Assessing the Comparability of Ammonium,Nitrate and Sulfate Concentrations Measured by Three Air Quality Monitoring Networks

Airborne fine particulate matter across the United States is monitored by different networks, the three prevalent ones presently being the Clean Air Status and Trend Network (CASTNet), the Interagency Monitoring of PROtected Visual Environment Network (IMPROVE) and the Speciation and Trend Network (STN). If combined, these three networks provide speciated fine particulate data at several hundred locations throughout the United States. Yet, differences in sampling protocols and samples handling may not allow their joint use. With these concerns in mind, the objective of this study is to assess the spatial and temporal comparability of the sulfate, nitrate and ammonium concentrations reported by each of these networks. One of the major differences between networks is the sampling frequency they adopted. While CASTNet measures pollution levels on seven-day integrated samples, STN and IMPROVE data pertain to 24-hour samples collected every three days. STN and IMPROVE data therefore exhibit considerably more short-term variability than their CASTNet counterpart. We show that, despite their apparent incongruity, averaging the data with a window size of four to six weeks is sufficient to remove the effects of differences in sampling frequency and duration and allow meaningful comparison of the signals reported by the three networks of concern. After averaging, all the sulfate and, to a lesser degree, ammonium concentrations reported are fairly similar. Nitrate concentrations, on the other hand, are still divergent. We speculate that this divergence originates from the different types of filters used to collect particulate nitrate. Finally, using a rotated principal component technique (RPCA), we determined the number and the geographical organization of the significant temporal modes of variation (clusters) detected by each network for the three pollutants of interest. For sulfate and ammonium, the clusters’ geographical boundaries established for each network and the modes of variations within each cluster seem to correspond. RPCA erformed on nitrate concentrations revealed that, for the CASTNet and IMPROVE networks, the modes of variation do not correspond to unified geographical regions but are found more sporadically. For STN, the clustered areas are unified and easily delineable. We conclude that the possibility of jointly using the data collected by CASTNet, IMPROVE and STN has to be weighed pollutant by pollutant. While sulfate and ammonium data show some potential for joint use, at this point, combining the nitrate data from these monitoring networks may not be a judicious choice.     

岩土钻掘设备的液压步履机构

因液压步履移位最方便，辅助时间短，换向灵活，移位对孔准确，大型岩土钻掘设备施工的群孔现场实现近距离的自行迁移多采用液压步履机构。详细叙述了双向移动和单向移动加转向步履机构的结构和特点。     

空间运动对象与时空数据类型研究

当前时空数据模型多以描述空间实体的离散变化为主。该文中对空间运动对象在抽象层次的无限连续空间、离散层次的有限离散空间上的数据类型进行分析和定义，将其分别划分为时间类型、空间类型和时态类型来研究，并提出支持空间运动对象的表示方法和操作方式。该方法既能表示空间实体的连续运动，也能表示其离散变化，为空间运动对象时空数据模型的建立奠定了基础。     

Three‐dimensional shakedown solutions for anisotropic cohesive‐frictional materials under moving surface loads

Previous work on three‐dimensional shakedown analysis of cohesive‐frictional materials under moving surface loads has been entirely for isotropic materials. As a result, the effects of anisotropy, both elastic and plastic, of soil and pavement materials are ignored. This paper will, for the first time, develop three‐dimensional shakedown solutions to allow for the variation of elastic and plastic material properties with direction. Melan's lower‐bound shakedown theorem is used to derive shakedown solutions. In particular, a generalised, anisotropic Mohr–Coulomb yield criterion and cross‐anisotropic elastic stress fields are utilised to develop anisotropic shakedown solutions. It is found that shakedown solutions for anisotropic materials are dominated by Young's modulus ratio for the cases of subsurface failure and by shear modulus ratio for the cases of surface failure. Plastic anisotropy is mainly controlled by material cohesion ratio, the rise of which increases the shakedown limit until a maximum value is reached. The anisotropic shakedown limit varies with frictional coefficient, and the peak value may not occur for the case of normal loading only. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Modeling nonlinear wave–wave interactions with the elliptic mild slope equation

An approach is developed to simulate wave–wave interactions using nonlinear elliptic mild-slope equation in domains where wave reflection, refraction, diffraction and breaking effects must also be considered. This involves the construction of an efficient solution procedure including effective boundary treatment, modification of the nonlinear equation to resolve convergence issues, and validation of the overall approach. For solving the second-order boundary-value problem, the Alternating Direction Implicit (ADI) scheme is employed, and the use of approximate boundary conditions is supplemented, for improved accuracy, with internal wave generation method and dissipative sponge layers. The performance of the nonlinear model is investigated for a range of practical wave conditions involving reflection, diffraction and shoaling in the presence of nonlinear wave–wave interactions. In addition, the transformation of a wave spectrum due to nonlinear shoaling and breaking, and nonlinear resonance inside a rectangular harbor are simulated. Numerical calculations are compared with the results from other relevant nonlinear models and experimental data available in literature. Results show that the approach developed here performs reasonably well, and has thus improved the applicability of this class of wave transformation models.     

