Redox environment effect on redox sensitive elements in surface sediments of the Changjiang Estuary hypoxia zone

The grain size and element (including redox sensitive elements and terrigenous elements) concentration of surface sediments from the Changjiang Estuary hypoxia zone and its adjacent sea area were measured in this research. Based on the obtained data, the hypoxic environment’s influence on the distribution of elements in surface sediments was further studied. We believe that the “redox environment effect” greatly influences the distribution of the RSE, which reveals the “patchy enrichment pattern” offshore in the hypoxia zone, while the distribution of the terrigenous elements which shows the “stripped enrichment pattern” near shore is mainly affected by “granularity effects”. Due to the existence of the hypoxia zone of the Changjiang Estuary, the distribution of the RSE such as Mo, Cd and V in the study area exhibits the characteristics of “redox environment effects”. __________ Translated from Marine Geology & Quaternary Geology, 2007, 27(3):1–8 [译自: 海洋地质与第四纪地质]     

The Cathedral of S. Giorgio in Ragusa Ibla (Italy): characterization of construction materials and their chromatic alteration

The Cathedral of St. Giorgio in Ragusa Ibla (Sicily) is one of the most important Baroque monuments of eastern Sicily. The restoration of the monument underway has put forward notable questions regarding the stone materials used and their state of degradation. The façade appears to be made mainly of a creamy white calcarenite, and of mortars and plasters. However, detailed analysis has highlighted a more complex use of the raw material. The mortar and plaster have a different composition in regards to their architectural use while the natural stone material is distinguished not only by a creamy-white calcarenite but also by a dark coloured bituminous calcarenite (pitch rock), which now appears whiter because of superficial chromatic alterations. This process was reproduced in the laboratory using an accelerated aging technique on samples of bituminous calcarenite, which allowed the cause of the alternation to be identified as photo-oxidation of the asphaltenes. Following this process of photo-oxidation, other forms of chromatic alterations affected the façade (brown–orange-coloured patinas). FTIR, Scanning Electron Microscope and thin section microscopic observation allowed the characterization of also the products of this process to be carried out, highlighting the complex mechanism which the processes underwent.     

测量学课程体系建设研究与教学实践

结合测量学课程教学实际,制定了科学合理的课程教学体系。讨论了教材建设、教学手段建设和实践教学环节建设等课程体系建设与实施方法,保证了测量学课程教学改革的成果和质量。测量学课程体系建设,对培养学生分析问题和解决问题的能力,提高学生的实践技能,提高教师的教学业务水平具有十分重要的意义。     

Use of naturally-occurring but non-standard materials in low-cost road construction

Summary This paper briefly outlines the use of non-standard materials in road base construction in Australia. After a short survey of the history of usage and the parallel development of current rigorous standards for base course materials, a selection of examples of the successful use of materials not meeting those standards is given. Such materials include decomposed rocks, soft rocks, fine grained materials, loams and sands. Some comments are made on construction and maintenance practices appropriate to such usage.     

Vermiculate artefacts in image analysis of granular materials

Some reported analyses of images of deforming granular materials have generated surprising vermiculate strain features which are difficult to reconcile with the mechanics of deformation of granular matter. Detailed investigation using synthetic images and improved processing of images of laboratory experiments indicates that such features can emerge as a consequence of the image acquisition (sensor, contrast, resolution), the subsequent image correlation implementation, and the user’s choice of processing parameters. The two principal factors are: (i) the texture and resolution of the images and (ii) the algorithm used to achieve sub-pixel displacement resolution. Analysis of the images using a sub-pixel interpolation algorithm that is more robust than that used originally eliminates the vermiculate features for images with moderate resolution and texture. However, erroneous features persist in images with low resolution and poor texture. Guidance is provided on ways in which such artefacts can be avoided through improved experimental and image analysis techniques.     

岩盐中合成烃包裹体与母油的地球化学特征及其在油源对比中的意义

油气包裹体广泛应用于油气成藏研究,但油气包裹体能否继承母油荧光及地球化学特征等,尚缺乏直接的实验证据。本文在开放体系下用NaCl挥发结晶法对一轻质原油进行合成烃类包裹体实验,通过镜下观察和激光剥蚀色谱-质谱技术分析合成的烃包裹体和母油的荧光特征、成分特征及地化特征,研究两者的异同点。结果表明,在NaCl合成烃类包裹体中共发现三种相态的包裹体:纯液相烃包裹体、气液两相烃包裹体和气油水三相包裹体;共有绿黄色荧光、蓝色荧光两种不同颜色的荧光特征。相对于母油,合成包裹体的饱和烃和芳烃类化合物中的轻质组分含量较低,可以推测在母油被捕获成为包裹体的过程中,不同的化学成分存在差异性捕获。但合成包裹体的Pr/Ph等地化参数和不同系列化合物相对含量与母油相差不大,能很好地反映母油的沉积环境等地化特征。因此,包裹体成分信息可以应用于油源对比分析。     

