Geochemical characteristics and spectrometric prospecting in the muscovite-bearing pegmatites and granites,southeastern Aswan,Egypt

Rare metal mineralization of Sn, Nb-Ta and W is encountered in the Gebel Dihmit area （GDA）, southeastern Aswan, Egypt. The mineralization is related to muscovite granites and their pegmatite derivatives. The pegmatites are divided into three types according to their main mineral assemblages： K-feldspar-muscovite-tourmaline, K-feldspar-albite-muscovite and albite-K-feldspar-lepidolite veins. Petrogenetic studies indicate that Sn and Nb-Ta mineralization extends from the late-magmatic stage to the pegmatite and hydrothermal stages of the （GDA） suite. The albite-K-feldspar-lepidolite granite is composed dominantly of albite, lepidolote, and quartz, with topaz, K-feldspar and amblygonite. The accessory minerals are zircon, monazite, pollucite, columbite-tantalite, microlite and Ta-rich cassiterite. Phenocrysts of quartz, topaz and K-feldspar contain abundant inclusions of albite laths and occasional lepidolite crystals along growth zones （snowball texture）, indicating simultaneous crystallization from a subsolvus, residual magma. The origin of the pegmatites is attributed to extreme differentiation by fractional crystallization of a granitic magma. The economic potential for rare metals was evaluated in the geochemical discrimination diagrams. Accordingly, some of the pegmatites are not only highly differentiated in terms of alkalis, but also the promising targets for small-scale Ta and, to a less extent, Sn. The pegmatites also provide the first example of Fe-Mn and Nb-Ta fractionation in successive generations of granites to cassiterite-bearing pegmatites, which perfectly ex- hibit similar fractionation trends established for primary columbite-tantalite in the corresponding categories of pegmatites. Uranium and Th of magmatic origin are indicated by the presence of thorite and allanite, whereas evidence of hydrothermal mineralization is the alteration of rock- foring minerals such as feldspar and the formation of secondary minerals such as uranophane..     

Internal atmospheric hydromagnetic planetary-gravity waves in zonal wind-magnetic shears

Internal atmospheric hydromagnetic planetary-gravity waves propagating through a latitudinally sheared zonal flow and a zonal magnetic field sheared both latitudinally and vertically are studied.It is shown that the waves possess four critical latitudes. At two of them the waves propagate on one side only with their energy and momentum fluxes differing by an additive factor on the two sides of the critical latitude, whereas at the other two they are capable of propagating on both sides and exhibit the value effect behaviour, with their energy and momentum fluxes attenuated by an exponential factor as they cross the critical latitude.     

Facies and sequence stratigraphy of a Late Barremian wave-dominated deltaic deposit, Agadir Basin, Morocco

The late Barremian succession in the Agadir Basin of the Moroccan Western High Atlas represents wave-dominated deltaic deposits. The succession is represented by stacked thickening and coarsening upwards parasequences 5–15 m thick formed during fifth- or fourth-order regression and building a third-order highstand systems tract. Vertical facies transitions in parasequences reflect flooding followed by shoaling of diverse shelf environments ranging from offshore transition interbedded mudstones, siltstones and thin sandstones, lower shoreface/lower delta front hummocky bedforms to upper shoreface/upper delta front cross-bedded sandstones. The regional configuration reflects the progradation of wave-dominated deltas over an offshore setting. The maximum sea-level fall led to the development of a sequence boundary that is an unconformity. The subsequent early Aptian relative sea-level rise contributes to the development of an extensive conglomerate lagged transgressive surface of erosion. The latter and the sequence boundary are amalgamated forming a composite surface.     

The use of magnetic and geo-electrical data to delineate the subsurface structures and groundwater potentiality in Southeastern Sinai, Egypt

The study area is located in the southern part of Sinai Peninsula. This study was done to delineate the subsurface structure of the basement rocks affecting the groundwater potentiality in the study area and to perform the lateral and vertical variations in the subsurface lithologic properties. To achieve these, a high-resolution total intensity magnetic map and geo-electrical survey were acquired. Two-dimensional power spectrum, analytical signal, and Euler deconvolution techniques are applied on magnetic data. The geo-electric data interpretations concluded that, the study area can be classified into five units of sediments arranged as: (1) the top surficial layer of dry sand and gravels; (2) the second layer of silty sand layer with thickness ranging from 5 to 35 m; (3) the third layer of dry sand with thickness ranging from 5 to 130 m; (4) the fourth layer composed of saturated sand which was considered as the water-bearing zone of the investigated interval, its thickness ranges between 50m and more than 200 m; (5) the fifth layer is interpreted as basement rocks. The depth to the basement surface has an average value of 156 m at the eastern side and 758 m at the western side of the study area. This area is characterized by a graben structure bounded by major faults striking in the NW–SE direction and is considered one of the most promising regions for water resources in Sinai.     

Impact de la vie benthique sur la genèse de nodules calcaires dans les black shales

The study of calcareous nodules from four organic-rich black shale series allows us to suggest a prominent part for benthic organisms in creating heterogeneities in the sediment, thus favouring microbially mediated early diagenesis based on organic matter consumption. To cite this article: J.-G. Bréhéret et al., C. R. Geoscience 336 (2004).     

