Hydrogeochemical models locating sulfate-methane transition zone in marine sediments overlying black shales: A new tool to locate biogenic methane?

Precise hydrogeochemical modeling of early diagenesis is a key in the reconstruction of sedimentary basin models. This determines the mineralogical evolution of the sediment and consequently the porosity of the rock. During early diagenesis also part of the initial organic matter is converted into biogenic gas: CH₄ CO₂, and H₂S. These processes are part of complex reaction chains during sedimentation, and biogeochemical reactions leave different signals that can be observed today. In this work, we reproduce the early diagenetic processes as integrated signals over geological times in sediments of the Demerara Rise by applying chemical thermodynamics using the PHREEQC (version 2) computer code. The investigated sediments are characterized by the presence of black shales in 410–490 mbsf and by a diagenetic barite layer above in 300–350 mbsf at depth of sulfate-methane transition (SMT). We determine the parameters that influence the location of diagenetic barite peaks in sediments overlying black shales by means of a novel modeling approach. Crucial parameters are the amount of bacterial organic matter mineralization, sedimentation rates and bottom water sulfate concentrations. All parameters are intertwining and influence the sulfate-methane cycle. They affect the location of the SMT visualized by diagenetic barite peaks. However, our model approach opens a wide field in exploring early diagenetic reactions, processes and products (such as biogenic methane) over geological times mirrored by diagenetic minerals and pore water concentration profiles that can be detected in present-day sediments.     

Feeding strategies of deep-sea sub-Arctic macrofauna of the Faroe-Shetland Channel: Combining natural stable isotopes and enrichment techniques

The response of a sub-arctic, deep-sea macrofaunal community to a simulated food sedimentation event was studied by means of a stable isotope “pulse-chase” experiment. A food pulse was simulated by adding 500 mg C m⁻² of ¹³C-labelled diatoms, Chaetoceros radicans, to sediment cores retrieved from 1080 m in the Faroe-Shetland Channel. Carbon uptake by specific macrofaunal groups was quantified after 3 and 6 days of incubation. The carbon uptake of the dominant taxon (Polychaeta) was quantified at the genus-, and where possible, species-level, representing a data resolution that is rare in deep-sea tracer studies. The macrofaunal community reacted rapidly to the diatom addition, with 47% and 70% of the animals illustrating ¹³C-enrichment after 3 and 6 days, respectively. Approximately 95% of C uptake was located in the upper 2 cm due to the particularly shallow vertical distribution of the macrofaunal community and the nonexistent tracer subduction by burrowing species. Polychaetes of the families Ampharetidae and Cirratulidae were among the most heavily labelled with above background enrichment reaching 1300‰. Approximately 0.8 and 2.0 mg C m⁻² were processed by the macrofauna after 3 and 6 days, representing 0.2% and 0.4% of the added carbon, respectively. It was not possible to differentiate sub-surface deposit-feeding polychaetes from predator/scavenger- and omnivorous polychaetes using their natural ??¹⁵N signatures. However, the combination of natural abundance ??¹⁵N data and ¹³C-labelling experiments proved to be useful for elucidating trophic relations in deep-sea food webs. This study confirms that macrofauna play an active role in the short-term carbon cycling at bathyal depths even at sub-zero temperatures and highlights the need for detailed knowledge of the community structure in understanding carbon processing patterns and early diagenesis of organic matter in marine sediments.     

Patterns and controls of surface sediment distribution: west-central Florida inner shelf

