Numerical models of mantle convection with secular cooling

A 2-D time-dependent finite-difference numerical model is used to investigate the thermal character and evolution of a convecting layer which is cooling as it convects. Two basic cooling modes are considered: in the first, both upper and lower boundaries are cooled at the same rate, while maintaining the same temperature difference across the layer; in the second, the lower boundary temperature decreases with time while the upper boundary temperature is fixed at 0°C. The first cooling mode simulates the effects of internal heating while the second simulates planetary cooling as mantle convection extracts heat from, and thereby cools, the Earth's core. The mathematical analogue between the effects of cooling and internal heating is verified for finite-amplitude convection. It is found that after an initial transient period the central core of a steady but vigorous convection cell cools at a constant rate which is governed by the rate of cooling of the boundaries and the viscosity structure of the layer. For upper-mantle models the transient stage lasts for about 30 per cent of the age of the Earth, while for the whole mantle it lasts for longer than the age of the Earth. Consequently, in our models the bulk cooling of the mantle lags behind the cooling of the core-mantle boundary. Models with temperature-dependent viscosity are found to cool in the same manner as models with depth-dependent viscosity; the rate of cooling is controlled primarily by the horizontally averaged variation of viscosity with depth. If the Earth's mantle cools in a similar fashion, secular cooling of the planet may be insensitive to lateral variations of viscosity.     

Optimal weighting in the finite difference solution of the convection-dispersion equation

Oscillation and numerical dispersion limit the reliability of numerical solutions of the convection-dispersion equation when finite difference methods are used. To eliminate oscillation and reduce the numerical dispersion, an optimal upstream weighting with finite differences is proposed. The optimal values of upstream weighting coefficients numerically obtained are a function of the mesh Peclet number used. The accuracy of the proposed numerical method is tested against two classical problems for which analytical solutions exist. The comparison of the numerical results obtained with different numerical schemes and those obtained by the analytical solutions demonstrates the possibility of a real gain in precision using the proposed optimal weighting method. This gain in precision is verified by interpreting a tracer experiment performed in a laboratory column.     

大地电磁二维对称各向异性介质的有限元数值模拟

假定垂直轴为二维对称各向异性介质主轴之一，构造走向与另一主轴方向成任一夹角，用伽勒金（Ｇａｌｅｒｋｉｎ）有限元法和矩形网格，优化地合成总体刚度矩阵，使二维各向异性介质的基本方程形成有限元代数方程组，求出各节点场值，并利用ＭＯＭ法求出辅助场，进而求出张量阻抗等响应函数．同时还对有关文献的计算模型进行了数值模拟检验     

三维溶质运移问题的分步广义迎风解法

对对流占优的三维溶质运移问题提出了分步广义迎风解法，首先利用Ｎ．Ｎ．Ｙａ－ｎｅｎｋｏ对水动力弥散方程分步求解的思想，将原来的一个定解问题分解为两个定解问题即对流定解问题和扩散定解问题，对对流定解问题采用广义迎风对偶单元均衡法求解，对扩散定解问题采用一般的Ｇａｌｅｒｋｉｎ有限元法求解，不仅避免了用一般有限元法和有限差分法求解对流占优的地下水水质数学模型时常出现数值弥散和过量问题，而且避免了求节点速度这一步，节省运算步骤，对井点的浓度变化给出了更合适的求解方法。     

煤层倾角与覆岩变形破裂分带

地下采煤中三带(冒落带、裂隙带、弯曲带)高度的判断是预测采空引起地表变形破坏程度的依据。在诸多的影响因素中, 煤层倾角是控制三带高度的最主要因素。建立在实测统计基础上的经验范围值用于三带高度的判断带有一定的人为性。急倾斜煤层中冒落带和裂隙带高度随煤层倾角变化的规律已被褐示[7].通过弹塑性岩石材料的非线性有限元模拟, 本文提出了利用应力重分布图判断中、缓倾角煤层采空区覆岩三带高度的方法, 并应用于实际工程。     

岩浆活动旋回与地球多层对流系统

从地球历史的节律角度讨论岩浆活动旋回。岩浆活动旋回可按时间与空间分出相互对应的不同尺度，进而可与深度尺度不同的地球多层对流系统相互对应，从而给予了岩浆活动旋回的动力学意义。岩浆活动的时间周期愈长，空间尺度亦愈大，需要的维持岩浆源存在的热能、挥发分供给的数量与深度亦愈大。     

