Effect of element size on the static finite element analysis of steep slopes

The accuracy of the computed stress distribution near the free surface of vertical slopes was evaluated in this study as a function of the element size, including aspect ratio. To accomplish this objective, a parametric study was carried out comparing stresses computed using the finite element method (FEM) to those obtained from a physical model composed of photoelastic material. The results of the study indicate a reasonable agreement between a gelatin model and the FEM model for shear stresses, and an overall good agreement between the two models for the principal stresses. For stresses along the top of the slope, the height of the element tends to be more important than width or aspect ratio, at least for aspect ratios up to 4. In all cases, the greatest difference between the two models occurs in the vicinity of the slope. Specifically, if H is defined as the slope height, an element height of H/10 appears to be adequate for the study of stresses deep within the slope, such as for typical embankment analyses. However, for cases where tensile stresses in the vicinity of the slope face which are critical, such as for the stability analysis of steep slopes, element heights as small as H/32, or higher‐order elements, are necessary. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Nutrient conditions in the Euboikos Gulf (west Aegean)

The Euboikos Gulf is a restricted embayment on the eastern coast of Greece, having a significant, unusual tidal phenomenon, and receiving some industrial and domestic wates. The South Euboikos Gulf has only slightly greater concentrations of nutrients than background, while the North Euboikos Gulf tends to accumulate nutrients, in particular nitrate and silicate. Also a comparison is made with the nutrient concentrations in polluted coastal gulfs of the Aegean. The different nutrient levels are due to the different sources of nutrients, as well as the morphology of each area and the circulation of the waters.     

Towards a volcanic–structural balance: relative importance of volcanism, folding, and remobilisation of nickel sulphides at the Perseverance Ni–Cu–(PGE) deposit, Western Australia

Perseverance is a world-class, komatiite-hosted nickel sulphide deposit situated in the well-endowed Leinster nickel camp of the Agnew–Wiluna greenstone belt, Western Australia. The mine stratigraphy at Perseverance trends north-northwest (NNW), dips steeply to the west, and is overturned. Stratigraphic footwall units lie along the western margin of the Perseverance Ultramafic Complex (PUC). The PUC comprises a basal nickel sulphide-bearing orthocumulate- to mesocumulate-textured komatiite that is overlain by a thicker, nickel sulphide-poor, dunite lens. Hanging wall rocks include rhyodacite that is texturally and compositionally similar to footwall volcanic rocks. These rocks separate the PUC from a second sequence of nickeliferous, E-facing, spinifex-textured komatiite units (i.e. the East Perseverance komatiite). Past workers argue for a conformable stratigraphic contact between the PUC and the East Perseverance komatiite and conclude that the PUC is extrusive. This study, however, clearly demonstrates that these komatiite sequences are discordant, implying that the PUC may have intruded rhyodacite country rock as a sill with subsequent structural juxtaposition against the East Perseverance komatiite. Early N–S shortening associated with the regional D_I deformation event (corresponding to the local D_P1 to D_P3 events at Perseverance) resulted in the heterogeneous partitioning of strain along the margins of the competent dunite. A mylonite developed in the more ductile footwall rocks along the footwall margin of the PUC, while isoclinal F₃ folds, such as the Hanging wall limb and Felsic Nose folds, formed in low-mean stress domains along the fringes of the elongated dunite lens. Strata-bound massive and disseminated nickel sulphides were passively fold thickened in hinge areas of isoclinal folds, whereas basal massive sulphides lubricated fold limbs and promoted thrust movement along shallowly dipping lithological contacts. Massive sulphides were physically remobilised up to 20 m from their primary footwall position into deposit-scale fold hinges to form the 1A and Felsic Nose orebodies. First-order controls on the geometry of the Perseverance deposit include the thermomechanical erosion of footwall rocks and the channelling of the mineralised komatiitic magma. Second- or third-order controls are several postvolcanic deformation events, which resulted in the progressive folding and shearing of the footwall contact, as well as the passive fold thickening of massive and disseminated sulphide orebodies. Massive sulphides were physically remobilised into multiple generations of fold hinges and shear zones. Important implications for near-mine exploration in the Leinster camp include identifying nickeliferous komatiite units, defining their three-dimensional geometry, and targeting fold hinge areas. Fold plunge directions and stretching lineations are indicators of potential plunge directions of massive sulphide orebodies.     

Pressure and volume changes in magmatic systems due to the vertical displacement of compressible materials

The problem of a pressure or volume increase due to the vertical redistribution of two substances with differing compressibilities is considered and compared with a previous treatment. Modified expressions for the pressure and volume changes are obtained using the general equation of state with constant compressibility. The effects of gas and melt compressibilities, and also of the solubility of gas in floating bubbles, on pressure and volume changes in magmatic systems are discussed. Very different conclusions from those in the previous treatment are found.     

A new methodological perspective on the impact of energy consumption on economic growth: time series evidence based on the Fourier approximation for solar energy in the USA

From the empirical energy literature, it is observed that studies focusing on the energy-economic growth nexus ignore the possible existence of gradual breaks as they employ methods without or with sharp structural breaks. Therefore, one can argue that they may yield biased and inefficient output in the presence of gradual breaks. The goal of this paper is to investigate the impact of solar energy consumption on GDP utilizing quarterly data over the period 1984–2018 for the USA. For this purpose, the paper performs a unit root test and a cointegration test that are based on the Fourier approximation to take gradual breaks into account. The paper also performs the dynamic ordinary least squares estimator to estimate long-run parameters. The findings document that there exists cointegration in the empirical model and that GDP is positively associated with solar energy consumption. Some implications based on the empirical findings are presented in the paper.

