Degradation of digested sewage sludge residue under anaerobic conditions for mine tailings remediation

Previous studies showed that 85 % of total organic matter (TOM) in digested sewage sludge (biosolids) used as a sealing layer material over sulfide tailings at the Kristineberg Mine, northern Sweden, had been degraded 8 years after application, resulting in a TOM reduction from 78 to 14 %. To achieve a better understanding of the field observations, laboratory studies were performed to evaluate biodegradation rates of the TOM under anaerobic conditions. Results reveal that the original biosolid consisted of ca. 60 % TOM (48.0 % lignin and 11.8 % carbohydrates) that had not been fully degraded. The incubation experiments proved that 27.8 % TOM in the biosolid was further degraded anaerobically at 20–22 °C during the 230 days’ incubation period, and that a plateau to the biodegradation rate was approached. Based on model results, the degradation constant was found to be 0.0125 (day^?1). The calculated theoretical gas formation potential was ca. 50 % higher than the modeled results based on the average degradation rate. Cumulated H₂S equated to 0.65 μmoL g^?1 of biosolid at 230 days. However, the large sulfurous compounds reservoir (1.76 g SO₄ ^2? kg^?1 biosolid) together with anaerobic conditions can generate high concentrations of this gas over a long-term perspective. Due to the rate of biodegradability identified via anaerobic processes, the function of the biosolid to serve as an effective barrier to inhibit oxygen migration to underlying tailings, may decrease over time. However, a lack of readily degradable organic fractions in the biosolid and a large fraction of organic matter that was recalcitrant to degradation suggest a longer degradation duration, which would prolong the biosolid material’s function and integrity.     

Enriched crustal and mantle components and the role of the lithosphere in generating Paleoproterozoic dyke swarms of the Ungava Peninsula,Canada

Paleoproterozoic mafic dyke swarms (2.5–2.0 Ga) of the Ungava Peninsula can be divided in three chemical groups. The main group has a wide range of Fe (10–18 wt.% Fe₂O₃) and Ti (0.8–2.0 wt.% TiO₂) contents, and the most magnesian samples have compositions consistent with melting of a fertile lherzolitic mantle at ~ 1.5 GPa. Dykes of a low-LREE (light rare earth element) subgroup (La/Yb ≤ 4) display decreasing Zr/Nb with increasing La/Yb ratios and positive εNd_2.0 Ga values (+ 3.9 to + 0.2) that trend from primitive mantle towards the composition of Paleoproterozoic alkaline rocks. In contrast, dykes of a high-LREE subgroup (La/Yb ≥4) display increasing Zr/Nb ratios and negative εNd_2.0 Ga values (? 2.3 to ? 6.4) that trend towards the composition of Archean crust. A low Fe–Ti group has low Fe (< 11 wt.% Fe₂O₃), Ti (< 0.8 wt.% TiO₂), high field strength elements (HFSE; < 6 ppm Nb) and heavy rare earth elements (HREE; < 2 ppm Yb) contents, but are enriched in large ion lithophile elements (LILE; K/Ti = 0.7–3) and LREE (La/Yb > 4). These dykes are interpreted as melts of a depleted harzburgitic mantle that has experienced metasomatic enrichment. A positive correlation of Zr/Nb ratio and La/Yb ratio, negative εNd_2.0 Ga values (? 14 to ? 6), and the presence of inherited Archean zircons further suggest the incorporation of a crustal component. A high Fe–Ti group has high Fe (> 14 wt.% Fe₂O₃) and Ti (> 1.4 wt.% TiO₂) contents, along with higher Na contents relative to the main group dykes. Dykes of a high-Al subgroup (> 12 wt.% Al₂O₃) share Fe contents, εNd_2.0 Ga values (? 2.3 to ? 3.4), La/Yb and Th/Nb ratios with Archean ferropicrites, and may represent evolved ferropicrite melts. A low-Al subgroup (< 12 wt.% Al₂O₃) has relatively lower Yb contents (< 2 ppm) and fractionated HREE patterns that indicate the presence of garnet in their melting residue. A comparison with ~ 5 GPa experimentally-derived melts suggests that these dykes may be derived from garnet-bearing pyroxenite or peridotite. The εNd_2.0 Ga values (? 0.3 to ? 2.0) of these dykes lie between the compositions of Archean granitoids and Paleoproterozoic alkaline rocks, signifying their petrogenesis involved both crustal and mantle components.Paleoproterozoic dykes containing a crustal component occur within, or close to, an isotopically enriched Archean terrane (T_DM 4.3–3.1 Ga), whereas dykes without this component occur in an isotopically juvenile terrane (T_DM < 3.1 Ga). The lack of a crustal component and the positive εNd_2.0 Ga values of dykes intruding the latter suggest that the crust they intruded was either too cold to be assimilated, or that its lower crust and/or lithosphere were Paleoproterozoic in age. In contrast, the ubiquitous presence of a crustal component and the diversity of mantle sources for dykes intruding the enriched terrane (lherzolite, harzburgite, pyroxenite) suggest a warmer crust with underlying heterogeneous lithospheric mantle.     

