 |
| Titel |
A low-power consumption device for CO2 monitoring in cave environments |
| VerfasserIn |
Marc Luetscher, Felix Ziegler |
| Konferenz |
EGU General Assembly 2010
|
| Medientyp |
Artikel
|
| Sprache |
Englisch
|
| Digitales Dokument |
PDF |
| Erschienen |
In: GRA - Volume 12 (2010) |
| Datensatznummer |
250038826
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Zusammenfassung |
| Karst systems are known to be highly heterogeneous environments with complex hydrology
and transient ventilation regimes. Consequently, the subsurface pCO2 varies in space and
time, and is locally significantly increased as compared to the outside atmosphere. Studying
carbon dioxide fluctuations is therefore fundamental to assess dissolution and precipitation
rates of calcium carbonate in caves. Unfortunately, commercially available devices rarely
suite the specific criteria required for cave monitoring and many systems face severe
limitations due to power supply and/or electronics failure. Here we present a new
energy-efficient device for the long-term monitoring of pCO2 in cave environments. This
hand-held instrument was specifically developed for extreme monitoring conditions (i.e. low
temperatures, high relative humidity, muddy galleries, etc) and successfully tested
for several months in alpine caves. Preliminary results demonstrate that precise
measurements can be achieved with high temporal resolution (i.e. -¥1h-1) over -¥6 months
without significant drift. The first applications therefore demonstrate the suitability of
our instrument also for speleothem research, particularly in remote cave settings. |
|
|
|
|
|
|