Mineral distribution within polymineralic veins in the Sanbagawa belt,Japan: implications for mass transfer during vein formation

Pelitic schists of the Sanbagawa metamorphic belt contain several types of polymineralic veins that formed during the late stages of exhumation. The vein mineral assemblages are quartz + albite + K-feldspar + chlorite ± calcite (Type I, II) and quartz + albite + calcite (Type III). Type I and II veins contain quartz and albite with stretched-crystal and elongate-blocky textures, respectively. The mineral species within Type I veins vary with compositional bands within the host rocks. Type III veins are characterized by euhedral to subhedral quartz grains with concentric zoning and a homogeneous distribution along the vein length. The vein textures vary depending on the crack aperture during multiple crack-seal events: <0.08 mm for Type I, and 0.5–10 mm for Type III. Type II veins show intermediate features between Type I and III veins in terms of mineral distribution (weak dependence on the host rock composition) and apparent crack aperture (less than 1–15 mm). These observations suggest a transition in the dominant transport mechanism of vein components with increasing crack aperture, from diffusion from host rocks to fluid advection along cracks.     

Vertical changes in abundance,biomass and community structure of copepods down to 3000 m in the southern Bering Sea

Vertical changes in abundance, biomass and community structure of copepods down to 3000 m depth were studied at a single station of the Aleutian Basin of the Bering Sea (53°28′N, 177°00′W, depth 3779 m) on the 14th June 2006. Both abundance and biomass of copepods were greatest near the surface layer and decreased with increase in depth. Abundance and biomass of copepods integrated over 0–3000 m were 1,390,000 inds. m^?2 and 5056 mg C m^?2, respectively. Copepod carcasses occurred throughout the layer, and the carcass:living specimen ratio was the greatest in the oxygen minimum layer (750–100 m, the ratio was 2.3). A total of 72 calanoid copepod species belonging to 34 genera and 15 families occurred in the 0–3000 m water column (Cyclopoida, Harpacticoida and Poecilostomatoida were not identified to species level). Cluster analysis separated calanoid copepod communities into 5 groups (A–E). Each group was separated by depth, and the depth range of each group was at 0–75 m (A), 75–500 m (B), 500–750 m (C), 750–1500 m (D) and 1500–3000 m (E). Copepods were divided into four types based on the feeding pattern: suspension feeders, suspension feeders in diapause, detritivores and carnivores. In terms of abundance the most dominant group was suspension feeders (mainly Cyclopoida) in the epipelagic zone, and detritivores (mainly Poecilostomatoida) were dominant in the meso- and bathypelagic zones. In terms of biomass, suspension feeders in diapause (calanoid copepods Neocalanus spp. and Eucalanus bungii) were the major component (ca. 10–45%), especially in the 250–3000 m depth. These results are compared with the previous studies in the same region and that down to greater depths in the worldwide oceans.     

银离子和含银不锈钢的抗菌性研究

基于银因其具有良好的广谱抗茵活性和低毒性而在医学方面有着较为广泛的应用,对银离子(硝酸银)和含银不锈钢的抗茵活性进行了初步研究。实验结果表明,在10^6CFu／mL的初始接种浓度下,银离子对枯草杆菌、大肠杆菌和假单胞茵的最小抑茵质量浓度和最小杀菌质量浓度分别为2,6,8mg／L和2,8,10mg／L。大肠杆菌经8mg／L的银离子处理2h后,有99．9％以上的细菌被破坏。含银不锈钢也表现了较强的抗菌性能。在普通的、银合金和银涂层的sus304不锈钢表面附着的单层生物膜浸泡在PBS溶液中3d后,经CFDA-DAPI双染色和荧光显微镜观察计数获得的假单胞菌的平均存活率为98．0％,38．5％和15．1％。     

The influence of the Jahn–Teller effect at Fe<Superscript>2+</Superscript> on the structure of chromite at high pressure

