Search results for: seismic ground motion

Authors: Ana Maria Carmen Ilie, Carmela Vaccaro

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Gas migration through wellbore failure, in particular from abandoned wells, is repeatedly identified as the highest risk mechanism. The vadose zone was subject to monitoring system close to the wellbore in Minerbio, methane storage site. The new technology has been well-developed and used with the purpose to provide reliable estimates of leakage parameters. Of these techniques, soil flux sampling at the soil surface, via the accumulation chamber method and soil flux sampling at the depths of 100cm below the ground surface, have been an important technique for characterizing the gas concentrations at the gas storage site. We present results of soil Radon Bq/m3, CO2%, CH4% and O2% concentration gases. Measurements have been taken for radon concentrations with an Durridge RAD7 Company, Inc., USA, instrument. We used for air and soil quality an Biogas ETG instrument monitoring system, with NDIR CO2, CH4 gas sensor and electrochemical O2 gas sensor. The measurements started in September-October 2015, where no outliers have been identified. The measurements have continued in March-April-July-August-September 2016, almost at the same time in the same place around the gas storage site, values measured 15 minutes for each sampling, to determine their concentration, their distribution and to understand the relationship among gases and atmospheric conditions. At a depth of 100 cm, the maximum soil radon gas concentrations were found to be 1770 ±±582 Bq/m3, the soil consists of 64.31% sand, 20.75% silt and 14.94% clay, and with 0.526 ppm of Uranium. The maximum concentration (September 2016), in soil at 100cm below the ground surface, with 83% sand, 8.96% silt and 7.89% clay, was about 0.06% CH4, and in atmosphere 0.06% CH4 at 40°C (T). In the other months the values have been on the range of 0.01% to 0.03% CH4. Since we did not have outliers in the gas storage site, soil-gas samples for isotopic analysis have not been done.

Keywords: leakage gas monitoring, lithology, soil gas, methane

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Authors: Christofas Stergianos, Jason Atkin, Herve Morvan

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As air traffic increases, more airports are interested in utilizing optimization methods. Many processes happen in parallel at an airport, and complex models are needed in order to have a reliable solution that can be implemented for ground movement operations. The ground movement for aircraft in an airport, allocating a path to each aircraft to follow in order to reach their destination (e.g. runway or gate), is one process that could be optimized. The Quickest Path Problem with Time Windows (QPPTW) algorithm has been developed to provide a conflict-free routing of vehicles and has been applied to routing aircraft around an airport. It was subsequently modified to increase the accuracy for airport applications. These modifications take into consideration specific characteristics of the problem, such as: the pushback process, which considers the extra time that is needed for pushing back an aircraft and turning its engines on; stand holding where any waiting should be allocated to the stand; and runway sequencing, where the sequence of the aircraft that take off is optimized and has to be respected. QPPTW involves searching for the quickest path by expanding the search in all directions, similarly to Dijkstra’s algorithm. Finding a way to direct the expansion can potentially assist the search and achieve a better performance. We have further modified the QPPTW algorithm to use a heuristic approach in order to guide the search. This new algorithm is based on the A-star search method but estimates the remaining time (instead of distance) in order to assess how far the target is. It is important to consider the remaining time that it is needed to reach the target, so that delays that are caused by other aircraft can be part of the optimization method. All of the other characteristics are still considered and time windows are still used in order to route multiple aircraft rather than a single aircraft. In this way the quickest path is found for each aircraft while taking into account the movements of the previously routed aircraft. After running experiments using a week of real aircraft data from Zurich Airport, the new algorithm (A-star QPPTW) was found to route aircraft much more quickly, being especially fast in routing the departing aircraft where pushback delays are significant. On average A-star QPPTW could route a full day (755 to 837 aircraft movements) 56% faster than the original algorithm. In total the routing of a full week of aircraft took only 12 seconds with the new algorithm, 15 seconds faster than the original algorithm. For real time application, the algorithm needs to be very fast, and this speed increase will allow us to add additional features and complexity, allowing further integration with other processes in airports and leading to more optimized and environmentally friendly airports.

Keywords: a-star search, airport operations, ground movement optimization, routing and scheduling

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Authors: Modi M. Ahmed, Noor Al-Dousari, Ali M. Al-Dousari

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Cornulaca aucheri is an annual herb consider as disturbance indicator currently visible and widely distributed in disturbed lands in Liyah area. Such area is suffered from severe land degradation due to multiple interacting factors such as, overgrazing, gravel and sand quarrying, military activities and natural process. The restoration program is applied after refilled quarries sites and levelled the surface irregularities in order to rehabilitate the natural vegetation and wildlife to its original shape. During the past 10 years of rehabilitation, noticeable greenery healthy cover of Cornulaca sp. are shown specially around artificial lake and playas. The existence of such species in high density it means that restoration program has succeeded and transit from bare ground state to Cornulaca and annual forb state. This state is lower state of Range State Transition Succession model, but it is better than bare soil. Cornulaca spp is native desert plant grows in arid conditions on sandy, stony ground, near oasis, on sand dunes and in sandy depressions. The sheep and goats are repulsive of it. Despite its spiny leaves, it provides good grazing for camels and is said to increase the milk supply produced by lactating females. It is about 80 cm tall and has stems that branched from the base with new faster greenery growth in the summer. It shows good environmental potential to be managed as natural types used for the restoration of degraded lands in desert areas.

