An investigation of the morphodynamic change of reef islands under monochromatic waves

The persistence and habitability of coral reef islands in future extreme oceanographic conditions has received increasing attention in the recent decade,concerning that the sea level rise(SLR)and more frequent and intense storms in the context of global climate change are expected to destabilize those islands.Here,we conduct a set of wave-flume laboratory experiments focusing on the morphodynamic change of reef islands to varying ocean forcing conditions(wave height and SLR).Subsequently,a phase-resolving XBeach numerical model is adopted to simulate the monochromatic wave process and its associated sediment dynamics.The adopted model is also firstly validated by laboratory experimental results as reported in this study.It is then used to examine the impacts of island morphological factors(island width,island height,island location and island side slope)on the island migration.The combined laboratory/physical and numerical experiment outputs suggest that reef islands can accrete vertically in response to the sea level rise and the increased storminess.

The role of biocrusts in nitrogen cycling on the tropical reef islands,South China Sea

Harboring polyextremotolerant microbial topsoil communities,biological soil crusts(biocrusts)occur across various climatic zones,and have been well studied in the terrestrial drylands.However,little is known about the functional metabolic potential of microbial communities involved in the biogeochemical processes during the early succession of biocrusts on the tropical reef islands.We collected 26 biocrusts and bare soil samples from the Xisha Islands and Nansha Islands,and applied a functional gene array(GeoChip 5.0)to reveal nitrogen(N)cycling processes involved in these samples.Both physicochemical measurement and enzyme activity assay were utilized to characterize the soil properties.Results revealed the composition of N-cycling functional genes in biocrusts was distinct from that in bare soil.Additionally,microorganisms in biocrusts showed lower functional potential related to ammonification,denitrification,N assimilation,nitrification,N fixation,and dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium compared to bare soils.Although the abundance of nifH gene was lower in biocrusts,nitrogenase activity was significantly higher compared to that in bare soils.Precipitation,soil physicochemical properties(i.e.,soil available copper,soil ammonia N and pH)and soil biological properties(i.e.,β-glucosidase,fluorescein diacetate hydrolase,alkaline protease,urease,alkaline phosphatase,catalase and chlorophyll a)correlated to the N-cycling functional genes structure.Nitrate N and ammonia N were more abundant in biocrusts than bare soil,while pH value was higher in bare soil.Our results suggested biocrusts play an important role in N-cycling in coral sand soil,and will be helpful in understanding the development and ecological functions of biocrusts on tropical reef islands.

Drivers,Trends,and Patterns of Changing Vegetation-greenness in Nansha Islands,China from 2016 to 2022

Changes in vegetation status generally also represents changes in the ecological health of islands and reefs(IRs).However,studies are limited of drivers and trends of vegetation change of Nansha Islands,China and how they relate to climate change and human activities.To resolve this limitation,we studied changes to the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index(NDVI)vegetation-greenness index for 22 IRs of Nansha Islands during normal and extreme conditions.Trends of vegetation greenness were analyzed using Sen's slope and Mann-Kendall test at two spatial scales(pixel and island),and driving factor analyses were performed by time-lagged partial correlation analyses.These were related to impacts from human activities and climatic factors under normal(temperature,precipitation,radiation,and Normalized Difference Built-up Index(NDBI))and extreme conditions(wind speed and latitude of IRs)from 2016 to 2022.Results showed:1)among the 22 IRs,NDVI increased/decreased significantly in 15/4 IRs,respectively.Huayang Reef had the highest NDVI change-rate(0.48%/mon),and Zhongye Island had the lowest(–0.29%/mon).Local spatial patterns were in one of two forms:dotted-form,and degradation in banded-form.2)Under normal conditions,human activities(characterized by NDBI)had higher impacts on vegetation-greenness than other factors.3)Under extreme conditions,wind speed(R^(2)=0.2337,P<0.05)and latitude(R^(2)=0.2769,P<0.05)provided limited explanation for changes from typhoon events.Our results provide scientific support for the sustainable development of Nansha Islands and the United Nations‘Ocean Decade’initiative.

