• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.47 no.6
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• pp.759-779
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• 2023

The paper proposes two hybrid metaheuristic optimization and artificial neural network (ANN) methods for the close prediction of the ultimate axial compressive capacity of concentrically loaded concrete filled double skin steel tube (CFDST) columns. Two metaheuristic optimization, namely genetic algorithm (GA) and particle swarm optimization (PSO), approaches enable the dynamic training architecture underlying an ANN model by optimizing the number and sizes of hidden layers as well as the weights and biases of the neurons, simultaneously. The former is termed as GA-ANN, and the latter as PSO-ANN. These techniques utilize the gradient-based optimization with Bayesian regularization that enhances the optimization process. The proposed GA-ANN and PSO-ANN methods construct the predictive ANNs from 125 available experimental datasets and present the superior performance over standard ANNs. Both the hybrid GA-ANN and PSO-ANN methods are encoded within a user-friendly graphical interface that can reliably map out the accurate ultimate axial compressive capacity of CFDST columns with various geometry and material parameters.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.113-123
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• 2023

A novel type of buckling restrained brace with built-up angle steel was developed. The core segment was formed by welding angle steel, and the middle section was reduced by cutting technology to solve the problem that the end of BRB was easy to buckle. The experimental program has been undertaken to study the performance of BRBs with different unbonded materials (silica gel, kraft paper) and different filler materials (ordinary concrete, full light-weight concrete). Four specimens were designed and fabricated for low cycle reciprocating load tests to simulate horizontal seismic action. The failure mode, hysteretic curves, tension-compression unbalance coefficient and other mechanical parameters were compared and analyzed. The finite element software ABAQUS was used to conduct numerical simulation, and the simulation results were compared with the experimental phenomena. The test results indicated that the hysteretic curve of each specimen was plump. Sustaining cumulative strains of each specimen was greater than the minimum value of 200 required by the code, which indicated the ductility of BRB was relatively good. The energy dissipation coefficient of the specimen with silica gel as unbonded material was about 13% higher than that with kraft paper. The experimental results were in good agreement with the simulation results.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.197-208
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• 2023

Rate-dependent mechanical response of sand, subjected to loading of medium to high strain rate range, is of interest for several civilian and military applications. Such rate-dependent response can vary significantly based on the initial density state of the sand, applied confining pressure, considered strain rate range, drainage condition and sand morphology. A numerical study has been carried out employing a recently proposed visco-plastic constitutive model to explore the rate-dependent mechanical behaviour of Toyoura sand under drained triaxial loading condition. The model parameters have been calibrated using the experimental data on Toyoura sand available in published literature. Under strain rates higher than a reference strain rate, the simulation results are found to be in good agreement with the experimentally observed characteristic shearing behaviour of sand, which includes increased shear strength, pronounced post-peak softening and suppressed compression. The rate-dependent response, subjected to intermediate strain rate range, has further been assessed in terms of enhancement of peak shear strength and peak friction angle over varying initial density and confining pressure. The simulation results indicate that the rate-induced strength increase is highest for the dense state and such strength enhancements remain nearly independent of the applied confinement level.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.45 no.2
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• pp.281-291
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• 2022

Surmounting complexities in analyzing the mechanical parameters of concrete entails selecting an appropriate methodology. This study integrates a novel metaheuristic technique, namely satin bowerbird optimizer (SBO) with artificial neural network (ANN) for predicting uniaxial compressive strength (UCS) of concrete. For this purpose, the created hybrid is trained and tested using a relatively large dataset collected from the published literature. Three other new algorithms, namely Henry gas solubility optimization (HGSO), sunflower optimization (SFO), and vortex search algorithm (VSA) are also used as benchmarks. After attaining a proper population size for all algorithms, the Utilizing various accuracy indicators, it was shown that the proposed ANN-SBO not only can excellently analyze the UCS behavior, but also outperforms all three benchmark hybrids (i.e., ANN-HGSO, ANN-SFO, and ANN-VSA). In the prediction phase, the correlation indices of 0.87394, 0.87936, 0.95329, and 0.95663, as well as mean absolute percentage errors of 15.9719, 15.3845, 9.4970, and 8.0629%, calculated for the ANN-HGSO, ANN-SFO, ANN-VSA, and ANN-SBO, respectively, manifested the best prediction performance for the proposed model. Also, the ANN-VSA achieved reliable results as well. In short, the ANN-SBO can be used by engineers as an efficient non-destructive method for predicting the UCS of concrete.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.35 no.6
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• pp.627-636
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• 2023

