New Damage-locating Method for Bridges Subjected to a Moving Load

A new damage-locating method for bridges subjected to a moving load is presented, and a new ‘moving load damage-locating indicator＇ （MLDI） is introduced. A vehicle is modeled as a moving load, the bridge is simplified as an Euler-Bernoulli beam, and the damage is simulated by a reduction of stiffness properties of the elements. The curvature and MLDI values at each node of the baseline model （undamaged） and the damage model are computed respectively. Then the damage or damages can be located from a sudden change of the MLDI value. The feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed method are validated by numerical simulation. The results indicate that the method is effective, being able to not only locate a single damage accurately, but also locate multiple damages in simply-supported bridges, including multiple damages in continuous bridges. The results also indicate that the MLDI can accurately locate damages under 5% measurement noise.     

Exopolysaccharide production by four cyanobacterial isolates and preliminary identification of these isolates

Four marine cyanobacterial isolates, named 104, 109, 113 and 115, from marine water off China＇s coast can release a large amount of exopolysaccharide （EPS） to medium. The effects of different components in medium on EPS production by the four isolates were investigated. Under the optimal condition, the EPS released by isolates 104,109, 113 and 115 reached 7.48 g L^-1, 8.33 g L^-1, 18.26 g L^-1, and 6.78 g L^-1 within 14 d,respectively. Based on the conventional identification methods for cyanobacteria,these isolates were assigned to genus Cyanothece.     

Stress Responses to Rapid Temperature Changes of the Juvenile Sea Cucumber （Apostichopusjaponicus Selenka）

Activities of hexokinase （HK）, pyruvate kinase （PK）, superoxide dismutase （SOD） and catalase （CAT） and Hsp70 level were measured to evaluate the response of the commercially important sea cucumber （Apostichopus japonicus Selenka） to rapid temperature changes in laboratory. Animals were subjected to a higher temperature （from 10 to 20℃） （Tinc treatment） or to a lower temperature （from 20 to 10℃） （Tddec treatment） for 72 h. At 1, 3, 12, 24, 72 h of exposure, animals were removed and prepared for further analysis. Results showed that the effect of acute temperature changes on enzyme activities was significant. In Tinc treatment, activities of SOD and CAT increased immediately. The significant enhancement of SOD and CAT activities suggested that oxidative stress increases significantly when ambient temperature increasing from 10 to 20℃. The up-regulation of Flsp70 in Tinc and Tdec treatments indicated that Hsp70 was a bioindicator of thermal stress in the sea cucumber, and the expression pattern depended on the thermal treatment.     

Effect of climate change on seasonal water use efficiency in subalpine <Emphasis Type="Italic">Abies fabri</Emphasis>

Abies fabri is a typical subalpine dark coniferous forest in southwestern China. Air temperature increases more at high elevation areas than that at low elevation areas in mountainous regions, and climate change ratio is also uneven in different seasons. Carbon gain and the response of water use efficiency (WUE) to annual and seasonal increases in temperature with or without CO₂ fertilization were simulated in Abies fabri using the atmospheric-vegetation interaction model (AVIM2). Four future climate scenarios (RCP2.6, RCP4.5, RCP6.0 and RCP8.5) from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5) were selectively investigated. The results showed that warmer temperatures have negative effects on gross primary production (GPP) and net primary production (NPP) in growing seasons and positive effects in dormant seasons due to the variation in the leaf area index. Warmer temperatures tend to generate lower canopy WUE and higher ecosystem WUE in Abies fabri. However, warmer temperature together with rising CO₂ concentrations significantly increase the GPP and NPP in both growing and dormant seasons and enhance WUE in annual and dormant seasons because of the higher leaf area index (LAI) and soil temperature. The comparison of the simulated results with and without CO₂ fertilization shows that CO₂ has the potential to partially alleviate the adverse effects of climate warming on carbon gain and WUE in subalpine coniferous forests.     

Experimental study on the energy dissipation characteristics of debris flow deceleration baffles

Debris flow can cause serious damages to roads, bridges, buildings and other infrastructures.Arranging several rows of deceleration baffles in the significant influence on the mobility and deposition characteristic of debris flow. The deposit amount first increased then decreased when the flow density rises,flow path can reduce the flow velocity and ensure better protection of life and property. In debris flow prevention projects, deceleration baffles can effectively reduce the erosion of the debris flow and prolong the running time of the drainage channel.This study investigated the degree to which a 6 m long flume and three rows of deceleration baffles reduce the debris flow velocity and affect the energy dissipation characteristics. The influential variables include channel slope, debris flow density, and spacing between baffle rows. The experimental results demonstrated that the typical flow pattern was a sudden increase in flow depth and vertical proliferation when debris flow flows through the baffles. Strong turbulence between debris flow and baffles can contribute to energy dissipation and decrease the kinematic velocity considerably. The results showed that the reduction ratio of velocity increased with the increase in debris flow density,channel slope and spacing between rows. Tests phenomena also indicated that debris flow density hasand the deposit amount of debris flow density of 1500kg/m~3 reached the maximum when the experimental flume slope is 12°.     

