XANES analysis of the mechanisms of arsenic removal in biological iron and manganese treatment unit

Biological iron and manganese removal utilizing indigenous iron and manganese oxidizing bacteria （IRB hereafter） in groundwater can also be applied to arsenic removal according to our pilot-scale test. The arsenic removal probably occurred through sorption and complexation of arsenic to iron and manganese oxides formed by enzymic action of IRB. We investigated the chemical properties of iron and manganese oxides in IRB floc and the valence state of arsenic sorbed to the floc to clarify the mechanisms of the arsenic [especially As （Ⅲ）] removal. The floc samples were collected from two drinking water plants using IRB （Jyoyo and Yamatokoriyama, Japan）, and our pilot - scale test site where arsenic and iron removal using IRB is under way （Mukoh, Japan）. The Jyoyo and Yamatokoriyama IRB floc samples were subjected to As （Ⅲ） and As（Ⅴ） sorption experiments. The elemental composition of the floc samples was measured. XANES spectra were collected on As, Fe and Mn K-edges at synchrotron radiation facility Spring 8 （Hyogo, Japan）. FT-IR and the X-ray diffraction spectra of the samples were also obtained. The IRB floc contained ca. 35 % Fe, 0.3%-3.5% Mn and 2%-6% P. The samples were highly amorphous and contained ferrihidrites and hydrated iron phosphate. According to XANES analyses of IRB, As associated with IRB was in ＋5 valence state when As （Ⅲ） （or As （Ⅴ）） was added in laboratory sorption test, Fe in ＋3 valence state, and Mn a mixture of＋3 and ＋4 valence states. Small shift was observed in the XANES spectra of IRB on As K-edge as the equilibration time of the sorption experiment was increased. Gradual oxidation of a small amount of As （Ⅲ） associated with IRB or change in arsenic binding with sorption site were the probable mechanism.     

Analysis of the effect of geology, soil properties, and land use on groundwater quality using multivariate statistical and GIS methods

The regional survey of groundwater used as a small water supply system was performed to know the effect of geology, soil properties and land use on groundwater quality at Nonsan City, Korea. A total of 126 groundwater samples were collected and analyzed at the study area. The multivariate statistical methods, principal components analysis and discriminant analysis, and GIS technique were used for the quantitative interpretation of groundwater quality. The study area is mainly composed of Precambrian gneiss, Jurassic granite, and Cretaceous volcanics, and metasedimentary rocks of the Ogcheon zone. The land use was grouped as paddy, upland, grassland, resident, point source, industrial area, and water system. The soil properties were classified as 4 major groups, Entisols, Alfisols, Inceptisols, and Ultisols, by the degree of development, and reclassified as 11 subgroups. The modified and simplified geologic map, soil map, and land use map were made by using ARCGIS soft-ware. The area of geology, soil property, and land use affecting the groundwater quality for each well were also calculated by ARCGIS soft-ware to acquire the quantitative parameters for multivariate statistical analysis. The monitoring results of groundwater in the study area showed that 13%-21% of the groundwater samples exceeded the portable water guideline and the main causes were turbidity, bacteria, arsenic and nitrate-N. The spatial distribution of each component showed the close relationship between groundwater quality and geology reflecting the topography, land use.     

A pronounced dry event recorded around 4.2 ka in brine sediments from the northern Red Sea

Partly laminated sediments were sampled from the brine-filled, anoxic Shaban Deep basin in the northern Red Sea. At about 4200 cal yr BP more than two millennia of anoxic sedimentation is replaced by a sub-oxic facies strongly suggesting the episodic absence of the brine. At the same time stable oxygen isotopes from surface dwelling foraminifera show a sharp increase (within less than 100 yr) pointing to a strong positive salinity anomaly at the sea surface. This major evaporation event significantly enhanced the renewal of deep water and the subsequent ventilation of the small Shaban Deep basin. The timing and strength of the reconstructed environmental changes around 4200 cal yr BP suggest that this event is the regional expression of a major drought event, which is widely observed in the neighboring regions, and which strongly affected Middle East agricultural civilizations.     

Non-volcanic deep low-frequency tremors accompanying slow slips in the southwest Japan subduction zone

Non-volcanic deep low-frequency tremors in southwest Japan exhibit a strong temporal and spatial correlation with slow slip detected by the dense seismic network. The tremor signal is characterized by a low-frequency vibration with a predominant frequency of 0.5–5 Hz without distinct P- or S-wave onset. The tremors are located using the coherent pattern of envelopes over many stations, and are estimated to occur near the transition zone on the plate boundary on the forearc side along the strike of the descending Philippine Sea plate. The belt-like distribution of tremors consists of many clusters. In western Shikoku, the major tremor activity has a recurrence interval of approximately six months, with each episode lasting over a week. The tremor source area migrates during each episode along the strike of the subducting plate with a migration velocity of about 10 km/day. Slow slip events occur contemporaneously with this tremor activity, with a coincident estimated source area that also migrates during each episode. The coupling of tremor and slow slip in western Shikoku is very similar to the episodic tremor and slip phenomenon reported for the Cascadia margin in northwest North America. The duration and recurrence interval of these episodes varies between tremor clusters even on the same subduction zone, attributable to regional difference in the frictional properties of the plate interface.     

