Geotechnical characteristics of mississippi delta sediments,southeast Louisiana

An investigation of the geotechnical properties of sediments from 57 boreholes drilled in West Delta and South Pass OSC Lease Areas, offshore Louisiana, indicated that sediment texture, shear strength, water content, and liquid limit vary significantly laterally and with depth. Samples are predominantly soft, fine‐grained sediments with high water content and medium to high plasticity. Firm, coarser‐grained sediments were obtained near the shoreline in South Pass OCS Lease Area and in the northern and eastern parts of West Delta OCS Lease Area. Trends in the distribution of geotechnical properties appear to be influenced by sediment texture and rate of sedimentation.     

Benthic community structure and water column characteristics at two sites in the Kermadec Islands Marine Reserve,New Zealand

The Kermadec Islands Marine Reserve (KIMR), which is located at 30°S, is New Zealand's largest marine reserve at 748 000 ha, and its biota is composed of a mix of warm temperate, subtropical, and tropical species. A depth‐stratified ecological survey was conducted of the abundance and percentage cover of macrobenthic species and of the water column at two sites (Meyer Island and West Chanter Island), 2km apart. Significant differences in benthic community structure and in water column turbidity and chlorophyll concentrations were observed between the two sites despite their proximity and physical similarity. Compared with other “snapshot” surveys of benthic community structure at sites within the KIMR there was a high degree of similarity among the species observed, but often a low degree of similarity in species abundance or percentage cover as a function of depth. We suggest that despite its isolation and the degree of difficulty of working at this location, a full‐scale ecological survey of the coastal marine biota of the KIMR is warranted to better understand New Zealand's subtropical marine biota and its affinities with other marine biotas of the South Pacific.     

Physical conditions driving the spatial and temporal variability in aquatic metabolism of a subtropical coastal lake

We investigated the importance of meteorological and lake physical conditions for temporal, horizontal and vertical differences in the concentration of dissolved oxygen (DO) and water temperature, and the derived daily estimates of gross primary production (GPP), ecosystem respiration (R) and net ecosystem production (NEP). Our study was conducted in a subtropical and polymictic lake in Southern Brazil, during a spring–summer transition. Metabolic rates were determined from two sites using the open water oxygen technique. At the central deep site, oxygen sondes were deployed at three depths to assess patterns in vertical variability. During 10 days, an additional DO and temperature sonde was placed near the shoreline allowing us to compare metabolic differences in the surface layers between the central pelagic and littoral site. While GPP was similar, R was significantly higher at the shallower littoral site, causing NEP to be lower, although NEP was still positive. The littoral site had less diel changes in DO and higher daily variability in all metabolic rates. Variability in GPP and R at the littoral site was related to temperature, wind speed and rainfall suggesting that short-term variability in metabolic rates in shallow areas are sensitive to resuspension of sediments caused by a less stable water column. A clear vertical gradient was furthermore found for the metabolic rates at the central deep part of the lake, related to the light extinction, with highest GPP around 0.3 m and decreasing with depth, while respiration showed the inverse pattern. Below subsurface, respiration prevailed at 5.0 m depth and was uncoupled to primary production. Under conditions with high light and temperature, and low wind speeds, the mixing depth became shallower, in turn increasing the water column stability at the deep pelagic site, which resulted in higher mean light available and higher GPP in the water column. Our results confirm that deployment of sensors in different sites and depths allows for spatially, as well as temporally more representative estimates of lake metabolism.     

Modified three‐dimensional seismic assessment method for buildings based on ambient vibration tests: extrapolation to higher shaking levels and measuring the dynamic amplification portion of natural torsion

This paper presents applications of the modified 3D‐SAM approach, a three‐dimensional seismic assessment methodology for buildings directly based on in situ experimental modal tests to calculate global seismic demands and the dynamic amplification portion of natural torsion. Considering that the building modal properties change from weak to strong motion levels, appropriate modification factors are proposed to extend the application of the method to stronger earthquakes. The proposed approach is consistent with the performance‐based seismic assessment approach, which entails the prediction of seismic displacements and drift ratios that are related to the damage condition and therefore the functionality of the building. The modified 3D‐SAM is especially practical for structures that are expected to experience slight to moderate damage levels and in particular for post‐disaster buildings that are expected to remain functional after an earthquake. In the last section of this paper, 16 low to mid‐rise irregular buildings located in Montreal, Canada, and that have been tested under ambient vibrations are analyzed with the method, and the dynamic amplification portion of natural torsion of the dataset is reported and discussed. The proposed methodology is appropriate for large‐scale assessments of existing buildings and is applicable to any seismic region of the world. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

In situ tests simulating traffic-load-induced settlement of alluvial silt subsoil

In China, The Yellow River delta is the youngest large river delta, and the low liquid limit alluvial silt is widely distributed there. The silt is easy to liquefy so that the silt subsoil shows large settlement under traffic load. At present, few in situ model tests were conducted to study the traffic-load-induced settlement of silt subsoil. Therefore, a falling-weight simulation equipment of traffic load was developed. By adjusting the technical parameters such as the falling height of the weight, different types of traffic loads can be well simulated. With the equipment, in situ tests were carried out to study cumulative settlement of silt subsoil in the Yellow River delta. Tests indicate that the settlement and excess pore water pressures rapidly grow initially and then tend to be stable with increasing the number of load cycles, and they also increase with the magnitude of the traffic load. When the load attains a threshold value, liquefaction takes place in the silt subsoil. After terminating loading, the pore water pressure rapidly decreases and the settlement increases simultaneously, while after one hour they tend to stabilize. Based on Chai–Miura cumulative deformation model of soil, the traffic-load-induced cumulative settlement of silt subsoil was calculated and compared with the test results. The calculated cumulative settlement with increasing number of load cycles agrees well with the test results, except the initial phase of cyclic loading where the settlement observed in the situ tests is overestimated. This is mainly because Chai–Miura model assumes undrained conditions while the subsoil under traffic loads is partly drained.     

