Entire Deposit Research Articles

Case report: Partial regression of metastatic squamous cell carcinoma with altered azathioprine dosage after long-term use in renal transplant patient

IntroductionWe report the partial regression of metastatic squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) after reduction of long-term azathioprine therapy while awaiting surgery. The patient was a 69-year-old man with a history of kidney transplantation. Moderately differentiated SCC arising in the anterior neck was initially diagnosed, followed later by poorly differentiated SCC metastases to cervical lymph nodes. Lymph node clearance was performed 28 days after a reduction in azathioprine dosage. The palpable lymph node lesion had noticeably decreased in size at the time of surgery, and subsequent histology only detected 7mm and 0.2mm deposits of poorly differentiated SCC in 2 of 5 level I nodes, and a further 10 reactive nodes from levels II and III. One positive level I and another benign level II/III node, demonstrated necrosis, histiocytic infiltration and fibrosis, interpreted as features of regression. Hence, we investigated the role of immune cells in the partial regression of metastatic SCC after reduction of long-term azathioprine therapy while awaiting surgery.MethodsMultispectral immunohistochemistry using custom markers was performed on regions of interest of excised cervical lymph nodes, encompassing the entire SCC deposit and the surrounding adjacent stroma to quantify to number and types of immune cells present.ResultsMultispectral immunohistochemistry revealed the heavy infiltration of activated T cells in the tumour, as well as PD-L1+ antigen-presenting cells in the surrounding adjacent stroma, suggesting an immunologically mediated partial regression.DiscussionWe hypothesize that this reaction was triggered by azathioprine dose reduction. Dose modification of long-term immunosuppressive medications in patients with a transplantation history who later develop SCCs warrants further investigation.

Crystallization and rheology of Na2O–CaO–Al2O3–SiO2 melt in the vitrification of technological waste

AbstractVitrification of solid technological waste is currently under investigation. For this type of waste made up of metals, minerals, and organic matters, formulation studies were carried out in the NCAS (Na2O–CaO–Al2O3–SiO2) system in order to define a vitrifying additive to treat the entire waste deposit, while maximizing the waste loading. Main challenge related to this type of waste comes from the presence of alumina in very large quantities in the glass/glass–ceramics melt, enhancing the risk of melt solidification due to a fast and massive crystallization. Melt lock‐up can potentially occur at the operating temperature envisaged for the process (1400°C) and is prohibitive because it would lead to a premature stoppage of the process. The results obtained from casting tests, rheological experiments, and thermodynamic modeling enabled to provide an accurate estimation of the risk of melt lock‐up for NCAS compositions. It was highlighted that the composition had a major influence on the temperature at which massive crystallization might occur. From all the results obtained, the maximum Al2O3 content that could be incorporated in the final material was determined to be close to 50 wt%. The composition of a vitrifying additive was also statistically designed to treat the technological waste of interest.

Basis for Legislating to Institutionalize Personal Deposit Protection System

The article conducts a legal analysis of approaches to understanding the nature of the powers of the Deposit Guarantee Fund for Individuals, impacting the institutional reform of the respective deposit guarantee system. The author delineates the powers of the Fund. According to the proposed approach, the powers of the Fund regarding the functioning of the deposit guarantee system are divided into two subgroups: managerial and entrepreneurial. Managerial functions aim to institutionalize the deposit guarantee system itself. They are oriented towards the interaction of the Fund with banks participating in this system rather than towards depositors. Entrepreneurial powers essentially represent a specialized form of commercial activity, involving measures to preserve and increase the funds collected from participants in the deposit guarantee system. Powers related to ensuring the functioning of the deposit guarantee system for individuals, both managerial and entrepreneurial, are inherent to the Fund and require further development in accordance with international standards and Ukraine’s European integration commitments. It is essential to ensure a balance between state intervention and self-regulation through market instruments in the relevant sphere. Additionally, regulatory, administrative, and supervisory powers are separately highlighted, primarily concerning the removal of insolvent banks from the market and bank liquidation procedures. During the institutional reform of the Fund, it is necessary to review these powers, taking into account their nature and the constitutional regulation of relevant legal relationships. In particular, it should be noted that the concepts of “deposit guarantee” and “deposit insurance” are legally distinct in nature. This is a crucial aspect that further elucidates the functional orientation of the Fund’s powers, the specific procedure of its formation, and, most importantly, its role and significance in the banking system of Ukraine. It is critically important for the entire deposit guarantee system for individuals, as well as the removal of banks from the market to be legally transparent and predictable. To achieve this goal, all main mechanisms, procedures, and forms of activity should be appropriately regulated at the legislative level. In this regard, the experience gained from the relevant legislative regulation of the activities of state “regulators” and the functioning of self-regulatory organizations in related fields can serve as a basis for further institutional reform of the deposit guarantee system in Ukraine.

