Integrating computer simulations and experiments to study explosive volcanic eruptions     

Domenico M. Doronzo 《Natural Hazards》2012,60(2):785-788

Explosive eruptions cannot be directly measured because they are inaccessible, which is the reason why computer simulations are developing more and more in volcanology. Calculations of volcanic hazard take substantial advantage of the simulations, particularly when they are validated experimentally. Here, an integrated approach is proposed, which combines 3D simulations and large-scale experiments, in order to provide an effective tool that helps detailing actual explosive eruptions.  相似文献   

Granite magma migration and emplacement along thrusts   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1  

Eric C. Ferré  Olivier Galland  Domenico Montanari  Thomas J. Kalakay 《International Journal of Earth Sciences》2012,101(7):1673-1688

This paper investigates the influence exerted by brittle tectonic structures in the emplacement of granite plutons in contractional settings. We address both cases where contractional tectonics and magma intrusion are (1) coeval, to study how active contractional tectonics controls the transport of magma, and (2) diachronous, to study the role of pre-existing structures on the transport of magma. In light of new experimental models, we show that magma can rise along thrusts ramps and flats. This phenomenon occurs for both low-viscosity magma (basalts to andesite) and high-viscosity magma (dry granite). The experimental results also allow the evaluation of the role played by magma viscosity in determining pluton geometries. In addition, a review of literature demonstrates a spatial and causal relationship between granites and thrusts and highlights the geometric control of magma pathways in the pluton final shape. The abundance of subhorizontal and tabular granitic intrusions indicates that the location of inflating granitic sills along thrust flats can be common. We argue that active and pre-existing flats-and-ramps thrusts provide a preferential continuous planar anisotropy susceptible to become a granitic magma migration pathway.  相似文献   

Effects of air temperature on the cyclic behavior of elastomeric seismic isolators     

Donatello Cardone  Giuseppe Gesualdi  Domenico Nigro 《Bulletin of Earthquake Engineering》2011,9(4):1227-1255

The mechanical properties of elastomers can change significantly due to air temperature variations. In particular, prolonged exposure to subzero temperatures can result in rubber crystallization, with a considerable increase in the shear stiffness of the material. As a result, the seismic response of structures with elastomeric isolators can be strongly influenced by air temperature. Current seismic codes, indeed, require an upper and lower bound analysis, using suitable modification factors, to account for the changes in the cyclic behavior of elastomeric isolators due to air temperature variations. In this study, the sensitivity of the cyclic behavior of elastomeric isolators to air temperature variations is investigated based on the experimental results of an extensive test program on six different elastomeric compounds for seismic isolators, characterized by a shear modulus ranging from 0.5 to 1.2 MPa at 100% shear strain and 20°C. The cyclic tests have been performed on small-size specimens, subjected to shear strain amplitudes and frequency of loading typical for elastomeric seismic isolators, at seven different air temperatures, ranging from 40 to −20°C. The effects of rubber crystallization due to prolonged exposure to low-temperatures have been also investigated. A finite element model for the evaluation of the temperature contour map inside a full-size elastomeric isolator exposed to low air temperatures has been also developed. In the paper, the experimental outcomes are compared with the modification factors provided by the current seismic codes to account for the temperature effects on the mechanical properties of elastomeric isolators.  相似文献   

Effect of the dilution process on the attenuation of contaminants in aquifers   总被引：1，自引：1，他引：0  

Manuela Lasagna  Domenico Antonio De Luca  Laura Debernardi  Paolo Clemente 《Environmental Earth Sciences》2013,70(6):2767-2784

