Non-adiabatic gravitational collapse in higher dimensional space-time and its junctions conditions

Junction conditions are studied at the boundary of a higher dimensional spherical distribution containing an outgoing heat flow and radiation flux. Our analysis extends to higher dimension, an important observation of Santos that for a collapsing fluid with radial heat flow the isotropic pressure on the surface of discontinuity does not vanish. Some physically relevant parameters like luminosity, mass function for the bounded distribution and also the time required for horizon formation are also calculated and it is observed that the dimensionality of space-time does not qualitatively alter the analogous results of the standard space time.     

MEM Analysis of Geomagnetic Field Variations Over Narssarssuaq

—Maximum entropy spectral analysis (MESA) has been applied to 24 series of hourly daily data and only one daily mean series for the horizontal (H) and vertical (Z) components of the geomagnetic field for the year 1983 as observed at Narssarssuaq, Greenland (71.2°N, 36.7°E) (gm coordinate). The method has isolated some prominent medium frequency signal components. The maximum peaks for H are at 06 hr (0.174 cycles per day (cpd), 3.2 × 10⁴ db) and 08 hr (0.09 cpd, 3.5 × 10⁴ db). Similarly, the maximum peak in Z is observed at 04 hr (0.114 cpd, 5.7 × 10⁴ db). The spectral results for the daily-mean data indicate periods are greater than two days, with 178.5 days (nearly semiannual) being common to both H and Z. Other harmonics have been found for all the series of H and Z components which are mainly caused by the "Effective Period", i.e., the period produced by the combined effect of the sunspot numbers and the sun’s rotation period. Such frequencies correspond very well with those found in the geomagnetic indices A _p ?, C _p and AE. This suggests that the disturbance transient variations are caused by viscous interaction of the solar energies emanating from sunspot regions with the outermost magnetospheric boundary which, in turn, influences the magnetosphere-iono sphere coupling and produces the medium intensity long-duration continuous auroral activities (MILD CAAs) over high latitude regions. Thus, the higher latitude geomagnetic activities are nothing but the "effective period driven MILDCAAs" having a recurrence tendency of 27/n, where n is an integer.     

Selective digestion of industrial potato wastes for efficient biomethanation: a sustainable solution for safe environmental disposal

Potato being the staple vegetable in India is widely cultivated and processed for different value additions. During processing of potato, a huge amount of waste is generated in the form of peel and meat (mash). These wastes constitute a potential feedstock for biogas generation. The present study is focused on mitigation of acidogenesis that occurs during early stages of anaerobic digestion (AD) of potato waste which eventually inhibits the process of methanogenesis. A novel strategy of selective digestion was adopted in which the leachate and solid slurry resulting from the first stage digestion were further subjected to second stage by separating the solid and liquid phases. The obtained results indicated that stepwise digestion enhanced biomethane yield with an increase in methane percent from 46.47 to 60.4 % and reduction in total COD to about 94 %. Another novel strategy adopted in this study was the use of specifically developed microbial consortia for AD of potato wastes instead of conventional inoculum for production of biogas. The obtained yield is at par with the conventional inoculums which suggests that the developed consortia could act as potential substitute. The present study paves the way for sustainable utilization of industrial potato wastes for bioenergy production by overcoming the problems associated with conventional processes.     

Distribution pattern and morphochemical relationships of manganese nodules from the Central Indian Basin

In the Central Indian Basin manganese nodule abundance was variable in all sediment types. Mean abundance varied from 1.5 in calcareous ooze to 10.2 kg/m² in terrigenous-siliceous ooze sediments. Nodule grade and growth rates are positively correlated only up to 10 mm/My (million years), and grade shows no distinct relationship with abundance. Relationships between the morphochemical characteristics of the nodules and host sediment types are subtle. Both hydrogenetic and diagenetic nodules (with smooth and rough surfaces respectively) occur on almost all sediments, but in variable proportions. Thus, the overall distribution pattern shows that small nodules (<4-cm diameters) of lower grade (average value Ni+Cu+Co=1.21%) with smooth surfaces are more common on red clay, terrigenous, and terrigenous-siliceous ooze transition-zone sediments. By contrast, large nodules (>4-cm diameters) of higher grade (average value Ni+Cu+Co=1.80%) with rough surfaces are more prevalent on siliceous ooze, siliceous ooze-red clay, and calcareous ooze-red clay transition-zone sediments. This implies an enhanced supply of trace metals from pore waters to rough-surface nodules during early diagenesis.     