The essence of subgrade mud pumping under train load is the migration of fine particles in subgrade soil. The migration of fine particles will change the pore structure of overlying ballast, thus affecting the mechanical properties and hydraulic properties of ballast layer. It is of great theoretical significance and engineering value to study the effect of fine particle migration on the pore structure of ballast layer under cyclic loading. In this paper, a tailor-made subgrade mud pumping test model and an X-ray computed tomography (CT) scanning equipment were used to study the influence of migration of fine particles in subgrade soil on the pore parameters (plane porosity, volume porosity, pore distribution and pore connectivity) of overlying ballast under cyclic loading. The results show that the compression of ballast pores and the blockage of migrated fine particles make the porosity of ballast layer decreases gradually. And the percentage of small pores in ballast layer increases, while the percentage of large pores decreases; the connectivity of pores also gradually decreases. Based on the test results, an empirical model of ballast porosity evolution under cyclic loading is established and verified.

• Journal of Wind Energy
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.13-20
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• 2023

A self-climbing crane (SCC) system is under development for the installation and maintenance of wind turbines. It can move vertically along the wind turbine tower by itself. One of the key components of the SCC system is the clamping pad to maintain a safe position on the wind turbine tower. The SCC system can maintain its position on the tower from the frictional force generated between the surfaces of the clamping pads and the tower. If the frictional force provided by the clamping pads are insufficient, the SCC system cannot stay in the vertical position on the tower. Therefore, the development of clamping pads with sufficient frictional force is very important for the SCC system. At the same time, the operation of the SCC system should not damage the paint coating of the wind turbine tower. In order to verify that the frictional force is sufficient and that frictional and compressive forces do not cause damage to the paint, a number of combined compression and shear loading tests were conducted using a test device prepared for this study. The details regarding the test specimens, test procedure, and test results are summarized in this paper.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.251-262
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• 2024

To improve the seismic behavior of composite column with high strength concrete-filled steel tubular in bridge engineering, four column specimens, including one specimen with vertical prestressing force and three specimens with tri-directional prestressing force, were conducted under low cyclic loading. Test parameters including axial compression ratio, degree of vertical prestressing and existence of prestressed steel strips were emphatically analyzed. Experimental results revealed that applying tri-directional prestressing force to column with high strength concrete-filled steel tubular produced more beneficial behavior in terms of ductility, energy-dissipation and self-centering capacity over that of specimens only with vertical prestress. Moreover, ultimate bearing capacity of composite column was improved with increase of degree of vertical prestress and external axial force, while ductility would be reduced. External axial force showed slight influence on the self-centering behavior. Finally, a calculation equation for predicting the shear capacity of the tri-directional prestressed composite column was proposed and the accuracy of the calculated results validated by experimental data.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.38 no.6
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• pp.571-581
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• 2024

Concrete linings in tunnels constructed by drilling and blasting such as NATM serve as a secondary support structure. However, these linings can face unexpected earth pressures if the primary support deteriorates or if ground conditions become unfavorable. It is crucial to determine the loosening earth pressure that allows the lining to maintain its structural integrity and prevent damage caused by this pressure. This study proposes a numerical model for simulating the trapdoor test and developing a method for calculating the loosening earth pressure. The discrete element method (DEM) was employed to describe the soil characteristics around the tunnel. Using this numerical model, a sequence of experimental trapdoor steps was simulated, and the loosening earth pressure was analyzed. Contact parameters were calibrated based on an analysis of a triaxial compression test. The reliability of the developed model was confirmed through a comparison between simulation results and laboratory test findings. The model was used to calculate the contact force applied to the trapdoor plate and to assess the settlement of soil particles. Furthermore, the model accounted for the soil-arching effect, which effectively redistributes the load to the surrounding areas. The proposed model can be applied to analyze the tunnel's cross-sectional dimensions and design stability under various ground conditions.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Culture
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.53-59
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• 1994

