Debris Fan Produced by Failure of Canyon-Blocking Pyroclastic Flows

Ash-rich pyroclastic flows from the cataclysmic eruption of Mount Mazama (~7700 yr. B. P.), Cascade volcanic arc, Oregon, entered and blocked the narrow, bedrock-lined canyon of the Williamson River approximately 35 to 44 km from the source volcano. The blockage impounded a body of water which then released producing four stratigraphic units in the downstream debris fan. The four stratigraphic units are a boulder core comprised of locally sourced bedrock boulders and three sand-rich units including a fine-grained sand unit, a sandy pumice gravel (±basalt/hydrovolcanic tuff) unit, and a pumice pebble-bearing, crystal-rich sand unit. Hand-drilled auger holes up to ~1.6 m deep were used to obtain samples of the sand-rich units. Units were delimited using surface and down-hole observations, composition and texture, estimated density, statistical parameters of grain size, and vertical and lateral distribution of properties. Overtopping followed by rapid incision into the ash-rich pyroclastic flows progressively cleared the canyon, but a bedrock knickpoint near the head of the canyon limited the volume of debris available for transport to about 0.04 km3 to 0.08 km3. Co-deposition of bedrock boulders and lithic-rich sand was followed by rapid deposition with minimal reworking of remobilized pyroclastics. Continued draining of the impounded lake sent hyperconcentrated flows onto the debris fan depositing pumice-rich gravels that graded upward to crystal-rich sands.

Gravity tectonics controls on reservoir-scale sandbodies:Insights from 3D seismic geomorphology of the canyons buried in the upper slope of the Eastern Niger delta basin

High-resolution 3D seismic data analysis was integrated with a calibrated well and biostratigraphy data to present the first overview of a buried Pleistocene canyon system on the upper slope of the eastern Niger Delta,the Galabor Canyon.Attribute maps of specific horizons allow documenting the changing morphologies and infill lithologies of two main branches of the canyon through two stages of activity separated by a reference horizon dated at 0.99 Ma based on well calibration.At the upper slope,growth faults dissect the canyon heads,the catchment of which encroaches a network of valleys incised on the outer shelf.The canyon fill is composed of muddy channels and mass-transport deposits,largely derived from the collapse of canyon walls and sand-rich bodies forming a tract sourced by shelf-edge deltas at the outlet of the incised valleys.High-density turbiditic processes likely control the distribution of sand bodies along the canyon,ranging from tributary fans on the upper slope to 6 km-wide meander belts on the middle slope.The sandy deposits accumulate in minibasins formed along the canyon path,downstream of the subsiding hanging wall of the growth faults and upstream of shale ridges that damp the flow in the canyon.These results show that canyons can be major targets for sand reservoir exploration on the upper slope of large muddy deltas.

Distribution characteristics and succession regulation of the forests in alpine and canyon region of western Sichuan Province, P.R.China

Since 1950, 700 plots were established in the alpine and canyon region of western Sichuan. The distribution charac-teristics and the relationships between forest succession and environmental gradients were studied. The results showed that the main tree species were Picea and Abies in this region, and there were more than 90 forest types. Abies forests mainly dis-tributed in the middle and upper reaches of rivers and their branches, and Picea forests mainly distributed in wide valleys and on half-shaded and half-sunny slopes. The natural regeneration was poor under primitive spruce and fir forest canopy, but was good in the spruce and fire forest gap. The relationship between forest succession and vertical gradient was closely related to the relationship between forest succession procession and plant synusia under primary forests. Human activities could promote and postpone succession process. The results of expanding regeneration were often influenced by topography, vegetation and wind direction.

