• Steel and Composite Structures
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• 제30권3호
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• pp.281-292
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• 2019

In this paper, analysis of critical fluid velocity and heat transfer in the nanocomposite pipes conveying nanofluid is presented. The pipe is reinforced by carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and the fluid is mixed by $AL_2O_3$ nanoparticles. The material properties of the nanocomposite pipe and nanofluid are considered temperature-dependent and the structure is subjected to magnetic field. The forces of fluid viscosity and turbulent pressure are obtained using momentum equations of fluid. Based on energy balance, the convection of inner and outer fluids, conduction of pipe and heat generation are considered. For mathematical modeling of the nanocomposite pipes, the first order shear deformation theory (FSDT) and energy method are used. Utilizing the Lagrange method, the coupled pipe-nanofluid motion equations are derived. Applying a semi-analytical method, the motion equations are solved for obtaining the critical fluid velocity and critical Reynolds and Nusselt numbers. The effects of CNTs volume percent, $AL_2O_3$ nanoparticles volume percent, length to radius ratio of the pipe and shell surface roughness were shown on the critical fluid velocity, critical Reynolds and Nusselt numbers. The results are validated with other published work which shows the accuracy of obtained results of this work. Numerical results indicate that for heat generation of $Q=10MW/m^3$, adding 6% $AL_2O_3$ nanoparticles to the fluid increases 20% the critical fluid velocity and 15% the Nusselt number which can be useful for heat exchangers.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• 제71권6호
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• pp.627-641
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• 2019

The paper focuses on bending analysis of the functionally graded (FG) plates with arbitrary shapes and boundary conditions. The material property of FG plates is modelled by using the power law distribution. Based on the first order shear deformation plate theory (FSDT), the governing equations as well as boundary conditions are formulated and obtained by using the principle of virtual work. The coupled Boundary Element-Radial Basis Function (BE-RBF) method is established to solve the complex FG plates. The proposed methodology is developed by applying the concept of the analog equation method (AEM). According to the AEM, the original governing differential equations are replaced by three Poisson equations with fictitious sources under the same boundary conditions. Then, the fictitious sources are established by the application of a technique based on the boundary element method and approximated by using the radial basis functions. The solution of the actual problem is attained from the known integral representations of the potential problem. Therefore, the kernels of the boundary integral equations are conveniently evaluated and readily determined, so that the complex FG plates can be easily computed. The reliability of the proposed method is evaluated by comparing the present results with those from analytical solutions. The effects of the power index, the length to thickness ratio and the modulus ratio on the bending responses are investigated. Finally, many interesting features and results obtained from the analysis of the FG plates with arbitrary shapes and boundary conditions are demonstrated.

• Advances in nano research
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• 제16권2호
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• pp.127-140
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• 2024

Upon direct/indirect exposure to flame or heat, composite structures may burn or thermally buckle. This issue becomes more important in the natural fiber-based composite structures with higher flammability and lower mechanical properties. The main goal of the present study was to obtain an optimal eco-friendly composite system with low flammability and high thermal buckling resistance. The studied composite consisted of polypropylene (PP) and short abaca fiber (AF) with eggshell powder (ESP) and halloysite clay nanotubes (HNTs) additives. An optimal base composite, consisting of 30 wt.% AF and 70 wt.% PP, abbreviated as OAP, was initially introduced based on burning rate (BR) and the Young's modulus determined by horizontal burning test (HBT) and tensile test, respectively. The effects of adding ESP to the base composite were then investigated with the same experimental tests. The results indicated that though the BR significantly decreased with the increase of ESP content up to 6 wt.%, it had a very destructive influence on the stiffness of the composite. To compensate for the damaging effect of ESP, small amount of HNT was used. The performance of OAP composite with 6 wt.% ESP and 3 wt.% HNT (OAPEH) was explored by conducting HBT, cone calorimeter test (CCT) and tensile test. The experimental results indicated a 9~23 % reduction in almost all flammability parameters such as heat release rate (HRR), total heat released (THR), maximum average rate of heat emission (MARHE), total smoke released (TSR), total smoke production (TSP), and mass loss (ML) during combustion. Furthermore, the combination of 6 wt.% ESP and 3 wt.% HNT reduced the stiffness of OAP to an insignificant amount by maximum 3%. Moreover, the char residue analysis revealed the distinct differences in the formation of char between AF/PP and AF/PP/ESP/HNT composites. Afterward, dilatometry test was carried out to examine the coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) of OAP and OAPEH samples. The obtained results showed that the CTE of OAPEH composite was about 18% less than that of OAP. Finally, a theoretical model was used based on first-order shear deformation theory (FSDT) to predict the critical bucking temperatures of the OAP and OAPEH composite plates. It was shown that in the absence of mechanical load, the critical buckling temperatures of OAPEH composite plates were higher than those of OAP composites, such that the difference between the buckling temperatures increased with the increase of thickness. On the contrary, the positive effect of CTE reduction on the buckling temperature decreased by raising the axial compressive mechanical load on the composite plates which can be assigned to the reduction of stiffness after the incorporation of ESP. The results of present study generally stated that a suitable combination of AF, PP, ESP, and HNT can result in a relatively optimal and environmentally friendly composite with proper flame and thermal buckling resistance with no significant decline in the stiffness.