Latitudinal and Longitudinal Variations of Earth’s Magnetic Force on Electrified Hydrometeors

Geomagnetism and Aeronomy - In this study, a hypothesis is proposed about the possible effect of Geomagnetic field (GMF) on the charge structure of a thundercloud based on Lorentz force equation...     

Green space planning and land use: An assessment of urban regional and green structure planning in Greater Copenhagen

Geografisk Tidsskrift, Danish Journal of Geography 106(2):7–20, 2006

In its Regional Plan of 2005, The Greater Copenhagen Authority (abbreviated as “HUR” in Danish) places special emphasis on the future recreational values associated with the regional green structure. In this paper, the development of the urban green structure in Greater Copenhagen is elaborated upon, focusing on land use changes and the effectiveness of regionally coordinated planning measures. EU MOLAND data are used to analyse the development of the region's green structure during the period 1954 to 1998. Analysis of two “green wedges” within the green structure illustrates that the development of the green recreational areas is the result of both formal and more informal planning initiatives. Development has shown equal phases that correspond to the applied regional planning measures and the general economic conditions. However, local preferences in the involved municipalities likewise have played an important role and have resulted in different urbanisation pressure within the two wedges. Land use has transformed from an agricultural to a primarily recreational landscape. In some areas, however, urbanisation pressure has resulted in residential and green industrial areas instead of the planned recreational land use. Based on its historical development it is concluded that future preservation and development of the green structure in Greater Copenhagen requires regional planning measures to be incorporated into municipal plans. In this way the increasingly independent municipalities will comply to objectives of the Regional Plan 2005.     

Experimental vulnerability curves for the residential buildings of Iran

Iran is one of the most seismically active countries of the world located on the Alpine-Himalayan earthquake belt. More than 180,000 people were killed due to earthquakes in Iran during the last five decades. Considering the fact that most Iranians live in masonry and non-engineered houses, having a comprehensive program for decreasing the vulnerability of society holds considerable importance. For this reason, loss estimation should be done before an earthquake strikes to prepare proper information for designing and selection of emergency plans and the retrofitting strategies prior to occurrence of earthquake. The loss estimation process consists of two principal steps of hazard analysis and vulnerability assessment. After identifying the earthquake hazard, the first step is to evaluate the vulnerability of residential buildings and lifelines and also the social and economic impacts of the earthquake scenarios. Among these, residential buildings have specific importance, because their destruction will disturb the daily life and result in casualties. Consequently, the vulnerability assessment of the buildings in Iran is important to identify the weak points in the built environment structure. The aim of this research is to prepare vulnerability curves for the residential buildings of Iran to provide a proper base for estimating probable damage features by future earthquakes. The estimation may contribute fundamentally for better seismic performance of Iranian societies. After a brief review of the vulnerability assessment methods in Iran and other countries, through the use of the European Macroseismic method, a model for evaluating the vulnerability of the Iranian buildings is proposed. This method allows the vulnerability assessment for numerous sets of buildings by defining the vulnerability curves for each building type based on the damage observations of previous earthquakes. For defining the vulnerability curves, a building typology classification is presented in this article, which is representative of Iranian building characteristics. The hazard is described in terms of the macroseismic intensity and the EMS-98 damage grades have been considered for classifying the physical damage to the buildings. The calculated vulnerability indexes and vulnerability curves show that for engineered houses there is not any notable difference between the vulnerability of Iranian and Risk-UE building types. For the non-engineered houses, the vulnerability index of brick and steel structures is less than the corresponding values of the other unreinforced masonry buildings of Iran. The vulnerability index of unreinforced and masonry buildings of Iran are larger than the values of the similar types in Risk-UE and so the Iranian buildings are more vulnerable in this regard.     

Evaluation of public participation in reconstruction of Bam,Iran, after the 2003 earthquake

In the midst of the ever-increasing natural and human-induced disasters, where many of the preparedness and mitigation measures show inefficiencies, there is narrow margin for decision-makers to make mistakes by misallocating budgets, designing infeasible reconstruction plans, and in other terms, making decisions not in line with the public preferences. In particular, public participation in post-disaster measures seems undoubtedly necessary to reduce the possible economic, social, political, and cultural conflicts around the stressful community after a major disaster. This paper aims at evaluating the role of public participation in increasing the reconstruction phase efficiency through a case study of the reconstruction process in Bam, a southeastern Iranian city, after the 2003 earthquake. It is attempted to identify the major motivators of the public participation through a combination of quantitative and qualitative studies. Statistical data are generated through a set of questionnaires being filled by a number of 200 randomly selected survivors. The numerical results were then discussed through the Focus Group technique sessions to determine the main contributors to the public participation. It is later found that the answers are found among the performance of the reconstruction authorities, financial policies, emotional resiliency of the survivors, public information mechanisms, public satisfaction, the pace of reconstruction, and temporary housing policies.     

