The mitigation of the vibration effects caused by tunnel blasts in urban areas: a case study in Istanbul

Ground vibrations generated by commercial explosives in tunnel construction may cause structural damage in urban areas. Therefore, suppressing the vibration effects and mitigating the possible hazard after blasting is important. We present a new method of controlled blasting that is environmentally friendly, and easy to utilize for tunnel construction. Small charges in this method are detonated sequentially to produce minimum side effects. The efficiency of the charges may be increased based on the previously monitored shots. This method is utilized in a tunnel construction in Istanbul with five experimental shots. In these experiments, the duration and also the quantity of explosives were carefully controlled. We were able to obtain better results with short durations (480 ms) instead of long durations (9,000 ms) although the vibration levels defined as peak particle velocity (PPV) became bigger while the quantity of the explosive charge increased from 3.088 to 9.264 kg.     

Water and power in Santiago de Chile: Socio-spatial segregation through network integration

The analysis of the history of the management and distribution of electricity, water and sanitation networks in Santiago de Chile throws light on a problem which is central to thinking on the relationship between urban services management and territorial splintering: what is the impact of urban policy, in particular housing policy and urban planning, on access to services and on the potential levels of social segregation and institutional splintering of metropolises?The Chilean example is eminently anchored in its political and institutional history. We shall see, for example, that the authoritarian urban policy of the military government, associated with early liberal reform, enabled the improvement of access to networks in every municipality of the Greater Santiago area. However, this success, leading to the integration by urban services of a large territory, does not signify that networks remained neutral as regards the process of spatial segregation. Inversely, we can defend the theory that the presence of an integrated service was a necessary condition and a reinforcing factor of the process of urban spread and residential segregation. This paradoxical argument is a result of the ambivalent liberal network and urban policies of the military government. Urban expansion was largely sustained by the development of integrated infrastructures and universal services. The processes of liberalising land and urban services were mutually sustaining and provided the necessary conditions for the birth of an extremely intense movement of urban sprawl and segregation between 1985 and 2000.     

Drought and institutional adaptation in the Great Plains of Alberta and Saskatchewan, 1914–1939

Agriculture in the southern Great Plains of Canada has been particularly vulnerable to prolonged episodes of drought. Using climate data and a precipitation minus potential evapotranspiration index, the extent of the region’s exposure to drought is examined. Between 1914 and 1917, the Dry Belt was particularly vulnerable to drought, whereas after 1928, a much larger region known as the Palliser Triangle covering most of southern Alberta and Saskatchewan was much more exposed to drought. These droughts provoked major institutional adaptation, in particular the establishment of the Special Areas Board by the Government of Alberta, and the creation of the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration by the Government of Canada. Both organizations have proved to be relatively permanent public adaptations to the natural hazard of drought in the region. Moreover, these earlier experiences with prolonged drought as well as institution-building may be of value in helping the residents of the Palliser Triangle adapt to predicted climate changes in the future as well as anticipate some of the barriers to effective institutional adaptation.     

Influence of Structural Non-Stationarity of Surface Roughness on Morphological Characterization and Mechanical Deformation of Rock Joints

Summary Structural non-stationarity of surface roughness affects accurate morphological characterization as well as mechanical behaviour of rock joints at the laboratory scale using samples with a size below the stationarity threshold. In this paper, the effect of structural non-stationarity of surface roughness is investigated by studying the scale dependence of surface roughness and mechanical behaviour of rock joints. The results show that the structural non-stationarity mainly affects the accurate characterization of the surface roughness of the fracture samples. It also controls the amount and location of the contact areas during shear tests, which in turn affects the mechanical properties and asperity degradation of the samples. It is concluded that for accurate determination of the morphological and mechanical properties of rock joints at laboratory and field scales, samples with size equal to or larger than the stationarity threshold are required. Author’s address: Nader Fardin, Rock Mechanics Group, Department of Mining Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Tehran, P.O. Box: 11365/4563, Tehran, Iran     

