• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.859-887
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• 2015

Structural health monitoring (SHM) has gained in popularity in recent years since it can assess the performance and condition of instrumented structures in real time and provide valuable information to the asset's manager and owner. Operational modal analysis plays an important role in SHM and it involves the determination of natural frequencies, damping ratios and mode shapes of a constructed structure based on measured dynamic data. This paper presents the operational modal analysis and seismic response characterization of the Tsing Ma Suspension Bridge of 2,160 m long subjected to different earthquake events. Three kinds of events, i.e., short-distance, middle-distance and long-distance earthquakes are taken into account. A fast Bayesian modal identification method is used to carry out the operational modal analysis. The modal properties of the bridge are identified and compared by use of the field monitoring data acquired before and after the earthquake for each type of the events. Research emphasis is given on identifying the predominant modes of the seismic responses in the deck during short-distance, middle-distance and long-distance earthquakes, respectively, and characterizing the response pattern of various structural portions (deck, towers, main cables, etc.) under different types of earthquakes. Since the bridge is over 2,000 m long, the seismic wave would arrive at the tower/anchorage basements of the two side spans at different time instants. The behaviors of structural dynamic responses on the Tsing Yi side span and on the Ma Wan side span under each type of the earthquake events are compared. The results obtained from this study would be beneficial to the seismic design of future long-span bridges to be built around Hong Kong (e.g., the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge).

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.93-105
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• 2022

With the exploitation of natural resources in China, underground resource extraction and underground space development, as well as other engineering activities are increasing, resulting in the creation of many defective rocks. In this paper, uniaxial compression tests were performed on rocks with double holes and fractures at different angles using particle flow code (PFC2D) numerical simulations and laboratory experiments. The failure behavior and mechanical properties of rock samples with holes and fractures at different angles were analyzed. The failure modes of rock with defects at different angles were identified. The fracture propagation and stress evolution characteristics of rock with fractures at different angles were determined. The results reveal that compared to intact rocks, the peak stress, elastic modulus, peak strain, initiation stress, and damage stress of fractured rocks with different fracture angles around holes are lower. As the fracture angle increases, the gap in mechanical properties between the defective rock and the intact rock gradually decreased. In the force chain diagram, the compressive stress concentration range of the combined defect of cracks and holes starts to decrease, and the model is gradually destroyed as the tensile stress range gradually increases. When the peak stress is reached, the acoustic emission energy is highest and the rock undergoes brittle damage. Through a comparative study using laboratory tests, the results of laboratory real rocks and numerical simulation experiments were verified and the macroscopic failure characteristics of the real and simulated rocks were determined to be similar. This study can help us correctly understand the mechanical properties of rocks with defects and provide theoretical guidance for practical rock engineering.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.179-185
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• 2007

Nitrous oxide ($N_2O$) is an important trace gas in the atmosphere not only because of its large global warming potential (GWP) but also because of the role in the ozone depletion in the stratosphere. It has been known that soil is the largest natural source of $N_2O$ in global emission. However, anthropogenic sources contributing from industrial section is likely to increase with rising the energy consumption, and transportation as well. In this study, a total of 32 gasoline-powered passenger vehicles (ranging from small to large engine's displacement and also ranging from aged catalyst to new catalyst) were tested on the chassis dynamometer system in order to elucidate the characteristics of $N_2O$ emission from automobiles under different driving modes. Ten different driving modes developed by NIER were adapted for the test. The results show that the $N_2O$ emission decreases logarithmically with increase of vehicle speed over the all test vehicles ($N_2O$) emission = -0.062 Ln (vehicle speed) + $0.289,\;r^2=0.97$). It revealed that the larger engine's displacement, the more $N_2O$ emission were recorded. The correlation between $N_2O$ emission and catalyst aging was examined. It found that the vehicles with aged catalyst (odometer record more than 8,0000km) emit more $N_2O$ than those with new catalyst. Average $N_2O$ emission was $0.086{\pm}0.095\;N_2O-g/km$ (number of samples=210) for the all test vehicles over the test driving modes.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.27-37
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• 2014

