• Advances in nano research
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• v.5 no.4
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• pp.337-357
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• 2017

Knowledge of thin films mechanical properties is strongly associated to the reliability and the performances of Nano Electro Mechanical Systems (NEMS). In the literature, there are several methods for micro materials characterization. Bulge test is an established nondestructive technique for studying the mechanical properties of thin films. This study improve the performances of NEMS by investigating the mechanical behavior of Nano rectangular thin film (NRTF) made of new material embedded in Nano Electro Mechanical Systems (NEMS) by developing the bulge test technique. The NRTF built from adhesively-bonded layers of basalt fiber reinforced polymer (BFRP) laminate composite materials in Nano size at room temperature and were used for plane-strain bulging. The NRTF is first pre-stressed to ensure that is no initial deflection before applied the loads on NRTF and then clamped between two plates. A differential pressure is applying to a deformation of the laminated composite NRTF. This makes the plane-strain bulge test idea for studying the mechanical behavior of laminated composite NRTF in both the elastic and plastic regimes. An exact solution of governing equations for symmetric cross-ply BFRP laminated composite NRTF was established with taking in-to account the effect of the residual strength from pre-stressed loading. The stress-strain relationship of the BFRP laminated composite NRTF was determined by hydraulic bulging test. The NRTF thickness gradation in different points of hemisphere formed in bulge test was analysed.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.16 no.5
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• pp.547-558
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• 2018

Studies of soil dynamic properties in Malaysia are still very limited. This study aims to investigate the dynamic properties of two selected tropical residual soils (i.e., Sandy Clay and Sandy Silt) and a sand mining trail (Silty Sand) in Peninsular Malaysia using 1g shaking table test. The use of 1g shaking table test for soil dynamic testing is often constrained to large strain level and small confining pressure only. Three new experimental setups, namely large laminar shear box test (LLSBT), small chamber test with positive air pressure (SCT), and small sample test with suction (SSTS) are attempted with the aims of these experimental setups are capable of evaluating the dynamic properties of soils covering a wider range of shear strain and confining pressure. The details of each experimental setup are described explicitly in this paper. Experimental results show that the combined use of the LLSBT and SCT is capable of rendering soil dynamic properties covering a strain range of 0.017%-1.48% under confining pressures of 5-100 kPa. The studied tropical residual soils in Malaysia behaved neither as pure sand nor clay, but show a relatively good agreement with the dynamic properties of residual soils in Singapore. Effects of confining pressure and plasticity index on the studied tropical residual soils are found to be insignificant in this particular study.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.619-626
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• 2018

A simple prediction procedure was investigated for calculating the stresses and displacements of a circular opening. Unlike existed approaches, the proposed approach starts each step with a radius increment. The stress for each annulus could be obtained analytically, while strain increments for each step can be determinate numerically from the compatility equation by finite difference approximation, flow rule and Hooke's law. In the successive manner, the distributions of stresses and displacements could be found. It should be noted that the finial radial stress and displacement were equal to the internal supporting pressure and deformation at the tunnel wall, respectively. By assuming different plastic radii, GRC and the evolution curve of plastic radii and internal supporting pressures could be obtained conveniently. Then the real plastic radius can be calculated by using linear interpolation in the evolution curve. Some numerical and engineering examples were performed to demonstrate the accuracy and validity for the proposed procedure. The comparisons results show that the proposed procedure was faster than that in Lee and Pietrucszczak (2008). The influence of annulus number and dilation on the accuracy of solutions was also investigated. Results show that the larger the annulus number was, the more accurate the solutions were. Solutions in Park et al. (2008) were significantly influenced by dilation.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.54 no.5
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• pp.1570-1578
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• 2022

