The chemistry and origins of Proterozoic low-potash,high-iron,charnockitic gneisses from Tromøy,south Norway

New major and trace element data for 79 acid-intermediate charnockitic gneisses (the Tromøy gneisses) and 16 associated metabasites from the island of Tromøy show that this part of the 1200–900-m.y. Sveconorwegian zone is occupied by rocks of unusual composition. Overall values for K and Rb are the lowest yet reported for any granulites, and K/Rb ratios are very high. Cs and Th are also low and, abnormally for granulites, so are Ba, Sr and Zr. Ba/Sr ratios are similar to those in other suites, but K/Ba and K/Sr are higher. These features may partially be reflecting unusual pre-metamorphic lithologies, but it is considered more likely that they are largely the product of metamorphically induced depletion processes involving metasomatism. There is some indication that the Na₂O/CaO and normative Ab/An ratios may also have been modified during metamorphism.Data for the presumed relatively immobile elements Cr, Co, Ni and V support an igneous origin for the Tromøy gneisses, but the presence of a paragneiss component cannot be ruled out. A characteristic of the gneisses is their high iron content, and spatial and temporal considerations point towards a genetic link with the iron-rich, intrusive rapakivi suites of Finland, Sweden and south Greenland. If the Tromøy gneisses do represent material of this type, it would seem to follow that potash fractionation has been extreme.     

Anhydrous melting and crystallization of peralkaline obsidians

Experimental determinations of the dry liquidus temperatures of two pantellerite, and two pantelleritic trachyte glasses in the pressure range 0–2 kilobars, show minima in the liquidus curves between 0.1 and 0.2 kb. The pantellerite minima are 830°–850° C; the trachyte minima are 920°–940° C. At pressures below the minima a separate vapour phase co-exists with liquid, at higher pressures the intrinsic volatiles are completely soluble in the liquid and the liquidus curves have a positivedT/dP. Similar results have been obtained from a range of other pantelleritic glasses, and together with consistent alkali feldspar compositions (from a wide range of experimental conditions) are indicative of a close approach to equilibrium. The form of the liquidus curves above the minima, if rellecting natural conditions, offers a ready explanation of the near-or super-liquidus aspect of many peralkaline lavas. The temperatures in these anhydrous experiments are 100°–150° C higher than those for similar compositions in the presence of excess water. (Also, in the presence of excess water, the crystallization sequences in the natural glasses are profoundly modified, with pyroxene appearing on the liquidus). At lower pressures, feldspar is the liquidus phase in the dry pantellerites, but is joined by quartz around 1 kb, and superseded by quartz at higher pressures. As pantellerites with quartz phenocrysts are uncommon, low pressure equilibration is perhaps normal in these magmas. Feidspar is the usual liquidus phase in the trachytes, except at very low pressures where it is preceded by iron oxide. Preliminary studies at 5 kb indicate that the pantelleritic and trachytic liquidus curves are converging (in the range 950°–1000° C). Crystallization sequences, and the forms and positions of the solidus curves are therefore of vital importance. These, together with the vapour-present/vapour-absent conditions, are currently under investigation.     

A computer modelling study of the interaction of organic adsorbates with fluorapatite surfaces

Computer modelling techniques were employed to investigate the adsorption of a selection of organic surfactant molecules to a range of fluorapatite surfaces, and new interatomic potential models for the apatite/adsorbate interactions are presented. The adsorbates coordinate mainly to the surfaces through interaction between their oxygen (or nitrogen) atoms to surface calcium ions, followed by hydrogen-bonded interactions to surface oxygen ions and, to a much lesser extent, surface fluorides. Bridging between two surface calcium ions is the preferred mode of adsorption, when the geometry of the adsorbates allows it, and multiple interactions between surfaces and adsorbate molecules lead to the largest adsorption energies. All adsorbates containing carbonyl and hydroxy groups interact strongly with the surfaces, releasing energies between approximately 100 and 215 kJ mol⁻¹, but methylamine containing only the –NH₂ functional group adsorbs to the surfaces to a much lesser extent (25–95 kJ mol⁻¹). Both hydroxy methanamide and hydroxy ethanal prefer to adsorb to some surfaces in an eclipsed conformation, which is a requisite for these functional groups. Sorption of the organic material by replacement of pre-adsorbed water at different surface features is calculated to be mainly exothermic for methanoic acid, hydroxy methanamide and hydroxy ethanal molecules, whereas methyl amine would not replace pre-adsorbed water at the fluorapatite surfaces. The efficacy of the surfactant molecules is calculated to be hydroxy aldehydes > alkyl hydroxamates > carboxylic acids ≫ alkyl amines. The results from this study suggest that computer simulations may provide a route to the identification or even design of particular organic surfactants for use in mineral separation by flotation.     

