Browsing by Author "Sutton, SR"

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    Arsenic microdistribution and speciation in toenail clippings of children living in a historic gold mining area
    (Elsevier, 2010-05-15) Pearce, DC; Dowling, K; Gerson, AR; Sim, MR; Sutton, SR; Newville, M; Russell, RA; McOrist, GD
    Arsenic is naturally associated with gold mineralisation and elevated in some soils and mine waste around historical gold mining activity in Victoria, Australia. To explore uptake, arsenic concentrations in children's toenail clippings and household soils were measured, and the microdistribution and speciation of arsenic in situ in toenail clipping thin sections investigated using synchrotron-based X-ray microprobe techniques. The ability to differentiate exogenous arsenic was explored by investigating surface contamination on cleaned clippings using depth profiling, and direct diffusion of arsenic into incubated clippings. Total arsenic concentrations ranged from 0.15 to 2.1 µg/g (n = 29) in clipping samples and from 3.3 to 130 µg/g (n = 22) in household soils, with significant correlation between transformed arsenic concentrations (Pearson's r = 0.42, P = 0.023) when household soil was treated as independent. In clipping thin sections (n = 2), X-ray fluorescence (XRF) mapping showed discrete layering of arsenic consistent with nail structure, and irregular arsenic incorporation along the nail growth axis. Arsenic concentrations were heterogeneous at 10 × 10 µm microprobe spot locations investigated (< 0.1 to 13.3 µg/g). X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) spectra suggested the presence of two distinct arsenic species: a lower oxidation state species, possibly with mixed sulphur and methyl coordination (denoted As≈ III(–S, –CH3)); and a higher oxidation state species (denoted As≈ V(–O)). Depth profiling suggested that surface contamination was unlikely (n = 4), and XRF and XANES analyses of thin sections of clippings incubated in dry or wet mine waste, or untreated, suggested direct diffusion of arsenic occurred under moist conditions. These findings suggest that arsenic in soil contributes to some systemic absorption associated with periodic exposures among children resident in areas of historic gold mining activity in Victoria, Australia. Future studies are required to ascertain if adverse health effects are associated with current levels of arsenic uptake. © 2009, Elsevier Ltd.
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    Rheology of ε-iron up to 19 GPa and 600 K in the D-DIA
    (American Geophysical Union, 2007-12-07) Nishiyama, N; Wang, YD; Rivers, ML; Sutton, SR; Cookson, DJ
    Stress-strain curves, i.e., relations between the differential stress and macroscopic sample strain, of polycrystalline ε-iron have been obtained at pressures of 17(±1) GPa, three different temperatures (600, 400, and 300 K), and various strain rates between 3.8 × 10−6 and 2.3 × 10−5 s−1 using the deformation-DIA coupled with monochromatic X-rays. Five independent stress-strain curves were obtained on axial shortening and the sample exhibited ductile behavior in all. Above 4% axial strain, sample stresses reach saturation and the sample exhibited steady-state deformation. Stress exponents at temperatures of 400 and 600 K were determined to be ∼31 and ∼7, respectively. These results indicate that ε-iron deforms in plasticity regime below 400 K and that the dominant deformation mechanism at 600 K may be low temperature power-law creep. The overall deformation behavior for ε-iron is consistent with that of zinc, suggesting that the deformation mechanism map of ε-iron resembles those of other hexagonal metals. © 2007, American Geophysical Union