Modelling the effect of changing precipitation inputs on deep soil water utilization

Forests in the Southeastern United States are predicted to experience future changes in seasonal patterns of precipitation inputs as well as more variable precipitation events. These climate change‐induced alterations could increase drought and lower soil water availability. Drought could alter rooting patterns and increase the importance of deep roots that access subsurface water resources. To address plant response to drought in both deep rooting and soil water utilization as well as soil drainage, we utilize a throughfall reduction experiment in a loblolly pine plantation of the Southeastern United States to calibrate and validate a hydrological model. The model was accurately calibrated against field measured soil moisture data under ambient rainfall and validated using 30% throughfall reduction data. Using this model, we then tested these scenarios: (a) evenly reduced precipitation; (b) less precipitation in summer, more in winter; (c) same total amount of precipitation with less frequent but heavier storms; and (d) shallower rooting depth under the above 3 scenarios. When less precipitation was received, drainage decreased proportionally much faster than evapotranspiration implying plants will acquire water first to the detriment of drainage. When precipitation was reduced by more than 30%, plants relied on stored soil water to satisfy evapotranspiration suggesting 30% may be a threshold that if sustained over the long term would deplete plant available soil water. Under the third scenario, evapotranspiration and drainage decreased, whereas surface run‐off increased. Changes in root biomass measured before and 4 years after the throughfall reduction experiment were not detected among treatments. Model simulations, however, indicated gains in evapotranspiration with deeper roots under evenly reduced precipitation and seasonal precipitation redistribution scenarios but not when precipitation frequency was adjusted. Deep soil and deep rooting can provide an important buffer capacity when precipitation alone cannot satisfy the evapotranspirational demand of forests. How this buffering capacity will persist in the face of changing precipitation inputs, however, will depend less on seasonal redistribution than on the magnitude of reductions and changes in rainfall frequency.     

超基性岩中含铜、钴块状硫化物矿床——德尔尼铜矿成因新认识

长期以来对德尔尼铜矿的成因存在着不同认识。从矿石组成和结构、构造来看,应属典型的块状硫化物矿石,矿床亦应属于含铜黄铁矿型矿床。但从其地质产状来看又与一般的黄铁矿型矿床大不相同,与一般的岩浆熔离铜镍硫化物矿床也有较多差异。这就是本矿床类型独特之处。近年来通过工作又取得一些新资料,特别是超基性岩和矿石的同位素年龄数据。本文在综合新老资料基础上,提出新看法,认为该矿床形成于上地幔,再就位于地壳浅部。其成因类型暂定为:“深部熔离—构造侵位矿床”。鉴于本矿床与一般块状硫化物矿床相比有其独特性,建议命名为“德尔尼型”。     

塔中4号油藏渗透率分布的非均质性及渗流方向研究

研究油藏内部油水渗流方向时,主要考虑渗透率影响,引入两个水平方向渗透率比、水平与垂向渗透率比参数来分析。前者反映样品所在储层平面上两个水平方向渗流能力的差异,后者反映样品所在储层水平与垂向渗流能力的差异,并经小柱样测试和全岩心测试两种方法确定两个参数。通过对塔中4号油藏CⅠ油组9口井2306个样品两种渗透率比值分布直方图分析,研究了CⅠ油组渗透率的非均质性及其渗流方向:CI油组储层在水平方向的渗流能力有很大差异,具有明显的方向性。储层垂向渗流能力明显小于水平方向的渗流能力。     

Deep Processes of Basin Evolution:A Case Study of the Southern Songliao Basin and Adjacent Area,NE China in Mesozoic-Cenozoic

1IntroductionOne of the key factors related to basin geody-namics is deep process controlling formation and evolution of sedimentary basin. Depth and tempera-ture of asthenosphere,existence of mantle plume,occurrence of mantle melting,and amounts of melts under depressurization during thinning of lithosphere are controlling factors influenced formation and characteristics of extensional basin directly (Li,1994). Rifting is probably governed by frictional forces exerted on the base of litho…     

