Search results for: Structural model
8142 Multimode Dynamics of the Beijing Road Traffic System
Authors: Zundong Zhang, Limin Jia, Xiaoliang Sun
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The Beijing road traffic system, as a typical huge urban traffic system, provides a platform for analyzing the complex characteristics and the evolving mechanisms of urban traffic systems. Based on dynamic network theory, we construct the dynamic model of the Beijing road traffic system in which the dynamical properties are described completely. Furthermore, we come into the conclusion that urban traffic systems can be viewed as static networks, stochastic networks and complex networks at different system phases by analyzing the structural randomness. As well as, we demonstrate the evolving process of the Beijing road traffic network based on real traffic data, validate the stochastic characteristics and the scale-free property of the network at different phasesKeywords: Dynamic Network Models, Structural Randomness, Scale-free Property, Multi-mode character
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 15338141 'Performance-Based' Seismic Methodology and Its Application in Seismic Design of Reinforced Concrete Structures
Authors: Jelena R. Pejović, Nina N. Serdar
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This paper presents an analysis of the “Performance-Based” seismic design method, in order to overcome the perceived disadvantages and limitations of the existing seismic design approach based on force, in engineering practice. Bearing in mind, the specificity of the earthquake as a load and the fact that the seismic resistance of the structures solely depends on its behaviour in the nonlinear field, traditional seismic design approach based on force and linear analysis is not adequate. “Performance-Based” seismic design method is based on nonlinear analysis and can be used in everyday engineering practice. This paper presents the application of this method to eight-story high reinforced concrete building with combined structural system (reinforced concrete frame structural system in one direction and reinforced concrete ductile wall system in other direction). The nonlinear time-history analysis is performed on the spatial model of the structure using program Perform 3D, where the structure is exposed to forty real earthquake records. For considered building, large number of results were obtained. It was concluded that using this method we could, with a high degree of reliability, evaluate structural behavior under earthquake. It is obtained significant differences in the response of structures to various earthquake records. Also analysis showed that frame structural system had not performed well at the effect of earthquake records on soil like sand and gravel, while a ductile wall system had a satisfactory behavior on different types of soils.
Keywords: Ductile wall, frame system, nonlinear time-history analysis, performance-based methodology, RC building.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 14988140 Structural Behavior of Lightweight Concrete Made With Scoria Aggregates and Mineral Admixtures
Authors: M. Shannag, A. Charif, S. Naser, F. Faisal, A. Karim
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Structural lightweight concrete is used primarily to reduce the dead-load weight in concrete members such as floors in high-rise buildings and bridge decks. With given materials, it is generally desired to have the highest possible strength/unit weight ratio with the lowest cost of concrete. The work presented herein is part of an ongoing research project that investigates the properties of concrete mixes containing locally available Scoria lightweight aggregates and mineral admixtures. Properties considered included: workability, unit weight, compressive strength, and splitting tensile strength. Test results indicated that developing structural lightweight concretes (SLWC) using locally available Scoria lightweight aggregates and specific blends of silica fume and fly ash seems to be feasible. The stress-strain diagrams plotted for the structural LWC mixes developed in this investigation were comparable to a typical stress-strain diagram for normal weight concrete with relatively larger strain capacity at failure in case of LWC.
Keywords: Lightweight Concrete, Scoria, Stress, Strain, Silica fume, Fly Ash.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 35898139 Relationships among Tourists’ Needs for Uniqueness, Perceived Authenticity and Behavioral Intentions
Authors: Deniz Karagöz Yüncü
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This study tested a structural model which investigates the relationships among tourists’ need for uniqueness, perceived authenticity (object-based authenticity and existential authenticity) and behavioral intentions to consume cultural and heritage destinations. The sample of the study comprised of 281 participants in a cultural heritage site, in Cappadocia, Turkey. The data were provided via face to face interviews in two months (September and October) which considered the high season. Structural equation modeling was employed to test the causal relationships among the hypotheses. Findings revealed tourists’ creative choice had an influence on object-based authenticity and existential authenticity. Tourists’ avoidance had an influence on object-based authenticity. The study concluded that two dimensions, namely, the object based authenticity and existential authenticity had significant impact on behavioral intentions.
