Pliocene Age Research Articles

New fossil wood descriptions from the Pliocene of central Anatolia and the presence of Taxodioxylon in Turkey from the Oligocene to Pliocene

Recent paleobotanical studies on petrified woods revealed valuable information about the Miocene-period trees of Turkey. The purpose of this study is to present new descriptions from the Pliocene of central Anatolia. The materials were collected from a new fossil site of Pliocene age in the village of Yıprak (Çerkeş, Çankırı, Turkey) in central northern Turkey. With this study, a new fossil genus, Cercioxylon Ü. Akkemik, related to modern Cercis L., and a new fossil species of Cupressinoxylon were described, and a long presence of taxodioid type trees from the late Oligocene to Pliocene of Turkey were discussed. The wood composition showed that the area had a lowland riparian forest type composed of Taxodioxylon, with lowland semidry vegetation composed of Cercioxylon and Cupressinoxylon. This type of vegetation, excluding the presence of Taxodioxylon, is rather similar to modern vegetation in the Mediterranean region.

Dryobalanoxylon sp. : Silicified Fossil Wood from Lebak Regency, Banten Province, Indonesia

Abstract- Two fossil wood were discovered from Sindangsari Village, Sajira District, Lebak Regency, Banten Province, Indonesia. They were preserved within tuffaceous rocks of the Genteng Formation in Early Pliocene age in littoral to terrestrial environment deposition. To identify mineral composition of the silicified wood, XRD analyser method was applied. Result of XRD analyses shows that both of fossil wood are Dryobalanoxylon sp. consist of quartz mineral with d value is 3.358 Å and 3.350 Å Keywords : Dryobalanoxylon, Early Pliocene, Genteng Formation, Quartz

Dryobalanoxylon sp. : Silicified Fossil Wood from Lebak Regency, Banten Province, Indonesia

Abstract- Two fossil wood were discovered from Sindangsari Village, Sajira District, Lebak Regency, Banten Province, Indonesia. They were preserved within tuffaceous rocks of the Genteng Formation in Early Pliocene age in littoral to terrestrial environment deposition. To identify mineral composition of the silicified wood, XRD analyser method was applied. Result of XRD analyses shows that both of fossil wood are Dryobalanoxylon sp. consist of quartz mineral with d value is 3.358 Å and 3.350 Å Keywords : Dryobalanoxylon, Early Pliocene, Genteng Formation, Quartz

Dryobalanoxylon sp. : Silicified Fossil Wood from Lebak Regency, Banten Province, Indonesia

Abstract- Two fossil wood were discovered from Sindangsari Village, Sajira District, Lebak Regency, Banten Province, Indonesia. They were preserved within tuffaceous rocks of the Genteng Formation in Early Pliocene age in littoral to terrestrial environment deposition. To identify mineral composition of the silicified wood, XRD analyser method was applied. Result of XRD analyses shows that both of fossil wood are Dryobalanoxylon sp. consist of quartz mineral with d value is 3.358 Å and 3.350 Å Keywords : Dryobalanoxylon, Early Pliocene, Genteng Formation, Quartz

The efficacy of kinematic indicators in a complexly deformed Mass Transport Deposit: Insights from the deepwater Taranaki Basin, New Zealand

Abstract Analysis of a high-resolution three-dimensional (3D) marine seismic reflection dataset acquired in the Deepwater Taranaki Basin, New Zealand provides insights into the significance of kinematic indicators observed on the basal shear surface of a giant Mass Transport Deposit (MTD 2). The deposit covers an area of 22,397 km2, has an estimated volume of 3733 km3 and is of Pliocene age. Regional mapping using 2D seismic reflection data suggested a SW transport direction for MTD 2. Kinematic indicators derived from our 3D seismic interpretation provide conflicting evidence for the transport direction of at least a portion of MTD over only a few kilometres distance and so it was necessary to test their efficacy. Mapping of the basal shear surface revealed two sets of lineations, ramp, and scours (interpreted as paleo-channels) while 3D attribute analysis of the internal architecture revealed systematic domains of consistent internal deformation, including (i) a blocky Domain A dominated by extension, (ii) Domain B dominated by short wavelength folds and thrusts, (iii) Domain C characterised by strain overprinting, (iv) a homogenised Domain D with partially remnant (ghost) stratigraphy and (iv) a less deformed Domain E. The structural internal architecture suggests a SW transport direction which is consistent with previous interpretations from regional 2D seismic mapping of the entire MTD 2. However, the internal deformational pattern shows local deviations from this regional transport direction. The lineations rank the least; the ramp would be intermediate; and the structural internal architecture ranks the best. This study reinforces the notion that internal deformation of MTDs is often complex and varies laterally over short distances, and that a holistic approach to kinematic analysis is recommended.

