Textural characteristics of sediments along the southern Red Sea coastal areas,Saudi Arabia

A lack of understanding exists of the origin and textural characteristics of Saudi Arabian Red Sea coastal sediments. This paper concerns the southern coastline of Jizan on the Saudi Red Sea. It is some 160 km long characterised by either narrow rocky headlands with intermittent pocket beaches or wide low-lying beaches dissected by wadis. Granulometric testing of samples from 135 locations showed that beach sand size was mainly very fine to medium grained (M _z = 3.93 Ø), sorting ranged from 1.65 to 0.41 and skewness values from ?051 to 0.39, being mainly negative; dune sands were medium to fine grained (M _z = 1.13 Ø; average sorting 2.8), while skewness variations within dune samples indicated symmetrical to fine skewed values (б _Ι = 0.55 to 0.89). Most foreshore samples were derived from wadis. Wadi mud levels can be high, e.g. Baysh (84%), and wadi Samrah (90%) with mean grain size ranging from very fine to medium sand (M _z = 3.9 Ø), sorting being well to poor (0.45 to 1.52) due to sediment influxes. Sabkha had a wide range of sand/mud and significantly higher carbonate percentages than other environments. Sediment source differences and littoral reworking contributed to grain size variation. The carbonate content varied between 1.5 and 31.5% due to hinterland contributions, and spatial analysis showed increasing quantities of carbonate minerals towards the south. On the wider geographical front, findings from Jizan are similar to those of the Northern United Arab Emirates (UAE), including sabkhas, being composed of sand, skeletal carbonate, fine fluvial material and wind-blown silt and clay components of wadi origin. Further work on the northeastern Red Sea edge can hopefully confirm these findings.     

Nonracemic isovaline in the Murchison meteorite: chiral distribution and mineral association

The enantiomeric and carbon-isotopic composition of the amino acid isovaline have been analyzed in several samples of the Murchison meteorite and one sample of the Murray meteorite. l-Enantiomeric excesses of the amino acid were found to range from 0 to 15.2%, varying significantly both between meteorite stones and at short distances within a single stone. The upper limit of this range is the largest enantiomeric excess measured to date for a biologically rare meteoritic amino acid and raises doubts that circularly polarized light irradiation could have been the sole cause of amino acids chiral asymmetry in meteorites. Individual d- and l-isovaline δ¹³C values ware found to be about +18‰, with no significant differences between the two enantiomers to suggest terrestrial contamination. The amino acid relative abundance also varied between samples, with isovaline/alanine ratios of 0.5 to 6.5. X-ray diffraction analyses of contiguous meteorite fragments suggest a possible correlation between isovaline and hydrous silicates abundances.     

The effects of pH, ionic strength, and iron-fulvic acid interactions on the kinetics of non-photochemical iron transformations. II. The kinetics of thermal reduction

A combination of flow-injection analysis and kinetic analysis was used to examine the speciation of iron(II) and iron(III) in fulvic acid solutions as a function of pH, ionic strength, and time. This methodology was used to follow a shift in iron speciation from faster to slower reacting species over a timescale of several days. This speciation data shows that both iron(II) and iron(III)-fulvic acid complexes are important iron species in humic-containing natural waters and that their amounts and their rates of transformation to colloidal iron are controlled primarily by the kinetics of thermal (dark) reduction and iron(II) oxidation. The kinetic analysis methodology also yielded the rate constants for the thermal reduction of iron by the fulvic acid. These rate constants decrease with increasing pH and are independent of ionic strength. While thermal reduction was found to be too slow to produce large amounts of steady state iron(II) at circumneutral pH, it does provide a mechanism for iron redox cycling in the absence of photochemical or biochemical processes.     

