Hydrostatic Pressure Regime Research Articles

Determining Which Hydrostatic Pressure Regimes Promote Osteogenesis in Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells

Background:Compressive loading of bone causes hydrostatic pressure changes which have been proposed as an osteogenic differentiation stimulus for mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs). We hypothesised that hMSCs are adapted to differentiate only in response to cyclic hydrostatic pressures above critical thresholds of magnitude and frequency which correspond to physiological levels of anabolic bone loading.Methods:Using a pneumatic-hydrostatic bioreactor, we applied hydrostatic pressure regimes to human hMSCs in 3D collagen hydrogel cultures for 1 h/day over 28 days to determine which levels of pressure and frequency stimulated osteogenesis in vitro.Results:Stimulation of the 3D cultures with 0–280 kPa cyclic hydrostatic pressure at 1 Hz resulted in up to 75% mineralisation in the hydrogel (without exogenous growth factors), whilst static culture or variations of the regime with either constant high pressure (280 kPa, 0 Hz), low-frequency (0.05 Hz, 280 kPa) or low-magnitude (70 kPa, 1 Hz) stimulation had no osteogenic effects (< 2% mineralisation). Nuclear translocation of YAP was observed following cyclic hydrostatic pressure in mature MLO-A5 osteoblasts but not in hMSCs, suggesting that cyclic hydrostatic pressure activates different mechanotransduction pathways in undifferentiated stem cells and committed osteoblasts.Conclusions:Hydrostatic pressure is a potent stimulus for differentiating MSC into highly active osteoblasts and may therefore be a versatile tool for translational cell engineering. We have demonstrated that there are minimum levels of force and frequency needed to trigger osteogenesis, i.e. a pressure ‘switch’, which corresponds to the physiological forces experienced by cells in their native mesenchymal niche. The mechanotransduction mechanisms underpinning these effects are the subject of further study.

In Situ Stress Determination Based on Acoustic Image Logs and Borehole Measurements in the In-Adaoui and Bourarhat Hydrocarbon Fields, Eastern Algeria

The study of in situ stress from image logs is a key factor for understanding regional stresses and the exploitation of hydrocarbon resources. This work presents a comprehensive geomechanical analysis of two eastern Algerian hydrocarbon fields to infer the magnitudes of principal stress components and stress field orientation. Acoustic image logs and borehole measurements were used in this research to aid our understanding of regional stress and field development. The studied In-Adaoui and Bourarhat fields encompass a combined thickness of 3050 m of Paleozoic and Mesozoic stratigraphy, with the primary reservoir facies in the Ordovician interval. The Ordovician sandstone reservoir interval indicates an average Poisson’s ratio (v) of 0.3, 100–150 MPa UCS, and 27–52 GPa Young’s modulus (E). Direct formation pressure measurements indicate that the sandstone reservoir is in a hydrostatic pore pressure regime. Density-derived vertical stress had a 1.1 PSI/feet gradient. Minimum horizontal stress modeled from both Poisson’s ratio and an effective stress ratio-based approach yielded an average 0.82 PSI/feet gradient, as validated with the leak-off test data. Drilling-induced tensile fractures (DITF) and compressive failures, i.e., breakouts (BO), were identified from acoustic image logs. On the basis of the DITF criterion, the maximum horizontal stress gradient was found to be 1.57–1.71 PSI/feet, while the BO width-derived gradient was 1.27–1.37 PSI/feet. Relative stress magnitudes indicate a strike-slip stress regime. A mean SHMax orientation of N130°E (NW-SE) was interpreted from the wellbore failures, classified as B-quality stress indicators following the World Stress Map (WSM) ranking scheme. The inferred stress magnitude and orientation were in agreement with the regional trend of the western Mediterranean region and provide a basis for field development and hydraulic fracturing in the low-permeable reservoir. On the basis of the geomechanical assessments, drilling and reservoir development strategies are discussed, and optimization opportunities are identified.

Adaptations to high pressure of Nautilia sp. strain PV-1, a piezophilic Campylobacterium (aka Epsilonproteobacterium) isolated from a deep-sea hydrothermal vent.

