The Mineralogical and Geochemical Processes involved in Rapid Natural Lithification of Artificial Ground

人工地面是一个术语，用于描述被人类改造的部分陆地表面。这可以包括从自然陆地表面移除材料，例如采石，或在其上沉积材料，例如来自工业过程的废料。在世界各地，人类搬运的材料几乎是河流等自然过程的三倍。人造地面通常位于城市地区，因此最适合在所谓的“布朗菲尔德”上建造。它还可以增强生物多样性，并可用于碳捕获。然而，它往往含有污染物，容易发生山体滑坡。考虑到人工地基带来的这些机遇和挑战，了解可能对其产生作用的自然过程是很重要的。当人工地基由人类活动沉积时，它由松散的材料或沉积物组成。这可能会变成石化，即松散的沉积物融合在一起，变成岩石。随着人工地面的不断增加，以及石化可能产生的影响（如固定污染物和捕获碳），了解人工地面石化的原因和过程是重要和及时的。这项新颖的提案将通过研究两个英国案例研究地点来探索这一前沿研究领域，这些地点的人工地面已经变成了锂化。样品将从苏格兰和英格兰西北部的遗留渣堆（炼钢副产品）中收集。对样本的实验室分析将使我们能够理解为什么人工地面在非常快的时间尺度上变成锂化-比自然沉积物快得多。这项研究将提供一个基本的理解，为进一步的项目铺平道路，以了解石化对污染物固定，地面稳定性和碳捕获等实际方面的更具体的影响。

Artificial ground is a term used to describe parts of the land surface which have been modified by humans. This can include removing material from the natural land surface, such as quarrying, or depositing material on it, such as waste material from industrial processes. Around the world, almost three times as much material is moved by humans than by natural processes such as rivers. Artificial ground is typically in urban areas and so is favoured for building on, so-called 'brownfield land'. It can also enhance biodiversity, and may be used for carbon capture. However, it often contains pollutants, and is prone to landslides. Given these opportunities and challenges posed by artificial ground, it is important to understand natural processes which may act upon it.When it is deposited by human activity, artificial ground is composed of loose material or sediment. This can become lithified, i.e. the loose sediment becomes fused together to become like a rock. With the ever-increasing volume of artificial ground being created, and the impacts lithification may have (such as immobilising pollutants and capturing carbon), it is important and timely to understand the causes of, and processes involved in, lithification of artificial ground. This novel proposal will explore this frontier area of research by studying two UK case study sites where artificial ground has become lithified. Sample will be collected from legacy slag heaps (by-products from steelmaking) at sites in Scotland and NW England. Laboratory analysis of the samples will allow us to understand why artificial ground becomes lithified over very rapid timescales - much faster than natural sediments. This research will provide a fundamental understanding that will pave the way for further projects to understand more specific implications of lithification on practical aspects such as pollutant immobilisation, ground stability and carbon capture.