Estimation of parameters in petrologic materials balance equations

A rigorous treatment of the least-squares estimation of the parameters in petrologic materials balance equations is developed to take into account the uncertainties inherent in the chemical analyses. The choice of the optimal estimation procedure for a particular problem is dependent upon the extent of the petrogenetic understanding of the exact nature of the materials balance involved. Some of the complications entailed in obtaining least-squares estimates are illustrated by the examples of magmatic differentiation and metamorphic reactions.     

Stresses due to vertical subsurface loading for an inhomogeneous cross‐anisotropic half‐space

In this article, we present the solutions for the stresses induced by four different loads associated with an axially loaded pile in a continuously inhomogeneous cross‐anisotropic half‐space. The planes of cross‐anisotropy are parallel to the horizontal surface of the half‐space, and the Young's and shear moduli are assumed to vary exponentially with depth. The four loading types are: an embedded point load for an end‐bearing pile, uniform skin friction, linear variation of skin friction, and non‐linear parabolic variation of skin friction for a friction pile. The solutions for the stresses due to the pile load are expressed in terms of the Hankel integral and are obtained from the point load solutions of the same inhomogeneous cross‐anisotropic half‐space which were derived recently by the authors (Int. J. Rock Mech. Min. Sci. 2003; 40 (5):667–685). A numerical procedure is proposed to carry out the integral. For the special case of homogeneous isotropic and cross‐anisotropic half‐space, the stresses predicted by the numerical procedure agree well with the solutions of Geddes and Wang (Geotechnique 1966; 16 (3):231–255; Soils Found. 2003; 43 (5):41–52). An illustrative example is also given to investigate the effect of soil inhomogeneity, the type and degree of soil anisotropy, and the four different loading types on the vertical normal stress. The presented solutions are more realistic in simulating the actual stratum of loading problem in many areas of engineering practice. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Channel geometry,bed material,and inferred flow conditions in ephemeral stream systems,barrier range,western N.S.W. Australia

Streams draining the Barrier Range uplands in arid western N.S.W. are ephemeral and undergo rapid channel contraction away from the uplands as a consequence of transmission loss. These processes are documented on the basis of surveys of channel form and bed material at sequential sites located along the contracting lowland reaches of two representative streams. Channel width and depth display considerable fluctuation downstream, but cross-sectional area and maximum bed surface grain size decline in a very regular manner. Flood discharge, estimated from the channel capacity and predicted critical and mean flow velocities, also declines regularly. the trends are well fitted by log-linear models, and are reported in terms of a half-distance, the channel length in km over which the value of a morphometric parameter declines by 50 per cent. Rates of channel contraction and transmission loss are inferred to be inversely proportional to the volume of flow delivered from the upland section of the drainage basin. Unusual channel characteristics, including extensive tree growth in the bed, make application of ordinary flow equations difficult, because friction factors cannot be estimated with confidence. Systematic changes in the nature of the bed surface in contracting streams such as those studied here also have implications for the application of critical velocity equations, and highlight a need for further study of desert channels.     

绿洲边缘夏季小气候特征及地表辐射与能量平衡特征分析

利用“绿洲系统能量与水分循环过程观测试验”加强期(IOP)在甘肃省酒泉市金塔绿洲观测的资料,分析了夏季金塔绿洲边缘的小气候特征及地表辐射收支和地表能量平衡特征。作为绿洲沙漠相互作用的界面,在白天绿洲边缘的垂直运动仍然是以上升气流为主,并且其小气候主要受土壤湿度的影响。中午前后绿洲边缘的总辐射最大值在1000W.m-2左右,净辐射>700W.m-2;在白天,仅有个别天数的感热通量超过100W.m-2,最大值仅为150W.m-2左右。在整个观测期,有超过70%的天数出现负感热通量。而Bowen比在±10-1量级,地表能量不平衡的差额较大,约28%。     

Introductory review of specific factors influencing urban groundwater, an emerging branch of hydrogeology, with reference to Barcelona, Spain

