Petrological and organic geochemical investigation of recent peats with known environments of deposition

A series of recent peat samples from tropical, sub-tropical and temperate locations were investigated using coal petrographical and organic geochemical techniques. Maceral and biomarker compositions were examined to see if they correlated or diverged from the known environment of deposition of the peats.The proportion of humotelinite was related to the water depth and the frequency of dry periods. The pH and trophic level have a modifying influence on the preservation of tissues. Furthermore, the proportions of sclerotinite in the peats seem to reflected the oxygen status in the mire, which was also mirrored in the abundance of humic and fulvic acids.A facies diagram was calculated for the peat samples to see how maceral indices would fare in interpreting their known environments of deposition. The results proved to be generally unsuccessful as the herbaceous and woody peats did not always give the predicted high humodetrinite and humotelinite compositions, respectively.The aliphatic hydrocarbon fraction from the extracts of the peat samples show that mainly odd-numbered n-alkanes are present. Diterpenoids, triterpenoids and hopanoids were found in most samples and were mainly unsaturated in nature. The relative proportion of hopanoids in pears appears to be related to bacterial activity in acidic environments. De-A-triterpenoids were also detected in the peat stage of diagenesis.In an angiosperm dominated peat type (Mariscus), polycyclic aromatic triterpenoids were present in the aromatic fraction of the extract. Their occurrence and proportion appears to be related to the degree of humification. In a Taxodium peat, mono-, di-and triaromatic diterpenoids were detected. The presence of these aromatic biomarkers indicate the rapid formation of these compounds in the peat stage, mainly mediated by microbial activity.     

Brief review on climate change and tropical peatlands

In 2008, the very extensive tropical peats were estimated to be about 182 million ha spanning South America, Asia and Africa. About 20.3%(36.9 million ha) of this area exist in Asia. Peats are classified based on their degree of decomposition, namely Fibrists, Hemists, Saprists and Folists. This makes them different in characteristics. The activities of microorganisms vary in different types of peat due to, for example, the sapric layer of well humified peat can provide water and food to microorganisms during heat stress. In another scenario, deeper peat is older and typically has lower levels of labile carbon to provide substrate for microbes compared to surface peat. A complete understanding of the microbial communities in different layers of peat is essential as microorganisms play major roles in peat decomposition and are important to ecosystem processes. These peats are a very important global carbon(C)store or reserve and could severely impact climate change if not managed well. Peatlands can store as much as 40 to 90 Gt C. Mis-management of peats could severely impact the environment particularly the emission of carbon into the atmosphere. For instance, clearing of peatlands using fire has been reported to release an estimated 88 t C ha~(-1) to the atmosphere. There are several factors which influence the environmental consequences of tropical peat especially in relation to climate change. The main influences are:(i) changes in temperature,(ii) changes in precipitation or rainfall,(iii) changes in atmospheric composition, and(iv) fire and haze. This paper is a brief review on these four influences in relation to climate change. It is apparent from the brief review that there is a need for continued short and long-term research to better understand tropical peats and how they affect our climate. This will hopefully provide the basis for predicting better what could happen under various scenarios.     

神农架大九湖不同生境表土磷脂脂肪酸揭示的微生物群落结构差异

磷脂脂肪酸(phospholipid fatty acid,PLFAs)是活体微生物细胞膜的重要组成部分,微生物通过改变细胞膜中PLFA组成,快速响应环境变化.目前,表土PLFAs研究主要集中于季节和植被群落变化对微生物群落结构影响,对于不同生境下表土PLFAs揭示的微生物群落结构的差异性尚不明确.基于此,对神农架大九湖7种不同生境表土进行PLFAs研究.结果表明,表土样品PLFAs集中分布于C₁₄到C₁₉;除湿生泥炭沼泽和湿生半退化沼泽生境外,其他生境以n16:0为主峰.不同生境的PLFAs含量差异较大,沼泽生境TPLFAs含量是草甸及阔叶林生境下的3~8倍.PLFAs组成还揭示出生境间主要受到pH和含水率的影响,微生物群落结构存在差异.不同生境下表层土壤PLFAs揭示的微生物丰度和群落结构具有一定的相似性及差异性.运用PLFAs对微生物量及微生物群落结构的划分将有助于更好的了解区域生态系统中微生物群落结构的变化,为研究微生物参与碳循环及古生态研究奠定基础.      

