Lake-groundwater relationships and fluid-rock interaction in the East African Rift Valley: isotopic evidence

The assessment of water resources in the Rift Valley environment is important for population, agriculture and energy-related issues and depends on a good understanding of the relationship between freshwater lakes and regional groundwater. This can be hampered by the amount of fluid-rock interaction which occurs throughout the rift, obscuring original hydrochemical signatures. However, O and H stable isotope ratios can be used as tracers of infiltration over sometimes considerable distances, while showing that the volcanic edifices of the rift floor have varying effects on groundwater flow patterns. Specific cases from Kenya and Ethiopia are considered, including Lakes Naivasha, Baringo, Awasa and Zwai.In addition to their physical tracing role, stable isotopes can reveal information about processes of fluid-rock interaction. The general lack of O isotope shifting in rift hydrothermal systems suggests a high water:rock ratio, with the implication that these systems are mature. Carbon isotope studies on the predominantly bicarbonate waters of the rift show how they evolve from dilute meteoric recharge to highly alkaline waters, via the widespread silicate hydrolysis promoted by the flux of mantle carbon dioxide which occurs in most parts of the rift. There appears to be only minor differences in the C cycle between Kenya and Ethiopia.     

Principles of quantitative absorbance measurements in anisotropic crystals

The accurate measurement of absorbance (A=-log T; T=I/I ₀) in anisotropic materials like crystals is highly important for the determination of the concentration and orientation of the oscillator (absorber) under investigation. The absorbance in isotropic material is linearly dependent on the concentration of the absorber and on the thickness of the sample (A=?·c·t). Measurement of absorbance in anisotropic media is more complicated, but it can be obtained from polarized spectra (i) on three random, but orthogonal sections of a crystal, or (ii) preferably on two orthogonal sections oriented parallel to each of two axes of the indicatrix ellipsoid. To compare among different crystal classes (including cubic symmetry) it is useful to convert measured absorbance values to one common basis (the total absorbance A _tot), wherein all absorbers are corrected as if they were aligned parallel to the E-vector of the incident light. The total absorption coefficient (a _tot=A _tot/t) is calculated by $$\left( {\text{i}} \right)a_{{\text{tot}}} = \sum\limits_{i = 1}^3 {(a_{\max ,i} + a_{\min ,i} )} /2, {\text{or}} {\text{by}} {\text{(ii) }}a_{{\text{tot}}} = a_x + a_y + a_z .$$ Only in special circumstances will unpolarized measurements of absorbance provide data useful for quantitative studies of anisotropic material. The orientation of the absorber with respect to the axes of the indicatrix ellipsoid is calculated according to A _x/A _tot=cos² (x < absorber), and analogously for A _yand A _z. In this way, correct angles are obtained for all cases of symmetry. The extinction ratio of the polarizer (Pe=I _crossed/I _parallel) has considerable influence on the measured amplitude of absorption bands, especially in cases of strong anisotropic absorbance. However, if Pe is known, the true absorbance values can be calculated even with polarizers of low extinction ratio, according to A _max=?log[(T _max,obs?0.5·Pe·T _min,obs)/(1?0.5·Pe)], and similar for A _min. The theoretical approach is confirmed by measurements on calcite and topaz.     

Dynamic pile-soil-pile interaction. Part I: Analysis of axial vibration

Simple methods of analysis are developed for computing the dynamic steady-state axial response of floating pile groups embedded in homogeneous and non-homogeneous soil deposits. Physically-motivated approximations are introduced to account for the interaction between two individual piles. It is found that such an interaction arises chiefly from the ‘interference’ of wave fields originating along each pile shaft and spreading outward. For homogeneous deposits the wave fronts originating at an individual pile are cylindrical and the interaction is essentially independent of pile flexibility and slenderness. For non-homogeneous deposits the wave fronts are non-cylindrical and ray-theory approximations are invoked to derive pile flexibility-dependent interaction functions. Results are presented for the dynamic stiffness and damping of several pile groups, as well as for distribution of the applied load among individual piles. For deposits with modulus proportional to depth, the agreement with the few rigorous solutions available is encouraging. A comprehensive parameter study focuses on the effects of soil inhomogeneity and pile-group configuration. It is demonstrated that the ‘dynamic group efficiency’ may far exceed unity at certain frequencies. Increasing soil inhomogeneity tends to reduce the respective resonant peaks and lead to smoother interaction functions, in qualitative agreement with field evidence.     

High-temperature single-crystal neutron diffraction study of natural chondrodite

The H-atom environment in a Tilly Foster chondrodite was analyzed using single-crystal neutron-diffraction data collected at 500, 700 and 900 K and previously published low temperature data collected at 10, 100 and 300 K on the same crystal (Mg_4.64Fe_0.28Mn_0.014Ti_0.023(Si_1.01O₄)₂F_1.16(OH)_0.84; Friedrich et al. in Am Mineral 86:981–989, 2001). The full mean square displacement matrix Σ of the O–H pair was determined from the temperature dependence of the anisotropic displacement parameters, enabling a proper correction of the O–H bond for thermal vibration without assumptions about the correlation of O and H movements. The results show that the perpendicular O–H motions in chondrodite are intermediate between the riding and the independent motion models. The corrected O–H bond lengths do not change with temperature whereas the corrected H···F distances show an increase of ~0.02 Å with temperature, as do the Mg–O distances. This result shows that spectroscopic observations on the strength of the covalent O–H bond cannot be interpreted unambiguously in terms of a corresponding behaviour of the associated H···O/F hydrogen bond.     

