New insights on the diversity of the Iberian wild goat

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNIVERSITAT AUTONOMA DE BARCELONA

 

IMAGE: SPECIMEN OF IBERIAN WILD GOAT. view more 

CREDIT: JORDI LÓPEZ OLVERA

A new study led by a research team from the Centre for Research in Agricultural Genomics (CRAG; CSIC-IRTA-UAB-UB), with the participation of numerous Spanish scientific institutions, has evaluated the genetic diversity of the Iberian wild goat (Capra pyrenaica), a species with scarce genetic variability and highly differentiated populations. This research, published in the journal Evolutionary Applications, indicates that the degree of admixture among the different Iberian wild goat populations is very low, despite the efforts made over the last 50 years to increase the genetic diversity of this species. The study also demonstrates the existence of individuals resulting from the hybridisation between Iberian wild goats and domestic goats (Capra hircus), a rare phenomenon but one that should be avoided as much as possible to preserve the genetic heritage of this wild ungulate.

The Iberian wild goat is a species native to the Iberian Peninsula that thrives on mid and high-mountain forests, where it feeds on shrubs, bushes and herbaceous plants. During the 19th and 20th centuries, Iberian wild goat populations suffered drastic reductions due to excessive hunting and habitat destruction, coupled with outbreaks of sarcoptic mange and other endemic diseases. The population decline was such that, of the four subspecies of Iberian wild goat described at the beginning of the 20th century, two became extinct.

From the 1980s onwards, the creation of the Spanish network of natural parks and protected areas, together with the absence of predators, reforestation policies and the progressive abandonment of rural activities, contributed to the recovery and expansion of the Iberian wild goat. In order to increase the genetic diversity of this species, individuals were moved between different populations (reinforcements) and also introduced into geographical areas where the species had disappeared (reintroductions), but the impact of these relocations strategies on the genetic diversity of the Iberian wild goat has not been assessed until now.

What was the impact of reintroductions and population reinforcements?

To evaluate the effect of the relocations carried out at the end of the past century, the researchers analysed the genetic diversity of 118 Iberian wild goats belonging to populations in Tortosa-Beceite (an area located between Catalonia, Aragon and Valencia), Sierra Nevada (Granada), Muela de Cortes (Valencia), Gredos (peninsular centre) and Batuecas (Salamanca). Once the genotypes of the animals had been obtained using a DNA chip, a series of genetic-population analyses were carried out to study the genetic composition of these Iberian wild goat populations, as well as the relationships among them.

"We have observed that these five Iberian wild goat populations show very low genetic diversity due to drastic population reductions, and we have confirmed the existence of large genetic differences between populations. Only three individuals showed evidence of being the product of admixture between different populations, so the relocations that were made over the past 50 years to increase the genetic diversity of the Iberian wild goat populations did not leave a strong enough genetic footprint to be detected in current populations. The chronic stress that relocated individuals often experience during the capture process and the competition with local populations make it difficult for them to adapt to their new habitat. In fact, these could have been the main factors limiting the impact of relocations on the genetic diversity of the Iberian wild goat", explains Marcel Amills, leader of the study and researcher at the Department of Animal and Food Science of the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB) and at CRAG.

Hybrids between Iberian wild goat and domestic goats

Previously published results indicated the possible existence of hybrid individuals between Iberian wild goat and domestic goats, but the frequency of these hybridisations and their possible contribution to the increase of genetic variation in the Iberian wild goat was unknown. Of the 118 Iberian wild goats analysed in this study, only eight specimens with genetic profiles similar to those of domestic goats were detected, indicating that they were hybrids of domestic and Iberian wild goats.

"Our results point out that hybridisation between domestic and Iberian wild goats can occur in natural populations, although this is likely a rare event given the existence of some degree of reproductive incompatibility among them. In addition, domestic and Iberian wild goat herds do not usually come into direct contact with each other. However, it should be ensured that Iberian wild goat range areas are not occupied by domestic or feral goats, as hybridisation of the two species could generate individuals with low adaptive potential and a dilution of the Iberian wild goat gene pool", concludes Amills.

