This paper seeks to assess the potential of Alkali-Silica Reaction on some granitic rocks in Kumasi in Ghana. Alkali-Silica reactions occur over time between alkaline cement paste and silica contained in rock aggregates as a result of the swelling due to the reaction of certain constituents in the rock aggregates with alkali hydroxides. Alkali-Silica reactions become potentially harmful when they cause significant expansion. Aggregates used for this research were sought from three different quarries, namely, Consar Stone Quarry in Barekese, Nnagot Quarry in Kona and Modern Granite Quarry in Buoho. To achieve the objectives of this project, two test methods were employed such as Accelerated Mortar Bar test (ASTM C1260) and Petrographic analysis. Presence of strained quartz is an indicator for the occurrence of Alkali-Silica Reaction. Samples from Kona contained quite an appreciable amount of strained quartz and exhibited an expansion above the ASTM C 1260 specification, implying that it is potentially reactive and thus not useful for construction works, whilst samples from Barekese, and Buoho were innocuous and may be used for construction works. Supplementary cementing materials such as pozzolans (which are readily available) can be added to concrete mixtures with aggregates from Kona to reduce the harsh effects of ASR.

Sandstones are abundant in the regions of Azad Jammu and Kashmir in northeastern Pakistan. However, physio-mechanical data for project planning and construction of these sandstones, which serve as aggregates and foundations for a variety of infrastructures, are lacking. This research aims to investigate the petrographic and physio-mechanical characteristics of Murree and Kamlial Formation sandstones in the Rawalpindi group. The physio-mechanical parameters included specific gravity, water absorption, unconfined compressive strength (UCS), slake durability, Ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV), and Brazilian. The findings suggest that the sandstone of the Murree and Kamlial formations can be classified as construction-grade rocks. A comprehensive analysis of physico-mechanical observations of these sandstones shows a statistically significant correlation with point load index, Brazilian tensile strength, and UPV in a saturated condition against unconfined compression strength (UCS). Whereas the specific gravity, water absorption, slake durability index, and UPV in dry conditions found no statistically significant correlation against UCS. By rigorous petrographic research, the texture of quartz %, mineralogy and mineral alteration, the existence of micro-fractures, and mineral size distribution all contribute to the total strength qualities of these sandstones. To comprehend the suitability of Muree and Kamlial Formation sandstones, physio-mechanical characteristics were then correlated with the sequence (Murree sandstone) exposed at the Jena Kor village in Peshawar Basin. Based on the results, the sandstones of the Murree and Kamlial Formations in the study area are found appropriate for construction.

This work is focused on the members of the Late Cretaceous-Early Paleogene (K-Pg) diagnostic benthic foraminiferal genus Orthokarstenia which is regionally important in paleontology and stratigraphic correlations. The large number of tests available and the rapid morphologic changes, offer an opportunity to study evolutionary changes in these foraminiferal taxa over a time span of about 25 m. y. (75-50 Ma). Six species of the genus Orthokarstenia are presented: O. applinae, O. eleganta, O. esnehensis, O. higazyi, O. nakkadyi and O. oveyi, which were recorded in eight localities in the Southern Tethys: Nigeria, Tunisia, Egypt (central and north Africa), Jordan, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Iran and Pakistan (southwest Asia). Evolutionary changes of them are indicated by such criteria, such as changes in the test-size, chambers arrangement, type of sutures, periphery or surface ornamentation. These changes help to define the major faunal change of the Campanian/Maastrichtian (C/M) boundary, K/Pg boundary, and can used in biostratigraphic subdivisions and correlations based on benthic foraminifera, beside planktic foraminiferal zonation.

