Fluxes of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons to marine and lacustrine sediments in the northeastern United States

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) were measured in dated sediment cores from several sites in the northeastern United States (Lake Superior, Isle Royale, Somes Sound, Hadlock Lower Pond. Coburn Mountain Pond, and outer Boston Harbor). Fluxes of ten PAH were measured for each site for the periods roughly corresponding to the present, 1950, and 1900. Remote sites consistently demonstrated present-day deliveries of individual PAH near 1 ng cm^?2 yr^?1, probably reflecting the atmospheric fallout of these combustion-derived pollutants. Sites located nearer to urban centers showed much greater current inputs (average of 35 ng cm^?2 yr^?1 for most individual PAH), presumably caused by greater fallout of PAH-laden particles nearer their urban origins, augmented by runoff delivery of PAH-contaminated sediments. Differences in the relative abundances of individual PAH at remote-versus-urban locations support suggestions of different delivery mechanisms. The sedimentary historical records of PAH inputs confirm the previous finding that anthropogenic activities began introducing large quantities of PAH into the environment about 80–100 years ago.     

Diatom changes in sediments of basins possessing marine/lacustrine transitions in Frosta, Nord-Trøndelag, Norway

Diatoms in lower sediments from eight basins of the Frosta peninsula, Nord-Trødelag, Norway, have been analysed. All the basins have been isolated from the sea, and a succession from a flora influenced by marine and brackish water to a freshwater flora is always found. An attempt is made to establish a relative salinity range for the fjord basin around the investigated area, from the Younger Dryas chronozone to the end of the Atlantic chronozone. These changes seem to be controlled by the accumulation and ablation of the ice shield and also by major climatic changes in the early and middle Holocene. It is not possible to make a general list of lagoon taxa, because of great variation from basin to basin. The isolation contact (marine/brackish boundary) must be established at the end of the brackish water flora in the absence of lagoon types. The first period after isolation is characterized by a maximum in productivity with dominance of alkaliphilous types among the diatoms. A pioneer flora with dominance of Fragilaria taxa can be traced in the uppermost basins which were isolated just after the deglaciation of the area     

西藏盐湖沉积物：一种潜在的铷、铯资源

铷、铯是我国战略性关键矿产资源。西藏盐湖卤水中赋存着丰富的铷、铯资源,但是品位普遍低于10 mg/L。根据热泉与盐湖锂、铷、铯等元素的补给关系和含量差异特征及铷、铯极易被黏土矿物吸附等特点,推测盐湖沉积物中赋存一定规模的铷、铯资源。为验证该推测,本文选取西藏拉果错、聂尔错、依布茶卡、当穹错、扎布耶茶卡等5个典型盐湖,采集卤水和沉积物样品各5件,开展水体中铷、铯含量和沉积物矿物成分分析,结合沉积物分相淋滤实验,得出如下结论：西藏拉果错、当穹错、聂尔错盐湖卤水铷、铯含量和资源量与其补给量差异显著,大量的铷、铯资源消耗于盐湖沉积物中;盐湖沉积物中的铷、铯含量远高于卤水。铷、铯在沉积物水溶相、碳酸盐相中含量较低,主要以吸附形式赋存于黏土矿物(主要为伊利石),吸附点位包括基面位置、难解吸的磨损边缘及层间位置。盐湖沉积物铷、铯资源量远超大型矿床规模,黏土矿物中铷、铯含量高达100 n×10-6,超过固体盐类矿产综合评价指标,相较于现有盐湖钾产品中的铷资源、含铯硅华中的铯资源开发,具有较好的开发利用性,是一种潜在的铷、铯资源。本研究成果有助于完善盐湖铷、铯富集成矿机制,并为高效开发盐湖中的铷、铯资源提供理论支撑。     

