Long-runout pyroclastic surge on a Cretaceous alluvial plain, Republic of Korea

Pyroclastic surge is a dilute and turbulent flow of volcanic gas and tephra that is commonly generated during explosive volcanic eruptions and can threaten lives along its flow paths. Assessing its travel distance and delineating future volcanic hazards have therefore been major concerns of volcanologists. Historical eruptions show that most pyroclastic surges travel a few tens of kilometres or less from their sources. Aeolian or aquagene processes have therefore been evoked for the emplacement of supposed surge deposits much beyond this distance. Here we show that a Cretaceous tuff bed in Korea was emplaced by an exceptionally powerful pyroclastic surge that flowed as far as the most powerful pyroclastic flows that formed the low-aspect-ratio ignimbrites (LARI). This has significant implications for interpreting ancient volcanic eruptions and delineating volcanic hazards by pyroclastic surges, and casts intriguing questions on the eruption dynamics and physics of long-runout pyroclastic surges and their distinction from LARI-forming pyroclastic flows.     

A systematic regional approach for climate change adaptation to protect biodiversity

Developing appropriate climate change adaptations to protect biodiversity requires taking into account the dynamics of agro-ecological and socio-economic change. A framework for approaching this problem was proposed, but not applied in detail, as part of a major biodiversity and climate change report prepared in Australia. This paper describes the first trial application of the method. It was applied across Vietnam as the Government is interested in identifying adaptation options and detailed data are readily available for its 65 provinces. The process involves identifying ecoregions and collating information for each region based on the current conditions and trends in biodiversity, population, income and agricultural production. Climate change scenarios are identified for each region, together with governance options. Educational needs and key adaptation actions are then identified for each region taking into account the agro-ecological and socio-economic input data. It is concluded that the framework could easily be applied in other countries and should assist the development of strategic adaptation options.     

Sea Level Rise Affecting the Vietnamese Mekong Delta: Water Elevation in the Flood Season and Implications for Rice Production

In this study, we assessed the impact of sea level rise, one of the most ascertained consequences of global climate change, for water levels in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta (VMD). We used a hydraulic model to compute water levels from August to November - when flooding is presently critical- under sea level rise scenarios of 20 cm (=Δ 20) and 45 cm (=Δ 45), respectively. The outputs show that the contour lines of water levels will be shifted up to 25 km (Δ 20) and 50 km (Δ 45) towards the sea due to higher sea levels. At the onset of the flood season (August), the average increment in water levels in the Delta is 14.1 cm (Δ 20) and 32.2 cm (Δ 45), respectively. At the peak of the flood season (October), high discharge from upstream attenuates the increment in water level, but average water level rise of 11.9 cm (Δ 20) and 27.4 cm (Δ 45), respectively, still imply a substantial aggravation of flooding problems in the VMD. GIS techniques were used to delineate areas with different levels of vulnerability, i.e., area with high (2.3 mio ha =60% of the VMD), medium (0.6 mio ha = 15%) and low (1 mio ha =25%) vulnerability due to sea level rise. Rice production will be affected through excessive flooding in the tidally inundated areas and longer flooding periods in the central part of the VMD. These adverse impacts could affect all three cropping seasons, Mua (main rainfed crop), Dong Xuan (Winter-Spring) and He Thu (Summer-Autumn) in the VMD unless preventive measures are taken.     

Predicting soil erosion hazard in Lattakia Governorate(W Syria)

The main objective of this study is to predict soil erosion in the Lattakia Governorate(WSyria)using the Water Erosion Prediction Project model(WEPP)and to compare the result with that of the RUSLE.Field survey and data collection were carried out,and 44 soil samples were analyzed.In addition,all the necessary input files were prepared for use in the WEPP model and RUSLE.Results show that more than of 80%of the locations studied experience slight to moderate erosion(less than 5 t/ha/y),whereas the rest of the locations experience severe soil erosion hazard.Moreover,the volume of runoff estimated by the WEPP model is in the range of 51e321 mm,and the R^2 between the simulated soil erosion and the predicted runoff reached 0.68.Interestingly,the R^2 between the WEPP model and RUSLE is 0.56,which indicates a good correlation between the two models.     