Geological inheritance and its role in the geomorphological and sedimentological evolution of bedrock-hosted incised valleys, lake St Lucia, South Africa

The morphology of Lake St Lucia, Africa's largest estuary, has been strongly influenced by antecedent topography throughout its Quaternary evolution. The 5 × 20 km southern basin is bounded to landward by a 50 m-high Early/Mid-Pleistocene dune ridge and to seaward by a 100 m-high Late Pleistocene/Holocene dune barrier. Nine seismic units (A-I) are identified in the enclosed basin, along with two regionally developed sequence boundaries (SB1 and SB2) and two tidal ravinement surfaces (tRS1 and tRS2). The lowermost sequence boundary (SB1) is related to regional late-Pliocene hinterland uplift. SB2 is related to the last glacial maximum (LGM) when sea levels fell ∼130 m below present. Lowstand fluvial sediments occupy the base of both SB1 and SB2 incisions. Thick central basin deposits dominate the valley fills, more so in the Pliocene age valleys, the occurrence and thickness of which is attributed to sheltering by a seaward barrier-dune system as well as to the low gradient settings. Prograding tidal bedforms occupy the minor incisions formed within the tidal ravinement surfaces, marking the onset of lagoonal conditions in the area. The system is capped by lagoonal deposits, deposited above tidal flats. A series of prograding spits mark the early stages of lagoonal segmentation in the Holocene. The preservation of only one incision and fill sequence prior to the development of an LGM-aged valley succession is attributed to geological inheritance whereby older valleys were repeatedly re-incised by younger valleys throughout the Pleistocene, causing partial preservation of Pleistocene fills up to the most recent cycle. The older fill remnant relates to a larger magnitude base level fall prior to the Quaternary, which survived erosion during subsequent sea-level falls. Adjacent topography in the form of rocky cliffs and the seaward fronting barrier limit the accommodation space in which infilling material can be hosted outside the major valley network. The competent basement rock into which these valleys have incised protected lowstand fluvial sediments from subsequent tidal ravinement.

Age and Paleobathymetry of Salodik Group in PohPagimana section, East Arm of Sulawesi Based on Foraminiferal Assemblages

Planktonic and benthic foraminiferal assemblages were used for age and paleobathymetry analysis of outcropping carbonate succession of the Salodik Group in Poh–Pagimana section, East Arm of Sulawesi. Twenty spot samples of carbonate rocks were collected from cut slope along the road between Poh and Pagimana. Age analysis conducted for each sample by its planktonic foraminifera assemblages and group into their age interval. The age range from Early Eocene to Pliocene. Benthic foraminiferal assemblages indicate paleobathymetry ranging from middle shelf to upper bathyal settings. Age analysis of the studied section show an older sediments (Early–Middle Eocene) overlie younger sediment (Early Miocene). This is interpreted as the evidence of thrust fault in the Poh–Pagimana section as part of thrust sheets of Batui thrust complex which imbricated on deformation zone. The youngest sediment which have suffered deformations shown by disordered age sequence is Pliocene in age (N20-21). The Eocene to Pliocene carbonate succession in the studied section was deposited relatively in the more basinward position compared to the carbonate-dominated sediments in the Tomori area which was deposited in the more landward position.

