Fractionation of abyssal tholeiites: Samples from the oceanographer Fracture Zone (35°N, 35°W)

Chemical analyses of 48 fresh abyssal tholeiite specimens sampled from two dredge localities clearly define systematic chemical differences which indicate a moderate iron-enrichment trend of fractionation oblique to the FeO^*₂O, P₂O₅ and TiO₂. These results suggest that fractionation may be important in controlling the chemistry of abyssal tholeiites along sections of the mid-oceanic ridge.     

Measurement of small ions and condensation nuclei over the sea near the land

Summary To study the ionization equilibrium, simultancous measurements of the concentration of small ions (n), concentration of condensation nuclei (Z), and the diffusion coefficient of condensation nuclei (D) have been carried out over the sea. If we take the variation ofD into consideration, the correlation among them was found to be well expressed by the simple formula;q=n Z. The dependence of the effective attachment coefficient of small ions () upon the size of nuclei (2r) were also studied, and was found to correlate well withD orr. Slight differences of the dependence of uponD orr over the sea from that over the land seem to be well explained by the difference of charged states of nuclei over the sea and land.

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Zusammenfassung Zur Untersuchung des Ionisationsgleichgewichts wurden gleichzeitige Messungen der Konzentration schneller Ionen (n), der Konzentration der Kondensationskerne (Z) und des Diffusions-Koeffizienten der Kondensationskerne (D) über dem Meere ausgefürt. Unter Berücksichtigung des Diffusions-Koeffizienten (D) konnte der Zusammenhang zwischen den beiden anderen Grössen recht gut durch eine einfache Formel ausgedrückt werden:q=n Z. Die Abhängigkeit des wirksamen Anlagerungskoeffizienten für schnelle Ionen () von der Grösse der Kondensationskerne (2r) wurde ebenfalls untersucht, und es wurde gefunden, dass recht gut mitD oderr korreliert. Kleinere Unterschiede in der Abhängigkeit von vonD oderr, welche bei einem Vergleich der Messungen über See und über Land festgestellt wurden, liessen sich gut durch den Unterschied der geladenen Zustände der Kondensationskerne über See und Land erklären.

     

Recent volcanism in Masaya-Granada Area,Nicaragua

Masaya-Granada area is located in the middle part of the Central American volcanic zone. A basaltic shield volcano with a caldera, an acidic pyroclastic flow plateau with a caldera, cinder cones, maars, a lava dome and a composite andesitic volcano were formed by recent volcanic activities. Magmas of basic and intermediate ejecta are supposed to be formed by partial melting of the upper mantle material. Most of basalts and andesites was derived from common parental magma after crystallization differentiation history, but some basalts, which have extremely high MgO content and low K₂O content might be derived from primary magma of different type. There is no evidence to deny the possibility of differentiation product of acidic rock from basic magma, but compositional gap on variation diagram suggest the possibility of partial melting origin. Strike-slip fault systems might have been formed in association with plate movement, and fluidal basaltic magma was erupted also along these fault zones.     

Mineralogy,petrology, and chemistry of a Luna 16 basaltic fragment,sample B-1

Luna 16 sample B-1 was the largest fragment (62 mg) obtained in the sample exchange with the USSR. Petrologic, mineralogic, and chemical investigations have been made on this fragment in conjunction with Rb-Sr and⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar investigations by our colleagues. Sample B-1 is a fine-grained ophitic basalt but is distinguished from the Apollo samples by containing a single pyroxene, predominantly pigeonitic, an ilmenite content (7%) intermediate to that of the Apollo 11 and 12 samples, and subequal amounts of pyroxene (50%) and plagioclase (40%). Chemically it is distinguished by a high Sr content (437 ppm) and a high K/U value (4700). The K-content (1396 ppm) is higher than that of Luna 16 soil sample A-2.     

Unconfined aquifer and slow drainage

One of the particular features of unsteady free surface flow is the phenomenon of the slow draining of water-bearing materials. This phenomenon is usually identified and referred to as delayed yield from storage, introduced to scientific literature by Boulton.     

On the transmissivity of the atmosphere in the water vapour absorption (6–6.5 μ) band

Summary The atmospheric transmissivity in the water vapour absorption band (6–6.5 ) is evaluated using the recent Tiros III data and based onGoody's statistical model.Work completed while on leave from the Department of Meteorology, University of California, Los Angeles.     

