of interaction between the buried cables and their surroundings, especially in upper soil layers under low confining pressures. Extending recent DSS studies, we present an improved approach using microanchored fiber-optic cables-designed to optimize ground-to-cable coupling at the near surface-for strain determination along entire lengths of vertical boreholes. We proposed a novel criterion for soil-cable coupling evaluation based on the geotechnical bearing capacity theory. We applied this enhanced methodology to monitor groundwater-related vertical motions in both laboratory and field experiments. Corroborating extensometer recordings, acquired simultaneously, validated fiber optically determined displacements, suggesting microanchored DSS as an improved means for detecting and monitoring shallow subsurface strain profiles.
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Project description:Prior to the arrival of the Dawn spacecraft at Ceres, the dwarf planet was anticipated to be ice-rich. Searches for morphological features related to ice have been ongoing during Dawn's mission at Ceres. Here we report the identification of pitted terrains associated with fresh Cerean impact craters. The Cerean pitted terrains exhibit strong morphological similarities to pitted materials previously identified on Mars (where ice is implicated in pit development) and Vesta (where the presence of ice is debated). We employ numerical models to investigate the formation of pitted materials on Ceres and discuss the relative importance of water ice and other volatiles in pit development there. We conclude that water ice likely plays an important role in pit development on Ceres. Similar pitted terrains may be common in the asteroid belt and may be of interest to future missions motivated by both astrobiology and in situ resource utilization.
| S-EPMC5606497 | biostudies-literature
Project description:On 3 January 2019, China's Chang'E-4 (CE-4) successfully landed on the eastern floor of Von Kármán crater within the South Pole-Aitken Basin, becoming the first spacecraft in history to land on the Moon's farside. Here, we report the observations made by the Lunar Penetrating Radar (LPR) onboard the Yutu-2 rover during the first two lunar days. We found a signal penetration at the CE-4 landing site that is much greater than that at the CE-3 site. The CE-4 LPR images provide clear information about the structure of the subsurface, which is primarily made of low-loss, highly porous, granular materials with embedded boulders of different sizes; the images also indicate that the top of the mare basal layer should be deeper than 40 m. These results represent the first high-resolution image of a lunar ejecta sequence ever produced and the first direct measurement of its thickness and internal architecture.
| S-EPMC7043921 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Constructed wetlands for single household greywater treatment and metagenomic analysis of microbes in CWs.
| PRJEB33659 | ENA
Project description:We report the first census of natural microbial communities of the Bonneville Salt Flats (BSF), a perennial salt pan at the Utah-Nevada border. Environmental DNA sequencing of archaeal and bacterial 16S rRNA genes was conducted on samples from multiple evaporite sediment layers collected from the upper 30 cm of the surface salt crust. Our results show that at the time of sampling (September 2016), BSF hosted a robust microbial community dominated by diverse halobacteria and Salinibacter species. Sequences identical to Geitlerinema sp. strain PCC 9228, an anoxygenic cyanobacterium that uses sulfide as the electron donor for photosynthesis, are also abundant in many samples. We identified taxonomic groups enriched in each layer of the salt crust sediment and revealed that the upper gypsum sediment layer found immediately under the uppermost surface halite contains a robust microbial community. In these sediments, we found an increased presence of Thermoplasmatales, Hadesarchaeota, Nanoarchaeaeota, Acetothermia, Desulfovermiculus, Halanaerobiales, Bacteroidetes, and Rhodovibrio This study provides insight into the diversity, spatial heterogeneity, and geologic context of a surprisingly complex microbial ecosystem within this macroscopically sterile landscape.IMPORTANCE Pleistocene Lake Bonneville, which covered a third of Utah, desiccated approximately 13,000 years ago, leaving behind the Bonneville Salt Flats (BSF) in the Utah West Desert. The potash salts that saturate BSF basin are extracted and sold as an additive for agricultural fertilizers. The salt crust is a well-known recreational and economic commodity, but the biological interactions with the salt crust have not been studied. This study is the first geospatial analysis of microbially diverse populations at this site using cultivation-independent environmental DNA sequencing methods. Identification of the microbes present within this unique, dynamic, and valued sedimentary evaporite environment is an important step toward understanding the potential consequences of perturbations to the microbial ecology on the surrounding landscape and ecosystem.
| S-EPMC6714890 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BACKGROUND:Climate change is set to exacerbate occupational heat strain, the combined effect of environmental and internal heat stress on the body, threatening human health and wellbeing. Therefore, identifying effective, affordable, feasible and sustainable solutions to mitigate the negative effects on worker health and productivity, is an increasingly urgent need. OBJECTIVES:To systematically identify and evaluate methods that mitigate occupational heat strain in order to provide scientific-based guidance for practitioners. METHODS:An umbrella review was conducted in biomedical databases employing the following eligibility criteria: 1) ambient temperatures >?28?°C or hypohydrated participants, 2) healthy adults, 3) reported psychophysiological (thermal comfort, heart rate or core temperature) and/or performance (physical or cognitive) outcomes, 4) written in English, and 5) published before November 6, 2019. A second search for original research articles was performed to identify interventions of relevance but lacking systematic reviews. All identified interventions were independently evaluated by all co-authors on four point scales for effectiveness, cost, feasibility and environmental impact. RESULTS:Following screening, 36 systematic reviews fulfilled the inclusion criteria. The most effective solutions at mitigating occupational heat strain were wearing specialized cooling garments, (physiological) heat acclimation, improving aerobic fitness, cold water immersion, and applying ventilation. Although air-conditioning and cooling garments in ideal settings provide best scores for effectiveness, the limited applicability in certain industrial settings, high economic cost and high environmental impact are drawbacks for these solutions. However, (physiological) acclimatization, planned breaks, shading and optimized clothing properties are attractive alternative solutions when economic and ecological sustainability aspects are included in the overall evaluation. DISCUSSION:Choosing the most effective solution or combinations of methods to mitigate occupational heat strain will be scenario-specific. However, this paper provides a framework for integrating effectiveness, cost, feasibility (indoors and outdoor) and ecologic sustainability to provide occupational health and safety professionals with evidence-based guidelines.
