The application of large volume airgun sources to the onshore-offshore seismic surveys： implication of the experimental results in northern South China Sea

Onshore-offshore seismic experiments were carried out for the first time in northern South China Sea using large volume airgun sources at sea and seismic stations on land. The experimental results indicate that seismic signals from the new airgun array of R/V Shiyan 2 can be detected as far as 255 km. The signal effective area reaches nearly 50000 km2, which covers Hong Kong and Pearl River Delta. Compared with the old airgun array, the signal amplitude, propagation distance and effective area of the new airgun array have been increased notably, which demonstrates that the upgrade of the airgun source was successful. Comparisons with previous experimental results in other regions show that the shooting effect of the new airgun array is similar to those best airgun sources in the world. Especially, it is a new breakthrough in using the permanent seismic stations onshore to record long distance airgun signals offshore, which has great significance to the realization of the "seismic radar" concept and the 3D seismic surveys of crustal structure in coastal areas.     

Statistic characteristics of severe convective storm during Warm-Season in the Beijing-Tianjin region and its vicinity

This study analyzed the climatological characteristics of severe convective storms in the Beijing and Tianjin region and its vicinity based on the Doppler radar data of Tanggu during May-August of 2003-2007. The climatological characteristics, e.g. storm area, volume, top height, max reflectivity, life time and motion, are analyzed. The results include： 75% of all storms in the Beijing-Tianjin region last no more than 30 minutes, and most storms have a volume less than 400 kin3; most storms move from southwest to northeast while the speed is between 10-30 km/h; the mean storm top height is about 6 km, but some strong convective storms can have a top height larger than 15 kin; finally, storm area and volume have a similar geographical distribution character showing increasing trends from west to east. Compared with the statistic results based on the conventional surface meteorological observations, the results based on the radar data can present not only 3D spatial statistic results of convective storms （e.g., volume and top height）, but also the quantitative climatological characteristics, such as the lifetime and speed distributions. These statistical results are useful for studying the climatic characteristics of convective storms in the Beijing-Tianjin region and its vicinity.     

Statistic characteristics and weather significance of infrared TBB during May―August in Beijing and its vicinity

In order to meet the demand of nowcasting convective storms in Beijing, the climatological characteristics of convective storms in Beijing and its vicinity were analyzed based on the infrared （IR） temperature of black body （TBB） data during May--August of 1997--2004. The climatological probabilities, the diurnal cycle and the spatial distribution of convective storms are given respectively in this paper. The results show that the climatological characteristics of convective storms denoted by TBB≤-52℃ are consistent with those statistic studies based on the surface and lightning observations. Furthermore, the climatological characteristics of May and June are very different from those of July and August, showing that there are two types of convective storms in this region. One occurs in the transient polar air mass on the midlatitude continent during the late spring and early summer. This type of convection arises with thunder, strong wind gust and hail over the mountainous area in the northern part of this region from afternoon to nightfall, the other occurs with heavy rainfall in the warm and moist air mass over the North China Plain and vicinity of Bohai Sea. This study also shows that the long-term data of IR TBB observed by geostationary satellite can complement the temporal and spatial limitation of the weather radar and surface observations.     

双线地铁隧道对三维非线性场地地表地震反应的影响

地铁隧道的存在破坏了原有场地的完整性,进而在地震来临时影响场地的地震反应。为探讨双线地铁隧道建成后对场地地表水平地震动的影响,针对北京某一典型双线地铁隧道工程场地,建立三维非线性场地模型。采用自由场边界和应力时程地震波输入方式,运用有限差分数值分析软件FLAC~(3D)进行模型计算,分析了双线地铁隧道对三维非线性场地地表地震反应的影响。结果表明:1双线地铁隧道的存在使隧道附近场地地表地震动峰值加速度呈现先增大后减小并趋于自由场的趋势;2双线地铁隧道的存在主要影响场地加速度反应谱的短周期部分;3入射地震动频谱对双线地铁隧道的场地地震反应有着显著的影响。文中得出的影响规律,为双线地铁隧道附近场地的设计地震动参数确定提供参考依据。     

Mineral magnetic properties of surface sediments at Bei’anhe, Beijing, and its environmental significance

