CHARACTERISTICS OF CLAY MINERALS IN ASIAN DUST AND THEIR ENVIRONMENTAL SIGNIFICANCE

The objectives of this research were to characterise the clay minerals composition of soil-derived dust in Northern China and to set up a mineralogical signature to trace their origin. Mineral composition of aerosol particles was investigated at Aksu, Dunhuang, Yulin, Tongliao and Changwu during an intensive field campaign period of ACE-Asia. The results show that the kaolinite （K） to chlorite （C） ratio is sensitive to the regional origin of Asian dust. Western source areas （represented by Aksu） displayed the lowest K/C ratio of 0.3 （average）, while it was found to increase up to 0.70 （average） upon moving towards northern source areas （represented by Yulin）. By studying transported dust in a deposition area representative of the Chinese Loess Plateau, the usefulness of the K/C ratio, when associated with back air-mass trajectories, was found to lie in revealing the origin of the dust. Comparison of the mineralogical data between Asian dust and Sahara dust, shows that the K/C ratio is also an effective signature to identify the source areas on a hemisphere scale.     

Hygroscopic growth of aerosol scattering coefficient:A comparative analysis between urban and suburban sites at winter in Beijing

A humidity controlled inlet system was developed to measure the hygroscopic growth of aerosol scattering coefficient in conjunction with nephelometry at an urban site of Chinese Academy of Meteorological Sciences (CAMS) in Beijing and a rural site at Shangdianzi Regional Background Air Pollution Monitoring Station (SDZ) outside Beijing during winter, from December 2005 to January 2006. Measurements were carried out at a wavelength of 525 nm with an Ecotech M9003 nephelometer. The hygroscopic growth function (or factor) of the aerosol scattering coefficientf(RH) increased continuously with increasing relative humidity (RH) and showed no obvious "step-like" deliquescent behavior at both sites during the experiment. The average growth factorf(RH) at the SDZ site could reach 1.5 when RH increased from less than 40% to 92%, and to 2.1 at the CAMS site when RH increased from less than 40% to 93%. The average hygroscopic growth factor at a relative humidity of 80%, f(RH=80±1%), was found to be about 1.26±0.15 at CAMS and 1.24±0.11 at SDZ. Further analysis indicated that under relatively polluted conditions, the average hygroscopic growth factor was higher at the CAMS site than that at the SDZ site. However, under relatively clean air conditions, the difference between the two sites was small, showing a hygroscopic growth behavior similar to those of burning biomass or blowing dust. These results reflected the different characteristics of aerosol types at the two sites.     

Long-range transport of organic aerosol to Cape Hedo,Japan

An investigation at Cape Hedo, Japan, from 2005 to 2006, focused on the long-range transport of organic aerosol （OA） from the Asian continent. An Aerodyne aerosol mass spectrometer was used to investigate the OA data collected over the study. OA concentrations were low from July to September and peaked during March and April. Based on air mass origins, four OA source regions were identified： northern China, southern China, Japan, and Korea. OA concentrations measured at Cape Hedo from the four sources did not exhibit large differences. Conversely, the frequencies of the air masses reaching Cape Hedo from the different regions varied considerably. Northern China was identified as the primary source of organic aerosols at Cape Hedo. Examination of variations in the ratio of m/z 44 to OA concentrations with transport time showed that OAs were partially oxidized during transport     

Long-range transport of organic aerosol to Cape Hedo,Japan

An investigation at Cape Hedo, Japan, from 2005 to 2006, focused on the long-range transport of organic aerosol (OA) from the Asian continent. An Aerodyne aerosol mass spectrometer was used to investigate the OA data collected over the study. OA concentrations were low from July to September and peaked during March and April. Based on air mass origins, four OA source regions were identified: northern China, southern China, Japan, and Korea. OA concentrations measured at Cape Hedo from the four sources did not exhibit large differences. Conversely, the frequencies of the air masses reaching Cape Hedo from the different regions varied considerably. Northern China was identified as the primary source of organic aerosols at Cape Hedo. Examination of variations in the ratio of m/z 44 to OA concentrations with transport time showed that OAs were partially oxidized during transport     

