Engineering geology and geotechnical summary of central Glasgow in the vicinity of the UK Geoenergy Observatories field sites

This report presents the engineering and geotechnical properties of the geological units that will be encountered in the Glasgow UK Geoenergy Observatories (UKGEOS) site and environs, Glasgow. The data is from third party ground investigations provided by client, consultants and contractors. The data is extracted from analogue reports (paper or pdf files) or is ‘downloaded’ from Association of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Specialist (AGS) data transfer file and stored in the BGS National Geotechnical Properties Database from where it was accessed. As there is limited data nearby the proposed UKGEOS sites the data is from a wider area most notably for the deeper bedrock. The first part of the report briefly introduces the UKGEOS project and the context of this report. Section 2 shows where the UKGEOS site locations and the target formation for the low enthalpy energy. Section 3 gives the borehole locations of the different parameters. Section 4 is about the engineering geology of the different geological units and includes engineering descriptions, various graphs of the different geotechnical parameters and gives a brief interpretation of the data

3D geological models and their hydrogeological applications : supporting urban development : a case study in Glasgow-Clyde, UK

Urban planners and developers in some parts of the United Kingdom can now access geodata in an easy-to-retrieve and understandable format. 3D attributed geological framework models and associated GIS outputs, developed by the British Geological Survey (BGS), provide a predictive tool for planning site investigations for some of the UK's largest regeneration projects in the Thames and Clyde River catchments. Using the 3D models, planners can get a 3D preview of properties of the subsurface using virtual cross-section and borehole tools in visualisation software, allowing critical decisions to be made before any expensive site investigation takes place, and potentially saving time and money. 3D models can integrate artificial and superficial deposits and bedrock geology, and can be used for recognition of major resources (such as water, thermal and sand and gravel), for example in buried valleys, groundwater modelling and assessing impacts of underground mining. A preliminary groundwater recharge and flow model for a pilot area in Glasgow has been developed using the 3D geological models as a framework. This paper focuses on the River Clyde and the Glasgow conurbation, and the BGS's Clyde Urban Super-Project (CUSP) in particular, which supports major regeneration projects in and around the City of Glasgow in the West of Scotland

The mineralogy and fabric of 'Brickearths' in Kent, UK and their relationship to engineering behaviour

Mineralogical and petrographical investigation of two loessic brickearth profiles from Ospringe and Pegwell Bay in north Kent, UK have differentiated two types of brickearth fabric that can be correlated with different engineering behaviour. Both sequences comprise metastable (collapsing) calcareous brickearth, overlain by non collapsing ‘non-calcareous’ brickearth. This study has demonstrated that the two types of brickearth are discretely different sedimentary units, with different primary sedimentary characteristics and an erosional junction between the two units. A palaeosol is developed on the calcareous brickearth, and is associated with the formation of rhizolithic calcrete indicating an arid or semi-arid environment. No evidence has been found for decalcification being responsible for the fabric of the upper ‘non-calcareous’ brickearth. Optically-stimulated dates lend further support for the calcareous and ‘non-calcareous’ brickearth horizons being of different age or origins. The calcareous brickearth is metastable in that it undergoes rapid collapse settlement when wetted under applied stresses. It is characterised by an open-packed arrangement of clay-coated, silt-sized quartz particles and pelletised aggregate grains (peds) of compacted silt and clay, supported by an interped matrix of loosely packed, silt/fine-grained sand, in which the grains are held in place by a skeletal framework of illuviated clay. The illuviated clay forms bridges and pillars separating and binding the dispersed component silt/sand grains. There is little direct grain-to-grain contact and the resultant fabric has a very high voids ratio. Any applied load is largely supported by these delicate clay bridge and pillar microfabrics. Collapse of this brickearth fabric can be explained by a sequence of processes involving: (1) dispersion and disruption of the grain-bridging clay on saturation, leading to initial rapid collapse of the loose packed inter-ped silt/sand; (2) rearrangement and closer stacking of the compact aggregate silt/clay peds; (3) with increasing stress further consolidation may result from deformation and break up of the peds as they collapse into the inter-ped regions. Smectite is a significant component of the clay assemblage and will swell on wetting, further encouraging disruption and breaking of the clay bonds. In contrast, the ‘non-calcareous’ brickearth already possesses a close-packed and interlocking arrangement of silt/sand grains with only limited scope for further consolidation under load. Minor authigenic calcite and dolomite may also form meniscus cements between silt grains. These have either acted as ‘‘scaffolds’’ on which illuviated clay has subsequently been deposited or have encrusted earlier formed grain-bridging clay. In either case, the carbonate cements may help to reinforce the clay bridge fabrics. However, these carbonate features are a relatively minor feature and not an essential component of the collapsible brickearth fabric. Cryoturbation and micromorphological features indicate that the calcareous brickearth fabric has probably been developed through periglacial freeze–thaw processes. Freezing could have produced the compact silt/clay aggregates and an open porous soil framework containing significant inter-ped void space. Silt and clay were remobilised and translocated deeper into the soil profile by water percolating through the active layer of the sediment profile during thawing cycles, to form the loosed packed inter-ped silt matrix and grain-bridging meniscus clay fabrics. In contrast, the upper ‘non-calcareous’ brickearth may represent a head or solifluction deposit. Mass movement during solifluction will have destroyed any delicate grain-bridging clay microfabrics that may have been present in this material

