南海东北部硫酸盐还原-甲烷厌氧氧化界面——海底强烈甲烷渗溢的记录

南海东北部沉积物顶空气甲烷含量较高,海底存在明显的甲烷渗溢现象。该海域6个沉积物岩心的孔隙水硫酸盐浓度和顶空气甲烷含量随深度变化而变化,出现明显的硫酸盐-甲烷互相消耗区域,硫酸盐和甲烷浓度均急剧下降。HD109、HD170、HD196A、HD200、HD319和GC10等6个岩心的硫酸盐还原-甲烷厌氧氧化界面(SMI)分别位于704、911、728、636、888、792cm处,完全落入全球水合物区富甲烷环境的SMI深度范围之内。强烈的甲烷渗溢过程使得硫酸盐-甲烷互相消耗作用加剧,并形成浅的SMI。浅的SMI显示了东北部存在强烈的甲烷渗溢活动以及强烈的甲烷厌氧氧化作用,具有天然气水合物成藏的典型特征。     

南海北部陆坡沉积物硫酸盐-甲烷反应界面深度的空间变化及其对甲烷水合物赋存状态差异性的指示意义

海洋沉积物中的硫酸盐-甲烷反应界面（SMI）的深度变化能够指示下伏甲烷水合物的赋存状态。本文通过对南海北部陆坡天然气水合物潜在分布区沉积物间隙水化学和自生碳酸盐氧、碳同位素组成资料系统分析和对比,探讨了南海北部陆坡沉积物的SMI深度空间变化对下伏甲烷水合物的赋存状态的指示意义。结果表明,南海北部陆坡沉积物的SMI的深度呈现出从西南-东北变浅的趋势,这一趋势与自生碳酸盐的碳同位素组成揭示的甲烷释放量增大趋势有很好的对应关系,进而表明在南海北部陆坡从西南-东北甲烷水合物的埋藏深度变浅或者甲烷水合物的分解程度增大。     

硫酸盐-甲烷界面与甲烷通量及下伏天然气水合物赋存的关系

硫酸盐-甲烷界面在富甲烷和含天然气水合物的海洋沉积区已经成为一个重要的生物地球化学识别边界。在硫酸盐-甲烷界面之上,沉积物中的硫酸盐因参与分解有机质和甲烷厌氧氧化反应而被消耗,而其界面之下沉积物中的甲烷则不断生成,含量逐渐增加。根据该界面附近硫酸盐浓度和甲烷浓度的变化特征,可以判断该区甲烷流体通量的大小,从而指示下伏天然气水合物的可能赋存状况。南海北部陆坡的柱状沉积物孔隙水数据的分析显示,硫酸盐-甲烷界面埋深比较浅,表明该海域的甲烷通量较高。这种高甲烷通量很可能是由下伏的天然气水合物所引起的,并暗示着该区下伏海底可能有天然气水合物沉积层赋存。     

硫酸盐-甲烷界面与甲烷通量及下伏水合物赋存的关系

硫酸盐-甲烷界面在富甲烷和含天然气水合物的海洋沉积区已经成为一个重要的生物地球化学识别边界.在硫酸盐-甲烷界面之上,沉积物中的硫酸盐因参与分解有机质和甲烷厌氧氧化反应而被消耗,而界面之下沉积物中的甲烷则不断生成,含量逐渐增加.根据该界面附近硫酸盐浓度和甲烷浓度的变化特征,可以判断该区甲烷流体通量的大小,从而指示下伏天然气水合物的可能赋存状况.南海北部陆坡的柱状沉积物孔隙水数据的分析显示,其硫酸盐-甲烷界面埋深比较浅,表明该海域的甲烷通量较高.这种高甲烷通量很可能是由下伏的天然气水合物所引起的,并暗示着该区下伏海底可能有天然气水合物沉积层赋存.     

