• Journal of the Korean GEO-environmental Society
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.13-24
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• 2023

Tunnels may undergo a larger or a smaller response compared with the free-field soil. In the pseudo-static procedure, the response of the tunnel is most often characterized by a curve that relates the racking ratio (R) with the flexibility ratio (F), where R represents the ratio of the tunnel response with respect to the free-field vibration and F is the relative stiffness of the tunnel and the surrounding soil. A set of analytical and empirical curves that do not account for the depth and the aspect ratio of the tunnel are typically used in practice. In this study, a series of dynamic analyses are conducted to develop a set of F-R_m relations for use in a frame analysis method. R_m is defined as an adjusted R where the rocking mode of deformation is removed and only the racking deformation is extracted. The numerical model is validated against centrifuge test recordings. The influence of aspect ratio, buried depth of tunnel on results is investigated. The results show that R_m increases with the increase of the buried depth and the aspect ratio. The widely used F-R relations are highlighted to be different compared with the obtained results in this study. Therefore, the updated F-R_m relations with proposed equations are recommended to be used in practice design. The rocking response decreases with either the decrease of the difference of stiffness between surrounding soil and tunnel or the larger aspect ratio of the tunnel section.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.125-134
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• 2023

In the present work, a new global damage index is proposed for the seismic performance and failure analysis of concrete gravity dams. Unlike the existing indices of concrete structures, this index doesn't need scaling with an ultimate or an upper value. For this purpose, the Beni-Haroun dam in north-eastern Algeria, is considered as a case study, for which an average seismic capacity curve is first evaluated by performing several incremental dynamic analyses. The seismic performance point of the dam is then determined using the N2 method, considering multiple modes and taking into account the stiffness degradation. The seismic demand is obtained from the design spectrum of the Algerian seismic regulations. A series of recorded and artificial accelerograms are used as dynamic loads to evaluate the nonlinear responses of the dam. The nonlinear behaviour of the concrete mass is modelled by using continuum damage mechanics, where material damage is represented by a scalar field damage variable. This modelling, which is suitable for cyclic loading, uses only a single damage parameter to describe the stiffness degradation of the concrete. The hydrodynamic and the sediment pressures are included in the analyses. The obtained results show that the proposed damage index faithfully describes the successive brittle failures of the dam which increase with increasing applied ground accelerations. It is found that minor damage can occur for ground accelerations less than 0.3 g, and complete failure can be caused by accelerations greater than 0.45 g.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.49 no.4
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• pp.381-392
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• 2023

This study experimentally investigates the flexural behavior of steel-UHPC composite slabs composed of an innovative negative Poisson's ratio (NPR) steel plate and Ultra High Performance Concrete (UHPC) slab connected via demountable high-strength bolt shear connectors. Eight demountable composite slab specimens were fabricated and tested under traditional four-point bending method. The effects of loading histories (positive and negative bending moment), types of steel plate (NPR steel plate and Q355 steel plate) and spacings of high-strength bolts (150 mm, 200 mm and 250 mm) on the flexural behavior of demountable composite slab, including failure mode, load-deflection curve, interface relative slip, crack width and sectional strain distribution, were evaluated. The results revealed that under positive bending moment, the failure mode of composite slabs employing NPR steel plate was distinct from that with Q355 steel plate, which exhibited that part of high-strength bolts was cut off, part of pre-embedded padded extension nuts was pulled out, and UHPC collapsed due to instantaneous instability and etc. Besides, under the same spacing of high-strength bolts, NPR steel plate availably delayed and restrained the relative slip between steel plate and UHPC plate, thus significantly enhanced the cooperative deformation capacity, flexural stiffness and load capacity for composite slabs further. While under negative bending moment, NPR steel plate effectively improved the flexural capacity and deformation characteristics of composite slabs, but it has no obvious effect on the initial flexural stiffness of composite slabs. Meanwhile, the excellent crack-width control ability for UHPC endowed composite members with better durability. Furthermore, according to the sectional strain distribution analysis, due to the negative Poisson's ratio effect and high yield strength of NPR steel plate, the tensile strain between NPR steel plate and UHPC layer held strain compatibility during the whole loading process, and the magnitude of upward movement for sectional plastic neutral axis could be ignored with the increase of positive bending moment.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.237-245
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• 2022