Fish Canyon Tuff榍石He扩散及(U-Th)/He年代学研究

榍石富含U和Th,是(U-Th)/He定年的理想矿物之一。本文以Fish Canyon Tuff榍石为例,开展了榍石He扩散行为和榍石(U-Th)/He定年实验方法研究。榍石分步加热扩散实验结果表明He扩散系数ln(D/a2)与温度倒数呈负相关,与期望的热活化扩散过程一致。测试Fish Canyon Tuff榍石(U-Th)/He年龄分布在28.3~24.6 Ma之间,平均值为26.7±1.2 Ma(1σ),Th/U分布在4.6~5.5之间,平均值为5.2±0.2,在误差范围内与国际上已出版数据一致,表明建立的榍石(U-Th)/He定年实验方法可靠。本次测试15粒榍石碎片外表层(~20μm)存在不同程度的磨蚀(即不完整晶体),且榍石表层磨蚀厚度随着等效半径的增加而增大。榍石碎片(U-Th)/He年龄介于完整晶体(U-Th)/He年龄和真实(U-Th)/He年龄之间,且随着榍石等效半径及表层磨蚀厚度(<20μm)的增大,(U-Th)/He年龄更接近真实年龄,这表明榍石(U-Th)/He年龄不确定度与等效半径大小和表层磨蚀厚度有关。

Dynamic Stress Intensity Factor and Scattering of SH Wave by Circle Canyon and Crack

The dynamic stress intensity factor (DSIF) and the scattering of SH wave by circle canyon and crack are studied with Green's function. In order to solve the problem, a suitable Green's function is constructed first, which is the solution of displacement fields for elastic half space with circle canyon under output plane harmonic line loading at horizontal surface. Then the integral equation for determining the unknown forces in the problem can be changed into the algebraic one and solved numerically so that crack DSIF can be determined. Last when the medium parameters are altered, the influence on the crack DSIF is discussed partially with the displacement between circle canyon and crack.

Anti-plane deformations around arbitrary-shaped canyons on a wedge-shape half-space:moment method solutions

The wave propagation behavior in an elastic wedge-shaped medium with an arbitrary shaped cylindrical canyon at its vertex has been studied.Numerical computation of the wave displacement field is carried out on and near the canyon surfaces using weighted-residuals(moment method).The wave displacement fields are computed by the residual method for the cases of elliptic,circular,rounded-rectangular and flat-elliptic canyons,The analysis demonstrates that the resulting surface displacement depends,as in similar previous analyses,on several factors including,but not limited,to the angle of the wedge,the geometry of the vertex,the frequencies of the incident waves,the angles of incidence,and the material properties of the media.The analysis provides intriguing results that help to explain geophysical observations regarding the amplification of seismic energy as a function of site conditions.

Scattering of SH waves induced by a symmetrical V-shaped canyon: a unified analytical solution

This paper reports a series solution of wave functions for two-dimensional scattering and diffraction of plane SH waves induced by a symmetrical V-shaped canyon with different shape ratios. A half-space with a symmetrical V-shaped canyon is divided into two sub-regions by using a circular-arc auxiliary boundary. The two sub-regions are represented by global and local cylindrical coordinate systems, respectively. In each coordinate system, the wave field satisfying the Helmholtz equation is represented by the separation of variables method, in terms of the series of both Bessel functions and Hankel functions with unknown complex coefficients. Then, the two wave fields are described in the local coordinate system using the Graf addition theorem. Finally, the unknown coefficients are sought by satisfying the continuity conditions of the auxiliary boundary. To consider the phase characteristics of the wave scattering, a parametric analysis is carried out in the time domain by assuming an incident signal of the Ricker type. Surface and subsurface transient responses demonstrate the characteristics and mechanisms of wave propagating and scattering.

Numerical Studies on Flow Fields Around Buildings in an Urban Street Canyon and Cross-Road

The questions on how vortices are constructed and on the relationship between the flow patterns and concentration distributions in real street canyons are the most pressing questions in pollution control studies. In this paper, the very large eddy simulation (VLES) and large eddy simulation (LES) are applied to calculate the flow and pollutant concentration fields in an urban street canyon and a cross-road respectively. It is found that the flow separations are not only related to the canyon aspect ratios, but also with the flow velocities and wall temperatures. And the turbulent dispersions are so strongly affected by the flow fields that the pollutant concentration distributions can be distinguished from the different aspect ratios, flow velocities and wall temperatures.

2.5D scattering of incident plane SV waves by a canyon in layered half-space

This paper presents a 2.5D scattering of incident plane SV waves by a canyon in a layered half-space by using the indirect boundary element method （IBEM）. A free field response analysis is performed to provide the displacements and stresses on the boundary of the canyon where fictitious uniform moving loads are applied to calculate the Green＇s fi.mctions for the displacements and stresses. The amplitudes of the loads are determined by the boundary conditions. The free field displacements are added to the fictitious uniform moving loads induced displacements and the total response is obtained. Numerical calculations are performed for a canyon with homogenous and in one layer over bedrock. The effects of the thickness and stiffness of the layer on the amplification are studied and discussed.

