Risk assessment of coal and gas outburst in driving face based on finite interval cloud model

Natural Hazards - Coal and gas outburst is one of the main disasters that seriously threaten workers’ safety during coal production. Timely identification and evaluation of the potential...     

Les récifs coniaciens à rudistes de Tunisie centro-occidentale: sédimentologie, cadre paléogéographique et interprétation séquentielle

Coniacian rudist-buildups have been discovered in the Dernaïa-Tamesmida area (west central Tunisia). They are sedimentologically studied in detail in this paper. Reefs sensu stricto are made up of rudists (Hippuritidae and Radiolitidae) and they show a height:lateral extension ratio of about 1:50. The fore-reef is composed of southwest progradang pelletoid sandwaves, whilst hemipelagic micrite has been deposited in the distal talus. The back-reef lagoons (NE side) include green algae and annelid, miliolid, ostracod and gastropod biotopes. Perilagoonal oolitic bars may border these environments.These reefs evolved in a shallow, relatively open environment. They correspond to barrier-reef complexes which developed at the margin of a generally shallow carbonate ramp.In terms of the sequence stratigraphy, they characterise late low sea levels and especially the high sea levels of the uppermost Turonien-Coniacian depositional sequence.     

Soil water content in southern England derived from a cosmic‐ray soil moisture observing system – COSMOS‐UK

Cosmic‐ray soil moisture sensors have the advantage of a large measurement footprint (approximately 700 m in diameter) and are able to operate continuously to provide area‐averaged near‐surface (top 10–20 cm) volumetric soil moisture content at the field scale. This paper presents the application of this technique at four sites in southern England over almost 3 years. Results show the soil moisture response to contrasting climatic conditions during 2011–2014 and are the first such field‐scale measurements made in the UK. These four sites are prototype stations for a UK COsmic‐ray Soil Moisture Observing System, and particular consideration is given to sensor operating conditions in the UK. Comparison of these soil water content observations with the Joint UK Land Environment Simulator 10‐cm soil moisture layer shows that these data can be used to test and diagnose model performance and indicate the potential for assimilation of these data into hydro‐meteorological models. The application of these large‐area soil water content measurements to evaluate remotely sensed soil moisture products is also demonstrated. Numerous applications and the future development of a national COsmic‐ray Soil Moisture Observing System network are discussed. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Source location using time‐reverse imaging

We present the chain of time‐reverse modeling, image space wavefield decomposition and several imaging conditions as a migration‐like algorithm called time‐reverse imaging. The algorithm locates subsurface sources in passive seismic data and diffractors in active data. We use elastic propagators to capitalize on the full waveforms available in multicomponent data, although an acoustic example is presented as well. For the elastic case, we perform wavefield decomposition in the image domain with spatial derivatives to calculate P and S potentials. To locate sources, the time axis is collapsed by extracting the zero‐lag of auto and cross‐correlations to return images in physical space. The impulse response of the algorithm is very dependent on acquisition geometry and needs to be evaluated with point sources before processing field data. Band‐limited data processed with these techniques image the radiation pattern of the source rather than just the location. We present several imaging conditions but we imagine others could be designed to investigate specific hypotheses concerning the nature of the source mechanism. We illustrate the flexible technique with synthetic 2D passive data examples and surface acquisition geometry specifically designed to investigate tremor type signals that are not easily identified or interpreted in the time domain.     

The nature and formation of cristobalite at the Soufrière Hills volcano, Montserrat: implications for the petrology and stability of silicic lava domes

Cristobalite is commonly found in the dome lava of silicic volcanoes but is not a primary magmatic phase; its presence indicates that the composition and micro-structure of dome lavas evolve during, and after, emplacement. Nine temporally and mineralogically diverse dome samples from the Soufrière Hills volcano (SHV), Montserrat, are analysed to provide the first detailed assessment of the nature and mode of cristobalite formation in a volcanic dome. The dome rocks contain up to 11 wt.% cristobalite, as defined by X-ray diffraction. Prismatic and platy forms of cristobalite, identified by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), are commonly found in pores and fractures, suggesting that they have precipitated from a vapour phase. Feathery crystallites and micro-crystals of cristobalite and quartz associated with volcanic glass, identified using SEM-Raman, are interpreted to have formed by varying amounts of devitrification. We discuss mechanisms of silica transport and cristobalite formation, and their implications for petrological interpretations and dome stability. We conclude: (1) that silica may be transported in the vapour phase locally, or from one part of the magmatic system to another; (2) that the potential for transport of silica into the dome should not be neglected in petrological and geochemical studies because the addition of non-magmatic phases may affect whole rock composition; and (3) that the extent of cristobalite mineralisation in the dome at SHV is sufficient to reduce porosity—hence, permeability—and may impact on the mechanical strength of the dome rock, thereby potentially affecting dome stability.     

