Search results for: retaining structures

Authors: Gauthier Lefevre, Holger Kohlmann, Sebastien Saitzek, Rachel Desfeux, Adlane Sayede

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Hydrogen is a promising energy carrier, compatible with the sustainable energy concept. In this context, solid-state hydrogen-storage is the key challenge in developing hydrogen economy. The capability of absorption of large quantities of hydrogen makes intermetallic systems of particular interest. In this study, efforts have been devoted to the theoretical investigation of binary systems with constraints consideration. On the one hand, besides considering hydrogen-storage, a reinvestigation of crystal structures of the palladium-arsenic system shows, with experimental validations, that binary systems could still currently present new or unknown relevant structures. On the other hand, various binary Mg-based systems were theoretically scrutinized in order to find new interesting alloys for hydrogen storage. Taking the effect of pressure into account reveals a wide range of alternative structures, changing radically the stable compounds of studied binary systems. Similar constraints, induced by Pulsed Laser Deposition, have been applied to binary systems, and results are presented.

Keywords: binary systems, evolutionary algorithm, first principles study, pulsed laser deposition

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Authors: Evgeny Pyshkin, Maxim Mozgovoy, Vladislav Volkov

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The paper follows a discourse on computer-assisted language learning. We examine problems of foreign language teaching and learning and introduce a metamodel that can be used to define learning models of language grammar structures in order to support teacher/student interaction. Special attention is paid to the concept of a virtual language lab. Our approach to language education assumes to encourage learners to experiment with a language and to learn by discovering patterns of grammatically correct structures created and managed by a language expert.

Keywords: computer-assisted instruction, language learning, natural language grammar models, HCI

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Authors: Mostafa Amirjan

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In the present study, the properties of Al-Al2O3 nanocomposite hollow sphere structures were investigated. For this reason, the Al-based nanocomposite hollow spheres with different amounts of nano alumina reinforcement (0-10wt %) and different ratio of thickness to diameter (t/D: 0.06-0.3) were prepared via a powder metallurgy method. Then, the effect of mentioned parameters was studied on physical and quasi static mechanical properties of their related prepared structures (open/closed cell) such as density, hardness, strength and energy absorption. It was found that as the t/D ratio increases the relative density, compressive strength and energy absorption increase. The highest values of strength and energy absorption were obtained from the specimen with 5 wt. % of nanoparticle reinforcement, t/D of 0.3 (t=1 mm, D=400µm) as 22.88 MPa and 13.24 MJ/m3, respectively. The moderate specific strength of prepared composites in the present study showed the good consistency with the properties of others low carbon steel composite with similar structure.

Keywords: hollow sphere structure foam, nanocomposite, thickness and diameter (t/D ), powder metallurgy

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Authors: Mariam Matiashvili

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Argumentation is an integral part of our daily communications - formal or informal. Argumentative reasoning, techniques, and language tools are used both in personal conversations and in the business environment. Verbalization of the opinions requires the use of extraordinary syntactic-pragmatic structural quantities - arguments that add credibility to the statement. The study of argumentative structures allows us to identify the linguistic features that make the text argumentative. Knowing what elements make up an argumentative text in a particular language helps the users of that language improve their skills. Also, natural language processing (NLP) has become especially relevant recently. In this context, one of the main emphases is on the computational processing of argumentative texts, which will enable the automatic recognition and analysis of large volumes of textual data. The research deals with the linguistic analysis of the argumentative structures of Georgian political speeches - particularly the linguistic structure, characteristics, and functions of the parts of the argumentative text - claims, support, and attack statements. The research aims to describe the linguistic cues that give the sentence a judgmental/controversial character and helps to identify reasoning parts of the argumentative text. The empirical data comes from the Georgian Political Corpus, particularly TV debates. Consequently, the texts are of a dialogical nature, representing a discussion between two or more people (most often between a journalist and a politician). The research uses the following approaches to identify and analyze the argumentative structures Lexical Classification & Analysis - Identify lexical items that are relevant in argumentative texts creating process - Creating the lexicon of argumentation (presents groups of words gathered from a semantic point of view); Grammatical Analysis and Classification - means grammatical analysis of the words and phrases identified based on the arguing lexicon. Argumentation Schemas - Describe and identify the Argumentation Schemes that are most likely used in Georgian Political Speeches. As a final step, we analyzed the relations between the above mentioned components. For example, If an identified argument scheme is “Argument from Analogy”, identified lexical items semantically express analogy too, and they are most likely adverbs in Georgian. As a result, we created the lexicon with the words that play a significant role in creating Georgian argumentative structures. Linguistic analysis has shown that verbs play a crucial role in creating argumentative structures.

