Composition of Kerogen in Kupferschiefer from Southwest Poland

Thirty-seven Kupferschiefer samples from southwestern Poland were analyzed by microscopy, Rock-Eval approach and instrumental neutron activation analysis to understand the geochemical and morphological characteristics of kerogen present in the samples. The analytical results indicate that there are two different types of kerogens. One type was only subjected to thermal alteration processes, and the other was further oxidized after deposition of the sediment.In the oxidized samples migrabitumen was transformed into pyrobitumen. Rock-Eval analyses show a significant decrease in HI values in the oxidized samples and an increase in OI values in relation to the samples that were not influenced by oxidation. Variations in S2 versus Corg contents indicate a change in kerogen from Type II to Type III with progressing oxidation. The presence of pyrobitumen and the depletion of hydrogen in the altered kerogen allow one to conclude that the kerogen was used as hydrogen donor for thermochemical sulfate reduction(TSR).     

The eastern continuation of the Cadomian orogen: U–Pb zircon evidence from Saxo-Thuringian granitoids in south-western Poland and the northern Czech Republic

We report U–Pb single zircon ages from three pre-Variscan granitoids in the NE part of the Bohemian Massif. The Platerówka granodiorite from the Lausitz-Izera Unit, the Polish Sudetes, has been dated at 533±9 Ma. The Bitouchov granite form the SW part of the South Krkonoe Unit, the Czech Sudetes, gave an age of 540+11/–10 Ma, and the Wdroe granodiorite in the Fore-Sudetic Block yielded 548±9 Ma. All these latest Vendian/Early Cambrian granitoids represent the post-tectonic expression of a late Proterozoic Cadomian orogenic cycle and demonstrate the eastward extent of the Cadomian basement into the Variscan orogen. Granodiorites of similar age have so far been reported from Brittany and especially from the Saxo-Thuringian Terrane to the NE and SW of the Elbe Fault Zone. We conclude that the Saxo-Thuringian Terrane extends across the Elbe and Sudetic Marginal Fault Zones into the Fore-Sudetic Block.     

A Sr isotope study on fluorite and siderite from post-orogenic mineral veins in the eastern Harz Mountains,Germany

Rb–Sr isotope data for siderite and fluorite from sediment-hosted epithermal mineral veins in the eastern Harz Mountains (Germany) are presented. Several fluorite and siderite-bearing paragenetic stages have been proposed for these veins, with the most important mineralization being related to a quartz–sulfide and a subsequent calcite–fluorite–quartz stage, which occurred at 226±1 and 209±2 Ma, respectively. Our Rb–Sr data do not permit the identification of distinct generations of siderite and fluorite, but rather reveal straight internal mixing relations, reflecting mixing of fluids or differential fluid–rock interaction processes. This indicates merely two significant phases of mineral deposition related to the quartz–sulfide and calcite–fluorite–quartz stages. It is shown that the Paleozoic sedimentary host rocks of the veins are the most likely source for the siderite Sr, whereas fluorite displays a two-component mixture between sedimentary Sr and radiogenic Sr derived from locally occurring Permian metavolcanic rocks. Editorial handling: B. Lehmann     

On the spectral dissipation of ocean waves due to white capping

Summary The effect of white capping on the spectral energy balance of surface waves is investigated by expressing the white-cap interactions in terms of an equivalent ensemble of random pressure pulses. It is shown first that the source function for any non-expansible interaction process which is weak-in-the-mean is quasi-linear. In the case of white capping, the damping coefficient is then shown to be proportional to the square of the frequency, provided the wave scales are large compared with the white-cap dimensions. The remaining free factor is determined indirectly from consideration of the spectral energy balance. The proposed white-capping dissipation function is consistent with the structure of the energy balance derived from JONSWAP, and the existence of a ^–5 spectrum governed by a non-local energy balance between the atmospheric input, the nonlinear energy transfer and dissipation. However, closure of the energy balance involves hypotheses regarding the structure of the atmospheric input function which need to be tested by further measurements. The proposed set of source functions may nevertheless be useful for numerical wave-prediction. According to the model, nearly all the momentum transferred across the air-sea interface enters the wave field. For fetchlimited and fully developed spectra in a stationary, uniform wind field, the drag coefficient remains approximately constant. However, for more general wind conditions, this will not be the case and the wave spectrum should be included in an accurate parameterisation of the air-sea momentum transfer.Contribution from the Sonderforschungsbereich Meeresforschung Hamburg of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft.     