The use of digital image analysis in the study of laminated sediments

The use of digital image analysis for the investigation of many natural phenomena is not novel. A vast amount of literature exists on its application to the study of a diversity of physical characteristics from many environments. The power of this tool is now being realised, however, in the study of sediments, from both marine and lacustrine environments. The advent of image processing applications for use in a personal computing environment, and the availability of high resolution digital video cameras, are serving to bring the technique to the desktops of many researchers. This paper will attempt to review those techniques which may be found useful by researchers contemplating the use of image analysis in this type of study, and in particular those who need to count laminations in order to construct a chronology, or to compile time series from lamina thickness or composition, for comparison with those derived from other datasets. Much of the information may be found already in print, but it derives from many disciplines, and does not seem to have been documented previously in this connection.     

Robert Hooke (1635-1703): Proto-Photogrammetrist

A few of the many interesting aspects of the mind, life and work of Robert Hooke (1635-1703) are discussed, particularly some that are relevant to opto-mechanical photogrammetric plotters and cameras. Evidence from primary and secondary sources is presented which indicates that Hooke devised instruments with optical and mechanical components which later came to be used in photogrammetric plotters, that he recognized the value of perspective projection in accurate recording of terrain, and devised a "Picture-Box" for that purpose. The question of how far he progressed in photography in experiments with purple dyes is left open. These "photogrammetric" activities of Hooke's are shown to have been only a small part of his work in London which included duties as Curator of Experiments to the Royal Society, Professor of Geometry at Gresham College, and Surveyor to the City of London Authorities following the Great Fire in 1666.     

Implications of ozone depletion for surface-water photochemistry: Sensitivity of clear lakes

Increased ultraviolet-B radiation (UV-B) in aquatic ecosystems brought about by stratospheric ozone depletion may result in increased formation rates of photochemical reaction products in the surface waters of aquatic ecosystems. In this study, the potential impact of increases in lower wave-length radiation on the formation of hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) and singlet oxygen (¹O₂) was modelled for lakes over a range of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations. The impact of increased UV-B radiation on the production of carbon monoxide (CO) was also calculated for two humic stained systems. The relative increases of H₂O₂ and¹O₂ production were greater in the clear lakes (70% increase in photochemical reaction rates near the surface) than the coloured systems (25%). Production of CO in the study sites also increased under depleted ozone conditions implying increased DOC losses to the overlying atmosphere.     

U---Pb and Rb---Sr geochronology and geological evolution of the Harts Range ruby mine area of the Arunta Inlier, central Australia

Supracrustal and meta-igneous rock units from the ruby mine area of the Harts Range, eastern Arunta Inlier, central Australia, have been dated by the zircon U---Pb and Rb---Sr total-rock (TR) and mica methods. A well-defined zircon discordia for a weakly deformed specimen of the Bruna granite gneiss yields an age of emplacement of 1748₋₄⁺⁵ Ma, thereby constraining the minimum age of the Irindina supracrustal assemblage. Metapelitic gneiss within the supracrustals and a meta-igneous ultramafic boudin from the associated Harts Range meta-igneous complex yield highly discordant zircon data, revealing a strong early Palaeozoic overprint. Rb---Sr TR data from anorthositic gneisses associated with the ultramafic boudin are highly disturbed, also apparently during the lower Palaeozoic. However, Rb---Sr model age calculations and the zircon U---Pb data suggest a maximum age of about 2000 Ma for the supracrustal and meta-igneous rocks, and argue for new Proterozoic crust formation.

Zircon U---Pb data from a deformed pegmatite, emplaced in the meta-igneous complex, yield an emplacement age of 520₋₄⁺⁵ Ma, further pointing to Lower Palaeozoic magmatism and deformation. Correlations of U content and calculated ²⁰⁶Pb/²³⁸U age for the ultramafic boudin zircons suggest that new growth of low-U zircons occurred during retrogression associated with this event. The Sr-isotope systematics of the anorthositic gneisses can also be interpreted in terms of introduction of Palaeozoic Sr. Our data suggest lower Palaeozoic (possibly Delamerian) tectonothermal activity to be more important in the evolution of the Harts Range area than previously recognised.