A multiparameter investigation of surface sediments from the Bei＇anhe section （Beijing） has been conducted using environmental magnetic approaches. The studied sedimentary sequence consists of pluvial and lacustrine silts and clay of the Holocene age. Magnetite, hematite and pyrrhotite were identiffed as the dominant magnetic minerals. The mineral magnetic characteristics are considered to reflect the Holocene paleoenvironmental processes of the studied area, which are different from the mineral magnetic properties of typical polluted sections reported in the Beijing area. The low-field magnetic susceptibility and saturated isothermal remanence magnetization of the section decrease gradually with increasing depth. This indicates that the concentration of magnetic minerals in the strata decreases down the section. Values of interparametric ratios, such as ARM/SIRM, XARM/Xand SIRM/X, gradually increase with increasing depth, which indicates a down-section decreasing trend in the magnetic grain size of the sediments. Pyrrhotite occurs below the depth of 22 cm, suggesting the existence of redox interface. The magnetic variations of the Bei＇anhe surface sediments might be controlled by two geological processes： reductive diagenesis and pedogenesis. Our findings may have provided a reference point for magnetic investigation of polluted surface sediments in the Beijing area.     

Relaxor behavior of (1-x)Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3-xPbTiO3 ceramics

n the present work, the phase transitions and relaxor behavior of (1−x)Pb(Mg_1/3Nb_2/3)O₃-xPbTiO₃ (PMN-PT, x = 0.2―0.4) ferroelectric ceramics have been investigated by means of X-ray diffraction, di-electric spectroscopy, the P-E hysteresis loop measurements and Raman scattering techniques. Structural analysis revealed that with the increase of PbTiO₃ content, PMN-PT ceramics experienced a gradual phase transition process from rhombohedral to tetragonal. It is usually believed that such kinds of phase transitions resulted in the linear decrease of relaxation degree. Surprisingly, our analy-sis of the dielectric spectra revealed that the indicator of the degree of diffuseness γ reached the maximum value near morphotropic phase boundary (MPB) (x = 0.32), then decreased with the further increase of PbTiO₃ content. The large dielectric relaxor feature near MPB may be attributed to the for-mation of ordered nanodomains, resulting from complex coexisting nanostructures. Further, the P-E hysteresis loop measurements and Raman analysis of the B-site cation order correlated well with the dielectric measurement results. It was found that the hysteresis loop squareness R_sq received the minimum value while the inverse of the value of full wide of half maximum (FWHM) of A_1g mode reached the maximum value at MPB composition, which showed similar trends to γ.     

Measuring radial Young’s modulus of DNA by tapping mode AFM

Based on tapping mode AFM imaging, a method was demonstrated to evaluate compression elasticity of single double-stranded DNA （dsDNA） molecules in the force region. With images under ambient conditions, Young＇s moduli of dsDNA in compression were calculated. Results demonstrated that Young＇s moduli of dsDNA can be simply deduced according to the proposed model. The method can also be used to evaluate the compression elasticity of similar soft nanomaterials.     

Synthetic seismograms of ground motion near earthquake fault using simulated Green’s function method

Seismograms near source fault were synthesized using the hybrid empirical Green＇s function method where the discretely simulated seismic waveforms are used for Green＇s functions instead of the observed waveforms of small earthquakes. The Green＇s function seismic waveforms for small earthquake were calculated by solving wave equation using the pseudo-spectral method with the staggered grid real FFT strategy under a detailed 2-D velocity structure in Kobe region. Magnitude and seismic moment of simulated Green＇s function waveforms were firstly determined by using the relationship between fault length and corner frequency of source spectrum. The simulated Green＇s function waveforms were employed to synthesize seismograms of strong ground motion near the earthquake fault. The synthetic seismograms of the target earthquake were performed based on the model with multiple source rupture processes. The results suggest that synthesized seismograms coincide well with observed seismic waveforms of the 1995 Hyogo-ken Nanbu earthquake. The simulated Green＇s function method is very useful for prediction of the strong ground motion in region without observed seismic waveforms. The present technique spreads application field of the empirical Green＇s function method.     

