Search results for " sedi"

Bottom-Up Control of Macrobenthic Communities in a Guanotrophic Coastal System

2015

Soft bottom macrobenthic communities were studied seasonally in three coastal ponds (Marinello ponds, Italy) at increasing distances from a gull (Larus michahellis) colony to in- vestigate the effect of seabird-induced eutrophication (i.e. guanotrophication) on macro- benthic fauna.We hypothesized that enhanced nutrient concentration and organic load caused by guano input significantly alter the trophic and sedimentological condition of ponds, affecting benthic fauna through a bottom-up control. The influence of a set of envi- ronmental features on macrobenthic assemblages was also tested. Overall, the lowest macrobenthic abundances and functional group diversity were found in deeper sites,…

Toxicity Testing of Silver Nanoparticles in Artificial and Natural Sediments Using the Benthic Organism Lumbriculus variegatus

2016

The increased use of silver nanoparticles (AgNP) in industrial and consumer products worldwide has resulted in their release to aquatic environments. Previous studies have mainly focused on the effects of AgNP on pelagic species, whereas few studies have assessed the risks to benthic invertebrates despite the fact that the sediments act as a large potential sink for NPs. In this study, the toxicity of sediment-associated AgNP was evaluated using the standard sediment toxicity test for chemicals provided by the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development. The freshwater benthic oligochaete worm Lumbriculus variegatus was exposed to sediment-associated AgNP in artificial and natural …

Hybrid WENO schemes for polydisperse sedimentation models

2015

International audience; Polydisperse sedimentation models can be described by a strongly coupled system of conservation laws for the concentration of each species of solids. Typical solutions for the sedimentation model considered for batch settling in a column include stationary kinematic shocks separating layers of sediment of different composition. This phenomenon, known as segregation of species, is a specially demanding task for numerical simulation due to the need of accurate numerical simulations. Very high-order accurate solutions can be constructed by incorporating characteristic information, available due to the hyperbolicity analysis made in Donat and Mulet [A secular equation fo…

Geohazard assessment of the north-eastern Sicily continental margin (SW Mediterranean): coastal erosion, sea-level rise and retrogressive canyon head…

2022

Coastal dynamics are the result of several processes controlling the balance between sediment input and output over time. The beach system is not always able to maintain a neutral coastal balance due to natural and anthropogenic causes. We present an integrated marine geology, geomorphological and sea-level rise analysis in the coastal sector between Torre delle Ciavole and Capo Calavà (North-Eastern Sicily, Italy).This sector is characterized by high uplift rates and frequent seismicity (mainly generated by the very active Vulcano-Tindari Fault System), promoting the development of mass-wasting processes in the coastal and offshore sectors. A main erosive feature observed in the area is th…

Active tectonics in the Calabrian Arc: Insights from the Late Miocene to Recent structural evolution of the Squillace Basin (offshore eastern Calabri…

2023

The Calabrian Arc represents one of the most active sectors of the upper plate of the Tyrrhenian-Ionian subduction system. This research aims to reconstruct the evolution of the Squillace Basin (Ionian offshore of the Calabrian Arc) from the Late Miocene to Recent times and recognise active shallow and deep structures using a multiscale approach. The latter is based on interpreting high-penetration and high-resolution seismic reflection profiles, calibrated with well-log data coupled with bathymetric data and the distribution of instrumental earthquakes. Data highlight three steps in the evolution of the Squillace Basin. A Late Miocene extensional event led to the formation of WNW-ESE orien…

Onset of the Messinian Salinity Crisis: Sedimentological, petrographic and geochemical characterization of the pre-salt sediments from a new core (Ca…

2022

The present study aims to reconstruct the environmental changes leading to the Messinian Salinity Crisis during the transition from the Tortonian-Messinian marine conditions to the Messinian evaporitic environments. The core 3AGN2S04, recently drilled in the Caltanissetta Basin (Sicily), was analyzed to reveal the petrographic, mineralogical and geochemical characteristics of the late Tortonian – early Messinian pre-salt sediments. In particular, the facies characterization of the carbonates and organic-rich shales of the Calcare di Base (CdB) member allowed to understand its significance in the paleoenvironmental evolution towards salt deposition and to the reconstruct the brecciation proc…

Geoconservation in Sicily (Italy): the Example of the Isola delle Femmine (Palermo)

2022

Abstract The Regional Administration of Sicily recently erected Isola delle Femmine—a small island of the Tyrrhenian Sea, close to Palermo—as a geosite. A detailed geological survey has been carried out in order to define the most important geological features of the island together with the development of a new geological map based on topographic data and a digital model at 1:2.000 scale specially processed. Finally, a geological pathway through the island has been traced and illustrated. The geological substrate of Isola delle Femmine consists of a Mesozoic carbonate succession belonging to the Panormide Carbonate Platform. Two lithostratigraphic units have been differentiated. The lowest…

La successione della Formazione Terravecchia di Monte Riparato (Scillato). Spunti per la valorizzazione di un sito di interesse geologico

2010

Soil Erosion and Deposition Rate Inside an Artificial Reservoir in Central Italy: Bathymetry versus RUSLE and Morphometry

2022

This study, using different direct and indirect methodologies, evaluated the sedimentation rate in an artificial reservoir in central Italy. This reservoir is regionally representative and was built in the 1960s for hydroelectric purposes; it has experienced a strong decrease in trap efficiency and a loss of over 70% of the stored water volume. Direct measurements of the lake bottom bathymetry, carried out in 2006 and 2015, and 3D reconstructions performed in a GIS environment, made it possible to calculate the volume of filling material and to verify an increasing trend in the sedimentation rate since 2006. The sample reservoir denudation rate was compared with that obtained using the Revi…

Chemostratigraphy of the early Pliocene diatomite interval from MIS AND-1B core (Antarctica): Palaeoenvironment implications

2013

The AND-1B drill core (1285m-long) was recovered, inside the ANDRILL (ANtarctic geological DRILLing) Program, during the austral summer of 2006/07 from beneath the floating McMurdo Ice Shelf. Drilling recovered a stratigraphic succession of alternating diamictites, diatomites and volcaniclastic sediments spanning about the last 14Ma. A core portion between 350 and 480mbsf, including a 80m-thick diatomite interval recording the early Pliocene warming event, was investigated in term of opal biogenic content and element geochemistry. Across the diatomite interval, in spite of the lithological uniformity, a fluctuating biogenic opal profile mirrors the δ18O record, testifying a decrease in prod…