Salt exploitation by dissolution – an alternative method to reduce post-closure risks

During the last century, the mine closure frequency had significantly increased, therefore important environmental issues affect the public safety and the sustainable development process of the mining areas. The customary method of salt exploitation by dissolution uses the flooding of the formed caverns as the last step of the exploitation, which permanently isolates the caverns. In this case the rock-mass equilibrium inside the cavern changes, calamities such as seismicity, subsidence and collapse occasionally occur. Quite a few times, human settlements, civil buildings or industrial constructions located at the surface are affected. The present paper discusses adopting an alternative salt exploitation method by dissolution which offers the possibility to extract the entire salt deposit. This allows monitoring the stability factors linked to the exploitation process - the collapse that will occur as monitored represents the latter part of the method. It finally offers the opportunity to reclaim the water surface formed as a sustainable development goal and to reduce the long-term risks for calamities.

Evolution of the facies development of the Knurów deposit (USCB) based on the microlithotypes analysis

This paper presents the first attempt to reconstruct the facies development of the entire Carboniferous coal deposit with an area of 38.50 km2, in the western part of the Upper Silesian Coal Basin based on microscopic microlithotype analysis. For this purpose, eight coal seams in the Knurów deposit were sampled. Samples were taken from all stratigraphic series of exploited seams and exploratory boreholes. This paper reconstructs the transition of environments between eight coal seams extracted in the active Knurów coking coal mine in the Upper Silesian Coal Basin, using microlithotype analysis of the whole seam basis on the fifty coal samples. Facies diagrams proposed in the literature by other researchers were used to reconstruct the depositional environments. The dominant microlithotypes in the coking coal of the Knurów deposit are vitrite (in the range from 19.96 vol% for coal seam No. 504 to 42.96 vol% for coal seam No. 355) and duroclarite (in the range from 20,57 vol% for coal seam No. 410 to 33,65 vol% for coal seam No. 405/1). The distribution of the samples indicates two dominant peat-forming environments. These are telmatic reed moor rich in duroclarite and telmatic forest moor rich in vitrite. This indicates a transitional environment between forest swamp and herbaceous swamp. Thus, the deposit evolved from the paralic to limnic facies. The formation of the river delta caused the progradation of terrestrial environments into the sea and the formation of extensive mires fed mainly by groundwater connected to the river system. Over time, the deposit changed from a reed facies to a forest facies. Periodically, the mires were flooded with waters formed in the proximal lacustrine delta by rising water levels or delta subsidence. The remnants of this phenomenon are interbeds in coal seams resembling macroscopic sapropelic coal rich in the clay matters and gelinite. These are layers containing vitrite in the range of 52.99–59.06 vol% and mineral matter in the amount of 19.76–34.59 vol%. The evolution of the basin proceeded from the paralic to limnic stage. The main factor determining the evolution of the mire was the existing river system with periodically variable activity and intensity.