Extensional neotectonic regime in West-southwest Konya, Central Anatolia, Turkey

ABSTRACT In the Central Anatolia, the style of neotectonic regime governing the region has been a controversial issue. A tectonic study was carried out in order to contribute to this issue and better understand the neotectonic stress distribution and style of deformation in the west-southwest of the Konya region. From Middle Miocene to Recent time, Konya region was part of the Central Anatolia extensional province. The present-day topography in the west-southwestern part of Konya is characterized by alternating elongate grabens and horsts trending E-W and NW-SE. The grabens were developed upon low-grade metamorphic rocks of Palaeozoic and Mesozoic ages and ophiolite slabs of possibly Late Cretaceous age. The evolutionary history of grabens is episodic as evidenced by two graben infills; older and younger graben infills separated by an angular unconformity. The older infill consists of fluviolacustrine sequence intercalated with calc-alkaline lavas and pyroclastic rocks. This infill is folded; thrust faulted and Middle Miocene-Early Pliocene in age. The younger and undeformed basin fill comprises mainly of Plio-Quaternary conglomerates, sandstone-mudstone alternations of alluvial fan and recent basin floor deposits. Three major tectonic phases were differentiated based on the detailed mapping, morphological features and kinematic analysis. Approximately N-S trending extension began in the Middle Miocene-Early Pliocene in the region with the formation of E-W and NW-SE-trending grabens. Following NE-SW-directed compression which deformed the older basin fill deposits by folding and thrusting, a second period of ENE-WSW-trending extension began in the late Pliocene and continued to the present. The west-southwestern margin of the Konya depression is bounded by the Konya Fault Zone. It is an oblique-slip normal fault with a minor dextral strike-slip component and exhibits well-preserved fault slickensides and slickenlines. Recent seismicity and fault-related morphological features reveal that the Konya Fault Zone is an active neotectonic structure.

LA-ICP-MS U/Pb zircon timescale constraints of the Pleistocene latest magmatic activity in the Sancy stratovolcano (French Massif Central)

It has been demonstrated for several years that the UPb zircon system can provide useful dating information for understanding the time-evolution of the volcanic systems. In addition, in situ techniques were successfully used for determining the formation age of young Pliocene and Pleistocene volcanic rocks and to record the spatial and temporal distribution and the lifetime evolution of the magma chambers, generally in the case of large volcanic domains.Here we show that it is possible to obtain a precision at the percent level on zircon from a short-size and late volcanic event from the Sancy stratovolcano (French Massif Central). LA-ICP-MS dating of Pleistocene magmatic zircons allow to distinguish the timescale of these late magmatic events within the complex volcanic activity of this large stratovolcano. A syenite xenolith enclosed into a trachyte pumice flow were dated at 277.6 ± 3.2 ka and 260.1 ± 3.6 ka, respectively, whereas an earlier trachyandesite dome was emplaced at 284.4 ± 4.2 ka. These different ages allow to propose a minimum evolution time of about 24 ± 8 kyrs for a differentiated magma chamber, which corresponds to a short lifetime associated with low magma volumes. The duration of this discrete volcanic event should be compared to the hundreds of thousands of years reported for the large volcanic systems. Interestingly, the zircon crystals from the pumices were embedded into a thin layer of glass of trachytic composition, demonstrating that these zircons crystallized into the melt only a short time before eruption.

New geochemical evidence for the origin of North America's largest dune field, the Nebraska Sand Hills, central Great Plains, USA

The Nebraska Sand Hills region is the largest dune field in North America and has diverse aeolian landforms. It has been active during both the late Pleistocene and late Holocene. Despite decades of study, the source of sediment for this large sand sea is still controversial. Here we report new trace element compositions of aeolian sand that are compared to four hypothesized sediment sources, Tertiary rocks of the Arikaree Group and Ogallala Group, unconsolidated sands of Pliocene age, and Platte River system sands. All four potential sources have a mineralogy that is similar to the Nebraska Sand Hills. K/Rb, K/Ba, Sc-Th-La, Eu/Eu*, LaN/YbN, As/Sb, and Fe/Sc values show, however, that Pliocene sediments and sands from the Platte River system are not likely sources. The Arikaree Group could be a minor contributor, but sands from the Ogallala Group appear to have the best compositional fit to the Nebraska Sand Hills. Although past studies have proposed the Ogallala Group as an important sand source, the hypothesis has been questioned, because the unit is well cemented by calcrete in its upper part. However, examination of the landscape upwind of the Nebraska Sand Hills shows that the Ogallala Group, where it occurs at the land surface, is highly dissected in much of this region, which makes sand-sized particles available for aeolian entrainment whenever drought conditions diminish a protective vegetation cover.

