Statistical techniques for the classification of chromites in diamond exploration samples     

W.L. Griffin  N.I. Fisher  J.H. Friedman  C.G. Ryan 《Journal of Geochemical Exploration》1997,59(3):233-249

A database of 1267 quality-screened major- and trace-element analyses of chromites (s.l.) from kimberlites, lamproites, ultramafic lamprophyres (UMLs) and crustal sources (‘greenstones’, including ophiolites, gabbros, basalts and komatiites) has been subjected to statistical analysis, in order to derive discriminants for use in diamond exploration. The techniques used included nearest-neighbour analysis, CART (classification and regression trees) and MARS (multivariate adaptive regression splines). The results show that both CART and MARS approaches can correctly discriminate kimberlite/lamproite chromites from UML/‘greenstone’ chromites at levels near 90%. Discrimination into the four classes separately is achieved at levels of ca. 80% by MARS and > 70% by CART; much of the misclassification is between the kimberlite and lamproite classes. These results probably represent the maximum probable level of discrimination on chemical criteria, given that ascending magmas may sample both mantle and crustal rocks. The CART approach produces a classification tree that requires no further computation to classify a given grain; the MARS approach requires the use of a simple software package. Tests on known samples illustrate the high level of accuracy of the methods in an exploration context, as well as the useful petrogenetic conclusions that can be drawn from some ‘misclassifications’.  相似文献   

A New Appraisal of Sri Lankan BB Zircon as a Reference Material for LA‐ICP‐MS U‐Pb Geochronology and Lu‐Hf Isotope Tracing          下载免费PDF全文

Maristella M. Santos  Cristiano Lana  Ricardo Scholz  Ian Buick  Mark D. Schmitz  Sandra L. Kamo  Axel Gerdes  Fernando Corfu  Simon Tapster  Penelope Lancaster  Craig D. Storey  Miguel A.S. Basei  Eric Tohver  Ana Alkmim  Herminio Nalini  Klaus Krambrock  Cristiano Fantini  Michael Wiedenbeck 《Geostandards and Geoanalytical Research》2017,41(3):335-358

A potential zircon reference material (BB zircon) for laser ablation‐inductively coupled plasma‐mass spectrometry (LA‐ICP‐MS) U‐Pb geochronology and Hf isotope geochemistry is described. A batch of twenty zircon megacrysts (0.5–1.5 cm³) from Sri Lanka was studied. Within‐grain rare earth element (REE) compositions are largely homogeneous, albeit with some variation seen between fractured and homogeneous domains. Excluding fractured cathodoluminescence bright domains, the variation in U content for all analysed crystals ranged from 227 to 368 μg g^?1 and the average Th/U ratios were between 0.20 and 0.47. The Hf isotope composition (0.56–0.84 g/100 g Hf) is homogeneous within and between the grains – mean ¹⁷⁶Hf/¹⁷⁷Hf of 0.281674 ± 0.000018 (2s). The calculated alpha dose of 0.59 × 10¹⁸ g^?1 for a number of BB grains falls within the trend of previously studied, untreated zircon samples from Sri Lanka. Aliquots of the same crystal (analysed by ID‐TIMS in four different laboratories) gave consistent U‐Pb ages with excellent measurement reproducibility (0.1–0.4% RSD). Interlaboratory assessment (by LA‐ICP‐MS) from individual crystals returned results that are within uncertainty equivalent to the TIMS ages. Finally, we report on within‐ and between‐grain homogeneity of the oxygen isotope systematic of four BB crystals (13.16‰ VSMOW).  相似文献   

Preparation and Measurement of Cassiterite for Sn Isotope Analysis          下载免费PDF全文

Ryan Mathur  Wayne Powell  Andrea Mason  Linda Godfrey  Junming Yao  Mark E. Baker 《Geostandards and Geoanalytical Research》2017,41(4):701-707

