The Effect of the Introduction of the American Species Marenzelleria viridis (Polychaeta; Spionidae) on the Benthic Ecosystem of Vistula Lagoon

Abstract. In the late 1980s, a radical change in the macrozoobenthos composition occurred in the Vistula Lagoon, an oligohaline and silted water basin. This structural change is a result of the mass appearance of the very strongly euryhaline spionid polychaete Marenzelleria viridis Verrill, a newcomer from North American estuaries. It considerably reduced the previous bottom macrofauna, which was composed mainly of Chironornidae larvae and oligochaetes.
The penetration depth of the macrozoobenthos into the sediments and its total biomass increased in the last years, which enhanced the organic matter displacement in sediment layers of a greater thickness. The previous bottom dwellers inhabited mainly the most superficial sediment layer, whereas the new polychaete immigrant can penetrate down to a depth of 20–40 cm.     

Controls on iron-isotope fractionation in organic-rich sediments (Kimmeridge Clay, Upper Jurassic, Southern England)

This study explores the fractionation of iron isotopes (⁵⁷Fe/⁵⁴Fe) in an organic-rich mudstone succession, focusing on core and outcrop material sampled from the Upper Jurassic Kimmeridge Clay Formation type locality in south Dorset, UK. The organic-rich environments recorded by the succession provide an excellent setting for an investigation of the mechanisms by which iron isotopes are partitioned among mineral phases during biogeochemical sedimentary processes.Two main types of iron-bearing assemblage are defined in the core material: mudstones with calcite ± pyrite ± siderite mineralogy, and ferroan dolomite (dolostone) bands. A cyclic data distribution is apparent, which reflects variations in isotopic composition from a lower range of δ⁵⁷Fe values associated with the pyrite/siderite mudstone samples to the generally higher values of the adjacent dolostone samples. Most pyrite/siderite mudstones vary between −0.4 and 0.1‰ while dolostones range between −0.1 and 0.5‰, although in very organic-rich shale samples below 360 m core depth higher δ⁵⁷Fe values are noted. Pyrite nodules and pyritized ammonites from the type exposure yield δ⁵⁷Fe values of −0.3 to −0.45‰. A fractionation model consistent with the δ⁵⁷Fe variations relates the lower δ⁵⁷Fe pyrite and siderite ± pyrite mudstones values to the production of isotopically depleted Fe(II) during biogenic reduction of the isotopically heavier lithogenic Fe(III) oxides. A consequence of this reductive dissolution is that a ⁵⁷Fe-enriched iron species must be produced that potentially becomes available for the formation of the higher δ⁵⁷Fe dolostones. An isotopic profile across a dolostone band reveals distinct zonal variations in δ⁵⁷Fe, characterized by two peaks, respectively located above and below the central part of the band, and decoupling of the isotopic composition from the iron content. This form of isotopic zoning is shown to be consistent with a one-dimensional model of diffusional-chromatographic Fe-isotope exchange between dolomite and isotopically enriched pore water. An alternative mechanism envisages the infiltration of dissolved ferrous iron from variable (high and low) δ⁵⁷Fe sources during coprecipitation of Fe(II) ion with dolomite. The study provides clear evidence that iron isotopes are cycled during the formation and diagenesis of organic carbon-rich sediments.     

Correlation between petrography,NAA, and ICP analyses: Application to early bronze Egyptian pottery from Canaan

Under favorable circumstances petrographic studies supported by chemical analysis using inductively coupled plasma (ICP) suffice to establish the provenience of pottery. A case in point is Egyptian-style pottery of Early Bronze Age found in Canaan. The pottery was divided into three groups according to four criteria determined by thin section analysis supplemented by X-ray diffraction: sorting and volume of silt-sized quartz, heavy minerals, the amount of carbonates in the matrix, and the firing temperature. Chemical analyses confirmed the classification. The source materials inferred for the three groups are Nile muds, Egyptian marly sediments, and local loess. Although the chemical analyses obtained by ICP and neutron activation analysis (NAA) were compatible, the existing database for NAA cannot be used indiscriminately. However, for provenience studies based on mineralogical and petrographic data, knowledge of the geology of the potential source areas can replace an extensive database.     