Keywords: Needs for uniqueness, object-based authenticity, existential authenticity, behavioral intentions.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 16548138 Statistical Analysis of Stresses in Rigid Pavement
Authors: Aleš Florian, Lenka Ševelová, Rudolf Hela
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Complex statistical analysis of stresses in concrete slab of the real type of rigid pavement is performed. The computational model of the pavement is designed as a spatial (3D) model, is based on a nonlinear variant of the finite element method that respects the structural nonlinearity, enables to model different arrangement of joints, and the entire model can be loaded by the thermal load. Interaction of adjacent slabs in joints and contact of the slab and the subsequent layer are modeled with help of special contact elements. Four concrete slabs separated by transverse and longitudinal joints and the additional subgrade layers and soil to the depth of about 3m are modeled. The thickness of individual layers, physical and mechanical properties of materials, characteristics of joints, and the temperature of the upper and lower surface of slabs are supposed to be random variables. The modern simulation technique Updated Latin Hypercube Sampling with 20 simulations is used for statistical analysis. As results, the estimates of basic statistics of the principal stresses s1 and s3 in 53 points on the upper and lower surface of the slabs are obtained.Keywords: concrete, FEM, pavement, simulation.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 15798137 A Statistical Identification Approach by the Boundary Field Changes
Authors: Rumena D. Stancheva, Ilona I. Iatcheva
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In working mode some unexpected changes could be arise in inner structure of electromagnetic device. They influence modification in electromagnetic field propagation map. The field values at an observed boundary are also changed. The development of the process has to be watched because the arising structural changes would provoke the device to be gone out later. The probabilistic assessment of the state is possible to be made. The numerical assessment points if the resulting changes have only accidental character or they are due to the essential inner structural disturbances. The presented application example is referring to the 200MW turbine-generator. A part of the stator core end teeth zone is simulated broken. Quasi three-dimensional electromagnetic and temperature field are solved applying FEM. The stator core state diagnosis is proposed to be solved as an identification problem on the basis of a statistical criterion.Keywords: Identification, structural disturbance, statistical criterion.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 12928136 Best Combination of Design Parameters for Buildings with Buckling-Restrained Braces
Authors: Ángel de J. López-Pérez, Sonia E. Ruiz, Vanessa A. Segovia
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Buildings vulnerability due to seismic activity has been highly studied since the middle of last century. As a solution to the structural and non-structural damage caused by intense ground motions, several seismic energy dissipating devices, such as buckling-restrained braces (BRB), have been proposed. BRB have shown to be effective in concentrating a large portion of the energy transmitted to the structure by the seismic ground motion. A design approach for buildings with BRB elements, which is based on a seismic Displacement-Based formulation, has recently been proposed by the coauthors in this paper. It is a practical and easy design method which simplifies the work of structural engineers. The method is used here for the design of the structure-BRB damper system. The objective of the present study is to extend and apply a methodology to find the best combination of design parameters on multiple-degree-of-freedom (MDOF) structural frame – BRB systems, taking into account simultaneously: 1) initial costs and 2) an adequate engineering demand parameter. The design parameters considered here are: the stiffness ratio (α = Kframe/Ktotal), and the strength ratio (γ = Vdamper/Vtotal); where K represents structural stiffness and V structural strength; and the subscripts "frame", "damper" and "total" represent: the structure without dampers, the BRB dampers and the total frame-damper system, respectively. The selection of the best combination of design parameters α and γ is based on an initial costs analysis and on the structural dynamic response of the structural frame-damper system. The methodology is applied to a 12-story 5-bay steel building with BRB, which is located on the intermediate soil of Mexico City. It is found the best combination of design parameters α and γ for the building with BRB under study.
