2023: Weather and Climate Extremes Hitting the Globe with Emerging Features

Globally,2023 was the warmest observed year on record since at least 1850 and,according to proxy evidence,possibly of the past 100000 years.As in recent years,the record warmth has again been accompanied with yet more extreme weather and climate events throughout the world.Here,we provide an overview of those of 2023,with details and key background causes to help build upon our understanding of the roles of internal climate variability and anthropogenic climate change.We also highlight emerging features associated with some of these extreme events.Hot extremes are occurring earlier in the year,and increasingly simultaneously in differing parts of the world(e.g.,the concurrent hot extremes in the Northern Hemisphere in July 2023).Intense cyclones are exacerbating precipitation extremes(e.g.,the North China flooding in July and the Libya flooding in September).Droughts in some regions(e.g.,California and the Horn of Africa)have transitioned into flood conditions.Climate extremes also show increasing interactions with ecosystems via wildfires(e.g.,those in Hawaii in August and in Canada from spring to autumn 2023)and sandstorms(e.g.,those in Mongolia in April 2023).Finally,we also consider the challenges to research that these emerging characteristics present for the strategy and practice of adaptation.

Relative Dielectric Permittivity Variations during Compaction as a Mean of Compaction Quality Control: Case Study on Laterite Samples from Senegal

This study explores an alternative to the classical use of direct methods, as water content and dry density measurements, for compaction quality control. For this purpose, the dielectric properties of lateritic materials are determined by radar method and are compared with the permittivity determined from the Topp formula and from the CRIM model. This approach allowed to establish a relationship between the geotechnical properties determined during compaction such as dry density, water content or porosity with dielectric permittivity. The obtained results made it possible to determine an optimum dielectric permittivity corresponding to the optimum dry density and the optimum water content that could be used for non-destructive in situ compaction testing. Such an approach should improve the implementation and effectiveness of in situ compaction quality control of geotechnical infrastructures.

Linear and Nonlinear Stokes Waves Theory: Numerical Hydrodynamic and Energy Studies

The increase of wave energy in electricity production is an objective shared by many countries to meet growing demand and global warming. To analyze devices capable of converting the energy of sea waves into electrical energy, it is important to master the various theories of gravity waves and generation. We will in our work consider a numerical waves tank for an amplitude A=0.5, a wavelength λ=0.25 , an average height He=10 and a Froude number fixed at 1 × 105. Numerical wave channel analysis is used to reproduce the natural phenomenon of wave propagation in an experimental model. Wave makers are usually used to generate waves in the channel. In theory, the influence of an incident wave can be considered, as in the case of our study. In this study, the evolution of the hydrodynamic parameters and the energy transported in one wavelength can be determined by calculation. A change of variable will be done in this work to facilitate the writing of the boundary conditions at the free surface and at the bottom. The nonlinear Stokes theory will be studied in this case in order to provide hydrodynamic solutions through the Navier-Stokes equations to finally deduce the energetic results. To do this, the finite difference method will be used for the hydrodynamic results such as the velocity potential and the free surface elevation and the trapezium method of Newton for the energetic results. Thus, we will determine the energetic potential according to the decrease in the slope of the tank. To do this, we will take as values of beta representing the inverse of the slope of the tank, β=100, β=105, β=110 and β=105. .

Assessment of Deviation in Quality of Steel Reinforcing Bars Used in Some Building Sites in Cameroon

The present work evaluated the deviations in the quality of steel reinforcing bars in terms of markings, diameter, yield strength and ductility in order to facilitate the drawing up of a yield strength value for the Cameroon National Annex to Eurocode 2. The methodology of the work started with the collection of steel samples from various active building project sites in four different towns viz: Bamenda, Douala, Maroua and Yaoundé and testing their tensile strength and elongation using a Universal Testing Machine and also carrying out the bending test. Results show that bars without marked manufacturer’s name fell all the tests. Other results show that 52% of all the steel had yield stresses below 400 Mpa and the highest deviation in the yield strengths was 22.50%. The study recommends that properly marked grade 500 steel bars should be adopted in the Cameroon national annex to Eurocode 2.

