A simplified analytical model for run-out prediction of flow slides in municipal solid waste landfills

Flow slides in municipal solid waste (MSW) landfills are common geoenvironmental issues in the urban environment and can pose a serious threat to the surrounding population and infrastructure. Prediction of the maximum run-out distance of flow slides in MSW landfills is therefore an essential part of hazard and risk assessment in engineering design. Based on the framework for simple analysis originally developed by Hungr (1995), we propose a simplified analytical model for calculating dam breaks in a plastic fluid along a single inclined base. In the proposed model, a quarter-elliptical shape is used to describe the approximate configuration of the flow slide. Following this step, the physical laws relating to the conservation of mass and energy are used to calculate the potential flow. Of additional note is a boundary condition in mathematics relating to this simplified analytical model, which is also reported in this study. Taking the obvious mobility characteristics of the MSW at point of failure into consideration, a three-phase simplified model along double inclined bases has been further developed for run-out prediction of the flow slide in MSW landfill. The proposed three-phase model is then applied to estimate the maximum run-out distance of two typical flow failures of landfills located in Sarajevo and Bandung, which demonstrate the capability of the proposed simplified analytical model for use in hazard assessments of landfills.     

Influence of Mussel Culture on the Vertical Export of Phytoplankton Carbon in a Coastal Upwelling Embayment (Ría de Vigo,NW Iberia)

The goal of this paper is to find out whether suspended mussel culture affects the vertical fluxes of biogenic particles in the Ría de Vigo on a seasonal scale. With this aim, vertical fluxes of particulate organic carbon (POC) and the magnitude and composition of vertical export of phytoplankton carbon (Cphyto) collected in sediment traps were examined by comparing data obtained inside a mussel farming area (RaS) with those found at a reference station (ReS) not affected by mussels. Our results indicate that mussel farming has a strong impact on sedimentation fluxes under the rafts, not only increasing POC flux but also altering the magnitude and composition of Cphyto fluxes. Average POC flux at RaS (2564?±?1936 mg m^?2 day^?1) was four times higher than at ReS (731?±?276 mg m^?2 day^?1), and much of this increase was due to biodeposit fluxes (Cbiodep) which accounted for large proportion of POC flux (35–60 %). Indeed, because of this high Cbiodep flux, only a small proportion of the POC flux was due to Cphyto flux (3–12 %). At the same time, we observed an increased sedimentation of phytoplankton cells at RaS that could be explained by a combination of mechanisms: less energetic hydrodynamic conditions under mussel rafts, ballast effect by sinking mussel feces, and diatom aggregates. Moreover, mussel farming also altered the quality of the Cphyto flux by removing part of the predatory pressure of zooplankton and thus matching diatom composition in water column and sediment traps.     

Diffusion of tetravalent cations in zircon

Diffusion rates for the three tetravalent cations U, Th and Hf have been measured in synthetic zircon. Diffusant sources included oxide powders and ground pre-synthesized silicates. Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS) was used to measure depth profiles. Over the temperature range 1400–1650 °C, the following Arrhenius relations were obtained (diffusion coefficients in m²sec⁻¹): log D _Th = (1.936 ± 0.9820) + (− 792 ± 34 kJ mol⁻¹ /2.303 RT) log D _U = (0.212 ± 2.440) + (− 726 ± 83 kJ mol⁻¹ /2.303 RT) log D _Hf = (3.206 ± 1.592) + (− 812 ± 54 kJ mol⁻¹ /2.303 RT) The data show a systematic increase in diffusivity with decreasing ionic radius (i.e., faster diffusion rates for Hf than for U or Th), a trend also observed in our earlier study of rare earth diffusion in zircon. Diffusive fractionation may be a factor in the Lu-Hf system given the much slower diffusion rates of tetravalent cations when compared with the trivalent rare earths. The very slow diffusion rates measured for these tetravalent cations suggest that they are essentially immobile under most geologic conditions, permitting the preservation of fine-scale chemical zoning and isotopic signatures of inherited cores. Received: 12 July 1996 / Accepted: 2 December 1996     

A Challenging Solar Eruptive Event of 18 November 2003 and the Causes of the 20 November Geomagnetic Superstorm. III. Catastrophe of the Eruptive Filament at a Magnetic Null Point and Formation of an Opposite-Handedness CME

