Measurements of beach pebble attrition in Palliser Bay, southern North Island, New Zealand

The beaches of Palliser Bay, exposed to oceanic waves from the south, are composed of mixed sand and gravel derived from mountain ranges of greywacke and argillite that rise above both sides of the bay. Beach gravel tracer experiments, each using up to 75 tonnes of limestone pebbles, were conducted at three sites. Increase in the roundness of these tracer pebbles at each site during the year of observation was compared with the increase in roundness and rate of weight loss of limestone and greywacke pebbles in a laboratory tumbler. The comparison enabled estimation of the rate of attrition of the natural beach pebbles. A weight loss of 41% per year was found for pebbles at the most exposed site and 15 and 7% at the other two sites.     

粤北岩溶峰林不同地貌部位植被特征研究

文章选择粤北英德九龙镇典型峰林平原为研究区,在不同地貌部位调查了生态环境的岩石裸露率和土壤厚度,以及植物物种、生物量、盖度等指标,运用物种α多样性指数和Jaccard相似性系数分析了植物多样性与相似性,结果表明:（1）不同地貌部位的岩石裸露率、土层厚度差异较大,峰壁岩石裸露率显著大于峰顶、坡麓和洼地,而洼地的土层厚度显著大于峰顶、峰壁和坡麓;（2）峰顶、峰壁、坡麓和峰间洼地的群丛依次为乔栯榕-竹叶椒+檵木-纤毛鸭嘴草、乔栯榕-红背山麻杆+檵木-五节芒、黄连木-灰白毛莓-纤毛鸭嘴草和长毛八角枫-藤金合欢+粉单竹-纤毛鸭嘴草,优势种与层片结构有一定差异;（3）岩溶植物具有对环境的高度适应性,使不同地貌部位植被能够保持较高的覆盖度,但地势平缓、土层相对较厚的峰顶与峰间洼地的生物量要显著大于坡麓及峰壁;（4）岩石裸露率与土层厚度、土层厚度与生物量间都呈极显著的负相关关系;（5）峰顶与峰间洼地的物种数显著少于峰壁与坡麓,峰顶的Shannon-Wiener指数、Simpson指数和Pielou指数都显著低于其他部位,而峰壁的几项多样性指数均显著高于其他部位植被,岩溶环境地貌部位的多样性有助于提高生物多样性;（6） Jaccard相似性系数分析表明峰林空间异质性造成物种分布的差异,空间位置远近和地貌部位差异大小对物种分布影响至关重要。      

Cliff retreat and sea bed morphology under monochromatic wave forcing: Experimental study

Wave flume experiments have been performed to investigate a sandy cliff recession under monochromatic wave forcing. We varied the wave climate through the wave energy flux F and the surf similarity parameter ξ. The various processes of the cliff erosion cycle are depicted. The sea bed evolution mostly depends on the surf similarity parameter ξ. Steep planar (ξ > 0.7), gentle planar (0.5 < ξ < 0.7) and bared (ξ < 0.5) profiles are observed. We observed different bar dynamics, including steady and unsteady self-sustained oscillating states. Then we analyze the role of the eroded material on the cliff recession rate. We show that the cliff recession rate increases with the wave energy flux. Moreover, for a given wave energy flux, it is larger for a gentle planar profile than for a bared profile. However it is similar for both a bared profile and a steep planar profile. The cliff recession rate is not a monotonic function of the cliff height as the type of bottom profile influences the wave energy at the cliff.     

The Bälinge conglomerate in northern Sweden reinterpreted as a magmatic, hydraulic breccia

The Bälinge conglomerate has played a key role in the lithostratigraphy of northern Sweden. The conglomerate, with pebbles dominated by granodiorites and tonalites in a generally biotite-rich matrix, borders volcanic rocks with unclear relative age relationships. In nearby areas these volcanites have been intruded by plutonic rocks (c. 1.9 Ga) which are similar to the pebble material. On these grounds, the conglomerate has been regarded as younger than the volcanic rocks and an important marker in the geological evolution of the region. In this preliminary study, it is suggested that the features displayed by the Balinge conglomerate are not compatible with an epiclastic origin. On the contrary, they indicate that this rock represents a hydraulic breccia where the roundness of the granitoid 'pebbles' has resulted from erosion in a fluidised, heterogeneous and magmatic environment. In the actual area the 'conglomerate' must thus be dismissed as a stratigraphic marker horizon. It belongs to the early Svecofennian evolution.     

