On a power series solution to the Boussinesq equation

For certain initial and boundary conditions the Boussinesq equation, a nonlinear partial differential equation describing the flow of water in unconfined aquifers, can be reduced to a boundary value problem for a nonlinear ordinary differential equation. Using Song et al.'s (2007) [7] approach, we show that for zero head initial condition and power-law flux boundary condition at the inlet boundary, the solution in the form of power series can be obtained with Barenblatt's (1990) [2] rescaling procedure applied to the power series solution obtained in Song et al. (2007) [7] for the power-law head boundary condition. Polynomial approximations can then be obtained by taking terms from the power series. Although for a small number of terms the newly obtained approximations may be worse than polynomial approximations obtained by other techniques, any desired accuracy can be achieved by taking more terms from the power series.     

Chemical characteristics of chromian spinel in plutonic rocks: Implications for deep magma processes and discrimination of tectonic setting

We summarize chemical characteristics of chromian spinels from ultramafic to mafic plutonic rocks (lherzolites, harzburgites, dunites, wehrlites, troctolites, olivine gabbros) with regard to three tectonic settings (mid‐ocean ridge, arc, oceanic hotspot). The chemical range of spinels is distinguishable between the three settings in terms of Cr# (= Cr/(Cr + Al) atomic ratio) and Ti content. The relationships are almost parallel with those of chromian spinels in volcanic rocks, but the Ti content is slightly lower in plutonics than in volcanics at a given tectonic environment. The Cr# of spinels in plutonic rocks is highly diverse; its ranges overlap between the three settings, but extend to higher values (up to 0.8) in arc and oceanic hotspot environments. The Ti content of spinels in plutonics increases, for a given lithology, from the arc to oceanic hotspot settings by mid‐ocean ridge on average. This chemical diversity is consistent with that of erupted magmas from the three settings. If we systematically know the chemistry of chromian spinels from a series of plutonic rocks, we can estimate their tectonic environments of formation. The spinel chemistry is especially useful in dunitic rocks, in which chromian spinel is the only discriminating mineral. Applying this, discordant dunites cutting mantle peridotites were possibly precipitated from arc‐related magmas in the Oman ophiolite, and from an intraplate tholeiite in the Lizard ophiolite, Cornwall.     

Petrology of the Yugu peridotites in the Gyeonggi Massif,South Korea: Implications for its origin and hydration process

Peridotites exposed in the Yugu area in the Gyeonggi Massif, South Korea, near the boundary with the Okcheon Belt, exhibit mylonitic to strongly porphyroclastic textures, and are mostly spinel lherzolites. Subordinate dunites, harzburgites, and websterites are associated with the lherzolites. Amphiboles, often zoned from hornblende in the core to tremolite in the rim, are found only as neoblasts. Porphyroclasts have recorded equilibrium temperatures of about 1000°C, whereas neoblasts denote lower temperatures, about 800°C. Olivines are Fo_90–91 in lherzolites and Fo₉₁ in a dunite and a harzburgite. The Cr# (= Cr/(Cr + Al) atomic ratio) of spinels varies together with the Fo of olivines, being from 0.1 to 0.3 in lherzolites and around 0.5 in the dunite and harzburgite. The Na₂O content of clinopyroxene porphyroclasts is relatively low, around 0.3 to 0.5 wt% in the most fertile lherzolite. The Yugu peridotites are similar in porphyroclast mineral chemistry not to continental spinel peridotites but to sub‐arc or abyssal peridotites. Textural and mineralogical characteristics indicate the successive cooling with hydration from the upper mantle to crustal conditions for the Yugu peridotites. Almost all clinopyroxenes and amphiboles show the same U‐shaped rare earth element (REE) patterns although the level is up to ten times higher for the latter. The hydration was associated with enrichment in light REE, resulting from either a slab‐derived fluid or a fluid circulating in the crust. The mantle‐wedge or abyssal peridotites were emplaced into the continental crust as the Yugu peridotite body during collision of continents to form a high‐pressure metamorphic belt in the Gyeonggi Massif. The peridotites from the Gyeonggi Massif exhibit lower‐pressure equilibration than peridotites, with or without garnets, from the Dabie–Sulu Collision Belt, China, which is possibly a westward extension of the Gyeonggi Massif.     

Molecular cloning and mRNA expression of cytochrome P4501A1 and 1A2 in the liver of common minke whales (Balaenoptera acutorostrata)

This study presents full-length cDNA sequences of CYP1A1 and 1A2, in common minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) from the North Pacific. Both CYP1A1 and CYP1A2 cDNAs had an open reading frame of 516 amino acid residues, and predicted molecular masses were 58.3 kDa and 58.1 kDa, respectively. The deduced full-length amino acid sequence of CYP1A1 revealed higher identities with those of sheep (86%) and pig (87%), and that of CYP1A2 was most closely related to human (82%) and monkey CYP1A2 (82%) among species from which CYP1A2 has been isolated so far. Differences in certain conserved and functional amino acid residues of CYP1A1 and 1A2 between common minke whale and other mammalian species indicate the possibility of their specific metabolic function. Concentrations of organochlorine compounds (OCs) including PCBs and DDTs analyzed in common minke whale liver showed no significant correlation with hepatic mRNA expression levels of CYP1A1 and CYP1A2, indicating no induction of these enzymes by such OCs.     

