Fully coupled elastoplastic hydro-mechanical analysis of unsaturated porous media using a meshfree method

This paper presents the first application of an advanced meshfree method, ie, the edge-based smoothed point interpolation method (ESPIM), in simulation of the coupled hydro-mechanical behaviour of unsaturated porous media. In the proposed technique, the problem domain is spatially discretised using a triangular background mesh, and the polynomial point interpolation method combined with a simple node selection scheme is adopted for creating nodal shape functions. Smoothing domains are formed on top of the background mesh, and a constant smoothed strain, created by applying the smoothing operation over the smoothing domains, is assigned to each smoothing domain. The deformation and flow models are developed based on the equilibrium equation of the mixture, and linear momentum and mass balance equations of the fluid phases, respectively. The effective stress approach is followed to account for the coupling between the flow and deformation models. Further coupling among the phases is captured through a hysteretic soil water retention model that evolves with changes in void ratio. An advanced elastoplastic constitutive model within the context of the bounding surface plasticity theory is employed for predicting the nonlinear behaviour of soil skeleton. Time discretisation is performed by adopting a three-point discretisation method with growing time steps to avoid temporal instabilities. A modified Newton-Raphson framework is designed for dealing with nonlinearities of the discretised system of equations. The performance of the numerical model is examined through a number of numerical examples. The state-of-the-art computational scheme developed is useful for simulation of geotechnical engineering problems involving unsaturated soils.     

Fast genetic mapping in barley: case studies of cuticle mutants using RNA-sequencing

Barley(Hordeum vulgare L.) is one of the earliest domesticated crop species and ranked as the fourth largest cereal production worldwide. Forward genetic studies in barley have greatly advanced plant genetics during the last century; however, most genes are identified by the conventional mapping method. Array genotyping and exome-capture sequencing have also been successfully used to target the causal mutation in barley populations, but these techniques are not widely adopted because of associated costs and partly due to the huge genome size of barley. This review summarizes three mapping cases of barley cuticle mutants in our laboratory with the help of RNA-sequencing. The causal mutations have been successfully identified for two of them and the target genes are located in the pericentromeric regions. Detailed information on the mapping-by-sequencing, mapping-and-sequencing, and RNA-sequencing assisted linkage mapping are presented and some limitations and challenges on the mapping assisted by RNA sequencing are also discussed. The alternative and elegant methods presented in this review may greatly accelerate forward genetics of barley mapping, especially for laboratories without large funding.     

Metamorphism in Archaean greenstone belts: calculated fluid compositions and implications for gold mineralization

An inescapable consequence of the metamorphism of greenstone belt sequences is the release of a large volume of metamorphic fluid of low salinity with chemical characteristics controlled by the mineral assemblages involved in the devolatilization reactions. For mafic and ultramafic sequences, the composition of fluids released at upper greenschist to lower amphibolite facies conditions for the necessary relatively hot geotherm corresponds to those inferred for greenstone gold deposits (X_CO2= 0.2–0.3). This result follows from the calculation of mineral equilibria in the model system CaO–MgO–FeO–Al₂O₃–SiO₂–H₂O–CO₂, using a new, expanded, internally consistent dataset. Greenstone metamorphism cannot have involved much crustal over-thickening, because very shallow levels of greenstone belts are preserved. Such orogeny can be accounted for if compressive deformation of the crust is accompanied by thinning of the mantle lithosphere. In this case, the observed metamorphism, which was contemporaneous with deformation, is of the low-P high-T type. For this type of metamorphism, the metamorphic peak should have occurred earlier at deeper levels in the crust; i.e. the piezothermal array should be of the ‘deeper-earlier’type. However, at shallow crustal levels, the piezothermal array is likely to have been of ‘deeper-later’type, as a consequence of erosion. Thus, while the lower crust reached maximum temperatures, and partially melted to produce the observed granites, mid-crustal levels were releasing fluids prograde into shallow crustal levels that were already retrograde. We propose that these fluids are responsible for the gold mineralization. Thus, the contemporaneity of igneous activity and gold mineralization is a natural consequence of the thermal evolution, and does not mean that the mineralization has to be a consequence of igneous processes. Upward migration of metamorphic fluid, via appropriate structurally controlled pathways, will bring the fluid into contact with mineral assemblages that have equilibrated with a fluid with significantly lower X_CO2. These assemblages are therefore grossly out of equilibrium with the fluid. In the case of infiltrated metabasic rocks, intense carbonation and sulphidation is predicted. If, as seems reasonable, gold is mobilized by the fluid generated by devolatilization, then the combination of processes proposed, most of which are an inevitable consequence of the metamorphism, leads to the formation of greenstone gold deposits predominantly from metamorphic fluids.     

