Coal facies evolution of the main minable coal-bed in the Heidaigou Mine,Jungar Coalfield,Inner Mongolia,northern China

The No. 6 Coal-bed from the Heidaigou Mine, Jungar Coalfield, Inner Mongolia is a super-large Ga deposit. The dominant carrier of Ga is boehmite in coal. The study of coal facies may provide genetic enrichment information of Ga and its carrier (boehmite) in the Ga deposit. On the basis of study on coal petrology and mineralogy, it was found that the No. 6 Coal-bed from the Heidaigou Mine of Jungar was enriched in inertinites and the microlitho-types were dominated by clarodurite. The maceral morphological features and association indicate that the coal-bed was formed in a dry sedimentary environment or in a periodic dry sedimentary environment caused by the alternating variations of groundwater level. The optimum conditions for the enrichment of Ga and its particular carrier (boehmite) were dominated by four transitional conditions: (1) the upper delta plain which was the transitional zone between alluvial and lower delta plains, (2) the transitional zone between the dry and wet forest swamps, being slightly apt to the dry one, (3) the transitional tree density between the thick and loose ones, and (4) the low moor that was the transitional zone between two high moors during peat accumulation.     

Evaluation of statistical tropospheric scintillation models using SUPERBIRD-C satellite for Malaysia

The main purpose of this paper is to evaluate and compare some of the statistical tropospheric scintillation models for one-year data (1999–2000) measured using SUPERBIRD-C satellite in Tronoh, Malaysia. Eight statistical models of monthly mean scintillation intensity are briefly reviewed and their predictions compared with measurements. Results are discussed in order to understand the potentials and the limits of each prediction model within this case study. In the context of our measurements, the Karasawa and Ortgies-T models have the best overall performance. The agreement with satellite measurements is found to be mainly dependent on the parameterization of prediction models to the radiometeorological variables along the earth-space path.     

Accumulation characteristics and the main controlling factors of Lunnan multilayer oil province,Tarim Basin,China

Lunnan region is a large-scale paleohigh with many coexisting oil and gas bearing series. At present, about 2 billions tons of proved, probable and possible oil and gas reverses have been proved there. Eight oil and gas bearing series have been found in the Ordovician, Carboniferous, Triassic and Jurassic of Lunnan region, they all bear the characteristics of large-scale multilayer oil-gas province. Ordovician is the main reservoir series where over 0.8 billion tons of oil geologic reserves were discovered, and a super large-scale marine carbonate oil and gas field has formed. Reservoir space of the carbonate reservoirs is mainly composed of dissolved hole, dissolved pore and fracture in Lunnan paleo-burial hill. Generally, dissolved holes are widely distributed among them. Reservoir developments are mainly controlled by karstification and tectonic disruption. Due to the similar geochemical characters, the Ordovician, Carboniferous, Triassic and Jurassic oil and gas reservoirs present the same oil source rock of Mid-Upper Ordovician, the latter except Ordovician are mostly of secondary oil and gas reservoirs migrated vertically by faults during the process of multiple phase tectonic movement, adjustment and reconstruction. Lunnan composite oil and gas accumulation region is situated in the vicinity of large-scale hydrocarbon generation depressions in three directions, ample oil and gas from hydrocarbon generation depressions supplied the adjacent oil and gas reservoirs once. Hereby, the succeed paleohigh is the long-term hydrocarbon accumulation region, which is favor for the formations of high quality reservors, fault systems and huge-scale composite oil and gas accumulation.     

Mechanical and low-cycle fatigue behavior of stainless reinforcing steel for earthquake engineering applications

Use of stainless reinforcing steel (SRS) in reinforced concrete (RC) structures is a promising solution to corrosion issues. However, for SRS to be used in seismic applications, several mechanical properties need to be investigated. These include specified and actual yield strengths, tensile strengths, uniform elongations and low-cycle fatigue behavior. Three types of SRSs (Talley S24100, Talley 316LN and Talley 2205) were tested and the results are reported in this paper. They were compared with the properties of A706 carbon reinforcing steel (RS), which is typical for seismic applications, and MMFX II, which is a high strength, corrosion resistant RS. Low-cycle fatigue tests of the RS coupons were conducted under strain control with constant amplitude to obtain strain life models of the steels. Test results show that the SRSs have slightly lower moduli of elasticity, higher uniform elongations before necking, and better low-cycle fatigue performance than A706 and MMFX II. All five types of RSs tested satisfy the requirements of the ACI 318 code on the lower limit of the tensile to yield strength ratio. Except Talley 2205, the other four types of RSs investigated meet the ACI 318 requirement that the actual yield strength does not exceed the specified yield strength by more than 18 ksi (124 MPa). Among the three types of SRSs tested, Talley S24100 possesses the highest uniform elongation before necking, and the best low-cycle fatigue performance.     

