Humidity Effect and Its Influence on the Seasonal Distribution of Precipitation δ^(18)O in Monsoon Regions

The humidity effect, namely the markedly positive correlation between the stable isotopic ratio in precipitation and the dew-point deficit ATd in the atmosphere, is put forward firstly and the relationships between the δ18O in precipitation and ATd are analyzed for the Urumqi and Kunming stations, which have completely different climatic characteristics. Although the seasonal variations in δ18O and △Td exhibit differences between the two stations, their humidity effect is notable. The correlation coefficient and its confidence level of the humidity effect are higher than those of the amount effect at Kunming, showing the marked influence of the humidity conditions in the atmosphere on stable isotopes in precipitation. Using a kinetic model for stable isotopic fractionation, and according to the seasonal distribution of mean monthly temperature at 500 hPa at Kunming, the variations of the δ18O in condensate in cloud are simulated. A very good agreement between the seasonal variations of the simulated mean δ18O and the mean monthly temperature at 500 hPa is obtained, showing that the oxygen stable isotope in condensate of cloud experiences a temperature effect. Such a result is markedly different from the amount effect at the ground. Based on the simulations of seasonal variations of δ18O in falling raindrops, it can be found that, in the dry season from November to April, the increasing trend with falling distance of δ18O in falling raindrops corresponds remarkably to the great △Td, showing a strong evaporation enrichment function in falling raindrops; however, in the wet season from May to October, the δ18O in falling raindrops displays an unapparent increase corresponding to the small △Td, except in May. By comparing the simulated mean δ18O at the ground with the actual monthly δ18O in precipitation, we see distinctly that the two monthly δ18O variations agree very well. On average, the δ18O values are relatively lower because of the highly moist air, heavy rainfall, small ATd and weak evaporation enrichment function of stable isotopes in the falling raindrops, under the influence of vapor from the oceans; but they are relatively higher because of the dry air, light rainfall, great △Td and strong evaporation enrichment function in falling raindrops, under the control of the continental air mass. Therefore, the δ18O in precipitation at Kunming can be used to indicate the humidity situation in the atmosphere to a certain degree, and thus indicate the intensity of the precipitation and the strength of the monsoon indirectly. The humidity effect changes not only the magnitude of the stable isotopic ratio in precipitation but also its seasonal distribution due to its influence on the strength of the evaporation enrichment of stable isotopes in falling raindrops and the direction of the net mass transfer of stable isotopes between the atmosphere and the raindrops. Consequently, it is inferred that the humidity effect is probably one of the foremost causes generating the amount effect.

The Sensing Behavior to Volatile Organic Compounds Gas on Polypyrrole Sensor under Humidity Condition

Polypyrrole (PPy) powder was synthesized by chemical polymerization at 0℃under atmospheric condition and its layer was prepared by dip coating method on the alumina substrate with interdigitated electrodes.The influence of relative humidity (RH 0～70%) to PPy sensor was studied.The measuring temperature was fixed at 25℃.Methanol and benzene were used as target gases.Various analytic techniques were examined to observe changes in the properties of PPy sensor.The sensitivity of PPy sensor to water vapor was linearly increased with the increasing humidity.As the relative humidity increase from 0% to 70%,the sensitivities to methanol and benzene vapor were reduced,and reduction ratio of sensitivity was 94%, 92.5% at RH 70%,respectively.

Effect of Ambient Humidity on the Transmission of UV/Visible Light through Model Human Epidermis

Transmission of light through model human epidermal samples is investigated at four different wavelengths and at varying ambient humidity. Light from light emitting diodes (LEDs) is used for transmission measurements through the samples at a UVA wavelength of 365 nm, and visible wavelengths of 460 nm, 500 nm, and 595 nm. Ambient air-humidity is varied between 20% and 100%. Results show that for high ambient humidity, near 100%, transmission of light through the epidermis is higher than at low ambient humidity, 60% or lower. These results are explained with a simple model of epidermis as a turbid medium and the effect of adsorbed water in reducing light-scattering by refractive-index-matching. Biological implications of increased light-transmission through epidermis at high ambient humidity are discussed.

Interface bond degradation and damage characteristics of full-length grouted rock bolt in tunnels with high temperature

Full-length grouted bolts play a crucial role in geotechnical engineering thanks to their excellent stability.However,few studies have been concerned with the degrading performance of grouted rock bolts caused by extensive and continuous heat conduction from surrounding rocks in high-geothermal tunnels buried more than 100 m(temperature from 28C to 100C).To investigate the damage mechanism,we examined the time-varying behaviors of grouted rock bolts in both constant and variable temperature curing environments and their damage due to the coupling effects of high temperature and humidity through mechanical and micro-feature tests,including uniaxial compression test,pull-out test,computed tomography(CT)scans,X-ray diffraction(XRD)test,thermogravimetric analysis(TGA),etc.,and further analyzed the relationship between grout properties and anchorage capability.In order to facilitate a rapid assessment and control of the anchorage performance of anchors in different conditions,results of the interface bond degradation tests were correlated to environment parameters based on the damage model of interfacial bond stress proposed.Accordingly,a thermal hazard classification criterion for anchorage design in high-geothermal tunnels was suggested.Based on the reported results,although high temperature accelerated the early-stage hydration reaction of grouting materials,it affected the distribution and quantity of hydration products by inhibiting hydration degree,thus causing mechanical damage to the anchorage system.There was a significant positive correlation between the strength of the grouting material and the anchoring force.Influenced by the changes in grout properties,three failure patterns of rock bolts typically existed.Applying a hot-wet curing regime results in less reduction in anchorage force compared to the hot-dry curing conditions.The findings of this study would contribute to the design and investigations of grouted rock bolts in high-geothermal tunnels.

