• Composites Research
• /
• v.25 no.4
• /
• pp.98-104
• /
• 2012

In recent years, degenerative spinal instability has been effectively treated with a cage. However, little attention is focused on the stiffness of the cage. Recent advances in the medical implant industry have resulted in the use of medical carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) cages. The biomechanical advantages of using different cage material in terms of stability and stresses in bone graft are not fully understood. A previously validated three-dimensional, nonlinear finite element model of an intact L2-L5 segment was modified to simulate posterior interbody fusion cages made of CFRP and titanium at the L4-L5 disc with pedicle screw, to investigate the effect of cage stiffness on the biomechanics of the fused segment in the lumbar region. From the results, it could be found that the use of a CFRP cage would not only reduce stress shielding, but it might also have led to increased bony fusion.

• Explosives and Blasting
• /
• v.23 no.2
• /
• pp.23-35
• /
• 2005

Excavation of an opening in a saturated porous rock may lead to the development of pore pressure around the opening due to the redistribution of initial rock stresses. The built-up of pore pressure, in turn, may affect the mechanical behavior of rock mass and give the different pattern of stress distribution around the opening from that of the case where the coupling is neglected. In this study, the short time response of an opening excavated in saturated ground under anisotropic initial stress conditions was investigated numerically. Not on the wall of opening but at a short distance from the wall, the tangential stresses were peak during the short period after excavation when the hydro-mechanical coupling is considered.

• Composites Research
• /
• v.22 no.3
• /
• pp.29-34
• /
• 2009

In this paper, finite element analyses were used to estimate the strain distribution at the fracture site of a tibia bone. A stainless steel bone plate and various composite bone plates were considered to find out the best conditions for callus generation while bone fracture was cured for 16 weeks. Through this research, the appropriate load condition which makes the strains between the appropriate range($2{\sim}10%$) was sought. From this analysis, it was found that lower level of external load is needed for the appropriate strain for the case of composite bone plate application and it was also found that the composite bone plate had potential advantages for effective bone fracture healing relieved stress shielding effect.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
• /
• v.24 no.4
• /
• pp.297-307
• /
• 2014

Cavern Thermal Energy Storage system stores thermal energy in caverns to recover industrial waste heat or avoid the sporadic characteristics of renewable-energy resources, and its advantages include high injection-and-extraction powers and the flexibility in selecting a storage medium. In the present study, the structural stability of rock mass pillar between these silo-type storage caverns was assessed using a coupled thermal-mechanical model in $FLAC^{3D}$. The results of numerical simulations showed that thermal stresses due to long-term storage depended on pillar width and had significant effect on the pillar stability. A sensitivity analysis of main factors indicated that the influence on the pillar stability increased in the order cavern depth < pillar width < in situ condition. It was suggested that two identical caverns should be separated by at least one diameter of the cavern and small-diameter shaft neighboring the cavern should be separated by more than half of the cavern diameter. Meanwhile, when the line of centers of two caverns was parallel to the direction of maximum horizontal principal stress, the shielding effect of the caverns could minimize an adverse effect caused by a large horizontal stress.