CuCl 2 -impregnated sorbents were employed to remove elemental mercury from flue gas. Three carriers including neutral Al 2 O 3 , artificial zeolite, and activated carbon have been investigated in this research. The performances of these prepared sorbents have been tested in a bench-scale fixed-bed reactor under different simulated flue gas atmospheres and temperatures (333−573 K). CuCl 2 -impregnated activated carbon showed the best adsorption ability. However, CuCl 2 -impregnated neutral Al 2 O 3 and zeolite have demonstrated an adsorption rate similar to that of CuCl 2 -impregnated activated carbon in the early stage of the tests (5 min), and they achieved relatively high mercury oxidation efficiencies. These non-carbon sorbents could remarkably enhance the technoeconomical properties of mercury removal in coal-fired power plants and have great potentials in industrial application. The appropriate mercury capture temperature for these sorbents is 333−473 K. The possible mechanisms of elemental mercury oxidation have been discussed.

To assess the level and nature of ground shaking in Hawaii for the purposes of earthquake hazard mitigation and seismic design, empirical groundmotion prediction models are desired. To develop such empirical relationships, knowledge of the subsurface site conditions beneath strong-motion stations is critical. Thus, as a first step to develop ground-motion prediction models for Hawaii, spectralanalysis-of-surface-waves (SASW) profiling was performed at the 22 free-field U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) strong-motion sites on the Big Island to obtain shear-wave velocity (V S ) data. Nineteen of these stations recorded the 2006 Kiholo Bay moment magnitude (M) 6.7 earthquake, and 17 stations recorded the triggered M 6.0 Mahukona earthquake. V S profiling was performed to reach depths of more than 100 ft. Most of the USGS stations are situated on sites underlain by basalt, based on surficial geologic maps. However, the sites have varying degrees of weathering and soil development. The remaining strong-motion stations are located on alluvium or volcanic ash. V S30 (average V S in the top 30 m) values for the stations on basalt ranged from 906 to 1908 ft=s [National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP) site classes C and D], because most sites were covered with soil of variable thickness. Based on these data, an NEHRP site-class map was developed for the Big Island. These new V S data will be a significant input into an update of the USGS statewide hazard maps and to the operation of ShakeMap on the island of Hawaii.

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