Quaternary clay mineralogy in the northern South China Sea (ODP Site 1146)

Measurement of clay mineralogy at ODP Site 1146 in the northern South China Sea (SCS) indicates that illite, chlorite, and kaolinite contents increased during glacials and smectite content increased during interglacials. The smectite/(illite+chlorite) ratio and the smectite abundance were determined as mineralogical indicators for the East Asian monsoon evolution. At a 10 ka timescale, prevailing southeasterly surface oceanic currents during interglacials transported more smectite from the south and east areas to the north, showing a strengthened summer monsoon circulation, whereas dominated counter-clockwise surface currents during glacials carried more illite and chlorite from Taiwan as well as from the Yangtze River via the Luzon Strait to the northern SCS, indicating a strongly intensified winter monsoon. Based on a 100 ka timescale, a linear correlation between the smectite/(illite+chlorite) ratio and the sedimentation rate reflects that the winter monsoon has prevailed in the northern SCS in the intervals 2000–1200 ka and 400–0 ka and the summer monsoon did the same in the interval 1200–400 ka. The evolution of the summer monsoon provides an almost linear response to the summer insolation of Northern Hemisphere, implying an astronomical forcing of the East Asian monsoon evolution.     

Quaternary clay mineralogy in the northern South China Sea (ODP Site 1146) —— Implications for oceanic current transport and East Asian monsoon evolution

The East Asian monsoon system is a thermodynamic atmospheric circulation induced by the different potential heating between the 揥estern Pacific Warm Pool?(WPWP) and the Asian continent. The circulation patterns dominate seasonal patterns of winds, preci…     

Distribution and significance of hydrothermal alteration minerals in the Tuzla hydrothermal system, Çanakkale, Turkey

Hydrothermal alteration zones have been investigated by X-ray diffraction, mineralogical–petrographical techniques, and geochemical analysis. Examination of cores and cuttings from two drill sites, obtained from a depth of about 814–1020 m, show that the hydrothermal minerals occuring in the rock include: K-feldspar, albite, chlorite, alunite, kaolinite, smectite, illite, and opaque minerals.In the studied area, silicified, smectite, illite, alunite, and opal zones have been recognized. These alteration mineral assemblages indicate that there are geothermal fluids, which have temperatures of 150–220°C in the reservoir.The distribution of the hydrothermal minerals shows changes in the chemical composition of the hydrothermal fluid, which are probably due not only to interaction with host rock, but also to dilution of the Na–K–Cl-rich hydrothermal fluid of the deep reservoir by cold sea water at shallow levels. Geochemical analyses of the solid and liquid phases indicate that the hydrothermal fluids of the Tuzla geothermal system are in equilibrium with alteration products.The tectonic structure of the studied area is caused by NW–SE and NE–SW directional forces. The volcanic rocks where hydrothermal zones are observed in the studied area are of Lower–Middle Miocene age comprise latite, andesite, dacite, rhyolite-type lavas, tuff, and ignimbrites.     

Characterising the hydrothermal alteration of the Broadlands–Ohaaki geothermal system, New Zealand, using short-wave infrared spectroscopy

Hydrothermal clay minerals present in the Broadlands–Ohaaki geothermal field were characterised by field portable short-wave infrared spectroscopy. Three major alteration zones, an upper smectite, a middle illite and a lower illite–chlorite, are spectrally separable. The zoning pattern is generally consistent with the thermal structure of the geothermal field, although occasionally zone boundaries cut present-day isotherms. The data indicate that temperature is the major control on clay zoning and permeability plays a subordinate role.Both beidellite and montmorillonite are common in the upper, low-temperature smectite zone. Kaolinite, mainly of low crystallinity, marks the margin of the field where cool acidic ground waters inflow. In the middle alteration zone, illite, dominantly K-rich, shows a narrow compositional variability. Some highly permeable zones are characterised by illite with low octahedral Al contents. Ammonium-bearing illite and buddingtonite are present locally in permeable horizons within the illite zone, where temperatures are above 200°C. Chlorite is most abundant in the lower alteration zone (temperature >250°C), although it also occurs unevenly in the upper and middle alteration zones. Chlorite varies from Mg- to Fe-rich varieties (but mostly with Mg# values <0.5), but no compositional trends with respect to depth are spectrally detectable.     