Damage assessment of the target area of the island/reef under the attack of missile warhead

Under the background of vigorously developing facilities of island/reef in the world,the economic value and strategic significance of the island/reef have become increasingly important.Unfortunately,they may easily become the attacking target of missiles in the war time.Therefore,aiming at the damage quantification of the targets in the island/reef under the missile attacking,a macroscopic damage assessment model for the target area is proposed in this paper.The model focuses on the construction of the assessment model framework.Firstly,the analytic hierarchy process and the grey relational analysis are applied to measure the importance of each target in the region through four indicators of the target hazard,striking urgency,damage advantage and mission relevance,respectively.Secondly,based on the damage mechanism of shock wave and fragments to target,the corresponding damage model is established,and the damage grade of each target in the evaluated area is obtained according to the damage criteria and grading standard.Finally,the model obtains the overall damage grade of the target area by employing the fuzzy comprehensive evaluation method,with synthesizing the importance and the damage grade of each target.Through the verification of an example,it demonstrates the certain feasibility of the model and provides a certain basis and reference for the subsequent research.

Survey of reefs based on Landsat 8 operational land imager(OLI)images in the Nansha Islands, South China Sea

A detailed survey of the reefs in the Nansha Islands＇ sea that are of strategic importance is conducive to their future development. In this study, a total of 50 Landsat 8 operational land imager（OLI） images were used to analyze the geological features and spectral characteristics of the Nansha reefs. The exposed islands/sandbanks,reef flats and sub-tidal reefs were identified with the near-infrared band, the red and green bands, and the blue band, respectively. Based on the relationships among various characteristics and bands illustrated in the OLI images, the maximum between-cluster variance threshold algorithm（OTSU method） and the mathematical morphology were employed to extract characteristic parameters of the spatial geometry of the reefs from top to bottom, which were subsequently operated by a series of post-processing methods such as vectorization,simplification and topological analysis. Among the 132 standalone reefs and 16 atolls that are identified in the study, four reefs have yet to be named in the Standard Names of Various Islands in the South China Sea and the website Nansha Islands Online（http：//www.nansha.org/）. Another 24 ones are exposed to the atmosphere even during high tides. Taiping Island with an area of 0.57 km^2 represents the largest exposed geological feature. This study demonstrated the applicability of medium-resolution satellite images to derive the coral reef information effectively and thus provided information for the related departments that are responsible to manage the coast.An improved resolution of multispectral bands with the panchromatic band in higher spatial resolution（15 m for OLI image） is expected to provide an optimum satellite based approach to map marine habitats.

Remote sensing composite information's trend surface analysis of Nansha Islands coral islets and reefs' top

Based on the remote sensing information feature of Nansha coral islets and reefs that controlled by the Nansha Islands local area's goological structure and growth law, by means of mathematical model and PC, the Nansha Islands coral islets and reefs' top geological data' spatial distribution and local change trend are simulated by using the trend surface system on the remote sensing composite information, and an scientific interpretation and local comparison of Nansha coral islands and islets' spatial distribution feature are made.

The influence of earthquakes on Zhubi Reef in the Nansha Islands of the South China Sea

