Sequentially sampled gas hydrate water,coupled with pore water and bottom water isotopic and ionic signatures at the Kukuy mud volcano,Lake Baikal: ambiguous deep-rooted source of hydrate-forming water

The isotopic and ionic composition of pure gas hydrate (GH) water was examined for GHs recovered in three gravity cores (165–193 cm length) from the Kukuy K-9 mud volcano (MV) in Lake Baikal. A massive GH sample from core St6GC4 (143–165 cm core depth interval) was dissociated progressively over 6 h in a closed glass chamber, and 11 sequentially collected fractions of dissociated GH water analyzed. Their hydrogen and oxygen isotopic compositions, and the concentrations of Cl^– and HCO₃ ^– remained essentially constant over time, except that the fraction collected during the first 50 minutes deviated partly from this pattern. Fraction #1 had a substantially higher Cl^– concentration, similar to that of pore water sampled immediately above (135–142 cm core depth) the main GH-bearing interval in that core. Like the subsequent fractions, however, the HCO₃ ^– concentration was markedly lower than that of pore water. For the GH water fractions #2 to #11, an essentially constant HCO₃ ^–/Cl^– ratio of 305 differed markedly from downcore pore water HCO₃ ^–/Cl^– ratios of 63–99. Evidently, contamination of the extracted GH water by ambient pore water probably adhered to the massive GH sample was satisfactorily restricted to the initial phase of GH dissociation. The hydrogen and oxygen isotopic composition of hydrate-forming water was estimated using the measured isotopic composition of extracted GH water combined with known isotopic fractionation factors between GH and GH-forming water. Estimated δD of ?126 to ?133‰ and δ¹⁸O of ?15.7 to ?16.7‰ differed partly from the corresponding signatures of ambient pore water (δD of ?123‰, δ¹⁸O of ?15.6‰) and of lake bottom water (δD of ?121‰, δ¹⁸O of ?15.8‰) at the St6GC4 coring site, suggesting that the GH was not formed from those waters. Observations of breccias in that core point to a possible deep-rooted water source, consistent with published thermal measurements for the neighboring Kukuy K-2 MV. By contrast, the pore waters of core St6GC4 and also of the neighboring cores GC2 and GC3 from the Kukuy K-9 MV show neither isotopic nor ionic evidence of such a source (e.g., elevated sulfate concentration). These findings constrain GH formation to earlier times, but a deep-rooted source of hydrate-forming water remains ambiguous. A possible long-term dampening of key deep-water source signatures deserves further attention, notably in terms of diffusion and/or advection, as well as anaerobic oxidation of methane.     

Stratigraphy of the mid‐ to upper‐Cretaceous System in the Aridagawa area,Wakayama, Southwest Japan

The litho‐ and biostratigraphy of the mid‐ to upper‐Cretaceous System around the Yagumaike Pond in the Aridagawa area, Wakayama, Southwest Japan, were investigated. Many Middle to Late Albian megafossils were found in the strata of a block bounded by faults. It was also revealed that the Upper Cretaceous System of other blocks ranges from the Middle Turonian to Santonian. The Albian megafossil assemblage contains few benthic organisms, in contrast with the abundance of nektons found (e.g. cephalopods). Sedimentological observations of the mudstone profiles also indicate that scarcely or weakly bioturbated, well‐laminated mudstone is dominant among the Albian deposits. These results suggest deposition of the Albian mudstone under a dysaerobic to anoxic environment. It is comparable to the extended oceanic anoxia (OAEs) in mid‐Cretaceous time. Albian deposits with similar characteristics are also known to exist in Shikoku, Southwest Japan. A wide sedimentary basin that was directly affected by global environmental events, such as OAEs, seemed to be formed on the Chichibu Belt in the Albian. The Upper Cretaceous strata in the study area are extremely thin, similar to the coeval deposits on the Chichibu Belt in Shikoku. It is suggested that the sedimentation rate in the sedimentary basin on the Chichibu Belt was extremely low during early Late Cretaceous time.     

Aerodynamic Scaling for Estimating the Mean Height of Dense Canopies

We used an aerodynamic method to objectively determine a representative canopy height, using standard meteorological measurements. The canopy height may change if the tree height is used to represent the actual canopy, but little work to date has focused on creating a standard for determining the representative canopy height. Here we propose the ‘aerodynamic canopy height’ h _a as the most effective means of resolving the representative canopy height for all forests. We determined h _a by simple linear regression between zero-plane displacement d and roughness length z ₀, without the need for stand inventory data. The applicability of h _a was confirmed in five different forests, including a forest with a complex canopy structure. Comparison with stand inventory data showed that h _a was almost equivalent to the representative height of trees composing the crown surface if the forest had a simple structure, or to the representative height of taller trees composing the upper canopy in forests with a complex canopy structure. The linear relationship between d and z ₀ was explained by assuming that the logarithmic wind profile above the canopy and the exponential wind profile within the canopy were continuous and smooth at canopy height. This was supported by observations, which showed that h _a was essentially the same as the height defined by the inflection point of the vertical profile of wind speed. The applicability of h _a was also verified using data from several previous studies.     

