Application of T-bar in numerical simulations of a monopile subjected to lateral cyclic load

A series of centrifuge tests were performed to investigate the response of a free-head monopile due to cyclic lateral loading in normally consolidated clay. By linking the maximum reaction-force point of the final cycles in all tests with various amplitudes, a postcyclic reaction-force curve is obtained, which can be used to assess the postcyclic remolded lateral stiffness. To numerically analyze the tests, a strength degradation model of the clay is calibrated by the T-bar cyclic test. However, this model is T-bar-dependent, which is unable to capture the degrading behavior of the monopile stiffness. Thus, a modification approach is proposed based on the upper bound theory, and the modified model is further combined with finite element analysis to simulate the cyclic behavior of the model pile. The simulation results show similar degrading trend and consistent postcyclic remolded lateral stiffness with the model tests. This further demonstrates that the remolded lateral stiffness mainly depends on the soil remolded strength, which is one of the parameters calibrated by the T-bar tests. Based on this finding, a simplified numerical analysis is proposed, which can predict the postcyclic reaction-force curve by performing one monotonic loading instead of modeling the whole process of cyclic loading.     

The Widmanstätten pattern

A table is provided to determine the angles within the Widmanstätten pattern as a function of orientation of the slice, and methods are provided to solve the inverse problem, namely to determine the orientation of the slice from measurements of the Widmanstätten pattern.     

Terrestrial microfossils in Antarctic ordinary chondrites

Abstract— Microfossils have been separated and identified in four high metamorphic grade chondrites from Allan Hills and Queen Alexandra Range, Antarctica. Diatoms and opal phytoliths representing both marine and terrestrial flora were recognized among the dust removed from cracks in all meteorites studied. It is likely that contamination of Antarctic meteorites with such biogenic material is ubiquitous. Standard clean room procedures to avoid laboratory introduction of microfossils into the meteorites were followed, and the genera and species identified so far are characteristic of marine, freshwater, and continental environments. The most probable mechanism for introduction of the microfossils into the meteorites is eolian transport to and on the polar ice cap. It is likely that wind-driven systems may sample atmospherically transported material from large portions of the southern hemisphere. Entrainment of terrestrial microfossils is probably a typical interaction of meteorites with the Antarctic environment and must be recognized and accounted for in any attempt to use Antarctic meteorites as sources of extraterrestrial life forms. Organic molecules derived from microfossils are likely to be pervasive throughout any crack network present in a meteorite at all scales from millimeter to submicron. Cracks are a ubiquitous consequence of weathering in and on the Antarctic ice and the probability that crack surfaces contain terrestrial organic materials is high.     

Assessment of recreation activity and its application to integrated management and spatial planning for Cork Harbour, Ireland

The coastal environment is commonly the location for multiple human activities, of which recreation is just one. The coastal and marine sector has experienced nascent growth and this trend is likely to continue into the foreseeable future; the projected growth of the sector will impact coastal and marine resources, whilst also placing demands on those tasked with planning and managing the coastal environment. In Ireland, this presents particular challenges for coastal local authorities, as the principal planning consent body. In order to address these emerging challenges an innovative working partnership was developed between the research community and local authority to examine marine recreation in Cork Harbour, situated on the southern coast of Ireland. A programme of work was devised to identify data gaps in terms of: baseline information; user attitudes and perceptions towards existing management framework and facilities for recreation; interactions between different user groups; and, spatial distribution of recreational activities. The results of the assessment provided an improved understanding of the current coastal recreational situation, have value as input to spatial planning and contribute to the development of an integrated management plan for Cork Harbour.     

Calibration and combination of dynamical seasonal forecasts to enhance the value of predicted probabilities for managing risk

Seasonal probability forecasts produced with numerical dynamics on supercomputers offer great potential value in managing risk and opportunity created by seasonal variability. The skill and reliability of contemporary forecast systems can be increased by calibration methods that use the historical performance of the forecast system to improve the ongoing real-time forecasts. Two calibration methods are applied to seasonal surface temperature forecasts of the US National Weather Service, the European Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasts, and to a World Climate Service multi-model ensemble created by combining those two forecasts with Bayesian methods. As expected, the multi-model is somewhat more skillful and more reliable than the original models taken alone. The potential value of the multimodel in decision making is illustrated with the profits achieved in simulated trading of a weather derivative. In addition to examining the seasonal models, the article demonstrates that calibrated probability forecasts of weekly average temperatures for leads of 2–4 weeks are also skillful and reliable. The conversion of ensemble forecasts into probability distributions of impact variables is illustrated with degree days derived from the temperature forecasts. Some issues related to loss of stationarity owing to long-term warming are considered. The main conclusion of the article is that properly calibrated probabilistic forecasts possess sufficient skill and reliability to contribute to effective decisions in government and business activities that are sensitive to intraseasonal and seasonal climate variability.     