Factors Predisposing and Triggering the Phenomenon of Shrinkage-Swelling of Clay Soils in the Urban Center of Diamniadio

The phenomena of shrinkage and swelling of clay induce damage to housing structures every year. Precipitation, climatic changes and drought are the cause of wall cracks due to subsidence or swelling of the supporting soil. This movement alters the balance between the soil and the structures. To explain this defection, the soil is made up of three elements: the solid, the liquid and the gas. Sometimes in a natural way or following a human intervention, one of these elements undergoes an abnormal variation that causes the loss of the balance between land and works. It is in this sense that this article deals on the one hand with the factors of predisposition and triggering of the phenomena of shrinkage-swelling of the clay soils of Diamniadio and on the other hand, the factors of aggravation linked to the lithological heterogeneity and the variation in the thickness of the layers susceptible to shrinkage-swelling. The studies carried out have enabled a deeper understanding of the behavior of expansive soils following their interactions with climate, vegetation, hydrology, hydrogeology, constructions among others, but also the influence of lateral and vertical variations of fine soil facies.

A Review on Bioactive Compounds Isolated from Euphorbia hirta L.

Euphorbia hirta L. is an annual medicinal herb throughout many tropical continents used to cure various diseases. Several studies have isolated many bioactive compounds from E. hirta. This study aimed at providing a collection of bioactive constituents in E. hirta. This review summarizes the extraction solvent, the structures and the properties of 38 bioactive phytochemicals isolated from E. hirta. It could help to understand the relationship existing between phytochemicals and their activities.

Study and Comparison of Swelling and Compressibility Characteristics of Crumb Marl, Flaky Marl with Attapulgite and Sandy Clay from the Diamniadio Urban Pole at the Oedometer

In Senegal, the Diamniadio, Sebikhotane and Bargny sector contains clay soils that are problematic for construction. In order to have more information on the behavior of the clay soils of Diamniadio, free swelling tests followed by load-discharge cycles were carried out according to standard NF P 94-090-1. These tests were carried out using an Oedometric device on the three samples from the study site (sandy clays with calcareous concretion, marls with crumbs and laminated marls with attapulgite) to apprehend their swelling aspects in saturated conditions. For the free swelling test, a determination of the different swelling phases will be carried out followed by a comparison of the rate of evolution of the phases for the three samples from the site. In the same vein, the compressibility characteristics of the samples will also be provided from load-unload Oedometric tests. Thereafter, we proceed to a comparison of the void index at the initial state of the samples after two charge-discharge cycles and the influence of the cycles on the reorganization of the internal structure of the samples. These studies will provide more information on the swelling behavior of Diamniadio soils in the presence of water.

Thermal Properties of Earth Bricks Stabilised with Cement and Sawdust Residue Using the Asymmetrical Hot-Plane Method

This paper presents an experimental study of the characterisation of local materials used in the construction and thermal insulation of buildings. These materials are compressed earth bricks stabilised with cement and sawdust. The thermal conductivity, diffusivity, effusivity, and specific heat of earth-based materials containing cement or sawdust have been determined. The results show that the blocks with earth + sawdust are better thermal insulators than the blocks with simple earth. We observe an improvement in thermal efficiency depending on the presence of sawdust or cement stabilisers. For cement stabilisation, the thermal conductivity increases (λ: 1.04 to 1.36 W·m-1·K-1), the diffusivity increases (from 4.32 × 10-7 to 9.82 × 10-7 m2·s-1), and the effusivity decreases (1404 - 1096 J·m-2·K-1·s-1/2). For sawdust stabilisation, the thermal conductivity decreases (λ: 1.04 to 0.64 W·m-1·K-1), the diffusivity increases (from 4.32 × 10-7 to 5.9 × 10-7 m2·s-1), and the effusivity decreases (1404 - 906 J·m-2·K-1·s-1/2). Improving the structural and thermal efficiency of BTC via stabilisation with derived binders or cement is beneficial for the load-bearing capacity and thermal performance of buildings.

