Aims Biological soil crusts(BSCs)can affect soil properties including water dynamics and cycling of soil carbon and nitrogen in dryland ecosystems.Previous research has mostly focused on effects of BSCs on soil water ...Aims Biological soil crusts(BSCs)can affect soil properties including water dynamics and cycling of soil carbon and nitrogen in dryland ecosystems.Previous research has mostly focused on effects of BSCs on soil water distribution or carbon and nitrogen fixation in the surface soil layer.Thus,little is known about effects of BSCs on properties throughout the soil profile.In the current study,we assessed the effects of BSCs on the distribution of soil water content(SW),soil organic carbon content(SOC)and soil total nitrogen content(STN)throughout the soil profile as well as the influence of water conditions on the effects of BSCs.Methods In a field investigation in Mu Us Sandland,North China,soil samples were taken from plots with and without BSCs on 13 and 28 September 2006,respectively.On the two sampling dates,average soil gravimetric water content was 3.83%(61.29%)and 5.08%(60.89%),respectively,which were regarded as low and high water conditions.Soil samples were collected every 5 cm to a depth of 60 cm,and SW,SOC and STN were measured in the laboratory.Important Findings(i)BSCs affected profile distribution of SW,SOC and STN.In addition,water conditions within the plots significantly modified BSCs’effects on the profile distribution of SW,but marginally affected the effects on SOC and STN.(ii)Under high water conditions,SW in the surface soil layer(0–10 cm)was higher in soils with BSCs compared to those without BSCs,while the opposite was true in the deep soil layer(30–55 cm).(iii)Under low water conditions,SW was lower with BSCs compared with no BSCs in near-surface(5–20 cm)and deep(25–40 cm)soil layers.(iv)BSCs affected SOC and STN only in the surface soil layer(0–5 cm)and were modified by plot water conditions.展开更多
Curved steel bridges are commonly used at interchanges in transportation networks and more of these structures continue to be designed and built in the United States. Though the use of these bridges continues to incre...Curved steel bridges are commonly used at interchanges in transportation networks and more of these structures continue to be designed and built in the United States. Though the use of these bridges continues to increase in locations that experience high seismicity, the effects of curvature and other parameters on their seismic behaviors have been neglected in current risk assessment tools. These tools can evaluate the seismic vulnerability of a transportation network using fragility curves. One critical component of fragility curve development for curved steel bridges is the completion of sensitivity analyses that help identify influential parameters related to their seismic response. In this study, an accessible inventory of existing curved steel girder bridges located primarily in the Mid-Atlantic United States （MAUS） was used to establish statistical characteristics used as inputs for a seismic sensitivity study. Critical seismic response quantities were captured using 3D nonlinear finite element models. Influential parameters from these quantities were identified using statistical tools that incorporate experimental Plackett-Burman Design （PBD）, which included Pareto optimal plots and prediction profiler techniques. The findings revealed that the potential variation in the influential parameters included number of spans, radius of curvature, maximum span length, girder spacing, and cross-frame spacing. These parameters showed varying levels of influence on the critical bridge response.展开更多
基金Chinese Academy of Sciences grant(KZCX2-YW-431)State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change(VEWALNE-project).
文摘Aims Biological soil crusts(BSCs)can affect soil properties including water dynamics and cycling of soil carbon and nitrogen in dryland ecosystems.Previous research has mostly focused on effects of BSCs on soil water distribution or carbon and nitrogen fixation in the surface soil layer.Thus,little is known about effects of BSCs on properties throughout the soil profile.In the current study,we assessed the effects of BSCs on the distribution of soil water content(SW),soil organic carbon content(SOC)and soil total nitrogen content(STN)throughout the soil profile as well as the influence of water conditions on the effects of BSCs.Methods In a field investigation in Mu Us Sandland,North China,soil samples were taken from plots with and without BSCs on 13 and 28 September 2006,respectively.On the two sampling dates,average soil gravimetric water content was 3.83%(61.29%)and 5.08%(60.89%),respectively,which were regarded as low and high water conditions.Soil samples were collected every 5 cm to a depth of 60 cm,and SW,SOC and STN were measured in the laboratory.Important Findings(i)BSCs affected profile distribution of SW,SOC and STN.In addition,water conditions within the plots significantly modified BSCs’effects on the profile distribution of SW,but marginally affected the effects on SOC and STN.(ii)Under high water conditions,SW in the surface soil layer(0–10 cm)was higher in soils with BSCs compared to those without BSCs,while the opposite was true in the deep soil layer(30–55 cm).(iii)Under low water conditions,SW was lower with BSCs compared with no BSCs in near-surface(5–20 cm)and deep(25–40 cm)soil layers.(iv)BSCs affected SOC and STN only in the surface soil layer(0–5 cm)and were modified by plot water conditions.
基金the Korea Electric Power Infrastructure for funding this work
文摘Curved steel bridges are commonly used at interchanges in transportation networks and more of these structures continue to be designed and built in the United States. Though the use of these bridges continues to increase in locations that experience high seismicity, the effects of curvature and other parameters on their seismic behaviors have been neglected in current risk assessment tools. These tools can evaluate the seismic vulnerability of a transportation network using fragility curves. One critical component of fragility curve development for curved steel bridges is the completion of sensitivity analyses that help identify influential parameters related to their seismic response. In this study, an accessible inventory of existing curved steel girder bridges located primarily in the Mid-Atlantic United States （MAUS） was used to establish statistical characteristics used as inputs for a seismic sensitivity study. Critical seismic response quantities were captured using 3D nonlinear finite element models. Influential parameters from these quantities were identified using statistical tools that incorporate experimental Plackett-Burman Design （PBD）, which included Pareto optimal plots and prediction profiler techniques. The findings revealed that the potential variation in the influential parameters included number of spans, radius of curvature, maximum span length, girder spacing, and cross-frame spacing. These parameters showed varying levels of influence on the critical bridge response.
