Combined analyses of chemometrics and kriging for identifying groundwater contamination sources and origins at the Masan coastal area in Korea

Hydrogeochemical analyses including the basic statistics of chemical components, Piper??s trilinear diagram, and Mazor??s compositional bivariate diagram revealed that the main source and origin of groundwater contamination was seawater intrusion in the study area. However, the other sources and origins of groundwater contamination could be found by the combined analyses of chemometrics and kriging. Cluster analysis was helpful for the classification on the basis of the contamination characteristics of groundwater quality; however, it was not sufficient for the apportionment of groundwater contamination sources. Factor analysis (FA) determined three factors with 81.07% in total variance: Factor 1 for seawater contamination, Factor 2 for nitrate contamination, and Factor 3 for iron contamination. Factor analysis determined the sources of groundwater contamination; however, it could not discover the origins of contaminants except Factor 1. In backward stepwise mode, discriminant analysis decreased the number of parameters from 18 to 6 in discriminating the contaminant type with 96.2% correctness. TDS, Ca, NO₃, Mn, Fe, and Br were the most significant parameters for the discrimination of contaminants. Kriging analysis was very useful for the understanding of correlation and similarity between contaminants and factors of FA, and for the investigation of contaminant origins. It also showed that the similarity between factor scores and contaminant concentrations was proportional to the magnitudes of factor loadings for contaminants. This study represented that the combined analyses of chemometrics and kriging were very indispensable to the identification of groundwater contamination sources and origins, as well as for the spatial classification and assessment of groundwater quality.     

A constant key length coding scheme for linear quadtrees

ABSTRACT

Although the linear quadtree is popular in both image processing and GIS, most linear quadtree coding methods need in representation a bit length that is proportional to the resolution of images; the proportionality factor is replaced with a constant bit length that induces a more compact linear quadtree. We propose a linear quadtree coding scheme named constant key length quadtree coding (CKQC) that has advantages of easy implementation and decreased memory requirements. The proposed CKQC scheme is developed on the bases of node classification, order of traversal with breadth first and the Morton sequence. The major characteristic is to apply a constant bit length to construct quaternary codes. The bit length of each quaternary code is constant, either four or eight bits, no matter what the resolution of a raster image. In terms of memory space required and duration complexities, the overall performance is analyzed and compared with other methods to demonstrate the superiority of the proposed CKQC scheme. Several experimental results validate the applicability of the proposed scheme.     

Grain size trend and hydrodynamic condition of tirumalairajan River estuary,east coast of India

The estuary can be considered as environments characterized by high productivity and uncommensurable ecological value. However, marine ecosystems are also subjected to high human pressures that increase their vulnerability. The aim of this work is to analyze grain size trend of sediment due to the action of the main hydrodynamic condition. The spatial distribution patterns of sediments were monitored according to season. The grain-size trend of surficial sediments revealed a dominant sediment transport trend towards the eastern and south eastern part of study area. This study shows that there is an agreement among sediments path ways, hydrodynamic condition and the sediment spatial distribution in the estuarine environment. The agitation by waves is an important sorting mechanism in the study area. The findings are based on the grain size trend and also corroborated by short term observations of the estuarine sediment dynamics and transport during the monsoon, postmonsoon, summer and premonson seasons in Tirumalairajan River estuary.     

Mapping landslide susceptibility from small datasets: A case study in the Pays de Herve (E Belgium)

A landslide susceptibility map is proposed for the Pays de Herve (E Belgium), where large landslides affect Cretaceous clay outcrop areas. Based on a Bayesian approach, this GIS-supported probabilistic map identifies the areas most susceptible to deep landslides. The database is comprised of the source areas of ten pre-existing landslides (i.e. a sample of 154 grid cells) and of six environmental data layers, namely lithology, proximity to active faults, slope angle and aspect, elevation and distance to the nearest valley-floor. A 30-m-resolution DEM from the Belgian National Geographical Institute is used for the analysis. Owing to the small size of the sample, a special cross-validation procedure of the susceptibility map is performed, which uses in an iterative way each of the landslides to test the predictive power of the map derived from the other landslides. Four different sets of variables are used to produce four susceptibility maps, whose prediction curves are compared. While the prediction rates associated with the models not involving the “proximity to active fault” criterion are comparable to those of the models considering this variable, strong weaknesses inherent in the fault data on which the latter rely suggest that the final susceptibility map should be based on a model that excludes any reference to fault. This highlights the difference between a triggering factor and determining factors, and in the same time broadens the scope of the produced map. A single reactivated slide is also used to test the possibility of predicting future reactivation of existing landslides in the area. Finally, the need for geomorphological control over the mathematical treatment is underlined in order to obtain realistic prediction maps.     

Subduction-related 200 Ma Talun metagranite,SE Taiwan: an age constraint for palaeo-Pacific plate subduction beneath South China Block during the Mesozoic

Various tectonic models have been proposed to account for the widely distributed igneous activities in the southeastern part of the South China Block (SCB) during the Triassic–Jurassic period. One of the major contending debates is on the timing of initiation of the palaeo-Pacific plate subduction under the SCB, due to lack of unequivocal evidence for arc magmatism during the period in this region.

