Impact of spate irrigation of flood waters on agricultural drought and groundwater recharge: case of Sidi Bouzid plain,Central Tunisia

In Sidi Bouzid plain, rainfall alone is insufficient to satisfy crop water requirements. Within this framework, and in order to improve water resources in the region, the Tunisian State adopted non-conventional water mobilization techniques, among which artificial spate irrigation. The objective of the study is to evaluate the impact of spate irrigation of flood water on the mitigation of agricultural drought and the enhancement of groundwater recharge. Annual and monthly rainfall data as well as flood water volumes were monitored. The study focused on the groundwater drawdown monitoring. Results showed a high flood water contribution to crop water requirements that exceeded rainfall. This water prevented drought in the spate perimeters. The groundwater drawdown was found to fluctuate over time, with an average decreasing rate of 0.4 to 0.5 m/year. Groundwater recharge was found to be highly correlated with flood water contribution through spate irrigation (R ² = 84 %). Out of the spate zone, a high decrease in the groundwater level was noted. The lowest rate of 1 m/year was that of the farthest piezometer from the spate perimeters. This is influenced by the excessive pumping out of the spate zone. In 1980, groundwater flew from the west to the east. In 2015, the flow movement from the east to the center of the plain did not change due to the presence of the spate perimeters. Nevertheless, excessive pumping around sabkhas changed the flow directions at the outlet zone. A variation in groundwater salinity was observed in both space and time. In 1975, salinity was very low. The outlet zone was the most affected where the drawdown reached several meters, causing saltwater intrusion from the surrounding sabkhas.     

Three-dimensional supervirtual seismic refraction interferometry

Improved supervirtual interferometry (SVI) method that enhance the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of noisy seismic refraction data is presented. This 3D supervirtual algorithm is helpful in removal of side lobes caused by convolution in the conventional 3D SVI method. In this study, we extend the supervirtual seismic refraction interferometry method to 3D geometries commonly used in active seismic exploration. To achieve this objective, synthetic 3D seismic refraction data were created using single patch orthogonal geometry. Simple two-layers velocity model was used. A zero phase wavelet was convolved with the refraction travel time to create the seismic wiggle trace. The refraction arrival is computed using the equation for horizontal refractor case and is not adapted for dipping refractor. Noise of Gaussian distribution with zero mean and 0.25 standard deviation was added to simulate a case of moderate ambient noise. The supervirtual algorithm, consisting of crosscorrelation, alignment, summation, and first arrival calculation is performed. By aligning and summation of all the correlogram, the stationary position of source-receiver pairs as required in the 2D supervirtual method are eliminated in this case. Synthetic data presented in this study shows accurate first arrivals after the application of the 3D SVI and traces with much better SNR than the actual traces.     

Effects of size and strain rate on the mechanical behaviors of rock specimens under uniaxial compression

Size and strain rate are two key factors that dramatically influence the estimation of rock mechanical behaviors. To better understand the effects of size and strain rate on measured rocks, rock specimens with six different sizes were tested at six different strain rates under uniaxial compression using the MTS 815 Rock Mechanics Test System. Having determined that the size and strain rate significantly affect the peak strain, peak stress, elastic modulus, acoustic emission (AE), and failure pattern of the rock specimens, the relation was established between the strength and the size and strain rate of red sandstone. And the variation was revealed among the size and strain rate, the AE, and the failure pattern. It turned out that the peak stress was negatively correlated with the rock size and was positively correlated with the strain rate. When the length to diameter ratio (L/D) of the rock specimen was less than 2.0, the AE appeared mildly. The AE quantities gradually increased before the peak stress, and then sharply decreased after the peak stress. The failure pattern of the rock specimen was relatively complicated, with a fracture plane appearing along the axial direction. Conical failure type was also presented. When the L/D ratio of the specimen was greater than 2.0, the AE characteristics of red sandstone showed the radical model. There were relatively few AE rings before the peak stress. But the AE rings increased suddenly and dramatically during the peak stress. The rock specimens primarily failed with a single shear plane. Moreover, with an increase in the strain rate, the AE activities were enhanced and the AE quantities increased. When the strain rate of the rock specimen was less than 5.0?×?10^?4/s, the rock specimen failed with a shear or tensile-shear pattern. And when the strain rate was greater than 5.0?×?10^?4/s, the rock specimen tended to fail in a conical pattern.     

Comparative analysis of Lake Urmia and Lake Van water level time series

Recent decline in Lake Urmia water level makes it crucial to consider this issue more seriously. For this purpose, comparison of water level in Lake Urmia with Lake Van in Turkey, which is in relatively similar geographic and climate conditions, can be an effective approach. To follow this objective, trend analysis, regime shift, and coherency analyses are implemented. The results showed negative trend in Lake Urmia water level for the past 20 years, while in Lake Van, the trend is positive. Moreover, correlation of the lake level variations versus the basin rainfall during three common periods, identified by the regime shifts analysis, illustrated a decreasing trend in the correlation. These changes can be attributed to non-climatic factors such as different allocation disciplines in two lake’s catchments. Finally, the coherency analysis showed significant annual and inter-annual frequencies common between the two lake levels. Herein, the short-term period relations are associated with lags, while in long term, they act simultaneously.     