Ternary interactions in a humic acid–Cd–bacteria system

Humic acid adsorption onto the bacterial surface of Bacillus subtilis was measured with and without Cd, as a function of pH and humic–bacteria–Cd ratios. These experiments tested for the existence of ternary interactions in a bacteria–humic–metal system. We determine both the effects of humic acid on the bacterial adsorption of Cd, as well as the effects of the aqueous metal cation on the bacterial adsorption of humic acid. The presence of Cd does not affect the extent of humic acid adsorption onto the bacterial surface, indicating that there is no competition for sorption sites between humic acid and Cd under the experimental conditions, and that changes in the charging properties of the bacterial surface, as a result of the Cd adsorption, are not significant enough to affect humic acid adsorption.

The presence of humic acid does diminish Cd adsorption onto the bacterial surface, suggesting the presence of an aqueous Cd–humate complex under mid to high pH conditions. However, we also observe that the solubility of humic acid is unaffected by the presence of aqueous Cd. This apparently inconsistent behavior of an aqueous Cd–humate complex affecting Cd adsorption but not affecting humic acid solubility is not observed with simpler ionizable organic molecules. We propose that the solubility of humic acid is controlled by the solubility of a less soluble fraction of the acid. Cd forms an aqueous complex with the more soluble fraction of humic acid and there is no interdependence between the aqueous activities of the more and less soluble fractions. That is, the solubility of one humic acid fraction is unaffected by the presence of an aqueous Cd–humate complex involving another humic acid fraction. These experimental results constrain the relative importance of surface ternary and aqueous metal–humate complexes on the bacterial adsorption of both humic acid and metal cations.     

High-Al gabbros in the Laramie Anorthosite Complex,Wyoming: implications for the composition of melts parental to Proterozoic anorthosite

High-Al gabbro represents one of the latest phases of magmatism in the 1.43 Ga Laramie anorthosite complex (LAC) in southeastern Wyoming. This lithology, which is mineralogically and geochemically the most primitive in the LAC, forms dikes and small intrusions that cross cut monzonitic and anorthositic rocks. High-Al gabbro is characterized by high Al₂O₃ (15–19 wt%), REE patterns with positive europium anomalies (Eu/Eu^*=1.2–3.8), and the lowest initial ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr (as low as 0.7033) and highest initial _Nd (up to +2) in the LAC. Their Sr and Nd isotopic characteristics indicate a mantle origin followed by crustal assimilation during ascent. Intermediate plagioclase (An_50–60) and mafic silicate (Fo_54–63) compositions suggest that they are not primary mantle melts and that they differentiated prior to final emplacement. High-Al gabbros of the LAC are similar compositionally to gabbros from several other Proterozoic anorthosite complexes, including rocks from the Harp Lake complex and the Hettasch intrusion in Labrador and the Adirondack Mountains of New York. These gabbros are considered to be parental to their associated anorthositic rocks, a theory that is supported by recent experimental work. We interpret LAC high-Al gabbros to represent mantle-derived melts produced by the differentiation of a basaltic magma in an upper mantle chamber. Continued evolution of this magma eventually resulted in the formation of plagioclase-rich diapirs which ascended to mid-crustal levels and formed the anorthositic rocks of the LAC. Because these gabbros intrude the anorthositic rocks, they do not represent directly the magma from which anorthosite crystallized and instead are younger samples of magma formed by identical processes.     

Drivers of peatland water table dynamics in the central Andes,Bolivia and Peru

Cushion plant dominated peatlands are key ecosystems in tropical alpine regions of the Andes in South America. The cushion plants have formed peat bodies over thousands of years that fill many valley bottoms, and the forage produced by the plants is critical for native and nonnative domesticated mammals. The sources and flow paths of water supporting these peatlands remain largely unknown. Some studies have suggested that glacier meltwater streams support some peatlands, and that the ongoing loss of glaciers and their meltwaters could lead to the loss or diminishment of peatlands. We analysed the hydrologic regime of 10 peatlands in four mountain regions of Bolivia and Peru using groundwater monitoring. Groundwater levels in peatlands were relatively stable and within 20 cm of the ground surface during the rainy season, and many sites had water tables 40–90 cm below the ground surface in the dry season. Topographic and groundwater elevations in the peatlands demonstrated that the water source of all 10 peatlands was hillslope groundwater flowing from lateral moraines, talus, colluvium, or bedrock aquifers into the peatlands. There was little to no input from streams, whether derived from glacier melt or other sources, and glacier melt could not have recharged the hillslope aquifers supporting peatlands. We measured the stable water isotopes in water samples taken during different seasons, distributed throughout the catchments, and the values are consistent with this interpretation. Our findings indicate that peatlands in the study region are recharged by hillslope groundwater discharge rather than stream water and may not be as vulnerable to glacial decline as other studies have indicated. However, both glaciers and peatlands are susceptible to changing thermal and precipitation regimes that could affect the persistence of peatlands.