Stability study on the northern batter of MBC Open Pit using Plaxis 3D

Cracks appeared on the northern batter at Maddingley Brown Coal Open Pit Mine, Victoria, Australia, on 8 November 2013 and a 2-day rainfall event happened 5 days later. This study models the stability of the northern batter considering the effect of the rainfall event and an emergency buttress using finite element method (FEM) encoded in Plaxis 3D. It is found that the batter tended to lead to block sliding after overburden removal. The observed vertical crack would be a combined action of the overburden removal and groundwater flow. The simulated location of cracks agrees well with the actual location, and the simulated heave of the coal seam is in good agreement with the experience in Victoria brown coal open pit mining. The rainfall accelerated the development of the cracks. With the construction of the emergency buttress, the batter became stable that is in good agreement with the monitored data.     

Petrogenesis of low-δ<Superscript>18</Superscript>O quartz porphyry dykes,Koegel Fontein complex,South Africa

This paper investigates the origin of low-δ¹⁸O quartz porphyry dykes associated with the 144–133 Ma Koegel Fontein Igneous Complex, which was intruded during the initial phase of breakup of Africa and South America. The 25-km diameter Rietpoort Granite is the largest and youngest phase of activity, and is roofed by a 10-km diameter pendant of gneiss. Quartz porphyry (QP) dykes, up to 15 m in width, strike NW–SE across the complex. The QP dykes that intruded outside the granite have similar quartz phenocryst δ¹⁸O values (average 8.0‰, ± 0.7, n?=?33) to the granite (average 8.3?±?1.0, n?=?7). The QP dykes that intruded the roof pendant have quartz phenocrysts with more variable δ¹⁸O values (average 1.6‰, ± 2.1, n?=?55). In some cases quartz phenocrysts have δ¹⁸O values as low as ? 2.5‰. The variation in δ¹⁸O value within the quartz crystal population of individual dykes is small relative to the overall range, and core and rim material from individual quartz phenocrysts in three samples are identical within error. There is no evidence that quartz phenocryst δ¹⁸O values have been affected by fluid–rock interaction. Based on a ?_quartz?magma value of 0.6‰, magma δ¹⁸O values must have been as low as ? 3.1‰. Samples collected along the length of the two main QP dykes that traverse the roof pendant have quartz phenocryst δ¹⁸O values that range from +?1.1 to +?4.6‰, and ? 2.3 to +?5.6‰, respectively. These δ¹⁸O values correlate negatively (r = ? 0.96) with initial ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr, which can be explained by the event that lowered δ¹⁸O values of the source being older than the dykes. We suggest that the QP dykes were fed by magma produced by partial melting of gneiss, which had been variably altered at high temperature by ¹⁸O-depleted meteoric water during global glaciation at ~?550 Ma. The early melts had variable δ¹⁸O value but as melt pockets interconnected during melting, the δ¹⁸O values approached that of average gneiss. Variable quartz phenocryst δ¹⁸O values in the same dyke can be explained by vertical emplacement, at variable rates of ascent along the dyke. The lateral variation in quartz, and hence magma δ¹⁸O value at a particular point along a single dyke would depend on the rate of ascent of magma at that point along the dyke, and the ‘age’ of the particular magma batch.     

Composition of barian mica in multiphase solid inclusions from orogenic garnet peridotites as evidence of mantle metasomatism in a subduction zone setting

