Pollution studies on Tolo Harbour,Hong Kong

Eight stations were chosen for this 14 month survey of Tolo Harbour in Hong Kong, four of them in the harbour proper and four in the estuaries of the major streams entering the harbour. Various chemical and physical factors were measured twice each month. Water samples were collected for nutrient, phytoplankton, chlorophyll and bacteriological analysis.The annual discharge of nutrients from the four streams into Tolo Harbour has been estimated, based on the nutrient analyses and computation of annual discharge (QA) values for these streams. The seasonal and spatial variations in nutrient content are discussed in relation to the increasing organic pollution of Tolo Harbour. Calculations of various ratios between SiO₃, PO₄, NO₃ and total inorganic N reveal that excessive amounts of phosphate are entering the harbour and subsequently accumulating in the bottom waters and sediments, leading to changes in the trophic condition of this water body and the development of anoxic conditions in the bottom layer.Significant correlation has been demonstrated between standing crop and various environmental parameters in both estuarine and marine waters and similarly between chlorophyll a concentration and various environmental parameters. However, no significant correlation values were obtained between either standing crop or chlorophyll a concentrations, SiO₃Si (the latter presumably due to the predominance of diatoms in the phytoplankton). Neither standing crop nor chlorophyll determinations reveal any evidence of alternating periods of high productivity and decomposition which could explain the deteriorating bottom water conditions. This again is taken as evidence that the high organic inputs are responsible for such deterioration.Increasing TC, FC and FS densities have been noted in Tolo Harbour as a direct result of the increasing organic pollution and ratios between FC and FS densities indicate that in 55% of the samples pollution was derived from human sewage. The bacterial levels well exceeded various international standards for bathing waters and shellfish collection for at least a part of the survey period and at a number of stations for the entire survey period. Pathogenic organisms were also present. This underlines the potential health risks in these waters.Finally, the future prospects for this harbour are discussed in relation to activities such as reclamation and the development of new towns and their impact on water quality.     

Metal uptake in zebrafish embryo-larvae exposed to metal-contaminated sediments

Heavy metal contamination in coastal and estuarine regions of inner Tolo Harbour, as well as some river and nullah areas, is one of the major water-pollution issues in Hong Kong. Zebrafish (Danio rerio) embryo-larvae was used to study metal uptake from coastal sediments collected from Fo Tan River (industrial area, Sha Tin), Tai Po River (residential area, Tai Po) and Wu Kai Sa (rural area, Tolo Harbour). Exposure experiments (7-days) were carried out using different concentrations (0.1%, 0.5%, 1% and 0% as control) of sediments that were added to aquaria containing fertilized zebrafish eggs until they hatched to become larvae. Uptake of heavy metals (Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn) was determined in whole embryo-larvae following exposure. Significant levels of Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn were detected in the embryo-larvae exposed to sediments from Tai Po River. However, significant levels of only Cd and Cu were found in embryo-larvae exposed to sediments from Fo Tan River.     

Wave loads on large vertical cylinders: A design method

The finite element method based on linear diffraction theory proposed by Zienkiewicz and Bettess (1977) has been used to compute wave loads and moments about the bed of surface piercing cylinders of circular, square, rectangular and elliptical sections for different angles of wave incidence. On the basis of the results obtained, a design method is presented in the form of simple design charts for estimating wave forces and moments on large cylinders of arbitrary sections. The numerical solutions obtained have been checked for their validity by comparing with other theoretical solutions and experimental data. Further the application of the design method to a case study shows good correlation with experimental and other theoretical solutions.     

Environmental Geotechnical Problems in the Taiwan Strait Area

This article presents general information on environmental geotechnical problems along the Taiwan Strait Tunnel (TST) route including sea-floor characteristics. The term apparent sea-floor is introduced. This layer is due to land erosion washing down and settling in the Taiwan Strait. The depth of ocean water along the Taiwan Strait is estimated. Various soil, and rock types and marine sediments along the coastline of mainland, Taiwan Strait, and Taiwan Islands are presented. Foundation problems under adverse marine environments are discussed.     