Peat mounds of southwest Tasmania: Possible origins

Small mounds of peat rise several metres above the level of the water‐table at Melaleuca Inlet and Louisa Plains on the buttongrass plains in southwest Tasmania. Possible origins of the peat mounds have been explored by pollen analysis and radiocarbon dating of a set of samples taken from a vertical section of one peat mound at Melaleuca. The peat accumulation is entirely of Holocene age although the mound is underlain by sapric peats preserving a cold climate palynoflora of probable Late Pleistocene age. Peats at and near the base of the mound accumulated under a heath sedgeland during the earliest Holocene while after about 7630 a BP the peat‐forming vegetation was shrub‐dominated. The radiocarbon data indicate two main phases of overall peat accumulation, between 7630 and 5340 a BP (Middle Holocene) and between 4450 and 450 a BP (Late Holocene), that were interrupted by a wildfire which burnt into the surface peats. The maintenance of high surface and internal levels of moisture almost certainly was the critical factor behind the low incidence of in situ fires burning into the surface peats on the mound. The perennial influx of groundwater below the mound is a possible origin that fits well with our observations, although the expansion and contraction of soils cannot be discounted as an initiating factor. Enhanced nutrient input from birds may have helped promote growth in the peat‐forming communities. The data do not support the mounds being eroded remnants of a former blanket peat cover or being due to periglacial activity. The peat mounds of southwest Tasmania deserve maximum protection because of their rarity in the Australian landscape and, it seems, elsewhere.     

Paleoecology of late-glacial peats from the bering land bridge, Chukchi Sea shelf region, northwestern Alaska

Insect fossils and pollen from late Pleistocene nonmarine peat layers were recovered from cores from the shelf region of the Chukchi Sea at depths of about 50 m below sea level. The peats date to 11,300−11,000 yr B.P. and provide a limiting age for the regional Pleistocene-Holocene marine transgression. The insect fossils are indicative of arctic coastal habitats like those of the Mackenzie Delta region (mean July TEMPERATURES = 10.6–14°C) suggesting that 11,000 yr ago the exposed Chukchi Sea shelf had a climate substantially warmer than modern coastal regions of the Alaskan north slope. The pollen spectra are consistent with the age assignment to the Birch Interval (14,000–9000 yr B.P.). The data suggest a meadow-like graminoid tundra with birch shrubs and some willow shrubs growing in sheltered areas.     

辽东半岛大孤山一带沟谷埋藏泥炭的硅藻组合以及 古环境和全新世最高海平面*

在辽东半岛东部的大孤山一带,面向海岸平原的沟谷埋藏泥炭十分发育。通过对11个沟谷进行钻孔调查,确认了在被切割的丘陵台地的沟谷中,埋藏泥炭广泛地发育在海拔\{2~\}10余米的不同高度; 并对钻孔样品做硅藻分析,明确了基底海拔高度在\{4~\}2m的泥炭层之下的沉积物为海生种硅藻占优势的海相层,因而取得了海水广泛侵入大洋河平原并直达沟谷深处的微体古生物方面的证据。进一步对3个代表性的小沟谷平原从沟头到沟口连续钻孔取样以及地质剖面分析,研究沟谷埋藏泥炭在横向上的分布特征表明:沟谷埋藏泥炭是全新世高海面期以后,随着海水的退却而形成的沼泽和湖沼等环境下的溺谷型泥炭; 位于沟谷中沟头位置的海拔4m左右的泥炭底部的标高,大致代表了该区全新世最高海面期海水(平均高潮线)曾达到的位置和高度,其泥炭在沟头开始形成的时期大致代表该区全新世最高海平面期; 研究区约\{6000~\}5500年前达到全新世最高海面,当时海面高度比现在约高出1.7m。     

Sedimentology of Fraser River delta peat deposits: A modern analogue for some deltaic coals

