Coprecipitation of Ti,Mo, Sn and Sb with fluorides and application to determination of B,Ti, Zr,Nb, Mo,Sn, Sb,Hf and Ta by ICP-MS

We examined the coprecipitation behavior of Ti, Mo, Sn and Sb in Ca–Al–Mg fluorides under two different fluoride forming conditions: at < 70 °C in an ultrasonic bath (denoted as the ultrasonic method) and at 245 °C using a Teflon bomb (denoted as the bomb method). In the ultrasonic method, small amounts of Ti, Mo and Sn coprecipitation were observed with 100% Ca and 100% Mg fluorides. No coprecipitation of Ti, Mo, Sn and Sb in Ca–Al–Mg fluorides occurred when the sample was decomposed by the bomb method except for 100% Ca fluoride. Based on our coprecipitation observations, we have developed a simultaneous determination method for B, Ti, Zr, Nb, Mo, Sn, Sb, Hf and Ta by Q-pole type ICP-MS (ICP-QMS) and sector field type ICP-MS (ICP-SFMS). 9–50 mg of samples with Zr–Mo–Sn–Sb–Hf spikes were decomposed by HF using the bomb method and the ultrasonic method with B spike. The sample was then evaporated and re-dissolved into 0.5 mol l^− 1 HF, followed by the removal of fluorides by centrifuging. B, Zr, Mo, Sn, Sb and Hf were measured by ID method. Nb and Ta were measured by the ID-internal standardization method, based on Nb/Mo and Ta/Mo ratios using ICP-QMS, for which pseudo-FI was developed and applied. When 100% recovery yields of Zr and Hf are expected, Nb/Zr and Ta/Hf ratios may also be used. Ti was determined by the ID-internal standardization method, based on the Ti/Nb ratio from ICP-SFMS. Only 0.053 ml sample solution was required for measurement of all 9 elements. Dilution factors of ≤ 340 were aspirated without matrix effects. To demonstrate the applicability of our method, 4 carbonaceous chondrites (Ivuna, Orgueil, Cold Bokkeveld and Allende) as well as GSJ and USGS silicate reference materials of basalts, andesites and peridotites were analyzed. Our analytical results are consistent with previous studies, and the mean reproducibility of each element is 1.0–4.6% for basalts and andesites, and 6.7–11% for peridotites except for TiO₂.     

Metals,arsenic, and sulfur in the Aue and Eibenstock granites,Erzgebirge

Average concentrations of Pb, Zn, Cu, and other metals, as well as S and As, were calculated for the Aue granitic cupola, the contact aureole of which hosts the large vein-type uranium deposit of Schlema-Alberoda and the Schneeberg uranium-base metal deposit (Erzgebirge, Germany). The cupola was exposed by mine workings and boreholes, which provided an opportunity to evaluate variations in the abundances of metals in the granites over a vertical interval of more than 2.5 km and estimate their losses in the upper oxidized part of the investigated volume of the cupola (coefficient of iron oxidation, KO _Fe, increases in the granites from bottom to top from 7 to 70%) compared with the lower unaltered and unoxidized part (with a KO _Fe plateau at about 5%). The average concentrations of metals in the upper part of the cupola are lower than those in the lower part by a factor of 2.5 for Pb, 1.56 for Zn, 1.45 for Cu, 1.3 for Co, etc. A similar decrease in the abundances of ore elements along the vertical section associating with the relative epigenetic alteration and oxidation of the granite was previously described by us for U and Th and for the components of high-temperature ores, W, Sn, and Mo. The removal of ore elements from the granite was accompanied by a decrease in the bulk contents of sulfur and arsenic by a factor of 1.35 and 1.65, respectively. The leaching of trace metals from the granites of the upper part of the Aue cupola was followed by their partial redeposition above the cupola in the ore veins of the Schlema and Schneeberg deposits. Original Russian Text ? Vikt. L. Barsukov, N.T. Sokolova, O.M. Ivanitskii, 2006, published in Geokhimiya, 2006, No. 9, pp. 967–982.     