Keywords: georgian, argumentation schemas, argumentation structures, argumentation lexicon

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Authors: Rene Jimenez, Sonia E. Ruiz, Miguel A. Orellana

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On 09/19/2017, a Mw = 7.1 intraslab earthquake occurred in Mexico causing the collapse of about 40 buildings. Many of these were 5- or 6-story buildings with soft first story; so, it is desirable to perform a structural fragility analysis of typical structures representative of those buildings and to propose a reliable structural solution. Here, a typical 5-story building constituted by regular R/C moment-resisting frames in the first story and confined masonry walls in the upper levels, similar to the collapsed structures on the 09/19/2017 Mexico earthquake, is analyzed. Three different structural solutions of the 5-story building are considered: S1) it is designed in accordance with the Mexico City Building Code-2004; S2) then, the column dimensions of the first story corresponding to S1 are reduced, and S3) viscous dampers are added at the first story of solution S2. A number of dynamic incremental analyses are performed for each structural solution, using a 3D structural model. The hysteretic behavior model of the masonry was calibrated with experiments performed at the Laboratory of Structures at UNAM. Ten seismic ground motions are used to excite the structures; they correspond to ground motions recorded in intermediate soil of Mexico City with a dominant period around 1s, where the structures are located. The fragility curves of the buildings are obtained for different values of the maximum inter-story drift demands. Results show that solutions S1 and S3 give place to similar probabilities of exceedance of a given value of inter-story drift for the same seismic intensity, and that solution S2 presents a higher probability of exceedance for the same seismic intensity and inter-story drift demand. Therefore, it is concluded that solution S3 (which corresponds to the building with soft first story and energy dissipation devices) can be a reliable solution from the structural point of view.

Keywords: demand hazard analysis, fragility curves, incremental dynamic analyzes, soft-first story, structural capacity

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Authors: Kiyoumars Roushangar, Shabnam Mirheidarian

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This study proposes metamodel approaches as a new intelligent technique for the explicit formulation of friction factors of water conveyance structures. For this purpose, experimental data of a movable bed flume with dune bed form were used. Analyzing the result clears the high capability of metamodel approaches (MNE= 0.05, R= 0.92) as a powerful tool for optimizing and explicit simulation of Manning's roughness coefficients of water conveyance structures compared to other nonlinear approaches.

Keywords: intelligent techniques, explicit simulation, roughness coefficient, water conveyance structure

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Authors: R. Ziaie Moayed, A. Khalili

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Improvement and reinforcement of soils with poor strength and engineering properties for constructing low height structures or structures such as liquid storage tanks, bridge columns, and heavy structures have necessitated applying particular techniques. Stone columns are among the well-known methods applied in such soils. This method provides an economically justified way for improving engineering properties of soft clay and loose sandy soils. Stone column implementation in these soils increases their bearing capacity and reduces the settlement of foundation build on them. In the present study, the finite difference based FLAC3D software was used to investigate the performance and effect of soil reinforcement through stone columns without lining and those with geosynthetic lining with different levels of stiffness in horizontal and vertical modes in clayey soils. The results showed that soil improvement using stone columns with lining in vertical and horizontal modes results in improvement of bearing capacity and foundation settlement.

Keywords: bearing capacity, FLAC3D, geosynthetic, settlement, stone column

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Authors: Doo Byong Bae, Jae Jun Yoo, Il Gyu Park, Choi Seowon, Oh Chang Kook

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There are several wind load provisions to evaluate the wind response on tank structures such as API, Euro-code, etc. the assessment of wind action applying these provisions is made by performing the finite element analysis using both linear bifurcation analysis and geometrically nonlinear analysis. By comparing the pressure patterns obtained from the analysis with the results of wind tunnel test, most appropriate wind load criteria will be recommended.

Keywords: wind load, finite element analysis, linear bifurcation analysis, geometrically nonlinear analysis

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Authors: Rajwanlop Kumpoopong, Sukit Yindeesuk, Pornchai Silarom