Effect of the free surface on the earthquake energy: A case study of reverse faulting

Based on the representation theorem of seismic energy radiation, in this study, we have quantitatively investigated the effect of free surface on the radiation energy distribution due to a coupling interaction between free surface and near surface finite fault for the reverse earthquake faulting. Corresponding to the finite faulting, a 2-D pseudostatic-reverse-fault-dislocation solution has been used in the calculation of the work done by the seismic response against free surface. The results indicate that, due to a strong coupling interaction between the free surface and near surface fault, the total radiated seismic energy ER is much larger than that radiated only from the fault itself （EF）, especially for the shallow reverse faulting. In convention, EF is commonly used in the estimation of earthquake energy radiation. However, when the fault depth H, the distance between the free surface and top of fault location, increases, the effect of the coupling interaction between the fault and free surface decreases gradually. Therefore, the total radiated energy ER approaches to the EF when the depth H is about 2 times the fault length L The current study could provide us a partial explanation of the apparent stress discrepancy observed at the far field and near field in the recent large earthquake. Moreover, the current study also has a significant implication of how to quantitatively describe the near fault strong ground motion and associated seismic hazard from the earthquake source energy point of view.     

Effect of crystallization temperature and propylene sequence length on the crystalline structure of propylene-ethylene random copolymers

Crystallization behavior and resultant crystalline structure of a series of temperature-rising elution-fractionated specimen of a Ziegler-Natta catalyst-synthesized propylene-ethylene random copolymer were studied by DSC, WAXD and AFM. The experimental results indicate that both crystallization temperature and propylene sequence length exhibit great influence on the crystallization behavior and crystalline structure of the copolymer. It was found that the ethylene co-monomers acting as point defects inserted into the polypropylene chains play an important role in the formation of y-iPP. As the co-monomer content increases, the crystallizable sequence length of iPP decreases, which produces an appropriate condition for its y crystallization. At the same time, the existence of chain defects leads to a lower crystallinity of the copolymer and imperfection of the resultant crystals. For each individual sample with certain propylene sequence length or ethylene content, the increment of y-iPP crystal content with increasing crystallization temperature demonstrates that higher crystallization temperature is in favor of the y-iPP crystallization. Pure y-iPP crystals have been got in samples with propylene sequence length lower than 21 under suitable crystallization conditions.     

Tunable multiple-channel filters based on photonic heterostructures using single-negative materials

We studied the multiple-channel filters based on photonic heterostructures consisting of single-negative permittivity and single-negative permeability media. The results showed that the number of resonance modes inside the zero-φeff gap increases as the number of heterogenous interface M increases. The number of resonance modes inside the zero-φeff, gap is equal to that of heterogenous interface M, and it can be used as M channels filter. This result provides a feasible method to adjust the channel number of multiple-channel filters. When losses are involved, the results showed that the electric fields of the resonance modes decay largely with the increase of the number of heterogenous interface and damping factors. Besides, the relationship between the quality factor of multiple-channel filters and the number of heterogenous interface M is linear, and the quality factor of multiple-channel filters decreases with the increase of the damping factor. These results provide feasible methods to adjust the quality factor of multiple-channel filters.     

Investigation on chain structure of LLDPE obtained by ethylene in-situ copolymerization with DSC and XRD

Thermal segregations of LLDPE were treated with successive self-nucleation/annealing (SSA) on dif-ferential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Information on molecular heterogeneity of LLDPE was obtained. After SSA was treated, the multiple endothermic peaks were observed in the DSC thermograms during heating experiment. It is obtained that the thickness of different lamellas formed by segments of vari-ous lengths was 4―10 nm. X-ray diffraction (XRD) results showed that the crystallites dimensions of various reflections were about several dozens of nanometers. The ethylene/α-olefin copolymers and the copolymer via in-situ copolymerization were similar to each other for molecular heterogeneity and XRD characteristics, which revealed that it was possible to use the ethylene/α-olefin copolymers to simulate the copolymer via in-situ copolymerization of ethylene to simplify the complexity of the structure of the ethylene in-situ copolymer.     

