Reconstruction of seismotectonic deformations of Asia in different layers of the Earth’s crust

The calculation of seismotectonic deformations for different depth levels 1–15, 16–35, 36–70 km was performed according to the data of 1819 mechanisms of earthquake foci that occurred in Central Asia (φ = 25° – 60° N, λ=60° – 115° E) for the period from 1976 to the end of July 2020 with M>4.7. The orientation of the main axes of the strain tensor reconstructed from the mechanisms of earthquake foci with M>4.7 coincide at different depth levels with mainly submeridional and north-eastern shortening and varying elongation from sublatitude to north-western and near-vertical. The consistency of the orientation of the main axes of shortening and elongation reconstructed from seismological materials and from the published results of calculating GPS observations, is traced.

GEODYNAMICS

In order to study the deep structure of the southwestern Ukrainian Carpathians, where the Carpathian conductivity anomaly is located, in 2015 and 2020, modern synchronous magnetotelluric studies were carried out on the profiles of Mukachevo-Skole, Seredne-Borynya and Karpatsky at twenty-three points and the spatiotemporal distribution and the electric field on the Earth's surface, which can be used to assess the conductivity and geoelectrical structure of the region, was obtained. Processing of experimental data was performed using the software PRC_MTMV, which provides a common noise-canceling impedance estimation for synchronous magnetotellurical recordings. Curves of apparent electrical resistivity (amplitude values and phases of impedance) from 10 to 10000 s were obtained reliably. A joint analysis of the apparent resistivity and impedance phases and the formal interpretation of the deep magnetotellurical sounding curves using the Niblett transformation indicate the presence of the spatially inhomogeneous conductor both in the earth's crust and in the upper part of the upper mantle. The chain of local conductive sections in the earth's crust coincides with the axial part of the Carpathian conductivity anomaly. High conductivity of the upper mantle was recorded in the Ukrainian Carpathians from the Transcarpathian Depression to the Skiba cover. It is shown that it is not a homogeneous layer, there is a general deepening of the upper edge to the northeast from 40-60 km (Transcarpathian depression) to 90-100 km (Krosno cover). Sharp deepening along the Porkulets and Dukla covers is revealed. Information about the existence of a deep conductor and its parameters should be the basis for quantitative interpretation and construction of the 3D deep geoelectrical model.

Features of the Tien Shan newest orogen morphostructure

Research subject. The concept of morphostructure implies the presence of a relationship between the relief forms of segments of the Earth’s crust and their structural and material content. This article describes the geological ensembles of the Tien Shan orogen, the tectonic structure and modern relief of which differ in their parameters from the general morphostructural plan and which, therefore, belong to the category of morphostructural anomalies. Materials and methods. The data presented in the article were obtained in the course of field structural-geological and morphostructural study of key segments of the Tien Shan orogen, as well as an analysis of materials from previous research, including the results of geophysical sounding of the Earth’s crust and geodesical monitoring of relative modern movements of reference points on the surface.Results. The article demonstrates that, against the background of the general linear-wave morphostructure of the Tien Shan orogen, there are areas whose relief and tectonic structure do not agree with the general tectonic plan of the mountain. Wi thin the considered region, different types of morphostructural anomalies are identified and described, reflecting the speci fics of the evolution and geotectonic position of individual volumes of upper-crust rock complexes: zones of concentrated deformation and tectonic joining; centrally symmetric structures formed on the site of paleoatolls; neotectonic protrusions of the granite basement; trans-regional zone of the Talaso-Ferghana Fault and other structures. Conclusion. The formation of morphostructural anomalies is associated with the presence of non-trivial geodynamic environments operating against the background of the tectonic regime common to the Tien Shan. The modern morphostructure of the Tien Shan is the result of interference between various geodynamic regimes and settings: a regime common to the entire territory of the orogen and particular regimes that manifest themselves sporadically and are reflected in the modern relief.

An Overview of Rare Earth Ores Beneficiation in Vietnam

Rare earth metals are used in electricity, electronics, nuclear, optics, space, metallurgy,superconducting and super magnetic materials, glass and ceramics, and agriculture. Some rare earthelements are added to fertilizers for crops and some trials for animal feed. Rare earth elements, exceptfor radioactive promethium, are relatively abundant in the earth's crust. Vietnam has a tremendous rareearth potential, distributed mainly in the Northwest, including Nam Xe, Dong Pao, Muong Hum, andYen Bai. There are many research projects on rare earth ores of different types globally, but the focus ismainly on the essential minerals, including monazite, xenotime, and bastnaesite. This report summarizesresearch data on rare earth ore intending to produce a general assessment of rare earth ore and itsbeneficiation technology in Vietnam.

A 5-km-thick reservoir with >380,000 km3 of magma within the ancient Earth's crust

Several recent studies have argued that large, long-lived and molten magma chambers1–10 may not occur in the shallow Earth’s crust11–23. Here we present, however, field-based observations from the Bushveld Complex24 that provide evidence to the contrary. In the eastern part of the complex, the magmatic layering was found to continuously drape across a ~4-km-high sloping step in the chamber floor. Such deposition of magmatic layering implies that the resident melt column was thicker than the stepped relief of the chamber floor. Prolonged internal differentiation within such a thick magma column is further supported by evolutionary trends in crystallization sequence and mineral compositions through the sequence. The resident melt column in the Bushveld chamber during this period is estimated to be >5-km-high in thickness and >380,000 km3 in volume. This amount of magma is three orders of magnitude larger than any known super-eruptions in the Earth’s history25 and is only comparable to the extrusive volumes of some of Earth’s large igneous provinces26. This suggests that super-large, entirely molten and long-lived magma chambers, at least occasionally, occur in the geological history of our planet. Therefore, the classical view of magma chambers as ‘big magma tanks’1–10 remains a viable research concept for some of Earth’s magmatic provinces.

Faulting and Folding Signals in Seismic Data

A novel numerical model simulates folding in Earth’s crust throughout the earthquake cycle.

Selected Critical Raw Materials in Waste from Coal Gasification in Poland

In an effort to identify new sources of critical raw materials (CRMs) possibility of recovering selected CRMs from Polish coals, chars, and ashes resulting from the combustion of coals and chars was investigated. The samples were collected from pilot fluidized bed gasification systems. The search for CRMs in coal gasification wastes has not been widely reported before. The study used 2 bituminous coal and 1 lignite sample; the concentration of individual critical raw materials (CRMs) was analyzed using the ICP-MS method. The obtained results were compared with Clarke values in coal ash and in the Earth’s crust, and with the adopted cut-off grade. As shown by the analysis, the highest concentrations of CRMs can be found in fly ash, mainly in samples from the eastern part of the Upper Silesian Coal Basin. This applies mostly to Be, Cs, or Sb due to the fact that their concentrations were found to be higher than the Clarke value in the Earth’s crust; the mentioned fly ashes could be used as potential sources of critical elements if appropriate recovery technologies are developed. In addition, the tested materials have elevated Se, Pb, Ni concentrations, but their recovery is currently not economically viable. Compared to the currently adopted cut-off grade levels, there are no critical elements in the analyzed coal gasification waste that could be recovered.