成都粘土裂隙成因研究

根据成都粘土中裂隙特征与地质环境条件的分析，提出成都粘土中途中眩要裂隙类型的成因模式，上升剥蚀引起的垂向卸荷作用产生波状水平裂隙，冲沟切割引起的侧向卸荷作用，产生平行斜列隙裂。     

Crystal morphologies in pillow basalts: implications for mid-ocean ridge processes

We present the results of a detailed petrological study of a sparsely phyric basalt (MAPCO CH98-DR11) dredged along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (30°41′N). The sample contains microphenocrysts of olivine that display four different rapid-growth morphologies. Comparison of these morphologies with those obtained in dynamic crystallization experiments allows us to constrain the thermal history of the sample. The dendritic morphology (swallowtail, chain and lattice olivine) is directly related to the final quenching during magma–seawater interaction. In contrast, the three other morphologies, namely the complex polyhedral crystal, the closed hopper and the complex swallowtail morphology result from several cycles of cooling–heating (corresponding to a maximum degree of undercooling of 20–25°C) during crystal growth. These thermal variations occurred before eruption and are interpreted to be the result of turbulent convection in a small magmatic body beneath the ridge. The results suggest that the Mid-Atlantic Ridge is underlain by a mush zone that releases batches of liquid during tectonic segregation. Aphyric basalts are emitted during eruptions controlled by the tectonic activity, whereas phyric basalts correspond to small fractions of magma from the mush zone mobilized by reinjections of primitive magmas.     

In-plane and anti-plane strong shaking of soil systems and structures

The concept of in-plane and anti-plane shaking is introduced with a rigid block on a plane surface with Coulomb friction. Using a hypoplastic constitutive relation to model the mechanical behaviour of the soil, numerical solutions for a rigid block on a thin dry or saturated soil layer are obtained. The coupled nature of dynamic problems involving granular materials is shown, i.e. the motion of the block changes the soil state—skeleton stresses and density—which in turn affects the block motion. Motions of the block as well as soil response can be more realistically calculated by the new model. The same constitutive equation is applied to the numerical simulation of the propagation of plane waves in homogeneous and layered level soil deposits induced by a wave coming from below. Experiments with a novel laminar shake box as well as real seismic records from well-documented sites during strong earthquakes are used to verify the adequacy of the hypoplasticity-based numerical model for the prediction of soil response during strong earthquakes. The response of a homogeneous earth dam subjected to in-plane and anti-plane shaking is investigated numerically. In-plane and anti-plane shaking is shown to cause nearly the same spreading of a sand dam under drained conditions, whereas under undrained conditions anti-plane shaking causes stronger spreading of the dam. The dynamic behaviour of a breakwater founded on rockfill and soft clay during the 1995 Kobe earthquake is back-calculated to show the good performance of the proposed numerical model also with a structure. Section 9 deals with buildings on mattresses of densified cohesionless soils or fine-grained soils with granular columns, slopes with ‘hidden’ dams and structures on piles traversing clayey slopes to show the suitability of hypoplasticity-based models for the earthquake-resistant design and safety assessment of geotechnical systems.     

Magmatic effects of the lunar late heavy bombardment

Large volumes of mare basalts are present on the surface of the moon, located preferentially in large impact basins. Mechanisms relating impact basins and mare basalt eruptions have previously been suggested: lunar impacts removed low-density material that may have inhibited eruption, and created cracks for fluid flow [Icarus 139 (1999) 246], and lunar basins have long been described as catchments for magma (e.g., [Rev. Geophys. Space Phys. 18 (1980) 107] and references therein). We present a new model for melt creation under near side lunar basins that is triggered by the impacts themselves. Magma can be produced in two stages. First, crater excavation depressurizes underlying material such that it may melt in-situ. Second, the cratered lithosphere rises isostatically, warping isotherms at the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary which may initiate convection, in which adiabatic melting can occur. The first stage produces by far the largest volume of melt, but convective melting can continue for up to 350 Ma. We propose that giant impacts account for a large portion of the volume and longevity of mare basalt volcanism, as well as for several compositional groups, including high alumina, high titanium, KREEP-rich, and picritic magmas.