A possible mechanism of formation of faculae

We propose a new heating mechanism of faculae. We think that the formation of faculae is a result of the Joule dissipation of the Hall current generated by the interaction of the convection field of granules in an active region and the inter-granular magnetic field. For a region to generate effectively Hall current, its characteristic length must be such that the magnetic Reynolds number is less than 1. The equation of energy balance in the facula region is

$\text{16σT}{}^3{}_{\mathrm{p}}\text{(T}{}_{\mathrm{l}}\text{? T}{}_{\mathrm{p}}\text{)}{}^{\mathrm{n}}\text{HP}{}_{\mathrm{s}}{}^{\mathrm{a}}\text{H}{}^{\mathrm{?}}\text{=}\text{Qn}{}_{\mathrm{s}}\text{m}{}_{\mathrm{i}}\text{u}{}_{\mathrm{x}}{}^2\text{(τ}{}^2{}_{\mathrm{in}}\text{ω}{}_{\mathrm{i}}\text{)}$

.For five observational models of faculae, we calculated the corresponding velocity fields, and the results are in basic agreement with the observed fields. The present mechanism explains the dependence of the facula brightness on the magnetic and velocity fields, the apparent distribution of the faculae on the solar disk and suggest a possible interpretation of the five structures of faculae.     

悼念郭敬辉同志

我国著名的水文地理学家、中国科学院地理研究所研究员郭敬辉同志于1985年4月5日溘然长逝。他的逝世是我国地理学界和水文学界的一大损失。我们怀着十分悲痛的心情对他表示沉重悼念。     

Distinct climate change synchronous with Heinrich event one, recorded by stable oxygen and carbon isotopic compositions in stalagmites from China

Uranium-series dating of oxygen and carbon isotope records for stalagmite SJ3 collected in Songjia Cave, central China, shows significant variation in past climate and environment during the period 20-10 ka. Stalagmite SJ3 is located more than 1000 km inland of the coastal Hulu Cave in East China and more than 700 km north of the Dongge Cave in Southwest China and, despite minor differences, displays a clear first-order similarity with the Hulu and Dongge records. The coldest climatic phase since the Last Glacial Maximum, which is associated with the Heinrich Event 1 in the North Atlantic region, was clearly recorded in SJ3 between 17.6 and 14.5 ka, in good agreement in timing, duration and extent with the records from Hulu and Dongge caves and the Greenland ice core. The results indicate that there have been synchronous and significant climatic changes across monsoonal China and strong teleconnections between the North Atlantic and East Asia regions during the period 20-10 ka. This is much different from the Holocene Optimum which shows a time shift of more than several thousands years from southeast coastal to inland China. It is likely that temperature change at northern high latitudes during glacial periods exerts stronger influence on the Asian summer monsoon relative to insolation and appears to be capable of perturbing large-scale atmospheric/oceanic circulation patterns in the Northern Hemisphere and thus monsoonal rainfall and paleovegetation in East Asia. Climatic signals in the North Atlantic region propagate rapidly to East Asia during glacial periods by influencing the winter land-sea temperature contrast in the East Asian monsoon region.     

内蒙古苏莫查干敖包特大型萤石矿床地质特征及成因

苏莫查干敖包矿床是迄今为正在全球范围内找到的最大规模单一萤石矿床.萤石矿体大多呈层状、似层状和透镜状沿下二叠统碳泥质板岩(夹灰岩透镜体)与流纹质火山岩接触带分布,并且与中生代花岗岩类侵入岩体具有密切的空间分布关系.流纹质火山岩和花岗岩的锆石SHRIMP U-Pb年龄值分别为(276±10)Ma和(138±4)Ma,它们分别是海西晚期和燕山中期酸性岩浆活动的产物.萤石矿体主要由4种类型矿石所构成,即石英-萤石型、石英-硫化物-萤石型、萤石-石英型和方解石-石英-萤石型.矿物组分有萤石、石英(蛋白石、玉髓)、方解石、绢云母和绿泥石,个别样品中有磁铁矿、黄铁矿、磁黄铁矿、黄铜矿、闪锌矿、毒砂和锡石.围岩蚀变自矿体中心向外分别为绢云母化、硅化、碳酸盐化和高岭石化.钕、锶和铅同位素分析结果表明,萤石矿床是多期次和多阶段岩浆热液活动的产物,成矿作用分别发生在海西晚期和燕山中期,并以后者为主.海西晚期富碱质酸性岩浆喷发活动为层纹状和条带状矿体以及矿源层的形成创造了有利条件.相比之下,燕山中期花岗质岩浆侵入活动不仅为细晶质、伟晶质和角砾状矿体的形成提供了物质、动力和热力来源,而且是成矿流体对流循环的"发动机".苏莫查干敖包矿床属于与花岗岩类深成侵入岩体有关的热液型萤石矿床,成岩(矿)物质来自壳、幔混合源,其中壳源组分占有绝对优势.     

