- Email: [email protected]
The global biogeochemical sulphur cycle, SCOPE 19
BOOK REVIEWS
The Global Biogeochemicat Sulphw Cycle, SCOPE 19, M. V. lvanov and J. R. Freney (eds.), 1983. John Wiley and Sons. 470 pp., E42.50. VOLUME was born as the product of the ICSU SCOPE Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment Sulfur Project, a part of the special project on Biogeochemical Cycles. The project aims for a better understanding of the global geochemical cycling and insolation and transport m~hanisms of life-su~~ng elements, especially nitrogen. carbon, phosphorus and sulfur and the assessment of anthropogenic effects on their natural cycles. The sulfur project started in 1977 under the initiative of Prof. M. V. Ivanov. A group of Russian scientists consisting of D. I. Grigoryan. V. A. Grinenko, M. V. Ivanov, A. Yu Lein, A. A. Migdisov, A. C. Rabinovich, A. B. Ronov, A. G. Roaanov, A. G. Ryaboshapko and I. 1. Volkov was nominated and agreed to produce this monograph. As La Riviere, the chairman of the project, put it in the Foreword, the Russian initiative was necessary, “as the extensive work done in this area by our colleagues in the USSR had not yet been fully taken into account”. The review was thus quite uniquely designed to demonstrate Russian achievements in this field. Only Chapter 3 on the sulfur cycle in soil was written by two Australians, J. R. Freney and C. H. Williams. For those who do not read Russian, like myself. yet are living in the flood of scientific papers, Russian literature is becoming increasingly more di8icuIt to follow. ft seems to me that the world of science today is split by the language barrier. In this context, this volume is a very timely review of the vast works done by Russians during the last decade or two on the distribution of sulfur and its isotopes in various geologic units. After a brief discussion of the principles of chemical reactions of sulfur and associated isotopic effect, the book reviews and evaluates available data on sulfur concentrations and isotopic ratios in the lithosphere, soil, atmosphere. continental and oceanic reservoirs and transport media (rivers and so on) and then the inventory of sulfur in each reservoir and fluxes between reservoirs are estimated. Based THIS
on these estimates. the global picture of the oio- and geochemical cycles of sulfur is presented. lvanov concludes in the final chapter that the sulfur flux of anthropogenic origins to the oceans amounts to about a half of the total river flux. Discussion on lithosphere and continental and oceanic reservoirs most heavily depends on Russian works. which will impress readers by their laborious efforts to obtain such a picture based on direct estimates of various Ruxes. However, chapters on soils and the atmosphere occupy more pages than those devoted to continental and oceanic reservoiw. The domination of Russian literature brings some negative effects. For instance, when one encounters statements ambiguous or seemingly wrong and wants to check them by cited references, they are often Russian and impede the approach of poor readers. Quite a few Russian papers have been translated into English in internationally distributed joumah (e.g. an English version of Igumnov ef al. (Geokhimiya, 1977) cited on page 2 1 has appeared in Ge~hemist~ International). This should be appreciated as an effort to make a tunnel through the barrier and both literatures should be quoted. Overlapping, misprints and mistakes are not rare. A plot of the time excursion of 6?3 of evaporite, for instance, appears on pages 20 and 88, the first taken from Russian authors and the other from Americans, with some noticeable difference between them. On page 13, R: and No of the Rayleigh equation should more precisely be the isotopic ratio f%S/32S,instead of the ?S content. and l\,[ II should be I,‘/I;, . In spite of these weak points, the book is excettently organized in the presentation of the data and discussion of various problems associated with synthesis of the global sulfur cycles. It will serve as a useful guide for researchers concerned about geochemical as well as environmental aspects of the life-supporting elements.