Very-low-temperature record of the subduction process: A review of worldwide lawsonite eclogites

Lawsonite eclogites preserve a record of very-low-temperature conditions in subduction zones. All occur at active margin settings, typically characterized by accretionary complexes lithologies and as tectonic blocks within serpentinite-matrix mélange. Peak lawsonite-eclogite facies mineral assemblages (garnet + omphacite + lawsonite + rutile) typically occur in prograde-zoned garnet porphyroblasts. Their matrix is commonly overprinted by higher-temperature epidote-bearing assemblages; greenschist- or amphibolite-facies conditions erase former lawsonite-eclogite relics. Various pseudomorphs after lawsonite occur, particularly in some blueschist/eclogite transitional facies rocks. Coesite-bearing lawsonite-eclogite xenoliths in kimberlitic pipes and lawsonite pseudomorphs in some relatively low-temperature ultrahigh-pressure eclogites are known. Using inclusion assemblages in garnet, lawsonite eclogites can be classified into two types: L-type, such as those from Guatemala and British Columbia, contain garnet porphyroblasts that grew only within the lawsonite stability field and E-type, such as from the Dominican Republic, record maximum temperature in the epidote-stability field.

Formation and preservation of lawsonite eclogites requires cold subduction to mantle depths and rapid exhumation. The earliest occurrences of lawsonite-eclogite facies mineral assemblages are Early Paleozoic in Spitsbergen and the New England fold belt of Australia; this suggests that since the Phanerozoic, secular cooling of Earth and subduction-zone thermal structures evolved the necessary high pressure/temperature conditions. Buoyancy of serpentinite and oblique convergence with a major strike-slip component may facilitate the exhumation of lawsonite eclogites from mantle depths.     

Mineralogy and trace element relative solubility patterns of shallow marine sediments affected by submarine tailings disposal and artisanal gold mining,Buyat-Ratototok district,North Sulawesi,Indonesia

Shallow marine sediments of the Buyat-Ratototok district of North Sulawesi, Indonesia, are affected by submarine disposal of industrial gold mine tailings and small-scale gold mining using mercury amalgamation. Industrial mine tailings contained 590–660 ppm arsenic, 490–580 ppm antimony, and 0.8–5.8 ppm mercury. Electron microprobe survey found both colloidal iron–arsenic-phases without sulphur and arsenian pyrite in tailings and sites to which tailings had dispersed, but only arsenopyrite in sediments affected by artisanal mining. Antimony in tailings was present as antimony oxides, colloidal iron–antimony phases, colloidal iron–antimony phases, and stibnite in sediments affected by both types of mining. A sequential extraction found that 2% of arsenic held in tailings and tailings-contaminated sediments was exchangeable, 20–30% was labile, including weakly adsorbed, carbonate- and arsenate bound, 20–30% was metastable, probably incorporated into iron or manganese oxyhydroxides, or strongly adsorbed to silicate minerals, and 40–48% was relatively insoluble, probably incorporated into sulphides or silicates. Arsenic in sediments affected by artisanal gold mining was 75–95% relatively insoluble. Antimony in all sediments was >90% relatively insoluble. Relative solubility patterns of most other metals did not differ between industrial tailings-affected, artisanal-mining affected areas, and fluvial sediments. Results suggest that submarine tailings disposal is not suitable for refractory Carlin-like gold deposits because ore processing converts arsenic to forms unstable in anoxic marine sediments. Electronic supplementary material Supplementary material is available in the online version of this article at and is accessible for authorized users.     

Parsimonious 3D post-stack Kirchhoff depth migration

Parsimonious post‐stack migration is extended to three dimensions. By tracing single rays back along each incident wave direction (as determined by a local slant stack at the receivers), the ray tracing can be embedded in the migration. This approach significantly reduces the computer time and disk space needed because it is not necessary to build and save image time maps; 3D migration can be performed on a workstation or personal computer rather than using a supercomputer or cluster. The location of a reflector in the output image is defined by tracing a zero‐offset ray to the one‐way traveltime (the image condition); the orientation of the reflector is defined as a surface perpendicular to the raypath. The migration impulse response operator is confined to the first Fresnel zone around the estimated reflection point, which is much smaller than the large isochronic surface in traditional Kirchhoff depth migration. Additional efficiency is obtained by applying an amplitude threshold to reduce the amount of data to be migrated. Tests on synthetic data show that the proposed implementation of parsimonious 3D post‐stack Kirchhoff depth migration is at least two orders of magnitude faster than traditional Kirchhoff migration, at the expense of slightly degraded migration image coherence. The proposed migration is expected to be a useful complement to conventional time migrations for fast initial imaging of subsurface structures and for real‐time imaging of near‐offset sections during data acquisition for quality control.     

Wave propagation and soil–structure interaction on a cliff crest during the 1999 Athens Earthquake

During the 1999 Athens Earthquake the town of Adàmes, located on the eastern cliff of the Kifissos river canyon, experienced unexpectedly heavy damage. Despite the significant amplification potential of the slope geometry, topography effects cannot alone explain the uneven damage distribution within a 300 m zone behind the crest, characterized by a rather uniform structural quality. This paper illustrates the important role of soil stratigraphy, material heterogeneity, and soil–structure interaction on the characteristics of ground surface motion. For this purpose, we first perform elastic two-dimensional wave propagation analyses utilizing available geotechnical and seismological data, and validate our results by comparison with aftershock recordings. We then conduct non-linear time-domain simulations that include spatial variability of soil properties and soil–structure interaction effects, to reveal their additive contribution in the topographic motion aggravation.