Mineralization time and tectonic setting of the Zhengguang Au deposit in the Duobaoshan ore field,Heilongjiang Province,NE China

The Zhengguang deposit, a representative large gold deposit in the Duobaoshan ore field in NE China, is located in the northeast of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt (CAOB). Ore body emplacement was structurally controlled and occurs mainly at the contact zone between the strata of Duobaoshan Formation and an Ordovician diorite stock. The diorite rocks have a close genetic relationship with Au mineralization. Re–Os isotope dating of Au-bearing pyrite yields an isochron age of 506 ± 44 Ma (MSWD = 15). Based on present and previous dating results, it can be concluded that the Zhengguang deposit formed at ~480 Ma. The mineralization time of the Zhengguang deposit is nearly identical to those of the Duobaoshan and Tongshan deposits, indicating they are all derived from the same metallogenic system. The Duobaoshan-style porphyry Cu–Mo mineralization may exist at deeper levels at Zhengguang. The geochemical characteristics of the Zhengguang dioritic rocks presented in this paper are similar to those of bajaitic high-Mg andesite, and the magmas originated from a mantle wedge metasomatized by melts from a subducting oceanic slab at an active continental margin setting. The Ordovician magmatic–metallogenic events in the Duobaoshan ore field were caused by the westward subduction of an oceanic slab located between the Xing’an and Songliao blocks. It is worth pointing out that the Zhengguang deposit is the oldest known Phanerozoic Au deposit in NE China. Further studies of this deposit will improve understanding of the regularity of ore formation and aid mineralization forecast across the Duobaoshan region.     

New occurrence of potential phosphate resource in northeast Jordan

An exploration program aided by field investigation, exploration drilling, detailed sampling, lithological and petrological studies, geochemical investigation, and resource calculation leads to the discovery of a potential phosphate resource in northeast Jordan close to the international border with Saudi Arabia and Iraq. The studied phosphate is of the Middle Eocene age that belongs to the Wadi Shallala Formation. It is equivalent to the phosphate deposits recorded in the lower part of the Umm Wual Formation in the Turayf region of Saudi Arabia and the Eocene Ratga Formation in the Ethna phosphate deposit west of Iraq. The phosphorites in the region are broadly similar in mineralogical composition and geochemical affinities. X-ray diffraction indicates the presence of francolite with variable amounts of calcite and quartz. Most samples consist of phosphate clasts embedded in carbonate and silica matrix and cement. P₂O₅ content is up to 32.3 % with an average equal to 18.6 %. The impurity is caused by the presence of variable amounts of SiO₂ and CaO. The F% and F/P₂O₅ ratio in studied phosphates is lower compared with that in phosphates from Jordan and Saudi Arabia. The geological and geochemical results were integrated for resource estimation. Three high-grade phosphate layers with ≥23 % P₂O₅ were considered in the calculations. The phosphate resource is classified as an inferred resource. The total volume of the resource is about 649 million tons. The average P₂O₅ content is 24.57, and the stripping ratio is 1:5.8.     

Impact assessment of land cover changes on the runoff changes on the extreme flood events in the Kelantan River basin

In the current years, changing the land cover/land use had serious hydrological impacts affecting the flood events in the Kelantan River basin. The flood events at the east coast of the peninsular Malaysia got highly affected in the recent decades due to several factors like urbanisation, rapid changes in the utilisation of land and lack of meteorological (i.e. change in climate) and developmental monitoring and planning. The Kelantan River basin has been highly influenced due to a rapid change in land use during 1984 to 2013, which occurred in the form of transformation of agricultural area and deforestation (logging activities). In order to evaluate the influence of the modifications in land cover on the flood events, two hydrological regional models of rainfall-induced runoff event, the Hydrologic Engineering Center (HEC)-Hydrologic Modeling System (HMS) model and improved transient rainfall infiltration and grid-based regional model (Improved TRIGRS), were employed in this study. The responses of land cover changes on the peak flow and runoff volume were investigated using 10 days of hourly rainfall events from 20 December to the end of December 2014 at the study area. The usage of two hydrological models defined that the changes in land use/land cover caused momentous changes in hydrological response towards water flow. The outcomes also revealed that the increase of severe water flow at the study area is a function of urbanisation and deforestation, particularly in the conversion of the forest area to the less canopy coverage, for example, oil palm, mixed agriculture and rubber. The monsoon season floods and runoff escalate in the cleared land or low-density vegetation area, while the normal flow gets the contribution from interflow generated from secondary jungle and forested areas.