Stromatolites and sabkha cycles from the Lower Fars Formation (Miocene) of Iraq

Stromatolites and cryptalgal laminites are described from the Lower Fars Formation of Middle Miocene age from northern Iraq. The Lower Fars is comprised of many cycles of the sequence marl, limestone, gypsum. The microstructures of the stromatolites are described and compared with those of Recent algal mats. An intertidal depositional environment is indicated by the features of the cryptalgal limestones and by the presence of calcite pseudomorphs after gypsum. The significance of this interpretation in terms of Lower Fars sedimentation is discussed. It is concluded that the sulphate horizons formed in a supratidal setting and that the cycles resulted from repeated sabkha progradation.

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Zusammenfassung Charakteristisch für die untere Fars-Formation (Mittel-Miozän) im Nord-Irak sind Stromatolithe und kryptoalgische Plättchen. Das untere Fars wird aus zahlreichen Zyklen von Mergel, Kalk und Gips aufgebaut. Die Mikrostrukturen der Stromatolithe werden mit heutigen Algenrasen verglichen. Ein Ablagerungsraum in der intertidalZone ist durch die Merkmale des kryptoalgischen Kalkes und die Kalzit-Pseudomorphosen nach Gips angedeutet. Der Schluß folgt, daß die Sulphat-Horizonte im Supratidal entstanden und daß die Zyklen durch wiederholtes Sabkhawachstum entstanden sind.

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Résumé Sont décrites ici les stromatolites et les laminites cryptalgaires de la formation du Fars Inférieur d'âge Miocène Moyen du nord de l'Irak. Les Fars Inférieur comprend beaucoup de cycles formés de marne, calcaire, gypse. Les microstructures des stromatolites sont décrites et comparées avec celles des mattes algaires récentes. Un milieu de depôt intertidal est indiqué par les caractères des calcaires cryptalgaires et par la présence de pseudomorphoses de gypse en calcite. On discute l'importance de cette interprétation en termes de sédimentation du Fars Inférieur. En conclusion: les horizons sulfatés sont formés dans un emplacement supratidal et les cycles sont le résultat d'une progradation répétée de sabkha.

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A note on the effects of virtual temperature: Research note

Abstract

The effects of virtual temperature on parcel buoyancy are investigated and the following results obtained. For descent or unsaturated ascent, the buoyancy acceleration is enhanced if the mixing ratio increases with pressure. However, for saturated ascent, the buoyancy acceleration is inhibited unless the lapse rate of mixing ratio exceeds a value slightly greater than that along a moist adiabat. This criterion is evaluated for several mean soundings. For the case of Oklahoma supercells, the mixing ratio lapse rate is clearly large enough. However, for other cases it often is not. Horizontal gradients in water vapour and condensed water can have a significant influence on the thermal wind.     

Ferromanganese nodules from the devonian of the montagne noire (S. France) and West Germany

Ferromanganese nodules (equivalent to Recent manganese nodules) are described from the Upper Devonian griotte (red pelagic limestone) of the Montagne Noire (S. France) and the Cephalopodenkalk of the Rheinisches Schiefergebirge, West Germany. They occur as encrustations, commonly exhibiting colloform structures, around skeletal material and limestone clasts. The nodules are associated with encrusting foraminifera and a development in the sublittoral environment is envisaged. Chemically, the ferromanganese nodules are depleted in manganese relative to iron, compared with Recent nodules, a loss which is attributed to diagenetic migration of manganese. Electron probe studies show that manganese covaries positively with calcium, but negatively with iron and silicon. Diagenetic enrichment of hematite occurs in the griotte at hardground horizons where two periods of mineralization can be established. The Devonian ferromanganese nodules show that solution of nodules has not occurred on burial.

