Compositional Zoning of the Bishop Tuff

Compositional data for >400 pumice clasts, organized accordingto eruptive sequence, crystal content, and texture, providenew perspectives on eruption and pre-eruptive evolution of the>600 km³ of zoned rhyolitic magma ejected as the Bishop Tuffduring formation of Long Valley caldera. Proportions and compositionsof different pumice types are given for each ignimbrite packageand for the intercalated plinian pumice-fall layers that eruptedsynchronously. Although withdrawal of the zoned magma was lesssystematic than previously realized, the overall sequence displaystrends toward greater proportions of less evolved pumice, morecrystals (0·5–24 wt %), and higher FeTi-oxide temperatures(714–818°C). No significant hiatus took place duringthe 6 day eruption of the Bishop Tuff, nearly all of which issuedfrom an integrated, zoned, unitary reservoir. Shortly beforeeruption, however, the zoned melt-dominant portion of the chamberwas invaded by batches of disparate lower-silica rhyolite magma,poorer in crystals than most of the resident magma but slightlyhotter and richer in Ba, Sr, and Ti. Interaction with residentmagma at the deepest levels tapped promoted growth of Ti-richrims on quartz, Ba-rich rims on sanidine, and entrapment ofnear-rim melt inclusions relatively enriched in Ba and CO₂.Varied amounts of mingling, even in higher parts of the chamber,led to the dark gray and swirly crystal-poor pumices sparselypresent in all ash-flow packages. As shown by FeTi-oxide geothermometry,the zoned rhyolitic chamber was hottest where crystal-richest,rendering any model of solidification fronts at the walls orroof unlikely. The main compositional gradient (75–195ppm Rb; 0·8–2·2 ppm Ta; 71–154 ppmZr; 0·40–1·73% FeO*) existed in the melt,prior to crystallization of the phenocryst suite observed, whichincluded zircon as much as 100 kyr older than the eruption.The compositions of crystals, though themselves largely unzoned,generally reflect magma temperature and the bulk compositionalgradient, implying both that few crystals settled or were transportedfar and that the observed crystals contributed little to establishingthat gradient. Upward increases in aqueous gas and dissolvedwater, combined with the adiabatic gradient (for the 5 km depthrange tapped) and the roofward decline in liquidus temperatureof the zoned melt, prevented significant crystallization againstthe roof, consistent with dominance of crystal-poor magma earlyin the eruption and lack of any roof-rind fragments among theBishop ejecta, before or after onset of caldera collapse. Amodel of secular incremental zoning is advanced wherein numerousbatches of crystal-poor melt were released from a mush zone(many kilometers thick) that floored the accumulating rhyoliticmelt-rich body. Each batch rose to its own appropriate levelin the melt-buoyancy gradient, which was self-sustaining againstwholesale convective re-homogenization, while the thick mushzone below buffered it against disruption by the deeper (non-rhyolitic)recharge that augmented the mush zone and thermally sustainedthe whole magma chamber. Crystal–melt fractionation wasthe dominant zoning process, but it took place not principallyin the shallow melt-rich body but mostly in the pluton-scalemush zone before and during batchwise melt extraction. KEY WORDS: Bishop Tuff; ignimbrite; magma zonation; mush model; rhyolite     

Mixing and differentiation in the Oruanui rhyolitic magma, Taupo, New Zealand: evidence from volatiles and trace elements in melt inclusions

Large pyroclastic rhyolites are snapshots of evolving magma bodies, and preserved in their eruptive pyroclasts is a record of evolution up to the time of eruption. Here we focus on the conditions and processes in the Oruanui magma that erupted at 26.5 ka from Taupo Volcano, New Zealand. The 530 km³ (void-free) of material erupted in the Oruanui event is comparable in size to the Bishop Tuff in California, but differs in that rhyolitic pumice and glass compositions, although variable, did not change systematically with eruption order. We measured the concentrations of H₂O, CO₂ and major and trace elements in zoned phenocrysts and melt inclusions from individual pumice clasts covering the range from early to late erupted units. We also used cathodoluminescence imaging to infer growth histories of quartz phenocrysts. For quartz-hosted inclusions, we studied both fully enclosed melt inclusions and reentrants (connecting to host melt through a small opening). The textures and compositions of inclusions and phenocrysts reflect complex pre-eruptive processes of incomplete assimilation/partial melting, crystallization differentiation, magma mixing and gas saturation. ‘Restitic’ quartz occurs in seven of eight pumice clasts studied. Variations in dissolved H₂O and CO₂ in quartz-hosted melt inclusions reflect gas saturation in the Oruanui magma and crystallization depths of ∼3.5–7 km. Based on variations of dissolved H₂O and CO₂ in reentrants, the amount of exsolved gas at the beginning of eruption increased with depth, corresponding to decreasing density with depth. Pre-eruptive mixing of magma with varying gas content implies variations in magma bulk density that would have driven convective mixing. Electronic Supplementary Material Supplementary material is available for this article at and is accessible for authorized users.     