Lithostratigraphy and biostratigraphy of the Campanian–Maastrichtian Toyajo Formation in Wakayama, southwestern Japan

The Upper Cretaceous Toyajo Formation is distributed around the Mt. Toyajo in the Aridagawa area, Wakayama, southwestern Japan. The formation is subdivided into three newly defined members, the Nakaibara Siltstone Member, Hasegawa Muddy Sandstone Member, and Buyo Sandstone Member, in ascending order. Close field observation elucidated the detailed biostratigraphy of the Toyajo Formation, and high-precision biostratigraphic correlation was made with the Yezo Group in Hokkaido (northern Japan) and Sakhalin and the Izumi Group in southwestern Japan.The Toyajo Formation contains diversified lower Campanian to upper Campanian heteromorph ammonoid assemblages, including Eubostrychoceras and Scaphites. Discovery of the heteromorph fauna demonstrates that scaphitid ammonoids survived until Campanian time in the northwestern Pacific region. Although Eubostrychoceras elongatum has been known in the northeastern Pacific region, the occurrence of this species in the northwestern Pacific region has been uncertain before. The rich occurrence of E. elongatum in the Aridagawa area indicates that this species was distributed widely in the northern Pacific realm.The Toyajo Formation is similar to the Izumi Group in various geologic features, and may indicate that the Toyajo Formation was deposited in a strike-slip basin along the Chichibu Belt formed by the movement along the Kurosegawa Tectonic Zone in the latest Cretaceous, like the Izumi Group, along the Median Tectonic Line.     

国际全球变化研究发展态势文献计量评价

-全球变化研究是国际上地球系统综合研究的重大跨学科研究领域。随着全球环境问题的日益突出，国际上先后组织发起了全球环境变化研究的四大科学计划WCRP、IGBP、IHDP、DIVERSITAS及其组成的地球系统科学联盟ESSP，开展对全球变化和地球系统科学的研究。当前，全球变化问题不仅是科学界关注和研究的问题，也是政治界、经济界都关注的重大问题。 科技文献能够反映科学前沿的发展动态。对SCIE和SSCI数据库收录的全球变化研究文献进行统计，从文献计量学的角度，分析国际全球变化研究领域的发展态势，了解中国全球变化研究的国际影响力。可以看出：国际上全球变化研究的论文数量一直呈增长趋势，以地球科学多学科、生态学、环境科学、自然地理学、植物学等学科领域为主。中国自2000年以来在该领域的发文数量增长较快，特别是中国科学院的发文量已进入国际前列，但中国在该研究领域尚缺少高影响力的论文。     

Investigation on the Performance of Pipe Roof Method Adjacent to the Underground Construction

In this paper, the behaviour of the pipe roof method with different pipe roofs disposition schemes including the pipe roof gate system and L-shaped system is discussed in terms of ground settlement reduction in the condition of underground space construction adjacent to the existing structure by using numerical simulation method. Considering the construction sequences of parallel underground tunnels with rectangular cross sections, the appropriate parameters and ground response characteristics of the corresponding pipe roof methods are evaluated by the ground surface displacement. The results indicated that the construction impacts from new buildings can be reduced by the pipe roof method. However, the theoretical performance of pipe roofs is highly dependent on the spacing between two structures. Generally, the L-shaped system is more effective in case of the distance (D) that is less than or equal to 1/2 width of box culvert (R) under the condition of a new structure constructed nearby the existing building. When two structures are constructed simultaneously, the excavation and the construction of structures influence each other reciprocally. The conclusions could provide a reference for the pipe roof method with the application scenario of adjacent building protection.

     

Purification of seawater contaminated with undegradable aromatic ring compounds using ozonolysis followed by titanium dioxide treatment

Treatment of aromatic ring compounds, 2,4-dichlorophenoxy acetic acid (2,4-D), 2,4,5-trichloro-phenoxy acetic acid (2,4,5-T), and bisphenol A, in the artificial seawater, i.e. Allen seawater, was carried out by ozonation and titanium dioxide (TiO2) photocatalyst treatment. Each compound was degraded and varnished within 30 min by only ozonolysis at pH 9.0 and at 20 degrees C, while the TOC value of each compound decreased gradually but reached almost constant value, i.e. about 70-80% of the initial value, at even 30 min of ozonation time. Ozonolysis (30 min of ozonation time) followed by TiO2 photocatalyst treatment (50h of reaction time) was a very effective method for decreasing the TOC values of aromatic ring compounds in the artificial seawater. In consequence, TOC values of 2,4-D, 2,4,5-T, and bisphenol A could be reduced to about 28, 21, and 34% of their initial values, respectively.     

