Search results for "structural"
showing 10 items of 5047 documents
INNOVATIVE MASS-DAMPING-BASED APPROACHES FOR SEISMIC DESIGN OF TALL BUILDINGS
2021
Mass damping is a well known principle for the reduction of structural vibrations and applied in tall building design in a variety of configurations. With mass usually small (around 1% of building mass), the properly “tuned” mass damper (TMD) shows great effectiveness in reduc-ing wind vibrations, but minor advantages under earthquake excitations. The above limitation can be surpassed by utilizing relatively large mass TMD. For this pur-pose, two different solutions are here proposed. In both cases, the idea is to separate the building into two or more parts, thus allowing for a relative motion between them, and acti-vating the mass damping mechanism. In the first solution, the building is …
Digital Hydraulic Winch Drives
2018
This paper presents the planned use of digital displacement high torque low speed motors to drive large winches in off-shore and maritime applications. The digital displacement technology uses forced actuation of high- and low pressure valves for each cylinder chamber, i.e. valves are opened and closed by actuation forces independently of cylinder pressure and supply pressures. Motors equipped with the technology are well suited for low speed secondary controlled operation including start and stop. It also enables unloading of motor cylinders that are not needed to produce torque, whereby excellent efficiency at partial displacement is obtained. A research project on application of multi di…
Influence of online shopping information dependency and innovativeness on internet shopping adoption
2008
PurposeThe paper's purpose is to analyse the influence of online shopping information dependency and innovativeness on the acceptance of internet shopping.Design/methodology/approachThe impact of online shopping information dependency, domain‐specific innovativeness and technology acceptance model (TAM) variables on future shopping intention has been tested through structural equation modelling techniques. The sample consisted of 465 Spanish consumers who had never purchased online.FindingsData analysis shows that consumer innovativeness and online shopping information dependency have a direct and positive influence on future online shopping intention and that the basic TAM hypotheses are f…
Key drivers of consumer loyalty to Facebook fan pages
2014
Purpose – With the rapid expansion of social networking sites, researchers and practitioners are challenged to understand drivers of customer loyalty in fan pages. The purpose of this paper is to identify the main drivers of Facebook fan page loyalty in order to promote the creation of affective links and long-term relationships with users. Design/methodology/approach – The impact of trust, fan page content dependency, attitude and consumer beliefs on loyalty to fan pages was tested through structural equation modelling techniques. The sample consisted of 691 Spanish Facebook users. Findings – Data analysis shows that attitude appears as a key variable in increasing loyalty to fan pages. T…
Relationships between work-family culture and work attitudes at both individual and the department level
2011
There is a need to better understand the nature of work-family culture and its relationships with job-related outcomes. The main objective of this study was to investigate the associations between a supportive work-family culture and work attitudes (i.e., job satisfaction, work engagement, turnover intentions) at both the individual and work departmental level. Survey-based data were gathered from 52 Finnish work departments (1219 individuals) in the domains of health care, ICT, and the paper industry. Data were analysed via multilevel structural equation modelling. Work-family culture was assessed via managers’ supportiveness, organizational time demands, and the expected career consequenc…
A Novel Instrument to Measure the Multidimensional Structure of Professional Agency
2018
This study aimed to construct and validate a quantitative measurement instrument to determine the structure of professional agency in working life. Empirical data (N = 589) were collected via a web-based, theoretically informed questionnaire, within the professional domains of education, healthcare, rescue services, and information technology. The questionnaire items incorporated theoretically based dimensions of professional agency. The structure of professional agency was initially analysed via exploratory factor analysis. Thereafter, using exploratory structural equation modelling, the structure of professional agency was investigated with a view to confirmation and validation. The resul…
Middle Miocene–Early Pliocene wedge-top basins of NW Sicily (Italy): constraints for the tectonic evolution of a ‘non-conventional’ thrust belt, affe…
2014
The study of geological evolution of a multiphase orogenic belt is complex, expecially when the tectonic events are superimposed in a coaxial fashion. The Sicilian fold-and-thrust belt represents an interest- ing case study, as a non-coaxial superimposition of structures is recognizable, owing to large synkinematic clockwise rotations during each of two subsequent compressional events. These rotations involved also the syntectonic basins that developed in the wedge-top depozone. This study aims to constrain the tectono-depo- sitional evolution of the NW Sicily fold-and-thrust belt and the associated wedge-top depozone between the middle Miocene and the early Pliocene. Integrated analyses of…
Reuse of electric vehicle batteries in buildings: An integrated load match analysis and life cycle assessment approach
2019
Abstract The increasing use of renewable energy technologies for electricity generation in buildings will require a growing number of battery energy storage systems (BESS) to enhance the reliability of electricity supply. The increasing number of retired electric vehicle (EV) batteries, expected from the automotive sector, can match this demand as EV batteries can be used as BESS, considering that they have about 80% of their original energy capacity. In this context, the study aims at examining the system, consisting of a BESS made by retired Li-ion EV batteries, a photovoltaic plant (20 kW) and the electricity grid, that provides the electricity required by an existing nearly net zero res…
Using a neural network for qualitative and quantitative predictions of weld integrity in solid bonding dominated processes
2014
Solid-state bonding occurs in several manufacturing processes, as Friction Stir Welding, Porthole Die Extrusion and Roll Bonding. Proper conditions of pressure, temperature, strain and strain rate are needed in order to get effective bonding in the final component. In the paper, a neural network is set up, trained and used to predict the bonding occurrence starting from the results of specific numerical models developed for each process. The Plata-Piwnik criterion was used in order to define a quantitative parameter taking into account the effectiveness of the bonding. Excellent predictive capability of the network is obtained for each process.
Finite-element simulation of residual stress induced by split-sleeve cold-expansion process of holes
2008
A three-dimensional finite-element simulation was conducted for a split-sleeve cold-expansion process in order to determine the residual stress field around an expanded hole. The commercial FEA software DEFORM-3D™, a Lagrangian implicit code designed for metal forming processes, was used to model the cold-expansion process of a fastener hole. The results show a through-thickness residual stress field in good agreement with the analytical solution developed by Guo. Moreover, the simulation has highlighted the effect of the split sleeve and the plate thickness on the residual stress field. © 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.