• Journal of Welding and Joining
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.27-33
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• 2006

Structural stress approach is well known as a mesh-size insensitive fatigue assessment method by using finite element analyses. It is, however, difficult to estimate the structural stress (SS) at weld end points due to stress singularities when shell elements are used. In this study, fatigue evaluations with longitudinal load carrying box fillet weldment under out-of-plane bending load have been performed by using virtual node method (VNM) in order to avoid the problem, which is called the weld end effect. Various combinations of virtual node parameters, such as reference point and virtual node locations, are investigated for the estimation of proper structural stress values applying VNM in a systematic manner. The appropriate guidance of virtual node parameter has been offered for the fillet weldment considered in the study. The structural stress values obtained by VNM have also been validated by comparing the result with finite element model including weld bead. Moreover, the fatigue strength of the fillet weldment based on the equivalent structural stress is shown to be consistent with the master S-N curve.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.99-117
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• 2015

The Stonecutters Bridge (SCB) in Hong Kong is the third-longest cable-stayed bridge in the world with a main span stretching 1,018 m between two 298 m high single-leg tapering composite towers. A Wind and Structural Health Monitoring System (WASHMS) is being implemented on SCB by the Highways Department of The Hong Kong SAR Government, and the SCB-WASHMS is composed of more than 1,300 sensors in 15 types. In order to establish a linkage between structural health monitoring and maintenance management, a Structural Health Rating System (SHRS) with relevant rating tools and indices is devised. On the basis of a 3D space frame finite element model (FEM) of SCB and model updating, this paper presents the development of an SHR-oriented 3D multi-scale FEM for the purpose of load-resistance analysis and damage evaluation in structural element level, including modeling, refinement and validation of the multi-scale FEM. The refined 3D structural segments at deck and towers are established in critical segment positions corresponding to maximum cable forces. The components in the critical segment region are modeled as a full 3D FEM and fitted into the 3D space frame FEM. The boundary conditions between beam and shell elements are performed conforming to equivalent stiffness, effective mass and compatibility of deformation. The 3D multi-scale FEM is verified by the in-situ measured dynamic characteristics and static response. A good agreement between the FEM and measurement results indicates that the 3D multi-scale FEM is precise and efficient for WASHMS and SHRS of SCB. In addition, stress distribution and concentration of the critical segments in the 3D multi-scale FEM under temperature loads, static wind loads and equivalent seismic loads are investigated. Stress concentration elements under equivalent seismic loads exist in the anchor zone in steel/concrete beam and the anchor plate edge in steel anchor box of the towers.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.36-44
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• 2019

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the structural performance of press-formed type asymmetric column to beam connections of steel-PC composite module frames. Most of the column sections of the joints making up the modular frame use a closed square steel section. The column-beam connection using the closed column section has difficulty in reducing the workability and securing the fire resistance. In order to overcome this disadvantage, concrete is filled in the asymmetrical open type cross section of the steel plate by press forming. A total of four specimens were fabricated to investigate the structural performance of press formed type asymmetric column to beam connections. The experimental results show that the structural performance and behavior of the asymmetric columns are different depending on whether the asymmetric column cross section is composited or the column width thickness ratio. The structural performance of the press formed type asymmetric column to beam connection was evaluated by comparing the experimental results with the theoretical formulas.

• Advances in aircraft and spacecraft science
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• v.4 no.6
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• pp.613-637
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• 2017

The development systems for the Structural Health Monitoring has attracted considerable interest from several engineering fields during the last decades and more specifically in the aerospace one. In fact, the introduction of those systems could allow the transition of the maintenance strategy from a scheduled basis to a condition-based approach providing cost benefits for the companies. The research presented in this paper consists of a definition and next comparison of four methods applied to numerical measurements for the extraction of damage features. The first method is based on the determination of the Structural Intensity field at the on-resonance condition in order to acquire information about the dissipation of vibrational energy throughout the structure. The Damage Quantification Indicator and the Average Integrated Global Amplitude Criterion methods need the evaluation of the Frequency Response Function for a healthy plate and a damaged one. The main difference between these two parameters is their mathematical definition and therefore the accuracy of the scalar values provided as output. The fourth and last method is based on the Mode-shape Curvature, a FRF-based technique which requires the application of particular finite-difference schemes for the derivation of the curvature of the plate. All the methods have been assessed for several damage conditions (the shape, the extension and the intensity of the damage) on two test plates: an isotropic (steel) plate and a 4-plies composite plate.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Automotive Engineers
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• v.15 no.6
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• pp.50-61
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• 2007

The structural stiffness, strength and stability on the bodyshell and floor structures of the Korean Low Floor Bus composed of laminate, sandwich panels and metal reinforced frame were evaluated. The laminate composite panel and facesheet of sandwich panel were made of WR580/NF4000 glass fabric/epoxy laminate, while aluminum honeycomb or balsa was applied to the core materials of the sandwich panel. A finite element analysis was used to verify the basic design requirements of the bodyshell and the floor structure. The use of aluminum reinforced frame and honeycomb core was beneficial for weight saving and structural performance. The symmetry of the outer and inner facesheet thickness of sandwich panels did not affect the structural integrity. The structural strength of the panels was evaluated using Von-Mises criterion for metal structures and total laminate approach criterion for composite structures. All stress component of the bodyshell and floor structures were safely located below the failure stresses. The total laminate approach is recommended to predict the failure of hybrid sandwich composite structures at the stage of the basic design.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Automotive Engineers
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.144-152
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• 2013