Buried nodules and associated sediments from the central Indian basin

Buried nodules from siliceous sediments in the central Indian Basin are morphologically variable and mineralogically consist ofd-MnO₂ and incipient todorokite. Compositionally they are weakly diagenetic. The sediment coarse fractions (>63 μm) at different depths show variable abundances of micronodules, volcanic glass shards and biodebris. Dissolution of biodebris increases and abundance of micronodules decreases with increasing depth. Enrichment in Mn, Fe, Cu, Ni, Co, together with a decrease in organic carbon in the sediment column, may result from diagenetic metal remobilization. Diagenetically remobilized trace metals might have been utilized for the growth of micronodules over the buried nodules. The details of the chemical analyses of buried nodules and associated sediments can be obtained from the first author.     

Decomposition of product of certain functions relevant to the solution of transfer equations by Wiener-Hopf technique

Decomposition of the product of functions like exp (– ⁰/z)S ⁺(z) [S ⁺(z = ₀ ¹ P(x) dx/(x–z)], obtained by Das Gupta (1978) and relevant to the solution of equations of radiative transfer or of transfer problems in finite media by Wiener-Hopf technique, is reviewed and transformed to quite simple integral forms amenable to easy numerical evaluations. The same forms are then shown to be directly obtainable in one step under a slightly stronger condition consistent with practical cases.     

Some aspects of volcanic ash layers in the Central Indian Basin

Intercalated volcanic ash layers in two deep-sea sediment cores from the Central Indian Basin (CIB) are examined for the possibility of an in situ source of suboceanic volcanism. An in situ source has been predicated based on the bottom morphological structures and activation of seamounts during the geological past. The tentative correlation between depositional ages of the ash layer horizons and the period of global climatic cooling events reinforces the hypothesis that the suboceanic volcanic episode might have been initiated during the onset of glaciation.     

Interaction of surface erosion and sequential thrust progression: Implications on exhumation processes

This paper investigates the evolution of thrust wedges with concomitant surface erosion, and its bearing on the exhumation processes in orogenic belts. We performed sandbox experiments, simulating syn-orogenic erosion on forelandward sloping surfaces (∼4°). Experiments show that the erosion process has a significant control on the progression of frontal thrusts. In case of no-erosion condition, wedges with high basal friction develop frontal thrusts with strongly increasing spacing. In contrast, for the same basal friction the thrusts show uniform spacing as the wedge development involves concomitant surface erosion. On the other hand, the erosion promotes reactivation of hinterland thrusts in wedges with low basal friction. We show that erosion-assisted thrust reactivation is the principal mechanism for exhumation of deeper level materials in orogens. Efficiency of this mechanism is largely controlled by basal friction. The exhumation of deeper level materials is limited, and occurs within a narrow, sub-vertical zone in the extreme hinterland when the basal friction is high (μ_b = 0.46). In contrast, the process is quite effective in wedges with low basal friction (μ_b =0.36), resulting in exhumation along gently dipping foreland-vergent thrusts as well as along thrusts, subsequently rotated into steep attitude. The zone of exhumation also shifts in the foreland direction in the course of horizontal movement. Consequently, deeper level materials cover a large area of the elevated part of the wedge.     

On the possibility of obtaining relative paleointensities from lake sediments

Relative paleointensities are obtained from a 6-m sediment core from Lake St. Croix, Minnesota, spanning the time range from 445 to 1740 years B.P. To normalize the natural remanent magnetization (NRM) for variations in the magnetic content, a laboratory-induced remanence is chosen, whose alternating field (AF) demagnetization curves most closely resemble the NRM demagnetization curves. By plotting the ratio of the NRM to the normalizing remanence versus AF demagnetizing field, H_AF, for samples of the same sediment horizon, as well as for samples from different horizons, estimates are obtained for expected uncertainties in the relative paleointensities. For the Lake St. Croix sediments the anhysteretic remanence (ARM) demagnetization curves are very similar to those of the NRM's, and ARM is therefore used as the normalization parameter. Because the sediment exhibits homogeneous remanence properties throughout, and H_AF = 100Oe is the optimum “cleaning” field for the entire core, NRM₁₀₀/ARM₁₀₀ is evaluated to represent the fluctuations of the relative paleointensity. Our relative paleointensity data exhibit the same general features as obtained from archeomagnetic studies. The intensity increases as one goes back in time with a peak near 800 years B.P., representing an increase in the intensity of up to 60%. Apparent periodicities in the intensity of 300–400 years are observed.     

Theoretical grain-size thresholds and their application to accurate methods for paleointensity determination

New values of critical grain-size thresholds, d_s and d₀, for magnetite and Fe have been obtained using a rigorous theoretical approach. The temperature dependence of these thresholds is interesting in that they point up the existence of certain grains which, when cooled from above their blocking temperature, pass sequentially through the following magnetization states: superparamagnetic→single-domain→non-uniform magnetization. Such grains will yield correct paleointensities by the Wilson or Shaw method but not by the well-known method due to Thellier and Thellier.