A number of specific factors must be considered when dealing with groundwater in urban areas. Urbanization significantly affects the natural water cycle, both in terms of quantity and quality. In particular, the main contributors to recharge and discharge clearly differ from those in natural systems. Moreover, water can affect underground structures and infrastructure characteristics of cities such as basements, public transport services (trains, underground railways, etc.), and utility conduits. As a result, urban groundwater is emerging as a distinct branch of hydrogeology. The objective of this paper is to review some of the topics that are specific to urban groundwater. These include (1) fluctuations in groundwater levels caused by changes in land and water uses; (2) pollution problems caused by point or non-point sources in urban areas; (3) characterization and quantification of the components contributing to groundwater recharge and discharge; (4) specific characteristics of groundwater flow and solute transport models in urban areas; and (5) integration of data for sustainable urban water management. Some of these issues are illustrated for the particular case of Barcelona, where a comprehensive hydrogeological study has been carried out during the last few years by both the public and the private sectors.

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Resumen Se debe considerar una serie de factores específicos al tratar las aguas subterráneas en áreas urbanas. El proceso de urbanización afecta el ciclo natural del agua de manera significativa tanto en lo que se refiere a cantidad como a calidad. En particular, los contribuyentes principales a la recarga y descarga claramente difieren de aquellos aplicables a los sistemas naturales. Es más, el agua puede afectar los estructuras subterráneas de las ciudades tales como sótanos, servicios de transporte público (trenes, trenes subterráneos) y los servicios básicos. Como resultado de esto, la hidrogeologia urbana está emergiendo como una rama específica de la hidrogeología. El objectivo de este artículo es revisar algunos de los temas que son específicos al agua subterránea urbana. Estos incluyen: 1) Fluctuaciones en los niveles de agua subterránea causados por cambios en los usos de terreno y del agua; 2) Problemas de contaminación causados por fuentes puntuales o no puntuales en áreas urbanas; 3) Caracterización y cuantificación de los componentes que contribuyen a la recarga y descarga de agua subterránea; 4) Características especificas de flujo de agua subterránea y modelos de transporte de solutos en áreas urbanas; y 5) Integración de datos para el manejo sostenible de agua urbana. Algunos de estos puntos se han ilustrados para el caso particular de Barcelona en donde se ha llevado a cabo un estudio hidrogeológico amplio durante los últimos años tanto por el sector privado como el público.

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Résumé Une série de facteurs spécifiques doit être considérée lorsque leau souterraine en région urbaine est étudiée. Lurbanisation affecte significativement le cycle naturel de leau, autant du point de vue quantitatif que qualitatif. Plus particulièrement, les zones de recharge et de décharge diffèrent considérablement des systèmes naturels. Leau souterraine peut affecter les structures souterraines ainsi que les infrastructures municipales telles que les sous-sols, les systèmes de transport publique (trains, métros, ...) et les conduits de service. De ce fait, lhydrogéologie en milieu urbain émerge comme une branche distincte de lhydrogéologie classique. Lobjectif de cet article est de revoir certaines notions qui sont spécifiques à létude de leau souterraine en milieu urbain. Parmi ces notions : 1) les fluctuations de la nappe phréatique causées par des changements dans lutilisation du territoire et de leau, 2) les problèmes de pollution causés par des sources ponctuelles ou diffuses en milieu urbain, 3) la caractérisation et quantification des composants qui contribuent à la recharge et décharge des aquifères, 4) les caractéristiques spécifiques des modèles découlement de leau souterraine et de transport de solutés en milieux urbain, et 5) lintégration des données pour la gestion durable de leau en milieu urbain. Certaines de ces questions sont étudiées pour le cas particulier de la ville de Barcelone où une étude hydrogéologique complète a été menée au cours des dernières années par les secteurs privé et public.

