Behavior of diatomaceous soil in lacustrine deposits of Bogota, Colombia

This work presents a study on the behaviors of diatomaceous soils. Although studies are rarely reported on these soils, they have been identified in Mexico City, the Sea of Japan, the northeast coast of Australia,the equatorial Pacific, and the lacustrine deposit of Bogota(Colombia), among other locations. Features of this kind of soil include high friction angle, high initial void ratio, high compressibility index, high liquid limit, and low density. Some of these features are counterintuitive from a classical soil mechanics viewpoint. To understand the geotechnical properties of the diatomaceous soil, a comprehensive experimental plan consisting of more than 2400 tests was performed, including physical tests such as grain size distribution, Atterberg limits, density of solid particles, and organic matter content; and mechanical tests such as oedometric compression tests, unconfined compression tests, and triaxial tests.Laboratory tests were complemented with scanning electron microscope(SEM) observations to evaluate the microstructure of the soil. The test results show that there is an increase in liquid limit with increasing diatomaceous content, and the friction angle also increases with increasing diatomaceous content. In addition, several practical correlations were proposed for this soil type for shear strength mobilization and intrinsic compression line. Finally, useful correlations were presented, such as the relationship between the state consistency and the undrained shear strength, the friction angle and the liquid limit, the void ratio at 100 kPa and the liquid limit, the plasticity index and the diatomaceous content, among others.

Some contributions to mechanical behaviors of lacustrine deposit in Bogota, Colombia

This paper presents the mechanical behaviors of the lacustrine deposit,a representative soil in Bogota,Colombia.Initially,the physical characterization of the deposit is performed via laboratory tests (grain size distribution,scanning electron microscopy,Atterberg limits and water content).This characterization intends to explain the special characteristics of the mechanical behaviors of this soil.Then,various triaxial tests are carried out with controlled loading path,strain rate change,relaxation,extensile stress,and cyclic loading.The test results reveal the shape of the yield curve for Bogotá soil (in a natural state),and also show that an increasing effect of the strain rate depends on the liquid limit.This effect is also preserved with extensile stresses (which are poorly studied in soil mechanics).Finally,other effects,such as the loss of structure in the reconstituted samples and the effect of shear modulus at low strains,are studied for Bogota soil.

Critical state model for structured soil

Structure is an evident determinant for macroscopic behaviors of soils.However,this is not taken into account in most constitutive models,as structure is a rather complex issue in models.For this,it is important to develop and implement simple models that can reflect this important aspect of soil behavior.This paper tried to model structured soils based on well-established concepts,such as critical state and sub-loading.Critical state is the core of the classic Cam Clay model.The sub-loading concept implies adoption of an inner(sub-loading)yield surface,according to specific hardening rules for some internal strain-like state variables.Nakai and co-workers proposed such internal variables for controlling density(p)and structure(ω),using a modified stress space,called tij.Herein,similar variables are used in the context of the better-known invariants(p and q)of the Cam Clay model.This change requires explicit adoption of a non-associated flow rule for the sub-loading surface.This is accomplished by modifying the dilatancy ratio of the Cam Clay model,as a function of the new internal variables.These modifications are described and implemented under three-dimensional(3D)conditions.The model is then applied to simulating laboratory tests under different stress paths and the results are compared to experiments reported for different types of structured soils.The good agreements show the capacity and potential of the proposed model.

Study of Spider Silk Fibers by Raman Microscopy

Spider silk fibers of species of the genera Araneus, Gasteracantha, and Linothele sericata were studied. The fibers are composed of axial threads and lateral villi, allowing adhesion to surfaces. Raman spectroscopy was used to determine the surface and internal composition of the threads forming the structure. In the three species, the characteristic amino acid peaks of the spider web were found between 2871 and 2975 cm-1, which belong to L-glycine, L-alanine, L-glutamine, and L-proline. The threads are composed of a protective layer mainly composed of amides, alanine, and glycine. The fibrils surrounding the axial fibers consist mainly of amide II (1533 cm-1), which allows adhesion between the thread and the surfaces onto which the spider weaves the web. For the genus Linothele sericata, there is a peak on the surface of this spider web located at 2145 cm-1, which is associated with isonitriles with R-N-C bonds.

