174 research outputs found
Dynamic feeder dyke systems in basaltic volcanoes
In this paper, we describe the 1809 eruption of Mt. Etna, Italy, which represents one historical rare case in which it is possible to observe details of the internal structure of the feeder system. This is possible thanks to the presence of two large pit craters located in the middle of the eruptive fracture field that allow studying a section of the shallow feeder system. Along the walls of one of these craters, we analysed well-exposed cross sections of the uppermost 15–20 m of the feeder system and related volcanic products. Here, we describe the structure, morphology and lithology of this portion of the 1809 feeder system, including the host rock which conditioned the propagation of the dyke, and compare the results with other recent eruptions. Finally, we propose the dynamic model of the magma behaviour inside a laterally-propagating feeder dyke, demonstrating how this dynamic triggered important changes in the eruptive style (from effusive/Strombolian to phreatomagmatic) during the same eruption. Our results are also useful for hazard assessment related to the development of flank eruptions, potentially the most hazardous type of eruption from basaltic volcanoes in densely urbanized areas, such as Mt. Etna
Total energy calculation of high pressure selenium: The origin of incommensurate modulations in Se-IV and the instability of proposed Se-II
We present calculation of the high pressure crystal structures in selenium,
including rational approximants to the recently reported incommensurate phases.
We show how the incommensurate phases can be intuitively explained in terms of
imaginary phonon frequencies arising from Kohn anomalies in the putative
undistorted phase. We also find inconsistencies between the calculated and
experimental Se-II phase - the calculations show it to be a metastable metal
while the experiment finds a stable semiconductor. We propose that the
experimentally reported structure is probably in error.Comment: 4 pages 4 figure
A hierarchical research by large-scale and ab initio electronic structure theories -- Si and Ge cleavage and stepped (111)-2x1 surfaces --
The ab initio calculation with the density functional theory and plane-wave
bases is carried out for stepped Si(111)-2x1 surfaces that were predicted in a
cleavage simulation by the large-scale (order-N) electronic structure theory
(T. Hoshi, Y. Iguchi and T. Fujiwara, Phys. Rev. B72 (2005) 075323). The
present ab initio calculation confirms the predicted stepped structure and its
bias-dependent STM image. Moreover, two (meta)stable step-edge structures are
found and compared. The investigation is carried out also for Ge(111)-2x1
surfaces, so as to construct a common understanding among elements. The present
study demonstrates the general importance of the hierarchical research between
large-scale and ab initio electronic structure theories.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, to appear in Physica
Structural and superconducting transition in selenium under high pressures
First-principles calculations are performed for electronic structures of two
high pressure phases of solid selenium, -Po and bcc.
Our calculation reproduces well the pressure-induced phase transition from
-Po to bcc observed in selenium.
The calculated transition pressure is 30 GPa lower than the observed one, but
the calculated pressure dependence of the lattice parameters agrees fairly well
with the observations in a wide range of pressure.
We estimate the superconducting transition temperature of both
the -Po and the bcc phases by calculating the phonon dispersion and the
electron-phonon interaction on the basis of density-functional perturbation
theory.
The calculated shows a characteristic pressure dependence, i.e.