Culture based investigations of key microbial functional groups in gas hydrate bearing sediments of the Krishna-Godavari Basin in offshore India

Abstract Results of National Gas Hydrate Program-02 (NGHP-02) expedition have confirmed the resource potential of sand-hosted gas hydrate accumulations in the deep offshore of Krishna-Godavari Basin (KG Basin). NGHP-02 has identified two types of gas hydrate accumulations: one is thick, layer-type units developed in sand-rich facies at depths of a few 100 m below sea floor (mbsf), and the other, fracture type unit of variable thickness at shallow depths. Fracture-type and Layer-type gas hydrates were observed in Areas B, C, and E in the KG Basin as defined under NGHP-02. The importance of each type of gas hydrate occurrence as discovered during NGHP-02 has led to the need for microbial profiling. Different classes of microbes, anaerobic fermentative microbes (AFM), methanotrophs and sulphate reducing bacteria (SRB) were studied to understand the microbial system for biogenic gas generation in sedimentary sequences encountered in eight core holes (4 in Area B, 3 in Area C and 1 in Area E) as established during NGHP-02. This study reveals the availability of highest concentration of methane generating microbes that are closely associated with high total organic carbon (TOC) content in the identified gas hydrate bearing sedimentary units cored in each borehole. The presence of microbial consortia for methane generation through both processes, of reduction of CO2 and fermentation of formate/acetate has been confirmed. Stratigraphic correlation between drill sites have also been generated to better understand the spatial relationship of various microbial processes. An observation from the study, is that the entire late Miocene age sediments has potential to generate biogenic gas in Holes NGHP-02-05B, −17B, −22B and −23B. Late to early Pleistocene age sediments are showing methane generating activity in Holes NGHP-02-01C, −08B and −09B, while early Pleistocene to late Pliocene age sediments contains methane generating microbes in Holes NGHP-02-05B, −17B, −19B, −22B and −23B. The existence of methane generating biogenic microbial system in Areas B, C and E of KG Basin has been confirmed.

Combining legacy data with new drone and DGPS mapping to identify the provenance of Plio-Pleistocene fossils from Bolt's Farm, Cradle of Humankind (South Africa).

Bolt’s Farm is a Plio-Pleistocene fossil site located within the southwestern corner of the UNESCO Hominid Fossil Sites of South Africa World Heritage Site. The site is a complex of active caves and more than 20 palaeokarst deposits or pits, many of which were exposed through the action of lime mining in the early 20th century. The pits represent heavily eroded cave systems, and as such associating the palaeocave sediments within and between the pits is difficult, especially as little geochronological data exists. These pits and the associated lime miner’s rubble were first explored by palaeoanthropologists in the late 1930s, but as yet no hominin material has been recovered. The first systematic mapping was undertaken by Frank Peabody as part of the University of California Africa Expedition (UCAE) in 1947–1948. A redrawn version of the map was not published until 1991 by Basil Cooke and this has subsequently been used and modified by recent researchers. Renewed work in the 2000s used Cooke’s map to try and relocate the original fossil deposits. However, Peabody’s map does not include all the pits and caves, and thus in some cases this was successful, while in others previously sampled pits were inadvertently given new names. This was compounded by the fact that new fossil bearing deposits were discovered in this new phase, causing confusion in associating the 1940s fossils with the deposits from which they originated; as well as associating them with the recently excavated material. To address this, we have used a Geographic Information System (GIS) to compare Peabody’s original map with subsequently published maps. This highlighted transcription errors between maps, most notably the location of Pit 23, an important palaeontological deposit given the recovery of well-preserved primate crania (Parapapio, Cercopithecoides) and partial skeletons of the extinct felid Dinofelis. We conducted the first drone and Differential Global Positioning System (DGPS) survey of Bolt’s Farm. Using legacy data, high-resolution aerial imagery, accurate DGPS survey and GIS, we relocate the original fossil deposits and propose a definitive and transparent naming strategy for Bolt’s Farm, based on the original UCAE Pit numbers. We provide datum points and a new comprehensive, georectified map to facilitate spatially accurate fossil collection for all future work. Additionally, we have collated recently published faunal data with historic fossil data to evaluate the biochronological potential of the various deposits. This suggests that the palaeocave deposits in different pits formed at different times with the occurrence of Equus in some pits implying ages of <2.3 Ma, whereas more primitive suids (Metridiochoerus) hint at a terminal Pliocene age for other deposits. This study highlights that Bolt’s Farm contains rare South African terminal Pliocene fossil deposits and creates a framework for future studies of the deposits and previously excavated material.

