Characterization of Hypoxia: Topic I Report for the Integrated Assessment on Hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico

Nutrient overenrichment from human activities is one of the major stresses affecting coastal ecosystems. There is increasing concern in many areas around the world that an oversupply of nutrients from multiple sources is having pervasive ecological effects on shallow coastal and estuarine areas. These effects include reduced light penetration, loss of aquatic habitat, harmfid algal blooms, a decrease in dissolved oxygen (or hypoxia), and impacts on living resources. The largest zone of oxygen-depleted coastal waters in the United States, and the entire western Atlantic Ocean, is found in the northern Gulf of Mexico on the Louisiana-Texas continental shelf. This zone is influenced by the freshwater discharge and nutrient flux of the Mississippi River system. This report describes the seasonal, interannual, and long-term variability in hypoxia in the northern Gulf of Mexico and its relationship to nutrient loading. It also documents the relative roles of natural and human-induced factors in determining the size and duration of the hypoxic zone.

Heat-stress and light-stress induce different cellular pathologies in the symbiotic dinoflagellate during coral bleaching

Coral bleaching is a significant contributor to the worldwide degradation of coral reefs and is indicative of the termination of symbiosis between the coral host and its symbiotic algae (dinoflagellate; Symbiodinium sp. complex), usually by expulsion or xenophagy (symbiophagy) of its dinoflagellates. Herein, we provide evidence that during the earliest stages of environmentally induced bleaching, heat stress and light stress generate distinctly different pathomorphological changes in the chloroplasts, while a combined heat- and light-stress exposure induces both pathomorphologies; suggesting that these stressors act on the dinoflagellate by different mechanisms. Within the first 48 hours of a heat stress (32°C) under low-light conditions, heat stress induced decomposition of thylakoid structures before observation of extensive oxidative damage; thus it is the disorganization of the thylakoids that creates the conditions allowing photo-oxidative-stress. Conversely, during the first 48 hours of a light stress (2007 µmoles m−2 s−1 PAR) at 25°C, condensation or fusion of multiple thylakoid lamellae occurred coincidently with levels of oxidative damage products, implying that photo-oxidative stress causes the structural membrane damage within the chloroplasts. Exposure to combined heat- and light-stresses induced both pathomorphologies, confirming that these stressors acted on the dinoflagellate via different mechanisms. Within 72 hours of exposure to heat and/or light stresses, homeostatic processes (e.g., heat-shock protein and anti-oxidant enzyme response) were evident in the remaining intact dinoflagellates, regardless of the initiating stressor. Understanding the sequence of events during bleaching when triggered by different environmental stressors is important for predicting both severity and consequences of coral bleaching

Characterizing a cyanobacterial bloom in western Lake Erie using satellite imagery and meteorological data

The distribution and intensity of a bloom of the toxic cyanobacterium, Microcystis aeruginosa, in western Lake Erie was characterized using a combination of satellite ocean-color imagery, field data, and meteorological observations. The bloom was first identified by satellite on 14 August 2008 and persisted for more than 2 months. The distribution and intensity of the bloom was estimated using a satellite algorithm that is sensitive to near-surface concentrations of M. aeruginosa. Increases in both area and intensity were most pronounced for wind stress less than 0.05 Pa. Area increased while intensity did not change for wind stresses of 0.05–0.1 Pa, and both decreased for wind stress greater than 0.1 Pa. The recovery in intensity at the surface after strong wind events indicated that high wind stress mixed the bloom through the water column and that it returned to the surface once mixing stopped. This interaction is consistent with the understanding of the buoyancy of these blooms. Cloud cover (reduced light) may have a weak influence on intensity during calm conditions. While water temperature remained greater than 15°C, the bloom intensified if there were calm conditions. For water temperature less than 15°C, the bloom subsided under similar conditions. As a result, wind stress needs to be considered when interpreting satellite imagery of these blooms.

