Use of Factor Analysis to Study the Distribution of Metalliferous Bauxitic Tailings in the Seabed of the Gulf of Corinth,Greece

In 1994, a detailed marine environmental survey was carried out in surface sediments of the northern flank (Antikyra Bay) and the basin floor of the Gulf of Corinth. Metalliferous tailings (red-mud slurry) of a bauxite processing plant are discharged through a pipeline at a water depth of 100 m, in the Antikyra Bay, covering an area of 16 km². The bauxitic tailings are detached from the main deposit at the outfalls, flow as turbidity currents downslope, and are redeposited on the basin floor of the Gulf of Corinth, where they cover an area of about 277 km². One hundred sediment samples, that were collected from red-mud deposits and the surrounding natural sediments, were analyzed for Ag, Al, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Hg, Mg, Mn, Ni, Pb, Si, Ti, V, and Zn concentrations. Statistical analysis of the heavy metals concentrations using factor analysis allowed (i) an examination of the interrelations among metals and (ii) distinguishing possible sample groups on the basis of metal concentrations in order to study the mechanisms of transport of the red mud and the degree of mixing with natural sediments. Factor 1 (Al, Cr, Ti, Fe, Co, Ni, Pb, Ag, Hg, V, Cd, and Cu) and the positive pole of Factor 2 (Cu, Ag, Cd, and Hg) are red-mud factors, reflecting different metal behaviors, which are related to processes that take place during the transport and redeposition of the red mud. The negative poles of Factors 2 and 3 and the positive pole of Factor 4 are related to natural sediment supply processes. Q-mode factor analysis identifies three distinct sediment groups located in different areas, on the base of the degree of mixing of red mud with natural sediments.     

REVIEWS

Book reviewed in this article:
GEOGRAPHY, ITS SCOPE AND SPIRIT. By J. O. M. Broek
GEOGRAPHY AS HUMAN ECOLOGY: METHODOLOGY BY EXAMPLE. Edited by S. R. Eyre and G. R. J. Jones
A PREFACE TO ECONOMIC GEOGRAPHY. By H. H. McCarty and J. B. Lindberg
A PROLOGUE TO POPULATION GEOGRAPHY. By W. Zelinsky     

Natural aggregates in the performance and durability of concrete: chemical characteristics

This article continues from the earlier feature in Geology Today (2011, v.27, n.4) and looks at the influence of chemical reactivity within concrete due to the presence of unsound aggregates or deleterious material incorporated in the aggregate used in the concrete mix. Some of the more disruptive problems from chemical unsoundness come from the presence of chlorides, which cause rusting in reinforced concrete or, sulphate attack from ground waters. Both of these reactions are relatively common in Britain. Alkali–silica reactions with aggregates and cement is not too prevalent in Britain but can be very prevalent and disruptive elsewhere in the world.     

Dispersion characteristics of low-latitude whistlers

The effect of ions on whistler dispersion characteristics has been studied. It is shown that the significant changes in the dispersion characteristics of low-latitude whistlers are brought about by the presence of ions. The dispersions for Nainital (geomagnetic lat. 19°1'N) and Gulmarg (geomagnetic lat. 24°10'N) are found to peak around 800 Hz. The short whistler sonograms recorded at Nainital and Gulmarg have been analysed, using the complete dispersion equation and the effect of ions has been shown. At higher frequencies the dispersion is found to decrease steadily and becomes independent of ions. Some examples of short whistlers have been found whose characteristics do not conform to the general trend of low-latitude whistlers, and, on the other hand, these whistlers show a constant dispersion unaffected by ions up to a fairly low frequency and thereafter decrease sharply at lower frequencies.     

