Magma Ascent and Crustal Accretion at Ultraslow-Spreading Ridges: Constraints from Plagioclase Ultraphyric Basalts from the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge

Plagioclase ultraphyric basalts (PUBs) with up to 54% plagioclasephenocrysts were dredged in the rift valley and adjacent flanksof the ultraslow-spreading Mohns and Knipovich ridges. The PUBsshow large variations in crystal morphologies and zoning. Thelarge variations suggest that single basalt samples containa mixture of plagioclase crystals that aggregated at differentlevels in the magma conduits. Resorbed crystals and repeatedreverse zones suggest that the magma reservoirs were replenishedand heated several times. Thin concentric zones with melt inclusions,and sharp reductions in the anorthite content of 3–7%,are common between the reverse zones. These zones, and skeletalcrystals with distinctly lower anorthite contents than massivecrystals, are interpreted to be the result of rapid crystalliztionduring strong undercooling. The changes between short periodsof cooling and longer periods with reheating are explained bymultiple advances of crystal-rich magma into cool regions followedby longer periods of gradual magma inflow and temperature increase.The porphyritic basalts are characterizd by more depleted andmore fractionated compositions than the aphyric basalts, withlower (La/Sm)_N, K₂O and Mg-numbers. This relationship, and theobservation that PUBs are sampled only close to segment centresalong these ridges, suggests that the PUBs formed by higherdegrees of melting and evolved in more long-lived magma reservoirs.We propose that the zoning patterns of plagioclase crystalsand crystal morphologies of these PUBs reflect the developmentand flow of magma through a stacked sill complex-like conduitsystem, whereas the aphyric equivalents represent later flowof magma through the conduit. The formation of voluminous higher-degreemelts may trigger the development of the magma conduits andexplain the generally depleted compositions of PUB magmas. KEY WORDS: basalt; mineral chemistry; MORB; magma mixing; magma chamber; major element     

Modelling of the internal mechanics in ship collisions

A method for analysis of the structural damage due to ship collisions is developed. The method is based on the idealized structural unit method (ISUM). Longitudinal/transverse webs which connect the outer and the inner hulls are modelled by rectangular plate units. The responses are determined by taking into account yielding, crushing, and rupture. Some plates of the outer and the inner shell subjected to large membrane tensions are modelled by membrane tension triangular/rectangular plate units, while the remaining shell panels are modelled by the usual plate units. The effect of stiffeners on the stiffness and the strength is considered as well. In order to include the coupling effects between local and global failure of the structure, the usual non-linear finite-element technique is applied. In order to deal with the gap and contact conditions between the striking and the struck ships, gap/contact elements are employed. Dynamic effects are considered by inclusion of the influence of strain-rate sensitivity in the material model. On the basis of the theory a computer program has been written. The procedure is verified by a comparison of experimental results obtained from test models of double-skin plated structures in collision/grounding situations with the present solutions. As an illustrative example the procedure has been used for analyses of a side collision of a double-hull tanker. Several factors affecting ship collision response, namely the collision speed and the scantlings/ arrangements of strength members, are discussed.     

Evidence of ancient life at 207 m depth in a granitic aquifer

The results of electron-microscopy investigations of calcite precipitated in a water-conducting fracture in a ca. 1800 Ma granitic rock from 207 m below sea level at the island of Aspo on the southeastern (Baltic) coast of Sweden are compared with measurements of carbon, oxygen, and sulfur isotope composition of the calcite and embedded pyrite. Parts of the calcite had extremely low delta 13C values, indicative of biological activity, and contained bacteria-like microfossils occurring in colonies and as typical biofllms. X-ray microanalysis demonstrated these fossils to be enriched in carbon. Our results provide evidence for ancient life in deep granitic rock aquifers and suggest that the modern microbial life found there is intrinsic. Modeling historical and present geochemical processes in deep granitic aquifers should, therefore, preferably include biologically catalyzed reactions. The results also suggest that the search for life on other planets, e.g., Mars, should include subsurface material.     

Magmatic evolution of the Karmøy Ophiolite Complex,SW Norway: relationships between MORB-IAT-boninitic-calc-alkaline and alkaline magmatism

The polyphasal magmatic evolution of the Caledonian Karmøy Ophiolite Complex includes: (1) formation of an axis sequence from island-arc tholeiitic (IAT) and more MORB-like magmas (493+7/-4 Ma); (2) intrusion of magmas of boninitic affinity (485±2 Ma); (3) intrusion of MORB- and IAT-like magmas; (4) intrusion and extrusion of calc-alkaline magmas (470+9/-5 Ma); (5) intrusion and extrusion of basalts with alkaline trace-element affinity. Repeated intrusion of MORB and IAT-like magmas may be explained by intermittent magmatism involving magma-chamber solidification and remelting of a source characterized by initial _Nd of approximately +6.5. The boninitic rocks may have formed from two LREE-depleted sources: the primary source of the axis-sequence magmas and the residual source left after extraction of these magmas. These sources have been enriched in LREE, Th and Zr from subducted material exhibiting a continental Nd-isotope signature with initial _Nd less than-8. Covariation between _Nd and Th, Zr, Nd, Y and Yb may be explained by metasomatic enrichment of a LREE-depleted mantle source by a LREE-enriched subduction component, followed by partial melting during which the degree of melting of the metasomatized mantle source increased linearly with the amount of subduction component added to the mantle source. The calc-alkaline magmas may have formed by remelting of a highly depleted source, which became enriched in some trace elements derived from the source of the subsequent alkaline magmatism. The geology and geochemistry of the Karmøy Ophiolite Complex suggest growth of an island-arc upon newly-formed oceanic crust, followed by arc-splitting and the development of a new basin.     

