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Magnetic spherules in sediments of the karstic Dobra River (Croatia)

  • SEDIMENTS, SEC 2 • PHYSICAL AND BIOGEOCHEMICAL PROCESSES • RESEARCH ARTICLE
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Abstract

Purpose

The paper describes an unusual finding of magnetic particles in stream sediments of the karstic Dobra River (Croatia). It aims to investigate the magnetic susceptibility properties of river sediments and to find links with their mineralogical and chemical composition. The goal of our research was to suggest the possible origin of magnetic particles in the river sediments within the Dinaric karst region, which to our knowledge was not exposed to metal manufacturing processes.

Materials and methods

A preliminary, exploratory sediment sampling programme was undertaken. Sediments were collected near the channel bank (from the top layer) at 16 representative stations distributed along the length of the Dobra River (110 km). Sediments were air-dried and passed through 2-mm and 63-μm sieves, and analysed for magnetic susceptibility (and Curie temperature), isothermal remanent magnetism (IRM), stereo-microscopy of separated magnetic grains, mineralogical analysis (using X-ray diffraction), and chemical analysis (using inductively coupled plasma–mass spectrometry).

Results and discussion

Increased magnetic susceptibility and IRM values were observed mostly in the sediments of the Upper Dobra. Thermomagnetic curves show a distinctive Curie-point of magnetite at 580 °C. Additional transformation observed at 520–560 °C derives from titanomagnetite. There was no significant correlation between magnetic susceptibility and Fe. Magnetic particles from the Dobra River sediments contain pyroxene, plagioclase, hematite and quartz, in addition to magnetite. White spherules within magnetic grains are also present. The major constituent of five separated magnetic spherules is Fe; the minor constituents are Al, Ca, Mg and Si, and there are numerous trace elements (Ba, Cr, K, Mn, Na, Ni, Ti and V). The ratio Ni/ Fe versus Cr/Fe suggests that the magnetic spherules are impactites.

Conclusions

Magnetic spherules were discovered for the first time in stream sediments of the sinking karstic Dobra River, a region where anthropogenic sources for that contribution are absent. Preliminary results point to a possible impactite, formed either by a shock event caused by a meteorite impact or by volcanic processes. The presence of magnetic spherules in the fluvial sediments of the Upper Dobra River represents a new and exciting finding and deserves further field work and laboratory research.

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Acknowledgements

Field work in the Dobra River valley was financed under project No. 098-0982934-2720 of the Croatian Ministry of Science, Education and Sport (principal investigator Ph.D Ivanka Pižeta). Accommodation costs of the first author in Leoben during laboratory magnetic measurements were covered by the Austrian agency ÖAD, under a bilateral Croatia-Austria 2010–2011 project. We thank Prof. Eduard Petrovsky and Prof. Ales Kapička from the Czech Academy of Science for joining us in earlier field work with their equipment when magnetic anomaly first observed by Ph.D. S. Frančišković-Bilinski in sediments of the Dobra River was confirmed. Prof. Gerd Rantitsch from the Montan University Leoben, Austria, helped us with preparing the microscopic preparations of magnetic grains, and we thank him for that. Special thanks go to Prof. Tihomir Marjanac from the Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, for letting us use his stereo microscope, for taking microscopic images and for useful discussion. Part of laboratory work was performed at the Central Water Management Laboratory (CWML) Hrvatske vode (Croatian water management authority), for which we thank M.Sc. Marija Marijanović Rajčić,. The text was language-edited by Tatjana Jauk, a professional linguist. The final version of the manuscript was edited by Prof. Philip N. Owens. Professor Ulrich Foerstner helped us enormously with his discussions and suggestions during corrections of the first submitted manuscript to JSS.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division for Marine and Environmental Research, Ruđer Bošković Institute, POB 180, 10002, Zagreb, Croatia

    Stanislav Frančišković-Bilinski & Halka Bilinski

  2. Department of Applied Geosciences and Geophysics, Montanuniversität Leoben, Peter Tunner Straße 25, 8700, Leoben, Austria

    Robert Scholger

  3. Division of Mineralogy and Petrology, Department of Geology, Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, Horvatovac bb, 10000, Zagreb, Croatia

    Nenad Tomašić

  4. Central Water Management Laboratory, Hrvatske Vode [Croatian Waters], Ulica grada Vukovara 220, 10000, Zagreb, Croatia

    Krešimir Maldini

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  1. Stanislav Frančišković-Bilinski
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Correspondence to Stanislav Frančišković-Bilinski.

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Frančišković-Bilinski, S., Bilinski, H., Scholger, R. et al. Magnetic spherules in sediments of the karstic Dobra River (Croatia). J Soils Sediments 14, 600–614 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-013-0808-x

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