Oxidation inhibitors occuring in bioproducers, recent sediments, ancient rocks and oils

Native antioxidants (AO) are involved in the transformation of organic matter (OM) in different stages of diagenesis. In the early stages, the geochemical significance of AO can be estimated by using AO consumption index (I). The positive I values suggest that the OM fossilization proceeded under reducing conditions which favoured the formation of oil-source rocks, while the negative I values indicate oxidizing conditions which are characterized by the formation of rocks having a low oil-generation potential. In the late stages of diagenesis, the AO content is indicative of the degree of catagenic (thermal) or biodegradation (oxidative) transformation of oils. The AO contents of Paleogenic, Mesozoic and Paleozoic oils have been found to differ approximately by one order of magnitude. A major portion of AO is concentrated in oil resins and asphaltenes. The ratio of AO to resins and asphaltenes can be used as criterion of catagenic transformation of OM.     

Key structural parameters affecting earthquake ground motion in 2D and 3D sedimentary structures

Alluvial valleys generate strong effects on earthquake ground motion (EGM). These effects are rarely accounted for even in site-specific studies because of (a) the cost of the required geophysical surveys to constrain the site model, (b) lack of data for empirical prediction, and (c) poor knowledge of the key controlling parameters. We performed 3D, 2D and 1D simulations for six typical sedimentary valleys of various width and depth, and for a variety of modifications of these 6 “nominal models” to investigate sensitivity of EGM characteristics to impedance contrast, attenuation, velocity gradient and geometry. We calculated amplification factors, and 2D/1D and 3D/2D aggravation factors for 10 EGM characteristics, using a representative set of recorded accelerograms to account for input motion variability. The largest values of the amplification and aggravation factors are found for the Arias intensity and cumulative absolute velocity, the lowest for the root-mean-square acceleration. The aggravation factors are largest for the vertical component. For each model, at least one EGM characteristic exhibits a significant 2D/1D aggravation factor, while all EGM characteristics exhibit significant 2D/1D aggravation factor on the vertical component. For all investigated sites, there is always an area in the valley for which 1D estimates are not sufficient. 2D estimates are insufficient at several sites. The key structural parameters are the shape ratio and overall geometry of the sediment-bedrock interface, impedance contrast at the sediment-bedrock interface, and attenuation in sediments. The amplification factors may largely exceed the values that are usually considered in GMPEs between soft soils and rock sites.     

To the issue of stabilization of permafrost soil subgrade

This paper summarizes an analysis of consequences of railway subgrade construction and maintenance solutions in northern areas of the Russian Far East. An idea of the natural long-term stabilization of the subgrade-base geotechnical system is presented. Proposals to improve the decision-making of construction and engineering solutions are formulated.     

Signature of long supercycles in the Pleistocene history of Asian limnic systems

The analysis of sediment chemistry and biota in drill cores from Lake Khubsugul in Mongolia (KDP-01) and Lake Baikal in Siberia (BDP-96/1), two great Eurasian freshwater lakes, detected prominent climate and biological events at 460–420 and 670 kyrs BP in addition to the orbital cycles of precession, tilt and eccentricity. The revealed long-term events were associated with notable changes in biodiversity and geography/landscapes, mainly in water budgets and weathering patterns. The span between 460–420 and 670 kyrs BP was the time when the climate and geographic conditions differed from those before and after these events. The corresponding 33–24 m (670–460 kyr) interval of the Khubsugul core lacked the usual signature of the Milankovitch glacial/interglacial cycles. Events of approximately these ages were found in some other continental ecosystems and in oceanic δ¹³C records. The two events may mark the phases of a 300–500-kyr long supercycle (or megastadial) in the evolution of continental ecosystems. Among other causes (e.g., regional tectonic events), this periodicity, being globally correlated, may be associated with the 400-kyr cycle of the Earth’s orbital eccentricity.     

Microbial processes and factors controlling their activities in alkaline lakes of the Mongolian plateau

A striking feature of the Mongolian plateau is the wide range of air temperatures during a year,-30 to 30°C.High summer temperatures,atmospheric weathering and the arid climate lead to formation of numerous alkaline soda lakes that are covered by ice during 6–7 months per year.During the study period,the lakes had p H values between 8.1 to 10.4 and salinity between 1.8 and 360 g/L.According to chemical composition,the lakes belong to sodium carbonate,sodium chloride-carbonate and sodium sulfate-carbonate types.This paper presents the data on the water chemical composition,results of the determination of the rates of microbial processes in microbial mats and sediments in the lakes studied,and the results of a Principal Component Analysis of environmental variables and microbial activity data.Temperature was the most important factor that influenced both chemical composition and microbial activity.p H and salinity are also important factors for the microbial processes.Dark CO 2 fixation is impacted mostly by salinity and the chemical composition of the lake water.Total photosynthesis and sulfate-reduction are impacted mostly by p H.Photosynthesis is the dominant process of primary production,but the highest rate(386 mg C/(L?d)) determined in the lakes studied were 2–3 times lower than in microbial mats of lakes located in tropical zones.This can be explained by the relatively short warm period that lasts only 3–4 months per year.The highest measured rate of dark CO 2 assimilation(59.8 mg C/(L?d)) was much lower than photosynthesis.The highest rate of sulfate reduction was 60 mg S/(L?d),while that of methanogenesis was 75.6 μLСН 4 /(L?d) in the alkaline lakes of Mongolian plateau.The rate of organic matter consumption during sulfate reduction was 3–4 orders of magnitude higher than that associated with methanogenesis.     

