Lignin degradation products as palaeoenvironmental proxies in the sediments of small lakes

The quantity and quality of lignin phenols (Σ8, Λ, S/V, C/V and (Ad/Al)_v) in the sediments of three small Lobelia lakes with neither inlets nor outlets were investigated and compared with palynological data and lithology of the profiles. The method of alkaline CuO oxidation was used. Substantial differences with respect to sedimentary lignin concentration and provenance recorded along the profiles and among the sites are in good agreement with pollen data describing the dominant type of vegetation and with indices of soil erosion in the lakes’ catchments. This relation shows that the compositions of lignin degradation products in these lakes are closely related to the local environmental conditions. In all the lakes gymnosperm wood is the main source of lignin products; however, each lake is characterized by different S/V index values. Especially good correlations were obtained between pine pollen proportions in sediments and the S/V index. The correlation between the C/V and (Ad/Al)_v indices indicates a higher degradation of organic matter when non-woody tissue is more abundant. This pilot study illustrates the usefulness and potential for a wider application of lignin oxidation products in palaeoecological reconstructions. This kind of data would be of special importance when investigating local presence/absence of woody plants and the role of angiosperms/gymnosperms in local vegetation. Estimates of lignin biodegradation levels, as well as the data on diagenetic processes, may afford supplementary information on possible disturbances in sedimentation.     

Distribution and characteristics of landslides induced by the Iwate–Miyagi Nairiku Earthquake in 2008 in Tohoku District, Northeast Japan

The Iwate–Miyagi Nairiku Earthquake in 2008, whose seismic intensity was M. 7.2 in Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) scale, induced innumerable landslides on the southern flank of Mt. Kurikoma volcano allocated along the Ou Backbone Range in Northeast Japan. Most landslides are detected in a hanging wall side of the seismic fault. Those landslides are classified into five types: deep-seated slide, debris slide, shallow debris slide, secondary shallow debris slide, and debris flow. Most common landslide types induced by the earthquake are shallow debris slides and subsequent debris flows. They are intensively distributed along steep gorges incising a volcanic skirt of Mt. Kurikoma, consisting of welded ignimbrite of the Pleistocene age. Debris flows are also distributed even along gentle river floors in the southern lower flank of the volcano. The area of densely distributed debris slides, shallow debris slides, and debris flows is concordant with that of severe seismic tremor. Thus, genetic processes of landslides induced by the Iwate–Miyagi Nairiku Earthquake in 2008 are attributed to multiple causative factors such as geology, topography, and seismic force.     

Modelling hydraulic and capillary-driven two-phase fluid flow in unsaturated concretes at the meso-scale with a unique coupled DEM-CFD technique

The goal of the research was to demonstrate the impact of thin porous interfacial transition zones (ITZs) between aggregates and cement matrix on fluid flow in unsaturated concrete caused by hydraulic/capillary pressure. To demonstrate this impact, a novel coupled approach to simulate the two-phase (water and moist air) flow of hydraulically and capillary-driven fluid in unsaturated concrete was developed. By merging the discrete element method (DEM) with computational fluid dynamics (CFD) under isothermal settings, the process was numerically studied at the meso-scale in two-dimensional conditions. A flow network was used to describe fluid behaviour in a continuous domain between particles. Small concrete specimens of a simplified particle mesostructure were subjected to fully coupled hydro-mechanical simulation tests. A simple uniaxial compression test was used to calibrate the pure DEM represented by bonded spheres, while a permeability and sorptivity test for an assembly of spheres was used to calibrate the pure CFD. For simplified specimens of the pure cement matrix, cement matrix with aggregate, and cement matrix with aggregate and ITZ of a given thickness, DEM/CFD simulations were performed sequentially. The numerical results of permeability and sorptivity were directly compared to the data found in the literature. A satisfactory agreement was achieved. Porous ITZs in concrete were found to reduce sorption by slowing the capillary-driven fluid flow, and to speed the full saturation of pores when sufficiently high hydraulic water pressures were dominant.