It is exceedingly important to estimate the stability of coral reefs. In recent years, growing construction projects have been carried out on the reef flat in the South China Sea. As a special marine geotechnical medium, it is made of the reef debris underwent overwhelmingly long geological age. Reefs grow thickly on the carbonate platform after the Late Oligocene and have five to six main sedimentary facies. It can be used as a recorder to measure the occurrence time of recent earthquake. A model of reef body is presented to study the influence of earthquakes according to the geological structure characteristic of reefs in the Nansha Islands. Furthermore, Geo Studio is used to simulate stress and deformation situations within it under various earthquake intensities. A safety factor is calculated by the limit equilibrium method, and the possible scenarios of earthquake-induced landslides and sliding scale are defined with a Newmark sliding block method, as well as stress distribution and deformation behaviors. Therefore, the numerical results suggest that the connections between the coral reef and the earthquake are as follows：（1） the reef body has a good stability under self-gravity state;（2） after the earthquake, it may cause slope＇s instability and bring out slumping when the safety factor is smaller than 1（FS〈1）;（3） the safety factor decreases with the increasing earthquake intensity, and fluctuates around a particular value after a while;and（4） as a new developed part of the reef, the smaller shallow landslide will be easily subject to collapse caused by the earthquake. It is concluded that it is feasible to provide a reference for evaluating the stability of coral reef using a geotechnical engineering simulation method. This can help the engineering constructions in the South China Sea.

Reconstructing Environmental Changes of a Coastal Lagoon with Coral Reefs in Southeastern Hainan Island

Coastal lagoons with small catchment basins are highly sensitive to natural processes and anthropogenic activities. To figure out the environmental changes of a coastal lagoon and its contribution to carbon burial, two sediment cores were collected in Xincun Lagoon, southeastern Hainan Island and (210) ~Pb activities, grain size parameters, total organic carbon(TOC), total nitrogen(TN), total inorganic carbon(TIC) and stable carbon isotopes(δ^(13)C) were measured. The results show that in 1770–1815, the decreasing water exchange capacity with outer open water, probably caused by the shifting and narrowing of the tidal inlet, not only diminished the currents and fined the sediments in the lagoon, but also reduced the organic matter of marine sources. From 1815 to 1950, the sedimentary environment of Xincun Lagoon was frequently influenced by storm events. These extreme events resulted in the high fluctuation of sediment grain size and sorting, as well as the great variation in contributions of terrestrial(higher plants, soils) and marine sources(phytoplankton, algae, seagrass). The extremely high content of TIC, compared to TOC before 1950 could be attributed to the large-scale coverage of coral reefs. However, with the boost of seawater aquaculture activities after 1970, the health growth of coral species was severely threatened, and corresponding production and inorganic carbon burial flux reduced. The apparent enhanced inorganic carbon burial rate after 1990 might result from the concomitant carbonate debris produced by seawater aquaculture. This result is important for local government long-term coastal management and environmental planning.

Distribution of Rare Earth Elements in Early Permian Reef-Island Ocean Sediments in Eastern Kunlun

Abstract: Based on the study of stratigraphy and fossils, the Early Permian ocean in eastern Kunlun is recognized as a kind of reef-island ocean, in which there exist many different kinds of sediment, including patch carbonate platform, reef facies, transitional facies and deep basin sediments. It has been found that the total contents of REEs increase gradually from carbonate platform facies to deep basin facies. Meanwhile, sediments of different facies have different REE distribution patterns and different Ce anomalies. Most of the sediments of patch carbonate platform facies or reef facies are characterized by extremely negative Ce anomalies or moderately negative Ce anomalies (Ce/Ce*=0.33 to 0.55), and medium or thin-bedded limestones of transitional facies by moderately negative Ce anomalies (Ce/Ce*=0.49 to 0.60). However, sediments of deep basin facies show weak or no negative Ce anomalies (Ce/Ce*=0.69 to 1.47), among which the value of Ce/Ce* in the radiolarian chert is 1.47.

Durability of Concrete with Different Improvement Measures and Its Ser-vice Life Prediction in Island and Reef Environment

To solve the durability of island and reef concrete engineering in the harsh environment of high temperature,high salt,high humidity and windy,the strength grade of concrete and the type of corrosion inhibitor were used as the influence factors,while the relative dynamic elastic modulus was used as the evaluation index.In addition,the law and time variability of the deterioration of concrete,the size effect,environmental similarity and the service life model were studied.The results showed that improving the strength grade of concrete could improve the durability of concrete,and corrosion inhibitor could slightly improve the durability of concrete.Time-varying law of the deterioration of concrete conformed to the univariate quadratic polynomial.Combined with the concrete damage equivalent theory,a size effect model based on the relative dynamic elastic modulus was proposed and verified,and the size effect coefficient was also given.An environmental similarity model between simulated and practical island and reef environment was proposed.Combined with the reliability theory and the first order second moment method,a new service life model of concrete structure was proposed.The authors were convinced that the research will be advantageous to researchers.

