Effects of Recharge Wells and Flow Barriers on Seawater Intrusion

The installation of recharge wells and subsurface flow barriers are among several strategies proposed to control seawater intrusion on coastal groundwater systems. In this study, we performed laboratory‐scale experiments and numerical simulations to determine the effects of the location and application of recharge wells, and of the location and penetration depth of flow barriers, on controlling seawater intrusion in unconfined coastal aquifers. We also compared the experimental results with existing analytical solutions. Our results showed that more effective saltwater repulsion is achieved when the recharge water is injected at the toe of the saltwater wedge. Point injection yields about the same repulsion compared with line injection from a screened well for the same recharge rate. Results for flow barriers showed that more effective saltwater repulsion is achieved with deeper barrier penetration and with barriers located closer to the coast. When the flow barrier is installed inland from the original toe position however, saltwater intrusion increases with deeper barrier penetration. Saltwater repulsion due to flow barrier installation was found to be linearly related to horizontal barrier location and a polynomial function of the barrier penetration depth.     

Experimental Constraints on the Thermal Peak of a Granulite from McIntyre Island, Enderby Land, East Antarctica

High-pressure experiments have been carried out at 11-22 kbar and 900-1200°C using a piston cylinder apparatus to constrain the thermal peak condition of a granulite characterized by the mineral assemblage of orthopyroxene+sillimanite+quartz from McIntyre Island, Enderby Land, East Antarctica. The bulk composition of the starting material is 85 wt.% McIntyre granulite+15 wt.% sillimanite. At 11 kbar, orthopyroxene, sillimanite and quartz are stable below 1000°C. At 1050°C sillimanite does not appear, and sapphirine coexists with orthopyroxene and quartz. These experimental results indicate that the McIntyre granulite has undergone the ultra high-temperature metamorphism at 1000-1050°C represented by the diagnostic mineral assemblage of orthopyroxene, sillimanite and quartz.     

Iron partitioning in pyrolitic lower mantle

The partitioning of iron between Mg-rich perovskite (Pv) and ferropericlase (Fp) was investigated for a pyrolitic bulk composition over a wide range of simulated lower-mantle pressures and temperatures from 28 to 114 GPa and from 1,900 to 2,300 K, in a laser-heated diamond anvil cell (DAC). The recovered DAC samples are chemically homogeneous, indicating a relatively small temperature gradient during laser heating. The chemical compositions of coexisting Pv, Fp, and Ca-rich perovskite (CaPv) were determined by energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) using an EDS instrument attached to a transmission electron microscope. Our results demonstrate that at pressures above 90 GPa, Pv becomes more Fe-rich with increasing pressure, which is likely due to the effects of high-spin to low-spin crossover of Fe³⁺ in Pv. We highlight that such a change in Fe–Mg partitioning between Pv and Fp should have a strong influence on the physical properties of the deep lower mantle.     

In situ X-ray diffraction measurements of the <Emphasis Type="Italic">fcc</Emphasis>–<Emphasis Type="Italic">hcp</Emphasis> phase transition boundary of an Fe–Ni alloy in an internally heated diamond anvil cell

The phase transition boundary between the face-centered cubic (fcc) structure and hexagonal close-packed (hcp) structure in an Fe–Ni alloy was determined at pressures from 25 to 107 GPa by using an internally resistive-heated diamond anvil cell (DAC), combined with in situ synchrotron X-ray diffraction measurements. The fcc–hcp phase transition boundary in Fe–9.7 wt% Ni is located at slightly lower temperatures than that in pure Fe, confirming the previous understanding that the addition of Ni expands the stability field of the fcc phase. The dP/dT slope of the boundary was determined to be 0.0426 GPa/K, which is slightly larger than that of pure Fe. The pressure interval of the two-phase region is about 6 GPa at a constant temperature, implying that the previous estimates by laser-heated DAC experiments of 10–20 GPa were overestimated. The two-phase region of fcc + hcp would be limited to a pressure of about 120 GPa even in Fe–15 wt%Ni, excluding the possibility of the existence of the fcc phase in the inner core if the simple linear extrapolation of the two-phase region is applied. The pressure and temperature dependences of the c/a axial ratio of the hcp phase in Fe–9.7 wt% Ni are generally consistent with those in pure Fe, suggesting that Ni has minor effects on the c/a ratio.     

