A full-scale field study for performance evaluation of axially loaded large-diameter cylinder piles with pipe piles and PSC piles

This paper presents the results from a pile load testing program for a bridge construction project in Louisiana. The testing includes two 54-in. open-ended spun cast concrete cylinder piles, one 30-in. open-ended steel pile and two (30- and 16-in.) square prestressed concrete (PSC) piles driven at two locations with very similar soil conditions. Both cone penetration tests (CPTs) and soil borings/laboratory testing were used to characterize the subsurface soil conditions. All the test piles were instrumented with vibrating wire strain gauges to measure the load distribution along the length of the test piles and measure the skin friction and end-bearing capacity, separately. Dynamic load tests were performed on all test piles at different times after pile installations to quantify the amount of setup with time. Static load tests were also performed on the PSC and open-ended steel piles. Due to expected large pile capacities, the statnamic test method was used on the two open-ended cylinder piles. The pile capacities of these piles were evaluated using various CPT methods (such as Schmertmann, De Ruiter and Beringen, LCPC, Lehane et al. methods). The result showed that all the methods can estimate the skin friction with good accuracy, but not the end-bearing capacity. The normalized cumulative blow counts during pile installation showed that the blow count was always higher for the PSC piles compared to the large-diameter open-ended cylinder pile, regardless of pile size and hammer size. Setup was observed for all the piles, which was mainly attributed to increase in skin frictions. The setup parameters “A” were back-calculated for all the test piles and the values were between 0.31 and 0.41.     

Isotope–geochemical characterization and geothermometrical modeling of Uttarakhand geothermal field,India

Uttarakhand geothermal area, located in the central belt of the Himalayan geothermal province, is one of the important high temperature geothermal fields in India. In this study, the chemical characteristics of the thermal waters are investigated to identify the main geochemical processes affecting the composition of thermal waters during its ascent toward the surface as well as to determine the subsurface temperature of the feeding reservoir. The thermal waters are mainly Ca–Mg–HCO₃ type with moderate silica and TDS concentrations. Mineral saturation states calculated from PHREEQC geochemical code indicate that thermal waters are supersaturated with respect to calcite, dolomite, aragonite, chalcedony, quartz (SI > 0), and undersaturated with respect to gypsum, anhydrite, and amorphous silica (SI < 0). XRD study of the spring deposit samples fairly corroborates the predicted mineral saturation state of the thermal waters. Stable isotopes (δ¹⁸O, δ²H) data confirm the meteoric origin of the thermal waters with no oxygen-18 shift. The mixing phenomenon between thermal water with shallow ground water is substantiated using tritium (³H) and chemical data. The extent of dilution is quantified using tritium content of thermal springs and non-thermal waters. Classical geothermometers, mixing model, and multicomponent fluid geothermometry modeling (GeoT) have been applied to estimate the subsurface reservoir temperature. Among different classical geothermometers, only quartz geothermometer provide somewhat reliable estimation (96–140 °C) of the reservoir temperature. GeoT modeling results suggest that thermal waters have attained simultaneous equilibrium with respect to minerals like calcite, quartz, chalcedony, brucite, tridymite, cristobalite, talc, at the temperature 130 ± 5 °C which is in good agreement with the result obtained from the mixing model.     

Landslide initiation and runout susceptibility modeling in the context of hill cutting and rapid urbanization: a combined approach of weights of evidence and spatial multi-criteria

Rainfall induced landslides are a common threat to the communities living on dangerous hill-slopes in Chittagong Metropolitan Area, Bangladesh. Extreme population pressure, indiscriminate hill cutting, increased precipitation events due to global warming and associated unplanned urbanization in the hills are exaggerating landslide events. The aim of this article is to prepare a scientifically accurate landslide susceptibility map by combining landslide initiation and runout maps. Land cover, slope, soil permeability, surface geology, precipitation, aspect, and distance to hill cut, road cut, drainage and stream network factor maps were selected by conditional independence test. The locations of 56 landslides were collected by field surveying. A weight of evidence (WoE) method was applied to calculate the positive (presence of landslides) and negative (absence of landslides) factor weights. A combination of analytical hierarchical process (AHP) and fuzzy membership standardization (weighs from 0 to 1) was applied for performing a spatial multi-criteria evaluation. Expert opinion guided the decision rule for AHP. The Flow-R tool that allows modeling landslide runout from the initiation sources was applied. The flow direction was calculated using the modified Holmgren’s algorithm. The AHP landslide initiation and runout susceptibility maps were used to prepare a combined landslide susceptibility map. The relative operating characteristic curve was used for model validation purpose. The accuracy of WoE, AHP, and combined susceptibility map was calculated 96%, 97%, and 98%, respectively.     

