• Journal of the Korea Concrete Institute
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.497-508
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• 2013

This paper introduces a numerical model which can evaluate the fire-resistant capacity of reinforced concrete members. On the basis of the transient heat transfer considering the heat conduction, convection and radiation, time-dependent temperature distribution across a section is determined. A layered fiber section method is adopted to consider non-linear material properties depending on the temperature and varying with the position of a fiber. Furthermore, effects of non-mechanical strains of each fiber like thermal expansion, transient strain and creep strain are reflected on the non-linear structural analysis to take into account the extreme temperature variation induced by the fire. Analysis results by the numerical model are compared with experimental data from the standard fire tests to validate an exactness of the introduced numerical model. Also, time-dependent changes in the resisting capacities of reinforced concrete members exposed to fire are investigated through the analyses and, the resisting capacities evaluated are compared with those determined by the design code.

• Journal of the Korea Concrete Institute
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.485-496
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• 2013

In recent years, frequent terror or military attacks by explosion or impact accidents have occurred. Examplary case of these attacks were World Trade Center collapse and US Department of Defense Pentagon attack on Sept. 11 of 2001. These attacks of the civil infrastructure have induced numerous casualties and property damage, which raised public concerns and anxiety of potential terrorist attacks. However, a existing design procedure for civil infrastructures do not consider a protective design for extreme loading scenario. Also, the extreme loading researches of prestressed concrete (PSC) member, which widely used for nuclear containment vessel, gas tank, bridges, and tunnel, are insufficient due to experimental limitations of loading characteristics. To protect concrete structures against extreme loading such as explosion and impact with high strain rate, understanding of the effect, characteristic, and propagation mechanism of extreme loadings on structures is needed. Therefore, in this paper, to evaluate the impact resistance capacity and its protective performance of bi-directional unbonded prestressed concrete member, impact tests were carried out on $1400mm{\times}1000mm{\times}300mm$ for reinforced concrete (RC), prestressed concrete without rebar (PS), prestressed concrete with rebar (PSR, general PSC) specimens. According to test site conditions, impact tests were performed with 14 kN impactor with drop height of 10 m, 5 m, 4 m for preliminary tests and 3.5 m for main tests. Also, in this study, the procedure, layout, and measurement system of impact tests were established. The impact resistance capacity was measured using crack patterns, damage rates, measuring value such as displacement, acceleration, and residual structural strength. The results can be used as basic research references for related research areas, which include protective design and impact numerical simulation under impact loading.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.21 no.6
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• pp.627-636
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• 2011

A commercially important alkaline protease, produced by Bacillus sp. RRM1 isolated from the red seaweed Kappaphycus alvarezii (Doty) Doty ex Silva, was first recognized and characterized in the present study. Identification of the isolated bacterium was done using both biochemical characterization as well as 16S rRNA gene sequencing. The bacterial strain, Bacillus sp. RRM1, produced a high level of protease using easily available, inexpensive agricultural residues solid-state fermentation (SSF). Among them, wheat bran was found to be the best substrate. Influences of process parameters such as moistening agents, moisture level, temperature, inoculum concentration, and co-carbon and co-nitrogen sources on the fermentation were also evaluated. Under optimized conditions, maximum protease production (i.e., 2081 U/g) was obtained from wheat bran, which is about 2-fold greater than the initial conditions. The protease enzyme was stable over a temperature range of 30-$60^{\circ}C$ and pH 6-12, with maximum activity at $50^{\circ}C$ and pH 9.0. Whereas the metal ions $Na^+$, $Ca^{2+}$, and $K^+$ enhanced the activity of the enzyme, others such as $Hg^{2+}$, $Cu^{2+}$, $Fe^{2+}$, $Co^{2+}$, and $Zn^{2+}$ had rendered negative effects. The activity of the enzyme was inhibited by EDTA and enhanced by $Cu^{2+}$ ions, thus indicating the nature of the enzyme as a metalloprotease. The enzyme showed extreme stability and activity even in the presence of detergents, surfactants, and organic solvents. Moreover, the present findings opened new vistas in the utilization of wheat bran, a cheap, abundantly available, and effective waste as a substrate for SSF.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.933-961
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• 2015

Damage by high-speed impact fracture is a dominant mode of failure in several applications of concrete structures. Numerical modelling can play a crucial role in understanding and predicting complex fracture processes. The commonly used mesh-based Finite Element Method has difficulties in accurately modelling the high deformation and disintegration associated with fracture, as this often distorts the mesh. Even with careful re-meshing FEM often fails to handle extreme deformations and results in poor accuracy. Moreover, simulating the mechanism of fragmentation requires detachment of elements along their boundaries, and this needs a fine mesh to allow the natural propagation of damage/cracks. Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) is an alternative particle based (mesh-less) Lagrangian method that is particularly suitable for analysing fracture because of its capability to model large deformation and to track free surfaces generated due to fracturing. Here we demonstrate the capabilities of SPH for predicting brittle fracture by studying a slender concrete structure (column) under the impact of a high-speed projectile. To explore the effect of the projectile material behaviour on the fracture process, the projectile is assumed to be either perfectly-elastic or elastoplastic in two separate cases. The transient stress field and the resulting evolution of damage under impact are investigated. The nature of the collision and the constitutive behaviour are found to considerably affect the fracture process for the structure including the crack propagation rates, and the size and motion of the fragments. The progress of fracture is tracked by measuring the average damage level of the structure and the extent of energy dissipation, which depend strongly on the type of collision. The effect of fracture property (failure strain) of the concrete due to its various compositions is found to have a profound effect on the damage and fragmentation pattern of the structure.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.197-208
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• 2014

