Rockfall hazard assessment at Ajanta Cave,Aurangabad, Maharashtra,India

The Ajanta caves are situated in Deccan Trap basalt and declared as one of the World Heritage Sites by UNESCO. The present study aims to investigate and understand the damage of caves and to protect the life of the visitors from the rockfall phenomenon at and around the caves. Information related to the detached rock mass/block was acquired by using Barton–Bandis model in Universal Distinct Element Code. Parameters for rockfall simulation were determined by rigorous field study and laboratory experiment and then calibrated some of the parameters by back analysis. RocFall 4.0 program has been used to calculate maximum bounce heights, total kinetic energies, and translational velocities of the falling blocks of different weights. The maximum bounce height varies from 14.0 to 19.0 m for the weight of the block size ranging from 500 to 2,000 kg, whereas the maximum velocity and maximum kinetic energy are 30.0 m/s and 917.66 kJ, respectively. Finally, the results of simulation have been used to find out the position of the barrier and its capacity to design the protection barrier. The barrier capacity was found to be 325 kJ for 2,000 kg of falling blocks at a height of 50.0 m.     

Assessment of Durability and Weathering State of Some Igneous and Metamorphic Rocks Using Micropetrographic Index and Rock Durability Indicators: A Case Study

Weathering and durability are the key factors of the rock in the suitability and usefulness of different construction materials, building materials and engineering structures. A single test never predicts the entire factor for suitability of rock stone and aggregate in different uses. Thus, variety of physical, mechanical and chemical tests and indices of rocks are widely used to estimate and evaluate the rocks for the suitability of the required purpose. In all the cases, knowledge of durability and weathering properties are the most important along with the strength of the rock. Micropetrographic index and rock durability indicators (dynamic and static) are the one of the best methods to evaluate the rock for weathering and durability. To estimate these indices, variety of tests are performed such as petrographic examination test, point load index, sulfate soundness test, water absorption test, modified aggregate impact value test and test for specific gravity. Slake durability index and impact strength index tests were also performed for correlation with static and dynamic rock durability indicators due to its application and usefulness in the durability and strength of the rock materials. Micropetrographic index was obtained by petrographic examination test and correlated with all the physical and mechanical properties used for find out the durability indicators. The present study is to express the usefulness of these three indices in the classification of weathering and durability classes and estimation of durability indices by slake durability index, impact strength index and micropetrographic index.     

Hydrochemical characteristics and evaluation of the granite aquifer in the Alwadeen area,southwest Saudi Arabia

This study was carried out in the Alwadeen area of Khamis Mushayt district of southwestern Saudi Arabia to evaluate the hydrochemical characteristics of the shallow hard rock aquifers. These hard rock aquifers mostly comprise granites and contain significant quantities of groundwater that complement the available groundwater from the unconsolidated alluvial sediments in the nearby wadis. The field investigation indicates two main fracture sets which intersect each other and are oriented in the west-northwest and east-west directions. The granitic rocks in the area are intruded by coarse-grained and quartz-rich monzogranite and pegmatite veins. Hydrogeologically, the fracture systems are important since they facilitate the groundwater storage and assume the transmissive function during times of groundwater abstraction. Given the fact that groundwater in the fractured rock aquifers generally occurs at shallow depths, it may be exposed to contamination from surface and/or near-surface sources, and it is therefore important to evaluate its quality. To this end, a hydrochemical analysis was carried out on six groundwater samples collected from the area. The hydrochemistry revealed that the groundwater is fairly fresh, and facies analysis reveals mixed Na-Cl and Ca-Mg-Cl-SO₄ types. Overall, the results reveal that the groundwater is saturated with calcite and dolomite, but unsaturated with gypsum and halite. The degree of salinity increases in the direction of the groundwater flow due to increased rock-water interaction.     