Increased interest in the fractionation of Sn isotopes has led to the development of several techniques for preparing cassiterite (SnO₂, the primary ore of Sn) for isotopic analysis. Two distinct methods have been applied in recent isotopic studies of cassiterite: (a) reduction to tin metal with potassium cyanide (KCN) at high temperature (800 °C), with subsequent dissolution in HCl, and (b) reduction to a Sn solution with hydriodic acid (HI) at low temperature (100 °C). This study compares the effectiveness and accuracy of these two methods and contributes additional methodological details. The KCN method consistently yielded more Sn (> 70% in comparison with < 5%), does not appear to fractionate Sn isotopes at high temperatures over a 2‐hour period and produced consistent Sn isotope values at flux mass ratios of ≥ 4:1 (flux to mineral) with a minimum reduction time of 40 min. By means of a distillation experiment, it was demonstrated that HI could volatilise Sn, explaining the consistently low yields by this method. Furthermore, the distillation generated Sn vapour, which is up to 0.38‰ per mass unit different from the starting material, the largest induced Sn fractionation reported to date. Accordingly, the HI method is not recommended for cassiterite preparation for Sn isotopic analysis.  相似文献   

Changes in Habitat Availability for Multiple Life Stages of Diamondback Terrapins (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Malaclemys terrapin</Emphasis>) in Chesapeake Bay in Response to Sea Level Rise     

Ryan J. Woodland  Christopher L. Rowe  Paula F. P. Henry 《Estuaries and Coasts》2017,40(5):1502-1515

Global sea level rise (SLR) will significantly alter coastal landscapes through inundation and erosion of low-lying areas. Animals that display area fidelity and rely on fringing coastal habitats during multiple life stages, such as diamondback terrapins (Malaclemys terrapin Schoepff 1793), are likely to be particularly vulnerable to SLR-induced changes. We used a combination of empirical nest survey data and results from a regional SLR model to explore the long-term availability of known nesting locations and the modeled availability of fringing coastal habitats under multiple SLR scenarios for diamondback terrapin in the MD portion of Chesapeake Bay and the MD coastal bays. All SLR scenarios projected the rapid inundation of historically used nesting locations of diamondback terrapins with 25%–55% loss within the next 10 years and over 80% loss by the end of the century. Model trajectories of habitat losses or gains depended on habitat type and location. A key foraging habitat, brackish marsh, was projected to decline 6%–94%, with projections varying spatially and among scenarios. Despite predicted losses of extant beach habitats, future gains in beach habitat due to erosion and overwash were projected to reach 40%–600%. These results demonstrate the potential vulnerability of diamondback terrapins to SLR in Chesapeake Bay and underscore the possibility of compounding negative effects of SLR on animals whose habitat requirements differ among life stages. More broadly, this study highlights the vulnerability of species dependent on fringing coastal habitats and emphasizes the need for a long-term perspective for coastal development in the face of SLR.  相似文献   

Metals in tidal flats colonized by microbial mats within a South-American estuary (Argentina)     

Analía V. Serra  Sandra E. Botté  Diana G. Cuadrado  Noelia S. La Colla  Vanesa L. Negrin 《Environmental Earth Sciences》2017,76(6):254

In this study, we measured the concentrations of metals (Cd, Cu, Pb, Ni, Cr, Zn, Hg, Mn, and Fe) and assessed the characteristics of tidal flats (grain size and organic matter content) in sediments and their overlying microbial mats fractions to evaluate the anthropogenic impact within the Bahía Blanca Estuary (BBE). Puerto Rosales (PR) and Almirante Brown (AB), located in the middle and inner zone of the estuary, respectively, were used as sampling sites. Sediments were composed mainly of silt–clay in AB, whereas first fine-grained particles were coarser in depth in PR. Regarding the concentration of metals in both fractions, we found differences between sites: There were higher concentrations of overall metals in AB relative to PR. In addition, higher concentrations of Cu were recorded in the first centimeters of AB tidal flats, whereas higher concentration of Cd were recorded in microbial mats of PR. Considering that the grain size was similar between sites, these results are consistent with the high concentration of organic matter found in AB, probably because this site is close to a former municipal dump and sewage discharges. Also, the higher Cd content found in PR site would highlight both the influence of untreated urban discharges and port anthropogenic activities. In conclusion, this study allowed identifying high values of some metals in the presence of microbial mats in the BBE, thus suggesting a possible interaction between both, at least for metals like Cu or Cd.  相似文献   