MIS 3 marine and lacustrine sediments at Kriegers Flak,southwestern Baltic Sea

Anjar, J., Larsen, N. K., Björck, S., Adrielsson, L. & Filipsson, H. L. 2010: MIS 3 marine and lacustrine sediments at Kriegers Flak, southwestern Baltic Sea. Boreas, 10.1111/j.1502‐3885.2010.00139.x. ISSN 0300‐9483. Sediment cores from the Kriegers Flak area in the southwestern Baltic Sea show a distinct lithological succession, starting with a lower diamict that is overlain by a c. 10 m thick clay unit that contains peat, gyttja and other organic remains. On top follows an upper diamict that is inter‐layered with sorted sediments and overlain by an upward‐coarsening sequence with molluscs. In this paper we focus on the clay unit, which has been subdivided into three subunits: (A) lower clay with benthic foraminifera and with diamict beds in the lower part; (B) thin beds of gyttja and peat, which have been radiocarbon‐dated to 31–35 ¹⁴C kyr BP (c. 36–41 cal. kyr BP); and (C) upper clay unit. Based on the preliminary results we suggest the following depositional model: fine‐grained sediments interbedded with diamict in the lower part (subunit A) were deposited in a brackish basin during a retreat of the Scandinavian Ice Sheet, probably during the Middle Weichselian. Around 40 kyr BP the area turned into a wetland with small ponds (subunit B). A transgression, possibly caused by the damming of the Baltic Basin during the Kattegat advance at 29 kyr BP, led to the deposition of massive clay (subunit C). The data presented here provide new information about the paleoenvironmental changes occurring in the Baltic Basin following the Middle Weichselian glaciation.     

Authigenic associations between selected rare earth elements and trace metals in lacustrine sediments

Surficial sediment samples were collected at 47 stations in Little Traverse Bay, Lake Michigan, to determine the geochemical associations between certain rare earth elements (REE's) and trace metals. Each sample was analyzed for carbonate carbon, organic carbon, grain size, and the elements Al, Ca, Ce, Co, Cr, Eu, Fe, Hf, La, and Mn. Two distinct Ce subpopulatins were identified by graphical analysis, and an R-mode factor analysis was applied to data from the “enriched” Ce subpopulation (18 samples). Results show that the REE's and trace metals are primarily enriched in the authigenic phase of these sediments. Partial correlation analyses indicate that the REE's are primarily associated with hydrous Fe oxides relative to organic matter in this phase. The ratio of Ce/La concentrations increased markedly from the bay margins to the central trough of the bay, indicating that Ce, similar to Fe, exhibits a variable oxidation state in the authigenic phase of nearshore fine-grained sediments. The results of the present study suggest that the REE's and trace metals behave coherently in the authigenic phase of recent lacustrine sediments, and the REE's may be useful as geochemical tracers to differentiate between trace metal enrichments in surface sediments as a result of diagenesis and pollution loadings.     

Clay minerals in recent sediments of the World Ocean and their relation to types of lithogenesis

Problem of the distribution of clay minerals in water areas of the World Ocean and their relation to different (humid, arid, and volcanosedimentary) types of lithogenesis is considered. It is shown that layer silicates can be used as index minerals for distinguishing types of lithogenesis under conditions of marine sedimentation. Humid marine lithogenesis is represented by sediments of the White, Baltic, Black, and Mediterranean seas. Genetic link of marine clay formation with soil-climatic zones is clearly manifested in recent sediments of the World Ocean. Accumulation of statistic data on the mineral composition of clays allowed us to distinguish two modes of spatial-latitudinal distribution of clay minerals: maximal concentrations of illites and chlorites are confined to high latitudes, whereas kaolinite and smectite accumulate in the equatorial zone. In the arid lithogenesis, the dependence of clay formation on drainage areas is practically absent. The whole process is realized in surficial sediments and bottom waters: under conditions of intense evaporation, especially in closed water basins, the concentration of elements in the medium is enough for the synthesis of layer silicates, such as palygorskite and sepiolite. The processes were studied based on the Paleogene Fergana Bay and bottom sediments of the Sea of Aral, as well as DSDP core materials from the Atlantic (near the western coast of Africa) and Indian (the Arabian Peninsula area) oceans. The investigation of processes of volcanosedimentary lithogenesis was carried out within the East Pacific Rise (on the basis of core materials obtained during cruises of R/V Dmitry Mendeleev and Akademik Kurchatov). The results obtained made it possible to establish authigenic (primarily celadonite) K-Fe mineralization in the most active geothermal zones. The formation of clay minerals has specific features in each of the studied (humid, arid, and volcanosedimentary) types of lithogenesis. This should be taken into consideration during the lithological investigations and the study of clay mineralogy of past geological epochs. Clay minerals (particularly, unstable mixed-layered phases) are actively used as index minerals for paleogeographic and climatologic reconstructions.     