Correlation between hydrogen isotope ratios of lipid biomarkers and sediment maturity

We investigated the influence of thermal maturity on the hydrogen isotope ratios of sedimentary hydrocarbons to prove that the isotope ratio of hydrocarbons mirrors paleoclimate signatures. δD values from n-alkanes and acyclic isoprenoids of two sediment sections (Kupferschiefer [KS], 258 Ma, and Posidonienschiefer [PS], 184 Ma) with different maturation history were investigated. Both covered thermal maturity from 0.48 to 1.3 R_c (vitrinite reflectance and reflectance calculated from MPI1). Sediment burial up to 4500 m caused thermal maturation of organic matter in the KS horizon from the Early Zechstein basin of Poland, whereas contact metamorphic thermal maturation originated in the Early Toarcian PS (Posidonienschiefer) of the North German Vlotho Massif. The δD values of the extracted n-alkanes positively correlate with thermal maturity in the KS (y = 56‰ × MPI1[x] − 160‰ [VSMOW]) and in the PS (y = 104‰ × MPI1[x] − 200‰ [VSMOW]). The δD values of isoprenoids (i.e., pristane, phytane) were even more enriched with increasing maturity (y = 179‰ × MPI1[x] − 341‰ [VSMOW] in the KS; y = 300‰ × MPI1[x] − 415‰ [VSMOW] in PS).These results explain why isotope ratios of n-alkanes and isoprenoids in mature sediments are generally enriched in D and do not have the expected isotopic difference between n-alkanes and isoprenoids of ∼190‰. Moreover, the correlation between sediment maturity parameters and δD values suggests that after correction the δD values of n-alkanes can be used to reconstruct climate and environment in the geological past.     

Historical record of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and heavy metals in floodplain sediments from the Rhine River (Hessisches Ried, Germany)

The depth-related content of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and heavy metals was determined for two soil profiles (i.e. one Fluvisol and one Gleyic Cambisol) which developed in sediments from floodplains located at an old meander of the Rhine river. The meander had been cut off from the main river in 1829. The separation of the meander from the main river caused a change in sediment deposition (i.e. from sand to silt) which is clearly visible in the soil-profiles. Since that time, approximately 100 cm of sediments have accumulated due to temporary flooding of the area. Each soil profile was separated into 18 samples. The samples were analysed for their content of PAH after solvent extraction. Additionally, several trace elements (Co, Ni, Cd, Pb, Zn, Cr and Cu) were determined in the same sample set, and depth-related concentration profiles for both PAH and trace elements were developed. The distribution patterns of PAH with more than 3 condensed rings did not provide any evidence for PAH biodegradation or vertical transport after deposition of the sediments. Thus, in the case of PAH, the historical record can be derived not only from subhydric sediments but also from floodplain sediments. It was not possible to distinguish between atmospheric and fluvial input of PAH into the sediments from the observed distribution patterns due to the same origin of PAH from pyrolytic processes. A source determination of the PAH was not possible except for perylene, for which biogenic formation can be assumed. A comparison of the results shows that the depth-related PAH and trace element concentrations display similar trends over most of the total profiles. In the uppermost section of the profiles, the concentration of most trace elements declines whereas the PAH concentration remains high. This indicates the presence of different sources for PAH and trace elements in the last decades.     

Late Cretaceous reactivation of major crustal shear zones in northern Namibia: constraints from apatite fission track analysis

Namibia's passive continental margin records a long history of tectonic activity since the Proterozoic. The orogenic belt produced during the collision of the Congo and Kalahari Cratons in the Early Proterozoic led to a zone of crustal weakness, which became the preferred location for tectonism during the Phanerozoic. The Pan-African Damara mobile belt forms this intraplate boundary in Namibia and its tectonostratigraphic zones are defined by ductile shear zones, where the most prominent is described as the Omaruru Lineament–Waterberg Thrust (OML–WT). The prominance of the continental margin escarpment is diminished in the area of the Central and Northern Zone of the Damara belt where the shear zones are located. This area has been targeted with a set of 66 outcrop samples over a 550-km-long, 60-km-broad coast-parallel transect from the top of the escarpment in the south across the Damara sector to the Kamanjab Inlier in the north. Apatite fission track age and length data from all samples reveal a regionally consistent cooling event. Thermal histories derived by forward modelling bracket this phase of accelerated cooling in the Late Cretaceous. Maximum palaeotemperatures immediately prior to the onset of cooling range from ca. 120 to ca. 60 °C with the maximum occurring directly south of the Omaruru Lineament. Because different palaeotemperatures indicate different burial depth at a given time, the amount of denudation can be estimated and used to constrain vertical displacements of the continental crust. We interpret this cooling pattern as the geomorphic response to reactivation of basement structures caused by a change in spreading geometry in the South Atlantic and South West Indian Oceans.     

Boundary-layer diffusion modelling: The Gaussian plume approach versus the spectral solution

The equation of turbulent diffusion is solved for a vertical area source within the planetary boundary layer. The traditional Gaussian-plume approach is compared with the spectral solution of the diffusion equation used together with the barotropic boundary-layer model of Lettau and Dabberdt (1970). The results of the numerical computations are presented and the differences between the solutions are discussed.