Gravity contributions to the understanding of salt tectonics from the Jebel Cheid area (dome zone, Northern Tunisia)

Detailed gravity measurements integrated with geological data were computed to constrain the mechanisms that were active during the emplacement of the Triassic evaporite-bearing folds of Jebel Cheid from the salt-dome zone in the Atlassic region. The gravity analysis consists in mapping the contrasting gravity responses: complete Bouguer anomaly, residual anomaly and derivative maps; the main results display a positive amplitude gravity anomaly as the response of Triassic evaporite bodies and important NE–SW-trending features at the boundaries between the Triassic outcrops and their enveloping strata. In contrast with gravity calculations of a salt dome structure usually resulting in negative gravity anomaly models, the Jebel Cheid clearly expresses a positive gravity anomaly; furthermore, this result is supported by synthetic gravity interpretation.     

Polar Compounds from the Dissolution of Weathered Diesel

Hydrocarbon and nonhydrocarbon components dissolving in water from fresh diesel and field samples of highly weathered diesel (spilled up to 50 years ago) from two sites were investigated. The fresh and weathered diesels were equilibrated with water using a slow-stirring method, and the product and equilibrated aqueous water samples analyzed by a range of analytical procedures. The water phase equilibrated with weathered diesels had higher total dissolved organics concentrations (96 and 8.6 mg/L at the two sites) compared to the water phase equilibrated with fresh diesel (average of 3.4 mg/L). Compound class characterization of dissolved organics in water from the weathered diesel showed that polar components were a significant compound class (98% and 42% at the two sites) and appeared largely as an unresolved complex mixture (UCM) in the total ion chromatograms (TICs). Identification of 1-adamantanol in the polar fraction of both weathered diesel samples (3.6 and 0.3 μg/L at the two sites) suggested that at least some of the associated polar components are from a petroleum source. The analysis of total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH) is aimed at measuring only dissolved carbon and hydrogen-containing compounds, and dissolved polar compounds present as a UCM are often assumed to be from natural organic matter (NOM) and removed. This may result in a gross underestimation of the total soluble organic material in water associated with weathered diesels. In addition, the risk posed by these fuel-derived polar compounds is unknown.     

Processes at the margins of supraglacial debris cover: Quantifying dirty ice ablation and debris redistribution

Current glacier ablation models have difficulty simulating the high-melt transition zone between clean and debris-covered ice. In this zone, thin debris cover is thought to increase ablation compared to clean ice, but often this cover is patchy rather than continuous. There is a need to understand ablation and debris dynamics in this transition zone to improve the accuracy of ablation models and the predictions of future debris cover extent. To quantify the ablation of partially debris-covered ice (or ‘dirty ice’), a high-resolution, spatially continuous ablation map was created from repeat unmanned aerial systems surveys, corrected for glacier flow in a novel way using on-glacier ablation stakes. Surprisingly, ablation is similar (range ~ 5 mm w.e. per day) across a wide range of percentage debris covers (~ 30–80%) due to the opposing effects of a positive correlation between percentage debris cover and clast size, countered by a negative correlation with albedo. Once debris cover becomes continuous, ablation is significantly reduced (by 61.6% compared to a partial debris cover), and there is some evidence that the cleanest ice (<~ 15% debris cover) has a lower ablation than dirty ice (by 3.7%). High-resolution feature tracking of clast movement revealed a strong modal clast velocity where debris was continuous, indicating that debris moves by creep down moraine slopes, in turn promoting debris cover growth at the slope toe. However, not all slope margins gain debris due to the removal of clasts by supraglacial streams. Clast velocities in the dirty ice area were twice as fast as clasts within the continuously debris-covered area, as clasts moved by sliding off their boulder tables. These new quantitative insights into the interplay between debris cover characteristics and ablation can be used to improve the treatment of dirty ice in ablation models, in turn improving estimates of glacial meltwater production. © 2020 The Authors. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd     

Neotectonic and seismotectonic investigation of seismically active regions in Tunisia: a multidisciplinary approach

Due to its key position within the Africa–Europe convergence zone, Tunisia is marked by thrusting, folding, and faulting and has a major rupture zones associated with active faults. Consequently, most of Tunisian land is seismically active with significant active deformations, showing recent seismic events and their relative surface effects. This paper reports on several aspects of the seismotectonics, historical, and present-day seismicity and places them in the general tectonic and geodynamic framework of Tunisia. Field investigations, based on an integrated multidisciplinary approach, included (1) the identification of active faults, their motion and displacement, geomorphic aspects, and scarps and their relation with the general structural map of Tunisia and (2) an extensive analysis of brittle tectonic deformation affecting Quaternary deposits in several sites throughout Tunisia. The integration of field data within the existing data related to the seismic events that took place during the last decades allowed the establishment of an earthquake distribution map, as well as major seismic zones for better understanding of the seismicity database of Tunisia. To establish microzonation maps in seismic regions such as Gafsa and its surroundings, we have analyzed surface effects and secondary structures associated with active faults and correlated them with deformation rates, reconstructed for significant seismic events. Most faults exhibited typical left-stepping en-echelon with strike-slip component pattern suggesting that Tunisia is presently subjected to NNW–SSE compression. The focal mechanism of most Tunisia earthquakes combined with the existing tectonic and structural information and reconstruction of the Quaternary stress tensor allowed (a) better understanding of seismic zoning, (b) provided better assessment of the seismic hazard, and (c) facilitated the interpretation of the relationship between seismic zones and the geodynamic African–Eurasian plate boundary.