天然裂缝影响下的花岗岩水力裂缝扩展数值模拟

水力压裂技术是成功实现干热岩资源开发利用的重要手段之一,数值模拟技术能够精准预测水力裂缝扩展。针对典型花岗岩,借助黏性单元法,分别模拟了致密花岗岩和天然裂缝存在情况下的水力裂缝扩展特征,得出以下结论:致密花岗岩的水力裂缝形态单一,天然裂缝的存在增加了压裂后裂缝的复杂性;致密花岗岩水力裂缝拓展主要分为憋压和拓展两个交替往复的阶段,当存在天然裂隙时,水力压裂过程会变得复杂;天然裂缝存在时,水力裂缝的缝长和缝宽分别为致密花岗岩的5.7倍和1.7倍;缝网的形成需要借助复杂的压裂工艺实现。研究结果可以为增强型地热系统(EGS)储层水力刺激工作提供理论支持。     

Fully coupled simulation of a hydraulic fracture interacting with natural fractures with a hybrid discrete‐continuum method

A hybrid discrete‐continuum numerical scheme is developed to study the behavior of a hydraulic fracture crossing natural fractures. The fully coupled hybrid scheme utilizes a discrete element model for an inner domain, within which the hydraulic fracture propagates and interacts with natural fractures. The inner domain is embedded in an outer continuum domain that is implemented to extend the length of the hydraulic fracture and to better approximate the boundary effects. The fracture is identified to propagate initially in the viscosity‐dominated regime, and the numerical scheme is calibrated by using the theoretical plane strain hydraulic fracture solution. The simulation results for orthogonal crossing indicate three fundamental crossing scenarios, which occur for various stress ratios and friction coefficients of the natural fracture: (i) no crossing, that is, the hydraulic fracture is arrested by the natural fracture and makes a T‐shape intersection; (ii) offset crossing, that is, the hydraulic fracture crosses the natural fracture with an offset; and (iii) direct crossing, that is, the hydraulic fracture directly crosses the natural fracture without diversion. Each crossing scenario is associated with a distinct net pressure history. Additionally, the effects of strength contrast and stiffness contrast of rock materials and intersection angle between the hydraulic fracture and the natural fracture are also investigated. The simulations also illustrate that the level of fracturing complexity increases as the number and extent of the natural fractures increase. As a result, we can conclude that complex hydraulic fracture propagation patterns occur because of complicated crossing behavior during the stimulation of naturally fractured reservoirs. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

高水压下岩体裂纹扩展的渗流-断裂耦合机制与数值实现

采用渗流力学、断裂力学理论结合Monte Carlo方法描述岩体裂纹的随机分布,研究高水压作用下岩体原生裂纹的变形和翼形裂纹的萌生、扩展、贯通的渗流-断裂耦合作用机制,建立高水压作用下岩体裂纹的渗流-断裂耦合数学模型,给出该数学模型的求解策略与方法,在Fortran95平台下开发高水压下岩体裂纹扩展的渗流-断裂耦合分析程序HWFSC.for。高水压下岩体裂纹扩展的渗流-断裂耦合体现在岩体裂纹网络和渗流初始条件都随渗流时步变化。对高压注水岩体裂纹扩展过程进行渗流-断裂耦合分析。结果表明,高压注水条件下,岩体裂纹扩展存在起动水压力,当水压力大于起动水压力时,裂纹尖端开始萌生翼形裂纹,随着裂纹水压力的增加,翼形裂纹扩展,进而与其他裂纹搭接贯通,停止扩展。渗流-断裂耦合分析考虑了裂纹动、静水压力对裂纹产生的法向扩张效应及翼形裂纹的扩展而形成新的渗流通道两方面的影响,连通裂纹数随渗流的发展而增加。岩体裂纹的渗流-断裂耦合分析,能较真实地再现岩体裂纹的水力劈裂现象,描述岩体裂纹的扩展、贯通过程及与之相耦合的渗流响应。     

FDEM-flow3D: A 3D hydro-mechanical coupled model considering the pore seepage of rock matrix for simulating three-dimensional hydraulic fracturing

A hydro-mechanical coupled model that can simultaneously consider the pore seepage of a rock matrix and the fracture seepage is proposed to simulate three-dimensional hydraulic fracturing. This model appropriately takes into account the fluid leak-off into the surrounding rock matrix from the fracture. Several examples are given to validate the seepage algorithms and the coupled model. The results suggest that this model can solve problems involving pore seepage and fracture seepage through simple pure fracture seepage. Moreover, it can reproduce the fluid pressure distribution and the crack initiation and propagation and consider the fluid loss during hydraulic fracturing.     

