Nonlinear Static Finite Element Stress Analysis of Pipe-in-Pipe Risers

Owing to the complexity of the pipe-in-pipe (PIP) riser system in structure, load and restraint, many problems arise in the structural analysis of the system. This paper presents a new method for nonlinear static finite element stress analysis of the PIP riser system. The finite element (FE) model of the PIP riser system is built via software AutoPIPE 6.1. According to the specialties of a variety of components in the PIP riser system, different elements are used so as to model the system accurately. Allowing for the complication in modeling the effects of seabed restraint, a technique based on the bilinear spring concept is developed to calculate the soil properties. Then, based on a pipeline project, the entire procedure of stress analysis is discussed in detail, including creation of an FE model, processing of input data and analysis of results. A wide range of loading schemes is investigated to ascertain that the stresses remain within the acceptable range of the pipe material strength. Finally, the effects of the location of flanges, the thermal expansion of submarine pipelines and the seabed restraint on stress distribution in the riser and expansion loop are studied, which are valuable for pipeline designers.     

Changes in soils and vegetation in a Mediterranean coastal salt marsh impacted by human activities

This paper reports changes in vegetation distribution and species cover in relation to soil factors and hydrology in a semiarid Mediterranean salt marsh adjacent to the Mar Menor saline lagoon. Species cover, soil salinity, and the groundwater level were monitored between 1991 and 1993 and between 2002 and 2004, and total organic carbon, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, nitrates, ammonium and exchangeable phosphorus were measured in the soils in both study periods. In addition, three soil profiles were described in August 1992 and August 2004. The results indicate an elevation of the water table throughout the 13-year period, which was attributable to water flowing from areas with intensive agriculture. Flooding increased and soil salinity dropped in the most saline sites and increased in the least saline ones. The morphology of the soil profiles reflected the increase in flooding periods, due to the appearance of a greyer matrix in the deeper horizons and a more diffuse pattern of Fe mottles. Following these environmental changes, Sarcocornia fruticosa, Phragmites australis and Juncus maritimus strongly expanded at the wettest sites, which led to the disappearance of the original zonation pattern. The cover of Limonium delicatulum, in turn, decreased with the increase in moisture but increased following the increase in salinity. Changes in soil nutrients were only very evident in the sandy soils of the beach, probably due to the influence of organic debris deposited on the shoreline by the storms and due to the strong increase in the colonisation of this habitat by perennial species. According to the results obtained, control measures are needed in order to preserve habitat diversity in this and other salt marshes of this area. Monitoring of the vegetation distribution could be a useful tool to identify environmental impacts, in order to implement remedial actions.     

Freshening of the Intermediate Waters in the Northern South China Sea over the PastSix Decades

The properties of salinity in the South China Sea (SCS), a significant marginal sea connecting the Pacific andIndian Oceans, are greatly influenced by the transport of fresh water flux between the two oceans. However, the long-termchanges in the intermediate water in the SCS have not been thoroughly studied due to limited data, particularly in relationto its thermodynamic variations. This study utilized reanalysis data products to identify a 60-year trend of freshening in theintermediate waters of the northern South China Sea (NSCS), accompanied by an expansion of low-salinity water. Thestudy also constructed salinity budget terms, including advection and entrainment processes, and conducted an analysis ofthe salinity budget to understand the impacts of external and internal dynamic processes on the freshening trend of theintermediate water in the NSCS. The analysis revealed that the freshening in the northwest Pacific Ocean and theintensification of intrusion through the Luzon Strait at intermediate levels are the primary drivers of the salinity changes inthe NSCS. Additionally, a weakened trend in the intensity of vertical entrainment also contributes to the freshening in theNSCS. This study offers new insights into the understanding of regional deep sea changes in response to variations in boththermodynamics and oceanic dynamic processes.     

旧路改建高速公路中地基强夯效应测试与工艺参数分析

旧路改建高速公路遇到的最主要的问题是地基的不均匀沉降。数值分析表明,对新的天然地基进行处理是解决这一问题的关键。强夯是加固地基的一种有效措施,为了对强夯工艺参数进行优化研究,对夯锤冲击地面过程中产生的动孔隙水压力、动土应力以及夯后超静孔隙水压力的消散过程进行了跟踪测试与分析。结果表明,对以风化料为主的地基,最大夯击数不宜超过4击,而且铺底夯完成2d后就可进行满夯。     

斜坡应力分布的系统测试与反演分析

采用简易、快速、经济的洞壁应力恢复法对某工程边坡勘探平硐洞壁应力场作了系统测试, 并采用FLAC2D软件对测试成果作了斜坡初始应力的反演分析。结果表明, 斜坡应力场随深度变化具有明显分带性, 应力量值随硐深曲线具有典型的驼峰式特征, 与理论分析结果相符, 表明该方法能较好地应用于斜坡应力场的系统测试和研究。成果对认识斜坡岩体的变形破裂及卸荷特征等具有重要意义。     

Time-dependent stress change during failure of rocks

The energy balance of a solid subject to fracture has been explored using heat and mass transfer equations with regard to the volumetric and superficial components. In the suggested model, brittle fracture of a cracked solid considered as a heterogeneous two-phase medium is described by an equation analogous to the Griffith’s criterion for propagation of a single crack. The derived equation is used, together with estimates of relative change in specific interface area, to study the respective change of free strain energy and pressure in rocks associated with failure.     

西藏札达盆地控盆断裂有限元数值模拟

札达盆地是喜马拉雅构造带中的一个山间断陷盆地,其演化过程与盆地两侧的控盆构造密切相关。对控盆断裂的构造应力场进行模拟计算,将有助于进一步深化对本区构造控盆的认识。因此,在对盆地构造地质进行详细调查的基础上,结合本区的深部地质与地球物理资料,对札达盆地控盆断裂的构造应力场进行了模拟。计算结果表明,札达盆地的演化明显受盆地两侧边界断裂的控制,札达盆地是在整体南北向挤压应力的作用下,不同块体差异隆升作用的结果。其南侧的控盆断裂为北倾的正断层,北侧的控盆断裂为南倾的逆断层,二者共同形成了南降北升的翘板式断陷盆地运动过程,是喜马拉雅地块在陆内汇聚挤压构造环境中构造应力场调整的一种方式。     

Definition and measurement of salinity in salt lakes

Salinity is the most important chemical attribute of athalassic salt lakes. Even so, some confusion persists of what salinity means and how to measure it. For sal lakes, salinity is best defined as the sum total of all ion concentrations, or total ion concentration. Ideally, it is recommended that salinities be expressed on a mass per mass basis and as ppt (parts per thousand). Direct measurements of salinity can only be derived from full ionic analyses. Indirect measurements can be derived by determinations of density, conductivity, freezing point depression and total dissolved solids or matter.     

On the physical model of earthquake precursor fields and the mechanism of precursors＇timespace distribution──origin and evidences of the strong body earthquake──generating model

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