Paleomagnetic dating of the most recent silicic eruptive activity at Pantelleria (Strait of Sicily)     

Fabio Speranza  Patrizia Landi  Francesca D’Ajello Caracciolo  Alessandro Pignatelli 《Bulletin of Volcanology》2010,72(7):847-858

We report on the paleomagnetism of ten sites in the products of the most recent silicic eruptive cycle of Pantelleria, Strait of Sicily. Previously radiometrically dated at 5–10 ka, our comparison with proxies for geomagnetic field directions allows us to narrow considerably the time window during which these eruptions occurred. The strongly peralkaline composition causes the magmas to have low viscosities, locally resulting in strong agglutination of proximal fall deposits. This allows successful extraction of paleomagnetic directions from the explosive phases of eruptions. One of our sites was located in the Serra della Fastuca fall deposit, produced by the first explosive event of the eruptive cycle. The other nine sites were located in the most recent explosive (pumice fall and agglutinate from Cuddia del Gallo and Cuddia Randazzo) and effusive (Khaggiar lava) products. The (very similar) paleomagnetic directions gathered from eight internally consistent sites were compared to reference geomagnetic field directions of the last 5–10 ka. Directions from Cuddia del Gallo agglutinate and Khaggiar flows translate into 5.9- to 6.2-ka ages, whereas the Fastuca pumices yield a slightly older age of 6.2–6.8 ka. Hence, the most recent silicic eruptive cycle lasted at most a millennium and as little as a few centuries around 6.0 ka. Paleomagnetically inferred ages are in good agreement with published (and calibrated by us) ¹⁴C dates from paleosols/charcoals sampled below the studied volcanic units, whereas K/Ar data are more scattered and yield ∼30% older ages. Our data show that the time elapsed since the most recent silicic eruptions at Pantelleria is comparable to the quiescence period separating the two latest volcanic cycles.  相似文献   

Seismic fragility curves of as-built single-span masonry arch bridges     

Giovanni Tecchio  Marco Donà  Francesca da Porto 《Bulletin of Earthquake Engineering》2016,14(11):3099-3124

Masonry arch bridges are crucial elements in the railway transportation network throughout Europe. Although significant advances in seismic risk assessment of various bridge types have been made by developing fragility curves of generalized classes of structures, there are no comparable tools for masonry arch structures. In this context, this paper presents the construction of seismic fragility curves of single-span masonry bridges according to the limit analysis method. An iterative procedure is implemented to define the capacity curve of the equivalent single degree of freedom system through non-linear kinematic analysis. The process involves determination of the collapse mechanism, calculation of the limit load multiplier, and definition of the thrust line. The intrinsic variability of the seismic action is incorporated with the use of different sets of elastic spectra compatible with EC 8 Type-1 spectrum for various types of soil, with peak ground acceleration varying over the range 0.05–1.5 g. The fragility curves of the generalized classes of single-span masonry bridges are finally obtained from the effective ranges of the main geometric and material parameters affecting arch bridge capacity.  相似文献   

Landslide HotSpot Mapping by means of Persistent Scatterer Interferometry   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1  

Silvia Bianchini  Francesca Cigna  Gaia Righini  Chiara Proietti  Nicola Casagli 《Environmental Earth Sciences》2012,67(4):1155-1172

Landslide detection and mapping represent fundamental requirements for every hazard and risk evaluation and consequent improvement of the management strategies for such natural hazards. Optical and radar remote sensing can be used to observe landslide-induced ground deformation, ranging from regional to local scales. This work presents a methodology called Landslide HotSpot Mapping; this approach integrates cartographic, thematic and optical data with Persistent Scatterer Interferometry for the identification of extremely slow to very slow moving landslides, and for the evaluation of their state of activity and intensity. This methodology scans wide areas to detect hotspots, which are narrow unstable zones characterized by higher landslide hazard. To these hotspots, priority has to be given when planning field surveys and in situ validation campaigns, so that field work time and effort can be optimized and significantly reduced. The approach is tested in Central Calabria, over a 4,470?km² area located in southern Italy. ENVISAT ascending images acquired between 2003 and 2009 and processed with the Persistent Scatterer Pairs (PSP) technique are used to analyse deformation patterns. Combining conventional photo-interpretation with the analysis of PSP data, 64 new landslides are identified and the spatial (boundaries) and temporal (activity) information of 980 pre-mapped phenomena (23.6% of updated inventory) are updated. 1,012 active (continuous or reactivated) landslides are identified and 4 hotspot areas selected: San Fili, Rende, Lago, Catanzaro. Urgent field checks have to be organized for these hotspots to validate the satellite-based observations and to design appropriate mitigation measures to reduce impacts on the elements at risk.  相似文献   

Engineering ground motion record selection in the ITalian ACcelerometric Archive   总被引：1，自引：1，他引：0  