Interactions between Cd,Cu, Pb,and Zn and four different mine soils

The chemical associations of Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn in four mine soil samples from the Amizour-Bejaia Pb/Zn mine (Algeria) have been investigated by a five-step sequential extraction procedure. Although Cd preferentially binds to carbonates, Cu, Pb, and Zn are mainly associated with the organic and reducible fractions. Batch adsorption experiments with either mono- or multi-metallic solutions are described with the Freundlich isotherm model. Whatever the nature of the soil sample, the sorption behavior for each given metal except Pb is very similar, indicating that the binding sites at the soil surface are progressively occupied by the metal from the solution. On each soil sample, the decreasing order of sorption can be established as Pb >> Cu > Cd > Zn. When the four metals are simultaneously applied to each soil sample, their specific behavior is strongly affected by their interactions and/or competition for the available surface sites: we generally observed isotherm curves with a slight maximum before the plateau at higher solution concentration. Although Cu is only slightly affected by the other metals, in the case of Pb, Cd, and Zn, the sorbed amounts strongly decreased.     

Determination of REE, Y, Nb, Zr, Hf, Ta, Th and U in Geological Reference Materials LSHC-1 and Amf-1 by Solution and Laser Ablation ICP-MS

This paper presents data on REE and Y, Nb, Zr, Hf, Ta, Th and U abundances for two candidate reference materials (RMs), spinel lherzolite LSHC-1 and amphibole Amf-1, being currently developed at the Institute of Geochemistry SB RAS, Irkutsk. To determine the contents of these elements inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry was applied with: (i) solution nebulisation (solution ICP-MS) and (ii) laser ablation (LA-ICP-MS) of fused glass disks. The precision of results obtained by both techniques was better than 6% RSD for most elements. Accuracy was assessed by using the geochemical RMs JB-2, JGb-1 (GSJ) and MAG-1 (USGS). The trace element results by solution ICP-MS for JGb-1 and JB-2 agree with reference values presented by Imai et al. (1995, this Journal) within 1–10%. Significant differences were found for Nb and Ta determinations. The accuracy of LA-ICP-MS results evaluated by RM MAG-1 was within 4%, except for Eu (about 10%). The analytical results obtained for LSHC-1 and Amf-1 by solution ICP-MS and LA-ICP-MS were in good agreement with each other and with INAA and XRF data presented for the certification of these RMs. They can be considered as the indicative values for assigning certified values to the above-mentioned RMs.     

The coagulation,solubility and adsorption properties of Fe,Mn, Cu,Ni, Cd,Co and humic acids in a river water

River water (Water of Luce, Scotland) is used in laboratory experiments designed to investigate physical and chemical properties of Fe. Mn, Cu, Ni, Co, Cd and humic acids in riverine and estuarine systems. Using NaCl, MgCl₂ and CaCl₂ as coagulating agents, coagulation of dissolved (0.4 μm filtered) Fe, Cu, Ni, Cd and humic acids increases in a similar matter with increasing salt molarily: Ca²⁺ is the most dominant coagulating agent. Removal by coagulation with Ca²⁺ at seawater concentrations ranges from large (Fe-80%. HA-60%, Cu-40%) to small (Ni, Cd-15%) to essentially nothing (Cd, Mn-3%). Destabilization of colloids is the indicated mechanism. Solubility-pH measurements show that between a pH of 3 and 9, Fe, Cu, Ni, Mn, Co and Cd are being held in the dissolved phase by naturally occurring organic substances. Between pH of 2.2 and 1.2 a large proportion of dissolved Fe, Cu. Ni and Cd (72, 35,44 and 36% respectively) is precipitated along with the humic acids; in contrast, Mn and Co show little precipitation (3%). Adsorption-pH experiments, using unfiltered river water spiked with Cu, indicate that adsorption of Cu onto suspended particles is inhibited to a large extent by the formation of dissolved Cu-organic complexes.The experimental results demonstrate that solubilities and adsorption properties of certain trace metals in freshwaters can be opposite to those observed with artificial solutions or predicted with chemical models. Interaction with organic substances is a critical factor.     

