Hydrogeochemical study of the thermal and mineralized waters of the Banaz (Hamamboğazi) area,western Anatolia,Turkey

The Hamamboğazi spa in western Turkey was built around natural hot springs with discharge temperatures in the range of 30–54°C; the waters have near neutral pH values of 6.50–7.10 and a TDS content between 2,694 and 2,982 mg/l. Thermal water with a temperature of 47.5–73°C has been produced at 325 l/s from five wells since 1994, causing some springs to go dry. A management plan is required in the study area to maximize the benefits of this resource, for which currently proposed direct uses include heating in the district and greenhouses, as well as balneology in new spas in the area. The best use for the water from each spring or well will depend on its temperature, chemistry and location. The thermal waters are mixed Na–Mg–HCO₃–SO₄ fluids that contain a significant amount of CO₂ gas. The chemical geothermometers applied to the Hamamboğazi thermal waters yield a maximum reservoir temperature of 130°C. Isotope results (¹⁸O, ²H, ³H) indicate that the thermal waters have a meteoric origin: rainwater percolates downward along fractures and faults, is heated at depth, and then rises to the surface along fractures and faults that act as a hydrothermal conduit. The basement around the Banaz Hamamboğazi resort is comprised of Paleozoic metamorphic schist and marbles exposed 8 km south and 15 km north of Banaz. Mesozoic marble, limestone and ophiolitic complex are observed a few km west and in the northern part of Banaz. These units were cut at a depth of 350–480 m in boreholes drilled in the area. Overlying lacustrine deposits are composed of fine clastic units that alternate with gypsum, tuff and tuffites of 200–350 m thickness. The marble and limestones form the thermal water aquifer, while lacustrine deposits form the impermeable cap.     

Groundwater quality assessment and its suitability in Çeltikçi plain (Burdur/Turkey)

The Çeltikçi (Burdur) plain is located in the southwest of Turkey and is a semi-closed basin. Groundwater is densely used as drinking, irrigation and domestic water in the plain. Hydrogeochemical processes controlling groundwater chemistry and geochemical assessment of groundwater were investigated in the Çeltikçi (Burdur/Turkey) plain. In this study, groundwater samples for two seasons were analyzed and major ion chemistry of groundwater was researched to understand the groundwater geochemistry. Two major hydrochemical facies (Ca–HCO₃ and Ca–Mg–HCO₃) were determined in the area. Various graphical plots and multivariate statistical analysis were used for identifying the occurrence of different geochemical processes. In the study area, weathering is one of the key geochemical processes which controlled the solute concentration in groundwater. Chemical indexes such as sodium adsorption ratio, %Na, residual sodium carbonate, magnesium hazard and permeability index were calculated and results show that groundwater is suitable for irrigation purpose except for permeability index values. Concentrations of Mn, NO₃ and total hardness exceed the prescribed limits of WHO and are the major limiting parameters of groundwater use for potable and domestic purposes.     

The effects of elevation on thermal bioclimatic conditions in Uludağ (Turkey)

This study compares the thermal bioclimatic conditions recorded at Bursa (100 m) and Uluda? (1878 m) meteorological stations at 7:00, 14:00 and 21:00 LST (local standard time) between 1975 and 2006, by using the physiologically equivalent temperature (PET), which is calculated from meteorological parameters. The effects of elevation-dependent environmental and atmospheric conditions on thermal perception (i.e., PET) values were analyzed and assessed. The analysis showed that the mean annual difference between PET values in Bursa and Uluda? was 12 ºC. The difference was lower in winter (9 ºC PET) and higher in summer (15 ºC PET). The highest difference between PET values occurred in the afternoon (16 ºC PET) and the lowest difference occurred in the morning (8.4 ºC PET). The differences occur as a result of high altitude and higher surface albedo due to snowfall, which leads to lower PET values and thus to less comfortable thermal conditions. The mean PET values of Bursa and Uluda? decrease 0.67 ºC every 100 m.     