Particle size distribution and dissolution properties of metals in cyclone fly ash

The particles in the examined cyclone fly ash were all smaller than 0.25 mm. in diameter, and particles smaller than 0.075 mm. in diameter accounted for 88.4 % of the ash weight. This result indicates that cyclone fly ash consists of particles with a small diameter. The metals in the cyclone fly ash were enriched in small particles. The highest concentrations for zinc, copper, lead, cadmium and molybdenum in the cyclone fly ash were found in the smallest particle size fraction (< 0.075 mm.) and for Barium, chromium, nickel, Vanadium and Cobalt in the second to smallest particle size fraction (0.075-0.125 mm.). From an environmental and toxicological standpoint, the smallest particles are of the greatest concern when ash is handed at landfill disposal sites (transport and disposal especially in stormy weather conditions), and some studies have reported risks to workers from prolonged exposure to ash. The results of the comparison of various dissolution methods for metals showed that the digestion procedures with nitric acid alone (USEPA 3051) or with a mixture of nitric acid + hydrogen peroxide (USEPA 3050B) slightly underestimated the metal concentrations in the cyclone fly ash. Although the use of hydrofluoric acid is often necessary for the determination of a number of elements associated with siliceous minerals, its use can result in loss of trace elements during dissolution.     

Interaction of groundwater with Lake Urmia in Iran

Being a large hyper‐saline water body, Lake Urmia in north‐western Iran deals with a gradual decline in its water level. Most of the studies on Lake Urmia have neglected the groundwater issue. In this study, as a direct approach, the interaction between the groundwater level and the lake water level is investigated both in time and space by analysing the groundwater data compiled from observation wells surrounding the lake. Baseflow separation is considered as an indirect approach to understand the groundwater contribution to the river network flowing into the lake. It is determined that about 70% of run‐off in the rivers draining into the lake is born in the form of baseflow. An interaction between the lake and the groundwater storage is clearly seen from the analysis to conclude that groundwater has a potential to recharge the lake. Thus, the shrinkage of water level in Lake Urmia could be expected to accelerate with the drastic use of groundwater, which will be a disaster with no return.     

Using value engineering to optimize flood forecasting and flood warning systems: Golestan and Golabdare watersheds in Iran as case studies

Flood occurrence has always been one of the most important natural phenomena, which is often associated with disaster. Consequently, flood forecasting (FF) and flood warning (FW) systems, as the most efficient non-structural measures in reducing flood loss and damage, are of prime importance. These systems are low cost and the time required for their implementation is relatively short. It is emphasized that for designing the components of these systems for various rivers, climatic conditions and geographical settings different methods are required. One of the major difficulties during implementing these systems in different projects is the fact that sometimes the main functions of these systems are ignored. Based on a systematic and practical approach and considering the components of these systems, it would be possible to extract the most essential key functions of the system and save time, effort and money by this way. For instance, in a small watershed with low concentration and small lead time, the main emphasis should be on predicting and monitoring weather conditions. In this article, different components of flood forecasting and flood warning systems have been introduced. Then analysis of the FF and FW system functions has been undertaken based on the value engineering (VE) technique. Utilizing a functional view based on function analysis system technique (FAST), the total trend of FF and FW functions has been identified. The systematic trend and holistic view of this technique have been used in optimizing FF and FW systems of the Golestan province and Golabdare watersheds in Iran as the case studies.     

Nonlinear Dynamic Analysis of Flexible Marine-Risers

A nonlinear dynamic analysis model is estabilished on the basis of "lumped mass" approach, which takes the influence of the fluid flow within the pipe into consideration. Numerical results are compared with the published works, and the effects of internal fluid flow, internal pressure, dyanmics as well as the nonlinear characteristics on the behavior of flexible risers are discussed. From this work, some useful conclusions are drawn.     

Intense extreme hydro-climatic events take a toll on society

Natural Hazards - In March 2019, the Iranian meteorological organization warned of the formation of several dense precipitation systems throughout the country. This was followed by a chain of storm...     

Reconstruction management policies in residential and commercial sectors after the 2003 bam earthquake in Iran

In the very early hours of 26th December 2003, a devastating and strong earthquake with a magnitude of 6.5 struck Bam, one of the historical cities of Kerman province in the south of Iran. According to the official reports, more than 30,000 were killed and about 25,000 injured. More than 80% of the town’s buildings were also destroyed. After the disaster, Bam’s reconstruction management process was presented with a lot of challenges and faced many fundamental questions. The number of human losses and related social issues, extensive destruction of the historical town, and also the lack of good experience in the reconstruction of a city or town made the reconstruction project of Bam more complicated. The reconstruction of Bam was the most important post-disaster reconstruction project among recent reconstructions in Iran. Many factors, such as concern over the government and international agencies, the new managerial approaches, and the application of appropriate reconstruction methods, made it different from the other reconstruction programs. Thus, the post-earthquake reconstruction of Bam is investigated in this research with respect to the importance of this issue. The aim behind this article is to give a brief explanation of the earthquake reconstruction management policies in Bam and also the plans for the reconstruction and rebuilding of urban residential and commercial units.