Long-term coupled behaviour of cemented paste backfill in load cell experiments

A pressure cell apparatus has been developed in this research work to study the long-term hydro-mechanical behaviour of cemented paste backfill (CPB) cured under applied stress. The samples are cured for 7, 28, 90 and 150 days and the evolution of their mechanical, hydraulic, physical and microstructural properties is studied. Also, the suction, temperature and electrical conductivity are monitored for a period of 150 days of curing. The testing and monitoring programmes are conducted in undrained conditions, with and without pressure application. The obtained results show that the curing stress affects the hydro-mechanical behaviour of CPB for up to 28 days. Within this curing period, the CPB exhibits enhanced hydro-mechanical performance. However, application of sustained excessive curing stress onto the CPB samples induces the propagation of microcracks in the backfill structure, thus causing lower mechanical strength and higher fluid permeability at the more advanced ages. Furthermore, the mineralogical and chemical compositions of the tailings (e.g., sulfidic tailings) can significantly alter the mechanical strength properties (uniaxial compressive strength and elastic modulus) and the permeability of the CPB. The evolution of coupled factors and characteristics of the CPB at an early age control and influence its long-term behaviour and performance.     

A coarse-scale compositional model

In subsurface flow modeling, compositional simulation is often required to model complex recovery processes, such as gas/CO ₂ injection. However, compositional simulation on fine-scale geological models is still computationally expensive and even prohibitive. Most existing upscaling techniques focus on black-oil models. In this paper, we present a general framework to upscale two-phase multicomponent flow in compositional simulation. Unlike previous studies, our approach explicitly considers the upscaling of flow and thermodynamics. In the flow part, we introduce a new set of upscaled flow functions that account for the effects of compressibility. This is often ignored in the upscaling of black-oil models. In the upscaling of thermodynamics, we show that the oil and gas phases within a coarse block are not at chemical equilibrium. This non-equilibrium behavior is modeled by upscaled thermodynamic functions, which measure the difference between component fugacities among the oil and gas phases. We apply the approach to various gas injection problems with different compositional features, permeability heterogeneity, and coarsening ratios. It is shown that the proposed method accurately reproduces the averaged fine-scale solutions, such as component overall compositions, gas saturation, and density solutions in the compositional flow.     

Enhancing PIV image and fractal descriptor for velocity and shear stresses propagation around a circular pier

In this study,the fractal dimensions of velocity fluctuations and the Reynolds shear stresses propagation for flow around a circular bridge pier are presented.In the study reported herein,the fractal dimension of velocity fluctuations(u′,v′,w′) and the Reynolds shear stresses(u′v′ and u′w′) of flow around a bridge pier were computed using a Fractal Interpolation Function(FIF) algorithm.The velocity fluctuations of flow along a horizontal plane above the bed were measured using Acoustic Doppler Velocity meter(ADV)and Particle Image Velocimetry(P1V).The PIV is a powerful technique which enables us to attain high resolution spatial and temporal information of turbulent flow using instantaneous time snapshots.In this study,PIV was used for detection of high resolution fractal scaling around a bridge pier.The results showed that the fractal dimension of flow fluctuated significantly in the longitudinal and transverse directions in the vicinity of the pier.It was also found that the fractal dimension of velocity fluctuations and shear stresses increased rapidly at vicinity of pier at downstream whereas it remained approximately unchanged far downstream of the pier.The higher value of fractal dimension was found at a distance equal to one times of the pier diameter in the back of the pier.Furthermore,the average fractal dimension for the streamwise and transverse velocity fluctuations decreased from the centreline to the side wall of the flume.Finally,the results from ADV measurement were consistent with the result from PIV,therefore,the ADV enables to detect turbulent characteristics of flow around a circular bridge pier.     

Orbit uncertainty propagation and sensitivity analysis with separated representations

Most approximations for stochastic differential equations with high-dimensional, non-Gaussian inputs suffer from a rapid (e.g., exponential) increase of computational cost, an issue known as the curse of dimensionality. In astrodynamics, this results in reduced accuracy when propagating an orbit-state probability density function. This paper considers the application of separated representations for orbit uncertainty propagation, where future states are expanded into a sum of products of univariate functions of initial states and other uncertain parameters. An accurate generation of separated representation requires a number of state samples that is linear in the dimension of input uncertainties. The computation cost of a separated representation scales linearly with respect to the sample count, thereby improving tractability when compared to methods that suffer from the curse of dimensionality. In addition to detailed discussions on their construction and use in sensitivity analysis, this paper presents results for three test cases of an Earth orbiting satellite. The first two cases demonstrate that approximation via separated representations produces a tractable solution for propagating the Cartesian orbit-state uncertainty with up to 20 uncertain inputs. The third case, which instead uses Equinoctial elements, reexamines a scenario presented in the literature and employs the proposed method for sensitivity analysis to more thoroughly characterize the relative effects of uncertain inputs on the propagated state.     