Comparisons between numerical calculations and measurements in vaned diffuser of SHF impeller

The paper presents analysis of the performance and the internal flow behaviour in the vaned diffuser of a radial flow pump using PIV(particle image velocimetry)and pressure probe traverses.PIV measurements have already been performed at middle height inside one diffuser channel passage for a given speed of rotation and various mass flow rates.These results have been already presented in several previous communications.New experiments have been performed using a three-hole pressure probe traverses from hub to shroud diffuser width at different radial locations between the two diffuser geometrical throats.Numerical simulations are also realized with the commercial codes Star CCM+7.02.011 and CFX.Frozen rotor and fully unsteady calculations of the whole pump have been performed.Comparisons between numerical results,previous experimental PIV results and new probe traverses one's are presented and discussed for one mass flow rate.In this respect,a first attempt to take into account fluid leakages between the rotating and fixed part of the pump has been checked since it may affects the real flow structure inside the diffuser.

Variation of Surface Temperature during the Last Millennium in a Simulation with the FGOALS-gl Climate System Model

A reasonable past millennial climate simulation relies heavily on the specified external forcings, including both natural and anthropogenic forcing agents. In this paper, we examine the surface temperature responses to specified external forcing agents in a millennium-scale transient climate simulation with the fast version of LASG IAP Flexible Global Ocean-Atmosphere-Land System model （FGOALS-gl） developed in the State Key Laboratory of Numerical Modeling for Atmospheric Sciences and Geophysical Fluid Dynamics, Institute of Atmospheric Physics （LASG/IAP）. The model presents a reasonable performance in comparison with reconstructions of surface temperature. Differentiated from significant changes in the 20th century at the global scale, changes during the natural-forcing-dominant period are mainly manifested in the Northern Hemisphere. Seasonally, modeled significant changes are more pronounced during the wintertime at higher latitudes. This may be a manifestation of polar amplification associated with sea-ice-temperature positive feedback. The climate responses to total external forcings can explain about half of the climate variance during the whole millennium period, especially at decadal timescales. Surface temperature in the Antarctic shows heterogeneous and insignificant changes during the preindustrial period and the climate response to external forcings is undetectable due to the strong internal variability. The model response to specified external forcings is modulated by cloud radiative forcing （CRF）. The CRF acts against the fluctuations of external forcings. Effects of clouds are manifested in shortwave radiation by changes in cloud water during the natural-forcing-dominant period, but mainly in longwave radiation by a decrease in cloud amount in the ant hropogenic- forcing-dominant period.

Scaling law of resolved-scale isotropic turbulence and its application in large-eddy simulation

Eddy-damping quasinormal Markovian （EDQNM） theory is employed to calculate the resolved-scale spectrum and transfer spectrum, based on which we investigate the resolved-scale scaling law. Results show that the scaling law of the resolved-scale turbulence, which is affected by several factors, is far from that of the full-scale turbulence and should be corrected. These results are then applied to an existing subgrid model to improve its performance. A series of simulations are performed to verify the necessity of a fixed scaling law in the subgrid modeling.

Does CMIP6 Inspire More Confidence in Simulating Climate Extremes over China?

Based on climate extreme indices calculated from a high-resolution daily observational dataset in China during 1961–2005,the performance of 12 climate models from phase 6 of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project(CMIP6),and 30 models from phase 5 of CMIP(CMIP5),are assessed in terms of spatial distribution and interannual variability.The CMIP6 multi-model ensemble mean(CMIP6-MME)can simulate well the spatial pattern of annual mean temperature,maximum daily maximum temperature,and minimum daily minimum temperature.However,CMIP6-MME has difficulties in reproducing cold nights and warm days,and has large cold biases over the Tibetan Plateau.Its performance in simulating extreme precipitation indices is generally lower than in simulating temperature indices.Compared to CMIP5,CMIP6 models show improvements in the simulation of climate indices over China.This is particularly true for precipitation indices for both the climatological pattern and the interannual variation,except for the consecutive dry days.The arealmean bias for total precipitation has been reduced from 127%(CMIP5-MME)to 79%(CMIP6-MME).The most striking feature is that the dry biases in southern China,very persistent and general in CMIP5-MME,are largely reduced in CMIP6-MME.Stronger ascent together with more abundant moisture can explain this reduction in dry biases.Wet biases for total precipitation,heavy precipitation,and precipitation intensity in the eastern Tibetan Plateau are still present in CMIP6-MME,but smaller,compared to CMIP5-MME.