Physiological and gene expression studies of deep-sea bacteria under pressure conditions similar to those experienced in their natural habitat are critical for understanding growth kinetics and metabolic adaptations to in situ conditions. The Campylobacterium (aka Epsilonproteobacterium) Nautilia sp. strain PV-1 was isolated from hydrothermal fluids released from an active deep-sea hydrothermal vent at 9° N on the East Pacific Rise. Strain PV-1 is a piezophilic, moderately thermophilic, chemolithoautotrophic anaerobe that conserves energy by coupling the oxidation of hydrogen to the reduction of nitrate or elemental sulfur. Using a high-pressure-high temperature continuous culture system, we established that strain PV-1 has the shortest generation time of all known piezophilic bacteria and we investigated its protein expression pattern in response to different hydrostatic pressure regimes. Proteogenomic analyses of strain PV-1 grown at 20 and 5MPa showed that pressure adaptation is not restricted to stress response or homeoviscous adaptation but extends to enzymes involved in central metabolic pathways. Protein synthesis, motility, transport, and energy metabolism are all affected by pressure, although to different extents. In strain PV-1, low-pressure conditions induce the synthesis of phage-related proteins and an overexpression of enzymes involved in carbon fixation.

Pressure-induced phase transition in magnetoresistance perovskite La0.75Ca0.25MnO3: a GGA + U study

Density functional theory calculations within a DFT+U approach have been carried out to determine the effect of hydrostatic pressure and strain on the structural, electronic and magnetic properties of La0.75Ca0.25MnO3. We investigate the opportunuty of the appearence of the A-type antiferromagnetic phase under pressure as observed from experiments. At ambient pressure and in the hydrostatic pressure regime (4–25 GPa), the system remains ferromagnetic in its ground state, and the A-type antiferromagnetic coupling is tied to Mn e g orbital order while the ferromagnetic behavior refers to orbital disorder one. No magnetic transition was found when increasing the hydrostatic pressure up to 25 GPa. Applying a tetragonal distortion along the b direction of the pnma orthorhombic structure, the system exhibits a transition from the ferromagnetic orbitally disordered phase to the A-type antiferromagnetic orbitally ordered phase at about 22.5 GPa, in agreement with experiment. Projected density of states (PDOS) calculations predict the pressure and strain effects that are discussed in terms of different electronic occupations through and orbitals.

Pore pressure and in-situ stress magnitudes in the Bhiret Hammou hydrocarbon field, Berkine Basin, Algeria

A recently drilled exploratory well encompassing over 5 km of Mesozoic and Paleozoic sediments has been studied from the Bhiret Hammou field of the Berkine Basin, Algeria. Geophysical logs and downhole measurements have been integrated to ascertain rock strength, elastic properties, pore pressure and principal in-situ stress magnitudes. Vertical stress has an average 1.02 PSI/feet gradient in the studied field, as estimated from the density log. The Devonian shales are mildly over-pressured, while the Triassic and Carboniferous hydrocarbon reservoirs are in a hydrostatic pore pressure regime. Minimum and maximum horizontal stresses are quantified from a poroelastic strain model. The Sh gradient varies between 0.59 and 0.80 PSI/feet, whereas the SH gradient is interpreted as 0.86–1.26 PSI/feet. Based on the relative stress magnitudes (SH≥Sv>Sh), a present-day normal to strike-slip transitional tectonic regime is inferred.

The Pb-Zn-Ag vein system at Montevecchio-Ingurtosu, southwestern Sardinia, Italy: A summary of previous knowledge and new mineralogical, fluid inclusion, and isotopic data

