Determination of uncertainties of geomechanical parameters of metamorphic rocks using petrographic analyses

Geomechanical parameters of intact metamorphic rocks determined from laboratory testing remain highly uncertain because of the great intrinsic variability associated with the degrees of metamorphism.The aim of this paper is to develop a proper methodology to analyze the uncertainties of geomechanical characteristics by focusing on three domains,i.e.data treatment process,schistosity angle,and mineralogy.First,the variabilities of the geomechanical laboratory data of Westwood Mine(Quebec,Canada)were examined statistically by applying different data treatment techniques,through which the most suitable outlier methods were selected for each parameter using multiple decision-making criteria and engineering judgment.Results indicated that some methods exhibited better performance in identifying the possible outliers,although several others were unsuccessful because of their limitation in large sample size.The well-known boxplot method might not be the best outlier method for most geomechanical parameters because its calculated confidence range was not acceptable according to engineering judgment.However,several approaches,including adjusted boxplot,2MADe,and 2SD,worked very well in the detection of true outliers.Also,the statistical tests indicate that the best-fitting probability distribution function for geomechanical intact parameters might not be the normal distribution,unlike what is assumed in most geomechanical studies.Moreover,the negative effects of schistosity angle on the uniaxial compressive strength(UCS)variabilities were reduced by excluding the samples within a specific angle range where the UCS data present the highest variation.Finally,a petrographic analysis was conducted to assess the associated uncertainties such that a logical link was found between the dispersion and the variabilities of hard and soft minerals.

An empirical method for joint inversion of wave and wind parameters based on SAR and wave spectrometer data

Synthetic aperture radar(SAR)and wave spectrometers,crucial in microwave remote sensing,play an essential role in monitoring sea surface wind and wave conditions.However,they face inherent limitations in observing sea surface phenomena.SAR systems,for instance,are hindered by an azimuth cut-off phenomenon in sea surface wind field observation.Wave spectrometers,while unaffected by the azimuth cutoff phenomenon,struggle with low azimuth resolution,impacting the capture of detailed wave and wind field data.This study utilizes SAR and surface wave investigation and monitoring(SWIM)data to initially extract key feature parameters,which are then prioritized using the extreme gradient boosting(XGBoost)algorithm.The research further addresses feature collinearity through a combined analysis of feature importance and correlation,leading to the development of an inversion model for wave and wind parameters based on XGBoost.A comparative analysis of this model with ERA5 reanalysis and buoy data for of significant wave height,mean wave period,wind direction,and wind speed reveals root mean square errors of 0.212 m,0.525 s,27.446°,and 1.092 m/s,compared to 0.314 m,0.888 s,27.698°,and 1.315 m/s from buoy data,respectively.These results demonstrate the model’s effective retrieval of wave and wind parameters.Finally,the model,incorporating altimeter and scatterometer data,is evaluated against SAR/SWIM single and dual payload inversion methods across different wind speeds.This comparison highlights the model’s superior inversion accuracy over other methods.

Drilling-based measuring method for the c-φ parameter of rock and its field application

The technology of drilling tests makes it possible to obtain the strength parameter of rock accurately in situ. In this paper, a new rock cutting analysis model that considers the influence of the rock crushing zone(RCZ) is built. The formula for an ultimate cutting force is established based on the limit equilibrium principle. The relationship between digital drilling parameters(DDP) and the c-φ parameter(DDP-cφ formula, where c refers to the cohesion and φ refers to the internal friction angle) is derived, and the response of drilling parameters and cutting ratio to the strength parameters is analyzed. The drillingbased measuring method for the c-φ parameter of rock is constructed. The laboratory verification test is then completed, and the difference in results between the drilling test and the compression test is less than 6%. On this basis, in-situ rock drilling tests in a traffic tunnel and a coal mine roadway are carried out, and the strength parameters of the surrounding rock are effectively tested. The average difference ratio of the results is less than 11%, which verifies the effectiveness of the proposed method for obtaining the strength parameters based on digital drilling. This study provides methodological support for field testing of rock strength parameters.