Numerical Simulation of Double Diffusive Mixed Convection in a Horizontal Annulus with Finned Inner Cylinder

The present work relates to a numerical investigation of double diffusive mixed convection around a horizontal annulus with a finned inner cylinder.The solutal and thermal buoyancy forces are sustained by maintaining the inner and outer cylinders at uniform temperatures and concentrations.Buoyancy effects are also considered,with the Boussinesq approximation.The forced convection effect is induced by the outer cylinder rotating with an angular velocity(ω)in an anti-clockwise direction.The studies are made for various combinations of dimensionless numbers;buoyancy ratio number(N),Lewis number(Le),Richardson number(Ri)and Grashof number(Gr).The isotherms,isoconcentrations and streamlines as well as both average and local Nusselt and Sherwood numbers were studied.A finite volume scheme is adopted to solve the transport equations for continuity,momentum,energy and mass transfer.The results indicate that the use of fins on the inner cylinder with outer cylinder rotation,significantly improves the heat and mass transfer in the annulus.

Improved slope safety analysis by new Druker-Prager type criterion

Based on Mohr-Coulomb(M-C) criterion,the parameters of Druker-Prager(D-P) criterion for geomaterial were determined under non-associated flow rule,and thus a new D-P type criterion was presented.Two assumptions were employed during the derivation:1) principal strains by M-C model and D-P model are equal,and 2) the material is under plane strain condition.Based on the analysis of the surface on π plane,it is found that the proposed D-P type criterion is better than the D-P criterion with M-C circumscribed circle or M-C inscribed circle,and is applicable for stress Lode angle less than zero.By comparing the predicted results with the test data of sand under plane strain condition and other D-P criteria,the proposed criterion is verified and agrees well with the test data,which is further proved to be better than other D-P type criteria in certain range of Lode angle.The criterion was compiled into a finite difference package FLAC3D by user-subroutine,and was used to analyze the stability of a slope by strength reduction method.The predicted slope safety factor from the proposed criterion agrees well with that by Spencer method,and it is more accurate than that from classic D-P criteria.

Effect of an adverse pressure gradient on the streamwise Reynolds stress profile maxima in a turbulent boundary layer

It is widely accepted that in a turbulent boundary layer （TBL） with adverse pressure gradient （APG） an outer peak usually appears in the profile of streamwise Reynolds stress. However, the effect of APG on this outer peak is not clearly understood. In this paper, the effect of APG is analysed using the numerical and experimental results in the literature. Because the effect of upstream flow is inherent in the TBL, we first analyse this effect in TBLs with zero pressure gradient on flat plates. Under the individual effect of upstream flow, an outer peak already appears in the profile of streamwise Reynolds stress when the TBL continues developing in the streamwise direction. The APG accelerates the appearance of the outer peak, instead of being a trigger.

Identification of a Cam Clay Model through Shear-Box and Oedometer Tests. Application to Lateritical Soils from Senegal (West Africa)

The main objective of this research is to study the mechanical behaviour of tropical soils using elasto-plastic constitutive equations in the so-called limit and critical states. Indeed, researchers of the Cambridge University had noticed that during their various experiments, the rate of volumetric deformation ( ) of the sample tending to zero every time the rupture of the specimen is reached during a test performed on a clay specimen Roscoe et al., 1958. To better understand and clarify this mechanical behaviour, a description has been proposed in the (e, p, q) representation that means void ratio, volumetric stress (spherical pressure) and deviatoric stress. This frame of theoretical study and apprehension is called: the theory of the Critical State. One of the major problems met at the time of our present research is the non-availability of triaxial apparatus allowing us to achieve some tests on tropical soils (samples from Senegal in West Africa) and to describe the behaviour of these materials easily like the researchers of the university of Cambridge in the theory of the critical state. To by-pass this difficulty, we decided to consider two very classical and simple mechanical tests: shear-box and the oedometer test as well as the interrelationship of the results given by the tests and some theoretical calculations. This is a way to identify an elasto-plastic model (the modified Cam Clay model) without any triaxial experiment. Indeed it supposes the model to be suitable to describe the mechanical behaviour of the considered clays.