Modeling of the Turbulence in the Water Column under Breaking Wind Waves

Past studies have shown that there is a wave-enhanced, near-surface mixed-layer in which the dissipation rate is greater than that derived from the “law of the wall”. In this study, turbulence in water columns under wind breaking waves is investigated numerically and analytically. Improved estimations of dissipation rate are parameterized as surface source of turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) for a more accurate modelling of vertical profile of velocity and TKE in the water column. The simulation results have been compared with the experimental results obtained by Cheung and Street (1988) and Kitaigorodskii et al. (1983), with good agreement. The results show that the numerical full model can well simulate the near-surface wave-enhanced layer and suggest that the vertical diffusive coefficients are highly empirical and related to the TKE diffusion, the shear production and the dissipation. Analytical solutions of TKE are also derived for near surface layer and in deep water respectively. Near the surface layer, the dissipation rate is assumed to be balanced by the TKE diffusion to obtain the analytical solution; however, the balance between the dissipation and the shear production is applied at the deep layer. The analytical results in various layers are compared with that of the full numerical model, which confirms that the wave-enhanced layer near the surface is a diffusion-dominated region. The influence of the wave energy factor is also examined, which increases the surface TKE flux with the wave development. Under this region, the water behavior transits to satisfy the classic law of the wall. Below the transition depth, the shear production dominantly balances the dissipation. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

The Influence of a Mass Spectrum on the Long Term Evolution of a Self-Gravitating System of Softened Particles

Using N-body simulations, we study the effects of the mass spectrum in the evolution of self-gravitating systems of softened point-mass particles. The mass function is described by a power law and the ratio between the maximum and minimum mass is . We showed that the dynamical evolution of the system depends on the mass spectrum: the secular evolution time is longer for flatter mass spectrum. For the steepest mass spectrum, the secular evolution time is of the order of the relaxation time. The mass segregation effects are achieved rapidly and the core-halo structures are formed. The projected number distributions for the systems with mass spectrum change drastically with the evolution while the projected mass distributions are not affected. Velocity dispersion profiles are modified in the sense of heating of the central regions of the systems, while the velocity anisotropy profiles are slightly affected. The consequence of our results on the dynamical evolution of clusters of galaxies is presented. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Weathering damage evaluation of rock properties in the Bunhwangsa temple stone pagoda,Gyeongju, Republic of Korea

The stone pagoda of the Bunhwangsa temple in Republic of Korea was made of piling small brick-shaped stones. The majority of stone bricks are andesitic rocks with variable geneses. Rock properties of the pagoda roof suffer partial significant deterioration, such as multiple peel-offs, exfoliation, onion-peel-like decomposition, cracks forming round lines and falling-off stone pieces. The stylobates and tabernacles at the four corners are composed of granitic rocks, which are heavily contaminated by lichens and mosses. Some of these contamination marks show dark black or yellowish brown colors by inorganic secondary hydrates. The four tabernacles and northern face of the pagoda body have been exposed to relatively high humidity, which causes light gray efflorescence as stalactites between the northern and western sides of the body. The efflorescences are composed of calcite, gypsum and clay minerals. The stone lion statues at the southeast and northeast corners are made of alkali granite, while the others are lithic tuff. Total rock properties of the pagoda consist of 9,708 stone bricks. Among them, 11.0% are fractured, 6.7% are fallen off, and 7.0% show considerable surface efflorescence, which shows that the pagoda has been highly deteriorated by physical, chemical and biological weathering. The authors strongly suggest long-term monitoring and comprehensive conservation researches.     

