An experimental study of water table recharge by seepage losses from a ditch with intermittent flow

Farmed catchments in the Mediterranean area often exhibit dense networks of ditches which are also preferential zones of water table recharge, and thereby of groundwater contamination. This study presents an experimental analysis of seepage losses and related groundwater recharge patterns during a typical Mediterranean runoff event at the scale of a ditch located above a shallow water table. The objectives were (i) to evaluate the patterns of water table recharge by seepage in a ditch, (ii) to study the main flow processes occurring during recharge, and (iii) to estimate solute propagation in case of contaminated flow in the ditch. The field observation indicated three major points. Firstly, they showed that seepage losses during a runoff event in a ditch can rapidly lead to a significant recharge of a shallow water table. Secondly, the recharge induces a groundwater mound much larger than the event plume. The infiltrated water and the accompanying solutes remained in the vicinity of the ditch. The patterns of groundwater recharge and contamination appeared very different. Lastly, both unsaturated and saturated‐piston flow processes were observed which suggests that a variably‐saturated flow modelling approach ought to be used to simulate the ditch‐water shallow table interaction. Finally, the study indicates that the patterns of water table recharge and contamination in Mediterranean catchments with dense ditches network vary largely in space and time, and will require dense monitoring networks to estimate the evolution of the average contamination levels. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effects of non-stoichiometry on the spinel structure at high pressure: Implications for Earth’s mantle mineralogy

A non-stoichiometric sample of spinel with composition ^T(Mg_0.4Al_0.6)^M(Al_1.8□_0.2)O₄ was investigated by single-crystal X-ray diffraction in situ up to about 8.7 GPa using a diamond anvil cell. The P(V) data were fitted using a third-order Birch-Murnaghan equation of state and the unit-cell volume V₀, the bulk modulus K_T0 and its first pressure derivative K′ were refined simultaneously providing the following coefficients: V₀ = 510.34(6) Å³, K_T0 = 171(2) GPa, K′ = 7.3(6). This K_T0 value represents the lowest ever found for spinel crystal structures. Comparing our data with a stoichiometric and natural MgAl₂O₄ (pure composition) we observe a decrease in K_T0 by about 11.5% and a strong increase in K′ by about 33%. These results demonstrate how an excess of Al accompanied by the formation of significant cation vacancies at octahedral site strongly affects the thermodynamic properties of spinel structure. If we consider that the estimated mantle composition is characterized by 3-5% of Al₂O₃ this could imply an Mg/Al substitution with possible formation of cation vacancies. The results of our study indicate that geodynamic models should take into account the potential effect of Mg/Al substitution on the incompressibility of the main mantle-forming minerals (olivine, wadsleyite, ringwoodite, Mg-perovskite).     

Automated system for magnetic monitoring of active volcanoes

In order to provide a basis for short-term decision-making in the forecasting and monitoring of volcanic activity, we developed an entirely automated system of data acquisition and reduction for magnetic data. The system (Mag-Net) is designed to provide monitoring and analysis of magnetic data on Etna volcano at large distances from the central observatory. The Mag-Net system uses data from an array of continuously recording remote stations spread over the volcanic area and linked by mobile phone to the control center at the local observatory. At this location a computer receives the data and performs data sorting and reduction as well as limited evaluation to detect abnormal behavior or breakdown of remote sensors. Communication software, called MagTalk, is also designed to provide data to distant users. With a view to using continuous magnetic observations in advanced analysis techniques for volcano monitoring, the Mag-Net system also delivers two graphical user interface based applications to provide an interpretation capability. The former, called MADAP, speeds up all the data reduction processes in order to evaluate the reliability of magnetic signals. The latter, called VMM, is a procedure for modeling magnetic fields associated with tectonic and volcanic activity to facilitate the identification and interpretation of the sources of a wide spectrum of magnetic signals.     

Distinctive crystal chemistry and site configuration of the clinopyroxene from alkali basaltic rocks

A crystal chemical investigation of clinopyroxenes from a suite of nepheline-bearing lavas located in the Nyambeni Range of Kenya has delineated the polyhedral site configurations and related intracrystalline relationships. These are distinct from those determined for the clinopyroxene in an analogous suite of leucite-bearing lavas from the Sabatini volcanoes in the Roman Region of Italy (Dal Negro et al. 1985).The Nyambeni clinopyroxene, varying from salite to hedenbergite, preferentially accepts Na in the M2 site to balance increasing Fe²⁺ and Si, respectively, whereas the Sabatini clinopyroxene is confined within the salite field and preferentially accepts Al^iv to balance the effect of increasing (Fe³⁺+Ti⁴⁺+Al^vi+Cr³⁺)_M1.The Fe²⁺/Fe³⁺ and K/Na ratios of the host rocks emerge as significant factors in determining the different polyhedral configurations and evolutions of the clinopyroxene from the two lava suites, respectively. The resulting Mg-Fe²⁺ order-disorder relationships in M1–M2 are also distinct in the two clinopyroxenes. A high degree of MgFe²⁺ order in M1–M2 corresponds to the largest configurational, hence energetic, difference between M1 and M2 in the Nyambeni clinopyroxene, whereas the converse applies to the Sabatini clinopyroxene.In view of the significant crystal chemical differences and distinct evolution trends, it is proposed that salites from alkali volcanic rocks may be referred to as Nyambeni-type or Sabatini-type, respectively.     