Chloritoid: Its Composition, X-ray and Optical Properties, Stability, and Occurrence

The nomenclature of the chloritoid group, which includes ottrelite,is reviewed. Five new chemical analyses, and all published analysesthat are considered reliable, indicate that the chloritoid groupcan be represented by the general formula H₂FeAI₂SiO₇ with upto two-fifths of the ferrous iron replaced by magnesium, upto one-sixth by manganese, and up to one-seventh of the aluminiumreplaced by ferric iron. Chloritoid crystallizes in both monoclinicand triclinic polymorphs. The triclinic unit cell is one-halfthe monoclinic unit cell. Both polymorphs are widely distributed;they may be distinguished by their X-ray diffraction powderpatterns. In most monoclinic chloritoids the optic plane isnormal to (010), whereas in most triclinic chloritoids it isnearly parallel to (010). Replacement of iron by magnesium lowersthe indices of refraction. With increasing temperatures chloritoid breaks down to ironcordierite+hercynite+vapour at low pressures and to staurolite+almandine+hercynite+vapourat high pressures. Chloritoid was synthesized only at pressuresof about 10,000 bars, but natural chloritoids were stable athigher pressures. At lower pressures chloritoid was not synthesizedbecause of the persistence of a metastable chamosite with a7 ? basal spacing. Natural chloritoids did not decompose belowabout 600? C at these lower pressures. Stress as defined byHarker is not necessary for the growth of chloritoid. Chloritoid-bearing rocks have a high content of alumina relativeto potash, soda, lime, and mafic components, and have more ferrousoxide than magnesium oxide. In pelitic and lateritic sedimentshaving these characteristics, chloritoid is one of the firstnew minerals to form during regional or contact metamorphism.In higher metamorphic grades it is accompanied by cordierite,andalusite, kyanite, or staurolite. It also grows in hydrothermalveins. Various reactions in which chloritoid is produced orconsumed are presented. ¹Present address: Research Council of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.     

The degassing behavior of Au, Tl, As, Pb, Re, Cd and Bi from silicate liquids: Experiments and applications

We investigate the degassing of volatile heavy metals from natural basalt and dacite and synthetic rhyolite melts doped with Bi, Pb, Tl, Au, Re, Sb, Sn, Cd, Mo, As, Cu in Pt capsules over a range of temperatures (1200-1430 °C) exposed to air at 0.1 MPa. We also investigated the effects of ligands on degassing by adding known concentrations of Cl and S. During the experiments concentration gradients normal to the melt/gas interface arose for the trace metals Au, Tl, As, Cd, Re, Bi and Pb, as shown by measurements by laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) on the quenched glasses. In contrast, erratic concentration gradients occurred for Cu, Mo, Sn, Sb due to the development of compositional cords in the glass for those elements. The diffusivities for Au, Tl, As, Cd, Re, Bi and Pb (in decreasing order of volatility) followed an Arrhenius relationship with log D at 1260 °C varying from −12 to −17. The addition of Cl and S were shown to increase by two-to five-fold the volatilities of all metals, with S having a more profound effect. Diffusivities from the experiments were applied in a bubble growth model to examine the behavior of Tl and Pb in volcanic gases. The Tl/Pb ratio in gases shows much greater variation than can be explained by partitioning and magma composition alone, with diffusion serving to drastically enrich or deplete the Tl/Pb of gases to values significantly different from that of the melt.     

Roles of xenomelts,xenoliths, xenocrysts,xenovolatiles, residues,and skarns in the genesis,transport, and localization of magmatic Fe-Ni-Cu-PGE sulfides and chromite

Most sulfide-rich magmatic Ni-Cu-(PGE) deposits form in dynamic magmatic systems by partial melting S-bearing wall rocks with variable degrees of assimilation of miscible silicate and volatile components, and generation of barren to weakly-mineralized immiscible Fe sulfide xenomelts into which Ni-Cu-Co-PGE partition from the magma. Some exceptionally-thick magmatic Cr deposits may form by partial melting oxide-bearing wall rocks with variable degrees of assimilation of the miscible silicate and volatile components, and generation of barren Fe ± Ti oxide xenocrysts into which Cr-Mg-V ± Ti partition from the magma. The products of these processes are variably preserved as skarns, residues, xenoliths, xenocrysts, xenomelts, and xenovolatiles, which play important to critical roles in ore genesis, transport, localization, and/or modification. Incorporation of barren xenoliths/autoliths may induce small amounts of sulfide/chromite to segregate, but incorporation of sulfide xenomelts or oxide xenocrysts with dynamic upgrading of metal tenors (PGE > Cu > Ni > Co and Cr > V > Ti, respectively) is required to make significant ore deposits. Silicate xenomelts are only rarely preserved, but will be variably depleted in chalcophile and ferrous metals. Less dense felsic xenoliths may aid upward sulfide transport by increasing the effective viscosity and decreasing the bulk density of the magma. Denser mafic or metamorphosed xenoliths may also increase the effective viscosity of the magma, but may aid downward sulfide transport by increasing the bulk density of the magma. Sulfide wets olivine, so olivine xenocrysts may act as filter beds to collect advected finely dispersed sulfide droplets, but other silicates and xenoliths may not be wetted by sulfides. Xenovolatiles may retard settling of – or in some cases float – dense sulfide droplets. Reactions of sulfide melts with felsic country rocks may generate Fe-rich skarns that may allow sulfide melts to fractionate to more extreme Cu-Ni-rich compositions. Xenoliths, xenocrysts, xenomelts, and xenovolatiles are more likely to be preserved in cooler basaltic magmas than in hotter komatiitic magmas, and are more likely to be preserved in less dynamic (less turbulent) systems/domain/phases than in more dynamic (more turbulent) systems/domains/phases. Massive to semi-massive Ni-Cu-PGE and Cr mineralization and xenoliths are often localized within footwall embayments, dilations/jogs in dikes, throats of magma conduits, and the horizontal segments of dike-chonolith and dike-sill complexes, which represent fluid dynamic traps for both ascending and descending sulfides/oxides. If skarns, residues, xenoliths, xenocrysts, xenomelts, and/or xenovolatiles are present, they provide important constraints on ore genesis and they are valuable exploration indicators, but they must be included in elemental and isotopic mass balance calculations.     

