Photosynthetic community responses to upwelling in mesoscale eddies in the subtropical North Atlantic and Pacific Oceans

In this paper we summarise the photo-physiological responses of phytoplankton to upwelling of macronutrients in mesoscale eddies in the subtropical North Atlantic (EDDIES project, Sargasso Sea) and subtropical North Pacific (E-FLUX project, Hawaii). The observations, obtained on two sets of cruises over 2 years, occupied six cyclonic eddies and two mode-water eddies. The photosynthetic physiological parameters were measured using a bench-top fluorescence induction and relaxation (FIRe) system and a submersible in situ fast repetition rate fluorometer (FRRF) deployed on an undulating towed vehicle. Both of these instruments were used to provide highly sensitive and well-resolved data on community responses. The responses are dependent on both the type of eddy and its stage of development. Our results indicate that, while cyclonic eddies in the Atlantic and Pacific can increase primary photosynthetic production early in their development, mode-water eddies in the subtropical North Atlantic can support patchy blooms of large diatoms for long periods of time (more than 3 months).     

Use of the Spectrometric Sum Parameter for Aromatic Amines in the Monitoring of a Former Ammunition Plant

Aromatic amines are important metabolites of nitroaromatic explosives, hence monitoring of aromatic amines’ content at former ammunition plants is necessary. Twenty years ago, a threshold limit value of 0.1 μg/L for the sum of diazotizable aromatic amines in water distributed from the waterworks at the former ammunition plant in Stadtallendorf/Hesse was established. This value is still measured with a spectrometric sum parameter, in which diazotization and a subsequent azo coupling of the analytes are utilized. The sum parameter is well suited for the long‐term monitoring of filter installations, and it allows very quick measurements and a non‐target screening of aniline contents, both of which are important in research. Nevertheless, as several problems are associated with this parameter, we developed analytical methods suitable for the determination of the most important single compounds contributing to the overall sum. Initial results of these methods show that amphoteric anilines are of considerable importance in ammunition waste but have been neglected up to now in official monitoring schemes. The summation of single compound contents in ammunition wastewater generally gives 3 to 6 times higher values than the spectrometrically determined sum, which is mainly due to the choice of the reference substance 4‐nitroaniline in the sum parameter.     

Occurrence and Distribution of Organic Contaminants in the Aquatic System in Berlin. Part I: Drug Residues and other Polar Contaminants in Berlin Surface and Groundwater

Several polar contaminants were found in screening analyses of 30 representative surface water samples collected from rivers, lakes, and canals in Berlin. Residues of pharmaceuticals and N-(phenylsulfonyl)-sarcosine originating from various sewage treatment plants effluents were found at concentrations up to the μg/L-level in the surface water, whereas the concentrations of polar pesticides such as dichlorprop and mecoprop were always below 0.1 μg/L. The pharmaceuticals most frequently detected in the surface water samples include clofibric acid, diclofenac, ibuprofen, propiphenazone, and two other drug metabolites. Additional investigations of groundwater wells of a drinking water plant have shown that polar contaminants such as drug residues or N-(phenylsulfonyl)-sarcosine easily leach through the subsoil into the groundwater aquifers when contaminated surface water is used for groundwater recharge in drinking water production.     

Palaeodiet of Miocene Producers and Depositional Environments: Inferences from the First Evidence of Microcoprolites from India

This paper reviews research on coprolites from India, providing the first evidence of microcoprolites from the early Miocene (Aquitanian) Khari Nadi Formation sedimentary succession, exposed about 1.5 km northeast of the village of Kotada, Kachchh (Kutch) District, Gujarat State, western India. Morphometric and size comparisons (in a statistical framework) with known coprolites from the Mesozoic-Cenozoic successions of India (including those recorded herein) and globally suggest that fishes were the likely producers of the Kotada coprolites. Scanning electron microscopy confirms the presence of fish dental remains within the coprolites, while both Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS) reveal the phosphatic nature of the microscopic coprolite specimens (recorded herein) hinting that the producer(s) were predominantly carnivorous (ichthyophagous) in their diet. Furthermore, X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) analysis of the host and associated lithologies allows us to deduce that the Kotada coprolites were deposited in a shallow marine environment, with possible aerial exposure of the host lithology occurring at some point after deposition. To the best of our knowledge, the present report is the first record of microscopic fish coprolites from India, as well as being the first from the Aquitanian of India and the oldest Neogene record from India.     