Les failles récentes des Grands-Moulins (Savoie) : un Sackung (tassement gravitaire) majeur dans les Alpes françaises

In Savoy, the Grands-Moulins recent fault scarps, previously interpreted as seismic fault ruptures, are in fact part of a major Sackung (deep seated gravitational spreading) of the French Alps (9 km long). We mapped more than 60 sackung scarps, some of them reaching 1330 m long and 30 m high. These antislope scarps stop the active screes and offset relict Dryassic rock glaciers by 16 m. We present geomorphologic observations attesting for their gravitational origin. This Sackung is primarily due to glacial debuttressing, while seismic shaking could be a triggering mechanism. To cite this article: J.-C. Hippolyte et al., C. R. Geoscience 338 (2006).     

Weathering characteristics of arctic islands in northern Norway

The arctic islands of the Lofoten-Vesterålen archipelago in northern Norway have a wide distribution of weathered land surfaces commonly located above 250 m with several apparent similarities. In order to investigate the characteristics of (deep) weathering in this region, northern Langøya and Hadseløya were chosen for in-depth analyses. Eight weathering profiles were excavated from various surfaces, and the stratigraphies were logged in detail. Material was collected throughout the weathering horizons, and all samples were subsequently analysed for clay mineralogy (< 63 μm fraction) and grain size distribution. The sampling strategy was complemented by samples from additional saprolites and other landforms such as moraines and rock glaciers. The XRD results indicate that the presence of secondary minerals, such as gibbsite (Al(OH)₃) and kaolinite (Al₂Si₂O₅(OH)₄), are very common throughout the profiles. Gibbsite is an extreme end product of silicate weathering and usually associated with a warmer and more humid climate, as found in Scandinavia during the Tertiary. The grain size analyses (< 63 μm) show that the finer silt fractions (< 8 μm) tend to be high in the profiles (20–40%), with significant amounts of clay (5–15%) demonstrating that the regolith itself is susceptible to frost sorting mechanisms.¹⁰Be exposure dates from in situ quartz knobs on tors and boulders of local origin suggest > 40,000 years of subaerial conditions. Considering the steady surface erosion, this figure should be viewed as an absolute minimum age estimate. Mapping of the superficial sediments and geomorphological features of the study areas has revealed several common morphological features, which indicate dominance of glacial and periglacial processes in the areas lying below the lower boundary of blockfields (c. 250 m). The weathering mantles are not a periglacial end product, but rather a relict tertiary landform that were modulated by permafrost processes as well as biological processes at later stages. The regolith cover constrain the vertical extension of warm-based Quaternary ice sheets challenging the notion of a parabolic ice mass consuming every mountain top of Lofoten and Vesterålen.     

Groundwater and highways interaction: past and present experiences of highway construction in Slovenia

During the planning, designing, construction, operation and maintenance of highways, groundwater can be of important environmental and constructional constraint that can significantly influence the safety operation of traffic and of big influence on the operational costs of highways. To classify and conceptualize the relation between groundwater and highways, three important groups of problems can be determined: groundwater protection from highway influences, protection of highway from groundwater and economic use of groundwater for highway operation. In the present study, groundwater management strategies are represented during all life cycles of highways. Greater emphasis is given to groundwater protection and field hydrogeological investigations for proper groundwater management related to the highway. The approach adopted in Slovenia and the role of hydrogeology is given as an illustration.     

早涝碱咸综合治理与生态环境良性循环

华北平原东部淡水资源短缺，旱涝碱成灾害限制了农业生产的可持续发展。海河的治理，解决了排洪排涝排咸出路。春季开发利用地下水包括微咸水和半咸水抗旱灌溉。夏季利用伏雨洗盐排咸，增大降雨入渗，减少径流流失，防治渍涝灾害，把降雨转化为地下水资源。秋冬引蓄河水，回灌地下水补源。以土壤与潜水的地层空间作为调节大气降水、土壤水、地下水、地表水的地下水库，以调控地下水埋深在临界动态为指标，最大限度地把时空分布不均的天然降雨转化为可持续利用的水资源。地表水地下水联合运用，促使水资源采补平衡，降雨灌溉淋洗脱盐强于干旱蒸发积盐过程，地下水淡化强于矿化过程。实现旱涝碱咸综合治理，水土资源可持续利用，经济社会可持续发展，生态环境良性循环。