Post-Collisional Miocene Alkaline Volcanism in the Oglakçi Region,Turkey: Petrology and Geochemistry

Miocene volcanism of the Oglakci region (Sivrihisar, Eskisehir) in northwestern Central Anatolia, Turkey, is represented by basaltic and trachytic groups of rocks. Samples of both groups have been investigated using mineral-chemical data together with whole-rock major-, trace-element, and radiogenic Sr-Nd isotopic data. The basaltic volcanic rocks consist of mugearites and shoshonites, whereas the trachytic rocks include trachytes, latite, and rhyolite. Both groups are of alkaline character. The basaltic rocks contain plagioclase (An_29-63), alkali feldspar (Or_12-74), olivine, orthopyroxene (En_64-67), clinopyroxene (Wo_43-48), biotite (Mg#_82-88), and Fe-Ti oxide phenocrysts, whereas the trachytic rocks contain plagioclase (An_21-64), alkali feldspar (Or_10-53), clinopyroxene (Wo_41-49), amphibole (Mg#_64-83), biotite (Mg#_79-85), Fe-Ti oxide, titanite, apatite, and quartz phenocrysts. The measured ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios of basaltic samples range from 0.7045 to 0.7048, and those of trachytic samples from 0.7054 to 0.7056. The basaltic samples have ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd ratios ranging from 0.512753 to 0.512737, and those of trachytic samples are 0.512713 to 0.512674. Isotopic, major-, and trace-element data suggest that the Oglakci volcanic rocks are products of postcollisional magmatism and originated from a complex interplay of crustal assimilation, magma mixing, and fractional crystallization processes following the demise of Neotethys. Trace-element characters also are consistent with an OIB-like mantle source. These volcanic rocks probably were associated with extensional tectonics, which occurred within the Anatolian plate as a result of collision of the Eurasian and Afro-Arabian plates during the neotectonic evolution of Turkey.     

Mobility of rare earth elements in the system soils–plants–groundwaters: a case study of an arid area (Oman)

Groundwater samples from six wells and various species of plants from soils developed on ophiolites were collected from an arid area (AlKhod area, Oman) and analyzed for trace elements including rare earth elements (REEs). The distribution patterns of REEs in plants indicated an enrichment in middle REEs (MREEs?=?Sm to Dy) and heavy REEs (HREEs?=?Ho to Lu), when they are normalized to the REE composition of the Post Archean Australian Shale (PAAS), with a significant negative anomaly in Ce and a positive anomaly in Eu. Compared to Oman ophiolites, the REEs in different species of plants are depleted in Ce and enriched in MREEs and slightly enriched in light REE (LREE?=?from La to Nd). Relative to PAAS, the distribution of REEs in groundwaters revealed similar patterns to the REE distribution in plants. The distribution patterns of REEs in plants relative to those in waters are nearly flat. These patterns suggest that the transfer of REEs from soil solutions to the groundwaters in Oman occurs without any significant fractionation.     

Modeling of water–rock interactions in an aquitard of sandy clay in the coastal area near Beihai,China

Unconsolidated sand, gravel and clay deposits near Beihai and in the Leizhou Peninsula in southern China form an unconfined aquifer, aquitard and a confined aquifer. Water and soil samples were collected from the two aquifers in the coastal Beihai area for the determination of chemical compositions, minerals and soluble ions. Hydrogeochemical modeling of three flow paths through the aquitard are carried out using PHREEQC to determine water–rock interactions along the flow paths. The results indicate that the dissolution of anorthite, fluorite, halite, rhodochrosite and CO₂, and precipitation of potash feldspar and kaolinite may be occurring when groundwater leaks through the aquitard from the unconfined aquifer to the confined aquifer. Cation exchanges between Na and Ca can also happen along the flow paths.     