海底沉积物中不同形式烃类气体的地球化学意义

顶空气法和酸解烃法将东沙群岛海域海底浅表层沉积物中不同形式的烃类气体释放出来,通过分析两类气体在沉积物中的含量及其甲烷碳同位素,发现两类气体的成因和来源不同。笔者认为,相对而言,吸附气(包裹气)反映的是一种更为早期的信息,而游离气(溶解气)则更具有“现代性”。笔者进一步认为,两类气体的不同形成过程,对于天然气水合物调查具有不同的意义,其中游离气(溶解气)具有直接的指示意义,而吸附气(包裹气)可能指示成岩时沉积物中的空间信息。     

Reaction time scales for sulphate reduction in sediments of acidic pit lakes and its relation to in-lake acidity neutralisation

Sulphate reduction is a key reaction to remove acidity from water bodies affected by acid mine drainage. In this study, ³⁵SSO₄²⁻ reduction rates determined in sediments from a variety of acidic lignite pit lakes have been compiled. The rates decreased with pH and are strongly dependent on carbon substrate. The rates were fitted to a Monod model adapted to the specific conditions of acidic pit lakes (APL) sediments: i) sulphate reduction rate is independent from sulphate concentration due to the high concentration typically observed in APL systems (10–30 mM), ii) the observed pH dependency of sulphate reduction was accounted for by an inhibition function F_inihibt which considers the occurrence of low cell numbers of sulphate reducing bacteria at pH values < 4.75. Simulated steady-state sulphate reduction rates are predicting measured rates at carbon substrate concentrations of <10 μM. Estimated steady-state reaction time scales range between 2.4 h at pH 7 and 41 h at pH 3 at a carbon half-saturation constant of K_C−S = 100 μM and are increasing with increasing K_C−S values. Time scales at low pH are too long to allow for significant generation of alkalinity during the time of residence of groundwater passing through the top and hence most reactive zone of APL sediments which has important implications for the remediation of acidic pit lakes.     

Thermal alteration experiments on organic matter from recent marine sediments in relation to petroleum genesis

Three fractions of organic matter: lipid (benzene:methanol-extractable), humic acid (alkali-extractable) and kerogen (residue) were extracted from a young marine sediment (Tanner Basin, offshore southern California) and heated for different times (5–116 hr) and temperatures (150°–410°C). The volatile (gases) and liquid products, as well as residual material, were then analyzed. On a weight basis, the lipid fraction produced 58% of the total identified n-alkanes, the kerogen fraction 41%, and the humic acid <1%. Whereas n-alkanes produced from lipid show a CPI > 1.0, those produced by thermal alteration of kerogen display a CPI < 1.0. The volatiles produced by heating the lipid and humic acid fractions were largely CO₂ and water, whereas those produced from heated kerogen also included methane, hydrogen gas and small amounts of C₂–C₄ hydrocarbons. A mechanism for hydrocarbon production due to the thermal alteration of organic constituents of marine sediment is discussed.     

Characterisation of marine and lacustrine sediments in a drowned thermokarst embayment, Richards Island, Beaufort Sea, Canada

A multidisciplinary study was made of lakes and lagoons in a thermokarst embayment on Richards Island, Canadian Beaufort Sea, in order to investigate the response of the Mackenzie Delta shoreline to changing hydrological influences. Seismo-acoustic profiles made from an amphibious vehicle, combined with sediment core data, show that the deepest lakes contain up to 10 m of transparent or stratified silty mud overlying the Kittigazuit sand basement. Palynological and microfossil data from 21 surface samples allow delineation of freshwater, saltmarsh, tidal flat and subtidal assemblages. These modern reference data allow distinction of freshwater and marine facies in the cores and subsequent interpretation of geochemical content (carbon, ammonia, sulphate). Radiocarbon dates and ¹³⁷ Cs show that sedimentation rates have increased by an order of magnitude since drowning of the embayment during the past millennium, and that most of this sediment is from the Mackenzie River plume.     