Optimization of chemistry and process parameters for control of intermetallic formation in Mg sludges

Intermetallic formation in sludge during magnesium(Mg)melting,holding and high pressure die casting practices is a very important issue.But,very often it is overlooked by academia,original equipment manufacturers(OEM),metal ingot producers and even die casters.The aim of this study was to minimize the intermetallic formation in Mg sludge via the optimization of the chemistry and process parameters.The Al8Mn5 intermetallic particles were identified by the microstructure analysis based on the Al and Mn ratio.The design of experiment(DOE)technique,Taguchi method,was employed to minimize the intermetallic formation in the sludge of Mg alloys with various chemical compositions of Al,Mn,Fe,and different process parameters,holding temperature and holding time.The sludge yield(SY)and intermetallic size(IS)was selected as two responses.The optimum combination of the levels in terms of minimizing the intermetallic formation were 9 wt.%Al,0.15 wt.%Mn,0.001 wt.%(10 ppm)Fe,690℃ for the holding temperature and holding at 30 mins for the holding time,respectively.The best combination for smallest intermetallic size were 9 wt.%Al,0.15 wt.%Mn,0.001 wt.%(10 ppm)Fe,630℃ for the holding temperature and holding at 60 mins for the holding time,respectively.Three groups of sludge factors,Chemical Sludge(CSF),Physical Sludge(PSF)and Comprehensive Sludge Factors(and CPSF)were established for prediction of sludge yields and intermetallic sizes in Al-containing Mg alloys.The CPSF with five independent variables including both chemical elements and process parameters gave high accuracy in prediction,as the prediction of the PSF with only the two processing parameters of the melt holding temperature and time showed a relatively large deviation from the experimental data.The Chemical Sludge Factor was primarily designed for small ingot producers and die casters with a limited melting and holding capacity,of which process parameters could be fixed easily.The Physical Sludge Factor could be used for mass production with a single type of Mg alloy,in which the chemistry fluctuation might be negligible.In large Mg casting suppliers with multiple melting and holding furnaces and a number of Mg alloys in production,the Comprehensive Sludge Factor should be implemented to diminish the sludge formation.

Design,preparation,application of advanced array structured materials and their action mechanism analyses for high performance lithium-sulfur batteries

Lithium-sulfur battery(LSB)has brought much attention and concern because of high theoretical specific capacity and energy density as one of main competitors for next-generation energy storage systems.The widely commercial application and development of LSB is mainly hindered by serious“shuttle effect”of lithium polysulfides(Li PSs),slow reaction kinetics,notorious lithium dendrites,etc.In various structures of LSB materials,array structured materials,possessing the composition of ordered micro units with the same or similar characteristics of each unit,present excellent application potential for various secondary cells due to some merits such as immobilization of active substances,high specific surface area,appropriate pore sizes,easy modification of functional material surface,accommodated huge volume change,enough facilitated transportation for electrons/lithium ions,and special functional groups strongly adsorbing Li PSs.Thus many novel array structured materials are applied to battery for tackling thorny problems mentioned above.In this review,recent progresses and developments on array structured materials applied in LSBs including preparation ways,collaborative structural designs based on array structures,and action mechanism analyses in improving electrochemical performance and safety are summarized.Meanwhile,we also have detailed discussion for array structured materials in LSBs and constructed the structure-function relationships between array structured materials and battery performances.Lastly,some directions and prospects about preparation ways,functional modifications,and practical applications of array structured materials in LSBs are generalized.We hope the review can attract more researchers'attention and bring more studying on array structured materials for other secondary batteries including LSB.

Calibrating and testing the discrete element parameters for peanut seedling film

This study constructed a numerical model using the discrete element software EDEM to address the current lack of calibrated contact parameters for peanut seedling membranes and the absence of precise simulation model parameters for mechanized separation. The Hysteretic Spring Contact Model (HSCM) was employed to calibrate the contact parameters of peanut seedling membranes. The angle of repose of peanut seedling membranes was determined through image processing combined with the least squares method. Through central composite design (CCD), a second-order response model linking the contact parameters to the angle of repose was established. Optimization was achieved by using the angle of repose obtained from physical tests as the objective. Secondary simulation tests were conducted with the calibrated parameters, revealing a relative error of 1.37% between the simulated and physical angles of repose. This confirmed the effectiveness of the parameters in calibrating peanut seedling membrane characteristics. The findings offer theoretical and empirical support for discrete element simulations of peanut seedling membrane separation and peanut straw pulverization processes.

Structural Modal Parameter Recognition and Related Damage Identification Methods under Environmental Excitations: A Review

Modal parameters can accurately characterize the structural dynamic properties and assess the physical state of the structure.Therefore,it is particularly significant to identify the structural modal parameters according to the monitoring data information in the structural health monitoring(SHM)system,so as to provide a scientific basis for structural damage identification and dynamic model modification.In view of this,this paper reviews methods for identifying structural modal parameters under environmental excitation and briefly describes how to identify structural damages based on the derived modal parameters.The paper primarily introduces data-driven modal parameter recognition methods(e.g.,time-domain,frequency-domain,and time-frequency-domain methods,etc.),briefly describes damage identification methods based on the variations of modal parameters(e.g.,natural frequency,modal shapes,and curvature modal shapes,etc.)and modal validation methods(e.g.,Stability Diagram and Modal Assurance Criterion,etc.).The current status of the application of artificial intelligence(AI)methods in the direction of modal parameter recognition and damage identification is further discussed.Based on the pre-vious analysis,the main development trends of structural modal parameter recognition and damage identification methods are given to provide scientific references for the optimized design and functional upgrading of SHM systems.