On the other hand, Rb---Sr mica ages for deformed and undeformed pegmatites, and TR isochrons for the latter, show that pervasive tectonothernal activity had ceased by about 315 Ma and that regional cooling occurred between about 345 and 325 Ma. Local shear-zone biotite resetting may have persisted to about 300 Ma, consistent with the previously recognised Alice Springs Orogeny. Possible dilational Pb loss in the Bruna zircons occurred at about 103 Ma.     

Evaporite Dissolution Subsidence in the Historical City of Calatayud,Spain: Damage Appraisal and Prevention

Calatayud in NE Spain is an historically important city built on recent alluvial deposits underlain by gypsum and other soluble rocks. Since its foundation by the Muslims in 716 A.D., the city development has been strongly influenced by geohazards including flooding, subsidence and slope movements. Most of the flooding problems have been mitigated by diversion of the local drainage. However, dissolution of the evaporite bedrock in the urban areas continually causes subsidence and triggers rock-falls from the gypsum cliffs overlooking the city. Subsidence is also caused by the hydrocollapse of gypsiferous silt in the alluvial fan deposits. Building damage in the city was surveyed using a classification scheme developed originally to record damage in British coal mining areas. The Calatayud damage survey shows that the worst building subsidence is concentrated along the line of a buried channel that runs underneath the gypsiferous silt alluvial fan. Natural subsurface drainage causes the dissolution and subsidence, which is aggravated by leakage from water and sewage pipes. Some building damage has been exacerbated during reconstruction by incomplete piling leaving buildings partially unsupported. Mitigation measures include the control of water leakage by the installation of flexible service pipes. Careful construction techniques are needed for both conservation and new developments, especially when piled and minipiled foundations are used. Geomorphological mapping is cost-effective in helping to locate and avoid the zones of subsidence for future development.     

Volatilization kinetics of silicon carbide in reducing gases: an experimental study with applications to the survival of presolar grains in the solar nebula

The volatilization kinetics of single crystal α-SiC, polycrystalline β-SiC, and SiO₂ (cristobalite or glass) were determined in H₂-CO₂, CO-CO₂, and H₂-CO-CO₂ gas mixtures at oxygen fugacities between 1 log unit above and 10 log units below the iron-wüstite (IW) buffer and temperatures in the range 1151 to 1501°C. Detailed sets of experiments on SiC were conducted at 2.8 and 6.0 log units below IW (IW-2.8 and IW-6.0) at a variety of temperatures, and at 1300°C at a variety of oxygen fugacities. Transmission electron microscopic and Rutherford backscattering spectroscopic characterization of run products shows that the surface of SiC exposed to IW-2.8 is characterized by a thin (<1 μm thick), continuous layer of cristobalite. SiC exposed to IW-6.0 lacks such a layer (or its thickness is <0.01 μm), although some SiO₂ was found within pits and along incised grain boundaries.In H₂-CO₂ gas mixtures above ∼IW-3, the similarity of the SiC volatilization rate and of its dependence on temperature and fO₂ to that for SiO₂ suggests that SiC volatilization is controlled by volatilization of a SiO₂ layer that forms on the surface of the SiC. With decreasing log fO₂ from ∼IW-3 to ∼IW-6, the SiC volatilization rate is constant at constant temperature, whereas that for SiO₂ increases. The independence of the SiC volatilization rate from the gas composition under these conditions suggests that the rate-controlling step is a solid-solid reaction at the internal SiC/SiO₂ interface. For gas compositions more reducing than ∼IW-6, the SiC volatilization rate increases with decreasing fO₂, with both bare SiC surfaces and perhaps silica residing in pits and along incised grain boundaries contributing to the overall reaction rate.If the volatilization mechanism and reaction rate in the solar nebula were the same as in our H₂-CO₂ experiments at IW-6.0, then estimated lifetimes of 1-μm-diameter presolar SiC grains range from several thousand years at ∼900°C, to ∼1 yr at 1100°C, ∼1 d at 1300°C, and ∼1 h at 1400°C. The corresponding lifetimes for 10-μm SiC grains would be an order of magnitude longer. If the supply of oxidants to surfaces of presolar SiC grains were rate limiting—for example, at T > 1100°C for P^tot= 10⁻⁶ atm and sticking coefficient = 0.01, then the calculated lifetimes would be about 10 yr for 10-μm-diameter grains, essentially independent of temperature. The results thus imply that presolar SiC grains would survive short heating events associated with formation of chondrules (minutes) and calcium-, aluminum-rich inclusions (days), but would have been destroyed by exposure to hot (≥900°C) nebular gases in less than several thousand years unless they were coated with minerals inert to reaction with a nebular gas.