Archean of Greenland and Fennoscandia

The North Atlantic craton in southern West Greenland mainly consists of a tectonic collage of Mesoarchean continental crustal terranes, which were amalgamated at c. 2.7 Ga and are currently exposed at mid-crustal amphibolite to granulite facies levels. Tonalitic orthogneisses predominate, intercalated with slightly older tholeiitic to andesitic metavolcanic rocks and associated gabbro-anorthosite intrusive complexes. The North Atlantic craton also contains enclaves of Eoarchean, c. 3.86-3.6 Ga orthogneisses and supracrustal rocks including the Isua greenstone （or supracrustal） belt. This is the oldest known assemblage of rocks deposited at the surface of the Earth, comprising mafic pillow lavas, banded iron formations and metasedimentary schists with local disseminated graphite of possible biogenic origin. Eoarchean rocks have not been found in Kola and Karelia in Fennoscandia where most rocks are 2.9-2.7 Ga tonalitic-trondhjemitic-granodioritic orthogneisses with intercalated coeval greenstone belts and amphibolites. Mesoarchean 3.0-3.2 Ga rocks are found in the eastern and western parts of the Karelian province. Subduction-related rocks like the Iringora supra-subduction type ophiolite and basalt-andesite-dacite-rhyolite series volcanic rocks in many greenstone belts, as well as eclogites are found in the Archean of Fennoscandia. A clear distinction between Greenland and Fennoscandia is the abundance of 2.75-2.65 Ga igneous rocks in Fennoscandia which indicates that these two cratons had a separate evolution during the Neoarchean.     

Model development and calibration for the coupled thermal,hydraulic and mechanical phenomena of the bentonite

In the international DECOVALEX-THMC project, five research teams study the influence of thermal-hydro-mechanical (THM) coupling on the safety of a hypothetical geological repository for spent fuel. In order to improve the analyses, the teams calibrated their bentonite models with results from laboratory experiments, including swelling pressure tests, water uptake tests, thermally gradient tests, and the CEA mock-up THM experiment. This paper describes the mathematical models used by the teams, and compares the results of their calibrations with the experimental data.     

Writing the history of water services

This paper analyses the experiences acquired through several research projects on the history of water and sanitation services by two multidisciplinary teams. Challenges have been faced in identifying feasible objectives, realistic resources, time allocations and unexpected external factors. Water history can preserve cultural heritage, promote reputation management, record vanishing knowledge, and discover new facts.     

A preliminary archaeological and environmental study of pre‐Columbian burial towers at Huachacalla,Bolivian Altiplano

Chullpas are pre‐Columbian burial towers built by indigenous Aymaras on the Bolivian Altiplano. Bolivian chullpas date back to the Late Intermediate Period (A.D. 1000–1476) and the Late Horizon (A.D. 1476–1532). We recorded 228 chullpas among 84 sites in the Huachacalla region of west‐central Bolivia. In our study area, the chullpas are on debris flows and coarse alluvium in the proximal and medial segments of alluvial fans at the foot of two volcanoes. Grain‐size, element, and mineralogical analysis of chullpa wall material and local sediment revealed that the burial towers are composed of calcareous sand that is readily available in alluvial fan deposits near the sites. Our data suggest that the Aymaras considered environmental factors, such as drainage and stability of the soil, when they selected the locations of chullpas, whereas cultural factors played a significant role in chullpa architecture. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.