The influence of stiffness of the true triaxial testing machine on the rupturing and acoustic emission of rocks and its correlation with seismic activities

This paper introduces how the ratioR of the characteristic stiffness of rock samplevs. the stiffness of testing machines would influence the rupturing process and the acoustic emission (AE) on the part of the tested rock samples. Result of the experiment shows: WhenR>0.20, the rock sample would rupture abruptly; whereas whenR<0.20, the rock samples would rupture slowly. When the samples rupture abruptly, the time-dependent variation of the AE rate takes such a pattern:peak value—stable low values—rises to the maximum value (concentration)—drops back to the minimum value (quiescence)—(rises again)—ruptures. Moreover, smallerR-value tends to be associated with longer quiescence and vice versa. WhenR>1.50, no pre-failure quiescence is detected. When the rock samples rupture slowly, the variation pattern of the AE rate (after the stress has increased to more than 50% of the rupturing stress) is as the following:stable low (or high) values—rises (or drops) to its maximum (or minimum) values and then continues for some time—ruptures. The Chinese version of this paper appeared in the Chinese edition ofActa Seismologica Sinica,13, 223–233, 1991. This study is supported by the Chinese Joint Seismological Science Foundation.     

AbnormalSq behaviour

It is well-known that the amplitude and phase of theSq(H) variation show considerable variability from day to day. In this paper we consider one aspect of the phase variability—that associated with AQDs. AQDs (or abnormal quiet days) are defined as magnetically quiet days where the maximum excursion ofH at a mid-latitude station on the poleward side of the focus occurs outside the normal time range 0830–1330 LST. Such days exhibit properties, many of which appear quite distinct from the properties of the normalSq(H) variation. The properties of AQDs, and the proposals that have been made to explain them, are considered in detail. The consequences of these proposals and some problems which need to be addressed in order to obtain a fuller understanding of the dynamics of the ionosphere on AQDs are also discussed.     

Tidal Stress/Strain and the b-values of Acoustic Emissions at the Underground Research Laboratory, Canada

The correlation between the b-values of acoustic emissions (AEs) and the phase of the moon was investigated at the Underground Research Laboratory (URL) in Canada. The same data as those used in Iwata (2002) were examined, which showed that the occurrence of AEs is correlated with the phase of the moon. It was expected, therefore, that the b-value of the AEs would also be sensitive to tidal stress/strain fluctuations. We investigated the variation of the b-values as a function of the phase of the moon. Results show that b-values immediately following the times of full/new moon are higher than those at other times. Using AIC (Akaike Information Criterion) and random (Monte Carlo) simulations, it was confirmed that this feature is statistically significant. We also investigated whether or not there was a change in the b-values immediately before the times of full/new moon, but no statistically significant change was observed. The results suggest that the effect of stress/strain fluctuations on AE occurrences at the URL is asymmetric to the times of full/new moon.All authors are members of the Academic Robotics Group. In listing The Academic Robotics Group, the authors are endeavoring to place each of the participant institutions on an equal footing in terms of effort and authorship. M. A. Talamini is serving as presenter.     

Frequency-dependence of velocity and attenuation of elastic waves in granite under uniaxial compression

Velocity as well as attenuation factorQ ^–1 ofP-wave in a dry granitic rock sample under uniaxial compressions were measured in the range of frequency between 100 kHz and 710 kHz by using the pulse transmission technique. Above the stress of 0.5 _f , where _f is the fracture stress, theP-wave velocity decreases with increasing axial stress, whereasQ ^–1 increases. Particularly, the change ofQ ^–1 is greater for high frequency than for low frequency. At a given stress level, the higher the frequency, the higher theP-wave velocity and the largerQ ^–1. This result means that the velocity decrease with increasing stress is smaller for higher frequency. Because of this frequency-dependence of velocity decrease, theP-wave in the rock under dilatant state shows dispersion. The body wave dispersion is more remarkable at higher stress, and is not found in a homogeneous material with no cracks. Thus the disperison is attributed to the generation of cracks. When the frequency-dependence ofQ ^–1 is approximated asf ⁿ in the present frequency range, the exponentn takes a value from 0.63 to 0.77.     

