Passive diffusion sampling of sulfur dioxide in India: Impact assessment on arid areas

Environmental constraints have drastically limited options of sustainable developmentand have severely offset many developmental schemes. In this paper, possibilities of acidic depo-sition, as a counter measure of desertification, are analyzed. Seasonal data of ambient sulfur di-oxide, pH of rain water and soil acidity are collected for over an year and analyzed. Arid environ-ment of surrounding areas of Delhi is considered and analyzed. Though ambient sulfur depositionis well below critical level, it might not be truly indicative of plant survival in arid areas. Results maybe useful in arid area afforestation, and polluting industries relocation, which holds tremendouspotential vis-a-vis sustainable development.     

Response of an anisotropic liquid-saturated porous medium due to two dimensional sources

Eigenvalue approach, following Laplace and Fourier transforms, has been employed to find the general solution to the field equations in an anisotropic liquid-saturated porous medium, in the transformed domain. The results of isotropic liquid-saturated porous medium can be derived as a special case. A numerical inversion technique has been applied to get the solutions in the physical domain. To illustrate the utility of the approach, an application of infinite space with impulsive force at the origin has been considered. The results in the form of displacement and stress components have been obtained and discussed graphically for a particular model.     

WISE USE OF WETLAND FOR SUSTAINABLE LIVELIHOOD THROUGH PARTICIPATORY APPROACH： A CASE OF ADAPTING TO CLIMATE CHANGE

1INTRODUCTION Hydroponics(aGreekword,hydromeanswater andponos,labour),asoil-lessagriculture,isa termtobedescribedinseveralwaysinwhichplants cangrowwithoutsoil,byuseofaninertmedium whereplantcantakeupessentialnutrients,either fromwaterinwhichanutrientsolutionisaddedor fromorganicmaterialsthatexistsinthemedium.Thesemediacanbegravel,sand,peat,vermiculate,prelite,sawdustorotherplantmatters(organiccom ponents).Therefore,theprocessinwhichaquatic weedsaredumpedonwatertoconstructfloatingbed orart…     

PASSIVE PRESSURE DETERMINATION BY METHOD OF SLICES

A method of slices satisfying all the conditions of statical equilibrium has been developed to deal with the problem of determination of passive earth pressure over a retaining wall in sand. A method similar to that of Morgenstern and Price, which was used to solve the stability of slopes, has been followed. The earth pressure coefficients with the proposed methodology have been computed for a vertical retaining wall for both positive and negative wall friction angle. Also examined is the variation of the interslice shear force between the retaining wall and the Rankine Passive boundary. Due to complete satisfaction of the equilibrium conditions, the method generates exactly the same earth pressure coefficients as computed by using Terzaghi's overall limit equilibrium approach. © 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Prediction of elastic settlement of rectangular raft foundation — a coupled FE–BE approach

A numerical method of analysis is proposed for computation of the elastic settlement of raft foundations using a FEM–BEM coupling technique. The structural model adopted for the raft is based on an isoparametric plate bending finite element and the raft–soil interface is idealized by boundary elements. Mindlin's half-space solution is used as a fundamental solution to find the soil flexibility matrix and consequently the soil stiffness matrix. Transformation of boundary element matrices are carried out to make it compatible for coupling with plate stiffness matrix obtained from the finite element method. This method is very efficient and attractive in the sense that it can be used for rafts of any geometry in terms of thickness as well as shape and loading. Depth of embedment of the raft can also be considered in the analysis. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

An agile very low frequency radio spectrum explorer

The very low frequency(VLF) regime below 30 MHz in the electromagnetic spectrum has presently been drawing global attention in radio astronomical research due to its potentially significant science outcomes exploring many unknown extragalactic sources,transients,and so on.However,the nontransparency of the Earth's ionosphere,ionospheric distortion and artificial radio frequency interference(RFI) have made it difficult to detect the VLF celestial radio emission with ground-based instruments.A straightforward solution to overcome these problems is a space-based VLF radio telescope,just like the VLF radio instruments onboard the Chang'E-4 spacecraft.But building such a space telescope would be inevitably costly and technically challenging.The alternative approach would be then a ground-based VLF radio telescope.Particularly,in the period of post 2020 when the solar and terrestrial ionospheric activities are expected to be in a 'calm' state,it will provide us a good chance to perform VLF ground-based radio observations.Anticipating such an opportunity,we built an agile VLF radio spectrum explorer co-located with the currently operational Mingantu Spectra Radio Heliograph(MUSER).The instrument includes four antennas operating in the VLF frequency range 1-70 MHz.Along with them,we employ an eight-channel analog and digital receivers to amplify,digitize and process the radio signals received by the antennas.We present in the paper this VLF radio spectrum explorer and the instrument will be useful for celestial studies of VLF radio emissions.     

