• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.7 no.6
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• pp.533-550
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• 1999

Optimal design of raft-pile foundations is examined by combining finite element technique and the optimization approach. The piles and soil medium are modeled by three dimensional solid elements while the raft is modelled by shell elements. Drucker-Prager criterion is adopted for the soil medium while the raft and the piles are assumed to be linear elastic. For the optimization process, the approximate semi-analytical method is used for calculating constraint sensitivities and a constraint approximation method which is a combination of the extended Bi-point approximation and Lagrangian polynomial approximation is used for predicting the behaviour of the constraints. The objective function of the problem is the volume of materials of the foundation while the design variables are raft thickness, pile length and pile spacing. The generalized reduced gradient algorithm is chosen for solving the optimization process. It is demonstrated that the method proposed in this study is promising for obtaining optimal design of raft-pile foundations without carrying out a large number of analyses. The results are also compared with those obtained from the previous study in which linear analysis was carried out.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.7 no.5
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• pp.417-432
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• 2011

The present paper is devoted to vibration canceling and shape control of piezoelastic slender beams. Taking into account the presence of electric networks, an extended electromechanically coupled Bernoulli-Euler beam theory for passive piezoelectric composite structures is shortly introduced in the first part of our contribution. The second part of the paper deals with the concept of passive shape control of beams using shaped piezoelectric layers and tuned inductive networks. It is shown that an impedance matching and a shaping condition must be fulfilled in order to perfectly cancel vibrations due to an arbitrary harmonic load for a specific frequency. As a main result of the present paper, the correctness of the theory of passive shape control is demonstrated for a harmonically excited piezoelelastic cantilever by a finite element calculation based on one-dimensional Bernoulli-Euler beam elements, as well as by the commercial finite element code of ANSYS using three-dimensional solid elements. Finally, an outlook for the practical importance of the passive shape control concept is given: It is shown that harmonic vibrations of a beam with properly shaped layers according to the presented passive shape control theory, which are attached to an resistor-inductive circuit (RL-circuit), can be significantly reduced over a large frequency range compared to a beam with uniformly distributed piezoelectric layers.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.69 no.3
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• pp.269-281
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• 2019

This work addresses a three-dimensional nonlinear structural analysis of the constructive phases of a cable-stayed segmental concrete bridge using The Finite Element Method through ANSYS, version 14.5. New subroutines have been added to ANSYS via its UPF customization tool to implement viscoelastoplastic constitutive equations with cracking capability to model concrete's structural behavior. This numerical implementation allowed the use of three-dimensional twenty-node quadratic elements (SOLID186) with the Element-Embedded Rebar model option (REINF264), conducting to a fast and efficient solution. These advantages are of fundamental importance when large structures, such as bridges, are modeled, since an increasing number of finite elements is demanded. After validating the subroutines, the bridge located in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and known as "Ponte do Saber" (Bridge of Knowledge, in Portuguese), has been numerically modeled, simulating each of the constructive phases of the bridge. Additionally, the data obtained numerically is compared with the field data collected from monitoring conducted during the construction of the bridge, showing good agreement.

• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.1-7
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• 2021

Speech is a spatiotemporally coordinated structure of constriction actions at discrete articulators such as lips, tongue tip, tongue body, velum, and glottis. Like other human movements (e.g., reaching), each action as a linguistic task is completed by a synergy of involved basic elements (e.g., bone, muscle, neural system). This paper discusses how speech tasks are dynamically related to joints as one of the basic elements in terms of robotics of speech production. Further this introduction of robotics to speech sciences will hopefully deepen our understanding of how speech is produced and provide a solid foundation to developing a physical talking machine.

• Coupled systems mechanics
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.285-295
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• 2022

Laminated composite plates are utilized extensively in different fields of construction and industry thanks to their advantages such as high stiffness-to-weight ratio. Additionally, they are characterized by their directional properties that permit the designer to optimize their stiffness for specific applications. This paper presents a numerical analysis and optimization study of plates made of composite subjected to low velocity impact. The main aim is to identify the optimum fiber orientations of the composite plates that resist low velocity impact load. First, a three-dimensional finite element model is built using LS DYNA computer software package to perform the impact analyses. The composite plate has been modeled using solid elements. The failure criteria of Tsai-Wu's criterion have been used to control the strength of the composite material. A good agreement has been found between the predicted numerical results and experimental results in the literature which validate the finite element model. Then, an Adaptive Simulated Annealing (ASA) has been used to optimize the response of impacted composite laminate where its objective is to maximize the safety factor by varying the ply angles. The results show that the ASA is robust in the sense that it is capable of predicting the best optimal designs.