内蒙古敖包吐萤石矿床的Sr、Nd、Pb同位素地球化学特征

敖包吐萤石矿床是内蒙古北部苏莫查干地区单一萤石矿集区中的一个代表性矿床,产于早二叠世大石寨组火山-沉积岩与早白垩世敖包吐花岗岩的接触带上。文章通过分析该矿床岩、矿石的微量元素和稀土元素,揭示出萤石的成矿作用可分为2个阶段,即交代作用和充填作用。交代作用过程中大石寨组的结晶灰岩可能为萤石的形成提供了部分Ca来源,萤石矿石的稀土元素配分模式与海水基本类似,具有Ce负异常;成矿作用后期主要表现为充填作用,形成颗粒粗大的萤石,表现为重稀土元素富集的特征,并随着萤石的沉淀析出,稀土元素总量逐渐下降,反映出成矿流体经历了较长期的演化过程。各地层单元、花岗岩体和萤石矿石的Sr、Nd、Pb同位素研究表明,萤石的放射性同位素组成具有壳、幔源混合的特点,成矿物质来源具有多源性。早白垩世敖包吐花岗岩可能是萤石中F的主要来源,而大石寨组的结晶灰岩则可能提供了Ca。另外,Pb、Nd同位素的极大不均一性,有可能是成矿流体在运移过程中对艾力格庙群放射性组分的选择性吸收的结果。萤石成矿作用与钾玄岩的时空关系暗示了萤石的成矿过程可能是中国东部岩石圈减薄和下地壳的置换地质事件的结果。在构造转型的过程中,燕山中期富碱的酸性花岗岩浆的活动分异出富含F的成矿流体,与幔源流体混合,沿区域重新活化的深大断裂和大石寨组的层间破碎带上升,交代其间的灰岩透镜体,从而形成敖包吐中型萤石矿床。     

柴达木盆地北缘侏罗系不同沉积环境烃源岩生物标志物特征及其应用

柴达木盆地北缘地区侏罗系(中下侏罗统)的优质烃源岩主要发育于湖相与三角洲相环境。研究了不同时代、不同沉积环境中烃源岩的生物标志物组成特征,结果发现,有3类化合物的分布与组成差异显著,包括三环萜烷(C19、C20、C21)的分布型式、重排藿烷的丰度以及规则甾烷的相对组成。其中,不同时代的差异主要体现在规则甾烷组成上;而不同沉积环境的差异主要体现为三环萜烷(C19、C20、C21)的分布型式及重排藿烷的丰度。分析认为,这些差异与烃源岩的沉积环境及其生源组成有密切关系。据此,初步将这些参数应用于两方面研究,一是为划分地层沉积环境提供“生物标志物相标志”,二是研究油源对比,取得良好效果。因此,本文研究结果具有重要实用价值与参考意义。     

Impact of land use covers upon karst processes in a typical Fengcong depression system of Nongla, Guangxi, China

The direction and intensity of karst processes can be deeply affected by soil physical and chemical variations which were resulted from land use. Taking Nongla Fengcong depression area, Mashan County, Guangxi as an example, authors discussed the impact of land use on karst processes based on the data of field limestone tablet. The results showed that the corrosional rates at varied soil depth are quite different. Corrosional rate in woodland and orchard is mostly bigger than 20 mg/a, which is much higher than that in tilled land and shrub. Generally, corrosional rate decreased from orchard, woodland, tilled land, fallow land and shrub successively, in which soil organic matter (OM) and soil pH are two major controlling factors: corrosion process is controlled remarkably by soil OM in woodland and orchard. The higher the organic matter content is and the less the pH value is, the higher the corrosional rate is. Owing to lower organic matter content, the corrosional rate is mainly affected by soil CO₂ in tilled land and shrub.     

An experimental study of the grain-scale processes of peridotite melting: implications for major and trace element distribution during equilibrium and disequilibrium melting

The grain-scale processes of peridotite melting were examined at 1,340°C and 1.5 GPa using reaction couples formed by juxtaposing pre-synthesized clinopyroxenite against pre-synthesized orthopyroxenite or harzburgite in graphite and platinum-lined molybdenum capsules. Reaction between the clinopyroxene and orthopyroxene-rich aggregates produces a melt-enriched, orthopyroxene-free, olivine + clinopyroxene reactive boundary layer. Major and trace element abundance in clinopyroxene vary systematically across the reactive boundary layer with compositional trends similar to the published clinopyroxene core-to-rim compositional variations in the bulk lherzolite partial melting studies conducted at similar P–T conditions. The growth of the reactive boundary layer takes place at the expense of the orthopyroxenite or harzburgite and is consistent with grain-scale processes that involve dissolution, precipitation, reprecipitation, and diffusive exchange between the interstitial melt and surrounding crystals. An important consequence of dissolution–reprecipitation during crystal-melt interaction is the dramatic decrease in diffusive reequilibration time between coexisting minerals and melt. This effect is especially important for high charged, slow diffusing cations during peridotite melting and melt-rock reaction. Apparent clinopyroxene-melt partition coefficients for REE, Sr, Y, Ti, and Zr, measured from reprecipitated clinopyroxene and coexisting melt in the reactive boundary layer, approach their equilibrium values reported in the literature. Disequilibrium melting models based on volume diffusion in solid limited mechanism are likely to significantly underestimate the rates at which major and trace elements in residual minerals reequilibrate with their surrounding melt. Electronic supplementary material  The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Simple models for dynamic melting in an upwelling heterogeneous mantle column: Analytical solutions