Evolution of pore structure in nanoparticle deposits from unimodal to bimodal pore size distributions: Focus on structural features of dendritic structures

Nanoparticle deposits can exhibit various structures, including compact and dendritic structures, depending on the deposition conditions. While previous studies have characterized deposit structures using factors such as porosity and spatial autocorrelation index, the pore size distribution (PSD), which is an essential structural property, has only been explored in compact structures. In this study, we investigate the PSDs of the entire nanoparticle deposits, ranging from compact to dendritic structures. Deposits are formed using an off-lattice Monte Carlo simulation, and deposition conditions are represented by two dimensionless numbers (KnD, χF). The diffusive Knudsen number (KnD) ranges from 10−1.5 to 101.5, while the dimensionless translational energy of a particle (χF) ranges from 10−3 to 101.5. We use the Delaunay triangulation algorithm for fast PSD calculation, and validate the calculation method using theoretical values of ideal structures and experimental literature data. Our results show that bimodal PSDs appear under thermally-dominated conditions with high values of KnD, while unimodal PSDs with a constant mode radius (∼2.5 rp) are observed under highly advective conditions with high values of χF. We present the geometric mean radii and mode radii of pores as color-filled contours to show their variation trends with KnD and χF. Additionally, we propose a simple model that predicts dendrite width by combining the overall porosity and mode radii of pores. Our model's predictions reasonably match the dendrite width data obtained using a density-based clustering algorithm.

The Zunyi manganese deposit, South China: A consequence of climatic-oceanic changes triggered by the eruption of Emeishan large Igneous Province?

South China hosts a large number of Middle Permian marine sedimentary Mn deposits (MSMDs) coeval to the eruption of the Emeishan Large Igneous Province (ELIP). The linkage between these MSMDs and ELIP eruption remains unclear. Here, we observed anomalously high Hg concentrations and Hg/TOC ratios, and a shift of Δ199Hg to near-zero at the base of the Middle Permian Zunyi MSMD. These results suggest ELIP eruption as a possible driving force for the deposition of the Zunyi MSMD. Principal component analysis (PCA) of trace element concentrations of the Zunyi MSMD samples revealed three clusters of trace elements. Cluster A elements (Cr, Zn, Mo, Sb, and Tl) are anomalously high at the basal of the Zunyi MSMD, confirming ELIP as a driver for the formation of this deposit. Cluster B elements (Ba, Rb, and Cu) are high in the entire deposit, supporting elevated oceanic productivity. A stepwise increase in Cluster C elements (Li, Ga, Sn, Zr, Nb, Hf, Ta, and W) concentrations in the Zunyi MSMD suggests enhanced terrestrial weathering. We infer that the ELIP eruption triggered an increased input of terrestrial nutrients to the ocean, causing increased oceanic productivity and rising dissolved O2 levels in the surface water of the middle Permian ocean in South China, favoring Mn deposition and MSMDs formation.

An integrated study for seismic structural interpretation and reservoir estimation of Sawan gas field, Lower Indus Basin, Pakistan

The information about the subsurface structure, type of fluids present in the reservoir, and physical properties of the rocks is essential for identifying potential leads. The integrated approach of petrophysical analysis, seismic data interpretation, seismic attributes analysis, lithology, mineralogy identification, and Gassmann fluid substitution were used for this purpose. The structural interpretation with the help of seismic data indicated the extensional regime with horst and graben structures in the study area. The two negative flower structures are cutting the entire Cretaceous deposits. The depth contour map also indicate favorable structures for hydrocarbon accumulation. The four possible reservoir zones in the Sawan-01 well and two zones in the Judge-01 well at B sand and C sand levels are identified based on well data interpretation. The main lithology of the Lower Goru Formation is sandstone with thin beds of shale. The clay types confirm the marine depositional environment for Lower Goru Formation. The water substitution in the reservoir at B sand and C sand levels indicated increased P-wave velocity and density. The water substitution affected the shear wave velocity varies slightly due to density changes. The cross plots of P-impedance versus Vp/Vs ratio differentiate the sandstone with low P-impedance and low Vp/Vs ratio from shaly sandstone with high values in the reservoir area. The P-impedance and S-impedance cross plot indicate increasing gas saturation with a decrease in impedance values. The low values of Lambda-Rho and Mu-Rho indicated the gas sandstone in the cross plot.

