• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.189-213
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• 2020

Stainless-clad (SC) bimetallic steels that are manufactured by metallurgically bonding stainless steels as cladding metal and conventional mild steels as substrate metal, are kind of advanced steel plate products. Such advanced composite steels are gaining increasingly widespread usage in a range of engineering structures and have great potential to be used extensively for large civil and building infrastructures. Unfortunately, research work on the SC bimetallic steels from material level to structural design level for the applications in structural engineering field is very limited. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to investigate the material behaviour of the SC bimetallic steels under the cyclic loading which structural steels usually could encounter in seismic scenario. A number of SC bimetallic steel coupon specimens are tested under monotonic and cyclic loadings. The experimental monotonic and cyclic stress-strain curves of the SC bimetallic steels are obtained and analysed. The effects of the clad ratio that is defined as the ratio of the thickness of cladding layer to the total thickness of SC bimetallic steel plate on the monotonic and cyclic behaviour of the SC bimetallic steels are studied. Based on the experimental observations, a cyclic constitutive model with combined hardening criterion is recommended for numerical simulation of the cyclic behaviour of the SC bimetallic steels. The parameters of the constitutive model for the SC bimetallic steels with various clad ratios are calibrated. The research outcome presented in this paper may provide essential reference for further seismic analysis of structures fabricated from the SC bimetallic steels.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.29 no.5
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• pp.339-359
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• 2019

Pre-stressed concrete poles are among the supporting systems used to support transmission lines. It is essential to protect transmission line systems from harsh environmental attacks such as downburst wind events. Typically, these poles are designed to resist synoptic wind loading as current codes do not address high wind events in the form of downbursts. In the current study, the behavior of guyed pre-stressed concrete Transmission lines is studied under downburst loads. To the best of the authors' knowledge, this study is the first investigation to assess the behaviour of guyed pre-stressed concrete poles under downburst events. Due to the localized nature of those events, identifying the critical locations and parameters leading to peak forces on the poles is a challenging task. To overcome this challenge, an in-house built numerical model is developed incorporating the following: (1) a three-dimensional downburst wind field previously developed and validated using computational fluid dynamics simulations; (2) a computationally efficient analytical technique previously developed and validated to predict the non-linear behaviour of the conductors including the effects of the pretension force, sagging, insulator's stiffness and the non-uniform distribution of wind loads, and (3) a non-linear finite element model utilized to simulate the structural behaviour of the guyed pre-stressed concrete pole considering material nonlinearity. A parametric study is conducted by varying the downbursts locations relative to the guyed pole while considering three different span values. The results of this parametric study are utilized to identify critical downburst configurations leading to peak straining actions on the pole and the guys. This is followed by comparing the obtained critical load cases to new load cases proposed to ASCE-74 loading committee. A non-linear failure analysis is then conducted for the three considered guyed pre-stressed concrete transmission line systems to determine the downburst jet velocity at which the pole systems fail.

• Proceedings of the Korea Water Resources Association Conference
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• 2018.05a
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• pp.145-145
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• 2018

Small islands rely heavily on groundwater resources in addition to rainwater as the source of freshwater since surface water bodies are often absent. The groundwater resources are vulnerable to sea level rise, coastal flooding, saltwater intrusion, irregular pattern of precipitation resulting in long droughts and flash floods. Increase in population increases the demand for the limited groundwater resources, thus aggravating the problem. In this study, the effects of climate change on Tongatapu Island, Kingdom of Tonga, a small island in Pacific Ocean, are investigated using a sharp interface transient groundwater flow model. Twenty nine downscaled General Circulation Model(GCM) predictions are input to a water balance model to estimate the groundwater recharge. The temporal variation in recharge is predicted over the period of 2010 to 2099. A set of GCM models are selected to represent the ensemble of 29 models based on cumulative recharge at the end of the century. This set of GCM model predictions are then used to simulate a total of six climate scenarios, three each (2010-2039, 2040-2069, and 2070-2099) under RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5. The impacts of predicted climate change on groundwater resources is evaluated in terms of freshwater volume changes and saltwater ratios in pumping wells compared to present conditions. Though the cumulative recharge at the end of the century indicates a wetter climate compared to the present conditions the large variability in rainfall pattern results in frequent periods of groundwater drought leading to saltwater intrusion in pumping wells. Thus for sustaining the limited groundwater resources in small islands, implementation of timely assessment and management practices are of utmost importance.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.37-66
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• 2019