A zero-stiffness elastic shell structure

A remarkable shell structure is described that, due to a particular combination of geometry and initial stress, has zero stiffness for any finite deformation along a twisting path; the shell is in a neutrally stable state of equilibrium. Initially the shell is straight in a longitudinal direction, but has a constant, nonzero curvature in the transverse direction. If residual stresses are induced in the shell by, for example, plastic deformation, to leave a particular resultant bending moment, then an analytical inextensional model of the shell shows it to have no change in energy along a path of twisted configurations. Real shells become closer to the inextensional idealization as their thickness is decreased; experimental thin-shell models have confirmed the neutrally stable configurations predicted by the inextensional theory. A simple model is described that shows that the resultant bending moment that leads to zero stiffness gives the shell a hidden symmetry, which explains this remarkable property.

植物分子伴侣热休克蛋白90（Hsp90）的分子作用机理及抗逆基因工程研究

热激蛋白90是广泛存在于各类细菌和真核生物中的一类高度保守的分子伴侣，它对维持细胞生命是绝对必需的。对Hsp90的相关认知主要来源于对动物和酵母细胞的研究，植物Hsp90的研究甚少。由于植物的特殊性，因此对植物Hsp90的研究是对Hsp90未知功能的有力补充。拟南芥中有7个Hsp90蛋白，其中AtHsp90-1、AtHsp90-2、AtHsp90-3和AtHsp90-4定位在细胞质中，AtHsp90-5、AtHsp90-6和AtHsp90-7分别定位在叶绿体、线粒体和内质网中。本文对拟南芥中的AtHsp90-1、AtHsp90-2、AtHsp90-5、AtHsp90-6和AtHsp90-7五个基因进行了克隆，并分别利用酵母互补、双杂交和拟南芥过表达体系几个层面进行了功能分析。 我们利用酵母穿梭载体p416GPD构建了五个AtHsp90基因的酵母表达载体，将其转入Hsp90基因点突变和条件型缺失的酵母菌株iG170D和R0005中。酵母功能互补实验表明细胞质定位的AtHsp90-1和AtHsp90-2可以在各种胁迫条件下互补酵母Hsp90的功能，而定位于细胞器中的AtHsp90-5、 AtHsp90-6和AtHsp90- 7则在任何条件下都不能互补酵母Hsp90的功能。我们还对转基因酵母进行了液体培养的动态观测和细胞膜完整性检测，其结果和固体培养的结果一致。这说明细胞质Hsp90的功能具有一定的保守性，细胞器Hsp90的功能有其特殊性。 热激蛋白90在执行其生物功能时，需要和大量的辅助因子相互作用，因此我们利用酵母双杂交体系检测了AtHsp90-1、AtHsp90-2、AtHsp90-5、AtHsp90-6和AtHsp90-7五个Hsp90蛋白和Hsp70、p23、Cyp40、NOS等几个辅助因子之间的相互作用情况。双杂交结果显示AtHsp90-1和AtHsp90-2几乎不和所选的这几个辅助因子相互作用，AtHsp90-5可以和所有的辅助因子相互作用、AtHsp90-6可以和除Hsp70以外的辅助因子相互作用，AtHsp90-7也可以和所有的辅助因子相互作用但和Hsp70及Hsp70t-2和互作较其他辅助因子弱一些。可以看出胞质Hsp90和细胞器Hsp90在和辅助因子相互作用时有一定的差异。 为了进一步了解拟南芥个Hsp90基因在抗非生物逆境中的作用，我们又将AtHsp90-2、AtHsp90-5、AtHsp90-7基因插入植物表达载体pBI121，用农杆菌介导的浸蕾法将这三个基因转入拟南芥并在其中过量表达，并研究了这些基因的过表达植株的种子和幼苗对多种模拟非生物逆境的响应。结果显示，转基因种子和幼苗对ABA、盐(NaCl)、干旱(甘露醇)、高温、氧化、高钙等非生物逆境都表现出了敏感，转细胞器Hsp90的种子和幼苗比转细胞质Hsp90的更为敏感。但在高浓度钙离子胁迫下，幼苗表现情况与盐、旱和氧化等非生物逆境处理下的情况正好相反，转细胞器Hsp90的幼苗比转细胞质Hsp90的长得健壮。这些结果表明Hsp90参与了植物抵抗非生物逆境的反应，其作用可能是通过ABA和Ca2+途径实现的，然而体内Hsp90的动态平衡可能才是植物抵抗非生物逆境的关键。

