Transmission electron microscopy of subsolidus oxidation and weathering of olivine

Olivine crystals in basaltic andesites which crop out in the Abert Rim, south-central Oregon have been studied by high-resolution and analytical transmission electron microscopy. The observations reveal three distinct assemblages of alteration products that seem to correspond to three episodes of olivine oxidation. The olivine crystals contain rare, dense arrays of coherently intergrown Ti-free magnetite and inclusions of a phase inferred to be amorphous silica. We interpret this first assemblage to be the product of an early subsolidus oxidation event in the lava. The second olivine alteration assemblage contains complex ordered intergrowths on (001) of forsterite-rich olivine and laihunite (distorted olivine structure with Fe³⁺ charge balanced by vacancies). Based on experimental results for laihunite synthesis (Kondoh et al. 1985), these intergrowths probably formed by olivine oxidation between 400 and 800°C. The third episode of alteration involves the destruction of olivine by low-temperature hydrothermal alteration and weathering. Elongate etch-pits and channels in the margins of fresh olivine crystals contain semi-oriented bands of smectite. Olivine weathers to smectite and hematite, and subsequently to arrays of oriented hematite crystals. The textures resemble those reported by Eggleton (1984) and Smith et al. (1987). We find no evidence for a metastable phase intermediate between olivine and smectite (M — Eggleton 1984). The presence of laihunite exerts a strong control on the geometry of olivine weathering. Single laihunite layers and laihunite-forsteritic olivine intergrowths increase the resistance of crystals to weathering. Preferential development of channels between laihunite layers occurs where growth of laihunite produced compositional variations in olivine, rather than where coherency-strain is associated with laihunite-olivine interfaces.     

Distribution of local Cs anomalies on the seafloor near the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant

An estimated 3.5 ± 0.7 × 10¹⁵ Bq of ¹³⁷Cs is thought to have been discharged into the ocean following the melt down at Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant (F1NPP). While efforts have been made to monitor seafloor radiation levels, the sampling techniques used cannot capture the continuous distribution of radionuclides. In this work, we apply in situ measurement techniques using a towed gamma ray spectrometer to map the continuous distribution of ¹³⁷Cs on the seafloor within 20 km of the F1NPP. The results reveal the existence of local ¹³⁷Cs anomalies, with levels of ¹³⁷Cs an order of magnitude higher than the surrounding seafloors. The sizes of the anomalies mapped in this work range from a few meters to a few hundreds of meters in length, and it is demonstrated that the distribution of these anomalies is strongly influenced by meter scale features of the terrain.     

Estimating Sea-Level Allowances for Atlantic Canada using the Fifth Assessment Report of the IPCC

Abstract

Sea-level allowances at 22 tide-gauge sites along the east coast of Canada are determined based on projections of regional sea-level rise for the Representative Concentration Pathway 8.5 (RCP8.5) from the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC AR5) and on the statistics of historical tides and storm surges (storm tides). The allowances, which may be used for coastal infrastructure planning, increase with time during the twenty-first century through a combination of mean sea-level rise and the increased uncertainty of future projections with time. The allowances show significant spatial variation, mainly a consequence of strong regionally varying relative sea-level change as a result of glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA). A methodology is described for replacement of the GIA component of the AR5 projection with global positioning system (GPS) measurements of vertical crustal motion; this significantly decreases allowances in regions where the uncertainty of the GIA models is large. For RCP8.5 with GPS data incorporated and for the 1995–2100 period, the sea-level allowances range from about 0.5?m along the north shore of the Gulf of St. Lawrence to more than 1?m along the coast of Nova Scotia and southern Newfoundland.     

Shear and Richardson number in a mode-water eddy

Measurements of stratification and shear were carried out as part of the EDDIES tracer release experiment in mode-water eddy A4 during the summer of 2005. These measurements were accomplished using both shipboard instrumentation and a drifting mooring. A strong relationship between shear intensity and distance from the center of the eddy A4 was observed with the shipboard ADCP. Diapycnal diffusivity at the SF₆ tracer isopycnal prior to and during the release was estimated from the drifting mooring to be 2.9×10⁻⁶ m² s⁻¹. Diffusivity increased by an order of magnitude to 3.2×10⁻⁵ m² s⁻¹ during the period of the final tracer survey in early September, which was similar to the value estimated from the tracer analysis for the whole experiment (3.5×10⁻⁵ m² s⁻¹, [Ledwell, J.R., McGillicuddy Jr., D.J., Anderson, L.A., 2008. Nutrient flux into an intense deep chlorophyll layer in a mode-water eddy. Deep-Sea Research II, this issue [doi:10.1016/j.dsr2.2008.02.005]].     

Fourier contamination of a finite length of data in tidal analysis

Summary. The contamination effect when a discrete Fourier analysis is applied to a short length of data in order to estimate the main diurnal (O₁) and semi-diurnal (M₂) components of the solid body tide is estimated and it is shown that a moderate length of record (30 days) has distinct advantages over larger record lengths of less than 60 days or so.     

