A Gill Twin Propeller-Vane Anemometer for Flux Measurements During Moderate and Strong Winds

A wind velocity measuring system based on the Gill propeller anemometer is described. A method of calculating the vertical component, which allows for the non-cosine response and avoids the region of stall and nonlinear operation, is presented. A summary of the possible errors in Reynolds stress and drag coefficient estimates is given. A method of establishing the distance constant using field observations is presented. Finally, some preliminary results and some intercomparisons with otheranemometers are described briefly.     

Toward an improved global network for determination of tropospheric ozone climatology and trends

An examination of typical tropospheric ozone variability on daily, monthly, annual and interannual timescales and instrumental precision indicates that the current ozonesonde network is insufficient to detect a trend in tropospheric ozone of 1% per year at the 2 level even at stations with records a decade in length. From a trend prediction analysis we conclude that in order to detect a 1% per year trend in a decade or less it will be necessary to decrease the time between observations from its present value of 3–7 days to 1 day or less. The spatial distribution of the current ozonesonde stations is also inadequate for determining the global climatology of ozone. We present a quantitative theory taking into account photochemistry, surface deposition, and wind climatology to define the effectively sampled region for an observing station which, used in conjunction with the instrumental precision and the above prediction analysis, forms the basis for defining a suitable global network for determining regional and global ozone climatology and trends. At least a doubling of the present number of stations is necessary, and the oceans, most of Asia, Africa, and South America are areas where more stations are most needed. Differential absorption lidar ozone instruments have the potential for far more frequent measurements of ozone vertical profiles and hence potentially more accurate climatology and trend determinations than feasible with ozonesondes but may produce a (fair weather) biased data set above the cloud base. A strategy for cloudy regions in which either each station utilizes both lidars and sondes or each station is in fact a doublet comprised of a near-sea-level lidar and a proximal-mountain-top lidar could serve to minimize this bias.     

Application of Compositional Techniques in the Field of Crystal Chemistry: A Case Study of Luzonite, a Sn-Bearing Mineral

Out-of-equilibrium crystallization often produces complex compositional variability in minerals, generating zoning and other mixing phenomena. The appropriate microchemical characterization of the resulting out-of-equilibrium patterns is of critical importance in understanding the overall physical and chemical properties of the host crystalline phases. In this framework, the modeling of compositional changes assumes a fundamental role. However, when compositional data are used, their management with standard exploratory, statistical, graphical, and numerical tools may give misleading results attributable to the phenomenon of induced correlations. To avoid these problems, methods able to extract compositional data from their constrained space (the simplex) in order to apply standard statistics, have to be adopted. As an alternative, the use of tools having properties able to work in the simplex geometry has to be considered. A luzonite single crystal (ideal composition, Cu₃AsS₄) exhibiting concentric and sector zoning was studied using electron probe microanalysis in order to understand the mechanisms which give rise to chemical variability and conditions in the developing environment. Compositional variations were determined by collecting data along three different transects. The major and minor elements (Cu, As, S, Fe, Sb, Sn) were analyzed with the aim of characterizing their patterns of association in the crystal and, hence, crystal evolution. The whole covariance structure as well as the chemical relationships between the successive zones was investigated by means of compositional methods, considering both data transformation and the stay in the simplex approach. Results indicate that the crystal grew under quiescent conditions, where chemical control was primarily exercised by the mineral’s surface and only minor effects were due to changes in the composition of the surrounding fluid. Consequently, an oscillatory uptake of chemical components occurred in which a competition between famatinite-like (Cu₃SbS₄) and kuramite-like (Cu₃SnS₄) domains characterized the As-poor zones.     

Backward modeling of the rifting kinematics in the Upper Rhine Graben: insights from an elastic-perfect contact law on the restoration of a multi-bloc domain

This paper addresses the problem of volume restoration for 3-D sedimentary basin kinematic deformation. The primary purpose is methodological and concerns the use of contact mechanics with the finite element method, in order to deform a geological multi-bloc domain. This approach is applied to backward model the later stage of rifting of a segment of the southern Upper Rhine Graben (France–Germany border). Preliminary results from our modeling demonstrate the ability of the method not only to handle complex geometries, but also to successfully perform retro-deformation of a complex geological domain. In addition, they provide or confirm crucial information on the rifting evolution and tectonic features of this segment of the Upper Rhine Graben, such as the distribution of deformation, the asymmetry of the graben and a significant left-lateral strike-slip component of displacement.     

