Seafloor and buried mounds on the western slope of the Niger Delta

Seafloor mounds are potential geohazards to offshore rig emplacement and drilling operations and may contain evidence of underlying petroleum systems. Therefore, identifying and mapping them is crucial in de-risking exploration and production activities in offshore domains.A 738 km² high resolution three-dimensional seismic dataset was used to investigate the occurrence, seismic characteristics and distribution of features interpreted as seafloor and buried sediment mounds, at water-depths of 800–1600 m, on the western Niger Delta slope. Fifteen seafloor mounds and eighteen shallowly buried mounds were identified. The seafloor mounds are characterised by lower seismic amplitude anomalies than the surrounding seabed sediments, and overlie vertical zones of acoustic blanking. The buried mounds in contrast are characterised by high amplitude anomalies; they also directly overlie sub-vertical zones of acoustic blanking. Seismic evidences from the features, their distribution patterns and tectono-stratigraphic associations suggest that their formation was controlled by the juxtaposition of buried channels and structural highs and their formation caused by focused fluid flow and expulsion of entrained sediments at the seabed.Considering the acoustic and geometrical characteristics of the mounds and comparing them with mound-shaped features from around the world, we conclude that the mounds most likely comprise heterolithic seafloor extrusions of muds and sands from the Agbada Formation with gas and possibly oil in some of the pore space giving rise to the acoustic characteristics.     

琼东南盆地北礁地区梅山组丘形反射特征

目前琼东南盆地北礁凹陷中中新统梅山组顶部丘形反射引起广泛关注,但对其成因有不同认识。本文通过高精度二维、三维地震、钻井资料,研究丘形反射的特征。研究表明北礁地区梅山组顶部发育近东西向展布的长条形丘体,丘间为水道,丘内为中-弱振幅的地震反射,与西南部强振幅水道砂岩形成鲜明的对比,波阻抗反演揭示丘内为低波阻抗,属泥岩范畴。梅山组塑性丘内地层发生重力扩展,在其上覆的脆性地层（强振幅砂岩和弱振幅泥岩）发育多边形断层,反推出梅山组形成于深水环境,丘为泥丘,沉积环境分析也认为北礁凹陷中中新世为半深海沉积,梅山组的丘-谷分别对应上覆地层的谷-丘,认为是底流剥蚀/沉积成因。本文的研究对南海北部丘形反射的认识有重要意义,并可降低油气探勘风险。     

堆石防波堤不规则波浪反射系数试验研究

结合物理模型试验,分析斜坡坡度、波陡、相对水深、护面类型和破波参数等因素对堆石防波堤不规则波浪反射系数的影响规律。将常用的Van der Meer公式,Seelig公式,Postma公式和Davison公式计算值和实测值进行比较,并结合试验数据,基于有效波高和平均周期定义的Iribarren数,得出堆石防波堤不规则波浪反射系数经验公式。结果表明,该公式能较好地计算不规则波作用下块石和扭王块体护面堆石防波堤波浪反射系数。     

天山乌苏段火山泥元素组成及含量分析

采用能量色散型X射线荧光光谱分析（EDXRF）对新疆乌苏天山泥火山土壤样品的元素含量进行了测定。采用单指标评价指数法和内梅罗综合指数法,对新疆天山乌苏段火山泥中的重金属的种类和含量进行了研究,结果显示：Cd、As、Cu元素的含量达到土壤环境质量评价的二级标准,Hg、Pb、Cr、Zn、Ni元素的含量达到土壤环境质量评价的一级标准,乌苏天山火山泥综合评价达到二级标准。将火山泥的元素含量与新疆地区不同土质的土壤元素含量进行比较,与干旱区不同省份的土壤元素含量进行比较,分析了火山泥元素组成及含量的成因。     

origin of the mud volcano in northern tianshan constrained by geochemical investigation

Mud volcano is a kind of structural geological phenomena under certain hydrogeological environment and can bring plenty of valuable information to the ground when it erupts, therefore, many researchers call it as "Heaven granted well" whose depth can be up to 12km. Mud volcanoes in Xinjiang are distributed in the central-west region of North Tianshan, and five of them are representative, namely, Horgus, Dushanzi, Wenquan, Poplar valley, and Sailetike. We tested the gas, fluid and solid components of these mud volcanoes through investigations and studies of topography and geomorphology, geological and hydrogeological conditions, and mud debris characteristics, and preliminary obtained the origin of these mud volcanoes based on geochemical features. Finally, the paper describes briefly that the continuous enchancement of regional crustal tectonic stress can not only give rise to the seismogenesis and earthquake occurrence, but also break the original cycle of mud volcano to bring about significant activity, therefore, the two have a certain homology relationship.     

