• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.78 no.2
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• pp.163-174
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• 2021

Track-bridge interaction has become an essential part in the design of bridges and rails in terms of modern railways. As a unique ballastless slab track, the longitudinal continuous slab track (LCST) or referred to as the China railway track system Type-II (CRTS II) slab track, demonstrates a complex force mechanism. Therefore, a comprehensive track-bridge interaction study between multi-span simply supported beam bridges and the LCST is presented in this work. In specific, we have developed an integrated finite element model to investigate the overall interaction effects of the LCST-bridge system subjected to the actions of temperature changes, traffic loads, and braking forces. In that place, the deformation patterns of the track and bridge, and the distributions of longitudinal forces and the interfacial shear stress are studied. Our results show that the additional rail stress has been reduced under various loads and the rail's deformation has become much smoother after the transition of the two continuous structural layers of the LCST. However, the influence of the temperature difference of bridges is significant and cannot be ignored as this action can bend the bridge like the traffic load. The uniform temperature change causes the tensile stress of the concrete track structure and further induce cracks in them. Additionally, the influences of the friction coefficient of the sliding layer and the interfacial bond characteristics on the LCST's performance are discussed. The systematic study presented in this work may have some potential impacts on the understanding of the overall mechanical behavior of the LCST-bridge system.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.30 no.6
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• pp.591-602
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• 2020

Several alternative rock-cutting concepts, which are modified from the conventional ones, have been developed lately. Of the concepts, undercutting is one of the latest technologies. In this study, as a fundamental study on the undercutting technique, the rock-cutting mechanism and important parameters of the undercutting were introduced. This study built up cutting test system for evaluating the cutting performance of an actuated undercutting disc cutter (ADC), and carried out a series of cutting tests under different cutting parameters of ADC. The characteristics of cutter forces obtained from ADC rock-cutting tests were analyzed. The both average and peak values of the three directional cutter forces were linearly increased with the increases of linear velocity, penetration depth in vertical direction and eccentricity of ADC.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.77 no.2
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• pp.167-177
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• 2021

Due to various benefits such as unlimited degrees of freedom, environment adaptability, and safety for humans, engineers have used soft materials with hyperelastic behavior in various industrial, medical, rescue, and other sectors. One of the applications of these materials in the fabrication of bending soft actuators (SA) is that they have eliminated many problems in the actuators such as production cost, mechanical complexity, and design algorithm. However, SA has complexities, such as predicting and monitoring behavior despite the many benefits. The first part of this paper deals with the prediction of SA behavior through mathematical models such as Ogden and Darijani, and its comparison with the results of experiments. At first, by examining different geometric models, the cubic structure was selected as the optimal structure in the investigated models. This geometrical structure at the same pressure showed the most significant bending in the simulation. The simulation results were then compared with experimental, and the final gripper model was designed and manufactured using a 3D printer with silicone rubber as for the polymer part. This geometrical structure is capable of bending up to a 90-degree angle at 70 kPa in less than 2 seconds. The second section is dedicated to monitoring the bending behavior created by the strain sensors with different sensitivity and stretchability. In the fabrication of the sensors, silicon is used as a soft material with hyperelastic behavior and carbon fiber as a conductive material in the soft material substrate. The SA designed in this paper is capable of deforming up to 1000 cycles without changing its characteristics and capable of moving objects weigh up to 1200 g. This SA has the capability of being used in soft robots and artificial hand making for high-speed objects harvesting.

• Advances in nano research
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• v.10 no.3
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• pp.253-261
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• 2021

Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) is one of the most widely adopted silicon-based organic polymeric elastomers. Elastomeric nanostructures are normally required to accomplish an explicit mechanical role and correspondingly their mechanical properties are crucial to affect device and material performance. Despite its wide application, the mechanical properties of PDMS are yet fully understood. In particular, the time dependent mechanical response of PDMS has not been fully elucidated. Here, utilizing state-of-the-art PeakForce Quantitative Nanomechanical Mapping (PFQNM) together with Force Volume (FV) and Fast Force Volume (FFV), the elastic moduli of PDMS samples were assessed in a time-dependent fashion. Specifically, the acquisition frequency was discretely changed four orders of magnitude from 0.1 Hz up to 2 kHz. Careful calibrations were done. Force data were fitted with a linearized DMT contact mechanics model considering surface adhesion force. Increased Young's modulus was discovered with increasing acquisition frequency. It was measured 878 ± 274 kPa at 0.1 Hz and increased to 4586 ± 758 kPa at 2 kHz. The robust local probing of mechanical measurement as well as unprecedented high-resolution topography imaging open new avenues for quantitative nanomechanical mapping of soft polymers, and can be extended to soft biological systems.

