Direct determination of barium in Sea water by inductively coupled plasma emission spectrometry

A method for the determination of barium in sea water was investigated using inductively coupled plasma emission spectrometry, and sea water samples from the Japan Sea and the Pacific Ocean were directly analyzed by this method. Artificial sea water was used to prepare matrix matched standard solutions to overcome the problem of physical interference. The detection limit (signal/noise ratio=2) for barium in deionized and distilled water was 0.08µg l^?1 and in sea water, 0.12µg l^?1. The reproducibilities in the purified water and in the sea water at the 10µg l^?1 level were 0.7% a#FFFFFFnd 0.5%, respectively. The barium concentration in both the Japan Sea and the Pacific Ocean increased with depth and ranged between 5.5–10.0µg l^?1 and 4.1–18.4µg l^?1, respectively.     

Performance of Mortar and Chemical Grout Injection into Surrounding Soil When Slurry Pipe-jacking Method is Used

Small-diameter shallow tunnels are often being built by using the slurry pipe-jacking method. This system involves the pushing or thrusting of a drivage machine and concrete pipes into the ground. Chemical grout injection into the surrounding soil around the tunnel is carried out after the drivage and pushing processes are finished. The purpose of the chemical grout injection is to maintain permanent stability of the surrounding soil. However, the behavior of the chemical grouting material in the surrounding soil around the tunnel and the amount of optimum injection is not clearly understood. From these points of view, this paper discusses the performance of the chemical grouting material, when it is injected into the surrounding soil around the tunnel, by means of 2-D Eulerian–Lagrangian seepage analysis. Moreover, the effectiveness of the chemical grout injection was evaluated by using the non-linear finite element method. This investigation show when the range of the grouted zone is designed; it is necessary that the relationship between Young’s modulus of the soil/grouted zone and the confining stress be taken into consideration in order to establish effective, economical and safe chemical grout injection system. Understanding the performance of the seepage/dispersion behavior of the chemical grout and the characteristics of soil/ grouted zone is also important.     

Monitoring of Over Cutting Area and Lubrication Distribution in a Large Slurry Pipe Jacking Operation

Slurry pipe jacking was firmly established as a special method for the non-disruptive construction of the underground pipelines of sewage systems. Pipe jacking, in its traditional form, has occasionally been used for short railways, roads, rivers, and other projects. Basically the system involves the pushing or thrusting of concrete pipes into the ground by a number of jacks. In slurry pipe jacking, during the pushing process, mud slurry and lubricant are injected into the face and the over cutting area that is between the concrete pipes and the surrounding soil. Next, the slurry fills voids and the soil stabilizes due to the created slurry cake around the pipes. Fillings also reduce the jacking force or thrust during operation. When the drivage and pushing processes are finished, a mortar injection into the over cutting area is carried out in order to maintain permanent stability of the surrounding soil and the over cutting area. Successful lubrication around the pipes is extremely important in a large diameter slurry pipe jacking operation. Control of lubrication and gaps between pipes and soil can prevent hazards such as surface settlement and increases in thrust. Also, to find voids around the pipes after the jacking process, in order to inject mortar for permanent stabilizing, an investigation around the pipes is necessary. To meet these aims, this paper is concerned with the utilization of known methods such as the GPR (Ground Penetrating Radar) system and borehole camera to maintain control of the over cutting area and lubricant distribution around the pipes during a site investigation. From this point of view, experiments were carried out during a tunnel construction using one of the largest cases of slurry pipe jacking in Fujisawa city, Japan. The advantages and disadvantages of each system were clarified during the tests.     

U-Pb Age Determination for Seven Standard Zircons using Inductively Coupled Plasma–Mass Spectrometry Coupled with Frequency Quintupled Nd-YAG (λ = 213 nm) Laser Ablation System: Comparison with LA-ICP-MS Zircon Analyses with a NIST Glass Reference Material

This paper evaluates the analytical precision, accuracy and long‐term reliability of the U‐Pb age data obtained using inductively coupled plasma–mass spectrometry (ICP‐MS) with a frequency quintupled Nd‐YAG (λ = 213nm) laser ablation system. The U‐Pb age data for seven standard zircons of various ages, from 28 Ma to 2400 Ma (FCT, SL13, 91500, AS3, FC1, QGNG and PMA7) were obtained with an ablation pit size of 30 μm diameter. For ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁶Pb ratio measurement, the mean isotopic ratio obtained on National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) SRM610 over 4 months was 0.9105 ± 0.0014 (n = 280, 95% confidence), which agrees well with the published value of 0.9096. The time‐profile of Pb/U ratios during single spot ablation showed no significant difference in shape from NIST SRM610 and 91500 zircon standards. These results encouraged the use of the glass standard as a calibration standard for the Pb/U ratio determination for zircons with shorter wavelength (λ = 213 nm) laser ablation. But ²⁰⁶Pb/²³⁸U and ²⁰⁷Pb/²³⁵U ages obtained by this method for seven zircon standards are systematically younger than the published U‐Pb ages obtained by both isotope dilution–thermal ionization mass spectrometry (ID‐TIMS) and sensitive high‐resolution ion‐microprobe (SHRIMP). Greater discrepancies (3–4% younger ages) were found for the ²⁰⁶Pb/²³⁸U ages for SL13, AS3 and 91500 zircons. The origin of the differences could be heterogeneity in Pb/U ratio on SRM610 between the different disks, but a matrix effect accuracy either in the ICP ion source or in the ablation‐transport processes of the sample aerosols cannot be neglected. When the ²⁰⁶Pb/²³⁸U (= 0.2302) newly defined in the present study is used, the measured ²⁰⁶Pb/²³⁸U and ²⁰⁷Pb/²³⁵U ages for the seven zircon standards are in good agreement with those from ID‐TIMS and SHRIMP within ±2%. This suggests that SRM610 glass standard is suitable for ICP‐MS with laser ablation sampling (LA‐ICP‐MS) zircon analysis, but it is necessary to determine the correction factor for ²⁰⁶Pb/²³⁸U by measuring several zircon standards in individual laboratories.     