Distribution of convection associated with tropical cyclones making landfall along the South China coast

Summary This study examines the convection distribution associated with 18 TCs that made landfall along the South China coast during 1995 and 2005. Cloud-top temperatures from high-resolution satellite imageries of the Geosynchronous Meteorological Satellite 5 are used as proxy of strong convection. It is found that convection tends to be enhanced on the western side of the TC as it makes landfall in 10 of the cases, in agreement with the conclusion of some previous studies. Four cases have stronger convection on the eastern side. This “deviation” from the general rule appears to be related to the TCs being more slow-moving or their interaction of the TC with another land surface prior to its making landfall along the South China coast. For the remaining cases in which no significant asymmetries in convection can be identified, the vertical wind shear appears to enhance convection on the east side.     

An integrated GPS–accelerometer data processing technique for structural deformation monitoring

Global Positioning System (GPS) is being actively applied to measure static and dynamic displacement responses of large civil engineering structures under winds. However, multipath effects and low sampling frequencies affect the accuracy of GPS for displacement measurement. On the other hand, accelerometers cannot reliably measure static and low-frequency structural responses, but can accurately measure high-frequency structural responses. Therefore, this paper explores the possibility of integrating GPS-measured signals with accelerometer-measured signals to enhance the measurement accuracy of total (static plus dynamic) displacement response of a structure. Integrated data processing techniques using both empirical mode decomposition (EMD) and an adaptive filter are presented. A series of motion simulation table tests are then performed at a site using three GPS receivers, one accelerometer, and one motion simulation table that can simulate various types of motion defined by input wave time histories around a pre-defined static position. The proposed data processing techniques are applied to the recorded GPS and accelerometer data to find both static and dynamic displacements. These results are compared with the actual displacement motions generated by the motion simulation table. The comparative results demonstrate that the proposed technique can significantly enhance the measurement accuracy of the total displacement of a structure.     

Environmental impact and geochemistry of old tailing pile from the Sanggok mine creek, Republic of Korea

This study evaluates the pollution load on a creek based on the physicochemical and mineralogical properties of old tailings. The Sanggok mine is one of the largest lead–zinc producers in the Hwanggangri mining district, Republic of Korea. The vertical profile of the old tailings in the mine area can be divided into three units based on color change, and mineralogical and textural variations, as well as physical and chemical properties. Unit I (surface accumulation and oxidized heterogeneous tailing soil) has lower pH and higher Eh than unit II (originally unoxidized dumped tailing soil) and unit III (pebble-bearing bottom soil). The conductivity data indicates that unit I and II have very high values compared to unit III and basement. The mine area consists mainly of carbonate rocks; however, mineral constituents of tailing soil and sediments near the mine were mainly composed of quartz, mica, feldspar, amphibole, calcite, dolomite, magnesite, and clay minerals. Units I and II are characterized by high abundances of siderite, locally pyrite, and dolomite. Precipitates in the mining drainage mainly included: smectite, illite, berthierine, quartz, siderite, hexahydrite, and Ca-ferrate. Among the separated metallic minerals, tailing soils and sediments of highly concentrated toxic metals are found: some pyrite, arsenopyrite, chalcopyrite, sphalerite, galena, malachite, goethite, various hydroxide, and uncertain secondary minerals. Units I and II are characterized by relatively high concentrations of Ca, Fe, Mn and low contents of Al, Mg, K, Na, Ti, rare earth elements (REEs) that correlated with the proportion of secondary minerals. Potentially toxic elements such as Ag, As, Cd, Cu, Pb, Sb, and Zn are highly enriched in the upper two units. This metal concentration can be influenced by changes in the depth because of oxic and suboxic zonal distribution. The removal zone (unit I) has probably migrated below the elevation of the maximum enrichment layer due to deepening of the oxic/suboxic boundary. In most of the materials, the enrichment index is higher than 3.62. The highest value of 42.55 is found in the oxidation surface soils of the tailing pile. An average enrichment index of the profiles and precipitates are 27.62 and 22.62, respectively. Rocky basement soils have an average enrichment index of 6.63, which is influenced by overlying the tailing pile. The water quality and habitat of the Sanggok creek are severely polluted. Polluted surface water may also negatively impact the agricultural soil and groundwater.