Broadening of electron cyclotron maser emission lines in a nonuniform magnetic field

The formation of cyclotron maser emission lines in a non-uniform (regular or random) magnetic field is studied. In the presence of sufficiently small inhomogeneity, the line shape can be described by a broadened Gaussian profile. In the case of stronger inhomogeneity, the initial Gaussian profile splits into two Gaussian components, which could be observationally perceived as “harmonics.” A relation between the distribution of local magnetic trap sizes and the distribution of the spectral widths of solar radio spikes is derived. Possible applications of the results to the interpretation of solar radio spikes and related problems are discussed.     

Thermal cyclotron radiation by isolated magnetic white dwarfs and constraints on the parameters of their coronas

An efficient method for the detection and estimation of the parameters of the coronas of isolated white dwarfs possessing magnetic fields of about 10⁷ G is tested. This method is based on the detection of thermal radiation of the coronal plasma at harmonics of the electron gyrofrequency, which is manifest as a polarized infrared excess. The Stokes parameters for the thermal cyclotron radiation from the hot corona of a white dwarf with a dipolar magnetic field are calculated. A new upper limit for the electron density, 10¹⁰ cm^?3, in a corona with a temperature of ?10⁶ K is found for the white dwarf G99-47 (WD 0553+053). This limit is a factor of 40 lower than the value derived earlier from ROSAT X-ray observations. Recommendations for subsequent infrared observations of isolated magnetic white dwarfs aimed at detecting their coronas or deriving better constraints on their parameters are presented.     

Scattering of cyclotron radiation in a moving plasma

We consider the scattering of cyclotron radiation in a plasma moving along a homogeneous magnetic field. The equation of radiation transfer in a co-moving frame is derived and two limiting cases are pointed out. In the first case of a “small” velocity gradient, the total Doppler frequency shift due to variations in the plasma velocity over the flow is much smaller than the width of the line. The second, opposite, case of a “large” velocity gradient is analogous to the Sobolev approximation in the theory of moving stellar envelopes. The solution of the transfer equation for a wind-type flow illuminated by radiation of a given intensity is obtained in the latter case, when the influence of the plasma motion on cyclotron scattering is most important. It is shown that cyclotron scattering in a moving plasma differs from the known (and qualitatively similar) problems of resonance scattering in moving stellar envelopes and cyclotron scattering in a motionless plasma permeated by an inhomogeneous magnetic field. In particular, a symmetric absorption band with residual intensity proportional to the velocity gradient appears in the spectrum of the outgoing radiation, while in these two other problems, the depth of the corresponding spectral features cannot exceed half the continuum level. Detailed qualitative analysis reveals that this difference is due to the particular form of the frequency redistribution for cyclotron scattering.     

The passage of radiation through a wormhole

We consider a model for the passage of radiation through a “wormhole.” A physical interpretation of a special class of solutions of the Einstein equations with a scalar field is given. A solution describing the passage of an infinitely narrow pulse of radiation is constructed by joining along the null geodesic the two stationary equations describing the wormhole before and after the passage of the radiation. The physical consequences of the passage of the radiation on the structure of the wormhole are analyzed.     

The origin of olivine-plagioclase coronas in metagabbros from the Adirondack Mountains, New York

Olivine-plagioclase coronas in metagabbros from the Adirondack Mountains, New York (USA) are spatially well-organized reaction textures consisting most commonly of sequential layers of orthopyroxene, clinopyroxene, plagioclase, and garnet; the textures are characteristic of diffusion-controlled reaction kinetics. Although similar coronas have been interpreted by previous workers in terms of an isochemical steady-state diffusion model, petrographical relations and material-balance calculations establish that coronas in the Adirondack metagabbros cannot be treated as isochemical and do not form in a single-stage steady-state process; instead they evolve through time in a complex open-system reaction. In this study, the isochemical diffusion model is modified to account for elemental fluxes across the outer boundaries of the coronal reaction band, thereby approximating the open-system behaviour of the coronas. The sequence and relative proportions of product minerals calculated by the open-system steady-state model correspond closely to those observed in coronas of the Adirondacks, over a wide range of values for the relative diffusivities of chemical components involved in the reaction, regardless of the particular method used to determine material balance in the reaction texture. Despite this correspondence, petrographical evidence for successive replacement of coronal product layers reveals that the Adirondack coronas evolved through one or more transient states, rather than forming in a single-stage steady-state process. There is no evidence that the successive replacement of coronal product layers resulted from changes in pressure or temperature, but there is petrographical evidence that these changes resulted from modification of the composition of reactant plagioclase as the corona-forming reaction proceeded. This is confirmed by the fact that the evolution of the coronas over time can be replicated with the open-system diffusion model by simulating the effect of the gradual exhaustion of plagioclase as a source of the Ca and Si components required for reaction. These simulations suggest that successive stages in the evolution of the coronas are characterized by these product sequences: (i) orthopyroxene-clinopyroxene-plagioclase-garnet; (ii) orthopyroxene-clinopyroxene-garnet; and (iii) orthopyroxene-garnet. All of these stages, and the transitions between them, are observed petrographically. Coronas in Adirondack metagabbros appear, therefore, to have originated in a complex, open-system, diffusion-controlled reaction in which the product assemblages changed as the reaction progressed.     