Groundwater sustainability and groundwater/surface-water interaction in arid Dunhuang Basin,northwest China

The Dunhuang Basin, a typical inland basin in northwestern China, suffers a net loss of groundwater and the occasional disappearance of the Crescent Lake. Within this region, the groundwater/surface-water interactions are important for the sustainability of the groundwater resources. A three-dimensional transient groundwater flow model was established and calibrated using MODFLOW 2000, which was used to predict changes to these interactions once a water diversion project is completed. The simulated results indicate that introducing water from outside of the basin into the Shule and Danghe rivers could reverse the negative groundwater balance in the Basin. River-water/groundwater interactions control the groundwater hydrology, where river leakage to the groundwater in the Basin will increase from 3,114?×?10⁴ m³/year in 2017 to 11,875?×?10⁴ m³/year in 2021, and to 17,039?×?10⁴ m³/year in 2036. In comparison, groundwater discharge to the rivers will decrease from 3277?×?10⁴ m³/year in 2017 to 1857?×?10⁴ m³/year in 2021, and to 510?×?10⁴ m³/year by 2036; thus, the hydrology will switch from groundwater discharge to groundwater recharge after implementing the water diversion project. The simulation indicates that the increased net river infiltration due to the water diversion project will raise the water table and then effectively increasing the water level of the Crescent Lake, as the lake level is contiguous with the water table. However, the regional phreatic evaporation will be enhanced, which may intensify soil salinization in the Dunhuang Basin. These results can guide the water allocation scheme for the water diversion project to alleviate groundwater depletion and mitigate geo-environmental problem.     

Inertial instability of large Rossby number horizontal shear flows in a thin homogeneous layer

A horizontal shear flow having a Rossby number, Ro, greater than unity on a rotating plane can become unstable when its shear value is less than −f, the Coriolis frequency. In this paper, this instability is investigated for an O(10 km) submesoscale, sinusoidal shear flow in a thin homogeneous fluid layer as in an oceanic mixed layer or a shallow sea. The most unstable mode is shown by a linear analysis to occur in a narrow localized region centered around the maximum anticyclonic current shear. However, nonlinear numerical calculations show that the instability can grow to encompass both unstable and stable regions of the current. A consequence of this finite-amplitude evolution is the formation of surface convergence/shear fronts. The possibility that inertial instability mechanism is a source of some surface convergence/shear features seen in remote sensing images of the sea surface is discussed. A comparison is made with the shear-flow instability that can occur concurrently in a sinusoidal shear current, and inertial instability is shown to be the dominant instability mechanism in the immediate range above Ro=2.     

Time-lapse seismic analysis of pressure depletion in the Southern Gas Basin

In the Southern Gas Basin (SGB) of the North Sea there are many mature gas fields where time‐lapse monitoring could be very beneficial in extending production life. However, the conditions are not immediately attractive for time‐lapse seismic assessment. This is primarily because the main production effect to be assessed is a pore pressure reduction and frame stiffening because of gas production in tight sandstone reservoirs that also have no real seismic direct hydrocarbon indicators. Modelling, based on laboratory measurements, has shown that such an effect would be small and difficult to detect in seismic data. This paper makes two main contributions. Firstly, this is, to our knowledge, the first time‐lapse study in the SGB and involves a real‐data assessment of the viability for detecting production in such an environment. Secondly, the feasibility of using markedly different legacies of data in such a study is addressed, including an assessment of the factors influencing the crossmatching. From the latter, it is found that significant, spatially varying time shifts need to be, and are successfully, resolved through 3‐D warping. After the warping, the primary factors limiting the crossmatching appear to be residual local phase variations, possibly induced by the differing migration strategies, structure, reverberations and different coherencies of the volumes, caused by differences in acquisition‐structure azimuth and acquisition fold. Despite these differences, a time‐lapse amplitude signature is observed that is attributable to production. The character of the 4‐D amplitude anomalies may also indicate variations in stress sensitivity, e.g. because of zones of fracturing. Additionally, warping‐derived time attributes have been highlighted as a potential additional avenue for detection of pressure depletion in such reservoirs. Although the effects are subtle, they may indicate changes in stress/pressure in and around the reservoir because of production. However, to fully resolve the subtle time‐lapse effects in such a reservoir, the data differences need to be better addressed, which may be possible by full re‐processing and pre‐stack analysis, but more likely dedicated 4‐D acquisition would be required.     