During a severe accident, steam generator (SG) tubes undergo rapid changes in the pressure and temperature. Therefore, an appropriate creep model to predict a short term creep damage is essential. In this paper, a novel creep model for Alloy 690 SG tube material was proposed. It is based on the theta (θ) projection method that can represent all three stages of the creep process. The original θ projection method poses a limitation owing to its inability to represent experimental creep curves for SG tube materials for a large strain rate in the tertiary creep region. Therefore, a new modified θ projection method is proposed; subsequently, a master curve for Alloy 690 SG material is also proposed to optimize the creep model parameters, θ_i (i = 1-5). To adapt the implicit creep scheme to the finite element code, a partial derivative of incremental creep with respect to the stress is necessary. Accordingly, creep model parameters with a strictly linear relationship with the stress and temperature were proposed. The effectiveness of the model was validated using a commercial finite element analysis software. The creep model can be applied to evaluate the creep rupture behavior of SG tubes in nuclear power plants.

• Advances in concrete construction
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• v.15 no.6
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• pp.405-417
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• 2023

While ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) is commonly reinforced with micro straight steel fibers in existing applications, studies have indicated that the use of deformed steel macro-fibers leads to enhanced ductility and post-peak responses for UHPC structural elements, which is of particular importance for earthquake-resistant structures. However, there are potential concerns regarding the use of UHPC reinforced with macro-fibers due to the issues of workability and fiber distribution. The objective of this study was to address these issues by extensively investigating the restricted and non-restricted deformability, filling ability, horizontal and vertical velocities, and passing ability of UHPC containing macro hooked-end steel fibers. A new approach is suggested to examine the homogeneity of fiber distribution in UHPC. The influences of ultra-fine fillers and steel macro-fibers on the workability of fresh UHPC and the mechanics of hardened UHPC were examined. It was found that although increasing the ratio of quartz powder to cement led to an improvement in the workability and tensile strain hardening behavior of UHPC, it reduced the fiber distribution homogeneity. The addition of 1% volume fraction of macro-fibers in UHPC improved workability, but reduced its compressive strength, which is contrary to the effect of micro-fiber inclusion in UHPC.

• The Korean Journal of Mycology
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• v.51 no.2
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• pp.101-109
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• 2023

A fungal strain designated KNUF-21-66Q1 was isolated from soil in Chungcheongbuk Province, Korea. Moderate growth of colonies was observed on potato dextrose agar, oatmeal agar (OA), malt extract agar, and cornmeal agar media at 25℃, and the detailed morphology was examined on OA medium. The colonies on OA medium were flat, had entire margin, hyaline, and yellow concentric rings in 3-4 weeks. Conidiomata were pycnidial, solitary or clustered, globose to subglobose, black-brown, and 300-500 ㎛ in diameter. Conidiogenous cells were smooth, hyaline, globose to ampulliform, and 6.0-9.0×3.0-6.0 ㎛ in size (n=15). Conidia were hyaline to pale brown, slightly golden, obovoid to slightly ellipsoidal, smooth, guttulate, and 3.0-4.7×2.1-3.3 ㎛ in size (n=100). The strain was confirmed based on phylogenetic analysis using internal transcribed spacer regions, the partial 28S rDNA of large subunit, and β-tubulin gene sequences. The morphological observations and phylogenetic analysis revealed that the strain KNUF-21-66Q1 was similar to the previously described Paraconiothyrium kelleni. To our knowledge, this is the first report of P. kelleni in Korea.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.48 no.5
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• pp.485-498
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• 2023

The need for carbon neutrality in the world strives the construction industry to reduce the use of construction materials. Aiming to this, recycled aggregate concrete (RAC) could be used as it reduces the carbon dioxide emissions. Currently, RAC is mainly used in non-structural members of civil constructions, seldom used in structural members. To broaden its structural use, a new type of composite column, i.e., the square and rectangular RAC filled FRP tubes (CFFTs), has been concerned in this study. The investigation on their axial compressive behavior through physical test and numerical analysis demonstrated that the load-carrying capacity of such column is reduced with the increase of replacement ratio of recycled aggregate and aspect ratio of section but can be improved by the increase of FRP confining stiffness and corner radius, said capacity can be equivalent to their steel reinforced concrete counterparts. At failure, the hoop strain at corner of tube is unexpectedly smaller than that at flat side of the tube although the FRP tube ruptured at its corner first, revealing a premature failure. Besides, a design-oriented stress-strain model of concrete and an analysis-oriented finite element model are proposed to predict the load-strain response of square and rectangular CFFT columns, which facilitates the engineering use of RAC in load-carrying structural members.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.87 no.6
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• pp.555-574
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• 2023

