Performance of reinforced,DMM column-supported embankment considering reinforcement viscosity and subsoil’s decreasing hydraulic conductivity

It has been widely accepted that reinforcement made of polyethylene and polypropylene is susceptible to creep and soil’s hydraulic conductivity varies with its void ratio. However, unfortunately there is no available sensitivity analysis on time-dependent embankment behaviour taking either reinforcement viscosity or time varying hydraulic conductivity of subsoil into consideration. The influence of geosynthetic reinforcement viscosity and decreasing hydraulic conductivity with consolidation on the time-dependent performance of embankments with floating columns is investigated using a fully 3D coupled model. For an embankment at the working height corresponding to a post-consolidation polypropylene geotextile strain of about 5%, it is shown that the assumption of constant hydraulic conductivity and the failure to consider the viscous behaviour of geosynthetic reinforcement can underestimate time-dependent embankment deformations (including differential crest settlement and horizontal toe movement). The effects of factors including the foundation soil, reinforcement stiffness, column stiffness, column spacing, column type (floating and fully penetrating), and construction rate, on the time-dependent behaviour of column supported embankments are explored.     

Three-dimensional topology optimization for geotechnical foundations in granular soil

This article presents three-dimensional structural optimization in geotechnical engineering for foundations in granular soil. The general design (topology) of a shallow foundation is optimized with respect to its deformational behaviour within the service limit state. The SIMP (solid isotropic material with penalization) method is applied to optimize the distribution of foundation material. The soil is modelled as a hypoplastic material with a constitutive model suitable for optimization using finite element analysis. Two load cases are examined. The optimized topology is validated against two-dimensional optimization and 1g-model test results. The present study proves the applicability and shows the potential of topology optimization in geotechnical engineering.     

Simulation of three-dimensional tectonic stress fields and quantitative prediction of tectonic fracture within the Damintun Depression,Liaohe Basin,northeast China

Tectonic fractures are important factors that influence oil and natural gas migration and accumulation within “buried hill” reservoirs. To obtain a quantitative forecast of the development and distribution of reservoir fractures in the Damintun Depression, we analyzed the characteristics of regional structural evolution and paleotectonic stress field setting. A reasonable geological model of the research area was built based on an interpretation of the geological structure, a test for rock mechanics, and experiment on acoustic emission. Thereafter, a three-dimensional paleotectonic stress field during the Yanshan movement was simulated by the finite element method. Rock failure criterion and comprehensive evaluation coefficient of fractures were used to determine the quantitative development of fractures and predict zones that are prone to fracture development. Under an intense Yanshan movement, high stress strength is distributed in the south and northeast parts of the study area, where stress is extremely high. The fracture development zones are mainly controlled by the tectonic stress field and typically located in the same areas as those of high maximum principal and shear stresses. The predicted areas with developed fractures are consistent with the wells with high fracture linear density and in locations with high-producing oil and gas wells.     

Application of desingularized approach to water wave propagation over three-dimensional topography

A numerical approach based on desingularized boundary element method and mixed Eulerian–Lagrangian formulation [Zhang et al., 2006. Wave propagation in a fully nonlinear numerical wave tank: a desingularized method. Ocean Engineering 33, 2310–2331] is extended to solve the water wave propagation over arbitrary topography in a three-dimensional wave tank. A robust damping layer applicable for regular and irregular incident waves is employed to minimize the outgoing wave reflection back into the wave tank. Numerical results on the propagation of regular and irregular incident waves over the flat bottom and linear incident waves over an elliptical shoal show good concurrence with the corresponding analytical solutions and experimental data.     

Automated trinocular stereo imaging system for three-dimensional surface wave measurements

A novel automated trinocular stereo imaging system (ATSIS) is developed for non-intrusively measuring the temporal evolution of three-dimensional wave characteristics. The system consists of three progressive digital cameras to provide three independent stereo-pairs, i.e. left–right, left–center, and center–right, for accurately estimating depth of a scene. A third camera assists to resolve correspondence problems due to specular reflection on the water surface and provides additional constraints on image matching, dramatically reducing the chance of a mismatch. An oblique configuration for the trinocular system effectively increases spatial coverage, allowing observations of wave phenomena over a broad range of spatial scales. The height resolution is increased with the optical axes of the cameras pointed at an oblique angle with respect to vertical surface wave displacements. A new exterior calibration procedure is developed in this paper to determine the orientation of cameras in the field. Field experiments demonstrate that ATSIS can robustly measure hundreds of matched image points in seconds, allowing fast extraction of the temporal evolution of a three-dimensional surface wave field.     

