Calorimetric study of high pressure polymorphism in FeTiO3: Stability of the perovskite phase

A calorimetric study of the ilmenite and lithium niobate polymorphs of FeTiO₃ was undertaken to assess the high-pressure stabilities of these phases. Ilmenite is known to be the stable phase at ambient pressure, but the lithium niobate form may be a quench phase from a perovskite form which has been previously observed in situ at high pressure.In this study, the lithium niobate phase of FeTiO₃ was synthesized from an ilmenite starting material at 15– 16 GPa and 1473 K, using a uniaxial split-sphere high-pressure apparatus (USSA 2000). The energetics of the ilmenite to lithium niobate transformation were investigated through transposed-temperature drop calorimetry. The heat of back-transformation of lithium niobate to ilmenite was measured by dropping the sample in argon from ambient conditions to a temperature where the transformation occurs spontaneously. In drops made at 977 K, an intermediate x-ray amorphous phase was encountered. At 1273 K, the transformation went to completion. A value of -13.5±1.2 kJ/mol was obtained for the heat of transformation.     

Lithospheric response to volcanic loading in the Southern Cook Islands

The response of the ocean lithosphere to volcanic island loading has been investigated for the Southern Cook Islands of Rarotonga, Mangaia and the Aitutaki-Mauke group using (1) estimates of the change—with distance from the load—of uplift of islands located on the flexure-created arch, (2) geoid height perturbations as observed with the GEOS 3 and SEASAT radar altimeters, and (3) bathymetric evidence for the moat and arch about the island loads. The effective flexural rigidity for Rarotonga is found to be higher than for the older and nearby islands of Mangaia and Aitutaki. This, together with an earlier result for Tahiti [1], suggests that stress relaxation of the lithosphere has occurred and that this layer behaves as a viscoelastic material with an effective viscosity of about 5–10×10²⁵ poise. The observations for the flexural rigidity do not indicate any dependence on the age of the lithosphere at the time the loading occurred. This suggests that there are no significant differences in lithospheric properties for plates in the age range of 6–7×10⁷ years. Altimeter passes to the east of Mauke indicate that there may be an uncharted submarine extension of the Aitutaki-Mauke chain.     

Noble gas components in clasts and separates of the Abee meteorite

The noble gas components and their distributions were studied in a variety of clasts and in separated phases of clast 2,2 using a detailed stepwise release program. The results show the presence of two distinct trapped components: one appears to be similar to Kenna-type gas [28], the other is characterized by element ratios³⁶Ar/⁸⁴Kr < 370 and³⁶Ar/¹³²Xe ≥ 900 and is termed Ar-rich component. Silicate phases are identified as carriers of both components; but since they are differentially released, the results imply that multiple carrier phases are required. Unlike results from other meteorites, HF attack removes all but 15% of the xenon. Substantial amounts of trapped and, in many cases, unfractionated air were observed, apparently in reaction products of reduced and easily oxidized minerals. The¹²⁹Xe_r release systematics imply the presence of two distinct carriers of extinct¹²⁹I and suggest lithophilic behavior of I in Abee. The U/Th-⁴He and K-⁴⁰Ar data are consistent with a 4.5 Gy age. Amounts of spallogenic He, Ne and Ar yield a cosmic ray exposure age of 8 My. We compare the Ar-rich component to noble gas abundances in planetary atmospheres and we discuss a suggested model of origin.     

Über die Natur des Sedimentgleichgewichtes im Litoral

Zusammenfassung Unter Beachtung der Fortschritte der modernen Brandungsforschung sowie neuerer Beobachtungsergebnisse im Litoral erscheint die vonCornaglia entwickelte Theorie der neutralen Linie, die das einzelne Sedimentkorn isoliert in Ansatz brachte, unhaltbar. An ihre Stelle tritt die den tatsächlichen Verhältnissen besser Rechnung tragende Theorie des «Massenmomentes» der brandenden Wellen, die nicht mehr das einzelne Korn, sondern die gesamte unter der Einwirkung der Oszillation entstehende Suspensionswolke betrachtet. Die Vorteile dieser neuen Betrachtungsweise werden kurz skizziert und an Hand einiger Beispiele näher erläutert.

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Summary With respect to the attainments of the modern surf phenomena research and based on new results of observations in the littoral zone the theory of the neutral line, developed byCornaglia, which looked upon the wave-moved grain as an isolated individual, is no longer useful. In its place the better theory of the surging wave's «momentum of mass» is set, which considers the whole cloud of material whirled up by the oscillatory undulation near the bottom. The advantages of this new consideration are shortly sketched and particularly illustrated by means of some examples.