Fluid flow equations governing primary oil migration as a separate phase

A mathematical model of primary oil migration as a separate phase out of compacting shales is presented. During burial and oil generation, source rock porosity decreases and oil saturation increases until residual oil saturation is reached. At this stage oil is expelled out by capillary and excess fluid pressure gradients. The model is a system of differential equations which relate changes in oil and water saturation in time to water and oil flow out of the source rock during burial. An additional set of equations for periods of erosion of overburden are also provided. The equations can be numerically solved by finite difference method. If oil and water flow is to be simulated during oil generation, then at each time step, changes by oil generation in oil and water saturations and porosity must be calculated. The solution procedure is briefly outlined.     

Coastal Upwelling Activity on the Pacific Shelf of the Baja California Peninsula

High primary productivity on the Pacific coast of the Baja California Peninsula is usually related to coastal upwelling activity that injects nutrients into the euphotic zone in response to prevailing longshore winds (from the northwest to north). The upwelling process has maximum intensity from April to June, with the coastal upwelling index varying from 50 to 300 m³/s per 100 m of coastline. Along the entire coast of the peninsula, the upwelling intensity changes in accordance with local wind conditions and bottom topography. Spatial variability can also be modulated by the influence of mesoscale meanders of the California Current. We have identified the seasonal and synoptic variability of upwelling signatures on the Baja California shelf, using averaged monthly and weekly sea surface temperature (SST) distributions obtained from remote sensing imagery from the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer in the period from 1996 to 2001. Analysis of SST distribution and direct experimental data on temperature and nutrient concentration shows that the areas with the coldest SST anomalies were closely related to the bottom slope, shelf width, and coastline orientation relating to wind direction. We also assume that the nutrient transport into the coastal lagoons may be forced by the coupling of coastal upwelling and tidal pumping of surface waters into the lagoon system. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Simulation of green water flow on deck using non-linear dam breaking theory

Experiments carried out with models of floating production, storage and offloading platforms (FPSOs) showed that the flow of water over the deck edge, onto the deck resembled a suddenly released wall of water rather than a breaking wave. Therefore green water flow onto the deck was simulated using dam breaking theory, but the theory’s shallow-water assumptions may be limiting. In this paper a non-linear dam breaking problem is formulated. Equations of motion in the Lagrangian form are used and the solution is sought as an infinite series in time. Comparisons with the shallow water approximation are carried out.     

Decadal Variability of Subsurface Temperature in the Central North Pacific

Decadal variability of subsurface temperature in the North Pacific has been investigated. Two dominant regions were found; the central subarctic region (CSa) and the north-eastern subtropical region (NESt). In CSa, cooling (warming) of wintertime subsurface temperature corresponds to the large (small) temperature gradient and southward (northward) shift of subsurface temperature front, associated with the increase (decrease) of positive wind stress curl and the southward (northward) shift of curl τ zero line with 2 years delay. It is suggested that the relocation of subtropical-subarctic boundary plays an important role. In NESt, importance of heat flux through the sea surface and heat divergence in the Ekman layer is also discussed. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

A Computational Model for Velocity Separation in Shallow Sea

Based on the hydrodynamical feature and the theoretical velocity profiles of tidal flow and vvind-induced flow in shal-low sea, a computational model is established for the first time, which can separate observed velocity into tidal velocity and wind-induced velocity by use of the least square method. With the model, not only the surface velocities of tidal flow and vvind-induced flow are obtained, but also the bed roughness height is determined and the wind velocity above the wa-ter surface is estimated. For verification of the model, the observed velocity in the Yellow River Estuary and the laborato-ry test is separated, then it is applied to the Yangtze River Estuary. All the results are satisfactory. The research results show that the model is simple in method, feasible in process and reasonable in result. The model is a valid approach to analysis and computation of field dala, and can be applied to separate the observed velocity in shallow sea; at the same time, reasonable boundary conditions of th     

沃克环流上升区赤道低空强西风带的分析

采用ＴＯＧＡ／ＣＯＡＲＥ国际合作考察期间（１９９２年１０月─１９９３年２月）获得的２６７次定点（２°Ｓ，１５５°Ｅ）定时高空大气探测资料，进行计算分析，发现１９９２年１２月─１９９３年２月低空存在一支西风急流，有两次分别持续半月之久，而１９９２年１１月的两次赤道西风急流，因无赤道高空急流配合，仅持续２ｄ便消失。本文还指出：（１）赤道低空西风急流是各种海－气指数产生ＥＮＳＯ异常的重要信息；（２）赤道高空急流有滞后赤道低空急流２ｄ左右的响应关系；（３）赤道低空急流是纬向水汽输送的狭窄通道。     

Numerical Study on Instantaneous Discharge of Unsorted Particle Cloud in Cross Flow