Petrology of Philippine geothermal systems and the application of alteration mineralogy to their assessment

Philippine geothermal systems occur in the vicinity of large Holocene calc-alkaline volcanic complexes. Wells drilled in these areas encountered multiple intrusions; the latest dikes are the subsurface manifestations of the youngest heat source. Commonly, at least two hydrothermal regimes are juxtaposed in a single area, with the latest being in equilibrium with the present temperature and chemical regime.Alteration by neutral-pH water is pervasive and abundant. A contact-metamorphic aureole also occurs near intrusives. Alteration due to acid-sulfate fluids is generally confined to permeable structures. Neutral-pH alteration is divided into four zones on the basis of key clay minerals, and two subzones are defined by calc-silicates. These are the smectite (ambient to 180°C), transition (180–230°C), illite (230–320°C) and biotite (270–340°C) zones. Subzones are defined by epidote (250–340°C) and amphibole (280–340°C). The four main zones of acid alteration are: kaolinite (ambient to 120°C), dickite ± kaolinite (120–200°C), dickite ± pyrophyllite (200–250°C), and pyrophyllite ± illite (230–320°C). Where relict high-temperature alteration reaches the surface, the area being drilled is usually the outflow zone of the present system.These hydrothermal mineral assemblages are used: (1) as geothermometers; (2) to assist in determining the depth at which the production casing will be set during drilling; (3) to estimate fluid pH and other chemical parameters; (4) to predict possible corrosion and scaling tendencies of the fluids; (5) as a measure of permeability and possible cold water influx into wells; (6) as a guide to field hydrology; and (7) to estimate roughly the thickness of the eroded overburden.     

K/Ar dates of hydrothermal clays from core hole VC-2B, Valles caldera, New Mexico and their relation to alteration in a large hydrothermal system

Seventeen K/Ar dates were obtained on illitic clays within Valles caldera (1.13 Ma) to investigate the impact of hydrothermal alteration on Quaternary to Precambrian intracaldera and pre-caldera rocks in a large, long-lived hydrothermal system ( 1.0 Ma to present). Clay samples came from scientific core hole VC-2B (295°C at 1762 m) which was spudded in the Sulphur Springs thermal area and drilled into the boundary between the central resurgent dome and the western ring-fracture zone. Six illitic clays within Quaternary caldera-fill debris flow, tuffaceous sediment, and ash-flow tuff (48 to 587 m depth) yield ages from 0.35 to 1.09 Ma. Illite from Miocene pre-caldera sandstone (765 m) gives an age of 6.74 Ma. Two dates on illite from sandstones in Permian red beds (1008 and 1187 m) are 4.33 and 4.07 Ma, respectively. Surprisingly, three dates on illites from altered andesite pebbles within the red beds (1010–1014 m) are 0.95 to 1.06 Ma. Four illite dates on variably altered Precambrian quartz monzonite (1615–1762 m) range from 2.90 to 276 Ma.Post-Valles age illite is not correlated with alteration style (argillic to propylitic). Rather, post-Valles ages are uniformly obtained from illites in highly fractured, intensely altered, caldera-fill rocks and the Permian volcanic clasts. Generally, finer clay fractions from identical samples yield younger ages. Plots of ⁴⁰Ar/³⁶Ar versus ⁴⁰K/³⁶Ar and ⁴⁰Ar* versus ⁴⁰K for the illites in caldera-fill rocks lie close to a 1-Ma isochron. Most illite dates older than Valles caldera are difficult to interpret because they correspond to the ages of pre-Valles volcanic and hydrothermal episodes in the Jemez volcanic field ( 13 Ma). In addition, older dates may be caused by co-mingling of different illites during sample preparation, or by inherited argon or lost argon in illites from rocks with potentially complex hydrothermal histories. However, the range of ages obtained from illites in Permian sands and pebbles and from Precambrian crystalline rocks indicates that Valles hydrothermal activity is overwhelming illite produced by earlier geologic events.     