Biogeochemical conversion of sulfur species in saline lakes of Steppe Altai

The aim of the present research is to identify the main mechanisms of sulfur behavior in saline lakes in the course of time and followed transformations in their chemical composition. The influence of water on chemical composition of biochemical processes involved in decomposition of organic matter was determined by the study of behavior of reduced forms of sulfur in lakes. The determination of reduced forms of sulfur was carried out by successive transfer of each form of sulfur to hydrogen sulfide followed by photometric measurements. The other chemical components were determined by standard methods(atomic absorption, potentiometric method, titration method and others). The salt lakes of the Altai steppe were studied in summer season 2013–2015. Analysis of the chemical composition of the saline lakes of Altai Krai has shown that carbonate-, hydrocarbonate-and chloride ions dominate among anions; sodium is main cation; sulfates are found in subordinate amounts. Reduced forms of sulfur occur everywhere: hydrogen and hydrosulfide sulfur S~(2-) prevail in the bottom sediments; its derivative—elemental S~0—prevails in the lakes water. The second important species in water of soda lakes is hydrosulfide sulfur S~(2-), and in chloride lakes is thiosulfate sulfur S_2O_2~(3ˉ). The lag in the accumulation of sulfates in soda lakes in comparison to chloride lakes can be explained by their bacterial reduction, followed by the formation and deposition of iron sulfides in sediments. In chloride lakes gypsum is a predominantly barrier for sulfates.     

Moisture origin and stable isotope characteristics of precipitation in southeast Siberia

The paper presents oxygen and hydrogen isotopes of 284 precipitation event samples systematically collected in Irkutsk, in the Baikal region (southeast Siberia), between June 2011 and April 2017. This is the first high-resolution dataset of stable isotopes of precipitation from this poorly studied region of continental Asia, which has a high potential for isotope-based palaeoclimate research. The dataset revealed distinct seasonal variations: relatively high δ¹⁸O (up to −4‰) and δD (up to −40‰) values characterize summer air masses, and lighter isotope composition (−41‰ for δ¹⁸O and −322‰ for δD) is characteristic of winter precipitation. Our results show that air temperature mainly affects the isotope composition of precipitation, and no significant correlations were obtained for precipitation amount and relative humidity. A new temperature dependence was established for weighted mean monthly precipitation: +0.50‰/°C (r² = 0.83; p <.01; n = 55) for δ¹⁸O and +3.8‰/°C (r² = 0.83, p < 0.01; n = 55) for δD. Secondary fractionation processes (e.g., contribution of recycled moisture) were identified mainly in summer from low d excess. Backward trajectories assessed with the Hybrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory (HYSPLIT) model indicate that precipitation with the lowest mean δ¹⁸O and δD values reaches Irkutsk in winter related to moisture transport from the Arctic. Precipitation originating from the west/southwest with the heaviest mean isotope composition reaches Irkutsk in summer, thus representing moisture transport across Eurasia. Generally, moisture transport from the west, that is, the Atlantic Ocean predominates throughout the year. A comparison of our new isotope dataset with simulation results using the European Centre/Hamburg version 5 (ECHAM5)-wiso climate model reveals a good agreement of variations in δ¹⁸O (r² = 0.87; p <.01; n = 55) and air temperature (r² = 0.99; p <.01; n = 71). However, the ECHAM5-wiso model fails to capture observed variations in d excess (r² = 0.14; p < 0.01; n = 55). This disagreement can be partly explained by a model deficit of capturing regional hydrological processes associated with secondary moisture supply in summer.     

Faunal communities at sites of gas- and oil-bearing fluids in Lake Baikal

Macro- and meiofaunal communities were examined at four geomorphologically distinct sites with different gas- and oil-bearing fluid characteristics in the northern, central and southern basins of Lake Baikal. All sites had elevated concentrations of bicarbonate, nitrate, sulphate and chloride ions in pore fluids, with highest values at the Frolikha vent. Elevated levels of iron ions were found in pore waters of the St. Petersburg methane seep and the Gorevoy Utes oil seep. The chemical composition of pore waters at the Malenky mud volcano was similar to that reported in earlier work. Consistent with published data, the Frolikha vent (northern basin) and the St. Petersburg methane seep (central basin) were characterised by methane of mixed genesis (thermogenic + biogenic), whereas the methane source was mainly thermogenic at the Gorevoy Utes oil seep (central basin) and biogenic at the Malenky mud volcano (southern basin). In contrast to marine seep ecosystems, the macrofauna was dominated only by amphipods, giant planarians and oligochaetes, whereas bivalves were absent; the meiofauna was similar to its marine counterpart, being dominated by nematodes, cyclops, harpacticoids and ostracods. A statistically significant positive relationship was revealed between faunal abundance and the availability of bacterial mats on seep sediments. Moreover, ANOVA tests showed significant increases in both meiozoobenthic and macrozoobenthic densities at “hot spot” vent/seep sites relative to discharge-free reference sites. The isotopic composition of carbon and nitrogen at various trophic levels of these benthic vent/seep communities was found to differ markedly from that reported by earlier studies for the pelagic and other benthic food webs in Lake Baikal. As in marine seeps, the macrofauna had variable isotopic signatures. Light δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N values suggest the utilization of chemosynthetically fixed and/or methane-derived organic matter. By contrast, the heavy δ¹³C signatures of some mobile amphipods likely reflect consumption of photosynthetically derived carbon. These findings would at least partly explain why Lake Baikal is a notable outlier in global temperature–biodiversity patterns, exhibiting the highest biodiversity of any lake worldwide but at an extremely cold average temperature.