Sampling and Characterizing Rare Earth Elements in Groundwater in Deep-Lying Fractures in Granitoids Under In Situ High-Pressure and Low-Redox Conditions     

Linda J. Alakangas  Frédéric A. Mathurin  Mikko Faarinen  Bill Wallin  Mats E. Åström 《Aquatic Geochemistry》2014,20(4):405-418

Several countries are preparing to dispose of radioactive nuclear waste deep underground in crystalline rock. This type of bedrock is commonly extensively fractured and consequently carries groundwater that serves as a medium for transporting metals and radionuclides. A group of metals of particular interest in this context is the rare earth elements (REEs), because they are analogues of actinides contained within radioactive waste and are tracers of hydrological pathways and geochemical processes. Concentrations of REEs are commonly low in these groundwaters, leading to values below detection limits of standard monitoring methods, particularly for the heavy REEs. We present a new technical set-up for monitoring REEs (and other trace metals) in groundwater in fractured crystalline rock. The technique consists of passing the fracture groundwater, commonly under high pressure and containing reduced chemical species, through a device that maintains the physicochemical character of the groundwater. Within the device, diffusive gradient in thin-film (DGT) discs are installed in triplicate. With this set-up, we studied REEs in groundwater in fractures at depths of approximately ?144, ?280, and ?450 m in granitoids in the Äspö Hard Rock Laboratory in southern Sweden. The entire REE suite was detected (concentrations down to 0.1 ng L^?1) and was differently fractionated among the groundwaters. The shallowest groundwater, composed of dilute modern Baltic Sea water, was enriched in the heavy REEs, whereas the deeper groundwaters, dominated by old saline water, were depleted in the heavy REEs. Deployment periods varying from 1 to 4 weeks delivered similar REE concentrations, indicating stability and reproducibility of the experimental set-up. The study finds that 1 week of deployment may be enough. However, if the overall setting and construction allow for longer deployment times, 2–3 weeks will be optimal in terms of reaching reliable REE concentrations well above the detection limit while maintaining the performance of the DGT samplers.  相似文献   

Effects of carbon dioxide on deep-sea harpacticoids revisited     

Linda Sedlacek  David Thistle  Kevin R. Carman  John W. Fleeger  James P. Barry 《Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers》2009,56(6):1018-1025

As part of the evaluation of the environmental impact of sequestering carbon dioxide in the deep ocean, we exposed the sediment-dwelling fauna at a station in Monterey Submarine Canyon (36.378°N, 122.676°W, 3262 m) to carbon dioxide-rich seawater and found that most of the harpacticoid copepods were killed. In an expanded, follow-on experiment on the continental rise nearby (36.709°N, 123.523°W, 3607 m), not only did harpacticoids survive exposure to carbon dioxide-rich seawater, but we found no evidence from seven additional metrics that the harpacticoids had been affected. We infer that during the second experiment the harpacticoids were not exposed to a stressful dose. During the second experiment, carbon dioxide-rich seawater appears to have been produced more slowly than in the first, probably because of differences in the near-bottom flow regimes. We conclude that local physical circumstances can substantially influence the results of experiments of this type and will complicate the evaluation of the environmental consequences of deep-ocean carbon dioxide sequestration.  相似文献   

THE IMPACT-FLOOD CONNECTION: DOES IT EXIST?*     

Alexander Deutsch  Christian Koeberl  Joel D. Blum  Bevan M. French  Billy P. Glass  Richard Grieve  Peter Horn  Elmar K. Jessberger  Gero Kurat  Wolf Uwe Reimold  Jan Smit  Dieter Stöffler  Stuart Ross Taylor 《地学学报》1994,6(6):644-650

In a recent article in Terra Nova, Kristan-Tollmann and Tollmann (1994) suggested that the Biblical Flood can be explained by seven fragments of a comet that impacted the ocean at seven locations on Earth at 03.00h (C.E.T.) on 23 September, 9545 yr BP. We demonstrate that all the ‘geological proofs’ that allegedly support their conclusions are not supported by the available data on impact cratering. Their hypothesis is based on insufficient and ambiguous data, selective citation, and incomplete comprehension of previous research.  相似文献   

Influence of Weathering on Pore Size Distribution of Soft Rocks     

Knopp  Julia  Steger  Hagen  Moormann  Christian  Blum  Philipp 《Geotechnical and Geological Engineering》2022,40(11):5333-5346

Geotechnical and Geological Engineering - Soft rocks can weather and lose their structure within a short time due to drying out and rewetting. Thus they are very sensitive to weathering. Since...  相似文献   

An estimate of the water storage contribution to the excitation of polar motion   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1  

Linda A. Hinnov  Clark R. Wilson 《Geophysical Journal International》1987,88(2):437-459