Determination of the optimum period for ciliated protozoa colonizing of an artificial substrate in a tropical aquatic ecosystem

The optimum period for ciliated protozoa colonizing of an artificial substrate, the polyurethane foams have been assessed in a tropical aquatic ecosystem, the Ekozoa stream of the Mfoundi River Basin in Yaounde (Cameroon). 5?days were calculated as the highest period for the biological indicators of pollution to optimally colonize the artificial substrate. This time interval is the same for all the sampling stations assessed from upstream to downstream and the various microhabitats along the water course. The statistical method applied is that of the completely randomized blocks. The colonization of the substrate increases from the first day to the fifth day, before decreasing to the tenth day. The statistical analysis of variance between the maximum day and the other sampling period was significant at 5?% while the calculation of the value between different points of the same station was not significant. The average number of ciliated protozoan ranges from 20 to 23, from upstream to downstream.     

H 187 - At the Onset of a New Eclipse

CCD photometry data of the T Tauri star H 187 are presented. They show that a new eclipse of this star began at the end of 2004. Since only one eclipse of this star has been observed previously with a duration of 3.5 years, our data indicate that the eclipses of this object are periodic with a period P=4.9 years between eclipses. Thus, in terms of the absolute duration of the eclipses and in terms of their relative length as a fraction of the period, H 187 is one of the most exotic objects in the sky. __________ Translated from Astrofizika, Vol. 48, No. 4, pp. 529–534 (November 2005).     

The development of talus slopes around Lord Howe island and implications for the history of island planation

Lord Howe Island is a small eroded remnant of a Late Miocene shield volcano. A fringing coral reef dissipates wave energy along a portion of the shoreline, but the remainder of the coast is rugged with spectacular high basaltic sea cliffs. This paper investigates the evolution of talus slopes that occur beneath the loftiest cliffs, and places this analysis within the context of a longer history of island planation that has resulted in a wide truncated shelf around the island. During the Last Glacial, when the sea level was lower than at present, talus slopes accumulated around the extent of the island's cliffed coast because material eroded from cliffs by subaerial processes could not be removed by marine processes. The survival of these slopes during the Holocene has depended on a balance achieved between rates of subaerial and marine erosion. This balance is fundamentally influenced by cliff height, as cliffs higher than 200 m are plunging or veneered by talus slopes, whereas lower cliffs have erosional shore platforms. On comparison with published erosion rates from inland basalt scarps it appears that marine processes may account for over 90 per cent of the total cliff retreat that has occurred at Lord Howe Island, yet contemporary coastal morphology attests to the significance of subaerial processes in recent times. It is likely that marine cliffing was very rapid soon after volcanism ceased, but rates of erosion decreased through time as wave energy became increasingly attenuated across a widening planation surface, and as increasing cliff heights yielded greater quantities of talus that provided protection from rapid marine erosion.     

Optical properties of dust from Jupiter family comets

To try to define specific physical properties of the dust of Jupiter-family comets (JFCs), we compare the light scattered by them. Amongst the more than 1000 JFCs, less than 200 are numbered, 40 of them being rather bright. In the present work we use data from the latter. In situ observations of three nuclei show low albedo surfaces. The albedo of the dust particles in the coma is low, with generally a red colour. The A(α)fρ product is a measure of cometary activity and secular changes. Images of different regions (jets and fans) give indications on the nucleus rotation and position of the emitting areas, as compared to the position of the rotation axis. Differences in physical properties between the particles in different regions are pointed out by differences in the linear polarization of the scattered light and by spectral variations in brightness and polarization. Jupiter family comets are considered as dust-poor comets. Tails and trails’ studies give an estimation of the size distribution of the particles. However the dust production rates depend on the largest particles (up to centimetre size), which are mainly observed in the trails where large dark compact particles are found. These dark particles are also responsible for the high polarization in the inner most coma of some comets. The meaning, in terms of physical properties, of the linear polarization is discussed through different examples such as 2P/Encke, 9P/Tempel 1 or the fragments of 73P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 3. Cometary outbursts and splitting events show that the properties of the dust ejected from the interior of the nucleus are similar to the ones of more active comets (new or with larger semi-major axis).