Strengthening community roles in aquatic resource governance in Uganda

Lake Victoria fisheries face severe environmental stresses. Stocks are declining in a context of increasing population and growing demand for the lake’s resources. Rising competition between users is putting conservation goals and rural livelihoods at risk. While Uganda’s co-management policy framework is well-developed, key resources for implementation are lacking, enforcement is poor, and the relations between stakeholders are unequal. Poor rural resource users face significant challenges to effectively participate in fisheries decision-making. This case study demonstrates the progress that can be made using a collaborative approach to catalyze community-led actions linking public health, sanitation and environmental conservation in difficult circumstances, even over a relatively short time period. Multistakeholder dialogue can bring to light the sources of conflict, pinpoint governance challenges, and identify opportunities for institutional collaboration to address community needs. At the same time, the process can help build trust, confidence in collective action and public accountability.

Application of a wind-driven barotropic model to simulate the seasonal circulation of the northern Arabian Sea

A two dimensional numerical barotropic model based on the depth-integrated equations is presented here. Sensitivity of the model is analyzed by using wind stresses of different months. Real wind data and actual bathymetry are used as an input to obtain the circulation patterns of the northern Arabian Sea during specific seasons. However, the model is also tested with constant depth for comparison. A number of numerical simulations are performed to study the combined effects of wind stress, bathymetry and basin geometry. Since the goal of this study is to simulate the circulation of the northern Arabian sea in accordance with the observed wind stress, therefore, wind stresses of different months like July (the peak os SW monsoon), October (the transition period from SW to NE monsoon), January (the peack of NE monsoon) and April (the transition period from NE to SW monsoon) are used to examine the circulation patterns. The results obtained are satisfactory in that they resemble known patterns.