The Montevecchio-Ingurtosu district (SW Sardinia) was among the largest historical Pb-Zn producers of Italy, with significant Ag output, and yields of metallic byproducts such as Cd, Co, Cu, Bi, Sb, Ge, In, and Ga. Despite this importance, detailed descriptions of orebodies and mineral assemblages are surprisingly scarce and old. Here we summarize all previously available information and contribute new textural, microchemical, fluid inclusion, and C-O isotopic data deriving from a recent sampling of currently exposed orebodies. Mineralization occurs as steeply dipping veins extending for almost 20 km at the northern and western flanks of the Variscan Arbus pluton; veins are hosted in phyllites of the Arburese Unit close to the thermometamorphic aureole. Ore enrichments range from massive to coarsely nodular, stockwork and brecciated. Vein filling consists of siderite (locally Zn-rich), quartz, sphalerite, galena (remarkably rich in micro-inclusions), with accessory chalcopyrite, fahlore, bournonite, barite, and Ni-Co sulfarsenides. Vein assemblages may vary, even within a single vein, from sphalerite- to galena-dominated. Cu-rich assemblages (fahlore + chalcopyrite) were locally observed. Wallrock is affected by silicification, sericitization and pyrite dissemination. Sphalerite shows a complex mineral chemistry, with marked variations in Fe (0.08 to 8.9 mol% FeS) and in Cd contents (from <0.05 to >1 wt%). Trace element analyses (LA-ICP-MS) document the presence of measurable amounts of Ga, Ge, In, Ag, Ni, Co, Tl and Mo. Fahlore varies from the Sb (tetrahedrite) and the As (tennantite) endmembers, with Ag-rich compositions corresponding to Sb endmembers. The occurrence of Cd-rich tetrahedrite (up to 14.5 wt%) is remarkable. Fluid inclusion studies on sphalerite and quartz are in agreement with previous literature data, and indicate comparatively low (in the range 90°–130 °C) homogenization temperatures (Th) and high salinities (14 to 25 equiv. mass % NaCl); both microthermometric data and SEM/EDS analyses of decrepitated inclusions indicate the presence of Ca and K beside Na. Pressure correction to Th is presumably low (in the order of 10 °C), considering a hydrostatic pressure regime. Application of the sphalerite-based GGIMFiS thermometer provided temperatures in excellent agreement with fluid inclusion data for the Montevecchio mineralization. Isotopic data on Montevecchio carbonates define mildy negative δ13CPDB values (between −1 and −5 per mil), and a larger spread of δ18OSMOW values, between +14 and +20 per mil. Other isotopic data from literature include a limited set of δ34S values for galena, sphalerite and pyrite, and a fairly large body of Pb isotopic data on galena. Comparatively narrow ranges for sulfur isotope signatures suggest a homogeneous, possibly igneous, sulfur source, whereas the large spread in Pb isotope signatures reflects the large-scale character of the hydrothermal process and indicates that the Arbus pluton may have been just one of the sources of ore lead. The Montevecchio vein system shows affinities with other late to post Variscan European deposits. The nature of the mineralizing fluids at Montevecchio is analogous to low temperature, basinal brines, and typical of several regional-scale, late to post-Variscan hydrothermal events across Europe. Mineralization at Montevecchio obviously postdates the emplacement of the Arbus plutonic complex, but its exact age remains unknown..

The role of hydrophobicity in the cold denaturation of proteins under high pressure: A study on apomyoglobin.

An exciting debate arises when microscopic mechanisms involved in the denaturation of proteins at high pressures are explained. In particular, the issue emerges when the hydrophobic effect is invoked, given that hydrophobicity cannot elucidate by itself the volume changes measured during protein unfolding. In this work, we study by the use of molecular dynamics simulations and essential dynamics analysis the relation between the solvation dynamics, volume, and water structure when apomyoglobin is subjected to a hydrostatic pressure regime. Accordingly, the mechanism of cold denaturation of proteins under high-pressure can be related to the disruption of the hydrogen-bond network of water favoring the coexistence of two states, low-density and high-density water, which directly implies in the formation of a molten globule once the threshold of 200 MPa has been overcome.

A new AVA attribute based on P-wave and S-wave reflectivities for overpressure prediction

Pore pressure prediction is a key step for safe well drilling operations and is usually performed by deriving a velocity-pressure relationship calibrated to a reference well. However, in the last few decades, other seismic-based methods, such as the Amplitude versus Angle (AVA) technique, have been extended to predict anomalous pressure values. Concerning AVA analysis, in this work, we show that the expected pressure effect on the elastic rock properties is very different from the fluid effect, thus making the classical AVA attributes used for fluid prediction ineffective at highlighting pressure anomalies. Therefore, we propose a new AVA attribute to evidence the decrease in P-wave and S-wave reflectivity that usually occurs when passing from an overlying formation to an underlying overpressured one. This attribute can be easily derived from the intercept and gradient values extracted from the recorded seismic pre-stack data by means of the Shuey equation. To demonstrate the applicability of this new attribute for pore pressure prediction we show examples on synthetic seismic data and three applications to different field datasets over already drilled prospects. In the case of overpressured layers, this attribute shows anomalous responses, thus demonstrating its effectiveness in highlighting anomalous pore pressure regimes. In contrast, no anomalous attribute values are observed in cases characterized by a hydrostatic pore pressure regime.

