Neuro‐control of seismically excited steel structure through sensitivity evaluation scheme

The neuro‐controller training algorithm based on cost function is applied to a multi‐degree‐of‐freedom system; and a sensitivity evaluation algorithm replacing the emulator neural network is proposed. In conventional methods, the emulator neural network is used to evaluate the sensitivity of structural response to the control signal. To use the emulator, it should be trained to predict the dynamic response of the structure. Much of the time is usually spent on training of the emulator. In the proposed algorithm, however, it takes only one sampling time to obtain the sensitivity. Therefore, training time for the emulator is eliminated. As a result, only one neural network is used for the neuro‐control system. In the numerical example, the three‐storey building structure with linear and non‐linear stiffness is controlled by the trained neural network. The actuator dynamics and control time delay are considered in the simulation. Numerical examples show that the proposed control algorithm is valid in structural control. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Evaluation of response and energy in actively controlled structures

A computational method of energy evaluation is derived to study the elastic responses and energy distribution of actively controlled single‐degree‐of‐freedom (SDOF) structures during earthquakes. Contrary to the common perception that applying active control force pumps energy into the structure, the applied control force can actually reduce the energy in the structure by reducing the input energy from earthquakes to the structure. In addition, applying control force can dissipate a large amount of energy in the structure when this control force is applied in the direction opposite to the displacement and velocity responses. To demonstrate this energy mechanism in active controlled structures, the two most popular control algorithms, optimal linear control (OLC) and instantaneous optimal control (IOC) algorithms, are used to calculate the control response and energy spectra. One‐step time delay is incorporated into the algorithms to take into consideration the practical aspect of active control. The effects of different earthquakes and damping ratios on control energy and response spectra are studied. These studies show that both OLC and IOC are very effective in reducing the structural displacement and velocity responses by reducing the input earthquake energy as well as dissipating a large amount of energy in the structure. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effectiveness of structural control based on control energy perspectives

A computational algorithm for maximizing the control efficiency in actively controlling the elastic structural responses during earthquake is proposed. Study of optimal linear control using a single degree of freedom shows that applying active control is very effective in reducing the structural displacement and velocity responses for long‐period structures, but at the same time it has an adverse effect in increasing the absolute acceleration response. The extent of this adverse effect reduces the effectiveness of the control system, and therefore it poses a limit on the maximum control force in order to provide maximum control efficiency. In view of this shortcoming, maximum control energy dissipation is used to define the most effective optimal linear control law. Less displacement and velocity response are expected as larger control force is applied, but there is always a limit that maximum control energy can be dissipated. This study shows that this limit depends on the structural characteristics as well as the input ground motion, and a general trend is that the maximum control energy decreases as damping increases. Finally, application of the proposed algorithm on a six‐storey hospital building is presented to show the effectiveness of using optimal linear control on a multi‐degree‐of‐freedom system from the control energy perspectives. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Factors affecting sediment trapping in vegetated filter strips: simulation study using VFSMOD

Soil and water conservation practices have been promoted for a long time, in order to sustain agricultural activities and prevent environmental pollution. Vegetated filter strips (VFS) have been used to reduce sediment pollution into water bodies at or near the pollutant source. However, factors effecting VFS performance under natural conditions have not been well understood owing to the physical, time and financial limitations of field experiments. The use of well‐validated simulation models to understand the performance of VFS and factors affecting sediment deposition is highly justified. The objective of this research is to investigate sediment trapping in VFS and to study various factors affecting VFS performance using the simulation model VFSMOD, which was developed by researchers at University of North Carolina. Recently, VFSMOD has been validated successfully by using 21 filters with varying length, slope and vegetated cover. A wide range of five parameters was selected for the simulations, namely filter length, filter slope, manning roughness coefficient, soil type and characteristics of incoming sediment from adjacent fields. Computer simulations revealed that the length of filter is the most significant factor affecting sediment trapping in VFS. The relative increase in trapping efficiencies was not linearly related to an increase in filter length. Inflow sediment class also has a major influence on sediment trapping in VFS. The trapping efficiency of clay sediments in a 15 m length VFS was 47% compared with 92% for silt from incoming sediment. Manning roughness coefficient had a moderate effect on sediment trapping and was more significant in short filters. Land slope and soil type of VFS had a minor influence on the performance of VFS. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Trace metals in acid sediments and waters, Pimpama catchment, southeast Queensland, Australia