A new boundary element solution to evaluate the geometric effects of the canyon site on the displacement response spectrum

This paper presents a step-by-step procedure using the three-dimensional boundary element approach to study the behavior of semi-circular canyons under seismic shear waves. The boundary element code TDASC allows utilization for various canyon geometries, evaluation of concurrent seismic waves and calculation of the ground motions on canyons due to an excitation at any arbitrary point of the incident field. Considering the widening ratio of the canyon(including prismatic, semi-prismatic and non-prismatic canyons), wave characteristics(wavelength, dimensionless period, direction) and maximum amplification pattern, the solution was applied to carry out a series of parametric studies. It was shown that canyon form can significantly affect the displacement amplification, especially at the points located on its edges. By increasing the wave dimensionless frequency(η > 1), the amplification pattern becomes more complex. On the basis of the results from a variety of considered cases, a new expression has been presented for the limiting wavelength beyond which the widening of the canyon will not have a major effect on the displacement amplification. To verify the reliability of the proposed approach, the obtained results, expressed in terms of displacement amplitude, were compared with those from the available published literature and a reasonably good agreement was observed.

Decoding the Regional～1700 Ma Deformational History from the Rocks of Big Thompson Canyon Region of Colorado Using Monazite Dating of Foliations Preserved within Garnet and Staurolite Porphyroblastic Phases

Dating of monazite grains preserved within foliations defining FIAs(foliation inflection/intersection axes preserved within porphyroblasts)have provided a detailed chronology of deformational and metamorphic events during a regional～1700 Ma orogeny,in Big Thompson region of the Colorado Rockies in the USA.FIAs controlled dating of monazite grains preserved within multiple-foliations of garnet and staurolite porphyroblast have complemented and potentially revolutionized all traditional dating approaches available.With this technique it is possible to accurately differentiate the

Diffraction of plane P waves by a canyon of arbitrary shape in poroelastic half-space (Ⅰ): Formulation

This paper presents an indirect boundary integration equation method for diffraction of plane P waves by a two-dimensional canyon of arbitrary shape in poroelastic half-space. The Green＇s functions of compressional and shear wave sources in poroelastic half-space are derived based on Biot＇s theory. The scattered waves are constructed using the fictitious wave sources close to the boundary of the canyon, and magnitude of the fictitious wave sources are determined by the boundary conditions. The precision of the method is verified by the satisfaction extent of boundary conditions, the comparison between the degenerated solutions of single-phased half-space and the well-known solutions, and the numerical stability of the method.

Diffraction of plane P waves by a canyon of arbitrary shape in poroelastic half-space (Ⅱ): Numerical results and discussion

This paper investigates in detail the nature of diffraction of plane P waves around a canyon in poroelastic half-space, and studies the effects of incident frequency, drainage condition, porosity, etc, on the diffraction of waves. It is shown that the surface displacement amplitudes of the drained case are close to those of the undrained case, however, the surface displacement amplitudes of the dry case are very different from those of the saturated （either drained or undrained） cases. There are large phase shift between the dry case and the saturated cases, as well as slightly longer resultant wavelengths for the undrained case than those for the drained case and longer resultant wavelengths for the drained case than those for the dry case. For small porosity the surface displacement amplitudes for the saturated cases are almost identical to those for the dry case; while for large porosity, the effect of drainage condition becomes significant, and the surface displacement amplitudes for the undrained case are larger than those for the drained case. As the incident frequency increases, the effect of porosity becomes significant, and more significant for the undrained case than that for the drained case. As the porosity increases, the pore pressures increase significantly but their oscillations become smoother. As the incident frequency increases, the pore pressures become more complicated.