冬小麦对盐分与臭氧胁迫的生理生态响应机理研究

本研究选用抗盐冬小麦品种—德抗961（DK961）和盐敏感品种—济南17（JN17）为试验材料。一方面，研究了冬小麦对盐分及臭氧胁迫的生理生态响应机制；另一方面，探讨了外源硝酸钾对小麦盐伤害的缓解机理，提出了盐胁迫下小麦优质高产的栽培技术规程。主要结论如下： 1 冬小麦产量与品质对不同浓度盐胁迫的响应 同一小麦品种在不同盐浓度胁迫下产量和品质存在显著差异，不同小麦品种在同一盐分浓度胁迫下产量和品质也有显著差异，说明盐胁迫下小麦产量和品质与小麦品种特性和耐盐性关系密切。在对照栽培条件下，两小麦品种的产量次序为JN17＞DK961；在轻度（0.3%）盐胁迫下，耐盐品种仍获得了较高的产量（仅下降5.8%），而盐敏感品种下降幅度较大（为22.9%），此时的产量次序为DK961＞JN17；DK961在0.5%盐胁迫下，产量较对照处理下降9.7%，而JN17下降了54.3%；在0.7％盐浓度环境中，DK961和JN17产量均出现了大幅降低，但DK961的产量仍显著高于JN17。 盐胁迫下的小麦品质指标表现为：在0.3％和0.5%盐浓度下，随着盐浓度的升高，蛋白质含量升高，淀粉含量下降；当盐浓度达到0.7%时，两者都快速下降。 2 不同耐盐性冬小麦品种对盐胁迫的生理生态响应 2.1品种与盐浓度对小麦生长特性的影响 盐胁迫造成了小麦的后期衰老加快，光合速率降低，生育期缩短。但这种影响会因小麦的耐盐性不同而有很大的差异：DK961在轻、中度盐浓度（0.3％、0.5％）下，生育期与无盐处理时无显著差异，但当盐浓度达到0.7%时，生育期出现了明显的缩短；相反，JN17生育期在各个盐浓度下都出现了显著变化。对盐敏感品种，盐胁迫导致小麦出苗期、拔节期推迟3-5 d，抽穗期和开花期提前6-7 d，成熟期提前10-15 d。盐胁迫对小麦生育期的影响主要是缩短生殖生长期。 2.2品种与盐浓度对小麦生理代谢的影响 不同冬小麦品种对盐胁迫产生的生理反应程度不同，耐盐小麦品种在一定的盐浓度范围内，盐胁迫症状不明显，生理反应比较迟钝，光合速率、气孔导度、光饱和点等基本维持在无盐处理的水平，丙二醛和活性氧清除酶活性增加不显著；盐敏感品种在各种盐浓度胁迫下或耐盐品种在过重的盐分浓度胁迫下，盐胁迫症状极为显著，小麦植株生长矮小，光合速率、气孔导度、光饱和点等大幅下降，丙二醛和活性氧自由基含量大幅上升，严重的情况下，小麦植株不能正常生长，甚至出现“干死”现象。 3 盐胁迫下冬小麦生理生态特征对臭氧浓度升高的响应 3.1 臭氧污染对小麦生理代谢的影响 3.1.1对小麦叶片气体交换的影响 气孔是小麦叶片与外界气体交换的“大门”，是臭氧进入叶片的主要通道，控制着蒸腾、光合、呼吸等重要生理过程。通常，高浓度臭氧环境中，小麦表现出较低的气孔导度。气孔的这种反应是植物限制臭氧进入叶片中的一种避害机制。 臭氧的强氧化性导致高浓度臭氧环境中小麦的光合速率下降。臭氧通过气孔进入叶片后，对植物叶片光合作用的抑制主要是由Rubiso酶含量/活性的降低引起的。研究发现，臭氧低于某一临界值时，产生的氧化伤害可以被植物体的抗氧化系统清除而不会对光合作用产生抑制，而高于该临界值时由Rubsico限制引起的光合速率降低将与臭氧吸收量呈线性关系。高浓度臭氧环境下，植物光合作用降低的生理原因，主要是臭氧导致叶绿素和可溶性蛋白分解，叶片衰老加快、叶绿体结构发生改变、活性氧清除酶活性升高，而与碳素固定有关的酶活性降低、光合产物向外运输受阻而导致的反馈抑制。 3.1.2对小麦生长特性的影响 研究表明，环境中臭氧浓度升高可引起小麦生长特性发生巨大改变。臭氧污染首先加快老叶的衰老，而对新叶的影响很小。然而老叶衰老能够将其中的营养转移到新生长叶片中，有利于维持植株的生长。臭氧环境下，老叶迅速衰老的同时，同一植株中的新生组织具有较高的Rubisco合成速率和总量，同化速率加强。这一现象被认为是植株在臭氧环境下的一种补偿机制。臭氧显著降低植株同化物向根系的分配，而同化物向根系分配的改变将导致根系与整株植物功能关系的改变。在水分亏缺环境下，植物根系的生长受到抑制，导致根系对土壤营养吸收能力的降低，从而间接降低叶片的光合速率。 3.2 盐胁迫引起的生理响应提高了小麦抵御臭氧伤害的能力 试验结果表明，盐胁迫引起的小麦生理响应（如，气孔导度降低、抗氧化酶活性升高等），显著增强了小麦抵抗臭氧伤害的能力。但这种保护作用是相对的，因为盐胁迫本身已对小麦生长产生显著的抑制作用。 3.2.1 气孔导度下降减少了臭氧的进入 研究发现，臭氧是通过气孔进入植物体内的，而盐胁迫引起的小麦气孔导度下降，显著减少了臭氧进入小麦体内的量，大大减轻了臭氧对小麦的伤害。