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On May 5, 2014, an earthquake of magnitude 6.3 Richter hit the Northern part of Thailand. The epicenter was in Phan District, Chiang Rai Province. This earthquake or the so-called 2014-Chiang Rai Earthquake is the strongest ground shaking that Thailand has ever been experienced in her modern history. The 2014-Chiang Rai Earthquake confirms the geological evidence, which has previously been ignored by most engineers, that earthquakes of considerable magnitudes 6 to 7 Richter can occurr within the country. This promptly stimulates authorized agencies to pay more attention at the safety of their assets and promotes the comprehensive review of seismic resistance design of their building structures. The focus of this paper is to summarize the damages of highway bridges as a result of the 2014-Chiang Rai ground shaking, the remedy actions, and the research needs. The 2014-Chiang Rai Earthquake caused considerable damages to nearby structures such as houses, schools, and temples. The ground shaking, however, caused damage to only one highway bridge, Mae Laos Bridge, located several kilometers away from the epicenter. The damage of Mae Laos Bridge was in the form of concrete spalling caused by pounding of cap beam on the deck structure. The damage occurred only at the end or abutment span. The damage caused by pounding is not a surprise, but the pounding by only one bridge requires further investigation and discussion. Mae Laos Bridge is a river crossing bridge with relatively large approach structure. In as much, the approach structure is confined by strong retaining walls. This results in a rigid-like approach structure which vibrates at the acceleration approximately equal to the ground acceleration during the earthquake and exerts a huge force to the abutment causing the pounding of cap beam on the deck structure. Other bridges nearby have relatively small approach structures, and therefore have no capability to generate pounding. The effect of mass of the approach structure on pounding of cap beam on the deck structure is also evident by the damage of one pedestrian bridge in front of Thanthong Wittaya School located 50 meters from Mae Laos Bridge. The width of the approach stair of this bridge is wider than the typical one to accommodate the stream of students during pre- and post-school times. This results in a relatively large mass of the approach stair which in turn exerts a huge force to the pier causing pounding of cap beam on the deck structure during ground shaking. No sign of pounding was observed for a typical pedestrian bridge located at another end of Mae Laos Bridge. Although pounding of cap beam on the deck structure of the above mentioned bridges does not cause serious damage to bridge structure, this incident promotes the comprehensive review of seismic resistance design of highway bridges in Thailand. Given a proper mass and confinement of the approach structure, the pounding of cap beam on the deck structure can be easily excited even at the low to moderate ground shaking. In as much, if the ground shaking becomes stronger, the pounding is certainly more powerful. This may cause the deck structure to be unseated and fall off in the case of unrestrained bridge. For the bridge with restrainer between cap beam and the deck structure, the restrainer may prevent the deck structure from falling off. However, preventing free movement of the pier by the restrainer may damage the pier itself. Most highway bridges in Thailand have dowel bars embedded connecting cap beam and the deck structure. The purpose of the existence of dowel bars is, however, not intended for any seismic resistance. Their ability to prevent the deck structure from unseating and their effect on the potential damage of the pier should be evaluated. In response to this expected situation, Thailand Department of Highways (DOH) has set up a team to revise the standard practices for the seismic resistance design of highway bridges in Thailand. In addition, DOH has also funded the research project 'Seismic Resistance Evaluation of Pre- and Post-Design Modifications of DOH’s Bridges' with the scope of full-scale tests of single span bridges under reversed cyclic static loadings for both longitudinal and transverse directions and computer simulations to evaluate the seismic performance of the existing bridges and the design modification bridges. The research is expected to start in October, 2015.

Keywords: earthquake, highway bridge, Thailand, damage, pounding, seismic resistance

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Authors: H. Ucar, U. Aridogan

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Composite structures become intriguing for the design of aerospace, automotive and marine applications due to weight reduction, corrosion resistance and radar signature reduction demands and requirements. Studies on piezoelectric ceramic transducers (PZT) for diagnostics and health monitoring have gained attention for their sensing capabilities, however PZT structures are prone to fail in case of heavy operational loads. In this paper, we develop a piezo-based Glass Fiber Reinforced Polymer (GFRP) composite finite element (FE) model, validate with experimental setup, and identify the applicability and limitations of PZTs for a marine application. A case study is conducted to assess the piezo-based sensing capabilities in a representative marine composite structure. A FE model of the composite structure combined with PZT patches is developed, afterwards the response and functionality are investigated according to the sea conditions. Results of this study clearly indicate the blockers and critical aspects towards industrialization and wide-range use of PZTs for marine composite applications.

Keywords: FRP composite, operational challenges, piezoelectric transducers, FE modeling

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Authors: A. Pietro Rimoldi, B. Anilkumar Gopinath, C. Minimol Korulla

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Coastal engineering structure is conventionally designed for a shorter planning horizon usually 20 years. These structures are subjected to different offshore climatic externalities like waves, tides, tsunamis etc. during the design life period. The probability of occurrence of these different offshore climatic externalities varies. The impact frequently caused by these externalities on the structures is of concern because it has a significant bearing on the capital /operating cost of the project. There can also be repeated short time occurrence of these externalities in the assumed planning horizon which can cause heavy damage to the conventional coastal structure which are mainly made of rock. A replacement of the damaged portion to prevent complete collapse is time consuming and expensive when dealing with hard rock structures. But if coastal structures are made of Geo-synthetic containment systems such replacement is quickly possible in the time period between two successive occurrences. In order to have a better knowledge and to enhance the predictive capacity of these occurrences, this study estimates risk of encounter within the design life period of various externalities based on the concept of exponential distribution. This gives an idea of the frequency of occurrences which in turn gives an indication of whether replacement is necessary and if so at what time interval such replacements have to be effected. To validate this theoretical finding, a pilot project has been taken up in the field so that the impact of the externalities can be studied both for a hard rock and a Geosynthetic tube structure. The paper brings out the salient feature of a case study which pertains to a project in which Geosynthetic tubes have been used for reformation of a seawall adjacent to a conventional rock structure in Alappuzha coast, Kerala, India. The effectiveness of the Geosystem in combatting the impact of the short-term externalities has been brought out.