Keywords: land degradation, range state transition succession model, rehabilitation, restoration program

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Authors: Arfanara Najnin, Michael W. Roach, Jr., Dr. Jianhong Cecilia Xia

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The SkyCar Rapid Transit System (SRT) is an innovative intelligent transport system for the sustainable urban transport system. This system will increase the urban area network connectivity and decrease urban area traffic congestion. The SRT system is designed as a suspended Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) system that travels under a guideway 5m above the ground. A driver-less passenger is via pod-cars that hang from slender beams supported by columns that replace existing lamp posts. The beams are setup in a series of interconnecting loops providing non-stop travel from beginning to end to assure journey time. The SRT forward movement is effected by magnetic motors built into the guideway. Passenger stops are at either at line level 5m above the ground or ground level via a spur guideway that curves off the main thoroughfare. The main objective of this paper is to propose an integrated Automated Transit Network (ATN) technology for the future intelligent transport system in the urban built environment. To fulfil the objective a 4D simulated model in the urban built environment has been proposed by using the concept of SRT-ATN system. The methodology for the design, construction and testing parameters of a Technology Demonstrator (TD) for proof of concept and a Simulator (S) has been demonstrated. The completed TD and S will provide an excellent proving ground for the next development stage, the SRT Prototype (PT) and Pilot System (PS). This paper covered by a 4D simulated model in the virtual built environment is to effectively show how the SRT-ATN system works. OpenSim software has been used to develop the model in a virtual environment, and the scenario has been simulated to understand and visualize the proposed SkyCar Rapid Transit Network model. The SkyCar system will be fabricated in a modular form which is easily transported. The system would be installed in increasingly congested city centers throughout the world, as well as in airports, tourist resorts, race tracks and other special purpose for the urban community. This paper shares the lessons learnt from the proposed innovation and provides recommendations on how to improve the future transport system in urban built environment. Safety and security of passengers are prime factors to be considered for this transit system. Design requirements to meet the safety needs to be part of the research and development phase of the project. Operational safety aspects would also be developed during this period. The vehicles, the track and beam systems and stations are the main components that need to be examined in detail for safety and security of patrons. Measures will also be required to protect columns adjoining intersections from errant vehicles in vehicular traffic collisions. The SkyCar Rapid Transit takes advantage of all current disruptive technologies; batteries, sensors and 4G/5G communication and solar energy technologies which will continue to reduce the costs and make the systems more profitable. SkyCar's energy consumption is extremely low compared to other transport systems.

Keywords: SkyCar, rapid transit, Intelligent Transport System (ITS), Automated Transit Network (ATN), urban built environment, 4D Visualization, smart city

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Authors: Djaouida Sadaoui

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In this paper, the design procedure of the active sliding mode controller which is a combination of the active controller and the sliding mode controller is given first and then the problem of synchronization of two satellites systems is discussed for the proposed method. Finally, numerical results are presented to evaluate the robustness and effectiveness of the proposed control strategy.

Keywords: active control, sliding mode control, synchronization, satellite attitude

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Authors: Dhekra Khazri, Hakim Gabtni

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Because of Sidi Bouzid water table overexploitation, this study aims at integrating geophysical methods to determinate aquifers geometry assessing their geological situation and geophysical characteristics. However in highly tectonic zones controlled by Atlassic structural features with NE-SW major directions (central Tunisia), Bouguer gravimetric responses of some areas can be as much dominated by the regional structural tendency, as being non-identified or either defectively interpreted such as the case of Sidi Bouzid basin. This issue required a residual gravity anomaly elaboration isolating the Sidi Bouzid basin gravity response ranging between -8 and -14 mGal and crucial for its aquifers geometry characterization. Several gravity techniques helped constructing the Sidi Bouzid basin's residual gravity anomaly, such as Upwards continuation compared to polynomial regression trends and power spectrum analysis detecting deep basement sources at (3km), intermediate (2km) and shallow sources (1km). A 3D Euler Deconvolution was also performed detecting deepest accidents trending NE-SW, N-S and E-W with depth values reaching 5500 m and delineating the main outcropping structures of the study area. Further gravity treatments highlighted the subsurface geometry and structural features of Sidi Bouzid basin over Horizontal and vertical gradient, and also filters based on them such as Tilt angle and Source Edge detector locating rooted edges or peaks from potential field data detecting a new E-W lineament compartmentalizing the Sidi Bouzid gutter into two unequally residual anomaly and subsiding domains. This subsurface morphology is also detected by the used 2D seismic reflection sections defining the Sidi Bouzid basin as a deep gutter within a tectonic set of negative flower structures, and collapsed and tilted blocks. Furthermore, these structural features were confirmed by forward gravity modeling process over several modeled residual gravity profiles crossing the main area. Sidi Bouzid basin (central Tunisia) is also of a big interest cause of the unknown total thickness and the undefined substratum of its siliciclastic Tertiary package, and its aquifers unbounded structural subsurface features and deep accidents. The Combination of geological, hydrogeological and geophysical methods is then of an ultimate need. Therefore, a geophysical methods integration based on gravity survey supporting available seismic data through forward gravity modeling, enhanced lateral and vertical extent definition of the basin's complex sedimentary fill via 3D gravity models, improved depth estimation by a depth to basement modeling approach, and provided 3D isochronous seismic mapping visualization of the basin's Tertiary complex refining its geostructural schema. A subsurface basin geomorphology mapping, over an ultimate matching between the basin's residual gravity map and the calculated theoretical signature map, was also displayed over the modeled residual gravity profiles. An ultimate multidisciplinary geophysical study of the Sidi Bouzid basin aquifers can be accomplished via an aeromagnetic survey and a 4D Microgravity reservoir monitoring offering temporal tracking of the target aquifer's subsurface fluid dynamics enhancing and rationalizing future groundwater exploitation in this arid area of central Tunisia.