Anisotropy in volume change behaviour of soils during shrinkage

It has been long recognised that some of the fundamental and engineering properties of soils exhibit a certain degree of anisotropy that eventually dictates their directional geoengineering behaviours. Consideration of the importance of the volume change behaviour of soils during shrinkage and a critical review of the literature suggests scopes for further research for the development of a better understanding of the anisotropy in volume change encountered during soil shrinkage. In this paper, anisotropy in volumetric shrinkage behaviour of soil is depicted with the theory of geometry factor and shrinkage strains. A systematic investigation and analysis on the evolution of geometry factors and shrinkage strains of several geomaterial samples during evaporative dewatering is reported herein. A theoretical framework for evaluating shrinkage geometry factors of a cylindrical soil specimen undergoing volume change during progressive moisture loss is described in this paper. Furthermore, based on experimental and literature data, shrinkage geometry factors of several specimens differing in terms of gradational properties, specimen size, evaporative boundary condition and pore fluid salinity are evaluated and discussed in detail in accordance with the theoretical framework. Linkages between shrinkage process, shrinkages strains and geometry factor are also analysed to underpin the usage of geometry factor and shrinkage strains to characterise anisotropy during soil shrinkage.

     

Hydrogeochemical evaluation and statistical analysis of groundwater of Sylhet,north-eastern Bangladesh

To investigate the hydrogeochemical characteristics of groundwater 23 shallow, 30 intermediate and 38 deep wells samples were collected from Sylhet district of Bangladesh, and analyzed for temperature, pH, Eh, EC,DO, DOC, Na^+, K^+, Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, Cl^-, SO_4^2-, NO_3^-,HCO_3^-, SiO_2^-, Fe, Mn and As. Besides, 12 surface water samples from Surma and Kushiyara Rivers were also collected and analyzed to understand the influence into aquifers. Results revealed that, most of the groundwater samples are acidic in nature, and Na–HCO_3 is the dominant groundwater type. The mean value of temperature, EC,Na^+, K^+, Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, Cl^-, NO_3^- and SO_4^2- were found within the range of permissible limits, while most of the samples exceeds the allowable limits of Fe, Mn and As concentrations. However, relatively higher concentration of Fe and Mn were found in deep water samples and reverse trend was found in case of As. The mean concentrations of As in shallow, intermediate and deep wells were 39.3, 25.3and 21.4 lg/L respectively, which varied from 0.03 to148 lg/L. From spatial distribution, it was found that Fe,Mn and As concentrations are high but patchy in northern,north-western, and south-western part of Sylhet region. The most influential geochemical process in study area were identified as silicate weathering, characterized by active cation exchange process and carbonate weathering, which thereby can enhance the elemental concentrations in groundwater. Pearson's correlation matrix, principal component analysis and cluster analysis were also employed to evaluate the controlling factors, and it was found that, both natural and anthropogenic sources were influencing the groundwater chemistry of the aquifers. However, surface water has no significant role to contaminate the aquifers,rather geogenic factors affecting the trace elemental contamination. Thus it is expected that, outcomes of this study will provide useful insights for future groundwater monitoring and management of the study area.     