Analytical study on vulnerability functions for casualty estimation in the collapse of adobe buildings induced by earthquake

Collapse of adobe buildings during an earthquakes with various earthquake intensities is analyzed using the 3-dimensional distinct element method code developed by the first author. Firstly, we evaluate structural damage with damage index, interior-space damage with w score, and human casualties in the collapsing buildings with three casualty criteria. Secondly, we investigate relationships between the earthquake intensity, the structural damage, the interior-space damage, and the casualties. It is found that the casualties have stronger correlation with the interior-space damage than the structural damage, and three vulnerability functions, namely, structural, interior-space and casualty vulnerability functions, are proposed. Effects of reinforcing methods on these functions are also examined. Finally, a series of analytical procedures to develop vulnerability functions and to estimate casualties using the functions are described.     

Sublimation-driven evolution of the local radius and the moment of inertia of short-period comets

This article is a continuation of the previous one considering the evolution of a long-period comet. The changes of the local radius and the moment of inertia as well as the orientation of the rotation axis are calculated. With reference to the previous model, the time-dependent orbital parameters are introduced. The procedure of sublimation-driven evolution is implemented to the comets 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, 9P/Tempel 1, and 81P/Wild. The inclination of the rotation axis of Comet Ch-G is calculated. The position of the rotation axis is a result of the best fit of the water production rate curve received from modelling to the observational water production rate curve. The method is verified through application to Comets 9P/Tempel 1 and 81P/Wild with well-known positions of the rotation axes. The best fit is for inclination of the rotation axis which is close to the position of the rotation axis with minimum energy (maximum of the moment of inertia). For the best fitted position of the rotation axis I = 90° and Φ = 60°, the largest decrease of radius was about 5.6 m in the northern polar region. The smallest decrease of radius, of about 0.3 m, was noticed on cometographic latitudes between 39° and 46°.     

Miocene silicic volcanism in southwestern Idaho: geochronology,geochemistry, and evolution of the central Snake River Plain

New ⁴⁰Ar-³⁹Ar geochronology, bulk rock geochemical data, and physical characteristics for representative stratigraphic sections of rhyolite ignimbrites and lavas from the west-central Snake River Plain (SRP) are combined to develop a coherent stratigraphic framework for Miocene silicic magmatism in this part of the Yellowstone ‘hotspot track’. The magmatic record differs from that in areas to the west and east with regard to its unusually large extrusive volume, broad lateral scale, and extended duration. We infer that the magmatic systems developed in response to large-scale and repeated injections of basaltic magma into the crust, resulting in significant reconstitution of large volumes of the crust, wide distribution of crustal melt zones, and complex feeder systems for individual eruptive events. Some eruptive episodes or ‘events’ appear to be contemporaneous with major normal faulting, and perhaps catastrophic crustal foundering, that may have triggered concurrent evacuations of separate silicic magma reservoirs. This behavior and cumulative time-composition relations are difficult to relate to simple caldera-style single-source feeder systems and imply complex temporal-spatial development of the silicic magma systems. Inferred volumes and timing of mafic magma inputs, as the driving energy source, require a significant component of lithospheric extension on NNW-trending Basin and Range style faults (i.e., roughly parallel to the SW–NE orientation of the eastern SRP). This is needed to accommodate basaltic inputs at crustal levels, and is likely to play a role in generation of those magmas. Anomalously high magma production in the SRP compared to that in adjacent areas (e.g., northern Basin and Range Province) may require additional sub-lithospheric processes. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi: ) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. This paper constitutes part of a special issue dedicated to Bill Bonnichsen on the petrogenesis and volcanology of anorogenic rhyolites.