X-ray CT and hydraulic evidence for a relationship between fracture conductivity and adjacent matrix porosity

Multi-phase flow in fractured rocks plays an important role in any hydrocarbon recovery process, be it for environmental remediation or natural oil and gas extraction. Fractures may form the primary production conduits, and the mass transport at the fracture interfaces with the matrix determines the effectiveness of extraction processes. This paper presents specific evidence for a relationship between fracture apertures and the porosity of the adjoining perpendicular layers in Berea sandstone samples. Measurements of fracture apertures were done with high-resolution Micro-Computed Tomography (MCT) with a voxel resolution of about 0.05 mm in three dimensions. Multi-phase fluid flow experiments were done using a medical CT scanner with a voxel resolution of about 1.00 × 0.25 × 0.25 mm. MCT evidence shows a correlation between aperture and the porosity of the intersected layers. The comparison was made by generating two-dimensional maps of matrix porosity and CT values adjacent to the fracture and of the corresponding fracture apertures. High-porosity layers are lined up with large fracture apertures. Multi-phase fluid experiments provided hydraulic evidence that the high-porosity layers have high permeability. Oil injection into a water-saturated sample was tracked by a sequence of transverse scans near the downstream tip of a fracture. The hydraulic evidence from the two-phase flow experiments also confirms high permeability in fracture strips adjacent to high-porosity and high-permeability layers. The reasons for the relationship between fracture aperture and the properties of the adjacent layers are not fully understood. Some explanation for the physical and hydraulic observations rests in the method of fracturing, fracture propagation, and the lithological characteristics of the rock.     

Capabilities and limitations of numerical ice sheet models: a discussion for Earth-scientists and modelers

The simulation of dynamically coupled ice sheet, ice stream, and ice shelf-systems poses a challenge to most numerical ice sheet models. Here we review present ice sheet model limitations targeting a broader audience within Earth Sciences, also those with no specific background in numerical modeling, in order to facilitate cross-disciplinary communication between especially paleoglaciologists, marine and terrestrial geologists, and numerical modelers. The ‘zero order’ (Shallow Ice Approximation, SIA)-, ‘higher order’-, and ‘full Stokes’ ice sheet models are described conceptually and complemented by an outline of their derivations. We demonstrate that higher order models are required to simulate coupled ice sheet-ice shelf and ice sheet-ice stream systems, in particular if the results are aimed to complement spatial ice flow reconstructions based on higher resolution geological and geophysical data. The zero order SIA model limitations in capturing ice stream behavior are here illustrated by conceptual simulations of a glaciation on Svalbard. The limitations are obvious from the equations comprising a zero order model. However, under certain circumstances, simulation results may falsely give the impression that ice streams indeed are simulated with a zero order SIA model.     

Magma chamber growth models in the upper crust: A review of the hydraulic and inertial constraints

Finite volumes of magma moving in confinement, store hydraulic potential energy for the generation,control and transmission of power. The Pascal's principle in a hydraulic jack arrangement is used to model the vertical and lateral growth of sills. The small input piston of the hydraulic jack is equivalent to the feeder dike, the upper large expansible piston equivalent to the magmatic chamber and the inertial force of the magma in the dike is the input force. This arrangement is particularly relevant to the case of sills expanding with blunt tips, for which rapid fracture propagation is inhibited. Hydraulic models concur with experimental data that show that lateral expansion of magma into a sill is promoted when the vertical ascent of magma through a feeder dike reaches the bottom contact with an overlying, flat rigid-layer. At this point, the magma is forced to decelerate, triggering a pressure wave through the conduit caused by the continued ascent of magma further down(fluid-hammer effect). This pressure wave can provide overpressure enough to trigger the initial hydraulic lateral expansion of magma into an incipient sill, and still have enough input inertial force left to continue feeding the hydraulic system. The lateral expansion underneath the strong impeding layer, causes an area increase and thus, further hydraulic amplification of the input inertial force on the sides and roof of the incipient sill, triggering further expansion in a self-reinforcing process. Initially, the lateral pressure increase is larger than that in the roof allowing the sill to expand. However, expansion eventually increases the total integrated force on the roof allowing its uplift into either a laccolith, if the roof preserves continuity, or into a piston bounded by a circular set of fractures. Hydraulic models for shallow magmatic chambers, also suggest that laccolith-like intrusions require the existence of a self-supported chamber roof. In contrast, if the roof of magmatic chambers loses the self-supporting capacity, lopoliths and calderas should be expected for more or less dense magmas, respectively, owing to the growing influence of the density contrast between the host rock and the magma.     