Preserving the Iberian wild goat's future

The accelerated rate at which Iberian wild goat populations have been growing since the 1980s leads researchers to consider that their diversity could increase as a consequence of this expansion process, without the need for human intervention. This is particularly true if we take into consideration the low genetic impact of past relocations, as this study has convincingly demonstrated. Further research will be essential to closely monitor the demographic evolution of Iberian wild goats, researchers note.

Moreover, the results obtained in this study indicate that, although unlikely, hybridisation with domestic goats could become a potential threat to the genetic conservation of the Iberian wild goat, not to mention the adverse effects associated with the transmission of infectious diseases. Thus, researchers point out the need to adopt specific measures to limit the presence of domestic or feral goat herds in mountain areas inhabited by this iconic wild ungulate.

About funding for this research:

This research has been possible thanks to the financial support by the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER)/Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación-Agencia Estatal de Investigación (PID2019-105805RB-I00), the CERCA Programme/Generalitat de Catalunya, the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (Center of Excellence Severo Ochoa 2020–2023, and research grants CGL2012-40043-C02-01, CGL2012-40043-C02-02, and CGL2016-80543-P), the Spanish Ministry of Education (BES-C-2017-0024 grant to María Gracia Luigi-Sierra; FPU15/01733 grant to Emilio Mármol-Sánchez), and the CAPES Foundation-Coordination of Improvement of Higher Education, Ministry of Education of the Federal Government of Brazil (fellowship to Tainã Figueiredo Cardoso).

---

JOURNAL

Evolutionary Applications

DOI

10.1111/eva.13299 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Experimental study

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Animals

ARTICLE TITLE

Assessing the levels of intraspecific admixture and interspecific hybridization in Iberian wild goats (Capra pyrenaica)

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

12-Oct-2021

Two new pit vipers discovered from Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

Peer-Reviewed Publication

PENSOFT PUBLISHERS

 

IMAGE: GLACIER PIT VIPER (GLOYDIUS SWILD SP. NOV.) view more 

CREDIT: SHI ET AL.

Two new species of venomous snakes were just added to Asia’s fauna – the Nujiang pit viper (Gloydius lipipengi) from Zayu, Tibet, and the Glacier pit viper (G. swild) found west of the Nujiang River and Heishui, Sichuan, east of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Researchers from the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology at the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Bangor University published the discovery in the open-access journal ZooKeys as part of a new molecular phylogenetic analysis of the Asian pit vipers.

The Nujiang pit viper has a greyish brown back with irregular black ring-shaped crossbands, wide, greyish-brown stripes behind the eyes, and relativity short fangs, while the Glacier pit viper is blueish-grey, with zigzag stripes on its back, and has relatively narrow stripes behind its eyes.

Interestingly, the Glacier pit viper was found under the Dagu Holy-glacier National Park: the glacier lake lies 2000 meters higher than the habitat of the snakes, at more than 4,880 m above sea level. This discovery suggests that the glaciers might be a key factor to the isolation and speciation of alpine pit vipers in southwest China.

The researchers also share the stories behind the snakes’ scientific names: with the new species from Tibet, Gloydius lipipengi, the name is dedicated to the senior author’s (Jingsong Shi) Master’s supervisor, Professor Pi-Peng Li from the Institute of Herpetology at Shenyang Normal University, just in time for Li’s sixtieth birthday. Prof. Li has devoted himself to the study of the herpetological diversity of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, and it was under his guidance that Jingsong Shi became an Asian pit viper enthusiast and professional herpetological researcher. 

Gloydius swild, the new species from Heishui, Sichuan, is in turn named after the SWILD Group, which studies the fauna and biodiversity of southewst China. They discovered and collected the snake during an expedition to the Dagu Holy-glacier.

On top of their discoveries, the researchers were also astonished by the sceneries they encountered during their field work. During their expeditions, they experienced striking views of “sacred, crystal-like” glacier lakes embraced by mountains, as well as colourful broadleaf-conifer forests and morning mists falling over the village. 

“During our expedition, we met a lot of hospitable Tibetan inhabitants and enjoyed their kindness and treats, which made the expedition more unforgettable,” they add.

CAPTION

Nujiang pit viper (Gloydius lipipengi sp. nov)

CREDIT

Shi et al.