STPGTN-AMulti-Branch Parameters Identification Method Considering Spatial Constraints and Transient Measurement Data

Transmission line(TL)Parameter Identification(PI)method plays an essential role in the transmission system.The existing PI methods usually have two limitations:(1)These methods only model for single TL,and can not consider the topology connection of multiple branches for simultaneous identification.(2)Transient bad data is ignored by methods,and the random selection of terminal section data may cause the distortion of PI and have serious consequences.Therefore,a multi-task PI model considering multiple TLs’spatial constraints and massive electrical section data is proposed in this paper.The Graph Attention Network module is used to draw a single TL into a node and calculate its influence coefficient in the transmission network.Multi-Task strategy of Hard Parameter Sharing is used to identify the conductance ofmultiple branches simultaneously.Experiments show that themethod has good accuracy and robustness.Due to the consideration of spatial constraints,the method can also obtain more accurate conductance values under different training and testing conditions.

Uncertainty analysis for the calculation of marine environmental design parameters in the South China Sea

The calculation results of marine environmental design parameters obtained from different data sampling methods,model distributions,and parameter estimation methods often vary greatly.To better analyze the uncertainties in the calculation of marine environmental design parameters,a general model uncertainty assessment method is necessary.We proposed a new multivariate model uncertainty assessment method for the calculation of marine environmental design parameters.The method divides the overall model uncertainty into two categories:aleatory uncertainty and epistemic uncertainty.The aleatory uncertainty of the model is obtained by analyzing the influence of the number and the dispersion degree of samples on the information entropy of the model.The epistemic uncertainty of the model is calculated using the information entropy of the model itself and the prediction error.The advantages of this method are that it does not require many-year-observation data for the marine environmental elements,and the method can be used to analyze any specific factors that cause model uncertainty.Results show that by applying the method to the South China Sea,the aleatory uncertainty of the model increases with the number of samples and then stabilizes.A positive correlation was revealed between the dispersion of the samples and the aleatory uncertainty of the model.Both the distribution of the model and the parameter estimation results of the model have significant effects on the epistemic uncertainty of the model.When the goodness-of-fit of the model is relatively close,the best model can be selected according to the criterion of the lowest overall uncertainty of the models,which can both ensure a better model fit and avoid too much uncertainty in the model calculation results.The presented multivariate model uncertainty assessment method provides a criterion to measure the advantages and disadvantages of the marine environmental design parameter calculation model from the aspect of uncertainty,which is of great significance to analyze the uncertainties in the calculation of marine environmental design parameters and improve the accuracy of the calculation results.

Finite Element Analysis of the Influence of Artificial Cementation on the Strength Parameters and Bearing Capacity of Sandy Soil under a Strip Footing

Artificial cementation is a method commonly used to enhance and improve soil properties. This paper investigates the effect of using different amounts of cement on soil strength parameters and soil bearing capacity, using the finite element method. Experimental tests are conducted on soil samples with different amounts of Portland cement. A 2-D numerical model is created and validated using the numerical modelling software, COMSOL Multiphysics 5.6 software. The study finds that the cohesion, and the angle of the internal friction of the soil samples increase significantly as a result of adding 1%, 2%, and 4% of Portland cement. The results demonstrate that the stresses and strain under the strip footing proposed decrease by 3.24% and 7.42%. Moreover, the maximum displacement also decreases by 1.47% and 2.97%, as a result of adding cements of 2% and 4%. The bearing capacity values obtained are therefore excellent, especially when using the 2% and 4% cement. The increase identified is due to the increased values of the bearing capacity factors. It is concluded that from an economic viewpoint, using 2% cement is the best option.

Fuzzy finite difference method for heat conduction analysis with uncertain parameters

A new numerical technique named as fuzzy finite difference method is proposed to solve the heat conduction problems with fuzzy uncertainties in both the phys- ical parameters and initial/boundary conditions. In virtue of the level-cut method, the difference discrete equations with fuzzy parameters are equivalently transformed into groups of interval equations. New stability analysis theory suited to fuzzy difference schemes is developed. Based on the parameter perturbation method, the interval ranges of the uncertain temperature field can be approximately predicted. Subsequently, fuzzy solutions to the original difference equations are obtained by the fuzzy resolution theorem. Two numerical examples are given to demonstrate the feasibility and efficiency of the presented method for solving both steady-state and transient heat conduction problems.