Purpose - As economic activities between different countries have rapidly spread in a world of free trade, it is inevitable that a large volume of cargo will be carried between countries. It is natural, then, that CO2 emissions and other environmental pollutions have followed, which exposes people and society to serious environmental problems and social costs, and so on. Therefore, the need to understand logistics is not only a matter of transportation but also an environmentally oriented matter. The purpose of this study is to look at some lessons and implications from the European case in terms of green logistics matters. Research design, data, and methodology - In order to look into this matter, first, it has to be established that some cargo transport volumes using different transportation modes have clearly declined because of previous economic recessions. Some transport policies produced by the European Union (EU) are based in a long history of struggling to cope with transport matters in European countries. In its recent transport policies, the EU has provided greener transportation alternatives, realizing that pollution matters affect the European transport market. This study tries to determine what policies the EU has implemented to deal with green logistics matters. This study concentrates in particular on the Marco Polo program in the EU. Results - This study found that the EU seems to consider these kinds of matters, that is, transport and the environment in the context of green logistics. The EU launched some policy instruments to solve this matter relatively earlier than other countries and reviewed them as necessary. In order to make these policy tools work, the EU provided PACT for combined transport, and then the Marco Polo I and II European transport white paper packages. These European policies deal with green logistics matters in two ways. First, some restrictions have been imposed, especially taxation, and so on. Transport subsidies are also powerful means of handling green logistics matters in Europe. Along with these two means of dealing with transport and the environment, the EU eventually targeted integration of different transport modes. Instead of employing only a single transport instrument mode to deliver the cargo to be carried, such as trucking, rail, ocean-going carrier, flight, or inland waterway transport, the EU has proposed that combining transport modes is the best alternative for transport and the environment. That is, the EU is pursuing the adoption of multimodalism as an answer to the green logistics challenge as it provides a more cost efficient and more productive means of transport. Conclusions - In conclusion, multimodal transport should be considered when applying green logistics, as it can provide an alternative way to achieve transport and environmental solutions together at the present time. Two methods can be used to encourage multimodal transport: restrictions and subsidies. These are the lessons and implications from European green logistics policies.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers B
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• v.39 no.7
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• pp.579-589
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• 2015

This study aims to understand the internal flow and the evaporation characteristics of a deionized water droplet subjected to vertical forced vibrations. To predict and evaluate its resonance frequency, the theories of Lamb, Strani, and Sabetta have been applied. To visualize the precise mode, shape, and internal flow inside a droplet, the experiment utilizes a combination of a high-speed camera, macro lens, and continuous laser. As a result, a water droplet on a hydrophobic surface has its typical shape at each mode, and complicated vortices are observed inside the droplet. In particular, large symmetrical flow streams are generated along the vertical axis at each mode, with a large circulating movement from the bottom to the top and then to the triple contact line along the droplet surface. In addition, a bifurcation-shaped flow pattern is formed at modes 2 and 4, whereas a large ellipsoid-shape flow pattern forms at modes 6 and 8. Mode 4 has the fastest internal flow speed and evaporation rate, followed by modes 8 then 6, with 2 having the slowest of these properties. Each mode has the fastest evaporation rate amongst its neighboring frequencies. Finally, the droplet evaporation under vertical vibration would lead to more rapid evaporation, particularly for mode 4.

• Journal of Adhesion and Interface
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.1-11
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• 2006

Interfacial evaluation of the untreated and treated Jute and Hemp fibers reinforced different matrix polypropylene-maleic anhydride polypropylene copolymer (PP-MAPP) composites were investigated by micromechanical technique and dynamic contact angle measurement. For the statistical tensile strength of Jute and Hemp fibers, bimodal Weibull distribution was fitted better than the unimodal distribution. The acid-base parameter on the interfacial shear strength (IFSS) of the natural fiber composites was characterized by calculating the work adhesion, $W_a$. The effect of alkaline, silane coupling agent on natural fibers were obtained with changing MAPP content in PP-MAPP matrices. Alkaline treated fibers made the surface energy to be higher due to removing the weak boundary layers and thus increasing surface area, whereas surface energy of silane treated Jute and Hemp fibers decreased due to blocked high energy sites. MAPP in the PP-MAPP matrix caused the surface energy to increase due to introduced acid-base sites. Microfailure modes of two natural fiber composites were observed clearly differently due to different tensile strength of natural fibers.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Aeronautical & Space Sciences
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• v.38 no.5
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• pp.482-489
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• 2010

This paper describes the test procedure, instrumentation, verification methodology and the results of the ground vibration test(GVT) and force vibration test(FVT) of the SmartUAV aircraft to estimate experimentally dynamic characteristics of the aircraft. Bungee cords are used to emulate free-free boundary conditions of the test aircraft. The SmartUAV is excited by three shakers and one-hundred frequency response functions(FRF's) is measured. The FRF's are reduced and analyzed to identify the dynamics parameters of the SmartUAV. To extract modal parameters of the SmartUAV such as, natural frequencies and damping ratios, the poly-reference least square complex exponential method is used in the time domain. The mode shape coefficients are estimated with the least squares frequency domain method to identify the vibration modes. The FVT was performed by fixed sine frequency with three shakers on the x, y and z direction and vibration characteristics of structures and detail equipments are measured.