The Petrogenesis of A-type Magmas from the Amram Massif, Southern Israel

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Measurements of line-of-sight velocities in prominences

Measurements of line-of-sight velocities of quiescent and sunspot prominences on the limb made during the years 1966 and 1968 at Swedish Astrophysical Station in Anacapri, Italy are discussed. Several statistical properties of the velocity field, in particular its connection with close McMath plages are investigated. Results are interpreted in terms of oscillatory motion in prominences.     

Strontium stable isotopes fractionate in the soil environments?

This study shows that the stable isotopic composition of strontium (the ⁸⁸Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratio expressed as δ^88/86Sr value relative to the NBS987 standard) varies significantly in sedimentary terrestrial environments. The abundances of ⁸⁶Sr, ⁸⁸Sr isotopes were analyzed by MC-ICP-MS “Nu Plasma”. All studied rocks and waters show δ^88/86Sr values that are distinctly different from the measured NBS987 standard (yielding 0.01 ± 0.05‰, all errors are reported as 2σ). Modern corals from the northern Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea yielded significantly different value than seawater (δ^88/86Sr = 0.22 ± 0.07‰, compared to 0.35 ± 0.06‰, respectively), in an excellent correlation with the δ^88/86Sr analyses reported by Fietzke and Eisenhauer [Fietzke, J., Eisenhauer, A., 2006. Determination of temperature-dependent stable strontium isotopes (⁸⁸Sr/⁸⁶Sr) fractionation via bracketing standard MC-ICP-MS. Geochm. Geophys. Geosyst. 7 (no. 8)] on other coral samples. All carbonate samples that originated in the marine environment: corals (porites and acropora from the northern Gulf of Aqaba); Cretaceous limestone and runoff from the Judea Mountains as well as lacustrine evaporitic aragonite (Dead Sea); and Red Sea and Atlantic seawater yield an average δ^88/86Sr value of 0.26 ± 0.1‰. On the other hand, secondary materials (products of chemical weathering) from the terrestrial environment of the Judea Mountain such as terra rossa soil and speleothem calcite (that derives its Sr from the above-lying soil) yielded significantly lower δ^88/86Sr value of − 0.17 ± 0.06‰. This indicates that strontium isotopes fractionate in the soil environment calling for a possible development of strontium isotopes as a tracer for processes of chemical weathering and pedogenesis.     

Lead and uranium isotopic behavior in diagenetic and epigenetic manganese nodules, Timna Basin, Israel, determined by MC-ICP-MS

Isotope ratios of U and Pb were measured in two types of Mn nodules from the Cambrian Timna Formation, Israel. Type A nodules are mainly composed of pyrolusite and hollandite, with Mn, Ba, Pb and U concentrations of 30–60%, 0.2–2.5%, 0.2–1.0% and 500–3500 ppm, respectively, whereas type B nodules were formed by alteration of the former, and contain mainly coronadite, with Mn, Ba, Pb and U concentrations of 7–48%, 0.2–7%, 0.6–5% and 10–160 ppm, respectively. The isotopic composition of U and Pb was measured by MC-ICP-MS on Mn-rich solutions (up to 100 mg/L) without and with chromatographic separation. The values for the 207/206 and 208/206 ratios have been determined with precisions of up to 50 ppm and those of 206/204, 207/204 and 208/204 – up to 200 ppm. The values for the 234/238 ratios have been determined with precisions of 0.4–1%. The results of the separated and unseparated solutions were shown to be equal within the error. Thus there is no significant matrix effect while measuring U and Pb in Mn rich solution using the MC-ICP-MS.The isotopic composition of Pb and U support the distinction between the two types of Mn nodules. Type A nodules have a wide range of ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb ratios (18.278–19.776), and an almost constant ratio of ²⁰⁸Pb/²⁰⁴Pb. In contrast, type B nodules have almost constant ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb ratios and a wide range of ²⁰⁸Pb/²⁰⁴Pb ratios (37.986–38.079). Type A nodules form a linear array on a ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁴Pb vs ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb diagram, while type B nodules form a tight group characterized by lower Pb isotope ratios that slightly deviate from the type A array. The ²³⁴U/²³⁸U ratio differs between the two types of nodules; type A nodules exhibit a uniform and close to equilibrium ²³⁴U/²³⁸U ratio while type B nodules show a wide range of ²³⁴U/²³⁸U ratios above and below the equilibrium value. The isotopic composition of Pb in type A nodules might reflect Pb contributions from plutonic rock weathering, exposed at the time of deposition or later, to the Cambrian sea. These nodules have remained unaffected by processes that occurred since the Cambrian. The higher ²⁰⁸Pb/²⁰⁴Pb values of type B indicate that these nodules were formed from a Th-enriched solution probably during epigenetic processes which occurred also during the last 1 Ma.Thus the two isotopic systems of U and Pb can record formation, leaching and redeposition of Mn ores.     