An Equation of State for Hypersaline Water in Great Salt Lake,Utah, USA

Great Salt Lake (GSL) is one of the largest and most saline lakes in the world. In order to accurately model limnological processes in GSL, hydrodynamic calculations require the precise estimation of water density (ρ) under a variety of environmental conditions. An equation of state was developed with water samples collected from GSL to estimate density as a function of salinity and water temperature. The ρ of water samples from the south arm of GSL was measured as a function of temperature ranging from 278 to 323 degrees Kelvin (^oK) and conductivity salinities ranging from 23 to 182 g L⁻¹ using an Anton Paar density meter. These results have been used to develop the following equation of state for GSL (σ = ± 0.32 kg m⁻³):

Curve-Fitting Schemes for Fragmentation Data

Fragmentation measurements in the form of sieve passing and mass fraction data were used to test the capability of three different distributions to fit the observed data over a wide range in fragment size and mass. These distributions were based on Rosin-Rammler, lognormal and simple sigmoidal (S-shaped) functions, having 2 input parameters for the single-component versions and 5 input parameters for the two-component versions. Provided convergence was achieved in the non-linear curve-fitting technique, the two-component versions always provided superior fits to the observed data. However, these versions were very sensitive to variations in the values chosen for the input parameters. In this particular regard, the two-component sigmoidal function was the most robust. The present results also show that the two-component lognormal function provided the best fit to the fragmentation data in a general sense, and the two-component Rosin-Rammler function provided the worst fit. However, there was not a significant difference between any of the three methods.     

A new method integrating high-precision U-Pb geochronology with zircon trace element analysis (U-Pb TIMS-TEA)

Increased precision in isotope-dilution thermal ionization mass spectrometry (ID-TIMS) U-Pb geochronology has revealed age complexities in zircon populations that require new tools for understanding how the growth of zircon is related to geologic processes. U and Pb are routinely separated from other elements in dated minerals by ion exchange separation prior to TIMS isotope measurement. We develop a method in which trace elements in the exact same volume of zircon are redissolved and analyzed using solution nebulization inductively coupled plasma sector-field mass spectrometry with matrix-matched external liquid calibration. Using <0.5 ml solution, resulting concentrations are between <1 ppt for elements such as Ti, Nb and Ta and tens of ppb for Zr. By analyzing a series of standard solutions, zircons and procedural blanks, we show that accurate measurements are performed on Zr, Hf, Y, Sc, and the HREE while low-concentration elements can be measured accurately to <5 ppt. We performed combined U-Pb ID-TIMS geochronology with trace element analysis (here called U-Pb TIMS-TEA) on zircons from eight volcanic rocks comprising several volcanic systems and one metamorphic sample. Similar to previous in situ trace element analyses, zircon geochemistry is distinct between different samples and records petrogenetic processes such as fractional crystallization, assimilation and/or magma mixing. Unique from in situ analysis, U-Pb TIMS-TEA can trace geochemical evolution in accessory minerals with adequate age precision to resolve magmatic processes in rocks at least 200 million years old. This provides a means to identify auto-, ante- and xenocrystic zircon and lead to more robust age interpretations in ID-TIMS U-Pb geochronology. One suite of Cretaceous andesitic zircons shows correlations in geochemistry and absolute time that record evolution of a magmatic system over ∼250 ka prior to eruption. Future work will combine U-Pb TIMS-TEA with solution isotopic analysis of Nd, Sr and Hf and will be applied to a host of datable minerals such as monazite, sphene, apatite, rutile, xenotime, and baddeleyite. These combined tools will provide access to an improved understanding of a wide range of igneous and metamorphic processes as a function of time.     

Arsenic attenuation in tailings at a former Cu–W–As mine,SW Finland

Nearly half a century after mine closure, release of As from the Ylöjärvi Cu–W–As mine tailings in groundwater and surface water run-off was observed. Investigations by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), electron microprobe analysis (EMPA), synchrotron-based micro-X-ray diffraction (μ-XRD), micro-X-ray absorption near edge structure (μ-XANES) and micro-extended X-ray absorption fine structure (μ-EXAFS) spectroscopy, and a sequential extraction procedure were performed to assess As attenuation mechanisms in the vadose zone of this tailings deposit. Results of SEM, EMPA, and sequential extractions indicated that the precipitation of As bearing Fe(III) (oxy)hydroxides (up to 18.4 wt.% As₂O₅) and Fe(III) arsenates were important secondary controls on As mobility. The μ-XRD, μ-XANES and μ-EXAFS analyses suggested that these phases correspond to poorly crystalline and disordered As-bearing precipitates, including arsenical ferrihydrite, scorodite, kaňkite, and hydrous ferric arsenate (HFA). The pH within 200 cm of the tailings surface averaged 5.7, conditions which favor the precipitation of ferrihydrite. Poorly crystalline Fe(III) arsenates are potentially unstable over time, and their transformation to ferrihydrite, which contributes to As uptake, has potential to increase the As adsorption capacity of the tailings. Arsenic mobility in tailings pore water at the Ylöjärvi mine will depend on continued arsenopyrite oxidation, dissolution or transformation of secondary Fe(III) arsenates, and the As adsorption capacity of Fe(III) (oxy)hydroxides within this tailings deposit.