Tracing of variabilities within a geological barrier by molecular organic geochemistry.: Case of the Callovo-Oxfordian sedimentary series in the East of the Paris Basin (France)

The Callovo-Oxfordian claystones located at 500 m depth at Bure (Meuse, France) are currently being investigated by Andra (the French National Radioactive Waste Management Agency) for testing the feasibility of long-term and deep geological nuclear waste disposal. In order to evaluate its potential as a geological barrier, it is very important to study, assess and describe its physico-chemical variability. The molecular biomarker composition of 150 samples of these claystones and their surrounding limestones carry diverse information on the sources of the sedimentary organic matter, the chemistry of the depositional environment, the preservation and diagenesis conditions. It also allows assessing the degree of lateral and vertical variability of the organic matter within these sedimentary series. The abundance of unsaturated biomarkers, the distribution of steroids and hopanoids and CPI values >2 prove the thermal immaturity of the organic matter. The co-occurrence of plankton, bacteria and land plant biomarkers indicate that the organic matter is a mixture of marine and continental contributions. The data also reveal that the organic matter was deposited under oxic and open-sea conditions except for a brief event of photic zone anoxia at the beginning of the Middle Callovian. In the claystones, the geosynthesis of diasterenes is favored to the detriment of the formation of steranes, especially in smectite-rich levels, and the organic matter is rapidly isolated from oxidizing then reducing conditions after the deposition due to the protective effect of clays. On the scale investigated, the claystones are characterized by a unique molecular facies and are thus homogenous from their organic content point of view. Yet, detailed investigation of specific molecular families indicates changes related to major claystone–limestone transitions. The homogeneity of these claystones can be explained by the paleogeographic position of their depositional setting and the plane and sub-horizontal paleotopography on which they were deposited. This study demonstrates the efficiency of organic geochemistry in the assessment of the variability of geological barriers.     

Links between NAO fluctuations and inter-annual variability of winter-months precipitation in the Seine River watershed (north-western France)

The inter-annual to multi-decadal winter variability (DJFM) of precipitation on the Seine River watershed (France) was analysed using continuous wavelet transform analysis and compared to the winter North Atlantic Oscillation Index (NAOI). Nine weather stations were used over the 1951 to 2004 period and confirmed the homogeneity of inter-annual fluctuations for all stations but one. Wavelet coherence between SLP over the Icelandic and Azores regions and precipitation highlighted coherence for different scales of variability according to the centre of action considered. Segmentation and wavelet analysis and coherence between precipitation and NAOI over a long period of time (1873–2004) showed: i) increasing variability across the last century at most time scales, especially for NAOI; ii) the existence of change points for the mean and variance of both signals; iii) overall discontinuity of the coherence whatever the scale considered, especially between ∼1910 and ∼1955 for inter-decennial to pluri-decennial scales.     

Scenario Reduction Applied to Geostatistical Simulations

Having a large number of geostatistical simulations of a mineral or petroleum deposit provides a better idea of its upside potential and downside risk; however, large numbers of simulated realizations of a deposit may pose computational difficulties in subsequent decision-making phases. Hence, depending on the specific case, there can be a need to select a representative subset of conditionally simulated deposit realizations. This paper examines and extends an approach developed by the stochastic optimization community based on stochastic mathematical programming with recourse and is discussed here in the context of mineral deposits while it is possibly suitable for other earth science applications. The approach is based on measuring the “distance” between simulations and the introduced distance measure between simulated realizations of a mineral deposit is based on the metal above a given set of cutoff grades while a pre-existing mine design is available. The approach is tested on 100 simulations of the Walker Lake data with promising results.     

Observing the atmospheric wind from space

Among the basic variables that characterize the thermodynamic state of the atmosphere, wind is relatively poorly observed. Surface measurements by in situ sensors are numerous, but irregularly distributed over the globe. Upper level winds are characterized by radiosoundings that are reliable and accurate, but in a very limited number due to their expensive cost. They are complemented by wind measurements performed by commercial aircrafts, but these data are mostly acquired along the major flight routes at a cruising altitude of ～10 km. Radio sondes and aircrafts leave large gaps in the observation network that have been partly complemented for 10 years by an increasing amount of wind information derived from cloud tracking in satellite images, and more recently, surface winds by scatterometers. However, the observation capacity still suffers deficiencies as there is still no information in cloud-free parts of the atmosphere, and no complete vertical profiles except for the radiosoundings. They should be overcome with the launch in 2011 of the European satellite ADM-Aeolus, a space-based Doppler lidar currently under development at the European Space Agency.     

Critical Review of the Hypervib1 Model to Assess Pile Vibro-Drivability

The vibratory driving technique is used for driving piles, sheet piles, tubes and rods into the ground by imparting to the element a longitudinal periodic motion. The small amplitude vibrations induced by the equipment reduce the ground resistance which allows penetration under the action of a relatively small axial force. The technique offers an alternative to impact driving due to lower installation costs and reduced environmental disturbance (noise, vibration, etc.) especially in sensitive environments, such as industrial and urban sites or offshore wind farm sites. The vibratory technique is also preferred when the maximum stress levels imparted to the driven element are of concern. Despite the advantages of the vibratory driving technique, its application remains however mainly driven by pragmatic aspects. Within that context, the access to experience databases and full-scale field test results is of valuable interest. The aim of this paper is to review the Hypervib1 model developed by (Holeyman 1993) for assessing the vibratory drivability of piles and sheet piles, based on the analysis of such experimental results. New findings and developments brought to the model are discussed. Conclusions in terms of reliability of the method are finally drawn.     