The Effect of Climate on the Chemical Composition of the Coral Reefs around Kubbar Island—Kuwait

Thick recent carbonate sediments cover all the intertidal and subtidal zones consist of mainly different shell and coral reef debris. The chemical investigations of the coral fragments were done on controlled bases, which depend on the coral size and seasons, in order to elucidate the effect of weather parameters on the coral reefs. Geochemical investigation indicated that corals gathered from high-tide mark are mainly contaminated by copper, cobalt, and chromium and the corals gathered from low-tide mark are contaminated by lead and zinc. All the analyzed coral samples are contaminated by copper. The major contamination sights by heavy metals are related to the weather pattern around the islands. Calcium concentration in all the corals indicates a low-Magnesium calcite or aragonite composition, except for some coral samples which were gathered during October from the high-tide mark. Trace element concentration levels show high concentrations at sights of low-wave action around the island during the various seasons. Chemical analysis on the coral derbies indicates compositional variations regarding calcium and magnesium mole% between the seasons and at different locations and it is dependant on wind direction and water salinity. Some localities are iron rich others are aluminum and potassium rich. Generally, aluminum, iron, and potassium occur in lower quantities than the other elements. Therefore, all the chemical data regarding trace elements indicate relationship to weather and environmental parameters.

岛礁风光柴储多能源独立微电网建模分析

岛礁多能源独立微电网是解决远海岛礁供电难题,确保岛上军民用电稳定及提高岛礁自然资源利用率的关键技术。传统岛礁独立微电网建模电源种类不够完备,交流母线应用较少。为此,建立了风、光、柴、储4种电源数学模型,在电力电子变换器中使用了基于扰动观察法的Boost升压电路与基于电网电压定向的矢量控制方式。系统模型中风、光、柴、储4种电源汇入交流母线,整体功率、电压趋于稳态。仿真结果表明:所构建的岛礁多能源独立微电网模型较为科学合理,可为开展岛礁多能源微电网健康管理等研究打下坚实基础。

硫酸锌胶结珊瑚砂渗透特性试验及工程应用探讨

对松散珊瑚砂进行胶结处理以降低岛礁地层渗透性是促进生态岛淡水涵养的重要手段之一。为此,开展了硫酸锌胶结珊瑚砂的渗透试验,分析了不同浸泡时长、硫酸锌溶液浓度及初始干密度对胶结珊瑚砂渗透性的影响,采用干湿循环试验验证其耐久性,通过X射线衍射(X-ray diffraction,简称XRD)、扫描电镜(scanning electron microscope,简称SEM)、能量色散X射线光谱(energy dispersive spectrometer,简称EDS)及计算机断层扫描(computed tomography,简称CT)扫描研究微观胶结机制。结果表明:(1)硫酸锌胶结可将珊瑚砂渗透系数降低70.17%~95.79%;(2)干湿循环16次后,胶结处理36 h的珊瑚砂样品质量损失率不超过4%,渗透系数变化不超过1.0×10^(-3)cm/s,表明样品耐久性良好;(3)珊瑚砂和硫酸锌反应生成二水石膏与菱锌矿填充样品孔隙,使孔喉平均半径、配位数均减小,孔隙连通性显著下降。该技术可应用于岛礁吹填初期固砂防侵蚀、提高地基承载力、降低渗透性以促进地下淡水涵养和生态岛建设,具有重要的工程应用价值。