Curvature ductility of columns and structural displacement ductility in RC frame structures subjected to ground motions

This paper examined the statistical relationship between the curvature ductility demands of columns and the global displacement ductility demands of reinforced concrete (RC) frame structures when subjected to earthquakes. Elements with a designated moment–curvature relationship were adopted for both beam and column elements, and five-story and ten-story RC frame numerical structures were established. Using pushover analysis and earthquake nonlinear dynamic time-history analysis, the maximum global displacement ductility demands of the structure and the maximum curvature ductility demands of the columns were determined. The effects of the spectral acceleration and the strong column factor on ductility demands were analyzed, and the quantitative relationship between the curvature ductility demands of columns and the global displacement ductility demands of frame structures were established. Moreover, the validity of the established relationship was further tested and verified through a real-world application. The results show that the maximum curvature ductility demands of the columns and the maximum displacement ductility demands of the structure were positively associated with the spectral acceleration and negatively associated with the strong column factor. A proposed first-degree linear relationship between curvature ductility of columns and structural displacement ductility in RC frame structures with two parameters was obtained by curve fitting, while considering the effect of the strong column factor. The model was highly correlated with the sampling analysis data. Applying the empirical model established in this study is a simple and effective means to guide the design of ductility and the assessment of RC frame columns.     

薄壁方钢管混凝土柱劲化设计及轴压性能探讨

对于薄壁方形钢管混凝土柱,有效且经济地提高柱的承载力、刚度和延性,增强其抵抗局部屈曲的能力是目前的一项重要研究课题。据此,进行8个薄壁方形钢管混凝土轴压试件的研究,比较普通薄壁钢管混凝土柱与劲化薄壁钢管混凝土柱的轴压极限承载力、延性性能、局部屈曲模态及相应耗钢量,研究表明:劲化设置在增加较少用钢量的情况下,使钢管壁对核心混凝土的约束作用相对于普通钢管混凝土柱和单纯加设约束拉杆的钢管混凝土柱更趋均匀,提高了整体约束效应,混凝土强度得以提高,本构关系明显改善。从而增加了钢管混凝土柱的轴压承载力和延性,改变了钢管的局部屈曲变形状态,其实用效益与经济效益极其可观,具有良好推广价值。     

一种非饱和土表层蒸发过程的预测方法

探索了一种由土壤基本物性指标、气象数据预测非饱和土表层蒸发过程的方法。通过土壤基本物理性质（颗粒分布、土粒相对密度、干密度）预测出土-水特征曲线（SWCC）,进而得到土壤气相对湿度与含水率的关系,采用Penman-Wilson模型预测出了非饱和土表面的蒸发曲线。通过该方法,只需实地采取土样,获取其基本物理性质,由任意时刻土壤的含水率及气象数据就能预测出该时刻土表的蒸发速率。采用自制的自动蒸发测量系统进行浅层土蒸发试验,得到了蒸发曲线,与预测结果进行比较发现预测蒸发过程与实测结果一样皆由临界含水率和风干含水率将其分为3个阶段：稳定阶段、减速阶段和残余阶段,且蒸发量吻合,证明了所提出方法的准确性和实用性,对工程界估计土表蒸发量,确定水流量边界有重要意义。     

几种缺陷单桩竖向承载性状的现场模型试验研究

为评价灌注桩在施工过程中因形成缩径、扩径、断桩、泥皮等缺陷导致单桩竖向极限承载力变化的程度,针对缺陷桩单桩开展了现场模型试验研究。进行正常桩和缺陷桩的竖向静载模型试验,测试单桩竖向极限承载力,对比缺陷桩和正常桩的单桩承载特性,分析了缩径、扩径、断桩、泥皮等缺陷对单桩承载性状的影响。对比正常桩和缺陷桩的荷载-沉降关系曲线,得出了基于文中缺陷桩设计方案的结论,缩径缺陷和泥皮缺陷均使单桩竖向极限承载力降低,降幅在正常桩极限承载力的15%范围内;扩径缺陷桩的荷载-沉降关系曲线无明显陡降点,桩顶沉降较正常桩递增缓慢;断桩缺陷影响荷载-沉降关系曲线中反弯点的出现位置,即反弯点出现时的桩顶位移与断桩缺陷距地表的距离有关。     

Dynamic characteristics and seismic behavior of prefabricated steel stairs in a full‐scale five‐story building shake table test program

This paper investigates the dynamic characteristics and seismic behavior of prefabricated steel stairs in a full‐scale five‐story building shake table test program. The test building was subjected to a suite of earthquake input motions and low‐amplitude white noise base excitations first, while the building was isolated at its base, and subsequently while it was fixed to the shake table platen. This paper presents the modal characteristics of the stairs identified using the data recorded from white noise base excitation tests as well as the physical and measured responses of the stairs from the earthquake tests. The observed damage to the stairs is categorized into three distinct damage states and is correlated with the interstory drift demands of the building. These shake table tests highlight the seismic vulnerability of modern designed stair systems and in particular identifies as a key research need the importance of improving the deformability of flight‐to‐building connections. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.