The domain structure of synthetic stoichiometric TM10–TM75 and Al-, Mg-, Mn- and V-doped TM62 titanomagnetites

The existence of domain structure has been questioned for titanomagnetites of typical oceanic basalt composition owing to the unusual temperature dependence of their susceptibility, resembling that of spin glasses. In order to make a direct test of domain structure, a series of stoichiometric titanomagnetites between magnetite (TM0) and 75% ulvöspinel content (TM75) as well as a titanomagnetite of typical oceanic basalt composition have been synthesised using the double-sintering technique at 1300°C, in controlled atmospheres. The purity, stoichiometry and homogeneity of these materials were tested by optical, X-ray and microprobe studies as well as by magnetic measurements.Domain structures were observed using the Bitter-pattern technique after ionic polishing to produce stress-free surface of the bulk material. The optimum time required for ionic polishing was found to increase with the ulvöspinel content and to be correlated with the magnetostrictive constant θ. Magnetite showed a domain configuration which is also typical for nickel (mostly lamella-shaped domains, pine-tree-shaped closure domains, high domain wall mobility in small external fields, straight domain walls). The tendency to form lamella-shaped domains is present up to TM75 (which has a Curie temperature of only 40°C), but with an increasing tendency to form curved domain walls and to have fewer and also differently shaped closure domains. This is demonstrated in a series of photographs. The results constitute unequivocal evidence for the existence of a domain structure in the classical sense in a broad range of stoichiometric pure and doped (Al, Mg, Mn, V) titanomagnetites.     

International Association of Geoanalysts' Protocol for the Certification of Geological and Environmental Reference Materials: A Supplement

The International Association of Geoanalysts (IAG) published a protocol for the certification of reference materials in close accord with the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) guidelines (Kane et al. 2003). This article supplements that protocol, providing additional discussion of best approaches for pre-selecting laboratories for participation in certification projects. This discussion also makes a distinction between inter-laboratory certifications, where n = 15 is the general standard, and expert laboratory certifications, where a much smaller number of laboratories will be deemed qualified to provide data of the quality needed for certification.     

X-Ray Line Transfer in Plasmas with Large Velocity Gradients

An astrophysically relevant experiment is compared to the output of a multidimensional radiation transfer code in which populations and radiation are self-consistently treated. Experimental Al Ly α spectra obtained with a very high-resolution spectrometer are presented as quantitative evidence of dot plasma non-planar expansion. Analysis of these spectra using the code is performed, in particular examining the effects of velocity gradients in directions other than that of the primary expansion. These calculations are found to be in good agreement with the experimental results. Usage of the Ly α doublet as a planarity diagnostic is discussed.     

Particle composition and size distributions in and around a deep-pit swine operation,Ames, IA

The contribution of emissions from agricultural facilities is rapidly becoming a major concern for local and regional air quality. Characterization of particle properties such as physical size distribution and chemical composition can be valuable in understanding the processes contributing to emissions and ultimate fate of particulate matter from agricultural facilities. A measurement campaign was conducted at an Iowa, deep-pit, three-barn swine finishing facility to characterize near-source ambient particulate matter. Size-specific mass concentrations were determined using minivol samplers, with additional size distribution information obtain using optical particle counters. Particulate composition was determined via ion chromatographic analysis of the collected filters. A thermal-CO₂ elemental/organic carbon analyzer measured particulate carbon. The chemical composition and size distribution of sub-micron particles were determined via real-time aerosol mass spectrometry. Primary particulate was not found to be a major emission from the examined facility, with filter-based impactor samples showing average near-source increases (~15–50 m) in ambient PM₁₀ of 5.8 ± 2.9 μg m⁻³ above background levels. PM_2.5 also showed contribution attributable to the facility (1.7 ± 1.1 μg m⁻³). Optical particle counter analysis of the numerical size distributions showed bimodal distributions for both the upwind and downwind conditions, with maximums around 2.5 μm and below the minimum quantified diameter of 0.3 μm. The distributions showed increased numbers of coarse particles (PM₁₀) during periods when wind transport came from the barns, but the differences were not statistically significant at the 95% confidence level. The PM₁₀ aerosols showed statistically increased concentrations of sulfate, nitrate, ammonium, calcium, organic carbon, and elemental carbon when the samplers were downwind from the pig barns. Organic carbon was the major constituent of the barn-impacted particulate matter in both sub-micron (54%) and coarse size (20%) ranges. The AMS PM₁ chemical speciation showed similar species increases, with the exception of and Ca⁺², the latter not quantified by the AMS.     

Late Miocene–Pliocene eclogite facies metamorphism, D'Entrecasteaux Islands, SE Papua New Guinea

The D'Entrecasteaux Islands of south‐eastern Papua New Guinea are active metamorphic core complexes that formed within a region where the plate tectonic regime has transitioned from subduction to rifting. While rapid, post 4 Myr exhumation and cooling of amphibolite and greenschist facies rocks that constitute the footwall of the crustal scale detachment fault system have been previously documented on Fergusson and Goodenough Islands of the D'Entrecasteaux chain, the timing of eclogite facies metamorphism in rocks of the footwall was unknown. Recent work revealed that at least one of the eclogite bodies formed during the Pliocene. We present combined in situ ion microprobe U–Pb age analyses of zircon from five variably retrogressed eclogite samples from Fergusson and Goodenough Islands that document Late Miocene–Pliocene (8–2 Ma) eclogite formation on these islands. Textural relationships and zircon–garnet rare earth element partition coefficients indicate that U–Pb ages constrain zircon crystallization under eclogite facies conditions in all samples. Results suggest westward younging of eclogite facies metamorphism from Fergusson to Goodenough Island. Present‐day exposure of Late Miocene–Pliocene eclogites requires exhumation rates > 2.5 cm yr^?1.     