A Miocene onset of the modern extensional regime in the Isparta Angle: constraints from the Yalvaç Basin (southwest Turkey)

The pre-Neogene Tauride fold-and-thrust belt, comprising Cretaceous ophiolites and metamorphic rocks and non-metamorphic carbonate thrust slices in southern Turkey, is flanked and overlain by Neogene sedimentary basins. These include poorly studied intra-montane basins including the Yalvaç Basin. In this paper, we study the stratigraphy, sedimentology and structure of the Yalvaç Basin, which has a Middle Miocene and younger stratigraphy. Our results show that the basin formed as a result of multi-directional extension, with NE–SW to E–W extension dominating over subordinate NW–SE to N–S extension. We show that faults bounding the modern basin also governed basin formation, with proximal facies close to the basin margins grading upwards and basinwards into lacustrine deposits representing the local depocentre. The Yalvac Basin was a local basin, but a similar, contemporaneous history recently reconstructed from the Alt?napa Basin, ~100 km to the south, shows that multi-directional extension dominated by E–W extension was a regional phenomenon. Extension is still active today, and we conclude that this tectonic regime in the study area has prevailed since Middle Miocene times. Previously documented E–W shortening in the Isparta Angle along the Aksu Thrust, ~100 km to the southwest of our study area, is synchronous with the extensional history documented here, and E–W extension to its east shows that Anatolian westwards push is likely not the cause. Synchronous E–W shortening in the heart and E–W extension in the east of the Isparta Angle may be explained by an eastwards-dipping subduction zone previously documented with seismic tomography and earthquake hypocentres. We suggest that this slab surfaces along the Aksu thrust and creates E–W overriding plate extension in the east of the Isparta Angle. Neogene and modern Anatolian geodynamics may thus have been driven by an Aegean, Antalya and Cyprus slab segment that each had their own specific evolution.     

ESR and Th/U dating of speleothems from Aladağlar Mountain Range (AMR) in Turkey

Electron spin resonance (ESR) and ²³⁰Th/²³⁴U ages of speleothem samples collected from karstic caves located around 3000 m elevation in the Alada?lar Mountain Range (AMR), south-central Turkey, were determined in order to provide new insight and information regarding late Pleistocene climate. ESR ages were validated with the ²³⁰Th/²³⁴U ages of test samples. The ESR ages of 21 different layers of six speleothem samples were found to range mostly between about 59 and 4 ka, which cover the Marine Oxygen Isotope Stages (MIS) MIS 3 to MIS 1. Among all, only six layers appear to have deposited during MIS 8 and 5. Most of the samples dated were deposited during the late glacial stage (MIS 2). It appears that a cooler climate with a perennial and steady recharge was more conducive to speleothem development rather than a warmer climate with seasonal recharge in the AMR during the late Quaternary. This argument supports previous findings that suggest a two -fold increase in last glacial maximum mean precipitation in Turkey with respect to the present value.     

Evolution of a tourmaline-bearing lawsonite eclogite from the Elekdağ area (Central Pontides,N Turkey): evidence for infiltration of slab-derived B-rich fluids during exhumation

An undated high-pressure low-temperature tectonic mélange in the Elekda area (central Pontides, N Turkey) comprises blocks of MORB-derived lawsonite eclogite within a sheared serpentinite matrix. In their outer shells, some of the eclogite blocks contain large (up to 6 cm) tourmaline crystals. Prograde inclusions in poikiloblastic garnet from a well-preserved eclogite block are lawsonite, epidote/clinozoisite, omphacite, rutile, glaucophane, chlorite, Ba-bearing phengite, minor actinolite, winchite and quartz. In addition, glaucophane, lawsonite and rutile occur as inclusions in omphacite. These inclusion assemblages document the transition from a garnet-lawsonite-epidote-bearing blueschist to a lawsonite eclogite with the peak assemblage garnet + omphacite I + lawsonite + rutile. Peak metamorphic conditions are not well-constrained but are estimated approximately 400–430°C and >1.35 GPa, based on Fe–Mg exchange between garnet and omphacite and the coexistence of lawsonite + omphacite + rutile. During exhumation of the eclogite–serpentinite mélange in the hanging wall of a subduction system, infiltration of B-rich aqueous fluids into the rims of eclogite blocks caused retrogressive formation of abundant chlorite, titanite and albite, followed by growth of tourmaline at the expense of chlorite. At the same time, omphacite I (X_Jd=0.24–0.44) became unstable and partially replaced by omphacite II characterized by higher X_Jd (0.35–0.48), suggesting a relatively low silica activity in the infiltrating fluid. Apart from Fe-rich rims developed at the contact to chlorite, tourmaline crystals are nearly homogeneous. Their compositions correspond to Na-rich dravite, perhaps with a small amount of excess (tetrahedral) boron (~5.90 Si and 3.10 B cations per 31 anions). ¹¹ B values range from –2.2 to +1.7. The infiltrating fluids were most probably derived from subducting altered oceanic crust and sediments.     

