2-D and 3-D processing and interpretation of multi-fold ground penetrating radar data:a case history from an archaeological site

A 2.5-D and 3-D multi-fold GPR survey was carried out in the Archaeological Park of Aquileia (northern Italy). The primary objective of the study was the identification of targets of potential archaeological interest in an area designated by local archaeological authorities. The second geophysical objective was to test 2-D and 3-D multi-fold methods and to study localised targets of unknown shape and dimensions in hostile soil conditions. Several portions of the acquisition grid were processed in common offset (CO), common shot (CSG) and common mid point (CMP) geometry. An 8×8 m area was studied with orthogonal CMPs thus achieving a 3-D subsurface coverage with azimuthal range limited to two normal components. Coherent noise components were identified in the pre-stack domain and removed by means of FK filtering of CMP records. Stack velocities were obtained from conventional velocity analysis and azimuthal velocity analysis of 3-D pre-stack gathers. Two major discontinuities were identified in the area of study. The deeper one most probably coincides with the paleosol at the base of the layer associated with activities of man in the area in the last 2500 years. This interpretation is in agreement with the results obtained from nearby cores and excavations. The shallow discontinuity is observed in a part of the investigated area and it shows local interruptions with a linear distribution on the grid. Such interruptions may correspond to buried targets of archaeological interest. The prominent enhancement of the subsurface images obtained by means of multi-fold techniques, compared with the relatively poor quality of the conventional single-fold georadar sections, indicates that multi-fold methods are well suited for the application to high resolution studies in archaeology.

Precipitation-use efficiency along a 4500-km grassland transect

National Natural Science Foundation of China [30590381, 40971027]; State Key Technologies RD Program [2006BAC08]; Chinese Academy of Sciences ; National Key Research and Development Program [2010CB833501]

Relationship between precipitation and the infiltration depth over the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River and Yangtze-Huaihe River Valley

National Natural Science Foundation of China [40701021, 40625002, 40331013]; National Knowledge Innovation Program of Chinese Academy of Sciences [KZCX2-YW-315-2]

Stable isotopic compositions in Australian precipitation

Stable deuterium (delta D) and oxygen-18 (delta O-18) isotopes in 1962 to 2002 precipitation from the seven Australian stations of the Global Network of Isotopes in Precipitation (GNIP) were used to investigate isotope characteristics including temporal and spatial distributions across different regions of Australia. On the basis of 1534 samples, the local meteoric water line (LMWL) was established as delta D = 7.10 delta O-18 + 8.21. delta O-18 showed a depletion trend from north and south to central Australia (a continental effect) and from west to east. Precipitation amount effects were generally greater than temperature effects, with quadratic or logarithmic correlations describing delta/T and delta/P better than linear relationships. Nonlinear stepwise regression was used to determine the significant meteorological control factors for each station, explaining about 50% or more of the delta O-18 variations. Geographical control factors for delta O-18 were given by the relationship delta O-18 (parts per thousand) = -0.005 longitude (degrees) - 0.034 latitude (degrees)-0.003 altitude (m) - 4.753. Four different types of d-excess patterns demonstrated particular precipitation formation conditions for four major seasonal rainfall zones. Finally, wavelet coherence (WTC) between delta O-18 and SOI confirmed that the influence of ENSO decreased from east and north to west Australia.

Relationships between precipitation, soil water and groundwater at Chongling catchment with the typical vegetation cover in the Taihang mountainous region, China

Vegetation cover plays an important role in the process of evaporation and infiltration. To explore the relationships between precipitation, soil water and groundwater in Taihang mountainous region, China, precipitation, soil water and water table were observed from 2004 to 2006, and precipitation, soil water and groundwater were sampled in 2004 and 2005 for oxygen-18 and deuterium analysis at Chongling catchment. The soil water was sampled at three sites covered by grass (Carex humilis and Carex lanceolata), acacia and arborvitae respectively. Precipitation is mainly concentrated in rainy seasons and has no significant spatial variance in study area. The stable isotopic compositions are enriched in precipitation and soil water due to the evaporation. The analysis of soil water potential and isotopic profiles shows that evaporation of soil water under arborvitae cover is weaker than under grass and acacia, while soil water evaporation under grass and acacia showed no significant difference. Both delta O-18 profiles and soil water potential dynamics reveal that the soil under acacia allows the most rapid infiltration rate, which may be related to preferential flow. In the process of infiltration after a rainstorm, antecedent water still takes up over 30% of water in the topsoil. The soil water between depths of 0-115 cm under grass has a residence time of about 20 days in the rainy season. Groundwater recharge from precipitation mainly occurs in the rainy season, especially when rainstorms or successive heavy rain events happen.

Upconversion luminescence of Y2O3 : Er3+, Yb3+ nanoparticles prepared by a homogeneous precipitation method

Y2O3: Er3+, Yb3+ nanoparticles were synthesized by a homogeneous precipitation method without and with different concentrations of EDTA 2Na. Upconversion luminescence spectra of the samples were studied under 980 nm laser excitation. The results of XRD showed that the obtained Y2O3:Er3+,Yb3+ nanoparticles were of a cubic structure. The average crystallite sizes calculated were in the range of 28-40 nm. Green and red upconversion emission were observed, and attributed to H-2(11/2), S-4(3/2) -> I-4(15/2) and F-4(9/2) -> I-4(15/2) transitions of the Er3+ ion, respectively.

Probing structural changes of spin-coated polystyrene film after swelling and precipitation by synchrotron GIUSAXS and AFM

Polystyrenc film of about 50 nm in thickness on silicon wafer was obtained by spin-coating in tetrahydrofuran solution.The film exhibits a rough surface as shown by atomic force microscopy images and ellipsometry data.