Quaternary sediments in the northwestern part of the Barents Sea and their relation to the underlying Mesozoic bedrock

A sedimentological study of Quaternary sediments from the northwestern part of the Barents Sea shows that their composition is controlled by the underlying Mesozoic bedrock and that very little sediment has been supplied from outside sources. The Quaternary sediments consist of Pleistocene glacial clays (moraines) and Holocene gravel, sand and mud, derived by erosion of the clay-rich moraines, which again have been derived from underlying Mesozoic rocks. On the shallow Spitsbergen Bank (30-100 m depth) we find a high energy facies of bioclastic carbonate sand and gravel and lag deposits of Mesozoic rock fragments from the underlying moraine. ¹⁴C-datings of the bioclastic carbonates (Molluscs and Barnacles) suggest that soft bottom conditions with Mya truncata prevailed in early Holocene time, succeeded by a hard bottom high energy environment with Barnacles in the last 2000-3000 years. This may be due to a southward movement of the oceanic polar front into the Spitsbergen Bank due to colder climate in Late Holocene (subatlantic) time, which at present day produces strong bottom currents down to 100 m depth. On the Spitsbergen Bank carbonate sedimentation has succeeded glacial sedimentation as a result of withdrawal of clastic sediment supply in Holocene time and high organic productivity because of upwelling. A similar mechanism may have been operating during earlier glaciations, i.e. in Late Precambrian time to produce an association of glacial and carbonate sediments although the biological precipitation was different at that time. In Late Precambrian time precipitation or carbonate by algaes may have occurred in colder water on the shelves due to higher saturation of carbonate in the sea water.     

Relationship between sediments and their igneous source rocks using clay mineral multi-element chemistry: the Cenozoic lacustrine Anloua basin (Adamaoua, Cameroon)

The Cenozoic lacustrine basin of Anloua (Adamaoua, Cameroon), is filled with the weathering products of the surrounding rocks. In order to determine the origin of these sediments, multi-element, especially trace element, analysis of their < 2 μm fraction was undertaken. The chemical compositions of these fractions were compared with those of the rocks surrounding the basin by multivariate statistical analysis and also graphically. A principal component analysis allowed the most discriminant elements to be selected, and a hierarchical ascending classification (HAC) made with these elements divided the samples into groups. Some of these groups contain < 2 μm fractions of both the lake sediments and surrounding rocks. These sediments are determined as deriving by weathering from the surrounding rocks. Some of the other groups contain no samples from the surrounding rocks and their petrographic origin cannot be given. A graphic comparison of the relative amounts of the elements (determined by HAC) from the < 2 μm fractions of the various groups and the rocks surrounding the basin allowed attribution of a petrographic origin for the various sediments analysed by using the fit between the curves.

The clay mineralogy, the amounts of Ti, Zr, and heavy minerals in the < 2 μm fractions and their distribution in the area studied, as well as the presence of angular quartzite pebbles in some sediments gives an indication of the paleogeography of the Anloua basin. There was deltaic input towards the north and a high energy input, possibly torrential, to the west.     

咸化湖盆混积岩成因机理研究

关于海相及淡水湖盆混积岩的研究已相对完善,而针对咸化湖盆混积岩理论的形成及实践应用却鲜有报道,本文旨在系统地阐述咸化湖盆混积岩的成因机理、沉积模式、分布规律,对比其与一般混积岩沉积特征的异同点,并探讨其与油气富集特征的相关性。本文采用矿物学、微观岩石学分析方法进行混积岩矿物组成、沉积特征、储集空间类型研究,采取地质统计分析方法明确混积岩分布规律,并运用物性分析方法对比不同类型混积岩的储集性能。结合柴达木盆地西北区新近系混积岩研究实例,本文创新性地提出了欠补偿咸化湖盆的混积岩成因类型：机械成因的相混合混积岩和生物成因的藻混合混积岩。相混合又可划分为两种亚类：互层型混合、组构型混合;藻混合亦可划分为两种亚类：藻粘结混合、滑塌再混合。建立了咸化湖盆混积岩的沉积模式：混积岩主要发育于三角洲、水下扇、滩坝等碎屑岩沉积体系与湖相碳酸盐岩沉积体系的过渡相带以及藻灰岩发育区。明确了混积岩的分布规律,可归纳为“盆缘互层型、盆内组构型、藻混合局限分布”。混积岩沉积特征对比分析结果表明,任何环境下混积岩形成的先决条件均为碳酸盐岩的生长和聚集,而不同于淡水湖盆及海相混积岩沉积厚度大,生物含量高等特点,咸化湖盆混积岩单层厚度极薄,并发育特殊的藻混积岩类。综合研究认为,藻混合混积岩与油气储层的相关性要大于相混合混积岩。以上成果可为咸化湖盆混积岩,乃至陆相湖泊混合沉积物的成因类型及油气地质意义研究提供借鉴与参考。     