Preliminary report on the 1963 eruption of Mt.Agung in Bali (Indonesia)

Mt. Agung in Bali which has been dormant for about hundred and twenty years showed increased activity on February 18 this year culminating with a paroxysmal eruption early in the morning on March 17; the second paroxysmal eruption occurred on May 16. The activity started with minor explosions in the main crater with the production of pyroclastics followed by the effusion of lavas which flowed over the lowest northern crater rim and the formation of nuées ardentes d’explosion which came down into the northwestern sector of the volcano. Successive nuées ardentes d’explosion which accompanied the paroxysmal cruption on March 17 and on May 16, came down along the southern, southeastern and northern slopes, devastating many villages. The first cycle of activity killed about 1700 people of which 1500 died from the nuées ardentes. Cold lahars, caused by heavy rainfall immediately after the eruption destroyed villages and constructions on the southern slope and killed about 200 more people. The nuées ardentes from the second paroxysmal eruption killed also about 200 more people who were all caught in the « Closed Zone ». A map showing the devastated area is presented.     

Magnetic effects associated with chemical changes in igneous rocks

Experimental evidence and theory indicate that chemical changes occur in many igneous rocks at sufficiently low temperatures to significantly affect the remanent magnetization. Some chemical changes lead to self-reversals of magnetization that are not reproducible in laboratory experiments. Such self-reversals appear to be very rare in subaerially-erupted basalts, but they probably are much more common in some other rock types, such as granites and diorites. The stability of the natural remanent magnetization in igneous rocks can be decreased, left unaltered, or increased by chemical changes. In addition, chemical changes will usually affect the intensity of magnetization in a rock; the intensity can increase, decrease, or (rarely) be left unaltered by a chemical change. Such changes are important to consider in the development of improved techniques for obtaining reliable estimates of the intensity of the Earth's magnetic field in the past and in correctly interpreting marine magnetic anomalies. Finally, experiments and theory are presented which suggest that many of the chemical changes in igneous rocks will only occasionally produce significant changes in the direction of the magnetization.     

Effects of sediment pulses on bed relief in bar‐pool channels

To further develop prediction of the range of morphological adjustments associated with sediment pulses in bar‐pool channels, we analyze channel bed topographic data collected prior to and following the removal of two dams in Oregon: Marmot Dam on the Sandy River and Brownsville Dam on the Calapooia River. We hypothesize that, in gravel‐bed, bar‐pool channels, the response of bed relief to sand and gravel sediment pulses is a function of initial relief and pulse magnitude. Modest increases in sediment supply to initially low‐relief, sediment‐poor cross‐sections will increase bed relief and variance of bed relief via bar deposition. Modest increases in sediment supply to initially high‐relief cross‐sections, characteristic of alternate bar morphology, will result in decreased bed relief and variance of relief via deposition in bar‐adjacent pools. These hypothesized adjustments are measured in terms of bed relief, which we define as the difference in elevation between the pool‐bottom and bar‐top. We evaluate how relief varies with sediment thickness, where both relief and mean sediment thickness at a cross‐section are normalized by the 90th percentile of observed relief values within a reach prior to a sediment pulse. Field measurements generally supported the stated hypotheses, demonstrating how introduction of a sediment pulse to low‐relief reaches can increase mean and variance of relief, while introduction to high‐relief reaches can decrease the mean and variance of bed relief, at least temporarily. In general, at both sites, the degree of impact increased with the thickness of sediment delivered to the cross‐section. Results thus suggest that the analysis is a useful step for understanding the morphological effects of sediment pulses introduced to gravel‐bed, bar‐pool channels. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effect of Biofuels on Biodegradation of Benzene and Toluene at Gasoline Spill Sites

The risk that benzene and toluene from spills of gasoline will impact drinking water wells is largely controlled by the natural anaerobic biodegradation of benzene and toluene. Benzene and toluene, as well as ethanol and other biofuels, are degraded under anaerobic conditions to the same pool of degradation products. Biodegradation of biofuels may produce concentrations of degradation products that make the thermodynamics for degradation of benzene and toluene infeasible under methanogenic conditions and produce larger plumes of benzene and toluene. This study evaluated the concentrations of fuel alcohols that are necessary to inhibit the anaerobic degradation of benzene and toluene under methanogenic conditions. At two ethanol spill sites, concentrations of ethanol greater ≥42 mg/L inhibited the anaerobic degradation of toluene. The pH and concentrations of acetate, dissolved inorganic carbon, and molecular hydrogen were used to calculate the Gibbs free energy for the biodegradation of toluene. In general, the anaerobic biodegradation of toluene was not thermodynamically feasible in water with ≥42 mg/L ethanol. In a microcosm study, when the concentrations of ethanol were ≥14 mg/L or the concentrations of n‐butanol were ≥16 mg/L, the biodegradation of the alcohols consistently produced concentrations of hydrogen, dissolved inorganic carbon, and acetate that would preclude natural anaerobic biodegradation of benzene and toluene by syntrophic organisms. In contrast, iso‐butanol and n‐propanol only occasionally produced conditions that would preclude the biodegradation of benzene and toluene.