• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.54 no.5
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• pp.1560-1569
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• 2022

Liquid fueled molten salt reactors (MSRs) have seen renewed interest because of their inherent safety features, higher thermal efficiency and potential for efficient thorium utilisation for power generation. Thorium fluoride is one of the salts used in liquid fueled MSRs employing Th-U cycle. In the present study, ThF₄ was prepared by hydro-fluorination of ThO₂ using anhydrous HF gas. Process parameters viz. bed depth, hydrofluorination time and hydrofluorination temperature, were optimized for the preparation of ThF₄ in a static bed reactor setup. The products were characterized with X-Ray diffraction and experimental conditions for complete conversion to ThF₄ were established which also corroborated with the yield values. Hydrofluorination of ThO₂ at 450 ℃ for half an hour at a bed depth of 6 mm gave the best result, with a yield of about 99.36% ThF₄. No unconverted oxide or any other impurity was observed. Rietveld refinement was performed on the XRD data of this ThF₄, and Chi2 value of 3.54 indicated good agreement between observed and calculated profiles.

• Advances in aircraft and spacecraft science
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.83-106
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• 2023

In this work, the static behavior of FGM macro and nano-plates under thermomechanical loading. Equilibrium equations are determined by using virtual work principle and local and non-local theory. The novelty of the current model is using a new displacement field with four variables and a warping function considering the effect of shear. Through this analysis, the considered sandwich FGM macro and nanoplates are a homogeneous core and P-FGM faces, homogeneous faces and an E-FGM core and finally P-FGM faces and an E-FGM core. The analytical solution is obtained by using Navier method. The model is verified with previous published works by other models and very close results are obtained within maximum 1% deviation. The numerical results are performed to present the influence of the various parameters such as, geometric ratios, material index as well as the scale parameters are investigated. The present model can be applicable for sandwich FG plates used in nuclear, aero-space, marine, civil and mechanical applications.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.45 no.3
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• pp.331-348
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• 2022

The main goal of this article is to develop the finite element formulation based on the nonlocal strain gradient and the refined higher-order deformation theory employing a new function f(z) to investigate the static bending and free vibration of functionally graded porous (FGP) nanobeams. The proposed model considers the simultaneous effects of two parameters: nonlocal and strain gradient coefficients. The nanobeam is made by FGP material that exists in un-even and logarithmic-uneven distribution. The governing equation of the nanobeam is established based on Hamilton's principle. The authors use a 2-node beam element, each node with 8 degrees of freedom (DOFs) approximated by the C¹ and C² continuous Hermit functions to obtain the elemental stiffness matrix and mass matrix. The accuracy of the proposed model is tested by comparison with the results of reputable published works. From here, the influences of the parameters: nonlocal elasticity, strain gradient, porosity, and boundary conditions are studied.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.32 no.6
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• pp.371-382
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• 2023

Box girder bridges are now widely used in bridge construction, and it is necessary to perform load rating regularly to evaluate the load capacity of box girder bridges. Load testing is a common measure for load rating. However, the bridge must be loaded by many trucks under different loading conditions, which is time-consuming and laborious. To solve this problem, this paper proposes a load rating method for box girder bridges based on rapid moving loads testing. The method includes three steps. First, the quasi-influence factors of the bridge are obtained by crossing the bridge with rapidly moving loads, and the structural modal parameters are simultaneously obtained from the dynamic data to supplement. Second, an objective function is constructed, consisting of the quasi-influence factors at several measurement points and structural modal parameters. The finite element model for load rating is then updated based on the Rosenbrock method. Third, on this basis, a load rating method is proposed using the updated model. The load rating method proposed in this paper can considerably reduce the time duration of traditional static load testing and effectively utilize the dynamic and static properties of box girder bridges to obtain an accurate finite element model. The load capacity obtained based on the updated model can avoid the inconsistency of the evaluation results for the different structural members using the adjustment factors specified in codes.

• Journal of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute of Korea
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.165-172
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• 2003

In this study, a new and efficient harmonic axisymmetric shell element for static and dynamic analysis Is proposed. The present element considering shear strain is based on a modified mixed variational principle in which the independent unknowns are only the Quantities prescribable at the shell edges. Unlike existing hybrid-mixed axisymmetric shell elements, the present element introduces additional nodeless degrees for displacement field Interpolation In order to enhance the numerical performance. The stress parameters are eliminated by the stationary condition and the nodeless degrees are condensed out by the Guyan reduction. Through several numerical examples, the hybrid-miked shell element with the additional nodeless degrees and the consistent stress parameters is shown to be efficient and yield very accurate results for static and vibration analysis.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.513-531
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• 2018

