Two-dimensional numerical approach for the vibration isolation analysis of thin walled wave barriers in poroelastic soils

This paper is concerned with the vibration isolation efficiency analysis of total or partially buried thin walled wave barriers in poroelastic soils. A two-dimensional time harmonic model that treats soils and structures in a direct way by combining appropriately the conventional Boundary Element Method (BEM), the Dual BEM (DBEM) and the Finite Element Method (FEM) is developed to this aim. The wave barriers are impinged by Rayleigh waves obtained from Biot’s poroelasticity equations assuming a permeable free-surface. The suitability of the proposed model is justified by comparison with available previous results. The vibration isolation efficiency of three kinds of wave barriers (open trench, simple wall, open trench-wall) in poroelastic soils is studied by varying their geometry, the soil properties and the frequency. It is found that the efficiency of these wave barriers behaves similarly to these in elastic soils, except for high porosities and small dissipation coefficients. The efficiency of open trench-wall barriers can be evaluated neglecting their walls if they are typical sheet piles. This does not happen with walls of bigger cross-sections, leading in general to efficiency losses. Likewise, increasing the burial depth to trench depth ratio has a negative impact on the efficiency.     

Defining the 3D geometry of thin shale units in the Sleipner reservoir using seismic attributes

Defining the 3D geometry and internal architecture of reservoirs is important for prediction of hydrocarbon volumes, petroleum production and storage potential. Many reservoirs contain thin shale layers that are below seismic resolution, which act as impermeable and semi-permeable layers within a reservoir. Predicting the storage volume of a reservoir with thin shale layers from conventional seismic data is an issue due to limited seismic resolution. Further, gas chimneys indicative of gas migration pathways through thin shale layers, are not easily defined by conventional seismic data. Additional information, such as borehole data, can be used to aid mapping of shale layers, but making lateral predictions from 1D borehole data has high uncertainty. This paper presents an integrated workflow for quantitative seismic interpretation of thin shale layers and gas chimneys in the Utsira Formation of the Sleipner reservoir. The workflow combines the use of attribute and spectral analysis to add resolution to conventional seismic amplitude data. Detailed interpretation of these analyses reveals the reservoirs internal thin shale architecture, and the presence of gas chimneys. The comprehensive interpretation of the reservoirs internal structure is used to calculate a new reservoir storage volume. This is done based on the distribution of sand and interpreted shale layers within the study area, for this active CO₂ storage site.     

Intercomparison of High-Resolution Bay of Bengal Circulation Models Forced with Different Winds

The high-resolution Bay of Bengal circulation modeling in the region [80E–95E; 5N–22N] is performed with a horizontal resolution of 10 km and the highest vertical resolution of 5 m near the surface. The intercomparison experiments, with ocean model forced with the near-surface (1) National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) reanalysis winds and (2) blended seawinds data (a combination of remotely sensed scatterometer and in situ observations) are carried out for a period of 17 years during 1998–2014. The seasonal variability of the realistically simulated surface hydrographic (temperature and salinity) and circulation (currents) variables from both the experiments is compared and contrasted with the observational data. The mixed layer depth seasonal variability of the region is also studied. The mesoscale features of currents at 50 and 100 m are also studied. The volume transport across different sections in the Bay of Bengal is computed and its relation with summer monsoon rainfall is investigated. The results suggest that there is no real advantage of using high-resolution blended seawinds over the much coarser NCEP reanalysis winds.     

浅化波浪层流边界层流速分布特性的数值分析

建立了同时考虑波致雷诺应力和时均水平压强梯度影响的二阶波浪边界层数学模型,模型计算得到的浅化波浪层流边界层内瞬时流速剖面、振荡速度幅值和时均流速剖面均与水槽实验数据吻合较好,在此基础上探讨了浅化波浪边界层流速分布特性及其影响机制。随着波浪的浅化变形,边界层内时均流速剖面"底部向岸、上部离岸"的变化特征越来越明显。这是二阶对流项引起的波致雷诺应力和离岸回流引起的时均水平压强梯度共同作用的结果,在床面附近由波致雷诺应力占主导作用并趋于引起向岸流动,在上部区域由时均水平压强梯度占主导作用并趋于引起离岸流动。     

风浪和海洋飞沫对海表面拖曳系数和风廓线的影响

基于埃克曼理论,本文将波致应力和飞沫应力引入到海-气边界层的界面应力中,来研究海表面风浪和海洋飞沫对海-气边界层动量交换的影响,并得到修改后的埃克曼模型的理论解。波致应力是由风浪谱和波增长函数估计,并得到在中低风速下,波致应力、飞沫应力与湍流应力相比,对海表面拖曳系数和风廓线的影响非常小。当风速高于25米/秒时,海洋飞沫通过飞沫应力对海-气界面应力的作用远高于波致应力,以至于波致应力可以忽略。海表面拖曳系数在高风速下,随着风速的增大而减小。通过采用风浪谱的不同波龄,得到海洋飞沫的产生会导致海-气边界层风速的增加。最后,理论解与现场的观察数据进行了对比。对比后的数据表明,在中高风速下,飞沫对海-气边界层的影响远大于表面风浪。     