Multiphase solid inclusions in minerals formed at ultra-high-pressure (UHP) provide evidence for the presence of fluids during deep subduction. This study focuses on barian mica, which is a common phase in multiphase solid inclusions enclosed in garnet from mantle-derived UHP garnet peridotites in the Saxothuringian basement of the northern Bohemian Massif. The documented compositional variability and substitution trends provide constraints on crystallization medium of the barian mica and allow making inferences on its source. Barian mica in the multiphase solid inclusions belongs to trioctahedral micas and represents a solid solution of phlogopite KMg₃(Si₃Al)O₁₀(OH)₂, kinoshitalite BaMg₃(Al₂Si₂)O₁₀(OH)₂ and ferrokinoshitalite BaFe₃(Al₂Si₂)O₁₀(OH)₂. In addition to Ba (0.24–0.67 apfu), mica is significantly enriched in Mg (X_Mg ~ 0.85 to 0.95), Cr (0.03–0.43 apfu) and Cl (0.04–0.34 apfu). The substitution vector involving Ba in the I-site which describes the observed chemical variability can be expressed as BaFe^IVAlClK_?1Mg_?1Si_?1(OH)_?1. A minor amount of Cr and ^VIAl enters octahedral sites following a substitution vector ^VI(Cr,Al)₂□^VI(Mg,Fe)_?3 towards chromphyllite and muscovite. As demonstrated by variable Ba and Cl contents positively correlating with Fe, barian mica composition is partly controlled by its crystal structure. Textural evidence shows that barian mica, together with other minerals in multiphase solid inclusions, crystallized from fluids trapped during garnet growth. The unusual chemical composition of mica reflects the mixing of two distinct sources: (1) an internal source, i.e. the host peridotite and its garnet, providing Mg, Fe, Al, Cr, and (2) an external source, represented by crustal-derived subduction-zone fluids supplying Ba, K and Cl. At UHP–UHT conditions recorded by the associated diamond-bearing metasediments (c. 1100 °C and 4.5 GPa) located above the second critical point in the pelitic system, the produced subduction-zone fluids transporting the elements into the overlying mantle wedge had a solute-rich composition with properties of a hydrous melt. The occurrence of barian mica with a specific chemistry in barium-poor mantle rocks demonstrates the importance of its thorough chemical characterization.     

Water system characteristics of Karst river basins in South China and their driving mechanisms of hydrological drought

Natural Hazards - It is common knowledge that drought is considered one of the most damaging natural disasters in terms of economic costs, societal problems, and ecological impacts. In this study,...     

Zircon U-Pb Geochronology,Geochemistry and Petrogenesis of Early Cretaceous A-type Granites in the Mikengshan Area,Southern Jiangxi ProvinceEI北大核心CSCD

In the Mikengshan-Yanbei area, a special region for the tin mineralization in South China, there are some Yanshanian granites and porphyries and associated porphyry tin deposits (e.g., Yanbei). Although the tin mineralization is closely associated with the granitoids magmatism, the age and petrogenesis of the granites remain controversial. The Mikengshan pluton, which intrudes into the rhyolitic tuff and pyroclastic rocks of the Upper Jurassic Jilongzhang Formation, is the largest one in Mikengshan-Yanbei area and mainly consists of K-feldspar bearing granites. In this study, we report new age and geochemical data for the Mikengshan K-feldspar bearing granites. LA-ICP-MS zircon U-Pb age dating shows that they were generated in the Early Cretaceous (~138 Ma). They have high SiO2 (74.42% to 76.69%), low Al2O3 (12.39% to 13.49%) and Mg# (11 to 19), and negative Eu, Sr and Ba anomalies, and are rich in potassium (most K2O/Na2O=1.37 to 1.94) and high field strength elements (HFSEs), and are weakly peraluminous (A/CNK=1.03 to 1.1) with high 10000×Ga/Al ratios (3.46 to 4.96) and slightly high zircon saturation temperatures (807 ℃ to 817 ℃), showing the characteristics of the typical A-type granites. Moreover, they have high Rb contents 842×10-6 to 1295×10-6, Rb/Sr (90 to 255) ratios and show rare earth elements (REE) tetrad effect, which are similar to those of high fractionated granites. Thus, we suggested that the Mikengshan K-feldspar bearing granites are high fractionated and aluminous A-type granite. Their slightly high εNd(t) values (-3.4 to -4.6) indicate that the mantle components should have played a role during their formation. Taking into account regional igneous rocks and tectonic setting data, we suggest that the Mikengshan K-bearing granites were formed in an extensional setting, which was probably related to the roll-back of the subducted Paleo-Pacific plate. © 2018, Science Press. All right reserved.     