珠江口及其邻近海域沉积物甲烷-硫酸根界面分布深度及影响因素

利用化学和稳定同位素化学等方法分析研究区沉积物间隙水甲烷和硫酸根、pH和∑CO2以及δ^13C—CH4和δ^13C—ECO2的垂直剖面分布。结果显示,间隙水硫酸根浓度呈线性梯度减小,至沉积物甲烷-硫酸盐界面（sulfate-methane interface,SMI）附近,硫酸盐几乎全部消耗而甲烷浓度急剧增大;与此同时,间隙水pH和∑CO2在该深度位置明显升高。间隙水地球化学特征揭示了沉积物发生了AOM作用。在AOM过程中,由于^12CH4氧化速率较^13CH4快,故引起沉积物间隙水剩余甲烷的碳同位素偏重,而δ^13C—ZCO2值变为极负,珠江口QA11—2、QA12-9、QA12—14和GS-1四个站位SMI对应深度分别为12cm、38cm、50cm和204cm,而南海BD-7站位由间隙水硫酸根剖面变化推算约为600cm。从珠江河口到南海沉积物,由于受陆源输入的减少,表层沉积物有机质含量呈降低趋势。有机质输入量及其活性的高低是制约了沉积物SMI分布深浅的关键因素,这是由于高含量的活性有机质一方面可加速间隙水硫酸根通过有机质再矿化分解作用途径消耗;另一方面可引起向上扩散进入AOM反应带的甲烷通量增大,使得通过AOM作用的硫酸根消耗通量相应增大,其结果造成沉积物SMI的上移。根据沉积物C／N比值以及^13C剖面变化,推断AOM作用的可能发生机制是由于在沉积物表层再矿化作用过程中,因一部分活性有机质被大量消耗,导致进入沉积物硫酸根还原带底部的活性有机质数量相应减少,从而引起部分硫酸根转为与甲烷发生反应,并在微生物的作用下完成AOM过程。     

南海东沙东北部甲烷缺氧氧化作用的生物标志化合物及其碳同位素组成

南海东沙东北部碳酸盐岩和泥质沉积物中的生物标志化合物组合及其碳同位素组成分析表明,研究区内甲烷缺氧氧化作用(anaerobic oxidation of methane-AOM)发育.研究区内碳酸盐岩中含丰富的AOM标志化合物,2,6,11,15-四甲基十六烷(Crocetane-Cr.)、2,6,10,15,19-五甲基番茄烷(Pentamethylicosane-PMI)和2,6,10,15,19,23-六甲基二十四烷(Squalane-Sq角鲨烷)的13C亏损强烈(δ13C值介于-74.2‰~-119.0‰PDB之间),表明碳酸盐岩形成于AOM,同时反映该研究区曾发生过强烈、持续的富CH₄流体释放活动.柱状泥质沉积物中,AOM生物标志化合物在硫酸岩-甲烷过渡带(SMI-Sulfate-Methane Interface)边界附近相对丰度高,SMI之上样品中含量低,或未检出,表明现代环境在SMI附近有大量嗜甲烷微生物生长,使得深部上升的甲烷被大量消耗,很少有甲烷逸出海底.AOM生物标志化合物可用来指示SMI边界.不同站位、不同岩性AOM生物标志化合物组成(包括碳同位素组成)的差异反映了嗜甲烷古细菌组成的不同.     

红树林湿地沉积物硫酸盐-甲烷界面分布特征及其影响因素研究

利用孔隙水化学和稳定同位素化学等方法分析珠江口红树林湿地沉积层孔隙水硫酸根(SO_4~(2-))、游离甲烷气体(CH_4)、总溶解无机碳(DIC)以及δ13CDIC的垂直剖面分布特征.结果显示,孔隙水SO_4~(2-)浓度自表至底呈线性梯度减小,至硫酸盐-甲烷界面(SMI)附近,硫酸盐几乎全部消耗,而CH_4浓度急剧增大,KC1、KC3、KC4、K17和K10等5个站位SMI深度分别为20、50、70、80、50 cm,SMI深度由红树林湿地林间向光滩逐渐增大.同时,孔隙水DIC浓度在该深度明显升高,沉积物发生强烈的甲烷厌氧氧化(AOM)作用.在AOM过程中,由于12CH_4氧化速率较13CH_4快,故引起沉积物孔隙水δ13CDIC偏轻.沉积层中的有机质含量及其活性高低是制约沉积物SMI分布深浅的关键因素,高含量的活性有机质可加速孔隙水SO_4~(2-)再矿化过程的消耗,使得通过AOM作用的SO_4~(2-)消耗通量相应增大.在微生物作用下,部分活性有机质被大量消耗,致使进入沉积物SO_4~(2-)还原带的活性有机质数量相应减少,从而引起部分SO_4~(2-)转为与CH_4发生反应促进AOM作用.     