In cold-formed steel structures, such as trusses, wall frames and portal frames, the use of back-to-back built-up cold-formed stainless-steel lipped channels as compression members are becoming increasingly popular. The advantages of using stainless-steel as structural members are corrosion resistance and durability, compared with carbon steel. The AISI/ASCE Standard, SEI/ASCE-8-02 and AS/NZS do not include the design of stainless-steel built-up channels and very few experimental tests or finite element analyses have been reported in the literature for such back-to back cold-formed stainless-steel channels. Current guidance by the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) and the Australian and New Zealand (gAS/NZS) standards for built-up carbon steel sections only describe a modified slenderness approach, to consider the spacing of the intermediate fasteners. Thus, this paper presents a numerical investigation on the behavior of back-to-back cold-formed stainless-steel built-up lipped channels. Three different grades of stainless steel i.e., duplex EN1.4462, ferritic EN1.4003 and austenitic EN1.4404 have been considered. Effect of screw spacing on the axial strength of such built-up channels was investigated. As expected, most of the short and intermediate columns failed by either local-global or local-distortional buckling interactions, whereas the long columns, failed by global buckling. All three grades of stainless-steel stub columns failed by local buckling. A comprehensive parametric study was then carried out covering a wide range of slenderness and different cross-sectional geometries to assess the performance of the current design guidelines by AISI and AS/NZS. In total, 647 finite element models were analyzed. From the results of the parametric study, it was found that the AISI & AS/NZS are conservative by around 10 to 20% for cold-formed stainless-steel built-up lipped channels failed through overall buckling, irrespective of the stainless-steel grades. However, the AISI and AS/NZS can be un-conservative by around 6% for all three grades of stainless-steel built-up channels, which failed by local buckling.

• Journal of the Korean Solar Energy Society
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• v.38 no.5
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• pp.63-74
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• 2018

The heating performance of a solar thermal seasonal storage system applied to a 1,320 m2 glass greenhouse was analyzed numerically, and the economic feasibility depending upon the number of boreholes was evaluated. For this study, the gardening 16th and 19th zucchini greenhouse of Jeollanam-do agricultural research & extension services was selected. And the heating load of the glass greenhouse selected was 1,147 GJ. BTES(Borehole Thermal Energy Storage) was considered as a seasonal storage, which is relatively economical. The number of boreholes was selected from 25 to 150. The TRNSYS was used to predict and analyze the dynamic performance of the solar thermal system. Numerical simulation was performed by modelling the solar thermal seasonal storage system consisting of flat plate solar collector, BTES system, short-term storage tank, boiler, heat exchanger, pump and controller. As a result of the analysis, when the number of boreholes was from 25 to 50, the thermal efficiency of BTES system and the solar fraction was the highest. When the number of boreholes was from 25 to 50, it was analyzed that the payback period was from 5.2 years to 6.2 years. Therefore it was judged to be the number of boreholes of the proposed system was from 25 to 50, which is the most efficient and economical.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.21 no.6
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• pp.717-726
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• 2018

Concrete pipelines are the most efficient and safe means for gas and oil transportation over a long distance. The use of nano materials and nono-engineering can be considered for enhancing concrete pipelines properties. the tests show that $SiO_2$ nanoparticles can improve the mechanical behavior of concrete. Moreover, severe hazard for pipelines is seismic ground motion. Over the years, scientists have attempted to understand pipe behavior against earthquake most frequently via numerical modeling and simulation. Therefore, in this paper, the dynamic response of underwater nanocomposite submerged pipeline conveying fluid is studied. The structure is subjected to the dynamic loads caused by earthquake and the governing equations of the system are derived using mathematical model via Classic shell theory and Hamilton's principle. Navier-Stokes equation is employed to calculate the force due to the fluid in the pipe. As well, the effect of external fluid is modeled with an external force. Mori-Tanaka approach is used to estimate the equivalent material properties of the nanocomposite. 1978 Tabas earthquake in Iran is considered for modelling seismic load. The dynamic displacement of the structure is extracted using differential quadrature method (DQM) and Newmark method. The effects of different parameters such as $SiO_2$ nanoparticles volume percent, boundary conditions, thickness to radius ratios, length to radius ratios, internal and external fluid pressure and earthquake intensity are discussed on the seismic response of the structure. From results obtained in this paper, it can be found that the dynamic response of the pipe is increased in the presence of internal and external fluid. Furthermore, the use of $SiO_2$ nanoparticles in concrete pipeline reduces the displacement of the structure during an earthquake.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.31 no.6
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• pp.629-640
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• 2019