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Zusammenfassung Es werden Eisenmanganknollen (als Äquivalent zu den rezenten Manganknollen) aus dem oberdevonischen Griotte (rote pelagische Kalke) der Montagne Noir und den Cephalopoden-Kalken des Rheinischen Schiefergebirges beschrieben. Sie treten als Umkrustungen von Skeletten und Kalksteinbruchstückchen auf und zeigen gewöhnlich Kolloform-Strukturen. Die Knollen sind vergesellschaftet mit umkrusteten Foraminiferen, und es wird deshalb sublitorales Bildungsmilieu angenommen. Verglichen mit rezenten sind die oberdevonischen Knollen durch Auslaugung von Mangan relativ Eisen-angereichert, was auf diagenetische Mobilisation zurückzuführen ist. Untersuchungen mit der Mikrosonde haben gezeigt, daß Mangan und Calcium gleichläufig, Mangan und Eisen und Kieselsäure gegenläufig sind. Diagenetische Hämatit-Anreicherungen gibt es im Griotte an hardground-Horizonten; es wurden zwei Mineralisationsphasen festgestellt. Die oberdevonischen Eisenmangan-Knollen zeigen, im Gegensatz zur allgemein verbreiteten Meinung, daß sich die Knollen bei Überlagerung nicht unbedingt auflösen.

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Résumé Les nodules de ferromanganèse (équivalents des nodules de manganèse de la période holocène) décrits ici proviennent de la griotte du Dévonien Supérieur (calcaire pélagique rouge) de la Montagne Noire (Sud de la France) et du calcaire à Céphalopodes du Massif Schisteux Rhénan, (Allemagne de l'Ouest). Ils se présentent comme des incrustations exhibant communément des structures colloformes autour de débris de squelettes et de matériaux clastiques calcaire. Les nodules sont associés à des foraminifères qui s'y incrustent; leur développement est conçu dans un milieu sous-littoral. Chimiquement les nodules de ferromanganèse, comparés aux nodules du manganèse de l'époque récente, sont de faible teneur en manganèse par rapport au fer, perte que l'on attribute à la migration diagénétique du manganèse. Des expériences faites à la sonde électronique montrent que le manganèse réagit positivement avec le calcium, mais négativement avec le fer et le silicium. L'enrichissement diagénétique de l'hématite se produit dans la griotte dans des zones de «hardgrounds», où deux périodes de minéralisation peuvent être constatées. Les nodules de ferromanganèse dévoniens montrent, contrairement à une opinion généralement répandue, que les nodules ne se dissolvent pas nécessairement par l'accumulation des sédiments.

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The effect of cadmium on fulvic acid adsorption to Bacillus subtilis

The effects of Cd on the adsorption of an aquatic fulvic acid (FA) to the surface of Bacillus subtilis were investigated from pH 2.5 to 7.0, at fixed ionic strength (0.1 M NaClO₄) and at ambient temperature (22 °C). Cd (14 mg/l) had no effect on FA adsorption at pH<5 but increased FA adsorption at pH>6. The effects of Cd (0, 14 mg/l) on FA adsorption to B. subtilis were further examined as a function of initial FA concentration (0–45 mg C/l) at pH 6.5. FA adsorption isotherms also were measured at pH 6.5 as a function of dissolved Cd concentration (0–14 mg/l) at three initial FA concentrations (4, 8, 22 mg C/l). At all FA concentrations studied at pH 6.5, FA adsorption increased with increasing initial total Cd concentration.

Under all studied conditions, preferential adsorption of high- to intermediate-molecular-weight FA components to B. subtilis resulted in a fractionation of the FA pool, with lower-molecular-weight components remaining in solution. At pH>6, Cd further enhanced the adsorption of high- to intermediate-molecular-weight FA components but did not significantly enhance the adsorption of lower-molecular-weight components. Hence, the overall process of adsorptive fractionation was not altered significantly by the presence of Cd.

