A low-cost and computer-controlled graphitization system connected to an elemental analyzer (EA) has been designed and built at the NTUAMS Lab. This semiautomatic system equips 6-unit reactors for the graphitization of CO2 with H2 on the iron catalyst. The entire procedure takes about 7 hours for iron conditioning, sample combustion and loading, and graphitization. The system can produce good-quality graphite for samples containing 0.5–1.6 mg carbon mass, with the pressure yield of graphitization ranging from 57.7% to 87.1%. The average values of OXI and OXII agree well with the consensus value, but the result of ANU sucrose was observed to be slightly higher than the reported one. The background samples of anthracite over ten months yielded an average of 0.38±0.10 pMC (n=21) corresponding to a 14C age of 45 kyr BP. Intercomparison samples L and M of FIRI exhibit that the measured 14C ages are almost identical to the consensus values and have a small spread in these values. The system has been carrying out graphitization for total organic carbon (TOC) of peat samples, and providing a more efficient and convenient way for AMS 14C dating.

The Excello Shale is one of the best exposed and most laterally continuous of the Pennsylvanian cyclothemic black shales in the midcontinent region of the United States. Its petrology and paleoenvi-ronmental significance were studied to understand the nature of cyclic black shales in general and how they relate to the habitat of hydrocarbon source beds. The Excello is thinly laminated, fissile where weathered, and rich in organic matter and phosphate nodules; it is 90–120 cm thick. Its thin laminations, fine particle size, and high total organic carbon (TOC) content suggest that it was deposited in a quiet water environment of an epeiric sea having anaerobic bottom water. The Excello Shale consists of two lithofacies: non-bioturbated black shale and bioturbated yellow-brown shale. Petrographic studies show that the black shale contains wavy to straight laminations and that the yellow-brown shale contains discontinuous and random laminae and mottled stratification. The close association of organic matter and phosphate-controlled nodule morphology (spherical, elongated, bladed, and platy) appear to be related to progressive decreases in nutrient supply of the sea water from the ancient ocean (Panthalassa).

Clay-mineral assemblages consist mainly of detrital illite, kaolinite, chlorite, and illite/smectite (I/S). Grain size and amount of these clays increase and TOC decreases shoreward towards the probable source areas of the clay minerals in the northern Ouachita region and northern Iowa. Quartz, carbonate-fluor-apatite, carbonate fossil fragments, and minor feldspar and pyrite are the principal minerals in the Excello Shale. Minor amounts of fine-silt-size carbonate minerals are present in some samples. Limestone concretions, 90–150 cm in diameter and 30 cm thick, were found at only one locality in Missouri where the Excello is a maximum of about 3 m thick. Fissility increases with weathering along the bedding plane, and laminae are separated by a limonite film. Four petrographically distinct microfabric variations of the Excello Shale appear to be related to the TOC content and bioturbation. Textural and structural properties of the shale are more developed with increasing organic matter content.

Evidence for the formation of maghemite from goethite due to a bushfire on acid sulfate soil at East Trinity, Australia, is presented. Oxidation of pyrite-bearing acid sulfate soils led to precipitation of goethite-impregnated leaf litter. During a major bushfire, goethite with a crystal size calculated from broadening of the 110 reflection of ∼9 nm was converted to microcrystalline maghemite (size 12 nm, 220 reflection) and hematite (17 nm, 104 reflection) in a matrix of partly combusted plant litter. Replication of this natural formation of maghemite from goethite was achieved in the laboratory by burning goethite-impregnated leaf litter.

We discuss present and developing techniques for studying radiocarbon in marine organic carbon (C). Bulk DOC (dissolved organic C) Δ14C measurements reveal information about the cycling time and sources of DOC in the ocean, yet they are time consuming and need to be streamlined. To further elucidate the cycling of DOC, various fractions have been separated from bulk DOC, through solid phase extraction of DOC, and ultrafiltration of high and low molecular weight DOC. Research using 14C of DOC and particulate organic C separated into organic fractions revealed that the acid insoluble fraction is similar in 14C signature to that of the lipid fraction. Plans for utilizing this methodology are described. Studies using compound specific radiocarbon analyses to study the origin of biomarkers in the marine environment are reviewed and plans for the future are outlined. Development of ramped pyrolysis oxidation methods are discussed and scientific questions addressed. A modified elemental analysis (EA) combustion reactor is described that allows high particulate organic C sample throughput by direct coupling with the MIniCArbonDAtingSystem.