The west-central Florida inner shelf represents a transition between the quartz-dominated barrier-island system and the carbonate-dominated mid-outer shelf. Surface sediments exhibit a complex distribution pattern that can be attributed to multiple sediment sources and the ineffectiveness of physical processes for large-scale sediment redistribution. The west Florida shelf is the submerged extension of the Florida carbonate platform, consisting of a limestone karst surface veneered with a thin unconsolidated sediment cover. A total of 498 surface sediment samples were collected on the inner shelf and analyzed for texture and composition. Results show that sediment consists of a combination of fine quartz sand and coarse, biogenic carbonate sand and gravel, with variable but subordinate amounts of black, phosphorite-rich sand. The carbonate component consists primarily of molluskan fragments. The distribution is patchy and discontinuous with no discernible pattern, and the transition between sediment types is generally abrupt. Quartz-rich sediment dominates the inner 15 km north of the entrance into Tampa Bay, but south of the Bay is common only along the inner 3 km. Elsewhere, carbonate-rich sediment is the predominate sediment type, except where there is little sediment cover, in which cases black, phosphorite-rich sand dominates. Sediment sources are likely within, or around the periphery of the basin. Fine quartz sand is likely reworked from coastal units deposited during Pleistocene sea-level high stands. Carbonate sand and gravel is produced by marine organisms within the depositional basin. The black, phosphorite-rich sand likely originates from the bioerosion and reworking of the underlying strata that irregularly crop out within the study area. The distribution pattern contains elements of both storm- and tide-dominated siliciclastic shelves, but it is dictated primarily by the sediment source, similar to some carbonate systems. Other systems with similar sediment attributes include cool-water carbonate, sediment-starved, and mixed carbonate/siliciclastic systems. This study suggests a possible genetic link among the three systems.     

Metal binding by humic acids in recent sediments from the SW Iberian coastal area

The concentrations of Cu, Zn, Cr, Ni, Pb, As, Mn and Co were determined by Inductively Coupled Plasma–Mass Spectrometry both in recent sediments from different locations of the Huelva littoral (SW Iberian Peninsula) and in their humic acid (HA) fractions in order to evaluate distribution and binding capacity of those trace elements to HAs. In addition, elemental composition (C, N, S) and δ¹³C values were determined to appraise the sources of organic matter in the area. This study involved the comparison of selected samples taken from different environments including the estuary of the Guadiana River, the main fluvial system of the region, the Tinto and Odiel estuary system and the proximal shelf. Significant positive correlations were found among Cu, Zn, As and Pb in bulk sediments, suggesting a common origin of all of those elements: the mining activities and pyrite deposits located hinterland. On the other hand, results for Cr, Co and Ni pointed to the basic rocks from the low basin of the Guadiana River as their main source. Elemental (C, N) and isotopic (δ¹³C) composition of sediments indicated a significant contribution of autochthonous plankton in coastal shelf sediments, whereas estuarine and riverine sediments showed a major contribution of terrestrial biomass. Geochemical values for their corresponding HAs suggested a greater terrestrial contribution in the sedimentary OM of the coastal shelf sediments than in bulk sediments, which evidenced the influence of coastal currents and sediment fluxes. Humic acids sequester considerable amounts of Cu and Zn contributing to reduce the bioavailability of these contaminants.     

越南岸外上升流区48万年来高分辨率的生源组分记录及其古海洋学意义

南海西部越南岸外MD05-2901孔沉积物分析显示,该孔覆盖氧同位素1-12期,底界年龄约为48万年。生源组分记录显示表层古生产力冰期高、间冰期低,体现间冰期海平面下降、陆源物质输入增强的影响。生产力在末次冰期达到最高,体现末次盛冰期海陆差异增强,东北风发育对生产力提高的促进作用。碳酸钙含量变化呈现冰期早期含量低、冰消期和间冰期含量高的趋势。其冰消期的高值在MIS1/2、MIS3/4和MIS5/6分界处,与浮游有孔虫碳同位素低值对应,揭示该地区的碳酸钙沉积旋回是“稀释旋回”。同时碳酸钙含量变化领先于同一地区浮游有孔虫氧同位素的变化,证明低纬海区碳酸钙泵作用对大气二氧化碳浓度和温度有影响。滤波分析结果显示碳同位素存在23 ka的岁差周期和偏心率长周期,生源组分的含量变化显示出典型的岁差周期,体现南海季风环流的轨道响应,证明低纬热带过程是调节气候变化的重要因素。     