Geodetic observations for both vertical and horizontal control networks cannot be compromised for any reason in accuracy and precision in the field of geomatics. Due to the error-prone nature of survey measurements, standards are established to allow for comparing the obtained results with a set of guidelines, regulations, or pre-determined specifications. The University of Benin’s Ugbowo Campus in Nigeria does not have enough control points, which informs this study. The densification of more reliable control points using the most recent technology is necessary. Before the observations, control network design, excavation, casting, and monumentation of first-order compliance beacons had been completed. Eight GNSS receivers were connected to the CORS_Geosystems multi-link access point and simultaneously deployed for observations. The stages involve the adjustment of observed data, the presentation of adjusted results, and the determination of horizontal and vertical accuracies. The result of horizontal accuracy showed that the RAPH_GNSS_08 station had the highest horizontal accuracy standard ratio of 1:432,193, while the Raph_GNSS_04 station had the lowest, 1:133,271. The highest vertical accuracy standard was 4.0mm, achieved between Cors_Geo and RAPH_GNSS_09, while the lowest, which was 3.1mm, was observed between Cors_Geo and RAPH_GNSS_08. High-precision engineering projects in the research area will benefit from the established first-order controls in terms of execution, monitoring, and maintenance. The Surveyors Council of Nigeria (SURCON) has recommended GNSS as one of the methods for achieving geodetic control densification in Nigeria.

Thirty three small diagnostic benthic foraminiferal species of the Textulariid genus Spiroplectinella are common in the Late Cretaceous-Neogene rocks from many Tethyan localities: North Atlantic (USA, Mexico, Caribbean), South America (Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Venezuela, Ecuador), Europe (North Sea, Norway, Spain, France, Poland, Czech, Italy, Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, Romania, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Turkmenistan), North Africa (Tunisia, Egypt), Southwest Asia (Turkey, Jordan, Iraq, UAE, Iran, Pakistan) and Indian Ocean (Australia, Antarctic Basin). These diagnostic species are: Spiroplectinella adamsi, baudouiniana, carinata, chicoana, costata, cretosa, dalmatina, dentata, deperdita, desertorum, elongata, esnaensis, excolata, hamdani, henryi, israelski, jarvisi, knebeli, laevis, longa, nuttalli, paleocenica, paracarinata, pectinatiforma, plummerae, praelonga, richardi, rossae, semicomplanata, sigmoidina, subhaeringensis, wilcoxensis and wrightii. The paleontology, stratigraphy, paleoenvironment and paleogeographic distribution of them in the Tethys are presented.

The purpose of this research is to establish the relationship between the gold grades and the various pebble sizes from a mine. This objective was reached by choosing parameters of interest from the logging and sampling data, lithological data and assay data from the mine. These parameters were further processed using Microsoft Excel to plot graph of pebble size against gold grade. In order to build a concrete ground for the analysis, an average gold grade for the various samples used was calculated and compared to the cut-off grade at the Mine which is 0.45g/t. Upon further analysis, it was observed that, gold grade which are considered economically feasible at the mine is associated with the coarse pebbles, which has a diameter range of (5mm-30mm) and those which are considered as waste are associated with the fine pebbles (less than 5mm diameter). Some of these coarser pebbles are not economically feasible, since their average gold grade when calculated falls below the cut-off grade at the mine. The mode of deposition as well as the topography of the medium at the time of deposition of gold determine the gold grade of a reef. The degree of roundness and sorting of the conglomerates associated with mineralization as well as ore dilution within the depositional medium by the pebbly quartzite and quartzite waste account for the fall in gold grade of the reef.

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) were studied with the aim of investigating the compositional profile of particulate matters in offices and residential areas in Bonny metropolis. A Gas-chromatography Mass spectrometer was used to evaluate PAHs bound in dust retained in air-conditioning unit filters from office and residential buildings in Bonny metropolitan. The results obtained show that office and residential areas had average summation (PAHs) of 39.52 and 21.14 mg/kg, respectively. Acenaphthalene and naphthalene were the most common PAHs in Bonny Metropolis. In addition, the carcinogenic summation (PAH) from the Bonny office and residential areas was found to be 14.87 and 8.10 mg/kg, respectively. Bonny metropolis has a greater concentration of PAH hazardous pollutants. This could be attributable to the metropolis’s intense industrial operations and uncontrolled activities coupled with continuous gas flaring which contributed significantly to the concentration of PAHs within Bonny metropolis. Thus, the government should enact and implement environmental restrictions that regulate industrial emissions in the city under study.