ANALYSIS OF THE THERMOPHYSICAL PARAMETERS OF MOIST WOOD PARTICLE MATERIAL IN A COUPLED HEAT AND MASS TRANSFER PROCESS OF FREEZING BY USING FINITE ELEMENT METHOD

The coupled heat and moisture transfer in a freezing process of wood particle material was mathematically modeled in the paper. The models were interactively solved by using the numerical method(the finite element method and the finite difference method). By matching the theoretical calculation to an experiment, the nonlinear problem was analyzed and the variable thermophysical parameters concerned was evaluated. The analysis procedure and the evaluation of the parameters were presented in detail. The result of the study showed that by using the method as described in the paper, it was possible to determine the variable (with respect to temperature, moisture content and freezing state) thermophysical parameters which were unknown or difficult to measure as long as the governing equations for a considered process were available. The method can significantly reduces the experiment efforts for determining thermophysical parameters which arc very complicated to measure. The determined variable of the effective heat conductivity of wood particle material was given in the paper. The error of the numerical calculation was also estimated by the comparison with a matched experiment.

Structural Parameter Analyses on Rotor Airloads with New Type Blade-Tip Based on CFD/CSD Coupling Method

For accurate aeroelastic analysis,the unsteady rotor flowfield is solved by computational fluid dynamics(CFD)module based on RANS/Euler equations and moving-embedded grid system,while computational structural dynamics(CSD)module is introduced to handle blade flexibility.In CFD module,dual time-stepping algorithm is employed in temporal discretization,Jameson two-order central difference(JST)scheme is adopted in spatial discretization and B-L turbulent model is used to illustrate the viscous effect.The CSD module is developed based on Hamilton′s variational principles and moderate deflection beam theory.Grid deformation is implemented using algebraic method through coordinate transformations to achieve deflections with high quality and efficiency.A CFD/CSD loose coupling strategy is developed to transfer information between rotor flowfield and blade structure.The CFD and the CSD modules are verified seperately.Then the CFD/CSD loose coupling is adopted in airloads prediction of UH-60A rotor under high speed forward flight condition.The calculated results agree well with test data.Finally,effects of torsional stiffness properties on airloads of rotors with different tip swept angles(from 10° forward to 30° backward)are investigated.The results are evaluated through pressure distribution and airloads variation,and some meaningful conclusions are drawn the moderated shock wave strength and pressure gradient caused by varied tip swept angle and structural properties.

The Complex Analysis Method of Numerical Identification of Parameters of Quasiideals Processes in Doubly-Connected Nonlinear-Layered Curvilinear Domains

The method of numerical solving of nonlinear model problems of theory of a complex quasi-potential in doubly-connected nonlinear-layered curvilinear domains considering inverse influence function of flow on a conductivity coefficient of medium was developed on the basis of synthesis of numerical methods of the quasi-conformal mappings and summary representations in conjunction with domain decomposition by method Schwartz. The proposed algorithm allows finding the potential of the quasiideals field, construction a motion grid （fluid-flow grid） simultaneously defining the flow lines that separate of sub-domains constancy of coefficient conductivity and identification the piecewise-constant values of coefficient conductivity, the local flows for the known measurements on boundary of domain.

Rigorous back analysis of shear strength parameters of landslide slip

A rigorous back analysis of shear strength parameters of landslide slip was presented. Kinematical element method was adopted to determine factor of safety and critical failure surface, which overcomes the disadvantage of limit equilibrium method. The theoretical relationship between the combination of shear strength parameters and stability state was studied. The results show that the location of critical slip surface, F/tan f and F/c depend only on the value of c/tan f. The failure surface moves towards the inside of slope as c/tan f increases. According to the information involving factor of safety and critical failure surface in a specific cross-section, strength parameters can be back calculated based on the above findings. Three examples were given for demonstrating the validity of the present method. The shear strength parameters obtained by back analysis are almost consistent with their correct solutions or test results.

