Origin and formation pathways of kerogen-like organic matter in recent sediments off the Danube delta (northwestern Black Sea)

The chemical structure, source(s), and formation pathway(s) of kerogen-like organic matter (KL) were investigated in recent sediments from the northwestern Black Sea, off the Danube delta. Three sections from a sediment core collected at the mouth of the Sulina branch of the delta, under an oxic water column, were examined: S₀ (0–0.5 cm bsf), S₁₀ (10–13 cm bsf), and S₂₀ (20–25 cm bsf). The bulk geochemical features of these sediments (total organic carbon, organic C/N atomic ratio, δ¹³C_org) were determined. Thereafter, KL was isolated from the samples, as the insoluble residue obtained after HF/HCl treatment. KL chemical composition was investigated via spectroscopic (FTIR, solid state ¹³C and ¹⁵N NMR) and pyrolytic (Curie point pyrolysis–gas chromatography–mass spectrometry) methods, and the morphological features were examined by scanning and transmission electron microscopy. Similar morphological features and chemical composition were observed for the three KLs and they suggested that the selective preservation of land-plant derived material as well as of resistant aliphatic biomacromolecules (probably derived from cell walls of freshwater microalgae) was the main process involved in KL formation. Besides, some melanoidin-type macromolecules (formed via the degradation-recondensation of products mainly derived from proteinaceous material) and/or some encapsulated proteins also contributed to the KL chemical structure.     

A Method to Estimate Length Distributions from Outcrop Data

Dimensions of shales and other geologic bodies that affect fluid flow through reservoirs and aquifers are often estimated from analogous deposits exposed in outcrops. Shale lengths observed in outcrops are biased because the finite length of outcrops truncates longer shales and long shales tend to be overrepresented in the sample. Shale length distributions can be modeled using an Erlangian probability density function based on termination frequency. Termination frequency can be calculated from outcrop observations even if the shales are incompletely exposed. Termination frequency is unbiased regardless of underlying shale length distribution and outcrop size and shape. Complex length distributions can be represented by a weighted sum of Erlangian models, each with a distinct termination frequency. The proportions and termination frequencies of the component models can be estimated using Bayes' theorem. Subsamples of the outcrop area can be analyzed to quantify spatial trends in termination frequency and thus shale length. These methods can be applied to estimate length distributions of any geologic object exposed in outcrops or other spatially limited samples. In many cases estimated termination frequency is normally distributed, and its variance can be estimated using closed-form expressions. Shale length distributions for the Frewens Sandstone were modeled using one- and two-component Erlangian probability density functions. The Frewens Sandstone is a tide-influenced deltaic sandstone body within the Cretaceous-age Frontier Formation, exposed in central Wyoming, USA. Length observations and Erlangian models agree reasonably well. Because the models correct for the effects of shale truncation in limited outcrop exposures, predicted means and proportions of long shales are substantially greater than observed values. There is a vertical trend and pronounced vertical cyclicity in termination frequency, indicating that shales become shorter upward and intervals of longer and shorter shales alternate. Along strike, termination frequency decreases away from the sandstone-body axis, reflecting greater preserved shale lengths toward sandstone-body margins. No correlation was observed between distance along dip and termination frequency. Termination frequencies and histograms of shale length for adjacent, perpendicular walls are similar, indicating that there is no anisotropy in shale length.     

A gravel lobe deposit in the prodelta of the Doumsan fan delta (Miocene), SE Korea

The Doumsan fan-delta system in the Pohang Basin (Miocene), SE Korea comprises tripartite components of Gilbert-type topset, foreset, and bottomset environments with an extended prodelta in the deeper part (a few hundred metres deep). The present study documents sedimentologic features and origin of a gravel body (here interpreted as a gravel lobe) formed in the prodelta region of the Doumsan fan delta. The gravel lobe lies on sandy mud deposits and is capped by a thick massive sand bed. It extends for more than 1.5 km with a height of up to 30 m and shows a narrow tongue-like geometry. Eight sedimentary facies have been distinguished to describe characteristic features of the gravel lobe and the associated deposits. Of these, three types of gravelly sedimentary facies are important with regard to volumetric contribution and depositional processes: (1) crudely stratified pebble-grade conglomerate; (2) disorganized, clast-rich pebble(-to-cobble)-grade conglomerate; and (3) matrix-rich, bimodal cobble-grade conglomerate. The former two types dominate the central part of the lobe where they are not accompanied by sand beds, whereas the latter, as subordinate units, is prevalent in the fringe which otherwise is dominated by thick sandy mud deposits. The stacked successions of crudely stratified pebble-grade conglomerate are representative of the active aggradational phases of the gravel lobe, whereas the occurrence of channels within the lobe reflects that the gravel lobe prograded under the influence of subaqueous channel systems. The gravel lobe resulted from catastrophic disturbance (slumping) on the foreset region that further caused the development of channel systems, promoting efficient transport of gravelly sediments. This type of deposit may represent an important additional category of low-efficiency subaqueous fans.     