Geophysical investigations were carried out around the ministry of Justice building, Ekiti State Secretariat, Ado-Ekiti, with the aim of investigating the possible cause(s) of failures from the foundation of the building in the government Secretariat. The Electromagnetic and Electrical Resistivity methods were used for the investigation. The Electrical Resistivity method involves Vertical Electrical Sounding (VES) and 2D Electrical Resistivity Tomography using Schlumberger and dipole-dipole configuration. Three (3) VES points were conducted along the traverse within the investigated area with half current electrode separation (AB/2) varying from 2 m to a maximum of 65 m. The electromagnetic measurements were taken at distance separation of 10 m along the traverse line in the SE-NW direction. The VES curve types obtained in the area are H and HKH. Four geoelectric layers were delineated within the investigated area which includes the topsoil, lateritic clay, clay, and partly weathered basement which is a quartzite rock with resistivity values ranging from 47-280 ohm-m, 383-435 ohm-m, 47-78 ohm-m, and 239-4999 ohm-m and the thickness ranges from 1-1.6 m, 2.8-4.2 m, and 9.1-27.9 m respectively. The dipole-dipole results also delineate four geologic formations that revealed the differential settlement within the clayey zone of the building foundations. The electromagnetic method also delineated seven subsurface geologic formations which revealed that most of the materials characterizing the subsurface are of clayey composition. The integration of the results showed that the possible cause(s) of failures in part of the building is due to the presence of clayey formations and geologic fractures within the foundation of the studied area.

The Campanian-Ypresian (C-Y) fauna in the Southern Tethys (ST) include rich small benthic foraminifera (SBF) reveals significant biostratigraphic changes during the C-Y transition. A progressive evolutionary trend within the Verneuilina lineage allowed to establish the Campanian V. iraqensis Total Range Zone (TRZ), and three successive zones in the Maastrichtian-Ypresian, namely: the Maastrichtian V. aegyptiaca Interval Range Zone (IRZ), the Paleocene V. laevigata IRZ, and the Ypresian V. luxorensis TRZ, which may correlate with the standard planktonic foraminifera zones: Globotruncana aegyptiaca IRZ to Acarinina pentacamerata PRZ, and span about 23 M.Y. (75-52 Ma). On the other hand, a minor difference in the test morphology and differences in the stratigraphic ranges of the members of the genus Verneuilina are recognized as being of decisive specific value. For that, the Proterogenesis Rule can be applied here on the Late C-Y six species of the genus Verneuilina, and these are: Verneuilina aegyptiaca and V. karreri, V. laevigata and V. luxorensis. Another two species are believed here as new: Verneuilina iraqensis and Verneuilina jordanica. The identified species were recorded from many localities in the ST (Tunisia, Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, Iran, United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Pakistan), and one of them are recorded in Spain, in the Northern Tethys (NT).

Contaminated sediment poses a serious environmental problem, therefore knowledge of the concentration of heavy metals in stream sediments is very important because of their significance to aquatic life and human health. The concentration of heavy metals (Cd, Pb, Cr, As, Ni, Zn, Fe and Cu), in stream sediments of some parts of Warri River, Southwestern Nigeria were examined during the rainy and dry seasons using Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer, in order to assess their contamination levels using the environmental contamination indexes; Geoaccumulation Index, Enrichment Factor (EF), and Contamination Factor (CF). For both the rainy and dry seasons, the results revealed average heavy metal concentrations obtained in all samples in the study area in the order As>Cd>Pb>Ni>Cr>Zn>Cu>Fe. The trend in mean Igeo values was as follows: As (-0.66) > Zn (-4.93) > Cu (-5.8) > Fe (-5.31) > Cd (5.76) > Pb (-6.35) > Ni (11.25), showing that River Warri’s sediments were not polluted by heavy metals. Cu= Zn (0.08), Cd (0.34), Pb (0.02), As (0.01), and Ni (0.00) were the mean CF values across all measured locations, indicating a low contamination factor. The average EFs for the sediments were As (1.09) > Cd (1.10) > Cu (1.46) > Zn (1.61) > Pb (1.09) > Ni (1.09) > Fe (0.83), showing low enrichment (<2). Evaluation of enrichment factor, geo-accumulation index and contamination factor values showed that the stream sediments of the study area were unpolluted. Heavy metals in the sediments were found to be linked to anthropogenic activities in the study region, according to the results of the hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA). The metal concentrations in the sediment were found to be elevated at some sampled points, it is therefore recommended that annual monitoring of the stream sediments of the study area is undertaken. Also, sustainable practices should be employed in order to conserve the resources of the Warri River.