Preconditioned IDR(s) iterative solver for non‐symmetric linear system associated with FEM analysis of shallow foundation

Non‐associated flow rule is essential when the popular Mohr–Coulomb model is used to model nonlinear behavior of soil. The global tangent stiffness matrix in nonlinear finite element analysis becomes non‐symmetric when this non‐associated flow rule is applied. Efficient solution of this large‐scale non‐symmetric linear system is of practical importance. The standard Krylov solver for a non‐symmetric solver is Bi‐CGSTAB. The Induced Dimension Reduction [IDR(s)] solver was proposed in the scientific computing literature relatively recently. Numerical studies of a drained strip footing problem on homogenous soil layer show that IDR(s = 6) is more efficient than Bi‐CGSTAB when the preconditioner is the incomplete factorization with zero fill‐in of global stiffness matrix K_ep (ILU(0)‐K_ep). Iteration time is reduced by 40% by using IDR(s = 6) with ILU(0)‐K_ep. To further reduce computational cost, the global stiffness matrix K_ep is divided into two parts. The first part is the linear elastic stiffness matrix K_e, which is formed only once at the beginning of solution step. The second part is a low‐rank matrix Δ, which is re‐formed at each Newton–Raphson iteration. Numerical studies show that IDR(s = 6) with this ILU(0)‐K_e preconditioner is more time effective than IDR(s = 6) with ILU(0)‐K_ep when the percentage of yielded Gauss points in the mesh is less than 15%. The total computation time is reduced by 60% when all the recommended optimizing methods are used. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Construction and analysis of higher order finite difference schemes for the 1D wave equation

In this article, we propose to: 1. Establish most of the properties conjectured in [2] about the higher order finite difference approximation of the 1D Laplace operator. 2. Generalize to any order the fourth-order accurate scheme in space and time of Shubin and Bell [20] and Cohen [6]. For this new family of 2m–2m schemes, we establish, via elementary mathematics, various stability and dispersion results that are helpful to compare these schemes to the 2–2m schemes of Anné et al. [2]. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Study on the kinetics of iron oxide leaching by oxalic acid

The presence of iron oxides in clay or silica raw materials is detrimental to the manufacturing of high quality ceramics. Although iron has been traditionally removed by physical mineral processing, acid washing has been tested as it is more effective, especially for extremely low iron (of less than 0.1% w/w). However, inorganic acids such as sulphuric or hydrochloric acids easily contaminate the clay products with SO₄²⁻ and Cl⁻, and therefore should be avoided as much as possible. On the other hand, if oxalic acid is used, any acid left behind will be destroyed during the firing of the ceramic products. The characteristics of dissolution of iron oxides were therefore investigated in this study.The dissolution of iron oxides in oxalic acid was found to be very slow at temperatures within the range 25–60 °C, but its rate increases rapidly above 90 °C. The dissolution rate also increases with increasing oxalate concentration at the constant pH values set within the optimum range of pH2.5–3.0. At this optimum pH, the dissolution of fine pure hematite (Fe₂O₃) (105–140 μm) follows a diffusion-controlled shrinking core model. The rate expression expressed as 1 − (2 / 3)x − (1 − x)^2 / 3 where x is a fraction of iron dissolution was found to be proportional to [oxalate]^1.5.The addition of magnetite to the leach liquor at 10% w/w hematite was found to enhance the dissolution rate dramatically. Such addition of magnetite allows coarser hematite in the range 0.5–1.4 mm to be leached at a reasonable rate.     

System analysis in calculation of cantilever retaining walls

The paper is concerned with the solution and determination of the optimum shape of a retaining wall modelled by the co-ordinates of a set of points which belongs to a certain permissible space. An optimum design method is formulated as a non-linear multiobjective optimization problem. The following two objective functions, which are mutually conflicting and non-commensurable with each other, are considered: (a) to minimize the total weight of the wall, (b) to maximize the structure stability. A set of Pareto optimum solutions is derived numerically by adopting a logical algorithm, and a Pereto optimum solution is obtained by investigating the trade-off relationships among design objectives.     