Mineralogy and physical nature of clay gouge

Fault gouges have been observed in the surface outcrops, in shallow excavations, and in deep (300 meters below the surface) tunnels and mines in fault zones. The 2-microns fractions in these fault gouges may compose a few percent to more than fifty percent of the total mass in the outcrops, and the mineralogy of the 2-microns fractions consists of a variety of clays (the common ones are montmorillonite, illite, kaolinite, chlorite, vermiculite and mixed-layer clays) and some quartz, feldspars, etc.Although we cannot yet conclude directly from the studies of gouges that similar gouges exist at depths where many large shallow earthquakes are generated, there is a strong possibility that they do, based on (1) available equilibrium data on various clays — for example, kaolinite has been found to exist at 4 kb and 375°C (±15°C) (Thompson, 1970) and montmorillonite + kaolite has been found to exist at 450°C and 4 kb (Velde, 1969); (2) the compatibility of laboratory velocity data in gouge (Wang et al., 1977) with those in a model for central California (Healy andPeake, 1975); (3) the capability of clays to undergo sudden earthquake-like displacements (Summers andByerlee, 1977); (4) the petrology of intrafault cataclastic rocks in old fault zones (Kasza, 1977); and (5) the compatibility of gouge mineralogy with the mineralogy of hydrothermal clay deposits.If clay gouges are indeed significant components of the fault zone at depth, then the mechanical properties of clays under confining pressures up to 4 kb are important in the behavior of faults. Very few experiments have been performed under such high pressures. But from the physical makeup of clays, we can infer that (1) the range of possible behavior includes stable sliding with vermiculite and montmorillonite (asByerlee andSummers, 1977, have proven) to stick-slip-like behavior with kaolinite, chlorite, etc.; (2) the absence or presence of water will greatly affect the strengths of gouges — it is possible that water may reduce the strength of gouge to a fairly small value.     

Bentonites in the Chalk of central eastern England and their relation to the opening of the Northeast Atlantic

Within the post-Cenomanian Chalk sequence of central eastern England about 20 thin persistent marl horizons occur. These marls contain from 30 to 65% non-carbonate material the bulk of which is composed of a well crystallised Mg-rich smectite with a notable paucity of illite and quartz. The Chalk matrix above and below the marls contains up to 2.0% of non-carbonate matter which again is dominated by the presence of an Mg-rich smectite but which contains a larger proportion of illite and quartz than occurs in the marls. For both sets of non-carbonate materials the excellent crystallinity and Mg-rich nature of the smectite strongly suggest that it was formed by the in situ alteration of an aeolian transported volcanic ash, i.e. it is a true bentonite. Quartz and illite in the Chalk matrix are probably detrital components.Relative to a standard shale, non-carbonate materials from the Chalk marl horizons exhibit a highly anomalous trace element pattern with accentuated levels of Zr, Nb and Th but depleted levels of Ba, Rb and K. This trace element chemistry corroborates a volcanogenic origin for the smectite insofar as it is not explicable in terms of any realistic sedimentary process. The chemistry is best interpreted in terms of the magnetic processes responsible for the formation of the original ash precursor of the marls. It appears that this precursor had a pantelleritic composition and therefore originated from a source overlying an area where incipient continental rifting was taking place.Micromorphological examinations prove that residues from the Chalk marls contain small amounts of pyroclastic debris, including pumice and fragments of sideromelane glass. The morphology of the fragments suggests that the volcanic eruptions responsible for the ejection of the original ash into the air were of the shallow-water phreatomagmatic (Surtseyan) type.The distribution of marls in the Chalk of eastern England suggests that the ashfalls responsible for their origin were of the tropospheric type and were drawn by westerly winds from a centre to the west or northwest of mainland Britain. Of the numerous volcanic centres that lie in offshore areas to the west, the Anton Dohrn Seamount in the Rockall Trough appears to a likely centre of origin for the ashfalls. However, ashfalls responsible for the formation of the traces of smectite in the Chalk matrix were probably of the general background (stratospheric) type and may have been drawn from more distant centres.Volcanism at the Anton Dohrn Seamount was related to tensional effects in the continental crust that immediately preceded the formation of the Rockall Trough and the separation of Greenland from northwestern Europe during Tertiary times. Activity at the centre, and Cretaceous bentonites derived therefrom, therefore represent the earliest stages in the development of the Thulean igneous province.     