An efficient optimization algorithm and damage-sensitive objective function are two main components in optimization-based Finite Element Model Updating (FEMU). A suitable combination of these components can considerably affect damage detection accuracy. In this study, a new hybrid damage-sensitive objective function is proposed based on combining two different objection functions to detect the location and extent of damage in structures. The first one is based on Generalized Pseudo Modal Strain Energy (GPMSE), and the second is based on the element's Generalized Flexibility Matrix (GFM). Four well-known population-based metaheuristic algorithms are used to solve the problem and report the optimal solution as damage detection results. These algorithms consist of Cuckoo Search (CS), Teaching-Learning-Based Optimization (TLBO), Moth Flame Optimization (MFO), and Jaya. Three numerical examples and one experimental study are studied to illustrate the capability of the proposed method. The performance of the considered metaheuristics is also compared with each other to choose the most suitable optimizer in structural damage detection. The numerical examinations on truss and frame structures with considering the effects of measurement noise and availability of only the first few vibrating modes reveal the good performance of the proposed technique in identifying damage locations and their severities. Experimental examinations on a six-story shear building structure tested on a shake table also indicate that this method can be considered as a suitable technique for damage assessment of shear building structures.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.55 no.9
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• pp.3342-3351
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• 2023

High-density polyethylene (HDPE) pipelines in nuclear power plants (NPPs) have to meet high requirements for seismic performance. HDPE pipes have been proved to have good seismic performance, but joints are the weak links in the pipelines, and pipeline failures usually initiate from the defects inside the joints. Limited data are available on the seismic performance of butt-fusion joints of HDPE pipelines in NPPs, especially in terms of defects changes inside the joints after earthquakes. In this paper, full-scale shaking table tests were performed on a test section of suspended HDPE pipelines in an NPP, which included straight pipes, elbows, and 10 butt-fusion joints. During the tests, the seismic load-induced strain of the joints was analyzed by strain gauges, and it was much smaller than the internal pressure and self-weight-induced strain. Before and after the shaking table tests, phased array ultrasonic testing (PA-UT) was conducted to detect defects inside the joints. The locations, numbers, and dimensions of the defects were analyzed. It was found that defects were more likely to occur in elbows joints. No new defect was observed after the shaking table tests, and the defects showed no significant growth, indicating the satisfactory seismic performance of the butt-fusion joints.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.46 no.3
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• pp.293-318
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• 2023

This study aims to examine the elastic stiffness properties of Elliptic-Braced Moment Resisting Frame (EBMRF) subjected to lateral loads. Installing the elliptic brace in the middle span of the frames in the facade of a building, as a new lateral bracing system not only it can improve the structural behavior, but it provides sufficient space to consider opening it needed. In this regard, for the first time, an accurate theoretical formulation has been developed in order that the elastic stiffness is investigated in a two-dimensional single-story single-span EBMRF. The concept of strain energy and Castigliano's theorem were employed to perform the analysis. All influential factors were considered, including axial and shearing loads in addition to the bending moment in the elliptic brace. At the end of the analysis, the elastic lateral stiffness could be calculated using an improved relation through strain energy method based on geometric properties of the employed sections as well as specifications of the utilized materials. For the ease of finite element (FE) modeling and its use in linear design, an equivalent element was developed for the elliptic brace. The proposed relation was verified by different examples using OpenSees software. It was found that there is a negligible difference between elastic stiffness values derived by the developed equations and those of numerical analysis using FE method.