Decreasing trend of sediment transfer function of the Upper Yellow River,China, in response to human activity and climate change

Abstract

An index (F_s) for sediment transfer function is introduced, based on the sediment budget at the channel scale. The purpose of this study is two-fold: to gain a deeper insight into how F_s is influenced by natural and human factors, and to provide some new knowledge for decision making in the management of the Upper Yellow River, China. Since 1960, the F_s of the Lanzhou to Toudaoguai reach of the Upper Yellow River shows a decreasing trend. At the drainage basin level, the decreased F_s can be explained by changes in precipitation and air temperature, as well as by a number of variables describing human activity, such as reservoir regulation, water diversion, and soil and water conservation. The higher temperature reduces the transfer function, while the larger runoff coefficient increases it. At the channel level, the decreased F_s can be explained by a number of variables of flow and sediment input. Three countermeasures for restoration of the F_s are suggested.

Editor Z.W. Kundzewicz     

Dune field development,interactions and boundary conditions for crescentic and stellate megadunes of the Al Liwa Basin,the Empty Quarter

Within the greater Ar Rub' al Khali (Empty Quarter) sand sea lies an internal depocentre, the Al Liwa Basin, which comprises a variety of mega‐scale dune types. Crescentic dunes dominant the north of the basin while megadunes of stellate or star form are a major landform of the south‐eastern reaches. Their development into dune fields is determined by the style and rate of dune–dune interactions, the boundary conditions imposed by a multi‐modal wind regime, fluctuating groundwater levels, and sediment availability under an assortment of climatic conditions throughout the Quaternary. As a result, dune field patterns are a collective response to these perturbations in space, time and environment. The R‐statistic is a collective measure of these responses, and is a metric capable of identifying the degree of pattern maturity or self‐organization of the aeolian system, and the pathways from which patterns evolve. The spatial signature of the southerly located star dunes is characterized by two definitive patterns of organization: the first, one of complete spatial randomness, the second, a low degree of spatial uniformity. In isolation, these results appear to be unrelated to those for crescentic dunes of the region in which a significantly higher degree of pattern dispersion is the norm. However, when spatial statistical measures are integrated with the theoretical understanding of dune–dune interactions and the involvement of environmental agents, the complex morphodynamic pathways and linkages between regional dune fields is better understood. In this case, both constructive (e.g. merging, lateral linking) and regenerative activity (e.g. calving) have played important roles in the development of dune size, and associated adjustments in spacing, and dune numbers, and subsequently dune field patterns. Synergetic patterns are emblematic of this vast dunescape, whereby transitional geographic, morphologic, dimensional and environmental modifications exist between the mega‐crescentic and mega‐stellate dunes of the Empty Quarter. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Annual to decadal morphodynamics of the foredune system at Greenwich Dunes,Prince Edward Island,Canada

The purpose of this study was to quantify relationships between season, sediment availability, sediment transport pathways, and beach/foredune morphology at Greenwich Dunes, PEI. This was done for periods ranging from a few days to multiple decades using erosion pins, bedframe measurements, annual surveys, and digital photogrammetry using historical aerial photographs. The relative significance of seasonal/annual processes versus response of the foredune system to broader geomorphic controls (e.g. relative sea level rise, storms, etc.) was also assessed. The data show that there are clear seasonal differences in the patterns of sand supply from the beach to the foredune at Greenwich and that there are differences in sediment supply to the foredune between the east and west reaches of the study area, resulting in ongoing differences in foredune morphology. They also demonstrate that models that incorporate wind climate alone, or even models that include other factors like beach moisture, would not be able to predict the amount of sediment movement from the beach to the foredune in this environment unless there were some way to parameterize system morphology, especially the presence or absence of a dune ramp. Finally, the data suggest that the foredune can migrate landward while maintaining its form via transfers of sediment from the stoss slope, over the crest, and onto the lee slope. Although the rate of foredune development or recovery after disturbance changes over time due to morphological feedback, the overall decadal evolution of the foredune system at Greenwich is consistent with, and supports, the Davidson‐Arnott (2005) conceptual model of dune transgression under rising sea level. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The dynamics of natural pipe hydrological behaviour in blanket peat

Natural soil pipes are found in peatlands, but little is known about their hydrological role. This paper presents the most complete set of pipe discharge data to date from a deep blanket peatland in Northern England. In a 17.4‐ha catchment, we identified 24 perennially flowing and 60 ephemerally flowing pipe outlets. Eight pipe outlets along with the catchment outlet were continuously gauged over an 18‐month period. The pipes in the catchment were estimated to produce around 13.7% of annual streamflow, with individual pipes often producing large peak flows (maximum peak of 3.8 l s^?1). Almost all pipes, whether ephemerally or perennially flowing, shallow or deep (outlets > 1 m below the peat surface), showed increased discharge within a mean of 3 h after rainfall commencement and were dominated by stormflow, indicating good connectivity between the peatland surface and the pipes. However, almost all pipes had a longer period between the hydrograph peak and the return to base flow compared with the stream (mean of 23.9 h for pipes, 19.7 h for stream). As a result, the proportion of streamflow produced by the pipes at any given time increased at low flows and formed the most important component of stream discharge for the lowest 10% of flows. Thus, a small number of perennially flowing pipes became more important to the stream system under low‐flow conditions and probably received water via matrix flow during periods between storms. Given the importance of pipes to streamflow in blanket peatlands, further research is required into their wider role in influencing stream water chemistry, water temperature and fluvial carbon fluxes, as well as their role in altering local hydrochemical cycling within the peat mass itself. Enhanced piping within peatlands caused by environmental change may lead to changes in the streamflow regime with larger low flows and more prolonged drainage of the peat. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A late Holocene winter monsoon record inferred from the palaeo-aeolian sand dune in the southeastern Mu Us Desert, northern China