Implementing low-cost landslide risk reduction: a pilot study in unplanned housing areas of the Caribbean

Landslides pose a serious physical and environmental threat to vulnerable communities living in areas of unplanned housing on steep slopes in the Caribbean. Some of these communities have, in the past, had to be relocated, at costs of millions of dollars, because of major slides triggered by tropical storm rainfall. Even so, evidence shows that: (1) risk reduction is a marginal activity; (2) there has been minimal uptake of hazard maps and vulnerability assessments and (3) there is little on-the-ground delivery of construction for risk reduction. This article directly addresses these issues by developing a low-cost approach to the identification of the potential pore pressure changes that trigger such slides we seek to address these three commentaries directly. A complex 45–60° slope site in St Lucia, West Indies was selected as a pilot for a modelling approach that uses numerical models (FLAC and CHASM) to verify the need for surface water management to effectively reduce landslide risk. Following the model confirmation, a series of drains were designed and constructed at the site. Post-construction evidence indicates the methodology to be sound, in that the site was stable in subsequent 1-in-1 to 1-in-4 year rainfall events. A critical feature of the approach is that it is community-based from data acquisition through to community members participating in construction.     

华北克拉通北缘隆化地区S型花岗岩的独居石年龄图谱

位于华北克拉通北缘中段的隆化S型花岗岩由石榴石黑云母花岗岩、石榴石花岗岩以及片麻理化的黑云母花岗岩组成。其主体岩性石榴石黑云母花岗岩SiO_2和Al_2O_3含量分别为64.09%～69.6%以及14.6%～16.13%,K_2O/Na_2O>1.0,A/CNK>1,0,Mg~#在20.76～34.89之间变化,具有明显的Nb、Ta、P、Ti和Sr亏损以及Rb、K和Th富集。石榴石黑云母花岗岩(样品JB6031-1)采用独居石电子探针U-Th-Pb化学法进行测年,获得了2553±120Ma、2180±42Ma和1854±24Ma三个年龄峰值。一颗独居石内部成分分带上6个分析点定年结果构成2553±120Ma的峰值年龄,这一年龄与我们最新获得的2506±7Ma和2541±8Ma(继承锆石年龄)LA-ICP-MS锆石U-Pb同位素年龄相似,我们将这一独居石年龄解释为继承独居石的年龄,表明在赤城-隆化断裂以北存在太古宙陆块,并且在后期构造-热事件中发生部分熔融形成S型花岗岩。该独居石颗粒幔部成分分带上10个分析点的测年结果揭示的峰值年龄为2181±42Ma,该年龄也是出现频率最高的年龄值,我们建议2181±42Ma为S型花岗岩的结晶年龄,反映了S型花岗岩的侵位时代。独居石颗粒外部成分分带上8个分析点的测年结果构成1854±24Ma的峰值年龄,该年龄与华北克拉通中部带的变质年龄接近,我们将其解释为S型花岗岩的变质年龄,表明华北克拉通北缘的构造演化与中部带的构造演化密切相关。     

柴达木盆地北缘侏罗系两类不同有机质丰度泥岩的 生物标志物特征对比研究

在柴达木盆地北缘地区,分别选取有机碳含量很低和较高的侏罗系泥岩样品,对比分析了它们在生物标志物组成上的差异。结果发现,高有机质丰度泥岩的生标组成与我国西北地区侏罗纪煤系有机质的特征差异不大,相比而言,低有机质丰度泥岩的正烷烃以前主峰为特征,Pr/Ph比值在1.0左右,三环萜烷和伽马蜡烷丰度较高,并在部分样品中检出了25 降藿烷系列。结合泥岩的有机岩石学特征,认为这些差异可能反映了泥岩沉积环境和生烃母质的不同:高有机质丰度泥岩的有机显微组分以相对弱还原条件下的形态有机质为主,包括藻类体、孢子体和角质体等,而低有机质丰度泥岩的有机显微组分以相对强还原条件下的矿物沥青基质为主,其母质可能来源于低等显微菌藻类。进一步通过对比不同有机质丰度泥岩,以及区内原油生标组成之间的相互关系,讨论了研究区的油源问题。     