Hot-spring travertine facies and sequences, Late Pleistocene, Rapolano Terme, Italy

Late Pleistocene travertines up to 40 m thick near Rapolano Terme in Tuscany, central Italy, were precipitated by hot water issuing from springs on hillsides and flowing into adjacent depressions to mix with rainwater. Proximal light-coloured slope and terrace travertines pass distally into darker reed mound and depression-fill travertines. Lithotypes include crystalline crust, shrub, pisoid, paper-thin raft, coated bubble, reed, and lithoclast-breccia. High precipitation rates resulted in rapid slope aggradation and progradation. Dilution by rainwater likely lowered precipitation rates in depressions, but deposition was augmented by allochthonous material eroded from upslope travertines. Slope Depositional Systems consist of Smooth and Terrace Slope facies characterized by white crystalline crusts, with diverse additional lithotypes in terrace pools. Depression Depositional Systems have mixed light and dark travertines with horizontal to gently concave stratification. Extensive light-coloured Shrub Flat travertine is dominant; darker Marsh-Pool Facies composed of fine lithoclast and reed travertine is localized. Reed Mounds composed of mixed light and dark travertines localized by abundant reed growth, formed where spring water emerged near the bases of low angle slopes. Distal reduction in accretion rate was the major influence on sequence development. Light-coloured slope travertines interdigitate with darker depression deposits. Vertical aggradation of slope deposits, mound progradation, and filling of topographic depressions is expressed by advance and retreat of facies. Evolution from depression to slope or mound sequences is termed ‘steepening up’. Up-sequence change from slope or mound to depression facies is termed ‘levelling up’. Exposure surfaces associated with palaeosols are common in all facies and often constitute sequence boundaries. They are more closely spaced in depression sequences, reflecting slower and possibly also more discontinuous accumulation at sites furthest from hot springs.     

电感耦合等离子体发射光谱法测定钼矿石中钴铬铜钼镍铅锡钨钇锌

采用盐酸-硝酸-氢氟酸-高氯酸-柠檬酸处理样品,电感耦合等离子体发射光谱法同时测定钼矿中钴、铬、铜、钼、镍、铅、锡、钨、钇、锌10个元素,筛选了不同溶矿方法和仪器参数条件。测定的相对标准偏差(RSD,n=11)均小于3.0%,经国家一级钼矿标准物质分析验证,结果与推荐值吻合。     

Sedimentology, stratigraphy, and glacier dynamics, western Scottish Highlands

Glacial sediments of the western Scottish Highlands are comprehensively described and characterized here for the first time, enabling the first glacial stratigraphy for the area to be proposed. This classification is based on the results of extensive geological mapping and field investigation of sedimentary sequences and their structures, X-ray diffraction and particle size distribution analyses, and comparison with deposits formed in contemporary glaciated environments. These new data are subsequently appraised in terms of their implications for late Pleistocene glacier evolution and dynamics. Together, the data suggest that much of the landscape is palimpsest, and can be attributed to the Weichselian (Late Devensian) glaciation. Subsequent glacier advance during the Younger Dryas did little to modify the area, suggesting that ice flow was dominated by sliding on a meltwater-lubricated rigid bed, with deformation of basal sediments playing a more limited role. Final deglaciation was marked by a significant increase in basal meltwater flux, reflecting the warming climate and increasing precipitation. These new palaeoglaciological and palaeoenvironmental insights advance our understanding of former glacier dynamics in the western Scottish Highlands, improve our knowledge of Pleistocene landscape evolution of this area, and enable comparisons to be made with sedimentary sequences elsewhere.     