Keywords: Best combination of design parameters, BRB, buildings with energy dissipating devices, buckling-restrained braces, initial costs.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 11888135 Latent Factors of Severity in Truck-Involved and Non-Truck-Involved Crashes on Freeways
Authors: Shin-Hyung Cho, Dong-Kyu Kim, Seung-Young Kho
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Truck-involved crashes have higher crash severity than non-truck-involved crashes. There have been many studies about the frequency of crashes and the development of severity models, but those studies only analyzed the relationship between observed variables. To identify why more people are injured or killed when trucks are involved in the crash, we must examine to quantify the complex causal relationship between severity of the crash and risk factors by adopting the latent factors of crashes. The aim of this study was to develop a structural equation or model based on truck-involved and non-truck-involved crashes, including five latent variables, i.e. a crash factor, environmental factor, road factor, driver’s factor, and severity factor. To clarify the unique characteristics of truck-involved crashes compared to non-truck-involved crashes, a confirmatory analysis method was used. To develop the model, we extracted crash data from 10,083 crashes on Korean freeways from 2008 through 2014. The results showed that the most significant variable affecting the severity of a crash is the crash factor, which can be expressed by the location, cause, and type of the crash. For non-truck-involved crashes, the crash and environment factors increase severity of the crash; conversely, the road and driver factors tend to reduce severity of the crash. For truck-involved crashes, the driver factor has a significant effect on severity of the crash although its effect is slightly less than the crash factor. The multiple group analysis employed to analyze the differences between the heterogeneous groups of drivers.
Keywords: Crash severity, structural equation modeling, truck-involved crashes, multiple group analysis, crash on freeway.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 13448134 Information Technology and Business Alignments among Different Divisions: A Comparative Analysis of Japan and South Korea
Authors: Michiko Miyamoto
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This paper empirically investigates whether information technology (IT) strategies, business strategies, and divisions are aligned to meet overall business goals for Korean Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), based on structure based Strategic Alignment Model, and make comparison with those of Japanese SMEs. Using 2,869 valid responses of Korean Human Capital Corporate Panel survey, a result of this study suggests that Korean human resources (HR) departments have a major influence over IT strategy, which is the same as Japanese SMEs, even though their management styles are quite different. As for IT strategy, it is not related to other departments at all for Korean SMEs. The Korean management seems to possess a great power over each division, such as Sales/Service, Research and Development/Technical Experts, HR, and Production.
Keywords: IT-business alignment, structured based strategic alignment model, structural equation model, human resources department.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 11008133 Dynamic Response of a Water Tower Composed of Interlocked Panels
Authors: F. Gurkalo, K. Poutos
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Earthquakes produce some of the most violent loading situations that a structure can be subjected to and if a structure fails under these loads then inevitably human life is put at risk. One of the most common methods by which a structure fails under seismic loading is at the connection of structural elements. The research presented in this paper investigates the interlock systems as a novel method for building structures. The main objective of this experimental study wasto determine the dynamic characteristics and the seismic behaviour of the proposed structures compared to conventional structural systemsduring seismic motions. Results of this study indicate that the interlock mechanism of the panels influences the behaviour of lateral load-resisting systems of the structures during earthquakes, contributing to better structural flexibility and easier maintenance.Keywords: Watertower, earthquake, seismic, interlocked panels
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 20498132 Robust Integrated Design for a Mechatronic Feed Drive System of Machine Tools
Authors: Chin-Yin Chen, Chi-Cheng Cheng
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This paper aims at to develop a robust optimization methodology for the mechatronic modules of machine tools by considering all important characteristics from all structural and control domains in one single process. The relationship between these two domains is strongly coupled. In order to reduce the disturbance caused by parameters in either one, the mechanical and controller design domains need to be integrated. Therefore, the concurrent integrated design method Design For Control (DFC), will be employed in this paper. In this connect, it is not only applied to achieve minimal power consumption but also enhance structural performance and system response at same time. To investigate the method for integrated optimization, a mechatronic feed drive system of the machine tools is used as a design platform. Pro/Engineer and AnSys are first used to build the 3D model to analyze and design structure parameters such as elastic deformation, nature frequency and component size, based on their effects and sensitivities to the structure. In addition, the robust controller,based on Quantitative Feedback Theory (QFT), will be applied to determine proper control parameters for the controller. Therefore, overall physical properties of the machine tool will be obtained in the initial stage. Finally, the technology of design for control will be carried out to modify the structural and control parameters to achieve overall system performance. Hence, the corresponding productivity is expected to be greatly improved.