In this article, static, buckling and free vibration analyses of a sinusoidal micro composite beam reinforced by single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) with considering temperature-dependent material properties embedded in an elastic medium in the presence of magnetic field under transverse uniform load are presented. This system is used at micro or sub micro scales to enhance the stiffness of micro composite structures such as bar, beam, plate and shell. In the present work, the size dependent effects based on surface stress effect and modified strain gradient theory (MSGT) are considered. The generalized rule of mixture is employed to predict temperature-dependent mechanical and thermal properties of micro composite beam. Then, the governing equations of motions are derived using Hamilton's principle and energy method. Numerical results are presented to investigate the influences of material length scale parameters, elastic foundation, composite fiber angle, magnetic intensity, temperature changes and carbon nanotubes volume fraction on the bending, buckling and free vibration behaviors of micro composite beam. There is a good agreement between the obtained results by this research and the literature results. The obtained results of this study demonstrate that the magnetic intensity, temperature changes, and two parameters elastic foundations have important effects on micro composite stiffness, while the magnetic field has greater effects on the bending, buckling and free vibration responses of micro composite beams. Moreover, it is shown that the effects of surface layers are important, and observed that the changes of carbon nanotubes volume fraction, beam length-to-thickness ratio and material length scale parameter have noticeable effects on the maximum deflection, critical buckling load and natural frequencies of micro composite beams.

• Physical Therapy Rehabilitation Science
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.34-39
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• 2016

Objective: Hip abductors play a role in providing stability and movement to the lower limbs. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of hip abductor fatigue on static balance and gait in the general population. Design: One group pre-test post-test design. Methods: Thirteen university students in their twenties volunteered for the study and had underwent a functional assessment. To induce fatigue, the subjects were instructed to raise their dominant lower extremity up against a load of 50% of 1 repetition maximum while producing hip abduction in a side-lying position. Subjects were instructed to maintain an abduction speed of 30 repetitions per minute to induce fatigue. Muscle fatigue was considered to be established when subjects were unable to perform hip abduction three consecutive times along with the metronome. A post-test of balance and gait was performed immediately in order to prevent fatigue recovery. The center of pressure (COP) distance area was measured using the Zebris FDM-S Multifunction Force measuring plate. Gait performance was analyzed using the GAITRite. Results: The COP distance was increased after fatigue was induced. There was a significant increase in the standard deviation of the medio-lateral and antero-posteror distance (p<0.05). Although there was no significant difference in gait parameters, there was a significant decrease in single support time after fatigue was induced (p<0.05). Conclusions: There was an increase in static balance instability and a significant decrease in single support time during gait due to hip abductor muscle fatigue.

• Composites Research
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.91-97
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• 2016

In this paper, impulse-momentum theory was coupled to a constitutive equation both for implementing quasi-static and impact characteristics of EPP (Expanded polypropylene). Also, parameters which have physical meanings were expressed as functions of relative density. Simultaneous nonlinear Newton-Raphson method was applied to find the proper values for parameters in the constitutive equation along with quasi-static test data. Results from the impulse-momentum theory coupled constitutive equation showed good agreement with experimental data and the potential to be applied to different material type polymeric foam.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.85 no.4
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• pp.485-500
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• 2023

The non-linear static analysis of reinforced concrete (RC) structures using the three-dimensional (3D) finite element method is a time-consuming and challenging task. Moreover, this type of analysis encounters numerical problems such as the lack of convergence of results in the stages of growth and propagation of cracks in the structure. The time integration analysis along with the mass scaling (MS) technique is usually used to overcome these limitations. Despite the use of this method in the 3D finite element analysis of RC structures, a comprehensive study has not been conducted so far to assess the effects of the MS method on the accuracy of results. This study aims to evaluate the accuracy of the MS method in the non-linear quasi-static finite element analysis of RC structures. To this aim, different types of RC structures were simulated using the finite element approach based on the implicit time integration method and the mass scaling technique. The influences of effective parameters of the MS method (i.e., the allowable values of increase in the mass of the RC structure, the relationship between the duration of the applied load and fundamental vibration period of the RC structure, and the pattern of applied loads) on the accuracy of the simulated results were investigated. The accuracy of numerical simulation results has been evaluated through comparison with existing experimental data. The results of this study show that the achievement of accurate structural responses in the implicit time integration analyses using the MS method involves the appropriate selection of the effective parameters of the MS method.

• Proceedings of the Earthquake Engineering Society of Korea Conference
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• 2002.03a
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• pp.3-11
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• 2002

Source parameters for forty nine recent earthquakes occurred in and around Korean Peninsula are determined and the relations among them are studied. The corner frequency and seismic moment are estimated from three different methods. The spectral fitting of the source displacement spectrum with the $\omega$-square source model of Brune(1970) and Snoke(1987)'s method are applied to all events and empirical Green's function method for two events are adopted. The source parameters determined in this study show different values depending on the adopted method and on the stations of which seismograms are recorded. It is interpreted that the disagreements principally originate from insufficient consideration of source radiation pattern and attenuation and amplification according to path direction. The corner frequencies and seismic moments are averaged to exclude the directional effects and other source parameters are estimated from the mean corner frequency and seismic moment. The static stress drops estimated in this study tend to be independent of seismic moment or magnitude for events above a certain size. For earthquakes with the size less than about 3.0$\times$10$^{21}$dyne-cm(nearly same as M$_{L}$=3.7), the stress drop tends to decrease with the decreasing moment. This fact suggests a breakdown of scaling law of source parameters below the threshold magnitude. The moment magnitudes calculated from source parameters appear to be slightly larger than the Richter's local magnitudes in the range above M$_{L}$=3.5.3.5.