Numerical estimation of carbonate rock properties using multiscale images          下载免费PDF全文

Mohamed Soufiane Jouini  Sandra Vega  Ahmed Al‐Ratrout 《Geophysical Prospecting》2015,63(2):405-421

Characterizing the pore space of rock samples using three‐dimensional (3D) X‐ray computed tomography images is a crucial step in digital rock physics. Indeed, the quality of the pore network extracted has a high impact on the prediction of rock properties such as porosity, permeability and elastic moduli. In carbonate rocks, it is usually very difficult to find a single image resolution which fully captures the sample pore network because of the heterogeneities existing at different scales. Hence, to overcome this limitation a multiscale analysis of the pore space may be needed. In this paper, we present a method to estimate porosity and elastic properties of clean carbonate (without clay content) samples from 3D X‐ray microtomography images at multiple resolutions. We perform a three‐phase segmentation to separate grains, pores and unresolved porous phase using 19 μm resolution images of each core plug. Then, we use images with higher resolution (between 0.3 and 2 μm) of microplugs extracted from the core plug samples. These subsets of images are assumed to be representative of the unresolved phase. We estimate the porosity and elastic properties of each sample by extrapolating the microplug properties to the whole unresolved phase. In addition, we compute the absolute permeability using the lattice Boltzmann method on the microplug images due to the low resolution of the core plug images. In order to validate the results of the numerical simulations, we compare our results with available laboratory measurements at the core plug scale. Porosity average simulations for the eight samples agree within 13%. Permeability numerical predictions provide realistic values in the range of experimental data but with a higher relative error. Finally, elastic moduli show the highest disagreements, with simulation error values exceeding 150% for three samples.  相似文献   

Since turtles cannot talk: what beak movement sensors can tell us about the feeding ecology of neritic loggerhead turtles,Caretta caretta     

Sandra Hochscheid  Andrea Travaglini  Fulvio Maffucci  Graeme C. Hays  Flegra Bentivegna 《Marine Ecology》2013,34(3):321-333

Understanding the role that consumers play in an ecosystem requires knowledge about food selection and intake rates. However, such basic data are often difficult to obtain, particularly for marine animals that are not easy to observe. To overcome this problem, a beak movement sensor was employed on a free‐ranging loggerhead turtle in a neritic foraging habitat at the Domitian littoral (SW Italy). In combination with gastrointestinal content analysis from six turtles found dead in the same area we sought to identify which beak movement patterns were associated with which prey type, and to quantify the ingestion of the various prey types. Brachyuran crabs (100% occurrence), in particular Liocarcinus vernalis, and small molluscs (66% occurrence) were found most frequently in the stomach and intestine of the turtles. Beak movements revealed average ingestion rates of (mean ± SE) 0.27 ± 0.13 food items per minute and that feeding occurred predominantly during dives >4 m and during early morning and evening. Interestingly, the time spent feeding amounted to only 2.2% of the total observation time, whereas feeding‐associated dives added up to just above 10% of the total time. We thus established that loggerhead turtles in this area are specialised on brachyuran crabs, on which they prey with high success during the short time dedicated to foraging. This information strengthens our knowledge about turtle–prey and turtle–habitat interactions, which are essential data to delineate the role that turtles play in this and similar marine ecosystems. Moreover, since the same area is also intensively used by the regional bottom trawl fishery, our results have important conservation implications, because they clearly show the time of day and water depths for which fishing activity should be regulated to reduce the number of turtles that are currently being incidentally caught in this area.  相似文献   

Relationships between molecular bacterial diversity and chemistry of groundwater in the Wairarapa Valley,New Zealand     

KA Sirisena  CJ Daughney  M Moreau  KG Ryan  GK Chambers 《新西兰海洋与淡水研究杂志》2013,47(4):524-539