Research article:

Shi J-S, Liu J-C, Giri R, Owens JB, Santra V, Kuttalam S, Selvan M, Guo K-J, Malhotra A (2021) Molecular phylogenetic analysis of the genus Gloydius (Squamata, Viperidae, Crotalinae), with description of two new alpine species from Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, China. ZooKeys 1061: 87-108. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1061.70420

---

JOURNAL

ZooKeys

DOI

10.3897/zookeys.1061.70420 

ARTICLE TITLE

Molecular phylogenetic analysis of the genus Gloydius (Squamata, Viperidae, Crotalinae), with description of two new alpine species from Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, China

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

4-Oct-2021

CAPTION

The glacier lake on the top of the mountain near the type locality of Glacier pit viper.

CAPTION

Misty morning near the habitat of Glacier pit viper

CREDIT

Shi et al.

COUNTERINTUITIVE

Threatened rattlesnakes’ inbreeding

makes species more resistant to bad

mutations

Scientists complete first genomic analysis of Eastern massasaugas

Peer-Reviewed Publication

OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The first look at a threatened rattlesnake species’ recent genetic history suggests that inbreeding necessitated by limited habitat may not be as detrimental as theory would predict it to be.

In fact, scientists speculate that Eastern massasauga rattlesnakes may have pre-adapted to living in small, isolated populations – where the most dangerous genetic mutations that arose could be easily exposed and purged.

Researchers sequenced the genomes of 90 Eastern massasauga rattlesnakes, which were listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act in 2016 because of loss and fragmentation of their wetland habitat. For comparison, the researchers also sequenced 10 genomes of a close relative, the Western massasauga rattlesnake, a common species with no limitations on breeding opportunities and large populations.

The Ohio State University team found that the most potentially damaging gene mutations were less abundant in the Eastern than the Western species. This finding suggests the breeding limitations of small, isolated populations might be accompanied by an evolutionary advantage of being able to elbow out genetic variants that get in the way of survival, said H. Lisle Gibbs, professor of evolution, ecology and organismal biology at Ohio State and senior author of the study.

“This is something that has been reported very recently in other endangered species, but it’s the first time it’s been shown in a reptile,” Gibbs said. “We always worry about genetics and the loss of variation and what it means to be in a small population in which there’s lots of inbreeding. At least in this species, maybe it’s not such a big deal.

“From a conservation perspective, perhaps we can downplay genetics and say ecology – such as habitat restoration – is more important.”

Gibbs completed the study with Alexander Ochoa, a former postdoctoral researcher at Ohio State who is now a postdoctoral scholar at the University of Central Florida. The research is published in the journal Molecular Ecology.

Eastern massasauga rattlesnakes live in isolated spaces in midwestern and eastern North America, and evolutionary theory posits that the inevitable inbreeding in such populations threatens species with extinction as genetic mutations accumulate. The smallest populations might reach 30 snakes, but Ohio’s Killdeer Plains Wildlife Area is home to one of the most genetically diverse and largest populations in the country, numbering in the thousands.

Gibbs has studied Eastern massasaugas for over two decades and, as director of the Ohio Biodiversity Conservation Partnership, advises the Ohio Department of Natural Resources on management of the species.

“Through years and years of study, we know that most populations are isolated, like little natural zoos scattered throughout the landscape,” Gibbs said. “Due to habitat degradation, we’ve known they show little variation – but we’ve never actually looked at variation in genes that code for things that matter to a rattlesnake.”

Only recently has it been possible to apply the research techniques perfected with the human genome to work with this species. Gibbs and Ochoa zeroed in on identifying mutations in genes that may affect survival and reproduction to gauge how hazardous inbreeding might be to Eastern massasaugas.

Though a higher overall number of potentially deleterious mutations were found in the common Western massasaugas, that didn’t translate to more threats to their survival because most troublesome gene copies were offset by protective copies. That can happen only in heterozygotes, which have two different copies, or alleles, of a particular gene – one inherited from each parent. Because of generations of inbreeding, Eastern massasaugas are much more likely to have two copies of the same allele.

“That’s why inbreeding has impacts – because that’s when you get two bad alleles showing up together, with no good allele to compensate, so there is a negative effect,” Gibbs said. “There’s more inbreeding, so overall you get more mostly bad mutations together, but the really bad ones, because they’re exposed, are also eliminated at a much greater rate.”