On the Recent lobe of the Fraser River delta peat accumulation has actively occurred on the distal lower dilta plain, the transition between upper and lower delta plains, and the alluvial plain.Distal lower delta plain peats developed from widespread salt and brackish marshes and were not influenced appreciably by fluvial activity. Lateral development of the marsh facies were controlled by compaction and eustatic sea level rise. The resulting thin, discontinuous peat network contains numerous silty clay partings and high concentrations of sulphur. Freshwater marsh facies formed but were later in part eroded and altered by transgressing marine waters. The peats overlie a thin, fluvial, fining-upward sequence which in turn overlies a thick, coarsening-upward, prodelta—delta front succession.Lower delta plain—upper delta plain peats initially developed from interdistributary brackish marshes and were later fluvially influenced as the delta prograded. The thickest peats occur in areas where distributary channels were abandoned earliest. Sphagnum biofacies replace sedge-grass-dominated communities except along active channel margins, where the sedge-grass facies is intercalated with overbank and splay deposits. The peats are underlain by a relatively thin sequence of fluvial deposits which in turn is underlain by a major coarsening-upward delta front and pro-delta sequence.Alluvial plain peats accumulated in back swamp environments of the flood plain. Earliest sedge-clay and gyttjae peats developed over thin fining-upward fluvial cycles or are interlaminated with fine-grained flood deposits. Thickest accumulations occur where peat fills small avulsed flood channels. Overlying sedge-grass and Sphagnum biofacies are horizontally stratified and commonly have sharp boundaries with fine-grained flood sediments. At active channel margins however, sedge-grass peats are intercalated with natural levee deposits consisting of silty clay. These levees reduce both the number and size of crevasse splay deposits.Coal originating from peats of the different environments of the Fraser delta would vary markedly in character. Peats of the lower delta plain will form thin lenticular coal seams with numerous splits and have a high ash and sulphur content. Peats from the lower to upper delta plain will be laterally extensive and of variable thickness and quality. Basal portions of the seams will contain numerous splits and have a high sulphur content whereas upper portions will be of higher quality. Peats from the upper delta plain—alluvial plain will form thick, isolated and laterally restricted coal seams characterized by low ash and sulphur contents.     

Coastal peats from northwest Ireland: implications for late-Holocene relative sea-level change and shoreline evolution

Peat and organic rich sediments at coastal sites in extreme northwest Ireland have accumulated in a wide variety of environments, often strongly influenced by late Holocene changes in relative sea level and by geomorphic processes. A deep peat sequence on the coast of Aranmore Island accumulated initially in a lake and subsequently in a freshwater marsh environment. The long pollen record serves as a template for regional events. It extends over much of the Holocene and shows relatively high levels of Pinus pollen up to just before the disappearance of this taxon at c . 3600 BP. Coastal peat occurrences elsewhere are much thinner and have accumulated over shorter periods; they contain further evidence to show that coastal areas were well-wooded compared with today, and that Pinus was an important woodland component prior to c . 4000 BP. At sites in Gweebarra Bay intertidal peats record the closure of small estuaries by geomorphological events during the past 5000 years. Coastal sites at Ballyness, Clonmass, and Trawenagh display regressive stratigraphies ˜ minerogenic marine sediments are overlain by silty peats capped by highly organic freshwater peats. Basal radiocarbon dates range from 4500 to 3300 BP. The silty peats are interpreted as having formed in salt-marsh environments and contain distinctive pollen spectra, marked by high levels of Pinus and Compositae Liguliflorae pollen. The data suggest that relative sea level attained levels close to that of today by the mid-Holocene in this region. The pattern of relative sea-level change agrees well with that predicted by geophysical modelling.     

海相成煤论进展

海相成煤论的提出与深化,必将带来含煤沉积学诸多领域的新变革与新进展。本文从泥炭坪海相成煤模式、现代热带红树林潮坪比较沉积学研究、关于含煤建造中的潮汐沉积与陆表海性质、台地、堡岛及其复合的含煤建造沉积体系、聚煤盆地的地质事件及其沉积记录、煤田岩相古地理研究方法论及巨型聚煤盆地的整体研究诸领域论述了所取得的成果与新时展,从而丰富和深化了海相成煤论.为重新认识我国晚古生代巨型聚煤盆地,探求新的聚煤规律,扩大新的煤炭资源奠定基础.     