基于能量耗散机制的粗粒土圆度损伤特性分析

圆度损伤是研究粗粒土力学特性变化的重要指标,为探索剪切过程中粗粒土圆度损伤的演化过程,定性及定量从能量角度对损伤本质进行分析。根据能量耗散原理,分析了剪切系统及单个颗粒剪切过程中能量的耗散与传递。结合弹塑性力学与热力学定律,定义粗粒土圆度损伤因子Dr,建立了基于能量耗散下的圆度损伤模型。采用剪切试验研究不同圆度的花岗岩和卵石颗粒的强度特性,以观测效果较好的花岗岩颗粒为研究对象,研究不同法向应力下的圆度损伤演化过程,运用MATLAB对模型及试验数据分析。结果表明:圆度不同的颗粒(花岗岩、卵石)随圆度减小,传递到颗粒内部积聚的塑性势能增大,更易在颗粒边界棱角处产生微裂纹使颗粒磨损,从而增大粗颗粒圆度,强度特性减小;剪切试验粗粒土圆度损伤演化过程存在2次损伤拐点,可分为圆度损伤响应、圆度损伤演化、圆度损伤稳定3个阶段;同一类型颗粒法向应力增大,达到损伤临界状态圆度损伤所需能量增大,圆度损伤因子减小。基于能量耗散下建立的圆度损伤模型阐述了剪切过程中的圆度损伤,试验结果能合理地反应圆度损伤演化过程中颗粒力学特性响应。     

How round is round? A new approach to the topic ‘roundness’by Fourier grain shape analysis

Numerous methods for roundness measurement have been developed. None, however, has been generally accepted, because of conceptual and practical deficiencies. Modern image processing and Fourier grain shape analysis have eliminated the practical shortcomings, but the conceptual ones remained. Single, higher harmonics of the Fourier series, for example, fail to serve as reliable equivalents for roundness evaluation. The concept outlined in this paper recognizes three criteria for the evaluation of roundness. (1) All curvatures, convex as well as concave or plane elements, must be considered. (2) The positions of morphological elements are significant because salient parts of a particle are more easily abraded than protected ones. Consequently, the curvatures have to be weighted by their relative position on the particle. (3) Positions and curvatures of morphological elements have to be compared with the particle's ultimate abraded shape, which is assumed to be an ellipsoid. The ellipsoid reflects the aspect of form or sphericity. The distinction between sphericity and roundness is retained because there is no evidence that sphericity changes significantly during transport. The measurement is based on the outline of a particle's maximum projection plane, which is transformed to a Fourier series. Roundness data are derived from the complete amplitude spectrum. The aspect of sphericity is eliminated by subtracting the amplitude spectrum of the best approximating ellipse from the spectrum of the empirical shape. The residual amplitudes are normalized and summed. In a final step the resulting values are rescaled. This guarantees reasonable boundaries and a normal distribution of roundness values. The procedure is automated and its efficiency permits the calculation of large samples. Tests on fluvial and coastal gravel populations demonstrate that the method is sensitive to abrasional wear during all stages of roundness.     

Lateral variations in pebble shape in northwest Yorkshire

A simple index of roundness measurement, ($\text{2r}\text{L}\text{) × 100}$), based upon radius of curvature (r) and maximum length (L) is applied to 8500 pebbles sampled from glacial deposits and contemporary river channel deposits in Wensleydale, Yorkshire. The index successfully distinguishes between till and fluvioglacial material but not between till and deposits in features previously described as lateral moraine. When applied to material from the channel of the River Cover, the index demonstrates a rapid increase of roundness in the first 4–5 km below the initial rock outcrop, followed by a further very slight downstream increase in roundness, although spatial variations occur due to increase in slope, waterfalls, potholes and supply of material. The downvalley pattern of roundness of glacial deposits in Wensleydale suggests that one of four postulated moraines is composed of till but that the other three are of fluvioglacial origin. Roundness of material in the glacial deposits increases rapidly in 4 km below the moraine but subsequently shows a slight downvalley increase.     

Ophiolitic radiolarites of the Crimea and their significance for geodynamics of Mesotethys

In southern Crimea, at the southeastern foot of the Demerdzhi Mountain, at the base of conglomerates, aged from the Callovian to the Kimmeridgian, there were revealed pebbles of radiolarian cherts, from which using hydrofluoric acid, Triassic radiolarians of fine and satisfactory preservation were identified. Among them were Podobursa primitiva Tekin, Picapora robusta Kozur et Mostler, Spinotriassocampe carnica Kozur et Mostler, etc., by which the age of Crimean radiolarites was dated as Triassic (Ladinian-Early Norian).     