Mineralogical characteristics of airborne particles collected in Beijing during a severe Asian dust storm period in spring 2002

Asian dust storm (ADS) samples were collected on March 20,2002 in Beijing,China. High-resolution field emission scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray detector (FESEM-EDX) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) were used to study the morphology,chemical compositions,number-size dis-tributions and mineralogical compositions of ADS particles. The mineral particles were major compo-nents in the ADS samples,accounting for 94% by number. The XRD analysis indicated that the dust particles were dominated by clay (40.3%),and quartz (19.5%),followed by plagioclase (8.4%),calcite (7.5%),K-feldspar (1.5%),hematite (0.9%),pyrite (0.9%),hornblende (0.4%) and gypsum (0.3%),with a certain amount of noncrystalline materials (20.3%). Clay minerals were mainly illite/smectite mixed lay-ers (78%),followed by illite (9%),kaolinite (6%),and chlorite (7%). In addition to these main minerals,FESEM-EDX also detected some trace minerals,such as dolomite,pyrite,thenardite,as well as heavy minerals represented by rutile,ilmenite and apatite. The mineralogical compositions of the 2002-03-20 Asian dust storm and the Saharan dust plumes were similar but the clay mineralogy showed a great distinction,with the illite/smectite mixed layers being common in the Asian dust storm but illite being common in the Saharan dust plumes.     

Seasonal acceleration of the rate of total ozone decreases over Central Europe: impact of tropopause height changes

Total ozone data from some European stations have been analyzed to detect the ozone decrease in different seasons from 1979 to 1995. The differences between the winter–spring (December–March) and summer (May–August) total ozone means have decreased distinctly during the last three decades, by 10 Dobson Units per decade, showing that the winter–spring decrease is significantly stronger than the summer one. Applying a multiple regression model to the monthly means of tropopause height, positive trends in the summer and winter–spring seasons have been found, especially since 1979. This corresponds to the accelerating ozone decrease then. The possibility of using tropopause height variations as an indicator of dynamical variability in the total ozone trend model is discussed. The total ozone response to the changes of tropopause height seems to be independent of timescale over which the tropopause-total ozone relationship has been examined (month-to-month, interannual). The total ozone trends, as well as the accelerated rate of ozone decrease since 1979 in the winter–spring and summer seasons, respectively, are reduced by about 0.5–1% per decade after inclusion of the tropopause height effect on the ozone model.     

临夏盆地新近纪郭泥沟剖面磁组构特征及其环境意义

临夏盆地在东亚新生代地层、古气候、古生物研究方面占有举足轻重的地位.本文对盆地东部的郭泥沟剖面进行了详细的岩石磁学和磁组构研究,以揭示从早中新世到早上新世临夏盆地的沉积演化过程.郭泥沟剖面沉积物中的磁性矿物有磁铁矿、磁赤铁矿、赤铁矿和针铁矿,但剩磁载体以磁铁矿和赤铁矿为主.从上庄组和东乡组的褐红色粉砂质粘土到柳树组和何王家组的褐黄色粘土,赤铁矿含量呈现降低的趋势,与沉积物颜色变化一致.郭泥沟剖面沉积物磁组构类型为正常沉积磁组构.结合岩石磁学结果和磁组构参数特征可揭示临夏盆地早中新世-早上新世沉积的演化过程：早中新世上庄组为稳定湖相沉积,古水流方向为NNW,与南北向的大夏河方向一致;中中新世气候发生较明显的干湿波动,形成了东乡组的褐红色湖相粉砂质粘土夹粉砂、砂和青灰色泥灰质粘土条带,古水流方向主要为NNW,沉积过程主要受大夏河控制;中中新世晚期,受青藏高原构造运动影响,沉积相由湖相细粒沉积物转变为虎家梁组河流相砂砾层;同时,盆地的水动力条件也发生改变,晚中新世柳树组湖相沉积过程同时受南北向大夏河和东西向洮河控制,两个方向近垂直的河流共同作用导致柳树组内沉积各向异性度较低,面理和线理均不发育,磁化率最大轴偏角分布比较分散,磁组构确定的古流向为东西向和南北向;早上新世期间,由于受青藏高原隆升影响,沉积了何王家组下部的河流相砂砾层;受构造抬升影响,大夏河重新主导何王家组上部洪泛平原相沉积过程,水动力条件较为单一稳定,古流向主要为N向,与大夏河流向一致.

