[GWSG] A new concrete; cheaper, safer battery; suffering species; blame the currents; lower O; H2S burps; anoxic zones

[Tilley, Al]

1.  Concrete manufacturing contributes about 5% of greenhouse gasses.  Richard Riman of Rutgers has developed a low-temperature manufacturing process which reduces the carbon footprint of concrete by 70% without increasing costs or sacrificing strength.  The process, based on his insights into the way shellfish form their bodies, is applicable to a range of materials.  http://news.rutgers.edu/news/rutgers-develops-eco-friendly-concrete/20170212#.WKGhHfkrLIU



2.  Stanford has developed a cheap, nonflammable battery appropriate for use with renewable energy.  Its electrolyte uses urea, commonly found in mammal urine.  AB Systems is developing a commercial version of the battery.     http://news.stanford.edu/2017/02/07/stanford-engineers-create-low-cost-battery-storing-renewable-energy/



3.  A new study shows that large numbers of threatened species are already being impacted by climate change.  Many species were somewhat more resilient than the researchers had expected.    http://www.nature.com/articles/nclimate3223.epdf?referrer_access_token=qfXNRIo5bjiltlXxYR6lB9RgN0jAjWel9jnR3ZoTv0N57SPFJrLHECuOvjklRFCC7wxKThk3nwMaj4L3TK6Id9EcEcaco1emma8vgxaytgQ9z9Uv9uAsl6mjsjuNaerbSLWM6eTHRCn_FXafPpfOGTLoAHhhy_DQIXHOExqk1SNuy1WGOaeUGONW4GPqPPwUWLffJ6NNfaOPPUVLwB7gEYVt89E-75D8_oqJrAeYijzIRra54qQSJuFYceNd3BSpEsU3CRbrmDQT1sy20m5McZEjFwgBiLWKry8GdGdLFrUkFuSrbuCzqDRJImqHWfry&tracking_referrer=www.independent.co.uk



4.  Heinrich events are periods of the rapid disintegration of ice sheets.  Such events in the past appear to have occurred because of warm ocean currents, not necessarily air temperature.  The implication is that models currently do not take into adequate account ocean currents, and are likely to underestimate the amount of sea level rise we should expect.  Heinrich events are followed by rapid atmospheric warming.    https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/02/170215131551.htm



5.  A drop of oceanic oxygen levels has been expected, and now discovered globally and at great depths as well as elsewhere.  The general drop in dissolved oxygen has been 2% between 1960 and 2010, though it differs considerably by region, with the Arctic being the hardest hit.  Loss of oxygenation threatens marine life.  https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2017/02/15/its-official-the-oceans-are-losing-oxygen-posing-growing-threats-to-marine-life/?utm_term=.cc8e7d3c2ca8



6.  Increasing stratification of the oceans is a major factor in the observed drop in oxygen levels, as less oxygen from the atmosphere gets beyond the surface levels.  Such stratification can lead to sulfur chemistry in the depths and to release of hydrogen sulfide gas.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anoxic_waters  Massive burps of H2S from anoxic zones in the oceans have been suggested as a cause of the great extinction of the Late Permian 251 mya.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Permian#Permian.E2.80.93Triassic_extinction_event  Also http://www3.geosc.psu.edu/~jlm80/Geosc497/Kump2005burp.pdf



7.  Dead zones line the coastlines in this map from 2014.  http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/ocean-dead-zones-are-getting-worse-globally-due-climate-change-180953282/  Dead zones off the US West Coast and off Africa have recently released hydrogen sulfide.  https://psmag.com/suffocating-the-ocean-1c4fa66ca0f4#.yd5ws77y1  ?

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