Oncolites from lacustrine sediments in the Cretaceous of north-eastern Spain

Compact micritic oncolites up to 8 cm in maximum diameter occur within Maestrichtian (Upper Cretaceous) Garumniense continental marls of Sierra del Montsec (Lerida Province) of north-eastern Spain. Synsedimentary development is documented by patches of terrigenous quartz that occur among oncolitic protuberances. Soluble nuclei (limestone fragments and bivalves) further suggest an origin through accretion, rather than that of soil pisolite. Similarities between the petrography and isotopic compositions of the oncolites and those of interbedded Garumniense limestones suggest similar sedimentary origins. However, these lacustrine oncolites, like modern counterparts described by others, probably developed through in situ metabolic precipitation of calcium carbonate. Evidence of this origin is their high degree of concentricity, which is unlikely to have developed through sedimentary accretion, inasmuch as the oncolites ‘float’ in quiet-water marls.     

湖相烃源岩中的火山—热液深源物质与油气生成耦合关系研究进展*

陆内湖相烃源岩系是中国含油气盆地广泛发育的一类组分复杂且富含有机质的细粒沉积岩。随着非常规油气资源需求量日益增加,该岩系被作为致密油或页岩油层系受到广泛关注。然而,其极细的粒度增加了精细岩石学、矿物学研究难度,使它长期被简单视为陆源沉积岩。研究发现,该岩系中发育丰富的火山喷发及热液喷流产生的深源物质,并与油气的生成和富集表现出了极强的耦合关系。因此,探索深源物质如何参与烃源岩形成并影响油气生成亟待深入研究。作者详细总结并探讨了国内外近年来关于湖相烃源岩成因以及火山—热液活动带来的深源物质与油气形成关系的现阶段新发现与认识。并结合笔者研究团队基于新疆三塘湖盆地二叠系芦草沟组烃源岩的新发现,采用精细的岩石学、矿物学方法,结合无机和有机地球化学等方法,初步开展了该耦合关系的机理研究。认为火山—热液深源物质参与了烃源岩的沉积与成岩作用,并与正常湖相沉积物共同影响着油气的形成。建议重新认识湖相烃源岩的物质组成,从而拓展陆相生油理论,同时为同类型非常规油气资源勘探开发提供理论指导。     

Albeluvisol development with time in loamy marine sediments of southern Norway

This paper reports a study on soil development in loamy marine sediments on both sides of the Oslofjord (Vestfold, Østfold). This region has been subject to steady glacio-isostatic uplift during the whole Holocene. Hence, land surface age continuously increases from the coast inland. Several sea level curves, based on radiocarbon datings, enable estimation of land surface age for all locations. Clay illuviation starts in less than 1650 years. E horizons become lighter with age, but their lower boundary stays around 40 cm for more than 10 000 years. Albeluvic tongues develop between 4600 and 6200 years. Initially, they form along intersections of cracks. As preferential flow and leaching along the cracks continues, the tongues increase in length and width, progressively consuming the prisms between the cracks in the upper Bt horizon. The Fe_d/Fe_t ratios (weighted means of the upper meter) show a clear linear increase with soil age and may be used for “pedo-dating”, i.e. for estimating the ages of non-dated land surfaces covered with similar sediments. In contrast, the logarithmic decrease of base saturation and pH, with rapid changes in the first time but only very slight changes between 2000 and 10 000 years, makes these parameters unsuitable for “pedo-dating”.     