     

虹口八角庙-深溪沟炭质泥岩同震断层泥的X射线衍射分析结果

5.12汶川地震同震地表破裂带在虹口八角-深溪沟一带主要出露于三叠系须家河组的炭质泥岩中,同震断层泥在颜色、结构上与老断层泥和围岩类似。通过开挖探槽,系统采样,采用粉晶X射线衍射定量分析方法,研究了同震地表破裂带的围岩、断层角砾岩、老断层泥和新断层泥的矿物成分特征。同震断层泥的主要成分为石英和黏土矿物,含微量长石和白云石;断层泥的显著特征为高黏土矿物含量,从同震断层泥、老断层泥、角砾岩到围岩黏土矿物含量依次降低,黏土矿物以伊利石和伊蒙混层为主,含微量绿泥石和高岭石,矿物组成明显比地表破裂带北段同震断层泥简单。不同颜色的同震断层泥成分略有不同,黑色断层泥中伊利石含量明显高于白色断层泥;老断层泥中含有方解石和白云石,而同震断层泥不含方解石,只含微量白云石。同震断层泥中伊蒙混层高含量表明,在本次地震错动中有富含K的流体参与。     

Clay minerals in the late Quaternary sediment of Tulare Lake,California: Implications for climate change,weathering, and erosion processes

The clay mineralogy of Tulare Lake sediment was examined to investigate hydroclimatic and environmental changes in the southern Sierra Nevada Mountains (SNM) since the most recent glacial maximum. Evolution of clay mineral assemblages elucidates significant changes in weathering, erosion, and hydroclimatic condition in the catchment. During the last glacial period (24.4–15.1 cal ka BP), low illite content implies less physical erosion of the granitic batholith rocks and a cold and arid environment in the southern SNM. Abrupt increases of illite content at 21.8–20.8 and 17.6 cal ka BP resulted from the glacier advances to the ablation zone and illite-rich glacier flour was transported down to the lake. The gradual increase of smectite induced by progressive depletion of illite-rich glacier flour from 17.6 cal ka BP toward the end of this period indicates climate was beginning to get warm and wet. From 11.9 to 5.3 cal ka BP, two warm and wet periods (10.7–9.4 and 8.2–5.2 cal ka BP) were characterized by high smectite/illite content ratios and low illite crystallinity values, suggesting intensive rainfall precipitation and more physical erosion in the highland and lowland catchment as well as more smectite formation in the terrace soils. Since the last glacial period, physical erosion, in comparison to the chemical weathering, was the dominant process responding to the hydroclimatic change in the Tulare Lake catchment. Moderate to weak chemical weathering was signified by the mostly low illite chemical weathering index of the core sediments. Such results suggest that vegetation cover in the southern SNM was low and limited.     

East Asian paleoclimate change in the Weihe Basin(central China)since the middle Eocene revealed by clay mineral analysis

Obtaining a continuous sedimentary record of Cenozoic East Asian paleoclimate change is key to understand the origin, evolution and driving mechanism of the East Asian monsoon and climate change. Based on the continuous Cenozoic fluvial and lacustrine sedimentary sequence in the Weihe Basin, central China, we carried out research on the content and crystal parameters of clay minerals. The paleoclimate change since the middle Eocene was reconstructed accordingly. The results show that smectite and illite are the dominant clay minerals in fluvial-lacustrine sediments of Weihe Basin. The crystallinity of illite,the chemical index of illite, the ratio of smectite to illite and chlorite decrease gradually, which indicates that chemical weathering in the Weihe River watershed stepwise weakened since the middle Eocene, under the background of a semi-arid and semi-humid climate. The formation of palygorskite may be affected by a weak diagenesis. In this case, the content of smectite and the illite crystallinity caused by the weathering in the corresponding period may be actually higher than that of the current,which indicates that the climate in the Weihe Basin region was relatively warm and humid from the middle Eocene to Pliocene.With the decrease of Cenozoic global temperature and the continuous accumulation of sediments, the intensity of chemical weathering in the Weihe Basin gradually weakened, and the East Asian monsoon climate gradually evolved until becoming dry in the Quaternary. Evidence from clay minerals also indicates that the aridification in the Weihe Basin from the late Eocene to the Oligocene may be a response to the global cooling event at the Eocene-Oligocene transition.     