Characterization and quantification of inorganic constituents of tropical peats and organic-rich deposits from Tasek Bera (Peninsular Malaysia): implications for coals

Since the Carboniferous, tropical latitudes have been the site of formation of many economic coal deposits, most of which have a restricted range of mineralogical composition as a result of their depositional environment, climatic conditions, and diagenesis. Mineralogical and microscopic investigations of tropical peats from Tasek Bera, Peninsular Malaysia, were performed in order to better understand some of these factors controlling the nature, distribution and association of inorganic matter in peat-forming environments. Distribution and nature of the inorganic fraction of peat deposits give insight into the weathering conditions and detrital input into the mire system. Because the inorganic composition of peat deposits is determined by plant communities, height of water table, and climate, the results of the quantitative and qualitative analysis can be used to reconstruct palaeoclimatic conditions.Tasek Bera is a peat-accumulating basin in humid tropical Malaysia with organic deposits of low- to high-ash yield and thus representative of many ancient peat-forming environments. Clay minerals dominate the mineralogical composition of the peat and organic-rich sediments, while quartz and clays dominate the underlying siliciclastic deposits. Kaolinite is the most abundant clay mineral in the organic deposits with minor amounts of illite and vermiculite. Particle size analyses indicate that >50% of the inorganic detrital fraction is <2 μm. Most detrital quartz grains range in size from fine silt to fine sand. The fine sand fraction accounts for a maximum of 5 wt.% of the inorganic constituents. In addition, abundant biogenic and non-biogenic, Al- and Si-rich amorphous matter occur. In the ombrotrophic (low-nutrient) environment, biogenic inorganic material contributes up to >75% of the ash constituents. As a consequence, the vegetational communities make an important contribution to the inorganic and overall ash composition of peats and coals. The ash content of the often inundated peat consists on average of 10% opaline silica from diatoms and sponge spicules, while the ash of the top deposits may have up to 50% biogenic silica. Hence, Al- and Si-hydroxides and the opaline silica from diatoms and sponges represent a large repository of Al and Si, which may form the basis of mineral transformation, neoformation and alteration processes during coalification of the peat deposits. As a result, most coal deposits from paleotropical environments are anticipated to have little to no biogenic inorganic material but high amounts of secondary clays, such as kaolinite (detrital kaolinite, resilisified kaolinite, or desilisified gibbsite) or illite, and various amounts of detrital and authigenetic quartz.     

Long-term Arctic peatland dynamics, vegetation and climate history of the Pur-Taz region, Western Siberia

Stratigraphic analyses of peat composition, LOI, pollen, spores, macrofossils, charcoal and AMS ages are used to reconstruct the peatland. vegetation and climatic dynamics in the Pur-Taz region of western Siberia over 5000 years (9300-4500 BP). Section stratigraphy shows many changes from shallow lake sediment to different combinations of forestcd or open sedge, moss, and Equisetum fen and peatland environments. Macrofossil and pollen data indicate that Larix sibirica and Beth pubescens trees were the first to arrive, followed by Picea obovata . The dominance of Picea macrofossils 6000-5000 BP in the Pur-Taz peatland along with regional Picea pollen maxima indicate warmer conditions and movement of the spruce treeline northward at this time. The decline of pollen and macrofossils from all of these tree species in uppermost peats suggests a change in the environment less favorable for their growth, perhaps cooler tempratures and/or less moisture. Of major significance is the evidence for old ages of the uppermost peats in this area of Siberia, suggesting a real lack of peat accumulation in recent millennia or recent oxidation of uppermost peat.     