Supercritical geothermal reservoir revealed by a granite–porphyry system

To understand the geological properties of a supercritical geothermal reservoir, we investigated a granite–porphyry system as a natural analog. Quartz veins, hydrothermal breccia veins, and glassy veins are present in Neogene granitoids in NE Japan. The glassy veins formed at 500–550°C under lithostatic pressures, and then pressures dropped drastically. The solubility of silica also dropped, resulting in formation of quartz veins under a hydrostatic pressure regime. Connections between the lithostatic and hydrostatic pressure regimes were key to the formation of the hydrothermal breccia veins, and the granite–porphyry system provides useful information for creation of fracture clouds in supercritical geothermal reservoirs.

Cytochemical features of olfactory receptor cells in benthic and pelagic Sculpins (Cottoidei) from Lake Baikal

Electron and laser confocal microscopy were used to analyze the adaptive cytochemical features of the olfactory epithelium in three genetically close deep-water Cottoidei species endemic to Lake Baikal ? golomyanka (Baikal oilfish) Comephorus baicalensis, longfin Baikal sculpin Cottocomephorus inermis and fat sculpin Batrachocottus nikolskii ? whose foraging strategies are realized under different hydrostatic pressure regimes. Hypobaric hypoxia that developed in B. nikolskii (a deep-water benthic species) upon delivery to the surface caused distinct destructive changes in cells of the olfactory epithelium. In C. baicalensis and C. inermis, whose foraging behavior involves daily vertical migrations between deep and shallow layers, these cells are characterized by a significantly higher structural and functional stability than in deep-water B. nikolskii. The results of morphological study and quantitative analysis of functionally active mitochondria in cells of the olfactory epithelium of closely related deep-water fish species with different modes of life provide evidence that tolerance of the olfactory apparatus to hypobaric hypoxia is different in pelagic and benthic species. These results help elucidate the mechanisms responsible for the consistent functioning of the olfactory system in animals evolutionarily adapted to extreme environmental factors, and provide theoretical and practical implications in different fields of biology, neurology and extreme medicine.

Metallogenesis at the Carris W–Mo–Sn deposit (Gerês, Portugal): Constraints from fluid inclusions, mineral geochemistry, Re–Os and He–Ar isotopes

The Carris orebody consists of two partially exploited W–Mo–Sn quartz veins formed during successive shear stages and multipulse fluid fillings. They cut the Variscan post-D3 Gerês I-type granite. The most important ore minerals are wolframite, scheelite, molybdenite and cassiterite. There are two generations of wolframite. The earlier generation of wolframite is rare and has the highest WO4Mn content (91 mol%) and the most common wolframite contains 26–57 mol% WO4Mn. Re–Os dating of molybdenite from the ore quartz veins and surrounding granite yields ages of 279 ± 1.2 Ma and 280.3 ± 1.2 Ma, respectively which are in very good agreement with the previous ID-TIMS U–Pb zircon age for the Carris granite (280 ± 5 Ma). 3He/4He ratio of pyrite ranging between 0.73 and 2.71 Ra (1 Ra = 1.39 × 10− 6) and high 3He/36Ar (0.8–5 × 10− 3) indicate a mixture of a crustal radiogenic helium fluid with a mantle derived-fluid. The fluid inclusion studies on quartz intergrown with wolframite and scheelite, beryl and fluorite reveal that two distinct fluid types were involved in the genesis of this deposit. The first was a low to medium salinity aqueous carbonic fluid (CO2 between 4 and 14 mol%) with less than 1.95 mol% N2, which was only found in quartz associated with wolframite. The other was a low salinity aqueous fluid found in all the four minerals. The homogenization temperatures indicate minimum entrapment temperatures of 226–310 °C (average 280 °C) for the H2O–CO2–N2–NaCl fluid and average temperatures of 266 °C for scheelite and 242 °C, 190 °C and 160 °C for the last generations of beryl, fluorite and quartz, respectively. It was estimated that wolframite was deposited ~ 7 km depth, assuming a lithostatic pressure, probably due to strong pressure fluctuation caused by seismic events triggered by brittle tectonics during the exhumation event. Precipitation of scheelite and sulphides took place later, at the same depth, but under a hydrostatic or suprahydrostatic pressure regime, and probably caused by mixing between the magmatic–hydrothermal fluid and meteoric waters that deeply penetrated the basement during post-Variscan decompression.