Gravelly spit deposits in a transgressive systems tract: the Pleistocene Higashikanbe Gravel, central Japan

The Pleistocene Higashikanbe Gravel, which crops out along the Pacific coast of the Atsumi Peninsula, central Japan, consists of well‐sorted, pebble‐ to cobble‐size gravel beds with minor sand beds. The gravel includes large‐scale foreset beds (5–10 m high) and overlying subhorizontal beds (0·5–3 m thick), showing foreset and topset structure, from which the gravel has previously been interpreted as deposits of a Gilbert‐type delta. However, (1) the gravel beds lack evidence of fluvial activity, such as channels in the subhorizontal beds; (2) the foresets incline palaeolandwards; (3) the gravels fill a fluvially incised valley; and (4) the gravels overlie low‐energy deposits of a restricted environment, such as a bay or an estuary. The foresets generally dip towards the inferred palaeoshoreline, indicating landward accretion of gravel. Reconstruction of the palaeogeography of the peninsula indicates that the Higashikanbe Gravel was deposited as a spit similar to that developed at the western tip of the present Atsumi Peninsula, rather than as a delta. According to the new interpretation, the large‐scale foreset beds are deposits on the slopes of spit platforms and accreted in part to the sides of small islets that are fragments of the submerging spit during relative sea‐level rise. The subhorizontal beds include nearshore deposits on the spit platform topsets and deposits of gravel shoals or bars, which are reworked sediments of the spit beach gravels during a transgression. The lack of spit beach facies in the subhorizontal beds results from truncation by shoreface erosion. Dome structure, which is a cross‐sectional profile of a recurved gravel spit at its extreme point, and sandy tidal channel deposits deposited between the small islets were also identified in the Higashikanbe Gravel. The Higashikanbe Gravel fills a fluvially incised valley and occupies a significant part of a transgressive systems tract, suggesting that gravelly spits are likely to be well developed during transgressions. The large‐scale foreset beds and subhorizontal beds of gravelly spits in transgressive systems tracts contrast with the foreset and topset beds of deltas, characteristic of highstand, lowstand and shelf‐margin systems tracts.     

黄河三角洲地区地基承载力的确定

由于试验原理的不同,不同试验方法在判别土体破坏时的依据也不相同,而且有些试验需要经过概率统计的修正,导致由不同试验方法确定的承载力值之间存在较大的差异。不同试验所测得的数据与承载力之间具有一定的内在联系,利用这一特点,针对不同岩性的土体,采用回归分析法可以建立比贯入阻力与地基承载力值、标贯击数与地基承载力值、室内土工参数与地基承载力值的相关关系,以克服各试验方法间的差异性,为黄河三角洲地区高速公路勘察设计提供快速、准确的地基承载力特征值。     

论上海与长江三角洲地区市场体系的互动与协调发展

上海与长江三角洲地区历史上就形成了紧密地地缘经济关系,上海依靠市场的力量,对这一地区发挥着重要的地缘经济整合功能。随着浦东的开发开放,实现上海与长江三角洲地区经济一体化的要求更加迫切。尽管目前整个稀薄工三角洲地区的市场体系发育已相对寒带,但仍角要推动上海与长江三角洲地区更深层次的互动和协调发展。     

Influence of fluvial‐tidal interactions on the nature of cross‐stratified packages in a deltaic setting: examples from the Barakar Coal Measure (Permian), Satpura Gondwana Basin,central India