Germanium Contents of Selected International Geostandards by Hydride Generation and ICP-AES.

Germanium in thirty-four SRM's was determined by hydride generation and ICP-AES after separation of germanium from the concomitant matrix into carbon tetrachloride, and finally back-extraction into water. This procedure permits the determination of 0.1 ppm of germanium in as small as 50 mg sample. The precision and accuracy of the method was established using Basalt BCR-1 as the most precisely determined standard available.     

The use of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) for detection of PAHs in the Gulf of Gdańsk (Baltic Sea)

A field operable surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) sensor system was applied for the first time under real conditions for the detection of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) as markers for petroleum hydrocarbons in the Gulf of Gdańsk (Baltic Sea). At six stations, seawater samples were taken, and the sensor system was applied in situ simultaneously. These measurements were compared to the results of conventional GC/MS laboratory analysis of the PAH concentrations in the seawater samples. For a PAH concentration above 150 ng(12PAH)l(-1), there was agreement between the SERS sensor and the GC/MS determinations. A standard addition experiment yielded a PAH concentration of 900 ng l(-1) at the Gdańsk Harbor, which was of the same order as the GC/MS determinations of 12PAHs (200 ng(12PAH)l(-1)). The high SERS detection limit for seawater samples is explained by the competition for PAHs between the sensor membrane and particulate matter surfaces. Thus, the SERS sensor can be applied, e.g., as a non-quantitative alarm sensor for relatively high PAH concentrations in heavily polluted waters. The spectral unmixing procedure applied for Gdańsk Harbor water confirmed the presence of phenanthrene at the highest concentration ([Phe]=140 ngl(-1)) and of Chr (2.7 ng l(-1)), but it did not detect the other PAHs present in the Gdańsk Harbor water, as determined by GC/MS. When compared to the past literature and databases, the SERS spectra indicated the presence of a mixture of molecules consisting of carotenoids, n-alkanes, amines or fatty acids, and benzimidazoles at the coastal station ZN2. The spectra in the offshore direction indicated carboxylic acids. Interpretation of the farthest offshore in situ SERS measurements is difficult, principally due to the limited availability of reference spectra. The detection of the lower PAH concentrations commonly found in Baltic coastal water needs further research and development to obtain better sensitivity of the SERS sensor. However, the high analytical specificity of the SERS sensor also allows the detection of other chemical species that require the development of a SERS/Raman library for specific in situ spectral interpretation.     

Sorption of methane on lignite from Polish deposits

Coal samples from Miocene lignite deposits (ortholignite—ECE-UN 2002) in Belchatow, Adamow, Konin and Turow (Poland) were analyzed to determine the relationships between coal properties and gas capacity.Investigations presented here addressed the occurrence of methane sorbet in lignite deposits within Poland's largest penetrated lignite deposits (e.g., Belchatow, Adamow, Turow and Konin).Lignite samples collected from surface mines were detritic coal with variable contents of xylites. The highest level of xylites (up to 25 vol.%) was found in carbon samples taken from the Belchatow deposit. Samples from other mines contained no more than 10 vol.% xylites. Petrographic compositions were dominated by huminite group macerals (73-88 vol.%) with atrinite, densinite and texto-ulminite, a porous form of ulminite; inertinite groups were less important components (4-8 vol.%).Isotherms were determined for methane sorption at 298 K with test pressure ranges below 1.2 MPa. At a pressure of 1.0 MPa, the largest gas capacity of approximately 1.7 [dm³ STP/kg] was found in the sample from Belchatow. This result may have been attributable to differences in the porosity of the samples; the porosity of the sample from Belchatow was twice as high as the porosities of the other coal samples. This variation in porosity resulted from the lithologic and maceral composition of the coal sample that contained substantial quantities of porous textinite and texto-ulminite.The thermal sorption equation was used to determine the limiting values of isosteric enthalpy of sorption, which suggested weak interactions between methane and the lignite matrix. The residual gas capacity of the tested samples was also determined.All samples exhibited a high residual methane-bearing capacity, which may not only cause methane to be released from coal at a pressure of 1 bar but also may pose a gas risk during mining operations.