Investigations on Mineralogical and Chemical Composition of Suspended Particulate Matter (SPM) in the Odra Estuary

In order to recognize lateral and seasonal variations in composition of suspended particulate matter (SPM) in the Odra Estuary, samples were taken at four sites in the period July 1996 - July 1997 monthly if possible. The contents of the elements Si, Ti, Al, Fe, Mn, Mg, Ca, Na, K, P, C, S as well as Ba, Cr, Sr, V, Zn, Cu, Zr, and of the minerals illite, chlorite, smectite, kaolinite and others have been determined. The decreasing influence of the river Odra towards the open sea could be realized with the help of the contents of the minerals quartz, smectite, and of the elements Ba, Cr, K, P, Si and other. 60% of the seasonal and lateral variations can be explained by changing contents of total carbon (TC), total organic carbon (TOC), Al, Fe, Si, Ti, P, Mn, and Ba. They are mainly caused by differences in the production of organic matter, resuspension, riverine input, and redox-sensitive processes.     

Transmissivity variations in mudstones

Many people in sub-Saharan Africa have to rely on meager water resources within mudstones for their only water supply. Although mudstones have been extensively researched for their low permeability behavior, little research has been undertaken to examine their ability to provide sustainable water supplies. To investigate the factors controlling the occurrence of usable ground water in mudstone environments, an area of Cretaceous mudstones in southeastern Nigeria was studied over a 3 yr period. Transmissivity (T) variations in a range of mudstone environments were studied. The investigations demonstrate that within the top 40 m of mudstones, transmissivity can be sufficient to develop village water supplies (T > 1 m2/d). Transmissivity is controlled by two factors: low-grade metamorphism and the presence of other, subordinate, lithologies within the mudstones. Largely unaltered mudstones (early diagenetic zone), comprising mainly smectite clays, are mostly unfractured and have a low T of < 0.1 m2/d. Mudstones that have undergone limited metamorphism (late diagenetic zone) comprise mixed layered illite/smectite clays, and ground water is found in widely spaced fracture zones (T > 1 m2/d in large fracture zones; T < 0.1 m2/d away from fracture zones). Mudstones that have been further altered and approach the anchizone comprise illite clays, are pervasively fractured, and have the highest transmissivity values (T > 4 m2/d). Dolerite intrusions in unaltered, smectitic mudstones are highly fractured with transmissivity in the range of 1 < T < 60 m2/d. Thin limestone and sandstone layers can also enhance transmissivity sufficiently to provide community water supplies.     

OSL dating of fine-grained quartz from Holocene Yangtze delta sediments

Holocene flood events in the Yangtze River are associated with variations in East Asian Summer Monsoon (EASM) precipitation, and so Yangtze delta sediments may preserve information about the frequency and magnitude of EASM precipitation. These flood/drought cycles of the EASM directly affect the living standards of East Asian population. However, despite its importance, little chronological control is available for the Yangtze Delta sediments; because biogenic carbonate only occurs sporadically, it has proved the difficulty to discuss sedimentation mechanisms and rates in any detail.In 2013 two sediment cores (YD13-G3 and H1) were taken from the Yangtze subaqueous delta to investigate precipitation history. In this study, we investigate the potential of quartz OSL dating of the fine silt fraction (fine-grained quartz; 4–11 μm) from these cores to estimate the depositional age of the sediments. We test whether: (1) Yangtze subaqueous delta sediments contain quartz with suitable characteristics for dating, and (2) quartz grains are well-bleached during/before the transportation process, by examining a modern analogue of suspended particulate matter, and by cross-checking with the doses derived from infrared stimulated luminescence (IRSL) signals (both IR₅₀ and pIRIR₁₆₀) from feldspar in polymineral fine grains. We find that both the quartz and feldspar luminescence characteristics are satisfactory (quartz dose recovery ratio 1.067 ± 0.004; n = 250, pIRIR₁₆₀ dose recovery ratio 1.01 ± 0.02; n = 151). Modern suspended particulate matter has measured quartz equivalent doses between 0.1 and 0.2 Gy, suggesting that this material was sufficiently bleached during/before transportation to allow dating of Holocene sediments (mean dose rates of ∼3 Gy ka⁻¹). OSL ages of 44 samples from the 2 cores show apparently rapid accumulation at ∼6 ka between 9.65 and 5.50 m in core H1 and ∼2 ka throughout core G3 and between 5.0 and 0.0 m in core H1. The pIRIR₁₆₀ signals suggest less light exposure of the core top sediments and of those from the transition layer between ∼6 ka to ∼2 ka, although there is no evidence for incomplete bleaching of quartz. The question remains as to whether significant deposition took place only at these two times, or whether the record has been disturbed by erosion/reworking.     

