Reply to the discussion by Conti R., De Sanctis L. and Viggiani G.M.B. on ‘Influence of diaphragm wall installation on the numerical analysis of deep excavation’ by Burlon S., Mroueh H. & Shahrour I.

The authors thank the discussers R.Conti, L.De Sanctis and G.M.B.Viggiani for their interest to the paper entitled ‘Influence of diaphragm wall installation on the numerical analysis of deep excavation’ and for providing the opportunity to submit additional information to clarify some issues. The authors broadly agree with the comments which deal with three main aspects of the paper: presence of water and type of analysis, constitutive modelling and numerical strategies. The present reply addresses some additional issues that the discussers find not clear on the original paper submitted by the writers. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Influence of diaphragm wall installation on the numerical analysis of deep excavation

This paper presents a numerical analysis of the influence of initial stress state on the response of deep excavation supported by retaining wall. Indeed, the influence of diaphragm wall installation prior to excavation works may affect the soil response and lateral wall deflection induced by excavation process. The first part of this paper gives a short review of the numerical methods aimed to reproduce the retaining wall installation. Numerical analysis of a deep excavation in two‐dimensional and three‐dimensional conditions is then performed according to the methods previously presented. In three‐dimensional conditions, diaphragm wall installation is performed considering a sequence of panels, described by their number and length. Results of three‐dimensional calculations confirm that stress state is disturbed by wall installation, which has a sensitive effect on the ground response induced by soil excavation. It is also noted that these results are not easily reproduced in two‐dimensional conditions. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Syn‐rift mass flow generated ‘tectonofacies’ and ‘tectonosequences’ of the Kingston Peak Formation,Death Valley,California, and their bearing on supposed Neoproterozoic panglacial climates

The Kingston Peak Formation of the Pahrump Group in the Death Valley region of the Basin and Range Province, USA, is the thick (over 3 km) mixed siliciclastic–carbonate fill of a long‐lived structurally‐complex Neoproterozoic rift basin and is recognized by some as a key ‘climatostratigraphic’ succession recording panglacial Snowball Earth events. A facies analysis of the Kingston Peak Formation shows it to be largely composed of ‘tectonofacies’ which are subaqueous mass flow deposits recording cannibalization of older Pahrump carbonate strata exposed by local faulting. Facies include siltstone, sandstone and conglomerate turbidites, carbonate megabreccias (olistoliths) and related breccias, and interbedded debrites. Secondary facies are thin carbonates and pillowed basalts. Four distinct associations of tectonofacies (‘base‐of‐scarp’; FA1, ‘mid‐slope’; FA2, ‘base‐of‐slope’; FA3, and a ‘carbonate margin’ association; FA4) reflect the initiation and progradation of deep water clastic wedges at the foot of fault scarps. ‘Tectonosequences’ record episodes of fault reactivation resulting in substantial increases in accommodation space and water depths, the collapse of fault scarps and consequent downslope mass flow events. Carbonates of FA4 record the cessation of tectonic activity and resulting sediment starvation ending the growth of clastic wedges. Tectonosequences are nested within regionally‐extensive tectono‐stratigraphic units of earlier workers that are hundreds to thousands of metres in thickness, recording the long‐term evolution of the rifted Laurentian continental margin during the protracted breakup of Rodinia. Debrite facies of the Kingston Peak Formation are classically described as ice‐contact glacial deposits recording globally‐correlative panglacials but they result from partial to complete subaqueous mixing of fault‐generated coarse‐grained debris and fine‐grained distal sediment on a slope conditioned by tectonic activity. The sedimentology (tectonofacies) and stratigraphy (tectonosequences) of the Kingston Peak Formation reflect a fundamental control on local sedimentation in the basin by faulting and likely earthquake activity, not by any global glacial climate.     

Reply to the Discussion by John Nott on ‘Coarse‐sand beach ridges at Cowley Beach,north‐eastern Australia: Their formative processes and potential as records of tropical cyclone history’ by Tamura et al. (2018), Sedimentology,65, 721–744

Tamura et al. (2018) refined our understanding of formative processes that have resulted in a series of coarse‐sand beach ridges at Cowley Beach in north‐eastern Australia. Nott (2018) claimed that there are several shortcomings in the findings Tamura et al. (2018) presented. However, his criticism mostly derived from his misunderstanding of the data and discussion presented in Tamura et al. (2018), which thus should be clarified here. This reply also reiterates how his method for estimating the magnitude of past tropical cyclones from beach ridges is inconsistent with our observations of beach morphology and beach‐ridge formative processes.     