The brightness distribution over a stellar disk derived from observations of microlensing by a binary system

Using a model-independent technique, we have reconstructed a one-dimensional strip distribution of the brightness over a stellar disk from observations of microlensing of a Galactic bulge star by a caustic of the binary gravitational lens OGLE-1999-BUL-23, obtained by the international PLANET group. The ill-posed inverse problem was solved using a regularization method taking into account the non-negativity of the brightness distribution. The radial brightness distribution was searched for on a compact set of convex-upward, monotonically non-increasing, non-negative functions, assuming that the source is circularly symmetrical. The reconstructed brightness distribution is compared with the results of model fitting and limb-darkening calculations based on models of stellar atmospheres.     

电子探针技术研究粤北龙华山岩体中独居石蚀变晕圈的结构与成分特征

淡钡钛石为含硼硅酸盐矿物,晶体结构属二轴晶单斜晶系,是典型的热液成因矿物。产于中国准噶尔盆地风城组页岩中的淡钡钛石尚未开展矿物学研究,其成因尚不明确。本文选取了该地玛页1钻井岩心中的淡钡钛石,采用电子探针(EPMA)、X射线能谱(EDS)和X射线衍射(XRD)分析其矿物成分和晶体结构特征。结果表明：风城组淡钡钛石晶体大小为微米级,形态呈板状或短柱状,与硅硼钠石共生。矿物主要元素组成为：BaO 12.64%,TiO₂ 13.47%,Na₂O 10.69%,SiO₂ 53.46%,B₂O₃ 10.11%;d=4.22(-220)、d=8.45(-110)、d=3.37(-112)对应的三个晶面最发育。风城组淡钡钛石元素组成及晶体衍射特征与国外发现的淡钡钛石相吻合,但更富硼元素。由于热液流体中硼含量与盐度呈明显正相关,因此风城组淡钡钛石形成于更高盐度热液流体中,深部热液流体侵入到风城组页岩中依次形成硅硼钠石、淡钡钛石。该研究结果为准噶尔盆地风城组淡钡钛石矿物学的进一步研究提供了基础资料。

     

某长隧洞环境放射性评价研究

通过在拟开掘隧道沿线的专门勘探平洞和煤矿巷道中进行的γ辐射剂量率(225组数据)和环境氡浓度(96个数据)测量,评价和研究该区未来隧道放射性辐射环境.这些平洞和巷道均穿越了(或低于)拟开掘隧洞的底部,基本上揭露了比选隧洞可能穿越的地层岩性.结果表明,在该区煤系地层和侏罗系砂岩交接带可能会出现环境γ辐射照射剂量超标现象,在上述交接带以及含土碎石分布区,有可能出现环境氡浓度超标现象.在选线和施工过程中应引起重视.     

Unusual biomarker maturation ratio changes through the oil window, a consequence of varied thermal history

Saturated and aromatic biomarker ratios continue to change systematically through the oil window and into the gas-condensate window to high vitrinite reflectances (R_o = 1.16%) in mature marine and lacustrine Mesozoic clastic samples from a South African basin. Two of the ratios reverse above R_o = 0.9%. These unusual maturation effects result from isolated periods of high rates of maturation increase. The basin cooled regionally after the break-up of Gondwana but high heating rates prevailed during the late Cretaceous-early Tertiary, as Africa moved across a hotspot, and again in the late Tertiary as a result of a possible hotspot and hydrothermal event.     