Mineralogy, Chemistry, and Genesis of the Boninite Series Volcanics, Chichijima, Bonin Islands, Japan

The Bonin archipelago represents an uplifted fore-arc terrainwhich exposes the products of Eocene supra-subduction zone magmatism.Chichijima, at the centre of the chain, represents the typelocality for the high-Mg andesitic lava termed boninite. Therange of extrusives which constitute the boninite series volcanicsare present on Chichijima, and are disposed in the sequenceboninite-andesite-dacite with increasing height in the volcano-stratigraphy.Progression to evolved compositions within the Chichijima boniniteseries is controlled by crystal fractionation from a boniniteparental magma containing 15% MgO. Olivine and clinoenstatiteare the initial liquidus phases, but extraction of enstatiticorthopyroxene, followed by clinopyroxene and plagioclase, isresponsible for the general evolution from boninite, throughandesite, to dacite. Some andesites within the overlying MikazukiyamaFormation are petrographically distinct from the main boniniteseries in containing magnetite phenocrysts and a high proportionof plagioclase. As such, these andesites have affinities withthe calc-alkaline series. Major and trace element data for 74 boninitic series rocks fromChichijima are presented. Although major element variation isdominantly controlled by high-level crystal fractionation, thelarge variations in incompatiable trace element concentrationsat high MgO compositions cannot be explained by this mechanism.Nd, Pb, and Sr isotopic data indicate the following: (1) a strongoverprint on ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr by seawater alteration; (2) Pb isotopeslie above the northern hemisphere reference line (NHRL) andare thus similar to the <30-Ma are and basin lavas of theIzu—Bonin system, and (3) _Nd(40 Ma) ranges between 2.8and 6.8 within the boninite series volcanics. Differences inrare-earth elements (REE), Zr, Ti, and ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd at similardegrees of fractionation can be explained by the addition ofa component of fixed composition from the down-going oceaniccrustal slab to a variably depleted source region within theoverlying wedge. Data presented for Sm/Zr and Ti/Zr indicatethat boninite series volcanics are characterized by low valuesfor both of these ratios. In particular, boninites appear tohave uniquely low Sm/Zr ratios. These characteristics may bethe result of slab melting in the presence of residual amphibole;the resultant melt could combine with typical slab dehydrationfluids and infiltrate the overlying mantle wedge. Such a fluid—meltcomponent could mix either with shallow mantle or directly withprimitive melts from depleted mantle. Trace elements, REE, andisotope data thus point to a model for boninite genesis whichrequires tightly constrained pressure—temperature conditionsin the slab combined with melting of a variably depleted sourcein the overlying wedge. Such constraints are rarely met exceptduring the subduction of juvenile oceanic crust beneath a young,hot overriding plate.     

Mass Fractions of S,Cu, Se,Mo, Ag,Cd, In,Te, Ba,Sm, W,Tl and Bi in Geological Reference Materials and Selected Carbonaceous Chondrites Determined by Isotope Dilution ICP‐MS

Mass fractions of S, Cu, Se, Mo, Ag, Cd, In, Te, Ba, Sm, W and Tl were determined by isotope dilution sector field ICP‐MS in the same sample aliquot of reference materials using HF‐HNO₃ digestion in PFA beakers in pressure bombs and glassy carbon vessels in a high‐pressure asher (HPA‐S) for comparison. Additionally, Bi was determined by internal standardisation relative to Tl. Because isobaric and oxide interferences pose problems for many of these elements, efficient chromatographic separation methods in combination with an Aridus desolvator were employed to minimise interference effects. Repeated digestion and measurement of geological reference materials (BHVO‐1, BHVO‐2, SCo‐1, MAG‐1, MRG‐1 and UB‐N) gave results with < 5% relative intermediate precision (1s) for most elements, except Bi. Replicates of NIST SRM 612 glass digested on a hot plate were analysed by the same methods, and the results agree with reference values mostly within 2% relative deviation. Data for the carbonaceous chondrites Allende, Murchison, Orgueil and Ivuna are also reported. Digestion in a HPA‐S was as efficient as in pressure bombs, but some elements displayed higher blank levels following HPA‐S treatment. Pressure bomb digestion yielded precise data for volatile S, Se and Te, but may result in high blanks for W.     

