Ground penetrating radar and 2D electric resistivity studies for tracing hydrocarbon leakage site,close to Abha City: a case study

This work presents the application of the ground-penetrating radar (GPR) method and electric resistivity tomography (ERT) technique in outlining a zone of contamination due to the light non-aqueous phase liquid (LNAPL) plume underground in the area of an impacted fuel station, close to Abha City. The GPR has been performed using SIR3000 unit with the 100 and 400 MHz antennas. The main objective of the GPR survey was to evaluate the lateral extension of contamination. The complex GPR signature of the plume was well characterized. Low reflectivity zone corresponds to hydrocarbon vapor phase in the vadose zone. Enhanced reflections are associated with free and residual products in the fractured saturated zone directly above the water table. An electric resistivity tomography (ERT) survey was performed on four profiles within the site to investigate the vertical and horizontal extent of the contamination plume and to define the bottom of the landfill. The 2D electric profiles show the presence of low-resistivity (4O to 37 Ω m) anomalies that refers to the presence of accumulated hydrocarbons. From the interpretation of the GPR and ERT profile, it was possible to locate the top and bottom of the contamination plume of the waste disposal site. The radar signal penetrated deep enough and enabled the identification of a second reflector at approximately 10-m deep, interpreted as the hard basement surface which causes the strong amplitude reflection in the GPR profile. The results of GPR and ERT showed good agreement.     

东海内陆架沉积物敏感粒级构成及其地质意义

沉积物粒级包含了大量的沉积环境信息,在古环境恢复和重建中被广泛应用。基于采自东海内陆架的三根沉积物岩芯,作者利用激光粒度分析方法研究了沉积物的粒度组成,确定了敏感性粒级,探讨了搬运机制及其环境意义。研究表明:东海内陆架现代沉积物含有大致相同的三个敏感性粒级,分别是粒级1(12μm)、粒级2(12—225μm)和粒级3(225μm)。从北到南敏感粒级具有逐渐细化的趋势,该趋势与长江入海沉积物向南搬运过程中发生的沉积分异作用有关。粒级1和粒级2分别由均匀悬浮次总体和递变悬浮次总体构成,而粒级3则由生物过程产生。结合该区的海洋动力特征,作者认为,粒级2可较好地用来指示冬季海洋动力强度,并具有揭示东亚冬季风强度的潜在意义。     

Sequence stratigraphic analysis of Eocene Rock Strata,Offshore Indus,southwest Pakistan

In this study, seismic data from two wells (Pak G2-1 and Indus Marine-1C) and age diagnostic larger benthic foraminifera (LBF) within drill cuttings has been used for the first time to identify depositional sequences within the carbonates in the Offshore Indus Basin, Pakistan. The Offshore Indus is tectonically categorized as a passive continental margin where carbonates occur as shelf carbonates in the near offshore and on volcanic seamounts in deeper waters. Seismic data analysis has indicated the presence of minor faults and carbonate buildups above the igneous basement in the south. Patterns of the seismic reflections enabled definition of three seismic facies units identified as: Unit 1 basement, represented by chaotic, moderate amplitude reflection configuration; while parallel bedding and the drape of overlying strata is typical character of Unit 2, carbonate mound facies. The younger Miocene channels represent Unit 3. The diagnosis of Alveolina vredenburgi/cucumiformis biozone confirmed the Ilerdian (55–52 Ma) stage constituting a second order cycle of deposition for the Eocene carbonates (identified as Unit 2). The carbonate succession has been mainly attributed to an early highstand system tract (HST). The environmental conditions remained favorable leading to the development of keep-up carbonates similar to pinnacle buildups as a result of aggradation during late transgressive system tract and an early HST. The carbonate sequence in the south (Pak G2-1) is thicker and fossiliferous representing inner to middle shelf depths based on fauna compared to the Indus Marine-1C in the north, which is devoid of fossils. Three biozones (SBZ 5, SBZ 6 and SBZ 8) were identified based on the occurrence of LBF. The base of the SBZ 5 zone marks the larger foraminifera turnover and the Paleocene–Eocene (P–E) boundary. The LBF encountered in this study coincides with earlier findings for the P–E boundary. Our findings indicate that the entire Ilerdian stage ranges from 55.5 to 52 Ma that was the episode of warmer water conditions on the carbonate shelves leading to the diversification of K-strategist larger foraminifera. The larger foraminiferal assemblage encountered in this study confirms the findings. The possible indication of stratigraphic-combination traps, revealed as reflection terminations, make carbonate mounds in the south a potential exploration target.     

