Field experiments and numerical simulations of whirlpool foundation pit dewatering

A whirlpool foundation pit is a small-diameter, deep circular pit. Because of its depth and small diameter, a large drawdown is required, and a limited number of wells can be installed inside the pit. During excavation, partially penetrating wells inside and outside the foundation pit have to be installed to lower the water level when the aquifer is too thick. However, partially penetrating wells near partially penetrating curtains cannot be treated by analytical methods. Therefore, it is necessary to use numerical methods to predict dewatering during excavation. Field experiments were performed on whirlpool foundation pit 1880 of Baosteel Group, Shanghai, China, to obtain pumping rates and drawdown, pumping with a single well and two wells in the confined aquifer. The results indicate that the drawdown inside the pit induced by pumping wells outside the foundation pit was small, whereas it was large for pumping wells inside the pit. The pumping wells inside and outside the pit had to be combined to lower the water level. A three-dimensional numerical model was developed to simulate the dewatering process. The hydraulic conductivities of the confined aquifers were inversed by using the pumping tests. Operation schedules were simulated with the corrected model for different combinations of wells inside and outside the pit. The results suggest that different schedules and operation conditions affect drawdown. The monitored results during dewatering indicate that the simulation and field measurements were in agreement. The results can be applied to similar situations.     

Assessment of soil salinization based on a low-cost method and its influencing factors in a semi-arid agricultural area,northwest China

An investigation of soil salinization was carried out in the Nanshantaizi area (Northwest China) with WET Sensor. This device can measure such soil parameters as bulk soil electrical conductivity, water content, and the pore water electrical conductivity that are important for soil salinization assessments. A distribution map of soil salinization was produced, and the factors influencing soil salinization and its processes were discussed in detail. The study shows that moderately salinized to salt soils are mainly observed in the alluvial plain, where groundwater level is high and lateral recharge water contains high salinity. Nanshantaizi is covered by slightly salinized soils. The soil salinization distribution estimated by WET Sensor is generally consistent with the actual levels of salinization. Soil salinity in Nanshantaizi is mostly of natural origin and accumulated salts could leach to deeper soils or aquifers by water percolation during irrigation. Groundwater evaporation, groundwater level depth and quality of recharge water are important factors influencing soil salinization in the alluvial plain.     

Mercury-binding forms in coals and their geological provenances in coals of different types

Mercury (Hg) is an element of environmental and geological significance. Quantification of different Hg-binding forms is crucial to understand geological Hg provenances and associated geochemical processes during coal formation. In this study, seven coal samples were selected, according to coal rank (i.e., middle volatile bituminous, C-3; low volatile bituminous, C-2; anthracite, C-1), chemical anomalies (high S coal, IBC-105; high Cl coal, C22650) and sampling environment (fresh coal, LH; weathered coal LHW), to determine their Hg-binding forms using well-established sequential extraction procedures coupled with sink–float experiment. In the thermally metamorphosed samples C-1 and C-2, a comparative enrichment of total Hg relative to C-3 is observed. Silicate- and organic-bound Hg are the dominant Hg-binding forms in C-1, suggesting possible Hg sources from magma silicate and secondary Hg enrichment by adsorption. Sulfide- and organic-bound Hg are the most abundant Hg-binding forms in IBC-105, whereas only organic-bound Hg dominates in CC22650. Weathering processes are suggested to transform the abundant sulfide-bound Hg in LH to silicate- and organic-bound Hg in its weathering product LHW.     