Sulfur in peat-forming systems of the Okefenokee Swamp and Florida Everglades: origins of sulfur in coal

Six sulfur forms were investigated in profiles of freshwater- and marine-derived peat-forming systems of the Okefenokee Swamp, Georgia and Everglades Swamp, Florida. Total sulfur levels of 0.1–10% were found, thus indicating a major incorporation of sulfur in the very early stages of coal formation. The quantities of hydrogen sulfide and elemental sulfur observed appeared to be indicative of whether marine or freshwater conditions prevailed at the site of deposition. Carbon-bonded sulfur accounted for 70% of the total sulfur in the freshwater peat and 50% of the total sulfur in the marine peat. Over 15% of the total sulfur was in pyritic combination in the marine environment, while levels of pyrite in the freshwater peats were an order of magnitude lower. An ester-sulfate fraction represented 25% of the total sulfur in both freshwater and marine peats. The levels of sulfur forms in the peat profiles are compared to those observed in living plants and to various coals; levels of pyrite and organic sulfur in the peat are similar to those found by other investigators in freshwater-derived and marine-derived coals.     

Blanket mire formation at the Cross Lochs, Sutherland, northern Scotland

A brief review of the genesis of blanket peats is presented, together with detailed analyses of basal peats from northern Scotland. Particular attention is paid to local factors affecting peat growth and the problems of sampling and interpretation arising from them. Macrofossil and loss-on-ignition analyses of four peat-mineral interfaces solve many of the terminological problems of such profiles and indicate that interpretations based on field stratigraphy alone are uncertain. Pollen analyses of two profiles from contrasting microtopographic situations show well-defined vegetational change associated with early peat development. Fully organic ombrotrophic peat is present from 6805 ± 50 BP at one site, following anthropogenic burning from c . 7500 BP and partial recovery of the open birch woodland. A change from birch woodland to Calluna heath occurs at approximately the same time on a more freely drained site with much later peat development, following further burning from 4890 ± 65 BP. Anthropogenic activity is clearly associated with changes in soil and vegetation preceding peat formation, and the role of climatic factors remains equivocal.     

Lithostratigraphy of the Mérida (Wisconsinan) glaciation and Pedregal interstade, Mérida Andes, northwestern Venezuela

At Pedregal, more than 40 m of sediments are exposed within a ‘fan complex’ formed between lateral moraines of the adjacent Mucuchache and El Caballo valleys. Early and late Mérida (Wisconsinan) glaciations are represented by till and till plus proglacial sediments, respectively. A middle Wisconsinan interstadial event, here termed the Pedregal interstade, began at the end of the Early Mérida glaciation at approximately 60 ka BP. Following the retreat of ice from the small Pedregal Basin, a lake formed when the local drainage was blocked due to movement of the Mesa de Caballo along the Boconó Fault. Shallow lake or no-lake phases lasted approximately a few hundred to, at most, 2000 years, and each lake phase was marked by peat accumulation. Four of seven peats identified formed during sufficiently long intervals for soil profiles (incipient to mature Spodosols) also to develop. The Spodosol with the strongest development (Eb/Bsb/Coxb/Cub horizons) is found adjacent to the lowest peat and reflects ongoing early Mérida stadial (MIS 3) conditions; the youngest peats, associated with weak podzolic soils (Eb/Bsb horizons), formed under slightly warmer interstadial conditions, presumably with less soil water. Cyclic lacustrine deposition is related to lake level and relative depth fluctuations, due in part to variable shoreline/delta progradation and shallowing as the lake deepened in general. Whereas final drainage of the lake is related to movement of the Boconó Fault and breach of the moraines that form the Mesa de Caballo, earlier lake level fluctuations appear related to climate change. Radiocarbon dating of the peats suggests they are related to warmer periods and may tentatively correlate with small ‘interstadials’ or ‘D-O events’ detected in the oxygen-isotope record of Greenland ice cores and North Atlantic marine sediments.     

Studies of peat as the input to coalification,I. Rationale and preliminary examination of polysaccharides in peats

It is widely believed that minerals of the huminite and vitrinite groups in coals consist to an important extent of a cross-linked macromolecular network, but in spite of debate that has extended over 60 years or more, the nature of the starting materials for this network, and the manner in which it is formed, are still not satisfactorily settled, though some advances resulting from the use of cross-polarization, magic-angle spinning, ¹³C nuclear magnetic resonance and pyrolysis techniques have been made recently. In a preliminary study peats in two cores from the Florida Everglades were fractionated by procedures adapted from those used in soil science. Measurements of optical rotation and viscometric molecular weights show that the plant polysaccharides are already altered in surface litter. Acid hydrolysates of whole peat and the humic acid and humin fractions gave distributions of sugars different from what is expected from plant polysaccharides; that is, hemicelluloses and α-cellulose seem to have been at least partly destroyed and various bacterial and/or fungal polysaccharides added. Better procedures for the fractionation and analysis of peat are needed.     

