• Coupled systems mechanics
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.111-126
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• 2013

The structural design requirements of an offshore platform subjected to wave induced forces and moments in the jacket can play a major role in the design of the offshore structures. For an economic and reliable design; good estimation of wave loadings are essential. A nonlinear response analysis of a fixed offshore platform under structural and wave loading is presented, the structure is discretized using the finite element method, wave plus current kinematics (velocity and acceleration fields) are generated using 5th order Stokes wave theory, the wave force acting on the member is calculated using Morison's equation. Hydrodynamic loading on horizontal and vertical tubular members and the dynamic response of fixed offshore structure together with the distribution of displacement, axial force and bending moment along the leg are investigated for regular and extreme conditions, where the structure should keep production capability in conditions of the 1-yr return period wave and must be able to survive the 100-yr return period storm conditions. The result of the study shows that the nonlinear response investigation is quite crucial for safe design and operation of offshore platform.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.899-910
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• 2018

Terrace deposits are often encountered in portal areas and tunnels with low overburden. They are challenging to excavate considering their great mechanical and spatial heterogeneity and a very high stiffness contrast within the ground. Terrace deposits are difficult to characterize, considering that samples for laboratory testing are almost unfeasible to obtain, and laboratory tests may not be representative due to scale effects. This paper presents the approach taken for their characterization during the design stage and their posterior validation performed during construction. Lessons learned from several tunnels excavated on terrace deposits on the Bogota-Villavicencio road (central-east Colombia), suggest that based on numerical simulations, laboratory testing and tunnel system behaviour monitoring, an observational approach allows engineers to optimize the excavation and support methods for the encountered ground conditions, resulting in a more economic and safe construction.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.609-625
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• 2015

Management of infrastructure stock is essential in sustainability of society, and its analysis and optimization are studied in the light of control system modeling in this paper. At the first part of the paper, cost of stock management is analyzed based on macroscopic statistics on infrastructure stock and economical growth. Stock management burden relative to economy is observed to become larger at low economic growth periods in developed economies. Then, control system modeling of stock management is introduced and by augmenting maintenance actions as control input, dynamic behavior of stock is simulated and compared with existing time history statistics. Assuming steady state conditions, applicability of the model to cross sectional data is also demonstrated. The proposed model is enhanced so that both preventive and corrective maintenance can be included as system inputs, i.e., feedforward and feedback control inputs. Optimal management strategy to achieve specified deteriorated stock level with minimal cost, expressed in terms of preventive and corrective maintenance actions, is derived based on estimated parameter values for corrosion of steel bridges. Relative cost effectiveness of preventive maintenance is shown when target deteriorated stock level is lower.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.365-375
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• 2017

Seismic risk management has two main technical aspects: to recommend the construction of high-performance buildings and other structures using earthquake-resistant designs or evaluate existing ones, and to prepare emergency plans using realistic seismic scenarios. An overview of seismic risk assessment methodologies in Croatia is provided with details regarding the components of the assessment procedures: hazard, vulnerability and exposure. For Croatia, hazard is presented with two maps and it is expressed in terms of the peak horizontal ground acceleration during an earthquake, with the return period of 95 or 475 years. A standard building typology catalogue for Croatia has not been prepared yet, but a database for the fourth largest city in Croatia is currently in its initial stage. Two methods for earthquake vulnerability assessment are applied and compared. The first is a relatively simple and fast analysis of potential seismic vulnerability proposed by Croatian researchers using damage index (DI) as a numerical value indicating the level of structural damage, while the second is the Macroseismic method.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.13 no.5
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• pp.633-648
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• 2014

The seismic safety of concrete dams is one of the important problems in the engineering due to the vast socio-economic disasters which may be caused by collapse of these infrastructures. The accuracy of the risk evaluation associated with these existing dams as well as the efficient design of future dams is highly dependent on a proper understanding of their behaviour due to earthquakes. This paper develops an anisotropic damage model for arch dam under strong earthquakes. The modified Drucker-Prager criterion is adopted as the failure criteria of the dynamic damage evolution of concrete. Some process fields and other necessary information for the safety evaluation are obtained. The numerical results show that the seismic behaviour of concrete dams can be satisfactorily predicted.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.89 no.4
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• pp.399-409
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• 2024

Assessment of existing concrete bridges is a challenge for owners. It has greater economic impact when compared to designing new bridges. When using conventional linear analyses, judgment of the engineer is required to understand the behavior of redundant structures after the first element in the structural system reaches its ultimate capacity. The alternative is to use a predictive tool such as advanced nonlinear finite element analyses (ANFEA) to assess the overall structural behavior. This paper proposes a new reliability framework for the assessment of existing bridge structures using ANFEA. A general framework defined in previous works, accounting for material uncertainties and concrete model performance, is adapted to the context of the assessment of existing bridges. A "shifted" reliability problem is defined under the assumption of quasi-deterministic dead load effects. The overall exercise is viewed as a progressive pushover analysis up to structural failure, where the actual safety index is compared at each event to a target reliability index.