Thermal magnetic analysis on iron ores and banded iron formations (BIFs) in the Hamersley Province: Implications of origins of magnetic minerals and iron ores

<abstract> <p>The genesis models of the iron-ores hosted in banded iron formations (BIFs) in the Hamersley Province of Western Australia have been debated since the iron-ore deposits were discovered in the 1960s. The existing models considered the few physicochemical conditions for the iron-ore enrichment from BIFs. This study incorporates the latest research outcomes in conversions among the major magnetic minerals under different physicochemical conditions with the thermal magnetic analysis for BIFs and iron-ores collected from the Hamersley Province to fill the gap in knowledge highlighted by existing studies of the iron ores and BIFs. The results indicate that the high-grade hematite ores might have been undergone a physicochemical process under hydrothermal conditions between 120 ℃ and 220 ℃ during the major stage of enrichment from the original BIFs in the Brockman Iron Formation. Such physicochemical conditions would require either that the BIF units were buried 4000–5000 m underground with tilted broad channels formed by large-scale deformation in the region that facilitates hydrothermal reactions and leaching by the fluids flowing down deep to 4000–5000 m, somehow similar to the deep-seated supergene model proposed in previous works, or that the BIF units were still buried but the hydrothermal fluids coming up from deeper sources spread widely over the broad channels to ensure the high-grade hematite ores are consistently uniform over the entire deposit. The large-scale martite-goethite deposits in the Marra Mamba Iron Formation might be derived from multiple supergene phases from hematite-martite ores below 100 ℃ in the natural process of oxidization near surface, somewhat similar to the existing model for the channel iron deposits. Magnetite contained within current BIFs and iron ores was least likely derived from primary hematite in BIFs.</p> </abstract>

Logical Innovativeness on Organisational Effectiveness of Deposit Money Bank in Akure Metropolis

The study determines impact of technological innovativeness on organisational effectiveness with reference to Akure Metropolis.A descriptive survey research design was adopted for the study. The population of the study comprisedthe unit managers of the entire deposit money bank in Akure metropolis. The study employed sample size of 48through censussampling. Primary data used for the study were gathered through the administration of well structured questionnaire. Data gathered were analyzed using Pearson product moment correlation andregression analysis. The study found that Automated Teller Machine,Mobile Banking and Internet Banking positively and significantly affect organisational effectiveness. Thus, it concluded that organisational effectiveness is positively impacted by technological innovativeness.

Rapid megaflood-triggered base-level rise on Mars

Abstract The existence of ancient fluvial systems on Mars is widely accepted, but little is known about how quickly they formed, or what environmental conditions controlled their evolution. We analyzed a sequence of well-preserved inner-bank bar deposits within the meander bends of a multistacked sinuous fluvial ridge in Aeolis Dorsa and compared them to similar features on Earth to establish the conditions required for their formation. Our results reveal that these Martian channels were highly aggradational, rising an order of magnitude higher than terrestrial rivers. This evolution occurred over very rapid time scales, with our estimates suggesting that some entire inner-bar set deposits, and therefore the aggradational channel, may have formed in less than a single Martian year, with upper bounds of a few decades. We suggest that this unique channel topography was created by a rapidly rising downstream water body, triggered by a sequence of externally sourced megafloods (e.g., crater lake breaches).

Designing the 3D Porous Anode Based on Pore Size Dependent Li Deposition Behavior for Reversible Li Metal-Free Solid-State-Batteries

