Various admixtures to mitigate the long-term strength retrogression of Portland cement cured under high pressure and high temperature conditions

In order to investigate the problem of long-term strength retrogression in oil well cement systems exposed to high pressure and high temperature(HPHT)curing conditions,various influencing factors,including cement sources,particle sizes of silica flour,and additions of silica fume,alumina,colloidal iron oxide and nano-graphene,were investigated.To simulate the environment of cementing geothermal wells and deep wells,cement slurries were directly cured at 50 MPa and 200?C.Mineral compositions(as determined by X-ray diffraction Rietveld refinement),water permeability,compressive strength and Young’s modulus were used to evaluate the qualities of the set cement.Short-term curing(2e30 d)test results indicated that the adoption of 6 m m ultrafine crystalline silica played the most important role in stabilizing the mechanical properties of oil well cement systems,while the addition of silica fume had a detrimental effect on strength stability.Long-term curing(2e180 d)test results indicated that nano-graphene could stabilize the Young’s modulus of oil well cement systems.However,none of the ad-mixtures studied here can completely prevent the strength retrogression phenomenon due to their inability to stop the conversion of amorphous to crystalline phases.

Numerical Simulation on Climate Effects of Freezing-Thawing Processes Using CCM3

A parameterization of soil freezing-thawing physics for use in the land-surface model of the National Center for Atmospheric Research(NCAR) Community Climate Model(CCM3) is developed and evaluated.The new parameterization scheme has improved the representation of physical processes in the existing land surface model.Numerical simulations using CCM3 with improved land-surface processes and with the original land-surface processes are compared against the NCEP reanalysis.It is found that the CCM3 version using the improved land surface model shows significant improvements in simulating precipitation in China during the summer season,the general circulation over East Asia,and wind fields over the Tibet Plateau.For the summer season,the improved model was able to better simulate the Indian summer monsoon components,including the mean northerly wind in the upper troposphere and mean southerly wind in the lower troposphere.

Microcoring and dendrometer-detected intra-annual wood formation of Populus euphratica in the Ejina Oasis,northwestern China

Seasonal stem radial growth and wood formation of trees have become research hotspots because of their significance for dendroclimatological and dendroecological studies. However, until recently, these studies concentrated on coniferous tree species in high-altitude and high-latitude regions,while detailed information on arid-zone riparian forests is scarce. The main focus of this study is to monitor the intra-annual dynamics of radial growth and tree ring formation in a deciduous species, Populus euphratica. In 2013, we combined the dendrometer and microcoring methods to study this species in the riparian forest of the Ejina Oasis, in arid northwestern China. Vessel enlargement began in early May, and the maximum rate of cell production occurred in early June. The cell division then ceased from early to mid-July. The dendrometer method failed to reliably detect the date of growth initiation and cessation, but succeeded to detect the time of maximum growth rate just like the microcoring method did. We found that weekly stem radial increment data described xylem growth more accurately than daily datasets. Based on correlation analysis among climatic and hydrologic variables, and weekly stem radial increment, weekly ring width increase dataset, the depth to groundwater was the main factor that limited tree ring growth. From a practical perspective, such studies of intra-annual wood formation can provide empirical guidance for seasonal water allocations within a river basin.

Improvement on short-circuit ability of SiC super-junction MOSFET with partially widened pillar structure

A novel 1200 V SiC super-junction(SJ)MOSFET with a partially widened pillar structure is proposed and investi-gated by using the two-dimensional numerical simulation tool.Based on the SiC SJ MOSFET structure,a partially widened P-region is added at the SJ pillar region to improve the short-circuit(SC)ability.After investigating the position and doping concentration of the widened P-region,an optimal structure is determined.From the simulation results,the SC withstand times(SCWTs)of the conventional trench MOSFET(CT-MOSFET),the SJ MOSFET,and the proposed structure at 800 V DC bus voltage are 15μs,17μs,and 24μs,respectively.The SCWTs of the proposed structure are increased by 60%and 41.2%in comparison with that of the other two structures.The main reason for the proposed structure with an enhanced SC capability is related to the effective suppression of saturation current at the high DC bias conditions by using a modu-lated P-pillar region.Meanwhile,a good Baliga's FOM(BV^(2)/R_(on))also can be achieved in the proposed structure due to the advantage of the SJ structure.In addition,the fabrication technology of the proposed structure is compatible with the standard epitaxy growth method used in the SJ MOSFET.As a result,the SJ structure with this feasible optimization skill presents an effect on improving the SC reliability of the SiC SJ MOSFET without the degeneration of the Baliga's FOM.

