The behavior of trace elements during schwertmannite precipitation and subsequent transformation into goethite and jarosite

Schwertmannite is a ubiquitous mineral formed from acid rock drainage (ARD), and plays a major role in controlling the water chemistry of many acid streams. The formation of schwertmannite was investigated in the acid discharge of the Monte Romero abandoned mine (Iberian Pyrite Belt, SW, Spain). Schwertmannite precipitated from supersaturated solutions mainly owing to the oxidation of Fe(II) to Fe(III) and transformed with time into goethite and jarosite. In a few hours, schwertmannite precipitation removed more than half of the arsenic load from solution, whereas the concentration of divalent trace metals (Zn, Cu, Pb, Cd, Ni, and Co) remained almost unchanged. In the laboratory, natural schwertmannite was kept in contact with its coexisting acid water in a flask with a solid-liquid mass ratio of 1:5 for 353 days. During this time, the pH of the solution dropped from 3.07 to 1.74 and the concentrations of sulfate and Fe increased. During the first 164 days, schwertmannite transformed into goethite plus H₃O-jarosite but, subsequently, goethite was the only mineral to form. Some of the trace elements, such as Al, Cu, Pb, and As were depleted in solution during the first stage as schwertmannite transformed into goethite plus H₃O-jarosite. On the contrary, the transformation of schwertmannite to goethite (with no jarosite) during the second stage released Al, Cu, and As to the solution. Despite the variation in their concentrations in solution, approximately 80% of the total Al and Cu inventories and more than 99% As and Pb remained in the solid phase throughout the entire aging process.     

Direct observations of aluminosilicate weathering in the hyporheic zone of an Antarctic Dry Valley stream

This study focused on chemical weathering and bacterial ecology in the hyporheic zone of Green Creek, a McMurdo Dry Valley (Antarctica) stream. An in situ microcosm approach was used to observe dissolution features on the basal-plane surface of muscovite mica. Four mica chips were buried in December 1999 and dug up 39 d later. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) of the basal-plane surfaces revealed small, anhedral ∼10-Å-deep etch pits covering ∼4% of the surfaces, from which an approximate basal-plane dissolution rate of 8.3 × 10⁻¹⁸ mol muscovite cm⁻² s⁻¹ was calculated (on the basis of the geometric surface area) for the study period. This is an integrated initial dissolution rate on a fresh surface exposed for a relatively brief period over the austral summer and should not be compared directly to other long-term field rates. The observation of weathering features on mica agrees with previous stream- and watershed-scale studies in the Dry Valleys, which have demonstrated that weathering occurs where liquid water is present, despite the cold temperatures.AFM imaging of mica surfaces revealed biofilms including numerous small (<1 μm long), rounded, oblong bacteria. The AFM observations agreed well with X-ray photoelectron microscopy results showing increased organic C and N. Bacteriologic analysis of the hyporheic zone sediments also revealed <1-μm-long bacteria. α-Proteobacteria were observed, consistent with the oligotrophic conditions of the hyporheic zone. Nitrate-reducing bacteria were found, in agreement with a previous tracer test at Green Creek that suggested nitrate reduction occurs in the hyporheic zone. The results of this study thus provide direct evidence of dynamic geochemical and microbial processes in the hyporheic zone of a Dry Valley stream despite the extreme conditions; such processes were inferred previously from stream-scale hydrogeochemical studies.     

Multiphase inclusions in plagioclase from anorthosites in the Stillwater Complex,Montana: implications for the origin of the anorthosites

Multiphase inclusions, consisting of clinopyroxene+ilmenite+apatite, occur within cumulus plagioclase grains from anorthosites in the Stillwater Complex, Montana, and in other rocks from the Middle Banded series of the intrusion. The textures and constant modal mineralogy of the inclusions indicate that they were incorporated in the plagioclase as liquid droplets that later crystallized rather than as solid aggregates. Their unusual assemblage, including a distinctive manganiferous ilmenite and the presence of baddeleyite (ZrO₂), indicates formation from an unusual liquid. A process involving silicater liquid immiscibility is proposed, whereby small globules of a liquid enriched in Mg, Fe, Ca, Ti, P, REE, Zr and Mn exsolved from the main liquid that gave rise to the anorthosites, became trapped in the plagioclase, and later crystallized to form the inclusions. The immiscibility could have occurred locally within compositional boundaries around crystallizing plagioclase grains or it could have occurred pervasively throughout the liquid. It is proposed that the two immiscible liquids were analogous, n terms of their melt structures, to immiscible liquid pairs reported in the literature both in experiments and in natural basalts. For the previously reported pairs, immiscibility is between a highly polymerized liquid, typically granitic in composition, and a depolymerized liquid, typically ferrobasaltic in composition. In the case of the anorthosites, the depolymerized liquid is represented by the inclusions, and the other liquid was a highly polymerized aluminosilicate melt with a high normative plagioclase content from which the bulk of the anorthosites crystallized. Crystallization of the anorthosites from this highly polymerized liquid accounts for various distinctive textural and chemical features of the anorthosites compared to other rocks in the Stillwater Complex. A lack of correlation between P contents and chondrite-normalized rare earth element (REE) ratios of plagioclase separates indicates that the amount of apatite in the inclusions is too low to affect the REE signature of the plagioclase separates. Nevertheless, workers should use caution when attempting REE modelling studies of cumulates having low REE contents, because apatite-bearing inclusions can potentially cause problems.     