TL dating studies of tephra, loess and lacustrine sediments

A brief review is presented of my efforts to improve the accuracy of dating unheated sediments by TL and of the development of a new tephrochronometer. Specific applications to known-age deposits are outlined, as are studies of the depositional environment of subaqueous sediments. Removal of anomalous fading in loess by storage at 75°C for 8 days is demostrated.Throughout, for unheated sediments the preferential use of the partial bleach (R-gamma or R-beta) technique is emphasized, especially in situations where the growth curves are sublinear. Contrary to a widespread misconception, sublinearity does not invalidate the partial bleach method. Furthermore, examples are given of TL ‘sensitivity’ (or ‘efficiency’) changes occurring with the regeneration technique — changes that are variable and seemingly sample dependent.     

磷灰石对湖泊沉积物中水铁矿稳定性的制约

通过在滇池开展原位实验,研究探讨了湖泊沉积物中磷灰石制约水铁矿分解和转化的机制,以及二者共存时的环境效应。结果表明:将水铁矿放置到沉积物中1个月,矿物保持稳定;放置时间达到3个月时,添加磷灰石实验中水铁矿发生了显著物相转变。冬天(12—2月)实验中,转化产物随深度的变化趋势为针铁矿+磁(赤)铁矿→针铁矿+纤铁矿→针铁矿;夏天(6—9月)实验中,转化产物随深度的变化趋势为针铁矿+纤铁矿+磁(赤)铁矿→针铁矿+纤铁矿→未转化。透射电镜分析结果显示冬天实验中生成的磁性铁氧化物为纳米磁铁矿和磁赤铁矿,夏天实验中产生的则主要为纳米磁铁矿。X射线光电子能谱分析结果显示冬天表层实验样品具有较高P含量。分析表明的湖泊沉积物中磷灰石促进水铁矿转化的过程为:(1)微生物促进磷灰石溶解;(2)磷灰石溶解释放的P促进铁还原菌生长;(3)铁还原菌促进水铁矿还原;(4)水铁矿还原产生的溶解态Fe²⁺催化水铁矿向针铁矿、纤铁矿和磁铁矿转化。冬天及沉积氧化-还原界面最适宜磷灰石分解菌和铁还原菌生长,水铁矿的转化和P释放能力也更强,相应地内源磷释放的风险也更大。     

137Cs in sediments of deep lakes

Sedimentation rate of suspensions (0.3–18.2 mm/yr) was determined on the basis of layer-by-layer distribution of ¹³⁷Cs (global and Chernobyl) in the cores of bottom sediments (BS) from 16 lakes located in the high and moderate latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere. Profiles of ¹³⁷Cs concentration in the BS cores were analyzed. Sedimentation rates in the limnic zones of deep-water lakes were calculated using ¹³⁷Cs accumulated in the finely-dispersed component of mineral suspension.     

新疆阿尔泰全新世双湖沉积物正构烷烃分布及其环境意义

文章对新疆阿尔泰双湖沉积物进行了古气候、古环境变化研究。双湖（48°52'N,87°02'E）位于阿尔泰山中部,是山谷岩石滑塌阻塞形成的堰塞湖,湖长约1200m,宽度约300m,最大水深9m。项目使用重力钻在双湖中心钻取了172cm无扰动岩芯,根据核素测年（¹³⁷Cs,²¹⁰Pb,AMS¹⁴C）建立了9.1cal. ka B.P.以来的时间标尺,以正构烷烃分布特征（ACL_23~33、nC₂₇/nC₃₁、P_aq）为指标,重建了该区的古植被、古气候变化。沉积物中正构烷烃以高碳数为主,中长链正构烷烃存在显著的奇碳优势。链长指标（ACL_23~33）、nC₂₇/nC₃₁指标、P_aq之间具有很强的相关性关系,表明指标可能受到相似的气候驱动因素影响,反映了区域植被和湖泊水生生物的演替历史：9.1~8.8cal. ka B.P.期间水生植被输入较少,陆生植被中草本植物相对占比较高;8.8~3.3cal. ka B.P.期间大型水生植物大量繁殖,汇水区木本植物增多;3.3cal. ka B.P.至今湖泊周围的木本植物减少,草本植物相对占比增多,水生植物输入减少。双湖沉积物ACL_23~33指标自9.1cal. ka B.P.以来呈逐渐增加的趋势,可能表明温度逐渐增加,这一结果与前人在该区利用泥炭br-GDGT重建的温度序列具有相似的变化趋势,但在百-千年尺度上,温度变化不一致,可能与指标的敏感性和定年精度有关。