Keywords: Machine tools, integrated structure and control design, design for control, multilevel decomposition, quantitative feedback theory.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 19508131 Development and Structural Performance Evaluation on Slit Circular Shear Panel Damper
Authors: Daniel Y. Abebe, Jaehyouk Choi
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There are several types of metal-based devices conceived as dampers for the seismic energy absorber whereby damages to the major structural components could be minimized for both new and existing structures. This paper aimed to develop and evaluate structural performance of slit circular shear panel damper for passive seismic energy protection by inelastic deformation. Structural evaluation was done using commercially available nonlinear FE simulation program. The main parameters considered are: diameter-to-thickness (D/t) ratio and slit length-to-width ratio (l/w). Depending on these parameters three different buckling mode and hysteretic behavior was found: yielding prior to buckling without strength degradation, yielding prior to buckling with strength degradation and yielding with buckling and strength degradation which forms pinching at initial displacement. The susceptible location at which the possible crack is initiated is also identified for selected specimens using rupture index.
Keywords: Slit circular shear panel damper, Hysteresis Characteristics, Slip length-to-width ratio, D/t ratio, FE analysis.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 25008130 Bridge Health Monitoring: A Review
Authors: Mohammad Bakhshandeh
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Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) is a crucial and necessary practice that plays a vital role in ensuring the safety and integrity of critical structures, and in particular, bridges. The continuous monitoring of bridges for signs of damage or degradation through Bridge Health Monitoring (BHM) enables early detection of potential problems, allowing for prompt corrective action to be taken before significant damage occurs. Although all monitoring techniques aim to provide accurate and decisive information regarding the remaining useful life, safety, integrity, and serviceability of bridges, understanding the development and propagation of damage is vital for maintaining uninterrupted bridge operation. Over the years, extensive research has been conducted on BHM methods, and experts in the field have increasingly adopted new methodologies. In this article, we provide a comprehensive exploration of the various BHM approaches, including sensor-based, non-destructive testing (NDT), model-based, and artificial intelligence (AI)-based methods. We also discuss the challenges associated with BHM, including sensor placement and data acquisition, data analysis and interpretation, cost and complexity, and environmental effects, through an extensive review of relevant literature and research studies. Additionally, we examine potential solutions to these challenges and propose future research ideas to address critical gaps in BHM.
Keywords: Structural health monitoring, bridge health monitoring, sensor-based methods, machine-learning algorithms, model-based techniques, sensor placement, data acquisition, data analysis.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 3328129 Structural Analysis of Stiffened FGM Thick Walled Cylinders by Application of a New Cylindrical Super Element
Authors: S. A. Moeini, M. T.Ahmadian
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Structural behavior of ring stiffened thick walled cylinders made of functionally graded materials (FGMs) is investigated in this paper. Functionally graded materials are inhomogeneous composites which are usually made from a mixture of metal and ceramic. The gradient compositional variation of the constituents from one surface to the other provides an elegant solution to the problem of high transverse shear stresses that are induced when two dissimilar materials with large differences in material properties are bonded. FGM formation of the cylinder is modeled by power-law exponent and the variation of characteristics is supposed to be in radial direction. A finite element formulation is derived for the analysis. According to the property variation of the constituent materials in the radial direction of the wall, it is not convenient to use conventional elements to model and analyze the structure of the stiffened FGM cylinders. In this paper a new cylindrical super-element is used to model the finite element formulation and analyze the static and modal behavior of stiffened FGM thick walled cylinders. By using this super-element the number of elements, which are needed for modeling, will reduce significantly and the process time is less in comparison with conventional finite element formulations. Results for static and modal analysis are evaluated and verified by comparison to finite element formulation with conventional elements. Comparison indicates a good conformity between results.Keywords: FGMs, Modal analysis, Static analysis, Stiffened cylinders.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 23238128 Improvement of Load Carrying Capacity of an RCC T-Beam Bridge Longitudinal Girder by Replacing Steel Bars with SMA Bars
Authors: N. K. Paul, S. Saha
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An innovative three dimensional finite element model has beed developed and tested under two point loading system to examine the structural behavior of the longitudinal reinforced concrete Tee-beam bridge girder, reinforcing with steel and shape memory alloy bars respectively. 25% of steel bars are replaced with superelastic Shape Memory Alloy bars in this study. Finite element analysis is performed using ANSYS 11.0 program. Experimentally a model of steel reinforced girder has been casted and its load deflection responses are checked with ANSYS analysis. A comparison of load carrying capacity for the model between steel RC girder and the girder combined reinforcement with SMA and steel are also performed.