The investigation of retaining wall structures behavior under dynamic loads is considered as one of important parts for designing such structures. Generally, the performance of these structures is under the influence of the environment conditions and their geometry. The aim of this research is to design retaining wall structures based on smart and optimal systems. The use of accuracy and speed to assess the structures under different conditions is one of the important parts sought by designers. Therefore, optimal and smart systems are able to have better addressing these problems. Using numerical and coding methods, this research investigates the retaining wall structure design under different dynamic conditions. More than 9500 models were constructed and considered for modelling design. These designs include height and thickness of the wall, soil density, rock density, soil friction angle, and peak ground acceleration (PGA) variables. Accordingly, a neural network system was developed to establish an appropriate relationship between data to obtain safety factor (SF) of retaining walls under different seismic conditions. Different parameters were analyzed and the effect of each parameter was assessed separately. According to these analyses, the structure optimization was performed to increase the SF values. The optimal and smart design showed that under different PGA conditions, the structure performance can be appropriately improved while utilization of the initial (or basic) parameters leads to the structure failure. Therefore, by increasing accuracy and speed, smart methods could improve the retaining structure performance in controlling the wall failure. The intelligent design process of this study can be applied to some other civil engineering applications such as slope stability.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.31 no.6
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• pp.601-615
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• 2019

In cold-formed steel (CFS) structures, such as trusses, wall frames and columns, the use of back-to-back built-up CFS angle sections are becoming increasingly popular. In such an arrangement, intermediate fasteners are required at discrete points along the length, preventing the angle-sections from buckling independently. Limited research is available in the literature on the axial strength of back-to-back built-up CFS angle sections. The issue is addressed herein. This paper presents the results of 16 experimental tests, conducted on back-to-back built-up CFS screw fastened angle sections under axial compression. A nonlinear finite element model is then described, which includes material non-linearity, geometric imperfections and explicit modelling of the intermediate fasteners. The finite element model was validated against the experimental test results. The validated finite element model was then used for the purpose of a parametric study comprising 66 models. The effect of fastener spacing on axial strength was investigated. Four different cross-sections and two different thicknesses were analyzed in the parametric study, varying the slenderness ratio of the built-up columns from 20 to 120. Axial strengths obtained from the experimental tests and finite element analysis were used to assess the performance of the current design guidelines as per the Direct Strength Method (DSM); obtained comparison showed that the DSM is over-conservative by 13% on average. This paper has therefore proposed improved design rules for the DSM and verified their accuracy against the finite element and test results of back-to-back built-up CFS angle sections under axial compression.

• Composites Research
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.120-126
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• 2019

Advanced fiber fabrics have been utilized in not only anti-stabbing and bullet-proofing for body armor but also various industrial fields including vehicular armor and spacecraft structure. Furthermore, there have been a number of research to improve the ballistic performance of advanced fabrics introducing many computational approaches. In our research, an advanced fabric, Heracron manufactured in South Korea was modelled firstly using Autodyn, a commercial software specializing in impact and explosion phenomenon. The sensitivity of the input parameters was also confirmed by conducting simulations. To verify the numerical modelling, we measured and compared the simulation results with velocity decrements after impact involving one, three, and five layers of Heracron under 200-500 m/s impacts by an aluminum spherical projectile. The Heracron fabric was successfully modelled using Autodyn.

• Advances in nano research
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.209-221
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• 2019

Graphene, with impressive electronic properties, have high potential in the microelectronic field. However, graphene itself is a zero bandgap material which is not suitable for digital logic gates and its application. Thus, much focus is on graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) that are narrow strips of graphene. During GNRs fabrication process, the occurrence of defects that ultimately change electronic properties of graphene is difficult to avoid. The modelling of GNRs with defects is crucial to study the non-idealities effects. In this work, nearest-neighbor tight-binding (TB) model for GNRs is presented with three main simplifying assumptions. They are utilization of basis function, Hamiltonian operator discretization and plane wave approximation. Two major edges of GNRs, armchair-edged GNRs (AGNRs) and zigzag-edged GNRs (ZGNRs) are explored. With single vacancy (SV) defects, the components within the Hamiltonian operator are transformed due to the disappearance of tight-binding energies around the missing carbon atoms in GNRs. The size of the lattices namely width and length are varied and studied. Non-equilibrium Green's function (NEGF) formalism is employed to obtain the electronics structure namely band structure and density of states (DOS) and all simulation is implemented in MATLAB. The band structure and DOS plot are then compared between pristine and defected GNRs under varying length and width of GNRs. It is revealed that there are clear distinctions between band structure, numerical DOS and Green's function DOS of pristine and defective GNRs.