• Journal of the Korea Institute of Building Construction
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.219-228
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• 2022

In this study, to improve educational motivation and learning outcomes, a mobile app using game elements was developed, and the effect of its application in rebar work education was analyzed. Using the 4F(Figure out-Focus-Fun design-Finalize) process, which is a game development model, a mobile learning app for rebar work was developed that considers the characteristics of college students familiar with smartphone use, and the app was developed in a manner that utilizes game mechanics such as learning missions and points to stimulate a learner's interest and improve educational motivation. The results show that the proposed app for rebar work is positively evaluated in terms of interface style, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, perceived enjoyment, attitude toward using, and intention to use. Therefore, it can be concluded that using the learning game app for rebar work in classes can contribute to improving a learner's performance in various aspects.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.81 no.3
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• pp.293-303
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• 2022

As infrastructure ages and traffic load increases, serious public concerns have arisen for the well-being of bridges. The current health monitoring practice focuses on large-scale bridges rather than short span bridges. However, it is critical that more attention should be given to these behind-the-scene bridges. The relevant information about the construction methods and as-built properties are most likely missing. Additionally, since the condition of a bridge has unavoidably changed during service, due to weathering and deterioration, the material properties and boundary conditions would also have changed since its construction. Therefore, it is not appropriate to continue using the design values of the bridge parameters when undertaking any analysis to evaluate bridge performance. It is imperative to update the model, using finite element (FE) analysis to reflect the current structural condition. In this study, a FE model is established to simulate a concrete culvert bridge in New South Wales, Australia. That model, however, contains a number of parameter uncertainties that would compromise the accuracy of analytical results. The model is therefore updated with a neural network (NN) optimisation algorithm incorporating Monte Carlo (MC) simulation to minimise the uncertainties in parameters. The modal frequency and strain responses produced by the updated FE model are compared with the frequency and strain values on-site measured by sensors. The outcome indicates that the NN model updating incorporating MC simulation is a feasible and robust optimisation method for updating numerical models so as to minimise the difference between numerical models and their real-world counterparts.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.78 no.3
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• pp.351-368
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• 2021

This paper, by applying a reliability-based framework, develops seismic vulnerability macrozonation maps for Tehran, the capital and one of the most earthquake-vulnerable city of Iran. Seismic performance assessment of 3-, 4- and 5-story steel moment resisting frames (SMRFs), designed according to ASCE/SEI 41-17 and Iranian Code of Practice for Seismic Resistant Design of Buildings (2800 Standard), is investigated in terms of overall maximum inter-story drift ratio (MIDR) and unit repair cost ratio which is hereafter known as "damage ratio". To this end, Tehran city is first meshed into a network of 66 points to numerically locate low- to mid-rise SMRFs. Active faults around Tehran are next modeled explicitly. Two different combination of faults, based on available seismological data, are then developed to explore the impact of choosing a proper seismic scenario. In addition, soil effect is exclusively addressed. After building analytical models, reliability methods in combination with structure-specific probabilistic models are applied to predict demand and damage ratio of structures in a cost-effective paradigm. Due to capability of proposed methodology incorporating both aleatory and epistemic uncertainties explicitly, this framework which is centered on the regional demand and damage ratio estimation via structure-specific characteristics can efficiently pave the way for decision makers to find the most vulnerable area in a regional scale. This technical basis can also be adapted to any other structures which the demand and/or damage ratio prediction models are developed.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.32 no.6
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• pp.586-597
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• 2022

In this study, a model was developed for the estimating the locational thickness information of the upper clay layer to be used for the consolidation vulnerability evaluation in the Nakdong river estuary. To estimate ground layer thickness information, we developed four spatial estimation models using machine learning algorithms, which are RF (Random Forest), SVR (Support Vector Regression) and GPR (Gaussian Process Regression), and geostatistical technique such as Ordinary Kriging. Among the 4,712 borehole data in the study area collected for model development, 2,948 borehole data with an upper clay layer were used, and Pearson correlation coefficient and mean squared error were used to quantitatively evaluate the performance of the developed models. In addition, for qualitative evaluation, each model was used throughout the study area to estimate the information of the upper clay layer, and the thickness distribution characteristics of it were compared with each other.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.32 no.6
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• pp.345-352
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• 2022

The existing NATM (New Austrian Tunneling Method) has induced civil compliants due to blasting vibration and noise. Machanized excavation methods such as TBM (Tunnel Boring Machine) are being adopted in the planning and construction of tunneling projects. Shield TBM method is composed of repetition processes of TBM excavation and segment installation, the machine has to be stopped during the later process. Consecutive excavation technology using helical segment is under developing to minimize the stoppage time. The modification of thrust jacks and module are planned to ensure the advance force acting on the inclined surface of helical segment. Also, the integrated system design of hydraulic circuit will be remodeled. This means that the system deactivate the jacks on the installing segment while the others automatically act the thrusting forces on the existing segments. This report briefly introduces the mechanical research part of the current consecutive excavation technological development project of TBM.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.85 no.2
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• pp.197-206
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• 2023

The deterioration caused by chloride penetration and carbonation plays a significant role in a concrete structure in a marine environment. The chloride corrosion in some marine concrete structures is invisible but can be dangerous in a sudden collapse. Therefore, as a novelty, this research investigates the ability of a non-destructive damage detection method named the Power Spectral Density (PSD) to diagnose damages caused only by chloride ions in concrete structures. Furthermore, the accuracy of this method in estimating the amount of annual damage caused by chloride in various parts and positions exposed to seawater was investigated. For this purpose, the RC Arosa bridge in Spain, which connects the island to the mainland via seawater, was numerically modeled and analyzed. As the first step, each element's bridge position was calculated, along with the chloride corrosion percentage in the reinforcements. The next step predicted the existence, location, and timing of damage to the entire concrete part of the bridge based on the amount of rebar corrosion each year. The PSD method was used to monitor the annual loss of reinforcement cross-section area, changes in dynamic characteristics such as stiffness and mass, and each year of the bridge structure's life using sensitivity equations and the linear least squares algorithm. This study showed that using different approaches to the PSD method based on rebar chloride corrosion and assuming 10% errors in software analysis can help predict the location and almost exact amount of damage zones over time.