Hydraulic Design and Preliminary Performance Evaluation of Countermeasure against Debris Accumulation and Resulting Local Pier Scour on River Po in Italy

This paper presents a protection structure built for a bridge pier consisting of six narrow piles. Accumulation of large woody debris upstream of the pile group during high-flow terms might have induced much larger scour depths compared with those expected for the single pile. A phenomenological sketch of the system suggested that accumulation of debris material during peak flows and subsequent descent of the same material during the tail of the events represented a very dangerous two-stage process owing to the high expected scour. Consequently, a countermeasure was designed, consisting of a plate preventing the descent of debris below its elevation. The performance of the plate in reducing local scour was subjected to some preliminary laboratory tests, and satisfactory results were obtained. This paper reports some tentative performance observations for the real structure built on the river, based on the amount of debris trapped during a recent event with moderate flow.     

Social representations of craft food products in three European countries

Despite the growing interest in craft food products (CFPs), their social representation remains a conundrum. In light of social representation theory, this study aims to understand the meaning of CFPs in three different countries.Data were collected in Italy, Germany and the United Kingdom from 458 interviewees between November 2018 and January 2019. Using a free word association approach, participants had to state the first four words that came into their mind using “craft food products” as inductor terms. Afterwards, interviewees had to rank the four evoked words based on their importance and rate the valence of each of them. Data were subjected to textual and prototypical analysis to identify the core and peripheral areas of the concept investigated. The occurrence of associations’ frequencies was analysed through correspondence analysis to find possible differences according to age groups.Results showed that the social representation of the CFPs differs across cultures. The British saw them as luxury or gourmet foods. Germans equated them to natural foods relying more on institutional signals. Italians, instead, conceived of them as genuine/authentic foods in which human intervention does not alter the sensorial aspects of the ingredients. Furthermore, results showed that the mental representation of the CFPs is fragile and substantially exposed to the deceptive marketing practices known as “craftwashing”.     

A Simulation Study of CO2 Sequestration in the Arno River Plain (Tuscany,Italy)

We present a geochemical model for the sequestration of anthropogenic CO₂ (from hypothetical hydrocarbon-based H₂ production) consequent to the theoretical injection of gas beneath the River Arno plain, near the city of Pisa, Italy. The potential reservoirs for gas disposal are of two different types: dolostones or sandstones. The model predicts the sandstones to be the best reservoirs because CO₂ sequestration in these rocks can occur via the deposition of solid carbonates. On the contrary, the injection of gas into the dolostone could generate gas accumulation and high gas pressures (50–100 atm) that could possibly promote rock fracturing and gas leakage in these shallow (500–1000 m depth) reservoirs. The best sites for gas disposal are therefore located west of the town of Pisa, along the coastal plain.     

Three years of monitoring of PCDD/F,DL-PCB and NDL-PCB residues in bovine milk from Lombardy and Emilia Romagna regions (Italy): Contamination levels and human exposure assessment

In the three-years period 2012–2014, 160 cow milk samples from farms located in Lombardy and Emilia Romagna regions (Italy) were analyzed during the implementation of the Italian National Residues Monitoring Plan to assess the presence of PCDD/F, DL-PCB and NDL-PCB residues. The obtained contamination data were combined with cow milk consumption data from the Italian national dietary survey to estimate PCDD/F, DL-PCB and NDL-PCB human dietary exposure through the consumption of whole, semi skimmed and skimmed bovine milk. The exposure assessment was carried out separately for children, teenagers, adults and elderly. Average contamination levels of the analyzed samples were found to be 1.26 pg WHO-TEQ/g fat for the sum of PCDD/Fs and DL-PCBs and 9.30 ng/g fat for the sum of the 6 NDL-PCB indicators. PCB 126 was found to be the main contributor to the total WHO-TEQ. Using the upper bound approach, the estimated mean dietary intakes ranged from 0.07 pg WHO-TEQ/kg bw per day to 0.39 pg WHO-TEQ/kg bw per day for the sum of PCDD/Fs and DL-PCBs and considering exposure from whole milk. NDL-PCB mean dietary intakes resulted between 0.52 ng/kg bw per day and 2.86 ng/kg bw per day for consumption of whole milk. Children and teenagers were found to be the most exposed groups. This is the first time that Italian consumers exposure to NDL-PCBs is assessed using contamination data of cow milk produced in Italy.     