海洋上层暖水在热带气旋迅速增强中的作用:基于台风威马逊(1409)的个例研究

在登陆海南岛之前,台风威马逊在南海北部从热带风暴级别迅速增强成为超强台风。观测数据的分析结果显示,海洋上层的异常暖水在威马逊的迅速增强过程中扮演了重要的角色。威马逊期间,南海北部的海表面温度相比于气候态海表面温度暖很多。这部分异常暖水为威马逊提供了更多的能量,从而导致了威马逊的迅速增强。数值模拟结果进一步证明,南海北部的暖水在台风威马逊的迅速增强过程中起重要作用。如果没有这团异常暖水的影响,威马逊只增强25 hPa,仅为有暖水影响条件下增强程度的58.1%。     

Heat and mass transfer effects during displacement of deepwater methane hydrate to the surface of Lake Baikal

The present paper focuses on heat and mass exchange processes in methane hydrate fragments during in situ displacement from the gas hydrate stability zone (GHSZ) to the water surface of Lake Baikal. After being extracted from the methane hydrate deposit at the lakebed, hydrate fragments were placed into a container with transparent walls and a bottom grid. There were no changes in the hydrate fragments during ascent within the GHSZ. The water temperature in the container remained the same as that of the ambient water (~3.5 °С). However, as soon as the container crossed the upper border of the GHSZ, first signs of hydrate decomposition and transformation into free methane gas were observed. The gas filled the container and displaced water from it. At 300 m depth, the upper and lower thermometers in the container simultaneously recorded noticeable decreases of temperature. The temperature in the upper part of the container decreased to –0.25 °С at about 200 m depth, after which the temperature remained constant until the water surface was reached. The temperature at the bottom of the container reached –0.25 °С at about 100 m depth, after which it did not vary during further ascent. These observed effects could be explained by the formation of a gas phase in the container and an ice layer on the hydrate surface caused by heat consumption during hydrate decomposition (self-preservation effect). However, steady-state simulations suggest that the forming ice layer is too thin to sustain the hydrate internal pressure required to protect the hydrate from decomposition. Thus, the mechanism of self-preservation remains unclear.     

Modern modes of provenance and dispersal of terrigenous sediments in the North Pacific and Bering Sea: implications and perspectives for palaeoenvironmental reconstructions

During expedition 202 aboard the RV Sonne in 2009, 39 seafloor surface sediment sites were sampled over a wide sector of the North Pacific and adjoining Bering Sea. The data served to infer land–ocean linkages of terrigenous sediment supply in terms of major sources and modes of sediment transport within an over-regional context. This is based on an integrated approach dealing with grain-size analysis, bulk mineralogy and clay mineralogy in combination with statistical data evaluation (end-member modelling of grain-size data, fuzzy cluster analysis of mineralogical data). The findings on clay mineralogy served to update those of earlier work extracted from the literature. Today, two processes of terrigenous sediment supply prevail in the study area: far-distance aeolian sediment supply to the pelagic North Pacific, and hemipelagic sediment dispersal from nearby land sources via ocean currents along the continental margins and island arcs. Aeolian particles show the finest grain sizes (clay and fine silt), whereas hemipelagic sediments have high abundances of coarse silt. Exposed sites on seamounts and the continental slope are partly swept by strong currents, leading to residual enrichment of fine sand. Four sediment sources can be distinguished on the basis of distinct index minerals revealed by statistical data analysis: dust plumes from central Asia (quartz, illite), altered materials from the volcanic regions of Kamchatka and the Aleutian Arc (smectite), detritus from the Alaskan Cordillera (chlorite, hornblende), and fluvial detritus from far-eastern Siberia and the Alaska mainland (quartz, feldspar, illite). These findings confirm those of former studies but considerably expand the geographic range of this suite of proxies as far south as 39°N in the open North Pacific. The present integrated methodological approach proved useful in identifying the major modern processes of terrigenous sediment supply to the study region. This aspect deserves attention in the selection of sediment core sites for future palaeoenvironmental reconstructions related to aeolian and glacial dynamics, as well as the recognition of palaeo-ocean circulation patterns in general.     

