Source and yearly distribution of PAHs in the snow from the Hailuogou glacier of Mountain Gongga,China

Snow samples were collected over a 3-year period from 2012 to 2014 at the Hailuogou glacier of Mountain Gongga (Mt. Gongga) and analyzed for 16 priority polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) using Gas Chromatography–Mass Spectrometry (GC–MS). The results show that total average levels of the 16 PAHs ranged from 452 to 290 ng·L^?1 with a possible declining trend from 2012 to 2014. Distances between the sampling sites and the emission sources were estimated at typically less than 500 km. The results suggest that the major source of PAHs was from coal combustion, while contributions from automobile exhaust played an important role in more recent years. This finding was in agreement with the characteristics of presence of local industry, residence, and recent development of tourism of the surrounding areas.     

U–Pb zircon age of the base of the Ediacaran System at the southern margin of the Qinling Orogen

Global abrupt climate change from Marinoan snowball Earth to greenhouse Earth, recorded as cap carbonate overlain on diamictite, had shed the first light on Cambrian bio-radiation. The most documented cap carbonate sections are typical with comprehensive δ¹³C negative values and ubiquitous sedimentary structures, such as tepee-like, sheet-crack etc., which are associated with successive glacial eustatic variation caused by isostatic rebound in shallow-water facies. Here we report a deep-water basinal cap carbonate section with strong negative δ¹³C values in the southern margin of the Qinling Orogen, Heyu, Chengkou County, Chongqing in China, which consists of massive dolostone with abundant carbonaceous laminae. However, it lacks the sedimentary structure as mentioned above and is overlain by thin-bedded silicious shales and cherts. A K-bentonite bed was discovered within the base of cap carbonates, about 0.7 m above the top of the Marinoan diamictite. Magmatic zircons that were separated from the K-bentonite bed yield a SIMS concordia U–Pb age of 634.1 ± 1.9 Ma (1σ, MSWD_CE = 0.31, Probability_CE = 1.000, n = 20). The age is in good agreement with previously reported TIMS U–Pb ages for the termination of Marinoan glaciation and provides a geochronological constraint for the Ediacaran successions in the Qinling Orogen.     

Seasonal variability of oxygen and hydrogen isotopes in a wetland system of the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau,southwest China: a quantitative assessment of groundwater inflow fluxes

The Caohai Wetland serves as an important ecosystem on the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau and as a nationally important nature reserve for migratory birds in China. In this study, surface water, groundwater and wetland water were collected for the measurement of environmental isotopes to reveal the seasonal variability of oxygen and hydrogen isotopes (δ¹⁸O, δD), sources of water, and groundwater inflow fluxes. Results showed that surface water and groundwater are of meteoric origin. The isotopes in samples of wetland water were well mixed vertically in seasons of both high-flow (September) and low-flow (April); however, marked seasonal and spatial variations were observed. During the high-flow season, the isotopic composition in surface wetland water varied from ?97.13 to ?41.73‰ for δD and from ?13.17 to ?4.70‰ for δ¹⁸O. The composition of stable isotopes in the eastern region of this wetland was lower than in the western region. These may have been influenced by uneven evaporation caused by the distribution of aquatic vegetation. During the low-flow season, δD and δ¹⁸O in the more open water with dead aquatic vegetation ranged from ?37.11 to ?11.77‰, and from ?4.25 to ?0.08‰, respectively. This may result from high evaporation rates in this season with the lowest atmospheric humidity. Groundwater fluxes were calculated by mass transfer and isotope mass balance approaches, suggesting that the water sources of the Caohai Wetland were mainly from groundwater in the high-flow season, while the groundwater has a smaller contribution to wetland water during the low-flow season.     