Role of aeolian sediment accretion in the formation of heuweltjie earth mounds,western South Africa

The action of organisms in shaping landforms is increasingly recognized; the field of biogeomorphology and the conceptual framework of ecosystem engineering have arisen in response to the need for integrated studies of the interactions between biotic and abiotic components of landscapes. Pathways by which organisms influence landscape development may be complex. For example, primary change initiated by one biotic element may initiate a cascade of other changes that eventually produce a significant landscape modification. Mound‐like landforms in North America and southern Africa are widely cited examples of biogenic structures, yet there is considerable controversy regarding the processes responsible for their formation. Heuweltjies (Afrikaans for little hills) are circular mounds ranging from 10–30 m diameter and 0.5–2 m height and are widespread in western South Africa. Colonies of the termite (Microhodotermes viator) are typically associated with heuweltjies and some investigators have attributed heuweltjie formation to the direct action of termites in redistributing earthen materials. However, rather than being directly responsible in this way, termites simply create nutrient‐rich islands, which support denser vegetation, thereby inducing the localized accretion of aeolian sediments and upward growth of mounds. Contrasting soil features in heuweltjies in one locale indicate these processes have occurred throughout the late Quaternary. Geographic variation in sizes of mounds is explained in part by the local availability of sediments that can be mobilized and redistributed by the wind. Recognition of the operation of aeolian processes in the formation of heuweltjies has important implications for conservation. Any land use that diminishes the sediment‐trapping effect of vegetation on heuweltjies truncates the very process by which new aeolian materials can accrue and may promote irreversible erosion and landscape degradation. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Modeling planform evolution of a mud‐dominated meandering river: Quinn River,Nevada, USA

A depth‐averaged linearized meander evolution model was calibrated and tested using the field data collected at the Quinn River in the Black Rock Desert, Nevada. Two approaches used to test the model were: (1) simulating meander evolution and comparing the results with the observed 38 year migration pattern; and (2) fitting the model parameters to present bank asymmetry (the ratio of the maximum bank gradients on opposite sides of the channel). The data required as input were collected in the field during a high flow in May 2011 and from aerial photographs and LiDAR data. Both approaches yielded similar results for the best fit parameter values. The bank asymmetry analysis showed that the bank asymmetry and the velocity perturbation have high correlation at close to zero spatial lag while the maximum correlation between the bank asymmetry and maximum bend curvature is offset by about 25 m. The model sufficiently replicated 38 years of channel migration, with a few locations significantly under‐ or over‐predicted. Inadequacies of the flow model and/or variation in bank properties unaccounted for are most likely the causes for these discrepancies. Flow through the Quinn River was also simulated by a more general 3D model. The downstream pattern of near‐bank shear stresses simulated by the 3D model is nearly identical to those resulting from the linearized flow model. Topographic profiles across interior bends are essentially invariant over a wide range of migration rates, suggesting that the traditional formulation that cut bank erosion processes govern migration rates is appropriate for the Quinn River. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

考虑泥浆套不同形态的顶管管壁摩阻力计算公式

大直径、长距离顶管施工常通过注浆形成泥浆套来减小阻力,泥浆套的形态及其完整性对管壁摩阻力大小有决定性作用,现有摩阻力计算公式一般未考虑不同泥浆套形态对摩阻力的影响,计算结果与实际情况相差较大。根据不同施工状况对顶管外壁泥浆套的可能形态进行了分类及成因分析,提出了判断3种常见泥浆套形态的方法。利用半无限弹性体中柱形圆孔扩张理论探讨了注浆压力对泥浆套厚度的影响,结合非线性流体力学计算泥浆与管壁接触产生的摩阻力,最终采用挖掘面稳定假设,针对3种泥浆套形态提出了摩阻力计算公式。采用该方法对工程案例进行计算,计算结果与实测数据对比表明：现有摩阻力计算公式的计算结果过于保守,所提出的计算公式是合理和有效的。     

济州岛西南泥质区粒度组分变化的古环境应用

利用激光粒度仪对位于东海陆架济州岛西南泥质区的B2孔进行了沉积物粒度分析,根据标准偏差变化检出了B2孔含有4个粒度组分：〉65．6、65．6～10．5、10．5～1．3和〈1．3μm,其中〉65．6μm粗组分含量很低,主要是以底栖有孔虫为主的生源沉积．各组分平均粒径和粒度含量随孔深的变化显示了65．6～10．5μm组分在B2孔含量较高（21％～30％）,变化最明显,是该孔对环境变化最敏感的粒度组分．研究表明该敏感组分的粒度含量和平均粒径变化主要受东亚冬季风的强弱变化制约,其变化恢复的近2ka来东亚冬季风变化和中国东部气候变化序列具有很好的一致性,证明65．6～10．5μm粒度组分可以作为东亚冬季风的替代指标．     

Distribution and Acoustic Characteristics of Shallow Gas in the Korea Strait Shelf Mud off SE Korea

Shallow gas in the Korea Strait shelf mud (KSSM) off SE Korea, revealed by high-resolution subbottom profiles, is associated with acoustic blanking, acoustic turbidity, seepages with plumes in the water column, and seafloor depressions. The acoustic blanking, characterized by strong, consistent top reflection and wipeout below, is most dominant. The seaward edge of the acoustic blanking zone generally coincides with the 100-m water-depth contour, suggesting that the water depth (the pressure) may control the distribution of shallow gas. The acoustic turbidity, characterized by diffuse top reflection, is a dark smear, partially blanking the data below. The seepages with plumes, characterized by vertical smearing and disturbed seafloor, are seen only along the shallowest, landward edge of the acoustic blanking zone. This may suggest that the decreased gas solubility at shallow water depths, caused by the lowered pressure, increases the volume of free gas in the sediments, facilitating the gas escape. The seafloor depressions, interpreted as pockmarks, are accompanied by cone-shaped acoustic masking, which is probably the reflection from a narrow vent of gas. The gas-related acoustic anomalies appear to occur mostly in the upper, recent mud of the KSSM. Neither permeable beds nor faults, which can act as vertical migration pathways for deep thermogenic gas, are evident in the recent mud. We interpret that the bacterial degradation of organic matter in situ is the main source for the gas in the KSSM. The upwelling off SE Korea may be an important source for the increased organic matter in the area.