Numerical storm surge model with higher order finite difference method of lines for the coast of Bangladesh

In this study, the method of lines (MOLs) with higher order central difference approximation method coupled with the classical fourth order Runge-Kutta (RK(4,4)) method is used in solving shallow water equations (SWEs) in Cartesian coordinates to foresee water levels associated with a storm accurately along the coast of Bangladesh. In doing so, the partial derivatives of the SWEs with respect to the space variables were discretized with 5-point central difference, as a test case, to obtain a system of ordinary differential equations with time as an independent variable for every spatial grid point, which with initial conditions were solved by the RK(4,4) method. The complex land-sea interface and bottom topographic details were incorporated closely using nested schemes. The coastal and island boundaries were rectangularized through proper stair step representation, and the storing positions of the scalar and momentum variables were specified according to the rules of structured C-grid. A stable tidal regime was made over the model domain considering the effect of the major tidal constituent, M₂ along the southern open boundary of the outermost parent scheme. The Meghna River fresh water discharge was taken into account for the inner most child scheme. To take into account the dynamic interaction of tide and surge, the generated tidal regime was introduced as the initial state of the sea, and the surge was then made to come over it through computer simulation. Numerical experiments were performed with the cyclone April 1991 to simulate water levels due to tide, surge, and their interaction at different stations along the coast of Bangladesh. Our computed results were found to compare reasonable well with the limited observed data obtained from Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) and were found to be better in comparison with the results obtained through the regular finite difference method and the 3-point central difference MOLs coupled with the RK(4,4) method with regard to the root mean square error values.     

Seasonal Shift in Community Structure of Periphytic Ciliates in Estuarine Waters in the Northern Bay of Bengal,Bangladesh

To investigate the seasonal heterogeneity of the periphytic ciliate communities, a 1-year baseline survey was conducted in the Karnaphuli River estuary, northern Bay of Bengal, Bangladesh. A total of 54 ciliate species were recorded, including seven common and 14 dominant species. Maximum species number was in autumn whereas maximum abundance was in winter; the minimum for both occurred in summer. Multivariate analyses, i.e., canonical analysis of principal coordinates (CAP) and principal co-ordinates analysis (PCoA), revealed a clear seasonal heterogeneity of community structure and environmental variables. Multivariate correlation analysis (RELATE) demonstrated that the community structure of the periphytic ciliate communities was significantly correlated with environmental variables, and best matching analysis (BIOENV) indicated that heterogeneity of community patterns was mainly driven by water temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen, total dissolved solids and nutrients. Species richness and diversity peaked in autumn whereas species evenness peaked in summer. These results suggest that environmental conditions shape periphytic ciliate community structure, which is a potentially useful bio-indicator of estuarine water quality.     

利用Landsat TM和IRS P6 LISS III卫星影像及GIS对耕地和耕种模式的时空动态分析(英文)

The study of the spatial patterns and temporal changes of cropland is important to understand the underlying factors and the functional effects of the agricultural landscape. On the other hand, crop dynamics mapping is essential to know the overall agro-spatial diversity of the area. Therefore, this paper addressed a spatio-temporal analysis of cropland and cropping pattern change in the Bogra district of Bangladesh over the last 16 years (between 1988/89 and 2004/05). In this paper, crop mapping from multi-temporal and multi-sensor satellite images was described. Landsat TM and IRS P6 LISS III satellite images were used with GIS for spatial dynamics of cropland and cropping pattern change analysis. First, seasonal cropland maps were derived from object-based classification of satellite images, then two-date classified image differencing with GIS overlay technique and decision rules were applied. Cropping pattern change was analyzed in a spatial and quantitative way for the 16 years and for this, Integrated Land and Water Information System (ILWIS) and Land Change Modular (LCM) of IDRISI Andes were used. The results showed that in the area, mono crop cultivation was found in summer, but in winter, areas under different crop cultivation had changed dramatically. Change analysis showed that the changes mainly occurred in the north northwest and southwest of the areas, and during the time the highest change area was found under the rice-potato pattern.      

Assessment of Red Bed Groundwater in the Jinqu Basin,Southeastern China: Its Enrichment Regularity and Emergency Exploitation Potential

Natural Resources Research - Due to unbalanced spatial distribution and insufficient capacity allocation of water resources in the Jinqu Basin, developing and utilizing the red bed groundwater...