Tests and constraints on theories of galaxy formation and evolution

Tests and constraints on current theories of galaxy formation and evolution are presented. They are derived from observations of the Northern Hubble Deep Field with WFPC2 and NICMOS. Photometric redshifts, extinctions and spectral energy distributions are calculated for all objects in the field. The tests and constraints are derived from the output of this analysis. The tests of the predictions from hierarchical and pure luminosity evolution galaxy evolution calculations favor the hierarchical model. Constraints are provided by the current luminosity function and its evolution to a redshift of 6. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Reliability assessment of serviceability performance of braced retaining walls using a neural network approach

In urban environments, one major concern with deep excavations in soft clay is the potentially large ground deformations in and around the excavation. Excessive movements can damage adjacent buildings and utilities. There are many uncertainties associated with the calculation of the ultimate or serviceability performance of a braced excavation system. These include the variabilities of the loadings, geotechnical soil properties, and engineering and geometrical properties of the wall. A risk‐based approach to serviceability performance failure is necessary to incorporate systematically the uncertainties associated with the various design parameters. This paper demonstrates the use of an integrated neural network–reliability method to assess the risk of serviceability failure through the calculation of the reliability index. By first performing a series of parametric studies using the finite element method and then approximating the non‐linear limit state surface (the boundary separating the safe and ‘failure’ domains) through a neural network model, the reliability index can be determined with the aid of a spreadsheet. Two illustrative examples are presented to show how the serviceability performance for braced excavation problems can be assessed using the reliability index. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Circulation in the Gulf of Aqaba (Red Sea) during winter—spring

This study is devoted to oceanographic features of the semi-enclosed Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea. The data were recorded in winter—spring 1999 on the R/V Meteor cruise leg 44/2. Temperature and salinity profiles were measured at six positions (I—VI). The shipboard NarrowBand Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (NB ADCP) 150 kHz continuously recorded current profiles down to 350 m en route. The research revealed that the current near the Strait of Tiran front (position VI) represents a semidiurnal signal of an internal tide wave (∼12 h period; 0.2 ms⁻¹ amplitude) that might be generated by the barotropic tide at the sill of the Strait. A sequence of cyclonic and anticyclonic eddy pairs is found along the axis of the Gulf of Aqaba during winter-spring seasons. These sub-mesoscale signals are dominant above the main thermocline and might be caused by wind forcing and the narrowness of the Gulf; it might remain in other seasons with different dimensions in relation to the depth of thermocline. The total diameter of each pair was twice the baroclinic Rossby radius (R ≈ 10 km). A single anti-cyclonic eddy was observed in the upper 300 m in the northern tip of the Gulf with a diameter of about 5–8 km.     

Design and Strength Analysis of A Spherical Connector for Lifting Subsystem in Deep Sea Mining System

1 .IntroductionThe lifting systemis composed of pipes andtheir connectors .It is not onlythe lifting channel formanganese nodule betweenthe miningship andintermediate bin,but alsothe supporting massfor deepsea miningequipment and cables .Sothe reliability…     

围垦区地下水位的控制及计算方法

利用抽水井群和注水井群可以控制生态围垦区的地下水位.研究了潜水抽-注水井(群)耦合作用下浸润线的求解方法,利用势流理论和镜像原理,在假定含水层水平及土层渗透系数各向同性的条件下,推导出完整抽-注水井(群)耦合作用时浸润线的计算公式及非完整抽-注水井(群)耦合作用时浸润线的计算公式,还对潜水单个非完整抽水井及非完整抽-注水井群耦合作用时的解析解和数值解作了比较,结果表明,两者吻合得较好.同时还给出该理论用于地下水位控制中求解抽水量和注水量的方法等,对工程设计有实用价值.     

科学大洋钻探与深部生物圈

从深海钻探计划(DSDP)在20世纪70年代最早提出海洋沉积物中细菌活动性的证据到90年代大洋钻探计划(ODP)获得了令人信服的海底深部生物的存在证据，并成为即将启动的综合大洋钻探计划(IODP)的一个优先研究领域，深部生物圈成为科学大洋钻探近年来最为重大的发现之一，同时它也将有效地促进地球科学和生物学等其他学科的交叉。