This paper discusses the effects of the dilution process on levels of aquifer contamination attenuation, developing analytical equations for application in theoretical and practical cases. The key finding is that, in aquifers, the dilution process causes a reduction of the contaminant concentration. Analytical equations for the assessment of the contaminant attenuation capacity, by means of the dilution process in an aquifer, are put forward. In particular, the attenuation of the contaminant concentration in an aquifer, and thus the dilution, is described by the volumetric flow rate per unit width perpendicular to the flow direction (q _u). Moreover, a classification of q _u was developed, considering six classes of attenuation capacity due to dilution. For the equations validation, nitrate contamination attenuation due to dilution was analysed in two sample areas in Piedmont (North-West Italy). The results confirmed the hypothesis, evidencing high nitrate concentrations in areas with low q _u values, connected to low dilution rate of the contaminant in the groundwater; vice versa, low nitrate concentrations were evidenced in areas with high q _u values, due to a high nitrate dilution rate.  相似文献   

First study of fault trench stratigraphy at Mt. Etna volcano, Southern Italy: understanding Holocene surface faulting along the Moscarello fault     

Raffaele Azzaro  Domenico Bella  Luca Ferreli  Alessandro Maria Michetti  Federica Santagati  Leonello Serva  Eutizio Vittori 《Journal of Geodynamics》2000,29(3-5)

Paleoseismology, the study of past earthquakes based on their geological record in the stratigraphy and landscape, is a successful newly developing field of research. The application of fault trench studies in volcanic environments is one of the youngest branches of paleoseismology. In this paper, we present the results of the first exploratory trenches excavated at Mt. Etna in Sicily, the largest European volcano. Modern surface faulting at Etna is a very well known feature, which poses significant hazard to the local community, both in terms of ground displacement of essential lifelines and ground shacking from frequent damaging earthquakes. However, while the geomorphology and the seismicity of the active fault in the Etna region consistently show very high rates of tectonic activity, the Holocene cumulative throw and slip-rates, along with the nature (coseismic vs. creeping fault slip), dimension and timing of the displacement events, are still poorly constrained. For this purpose, we selected as a sample area the Moscarello fault, one of the most outstanding segment of the Timpe system of active normal faults in the volcano’s lower eastern flank. Displaced landforms and volcanic units at the Fondo Macchia basin, in the central sector of this fault, indicate some hundreds of meters of vertical offset in the last ca. 80 kyr, with a long-term slip-rate substantially higher than 1.5–2.0 mm/yr. According to the historical sources and instrumental observations, the Moscarello fault ruptured four times in the last 150 years during shallow (H < 5 km) and moderate magnitude (M < 4.8) earthquakes. These events were associated with severe damage in a narrow epicentral area (macroseismic intensities up to the IX–X grade of the MSK scale) and extensive surface faulting (end-to-end rupture length up to 6 km, vertical offsets up to 90 cm). This clearly indicates very high modern rates of deformation along this fault. We conducted trench investigations at the Fondo Macchia site, in a point where eyewitnesses observed ca. 20 cm of coseismic vertical displacement after the April 21, 1971, M_s=3.7, earthquake. The excavated sections provided direct stratigraphic evidence for a vertical slip-rate of 1.4–2.7 mm/yr in the last ca. 6 kyr. This should be regarded as a minimum slip-rate for the central section of the fault. We explored a single scarp at a single site, while we know from recent historical observations that several parallel scarps may rupture coseismically at Fondo Macchia. Thus, the relevant deformation rate documented for the modern period might be likely extended back in the past to a time-span of some thousands of years at least. As expected, for such a volcanic environment, the activity rates of the Moscarello fault are also significantly higher than for the Apennines normal faults, typically showing slip-rates lower than 1 mm/yr. The agriculturally reworked trench hangingwall stratigraphy did not allow to recognize individual displacement events. Nevertheless, the sedimentary structures observed in the trench footwall strongly suggest that, as for the last 150–200 years of detailed historical record, fault behavior at Fondo Macchia is governed by coseismic surface displacement rather than fault creep. This research confirms that paleoseismology techniques can be effectively applied also in active volcanic environments, typically characterized by rheology and, consequently, seismicity and fault dynamics very different from those of other tectonic environments in which paleoseismology has been firstly developed and is today extensively applied.  相似文献   

Distribution patterns of interstitial polychaetes in sandy beaches of southern Brazil   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1  

