Weakly compressible SPH simulation of cnoidal waves with strong plunging breakers

Ocean Dynamics - Hydrodynamics of highly nonlinear cnoidal waves and their subsequent strong plunging breakers are among the least understood and most significant issues in coastal engineering. In...     

The Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers in Bangladesh: basin denudation and sedimentation

Every year the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers in Bangladesh transport 316 and 721 million tonnes of sediment, respectively. These high loads of suspended sediment reflect the very high rate of denudation in their drainage basins. The average mechanical denudation rate for the Ganges and Brahmaputra basins together is 365 mm 10³ yr⁻¹. However, the rate is higher in the Brahmaputra Basin than that in the Ganges Basin. Several factors, including mean trunk channel gradient, relief ratio, runoff, basin lithology and recurring earthquakes are responsible for these high denudation rates. Of the total suspended sediment load (i.e. 1037 million tonnes) transported by these rivers, only 525 million tonnes (c. 51% of the total load) are delivered to the coastal area of Bangladesh and the remaining 512 million tonnes are deposited within the lower basin, offsetting the subsidence. Of the deposited load, about 289 million tonnes (about 28% of the total load) are deposited on the floodplains of these rivers. The remaining 223 million tonnes (about 21% of the total load) are deposited within the river channels, resulting in aggradation of the channel bed at an average rate of about 3·9 cm yr⁻¹. Although the Brahmaputra transports a higher sediment load than the Ganges, the channel bed aggradation rate is much higher for the Ganges. This study also documents a wide range of interannual, seasonal and daily variation in suspended sediment transport and water discharge. Interannual variation in sediment deposition within the basin is also suggested. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Estimating Runoff Using Hydro-Geodetic Approaches

Given the continuous decline in global runoff data availability over the past decades, alternative approaches for runoff determination are gaining importance. When aiming for global scale runoff at a sufficient temporal resolution and with homogeneous accuracy, the choice to use spaceborne sensors is only a logical step. In this respect, we take water storage changes from Gravity Recovery And Climate Explorer (grace) results and water level measurements from satellite altimetry, and present a comprehensive assessment of five different approaches for river runoff estimation: hydrological balance equation, hydro-meteorological balance equation, satellite altimetry with quantile function-based stage–discharge relationships, a rudimentary instantaneous runoff–precipitation relationship, and a runoff–storage relationship that takes time lag into account. As a common property, these approaches do not rely on hydrological modeling; they are either purely data driven or make additional use of atmospheric reanalyses. Further, these methods, except runoff–precipitation ratio, use geodetic observables as one of their inputs and, therefore, they are termed hydro-geodetic approaches. The runoff prediction skill of these approaches is validated against in situ runoff and compared to hydrological model predictions. Our results show that catchment-specific methods (altimetry and runoff–storage relationship) clearly outperform the global methods (hydrological and hydro-meteorological approaches) in the six study regions we considered. The global methods have the potential to provide runoff over all landmasses, which implies gauged and ungauged basins alike, but are still limited due to inconsistencies in the global hydrological and hydro-meteorological datasets that they use.     

The relationship among environmental variables,jellyfish and non‐gelatinous zooplankton: A case study in the north of the Gulf of Oman

