Slope analysis based on local strength reduction method and variable-modulus elasto-plastic model

Employing an ideal elasto-plastic model,the typically used strength reduction method reduced the strength of all soil elements of a slope.Therefore,this method was called the global strength reduction method(GSRM).However,the deformation field obtained by GSRM could not reflect the real deformation of a slope when the slope became unstable.For most slopes,failure occurs once the strength of some regional soil is sufficiently weakened; thus,the local strength reduction method(LSRM)was proposed to analyze slope stability.In contrast with GSRM,LSRM only reduces the strength of local soil,while the strength of other soil remains unchanged.Therefore,deformation by LSRM is more reasonable than that by GSRM.In addition,the accuracy of the slope's deformation depends on the constitutive model to a large degree,and the variable-modulus elasto-plastic model was thus adopted.This constitutive model was an improvement of the Duncan–Chang model,which modified soil's deformation modulus according to stress level,and it thus better reflected the plastic feature of soil.Most importantly,the parameters of the variable-modulus elasto-plastic model could be determined through in-situ tests,and parameters determination by plate loading test and pressuremeter test were introduced.Therefore,it is easy to put this model into practice.Finally,LSRM and the variable-modulus elasto-plastic model were used to analyze Egongdai ancient landslide.Safety factor,deformation field,and optimal reinforcement measures for Egongdai ancient landslide were obtained based on the proposed method.

Local buckling failure analysis of high-strength pipelines

Pipelines in geological disaster regions typically suffer the risk of local buckling failure because of slender structure and complex load. This paper is meant to reveal the local buckling behavior of buried pipelines with a large diameter and high strength, which are under different conditions, including pure bending and bending combined with internal pressure. Finite element analysis was built according to previous data to study local buckling behavior of pressurized and unpressurized pipes under bending conditions and their differences in local buckling failure modes. In parametric analysis, a series of parameters,including pipe geometrical dimension, pipe material properties and internal pressure, were selected to study their influences on the critical bending moment, critical compressive stress and critical compressive strain of pipes.Especially the hardening exponent of pipe material was introduced to the parameter analysis by using the Ramberg–Osgood constitutive model. Results showed that geometrical dimensions, material and internal pressure can exert similar effects on the critical bending moment and critical compressive stress, which have different, even reverse effects on the critical compressive strain. Based on these analyses, more accurate design models of critical bending moment and critical compressive stress have been proposed for high-strength pipelines under bendingconditions, which provide theoretical methods for highstrength pipeline engineering.

LOCAL CHEMISTRY AND THE COHESIVE STRENGTH OF GRAIN BOUNDARIES IN Ni_3Al

Local chemistry plays an important role in determining the cohesive strength of grain boundaries in Ni3Al. Doping with B increases the room temperature ductility and changes the fracture mode from intergranular to transgranular, while doping with Zr increases the ductility but leaves the fracture mode predominantly intergranular.Electron Energy Loss Spectroscopy (EELS) and Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS) were used to probe the changes in local bonding (and hence the cohesive strength) produced by changes in local chemistry at large angle boundaries in Ni3Al.In addition , small angle tilt boundaries were studied to correlate structure with Nienrichment at the interface. B segregation to Ni-rich grain boundaries was shown to make the bonding similar to that of the bulk, thereby increasing their fracture resistance. Ni-enrichment does not occur in the presence of Zr segregation to grain boundaries. Ni-enrichment to antiphase boundaries (APB) in small angle tilt boundaries lowers the APB energy by reducing the number of high energy Al-Al interactions across the interface. Ni-enrichment to large angle boundaries is expected to produce a similar effect on energy.