Die Rheingrabenrandverwerfung im Wattkopftunnel bei Ettlingen (Nordschwarzwald)

The Wattkopftunnel, near Ettlingen (Nordschwarzwald), drives through the eastern margin of the Rheingraben. The tunnel passes cenozoic and mesozoic sediments. Early quarternary and tertiary beds are situated west of the main thrust of the Rheingraben. Fossil record indicates upper Oligocene age (Chatt) for parts of the tertiary sediments. At the eastern border of the Rheingraben, wedges of jurassic and middle triassic series are squeezed. East of the Rheingraben the tunnel drives in the lower triassic Bausandstein. The eastern margin of the Rheingraben was investigated in detail during tunneling. Faults of the Rheingraben margin are distributed in an 130 meter wide fault zone in the tunnel. Total stratigraphic separation by the normal faults reaches more than 2 000 meters. The cenozoic sequence suffered synsedimentary to early diagenetic deformation, while the mesozoic series are characterized by ruptural deformation. The fault- and joint system is directed in the rheinische Richtung (SSW-NNE). East of the Rheingraben a second direction occur, running parallel to the lower Albtal (W-E).

     

Characterization of high molecular weight biomarkers in crude oils

High-temperature gas chromatography (HTGC) has enhanced our ability to characterize hydrocarbons extending to C₁₂₀ in crude oils. As a result, hydrocarbons in waxes (> C₂₀) have been observed to vary significantly between crude oils, even those presumed to originate from the same source. Prior to this development, microcrystalline waxes containing hydrocarbons above C₄₀ were not characterized on a molecular level due to the analytical limitations of conventional gas chromatography. Routine screenings of high pour-point crude oils by high-temperature gas chromatography has revealed that high molecular weight hydrocarbons (> C₄₀) are very common in most oils and may represent 2% of the crude oil. Precise structures, origins, and significance of these high molecular weight compounds remain elusive. As a preliminary step to expand our knowledge of these compounds their general molecular structures and formulas have been investigated in this study. Initial results suggest that the major high molecular weight compounds include a homologous series of n-alkanes, methylbranched alkanes, alkylcyclopentanes, alkylcyclohexanes, alkylbenzenes and alkylcycloalkanes.     

Differential unroofing within the central metasedimentary Belt of the Grenville Orogen: constraints from 40Ar/39Ar thermochronology

An ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar thermochronological investigation of upper greenschist to granulite facies gneiss, amphibolite and marble was conducted in the Central Metasedimentary Belt (CMB), Ontario, to constrain its cooling history. Incremental ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar release spectra indicate that substantial differential unroofing occurred in the CMB between 1000 and 600 Ma. A consistent pattern of significantly older hornblende and phlogopite ⁴⁰Ar/³Ar cooling ages on the southeast sides of major northeast striking shear zones is interpreted to reflect late displacement due to extensional deformation. Variations in hornblende ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar age plateaus exceeding 200 Ma occur over distances less than 50 km with major age discontinuities occurring across the Robertson Lake shear zone and the Sharbot Lake mylonite zone which separate the Sharbot Lake terrane from the Elzevir and Frontenac terranes. Extensional displacements of up to 14 km are inferred between the Frontenac and Elzevir terranes of the CMB. No evidence for significant post argon-closure vertical displacement is indicated in the vicinity of the Perth Road mylonite within the Frontenac terrane. Variations of nearly 100 Ma in phlogopite ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar plateau ages occur in undeformed marble on either side of the Bancroft Shear Zone. Phlogopites from sheared and mylonitized marble within the shear zone yield ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar diffusional loss profiles, but have older geologically meaningless ages thought to reflect incorporation of excess argon. By 900 Ma, southeast directed extension was occurring throughout the CMB, possibly initiated along previous zones of compressional shearing. An easterly migration of active zones of extension is inferred, possibly related to an earlier, overall easterly migration of active zones of regional thrusting and easterly migration of an ancient subduction zone. The duration of extensional shearing is not well constrained, but must have ceased before 600 Ma as required by the deposition of overlying undeformed Cambrian and/or Ordovician sedimentary rocks.Contribution No. 481 from the Mineralogical Laboratory, University of Michigan     