Solar-, monsoon- and Kuroshio-influenced thermocline depth and sea surface salinity in the southern Okinawa Trough during the past 17,300 years

Factors influencing millennial-scale variability in the thermocline depth (vertical mixing) and sea surface salinity (SSS) of the southern Okinawa Trough (OT) during the past 17,300 years were investigated based on foraminifer oxygen isotope records of the surface dweller Globigerinoides ruber sensu stricto and the thermocline dweller Pulleniatina obliquiloculata in the AMS ¹⁴C dated OKT-3 core. The thermocline depth is influenced by surface thermal buoyancy (heat) flux, in turn controlled by the annual mean insolation at 30°N and the strength of the East Asian winter monsoon (EAWM). Strong insolation and weak EAWM tend to increase buoyancy gain (decrease buoyancy loss), corresponding to shallow thermocline depths, and vice versa. Regional SSS is influenced by the global ice volume, the Kuroshio Current (KC), and vertical mixing. A deep thermocline coincides with a high SSS because strong vertical mixing brings more, saltier subsurface KC water to the surface, and vice versa. Local SSS (excluding the global ice volume effect) became lower in the northern OT than in the southern OT after ~9.2 ka, implying that Changjiang diluted water had stronger influence in the northern sector. SSS show no major changes during the Bølling/Allerød and Younger Dryas events, probably because the KC disturbed the North Atlantic signals. This argues against earlier interpretations of sea surface temperature records of this core. Wavelet and spectral analyses of the Δδ¹⁸O_P-G (δ¹⁸O of P. obliquiloculata minus G. ruber s.s.) and δ¹⁸O_local records display 1,540-, 1,480-, 1,050-, 860-, 640-, and 630-year periods. These are consistent with published evidence of a pervasive periodicity of 1,500 years in global climate as well as EAWM and KC signatures, and a fundamental solar periodicity of 1,000 years and intermediary derived periodicity of 700 years.     

Glaciomarine sedimentation and bottom current activity on the north-western and northern continental margins of Svalbard during the late Quaternary

Palaeo-bottom current strength of the West Spitsbergen Current (WSC) and the influence of the Svalbard-Barents Sea Ice Sheet (SBIS) on the depositional environment along the northern Svalbard margins are poorly known. Two gravity cores from the southern Yermak Plateau and the upper slope north of Nordaustlandet, covering marine isotope stage (MIS) 1 to MIS 5, are investigated. Five lithofacies, based on grain size distribution, silt/clay ratio, content and mean of sortable silt (SS), are distinguished to characterise the contourite-dominated sedimentary environments. In addition, depositional environments are described using total organic carbon (TOC), total sulphur (TS) and calcium carbonate (CaCO₃) contents of sediments. Facies A, containing coarse SS, suggests strong bottom current activity and good bottom water ventilation conditions as inferred from low TOC content. This facies was deposited during the glacial periods MIS 4, MIS 2 and during the late Holocene. Facies B is dominated by fine SS indicating weak bottom current and poor ventilation (cf. high TOC content of 1.2–1.6%), and correlates with the MIS 4/3 and MIS 2/1 transition periods. With an equal amount of clay and sand, fine SS and high content of TOC, facies C indicates reduced bottom current strength for intervals with sediment supply from proximal sources such as icebergs, sea ice or meltwater discharge. This facies was deposited during the last glacial maximum. Facies D represents mass-flow deposits on the northern Svalbard margin attributed to the SBIS advance at or near the shelf edge. Facies E sediments indicating moderate bottom current strength were deposited during MIS 5 and MIS 3, and during parts of MIS 2. This first late Quaternary proxy record of the WSC flow and sedimentation history from the northern Svalbard margin suggests that the oceanographic conditions and ice sheet processes have exerted first-order control on sediment properties.     