深海冷泉古菌厌氧甲烷氧化研究进展

在富含甲烷水合物的海相冷泉沉积物中, 古菌厌氧甲烷氧化作用(anaerobic oxidation of methane, AOM)越来越受到人们的重视。目前普遍认为, AOM是由嗜甲烷古菌和硫酸盐还原菌共同调节的生物地球化学过程。16S rRNA基因分析表明, 包括AEME-1、AEME-2和AEME-3在内的多种甲烷古菌参与了AOM的过程, 它们广泛分布于全球大洋海底缺氧带。AOM过程与全球环境变化密切相关, 从深海底部冷泉区向上渗漏的甲烷气体, 绝大部分在穿透缺氧带沉积层过程中被甲烷氧化古菌所消耗, 有效减少了具有强烈温室效应的甲烷气体向大气的释放。对AOM生物地球化学过程的研究, 在认识冷泉系统碳酸盐的形成机理、控制强温室气体甲烷从海底的渗漏和开发可燃冰新能源等方面具有重要意义。     

海洋孔隙水的硫酸盐剖面在底层气体水合物甲烷通量中的指示

海洋孔隙水的硫酸盐剖面在底层气体水合物甲烷通量中的指示ＷａｌｔｅｒＳ．Ｂｏｒｏｗｓｋｉ等微生物硫酸盐的减少，微生物沼气的产量，和气体水合物的形成与深海、大陆边缘沉积物中出现的成岩作用紧密联系（Ｐａｕｌｌ等，１９９４）．气体水合物是由水和低分子量气体（...     

海底甲烷缺氧氧化与冷泉碳酸盐岩沉淀动力学研究进展

海底缺氧带甲烷氧化作用是一个重要的甲烷生物地球化学过程,已被许多地球化学现象所证实。甲烷缺氧氧化有效地减少了渗漏到海水和大气中的甲烷通量,但目前仅有的数据还不能很好地限定甲烷缺氧氧化在全球甲烷循环和全球碳循环中的作用。甲烷缺氧氧化的机理还存在争议,很可能是一个“反甲烷生成”过程。在许多天然气渗漏发育区域,由于甲烷缺氧氧化作用引起环境碱度的增加而沉淀冷泉碳酸盐岩,在海底表层沉积物中形成块状碳酸盐岩结壳。但冷泉碳酸盐岩生成所需的物理化学和生物地球化学条件在很大程度上还不清楚。数值计算表明,孔隙水中溶解足够量的甲烷、冷泉渗漏强度适中、较小的生物扰动作用有利于冷泉碳酸盐岩的生成,而过高的沉积速率则抑制冷泉碳酸盐岩结壳的生成。因此,海底发育冷泉碳酸盐岩可以指示天然气渗漏系统的演化特征。     

Model of the post-Cenozoic evolution of the cryolithozone of the shelf of the western part of the Laptev Sea

The analysis of the structure of the cryolithozone, facies, and thicknesses of the Quaternary sediments and the results of the physicochemical mathematical modeling of the modern shelf of the western part of the Laptev Sea support the influence of the Late Pleistocene glaciations on the heat conditions and the distribution of the permafrost in the area. A ～200-m thick glacier formed under aerial conditions from atmospheric precipitation represented the metamorphosed snow cover. According to the modeling, the long-living (from 60?50 to 10?4 ky) glacier reduced the thickness of the permafrost rocks in the reviewed shelf area for 280–360 m. The Holocene marine transgression additionally decreased the thickness from 50–140 m on the inner shelf to 220–350 m on the outer shelf. The modern submarine cryolithozone 450-0 m thick is wide-spread in the studied region from the coast to the shelf boundary (isobaths of 130–140 m), where it pinches out at a distance of ～380 km from the coast at a depth of ～250 m above the sea level.     

Investigation of the mechanism of the long-term evolution of the carbon cycle in the ecosystem of the Sevastopol bay

We analyze the components of the carbon system of the Sevastopol bay waters and the balance of main sediment-forming substances using the data of field investigations in 1998–2008. The interannual variations of total inorganic carbon and the equilibrium partial pressure of carbon dioxide in the bay water are noted. An increase in the flux of carbon dioxide into the bay and in the content of organic carbon in bottom sediments is revealed, and an explanation of this phenomenon is given. The priority accumulation of organic carbon in the sediments of the bay is established. We assess the interannual variation in the relative abundances of organic and inorganic carbon as an index of the carbon cycle stability.     

Contemporary state of the investigation of the influence of the discharge of rivers on the hydrologic structure of the Black Sea

We generalize and analyze the state of investigations of the influence of river waters on the hydrologic structure of the Black Sea. Specific features of the water, regime and hydrography of rivers flowing into the sea, data on the discharge of rivers, and intrayear and interyear variability of the discharge are presented. We discuss and analyze works studying the transformation of river waters, routes of desalinized sea waters, and their influence on the thermohaline structure and dynamic regime of the sea. Translated by Peter V. Malyshev and Dmitry V. Malyshev     

Modelling of the ecosystem of the Black-Sea shelf zone near the estuary of the Danube

