Ice-Class Propeller Strength and Integrity Evaluation Using Unified Polar ClassURI3 Rules

A systematic method was developed for ice-class propeller modeling,performance estimation,strength and integrity evaluation and optimization.To estimate the impact of sea ice on the propeller structure,URI3 rules,established by the International Association of Classification Societies in 2007,were applied for ice loading calculations.An R-class propeller(a type of ice-class propeller)was utilized for subsequent investigations.The propeller modeling was simplified based on a conventional method,which expedited the model building process.The propeller performance was simulated using the computational fluid dynamics(CFD)method.The simulation results were validated by comparison with experimental data.Furthermore,the hydrodynamic pressure was transferred into a finite element analysis(FEA)module for strength assessment of ice-class propellers.According to URI3 rules,the ice loading was estimated based on different polar classes and working cases.Then,the FEA method was utilized to evaluate the propeller strength.The validation showed that the simulation results accorded with recent research results.Finally,an improved optimization method was developed to save the propeller constituent materials.The optimized propeller example had a minimum safety factor of 1.55,satisfying the safety factor requirement of≥1.5,and reduced the design volume to 88.2%of the original.

Finite element and experimental analysis of pinion bracket-assembly of three gorges project ship lift

The pinion bracket-assembly(PBA) is a major part of three gorges project(TGP) ship lift drive system. The static strength,fatigue strength and stress distribution of hinge pin of PBA were analyzed by ANSYS, and the structure of PBA was optimized. The results show that after the optimization, the maximum comprehensive stress is 259.59 MPa, the maximum fatigue cumulative damage of weld joints is 0.94 and the maximum vertical deformation of hinge pin is 0.14 mm. The elastic deformation, hydropneumatic spring cylinder(HSC) load response and the vibration characteristics of PBA were studied by the bearing test when PBA bore the load caused by different water level errors. The results indicate that when the water level of ship chamber ranges from 3.4 m to 3.6 m,the vertical elastic deformation of the pinion shaft is between-8.58 and 10.50 mm. When upward outage-load(1580 k N) is imposed by the test-rack, the vertical elastic deformation of the pinion shaft is 13.42 and 14.07 mm and HSC load response is 795.80-800.80 k N. In the process of imposing load on the pinion by the test-rack, the maximum vibration amplitude and acceleration of PBA internal components are 0.37° and 2.67 rad/s2, respectively; the maximum impact on the pin caused by vibration is 19.89 k N; the pinion shaft vertical displacement and HSC load response do not fluctuate. There is a great difference between the frequency of meshing force of the pinion and the rack(1.06 Hz) and first-order natural frequency of PBA(8.41 Hz), thus PBA will not resonate.From all above, PBA meets the static strength and fatigue strength requirements. The vibration of PBA internal components has no effect on the vertical displacement of the pinion shaft, HSC load response and smooth operation of PBA. There is a liner relationship in the ratio of 2:1 between the thrust imposed by the test-rack and HSC load, thus HSC can limit the load imposed on the pinion.

Strength Optimization and Prediction of Cemented Tailings Backfill Under Multi-Factor Coupling

In order to solve the problem of strength instability of cemented tailings backfill(CTB)under low temperature environment(≤20℃),the strength optimization and prediction of CTB under the influence of multiple factors were carried out.The response surface method(RSM)was used to design the experiment to analyze the development law of backfill strength under the coupling effect of curing temperature,sand-cement ratio and slurry mass fraction,and to optimize the mix proportion;the artificial neural network algorithm(ANN)and particle swarm optimization algorithm(PSO)were used to build the prediction model of backfill strength.According to the experimental results of RSM,the optimal mix proportion under different curing temperatures was obtained.When the curing temperature is 10-15℃,the best mix proportion of sand-cement ratio is 9,and the slurry mass fraction is 71%;when the curing temperature is 15-20℃,the best mix proportion of sand-cement ratio is 8,and the slurry mass fraction is 69%.The ANN-PSO intelligent model can accurately predict the strength of CTB,its mean relative estimation error value and correlation coefficient value are only 1.95%and 0.992,and the strength of CTB under different mix proportion can be predicted quickly and accurately by using this model.

Light weighting opportunities and material choice for commercial vehicle frame structures from a design point of view

This paper focuses on an estimation of light weighting opportunities for the frame structure of com- mercial road vehicles. This estimation is based on simpli- fied static load cases which play a predominant role for the dimensioning of a frame structure and therefore these simplifications are not putting the general validity of the conclusions into question. A comparison of different ma- terials under this scenario shows that light metals do not show any weight reduction advantage in comparison to steel while a material-independent topology optimization has more weight reduction potential for the frame structure than a simple change of materials. Considering the con- straints of part complexity which is directly linked with production and assembly cost, the ladder frame structure has become the current state of the art design. Thus the paper also puts a spotlight on basic rules of node design and vertical load induction in order to keep the weight of such a design as low as possible. Practical examples from manufacturers show that the weight of a commercial vehicle could be reduced by 10%, and main parts of the frame structure could be reduced by 30% using high strength steel in combination with innovative production methods like roll forming.