Reconstruction of the brightness distribution across a stellar disk from gravitational lensing caustic passage observations

This paper describes a method for analyzing observations of the passage of a star through a gravitational lensing caustic that enables the derivation of information about the brightness distribution across the stellar disk without knowledge of the lens parameters. The ill-posed inverse problem of reconstructing a one-dimensional strip brightness distribution across the stellar disk is solved using a regularization method, taking into account the non-negative nature of this function. Assuming the source is circularly symmetric, the search for the radial brightness distribution is carried out over compact sets of upward-convex, non-negative functions or functions that do not grow with distance from the stellar center. The method is used to analyze the gravitational microlensing event MACHO 98-SMC-1, of a star in the Small Magellanic Cloud, obtained by the PLANET international group. The resulting brightness distribution is compared with computations of limb darkening for model stellar atmospheres.     

The Al-Fe(III)epidote miscibility gap in a metamorphic profile through the penninic series of the Tauern window,Austria

The compositional variations in epidotes, Ca₂Al₂(Fe³⁺, Al)-Si₃O₁₂(OH), from a prograde Mesozoic rock series in the Eastern Alps, Austria, are systematically related to metamorphic grade and the oxidation state of the rock. With increasing metamorphic grade the average composition of the zoned epidotes shifts to Fe³⁺-poorer compositions reflecting not only the effect of temperature and total pressure but also the concomitant decrease of the oxidation state of the rocks. Oxidized hematite-bearing assemblages are: 90 mole % Al₂FeEp (greenschists) 70 mole % Al₂FeEp (garnet amphibolites) 58 mole % Al₂FeEp (eclogites); reduced sulfidebearing assemblages are: 42 mole % Al₂FeEp (greenschists) 24 mole % Al₂FeEp (garnet amphibolites) 23 mole % Al₂FeEp (eclogites).A similar compositional evolution of the epidotes as in the spatial sequence of the samples can be observed within the single zoned crystals, reflecting the temporal changes of temperature, total pressure and oxygen fugacity during the prograde crystallization. The Fe³⁺-contents of core and rim decrease with increasing metamorphic grade and decreasing oxidation state. Generally the zoned epidotes consist of a Fe³⁺-rich core (90 to 63 mole % Al₂FeEp) and a Fe³⁺-poorer rim (55 to 23 mole % Al₂FeEp). Core and rim of the epidote crystals are separated by a compositional gap the extension of which is independent of the bulk rock composition, the oxidation state, and the mineralogical composition of the assemblages but becomes smaller with increasing metamorphic grade: 7253 mole % Al₂FeEp (low grade greenschists, 400° C) 6355 mole % Al₂FeEp (higher grade greenschists, 500° C), and 6055 mole % Al₂FeEp (garnet amphibolites, 500–550° C). At the temperature conditions of the highest grade garnet amphibolites and eclogites (550° C) the compositional gap closes at a composition of 58 mole % Al₂FeEp.The data presented thus confirm clearly the existence of an asymmetric miscibility gap in the monoclinic Al-Fe(III)-epidote solid solution series, which, for the first time, has been assumed by Strens (1964, 1965).A model is proposed that describes the prograde compositional evolution of the epidotes studied through the competing mechanisms of growth and diffusional Al-Fe³⁺ exchange and their dependence on metamorphic grade and oxidation state.     

The spectra of hard radiation from radio pulsars

The kinetic equation for the distribution function of relativistic electrons is solved taking into account quasi-linear interactions with waves and radiative processes. Mean values of the pitch angles ψ are calculated. If the particles of the primary beam with Lorentz factors γ_b～10⁶ are resonant, then the condition γ_bψ_b?1 is satisfied, the particle distribution is described by the function f _‖(γ) ∝ γ^?4, and the synchrotron radiation spectrum is characterized by the spectral index α=3/2. On the other hand, if a cyclotron resonance is associated with particles of the high-energy tail of the secondary plasma (γ_t～10⁵), then γ_tψ_t?1, and the distribution function has two parts—f _‖(γ) ∝ γ and f _‖(γ) ∝ γ^?2—which correspond to the spectral indices α₁=+1 and α₂=?0.5. This behavior is similar to that observed for the pulsar B0656+14. The predicted frequency of the maximum ν_m=7.5×10¹⁶ Hz coincides with the peak frequency for this pulsar. The model estimate for the total synchrotron luminosity of a typical radio pulsar with hard radiation L _s =3×10³³ erg/s is in agreement with observed values.     