Effect of Fluid Saturation on Acoustic Wave Velocity for Sandstone Reservoirs

Compressional and shear velocities were measured at room temperature and ambient pressure on cylindrical samples. The p-wave and s-wave velocities have been measured at ultrasonic frequencies of 63 kHz and 33 kHz, respectively. Compressional and shear waves have different behaviour in rocks depending on difference in porosity, fluid saturation, fluid viscosity, rock density, lithologic laminations, fracturing, clay content, mineralogy, compaction and pore space framework. The velocity ratio of compressional and shear waves (Vp/Vs) varies in crystalline and metamorphic rocks within a very narrow range (from 1.7 to 1.9). In sedimentary rocks, it varies in a wider range from 1.5 to 14.0 due to the very low shear strength of highly porous rocks (Φ > 25%). The technique used to measure acoustic wave velocity is the pulse first arrival technique, in which the travel times are determined for a pulse of compressional and/or shear waves to pass a known measured thickness of the rock (sample length). P-wave and s-wave velocities values (at different saturation) have been determined on a subset of 67 sandstone core samples. Only 26 sandstone samples are belonging to the upper Cretaceous in age (Bahariya Fm, Egypt) and the rest of samples belongs to the Miocene, Lower Pliocene and Upper Pliocene in age (Endrod gas field, Hungary). The p-wave and s-wave velocities were measured with the sample fully saturated with air (dry, Sw = 0) and partially saturated with brine water (Sw = 25%, 50% and 75%) and fully saturated with brine water (Sw = 100%). The effect of sandstone sample water saturation either partial or full water saturation on acoustic parameters were investigated. Some empirical approaches in obtained data analysis are developed based on both Wyllie and Raymer equations in order to predict seismic velocities (Vp and Vs) and Poisson’s ratio for either dry or saturated sandstones.

An Aspect of Palyno Stratigraphy of “XM” Field Located in Semliki Basin South Western Uganda

“XM” field, a clastic sedimentary domain within the Albertine Graben, southwestern Uganda, was studied using palynological data, complemented with wire-line well logs, to determine the stratigraphy, age, and depositional setting. Field wide correlation was attempted using additional geological and stratigraphical data from the larger Albertine Graben. The study involved the use of geological computing tools such as Petrel and Strata Bug softwares which allowed for the graphic plots of palynoflora, identification of marker species, species abundances, species first and last occurrences and the geological correlation of the two wells. The palynological marker species identified include; Podocarpus spp., Tournefortia spp., Praedapollis flexibilis, Peregrinipollis nigericus, Gramineae spp., Laevigatosporites spp. and Verrucatosporites usmensis. This association of species indicates Early Pliocene to Holocene age. These species were further used in delineating the Early Pliocene age of well T2 into TZ1a and TZ1b. The TZ1a subzone is marked by index species of Laevigatosporites spp., the quantitative top occurrence of Sapotaceae spp. and Verrucatosporites usmensis. TZ1b is marked by the presence of index species of Laevigatosporites spp. and top occurrence of Sapotaceae spp. Further, the study revealed five informal palynological biozonation of the well T3 into; TZI, TZII, TZIII, TZIV and TZV all ranging in age from Early Pliocene to Holocene and defined based on top occurrences, downhole increases and decreases of some of the stratigraphical important species recorded in the well as follows: TZI is marked by the top occurrence of index specie Gramineae spp. TZII by the presence of index specie of Peregrinipollis nigericus and top occurrence of Praedapollis flexibilis. TZIII is defined by top occurrence of Tournefortia spp. and the downhole decrease in Podocarpus spp. TZIV is defined by the top downhole increase in Podocarpus spp. and TZV by the base downhole decrease in Podocarpus spp. In arriving at these interpretations, data and publications from other basins such as the Niger Delta in West Africa and the Muglad and Burundi Basins in Central and East Africa were used as analogues. The age of the drilled wells ranged from Early Pliocene to Holocene while the paleo environment of deposition was determined to be mostly continental ranging from fluvial to lacustrine settings.

