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The application of whole-rock compositions to trace magma evolution or crystal-melt equilibrium may be called into question when foreign crystals are incorporated into host magmas. To address this challenge, establishing the origins (orthocrysts, antecrysts, xenocrysts, etc.) of minerals with variable textures in magmatic plumbing systems is necessary. In this paper, we describe complex oscillatory zoning patterns of clinopyroxenes (Cpx) from the Miocene Majuangou (MJG) alkali basalts from West Qinling, China. Our detailed petrographic, mineralogical, and geochemical analyses unravel the origins of various Cpx crystals with distinct textural patterns, thereby providing information about magma storage, recharging and/or mixing, and transportation, as well as the reactions between crystals and melts/fluids. Based on textural patterns, Cpx may be divided into four types: normal (Type-1 Cpx), simple oscillatory (Type-2 Cpx), complex oscillatory (Type-3 Cpx), and grains that lack zoning (Type-4 Cpx, suggested to be orthocrysts). Through the textural characterization of Cpx, the comparison between different types of Cpx, and the relationships between Cpx major compositions from different lithologies, we concluded that Type-1–3 Cpx cores are antecrysts or xenocrysts with diverse origins: primitive magma (Type-1 Cpx cores), magma mush (Type-2 Cpx cores), and crustal granulite (Type-3 Cpx cores). The zoning patterns and the compositions of these Cpx crystals indicate at least three batches of magmatic activity, i.e., the Batch-1 low-Mg# magma (Mg#: 47.4–53.3), the Batch-2 primitive magma (Mg#: 57.2–64.5), and the Batch-3 low-Mg# host alkali magma (Mg#: 47.2–54.6). Cpx-melt thermobarometry demonstrates that at least two crustal magma reservoirs existed in the magma plumbing system at depths of 30.1 and 40.9 km. The antecrystic/xenocrystic Cpx cores were captured by, continued to grow in, and subsequently reacted with ascending K-rich melt/fluid. The spongy textures in Cpx cores/mantles are attributed to this reaction, which may be expressed as: Melt 1 (primitive or evolved) + K-rich melts/fluids + Cpx (CaMgSi2O6) = K-feldspar (KAlSi3O8) + ilmenite (FeTiO3) + Melt 2 (derivative). The products of this reaction (K-feldspar and ilmenite) filled the sieves in the spongy zones of Type-1–3 Cpx. This detailed investigation of compositional and textural features of Cpx antecrysts/xenocrysts suggests that the interactions between various interconnected magma reservoirs are widespread beneath the magmatic plumbing system. Our study emphasizes the importance of the incorporation of foreign crystals and the Cpx-melt/fluid reaction in magmatic plumbing system, which can significantly modify the whole-rock compositions and lead to the formation of spongy textures without the need for fractures and cracks in minerals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The potassium (K) and water (H2O) cycles in subduction zones are predominately controlled by the stability of K- and H2O-bearing minerals, such as K-mica, lawsonite, and dense hydrous magnesium silicates (DHMS). K-micas (muscovite or phlogopite) are the principal H2O and K hosts in subduction zones and Earth's upper mantle and play a significant role in the deep H2O and K cycles. The Mg-10 Å phase, normally appearing in hydrated peridotite in high-pressure experiments, has been considered as an important water-carrier in subducted hydrated peridotite. In this study, we found a K-bearing Al-10 Å phase in the MORB+H2O system (hydrated basalt) at high pressures according to X-ray diffraction and stoichiometry. We experimentally constrained its stability field at high pressure. By considering newly and previously documented compositions of the 10 Å phase and micas, we confirmed a continuous solid solution or mixed layering between the 10 Å phase and K-mica at the interlayer site, suggesting that the K cycle and the H2O cycle in subduction zones are coupled. From the discussion of the effect of ƒH2O on stability of the Al-10 Å phase, we conclude that a cold subduction zone can host and carry more bulk H2O and K into Earth's deep mantle than a hot one. This work expands the stability regions of the 10 Å phase from the ultramafic system (Mg-10 Å phase) to the mafic system (Al-10 Å phase), and emphasizes the significance of the 10 Å phase for the deep H2O and K cycle in subduction zone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fungal decay alters the composition, microstructure, and mechanical properties of wood cell walls. To understand better the structure-function relationships during fungal decay, selected annual rings of fungal deteriorated Scots pine sapwood were analyzed in terms of their composition, microstructure, and micromechanical properties. The datasets were acquired separately for earlywood and latewood concerning the S2 cell wall layer and the cell corner middle lamella (CCML) and analyzed by means of principal component analysis and partial least squares regression analysis. Links between cell wall stiffness and hardness and the composition and microstructure could be established. Increased mechanical properties in the CCML, as obtained by nanoindentation, were correlated to the degradation of pectins. In the S2 layer, the altered data were related to the degradation of hemicelluloses and lignin modification during fungal decay. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fungal degradation alters the microstructure of wood and its physical and chemical properties are also changed. While these changes are well investigated as a function of mass loss, mass density loss and changes in equilibrium moisture content are not well elucidated. The physical and chemical alterations are crucial when linking microstructural characteristics with macroscopic mechanical properties. In the present article, a consistent set of physical, chemical and mechanical characteristics is presented, which were measured on the same sample before and after fungal degradation. In the first part of this two-part contribution, elucidating microstructure/stiffness-relationships of degraded wood, changes in physical and chemical data are presented, which were collected from specimens of Scots pine ( Pinus sylvestris) sapwood degraded by Gloeophyllum trabeum (brown rot) and Trametes versicolor (white rot) for up to 28 weeks degradation time. A comparison of mass loss with corresponding mass density loss demonstrated that mass loss entails two effects: firstly, a decrease in sample size (more pronounced for G. trabeum), and secondly, a decrease of mass density within the sample (more pronounced for T. versicolor). These two concurrent effects are interrelated with sample size and shape. Hemicelluloses and cellulose are degraded by G. trabeum, while T. versicolor was additionally able to degrade lignin. In particular because of the breakdown of hemicelluloses and paracrystalline parts of cellulose, the equilibrium moisture content of degraded samples is lower than that in the initial state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fungal decay considerably affects the macroscopic mechanical properties of wood as a result of modifications and degradations in its microscopic structure. While effects on mechanical properties related to the stem direction are fairly well understood, effects on radial and tangential directions (transverse properties) are less well investigated. In the present study, changes of longitudinal elastic moduli and stiffness data in all anatomical directions of Scots pine ( Pinus sylvestris) sapwood which was degraded by Gloeophyllum trabeum (brown rot) and Trametes versicolor (white rot) for up to 28 weeks have been investigated. Transverse properties were found to be much more deteriorated than the longitudinal ones. This is because of the degradation of the polymer matrix between the cellulose microfibrils, which has a strong effect on transverse stiffness. Longitudinal stiffness, on the other hand, is mainly governed by cellulose microfibrils, which are more stable agains fungal decay. G. trabeum (more active in earlywood) strongly weakens radial stiffness, whereas T. versicolor (more active in latewood) strongly reduces tangential stiffness. The data in terms of radial and tangential stiffnesses, as well as the corresponding anisotropy ratios, seem to be suitable as durability indicators of wood and even allow conclusions to be made on the degradation mechanisms of fungi. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Red oak wood ( Quercus rubra L.) samples were submitted to an enzymatic treatment with a commercial mixture of hemicellulases aiming at the selective depolymerization and removal of the hemicelluloses. Mechanical properties of treated samples were characterized and compared with untreated samples at two hierarchical levels. At the macrolevel, tensile properties revealed to be less sensitive to degradation of the cell wall matrix compared to compression and hardness properties. Results obtained through indentation at the microlevel indicated that hardness and the so-called reduced modulus of treated wood were significantly lowered. Accordingly, hardness and reduced elastic modulus have proven to be most sensitive to modification of the cell wall matrix by reducing the content of hemicelluloses. It is proposed that transversal and shear stresses, which are mainly carried by the cell wall matrix, are additional parameters having strong effects on elastic modulus obtained by nanoindentation. Micromechanical modeling was employed to confirm the observed changes. There is consistency between the measured and the modeled properties, obtained at both the microlevel and the macrolevel of wood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]