     

AGRICULTURAL DROUGHT ON SOUTH-CENTRAL PACIFIC ISLANDS *

A pilot study of spatial patterns of agricultural drought hazard in the south-central Pacific is presented. The durations of crop stress periods are estimated using a water balance approach. A rainfall approach is used to identify dry periods corresponding to different durations. Strong correlation between the results of the two methods indicates that monthly rainfall data are sufficient for estimating the patterns of agricultural drought hazard in the region. The simpler rainfall method is particularly useful for high islands where data required for the water balance approach are not sufficient to characterize the complex climatic patterns. Drought hazard is greatest in the eastern and southwestern parts of the study area. Great spatial variation in drought hazard is observed in a small area on the high islands of Western Samoa, where the range of values found within a few tens of kilometers is about the same as the range found across thousands of kilometers for low islands.     

Spectral Characteristics and Correction of Long-Term Eddy-Covariance Measurements Over Two Mixed Hardwood Forests in Non-Flat Terrain

We present turbulence spectra and cospectra derived from long-term eddy-covariancemeasurements (nearly 40,000 hourly data over three to four years) and the transferfunctions of closed-path infrared gas analyzers over two mixed hardwood forests inthe mid-western U.S.A. The measurement heights ranged from 1.3 to 2.1 times themean tree height, and peak vegetation area index (VAI) was 3.5 to 4.7; the topographyat both sites deviates from ideal flat terrain. The analysis follows the approach ofKaimal et al. (Quart. J. Roy. Meteorol. Soc. 98, 563–589, 1972) whose results were based upon 15 hours of measurements atthree heights in the Kansas experiment over flatter and smoother terrain. Both thespectral and cospectral constants and stability functions for normalizing and collapsingspectra and cospectra in the inertial subrange were found to be different from those ofKaimal et al. In unstable conditions, we found that an appropriate stabilityfunction for the non-dimensional dissipation of turbulent kinetic energy is of the form ₍₎ = (1 - b^-)^-1/4 - c^-, where representsthe non-dimensional stability parameter. In stable conditions, a non-linear functionG_xy() = 1 + b_xy^c _xy (c_xy < 1) was found to benecessary to collapse cospectra in the inertial subrange. The empirical cospectralmodels of Kaimal et al. were modified to fit the somewhat more (neutraland unstable) or less (stable) sharply peaked scalar cospectra observed over forestsusing the appropriate cospectral constants and non-linear stability functions. Theempirical coefficients in the stability functions and in the cospectral models varywith measurement height and seasonal changes in VAI. The seasonal differencesare generally larger at the Morgan Monroe State Forest site (greater peak VAI) andcloser to the canopy.The characteristics of transfer functions of the closed-path infrared gas analysersthrough long-tubes for CO₂ and water vapour fluxes were studied empirically. This was done by fitting the ratio between normalized cospectra of CO₂ or watervapour fluxes and those of sensible heat to the transfer function of a first-order sensor.The characteristic time constant for CO₂ is much smaller than that for water vapour. The time constant for water vapour increases greatly with aging tubes. Three methods were used to estimate the flux attenuations and corrections; from June through August, the attenuations of CO₂ fluxes are about 3–4% during the daytime and 6–10% at night on average. For the daytime latent heat flux (Q_E), the attenuations are foundto vary from less than 10% for newer tubes to over 20% for aged tubes. Correctionsto Q_E led to increases in the ratio (Q_H + Q_E)/(Q^* - Q_G) by about 0.05 to0.19 (Q_H is sensible heat flux, Q^* is net radiation and Q_G is soil heat flux),and thus are expected to have an important impact on the assessment of energy balanceclosure.     

