An approach to measure infill matric suction of irregular infilled rock joints under constant normal stiffness shearing

Rock joints infilled with sediments can strongly influence the strength of rock mass. As infilled joints often exist under unsaturated condition, this study investigated the influence of matric suction of infill on the overall joint shear strength. A novel technique that allows direct measurement of matric suction of infill using high capacity tensiometers(HCTs) during direct shear of infilled joints under constant normal stiffness(CNS) is described. The CNS apparatus was modified to accommodate the HCT and the procedure is explained in detail. Joint specimens were simulated by gypsum plaster using threedimensional(3D) printed surface moulds, and filled with kaolin and sand mixture prepared at different water contents. Shear behaviours of both planar infilled joints and rough joints having joint roughness coefficients(JRCs) of 8-10 and 18-20 with the ratios of infill thickness to asperity height(t/a)equal to 0.5 were investigated. Matric suction shows predominantly unimodal behaviour during shearing of both planar and rough joints, which is closely associated with the variation of unloading rate and volumetric changes of the infill material. As expected, two-peak behaviour was observed for the rough joints and both peaks increased with the increase of infill matric suction. The results suggest that the contribution of matric suction of infill on the joint peak normalised shear stress is relatively independent of the joint roughness.

Quick Fluorescence Method for the Distinguishing of Vegetable Oils

This paper presents the possibilities offered by fluorescence spectroscopy for the identification of vegetable oils such as soybean, sunflower, flax, walnut, corn, almond, sesame, olive and pumpkin oils. The probes under study have been excited with two types of sources： a laser diode （LD） and light-emitting diodes （LEDs） emitting in the UV and in the visible range. Total luminescence spectra were recorded by measuring the emission spectra in the range 350-720 nm at excitation wavelengths from 375 to 450 nm. The excitation-emission matrices have been obtained and two basic fluorescence regions in the visible have been outlined. On this basis the fluorescence spectra of the oils have been subdivided into three categories depending on the prevalence of the fluorescence maxima. The samples show differences in their fluorescence spectra. The latter fact shows that fluorescence spectroscopy can be used for the quick identification of edible oils. The fatty acid, the tocopherol, the beta-carotene and chlorophyll contents in the analyzed oils have been studied. It is shown that some of the types of oils differ significantly from each other by the first derivatives of their fluorescence spectra. There also exist color differences between the groups of vegetable oils under study.

Evolution of soil DOM during thermal remediation below 100℃:concentration,spectral characteristics and complexation ability

The impact of thermal remediation on soil function has drawn increasing attention.So far,as the most active fraction of soil organic matter,the evolution of dissolved organic matter(DOM)during the thermal remediation lacks in-depth investigation,especially for the temperatures value below 100℃.In this study,a series of soil thermal treatment experiments was conducted at 30,60,and 90℃ during a 90-d period,where soil DOM concentration increased with heating temperature and duration.The molecular weight,functional groups content and aromaticity of DOM all decreased during the thermal treatment.The excitation-emission matrices(EEM)results suggested that humic acid-like substances transformed into fulvic acid-like substances(FIII/FV increased from 0.27 to 0.44)during the heating process,and five DOM components were further identified by EEM-PARAFAC.The change of DOM structures and components indicated the decline of DOM stability and hydrophilicity,and can potentially change the bioavailability and mobility.Elevated temperature also resulted in the decline of DOM complexation ability,which may be caused by the loss of binding sites due to the decrease of polar function groups,aromatic structures and hydrophilic components.This study provides valuable information about the evolution of DOM during thermal remediation,which would potentially change the fate of metal ions and the effectiveness of the post-treatment technologies in the treated region.

Identification of sources,characteristics and photochemical transformations of dissolved organic matter with EEM-PARAFAC in the Wei River of China

Dissolved organic matter(DOM)in rivers is a critical regulator of the cycling and toxicity of pollutants and the behavior of DOM is a key indicator for the health of the environment.We investigated the sources and characteristics of DOM in surface water and sediment samples of the Wei River,China.Dissolved organic carbon(DOC)concentration and ultraviolet absorbance at 254 nm(UV254)increased in the surface water and were decreased in the sediment downstream,indicating that the source of DOM in the water differed from the sediment.Parallel factor(PARAFAC)analysis of the excitation-emission matrices(EEM)revealed the presence of terrestrial humus-like,microbial humus-like and tryptophan-like proteins in the surface water,whereas the sediment contained UVA humic-like,UVC humic-like and fulvic-like in the sediment.The DOM in the surface water and sediment were mainly derived from microbial metabolic activity and the surrounding soil.Surface water DOM displayed greater photodegradation potential than sediment DOM.PARAFAC analysis indicated that the terrestrial humic-like substance in the water and the fulvic-like component in the sediment decomposed more rapidly.These data describe the characteristics of DOM in the Wei River and are crucial to understanding the fluctuations in environmental patterns.