• Journal of Advanced Research in Ocean Engineering
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• v.1 no.4
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• pp.239-251
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• 2015

In this study, a spectral fatigue analysis was performed for the topside structure of an offshore floating vessel. The topside structure was idealized using beam elements in the SACS program. The fatigue analysis was carried out considering the wave and wind loads separately. For the wave-induced fatigue damage calculation, motion RAOs calculated from a direct wave load analysis and regular waves with different periods and unit wave heights were utilized. Then, the member end force transfer functions were generated covering all the loading conditions. Stress response transfer functions at each joint were produced using the specified SCFs and member end force transfer functions. fatigue damages were calculated using the obtained stress ranges, S-N curve, wave spectrum, heading probability of each loading condition, and their corresponding occurrences in the wave scatter diagrams. For the wind induced fatigue damage calculation, a dynamic wind spectral fatigue analysis was performed. First, a dynamic natural frequency analysis was performed to generate the structural dynamic characteristics, including the eigenvalues (natural frequencies), eigenvectors (mode shapes), and mass matrix. To adequately represent the dynamic characteristic of the structure, the number of modes was appropriately determined in the lateral direction. Second, a wind spectral fatigue analysis was performed using the mode shapes and mass data obtained from the previous results. In this analysis, the Weibull distribution of the wind speed occurrence, occurrence probability in each direction, damping coefficient, S-N curves, and SCF of each joint were defined and used. In particular, the wind fatigue damages were calculated under the assumption that the stress ranges followed a Rayleigh distribution. The total fatigue damages were calculated from the combination with wind and wave fatigue damages according to the DNV rule.

• Journal of Power System Engineering
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.24-31
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• 2011

Rectangular box type structures are used in many fields of civil, mechanical and marine engineering. Especially, Most ship structures are often in contact with inner or outer fluid, like ballast, fuel and stem tanks. Fatigue damages are sometimes observed in these tanks which seem to be caused by resonance with exciting force of engine and propeller. Vibration characteristics of these thin walled tanks in contact with fluid near engine and propeller are strongly affected by added mass of containing fluid. Therefore it is essentially important to estimate the added mass effect to predict vibration of the tanks. Many authors have studied vibration of rectangular tanks containing fluid. Few research on dynamic interaction among tank walls filled with fluid are reported in the vibration of rectangular tanks recently. In case of rectangular tanks, structural coupling between adjacent panels and effect of vibration modes of multiple panels on added mass of water have to be considered. In the previous report, a numerical analysis is performed for the coupling effect between panels of a tank on added mass of containing fluid, the effect of structural constraint between panels on each vibration mode for fluid region, and mode characteristics in accordance with changing breadth of the plates by using finite element method for plates and boundary element method for fluid region. In this paper, the coupling effect between panels of a tank on added mass of containing fluid, the effect of structural constraint between panels on each vibration mode for fluid region, and mode characteristics in accordance with changing length, thickness, and boundary condition of the plates are investigated numerically and discussed.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.58 no.2
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• pp.277-300
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• 2016

Cold-formed steel (CFS) sections are becoming an increasingly popular solution for constructing floors in residential, healthcare and education buildings. Their reduced weight, however, makes them prone to excessive vibrations, increasing the need for accurate prediction of CFS floor modal properties. By combining experimental modal analysis of a full-scale CFS framed building and its floors and their numerical finite element (FE) modelling this paper demonstrates that the existing methods (based on the best engineering judgement) for predicting CFS floor modal properties are unreliable. They can yield over 40% difference between the predicted and measured natural frequencies for important modes of vibration. This is because the methods were adopted from other floor types (e.g., timber or standard steel-concrete composite floors) and do not take into account specific features of CFS floors. Using the adjusted and then updated FE model, featuring semi-rigid connections led to markedly improved results. The first four measured and calculated CFS floor natural frequencies matched exactly and all relevant modal assurance criterion (MAC) values were above 90%. The introduction of flexible supports and more realistic modelling of the floor boundary conditions, as well as non-structural $fa{\c{c}}ade$ walls, proved to be crucial in the development of the new more successful modelling strategy. The process used to develop 10 identified and experimentally verified FE modelling parameters is based on published information and parameter adjustment resulting from FE model updating. This can be utilised for future design of similar lightweight steel floors in prefabricated buildings when checking their vibration serviceability, likely to be their governing design criterion.