Keywords: Shape memory alloy, bridge girder, ANSYS, load-deflection.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 8918127 Cosastudio: A Software Architecture Modeling Tool
Authors: Adel Smeda, Adel Alti, Mourad Oussalah, Abdallah Boukerram
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A key aspect of the design of any software system is its architecture. An architecture description provides a formal model of the architecture in terms of components and connectors and how they are composed together. COSA (Component-Object based Software Structures), is based on object-oriented modeling and component-based modeling. The model improves the reusability by increasing extensibility, evolvability, and compositionality of the software systems. This paper presents the COSA modelling tool which help architects the possibility to verify the structural coherence of a given system and to validate its semantics with COSA approach.Keywords: Software Architecture, Architecture Description Languages, UML, Components, Connectors.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 16848126 Thermodynamic, Structural and Transport Properties of Molten Copper-Thallium Alloys
Authors: D. Adhikari, R. P. Koirala, B.P. Singh
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A self-association model has been used to understand the concentration dependence of free energy of mixing (GM), heat of mixing (HM), entropy of mixing (SM), activity (a) and microscopic structures, such as concentration fluctuation in long wavelength limit (Scc(0)) and Warren-Cowley short range order parameter ( 1 α )for Cu- Tl molten alloys at 1573K. A comparative study of surface tension of the alloys in the liquid state at that temperature has also been carried out theoretically as function of composition in the light of Butler-s model, Prasad-s model and quasi-chemical approach. Most of the computed thermodynamic properties have been found in agreement with the experimental values. The analysis reveals that the Cu-Tl molten alloys at 1573K represent a segregating system at all concentrations with moderate interaction. Surface tensions computed from different approaches have been found to be comparable to each other showing increment with the composition of copper.Keywords: Concentration fluctuations, surface tension, thermodynamic properties, Quasi-chemical approximation.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 21678125 Obtaining Constants of Johnson-Cook Material Model Using a Combined Experimental, Numerical Simulation and Optimization Method
Authors: F. Rahimi Dehgolan, M. Behzadi, J. Fathi Sola
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In this article, the Johnson-Cook material model’s constants for structural steel ST.37 have been determined by a method which integrates experimental tests, numerical simulation, and optimization. In the first step, a quasi-static test was carried out on a plain specimen. Next, the constants were calculated for it by minimizing the difference between the results acquired from the experiment and numerical simulation. Then, a quasi-static tension test was performed on three notched specimens with different notch radii. At last, in order to verify the results, they were used in numerical simulation of notched specimens and it was observed that experimental and simulation results are in good agreement. Changing the diameter size of the plain specimen in the necking area was set as the objective function in the optimization step. For final validation of the proposed method, diameter variation was considered as a parameter and its sensitivity to a change in any of the model constants was examined and the results were completely corroborating.
Keywords: Constants, Johnson-Cook material model, notched specimens, quasi-static test, sensitivity.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 36198124 3D Modeling Approach for Cultural Heritage Structures: The Case of Virgin of Loreto Chapel in Cusco, Peru
Authors: Rony Reátegui, Cesar Chácara, Benjamin Castañeda, Rafael Aguilar
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Nowadays, Heritage Building Information Modeling (HBIM) is considered an efficient tool to represent and manage information of Cultural Heritage (CH). The basis of this tool relies on a 3D model generally obtained from a Cloud-to-BIM procedure. There are different methods to create an HBIM model that goes from manual modeling based on the point cloud to the automatic detection of shapes and the creation of objects. The selection of these methods depends on the desired Level of Development (LOD), Level of Information (LOI), Grade of Generation (GOG) as well as on the availability of commercial software. This paper presents the 3D modeling of a stone masonry chapel using Recap Pro, Revit and Dynamo interface following a three-step methodology. The first step consists of the manual modeling of simple structural (e.g., regular walls, columns, floors, wall openings, etc.) and architectural (e.g., cornices, moldings and other minor details) elements using the point cloud as reference. Then, Dynamo is used for generative modeling of complex structural elements such as vaults, infills and domes. Finally, semantic information (e.g., materials, typology, state of conservation, etc.) and pathologies are added within the HBIM model as text parameters and generic models’ families respectively. The application of this methodology allows the documentation of CH following a relatively simple to apply process that ensures adequate LOD, LOI and GOG levels. In addition, the easy implementation of the method as well as the fact of using only one BIM software with its respective plugin for the scan-to-BIM modeling process means that this methodology can be adopted by a larger number of users with intermediate knowledge and limited resources, since the BIM software used has a free student license.
