High-Pressure crystal chemistry of spinel (MgAl2O4) and magnetite (Fe3O4): Comparisons with silicate spinels

High-pressure crystal structures and compressibilities have been determined by x-ray methods for MgAl₂O₄ spinel and its isomorph magnetite, Fe₃O₄. The measured bulk moduli, K, of spinel and magnetite (assuming K′=4) are 1.94±0.06 and 1.86±0.05 Mbar, respectively, in accord with previous ultrasonic determinations. The oxygen u parameter, the only variable atomic position coordinate in the spinel structure (Fd3m, Z=8), decreases with pressure in MgAl₂O₄, thus indicating that the magnesium tetrahedron is more compressible than the aluminum octahedron. In magnetite the u parameter is unchanged, and both tetrahedron and octahedron display the 1.9 Mbar bulk modulus characteristic of the entire crystal. This behavior contrasts with that of nickel silicate spinel (γ-Ni₂SiO₄), in which the u parameter increases with pressure because the silicon tetrahedron is relatively incompressible compared to the nickel octahedron.     

Ferrihydrite dissolution by pyridine-2,6-bis(monothiocarboxylic acid) and hydrolysis products

Pyridine-2,6-bis(monothiocarboxylate) (pdtc), a metabolic product of microorganisms, including Pseudomonas putida and Pseudomonas stutzeri was investigated for its ability of dissolve Fe(III)(hydr)oxides at pH 7.5. Concentration dependent dissolution of ferrihydrite under anaerobic environment showed saturation of the dissolution rate at the higher concentration of pdtc. The surface controlled ferrihydrite dissolution rate was determined to be 1.2 × 10⁻⁶ mol m⁻² h⁻¹. Anaerobic dissolution of ferrihydrite by pyridine-2,6-dicarboxylic acid or dipicolinic acid (dpa), a hydrolysis product of pdtc, was investigated to study the mechanism(s) involved in the pdtc facilitated ferrihydrite dissolution. These studies suggest that pdtc dissolved ferrihydrite using a reduction step, where dpa chelates the Fe reduced by a second hydrolysis product, H₂S. Dpa facilitated dissolution of ferrihydrite showed very small increase in the Fe dissolution when the concentration of external reductant, ascorbate, was doubled, suggesting the surface dynamics being dominated by the interactions between dpa and ferrihydrite. Greater than stoichiometric amounts of Fe were mobilized during dpa dissolution of ferrihydrite assisted by ascorbate and cysteine. This is attributed to the catalytic dissolution of Fe(III)(hydr)oxides by the in situ generated Fe(II) in the presence of a complex former, dpa.     

Mineral associations and character of isotopically anomalous organic material in the Tagish Lake carbonaceous chondrite

We report a coordinated analytical study of matrix material in the Tagish Lake carbonaceous chondrite in which the same small (?20 μm) fragments were measured by secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS), and X-ray absorption near-edge spectroscopy (XANES). SIMS analysis reveals H and N isotopic anomalies (hotspots), ranging from hundreds to thousands of nanometers in size, which are present throughout the fragments. Although the differences in spatial resolution of the SIMS techniques we have used introduce some uncertainty into the exact location of the hotspots, in general, the H and N isotopic anomalies are spatially correlated with C enrichments, suggesting an organic carrier. TEM analysis, enabled by site-specific extraction using a focused-ion-beam scanning-electron microscope, shows that the hotspots contain an amorphous component, Fe-Ni sulfides, serpentine, and mixed-cation carbonates. TEM imaging reveals that the amorphous component occurs in solid and porous forms, EDS indicates that it contains abundant C, and EELS and XANES at the C K edge reveal that it is largely aromatic. This amorphous component is probably macromolecular C, likely the carrier of the isotopic anomalies, and similar to the material extracted from bulk samples as insoluble organic matter. However, given the large sizes of some of the hotspots, the disparity in spatial resolution among the various techniques employed in our study, and the phases with which they are associated, we cannot entirely rule out that some of the isotopic anomalies are carried by inorganic material, e.g., sheet silicates. The isotopic composition of the organic matter points to an initially primitive origin, quite possibly within cold interstellar clouds or the outer reaches of the solar protoplanetary disk. The association of organic material with secondary phases, e.g., serpentine and carbonates, suggests that the organic matter was susceptible to parent-body processing, and thus, isotopic dilution.     