Keywords: aquifer geometry, geophysics, 3D gravity modeling, improved depths, source edge detector

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Authors: Karim Akkouche, Amine Nekmouche, Leyla Bouzid

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This study focuses on the development of a multifunctional Expert System (ES) called post-seismic damage inspection tool (PSDIT), a powerful tool which allows the evaluation, the processing, and the archiving of the collected data stock after earthquakes. PSDIT can be operated by two user types; an ordinary user (ingineer, expert, or architect) for the damage visual inspection and an administrative user for updating the knowledge and / or for adding or removing the ordinary user. The knowledge acquisition is driven by a hierarchical knowledge model, the Information from investigation reports and those acquired through feedback from expert / engineer questionnaires are part.

Keywords: .disaster, damaged structures, damage assessment, expert system

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Authors: K. S. Vedasingha, K. K. M. T. Perera, K. I. Hathurusinghe, H. W. I. Akalanka, Nelum Chathuranga Amarasena, Nalaka R. Dissanayake

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Railways provide the most convenient and economically beneficial mode of transportation, and it has been the most popular transportation method among all. According to the past analyzed data, it reveals a considerable number of accidents which occurred at railways and caused damages to not only precious lives but also to the economy of the countries. There are some major issues which need to be addressed in railways of South Asian countries since they fall under the developing category. The goal of this research is to minimize the influencing aspect of railway level crossing accidents by developing the “railway process automation system”, as there are high-risk areas that are prone to accidents, and safety at these places is of utmost significance. This paper describes the implementation methodology and the success of the study. The main purpose of the system is to ensure human safety by using the Internet of Things (IoT) and image processing techniques. The system can detect the current location of the train and close the railway gate automatically. And it is possible to do the above-mentioned process through a decision-making system by using past data. The specialty is both processes working parallel. As usual, if the system fails to close the railway gate due to technical or a network failure, the proposed system can identify the current location and close the railway gate through a decision-making system, which is a revolutionary feature. The proposed system introduces further two features to reduce the causes of railway accidents. Railway track crack detection and motion detection are those features which play a significant role in reducing the risk of railway accidents. Moreover, the system is capable of detecting rule violations at a level crossing by using sensors. The proposed system is implemented through a prototype, and it is tested with real-world scenarios to gain the above 90% of accuracy.

Keywords: crack detection, decision-making, image processing, Internet of Things, motion detection, prototype, sensors

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Authors: Jason Clarke, Michaela Porubanova, Angela Mazzoli, Gulsah Kut

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What accounts for our perception that time inexorably passes in one direction, from the past to the future, the so-called arrow of time, given that the laws of physics permit motion in one temporal direction to also happen in the reverse temporal direction? Modern physics says that the reason for time’s unidirectional physical arrow is the relationship between time and entropy, the degree of disorder in the universe, which is evolving from low entropy (high order; thermal disequilibrium) toward high entropy (high disorder; thermal equilibrium), the second law of thermodynamics. Accordingly, our perception of the direction of time, from past to future, is believed to emanate as a result of the natural evolution of entropy from low to high, with low entropy defining our notion of ‘before’ and high entropy defining our notion of ‘after’. Here we explored this proposed relationship between entropy and the perception of time’s arrow. We predicted that if the brain has some mechanism for detecting entropy, whose output feeds into processes involved in constructing our perception of the direction of time, presentation of violations to the expectation that low entropy defines ‘before’ and high entropy defines ‘after’ would alert this mechanism, leading to measurable behavioral effects, namely a disruption in duration perception. To test this hypothesis, participants were shown briefly-presented (1000 ms or 500 ms) computer-generated visual dynamic events: novel 3D shapes that were seen either to evolve from whole figures into parts (low to high entropy condition) or were seen in the reverse direction: parts that coalesced into whole figures (high to low entropy condition). On each trial, participants were instructed to reproduce the duration of their visual experience of the stimulus by pressing and releasing the space bar. To ensure that attention was being deployed to the stimuli, a secondary task was to report the direction of the visual event (forward or reverse motion). Participants completed 60 trials. As predicted, we found that duration reproduction was significantly longer for the high to low entropy condition compared to the low to high entropy condition (p=.03). This preliminary data suggests the presence of a neural mechanism that detects entropy, which is used by other processes to construct our perception of the direction of time or time’s arrow.

Keywords: time perception, entropy, temporal illusions, duration perception

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Authors: Akshay Satishrao Kawtikwar

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The effect of blast masses on structures is an essential aspect that need to be considered. This type of assault could be very horrifying, who where we take it into consideration in the course of the design system. While designing a building, now not only the wind and seismic masses however also the consequences of the blast have to be take into consideration. Blast load is the burden implemented to a structure form a blast wave that comes straight away after an explosion. A blast in or close to a constructing can reason catastrophic harm to the interior and exterior of the building, inner structural framework, wall collapsing, and so on. The most important feature of blast resistant construction is the ability to absorb blast energy without causing catastrophic failure of the structure as a whole. Construction materials in blastprotective structures must have ductility as well as strength.