The 191 ± 10 Ma (N = 5, MSWD = 12) calc-alkalic high-K I-type Talun metagranite occurs in the southern Tailuko belt of the Tananao metamorphic complex, Taiwan. In terms of age, this metagranite belongs to the Early Yanshanian igneous activity in the southeastern part of the SCB. However, its geographic position does not accord with the well-known general oceanward younging trend of the Yansnanian igneous rocks. In view of the large age uncertainty reported, this metagranite is redated in this study. Some zircons of this metagranite are high in U content and are metamict. Zircons with low U contents are analysed by SHRIMP yielding a more precise age of 200 ± 2 Ma (N = 10, MSWD = 4). In particular, the εHf(t) of these dated zircons ranges from +4.5 to +12.9. The metagranite mainly consists of quartz, K-feldspar, plagioclase, with minor amounts of garnet, biotite, zircon, apatite, and pyrrhotite. Chlorite and calcite are secondary phases overprinted by the later tectonic event(s). Its initial Sr isotope compositional range is 0.70473–0.70588, and εNd(t), +2.4 to +3.6. The results demonstrate that the genesis of this metagranite could be attributed to the assimilation-fractionation of a depleted mantle-derived basaltic magma, which was most likely related to arc magmatism. The present study therefore offers key evidence that during the Mesozoic, the palaeo-Pacific plate subduction underneath the SCB would have taken place no later than the very early Jurassic.     

Seasonal changes in imposex and tissue burden of butyltin compounds in Thais clavigera populations along the coastal area of Mirs Bay, China

We assessed the current status of tributyltin (TBT) contamination of Thais clavigera (Gastropoda) along the coastal area of Mirs Bay, China for the first time. The snail samples were collected from 10 different sites in the summer (June) and winter (December) of 2006, respectively. They were analyzed for imposex status, i.e. relative penis size index (RPSI) and vas deferens sequence index (VDSI), followed by quantification of butyltins in their tissues. Most of the collected females suffered from imposex, but the level of butyltin contamination varied with the distance from Yantian Port, which is currently the fourth busiest container port in the world. The tissue concentration of TBT varied with season. For a particular site, the winter samples in general contained much higher concentration of TBT than the summer samples. RPSI, VDSI and organotin concentrations were higher in T. clavigera collected from sites closer to the Port, such as the Seafood Street and Kat O. Both RPSI and VDSI were positively correlated with the tissue burden of tributyltin. VDSI exhibited little seasonal variability, whereas RPSI showed marked seasonal variability, with lower values in the summer samples. The current results will serve as an important reference for long-term monitoring of butyltin contamination in this area.     

The reservoir-associated earthquakes of April 1983 in western Thailand: Source modeling and implications for induced seismicity

On 22 April 1983, a very large area of Thailand and part of Burma were strongly shaken by a rare earthquake (m _b=5.8,M _s=5.9). The epicenter was located at the Srinagarind reservoir about 190 km northwest of Bangkok, a relatively stable continental region that experienced little previous seismicity. The main shock was preceded by some foreshocks and followed by numerous aftershocks. The largest foreshock ofm _b=5.2 occurred 1 week before the main shock, and the largest aftershock ofm _b=5.3 took place about 3 hours after the main shock. Focal mechanisms of the three largest events in this earthquake sequence have been studied by other seismologists using firts-motion data. However, the solutions for the main shock and the largest aftershock showed significant inconsistency with known surface geology and regional tectonics. We reexamined the mechanisms of these three events by using teleseismicP-andS-waveforms and through careful readings ofP-wave first motions. The directions of theP axes in our study range from NNW-SSE to NNE-SSW, and nodal planes strike in the NW-SE to about E-W in agreement with regional tectonics and surface geology. The main shock mechanism strikes 255°, dips 48°, and slips 63.5°. The fault motions during the main shock and the foreshock are mainly thrust, while the largest aftershock has a large strike-slip component. The seismic moment and the stress drop of the mainshock are determined to be 3.86×10²⁴ dyne-cm and 180 bars, respectively. The occurrence of these thrust events appears to correlate with the unloading of the Srinagarind reservoir. The focal depths of the largest foreshock, the main shock, and the largest aftershock are determined to be 5.4 km, 8 km, and 22.7 km, respectively, from waveform modeling and relative location showing a downward migration of hypocenters of the three largest events during the earthquake sequence. Other characteristics of this reservoir-induced earthquake sequence are also discussed.     

Logistic regression model for sinkhole susceptibility due to damaged sewer pipes

The occurrence of anthropogenic sinkholes in urban areas can lead to severe socioeconomic losses. A damaged underground sewer pipe is regarded as one of the primary causes of such a phenomenon. This study adopted the best subsets regression method to produce a logistic regression model that evaluates the susceptibility for sinkholes induced by damaged sewer pipes. The model was developed by analyzing the sewer pipe network as well as cases of sinkholes in Seoul, South Korea. Among numerous sewer pipe characteristics tested as explanatory variables, the length, age, elevation, burial depth, size, slope, and materials of the sewer pipe were found to influence the occurrence of sinkhole. The proposed model reasonably estimated the sinkhole susceptibility in the area studied, with an area value under the receiver-operating characteristics curve of 0.753. The proposed methodology will serve as a useful tool that can help local governments to choose a cavity inspection regime, and to prevent sinkholes induced by damaged sewer pipes.     

Application of bivariate frequency analysis to the derivation of rainfall–frequency curves

Bivariate distributions have been recently employed in hydrologic frequency analysis to analyze the joint probabilistic characteristics of multivariate storm events. This study aims to derive practical solutions of application for the bivariate distribution to estimate design rainfalls corresponding to the desired return periods. Using the Gumbel mixed model, this study constructed rainfall–frequency curves at sample stations in Korea which provide joint relationships between amount, duration, and frequency of storm events. Based on comparisons and analyses of the rainfall–frequency curves derived from univariate and bivariate storm frequency analyses, this study found that conditional frequency analysis provides more appropriate estimates of design rainfalls as it more accurately represents the natural relationship between storm properties than the conventional univariate storm frequency analysis.