Through another analytical technique comparing the narrowing of the Eastern and Western massasauga genetic makeup over several hundred years, Gibbs and Ochoa confirmed the impact human activity has had on the Eastern massasauga’s swampy habitat. Unlike the Eastern species, Western massasaugas live in grassy and woodland regions of the south-central United States that are less densely populated by humans.

“We looked at what has happened in these snakes and their population sizes over the last 300 years, which is when humans have been tromping all over North America, impacting the landscape,” Gibbs said. “The impacts in terms of reducing population sizes are greater in Eastern than in Western massasaugas over this period.”

The findings could influence management decisions. A common conservation practice would involve introducing snakes from a more genetically diverse population into a highly isolated group to counter the effects of inbreeding. But it turns out the Eastern massasauga might benefit more from preservation of its habitat while the genetics takes care of itself.

“This counterintuitive result makes us rethink what living in a small population is, and whether genetic problems are as important as we think they are,” Gibbs said. “This is certainly not to say living in a small population isn’t bad – it just may be that the genetic effects are not as bad as we thought.”

This work was supported by the State Wildlife Grants Program administered jointly by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Ohio Division of Wildlife, with funds provided by the Ohio Biodiversity Conservation Partnership between Ohio State and the Ohio Division of Wildlife, as well as the National Science Foundation.

#

Contact: H. Lisle Gibbs, Gibbs.128@osu.edu

Written by Emily Caldwell, Caldwell.151@osu.edu

 

---

JOURNAL

Molecular Ecology

DOI

10.1111/mec.16147 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Data/statistical analysis

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Animals

ARTICLE TITLE

Genomic signatures of inbreeding and mutation load in a threatened rattlesnake

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

27-Aug-2021

Common chemicals in electronics and baby products harm brain development

Peer-Reviewed Publication

GREEN SCIENCE POLICY INSTITUT

Chemicals increasingly used as flame retardants and plasticizers pose a larger risk to children’s brain development than previously thought, according to a commentary published today in Environmental Health Perspectives. The research team reviewed dozens of human, animal, and cell-based studies and concluded that exposure to even low levels of the chemicals—called organophosphate esters—may harm IQ, attention, and memory in children in ways not yet looked at by regulators.

The neurotoxicity of organophosphate esters used as nerve agents and pesticides is widely recognized, but the neurotoxicity of those used as flame retardants and plasticizers has been assumed to be low. As a result, they are widely used as replacements for some phased-out or banned halogenated flame retardants in electronics, car seats and other baby products, furniture, and building materials. However, the authors’ analysis revealed that these chemicals are also neurotoxic, but through different mechanisms of action.

“The use of organophosphate esters in everything from TVs to car seats has proliferated under the false assumption that they’re safe,” said Heather Patisaul, lead author and neuroendocrinologist at North Carolina State University. “Unfortunately, these chemicals appear to be just as harmful as the chemicals they’re intended to replace but act by a different mechanism.”

Organophosphate esters continuously migrate out of products into air and dust. Contaminated dust gets on our hands and is then inadvertently ingested when we eat. That’s why these chemicals have been detected in virtually everyone tested. Children are particularly exposed from hand-to-mouth behavior. Babies and young children consequently have much higher concentrations of these chemicals in their bodies during the most vulnerable windows of brain development.

“Organophosphate esters threaten the brain development of a whole generation,” said co-author and retired NIEHS Director Linda Birnbaum. “If we don’t stem their use now, the consequences will be grave and irreversible.”

The authors call for a stop to unnecessary uses of all organophosphate esters. This includes their use as flame retardants to meet ineffective flammability standards in consumer products, vehicles, and building materials.

For uses where organophosphate esters are deemed essential, the authors recommend governments and industry conduct alternatives assessments and make investments in innovative solutions without harmful chemicals.

“Organophosphate esters in many products serve no essential function while posing a serious risk, especially to our children,” said Carol Kwiatkowski, co-author and Science and Policy Senior Associate at the Green Science Policy Institute. “It’s urgent that product manufacturers critically reevaluate the uses of organophosphate ester flame retardants and plasticizers—many may be doing more harm than good.”