A 1108.6 m long core was recovered at Site U1457 located on the Indus Fan in the Laxmi Basin of the eastern Arabian Sea during IODP Expedition 355. Shipboard examinations defined five lithologic units (I to V) of the lower Paleocene to Holocene sedimentary sequence. In this study, δ13C values of sedimentary organic matter (SOM) confirm the differentiation of the lithologic units and further divide units III and IV into two subunits (1 and 2). Based on the underlying assumption that the SOM is decided primarily by a mixture of marine and terrestrial origins, δ13CSOM values at Site U1457 provide information on the terrestrial catchment conditions since late Miocene time. Low δ13CSOM values from late Miocene to late Pleistocene times are similar (c. −22.0 ‰) for the most part, reflecting a consistent contribution of terrestrial organic matter from the catchment areas characterized by dominant C3 land plants. Significantly lower δ13CSOM values (c. −24.0 ‰) in Unit III-2 (∼8 to ∼7 Ma) might be due to a greater input of C3 terrestrial organic matter. The increase in δ13CSOM values at ∼7 Ma and the appearance of high δ13CSOM values (c. −18.0 ‰) within Unit III-1 (∼7 to ∼2 Ma) indicate that C4 biomass overwhelmed the terrestrial catchment environment as a result of enhanced terrestrial aridity in the Himalayan foreland. The three-end-member simple mixing model, estimating the relative contributions of SOM from terrestrial C3 and C4 plants and marine phytoplankton, supports our interpretation of the distribution of C3 and C4 land plants in the terrestrial catchment environment.

A screening procedure has been developed to evaluate the relative loss of pesticides from soils, to assist the Soil Conservation Service in implementing water quality for conservation planning. This screening procedure is a first-tier evaluation of the impact of using a particular pesticide on a specified soil. The screening procedure was developed from evaluating pesticide loss from over 40 thousand runs of the GLEAMS (Groundwater Loading Efects of Agricultural Management Systems) model. The model input data were a combination of soils and pesticides with a wide range of properties. The estimated pesticide losses were categorized into losses by leaching, losses adsorbed on sediment in runoff, and losses in the solution phase of runoff. Algorithms using soil properties were developed to rate soils into four loss potential classes for leaching and three loss potential classes for the two categories of runoff. Also, algorithms using pesticide properties were developed to rate pesticides into four loss potential classes for leaching and three loss potential classes for runoff. The soil and pesticide groupings are combined in a matrix to give an overall loss potential rating. Statistics of the overall loss potential indicate the low loss potential class is pure, that is, it does not contain occurrences that have medium or high losses. The medium loss potential classes does not contain occurrences of high loss, but does contain many occurrences of low loss. The high loss potential class contains incidences of medium and low loss.

Core A9-EB2 from the eastern Bransfield Basin, Antarctic Peninsula, consists of pelagic (diatom ooze-clay couplets and bioturbated diatom ooze) and hemipelagic (bioturbated mud) sediments interbedded with turbidites (homogeneous mud and silt–clay couplets). The cyclic and laminated nature of these pelagic sediments represents alternation between the deposition of diatom-rich biogenic sediments and of terrigenous sediments. Sediment properties and geochemical data explain the contrasting lamination, with light layers being finer-grained and relatively rich in total organic carbon and biogenic silica content. Also, the high-resolution magnetic susceptibility (MS) variations highlight distinct features: high MS values coincide with clastic-rich sections and low MS values correspond to biogenic sections. The chronology developed for core A9-EB2 accounts for anomalous ages associated with turbidites and shows a linear sedimentation rate of approximately 87 cm/103 yr, which is supported by an accumulation rate of 80 cm/103 yr calculated from 210Pb activity. The late Holocene records clearly identify Neoglacial events of the Little Ice Age (LIA) and Medieval Warm Period (MWP). Other unexplained climatic events comparable in duration and amplitude to the LIA and MWP events also appear in the MS record, suggesting intrinsically unstable climatic conditions during the late Holocene in the Bransfield Basin of Antarctic Peninsula.

