• International Journal of Fluid Machinery and Systems
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.104-113
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• 2011

The paper presents a new method for the analysis of the cavitation behaviour of hydraulic turbomachines. This new method allows determining the coefficient of the cavitation inception and the cavitation sensitivity of the turbomachines. We apply this method to study the cavitation behaviour of a large storage pump. By plotting in semi-logarithmic coordinates the vapour volume versus the cavitation coefficient, we show that all numerical data collapse in an exponential manner. By analysis of the slope of the curve describing the evolution of the vapour volume against the cavitation coefficient we determine the cavitation sensitivity of the pump for each operating point.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.55 no.1
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• pp.205-228
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• 2015

The results of a numerical investigation pertaining to the hysteretic behaviour of concrete filled steel tubular (CFT) column to I-beam connections are discussed in detail. Following the verification of the numerical results against the available experimental tests, the nonlinear finite element (FE) analysis was implemented to evaluate the effects of different parameters including the column axial load, beam lateral support, shape and arrangement of stiffeners, stiffness of T-stiffeners, and the number of shear stiffeners. Pursuing this objective, an external CFT column to beam connection, tested previously, was selected as the case-study. The lateral forces on the structure were simulated, albeit approximately, using an incremental cyclic loading reversal applied at the beam tip. The results were compared in terms of hysteretic load-displacement curves, stress distributions in connection, strength, rotation, and energy dissipation capacity. It was shown that external T-stiffeners combined with internal shear stiffeners play an important role in the hysteretic performance of CFT columns to I-beam connections.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.373-389
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• 2015

The development of a finite element model for the geometric and material nonlinear analysis of bonded prestressed concrete continuous beams is presented. The nonlinear geometric effect is introduced by the coupling of axial and flexural fields. A layered approach is applied so as to consider different material properties across the depth of a cross section. The proposed method of analysis is formulated based on the Euler-Bernoulli beam theory. According to the total Lagrangian description, the constructed stiffness matrix consists of three components, namely, the material stiffness matrix reflecting the nonlinear material effect, the geometric stiffness matrix reflecting the nonlinear geometric effect and the large displacement stiffness matrix reflecting the large displacement effect. The analysis is capable of predicting the nonlinear behaviour of bonded prestressed concrete continuous beams over the entire loading stage up to failure. Some numerical examples are presented to demonstrate the validity and applicability of the proposed model.

• Advances in concrete construction
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.161-169
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• 2020

This paper studies the influence of silica fume and Processed Quarry Fines (PQF) on the flexural behaviour of the reinforced concrete beams by experimental as well as numerical studies. The study has been shown that the incorporation of PQF can significantly increase the stiffness and the flexural strength of reinforced HPC beams. Also, the ultimate strength of specimens prepared with the 10% silica fume and 100% PQF are higher compared to conventional reinforced concrete specimen. Numerical analysis is performed to find the ultimate strength of HPC beams to compare with experimental results. Nonlinear behaviour of steel reinforcing bars and plain concrete is simulated using appropriate constitutive models and experimental results. The results indicate that the ultimate strength, deformed shape and crack patterns of reinforced HPC beams obtained through the Finite Element Analysis (FEA) are confirming with the experimental results.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.237-260
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• 2005

This paper presents an experimental as well as a numerical analysis of the in-plane shear behaviour of hollow, $870{\times}840{\times}100mm$ masonry walls, externally strengthened with FRP composites. The experimental approach is devoted to the evaluation of the effectiveness of different composite strengthening configurations and the methodology consists in the diagonal compression of masonry walls. The numerical study assesses the stress and strain state distribution in the unreinforced and strengthened panels using a commercial finite element code. The effect of FRP reinforcement on the masonry behaviour and the capability of modelling to forecast a representative failure mode of the unreinforced and reinforced masonry walls is investigated.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.121-131
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• 2019

Due to the heterogeneity nature of the concrete, it is difficult to simulate the hyperdynamic behaviour and crack trajectory of concrete material when subjected to explosion loads. In this paper, a 3D nonlinear numerical study was conducted to simulate the hyperdynamic behaviour of concrete under various loading conditions using Riedel-Hiermaier-Thoma (RHT) model. Detailed calibration was conducted to identify the optimal parameters for the RHT model on the material level. For the component level, the calibrated RHT parameters were used to simulate the failure behaviour of plain concrete (PC) slab under free air blast load. The response was compared with an available experimental result. The results show the proposed numerical model can accurately simulate the crack trajectory and the failure mode of the PC slab under free air blast load.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.265-273
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• 2024

Predicting fracture properties requires an understanding of structural failure behaviour in relation to specimen type, dimension, and notch length. Facture properties are evaluated using various testing methods, wedge splitting test being one of them. The wedge splitting test was numerically modelled three dimensionally using the finite element method on self compacting concrete specimens with varied specimen and notch depths in the current work. The load - Crack mouth opening displacement curves and the angle of rotation with respect to notch opening till failure are used to assess the fracture properties. Furthermore, based on the simulation results, failure curve was built to forecast the fracture behaviour of self-compacting concrete. The fracture failure curve revealed that the failure was quasi-brittle in character, conforming to non-linear elastic properties for all specimen depth and notch depth combinations.

• Proceedings of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute Conference
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• 2000.10a
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• pp.174-181
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• 2000

A brief review of previous studies on the behaviour of concrete at extremely low temperature is presented in this paper. In addition, to describe temperature dependent behaviour of concrete, simple piecewise linear stress-strain relation is introduced. The proposed curve shows good agreement with experimental stress-strain curves at various temperature conditions. Moreover, numerical analyses for two PC beams are conducted to verify the influence of extremely low temperature to the structural behaviour.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.131-147
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• 2011

The aim of this work is to provide some insights into the elasto-plastic behaviour of plate girder web square and rectangular panels with centred and eccentric holes under both compression and in-plane bending moment. The numerical study was validated comparing the numerical results obtained for one simple steel plate configuration with the corresponding experimental results, obtained at the University of Padova, observing the influence of the initial out-of-plane imperfections on the force vs. displacement relationship and ultimate strength. Once validated the numerical approach, the effect of bending moment on the stability of the plate is studied and some differences with respect to the uniform compression load case are shown. The influence of dimension and position of the hole, the plate aspect ratio and the steel grade on elasto-plastic behaviour is observed. Some indications regarding the critical slenderness (at which transition from elastic to plastic collapse occurs) are given for square and rectangular plates with symmetric and eccentric holes having small, medium and large diameter.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.8 no.5
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• pp.707-726
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• 2015

This paper investigates the time dependent behaviour of Haarajoki test embankment on soft structured clay deposit. Half of the embankment is constructed on an area improved with prefabricated vertical drains, while the other half is constructed on the natural deposit without any ground improvement. To analyse the PVD-improved subsoil, axisymmetric vertical drains were converted into equivalent plane strain conditions using three different approaches. The construction and consolidation of the embankment are analysed with the finite element method using a recently developed anisotropic model for time-dependent behaviour of soft clays. The constitutive model, namely ACM-S accounts for combined effects of plastic anisotropy, interparticle bonding and degradation of bonds and creep. For comparison, the problem is also analysed with isotropic Soft Soil Creep and Modified Cam Clay models. The results of the numerical analyses are compared with the field measurements. The results show that neglecting effects of anisotropy, destructuration and creep may lead to inaccurate predictions of soft clay response. Additionally, the numerical results show that the matching methods accurately predict the consolidation behaviour of the embankment on PVD improved soft clays and provide a useful tool for engineering practice.