. _ _._._____. _ __.._ Ceochemical ExploMnn 1982, edited by 6. R. Parslow, 1983, Elsevier, 746p., USS95.75, Dfl.225.00. As WITH THE previous editions of “Geochemical Exploration,” the 1982 version represents a compendium of papers presented at the biennial international Geochemical Symposium and a spa&l pu~i~tion reprinted from the Journal of Geochemical Exploration. This volume contains 55 articles in all (33 papers, 18 abstracts, and 4 selected poster presentations) and represents a veritable treasure-trove of ugtodate information on exploration methodology and data analysis and interpretation. A wide range of mineralized environments are covered including sedimentary U, Mississippi Valley Pb-Zn, graniterelated Sn-W-U-MO, volcanogenic massive sulphides, sedimentary exhalative Pb-Zn, lode and epithermal gold, porphyry copper, and barite deposits. Of these, uranium receives the broadest coverage with 14 papers describing exploration in Canada, Austrahi, U.S.A., GreenIand, Belgium, Sri Lanka, and Indonesia. In addition to papers dealing with well established lithogeochemical and hydrogeochemical procedures, many innovative techniques find coverage in this volume (e.g. Ra activity ratios in groundwater exploration for uranium, ionic
migration through gIaciolacustrine sediment above concealed sulphide mineralization, soil air COz and O2 analysis, and fluid inclusion decrepitometry), as do several articles evaluating geostatistical and computer analysis. Throughout the scientific quality is high from both the quantitative and interpretational standpoints. Two papers in particular deserve mention: Sopuck ef al. present a unique example of the successful integration of geochemical data with clay mineral analysis to enlarge lithogeochemical-mineralogical haloes around unconformity-type U deposits, and Goodfellow et nl. provide an excellent summary of the stratigraphic setting and lithogeochemical zoning around the Howard’s Pass ZnPb deposit. All in all, this text should prove indispensible to all those actively involved in mineral exploration and should help generate new approaches to problem-~lving. The editor, Dr. G. R. Parslow, and his coIleagues from the Association of Exploration Geochemists are to be congratulated upon their efforts. D&artement de giologie UniversitP de Montrkai ;Montr&al,Quibec H3C 317
Richara )_; Taylor
The Global Biogeochemicat Sulphw Cycle, SCOPE 19, M. V. lvanov and J. R. Freney (eds.), 1983. John Wiley and Sons. 470 pp., E42.50. VOLUME was born as the product of the ICSU SCOPE Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment Sulfur Project, a part of the special project on Biogeochemical Cycles. The project aims for a better understanding of the global geochemical cycling and insolation and transport m~hanisms of life-su~~ng elements, especially nitrogen. carbon, phosphorus and sulfur and the assessment of anthropogenic effects on their natural cycles. The sulfur project started in 1977 under the initiative of Prof. M. V. Ivanov. A group of Russian scientists consisting of D. I. Grigoryan. V. A. Grinenko, M. V. Ivanov, A. Yu Lein, A. A. Migdisov, A. C. Rabinovich, A. B. Ronov, A. G. Roaanov, A. G. Ryaboshapko and I. 1. Volkov was nominated and agreed to produce this monograph. As La Riviere, the chairman of the project, put it in the Foreword, the Russian initiative was necessary, “as the extensive work done in this area by our colleagues in the USSR had not yet been fully taken into account”. The review was thus quite uniquely designed to demonstrate Russian achievements in this field. Only Chapter 3 on the sulfur cycle in soil was written by two Australians, J. R. Freney and C. H. Williams. For those who do not read Russian, like myself. yet are living in the flood of scientific papers, Russian literature is becoming increasingly more di8icuIt to follow. ft seems to me that the world of science today is split by the language barrier. In this context, this volume is a very timely review of the vast works done by Russians during the last decade or two on the distribution of sulfur and its isotopes in various geologic units. After a brief discussion of the principles of chemical reactions of sulfur and associated isotopic effect, the book reviews and evaluates available data on sulfur concentrations and isotopic ratios in the lithosphere, soil, atmosphere. continental and oceanic reservoirs and transport media (rivers and so on) and then the inventory of sulfur in each reservoir and fluxes between reservoirs are estimated. Based THIS