Determination of 137Cs activities in surface sediments and derived sediment accumulation rates in Thessaloniki Gulf, Greece

Surficial and core samples collected from the eastern Thessaloniki Gulf, located in the NW Aegean Sea, were analyzed for their sedimentation rate and inventories of ¹³⁷Cs and ²¹⁰Pb. The study of the spatial radionuclide dispersion in the specific region is essential for the assessment of marine pollution levels. The sedimentation rates were calculated from the vertical distribution of ¹³⁷Cs and excess ²¹⁰Pb in the sediment cores. The spatial distribution of ¹³⁷Cs was studied with respect to sediment characteristics such as the grain size of the sample and the organic carbon content. The activity concentrations were measured by means of gamma ray spectrometry using HPGe detector for ¹³⁷Cs and gross alpha counting using alpha counter for ²¹⁰Pb. The average sedimentation rate along the sediment cores is characterized by a consistent pattern and varies from 0.18?±?0.02 to 0.22?±?0.03?cm?year^?1. The ¹³⁷Cs inventories varied from 205?±?15 to 602?±?39?Bq?m^?2, while the ²¹⁰Pb inventories of the studied cores exhibited average value of 140?±?9?Bq?m^?2. Elevated ¹³⁷Cs activities were observed compared to certain Mediterranean marine areas; however, they were lower than the reported values in the Black Sea.     

Astrometry from space: GAIA and planet detection

The proposed baseline GAIA mission will be able to detect the astrometric signature of Jupiter-size planets around of the order of a million stars, using either global or narrow-angle astrometry. If the mission can realize the higher astrometric accuracy that photon statistics allows for bright stars, lower-mass planets (from Earth size to ten times larger) can be found around ten to a few hundred stars.     

Longitudinal variation of the equatorial anomaly

The present analysis concerns the longitudinal variation in the development and decay of the equatorial anomaly as observed by the Ariel 3 satellite. Data from about seven hundred equatorial passes of the satellite were used to give a broad longitudinal and local time coverage.     

A Statistical Framework for Calculating and Assessing Compositional Linear Trends Within Fault Zones: A Case Study of the NE Block of the Clark Segment,San Jacinto Fault,California, USA

Utilizing chemical data derived from the various fault zone architectural components of the Clark strand of the San Jacinto fault, southern California, USA, we apply for the first time non-central principal component analysis to calculate a compositional linear trend within molar A–CN–K space. In this procedure A–CN–K are calculated as the molar proportions of Al₂O₃ (A), CaO* + Na₂O (CN), and K₂O (K) in the sum of molar Al₂O₃, Na₂O, CaO*, and K₂O. CaO* is the molar CaO after correction for apatite. We then derive translational invariant chemical alteration intensity factors, t, for each architectural component through orthogonal projection of analyzed samples onto the compositional linear trend. The chemical alteration intensity factor t determines the relative change in composition compared to the original state (i.e., the composition of the altered wall rocks). It is dependent on the degree of intensity to which the process or processes responsible for the change in composition of each architectural component has been active. These processes include shearing, fragmentation, fluid flow, and generation of frictional heat. Non-central principal component analysis indicates that principal component 1 explains 99.7 % of the spread of A–CN–K data about the calculated compositional linear trend (i.e., the variance). The significance level for the overall one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) is 0.0001. Such a result indicates that at least one significant difference across the group of means of t values is different at the 95 % confidence level. Following completion of the overall one-way ANOVA, the difference in means t test indicated that the mean of the t values for the fault core are different than the means obtained from the transition and damage zones. In contrast, at the 95 % confidence level, the means of the t values for the transition and damage zones are not statistically distinguishable. The results of XRD work completed during this study revealed that the <2 µm fraction is composed primarily of illite/smectite with ~15 % illite in the damage zone, of illite/smectite with ~30 % illite in the transition zone, and of discreet illite with very minor smectite in the fault core. These changes parallel the increasing values of the chemical alteration intensity factors (i.e., t). Based on the above results, it is speculated that when fault zones are derived from tonalitic wall rocks at depths of ~400 ± 100 m, the onset of the illite/smectite to illite conversion will occur when t values exceed 0.20 ± 0.12, the average chemical alteration intensity factor calculated for the transition zone. Under such conditions during repeated rupturing events, frictional heat is produced and acidic fluids with elevated temperatures (≥ ~125 °C) are flushed through the fault core. Over time, the combination of shearing, fragmentation, and frictionally elevated temperatures eventually overcomes the kinetic barrier for the illite/smectite to illite transition. Such settings and processes are unique to fault zones, and as a result, they represent an underappreciated setting for the development of illite from illite/smectite. The success of non-central principal component analysis in this environment offers the first statistically rigorous methodology for establishing the existence of compositional linear trends in fault zones. This method also derives quantifiable alteration intensity factors that could potentially be used to compare the intensity of alteration at different segments of a fault, as well as offer a foundation to interpret the potential driving forces for said alteration and differences therein.