The experimental research on b value of AE for the rock specimens with pre-existing crack or notch under uniaxial compression

A lot of researches onb value have been made in seismology. Since the 1960’s Mogi, Scholz and others have studied AE of rock specimens in laboratory and discovered that it is related to natural earthquakes. All former researchers used integral specimens to studyb value in the laboratory. However a major earthquake is usually related to a existing seismic-fault in that area. For this reason, a series of fracture experiments with rock and glass specimens having pre-existing crack or notch is performed in order to examine the effect of preexisting crack tob value. The experimental results show that theb value begins to decrease as soon as the initiation of the crack and finally drop to a very low value when the specimen breaks unstably. Based on these, a brief discussion on the possible mechanism ofb value change for natural earthquakes is given. The Chinese version of this paper appeared in the Chinese edition ofActa Seismologica Sinica,9, 393–400, 1987. Projects sponsored by the Chinese Joint Seismological Science Foundation.     

Am improved source mechanism for the 1935 Timiskaming,Quebec earthquake from regional waveforms

The Timiskaming earthquake, which occurred near the Quebec-Ontario border at the northwest end of the Western Quebec seismic zone in 1935, is one of the five largest instrumentally recorded southeastern Canadian earthquakes. Previous studies of this earthquake concentrated on modeling teismograms recorded at regional distances, a better constrained focal mechanism is obtained. The waveforms indicate thrust faulting on a moderately dipping northwest striking plane at a depth of 10 km. TheM _w of 6.1 determined in this study is in good agreement with previous magnitude estimates (m _b 6.1,M _s 6.0, andm _bLg 6.2–6.3). The focal mechanism is similar to those of many recent small to moderate earthquakes in the region, and the inferred (from theP axis) acting stress of northeast compression is consistent with the overall eastern North American stress field. The Lake Timiskaming Rift Valley in which the earthquake occurred, comprises several northwest striking faults consistent with the strike of the 1935 event. Thus, the 1935 earthquake appears to be a result of faulting on the reactivated Timiskaming graben.     

Regional moments,energy levels,and a new discriminant

Teleseismic observations of explosions tend to be richer in short-period energy than are earthquakes, thus the effectiveness of them _b M _s discriminant. At regional distances the same basic separation occurs for smaller events in terms ofM _L M ₀ (Woods et al., 1993) andm _b M ₀ (Patton andWalter, 1993). While these studies demonstrate the basic differences in excitation, they suffer in practical application because of the detailed information required in the retrieval ofM ₀ . In this paper, we introduce a new method of discrimination, based on the energy strength (M _E ) from broadband regional records that appears to be effective and efficient. In this method all events are processed as earthquakes, and explosions are distinguished by their stronger energy levels relative to their long-period amplitudes. Results from 29 events recorded by TERRAscope, sampling 15 explosions from NTS and 14 earthquakes from the southwestern United States, are represented, indicating complete separation (45 data points).M _L =3.6 is the smallest event examined to date but the method can probably be extended to even smaller levels in calibrated regions.     

The experimental study of acoustic emission during creep of rocks

Under normal temperature, the creep experiments with complete samples of Gabbro and Marble rocks are made under uniaxial compression. It is found that at the instantaneous creeping stage, AE activities increase with loading; at the steady creeping stage, large AE signals may appear at lower background of AE action, andm—value which shows the relationship between AE amplitude and frequency keeps stable on the low value or decreases; at the accelerate creeping stage, AE activities increase andm—value decreases quickly or decreases again after recovery. These experimental results are related to the quality of the samples. In this paper, AE activities during three stages of creeping process are connected with the seismic patterns (for exampleb—value, foreshocks). Finally, it is pointed out the possibility that the foreshock—mainshock—aftershock earthquake sequence has been formed by the mechanism of creep fracture of crustal rocks. The Chinese version of this paper appeared in the Chinese edition ofActa Seismologica Sinica,13, 104–112, 1991. This subject is sponsored by the Chinese Joint Seismological Science Foundation.     