Overall, the results of this study (1) demonstrate that FA adsorption to bacterial surfaces can be altered by the presence of a metal cation, and (2) provide further evidence that microbe–metal–ligand interactions may significantly affect the mobility and fate of natural organic matter in the subsurface.     

An Overview of Some Significant Eastern Canadian Earthquakes and Their Impacts on the Geological Environment,Buildings and the Public

Numerous moderate to large earthquakes have occurred in eastern Canada. Some ofthese events had significant geological effects such as surface faulting, liquefaction,submarine slumping, rock avalanches, rock falls, landslides, railroad embankmentslides, and one tsunami. Some of these earthquakes caused considerable damage tobuildings with unreinforced masonry elements that were located on thick clay deposits. These events also had strong psychological and social impacts, mainly due to the unpreparedness of the population. To minimize these impacts, programs should be designed to map the land and offshore areas most susceptible to mass movements (Earth Sciences), to define buildings most at risk (Engineering) and to educate the public about mitigation actions (Education, science popularization).     

Mid-Cretaceous uplift and erosion on the northern margin of the Ligurian Tethys deduced from thermal history reconstruction

The paleogeography during Early Cretaceous of the northern margin of the Ligurian Tethys is poorly constrained because of deformation and erosion during Pyrenean and Alpine orogenic phases. The present-day limit between Lower Cretaceous sediments in the South–East basin, located at the northwestern margin of the Ligurian Tethys, and basement rocks is the consequence of a protracted erosion history. Lower Cretaceous sediments observed today in the basin, even close to the present-day outcropping border, are characteristic of pelagic environments. A larger extent of a Lower Cretaceous cover on the basement must then be considered. This study focuses on the western part of this margin (the Causses basin), in the South of the Massif Central (France), using several thermochronometers and geothermometers to decipher the former extent of the sedimentary cover. Apatite fission track thermochronology on basement rocks surrounding the Causses basin suggests that these rocks cooled from temperatures higher than 110°C during the mid-Cretaceous. Average fluid inclusion homogenisation temperatures between 94°C and 108°C are recorded in calcite veins from outcropping Toarcian and Aalenian shales. In the shales, Tmax values, temperature obtained by Rock–Eval pyrolysis of organic matter, are in agreement with these elevated temperatures. Different explanations for these relatively high temperatures, which cannot be explained by the present-day sedimentary serie in the basin, have been tested using a 1D thermal modelling procedure (Genex). For a 95±10-mW/m² paleoflux, thick sedimentary deposits (2.5±0.3 km) including 1.3±0.3 km of Lower Cretaceous sediments cover the South of the Massif Central; these formations have been subsequently eroded from mid-Cretaceous time onwards. This study confirms that the South of the Massif Central was a site of marine sedimentation during the Early Cretaceous where a thick sedimentary sequence was once deposited.     

Using 87Sr/86Sr, δ18O and δ2H isotopes along with major chemical composition to assess groundwater salinization in lower Shire valley,Malawi

Groundwater resources in some parts of the lower section of Shire River valley, Malawi, are not useable for rural domestic water supply due to high salinity. In this study, a combined assessment of isotopic (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr, δ¹⁸O and δ²H) and major ion composition was conducted in order to identify the hydro-geochemical evolution of the groundwater and thereby the causes of salinity. Three major end-members (representing fresh- and saline groundwater, and evaporated recharge) were identified based on major ion and isotopic composition. The saline groundwater is inferred to result from dissolution of evaporitic salts (halite) and the fresh groundwater shows influence of silicate weathering. Conservative mixing models show that brackish groundwater samples result from a three component mixture comprising the identified end-members. Hence their salinity is interpreted to result from mixing of fresh groundwater with evaporated recharge and saline groundwater. On the other hand, the groundwater with low TDS, found at some distance from areas of high salinity, is influenced by mixing of evaporated recharge and fresh groundwater only. Close to the Shire marshes, where there is shallow groundwater, composition of stable isotopes of water indicates that evaporation may also be an important factor.