本实验中，无盐栽培条件下，臭氧引起的小麦光合速率降低，达到了显著水平；而盐胁迫下，由臭氧引起的小麦光合速率降低，未达到显著水平。这说明盐胁迫引起的气孔导度降低，起到了减轻臭氧对小麦生长抑制的作用。 3.2.2 渗透调节能力的增强弱化了臭氧的伤害 盐胁迫引起的可溶性糖、可溶性蛋白、脯氨酸等渗透调节物质含量的升高，大大增强了小麦抵御臭氧伤害的能力。如，臭氧往往造成植物蛋白质的分解，降低蛋白质含量；但盐胁迫下，可溶性蛋白含量是上升的，两方面协调，维持了植株蛋白质水平，促进了小麦生长。另一方面，渗透调节物质的积累，有利于小麦同化物的合成、转化和运输，加快了循环的节奏，这也是盐胁迫降低臭氧对小麦伤害的重要原因之一。 3.2.3 抗氧化能力增强降低了臭氧的氧化伤害 盐胁迫引起的小麦酶促保护系统抗氧化酶（SOD、POD等）活性升高，提高了小麦体内活性氧清除能力。臭氧污染可产生大量的活性氧自由基，对小麦产生强氧化伤害，抑制小麦生长。通常情况下，臭氧胁迫也可引起小麦抗氧化酶活性的提高，来适应这种污染环境。本实验表明，在盐和臭氧的交互作用下，小麦抗氧化酶活性的升高呈现了叠加效应，小麦的活性氧清除能力大大加强，减缓了小麦衰老进程，有利于小麦生长。 4 外源硝酸钾对冬小麦盐胁迫伤害的缓解机理及高产栽培技术规程 4.1 不同浓度硝酸钾处理对盐胁迫下小麦幼苗生理代谢的影响 植株体内K+/Na+比值是衡量小麦抗盐性的一项重要指标。盐胁迫下，小麦体内Na+含量快速上升，而K+含量相对下降，K+/Na+比值快速降低，打破了植株体内离子平衡，对小麦造成Na+“单盐毒害”，严重抑制小麦生长。可溶性糖、脯氨酸等低分子量渗透调节物质含量升高；膜质过氧化程度加重，电解质外渗量及丙二醛含量升高；活性氧自由基增多，抗氧化酶活性升高。 外源KNO3显著提高了小麦植株组织内K+/Na+比值，盐胁迫症状减轻，可溶性糖、脯氨酸等低分子量渗透调节物质含量比单独NaCl胁迫时降低；膜质过氧化程度减轻，电解质外渗量及丙二醛含量降低；活性氧自由基减少，抗氧化酶活性恢复到接近正常水平。但过量施用硝酸钾同样不利于小麦的生长。实验结果表明，小麦生长环境中最佳的K+/Na+ = 16:100。 4.2 抽穗期叶面喷施硝酸钾对盐胁迫下小麦花后生长及籽粒产量的影响 根据小麦生长环境中最佳的钾/钠 = 16:100的实验结果，设计了对100 mM NaCl生长环境中小麦抽穗期叶面喷施10 mM KNO3溶液试验（Hoagland 营养液中已含6 mM KNO3），得出外源硝酸钾有利于盐胁迫下小麦生长的恢复及籽粒产量的提高，DK961和JN17的穗粒数分别比单纯盐胁迫时提高了1.9%和7.1%；千粒重分别提高了2.3%和2.8 %；产量分别提高了4.5%和12.3%；叶面喷施钾肥后，盐胁迫对耐盐小麦产量指标影响变小，小麦各项指标恢复到接近于对照水平。盐敏感小麦品种受到盐胁迫的伤害较重，产量下降幅度较大，施钾肥后小麦盐胁迫症状虽有改善，但仍与对照相差较远。所以，盐胁迫下小麦高产优质栽培中，耐盐品种的选用是首要的。 4.3外源硝酸钾对盐胁迫下花后小麦旗叶气体交换的影响 盐胁迫下小麦叶面喷施钾肥，旗叶光合速率在灌浆期比不施钾处理显著升高，且维持高光合速率时间延长，小麦后期衰老速率减缓。由于施钾处理使旗叶光合速率提高，功能期延长，使籽粒可溶性总糖含量和蔗糖含量高于不施钾的处理，促进了淀粉合成底物的供应，由此促进了淀粉的合成。盐胁迫下小麦抽穗期施钾，可促进小麦旗叶、籽粒的碳、氮代谢，淀粉合成速率加快。同时游离氨基酸含量增加，籽粒中蛋白质合成底物的供应增加，蛋白质产量提高。适宜的钾肥处理能够显著促进小麦植株碳、氮代谢过程，加速碳水化合物和蛋白质的合成，使籽粒蛋白质、淀粉产量提高。 4.4外源硝酸钾对盐胁迫下小麦花后旗叶抗衰老酶活性的影响 盐胁迫可使小麦代谢过程中产生的活性氧自由基增多，刺激酶促防御系统的保护酶（如，SOD、POD、CAT等）活性提高，但当盐浓度超过其上限时，酶活性达到一定的极限，活性氧自由基不能及时的清除，代谢发生紊乱，植株加速衰老或不能正常生长，出现“早死”现象。外源硝酸钾可有效缓解这一抑制作用，提高小麦在盐胁迫下的代谢能力，减少活性氧自由基的产生，减轻活性氧清除系统的压力，能较长时间维持叶片细胞结构的完整性，提高小麦抵抗盐胁迫的能力。 4.5 盐胁迫下小麦优质高产栽培技术规程 研究结果表明：选用高产优质抗盐小麦新品种，并合理配合施用钾肥是获得小麦优质高产的一项有效措施： 1） 选用高产优质抗盐小麦新品种 在品种选用上，首先要考虑苗期耐盐力好、个体分蘖强、成穗率高三大因素，在此基础上选择多穗、粒大、粒多的性状。 2）配合施用钾肥 钾肥基施和抽穗期叶面喷施皆对盐胁迫下小麦生长有促进作用。钾肥的施用量应根据土壤盐浓度而定，小麦生长环境中最佳的K+/Na+比值为16:100。