Characterization of the Frequency of Extreme Earthquake Events by the Generalized Pareto Distribution

Recent results in extreme value theory suggest a new technique for statistical estimation of distribution tails (Embrechts et al., 1997), based on a limit theorem known as the Gnedenko-Pickands-Balkema-de Haan theorem. This theorem gives a natural limit law for peak-over-threshold values in the form of the Generalized Pareto Distribution (GPD), which is a family of distributions with two parameters. The GPD has been successfully applied in a number of statistical problems related to finance, insurance, hydrology, and other domains. Here, we apply the GPD approach to the well-known seismological problem of earthquake energy distribution described by the Gutenberg-Richter seismic moment-frequency law. We analyze shallow earthquakes (depth h<70 km) in the Harvard catalog over the period 1977–2000 in 12 seismic zones. The GPD is found to approximate the tails of the seismic moment distributions quite well over the lower threshold approximately M 10²⁴ dyne-cm, or somewhat above (i.e., moment-magnitudes larger than m _W =5.3). We confirm that the b-value is very different (b=2.06 ± 0.30) in mid-ocean ridges compared to other zones (b=1.00 ± 0.04) with a very high statistical confidence and propose a physical mechanism contrasting crack-type rupture with dislocation-type behavior. The GPD can as well be applied in many problems of seismic hazard assessment on a regional scale. However, in certain cases, deviations from the GPD at the very end of the tail may occur, in particular for large samples signaling a novel regime.     

Lg magnitude scale in the mainland of China

The data of short-period seismograms had been collected widely in the mainland area of China not including Xinjiang and Tibet. The physical quantities of Lg wave are determined respectively in the five subregions. The group velocities of priminary arrival and maximum amplitude of Lg wave are equal to 3.54±0.02 km/s and 3.30±0.05 km/s, respectively. The periods of Lg waves are between 0.2s to 1.2s, averaging 0.7s. The γ-values of Lg waves in the five subregions are equal to 0.0034±0.0001 km⁻¹ for East, 0.0031±0.0004 km⁻¹ for Southwest, 0.0027±0.0004 km⁻¹ for Northeast, 0.0022±0.0001 km⁻¹ for South, and 0.0021±0.0002 km⁻¹ for Northwest subreqion, respectively. The average γ-value for the five subregions, γ=0.0027±0.0006 km⁻¹. The relations among the amplitude ratioH/Z, the station correctionD _z andD _h of amplitudes, and among them and station site condition are discussed. The subregional magnitude calibration functions ofm _Lg had been established according to each regional γ-value. From these, the unified magnitude calibration function of Chinese mainland not including Xinjiang and Tibet was given by

P in the shadow zone of the earth's core—Part I

Summary Regional variations have been indicated in the slope of theP travel-time curve in the shadow zone of the earth's core. Further study is needed since the uncertainties of the slope are large, especially for the observations from North American stations. There is no significant difference between themean slope of theP travel-time curve in the 95°102.9 range and those obtained byJeffreys, andJeffreys andBullen. However, there is a significant difference between themean slope in the 103° to 135° range as obtained in this study, and those obtained byJeffreys andBullen, and in a later revision byJeffreys. Themean travel-time curve ofP in the shadow zone of the earth's core should be lowered. A trial travel-time table is given with amean slope of 4.41 sec/deg. This table is in close agreement with the times obtained byGutenberg andRichter, and with the trial travel-times ofLehmann. Under the assumption of diffraction the longitudinal wave velocity has been determined to be 13.7 km/sec at the core-mantle boundary.This paper was presented at the Annual Meeting of the Seismological Society of America Reno, Nevada, 1966.     