     

9: Processes of tectonism, magmatism and mineralization: Lessons from Europe

Metallogenic provinces in Europe range in age from the Archaean to the Neogene. Deposit types include porphyry copper and epithermal Cu–Au, volcanic-hosted massive sulphide (VMS), orogenic gold, Fe-oxide–Cu–Au, anorthosite Fe–Ti-oxide and sediment-hosted base-metal deposits. Most of them formed during short-lived magmatic events in a wide range of tectonic settings; many can be related to specific tectonic processes such as subduction, hinge retreat, accretion of island arcs, continental collision, lithosphere delamination or slab tear. In contrast, most sediment-hosted deposits in Europe evolved in extensional, continental settings over significant periods of time. In Europe, as elsewhere, ore formation is an integral part of the geodynamic evolution of the Earth's crust and mantle. Many tectonic settings create conditions conducive to the generation of water-rich magma, but the generation of ore deposits appears to be restricted to locations and short periods of change in temperature and stress, imposed by transitory plate motions. Crustal influence is evident in the strong structural controls on the location and morphology of many ore deposits in Europe. Crustal-scale fault–fracture systems, many involving strike-slip elements, have provided the fabric for major plumbing systems. Rapid uplift, as in metamorphic core complexes, and hydraulic fracturing can generate or focus magmatic–hydrothermal fluid flow that may be active for time spans significantly less than a million years. Once a hydrologically stable flow is established, ore formation is strongly dependent on the steep temperature and pressure gradients experienced by the fluid, particularly within the upper crust. In Europe, significant fracture porosity deep in the crystalline basement (1%) is not only important for magmatic–hydrothermal systems, but allows brines to circulate down through sedimentary basins and then episodically upward, expelled seismically to produce sediment-hosted base-metal deposits and Kupferschiefer copper deposits. Emerging research, stimulated by GEODE, can improve the predicting power of numerical simulations of ore-forming processes and help discover the presence of orebodies beneath barren overburden.     

Flowers in the bathtub: boundary crossings at the public-private divide

Legal spaces are said to be a crucial materialization of law, serving to communicate legal meaning and, in so doing, helping to produce a liberal-legal consciousness. Given its centrality to legal ordering and liberal ideology, the spatial manifestation of the public-private divide, especially when related to property, would appear to be particularly important in this regard. Public and private are assumed to be both mutually exclusive and exhaustive. Drawing upon empirical research conducted in a neighbourhood in Vancouver, Canada, I argue that spatial and legal categories such as public and private may be more fluid than one might suppose. While the public/private divide is clearly powerful, and informs much policy and governmental action, it is not necessarily the case that it has the purchase on everyday life that some scholars have suggested. People may live in more complicated and overlapping worlds when it comes to supposedly determinate categories such as property.     

Upstairs-downstairs: supercontinents and large igneous provinces,are they related?

There is a correlation of global large igneous province (LIP) events with zircon age peaks at 2700, 2500, 2100, 1900, 1750, 1100, and 600 and also probably at 3450, 3000, 2000, and 300 Ma. Power spectral analyses of LIP event distributions suggest important periodicities at 250, 150, 100, 50, and 25 million years with weaker periodicities at 70–80, 45, and 18–20 Ma. The 25 million year periodicity is important only in the last 300 million years. Some LIP events are associated with granite-forming (zircon-producing) events and others are not, and LIP events at 1900 and 600 Ma correlate with peaks in craton collision frequency. LIP age peaks are associated with supercontinent rifting or breakup, but not dispersal, at 2450–2400, 2200, 1380, 1280, 800–750, and ≤200 Ma, and with supercontinent assembly at 1750 and 600 Ma. LIP peaks at 2700 and 2500 Ma and the valley between these peaks span the time of Neoarchaean supercraton assemblies. These observations are consistent with plume generation in the deep mantle operating independently of the supercontinent cycle and being controlled by lower-mantle and core-mantle boundary thermochemical dynamics. Two processes whereby plumes can impact continental assembly and breakup are (1) plumes may rise beneath supercontinents and initiate supercontinent breakup, and (2) plume ascent may increase the frequency of craton collisions and the rate of crustal growth by accelerating subduction.     

Identification and prioritization of data for collection in post-earthquake surveys

During an earthquake, buildings which are vulnerable to seismic loads will be damaged, resulting in property loss and the potential for casualties. To reduce loss of life and injury, the relationship between earthquake-induced building failure and injury severity and distribution needs to be clarified. To this end, a methodology and a series of data collection forms were developed to collect pertinent data for post-event analysis and to provide a basis for structural triage in the field shortly following an earthquake for search and rescue purposes. The forms were developed in four steps: (1) identifying the variables which affect the outcome of an occupant in a damaged building; (2) classifying the variables into three levels of priority for data collection; (3) designing the forms; and (4) applying the forms to damaged buildings from past earthquakes. These forms represent a significant departure from existing forms in that they consider both casualties and building damage jointly in a consistent format. This paper describes the first two steps of the development process; a companion paper outlines the latter components.