0000000000417200
AUTHOR
Michael Plötze
15. Spectroscopic methods applied to zircon
Natural and synthetic (pure and doped) zircon (ZrSiO4) have been studied with a variety of spectroscopic techniques. These techniques are based on different physical phenomena, for instance transitions between spin states of nuclei and electrons, energetic transitions of valence electrons, intra-molecular vibrations, or vibrations of atoms and molecular units in the lattice. All of the diverse spectroscopic techniques, however, have in common that they probe energy differences between a ground and excited states, mostly upon interaction of the mineral with incident radiation. Such interactions are not only determined by the excited elementary particles or molecules themselves but depend gre…
Spectroscopic methods applied to zircon
Natural and synthetic (pure and doped) zircon (ZrSiO4) have been studied with a variety of spectroscopic techniques. These techniques are based on different physical phenomena, for instance transitions between spin states of nuclei and electrons, energetic transitions of valence electrons, intra-molecular vibrations, or vibrations of atoms and molecular units in the lattice. All of the diverse spectroscopic techniques, however, have in common that they probe energy differences between a ground and excited states, mostly upon interaction of the mineral with incident radiation. Such interactions are not only determined by the excited elementary particles or molecules themselves but depend gre…
Clay minerals, oxyhydroxide formation, element leaching and humus development in volcanic soils
Aweathering sequence with soils developing on volcanic, trachy-basaltic parent materials with ages ranging from 100–115,000 years in the Etna region served as the basis to analyse and calculate the accumulation and stabilisation mechanisms of soil organic matter (SOM), the transformation of pedogenic Fe and Al, the formation and transformation of clay minerals, the weathering indices and, by means of mass-balance calculations, net losses of the main elements. Although the soils were influenced by ash depositions during their development and the soil on the oldest lava flow developed to a great extent under a different climate, leaching of elements and mineral formation and transformation co…
Pedogenesis and carbon sequestration in transformed agricultural soils of Sicily
The increasing atmospheric CO2 concentration is a consequence of human activities leading to severe environmental deteriorations. Techniques are thus needed to sequester and reduce atmospheric carbon. One of the proposed techniques is the transformation or construction of new soils into which more organic carbon can be sequestered and CO2 be consumed by increased weathering. By using a chronosequence of new and transformed soils on crushed limestone (0–48 years) in a Mediterranean area (Sicily), we tried to quantify the amount of organic carbon that could be additionally sequestered and to derive the corresponding rates. A further aim was to trace chemical weathering and related CO2 consump…
The influence of weathering processes on labile and stable organic matter in Mediterranean volcanic soils
The relationship and mechanisms among weathering processes, cation fluxes, clay mineralogy, organic matter composition and stability were studied in soils developing on basaltic material in southern Italy (Sicily). The soils were transitions between Phaeozems and Vertisols. Intense losses of the elements Na, Ca and Mg were measured indicating that weathering has occurred over a long period of time. The main weathering processes followed the sequence: amphibole, mica, volcanic glass or if ash was the primary source→smectite→interstratified smectite–kaolinite→kaolinite. Kaolinite formation was strongly related to high Al, Mg and Na losses. The good correlation between oxyhydroxides and kaolin…
Soil development on sediments and evaporites of the Messinian crisis
Abstract Vast areas in the Mediterranean are characterised by evaporite deposits of the Messinian crises (c. 6–5.3 Ma BP). During this period, large deposits were built up in shallow lagoon-like systems and are now found in southern Italy, Albania, Cyprus and Turkey. So far, soil formation on evaporites has been studied predominantly in subarid to arid environments. Although the formation of soils has received new significance, little is known about the evolutional trajectories on evaporites of the Mediterranean. We therefore studied soil formation in the Caltanissetta basin (Sicily) where evaporites are most widespread. The lithologies included the sequence: marine clay deposits, laminated…