Li metal-based all-solid-state batteries (ASSBs) can potentially combine the high energy of Li metal anodes and the safety of ASSBs. Among Li metal-based ASSBs, lithium-free or anodeless ASSBs are considered optimal battery configurations because of their higher energy density and economic advantages attributed to the absence of Li metal during the battery assembly process. Despite the extensive interest in Li-free ASSBs, they continue to suffer from low Coulombic efficiency and poor cycle performance. One reason for this inferior performance is the unstable interface between the current collector and solid electrolyte (SE), which can eventually lead to inhomogeneous Li deposition, dendritic Li growth, and internal short circuits. Various approaches including 3D porous anodes have been proposed to control the Li deposition behavior and improve the reversibility of anodeless ASSBs; however, there is no clarity on the mechanism and conditions for determining the Li deposition behavior in this emerging system.In this study, we systematically investigate the Li deposition behavior depending on the pore size of 3D anode and successfully demonstrate the strategy to obtain a highly reversible 3D porous anode for Li-free ASSBs. We found that more Li deposits could be accommodated within the pores of the anode with a smaller pore size using stacked Ni particles as the Li-hosting porous anode; this implies that the Li movement into the anode occurs via diffusional Coble creep. We proposed the modification of the Ni surface with carbon coating and Ag nanoparticle decoration (Ni_C_Ag particles) to further improve the Li storage capacity of the Ni-based 3D anode and, thereby, secure the interfacial contact between the 3D Ni anode and SE. The resulting Ni_C_Ag 3D anode successfully accommodated the entire Li deposit of 2 mAh cm−2 within the porous architecture without the separation of the anode/SE interface. We clarified the improved Li storage capacity of the Ni_C_Ag anode as follows.(1) C and especially Ag electrochemically react with Li ions above 0 V; thus, Li ions can be transported to 3D Ni_C_Ag porous anode before Li deposition at the SE/anode interface at < 0 V. Further, the high Li ion diffusion coefficient of lithiated carbon and Li-Ag alloy can further reduce Li ions within the pores of the 3D anode; therefore, Li deposition can occur within the porous 3D Ni anode.(2) Lithiophilic C and Ag facilitated the movement of Li via diffusional Coble creep. In particular, Ag with solid solubility in Li (Li(Ag)) can significantly enhance Li adatom mobility because of the identical structure of Li(Ag) with pure Li.(3) Li(Ag) is widely known to lower the energy barrier for Li nucleation.With the significantly reduced nucleation overpotential and interfacial resistance, the Ni_C_Ag anode showed high reversibility in Li deposition and stripping. The Ni_C_Ag anode could be cycled for more than 60 and 100 cycles with Li3PS4 and Li6PS5Cl0.5Br0.5 SE in half cells with a capacity limit of 2 mAh cm−2 and a current density of 0.5 mA cm− 2maintaining the CE of 97.9% and 96.9 %, respectively. Further, the synergistic effects of the stable anode/SE interface and reduced nucleation energy barrier enable stable NCM full-cell cycling at a room temperature of 30 °C. The NCM811 cathode/Ni_C_Ag anode full cell in the Li-free configuration showed an initial areal discharge capacity of 2 mAh cm−2, and it operated stably with a CE of 99.47% for 100 cycles. Figure 1

Geostatistical modeling of heterogeneous geo-clusters in a copper deposit integrated with multinomial logistic regression: An exercise on resource estimation

Resource estimation is the main and primary step in the development of a mining project. Principally, it is necessary to first identify the geological domains through boreholes, model them at unsampled locations, and then evaluate the grade(s) of interest inside each built domain. The traditional determination of these categorical domains over the sampling points is suboptimal as it considers mostly-one or two variables from core logging. This leads to the neglect of the influence of other significant variables. To circumvent the problem of estimation domain identification, spatially dependent clustering machine learning algorithms can be of great help in detecting such domains. However, one problem that may appear when using these techniques is that the resulting geo-domains (geo-clusters) obtained by the clustering technique might be heterogeneous and show a non-stationary property. The reason is that the aim of these spatially dependent techniques is to produce compact and spatially contiguous clusters, which are well suited to establishing non-stationary geo-domains. This makes the procedure of modelling challenging as it necessitates the use of advanced geostatistical techniques to propagate the heterogeneous geo-clusters at unsampled locations.An algorithm is presented in this study that employs a non-stationary sequential indicator simulation paradigm to model such complex variability of heterogeneous geo-clusters. Since the spatial trends of underlying geo-clusters are required in this simulation method, in this study, we propose the use of multinomial logistic regression to infer these trends. The algorithm was tested using an actual case study from a porphyry copper deposit in Iran, where Cu, Mo, Au, Rock Quality Designation (RQD), mineralization zones, alteration types, and rock types were employed to identify and spatially model the heterogeneous geo-domains in the entire deposit. The results were compared with a conventional sequential indicator simulation where no trend was used. An examination of the resulting maps using several evaluation criteria including visual inspection of the realizations, probability maps, reproduction of proportion of each geo-cluster, connectivity measures, and trend analysis, showed that the findings of the proposed algorithm were superior in modelling heterogeneous geo-domains.