Iunio Iervolino  Carmine Galasso  Roberto Paolucci  Francesca Pacor 《Bulletin of Earthquake Engineering》2011,9(6):1761-1778

This paper introduces REXELite, an internet version of REXEL, a software for automatic selection of ground motion suites for nonlinear dynamic analysis of structures. REXELite was developed with the aim of integrating an advanced earthquake records’ repository, such as the ITalian ACcelerometric Archive (ITACA), with a tool to define seismic input for engineering seismic analysis according to international standards (with priority to Europe). In fact, REXELite allows to define target design spectra according either to Eurocode 8 or to the Italian building code, and to search ITACA for suitable sets of seven records (comprised of one or two horizontal ground motion components) matching such target spectra: on average, in a user-specified period range, and with the desired tolerance. The records in the set also have, individually and according to some criteria, the most similar spectral shape with respect to that of the code. Selection options include magnitude, source-to-site distance, soil conditions and, if desired, linear scaling of records to reduce further record-to-record variability of the selected suite.  相似文献   

Hydrogen isotope ratios of leaf wax n-alkanes in grasses are insensitive to transpiration     

Francesca A. McInerney  Brent R. Helliker  Katherine H. Freeman 《Geochimica et cosmochimica acta》2011,75(2):541-554

We analyzed hydrogen isotope ratios of high-molecular weight n-alkanes (δD_l) and oxygen isotope ratios of α-cellulose (δ¹⁸O_C) for C₃ and C₄ grasses grown in the field and in controlled-environment growth chambers. The relatively firm understanding of ¹⁸O-enrichment in leaf water and α-cellulose was used to elucidate fractionation patterns of δD_l signatures. In the different relative humidity environments of the growth chambers, we observed clear and predictable effects of leaf-water enrichment on δ¹⁸O_C values. Using a Craig-Gordon model, we demonstrate that leaf water in the growth chamber grasses should have experienced significant D-enriched due to transpiration. Nonetheless, we found no effect of transpirational D-enrichment on the δD_l values. In field samples, we saw clear evidence of enrichment (correlating with relative humidity of the field sites) in both δ¹⁸O_C and δD_l. These seemingly contrasting results could be explained if leaf waxes are synthesized in an environment that is isotopically similar to water entering plant roots due to either temporal or spatial isolation from evaporatively enriched leaf waters. For grasses in the controlled environment, there was no enrichment of source water, whereas enrichment of grass source water via evaporation from soils and/or stems was likely for grass samples grown in the field.Based on these results, evaporation from soils and/or stems appears to affect δD_l, but transpiration from leaves does not. Further evidence for this conclusion is found in modeling expected net evapotranspirational enrichment. A Craig-Gordon model applied to each of the field sites yields leaf water oxygen isotope ratios that can be used to accurately predict the observed δ¹⁸O_C values. In contrast, the calculated leaf water hydrogen isotope ratios are more enriched than what is required to predict observed δD_l values. These calculations lend support to the conclusion that while δ¹⁸O_C reflects both soil evaporation and transpiration, δD_l appears to only record evaporation from soils and/or stems. Therefore, the δD of n-alkanes can likely be used to reconstruct the δD of water entering a leaf, supporting the soil-enrichment model of Smith and Freeman (2006). In both the field and controlled studies, we found significant photosynthetic pathway effects on n-alkane δD suggesting that biochemical pathways or plant phylogeny have a greater effect on leaf wax δD than leaf-water enrichment in grasses.  相似文献   

Two GUIs-based analysis tool for spectroradiometer data pre-processing     

Francesca Garfagnoli  Gianluca Martelloni  Andrea Ciampalini  Luca Innocenti  Sandro Moretti 《Earth Science Informatics》2013,6(4):227-240

A new graphical user interface (GUI) for pre-processing reflectance spectra, built using MATLAB and expressly designed for the ASD FieldSpec® spectroradiometer, was developed to solve problems that generally affect experimental ASD data. The GUI is characterised by an easily readable, graphic visualisation of spectra, from which the absorption band depth (ABD) can be obtained for a selected wavelength. The output format of the ASD data is a binary file with an .asd extension. The binary file, that provides a single spectrum, can be processed using a software functionality, by means of a GUI, that allows to select one or more binary files to produce a spectral library in a unique .txt file. The spectral reflectance is re-calibrated with the “convex-hull” methodology to eliminate the convex shape, which is typical of reflectance spectra. Different examples of the use of the new GUI are provided.  相似文献   

A DNA tracer used in column tests for hydrogeology applications   总被引：1，自引：1，他引：0  

Lucia Aquilanti  Francesca Clementi  Sara Landolfo  Torquato Nanni  Stefano Palpacelli  Alberto Tazioli 《Environmental Earth Sciences》2013,70(7):3143-3154