应用定量颗粒荧光技术研究岩性油气藏的隐蔽输导通道

应用定量颗粒荧光技术对东营凹陷牛庄洼陷5口井101块沙三段致密储层、薄层粉砂岩进行了定量荧光QGF-E和QGF分析。分析表明,牛24、牛83、牛876、王550、牛872等5口井致密薄储层颗粒具有相对较高的荧光,显示这些较致密的粉砂岩为过去或现在的油气运移路径/运载层,表明致密砂岩、粉砂岩、薄层砂岩可作为烃类运移的通道。这类薄层隐蔽输导通道为深凹带牛庄洼陷深部沙四段上亚段烃源岩生成的油气进入无断层切割的沙三段中、下亚段的砂岩透镜体而成藏提供了重要的依据。该研究结果对于东营凹陷正在进行的隐蔽油气藏成藏机理的研究可能具有重要意义。     

Characterization of dissolved organic matter fluorescence in the South Atlantic Bight with use of PARAFAC model: Interannual variability

Systematic water sampling for characterization of chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM) in the coastal South Atlantic Bight, was conducted as part of the long term Coastal Ocean Research and Monitoring Program (CORMP). Water samples were collected during a 3.5 year period, from October 2001 until March 2005, in the vicinity of the Cape Fear River (CFR) outlet and in adjacent Onslow Bay (OB). During this study there were two divergent hydrological and meteorological conditions in the CFR drainage area: a severe drought in 2002, followed by the very wet year of 2003. CDOM was characterized optically by the absorption coefficient at 350 nm, the spectral slope coefficient (S), and by Excitation Emission Matrix (EEM) fluorescence. Parallel Factor Analysis (PARAFAC) was used to assess CDOM composition from EEM spectra and six components were identified: three terrestrial humic-like components, one marine humic-like component and two protein-like components. Terrestrial humic-like components contributed most to dissolved organic matter (DOM) fluorescence in the low salinity plume of the CFR. The contribution of terrestrial humic-like components to DOM fluorescence in OB was much smaller than in the CFR plume area. Protein-like components contributed significantly to DOM fluorescence in the coastal ocean of OB and they dominated DOM fluorescence in the Gulf Stream waters. Hydrological conditions during the observation period significantly impacted both concentration and composition of CDOM found in the estuary and coastal ocean. In the CFR plume, there was an order of magnitude difference in CDOM absorption and fluorescence intensity between samples collected during the drought compared to the wet period. During the drought, CDOM in the CFR plume was composed of equal proportions of terrestrial humic-like components (ca. 60% of the total fluorescence intensity) with a significant contribution of proteinaceous substances (ca. 20% of the total fluorescence). During high river flow, CDOM was composed mostly of humic substances (nearly 75% of total fluorescence) with minor contributions by proteinaceous substances. The impact of changes in fresh water discharge patterns on CDOM concentration and composition was also observed in OB, though to a lesser degree.     

Paleo- and Mesoarchean TTG-sanukitoid to high-K granite cycles in the southern São Francisco craton,SE Brazil

The generation of the continental crust is widely accepted to have taken place predominantly in the Archean, when TTG magmatism associated with greenstone-belt supracrustal succession development was typically followed by emplacement of high-K granites before crustal stabilization. This study focuses on the Campos Gerais complex (CGC), which is an Archean granite-greenstone belt lithological association in a tectonic window located in the southwesternmost portion of the São Francisco craton (SFC). The CGC is an important segment of Paleo- to Mesoarchean continental crust to be integrated into paleogeographic reconstructions prior to the transition into the Paleoproterozoic. This investigation reports field relationships, 28 major and trace element compositions, U–Pb (zircon) geochronological results, and Hf and Sm–Nd isotope data for orthogneiss and amphibolite samples. The results indicate that the CGC records a complex Archean crustal evolution, where voluminous 2.97 Ga TTG tonalites and trondhjemites (ε_Nd(t) =  ? 4.7; T_DM = 3.24 Ga) were followed by 2.89 Ga sanukitoid tonalite production (ε_Nd(t) =  ? 1.9; T_DM = 3.02 Ga), broadly coeval with the development of the Fortaleza de Minas and Pitangui greenstone-belts. These events are interpreted to represent the initial stage of an important subduction-accretion tectonic cycle, which ended with the emplacement of 2.82–2.81 Ga high-K leucogranites and migmatization of the TTG-sanukitoid crust, with hybrid and two-mica, peraluminous compositions (ε_Nd(t) =  ? 8.0 to ? 8.6; T_DM = 3.57 – 3.34 Ga). The presence of inherited zircons with ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁶Pb ages of 3.08 Ga, 3.29 Ga, 3.55 Ga and 3.62 Ga indicates that the Mesoarchean tectonic processes involved reworking of Meso- to Eo-archean crust. Renewed TTG magmatism took place at ca. 2.77 Ga represented by juvenile tonalite stocks (ε_Nd(t) = +1.0 to ? 1.5; T_DM = 2.80 – 2.88 Ga) which intrude the TTG-greenstone belt association. Crustal stabilization was attained by 2.67 Ga, allowing for the emplacement of within-plate tholeiitic amphibolites (ε_Nd(t) =  ? 3.1; T_DM = 2.87 Ga). The CGC shows important tectonic diachronism with respect to other Archean terrains in the southern São Francisco craton, including an independent Meso- to Neoarchean crustal evolution.