7000 years of paleostorm activity in the NW Mediterranean Sea in response to Holocene climate events

A high-resolution record of paleostorm events along the French Mediterranean coast over the past 7000 years was established from a lagoonal sediment core in the Gulf of Lions. Integrating grain size, faunal analysis, clay mineralogy and geochemistry data with a chronology derived from radiocarbon dating, we recorded seven periods of increased storm activity at 6300–6100, 5650–5400, 4400–4050, 3650–3200, 2800–2600, 1950–1400 and 400–50 cal yr BP (in the Little Ice Age). In contrast, our results show that the Medieval Climate Anomaly (1150–650 cal yr BP) was characterised by low storm activity.The evidence for high storm activity in the NW Mediterranean Sea is in agreement with the changes in coastal hydrodynamics observed over the Eastern North Atlantic and seems to correspond to Holocene cooling in the North Atlantic. Periods of low SSTs there may have led to a stronger meridional temperature gradient and a southward migration of the westerlies. We hypothesise that the increase in storm activity during Holocene cold events over the North Atlantic and Mediterranean regions was probably due to an increase in the thermal gradient that led to an enhanced lower tropospheric baroclinicity over a large Central Atlantic–European domain.     

Joint optimization of oil well placement and controls

Well placement and control optimization in oil field development are commonly performed in a sequential manner. In this work, we propose a joint approach that embeds well control optimization within the search for optimum well placement configurations. We solve for well placement using derivative-free methods based on pattern search. Control optimization is solved by sequential quadratic programming using gradients efficiently computed through adjoints. Joint optimization yields a significant increase, of up to 20% in net present value, when compared to reasonable sequential approaches. The joint approach does, however, require about an order of magnitude increase in the number of objective function evaluations compared to sequential procedures. This increase is somewhat mitigated by the parallel implementation of some of the pattern-search algorithms used in this work. Two pattern-search algorithms using eight and 20 computing cores yield speedup factors of 4.1 and 6.4, respectively. A third pattern-search procedure based on a serial evaluation of the objective function is less efficient in terms of clock time, but the optimized cost function value obtained with this scheme is marginally better.     

Experimental studies of groundwater pipe flow network characteristics in gravelly soil slopes

Piping flow networks have often been identified in hydrogeological field studies of gravelly soil slopes in the southern part of China. The present experimental studies have shown that under long-term groundwater seepage, piping flow networks gradually develop in the slope. Factors affecting the development of flow pipe seepage network included the grain size distribution, the degree of soil compaction, and soil depth. Piping seepage networks favorably form if the content of the gravel was high, the soil cohesion was low, the degree of the soil compaction was low, or the soil depth was shallow. Due to the enhanced permeability associated with the presence of flow pipe seepage network in gravelly soil slopes, groundwater can be effectively drained away. This can beneficially prevent the rise of groundwater level in the slope during raining seasons, hence reducing pore water pressure along the potential failure surface and increasing slope stability. Once the flow pipe seepage network was disturbed or damaged, the water level in the upper portion of the slope experienced a great rise, hence reducing the slope stability. Therefore, slope toe excavation and excessive loading at the slope crest should be avoided for slopes with well-developed flow pipe seepage network in order to preserve it.     

Numerical Study on Coalescence of Pre-Existing Flaw Pairs in Rock-Like Material

The present numerical study, which is an extension of our previous numerical analysis on cracking processes of a single pre-existing flaw, focuses on the coalescence of two pre-existing parallel open flaws in rock subjected to a uniaxial compressive loading. To facilitate a systematic investigation, the arrangements of the flaw pair are classified into 11 categories. Simulations engaging AUTODYN are conducted on each category. The numerical results are compared with some published physical experimental test results. Eleven typical coalescence patterns are obtained, which are in good agreement with the experimental results, which include two coalescence patterns obtained in flaw pair arrangements (II) and (VIII″) not being reported in previous studies. The information gathered in the simulations helps identify the type (tensile/shear) of each crack segment involved in the coalescence. Most of the coalescence cracks initiate at or around the flaw tips, except those in flaw pair arrangements (II) and (IX′) with a very short ligament length, in which the coalescence cracks initiate on the flaw surfaces away from the flaw tip regions. Based on the numerical simulation results, the properties of the 11 coalescence patterns are obtained. Except those in flaw pair arrangements (II) and (IX′), the other coalescence patterns can be interpreted with respect to the basic crack types—tensile wing crack, horsetail crack and anti-wing crack. In addition, based on the type of crack segments involved in coalescence, namely tensile and shear, the coalescence can be classified into T mode (tensile mode), S mode (shear mode) and TS mode (mixed tensile–shear mode).     