PCB-anomalies around the urban karst area in ZADAR (CROATIA) as consequence of war action and /or industrial contamination

A great part of the former Yugoslavia has recently been encompassed by warfare. Research on the environmental impact of warfare has shown that many sorts of highly stable organic contaminants have entered the environment. The karstic region and in many ca…     

Assessment of water quality for drinking and irrigation purposes: a case study of Başköy springs (Ağlasun/Burdur/Turkey)

It is important to know the quality of water resources for drinking, domestic and irrigation in the rural area. Because, in recent times, there has been increased demand for water due to population growth and intense agricultural activities, so, hydrogeochemical investigations come into prominence for the groundwater use. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate water quality of Ba?köy springs for both drinking and irrigation purposes. The geochemical processes and quality of springs were followed as seasonal in the study area. In view of geochemical classification, springs are Ca-Mg-HCO₃ water type for both seasons. Comparison of geochemical data shows that majority of the spring samples are suitable for drinking water. On the other hand, chemical indexes of springs with various classifications were calculated for irrigation purposes. According to the classifications (electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids, total hardness, salinity hazard, percent sodium, sodium adsorption ratio, residual sodium carbonate, residual sodium bicarbonate, permeability index, potential salinity, soluble sodium percentage, magnesium ratio, and Kelly’s ratio), Ba?köy springs are suitable for irrigation purposes. However, water quality of Çaygözü spring is different the other springs due to the high electrical conductivity and total dissolved solids. Also, groundwater mineralization processes and rock–water interaction are controlled with bivariate diagrams of major elements.     

Spatial distribution of some elements and elemental contamination in the sediments of Köyceğiz Lake (SW Turkey)

Elemental accumulation, distribution and relationship profiles for sediment samples taken at 81 localities in the Köyce?iz Lake were investigated. Spatial distribution maps for ten elements (Cu, Pb, Zn, Ni, Cr, Co, Mn, Mo, Al, Fe) were created using the ordinary kriging interpolation method. Statistical tests revealed that the sediments taken from areas close to the Namnam (NamSM) and Karg?cak (KarSM) stream mouths have the highest element content. In addition, sediments close to NamSM have the highest contamination, according to contamination degree and modified contamination degree values. On the other hand, sediments close to KarSM have the highest value on the pollution load index. The enrichment factor and contamination factor values of Cr and Co, and especially Ni, close to NamSM are striking and have significantly higher values compared to the rest of the lake. There are strong correlations between these three elements, which were also confirmed by cluster analysis. Ni is the element having the highest value on the geoaccumulation index. In addition, according to the toxic unit results, it was found that 84–89% of the element-based toxic effect in the lake is due to Ni alone. According to the mean effect range median quotient values, the sediments of Köyce?iz Lake have a potential to show toxic effects of at least 76% in living organisms, which is due to the high levels of Ni. According to the mean probable effect low quotient value, it has been determined that Köyce?iz Lake is at a “highly impacted” level, which is the worst possible value on the quality scale.     

Microthermometric and stable isotopic (O and H) characteristics of fluid inclusions in the porphyry related Çöpler (İliç - Erzincan) gold deposit,central eastern Turkey

