Geology, Geophysics & Environment
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ISSN 2299-8004
e-ISSN: 2353-0790
Issue Date
2025
Volume
Vol. 51
Number
No. 2
Description
Journal Volume
Geology, Geophysics & Environment
Vol. 51 (2025)
Projects
Pages
Articles
Continuous contractional deformation followed by extension in the Nowy Sącz Basin, Polish Outer Carpathians: constraints from fault-slip analysis
(Wydawnictwa AGH, 2025) Fodor, László; Świerczewska, Anna; Strzelecki, Piotr Jan
Fault-slip analysis was carried out in the Nowy Sącz Basin and the surroundings of the Polish Outer Carpathians based on field observations, published maps, and publications. A reconstruction of the stress field and the contractional directions from the folds suggests that the area was marked by four different deformation phases, most of them involving several stress states. The tilt test supports the separation of pre-, syn-, and post-folding deformation episodes within the phases which occurred during the folding of the Palaeogene to Early Miocene flysch units and also during the folding of the late Middle Miocene basin fill. After an early extensional phase at the onset of the deformation history, the area was marked by contractional deformation from ~34 Ma to ~8 Ma. During this period the compressional direction did not change markedly but a slight clockwise change of the maximal stress axis may have occurred in the Early Miocene due to vertical-axis block rotation. In this persistent deformation field, the basin could have had a contractional origin in front of an out-of-sequence thrust. The latest Miocene(?) to Quaternary deformation was probably related to the extensional collapse of the Carpathian accretionary wedge.
The combination of soil magnetometry with portable XRF spectroscopy as an effective tool for the assessment of sources of trace elements in topsoil
(Wydawnictwa AGH, 2025) Magiera, Tadeusz; Wawer-Liszka, Małgorzata
The origin of potentially toxic elements (PTEs) may influence their persistence, mobility and determine the extent to which they pose a threat to the soil environment. Therefore, the research objective of this study was to obtain information on the origin of nine PTEs present in the soil at two Natura 2000 protected areas. The second objective was to test the usability of three popular soil indices in assessing soil pollution in the study area. The research was carried out in two forested areas belonging to the Natura 2000 network of European protected areas, located in the Cieszyn region (southern Poland) on the Polish-Czech border. The research involved the analysis of the distribution of elements in topsoil cores (to 30 cm depth), based on high-resolution measurements obtained from a combination of soil magnetometry and portable XRF spectrometer (pXRF). Measurement of the vertical distribution of volume magnetic susceptibility ($\kappa$) along the core was performed using a Bartington MS2C sensor and the analysis of PTE contents using an Explorer 7000 XRF spectrometer. Based on the obtained results, three popular geochemical indices of soil contamination with metals and metalloids were calculated: geo-accumulation index ($I_{geo}$), single pollution index ($PI$), and enrichment index ($EF$). Research has shown that the use of a pXRF spectrometer allows for the assessment of the distribution of PTEs in the soil profile with high accuracy, as well as a precise determination of the source of these elements and tracking the migration of pollutants deep into the soil profile. The peak of magnetic susceptibility values in the upper part of the profile strongly correlated with the contents of Pb, As and Zn, which confirmed the anthropogenic origin of these PTEs in the soil in both study areas. The distribution pattern of most of the remaining studied elements (Ti, V, Cr, Co, and Ni) in the soil profile and the analysis of geochemical indicators ($I_{geo}$, $PI$ and $EF$) indicated their lithogenic and/or pedogenic origin. The use of a pXRF spectrometer allows the assessment of the distribution of PTEs in the soil profile with high measurement resolution and enables precise determination of the source of elements, tracking the migration of pollutants down the soil profile. The combination of soil magnetometry and pXRF, supported by the analysis of geochemical indicators, has proven to be a very effective tool in examining soil contamination and environmental site assessment.