Keywords: blast resistant design, blast load, explosion, ETABS

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Authors: Arjun G. Koppad

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The study was conducted in Joida taluk of Uttara Kannada district, Karnataka, India, to assess the land use land cover (LULC) and forest aboveground biomass using L band SAR data. The study area covered has dense, moderately dense, and sparse forests. The sampled area was 0.01 percent of the forest area with 30 sampling plots which were selected randomly. The point center quadrate (PCQ) method was used to select the tree and collected the tree growth parameters viz., tree height, diameter at breast height (DBH), and diameter at the tree base. The tree crown density was measured with a densitometer. Each sample plot biomass was estimated using the standard formula. In this study, the LULC classification was done using Freeman-Durden, Yamaghuchi and Pauli polarimetric decompositions. It was observed that the Freeman-Durden decomposition showed better LULC classification with an accuracy of 88 percent. An attempt was made to estimate the aboveground biomass using SAR backscatter. The ALOS-2 PALSAR-2 L-band data (HH, HV, VV &VH) fully polarimetric quad-pol SAR data was used. SAR backscatter-based regression model was implemented to retrieve forest aboveground biomass of the study area. Cross-polarization (HV) has shown a good correlation with forest above-ground biomass. The Multi Linear Regression analysis was done to estimate aboveground biomass of the natural forest areas of the Joida taluk. The different polarizations (HH &HV, VV &HH, HV & VH, VV&VH) combination of HH and HV polarization shows a good correlation with field and predicted biomass. The RMSE and value for HH & HV and HH & VV were 78 t/ha and 0.861, 81 t/ha and 0.853, respectively. Hence the model can be recommended for estimating AGB for the dense, moderately dense, and sparse forest.

Keywords: forest, biomass, LULC, back scatter, SAR, regression

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Authors: Moustafa Ali Elwan, Ibrahim Salem Abdelrafa, Ashraf Moharm

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Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are among the most commonly prescribed oral and topical drugs worldwide. Moreover, NSAIDs are responsible for most of all adverse drug reactions. For several decades, there are numerous attempts to use the cutaneous layers as a gate into the body for the local delivery of the therapeutic agent. Transdermal drug delivery is a validated technology contributing significantly to global pharmaceutical care. Transdermal Drug Delivery systems can be improved by using therapeutic agents. Moreover, Transdermal Drug Delivery systems can be improved by using chemical enhancers like ultrasound or iontophoresis. Iontophoresis provides a mechanism to enhance the penetration of hydrophilic and charged molecules across the skin. Objective: to compare the drug administration by ‘iontophoresis’ versus the oral rule. Methods: This study was conducted at the Faculty of Physical Therapy, Modern University for technology and information, Cairo, Egypt, on 20 participants (8 female & 12 male) who complained of tennis elbow. Their mean age was (25.45 ± 3.98) years, and all participants were assessed in many aspects: Pain threshold was assessed by algometer. Range of motion was assessed by electro goniometer, and isometric strength was assessed by a portable hand-held dynamometer. Then Participants were randomly assigned into two groups: group A was treated with oral NSAID (diclofenac) while group B was treated via administration of NSAIDs (diclofenac) via an iontophoresis device. All the participants were subjected to blood samples analysis in both pre-administration of the drug and post-administration of the drug for 24 hours (sample/every 6 hours). Results: The results demonstrated that there was a significant improvement in group b, “iontophoresis NSAIDs group,” more than in group B,” oral NSAIDs group,” in all measurements ‘ pain threshold, strength, and range of motion. Also, the iontophoresis method shows higher maximum plasma concentrations (Cmax) and concentration-time curves than the oral method.

Keywords: diclofenac, iontophoresis, NSAIDs, oral, tennis elbow

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Authors: Xu Chen, Zhao Caiqi

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In addition to the advantages of light weight, resistant corrosion and ease of processing, aluminum is also applied to the long-span spatial structures. However, the elastic modulus of aluminum is lower than that of the steel. This paper combines the high performance aluminum honeycomb panel with the aluminum latticed shell, forming a new panel-and-rod composite shell structure. Through comparative analysis between the static and dynamic performance, the conclusion that the structure of composite shell is noticeably superior to the structure combined before.

Keywords: combination of aluminum honeycomb panel, rod latticed shell, dynamic performence, response spectrum analysis, seismic properties

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Authors: Mujde Turkkan, Nurkan Yagiz

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In this study an active controller is presented for vibration suppression of a full-bus model. The bus is modelled having seven degrees of freedom. Using the achieved model via Lagrange Equations the system equations of motion are derived. The suspensions of the bus model include air springs with two auxiliary chambers are used. Fuzzy logic controller is used to improve the ride comfort. The numerical results, verifies that the presented fuzzy logic controller improves the ride comfort.

Keywords: ride comfort, air spring, bus, fuzzy logic controller

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Authors: Ahmed Assem Abd El Rahim

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BACKGROUND: Low back pain (LBP) is enormously common health problem& most of subjects experience it at some point of their life. Kinesio-taping is one of therapy methods introduced for studied cases with nonspecific low back pain. OBJECTIVES: to look at how Kinesio-taping affects studied cases with non-specific low back pain in terms of discomfort, range of motion, & back muscular strength. SUBJECTS: 40 mechanical LBP patients aged 20-40 years had been assigned haphazardly into two groups, They had been selected from outpatient clinic, KasrAl-AiniHospital, Cairo university. Methods: GroupA: 20 patients received the I-shape KT longitudinally & conventional physiotherapy program. Group B:20 studied cases received application of the KT Horizontally & conventional physiotherapy program. pain had been measured by visual analog scale, Range of motion had been measured by Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire (RMDQ), & strength had been measured by an isokinetic dynamometer before & after therapy. Therapy sessions had been three times weekly for four weeks. RESULTS: Groups (A & B) discovered decrease in pain& disability and rise in their flexion, extension ROM & peak torque of trunk extensor after end of 4 weeks of program. mean values of pain scale after therapy had been 3.7 and 5.04 in groups A & B. mean values of Disability scale after treatment had been 7.87.and 9.35 in groups A & B. mean values of ROM of flexion had been 28.06, and 24.53 in groups A & B. mean values of ROM of extension had been 13.43 & 10.73 in groups A & B. mean values of Peak torque of lumbar extensors were 65.43 and 63.22 in groups A & B. Though, participants who received the I-shape KT longitudinally as well as conventional physiotherapy program (group A), discovered more reduction in pain& disability and more improvement in ROM of flexion, extension, and Peak torque of lumbar extensors value (P<0.001) after therapy program CONCLUSION: Therapeutic longitudinal Kinesio-taping application with conventional physiotherapy will be more valuable than Therapeutic horizontal Kinesio-taping application with conventional physiotherapy when treating nonspecific low back pain studied cases.