Method of variation of parameters for solving a constrained Birkhoffian system

For an in-depth study on the integration problem of the constrained mechanical systems the method of integration for the Birkhoffian system with constraints is discussed and the method of variation of parameters for solving the dynamical equations of the constrained Birkhoffian system is provided.First the differential equations of motion for the constrained Birkhoffian system as well as for the corresponding free Birkhoffian system are established.Secondly a system of auxiliary equations is constructed and the general solution of the equations is found.Finally by varying the parameters and utilizing the properties of the generalized canonical transformation of the Birkhoffian system the solution of the problem can be obtained.The proposed method reveals the inherent relationship between the solution of a free Birkhoffian system and that of a constrained Birkhoffian system. The research results are of universal significance which can be further used in a variety of constrained mechanical systems such as non-conservative systems and nonholonomic systems etc.

Ensemble Bayesian method for parameter distribution inference:application to reactor physics

The estimation of model parameters is an important subject in engineering.In this area of work,the prevailing approach is to estimate or calculate these as deterministic parameters.In this study,we consider the model parameters from the perspective of random variables and describe the general form of the parameter distribution inference problem.Under this framework,we propose an ensemble Bayesian method by introducing Bayesian inference and the Markov chain Monte Carlo(MCMC)method.Experiments on a finite cylindrical reactor and a 2D IAEA benchmark problem show that the proposed method converges quickly and can estimate parameters effectively,even for several correlated parameters simultaneously.Our experiments include cases of engineering software calls,demonstrating that the method can be applied to engineering,such as nuclear reactor engineering.

A strength reduction method based on double reduction parameters and its application

In the traditional strength reduction method,the cohesion and the friction angle adopt the same reduction parameter,resulting in equivalent proportional reduction.This method does not consider the different effects of the cohesion and friction angle on the stability of the same slope and is defective to some extent.Regarding this defect,a strength reduction method based on double reduction parameters,which adopts different reduction parameters,is proposed.The core of the double-parameter reduction method is the matching reduction principle of the slope with different angles.This principle is represented by the ratio of the reduction parameter of the cohesion to that of the friction angle,described as η.With the increase in the slopeangle,ηincreases; in particular,when the slope angle is 45°,tηis 1.0.Through the matching reduction principle,different safety margin factors can be calculated for the cohesion and friction angle.In combination with these two safety margin factors,a formula for calculating the overall safety factor of the slope is proposed,reflecting the different contributions of the cohesion and friction angle to the slope stability.Finally,it is shown that the strength reduction method based on double reduction parameters acquires a larger safety factor than the classic limit equilibrium method,but the calculation results are very close to those obtained by the limit equilibrium method.

Investigation on charge parameters of underwater contact explosion based on axisymmetric SPH method

This paper investigates the effects of charge parameters of the underwater contact explosion based on the axisymmetric smoothed particle hydrodynamics （SPH） method. The dynamic boundary particle is proposed to improve the pressure fluctuation and numerical accuracy near the symmetric axis. An in-depth study is carried out over the influence of charge shapes and detonation modes on the near-field loads in terms of the peak pressure and impulse of shock waves. For different charge shapes, the cylindrical charge with different length-diameter ratios may cause strong directivity of peak pressure and impulse in the near field. Compared with spherical charge, the peak pressure of cylindrical charge may be either weakened or enhanced in different directions. Within a certain range, the greater the length-diameter ratio is, the more obvious the effect will be. The weakened ratio near the detonation end may reach 25% approximately, while the enhanced ratio may reach around 20% in the opposite direction. However, the impulse in different directions seems to be uniform. For different detonation modes, compared with point-source explosion, the peak pressure of plane-source explosion is enhanced by about 5%. Besides, the impulse of plane-source explosion is enhanced by around 5% near the detonation end, but close to those of the point-source explosion in other directions. Based on the material constitutive relation in the axisymmetric coordinates, a simple case of underwater contact explosion is simulated to verify the above conclusions, showing that the charge parameters of underwater contact explosion should not be ignored.

Hydrodynamic Performance Analysis of Propeller-rudder System with the Rudder Parameters Changing

In order to study the effects of geometric parameters of the rudder on the hydrodynamic performance of the propeller-rudder system,the surface panel method is used to build the numerical model of the steady interaction between the propeller and rudder to analyze the relevant factors.The interaction between the propeller and rudder is considered through the induced velocities,which are circumferentially averaged,so the unsteady problem is translated to steady state.An iterative calculation method is used until the hydrodynamic performance converges.Firstly,the hydrodynamic performance of the chosen propeller-rudder system is calculated,and the comparison between the calculated results and the experimental data indicates that the calculation program is reliable.Then,the variable parameters of rudder are investigated,and the calculation results show that the propeller-rudder spacing has a negative relationship with the efficiency of the propeller-rudder system,and the rudder span has an optimal match range with the propeller diameter.Futhermore,the rudder chord and thickness both have a positive correlation with the hydrodynamic performance of the propeller-rudder system.