it is rather pressure independent in the -Po phase, shows a
discontinuous jump at the transition from -Po to bcc, and then decreases
rapidly with increasing pressure in the bcc phase.Comment: 8 pages, 11 figure
Krylov Subspace Method for Molecular Dynamics Simulation based on Large-Scale Electronic Structure Theory
For large scale electronic structure calculation, the Krylov subspace method
is introduced to calculate the one-body density matrix instead of the
eigenstates of given Hamiltonian. This method provides an efficient way to
extract the essential character of the Hamiltonian within a limited number of
basis set. Its validation is confirmed by the convergence property of the
density matrix within the subspace. The following quantities are calculated;
energy, force, density of states, and energy spectrum. Molecular dynamics
simulation of Si(001) surface reconstruction is examined as an example, and the
results reproduce the mechanism of asymmetric surface dimer.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures; corrected typos; to be published in Journal of
the Phys. Soc. of Japa
Ferromagnetism in semiconductors and oxides: prospects from a ten years' perspective
Over the last decade the search for compounds combining the resources of
semiconductors and ferromagnets has evolved into an important field of
materials science. This endeavour has been fuelled by continual demonstrations
of remarkable low-temperature functionalities found for ferromagnetic
structures of (Ga,Mn)As, p-(Cd,Mn)Te, and related compounds as well as by ample
observations of ferromagnetic signatures at high temperatures in a number of
non-metallic systems. In this paper, recent experimental and theoretical
developments are reviewed emphasising that, from the one hand, they disentangle
many controversies and puzzles accumulated over the last decade and, on the
other, offer new research prospects.Comment: review, 13 pages, 8 figures, 109 reference
The 2011 eruptive activity of Shinmoedake volcano, Kirishimayama, Kyushu, Japan—Overview of activity and Volcanic Alert Level of the Japan Meteorological Agency—
How caldera collapse shapes the shallow emplacement and transfer of magma in active volcanoes
Calderas are topographic depressions formed by the collapse of a partly drained magma reservoir. At volcanic edifices with calderas, eruptive fissures can circumscribe the outer caldera rim, be oriented radially and/or align with the regional tectonic stress field. Constraining the mechanisms that govern this spatial arrangement is fundamental to understand the dynamics of shallow magma storage and transport and evaluate volcanic hazard. Here we show with numerical models that the previously unappreciated unloading effect of caldera formation may contribute significantly to the stress budget of a volcano. We first test this hypothesis against the ideal case of Fernandina, Galápagos, where previous models only partly explained the peculiar pattern of circumferential and radial eruptive fissures and the geometry of the intrusions determined by inverting the deformation data. We show that by taking into account the decompression due to the caldera formation, the modeled edifice stress field is consistent with all the observations. We then develop a general model for the stress state at volcanic edifices with calderas based on the competition of caldera decompression, magma buoyancy forces and tectonic stresses. These factors control: 1) the shallow accumulation of magma in stacked sills, consistently with observations; 2) the conditions for the development of circumferential and/or radial eruptive fissures, as observed on active volcanoes. This top-down control exerted by changes in the distribution of mass at the surface allows better understanding of how shallow magma is transferred at active calderas, contributing to forecasting the location and type of opening fissures
Transcriptome analysis of Bupleurum chinense focusing on genes involved in the biosynthesis of saikosaponins
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p><it>Bupleurum chinense </it>DC. is a widely used traditional Chinese medicinal plant. Saikosaponins are the major bioactive constituents of <it>B. chinense</it>, but relatively little is known about saikosaponin biosynthesis. The 454 pyrosequencing technology provides a promising opportunity for finding novel genes that participate in plant metabolism. Consequently, this technology may help to identify the candidate genes involved in the saikosaponin biosynthetic pathway.