Keywords: Kinesio taping, function, low back pain, muscle power

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Authors: Tzong-Ying Hao, Mohammad T. Rahmani

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This article presents the structural health monitoring (SHM) method based on changes in wave traveling times (wave method) within a layered 1-D shear beam model of structure. The wave method measures the velocity of shear wave propagating in a building from the impulse response functions (IRF) obtained from recorded data at different locations inside the building. If structural damage occurs in a structure, the velocity of wave propagation through it changes. The wave method analysis is performed on the responses of Torre Central building, a 9-story shear wall structure located in Santiago, Chile. Because events of different intensity (ambient vibrations, weak and strong earthquake motions) have been recorded at this building, therefore it can serve as a full-scale benchmark to validate the structural health monitoring method utilized. The analysis of inter-story drifts and the Fourier spectra for the EW and NS motions during 2010 Chile earthquake are presented. The results for the NS motions suggest the coupling of translation and torsion responses. The system frequencies (estimated from the relative displacement response of the 8th-floor with respect to the basement from recorded data) were detected initially decreasing approximately 24% in the EW motion. Near the end of shaking, an increase of about 17% was detected. These analysis and results serve as baseline indicators of the occurrence of structural damage. The detected changes in wave velocities of the shear beam model are consistent with the observed damage. However, the 1-D shear beam model is not sufficient to simulate the coupling of translation and torsion responses in the NS motion. The wave method is proven for actual implementation in structural health monitoring systems based on carefully assessing the resolution and accuracy of the model for its effectiveness on post-earthquake damage detection in buildings.

Keywords: Chile earthquake, damage detection, earthquake response, impulse response function, shear beam model, shear wave velocity, structural health monitoring, torre central building, wave method

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Authors: Shuo Wang

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The hydrogeological parameters of the engineering site and the hydraulic connection between the aquifers can be obtained by the pumping test. Through the recovery test, the characteristics of water level recovery and the law of surface subsidence recovery can be understood. The above two tests can provide the basis for subsequent engineering design. At present, the deformation of deep soil caused by pumping tests is often neglected. However, some studies have shown that the maximum settlement subject to groundwater drawdown is not necessarily on the surface but in the deep soil. In addition, the law of settlement recovery of each soil layer subject to water level recovery is not clear. If the deformation-sensitive structure is deep in the test site, safety accidents may occur. In this study, the pumping test and recovery test of a confined aquifer in Shanghai are introduced. The law of measured groundwater changes and surface subsidence are analyzed. In addition, the fluid-solid coupling model was established by ABAQUS based on the Biot consolidation theory. The models are verified by comparing the computed and measured results. Further, the variation law of water level and the deformation law of deep soil during pumping and recovery tests under different site conditions and different times and spaces are discussed through the above model. It is found that the maximum soil settlement caused by pumping in a confined aquifer is related to the permeability of the overlying aquitard and pumping time. There is a lag between soil deformation and groundwater changes, and the recovery rate of settlement deformation of each soil layer caused by the rise of water level is different. Finally, some possible research directions are proposed to provide new ideas for academic research in this field.

Keywords: coupled hydro-mechanical analysis, deep ground settlement, numerical simulation, pumping test, recovery test

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Authors: Tri Harianto, Lawalenna Samang, St. Hijraini Nur, Arwin

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Recently, a port development is constructed in Makassar city, South Sulawesi Province, Indonesia. Makassar city is located in lowland area that dominated by soft marine clay deposit. A two kilometers causeway construction was built which is situated on the soft clay layer. In order to investigate the behavior of causeway embankment, a full-scale test was conducted of high embankment built on a soft clay deposit. The embankment with 3,5 m high was supported by two types of reinforcement such as raft and raft-aggregate column foundation. Since the ground was undergoing consolidation due to the preload, the raft and raft-aggregate column foundations were monitored in order to analyze the vertical ground movement by inducing the settlement of the foundation. In this study, two types of foundation (raft and raft-aggregate column) were tested to observe the effectiveness of raft-aggregate column compare to raft foundation in reducing the settlement. The settlement monitored during the construction stage by using the settlement plates, which is located in the center and toe of the embankment. Measurements were taken every day for each embankment construction stage (4 months). In addition, an analytical calculation was conducted in this study to compare the full-scale test result. The result shows that the raft-aggregate column foundation significantly reduces the settlement by 30% compared to the raft foundation. A raft-aggregate column foundation also reduced the time period of each loading stage. The Good agreement of analytical calculation compared to the full-scale test result also found in this study.

Keywords: full-scale, preloading, raft-aggregate column, soft clay

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Authors: Daniel Y. Abebe, Jaehyouk Choi

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From the past earthquake events, many people get hurt at the exit while they are trying to go out of the buildings because of the exit doors are unable to be opened. The door is not opened because it deviates from its the original position. The aim of this research is to develop and evaluate a new type safety door that keeps the door frame in its original position or keeps its edge angles perpendicular during and post-earthquake. The proposed door is composed of three components: outer frame joined to the wall, inner frame (door frame) and circular hollow section connected to the inner and outer frame which is used as seismic energy dissipating device.