Stratigraphic evidence for multiple drainings of glacial Lake Missoula along the Clark Fork River, Montana, USA

Glacial Lake Missoula, a source of Channeled Scabland flood waters, inundated valleys of northwest Montana to altitudes of ∼ 1265 m and to depths of  >600 m, as evidenced by shorelines and silty lacustrine deposits. This study describes previously unrecognized catastrophic lake-drainage deposits that lie stratigraphically beneath the glacial-lake silts. The unconsolidated gravelly flood alluvium contains imbricated boulder-sized clasts, cross-stratified gravel with slip-face heights of 2-> 35 m, and 70- to 100-m-high gravel bars which all indicate a high-energy, high-volume alluvial environment. Gravel bars and high scablands were formed by catastrophic draining of one or possibly more early, high lake stands (1200-1265 m). Most glacial-lake silt, such as the Ninemile section, was deposited stratigraphically above the earlier deposits, represents a lower lake stand(s) (1050-1150 m), and was not deposited in lake(s) responsible for the highest discharge events. The glaciolacustrine silt-covered benches are incised by relict networks of valleys formed during the drainage of the last glacial lake. Significant erosion associated with the last lake draining was confined to the inner Clark Fork River canyon.     

Examining potential genetic links between Jurassic porphyry Cu–Au ± Mo and epithermal Au ± Ag mineralization in the Toodoggone district of North-Central British Columbia,Canada

The Toodoggone district comprises Upper Triassic to Lower Jurassic Hazelton Group Toodoggone Formation volcanic and sedimentary rocks, which unconformably overlie submarine island-arc volcanic and sedimentary rocks of the Lower Permian Asitka Group and Middle Triassic Takla Group, some of which are intruded by Upper Triassic to Lower Jurassic plutons and dikes of the Black Lake suite. Although plutonism occurred episodically from ca. 218 to 191 Ma, the largest porphyry Cu–Au ± Mo systems formed from ca. 202 to 197 Ma, with minor mineralization occurring from ca. 197 to 194 Ma. Porphyry-style mineralization is hosted by small-volume (<1 km³), single-phase, porphyritic igneous stocks or dikes that have high-K calc-alkaline compositions and are comparable with volcanic-arc granites. The Fin porphyry Cu–Au–Mo deposit is anomalous in that it is 16 m.y. older than any other porphyry Cu–Au ± Mo occurrence in the district and has lower REEs. All porphyry systems are spatially restricted to exposed Asitka and Takla Group basement rocks, and rarely, the lowest member of the Hazelton Group (i.e., the ca. 201 Ma Duncan Member). The basement rocks to intrusions are best exposed in the southern half of the district, where high rates of erosion and uplift have resulted in their preferential exposure. In contrast, low- and high-sulfidation epithermal systems are more numerous in the northern half of the district, where the overlying Hazelton Group rocks dominate exposures. Cogenetic porphyry systems might also exist in the northern areas; however, if they are present, they are likely to be buried deeply beneath Hazelton Group rocks. High-sulfidation epithermal systems formed at ca. 201 to 182 Ma, whereas low-sulfidation systems were active at ca. 192 to 162 Ma. Amongst the studied epithermal systems, the Baker low-sulfidation epithermal deposit displays the strongest demonstrable genetic link with magmatic fluids; fluid inclusion studies demonstrate that its ore fluids were hot (>468°C), saline, and deposited metals at deep crustal depths (>2 km). Sulfur, C, O, and Pb isotope data confirm the involvement of a magmatic fluid, but also suggest that the ore fluid interacted with Asitka and Takla Group country rocks prior to metal deposition. In contrast, in the Shasta, Lawyers, and Griz-Sickle low-sulfidation epithermal systems, there is no clear association with magmatic fluids. Instead, their fluid inclusion data indicate the involvement of low-temperature (175 to 335°C), low-salinity (1 to 11 equiv. wt.% NaCl) fluids that deposited metals at shallow depths (<850 m). Their isotope (i.e., O, H, Pb) data suggest interaction between meteoric and/or metamorphic ore fluids with basement country rocks.     

