Transport rate of calcareous sand in unidirectional flow

This paper examines the transport of calcareous sand in unidirectional flow and its prediction through existing sediment transport models. A flume experiment of four sand samples collected on Oahu, Hawaii, provides 29 sets of sediment transport data in the bed-form and suspended transport stages. The measured transport data are compared with direct predictions from four energy-based transport models developed for siliceous particles. Corrections for the grain-size, fall velocity, and critical velocity of calcareous sand based on recent research are applied to the models and the results are compared with the direct calculations and measured data. The comparison illustrates the important role particle shape plays in the transport of calcareous sand. All four sediment transport models give consistent predictions and good agreement with the majority of the measured data. Two of the models respond positively to the corrections in both the bed-form and suspended transport stages indicating that such an approach may provide an interim solution for the transport of calcareous sand.     

Determination of Lithium, Beryllium and Boron at Trace Levels by Laser Ablation-Inductively Coupled Plasma-Sector Field Mass Spectrometry

The analytical capabilities of laser ablation (LA)-ICP-MS in determining Li, Be and B at trace levels in geological samples have been tested on a series of glass reference materials and natural samples. The LA-ICP-MS instrument used consisted of a sector-field ICP-MS coupled with a laser ablation microprobe operating at either 266 or 213 nm wavelength. Reference glasses from NIST (SRM 612, 614 and 616) and MPI-DING (KL2-G, ML3B-G, StHs6/80-G, GOR128-G, GOR132-G, T1-G and ATHO-G) were selected to develop the analytical method and to assess the best instrumental configuration. A series of calcic amphiboles with different Li, Be and B concentrations were also analysed using both LA-ICP-MS and SIMS to test the applicability of the method to natural minerals. Results indicated that with a spot size of 40 μm the agreement between measured and reference values of Li, Be and B is generally better than 10% for NIST SRM 612 and 20% for NIST SRM 614. Average reproducibility at the 2s level was 10% for Li, 20% for Be and 15% for B. Limits of detection were approximately 100 ng g^-1 for Be and B and 200 ng g^-1 for Li. These results were confirmed by analyses carried out on natural amphiboles and compared well in terms of precision and accuracy with those commonly achieved by SIMS.     

Upper mantle structure of the South American continent and neighboring oceans from surface wave tomography

We present a new three-dimensional SV-wave velocity model for the upper mantle beneath South America and the surrounding oceans, built from the waveform inversion of 5850 Rayleigh wave seismograms. The dense path coverage and the use of higher modes to supplement the fundamental mode of surface waves allow us to constrain seismic heterogeneities with horizontal wavelengths of a few hundred kilometres in the uppermost 400 km of the mantle.The large scale features of our tomographic model confirm previous results from global and regional tomographic studies (e.g. the depth extent of the high velocity cratonic roots down to about 200–250 km).Several new features are highlighted in our model. Down to 100 km depth, the high velocity lid beneath the Amazonian craton is separated in two parts associated with the Guyana and Guapore shields, suggesting that the rifting episode responsible for the formation of the Amazon basin has involved a significant part of the lithosphere. Along the Andean subduction belt, the structure of the high velocity anomaly associated with the sudbduction of the Nazca plate beneath the South American plate reflects the along-strike variation in dip of the subducting plate. Slow velocities are observed down to about 100 km and 150 km at the intersection of the Carnegie and Chile ridges with the continent and are likely to represent the thermal anomalies associated with the subducted ridges. These lowered velocities might correspond to zones of weakness in the subducted plate and may have led to the formation of “slab windows” developed through unzipping of the subducted ridges; these windows might accommodate a transfer of asthenospheric mantle from the Pacific to the Atlantic ocean. From 150 to 250 km depth, the subducting Nazca plate is associated with high seismic velocities between 5°S and 37°S. We find high seismic velocities beneath the Paraná basin down to about 200 km depth, underlain by a low velocity anomaly in the depth range 200–400 km located beneath the Ponta Grossa arc at the southern tip of the basin. This high velocity anomaly is located southward of a narrow S-wave low velocity structure observed between 200 and 500–600 km depth in body wave studies, but irresolvable with our long period datasets. Both anomalies point to a model in which several, possibly diachronous, plumes have risen to the surface to generate the Paraná large igneous province (LIP).     