Assessment of earthquake hazard for the northwestern Vietnam from geological and geophysical data using an original program package

The highest seismic activity in Vietnam is observed in the northwest of the country, hence the practical significance of more accurate assessment of the earthquake hazard for the area. The worldwide experience of seismicity, in particular, the recent Tohoku mega-earthquake (March 11, 2011, M _w = 9.0, Japan) shows that instrumental and historical data alone are insufficient to reliably estimate earthquake hazard. This is all the more relevant in relation to Vietnam where the period of instrumental observation is short and historical evidence is nearly lacking. In this connection we made an attempt to construct maps of earthquake hazard based on known seismicity data using the available geological and geophysical data and the method of G.I. Reisner and his associates for classification of areas by seismic potential. Since the question of what geological and geophysical parameters are to be used and with what weights remains unresolved, we developed a program package to estimate Mmax based on different options in the use of geological and geophysical data. In this paper we discuss the first results and the promise held by this program package.     

Assessment with satellite data of the urban heat island effects in Asian mega cities

This study focuses on using remote sensing for comparative assessment of surface urban heat island (UHI) in 18 mega cities in both temperate and tropical climate regions. Least-clouded day- and night-scenes of TERRA/MODIS acquired between 2001 and 2003 were selected to generate land-surface temperature (LST) maps. Spatial patterns of UHIs for each city were examined over its diurnal cycle and seasonal variations. A Gaussian approximation was applied in order to quantify spatial extents and magnitude of individual UHIs for inter-city comparison. To reveal relationship of UHIs with surface properties, UHI patterns were analyzed in association with urban vegetation covers and surface energy fluxes derived from high-resolution Landsat ETM+ data. This study provides a generalized picture on the UHI phenomena in the Asian region and the findings can be used to guide further study integrating satellite high-resolution thermal data with land-surface modeling and meso-scale climatic modeling in order to understand impacts of urbanization on local climate in Asia.     

A roadmap for a dedicated Earth Science Grid platform

Due to its intensive data processing and highly distributed organization, the multidisciplinary Earth Science applications community is uniquely positioned for the uptake and exploitation of Grid technologies. Currently Enabling Grids for E-sciencE, and other large Grid infrastructures are already deployed and capable of operational services. So far however, the adoption and exploitation of Grid technology throughout the Earth Science community has been slower than expected. The Dissemination and Exploitation of GRids in Earth sciencE project, proposed by the European Commission to assist and accelerate this process in a number of different ways, had between its main goals the creation of a roadmap towards Earth Science Grid platform. This paper presents the resulting roadmap.     

Drought in Bulgaria and atmospheric synoptic conditions over Europe

Drought in Bulgaria is analyzed from the multiple viewpoints of statistical occurrence, spatial patterns, and synoptic conditions. A new index of drought, the SD (spatial-dryness) index, characterizes drought by both intensity and spatial extent. The occurrence of the SD index is analyzed using global gridded data sets. Examination of transitional probabilities of multiple months and years with drought occurrence suggests persistence is sufficiently frequent to be important for climate-related environmental planning. Finally, it is shown that specific seasonal synoptic patterns are associated with wet and dry conditions in Bulgaria. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

P–T–t paths and post-metamorphic exhumation of the Day Nui Con Voi shear zone in Vietnam

The Day Nui Con Voi belt in Vietnam is the southeasternmost part of the Red River shear zone in Asia. It is a narrow high-grade metamorphic core complex consisting of garnet–sillimanite–biotite gneisses, mylonite bands, amphibolite layers and migmatites. Geothermobarometric study of the complex revealed that the peak metamorphism took place under amphibolite-facies conditions of 690₋₆₀⁺³⁰°C and 0.65±0.15 GPa and the subsequent mylonitization occurred under greenschist-facies conditions of 480°C and under 0.3 GPa. Fifteen synkinematic hornblende and biotite separates from gneisses, amphibolites and mylonites were dated with the K/Ar method. Hornblende separates from the Day Nui Con Voi give K–Ar ages of 26.4–28.5 Ma, and the biotite separates do give 24.5–24.7 Ma. Combination of thermobarometric and geochronological data yields the cooling history of 500°C at 28 Ma and 300°C at 24 Ma with a cooling rate of 70–110°C Ma⁻¹, and 23 km post-metamorphic exhumation of the core complex. The first 16 km exhumation from the peak of metamorphism (at probably 31 Ma) to 28 Ma was triggered by the left-lateral strike-slip displacement of the Red River shear zone.