Investigation on the Natural Modes of A Semi-Closed Floating Tank

Vessels with semi-closed tanks(i.e.,well docks)are widely applied in the military operation and maritime engineer-ing.The water is bound by the semi-closed floating tank and forced by both the incident waves and ship’s motions.The free surface oscillations inside the flooded well dock is thus distinctive and very complicated.So far,the natural modes of semi-closed floating tanks have not yet been studied.This paper investigates the characteristics of natural modes of a floating semi-closed tank by combining a mode-resolving model based on mild-slope equations and a hydrodynamic model based on computational fluid dynamics.Results show that the first three natural periods(i.e.,74,23.6,and 14 s)of the tank fall into the band of swell and infragravity waves and they could be triggered under certain circumstance.Multi-period free surface oscillations are observed inside the tank,including the longest natural period(i.e.,74 s),though the incident waves are monochromatic.A possible generation mechanism for the long-period mode is explained on the basis of liquid sloshing and harbor oscillations.Moreover,a long-period component with a period close to the natural mode of well dock is observed in the ship motions,which is generated by the interaction between the waves and ship.

A New Classification Method of Stress Modes in Hybrid Stress Finite Element

The paper presents a new method for classifying the stress modes in hybrid stress finite element in terms of natural stress modes in finite element and the rank analysis of matrix G in forming element It reveals the relation among the different assumed stress field, and gives the general method in forming stress field Comparing with the method of eigenvalue analysis, the new method is more efficient

ZERO MODE NATURAL FREQUENCY AND NONLINEAR VIBRATION OF COUPLED LATERAL AND TORSION OF A LARGE TURBINE GENERATOR

Zero mode natural frequency (ZMNF) is found during experiments. The ZMNF andvibrations resulted by it are studied. First, calculating method of the ZMNF excited byelectromagnetic in vibrational system of coupled mechanics and electrics are given from the view ofmagnetic energy. Laws that the ZMNF varies with active power and exciting current are obtained andare verified by experiments. Then, coupled lateral and torsional vibration of rotor shaft system isstudied by considering rest eccentricity, rotating eccentricity and swing eccentricity. UsingLargrange-Maxwell equation when three phases are asymmetric derives differential equation of thecoupled vibration. With energy method of nonlinear vibration, amplitude-frequency characteristics ofresonance are studied when rotating speed of rotor equals to ZMNF. The results show that ZMNF willoccur in turbine generators by the action of electromagnetic. Because ZMNF varies withelectromagnetic parameters, resonance can occur when exciting frequency of the rotor speed is fixedwhereas exciting current change. And also find that a generator is in the state of large amplitudein rated exciting current.

Dynamic flight stability of hovering insects

The equations of motion of an insect with flapping wings are derived and then simplified to that of a flying body using the ＂rigid body＂ assumption. On the basis of the simplified equations of motion, the longitudinal dynamic flight stability of four insects （hoverfly, cranefly, dronefly and hawkmoth） in hovering flight is studied （the mass of the insects ranging from 11 to 1,648 mg and wingbeat frequency from 26 to 157Hz）. The method of computational fluid dynamics is used to compute the aerodynamic derivatives and the techniques of eigenvalue and eigenvector analysis are used to solve the equations of motion. The validity of the ＂rigid body＂ assumption is tested and how differences in size and wing kinematics influence the applicability of the ＂rigid body＂ assumption is investigated. The primary findings are： （1） For insects considered in the present study and those with relatively high wingbeat frequency （hoverfly, drone fly and bumblebee）, the ＂rigid body＂ assumption is reasonable, and for those with relatively low wingbeat frequency （cranefly and howkmoth）, the applicability of the ＂rigid body＂ assumption is questionable. （2） The same three natural modes of motion as those reported recently for a bumblebee are identified, i.e., one unstable oscillatory mode, one stable fast subsidence mode and one stable slow subsidence mode. （3） Approximate analytical expressions of the eigenvalues, which give physical insight into the genesis of the natural modes of motion, are derived. The expressions identify the speed derivative Mu （pitching moment produced by unit horizontal speed） as the primary source of the unstable oscillatory mode and the stable fast subsidence mode and Zw （vertical force produced by unit vertical speed） as the primary source of the stable slow subsidence mode.