Objective: Viscoelasticity is an essential feature of nerves, although little is known about their viscous properties. The discovery of shear wave dispersion (SWD) imaging has presented a new approach for the non-invasive evaluation of tissue viscosity. The present study investigated the feasibility of using SWD imaging to evaluate diabetic neuropathy using the sciatic nerve in a diabetic rat model. Materials and Methods: This study included 11 diabetic rats in the diabetic group and 12 healthy rats in the control group. Bilateral sciatic nerves were evaluated 3 months after treatment with streptozotocin. We measured the nerve cross-sectional area (CSA), nerve stiffness using shear wave elastography (SWE), and nerve viscosity using SWD imaging. The motor nerve conduction velocity (MNCV) was also measured. These four indicators and the histology of the sciatic nerves were then compared between the two groups. The performance of CSA, SWE, and SWD imaging in distinguishing the two groups was assessed using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. Results: Nerve CSA, stiffness, and viscosity in the diabetic group was significantly higher than those in the control group (all p < 0.05). The results also revealed a significantly lower MNCV in the diabetic group (p = 0.005). Additionally, the density of myelinated fibers was significantly lower in the diabetic group (p = 0.004). The average thickness of the myelin sheath was also lower in the diabetic group (p = 0.012). The area under the ROC curve for distinguishing the diabetic neuropathy group from the control group was 0.876 for SWD imaging, which was significantly greater than 0.677 for CSA (p = 0.030) and 0.705 for SWE (p = 0.035). Conclusion: Sciatic nerve viscosity measured using SWD imaging was significantly higher in diabetic rats. The viscosity measured using SWD imaging performed well in distinguishing the diabetic neuropathy group from the control group. Therefore, SWD imaging may be a promising method for the evaluation of diabetic neuropathy.

• Aerospace Engineering and Technology
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.10-19
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• 2014

We designed bearingless rotor hub system which replace mechanical hinge/bearing with composite beam component and conducted fatigue analysis for flexbeam and torque tube. Extension/bending/torsional stiffness was calculated from 2D section analysis using VABS and 2D section structure analysis was applied for strain calculation. S-N curve of each composite material was generated using Wohler equation and fatigue analysis was conducted on weakness section which was decided from static structure analysis. CAMRAD II was used for load analysis and load analysis result was applied HELIX/FELIX standard load spectrum to generate bearingless rotor system load spectrum which was used fatigue safe life analysis.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.45-53
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• 2016

Generally, conventional transport infrastructures consist of compacted granular materials. Their stiffness and response greatly depend on the particle sizes and distributions, and application of loading on the surface over a foundation may induce deformation in both the surface and the underlying foundations. Therefore, a better understanding of the deformation characteristics on granular materials and the prediction are needed. For this reason, an attempt to evaluate and predict deformation of coarse materials based on the discrete element method is presented in this paper. An algorithm for particle distribution curve analysis was formulated and incorporated into the discrete element program. The results show that the discrete element model with particle distribution curve is suitable for estimating stress deformation in a pre-peak response. Unlike conventional uniform or random particle distribution, the response can be obtained by the use of the proper model and approach.