Processes underlying the temporal and spatial variations observed in the distribution of jellyfish and non‐gelatinous zooplankton in the Gulf of Oman are not well understood. This information gap is clearly a major issue in controlling the harmful blooms of jellyfish and non‐gelatinous zooplankton. Samples of jellyfish and non‐gelatinous zooplankton were collected from six stations in Chabahar Bay and three stations in Pozm Bay within four seasons. At each station, environmental variables were also recorded from bottom and surface water. A total of 83 individuals of medusae representing four species of Scyphozoa (i.e., Cyanea nozakii, Chrysaora sp., Pelagia noctiluca, Catostylus tagi) and species of Hydrozoa (i.e., Diphyes sp., Rhacostoma sp., Aequorea spp.) were observed in the study area. A total of 70,727.25 individuals/m^?3 of non‐gelatinous zooplankton dominated by copepods and cladocerans were collected in nine stations within the four seasons. The results of a RELATE analysis yielded no significant association between species composition for jellyfish and non‐gelatinous zooplankton. Among environmental variables, water transparency, nitrite concentration, water depth and temperature were better associated with the total variation in jellyfish species composition than with that of non‐gelatinous zooplankton. Dissolved oxygen, pH, and phosphate concentration were significant environmental variables associated with the variation in the spatial and temporal distribution patterns of non‐gelatinous zooplankton assemblages. Although some jellyfish species (i.e., Rhacostoma sp., Pelagia noctiluca, Catostylus tagi) occur independently of non‐gelatinous zooplankton assemblages, other jellyfish (i.e., Chrysaora sp., Aequorea spp., Cyanea nozakii, Diphyes sp.) are strongly correlated with non‐gelatinous zooplankton assemblages.     

Analysis of symbiotic Symbiodinium in scleractinian corals off Northwestern Kish Island,Persian Gulf

The genus Symbiodinium plays an essential role in the resistance and survival of reef‐building corals during temperature anomalies. Coral colonies inhabiting the Persian Gulf (PG) experience extended periods of different stresses. Kish Island is located in the harsh environment of the Northern PG with previously reported bleaching episodes. Samples of six coral species from Northwestern Kish Island were analysed by internal transcribed spacer 2 of ribosomal DNA to identify in hospite Symbiodinium populations. The results showed that lineage D of Symbiodinium was the most prevalent clade among different coral colonies, while clade C was only detected in symbiosis with a single coral species. However, the detected Symbiodinium subclades belonged to two host generalists. The predominance of the stress tolerant Symbiodinium trenchii and subclade C3 could suggest an acclimatization strategy to cope with the hostile environment of the PG.     

Investigation on the Effect of Geometrical and Geotechnical Parameters on Elongated Offshore Piles Using Fuzzy Inference Systems

Among numerous offshore structures used in oil extraction, jacket platforms are still the most favorable ones in shallow waters. In such structures, log piles are used to pin the substructure of the platform to the seabed. The pile’s geometrical and geotechnical properties are considered as the main parameters in designing these structures. In this study, ANSYS was used as the FE modeling software to study the geometrical and geotechnical properties of the offshore piles and their effects on supporting jacket platforms. For this purpose, the FE analysis has been done to provide the preliminary data for the fuzzy-logic post-process. The resulting data were implemented to create Fuzzy Inference System (FIS) classifications. The resultant data of the sensitivity analysis suggested that the orientation degree is the main factor in the pile’s geometrical behavior because piles which had the optimal operational degree of about 5° are more sustained. Finally, the results showed that the related fuzzified data supported the FE model and provided an insight for extended offshore pile designs.     

Application of the coral health chart to determine bleaching status of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Acropora downingi</Emphasis> in a subtropical coral reef

The ‘Coral Health Chart’ has become a popular tool for monitoring coral bleaching worldwide. The scleractinian coral Acropora downingi (Wallace 1999) is highly vulnerable to temperature anomalies in the Persian Gulf. Our study tested the reliability of Coral Health Chart scores for the assessment of bleaching-related changes in the mitotic index (MI) and density of zooxanthellae cells in A. downingi in Qeshm Island, the Persian Gulf. The results revealed that, at least under severe conditions, it can be used as an effective proxy for detecting changes in the density of normal, transparent, or degraded zooxanthellae and MI. However, its ability to discern changes in pigment concentration and total zooxanthellae density should be viewed with some caution in the Gulf region, probably because the high levels of environmental variability in this region result in inherent variations in the characteristics of zooxanthellae among “healthy” looking corals.     

