937 research outputs found
Assessment of Karstification Degree in the Copacabana Group for a Tailings Dam Foundation, South Andes, Peru
The world-wide occurrence of carbonate rocks is extensive, and Peru is no exception. Many mining facilities are located in or on carbonate rocks. Under specific conditions, carbonate rocks show varying degrees of karstification, which represent a potential high risk of damage or failure to mine facilities, especially tailings and water impoundments due to subsidence or internal erosion problems. Adequate engineering measures, including proper characterization of the foundation materials, should be taken to characterize foundation materials and mitigate the risk. This paper presents the assessment of the potential of karst dissolution in the Copacabana Group underlying about 50% the foundation of a proposed tailings dam and storage facility, located in the South Andes of Peru. A thorough geotechnical site investigation program was carried out in the area, which included regional and local geological mapping, geotechnical drilling, test pits, permeability tests, effervescence test in cores, petrographic analyses, and X-Ray diffraction tests. Hydrogeological studies, such as pumping and tracer tests, were also performed by other consultants to verify the observations, conclusions, and opinions developed from the geotechnical investigation program. The results of the geotechnical investigation allowed proper characterization of the dam foundation and the tailings storage facility and estimation of the degree of karstification in the carbonate rocks of the Copacabana Group. The completed geological site characterization was then used to locate the tailings dam and impoundment area to avoid areas of pervasive karst and to implement defensive engineering measures, including grout curtains and slush grouting of smaller cavities and joints, among others
Wallpaper Fermions and the Nonsymmorphic Dirac Insulator
Recent developments in the relationship between bulk topology and surface
crystal symmetry have led to the discovery of materials whose gapless surface
states are protected by crystal symmetries. In fact, there exists only a very
limited set of possible surface crystal symmetries, captured by the 17
"wallpaper groups." We show that a consideration of symmetry-allowed band
degeneracies in the wallpaper groups can be used to understand previous
topological crystalline insulators, as well as to predict new examples. In
particular, the two wallpaper groups with multiple glide lines, and
, allow for a new topological insulating phase, whose surface spectrum
consists of only a single, fourfold-degenerate, true Dirac fermion. Like the
surface state of a conventional topological insulator, the surface Dirac
fermion in this "nonsymmorphic Dirac insulator" provides a theoretical
exception to a fermion doubling theorem. Unlike the surface state of a
conventional topological insulator, it can be gapped into topologically
distinct surface regions while keeping time-reversal symmetry, allowing for
networks of topological surface quantum spin Hall domain walls. We report the
theoretical discovery of new topological crystalline phases in the AB
family of materials in SG 127, finding that SrPb hosts this new
topological surface Dirac fermion. Furthermore, (100)-strained AuY and
HgSr host related topological surface hourglass fermions. We also
report the presence of this new topological hourglass phase in
BaInSb in SG 55. For orthorhombic space groups with two glides, we
catalog all possible bulk topological phases by a consideration of the allowed
non-abelian Wilson loop connectivities, and we develop topological invariants
for these systems. Finally, we show how in a particular limit, these
crystalline phases reduce to copies of the SSH model.Comment: Final version, 6 pg main text + 29 pg supplement, 6 + 13 figure
Bog plant/lichen tissue nitrogen and sulfur concentrations as indicators of emissions from oil sands development in Alberta, Canada
Increasing gaseous emissions of nitrogen (N) and sulfur (S) associated with oil sands development in northern Alberta (Canada) has led to changing regional wet and dry N and S deposition regimes. We assessed the potential for using bog plant/lichen tissue chemistry (N and S concentrations, C:N and C:S ratios, in 10 plant/lichen species) to monitor changing atmospheric N and S deposition through sampling at five bog sites, 3-6 times per growing season from 2009 to 2016. During this 8-year period, oil sands N emissions steadily increased, while S emissions steadily decreased. We examined the following: (1) whether each species showed changes in tissue chemistry with increasing distance from the Syncrude and Suncor upgrader stacks (the two largest point sources of N and S emissions); (2) whether tissue chemistry changed over the 8 year period in ways that were consistent with increasing N and decreasing S emissions from oil sands facilities; and (3) whether tissue chemistry was correlated with growing season wet deposition of NH4+-N, NO3--N, or SO42--S. Based on these criteria, the best biomonitors of a changing N deposition regime were Evernia mesomorpha, Sphagnum fuscum, and Vaccinium oxycoccos. The best biomonitors of a changing S deposition regime were Evernia mesomorpha, Cladonia mitis, Sphagnum fuscum, Sphagnum capillifolium, Vaccinium oxycoccos, and Picea mariana. Changing N and S deposition regimes in the oil sands region appear to be influencing N and S cycling in what once were pristine ombrotrophic bogs, to the extent that these bogs may effectively monitor future spatial and temporal patterns of deposition
Anomalous f-electron Hall Effect in the Heavy-Fermion System CeTIn (T = Co, Ir, or Rh)
The in-plane Hall coefficient of CeRhIn, CeIrIn, and
CeCoIn and their respective non-magnetic lanthanum analogs are reported
in fields to 90 kOe and at temperatures from 2 K to 325 K. is
negative, field-independent, and dominated by skew-scattering above 50 K
in the Ce compounds. becomes increasingly negative below 50 K
and varies with temperature in a manner that is inconsistent with skew
scattering. Field-dependent measurements show that the low-T anomaly is
strongly suppressed when the applied field is increased to 90 kOe. Measurements
on LaRhIn, LaIrIn, and LaCoIn indicate that the same
anomalous temperature dependence is present in the Hall coefficient of these
non-magnetic analogs, albeit with a reduced amplitude and no field dependence.