Primary productivity and solar radiation off Sanriku in May 1997

We measured the in situ primary production at four stations from the surface to 80 m off Sanriku in late May 1997. The depth-integrated daily primary production in the upper 80 m was estimated to be 391, 468, and 855 mgC m⁻²d⁻¹ in water from the Oyashio, and 336 mgC m⁻²d⁻¹ in the warm-core ring. The variation in the primary production was primarily due to the variation in phytoplankton activity (chlorophyll α-specific primary production). A combination of previous and present studies in water from the Oyashio and the warm-core ring suggested that phytoplankton activity is proportional to light intensity between 12 and 50 Ein m⁻²d⁻¹ which is close to the usual light condition (61–75 Ein m⁻²d⁻¹) off Sanriku in May and June. Light may be a limiting factor for phytoplankton off Sanriku in late spring and early summer.     

Depositional and diagenetic history of limestones and dolostones of the Oligo‐Miocene Kujung Formation in the Northeast Java Basin,Indonesia

Lithological and geochemical features of platformal carbonates record the signatures of the global climates and the regional environmental settings and also reconstruct the diagenetic history and porosity evolution, which are essential to evaluate the potential of hydrocarbon reservoirs. This study investigates the platformal carbonates of the Oligo‐Miocene Krunji Formation of North East Java Basin, which are potentially significant hydrocarbon reservoirs. The carbonate sequence in a 283 m thick section at Kranji in East Java is subdivided into three lithological units: limestone unit 1, dolostone unit 2, and limestone unit 3, in ascending order. The strontium‐isotope ratios of well‐preserved calcite samples indicate the depositional period from Chattian (late Oligocene) to Burdigalian (early Miocene), which is consistent with ages of the foraminifer assemblages. Unit 1 consists of low‐porosity limestone, in which two horizons of subaerial exposure are recognized by the occurrence of red‐colored matrix and lower δ¹³C values. Unit 2 consists of dolomitic rock and exhibits coarse‐grained calcitic grains and cross‐stratified structure. Considering that this unit has been subject to dolomitization, the sediment of unit 2 was initially permeable and was likely deposited in a shoal setting. The overlying unit 3 of Aquitanian–Burdigalian age is characterized by a highly granular texture. High porosity and uniformly low δ¹³C and δ¹⁸O values indicate that Unit 3 was subjected to more intense meteoric diagenesis than the Chattian unit 1. This was likely a consequence of the Antarctic ice‐sheet expansion during the Oligocene/Miocene transition, which amplified sea level change. The unit 2 dolomite has high δ¹³C and δ¹⁸O values and a high ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratio which resulted from the reflux of seawater into permeable the sediment body in middle‐late Miocene (Burdigalian Tortonian) following the deposition of unit 3. The porosity and permeability of the Kujung Formation were initially controlled by sedimentological processes, but largely modified by later diagenetic processes.     

Isotopic composition of gas hydrates in subsurface sediments from offshore Sakhalin Island, Sea of Okhotsk

Hydrate-bearing sediment cores were retrieved from recently discovered seepage sites located offshore Sakhalin Island in the Sea of Okhotsk. We obtained samples of natural gas hydrates and dissolved gas in pore water using a headspace gas method for determining their molecular and isotopic compositions. Molecular composition ratios C₁/_C2+ from all the seepage sites were in the range of 1,500–50,000, while δ¹³C and δD values of methane ranged from ?66.0 to ?63.2‰ VPDB and ?204.6 to ?196.7‰ VSMOW, respectively. These results indicate that the methane was produced by microbial reduction of CO₂. δ¹³C values of ethane and propane (i.e., ?40.8 to ?27.4‰ VPDB and ?41.3 to ?30.6‰ VPDB, respectively) showed that small amounts of thermogenic gas were mixed with microbial methane. We also analyzed the isotopic difference between hydrate-bound and dissolved gases, and discovered that the magnitude by which the δD hydrate gas was smaller than that of dissolved gas was in the range 4.3–16.6‰, while there were no differences in δ¹³C values. Based on isotopic fractionation of guest gas during the formation of gas hydrate, we conclude that the current gas in the pore water is the source of the gas hydrate at the VNIIOkeangeologia and Giselle Flare sites, but not the source of the gas hydrate at the Hieroglyph and KOPRI sites.