| S-EPMC7487490 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Subsurface environments contain a large proportion of planetary microbial biomass and harbor diverse communities responsible for mediating biogeochemical cycles important to groundwater used by human society for consumption, irrigation, agriculture and industry. Within the saturated zone, capillary fringe and vadose zones, microorganisms can reside in two distinct phases (planktonic or biofilm), and significant differences in community composition, structure and activity between free-living and attached communities are commonly accepted. However, largely due to sampling constraints and the challenges of working with solid substrata, the contribution of each phase to subsurface processes is largely unresolved. Here, we synthesize current information on the diversity and activity of shallow freshwater subsurface habitats, discuss the challenges associated with sampling planktonic and biofilm communities across spatial, temporal and geological gradients, and discuss how biofilms may be constrained within shallow terrestrial subsurface aquifers. We suggest that merging traditional activity measurements and sequencing/-omics technologies with hydrological parameters important to sediment biofilm assembly and stability will help delineate key system parameters. Ultimately, integration will enhance our understanding of shallow subsurface ecophysiology in terms of bulk-flow through porous media and distinguish the respective activities of sessile microbial communities from more transient planktonic communities to ecosystem service and maintenance.
| S-EPMC6192502 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The marine lithospheric subsurface is one of the largest biospheres on Earth; however, little is known about the identity and ecological function of microorganisms found in low abundance in this habitat, though these organisms impact global-scale biogeochemical cycling. Here, we describe the diversity and metabolic potential of sediment and endolithic (within rock) microbial communities found in ultrasmall amounts (101 to 104 cells cm-3) in the subsurface of the Atlantis Massif, an oceanic core complex on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge that was sampled on International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Expedition 357. This study used fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) to enable the first amplicon, metagenomic, and single-cell genomic study of the shallow (<20 m below seafloor) subsurface of an actively serpentinizing marine system. The shallow subsurface biosphere of the Atlantis Massif was found to be distinct from communities observed in the nearby Lost City alkaline hydrothermal fluids and chimneys, yet similar to other low-temperature, aerobic subsurface settings. Genes associated with autotrophy were rare, although heterotrophy and aerobic carbon monoxide and formate cycling metabolisms were identified. Overall, this study reveals that the shallow subsurface of an oceanic core complex hosts a biosphere that is not fueled by active serpentinization reactions and by-products. IMPORTANCE The subsurface rock beneath the ocean is one of the largest biospheres on Earth, and microorganisms within influence global-scale nutrient cycles. This biosphere is difficult to study, in part due to the low concentrations of microorganisms that inhabit the vast volume of the marine lithosphere. In spite of the global significance of this biosphere, little is currently known about the microbial ecology of such rock-associated microorganisms. This study describes the identity and genomic potential of microorganisms in the subsurface rock and sediment at the Atlantis Massif, an underwater mountain near the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. To enable our analyses, fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) was used as a means to concentrate cells from low biomass environmental samples for genomic analyses. We found distinct rock-associated microorganisms and found that the capacity for microorganisms to utilize organic carbon was the most prevalent form of carbon cycling. We additionally identified a potential role for carbon monoxide metabolism in the subsurface.
| S-EPMC8406227 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Clay layers are common in subsurface where microbial activities play an important role in impacting the biogeochemical properties of adjacent aquifers. In this study, we analyzed the community structure and abundance of bacteria and archaea in response to geochemical properties of six clay sediments at different depths in a borehole (112°34'0″E, 30°36'21″N) of Jianghan Plain (JHP), China. Our results suggested that the top two clay layers were oxic, while the remaining bottom four clay layers were anoxic. Both high-throughput sequencing and qPCR of 16S rRNA gene showed relatively high abundance of archaea (up to 60%) in three of the anoxic clay layers. Furthermore, microbial communities in these clay sediments showed distinct vertical stratification, which may be impacted by changes in concentrations of sulfate, HCl-extractable Fe2+ and total organic carbon (TOC) in the sediments. In the upper two oxic clay layers, identification of phyla Thaumarchaeota (11.2%) and Nitrosporales (1.2%) implied nitrification in these layers. In the two anoxic clay layers beneath the oxic zone, high abundances of Anaeromyxobacter, Chloroflexi bacterium RBG 16_58_14 and Deltaproteobacteria, suggested the reductions of nitrate, iron and sulfate. Remarkably, a significant portion of Bathyarchaeota (∼25%) inhabited in the bottom two anoxic clay layers, which may indicate archaeal anaerobic degradation of TOC by these organisms. The results of this study provide the first systematic understandings of microbial activities in subsurface clay layers at JHP, which may help develop microorganism-based solutions for mitigating subsurface contaminations.
| S-EPMC7642157 | biostudies-literature