Comparison of the entrainment rate of debris flows in distinctive triggering conditions

Debris flows can be extremely destructive because they can increase in magnitude via progressive entrainment. In this paper, a total of 18 landslide-type debris flows and 268 channelized debris flows in Wenchuan earthquake and Taiwan region, as well as other regions were collected to analyze the entrainment rate of debris flows in each triggering condition. Results show that there is a power relationship between volume of initial triggered mass and final deposited debris for landslide type debris flow. The debris flows during 2008 and 2013 in Wenchuan earthquake-region have smaller entrainment rate than that from 2001 t0 2009 in Taiwan. The entrainment rate of debris flow events from 2001 to 2009 in Taiwan shows a decaying tendency as elapsed time. Comparison of the entrainment rate in the two earthquake-hit regions with other regions proves that entrainment rate has a close relation with major sediment availability and secondary rainstorm conditions.     

Upper Cretaceous alluvial fan deposits in the Jianglangshan Geopark of Southeast China: implications for bedrock control on Danxia landform evolution

The Jianglangshan Geopark in the western Zhejiang Province of Southeast China is well-known for its spectacular red-colored sandstone landforms. Little is known about the depositional processes of the conglomerate-dominated Fangyan Formation, the lithologic base of the Danxia landforms in this geopark. Based on detailed field investigation of lithology, sedimentary structures, bed thickness and geometry, five facies are recognized: facies A (matrix-supported cobble conglomerate), facies B (pebble conglomerate), facies C (pebbly sandstone), facies D (fine-grained sandstone) and facies E (mudstone). The results show that streamflow-dominated fans were the main depositional processes responsible for the accumulation of the Fangyan Formation along the mountain fronts. These fan conglomerates form the base for the evolution of the Danxia landscapes owing to the uplift and erosion of the study area. In contrast, the fine-grained sedimentary successions produced by fluvial floodplains in the distal part of the fans were thinner and more easily weathered. Such sedimentary facies distribution patterns were thought to be similar during Late Cretaceous across Southeast China. The Danxia landforms are largely the geographical expressions of the conglomerate-dominated redbeds in the proximal-middle fans.     

Measurement on soil deformation caused by expanded-base pile in transparent soil using particle image velocimetry (PIV)

A new small-scale geotechnical physical model in 1-g and unconfined condition, combining the transparent soil, close-range photogrammetry and particle image velocimetry (PIV), was employed, which provides a non-intrusively internal deformation measurement approach to monitor the internal deformation of soil caused by expanded-base pile jacking with casing. The transparent soil was made of fused quartz and its refractive index matched blended oil, adding reflective particles (glass beads). Close-range photogrammetry was employed to record the images of the process of casing jacking and extraction in transparent soil, allowing the use of Matlab-based Geo-PIV to figure out the displacement field converted from image space to object space. Analysis of test results indicates that the maximum displacement caused by casing jacking for expanded-conical-base pile is decreased by 29% compared with that for expanded-flat-base pile. The main movement happens at the early stage of casing extraction. The maximum displacement caused by casing extraction for the conical base is about 43% of that for the flat base, while the affected zone caused by casing extraction for the conical base accounts for about 1/3 of that for the flat base. The contraction for horizontal displacements tends to decrease with the depth increasing. By contrast, the contraction under pile base decreases with the increasing of displacement. The displacements generated by jacking a conventional pile having a diameter equal to the casing diameter of the expanded-base pile were comparable to the net displacement taking place due to expanded-base pile installation for the conical base pile.     

An investigation on changes in glacier mass balance and hypsometry for a small mountainous glacier in the northeastern Tibetan Plateau

Mass balance is a key indicator of the sensitivity of glaciers to climate change. Field measurement is one of the most important ways to study the mass balance of glaciers. Based on observations of mass balance in the ablation zone of Shuiguan Glacier No.4, Qilian Mountains, China, combined with the balance ratio between accumulation and ablation, we established a linear relation between mass balance and altitude. The results show that the mean annual mass balance of this glacier was ~510 mm w.e. from 2010 to 2013. The uncertainty in the balance ratio value does not lead to a significant difference in the mass balance. The equilibrium-line altitude rose by 180 m from 1972 to 2013, while the accumulation–area ratio decreased from 0.68 to 0.25. These variations may be caused by changes in air temperature. Meanwhile, the glacier is at present not in a steady state, and it may continue to shrink by a further ~900 m, even without further climate warming. In the western Lenglongling Mountains, assuming that the glaciers are in a steady state and the Equilibrium-line altitudes(ELAs)remain similar, there will be only 46 glaciers left, covering a total area of 19.2 km~2, in other words, only 22.3% of the glaciers area in 1972.     

On the criteria to create a susceptibility map to debris flow at a regional scale using Flow-R

Studies on susceptibility to debris flows at regional scale(100-1000 km~2) are important for the protection and management of mountain areas. To reach this objective, routing models, mainly based on land topography, can be used to predict susceptible areas rapidly while necessitating few input data. In this research, Flow-R model is implemented to create the susceptibility map for the debris flow of the Vizze Valley(BZ, North-Eastern Italy; 134 km~2). The analysis considers the model application at local scale for three sub-catchments and then it explores the model upscaling at the regional scale by verifying two methods to generate the source areas of debris-flow initiation. Using data of an extreme event occurred in the Vizze Valley(4 August 2012) and historical information, the modeling verification highlights that the propagation parameters are relatively simple to set in order to obtain correct runout distances. A double DTM filtering-using a threshold for the upslope contributing area(0.1 km~2) and a threshold for the terrain-slope angle(15°)-provides a satisfactory prediction of source areas and susceptibility map within the geological conditions of the Vizze Valley.