Introducing new design spectra derived from Italian recorded ground motions 1972 to 2017

The shape of design spectra, traditionally based on regions characterized by constant displacement, constant velocity, and constant acceleration, has been discussed from a conceptual point of view by Calvi (2018). In the same study, a formulation for the definition of the design spectra relying on four parameters was proposed. Predictive models are proposed herein to calculate these four parameters, conditional on magnitude and distance. These models were developed using a large number of recorded ground motions in Italy, and they allow defining combined spectral acceleration versus spectral displacement plots. Such design spectra are shown to reasonably interpolate the experimental data, resulting in acceleration and displacement demand that approximate the response spectra resulting from +1σ results obtained from recorded ground motions. While it is recognized that numerous additional parameter should be considered (eg, focal depth and fault distance, site amplification), it is also concluded that this approach to define the seismic demand is promising toward a rationalization of seismic design. A thorough application of the approach developed and preliminary tested in this work may result in a re‐visitation of seismic design approaches and, ultimately, in a more efficient use of the available resources.     

Groundwater Complexity in Urban Catchments: Shenzhen,Southern China

Groundwater interactions with surface water and sewers in an urban setting are complex, and classic hydrogeological approaches must be combined with anthropogenic elements to characterize them. The level of detail needed to understand these interactions is illustrated by the analysis of an urban subcatchment in the megacity of Shenzhen in southern China that has had a drastic urban expansion in the last 40 years. The study area is characterized by the Yanshanian granite that is widespread across southern-eastern China. The urban setting is studied using multitemporal analysis of satellite images, borehole investigations and field surveys. Given the local hydrostratigraphy, a conceptual model was developed to identify the physical and anthropogenic factors that regulate the urban groundwater system. Based on the conceptual model and the data collected from the field or compiled from the literature, the average annual effective recharge is estimated to be 290 mm/year, after the urbanization process. From rural to urban conditions, it is estimated that the effective recharge increased by 170% and sewers intercept at least 23% of the effective recharge. Groundwater captured by sewers reduces river flows and increases the required capacity and costs for waste water treatment plants.     

Conceptual seismic design in performance-based earthquake engineering

A principal aspect of seismic design is the verification of performance limit states, which help ensure satisfactory behaviour within a performance-based earthquake engineering framework. However, it is increasingly acknowledged that while ensuring life safety is a suitable basic design requirement, more meaningful metrics of seismic performance exist. Expected annual loss (EAL) has gained attention in recent years but tends to be limited to seismic assessment. This article proposes a novel conceptual design framework that employs EAL as a design tool and requires very little building information at the design outset. This means that designers may commence from a definition of required EAL and arrive at a number of feasible structural solutions without the need for any detailed design calculations or numerical analysis. This works by transforming the building performance definition to a design solution space using a number of simplifying assumptions. A suitable structural response backbone is subsequently determined and used to identify feasible building typologies and associated structural geometries. The assumptions made to implement such a conceptual design framework are discussed and justified herein followed by a case study application. This proposed design framework is intended to form the first step in seismic design to identify suitable typologies and layouts before subsequent member detailing and design verification. This way, engineers, architects, and clients can make more informed decisions that target certain performance goals at the beginning of design before further refinement.     

Seismic response of bridge piers on pile groups for different soil damping models and lumped parameter representations of the foundation

This paper presents a wide parametric study aimed at elucidating the influence, on the computed seismic response of bridge piers, of two related aspects of the model: (1) the adoption of the classical hysteretic or the causal Biot's damping models for the soil and (2) the use of two different lumped parameter models of different complexity and accuracy to approximate the impedances of the pile foundation. A total of 2072 cases, including different superstructures, pile foundations, soil deposits, and seismic input signals, are studied. The results are presented so that the influence of the different parameters involved in the analysis can be assessed. From an engineering point of view, both lumped parameter models provide, in general, sufficiently low errors. The choice of the most adequate model for each case will depend not only on the configuration of the structure and the soil-foundation system but also on the assumed soil damping model, whose influence on the computed seismic responses is relevant in many cases. The nonphysical behaviour provided by the classical hysteretic damping model for the soil at zero frequency generates issues in the process of fitting the impedance functions. It is also found that larger deck displacements are predicted by Biot's model due to the higher damping at low frequencies provided by the classical hysteretic damping model.     

