On the emptiness of voids

The observability of a galaxy population inside of voids is estimated by assuming a void population similar to the one of nearby field galaxies in density as well as in morphological mixture. Obviously an extension to apparent magnitudes beyond m = 22 for a complete sample of galaxies in a sufficient large field is needed to get reliable information on a void population.     

Could CoRoT-7b and Kepler-10b be remnants of evaporated gas or ice giants?

We present thermal mass loss calculations over evolutionary time scales for the investigation if the smallest transiting rocky exoplanets CoRoT-7b (∼1.68R_Earth) and Kepler-10b (∼1.416R_Earth) could be remnants of an initially more massive hydrogen-rich gas giant or a hot Neptune-class exoplanet. We apply a thermal mass loss formula which yields results that are comparable to hydrodynamic loss models. Our approach considers the effect of the Roche lobe, realistic heating efficiencies and a radius scaling law derived from observations of hot Jupiters. We study the influence of the mean planetary density on the thermal mass loss by placing hypothetical exoplanets with the characteristics of Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune, and Uranus to the orbital location of CoRoT-7b at 0.017 AU and Kepler-10b at 0.01684 AU and assuming that these planets orbit a K- or G-type host star. Our findings indicate that hydrogen-rich gas giants within the mass domain of Saturn or Jupiter cannot thermally lose such an amount of mass that CoRoT-7b and Kepler-10b would result in a rocky residue. Moreover, our calculations show that the present time mass of both rocky exoplanets can be neither a result of evaporation of a hydrogen envelope of a “Hot Neptune” nor a “Hot Uranus”-class object. Depending on the initial density and mass, these planets most likely were always rocky planets which could lose a thin hydrogen envelope, but not cores of thermally evaporated initially much more massive and larger objects.     

Chemical alternation of waters in the Kuroshio/Oyashio Interfrontal Zone

An intensive survey has been conducted of the distributions of some chemical properties (dissolved oxygen, nutrients and carbonate properties) in the Kuroshio/Oyashio Interfrontal Zone. Many low-salinity water patches were found down to depths of 640 m. Each chemical property also showed anomalies in these patches, but the degree of variation showed a low correlation with salinity. This may be due to the high variability of biological processes in the surface waters where these patches are formed. Vertical profiles of the chemical properties were also observed along the Kuroshio extension axis from 140.50°E to 146.75°E. The concentrations of nutrients and total carbonate (TC) in the water having densities greater than σ_θ=26.60 can be regarded as being formed by the isopycnal mixing of the Kuroshio component water and Oyashio component water and biological degradation within the density surfaces. This implies that the transport of chemical properties by the diapycnal mixing is negligible in these density layers in the K/O zone.     

Simulating flash heating in a muffle tube furnace

Abstract— Very rapid heating is an important chondrule-formation process, and it has not been clear whether conventional equipment, such as a muffle tube furnace, is adequate for the simulation of heating on a timescale of seconds. We present a method for measuring the internal temperature reached by a charge during rapid heating when the thermocouple response lags. We have constrained charge temperatures by monitoring the time required to melt metal wires of various compositions and melting points placed inside charges with furnace temperature at 1400, 1500, and 1600 °C. The times required for melting of the metal wires define the temperature paths inside the charges. At 1400 °C, a charge takes 31 s to reach 1399 °C; at 1500 °C, a charge takes 10 s to reach 1495 °C; and at 1600 °C, a charge takes 6 s to reach 1538 °C. Heating rates in vertical muffle tube furnaces are adequate for studying flash melting processes (i.e., of «1 min duration) invoked, for example, in the formation of chondrules.     

Evaporating quantum Lukewarm black holes final state from back-reaction corrections of quantum scalar fields

We obtain renormalized stress tensor of a mass-less, charge-less dynamical quantum scalar field, minimally coupled with a spherically symmetric static Lukewarm black hole. In two dimensional analog the minimal coupling reduces to the conformal coupling and the stress tensor is found to be determined by the nonlocal contribution of the anomalous trace and some additional parameters in close relation to the work presented by Christensen and Fulling. Lukewarm black holes are a special class of Reissner-Nordström-de Sitter space times where its electric charge is equal to its mass. Having the obtained renormalized stress tensor we attempt to obtain a time-independent solution of the well known metric back reaction equation. Mathematical derivations predict that the final state of an evaporating quantum Lukewarm black hole reduces to a remnant stable mini black hole with moved locations of the horizons. Namely the perturbed black hole (cosmological) horizon is compressed (extended) to scales which is smaller (larger) than the corresponding classical radius of the event horizons. Hence there is not obtained an deviation on the cosmic sensor-ship hypothesis.     