Advances in thermokarst lake research in permafrost regions

A thermokarst lake is defined as a lake occupying a closed depression formed by ground settlement following thawing of ice-rich permafrost or the melting of massive ice. As it is the most visible morphologic landscape developed during the process of permafrost degradation, we reviewed recent literature on thermokarst studies, and summarized the main study topics as： development and temporal evolution, carbon release, and ecological and engineering influence of thermokarst lakes. The climate warming, forest fires, surface water pooling, geotectonic fault and anthropogenic activity are the main influencing factors that cause an increase of ground temperatures and melting of ice-rich permafrost, resulting in thermokarst lake formation. Normally a thermokarst lake develops in 3–5 stages from initiation to permafrost recovery. Geo-rectified aerial photographs and remote sensing images show that thermokarst lakes have been mainly experiencing the process of shrinkage or disappearance in most regions of the Arctic, while both lake numbers and areas on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau have increased. Field studies and modeling indicates that carbon release from thermokarst lakes can feedback significantly to global warming, thus enhancing our understanding of the influences of thermokarst lakes on the ecological environment, and on regional groundwater through drainage. Based on field monitoring and numerical simulations, infrastructure stability can be affected by thermal erosion of nearby thermokarst lakes. This review was undertaken to enhance our understanding of thermokarst lakes, and providing references for future comprehensive studies on thermokarst lakes.

Water sources of plants and groundwater in typical ecosystems in the lower reaches of the Heihe River Basin

Stable oxygen and hydrogen isotopic compositions （δ18O and δD） of soil water and shallow groundwater of a riparian forest, an artificial shrub forest, and Gobi of the lower reaches of the Heihe River Basin are used to study the recharge water sources of those ecosystems. IsoSource software is used to determine the δ180 values for root water of Populous euphratica and Tamarix ramosissima in the riparian forest ecosystem, Haloxylon ammodendron in the artificial shrub forest, and Reaumuria soongorica in the Gobi, as well as for local soil water and groundwater, and precipitation in the upper reaches of the Heihe River Basin. Our results showed that soil water and shallow groundwater of the riparian forest and the artificial shrub forest were recharged by river water which originated from precipitation in the upper reaches, and strong evaporation occurred in the artificial shrub forest. Soil water of the Gobi was not affected by Heihe River water due to this area being far away from the river channel. The main water sources of Populous euphratica were from 40-60-cm soil water and groundwater, and of Tamarix ramosissima were from 40-80-cm soil water in the riparian forest ecosystem. In the artificial forest, Haloxylon ammodendron used 200-cm saturated-layer soil water and shallow groundwater. The Reaumuria soongorica mainly used soil water from the 175-200-cm depth in the Gobi. Therefore, soil water and groundwater are the main water sources which maintain survival and growth of the plants in the extremely arid regions of the lower reaches of the Heihe River Basin.

青藏高原多年冻土特征、变化及影响

青藏高原是全球中纬度面积最大的多年冻土分布区,青藏高原多年冻土对东亚季风乃至全球气候系统都有重要影响.本文在前人研究成果的基础上,系统地梳理了青藏高原多年冻土基本特征的现状,主要包括活动层厚度,多年冻土面积、温度和厚度的空间分布,以及多年冻土区地下冰和土壤碳储量等方面的研究进展.通过补充最近监测资料,阐述了高原尺度活动层和多年冻土热状况的动态变化过程及趋势,并分析了这种变化的水文效应.随后,概述了多年冻土与生态系统、多年冻土与碳循环相互作用关系方面的研究进展.青藏高原多年冻土在过去数十年来发生了不同程度的退化,对多年冻土区地表的水、土、气、生间的相互作用关系产生了显著影响,进而影响着区域水文、生态乃至全球气候系统.本研究可为冻土与气候变化相互作用关系的机理研究提供思路,为寒区环境保护、工程设计和施工提供参考经验.

