Search results for "Structural engineering"
showing 10 items of 1998 documents
Riesz fractional integrals and complex fractional moments for the probabilistic characterization of random variables
2012
Abstract The aim of this paper is the probabilistic representation of the probability density function (PDF) or the characteristic function (CF) in terms of fractional moments of complex order. It is shown that such complex moments are related to Riesz and complementary Riesz integrals at the origin. By invoking the inverse Mellin transform theorem, the PDF or the CF is exactly evaluated in integral form in terms of complex fractional moments. Discretization leads to the conclusion that with few fractional moments the whole PDF or CF may be restored. Application to the pathological case of an α -stable random variable is discussed in detail, showing the impressive capability to characterize…
Fokker Planck equation solved in terms of complex fractional moments
2014
Abstract In this paper the solution of the Fokker Planck (FPK) equation in terms of (complex) fractional moments is presented. It is shown that by using concepts coming from fractional calculus, complex Mellin transform and related ones, the solution of the FPK equation in terms of a finite number of complex moments may be easily found. It is shown that the probability density function (PDF) solution of the FPK equation is restored in the whole domain, including the trend at infinity with the exception of the value of the PDF in zero.
Poisson white noise parametric input and response by using complex fractional moments
2014
Abstract In this paper the solution of the generalization of the Kolmogorov–Feller equation to the case of parametric input is treated. The solution is obtained by using complex Mellin transform and complex fractional moments. Applying an invertible nonlinear transformation, it is possible to convert the original system into an artificial one driven by an external Poisson white noise process. Then, the problem of finding the evolution of the probability density function (PDF) for nonlinear systems driven by parametric non-normal white noise process may be addressed in determining the PDF evolution of a corresponding artificial system with external type of loading.
A FE-Meshless Multiscale Approach for Masonry Materials
2015
Abstract A FE-Meshless multiscale computational strategy for the analysis of running bond masonry is presented. The Meshless Method (MM) is adopted to solve the boundary value problem (BVP) at the mesoscopic level. The representative unit cell is composed by the aggregate and the surrounding joints, the former assumed to behave elastically while the latter are simulated as non-associated elastic-plastic zero-thickness interfaces with a softening response. Macroscopic localization of plastic bands is obtained performing a spectral analysis of the tangent stiffness matrix. Localized plastic bands are embedded into the quadrature points area of the macroscopic finite elements.
Effect of additives on the structural organization of asphaltene aggregates in bitumen
2019
Abstract Bitumens are composite materials whose complex organization hinders the rational understanding of their relationships between composition, structure and performances. So, research attempting to shed more light in this field is required. In this work Wide Angle X ray Scattering (WAXS) has been used to explore the influence of six opportunely chosen additives on the bitumen structure with the aim to ultimately correlate the findings with the bitumen performances. Diagnostic fingerprints have been observed in the WAXS profile: asphaltenes form stuck of about 18 A and constituted by about 6 asphaltene units on average. Such stucks are, in turn, organized at higher levels of complexity …
Forming Processes Design Oriented to Prevent Ductile Fractures
1996
During cold forming processes ductile fractures are sometimes encountered, depending on the operating parameters and on the material properties and determining the production of defective components to be discarded; for this reason the development of a general approach for the prediction of this type of defects is particularly suitable and this aim has been pursued by a large number of researchers in the last two decades. In the paper the most important and diffused models are described and analysed in order to outline the advantages offered by each of them. Some applications to typical metal forming processes are presented, carrying out a comparison between the numerical predictions and th…
Analysis of metal spinning processes by the ADINA code
1989
Abstract The ADINA code, version 84, has been employed for the analysis of sheet spinning processes. The main process parameters have been evaluated in different working conditions; namely for various geometries and constitutive laws of the material.
Data fusion analysis applied to different climate change models: An application to the energy consumptions of a building office
2019
Abstract The paper aims to achieve the modelling of climate change effects on heating and cooling in the building sector, through the use of the available Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change forecasted data. Data from several different climate models will be fused with regards to mean air temperature, wind speed and horizontal solar radiation. Several climatic models data were analysed ranging from January 2006 to December 2100. Rather than considering each model in isolation, we propose a data fusion approach for providing a robust combined model for morphing an existing weather data file. The final aim is simulating future energy use for heating and cooling of a reference building a…
Regional-scale modeling of reference evapotranspiration: Intercomparison of two simplified temperature- and radiation-based approaches
2015
Two regionalized models for the distributed estimation of daily reference evapotranspiration, the temperature-based Hargreaves (HE) and the radiation-based Makkink (MK) equations, are applied in Southern Italy during the years 2007 and 2008. Spatially distributed meteorological inputs, such as air temperature and incoming solar radiation, were derived from geostatistical interpolation of ground data and from the Land Surface Analysis Satellite Application Facility (LSA-SAF) surface radiation product, respectively. Comparison of the latter with 83,394 daily measurements provided by 128 weather stations shows a not negligible seasonal error in daily solar radiation that is corrected by means …
Experimental Analysis of Horizontal Turbulence of Flow over Flat and Deformed Beds
2015
Abstract Laboratory experiments in a straight flume were carried out to examine the evolution of large-scale horizontal turbulent structures under flat-bed and deformed-bed conditions. In this paper, the horizontal turbulence of flow under these conditions is analyzed and compared. The conditioned quadrant method is applied to verify the occurrence of turbulent events. The distributions of horizontal Reynolds shear stress and turbulent kinetic energy are also presented and discussed. Results show the occurrence of an “initial” sequence of horizontal vortices whose average spatial length scales with the channel width. Under deformed-bed conditions, this spatial length does not change.