Keywords: climatic externalities, exponential distribution, geosystems, planning horizon

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Authors: Navid Khayat, Babak Mombeni

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This study investigates the retrofitting of schools in Ahvaz City. Three schools, namely, Enghelab, Sherafat, and Golchehreh, in Ahvaz City, are initially examined through Schmidt hammer and ultrasonic tests. Given the tests and controls on the structures of these schools, the methods are presented for their reconstruction. The plan is presented for each school by estimating the cost and generally the feasibility and estimated the duration of project reconstruction. After reconstruction, the mentioned tests are re-performed for rebuilt parts and the results indicate a significant improvement in performance of structure because of reconstruction. According to the results, despite the fact that the use of fiber reinforced polymers (FRP) for structure retrofitting is costly, due to the low executive costs and also other benefits of FRP, it is generally considered as one of the most effective ways of retrofitting. Building the concrete coating on walls is another effective method in retrofitting the buildings. According to this method, a grid of horizontal and vertical bars is installed on the wall and then the concrete is poured on it. The use of concrete coating on the concrete and brick structures leads to the useful results and the experience indicates that the poured concrete filled the joints well and provides the appropriate bonding and adhesion.

Keywords: renovation, retrofitting, masonry structures, concrete coating

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Authors: Rashi Bhalla, Russel Pears, M. Asif Naeem

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In this 'Information Explosion Era' analyzing data 'a critical commodity' and mining knowledge from vertically distributed data stream incurs huge communication cost. However, an effort to decrease the communication in the distributed environment has an adverse influence on the classification accuracy; therefore, a research challenge lies in maintaining a balance between transmission cost and accuracy. This paper proposes a method based on Bayesian inference to reduce the communication volume in a heterogeneous distributed environment while retaining prediction accuracy. Our experimental evaluation reveals that a significant reduction in communication can be achieved across a diverse range of dataset types.

Keywords: big data, bayesian inference, distributed data stream mining, heterogeneous-distributed data

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Authors: Yu-Kuei Hsu, Ying-Chu Chen, Yan-Gu Lin

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The hierarchical Cu2S nano structural film is successfully fabricated via an electroplated ZnO nanorod array as a template and subsequently chemical solution process for the growth of Cu2S in the application of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) detection. The as-grown Cu2S nano structures were thermally treated at temperature of 150-300 oC under nitrogen atmosphere to improve the crystal quality and unexpectedly induce the Cu nano particles on surface of Cu2S. The structure and composition of thermally treated Cu2S nano structures were carefully analyzed by SEM, XRD, XPS, and XAS. Using 4-aminothiophenol (4-ATP) as probing molecules, the SERS experiments showed that the thermally treated Cu2S nano structures exhibit excellent detecting performance, which could be used as active and cost-effective SERS substrate for ultra sensitive detecting. Additionally, this novel hierarchical SERS substrates show good reproducibility and a linear dependence between analyte concentrations and intensities, revealing the advantage of this method for easily scale-up production.

Keywords: cuprous sulfide, copper, nanostructures, surface-enhanced raman scattering

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Authors: Z. Sakka, I. Assakkaf, T. Al-Yaqoub, J. Parol

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A reliability-based methodology for the analysis assessment and evaluation of reinforced concrete structural elements of concrete structures is presented herein. The results of the reliability analysis and assessment for structural elements are verified by the results obtained from the deterministic methods. The analysis outcomes of reliability-based analysis are compared against the safety limits of the required reliability index β according to international standards and codes. The methodology is based on probabilistic analysis using reliability concepts and statistics of the main random variables that are relevant to the subject matter, and for which they are to be used in the performance-function equation(s) related to the structural elements under study. These methodology techniques can result in reliability index β, which is commonly known as the reliability index or reliability measure value that can be utilized to assess and evaluate the safety, human risk, and functionality of the structural component. Also, these methods can result in revised partial safety factor values for certain target reliability indices that can be used for the purpose of redesigning the reinforced concrete elements of the building and in which they could assist in considering some other remedial actions to improve the safety and functionality of the member.

