Search results for " etna"
showing 10 items of 83 documents
Environmental impact of magmatic fluorine emission in the Mt. Etna area
2007
The sustained and uninterrupted plume degassing at Mount Etna volcano, Southern Italy, represents the troposphere's most prominent natural source of fluorine. Of the ∼ 200 Mg of fluorine (as HFg) emitted daily by the volcano, 1.6 ± 2.7 Mg are deposited by wet and dry deposition. Fluorine-deposition via volcanic ash, here characterised for the first time, can be quite significant during volcanic eruptions (i.e. 60 Mg of fluorine were deposited during the 2001 eruption through volcanic ash, corresponding to ∼ 85% of the total fluorine deposition). Despite the fact that these depositions are huge, the fate of the deposited fluorine and its impact on the environment are poorly understood. We he…
Determinazione in continuo di CO2, CH4 e H2Ov in ambiente atmosferico attraverso tecnica ad assorbimento laser (UGGA)
2015
Molti dei composti chimici presenti nell’atmosfera terrestre prendono il nome di “gas serra”. Queste specie gassose consentono alla radiazione solare di entrare liberamente nell’atmosfera e di trattenere parte della radiazione solare riflessa dalla superficie terrestre come energia termica. Nel corso del tempo si instaura un complesso equilibrio termico tra la quantità di energia inviata dal sole e quella irradiata dalla superficie. L’alterazione di questo equilibrio, con l’aumento di uno o più gas serra in atmosfera, porta a degli squilibri termici e un conseguente innalzamento delle temperature. Questo fenomeno è definito come “effetto serra”. I principali gas serra in natura che prendono…
The impact of Mt. Etna's ash plume on the chemical composition of meteoric deposition
2019
Mt. Etna, in eastern coast of Sicily (Italy), is one of the most active and most intensely monitored volcanoes of the planet. It is the biggest volcanic point source of volcanic gases and particles to the troposphere in the Mediterranean basin. On the morning of December 24th 2018, a new lateral eruption of the Mount Etna started. This eruption was related to an intrusion of a magmatic dike on the high eastern flank of the volcano, which a two kilometers long fracture in the NNW - SSE direction. At the same time, the summit craters also produced a continuous strombolian activity generating a very dense dark ash plume, dispersed by the wind into the southeastern direction. This volcanic even…
The flight of Arcadia: spatial CO2/SO2 variations in a cross section above the Nord East crater of Etna volcano
2015
The CO2/SO2 ratio in volcanic plumes of open conduit volcanoes can provide useful information about the magma depth inside a conduit and the possible occurrence of an eruptive event. Moreover, the same CO2 measurement when combined with a SO2 flux measurement, commonly carried out at many volcanoes nowadays, is used to contribute to an improved estimate of global volcanic CO2 budget. Today worldwide at 13 volcanoes automated in-situ instruments (known as Multi-GAS stations) are applied to continuously determine CO2/SO2 ratios and to use this signal as additional parameter for volcanic monitoring. Usually these instruments carry out measurements of half an hour 4 – 6 times/day and thus provi…
Biomonitoring of volcanogenic trace elements using two endemic species (Senecio aethnensis and Rumex aethnensis) on Mt. Etna.
2009
A biomonitoring survey, above treeline level, using two endemic species (Senecio aethnensis and Rumex aethnensis) was performed on Mt. Etna, in order to evaluate the dispersion and the impact of volcanic emissions. Samples of leaves were collected in summer 2008 from 30 sites in the upper part of the volcano (1500-3000 m a.s.l). Acid digestion of samples was carried out with a microwave oven, and 44 elements were analysed by using plasma spectrometry (ICP-MS and ICP-OES). The highest concentrations of all investigated elements were found in the samples collected closest to the degassing craters, and in the downwind sector, confirming that the eastern flank of Mt. Etna is the most impacted b…
Noble gases investigation in fluid inclusions of olivines and pyroxenes from Etnean products erupted in the 2001-2004 period.
2008
Elemental and isotope covariation of noble gases in olivines and pyroxenes from Etnean volcanics erupted during 2001-2005, and genetic relation with …
2009
Clay minerals, oxyhydroxide formation, element leaching and humus development in volcanic soils
2008
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…
A two-component mantle source feeding Mt. Etna magmatism; insights from the geochemistry of primitive magmas.
2014
The major elements, trace elements and Sr and Nd isotopes of selected Etnean primitive rocks (b15 ky BP) were studied in order to characterize their mantle source. The noble-gas geochemistry of fluid inclusions in minerals fromthe same lavaswas also investigated. Themajor element compositions ofwhole rocks and minerals showed that these products are among the most primitive atMt. Etna, comprising 6.3–17.5 wt.% MgO. The variable LREE (Light Rare Earth Elements) enrichment relative to MORB (Mid-Ocean Ridge Basalt) (Lan/Ybn = 11–26), togetherwith the patterns of certain trace-element ratios (i.e., Ce/Yb versus Zr/Nb and Th/Y versus La/Yb), can be attributed to varying degrees of melting of a c…