Uniform half-plane elastodynamic problems by an approximate boundary element method

In this paper the applicability of an approximate Boundary Element Method to uniform half-plane elastodynamic problems is investigated. This method employs the concept of images to construct approximate fundamental solutions for the half-plane and does not require any half-plane surface discretization. The method is formulated in the frequency domain for the case of harmonic disturbances or the Laplace transform domain for the case of transient disturbances. In the latter case a numerical inversion of the transformed solution is necessary to obtain the time domain response. The proposed method can be used as an alternative to boundary element methods that either utilize the infinite plane fundamental solution and thus require a half-plane surface discretization, or employ the exact half-plane fundamental solution, which even though leads to no surface discretization, is of a very lengthy and complicated form. Two characteristics numerical examples are used to illustrate the proposed method and study its advantages and disadvantages.     

Remote Sensing of Eupatorium Adenophorum Spreng Based on HJ-A Satellite Data

In the southwest of China, one of the greatest threats to local ecosystem is the area expansion of an invasive species, i.e., Eupatorium adenophorum Spreng (EAS). In this study, the remote-sensing technology was used to detect and map the spatial distribution of EAS in Guizhou Province, China. A series of vegetation indices, including normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), simple ratio index (SRI) and atmospherically resistant vegetation index (ARVI), were used to identify EAS from HJ-A Chninese satellite data. According to the analysis results of fieldworks from March 21 to 22, 2009, it was found that the vegetation index of {1.9589 ≤ SRI ≤ 4.1095}∩{0.2359 ≤ ARVI ≤ 0.5193} was the optimal remote-sensing parameter for identifying EAS from HJ-A data. According to the spatial distribution of EAS estimated from HJ-A data, it was found that EAS was rather more in southwest of Guizhou Province than in northeast. EAS became sparse from southwest to northeast gradually, and the central Guizhou Province was the ecological corridor linking EAS in southwest to that in northeast. By comparison with validated data collected by the government of Guizhou Province, it was found that the uncertainty of remote-sensing method was 18.52%, 29.31%, 8.77% and 9.46% in grassland, forest, farmland and others respectively, and the mean uncertainty was 13.29%. Owing to the lower height of EAS than many plants in forest, the uncertainty of EAS was the greatest in forest than that in grassland, farmland and so on.     

Smithsonian Institution’s Global Volcanism Network

Information included in this summary is based on more detailed reports published in the Bulletin of the Global Volcanism Network, vol. 31, no. 4, April 2006 (on the Internet at ). Edited by scientists at the Smithsonian, this bulletin includes reports provided by a worldwide network of correspondents. The reports contain the names and contact information for all sources. Please note that these reports are preliminary and subject to change as events are studied in more detail. The Global Volcanism Program welcomes further reports of current volcanism, seismic unrest, monitoring data, and field observations.     

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.     

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     

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.