Hurrying through a window of opportunity: the rapid expansion of the pulp and paper industry in Alberta

Within the recent upswing of the pulp and paper investment cycle, the province of Alberta dramatically expanded its industry by attracting several billion dollars of new and expanded plants. An important precondition for these events was the global shift to hardwoods which made the mixed forests on the plains of Alberta useful and desirable for forest products firms. Beyond this, the government of Alberta aggressively fostered expansion through an array of measures to attract investment. Alberta was made competitive, in cost terms, by cost concessions within its industrial and forestry policies. In part, this was necessary because of relatively high standards in its environmental regulations. With the surge of investment, unforseen problems arose when several mills were located on individual rivers, and there were concerns over downstream water quality for which there were no clearcut answers. The lightning rod of public concern was the giant Alpac mill, one of the last to be proposed, which gained official approval after an extended approval process led to a change in process technology. However, official approval for the various mills has not allayed public misgivings and legal challenges over environmental impacts of various steps in the process from tree extraction to pulp and paper production.     

Observed features of a two-phase stellar wind from WR 136 in the vicinity of NGC 6888

A number of features are detected outside the nebula NGC 6888, within 1.2° (30 pc) of the star WR 136, which can be explained in a two-phase stellar-wind model. These include regions with fine filamentary gas structure that do not contain sources of stellar wind, extended radial “streams,” ultra-compact HII regions with high-velocity gas motions, and high-velocity gas motions outside the envelope of NGC 6888. The two-phase wind consists of a rarefied component and dense compact condensations, or “bullets.” The bullets generate cylindrical shocks in the interstellar gas, resulting in the presence of high-velocity gas up 20–30 pc from the star, outside the cavity formed by the rarified component of the wind.     

Thermodynamics of Co3O4: a possible electron spin unpairing transition in Co3+

The free energy of the reaction: $$Co_3 O_4 \rightleftarrows 3C_O O + \tfrac{1}{2}O_2$$ has been studied between 890 and 1,240 K using an e.m.f. technique. There is a phase transition in Co₃O₄ at 1,120±20 K which is accompanied by a large change in entropy (～47 JK^?1 mol^?1 of Co₃O₄), and a rapid increase in unit cell volume and in electical conductivity. This is interpreted to be due to a partial change in electronic spin states in Co^{3 +} from the spin-paired (low spin) configuration observed at room temperature to the spin-unpaired (high spin) state. The transition is probably not first order.     

The preparation of silica from the olivine process and its possible use as a catalyst support

The production of silica from the dissolution of olivine in sulphuric acid has been studied. Variations in grainsize of the olivine result in different specific surface areas of the silica. The microporosity of the silica supports an aggregative growth model responsible for the increasing particle size. The silica is used in the preparation of a nickel catalyst. The performance of the produced catalyst is equal to a nickel catalyst based on commercially available silica     

The use of a cement-bentonite cut-off wall to contain possible pollutants from a landfill containing highly polluted dredging spoils

The dredging spoil from the sea canal at Ghent in Belgium has been landfilled at a specially engineered site at Zelzate. In order to prevent the spread of pollutants from the site to the surroundings a cement-bentonite screen has been constructed down to a thick clay layer 25 m under the surface. Calculations show that this barrier is adequate for the environmental objectives stipulated.     

Integral equation solution of heat extraction from a fracture in hot dry rock

In the study of heat extraction by circulating water in a fracture embedded in geothermal reservoir, the heat conduction in the reservoir is typically assumed to be one dimensional and perpendicular to the fracture. In this paper, we demonstrate that by an integral equation formulation utilizing Green's function, the multi‐dimensional heat flow in the reservoir can be modelled. In the resulting numerical solution system, the discretization of reservoir geometry is entirely eliminated, leading to a much more efficient scheme. The multi‐dimensional heat conduction effect as compared to its one‐dimensional simplification is studied. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

高速公路建设中的辐射监测和防护

在铀资源丰富的地区修建高速公路，天然放射性辐射对施工人员的影响是建设单位非常关心的问题。文章分析了梅河高速公路沿线的放射性环境地质特征，介绍了多种辐射监测方法、如何计算施工人员受到的辐射剂量及对超标地段采取的防护和处理措施。