Source apportionment of atmospheric particulate carbon in Las Vegas,Nevada, USA

A study was conducted to quantify wintertime contributions of source types to carbonaceous PM_2.5 at four urban sites in the Las Vegas Valley, one of the most rapidly growing urban areas in the southwestern United States. Twenty-four hour average ambient samples were collected for mass, ions, elements, organic carbon (OC), elemental carbon (EC), and trace organic markers analysis. Additional measurements were made to determine diurnal patterns in light-absorbing black carbon (BC) as a marker for combustion sources. Carbonaceous PM sources of on-road gasoline vehicles, on-road diesel vehicles, and off-road diesel engines were characterized with their chemical profiles, as well as fuel-based emission factors, using an In-Plume Sampling System. The Effective Variance Chemical Mass Balance (EV-CMB) source apportionment model was applied to the ambient samples collected, using source profiles developed in this study as well as profiles from other relevant studies. Four main sources contributed to PM_2.5 carbon within the Las Vegas Valley: (1) paved road dust, (2) on-road gasoline vehicles, (3) residential wood combustion, and (4) on-road diesel vehicles. CMB estimated that on-road mixed fleet gasoline vehicles are the largest source for OC and EC at all the sites. The contribution of paved road dust to both OC and EC was 5–10% at the four sites. On-road diesel vehicles contribute 22% of the OC and 34% of the EC at a site near the city center, which is located immediately downwind of a major freeway. Residential wood combustion is a more important source than on-road diesel vehicles for two residential neighborhood sites. These results are consistent with our conceptual model, and the research methodology may be applied to studying other urban areas.     

INFLUENCE OF ASIAN DUSTS ON THE PHYSICOCHEMICAL PROPERTIES OF ATMOSPHERIC AEROSOLS IN TAIWAN DISTRICT USING THE PENGHU ISLANDS AS AN EXAMPLE

1. Introduction In the early months of each year, Asian dusts transport frequently from Northwest China and Mongolia to the Pa-cific-Rim countries (Kagawa et al., 2001; Uno et al., 2002). It causes significant environmental effects such as ambient air quality deterioration, atmospheric visibility impairment, radiation energy reduction, mineral deposition, and acid rain neutralization (Terada et al., 2002; Zhang & An, 1999). During Asian dust periods, significant increases of atmos-pheric …     

中国21世纪若干重大工程地质与环境问题

21世纪中国的大规模的国家建设不可避免地导致大量的工程地质与环境问题。 2 1世纪中国西部高山峡谷地区主要工程地质问题有: 构造活动带岩土体动力稳定性, 高地应力下岩体应变储能与岩体性质, 高陡边坡的变形及尺寸效应和动力稳定性, 深埋长大隧洞的地温与地压, 深埋隧洞岩体结构探测与施工地质超前预报, 大跨度复杂洞群变形与稳定性的群洞效应, 冻土的冻融变形、稳定性及其处理技术, 可溶岩岩溶规律与岩体利用问题, 河床深厚覆盖层的处理与利用等问题; 中国东部及沿海地区工程地质问题包括: 高速交通网建设中软土地基变形与稳定性及处理技术, 深井采矿中软岩巷道大变形与处理技术, 深厚松散堆积层上大型桥梁桥基变形与稳定性, 海底隧道围岩工程地质与水文地质问题, 城市多层地下空间开发中的工程地质问题等; 此外, 水土流失与北方大规模荒漠化问题, 黄河下游地上悬河与长江下游塌岸和堤防稳定性问题, 黄河断流引起的下游地区环境问题, 我国北方干旱地区水资源长期匮乏问题, 城市化中的环境破坏与污染控制等问题, 将是中国 2 1世纪突出的环境问题。中国工程地质工作者应当在结构土力学与岩体结构力学、工程地质学的基本理论与工程地质动力学、人 地相互作用机制与环境工程地质学、地质工程理论与方法。     

Ground-based measurements of aerosol optical properties and radiative forcing in North China

In order to gain an insight into the aerosol properties and their climatic effect over the continental source regions of China, it is of significance to carry out long-term ground-based measurements of aerosol optical properties and radiative forcing. A couple of temporary and permanent Aerosol Robotic Network （AERONET） sites and three comprehensive radiative sites were established in China as a result of international cooperation in recent years. Heavy aerosol loading and significant temporal and spatial variation over North China are revealed by the AERONET data. Aerosol-induced reductions in surface radiation budget are examined on the basis of collocated observations by sun photometers and pyranometers. 2007 Chinese Society of Particuology and Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Published by Elsevier B.V.     