The crystal structure of chromite FeCr₂O₄ was investigated to 13.7 GPa and ambient temperature with single-crystal X-ray diffraction techniques. The unit-cell parameter decreases continuously from 8.3832 (5) to 8.2398 (11) Å up to 11.8 GPa. A fit to the Birch–Murnaghan equation of state (EoS) based on the P–V data gives: K ₀ = 209 (13) GPa, K′ = 4.0 (fixed), and V ₀ = 588 (1) ų. The FeO₄ tetrahedra and CrO₆ octahedra are compressed isotropically with pressure with their Fe–O and Cr–O bond distances decreasing from 1.996 (6) to 1.949 (7) Å and from 1.997 (3) to 1.969 (7) Å, respectively. The tetrahedral site occupied by the Fe²⁺ cation is more compressible than the octahedral site occupied by the Cr³⁺ cation. The resulting EoS parameters for the tetrahedral and the octahedral sites are K ₀ = 147 (9) GPa, K′ = 4.0 (fixed), V ₀ = 4.07 (1) ų and K ₀ = 275 (24) GPa, K′ = 4.0 (fixed), V ₀ = 10.42 (2) ų, respectively. A discontinuous volume change is observed between 11.8 and 12.6 GPa. This change indicates a phase transition from a cubic (space group Fd-[`3]{\overline{3}} m) to a tetragonal structure (space group I4₁ /amd). At the phase transition boundary, the two Cr–O bonds parallel to the c-axis shorten from 1.969 (7) to 1.922 (17) Å and the other four Cr–O bonds parallel to the ab plane elongate from 1.969 (7) to 1.987 (9) Å. This anisotropic deformation of the octahedra leads to tetragonal compression of the unit cell along the c-axis. The angular distortion in the octahedron decreases continuously up to 13.7 GPa, whereas the distortion in the tetrahedron rises dramatically after the phase transition. At the pressure of the phase transition, the tetrahedral bond angles along the c-axis direction of the unit cell begin decreasing from 109.5° to 106.6 (7)°, which generates a “stretched” tetrahedral geometry. It is proposed that the Jahn–Teller effect at the tetrahedrally coordinated Fe²⁺ cation becomes active with compression and gives rise to the tetrahedral angular distortion, which in turn induces the cubic-to-tetragonal transition. A qualitative molecular orbital model is proposed to explain the origin and nature of the Jahn–Teller effect observed in this structure and its role in the pressure-induced phase transition.     

Improving the scientific assessment of carbon sinks

Abstract

The future role of carbon sinks with reference to the Kyoto Protocol depends significantly on developing an international consensus on carbon-sink assessment and carbon accounting. A clear and practical approach is needed that allows both the scientific community and policy-makers to construct a viable operational framework. This article proposes that a new strategy be developed for carbon-sink assessment based on full carbon accounting (FCA) alongside a separate political tool for carbon accounting. This approach is derived from the experience of the European critical loads (CL) concept, which seeks to quantify levels of pollutants (such as sulfur) that can be absorbed by the environment without causing ecological harm. Crucial to the implementation of such a strategy are robust institutional settings, such as an internationally coordinated monitoring system, open and fair access to the assessment processes, and international research cooperation programs for addressing associated problems of carbon-sink activities.     

Length-Scale Similarity of Turbulent Organized Structures over Surfaces with Different Roughness Types

We examine the similarity of turbulent organized structures over smooth and very rough wall flows. Turbulent flow fields in horizontal cross-sections were measured using particle image velocimetry, and the characteristics of turbulent organized structures over four types of surfaces were investigated. Measurements were conducted at several measurement heights across the internal boundary layer. The length and width of turbulence structures were quantified using a two-point correlation method. We selected two thresholds of two-point correlation coefficients to consider both large-scale and small-scale structures; the validity of these choices was examined through the analyses using proper orthogonal decomposition. For large-scale structures, the length and aspect ratios (streamwise length/spanwise width) of structures were highly correlated with the velocity gradient for each measurement height and boundary-layer thickness. This relationship was also examined in the results of previous studies, and the scaling of the aspect ratio with the non-dimensional velocity gradient again showed the importance of the velocity gradient, with slight differences found between smooth and rough surfaces. In contrast, the small-scale structures exhibited weak dependency on the velocity gradient and boundary-layer thickness. Instantaneous snapshots of turbulent organized structures at the same shear level also displayed differences in small-scale structures, but the structures of the organized motions resembled each other, as in the results of the two-point correlation method.     

High pressure phase equilibria in the system CaTiO3-CaSiO3: stability of perovskite solid solutions

Phase relations in the system CaTiO₃-CaSiO₃ were experimentally examined at 5.3–14.7 GPa and 1200–1600 °C with a 6–8 type multianvil apparatus. As pressure increases, stability field of perovskite solid solution extends from CaTiO₃ to CaSiO₃, and the perovskite becomes stable for the entire composition range above about 12.3 GPa. The stability field of Ca(Ti_1?X, Si_X)₂O₅ (0.78<x≦1) titanite solid solution +Ca₂SiO₄ larnite exists in the CaSiO₃-rich composition range at 9.3–12.3 GPa and 1200 °C. Perovskite solid solutions containing CaSiO₃ component of 0 to 66 mol% could be quenched to 1 atm. The composition-molar volume relationship of perovskite solid solution showed that molar volume of perovskite solid solution linearly reduces from the value of CaTiO₃ to that of CaSiO₃.