A derivative-free methodology with local and global search for the constrained joint optimization of well locations and controls

In oil field development, the optimal location for a new well depends on how it is to be operated. Thus, it is generally suboptimal to treat the well location and well control optimization problems separately. Rather, they should be considered simultaneously as a joint problem. In this work, we present noninvasive, derivative-free, easily parallelizable procedures to solve this joint optimization problem. Specifically, we consider Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO), a global stochastic search algorithm; Mesh Adaptive Direct Search (MADS), a local search procedure; and a hybrid PSO–MADS technique that combines the advantages of both methods. Nonlinear constraints are handled through use of filter-based treatments that seek to minimize both the objective function and constraint violation. We also introduce a formulation to determine the optimal number of wells, in addition to their locations and controls, by associating a binary variable (drill/do not drill) with each well. Example cases of varying complexity, which include bound constraints, nonlinear constraints, and the determination of the number of wells, are presented. The PSO–MADS hybrid procedure is shown to consistently outperform both stand-alone PSO and MADS when solving the joint problem. The joint approach is also observed to provide superior performance relative to a sequential procedure.     

Proglacial sediment dynamics from daily to seasonal scales in a glaciated Alpine catchment (Bossons glacier,Mont Blanc massif,France)

The sediment yields of Alpine catchments are commonly determined from streamload measurements made some distance downstream from glaciers. However, this approach indiscriminately integrates erosion processes occurring in both the glacial and proglacial areas. A specific method is required to ascertain the respective inputs from (i) subglacial and supraglacial sediments, (ii) proglacial hillslopes and (iii) proglacial alluvial areas or sandurs. This issue is addressed here by combining high‐resolution monitoring (2 min) of suspended sediment concentrations at different locations within a catchment with discharge gauging and precipitation data. This methodological framework is applied to two proglacial streams draining the Bossons glacier (Mont Blanc massif, France): the Bossons and Crosette streams. For the Bossons stream, discharge and suspended load data were acquired from June to October 2013 at 1.15 and 1.5 km from the glacial terminus, respectively upstream and downstream from a small valley sandur. These hydro‐sedimentary data are compared with the Crosette stream dataset acquired at the outlet of the Bossons glacier subglacial drainage system. A fourfold analysis focusing on seasonal changes in streamload and discharge, multilinear regression modelling, evaluation of the sandur flux balance and probabilistic uncertainty assessment is used to determine the catchment sediment budget and to explain the proglacial sediment dynamics. The seasonal fluctuation of the sediment signal observed is related to the gradual closing of the subglacial drainage network and to the role of the proglacial area in the sediment cascade: the proglacial hillslopes appear to be disconnected from the main channel and the valley sandur acts as a hydrodynamic sediment buffer both daily and seasonally. Our findings show that an understanding of proglacial sediment dynamics can help in evaluating paraglacial adjustment and subglacial erosion processes. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Active tectonics,seismicity and geomorphology with special reference to Normandy (France)

Integrated studies based on tectonic, seismotectonic and geomorphological analyses indicate that Normandy (northwest France) has been an active area during the Quaternary. Topography and landform discontinuities reflect the dislocation and differential uplift of a late Cenozoic platform. The tectonic activity is represented by (i) active faults, indicated by linear scarps and seismic activity, (ii) offsetting of pre‐existing surfaces, (iii) Plio‐Pleistocene sedimentation restricted within narrow subsiding zones, and (iv) morphometric properties of drainage basins that indicate zones of differential uplift. The inferred strain pattern involves (i) a shortening direction that strikes NW–SE as expected in the European context of Alpine compression, and (ii) a NE–SW trending extension accommodated by NW–SE normal faults. The geomorphological systems encountered in Normandy preferentially record differential vertical displacements. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.