Test of the EEPAS Forecasting Model on the Japan Earthquake Catalogue

The EEPAS (Every Earthquake a Precursor According to Scale) model is a method of forecasting earthquakes based on the notion that the precursory scale increase () phenomenon occurs at all scales in the seismogenic process. The rate density of future earthquake occurrence is computed directly from past earthquakes in the catalogue. The EEPAS model has previously been fitted to the New Zealand earthquake catalogue and successfully tested on the California catalogue.Here we describe a further test of the EEPAS model in the Japan region spanning 1965–2001, initially on earthquakes with magnitudes exceeding the threshold value 6.75. A baseline model and the Gutenberg-Richter b-value were fitted to the JMA catalogue over the learning period 1926–1964. The performance of EEPAS, with the key parameters unchanged from the New Zealand values, was compared with that of the baseline model over the testing period, using a likelihood ratio criterion. The EEPAS model proved superior. A sensitivity analysis shows that this result is not sensitive to the choice of the learning period or b-value, but that the advantage of EEPAS over the baseline model diminishes as the magnitude threshold is lowered. When key model parameters are optimised for the Japan catalogue, the advantage of EEPAS over the baseline model is consistent for all magnitudes above 6.25, although less than in the New Zealand and California regions.These results add strength to the proposition that the EEPAS model is effective at a variety of scales and in a variety of seismically active regions.     

Flow directions in ash-flow tuffs: a comparison of geological and magnetic susceptibility measurements, Tshirege member (upper Bandelier Tuff), Valles caldera, New Mexico, USA

This study concludes that the elongation axis (K ₁) of the ellipsoid of anisotropic magnetic susceptibility (AMS) is a suitable proxy for flow axis in ashflow tuffs. 153 oriented samples (176 specimens) were studied from 18 sites in the 1.1 Ma Tshirege member of the Bandelier Tuff. These sites are distributed around the Valles caldera at distances of 5–25 km outside of the rim.K ₁ axes correlate well with postulated radial flow axes at 13 sites.K ₁ also agrees with measured geological flow indicators, mainly imbricated larger clasts, at 7 sites. At 2 of the 5 sites where significant disagreement is seen between theoretical radial flow directions and measuredK ₁ axes, theK ₁ axes correspond well with geological flow indicators, indicating that the divergence of flow from the predicted radial flow pattern is real. Two major topographic buttresses are suggested as the cause of flow divergence for the Tshirege ash flows: the San Pedro buttress northwest of the caldera, and the San Miguel buttress in the southeast. In situK ₁ axes plunge about 7° toward the source at two-thirds of the sites; therefore the plunge ofK ₁ is a plausible in situ indicator for thedirection of flow. Multiple flow zones in sections of several meters thickness indicate changes of flow direction that are both rapid and large during ash-flow emplacement. These observations raisre the question of how best to represent mean flow directions in ash-flow sheets: by eigenvector methods, by vector-sum methods, or by modes. A method for measuring imbrication of larger clasts using apparent dips in vertical joints is outlined. Imbrication, determined in this way at one-third of the sites, dips toward the source, i.e., up-flow. The minimum (K ₃) axis of the AMS ellipsoid correlates with the flow foliation rather than with the larger clast imbrication. The flow axes of ash flows correspond with theK ₁ axes, not with the declination ofK ₃ axes as suggested by some authors. Initial dip of the sampled ash flows is not large and does not affect the paleomagnetic remanence direction, which is reversed with a mean ofD=173.5°,I=-38.4°, ₉₅=3.4°N=18. This mean is not different at the 95% confidence level from that of earlier workers. The mean pole, at 098.0°E, 74.8°N,A ₉₅=3.3°,N=18, is about 15° far-sided relative to the expected time-averaged geomagnetic pole, suggesting a history of emplacement too short to adequately average secular variation.     