• Journal of Hydrogen and New Energy
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.21-28
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• 2019

Reversible solid oxide fuel cell (ReSOC) system was integrated with waste steam for electrical energy storage in distributed energy storage application. Waste steam was utilized as external heat in SOEC mode for higher hydrogen production efficiency. Three system configurations were analyzed to evaluate techno-economic performance. The first system is a simple configuration to minimize the cost of balance of plant. The second system is the more complicated configuration with heat recovery steam generator (HRSG). The third system is featured with HRSG and fuel recirculation by blower. Lumped models were used for system performance analyses. The ReSOC stack was characterized by applying area specific resistance value at fixed operating pressure and temperature. In economical assessment, the levelized costs of energy storage (LCOS) were calculated for three system configurations based on capital investment. The system lifetime was assumed 20 years with ReSOC stack replaced every 5 years, inflation rate of 2%, and capacity factor of 80%. The results showed that the exergy round-trip efficiency of system 1, 2, 3 were 47.9%, 48.8%, and 52.8% respectively. The high round-trip efficiency of third system compared to others is attributed to the remarkable reduction in steam requirement and hydrogen compression power owning to fuel recirculation. The result from economic calculation showed that the LCOS values of system 1, 2, 3 were 3.46 ¢/kWh, 3.43 ¢/kWh, and 3.14 ¢/kWh, respectively. Even though the systems 2 and 3 have expensive HRSG, they showed higher round-trip efficiencies and significant reduction in boiler and hydrogen compressor cost.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.54 no.4
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• pp.470-478
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• 2016

Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions caused by fossil fuels consumption is one of the challenging issues worldwide. Renewable energy source (RES)-based energy supply system can be a promising alternative to the current fossil fuel-based system. In this study, we propose an optimization approach for designing a stand-alone hybrid energy supply system using RES and evaluating economic performances of the energy systems. The suggested approach is used to answer the questions; i) what technology is suitable to various demand sectors in different regions, and ii) how does it cost to meet the demand in term of the levelized costs of energy (LCOE). We illustrate the applicability of the proposed approach by applying to the design problem of energy supply systems for residential, agricultural and commercial sectors of Korea. As the results of LCOE analysis, for the residential sector has the LCOE ranging of $0.37~$0.44/kWh, the agricultural sector of $0.15~$0.61/kWh and the commercial sector of $0.12~$0.28/kWh.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.53 no.7
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• pp.2418-2425
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• 2021

Monazite is a phosphate mineral that contains thorium (Th) and rare earth elements. The Th concentration in monazite can be as high as 500 ppm, and it has the potential to be used as fuel in the nuclear power system. Therefore, this study aimed to conduct the techno-economic analysis (TEA) of Th extraction in the form of thorium oxide (ThO₂) from monazite. Th can be extracted from monazite through an alkaline fusion method. The TEA of ThO₂ production studied parameters, including raw materials, equipment costs, total plant direct and indirect costs, and direct fixed capital cost. These parameters were calculated for the production of 0.5, 1, and 10 ton ThO₂ per batch. The TEA study revealed that the highest production cost was ascribed to installed equipment. Furthermore, the highest return on investment (ROI) of 21.92% was achieved for extraction of 1 ton/batch of ThO₂, with a payback time of 4.56 years. With further increase in ThO₂ production to 10 ton/batch, the ROI was decreased to 5.37%. This is mainly due to a significant increase in the total capital investment with increasing ThO₂ production scale. The minimum unit production cost was achieved for 1 ton ThO₂/batch equal to 335.79 $/Kg ThO₂.

• Journal of Practical Engineering Education
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.203-214
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• 2024

The purpose of this study was to identify the factors influencing vocational training participation among individuals aged 65 and older in order to enhance their employability. According to the research findings, the educational background and economic activity status of the elderly significantly impact their participation in vocational training. It was confirmed that economic activity and vocational training are closely related to the capacity development and increased employability of the elderly. Moreover, a considerable number of elderly individuals express a continued desire to work, and this group tends to participate more in vocational training. This underscores the importance of promoting vocational training among the elderly and developing suitable models, which holds significant policy implications. Logistic regression analysis revealed that gender, education, economic activity, desire to work, and pension income affect participation in vocational training. This highlights the necessity of formulating specific strategies in government support policies, particularly for those with lower educational backgrounds. Additionally, the study emphasizes the importance of approaches that encourage vocational training participation, especially among those with lower pension income.