Estimation of the <Emphasis Type="Italic">in situ</Emphasis> Ultraviolet-A absorption of seawater by a simple irradiance inversion model

An irradiance inversion model to estimate the in situ absorption coefficient of seawater has been developed for the Ultraviolet-A (UVA) wavelength domain. Input parameters are sun angle and the up-and downward planar irradiances measured for at least two depths. The present method does not require seawater to be sampled, and is a discrete wavelength method which returns the absorption coefficient at a given wavelength from the irradiances measured at that wavelength without assuming a spectral shape of any optical properties a priori. Comparison between the model results and spectrophotometric measurements shows that the model is practically useful when cloud cover in the atmosphere is ≤ 50%. According to the present method, measurements of the irradiances enable simultaneous observation of the in situ underwater UVA radiation level and the absorption capacity of bulk seawater using a radiometer.     

Application of laser ablation ICPMS to trace the environmental history of chum salmon Oncorhynchus keta

Trace element levels in otoliths of chum salmon Oncorhynchus keta were examined by means of laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICPMS). A close linear relationship in the Sr:Ca ratios between EPMA (X-ray analysis with an electron microprobe) and LA-ICPMS analyses was found (p<0.0001), suggesting that the latter technique could be used to separate the marine and freshwater life phases. Mg:Ca, Cr:Ca, Zn:Ca and Ba:Ca ratios in either the core region or the oceanic growth zone of the otoliths varied among sites. These differences suggest that elemental compositions may reflect environmental variability among spawning (breeding) or habitat sites. Thus, those element ratios demonstrate the potential to be used to distinguish between fish spawning (breeding) sites and habitats for this species of salmon.     

UV Laser Ablation ICP-MS: Some Applications in the Earth Sciences

This study reports a series of applications of UV laser ablation ICP-MS in the geological sciences. The advantages and disadvantages of the PQ "S" option and the use of nitrogen in the carrier gas are discussed. A general problem common to all ablation techniques is the calibration technique and experiments involving synthetic calibration samples are covered. Zircon geochemistry and geochronology by LA-ICP-MS are discussed and data are presented for REE, Hf and U for a standard zircon (91500) as well as a series of zircons from Zimbabwe. The potential of using Ce and Eu anomalies in petrologic studies is illustrated by zircons from a fractionated gabbroic-granite in the Urals. The potential of the LA-ICP-MS method to utilise standard X-ray fluorescence glass discs is demonstrated as a useful semi-quantitative tool in determining REE patterns. LA-ICP-MS is a powerful tool in the analysis of the platinum group elements (and Re) and some examples are given in the successful application of the technique to partitioning in iron meteorites.     

Duluth Complex apatites: Age reference material for LA–ICP–MS‐based fission‐track dating

Anorthositic series apatites of the Duluth Complex, Minnesota, USA, have high spontaneous fission‐track densities of up to ~10⁷ cm^–2 and a homogeneous age of ~900 Ma, allowing high‐precision fission‐track dating based on LA–ICP–MS U analysis. Absolute fission‐track dating, track‐length measurement and chemical composition analysis were performed to evaluate a cooling history, which is essential for age reference materials. Preliminary inverse modelling for a sample with a shortened track‐length distribution yielded a monotonic cooling history from ~100°C at 925 Ma. The apatites incur an over‐etching problem when employing the commonly used etching protocol involving 5.5 M HNO₃.     

Northward cooling of the Kuncha nappe and downward heating of the Lesser Himalayan autochthon distributed to the south of Mt. Annapurna,western central Nepal

We investigated the tectonothermal history of the Lesser Himalayan sediments (LHS), which are tectonically overlain by the Higher Himalayan Crystalline. Fission‐track dating and the track length measurement of detrital zircons obtained from the Kuncha nappe and the Lesser Himalayan autochthonous sediments in western central Nepal revealed northward cooling of the nappe and possible downward heating of the autochthon by the overlying hot nappe. Nine zircon fission‐track (ZFT) ages of the nappe showed northward‐younging linear distribution from 11.6 Ma in the front at Tamghas, 6 Ma in the central at Naudanda, and 1.6 Ma in the northernmost point at Tatopani. Thermochronological invert calculation of the ZFT length elucidated that the Kuncha nappe gradually cooled down (30 °C/Myr) at the front and rapidly cooled down (120 °C/Myr) at the root zone. In contrast, the ZFT age of the Chappani Formation, located just beneath the Kuncha nappe in the central part, demonstrated a totally reset age of 6.8 Ma, whereas the Virkot Formation, structurally far from the nappe, yielded a partially reset age of 457.3 Ma. This suggests that the LHS underwent downward heating, resulting in a thermal print on the upper part of the LHS; however, the thermal effect was not sufficient to anneal ZFT totally in the deeper part. Presently, the nappe cover is eroded and denuded from this area. Detrital zircons from the Chappani Formation in Tansen area to the south of the Bari Gad Fault did not show any evidence of annealing, suggesting that nappe never covered the LHS distributed to the south of the fault.