  相似文献   

An analytic method to determine future close approaches between satellites   总被引：6，自引：0，他引：6  

Felix R. Hoots  Linda L. Crawford  Ronald L. Roehrich 《Celestial Mechanics and Dynamical Astronomy》1984,33(2):143-158

The calculation of the times of future close approaches between pairs of satellites has been formulated using analytical techniques. The resulting analytical equations are solved using numerical iterative techniques similar to solving Kepler's equation. A solution is obtained in a very efficient manner by use of a series of prefilters which eliminate many cases from further consideration. The method is valid for all values of eccentricities less than one and all relative geometries between the two orbits. This approach produces results in a very efficient and reliable manner.  相似文献   

Ice in the Southern Coalsack     

R. G.Smith †  R. D.Blum †  D. E.Quinn  K.Sellgren  D. C. B.Whittet † 《Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society》2002,330(4):837-843

To better understand the conditions under which ice mantles form on grains in molecular clouds, three globules in the Southern Coalsack have been searched for the presence of H₂O ice. Given the total lack of star formation in the Coalsack, it is an ideal site for studying unprocessed icy molecular mantles. In our sample of eight field stars lying behind the Coalsack we detect strong H₂O ice absorption in the lines of sight to two stars and possible weak absorption in four others. We estimate H₂O ice column densities or upper limits for these lines of sight. Compared to dark clouds such as Taurus, the Coalsack H₂O ice column densities are lower than expected given the quiescent nature of the Coalsack region. It is possible that the chemical evolution of the Coalsack may simply be at too early a stage for significant ice mantles to appear on the grains, except perhaps in the densest parts of some of the globules. Alternatively, the presence or absence of ice absorption may be related to the distribution of dust along each line of sight, specifically, the relative contributions of dense globules and a more extended diffuse component. For example, our observations are consistent with an ice threshold extinction similar to that observed in the Taurus dark cloud if extinction amounting to   A _V∼5  towards Globules 2 and 3 arises in the extended component. Globule 1 appears to have no extended component.  相似文献   

Matching solute breakthrough with deterministic and stochastic aquifer models     

Lemke LD  Barrack WA  Abriola LM  Goovaerts P 《Ground water》2004,42(6-7):920-934

Two different deterministic and two alternative stochastic (i.e., geostatistical) approaches to modeling the distribution of hydraulic conductivity (K) in a nonuniform (sigma2ln(K)) = 0.29) glacial sand aquifer were used to explore the influence of conceptual model selection on simulations of three-dimensional tracer movement. The deterministic K models employed included a homogeneous effective K and a perfectly stratified 14 layer model. Stochastic K models were constructed using sequential Gaussian simulation and sequential i ndicator simulation conditioned to available K values estimated from measured grain size distributions. Standard simulation software packages MODFLOW, MT3DMS, and MODPATH were used to model three-dimensional ground water flow and transport in a field tracer test, where a pulse of bromide was injected through an array of three fully screened wells and extracted through a single fully screened well approximately 8 m away. Agreement between observed and simulated transport behavior was assessed through direct comparison of breakthrough curves (BTCs) and selected breakthrough metrics at the extraction well and at 26 individual multilevel sample ports distributed irregularly between the injection and extraction wells. Results indicate that conceptual models incorporating formation variability are better able to capture observed breakthrough behavior. Root mean square (RMS) error of the deterministic models bracketed the ensemble mean RMS error of stochastic models for simulated concentration vs. time series, but not for individual BTC characteristic metrics. The spatial variability models evaluated here may be better suited to simulating breakthrough behavior measured in wells screened over large intervals than at arbitrarily distributed observation points within a nonuniform aquifer domain.  相似文献   

Geochemistry of coral from Papua New Guinea as a proxy for ENSO ocean–atmosphere interactions in the Pacific Warm Pool     

Linda K. Ayliffe  Michael I. Bird  Michael K. Gagan  Peter J. Isdale  Heather Scott-Gagan  Bruce Parker  David Griffin  Michael Nongkas  Malcolm T. McCulloch 《Continental Shelf Research》2004,24(19):2343-2356

