Theoretical and Experimental Analysis for Cleaning Ice Cores from Estisol<sup>TM</sup> 140 Drill Liquid
To reconstruct climate history of the past 1.5 Million years, the project: Beyond EPICA Oldest Ice (BEOI) will drill about 2700 m of ice core in East Antarctica (2021–2025). As drilling fluid, an aliphatic ester fluid, Estisol<sup>TM</sup> 140, will be used. Newly drilled ice cores will...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2021-04-01
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| Series: | Applied Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/11/9/3830 |
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| author | Francesco Enrichi Dorthe Dahl-Jensen Jørgen Peder Steffensen Carlo Barbante |
| author_facet | Francesco Enrichi Dorthe Dahl-Jensen Jørgen Peder Steffensen Carlo Barbante |
| author_sort | Francesco Enrichi |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | To reconstruct climate history of the past 1.5 Million years, the project: Beyond EPICA Oldest Ice (BEOI) will drill about 2700 m of ice core in East Antarctica (2021–2025). As drilling fluid, an aliphatic ester fluid, Estisol<sup>TM</sup> 140, will be used. Newly drilled ice cores will be retrieved from the drill soaked in fluid, and this fluid should be removed from the cores. Most of it will be vacuum-cleaned off in a Fluid Extraction Device and wiped off with paper towels. Based on our experiences in Greenland deep ice coring, most of the residual fluid can be removed by storing the cores openly on shelves in a ventilated room. After a week of “drying”, the cores have a dry feel, handling them do not give “wet” gloves and they can easily be marked with lead pencils. This paper presents a theoretical investigation and some simple testing on the “drying” process. The rates of sublimation of ice and evaporation of fluid have been calculated at different temperatures. The calculations show that sublimation of the ice core should not occur, and that evaporation of fluid should be almost negligible. Our test results support these calculations, but also revealed significant fluid run-off and dripping, resulting in the removal of most of the fluid in a couple of days, independent of temperature and ventilation conditions. Finally, we discuss crucial factors that ensure optimal long-term ice core preservation in storage, such as temperature stability, defrosting cycles of freezers and open core storage versus storage of cores in insulated crates. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T12:02:12Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-bee4f35d1d6a44ecad1049d538f4b042 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-3417 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T12:02:12Z |
| publishDate | 2021-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Applied Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-bee4f35d1d6a44ecad1049d538f4b0422023-11-21T16:53:00ZengMDPI AGApplied Sciences2076-34172021-04-01119383010.3390/app11093830Theoretical and Experimental Analysis for Cleaning Ice Cores from Estisol<sup>TM</sup> 140 Drill LiquidFrancesco Enrichi0Dorthe Dahl-Jensen1Jørgen Peder Steffensen2Carlo Barbante3ISP-CNR Istitute of Polar Sciences, National Research Council, via Torino 155, Mestre, 30172 Venezia, ItalyCentre for Ice and Climate, Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Tagensvej 16, 2200 Copenhagen, DenmarkCentre for Ice and Climate, Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Tagensvej 16, 2200 Copenhagen, DenmarkISP-CNR Istitute of Polar Sciences, National Research Council, via Torino 155, Mestre, 30172 Venezia, ItalyTo reconstruct climate history of the past 1.5 Million years, the project: Beyond EPICA Oldest Ice (BEOI) will drill about 2700 m of ice core in East Antarctica (2021–2025). As drilling fluid, an aliphatic ester fluid, Estisol<sup>TM</sup> 140, will be used. Newly drilled ice cores will be retrieved from the drill soaked in fluid, and this fluid should be removed from the cores. Most of it will be vacuum-cleaned off in a Fluid Extraction Device and wiped off with paper towels. Based on our experiences in Greenland deep ice coring, most of the residual fluid can be removed by storing the cores openly on shelves in a ventilated room. After a week of “drying”, the cores have a dry feel, handling them do not give “wet” gloves and they can easily be marked with lead pencils. This paper presents a theoretical investigation and some simple testing on the “drying” process. The rates of sublimation of ice and evaporation of fluid have been calculated at different temperatures. The calculations show that sublimation of the ice core should not occur, and that evaporation of fluid should be almost negligible. Our test results support these calculations, but also revealed significant fluid run-off and dripping, resulting in the removal of most of the fluid in a couple of days, independent of temperature and ventilation conditions. Finally, we discuss crucial factors that ensure optimal long-term ice core preservation in storage, such as temperature stability, defrosting cycles of freezers and open core storage versus storage of cores in insulated crates.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/11/9/3830ice coresdrillingEstisolBeyond EPICA |
| spellingShingle | Francesco Enrichi Dorthe Dahl-Jensen Jørgen Peder Steffensen Carlo Barbante Theoretical and Experimental Analysis for Cleaning Ice Cores from Estisol<sup>TM</sup> 140 Drill Liquid Applied Sciences ice cores drilling Estisol Beyond EPICA |
| title | Theoretical and Experimental Analysis for Cleaning Ice Cores from Estisol<sup>TM</sup> 140 Drill Liquid |
| title_full | Theoretical and Experimental Analysis for Cleaning Ice Cores from Estisol<sup>TM</sup> 140 Drill Liquid |
| title_fullStr | Theoretical and Experimental Analysis for Cleaning Ice Cores from Estisol<sup>TM</sup> 140 Drill Liquid |
| title_full_unstemmed | Theoretical and Experimental Analysis for Cleaning Ice Cores from Estisol<sup>TM</sup> 140 Drill Liquid |
| title_short | Theoretical and Experimental Analysis for Cleaning Ice Cores from Estisol<sup>TM</sup> 140 Drill Liquid |
| title_sort | theoretical and experimental analysis for cleaning ice cores from estisol sup tm sup 140 drill liquid |
| topic | ice cores drilling Estisol Beyond EPICA |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/11/9/3830 |
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