Prototype development of an apparatus to locate and map sea floor petroleum seepages. 1: Quarterly technical progress report, August 1--October 31, 1995

There has been progress in three areas: electronic design, mechanical design, and experiment/research. Originally it had been conceived that off-the-shelf components could be developed into a system. This approach, which employed a single Keithley electrometer, was eventually set aside because inadequate impedance was noted in the switching circuitry. A design employing multiple electrometer amplifiers, each of high impedance (0.3 x 10E15 ohms) having no switching between the measurement electrodes and the amplifiers, was adopted. No significant changes in the mechanical design were made. Objectives in this work also include (a) the prediction and future interpretation of measured electrical potentials which are directly interpretable in terms of sulfide, hydrosulfide, and sulfate ion concentrations in marine sediments; (b) the development of an information base for presentation to potential clients; and (c) the location of marine regions of activity and the assessment of possible findings