Photothermal Floats for Evaporation Enhancement and Waterfowl Deterrence
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TECHNICAL ARTICLE
Photothermal Floats for Evaporation Enhancement and Waterfowl Deterrence Ross Monasmith1 · Grant Myhre1 · Jared Geer2 · Ryan Moe2 · Bryan Chamba Vasquez3 · Shyla Allred1 · Madison Cyr1 · Emma Wooldridge1 · Hans Swenson4 · Stella Capoccia5 · Dario Prieto Centurion6 · Courtney Young2 · Katherine R. Zodrow1 Received: 12 July 2019 / Accepted: 8 October 2020 © Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2020
Abstract Many industries store hazardous liquid waste in open ponds prior to treatment or as a means of disposal. In some cases, these ponds may present a hazard to migrating waterfowl. Present methods of deterring birds, such as plastic ‘shade balls’, reduce evaporation, making them ineffective where evaporation is desirable. To combat this effect, we applied photothermal materials to high-density polyethylene (HDPE) containers to create “photothermal floats”, which absorb solar irradiation and promote, rather than deter, evaporation. In this study, inexpensive materials (granular activated carbon, fiberglass, and carbon air filters) were coated onto HDPE containers. Carbon foam, a buoyant material, was used alone. These materials were tested for their effects on evaporation rates in a laboratory environment at low light intensities (150 W∙m−2). Granular activated carbon (GAC) displayed the largest improvement in evaporative performance, increasing the evaporation rate by 64 ± 7% compared to a control with standing water and 199 ± 7% compared to uncoated HDPE. Materials were characterized using scanning electron microscopy, specific surface area analysis, water retention analysis, contact angle goniometry, and reflectance. We observed significant and unexpected differences between materials in all parameters and their connections to measured evaporation rates. These novel and inexpensive material combinations may provide a new tool for water managers who need to maintain or improve evaporation rates while deterring waterfowl. Keywords Mining · Passive evaporation · Surface impoundment · Waterfowl management
Introduction Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (https://doi.org/10.1007/s10230-020-00729-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. * Katherine R. Zodrow [email protected] 1
Environmental Engineering Department, Montana Tech, Butte, MT 59701, USA
2
Metallurgy and Materials Engineering Department, Montana Tech, Butte, MT 59701, USA
3
School of Earth, Energy and Environmental Science, Yachay Tech University, Urcuquí, San Miguel de Urcuquí Canton, Ecuador
4
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT 59717, USA
5
Biological Sciences Department, Montana Tech, Butte, MT 59701, USA
6
Mechanical Engineering Department, Montana Tech, Butte, MT 59701, USA
In a given water body, it may be desirable to either enhance or slow evaporation to meet the needs of the water manager. For example, in hazardous wastewater operations, evaporation is a critical management
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