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Direct Visualization Of Clay Microfabric Signatures Driving Organic Matter Preservation In Fine-Grained Sediment, Kenneth Curry
Direct Visualization Of Clay Microfabric Signatures Driving Organic Matter Preservation In Fine-Grained Sediment, Kenneth Curry
Kenneth J. Curry
We employed direct visualization of organic matter (OM) sequestered by microfabric signatures in organo-clay systems to study mechanisms of OM protection. We studied polysaccharides, an abundant class of OM in marine sediments, associated with the nano- and microfabric of clay sediment using a novel application of transmission electron microscopy, histochemical staining (periodic acid-thiosemicarbazide-silver proteinate), and enzymatic digestion techniques. We used two experimental organo-clay sediment environments. First, laboratory-consolidated sediment with 10% chitin (w/w) added was probed for chitin before and after digestion with chitinase. Second, fecal pellets from the polychaete Heteromastus filiformis were used as a natural environment rich in clay …
Clay Fabric And Mass Physical Properties Of Surficial Marine Sediment Near The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, Andrew Head, Richard H. Bennett, Jessica R. Douglas, Kenneth J. Curry
Clay Fabric And Mass Physical Properties Of Surficial Marine Sediment Near The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, Andrew Head, Richard H. Bennett, Jessica R. Douglas, Kenneth J. Curry
Kenneth J. Curry
Surficial sediment was obtained on the RV Cape Hatteras Cruise (2010) from the seafloor at a water depth of 1570 meters located at latitude 28°44'20.16"N and longitude 88°20'24.96"W in close proximity to the Deepwater Horizon well, Gulf of Mexico. Preliminary clay nano- and microfabric observation using a transmission electron microscope (TEM) depicted a sediment rich in clays and organic matter (OM) especially in the upper 2 cm subbottom. Initial analysis of TEM micrographs depicted a high porosity clay sediment. Initial study of the mass physical properties revealed water content ωt = 67.32 – 67.28% (percent total mass), porosity n= 84.1 …
Hierarchical Modeling: Biogeochemical Processes And Mechanisms That Drives Clay Nano- And Microfabric Development, Kenneth J. Curry, Richard H. Bennett, Paula J. Smithka, Matthew H. Hulbert
Hierarchical Modeling: Biogeochemical Processes And Mechanisms That Drives Clay Nano- And Microfabric Development, Kenneth J. Curry, Richard H. Bennett, Paula J. Smithka, Matthew H. Hulbert
Kenneth J. Curry
Conceptual scientific models of clay and clay fabric development can be constructed profitably by considering chemical and physical systems in terms of an ordered hierarchy. We develop here a hierarchical model of early stages of marine sediment development identifying processes and focusing on mechanisms. While the focus of our model is on mechanisms, the physical aspects of the hierarchy are cast in terms of the scale of structure in which the mechanisms occur. Our primary scale of interest is the nanometer (nanofabric) level of organization of sediment fabric. This level is nested below the micrometer (microfabric) level that includes aggregates …