###

---

JOURNAL

Environmental Health Perspectives

DOI

10.1289/EHP9285 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Commentary/editorial

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Not applicable

ARTICLE TITLE

Beyond Cholinesterase Inhibition: Developmental Neurotoxicity of Organophosphate Ester Flame Retardants and Plasticizers

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

6-Oct-2021

Disclaimer: AAAS 

EWG scientists create new framework for using demographic data to evaluate cumulative cancer risk from tap water contamination

The EPA must include tap water quality in environmental justice screening tool

Peer-Reviewed Publication

ENVIRONMENTAL WORKING GROUP

WASHINGTON, D.C. – A peer-reviewed Environmental Working Group study shows how water quality data, community water system maps and demographic data such as race and ethnicity can help identify where cumulative cancer risks from polluted tap water plague communities already threatened by other environmental injustices.

The study, just published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, bolsters EWG’s August request that the Environmental Protection Agency adopt drinking water as a metric in its environmental justice mapping tools, to create more equitable water quality policies and actions.

“EWG’s analysis provides a framework for how policymakers can make safe drinking water part of the equation when analyzing the effects of new and existing public health policies,” said Uloma Uche, Ph.D., EWG environmental health science fellow and one of the study’s authors.

EWG’s framework is designed to demonstrate to the EPA, the agency’s National Environmental Justice Advisory Council and other decisionmakers that it is both feasible and important to consider drinking water quality data when identifying communities with significant, urgent environmental quality issues.

The framework fills a gap in the capacity of the EPA’s Environmental Justice Screening and Mapping Tool to identify communities facing multiple environmental injustices. The tool, known as EJSCREEN, aggregates and evaluates 11 environmental indicators – such as the presence of lead paint, proximity to Superfund sites and existence of nearby wastewater discharges – but not drinking water quality.

EWG researchers applied the new framework to evaluate the cancer risk posed by toxic cocktails of tap water contaminants in California and Texas, where more than one in five U.S. residents lives. They combined data from three sources: the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, the boundaries of the service areas for more than 7,000 community tap water systems and the results of federally mandated tests conducted by those systems.

EWG scientists calculated the cumulative effects, over a lifetime of exposure, of 30 carcinogenic tap water contaminants found across over 7,000 tap water systems in the two states. They found communities that skewed more Hispanic and/or Black, according to the American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates for 2019, had a statistically significant increase in risk from cancer due to exposure to tap water contamination, compared to communities with lower ratios of these populations.

The contaminants included 21 that are federally regulated, such as arsenic, nitrate, radium and disinfection byproducts, and nine that are not, including hexavalent chromium and 1,4-dioxane. 

The new study builds on earlier EWG peer-reviewed research, published in 2019 in the journal Heliyon, finding that cumulative exposure to mixtures of toxic chemicals commonly found in U.S. tap water could result in more than 100,000 cancer cases.

The EPA’s public health goal for tap water contamination – the level of a chemical contaminant in drinking water that does not pose a significant risk to health – is a one-in-one-million lifetime risk of cancer. 

The agency has not amended its list of regulated water contaminants since 2000, and it rarely revisits the maximum levels it sets for regulated contaminants, even when the latest science shows a clear risk to public health from cancer or other serious illnesses at amounts far lower than legal limits.

“Drinking water rarely, if ever, contains only one contaminant, yet federal regulators assess the public health risks of tap water pollutants one at a time,” said EWG Science Analyst Sydney Evans, who worked on both studies.

“With our newest research, EWG continues to shine a light on the need for policymakers to evaluate the actual threat posed by the combinations of carcinogens so many people have no choice but to drink,” she said.

U.S. drinking water infrastructure is long overdue for large investments that could significantly reduce contamination and better protect public health. Some water quality issues can be addressed with in-home water filters, but no filter can remove all contaminants. The most effective filters are unaffordable for many people facing the worst contamination.

“Everyone should have access to affordable, safe drinking water in the U.S., regardless of where they live,” Evans said. “Safe water has become a privilege when it should be a right.”

EWG’s study didn’t evaluate the levels of or risks from carcinogenic contaminants in private wells, which are not tracked by any government entity.

###

The Environmental Working Group is a nonprofit, non-partisan organization that empowers people to live healthier lives in a healthier environment. Through research, advocacy and unique education tools, EWG drives consumer choice and civic action. Visit www.ewg.org for more information.