Seismic response analysis of continuous rigid frame bridge considering canyon topography effects under incident SV waves

To evaluate the importance of the canyon topography effects on large structures, based on a rigid frame bridge across a 137-m-deep and 600-m-wide canyon, the seismic response of the canyon site is analyzed using a two-dimensional finite element model under different seismic SV waves with the assumptions of vertical incidence and oblique incidence to obtain the ground motions, which are used as the excitation input on the pier foundations of the bridge with improved large mass method. The results indicate that canyon topography has significant influences on the ground motions in terms of inci- dent angle. The peak ground acceleration values vary greatly from the bottom of the canyon to the upper comers. Under ver- tical incident SV waves, at the upper comers of canyon the peak ground accelerations greatly increase; whereas the peak ground accelerations diminish at the bottom comers of canyon. Under oblique incident SV waves, the shaking of the canyon slope perpendicular to the incidence direction is much more severe than that of the opposite side of canyon. And the ground surface has been characterized by larger deformations in the case of oblique incident waves. It is also concluded that the low piers and frame of the continuous rigid frame bridge ape more sensitive to the multi-support seismic excitations than the flexible high piers. The canyon topography as well as the oblique incidence of the waves brings the continuous rigid frame bridge severe responses, which should be taken into account in bridge design.

Difference in full-filled time and its controlling factors in the Central Canyon of the Qiongdongnan Basin

Based on the interpretation of high resolution 2D/3D seismic data, sedimentary filling characteristics and full- filled time of the Central Canyon in different segments in the Qiongdongnan Basin of northwestern South China Sea have been studied. The research results indicate that the initial formation age of the Central Canyon is traced back to 11.6 Ma （T40）, at which the canyon began to develop due to the scouring of turbidity currents from west to east. During the period of 11.6-8.2 Ma （T40-T31）, strong downcutting by gravity flow occurred, which led to the formation of the canyon. The canyon fillings began to form since 8.2 Ma （T31） and were dominated by turbidite deposits, which constituted of lateral migration and vertical superposition of turbidity channels during the time of 8.2-5.5 Ma. The interbeds of turbidity currents deposits and mass transport deposits （MTDs） were developed in the period of 5.5-3.8 Ma （T30-T28）. After then, the canyon fillings were primarily made up of large scale MTDs, interrupted by small scale turbidity channels and thin pelagic mudstones. The Central Canyon can be divided into three types according to the main controlling factors, geomorphology-controlled, fault-controlled and intrusion- modified canyons. Among them, the geomorphology-controlled canyon is developed at the Ledong, Lingshui, Songnan and western Baodao Depressions, situated in a confined basin center between the northern slope and the South Uplift Belt along the Central Depression Belt. The fault-controlled canyon is developed mainly along the deep-seated faults in the Changchang Depression and eastern Baodao Depression. Intrusion-modified canyon is only occurred in the Songnan Low Uplift, which is still mainly controlled by geomorphology, the intrusion just modified seabed morphology. The full-filled time of the Central Canyon differs from west to east, displaying a tendency of being successively late eastward. The geomorphology-controlled canyon was completely filled before 3.8 Ma （T28）, but that in intrusion-modified canyon was delayed to 2.4 Ma （T27） because of the uplifted southern canyon wall. To the Changchang Depression, the complete filling time was successively late eastward, and the canyon in eastern Changchang Depression is still not fully filled up to today. Difference in full-filled time in the Central Canyon is mainly governed by multiple sediment supplies and regional tectonic activities. Due to sufficient supply of turbidity currents and MTDs from west and north respectively, western segment of the Central Canyon is entirely filled up earlier. Owing to slower sediment supply rate, together with differential subsidence by deep-seated faults, the full-filled time of the canyon is put off eastwards gradually.

A Laboratory Model for the Flow in Urban Street Canyons Induced by Bottom Heating

Water tank experiments are carried out to investigate the convection flow induced by bottom heating and the effects of the ambient wind on the flow in non-symmetrical urban street canyons based on the PIV (Particle Image Visualization) technique. Fluid experiments show that with calm ambient wind, the flows in the street canyon are completely driven by thermal force, and the convection can reach the upper atmosphere of the street canyon. Horizontal and vertical motions also appear above the roofs of the buildings. These are the conditions which favor the exchange of momentum and air mass between the street canyon and its environment. More than two vortices are induced by the convection, and the complex circulation pattern will vary with time in a wider street canyon. However, in a narrow street canyon, just one vortex appears. With a light ambient wind, the bottom heating and the associated convection result in just one main vortex. As the ambient wind speed increases, the vortex becomes more organized and its center shifts closer to the leeward building.