Several lines of evidence suggest that the melt generation and segregation regions of the mantle are heterogeneous, consisting of chemically and lithologically distinct domains of variable size and dimension. Partial melting of such heterogeneous mantle source regions gives rise to a diverse range of basaltic magmas. In order to better assess the role of source heterogeneity during mantle melting, we have undertaken a theoretical study of trace element distribution and fractionation during concurrent melting and melt migration in an upwelling, chemically heterogeneous, two-porosity double lithology melting column. Analytical solutions for the abundance of a trace element in the matrix and channel were obtained under the assumptions that the porosity, melt and solid velocities, and solid-melt partition coefficients are constant and uniform. For simplicity, we neglected diffusion and dispersion in the melt. Chemical source heterogeneities of arbitrary size and shape were integrated into the simple melting models by allowing trace element abundance in the source region to vary as a function of time and space. Concurrent melting and melt migration in an upwelling heterogeneous mantle may be approximated as a quasi-steady state problem in which time-dependent concentration patterns produced by melting of heterogeneous source regions are superimposed on a reference steady-state concentration distribution established by melting of the ambient or background mantle. Chromatographic fractionation is especially important for the matrix melt and solid when chemical heterogeneities are involved during melting and melt migration in the mantle, giving rise to significant phase-shift between two incompatible trace elements in the matrix melt and scattered correlations among incompatible trace elements in residual peridotites. Mixing is the chief mass transfer process in the dunite channel where the chromatographic effect is negligible for most of the incompatible trace elements. The lack of chromatographic fractionation among incompatible trace elements and isotopic ratios in MORB suggests either most MORB are channel melts or mixing in magma conduit and chamber is very efficient such that the phase-shift is averaged out during magma transport and storage processes. Advection brings melt produced by smaller-degree of melting in the deeper part of the melting column to the overlying melting region, increasing the incompatible trace element abundance in the matrix and the channel. This advection-induced self-enrichment is especially important when heterogeneous sources are involved and may account for some of the enriched incompatible trace element patterns observed in residual peridotite that were previously interpreted to be a result of mantle metasomatism. Systematic studies of high-resolution spatially correlated mantle samples may help to constrain the melting history and the size and nature of chemical heterogeneities in the mantle.     

Comparison of arsenic concentrations in simultaneously-collected groundwater and aquifer particles from Bangladesh,India, Vietnam,and Nepal

One of the reasons the processes resulting in As release to groundwater in southern Asia remain poorly understood is the high degree of spatial variability of physical and chemical properties in shallow aquifers. In an attempt to overcome this difficulty, a simple device that collects groundwater and sediment as a slurry from precisely the same interval was developed in Bangladesh. Recently published results from Bangladesh and India relying on the needle-sampler are augmented here with new data from 37 intervals of grey aquifer material of likely Holocene age in Vietnam and Nepal. A total of 145 samples of filtered groundwater ranging in depth from 3 to 36 m that were analyzed for As (1–1000 μg/L), Fe (0.01–40 mg/L), Mn (0.2–4 mg/L) and S (0.04–14 mg/L) are compared. The P-extractable (0.01–36 mg/kg) and HCl-extractable As (0.04–36 mg/kg) content of the particulate phase was determined in the same suite of samples, in addition to Fe(II)/Fe ratios (0.2–1.0) in the acid-leachable fraction of the particulate phase. Needle-sampler data from Bangladesh indicated a relationship between dissolved As in groundwater and P-extractable As in the particulate phase that was interpreted as an indication of adsorptive equilibrium, under sufficiently reducing conditions, across 3 orders of magnitude in concentrations according to a distribution coefficient of 4 mL/g. The more recent observations from India, Vietnam and Nepal show groundwater As concentrations that are often an order of magnitude lower at a given level of P-extractable As compared to Bangladesh, even if only the subset of particularly reducing intervals characterized by leachable Fe(II)/Fe >0.5 and dissolved Fe >0.2 mg/L are considered. Without attempting to explain why As appears to be particularly mobile in reducing aquifers of Bangladesh compared to the other regions, the consequences of increasing the distribution coefficient for As between the particulate and dissolved phase to 40 mL/g for the flushing of shallow aquifers of their initial As content are explored.