We present reconstructions of late Holocene changes in the source of organic matter and siliceous export production in the Relocanví Fjord (41°S, 72°W), Northern Chilean Patagonia, based on organic carbon content, δ13Corg, N/C ratio, diatom assemblages and biogenic silica contents from three sediment cores. The age models are based on a combination of 210Pb profiles, AMS 14C dating, and on the first occurrence of the diatom Rhizosolenia setigera f. pungens, as a stratigraphic marker in the fjords. The cores span the last 300 to 700 yr. Diatoms dominate the siliceous assemblages in the three cores (98% on average). Our results suggest that precipitation seasonality in the region of Reloncaví was high in CE 1300–1400 and CE 1700–1850, with a clear decreasing trend since CE 1850. The latter trend is in agreement with instrumental records and tree-ring reconstructions. These fluctuations seem to be associated with the Southern Annular Mode (SAM).

Flumetsulam sorption and mobility studies were conducted on surface (0 to 15 cm) and subsurface (30 to 46 cm) soil of several southern soils. In a batch equilibrium study using a 1:1 ratio of soil–0.01 M CaCl2, flumetsulam adsorbed ranged from 2.9 to 48.7% and from 4.2 to 63.3% on surface and subsurface soils, respectively. Herbicide soil–solution distribution (K d) and organic carbon (K oc) coefficients ranged from 0.03 to 0.95 and from 5.1 to 77.1, respectively, in surface soils and from 0.04 to 1.72 and from 7.5 to 325.5, respectively, in subsurface soils. K d and K oc were correlated with humic and organic matter in surface soils. K d was correlated with extractable Fe, whereas K oc was inversely correlated to pH in subsurface soils. A desorption study using 0.01 M CaCl2 as an extractant on the Captina silt loam surface soil demonstrated that three to four washes were required to desorb more than 94% of the flumetsulam adsorbed over several equilibration times. Mobility studies on soil thin-layer chromatography plates demonstrated that flumetsulam and imazaquin had similar values, ranging from 0.50 to 0.90 and 0.59 to 0.90, respectively, in the surface soils, and both compounds had the same range of mobility in subsurface soils, with R f values between 0.60 and 0.93. At both soil depths, K d and K oc were inversely correlated with the R f of flumetsulam.

This article discusses radiocarbon dating results for soils and soil-like systems in the East Antarctic oases, including Schirmacher, Thala Hills, and Larsemann Hills. The organic matter of endolithic and hypolithic systems, soils of wind shelters, and soils under moss-algae vegetation were dated along with micro- and macroprofiles. Organic matter pools formed under extreme climatic conditions and originated not from vascular plants but from cryptogamic organisms, and photoautotrophic microbes have been identified within the oases of the East Antarctica. The organic matter of the most of East Antarctic soils is young and cannot reach a steady state because of the high dynamism in the soil cover due to active erosion. The oldest soil organic matter in East Antarctica was found in the soils formed in wind shelters and endolithic soil-like systems under the protection of consolidated rock surfaces. According to our data, the maximal duration for the formation of organic matter profiles within the oases of East Antarctica is ~500 yr, which is similar to the age determined for High Arctic soils in Eurasia. The absence of older soils, comparable with the Holocene deglaciation, can be due to the extreme conditions resulting in occasional catastrophic events that destroyed the soil organic horizons.

Benthic communities form an important component of the marine food chain. Their occurrence also provides information on the health of the ecosystem. A study was carried out to understand the distribution and abundance of macrobenthos along with sediment characteristics and physicochemical parameters in Visakhapatnam Harbour, a major port along the east coast of India. In all 84 macrobenthic taxa were reported from the port area of which 60 were polychaetes and 24 were other invertebrate taxa. Our observations revealed an increase in the number of polychaete species observed over the last 20 years from this region. An earlier study reported 38 polychaete species in 1975 and a year later the number of polychaete species reported was 12, indicating an increase in the number of polychaete species in the present study by about 150%. The macrobenthic abundance and dominance of species varied with the seasons. Pre-monsoon was dominated by Cirratulus sp., during monsoon tanaids were dominant indicating a seasonal shift in the occurrence and dominance of macrobenthos. During post-monsoon, Cossura coasta was dominant followed by Nephtys dibranchis and amphipods. Sediment characteristics (sand, silt and clay), organic carbon and dissolved oxygen were the important factors influencing the abundance and species diversity. The abundance of macrobenthic forms also varied with inner and outer harbour region. Higher species diversity was observed in the outer harbour suggesting the outer harbour has semi-polluted conditions such as higher dissolved oxygen (DO) and salinity, low nutrients (nitrite, nitrate and silicate) and low organic carbon in the sediment.