Modeling of environmental influence in structural health assessment for reinforced concrete buildings

One branch of structural health monitoring (SHM) utilizes dynamic response measurements to assess the structural integrity of civil infrastructures. In particular,modal frequency is a widely adopted indicator for structural damage since its square is proportional to structural stiffness. However,it has been demonstrated in various SHM projects that this indicator is substantially affected by fluctuating environmental conditions. In order to provide reliable and consistent information on the health status of the monitored structures,it is necessary to develop a method to filter this interference. This study attempts to model and quantify the environmental influence on the modal frequencies of reinforced concrete buildings. Daily structural response measurements of a twenty-two story reinforced concrete building were collected and analyzed over a one-year period. The Bayesian spectral density approach was utilized to identify the modal frequencies of this building and it was clearly seen that the temperature and humidity fluctuation induced notable variations. A mathematical model was developed to quantify the environmental effects and model complexity was taken into consideration. Based on a Timoshenko beam model,the full model class was constructed and other reduced-order model class candidates were obtained. Then,the Bayesian modal class selection approach was employed to select the one with the most suitable complexity. The proposed model successfully characterizes the environmental influence on the modal frequencies. Furthermore,the estimated uncertainty of the model parameters allows for assessment of the reliability of the prediction. This study not only improves the understanding about the monitored structure,but also establishes a systematic approach for reliable health assessment of reinforced concrete buildings.

Heterogeneous uptake of NO_2 on soils under variable temperature and relative humidity conditions

Heterogeneous reactions of nitrogen dioxide （NO2） on soils collected from Dalian （S 1） and Changsha （S2） were investigated over the relative humidity （RH） range of 5%-80% and temperature range of 278-328 K using a horizontal coated-wall flow tube. The initial uptake coefficients of NO2 on S2 exhibited a decreasing trend from （10 ± 1.3） × 10-8 to （3.1 ± 0.5） x 10-8 with the relative humidity increasing from 5% to 80%. In the temperature effect studies, the initial uptake coefficients of S1 and S2 decreased from （10± 1.2） × 10-8 to （3.8 ± 0.5） × 10-8 and from （16± 2.2） × 10-8 to （3.8 ±0.4） × 10-8 when temperature increased from 278 to 288 K for S1 and from 278 to 308 K for S2, respectively. As the temperature continued to increase, the initial uptake coefficients of S1 and S2 returned to （7.9 ± 1.1）× 10-8 and （20 ± 3.1） × 10-8 at 313 and 328 K, respectively. This study shows that relative humidity could influence the uptake kinetics of NO2 on soil and temperature would impact the heterogeneous chemistry of NO2.

The Effect of Air Humidity on Shock Wave Induced Incipient Separation

During earlier research on shock wave/boundary layer interaction control, the effect of air humidity flow separation has been observed. This has inspired a more detailed study on the effect of air humidity on shock induced incipient separation and on the involved involved processes. The phenomenon has a twofold nature. In supersonic flow, the condensation of humidity causes flow retardation due to heat addition. The consequent weakening of the shock wave reduces the tendency towards separation. On the other hand, the incipient separation is postponed at the same Mach numbers of interaction.

Biogenic volatile organic compound analyses by PTR-TOF-MS: Calibration, humidity effect and reduced electric field dependency

Green leaf volatiles（GLVs） emitted by plants after stress or damage induction are a major part of biogenic volatile organic compounds（BVOCs）. Proton transfer reaction time-of-flight mass spectrometry（PTR-TOF-MS） is a high-resolution and sensitive technique for in situ GLV analyses, while its performance is dramatically influenced by humidity, electric field,etc. In this study the influence of gas humidity and the effect of reduced field（E/N） were examined in addition to measuring calibration curves for the GLVs. Calibration curves measured for seven of the GLVs in dry air were linear, with sensitivities ranging from 5 to10 ncps/ppbv（normalized counts per second/parts per billion by volume）. The sensitivities for most GLV analyses were found to increase by between 20% and 35% when the humidity of the sample gas was raised from 0% to 70% relative humidity（RH） at 21°C, with the exception of（E）-2-hexenol. Product ion branching ratios were also affected by humidity,with the relative abundance of the protonated molecular ions and higher mass fragment ions increasing with humidity. The effect of reduced field（E/N） on the fragmentation of GLVs was examined in the drift tube of the PTR-TOF-MS. The structurally similar GLVs are acutely susceptible to fragmentation following ionization and the fragmentation patterns are highly dependent on E/N. Overall the measured fragmentation patterns contain sufficient information to permit at least partial separation and identification of the isomeric GLVs by looking at differences in their fragmentation patterns at high and low E/N.