Implementation of Solute Transport in the Vadose Zone into the “HYDRUS Package for MODFLOW”

The “HYDRUS package for MODFLOW” is an existing MODFLOW package that allows MODFLOW to simultaneously evaluate transient water flow in both unsaturated and saturated zones. The package is based on incorporating parts of the HYDRUS-1D model (to simulate unsaturated water flow in the vadose zone) into MODFLOW (to simulate saturated groundwater flow). The coupled model is effective in addressing spatially variable saturated-unsaturated hydrological processes at the regional scale. However, one of the major limitations of this coupled model is that it does not have the capability to simulate solute transport along with water flow and therefore, the model cannot be employed for evaluating groundwater contamination. In this work, a modified unsaturated flow and transport package (modified HYDRUS package for MODFLOW and MT3DMS) has been developed and linked to the three-dimensional (3D) groundwater flow model MODFLOW and the 3D groundwater solute transport model MT3DMS. The new package can simulate, in addition to water flow in the vadose zone, also solute transport involving many biogeochemical processes and reactions, including first-order degradation, volatilization, linear or nonlinear sorption, one-site kinetic sorption, two-site sorption, and two-kinetic sites sorption. Due to complex interactions at the groundwater table, certain modifications of the pressure head (compared to the original coupling) and solute concentration profiles were incorporated into the modified HYDRUS package. The performance of the newly developed model is evaluated using HYDRUS (2D/3D), and the results indicate that the new model is effective in simulating the movement of water and contaminants in the saturated-unsaturated flow domains.     

Analysis of Methods for Estimating the Energy of Sources of Acoustic-Gravity Waves in the Earth’s Atmosphere

Izvestiya, Physics of the Solid Earth - Abstract—A comparative analysis is presented of the approaches and methods for estimating the energy of the sources of acoustic-gravity waves (AGW) in...     

Macrophytes’ Performance in Floating Treatment Wetlands for the Remediation of Ciprofloxacin-Contaminated Water

The presence of trace antibiotics in domestic and industrial effluents poses a risk of toxicity to fauna and flora. The application of floating treatment wetlands (FTWs) is a low-cost and sustainable approach to remediate wastewater. In this study, the performance of different macrophytes vegetated in FTWs for the remediation of ciprofloxacin (CIP)-contaminated water is investigated. Six macrophytes, Brachia mutica, Typha domingensis, Phragmites australis, Canna indica, Cyperus laevigatus, and Leptochloa fusca, are vegetated in FTWs for the removal of CIP (50 mg L⁻¹) from water. The FTWs show the potential to remove 30–43.58 mg L⁻¹ CIP from water in 28 days. They also reduce the chemical oxygen demand (118–138 mg L⁻¹) and biochemical oxygen demand (35–45 mg L⁻¹) of water. Among the macrophytes, C. indica removes maximum (43.58 mg L⁻¹) and T. domingensis minimum (30 mg L⁻¹) CIP. Canna indica and T. domingensis exhibit the maximum and minimum increase (30% and 12% of dry biomass) in growth, respectively. This study reveals that the FTWs vegetated with different plant species exhibit varying performances in removing CIP from water. This investigation is a step forward toward sustainable bioremediation of water contaminated with antibiotics.     

Analysis of Geological Background of Seismic Activity in the Chengdu Plain from Data of Seismic Prospecting for Oil

Summarizing the existing data of seismological and geological investigations and of strong and intermediate-strong earthquakes in‘ the Sichuan basin and its adjacent areas accumulated by the seismological and petroleum organizations in Sichuan and of the results of seismic prospecting and detailed exploration in Chengdu depression during the last 20 years permitted us to studythe types and distribution of hidden structures in Chengdu depression and its adjacent areas, in particular, to identify in, detail the “hidden faults” in the Chenngdu-Deyang area on the one hand; The obtained data indicate that the NE-trending Xinjin fault ruus northward and dies out in the south of Penzhen town of Shuangliu County; Meanwhile, we studied genetic relations of seismic activity to active faults and their corresponding movernent charaeteristics on the other hand, Moreover, the Surface faults and deep-seated faults are clearly defined and outlined,and 5 types of seismogenic faults suggestd. The knowledge thus obtained enables us to delimit the focal zones for potential strong earthquakes in Chengdu depression. The study suggests that a zone of 40 km wide and more than 100 km long on sides along the Chengu Deyang lim bas a stable seismogeological background and good engineering-seismological conditions.     

New Parameter for Analysis of Ionospheric Disturbances and the Search for Ionospheric Precursors of Earthquakes Based on Barbier’s Formula

Geomagnetism and Aeronomy - A new relative parameter (δBarbier) is proposed for the analysis of ionospheric disturbances and the search for ionospheric precursors of earthquakes. The parameter...     