We analyze the results of numerical calculations performed according to the three-dimensional interdisciplinary model of an ecological system of the Black-Sea shelf zone near the estuary of the Danube. The complete system of equations of hydrothermodynamics is solved together with transport equations of the advection-diffusion-reaction type used to describe the transformation of a substance (nitrogen) between the components of the characteristic vectors of the ecosystem: plankton, detritus, and biogenic elements (nitrates). We describe the distinctive features of the circumcontinental distribution of components obtained as a result of numerical experiments and present arguments for the conclusion that the ecosystem of the Danube estuary water area plays the role of a buffer zone between the press of the Danubian biogenic pollutions and the neighbouring areas of the shelf zone and open sea. Translated by Peter V. Malyshev and Dmitry V. Malyshev     

Dynamics of the ice cover and peculiarities of the ice transportation of the sediments at the tidal flats of the Kandalaksha Gulf of the White Sea

Ten years of semistationary studies of the interaction of the ice cover and the coastal relief of the Kandalakhsa Gulf in the White Sea allowed us to reveal the peculiarities of these processes in the warm and cold years and the mechanisms of the origination of ice forms, including ice tents, which govern the character of the tidal flats. Three dynamic fast ice zones are distinguished by their geomorphological location, morphology, and ice dynamics. The dependence of the mechanisms and volumes of the enrichment of the fast ice in the sediments on the coastal zone??s relief was established. At the coast of the Kindo Peninsula (Velikaya Salma Strait), the ice mostly contains fine-sandy sediments. Coarser sediments, including boulders, are occasional and frozen into the ice at the contact of the fast ice and the bottom. At the expense of the ice??s spreading by 4?C6 times in the warm years and 2?C4 times in the cold years, several thousand tons of sediments mostly from the tidal flat??s surface (100?C700 m³ from 1 km of coast in the wide tidal flats and <50 m³ on the steep coasts) are delivered to the water area.     

Relationship between the path of the Kuroshio in the south of Japan and the path of the Kuroshio Extension in the east

A relationship between paths of the Kuroshio and Kuroshio Extension (KE) is investigated, using the satellite-derived altimetry dataset of 1993–2008. When the Kuroshio takes the nearshore nonlarge meander path or typical large meander path and resultantly goes through the deeper channel (about 2500 m) of the Izu-Ogasawara Ridge, the KE path adopts a relatively stable state with the two quasi-stationary meanders. On the other hand, when the Kuroshio takes the offshore nonlarge meander path and then passes over the shallower part of the Ridge (about 1000 m), the KE path tends to be convoluted, i.e., an unstable state.     

On the Relationship between the Characteristics of the Annual Variations of the Virtual Height of the Ionospheric Sporadic E Layer with the Seasonal Rearrangements of the Stratomesospheric Circulation

Izvestiya, Atmospheric and Oceanic Physics - Analysis of the temporal variations of the virtual heights of the sporadic E layer (h?ES) determined from ionograms with increased accuracy (1...     

A model of the dynamics of the ecosystem of the Sea of Azov

We use many-year archival observations of hydrologic and hydrobiologic state of the Sea of Azov for the identification of the structure of a model of its ecosystem. The ecosystem model, supplemented with expert estimates of bioresource consumption (fish reserve), contamination level, and possible ecologic fines for violation of the sea natural state, is formalized by the method of system dynamics. Hereat, the major part of influence functions is found in terms of observational data with application of self-organization algorithms. We also present the results of simulated experiments with the model of the ecosystem, which enable us to analyse scenarios of its behaviour under the influence of various external factors (wind, river discharge, water exchange with the Black Sea, etc.). Translated by Peter V. Malyshev and Dmitry V. Malyshev     

Parameters of the sediments of the deep-water basin of the Black Sea

The methodology and the first results of the computations of the volumes, masses, and growth rates of the sedimentary body of the buried Black Sea basin are presented. Their temporal evolution reflects the regional paleogeodynamics, in particular, the reorientation of the vector of the relative movement of the Arabian and Eurasian lithospheric plates and the related intensification of their collision in the late Miocene-Pliocene.     

Variability of the nutrient runoff of the rivers of the Arctic Basin

The spatiotemporal variability of the hydrochemical composition of the riverine runoff in nearmouth areas is presented using the example of selected rivers of the Arctic Basin. The temporal dynamics of the riverine nutrient runoff are mainly determined by the seasonal and interseasonal variations in the drainage basins. The spatial variations in the chemical composition of riverine waters in the near-mouth areas are mainly caused by the dynamics of the water flow and the river bed relief and, to a lesser degree, by biochemical processes. It is shown that the variations in the nutrient composition of the waters in near-mouth areas are comparable in magnitude to those at the river-sea geochemical barriers.