Failure mechanisms and triggering factors in calcareous cliffs of the Subalpine Ranges (French Alps)

In order to enhance the detection of prospective rock falls in calcareous cliffs, 25 rock falls have been described in a more detailed way than for an inventory. They are representative of middle size rock falls (10 to 100,000 m³) occurring in the French Subalpine Ranges, at an elevation between 200 m and 2000 m. Structural conditions of the rock masses, morphology of the initial cliff surface and the scar, possible failure mechanisms and processes have been studied. Typical failure configurations have been identified, based on the attitude of the failure surface, in relation to the bedding planes and the cliff surface. Irregular cliff morphology appears to be another important susceptibility factor. In most cases, the classical comparison of the average planes of the main joint sets with the average plane of the slope could not define the potentially unstable masses. Rather, those ones are due to joint planes that deviate from their mean set plane or to irregularities of the cliff surface. The proposed investigation method to detect prospective rock falls mainly consists in observing stereoscopic aerial photographs in order to look for critical configurations. Once a critical mass has been detected, its failure probability for a period of the order of one century must be evaluated (or its life expectancy). The main factor to consider for this purpose appears to be the proportion of rock bridges in the potential failure surface.

The triggering factors of rock falls in our study area have been investigated, by analysing an inventory of 46 rock falls. Statistical tests have been carried out to study the relation between rock falls and daily rainfall, freeze–thaw cycles or earthquakes. A good correlation has been obtained with freeze–thaw cycles, a slight correlation with rainfall and no correlation with earthquakes. This suggests that ice jacking could the main physical process leading to failure by causing microcrack propagation.     

A morphometric analysis of terrace gravels in Santa Ynez basin,Santa Barbara County,California

An analysis of 6,300 pebbles from eighteen river terraces within the five subareas of the Santa Ynez River basin has revealed significant differences in particle sphericity and roundness of the various terrace gravels.Using the Cailleux technique of pebble measurement, Krumbein's sphericity ratio formula (Y) and the author's own roundness ratio or the I/L¹ ratio (R) the computed values derived for $\text{Y}$ range from 0.92 to 1.11, and for $\text{R}$ from 0.66 to 0.79 on these benches.An analysis of variance, based on the F-test applied to samples has established that: (a) gravel sphericity and roundness increase significantly from upstream to the river mouth; (b) in the subareas themselves pebble sphericity and roundness vary significantly from bench to bench indicating varied energy conditions of deposition; (c) all terrace gravels measured show higher sphericity and roundness than the underlying Orcutt gravels. This suggests a reworking of the latter by the Santa Ynez River.     

交河故城崖体拉裂-倾倒破坏模式

交河故城崖体差异风蚀和次生卸荷裂隙发育部位破坏严重,研究二者对崖体破坏的影响以及在其影响下的破坏模 式,对加固崖体和保护交河故城具有重要意义,运用有限元软件ANSYS对崖体在差异风蚀和次生卸荷裂隙作用下进行数值模拟。为验证有限元软件模拟结果的可靠性,采用底面摩擦试验对崖体破坏演变过程进行模拟。ANSYS模拟结果表明,被裂隙切割土体最大位移为487.326 mm,崖体卸荷裂隙根部塑性应变最大,崖体拉裂-倾倒破坏。底面摩擦试验结果表明,经过2.7 h崖体顶部的裂隙张开度约20 mm,土体已经倾倒破坏。土体拉裂-倾倒破坏模式为：被卸荷裂隙切割的粉质黏土层底部临空,在重力作用下拉张卸荷裂隙的根部被切割,土体将发生倾斜变形,可能拉断卸荷裂隙的根部而使土体倾倒失稳。针对差异风蚀和次生卸荷裂隙对崖体破坏的影响,提出崖体加固方案。     

三峡库区小溪隧道口危岩稳定性评价与防治

小溪隧道进口危岩位于重庆市涪陵区乌江西岸,岸坡陡峻。陡崖脚泥岩风化凹进形成崖腔,陡崖顶有阶梯状陡坎,在构造裂隙、软弱陡崖基座、卸荷裂隙带等因素的控制下,稳定性极差。作者采用地质分析和量化分析方法对危岩作了稳定性评价。危岩破坏形式有坠落、倾倒和滑塌3种。随着软弱基座差异性风化的进一步发展、崖腔进一步扩大、卸荷裂隙逐渐连续贯通,危岩体将失去稳定产生崩塌。采用支撑、锚固、拦石、排水、少量危石清除相结合的综合防治措施,是行之有效的。通过3个水文年的监测显示,本区工程在经历多个雨季后,每个监测点都是稳定的,危岩整治效果明显,防治措施起到了良好作用。     

