Search results for "Geophysic"
showing 10 items of 2684 documents
Microbial-mediated pre-salt carbonate deposition during the Messinian salinity crisis (Calcare di Base fm., Southern Italy)
2017
Abstract A multi-scale analysis of sedimentary carbonate facies and post-sedimentary diagenetic features of the Calcare di Base Formation, the precursor to evaporites in Upper Messinian successions of Northern Calabria and Central Sicily, has revealed their microbial bio-mediated origin. Massive to laminated microbial boundstones represent the most common sedimentary facies forming flat to low relief cm to m scale stromatolitic and thrombolitic bodies. The fabric of the micrite varies from peloidal to aphanitic, and almost always preserves filamentous bacteria which characterized the original microbial mat. The mat was dominated by sulphur-oxidizing bacteria belonging to the Thiotrichaceae,…
Carbonate deposits from the ancient aqueduct of Béziers, France — A high-resolution palaeoenvironmental archive for the Roman Empire
2016
Abstract Carbonate deposits from a Roman aqueduct in Beziers, southern France, record environmental conditions during the late first century C.E. These deposits formed in a steep section of the aqueduct with a high flow velocity, which caused rapid deposition of up to 11 mm of calcite per year over a period of 22–24 years. The microstructure, trace element and stable isotope composition show that regular deposition was interrupted by high-discharge events, probably in response to heavy rainfall during autumn and winter, transporting colloidally- and particle-bound elements and depositing calcite with elevated δ 18 O values. Individual autumn high-discharge events coincide with abrupt decrea…
High-resolution analysis of trace elements in crustose coralline algae from the North Atlantic and North Pacific by laser ablation ICP-MS
2011
We have investigated the trace elemental composition in the skeleta of two specimens of attached-living coralline algae of the species Clathromorphum compactum from the North Atlantic (Newfoundland) and Clathromorphum nereostratum from the North Pacific/Bering Sea region (Amchitka Island, Aleutians). Samples were analyzed using Laser Ablation-Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) yielding for the first time continuous individual trace elemental records of up to 69 years in length. The resulting algal Mg/Ca, Sr/Ca, U/Ca, and Ba/Ca ratios are reproducible within individual sample specimens. Algal Mg/Ca ratios were additionally validated by electron microprobe analyses (Amch…
Influence of a major exposure surface on the development of microporous micritic limestones - Example of the Upper Mishrif Formation (Cenomanian) of …
2017
18 pages; International audience; Microporous platform top limestones of the Cenomanian Mishrif Formation (offshore Qatar) were studied in order to investigate the diagenetic processes associated with the top-Mishrif subaerial unconformity and its influence on the development of microporosity in underlying carbonates. Petrographical and stable isotope results indicate that complex diagenetic changes occurred during subaerial exposure of the Mishrif Formation, including pervasive dissolution and meteoric cementation, as well as neomorphism of the micritic matrix. Micrites at the top of the Mishrif Formation are coarse (i.e. > 2 μm), sub-rounded and very dull luminescent under cathodoluminesc…
Unusual internal structure of cm-sized coldwater calcite: Weichselian spars in former pools of the Zinnbergschacht Cave (Franconian Alb/SE Germany)
2018
The investigation of the internal structure of calcite crystals is a new focus in speleothem science, especially in the range of crystallization temperatures close to 0°C. Recently found calcite spars from Zinnbergschacht Cave of the Franconian Alb (SE Germany) are ideal for multi-method investigation. The elongated calcites (up to 6 cm in length) with three to six lateral faces and basal triangular faces at the ends are observed in collapse-zones in the cave. 230Th/U-ages of 38.9 ka suggest formation during the periglacial Weichselian, between the Scandinavian and Alpine Glaciations. The δ18O and δ13C values of the calcite spars vary from -11.18 to -16.11‰ V-PDB and from -4.78 to -6.13‰ V-…
The aqueduct of Gerasa – Intra-annual palaeoenvironmental data from Roman Jordan using carbonate deposits
2021
Abstract Calcium carbonate (CaCO3) deposits from Roman aqueducts are an innovative archive to obtain local high-resolution palaeoenvironmental and archaeological data in interdisciplinary studies. Deposits from one of the aqueducts of the Roman city of Gerasa provide a record of 59 years during the 1st to 3rd centuries CE, divided into three sequences separated by plaster layers. Annual carbonate layers show an alternation of sparite, formed in winter, and micrite, formed in summer. Brown bands at the base of many sparite layers probably correspond to large rainstorms in early winter. A fine lamination present in the brown bands may be diurnal in origin. Stable isotope and trace element dat…
Structural Behavior of Natural Silicate–Carbonate Spurrite Mineral, Ca5(SiO4)2(CO3), under High-Pressure, High-Temperature Conditions
2017
We report on high-pressure and high-temperature angle-dispersive synchrotron X-ray diffraction and high-pressure Raman data up to 27 GPa and 700 K for natural silicate carbonate Ca5(SiO4)2(CO3) spurrite mineral. No phase transition was found in the studied P–T range. The room-temperature bulk modulus of spurrite using Ne as the pressure-transmitting medium is B0 = 77(1) GPa with a first-pressure derivative of B0′ = 5.9(2). The structure compression is highly anisotropic, the b axis being approximately 30% more compressible than the a and c axes. The volumetric thermal expansivity value around 8 GPa was estimated to be 4.1(3) × 10–5 K–1. A comparison with intimately related minerals CaCO3 ca…
An overview of the geochemical characteristics of oceanic carbonatites: New insights from Fuerteventura carbonatites (Canary islands)
2021
The occurrence of carbonatites in oceanic settings is very rare if compared with their continental counterpart, having been reported only in Cape Verde and Canary Islands. This paper provides an overview of the main geochemical characteristics of oceanic carbonatites, around which many debates still exist regarding their petrogenesis. We present new data on trace elements in minerals and whole-rock, together with the first noble gases isotopic study (He, Ne, Ar) in apatite, calcite, and clinopyroxene from Fuerteventura carbonatites (Canary Islands). Trace elements show a similar trend as Cape Verde carbonatites, almost tracing the same patterns on multi-element and REE abundance diagrams. 3…
Burial dissolution of micrite in Middle East carbonate reservoirs (Jurassic–Cretaceous): keys for recognition and timing.
2006
14 pages; International audience; This paper discusses burial diagenesis and especially a burial dissolution phase and its effects on micrite microtexture in reservoirs in the Middle East. Three microporous reservoirs were selected: the Cenomanian Mishrif Formation in Iraq; the Kimmeridgian–Tithonian Arab D and the Barremian Kharaib Formations, both in Abu Dhabi. Staining, cathodoluminescence and scanning electron microscopy were used for petrographic observations. In the selected reservoirs, three typical micrite microtextures are distinguished: micro-rhombic, compact anhedral, and rounded. The chronology of diagenesis, based on petrographic observations, shows that mineralogical stabilisa…
Calcite Mg and Sr partition coefficients in cave environments: Implications for interpreting prior calcite precipitation in speleothems
2020
Abstract Trace element to Ca ratios in speleothems have emerged as important proxies that reflect local environmental conditions. However, interpretations of speleothem trace element records can be challenging due to various processes. Positive correlations between speleothem Mg/Ca and Sr/Ca have often been interpreted to reflect prior calcite precipitation (PCP), a process potentially modulated by rainfall variability. For quantitative interpretation of PCP, the distribution coefficients for Mg and Sr (DMg and DSr) are required. Here, we use ten cave monitoring calcite and drip water datasets to investigate the influence of temperature and drip water and calcite Mg/Ca and Sr/Ca ratios on s…