Reply to comments by H. Mashima on ‘Evolution of the eastern margin of Korea: constraints on the opening of the East Sea (Japan Sea)’ by Kim et al. [Tectonophysics 436 (2007) 37–55]

We thank H. Mashima for his interest in our recent article in Tectonophysics [Kim, H.J., Lee, G.H., Jou, H.T., Cho, H.M., Yoo, H.S., Park, G.T., Kim, J.S., 2007, Evolution of the eastern margin of Korea: Constraints on the opening of the East Sea (Japan Sea). Tectonophysics 436, 37–55.] and welcome the opportunity to respond to his comments. In our article we suggested that the southern part of the East Sea (Japan Sea) opened principally in the southeast direction in response to the northwestward subduction of the Pacific Plate beneath the Japan Arc. In contrast, Mashima claims that the opening of the East Sea was achieved in the south–southeast direction. However, there are many crucial things in his comments that we find scientifically unconvincing and misleading. In this reply, we give a detailed response to his comments.     

Comment on ‘Magnetic studies of magma-supply and sea-floor metamorphism: Troodos ophiolite dikes’, by G.J. Borradaile and D. Gauthier

Anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility is used as a proxy for the determination of magmatic flow direction in mafic dykes. Here we take advantage of the dataset from G.J. Borradaile and D. Gauthier to comment three points: (1) the sampling strategy; (2) the geometric relationship between magnetic axis dyke, and, (3) an alternative interpretation to obtain a flow direction. The magnetic lineations published by Borradaile and Gauthier correspond to the zone axis of the dyke and magnetic foliation poles, questioning the reliability of the magnetic lineation as a flow estimate. An alternative interpretation is based on the use of the tiling of the magnetic foliation plane against the dyke wall.     

Comment on “Microtremor observations of deep sediment resonance in metropolitan Memphis, Tennessee” by Paul Bodin, Kevin Smith, Steve Horton and Howard Hwang

Bodin et al. [Eng. Geol. 62 (2001) 159] reported three sets of maxima in observed H/V particle-motion spectra, where the longest-period set of peaks provided clear mapping information on the thickness of post-Cretaceous sediments in the Mississippi embayment, but the remaining peaks remained largely unexplained. A review of microtremor array studies for similar sites and similar frequencies suggests that the microtremor field is best interpreted in terms of Rayleigh-wave energy. Use of this approach, with modeling of particle-motion H/V ratios for realistic models of the Mississippi embayment, shows that the [Eng. Geol. 62 (2001) 159] second set of spectral maxima can be associated with higher-mode Rayleigh-wave energy, and may contain information on a possible velocity inversion in the shear-velocity profile of the site. A third spectral maximum appears to be associated with soft soils (loess) and may be able to be used for mapping the near-surface thickness (order 15 m) of this unit.     

Discussion of ‘Coarse‐sand beach ridges at Cowley Beach,north‐eastern Australia: Their formative processes and potential as records of tropical cyclone history’ by Tamura et al. (2018), Sedimentology, 65, 721–744

The processes resulting in the formation of a coarse‐grained sand beach ridge plain at Cowley Beach, north‐east Australia have been questioned by Tamura et al. (2018). These authors now acknowledge the conclusions by Nott et al. (2009) and Nott (2014) that the dominant depositional mechanisms here are waves and inundations generated during tropical cyclones. The Tamura et al. (2018) new ground penetrating radar data highlights that scarping of incipient ridges is a common feature and occurs regularly under non‐storm conditions. The upper sedimentary units deposited during storms are not scarped and demonstrate the high preservation potential and usefulness of these deposits for reconstructing long‐term records of tropical cyclones. Tamura et al. (2018) question the robustness of the methodology used by Nott & Hayne (2001), Nott (2003) and Nott et al. (2009) in estimating the magnitude of the storms responsible for these sedimentary deposits. These supposed issues though have been dealt with in detail in a series of publications over the past nearly two decades. The shortcomings of the Tamura et al. (2018) criticisms are explained in detail here.