L'aléa tsunami en Polynésie française : synthèse des observations et des mesures

Since 1837, 15 tsunamis in French Polynesia have been reported, 11 generated damage. The two last major Pacific-wide tsunamis, 1946 Aleutian and 1960 Chilean, generated damage in most of the archipelagos. Only one in 1999 was generated by a local source, a coastal cliff failure on Fatu-Hiva Island. Since 1965, no earthquake magnitude was greater than 8.4 and, consequently, no ocean-wide tsunami of large amplitude has crossed the Pacific Ocean. Nevertheless, the four tide gauge installed in French Polynesia recorded 33 distinct tsunamis of amplitude from several centimetres to 1.6 m, generated by earthquakes of magnitude between 7.3 and 8.4, two of them damageable in Marquesas bays. To cite this article: F. Schindelé et al., C. R. Geoscience 338 (2006).     

成都平原东郊台地中更新统合江组沉积特征及工程地质意义

通过地层沉积序列、粒度特征、砾石特征综合分析认为,成都平原东郊台地中更新统合江组为河流相沉积,垂向上具有明显的"河流二元"结构特征,主要以细粒沉积物为主,底部砾石层多为中-粗砾,磨圆较好,具有定向性。该组可细分为河道、边滩、堤岸-河漫3种沉积微相类型,对应发育3种岩相类型。河道砾石岩相沿十陵镇-红河镇-大面镇一带呈北西-南东向展布,边滩砂坝岩相集中发育于大面镇-西河镇东侧古河道凹岸处,堤岸-漫滩粘土岩相广泛分布于研究区内。这3种岩相特性及分布对工程建设的影响存在差异:河道砾石层作为地下水储集层的同时,水溶蚀使其地层结构稳定性被破坏,影响工程稳固技术的选择;边滩砂坝分布较为集中,对区内工程建设影响面最小;堤岸-河漫粘土广泛分布,是一种分布稳定的软弱层,对地下水有一定的封闭效果,同时软弱层的特性使其降低了边坡、坝体的稳定性。     

From limestones to distal turbidites: a facies and trace fossil analysis in the Zumaya flysch (Paleocene—Eocene), North Spain

The flysch of Paleocene to Eocene age outcropping in an almost unbroken cliff section at the Playa de San Telmo, Zumaya, North Spain, has been the subject of a quantitative sedimentological analysis. It is inferred that sedimentation commenced with deposition of a limestone-red shale sequence below wave base and continued with proximal and then distal turbidite sandstones deposited in what may have been a gradually deepening trough. The trough was probably oriented approximately east-west, parallel to the subsequent main tectonic trend. Sediment transport within the trough appears to have been essentially axial, with calcareous and siliceous sand derived from the east, but some siliceous sand was also laterally transported mainly from a land mass to the north. The sediments contain an abundant and varied suite of trace fossils. Thus, with the depositional environment already defined sedimentologically, it was possible to critically examine the relationship between facies, trace fossil distribution and possible water depth. The facies variations were shown to be reflected in a changing ichnofauna. Spreite such as Zoophycos and Rhizocorallium were present in limestones apparently deposited not far below wave base. These traces are replaced by rosetted, winding and meandering forms in the more proximal turbidite facies. In the more distal facies spiral and patterned trace fossils appear, winding and meandering forms are common but Zoophycos, Rhizocorallium and rosetted traces are absent. It is inferred that these changes reflect faunal distribution on the sea floor rather than preservational factors.     

THE PROBLEM OF UNDERSTANDING THE NOMENCLATURE OF FACIES

Chert-plus-pyrite pebbles have been known for some time in a number of Witwatersrand conglomerates, but their distribution is highly variable. A wide variety of textures in chert-plus pyrite pebbles are documented here, and these textures place constraints on the origin of such pebbles. Replacement of chert pebbles by pyrite is indicated (pyrite grains and aggregates continue across many pebble boundaries), and both distributional and textural evidence favors a post-burial timing for this process. Significant mobility of sulfur after burial is indicated. Whether this replacement was diagenetic or metamorphic is not certain.     

