Accounting for surface–groundwater interactions and their uncertainty in river and groundwater models: A case study in the Namoi River,Australia

Surface–groundwater (SW–GW) interactions constitute a critical proportion of the surface and groundwater balance especially during dry conditions. Conjunctive management of surface and groundwater requires an explicit account of the exchange flux between surface and groundwater when modelling the two systems. This paper presents a case study in the predominantly gaining Boggabri–Narrabri reach of the Namoi River located in eastern Australia. The first component of the study uses the Upper Namoi numerical groundwater model to demonstrate the importance of incorporating SW–GW interactions into river management models. The second component demonstrates the advantages of incorporating groundwater processes in the Namoi River model.Results of the numerical groundwater modelling component highlighted the contrasting groundwater dynamics close to, and away from the Namoi River where lower declines were noted in a near-field well due to water replenishment sourced from river depletion. The contribution of pumping activities to river depletion was highlighted in the results of the uncertainty analysis, which showed that the SW–GW exchange flux is the most sensitive to pumping rate during dry conditions. The uncertainty analysis also showed that after a drought period, the 95% prediction interval becomes larger than the simulated flux, which implies an increasing probability of losing river conditions. The future prospect of a gaining Boggabri–Narrabri reach turning into losing was confirmed with a hypothetical extended drought scenario during which persistent expansion of groundwater pumping was assumed. The river modelling component showed that accounting for SW–GW interactions improved the predictions of low flows, and resulted in a more realistic calibration of the Namoi River model.Incorporating SW–GW interactions into river models allows explicit representation of groundwater processes that provides a mechanism to account for the impacts of additional aquifer stresses that may be introduced beyond the calibration period of the river model. Conventional river models that neglect the effects of such future stresses suffer from the phenomenon of non-stationarity and hence have inferior low flow predictions past the calibration period of the river model. The collective knowledge acquired from the two modelling exercises conducted in this study leads to a better understanding of SW–GW interactions in the Namoi River thus leading to improved water management especially during low flow conditions.     

Erosion–corrosion behaviour of Ni–20Cr plasma coating in actual boiler environment

Abstract

Erosion–corrosion is encountered in a large variety of engineering industries. In such environments, protective coatings are used. In this investigation, erosion–corrosion of the Ni–20Cr coating on nickel and iron based superalloys has been investigated by subjecting them to the boiler of coal fired thermal power plant at the temperature zone of 540°C for 1000 h duration. The erosion–corrosion kinetics of the plasma sprayed Ni–20Cr coating on different superalloys has been investigated. XRD, SEM with EDS and EPMA have been used to analyse the eroded–corroded products along the surface and cross-section. Main phases identified in all the Ni–20Cr coated superalloys after exposure are NiO, Cr₂O₃, Al₂O₃ and SiO₂. Aluminium has penetrated from the bond coat to the top coat along the splat boundaries. Oxides of chromium, nickel and aluminium are recognized as protective oxides for boiler environment. The probable mechanism of attack for Ni–20Cr coating in the given boiler environment is discussed.     

Artificial Neural Network modeling of a hydrogen dual fueled diesel engine characteristics: An experiment approach

The rapid growth of vehicular pollution; mostly running on the diesel engine, emissions emerging are the concerns of the day. Owing to clean burn characteristics features, Hydrogen (H₂) as a fuel is the paradigm of the researcher. Extensive research presented in the literature on H₂ dual fueled diesel engine reveals, the significant role of H₂ in reducing emissions and enhancing the performance of a dual fueled diesel engine. With meager qualitative experiment data, the feasibility to develop an efficient Artificial Neural Network (ANN) model is investigated, the developed model can be utilized as a tool to investigate the H₂ dual fueled diesel engine further. In the process of developing an ANN model, engine load and H₂ flow rate are varied to register performance and emission characteristics. The creditability of the experiment is ascertained with uncertainty analysis of measurable and computed parameters. Leave-out-one method is adopted with 16 data sets; seven training algorithms are explored with eight transfer function combinations to evolve a competent ANN model. The efficacy of the developed model is adjudged with standard benchmark statistic indices. ANN model trained with Broyden, Fletcher, Goldfarb, & Shanno (BFGS) quasi-Newton backpropagation (trainbfg) stand out the best among other algorithms with regression coefficient ranging between 0.9869 and 0.9996.     

Pore formation mechanism and its mitigation in laser welding of AZ31B magnesium alloy in lap joint configuration

Magnesium is one of the lightest structural metals that has been used in different industries such as automobile, aerospace and electronics. However, in fusion joining of magnesium alloys, porosity is one of the main drawbacks to achieve a weld with desirable properties. The oxide layer existing on the surface of magnesium alloy is one of the causes of pore formation in the weld bead. In the current study, a fiber laser with a power of up to 4 kW is used to weld samples in a zero-gap lap joint configuration. Two groups of samples are studied: as-received (AR) surfaces (where an oxide layer remains on the surface) and treated surfaces. The surface treatment includes two techniques: mechanically removed (MR) and the use of a plasma arc (PA) as a preheating source. Also, a separate set of experiments are designed for preheating samples in a furnace for comparison with the PA-treated results. To reveal the chemical compositions of the welds and metal sheet surfaces, an energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) is performed. Surface chemical compositions are tested by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy-reflected electron energy loss spectroscopy (XPS-REELS) to characterize the surface composition on AR and PA-treated samples. The dynamic behavior of the weld pool and laser-induced plasma plume is monitored in real-time using a high speed CCD camera to investigate the stability of the laser welding process. The presence of the oxide layer at the faying surface of two overlapped sheets results in an unstable process. The obtained results reveal that the preheating procedure can effectively mitigate pore formation at the interface of the two overlapped sheets.     

