Papers

This paper addresses the study of renders and plasters

Near estuaries and harbours, submerged shoals and defence structures impact the exposure to overtopping. These features may be accounted for in two-dimensional horizontal (2DH) numerical models, either based on phase resolving or phase-average solvers for wave propagation. In between, surfbeat solvers, such as in XBeach, combine an affordable computational cost with the ability to generate and propagate the longer infragravity (IG) waves. However, surfzone wave characteristics and the overtopping exposure modelled with XBeach are sensi tive to settings such as the shape of the forcing wave spectra and the numerical scheme for wave propagation. The present paper explores this sensitivity and assesses the performance of different inundation models built with the 2DH surfbeat solver of XBeach. These models were forced with downscaled water levels and directional wave spectra and the results fuelled a discussion bounded by data collected downdrift of the entrance to the harbour of Figueira da Foz (Portugal). The original second-order upwind scheme, which propagates short-waves with a lower numerical diffusion improved the model performance in terms of long-wave height, and an unconventional breaking criterion better represented the cross-shore distribution of short-wave height near the shore. A cali brated model was validated through the hindcast of an overtopping event observed under moderate swell forcing, and was used to map the overtopping exposure during a hypothetical combination of an energetic swell with a water level having a return period of ~70 years. Compared to the default wave spectra shape and model settings, using an appropriate representation of the short-wave directional spectrum at the open boundary was necessary to reproduce the observed overtopping extent. Refining the cross-shore resolution of the model helped to better represent the observed inundation extents, as also did the reduction of the friction coefficient. Addi tional phase-resolving simulations in 1DH overestimated IG wave energy and produced higher and more frequent overtopping discharges. The differences with the calibrated 2DH surfbeat model increased with the proximity of the inlet and with short-wave height and angle of incidence. Overall, required calibration steps were provided. They aim at making 2DH XBeach surfbeat a credible tool for 1) predicting short and IG wave characteristics up to the shoreline, as well as for 2) providing first estimates of exposure to overtopping in areas with shallow and alongshore-irregular morphologies.

A three-dimensional particle model, based on the asphalt mastic micro-structure representation following a discrete element model framework, was developed to investigate the influence of sunflower oil (rejuvenator) on the rheological properties of asphalt mastic. Dynamic shear rheometer tests in laboratory, for a frequency range of 0.1

À medida que as ameaças ambientais se multiplicam à escala global exige-se uma mais apurada reflexividade sobre as práticas humanas, as formas de utilização dos territórios e seus recursos e a capacidade de previsão e resposta quanto a eventos ambientais extremos, socialmente disruptivos. Ora, é esta capacidade de previsão que a ciência experimenta em uma dimensão cada vez menos segura, entrando em crise os modelos causais e a pertinência do conhecimento empírico baseado em observações do passado, pois o futuro torna-se progressivamente mais incerto e ameaçador. Incerteza e ameaça que se antecipam em cada crise, sob a manifestação dos riscos ambientais [1]. Algumas destas manifestações tornam-se indetetáveis para os sentidos humanos, a não ser pela própria visibilidade das consequências. As comunidades humanas encontram-se, assim, cada vez mais dependentes da análise e do discurso da ciência para perceberem (mesmo que na impossibilidade de compreenderem com exatidão os mecanismos de exposição) os riscos a que estão expostas. A humanidade parece, pois, acossada numa estrutura medieval do medo, o medo do invisível, na emergência de um novo tipo de sociedade colonizada pelo medo e que dá lugar a todas as derivas políticas [2]....

In regions with a strong seasonal or interannual asymmetry in the distribution of precipitation and higher frequency of droughts, collective irrigation systems are vital infrastructures for agricultural activity. Although operating for decades, several systems have ageing infrastructures, with relevant water losses and pumping energy inefficiencies. Consequently, the systems are not adequately designed or operated to meet current and future water demand. Therefore, rehabilitation to improve water and energy efficiency while ensuring infrastructure, economic sustainability and service quality is crucial. In this sense, comprehensive approaches using performance assessment to support the planning process or benchmarking between water users associations play an essential role in improving efficiency in collective irrigation systems.

This paper presents a cross-national investigation into the soundscape perceptual attributes translation from English into European and Brazilian Portuguese. It is a study within the scope of a larger project

This study aims to validate a numerical model based on Reynolds-averaged Navier

Given the 516 Arouca pedestrian suspension bridge

Storms impacting sandy coastal areas produce hazards such as erosion and overwash that, in turn, promote risk to life and property damage in occupied areas. Coastal damage and risks willincrease in the future not only in association with climate change but also due to the growinghuman occupation in coastal areas (van Dongeren et al., 2018). Since the threatened coastal areas are often densely populated, there is a need to implement measures to prevent risks. One of such measures is the use of Early Warning Systems (EWS) that anticipate expected risks and, therefore, work as management tools to minimize or avoid disaster. This work presents the basis of an EWS prototype to alert about the potential consequences of overwash/overtopping and erosion induced by storms, in coastal areas.

The nowadays-available dynamic monitoring equipment integrating sensitive low-noise sensors creates an opportunity to implement continuously operating dynamic monitoring systems in dams and validate the suitability of these systems to monitor such massive structures with the goal of detecting damage. The continuous characterisation of the dam modal properties during important variations of the water level and temperature is a unique experimental result, which is particularly interesting for the calibration of numerical models that consider water