Recent trends of mean maximum and minimum air temperatures in the western half of Iran

In this study, the trends of the annual, seasonal and monthly maximum (T _max) and minimum (T _min) air temperatures time series were investigated for 20 stations in the western half of Iran during 1966?C2005. Three statistical tests including Mann?CKendall, Sen??s slope estimator and linear regression were used for the analysis. The annual T _max and T _min series showed a positive trend in 85% of the stations and a negative trend in 15% of the stations in the study region. The highest increase of T _max and T _min values were obtained over Kermanshah and Ahwaz at the rates of (+)0.597°C/decade and (+)0.911°C/decade, respectively. On the seasonal scale, the strongest increasing trends were identified in T _max and T _min data in summer. The highest numbers of stations with positive significant trends occurred in the monthly T _max and T _min series in August. In contrast, the lowest numbers of stations with significant positive trends were observed between November and March. Overall, the results showed similar increasing trends for the study variables, although T _min generally increased at a higher rate than T _max in the study period.     

Vertical resolution enhancement of petrophysical Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) log using ordinary kriging

Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) logging provides priceless information about hydrocarbon bearing intervals such as free fluid porosity and permeability. This study focuses on using geostatistics from NMR logging instruments at high depths of investigation to enhance vertical resolution for better understanding of reservoirs. In this study, a NMR log was used such that half of its midpoint data was used for geostatistical model construction using an ordinary kriging technique and the rest of the data points were used for assessing the performance of the constructed model. This strategy enhances the resolution of NMR logging by twofold. Results indicated that the correlation coefficient between measured and predicted permeability and free fluid porosity is equal to 0.976 and 0.970, respectively. This means that geostatistical modeling is capable of enhancing the vertical resolution of NMR logging. This study was successfully applied to carbonate reservoir rocks of the South Pars Gas Field.     

Oil formation volume factor modeling: Traditional vs. Stochastically optimized neural networks

Oil formation volume factor (FVF) is considered as relative change in oil volume between reservoir condition and standard surface condition. FVF, always greater than one, is dominated by reservoir temperature, amount of dissolved gas in oil, and specific gravity of oil and dissolved gas. In addition to limitations on reliable sampling, experimental determination of FVF is associated with high costs and time-consumption. Therefore, this study proposes a novel approach based on hybrid genetic algorithm-pattern search (GA-PS) optimized neural network (NN) for fast, accurate, and cheap determination of oil FVF from available measured pressure-volume-temperature (PVT) data. Contrasting to traditional neural network which is in danger of sticking in local minima, GA-PS optimized NN is in charge of escaping from local minima and converging to global minimum. A group of 342 data points were used for model construction and a group of 219 data points were employed for model assessment. Results indicated superiority of GA-PS optimized NN to traditional NN. Oil FVF values, determined by GA-PS optimized NN were in good agreement with reality.     

Features of interaction between lake water and springs,and evaluation of hydrochemical composition of water in Ifni Lake (High Atlas Mountains,Morocco, north of Africa)

The National Park of Toubkal is located in the High Moroccan Atlas Mountains, one of the regions sheltering the highest summits of North Africa (Mount Toubkal with an elevation of 4167 m). The park is characterized by very important water resources, including Ifni Lake, which is the highest natural lake in Morocco (with an elevation of 2320 m). This lake is located on the southern side of Mt. Toubkal. This area has never been the object of an environmental or hydrological study. The objective of the current study was the characterization of Ifni Lake and the spring waters located in this area, as the basis of a framework to protect natural resources in northern Africa. The hydrochemical composition of water determines its origin and relationship with its catchment. Hydrochemical studies were carried out to assess the ions water composition, and processes governing the hydrochemistry of Ifni Lake water and the springs in the study area. A total of 20 water samples were collected in 2013 and analyzed for various parameters such as pH, electrical conductivity, and major ions. The physico-chemical analysis of the Ifni Lake water showed that this is the least mineralized water studied in this region, having a bicarbonate, calcium, and magnesium as dominate ions. Also there is a relationship between the hydrochemical composition of Ifni Lake and spring waters.     

The diffuse transition between the Zagros continental collision and the Makran oceanic subduction (Iran): microearthquake seismicity and crustal structure

The nature of the transition between the Zagros intra-continental collision and the Makran oceanic subduction is a matter of debate: either a major fault cutting the whole lithosphere or a more progressive transition associated with a shallow gently dipping fault restricted to the crust. Microearthquake seismicity located around the transition between the transition zone is restricted to the west of the Jaz-Murian depression and the Jiroft fault. No shallow micro-earthquakes seem to be related to the NNW–SSE trending Zendan–Minab–Palami active fault system. Most of the shallow seismicity is related either to the Zagros mountain belt, located in the west, or to the NS trending Sabzevaran–Jiroft fault system, located in the north. The depth of microearthquakes increases northeastwards to an unusually deep value (for the Zagros) of 40 km. Two dominant types of focal mechanisms are observed in this region: low-angle thrust faulting, mostly restricted to the lower crust, and strike-slip at shallow depths, both consistent with NS shortening. The 3-D inversion of P traveltimes suggests a high-velocity body dipping northeastwards to a depth of 25 km. This high-velocity body, probably related to the lower crust, is associated with the deepest earthquakes showing reverse faulting. We propose that the transition between the Zagros collision and the Makran subduction is not a sharp lithospheric-scale transform fault associated with the Zendan–Minab–Palami fault system. Instead it is a progressive transition located in the lower crust. The oblique collision results in partial partitioning between strike-slip and shortening components within the shallow brittle crust because of the weakness of the pre-existing Zendan–Minab–Palami faults.     

