Storm event sediment fingerprinting for temporal and spatial sediment source tracing

Sediment fingerprinting has been widely used to distinguish discrete sediment sources; however, application to intra-storm sediment source variability has received relatively little focus despite the benefit being long recognized. In this investigation, sediment fingerprinting was applied to a 53-hr storm event sampled hourly to determine sediment source dynamics throughout the event. Sediment sources were differentiated using 16 variables, and source contribution determined using Bayesian and Frequentist mixing models for comparison. Both models provided comparable source predictions for the dominant source estimates and the general temporal pattern. The Frequentist model appeared to exhibit some unreliable values coinciding with low GOF and attributed to inherent model structure. The Bayesian model showed higher uncertainty, likely due to the “process error” utilized associated with single sample mixtures. High variability in sediment source contribution was observed between hourly time steps; however, local smoothing reveals temporal trends during the event. A higher average proportion of mudstone is found in the falling limb (0.544) compared with the rising limb (0.464), and the reverse is observed for mountain range (0.218 vs. 0.283) and unconsolidated (0.073 vs. 0.055). In the initial hours of the storm, mudstone source contribution significantly drops, whereas mountain range and unconsolidated contributions peak. The SSC-Q clockwise hysteresis indicates proximal sediment sources, suggesting the mudstone sediment is stored channel sediment and easily entrained. This sediment flushes through, coinciding with a drop as the distal mountain range and unconsolidated sources arrive to peak contribution. The wider Manawatū discharge and sediment load then arrive, delivering increasing levels of mudstone throughout the remainder of the event while mountain range sediment diminishes. Spatial representation of the sediment source contribution was derived from distributing sediment source loads to the spatial extent of the source material according to sub-catchment sediment loads and was weighted according to slope. This provided an effective means to visualize the origin of the sediment and a better spatial interpretation of sediment fingerprinting results, which is typically limited by poor spatial resolution.     

数据预处理在滑坡位移相关分析中的应用

滑坡位移的变化除受控于其内在的地质条件之外,也受到外在诱发因素动态作用的影响.为更好地揭示滑坡位移变化与诱发因素的综合关系,运用多种数据预处理方法对滑坡位移监测数据进行了处理分析.以巫山监测预警示范站玉皇阁崩滑体为例,分别采用t检验准则、正交多项式及三次样条函数进行数据剔除处理、数据平滑处理及数据等距化处理,在得到有效数据的基础上,对滑坡位移量与降雨量、库水位.变化等诱发因素进行了相关分析.结果表明,滑坡位移量与降雨量、库水位变化等诱发因素存在较强的相关性,同时具有典型的滞后性,其中,连续降雨与库水位下降是滑坡变形主要的直接诱发因素,且连续降雨对滑坡位移影响的滞后时间为0～6 d,库水位下降对滑坡位移影响的滞后时间为0～21 d.     

Lumped hysteretic model for subsurface stormflow developed using downward approach

The terms ‘downward’ and ‘upward’ (synonymous with ‘top‐down’ and ‘bottom‐up’ respectively) are sometimes used when describing methods for developing hydrological models. A downward approach is used here to develop a lumped catchment‐scale model for subsurface stormflow at the 0·94 km² Slapton Wood catchment. During the development, as few assumptions as possible are made about the behaviour of subsurface stormflow at the catchment scale, and no assumptions are made about its behaviour at smaller scales. (In an upward approach, in contrast, the modelling would be based on assumptions about, and data for, the behaviour at smaller scales, such as the hillslope, plot, and point scales.) The model has a single store with a relatively simple relationship between discharge and storage, based on equations describing hysteretic patterns seen in a graph of discharge against storage. Double‐peaked hydrographs have been observed at the catchment outlet. Rainfall on the channel and infiltration‐excess and saturation‐excess runoff give a rapid response, and shallow subsurface stormflow gives a delayed response. Hydrographs are successfully simulated for the large delayed responses observed in 1971–1980 and 1989–1991, then a lumped model for the rapid response is coupled to the lumped hysteretic model and some double‐peaked hydrographs simulated. A physical interpretation is developed for the lumped hysteretic model, making use of information on patterns of perched saturation observed in 1982 on a hillslope at the Slapton Wood catchment. Downward and upward approaches are complementary, and the most robust way to develop and improve lumped catchment models is to iterate between downward and upward steps. Possible next steps are described. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Water budget and surface‐layer water storage in a Sphagnum bog in central Sweden