Source identification and chemical compositions of particulate and mineral-associated organic matter in the deposited sediments of a dam-controlled watershed

Understanding the soil fraction controls on the source and chemical composition of soil organic matter (SOM) in buried sediments is essential for revealing the underlying mechanisms of deposited carbon (C) fate and stabilization on the earth. In this study, we fractionated the bulk SOM into particulate organic matter (POM) and mineral-associated organic matter (MAOM) in deposit profiles trapped by check dam on the Chinese Loess Plateau and then attempted to explore the sources and chemical compositions of the POM and MAOM fractions by combining physical fractionation with elemental, isotopic, and spectroscopic analyses. The results showed that the main C source of deposited SOM from upland soils varied with soil fractions. The primary contributor of the POM fraction in deposited sediments originated from grassland and the gully’s contribution was minimal, whereas the cropland was the main contributor to the MAOM fraction and the lowest contribution was from forest. The relative enrichments of δ13C and δ15N and the lower C/N ratio in the MAOM fraction indicated that it had undergone more microbial processing than the POM had. Moreover, the specific peak data of Fourier Transform Infrared spectra (FTIR) demonstrated that there were higher proportions of the labile functional groups (i.e., alcohol COH/CNH, polysaccharide CO, and aliphatic CH) than the recalcitrant functional group (i.e., aromatic CC/CN) in the POM fraction in entire deposit profiles. The poor relationships between 13CSOC and log-transformed SOC in different soil fractions further confirmed a lower decomposition rate of MAOM compared to the POM. The results indicate that the POM fraction might have a faster SOM biogeochemical cycling than the MAOM fraction in buried sediments. Our results provide important implications for accurately estimating the nature and persistence of the deposited OM retained by check dams.

Justification of the stress-strain state’s parameters of the mine workings contours depending on the influencing factors

The complication of mining and geological conditions is associated with the involvement in the development of areas and entire deposits with complex tectonics, an increase in the depth of development, the manifestation of dangerous dynamic effects of rock pressure, which necessitates the improvement of methods, systems, methods and means of supporting mine workings, as well as improving the quality of materials used for support. Mining and geological factors affecting the use of mining support include: the depth of occurrence, which determines the magnitude of the vertical and horizontal components of the rock pressure; layer thickness, developed deposit; bed angle; properties of the host rocks, structure and physical and mechanical properties of rocks and minerals. The paper presents the conduction of the analytical modelling of the rock mass stress-strain state around the active mine workings using the ANSYS software with the assessment of the influence of its cross-section shape and the angle of the coal seam fall on the value of the maximum stresses arising in the rock mass when the workings are supported with the anchoring support depending on the thickness of the easily collapsible rock layer at different lengths of anchoring.

The origins of transparent and non-transparent white pumice: A case study of the 52 ka Maninjau caldera-forming eruption, Indonesia