 

---

JOURNAL

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Data/statistical analysis

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

Community-Level Analysis of Drinking Water Data Highlights the Importance of Drinking Water Metrics for the State, Federal Environmental Health Justice Priorities in the United States

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

2-Oct-2021

COI STATEMENT

We declare no conflict of interest.

Quaise Inc. begins testing of potentially disruptive geothermal drilling technology

Paper on work is presented at 2021 Geothermal Rising conference

Reports and Proceedings

SCIENCE COMMUNICATIONS

 

IMAGE: CHRIS MEUTH OF QUAISE INC. (LEFT) STANDS NEXT TO A TEST FIXTURE BEING USED IN CURRENT EXPERIMENTS AT OAK RIDGE NATIONAL LABORATORY TO DEVELOP A NOVEL DRILLING TECHNIQUE. view more 

CREDIT: MATT HOUDE, QUAISE INC.

SAN DIEGO, CA—Geothermal energy—the heat beneath our feet—could become a crucial player in the energy transition away from fossil fuels, but only if we can drill down far enough to unleash its full potential. Matt Houde of Quaise Inc. made that point October 5 at the 2021 Geothermal Rising conference, then went on to describe the first test campaign to bring a potentially disruptive MIT drilling technology into the world at large where it could solve the problem.

The test campaign, begun this month, involves researchers from industry, MIT, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). The campaign is based at ORNL and supported by a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy through the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E).

The team is already well along in preparations for future phases of the campaign. For example, a second test fixture for Phase II is being built in Houston by Quaise Inc. engineers. It should be ready soon for shipping to ORNL.

Houde’s coauthors of the paper he presented are Quaise CEO Carlos Araque, Paul Woskov of the MIT Plasma Science and Fusion Center (PSFC), Jimmy Lee of the PSFC, Ken Oglesby of Impact Technologies LLC, Tim Bigelow of ORNL, and Geoff Garrison and Matt Uddenberg, both of AltaRock Energy Inc.

“I think the ultimate potential of geothermal is to truly be a replacement for fossil fuels,” said Araque at the 8th Geothermal Congress for Latin America & the Caribbean (GEOLAC 2021) last month. “Solar and wind will play a role, but displacing fossil fuels is going to take a lot more [than those two]. I think geothermal and some nuclear technologies are the only way to get there.”

The Energy Down Deep

The mother lode of geothermal energy is some 2 to 12 miles beneath the Earth’s surface where the rock is so hot (temperatures are over 374 degrees C, or 704 degrees F) that if water could be pumped to the area it would become supercritical, a steam-like phase that most people aren’t familiar with. (Familiar phases are liquid water, ice, and the vapor that makes clouds.) Supercritical water, in turn, can carry some 5-10 times more energy than regular hot water, making it an extremely efficient energy source if it could be pumped above ground to turbines that could convert it into electricity.

“The overwhelming majority of [super hot rock] resources are stored in deep continental crust, accessible to 80 percent of the world’s major population centers at depths ranging from 10-20 km,” the authors write in their Geothermal Rising paper.

Today we can’t access those resources except in Iceland and other areas where they are relatively close to the surface. The number one problem: we can’t drill down far enough. The drills used by the oil and gas industries can’t withstand the formidable temperatures and pressures that are found miles down.

Millimeter Wave Drilling

Quaise is working to replace the conventional drill bits that mechanically break up the rock with millimeter wave energy (cousins to the microwaves many of us cook with). Those millimeter waves (MMWs) literally melt then vaporize the rock to create ever deeper holes.

The general technique was developed by Woskov at MIT, who “over the last ten years demonstrated in the lab much of the core physics and science involved,” Houde said. Woskov, who recently completed testing that confirmed those data, also showed that he could use MMWs to drill a hole in basalt with a 1:1 aspect ratio (two inches deep by two inches in diameter).

Houde emphasized that the general technology, such as the gyrotron machine that produces the millimeter wave energy, is not new. “We’re leveraging some 70 years of research toward nuclear fusion as an energy source,” he said. “We don’t have to reinvent the wheel because fusion has pushed this technology to the point where it can serve our purposes. We simply have to optimize it for deep drilling.”

The Quaise technique also takes advantage of conventional drilling technologies such as those developed by the oil and gas industries. The company will still use these to drill down through surface layers to bedrock, which was what they were optimized for.