The Çöpler gold deposit occurs within the stockwork of quartz hosted by the Çöpler granitoid (Eosen) and by surrounding metasediments of Keban metamorphic (Late Paleozoic - Early Mesozoic) and the Munzur limestones (Late Carboniferous - Early Cretaceous). Native gold accompanied by small amounts of chalcopyrite, pyrite, magnetite, maghemite, hematite, fahlerz, marcasite, bornite, galena, sphalerite, specular hematite, goethite, lepidochrosite and bravoitic pyrite within the stockwork ore veinlets. In addition, epidote (pistazite - zoisite), garnet, scapolite, chlorite, tremolite/actinolite, muscovite and opaque minerals were determined within the veinlets occurred in skarn zones. The study of fluid inclusions in quartz veinlets showed that the hydrothermal fluids contain CaCl₂, MgCl₂ and NaCl and the salinities of the two phases (L+V) inclusions range from 1.7 to 20.6% NaCl equivalent. Salinity values up to 44% were determined within the halite bearing three phases inclusions. Their homogenization temperature values have a wide range from 145.0 to 380.0°C, indicative of catathermal/hypothermal to epithermal conditions. The δ ¹⁸O and δD values of the fluid inclusion waters from the Çöpler granitoid correspond to those assigned to Primary Magmatic Water, those from the metasediments of Keban metamorphics fall outside of the Primary Magmatic and are within the Metamorphic Water field. A sample from a quartz vein within the skarn zone hosted by the Munzur limestones has a particularly low δD value. The results suggest that fluids derived from the granitoids were mixed with those derived from the metasediments of Keban metamorphics and the the Munzur limestones and resulting in quartz veinlets in these lithologies and the formation of stockwork ores. In view of the occurrence, the features described and processes envisaged for this study area may be applicable in similar settings.     

On the geodynamics of the Alpine collisional granitoids from Central Anatolia: petrology,age and isotopic characteristics of the granitoids of the Ekecikdağ Igneous Association (Aksaray/Turkey)

Granitoids of the Ekecikda? Igneous Association (Central Anatolia/Turkey) are products of collisional–post-collisional magmatism in the Ekecikda? area. These granitoids are granodiorite, microgranite and leucogranite. Field relations of granodiorites with microgranites is obscured, but leucogranites intrude both rock types. Mean zircon laser ablation (LA)-ICP-MS ²⁰⁶Pb-²³⁸U ages of granodiorites and microgranites are 84.52 ± 0.93 Ma and 80.7 ± 1.6 Ma, respectively, and age of leucogranites is suggested as 80 Ma, based on field relations combined with ²⁰⁶Pb/²³⁸U and Rb-Sr ages. Crystallisation temperatures of granodiorites, microgranites and leucogranites are 728°C-848°C, 797°C-880°C, 704°C-809°C, respectively.

Geochemical characteristics including Sr-Nd isotopic evidences infer a non-cogenetic character, as there is a high crustal contribution in I-type granodiorite sources, a crustal source with insignificant and significant mantle inputs in S-type microgranites and leucogranites, respectively. LA-ICP-MS Lu-Hf isotope data from zircons reveal their crustal nature (εHf_(t): ?1.3 ± 0.5 to ?8.8 ± 0.5). Crustal melting linked to the Alpine thickening during the Late Cretaceous led to formation of heterogeneous sourced granitoids with crustal dominated sources in the Ekecikda? area. Understanding of the nature and evolution of collisional Ekecikda? granitoids is not only important to put contribution in the geodynamic evolution of Central Anatolia and surrounding Alpine area, but also to better understand systematics of collisional magmatic systems.     

The Taraklı Flysch in the Boyali area (Sakarya Terrane,northern Turkey): Implications for the tectonic history of the IntraPontide suture zone

In the Boyal? area, northern Turkey, the tectonic units of the ?stanbul–Zonguldak Terrane and the IntraPontide suture zone are thrust over the deposits at the top of the Sakarya Terrane, known as Tarakl? Flysch. It consists of Early Maastrichtian–Middle Paleocene turbidite and mass-gravity deposits, whose source mainly corresponds to the ?stanbul–Zonguldak Terrane, and, with a lesser extent, to the IntraPontide suture zone. These deposits were sedimented in a foredeep basin developed during the convergence between Sakarya and Eurasian continental microplates. In the Late Paleocene–Early Eocene time span, the Tarakl? Flysch was deformed (D1 phase) during the closure of the foredeep basin. In the Miocene time, the strike-slip tectonics (D2 phase) related to the North-Anatolian fault produced further deformations of the Tarakl? Flysch.     

Determination of potential hazardous elements in an coals (Canakkale- Turkey)-I

It is known that the increasing use of coal as an energy source led to the growing environmental and health problems. But comprehensive knowledge of coal quality parameters may help to reduce some of these problems. The ?anakkale-?an coalfield is located …