An Example of Island-Arc Petrogenesis: Geochemistry and Petrology of the Southern Luzon Arc, Philippines

Volcanism throughout the Luzon arc is associated with eastwardsubduction of the South China Sea floor along the Manila Trench.The southern section of the arc, the focus of this study, extendsfrom the Lingayen-Dingalan fault to the small islands just southof Luzon. Two segments appear to exist along this section ofthe arc the northern Bataan and southern Mindoro segments whichare separated by the Macolod Corridor. The volcanic rocks have typical arc phenocryst mineralogies:olivine, clinopyroxene, plagioclase, and titanomagnetite inthe most mafic rocks and clinopyroxene, plagioclase, orthopyroxene,titanomagnetite, ? amphibole in the more felsic samples. Complexzoning, sieve textures, and decoupling of incompatible traceelements suggest that processes such as assimilation have takenplace. The rocks from the study area range from basalts to rhyolitesand show typical calc-alkaline features. The rocks of the MacolodCorridor and Mindoro segment are particularly enriched in largeion lithophile elements (LILE), light rare earth elements (LREE),and radiogenic Sr compared with the Bataan segment. The datafall within the mantle array on Sr-Nd isotopic diagrams andgrade toward higher Sr and lower Nd isotopic values from northto south. A likely source for the volcanics of this study is either amid-ocean ridge basalt (MORB)-type mantle that undergoes higherdegrees of partial melting than regions involved in MORB generationor a previously depleted source. We suggest that the high fieldstrength element (HFSE) anomalies have been derived throughdifferential element partitioning during fluid transport fromthe subducted lithosphere to the mantle wedge. Continental crustal material seems to play a significant roleparticularly in the Macolod Corridor and the Mindoro segment,based on the high LILE, La/Sm ratios, radiogenic Sr isotopes,and ¹⁸O values. The Macolod Corridor and the Mindoro segmenthave undergone source contamination by crustal material fromthe North Palawan-Mindoro crustal block either during the collisionof this block with the Manila Trench or by subduction of sedimentsrich in this crustal material. A similar component has alsobeen detected in the Bataan segment but in minor amounts. Thetrace element and isotopic differences between the northernand southern sections of the arc are interpreted in terms ofvariable composition (i. e., variable amounts of a crustal componentintroduced from the Palawan-Mindoro crustal terrain) of themetasomatic fluids released into the source.     

Fine resolution 3D temperature fields off Kerguelen from instrumented penguins

The use of diving animals as autonomous vectors of oceanographic instruments is rapidly increasing, because this approach yields cost-efficient new information and can be used in previously poorly sampled areas. However, methods for analyzing the collected data are still under development. In particular, difficulties may arise from the heterogeneous data distribution linked to animals’ behavior. Here we show how raw temperature data collected by penguin-borne loggers were transformed to a regular gridded dataset that provided new information on the local circulation off Kerguelen. A total of 16 king penguins (Aptenodytes patagonicus) were equipped with satellite-positioning transmitters and with temperature–time–depth recorders (TTDRs) to record dive depth and sea temperature. The penguins’ foraging trips recorded during five summers ranged from 140 to 600 km from the colony and 11,000 dives >100 m were recorded. Temperature measurements recorded during diving were used to produce detailed 3D temperature fields of the area (0–200 m). The data treatment included dive location, determination of the vertical profile for each dive, averaging and gridding of those profiles onto 0.1°×0.1° cells, and optimal interpolation in both the horizontal and vertical using an objective analysis. Horizontal fields of temperature at the surface and 100 m are presented, as well as a vertical section along the main foraging direction of the penguins. Compared to conventional temperature databases (Levitus World Ocean Atlas and historical stations available in the area), the 3D temperature fields collected from penguins are extremely finely resolved, by one order finer. Although TTDRs were less accurate than conventional instruments, such a high spatial resolution of penguin-derived data provided unprecedented detailed information on the upper level circulation pattern east of Kerguelen, as well as the iron-enrichment mechanism leading to a high primary production over the Kerguelen Plateau.     

Geochemical evolution of the Capim River kaolin, Northern Brazil

The Capim River kaolin, located in the eastern Brazilian Amazon, constitutes one of the most important kaolin deposits in the world. Known for its high whiteness, its noble application is in the paper industry. Studies were carried out on samples from the six facies of the deposit (sand kaolin, soft kaolin, lower transition facies, ferruginous crust, upper transition facies and flint kaolin) in order to trace its geochemical evolution. The kaolin developed at the expense of Cretaceous sandy–clayey sediments of the Ipixuna Formation. Intense lateritic processes characterized by ferruginization and deferruginization mechanisms led to the distinction of the different facies.     