Developing High Strength Pervious Concrete Mixtures with Local Materials

This study focuses on developing pervious concrete mixtures that have higher compressive strengths than conventional pervious concrete. This study also focuses on producing high strength pervious concrete that is also made with locally available materials. The study focused on four aspects of pervious concrete to produce high compressive strengths. These parameters were the effect of the coarse aggregate (type and size), the compaction of the test specimens, the effect of the w/c along with superplasticizers, and lastly the effect of silica fume. This study was completed parametrically in order to isolate each variable in order to see its individual affect. Once an optimum performance was obtained from one variable the best performing mixture was used for the next variable testing. This method allowed for the highest performing mixture to be obtained from each of the investigated variables. The results showed that high strength pervious concrete made with local aggregates, without polymers, and without fibers can be produced in the range of 15.44 MPa - 21.63 MPa. A porosity range 19.1% - 32.9% with a percolation rate range of 5.8 mm/s - 1.9 mm/s was also achieved, with a porosity of 19.4% and percolation rate of 2.6 mm/s for the highest performing mixture.

Does Change in the Effect of Source Strength of the High Dose Rate ¹⁹²Iridium Radio-Isotope on Local Control and Late Normal Tissue Toxicity (Bladder and Rectum) in the Treatment of Carcinoma Cervix

Aim: To analyse and assess the effect of dose rate of 192ir-source strength on late complications and local control rate during treatment of carcinoma cervix. Materials and Methods: One hundred and two cases of carcinoma cervix were included in the study. All patients were treated with a curative intent with radical dose of radiation as per the department protocol. All patients were treated with both EBRT plus Brachytherapy with Inj. Cisplatin 40 mg/m2 weekly. Patients were divided into 2 groups based on activity i.e. group A (10-6Ci) and group B (5-2Ci). After brachytherapy, point doses were analysed based on ICRU 38 recommendations. During follow up, morbidities were evaluated using RTOG grading system. Results: There was no difference in local control and distant metastasis in both groups after six months of follow up. Late Complications were comparable in both groups irrespective of source strength. Bladder complications were minimal with no significant difference in both study groups. Further Patients were divided into four groups i.e. BED of ICRU rectal point (3 and ≥100 Gy3) and source strength (10-6Ci and 5-2Ci), when BED was >100 Gy3 resulted in higher late rectal complication rate (P 3. Conclusion: This study suggests that change in source activity did not make a difference in local control, late rectal and bladder morbidities at 6 months of follow up. Longer follow up is required to assess long term results and morbidities.

Compressive and Flexural Strength of Recycled Reactive Powder Concrete Containing Finely Dispersed Local Wastes

The main objective of this experimental study is to investigate the behavior of Recycled Reactive Powder Concrete (RRPC) developed from finely dispersed local waste raw materials. In this study, RRPC was developed by utilizing local wastes (finely dispersed waste glass powder, waste fly ash and waste ceramic powder) together with Portland cement, fine sand, admixture, steel fibers and water through full replacement of silica fume as well as quartz powder for sustainable construction practice. In this study, all raw materials for making RRPC were analyzed for X-Ray Fluorescence analysis. For sustainability of local construction works, this study employed standard curing method at ambient temperatures instead of steam curing at higher temperatures. Moreover, hand mixing was used throughout the study. To evaluate the structural performances of the developed RRPC mixes, compressive and flexural strengths of RRPC were investigated experimentally and compared with the control mix. The experimental results indicated that replacing the silica fume fully by finely dispersed local waste glass powder (GP) and fly ash (FA) is a promising approach for local structural construction applications. Accordingly, a mean compressive strength of 62.9 MPa and flexural strength of 8.8 MPa were developed using 50% GP-50% FA at 28thdays standard curing. In this study, 17.56% larger compressive strength and 30.6% flexural strength improvements were observed as compared to the control mix.

Localizing Jammer in an Indoor Environment by Estimating Signal Strength and Kalman Filter

Localizing a jammer in an indoor environment in wireless sensor networks becomes a significant research problem due to the ease of blocking the communication between legitimate nodes. An adversary may emit radio frequency to prevent the transmission between nodes. In this paper, we propose detecting the position of the jammer indoor by using the received signal strength and Kalman filter (KF) to reduce the noise due to the multipath signal caused by obstacles in the indoor environment. We compare our work to the Linear Prediction Algorithm (LP) and Centroid Localization Algorithm (CL). We observed that the Kalman filter has better results when estimating the distance compared to other algorithms.