ESR dating of dental enamel from Middle Palaeolithic levels at Lazaret Cave,France

ESR dating was carried out on Cervus elaphus tooth enamel samples from the depositional sequence of Lazaret Cave, Nice, France. The deposits contain Anteneandertal hominid fossils associated with abundant lithic artefacts and faunal remains. Three samples from the Mousterian occupations in complex CIII (Fouille d'entrée) yielded early uptake (EU) ages between 108 and 125 ka and linear uptake (LU) ages between 133 and 160 ka. Seven samples from the Acheulian levels in the upper part of the complex CII (Fouille d'entrée and Fouille centre) gave EU ages between 113 and 165 ka and LU ages between 147 and 210 ka, with weighted means at 131 ± 7 and 165 ± 9 ka, respectively. The results of six enamel samples from the lower Acheulian levels at Locus VIII, another place in the cave, were discarded because of their decreasing tendency with depth. The US–ESR combination method was also applied and the CSUS–ESR dates were calculated using the ESR-DATA program. Altogether, the data suggest that the Lazaret Acheulian and Mousterian occupations were rapidly formed during OIS 6.     

Can dynamite-blasted reefs recover? A novel, low-tech approach to stimulating natural recovery in fish and coral populations

Throughout Southeast Asia, blast fishing creates persistent rubble fields with low coral cover and depauperate fish communities. We stabilized a 20-year-old rubble field in a Marine Protected Area in the Philippines, using plastic mesh and rock piles in replicated 17.5m(2) plots, thereby increasing topographic complexity, fish habitat, and recruitment substrate surface area. Multivariate analysis revealed fish community shifts within the rehabilitated area from that characteristic of rubble fields to one similar to the adjacent healthy reef within three years, as measured by changes in fish abundance and body size. Coral recruitment and percent cover increased over time, with 63.5% recruit survivorship within plots, compared with 6% on rubble. Our low-cost approach created a stable substrate favoring natural recovery processes. Both rehabilitation and the elimination of poaching were integral to success, emphasizing the synergism between the two and the need to incorporate both when considering mitigation.     

An experimental study of sapped drainage network development

In a basin developed on a stream table, effluent subsurface flow supported a channel network that evolved by a combination of headward growth, lateral widening and divide decay. The area occupied by the developing network increased with time. Circularity was used to characterize network evolution which occurred in three phases (initiation, extension and abstraction). Basin sediment discharge declined exponentially with time. Pronounced quasi-cyclic variability was superimposed upon this general trend. Some of the variability was directly linked to changes in the amount of sediment supplied to the channel. The variation of mean network sediment yield (mean sediment discharge scaled by network area) with time adequately described the general decline in sediment discharge as the network evolved.     

Surface dynamic deformation estimates from local seismicity: the Itoiz reservoir,Spain

We analyze the ground motion time histories due to the local seismicity near the Itoiz reservoir to estimate the near-source, surface 3D displacement gradients and dynamic deformations. The seismic data were obtained by a semipermanent broadband and accelerometric network located on surface and at underground sites. The dynamic deformation field was calculated by two different methodologies: first, by the seismo-geodetic method using the data from a three-station microarray located close to the dam, and second, by single station estimates of the displacement gradients. The dynamic deformations obtained from both methods were compared and analyzed in the context of the local free-field effects. The shallow 1D velocity structure was estimated from the seismic data by modeling the body wave travel times. Time histories obtained from both methods result quite similar in the time window of body wave arrivals. The strain misfits between methods vary from 1.4 to 35.0 % and rotational misfits vary from 2.5 to 36.0 %. Amplitudes of displacement gradients vary in the range of 10^?8 to 10^?7 strains. From these results, a new scaling analysis by numerical modeling is proposed in order to estimate the peak dynamic deformations for different magnitudes, up to the expected maximum M _w in the region (M5.5). Peak dynamic deformations due to local M _w5.5 earthquakes would reach amplitudes of 10^?5 strain and 10^?3 radians at the Itoiz dam. The single station method shows to be an adequate option for the analysis of local seismicity, where few three-component stations are available. The results obtained here could help to extend the applicability of these methodologies to other sites of engineering interest.     

Top-down and bottom-up modelling to support low-carbon scenarios: climate policy implications

Bottom-up and top-down models are used to support climate policies, to identify the options required to meet GHG abatement targets and to evaluate their economic impact. Some studies have shown that the GHG mitigation options provided by economic top-down and technological bottom-up models tend to vary. One reason for this is that these models tend to use different baseline scenarios. The bottom-up TIMES_PT and the top-down computable general equilibrium GEM-E3_PT models are examined using a common baseline scenario to calibrate them, and the extend of their different mitigation options and its relevant to domestic policy making are assessed. Three low-carbon scenarios for Portugal until 2050 are generated, each with different GHG reduction targets. Both models suggest close mitigation options and locate the largest mitigation potential to energy supply. However, the models suggest different mitigation options for the end-use sectors: GEM-E3_PT focuses more on energy efficiency, while TIMES_PT relies on decrease carbon intensity due to a shift to electricity. Although a common baseline scenario cannot be ignored, the models’ inherent characteristics are the main factor for the different outcomes, thereby highlighting different mitigation options.

Policy relevance

The relevance of modelling tools used to support the design of domestic climate policies is assessed by evaluating the mitigation options suggested by a bottom-up and a top-down model. The different outcomes of each model are significant for climate policy design since each suggest different mitigation options like end-use energy efficiency and the promotion of low-carbon technologies. Policy makers should carefully select the modelling tool used to support their policies. The specific modelling structures of each model make them more appropriate to address certain policy questions than others. Using both modelling approaches for policy support can therefore bring added value and result in more robust climate policy design. Although the results are specific for Portugal, the insights provided by the analysis of both models can be extended to, and used in the climate policy decisions of, other countries.