Origin and evolution of Pliocene–Pleistocene granites from the Larderello geothermal field (Tuscan Magmatic Province, Italy)

Extensive, mainly acidic peraluminous magmatism affected the Tuscan Archipelago and the Tuscan mainland since late Miocene, building up the Tuscan Magmatic Province (TMP) as the Northern Apennine fold belt was progressively thinned, heated and intruded by mafic magmas. Between 3.8 and 1.3 Ma an intrusive complex was built on Larderello area (Tuscan mainland) by emplacement of multiple intrusions of isotopically and geochemically distinct granite magmas. Geochemical and isotopic investigations were carried out on granites cored during drilling exploration activity on the Larderello geothermal field. With respect to the other TMP granites the Larderello intrusives can be classified as two-mica granites due to the ubiquitous presence of small to moderate amounts of F-rich magmatic muscovite. They closely resemble the almost pure crustal TMP acidic rocks and do not show any of the typical petrographic features commonly observed in the TMP hybrid granites (enclaves, patchy zoning of plagioclase, amphibole clots). On the basis of major and trace elements, as well as REE patterns, two groups of granites were proposed: LAR-1 granites (3.8–2.3 Ma) originated by biotite-muscovite breakdown, and LAR-2 granites (2.3–1.3 Ma) generated by muscovite breakdown. At least three main crustal sources (at 14–23 km depth), characterized by distinct ε_Nd(t) and ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr values, were involved at different times, and the magmas produced were randomly emplaced at shallow levels (3–6 km depth) throughout the entire field. The partial melting of a biotite-muscovite-rich source with low ε_Nd(t) value (about −10.5) produced the oldest intrusions (about 3.8–2.5 Ma). Afterwards (2.5–2.3 Ma), new magmas were generated by another biotite-rich source having a distinctly higher ε_Nd(t) value (−7.9). Finally, a muscovite-rich source with high ε_Nd(t) (about −8.9) gave origin to the younger group of granites (2.3–1.0 Ma). The significant Sr isotope disequilibrium recorded by granites belonging to the same intrusion is interpreted, as due to the short residence time of magmas in the source region followed by their rapid transfer to the emplacement level. Partial melting was probably triggered by multiple, small-sized mafic intrusions, distributed over the last 3.8 Ma that allowed temporary overstepping of biotite- and muscovite-dehydration melting reactions into an already pre-heated crust. Dilution in time of the magmatic activity probably prevented melt mingling and homogenization at depth, as well as the formation of a single, homogeneous, hybrid pluton at the emplacement level. Moreover the high concentrations of fluxing elements (B, F, Li) estimated for the LAR granites modified melt properties by reducing solidus temperatures, decreasing viscosity and increasing H₂O solubility in granite melts. The consequences were a more efficient, fast, magma extraction and transfer from the source, and a prolonged time of crystallization at the emplacement level. These key factors explain the long-lived hydrothermal activity recorded in this area by both fossil (Plio-Quaternary ore deposits) and active (Larderello geothermal field) systems.     

Simplified Method for the Assessment of the Stiffness Anisotropy of Rocks at Small Strains

Summary A new, practically applicable method for characterizing the stiffness anisotropy of rocks is presented. The anisotropy of geo-materials is often ignored in engineering applications, with potentially serious ramifications, because of the number of parameters required for characterization. The elastic anisotropy has often been considered to be a function of mathematical symmetry, and the restrictions due to layering, microcracking and granularity of the materials have not been considered in the assessment of the anisotropy. The practicality of the method proposed here is achieved by rationally reducing the number of independent anisotropy parameters, typically 9 for orthotropic anisotropy, to a system of 4 independent parameters through a systematic theoretical and experimental analysis of these structural restrictions. These 4 parameters are shown to be sufficient for describing the anisotropy of some rocks and sands at small strains, and parameter determination by back-analysis is demonstrated to be stable using appropriate measurement systems involving 9 elastic wave velocities even when the directions of anisotropic axes are unknown and the velocity data contains appreciable error.