The oldest sigmodontine rodent revisited and the age of the first South American cricetids

AbstractNew fossil material ofAuliscomys formosusReig 1978 allows restudy of the oldest known South American representative of the subfamily Sigmodontinae. Description ofAuliscomys formosuswas based on a fragmentary dentary exhumed from the Monte Hermoso Formation of central Argentina. Previous studies allocatedA. formosusto the early Pliocene. A reevaluation of dental and cranial morphology, including for the first time the upper dentition, and the inclusion ofA. formosusin a phylogenetic analysis of the tribe Phyllotini indicate thatA. formosusrepresents a new genus,Kraglievichimys.Kraglievichimysshares a mosaic of characters with the livingAuliscomysOsgood, 1915 andLoxodontomysOsgood, 1947. The taxonomic reassignment ofA. formosusand the possibility that the Monte Hermoso Formation may be younger than early Pliocene in age provide a new understanding of cricetid diversification in South America. Estimates of sigmodontine ancestry by molecular approaches are biased toward older ages, whereas this new interpretation of the history ofK. formosussuggests that the South American history of sigmodontines spans less than 4 million years.UUID:http://zoobank.org/49dd8f60-56b1-4e8a-a044-6cea3a1bd52b

Late Cenozoic palynofloras revealing significant environment and climate changes in Changbai Mountain area, NE China

The present climate in the Changbai Mountain area, NE China is warm with abundant rainfall. It is mainly affected by the wet air mass from the Sea of Japan. Local vegetation belongs to the warm temperate mixed conifer and broad-leaved forest, with a mountain cold temperate coniferous forest belt occurring at an altitude of over 1100 m. The Neogene vegetation history of this region is not yet well understood because of the lack of palaeobotanical data. Here we report a systematic palynological result of a plant-bearing diatomite sequence at Badaogou of Changbai Mountains in Jilin Province, which shows distinct vegetation and environment changes during the late Neogene. Seven palynological assemblages are recognized in the diatomite deposits from a freshly closed mine (Zones M-I and M-II), and an outcrop (Zones I–V) respectively in ascending order. Pollen data indicate a dominant woody angiosperm plants such as Ulmus, Quercus, Pterocarya and Fagus etc. at first (Zone M-I). Subsequently, gymnosperm plants mainly represented by Pinus, Tsuga, Picea and Abies show an increase (Zone M-II), and become predominant at a lowest sample in the outcrop (Zone I), distinguished by rich Picea, along with large amount of Tsuga, Pinus and Abies. Pinus increases significantly, while Picea remains higher value, and Abies and Tsuga become limited in the following assemblage (Zone II). Woody angiosperm pollen Tilia, and terrestrial herbs and shrubs including Asteraceae and Chenopodiaceae show their first sign of increase in Zone III, and become more distinguishable in Zone IV. Picea rises again in Zone V. Pollen assemblages display a successive change of vegetation between the mine (Zones M-I and M-II) and the outcrop (Zones I–V), reflecting their continuity in time. Based on the Ar–Ar dating, the outcropping deposits (Zones I–V) are the Latest Pliocene in age, approaching to the Plio-Pleistocene boundary. Consequently, pollen data in this study indicate a major turnover from the warm temperate mixed conifer and broad-leaved forest (Zones M-I and M-II) to the cold temperate coniferous forest (Zone I) during the Late Pliocene in the Changbai Mountain area. It also displays some subsequent fluctuations including the warm temperate mixed conifer and broad-leaved forest partly recovered in Zones III and IV, and decreased again in Zone V. It shows for the first time how local vegetation responses to the global climate deterioration in the Late Pliocene of NE China. The overall changing process is more or less comparable with some simultaneous vegetation changes in North China and Central Japan. The terrestrial herbs and shrubs in the assemblages are not significant comparing with other areas in North China, reflecting the influence of wet air mass from the Sea of Japan. Meanwhile, Tsuga is gradually disappearing in the upper assemblages as a result of continuous lower temperature.