三亚凤凰岛造礁石珊瑚迁移效果研究

造礁石珊瑚既是构成珊瑚礁生态系统中的关键功能生物,也是国家二级保护野生动物,其数量的快速衰退已引起了广泛关注,因此近年来我国对造礁石珊瑚以及珊瑚礁生态系统的保护正在逐步加强。海岸工程易对周边的珊瑚礁造成严重影响,实施保护性迁移是降低工程对造礁石珊瑚影响的重要手段。为研究海南热带海域造礁石珊瑚迁移方法以及迁移保护的效果,我们对三亚凤凰岛二期项目拆除工程影响海域内的造礁石珊瑚实施了保护性迁移及监测。迁移造礁石珊瑚个体共计16634株,包括鹿角珊瑚属、牡丹珊瑚属、滨珊瑚属等18属造礁石珊瑚种类。迁移个体分别迁移至鹿回头海域6210株与西岛海域10424株。迁移珊瑚采用了三种移植方法,分别为铆钉移植、小型移植礁体移植与直接摆放。在迁移至鹿回头和西岛两地8个月后,迁移珊瑚平均存活率均在80%以上,两地迁移珊瑚的总存活率为86.24%。调查的结果显示,铆钉移植的方法存活率最高,小型移植礁体和直接摆放的两种移植方法存活率稍低。迁移至西岛的珊瑚8个月平均生长了3.03cm,的增长率为23.31%,而鹿回头迁入的珊瑚平均生长了6.15cm,增长率为58.74%,高于迁移至西岛的珊瑚。迁移采用的三种移植方法的8个月的存活率均高于75%,并且珊瑚的生长速率较好,说明珊瑚适应迁入区环境。由以上结果来看,此次保护性迁移珊瑚数量多,涉及的珊瑚种类广,在迁移后经受过两次台风的影响,迁移结果具有一定的代表性。本研究中,珊瑚迁移的效果达到了保护受拆除工程影响的造礁石珊瑚的目的,可为未来的珊瑚迁移性保护提供重要经验。

珊瑚礁海岸沉积物输运及珊瑚砂岛演变研究综述

珊瑚礁海岸沉积物的输运及珊瑚砂岛的演变研究在我国起步较晚,同时南中国海的珊瑚砂岛是我国重要的海洋空间资源,涉及国家领土主权的核心利益,开展这方面研究具有重要的学术价值和现实意义。综合分析了推移质和悬移质碳酸盐沉积物输运过程及其影响因素,重点介绍了短波、低频长波和海流对沉积物输运的驱动机制,以及粗糙珊瑚对沉积物的遮蔽效应。总结分析了珊瑚砂岛的动态演变规律及其影响因素,并重点介绍了珊瑚砂岛在长期海平面上升和短期风暴潮增强时的演变规律,并提出了今后研究需要关注的方向。

《西沙群岛珊瑚岛(礁)地区岩土工程勘察标准》研究与编制

为适应和满足西沙群岛珊瑚岛(礁)工程建设的需要,使珊瑚岛(礁)岩土工程勘察有据可依,总结了西沙群岛岩土工程勘察项目实践经验和研究成果,通过资料收集、分析与研究,编制了《西沙群岛珊瑚岛(礁)地区岩土工程勘察标准》(DBJ46—060—2022)。介绍标准的编制背景、编制的工作流程、标准的主要内容和重点研究内容,探讨需要进一步研究的内容。