Keywords: safety-door, earthquake disaster, low yield point steel, passive energy dissipating device, FE analysis

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Authors: M. Berrehail, F. Benamira

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We study the quantum motion of a particle in the presence of a time- dependent linear potential using an operator invariant that is quadratic in p and linear in q within the framework of the Lewis-Riesenfeld invariant, The special invariant operator proposed in this work is demonstrated to be an Hermitian operator which has an Airy wave packet as its Eigenfunction

Keywords: airy wave packet, ivariant, time-dependent linear potential, unitary transformation

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Authors: Yi Wang, Xun Liang

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This paper introduces a model of internet public opinion waves, which describes the message propagation and measures the influence of a detected event. We collect data on public opinion propagation from different platforms on the internet, including micro-blogs and news. Then, we compare the spread of public opinion to the seismic waves and correspondently define the P-wave and S-wave and other essential attributes and characteristics in the process. Further, a model is established to evaluate the magnitude scale of the events. In the end, a practical example is used to analyze the influence of network public opinion and test the reasonability and effectiveness of the proposed model.

Keywords: internet public opinion waves (IPOW), magnitude scale, cross-platform, information propagation

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Authors: Abdalrahman D. Alsulaili, Sheikha Y. Aljeraiwi, Athba N. Almanaie, Raghad Y. Alhajeri, Mariam Z. Almijren

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The water accompanying oil in the oil production process is increasing and due to its increasing rates a problem with handling it occurred. Current solutions like discharging into the environment, dumping water in evaporation pits, usage in the industry and reinjection in oil reservoirs to enhance oil production are used worldwide. The water injection method has been introduced to the oil industry with a process that either immediately injects water to the reservoir or goes to the filtration process before injection all depending on the porosity of the soil. Reinjection of unfiltered effluent water with high Total Suspended Solid (TSS) and Oil in Water (O/W) into soils with low porosity cause a blockage of pores, whereas soils with high porosity do not need high water quality. Our study mainly talks about the filtration and adsorption of the water using organic media as the adsorbent. An adsorbent is a substance that has the ability to physically hold another substance in its surface. Studies were done on nutshell and date pits with different surface areas and flow rates by using a 10inch filter connected with three tanks to perform as one system for the filtration process. Our approach in the filtration process using different types of medias went as follow: starting first with crushed nutshell, second with ground nutshell, and third using carbonized date pits with medium flow rate then high flow rate to compare different results. The result came out nearly as expected from our study where both O/W and TSS were reduced from our oily water sample by using this organic material. The effect of specific area was noticed when using nutshell as the filter media, where the crushed nutshell gave us better results than ground nutshell. The effect of flow rate was noticed when using carbonized date pits as the filter media whereas the treated water became more acceptable when the flow rate was on the medium level.

Keywords: date pits, nutshell, oil water, TSS

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Authors: F. O. Arimoro, F. N. Okonkwo, R. B. Ikomi

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The environmental determinants structuring species richness has been generating interest recently but we still lack an understanding of these patterns in various regions (e.g. Afrotropical), and how seasons help to structure these patterns. Our aim was to assessed the environmental drivers importance in regulating species richness and community structure of fish species. The lchthyofauna assemblage of Warri River, Niger Delta area of Nigeria was studied between August 2013 and July 2014. A total of 1152 individuals representing 43 species in 23 families and 30 genera were caught. Of the 43 species recorded, 67.4%, 53.5% and 67.4% of the species occurred in Stations 1, 2 and 3 respectively. Eight taxa representing 18.6% of the total abundance were ubiquitous. The claroteid, Chrysichthys walkeri and the cichlid, Chromidotilapia guentheri were the most dominant species accounting for 19.2% and 6.0% respectively of the total catch. The species richness and general diversity were relatively higher in station 1 although Jaccard similarity index revealed that stations 1 and 3 were significantly similar while station 2 showed complete dissimilarity with stations 1 and 3. Canonical correspondence analysis indicated that dissolved oxygen, electrical conductivity, total nitrogen, Biochemical Oxygen demand and temperature were important variables structuring the overall fish assemblages. The presence of appreciable number of juveniles in this water body suggests that the Warri River is a breeding and nursery ground for fish species particularly those of brackish origin. These findings indicate that the water body is still useful as a good fishing ground for the rural communities and every effort should be put in place to ensure its protection and conservation for the production of healthy fish.

Keywords: Chrysichthys walkeri, fish communities, mangrove ecosystem, physicochemical parameters, Warri River

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Authors: M. A. Talha, M. Osman Gani, M. Ferdows

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This paper focuses on the study of two dimensional magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) steady incompressible viscous Williamson nanofluid with exponential internal heat generation containing gyrotactic microorganism over a stretching sheet. The governing equations and auxiliary conditions are reduced to a set of non-linear coupled differential equations with the appropriate boundary conditions using similarity transformation. The transformed equations are solved numerically through spectral relaxation method. The influences of various parameters such as Williamson parameter γ, power constant λ, Prandtl number P_r, magnetic field parameter M, Peclet number P_e, Lewis number Le, Bioconvection Lewis number Lb, Brownian motion parameter Nb, thermophoresis parameter Nt, and bioconvection constant σ are studied to obtain the momentum, heat, mass and microorganism distributions. Moment, heat, mass and gyrotactic microorganism profiles are explored through graphs and tables. We computed the heat transfer rate, mass flux rate and the density number of the motile microorganism near the surface. Our numerical results are in better agreement in comparison with existing calculations. The Residual error of our obtained solutions is determined in order to see the convergence rate against iteration. Faster convergence is achieved when internal heat generation is absent. The effect of magnetic parameter M decreases the momentum boundary layer thickness but increases the thermal boundary layer thickness. It is apparent that bioconvection Lewis number and bioconvection parameter has a pronounced effect on microorganism boundary. Increasing brownian motion parameter and Lewis number decreases the thermal boundary layer. Furthermore, magnetic field parameter and thermophoresis parameter has an induced effect on concentration profiles.