Deformation mechanism of strain localization in 2D numerical interface tests

Heterogeneity arises in soil subjected to interface shearing, with the strain gradually localizing into a band area. How the strain localization accumulates and develops to form the structure is crucial in explaining some significant constitutive behaviors of the soil–structural interface during shearing, for example, stress hardening, softening, and shear-dilatancy. Using DEM simulation, interface shear tests with a periodic boundary condition are performed to investigate the strain localization process in densely and loosely packed granular soils. Based on the velocity field given by grains’ translational and rotational velocities, several kinematic quantities are analyzed during the loading history to demonstrate the evolution of strain localization. Results suggest that tiny concentrations in the shear deformation have already been observed in the very early stage of the shear test. The degree of the strain localization, quantified by a proposed new indicator, α, steadily ascends during the stress-hardening regime, dramatically jumps prior to the stress peak, and stabilizes at the stress steady state. Loose specimen does not develop a steady pattern at the large strain, as the deformation pattern transforms between localized and diffused failure modes. During the stress steady state of both specimens, remarkable correlations are observed between α and the shear stress, as well as between α and the volumetric strain rate.     

A simple approach to evaluating leakage through thin impervious element of high embankment dams

Internal erosion is the most common reason which induces failure of embankment dams besides overtopping. Relatively large leakage is frequently concentrated at defects of impervious element, and this will lead to eventual failure. The amount of leakage depends not only on integrity of impervious element, but also on dam height, shape of valley, shape of impervious element and water level in reservoir. The integrity of impervious element, which represents the relative level of seepage safety, is not easy to be determined quantitatively. A simple method for generalization of steady seepage state of embankment dams with thin impervious element is proposed in this paper. The apparent overall value of permeability coefficient for impervious element can be obtained by this method with reasonable accuracy and efficiency. A defect parameter of impervious element is defined as an index to characterize seepage safety of embankment dams. It equals the ratio of the apparent overall value of permeability coefficient to the measured value in laboratory for intact materials. Subsequently, seepage safety of three dams is evaluated and the evolution of defect level of impervious element of dams is investigated. It is proved that the newly proposed method in this paper is feasible in the evaluation of relative seepage safety level of embankment dams with thin impervious element.     

Study on the quantitative relationship between soil in situ strength and drilling parameters

The rational use of drilling parameters is a hot issue in the field of geotechnical engineering and geological engineering. A new method, for evaluating the bearing capacity of soils using drilling parameters was proposed. First, through the mechanical analysis of the drill bit, the preconditions and theoretical formulas for calculating the bearing capacity of soils using the bit’s torque are clearly defined. Next, drilling tests and dynamic cone penetration tests were performed on miscellaneous fill, silty clay, sandy clay, medium coarse sand and gravel sand, and the empirical formula for calculating the bearing capacity of these soils were given. Then, using the new method and the empirical formula, the bearing capacity of the soil under the roadbed was examined. The test results show that the bit’s torque is a good parameter for the evaluation of the bearing capacity of the soil. Finally, the application scope of the new method and the empirical formula is discussed, and the subsequent research directions are pointed out.     

Semi-analytical solutions for vertically and laterally loaded piles in multilayered soil deposits

In geotechnical practice, it is of considerable importance to assess the behavior of vertical–lateral coupled loading piles in multilayered soil deposits. This study deals with a semi-analytical formulation for the performance of a pile suffering from combined vertical and lateral loads. The emphasis is on quantifying the mobilization of the subgrade reaction provided by the layered soil stratums. In the proposed method, subgrade reactions, correlated with both the accumulative axial load transfer and side resistances depending upon the pile–soil interaction, are abstracted as a series of nonlinear springs in both vertical and lateral directions. On account of this, an alternative transfer matrix method is applied to characterize the pile reaction along the depth under the identified boundary conditions atop the pile; meanwhile, the condition of static equilibrium, between two specific pile segments located at the border of soil layers, is also essential. On this basis, validation of the solution is conducted by comparing with observations from experiments and predictions obtained from other existing methods. In addition, the influence of properties in shallow soil layer and the vertical load on the lateral response of the pile is also discussed. The results indicate a reduction in the lateral displacement and the maximum bending moment within the pile with the increase in the shallow soil stiffness, but a growth with the increase in vertical load due to the “P-Δ effect.”