Grazing Management Plans improve pasture selection by cattle and forage quality in sub-alpine and alpine grasslands

Over the last decades, the reduction of manpower for herd management has led to an increase of continuous grazing systems(CGS) in the Italian Alps, which allow cattle to roam freely. Under CGS, due to high selectivity, livestock exploit grasslands unevenly, over-and under-using specific areas at the same time with negative effects on their conservation. To counteract these effects, a specific policy and management tool(i.e. Grazing Management Plan) has been implemented by Piedmont Region since 2010. The Grazing Management Plans are based on the implementation of rotational grazing systems(RGS), with animal stocking rate adjusted to balance it with grassland carrying capacity. A case study was conducted on alpine summer pastures to test the 5-year effects produced by the implementation of a Grazing Management Plan in grasslands formerly managed under several years of CGS on 1) the selection for different vegetation communities by cattle, 2) the abundance of oligo-, meso-, and eutrophic plant species(defined according to Landolt N indicator value), and 3) forage yield, quality, and palatability. A total of 193 vegetation surveys were carried out in 2011 and repeated in 2016. Cows were tracked yearly with Global Positioning System collars to assess their grazing selectivity, and forage Pastoral Value(PV) was computed to evaluate forage yield, quality, and palatability. Five years after RGS implementation, cow selectivity significantly decreased and the preference for the different vegetation communities was more balanced than under CGS. The abundance of meso-and eutrophic species increased, whereas oligotrophic ones decreased. Moreover, the abundance of moderately to highly palatable plant species increased, whereas non-palatable plant species decreased, with a consequent significant enhancement of the PV. Our findings indicate that the implementation of Grazing Management Plans can be considered a sustainable and effective management tool for improving pasture selection by cattle and forage quality in mountain pastures.     

Application of first order rate kinetics to explain changes in bloom toxicity——the importance of understanding cell toxin quotas

Cyanobacteria are oxygenic photosynthetic Gram-negative bacteria that can form potentially toxic blooms in eutrophic and slow flowing aquatic ecosystems. Bloom toxicity varies spatially and temporally, but understanding the mechanisms that drive these changes remains largely a mystery. Changes in bloom toxicity may result from changes in intracellular toxin pool sizes of cyanotoxins with differing molecular toxicities, and/or from changes in the cell concentrations of toxic and non-toxic cyanobacterial species or strains within bloom populations. We show here how first-order rate kinetics at the cellular level can be used to explain how environmental conditions drive changes in bloom toxicity at the ecological level. First order rate constants can be calculated for changes in cell concentration( μ_c : specific cell division rate) or the volumetric biomass concentration( μ_g : specific growth rate) between short time intervals throughout the cell cycle. Similar first order rate constants can be calculated for changes in nett volumetric cyanotoxin concentration( μ_(tox) : specific cyanotoxin production rate) over similar time intervals. How μ_c(or μ_g) covaries with μ tox over the cell cycle shows conclusively when cyanotoxins are being produced and metabolised, and how the toxicity of cells change in response to environment stressors. When μ_(tox)/μ_c 1, cyanotoxin cell quotas increase and individual cells become more toxic because the nett cyanotoxin production rate is higher than the cell division rate. When μ_(tox)/μ_c =1, cell cyanotoxin quotas remains fixed because the nett cyanotoxin production rate matches the cell division rate. When μ_(tox)/μ_c 1, the cyanotoxin cell quota decreases because either the nett cyanotoxin production rate is lower than the cell division rate, or metabolic breakdown and/or secretion of cyanotoxins is occurring. These fundamental equations describe cyanotoxin metabolism dynamics at the cellular level and provide the necessary physiological background to understand how environmental stressors drive changes in bloom toxicity.     