Keywords: Cloud-to-BIM, cultural heritage, generative modeling, HBIM, parametric modeling, Revit.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 9388123 Reliability-Based Topology Optimization Based on Evolutionary Structural Optimization
Authors: Sang-Rak Kim, Jea-Yong Park, Won-Goo Lee, Jin-Shik Yu, Seog-Young Han
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This paper presents a Reliability-Based Topology Optimization (RBTO) based on Evolutionary Structural Optimization (ESO). An actual design involves uncertain conditions such as material property, operational load and dimensional variation. Deterministic Topology Optimization (DTO) is obtained without considering of the uncertainties related to the uncertainty parameters. However, RBTO involves evaluation of probabilistic constraints, which can be done in two different ways, the reliability index approach (RIA) and the performance measure approach (PMA). Limit state function is approximated using Monte Carlo Simulation and Central Composite Design for reliability analysis. ESO, one of the topology optimization techniques, is adopted for topology optimization. Numerical examples are presented to compare the DTO with RBTO.Keywords: Evolutionary Structural Optimization, PerformanceMeasure Approach, Reliability-Based Topology Optimization, Reliability Index Approach.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 28038122 Exploring Dimensionality, Systematic Mutations and Number of Contacts in Simple HP ab-initio Protein Folding Using a Blackboard-based Agent Platform
Authors: Hiram I. Beltrán, Arturo Rojo-Domínguez, Máximo Eduardo Sánchez Gutiérrez, Pedro Pablo González Pérez
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A computational platform is presented in this contribution. It has been designed as a virtual laboratory to be used for exploring optimization algorithms in biological problems. This platform is built on a blackboard-based agent architecture. As a test case, the version of the platform presented here is devoted to the study of protein folding, initially with a bead-like description of the chain and with the widely used model of hydrophobic and polar residues (HP model). Some details of the platform design are presented along with its capabilities and also are revised some explorations of the protein folding problems with different types of discrete space. It is also shown the capability of the platform to incorporate specific tools for the structural analysis of the runs in order to understand and improve the optimization process. Accordingly, the results obtained demonstrate that the ensemble of computational tools into a single platform is worthwhile by itself, since experiments developed on it can be designed to fulfill different levels of information in a self-consistent fashion. By now, it is being explored how an experiment design can be useful to create a computational agent to be included within the platform. These inclusions of designed agents –or software pieces– are useful for the better accomplishment of the tasks to be developed by the platform. Clearly, while the number of agents increases the new version of the virtual laboratory thus enhances in robustness and functionality.Keywords: genetic algorithms, multi-agent systems, bioinformatics, optimization, protein folding, structural biology.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 19038121 Concurrent Approach to Data Parallel Model using Java
Authors: Bala Dhandayuthapani Veerasamy
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Parallel programming models exist as an abstraction of hardware and memory architectures. There are several parallel programming models in commonly use; they are shared memory model, thread model, message passing model, data parallel model, hybrid model, Flynn-s models, embarrassingly parallel computations model, pipelined computations model. These models are not specific to a particular type of machine or memory architecture. This paper expresses the model program for concurrent approach to data parallel model through java programming.Keywords: Concurrent, Data Parallel, JDK, Parallel, Thread
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 21028120 Resistance and Sub-Resistances of RC Beams Subjected to Multiple Failure Modes
Authors: F. Sangiorgio, J. Silfwerbrand, G. Mancini
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Geometric and mechanical properties all influence the resistance of RC structures and may, in certain combination of property values, increase the risk of a brittle failure of the whole system. This paper presents a statistical and probabilistic investigation on the resistance of RC beams designed according to Eurocodes 2 and 8, and subjected to multiple failure modes, under both the natural variation of material properties and the uncertainty associated with cross-section and transverse reinforcement geometry. A full probabilistic model based on JCSS Probabilistic Model Code is derived. Different beams are studied through material nonlinear analysis via Monte Carlo simulations. The resistance model is consistent with Eurocode 2. Both a multivariate statistical evaluation and the data clustering analysis of outcomes are then performed. Results show that the ultimate load behaviour of RC beams subjected to flexural and shear failure modes seems to be mainly influenced by the combination of the mechanical properties of both longitudinal reinforcement and stirrups, and the tensile strength of concrete, of which the latter appears to affect the overall response of the system in a nonlinear way. The model uncertainty of the resistance model used in the analysis plays undoubtedly an important role in interpreting results.