The Glasgow (Scotland) geotechnical GIS: a desk study tool

Desk study is an essential part of all civil engineering project ground investigations. It is usually a collation and review of existing data and information about a site and, in some cases, the surrounding area, and carried out at an early stage of the ground investigation to inform and guide the ground investigation. It should provide suitable data and information to assess the ground conditions and the implications for the proposed engineering design. A similar approach can be taken to inform local, regional or national government with regard to development and the redevelopment of urban areas where ground investigation data and information are available. This paper describes a spatially defined geotechnical information system (GIS) designed to provide geological, geotechnical and geoenvironmental data and information for Glasgow City Council (Scotland). The system contains three main parts: the geology (bedrock, Quaternary and artificial deposits and the thickness and depth of these deposits); the data are presented as various summary graphs illustrating the variation of various parameters as well as a geotechnical and geoenvironmental database; and tools specifically developed to present the data. As undermining is a hazard in part of Glasgow, a dataset showing the distribution of mining is included. Further interpretation of the characteristics of the geological units has produced an engineering geological classification which may be used to provide rapid assessment of the engineering geological conditions

mTORC2-AKT signaling to ATP-citrate lyase drives brown adipogenesis and de novo lipogenesis

mTORC2 phosphorylates AKT in a hydrophobic motif site that is a biomarker of insulin sensitivity. In brown adipocytes, mTORC2 regulates glucose and lipid metabolism, however the mechanism has been unclear because downstream AKT signaling appears unaffected by mTORC2 loss. Here, by applying immunoblotting, targeted phosphoproteomics and metabolite profiling, we identify ATP-citrate lyase (ACLY) as a distinctly mTORC2-sensitive AKT substrate in brown preadipocytes. mTORC2 appears dispensable for most other AKT actions examined, indicating a previously unappreciated selectivity in mTORC2-AKT signaling. Rescue experiments suggest brown preadipocytes require the mTORC2/AKT/ACLY pathway to induce PPAR-gamma and establish the epigenetic landscape during differentiation. Evidence in mature brown adipocytes also suggests mTORC2 acts through ACLY to increase carbohydrate response element binding protein (ChREBP) activity, histone acetylation, and gluco-lipogenic gene expression. Substrate utilization studies additionally implicate mTORC2 in promoting acetyl-CoA synthesis from acetate through acetyl-CoA synthetase 2 (ACSS2). These data suggest that a principal mTORC2 action is controlling nuclear-cytoplasmic acetyl-CoA synthesis

Field observations and laboratory test results on tills in the Nairn-Inverness area of NE Scotland

The report describes the field observations, sampling and geotechnical laboratory results on selected Scottish till sections in the Nairn-Cawdor area, Inverness-shire, Scotland. The first part of the report introduces the project and the context of this particular work. This is followed in Part 2 by an account of the sampling and testing methods undertaken for both geotechnical characterisation in the laboratory and micromorphology analyses. Part 3 provides an account of the location details of the logged and sampled exposures and descriptions of the lithological sequences at each site. Part 4 presents details and results of the characterisation tests (particle size analyses) undertaken on the collected geotechnical samples. The results of micromorphological analyses undertaken on thin sections prepared from ‘undisturbed’ samples acquired from this study are being described in a separate report

Towards attributed, parameterised and fully integrated urban 3D geoscience models and related GIS datasets in the UK

