Role of coal ash morphology and composition in delivery and transport of trace metals in the aquatic environment.

Fly ash is predominately the inorganic byproduct of coal combustion for electrical power generation. It is composed of aluminosilicates with Fe, Mg, K, and Ca forming submicron to 100 μm spheres and amorphous particles. During combustion trace elements are incorporated into the heterogenous fine particles that can pose risks to the environment and human health.

Magnetic susceptibility measurements to detect coal fly ash from the Kingston Tennessee spill in Watts Bar Reservoir.

An estimated 229,000 m(3) of coal fly ash remains in the river system after dredging to clean-up the 2008 Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) spill in Kingston, Tennessee. The ash is heterogeneous with clear, orange and black spheres and non-spherical amorphous particles. Combustion produces iron oxides that allow low field magnetic susceptibility (χ(LF)) and percent frequency dependent susceptibility (χ(FD)%) to be used to discriminate between coal fly ash and sediments native to the watershed.

Complexity generated by iteration of hierarchical modules in bryozoa.

Growth in colonial organisms by iteration of modules inherently provides for an increase in available morpho-ecospace relative to their solitary relatives. Therefore, the interpretation of the functional or evolutionary significance of complexity within groups that exhibit modular growth may need to be considered under criteria modified from those used to interpret complexity in solitary organisms. Primary modules, corresponding to individuals, are the fundamental building blocks of a colonial organism.