发射光谱法测定化探样品中的Cu、Pb、Zn、Co、Ag、Sn、Mo和B

以Al2O3、K2S2O7、NaF、C作为缓冲剂与样品混匀,装入石墨电极中,以平头石墨电极为上电极,样品电极为下电极进行摄谱,由光电译谱仪测定谱线的黑度值,以锗为内标用内标法测定样品中Cu、Pb、Zn、Co、Ag、Sn、Mo和B的质量分数。     

Terrestrial geochemistry of Cd,Bi, Tl,Pb, Zn and Rb

About 2000 common magmatic, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks and rockforming minerals contained in 465 individual samples have been analyzed for 6 trace metals and potassium with high precision, mainly by combined distillation and AAS methods. Estimates of average abundances in the continental crust are: 98 ppb Cd. 82 ppb Bi. 490 ppb Tl, 14.8 ppm Pb, 77 ppm Zn and 98 ppm Rb (K/Rb: 223). These averages are close to the mean concentrations of the 6 elements in sedimentary and in low to medium grade metamorphic rocks. In relation to the upper mantle the earth's crust has very effectively accumulated Rb, Pb, Tl (and Bi). Cd and Zn are equally distributed between the upper and lower crust. Bi, Tl, Rb, Pb and K are accumulated in the upper relative to the lower continental crust by factors between 3.5 and 1.4. This is mainly due to higher concentrations in granites and lower abundances in granulites relative to gneisses and schists. The five metals form large ions with bulk coefficients less than one for the partition between metamorphic rocks and anatectic granitic melts. The major hosts of Rb, Tl, Pb and Bi in rocks are minerals with 8- to 12-coordinated sites such as mica, K-feldspar, plagioclase etc. (except for some preference of Bi for sphene and apatite). As examples of significant correlations those of Pb with Tl, K, Bi and Rb in mafic rocks and of Bi with K, Rb, Tl and Pb in sedimentary rocks can be reported. In granites and gneisses hydroxyl containing Fe²⁺-Mg-silicates are major host minerals for Zn and Cd. Except in some carbonate rocks Cd has no preference for Ca minerals.     

Structure of the Lithosphere and Mesozoic Sedimentary Basins in Western Liaoning,Northern Liaoning,and Songliao,Northeast China

The western Liaoning, northern Liaoning, and Songliao areas represent three different tectonic units with different lithospheric thermal-mechanical properties in terms of composition, thickness of the thermal lithosphere, effective elastic thickness, depth of the detachment surface, and strength of the lithosphere. Western Liaoning is characterized by a thick lithosphere with high rigidity and strength, whereas Songliao and northern Liaoning are characterized by relatively thin lithosphere with low rigidity and strength. These differences controlled the development of distinct types of basins under an extensional regime during the Early Cretaceous. The basins in western Liaoning are controlled by faulting rather than by thermal subsidence. The Songliao basin is controlled both by faulting and by thermal subsidence, and thus both syn- and post-rift sequences developed with the same thickness in the center of the basin. In contrast, in northern Liaoning, the basins are mainly controlled by faulting, and to a lesser extent by subsequent thermal subsidence. As a part of east China, where more than 93% of the proven oil reserves of China are distributed, the western Liaoning-northern Liaoning-Songliao area also has attracted considerable attention for its hydrocarbon potential. The Songliao basin is proven to be the largest non-marine petroliferous basin and one of the most important oil- and gas-producing basins in China. In addition, the Tieling-Changtu basin and the Zhezhong depression in northern Liaoning show some petroleum potential. In contrast, basins in western Liaoning represent a limited prospect for oil and gas.     