Carbon costs and benefits of France’s biomass energy production targets

Background

Concern about climate change has motivated France to reduce its reliance on fossil fuel by setting targets for increased biomass-based renewable energy production. This study quantifies the carbon costs and benefits for the French forestry sector in meeting these targets. A forest growth and harvest simulator was developed for French forests using recent forest inventory data, and the wood-use chain was reconstructed from national wood product statistics. We then projected wood production, bioenergy production, and carbon balance for three realistic intensification scenarios and a business-as-usual scenario. These intensification scenarios targeted either overstocked, harvest-delayed or currently actively managed stands.

Results

All three intensification strategies produced 11.6–12.4 million tonnes of oil equivalent per year of wood-based energy by 2026, which corresponds to the target assigned to French wood-energy to meet the EU 2020 renewable energy target. Sustaining this level past 2026 will be challenging, let alone further increasing it. Although energy production targets can be reached, the management intensification required will degrade the near-term carbon balance of the forestry sector, compared to continuing present-day management. Even for the best-performing intensification strategy, i.e., reducing the harvest diameter of actively managed stands, the carbon benefits would only become apparent after 2040. The carbon balance of a strategy putting abandoned forests back into production would only break even by 2055; the carbon balance from increasing thinning in managed but untended stands would not break even within the studied time periods, i.e. 2015–2045 and 2046–2100. Owing to the temporal dynamics in the components of the carbon balance, i.e., the biomass stock in the forest, the carbon stock in wood products, and substitution benefits, the merit order of the examined strategies varies over time.

Conclusions

No single solution was found to improve the carbon balance of the forestry sector by 2040 in a way that also met energy targets. We therefore searched for the intensification scenario that produces energy at the lowest carbon cost. Reducing rotation time of actively managed stands is slightly more efficient than targeting harvest-delayed stands, but in both cases, each unit of energy produced has a carbon cost that only turns into a benefit between 2060 and 2080.

     

Position-domain integrity risk-based ambiguity validation for the integer bootstrap estimator

Integrity monitoring for ambiguity resolution is of significance for utilizing the high-precision carrier phase differential positioning for safety–critical navigational applications. The integer bootstrap estimator can provide an analytical probability density function, which enables the precise evaluation of the integrity risk for ambiguity validation. In order to monitor the effect of unknown ambiguity bias on the integer bootstrap estimator, the position-domain integrity risk of the integer bootstrapped baseline is evaluated under the complete failure modes by using the worst-case protection principle. Furthermore, a partial ambiguity resolution method is developed in order to satisfy the predefined integrity risk requirement. Static and kinematic experiments are carried out to test the proposed method by comparing with the traditional ratio test method and the protection level-based method. The static experimental result has shown that the proposed method can achieve a significant global availability improvement by 51% at most. The kinematic result reveals that the proposed method obtains the best balance between the positioning accuracy and the continuity performance.     

漠河盆地西部二十二站组碎屑锆石U-Pb年龄、地球化学特征及其物源意义

大兴安岭北部漠河盆地内广泛发育二十二站组,其形成时代及物质来源一直以来备受争议.本文在野外地质调查及岩相学的基础上,利用碎屑锆石LA-ICP-MS U-Pb法测年,并结合岩石地球化学等方法,探讨了二十二站组形成时代、物源区大地构造环境及沉积物来源.测年结果显示132个测点年龄主要分布在4个群落,分别为508.3～492.3 Ma;486.9～435.5 Ma;278.3～254.2 Ma;209.5～178.1 Ma.本次获得二十二站组最小碎屑锆石年龄为178.1 Ma,并结合漠河盆地东西部碎屑锆石的年龄,综合认为二十二站组形成时代应为中晚侏罗世.地球化学分析结果显示,二十二站组砂岩的稀土元素与活动大陆边缘的稀土元素曲线吻合较好,且相对亏损高场强元素(Nb和Ta)和大离子亲石元素(Ba和Sr),相对富集高场强元素(La、Th、Zr、Hf),地球化学特征与活动大陆边缘相似.综合古流向、源区母岩分析、碎屑锆石测年分析、微量元素特征等诸多因素,本次研究认为本区二十二站组砂岩的母岩主要来源于盆地南缘广泛分布的前中生代沉积-变质基底(兴华渡口岩群、佳疙瘩组、额尔古纳河组等)及各期中酸性火成岩.