Field Studies of Dynamic Compaction on Marine Deposits

Marine deposit ground usually need significant improvement before the construction of civil structures in coastal areas due to the poor mechanical properties of soils. Dynamic compaction (DC) is a widely used technique in such projects. In this study, a case history of DC tests in sandy soils with a weak embedded layer is introduced. Two series of DC tests—single point tests and impact zone tests—were applied to test zones with similar geological conditions to investigate the effect of energy level on the depth of improvement (DI). The highest energy used is up to 15000 kN · m. Field measurements were conduct before and after DC in each series to validate the effectiveness of improvement, including crater settlement, excessive pore pressure, and acceleration measurement for single point tests, and the pressure meter and CPT tests for impact zone tests. For single point tests, the effectiveness of improvement increases as the energy level increases to 12000 kN · m. Further increase of compaction energy does not have an effect on settlement, pore pressure, or ground acceleration. For impact zone tests, the energy level does not show a positive correlation with the DI, mainly due to the presence of an embedded weak layer.     

柔性垂直阻隔技术在危废污染应急治理项目中的应用

通过江苏省靖江市一危废污染应急治理项目,对比刚性垂直阻隔,采用柔性垂直阻隔可更好地阻断场地内填埋污染物与周边土壤及地下水的水力联系。柔性垂直阻隔具有防渗性能好、抗变形能力强、使用寿命长等特点,并重点阐述了其技术原理、施工工艺及施工要点,可为后续类似工程提供参考。     

Parameterization of Sheared Entrainment in a Well-developed CBL.Part Ⅱ:A Simple Model for Predicting the Growth Rate of the CBL

Following the parameterization of sheared entrainment obtained in the companion paper, Liu et al. (2016), the present study aims to further investigate the characteristics of entrainment, and develop a simple model for predicting the growth rate of a well-developed and sheared CBL. The relative stratification, defined as the ratio of the stratification in the free atmosphere to that in the entrainment zone, is found to be a function of entrainment flux ratio (A _e). This leads to a simple expression of the entrainment rate, in which A _e needs to be parameterized. According to the results in Liu et al. (2016), A _e can be simply expressed as the ratio of the convective velocity scale in the sheared CBL to that in the shear-free CBL. The parameterization of the convective velocity scale in the sheared CBL is obtained by analytically solving the bulk model with several assumptions and approximations. Results indicate that the entrainment process is influenced by the dynamic effect, the interaction between mean shear and environmental stratification, and one other term that includes the Coriolis effect. These three parameterizations constitute a simple model for predicting the growth rate of a well-developed and sheared CBL. This model is validated by outputs of LESs, and the results show that it performs satisfactorily. Compared with bulk models, this model does not need to solve a set of equations for the CBL. It is more convenient to apply in numerical models.     

Parameterization of sheared entrainment in a well-developed CBL. Part I: Evaluation of the scheme through large-eddy simulations

The entrainment flux ratio A _e and the inversion layer (IL) thickness are two key parameters in a mixed layer model. A _e is defined as the ratio of the entrainment heat flux at the mixed layer top to the surface heat flux. The IL is the layer between the mixed layer and the free atmosphere. In this study, a parameterization of A _e is derived from the TKE budget in the firstorder model for a well-developed CBL under the condition of linearly sheared geostrophic velocity with a zero value at the surface. It is also appropriate for a CBL under the condition of geostrophic velocity remaining constant with height. LESs are conducted under the above two conditions to determine the coefficients in the parameterization scheme. Results suggest that about 43% of the shear-produced TKE in the IL is available for entrainment, while the shear-produced TKE in the mixed layer and surface layer have little effect on entrainment. Based on this scheme, a new scale of convective turbulence velocity is proposed and applied to parameterize the IL thickness. The LES outputs for the CBLs under the condition of linearly sheared geostrophic velocity with a non-zero surface value are used to verify the performance of the parameterization scheme. It is found that the parameterized A _e and IL thickness agree well with the LES outputs.     

Comparison of Estimated Atmospheric Boundary Layer Mixing Height in the Arctic and Southern Great Plains under Statically Stable Conditions: Experimental and Numerical Aspects

The atmospheric boundary layer mixing height (MH) is an important bulk parameter in air quality (AQ) modelling. Formulating this parameter under statically stable conditions, such as in the Arctic, has historically been difficult. In an effort to improve AQ modelling capacity in North America, MH is studied in two geographically distinct areas: the Arctic (Barrow, Alaska) and the southern Great Plains (Lamont, Oklahoma). Observational data from the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement program, Climate Research Facility and numerical weather forecasting data from Environment Canada's Regional Global Environmental Multiscale (GEM15) model have been used in order to examine the suitability of available parameterizations for MH under statically stable conditions and also to compare the level of agreement between observed and modelled MH. The analysis period is 1 October 2011 to 1 October 2012. The observations alone suggest that profile methods are preferred over surface methods in defining MH under statically stable conditions. Surface methods exhibit poorer comparison statistics with observations than profile methods. In addition, the fitted constants for surface methods are site-dependent, precluding their applicability for modelling under general conditions. The comparison of observations and GEM15 MH suggests that although the agreement is acceptable in Lamont, the default model surface method contributes to a consistent overprediction of MH in Barrow in all seasons. An alternative profile method for MH is suggested based on the bulk Richardson number. This method is shown to reduce the model bias in Barrow by a factor of two without affecting model performance in Lamont.