Estimating Menard pressuremeter modulus and limit pressure from SPT in silty sand and silty clay soils. A case study in Mashhad,Iran

The Menard pressuremeter test is a relatively expensive in situ test, which generates useful information about the strength and deformation properties of any soil and weak rock, which is carried out in some projects. On the other hand, the SPT test is a rather inexpensive, simple and typical in situ test used to determine the engineering properties of silt, clay, sand, and fine gravel which is utilised in almost all projects.

In this study SPT blow counts (N₆₀) were correlated with pressuremeter modulus (E_PMT) and limit pressure (P_L) and empirical equations were proposed to estimate P_L and E_PMT from N₆₀ in silty sand and silty clay soils separately. These tests have been conducted during subway geotechnical investigation in Mashhad, Iran.

Moreover, in order to verify these empirical equations, they were compared with similar equations that have been proposed by other researchers. These comparisons display that in all equations a linear relationship exists between N₆₀ - E_PMT and N₆₀ - P_L. However, the line slopes are different so it can be concluded the line slopes are related to soil type and geological condition of an area. Thus, for each area a separate empirical equation must be presented.     

Does beach seine fishery permanently alter macroinvertebrate communities and sediment characteristics in the Southern Caspian Sea?

The impacts of a beach seine fishery on macroinvertebrate communities and sediment characteristics were investigated in the Southwest Caspian Sea. Samples from a single impacted site that was regularly seined were compared with two control sites outside the fishing area. Benthic macroinvertebrates were sampled on four occasions: 6 months prior to the opening of the beach seine fishery (Time 1), 1 day immediately after the closing of beach seining (Time 2), 1 week after closing (Time 3), and 1 month after closing (Time 4). No significant differences were detected in total density, Shannon diversity, or evenness of the macroinvertebrate assemblages between impact and control sites. Unlike density, species richness increased significantly immediately after fishery closure at all sites. A significant difference was detected in the number of species between Time 2 and Time 3 at all sites and the number of species was reduced at Time 4 in all sites. Pontogammarids increased by twofold in the impact site 1 day immediately after closing beach seine fishery and leveled off toward the end of the closed season. The amplified density of pontogammarids 1 day after fishery closing at the impact site might be driven in part by an increase in sediment oxygen content resulting from disturbance of the sea floor. An alternative explanation is that the effect of fish predation on pontogammarids has largely been minimized at the impact site after 6 months of continuous fishing activity. No significant changes in the sedimentary organic content and chlorophyll‐a between the impact and control sites were observed during the courses of sampling; however, a significant change occurred between the average sedimentary pheopigment content of the control sites and that of the impact site. The conclusion from the present study is that beach seine fishery does not harm to benthic communities. The closed season also seemed to allow recovery to pre‐season levels of macroinvertebrate richness and sedimentary chlorophyll‐a.     

A family of exact solutions of Einstein-Maxwell field equations in isotropic coordinates: an application to optimization of quark star mass

In the present paper, we have obtained a class of charged super dense star models, starting with a static spherically symmetric metric in isotropic coordinates for perfect fluid by considering Hajj-Boutros (in J. Math. Phys. 27:1363, 1986) type metric potential and a specific choice of electrical intensity which involves a parameter K. The resulting solutions represent charged fluid spheres joining smoothly with the Reissner-Nordstrom metric at the pressure free interface. The solutions so obtained are utilized to construct the models for super-dense star like neutron stars (ρ _b =2 and 2.7×10¹⁴ g/cm³) and Quark stars (ρ _b =4.6888×10¹⁴ g/cm³). Our solution is well behaved for all values of n satisfying the inequalities \(4 < n \le4(4 + \sqrt{2} )\) and K satisfying the inequalities 0≤K≤0.24988, depending upon the value of n. Corresponding to n=4.001 and K=0.24988, we observe that the maximum mass of quark star M=2.335M _⊙ and radius R=10.04 km. Further, this maximum mass limit of quark star is in the order of maximum mass of stable Strange Quark Star established by Dong et al. (in arXiv:1207.0429v3, 2013). The robustness of our results is that the models are alike with the recent discoveries.     

Ash Shutbah: A possible impact structure in Saudi Arabia

We have investigated the Ash Shutbah circular structure in central Saudi Arabia (21°37′N 45°39′E) using satellite imagery, field mapping, thin‐section petrography, and X‐ray diffraction of collected samples. The approximately 2.1 km sized structure located in flat‐lying Jurassic Tuwaiq Mountain Limestone has been nearly peneplained by erosional processes. Satellite and structural data show a central area consisting of Dhruma Formation sandstones with steep bedding and tight folds plunging radially outward. Open folding occurs in displaced, younger Tuwaiq Mountain Limestone Formation blocks surrounding the central area, but is absent outside the circular structure. An approximately 60 cm thick, unique folded and disrupted orthoquartzitic sandstone marker bed occurring in the central area of the structure is found 140 m deeper in undisturbed escarpment outcrops located a few hundred meters west of the structure. With exception of a possible concave shatter cone found in the orthoquartzite of the central area, other diagnostic shock features are lacking. Some quartz‐rich sandstones from the central area show pervasive fracturing of quartz grains with common concussion fractures. This deformation was followed by an event of quartz dissolution and calcite precipitation consistent with local sea‐ or groundwater heating. The combination of central stratigraphic uplift of 140 m, concussion features in discolored sandstone, outward‐dipping concentric folds in the central area, deformation restricted to the rocks of the ring structure, a complex circular structure of 2.1 km diameter that appears broadly consistent with what one would expect from an impact structure in sedimentary targets, and a possible shatter cone all point to an impact origin of the Ash Shutbah structure. In fact, the Ash Shutbah structure appears to be a textbook example of an eroded, complex impact crater located in flat‐lying sedimentary rocks, where the undisturbed stratigraphic section can be studied in escarpment outcrops in the vicinity of the structure.