Effect of traditional management practices on woody species composition and structure in montane subtropical forests of Meghalaya,Northeast India

In Meghalaya, northeast India, the local people have the tradition of managing forest resources since early ages. The management practice varies and there are forests with high degree of protection, where no extraction (sacred forests) is allowed. There are also forests with moderate- level of protection and -extraction (reserved forests) as well as forests with low level of protection and open extraction (village forests). The present study was conducted to understand the impact of this traditional management system on the level of human disturbance, and on community composition and structure of the forests in Khasi hills of Meghalaya. The result revealed that disturbance index was low, whereas species richness, density and basal cover were significantly high in forests with high degree of protection (sacred forest) than those with low protection (reserved and village forest). Majority of endemic and threatened plant species were restricted to sacred forests as compared to the other forest types. Though these practices have ensured the sustainable use of forest resources by the local people but due to increased human- pressure and -disturbances, more effective conservation strategies need to be undertaken. Therefore, providing alternatives for fuel Received: 28 July 2016 Revised: 1 October 2016 Accepted: 15 December 2016 wood to local people, environmental education, encouraging afforestation and developmental activities involving local communities are recommended.     

Factors Influencing the Atmospheric Depositional Fluxes of Stable Pb, 210Pb, and 7Be into Chesapeake Bay

Atmospheric depositional fluxes of ⁷Be and²¹⁰Pb (bulk) and stable Pb (wet) were measuredsimultaneously for one year (from September 1995–August 1996) atStillpond, Maryland on the uppereastern shore of the Chesapeake Bay. The annual total(bulk) depositional fluxes of ²¹⁰Pb and ⁷Bewere 0.78 and 13 dpm cm^-2, respectively, andagree well with other previously reported results atnearby locations such as Norfolk, VA and Lewes, DE. The wet depositional flux of stable Pb (58 ng cm^-2 yr^-1)was also similar to thatmeasured at other Chesapeake sites during 1990–1991(55 ng cm^-2 yr^-1, for both Wye and Elms,Maryland). This suggests that a constant Pb flux hasbeen reached since the mandatory use of unleadedgasoline was instituted. The concentrations of⁷Be, ²¹⁰Pb, and to a lesser extent stable Pbwere diluted exponentially by precipitation, based onconcentrations versus precipitation plots. Due tohigher enrichment of ²¹⁰Pb in the lowertroposphere, the dilution effect was largest on²¹⁰Pb (i.e., controlled mainly by below-cloudscavenging processes), and thus its depositional fluxincrease is negligible as precipitation amountincreases. A good correlation between the amount ofprecipitation and total depositional flux of ⁷Beand stable Pb, which are more enriched in the uppertroposphere, suggests that precipitation amount isimportant in controlling their fluxes (i.e.,controlled by both below-cloud scavenging and in-cloudcondensation processes). Based on ⁷Be versus²¹⁰Pb plots, it appears that ⁷Be, relativeto ²¹⁰Pb, is less efficiently scavenged bysnowfall. Our results suggest that in addition toprecipitation amounts, marine air-mass transport orsnowfall may be important factors in controlling theseasonal variability of the fallout fluxes of tracemetals in coastal areas.     

Method Development and Optimisation of Sodium Peroxide Sintering for Geological Samples

This work provides a measurement procedure for the complete digestion of rock samples containing refractory minerals such as zircon and chromite. Their dissolution by wet acid digestion is often incomplete but, although providing complete digestions, alkali fusion techniques can result in solutions with a high blank and total dissolved solid content. It was established by the systematic study with reference material trachyandesite MTA‐1 that a 1:6 sample to sodium peroxide (Na₂O₂) ratio is conservative for the complete digestion and recovery of all the analytes especially those contained in zircon. The sample decomposition time was 120 min for the zircon‐bearing rhyolite reference material MRH‐1. Complete digestion of chromite was obtained in the harzburgite RM MUH‐1. The sample solutions were stable for at least 1 year. Accurate measurements of SiO₂, Al₂O₃, TiO₂, P₂O₅ and K₂O could be made with ICP‐MS by not discarding the supernatant of the sinter solution and by using geological reference materials for external calibration. HF digestions are slow, not universal, and may form new mineral/phases that are insoluble under high temperature conditions. The validated sample decomposition procedure combined with ICP‐MS presents an alternative to the use of HF in routine analysis of difficult to digest geological materials.     