The scope for generating bio-oils with relatively low oxygen contents via hydropyrolysis

The primary oils obtained in high yields from fast (fluidised-bed) pyrolysis of biomass generally have high oxygen contents (ca. 40% w/w). The scope for using pyrolysis under hydrogen pressure (hydropyrolysis), to give oils with much lower oxygen contents compared to normal pyrolysis has been investigated. Fixed-bed hydropyrolysis tests have been conducted on cellulose, sugar cane bagasse and eucalyptus wood using hydrogen pressures up to 10 MPa, with heating rates of 5 and 300°C min⁻¹. A colloidal FeS catalyst was used in some tests (Fe loading of 5%, w/w) to increase overall conversions. Further, the attractive option of using a two-stage reactor in which the primary oil vapors are passed though a bed of hydrotreating catalyst is also described. Raising the hydrogen pressure from atmospheric to 10 MPa reduced the oxygen content of the primary oil by over 10% to below 20% w/w. The addition of a dispersed iron sulphide catalyst gave conversions close to 100% for all three biomass samples investigated at 10 MPa under conditions in the fixed-bed reactor where significant diffusional resistances existed and reduced the oxygen content of the bio-oil by a further 10%. Although NMR indicated that the oils became increasingly aromatic as more oxygen was removed, the increase in hydrogen pressure decreased the extent of overall aromatisation that occurs primarily due to the lower char yields obtained. In two-stage tests for cellulose, using a commercial sulphided Ni/Mo γ-Al₂O₃ catalyst at 400°C, increasing the hydrogen pressure from 2.5 to 10 MPa decreased the oxygen content of the oil by over 20% to 10% w/w. The H/C ratios were higher and O/C ratios smaller for the two-stage bio-oils compared to their single stage counterparts. However, the differences in the O/C ratios between the single and two-stage bio-oils increase with pressure.     

Survivorship and growth of Fucus gardneri after transplant to an acid mine drainage-polluted area

Acid mine drainage (AMD) from an abandoned copper mine at Britannia Beach, British Columbia, Canada, enters the marine environment through Britannia Creek. The surrounding intertidal zone is devoid of rockweed, Fucus gardneri Silva, a seaweed that dominates nearby shores. Rockweed plants were transplanted to the intertidal zone near Britannia Creek and monitored for changes in percent cover, survivorship, growth rate and Cu content. Autumn and winter transplants to within 100 m of Britannia Creek resulted in negative growth rates and high mortality within 57 days of exposure to AMD, with Cu levels in rockweed surpassing 2,300 ppm in dry tissue. Summer transplants to sites 300-700 m from Britannia Creek showed no consistent differences between AMD-exposed rockweed and control plants, possibly because the plants were stressed by desiccation. The results are consistent with ecological effects observed in other studies, and provide strong evidence for the role of AMD in excluding rockweed from the shores near Britannia Creek.     

Glaciation and deglaciation of the SW Lake District,England: implications of cosmogenic 36Cl exposure dating

Exposure dating using cosmogenic ³⁶Cl demonstrates that the summit plateau of Scafell Pike (978 m) in the SW Lake District escaped erosion by glacier ice during the last glacial maximum (LGM; c. 26–21 kyr) and probably throughout the Devensian Glacial Stage (MIS 5d-2). Exposure ages obtained for ice-moulded bedrock on an adjacent col at 750–765 m confirm over-riding and erosion of bedrock by warm-based glacier ice during the LGM. The contrast between the two sites is interpreted in terms of preservation of tors, frost-shattered outcrops and blockfields on terrain above 840–870 m under cold-based ice. An exposure age of 17.3 ± 1.1 kyr for the col at 750–765 m suggests that substantial downwastage of the last ice sheet had occurred by c. 17 kyr, consistent with deglacial exposure ages obtained for other high-level sites in the British Isles. An exposure age of 12.5 ± 0.8 kyr obtained for a glacially transported rockfall boulder within the limits of later corrie glaciation confirms that the final episode of local glaciation in the Lake District occurred during the Loch Lomond Stade (c. 12.9–11.7 kyr). This research also demonstrated the difficulties of obtaining reliable exposure ages from rhyolite and andesite bedrock that has proved resistant to glacial abrasion.