Nine different types of cross‐stratified packages from the coal‐bearing, deltaic succession of the Barakar Formation (Permian) of the Satpura Gondwana Basin, central India, are described. The deposits are characterized by periodic mudstone drapes, reactivation surfaces including all other features suggestive of deposition from periodically unsteady, tidally‐influenced flows. The inferred flow patterns varied from purely bidirectional to pulsating unidirectional. The different types of cross‐stratified packages are interpreted to have resulted from superimposition of ebb‐oriented, steady, unidirectional fluvial currents of variable strength on the tidal flow in a deltaic setting. The study helps to distinguish cross‐strata that may develop in settings where fluvial and tidal currents interact. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

藏南沉错湖泊三角洲的沉积相及沉积环境

在西藏自治区沉错湖泊三角洲平原和湖内钻孔取芯 ,利用14 C和ESR测年方法建立了钻孔剖面的年代标尺。在岩芯描述、沉积物粒度分析和CaCO3含量分析基础上 ,对沉错湖泊三角洲的沉积环境和沉积相进行了解释分析。 36 7m长的岩芯大致记录了 5 5万年以来的沉积历史。全孔平均沉积速率约为 0 6 6 7mm/a。 16 92 0aBP以来三角洲的沉积速率较大 ,平均为 1 2 7mm/a。由于沉积物物质来源的多源性导致CaCO3在剖面上的无规律性变化。但是 ,沉积物粒度和沉积序列变化指示全套沉积由底部的冲积扇相向上过渡为水下扇亚相和三角洲沉积相。在大约 175 0 0aBP～ 14 0 0 0aBP时期 ,沉错存在高湖面阶段。沉积序列中记录了末次冰期最盛期 (LastGlacialMaximum )和新仙女木事件 (YoungerDryas)。沉积特征和沉积环境的变化主要受湖面涨缩变化所控制。而湖面升降变化的驱动因素主要为气候 ,尤其夏季风的强弱和冷事件     

Introduction to ‘A tribute to Edward P. Glenn (1947–2017): A legacy of scientific environmental assessment and applications in hydrological processes’

This special issue (SI) ‘A Tribute to Edward P. Glenn (1947-2017): A legacy of Scientific Environmental Assessment and Applications in Hydrological Processes’ is a celebration of the extensive work of Dr. Ed Glenn that was instrumental across multiple sub-disciplines of hydrology. The SI highlights four primary areas of hydrological processes that are cornerstones of Ed Glenn's over four decades of research. These contributions cover the following specialties: (i) Hydrology in the Colorado River Delta; (ii) Riparian ecosystem water use; (iii) Riparian Plant ecophysiology and ecohydrology; and (iv) Methods and models to characterize evapotranspiration. Since Ed was passionate about the dryland delta at the end of the Colorado River, we begin with four research studies that focus on this special region on the U.S.–Mexico border which encompasses four states (Baja and Sonora in Mexico and California and Arizona in United States) as well as tribal communities in the transboundary area. The Colorado River delta reaches the Northern Gulf of California in the Sea of Cortez which has been designated as a UNESCO international biosphere reserve (‘Reserva de la Biosfera El Pinacate y Gran Desierto de Altar’), which includes the Upper Gulf of California and Delta of the Colorado River (‘Reserva de la Biosfera Alto Golfo de California y Delta del Río Colorado’). Ed spent the majority of his last three decades on water balance studies and on ground-based transpiration quantification for validation of satellite and airborne remote sensing methods. We wrap up the special issue with contributions related to improving satellite and airborne remote sensing estimation of actual evapotranspiration. It is our pleasure to summarize the 16 research studies contributed to the special issue to honour Ed Glenn's research interests.     

辽河油田锦99块扇三角洲前缘储层层次分析

辽河油田锦99块沙河街组四段上亚段杜家台油层是典型的扇三角洲前缘沉积,主要由扇三角洲前缘水下分流河道和河道砂坝组成。依据高分辨率层序地层学和储层构型理论,采用层次分析方法,对锦99块沙四上亚段扇三角洲前缘砂体构型界面进行了层次表征。综合利用岩心资料和测井资料,识别出11种岩相类型和4种岩相组合。根据高频湖泛面、冲刷面、粒序突变面和岩相转换面将沙四上亚段Ⅰ3砂层组和Ⅱ1砂层组划分为6个短期旋回、15个超短期旋回。在等时格架内,建立了扇三角洲前缘储层5级构型界面层次,层次界面以三级和四级为主,四级界面分布较稳定,三级界面零星分布。总结出两种层次界面分布模式:较稳定分布的界面和随机型分布的界面。储层层次分析为研究区构型约束建模提供了依据。