Scaling Up

The new testing campaign at ORNL will use a gyrotron that is 10 times more powerful than the one Woskov used at MIT. The goal of the current testing phase is to drill a hole with a 10:1 aspect ratio. Further, the more powerful gyrotron will allow the team to simulate the full drilling process. Specifically, it will allow them to vaporize the rock (Woskov’s gyrotron was only powerful enough to melt the basalt). “This will be the first time anyone has done this,” Houde said.

Overall, the tests will result in a wealth of new data “that will enable us to fully model the MMW drilling process,” the team wrote in their Geothermal Rising paper.

The team is already moving forward with plans and equipment for additional phases of the test campaign. For example, the engineers are building a second test fixture for the next phase at ORNL when they will aim for a drilling aspect ratio of 100:1. “Next, we’ll go to the field for a 1000:1 demonstration. We are developing a prototype MMW drilling rig for that purpose,” Houde said. “It’s a matter of proving out the MMW process at deeper and deeper depths.”

A video about Quaise can be seen here.

—Elizabeth Thomson is a correspondent for Quaise Inc.

Acknowledgment: “The information, data, or work presented herein was funded in part by the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E), U.S. Department of Energy, under Award Number DE-AR0001051. The views and opinions of authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United States Government or any agency thereof.” 

CAPTION

Quaise Inc. engineers in Houston with a second test fixture for Phase II of the testing at Oak Ridge National Laboratory to develop a novel drilling technique.

CREDIT

Matt Houde, Quaise Inc.

Wildfires and microgravity: NSF-funded research team will use the ISS to better understand fire spread

Grant and Award Announcement

INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION U.S. NATIONAL LABORATORY

 

IMAGE: FIRE RESEARCHER JAMES URBAN IN HIS LABORATORY AT WORCESTER POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE. view more 

CREDIT: WORCESTER POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE

A tiny, enclosed flame onboard the International Space Station (ISS) could someday help researchers better predict the spread of massive, deadly wildfires. A new study funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) and sponsored by the ISS U.S. National Laboratory aims to use the microgravity conditions of space to better understand how flames spread on Earth.

Principal investigator James Urban, assistant professor of fire protection engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), and his team will leverage the ISS National Lab for an experiment that could help parse some of the prime forces behind wildfire spread. Successful results could contribute to more effective fire management and response measures, potentially saving lives and homes from destruction. This investigation was awarded through a joint solicitation from NSF and the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space, Inc. (CASIS), manager of the ISS National Lab, for research in the field of transport phenomena.

Urban’s study will involve complementary ground-based and microgravity experiments that will precisely measure how a flame spreads along the surface of a combustible object inside a miniature wind tunnel, under a dynamic rate of airflow. The “nonsteady” airflow approximates variable behavior in the flames that drive flame spread, allowing Urban’s team to model “intermittent” flame behaviors that can better predict how fire spreads in nature.

“Right now, our ability to develop a physical wildfire model and use such a model to predict what an active wildfire will do in a useful timescale is very limited,” Urban said. “By understanding how flames behave on a smaller scale, we can gain insight and apply that to wildfire behavior.”

Performing the experiment in microgravity will allow the team to eliminate the effects of gravity-driven buoyancy and convection, which along with wind can affect how a flame behaves. On Earth, buoyancy drives convection, causing warmer, lighter air to rise above the cooler, heavier air around it and causing dynamic flame behaviors like flickering, puffing, and dancing. By comparing flame behavior in space with ground-based results, Urban and his team can better investigate how nonsteady flame behavior driven by buoyancy and external or “forced” airflow could drive flame spread on Earth.

Urban’s research could contribute to a future “theory of wildfires” that could help researchers model the conditions that cause a wildfire to grow and spread. Such knowledge could lead to better predictions of the speed and direction in which fires will spread and how best to mitigate them, providing further protection for at-risk communities and critical infrastructure.

“The ultimate goal is to reduce the loss of lives, structures, and the danger posed to responders,” Urban said. “If we have a deeper understanding of the physical processes driving wildfires, we can recreate hypothetical wildfire situations and design communities to be more resilient against them. We can better predict under what conditions we can do safe, controlled burns. And when we do have extreme fires, we can better predict how the fire is going to behave and allocate resources appropriately.”

###