Keywords: structural reliability, concrete structures, FORM, Monte Carlo simulation

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Authors: Marija Vitanovа, Igor Gjorgjiev, Viktor Hristovski, Vlado Micov

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Evaluation of stability is very important in the process of definition of optimal structural measures for maintenance of bridge structures and their strengthening. To define optimal measures for their repair and strengthening, it is necessary to evaluate their static and seismic stability. Presented in this paper are methodologies for evaluation of the seismic stability of existing reinforced concrete bridges designed without consideration of seismic effects and checking of structural justification of newly designed bridge structures. All bridges are located in the territory of the Republic of North Macedonia. A total of 26 existing bridges of different structural systems have been analyzed. Visual inspection has been carried out for all bridges, along with the definition of three main damage categories according to which structures have been categorized in respect to the need for their repair and strengthening. Investigations involving testing the quality of the built-in materials have been carried out, and dynamic tests pointing to the dynamic characteristics of the structures have been conducted by use of non-destructive methods of ambient vibration measurements. The conclusions drawn from the performed measurements and tests have been used for the development of accurate mathematical models that have been analyzed for static and dynamic loads. Based on the geometrical characteristics of the cross-sections and the physical characteristics of the built-in materials, interaction diagrams have been constructed. These diagrams along with the obtained section quantities under seismic effects, have been used to obtain the bearing capacity of the cross-sections. The results obtained from the conducted analyses point to the need for the repair of certain structural parts of the bridge structures. They indicate that the stability of the superstructure elements is not critical during a seismic effect, unlike the elements of the sub-structure, whose strengthening is necessary.

Keywords: existing bridges, newly designed bridges, reinforced concrete bridges, stability assessment

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Authors: B. Chikh, L. Moussa, H. Bechtoula, Y. Mehani, A. Zerzour

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This study presents a new method, applicable to evaluation and design of structures has been developed and illustrated by comparison with the capacity spectrum method (CSM, ATC-40). This method uses inelastic spectra and gives peak responses consistent with those obtained when using the nonlinear time history analysis. Hereafter, the seismic demands assessment method is called in this paper DSM, Ductility Spectrum Method. It is used to estimate the seismic deformation of Single-Degree-Of-Freedom (SDOF) systems based on DDRS, Ductility Demand Response Spectrum, developed by the author.

Keywords: seismic demand, capacity, inelastic spectra, design and structure

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Authors: Jinkoo Kim, Hyungoo Kang, Hyungjun Shin

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In this study, a hybrid energy dissipation device is developed by combining a steel slit plate and friction pads to be used for seismic retrofit of structures, and its effectiveness is investigated by comparing the life cycle costs of the structure before and after the retrofit. The seismic energy dissipation capability of the dampers is confirmed by cyclic loading tests. The probabilities of reaching various damage states are obtained by fragility analysis, and the life cycle costs of the model structures are computed using the PACT (Performance Assessment Calculation Tool) program based on FEMA P-58 methodology. The fragility analysis shows that the probabilities of reaching limit states are minimized by the seismic retrofit with hybrid dampers and increasing column size. The seismic retrofit with increasing column size and hybrid dampers results in the lowest repair cost and shortest repair time.

Keywords: slit dampers, friction dampers, seismic retrofit, life cycle cost, FEMA P-58, PACT

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Authors: Ahmed W. Oda, Ahmed El-Desouky, Hassan Mahdy, Osama M. Moussa

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Nanomaterials have many applications in the field of asphalt paving. Two locally produced nanomaterials were used in the asphalt binder modification. The nanomaterials used are Nanosilica (NS), and Nanoclay (NC). The virgin asphalt binder was characterized by the conventional tests. The bitumen was modified by 3%, 5% and 7% of NS and NC. The penetration index(PI), and the retaining penetration (RP) was calculated based on the results of the penetration and the softening point tests. The results show that the RP becomes 95.35% at 5%NS modified bitumen and reaches 97.56% when bitumen is modified with 3% NC. The results show significant improvement in the bitumen stiffness when modified by the two types of nanomaterials, either fresh or aged (stored).

Keywords: bitumen, modified bitumen, aged, stored, nanomaterials

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Authors: Rekab Djabri Hamza, Daoud Salah

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We report first-principles calculations of structural and magnetic properties of TmAs compound in zinc blende(B3) and CsCl(B2), structures employing the density functional theory (DFT) within the local density approximation (LDA). We use the full potential linear muffin-tin orbitals (FP-LMTO) as implemented in the LMTART-MINDLAB code (Calculation). Results are given for lattice parameters (a), bulk modulus (B), and its first derivatives(B’) in the different structures NaCl (B1) and CsCl (B2). The most important result in this work is the prediction of the possibility of transition; from cubic rocksalt (NaCl)→ CsCl (B2) (32.96GPa) for TmAs. These results use the LDA approximation.