Developing Sustainable High Strength Concrete Mixtures Using Local Materials and Recycled Concrete

This study presents the development of high strength concrete (HSC) that has been made more sustainable by using both local materials from central Texas and recycled concrete aggregate (RCA), which has also been obtained locally. The developed mixtures were proportioned with local constituents to increase the sustainable impact of the material by reducing emissions due to shipping as well as to make HSC more affordable to a wider variety of applications. The specific constituents were: limestone, dolomite, manufactured sand (limestone), locally available Type I/II cement, silica fume, and recycled concrete aggregate, which was obtained from a local recycler which obtains their product from local demolition. Multiple variables were investigated, such as the aggregate type and size, concrete age (7, 14, and 28-days), the curing regimen, and the water-to-cement ratio (w/c) to optimize a HSC mixture that used local materials. This systematic development revealed that heat curing the specimens in a water bath at 50℃ (122oF) after demolding and then dry curing at 200℃ (392oF) two days before testing with a w/c of 0.28 at 28-days produced the highest compressive strengths. Once an optimum HSC mixture was identified a partial replacement of the coarse aggregate with RCA was completed at 10%, 20%, and 30%. The results showed a loss in compressive strength with an increase in RCA replacement percentages, with the highest strength being approximately 93.0 MPa (13,484 psi) at 28-days for the 10% RCA replacement. The lowest strength obtained from an RCA-HSC mixture was approximately 72.9 (MPa) (10,576 psi) at 7-days. The compressive strengths obtained from the HSC mixtures containing RCA developed in this study are comparable to HSC strengths presented in the literature. Developing this innovative material with local materials and RCA ultimately produces a novel sustainable construction material, reduces the costs, and produces mechanical performance similar to prepackaged, commercially, available construction building materials.

Mechanical properties of strengthened surface layer in Ti-6Al-4V alloy induced by wet peening treatment

A modified surface layer was formed on Ti-6Al-4V alloy by wet peening treatment. The variations of the residual stress,nano-hardness and microstructure of the modified layer with depth from surface were studied using X-ray diffraction analysis,nano-indentation analysis, scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy observations. The results show thatboth the compressive residual stress and hardness decrease with increasing depth, and the termination depths are 160 and 80 μm,respectively. The microstructure observation indicates that within 80 μm, the compressive residual stress and the hardness areenhanced by the co-action of the grain refinement strengthening and dislocation strengthening. Within 80–160 μm, the compressiveresidual stress mainly derives from the dislocation strengthening. The strengthened layer in Ti-6Al-4V alloy after wet peeningtreatment was quantitatively analyzed by a revised equation with respect to a relation between hardness and yield strength.

Variance-based fingerprint distance adjustment algorithm for indoor localization

The multipath effect and movements of people in indoor environments lead to inaccurate localization. Through the test, calculation and analysis on the received signal strength indication （RSSI） and the variance of RSSI, we propose a novel variance-based fingerprint distance adjustment algorithm （VFDA）. Based on the rule that variance decreases with the increase of RSSI mean, VFDA calculates RSSI variance with the mean value of received RSSIs. Then, we can get the correction weight. VFDA adjusts the fingerprint distances with the correction weight based on the variance of RSSI, which is used to correct the fingerprint distance. Besides, a threshold value is applied to VFDA to improve its performance further. VFDA and VFDA with the threshold value are applied in two kinds of real typical indoor environments deployed with several Wi-Fi access points. One is a quadrate lab room, and the other is a long and narrow corridor of a building. Experimental results and performance analysis show that in indoor environments, both VFDA and VFDA with the threshold have better positioning accuracy and environmental adaptability than the current typical positioning methods based on the k-nearest neighbor algorithm and the weighted k-nearest neighbor algorithm with similar computational costs.