PRT(Personal Rapid Transit) system is a new transportation system which will meet increasing demands of traffic in Korea. It is also an environment-friendly transportation and automatically operated. For these reasons, researches on the PRT system are actively undergoing, but the PRT vehicles have different forms of subway, bus, etc. There are no design standards to evaluate structural integrity, yet. In this paper, Structural design specifications are derived, which are based on the performance test standard for EMU and the ASCE-APM standards. We also perform the static and fatigue analyses by FE simulation and suggest strategies to improve an initial structure design. In addition, we derived the design specifications for energy-absorbing structures to meet the conditions of the collision scenarios predefined from a view point of operation safety.

• International Journal of Aeronautical and Space Sciences
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.349-360
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• 2012

In this study, the accuracy of CSD (Comprehensive Structural Dynamics) analysis on the evaluation of blade aeroelastic responses and structural loads of HART(Higher harmonic Aeroacoustic Rotor Test) II baseline rotor is assessed using a comprehensive rotorcraft dynamics code, CAMRAD II, and a nonlinear flexible multi-body dynamics analysis code, DYMORE. Considering insufficient measurement data for HART II rotor, prescribed airloads computed by a three-dimensional compressible flow solver KFLOW are used to replace the lifting-line airloads and thereby enhance the prediction capability of the comprehensive analyses. The CSD results on blade elastic deflections using the prescribed airloads indicate more oscillatory behavior than those by lifting-line based approaches, but the wave pattern becomes improved by including artificial damping into the rotor system. It is demonstrated that the structural load predictions are improved significantly by the prescribed airloads approach against the measured data, as compared with an isolated CSD analysis.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.56 no.4
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• pp.625-648
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• 2015

Modern super-tall buildings are more sensitive to strong winds. The evaluation of wind loads for the design of these buildings is of primary importance. A direct monitoring of wind forces acting on super-tall structures is quite difficult to be realized. Indirect measurements interpreted by inverse techniques are therefore favourable since dynamic response measurements are easier to be carried out. To this end, a Kalman filtering based inverse approach is developed in this study so as to estimate the wind loads on super-tall buildings based on limited structural responses. The optimum solution of Kalman filter gain by solving the Riccati equation is used to update the identification accuracy of external loads. The feasibility of the developed estimation method is investigated through the wind tunnel test of a typical super-tall building by using a Synchronous Multi-Pressure Scanning System. The effects of crucial factors such as the type of wind-induced response, the covariance matrix of noise, errors of structural modal parameters and levels of noise involved in the measurements on the wind load estimations are examined through detailed parametric study. The effects of the number of vibration modes on the identification quality are studied and discussed in detail. The made observations indicate that the proposed inverse approach is an effective tool for predicting the wind loads on super-tall buildings.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.157-179
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• 2013

Vulnerability studies on the existing building stock require that a large number of buildings is analyzed to obtain statistically significant evaluations of the seismic performance. Therefore, analytical evaluation methods need to be based on simplified methodologies of analysis which can afford the treatment of a large building population with a reasonable computational effort. Simplified Pushover-Based Earthquake Loss Assessment approach (SP-BELA), where a simplified methodology to identify the structural capacity of the building through the definition of a pushover curve is adopted, was developed on these bases. Main objective of the research work presented in this paper is to validate the simplified methodology implemented in SP-BELA against the results of more sophisticated nonlinear dynamic analyses (NLDAs). The comparison is performed for RC buildings designed only to vertical loads, representative of the "as built" in Italy and in Mediterranean countries with a building stock very similar to the Italian one. In NLDAs the non linear and degrading behaviour, typical of the structures under consideration when subjected to high seismic loads, is evaluated using models able to capture, with adequate accuracy, the non linear behaviour of RC structural elements taking into account stiffness degradation, strength deterioration, and pinching effect. Results show when simplified analyses are in good agreement with NLDAs. As a consequence, unsatisfactory results from simplified analysis are pointed out to address their current applicability limits.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.439-452
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• 2018

This paper presents experimental and numerical study on buckling behaviors and hysteretic performance of Class 1 H-shaped steel beam subjected to cyclic pure bending within the scope of ultra-low cycle fatigue (ULCF). A loading device was designed to achieve the pure bending loading condition and 4 H-shaped specimens with a small width-to-thickness ratio were tested under 4 different loading histories. The emphasis of this work is on the impacts induced by local buckling and subsequent ductile fracture. The experimental and numerical results indicate that the specimen failure is mainly induced by elasto-plastic local buckling, and is closely correlated with the plastic straining history. Compared with monotonic loading, the elasto-plastic local buckling can occur at a much smaller displacement amplitude due to a number of preceding plastic reversals with relative small strain amplitudes, which is mainly correlated with decreasing tangent modulus of the material under cyclic straining. Ductile fracture is found to be a secondary factor leading to deterioration of the load-carrying capacity. In addition, a new ULCF life evaluation method is proposed for the specimens using the concept of energy decomposition, where the cumulative plastic energy is classified into two categories as isotropic hardening and kinematic hardening correlated. A linear correlation between the two energies is found and formulated, which compares well with the experimental results.