Cambro‐Ordovician trace fossils from the SW‐Norwegian Caledonides

A diverse trace fossil association is described for the first time from low‐grade metamorphic rocks of the SW‐Norwegian Caledonides. The investigated cliff sections with autochthonous to parautochthonous metasediments comprise a coarsening‐ and thickening‐upward succession interpreted as prograding delta deposits. Sedimentary features indicate a tide‐influenced environment. Twenty‐one ichnospecies have been identified and assigned to the Cruziana and Skolithos ichnofacies, including the oldest record of Beaconites capronus and Macaronichnus segregatis. Cruziana ichnostratigraphy (sensu lato), previously rarely used in other palaeocontinents than Gondwana, allows an age determination for these metasediments of Middle Cambrian to Lower Ordovician as indicated by the presence of Cruziana barbata, C. furcifera, C. rugosa, C. semiplicata, Didymaulichnus rouaulti and Rusophycus ramellensis. Baltica was geographically the most isolated from the other three large continents (Gondwana, Laurentia and Siberia) during Cambro‐Ordovician time, and provinciality of faunal assemblages (e.g. brachiopods, conodonts) has been proved and is also supposed for trilobites by some authors. However, although the Cruziana ichnospecies result from a high specialization of their tracemakers, and therefore only a small group of trilobite species is eligible for its origin, the ichnospecies reported from Baltica occur also on other palaeocontinents and do not support the assumption of trilobite provincialism. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Tectonically significant pebble types: Sheared,pocked and second-cycle examples

A history of repeated faulting, within an area, can be obtained from unconformity analysis or sediment-vector sequences (not treated in the present paper) or from studies of gravel tongues. The latter may include sheared pebbles, pocked pebbles, half-rounds, and second-cycle (or multi-cycle) pebbles. Sheared pebbles (and larger fragments) were cut by faulting after deposition, hence represent two episodes of deformation. Pocked pebbles (scarred pebbles) were ground against each other, after deposition, by a second episode. Sheared and pocked pebbles typically develop where sand matrix is not abundant; single pebbles “floating” in sandstone rarely show these features. Quartz sand schist is a fine-grained equivalent of the sheared-pebble gravel or conglomerate. Half-rounds represent transportation of sheared pebbles, after shearing; where half-rounds have been sheared, at least three episodes of deformation are indicated.A second-cycle conglomerate is one in which individual pebbles (or larger pieces) are themselves conglomerates. They likewise indicate at least two episodes of deformation.In some areas, details of displacement can be obtained best from unconformity analysis; in other areas, the special pebble types listed here may provide such details. In a few places, both types of information may be available, thus giving a fuller picture than could be obtained in other ways.The best example of a thick stratigraphic sequence containing these special pebble types (representing repeated deformation), described in the present paper, is located near Bucaramanga, Colombia. A second example from northern New Mexico is described less fully. Brief references to other occurrences, in Wyoming, Montana, Oklahoma and Alabama, are made. It is concluded that, although these pebble types may not be abundant at any one locality, they nevertheless occur at many places, and therefore can provide important information about deformational history.     

How pressure solution creep and fracturing processes interact in the upper crust to make it behave in both a brittle and viscous manner

The upper crust has been described as being dominated by brittle deformation along faults, or ductile where folds and cleavage have developed. These two mechanical behaviors are explained by two different mechanisms of deformation: (i) fracture; and (ii) fluid-enhanced deformation (e.g. pressure solution). These two mechanisms operate at two time scales: fast for brittle deformation, slow for pressure solution. Natural observations of relationships between pressure solution and fractures in sandstones, or indented pebbles, and experimental results of pressure solution with an indenter technique indicate that both mechanisms can interact: fracture development increases the kinetics of the pressure solution process, pressure solution relaxes the stress between fracturing events. A simple model of brittle–ductile deformation, applied to indented limestone pebbles, shows that cycles of slow deformation can alternate with short-time fracture.     

The influence of rock structures on coast-line and cliff development around Tintagel,North Cornwall

The paper deals with the morphology of the stretch of coast between Boscastle and the Treligga Cliffs in North Cornwall. The prevalent cliff type is slope-over-wall, either hog's-back or bevelled as defined by Miss Arber (1949). Flat-topped cliffs are less common. It is considered that geological structures—bedding, jointing, faulting and, to a lesser extent, rock-type—have not only had considerable influence on the shape of the cliffs, but have also guided the marine attack on the coast. The evolution of most of the coast features, when seen in plan or profile, has been controlled by the local geological structure. The southern stretch of the coast is sub-parallel to seaward-dipping normal faults which have been stripped of their hanging-walls. Such a cliff line is dominantly a faultline scarp which has suffered slight retrogression.