Framework for surface water quality management on a river basin scale: Case study of Lake Iseo, Northern Italy

River (DESERT) and lake (EVOLA) water quality models are used to simulate the influences of alternative water quality management scenarios on the quality of receiving surface waters in the Lake Iseo basin, Northern Italy. The scenarios are representative of the European Union Directive on Urban Waste Water Treatment (91/271/EEC) and of the regional authority’s objective to reduce the total phosphorus loads from point sources entering Lake Iseo and to restore the lake as close as it is practically possible to its former natural qualitative state. Application of DESERT shows that the regional ‘Water Clean Up Plan’ can achieve similar reductions in total phosphorus concentrations in the basin’s main river system, Oglio River, to the 91/271/EEC directive, but at notably lower economic costs. Application of EVOLA to Lake Iseo shows that it is not practical to achieve the regional authority’s objective of a specific total phosphorus concentration in the lake by 2016. Instead, the results show that a more realistic, but higher, total phosphorus concentration can be achieved by 2016. The results of both modelling exercises indicate the usefulness of DESERT and EVOLA for comparing and assessing water quality management scenarios and for revising the regional authority’s final objectives with regards to total phosphorus concentration in Lake Iseo, as well as the regional ‘Water Clean Up Plan’ for restoring and safeguarding the quality of the basin’s surface waters.     

Isotopic and fluid inclusion study of hydrothermal and metamorphic carbonates in the Larderello geothermal field and surrounding areas, Italy

Fluid inclusions have been studied on six calcite veins from the shallow part (480 to 1515 m below ground level) of the Larderello geothermal field and outcropping in peripheral zones of the geothermal area. Oxygen and carbon isotopic analyses have been carried out on these carbonate veins, as well as on the dolostone layers found inside the Paleozoic metamorphic units of the deep part of the field (from 1939 to 3177 m below ground level). Fluid inclusion observations suggest that boiling processes probably occurred during calcite precipitation in most of the veins. The fluids that formed or interacted with the calcite veins below the uppermost reservoir (made up of Mesozoic marine carbonates), and with the calcite hydrothermal veins of Sassa, were characterised by an apparent salinity from 1.3 to 5.3 wt.% NaCl eq. and a homogenisation temperature from 137 to 245°C. The fluid inclusions related to the calcite veins hosted above the uppermost reservoir show a wide range of apparent salinity (from 1.7 to 22.2 wt.% NaCl eq.) and homogenisation temperatures from 224 to 296°C. Apparent salinity/homogenisation temperature covariations of the latter veins are interpreted as being the result of a mixing process between a low-temperature, high-salinity fluid and a higher-temperature, moderate-salinity fluid. The oxygen isotopic compositions of the calcite veins (δ¹⁸O from 10.34 to 11.45‰) located below the Mesozoic carbonates and in the outcrops (δ¹⁸O from 9.42 to 17.07‰) indicate that the vapour in equilibrium with these veins was isotopically similar to the present-day discharge steam. The aqueous fluids in equilibrium with these veins could be meteoric water that interacted with the Mesozoic carbonates of the upper reservoir. The δ¹³C values of the CO₂ produced at Larderello and the constant concentration of this gas over time are, however, indicative of a deep source inside the reservoir that is probably related to the decarbonation reaction within the metamorphic units that form the present-day deep reservoir. Fluid inclusion salinities (up to 22.2 wt.% NaCl eq.) and isotopic results (δ¹⁸O from 13.43 to 21.99‰, δ¹³C between −1.26 and −0.18‰) on the calcite veins hosted above the uppermost reservoir suggest that the water circulating in these veins has strongly interacted with Mesozoic carbonates or Neogene sediments containing evaporite layers. The isotopic values (δ¹⁸O from 14.09 to 19.91‰, δ¹³C from −4.09 to 1.90‰) of dolomite samples present in the Paleozoic metamorphic rocks indicate a reaction with fluid of variable temperatures under different water/rock ratios. The isotopic composition of one sample reveals equilibrium with present-day discharge fluids. This fact aside, the remaining data indicate that the Paleozoic dolomitic layers do not seem to contribute significantly to the production of CO₂.     

OIL AND GAS IN THE ADRIATIC FORELAND,ITALY

The offshore Adriatic Basin holds more than 50% of Italian gas reserves together with significant volumes of oil. A number of large and giant‐size biogenic gasfields and medium to large oilfields have been discovered here during the past 60 years. Two petroleum systems have been identified: a Plio‐Pleistocene biogenic gas system, and an Upper Triassic – Lower Jurassic oil system. These systems are described in this paper within a regional geological framework, with particular focus on petroleum system elements (source, reservoir, seal, trap and charge). The biogenic gas play was for several decades the prime focus of Italian E&P efforts throughout the Adriatic area but is now mature, and significant additional discoveries are unlikely to be made without a breakthrough in DHI (direct hydrocarbon indicator) technology. The Mesozoic oil play is as yet unproved in the northern Adriatic area, where large anticlinal structures at depths of up to ca. 6000 m are available for exploration and constitute high‐risk – high‐reward targets. By contrast, the play is proved in the Central and Southern Adriatic where several oilfields are currently producing. Exploration targets still exist here and may generate medium‐sized discoveries although the prevalent heavy‐oil phase may jeopardize their economic value.     