巴颜喀拉山东段及其邻区大地电磁测深成果地质解释

本文主要依据青海省囊歉至大河坝大地电磁测深成果,并结合重力资料对巴颜喀拉及南北两侧地区的壳幔结构进行了地质解释。指出了该区壳幔存在4个明显的低阻层,并简述了它们的形态特征,推断了其地质含意。认为昆中断裂带与昆南断裂带间是一个巨大的构造混杂岩带,影响深度亦很大。推断该区可能存在太古代地层。划出了8条壳幔断裂带,认为昆中断裂应是塔里木—华北板块与华南板块的分界线。     

The Expansion of the Distance Between Two Arbitrary Gravitating Points as Applied to Specific Models of Celestial Bodies

For the complete system of biharmonic functions a suitable representation in spheroidal coordinates is found. It is used for expanding the distance between two arbitrary gravitating points and its inverse quantity in appropriate series. Such expansions can be of interest and useful in a number of problems of celestial mechanics and stellar dynamics.     

SOHM-4与MHM-2010氢原子频标的特点比较

基于对已投入国家授时中心守时运转的SOHM-4型与MHM-2010型氢原子频标的长期关注,对这两种氢原子频标的性能作了较详细的比较和分析。讨论了它们共同的优点、各自的特长和不足之处,还给出了稳定度的测试结果。     

基于GPS实现测频等功能的虚拟仪器的研制

设计和研制了一种适用于大专院校示范教学实验的虚拟仪器。该虚拟仪器以GPS接收模块输出的1PPS(秒脉冲)信号为基准,测量无源石英晶体振荡器频率,同时利用GPS信号实现了仪器的时间同步与测距功能。从硬件和软件两方面描述了该虚拟仪器的构成及设计方法,主要介绍和讨论基于GPS和虚拟仪器技术实现多功能测量的途径。     

Application of stress release models to historical earthquakes from North China

Univariate and multivariate stress release models are fitted to historical earthquake data from North China. It is shown that a better fit is obtained by treating separately the Eastern part of the region, including the North China Plain and Bohai Sea, and the Western part of the region, including the Ordos Plateau and its Eastern boundary. Further improvement is obtained by fitting the large events (M7.6) and smaller events in the Western region by different stress release models. The comparisons are made by computing the likelihoods of the fitted models and discounting the number of parameters used by Akaike's AIC criterion. The models are used to develop long-term risk scenarios for the East and West regions.     

Magnetotelluric investigations for imaging electrical structure of Garhwal Himalayan corridor,Uttarakhand, India

Magnetotelluric investigations have been carried out in the Garhwal Himalayan corridor to delineate the electrical structure of the crust along a profile extending from Indo-Gangetic Plain to Higher Himalayan region in Uttarakhand, India. The profile passing through major Himalayan thrusts: Himalayan Frontal Thrust (HFF), Main Boundary Thrust (MBT) and Main Central Thrust (MCT), is nearly perpendicular to the regional geological strike. Data processing and impedance analysis indicate that out of 44 stations MT data recorded, only 27 stations data show in general, the validity of 2D assumption. The average geoelectric strike, N70°W, was estimated for the profile using tensor decomposition. 2D smooth geoelectrical model has been presented, which provides the electrical image of the shallow and deeper crustal structure. The major features of the model are (i) a low resistivity (<50Ωm), shallow feature interpreted as sediments of Siwalik and Indo-Gangetic Plain, (ii) highly resistive (> 1000Ωm) zone below the sediments at a depth of 6 km, interpreted as the top surface of the Indian plate, (iii) a low resistivity (< 10Ωm) below the depth of 6 km near MCT zone coincides with the intense micro-seismic activity in the region. The zone is interpreted as the partial melting or fluid phase at mid crustal depth. Sensitivity test indicates that the major features of the geoelectrical model are relevant and desired by the MT data.     

多接收器电感耦合等离子体质谱法测定镉标准溶液中镉的同位素组成

建立了多接收器电感耦合等离子体质谱仪对Cd标准溶液同位素组成进行分析的实验方法。仪器的质量分馏校正采用Standard-Sample Bracketing法。实验结果用δ114/110Cd来表达。在此研究基础上,以SPEX Cd标准溶液为参考标准,对国外4种Cd标准溶液进行了测定。结果表明,实验测定的精度在0.07‰~0.13‰(δ114/110Cd),与目前文献报道的结果具有相似的精度。以最新SPEX Cd标准样品(δ114/110Cd=0)为基准,计算的δ114/110CdJMC、δ114/110CdSPEX-1、δ114/110CdBAM1012和δ114/110CdM櫣nster的值分别为0.55‰、0.56‰、-0.65‰和5.14‰,说明不同批次SPEX标准溶液的Cd同位素组成是明显不同的,最新的SPEX Cd标准溶液与SPEX-1 Cd的δ114/110Cd值存在着0.56‰的差别。将以SPEX Cd为参考标准的δ114/110CdBAM1012和δ114/110CdM櫣nster转化为以SPEX-1或JMC为参考标准后,得到的结果与文献报道的结果在误差范围内一致。