A comparison of electrical and electromagnetic methods for the detection of hydraulic pathways in a fractured rock aquifer,Clare Valley,South Australia

Within fractured rock, the irregular and often unpredictable distribution and geometry of hydraulically conductive fractures produces large spatial variations in bore yield and groundwater quality. As fractures act as conduits for flow of both groundwater and electrical charge, methods which can efficiently detect the distribution of electrical pathways can be used to infer characteristics of significant hydrological parameters. This study compares the capabilities and limitations of electrical data obtained from direct current (DC) and electromagnetic (EM) surface azimuthal measurements, and from DC borehole-to-surface and cross-borehole measurements, for the interpretation of major hydrological structures in Clare Valley, South Australia. Electrical and EM surface methods are limited by poor depth sensitivity and the presence of conductive overburden, but provide useful tools for determining directional variations in resistivity at sites lacking bedrock exposure and boreholes. Application of borehole-to-surface methods yielded a better-resolved interpretation of sub-vertical fracture strike and was useful in identifying lateral variations in bedrock heterogeneity. Improved flexibility and sensitivity to measurements at depth permitted cross-borehole electrical tomography data to be used in reconstructing the spatial distribution of sub-horizontal, laterally extensive, electrically conductive zones. While the technique is restricted to small-scale sites with multiple boreholes, inferences can be made on fluid connections over a much larger regional scale. It is important to note, however, that while electrical methods provide valuable information about in-situ hydraulic pathways, they do not provide a complete hydraulic characterisation. Such a task requires integration of surface and borehole geophysics, geologic mapping, sampling and pumping tests of wells with packed-off intervals.

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Resumen La geometría, y con frecuencia impredecible, distribución irregular de fracturas hidráulicamente conductivas dentro de roca fracturada genera variaciones espaciales grandes en producción de pozos y calidad de agua subterránea. Debido a que las fracturas actúan como conductos de flujo de agua y carga eléctrica, los métodos que detectan eficientemente la distribución de trayectorias eléctricas pueden utilizarse para inferir las características de parámetros hidrológicos significativos. Este estudio compara las capacidades y limitaciones de datos eléctricos obtenidos de mediciones azimutales superficiales electromagnéticas (EM) y de corriente directa (DC), y de mediciones de DC realizadas en la superficie y pozos así como mediciones realizadas entre pozos para la interpretación de estructuras hidrológicas principales en el Valle Clare, sur de Australia. Los métodos superficiales eléctricos y EM están limitados por sensitividad de profundidad pobre y la presencia de cubierta conductiva, pero aportan herramientas útiles para determinar variaciones direccionales de resistividad en sitios que carecen de pozos y afloramientos rocosos. La aplicación de métodos superficiales y de pozos aportan una mejor interpretación del rumbo de fracturas sub-verticales y fue útil en identificar variaciones laterales en la heterogeneidad del macizo rocoso. El mejoramiento de flexibilidad y sensitividad en las mediciones profundas permitió que los datos de tomografía eléctrica de los pozos fuera utilizado en la reconstrucción de la distribución espacial de zonas eléctricas conductivas, sub-horizontales y lateralmente extensas. Aunque la técnica está restringida a sitios de pequeña escala con múltiples pozos, puede realizarse inferencias sobre relaciones entre fluidos en una escala regional mucho más grande. Sin embargo, es importante notar que aunque los métodos eléctricos aportan información valiosa acerca de las trayectorias hidráulicas in-situ, aún no proporcionan una caracterización hidráulica completa. Esta tarea requiere integrar geofísica superficial y de pozos, mapeo geológico, muestreo y pruebas de bombeo en pozos con intervalos sin empaque.