Nuclear energy response in the EMF27 study

The nuclear energy response for mitigating global climate change across 18 participating models of the EMF27 study is investigated. Diverse perspectives on the future role of nuclear power in the global energy system are evident in the broad range of nuclear power contributions from participating models of the study. In the Baseline scenario without climate policy, nuclear electricity generation and shares span 0–66 EJ/year and 0–25 % in 2100 for all models, with a median nuclear electricity generation of 39 EJ/year (1,389 GWe at 90 % capacity factor) and median share of 9 %. The role of nuclear energy increased under the climate policy scenarios. The median of nuclear energy use across all models doubled in the 450 ppm CO₂e scenario with a nuclear electricity generation of 67 EJ/year (2,352 GWe at 90 % capacity factor) and share of 17 % in 2100. The broad range of nuclear electricity generation (11–214 EJ/year) and shares (2–38 %) in 2100 of the 450 ppm CO₂e scenario reflect differences in the technology choice behavior, technology assumptions and competitiveness of low carbon technologies. Greater clarification of nuclear fuel cycle issues and risk factors associated with nuclear energy use are necessary for understanding the nuclear deployment constraints imposed in models and for improving the assessment of the nuclear energy potential in addressing climate change.     

Estimation of Seasonal Representation of the Sea Water Temperature Profile Using Machine Learning and Its Effect on the Prediction of Underwater Acoustic Detection Performance

Ocean Science Journal - Seawater temperature and salinity profiles are important physical properties that represent oceanic environments and affect underwater acoustic detection prediction...     

Effects of material variability on the ductility of composite beams and overstrength coefficients

The aim of this paper is to investigate the plastic rotation capacity of composite beams as well as the overstrength factors for composite joints considering the actual European steel production. It relies on the statistical data of the mechanical properties of steel profiles and reinforcement bars produced in several European steel mills that have been collected during the European research project OPUS. Several steel and composite structures have been designed following the EN 1998 rules, and the effect of the statistical distribution of the steel properties on the design has been analyzed. In such structures, the first attainment of the rotation capacity is expected to happen in the hogging region. The plastic rotation capacity was evaluated using the so‐called standard beam concept. The moment–rotation curve was constructed by joining together the pre‐buckling branch, determined using a fiber model, and the post‐buckling part derived by considering the local plastic failure mechanism as suggested by Gioncu. A program in MATLAB (MATLAB version 7.10.0. Natick, Massachusetts: The MathWorks Inc., 2010) was developed to establish such curve for arbitrary composite beams. The predictions of the model compare favorably against the experimental results. On the basis of the probabilistic model for the mechanical properties of steel, we derive the statistical distribution of the maximum rotation defined at the intersection of the pre‐buckling and post‐buckling curves. Next, we estimate the so‐called overstrength factors. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Multiscale poro‐creep model for cement‐based materials

Experimental observations clearly show that the relative humidity (h_r) conditions influence significantly the creep behavior of cement‐based materials, indicating that the water present within these materials plays a crucial role. This work presents a creep model for hardened cement pastes (HCP), based on a multiscale homogenization approach. It takes into account both free and adsorbed water contained in the porosity and investigates their effects on the HCP macroscopic creep behavior. The calcium silicate hydrate phase is assumed to be linear viscoelastic, and the Mori–Tanaka scheme is applied in the Laplace–Carson space to the composite formed of porosity, calcium silicate hydrate, and the other main hydrated compounds (which behavior is linearly elastic) by making use of the correspondence principle. With this model, estimations of the evolution of the macroscopic creep behavior of HCP submitted to constant external loading are examined under different h_r and compared with available experimental data. Finally, a method for implementing the model in a finite element code is proposed, and simulations of standard creep tests are performed to assess its validity. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Tracing carbon transfer and assimilation by invertebrates and fish across a tropical mangrove ecosystem using stable isotopes

Mangroves are highly productive ecosystems that exhibit a diverse range of habitats, including tidal creeks and flats, forest gaps and interior forest with varying understory light intensity, tidal dynamics, geomorphological settings, and overall biological production. Within mangrove ecosystems, invertebrates and fish feed on heterogeneous food sources, the occurrence of which is unevenly distributed across the system. This provides a basis for testing models of carbon transfer across mangrove ecosystems. We hypothesized that the carbon transfer and assimilation by fish and invertebrates will vary across the different mangrove habitats and that such variations can be predicted by their stable isotope compositions. We analysed δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N signatures of consumers and their potential organic carbon sources across a tropical mangrove ecosystem in Vietnam. The δ¹³C values of crabs and snails significantly decreased from the tidal flat to interior forest, indicating that variations in carbon transfer and assimilation occurred at small scales <30 m. Reduced variation in δ¹³C of suspension‐feeding bivalves suggested that tidal water was a vector for large‐scale transport of carbon across the mangrove ecosystem. An analysis of co‐variance using habitat as a fixed factor and feeding habit and movement capacity of consumers as co‐variates indicated that habitat and feeding types were major features that affected the δ¹³C values of invertebrates and fish. The findings demonstrate that carbon transfer and assimilation across mangrove ecosystems occur as a diverse combination of small (<30 m) and large (>30 m) scale processes.