The critical stage for inducing oviparity and embryonic diapause in parthenogenetic Artemia(Crustacea: Anostraca): an experimental study

The brine shrimp Artemia exhibits two reproductive modes: 1) oviparity, producing diapause embryos;and 2) ovoviviparity, producing free-swimming nauplii. Previous studies have suggested the existence of a critical stage that determines the reproductive mode. Physicochemical factors, such as photoperiod, temperature, and salinity, have been suggested to irreversibly aff ect the reproductive mode of oocytes during this critical stage. In this study, experiments were carried out using a photoperiod and temperature-sensitive parthenogenetic Artemia clone where maternal Artemia were shifted bidirectionally between ovoviviparity (18 h L:6 h D, 27℃) and oviparity (6 h L:18 h D, 19℃) culture conditions. In the main experiment ( Artemia shifted at six diff erent stages including the post-larva Ⅱ to adult Ⅱ), the reproductive mode of fi rst brood was converted when shifting was performed on post-larva Ⅱ and Ⅲ but was not converted when females were shifted after post-larva Ⅲ. A supplementary experiment further revealed that the reproductive mode of fi rst brood could be altered when shifting females at an "early phase of postlarva Ⅳ", characterized by a developing ovisac reaching the middle of the third abdominal segment, ventral spines, and some oocytes growing larger than the others. In both experiments, reproductive modes of the second brood were signifi cantly aff ected when the shifting was performed on post-larva Ⅳ. These results suggest that the critical stage for inducing oviparity and embryonic diapause is at the previtellogenic stage of oocytes, or at maternal "early phase of post-larva Ⅳ" for the first-brood off spring. During this stage, diff erential gene expression patterns of the two destined oocytes may be triggered by the token stimuli signals received by the oocytes.     

Dynamic Positioning System Design for A Marine Vessel with Unknown Dynamics Subject to External Disturbances Including Wave Effect

China Ocean Engineering - In this paper, a new control system is proposed for dynamic positioning (DP) of marine vessels with unknown dynamics and subject to external disturbances. The control...     

A multiple-point statistics algorithm for 3D pore space reconstruction from 2D images

Fluid flow behavior in a porous medium is a function of the geometry and topology of its pore space. The construction of a three dimensional pore space model of a porous medium is therefore an important first step in characterizing the medium and predicting its flow properties. A stochastic technique for reconstruction of the 3D pore structure of unstructured random porous media from a 2D thin section training image is presented. The proposed technique relies on successive 2D multiple point statistics simulations coupled to a multi-scale conditioning data extraction procedure. The Single Normal Equation Simulation Algorithm (SNESIM), originally developed as a tool for reproduction of long-range, curvilinear features of geological structures, serves as the simulation engine. Various validating criteria such as marginal distributions of pore and grain, directional variograms, multiple-point connectivity curves, single phase effective permeability and two phase relative permeability calculations are used to analyze the results. The method is tested on a sample of Berea sandstone for which a 3D micro-CT scanning image is available. The results confirm that the equi-probable 3D realizations obtained preserve the typical patterns of the pore space that exist in thin sections, reproduce the long-range connectivities, capture the characteristics of anisotropy in both horizontal and vertical directions and have single and two phase flow characteristics consistent with those of the measured 3D micro-CT image.     

Seismic tomographic imaging of P- and S-waves velocity perturbations in the upper mantle beneath Iran

The inverse tomography method has been used to study the P - and S -waves velocity structure of the crust and upper mantle underneath Iran. The method, based on the principle of source–receiver reciprocity, allows for tomographic studies of regions with sparse distribution of seismic stations if the region has sufficient seismicity. The arrival times of body waves from earthquakes in the study area as reported in the ISC catalogue (1964–1996) at all available epicentral distances are used for calculation of residual arrival times. Prior to inversion we have relocated hypocentres based on a 1-D spherical earth's model taking into account variable crustal thickness and surface topography. During the inversion seismic sources are further relocated simultaneously with the calculation of velocity perturbations. With a series of synthetic tests we demonstrate the power of the algorithm and the data to reconstruct introduced anomalies using the ray paths of the real data set and taking into account the measurement errors and outliers. The velocity anomalies show that the crust and upper mantle beneath the Iranian Plateau comprises a low velocity domain between the Arabian Plate and the Caspian Block. This is in agreement with global tomographic models, and also tectonic models, in which active Iranian plateau is trapped between the stable Turan plate in the north and the Arabian shield in the south. Our results show clear evidence of the mainly aseismic subduction of the oceanic crust of the Oman Sea underneath the Iranian Plateau. However, along the Zagros suture zone, the subduction pattern is more complex than at Makran where the collision of the two plates is highly seismic.     

Spatio-Temporal Assessment of Groundwater Potential Zone in the Drought-Prone Area of Bangladesh Using GIS-Based Bivariate Models

Natural Resources Research - Groundwater is one of the most dynamic and renewable natural resources found in the earth’s crust. A spatio-temporal assessment of groundwater potential zone...