Ophiomorpha irregulaire, rare trace fossil in shallow marine sandstones, Cretaceous Atane Formation, West Greenland

Ophiomorpha irregulaire is a large and extremely rare trace fossil. The type section is in the Book Cliffs, Utah, USA. A second on-shore locality is reported here, in the Nuussuaq Basin of West Greenland. Both occurrences date from the Late Cretaceous. Other reports of O. irregulaire are restricted to two-dimensional sections in well cores and are mostly Jurassic in age. The West Greenland occurrence is in the Atane Formation in shallow marine clean sandstone. The two on-shore localities lie in the same biogeographical region, in connection with the Cretaceous Western Interior Seaway of North America. O. irregulaire is characterized by a sinuous, branched meander maze lying mostly within a single horizontal plane, probably not far beneath the seafloor. The burrow lining has remarkably elongate pellets that probably were emplaced by the burrower. In some cases, diagenetic compression may have deformed the lining pellets to produce their elongated shape. The muddy sediment comprising the lining is almost unrepresented in the clean sands of the substrate, and it was probably trapped from suspension during suspension-feeding activity.     

Late Holocene sea-level changes and isostasy in western Denmark

Cores and exposed cliff sections in salt marshes around Ho Bugt, a tidal embayment in the northernmost part of the Danish Wadden Sea, were subjected to ¹⁴C dating and litho- and biostratigraphical analyses to reconstruct paleoenvironmental changes and to establish a late Holocene relative sea-level history. Four stages in the late Holocene development of Ho Bugt can be identified: (1) groundwater-table rise and growth of basal peat (from at least 2300 BC to AD 0); (2) salt-marsh formation (0 to AD 250); (3) a freshening phase (AD 250 to AD 1600?), culminating in the drying out of the marshes and producing a distinct black horizon followed by an aeolian phase with sand deposition; and (4) renewed salt-marsh deposition (AD 1600? to present). From 16 calibrated AMS radiocarbon ages on fossil plant fragments and 4 calibrated conventional radiocarbon ages on peat, we reconstructed a local relative sea-level history that shows a steady sea-level rise of 4 m since 4000 cal yr BP. Contrary to suggestions made in the literature, the relative sea-level record of Ho Bugt does not contain a late Holocene highstand. Relative sea-level changes at Ho Bugt are controlled by glacio-isostatic subsidence and can be duplicated by a glacial isostatic adjustment model in which no water is added to the world's oceans after ca. 5000 cal yr BP.     

Electrodialytic remediation of CCA-treated waste wood in pilot scale

When chromated copper arsenate (CCA)-treated wood is removed from service and turns into waste, the contents of Cu, Cr and As remain high due to the strong fixation of CCA in the wood. This high content of toxic compounds presents a disposal challenge. Incineration of CCA-treated waste wood is not allowed in Denmark; instead, the wood is to be land-filled until new methods for handling the wood are available. Since the amounts of CCA-treated wood being removed from service is expected to increase in the years to come, the need for finding alternative handling methods is very relevant. In this study, the usefulness of Electrodialytic Remediation was demonstrated for handling of CCA-treated waste wood in pilot scale. The electrodialytic remediation method, which uses a low-level direct current (DC) as the cleaning agent, combines electrokinetic movement of ions in the wood matrix with the principles of electrodialysis. It has previously been shown that it is possible to remove Cu, Cr and As from CCA-treated wood using electrodialytic remediation in laboratory scale, but until now, the method had not been studied in large scale. The pilot-scale plant used in this study was designed to contain up to 2 m³ wood chips. Six remediation experiments were carried out. In these experiments, the process was up-scaled stepwise by increasing the distance between the electrodes from initially 60 cm to finally 150 cm. The remediation time was varied between 11 and 21 days, and phosphoric acid and/or oxalic acid was used to facilitate the desorption of CCA from the wood. In the most successful of the experiments carried out, the concentration of CCA in the wood was reduced by up to 82% for Cr, 88% for Cu and at least 96% for As.     

Case study on the strategy and application of enhancement solutions to improve remediation of soils contaminated with Cu, Pb and Zn by means of electrodialysis

Numerous studies have been conducted with electrochemical removal of heavy metals from spiked kaolinite. Meanwhile, when moving from kaolinite to real soils, new factors must be taken into account—factors influencing, e.g., the buffering capacity of the soil against acidification and the adsorption/desorption processes of the heavy metals. The present study gives some examples where it is necessary to use an enhancement solution to aid desorption of Cu, Zn and Pb during electrodialytic treatment. Dependent on the composition of the pollution, different choices can be made. In the case of a Cu-polluted calcareous soil, ammonia may be used as enhancement solution, due to the formation of charged complexes between ammonia and Cu. Thus, Cu is mobile at high pH when ammonia is added and Cu can be removed without dissolving the calcareous parts. Zn is also mobilized by ammonia, but to a lesser extent than Cu. In the case of Cu, Zn and Pb at the same time, alkaline ammonium citrate may be a solution. It was shown that this enhancement solution could mobilize these three pollutants, but optimization of concentration and pH of the ammonium citrate is still needed. When choosing a remediation scheme for electrochemical treatment of an actual industrially polluted soil, this scheme must be chosen on basis of characterization of soil and pollution combination.