Analysis of the periodic solutions of a smooth and discontinuous oscillator

In this paper, the periodic solutions of the smooth and discontinuous （SD） oscillator, which is a strongly irra- tional nonlinear system are discussed for the system having a viscous damping and an external harmonic excitation. A four dimensional averaging method is employed by using the complete Jacobian elliptic integrals directly to obtain the perturbed primary responses which bifurcate from both the hyperbolic saddle and the non-hyperbolic centres of the un- perturbed system. The stability of these periodic solutions is analysed by examining the four dimensional averaged equa- tion using Lyapunov method. The results presented herein this paper are valid for both smooth （e 〉 0） and discontin- uous （ce = 0） stages providing the answer to the question why the averaging theorem spectacularly fails for the case of medium strength of external forcing in the Duffing system analysed by Holmes. Numerical calculations show a good agreement with the theoretical predictions and an excellent efficiency of the analysis for this particular system, which also suggests the analysis is applicable to strongly nonlinear systems.

New insights into sodium transport regulation in the distal nephron:Role of G-protein coupled receptors

The renal handling of Na^+ balance is a major determinant of the blood pressure(BP) level. The inability of the kidney to excrete the daily load of Na+ represents the primary cause of chronic hypertension. Among the different segments that constitute the nephron, those present in the distal part(i.e., the cortical thick ascending limb, the distal convoluted tubule, the connecting and collecting tubules) play a central role in the fine-tuning of renal Na^+ excretion and are the target of many different regulatory processes that modulate Na^+ retention more or less efficiently. G-protein coupled receptors(GPCRs) are crucially involved in this regulation and could represent efficient pharmacological targets to control BP levels. In this review, we describe both classical and novel GPCR-dependent regulatory systems that have been shown to modulate renal Na^+ absorption in the distal nephron. In addition to the multiplicity of the GPCR that regulate Na^+ excretion, this review also highlights the complexity of these different pathways, and the connections between them.

Evaluation of the Impact of Truck Overloading on Flexible Compacted Gravel Lateritic Soil’s Pavements by FEM with Cast3M^©

Within the framework of a FEM of the nonlinear behavior of lateritic pavement of Senegal, the effect of truck overloading is studied to estimate its impact on the deformability of road pavement on compacted gravel lateritic soils. For that purpose, various loading conditions were tested to measure the impact on the critical response parameters of road pavement design. The implementation of the models was realized with Cast3M©. This study allowed us to point out that the observed variations are linear and would help to plan in advance the impact of axle overloads for a better evaluation within the framework of the mechanistic (M. E.) design of pavements.

Railway Traffic Vibration Impact Analysis on Surrounding Buildings by FEM—Case Study: TER (Regional Express Train) Dakar—AIBD

The vibrations induced by railway traffic can affect the stability of structures, buildings and buried structures. To evaluate this impact, this study was carried out considering the case of the Regional Express Train which will connect Dakar to Blaise Diagne International Airport. For that, the modeling software Plaxis dynamic [1], able to generate harmonic loads, is used and permitted to have a dynamic analysis and comparison between static and dynamic load for one passage of the train for 2.56 s. In the modeling, two behavior laws were used those of Mohr Coulomb for the layers of soil, embankments and the form layer, and then the linear elastic model for the rest of the elements. The results obtained showed extreme vertical displacements 40.18 mm for the building and when no load is applied on the track, there was 40.24 mm for a static load, and 40.17 mm for a dynamic load. Also, it was observed for the track a displacement of 33.73 mm for a static load and 19.83 mm for a dynamic load. However, further studies are necessary to take into account the permanent deformation after an accurate cycle of train passage in order to better evaluate the railway traffic impact.