Elastic lateral dynamic impedance functions for a rigid cylindrical shell type foundation

Elastic lateral dynamic impedance functions are defined as the ratio of the lateral dynamic force/moment to the corresponding lateral displacement/rotation at the top ending of a foundation at very small strains. Elastic lateral dynamic impedance functions have a defining influence on the natural frequencies of offshore wind turbines supported on cylindrical shell type foundations, such as suction caissons, bucket foundations, and monopiles. This paper considers the coupled horizontal and rocking vibration of a cylindrical shell type foundation embedded in a fully saturated poroelastic seabed in contact with a seawater half‐space. The formulation of the coupled seawater–shell–seabed vibration problem is simplified by treating the shell as a rigid one. The rigid shell vibration problem is approached by the integral equation method using ring‐load Green's functions for a layered seawater‐seabed half‐space. By considering the boundary conditions at the shell–soil interface, the shell vibration problem is reduced to Fredholm integral equations. Through an analysis of the corresponding Cauchy singular equations, the intrinsic singular characteristics of the problem are rendered explicit. With the singularities incorporated into the solution representation, an effective numerical method involving Gauss–Chebyshev method is developed for the governing Fredholm equations. Selected numerical results for the dynamic contact load distributions, displacements of the shell, and lateral dynamic impedance functions are examined for different shell length–radius ratio, poroelastic materials, and frequencies of excitation. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Dynamic analysis of strain localization in water‐saturated clay using a cyclic elasto‐viscoplastic model

A computational framework is presented for dynamic strain localization and deformation analyses of water‐saturated clay by using a cyclic elasto‐viscoplastic constitutive model. In the model, the nonlinear kinematic hardening rule and softening due to the structural degradation of soil particles are considered. In order to appropriately simulate the large deformation phenomenon in strain localization analysis, the dynamic finite element formulation for a two‐phase mixture is derived in the updated Lagrangian framework. The shear band development is shown through the distributions of viscoplastic shear strain, the axial strain, the mean effective stress, and the pore water pressure in a normally consolidated clay specimen. From the local stress–strain relations, more brittleness is found inside the shear bands than outside of them. The effects of partially drained conditions and mesh‐size dependency on the shear banding are also investigated. The effect of a partially drained boundary is found to be insignificant on the dynamic shear band propagation because of the rapid rate of applied loading and low permeability of the clay. Using the finer mesh results in slightly narrower shear bands; nonetheless, the results manifest convergency through the mesh refinement in terms of the overall shape of shear banding and stress–strain relations. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Are peatlands in different states with respect to their thermodynamic behaviour? A simple test of peatland energy and entropy budgets

Whilst all ecosystems must obey the second law of thermodynamics, these physical bounds and controls on ecosystem evolution and development are largely ignored across the ecohydrological literature. To unravel the importance of these underlying restraints on ecosystem form and function, and their power to inform our scientific understanding, we have calculated the entropy budget of a range of peat ecosystems. We hypothesize that less disturbed peatlands are ‘near equilibrium’ with respect to the second law of thermodynamics and thus respond to change by minimizing entropy production. This ‘near equilibrium’ state is best achieved by limiting evaporative losses. Alternatively, peatlands ‘far-from-equilibrium’ respond to a change in energy inputs by maximizing entropy production which is best achieved by increasing evapotranspiration. To test these alternatives this study examined the energy balance time series from seven peatlands across a disturbance gradient. We estimate the entropy budgets for each and determine how a change in net radiation (ΔR_n) was transferred to a change in latent heat flux (ΔλE). The study showed that: (i) The transfer of net radiation to latent heat differed significantly between peatlands. One group transferred up to 64% of the change in net radiation to a change in latent heat flux, while the second transferred as little as 27%. (ii) Sites that transferred the most energy to latent heat flux were those that produced the greatest entropy. The study shows that an ecosystem could be ‘near equilibrium’ rather than ‘far from equilibrium’.     

Vertical vibration of a rigid strip footing on viscoelastic half-space

This paper presents an analytical method for modeling the dynamic response of a rigid strip footing subjected to vertical-only loads. The footing is assumed to rest on the surface of a viscoelastic half-space; therefore, effects of hysteretic soil damping on the impedance of the foundation and the generated ground vibrations are considered in the solution. To solve the mixed boundary value problem, we use the Fourier transform to cast a pair of dual integral equations providing contact stresses, which are solved by means of Jacobi orthogonal polynomials. The resulting soil and footing displacements and stresses are obtained by means of the Fourier inverse transform. The solution provides more realistic estimates of footing impedance, compared to existing solutions for elastic soil, as well as of the attenuation of ground vibrations with distance of the footing. The latter is important for the estimation of machine vibration effects on nearby structures and installations.     

Dynamic response of a pile considering the interaction of pile variable cross section with the surrounding layered soil

Assuming that the pile variable cross section interacts with the surrounding soil in the same way as the pile toe does with the bearing stratus, the interaction of pile variable cross section with the surrounding soil is represented by a Voigt model, which consists of a spring and a damper connected in parallel, and the spring constant and damper coefficient are derived. Thus, a more rigid pile–soil interaction model is proposed. The surrounding soil layers are modeled as axisymmetric continuum in which its vertical displacements are taken into account and the pile is assumed to be a Rayleigh–Love rod with material damping. Allowing for soil properties and pile defects, the pile–soil system is divided into several layers. By means of Laplace transform, the governing equations of soil layers are solved in frequency domain, and a new relationship linking the impedance functions at the variable‐section interface between the adjacent pile segments is derived using a Heaviside step function, which is called amended impedance function transfer method. On this basis, the impedance function at pile top is derived by amended impedance function transfer method proposed in this paper. Then, the velocity response at pile top can be obtained by means of inverse Fourier transform and convolution theorem. The effects of pile–soil system parameters are studied, and some conclusions are proposed. Then, an engineering example is given to confirm the rationality of the solution proposed in this paper. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effects of differing coverage of moss‐dominated soil crusts on hydrological processes and implications for disturbance in the Mu Us Sandland,China