A Preliminary Analysis of Seismotectonics for the Indonesia MS. 7 Earthquake on December 26,2004

The Indonesian region is one of the most seismically active zones on the earth. On December 26, 2004, an Ms 8.7 earthquake （as measured by the China Seismograph Network, or Mw = 9.3 as measured by USGS） struck the west coast of northern Sumatra, Indonesia. By its magnitude it is classified as the world＇s fourth largest earthquake since 1900 and the largest one since the 1964 Alaska earthquake. The spatial distribution of the relocation of larger aftershocks （ M 〉 4.5） following the main shock suggests a length and width of the rupture of about 1200km and 200km, respectively. The shock triggered massive tsunamis that affected several countries throughout South and Southeast Asia. It is a shallow interplate event of thrust type in the trench. Its epicenter is located at the northwestern end of the Indonesia-Melanesia plate boundary tectonic zone. In 2004, eight shocks of M≥ 7.0 occurred in this area, showing a migration from east to west. It implies that these shocks represent a correlated and consistent dynamic process along this subduction zone. These interplate events are associated with convergence of several plates and their fast motion in this region, which result in strong and complex structures and deformation. The India-Australia plate is underthrusting toward the Sunda continental block or Burma plate at a low angle, producing a great locked area on the shallow portion of the subduction zone where enormous strain is accumulated. Interseismic uplift recorded by coral growth and horizontal velocities measured by GPS show the geometry of the locked portion of the Sumatra subduction zone. The vertical and horizontal data reasonably match with a model in which the plate interface is fully locked over a significant width. This locked fault zone extends to a horizontal distance of 132km from the trench, which corresponds to a depth of 50km. The sudden ruptures and large-scale slip of this locked area as a release of stress occurred, are the direct cause of the M8.7 earthquake near Indonesia in 2004.     

Analysis of foreshock sequence of the 1975 Haicheng earthquake of Ms 7.3

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Analysis of the geothermal vortexes triggering the Xingtai earthquake in 1966

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Completeness Analysis of the Historical Earthquake Catalogue in China

The historical earthquake catalogue of China has lasted more than 3000 years,and most of its data are inferred from historical records.The earthquake catalogue in earlier times is not complete owing to various reasons,so some events are lost.This paper estimates the loss rate of earthquakes with various magnitudes in the historical earthquake catalogue for different time intervals quantitatively by using the Gutenberg-Richter formula and modern instrumental records,which will provide the references for statistic research in seismicity.     

Analysis of the Microseismicity Induced by Fluid Injections at the EGS Site of Soultz-sous-Forêts (Alsace, France): Implications for the Characterization of the Geothermal Reservoir Properties

In June/July 2000, a hydraulic stimulation experiment took place at the geothermal EGS site of Soultz-sous-Forêts (Alsace, France) in order to enhance the permeability of the fractured granitic massif at 5 km depth. As it is well known that fluid injections tend to induce microseismic events, a downhole and a surface seismological network have been installed to monitor the seismic activity during the stimulation test. 23400 m³ of fluid have been injected in the rock volume through the open-hole section (4400 m–5000 m) of the well GPK2 at increasing rates of 30 l.s⁻¹, 40 l.s⁻¹ and then 50 l.s⁻¹. More than 7200 microseismic events in the magnitude range –0.9 to 2.6 have been precisely located through a simultaneous inversion of the seismic velocity structure and location parameters. The analysis of the behavior of the seismicity relative to the hydraulic parameters gives important information about the geothermal reservoir. It appears that the evolution of the seismicity strongly depends on the variations of the injection rate: An increase or a decrease leads to changes of the velocity structure, the number and magnitude of microseismic events. This involves different hydro-mechanical processes between the fluid flow and the fracture planes, which will control the final shape of the microseismic cloud. Moreover, the study of the variations of the b-value with time suggests that the stimulation experiment produces a large proportion of small earthquakes, but records of events of magnitude higher than 2 indicate that fluid injection could reactivate structures whose dimensions allow the generation of such earthquakes.     