Laboratory tests on soil conditioning of clayey soil

Tunnelling in difficult and challenging conditions such as soft soils in urban areas is increasing. In this condition, it is important to minimise the possible negative effect of the tunnel excavation, such as settlement or, in the worst case, collapses. To achieve this result, earth pressure balance machines are commonly used. One of the key parameters that must be considered for an optimal management of the EPB-TBM excavation is soil conditioning since the excavated muck must properly transmit the pressure to the tunnel face. Soil conditioning is also necessary to reduce the effect of the problems, such as clogging in clay layers, that can occur during the excavation and that can affect the performance of the tools and of the entire tunnelling process. For this reason, in the last decade, much research has been carried out to understand how to deal with and reduce the effects of clogging and stickiness, using different conditioning additives. These studies have proposed several different test procedures to evaluate the effect of the conditioning on the adhesion of the soil on the metallic parts of the machines. The present research has been carried out with the aim of proposing a new approach and new devices to study clay conditioning with laboratory tests, and the results of many tests carried out with the proposed device are presented and discussed.     

Time variant analysis of geomagnetic signals describes the volcanic activity of Mt. Etna between early 2000 and late 2002

Volcanomagnetic anomalies have been mostly observed during strong eruptions. Our aim is to improve the geomagnetic data analysis to evidence the anomalies occurring in a larger time span, especially in the phases preceding the eruptive events. We developed a time variant statistical approach and applied it to the 2000–2002 Etna geomagnetic temporal series. It is based on an algorithm that statistically predicts the geomagnetic field at the station on the volcanic edifice by that recorded at the remote one. In such a way a number of significant changes in the time series (called statistical innovations), marking the local magnetic field change, were detected. The distribution of such statistical innovations accurately describes the Etna volcanic evolution: we note a progressive increase of the innovation occurrence as the eruptive cycles were approaching and only few and weak innovations at times between the various eruptive cycles. The significance of this analysis is further confirmed by the close agreement among the mean square prediction error, strain release and the volcanic activity behavior. On the contrary, the geomagnetic field at a single station or its difference at two stations do not have any clear correlation with other measured physical quantities. The complex pattern of the prediction error was also investigated by a multifractal analysis. We found that the Holder regularity increases with the intensification of the volcanic activity, implying that innovations tend to be less sporadic and correlated during the major volcanic phases.     

Changes in biomass structure and trophic status of the plankton communities in a highly dynamic ecosystem (Gulf of Venice,Northern Adriatic Sea)

The changes in the plankton biomass structure in relation to nutrient inputs were studied in the Gulf of Venice (Northern Adriatic Sea), an area characterized by a very marked trophic state variability. The investigation was carried out at two stations, in March, May and July 2005 and 2006, considering the whole water column. The size structure (from picoplankton to mesozooplankton) of both autotrophs and heterotrophs was analysed. Signals of diluted waters and nutrient inputs were more marked in 2005 than in 2006. In 2005, the total plankton biomass was almost double (87 ± 37 μg·C·l^?1) that in 2006 (44 ± 26 μg·C·l^?1). The variations were determined mainly by phytoplankton, with a 70% decrease, and a shift from a community dominated by microphytoplankton (49 ± 12%) in 2005 to one dominated by bacteria (43 ± 11%) in 2006 was observed. The relationship between the heterotrophic (H) and autotrophic (A) biomass indicated a rapid decline of the H/A ratio with increasing phytoplankton biomass. This study, although temporally limited, is consistent with the results reported for other marine environments and it seems to confirm the importance of nutrient inputs in structuring the biomass of plankton community.     

Time dependent piezomagnetic fields in viscoelastic medium

We investigated time dependent piezomagnetic fields due to volcanic sources embedded in a viscoelastic, homogeneous half-space. Especially in volcanic areas, the presence of inhomogeneous materials and high temperatures produce a lower effective viscosity of the Earth's crust that calls for considering anelastic properties of the medium. Piezomagnetic properties are carried by grains of titano-magnetite, which occupy only a small fraction of ordinary rock volume and are supposed to be elastic, while the non-magnetic surrounding matrix is assumed to be viscoelastic. From all the possible rheological models, we investigated two cases in which the bulk modulus is purely elastic and the shear modulus relaxes as: (i) a Maxwell solid and (ii) a standard linear solid (SLS). We applied the Correspondence Principle to the analytical elastic solutions for pressurized spherical sources and dislocation sources in order to determine the time dependent piezomagnetic fields in a viscoelastic medium. The piezomagnetic field completely vanishes after the relaxation process for a Maxwell rheology, whereas it is found to decrease over time and reach some finite offset value for a SLS rheology. These different behaviours provide helpful hints in understanding the temporal evolution of piezomagnetic anomalies in volcanic regions.     

Short-term under-ice variability of prokaryotic plankton communities in coastal Antarctic waters (Cape Hallett, Ross Sea)

During the 2006 Italian Antarctic expedition a diel sampling was performed close to Cape Hallett (Ross Sea) during the Austral summer. Under-ice seawater samples (4 m) were collected every 2 h for 28 h in order to estimate prokaryotic processes' variability and community structure dynamics. Prokaryotic and viral abundances, exoenzymatic activities (β-glucosidase, chitinase, lipase, alkaline phosphatase and leucine aminopeptidase), prokaryotic carbon production (³H-leucine incorporation) and community structure (Denaturing Gradient Gel Electrophoresis – DGGE fingerprints) were analysed. Results showed that the diel variability of the prokaryotic activity followed a variation in salinity, probably as a consequence of the periodical thawing of sea ice (driven by solar radiation and air temperature cycles), while negligible variation in viral and prokaryotic abundances occurred. The Bacterial and Archaeal community structures underwent an Operational Taxonomic Units (OTUs) temporal shift from the beginning to the end of the sampling, while Flavobacteria-specific primers highlighted high variations in this group possibly related to sea ice melting and substrate release.