Decision-theoretic sensitivity analysis for reservoir development under uncertainty using multilevel quasi-Monte Carlo methods

At various stages of petroleum reservoir development, we encounter a large degree of geological uncertainty under which a rational decision has to be made. In order to identify which parameter or group of parameters significantly affects the output of a decision model, we investigate decision-theoretic sensitivity analysis and its computational issues in this paper. In particular, we employ the so-called expected value of partial perfect information (EVPPI) as a sensitivity index and apply multilevel Monte Carlo (MLMC) methods to efficient estimation of EVPPI. In a recent paper by Giles and Goda, an antithetic MLMC estimator for EVPPI is proposed and its variance analysis is conducted under some assumptions on a decision model. In this paper, for an improvement on the performance of the MLMC estimator, we incorporate randomized quasi-Monte Carlo methods within the inner sampling, which results in an multilevel quasi-Monte Carlo (MLQMC) estimator. We apply both the antithetic MLMC and MLQMC estimators to a simple waterflooding decision problem under uncertainty on absolute permeability and relative permeability curves. Through numerical experiments, we compare the performances of the MLMC and MLQMC estimators and confirm a significant advantage of the MLQMC estimator.     

The formation of floor-fractured craters in Xanthe Terra

Floor-fractured craters (FFC) are a peculiar form of degradation of impact craters defined by the presence of crevice networks and mesas affecting crater floors. They are preferentially distributed near chaotic terrains and outflow channels. The scope of this paper is to present a detailed systematic analysis of FFC at Xanthe Terra. FFC morphologies in this region are classified into five types making a picture of different stages of the same degradation process. FFC are geographically intermixed with un-fractured normal craters (non-FFC). Young craters are less prone to show this type of degradation, as suggested by fresh ejecta layer with preserved crater floor. Size distributions of FFC and non-FFC indicate that larger craters are preferentially fractured. Careful examinations of the crater floor elevations reveal that the crevices often extend deeper than the original crater cavity. Furthermore, an onset depth for the formation of FFC is evidenced from the difference of spatial distributions between FFC and non-FFC. Roof-collapsed depressions observed in the same region have been also documented and their characteristics suggest the removal of subsurface material at depth from about 1200 to 4000 m. These observations taken together suggest a subsurface zone of volume deficit at depth from 1 to 2 km down to several kilometers responsible for FFC formation. Then a scenario of FFC formations is presented in the context of groundwater discharge events at the late Hesperian. This scenario involves two key processes, Earth fissuring and piping erosion, known to occur with rapid groundwater migrations on Earth.     

20th century seasonal moisture balance in Southeast Asian montane forests from tree cellulose δ18O

The seasonally varying moisture balance in a montane forest of Southeast Asia is reconstructed for the 20th century from the oxygen isotopic composition (δ¹⁸O) of subannual tree cellulose samples of Pinus kesiya growing at 1,500?m elevation on Doi Chiang Dao in northern Thailand. The cellulose δ¹⁸O values exhibit a distinctive annual cycle with amplitude of up to 12?‰, which we interpret to represent primarily the seasonal cycle of precipitation δ¹⁸O. The annual mean δ¹⁸O values correlate significantly with the amount of summer monsoon precipitation, and suggest a temporal weakening relationship between the South Asian monsoon and El Ni?o-Southern Oscillation over the late 20th century. The cellulose δ¹⁸O annual maxima values, which reflect the dry season moisture status, have declined progressively over the 20th century by about 3.5?‰. We interpret this to indicate a change in the contribution of the isotopically distinct fog water to the dry season soil moisture in response to rising temperature as well as deforestation.     

Spiral mode of standing accretion shock instability in core-collapse supernovae

The study of standing accretion shock instability (SASI) in core-collapse supernova cores has been done with three-dimensional (3D) computer simulations. Rotations with various perturbations were introduced from outer boundary of an initial steady accreting flow. We found that one or two armed spiral accreting flow onto the proto-neutron star (PNS) is formed inside the shock wave depending on perturbations. The linear growth of spiral modes are clearly diagnosed by the mode analysis of the shock surface, and the lower m modes grow quickly in the linear regime.     

Flow deformation of liquefied sand under constant shear load and its application to analysis of flow slide of infinite slope

This paper intended to evaluate the behavior of saturated sand and sloped ground subjected to flow failure with seepage of pore water in the ground after earthquake and the resultant liquefaction. Triaxial compression tests of sand with constant deviator stress but changing of pore pressure and volume of the specimens were conducted in this study. It was revealed that the relation between the volume change and the amount of shear strain during deformation depended on the initial density of the sand but it did not much depend on shear stress and initial confining stress levels. Based on this test results and numerical analysis of the seepage of pore water in liquefied ground, a methodology was proposed to predict the deformation of inclined ground due to liquefaction.