Southeast Bayuda volcano-sedimentary sequences (Kurmut terrane,Sudan): juvenile island arc series within the mega-shear zone marking the eastern boundary of the Saharan Metacraton

This study was conducted to investigate the volcano-sedimentary sequence of Kurmut terrane in southeast Bayuda Desert and its continuation east of the Nile. The sequence is situated at the inferred transition between the Neoproterozoic juvenile Arabian–Nubian Shield and the old reworked Saharan Metacraton. Lithologically, the rocks are composed of intermediate to basic metavolcanics and volcanoclastics intercalated with tuffeous material and metapelite sediments that formed in cyclic graded bedding, indicating a turbid environment in the active orogenic zone. For the first time in the study area, intraformational conglomerates with cigar-shaped volcanic clasts within the low-grade metasediments suggest a high-energy depositional environment. Minerals and textural examination of rock assemblage indicate an anticlockwise P/T condition from amphibolite facies to retrograde greenschist facies conditions in a large high strain zone of distributed deformation. Geochemical results of metavolcanics indicate derivation from different mantle sources (island arc tholeite, calc-alkaline basalt, mid-oceanic ridge, and back-arc basalt). Within this sequence, field relation and microstructural analysis clearly show the best evidence of superimposition of sinistral shear of the NNE–SSW-trending Keraf Shear Zone on the early dextral NE–SW Nakasib Suture Zone. Consequently, based on lithological and structural observations with support of available geochemical data, the volcano-sedimentary sequences SE of Bayuda Desert and east of Nile are similar to their equivalent assemblage of juvenile Neoproterozoic arc lavas association of the Arabian–Nubian Shield.     

北祁连下古城花岗岩体LA ICP MS锆石U Pb年代学及岩石化学特征

下古城花岗岩体分布于北祁连造山带南缘,岩性主要为石英闪长岩—花岗闪长岩,SiO2质量分数在58.78%~69.53%之间,Al2O3含量为14.30%~15.30%之间,A/CNK为0.86~1.08,属准铝质—弱过铝质,钙碱性—高钾钙碱性系列的I型花岗岩。整体上,具有低SiO2,高CaO、FeOT和MgO的岩石地球化学特征。稀土总量(ΣREE)为87.22×10-6~150.54×10-6,ΣLREE/ΣHREE为6.24~11.11,表明轻重稀土弱分异。富集大离子亲石元素Rb、Th、U、Pb、La等,亏损高场强元素Nb、Ta、P、Ti等,说明下古城花岗岩主要由壳源物质部分熔融形成。锆石原位Lu-Hf同位素分析结果表明,石英闪长岩的εHf(t)=-5.7~-0.7,二阶段模式年龄(tDM2)为1.51~1.83Ga,暗示源岩可能主要为中元古代增生的地壳物质。LA-ICP-MS锆石U-Pb年代学结果表明,下古城石英闪长岩的侵位年龄为505.4±4.1Ma(MSWD=0.78,n=21),与北祁连造山带南缘的柯柯里花岗岩(512Ma~501Ma)、野马咀花岗岩(~508Ma)形成的地球动力学背景相似,均属于北祁连洋向南俯冲活动大陆边缘的岛弧环境。     

云南省祥云县存得村矿区冷风箐矿段与相邻矿区的类比分析

存得村矿区冷风箐矿段位于马厂箐杂岩体南接触带,其产出的铜钼多金属矿总体受宝兴厂-铜厂向斜南翼斑岩脉（体）与围岩接触带附近的挤压破碎带控制,该挤压破碎带（碎裂岩带）为该矿段矿液的运移、矿体的赋存提供了良好的通道和赋存空间,并严格控制了铜、钼矿脉（体）的空间就位。但由于多期构造活动及多期次侵入岩体的影响使得该区地质情况复杂,加之工作年限短,地质工作程度低等因素使得如何取得找矿突破成为该区的首要目标。本文参照宝兴厂-铜厂铜钼矿、乱硐山铜钼矿的找矿成果及经验,同冷风箐矿段进行类比,结合2011工作成果进行综合分析,为下步地质工作提供了参考。     

Evacuees’ information sources and reentry decision making in the aftermath of Hurricane Ike

In the aftermath of a hurricane, local emergency managers need to communicate reentry plans to households that might be scattered over multiple counties or states. To better understand evacuees’ households’ reliance on different information sources at the time they decided to return home, this study collected data on reentry after Hurricane Ike. The results from a survey of 340 evacuating households indicated that there was low compliance with official reentry plans and that none of the information sources produced greater compliance with official reentry plans. Nonetheless, there were significant changes in the utilization of different sources of emergency information over the course of an evacuation but local news media remained the most common sources throughout the event. There also were significant differences in the relative importance of different sources of reentry information, with people relying most on information from peers. In summary, local authorities need to identify more effective ways to communicate with evacuees that have relocated to distant communities and to motivate them to comply with official reentry plans.     