Coals of Romania: Geology, petrology and use

This paper is a contribution to the coal geology, coal petrology and end products of coal utilization in Romania. Romanian coals are approached from geological, petrographical and industrial use points of view. This research surveys all Romanian basins yielding terrestrial, coal bearing formations in relation to their stratigraphy, palaeobotany, coal genesis, coal petrography and some industrial utilization, together with historical aspects, most of them Romanian pioneering contributions. Romanian coals range from Late Carboniferous, Early Jurassic, Late Cretaceous, Oligocene, to Miocene and Pliocene in age, from hard coals to lignite with numerous and wide applications in metallurgy and steel industry, chemistry and energy.The paper presents the various aspects of end products of coals utilization by improving coking and semi-coking technology and developing non-conventional technologies, coke-oven gas purification, obtaining of special coal-tar pitches and high grade carbon products, coal combustion, activated carbon precursors, coal wastes and combustion products recovery and recycling, other. This paper is a synthesis of extensive ideas, trends and research experiences carried out in Romania in coal geology and carbochemistry.

A new chronostratigraphy (40Ar-39Ar and U-Pb dating) for the middle section of the Burdur-Fethiye Shear Zone, SW Turkey (eastern Mediterranean)

Southwestern Turkey is a tectonically active region where extensional, strike-slip, and compressional tectonics cooccur. The Burdur-Fethiye Shear Zone is located in the middle of this complex area. Understanding the tectonic evolution of this region is crucial, but the controversial Neogene chronostratigraphy does not allow robust synthesis because of poor age control. The middle section of the Burdur-Fethiye Shear Zone includes three basins: the Acipayam, Cameli, and Golhisar basins. All these basins represent restricted portions of ancient larger carbonate lakes. The lacustrine sediments are locally covered or cut by lamproites with sparse intercalations of tuff levels. New 40 Ar- 39 Ar biotite and U-Pb zircon radiometric ages from volcanics and a tuff layer in this study demonstrate that the previously suggested Pliocene ages for these sediments are incorrect and that these Neogene sediments are middle Miocene in age.

Improved neural network model of assessment for interpretation of miocene lithofacies in the Vukovar formation, Northern Croatia / Izboljšani nevronsko-mrežni model za oceno interpretacije miocenskega litofaciesa v Vukovarski formaciji v severni Hrvaški

Abstract The Ladislavci Field (oil and gas reservoirs) is located 40 km from the city of Osijek, Croatia. The oil reservoir is in structural-stratigraphic trap and Miocene rocks of the Vukovar formation (informally named as El, F1a and F1b). The shallower gas reservoir is of Pliocene age, i.e. part of the Osijek sandstones (informally named as B). The oil reservoirs consist of limestones, breccias and conglomerates, and gas is accumulated in sandstones. Using neural networks, it was possible to interpret applicability of neural algorithm in well log analyses, and using neural model, it was possible to predict reservoir without or with small number of log data. Neural networks are trained on the data from two wells (A and B), collected from the interval starting with border of Sarmatian/ Lower Pannonian (EL marker Rs7) to the well’s bottom. The inputs were data from spontaneous potential (SP) and resistivity (R16 and R64) logs. They were used for neural training and validation as well as for final prediction of lithological composition in the analysed field. The multilayer perceptron (MLP) network had been selected as the most appropriate.

The finding of bryozoans from the lower Pliocence of Crete (Maronia - Sitia). Systematics - Paleoecology

A rich fauna of Bryozoa from the Lower Pliocene of the Maronia district (location of Hagios loannis) had been studied. 47 species have been indentified belonging to the Cyclostomata (16) and Cheilostomata (31). This study allows to precise - based on the Foraminifers - the distribution of Bryozoans in this area of the South- East Mediterranean. Based on the zoarial forms, the bathymetry, the temperature and the bottoms, where some species live yet now, we attempt to give a reconstruction of the paleoenvironments. The Lower Pliocene age is based on the stratigraphie distribution of the following Foraminifers: Amphistegina lessonii, Bolivina antiqua, μBulimina cf. minima, Cibicides refiilgens, Globigerinoides extremus, Globigerinoides nepenthes, Globigerinella pseudobesa, Globulina fissicosta, Heterolepa dertonensis, Neogloboquatrina ci.acostaensis, Rectuvigerina siphogenerinoides, Sphaeroidinellopsis seminulina.