The Pimpama River floodplain has developed over the last several thousand years as a result of sea-level fluctuations that shaped the lower catchment and enabled the formation of sedimentary pyrite. The subsequent production of sulfuric acid due to the oxidation of this pyrite enhances the breakdown of metal-bearing sediments and can lead to leaching of major and trace metals into the waters of the region. The seasonal pattern of rainfall and current land-use activities are important aspects that intensify the natural production of acid and influence the release and distribution of metals. To identify the source and migration of metals in the Pimpama catchment and to understand the impact of pyrite oxidation on the distribution of metals in sediments and waters, several components of the drainage system were analyzed: bedrock, sediments from river bed and bank, and water. The elements analyzed in this study (V, Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn and Pb) are all present in the bedrock material which explains their occurrence in the unconsolidated sediments of the floodplain. These metals concentrate in the upper section of the sedimentary sequence and their presence is related to clay minerals such as smectite, organic matter and iron phases. However, Zn, Mo and Co occur in higher amounts than the local background and within standard shale. This comparison suggests that the diagenetic processes alone cannot explain the higher concentrations and it is concluded that these metals also have an anthropogenic source. The formation of sulfuric acid creates conditions for higher mobility of some metals, such as Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, but does not affect less mobile ones such as Mo and Pb. Over the longterm, the production of acid influences the breakdown of mineral phases and enhances the process of weathering. Over the short term, every rain event leaches acid from sediments and mobilizes metals resulting in a substantial reduction in the quality of river water. Received: 2 October 1998 · Accepted: 16 February 1999     

Controls on the nature and distribution of an alga in coal mine-waste environments and its potential impact on water quality

 A dominant non-bacterial microorganism that may strongly impact environmental conditions in acid mine drainage at several Indiana coal mine sites is a single-celled protozoan, Euglena mutabilis. Field data suggest E. mutabilis has high tolerance for elevated total dissolved solids (TDS), to 18 g/l, and acid conditions to pH 1.7. Distribution is restricted to unmixed effluent pH<4.6, with prolific growth between pH 3.0 and 3.5. Additional factors influencing E. mutabilis include preference for areas with lower mineral/colloidal precipitation rates and a stable substrate of iron-rich precipitates. Initial studies indicate that in areas of prolific growth it contributes to oversaturation of dissolved oxygen by up to 200%. The presence of small orange intracellular crystalline-like structures, similar in color to iron oxyhydroxides, suggests that E. mutabilis may be sequestering iron, and possibly other metals. Further work is needed to determine if E. mutabilis contributes to natural mitigation of poor water quality at these and other coal mine sites. Received: 13 January 2000 · Accepted: 2 May 2000     

Geochemistry of groundwater in the alluvial plain of Tucumán province, Argentina

The Salí River hydrogeological basin is one of the most productive artesian basins in Argentina. It is located in the southeastern part of the province of Tucumán, northwestern Argentina, and its groundwater resources are developed for water supply and irrigation. The chemical composition of the water is strongly influenced by the interaction with the basinal sediments and by hydrologic characteristics such as the flow pattern and time of residence. Three hydrochemical zones are defined in the study area and the processes that control the chemical composition of the water are manifestly different in each zone. The dissolution of halite, sodium sulphate, and gypsum explains part of the contained Na⁺, K⁺, Cl^–, SO₄ ^2–, and Ca²⁺, but other processes, such as cation exchange, calcite precipitation, weathering of aluminosilicates, and gas exchange with the atmosphere, also contribute to the water composition. The assessment of contamination indicators, such as pH, dissolved organic matter, dissolved oxygen, phosphate, and nitrate, indicates that the groundwater is suitable for human consumption. However, biological contamination has been detected in samples from some wells, especially those near the Salí River. Electronic Publication     