Fluid inclusion evidence for hydrothermal fluid evolution in the Darreh-Zar porphyry copper deposit, Iran

The Darreh-Zar porphyry copper deposit is associated with a quartz monzonitic–granodioritic–porphyritic stock hosted by an Eocene volcanic sedimentary complex in which magmatic hydrothermal fluids were introduced and formed veins and alteration. Within the deepest quartz-rich and chalcopyrite-poor group A veins, LVHS2 inclusions trapped high salinity, high temperature aqueous fluids exsolved directly from a relatively shallow magma (0.5kbar). These late fluids were enriched in NaCl and reached halite saturation as a result of the low pressure of magma crystallization and fluid exsolution. These fluids extracted Cu from the crystallizing melt and transported it to the hydrothermal system. As a result of ascent, the temperature and pressure of these fluids decreased from 600 to 415°C, and approximately 500–315bars. At these conditions, K-feldspar and biotite were stabilized. Type A veins were formed at a depth of ∼1.2km under conditions of lithostatic pressure and abrupt cooling. Upon cooling and decompressing, the fluid intersected with the liquid–vapor field resulting in separation of immiscible liquid and vapor. This stage was recorded by formation of LVHS1, LVHS3 and VL inclusions. These immiscible fluids formed chalcopyrite–pyrite–quartz veins with sericitic alteration envelopes (B veins) under the lithostatic–hydrostatic pressure regime at temperatures between 415 and 355°C at 1.3km below the paleowater table. As the fluids ascended, copper contents decreased and these fluids were diluted by mixing with the low salinity-external fluid. Therefore, pyrite-dominated quartz veins were formed in purely hydrostatic conditions in which pressure decreased from 125bars to 54bars and temperature decreased from 355 to 298°C. During the magmatic-hydrothermal evolution, the composition and P–T regime changed drastically and caused various types of veins and alterations. The abundance of chalcopyrite precipitation in group B veins suggests that boiling and cooling were important factors in copper mineralization in Darreh-Zar.

Cyclic hydrostatic pressure stimulates enhanced bone development in the foetal chick femur in vitro

Mechanical loading of bone and cartilage in vivo results in the generation of cyclic hydrostatic forces as bone compression is transduced to fluid pressure in the canalicular network and the joint synovium. It has therefore been suggested that hydrostatic pressure is an important stimulus by which osteochondral cells and their progenitors sense and respond to mechanical loading in vivo. In this study, hydrostatic pressure regimes of 0–279kPa at 0.005–2Hz were applied to organotypically cultured ex vivo chick foetal femurs (e11) for 1hour per day in a custom designed bioreactor for 14days and bone formation assessed by X-ray microtomography and qualified by histology. We found that the mineralised portion of the developing femur cultured under any cyclic hydrostatic pressure regime was significantly larger and/or denser than unstimulated controls but that constant (non-cycling) hydrostatic pressure had no effect on bone growth. Further experiments showed that the increase in bone formation was directly proportional to stimulation frequency (R2=0.917), but independent of the magnitude of the pressure applied, whilst even very low frequencies of stimulation (0.005Hz) had significant effects on bone growth. Expression of Type-II collagen in both epiphyses and diaphysis was significantly upregulated (1.48-fold and 1.95-fold respectively), together with osteogenic genes (osteonectin and osteopontin) and the osteocyte maturation marker CD44. This work demonstrates that cyclic hydrostatic pressure promotes bone growth and mineralisation in a developmental model and supports the hypothesis that hydrostatic forces play an important role in regulating bone growth and remodelling in vivo.