The mixing characteristics of particles such as dredged sediment of variable size discharged into cross flow are studied by a 3D numerical model, which is developed to model the particle-fluid two-phase flow. The Eulerian method with the modified k-ε parameterization of turbulence for the fluid phase is used to solve fluid phase, while a Lagrangian method for the solid phase (particles), both the processes are coupled through the momentum sources. In the model the wake turbulence induced by particles has been included as additional source term in the k-ε model; and the variable drift velocities of the particles are treated efficiently by the Lagrangian method in which the particles are tracked explicitly and the diffusion process is approximated by a random walk model. The hydrodynamic behavior of dumping a cloud of particles is governed by the total buoyancy of the cloud, the drag force on each particle and the velocity of cross-flow. The computed results show a roughly linear relationship between the displacement of the frontal position and the longitudinal width of the particle cloud. The particle size in the cloud and the velocity of cross flow dominate the flow behavior. The computed results are compared with the results of laboratory experiments and satisfactory agreement is obtained.     

The Mathematical and Parameterized Expressions for Wave Induced Excess Flow of Momentum

Wave induced excess flow of momentum(WIEFM)is the averaged flow of momentum over a wave period due to wave presence,which may also be called 3-D radiation stress.In this paper,the 3-D current equations with WIEFM are derived from the averaged Navier-Stokes equations over a wave period,in which the velocity is separated into the large-scale background velocity,the wave particle velocity and the turbulent fluctuation velocity.A concept of wave fluctuating layer(WFL)is put forward,which is the vertical column from the wave trough to wave ridge.The mathematical expressions of WIEFM in WFL and below WFL are given separately.The parameterized expressions of WIEFM are set up according to the linear wave theory.The integration of WIEFM in the vertical direction equals the traditional radiation stress(namely 2-D radiation stress)given by Longuet-Higgins and Stewart.     

The Levant Slumps and the Phoenician Structures: collapse features along the continental margin of the southeastern Mediterranean Sea

Two distinct series of slumps deform the upper part of the sedimentary sequence along the continental margin of the Levant. One series is found along the base of the continental slope, where it overlies the disrupted eastern edge of the Messinian evaporites. The second series of slumps transects the continental margin from the shelf break to the Levant Basin. It seemed that the two series were triggered by two unrelated, though contemporaneous, processes. The shore-parallel slumps were initiated by basinwards flow of the Messinian salt, that carried along the overlying Plio-Quaternary sediments. Seawater that percolated along the detachment faults dissolved the underlying salt to form distinctly disrupted structures. The slope-normal slumps are located on top of large canyons that cut into the pre-Messinian sedimentary rocks. A layer of salt is found in the canyons, and the Plio-Quaternary sediments were deposited on that layer. The slumps are bounded by large, NW-trending faults where post-Messinian faulted offset was measured. We presume that the flow of the salt in the canyons also drives the slope-normal slumps. Thus thin-skinned halokynetic processes generated the composite post-Tortonian structural patterns of the Levant margin. The Phoenician Structures are a prime example of the collapse of a distal continental margin due to the dissolution of a massive salt layer.     

A climatology of mesoscale model simulated low-level wind jets over Cook Inlet and Shelikof Strait, Alaska

Weather in the North Gulf of Alaska is characterized by a high frequency of deep synoptic-scale low-pressure systems, especially during the cold season. The strong pressure gradients of these storms interact with the extremely rugged terrain of the coastal mountains to produce a variety of channeled flows. These surface wind regimes are not well documented in the scientific community, due to the paucity of observations. Modeling of these phenomena in regions of complex terrain is of great interest to those working with hydrodynamic, wave, and pollutant transport models in coastal and shelf areas. Such models, when coupled with ocean and coastal-ecology counterparts, give a broad view of the role surface winds play in shaping local coastal marine ecosystem in this region. This paper presents a climatology of simulated low-level wind jets over the domain of Cook Inlet and Shelikof Strait along Alaska's south-central coast. Daily simulations using the RAMS model were conducted in a 36-h forecast mode for the cold-season period 10/1/03 to 3/31/04. Systematic analysis of the resulting simulated low-level wind field makes it possible to characterize these jets and gap flows in spatial and temporal detail. The comparison between the RAMS winds and the Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR)-derived winds when available verifies the existence of these wind jets and the capability of the model to simulate these cases. Clearly, the results of a study in this region depend on the fidelity of the model at these scales (O[5 km]). The SAR comparisons attempt to help establish this. From the 6 months of simulations over Cook Inlet and Shelikof Strait, the low-level wind jets are classified into 10 different regimes by location and orientation. These regimes are categorized into four more general groups: cross-channel westerly, easterly, and up and down Inlet flows. The nature of a particular regime is largely a function of pressure gradient orientation and local topography. Jets in the same group have a similar occurrence distribution with time. Some form of jet occurred in the study region almost daily each month of the period, with December 2003 having the highest frequency of wind jets.