Attenuation and dispersion ofSH waves due to scattering by randomly distributed cracks

The effect of randomly distributed cracks on the attenuation and dispersion ofSH waves is theoretically studied. If earthquake ruptures are caused by sudden coalescence of preexisting cracks, it will be crucial for earthquake prediction to monitor the temporal variation of the crack distribution. Our aim is to investigate how the property of crack distribution is reflected in the attenuation and dispersion of elastic waves.We introduce the stochastic property, in the mathematical analysis, for the distributions of crack location, crack size and crack orientation. The crack size distribution is assumed to be described by a power law probability density (p(a) a ^– fora _minaa _max according to recent seismological and experimental knowledge, wherea is a half crack length and the range 13 is assumed. The distribution of crack location is assumed to be homogeneous for the sake of mathematical simplicity, and a low crack density is assumed. The stochastic property of each crack is assumed to be independent of that of the other cracks. We assume two models, that is, the aligned crack model and the randomly oriented crack model, for the distribution of crack orientation. All cracks are assumed to be aligned in the former model. The orientation of each crack is assumed to be random in the latter model, and the homogeneous distribution is assumed for the crack orientation. The idea of the mean wave formalism is employed in the analysis, and Foldy's approximation is assumed.We observe the following features common to both the aligned crack model and the randomly oriented crack model. The attenuation coefficientQ ^–1 decays in proportion tok ^–1 in the high frequency range and its growth is proportional tok ² in the low frequency range, wherek is the intrinsic wave number. This asymptotic behavior is parameter-independent, too. The attenuation coefficientQ ^–1 has a broader peak as increases and/ora _min/a _max decreases. The nondimensional peak wave numberk _p a _max at whichQ ^–1 takes the peak value is almost independent ofa _min/a _max for =1 and 2 while it considerably depends ona _min/a _max for =3. The phase velocity is almost independent ofk in the rangeka _max<1 and increases monotonically ask increases in the rangeka _max>1. While the magnitude ofQ ^–1 and the phase velocity considerably depend on the orientation of the crack in the aligned crack model, the above feature does not depend on the crack orientation.The accumulation of seismological measurements suggests thatQ ^–1 ofS waves has a peak at around 0.5 Hz. If this observation is combined with our theoretical results onk _p a _max, the probable range ofa _max of the crack distribution in the earth can be estimated for =1 or 2. If we assume 4 km/sec as theS wave velocity of the matrix medium,a _max is estimated to range from 2 to 5 km. We cannot estimatea _max in a narrow range for =3.     

Some exact solutions for the flow of fluid through tubes with uniformly porous walls

Summary This paper considers an incompressible fluid flowing through a straight, circular tube whose walls are uniformly porous. The flow is steady and one dimensional. The loss of fluid through the wall is proportional to the mean static pressure in the tube. Several formulations of the wall shear stress are considered; these formulations were motivated by the results from Hamel's radial flow problem, boundary layer flows/and boundary layer suction profiles. For each of these formulations exact solutions for the mean axial velocity and the mean static pressure of the fluid are obtained. Sample results are plotted on graphs. For the constant wall shear stress problem, the theoretical solutions compare favorably with some experimental results.Notations A, B, D, E constant parameters - a, b constant parameters - Ai(z), Bi(z) Airy functions - Ai, Bi derivatives of Airy functions - k constant of proportionality betweenV andp - L length of pores - p,p mean static pressure - p ₀ static pressure outside the tube - p ₀ value ofp atx=0 - Q constant exponent - R inside radius of the tube - T wall shear stress - T ₀ shear parameter - t wall thickness - U free stream velocity - ,u mean axial velocity - u ₀ value ofu atx=0 - V,V mean seepage velocity through the wall - v ₀ mean seepage velocity - x,x axial distance along the tube - z transformed axial distance - z ₀ value ofz atx=0 - mean outflow angle through the wall - cos - density of the fluid - wall shear stress - dynamic viscosity of the fluid - over-bar dimensional terms - no bar nondimensional terms The National Center for Atmospheric Research is sponsored by the National Science Foundation     

Zur Interpretation von seismischen Refraktionsmessungen

Zusammenfassung Unter der Voraussetzung, dass die Frontgeschwindigkeitc eine stetige und monoton wachsende Funktion von der Tiefez ist, wird dargelegt, wie man aus einer gemessenen Laufzeitkurve () die zuc inverse Funktionz=z (c) auf einfache Weise berechnen kann. Weiter wird die Eindringtiefez _m in Funktion von ermittelt und abschliessend ein Beispiel gegeben.