This study was attempted to investigate the effects of preheating treatment and chitosan addition on the textural properties of Korean radish during salting. For this study, we determined the changes in textural properties by compression, puncture, cutting tests respectively and the changes in pectin fractions were also determined. Sensory parameters such as hardness, crispness and toughness were evaluated by sensory analysis and their results were correlated with those by Instron. The results were as follows. The compression force of nonpreheated Korean radish was increased by chitosan addition, whereas that of preheated one was decreased during salting. The puncture force from all the samples of Korean radish decreased, however, chitosan addition showed higher puncture force. The cutting force of nonpreheated Korean radish increased during salting and those from nonpreheated and preheated ones were increased by chitosan addition. During salting hot water soluble pectin(HWSP) of nonpreheated Korean radish increased and 0.4% Na-hexametaphosphate soluble pectin(HXSP) and 0.05 N-HCl soluble pectin(HCISP) decreased respectively. However, HXSP was decreased by preheating treatment. On the contrary, the results were reversed by chitosan addition. Hardness and crispness of nonpreheated Korean radish decreased and toughness increased respectively during salting. However, toughness was decreased by preheating treatment and hardness was increased by chitosan addition. Compression and puncture forces were highly correlated with sensory parameters such as hardness and crispness, whereas cutting force was more correlated with toughness. From these results, it seems that the textural properties were improved by chitosan addition in both nonpreheated and preheated Korean radish. The preheating treatment was effective in the early stage of salting. However, combination of both treatments showed little effect during salting.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.39-47
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• 2000

A large scale field test of prefabricated vertical drains is performed to analyze the effect of parameters of the very soft clay at a test site. Compression index and the coefficient of horizontal consolidation obtained by back-analysis from the settlement data were compared with those obtained by means of laboratory tests. The Hyperbolic, Asaoka's and The Curve fitting methods are used to estimate final settlements and coefficients of consolidation. 1. Final settlement predicted with the Hyperbolic method was the largest, and the settlements predicted with the Asaoka's and the Curve fitting methods were nearly the same range, and it was concluded that smear effect has to be considered on design in the case that spacing of drains is small 2. The relationships of the measured consolidation ratio (Urn) and the designed consolidation ratio($U_t$) were showed as $U_m$ = (1.13~1.17)$U_t$, $U_m$ = (1.07~1.20)$U_t$, $U_m$ = (1.13~1.17)$U_t$ on the Hyperbolic, Asaoka's and the Curve fitting methods, respectively. The relations on the Asaoka's and the Curve fitting methods were nearly the same range. 3. The relationships of the field compression index($C_{cfield}$) and virgin compression index($V_{cclab}$) were showed as $C_{cfield}$ = (1.26~1.45)$V_{cclab}$, $C_{cfield}$ = (1.08~1.15) $V_{cclab}$, $C_{cfield}$ = (1.04~1.21)$V_{cclab}$, on the Hyperbolic, Asaoka's and the Curve fitting methods, respectively. 4. The ratio ($C_h/C_v$) of the coefficient of vertical consolidation and the coefficient of horizontal consolidation that is obtained by back-analysis from the settlement data was $C_h$=(0.7~0.9)$C_v$, $C_h$=(0.9~1.5)$C_v$, $C_h$=(2.4~3.0)$C_v$ on the Hyperbolic, Asaoka's and the Curve fitting methods, respectively. 5. It was concluded that the exact consolidation coefficient must be determined after the final settlement is predicted again when the consolidation is finished, because the field consolidation coefficient is decreased as the time allowed to be alone is increased.