Analysis of the 2012–2013 Torreperogil-Sabiote seismic swarm

This study analyses the temporal clustering, spatial clustering, and statistics of the 2012–2013 Torreperogil-Sabiote (southern Spain) seismic swarm. During the swarm, more than 2200 events were located, mostly at depths of 2–5 km, with magnitude event up to m_bLg 3.9 (M_w 3.7). On the basis of daily activity rate, three main temporal phases are identified and analysed. The analysis combines different seismological relationships to improve our understanding of the physical processes related to the swarm's occurrence. Each temporal phase is characterized by its cumulative seismic moment. Using several different approaches, we estimate a catalog completeness magnitude of m_c≅ 1.5. The maximum likelihood b-value estimates for each swarm phase are 1.11 ± 0.09, 1.04 ± 0.04, and 0.90 ± 0.04, respectively. To test the hypothesis that a b-value decrease is a precursor to a large event, we study temporal variations in b-value using overlapping moving windows. A relationship can be inferred between change in b-value and the regime style of the rupture. b-values are indicators of the stress regime, and influence the size of ruptures. The fractal dimension D₂ is used to perform spatial analysis. Cumulative gamma and beta functions are used to analyse the behaviour of inter-event distances during the earthquake sequence.     

Analysis of the liquefaction phenomena in the village of Vittorito (L��Aquila)

This paper describes a case-history of liquefaction occurred near the village of Vittorito after the April 6, 2009 L’Aquila earthquake (moment magnitude M_w = 6.3), approximately 45 km far from the epicentre. In the document, first, an estimation of the seismic motion in the area has been made. Thereafter, the performed geotechnical investigation is described, followed by the application of some fast assessment criteria for the occurrence of liquefaction, recently proposed by the new Italian Building Code. A careful assessment of all the parameters involved in conventional Seed and Idriss (1971) liquefaction analyses is considered. The cyclic resistance ratio CRR is evaluated by cone penetration tests CPT and by in situ seismic dilatometer tests SMDT; in the latter case CRR is evaluated by different empirical correlations with shear wave velocity V_s and horizontal stress index K_D. Analytical data confirmed the observed occurrence of the liquefaction in Vittorito, even if the acceleration field in the area, produced by the L’Aquila earthquake, was very low.     

Performance of CRONUS-P – A pyroxene reference material for helium isotope analysis

Helium isotope analyses are central to modern earth science and measured by many noble gas laboratories around the globe (Burnard, 2013; Wieler et al., 2002), spanning a wide spectrum of fundamental research – from identifying primordial reservoirs in the Earth mantle to paleoclimate reconstructions. The CRONUS-Earth initiative included the manufacturing, distribution and analysis of a pyroxene reference material (CRONUS-P) that was designed to be useful for internal reliability control of ³He measurements within a few percent and potentially for ⁴He on a higher level of uncertainty.This short paper describes the CRONUS-P material and its performance as ³He and ⁴He reference sample for noble gas laboratories. The companion paper by Blard et al. 2015 describes in depth the inter-laboratory helium isotope experiment within CRONUS-Earth.We show normalized helium isotope data of CRONUS-P measured at three different noble gas laboratories. Data from all three laboratories show no relation between helium isotope concentrations and sample mass, implying that the material is homogeneous. The data show that CRONUS-P is useful as an internal standard for ³He within better 2% (1σ) and for ⁴He within better 10%.     

Analysis of coherence in global seismic noise for 1997–2012

The coherent behavior of four parameters characterizing the global field of low-frequency (periods from 2 to 500 min) seismic noise is studied. These parameters include logarithmic variance, kurtosis (coefficient of excess), width of support of multifractal singularity spectrum, and minimal normalized entropy of the distribution of the squared orthogonal wavelet coefficients. The analy)sis is based on the data from 229 broadband stations of GSN, GEOSCOPE, and GEOFON networks for a 16-year period from the beginning of 1997 to the end of 2012. The entire set of stations is subdivided into eight groups, which, taken together, provide full coverage of the Earth. The daily median values of the studied noise parameters are calculated in each group. This procedure yields four 8-dimensional time series with a time step of 1 day with a length of 5844 samples in each scalar component. For each of the four 8-dimensional time series, the frequency-time diagram of the evolution of the spectral measure of coherence (based on canonical coherences) is constructed in the moving time window with a length of 365 days. Besides, for each parameter, the maximum-frequency values of the coherence measure and their mean over the four analyzed noise parameters are calculated as a measure of synchronization that depends on time only. Based on the conducted analysis, it is concluded that the increase in the intensity of the strongest (M ≥ 8.5) earthquakes after the mega-earthquake on Sumatra on December 26, 2004 was preceded by the enhancement of synchronization between the parameters of global seismic noise over the entire time interval of observations since the beginning of 1997. This synchronization continues growing up to the end of the studied period (2012), which can be interpreted as a probable precursor of the further increase in the intensity of the strongest earthquakes all over the world.     