210Pb balance in Long Island Sound

A material balance is constructed for excess ²¹⁰Pb (relative to ²²⁶Ra) as a test of the retentivity of Long Island Sound for a reactive heavy metal. Excess ²¹⁰Pb is supplied to Long Island Sound chiefly by direct atmospheric deposition [1 ± 0.2(dis·min^?1)cm^?2·yr^?1]. Rivers supply less than 20% of the atmospheric flux, and other inputs, from open ocean waters, ²²⁶Ra decay, groundwater seepage, and sewage discharge, appear to be negligible. The total input of excess ²¹⁰Pb represents approximately the flux required to maintain the inventory of excess ²¹⁰Pb measured in sediment cores from central Long Island Sound; that is, excess ²¹⁰Pb is lost from Long Island Sound chiefly by radioactive decay. The retention of excess ²¹⁰Pb within Long Island Sound is achieved in two steps: a rapid removal of soluble ²¹⁰Pb onto suspended particles and the ongoing entrapment of particles in the basin by the residual bottom-water influx from the east.     

Characterization of insoluble organic matter in primitive meteorites by microRaman spectroscopy

Abstract— We have analyzed the chemically and isotopically well‐characterized insoluble organic matter (IOM) extracted from 51 unequilibrated chondrites (8 CR, 9 CM, 1 CI, 3 ungrouped C, 9 CO, 9 CV, 10 ordinary, 1 CB and 1 E chondrites) using confocal imaging Raman spectroscopy. The average Raman properties of the IOM, as parameterized by the peak characteristics of the so‐called D and G bands, which originate from aromatic C rings, show systematic trends that are correlated with meteorite (sub‐) classification and IOM chemical compositions. Processes that affect the Raman and chemical properties of the IOM, such as thermal metamorphism experienced on the parent bodies, terrestrial weathering and amorphization due to irradiation in space, have been identified. We established separate sequences of metamorphism for ordinary, CO, oxidized, and reduced CV chondrites. Several spectra from the most primitive chondrites reveal the presence of organic matter that has been amorphized. This amorphization, usually the result of sputtering processes or UV or particle irradiation, could have occurred during the formation of the organic material in interstellar or protoplanetary ices or, less likely, on the surface of the parent bodies or during the transport of the meteorites to Earth. D band widths and peak metamorphic temperatures are strongly correlated, allowing for a straightforward estimation of these temperatures.     

生态模型在河口管理中的应用研究综述

河口作为河流和海洋的交汇地,具有生态交错带特性,其在自然和人类活动双重压力下发生着演变.生态模型是研究生态系统结构、功能及其时空演变规律以及生物过程对于生态系统的影响及其反馈机制的重要手段.采用不同方法对生态模型进行分类,综述各类生态模型的特性、优缺点及应用领域.讨论建模过程中模型变量与函数、模型整合及时空尺度、模型参数取值及不确定等关键技术问题.分析各类生态模型在河口生态工程设计、生态系统修复、生态系统评价、系统决策支持等管理领域的应用.尽管中国河口生态模型构建及应用已有一些成果,但与国外相比,在理论生态学及数据积累方面仍有一定差距.     

Methane-producing bacteria: natural fractionations of the stable carbon isotopes

The ${}^{13}\text{C}{}^{12}\text{C}$ fractionation factors ($\text{CO}{}_2\text{CH}{}_4$) for the reduction of CO₂ to CH₄ by pure cultures of methane-producing bacteria are, for Methanosarcina barkeri at 40°C, 1.045 ± 0.002; for Methanobacterium strain M.o.H. at 40°C, 1.061 ± 0.002; and, for Methanobacterium thermoautotrophicum at 65°C, 1.025 ± 0.002. These observations suggest that the acetic acid used by acetate dissimilating bacteria, if they play an important role in natural methane production, must have an intramolecular isotopic fractionation ($\text{CO}{}_2\text{H}\text{CH}{}_3$) approximating the observed $\text{CO}{}_2\text{CH}{}_4$ fractionation.