Precise and Accurate Doping of Nanoporous Silica Gel for the Synthesis of Trace Element Microanalytical Reference Materials

This study presents an experimental procedure to fabricate high‐purity silica glass containing a selected element at a specified mass fraction. The procedure was used to prepare glasses doped with trace‐level mass fractions of Ti with the goal of improving analytical confidence when measuring trace elements in quartz. Systematic tests were performed to determine the ideal conditions and procedures for doping nanoporous silica gel with the highest efficiency of dopant recovery. Silica gel was cleaned in concentrated HCl, immersed in a non‐polar doping medium at a controlled pH and doped with precise quantities of ICP‐MS standard solution. Using liquids composed of longer chain molecules as the doping medium diminishes recovery, suggesting that large molecules could obstruct nanopores to inhibit capillary uptake of the dopant. A control experiment using crystalline quartz reinforced the effectiveness of nanoporous silica gel for doping with trace‐level precision. Layered aggregates of silica gel doped with different Ti mass fractions were hot‐pressed to create multi‐layered reference materials that were analysed with multiple techniques at a variety of spatial scales. Analyses at the intra‐grain scale (cathodoluminescence scanning electron microscopy, electron probe microanalysis), at the single grain scale (SIMS), at the sample layer scale (EPMA, laser ablation‐ICP‐MS) and at the bulk scale (ICP‐OES) demonstrated acceptable homogeneity at sample volumes characteristic of most microanalysis techniques and show that nanoporous silica gel holds promise as a highly retentive doping substrate for preparing reference materials for laser‐, electron‐ and ion‐beam microanalysis.     

从原岩建造角度探讨辽河群的形成环境

文章通过对辽河群上百条实测剖面中岩石类型进行了加权平均统计,得出了辽河群中各种岩石类型的百分含量;对辽河群中已有的上千组岩石化学数据进行了筛选,选取具有代表性的94组数据,用以对辽河群原岩建造恢复和形成构造环境的讨论。认为辽河群的原岩建造为巨厚的陆源沉积碎屑岩—内源沉积碳酸盐岩(夹少量火山岩)建造,具有典型的大陆架沉积特征;这在威尔逊旋回中属于成年期洋盆(大西洋)阶段所独具的沉积特征,这个洋盆暂且称之为辽吉古元古洋。     

Geochemical and textural properties of carbonate and terrigenous sediments along the Jordanian coast of the Gulf of Aqaba

The physicochemical properties of 21 marine sediment samples were investigated, collected from five different localities along the Jordanian coast of the Gulf of Aqaba. According to the chemical parameters, sediments were categorized into three groups: carbonate (80% CaCO₃), composed mainly of materials of calcareous skeletal structures; terrigenous (<10% CaCO₃) depositional areas for land-derived materials from surrounding rocks and alluviums; and a admixture of the first two (19–37% CaCO₃). High significant linear correlations were found between organic carbon (OC) and total nitrogen (TN), indicating the occurrence of these components in a common phase (organic matter). Despite the co-occurrence of TP in organic matter, these two elements were negatively correlated, indicating anthropogenic sources of pollution such as phosphate exportation (hotel areas and clinker port sites) and industrial activities (industrial complex site). The study found that variations in texture properties and mud contents were due to differences in sediment sources, topography and their response during currents and waves. The finer, well-sorted sediments contain lower elemental concentrations of OC, calcium carbonate and TN (excluding TP) than coarser, poorly-sorted sediments.     

The role of non‐coaxiality in the simulation of strain localization based on classical and Cosserat continua

It is normally accepted that materials inside the shear band undergo severe rotation of the principal stress direction, which causes non‐coaxiality between the principal stress and principal plastic strain rate. However, classical plasticity flow theory implicitly assumes that the principal stress and the principal plastic strain rate are coaxial; thus, it may not correctly predict the onset of the shear band. In addition, classical continuum does not contain any internal length scales; as a result, it cannot provide a reasonable shear band thickness. In this study, the original vertex non‐coaxial plastic model based on the classical continuum is extended to the Cosserat continuum. The corresponding codes are implemented via the interface of the user defined element subroutine in ABAQUS. Through a simple shear test, the effectiveness of the user's codes is verified. Through a uniaxial compression test, the influence of non‐coaxiality on the onset, the orientation, and the thickness of the shear band is investigated. Results show that the onset of the shear localization is delayed, and the thickness of the shear band is widened when the non‐coaxial degree increases, while the orientation of the shear band is little affected by the non‐coaxial degree. In addition, it is found that the non‐coaxiality can weaken the micro‐polar effect to some extent; nonetheless, the Cosserat non‐coaxial model still has its advantage over the classical non‐coaxial model in capturing the pre‐bifurcation as well as the post‐bifurcation behaviors of strain localization. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.