Clay mineralogy of the first and second members of the Nenjiang Formation,Songliao Basin: Implications for paleoenvironment in the Late Cretaceous

The first and second members of the Nenjiang Formation (K₂n¹⁺²) in the Songliao Basin, northeast China, are an interval of dark-colored mudstone. Paleoenvironmental studies of these strata are useful for understanding the terrestrial environment under a greenhouse climate and hydrocarbon accumulation in lake basins. In this study, clay mineralogy of the K₂n¹⁺² from four borehole or outcrop sections is investigated to understand terrestrial paleoenvironment during the depositional period in the Late Cretaceous. In the mudstone samples, smectite and illite are the predominant clay minerals, and were derived from weathering of parent rocks in a temperate, sub-humid to sub-arid climate; kaolinite and chlorite are minor clay species. The difference in the clay-mineral assemblages between the eastern and western margins of the basin was primarily controlled by provenance lithology, and the high smectite content in the western basin resulted from alteration of volcanic rocks exposed in the Greater Xing’an Range area. The increasing illite content and ratio of illite/smectite percentages in the upper part of the first member of the Nenjiang Formation indicate paleoenvironmental change. This temporal change in the clay-mineral composition was primarily caused by a regionally cooler and drier paleoclimate, consistent with previous paleoenvironmental reconstructions.     

Aquifer chemistry of the Puga and Chumatang high temperature geothermal systems in India

Results of a chemical study of the fluids from drill holes and hot springs of Puga and Chumatang areas in the northwestern part of the Himalaya are presented and discussed in this paper. The thermal waters of Puga and Chumatang are of Na-HCO₃-Cl and Na-HCO₃ types, respectively. A comparison between these waters, their chemical classification and activity studies suggest a flow path within a quartzitic-schistose basement, containing quartz, K-feldspar and illite, and in clayey terrains containing montmorillonite and illite.The chemistry of thermal waters also indicate their association with magmatic activity. The chemical geothermometers indicate the possible existence of a geothermal reservoir at Puga with temperature ≈250°C. The Chumatang area has a comparatively cooler reservoir with a temperature of 150–180°C.     

Characteristics,extent and origin of hydrothermal alteration at Mount Rainier Volcano,Cascades Arc,USA: Implications for debris-flow hazards and mineral deposits

Hydrothermal alteration at Mount Rainier waxed and waned over the 500,000-year episodic growth of the edifice. Hydrothermal minerals and their stable-isotope compositions in samples collected from outcrop and as clasts from Holocene debris-flow deposits identify three distinct hypogene argillic/advanced argillic hydrothermal environments: magmatic-hydrothermal, steam-heated, and magmatic steam (fumarolic), with minor superimposed supergene alteration. The 3.8 km³ Osceola Mudflow (5600 y BP) and coeval phreatomagmatic F tephra contain the highest temperature and most deeply formed hydrothermal minerals. Relatively deeply formed magmatic-hydrothermal alteration minerals and associations in clasts include quartz (residual silica), quartz–alunite, quartz–topaz, quartz–pyrophyllite, quartz–dickite/kaolinite, and quartz–illite (all with pyrite). Clasts of smectite–pyrite and steam-heated opal–alunite–kaolinite are also common in the Osceola Mudflow. In contrast, the Paradise lahar, formed by collapse of the summit or near-summit of the edifice at about the same time, contains only smectite–pyrite and near-surface steam-heated and fumarolic alteration minerals. Younger debris-flow deposits on the west side of the volcano (Round Pass and distal Electron Mudflows) contain only low-temperature smectite–pyrite assemblages, whereas the proximal Electron Mudflow and a < 100 y BP rock avalanche on Tahoma Glacier also contain magmatic-hydrothermal alteration minerals that are exposed in the avalanche headwall of Sunset Amphitheater, reflecting progressive incision into deeper near-conduit alteration products that formed at higher temperatures.