Keywords: LDA, phase transition, properties, DFT

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Authors: Lucian Pîslaru-Dănescu, George-Claudiu Zărnescu, Laurențiu Constantin Lipan, Rareș-Andrei Chihaia

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In recent years, the utilization of supercapacitors for energy storage (ES) devices that are designed for energy harvesting (EH) applications has increased substantially. The use of supercapacitors as energy storage devices in hybrid energy harvesting systems allows the miniaturization of electronic structures for energy storage. This study is concerned with the concept of energy management capacitors – supercapacitors and the new electronic structures for energy storage used for energy harvesting devices. Supercapacitors are low-voltage devices, and electronic overvoltage protection is needed for powering the source. The power management device that uses these proposed new electronic structures for energy storage is better than conventional electronic structures used for this purpose, like rechargeable batteries, supercapacitors, and hybrid systems. A hybrid energy harvesting system with energy storage management is able to simultaneously use several energy sources with recovery from the environment. The power management device uses a summing electronic block to combine the electric power obtained from piezoelectric composite plates and from a photovoltaic conversion system. Also, an overvoltage protection circuit used as a voltage detector and an improved concept of charging supercapacitors is presented. The piezoelectric composite plates are realized only by pressing two printed circuit boards together without damaging or prestressing the piezoceramic elements. The photovoltaic conversion system has the advantage that the modules are covered with glass plates with nanostructured film of ZnO with the role of anti-reflective coating and to improve the overall efficiency of the solar panels.

Keywords: supercapacitors, energy storage, electronic overvoltage protection, energy harvesting

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Authors: Sfiso Radebe

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The design models dealing with flawless composite structures are in abundance, where the mechanical properties of composite structures are assumed to be known a priori. However, if the worst case scenario is assumed, where material defects combined with processing anomalies in composite structures are expected, a different solution is attained. Furthermore, if the system being designed combines in series hybrid elements, individually affected by material constant variations, it implies that a different approach needs to be taken. In the body of literature, there is a compendium of research that investigates different modes of failure affecting hybrid metal-composite structures. It covers areas pertaining to the failure of the hybrid joints, structural deformation, transverse displacement, the suppression of vibration and noise. In the present study a system employing a combination of two or more hybrid power transmitting elements will be explored for the least favourable dynamic loads as well as weight minimization, subject to uncertain material properties. Elastic constants are assumed to be uncertain-but-bounded quantities varying slightly around their nominal values where the solution is determined using convex models of uncertainty. Convex analysis of the problem leads to the computation of the least favourable solution and ultimately to a robust design. This approach contrasts with a deterministic analysis where the average values of elastic constants are employed in the calculations, neglecting the variations in the material properties.

Keywords: convex modelling, hybrid, metal-composite, robust design

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Authors: Ailvy Faith Zamora, Serj Donn David, Michael Anderson

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There are a number of decades-old piers and wharves in Manila, Philippines, that are currently being used for container and bulk cargo handling port operations. These structures fulfill a very important role in the economy and hence have undergone rehabilitation and assessment of capacity to accommodate current and future operational requirements. The capacity assessment would include structural and pile geotechnical evaluation. Unfortunately, old marine structures in the Philippines may not have a complete set of as-built information. In certain instances, critical information, such as pile toe levels, is missing in the documentation. A combination of direct tests, geophysical tests, and numerical analysis/modelling has been performed to estimate existing pile toe levels of open-type piers and anchored quay wall wharves in Manila. These techniques were applied to both concrete and steel piles. This paper presents the tools utilized, testing setup, and techniques used for estimating toe levels of existing piles for certain structures, including the challenges encountered and applied solutions.

Keywords: geophysical testing, pile toe level, structural assessment, piers, wharves

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Authors: Giuseppe Maria Russo, Patrícia Amélia Tomei, Antônio Linhares, André Moreira Santos

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Alignment between management strategies, policies and practices with organizational cultures holds great potential to meet the challenges of retaining professionals and maintaining their commitment. In this article, authors consider that when it is aligned with company strategy, compensation acts as an incentive for developing common visions within the organizational culture. This article verified the correlation between types of culture and compensation’s strategic components and provided inputs for the definition of strategies aligned with cultural typologies. We conclude that the impact of compensation variables varies according to the type of organizational culture. This result reinforces the theory that different cultures define different organizational strategies. Thus, compensation strategies may explain types of organizational culture.