Thawing and freezing processes of active layer in Wudaoliang region of Tibetan Plateau

The interaction between permafrost and atmosphere is accomplished through transfer of heat and moisture in the overlay active layer. Thus, the research on the thermal and hydrodynamics of active layer during the thawing and freezing processes was considered a key to revealing the heat and moisture exchanges between permafrost and atmosphere. The monitoring and research on active layer were conducted because permafrost occupies about two thirds of the total area of the Tibetan Plateau. Based on the analysis of the ground temperature data and soil moisture data of monitoring near the Wudaoliang region of the Tibetan Plateau, the thawing and freezing processes of active layer were divided into four stages, i.e. summer thawing stage (ST), autumn freezing stage (AF), winter cooling stage (WC) and spring warming stage (SW). Coupled heat and water flow is much more complicated in ST and AF, and more amount of water is migrating in these two stages. Heat is transferred mainly via conductive heat flow in the

Modification of solar radiation model over rugged terrain

The formula for the duration of possible sunshine has been modified. Two geometrical factors, the circumsolar view factor and the isotropic view factor for calculating solar radiation, have been proposed. The ray-tracing method in computer cartography has been applied to simulating the obstruction of terrain over solar radiation. In addition, the shape factor has been introduced to calculate the reflected radiation from surrounding terrain.

Mapping the permafrost stability on the Tibetan Plateau for 2005–2015

Data scarcity is a major obstacle for high-resolution mapping of permafrost on the Tibetan Plateau(TP).This study produces a new permafrost stability distribution map for the 2010 s(2005–2015)derived from the predicted mean annual ground temperature(MAGT)at a depth of zero annual amplitude(10–25 m)by integrating remotely sensed freezing degree-days and thawing degree-days,snow cover days,leaf area index,soil bulk density,high-accuracy soil moisture data,and in situ MAGT measurements from 237 boreholes on the TP by using an ensemble learning method that employs a support vector regression model based on distance-blocked resampled training data with 200 repetitions.Validation of the new permafrost map indicates that it is probably the most accurate of all currently available maps.This map shows that the total area of permafrost on the TP,excluding glaciers and lakes,is approximately 115.02(105.47–129.59)×10^4 km^2.The areas corresponding to the very stable,stable,semi-stable,transitional,and unstable types are 0.86×10^4,9.62×10^4,38.45×10^4,42.29×10^4,and 23.80×10^4 km^2,respectively.This new map is of fundamental importance for engineering planning and design,ecosystem management,and evaluation of the permafrost change in the future on the TP as a baseline.

Toward an improved data stewardship and service for environmental and ecological science data in West China

Sharing of scientific data can help scientific research to flourish and facilitate more widespread use of scientific data for the benefit of society.The Environmental and Ecological Science Data Center for West China(WestDC),sponsored by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(NSFC),aims to collect,manage,integrate,and disseminate environmental and ecological data from western China.It also aims to provide a long-term data service for multidisciplinary research within NSFC’s‘‘Environment and Ecology of West China Research Plan’’(NSFC West Plan).An integrated platform has been developed by the WestDC,and this has the function of data sharing,acting as a knowledge repository.Major data sets developed by the WestDC include basic geographic data,the regionalization of global data set for China,scientific data for cold and arid regions in China,scientific data for the cryosphere in countries that neighbor China,data relating to the inland river basins in northwestern China,and data submitted by the NSFC West Plan projects.In compliance with the‘‘full and open’’data sharing policy,most data in the WestDC can be accessed online.Highlights include detailed data documentation,the integration of data with bibliographic knowledge,data publishing,and data reference.

What dominates sustainability in endorheic regions?

Diverse evidence suggests that the sustainability of endorheic regions will be the underbelly of achieving the transformative promise“leave no one behind”of the Sustainable Development Goals(SDGs)proposed by the United Nations;for example,“Aral Sea Syndrome”[1],“basin closure symptom”[2],and saline lake salinization[3]are undermining life support systems and human wellbeing[4].Global warming is reducing the amount of solid water resources in mountainous regions[5],which,in turn,threatens the Asia water tower[6]that supports local life systems.