Interfacial microstructure and its effect on thermal conductivity of SiCp/Cu composites

Thermal conductivity of SiCp/Cu composites was usually far below the expectation, which is usually attributed to the low real thermal conductivity of matrix. In the present work, highly pure Cu matrix composites reinforced with acid washed SiC particles were prepared by the pressure infiltration method. The interfacial microstructure of SiCp/Cu composites was characterized by layered interfacial products, including un-reacted SiC particles, a Cu–Si layer, a polycrystalline C layer and Cu–Si matrix. However, no Cu₃Si was found in the present work, which is evidence for the hypothesis that the formation of Cu₃Si phase in SiC/Cu system might be related to the alloying elements in Cu matrix and residual Si in SiC particles. The thermal conductivity of SiCp/Cu composites was slightly increased with the particle size from 69.9 to 78.6 W/(m K). Due to high density defects, the real thermal conductivity of Cu matrix calculated by H–J model was only about 70 W/(m K). The significant decrease in thermal conductivity of Cu matrix is an important factor for the low thermal conductivity of SiCp/Cu composites. However, even considered the significant decrease of thermal conductivity of Cu matrix, theoretical values of SiCp/Cu composites calculated by H–J model were still higher than the experimental results. Therefore, an ideal particle was introduced in the present work to evaluate the effect of interfacial thermal resistance. The reverse-deduced effective thermal conductivities of ideal particles according to H–J model was about 80 W/(m K). Therefore, severe interfacial reaction in SiCp/Cu composites also leads to the low thermal conductivity of SiCp/Cu composites.     

Comparison of drying methods for the preparation of carbon fiber felt/carbon nanotubes modified epoxy composites

Carbon fiber felt with carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were prepared by immersing three-dimensional (3D) felt into CNT aqueous solution (with dispersant) followed by removing water with different drying methods. Epoxy resin was then introduced into the felt to obtain 3D fiber felt/CNTs modified epoxy composites. This paper highlights the effect of drying method on macro-morphologies of the felt, morphological dispersion of CNTs and some relevant properties of the composites, including electrical conductivity and flexural performance. The results demonstrate that compared to the commonly used heat drying method, freeze drying technique possesses obvious advantages for the fabrication of fiber felt/CNT modified epoxy composites.     

Factor structure and criterion-related validity of the metaperspective version of the Coach–Athlete Relationship Questionnaire (CART-Q).

The coach–athlete relationship has been purported to be shaped by coaches’ and athletes’ self-perceptions (e.g., I trust my coach/athlete) and metaperceptions (e.g., My coach/athlete trusts me) of closeness, commitment, and complementarity (3Cs). The development of the Coach–Athlete Relationship Questionnaire (CART-Q; S. Jowett & N. Ntoumanis, 2004) has enabled the assessment of coaches’ and athletes’ self-perceptions of the relationship as defined by the 3Cs. The author conducted 2 studies to examine the factor structure and criterion-related validity of the CART-Q when its items are worded to express metaperceptions. In the 1st study, confirmatory factor analyses employing a sample of athletes (n = 201) supported the validity of a 3-dimensional model in which the factors were separate but correlated for metacloseness, metacommitment, and metacomplementarity. The 2nd study provided further evidence of validity when the 3 factors were examined relative to criterion variables with 2 independent samples: athletes (n = 189) and coaches (n = 138). These results highlight that the conceptual model from which the CART-Q was developed captures the relationship quality through athletes’ and coaches’ feelings (closeness), thoughts (commitment), and behaviors (complementarity). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Work–family conflict in work groups: Social information processing, support, and demographic dissimilarity.

We used social information processing theory to examine the effect of work–family conflict (WFC) at the work group level on individuals’ experience of WFC. Consistent with hypotheses, results suggest that WFC at the work group level influences individual WFC over and above the shared work environment and job demands. It was also observed that work group support and demographic dissimilarity moderate this relationship. Moderator analyses suggest that work group social support buffers WFC for individuals but is also associated with a stronger effect of work group WFC on individuals’ WFC. Moreover, the work group effect on individuals’ WFC was shown to be stronger for individuals who were demographically dissimilar to the work group in terms of sex and number of dependents. The interpretations and implications of these findings are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Special features of the formation of electron beam welded joints in pressed strips of a high-strength aluminium alloy of the Al–Zn–Mg–Cu system

The special features of electron beam welding of pressed strips of the V-1963-strength aluminium alloy of the Al–Zn–Mg–Cu system with a thickness of 40 mm are investigated. The results of tests of the welded joints in static tensile loading, bending, and impact toughness of the weld metal are presented. It is shown that the strength of the welded joints equals 0.7–0.8 of the strength of the parent material. The results of investigations of the macro- and microstructure of the welded joints are generalized and it is shown that the welded joints are characterized by the formation of an equiaxed fine-grained structure with the grain size of 5–10 μm.