A novel protease gene from Bacillus gibsonii, aprBG, was cloned, expressed in B. subtilis, and characterized. High-level expression of aprBG was achieved in the recombinant strain when a junction was present between the promoter and the target gene. The purified recombinant enzyme exhibited similar N-terminal sequences and catalytic properties to the native enzyme, including high affinity and hydrolytic efficiency toward various substrates and a superior performance when exposed to various metal ions, surfactants, oxidants, and commercial detergents. AprBG was remarkably stable in 50% organic solvents and retained 100% activity and stability in 0-4 M NaCl, which is better than the characteristics of previously reported proteases. AprBG was most closely related to the high-alkaline proteases of the subtilisin family with a 57-68% identity. The secretion and maturation mechanism of AprBG was dependent on the enzyme activity, as analyzed by site-directed mutagenesis. Thus, when taken together, the results revealed that the halo-solvent-tolerant protease AprBG displays significant activity and stability under various extreme conditions, indicating its potential for use in many biotechnology applications.

• Journal of the Korea Concrete Institute
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.279-288
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• 2016

The present study simplified the moment-curvature relationship to straightforwardly determine the flexural behavior of reinforced concrete (RC) columns. For the idealized column section, moments and neutral axis depths at different stages(first flexural crack, yielding of tensile reinforcing bar, maximum strength, and 80% of the maximum strength at the descending branch) were derived on the basis of the equilibrium condition of forces and compatibility condition. Concrete strains at the extreme compression fiber beyond the maximum strength were determined using the stress-strain relationship of confined concrete, proposed by Kim et al. The lateral load-displacement curves converted from the simplified moment-curvature relationship of columns are well consistent with test results obtained from column specimens under various parameters. The moments and the corresponding neutral axis depth at different stages were formulated as a function of longitudinal reinforcement and transverse reinforcement indices and/or applied axial load index. Overall, curvature ductility of columns was significantly affected by the axial load level as well as concrete compressive strength and the amount of longitudinal and transverse reinforcing bars.

• BMB Reports
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.20-24
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• 1999

The first step of the branch pathway in tryptophan biosynthesis is catalyzed by anthranilate synthase, which is subjected to feedback inhibition by the end product of the pathway. The $trpE^{FBR}$ gene from a mutant Escherichia coli strain coding for anthranilate synthase that was insensitive to feedback inhibition by tryptophan has been cloned. To identify the amino acid changes involved in the feedback regulation of anthranilate synthase, the nucleotide sequence of the mutant $trpE^{FBR}$ gene was determined. Sequence analysis of the $trpE^{FBR}$ gene revealed that four bases were changed in the structural gene while alteration was not found in the 5' control region. Among these base changes, only two base substitutions caused the alterations in amino acid sequences. From the results of restriction fragment exchange mapping, the 61st nucleotide, C to A substitution, that changed $Pro^{21}{\rightarrow}Ser$ was identified as the cause of the desensitization to feedback inhibition by tryptophan. Additional feedback-resistant enzymes of the E. coli anthranilate synthases were constructed by site-directed mutagenesis to examine the effect of the $Ser^{40}\;{\rightarrow}\;Arg^{40}$ change found in the $trpE^{FBR}$ gene of Brevibacterium lactofermentum. From the feedback inhibition analysis, the $Pro^{21}{\rightarrow}Ser$ and $Ser^{40}{\rightarrow}Arg$ mutants maintained about 50% and 90% of their maximal activities, respectively, even at the extreme concentration of 10 mM tryptophan. From these results, we suggest that the $Pro^{21}$ and $Ser^{40}$ residues are involved in the tryptophan binding in the E. coli enzyme.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.526-531
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• 1988

Procedure for the purification of pretense from culture broth of Streptomyces sp. SMF301 was developed. It was evident that the strain produced two different proteases of which molecular weights were estimated to be 23, 500 and 38, 900 dalton. It was found that the optimum pH of the smaller was 9.0 and that of the larger was 1.0. The optimal temperature of the alkaline pretense was 5$0^{\circ}C$ and that of the neutral pretense was much more stable than neutral protease at extreme condition viz. high temperature, and pH.

• Journal of Magnetics
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.1-6
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• 2003

The new class of $Gd_5(Si_xGe_{1-x})_4$ compounds undergoes a simultaneous magnetic/structural phase transition giving a high level of strain that can be induced either by change in temperature or by application of a magnetic field. Profound changes of structural, magnetic, and electronic changes occur in the $Gd_5(Si_xGe_{1-x})_4$ system lead to extreme behavior of the material such as the giant magnetocaloric effect, colossal magnetostriction, and giant magnetoresistance. These unique material characters can be utilized for various applications including magnetic solid refrigerants, sensors, and actuators.

• Magazine of the Korea Concrete Institute
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.93-100
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• 1998

This paper presents a study on the flexural stiffness, plastic hinge length and plastic hinge rotation capacity of reinforced high performance concrete beams. 15 beams with different strength of concrete, reinforcement ratio and the pattern of loadings were tested. From the test results of reinforced normal strength concrete beams and reinforced high performance concrete beams with the concrete which has cylinder compressive strength of 700kg/${cm}^2$, slump value of 20~25cm and slump-flow value of 60~70cm. It is found that an extreme fiber concrete compressive strain of ${\varepsilon}_{cu}=0.0047$ may be used in ultimate curvature computations of reinforced high performance concrete beams. An empirical equation is proposed to estimate the effective moment of inertia. length and rotation capacity of plastic hinge of simply supported reinforced high performance concrete beams. The estimated deflections using this equation agree well with the experimental values.