Magnetic properties of street dust and topsoil in Beijing and its environmental implications

Environmental magnetic measurements were carried out on the sanrhples of street dust and topsoil, which were collected along the roadway in the urban and suburb of Beijing, including magnetic susceptibility （X）, anhysteretic remanent magnetization （ARM）, isothermal remanent magnetization （IRM） of all samples and temperature-dependence of magnetic susceptibilities and magnetic hysteresis parameters of representative samples. Obvious differences exist between the samples of street dust and those of topsoil. Compared with topsoil samples, the concentration of magnetic particles and high-coercivity components in street dust samples are higher, and the magnetic grains are coarser. Both dust and topsoil samples are dominated by ferrimagnetic minerals, and iron particles are only detected in some dust samples. These results suggest that street dust samples reflect the characteris- tic of particles produced by industrial and traffic activities, and the magnetic property of topsoil sam- ples represents the characteristic of particles from both anthropogenic and natural sources. The distribution of magnetic parameters is influenced by the environment where the samples are collected, like industry, traffic density and other road conditions. Hard isothermal remanent magnetization （HIRM） may be used as an indicator of particles produced by traffic activity. Dust storm samples collected on 17 and 18 April, 2006 have different magnetic properties from street dust and natural particles, like loess and paleosol, which indicate that the dust storm might be mixed with anthropogenic particulates during transport and falling.     

Divisional and hierarchical innervations of G. gecko’s toes to motion and reception

As a member of robot families, climbing robots have become one of the research hot-spots in the robotic field recently and Gekko gecko （G. gecko） has been broadly seen as an ideal model for climbing robot development. But for gecko-mimic robots, one of the key problems is how to design the robot＇s foot. In this paper, （1） high-speed camera recording and electrophysiological method are used to observe motion patterns of G. gecko＇s foot when it climbs on different oriented surfaces; （2） nerve innervations of gecko＇s toes to motion and reception are studied. It is found that the five toes of the G. gecko can be divided into two motion and reception divisions, and also its motion and reception are modulated and controlled hierarchically. The results provide important information and exclusive ideas for the foot design and control algorithm of gecko-mimic robots.     

Coherent thermal radiation in thin films and its application in the emissivity design of multilayer films

The infrared transmission spectra of a 0.54-μm-thick Ge film and a 20-μm-thick Si film were experimentally measured. As the incident radiation was in the wavelength range from 1.5μm to 10μm, the Ge film demonstrated a strongly spectral coherence. However, thermal radiation of the Ge film was found to be spatially incoherent due to its extreme thinness. The Si film exhibited significantly spectral and spatial coherence. The results confirmed that thermal radiation of a monolayer film could be coherent spectrally and spatially if the film thickness was comparable with the wavelength. The optical characteristic matrix method was applied to calculate the transmission spectra of the Si and Ge film, and the results agreed well with the measurements. This method was further used to analyze two multilayer films composed of five low emissive layers. Their emissivities were found to be highly emissive at a certain zenith angle, and the emissive peak could be controlled by careful selection of film thickness.     

Vp of muscovite-biotite gneiss up to 950℃ at 400 MPa: Constraints on the origin of abnormal seismic layers in continental crust

Here we present experimental results of compressional wave velocity (Vp) of muscovite-biotite gneiss from Higher Himalayan Crystallines (HHC) at the temperature up to 950℃ and the pressure of 0.1―400 MPa. At 400 MPa, when the temperature is lower than 600℃, Vp decreases linearly with increasing temperature at the rate of (Vp/T)p -4.43×10-4 km/s ℃. In the temperature range of 600―800℃, Vp drops significantly and the signal is degraded gradually due to the dehydration of muscovite and α-quartz softening. When the temperature rises from 800℃ to 875℃, Vp increases and the signals become clear again as a result of the temperature going through the β-quartz range. The experiments indicate that the duration has great influence on the experimental results when temperature is above the dehydration point of biotite. During the first 30 h at 950℃, the Vp decreases substantially from 5.9 to 5.4 km/s and the signal amplitude is attenuated by more than 80%. After the 30-h transition, the Vp and the amplitude of ultrasonic wave signals become steady. The decrease of Vp and attenuation of the signals at 950℃ are associated with the breakdown reactions of biotite. The experiments suggest that the breakdown of muscovite and/or quartz softening can contribute to the low seismic wave velocity in thickened quartz-rich felsic-crust such as what is beneath southern Tibet. Additionally, α-β quartz transition generates a measurable high seismic velocity zone, which provides a possibility of precisely constraining the temperature in the upper-middle continental crust. Our study also demonstrates that duration is a key factor to obtain credible experimental results.     