Analysis of the climate change effect on wheat production systems and investigate the potential of management strategies

In an emergency, schools are responsible for the safety of students until they can be reunited with their families. This study explored emergencies (i.e. bomb threat, a flood, and an earthquake) in three case study schools in New Zealand. Within each case, a selection of stakeholders (i.e. school leaders, staff, and parents) shared their experiences of responding to emergency events in the school. Lessons from participants’ experiences established factors before, during, and after an emergency that contribute to an effective response. Foremost among those factors was the importance of prior preparation. The study also identified recurring response activities, irrespective of emergency type, which enabled the development of a six-stage model of an effective school-based emergency response. The stages are: (1) Alerts; (2) Safety behaviours; (3) Response actions; (4) Student release/Family reunification; (5) Temporary school closure; and (6) Business as usual. The present study contributes to our understanding of research investigating how schools respond to emergencies and therefore seeks to enhance school safety efforts.     

Mineral Chemistry, Trace Elements, Isotopic Analysis and Zircon U-Pb Dating in the Hesar Pluton, Northern UDMA, Iran: Implications for Pre-Collisional Magma Mixing

The Hesar pluton in the northern Urumieh–Dokhtar magmatic arc hosts numerous mafic-microgranular enclaves (MMEs). Whole rock geochemistry, mineral chemistry, zircon U-Pb and Sr-Nd isotopes were measured. It is suggested that the rocks are metaluminous (A/CNK = 1.32–1.45), subduction-related I-type calc-alkaline gabbro to diorite with similar mineral assemblages and geochemical signatures. The host rocks yielded an U-Pb crystallization age of 37.3 ± 0.4 Ma for gabbro-diorite. MMEs have relatively low SiO2 contents (52.9–56.6 wt%) and high Mg# (49.8–58.7), probably reflecting a mantle-derived origin. Chondrite- and mantle-normalized trace element patterns are characterized by LREE and LILE enrichment, HREE and HFSE depletion with slight negative Eu anomalies (Eu/Eu* = 0.86–1.03). The host rocks yield (87Sr/86Sr)i ratios of 0.70492–0.70510, positive εNd(t) values of +1.55–+2.06 and TDM2 of 707–736 Ma, which is consistent with the associated mafic microgranular enclaves ((87Sr/86Sr)i = 0.705014, εNd(t) = +1.75, TDM2 = 729 Ma). All data suggest magma-mixing for enclave and host rock formation, showing a complete equilibration between mixed-mafic and felsic magmas, followed by rapid diffusion. The TDM1(Nd) and TDM2(Nd) model ages and U-Pb dating indicate that the host pluton was produced by partial melting of the lower continental crust and subsequent mixing with injected lithospheric mantle-derived magmas in a pre-collisional setting of Arabian–Eurasian plates. Clinopyroxene composition indicates a crystallization temperature of ~1000°C and a depth of ~9 km.     

Statistical Evaluation of CPT and CPTu Based Methods for Prediction of Axial Bearing Capacity of Piles

Piles are structural members made of steel, concrete, or wood installed into the ground to transfer superstructure loads to the soil. Nowadays, many structures are built on poor lands, and therefore piles have crucial roles in such structures. Performing in-situ tests such as cone penetration (CPT) and piezocone penetration tests (CPTu) have always been of great importance in designing piles. These tests have a brilliant consistency with reality, and as a result, the outcome data can be used in order to achieve reliable pile designing models and reduce uncertainty in this regard. In this paper, the capability of various CPT and CPTu based methods developed from 1961 to 2016 has been investigated using four statistical methods. Such CPT and CPTu based methods are adopted for direct prediction of axial bearing capacity of piles using CPT and CPTu field data. For this purpose, 61 sets of field data prepared from CPT and CPTu have been collected. The data sets were utilized in order to calculate the axial bearing capacity of piles (Q_E) through 25 different methods. In addition, the measured axial pile capacities (Q_M) have been collected, recorded and prepared from field static load tests, respectively. Then, four different statistical approaches have been applied to assess the accuracy of these methods. Finally, the most reliable and accurate methods are presented.

     

The Bam Earthquake of 26 December 2003

The devastating earthquake of 26 December 2003 claimed more than 26,000 lives in the city of Bam and surrounding towns and villages in Southeast Iran, and left the majority of the Bam population homeless. The reason for this tragedy was an unfortunate combination of geological, social and human circumstances. The causative fault practically traversed the city of Bam and the earthquake occurred at a shallow depth. The residential buildings were completely inappropriate for a seismic region, being extremely vulnerable to earthquake shaking, and the earthquake occurred early in the morning when most people were still sleeping. The damage pattern was nearly symmetric about a line 3 km to the west of the surface expression of the Bam fault, and the damage attenuated rapidly with distance from this line. The industrial facilities and the lifelines performed relatively well and experienced slight to moderate damage, but this might have been due to their distance from the earthquake epicentre. However, many of the qanat (traditional subterranean irrigation channels) chains that served the twin cities of Bam and Baravat collapsed. Emergency facilities (hospitals, police and fire stations), schools and the university were destroyed and/or heavily damaged during the earthquake. The geotechnical effects of the earthquake were not significant. There was little evidence that site response effects played a major role in the damage pattern in the city. There were no reports of liquefaction and only minor sliding activity took place during the event. A unique set of strong motion acceleration recordings were obtained at the Bam accelerograph station. The highest peak ground acceleration (nearly 1g) was recorded for the vertical component of the motion. However, the longitudinal component (fault-parallel motion in N–S direction) clearly had the largest energy flux, as well as the largest maximum velocity and displacement.