A water budget was established for the open, undisturbed bog Stormossen, central Sweden, for the growing seasons of 1996 and 1997 as a part of the NOPEX project. The water budget was complemented with data on the spatial variation of groundwater levels and water contents in different microrelief elements (ridge, hollow and ridge margin). The seasonal (24 May to 4 October) rainfall, evaporation and runoff were 200, 256, and 43 mm in 1996, respectively, and 310, 286 and 74 mm in 1997, giving negative budgets of ?99 mm in 1996 and ?50 mm in 1997. Approximately 60% of the total budget was caused by storage changes in the upper 40 cm of the bog and 40% by swelling/shrinking in the layers below. This ‘mire breathing’ must be incorporated in future models of mire‐water dynamics. The water content varied diversely among the different microrelief elements, much depending on the properties of moss and peat together with distance to water table. There also was a strong hysteresis in the relationships between groundwater level and measured volumetric water content, depending partly on pore‐throat effects and partly on swelling/shrinking of the peat matrix. A seasonal variation of volumetric water content in a layer beneath water table was found to be larger than what could be justified by compression alone. We think that probable causes could be methane gas expansion together with temperature effects. The main conclusions of this study were: (i) water‐transport and storage characteristics are distinctly different among hummocks, ridges and hollows, (ii) mire wetness cannot be deduced from groundwater levels only, and (iii) an important part of the total water storage was caused by swelling/shrinking of the peat, not by changes in unsaturated water content. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Surface and subsurface water contributions to streamflow from a mesoscale watershed in complex mountain terrain

An understanding of surface and subsurface water contributions to streamflow is essential for accurate predictions of water supply from mountain watersheds that often serve as water towers for downstream communities. As such, this study used the end‐member mixing analysis technique to investigate source water contributions and hydrologic flow paths of the 264 km² Boulder Creek Watershed, which drains the Colorado Front Range, USA. Four conservative hydrochemical tracers were used to describe this watershed as a 3 end‐member system, and tracer concentration reconstruction suggested that the application of end‐member mixing analysis was robust. On average from 2009 to 2011, snowmelt and rainwater from the subalpine zone and groundwater sampled from the upper montane zone contributed 54%, 22%, and 24% of the annual streamflow, respectively. These values demonstrate increased rainwater and decreased snow water contributions to streamflow relative to area‐weighted mean values derived from previous work at the headwater scale. Young water (2.3 ± 0.8 months) fractions of streamflow decreased from 18–22% in the alpine catchment to 8–10% in the lower elevation catchments and the watershed outlet with implications for subsurface storage and hydrological connectivity. These results contribute to a process‐based understanding of the seasonal source water composition of a mesoscale watershed that can be used to extrapolate headwater streamflow generation predictions to larger spatial scales.     

Interpreting nested storm event suspended sediment-discharge hysteresis relationships at large catchment scales

Reducing soil erosion and sediment delivery into rivers is a major aim for land management in New Zealand. Therefore, it is important to identify areas of sediment generation and their relationship to in-stream suspended sediment concentrations and water quality attributes. It is possible to infer and assess sediment sources and dynamics using storm event suspended sediment concentration-discharge hysteresis shape and loop direction. Research in small catchments has achieved some success; however, research in larger (>10³ km²) catchments has shown the inherent difficulty of interpreting hysteresis patterns at larger scales. In this paper, we use a nested, long-term suspended sediment monitoring program across a large catchment (3,903 km²: Manawatū in New Zealand) to address these challenges. We evaluate the hysteresis patterns of five major tributaries (subcatchment areas 329–1,298 km²) of the Manawatū River together with the hysteresis patterns at the gauged catchment outlet. Hysteresis patterns of the Manawatū subcatchments can be characterized as predominantly clockwise, that is, high hysteresis index (HI) value. Larger storms (discharge >2 × 10⁷ m³) increase the likelihood of clockwise hysteresis directions, whereas smaller storms (discharge <2 × 10⁷ m³) are more likely to be anticlockwise. The link between suspended sediment concentration-discharge hysteresis and subcatchment sediment sources becomes increasingly attenuated within the larger subcatchments. High antecedent discharge negatively correlates to HI values, suggesting conditions immediately before the storm have an influence on whether the catchment is “primed” or “exhausted” with available sediment. The different storm categories indicate that within this catchment, whereas hysteresis patterns vary due to the spatial origin of discharge and sediment to some extent, storm magnitude has a stronger impact on hysteresis dynamics than spatial origin.     