Maikon Di Domenico  Paulo da Cunha Lana  & André R. S. Garraffoni 《Marine Ecology》2009,30(1):47-62

This study describes the distribution patterns of interstitial polychaetes along morphodynamic gradients on six exposed sandy beaches in Santa Catarina and Paraná (South Brazil). Three random transects were sampled at two points on each beach, one at the swash and another at the surf zone, in winter and summer conditions. Six sediment replicates were collected at each sampling point using a corer of 4.6 cm internal diameter that removed 10 cm into the sediment. Abundance and composition of interstitial polychaete were correlated to wave height, slope, grain size, CaCO₃, chlorophyll a , omega indexes, temperature and relative tide range using a canonical correspondence analysis (CCA). A factorial ANOVA showed that taxa richness, mean density and Shannon's diversity were significantly higher at the reflective beaches, but average values differ significantly between transects and these differences change according to the beach zones on both sampling dates. PERMANOVA showed that polychaete associations differ among transects according to the beach zones. The composition of interstitial polychaete associations was significantly correlated to beach morphodynamics and features (P < 0.01). Polychaete associations of reflective beaches were more diverse than in other morphodynamic states. Intermediate beaches may also sustain diverse associations due to temporal variability of the morphodynamic patterns. Beaches presenting extreme dissipative morphodynamics and compacted sediments appear to be unfavourable for the occurrence of interstitial polychaetes.  相似文献   

Systematic conservation planning in the Mediterranean: a flexible tool for the identification of no-take marine protected areas     

Maiorano  Luigi; Bartolino  Valerio; Colloca  Francesco; Abella  Alvaro; Belluscio  Andrea; Carpentieri  Paolo; Criscoli  Alessandro; Jona Lasinio  Giovanna; Mannini  Alessandro; Pranovi  Fabio; Reale  Bruno; Relini  Giulio; Viva  Claudio; Ardizzone  Gian Domenico 《ICES Journal of Marine Science》2009,66(1):137-146

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Typical source areas of May 1998 flow-like mass movements in the Campania region, Southern Italy     

Leonardo Cascini  Sabatino Cuomo  Domenico Guida   《Engineering Geology》2008,96(3-4):107-125

Flow-like mass movements in granular materials are among the most serious natural hazards, systematically producing huge amounts of damage and numerous victims, especially when involving volcanic soils. This is the case of the events in Southern Italy in May 1998, when rainfall triggered many destructive landslides along the slopes of a carbonate massif mantled by pyroclastic soils. Due to the complexity of the occurred phenomena, a shared interpretation of their triggering stage is still not available.

As a contribution to the topic, the paper initially discusses the geological and geomorphological features of the massif combining them in three hillslopes models. The models are then associated to the hydrogeological features and anthropogenic factors in order to define six typical landslides source areas that are not casually distributed on the massif. The study subsequently focuses on the most frequent type of source areas, associated to the largest unstable soil volumes and longest run-out distances. For these source areas, the triggering mechanism is discussed, with an example of geotechnical validation being proposed for a well monitored mountain basin. The geotechnical modelling at site scale confirms the geological analyses at massif scale and provides further insights into the events, thus highlighting the potential of a multidisciplinary approach for the interpretation of very complex slope instability phenomena.  相似文献   

Reply to N. Van Wyck's Comment on “Two Paleoproterozoic (Statherian) siliciclastic metasedimentary sequences in central Wisconsin: The end of the Penokean Orogeny and cratonic stabilization of the southern Lake Superior region” [Precambrian Res. 157 (2007) 188–202]     

L.G. Medaris Jr.  R.H. Dott Jr.  B.S. Singer  W.R. Van Schmus  D.K. Holm 《Precambrian Research》2008,164(3-4):236-238

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Comment on: “Geomorphological, paleontological and Sr/Sr isotope analyses of early Pleistocene paleoshorelines to define the uplift of Central Apennines (Italy)”     

Domenico Cosentino  Giandomenico Fubelli 《Quaternary Research》2008,69(1):163-164

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