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Résumé Au sein des roches fracturées, lirrégularité et limprédictible distribution et géométrie des fractures par lesquelles sécoulent leau souterraine produit de larges variations spatiales entre les débits des forages et les paramètres de la qualité de leau. Comme les fractures conduisent et leau et les charges électriques, les méthodes qui peuvent de manière efficiente détecter la distribution des courants électriques peuvent être utilisées pour analyser les caractéristiques des principaux paramètres hydrologiques. Cette étude compare les capacités et les limites des données produites par Courant Direct (DC en Anglais) et par mesure Electromagnétique azimutale de surface (EM en Anglais), et par DC entre surface et forage et entre plusieurs forages, pour linterprétation de la structure hydrologique de la Vallée de Clare, Australie du Sud. Les méthodes électriques et électromagnétiques sont limitées par la faible sensitivité à la profondeur et la présence dune couverture conductrice, mais procure des outils utiles pour déterminer les variations directionnelles en terme de résistivité là où la roche nest pas affleurante et dans les puits. Lapplication de la méthode dinvestigation «forage à surface» apporte une meilleure interprétation des fractures sub-verticales et des hétérogénéités latérales. Les tomographies électriques entre forage bénéficient de la flexibilité et de la sensibilité des mesures en profondeur, et permettent de délimiter lextension latérale des hétérogénéités sub-horizontales de zones conductrices. Alors que la technique est restreinte à de petits sites comprenant de nombreux forages, il est possible de reconstituer les connections hydrauliques à des échelles régionales. Il est important de noter que les méthodes fournissent des informations intéressantes mais pas des caractérisations hydrauliques complètes. Pour cela les données pourraient être complétées par des études plus poussées intégrant les différentes prospections géophysique, les données des cartes géologiques, des échantillonnages et des essais de pompage à différents intervalles de profondeur.

     

Upscaling of Navier–Stokes equations in porous media: Theoretical, numerical and experimental approach

The accurate estimation of hydraulic conductivity is important for many geotechnical engineering applications, as the presence of fluids affects all aspects of soil behaviour, including its strength. Darcy’s law is the key experimental (or phenomenological) equation employed to model ground water flow. Yet, this phenomenological equation can be linked to a more fundamental microscale model of flow through the pore spaces of the porous material. This paper provides an experimental verification of the relationships between Darcy’s law (macroscale) and the Navier–Stokes equations (microscale) for actual complex pore geometries of a granular material. The pore geometries are experimentally obtained through state-of-the-art X-ray computer assisted micro-tomography. From the numerical modelling of the microscale flow based on actual pore geometries, it is possible to quantify and visualize the development of pore-scale fluid preferential flow-paths through the porous material, and to assess the importance of pore connectivity in soil transport properties.     

Coupled formulation and algorithms for the simulation of non‐planar three‐dimensional hydraulic fractures using the generalized finite element method

This paper presents a coupled hydro‐mechanical formulation for the simulation of non‐planar three‐dimensional hydraulic fractures. Deformation in the rock is modeled using linear elasticity, and the lubrication theory is adopted for the fluid flow in the fracture. The governing equations of the fluid flow and elasticity and the subsequent discretization are fully coupled. A Generalized/eXtended Finite Element Method (G/XFEM) is adopted for the discretization of the coupled system of equations. A Newton–Raphson method is used to solve the resulting system of nonlinear equations. A discretization strategy for the fluid flow problem on non‐planar three‐dimensional surfaces and a computationally efficient strategy for handling time integration combined with mesh adaptivity are also presented. Several three‐dimensional numerical verification examples are solved. The examples illustrate the generality and accuracy of the proposed coupled formulation and discretization strategies. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Review and enhancement of 3D concrete models for large‐scale numerical simulations of concrete structures

The present paper focuses on selected plasticity and damage‐plasticity models for describing the 3D material behavior of concrete. In particular, a plasticity model and a damage‐plasticity model are reviewed and evaluated. Based on the results of the evaluation, enhancements are proposed, aiming at improving the correspondence between predicted and observed material behavior and aiming at implementing a robust and efficient stress update algorithm in a finite element program for performing large‐scale 3D numerical simulations of concrete structures. The capabilities of the concrete models are demonstrated by 3D numerical simulations of benchmark tests with combined bending and torsional loading and combined compression and shear loading and by a large‐scale 3D finite element analysis of a model test of a concrete arch dam. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Inverse methods and kinetic models of hydrocarbon generation: III. Case histories for autoclave product analysis