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Summary Based on a recorded travel-time curve (), a simple direct method is developed for calculating the functionz=z (c), under the asumption that the wave velocityc is a regularly monotone increasing function of the depthz. Finally a rumerical example is given.

     

Interpretation of eclipse effects in theF-layer

Summary Using a fit-extended balance equation for the electron-density-variations during a sun eclipse a possiblity has been found to confirm by observation theF-layer processes deduced hitherto theoretically. Moreover, the rate of electron-productionq=q(h), of the recombination-coefficient =(h) and a temperature profilT(h) can be given. These data are self-consistent. The smallness of is remarkable, whereby a slow decomposition of the nightly layer can be understand now. Also the computed temperatures coincide with rocket and satellite results.

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Zusammenfassung Durch Verwendung einer passend erweiterten Bilanzgleichung für die Elektronendichte-Änderungen während einer Sonnenfinsternis gelinght es erstmalig, die bisher nur theoretisch abgeleiteten Prozesse in derF-Schicht durch die Beobachtungen zu bestätigen und Zahlenmaterial über die Größe der Elektronenproduktionq=q(h), des Wiedervereingungskoeffizienten =(h) und die TemperaturT=T(h) zu erhalten. Dieses Zahlenmaterial ist in sich widerspruchsfrei; bemerkenswert ist die Kleinheit von , wodurch nunmehr auch der nur langsame Abbau der Schicht in der Nacht verständlich wird. Die errechneten Temperaturwerte stimmen gut mit den Ergebnissen von Satellitenmessungen überein.

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Report presented on 18th April 1963 at the Eleventh Annual Meeting of theSocietà Italiana di Geofisica e Meteorologia (Genova: 18–20 April 1963).     

Study of the Q -value in and around Minle Basin

The digital seimograph network set up by China and France in Zhangye of China had been operated in 1988. The Zhangye network is situated in the middle segment of Hexi corridor and Qilina mountain, which was regarded as a monitoring earthquake area. Using the records of Zhangye digital network theQ-values in and around Minle basin have been measured. The results of this study showed that theQp-values range from 500 to 780, andQs-values range from 230 to 460. TheQ-values of inside of Minle basin are higher than that around the basin. The greater parts of moderate and strong earthquakes occurred along tectonic belts around the Minle basin. Moreover, TheQ-values increased with the depth of penctration of wave ray. The attenuation of S wave is stronger than P wave in shallow layer of crust. Some problems ofQ-value change versus time before and after Sunan eathquake (M _s=5.7) have been also disscussed. These results can be applied to study and to monitor seismic danger of the Minle monitoring area. The Chinese version of this paper appeared in the Chinese edition ofActa Seismologica Sinica,15, 296–302, 1993.     

New determination of the air-earth current over the ocean and measurements of ionosphere potentials

Summary The electrode effect could be detected in full magnitude on the Atlantic during the expedition of the research vessel Meteor. The average value of the electric field over the sea surface is about 125 V/m, in about 10 to 100 m over the surface only about 60 V/m. This phenomenon as well as the results of small ion records lead to a value of the air earth current density on the sea of only 0.9×10^–12 A/m², a quarter of the value accepted up to now. With these values the total current of the global air electric circuit will be about 665 A instead of 1500 to 1800 A. The ionosphere potentials over two places in a distance of 8000 km at 15 dates are nearly identical and in the average 280 kV.     

Differences between Mean Sea Levels for the Pacific,Atlantic and Indian Oceans From Topex/Poseidon Altimetry

Geopotential values W of the mean equipotential surfaces representing the mean ocean topography were computed on the basis of four years (1993 - 1996) TOPEX/POSEIDON altimeter data: W = 62 636 854.10m ² s ^–2 for the Pacific (P), W = 62 636 858.20m ² s ^–2 for the Atlantic (A), W = 62 636 856.28m ²s^–2 for the Indian (I) Oceans. The corresponding mean separations between the ocean levels were obtained as follows: A – P = – 42 cm, I– P = – 22 cm, I – A = 20 cm, the rms errors came out at about 0.3 cm. No sea surface topography model was used in the solution.