A Porites sp. coral growing offshore from the Sepik and Ramu Rivers in equatorial northern Papua New Guinea has yielded an accurate 20-year history (1977–1996) of sea surface temperature (SST), river discharge, and wind-induced mixing of the upper water column. Depressions in average SSTs of about 0.5–1.0 °C (indicated by coral Sr/Ca) and markedly diminished freshwater runoff to the coastal ocean (indicated by coral δ¹⁸O, δ¹³C and UV fluorescence) are evident during the El Niño – Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events of 1982–1983, 1987 and 1991-1993. The perturbations recorded by the coral are in good agreement with changes in instrumental SST and river discharge/precipitation records, which are known to be diagnostic of the response of the Pacific Warm Pool ocean–atmosphere system to El Niño. Consideration of coastal ocean dynamics indicates that the establishment of northwest monsoon winds promotes mixing of near-surface waters to greater depths in the first quarter of most years, making the coral record sensitive to changes in the Asian–Australian monsoon cycle. Sudden cooling of SSTs by 1°C following westerly wind episodes, as indicated by the coral Sr/Ca, is consistent with greater mixing in the upper water column at these times. Furthermore, the coral UV fluorescence and oxygen isotope data indicate minimal contribution of river runoff to surface ocean waters at the beginning of most years, during the time of maximum discharge. This abrupt shift in flood-plume behaviour appears to reflect the duration and magnitude of northwest monsoon winds, which tend to disperse flood plume waters to a greater extent in the water column when wind-mixing is enhanced. Our results suggest that a multi-proxy geochemical approach to the production of long coral records should provide comprehensive reconstructions of tropical paleoclimate processes operating on interannual timescales.  相似文献   

The middle Pleistocene transition: characteristics, mechanisms, and implications for long-term changes in atmospheric pCO₂   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1  

Peter U. Clark  David Archer  David Pollard  Joel D. Blum  Jose A. Rial  Victor Brovkin  Alan C. Mix  Nicklas G. Pisias  Martin Roy 《Quaternary Science Reviews》2006,25(23-24):3150

The emergence of low-frequency, high-amplitude, quasi-periodic (100-kyr) glacial variability during the middle Pleistocene in the absence of any significant change in orbital forcing indicates a fundamental change internal to the climate system. This middle Pleistocene transition (MPT) began 1250 ka and was complete by 700 ka. Its onset was accompanied by decreases in sea surface temperatures (SSTs) in the North Atlantic and tropical-ocean upwelling regions and by an increase in African and Asian aridity and monsoonal intensity. During the MPT, long-term average ice volume gradually increased by 50 m sea-level equivalent, whereas low-frequency ice-volume variability experienced a 100-kyr lull centered on 1000 ka followed by its reappearance 900 ka, although as a broad band of power rather than a narrow, persistent 100-kyr cycle. Additional changes at 900 ka indicate this to be an important time during the MPT, beginning with an 80-kyr event of extreme SST cooling followed by the partial recovery and subsequent stabilization of long-term North Atlantic and tropical ocean SSTs, increasing Southern Ocean SST variability primarily associated with warmer interglacials, the loss of permanent subpolar sea-ice cover, and the emergence of low-frequency variability in Pacific SSTs and global deep-ocean circulation. Since 900 ka, ice sheets have been the only component of the climate system to exhibit consistent low-frequency variability. With the exception of a near-universal organization of low-frequency power associated with marine isotope stages 11 and 12, all other components show an inconsistent distribution of power in frequency-time space, suggesting a highly nonlinear system response to orbital and ice-sheet forcing.Most hypotheses for the origin of the MPT invoke a response to a long-term cooling, possibly induced by decreasing atmospheric pCO₂. None of these hypotheses, however, accounts for the geological constraint that the earliest Northern Hemisphere ice sheets covered a similar or larger area than those that followed the MPT. Given that the MPT was associated with an increase in ice volume, this constraint requires that post-MPT ice sheets were substantially thicker than pre-MPT ice sheets, indicating a change in subglacial conditions that influence ice dynamics. We review evidence in support of the hypothesis that such an increase in ice thickness occurred as crystalline Precambrian Shield bedrock became exposed by glacial erosion of a thick mantle of regolith. This exposure of a high-friction substrate caused thicker ice sheets, with an attendant change in their response to the orbital forcing. Marine carbon isotope data indicate a rapid transfer of organic carbon to inorganic carbon in the ocean system during the MPT. If this carbon came from terrigenous sources, an increase in atmospheric pCO₂ would be likely, which is inconsistent with evidence for widespread cooling, Apparently rapid carbon transfer from terrestrial sources is difficult to reconcile with gradual erosion of regolith. A more likely source of organic carbon and nutrients (which would mitigate pCO₂ rise) is from shelf and upper slope marine sediments, which were fully exposed for the first time in millions of years in response to thickening ice sheets and falling sealevels during the MPT. Modeling indicates that regolith erosion and resulting exposure of crystalline bedrock would cause an increase in long-term silicate weathering rates, in good agreement with marine Sr and Os isotopic records. We use a carbon cycle model to show that a post-MPT increase in silicate weathering rates would lower atmospheric pCO₂ by 7–12 ppm, suggesting that the attendant cooling may have been an important feedback in causing the MPT.  相似文献