Characterization of PM2.5/PM2.5-10 and source tracking in the juncture belt between urban and rural areas of Beijing

Coarse （PM2.5-10） and fine （PM2.5） atmospheric particulate samples were collected in summer and winter during 2005-2007 in the juncture belt between urban and rural areas of Beijing. Elements, ions, organic/elemental carbon （OC/EC） and polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons （PAHs） were determined to obtain some latest information about the particulate pollution in the juncture belt of Beijing. Particulate matter levels at this site were high as compared with the levels at other sampling sites in Beijing. Pollution elements, secondary ions and PAHs were enriched in fine particles rather than in coarse particles. An obvious seasonal variation of the chemical composition of PM was observed. Source apportionment results showed that secondary components were the largest mass contributor of PM2.5, accounting for 28%; whereas soil-related sources were the largest contributor of PM2.5-10, explaining about 49% of the total mass. The abnormal levels of soil heavy metals at the electronic waste disassembly site in the upwind villages suggested the potential impact of such activities to the environment.     

Study on crustal, lithospheric and asthenospheric thickness beneath the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and its adjacent areas

Based on the results of pure dispersions of Rayleigh wave tomography in the Qinghai-Tlbet Plateau and its adjacent areas, tsklng S wave velocities from previous linear inversion as the initial model, using the simulated annealing algorithm, a nonlinear simultaneous inversion has been carried out for S wave velocity and thickness of different layers, including the crust, the lithosphere and the asthenosphere. The results indicate： The crustal thickness shows strong correlation with geology structures sketched by the sutures and major faults. The crust is very thick in the Qinghal-Tibet Plateau, varying from 60 km to 80 kin. The Ilthospherlc thickness in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau Is thinner （130-160 kin） than Its adjacent areas. And two blocks can be recognized, divided by an NNE strike boundary running between 90°E-92°E inside the plateau. Its asthenosphere is relatively thick, varies from 150 km to 230 kin, and the thickest area is located in the western Qiangtsng. India has a thinner crust （32-38 kin）, a thicker lithosphere of 190 km and a rather thin asthenosphere of only 60 kin. Sichuan and Tarlm basins have the crust thickness less than 50 kin. Their Iithospheres are thicker than the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, and their asthenospheres are thinner. A discussion has been made on the character and formation mechanism of the typical crust-mantle transition zone in the western Qiangtsng block.     

高墩大跨桥梁结构的脆弱性分析

采用大型有限元分析软件,对中国西南某铁路特大桥8#墩进行了静力弹塑性（Pushover）分析,得到了结构能力曲线,并以谱加速度和残余位移漂移比作为地面运动强度度量参数和工程需求参数,对高墩大跨桥梁结构进行了脆弱性分析。分析结果表明：当其他条件相同时,随着界限状态的提升,结构要达到相同的概率所需的地面运动强度呈递增趋势;当地面运动作用强度相同时,基阶加载模式计算的脆弱性曲线低估了结构的抗震性能,而均布和SRSS组合加载的脆弱性分析又过分高估了结构的抗震能力。     

远场地震动作用下地铁车站结构动力响应分析

基于ABAQUS有限元软件,针对深软场地条件,建立了土-结构动力相互作用模型。利用Python二次开发程序实现了黏弹性边界的自动施加。考虑远场大震波及人工波的不同频谱特性,对典型两层三跨地铁车站结构动力响应进行了研究。结果表明:车站结构动力响应受输入地震动的峰值加速度及频谱特性影响明显,结构在不同地震波作用下关键部位的内力及位移变化趋势一致。大震远场波作用下和人工波作用下的车站相对位移曲线形状有差异。对于典型的框架式地下车站而言,中柱的内力反应最大,为最不利受力构件,设计时应重点考虑。深软场地对地震波具有低频放大、高频滤波的效果,远场大震波中的低频含量丰富;与人工波作用相比,车站关键位置地震动峰值加速度(PGA)增大明显。