Sloshing in a three-dimensional rectangular tank: Numerical simulation and experimental validation

Pressure variations and three-dimensional effects on liquid sloshing loads in a moving partially filled rectangular tank have been carried out numerically and experimentally. A numerical algorithm based on the volume of fluid (VOF) technique is used to study the non-linear behavior and damping characteristics of liquid sloshing. A moving coordinate system is used to include the non-linearity and avoid the complex boundary conditions of moving walls. The numerical model solves the complete Navier–Stokes equations in primitive variables by using of the finite difference approximations. In order to mitigate a series of discrete impacts, the signal computed is averaged over several time steps. In order to assess the accuracy of the method used, computations are compared with the experimental results. Several configurations of both baffled and unbaffled tanks are studied. Comparisons show good agreement for both impact and non- impact type slosh loads in the cases investigated.     

Reducing horizontal diffusion errors in σ-coordinate coastal ocean models with a second-order Lagrangian-interpolation finite-difference scheme

When a steep bottom slope exists, it is well known that conventional methods for calculating horizontal diffusion in sigma-coordinate coastal ocean models causes spurious transport (e.g. salinity, temperature, and sediments) and currents. In this study, a second-order accurate finite-difference algorithm and program have been developed to reduce the spurious numerical diffusion errors. In the proposed algorithm, the finite differencing is performed in the x-z coordinate system to approximate the horizontal gradient. Each variable in the finite differential formation is calculated in the sigma-coordinate grid cells using a second-order Lagrangian interpolation polynomial. In conjunction with a stepwise bottom boundary condition, numerical experiments show that the proposed finite-difference scheme considerably reduces numerical errors compared to conventional approaches when dealing with horizontal diffusion over steep topography, which often occurs in coastal oceans and navigation channels.     

黄海、渤海温度垂直结构三维数值预报

文中将海洋分为具有密度阶跃的两层，设各层内各物理量与深度无关，用推广的ＡＤＩ方法进行包括潮流和风海流的二层流场计算，待流场计算稳定后，与温度扩散方程和上均匀层深度预报方程相耦合，对黄渤海区表、底层温度和上均匀层深度作了为期４ｄ的试报。然后，通过温度垂直剖面自模函数预报出三维的水温场。试报结果表明，整个模式的预报性能及试报结果与实测的吻合程度是令人满意的。     

Seismic image of the Mount Spurr magmatic system

 The three-dimensional P-wave velocity structure of Mount Spurr is determined to depths of 10 km by tomographic inversion of 3,754 first-arriving P-wave times from local earthquakes recorded by a permanent network of 11 seismographs. Results show a prominent low-velocity zone extending from the surface to 3–4 km below sea level beneath the southeastern flank of Crater Peak, spatially coincident with a geothermal system. P-wave velocities in this low-velocity zone are approximately 20% slower than those in the shallow crystalline basement rocks. Beneath Crater Peak an approximately 3-km-wide zone of relative low velocities correlates with a near-vertical band of seismicity, suggestive of a magmatic conduit. No large low-velocity zone indicative of a magma chamber occurs within the upper 10 km of the crust. These observations are consistent with petrologic and geochemical studies suggesting that Crater Peak magmas originate in the lower crust or upper mantle and have a short residence time in the shallow crust. Earthquakes relocated using the three-dimensional velocity structure correlate well with surface geology and other geophysical observations; thus, they provide additional constraints on the kinematics of the Mount Spurr magmatic system. Received: 4 December 1997 / Accepted: 27 February 1998     

Investigation of the earth's crustal structure using earthquake and deep seismic sounding data obtained for the Carpathians

The joint analysis performed for the Carpathian region from seismological data (three-dimensional fields of velocities, areas of concentration of earthquake foci in the Vrancea focal zone) and interpretation of DSS data and those of other geophysical fields have permitted to obtain new evidence for the earth's crust and mantle structure in this region.