3–D Tomographic Images and Deep Ore-Control in Northern Margin of the North China Plate

Abstract: 3–D velocity images of the crust beneath the northern margin of the North China Plate have been constructed using P-wave travel time residuals of the latest earthquakes, with the data supplied by Chinese seismic networks.
The seismic image results indicate that there is a lateral heterogeneity in the crust beneath the northern part of the North China block. The velocity images of the upper crust show features closely related to the tectonic features on the surface. It can be seen from these velocity images of the vertical sections, and from the horizontal slice images at depths of 11 and 16 km that there exist East-West and North-East structures. The images indicate that the juncture zone of basin–and–range terrain is between the blue-colored high–velocity block corresponding to the Yanshan mountain range that developed during the Yanshan period in northwest Beijing and the green low-velocity area corresponding to the North China basin in southeast Beijing (Fig. 5). The juncture zone between high-velocity and low–velocity, and EW and NE fault zones have significant ore-control effects. From the chart of epicenters in the northern region of North China, we find that the epicenters of earthquakes are almost entirely distributed within the NE strip. Almost all major earthquakes took place in the transition strip between the high and low-velocity zones in the crust. The distribution of epicenters also reflects the strikes of known NE–faults. From the image sections along the latitude, we find that in the area between 114.0 E –118.0 E , there is a blue high-velocity block standing upright from the Moho to the upper crust (Fig. 6), from which can be deduced that some materials such as magma moved upward from the upper mantle during the history of its geological development.     

Results from the Big Spring basin water quality monitoring and demonstration projects,Iowa, USA

Agricultural practices, hydrology, and water quality of the 267-km² Big Spring groundwater drainage basin in Clayton County, Iowa, have been monitored since 1981. Land use is agricultural; nitrate-nitrogen (-N) and herbicides are the resulting contaminants in groundwater and surface water. Ordovician Galena Group carbonate rocks comprise the main aquifer in the basin. Recharge to this karstic aquifer is by infiltration, augmented by sinkhole-captured runoff. Groundwater is discharged at Big Spring, where quantity and quality of the discharge are monitored. Monitoring has shown a threefold increase in groundwater nitrate-N concentrations from the 1960s to the early 1980s. The nitrate-N discharged from the basin typically is equivalent to over one-third of the nitrogen fertilizer applied, with larger losses during wetter years. Atrazine is present in groundwater all year; however, contaminant concentrations in the groundwater respond directly to recharge events, and unique chemical signatures of infiltration versus runoff recharge are detectable in the discharge from Big Spring. Education and demonstration efforts have reduced nitrogen fertilizer application rates by one-third since 1981. Relating declines in nitrate and pesticide concentrations to inputs of nitrogen fertilizer and pesticides at Big Spring is problematic. Annual recharge has varied five-fold during monitoring, overshadowing any water-quality improvements resulting from incrementally decreased inputs. Electronic Publication     

Impacts of afforestation on groundwater resources and quality

Plans to double the proportion of land under forest cover in Ireland by the year 2035 have been initiated. The plan, primarily financially driven, ignores potential environmental impacts of forestry, particularly impacts on groundwater resources and quality. Since groundwater supplies almost 25% of Ireland's total potable water, these impacts are important. Field investigations indicate that afforestation leads to a reduction in runoff by as much as 20%, mainly due to interception of rainfall by forest canopies. Clearfelling has the opposite impact. Implications are that uncoordinated forestry practices can potentially exacerbate flooding. Groundwater recharge is affected by forestry, largely due to greater uptake of soil water by trees and to increased water-holding capacity of forest soils, arising from higher organic contents. Recharge rates under forests can be reduced to one tenth that under grass or heathland. Groundwater quality may be affected by enhanced acidification and nitrification under forests, due partly to scavenging of atmospheric pollutants by forest canopies, and partly to greater deposition of highly acid leaf litter. The slower recharge rates of groundwater under forests lead to significant delays in manifestation of deterioration in groundwater quality. Electronic Publication