Stochastic dynamics of damage evolution in brittle rocks

Development of defects in brittle rocks is analysed in terms of continuous damage mechanics with an emphasis on a shear damage evolution. Necessity to account for an effect of stochastic action leads to an introduction of kinetic relations for damage accumlation in a form of stochastic differential equations. Numerical algorithms for their solution for three types of noise are proposed. Results of simulation are compared with analytical solutions for a determiistic case (absence of stochastic action). Effect of various types of noise on damage accumulation and on time-to-fracture distributions is investigated. The study is limited to the case of temporal stochasticity; ways for unification of approach and schemes with spatial randomness are discussed.     

Lois exponentielles de distance pour les systèmes de satellites

Résumé Une formulation exponentielle de la loi empirique de Titus-Bode a été proposée par Basano et Hugues. Ces auteurs introduisent l'hypothèse de trois planètes manquantes ou trous. Toutes les planètes obéissent à la relation a _n = ⁿ qui donne les demi-grands axes a des planètes pour des valeurs entières de n.Nous proposons une nouvelle méthode qui permet de retrouver la relation de Basano et Hugues pour le système solaire. Nous appliquons cette méthode aux systèmes de satellites de Jupiter, Saturne et Uranus en introduisant des trous pour combler les lacunes dans les séquences de satellites. Nous en tirons trois relations exponentielles de distance, analogues à la relation de Basano et Hugues. Nous constatons que les coefficients sont semblables pour les systèmes solaire, jovien et uranien alors que le coefficient du système de Saturne vaut approximativement la racine carrée des trois autres .Nous expliquons cet espacement exponentiel grâce à un modèle simple d'une nébuleuse gazeuse initiale soumise à de petites perturbations qui engendrent des oscillations dans la distribution de densité. Les minima de la densité perturbée sont donnés par les zéros des fonctions de Bessel décrivant la propagation de la perturbation. Les positions des maxima correspondent aux sites d'accrétion.Tous les trous introduits dans les parties intérieures des systèmes de satellites sont comblés par les anneaux et petits satellites. Dans le système d'Uranus, il reste deux trous vacants qui pourraient être occupés par des petits satellites non encore découverts.

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Exponential distance laws for satellite systems

A revised Titius-Bode law for the Solar system was proposed by Basano and Hugues, by introducing three missing planets. This law can be written a _n = ⁿ (with = 0.2853 AU and = 1.5226), which gives the distances a _n of the nth planet for successive integers n.We propose a new method to find this Basano-Hugues law for the Solar system. Based upon the comparison of the ratios of successive distances, this method can be applied to the satellite systems of the three giants planets Jupiter, Saturn and Uranus by introducing missing satellites to fill the gaps in satellites sequences. We find three exponential distance relations, similar to that of Basano-Hugues. We note that the coefficients for the Solar, Jovian and Uranian systems are almost equal while the Saturnian system's coefficient is nearly the square root of that of the three others.We explain that exponential spacing by a simple model of an initial gaseous nebula subject to small perturbations generating oscillations in the density distribution. The minima of the perturbed density are given by the zeros of Bessel functions describing the perturbation propagation. The maxima positions correspond to accretion sites.All the empty places in the inside parts of satellite systems are occupied by rings and small satellites. In the Uranian system, there are two empty places which could be filled by new undiscovered small satellites.

     

古纬度对原油稳定碳同位素组分的作用

稳定同位素过去很少成功地应用于对原油地质年代以及各自源岩的沉积环境进行限定。几种与主要时间界限（例如寒武纪—奥陶纪、三叠纪—侏罗纪、老第三纪—新第三纪）相应的原油的δ１３Ｃ的长期幕式变化似乎反映了生物化学过程对有机碳和无机碳保存的影响。通常 ,地质年龄越小 ,原油越趋向于富集１３Ｃ。这些变化似乎与原油的源岩类型无关 ,表明根据原油的δ１３Ｃ有可能限定它们的地质年龄。然而每个地质时间段的原油的δ１３Ｃ值都具有一定的范围 ,并且地质年龄越小 ,这些值的范围越大。因此 ,必须对空间因素如何影响时间上同位素变化进行…     

Latitudinal and bathymetric trends in egg size variation: a new look at Thorson's and Rass's rules

The inverse relationship between egg size in marine animals and water temperature was simultaneously described by two outstanding marine scientists: G. Thorson and T.S. Rass. This rule consists of two different phenomena. Thorson's rule describes ecological processes related to changes in larval biology and morphology that are caused by a selective pressure of natural selection on the different types of larval development. It belongs to the realm of macro‐evolution. Rass's rule describes physiological processes within populations and species, and between closely related species. This is not related to changes in reproductive strategy, and therefore belongs to the realm of micro‐evolution and to the early stages of macro‐evolution. Populations begin to produce larger eggs in colder environments because of phenotypic plasticity. Thorson's rule describes temperature‐dependent changes in the relative abundance of small‐ and large‐egged species, whereas Rass's rule describes a temperature‐dependent relative position of both groups within an adaptive range of reproductive strategies.     