Survival under chronic stress from sediment load: spatial patterns of hard coral communities in the southern islands of Singapore

Six reef sites were chosen along the west coasts of Singapore's southern islands, to: (1) quantitatively assess and compare coral community composition and structure, and recruitment rates, (2) assess the relationship between the aforementioned patterns and the environmental conditions, and (3) provide insights on potential processes that incorporate history at these study sites. Chronic exposure to high sediment load was the most obvious form of anthropogenic stress. Recruitment rates on ceramic tiles were low (1.4+/-1.0-20+/-14.7 recruits m(-2)year(-1)) but decreased towards the main island of Singapore as did hard coral cover and coral density. Coral fauna consisted of genera generally found in deeper waters (e.g., fungiids, foliose Oxypora, Leptoseris, and Echinopora) or those well adapted to turbid waters (e.g., Porites, Pectinia, Leptastrea, Montipora). Light extinction coefficient (K) and % live coral cover (%LCC) showed a strong and inverse curvilinear relationship (%LCC=13.60 *K(-3.40)). Similarly, the rate of sediment deposition (DFSPM) (Recruitment rate, RR=1.51-0.17 *DFSPM) and water clarity (RR=3.56-2.92 *K) exhibited strong and inverse relationships with recruitment rates. Although measured levels of the down-ward flux of suspended particulate matter and suspended solids were well within "normal" levels recorded in the literature, it was the proportion of benthic space, generic coral composition, and site history that offered compelling evidence of chronic exposure to increased sediment load. Clearly a reduction in both water clarity and live-coral cover has taken place since monitoring efforts began in the early 1970s, in fact coral cover has more than halved at all sites examined since the 1980s and benthic space was predominantly occupied by dead corals covered with sediment and filamentous algae.     

Climate during the last glacial maximum in the Wasatch and southern Uinta Mountains inferred from glacier modeling

Recent improvements in understanding glacial extents and chronologies in the Wasatch and Uinta Mountains and other mountain ranges in the western U.S. call for a more detailed approach to using glacier reconstructions to infer paleoclimates than commonly applied AAR-ELA-ÄT methods. A coupled 2-D mass balance and ice-flow numerical modeling approach developed by [Plummer, M.A., Phillips, F.M., 2003. A 2-D numerical model of snow/ice energy balance and ice flow for paleoclimatic interpretation of glacial geomorphic features. Quaternary Science Reviews 22, 1389–1406] allows exploration of the combined effects of temperature, precipitation, shortwave radiation and many secondary parameters on past ice extents in alpine settings. We apply this approach to the Little Cottonwood Canyon in the Wasatch Mountains and the Lake Fork and Yellowstone Canyons in the south-central Uinta Mountains. Results of modeling experiments indicate that the Little Cottonwood glacier required more precipitation during the local Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) than glaciers in the Uinta Mountains, assuming lapse rates were similar to modern. Model results suggest that if temperatures in the Wasatch Mountains and Uinta Mountains were  6 °C to 7 °C colder than modern, corresponding precipitation changes were  3 to 2× modern in Little Cottonwood Canyon and  2 to 1× modern in Lake Fork and Yellowstone Canyons. Greater amounts of precipitation in the Little Cottonwood Canyon likely reflect moisture derived from the surface of Lake Bonneville, and the lake may have also affected the mass balance of glaciers in the Uinta Mountains.     

中国区域土地利用/覆被变化对陆地碳收支的影响

准确估计土地利用/覆被变化（LUCC）对陆地生态系统碳收支的影响已成为当前全球变化和全球碳循环研究的重点内容。本文通过文献调研和数据的整合分析方法总结讨论了近年来中国区域LUCC时空特征及其对陆地碳收支影响,为合理评价中国区域陆地碳平衡以及确定未来研究发展方向提供参考。已有大量研究对近年来中国区域LUCC主要特征进行了探讨,并分别利用卫星遥感方法和IPCC清单法对中国区域陆地碳源汇影响进行了评估。结果表明,目前全国土地利用活动,特别是农林活动正对陆地生态系统碳收支产生了比较显著的积极作用,但基于以上两种方法的研究结论之间差异很大,反映出中国LUCC导致陆地碳收支变化的评估结果仍存在着较大的不确定性。通过分析认为,中国未来的研究工作应着重于发展和利用基于土地利用相互转化面积的计量方法,以提高对中国区域LUCC导致陆地碳收支变化评估的准确性。