Interactive behavior of soil–pile-superstructure system in transient state to liquefaction by means of large shake table tests

Shaking table tests were conducted by means of a large-scale laminar box with 4 m in length, 2 m in width and 2 m in height in order to investigate behavior of a soil-pile-superstructure system in liquefiable ground. A model two-storey structure, supported by a pile group, was set in a saturated sand deposit, and subjected to a sinusoidal base motion with increasing amplitude. Discussions are focused on the transient behavior until soil liquefaction occurs. Main interests are characteristics of springs used in a sway-rocking model and a multi-freedom lumped mass (MFLM) model that are frequently used in soil–pile interaction analysis. The spring constant in the sway-rocking model is represented by restoring force characteristics at the pile head, and that in the MFLM system is represented by an interaction spring connecting the pile to the free field. The transient state prior to soil liquefaction is shown to be important in the design of a pile because dynamic earth pressure shows peak response in this state. The reduction of the stiffness due to excess porewater generation and strain dependent nonlinear behavior is evaluated.     

Strain field measurements of rubber by image analysis and design criteria for laminated rubber bearings (LRB)

Although seismic isolation rubber bearings in bridges and buildings have proven to be a very effective passive method for reducing earthquake‐induced forces, a detailed mechanical modeling of the rubber that is used in bearings under large strains has not been established. Therefore, a 3D model of failure behavior and the design criteria for the safety evaluation of seismic isolation bearings have not yet been developed. This paper presents: (1) correlation‐based template‐matching algorithms to measure large strain fields of continua; (2) a failure criterion for rubber; and (3) the design criteria for the safety evaluation of laminated algorithms, data‐validation algorithms were developed and implemented to eliminate possible unrealistic displacement vectors present in the measured displacement field. The algorithms were successfully employed in the strain field measurement of LRB and rubber materials that are subjected to failure. The measured local strains for rubber material at failure were used to develop a failure criterion for rubber. The validity of the proposed criterion was evaluated by applying it to the LRB; the criterion was introduced into a 3D finite element model of LRB, compared with the experimental results of bearings failure, and verified. Finally, design criteria are proposed for LRB for the safety evaluation. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Viscosity of peridotite liquid up to 13 GPa: Implications for magma ocean viscosities

The viscosity of synthetic peridotite liquid has been investigated at high pressures using in-situ falling sphere viscometry by combining a multi-anvil technique with synchrotron radiation. We used a newly designed capsule containing a small recessed reservoir outside of the hot spot of the heater, in which a viscosity marker sphere is embedded in a forsterite + enstatite mixture having a higher solidus temperature than the peridotite. This experimental setup prevents spheres from falling before a stable temperature above the liquidus is established and thus avoids difficulties in evaluating viscosities from velocities of spheres falling through a partially molten sample.

Experiments have been performed between 2.8 and 13 GPa at temperatures ranging from 2043 to 2523 K. Measured viscosities range from 0.019 (± 0.004) to 0.13 (± 0.02) Pa s. At constant temperature, viscosity increases with increasing pressure up to  8.5 GPa but then decreases between  8.5 and 13 GPa. The change in the pressure dependence of viscosity is likely associated with structural changes of the liquid that occur upon compression. By combining our results with recently published 0.1 MPa peridotite liquid viscosities [D.B. Dingwell, C. Courtial, D. Giordano, A. Nichols, Viscosity of peridotite liquid, Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 226 (2004) 127–138.], the experimental data can be described by a non-Arrhenian, empirical Vogel-Fulcher-Tamman equation, which has been modified by adding a term to account for the observed pressure dependence of viscosity. This equation reproduces measured viscosities to within 0.08 log₁₀-units on average. We use this model to calculate viscosities of a peridotitic magma ocean along a liquid adiabat to a depth of  400 km and discuss possible effects on viscosity at greater pressures and temperatures than experimentally investigated.     

Diamond in metasedimentary crustal rocks from Pohorje,Eastern Alps: a window to deep continental subduction

