Search results for "Structural Engineering"

Muscular MEMS—the engineering of liquid crystal elastomer actuators

2016

A new class of soft-matter actuator, the liquid crystal elastomer (LCE), shows promise for application in a wide variety of mechanical microsystems. Frequently referred to as an 'artificial muscle', this family of materials exhibits large actuation stroke and generates considerable force, in a compact form which may easily be combined with the structures and devices commonly used in microsystems and MEMS. We show here how standard microfabrication techniques may be used to integrate LCEs into mechanical microsystems and present an in-depth analysis of their mechanical and actuation properties. Using an example from micro-optics and optical MEMS, we demonstrate that their performance and fle…

Designing Trickle Irrigation Systems in Sloping Fields without Pressure-Compensating Emitters: Application of the IRRILAB Software

2022

When designing trickle irrigation systems in sloped fields, the use of pressure-compensating (PC) emitters is generally preferred to ensure the emitter distribution uniformity regardless of the land topography and the variable operating pressures. However, the cost of PC emitters is generally higher than non-pressure-compensating (NPC) ones; moreover, the compensating membrane installed inside the emitters can lose elasticity due to the exposition to solar radiation, water quality, and chemical applications. Recently, the irrigation laboratory (IRRILAB) version 1.0 software application was developed to design microirrigation systems for rectangular and planar sectors when using NPC emitters…

Simulazione della propagazione di difetti a fatica mediante il modello di zona coesiva

2009

Le giunzioni incollate guadagnano sempre più mercato, nel campo delle costruzioni in genere, dove è necessario un alleggerimento delle strutture. Nel caso di geometrie di giunto semplici il dimensionamento avviene attraverso relazioni analitiche che restituiscono il valore massimo delle tensioni, il quale deve essere inferiore al limite di utilizzo dell’adesivo stesso. Quando le geometrie sono complesse l’approccio analitico diventa impraticabile, di conseguenza si provvede a verificare la correttezza della soluzione mediante analisi agli elementi finiti (EF). L’introduzione del modello di zona coesiva nell'analisi EF permette di simulare il danneggiamento ed il cedimento del giunto in cond…

Ultimate Shear of RC Beams with Corroded Stirrups and Strengthened with FRP

2019

Transverse reinforcement plays a key role in the response behavior of reinforced concrete beams. Therefore, corrosion of steel stirrups may change the failure mode of elements from bending to shear, leading to a brittle and catastrophic crisis. It is important to strengthen reinforced concrete beams with corroded stirrups to enhance the shear resistance. This paper presents a formulation, based on the modified compression field theory, to estimate the ultimate shear of reinforced concrete beams strengthened with FRP, because of stirrup corrosion. The detrimental effect of corrosion on steel stirrup yield strength was taken into account by introducing an empirical decay law. The effective st…

Nonlinear Analysis of Beams Reinforced in Shear with Stirrups and Steel Fibers

2012

The modified compression field theory (MCFT) and the disturbed stress field model (DSFM) are often used to predict the nonlinear behavior of reinforced concrete structures. This study presents several extensions of the MCFT and DSFM to the case of high-strength steel fiber-reinforced concrete beams subjected to transverse loads. Experimental four-point bending tests were conducted on 12 concrete beams with a different percentage of fibers and/or stirrups. To validate the updates introduced in the analytical models, numerical analysis was performed using nonlinear finite element software. Modeling of the post-peak softening branch of the tensile and compressive constitutive curves of fibrous…

Experimental Tests and FEM Model for SFRC Beams under Flexural and Shear Loads

2008

The complete load-vs-displacement curves obtained by four-point-bending tests on Steel Fiber Reinforced Concrete (SFRC) beams are predicted by using a nonlinear finite element code based on the Modified Compression Field Theory (MCFT) and the Disturbed Stress Field Model (DSFM) suitably adapted for SFRC elements. The effect of fibers on the shear-flexure response is taken into account, mainly incorporating tensile stress-strain analytical relationship for SFRC. The numerical results show the effectiveness of the model for prediction of the behavior of the tested specimens reinforced with light amount of stirrups or with fibers only. © 2008 American Institute of Physics.

Effect of the Joint Strength on the Performance of Ordinary Moment-resisting Frames Under a Progressive Collapse Situation

2020

A new algorithm for a robust solution of the fully dynamic Saint-Venant equations

2003

A new procedure for the numerical solution of the fully dynamic shallow water equations is presented. The procedure is a fractional step methodology where the original system is split into two sequential ones. The first system differs from the original one because of the head gradient term, that is treated as constant and equal to the value computed at the end of the previous time step. The solution of this system, called kinematic, is computed in each element using a spatial zero order approximation for both the heads and the flow rates by means of integration of single ODEs. The second system is called diffusive, contains in the momentum equations only the complementary terms and can be e…

Effect of ageing on the morphology and creep and recovery of polymer-modified bitumens

2018

Polymer additives are used to improve the properties of road bitumens including their oxidative resistance. However, their usage as anti-oxidative materials remains relatively unclear. This study aims to investigate the changes in the morphology and the rheological response of polymer modified bitumens used in road pavement construction caused by ageing. An elastomer (radial styrene butadiene styrene, SBS) and a plastomer (ethyl vinyl acetate, EVA) polymer were mixed with one base bitumen at three polymer concentrations. The bitumens were RTFO and PAV aged. The morphology of the bitumens was captured by fluorescence microscopy while the rheological properties were measured by means of the m…

A multi-physics integrated approach to breeding blanket modelling and design

2019

Abstract Often, for the design of a component, several kinds of analyses are needed. Even more frequently, the different fields of study, to be taken into account for the design verification, have to be examined minutely until the final results are satisfying. Furthermore, when geometry modifications are required, for instance to fulfill the component functions, the analyses cycle has to be restarted and an iterative process has to be carried out. This procedure may be time-consuming and herald of errors, in particular if it is demanded to the human activity. Therefore, it is more convenient for the scientific community to adopt a numerical tool that can combine various computational codes.…