Hall angle () measurements find that the ratio
varies as below 20 K for all
three Ce-115 compounds. The Hall angle of the La-115 compounds follow this
T-dependence as well. These data suggest that the electronic-structure
contribution dominates the Hall effect in the 115 compounds, with -electron
and Kondo interactions acting to magnify the influence of the underlying
complex band structure. This is in stark contrast to the situation in most
and heavy-fermion compounds where the normal carrier contribution to the
Hall effect provides only a small, T-independent background to Comment: 23 pages and 8 figure
First-principles theory of ferroelectric phase transitions for perovskites: The case of BaTiO3
We carry out a completely first-principles study of the ferroelectric phase
transitions in BaTiO. Our approach takes advantage of two features of these
transitions: the structural changes are small, and only low-energy distortions
are important. Based on these observations, we make systematically improvable
approximations which enable the parameterization of the complicated energy
surface. The parameters are determined from first-principles total-energy
calculations using ultra-soft pseudopotentials and a preconditioned
conjugate-gradient scheme. The resulting effective Hamiltonian is then solved
by Monte Carlo simulation. The calculated phase sequence, transition
temperatures, latent heats, and spontaneous polarizations are all in good
agreement with experiment. We find the transitions to be intermediate between
order-disorder and displacive character. We find all three phase transitions to
be of first order. The roles of different interactions are discussed.Comment: 33 pages latex file, 9 figure
Phase transitions in BaTiO from first principles
We develop a first-principles scheme to study ferroelectric phase transitions
for perovskite compounds. We obtain an effective Hamiltonian which is fully
specified by first-principles ultra-soft pseudopotential calculations. This
approach is applied to BaTiO, and the resulting Hamiltonian is studied
using Monte Carlo simulations. The calculated phase sequence, transition
temperatures, latent heats, and spontaneous polarizations are all in good
agreement with experiment. The order-disorder vs.\ displacive character of the
transitions and the roles played by different interactions are discussed.Comment: 13 page
Experimental nitrogen addition alters structure and function of a boreal poor fen: Implications for critical loads
Bogs and fens cover 6 and 21%, respectively, of the 140,329 km2 Oil Sands Administrative Area in northern Alberta. Regional background atmospheric N deposition is low (b2 kg N ha−1 yr−1 ), but oil sands development has led to increasing N deposition (as high as 17 kg N ha−1 yr−1 ). To examine responses to N deposition, over five years, we experimentally applied N (as NH4NO3) to a poor fen near Mariana Lake, Alberta, unaffected by oil sands activities, at rates of 0, 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25 kg N ha−1 yr−1 , plus controls (no water or N addition). At Mariana Lake Poor Fen (MLPF), increasing N addition: 1) progressively inhibited N2-fixation; 2) had no effect on net primary production (NPP) of Sphagnum fuscum or S. angustifolium, while stimulating S. magellanicum NPP; 3) led to decreased abundance of S. fuscum and increased abundance of S. angustifolium, S. magellanicum, Andromeda polifolia, Vaccinium oxycoccos, and of vascular plants in general; 4) led to an increase in stem N concentrations in S. angustifolium and S. magellanicum, and an increase in leaf N concentrations in Chamaedaphne calyculata, Andromeda polifolia, and Vaccinium oxycoccos; 5) stimulated root biomass and production;6) stimulated decomposition of cellulose, but not of Sphagnum or vascular plant litter; and 7) had no or minimal effects on net N mineralization in surface peat, NH4 +-N, NO3 −-N or DON concentrations in surface porewater, or peat microbial composition. Increasing N addition led to a switch from new N inputs being taken up primarily by Sphagnum to being taken up primarily by shrubs. MLPF responses to increasing N addition did not exhibit threshold triggers, but rather began as soon as N additions increased. Considering all responses to N addition, we recommend a critical load for poor fens in Alberta of 3 kg N ha−1 yr−1
Polarizing a stored proton beam by spin flip?
We discuss polarizing a proton beam in a storage ring, either by selective
removal or by spin flip of the stored ions. Prompted by recent, conflicting
calculations, we have carried out a measurement of the spin flip cross section
in low-energy electron-proton scattering. The experiment uses the cooling
electron beam at COSY as an electron target. The measured cross sections are
too small for making spin flip a viable tool in polarizing a stored beam. This
invalidates a recent proposal to use co-moving polarized positrons to polarize
a stored antiproton beam.Comment: 18 pages, 6 figure
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