Intercomparison of the JULES and CABLE land surface models through assimilation of remotely sensed soil moisture in southeast Australia

Numerous land surface models exist for predicting water and energy fluxes in the terrestrial environment. These land surface models have different conceptualizations (i.e., process or physics based), together with structural differences in representing spatial variability, alternate empirical methods, mathematical formulations and computational approach. These inherent differences in modeling approach, and associated variations in outputs make it difficult to compare and contrast land surface models in a straight-forward manner. While model intercomparison studies have been undertaken in the past, leading to significant progress on the improvement of land surface models, additional framework towards identification of model weakness is needed. Given that land surface models are increasingly being integrated with satellite based estimates to improve their prediction skill, it is practical to undertake model intercomparison on the basis of soil moisture data assimilation. Consequently, this study compares two land surface models: the Joint UK Land Environment Simulator (JULES) and the Community Atmosphere Biosphere Land Exchange (CABLE) for soil moisture estimation and associated assessment of model uncertainty. A retrieved soil moisture data set from the Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) mission was assimilated into both models, with their updated estimates validated against in-situ soil moisture in the Yanco area, Australia. The findings show that the updated estimates from both models generally provided a more accurate estimate of soil moisture than the open loop estimate based on calibration alone. Moreover, the JULES output was found to provide a slightly better estimate of soil moisture than the CABLE output at both near-surface and deeper soil layers. An assessment of the updated membership in decision space also showed that the JULES model had a relatively stable, less sensitive, and more highly convergent internal dynamics than the CABLE model.     

Comprehensive three dimensional finite element analysis,parametric study and sensitivity analysis on the seismic performance of soil–micropile-superstructure interaction

A comprehensive dynamic three dimensional finite element model, which includes the effect of lots of important parameters on the micropiles seismic performance, has been presented. The validation of the built model has been carried out using remodeling a single degree of freedom shaking table test done by Mc Manus at the University of Canterbury. The gained results proved the accuracy of the constructed model. Then, using the parametric analysis, effects of all the earthquake characteristics, soil properties, superstructure and micropiles' cap and micropiles structure on the seismic performance of micropiles have been investigated by means of presenting internal forces and displacements which occurred as the main result of earthquake. Furthermore, using the data analysis, the most and the least influential parameters on internal forces are obtained based on the Cosine Amplitude Method (CAM).     

Simulation of soil–foundation–structure interaction of Hualien large-scale seismic test using dynamic centrifuge test

Understanding the soil–structure interaction (SSI) mechanism is crucial in the seismic design of nuclear power plant (NPP) containment systems. Although the numerical analysis method is generally used in seismic design, there is a need for experimental verification for the reliable estimation of SSI behavior. In this study a dynamic centrifuge test was performed to simulate the SSI behavior of a Hualien large-scale seismic test (LSST) during the Chi-Chi earthquake. To simulate the soil profile and dynamic soil properties of the Hualien site, a series of resonant column (RC) tests was performed to determine the model soil preparation conditions, such as the compaction density and the ratio of soil–gravel contents. The variations in the shear wave velocity (V_S) profiles of the sand, gravel, and backfill layers in the model were estimated using the RC test results. During the centrifuge test, the V_S profiles of the model were evaluated using in-flight bender element tests and compared with the in-situ V_S profile at Hualien. The containment building model was modeled using aluminum and the proper scaling laws. A series of dynamic centrifuge tests was performed with a 1/50 scale model using the base motion recorded during the Chi-Chi-earthquake. In the soil layer and foundation level, the centrifuge test results were similar to the LSST data in both the time and frequency domains, but there were differences in the structure owing to the complex structural response as well as the material damping difference between the concrete in the prototype and aluminum in the model. In addition, as the input base motion amplitude was increased to a maximum value of 0.4g (prototype scale), the responses of the soil and containment model were measured. This study shows the potential of utilizing dynamic centrifuge tests as an experimental modeling tool for site specific SSI analyses of soil–foundation–NPP containment system.     

Effects of soil–structure interaction on seismic base isolation

The effects of soil–structure interaction on the performance of a nonlinear seismic base isolation system for a simple elastic structure are examined. The steady-state response of the system to harmonic excitation is obtained by use of the equivalent linearization method. Simple analytical expressions for the deformation of the base isolation system and of the superstructure at resonance are obtained in terms of an effective replacement oscillator characterized by amplitude-dependent frequency, damping ratio, and excitation. Numerical results suggest that the seismic response of a structure resting on an inelastic base isolation system may be larger when the flexibility of the soil is considered than the corresponding response obtained by ignoring the effects of soil–structure interaction. It is shown that, in the undamped case and in the absence of soil–structure interaction effects, a critical harmonic excitation exists beyond which the steady-state resonant response of the isolators and structure become unbounded.     

Effect of preloading on the amplification characteristics of soil profiles

Preloading is a temporary loading, usually an embankment, applied to improve subsurface soils by densification. This paper studies the effect of preloading on the amplification characteristics of soft sites with an elaborate parametric analysis. The soil type, the depth of the bedrock, the water table depth, the level of preloading, the applied earthquake, the shear wave velocity of the bedrock and the shear modulus and damping versus shear strain relations were varied in a systematic manner. The analysis was performed by the commonly used one-dimensional equivalent-linear dynamic method. The shear wave velocity versus depth and the effect of preloading on shear velocity are computed with well-established soil mechanics equations. The results illustrated that the seismic response at the top of the profile generally decreases as a result of preloading. A more detailed analysis of results shows that the effect of preloading on the seismic response depends on the soil type and the depth of the bedrock. Based on these results, a method is proposed by which a practicing engineer involved with improvement of soft ground can simulate the effect of preloading on the seismic motion.