Mechanisms of erosion of unfilled elastomers by solid particle impact

The mechanisms of material removal were studied during the erosion of two unfilled elastomers (natural rubber and epoxidised natural rubber). The effects of impact velocity and of lubrication by silicone oil were investigated. The development of surface features due to single impacts and during the early stages of erosion was followed by scanning electron microscopy. The basic material removal mechanism at impact angles of both 30° and 90° involves the formation and growth of fine fatigue cracks under the tensile surface stresses caused by impact. No damage was observed after single impacts; it was found that many successive impacts are necessary for material removal. It was found that the erosion rate has a very strong dependance on impact velocity above about 50 ms-1.

Solid particle erosion of boronized steels

Boronizing is a thermochemical diffusion-based process for producing iron boride layers in the surface of steel components. The boride layer is wear resistant and is very hard. Large residual stresses are found to exist in the surface layers, which are a function of substrate steel composition and heat treatment. By slow cooling from the boronizing temperature (900°C), a large compressive stress is developed in the boride layer. Hardening the steel by rapid cooling, either directly from the boronizing treatment or after subsequent austenitizing, develops tension in the coating which causes it to fracture. Tempering of the martensite produces compression in the coating, closing but not welding the cracks. The results of solid particle erosion experiments using silicon carbide, quartz, and glass bead erodents on boronized steels are presented.

Visualization of turbulent wedges under favourable pressure gradients using both shear-sensitive and temperature-sensitive liquid crystals

Turbulent wedges induced by a 3D surface roughness placed in a laminar boundary layer over a flat plate were visualised for the first time using both shear-sensitive and temperature-sensitive liquid crystals. The experiments were carried out at three different levels of favourable pressure gradients. The purpose of this investigation was to examine the spreading angles of the turbulent wedges indicated by their associated surface shear stresses and heat transfer characteristics and hence obtain further insight about the difference in the behaviour of transitional momentum and thermal boundary layers when a streamwise pressure gradient exists. It was shown that under a zero pressure gradient the spreading angles indicated by the two types of liquid crystals are the same, but the difference increases as the level of favourable pressure gradient increases. The result from the present study could have an important implication to the transition modelling of thermal boundary layers over gas turbine blades.