Keywords: Modelling, Monte Carlo Simulations, Probabilistic Models, Data Clustering, Reinforced Concrete Members, Structural Design.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 21118119 Alteration of Bone Strength in Osteoporosis of Mouse Femora: Computational Study Based on Micro CT Images
Authors: Changsoo Chon, Sangkuy Han, Donghyun Seo, Jihyung Park, Bokku Kang, Hansung Kim, Keyoungjin Chun, Cheolwoong Ko
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The purpose of the study is to develop a finite element model based on 3D bone structural images of Micro-CT and to analyze the stress distribution for the osteoporosis mouse femora. In this study, results of finite element analysis show that the early osteoporosis of mouse model decreased a bone density in trabecular region; however, the bone density in cortical region increased.
Keywords: Micro-CT, finite element analysis, osteoporosis, bone strength.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 17048118 Experimental Investigation on the Fire Performance of Corrugated Sandwich Panels made from Renewable Material
Authors: Avishek Chanda, Nam Kyeun Kim, Debes Bhattacharyya
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The use of renewable substitutes in various semi-structural and structural applications has experienced an increase since the last few decades. Sandwich panels have been used for many decades, although research on understanding the effects of the core structures on the panels’ fire-reaction properties is limited. The current work investigates the fire-performance of a corrugated sandwich panel made from renewable, biodegradable, and sustainable material, plywood. The bench-scale fire testing apparatus, cone-calorimeter, was employed to evaluate the required fire-reaction properties of the sandwich core in a panel configuration, with three corrugated layers glued together with face-sheets under a heat irradiance of 50 kW/m2. The study helped in documenting a unique heat release trend associated with the fire performance of the 3-layered corrugated sandwich panels and in understanding the structural stability of the samples in the event of a fire. Furthermore, the total peak heat release rate was observed to be around 421 kW/m2, which is significantly low compared to many polymeric materials in the literature. The total smoke production was also perceived to be very limited compared to other structural materials, and the total heat release was also nominal. The time to ignition of 21.7 s further outlined the advantages of using the plywood component since polymeric composites, even with flame-retardant additives, tend to ignite faster. Overall, the corrugated plywood sandwich panels had significant fire-reaction properties and could have important structural applications. The possible use of structural panels made from bio-degradable material opens a new avenue for the use of similar structures in sandwich panel preparation.
Keywords: Corrugated sandwich panel, fire-reaction properties, plywood, renewable material.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 4338117 Role-Governed Categorization and Category Learning as a Result from Structural Alignment: The RoleMap Model
Authors: Yolina A. Petrova, Georgi I. Petkov
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The paper presents a symbolic model for category learning and categorization (called RoleMap). Unlike the other models which implement learning in a separate working mode, role-governed category learning and categorization emerge in RoleMap while it does its usual reasoning. The model is based on several basic mechanisms known as reflecting the sub-processes of analogy-making. It steps on the assumption that in their everyday life people constantly compare what they experience and what they know. Various commonalities between the incoming information (current experience) and the stored one (long-term memory) emerge from those comparisons. Some of those commonalities are considered to be highly important, and they are transformed into concepts for further use. This process denotes the category learning. When there is missing knowledge in the incoming information (i.e. the perceived object is still not recognized), the model makes anticipations about what is missing, based on the similar episodes from its long-term memory. Various such anticipations may emerge for different reasons. However, with time only one of them wins and is transformed into a category member. This process denotes the act of categorization.