Keywords: compensation, Handy’s cultural typology, organizational culture, rewards

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Authors: Ganbat Danaa, Chuluundorj Puntsag

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The steel structures of the Oyu-Tolgoi mining Concentrator plant are corroded during operation, which raises doubts about the continued use of some important structures of the plant, which is one of the problems facing the plant's regular operation. As a part of the main operation of the plant, the bottom part of the pressure vessel, which plays an important role in the reliable operation of the concentrate filter-drying unit, was heavily corroded, so it was necessary to study by engineering calculations, modeling, and simulation using modern advanced engineering programs and methods. The purpose of this research is to investigate whether the corroded part of the pressure vessel can be used normally in the future using advanced engineering software and to predetermine the remaining life of the time of the pressure vessel based on engineering calculations. When the thickness of the bottom part of the pressure vessel was thinned by 0.5mm due to corrosion detected by non-destructive testing, finite element analysis using ANSYS WorkBench software was used to determine the mechanical stress, strain and safety factor in the wall and bottom of the pressure vessel operating under 2.2 MPa working pressure, made conclusions on whether it can be used in the future. According to the recommendations, by using sand-blast cleaning and anti-corrosion paint, the normal, continuous and reliable operation of the Concentrator plant can be ensured, such as ordering new pressure vessels and reducing the installation period. By completing this research work, it will be used as a benchmark for assessing the corrosion condition of steel parts of pressure vessels and other metallic and non-metallic structures operating under severe conditions of corrosion, static and dynamic loads, and other deformed steels to make analysis of the structures and make it possible to evaluate and control the integrity and reliable operation of the structures.

Keywords: corrosion, non-destructive testing, finite element analysis, safety factor, structural reliability

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Authors: Ramprasad Srinivasan

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Engineers create inventions and put their ideas in concrete terms to design new products. Design drivers must be established, which requires, among other things, a complete understanding of the product design, load paths, etc. For Aerospace Vehicles, weight/strength ratio, strength, stiffness and stability are the important design drivers. A complex built-up structure is made up of an assemblage of primitive structural forms of arbitrary shape, which include 1D structures like beams and frames, 2D structures like membranes, plate and shell structures, and 3D solid structures. Justification through simulation involves a check for all the quantities of interest, namely stresses, deformation, frequencies, and buckling loads and is normally achieved through the finite element (FE) method. Over the past few decades, Fiber-reinforced composites are fast replacing the traditional metallic structures in the weight-sensitive aerospace and aircraft industries due to their high specific strength, high specific stiffness, anisotropic properties, design freedom for tailoring etc. Composite panel constructions are used in aircraft to design primary structure components like wings, empennage, ailerons, etc., while thin-walled composite beams (TWCB) are used to model slender structures like stiffened panels, helicopter, and wind turbine rotor blades, etc. The TWCB demonstrates many non-classical effects like torsional and constrained warping, transverse shear, coupling effects, heterogeneity, etc., which makes the analysis of composite structures far more complex. Conventional FE formulations to model 1D structures suffer from many limitations like shear locking, particularly in slender beams, lower convergence rates due to material coupling in composites, inability to satisfy, equilibrium in the domain and natural boundary conditions (NBC) etc. For 2D structures, the limitations of conventional displacement-based FE formulations include the inability to satisfy NBC explicitly and many pathological problems such as shear and membrane locking, spurious modes, stress oscillations, lower convergence due to mesh distortion etc. This mandates frequent re-meshing to even achieve an acceptable mesh (satisfy stringent quality metrics) for analysis leading to significant cycle time. Besides, currently, there is a need for separate formulations (u/p) to model incompressible materials, and a single unified formulation is missing in the literature. Hence coupled field formulation (CFF) is a unified formulation proposed by the author for the solution of complex 1D and 2D structures addressing the gaps in the literature mentioned above. The salient features of CFF and its many advantages over other conventional methods shall be presented in this paper.

Keywords: coupled field formulation, kinematic and material coupling, natural boundary condition, locking free formulation

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Authors: Hui Zhang, Sherif Beskhyroun

Abstract:

In this study, a highly flexible LoRa-Based wireless sensing system was used to assess the strain state performance of building structures. The system was developed to address the local damage limitation of structural health monitoring (SHM) systems. The system is part of an intelligent SHM system designed to monitor, collect and transmit strain changes in key structural components. The main purpose of the wireless sensor system is to reduce the development and installation costs, and reduce the power consumption of the system, so as to achieve long-time monitoring. The highly stretchable flexible strain gauge is mounted on the surface of the structure and is waterproof, heat resistant, and low temperature resistant, greatly reducing the installation and maintenance costs of the sensor. The system was also developed with the aim of using LoRa wireless communication technology to achieve both low power consumption and long-distance transmission, therefore solving the problem of large-scale deployment of sensors to cover more areas in large structures. In the long-term monitoring of the building structure, the system shows very high performance, very low actual power consumption, and wireless transmission stability. The results show that the developed system has a high resolution, sensitivity, and high possibility of long-term monitoring.