Protosolar nebula and composition of comets

Comets seem to be composed of matter, which is supposed to have the same molecular composition as protosolar nebula. Although there are no unbiased evidence that cometary nuclei retain the molecular composition inherited from the protosolar cloud, the observed properties of comets indicate that there is at least a resemblance between cometary composition and the material properties of dense interstellar clouds. Therefore the origin of comets could be searched in the cold stages of the protosolar nebula and molecular abundances of grain mantles in this nebula may be similar to those in the cometary dust. It is suggested that comets may contain pristine, virtually unaltered protosolar material and their study might be very relevant way to more information about processes in early stages of the solar nebula. Our knowledge about composition of the cometary nucleus is still relatively scarce, but we can partly deduce it from data obtained either by ground-based spectroscopy or by in situ mass spectrometry from space experiments. Most important were the discovery of fluffy CHON particles composed partly or even completely from compounds containing light elements. No consensus concerning the presence of interstellar pristine matter in comet has been reached from various approaches to determine the relationship between comets and interstellar grains. Most of these studies are based on infrared spectroscopy. Another method is the comparison on the chemical models of the protosolar nebula with the volatile compounds of the cometary nuclei. Both gas-phase and grain-surface chemistry are considered and initial gas-phase atomic abundances are assumed to be protosolar. The cometary matter is certainly not identical with the typical material of dense interstellar cool dense clouds, but it is closer to it than any other type of matter in solar system so far accessible to us. The data from comets combined with models of chemical evolution of matter in environment similar as prevailed the early stage of presolar nebula may at least impose constrains on the condition for comet formation. Here presented study is a preliminary contribution to such studies.     

Tropospheric Ozone at the Swedish Mountain Site Åreskutan: Budget and Trends

Ozone measurements, performed since 1987, at the Swedish TOR/EUROTRACstation Åreskutan (lat. 63.4° N, long. 13.1° E, 1250 m abovesea level) are analyzed. The annual average ozone concentration at the sitehas increased by about 0.4 ppbv (1%) per year during the period1987–1994. The corresponding trends for individual months show adecrease during April–September and an increase during the rest of theyear. The ozone budget at Åreskutan has been investigated using backtrajectories of the air parcels, and the cosmogenic radionuclide⁷Be as a tracer of stratospheric air. From a simple diagnosticmodel, it is estimated that the contribution of stratospheric ozone to theconcentrations measured at Åreskutan is 5 ppbv (or 14% of themeasured values) on average, reaching a maximum of 23 ppbv (50%),during the episodes of direct stratospheric influence. In spring, thestratospheric contribution to ozone budget at Åreskutan is at itsmaximum, and approximately equal to the net photochemical ozone productionin the air mass affecting the site, whereas in winter, it is compensated byozone chemical sink during the transport of air masses from pollutedEuropean regions, to Scandinavia.     

Grid point surface air temperature calculations with a fast turnaround: Combining the results of IMAGE and a GCM

This paper describes a methodology that combines the outputs of (1) the Integrated Model to Assess the Greenhouse Effect (IMAGE Version 1.0) of the Netherlands National Institute of Public Health and Environmental Protection (RIVM) (given a greenhouse gas emission policy, this model can estimate the effects such as global mean surface air temperature change for a wide variety of policies) and (2) ECHAM-1/LSG, the Global Circulation Model (GCM) of the Max-Planck Institute for Meteorology in Hamburg, Germany. The combination enables one to calculate grid point surface air temperature changes for different scenarios with a turnaround time that is much quicker than that for a GCM. The methodology is based upon a geographical pattern of the ratio of grid point temperature change to global mean values during a certain period of the simulation, as calculated by ECHAM-1/LSG for the 1990 Scenarios A and D of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). A procedure, based upon signal-to noise ratios in the outputs, enabled us to estimate where we have confidence in the methodology; this is at about 23% to 83% of the total of 2,048 grid points, depending upon the scenario and the decade in the simulation. It was found that the methodology enabled IMAGE to provide useful estimates of the GCM-predicted grid point temperature changes. These estimates were within 0.5K (0.25K) throughout the 100 years of a given simulation for at least 79% (74%) of the grid points where we are confident in applying the methodology. The temperature ratio pattern from Scenario A enabled IMAGE to provide useful estimates of temperature change within 0.5K (0.25K) in Scenario D for at least 88% (68%) of the grid points where we have confidence; indicating that the methodology is transferable to other scenarios. Tests with the Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory GCM indicated, however, that a temperature ratio pattern may have to be developed for each GCM. The methodology, using a temperature ratio pattern from the 1990 IPCC Scenario A and involving IMAGE, gave gridded surface air temperature patterns for the 1992 IPCC radiative-forcing Scenarios C and E and the RIVM emission Scenario B; none of these scenarios has been simulated by ECHAM-1/LSG. The simulations reflect the uncertainty range of a future warming.The work reported by the authors was carried out during their stay at the project Forestry and Climate Change of the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, Laxenburg, Austria.     

Magnetic flux tubes — nonlinear strings in relativistic magnetohydrodynamics

A special Lagrangian coordinate system is introduced, in which the magnetic flux tube is the main object of investigation. The flux tube is shown to behave as a nonlinear relativistic string in relation to tangential force. General and particular variational principles are also discussed. With the introduction of a Lagrangian coordinate system the relativistic magnetohydrodynamic equation of motion reduces to a set of nonlinear string equations. From these results it follows that a highly conductive plasma with a frozen-in magnetic field can be considered as a gas of nonlinear strings interacting through pressure forces. A method is developed which allows the multi-dimensional nonlinear problems of RMHD (relativistic MHD) with boundary layers to be reduced to a set of two-dimensional problems for flux tubes, i.e., nonlinear strings.     

3D non-hydrostatic modelling of bottom stability under impact of the turbulent ship propeller jet

New three-dimensional numerical non-hydrostatic model with a free surface that was designed for modelling the bottom and bank stability subjected by ship propeller jets is presented. Unlike all known models, it describes three-dimensional fields of velocities generated by ship propellers, turbulence intensity and length scale in the given domain of arbitrary bottom and coastal topography. Results of simulations are compared with the laboratory experiments.