The Hyperstatic Reaction Method for the Analysis of the Sprayed Concrete Linings Behavior in Tunneling

Hyperstatic Reaction Method considers the interaction between the shotcrete lining and the rock mass modelling half tunnel section by beam elements connected by nodes, which can develop bending moments, axial forces and shear forces. The interaction between ground and support is represented by Winkler type springs in the nodes of the numerical model, in the normal and tangential direction. 1944 analyses were developed considering three different tunnel radius values (2.0, 4.5 and 7.0 m), three different rock types (RMR = 40, RMR = 60 and RMR = 80), three different stress ratios acting on the linings (\(K = 1, \,K = 0.5\) and \(K = 0\)), three different lining thickness values (0.1, 0.2 and 0.3 m) and three values of the average elastic modulus of the shotcrete (6000, 9000 and 12,000 MPa). Besides, also two different stiffness values of the tangential springs at nodes were considered. Results show that the lining thickness and the elastic modulus of the shotcrete have a strong influence on the bending moment values which develop inside. The maximum axial force is not practically influenced by the lining elastic modulus and thickness. Both maximum bending moments and maximum axial forces increase in a linear way with the vertical load value; tunnel radius, \(K\) and RMR values of the rock mass have also a great influence on the maximum bending moment and axial force. Besides, it is possible to note how the absence of shear interaction between the lining and the rock mass causes bending moment values in the lining higher with respect to the case where the stiffness of the tangential springs at nodes equals to half the stiffness of the normal springs. For this reason, the neglectance of the shear interaction between the lining and the tunnel wall leads to an overdesign of the SC lining.     

Multicriterial analysis in the investigation of favorable areas for edifications with shallow and deep foundations in the Municipality of Campos dos Goytacazes — Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

The Municipality of Campos dos Goytacazes is located on the northern coast of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The city developed on a floodplain and as a consequence of this occupation it has experienced problems with the water table level, drainage system, soil carrying capacity and aquifers' contamination. The purpose of this paper was to accomplish a geological and environmental study, producing interpretive and derived geotechnical maps to analyze the degree of aptitudes or restrictions of the physical environment for urban expansion. In order to do this, the methodology of multicriterial analysis was used, combined with pedological indicators resulting in the elaboration of the Favorability Maps for Buildings (Shallow and Deep Foundations). The remote sensing tools, GIS and GPS, sped up the elaboration of the Information Plans. The maps generated in this work allow us to indicate problems in the physical environment serving as a guide to urbanization. It was verified that the city expands into unsuitable areas and it is recommended as areas for expansion those considered favorable in the outcomes of this research.     

Double‐pass spectro‐imaging: TUNIS

We present TUNIS, a double‐pass spectro‐imager built in THEMIS as a proof‐of‐concept for EST. Basic concepts and selected first results are shown. We introduce the concept of a Hadamard spectral mask as a proposition to move forward from the present implementation of a single‐wavelength per image pixel to a more general one of multiplexed spectral information that improves the temporal coherence of the spectral measurement (© 2010 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Methane stocks in tropical hydropower reservoirs as a potential energy source

Several studies over the last decade have shown that tropical reservoirs may constitute an appreciable source of methane (CH₄) to the atmosphere. Here, we show that the use of low-cost, innovative mitigation and recovery strategies is able not only to reduce these emissions, but also to transform existing biogenic methane stocks into a renewable energy source. Recovered gas may be pumped to large consuming centers or stored locally and burned by gas turbines to generate electricity during high-demand periods, or even purified for transport applications. Our analysis shows that the use of biogenic methane may increase considerably the energy supply in countries, like Brazil, which possess large tropical reservoirs.     

Talus Instability in a Recent Deglaciation Area and Its Relationship to Buried Ice and Snow Cover Evolution (Picacho Del Veleta, Sierra Nevada, Spain)

The southernmost glacier in Europe formed during the Little Ice Age at the foot of the north wall of Picacho del Veleta (3 398 m) in Sierra Nevada, in the southeast region of the Iberian Peninsula (lat. 37δ03‘N, long. 3δ22‘W). The glacier gradually retreated during the last century, leaving a large talus slope at the base of the wall. The unconsolidated material covering the ice masses acted as a thermal insulator. Recent bottom temperature of snow (BTS) analyses and drillings indicate that the ice still exists within the talus. Evidence from field observations made during the period 1995–2001, revealed that large mass movements occurred during the driest summers (1998 and especially, 1999 and 2000) when the talus was snow free. These conditions suggest a direct relationship between talus stability and thermal insulation from the snow cover in areas where buried ice or decaying marginal permafrost exists.     

