New structural implications for the central Sahara (Algeria), from the revisited Upper Carboniferous “Hassi Bachir” Formation: Paleomagnetic constraints

Paleomagnetic investigations of the folded Upper Namurian–Lower Moscovian “Hassi Bachir” Formation cropping out in the “Ahnet” basin (Central Sahara, Algeria) yield two magnetic components. A pre-folding primary magnetization (D = 136.1°, I = 22.0°, k = 217, α₉₅ = 2.6°) enables us to define a paleomagnetic pole (32.8°S, 55.7°E, K = 328 and A₉₅ = 2.0°) which better constrains a paleopole that was determined by Daly and Irving [Daly, L., Irving, E., 1983. Paléomagnétisme des roches carbonifères du Sahara central; analyse des aimantations juxtaposées; configurations de la Pangée. Ann. Geophys. 1, 207–216] for the same formation. A secondary component consists in a synfolding remagnetization and shows that post-Permian tectonics account for at least about half of the total folding in the studied area. This indicates that Mesozoic folding noted 150 km to the West in the Reggane basin [Smith, B., Derder, M.E.M., Henry, B., Bayou, B., Amenna, M., Djellit, H., Yelles, A.K., Garces, M., Beamud, E., Callot, J.P., Eschard, R., Chambers, A., Aifa, T., Ait Ouali, R., Gandriche, H., 2006. Relative importance of the Hercynian and post-Jurassic tectonic phases in the Saharan platform: a palaeomagnetic study of Jurassic sills in the Reggane basin (Algeria). Geophys. J. Int. 167, 380–396] is not local and affected at least the entire north-western part of the Hoggar area. This reconfirms that the folding of the Paleozoic cover in the Sahara platform should not be restricted to the Hercynian orogeny.     

Role of early warning systems for sustainable agriculture in Iran

Drought is a complex phenomenon in meteorology and can affect agriculture. Its impacts vary greatly since they depend not only on the magnitude, timing, duration, and frequency of rainfall deficits but also on the differing responses of various plants to water stress. The essence of good drought management is to use this range of responses to the best advantage. Iran is one of the world’s largest and most productive suppliers of food and fiber. The objective of this study was, therefore, to gather and analyze standardized information on the Role of Early Warning Systems for Sustainable Agriculture for cereals and leguminous and industrial crops in Iran environmental zones. Annual average rainfall (mm year^?1) and ET_O (mm year^?1) are 76.56 and 3001, respectively, in stations with very dry climate; 195.41 and 2249, respectively, in stations with dry climate; 343.9 and 1351, respectively, in stations with semi-dry climate; 583.8 and 1153, respectively, in stations with semi-humid climate; and 1272 and 949, respectively, in stations with humid climate. The maximum and minimum of annual average rainfall happened in Rasht (1337 mm year^?1) and Zabol (57 mm year^?1) stations, and the maximum and minimum for annual average ET_O happened in Chabahar (3909.15 mm year^?1) and Anzali harbor (890.6 mm year^?1), respectively. Therefore, 13.63 % of stations have suitable conditions for crop productions and 86.37 % are in critical conditions.     

A transparent aqueous-saturated sand surrogate for use in physical modeling

This paper presents the geotechnical properties of a new family of synthetic transparent soils made of fused quartz, saturated with a matched refractive index water-based sucrose solution, suitable for modeling the behavior of sand in small-scale model tests. The dry density ranged between 1,134 and 1,358 kg/m³. The peak angle of friction was found to range from 46° to 57°. The average hydraulic conductivity was 1.7 × 10^?5 cm/s. The compressibility index (C _c) ranged from 0.34 to 0.57. The main advantage of fused quartz over available sand surrogates made of silica gel is that its solid structure better models the behavior of natural sand. The matching pore fluids are inert and non-toxic, which facilitates their use in educational settings. The availability of a safe and easy-to-use transparent sand permits measurement of three-dimensional deformation patterns and flow characteristics in controlled research experiments. The introduction of an aqueous solution permits the use of two immiscible pore fluids, one made of mineral oil and the other made of a sucrose solution, for modeling multiphase flow problems, as well as coupled flow-deformation problems.     