FACIES HETEROGENEITIES AND 3D POROSITY MODELLING IN AN OLIGOCENE (UPPER CHATTIAN) CARBONATE RAMP,SALENTO PENINSULA,SOUTHERN ITALY

Appraisal of the volumes of fluid in a carbonate reservoir will typically require a reliable predictive model. This can be achieved by combining studies of well-exposed carbonate successions with 3D models in order to obtain reliable quantitative data. In this paper, we present a detailed outcrop study and a 3D porosity model of a well-exposed Oligocene carbonate ramp (Salento Peninsula, southern Italy) to investigate the nature of small-scale facies and porosity heterogeneities. Porosity and permeability in the ramp carbonates appear to be controlled by the original mineralogy of skeletal components and by depositional textures. The aims of the study were therefore to identify the factors controlling porosity development in an undeformed carbonate ramp; to model the scale-dependent heterogeneities characteristic of the facies associations; and finally to produce a 3D model of the porosity distribution. The upper Chattian Porto Badisco Calcarenite which crops out along the coast of the Salento Peninsula consists of six lithofacies ranging from inner ramp deposits to fine-grained outer ramp calcarenites. The lithofacies are: inner ramp small benthic foraminiferal wackestone-packstones associated with (i) sea grass meadows (SG) and (ii) coral mounds (CM) consisting of coral bioconstructions with a floatstone/packstone matrix; middle ramp (iii) large rotaliid packstones to wackestone-packstones (LR), (iv) rhodolith floatstone-rudstones (RF), and (v) large lepidocyclinid packstones (LL); and (vi) outer ramp fine-grained bioclastic calcarenites (FC). A total of 38 samples collected from six stratigraphic sections (A, B, D, J, E, LO), measured in the Porto Badisco ravine, were investigated to discriminate the types of porosity. Effective and total porosity was measured using a helium pycnometer. The 3D porosity modelling was performed using PETREL™ 2016 software (Schlumberger). Four main types of porosity were recognized in the carbonates: interparticle, intraparticle, vuggy and mouldic. Primary porosity (inter- and intraparticle) is limited to middle ramp lithofacies (LL and LR) and outer ramp lithofacies (FC), whereas secondary porosity (vuggy and mouldic) was present in both inner ramp lithofacies (CM and SG) and middle ramp red algal lithofacies (RF). In the Porto Badisco carbonates, stratigraphic complexity and the distribution of primary porosity are controlled by lateral and vertical variations in depositional facies. Significant secondary porosity was produced by the dissolution of aragonitic and high-magnesium calcite components, which are dominant in the sea-grass and coral mound facies of the inner ramp and in the rhodolith floatstone-rudstones of the middle ramp. 3D models were developed for both effective and total porosity distribution. The porosity models show a clear correlation with facies heterogeneities. However of the two models, the effective porosity model shows the best correlation with the 3D facies model, and shows a general increase in effective porosity basinwards in the middle ramp facies.     

赴意大利考察琐记

文中综合了赴意大利进行陶瓷生产技术考察的情况．叙述了主要收获和体会，并结合我国的实际情况提出了改进意见．     

Dam-Break flood forecasting in Piemonte region,northwest Italy

Six major reservoirs in Piemonte region, northwest Italy, have been examined in order to assess the possible flood damages to the downstream area. In this paper, some results of the hydraulic study are presented. The floods are simulated by computer models with the input data which describe the imagined dam-break events as well as other facts. Some important practical aspects of the work are extensively discussed, i.e. the problems concerning determination of the dam-breaches, the influence of the breach parameters, and estimation of the hydraulic resistance factors.Notation A = cross sectional area of water flow - C = Chezy roughness coefficient - C = discharge coefficient - g = acceleration due to gravity - H = height of dam-breach - H = height of dam - h = water surface level above the datum plane - L = width of dam - Q = flow discharge - Q_e, Q_u = inflow and outflow discharges respectively - q = lateral inflow discharge - R_* = hydraulic radius - T = formation time of dam-breach - t = time - V = volume of reservoir storage - W = width of dam-breach - X = downstream distance from a dam along the river - = velocity distribution factor