Mantle peridotites from the Western Pacific

We review petrographical and petrological characteristics of mantle peridotite xenoliths from the Western Pacific to construct a petrologic model of the lithospheric mantle beneath the convergent plate boundary. The peridotite varies from highly depleted spinel harzburgite of low-pressure origin at the volcanic front of active arcs (Avacha of Kamchatka arc and Iraya of Luzon–Taiwan arc) to fertile spinel lherzolite of high-pressure origin at the Eurasian continental margin (from Sikhote-Alin through Korea to eastern China) through intermediate lherzolite–harzburgite at backarc side of Japan island arcs. Oxygen fugacity recorded by the peridotite xenoliths decreases from the frontal side of arc to the continental margin. The sub-arc type peridotite is expected to exist beneath the continental margin if accretion of island arc is one of the important processes for continental growth. Its absence suggests replacement by the continental lherzolite at the region of backarc to continental margin. Asthenospheric upwelling beneath the continental region, which has frequently occurred at the Western Pacific, has replaced depleted sub-cratonic peridotite with the fertile spinel lherzolite. Some of these mantle diapirs had opened backarc basins and strongly modified the lithospheric upper mantle by metasomatism and formation of Group II pyroxenites.     

Geochemistry of spinel-hosted amphibole inclusions in abyssal peridotite: insight into secondary melt formation in melt–peridotite reaction

Spinel-hosted hydrous silicate mineral inclusions are often observed in dunite and troctolite as well as chromitite. Their origin has been expected as products associated with melt–peridotite reaction, based on the host rock origin. However, the systematics in mineralogical and geochemical features are not yet investigated totally. In this study, we report geochemical variations of the spinel-hosted pargasite inclusions in reacted harzburgite and olivine-rich troctolite collected from Atlantis Massif, an oceanic core complex, in the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. The studied samples are a good example to examine geochemical variations in the inclusions because the origin and geological background of the host rocks have been well constrained, such as the reaction between MORB melt and depleted residual harzburgite beneath the mid-ocean ridge spreading center. The trace-element compositions of the pargasite inclusions are characterized by not only high abundance of incompatible elements but also the LREE and HFSE enrichments. Distinctive trace-element partitioning between the pargasite inclusion and the host-rock clinopyroxene supports that the secondary melt instantaneously formed by the reaction is trapped in spinel and produces inclusion minerals. While the pargasite geochemical features can be interpreted by modal change reaction of residual harzburgite, such as combination of orthopyroxene decomposition and olivine precipitation, degree of the LREE enrichment as well as variation of HREE abundance is controlled by melt/rock ratio in the reaction. The spinel-hosted hydrous inclusion could be embedded evidence indicating melt–peridotite reaction even if reaction signatures in the host rock were hidden by other consequent reactions.     

Multiple‐indicator study of groundwater flow and chemistry and the impacts of river and paddy water on groundwater in the alluvial fan of the Tedori River,Japan

To investigate the source, flow paths, and chemistry of rich resources of high‐quality, shallow groundwater in the alluvial fan between the Tedori and Sai rivers in central Japan, we analysed stable isotope ratios of H, O, and Sr and concentrations of major dissolved ions and trace elements in groundwater, river water, and paddy water. The ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios of the groundwater are related to near‐surface geology: groundwater in sediment from the Tedori River has high ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios (>0.711), whereas that from the Sai River in the north of the fan has low ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios (<0.711). δ²H and δ¹⁸O values and ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios indicate that groundwater in the central and southern fans is recharged by the Tedori River, whereas recharge in the north is from the Sai River. Mg²⁺, Ca²⁺, Sr²⁺, HCO₃^?, and SO₄^2? concentrations and δ²H and δ¹⁸O values in the groundwater are high in the central fan and, except for the northern area, tend to increase with distance from the Tedori River. There are linear relationships between ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratio and the reciprocal concentrations of Sr²⁺, Mg²⁺, and Ca²⁺. These geochemical characteristics suggest that as groundwater recharged from the Tedori River flows towards the central fan, it mixes with waters derived from precipitation and paddy water that have become enriched in these components during downward infiltration. These results are consistent with our hydrological analysis and numerical simulation of groundwater flow, thus verifying the validity of the model we used in our simulation of groundwater flow. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Peculiar Mg–Ca–Si metasomatism along a shear zone within the mantle wedge: inference from fine-grained xenoliths from Avacha volcano,Kamchatka

We found extremely high-Mg# (=Mg/(Mg + total Fe) atomic ratio) ultramafic rocks in Avacha peridotite suite. All the high-Mg# rocks have higher modal amounts of clinopyroxene than ordinary Avacha peridotite xenoliths, and their lithology is characteristically heterogeneous, varying from clinopyroxenite through olivine websterite to pyroxene-bearing dunite. The Mg# of minerals is up to 0.99, 0.98 and 0.97 in clinopyroxene, orthopyroxene and olivine, respectively, decreasing progressively toward contact with dunitic part, if any. The petrographical feature of pyroxenes in the high-Mg# pyroxenite indicates their metasomatic origin, and high LREE/HREE ratio of the metasomatic clinopyroxene implies that the pyroxenites are the products of reaction between dunitic peridotites and high-Ca, silicate-rich fluids. The lithological variation of the Avacha high-Mg# pyroxenites from clinopyroxenite to olivine websterite resulted from various degrees of fluid-rock reaction coupled with fractional crystallization of the high-Ca fluids, which started by precipitation of high-Mg# clinopyroxene. Such fluids were possibly generated originally at a highly reduced serpentinized peridotite layer above the subducting slab. The fluids can reach the uppermost mantle along a shear zone as a conduit composed of fine-grained peridotite that developed after continent-ward asthenospheric retreats from the mantle wedge beneath the volcanic front. The fluids are incorporated in mantle partial melts when the magmatism is activated by expansion of asthenosphere to mantle wedge beneath the volcanic front.