Statistical Analysis on the Corner Period of Site-Related Design Spectra

INTRODUCTIONFromTJ1 1 74 ,theseismicdesignforbuildingshasbeenbasedontheaccelerationresponsespectruminChina (HuYuxian ,1 988) .ThevalueofTgoftheresponsespectrumvariesbecauseofdifferentsiteclassesanddifferentearthquakeenvironments .Designresponsespectrainc…     

Performance of “G-Pisa” ring laser gyro at the Virgo site

The ring laser gyroscope ??G-Pisa?? has been taking data inside the Virgo interferometer central area with the aim of performing high sensitivity measurements of rotations in the vertical as well as in the horizontal orientation. We discuss the main characteristics of the instrument, describing its mechanical design and presenting the measured sensitivity limit. By applying a simple effective model for the laser gyroscope, we show that the stability of the sensor above 10?s of integration time is mainly limited by backscattering effects. The horizontal rotation rate signal is also compared with the signals recorded by the Virgo environmental monitoring system and by a biaxial mechanical tiltmeter rigidly fixed on top of the gyrolaser mounting frame.     

Spatial and Spectral Analysis of Refined Gravity Data for Modelling the Crust–Mantle Interface and Mantle-Lithosphere Structure

We analyse spatial and spectral characteristics of various refined gravity data used for modelling and gravimetric interpretation of the crust–mantle interface and the mantle-lithosphere structure. Depending on the purpose of the study, refined gravity data have either a strong or weak correlation with the Moho depths (Moho geometry). The compilation of the refined gravity data is purely based on available information on the crustal density structure obtained from seismic surveys without adopting any isostatic hypothesis. We demonstrate that the crust-stripped relative-to-mantle gravity data have a weak correlation with the CRUST2.0 Moho depths of about 0.02. Since gravitational signals due to the crustal density structure and the Moho geometry are subtracted from gravity field, these refined gravity data comprise mainly the information on the mantle lithosphere and sub-lithospheric mantle. On the other hand, the consolidated crust-stripped gravity data, obtained from the gravity field after applying the crust density contrast stripping corrections, comprise mainly the gravitational signal of the Moho geometry, although they also contain the gravitational signal due to anomalous mass density structures within the mantle. In the absence of global models of the mantle structure, the best possible option of computing refined gravity data, suitable for the recovery/refinement of the Moho interface, is to subtract the complete crust-corrected gravity data from the consolidated crust-stripped gravity data. These refined gravity data, that is, the homogenous crust gravity data, have a strong absolute correlation of about 0.99 with the CRUST2.0 Moho depths due to removing a gravitational signal of inhomogeneous density structures within the crust and mantle. Results of the spectral signal decomposition and the subsequent correlation analysis reveal that the correlation of the homogenous crust gravity data with the Moho depths is larger than 0.9 over the investigated harmonic spectrum up to harmonic degree 90. The crust-stripped relative-to-mantle gravity data correlate substantially with the Moho depths above harmonic degree 50 where the correlation exceeds 0.5.     

Research on the Result of Calibration for the Location of the Seismic Array in Shanghai

The paper proposes the calibration theory and methods for the Shanghai seismic array and analyzes the calibration results. As a result, the calibration results for the seismic array based on 2 typical earthquakes have been drawn; the difference of calibration results between Hokkaido and Honshu region in Japan is investigated. And calibration results of different directions, different epicenter distances and different magnitudes are probed into. The result shows that the location of earthquakes on the Shanghai seismic array is greatly improved.     

Assessment of observational networks with the Representer Matrix Spectra method—application to a 3D coastal model of the Bay of Biscay

The development of coastal ocean modeling in the recent years has allowed an improved representation of the associated complex physics. Such models have become more realistic, to the point that they can now be used to design observation networks in coastal areas, with the idea that a “good” network is a network that controls model state error. To test this ability without performing data assimilation, we set up a technique called Representer Matrix Spectra (RMS) technique that combines the model state and observation error covariance matrices into a single scaled representer matrix. Examination of the spectrum and the eigenvectors of that matrix informs us on which model state error modes a network can detect and constrain amidst the observation error background. We applied our technique to a 3D coastal model in the Bay of Biscay, with a focus on mesoscale activity, and tested the performance of various altimetry networks and an in situ array deployment strategy. It appears that a single nadir altimeter is not efficient enough at capturing coastal mesoscale physics, while a wide swath altimeter would do a much better job. Testing various local in situ array configurations confirms that adding a current meter to a vertical temperature measurement array improves the detection of secondary variability modes, while shifting the array higher on the shelf break would obviously enhance the model constraint along the coast. The RMS technique is easily set up and used as a “black box,” but the utility of its results is maximized by previous knowledge of model state error physics. The technique provides both quantitative (eigenvalues) and qualitative (eigenvectors) tools to study and compare various network options. The qualitative approach is essential to discard possibly inconsistent modes.