Temporal correlation of population composition and environmental variables in the marine invader Ciona robusta

The capacity for ascidians to inhabit coastal sea floor worldwide relies on their peculiar tolerance to environmental variables and pollution, which is considered, together with high levels of genetic diversity, among the main drivers of their invasive potential. In spite of the continued interest in the genetics of invasive species, little attention has been paid toward the microevolutionary processes that drive structure and fate of ascidian populations over time under chemically polluted conditions. Understanding the interplay between environmental and population dynamics is critical to predict the biodiversity of marine coastal ecosystems. In the present study, a local population of the ascidian Ciona robusta living in the Fusaro Lagoon has been monitored over a 13‐month period of sampling. Physico‐chemical parameters (temperature, salinity, turbidity, dissolved oxygen, heavy metals), genetic composition (microsatellites, ITS‐2), abundance and biomass (wet and dry weight) were assessed with the aim to infer fine‐scale temporal variation of population structure with respect to rapid environmental change. Analysis of biomass showed that C. robusta is highly sensitive to salinity and oxygen concentrations. Further, genetic analysis suggested a highly dynamic population structure, likely due to the strong clustering of temporal samples and distinct responses to environmental conditions, including bioaccumulation of heavy metals. Here, we hypothesize that rapid variation in allele frequencies of neutral markers in C. robusta populations may increase the ability of the species to colonize habitats that are subject to strong variation and are under heavy human pressure.     

The FUNWAVE model application and its validation using laboratory data

In this paper, the performance of a well known and widespread Boussinesq model is evaluated for its ability to predict deep waters and shoaling zone velocity and elevation, comparing them with laboratory data. The model evaluation places emphasis on the parameters of the wave field that could be used for the prediction of coastal phenomena. It was found that the model proved its ability to predict regular wave velocity and elevation both in deep waters and shoaling zones right up to the breaking region. In contrast to previous works found in literature, the comparisons in this case are not limited to modelled and measured wave elevations, but also involve horizontal velocities. As a result, experimental and computed time series of wave elevations and horizontal velocities and their corresponding phase-averaged values are investigated along the wave channel, showing a good performance of the model.     

Sources and fate of nutrients in a subtropical reservoir

This study examined the sources and fate of nutrient inputs from two principal tributaries to the eutrophic subtropical Wivenhoe reservoir: an unregulated river and a dammed river with regular releases, during a period of declining reservoir water levels. Nutrient budgets were constructed over a period of 6 years, and combined with short-term data on nutrient concentrations and forms, and δ¹⁵N stable isotope data. Our study found that over a 6 year period, there was net retention of phosphorus (P) in the reservoir, with 60% of inputs retained. Most of the P input load came from the unregulated river, with an agricultural catchment, during periods of high flow. During one event half of the total TP load from the unregulated river in the study period was delivered in only 12 days. Much of the P was dissolved inorganic P (DIP) and was derived from high P concentrations in soils and sediments. This highlights the importance of appropriate catchment management practices to reduce P losses from terrestrial systems because retention of P in reservoir sediments reduces the availability of this nutrient for agricultural production. In contrast, there was negligible retention of nitrogen (N). The unregulated river was an important source of N derived from N fixation in the river and adjacent soils, while the source from the dammed river was mostly reprocessed N. The high retention of P relative to N is consistent with relatively higher accumulation of P in sediments.     

Surface modes in the infrared spectrum of hydrous minerals: the OH stretching modes of bayerite

The theoretical infrared (IR) and Raman spectra of bayerite (β-Al(OH)₃) are computed in the density functional theory framework, using the linear response theory. The results are consistent with the occurrence of six non-equivalent OH groups in a bayerite structure with space group P2₁/n. Similar to gibbsite, the transmission powder IR spectrum of bayerite in the region of the OH stretching bands is found to depend on the shape of particles. In particular, the broadening of the strong band observed at about 3,460 cm⁻¹ in the spectrum of Al hydroxides is related to the electrostatic charges occurring at the surface of the polarized dielectric particles. The experimental correlation observed between the shape of this band and morphological parameters has therefore a physical, instead of chemical, origin.