The performance and sustainability of vehicle dust courses for military testing

Dust has long been recognized as an important parameter for testing military vehicles and equipment due to the potential for adversely affecting performance and durability. Vehicle dust test courses were originally established in areas of heavy underlying fine particulate layers (silt and clay) and used for cyclic tests. These soils, known as desert pavements, are geomorphically old and slowly develop through the trapping of atmospheric dust over tens of thousands of years. As such, these soils are both a sink and source for eolian material. However, this dust is a finite resource for military testing at the Yuma Proving Ground (YPG), the Army’s primary environmental hot weather test center. There is concern that the continuous utilization of YPG dust test courses over the past half century has eroded through the overlying dust-rich soil to the extent that the true natural environmental conditions are no longer adequately represented. The objectives of this study were (1) to characterize current dust courses at YPG in order to (2) gain a better understanding of the current state of dust availability and (3) assess the overall sustainability of high dust-potential soils needed for proper military testing. Soil samples collected from dust test courses and adjacent undisturbed soils, as well as dust collected on tactical test vehicles, were analyzed for mineralogy, geochemistry, and physical properties. Results indicate adjacent undisturbed soils exhibit a higher dust potential (higher silt and clay) and elevated reactive salts and carbonates indicating a significant loss of fines from the dust test courses. Routine vehicle traffic and surface preparation has eroded and mixed the dust layer with the underlying sand and gravel-rich horizons, thus depleting the dust test courses of their dust producing potential. Desert pavements are stable geomorphic landforms but the soils have finite dust content when disturbed and therefore are unsustainable for long-term repeated dust testing. Disturbance of these soils may potentially affect ecologically sensitive areas. As such, more geomorphically active areas such as floodplains may provide greater sustainability for long-term testing.     

Hygroscopic growth of aerosol scattering coefficient： A comparative analysis between urban and suburban sites at winter in Beijing

A humidity controlled inlet system was developed to measure the hygroscopic growth of aerosol scattering coefficient in conjunction with nephelometry at an urban site of Chinese Academy of Meteorological Sciences （CAMS） in Beijing and a rural site at Shangdianzi Regional Background Air Pollution Monitoring Station （SDZ） outside Beijing during winter, from December 2005 to January 2006. Measurements were carded out at a wavelength of 525 nm with an Ecotech M9003 nephelometer. The hygroscopic growth function （or factor） of the aerosol scattering coefficientf（RH） increased continuously with increasing relative humidity （RH） and showed no obvious ＂step-like＂ deliquescent behavior at both sites during the experiment. The average growth factorf（RH） at the SDZ site could reach 1.5 when RH increased from less than 40% to 92%, and to 2.1 at the CAMS site when RH increased from less than 40% to 93%. The average hygroscopic growth factor at a relative humidity of 80%, f（RH = 80 ± 1%）, was found to be about 1.26 ±0.15 at CAMS and 1.24 ±0.11 at SDZ. Further analysis indicated that under relatively polluted conditions, the average hygroscopic growth factor was higher at the CAMS site than that at the SDZ site. However, under relatively clean air conditions, the difference between the two sites was small, showing a hygroscopic growth behavior similar to those of burning biomass or blowing dust. These results reflected the different characteristics of aerosol types at the two sites.     

Surrogate atmospheric dust particles generated from dune soils in laboratory: Comparison with field measurement

Desert dust strongly influences the climate and the environment by altering the radiation budget, participating in atmospheric chemical reactions, and engaging the biogeochemical cycle. Studying its impacts requires knowledge of the physical and chemical properties of the original particles from the source origin. Unfortunately, the field collection of atmospheric samples in the desert is impractical. Fine surface soil is thus considered an alternative material from which to obtain the information applicable to dust particles from the desert soil. In this study, a laboratory system was set up to generate dust particles with simulated natural wind erosion processes from surface soils or directly from desert surfaces. Surface soils and field dust were simultaneously collected during a local blowing dust event. The comparison between the laboratory-generated dust and the field dust showed a consistent trend in particle size distribution and chemical composition. The chemical compositions were found to have explainable differences with the Certified Reference Materials for Asian dust (CJ-2). The laboratory-generated dust particles with the system could be applied as surrogates for soil-emitted dust in desert areas.     