• Journal of the Korean Wood Science and Technology
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.15-24
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• 2004

The present work was undertaken to investigate the anatomical and chemical characteristics of transgenic poplar down-regulated with antisense OMT gene. Also the distribution of lignin in transgenic poplar trees was investigated at cellular level. No visible abnormal phenotype was observed in the fibers and vessel elements of transgenic poplar. Any marked differences in the staining intensities of Wiesner and Mäule color reaction were not identified in the transgenic poplar. TEM micrographs did not show any staining intensities in the cell walls stained with KMnO₄. Interestingly, the UV spectroscopy of semi-thin sections exhibited a distinct decrease of lignin absorption at 280 nm in the vessel walls, indicating transgenic poplar wood with lower amount of guaiacyl lignin in vessel elements. Chemical composition of antisense OMT poplar was almost identical to that of wild-type poplar. Klason lignin content of transgenic poplar did not show any significant difference from that of the controls. The solid state NMR spectra revealed the transgenic poplar with only slightly more syringyl lignin than the control. The present work showed that antisense OMT gene constructed in the poplar was not enough to reduce the overall content of Klason lignin, and suggested that the expression of transformation was confined to vessel walls.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Heat Treatment
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.145-152
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• 2023

β titanium alloys containing β stabilizing elements such as V, Nb, Ta, Mo and Fe are widely used etc, due to their excellent specific strength, corrosion resistance, fatigue strength and easy formability. New metastable β titanium alloys are developed containing low-cost elements (Mo and Fe) in this study. Fe element is a strong β-stabilizer which can affect the mechanical and electrochemical properties of Ti-5Mo-xFe (x = 1, 4 wt%) alloys. These properties were analyzed in connection with microstructure and phase distribution. Ti-5Mo-4Fe alloy showed higher compression yield stress and maximum stress than Ti-5Mo-1Fe alloy due to solid-solution hardening and grain refinement hardening effect. As Fe element increased, Fe oxide formation and reduction of ${\bar{Bo}}$ (bond order) value affect the decrease of corrosion resistance. Ti-5Mo-xFe alloys were more excellent than Ti-6Al-4V ELI alloy.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.48 no.1
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• pp.108-119
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• 2024

In this study, we aimed to propose enhancements to the dimensions and design of walking aids tailored for elderly women. Specifically, we focused on wheeled walking assistance devices and aligned each structural component with the appropriate human body dimensions to suggest appropriate product dimensions organized by size clusters, aiming to maximize the practicality of the results. We extracted essential factors required for product design, including human body size elements. The dimension extraction method was clustered to establish connections between key human body parameters-such as height, weight, and age groups-and product dimensions. We conducted a comparative analysis of walking aid product dimensions according to the design elements and sizes of models currently available in the market. The outcomes of this study offer objective, data-driven insights into areas where existing models on the market could benefit from improvement and we anticipate that the findings of this study will provide a solid, quantitative foundation for individuals when selecting the most suitable model for their needs.

• Journal of Ocean Engineering and Technology
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.45-55
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• 2015

Because of the high stress concentration near the toe of a welded joint, the calculation of local stress using the finite element method which is relevant to the fatigue strength of the weld toe crack, is a challenging task. This is mainly caused by the sensitivity of finite element analysis, which usually occurs near the area of a dramatically changing stress field. This paper presents a novel numerical method through which a less mesh-sensitive local stress calculation can be achieved based on the 3D solid finite element, strictly sticking to the original definition of hot spot stress. In order to achieve the goal, a traction stress, defined at 0.5t and 1.5t away from the weld toe, was calculated using either a force-equivalent or work-equivalent approach, both of which are based on the internal nodal forces on the imaginary cut planes. In the force-equivalent approach, the traction stress on the imaginary cut plane was calculated using the simple force and moment equilibrium, whereas the equivalence of the work done by both the nodal forces and linearized traction stress was employed in the work-equivalent approach. In order to confirm the validity of the proposed method, five typical welded joints widely used in ships and offshore structures were analyzed using five different solid element types and four different mesh sizes. Finally, the performance of the proposed method was compared with that of the traditionally used surface stress extrapolation method. It turned out that the sensitivity of the hot spot stress for the analyzed typical welded joints obtained from the proposed method outperformed the traditional extrapolation method by far.

• Transactions of the Korean hydrogen and new energy society
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.620-628
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• 2014

Direct Carbon Fuel Cell(DCFC) is one of new power generation that the chemical energy of solid carbon can be converted into electrical energy directly. At the high temperature, the electrochemical reaction of the carbon takes place and the carbon reacts with oxygen to produce carbon dioxide as followed overall reaction ($C+O_2{\rightarrow}CO_2$). However, in case of using the raw coals as a fuel of DCFC, the volatile matter containing carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen produces at operating temperature. In this study, the electrochemical reaction of Adaro coal was compared with Graphite. This work focused on the electrochemical reaction of two kinds of solid carbon by Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy(EIS). The EIS results were estimated by equivalent circuit analysis. The constant phase element(CPE) was applied in Randle circuit to explain an electrode and fuel interface. The correlation between the fuel characteristic and electrochemical results was discussed by elements of equivalent circuit of each fuel.