Effect of the hydrostatic pressure on otolith growth of early juveniles of Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus

Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus early juveniles were maintained for 2 weeks in a pressurized system under a controlled photoperiod, at constant salinity and temperature. Groups of fish were exposed to one of three absolute hydrostatic pressure (HP) regimes: (1) a constant normal atmospheric pressure (100 kPa), (2) a constant 40 m pressure (500 kPa) or (3) a semi-diurnal cyclic vertical migration (100-500 kPa). No significant differences were detected in otolith size and incremental periodicity among the three HP treatments, suggesting that HP does not affect otolith growth of early juveniles O. niloticus.

Dynamic deviation of fluid pressure from hydrostatic pressure in turbidity currents

Turbidity currents are large sediment-carrying submarine avalanches that flow over the continental slope and through submarine channels to the deeps of the world9s oceans. For more than 50 years researchers have extended the hydrostatic pressure simplification, which is valid in most hydraulic analyses of flow in rivers and channels, to analyses of turbidity currents. In this paper we present the first measurements of fluid pressure beneath experimental turbidity currents. Basal fluid pressures are much lower (30%–45%) than those predicted from bulk flow density, in proportion to the kinematic energy density of the flow, a parameter usually referred to as the dynamic pressure. This invalidates the commonplace assumption of a hydrostatic pressure regime in turbidity currents, and necessitates the incorporation of dynamic fluid pressure as a physical parameter in the analysis of turbidity currents. The contrast between turbidity currents and free surface flows is caused by the difference in their density structure. We highlight current enigmas and gaps in our knowledge of submarine currents, for which our result opens new opportunities of investigation.

Compressibility and structural stability of nanoparticulate goethite

Synchrotron high-pressure X-ray diffraction was used to study the compressibility and structural stability of synthetic 17 nm nanoparticulate goethite at pressures up to ∼30 GPa. The lattice parameters and the unit cell volume were determined. We observed much higher contraction along c than a and b (Pnma space group), which we attribute to relatively weak hydrogen bonding along the c axis. In the hydrostatic pressure regime (pressures up to ∼10 GPa) the bulk modulus, K0, of 17 nm goethite was determined to be 109.4 ± 2.2 GPa. The compressibility of the 17 nm goethite is comparable to that of the bulk goethite. Amorphization of the nano-goethite began at ∼17 GPa, an effect not observed in bulk goethite, even at much higher pressures. The findings indicate that for 17 nm particles, the size-dependence of goethite compressibility is small at low to moderate pressures, but at very high pressure, surface effects on nanoparticle structure become very significant.

Field-induced charge-density-wave transitions in the organic metal α-(BEDT-TTF)2KHg(SCN)4 under pressure

Successive magnetic-field-induced charge-density-wave transitions in the layered molecular conductor α-(BEDT-TTF)2KHg(SCN)4 are studied in a hydrostatic pressure regime in which the zero field charge-density- wave (CDW) state is completely suppressed. It is shown that the orbital effect of the magnetic field restores the density wave, while orbital quantization induces transitions between different CDW states as the field strength is varied. The latter show up as distinct anomalies in the magnetoresistance as a function of field. The interplay between the orbital and Pauli paramagnetic effects, which act, respectively, to enhance and to suppress the CDW instability, is particularly manifest in the angular dependence of the field-induced anomalies.

Electronic states in double quantum well-wires with potential W-profile: combined effects of hydrostatic pressure and electric field

Within the framework of the effective mass and parabolic band approximations and using a variational procedure, a detailed theoretical study of the combined effects of hydrostatic pressure and in-growth direction applied electric field on the electronic states and binding energy of a donor impurity in a GaAs–(Ga,Al)As coupled double quantum well-wires is presented. The particular situation of W-shaped confining potential profile is analyzed. The results obtained show that the energy for the first confined electron states as well as the impurity binding energy bear strong dependences with the hydrostatic pressure, the strength of the applied electric field, and the shape of the confining potential barriers. In the case of the electron states, it is observed that their energies are increasing (decreasing) functions of the potential-shape-related \(\Uplambda\)-parameter (hydrostatic pressure). It is also found that, in the high hydrostatic pressure regime (25 kbar in this work), the binding energy of a donor impurity decreases with the pressure and the effects of hydrostatic pressure on the potential barriers are predominant over the effects of hydrostatic pressure on the GaAs static dielectric constant. It is shown that the binding energy can increase or decrease depending on the combined effects of the applied electric field and the dimensions of the transversal section of the coupled quantum well wires.