• Journal of Korean Society of Steel Construction
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• v.12 no.1 s.44
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• pp.65-73
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• 2000

The behavior of double angle connections is analyzed by 3D finite element method using ABAQUS(ver 5.8). Moment-rotation curves for the connections are generated, as well as stress distribution for angle and bolt. Double angle connections have various angle thickness, gage distance and number of bolt. Parameters, such as initial stiffness, plastic tiffness, reference load and curve shape parameter were obtained by regression method using Richard's formula. These parameter lead to predict nonlinear behavior of double angle connection. Design curves giving the parameters of the moment-rotation curves are generated. These parameters are primarily a function of the angle thickness, gage distance and the number of bolts in the connection. Using these parameters, connection moment and its ratio to the full plastic moment capacity Mp of the beam are calculated.

• Journal of the Korean Ceramic Society
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• v.40 no.8
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• pp.784-790
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• 2003

Present investigation shows the analysis results for ceramic reinforced metal matrix composite under uniaxial transverse tensile loading. The resulting deformation, the projected damage type, and stress-strain behavior were computed depending on microstructure details such as the type of periodic reinforcement array, and the type of interface bonding. A two-dimensional finite element analysis was conducted based on the unit-cell of square, hexagonal, or diagonal periodic away For composite with strong interface bonding, the transverse stress vs. strain curve was generally increased with the increase of the ceramic volume fraction. For the composite with weakly bonded interface, however, the transverse stress vs. strain curve was reduced against the ceramic volume fraction. The decrease was caused by the interface debonding-induced stiffness reduction of the composite. For the composite of weakly bonded interface, the relative reduction rate in the final limit stress for hexagonal array was larger than that for square array. Outcome of the present study was compared favorably with the published literature data.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.1447-1452
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• 2012

Aim: To evaluate the differential diagnostic potential of lesion stiffness assessed by the sonoelastographic strain index ratio (SR) and elastographic color scoring system (UE) for breast lesions. Materials and Methods: Three hundred and forty two breast masses (158 benign and 184 malignant) from 325 consecutive patients (mean age 44.2 years; range 16-81)who had been scheduled for a sonographically guided core biopsy were examined proposed by Itoh et al, with scoring 1-3=benign and 4-5=malignant. Strain and area ratios of each lesion were calculated within the same machine. Histological diagnosis was used as the reference standard. The area under the curve (AUC) and cut-off point were obtained by receiver operating curve and the cross table Fischer Test was carried out for assessing diagnostic value. Sensitivity, specificity, PPV, NPV, accuracy and false-discovery rates were compared. Results: The mean strain ratios for benign and malignant lesions were 1.87 and 7.9 respectively. (P<0.0001). When a cutoff point of 3.54 was used, SR had a sensitivity of 94.6%, a specificity 94.3%, a PPV of 95.1%, an NPV of 93.7% and an accuracy of 94.4%. The AUC values were 0.90 for the 5 point scoring system (UE) and 0.96 for the strain index ratio. The overall diagnostic performance was SR method was better (P<0.05). Conclusions: Strain ratio measurement could be another effective predictor in elastography imaging besides 5 the point scoring system for differential diagnosis of breast lesions.

• Journal of the Earthquake Engineering Society of Korea
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• v.7 no.6
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• pp.109-117
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• 2003

Traditional nonlinear static and dynamic analyses do not accurately estimate the energy dissipation capacity of reinforced concrete structure. Recently, simple equations which can accurately calculate the energy dissipation capacity of flexure-dominated RC members, were developed in the companion study. In the present study, nonlinear static and dynamic analytical methods improved using the energy-evaluation method were developed. For nonlinear static analysis, the Capacity Spectrum Method was improved by using the energy-spectrum curve newly developed. For nonlinear dynamic analysis, a simplified energy-based cyclic model of reinforced concrete member was developed. Unlike the existing cyclic models which are the stiffness-based models, the proposed cyclic model can accurately estimate the energy dissipating during complete load-cycles. The procedure of the proposed methods was established and the computer program incorporating the analytical method was developed. The proposed analytical methods can estimate accurately the energy dissipation capacity varying with the design parameters such as shape of cross-section, reinforcement ratio and arrangement, and can address the effect of the energy dissipation capacity on the structural performance under earthquake load.