Determination of Uranium in Thirty-six Geological Reference Samples by Fluorimetry and Extractive Spectrophotometry

The uranium contents of 36 geological reference samples have been determined by fluorimetry after ion-exchange separation, and spectrophotometry using Arsenazo III after solvent extraction with tri-n-octylphosphine oxide. The agreement between present results and published data is generally good. The methods of fluorimetry and spectrophotometry proved very convenient in the determination of uranium in geological materials.     

Carbon and Oxygen Isotopic Compositions of Carbonates from Precambrian Apatite-Bearing Carbonate Rocks of the Aldan Shield

Geostructural setting, as well as mineral and isotopic compositions, of separate apatite deposits and occurrences in the Aldan Shield composed of Precambrian metasedimentary apatite–carbonate rocks are considered. In terms of carbon and oxygen isotopic compositions, they differ from other carbonate rocks of the Aldan Shield, including carbonatites and Ca–Mg metasomatites, and resemble Phanerozoic and Precambrian metasedimentary carbonates. They formed in oxidizing conditions. The contribution of evaporite processes at different stages of their formation is supported by the carbonate enrichment in ¹³C and the presence of sulfates. It was established that apatite–carbonate rocks represent the product of complex alternation of sedimentary processes at different values of salinity in the basins occasionally characterized by the decomposition of older sediments under subaerial conditions.     

Heating and reconnection of the emerging magnetic flux-tubes and the role of the interchange instability

We propose in the present paper that the basic behaviors of newly-emerged magnetic regions (NEMR) as seen in EUV and soft X-rays from space are interpreted by the interchange instability of the magnetic field of NEMR in the global situation surrounding it.It is shown that the situation with the NEMR is unstable against the interchange instability, and a continual relaxation to the lower energy state, or a continual invasion of the magnetic flux of the NEMR to the ambient region in the form of fine bundles or thin sheets, will take place in a short time scale of ₁ L/V _A following the change in the boundary condition at the photosphere. The second and the final relaxation is shown to be the enhanced Joule dissipation in a time scale of hours to several days occurring in the thin current sheets on the interface of this intermingled structure which is distributed in a large volume. This hypothesis may provide an explanation for the heating of NEMR to an X-ray emitting temperature, which is otherwise rather difficult to explain. The observed fast reconnection without appreciable flares (except for some smaller brightenings) is another aspect which can be explained in the present hypothesis. Namely, since the situation with the NEMR is unstable for the interchange from the beginning, the stressed configuration is relaxed before storing appreciable energy in the form of magnetic stress and therefore without a drastic release of a large amount of stored stress energy in the form of a flare.     

Optimal placement of sensors on buildings subjected to intermediate‐storey excitation according to QN control method

An algorithm to calculate direct velocity feedback gain with limited number of sensors is developed in a simple way such that a certain performance index is minimized according to QN control method. If a limited number of velocity outputs can be measured, full velocity responses of the whole structure can be interpolated based on the mode shapes. By defining the performance index function as a combination of the structure's velocity responses and control forces only, feedback gain can be determined according to QN control method with the external excitation being taken into account throughout the entire algorithm. Control forces are then regulated by the time‐invariant feedback gain matrix. The effective location of the active control devices for a building structure subjected to intermediate‐storey excitation has been determined to be in the three floors adjacent to the vibration source. Hence for the purpose of this paper, only the optimal placement of sensors is verified. It is shown in this paper that if the dynamic behaviour of the structure is well described by a mathematical model, sufficient response reduction effect can be achieved according to the new DVFC algorithm, and the degradation of control performance due to time delay can also be verified. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Survival of a proto-atmosphere through the stage of giant impacts: the mechanical aspects

When a giant impact occurs, atmosphere loss may occur due to global ground motion excited by a strong shock wave traveling in the planetary interior. Here, the relations between the ground motion and the amount of the lost atmosphere are systematically investigated through calculations of a spherically one-dimensional atmospheric motion for various initial atmospheric conditions. The fraction of the lost atmosphere to the total mass of the atmosphere is found to be controlled only by the ground velocity and, insensitive to the initial atmospheric conditions. Unlike the previous studies (Ahrens, 1990, Origin of the Earth, H.E. Newson, J.H. Jones (Eds.), pp. 211-227; Ahrens, 1993, Annu. Rev. Earth Planet. Sci. 21, 525-555; Chen and Ahrens, 1997, Phys. Earth Planet. Inter. 100, 21-26); the estimated loss fraction for the giant impact is only 20%. Significant escape occurs only when the ground velocity is close to the escape velocity. Thus, most of the atmosphere should survive the giant impact. The cause of the difference from previous estimates is discussed from energetic and dynamic points of view. Moreover, if our estimates are applied to the atmosphere of the impactor planet, a significant fraction of it is carried to the target planet. Survival of the proto-atmosphere has very important effects on the origin and evolution of the terrestrial planets' volatile budget.     