The unsteady development of a turbulent wake through a downstream low-pressure turbine blade passage

This paper presents two-dimensional LDA measurements of the convection of a wake through a low-pressure (LP) turbine cascade. Previous studies have shown the wake convection to be kinematic but have not provided details of the turbulent field. The spatial resolution of these measurements has facilitated the calculation of the production of turbulent kinetic energy and this has revealed a mechanism for turbulence production as the wake converts through the bladerow. The measured ensemble-averaged velocity field confirmed the previously reported kinematics of wake convection while the measurements of the turbulence quantities showed the wake fluid to be characterised by elevated levels of turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) and to have an anisotropic structure. Based on the measured mean and turbulence quantities, the production of turbulent kinetic energy was calculated. This highlighted a TKE production mechanism that resulted in increased levels of turbulence over the rear suction surface where boundary layer transition occurs. The turbulence production mechanism within the bladerow was also observed to produce more nearly isotropic turbulence. Production occurs when the principal stresses within the wake are aligned with the mean strains. This coincides with the maximum distortion of the wake within the blade passage and provides a mechanism for the production of turbulence outside of the boundary layer.

LES and hybrid LES/RANS simulations for conjugate heat transfer over a matrix of cubes

Large Eddy Simulation (LES) and a novel k -l based hybrid LES/RANS approach have been applied to simulate a conjugate heat transfer problem involving flow over a matrix of surface mounted cubes. In order to assess the capability and reliability of the newly developed k -l based hybrid LES/RANS, numerical results are compared with new LES and existing RANS results. Comparisons include mean velocity profiles, Reynolds stresses and conjugate heat transfer. As well as for hybrid LES/RANS validation purposes, the LES results are used to gain insights into the complex flow physics and heat transfer mechanisms. Numerical simulations show that the hybrid LES/RANS approach is effective. Mean and instantaneous fluid temperatures adjacent to the cube surface are found to strongly correlate with flow structure. Although the LES captures more mean velocity field complexities, broadly time averaged wake temperature fields are found similar for the LES and hybrid LES/RANS. Copyright © 2005 by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Inc. All rights reserved.

A model for nonlinear viscoelastic mechanical responses of collagenous soft tissues

Experimental observations of the time-dependent mechanical responses of collagenous tissues have demonstrated behavior that deviates from standard treatments of linear or quasi-linear viscoelasticity. In particular, time-dependent deformation can be strongly coupled to strain level, and strain-rate independence can be observed under monotonic loading, even for a tissue with dramatic stress relaxation. It was postulated that this nonlinearity is fundamentally associated with gradual recruitment of individual collagen fibrils during applied mechanical loading. Based on previously observed experimental results for the time-dependent response of collagenous soft tissues, a model is developed to describe the mechanical behavior of these tissues under uniaxial loading. Tissue stresses, under applied strain-controlled loading, are assumed to be a sum of elastic and viscoelastic stress contributions. The relative contributions of elastic and viscoelastic stresses is assumed to vary with strain level, leading to strain- and time-dependent mechanical behavior. The model formulation is examined under conditions of monotonic loading at varying constant strain rates and stress-relaxation at different applied strain levels. The model is compared with experimental data for a membranous biological soft tissue, the amniotic sac, and is found to agree well with experimental results. The limiting behavior of the novel model, at large strains relative to the collagen recruitment, is consistent with the quasi-linear viscoelastic approach. © 2006 Materials Research Society.

Analysis of case histories on deep excavations in marine clay

Two case histories on deep excavation of marine clay are used to study the use of a decision-making tool based on a new deign method called the Mobilized Strength Design (MSD) method which allows the designer to use a simple method of predicting ground displacements during deep excavation. This application can approximately satisfy both safety and serviceability requirements by predicting stresses and displacements under working conditions by introducing the concept of "Mobilizable soil strength". The new method accommodates a number of features which are important to design of underground construction between retaining walls, including different deformation mechanism in different stages of excavation. The influence of wall depth, wall flexibility and stratified ground are the major focus of this paper. These developments should make it possible for a design engineer to take informed decisions on the influence of wall stiffness, or on the need for a jet-grouted base slab, for example, without having to conduct project-specific Finite Element Analysis.