Dynamic flight stability of a hovering model insect:lateral motion

The lateral dynamic flight stability of a hovering model insect （dronefly） was studied using the method of computational fluid dynamics to compute the stability derivatives and the techniques of eigenvalue and eigenvector analysis for solving the equations of motion. The main results are as following. （i） Three natural modes of motion were identified： one unstable slow divergence mode （mode 1）, one stable slow oscillatory mode （mode 2）, and one stable fast subsidence mode （mode 3）. Modes 1 and 2 mainly consist of a rotation about the horizontal longitudinal axis （x-axis） and a side translation; mode 3 mainly consists of a rotation about the x-axis and a rotation about the vertical axis. （ii） Approximate analytical expressions of the eigenvalues are derived, which give physical insight into the genesis of the natural modes of motion. （iii） For the unstable divergence mode, td, the time for initial disturbances to double, is about 9 times the wingbeat period （the longitudinal motion of the model insect was shown to be also unstable and td of the longitudinal unstable mode is about 14 times the wingbeat period）. Thus, although the flight is not dynamically stable, the instability does not grow very fast and the insect has enough time to control its wing motion to suppress the disturbances.

Dynamic flight stability of a bumblebee in forward flight

The longitudinal dynamic flight stability of a bumblebee in forward flight is studied. The method of computational fluid dynamics is used to compute the aerodynamic derivatives and the techniques of eigenvalue and eigenvector analysis are employed for solving the equations of motion. The primary findings are as the following. The forward flight of the bumblebee is not dynamically stable due to the existence of one （or two） unstable or approximately neutrally stable natural modes of motion. At hovering to medium flight speed [flight speed Ue = （0-3.5）m s^-1; advance ratio J = 0-0.44], the flight is weakly unstable or approximately neutrally stable; at high speed （Ue = 4.5 m s^-1; J = 0.57）, the flight becomes strongly unstable （initial disturbance double its value in only 3.5 wingbeats）.

Dynamic flight stability of a model dronefly in vertical flight

The dynamic flight stability of a model dronefly in hovering and upward flight is studied.The method of computational fluid dynamics is used to compute the stability derivatives and the techniques of eigenvalue and eigenvector used to solve the equations of motion.The major finding is as following.Hovering flight of the model dronefly is unstable because of the existence of an unstable longitudinal and an unstable lateral natural mode of motion.Upward flight of the insect is also unstable,and the instability increases as the upward flight speed increases.Inertial force generated by the upward flight velocity coupled with the disturbance in pitching angular velocity is responsible for the enhancement of the instability.

A Computational Study on Lateral Flight Stability of the Cranefly in Hover

The dynamic flight stability of hovering insects includes the longitudinal and lateral motion.Research results have shown that for the majority of hovering insects the same longitudinal natural modes are identified and the hovering flight in longitudinal is unstable.However,in lateral,the modal structure for hovering insects could be different and the stability property of lateral disturbance motion is not as robust as that of longitudinal motion.The cranefly possesses larger aspect ratio and lower Reynolds number,and such differences in morphology and kinematics may make the lateral dynamic stability different.In this paper,the lateral flight stability of the cranefly in hover is investigated by numerical simulation.Firstly,the stability derivatives are acquired by solving the incompressible Navier–Stokes equations.Subsequently,the dynamic stability characteristics are checked by analyzing the eigenvalues and eigenvectors of the linearized system.Computational results indicate that the lateral dynamic modal structure of cranefly is different from most other insects,consisting of three natural modes,and the weakly oscillatory mode illustrates the hovering lateral flight is nearly neutral.This neutral stability is mainly caused by the negative derivative of roll-moment vs.sideslip-velocity,which can be attributed to the weaker‘changingLEV-axial-velocity’effect.These results suggest that insects in nature may exhibit different dynamic stabilities with different morphological and kinematic parameters,which should be considered in the designs of flapping wing air vehicles.

Seismic Design Loads of Truss Arch Frames with Ceilings subjected to Vertical and Horizontal Earthquake Motions

Spatial structures such as a gymnasium and an exhibition hall often use ceilings because of enhancing sound effects and reducing heating bills. Although the ceiling members fell down on a large scale due to the seismic motion according to the past great earthquake disaster reports, structural engineers particularly do not carry out the seismic design. The study gives structural engineers the equivalent static loads for the design of the earthquake-proof design of the ceiling system. In particular, it is significant to investigate the dynamic behavior and the applied seismic loads for the complicated vibration of the long span arch building structures with RC columns.