The VEI 7 (220–250 km3), a 52 ka eruption of the Maninjau caldera in Indonesia produced two distinct types of white pumices: transparent (TWP) and non-transparent (NTWP). These pumices were identified on outcrops, based on their qualitative traits, without the use of laboratory analyses (geochemical and textural). TWPs are typically fragile, irregular in shape, and have a transparent glass of vesicle walls around visible large vesicles, whereas NTWPs are relatively strong, blocky in shape, and have a non-transparent glass due to invisible small vesicles. Based on chemical and petrographical analyses, both pumice types were crystal-poor (avg. of 3.3%), with similar mineralogy, glass compositions (avg. 78.5 wt% SiO2), and plagioclase core compositions (avg. of An28). From component analysis, we found that the abundance of TWP decreased towards the upper stratigraphic ignimbrite deposits, along with an increase in NTWP, grey pumice, banded pumice, and lithic (non-juvenile) contents. We defined two vesicle populations with a threshold diameter of 0.1 mm based on bimodal vesicle size distributions by textural analysis for TWP and NTWP. Large vesicles correspond to preexisting bubbles that form in the magma chamber (pheno-vesicle, > 0.1 mm), whereas small vesicles in the groundmass (matrix-vesicle, < 0.1 mm) are attributed to second nucleation in the conduit during the eruption. We performed a comparison using vesicle data (pheno- and matrix-vesicles) for these two white pumice types. Pheno- and matrix-vesicularity showed a negative correlation. Thus, the boundary between TWP and NTWP was also quantitatively confirmed by the volume fraction ratio of the pheno- and matrix-vesicles. This evidence suggests that TWP originated from pheno-bubble-dominated magma (at least 0.1% volume fraction of pheno-bubbles in the magma chambers), whereas NTWP originated from pheno-bubble-poor magma. The variation in the abundance of TWP and NTWP in the stratigraphic positions implies the rough stratification of pre-existing bubbles (pheno-bubbles) in the pre-eruptive magma chamber, where the overpressure developed to trigger and drive the eruption. The two regimes control the formation of matrix-vesicles: (1) a pheno-bubble-controlled regime, and (2) a decompression-controlled regime. Based on a correlation between pheno-vesicle number density (PVND) and matrix-vesicle number density (MVND) together with numerical calculations based on a previous study, we suggest that the TWPs with the highest pheno-vesicularity formed under conditions corresponding to the first regimes, while the NTWPs formed in the second regime, where MVND is mostly determined by decompression rate. We also argue that NTWP is the only representative juvenile for estimating magma decompression rate, as the MVND value in TWP do not represent the actual second nucleation processes. Therefore, the occurrence of NTWP in the entire deposits with a relatively similar MVNDs value might suggest that the early and final eruption stages experienced a relatively similar magma decompression rate.

Facies development of coal seams in the Knurów deposit (Upper Silesia, Poland)

This paper presents the first attempt to develop the facies model of the entire coal deposit belonging to the Carboniferous productive sequence located in the western part of the Upper Silesian Coal Basin. To achieve this objective, six seams from the Knurów deposit were examined. The deposit belongs to the largest producer of coking coal in Europe, which is Jastrzębska Spółka Węglowa SA (Polish state-run coking coal producer). The maceral composition, vitrinite reflectance, ash yield content, moisture content, gross calorific value, and volatile matter yield were determined. Coals from the Knurów deposit are classified as ortho-bituminous and meta-bituminous coals. Their average degree of coalification, determined by vitrinite reflectance, is RO = 0.79% to RO = 1.09%. Petrographic indices and the analysis of facies diagrams were used to develop the facies model. It was shown that the facies development and sedimentological evolution of the Knurów deposit were determined by the river system extended to the upper delta plain. In accordance with the stratigraphic succession, the oldest deposits are dominated by the reed facies (mainly Calamites) growing in oxbow lakes and dry streambeds. With the passage of time, the importance of the river system for the development of the paleo-environment decreased. Transitional bogs with mixed plant communities were formed. This started the conversion of wetlands into areas occupied by wet forest. At the end of the sedimentation of the documented coal seams in the Knurów deposit, lowland bogs (fens), which were subject to frequent fires, dominated the landscape. Based on a detailed maceral analysis and facies diagram analysis, a strong correlation between fault occurrence and coal facies developed under paleo-river influence was displayed. The aim of the study is to show environmental changes during deposit formation in the context of geological exploration.

A Preliminary Evaluation of the Effects of a Contingency Management + Deposit Contract Intervention on Problematic Smartphone Use With College Students.

