Quantimet image analysis of soil pore geometry: Comparison with tracer breakthrough curves

The relationships between two-dimensional image analysis of soil thin-sections and tracer breakthrough curves has been studied for a silty clay loam brown earth soil under saturated conditions. Initial tracer breakthrough is well in advance of one pore volume. Discrepancies between Quantimet image analysis and breakthrough curve characterization were related by inference to the role of infrequently occurring macropores not necessarily sampled on the two-dimensional images. A fundamental difficulty found in the use of image analysis is the uncertain nature of the relationship between the two-dimensional image and the three-dimensional pore system. Caution is needed in using Quantimet image analysis to describe gross properties of the three-dimensional pore system.     

Statistics on the vertical structure of rainshowers

A large sample of summertime data from the McGill Radar Weather Observatory was analyzed to determine the variation with altitude of the horizontal extent of individual rainshowers. For echoes defined by a reflectivity factor of 39 dBz (equivalent to a rainfall rate of about 10 mm/h) it was found that the mean area of the total population of echoes decreases linearly with altitude from approximately 20 km² at 2 km to 11 km² at 8 km. Subsets of the total population were investigated, consisting of only the echoes penetrating the altitudes of 6, 7, and 8 km. On the average these relatively tall echoes are much greater in horizontal extent than the total population. Whereas the sizes of the total population of echoes at any altitude are distributed approximately exponentially in terms of the square root of area, the sizes of the “survivors” that extend to high altitudes may be described by the gamma distribution with a mean value decreasing approximately linearly with height above 3 km and a dispersion of 0.55. Some characteristics are also reported for echoes defined by reflectivities of 31 dBz and 47 dBz. Estimates are given of the fraction of the total area in a horizontal plane that contains echoes in each of these categories.     

边坡岩体块体稳定性分析系统的开发与研究

提出了复杂形态块体几何建模的切割法, 在此基础上, 对石根华等人提出的块体理论作了改进和完善。并基于Windows操作平台, 开发了一套实用方便、实用的边坡岩体块体稳定性分析系统。经大量的实例 (例如三峡工程船闸高边坡 )检验结果表明, 该系统可以作为对边坡中复杂形状块体稳定性进行现场快速评价的实用工具。     

IAP AGCM中短波辐射方案的改进研究II·短波辐射方案的改进

在Version 2的基础上,对短波辐射方案进行进一步的改进:引入了新增非灰体气体吸收效应、冰晶粒子形状效应和尺度效应以及云的不均匀性效应(称为Version 3)。数值模拟试验结果表明:Version 3能更好地模拟出全球冬、夏季的降水场、海平面气压场及地表气温场的主要分布特征,并且能相当准确地反映出这几个场的季节性变化特征。Version 3对这3个场的模拟能力明显优于原版本(Version 1)。此外,它对东亚地区的季风降雨具有很好的模拟能力,能较好地反映东亚区域降水的季节性变化。可见,Version 3为进一步研究云-辐射相互作用提供了很好的模式基础。本工作还清楚地表明,模式的进一步发展必须进行对相关物理过程中各个因子的更精确刻画,只有这样,模式才能得到更好的模拟能力。     

The harmonious character in equilibrium aeolian transport on mixed sand bed

Wind tunnel experiments were carried out to measure the spatial distribution in equilibrium transport of four types of mixed sand. The flux profiles of each grain size group were calculated. It is found that the vertical distribution of mean grain size has a close relation with the grain size distribution in the sand bed. In a log-linear plot, the flux profiles of main grain size groups are all straight lines and their slopes are nearly equal. It is also found that the ratio of transport rate of each size group to the whole transport rate is directly proportional to the mass ratio of each size group in the sand bed and the proportion value is only dependent on the grain size. This harmonious law is applicable to all four types of mixed sand used in the experiment.     

沉积物粒度对水合物形成的制约：来自IODP 311航次证据

对取自IODP 311航次（东北太平洋Cascadia大陆边缘）所有5个站位、采样间距约为1.5 m的614件沉积物样品，利用Beckman Coulter LS 230激光粒度仪进行了沉积物粒度分析，获得了沉积物粒度随深度变化特征，进而与水合物层位的替代指标进行了位置对比，这些指标包括特殊沉积构造（soupy和mousse like构造）、测井数据（LWD）推算出来的水合物饱和度（Sh）、岩芯红外图像和实际钻取的含水合物沉积物等。发现沉积物粒度分别为31~63 μm和63~125 μm的2组较粗粒径的沉积物数量变化增多的位置与水合物出现层位之间存在较好的位置对应关系。如在U1326站位海底以下5~8 m、21~26 m、50~123 m、132~140 m、167~180 m、195~206 m、220~240 m深度位置出现了沉积物粒度明显偏向粗粒的趋势，而这些位置正好对应于大多数特殊沉积构造出现的深度，也对应于水合物饱和度（Sh）值相对较高的深度，并与一些实际钻取的赋含水合物的浊积沙层观察结果一致。因此，初步研究后认为，沉积物粒度在水合物形成过程中扮演了重要角色，天然气水合物可能偏向形成于粒度大于31 μm的粗粒沉积物中。       

A Combined Three-Dimensional Geological-Geostatistical-Numerical Model of Underground Excavations in Rock

Summary. This paper exploits geological and borehole geotechnical data obtained in the exploratory phase of a tunneling project to investigate in a first place if the kriging interpolation scheme may effectively reproduce the spatial variability of rock mass quality (Rock Mass Rating, RMR) in the vicinity of tunnels. For this purpose a quick solver in Fortran has been developed that performs variography analysis of 3D spatial data, fast kriging estimations of RMR between borehole sampling locations at the centroids of the elements of the numerical model, and model validation. For the purpose of an integrated underground excavation design, a step further is made by incorporating into the 3D mechanical numerical model of the rock mass, the three-dimensional (3D) solid geological model, thus coupling the geology with the ground (geotechnical) model (i.e. each element of the numerical model is assigned a geological material). The mechanical properties of each finite difference cell (or Representative Elementary Volume) of the ground model were then prescribed according to its geological type, the spatial heterogeneity of the rock mass expressed quantitatively with the kriging model, and the upscaling calculations of the mechanical properties of the intact rocks determined in the laboratory, based on the size-effect (strength dependence on size) and Damage Theory. Furthermore, a preliminary numerical simulation of the advance of unsupported tunnels in the model of the heterogeneous rock mass was performed for illustration purposes.     

Laboratory simulation of the salt weathering of schist: II. Fragmentation of fine schist particles

Recent developments in long term landform evolution modelling have created a new demand for quantitative salt weathering data, and in particular data describing the size distribution of the weathered rock fragments. To enable future development of rock breakdown models for use in landscape evolution and soil production models, laboratory work was undertaken to extend existing schist/salt weathering fragmentation studies to include an examination of the breakdown of sub‐millimetre quartz chlorite schist particles in a seasonally wet tropical climate. Laser particle sizing was used to assess the impact of different experimental procedures on the resulting particle size distribution. The results reveal that salt weathering under a range of realistic simulated tropical wet season conditions produces a significant degree of schist particle breakdown. The fragmentation of the schist is characterized by splitting of the larger fragments into mid‐sized product with finer material produced, possibly from the breakdown of mid‐sized fragments when weathering is more advanced. Salinity, the salt addition method and temperature were all found to affect weathering rates. Subtle differences in mineralogy also produce variations in weathering patterns and rates. It is also shown that an increase in drying temperature leads to accelerated weathering rates, however, the geometry of the fracture process is not significantly affected. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.