We report the first finding of diamond and moissanite in metasedimentary crustal rocks of Pohorje Mountains (Slovenia) in the Austroalpine ultrahigh‐pressure (UHP) metamorphic terrane of the Eastern Alps. Microscopic observations and Raman spectroscopy show that diamond occurs in situ as inclusions in garnet, being heterogeneously distributed. Under the optical microscope, diamond‐bearing inclusions are of cuboidal to rounded shape and of pinkish, yellow to brownish colour. The Raman spectra of the investigated diamond show a sharp, first order peak of sp³‐bonded carbon, in most cases centred between 1332 and 1330 cm^?1, with a full width at half maximum between 3 and 5 cm^?1. Several spectra show Raman bands typical for disordered graphitic (sp²‐bonded) carbon. Detailed observations show that diamond occurs either as a monomineralic, single‐crystal inclusion or it is associated with SiC (moissanite), CO₂ and CH₄ in polyphase inclusions_. This rare record of diamond occurring with moissanite as fluid‐inclusion daughter minerals implies the crystallization of diamond and moissanite from a supercritical fluid at reducing conditions. Thermodynamic modelling suggests that diamond‐bearing gneisses attained P–T conditions of ≥3.5 GPa and 800–850 °C, similar to eclogites and garnet peridotites. We argue that diamond formed when carbonaceous sediment underwent UHP metamorphism at mantle depth exceeding 100 km during continental subduction in the Late Cretaceous (c. 95–92 Ma). The finding of diamond confirms UHP metamorphism in the Pohorje Mountains, the most deeply subducted part of Austroalpine units.     

Temporal variations in the current structure and volume transport of the Coastal Oyashio revealed by direct current measurement

Direct current measurements by a shipboard and bottom-mounted acoustic Doppler current profiler and concurrent hydrographic observations with a CTD were conducted off southeastern Hokkaido, Japan, between January and May 2005 to reveal temporal variations in the current structure and volume transport of the Coastal Oyashio (CO). The CO, which has a baroclinic jet structure with southwestward speeds exceeding 90 cm s^?1 and a width of 7–8 km, was associated with a surface-to-bottom density front and was formed on the offshore side of the shelf break. The volume transport of CO (T _CO) was estimated by integrating the fluxes of lower-density water that was trapped against the coast along the density front represented by the 26.2 σ _θ isopycnal line. This transport decreased monotonously from 0.79 Sv (1 Sv = 10⁶ m³ s^?1) in January to 0.21 Sv in March and subsequently to 0.12 Sv in May, possibly due to the decay of the East Sakhalin Current Water in the Okhotsk Sea. Accompanied by a decrease in T _CO, the location of the jet structure associated with the density front moved toward the coast while the maximum speed of the jet decreased and the tilt of the front became more horizontal. Consequently, more saline offshore Oyashio water flowed into the deep part of the shelf area, and the current structure altered from relatively barotropic in winter to baroclinic in spring. This study is the first to estimate the observed volume transport of the CO from direct current measurements.     

Pressure and temperature dependence of cation distribution in Mg-Mn olivine

Synthetic (Mg_0.51, Mn_0.49)₂SiO₄ olivine samples are heat-treated at three different pressures; 0, 8 and 12 GPa, all at the same temperature (～500° C). X-ray structure analyses on these single crystals are made in order to see the pressure effect on cation distribution. The intersite distribution coefficient of Mg and Mn in M1 and M2 sites, K _D = (Mn/Mg) _M1/(Mn/Mg) _M2, of these samples are 0.192 (0 GPa), 0.246 (8 GPa) and 0.281 (12 GPa), indicating cationic disordering with pressure. The small differences of cell dimensions between these samples are determined by powder X-ray diffraction. Cell dimensions b and c decrease, whereas a increases with pressure of equilibration. Cell volume decreases with pressure as a result of a large contraction of the b cell dimension. The effect of pressure on the free energy of the cation exchange reaction is evaluated by the observed relation between the cell volume and the site occupancy numbers. The magnitude of the pressure effect on cation distribution is only a fifth of that predicted from the observed change in volume combined with thermodynamic theory. This phenomenon is attributed to nonideality in this solid solution, and nonideal parameters are required to describe cation distribution determined in the present and previous experiments. We use a five-parameter equation to specify the cationic equilibrium on the basic of thermodynamic theory. It includes one energy parameter of ideal mixing, two parameters for nonideal effects, one volume parameter, and one thermal parameter originated from the lattice vibrational energy. The present data combined with some of the existing data are used to determine the five parameters, and the cation distribution in Mg-Mn olivine is described as a function of temperature, pressure, and composition. The basic framework of describing the cationic behavior in olivine-type mineral is worked out, although the result is preliminary: each of the determined parameters is not accurate enough to enable us to make a reliable prediction.     

Soil-structure interaction experiment using impulse response

A new experimental method using a finite soil model with no special treatement on its boundaries is employed for soil-structure intration problems to simulate the semi-infinitenesss of the actual soil medium. The present method utlizies the characteristics of transient response to an impluse load to obtain the impedance functions and effective input motions for surface and embedded foundations. This technique is applicable to a linear elastic system whose impulse response decreases to a small enough value before observing the reflected waves. The experimentally obtained impedance functions and effective input motions are compared with those obtained by the direct boundary integral equation method and the hybrid approach. Good agreement between the xperimental and analytical results validates the present method as well as the accuracy of the numerical tools.