Zircon saturation revisited: temperature and composition effects in a variety of crustal magma types

Hydrothermal experiments in the temperature range 750–1020°C have defined the saturation behavior of zircon in crustal anatectic melts as a function of both temperature and composition. The results provide a model of zircon solubility given by: In D_Zr^zircon/melt= ?3.80?[0.85(M?1)]+12900/T where D_Zr^zircon/melt is the concentration ratio of Zr in the stoichiometric zircon to that in the melt, T is the absolute temperature, and M is the cation ratio (Na + K + 2Ca)/(Al · Si). This solubility model is based principally upon experiments at 860°, 930°, and 1020°C, but has also been confirmed at temperatures up to 1500°C for M = 1.3. The lowest temperature experiments (750° and 800°C) yielded relatively imprecise, low solubilities, but the measured values (with assigned errors) are nevertheless in agreement with the predictions of the model.For M = 1.3 (a normal peraluminous granite), these results predict zircon solubilities ranging from ～ 100 ppm dissolved Zr at 750°C to 1330 ppm at 1020°C. Thus, in view of the substantial range of bulk Zr concentrations observed in crustal granitoids (～ 50–350 ppm), it is clear that anatectic magmas can show contrasting behavior toward zircon in the source rock. Those melts containing insufficient Zr for saturation in zircon during melting can have achieved that condition only by consuming all zircon in the source. On the other hand, melts with higher Zr contents (appropriate to saturation in zircon) must be regarded as incapable of dissolving additional zircon, whether it be located in the residual rocks or as crystals entrained in the departing melt fraction. This latter possibility is particularly interesting, inasmuch as the inability of a melt to consume zircon means that critical geochemical “indicators” contained in the undissolved zircon (e.g. heavy rare earths, Hf, U, Th, and radiogenic Pb) can equilibrate with the contacting melt only by solid-state diffusion, which may be slow relative to the time scale of the melting event.     

A rapid-response 2-D drag anemometer for atmospheric turbulence measurements

A rapid response drag anemometer for measuring streamwise and lateral components of horizontal windspeed is described. Theory of operation, design and calibration are discussed with emphasis on the electronic preconditioning of signals and problems associated with using a mechanically resonant system as a sensor. Field comparisons showed half-hourly means and standard deviations of the streamwise component to be within 8% and 5% of respective values obtained from a 3-dimensional sonic anemometer. The lateral component from the drag anemometer was significantly more noisy than that from the 3-D sonic due to induced oscillations arising from vortex shedding. After mechanical and electronic filtering, half-hourly standard deviation comparisons agreed to within 6% for this component. Friction velocities obtained from the drag anemometer in combination with a 1-D sonic, agreed with measurements from the 3-D sonic anemometer to within 4% over a measured range of 0.05 to 1.2 m s^-1     

Domain wall formation in minerals: I. theory of twin boundary shapes in Na-feldspar

Domains of triclinic Na-feldspar which are a direct consequence of structural strain are investigated theoretically. The following conclusions are arrived at. Only two types of twin walls are created by spontaneous strain, namely the Albite- and Pericline twin walls. If intersections occur, rounded corners are predicted. Any third domain wall close to such an intersection must bend into an S-shape. Narrow domains between two twin walls tend to become needle-shaped close to the intersection with a further, perpendicular, twin wall. The combination of the elastic stiffness coefficients c ₄₄ c ₆₆-c ₄₆ ² is expected to become small at temperatures near to the transition temperature. In the same temperature interval elastic fluctuations occur; their amplitudes and propagation directions are given.     

The Galactic Thick Disk – Status

The status of the Galactic thick disk is reviewed. Consideration of the recent literature suggests that its vertical scale height and normalisation with respect to the thin disk remain uncertain to within a factor two, with values reported in the ranges 750–1500 pc, and 0.02–0.13, respectively. The bulk of the thick disk has kinematics (σ_U, σ_V, σ_W) = (65, 54, 38 km s^-1), and lags the thin disk by some 40 km s^-1; differences of opinion exists as to whether kinematics change with distance from the Galactic plane. The bulk of the thick disk has [Fe/H] ∼ −0.6, with little or no evidence for a vertical gradient. The question of gradients is critical for an understanding of thick disk cosmogony and needs closer attention. The reality of the so-called metal-weak thick disk (material having disklike kinematics and [Fe/H] ≤ −1.0) is also considered. The case for such material seems to be steadily growing: in the range −1.6 ≤ [Fe/H] ≤ −1.0, recent estimates suggest ρ_MWTD/ρ_Halo ∼ 0.1-0.3. While many workers regard the thick disk as a discrete entity, the caveat is made that this is a sufficient condition, but not one necessarily required by the observations. Best practice requires that both the discrete model and the alternative extended configuration be compared with observational data to examine the relative likelihood of their relevance. Recent theoretical advances are also discussed, together with the need for in situ measurements of the thick disk away from the Galactic plane. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Distribution and accumulation rate of ore elements in Holocene and Late Glacial Sediments of the Deryugin Basin,Sea of Okhotsk

Results of the study of contents and accumulation rates of Fe, Mn, and a number of trace elements in Upper Quaternary sediments of the Deryugin Basin are presented. Maps of the average contents and accumulation rates of excess Fe, Mn, Zn, Ba, Ni, Pb, Cu, and Mo in sediments of the first oxygen isotope stage (OIS) have been plotted. Anomalous contents and accumulation rates are confined to peripheral zones of the Deryugin sedimentary basin and large fracture zones. Different mechanisms of the influence of fluid-dynamic processes on the rate of hydrogenic and biogenic accumulation of ore elements are assumed.Translated from Litologiya i Poleznye Iskopaemye, No. 2, 2005, pp. 115–132.Original Russian Text Copyright © 2005 by Astakhov, Gorbarenko, Bakhareva, Gretskaya, Sattarova.