Keywords: convection flow, similarity, numerical analysis, spectral method, Williamson nanofluid, internal heat generation

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Authors: Utkarsh Tripathi, Bikalp C. Mandal, Ravi Kumar Umrao, Sirsha Das, M. K. Bhowmic, Joyesh Bagchi, Hemant Kumar

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The Central India Diamond Province (CIDP) is known for the occurrences of primary and secondary sources for diamonds from the Vindhyan platformal sediments, which host several kimberlites, with one operating mine. The known kimberlites are Neo-Proterozoic in age and intrude into the Kaimur Group of rocks. Based on the interpretation of areo-geomagnetic data, three potential zones were demarcated in parts of Chitrakoot and Banda districts, Uttar Pradesh, and Satna district, Madhya Pradesh, India. To validate the aero-geomagnetic interpretation, ground magnetic coupled with a gravity survey was conducted to validate the anomaly and explore the possibility of some pipes concealed beneath the Vindhyan sedimentary cover. Geologically the area exposes the milky white to buff-colored arkosic and arenitic sandstone belonging to the Dhandraul Formation of the Kaimur Group, which are undeformed and unmetamorphosed providing almost transparent media for geophysical exploration. There is neither surface nor any geophysical indication of intersections of linear structures, but the joint patterns depict three principal joints along NNE-SSW, ENE-WSW, and NW-SE directions with vertical to sub-vertical dips. Aeromagnetic data interpretation brings out three promising zones with the bi-polar magnetic anomaly (69-602nT) that represent potential kimberlite intrusive concealed below at an approximate depth of 150-170m. The ground magnetic survey has brought out the above-mentioned anomalies in zone-I, which is congruent with the available aero-geophysical data. The magnetic anomaly map shows a total variation of 741 nT over the area. Two very high magnetic zones (H1 and H2) have been observed with around 500 nT and 400 nT magnitudes, respectively. Anomaly zone H1 is located in the west-central part of the area, south of Madulihai village, while anomaly zone H2 is located 2km apart in the north-eastern direction. The Euler 3D solution map indicates the possible existence of the ultramafic body in both the magnetic highs (H1 and H2). The H2 high shows the shallow depth, and H1 shows a deeper depth solution. In the reduced-to-pole (RTP) method, the bipolar anomaly disappears and indicates the existence of one causative source for both anomalies, which is, in all probabilities, an ultramafic suite of rock. The H1 magnetic high represents the main body, which persists up to depths of ~500m, as depicted through the upward continuation derivative map. Radially Averaged Power Spectrum (RAPS) shows the thickness of loose sediments up to 25m with a cumulative depth of 154m for sandstone overlying the ultramafic body. The average depth range of the shallower body (H2) is 60.5-86 meters, as estimated through the Peters half slope method. Magnetic (TF) anomaly with BA contour also shows high BA value around the high zones of magnetic anomaly (H1 and H2), which suggests that the causative body is with higher density and susceptibility for the surrounding host rock. The ground magnetic survey coupled with the gravity confirms a potential target for further exploration as the findings are co-relatable with the presence of the known diamondiferous kimberlites in this region, which post-date the rocks of the Kaimur Group.

Keywords: Kaimur, kimberlite, Euler 3D solution, magnetic

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Authors: Kholod Khairy Salama, Shabban Hassan Thabet

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In the present study, a comprehensive investigation has been undertaken into an Egyptian mural painting with feet wear slippers approach to choose the most successful restoration methods. The mural painting under examination dates back to the Amarna period; it was detached from a wall of an unknown tomb in Egypt, and currently, it is initially displayed in a showcase at the Egyptian Museum – Tahrir Square – Cairo, Egypt. The main objectives of this research were to (a) reveal the pigment used in the mural painting, (b) reveal the medium used with colours, (c) determine the technique of manufacturing, (e) determine the ground support, and (f) reveal the main deterioration aspects. The analytical techniques used for investigation were Optical Microscopy, Raman, X-ray Florescence, X-ray diffraction, and Fourier transform infrared coupled with attenuated total reflectance “FTIR-ATR”. The investigation revealed that the vital deterioration factors affecting the object. This research aims to examine and analyze the mural painting to choose the suitable method for the restoration process (a) define the colours through comparative analysis to choose the suitable material for cleaning, (b) define the natural structure of the ground support layer, which appeared as mud layer (c) determine the medium used with colours (d) diagnosis the presence of the white wash layer, and (e) choose the suitable restoration methods according to the results. Conclusion: This study focused mainly on the physical and chemical properties of the mural painting compound and the main changes that happened to the mural painting material, which caused deterioration and fall down of the painting parts, so we can find the best and optimum restoration ways for this object.