Structure-specific selection of earthquake ground motions for the reliable design and assessment of structures

A decision support process is presented to accommodate selecting and scaling of earthquake motions as required for the time domain analysis of structures. Code-compatible suites of seismic motions are provided being, at the same time, prequalified through a multi-criterion approach to induce response parameters with reduced variability. The latter is imperative to increase the reliability of the average response values, normally required for the code-prescribed design verification of structures. Structural attributes like the dynamic characteristics as well as criteria related to variability of seismic motions and their compliance with a target spectrum are quantified through a newly introduced index, δ _sv–sc , which aims to prioritize motions suites for response history analysis. To demonstrate the applicability of the procedure presented, the structural model of a multi-story building was subjected to numerous suites of motions that were highly ranked according to both the proposed approach (δ _sv–sc ) and the conventional one (δ _conv ), that is commonly used for earthquake records selection and scaling. The findings from numerous linear response history analyses reveal the superiority of the proposed multi-criterion approach, as it extensively reduces the intra-suite structural response variability and consequently, increases the reliability of the design values. The relation between the target reliability in assessing structural response and the size of the suite of motions selected was also investigated, further demonstrating the efficiency of the proposed selection procedure to achieve higher response reliability levels with smaller samples of ground motion.     

Deposition of finely disseminated gold mineralization in black shales: A hypothesis of microstructural control

The deposition of finely disseminated gold in the deposits hosted in black shales is considered. It is suggested that gold deposition is controlled by microstructure of pore space in host rocks. The pore space structure of tight shales indicates that most pore volume is occupied by nanopores with hundredths of micrometers in characteristic dimension. The balance calculations show that deposition of native gold in nanopore channels of filtration is hampered by shortage of number of atoms necessary to overcome a nucleation threshold of the future gold crystal in the pore volume. When ore-transporting solution meets on its way the cavities (pores, micro- and macrofractures), whose volume is sufficient to overcome the nucleation threshold, the excess content of ore component, which exceeds equilibrium concentration, is released with formation of crystallization centers and further precipitation of gold. The conditions of ore deposition are exemplified in the reference Sukhoi Log deposit hosted in black shales. On the basis on the PT conditions of ore deposition and physical features of fluid heat and mass transfer, it is suggested that ore disseminations were deposited at the early high-temperature stage under a fluid pressure close to lithostatic and at a host rock permeability markedly exceeding its present-day value.     

On the Importance of Geolithological Features for the Estimate of the Site Response: The Case of Catania Metropolitan Area (Italy)

The evaluation of seismic site response in the urban area of Catania was tackled by selecting test areas having peculiar lithological and structural features, potentially favourable to large local amplifications of ground motion. The two selected areas are located in the historical downtown and in the northern part of Catania where the presence of a fault is evident. Site response was evaluated using spectral ratio technique taking the horizontal- to-vertical component ratio of ambient noise. Inferences from microtremor measurements are compared with results from synthetic accelerograms and response spectra computed at all drillings available for this area. Such method is particularly suitable in urban areas where the nature of the outcropping geological units is masked by city growth and anthropic intervention on the surface geology. The microtremor H/V spectral ratios evaluated at soft sites located within the downtown profile tend to be smaller than that usually reported in the literature for such soils. A tendency for amplifications to peaks near 2 Hz is observed only in some sites located on recent alluvial deposits. Evidences for amplifications of site effects (frequency range 4–8 Hz) were observed in the sampling sites located on the fault, with a rapid decrease of spectral amplitude just a few tenths of metres away from the discontinuity. Numerical simulations evidenced the importance of geolithological features at depth levels even greater than 20–30 m. Besides this, the results strongly confirm the importance of the subsurface geological conditions, in the estimate of seismic hazard at urban scale.     

Seismic characterization of switching platform geometries and dominant carbonate producers (Miocene,Las Negras,Spain)

The primary goals of seismic interpretation and quantification are to understand and define reservoir architecture and the distribution of petrophysical properties. Since seismic interpretation is associated with major uncertainties, outcrop analogues are used to support and improve the resulting conceptual models. In this study, the Miocene carbonates of Cerro de la Molata (Las Negras, south‐east Spain) have been selected as an outcrop analogue. The heterogeneous carbonate rocks of the Cerro de la Molata Platform were formed by a variety of carbonate‐producing factories, resulting in various platform morphologies and a wide range of physical properties. Based on textural (thin sections) and petrophysical (porosity, density, carbonate content and acoustic properties) analyses of the sediments, eleven individual facies types were determined. The data were used to produce synthetic seismic profiles of the outcrop. The profiles demonstrate that the spatial distribution of the facies and the linked petrophysical properties are of key importance in the appearance of the synthetic seismic sections. They reveal that carbonate factory and facies‐specific reflection patterns are determined by porosity contrasts, diagenetic modifications and the input of non‐carbonate sediment. The reflectors of the seismograms created with high‐frequency wavelets are coherent with the spatial distribution of the predefined facies within the depositional sequences. The synthetic seismograms resulting from convolution with lower frequency wavelets do not show these details – the major reflectors coincide with: (i) the boundary between the volcanic basement and the overlying carbonates; (ii) the platform geometries related to changes in carbonate factories, thus sequence boundaries; and (iii) diagenetic zones. Changes in seismic response related to diagenesis, switching carbonate producers and linked platform geometries are important findings that need to be considered when interpreting seismic data sets.