Paleogene–Neogene Boundary of Primorye,Russian Far East

Complex geological and paleobotanic analysis of sections of the boundary Oligocene–Miocene sediments of southern Primorye is conducted. The presence of a stratigraphic hiatus is identified in the transitional complexes of the Pushkino and Pavlovka depressions but not in the sections of the Rakovka depression; thus, it is suggested to use one of them (borehole no. 15) to choose the stratotype of the Paleogene–Neogene boundary. The previous conclusion on the presence of economic coal deposits of Primorye within the Paleogene part of the Tertiary complex is supported. It is suggested to use the section which is exposed by the Rakovka brown coal open pit (point 9209) as a stratotype of the upper subformation of the Pavlovka Formation.     

Correlation analysis between drought indices and terrestrial water storage from 2002 to 2015 in China

Drought monitoring is a key topic in environmental monitoring and assessment although there is still a need to determine the correlation between drought monitoring indices and remote sensing products. We analyzed the correlation between the self-calibrating Palmer Drought Severity Index (sc_PDSI), the Standardized Precipitation Index and the Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI) and terrestrial water storage monitored through the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) on a monthly timescale from 2002 to 2015 in China. As a consequence of anomalies in the soil water budget, the highly significant correlation between the sc_PDSI and the GRACE satellite-observed terrestrial water storage suggested that these two datasets are the most suitable for use in monitoring droughts. In comparing the three drought indices, the sc_PDSI was introduced as a means of drought monitoring in the Yangtze, Pearl, Huaihe, Southeast and Songhua River Basins, whereas the SPEI was found to be more applicable to other major river basins, such as the Inland River Basin. These diverse spatial behaviors are caused by the differences between the hydrological droughts characterized by these three drought indices.     

A micro–macro investigation of the capillary strengthening effect in wet granular materials

Wet granular materials are three-dimensionally simulated by the discrete element method with water bridges incorporated between particles. The water bridges are simplified as toroidal shapes, and the matric suction is constantly maintained in the material. A comparison with experimental tests in the literature indicates that the toroidal shape approximation may be one of the best choices with high practicability and decent accuracy. Mechanical behaviours of wet granular materials are studied by triaxial tests. Effects of particle size distributions and void ratios are investigated systematically in this study. The hydraulic limit of the pendular state is also discussed. It gives the capillary cohesion function which is not only determined by the degree of saturation but also positively correlated to relative density and particle size polydispersity and inversely proportional to mean particle size. Furthermore, the capillary strengthening effect is also analysed microscopically in aid of the Stress–Force–Fabric relationship, mainly in fabric anisotropy, coordination number and stress transmission pattern, which revealed the micro-mechanisms of the additional effective stress induced by capillary effect.     

Laboratory investigations of inert gas flow behaviors in compact sandstone

The seepage evolution behavior of compact rock is significant for the stability and safety of many engineering applications. In this research, both hydrostatic and triaxial compression tests were conducted on compact sandstone using an inert gas, namely argon. A triaxial compression test with a water permeability measurement was carried out to study the difference between the gas permeability and water permeability evolutions during the complete stress–strain process. Based on the experimental data, the hydrostatic stress-dependent gas permeability was discussed firstly. A second-order function was proposed to predict and explain the gas slippage effect. The mechanical properties and crack development of the sandstone samples were discussed to better understand the permeability evolution with crack growth during the complete stress–strain process. The results show that the gas permeability evolution can be divided into five stages according to the different crack growth stages. Then, the permeability changes in the crack closure stress \( \sigma_{\text{cc}} \), crack initiation stress \( \sigma_{\text{ci}} \), crack damage stress \( \sigma_{\text{cd}} \) and peak stress \( \sigma_{\text{p}} \) with confining pressures were analyzed. Finally, we found that the difference between the corrected gas permeability and water permeability can be attributed to the interaction between the water and sandstone grains.     

Effect of climate change on water resources in the Yuanshui River Basin: a SWAT model assessment

The Yuanshui River Basin is one of the most important river basins ensuring food production and livelihoods in the Hunan and Guizhou Provinces of China. Based on digital elevation model, land use, soil, and meteorological data, the soil and water assessment tool was used to analyze the response of water resources in the basin to climate change. Specifically, the monthly runoff from the Yuanshui River Basin was simulated. Runoff measurements from the 1961–1990 series were used to calibrate model parameters, and measurements from the 1991–2010 series were used for model validation. The Nash–Sutcliffe efficiency coefficient, correlation coefficient, and water balance error were used to evaluate the simulation results; the values obtained for these parameters were 0.925, 0.929, and 2.0%, respectively, indicating that the established model can be applied successfully to runoff simulations. To evaluate the effects of climate change and human activities on runoff, 24 different climate scenarios were modeled. By comparing the model simulation results with the baseline scenario, the effects of climate change were analyzed by year, during the dry season, and during extremely dry conditions. The results showed that runoff decreased with increasing air temperature and decreasing precipitation, and that the effects of rainfall on runoff were greater than those of air temperature. Under the same baseline conditions, the effects of climate change on runoff were most pronounced during extremely dry months.     

湘西-黔东下寒武统清虚洞组藻灰岩沉积特征及其找矿意义

铅锌矿是湘西-黔东地区的优势矿种,资源丰富,开发历史悠久,找矿潜力巨大。综合分析前人有关湘西-黔东生物礁的资料,介绍了藻灰岩的沉积特征,并结合大量实际地质资料,对藻灰岩控矿进行了论述。结果表明: 成矿物质主要来源于藻类及碳酸盐泥对Pb²⁺、Zn²⁺离子的吸取,矿床成因属于沉积成岩矿床类型,兼有成岩期后矿床性质; 藻礁灰岩与不同岩性的接合部位及其附近等微地球化学障区,往往就是铅锌富矿体产出部位; 藻礁灰岩与礁间通道的薄层泥质白云质灰岩呈指状交叉接触处,也常有铅锌富矿体产出; 铅锌富矿体基本上产于清虚洞组灰岩段中,且明显受该段藻礁灰岩控制。为满足国内外对铅锌矿日益增长的消费需要,深入研究区内铅锌矿的地层岩相岩石控矿因素及其富集规律,指导该地区藻灰岩中铅锌矿找矿工作,具有重要的现实意义。     

全国地热资源调查评价与勘查示范工程进展

地热作为一种清洁能源,在我国经济发展与能源转型过程中正发挥着越来越重要的作用。“全国地热资源调查评价与勘查示范工程”自实施以来,主要开展了京津冀地区地热资源评价以及东南沿海和青藏高原东部干热岩的勘查等工作。这些工作的开展在获得一系列科研突破成果的同时,也解决了大量地热开发的工程问题,积累了大量成果和经验。该文对工程取得的进展及成果进行了总结,对工作开展中出现的问题进行了探讨,可用于指导我国地热资源勘查开发工作。     

Behavior of Hydrocarbons in the Mouth Parts of Arctic Rivers

The paper reviews data (acquired in 2007–2016) on aliphatic and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in comparison with data on concentrations of lipids, C_org, and chlorophyll a in the water and bottom sediments the river–sea geochemical barrier (for the Northern Dvina, Ob, Yenisei, and Lena rivers). It was established that the concentrations of anthropogenic hydrocarbons decrease and these compounds precipitate like other organic compounds and particulate matter, where riverine and marine waters mix. Relatively pure water flows in the pelagic zones of seas. In spite of low temperatures in the Arctic, anthropogenic hydrocarbons transform so rapidly that natural compounds dominate in the water and bottom sediments: autochthonous in the seawater and allochthonous in the bottom sediments.