Experimental study of nonlinear behaviors of a free-floating body in waves

Nonlinear behaviors of a free-floating body in waves were experimentally investigated in the present study. The experiments were carried out for 6 different wave heights and 6 different wave periods to cover a relatively wide range of wave nonlinearities. A charge-coupled device (CCD) camera was used to capture the real-time motion of the floating body. The measurement data show that the sway, heave and roll motions of the floating body are all harmonic oscillations while the equilibrium position of the sway motion drifts in the wave direction. The drift speed is proportional to wave steepness when the size of the floating body is comparable to the wavelength, while it is proportional to the square of wave steepness when the floating body is relatively small. In addition, the drift motion leads to a slightly longer oscillation period of the floating body than the wave period of nonlinear wave and the discrepancy increases with the increment of wave steepness.     

Early Mesozoic Southward Subduction of the Eastern Mongol–Okhotsk Oceanic Plate: Evidence from Zircon U–Pb–Hf Isotopes and Whole‐rock Geochemistry of Triassic Granitic Rocks in the Mohe Area,NE China

In this paper, we present new U–Pb zircon ages, Hf isotope data and major and trace elements for Early Mesozoic granitic rocks in Mohe area in the Erguna Massif of northeast China to elucidate the southward subduction of the eastern Mongol–Okhotsk Oceanic plate in Early Mesozoic. Zircons from two representative intrusions, syenogranites and monzogranites, in the Mohe area are euhedral–subhedral in shape, display oscillatory growth zoning in cathodoluminescence (CL) images, and have Th/U ratios of 0.10–0.72, and in combination these features indicating that the zircons are of igneous origin. U–Pb zircon dating results demonstrate that the syenogranites formed at 245.1 ± 1.4 Ma and monzogranites formed at 212.2 ± 1.7 Ma. These granitic rocks are characterized by high SiO₂, Al₂O₃ and (Na₂O + K₂O), low TFeO, MgO, TiO₂ and P₂O₅ concentrations, belonging to the high‐K calc‐alkaline series. They are enriched in LREE and large ion lithophile elements (e.g., Rb, K, and Sr), depleted in HREE and high field strength elements (e.g., Nb, Ta, Th, and Ti), as well as very weak negative Eu anomalies (Eu/Eu* = 0.48 ~ 1.01). Their zircon εHf(t) values range from −7.9 to −2.0 and range from 0.20 to 0.49, in response to their two‐stage Hf model ages (T_DM2) range from 1.40 Ga to 1.77 Ga range from 0.94 Ga to 1.24 Ga, respectively, indicating that primary magmas of syenogranites were derived from partial melting of newly accreted juvenile crustal material that formed from the enriched mantle during the Mesoproterozoic, monzogranites are generated by partial melting of newly accreted juvenile crustal material that formed from the depleted mantle during the Meso‐ to Neoproterozoic. We conclude, therefore, that the early Mesozoic granitic rocks of the Mohe area are associated with the continuous southward subduction of the Mongol–Okhotsk oceanic plate rather than the Paleo‐Asian and circum‐Pacific tectonic regimes.