Downstream evolution of wastewater treatment plant nutrient signals using high-temporal monitoring

Wastewater treatment plants are major point-sources of nutrients to streams globally, but the impact on receiving streams is not always clear. Previous research has shown mixed responses in receiving streams, with some showing no net retention through in-stream processing for large distances below plants and some showing high rates of processing and retention. This study focuses on Sandy Run, a small, suburban stream in Montgomery County, PA, that receives effluent from two plants, where effluent makes up an estimated 50% of outlet discharge at baseflow. Two sites were monitored in late summer baseflow using high-temporal loggers to evaluate nitrate and phosphate retention with distance below the plants. Effluent quantity was monitored immediately below the effluent outfalls using specific conductivity as a conservative signal of solute fluctuations throughout the day. A site 1 km downstream showed diel nitrate changes, but despite moderate gross primary productivity and ecosystem respiration rates, there was little net retention of nutrients and the diel nitrate signal can be attributed to advection and dispersion of variable upstream effluent. A site 5.4 km below the plant showed a diel nitrate signal as well, but baseflow daily hysteresis plots of nitrate and specific conductivity showed the effluent and nitrate peaks did not coincide. Instead, the effluent input signal was seen overnight, but there was in-stream removal and release processes during the day. Over the distance to this site, the stream was metabolizing some of the high nutrient loads, although gross primary productivity and ecosystem respiration rates were lower. It is important to understand subdaily changes in nutrient processing to fully quantify the impacts of effluent on small streams at different scales. Furthermore, looking at the diel signal without considering conservative transport would overestimate in-stream processing.     

T形截面短肢剪力墙刚度及延性研究

基于T形截面的六片短肢剪力墙,两片普通剪力墙在低周反复水平荷载作用下的试验,描述了短肢剪力墙的破坏现象。通过对滞回曲线及骨架曲线的分析,找出短肢剪力墙试件从开始开裂直至破坏过程中刚度退化系数随试件位移变化的规律,并利用最小二乘法模拟了此曲线,给出了模拟公式。确定了试件的位移延性,比较了各试件间的差异。此外,通过与两片普通剪力墙试验结果的对比,发现当短肢剪力墙的高厚比从规范规定的8变化到普通剪力墙的9时性能差异并不明显。     

土体冻融特征研究现状与展望

冻土中水分迁移是导致土体冻胀的关键因素,而研究水分迁移及其驱动力的核心问题是要充分理解未冻水含量与温度、基质吸力等变量之间的关系,这些关系可充分体现土体在冻融过程中土水变化特征。长期以来,对土体冻融特征的研究采取的是与非饱和土力学中的土水特征类比的方法进行,结果也证明了二者存在一定的相似性。但是冻土中因冰-水相界面作用产生基质吸力与融土中水-气相界面作用产生基质吸力的机理并不完全相同,而由于相变等其他作用产生的冻融滞后效应与融土中孔隙“墨水瓶效应”等引起的滞后效应机理也有区别。针对这些机理性的不同,还需要做大量的研究工作才能真正揭示土体的冻融特征。通过对目前土体冻融特征方面研究进展和存在问题的归纳总结,笔者认为今后在这方面还需深入开展如下研究：建立适合各类土壤冻融特征的一般预测模型,使得在缺少数据条件下能快速获取所需土样的冻融特征;研究土体在冻融和干湿变化过程中存在的类似性及区别,对冻融过程中存在的滞后效应机理给出合理的解释;提升冻融特征变量的测试技术水平,研发高精度的相关仪器设备。     

低围压循环荷载作用下饱和粗粒土的动力特性与骨干曲线模型研究

基床层是铁路路基的核心组成部分,一般为粗颗粒土,厚约2.5～3.0 m,长期直接承受行车荷载的反复作用,其在动载反复作用下的变形特性是评价路基工作性能的关键要素之一。为研究粗粒土在列车循环荷载作用下的应力-应变特性,开展了一系列应力控制的单向循环加载大型动三轴试验,模拟列车动载和路基粗粒料填筑实际情况,包括不同动应力幅值（模拟不同列车轴重）、不同围压（模拟不同埋深）的动三轴持续振动试验。结果表明,在循环荷载作用下,土体刚度变化与振动次数、围压关系密切。根据动应力幅值大小的不同,循环荷载作用下饱和粗粒土的动应变随振次的发展形态可分为3种类型：稳定型、破坏型和临界型。根据试验所得出的动应力-应变关系曲线特点,建立了含围压和循环振次的骨干曲线模型。与传统的骨干曲线模型相比,该模型能反映土体刚度随循环振次的变化,更能反映列车往复作用的实际情况;同时该模型能用于估算路基土体动强度,对铁路路基核心层的动力变形稳定性评价和基于动力变形控制的路基设计具有参考价值。