A simulation study of capillary transport,preferential retention and distribution of salts in historic sandstone buildings

Salt crystallisation is a major problem of deterioration in historic stone buildings, monuments and sculptures. The capillary rise of soil water is one of the primary sources of salts in stone structures, which evaporates leaving the salts behind. It has been noted that the spatial distribution profile of different species of salts crystallised in historic stone buildings is not homogeneous, i.e. different salts crystallise at different locations. The capillary transport and inhomogeneous spatial distribution of different salts in the porous building materials has been considered to be a result of solubility-dependent crystallisation; however, the factors responsible for this phenomenon are not clearly known. This paper aims to investigate the factors influencing the differential distribution of salts during capillary rise of soil water. In this study, the capillary transport of salts was simulated on two different sandstones—Locharbriggs, a Permo–Triassic, red sandstone and Stoke Hall, a Carboniferous, buff sandstone. The experiments were carried out under controlled environmental conditions to eliminate the possibility of evaporation-driven crystallisation of salts depending on their solubilities. The results indicate that fractionation or differential distribution of salts takes place even in the absence of evaporation and crystallisation. The sandstones exhibit properties like an ion exchange column, and ionic species present in the salt solution show differential distribution within the porous network of sandstone.     

渤海湾北岸TZ02孔晚新生代沉积环境演化过程

渤海湾北岸晚新生代沉积环境和沉积体系不仅是区域水文地质、工程地质的基础,也为古近纪沉积模式提供“将今论古”的依据。本文依据沉积物色度和粒度,以及沉积物岩性、结构和构造等,将渤海湾北岸TZ02孔划分了6个沉积组合、4个沉积阶段：1）2.10~3.22Ma,沉积组合Ⅰ和Ⅱ,湖盆填充期,发育湖相-泛滥平原相或湖相-曲流河相,该时期处于构造稳定期,干冷气候时期发育河流相、泛滥平原相,湿润气候时期发育湖泊相。2）1.33~2.10Ma,沉积组合Ⅲ,湖盆开始发育期,主要为浅湖相,仅有少量砂体,下部多有机质,上部多钙质淀积结核,指示了盆山之间的构造分异后,湖泊初始发育的特征。3）0.62~1.33Ma,沉积组合Ⅳ,湖盆扩张期,以湖相为主,多砂体,且有短期湖泊水位变浅和成陆过程;指示了盆山构造分异后,盆地加速沉降,湖盆扩张;山体隆起、河流下切,盆地中湖相砂体增多;此时TZ02孔附近为湖相中心,BG10孔为湖泊边缘。4）0~0.62Ma,沉积组合Ⅴ和Ⅵ,湖泊填充期,BG10孔为湖相的沉积中心,而TZ02孔为湖泊的边缘,接受滦河迁移摆动后的沉积物;中更新世后,构造沉降形成湖相,而间冰期发育海相,埋深0~22.5m的海相-河流相更直接地反映了末次冰消期海平面变化过程。

     

塔里木板块东南缘多坝沟金矿区花岗岩类年代学、地球化学特征及找矿意义

多坝沟金矿是近年来塔里木盆地东南缘新发现的一处具有一定规模的金矿床,矿区内出露的英云闪长岩侵入闪长岩中,金矿体主要赋存在英云闪长岩体内部的构造蚀变带中。笔者对矿区闪长岩、英云闪长岩和金矿石进行了岩石学和地球化学研究,闪长岩具有埃达克型花岗岩特征,英云闪长岩具有喜马拉雅型花岗岩特征,全岩δ18OV-SMOW‰为11.0‰~13.4‰。通过金矿石的LA-ICP-MS锆石U-Pb测年,获得具有多期峰值的变质年龄,206Pb/238U年龄值在422~1 284 Ma,这组年龄显示出闪长岩形成年龄为（497±13）Ma,英云闪长岩的形成年龄为（435.9±6.6）Ma,伴随构造热液活动的年龄,成矿年龄稍晚于英云闪长岩的年龄,矿区的2期岩浆活动与塔里木东南缘-阿尔金北缘早古生代2期主要成矿阶段一致,多坝沟金矿成矿阶段主要集中在第二阶段,表明在塔里木盆地东南缘寻找与早古生代形成的埃达克型和喜马拉雅型花岗岩有关金铜矿床具有一定的潜力。