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>One-quarter of the 454 pyrosequencing runs produced a total of 195, 088 high-quality reads, with an average read length of 356 bases (NCBI SRA accession SRA039388). A <it>de novo </it>assembly generated 24, 037 unique sequences (22, 748 contigs and 1, 289 singletons), 12, 649 (52.6%) of which were annotated against three public protein databases using a basic local alignment search tool (E-value ≤1e-10). All unique sequences were compared with NCBI expressed sequence tags (ESTs) (237) and encoding sequences (44) from the <it>Bupleurum </it>genus, and with a Sanger-sequenced EST dataset (3, 111). The 23, 173 (96.4%) unique sequences obtained in the present study represent novel <it>Bupleurum </it>genes. The ESTs of genes related to saikosaponin biosynthesis were found to encode known enzymes that catalyze the formation of the saikosaponin backbone; 246 cytochrome P450 (<it>P450</it>s) and 102 glycosyltransferases (<it>GT</it>s) unique sequences were also found in the 454 dataset. Full length cDNAs of 7 <it>P450</it>s and 7 uridine diphosphate <it>GT</it>s (<it>UGT</it>s) were verified by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction or by cloning using 5' and/or 3' rapid amplification of cDNA ends. Two <it>P450</it>s and three <it>UGT</it>s were identified as the most likely candidates involved in saikosaponin biosynthesis. This finding was based on the coordinate up-regulation of their expression with <it>β-AS </it>in methyl jasmonate-treated adventitious roots and on their similar expression patterns with <it>β-AS </it>in various <it>B. chinense </it>tissues.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>A collection of high-quality ESTs for <it>B. chinense </it>obtained by 454 pyrosequencing is provided here for the first time. These data should aid further research on the functional genomics of <it>B. chinense </it>and other <it>Bupleurum </it>species. The candidate genes for enzymes involved in saikosaponin biosynthesis, especially the <it>P450</it>s and <it>UGT</it>s, that were revealed provide a substantial foundation for follow-up research on the metabolism and regulation of the saikosaponins.</p
Geochemistry of lavas from the 2005–2006 eruption at the East Pacific Rise, 9°46′N–9°56′N : implications for ridge crest plumbing and decadal changes in magma chamber compositions
Author Posting. © American Geophysical Union, 2010. This article is posted here by permission of American Geophysical Union for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Geochemistry Geophysics Geosystems 11 (2010): Q05T09, doi:10.1029/2009GC002977.Detailed mapping, sampling, and geochemical analyses of lava flows erupted from an ∼18 km long section of the northern East Pacific Rise (EPR) from 9°46′N to 9°56′N during 2005–2006 provide unique data pertaining to the short-term thermochemical changes in a mid-ocean ridge magmatic system. The 2005–2006 lavas are typical normal mid-oceanic ridge basalt with strongly depleted incompatible trace element patterns with marked negative Sr and Eu/Eu* anomalies and are slightly more evolved than lavas erupted in 1991–1992 at the same location on the EPR. Spatial geochemical differences show that lavas from the northern and southern limits of the 2005–2006 eruption are more evolved than those erupted in the central portion of the fissure system. Similar spatial patterns observed in 1991–1992 lavas suggest geochemical gradients are preserved over decadal time scales. Products of northern axial and off-axis fissure eruptions are consistent with the eruption of cooler, more fractionated lavas that also record a parental melt component not observed in the main suite of 2005–2006 lavas. Radiogenic isotopic ratios for 2005–2006 lavas fall within larger isotopic fields defined for young axial lavas from 9°N to 10°N EPR, including those from the 1991–1992 eruption. Geochemical data from the 2005–2006 eruption are consistent with an invariable mantle source over the spatial extent of the eruption and petrogenetic processes (e.g., fractional crystallization and magma mixing) operating within the crystal mush zone and axial magma chamber (AMC) before and during the 13 year repose period. Geochemical modeling suggests that the 2005–2006 lavas represent differentiated residual liquids from the 1991–1992 eruption that were modified by melts added from deeper within the crust and that the eruption was not initiated by the injection of hotter, more primitive basalt directly into the AMC. Rather, the eruption was driven by AMC pressurization from persistent or episodic addition of more evolved magma from the crystal mush zone into the overlying subridge AMC during the period between the two eruptions. Heat balance calculations of a hydrothermally cooled AMC support this model and show that continual addition of melt from the mush zone was required to maintain a sizable AMC over this time interval.This work has been supported by
NSF grants OCE‐0525863 and OCE‐0732366 (D. J. Fornari
and S. A. Soule), OCE‐0636469 (K. H. Rubin), and OCE‐
0138088 (M. R. Perfit), as well as postdoctoral fellowship funds
from the University of Florida
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