Beach monazites from Alleppey: A window to the Trivandrum Block,Southern India

Detrital monazites can be used to reconstruct the tectonothermal history of their provenance. Dating of beach monazites from Alleppey by EPMA U-Th-Pb_total technique using the centroid method demonstrates that the ages recorded by even a small number of 28 analyses from a single thin section grain mount can potentially reveal a considerable portion of the tectonothermal history of the Trivamdrum block. Three monazite populations were identified that yielded ages 605 ± 9, 575 ± 23 and 548 ± 11 Ma, which have their more or less exact counterparts reported from the Trivandrum Block. One monazite grain yielded random Paleoproterozoic ages ranging from 1756 Ma to 1345 Ma representing similar ages which earlier have been interpreted as due to differential Pb-loss from >2000 Ma monazites during the late Neoproterozoic-Cambrian metamorphism.     

Hyperspectral satellite data analysis for pure pixels extraction and evaluation of advanced classifier algorithms for LULC classification

The study was carried out for Indian capital city Delhi using Hyperion sensor onboard EO-1 satellite of NASA. After MODTRAN-4 based atmospheric correction, MNF, PPI and n-D visualizer were applied and endmembers of 11 LCLU classes were derived which were employed in classification of LULC. To incur better classification accuracy, a comparative study was also carried out to evaluate the potential of three classifier algorithms namely Random Forest (RF), Support Vector Machines (SVM) and Spectral Angle Mapper (SAM). The results of this study reemphasize the utility of satellite borne hyperspectral data to extract endmembers and also to delineate the potential of random forest as expert classifier to assess land cover with higher classification accuracy that outperformed the SVM by 19% and SAM by 27% in overall accuracy. This research work contributes positively to the issue of land cover classification through exploration of hyperspectral endmembers. The comparison of classification algorithms’ performance is valuable for decision makers to choose better classifier for more accurate information extraction.     

Epibiotic community on the acorn barnacle (Balanus amphitrite) from a monsoon‐influenced tropical estuary

The epibiotic communities (diatoms and metazoans) on the outer surfaces of the shell of the barnacle Balanus amphitrite (BSh) and its opercular valves (the scutum and tergum; BST) were investigated on a monthly basis for 1 year in a tropical monsoon‐influenced estuary and compared with that of the surrounding rock biofilm. BSh and BST were rich in the diatoms Achnanthes longipes and Melosira nummuloides and amongst the invertebrates, nematodes and tardigrades were abundant. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of epibiosis on the acorn barnacle. Diatom abundance was at its maximum during the monsoon season on all the inter‐tidal substrata i.e. BSh, BST and rock. A significant correlation was found between the density of diatoms and invertebrates associated with the BSh and BST, possibly because of the trophic relationship between them or the suitability of the physical environment. The possible role of these epibionts on the settlement of this barnacle species is currently unknown and needs further investigation.     

Revisiting the stratigraphy of the Mesoproterozoic Chhattisgarh Supergroup,Bastar craton,India based on subsurface lithoinformation

In the last 10 years, several teams of geologists from different institutions in India and abroad have vigorously investigated the Chhattisgarh basin (Bastar craton, India). Based on the new results and the lithologs of more than 350 water wells, resistivity and gamma-ray logs, and extensive geological traverses, we present a revised geological map, relevant cross sections, a new comprehensive stratigraphic column and a discussion of the new findings. Major outcomes of this revision are: (1) confirming the existence of two sub-basins (Hirri and Baradwar) and two depocentres; (2) establishing the age of the basin to be essentially Mesoproterozoic; (3) discarding the ‘unclassified Pandaria Formation’ and classifying the package of Pandaria rock units into Chandi, Tarenga, Hirri and Maniari formations in the Hirri sub-basin; (4) accepting the ‘group’ status of the Singhora Group and the newly proposed Kharsiya Groups in the Baradwar sub-basin; (5) establishing an intrabasinal correlation of formations; (6) reappraising the thicknesses of the different formations; and (7) finding that the geometry of the basin is ‘bowl-shaped’, which is compatible with a sag model for the origin and evolution of the basin.     

Hydrogeochemical characteristics of acid mine drainage and water pollution at Makum Coalfield,India

Acid mine drainage (AMD) is one of the severe environmental problems that coal mines are facing. Generation of AMD in the northeastern part of India due to the coal mining activities has long been reported. However detailed geochemical characterization of AMD and its impact on water quality of various creeks, river and groundwater in the area has never been reported. Coal and coal measure rocks in the study area show finely disseminated pyrite crystals. Secondary solid phases, resulted due to oxidation of pyrite, occur on the surface of coal, and are mainly consisting of hydrated sulphate complexes of Fe and Mg (copiapite group of minerals). The direct mine discharges are highly acidic (up to pH 2.3) to alkaline (up to pH 7.6) in nature with high concentration of SO₄²⁻. Acidic discharges are highly enriched with Fe, Al, Mn, Ni, Pb and Cd, while Cr, Cu, Zn and Co are below their maximum permissible limit in most mine discharges. Creeks that carrying the direct mine discharges are highly contaminated; whereas major rivers are not much impacted by AMD. Ground water close to the collieries and AMD affected creeks are highly contaminated by Mn, Fe and Pb. Through geochemical modeling, it is inferred that jarosite is stable at pH less than 2.5, schwertmannite at pH less than 4.5, ferrihydrite above 5.8 and goethite is stable over wide range of pH, from highly acidic to alkaline condition.     

Comparison of stress-dependent geophysical,hydraulic and mechanical properties of synthetic and natural sandstones for reservoir characterization and monitoring studies

Synthetic rock samples can offer advantages over natural rock samples when used for laboratory rock physical properties studies, provided their success as natural analogues is well understood. The ability of synthetic rocks to mimic the natural stress dependency of elastic wave, electrical and fluid transport properties is of primary interest. Hence, we compare a consistent set of laboratory multi-physics measurements obtained on four quartz sandstone samples (porosity range 20–25%) comprising two synthetic and two natural (Berea and Corvio) samples, the latter used extensively as standards in rock physics research. We measured simultaneously ultrasonic (P- and S-wave) velocity and attenuation, electrical resistivity, permeability and axial and radial strains over a wide range of differential pressure (confining stress 15–50 MPa; pore pressure 5–10 MPa) on the four brine saturated samples. Despite some obvious physical discrepancies caused by the synthetic manufacturing process, such as silica cementation and anisotropy, the results show only small differences in stress dependency between the synthetic and natural sandstones for all measured parameters. Stress dependency analysis of the dry samples using an isotropic effective medium model of spheroidal pores and penny-shaped cracks, together with a granular cohesion model, provide evidence of crack closure mechanisms in the natural sandstones, seen to a much lesser extent in the synthetic sandstones. The smaller grain size, greater cement content, and cementation under oedometric conditions particularly affect the fluid transport properties of the synthetic sandstones, resulting in lower permeability and higher electrical resistivity for a similar porosity. The effective stress coefficients, determined for each parameter, are in agreement with data reported in the literature. Our results for the particular synthetic materials that were tested suggest that synthetic sandstones can serve as good proxies for natural sandstones for studies of elastic and mechanical properties, but should be used with care for transport properties studies.