Diamond Rib: A Mechanical Design Method for Improving the Stiffness of a Structure

It is necessary to decrease the weight of space satellites, while maintaining their stiffness. To achieve this weight reduction, many structures, such as honeycomb and isogrid, have been reported in the literature. In this paper, the diamond rib method, a mechanical design method for improving the stiffness of structures, is introduced. By applying this method to a small space satellite, we propose a new structure called the “Diamond Rib Structure”. This structure significantly improves the ability to withstand the vibrational disturbances in a rocket fairing.

Dynamic Flight Stability of a Model Hoverfly in Inclined-Stroke-Plane Hovering

Most hovering insects flap their wings in a horizontal plane, called ＇normal hovering＇. But some of the best hoverers, e.g. true hoverflies, hover with an inclined stroke plane. In the present paper, the longitudinal dynamic flight stability of a model hoverfly in inclined-stroke-plane hovering was studied. Computational fluid dynamics was used to compute the aerodynamic derivatives and the eigenvalue and eigenvector analysis was used to solve the equations of motion. The primary findings are as follows. （1） For inclined-stroke-plane hovering, the same three natural modes of motion as those for normal hovering were identified： one unstable oscillatory mode, one stable fast subsidence mode, and one stable slow subsidence mode. The unstable oscillatory mode and the fast subsidence mode mainly have horizontal translation and pitch rotation, and the slow subsidence mode mainly has vertical translation. （2） Because of the existence of the unstable oscillatory mode, inclined-stroke-plane hov- ering flight is not stable. （3） Although there are large differences in stroke plane and body orientations between the in- clined-stroke-plane hovering and normal hovering, the relative position between the mean center of pressure and center of mass for these two cases is not very different, resulting in similar stability derivatives, hence similar dynamic stability properties for these two types of hovering.

Numerical analysis of dynamic stability of falling maple samaras

Due to autorotation,samaras can fly efficiently and stably to be dispersed over a great distance under various weather conditions.Here,we provide a quantitative analysis of the dynamic stability of free-falling maple samara(Acer grosseri Pax)and verify whether they are dynamically stable as observed.Morphological and kinematic parameters were obtained based on the existing experimental data of the maple seed.Then the linearized equations of motion were derived,and the stability derivatives were calculated by a computational fluid dynamics method.The techniques of eigenvalue and eigenvector analysis were also used to examine the stability characteristics.It is found that there are five natural modes of motion of the maple seed:one stable oscillatory mode,one fast subsidence mode,one slow subsidence mode,and two neutral stable modes.The two neutral modes are manifested as the seed moving horizontally at a low speed under disturbance.Results show that the maple seed has dynamic stability in sustaining the steady autorotation and descent,exhibiting a minor horizontal motion when disturbed.These findings can beapplied to biomimetic aircraft.

Green Economy, Green Capitalism and the Imperial Mode of Living： Limits to a Prominent Strategy, Contours of a Possible New Capitalist Formation

Since some years, the strategy of a Green Economy as a current form of ecological modernization was proposed. The paper highlights the core issues of the concept and its structural constraints. Several constraints of a far-reaching realization of a Green Economy are presented, and one constraint is highlighted, i.e., the imperial mode of （production and） living. The latter gives emphasis to the continuous and largely unquestioned access to products produced by cheap labor and under environmentally problematic conditions. This mode of living, the paper argues, is also attractive among the upper and middle classed in countries with emerging economies like China. Moreover, it compares it with the concept of sustainable development which emerged some 15 years ago. Like sustainable development, proposals for a Green Economy might become ＂a tranquilizing dis- positive＂ in order to silence doubt and criticisms. However, it is argued that, despite the improbability of realizing the ambitious objectives, the Green Economy strategy might contribute to further capitalist development. Environmental issues might be integrated into the mode of production and living. However, given capitalist and imperial structures and dynamics, this will occur in highly selective and partial ways. The author calls this emerging constellation and possible new mode of development in some countries or regions of the world Green Capitalism.