Long-term trend in aerosol optical depth from 1980 to 2001 in north China

Using the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) monthly aerosol optical depth (AOD) at 500 nm data from 1980 to 2001 in north China, the spatial and temporal variations of AOD were examined. Seasonal AODs in Taldimakan Desert were 0.69 and 0.44 in spring and summer,respectively, which were mainly due to frequent occurrences of dust events in this region. Dust activities in spring also led to high aerosol loading in Gobi Desert and in northeast China where spring AODs were 0.33 and 0.29, respectively. Heavily impacted by events such as volcano eruption, forest fires and extraordinary dust storms, AODs showed large inter-annual variations. A decreasing tendency in AOD was observed in north China during 1980-1991, though a reverse tendency was revealed during 1997-2001, especially for spring AOD in northeast China. Further study is required to figure out how much human activities have contributed to the AOD tendency in north China.     

大同二电厂扩建厂址工程区活动构造评价

大同盆地西侧北北东-北东向鹅毛口-口泉断裂, 属正平移性质, 晚第四纪以来断裂继续活动, 但北东、南西两段活动有明显差异。盆地东侧北东-北东东向六棱山北麓断裂, 亦属正断层性质, 至今仍在活动。距大同二电厂扩建厂址最近的水峪断裂, 晚更新世末3～1.5万年以来已停止活动, 对厂址稳定性不会有影响。     

Long-term trend in aerosol optical depth from 1980 to 2001 in north China

Using the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer （TOMS） monthly aerosol optical depth （AOD） at 500 nm data from 1980 to 2001 in north China, the spatial and temporal variations of AOD were examined. Seasonal AODs in Taklimakan Desert were 0.69 and 0.44 in spring and summer, respectively, which were mainly due to frequent occurrences of dust events in this region. Dust activities in spring also led to high aerosol loading in Gobi Desert and in northeast China where spring AODs were 0.33 and 0.29, respectively. Heavily impacted by events such as volcano eruption, forest fires and extraordinary dust storms, AODs showed large inter-annual variations. A decreasing tendency in AOD was observed in north China during 1980-1991, though a reverse tendency was revealed during 1997-2001, especially for spring AOD in northeast China. Further study is required to figure out how much human activities have contributed to the AOD tendency in north China.     

Aerosol optical absorption by dust and black carbon in Taklimakan Desert,during no-dust and dust-storm conditions

Aerosol absorption coefficient σ_ap involves the additive contribution of both black carbon aerosol (BC) and dust aerosol. The linear statistical regression analysis approach introduced by Fialho et al. (2005) is used to estimate the absorption exponents of BC and dust aerosol absorption coefficients, and further to separate the contributions of these two types of aerosols from the total light absorption coefficient measured in the hinterland of Taklimakan Desert in the spring of 2006. Absorption coefficients are measured by means of a 7-wavelength Aethalometer from 1 March to 31 May and from 1 November to 28 December, 2006. The absorption exponent of BC absorption coefficient α is estimated as (?0.95 ± 0.002) under background weather (supposing the observed absorption coefficient is due only to BC); the estimated absorption exponent of dust aerosol absorption coefficient β during the 6 dust storm periods (strong dust storm) is (?2.55 ± 0.009). Decoupling analysis of the measured light absorption coefficients demonstrates that, on average, the light absorptions caused by dust aerosol and BC make up about 50.5% and 49.5% respectively of the total light absorption at 520 nm; during dust weather process periods (dust storm, floating dust, blowing dust), the contribution of dust aerosol to absorption extinction is 60.6% on average; in the hinterland of desert in spring, dust aerosol is also the major contributor to the total aerosol light absorption, more than that of black carbon aerosol.     

On estimating site damping with soil non-linearity from earthquake recordings

This study proposes an approach for estimating the damping factor of non-linear soil and its role in seismic wave responses at soil sites from earthquake recordings. In particular, the paper first reviews the Fourier-based approach to characterizing the dynamic features of soil sites in seismic ground motion and shows the deficiencies for assessing non-linear site amplification and damping. It then offers an alternative approach, i.e., the Hilbert-Huang transform (HHT) for non-linear and non-stationary data process, in addressing the non-linearity issues. This study focuses on discerning the signature of non-linear site damping from the general non-linear features in the motion that are typically shown in the frequency-dependent site amplification. As a result, the study proposes an HHT-based approach to estimate site damping with non-linear soil from earthquake recordings and to measure the influences in the motion at soil sites. With the use of recordings from the mainshock and aftershock of the 2001 Nisqually earthquakes, this study shows that the proposed approach is able to assess appropriately the site damping that can be used to estimate the influences of soil damping in non-linear site responses.     

