Efficient methods for solving water flow in variably saturated soils under prescribed flux infiltration

The non-linear solvers in numerical solutions of water flow in variably saturated soils are prone to convergence difficulties. Many aspects can give rise to such difficulties and in this paper we address the gravity term and the prescribed-flux boundary in the Picard iteration. The problem of the gravity term in the Picard iteration is iteration-to-iteration oscillation as the gravity term is treated, by analogy with the time-step advance technique, ‘explicitly’ in the iteration. The proposed method for the gravity term is an improvement of the ‘implicit’ approach of Zhang and Ewen [Water Resour. Res. 36 (2000) 2777] by extending it to heterogeneous soil and approximating the inter-nodal hydraulic conductivity in the diffusive term and the gravity term with the same scheme. The prescribed-flux boundary in traditional methods also gives rise to iteration-to-iteration oscillation because there is no feedback to the flux in the solution at the new iteration. To reduce such oscillation, a new method is proposed to provide such a feedback to the flux. Comparison with traditional Picard and Newton iteration methods for a wide range of problems show that a combination of these two proposed methods greatly improves the stability and consequently the computational efficiency, making the use of small time step and/or under-relaxation solely for convergence unnecessary.     

泥石流多发干旱河谷区植被恢复研究

云南东北部东川小江流域的干旱河谷土地退化十分严重，土地表层的砾石含量已超过60％，有机质含量、全氮、有效氮、有效磷、有效钾的含量相对于残存燥红土明显下降。草坡是当地的主要植被类型，并未起到防治土地退化的应有作用。以合欢（Leucaena glauca)、马桑（Coriaria sinica)种植为主的恢复方式对土地的恢复有明显的改善作用。高密度的乔木树种合欢的种植使林下的草本物种的数量和组成发生了极大变化，较耐荫的植物占据了林分下层，且物种数量较草坡减少，群落多样性指数降低。三种马桑种植方式下，不但原有的草坡群落的物种仍有大量的生存空间，而且为一些新物种创造了生存环境，从而使物种的种类较原有草坡地增加，提高了群落的多样性指数。合欢种植的生物量最高，对解决当地薪柴严重短缺意义重大，马桑种植在增加灌木层生物量的同时，并未改变草坡的物种组成，还可兼顾解决当地的饲草和放牧，应大力推广。     

A New Model for Heat Flow in Extensional Basins: Estimating Radiogenic Heat Production

Radiogenic heat production (RHP) represents a significant fraction of surface heat flow, both on cratons and in sedimentary basins. RHP within continental crust—especially the upper crust—is high. RHP at any depth within the crust can be estimated as a function of crustal age. Mantle RHP, in contrast, is always low, contributing at most 1 to 2 mW/m² to total heat flow. Radiogenic heat from any noncrystalline basement that may be present also contributes to total heat flow. RHP from metamorphic rocks is similar to or slightly lower than that from their precursor sedimentary rocks. When extension of the lithosphere occurs—as for example during rifting—the radiogenic contribution of each layer of the lithosphere and noncrystalline basement diminishes in direct proportion to the degree of extension of that layer. Lithospheric RHP today is somewhat less than in the distant past, as a result of radioactive decay. In modeling, RHP can be varied through time by considering the half lives of uranium, thorium, and potassium, and the proportional contribution of each of those elements to total RHP from basement. RHP from sedimentary rocks ranges from low for most evaporites to high for some shales, especially those rich in organic matter. The contribution to total heat flow of radiogenic heat from sediments depends strongly on total sediment thickness, and thus differs through time as subsidence and basin filling occur. RHP can be high for thick clastic sections. RHP in sediments can be calculated using ordinary or spectral gamma-ray logs, or it can be estimated from the lithology.     

粘性泥石流残留层的形成及减阻作用--以云南蒋家沟泥石流为例

通过对云南蒋家沟粘性泥石流的野外观测 ,讨论了粘性泥石流残留层的定义特征 ,在大量实测数据基础上 ,分析了残留层易形成时段的特性 ;分别对一次泥石流过程、若干阵泥石流和一阵泥石流残留层的变化进行了相关分析 ;最后用观测数据分析了泥石流残留层的减阻作用     

长江日流量混沌变化特性研究——Ⅰ相空间嵌入滞时的确定

为了以新途径探索长江水量变化规律并在此基础上做出预测,全面而系统地研究了宜昌站日流量混沌变化特性并建立了新预测模型.重点论述相空间嵌入滞时的确定.分析了传统的自相关函数法和真实矢量场法确定嵌入滞时的优劣,并提出以广义相关函数合理确定嵌入滞时的方法.研究结果表明广义相关函数法是一个合理又可操作的途径.     

Sediment deposition from flow at low gradients into a buffer strip—a critical test of re-entrainment theory

The spatial and size distribution of sediment deposited from short periods of overland flow due to the effect of a simulated grass buffer strip was measured for low slopes of 1.6, 3.4 and 5.1%. These data were analysed so as to critically evaluate two alternative models of the process of re-entrainment of recently deposited sediment. A model of re-entrainment, previously thought to be appropriate only for a steady-state or equilibrium situation, was found to give better agreement with experiments than did a model previously used in the literature on this subject.     

Drainage in finite-sized unsaturated zones

After the initiation of gravity drainage, water is often assumed to be either (a) draining under unit gradient, or (b) at capillary/gravity equilibrium. Both of these simplifications can be useful, but the regimes of validity of each assumption must be delineated. Water pressures are measured versus time and distance as water drains out of a 1.6 m long sand column to determine the relative effects of capillary and gravitational forces during drainage. For medium sized sands (0.15–0.3 mm in diameter), the capillary pressure is constant in space in a large region of the column for over 12 days, and the water continues to flow under unit gradient for relatively long time scales. Similar results are seen for finer sands, but with a much faster approach to equilibrium. Numerical simulations and analytical estimates are presented and compare favorably to the measurements. Together, the experimental, theoretical and analytical results are used to calculate when capillary/gravity equilibrium is reached as a function of porous media properties and length of the unsaturated zone. The ratio of the length of the unsaturated zone to the bubbling pressure is a key parameter in determining the drainage regime, and that even for relatively short unsaturated zones the equilibrium time scale can be on the order of years.     

Parameters affecting maximum fluid transport in large aperture fractures

We present results of laboratory experiments to study the behavior of liquids moving in unsaturated wide-aperture fractures. A 5-mm-thick glass plate cut with a 1.7-mm aperture was used as a fractured rock analog to study behavior of film and capillary droplet flow modes. Flow rates ranged between 0.6 and 6.0 ml/min. Variability in the ambient barometric pressure, resulting from weather conditions, seemed to play a role in the natural selection of flow mode. For droplet mode, constant input conditions resulted in highly variable transport properties within the fracture. The advancing meniscus exhibited a dynamic contact angle that was a function of the droplet speed and much larger than the static contact angle. Flow rate was reduced due to the larger contact angle. Analytical expressions for droplet velocity and flow capacity are presented as a function of the dynamic rather than the static contact angle.