Engineering geology in underground aggregate mining and space utilisation

As consumption of construction aggregates increased in the Toronto (Canada) area and as regular source areas faced constraints, attention was given to the possibility of underground mining of limestone aggregate. Following a study of transportation costs and the drilling of several, continuously cored drill holes through the Paleozoic strata, Ontario Hydro and three Ontario government ministries undertook a feasibility study of the mining of limestone aggregate in the Toronto area.

The geological study showed the suitability of the Ordovician Gull River Formation as a source rock for the aggregate and the structural conditions suitable for mining operations.

A mining operation to produce 3–5 million tonnes/year over 16–30 years was investigated. This involved a decline or a shaft (depending on location) down to a mechanized room and pillar operation (square or rectangular grid) at depths between 200–500 m. Pillar stresses were calculated at less than 40 Mpa — well below the 100 Mpa unconfined compressive strength of the limestone. Operations would be mostly in dry conditions because of the presence of high horizontal stresses.     

Natural etching rates of feldspar and hornblende

Analysis of the etch-pit size distributions (PSDs) observed on potassium feldspar and hornblende grains in a soil catena in loess (age = 12,500 y) reveals natural mineral etching rates. Rates estimated for hornblende (6 to 9×10^–15mol/m²s) are based on consistent crystallographically controlled etch pits, while rates estimated for potassium feldspar (2×10^–15mol/m²s) are based on irregularly shaped pits. Although little difference in etching rate is observed between soil horizons, the highest etching rates generally occur in the upper B horizons where pH values are lowest. Decreasing soil drainage correlates with an increase in pit density,n°, probably due to increased grain wetting, while decreased drainage correlates with a decrease in pit growth rate (G), probably due to increased dissolved solute concentrations. The PSD model predicts that etching rate is a function ofn° and ofG ⁴. Etching rates calculated for potassium feldspar do not vary with drainage, while those of hornblende decrease with decreasing drainage. Estimated etching rates are lower than bulk dissolution rates measured in the laboratory.     

Nitrate concentrations and nitrate reduction in acid groundwater/lake systems in southern Australia

We have analyzed nitrate in saline groundwaters from the Lake Tyrrell region of north-western Victoria and the Norseman-Salmon Gums region of south-eastern Western Australia. These are regions where acid (pH<4) groundwater exists naturally. The nitrate concentrations of these groundwaters are ∼5–10 times lower than nitrate concentrations from other arid and semi-arid regions around the world and in Australia. The source of the nitrate to the groundwater is soil organic matter, not anthropogenic activity. The data from the Lake Tyrrell system suggest that the gain and loss of fixed nitrogen are probably important biogeochemical processes in the early evolution of these waters. Nitrate reduction also occurs in the shallow groundwaters of Western Australia. Nitrate reduction is very low due to the low concentrations of organic matter present. Groundwaters in both of these systems eventually discharge along the edges of playas. This process may concentrate nitrate in the surficial salts of the playa.     

Upscaling polydispersed particle transport in porous media using pore network model

Understanding particle transport in porous media is critical in the sustainability of many geotechnical and geoenvironmental infrastructure. To date, the determination of the first-order rate coefficients in the advection–dispersion equation for simulating attachment and detachment of particles in saturated porous media typically has been relied on the result of laboratory-scale experiments. However, to determine attachment and detachment coefficients under varied hydraulic and geochemical variables, this method requires a large experimental matrix because each test provides only one set of attachment and detachment coefficients. The work performed in this study developed a framework to upscale the results obtained in pore-scale modeling to the continuum scale through the use of a pore network model. The developed pore network model incorporated variables of mean particle size, the standard deviation of particle size distribution, and interparticle forces between particles and sand grains. The obtained retention profiles using the pore network model were converted into attachment coefficients in the advection–dispersion equation for long-term and large-scale simulation. Additionally, by tracking individual particles during and after the simulation, the pore network model introduced in this study can also be employed for modeling the clogging phenomenon, as well as fundamental investigation of the impact of particle size distribution on particle retention in the sand medium.

     

Vulnerabilities to flood hazards among rural households in India

Natural Hazards - Flooding constitutes the most predominant natural disaster in India. The degree and causes of vulnerability to flood risk vary by society, geographical region and over time. The...     

Conditions for generation of fire‐related debris flows,Capulin Canyon,New Mexico

Comparison of the responses of three drainage basins burned by the Dome fire of 1996 in New Mexico is used to identify the hillslope, channel and fire characteristics that indicate a susceptibility specifically to wildfire‐related debris flow. Summer thunderstorms generated three distinct erosive responses from each of three basins. The Capulin Canyon basin showed widespread erosive sheetwash and rilling from hillslopes, and severe flooding occurred in the channel; the North Tributary basin exhibited extensive erosion of the mineral soil to a depth of 5 cm and downslope movement of up to boulder‐sized material, and at least one debris flow occurred in the channel; negligible surface runoff was observed in the South Tributary basin. The negligible surface runoff observed in the South Tributary basin is attributed to the limited extent and severity of the fire in that basin. The factors that best distinguish between debris‐flow producing and flood‐producing drainages are drainage basin morphology and lithology. A rugged drainage basin morphology, an average 12 per cent channel gradient, and steep, rough hillslopes coupled with colluvium and soil weathered from volcaniclastic and volcanic rocks promoted the generation of debris flows. A less rugged basin morphology, an average gradient of 5 per cent, and long, smooth slopes mantled with pumice promoted flooding. Flood and debris‐flow responses were produced without the presence of water‐repellent soils. The continuity and severity of the burn mosaic, the condition of the riparian vegetation, the condition of the fibrous root mat, accumulations of dry ravel and colluvial material in the channel and on hillslopes, and past debris‐flow activity, appeared to have little bearing on the distinctive responses of the basins. Published in 2000 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Optical spectroscopy of two overlapping, flux-density-limited samples of radio sources in the North Ecliptic Cap, selected at 38 and 151 MHz

We present the results of optical spectroscopy of two flux-density-limited samples of radio sources selected at frequencies of 38 and 151 MHz in the same region around the North Ecliptic Cap, the 8C-NEC and 7C- iii samples respectively. Both samples are selected at flux density levels ≈20 times fainter than samples based on the 3C catalogue. They are amongst the first low-frequency selected samples with no spectral or angular size selection for which almost complete redshift information has been obtained, and contain many of the lowest-luminosity z >2 radio galaxies so far discovered. They will therefore provide a valuable resource for understanding the cosmic evolution of radio sources and their hosts and environments. The 151-MHz 7C- iii sample is selected to have S ₁₅₁≥0.5 Jy and is the more spectroscopically complete; out of 54 radio sources fairly reliable redshifts have been obtained for 44 objects. The 8C sample has a flux limit of S ₃₈≥1.3 Jy and contains 58 sources of which 46 have fairly reliable redshifts. We discuss possible biases in the observed redshift distribution, and some interesting individual objects, including a number of cases of probable gravitational lensing. Using the 8C-NEC and 7C- iii samples in conjunction, we form the first sample selected on low-frequency flux in the rest-frame of the source, rather than the usual selection on flux density in the observed frame. This allows us to remove the bias associated with an increasing rest-frame selection frequency with redshift. We investigate the difference this selection makes to correlations of radio source properties with redshift and luminosity by comparing the results from traditional flux-density selection with our new method. We show in particular that flux-density-based selection leads to an overestimate of the steepness of the correlation of radio source size with redshift.