海南岛红树林泥炭中硫及其成因研究

海南岛红树林泥炭普遍富硫。黄铁矿、硫酸盐和有机硫是泥炭中硫的三种主要赋存形态,其中,以黄铁矿硫高为特征。利用形态硫分析、硫同位素分析等手段结合硫的时空变化特征,研究了泥炭中硫的形成机理。泥炭中硫的富集与泥炭坪环境具紧密的成因联系,全硫和形态硫的时空变化受微环境的控制;潮坪水介质中的硫酸盐是泥炭中硫的最初来源;泥炭中硫的加入,主要发生于准同生价段,在加入过程中还原硫细菌起了决定性作用。定量沉积环境分析是查明古代富硫煤田硫分布的主要途径。     

Geochemistry of amino acids in some Florida peat accumulations—II. Amino acid distributions

Distributions of amino acids in some Florida peats have been compared with distributions in plants living now at the surface of the peats and in surface litter. Quantitative determinations were made by gas chromatography of volatile derivatives of both protein and non-protein amino acids. The latter. found also in mineral soils, are believed to represent bacterial cell constituents and/or anabolites. α,?-diaminopimelic acid, a constituent of the mureide complex of bacterial cell walls, was found in peats and surface litter, as were other acids believed in soil ecosystems to result from the living processes of microorganisms. The protein amino acids in peats do not show a distinctive signature of any particular kind of organism, but the nature and concentrations of the non-protein acids support the inference that the higher plant constituents are extensively re-worked and that essentially all of the amino acid material in peats is microbial in proximate origin. Thus microbial amino acids appear to be quite significant participants in the input to coalification.     

泥炭与煤形成环境对比研究现状

煤地质学一直偏重于对煤和含煤地层的地层学和沉积学的研究。近３０年来逐渐重视从现代聚煤作用产物－泥炭和泥炭沼泽的角度揭示,印证成煤环境问题。但苦于寻找古代煤层的合适的类比物。８０年代以来,人们逐渐把注意力集中在东南亚热带木本穹丘状高位泥炭的泥炭地,获得了大量数据资料和观察结果,开创了泥炭与煤形成环境对比研究的新局面。     

Analysis of fossil testate amoebae in Selisoo Bog,Estonia: local variability and implications for palaeoecological reconstructions in peatlands

Niinemets, E., Pensa, M. & Charman, D. J. 2010: Analysis of fossil testate amoebae in Selisoo Bog, Estonia: local variability and implications for palaeoecological reconstructions in peatlands. Boreas, 10.1111/j.1502‐3885.2010.00188.x. ISSN 0300‐9483. Local variability in decadal water‐table changes on an ombrotrophic peatland was explored using testate amoebae analysis of near‐surface peats in an Estonian raised bog. The distribution of testate amoebae assemblages was studied along the gradient from hummock to hollow in the upper 30‐cm layer of peat. As expected, testate amoebae assemblages in different micro‐ecotypes from hummock to hollow, even as close as 10 m apart, are distinctly different. Past water‐table change was reconstructed by applying a transfer function based on modern samples from throughout Europe. Results show a decline in water level from the mid‐late 20th century on Selisoo bog in all profiles from the different micro‐ecotypes. However, the absolute water‐table depths and amplitudes of fluctuations vary between reconstructions from different sampling micro‐ecotypes. Cores were correlated using changes in non‐mire pollen concentrations down‐core, but it was not possible to correlate minor changes in water‐table owing to non‐contiguous sampling and variable accumulation rates. We conclude that different microtopes show the same decadal trends in relative water‐table change but that the absolute magnitude of change may be more variable locally. It is important that reconstructed palaeohydrological changes in bogs consider changes in bog micro‐ecotypes, and their variation over time, as this may alter the sensitivity of an individual record to drivers such as climate change. Comparison and compilation of data from parallel cores from different micro‐ecotypes and/or different sites are likely to provide more robust reconstructions.