Two metallogenic maps for North America

Part of the interior of the North American continent is covered by relatively undisturbed sedimentary rocks not available to the entrance of ore-bearing fluids from depths, but a wide belt along the Pacific Coast, a narrower belt along the Atlantic Coast, and most of the north-east quadrant of the continent have been mineralized. If we plot all the known ore deposits in these latter areas, we find considerable differences in the densities of occurrences but no well defined patterns except a crowding along most of the area near the Pacific Coast. If, on the other hand, we plot only the major occurrences, we can see some linear patterns transverse to the edges of the continent.Transverse ore deposit patterns in an ENE direction are conspicuous in western United States and northern Mexico and in Ontario and Quebec of Canada but are almost unknown in British Columbia and Alaska. East-west patterns (within 5 degrees of a 90degree azimuth) are much more rare: one in southern British Columbia, one in Quebec and Ontario, one in Missouri, and one in Tennessee. No north-south patterns of any great length can be recognized.In addition to these rich ridges there are many inhomogeneities in the distribution of the major ore deposits, and these I think are due to subcrustal inhomogeneities in the distribution of metals, presumably in the upper mantle and probably of a late stage in the formation of the earth. I will attempt to show that the large ore deposits of North America form belts bounded approximately by parallels of latitude, separated by gaps in which no large deposits occur. Without undue distortions I have been able to draw outlines to include all the approximately 250 major ore deposits, except in the area north of latitude 60 where recorded occurrences are at present too sparse and too widely distributed.The localization of ore deposits in North America is thus the result of linear zones, probably deep crustal or sub-crustal fracture zones, crossing latitudinal belts of anomalous concentrations of metals probably of pre-crustal age.I have no explanations for the processes that formed either the transverse patterns or the latitudinal belts. They are not prominent and will be judged by many to be nonexistent. The lack of an explanation must not, however, be used to deny their existence— an attitude that surely limits the progress of metallogenic theory. Correlations with similar studies on other continents will be most useful.

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Zusammenfassung Ein Teil des Inneren des Nordamerikanischen Kontinents ist mit relativ ungestörten Sedimentgesteinen bedeckt, die ein Eindringen von Erz-bringenden Lösungen aus der Tiefe verhinderten. Dagegen sind ein breiter Streifen entlang der Pazifikküste, ein schmalerer Streifen entlang der Atlantikküste und der größte Teil des Nordostquadranten des Kontinentes mineralisiert. Wenn wir alle bekannten Erzlagerstätten in diese Gebiete eintragen, so finden wir auffällige Unterschiede in der Verteilung der Punkte, aber kein regelmäßiges Muster, ausgenommen das Gebiet nahe der Pazifikküste. Wenn wir dagegen nur die größeren Vorkommen auftragen, so ergeben sich lineare Anordnungen, die quer auf die Ecken des Kontinentes zulaufen.Quer verlaufende Muster in ENE-Richtung sind auffallend in den westlichen Vereinigten Staaten, in Nord-Mexico, in Ontario und Quebec; diese Richtung ist jedoch in British Columbia und in Alaska unbekannt.E-W-Muster mit±5° Schwankungen sind sehr viel seltener. Eines finden wir im südlichen British Columbia, eines in Quebec und Ontario, eines in Missouri und Tennessee, N-S-streichende Lineationen sind unbekannt.Über die Anordnung in reichen Zonen hinaus finden wir viele Inhomogenitäten in der Verteilung der wichtigsten Erzlagerstätten; diese sind meiner Meinung nach von subkrustalen Inhomogenitäten in der Verteilung der Metalle bestimmt. Vielleicht spielt hier eine frühe Verteilung im oberen Mantel zur Zeit der Entstehung der Erde eine Rolle. Ich will versuchen zu zeigen, daß die großen Erzlagerstätten an Zonen gebunden sind, die annähernd parallel zu den Breitengraden verlaufen und durch erzfreie Zonen getrennt sind. Ohne Schwierigkeiten lassen sich Umgrenzungen mit dieser Orientierung aufzeigen, die alle 250 größeren Erzlagerstätten umfassen, ausgenommen im Gebiet nördlich des 60. Breitengrades, wo die Dichte der Lagerstätten zu gering ist.Die Anordnung der Erzlagerstätten Nordamerikas ist auf lineare Zonen zurückzuführen, die wahrscheinlich auf Bruchstrukturen der Unterkruste oder des oberen Mantels begründet sind. Die Konzentration der Metalle in Querstrukturen zu den Breitenkreisen ist vermutlich eine Auflage, die vor der Bildung der Kruste entstanden ist. Ich habe keine Erklärung für die Prozesse, die zu dieser Metallkonzentration geführt haben. Viele mögen eine derartig vorgegebene Anordnung ablehnen; man sollte jedoch bedenken, daß das Fehlen einer Erklärung noch nicht zur Ablehnung auffälliger Phänomene berechtigt. Es sollten auch andere Kontinente daraufhin untersucht werden.