Middle Carboniferous crustal melting in the Variscan Belt: New insights from U–Th–Pbtot. monazite and U–Pb zircon ages of the Montagne Noire Axial Zone (southern French Massif Central)

In France, the Devonian–Carboniferous Variscan orogeny developed at the expense of continental crust belonging to the northern margin of Gondwana. A Visean–Serpukhovian crustal melting has been recently documented in several massifs. However, in the Montagne Noire of the Variscan French Massif Central, which is the largest area involved in this partial melting episode, the age of migmatization was not clearly settled. Eleven U–Th–Pb_tot. ages on monazite and three U–Pb ages on associated zircon are reported from migmatites (La Salvetat, Ourtigas), anatectic granitoids (Laouzas, Montalet) and post-migmatitic granites (Anglès, Vialais, Soulié) from the Montagne Noire Axial Zone are presented here for the first time. Migmatization and emplacement of anatectic granitoids took place around 333–326 Ma (Visean) and late granitoids emplaced around 325–318 Ma (Serpukhovian). Inherited zircons and monazite date the orthogneiss source rock of the Late Visean melts between 560 Ma and 480 Ma. In migmatites and anatectic granites, inherited crystals dominate the zircon populations. The migmatitization is the middle crust expression of a pervasive Visean crustal melting event also represented by the “Tufs anthracifères” volcanism in the northern Massif Central. This crustal melting is widespread in the French Variscan belt, though it is restricted to the upper plate of the collision belt. A mantle input appears as a likely mechanism to release the heat necessary to trigger the melting of the Variscan middle crust at a continental scale.     

Environmental impact of an urban landfill on a coastal aquifer (El Jadida, Morocco)

The El Jadida landfill is one among many uncontrolled dumping sites in Morocco with no bottom liner. About 150 tons/day of solid wastes from mixed urban and industrial origins are placed directly on the ground. At the site of this landfill, the groundwaters circulate deeply (10–15 m) in the Cenomanian rock (calcareous–marl), which is characterised by an important permeability from cracks. The soil is sand–clay characterized by a weak coefficient of retention.The phreatic water ascends to the bottom of three quarries, which are located within the landfill. These circumstances, along with the lack of a leachate collection system, worsen the risks for a potential deterioration of the aquifer.To evaluate groundwater pollution due to this urban landfill, piezometric level and geochemical analyses have been monitored since 1999 on 60 wells. The landfill leachate has been collected from the three quarries that are located within the landfill. The average results of geochemical analyses show an important polluant charge vehiculed by landfill leachate (chloride = 5680 mg l⁻¹, chemical oxygen demand = 1000 mg l⁻¹, iron = 23 000 μg l⁻¹). They show also an important qualitative degradation of the groundwater, especially in the parts situated in the down gradient area and in direct proximity to the landfill. In these polluted zones, we have observed the following values: higher than 4.5 mS cm⁻¹ in electric conductivity, 1620 and 1000 mg l⁻¹ respectively in chlorides and sulfate (), 15–25 μg l⁻¹ in cadmium, and 60–100 μg l⁻¹ in chromium. These concentrations widely exceed the standard values for potable water.Several determining factors in the evolution of groundwater contamination have been highlighted, such as (1) depth of the water table, (2) permeability of soil and unsaturated zone, (3) effective infiltration, (4) humidity and (5) absence of a system for leachate drainage. So, to reduce the pollution risks of the groundwater, it is necessary to set a system of collection, drainage and treatment of landfill leachates and to emplace an impermeable surface at the site of landfill, in order to limit the infiltration of leachate.     

Conflicting structural and geochronological data from the Ibituruna quartz-syenite (SE Brazil): Effect of protracted “hot” orogeny and slow cooling rate?

The Ibituruna quartz-syenite was emplaced as a sill in the Ribeira-Araçuaí Neoproterozoic belt (Southeastern Brazil) during the last stages of the Gondwana supercontinent amalgamation. We have measured the Anisotropy of Magnetic Susceptibility (AMS) in samples from the Ibituruna sill to unravel its magnetic fabric that is regarded as a proxy for its magmatic fabric. A large magnetic anisotropy, dominantly due to magnetite, and a consistent magnetic fabric have been determined over the entire Ibituruna massif. The magmatic foliation and lineation are strikingly parallel to the solid-state mylonitic foliation and lineation measured in the country-rock. Altogether, these observations suggest that the Ibituruna sill was emplaced during the high temperature (~ 750 °C) regional deformation and was deformed before full solidification coherently with its country-rock. Unexpectedly, geochronological data suggest a rather different conclusion. LA-ICP-MS and SHRIMP ages of zircons from the Ibituruna quartz-syenite are in the range 530–535 Ma and LA-ICP-MS ages of zircons and monazites from synkinematic leucocratic veins in the country-rocks suggest a crystallization at ~ 570–580 Ma, i.e., an HT deformation > 35My older than the emplacement of the Ibituruna quartz-syenite. Conclusions from the structural and the geochronological studies are therefore conflicting. A possible explanation arises from ⁴⁰Ar–³⁹Ar thermochronology. We have dated amphiboles from the quartz-syenite, and amphiboles and biotites from the country-rock. Together with the ages of monazites and zircons in the country-rock, ⁴⁰Ar–³⁹Ar mineral ages suggest a very low cooling rate: < 3 °C/My between 570 and ~ 500 Ma and ~ 5 °C/My between 500 and 460 Ma. Assuming a protracted regional deformation consistent over tens of My, under such stable thermal conditions the fabric and microstructure of deformed rocks may remain almost unchanged even if they underwent and recorded strain pulses separated by long periods of time. This may be a characteristic of slow cooling “hot orogens” that rocks deformed at significantly different periods during the orogeny, but under roughly unchanged temperature conditions, may display almost indiscernible microstructure and fabric.