Calibration of paired watersheds: Utility of moving sums in presence of externalities

Historically, paired watershed studies have been used to quantify the hydrological effects of land use and management practices by concurrently monitoring 2 similar watersheds during calibration (pretreatment) and post‐treatment periods. This study characterizes seasonal water table and flow response to rainfall during the calibration period and tests a change detection technique of moving sums of recursive residuals (MOSUM) to select calibration periods for each control–treatment watershed pair when the regression coefficients for daily water table elevation were most stable to minimize regression model uncertainty. The control and treatment watersheds were 1 watershed of 3–4‐year‐old intensely managed loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) with natural understory, 1 watershed of 3–4‐year‐old loblolly pine intercropped with switchgrass (Panicum virgatum), 1 watershed of 14–15‐year‐old thinned loblolly pine with natural understory (control), and 1 watershed of switchgrass only. The study period spanned from 2009 to 2012. Silvicultural operational practices during this period acted as external factors, potentially shifting hydrologic calibration relationships between control and treatment watersheds. MOSUM results indicated significant changes in regression parameters due to silvicultural operations and were used to identify stable relationships for water table elevation. None of the calibration relationships developed using this method were significantly different from the classical calibration relationship based on published historical data. We attribute that to the similarity of historical and 2010–2012 leaf area index on control and treatment watersheds as moderated by the emergent vegetation. Although the MOSUM approach does not eliminate the need for true calibration data or replace the classic paired watershed approach, our results show that it may be an effective alternative approach when true data are unavailable, as it minimizes the impacts of external disturbances other than the treatment of interest.     

Effects of linear and exponential heterogeneity on the dynamic response of a moving load in an irregular isotropic half-space: a comparative study

Heterogeneity, being a trivial feature inside the earth or in a geostructure, makes a strong basis for its consideration in the study of geomechanics. Inclusion of the concept of heterogeneity along with irregularity in the medium brings a novelty to the existing literature related to the study of the moving load. The present study investigates the effects of linear and exponential heterogeneity on the dynamic response due to a normal load moving with constant velocity on a rough irregular heterogeneous isotropic half-space in a comparative approach. Expressions for both normal and shear stresses for either case of heterogeneity have been established in closed form. Substantial effects of the affecting parameters such as depth, irregularity factor, maximum depth of irregularity, frictional coefficient, linear heterogeneity parameter and exponential heterogeneity parameter on normal and shear stresses for both the cases of heterogeneity have been observed. Numerical computation has been carried out and the effects of said parameters have been meticulously examined by means of graphs. Moreover, different cases of heterogeneity and homogeneity along with various types of irregularity namely rectangular, parabolic and no irregularity are compared which serve as a focal theme of the study.     

Petrophysical characterisation of tight sandstone gas reservoirs using nuclear magnetic resonance: a case study of the upper Paleozoic strata in the Kangning area,eastern margin of the Ordos Basin,China

Residual and movable porosity are significant parameters for characterising petrophysical properties, especially in tight reservoirs. Eight tight sandstone samples from the upper Paleozoic gas-bearing strata in the Kangning area, from the eastern margin of the Ordos Basin, were analysed using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), petrography, and porosity and permeability tests. The lithology and pore types were identified and classified using petrography and SEM. The residual and movable porosity were obtained with NMR. In addition, NMR was used to visualise pore structure and pore size distribution. The results suggest that the upper Paleozoic sandstones in the study area mainly comprise feldspathic litharenite and litharenite. The sandstone porosity and permeability are low, with means of 5.9% and 0.549 mD, respectively. Four pore types exist in the tight sandstones: residual primary pores, grain dissolution pores, micropores (clay-dominated) and microfractures. The T₂ spectra under water-saturated conditions correlate with pore size and can be used to distinguish small and large pores based on the transverse relaxation time cutoff value of 10 ms, which corresponds to a pore diameter of 0.232 μm. Small pores account for 72% of the pores in the tight sandstones. The continuous bimodal T₂ spectra suggest good connectivity between small and large pores, despite the low porosity and permeability. In this study, the movable porosity of the major tight sandstone gas reservoirs is higher than the residual porosity, which confirms the effective evaluation of movable porosity to tight sandstone reservoirs, based on NMR experiments.     

普朗斑岩型铜矿床成矿元素多重分形特征及其矿化强度指示

成矿元素品位的变化受控于长期地质作用过程,具有较强的非线性特征,定量刻画其变化特征有助于深入理解成矿过程,并为找矿预测提供理论依据。运用多重分形去趋势移动均值（MFDMA） 法,分析云南普朗斑岩型铜矿床4号勘探线钻孔Cu元素品位的多重分形特征及其对矿化强度的指示意义。结果显示：所有钻孔Cu元素品位具有多重分形特征,且不同矿化等级的元素分布存在局部奇异性差异,多重分形强度随矿化强度等级减弱而增加;这些特征指示在钾硅化带—带内侧强矿化钻孔的高品位相对聚集,而带外侧角岩化—青磐岩化带的高品位相对分散;通过数据随机重排技术推测Cu品位多重分形结构奇异性差异是由其分布概率密度和长相关性共同作用引起,后者的作用贡献大于前者。     

应用核磁共振成像(NMRI)技术研究复合剂驱油特征

本文应用核磁共振成像技术,在均值、非均值模型中研究了复合剂驱油动态实验过程。观察及分析了复合剂驱油特征和效果,对复合剂驱油段塞前缘进行了实时跟踪,得到了复合剂驱油段塞前缘油墙的形成及剩余油分布与运移的二维图像,给出了复合剂驱油后,剩余油的饱和度分布曲线。实验表明:在层状非均值地层中,若渗透率差异大,复合剂段塞主要进入高渗层,而波及不到低渗层,即复合剂波及效率低。若渗透率差异小,复合剂段塞大部分进入高渗层,有少部分进入低渗层,即复合剂波及效率较高。