Integration of Probabilistic and Multi-Hazard Risk Assessment Within Urban Development Planning and Emergency Preparedness and Response: Application to Manizales,Colombia

The details of a multi-hazard and probabilistic risk assessment, developed for urban planning and emergency response activities in Manizales, Colombia, are presented in this article. This risk assessment effort was developed under the framework of an integral disaster risk management project whose goal was to connect risk reduction activities by using open access and state-of-theart risk models. A probabilistic approach was used for the analysis of seismic, landslide, and volcanic hazards to obtain stochastic event sets suitable for probabilistic loss estimation and to generate risk results in different metrics after aggregating in a rigorous way the losses associated to the different hazards. Detailed and high resolution exposure databases were used for the building stock and infrastructure of the city together with a set of vulnerability functions for each of the perils considered. The urban and territorial ordering plan of the city was updated for socioeconomic development and land use using the hazard and risk inputs and determinants, which cover not only the current urban area but also those adjacent areas where the expansion of Manizales is expected to occur. The emergency response capabilities of the city were improved by taking into account risk scenarios and after updating anautomatic and real-time post-earthquake damage assessment.

Holistic Disaster Risk Evaluation for the Urban Risk Management Plan of Manizales,Colombia

Disaster risk depends on both the physical vulnerability and a wide range of social, economic, and environmental aspects of a society. For a better risk understanding, a holistic or integrated perspective was considered when risk was assessed for the city of Manizales, Colombia. This assessment accounts not only for the expected physical damage and loss, but also for the socioeconomic vulnerability factors that favor secondorder effects in a disaster. This comprehensive approach allows the identification of different aspects related to physical vulnerability, social fragility, and lack of resilience that can be improved, thus enhancing integrated disaster risk management actions. The outcomes of this comprehensive assessment are currently being used as input to update the disaster risk management plan of Manizales.

Probabilistic Seismic Risk Assessment in Manizales,Colombia: Quantifying Losses for Insurance Purposes

A fully probabilistic seismic risk assessment was developed in Manizales, Colombia, considering assets of different types. The first type includes elements that are part of the water and sewage network, and the second type includes public and private buildings. This assessment required the development of a probabilistic seismic hazard analysis that accounts for the dynamic soil response,assembling high resolution exposure databases, and the development of damage models for different types of elements. The economic appraisal of the exposed assets was developed together with specialists of the water utilities company of Manizales and the city administration. The risk assessment was performed using several Comprehensive Approach to Probabilistic Risk Assessment modules as well as the R-System, obtaining results in terms of traditional metrics such as loss exceedance curve, average annual loss, and probable maximum loss. For the case of pipelines, repair rates were also estimated. The results for the water and sewage network were used in activities related to the expansion and maintenance strategies, as well as for the exploration of financial retention and transfer alternatives using insurance schemes based on technical,probabilistic, and prospective damage and loss estimations.In the case of the buildings, the results were used in the update of the technical premium values of the existing collective insurance scheme.

Volcanic emissions and atmospheric pollution:A study of nanoparticles

The influence of emissions of an active volcano on the composition of nanoparticles and ultrafine road dust was identified in an urban area of the Andes.Although many cities are close to active volcanoes,few studies have evaluated their influence in road dust composition.Air quality in urban areas is significantly affected by nonexhaust emissions(e.g.road dust,brake wear,tire wear),however,natural sources such as volcanoes also impact the chemical composition of the particles.In this study,elements from volcanic emissions such as Si>Al>Fe>Ca>K>Mg,and Si-Al with K were identified as complex hydrates.Similarly,As,Hg,Cd,Pb,As,H,Cd,Pb,V,and salammoniac were observed in nanoparticles and ultrafine material.Mineral composition was detected in the order of quartz>mullite>calcite>kaolinite>illite>goethite>magnetite>zircon>monazite,in addition to salammoniac,a tracer of volcanic sources.The foregoing analysis reflects the importance of carrying out more studies relating the influence of volcanic emissions in road dust in order to protect human health.The road dust load(RD_(10))ranged between 0.8 and 26.8 mg m^(−2)in the city.