Local tectonic stress regime in the Upper Silesian Coal Basin using primary geodetic data
(Wydawnictwa AGH, 2025) Szczerbowski, Zbigniew
Many papers have been devoted to the problematic tectonic stress regime of the Upper Silesian Coal Basin (USCB), particularly relating to the interrelation between the tremors triggered by mining activity and the natural seismicity in the rock mass. This problem is analysed here on the basis of geodetic data in light of the tectonic setting. The author determined the horizontal strain regime in the USCB area with the application of triangular arrays that are formed by a network of GPS/GNSS stations. The primary geodetic data used in this research are the coordinates recorded in time by the stations. They enabled the calculation of the easting and northing components of displacement velocity vector and their errors. 16 permanently installed GPS/GNSS stations are located into the study area and this set led to the construction of 23 different triangles, while the centroid of each triangle was extracted. For each centroid, the deformation parameters were determined: maximal horizontal extension, azimuth of maximal horizontal extension, minimal horizontal extension, maximal shear strain, and area strain. These results were applied to estimate the spatial distributions of the parameters. The distributions reveal that the central part of the study area (the Upper Silesian Trough) is under compression, and is surrounded by extension zones. In general, the distributions of strain estimates correspond to the tectonic pattern of the area. These findings provide a different perspective on former studies on tectonic stress by geological surveys and tectonic influence on seismicity in the USCB area. They confirm earlier assumptions about the occurrence of tectonic stress in the studied area. The determined deformation parameters and their spatial distribution provide an explanation for the occurrence of high-energy tremors in the USCB area.
Decomposition of displacement vectors from InSAR images of mining areas - a case study
(Wydawnictwa AGH, 2025) Kwinta, Andrzej; Kopeć, Anna; Michałowska, Krystyna
Mining activities are a major anthropogenic driver of ground surface deformation, often resulting in complex subsidence phenomena that are difficult to characterize using conventional geodetic methods. Interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) provides a powerful means of detecting displacements over large areas, but decomposing its line-of-sight (LOS) measurements into full 3D displacement vectors remains a challenge, especially when limited to data from two satellite tracks. This paper presents an iterative decomposition algorithm that supplements the classical two-LOS system with an empirical relationship between horizontal displacement components and the slope of the subsidence trough, derived from established mining deformation theories. The algorithm is validated through both a theoretical »blind« test case and three real-life examples of mining-induced seismic deformation in the Legnica-Głogów Copper District (LGCD), Poland. The results show that the proposed method significantly improves the accuracy of displacement vector estimation compared to classical decomposition techniques. This approach not only enhances our understanding of mining-induced ground movements but also offers practical benefits for ground surface deformation monitoring and hazard assessment in subsidence-prone regions.
Technological research of calcinated dolomite ores as intermediates for metal magnesium production
(Wydawnictwa AGH, 2025) Bekényiová, Alexandra; Danková, Zuzana; Kollová, Zuzana; Fedorová, Erika; Bačo, Pavel; Briančin, Jaroslav; Čechovská, Katrína
The current work investigates the differences between four types of calcinated dolomite samples as suitable intermediates for subsequent silicothermic reduction of metal magnesium by simultaneous differential thermal analysis (DTA) /thermogravimetric analysis (TG). The results of the DTA/TG analysis showed the least significant differences at the temperature endotherms with no weight loss on the TG curves at a temperature of 1373 K for the calcined dolomite sample TR-1 from Trebejov deposit. The most significant difference on the DTA curves was detected for the calcinated sample KRA-1 (deposit Kraľovany), which is connected with the hydration activity of the sample. According to the results of the chemical analyses, annealing products of all samples fulfilled two of the three conditions, namely a molecular ratio of CaO:MgO and an impurity content below 2.5% for their subsequent use as feedstocks in the silicothermal process for the preparation of metallic magnesium. Subsequently, the experimental test of silicothermic reduction of magnesium of calcinated sample ST-1 in a flowing argon atmosphere was investigated by EDX analysis. The results indicate that the prepared magnesium sample analysed by EDX – point and mapping analysis confirmed the presence of magnesium totalling 91% despite the failure to reach the temperature in the furnace required for the reduction of Mg.