Antiplane response of two scalene triangular hills and a semi-cylindrical canyon by incident SH-waves

Antiplane response of two scalene triangular hills and a semi-cylindrical canyon by SH-waves is studied using wave function expansion and complex function method. Firstly, the analytical model is divided into three parts, and the displacement solutions of wave fields are constructed based on boundary conditions in the three regions. Three domains are then conjoined to satisfy the ＂conjunction＂ condition at shared boundary. In addition, combined with the zero-stress condition of semi-cylindrical canyon, a series of infinite algebraic equations for the problem are derived. Finally, numerical examples are provided and the influence of different parameters on ground motion is discussed.

Mass movements in small canyons in the northeast of Baiyun deepwater area, north of the South China Sea

The process of mass movements and their consequent turbidity currents in large submarine canyons has been widely reported, however, little attention was paid to that in small canyons. In this paper, we document mass movements in small submarine canyons in the northeast of Baiyun deepwater area, north of the South China Sea （SCS）, and their strong effects on the evolution of the canyons based on geophysical data. Submarine canyons in the study area arrange closely below the shelf break zone which was at the depth of -500 m. Within submarine canyons, seabed surface was covered with amounts of failure scars resulted from past small-sized landslides. A complex process of mass transportation in the canyons is indicated by three directions of mass movements. Recent mass movement deposits in the canyons exhibit translucent reflections or parallel reflections which represent the brittle deformation and the plastic deformation, respectively. The area of most landslides in the canyons is less than 3 km2. The trigger mechanisms for mass movements in the study area are gravitational overloading, slope angle and weak properties of soil. Geophysical data indicate that the genesis of submarine canyons is the erosion of mass movements and consequent turbidity currents. The significant effects of mass movements on canyon are incision and sediment transportation at the erosion phases and fillings supply at the fill phases. This research will be helpful for the geological risk assessments and understanding the sediment transportation in the northern margin of the SCS.

Effects of Street-Bottom and Building-Roof Heating on Flow in Three-Dimensional Street Canyons

Using a computational fluid dynamics （CFD） model, the effects of street-bottom and building-roof heating on flow in three-dimensional street canyons are investigated. The building and street-canyon aspect ratios are one. In the presence of street-bottom heating, as the street-bottom heating intensity increases, the mean kinetic energy increases in the spanwise street canyon formed by the upwind and downwind buildings but decreases in the lower region of the streamwise street canyon. The increase in momentum due to buoyancy force intensifies mechanically induced flow in the spanwise street canyon. The vorticity in the spanwise street canyon strengthens. The temperature increase is not large because relatively cold above-roof-level air comes into the spanwise street canyon. In the presence of both street-bottom and building-roof heating, the mean kinetic energy rather decreases in the spanwise street canyon. This is caused by the decrease in horizontal flow speed at the roof level, which results in the weakening of the mean flow circulation in the spanwise street canyon. It is found that the vorticity in the spanwise street canyon weakens. The temperature increase is relatively large compared with that in the street-bottom heating case, because relatively warm above-roof-level air comes into the spanwise street canyon.

Using the OSPM Model on Pollutant Dispersion in an Urban Street Canyon

An observational campaign was conducted in the street canyon of Zhujiang Road in Nanjing city in 2007. Hourly mean concentrations of PM10 were measured at street and roof levels. The Operational Street Pollution Model （OSPM） street canyon dispersion model was used to calculate the street concentrations and the results were compared with the measurements. The results show that there is good agreement between measured and predicted concentrations. The correlation coefficient R2 values （R2 is a measure of the correlation of the predicted and measured time series of concentrations） are 0.5319, 0.8044, and 0.6630 for the scatter plots of PM10 corresponding to light wind speed conditions, higher wind speed conditions, and all wind speed conditions, respectively. PM10 concentrations tend to be smaller for the higher wind speed cases and decrease rapidly with increasing wind speed. The presentations of measured and modelled concentration dependence on wind direction show fairly good agreement. PM10 concentrations measured on the windward side are relatively smaller, compared with the corresponding results for the leeward side. This study demonstrates that it is possible to use the OSPM to model PM10 dispersion rules for an urban street canyon.