Prediction of scour depth at piers with debris accumulation effects using linear genetic programming

Abstract

Exact evaluation of scour depth around piers under debris accumulation is crucial for the safe design of pier structures. Experimental studies on scouring around pier bridges with debris accumulation have been conducted to estimate the maximum scour depth using various empirical relationships. However, due to the oversimplification of a complex process, the proposed relationships have not always been able to accurately predict the pier scour depth. This research proposes linear genetic programming (LGP) approach as an extension of the genetic programming to predict the scour depth around bridge piers. Among the artificial intelligence techniques, LGP and locally weighted linear regression (LWLR) models have not been used to predict the scour depth at bridge piers. Literature experimental data were collected and used to develop the models. The performance of the LGP method was compared with gene-expression programming, LWLR, multilinear regression and empirical equations using rigorous statistical criteria. The correlation coefficient (R) and the root mean squared error (RMSE) were (R?=?0.962, RMSE =0.31) and (R?=?0.885, RMSE =0.542) for the LGP and LWLR, respectively. The results demonstrated the superiority of the LGP method for increasing the accuracy of the predicted scour depth in comparison with the other models.     

Soil genesis and clay mineralogy on Aliabbas River Alluvial Fan, Kerman Province

Alluvial fan is among the important geomorphic positions in arid and semi-arid environments, and the history of settlement in central parts of Iran plateau has significantly been related to this landform. Soil properties are also related to the stability and the position of geomorphic surfaces. To study and compare clay mineralogy and soil physicochemical responses to geomorphic positions, 11 representative pedons on stable and unstable alluvial fan surfaces and plain geomorphic position in a transect from Sarcheshmeh Mountains toward Rafsanjan Plain were studied. Soil moisture and temperature regimes of the area were aridic and mesic, respectively. Smectite, kaolinite, chlorite, illite, and palygorskite clay minerals were found in almost all the studied soils. More salinity was investigated in stable alluvial fan surfaces than unstable positions. Evidence of a more humid paleoclimate shown by buried Bt horizons in plain surface was observed. Transformation of palygorskite to smectite in surface horizon of unstable alluvial fan position and preservation of palygorskite associated by gypsum crystals in By horizon of stable fan surfaces were among the important findings of the research. There was a significant and mutual relationship between geomorphology and physicochemical and mineralogical properties of soils under study.     

Metal fluxes to the sediments of the Moulay Bousselham lagoon,Morocco

The metal content in surface sediments (0–2 cm, 26 samples), in a sediment core (120, 1 cm slices), taken from Moulay Bousselham (Morocco) was investigated. Concentrations of Al, Fe, Mn, Pb, Zn, Cu, Ni, Cr, Cd, As, and Hg were evaluated in surface and cored sediments of Moulay Bousselham lagoon. Significantly high concentrations in μg g⁻¹ dw of Pb (31.7–6.2), Zn (758.9–167), Cu (310.7–22), Ni (96–10.5), Cr (113–18.9), Cd (0.84–0.02), As (1–0.1), and Hg (0.61–0.02) were found in sediment samples from Moulay Bousselham lagoon. Calculated enrichment factors [EF_Me = (Me/Al)_sample/(Me/Al)_background], using Al as a normalizer, and correlation matrices showed that metal pollution in Merja Zerga of Moulay Bousselham lagoon was the product of anthropogenic sources, while the metal content in Merja Kehla was of natural origins. The results suggest that a major change in the sedimentary regime of the lagoon, associated with internal trapping and re-distribution of heavy metal, has been occurring in the past few decades. The cause would appear to be the construction of a Nador Canal at the lagoon. Probable effects concentrations (PEC) were often exceeded for heavy metals in the lagoon sediments, especially for Zn, Cu, Ni, and Cr, and four stations, stations MZ-11, MZ-12, MZ-13, MZ-14, MZ-16, and MZ-17, had multiple metals at presumptively toxic levels. These comparisons suggest that sediment metal levels in the river are clearly high and probably pose an environmental risk at some stations. The levels of most of the metals were not greatly enriched, a consideration that is of the utmost importance when contamination issues are at stake. Metal concentrations found in Moulay Bousselham lagoon were comparable to aquatic systems classified as contaminated from other regions of the world.