Characterizing seasonal groundwater storage in alpine catchments using time-lapse gravimetry,water stable isotopes and water balance methods

Alpine areas play a major role in water supply in downstream valleys by releasing water during warm and dry periods. However, the hydrogeology of alpine catchments, which are particularly exposed to the effects of climate change, is currently not well understood. Increasing our knowledge of alpine hydrogeological processes is thus of considerable importance for any forward-looking hydrological investigations in alpine areas. The objectives of this study are to quantify seasonal groundwater storage variations in a small Swiss alpine catchment and to evaluate the capabilities of time-lapse gravimetry in the identification of zones of high groundwater storage fluctuations. Time-lapse gravimetric measurements enable rapid localisation of zones of dynamic groundwater storage changes and help to highlight aquifers with a higher storage decrease. Temperature sensors enable measurement of the temporal trend in stream and spring drying in the post-snowmelt period. Stable isotope measurements allow us to identify the origin of surface water exiting the catchment. The results improve our comprehension of a conceptual schema highlighting two different hydrogeological systems: (a) a shallow, rapidly depleted one fed directly by snowmelt and (b) a deeper one, with a slower recession, fed by main recharge during peak snowmelt and emerging at the lower part of the catchment below the talus and moraine of the catchment where bedrock is exposed. These dynamics confirm the high variability of storage in the talus and moraine aquifers and highlight the dominant role of Quaternary deposits and their connectivity to store water over seasonal and multi-year time-scales. The mechanisms explaining the importance of Quaternary deposits are the combination of moraine and talus with different permeabilities allowing the storage of sufficient quantities of water permitting continuous release during drier periods of the year.     

REE and actinide microdistribution in Sahara 97072 and ALHA77295 EH3 chondrites: A combined cosmochemical and petrologic investigation

We report the results of rare earth elements (REEs) and U-Th inventory of individual minerals (oldhamite, enstatite and niningerite) in two of the most unequilibrated and primitive EH3 known so far, ALHA77295 and Sahara 97072. Under the highly reducing condition that prevailed during the formation of enstatite chondrites, REEs are mainly chalcophile and concentrated in oldhamite. The study is guided by detailed petrographic investigations of the individual minerals in chondrules, complex sulfide-metal clasts and enstatite-dominated matrices.We developed two textural parameters in order to resolve the evolution of oldhamite condensates and their residence in the solar gas prior to their accretion in the individual objects or in matrices and relate these textural features to the measured REE patterns of the individual oldhamite crystals. These textural parameters are the crystal habit of oldhamite grains (idiomorphic or anhedral) and their host assemblages. REE concentrations were measured by SIMS and LA-ICPMS.Oldhamite grains display REE enrichments (10-100 × CI). Four types of REE patterns are encountered in oldhamite in ALHA77295. In general the REE distributions cannot be assigned to a specific oldhamite-bearing assemblage. The most represented REE pattern is characterized by both slight to large positive Eu and Yb anomalies and is enriched in light REEs relative to heavy REEs. This pattern is present in 97% of oldhamite in Sahara 97072, suggesting a different source region in the reduced part of the nebula or different parental EH asteroids for the two EH3 chondrites. Different parental asteroids are also supported by MgS-FeS zoning profiles in niningerite grains adjacent to troilite revealing both normal and reverse zoning trends and different MnS contents. The observed homogeneity of REE distribution in oldhamite grains in Sahara 97072 is not related to the mild metamorphic event identified in this meteorite that caused breakdown of the major K- and Rb-bearing sulfide (djerfisherite).REE concentrations in enstatite range between 0.2 and 8 × CI. Hence, enstatite is an important REE host next to oldhamite. Most patterns are characterized by negative Eu and Yb anomalies. Niningerites are negligible contributors to bulk EH3 REE inventory. Average positive Eu and Yb anomalies observed in most oldhamite are complimentary to the negative ones in enstatite thus explaining the flat patterns of the bulk meteorites. The condensation calculations based on cosmic abundances predict that the first oldhamite condensates should have flat REE patterns with Eu and Yb depletions since Eu and Yb condense at lower temperature than other REE. However, this pattern is seen in enstatite. Our findings are at odds with the predicted negative Eu and Yb anomalies in oldhamite earliest condensates from a closed system in a reduced solar source. Our petrographic, mineral chemistry and REE abundances of oldhamite, enstatite and niningerite discards an origin of oldhamite by impact melting (Rubin et al., 2009).Our results do not support in first order the scenario of the incorporation of REE in the Earth’s core to explain ¹⁴²Nd excess in terrestrial samples relative to chondrites because oldhamite is the major REE carrier phase and has super-chondritic Sm/Nd ratios.     

Hydrothermal alteration of plagioclase in granitic rocks from Proterozoic basement of SE Sweden

Petrographic examinations and electron microprobe analyses of Proterozoic granitic rocks, SE Sweden aimed to characterize and unravel the mechanisms and conditions of plagioclase alterations. These alterations include saussuritization, albitization and replacement of plagioclase by K‐feldspar. The hydrothermal alterations, which are inferred to have occurred at ca. 250–400°C, resulted in concomitant formation of Al‐rich titanite, epidote, calcite, pumpellyite, prehnite and iron oxides. Replacement of plagioclase by K‐feldspar occurs in red‐stained zones, which have developed close to thin fractures owing to the precipitation of tiny Fe‐oxide pigment particles within the altered plagioclase, whereas saussuritized plagioclase has less systematic spatial relationships to these fractures. Albitization of plagioclase occurred in rocks that are poor in biotite compared to rocks that suffered extensive saussuritization. The chemical and textural characterization of various types of plagioclase alterations allows elucidation of the granitic hydrothermal systems. Features of feldspar alteration in the granitic rocks are similar to those encountered in feldspathic sandstones and should hence be considered in studies on diagenetic changes of siliciclastic successions during basin evolution. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.