An analysis of storm-induced landslides in colluvial soils overlying mudrock sequences, southeastern Ohio, USA

In late-June, 1998, a series of thunderstorms dropped 16.5 cm (6.5 in.) of rain in a 72-h period over southeastern Ohio, causing extensive flooding, six deaths, and 179 million dollars in property damage. The storms also triggered more than 60 shallow landslides along a 64 km (40-mi) stretch of Interstate 77 between Buffalo and Marietta, Ohio. Almost all of the landslides were translational, occurring along the contact between colluvial soils and the underlying bedrock (shales, claystones, mudstones). Six sites were selected in the affected area for a detailed study of the shallow landslides. At each site, a record was made of the stratigraphy, slope geometry, number of landslides, landslide dimensions, hydrologic conditions, and influence of vegetation on landslide distribution. Both colluvial soils and underlying bedrock were sampled for laboratory investigations, which included determination of natural water content, grain size distribution, Atterberg limits, permeability, slake durability, and shear-strength parameters. Data from laboratory tests were used to perform sensitivity and stability analyses with respect to varying slope angles, strength parameters, and thicknesses of saturated colluvial soil. The results of the study indicate that the shallow landslides along Interstate 77 occurred when the colluvial soils reached 90% to 100% saturation, depending upon the slope angles.     

钻孔灌注桩后压浆作用机理与应用

通过对桩侧和桩底后压浆,可大幅度提高钻孔灌注桩单桩承载力.应用桩-土理论分析了后压浆中浆液对土体及桩体的作用,并从分析影响桩基承载力的因素出发,研究了后压浆的作用机理.在渗透率小的地层中后压浆以压密注浆为主,在渗透率大的地层中后压浆以渗透注浆为主.为避免过分压裂土层,在压浆过程中应控制灌浆压力.压浆量是影响后压浆质量和提高单桩承载力的关键因素之一.     

Snow loads on wire mesh and cable net rockfall slope protection systems

Snow load on mesh systems is complicated by many factors. This paper presents field instrumentation data on snow load variation with temperature, snowfall and snow depth on a mesh system. It was found that snow load pattern on mesh systems changed with temperature even without variation in snow depth. It reached its maximum value when the temperature rose just above freezing to melt the interface. The field data was used to formulate appropriate snow load models for the various conditions of temperature in the field. The snow load models were used to study the performance of a number of mesh systems in North America and estimate the interface friction that was prevalent for the different surface conditions.     

云南沿边境地带生态环境3S监测、 评价与调控研究

本文利用全球新千年整体生态系统评估的理论，以云南省沿边境地带生态系统变化跨境生态安全为研究对象，探寻并揭示我国陆疆系统的跨境生态系统变化监测、评价和生态安全综合调控的基础理论与信息机理；进而研究基于“3S”云南沿边境地带的生态环境监测、评价与综合调控的方法和关键技术，包括方法和技术体系的建立、指标体系的建立、多尺度效应和尺度转换、数学模型的建立、综合调控模式和决策方案的建立等；在案例研究部分，建立了背景数据库，然后选择大、中、小尺度进行了全区生态环境现状评价，重点河道、典型路段和重点口岸的影响评价和预测预报研究，最后进行了综合调控模式和方案的探讨，并对研究结果进行了动态仿真和虚拟表达研究。     

The influence of coupled physical swelling and chemical reactions on deformable geomaterials

Coupled thermo‐hydro‐mechanical‐chemical modelling has attracted attention in past decades due to many contemporary geotechnical engineering applications (e.g., waste disposal, carbon capture and storage). However, molecular‐scale interactions within geomaterials (e.g., swelling and dissolution/precipitation) have a significant influence on the mechanical behaviour, yet are rarely incorporated into existing Thermal‐Hydro‐Mechanical‐Chemical (THMC) frameworks. This paper presents a new coupled hydro‐mechanical‐chemical constitutive model to bridge molecular‐scale interactions with macro‐physical deformation by combining the swelling and dissolution/precipitation through an extension of the new mixture‐coupling theory. Entropy analysis of the geomaterial system provides dissipation energy, and Helmholtz free energy gives the relationship between solids and fluids. Numerical simulation is used to compare with the selected recognized models, which demonstrates that the swelling and dissolution/precipitation processes may have a significant influence on the mechanical deformation of the geomaterials.     

Elastic behavior of weakly cemented contact

We investigate the elastic behavior of weakly cemented contact. We show that the radial distribution of stresses and the stiffnesses of a cemented contact are governed by the ratio a/RΛ, where R, a, and Λ are, respectively, the grain radius, the contact size, and the ratio of the elastic moduli of cement and grains. Moreover, we show that a cemented contact is always less stiff than a Hertzian contact having a similar size. Finally, we propose accurate approximate expressions of the contact stiffnesses. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A network theory approach for a better understanding of overland flow connectivity

Hydrological connectivity describes the physical coupling (linkages) of different elements within a landscape regarding (sub‐) surface flows. A firm understanding of hydrological connectivity is important for catchment management applications, for example, habitat and species protection, and for flood resistance and resilience improvement. Thinking about (geomorphological) systems as networks can lead to new insights, which has also been recognized within the scientific community, seeing the recent increase in the use of network (graph) theory within the geosciences. Network theory supports the analysis and understanding of complex systems by providing data structures for modelling objects and their linkages, and a versatile toolbox to quantitatively appraise network structure and properties. The objective of this study was to characterize and quantify overland flow connectivity dynamics on hillslopes in a humid sub‐Mediterranean environment by using a combination of high‐resolution digital‐terrain models, overland flow sensors and a network approach. Results showed that there are significant differences between overland flow connectivity on agricultural areas and semi‐natural shrubs areas. Significant positive correlations between connectivity and precipitation characteristics were found. Significant negative correlations between connectivity and soil moisture were found, most likely because of soil water repellency and/or soil surface crusting. The combination of structural networks and dynamic networks for determining potential connectivity and actual connectivity proved a powerful tool for analysing overland flow connectivity. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.