Keywords: Categorization, category learning, role-governed category, analogy-making, cognitive modeling.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 6658116 Towards a Complete Automation Feature Recognition System for Sheet Metal Manufacturing
Authors: Bahaa Eltahawy, Mikko Ylihärsilä, Reino Virrankoski, Esko Petäjä
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Sheet metal processing is automated, but the step from product models to the production machine control still requires human intervention. This may cause time consuming bottlenecks in the production process and increase the risk of human errors. In this paper we present a system, which automatically recognizes features from the CAD-model of the sheet metal product. By using these features, the system produces a complete model of the particular sheet metal product. Then the model is used as an input for the sheet metal processing machine. Currently the system is implemented, capable to recognize more than 11 of the most common sheet metal structural features, and the procedure is fully automated. This provides remarkable savings in the production time, and protects against the human errors. This paper presents the developed system architecture, applied algorithms and system software implementation and testing.Keywords: Feature recognition, automation, sheet metal manufacturing, CAM, CAD.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 11538115 Structural Monitoring and Control During Support System Replacement of a Historical Gate
Authors: Ahmet Turer
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Middle-gate is located in Hasankeyf, Batman dating back to 1800 BC and is one of the important historical structures in Turkey. The ancient structure has suffered major structural cracks due to aging as well as lateral pressure of a cracked rock which is predicted to be about 100 tons. The existing support system was found to be inadequate to support the load especially after a recent rock fall in the close vicinity. Concerns were increased since the existing support system that is integral with a damaged and cracked gate wall needed to be replaced by a new support system. The replacement process must be carefully monitored by crackmeters and control mechanisms should be integrated to prevent cracks to expand while the same crack width needs to be maintained after the operation. The control system and actions taken during the intervention are explained in this paper.Keywords: structural control, crack width, replacement, support
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 12758114 Fabrication of Nanoengineered Radiation Shielding Multifunctional Polymeric Sandwich Composites
Authors: Nasim Abuali Galehdari, Venkat Mani, Ajit D. Kelkar
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Space Radiation has become one of the major factors in successful long duration space exploration. Exposure to space radiation not only can affect the health of astronauts but also can disrupt or damage materials and electronics. Hazards to materials include degradation of properties, such as, modulus, strength, or glass transition temperature. Electronics may experience single event effects, gate rupture, burnout of field effect transistors and noise. Presently aluminum is the major component in most of the space structures due to its lightweight and good structural properties. However, aluminum is ineffective at blocking space radiation. Therefore, most of the past research involved studying at polymers which contain large amounts of hydrogen. Again, these materials are not structural materials and would require large amounts of material to achieve the structural properties needed. One of the materials to alleviate this problem is polymeric composite materials, which has good structural properties and use polymers that contained large amounts of hydrogen. This paper presents steps involved in fabrication of multi-functional hybrid sandwich panels that can provide beneficial radiation shielding as well as structural strength. Multifunctional hybrid sandwich panels were manufactured using vacuum assisted resin transfer molding process and were subjected to radiation treatment. Study indicates that various nanoparticles including Boron Nano powder, Boron Carbide and Gadolinium nanoparticles can be successfully used to block the space radiation without sacrificing the structural integrity.Keywords: Multi-functional, polymer composites, radiation shielding, sandwich composites.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 18198113 An Improved Optimal Sliding Mode Control for Structural Stability
Authors: Leila Fatemi, Morteza Moradi, Azadeh Mansouri
Abstract:
In this paper, the modified optimal sliding mode control with a proposed method to design a sliding surface is presented. Because of the inability of the previous approach of the sliding mode method to design a bounded and suitable input, the new variation is proposed in the sliding manifold to obviate problems in a structural system. Although the sliding mode control is a powerful method to reject disturbances and noises, the chattering problem is not good for actuators. To decrease the chattering phenomena, the optimal control is added to the sliding mode control. Not only the proposed method can decline the intense variations in the inputs of the system but also it can produce the efficient responses respect to the sliding mode control and optimal control that are shown by performing some numerical simulations.
Keywords: Structural Control, optimal control, optimal sliding mode controller, modified sliding surface.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2010