Groundwater plays an important role in New Zealand water supplies and hence monitoring activities are conducted regularly. Most monitoring programmes aim to evaluate groundwater chemistry and almost completely overlook the microbial component in this ecosystem. In our present study, the bacterial community structure of groundwater in the Wairarapa Valley was examined using the terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP), and relationships between bacterial community structure and groundwater chemistry, aquifer confinement and groundwater usage were explored. In addition, the results from this study were compared with a previous T-RFLP survey of the same area in an attempt to detect changes in bacterial community structure over time. The data obtained suggested that bacterial community structure was related to groundwater chemistry, especially to redox conditions. Species composition showed minimal variation over time if groundwater chemistry remained unchanged. These findings reflect the potential of using bacterial communities as biological indicators to evaluate the health of groundwater ecosystems. We suggest that it is important to include this type of broad bacterial diversity assessment criteria into regular groundwater monitoring activities.  相似文献   

Reply to the Discussion by Rose of Phelps et al. (2014) ‘Oceanographic and eustatic control of carbonate platform evolution and sequence stratigraphy on the Cretaceous (Valanginian–Campanian) passive margin,northern Gulf of Mexico’, Sedimentology, 61, 461–496          下载免费PDF全文

Ryan M. Phelps  Charles Kerans  Robert G. Loucks 《Sedimentology》2017,64(3):858-870

Discussion points raised by Rose ( 2016 ) concentrate on late Albian stratigraphic relationships between formations of the East Texas Basin and the San Marcos Arch of the Comanche Platform in the northern Gulf of Mexico. Criticisms of Phelps et al. (2014) regarding stratigraphic nomenclature, palaeogeography and regional lithostratigraphic correlations generally focus on interpretive aspects of the study or do not account for the full scope of published information. Revisions to the top Aptian–Albian Supersequence boundary by Rose are incompatible with the relative location of a subaerial unconformity, as well as deepening lithofacies trends and retrogradational stratigraphic patterns below the interpreted boundary. Rose's placement of the top Aptian–Albian Supersequence boundary precisely at the Albian–Cenomanian stage boundary also implies ca 1·4 Ma of diachroneity in second order sea‐level patterns between the northern Gulf of Mexico and other documented global sedimentary basins.  相似文献   

Estimating the settling velocity of bioclastic sediment using common grain‐size analysis techniques          下载免费PDF全文

Michael V. W. Cuttler  Ryan J. Lowe  James L. Falter  Daniel Buscombe 《Sedimentology》2017,64(4):987-1004

Most techniques for estimating settling velocities of natural particles have been developed for siliciclastic sediments. Therefore, to understand how these techniques apply to bioclastic environments, measured settling velocities of bioclastic sedimentary deposits sampled from a nearshore fringing reef in Western Australia were compared with settling velocities calculated using results from several common grain‐size analysis techniques (sieve, laser diffraction and image analysis) and established models. The effects of sediment density and shape were also examined using a range of density values and three different models of settling velocity. Sediment density was found to have a significant effect on calculated settling velocity, causing a range in normalized root‐mean‐square error of up to 28%, depending upon settling velocity model and grain‐size method. Accounting for particle shape reduced errors in predicted settling velocity by 3% to 6% and removed any velocity‐dependent bias, which is particularly important for the fastest settling fractions. When shape was accounted for and measured density was used, normalized root‐mean‐square errors were 4%, 10% and 18% for laser diffraction, sieve and image analysis, respectively. The results of this study show that established models of settling velocity that account for particle shape can be used to estimate settling velocity of irregularly shaped, sand‐sized bioclastic sediments from sieve, laser diffraction, or image analysis‐derived measures of grain size with a limited amount of error. Collectively, these findings will allow for grain‐size data measured with different methods to be accurately converted to settling velocity for comparison. This will facilitate greater understanding of the hydraulic properties of bioclastic sediment which can help to increase our general knowledge of sediment dynamics in these environments.  相似文献