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Résumé Une partie de l'intérieur du continent Nord Américain est couverte par des roches sédimentaires peu dérangées et défavorables à l'accès de fluides minéralisants venus de la profondeur. Par contre une large ceinture le long de la côte pacifique, un ceinture plus étroit de long de la côte atlantique, et la majeure partie du quadrant Nord-Est du continent ont été minéralisées. Si l'on reporte sur carte tous les dépôts connus dans ces domaines, on trouve des différences considérables dans les »densités d'occurrences« mais aucun réseau bien défini, à l'exception d'un fort peuplement dans presque tout le domaine proche du Pacifique. Si, d'autre part, on ne reporte que les occurrences majeures, on voit apparaître des lignes directrices transversales sur les bordures du continent.De telles transversales dirigées ENE apparaissent dans l'Ouest des Etats-Unis, le Nord du Mexique, l'Ontario et le Québec (Canada) mais sont presque inconnues en Colombie britannique et en Alaska.Des directions Est-Ouest (avec une variation de 5) sont beaucoup plus rares: une dans le Sud de la Colombie britannique, une dans le Québec et l'Ontario, une dans le Missouri et une dans le Tennessee. Aucune direction Nord-Sud de grande longueur ne peut être reconnue.En plus de ces »arêtes riches« existent beaucoup d'inhomogénéités dans la distribution des gisements importants, et celles-ci sont dues, à mon avis, à des hétérogénéités souscrustales de la distribution des métaux, probablement au niveau du manteau supérieur et remontant à une étape tardive de la formation de la Terre. Je désire essayer de montrer que les grands gisements métallifères de l'Amérique du Nord s'intègrent dans des ceintures approximativement limitées par des parallèles de latitude et séparées par des intervalles dépourvus de grands dépôts. Ainsi, sans distorsions abusives, j'ai pu tracer des enveloppes englobant environ 250 gisements majeurs, sauf dans une aire située au Nord du parallèle 60 Nord, où les occurrences jusqu'ici enregistrées sont encore trop rares et disséminées.La localisation des gisements métallifères de l'Amérique du Nord est donc due à des zones linéaires, probablement des zones de fractures crustales profondes ou sous-crustales, croisant des ceintures latitudinales de concentrations anormales de métaux, elles-mêmes probablement précrustales.Je n'offre pas d'explication pour les processus qui ont formé les ceintures latitudinales et les transversales. Les unes et les autres ne sont pas fortement apparentes, et beaucoup estimeront qu'elles n'existent pas. Cette absence d'explication ne doit cependant pas être utilisée pour nier leur existence, attitude qui limiterait certainement les progrès des théories métallogéniques. Des comparaisons avec des ètudes similaires sur d'autres continents seraient certainement très utiles.

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Characterisation of Two New Reference Materials: STL-1, the Stewart Lepidolite and ZA-1, the Zapot Amazonite

The analysis of granitic pegmatites still remains a challenge because suitable natural reference materials are scarce or not available. Two new reference materials were prepared at the Smithsonian Institution, to provide an avenue to pursue the geochemical analysis of micas and feldspars in granitic pegmatites: STL-1, the Stewart lepidolite (NMNH 174041) and ZA-1, the Zapot amazonite (NMNH 174042). STL-1 was prepared from lepidolite collected from the lithium-rich Stewart pegmatite, San Diego County, California (33°22'52'N, 117°03'41'W). ZA-1 was prepared from an amazonite from the topaz-bearing Zapot pegmatite, Mineral County, Nevada, (38° 41'N, 118 °33'W). The results of this study indicated that STL-1 and ZA-1 are homogeneous and could be used as reference materials that would allow the expansion of calibration curves in XRF analysis up to 16000 μg g⁻¹ for Rb, 2000 μg g⁻¹ for Cs and 100 μg g⁻¹ for Tl. STL-1 and ZA-1 also contain unusually high concentrations of Ga and Tl, and STL-1 of Nb.