Thermodynamic Mixing Models for Muscovite--Paragonite Solutions Based on Solution Calorimetric and Phase Equilibrium Data

Enthalpies of solution have been measured on a series of muscovite—paragonitemicas in 20.1% HF at 50C under isoperibolic conditions. Themolar enthalpy of formation of paragonite at 298 K, for whichno calorimetrically measured value is currently available, hasbeen determined to be –5937.5 (3) kJ. An inversion ofall calorimetric, volumetric and phase equilibrium data hasbeen performed, giving a range of mixing models compatible withmost experimental data. The following expressions of the mixingproperties of 2M₁ micas for enthalpy (H_ex) and volume (V_ex)at pressures up to 10 kbar, forcing excess entropy (S_ex) tobe zero and using a subregular mixing model are favoured: H_ex(kJ) = [10.6+4.45(1–2X_ms)]X_ms(1–X_ms) V_ex(J/bar) = 0.452X_ms(1–X_ms). However, mixing models of higher order with asymmetric negativeS_ex are also possible. KEY WORDS: muscovite; paragonite; solvus; calorimetry; solid solution ^*Corresponding author.     

Delayed geochemical hazard: Concept, digital model and case study

Delayed Geochemical Hazard (DGH briefly) presents the whole process of a kind of serious ecological and environmental hazard caused by sudden reactivation and sharp release of long-term accumulated pollutant from stable species to active ones in soil or sediment system due to the change of physical-chemical conditions (such as temperature, pH, Eh, moisture, the concentrations of organic matters, etc.) or the decrease of environment capacity. The characteristics of DGH are discussed. The process of a typical DGH can be expressed as a nonlinear polynomial. The points where the derivative functions of the first and second orders of the polynomial reach zero, minimum and maximum are keys for risk assessment and harzard pridication.The process and mechanism of the hazard is due to the transform of pollutant among different species principally. The concepts of "total releasable content of pollutant", TRCP, and "total concentration of active specie", TCAS, are necessarily defined to describe the mechanism of DGH. The possibility of the temporal and spatial propagation is discussed. Case study shows that there exists a transform mechanism of "gradual release" and "chain reaction" among the species of the exchangeable and the bounds to carbonate, iron and manganese oxides and organic matter, thus causing the delayed geochemical hazard.     

Experimental modelling of forearc basin development during accretionary wedge growth

We present results of three sand-box experiments that model the association between tectonic accretion and sedimentation in a forearc basin. Experimental sedimentation occurs step by step in the forearc basin during shortening of the sand wedge. In each experiment, the development of the accretionary wedge leads to the formation of a major backthrust zone. This major deformation zone accounts for the thickening in the rear part of the wedge. In natural settings this tectonic bulge dams sediments that are transported toward the trench from mountainous terrain behind the forearc. We test the variation of friction along the déollement and note the following: (1) shortening of a low-friction wedge involves a mechanical balance between forethrusts and backthrust propagation and this balance is recorded by the sedimentary sequence trapped in the forearc basin. Indeed, if most of the movement occurs along the backthrust, the deepening of the basin will be larger and consequently the thickness of the sedimentary sequence will be greater. (2) Such balance does not exist in the case of a high-friction wedge. (3) Variation of friction along the décollement during shortening of the sand wedge leads to modification in the forearc basin filling. Thus, for similar increments of convergence, the sequence deposited in the forearc basin shows relatively larger thickness when the wedge is shortened above a high-friction décollement. We suggest that contraction and thickening in the rear part of the wedge is an efficient mechanism to, initiate and develop a forearc basin. Thus, this kind of basin occurs in convergent settings, without collapse related to local extension or tectonic erosion. They represent a sedimentary trap on a passive basement, bounded by a tectonic bulge. The Quaternary Hikurangi forearc basin, southeast of the North Island of New Zealand, is bounded by two actively uplifting ridges. Thus, this basin is considered to be a possible example of the basins modelled in our experiments, and we suggest that the limit between the basin and the wedge could be a complex backthrust zone.     

Heavy metal pollution in the Arcachon Basin (France) : Bonding states

Information available (since 1977) from a great many recent surveys on the Arcachon Basin has enabled us to determine three characteristic environments and study the behaviour of heavy metals (Ni, Cu, Zn, Pb, Cd, Hg). The relationship between heavy metals and grain-size fractions has been determined after having specified whether metals were preferentially organically or inorganically bound. This study has allowed us to establish the origin (natural or anthropogenic) of metallic enrichment and assess the extent of pollution.