The variation of the Asian winter monsoonal strength has seriously affected the climate and environmental conditions in the Asian monsoonal region, and even in marginal islands and the ocean in the East Asian region. However, relevant understanding remains unclear due to the lack of suitable geological materials and effective proxies in the key study areas. Here, we present a grain-size record derived from the palaeo-aeolian sand dune in the southeastern Mu Us Desert, together with other proxies and OSL dating, which reflect a relatively detailed history of the winter monsoon and abrupt environmental events during the past 4.2 ka. Our grain-size standard deviation model indicated that >224 μm content can be considered as an indicator of the intensity of Asian winter monsoon, and it shows declined around 4.2-2.1 ka, enhanced but unstable in 2.1-0.9 ka, and obviously stronger since then. In addition, several typical climate events were also documented, forced by the periodic variation of winter monsoonal intensity. These include the cold intervals of 4.2, 2.8, 1.4 ka, and the Little Ice Age (LIA), and relatively warm sub-phases around 3.0, 2.1, 1.8 ka, and the Medieval Warm Period (MWP), which were roughly accordant with the records of the aeolian materials, peat, stalagmites, ice cores, and sea sediments in various latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere. Combined with the previous progresses of the Asian summer monsoon, we preliminarily confirmed a millennial-scale anti-correlation of Asian winter and summer monsoons in the Late Holocene epoch. This study suggests that the evolution of the palaeo-aeolian sand dune has the potential for comprehending the history of Asian monsoon across the desert regions of the modern Asian monsoonal margin in northern China.     

盾构隧道抬升作用下极限上覆土压力计算方法

注浆抬升技术是盾构隧道不均匀沉降治理的有效措施之一,但目前尚存在隧道抬升过程上覆土压力计算困难而无法估算抬升引起的隧道受力变形的问题。利用透明土结合PIV观测技术设计研发了模拟盾构隧道抬升的小比尺室内模型试验系统,通过试验获得了隧道抬升过程极限上覆土压力及上覆土速度场,根据上覆土的剪切滑移特征将上覆土分成了4个不同的运动区域,进而结合相关联流动法则,提出了隧道抬升作用下极限上覆土压力计算模型,并基于虚功平衡方程,推导了极限上覆土压力计算表达式。将计算所得的极限上覆土压力值与试验结果进行对比,两者有较好的吻合度,计算误差在4%～15%之间。     

重庆东温泉山既有隧道疏排对岩溶水的影响

岩溶水径流路径非常复杂,而隧道疏排对岩溶水的影响更是一个长期复杂的过程。在长期观测数据以及实地调查研究的基础上,分析重庆东温泉山既有隧道疏排对岩溶水的影响,总结出水平流动带内隧道疏排岩溶水形成的降落漏斗一般可达到隧道标高附近,岩溶裂隙水带内隧道疏排岩溶水形成的降落漏斗仍保持在隧道上方一定高度,渗透性是隧道疏排对岩溶水影响的关键因素。      

基于三维激光扫描的地铁隧道连续形变监测数据处理软件系统

利用地基三维激光扫描技术所具有的“形测量”特点,结合高精度、高空间分辨率的多时相点云数据,实现地铁隧道连续形变监测数据处理的软件系统。系统的主要功能包括：点云拼接、隧道中轴线拟合、断面连续截取、形变分析以及成果输出等。结合对上海某地铁隧道的多期激光扫描数据的处理,展示软件的主要功能和技术流程,最后对系统的应用前景进行阐述。     

地铁隧洞带水作业施工技术

以在建的北京地铁十号线双井一劲松区间暗挖隧道为例，通过分析北京特殊地层在带水条件下单洞结构单线隧道台阶法的施工工艺，洞悉浅埋暗挖正台阶法施工中超前预加固、开挖时空顺序、台阶长度等工艺对围岩稳定性的影响程度。     

破碎岩体浅埋大跨公路隧道开挖方案对比研究

三车道高速公路隧道通常跨度较大、高跨比较小属于大跨扁平隧道。这种结构型式对围岩稳定和结构受力均产生不利影响,因此施工中有必要通过开挖方案比选确定合理的开挖方法。江苏省宁波-常州高速公路茅山东隧道为上下行分离式双向6车道浅埋大跨扁平隧道。对于破碎的Ⅳ级围岩,针对设计阶段拟采用CRD法和实际施工采用下断面左右分部台阶法的开挖方案在设计支护条件下的三维数值模拟,从理论上分析了下断面左右分部台阶法是可行的。与实际施工过程的监控量测结果进行对比分析,进一步证实了实际开挖方案的合理性。研究成果可以为同类工程的设计与施工提供理论参考。