Iron and chromium doped titanium dioxide nanotubes for the degradation of environmental and industrial pollutants

Pure titanate nanotubes and titanate nanotubes doped with iron (III) and chromium (III) were fabricated by the hydrothermal treatment in methanol and sodium hydroxide mixture. The fabricated nano tubes have high surface area, high aspect ratio, consisted of very good surface morphology and high metals dispersion. The morphology, crysralline phase, composition were characterized by powdered X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, Barrett-Joyner-Halenda methods and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The results showed that nanotubes possess anatase phase and are composed up of 8–12 nm in diameter and 360–400 nm in length. The band gap of the titanium dioxide nanotubes was determined using transformed diffuse reflectance spectroscopy according to the Kubelka-Munk theory, showed pronounced band gap decrease on doped titanium dioxide nanotubes. The photocatalytic activity of doped nanotubes were evaluated in terms of degradation of phenol and photoreduction of carbon dioxide into methanol and ethanol under Ultra violet and Infra red irradiation. It was found that with iron (III) and chromium (III) doped titanium dioxide nanotubes exhibited much higher photocatalytic activity than undoped titanate nanotubes.     

Mineralogy,geochemistry and genesis of the massive base metal sulfide deposits of Chitradurga (Ingaldhal), Karnataka,India

The Chitradurga base metal sulfide deposit is associated with eugeosynclinal metabasalts (～ 2.5 b.y.) and banded pyritiferous cherts. The pre-tectonic character of the deposit and meta-volcanics is indicated by their deformational textures, structures and radioactive age data. The mineral assemblages of these ores are similar to the Zn-Cu type of massive sulfide deposits associated with Archean—Early Precambrian eugeosynclinal metavolcanics in other shield areas. The deposit has a rather high concentration of Co; microprobe data indicate that most of it is found as cobaltite and linnaeite and that it is inhomogenously distributed in these minerals. Very strong sympathetic correlation between Co and Cu, and the simultaneous increase of both of these elements with depth has been found. The geochemistry of the Chitradurga ores and metabasalts, especially their Zn:Cu:Pb and Pb:Zn ratios, suggests that the base metal sulfide content is probably genetically related to the basaltic flows. It appears that the Chitradurga deposit belongs to the ‘massive volcanogenic’ Cu-rich class of sulfide deposits. The metal content of the ores appears to have been supplied by rapidly degassing highly undifferentiated protomantle along with the basaltic magma.     

Remote sensing-based geostatistical hot spot analysis of Urban Heat Islands in Dhaka,Bangladesh

Urban Heat Island (UHI) refers to a phenomenon whereby urban areas experience higher temperatures compared to the surrounding areas. Remote sensing-based Land Surface Temperature (LST) measurements can be utilized to measure UHI. This study emphasized on geostatistical remote sensing-based hot spot analysis ($G_i^{*}$) of UHI in Dhaka, Bangladesh as a way of examining the influences of Land Use Land Cover (LULC) on UHI from 1991 to 2015. Landsat 5 and 7 satellite-based remote sensing indices were used to explore LULC, UHI and environmental footprints during the study period. The Urban Compactness Ratio (C_oR) was used to calculate the urban form and augmented characteristics. The Surface Urban Heat Island (SUHI) intensity (ΔT) was also used to explore the effects of UHI on the surrounding marginal area. Based on our investigations into LULC, we discovered that around 71.34 per cent of water bodies and 71.82 percent of vegetation cover decreased from 1991 to 2015 in Dhaka city. Contrastingly, according to C_oR readings, 174.13 km² of urban areas expanded by 249.77 per cent. Our hot spot analysis also revealed that there was a 93.73 per cent increase in hot concentration zones. Furthermore, the average temperature of the study area had increased by 3.26°C. We hope that the methods and results of this study can contribute to further research on urban climate.     

Full-scale experimental investigations on the response of a flooded passenger vehicle under subcritical conditions

Natural Hazards - Vehicles can be easily swept away by floodwaters once the flow velocity and depth reach certain critical limits, with probabilities toward fatality reported to be nearly 50%....