Research on governance of HFO use and carriage on ships in accordance with the Polar Code

In this paper, we discuss the environmental damages caused by the use and carriage of Heavy Fuel Oil(HFO) by ships in Arctic waters. We also review efforts made by major international and regional organizations in governing the use and carriage of HFO by ships in Arctic waters after implementation of the Polar Code, and analyze the obstacles and difficulties that lie ahead. By illustrating the features of the Arctic Council and the International Maritime Organization(IMO), which govern Arctic waters, we examine measures taken by these two organizations in tackling HFO issues. These include: assessing indigenous and local community’s reliance on HFO transportation in the Arctic, developing risk prevention measures for ships operating in Arctic waters, seeking economic alternatives to HFO that contribute to a greener economy, developing a package of HFO governance measures, strengthening cooperation between relevant international and regional organizations that govern HFO to provide suggestions for follow-up discussions on HFOs, and optimize governance by relevant organizations and determine a better global solution to governing the use and carriage of HFO by ships. In addition, we discuss the feasibility of an IMO-imposed HFO ban from the perspective of the Arctic governance to clearly grasp the path of its future development.

Velocity and Sediment Concentration Profiles in Sediment-Laden Flows

A theoretical analysis of velocity profiles in sediment-laden flows is presented by means of Prandtl-Karman mixing length theorem. The study shows that the upward velocity of liquid-phase caused by settling sediment leads to the invalidity of the log-law and Rouse equation. The theoretical analysis takes into account the upward velocity and shows: 1) the mean velocity in sediment-laden flows follows the log-law, but the Karman constant reduces in the main flow region, 2) sediment concentration reduces the mixing length of fluid particles, 3) flow resistance reduces with the presence of sediment concentration, and 4) the sediment concentration profile deviates from the well know Rouse equation. The experimental data agree well with the equations derived on the basis of non-zero wall velocity. It is found that the wall-normal velocity should not be neglected for density gradient flows because it induces more than for pure water flows.

Ex situ echo sounder target strengths of ice krill Euphausia crystallorophias

Ice krill is the keystone species in the neritic ecosystem in the Southern Ocean,where it replaces the more oceanic Antarctic krill. It is essential to understand the variation of target strength(TS in d B re 1 m 2) with the different body size to accurately estimate ice krill stocks. However,there is comparatively little knowledge of the acoustic backscatter of ice krill. The TS of individual,formalin-preserved,tethered ice krill was measured in a freshwater test tank at 38,120,and 200 k Hz with a calibrated split-beam echo sounder system. Mean TS was obtained from 21 individual ice krill with a broad range of body lengths(L :13–36 mm). The length( L,mm) to wet weight( W; mg) relationship for ice krill was W =0.001 218×103 × L 3.53( R 2= 0.96). The mean TS-to-length relationship were TS3 8 k Hz =-177.4+57log 10( L),( R 2 = 0.86); TS 120 k Hz =-129.9+31.56 log 10( L),( R 2 =0.87); and TS 200 k Hz =-117.6+24.66log1 0( L),( R 2 =0.84). Empirical estimates of the relationship between the TS and body length of ice krill were established at 38,120,and 200 k Hz and compared with predictions obtained from both the linear regression model of Greene et al.(1991) and the Stochastic Distorted Wave Born Approximation(SDWBA) model. This result might be applied to improve acoustic detection and density estimation of ice krill in the Southern Ocean. Further comparative studies are needed with in situ target strength including various body lengths of ice krill.

Experimental Study of Sediment Incipience Under Complex Flows

Sediment incipience under flows passing a backward-facing step was studied. A series of experiments were conducted to measure scouring depth, probability of sediment incipience, and instantaneous flow velocity field downstream of a backward-facing step. Instantaneous flow velocity fields were measured by using Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV), and an image processing method for determining probability of sediment incipience was employed to analyze the experimental data. The experimental results showed that the probability of sediment incipience was the highest near the reattachment point, even though the near-wall instantaneous flow velocity and the Reynolds stress were both much higher further downstream of the backward-facing step. The possible me- chanisms are discussed for the sediment incipience near the reattachment point.

The diel vertical migration of the sound-scattering layer in the Yellow Sea Bottom Cold Water of the southeastern Yellow Sea: focus on its relationship with a temperature structure

Using the hydroacoustic method with a 200 kHz scientific echo sounding system, the diel vertical migration （DVM） of the sound-scatteringlayer （SSL） in the Yellow Sea Bottom Cold Water （YSBCW） of the southeastern Yellow Sea was studied in April （spring） and August （summer） of 2010 and 2011. For each survey, 13-27 hours of acoustic data were continuously collected at a stationary station. The acoustic volume scattering strength （Sv） data were analyzed with temperature profile data. In the spring of both 2010 and 2011, the SSL clearly showed the vertical migration throughout the entire water column, moving from the surface layer at night to near the bottom during the day. Conductivity, temperature, and depth data indicated that the entire water column was well mixed with low temperature of about 8℃. However, the SSL showed different patterns in the summers of 2010 and 2011. In the summer of 2010 （≈28℃ at the surface）, the SSL migrated to near the bottom during the day, but there were two SSLs above and below the thermocline at depth of 10-30 m at night. In the summer of 2011 （≈20℃ at the surface）, the SSL extended throughout the entire water column at night, possibly owing to an abrupt change in sea weather conditions caused by the passage of a Typhoon Muifa over the study area. It was cancluded that the DVM patterns in summer in the YSBCW area may be greatly influenced by a strengthened or weakened thermocline.

A Linear Theory for Wave Scattering by Double Slotted Barriers in Weak Steady Currents

Recent experimental results have shown that the presence of a steady current can significantly reduce the energy of transmitted waves. In this paper, a theory is developed to study the wave scattering by single or double vertical slotted barriers in the presence of a weak uniform current. The quasi-linear theory is based on an eigenfunction expansion method. Comparisons between theory and existing experimental results for both single slotted barrier and double slotted barriers show satisfactory agreements. In consideration of wave propagation in a weak current it is found that the friction factor used to characterize the head loss at the slotted barrier depends on both the geometry of the slotted barrier and the strength of the steady current.