Organic carbon (OC) burial is an important process influencing atmospheric CO2 concentration and global climate change; therefore it is essential to obtain information on the factors determining its preservation. The Southern Ocean (SO) is believed to play an important role in sequestering CO2 from the atmosphere via burial of OC. Here we investigate the degradation of organic-walled dinoflagellate cysts (dinocysts) in two short cores from the SO to obtain information on the factors influencing OC preservation. On the basis of the calculated degradation index kt, we conclude that both cores are affected by species-selective aerobic degradation of dinocysts. Further, we calculate a degradation constant k using oxygen exposure time derived from the ages of our cores. The constant k displays a strong relationship with pore-water O2, suggesting that decomposition of OC is dependent on both the bottom- and pore-water O2 concentrations.

Excessive sedimentation of fine particles on stream beds has been recognized as a major threat to running-water ecosystems. Deposition of fine sediments often affects hyporheic zone (HZ) functioning by (1) reducing hydrological exchanges at the water–sediment interface and by (2) increasing the organic matter (OM) content of surface sediments. These two factors usually occur concurrently to control biogeochemical processes in sediments. In the present study, experimental and modelling approaches were coupled to evaluate the contribution of these factors on the biogeochemical functioning of the HZ. We used a one-dimensional (1D) vertical model taking into account the hydrodynamic properties, the vertical distribution of the OM and the main microbial processes involved in OM processing (aerobic respiration, denitrification, nitrification and sulphate reduction). This Mobile-Immobile Model for Organic Matter (MIM-OM) model was calibrated and validated using experimental data (conservative tracer, dissolved oxygen and nitrate concentrations) obtained in filtration columns filled with a porous sedimentary matrix. Simulations showed that organic carbon content and Darcy velocity acted in concert to shape biogeochemical processes in stream sediments. The use of the MIM-OM model on data obtained in filtration columns impacted by fine sediment deposition indicated that the biodegradability of the OM (modified through the degradation parameter kPOC) also played a key role on biogeochemical processes occurring in sediments. In conclusion, the MIM-OM model appears as an efficient simulation tool to evaluate biogeochemical functioning in river sediments under different conditions (granulometry, quality of surface water and clogging).

Time-series sediment traps were deployed to investigate the temporal evolution of particle fluxes in eastern and central Bransfield Strait, from December 1999–December 2000. Particle fluxes showed large seasonal variation at both trap sites. In eastern Bransfield Strait, summer mass fluxes were two orders of magnitude higher than winter mass fluxes, while in central Bransfield Strait, almost 99% of the annual mass flux (33 g m−2) was collected in a 40-day period from December–January. Export flux also exhibited a high regional variability. This regional variability is probably due to central Bransfield Strait's strong surface current, which carries most settling particles produced in the surface waters away from the mooring site during the low summer flux period. The relatively low biogenic silica to organic carbon ratios (a range of 0.29–1.4) and high lithogenic fluxes (41% of total mass flux) indicate that the growth of phytoplankton is not limited by the micronutrient iron in eastern Bransfield Strait. The annual flux of organic carbon in eastern Bransfield Strait was 6.8 g C −2, which is three times higher than the flux measured in central Bransfield Strait (2.2 g C −2). Organic carbon flux in eastern Bransfield Strait is relatively high for the Southern Ocean, possibly due to fast-sinking faecal pellets that lead to less decomposition of organic material in the water column. Calculations suggest that approximately 7.2% of the organic carbon produced at the surface in eastern Bransfield Strait is exported to a depth of 678 m. This exceeds the maximum calculated export of primary production to a depth of 1000 m in the Atlantic and Southern oceans.