Our analysis in Papers I and II (Grechnev et al., Solar Phys. 289, 289, 2014b and Solar Phys. 289, 1279, 2014c) of the 18 November 2003 solar event responsible for the 20 November geomagnetic superstorm has revealed a complex chain of eruptions. In particular, the eruptive filament encountered a topological discontinuity located near the solar disk center at a height of about 100 Mm, bifurcated, and transformed into a large cloud, which did not leave the Sun. Concurrently, an additional CME presumably erupted close to the bifurcation region. The conjectures about the responsibility of this compact CME for the superstorm and its disconnection from the Sun are confirmed in Paper IV (Grechnev et al., Solar Phys. submitted, 2014a), which concludes about its probable spheromak-like structure. The present article confirms the presence of a magnetic null point near the bifurcation region and addresses the origin of the magnetic helicity of the interplanetary magnetic clouds and their connection to the Sun. We find that the orientation of a magnetic dipole constituted by dimmed regions with the opposite magnetic polarities away from the parent active region corresponded to the direction of the axial field in the magnetic cloud, while the pre-eruptive filament mismatched it. To combine all of the listed findings, we propose an intrinsically three-dimensional scheme, in which a spheromak-like eruption originates via the interaction of the initially unconnected magnetic fluxes of the eruptive filament and pre-existing ones in the corona. Through a chain of magnetic reconnections their positive mutual helicity was transformed into the self-helicity of the spheromak-like magnetic cloud.     

An analytical method to compute comet cloud formation efficiency and its application

A quick analytical method is presented for calculating comet cloud formation efficiency in the case of a single planet or multiple-planet system for planets that are not too eccentric (e _p ≲ 0.3). A method to calculate the fraction of comets that stay under the control of each planet is also presented, as well as a way to determine the efficiency in different star cluster environments. The location of the planet(s) in mass-semi-major axis space to form a comet cloud is constrained based on the conditions developed by Tremaine (1993) together with estimates of the likelyhood of passing comets between planets; and, in the case of a single, eccentric planet, the additional constraint that it is, by itself, able to accelerate material to relative encounter velocity U ~ 0.4 within the age of the stellar system without sweeping up the majority of the material beforehand. For a single planet, it turns out the efficiency is mainly a function of planetary mass and semi-major axis of the planet and density of the stellar environment. The theory has been applied to some extrasolar systems and compared to numerical simulations for both these systems and the Solar System, as well as a diffusion scheme based on the energy kick distribution of Everhart (Astron J 73:1039–1052, 1968). The analytic results are in good agreement with the simulations.     

Comparison of daily and sub-daily SWAT models for daily streamflow simulation in the Upper Huai River Basin of China

Despite the significant role of precipitation in the hydrological cycle, few studies have been conducted to evaluate the impacts of the temporal resolution of rainfall inputs on the performance of SWAT (soil and water assessment tool) models in large-sized river basins. In this study, both daily and hourly rainfall observations at 28 rainfall stations were used as inputs to SWAT for daily streamflow simulation in the Upper Huai River Basin. Study results have demonstrated that the SWAT model with hourly rainfall inputs performed better than the model with daily rainfall inputs in daily streamflow simulation, primarily due to its better capability of simulating peak flows during the flood season. The sub-daily SWAT model estimated that 58 % of streamflow was contributed by baseflow compared to 34 % estimated by the daily model. Using the future daily and 3-h precipitation projections under the RCP (Representative Concentration Pathways) 4.5 scenario as inputs, the sub-daily SWAT model predicted a larger amount of monthly maximum daily flow during the wet years than the daily model. The differences between the daily and sub-daily SWAT model simulation results indicated that temporal rainfall resolution could have much impact on the simulation of hydrological process, streamflow, and consequently pollutant transport by SWAT models. There is an imperative need for more studies to examine the effects of temporal rainfall resolution on the simulation of hydrological and water pollutant transport processes by SWAT in river basins of different environmental conditions.     

Petrogenesis and geotectonic setting of the PanAfrican basement rocks in Bamenda Massif, Obudu Plateau, southeastern Nigeria： Evidence from trace element geochemistry

1 IntroductionThe study area is part of the Obudu Plateau,which forms part of the Precambrian Pan-African tec-tonothermal belt, lying between the West African Cra-ton and the Gabon-Congo Craton ( Fig. 1). It isbounded by the Benue Trough, in the NE-SW axi…     

Simplified formulae for designing coastal forest against tsunami run-up: one-dimensional approach

In the present study, laboratory experiments were conducted to validate the applicability of a numerical model based on one-dimensional nonlinear long-wave equations. The model includes drag and inertia resistance of trees to tsunami flow and porosity between trees and a simplified forest in a wave channel. It was confirmed that the water surface elevation and flow velocity by the numerical simulations agree well with the experimental results for various forest conditions of width and tree density. Further, the numerical model was applied to prototype conditions of a coastal forest of Pandanus odoratissimus to investigate the effects of forest conditions (width and tree density) and incident tsunami conditions (period and height) on run-up height and potential tsunami force. The modeling results were represented in curve-fit equations with the aim of providing simplified formulae for designing coastal forest against tsunamis. The run-up height and potential tsunami forces calculated by the curve-fit formulae and the numerical model agreed within ± 10% error.