From a determination of the transformation matrix for three pyrolysis product experimental data sets, an examination is given of both the applicability of the laboratory experimental data to the modeling of oil cracking in a sedimentary basin, and of the appropriateness of an inverse model. The results of the laboratory experimental data sets, which were done under different thermodynamic conditions and using different sources, show that the transformation matrix varies over each data set and also with time. Therefore, it is necessary to check the data sets before applying them to a basin for hydrocarbon modeling. The laboratory experimental data taken at lower temperature and over longer times appear more pertinent for the construction of an oil-cracking kinetic model suitable for geologic conditions.     

Long lasting interactions between tectonic loading, unroofing, post-rift thermal subsidence and sedimentary transfers along the western margin of the Gulf of Mexico: Some insights from integrated quantitative studies

After Jurassic rifting, numerous carbonate platforms (i.e., the Orizaba, Cordoba and Golden Lane-Tuxpan platforms) developed during the Lower and Middle Cretaceous episode of thermal subsidence along the western passive margin of the Gulf of Mexico, with intervening basinal domains (i.e., the Tampico-Misantla, Zongolica, Veracruz and Deep Gulf of Mexico - DGM - basins).During the Late Cretaceous-Paleocene, the east-verging Sierra Madre Oriental thrust belt developed, resulting in tectonic uplift and unroofing of the allochthonous units (i.e. tectonic units made up of former Orizaba and Cordoba platforms and Zongolica Basin series). This new topography provided also an important source of clastics to feed the adjacent foredeep, where coeval tectonic loading accounted for the bending of the foreland lithosphere. However, shallow water facies or even emersion persisted until the Eocene in the forebulge area (at the present location of the Golden Lane), preventing locally the clastics to reach the DGM. This topographic barrier was ultimately bypassed by the clastics only during the Oligocene and Neogene, once (1) the prograding clastic wedge had exceeded accommodation, and (2) the long lasting thermal subsidence of the passive margin could overpass the effect of the bending and force the former bulge to sink.Numerous paleo-thermo-meters (Tmax, Ro), paleo-thermo-barometers (fluid inclusions), PVT and coupled forward kinematic and thermal modeling have been used to calibrate and date the progressive unroofing of the thrust belt. Coupled tectonic and sedimentologic modeling was applied in the foreland to predict the distribution of sand versus shale ratios in the Oligocene to Plio-Quaternary clastic sedimentary wedge of the passive margin, where gravitational gliding of post-Eocene series occurred during the Neogene along major listric faults.Mantle dynamics are advocated as the main process accounting for post-orogenic uplift and regional tilting of the basement, which initiated a massive transfer of sediments from the Cordillera towards the Gulf of Mexico, from Oligocene onward, resulting in a destabilization and gravitational collapse of the western slope of the Gulf of Mexico in Neogene times.     

构造裂缝发育期次划分方法研究与应用——以海拉尔盆地布达特群为例

以海拉尔盆地苏德尔特构造带布达特群古潜山油藏裂缝性储层为例,对构造裂缝发育期次的划分方法进行了探讨;在大量岩心观察的基础上,结合区域构造演化史,综合采用裂缝充填物的同位素分析、包裹体测温和岩石声发射技术等,分析了裂缝的形成期次。研究认为布达特群主要存在三期构造破裂:第Ⅰ期裂缝的形成与南屯末—大磨拐河组沉积时期的构造运动有关,缝内以方解石充填为主,形成温度介于72～76℃之间,并见有烃类包裹体,但其成熟度较低。第Ⅱ期裂缝是在伊敏时期区域伸展作用下形成的,又细分为两个亚期,第一亚期裂缝以方解石充填为主,方解石形成温度介于117～132℃之间,是深埋高温环境下的产物;第二亚期裂缝以微—细晶石英充填为主,其形成温度介于120～154℃之间。相对来讲,第Ⅱ期烃类成熟度明显增强。第Ⅲ期裂缝是在伊敏末期强烈的抬升作用下形成的,裂缝内充填了微—细晶方解石和石英。其形成温度介于89～110℃之间,烃类成熟度减弱。裂缝发育期次划分对于恢复裂缝发育演化历史具有重要意义。     