Modeling core-scale permeability anisotropy in highly bioturbated “tight oil” reservoir rocks

A high-resolution simulation model of a heterogeneous low-permeability rock sample is used to investigate the effects of physical and biogenic sedimentary structures on scaling and anisotropy of absolute permeability at the core scale. Several simulation sub-samples with random locations and volumes were also selected for evaluation of the effects of scale and lithological composition on the calculated permeability. Vertical and horizontal permeability values (from whole core simulation) are in good agreement with routine core analysis (RCA) measurements from offsetting cores. Despite relatively good reservoir quality associated with geobodies of biogenic and relic bedding structures, results from the full diameter core simulation demonstrate that their limited volumetric abundance and restricted connectivity prevent these features from controlling fluid flow in these rocks. In fact, permeability seems to be dominated by the tighter encasing matrix, which exhibits average permeability values very close to those reported from RCA. Geometric averaging offers a better representation for the upscaling of horizontal permeability datasets; whereas, both geometric and harmonic averaging work similarly well for the vertical measurements. The methodology used in this work is particularly applicable to the detailed characterization of reservoir rocks with a high degree of heterogeneity caused by biological reworking and diagenesis.     

An integrated object-based image analysis and CA-Markov model approach for modeling land use/land cover trends in the Sarab plain

The present paper is an attempt to integrate a semi-automated object-based image analysis (OBIA) classification framework and a cellular automata-Markov model to study land use/land cover (LULC) changes. Land use maps for the Sarab plain in Iran for the years 2000, 2006, and 2014 were created from Landsat satellite data, by applying an OBIA classification using the normalized difference vegetation index, salinity index, moisture stress index, soil-adjusted vegetation index, and elevation and slope indicators. The classifications yielded overall accuracies of 91, 93, and 94% for 2000, 2006, and 2014, respectively. Finally, using the transition matrix, the spatial distribution of land use was simulated for 2020. The results of the study revealed that the number of orchards with irrigated agriculture and dry-farm agriculture in the Sarab plain is increasing, while the amount of bare land is decreasing. The results of this research are of great importance for regional authorities and decision makers in strategic land use planning.     

Geochemistry and origin of Dehoo manganese deposit,south Zahedan,southeastern Iran

Dehoo manganese deposit is located 52 km to the south of Zahedan in Sistan and Baluchestan Province, southeastern Iran. This deposit that lies in the central part of the Iranian Flysch Zone is lenticular in shape and lies above the micritic limestone-radiolarite cherts of the upper Cretaceous ophiolite unit. It is hosted within the reddish to brown radiolarite cherts and in places interlinks with them, so that the radiolarite chert packages play a key role for Mn mineralization in the region. Investigated ore-paragenetic successions and the geochemical characteristics of the Dehoo deposit were studied by means of major oxide, trace, and rare earth element (REE) contents that provide information as to the mineral origin. Strong positive correlations were found between major oxides and trace elements (Al₂O₃-TiO₂, r = 0.95; TiO₂-MgO, r = 0.94; Fe₂O₃-Al₂O₃, r = 0.90; MgO-Al₂O₃, r = 0.84; MgO-Fe₂O₃, r = 0.88; Fe₂O₃-TiO₂, r = 0.91; Fe₂O₃-K₂O, r = 0.74; Al₂O₃-K₂O, r = 0.69; Al₂O₃-V, r = 0.72; TiO₂-V, r = 0.73, and MgO-V, r = 0.69) that testify to the contribution of mafic terrigenous detrital material to the deposit. Chondrite-normalized REE patterns of all ore samples are characterized by negative Ce (0.06–0.15, average 0.10) and slightly positive Eu (0.29–0.45, average 0.36) anomalies. Based on ratios of Mn/Fe (average 56.23), Co/Ni (average 0.33), Co/Zn (average 0.38), U/Th (average 3.40), La/Ce (average 1.45), La_n/Nd_n (average 2.16), Dy_n/Yb_n (average 0.33), and light REE/heavy REE (average 8.40; LREE > HREE), as well as Ba (average 920 ppm) and total REE contents (average 6.96 ppm) negative Ce and positive Eu anomalies, Dehoo could be considered a predominantly submarine hydrothermal Mn deposit complemented by terrigenous detrital mafic material.