Urban regeneration in the UK tackles deprivation stemming from industrial decline. These long-term projects (up to 25 years) are some of Europe’s largest. They implement land recycling, sustainable development and effective management of land and water resources. Those engaged in regeneration and large-scale construction (e.g. Olympic Games 2012 in London) need accessible and readily understood environmental geoscience information. The British Geological Survey (BGS) increasingly meets these needs with interactive, bespoke, 3D attributed geologic models, constructed with GSI3D and other software, and related GIS datasets. Close partnerships with decision-makers, including environmental regulators, help ensure effective data use. For example, in the Clyde Corridor, Scotland’s national regeneration priority, BGS works with Glasgow City Council, delivering 3D models of surficial deposits and bedrock in an urban area undermined for coal and ironstone, and masked by variably contaminated anthropogenic deposits. Comprehensive geochemical datasets are also produced. The models incorporate engineering data, and provide a platform for groundwater recharge and flow models, developed using ZOOM object-oriented software, which will be parameterized with data from a groundwater monitoring network under development. This will facilitate monitoring of groundwater quality and levels during regeneration, and aid assessment of: large-scale remediation of chromium waste; point-source groundwater recharge associated with sustainable urban drainage, a growing part of metropolitan drainage strategy; and the potential for and sustainability of ground source heat from extensive minewaters and aquifers beneath Glasgow

Engineering geology (bedrock) map of the United Kingdom

Engineering geology is a broad discipline within geology that is defined by the International Association for Engineering Geology and the Environment (IAEG) as: “... the science devoted to the investigation, study and solution of the engineering and environmental problems which may arise as the result of the interaction between geology and the works and activities of man as well as to the prediction of and the development of measures for prevention or remediation of geological hazards.” Engineering geology is important, therefore, in the maintenance of public health, safety and welfare during development and redevelopment of the earth’s surface and shallow subsurface, in safeguarding the geological aspects of the environment and in delivering economic benefit. Two engineering geological maps of the UK have been produced at a scale of 1:1 million. One map shows the engineering geological characteristics of the bedrock, that is, those soils and rocks that were in place before the Quaternary Period. The second map shows the engineering geological characteristics of the superficial deposits emplaced during approximately the last 2 million years in the Quaternary Period. The reason for this separation is that Quaternary materials cover about 60% of the UK’s surface and hence mask large parts of the earlier geology. However, they are often relatively thin (less than 10 m) so the bedrock is frequently intersected during building and construction. These maps should not be used for site specific purposes, their intention is to provide an introduction to the engineering geology of the UK by presenting a broad overview of how engineering geological conditions change across the country. They provide the first stage to understanding the consequences of the interaction between human development, the ground and the natural processes acting upon it. For further information regarding engineering geological hazards, GeoSure products and other BGS datasets visit the BGS website http://www.bgs.ac.uk/ or contact BGS Enquiries enquiries@ bgs.ac.uk

The extended key for the engineering geology maps of the United Kingdom

Engineering geology is a broad discipline within geology that is defined by the International Association for Engineering Geology and the Environment (IAEG) as: “... the science devoted to the investigation, study and solution of the engineering and environmental problems which may arise as the result of the interaction between geology and the works and activities of man as well as to the prediction of and the development of measures for prevention or remediation of geological hazards.” Engineering geology is important, therefore, in the maintenance of public health, safety and welfare during development and redevelopment of the earth’s surface and shallow subsurface, in safeguarding the geological aspects of the environment and in delivering economic benefit. Two engineering geological maps of the UK have been produced at a scale of 1:1 million. One map shows the engineering geological characteristics of the bedrock, that is, those soils and rocks that were in place before the Quaternary Period. The second map shows the engineering geological characteristics of the superficial deposits emplaced during approximately the last 2 million years in the Quaternary Period. The reason for this separation is that Quaternary materials cover about 60% of the UK’s surface and hence mask large parts of the earlier geology. However, they are often relatively thin (less than 10 m) so the bedrock is frequently intersected during building and construction. These maps should not be used for site specific purposes, their intention is to provide an introduction to the engineering geology of the UK by presenting a broad overview of how engineering geological conditions change across the country. They provide the first stage to understanding the consequences of the interaction between human development, the ground and the natural processes acting upon it. For further information regarding engineering geological hazards, GeoSure products and other BGS datasets visit the BGS website http://www.bgs.ac.uk/ or contact BGS Enquiries enquiries@ bgs.ac.uk

Developing a near surface electrical resistivity model of Great Britain

This study presents a new electrical resistivity model for the near surface geology of Great Britain. It describes the first known national model of electrical resistivity at 1:50k scale. Due to the paucity of measured in situ electrical resistivity data a modeling scheme is adopted to attribute the spatial compilation. The British Geological Survey’s (BGS) National Geotechnical Database (Self, 2012) is utilized to derive synthetic modeled resistivity distributions for all of the lithostratigraphic units described in the near surface geological model of Great Britain. Resistivity values are calculated using an effective medium algorithm (Berg, 2007) and the central moments of the statistical distributions are used to populate the map. Alongside this primary output, the expected range of resistivity is derived from the difference between the 20th and the 80th percentiles of the distributions