Study of galvanic interactions between pyrite and chalcopyrite in a flowing system: implications for the environment

When galvanic interactions between pyrite and chalcopyrite occur in solution, pyrite, with the higher rest potential, acts as a cathode and is protected whereas chalcopyrite, with the lower rest potential, acts as an anode and its oxidation is increased. In this work a three-electrode system was used to investigate the corrosion current density and mixed potential of a galvanic cell comprising a pyrite cathode and a chalcopyrite anode in a flowing system. The results showed that with increasing concentration of ferric ion in the solution, with increasing acidity, and with increasing flow rate of the solution, the corrosion current density increased and the mixed potential of the galvanic cell became more positive. These experimental results are of direct significance to the control of environmental pollution in mining activity. By using the galvanic model, mixed potential theory, and the Butler–Volmer equation, the experimental results were explained theoretically.     

From outcrop and petrographic studies to basin-scale fluid flow modelling: The use of the Albanian natural laboratory for carbonate reservoir characterisation

The Albanian fold-and-thrust belt and the Peri-Adriatic Depression are well documented by means of seismic reflection profiles, GPS reference points, potential data, wells and outcrops. The continuous Oligocene to Plio-Quaternary sedimentary records help to constrain both the burial history of Mesozoic carbonate reservoirs, the timing of their deformation, and the coupled fluid flow and diagenetic scenarios.Since the mid-90s, the Albanian foothills were used as a natural laboratory to develop a new integrated methodology and work flow for the study of sub-thrust reservoir evolution, and to validate on real case studies the use of basin modelling tools as well as the application of new analytical methods for the study petroleum systems in tectonically complex areas.The integration of the interactions between petrographic and microtectonic studies, kinematic, thermal and fluid flow basin modelling, is described in detail. The fracturing of the reservoir intervals has a pre-folding origin in the Albanides and relates to the regional flexuring in the foreland. The first recorded cement has a meteoric origin, implying downward migration and the development of an earlier forebulge in the Ionian Basin. This fluid, which precipitates at a maximum depth of 1.5 km, is highly enriched in strontium, attesting for important fluid–rock interaction with the Triassic evaporites, located in diapirs. From this stage, the horizontal tectonic compression increases and the majority of the fluid migrated under high pressure, characterised by brecciated and crack-seal vein. The tectonic burial increased due to the overthrusting, that is pointed out by the increase of the precipitation temperature of the cements. Afterwards, up- or downward migration of SO₄²⁻, Ba²⁺ and Mg²⁺-rich fluids, which migrated probably along the décollement level, allows a precipitation in thermal disequilibrium. This period corresponds to the onset of the thrusting in the Ionian Zone. The last stage characterised the uplift of the Berati belt, developing a selective karstification due likely to the circulation of meteoric fluid.The main results of the fluid flow modelling show that the Upper Cretaceous–Paleocene carbonate reservoirs in the Ionian zone have been charged from the Tortonian onward, and that meteoric fluid migration should have intensely biodegraded the hydrocarbon in place. Concerning the migration paths, it has been demonstrated that the thrusts act principally as flow barriers in Albania, mainly due the occurrence of evaporites (non-permeable), except in the foreland, where they do not occur.     

Relationships between O isotope equilibrium,mineral alteration and Rb–Sr chronometric validity in granitoids: implications for determination of cooling rate