Keywords: LoRa, SHM system, strain measurement, civil structures, flexible sensing system

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Authors: Chun-Qing Li, Hassan Baji, Wei Yang

Abstract:

Corrosion of steel in reinforced concrete structures is a major problem worldwide. The volume expansion of corrosion products causes concrete cover cracking, which could lead to delamination of concrete cover. The time to cover cracking plays a key role to the assessment of serviceability of reinforced concrete structures subjected to corrosion. Many analytical, numerical, and empirical models have been developed to predict the time to cracking initiation due to corrosion. In this study, a numerical model based on finite element modeling of corrosion-induced cracking process is used. In order to predict the service life based on time to cover initiation, the numerical approach is coupled with a probabilistic procedure. In this procedure, all the influential factors affecting time to cover cracking are modeled as random variables. The results show that the time to cover cracking is highly variables. It is also shown that rust product expansion ratio and the size of more porous concrete zone around the rebar are the most influential factors in predicting service life of corrosion-affected structures.

Keywords: corrosion, crack width, probabilistic, service life

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Authors: Ahmed Noor Al-qayyim, Barlas Özden Çağlayan

Abstract:

Structural failure is caused mainly by damage that often occurs on structures. Many researchers focus on obtaining very efficient tools to detect the damage in structures in the early state. In the past decades, a subject that has received considerable attention in literature is the damage detection as determined by variations in the dynamic characteristics or response of structures. This study presents a new damage identification technique. The technique detects the damage location for the incomplete structure system using output data only. The method indicates the damage based on the free vibration test data by using “Two Points - Condensation (TPC) technique”. This method creates a set of matrices by reducing the structural system to two degrees of freedom systems. The current stiffness matrices are obtained from optimization of the equation of motion using the measured test data. The current stiffness matrices are compared with original (undamaged) stiffness matrices. High percentage changes in matrices’ coefficients lead to the location of the damage. TPC technique is applied to the experimental data of a simply supported steel beam model structure after inducing thickness change in one element. Where two cases are considered, the method detects the damage and determines its location accurately in both cases. In addition, the results illustrate that these changes in stiffness matrix can be a useful tool for continuous monitoring of structural safety using ambient vibration data. Furthermore, its efficiency proves that this technique can also be used for big structures.

Keywords: damage detection, optimization, signals processing, structural health monitoring, two points–condensation

Procedia PDF Downloads 339

Authors: Sara A. Pakvis, Giulia Scalet, Stefania Marconi, Ferdinando Auricchio, Matthijs Langelaar

Abstract:

In recent developments in the field of multi-material additive manufacturing, differences in material properties are exploited to create printed shape-memory structures, which are referred to as 4D-printed structures. New printing techniques allow for the deliberate introduction of prestresses in the specimen during manufacturing, and, in combination with the right design, this enables new functionalities. This research focuses on bi-polymer 4D-printed structures, where the transformation process is based on a heat-induced glass transition in one material lowering its Young’s modulus, combined with an initial prestress in the other material. Upon the decrease in stiffness, the prestress is released, which results in the realization of an essentially pre-programmed deformation. As the design of such functional multi-material structures is crucial but far from trivial, a systematic methodology to find the design of 4D-printed structures is developed, where a finite element model is combined with a density-based topology optimization method to describe the material layout. This modeling approach is verified by a convergence analysis and validated by comparing its numerical results to analytical and published data. Specific aspects that are addressed include the interplay between the definition of the prestress and the material interpolation function used in the density-based topology description, the inclusion of a temperature-dependent stiffness relationship to simulate the glass transition effect, and the importance of the consideration of geometric nonlinearity in the finite element modeling. The efficacy of topology optimization to design 4D-printed structures is explored by applying the methodology to a variety of design problems, both in 2D and 3D settings. Bi-layer designs composed of thermoplastic polymers are printed by means of the fused deposition modeling (FDM) technology. Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) polymer undergoes the glass transition transformation, while polyurethane (TPU) polymer is prestressed by means of the 3D-printing process itself. Tests inducing shape transformation in the printed samples through heating are performed to calibrate the prestress and validate the modeling approach by comparing the numerical results to the experimental findings. Using the experimentally obtained prestress values, more complex designs have been generated through topology optimization, and samples have been printed and tested to evaluate their performance. This study demonstrates that by combining topology optimization and 4D-printing concepts, stimuli-responsive structures with specific properties can be designed and realized.

Keywords: 4D-printing, glass transition, shape memory polymer, topology optimization

Procedia PDF Downloads 171