• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.15 no.6
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• pp.1439-1461
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• 2015

Design criteria, modeling rules, and analysis principles of seismic isolation systems have already found place in important building codes and standards such as the Uniform Building Code and ASCE/SEI 7-05. Although real behaviors of isolation systems composed of high damping or lead rubber bearings are nonlinear, equivalent linear models can be obtained using effective stiffness and damping which makes use of linear seismic analysis methods for seismic-isolated buildings possible. However, equivalent linear modeling and analysis may lead to errors in seismic response terms of multi-story buildings and thus need to be assessed comprehensively. This study investigates the accuracy of equivalent linear modeling via numerical experiments conducted on generic five-story three dimensional seismic-isolated buildings. A wide range of nonlinear isolation systems with different characteristics and their equivalent linear counterparts are subjected to historical earthquakes and isolation system displacements, top floor accelerations, story drifts, base shears, and torsional base moments are compared. Relations between the accuracy of the estimates of peak structural responses from equivalent linear models and typical characteristics of nonlinear isolation systems including effective period, rigid-body mode period, effective viscous damping ratio, and post-yield to pre-yield stiffness ratio are established. Influence of biaxial interaction and plan eccentricity are also examined.

• Research in Plant Disease
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.353-358
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• 2018

An effective bioformulation of mixtures of chitin-degrading bacteria has been used successfully to control plant diseases and nematodes. In this study, the bioformulation approach was assessed to control damping-off disease of ginseng. In pot experiments with soils infested with dapming-off pathogens of ginseng, root-drenchings of Chrobacterium sp. C-61, Lysobacterium enzymogenes C-3, and mixture of two bacterial strains grown in chitin minimal medium were signficantly increased emergence of seeds and reduced damping-off disease incidence of seedlings. Efficacy of the bioformulated product depended on the dose and timing of application. In two-year-old ginseng field, the high control efficacies were achieved by soil drenching of two times with an undiluted product or three times with a 10-fold diluted product. In a To-jik nursery (self soil nursery), biocontrol efficacy of the undiluted product against damping-off disease were similar to that of a seed dressing with fungicide, Tolclofos-methyl WP. These results suggest that the bioformulated product containing Chromobacterium sp. C-61 and L. enzymogenes C-3 could be an effective approach to control of ginseng damping-off disease.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.161-165
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• 2007

Cultivation of a biocontrol agent on a certain medium often results in reduced biocontrol efficacy and alters physiological state. In our previous study, Burkholderia gladioli strain B543 with long-term subculture on tryptic soy agar resulted in significantly reduced biocontrol ability against cucumber damping-off caused by P. ultimum. Therefore, we investigated the influence of laboratory culturing media on biocontrol activity and physiological state of Burkholderia gladioli strain B543 by using long-term repeated culture on a certain medium. When isolate B543 were successionally cultured on King's B agar (KBA), tryptic soy agar, nutrient agar (NA), or soil extract agar more than 20 times, the isolate cultured on KBA or NA showed a significantly enhanced biocontrol efficacy and higher population density in the rhizosphere of cucumber compared to that of the others. However, the isolates cultured on KBA more than 20 times showed the lowest production of protease, siderophore, or antifungal substance(s), measured by skim milk agar, Chrome-Azurol-S agar, and potato dextrose agar amended with 10% of the culture filtrate, respectively. Our results suggest that adaptation to proper culturing medium can alter biocontrol ability and physiological state, and we must consider laboratory media in optimizing the use of biocontrol agents.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.68-77
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• 2011

Fifty five species of medicinal plant materials were tested for their antifungal activity in vitro against Rhizoctonia solani AG 2-1 and Trichoderma harzianum to select plant species that can be used to improve the biocontrol efficacy of T. harzianum. Six species were effective against R. solani AG 2-1 but were also antagonistic to T. harzianum, except for Cinnamomum loureirii stem bark (CSB). CSB inhibited mycelial growth of R. solani AG 2-1 by 73.7% but showed an inhibitory effect on mycelial growth of T. harzianum by only 2.2%. Scanning electron microscophs showed that the CSB treatment resulted in deformed R. solani AG 2-1 hyphal cells, and transmission electron microscophs revealed degenerated cell structures such as degenerated cytoplasm and disentangled cell wall and the accumulation of electron-dense inclusions (asterisks) in the CSB treatment. The biocontrol efficacy of radish damping-off increased greatly following the combined treatments of T. harzianum and CSB and the combined treatment increased efficacy from 6.4-23.1% to 37.1-87.3% compared with either treatment alone. CSB did not affect T. harzianum population growth, as it was almost the same in rice-bran peat medium (culture) amended with 0.1% and 1.0% CSB powder as in non-amended medium. The formulation of T. harzianum in rice-bran peat medium amended with CSB powder reduced the severity of radish damping-off by 80.6%, suggesting that T. harzianum and CSB can be formulated as a biocontrol product for the control of R. solani AG 2-1.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.11 no.5
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• pp.435-451
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• 2013

High-rise buildings are a common feature of urban cities around the world. These flexible structures frequently exhibit large vibration due to strong winds and earthquakes. Structural control has been employed as an effective means to mitigate excessive responses; however, structural control mechanisms that can be used in tall buildings are limited primarily to mass and liquid dampers. An attractive alternative can be found in outrigger damping systems, where the bending deformation of the building is transformed into shear deformation across dampers placed between the outrigger and the perimeter columns. The outrigger system provides additional damping that can reduce structural responses, such as the floor displacements and accelerations. This paper investigates the potential of using smart dampers, specifically magnetorheological (MR) fluid dampers, in the outrigger system. First, a high-rise building is modeled to portray the St. Francis Shangri-La Place in Philippines. The optimal performance of the outrigger damping system for mitigation of seismic responses in terms of damper size and location also is subsequently evaluated. The efficacy of the semi-active damped outrigger system is finally verified through numerical simulation.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.271-276
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• 2004