三亚湾及周边海域表层沉积物重金属分布特征及生态风险评价

基于三亚湾及周边海域73个表层沉积物样品重金属元素Cu、Zn、Pb、Cr、As、Cd和Hg的化学测试分析,运用多种技术方法,查明重金属分布特征,探讨重金属来源及影响因素,并对其开展生态风险评价。结果表明：研究区Cu、Zn、Pb、Cr、As、Cd、Hg的平均含量分别为12.77、60.11、21.11、43.84、7.05、0.067、0.022 μg/g。As含量高值区为西瑁洲北侧海域,其他重金属分布大体上为沿岸低,向海的方向逐渐增高。Cr和Hg相对背景值亏损,其他重金属相对背景值少量富集;Zn、Pb、Cr分布符合“粒度控制效应”规律,物质来源为陆源碎屑的风化剥蚀。Cu除了来自陆源剥蚀外还可能受到人类活动的影响。Cd和Hg主要来自于沿岸生活污水的排放。As主要来自生活污水排放、农业施药、网箱水产养殖等;重金属总体属于低程度污染,总体平均潜在生态风险程度处于低等级水平,反映研究区总体较好的底质生态环境,且沿岸优于离岸海域。单项重金属平均污染程度排序为Cd>Pb>Zn>As=Cu>Cr>Hg,Cd和Pb属于中等程度污染,其他重金属属于低程度污染。单项重金属平均潜在生态风险程度均为低等级,排序为Cd>Hg>As>Pb>Cu>Cr>Zn;Cd为研究区污染程度和潜在生态风险程度最大的重金属元素,需加强对其的防控与治理。     

Hydrolytic enzymes of the paua Haliotis iris,a marine gastropod (note).

Extracts of the viscera of Haliotis iris (Martyn, 1784) were shown to hydrolyse 2‐hydroxy‐5‐nitrophenyl sulphate at pH 5.5, and the p‐nitrophenyl derivatives of α‐ and β‐D‐galactose, α‐ and β‐D‐mannose, α‐L‐lucose, β‐D‐glucuronic acid, β‐N‐acetyl glucosamine and phosphate at pH 4.0 and 5.5: p‐nitrophenyl‐β‐L‐fucose was not hydrolysed.     

Common bivalve larvae from New Zealand: Leptonacea

The late stage larvae of three erycinid bivalves (Mollusca: Pelecypoda: Leptonacea) taken from the brood chamber of the adult are described (Kellia cycladiformis, Lasaea rubra hinemoa, and L. maoria), and the provisionally identified late stage larva of the erycinid Arthritica bijurca taken from the plankton is described. Also, the D‐shaped larvae of the erycinid bivalves Kellia cycladiformis, Borniola reniformis, Arlhritica crassijormis, and A. bifurca taken from the parent brood chamber are described. The seasonal occurrence of each late stage larva in the plankton at the Bay of Islands (35° 15'S, 174° 10'E), Wellington Harbour (41° 16'S, 174° 51'E), and Raumati Beach (40° 56'S, 174° 58'E), New Zealand is described. Aspects of the reproductive cycles of Lasaea rubra hinemoa and Arthritica bifurca are presented.     

Hydrothermal Metalliferous Sediments and Waters Off the Lesser Antilles

Abstract

Considerable metal enrichments have been found in hydrothermal fluids and metalliferous sediments off the central Lesser Antilles Volcanic Arc. The elements variably enriched in the fluids as a result of the hydrothermal activity are Fe, Mn, As, Si, B, Li and in the sediments, Fe, P, Mo, As, Sb, Hg, Cu and Pb. Variations in the concentrations of these elements in both fluids and sediments along the arc result from a number of factors, the most important of which is the stage that each island's volcano has reached in its eruptive cycle. Although hydrothermal mineralization on the sea floor off the islands is only low grade, phase separation in the hydrothermal fluids at depth could be leading to higher grade stockwork mineralization below the vent fields or the discharge of metal rich brines on the lower flanks of the volcanic islands.