Three dimensional large scale earthquake simulator with six degrees of freedom

Conclusions When the aseismic test of large scale structure is performed, it is a major performance that the actual response waveform is identical to the input signal waveform under the condition of analog control, especially when the damping of the structure tested is small. The rotational motions of the simulator are induced due to the structure inertia, so that it is a key technique for the simulator design that realizes independent control of the simulator with six degrees of freedom and suppresses the rotational motions. In the design, the modern control techniques are applied and a high performance of the three dimensional earthquake simulator is developed successfully. The simulator can simulate actual earthquake load and it is an important test device for aseismic research. This paper is a main project of the Eighth Five Plan, State Seismological Bureau.     

Characteristics of particle size for creeping and saltating sand grains in aeolian transport

Creep and saltation are the primary modes of surface transport involved in the fluid‐like movement of aeolian sands. Although numerous studies have focused on saltation, few studies have focused on creep, primarily because of the experimental difficulty and the limited amount of theoretical information available on this process. Grain size and its distribution characteristics are key controls on the modes of sand movement and their transport masses. Based on a series of wind tunnel experiments, this paper presents new data regarding the saltation flux, obtained using a flat sampler, and on the creeping mass, obtained using a specifically designed bed trap, associated with four friction velocities (0·41, 0·47, 0·55 and 0·61 m sec^?1). These data yielded information regarding creeping and saltating sand grains and their particle size characteristics at various heights, which led to the following conclusions: (i) the creeping masses increased as a power function (q = ?1·02 + 14·19u_*³) of friction wind velocities, with a correlation (R²) of 0·95; (ii) the flux of aeolian sand flow decreases exponentially with increasing height (q = a exp(–z/b)) and increases as a power function (q = ?26·30 + 428·40 u_*³) of the friction wind velocity; (iii) the particle size of creeping sand grains is ca 1·15 times of the mean diameter of salting sand grains at a height of 0 to 2 cm, which is 1·14 times of the mean diameter of sand grains in a bed; and (iv) the mean diameter of saltating sand grains decreases rapidly with increasing height whereas, while at a given height, the mean diameter of saltating sand grains is positively correlated with the friction wind velocity. Although these results require additional experimental validation, they provide new information for modelling of aeolian sand transport processes.     

Determination of allowable subgrade frost heave with the pavement roughness index in numerical analysis

Frost heave is an upward swelling of soil during cryogenic conditions in cold regions. It is caused by the accumulation of ice crystals in subgrade soil, which grow upwards when freezing temperatures penetrate into the subgrade. This study establishes the allowable soil subgrade frost heave based on the roughness standard of asphalt pavement in China, and aims to balance the pavement design and frost heave resistance of subgrades in cold regions. We formulated a mechanical model of pavement supported by the boundary conditions of differential frost heave, based on the elastic layered system theory. The differential soil subgrade frost heave was modeled as a sinusoidal function, and the allowable frost heave and the roughness index were modeled as the displacement boundaries for the top and bottom of the pavement structure. Then the allowable frost heave was back-calculated according to the roughness standard. Numerical results show that the allowable frost heave depends on the pavement structure, material properties, the highway grade, and other factors. In order to ensure that the actual soil subgrade frost heave is lower than the allowable frost heave, pavement structures and materials need to be selected and designed carefully. The numerical method proposed here can be applied to establish the frost heave resistance of subgrade when the pavement structure and materials are determined.     

The origin of intergalactic stars in galaxy clusters

The paper analyzes possible origins of stars located in intergalactic space that are not bound to specific galaxies, which comprise 15–50% of all stars in galaxy clusters. Some such stars can form in streams of intergalactic gas flowing around gas-rich disk galaxies moving in the cluster. Others may be the products of the decay of young, low-mass, spheroidal galaxies after the loss of their gaseous components during an initial burst of star formation. The decay of low-mass disk galaxies moving at high speeds after they have lost their gaseous components due to the pressure of the incident flow of dense intergalactic gas is possible in the cluster core. The largest fraction of intergalactic stars are probably produced by the partial disruption of galaxies as a result of close passages, collisions, or mergers. Collisions of low-mass, gas-rich galaxies are especially good suppliers of intergalactic stars. Both stars from decaying stellar components of galaxies and stars arising in the gaseous components of colliding galaxies can be supplied to the intergalactic medium. The merger of galaxies harboring supermassive black holes in their nuclei could lead to the partial or total disruption of these galaxies during the deceleration of the binary black hole that is formed during the merger. An enhanced density of intergalactic stars is observed in the cores of galaxy clusters, underscoring the role of galaxy collisions in the formation of the intergalactic stellar population, since the frequency of galaxy collisions grows with their density.     

On the 70th birthday of F.V. Dolzhanskii

Izvestiya, Atmospheric and Oceanic Physics -     

覆盖中国沿海地区的精细化台风风暴潮模型的研究及适用

精细化风暴潮预报是目前风暴潮预报重点发展方向之一,本文首次建立起了一个覆盖整个中国沿海地区的精细化台风风暴潮数值模型,克服了以往分区域数值模型的不足,该模型在中国沿海地区的分辨率达到300m左右。模型采用了并行计算,并对2012年和2013年灾害性台风风暴潮过程进行了数值检验,计算精度和计算所用时间都能够满足业务化运行的要求。本文同时还根据中国气象局、美国国家气象局等5家主要台风预报机构给出的24h台风预报,对2013年度灾害性台风风暴潮过程进行了24h数值预报检验,检验结果表明:根据中国气象局台风登陆前24h预报可以得到更准确的风暴潮预报结果,其预报结果优于其他各家预报结果。该结论可以为今后的台风风暴潮预报中台风路径的选取提供重要的参考。     

历史文献中气候信息的评价

本文对我国史料中所载气候信息进行了评价。结论是:①对于史料所载的某一气候事件,我们将其状态分辨取越细,所获取的信息越少;②在分析过程中,对误差要求低些,所获取的信息反而高些;③就已记录的气候事件而言,官方组织的记载所提供的气候信息最多,私人笔札次之,方志类书最次。     

Flux–Profile Relationships Over a Fetch Limited Beech Forest

The influence of an internal boundary layer and a roughness sublayer on flux–profile relationships for momentum and sensible heat have been investigated for a closed beech forest canopy with limited fetch conditions. The influence was quantified by derivation of local scaling functions for sensible heat flux and momentum (_h and _m) and analysed as a function of atmospheric stability and fetch. For heat, the influences of the roughness sublayer and the internal boundary layer were in agreement with previous studies. For momentum, the strong vertical gradient of the flow just above the canopy top for some wind sectors led to an increase in _m, a feature that has not previously been observed. For a fetch of 500 m over the beech forest during neutral atmospheric conditions, there is no height range at the site where profiles can be expected to be logarithmic with respect to the local surface. The different influence of the roughness sublayer on _h and _m is reflected in the aerodynamic resistance for the site. The aerodynamic resistance for sensible heat is considerably smaller than the corresponding value for momentum.     

Effect of slow-solvent-vapour treatment on performance of polymer photovoltaic devices

In this work, enhanced poly(3-hexylthiophene):[6,6]-phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (P3HT:PCBM) bulk-heterojunction photovoltaic devices are achieved via slow-solvent-vapour treatment. The correlations between the morphology of the active layer and the photovoltaic performance of polymer-based solar cell are investigated. The active layers are characterized by atomic force microscopy and optical absorption. The results show that slow-solvent-vapour treatment can induce P3HT self-organization into an ordered structure, leading to the enhanced absorption and efficient charge transport.