Cretaceous evolution of the Andean margin between 36°S and 40°S latitude through a multi‐proxy provenance analysis of Neuquén Basin strata (Argentina)

During the Cretaceous, the Neuquén Basin transitioned from an extensional back‐arc to a retroarc foreland basin. We present a multi‐proxy provenance study of Aptian to Santonian (125–84 Ma) continental sedimentary rocks preserved in the Neuquén Basin used to resolve changes of sediment drainage pattern in response to the change in tectonic regime. Sandstone petrology and U–Pb detrital zircon geochronology constrain the source units delivering detritus to the basin; apatite U–Pb and fission track dating further resolve provenance and determine the age and patterns of exhumation of the source rocks. Sandstone provenance records a sharp change from a mixed orogenic source during Aptian time (ca. 125 Ma), to a magmatic arc provenance in the Cenomanian (ca. 100 Ma). We interpret this provenance change as the result of the drainage pattern reorganisation from divergent to convergent caused by tectonic basin inversion. During this inversion and early stages of contraction, a transient phase of uplift and basin erosion, possibly due to continental buckling, caused the pre‐Cenomanian unconformity dividing the Lower from Upper Cretaceous strata in the Neuquén Basin. This phase was followed by the development of a retroarc foreland basin characterised by a volcanic arc sediment provenance progressively shifting to a mixed continental basement provenance during Turonian‐Santonian (90–84). According to multi‐proxy provenance data and lag times derived from apatite fission track analysis, this trend is the result of a rapidly exhuming source within the Cordillera to the west, in response to active compressional tectonics along the western margin of South America, coupled with the increasing contribution of material from the stable craton to the east; this contribution is thought to be the result of the weak uplift and exhumation of the foreland due to eastward migration of the forebulge.     

Vertical structure variability in a seasonal simulation of a medium-resolution regional model of the Eastern South Pacific

A seasonal simulation from a medium-resolution ocean general circulation mode (OGCM) is used to investigate the vertical structure variability of the Southeast Pacific (SEP). The focus is on the extra-tropical Rossby wave (ETRW) variability and associated forcing mechanism. Some aspects of the model mean state are validated from available observations, which justifies a vertical mode decomposition of the model variability. The analysis of the baroclinic mode contributions to sea level indicates that the gravest mode is dominant over most of the domain at all frequencies. Annual variability is on average twice as large as the semi-annual variability which is confined near the coast for all the modes. The first baroclinic mode contribution to the annual cycle exhibits a clear westward propagation north of the critical latitude. The higher-order modes only contribute near the coast where they are associated with vertically propagating energy. The residual variability, which is the energy at all timescales other than annual and semi-annual periods peaks offshore between 20°S and 30°S for all baroclinic modes. The third baroclinic mode also exhibits a relative maximum variability off the coast of Peru south of the critical latitude of the annual cycle (13°S), where the Peru–Chile Undercurrent is the most intense. Sensitivity experiments to the atmospheric and boundary forcing suggest that the residual variability results from the non-linear interaction between annual Rossby waves and the mean flow, while the annual ETRWs in the model result from the summed-contribution from both the local wind stress and remote equatorial forcing. Overall the study extends the classical analysis of sea level variability in the SEP based on linear theory, and suggests that the peculiarities of the baroclinic modes need to be taken into account for interpreting the sea level variability and understanding its connection with the equatorial variability.     

Rapid fish stock depletion in previously unexploited seamounts: the case of Beryx splendens from the Sierra Leone Rise (Gulf of Guinea)

Fish stocks associated with seamounts may be particularly susceptible to overexploitation. From January to July 2001, the Spanish Oceanographic Institute (IEO) conducted an experimental fishing survey entitled ‘Palguinea-2001’ on the seamounts of the Sierra Leone Rise. Beryx splendens (commonly called alfonsino) is the main commercial demersal fish associated with this area. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of a demersal longline fishery targeting B. splendens on the previously unexploited small Machucambo Seamount over a short time-scale, and also to consider trends in pooled catch rate at another four seamounts. During 110 fishing days at Machucambo, a total catch of 207 tonnes of B. splendens was taken with a fishing effort of 1 309 070 hooks. A spectral analysis and red-noise spectra procedure (REDFIT) algorithm was used to identify the red-noise spectrum from the gaps in the observed time-series of catch per unit effort by weight. Our results show the potential impact of longline fishing pressure on an unexploited ecosystem – after approximately 50 fishing days, the stock appeared to decline substantially, as reflected by a marked drop in catch per unit effort. The apparent rapid decline of the stock might be related to the small size and the virgin state of the Sierra Leone seamounts. The results could be extrapolated to similar small seamounts elsewhere.