To examine the control effect of damping-off on radish caused by Pythium spp., researchers used the isolates of a fungivorous nematode, Aphelenchus avenae, and antagonistic fungi, Trichoderma spp. These were used as biocontrol agents, either alone, or in combination. Growth rates of the A. avenae isolates and fungal damages by the nematodes varied depending on Trichoderma spp., which contained lower T. koningii and T. virens cultures than other Trichoderma cultures. Phythium spp. were damaged by all five Aphelenchus isolates, but the multiplication rate of nematode isolate Aa-3 was very poor. Antibiotic activity of T. virens and T. harzianum to Pythium spp. was stronger than that of T. koningii. Control efficacy against damping-off of radish was most enhanced under the treatment using the nematode-T. harzianum combination. On the contrary, the combinations of the nematodes and T. virens or T. koningii mostly did not increase or decreased their control effect vis-$\`{a}$-vis that of the nematodes or antagonistic fungi being used alone. The results suggest that the fungivorous nematodes may play a leading role in the disease control, and that the activity of the fungivorous nematodes may be activated by T. harzianum, but inhibited by T. koningii and T.virens.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.107-131
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• 2016

The need for a more affordable, reliable, clean and secure energy has led to explorations in non-traditional sources, particularly renewable energies. Wind is one of the cleanest energy sources that plays a significant role in augmenting sustainability. Wind turbines, as energy convertors, are usually tall and slender structures, and depending on their location (inland or offshore), they can be subject to high wind and/or strong wave loadings. These loads can cause severe vibrations with detrimental effects on energy production, structural lifecycle and initial cost. A dissipativity analysis study was carried out to know whether wind turbine towers require damping enhancement or rigidity modifications for vibration suppression. The results suggest that wind turbines are lightly damped structures and damping enhancement is a potential solution for vibration lessening. Accordingly, the paper investigates different damping enhancement techniques for vibration mitigation. The efficacy of tuned mass damper (TMD), tuned liquid column damper (TLCD), tuned sloshing damper (TSD), and viscous damper (VD) to reduce vibrations is investigated. A comparison among these devices, in terms of robustness and effectiveness, is conducted. The VD can reduce both displacement and acceleration responses of the tower, better than other types of dampers, for the same control effort, followed by TMD, TSD, and finally TLCD. Nevertheless, the use of VDs raises concerns about where they should be located in the structure, and their application may require additional design considerations.

• Research in Plant Disease
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.234-238
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• 2002

In vitro and in vivo activities of a biocontrol agent, Bacillus stearothermophilus strain YC4194 was evaluated for the control of Pythium damping-off of cucumber. B. stearothermophilus YC4194 inhibited germination of cystospores and formation of zoosporangia of Pythium aphanidermatum in vitro. Incorporation of a bentonite and talc based formulation(10$^{9}$ cfu/g) of B. stearothermophilus YC4194 to the nursery soils (10 g/ι soil) resulted In a significant (p=0.01) reduction in the disease severity of cucumber damping-off after inoculation with P. aphanidermatum. The control efficacy of B. stearothermophilus YC4194 formulation was not different from that of the fungicides, dimethomorph, metalaxyl, ethaboxam. When the cucumber plants were transplanted to the soil inoculated with P. aphanidermatum zoospores, the B. stearothermophilus YC4194 maintained the high population density in rhizosphere soil upto 10$^{7}$ cfu/g until 15 days after treatment.

• Proceedings of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute Conference
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• 2004.10a
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• pp.52-59
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• 2004

In this paper, the efficacy of the MR damper-based control systems for vibration suppression of stay cables has been experimentally investigated. The performance of the several control strategies for the semiactive control system, such as the clipped-optimal control, the Lyapunov stability theory-based control, the maximum energy dissipation and the modulated homogeneous friction, has been compared with that of the passive-type control systems employing MR dampers. To do this, the full-scale stay cable, which is the same as used for the in-service cable-stayed bridge in Korea, is considered. The acceleration and the displacement of the stay cable as well as the damping force of the MR damper are measured. The velocity of the cable at the damper location, which is needed for some control algorithms, is obtained by differentiating the measured displacement. The damping ratios of the cable system employing the MR damper, which can be estimated by the Hilbert transform-based method, shows effectiveness of each control strategy considered.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.17 no.5
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• pp.709-724
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• 2016

This study investigates the optimum design parameters of a superelastic friction base isolator (S-FBI) system through a multi-objective genetic algorithm to improve the performance of isolated buildings against near-fault earthquakes. The S-FBI system consists of a flat steel-PTFE sliding bearing and superelastic NiTi shape memory alloy (SMA) cables. Sliding bearing limits the transfer of shear across the isolation interface and provides damping from sliding friction. SMA cables provide restoring force capability to the isolation system together with additional damping characteristics. A three-story building is modeled with S-FBI isolation system. Multiple-objective numerical optimization that simultaneously minimizes isolation-level displacements and superstructure response is carried out with a genetic algorithm in order to optimize S-FBI system. Nonlinear time history analyses of the building with optimal S-FBI system are performed. A set of 20 near-fault ground motion records are used in numerical simulations. Results show that S-FBI system successfully control response of the buildings against near-fault earthquakes without sacrificing in isolation efficacy and producing large isolation-level deformations.