三峡库区生基包滑坡监测及成果分析

生基包滑坡监测属于三峡库区奉节县三期地质灾害监测预警项目之一,该滑坡位于长江左岸,临近人口稠密的安坪乡集镇,地理位置重要。三峡水库175 m蓄水后,其变形破坏特征有何表现？对航道安全运营有无潜在威胁？是否会对滑坡体上的重要建筑及村民生产生活构成危害？针对这些问题,首先分析了滑坡的工程地质特征及主要的影响因素;其次,确立以4种监测手段为主、人工巡查为辅的监测方案;通过对大地变形GPS、深部位移、滑坡推力等几种监测方法的运用及对其成果进行分析研究,以实例说明其在滑坡监测中的应用;再次,结合宏观人工巡查进行对照分析,以充分说明大地变形、深部位移和滑坡推力监测在实际运用中的可行性;最后,根据监测结论提出对生基包滑坡防治的建议。     

预防油页岩地层钻进中压差卡钻的措施

分析了油页岩地层钻进中压差卡钻发生的原因,提出了预防压差卡钻的途径及处理方法,并通过工程实例来强调预防为主的重要性。     

塔里木盆地寒武-奥陶系白云岩结构构造类型及其形成机理

塔里木盆地寒武-奥陶系白云岩度大、分布广,是重要的油气储集层.根据岩石学研究并结合地球化学特征将其分为4类,其特点如下:(1)泥晶-粉晶白云岩,白云石晶体小、晶形差,有序度在4类中最低(0.73);Na、K、Sr含量在4类中最高;δ13C值及Z值较高,分别为-0.94‰、122.3;Fe、Mn含量较低;阴极发光为亮桔红色;常呈纹层状,具暴露及成化标志.这些特征表明其结晶较快,形成环境蒸发强烈、盐度较高、氧化性较强,是在萨布哈环境中由浓缩海水发生白云石化所形成.(2)藻纹层白云岩,白云石晶体小,晶形较好,有序度较高(0.85);藻纹层基本保留了其原始微细结构;Na、K、Sr含量较低:δC值在4类中最高,平均为-0.50‰;含有较多黄铁矿.这些特征说明其可能形成于成岩作用的稍早期阶段且其成因与藻类活动密切相关,成岩环境盐度较低,可能是在藻类作用下,由富藻层浓集的镁与残留海水在浅埋藏环境中共同作用所形成.(3)雾心亮边白云岩,白云石普遍具雾心亮边结构,雾心含少量包裹体及灰质残余,亮边则少见或无;阴极发光下,雾心发亮桔黄色光,亮边发光暗或不发光;局部见此类白云石;呈星散状分布于亮晶颗粒灰岩或泥晶灰岩中;白云石晶体较大,晶形较好.此类白云岩的δ13C及Z值在4类中最低,K、Na、Sr、Fe含量相对较低,Mn含量最高;有序度较高,均值为0.83.这些特征表明此类白云岩中白云石的雾心可能是在早期浅埋藏环境中,由富镁孔隙水交代周围灰质所形成;亮边则形成于埋藏较深的环境,其所需镁可能来源于粘土矿物的转化.(4)重结晶白云岩:白云石晶体粗大且污浊,接触紧密;局部见白云石晶体具环带结构,局部见颗粒幻影结构;阴极发光较暗;Fe含量在4类中最高,Mn含量较高;有序度最高,平均为0.95;包裹体均一温度平均为110.2℃.这些特征表明其可能是在还原性较强的深埋藏环境中,由早期形成的白云岩经较强的重结晶作用所形成.