Investigation of Hemispherical Variations of Soft X-Ray Solar Flares during Solar Cycles 21 to 24

Solar System Research - In the current investigation we have studied the distribution as well as the asymmetry of solar X-ray flares during the period 1976–2017 which corresponds to solar...     

Sheet flow hydrodynamics over a non-uniform sand bed channel

The current study experimentally investigates the flow characteristics and temporal variations in the sheet flow profile of a non-uniform sand bed channel. Experiments were done to explore turbulent structures in the presence of a sheet flow layer with and without seepage. The turbulent events, such as stream wise velocity, Reynolds shear stresses, and turbulence intensities were found to be increasing and vertical velocity was found decreasing with a sheet layer. The presence of a sheet layer also effects the turbulent energy production and energy dissipation. All the turbulence parameters with and without a sheet layer have also been influenced by the presence of downward seepage. The rate of sheet flow movement is increased with seepage, owing to increased turbulence with seepage. The current study used wavelet analysis on temporally lagged spatial bed elevation profiles obtained from a set of laboratory experiments and synchronized the wavelet coefficients with bed elevation fluctuation at different spatial scales. A spatial cross correlation analysis at multiple scales, based on the wavelet coefficients, has been done on these bed elevation datasets to observe the effect of downward seepage on the dynamic behavior of sheet flow at different length scales. It is found that seepage increases average bed celerity and also increases the celerity of sheet flow of similar length scales. This increase in the celerity has been hypothesized as the increase of sheet flow movement as well as the increase in turbulent parameters with seepage, which destabilizes the bed particles resulting in a disruption in the continuous propagation pattern of the sheet flow. The increase of sheet flow celerity with seepage is confirmed from the saturation level of the wavelet power spectra of the bed elevation series. The presence of seepage also affects the non-uniformity of collective sheet material.     

Hydrometeorological assessments and suspended sediment delivery from a central Himalayan glacier in the upper Ganga basin

Integrated hydrometeorological investigations are not frequently available at a regional scale over a longer time period, especially near the terminus of Indian Himalayan glaciers. An integrated approach to the collection of hydrological data has major advantages for understanding the runoff generation mechanisms at basin scale, particularly when coupled with meteorological observations. The current study involves time series analysis of hydrometeorological records collected near the terminus of the Chorabari Glacier, for four consecutive ablation seasons(June-Sept.) 2009-2012. The analysis shows that variation in rainfall was higher(c_v= 0.9) at the same elevation over proximal sites, while the intensity of extreme rainfall events was 121-160 mm/d. The diurnal temperature range(DTR) has a tendency to reduce over the ablation season because of the onset of the Indian Summer Monsoon(ISM) and then further increases during the ISM withdrawal indicating humid-temperate conditions. The peak discharge(Qpeak) was found to be higher during July and August. Snow and glacier melt contributed 76% of the total suspended sediment transport during peak ISM months(July and August) reflecting seasonal evolution of the hydrologic conduits. The results indicate that Karakoram and western Himalayan glaciers produce comparatively low sediment yield compared to central Himalayan glaciers. The hydrological variations are depicted through flow duration curves(FDC) for meltwater discharge and sediment load. The flow corresponding to Q_(50), Q_(75), and Q_(90)(where Qx is the discharge that is exceeded x percent of the time referred to as % dependability) are 4.2, 3.7, and 2.8 m~3/s; and the corresponding dependability for suspended sediment loads(SSLs) are 409.0, 266.0, and 157.2 t/d, respectively. The daily SSL and discharge(Q) from 2009 to 2012 were used to develop a sediment rating curve(SSL = 39.55 × Q~(1.588). R~2 = 0.8).Multiple regressions are used to determine the impacts of meteorological parameters on glacier melt.The meteorological conditions, hydrological characteristics, and suspended sediment delivery for the Chorabari Glacier provide insight on meltwater generation processes and sediment transport patterns during the ISM season.