西安地区饱和软黄土工程地质特征研究

饱和软黄土是黄土地区一种特殊性岩土。结合西安城区和北环铁路工程勘察的结果,分析了西安地区饱和软黄土的分布规律及其物理力学性质,讨论了饱和软黄土分布上的差异,从地质环境角度探讨了北环铁路饱和软黄土分布的成因,提出了上层滞水含水层也存在饱和软黄土的观点。     

攀枝花地区冰期膨胀土的工程特性研究

攀枝花地区冰期膨胀土生成于二冰期晚期中更新统冰期,通过室内和现场物理力学试验和分析,揭示攀枝花地区冰期膨胀土的物理力学性质具有很大的离散性,其性质受土体的矿物成分、含水率、裂隙面、埋藏深度、级配、试验条件等因素、条件的影响。试验研究表明:膨胀土中的裂隙面按光滑程度不相同,可分为两种类型,即光滑裂隙面和光滑擦痕裂隙面; 粗粒矿物对胀缩性影响不大,而细粒矿物对胀缩性影响较大; 裸露或近地表,土层风化剧烈,裂隙较发育,膨胀力度就稍大; 同一地区的膨胀土,蒙脱石含量愈高,自由膨胀率愈大,其膨胀等级就愈高; 不同场地内的膨胀土其物理力学性质指标存在一些差异,但差异性较小; 攀枝花冰期膨胀土层的黏粒含量并不大; 不同场地内的膨胀土抗剪强度值变化较大,同一场地内的膨胀土抗剪强度值有起伏; 攀枝花冰期膨胀土多数呈硬塑-坚硬状,自然状态下其抗压变形能力较好,在浸水饱和状态下,膨胀土的承载力几乎成倍数下降。     

Large-scale distribution of elements in Chinese aerosol

In spite of increasing attention on Chinese aerosol, there has never been a country-wide survey of its general characteristics. This paper presents elemental data for aerosol at 23 sites in and around China, mostly drawn from the literature, and shows some of the large-scale patterns. Al, Na, and Se are used to represent the crustal, marine, and pollution components, respectively. Most of the patterns are aligned in SW-NE. Al and Na are highest to the NW and the SE, respectively, and their ratio changes rapidly near the coast. Se has a broad maximum over Central China, and the Se/Al ratio （an indicator of pollution vs. crustal aerosol） increases progressively from the NW to the SE. A simple index for simulating pollution aerosol, which uses population density, annual precipitation, and mean wind speed, adequately reproduces the large-scale pattern of pollution aerosol and shows how crustal Al in the NW gradually gives way to flyash Al toward the SE.     

Particle number size distribution and new particle formation （NPF） in Lanzhou,Western China

Particle number size distribution from 10 to 10,000 nm was measured by a wide-range particle spectrometer (WPS-1000XP) at a downwind site north of downtown Lanzhou, western China, from 25 June to 19 July 2006. We first report the pollution level, diurnal variation of particle concentration in different size ranges and then introduce the characteristics of the particle formation processes, to show that the number concentration of ultrafine particles was lower than the values measured in other urban or suburban areas in previous studies. However, the fraction of ultrafine particles in total aerosol number concentration was found to be much higher. Furthermore, sharp increase of ultrafine particle concentration was frequently observed at noon. An examination of the diurnal pattern suggests that the burst of the ultrafine particles was mainly due to nucleation process. During the 25-day observation, new particle formation (NPF) from homogeneous nucleation was observed during 33% of the study period. The average growth rate of the newly formed particles was 4.4 nm/h, varying from 1.3 to 16.9 nm/h. The needed concentration of condensable vapor was 6.1 × 10⁷ cm^?3, and its source rate was 1.1 × 10⁶ cm^?3 s^?1. Further calculation on the source rate of sulphuric acid vapor indicated that the average participation of sulphuric acid to particle growth rate was 68.3%.