Tracing techniques are commonly used to investigate groundwater quality and dynamics, as well as to measure the hydrogeological parameters of aquifers. The last decade has seen a growing interest in environmentally friendly tracers, including single-stranded DNA molecules. In this study, an electrolytic tracer and a synthetic DNA tracer are comparatively evaluated in laboratory scale tests to assess their potential application in field studies aimed at investigating groundwater environments. A real-time quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction assay was developed and optimized to detect and quantify the DNA tracer, while tracer column tests were performed to investigate the DNA tracer behavior and to compare it to the electrolytic tracer. The results show that the DNA tracer has an almost pure convective flow, while the KCl tracer experiences dispersive behavior. The tracing method proposed can be applied in hydrogeological field studies involving calcareous fractured rock systems, with the DNA tracer particularly suitable in tracing karst systems, which are often characterized by several conduits of flow. To test the DNA tracer in operation, a preliminary test was conducted in the field.  相似文献   

Bioremediation of petroleum hydrocarbons in anoxic marine sediments: Consequences on the speciation of heavy metals   总被引：3，自引：0，他引：3  

Antonio Dell’Anno  Francesca Beolchini  Massimo Gabellini  Laura Rocchetti  Antonio Pusceddu  Roberto Danovaro 《Marine pollution bulletin》2009,58(12):1808-1814

We investigated the effects of biostimulation and bioagumentation strategies applied to harbor sediments displaying reducing conditions and high concentrations of petroleum hydrocarbons and heavy metals. We compared the microbial efficiency of hydrocarbon removal from sediments maintained for 60 days in anoxic conditions and inoculated with acetate, sulfate-reducing bacterial strains and acetate and sulfate-reducing bacteria. All treatments determined a significant increase in the microbial growth and significant decreases of hydrocarbon contents and of redox potential values. The addition of sulfate-reducing bacterial strains to the sediment was the most efficient treatment for the hydrocarbon removal. In all experiments, significant changes of the heavy metals’ phase repartition were observed. The results reported here suggest that the biodegradation of petroleum hydrocarbons in anoxic marine sediments may be enhanced by stimulating microbial anaerobic metabolism, but care should be applied to monitor the potential changes in the mobility and bioavailability of heavy metals induced by bio-treatments.  相似文献   

Estimation of load reduction factors for clay masonry walls     

Francesca da Porto  Manuel Grendene  Claudio Modena 《地震工程与结构动力学》2009,38(10):1155-1174

The in‐plane cyclic behaviour of three types of unreinforced clay masonry was characterized by means of laboratory tests on full‐scale specimens. The masonry walls were assembled with various bonding arrangements (head joints made with mortar pockets, dry head joints with mechanical interlocking, thin‐layer mortar bed joints), which are not yet inserted in seismic codes. Experimental behaviour was modelled with an analytical hysteretic model able to predict lateral load–displacement curves in case of shear failure of the unreinforced walls. According to the experimental results and those of the selected analytical model, parametric study to evaluate the reduction in lateral strength demand produced by non‐linear behaviour in masonry walls, i.e. the load reduction factor was carried out by non‐linear dynamic analyses. The calculated values of the load reduction factor were modest. The differences in values found for the three masonry types, although consistent with them, were not great. This may indicate that, in the ultimate limit state, the type of masonry cannot significantly affect the behaviour of an entire building. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.  相似文献   

Distributions-oriented wind forecast verification by a hidden Markov model for multivariate circular–linear data     

Gianluca?MastrantonioEmail authorView author&#;s OrcID profile  Alessio?Pollice  Francesca?Fedele 《Stochastic Environmental Research and Risk Assessment (SERRA)》2018,32(1):169-181

Winds from the North–West quadrant and lack of precipitation are known to lead to an increase of PM10 concentrations over a residential neighborhood in the city of Taranto (Italy). In 2012 the local government prescribed a reduction of industrial emissions by 10% every time such meteorological conditions are forecasted 72 h in advance. Wind forecasting is addressed using the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) atmospheric simulation system by the Regional Environmental Protection Agency. In the context of distributions-oriented forecast verification, we propose a comprehensive model-based inferential approach to investigate the ability of the WRF system to forecast the local wind speed and direction allowing different performances for unknown weather regimes. Ground-observed and WRF-forecasted wind speed and direction at a relevant location are jointly modeled as a 4-dimensional time series with an unknown finite number of states characterized by homogeneous distributional behavior. The proposed model relies on a mixture of joint projected and skew normal distributions with time-dependent states, where the temporal evolution of the state membership follows a first order Markov process. Parameter estimates, including the number of states, are obtained by a Bayesian MCMC-based method. Results provide useful insights on the performance of WRF forecasts in relation to different combinations of wind speed and direction.  相似文献