A combined study of mineral O and Rb–Sr isotopes was carried out for a number of Mesozoic granitoids in China in order to compare the degree of O isotope equilibrium between coexisting minerals, with the validity of mineral Rb–Sr isochrons for granitoids. A scrutiny of both O isotope geothermometry and Rb–Sr internal isochron dating for corresponding minerals indicates that equilibrium O isotope fractionation between Rb–Sr isochron minerals corresponds to geologically meaningful isochron ages if the variation in ⁸⁷Rb/⁸⁶Sr ratio is big enough to provide reasonably small uncertainties in age. Significant deviation of the Rb–Sr isochron age from the actual age appears to depend on the difference in Sr isotopic composition between an external fluid and the igneous minerals. As a result, O isotope disequilibrium is often caused by interaction between the rock and the external fluid that results in mineral alteration. Post-magmatic alteration can cause isotope exchange between the minerals and an internally buffered fluid that is isotopically identical to the host rock. The O isotope composition of coexisting minerals in studied samples changed principally due to a decrease in temperature. Both Rb and Sr concentrations and the Sr isotope ratios of isochron minerals also changed due to the mixing of different Sr reservoirs. Nevertheless, the isochron age can remain unchanged if the mixing took place along the isochron chord between the internal fluid and the minerals from that newly altered minerals formed. This provides an insight into the effect of internal and external fluids on the validity of mineral Rb–Sr chronometry. In addition, an alternative approach is proposed to construct the cooling curve by a combined use of O isotope temperature and mineral isotope age for the granitoids of interest. Comparing with the traditional method using the empirical closure temperature for Rb–Sr chronometry, the proposed approach utilizes fewer variables with smaller uncertainties than the traditional way.     

Numerical modeling of multiphase fluid flow in deforming porous media: A comparison between two- and three-phase models for seismic analysis of earth and rockfill dams

In this paper, a fully coupled numerical model is presented for the finite element analysis of the deforming porous medium interacting with the flow of two immiscible compressible wetting and non-wetting pore fluids. The governing equations involving coupled fluid flow and deformation processes in unsaturated soils are derived within the framework of the generalized Biot theory. The displacements of the solid phase, the pressure of the wetting phase and the capillary pressure are taken as the primary unknowns of the present formulation. The other variables are incorporated into the model using the experimentally determined functions that define the relationship between the hydraulic properties of the porous medium, i.e. saturation, relative permeability and capillary pressure. It is worth mentioning that the imposition of various boundary conditions is feasible notwithstanding the choice of the primary variables. The modified Pastor–Zienkiewicz generalized constitutive model is introduced into the mathematical formulation to simulate the mechanical behavior of the unsaturated soil. The accuracy of the proposed mathematical model for analyzing coupled fluid flows in porous media is verified by the resolution of several numerical examples for which previous solutions are known. Finally, the performance of the computational algorithm in modeling of large-scale porous media problems including the large elasto-plastic deformations is demonstrated through the fully coupled analysis of the failure of two earth and rockfill dams. Furthermore, the three-phase model is compared to its simplified one which simulates the unsaturated porous medium as a two-phase one with static air phase. The paper illustrates the shortcomings of the commonly used simplified approach in the context of seismic analysis of two earth and rockfill dams. It is shown that accounting the pore air as an independent phase significantly influences the unsaturated soil behavior.     

A critical review and re-investigation of the Pleistocene deposits between Cranfield Point and Kilkeel,Northern Ireland: Implications for regional sea-level models and glacial reconstructions of the northern Irish Sea basin

The coastline of County Down includes sites that are pivotal to understanding the history of the last glaciation of the northern Irish Sea Basin in relation to relative sea level and regional glacial readvances. The cliff sections display evidence that has been used to underpin controversial models of glaciomarine sedimentation in isostatically-depressed basins followed by emergent marine and littoral environments. They also provide crucial evidence claimed to constrain millennial-scale ice sheet oscillations associated with uniquely large and rapid sea-level fluctuations. This paper reviews previous work and reports new findings that generally supports the ‘terrestrial’ model of glaciation, involving subglacial accretion and deformation of sediment beneath grounded ice. Deep troughs were incised into the till sheet during a post Late Glacial Maximum draw-down of ice into the Irish Sea Basin. Ice retreat was accompanied by glaciomarine accretion of mud in the troughs during a period of high relative sea level. The trough-fills were over-ridden, compacted, deformed and truncated during a glacial re-advance that is correlated with the Clogher Head Readvance. Grounding-line retreat accompanied by rapid subaqueous ice-proximal sedimentation preserved a widespread subglacial stone pavement. Raised beach gravels cap the sequence. The evidence supports an uninterrupted fall in relative sea level from c. 30?m that is consistent with sea level curves predicted by current glacio-isostatic adjustment modelling. Critical evidence previously cited in support of subaerial dissection of the troughs, and hence rapid fall and rise in relative sea level prior to the deposition of the glaciomarine muds, is not justified.