Problematic smartphone use (PSU) is smartphone usage that is, in some way, damaging to the user. PSU represents a growing public health concern that could be addressed via behavioral intervention. We recruited six college students who reported negative side effects of smartphone use and sought to decrease their PSU. The effects of a contingency management (CM) + deposit contract intervention on PSU was evaluated. During the CM + deposit contract condition, participants deposited $40 and had the opportunity to earn back their entire deposit by meeting daily smartphone usage goals. To promote adherence to study protocols, participants also had the opportunity to earn a $20 cooperation bonus. For all participants, lower levels of PSU were observed during intervention relative to baseline. The CM + deposit contract intervention produced consistent decreases in PSU for four participants (mean reduction percentages above 40% were obtained) and had inconsistent effects on PSU for two participants (mean reduction percentages below 20%). Maintenance of intervention effects was limited for all participants. Although preliminary, results suggest that CM + deposit contract interventions could be a viable, low-cost approach to addressing PSU. Potential explanations for our findings and avenues for future research are discussed.

Mollusc assemblage from the early Neolithic site of Isorella (BS, northern Italy) and its palaeoenvironmental significance

This paper presents the results of the study of the mollusc assemblage retrieved during the excavations carried out in 1997 at the early Neolithic site of Isorella (Po Valley, Northern Italy), during which a shallow refuse pit structure was brought to light. The water sieving of the entire deposit led to the collection of thousands of specimens of land snails, freshwater, and marine molluscs.The spatial distribution of the finds highlighted the problems related with the interpretation of the associations of molluscs retrieved from buried structures in prehistoric open-air settlements. The data allow a first assessment of early Neolithic molluscs exploitation in northern Italy, and in particular the characteristics of the Isorella environmental setting around the end of the 6th and beginning of the 5th Millennium cal BC.

Seismic resilience of extra-large LNG tank built on liquefiable soil deposit capturing soil-pile-structure interaction

Assessment of seismic resilience of critical infrastructure such as liquefied natural gas (LNG) storage tanks, is essential to ensure availability and security of services during and after occurrence of large earthquakes. In many projects, it is preferred to build energy storage facilities in coastal areas for the ease of sea transportation, where weak soils such as soft clay and loose sand with liquefaction potential may be present. In this study, three-dimensional finite element model is implemented to examine the seismic response of a 160,000 m3 full containment LNG tank supported by 289 reinforced concrete piles constructed on liquefiable soil overlaying the soft clay deposit. The seismic soil-structure interaction analysis was conducted through direct method in the time domain subjected to the 1999 Chi-Chi and the 1968 Hachinohe earthquakes, scaled to Safe Shutdown Earthquake hazard level for design of LNG tanks. The analyses considered different thicknesses of the liquified soil deposit varying from zero (no liquefaction) to 15 m measured from the ground surface. The key design parameters inspected for the LNG tank include the acceleration profile for both inner and outer tanks, the axial, hoop and shear forces as well as the von Mises stresses in the inner tank wall containing the LNG, in addition to the pile response in terms of lateral displacements, shear forces and bending moments. The results show that the seismic forces generated in the superstructure decreased with increasing the liquefied soil depth. In particular, the von Mises stresses in the inner steel tank exceeded the yield stress for non-liquefied soil deposit, and the elastic–plastic buckling was initiated in the upper section of the tank where plastic deformations were detected as a result of excessive von Mises stresses. However, when soil liquefaction occurred, although von Mises stresses in the inner tank shell remained below the yield limit, localised stress concentrations were observed in the lower section of the tank near the base, increasing the risk of the elephant foot buckling. The lateral displacements, shear forces and bending moments in the piles increased with increasing depth of the liquefied soil. Indeed, increasing the pile lateral displacement amplified the bending moment at the pile head, thus resulting in increases in the pile bending moments especially when the liquefied soil depth exceeded one third of the entire soil deposit. In particular, the bending moment at the pile head exceeded the yield moment capacity of the pile and subsequent plastic hinges were formed. Moreover, when the thickness of the liquefied soil was more than half of the entire soil depth, the mobilised bending moments in the piles exceed the ultimate moment capacity of the pile and thus total failure of the piles were observed. In addition, in the absence of liquefied soil layer, the inertial interaction had a dominant impact on the pile response in this study. However, with increasing the thickness of the liquefied layer, further loads were developed in the piles due to amplified kinematic interaction, while the inertial interaction-induced loads decreased.