Keywords: mural paintings, Tal Al-Amarna, digital microscope, Raman, XRF, XRD, FTIR

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Authors: Masato Saeki

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Presented herein is a novel algorithms for calculating the damping performance of particle dampers. The particle damper is a passive vibration control technique and has many practical applications due to simple design. It consists of granular materials constrained to move between two ends in the cavity of a primary vibrating system. The damping effect results from the exchange of momentum during the impact of granular materials against the wall of the cavity. This damping has the advantage of being independent of the environment. Therefore, particle damping can be applied in extreme temperature environments, where most conventional dampers would fail. It was shown experimentally in many papers that the efficiency of the particle dampers is high in the case of resonant vibration. In order to use the particle dampers effectively, it is necessary to solve the equations of motion for each particle, considering the granularity. The discrete element method (DEM) has been found to be effective for revealing the dynamics of particle damping. In this method, individual particles are assumed as rigid body and interparticle collisions are modeled by mechanical elements as springs and dashpots. However, the computational cost is significant since the equation of motion for each particle must be solved at each time step. In order to improve the computational efficiency of the DEM, the new algorithms are needed. In this study, new algorithms are proposed for implementing the high performance DEM. On the assumption that behaviors of the granular particles in the each divided area of the damper container are the same, the contact force of the primary system with all particles can be considered to be equal to the product of the divided number of the damper area and the contact force of the primary system with granular materials per divided area. This convenience makes it possible to considerably reduce the calculation time. The validity of this calculation method was investigated and the calculated results were compared with the experimental ones. This paper also presents the results of experimental studies of the performance of particle dampers. It is shown that the particle radius affect the noise level. It is also shown that the particle size and the particle material influence the damper performance.

Keywords: particle damping, discrete element method (DEM), granular materials, numerical analysis, equivalent noise level

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Authors: Debashree Ghosh, Preethi Sridhar, Shloka Atul Dhavle

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The judicious and economic consumption of energy for sustainable growth and development is nowadays a thing of primary importance; Phase Change Materials (PCM) provide an ingenious option of storing energy in the form of Latent Heat. Energy storing mechanism incorporating phase change material increases the efficiency of the process by minimizing the difference between supply and demand; PCM heat exchangers are used to storing the heat or non-convectional energy within the PCM as the heat of fusion. The experimental study evaluates the effect of thermo-physical properties, variation in inlet temperature, and flow rate on charging period of a coiled heat exchanger. Secondly, a numerical study is performed on a PCM double pipe heat exchanger packed with two different PCMs, namely, RT50 and Fatty Acid, in the annular region. In this work, the simulation of charging of paraffin wax (RT50) using water as high-temperature fluid (HTF) is performed. Commercial software Ansys-Fluent 15 is used for simulation, and hence charging of PCM is studied. In the Enthalpy-porosity model, a single momentum equation is applicable to describe the motion of both solid and liquid phases. The details of the progress of phase change with time are presented through the contours of melt-fraction, temperature. The velocity contour is shown to describe the motion of the liquid phase. The experimental study revealed that paraffin wax melts with almost the same temperature variation at the two Intermediate positions. Fatty acid, on the other hand, melts faster owing to greater thermal conductivity and low melting temperature. It was also observed that an increase in flow rate leads to a reduction in the charging period. The numerical study also supports some of the observations found in the experimental study like the significant dependence of driving force on the process of melting. The numerical study also clarifies the melting pattern of the PCM, which cannot be observed in the experimental study.

Keywords: latent heat storage, charging period, discharging period, coiled heat exchanger

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Authors: K. Passbakhsh

Abstract:

Determination of reinforcement forces is one of the most important and main discussions in designing retaining walls. By determining these forces we refrain from conservative planning. By numerically modeling the reinforced soil retaining walls under dynamic loading reinforcement forces can be calculated. In this study we try to approach the gained forces by pseudo-static method according to FHWA code and gained forces from numerical modeling by finite element method, by selecting seismic horizontal coefficient for different wall height. PLAXIS software was used for numerical analysis. Then the effect of reinforcement stiffness and soil type on reinforcement forces is examined.

Keywords: reinforced soil, PLAXIS, reinforcement forces, retaining walls

Procedia PDF Downloads 349

Authors: Zheng Wang, Zhenhong Li, Jon Mills

Abstract:

Ground-based synthetic aperture radar (GBSAR) represents a powerful remote sensing tool for deformation monitoring towards various geohazards, e.g. landslides, mudflows, avalanches, infrastructure failures, and the subsidence of residential areas. Unlike spaceborne SAR with a fixed revisit period, GBSAR data can be acquired with an adjustable temporal resolution through either continuous or discontinuous operation. However, challenges arise from processing high temporal-resolution continuous GBSAR data, including the extreme cost of computational random-access-memory (RAM), the delay of displacement maps, and the loss of temporal evolution. Moreover, repositioning errors between discontinuous campaigns impede the accurate measurement of surface displacements. Therefore, a versatile package with two complete chains is developed in this study in order to process both continuous and discontinuous GBSAR data and address the aforementioned issues. The first chain is based on a small-baseline subset concept and it processes continuous GBSAR images unit by unit. Images within a window form a basic unit. By taking this strategy, the RAM requirement is reduced to only one unit of images and the chain can theoretically process an infinite number of images. The evolution of surface displacements can be detected as it keeps temporarily-coherent pixels which are present only in some certain units but not in the whole observation period. The chain supports real-time processing of the continuous data and the delay of creating displacement maps can be shortened without waiting for the entire dataset. The other chain aims to measure deformation between discontinuous campaigns. Temporal averaging is carried out on a stack of images in a single campaign in order to improve the signal-to-noise ratio of discontinuous data and minimise the loss of coherence. The temporal-averaged images are then processed by a particular interferometry procedure integrated with advanced interferometric SAR algorithms such as robust coherence estimation, non-local filtering, and selection of partially-coherent pixels. Experiments are conducted using both synthetic and real-world GBSAR data. Displacement time series at the level of a few sub-millimetres are achieved in several applications (e.g. a coastal cliff, a sand dune, a bridge, and a residential area), indicating the feasibility of the developed GBSAR data processing package for deformation monitoring of a wide range of scientific and practical applications.

Keywords: ground-based synthetic aperture radar, interferometry, small baseline subset algorithm, deformation monitoring

Procedia PDF Downloads 147