on these estimates. the global picture of the oio- and geochemical cycles of sulfur is presented. lvanov concludes in the final chapter that the sulfur flux of anthropogenic origins to the oceans amounts to about a half of the total river flux. Discussion on lithosphere and continental and oceanic reservoirs most heavily depends on Russian works. which will impress readers by their laborious efforts to obtain such a picture based on direct estimates of various Ruxes. However, chapters on soils and the atmosphere occupy more pages than those devoted to continental and oceanic reservoiw. The domination of Russian literature brings some negative effects. For instance, when one encounters statements ambiguous or seemingly wrong and wants to check them by cited references, they are often Russian and impede the approach of poor readers. Quite a few Russian papers have been translated into English in internationally distributed joumah (e.g. an English version of Igumnov ef al. (Geokhimiya, 1977) cited on page 2 1 has appeared in Ge~hemist~ International). This should be appreciated as an effort to make a tunnel through the barrier and both literatures should be quoted. Overlapping, misprints and mistakes are not rare. A plot of the time excursion of 6?3 of evaporite, for instance, appears on pages 20 and 88, the first taken from Russian authors and the other from Americans, with some noticeable difference between them. On page 13, R: and No of the Rayleigh equation should more precisely be the isotopic ratio f%S/32S,instead of the ?S content. and l\,[ II should be I,‘/I;, . In spite of these weak points, the book is excettently organized in the presentation of the data and discussion of various problems associated with synthesis of the global sulfur cycles. It will serve as a useful guide for researchers concerned about geochemical as well as environmental aspects of the life-supporting elements.
. _ _._._____. _ __.._ Ceochemical ExploMnn 1982, edited by 6. R. Parslow, 1983, Elsevier, 746p., USS95.75, Dfl.225.00. As WITH THE previous editions of “Geochemical Exploration,” the 1982 version represents a compendium of papers presented at the biennial international Geochemical Symposium and a spa&l pu~i~tion reprinted from the Journal of Geochemical Exploration. This volume contains 55 articles in all (33 papers, 18 abstracts, and 4 selected poster presentations) and represents a veritable treasure-trove of ugtodate information on exploration methodology and data analysis and interpretation. A wide range of mineralized environments are covered including sedimentary U, Mississippi Valley Pb-Zn, graniterelated Sn-W-U-MO, volcanogenic massive sulphides, sedimentary exhalative Pb-Zn, lode and epithermal gold, porphyry copper, and barite deposits. Of these, uranium receives the broadest coverage with 14 papers describing exploration in Canada, Austrahi, U.S.A., GreenIand, Belgium, Sri Lanka, and Indonesia. In addition to papers dealing with well established lithogeochemical and hydrogeochemical procedures, many innovative techniques find coverage in this volume (e.g. Ra activity ratios in groundwater exploration for uranium, ionic
migration through gIaciolacustrine sediment above concealed sulphide mineralization, soil air COz and O2 analysis, and fluid inclusion decrepitometry), as do several articles evaluating geostatistical and computer analysis. Throughout the scientific quality is high from both the quantitative and interpretational standpoints. Two papers in particular deserve mention: Sopuck ef al. present a unique example of the successful integration of geochemical data with clay mineral analysis to enlarge lithogeochemical-mineralogical haloes around unconformity-type U deposits, and Goodfellow et nl. provide an excellent summary of the stratigraphic setting and lithogeochemical zoning around the Howard’s Pass ZnPb deposit. All in all, this text should prove indispensible to all those actively involved in mineral exploration and should help generate new approaches to problem-~lving. The editor, Dr. G. R. Parslow, and his coIleagues from the Association of Exploration Geochemists are to be congratulated upon their efforts. D&artement de giologie UniversitP de Montrkai ;Montr&al,Quibec H3C 317
Richara )_; Taylor