Electron density distribution of FeTiO<Subscript>3</Subscript> ilmenite under high pressure analyzed by MEM using single crystal diffraction intensities

Many of ilmenites ABO₃ compounds bearing transition elements have semiconductive, ferroelectric and antiferromagnetic properties. The high-pressure diffraction studies of FeTiO₃ have been conducted up to 8.2 GPa using synchrotron radiation in KEK at Tsukuba with diamond anvil cell. The compression mechanism of FeTiO₃ ilmenite has been investigated by the structure refinements converged to the reliable factors R = 0.05. The deformations of the FeO₆ and TiO₆ octahedra were reduced with increasing pressure. In order to elucidate the electric conductivity change with pressure, electron density distribution of ilmenite have been executed by maximum entropy method (MEM) using single-crystal diffraction intensity data. MEM based on F _obs(hkl) of FeTiO₃ clearly shows electron density in comparison with the difference Fourier synthesis based on F _obs(hkl) − F _calc(hkl). The radial distribution of the electron density indicates electron localization around the cation positions. The bonding electron density found in bond Fe–O and Ti–O is lowered with pressure. The isotropic temperature factors B _iso become smaller with increasing pressure. Nevertheless the thermal vibration is considerably restrained by the compression, the electric conductivity is enhanced with pressure. Neither charge transfer nor electron hopping between Fe and Ti along the c axis in FeTiO₃ is plausible under high pressure. But the electric conductivity due to electron super-exchange in Fe–Fe and Ti–Ti has been clarified by the MEM electron density distribution. The anisotropy in the electric conductivity has been clarified.     

Graphite–sulfide deposits in Ronda and Beni Bousera peridotites (Spain and Morocco) and the origin of carbon in mantle-derived rocks

This paper describes unusual graphite–sulfide deposits in ultramafic rocks from the Serranía de Ronda (Spain) and Beni Bousera (Morocco). These deposits occur as veins, stockworks and irregular masses, ranging in size from some centimeters to a few meters in thickness. The primary mineral assemblage mainly consists of Fe–Ni–Cu sulfides (pyrrhotite, pentlandite, chalcopyrite and cubanite), graphite and chromite. Weathering occurs in some sulfide-poor deposits that consist of graphite (up to 90%), chromite and goethite. Texturally, graphite may occur as flakes or clusters of flakes and as rounded, nodule-like aggregates. Graphite is highly crystalline and shows light carbon isotopic signatures (δ¹³C≈− 15‰ to − 21‰). Occasionally, some nodule-like graphite aggregates display large isotopic zoning with heavier cubic forms (probably graphite pseudomorphs after diamond with δ¹³C up to − 3.3‰) coated by progressively lighter flakes outwards (δ¹³C up to − 15.2‰).Asthenospheric-derived melts originated the partial melting (and melt–rock reactions) of peridotites and pyroxenites generating residual melts from which the graphite–sulfide deposits were formed. These residual melts concentrated volatile components (mainly CO₂ and H₂O), as well as S, As, and chalcophile elements. Carbon was incorporated into the melts from the melt–rock reactions of graphite-bearing (formerly diamonds) garnet pyroxenites with infiltrated asthenospheric melts. Graphite-rich garnet pyroxenites formed through the UHP transformation of subducted kerogen-rich crustal material into the mantle. Thus, graphite in most of the studied occurrences has light (biogenic) carbon signatures. Locally, reaction of the light carbon in the melts with relicts of ¹³C-enriched graphitized diamonds (probably generated from hydrothermal calcite veins in the subducting oceanic crust) reacted with the partial melts to form isotopically zoned nodule-like graphite aggregates.     

Magnetic field and current sheets in the corona above active regions

A new method for the calculation of coronal magnetic field is proposed and it is shown to reproduce the EUV features in the corona as observed by Skylab experiments satisfactorily well. One of the remarkable points is that it reproduces the loopy threads in the active region corona and also the large scale field lines connecting active regions. The existence of coronal current is expected wherever the present coronal-current-free model fails to represent the feature. A method of calculating the coronal sheet-current is also developed with the purpose of knowing the shape of the current sheet and the amount of magnetic stress energy stored due the the presence of it by comparing the calculated field configuration with the observed local distortion of the EUV threads. This may be used in pinning down the possible site of the flare and in discussing the flare occurrence in terms of the energy stored there.During the preparation of this work, Poletto et al. (1975) calculated the magnetic field shape in Schmidt's method to compare with the soft X-ray feature obtained by Skylab.