羌塘盆地结构构造与油气勘探方向

羌塘盆地是我国陆域大型中生代海相沉积盆地,富含烃源岩,但结构构造非常复杂。结合野外观测及相关资料对地震反射剖面进行地质构造详细解释,良好地揭示了羌塘盆地结构和深部构造。羌塘盆地逆冲推覆构造延伸存在显著差别,北羌塘凹陷多格错仁逆冲推覆构造、阿木错逆冲推覆构造与南羌塘凹陷肖茶卡—双湖逆冲推覆构造、多玛—其香错逆冲推覆构造仅发育于盆地表层0~3km深度范围,北羌塘凹陷龙尾错逆冲推覆构造、羌中隆起北缘逆冲推覆构造、南羌塘凹陷赛布错—扎加藏布逆冲推覆构造、拉萨地块北缘色林错逆冲推覆构造系统自地表向深部延伸深度超过6km,羌塘盆地深部还发育中生界底部逆冲系和基底逆冲系,伴有不同规模的褶皱构造。逆冲推覆构造形成活动时代包括晚白垩世、古近纪早期和古近纪晚期,晚白垩世与古近纪早期逆冲推覆构造运动导致构造隆升的裂变径迹年龄分别为87±5~75±4Ma、64±5~46±4Ma。经过多期逆冲推覆构造改造和褶皱变形,羌塘盆地中生界海相沉积地层与烃源岩显著增厚,为新生代晚期二次生烃及油气成藏提供了非常有利的地质构造条件;北羌塘凹陷发育万安湖向斜、半岛湖背斜、东湖向斜、阿木错向斜,南羌塘凹陷发育宁日圈闭、鲁雄错背斜、诺尔玛错圈闭、协德圈闭、崩则错圈闭,羌中隆起下伏侏罗系和三叠系烃源岩,色林错下白垩统下伏古近纪湖相沉积,这些构造部位都是油气勘探的重要靶区。     

Socioeconomic development and the impact of natural disasters: some empirical evidences from China

Significant advancements have been made in examining the relationship between economic development and disaster losses at the global and national scales, but very little research has been done at the sub-national level, especially in China. Based on socioeconomic and disaster impact data from 31 provinces (municipalities, and autonomous regions) in China from 1990 to 2010, ordinary least squares regression was used to determine the relationship between socioeconomic development and effects of natural disasters. Results showed that economic development played a distinct role in mitigating disaster damages in the whole China and its eastern, central and western regions. There existed a U-shaped relationship between economic growth and disaster losses in the whole China and its eastern region, and an inverted-U nonlinearity linkage in its central and western areas. These findings further confirmed the existence of a nonlinear relationship between economic development and disaster losses. Economic growth had played a more important role in mitigating disaster losses in the central region of China than that in the western one. Further investigations demonstrated that as economic develops, there were fewer deaths caused by natural hazards in whole China and all its three regions. The combination of the lower level of education, higher unemployment rate and greater gross dependence ratio has contributed to the increase in death toll caused by natural disasters, but this trend could be partly offset by wealth growth.     

福建新建港口铁路工程地质勘察若干问题探讨

根据福建沿海湄洲湾、江阴、可门3条支线港口铁路的工程地质条件、水文地质特征,综合分析认为在工程施工过程中局部出现不良地质现象,主要有软土、块石填土、不均匀地基、地下水的腐蚀性等.总结在施工过程中因工程地质问题导致的设计变更及处理措施.