A geochemical study of the Sweet Home Mine, Colorado Mineral Belt, USA: hydrothermal fluid evolution above a hypothesized granite cupola

Deposition of quartz–molybdenite–pyrite–topaz–muscovite–fluorite and subsequent hübnerite and sulfide–fluorite–rhodochrosite mineralization at the Sweet Home Mine occurred coeval with the final stage of magmatic activity and ore formation at the nearby world-class Climax molybdenum deposit about 26 to 25 m.y. ago. The mineralization occurred at depths of about 3,000 m and is related to at least two major fluid systems: (1) one dominated by magmatic fluids, and (2) another dominated by meteoric water. The sulfur isotopic composition of pyrite, strontium isotopes and REY distribution in fluorite suggest that the early-stage quartz–molybdenite–pyrite–topaz–muscovite–fluorite mineral assemblage was deposited from magmatic fluids under a fluctuating pressure regime at temperatures of about 400°C as indicated by CO2-bearing, moderately saline (7.5–12.5 wt.% NaCl equiv.) fluid inclusions. LA-ICPMS analyses of fluid inclusions in quartz demonstrate that fluids from the Sweet Home Mine are enriched in incompatible elements but have considerably lower metal contents than those reported from porphyry–Cu–Au–Mo or Climax-type deposits. The ore-forming fluid exsolved from a highly differentiated magma possibly related to the deep-seated Alma Batholith or distal porphyry stock(s). Sulfide mineralization, marking the periphery of Climax-type porphyry systems, with fluorite and rhodochrosite as gangue minerals was deposited under a hydrostatic pressure regime from low-salinity ± CO2-bearing fluids with low metal content at temperatures below 400°C. The sulfide mineralization is characterized by mostly negative δ34S values for sphalerite, galena, chalcopyrite, and tetrahedrite, highly variable δ18O values for rhodochrosite, and low REE contents in fluorite. The Pb isotopic composition of galena as well as the highly variable 87Sr/86Sr ratios of fluorite, rhodochrosite, and apatite indicates that at least part of the Pb and Sr originated from a much more radiogenic source than Climax-type granites. It is suggested that the sulfide mineralization at the Sweet Home Mine formed from magmatic fluids that mixed with variable amounts of externally derived fluids. The migration of the latter fluids, that were major components during late-stage mineralization at the Sweet Home Mine, was probably driven by a buried magmatic intrusion.

The Dense Gas in the Central Kiloparsec of NGC 6946

We present observations of the HCN and HCO -->+ -->J = 1–0 transitions in the center of the nearby spiral galaxy NGC 6946 made with the BIMA and CARMA interferometers. Using the BIMA SONG CO map, we investigate the change in the -->IHCN/ICO and -->IHCO+/ICO integrated intensity ratios as a function of radius in the central kiloparsec of the galaxy and find that they are strongly concentrated at the center. We use the 2MASS -->Ks-band image to find the stellar surface density and then construct a map of the hydrostatic midplane pressure. We apply a PDR model to the observed -->IHCN/IHCO+ integrated intensity ratio to calculate the number density of molecular hydrogen in the dense gas tracer emitting region and find that it is roughly constant at -->105 cm -->−3 across our map. We explore two hypotheses for the distribution of the dense gas. If the HCN and HCO -->+ emission comes from self-gravitating density peaks inside of a less dense gas distribution, there is a linear proportionality between the internal velocity dispersion of the dense gas and the size of the density peak. Alternatively, the HCN and HCO -->+ emission could come from dense gas homogeneously distributed throughout the center and bound by ambient pressure, similar to what is observed toward the center of the Milky Way. We find both of these hypotheses to be plausible. We fit the relationships between -->IHCN, IHCO+, and -->ICO. Correlations between the hydrostatic midplane pressure and -->IHCN and -->IHCO+ are demonstrated, and power-law fits are provided. We confirm the validity of a relation found by Blitz & Rosolowsky between pressure and the molecular to atomic gas ratio in the high hydrostatic midplane pressure regime ( -->106- -->108 cm -->−3 K).