西沙群岛玉琢礁珊瑚礁鱼类种类组成及演变

玉琢礁是西沙群岛中的重要环礁,拥有多样化的珊瑚礁生态系统和丰富的鱼类资源。为掌握玉琢礁珊瑚礁鱼类的资源状况及其演变特征,于2023年采用手钓、水下潜捕、水下视频和eDNA等方法,对其珊瑚礁鱼类资源进行调查。共发现鱼类220种,其中eDNA方法共发现鱼类111种,结合2003年中国水产科学研究院南海水产研究所的历史档案数据,截至目前在玉琢礁共发现鱼类265种,隶属于12目50科128属,其中鲈形目占绝对优势。鱼类群落组成以小型鱼类为主,平均分类差异指数(Δ^(+))和变异分类差异指数(Λ^(+))分别为56.08和122.4;相似性分析表明,2003与2023年之间,鱼类在种类组成、食性组成和不同体型层面的相似性均表现为不相似或极不相似。与历史调查数据进行比较,共有45种鱼类未被监测到,其中大型肉食性鱼类受到自然与人类扰动的影响最为显著,植食性鱼类所受到的影响相对较小,分类多样性指数(Δ^(+)、Λ^(+))显著下降。初步推断不可持续的捕捞、生境衰退和温度上升等因素导致了玉琢礁珊瑚礁鱼类的更替。研究结果可为玉琢礁的珊瑚礁鱼类资源保护与管理、珊瑚礁生态系统的恢复提供参考。

吹填珊瑚礁岛地下水淡化时空规律初探

为分析吹填珊瑚礁岛地下水的时空淡化规律,开展珊瑚礁岛地下水现场长期监测,获取了不同位置、不同深度地下水电导率的长期监测数据和定期取样测试核验数据;结合礁岛降雨监测资料,以电导率为地下水质评价的主要指标,分析地下水电导率在时间、空间尺度上的变化特征,探索礁岛地下水的淡化趋势及影响因素,通过随机森林模型进一步预测了钻孔内地下水电导率的变化规律。研究结果表明,珊瑚礁岛地下水电导率总体呈震荡下降趋势,地下水电导率与时间的关系可以用指数函数表示。地下水电导率随深度的增加而增大直至与海水的电导率相当后维持稳定,礁岛内相同深度地下水电导率呈现中间低、四周高的趋势。说明地下水的淡化从礁岛中心部位开始向四周延展,并发现在礁岛中部存在多个初始淡化中心点。地下水电导率受降雨入渗、潮汐作用、水文地质参数等多个因素的影响,随机森林模型预测5 a后潜水面下8 m处的电导率将逐渐稳定在10000μS/cm,地下水的淡化速率显著降低。

岛礁环境对吊耳疲劳性能影响研究

目的 研究吊耳在岛礁环境下的腐蚀特征及其对疲劳性能的影响。方法 通过开展吊耳试验件的岛礁自然环境试验,测试其不同在试验周期的疲劳性能,分析断口形貌、元素含量变化,研究腐蚀对吊耳抗疲劳性能的影响。结果 在1a的岛礁自然环境试验中,吊耳的腐蚀部位主要为表面镀层,并且呈非均匀腐蚀特征。随着试验时间的延长,吊耳平均疲劳断裂循环次数呈下降趋势,疲劳断口的韧性断裂特征减弱,并且氢含量有所增加。吊耳内部存在MnS夹杂物,位于韧窝底部。结论 吊耳表面点蚀坑、内部MnS夹杂物对疲劳载荷作用下裂纹的萌生和生长起到促进作用,降低了其抗疲劳性能,应加强腐蚀防护和质量控制。

基于Reef Check调查的涠洲岛珊瑚礁生态状况评价

采用Reef Check(珊瑚礁健康调查法)和珊瑚礁生态系统健康指标因素分析法,对广西北海涠洲岛珊瑚礁健康状况进行评价。Reef Check调查从2001―2012年共进行了11 a,调查区为涠洲岛的竹蔗簝、公山、牛背坑3个地点,调查项目包括鱼类、无脊椎动物、珊瑚礁底质。调查结果表明:涠洲岛周边不同区域的珊瑚礁生态状况有较大差异,在竹蔗簝和牛背坑调查区的珊瑚礁覆盖率较为稳定;而在公山调查区,则发现珊瑚在2002年间出现了大面积死亡的情况,至今尚未恢复。利用珊瑚礁生态系统健康指标因素分析法对涠洲岛珊瑚礁健康状况进行评价,结果表明:竹蔗簝和牛背坑的珊瑚礁健康状态相似,都属于一般,其中牛背坑略好,而公山的珊瑚礁健康状态较差。