To study the effects of biological soil crusts (BSCs) on hydrological processes and their implications for disturbance in the Mu Us Sandland, the water infiltration, evaporation and soil moisture of high coverage (100% BSCs), middle coverage (40% BSCs) and low coverage (0% BSCs, bare sand) of moss‐dominated crusts were conducted in this study, respectively. The conclusions are as follows: (1) the main effects of moss‐dominated crusts in the Mu Us Sandland on the infiltration of rainwater were to reduce the infiltration depths and to retain the limited rainwater in shallow soil; (2) moss‐dominated crusts have no significant effects on daily evaporation when the volumetric water content at 4 cm depth in 100% BSCs (VWC4) was over 24.7%, on enhanced daily evaporation when the VWC4 ranged from 6.5% to 24.7% and on reduced daily evaporation when the VWC4 was less than 6.5%; and (3) decreasing the coverage of moss‐dominated crusts (from 100% to 40%) did not significantly change its effects on infiltration, evaporation and soil moisture. Our results demonstrated that for the growth and regeneration of shrubs, which were dominated by Artemisia ordosica in the Mu Us Sandland, high coverage of moss‐dominated crusts has negative effects on hydrological processes, and these negative effects could not be significantly reduced by decreasing the coverage of moss‐dominated crusts from 100% to 40%. Therefore, for the sustained and healthy development of shrub communities in the Mu Us Sandland, it is necessary to take appropriate measures for the well‐developed BSCs in the sites with high vegetation coverage in the rainy season. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A new approach to estimate canopy evaporation and canopy interception capacity from evapotranspiration and sap flow measurements during and following wetting

Canopy interception and its evaporation into the atmosphere during irrigation or a rainfall event are important in irrigation scheduling, but are challenging to estimate using conventional methods. This study introduces a new approach to estimate the canopy interception from measurements of actual total evapotranspiration (ET) using eddy covariance and estimation of the transpiration from measurements of sap flow. The measurements were conducted over a small‐scale sprinkler‐irrigated cotton field before, during and after sprinkler irrigation. Evaporation and sap flow dynamics during irrigation show that the total ET during irrigation increased significantly because of the evaporation of free intercepted water while transpiration was suppressed almost completely. The difference between actual ET and transpiration (sap flow) during and immediately following irrigation (post irrigation) represents the total canopy evaporation while the canopy interception capacity was calculated as the difference between actual ET and transpiration (sap flow) during drying (post irrigation) following cessation of the irrigation. The canopy evaporation of cotton canopy was calculated as 0.8 mm, and the interception capacity was estimated to be 0.31 mm of water. The measurement uncertainty in both the non‐dimensional ET and non‐dimensional sap flow was shown to be very low. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

临震前地壳变形不动点现象与机制研究

在综合分析国内外地形变前兆研究现状的基础上,结合汶川8.0级地震前GPS、应变、重力等研究结果,提出临震前震源区域可能出现变形不动点现象。地壳变形过程中的不动点现象是临震前区域应力场进入临界状态的重要标志,是地震潜在危险区域划定的重要依据。借助不动点理论,给出汶川地震前变形不动点集合的演化,结合大区域地震活动空区与远场显著形变异常分布,探讨变形不动点现象发生的动力学背景,验证了汶川地震前地壳变形的不动点现象是大区域应力场有序运动的结果。     

Modelling landslides in unsaturated slopes subjected to rainfall infiltration using material point method

This paper presents a dynamic fully coupled formulation for saturated and unsaturated soils that undergo large deformations based on material point method. Governing equations are applied to porous material while considering it as a continuum in which the pores of the solid skeleton are filled with water and air. The accuracy of the developed method is tested with available experimental and numerical results. The developed method has been applied to investigate the failure and post‐failure behaviour of rapid landslides in unsaturated slopes subjected to rainfall infiltration using two different bedrock geometries that lie below the top soil. The models show different failure and post‐failure mechanisms depending on the bedrock geometry and highlight the negative effects of continuous rain infiltrations. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

River evaporation,condensation and heat fluxes within a first‐order tributary of Catamaran Brook (New Brunswick,Canada)

Stream temperature plays an important role in many biotic and abiotic processes, as it influences many physical, chemical and biological properties in rivers. As such, a good understanding of the thermal regime of rivers is essential for effective fisheries management and the protection aquatic habitats. Moreover, a thorough understanding of underlying physical processes and river heat fluxes is essential in the development of better and more adaptive water temperature models. Very few studies have measured river evaporation and condensation and subsequently calculated corresponding heat fluxes in small tributary streams, mainly because microclimate data (data collected within the stream environment) are essential and rarely available. As such, the present study will address these issues by measuring river evaporation and condensation in tributary 1 (Trib 1, a small tributary within Catamaran Brook) using floating minipans. The latent heat flux and other important fluxes were calculated. Results showed that evaporation was low within the small Trib 1 of Catamaran Brook, less than 0.07 mm day^?1. Results showed that condensation played an important role in the latent heat flux. In fact, condensation was present during 34 of 92 days (37%) during the summer, which occurred when air temperature was greater than water temperature by 4–6 °C. Heat fluxes within this small stream showed that solar radiation dominated the heat gains and long‐wave radiation dominated the heat losses. © 2015 Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada. Hydrological Processes. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.