Triassic rift-related komatiite, picrite and basalt, Pelagonian continental margin, Greece

A wide range of Triassic rift-related volcanic rocks is preserved on the extensional continental margin of the central part of the Pelagonian micro-continental block of Greece, in the region of northern Evia Island and Othris. This part of the continental margin is unusual for the abundance of lavas, the wide range of lava types, and the presence of komatiitic lavas. The predominant rock types are subalkaline basalt and basaltic andesite, mildly alkaline basalt and picrite, and minor komatiite. Four groups of mafic rocks are distinguished from the 32 samples analyzed on the basis of variation in incompatible trace elements, with all but one group including both picritic and basaltic rocks. The geochemical character of the volcanic rocks suggests derivation from inhomogenous, spinel-bearing, lithospheric mantle. This mantle source was variably depleted and moderately refertilized by subduction-related fluids during earlier Hercynian subduction. The picrites were generated by variable degrees of partial melting, which are inferred to inversely correlate with pressure, thus suggesting decompression melting of their source. Evidence is lacking for a major mantle plume, but the enhanced magmatism in this sector of the rifted margin suggests that melting was induced by a large amount of hydration, which is appropriate to generate melts at lower temperatures. Consequent fractionation coupled with crustal assimilation generated the wide range of subalkaline to mildly alkaline mafic rocks.     

Macrotextures,microtextures, and carbonate-sulfide relationships in stratiform,carbonate-hosted Zn-Pb orebodies of Silvermines,Ireland

Ore-stage carbonates of the Silvermines stratiform orebodies have increased Zn and Pb and high Fe and Mn content. A major microtexture observed is produced by the replacement of carbonate allochems by dolomite, Fe dolomite, and siderite followed by the replacement of carbonates by sulfides. Generally, the process of replacement took place while the former fabric of the host carbonates was preserved. The reactivity of metal carbonates with sulfur favored the concentration of Pb and Zn in the sulfide and of Fe and Mn in the carbonate form. Sulfide-carbonate reactions probably maintained a high permeability in the ore zone over an extended period of time eventually producing a high-grade ore from solutions rich in Fe and Mn but poor in Zn and Pb. Initial porosity and permeability created by gravity flows controlled the mineralizing process at the beginning, but later stages were probably controlled by replacements, i.e., sulfide-carbonate reactions.     

Political ecology,development, and human exceptionalism

The sub-discipline of Political Ecology devotes much critical attention to the complex and often pernicious socio-ecological impacts of mainstream development - developmentality - across the world. However, despite the ’ecology’ in its name, Political Ecology continues to be predominantly anthropocentric which, we contend, compromises its critique of developmentality’s excesses. Drawing on recent literatures in philosophy, political theory, and human geography, we argue that both the more-than-human and social impacts of developmentality are enabled by zoöpolitical logics of human exceptionalism which support anthropocentrism. We suggest that the adverse effects of development are co-constituted with the positive vision of human wellbeing which runs through developmentality. Thus, an effective critique of development will necessarily have to address the zoöpolitical logics that underpin anthropocentrism. Doing so will strengthen the rigour of political ecology’s engagement with developmentality and widen its attention to the diversity of life harmed by mainstream development.     

Speciation and Mobility of Selected Trace Metals (As, Cu, Mn, Pb and Zn) in Sediment with Depth in Cam River-Mouth, Haiphong, Vietnam

The speciation and mobility of some selected trace metals (As, Cu, Mn, Pb and Zn) in sediments with depth was investigated in the Cam River-mouth (Vietnam) by collecting sediment cores and analysing porewater and sediment composition, complemented with single (ammonium-EDTA) and sequential (BCR 3-step) extractions and mineralogical analysis (XRD). All trace metals show overall decreasing trends with depth in porewater as a result of anthropogenic input in upper sediment layers. High porewater concentrations of As, Mn and Pb in oxic and suboxic sediment layers may result in groundwater pollution. Sediment-bound Pb and Mn dominate in the reducible and the acid-soluble fraction, respectively, while Cu and Zn distribute rather evenly between four extracted fractions. The porewater metal speciation, as predicted by a geochemical model Visual MINTEQ version 3.0, indicates that the toxicity of Cu, Mn, Pb and Zn (presented by the proportions of free metal ions) decreases with depth, while the toxicity of As increases when As(III) becomes more abundant. The dissolved concentrations of trace metals are not only controlled by the precipitation/dissolution of discrete hydroxide/oxide, carbonate and phosphate minerals, but also by sorption processes on major sorbents (i.e. As on goethite, and Mn and Zn on calcite and dolomite). Sulphide minerals do not show any control even in the anoxic zone most likely because of the low concentration of sulphur.