A Computational Investigation of the Group Effect of Pits on the Ultimate Strength of Steel Plates

In this work, we focus on assessing the group effect of localized corrosion on the ultimate strength of the marine structural plates and study the load-deformation behaviors of plates of various slenderness and uniaxial compression.Meanwhile, we investigate different corroded patterns from a single circular pit to 25 circular pits distributed over the plate and carry out hundreds of nonlinear finite element simulations by combining the number, depth, distribution of pits with imperfections and slenderness of plate. The distribution of multiple pits causes scattering of stress concentration on the plate, then the plastic section of plate changes with wider distribution of damage simultaneously. The ultimate strength arises when un-loading zone comprised of the yielding strips and holes extends across the plate. It can be concluded that the corroded condition defined as group effect of pits manipulates the deformation state and the loading capacity of plate at the ultimate strength mode that coincides with the proportion of effective loading area and section in the process of post-buckling. To validate the effect of pits group, we perform the numerical experiments of the post-buckling of steel plates containing pits in a row with different orientation.

RSS-Distance Rationalization Procedure for Localization in an Indoor Environment

The computational capabilities of off-the-shelf wireless sensors networks presents a limitation when more complex forms of localization algorithms are employed for location estimation purposes, particularly in an indoor environment. Range-free algorithms rely on Received Signal Strength (RSS) from sensors that are location aware (anchor nodes) as the major means of distance estimation. This paper presents a non-site specific algorithm for better estimating RSS relationship with distance. By employing a unique form of rationalization of raw RSS with respect to distance using the proposed algorithm, it is possible to enhance the reliability of RSS when employed in indoor Localization Algorithms. Consequently, this paper presents an innovative RSS-Distance rationalization algorithm for localization of objects in an indoor environment. The paper compared the proposed algorithm with Simple Moving Average (SMA) algorithm due to the wide applicability and ease of manipulation of SMA. The analysis of the proposed algorithm and SMA shows that the proposed algorithm better modifies RSS for more accurate position estimation in an indoor environment.

Reach Centroid Localization Algorithm

As much as accurate or precise position estimation is always desirable, coarse accuracy due to sensor node localization is often sufficient. For such level of accuracy, Range-free localization techniques are being explored as low cost alternatives to range based localization techniques. To manage cost, few location aware nodes, called anchors are deployed in the wireless sensor environment. It is from these anchors that all other free nodes are expected to estimate their own positions. This paper therefore, takes a look at some of the foremost Range-free localization algorithms, detailing their limitations, with a view to proposing a modified form of Centroid Localization Algorithm called Reach Centroid Localization Algorithm. The algorithm employs a form of anchor nodes position validation mechanism by looking at the consistency in the quality of Received Signal Strength. Each anchor within the vicinity of a free node seeks to validate the actual position or proximity of other anchors within its vicinity using received signal strength. This process mitigates multipath effects of radio waves, particularly in an enclosed environment, and consequently limits localization estimation errors and uncertainties. Centroid Localization Algorithm is then used to estimate the location of a node using the anchors selected through the validation mechanism. Our approach to localization becomes more significant, particularly in indoor environments, where radio signal signatures are inconsistent or outrightly unreliable. Simulated results show a significant improvement in localization accuracy when compared with the original Centroid Localization Algorithm, Approximate Point in Triangulation and DV-Hop.

Application of the local approach to the fatigue assessment for welded joints

The fatigue behavior of welded structures is currently determined by means of recommendations defined in terms of S-N curve corresponding to the detail classes of welded joints without taking account of the actual geometry of the weld. A new fatigue strength assessment method based on Dang Van multiaxial fatigue limit criterion was introduced, which is named the local approach and presented by Institut de Soudure recently. The local approach has advantages in taking welding residual stresses and the geometry of the weld toe and weld root into consideration. The application of the local approach to the fatigue strength assessment of low carbon steel Q235B welded joints was studied. The fatigue tests and finite element analysis results show that the local approach parameters recommended by Institut de Soudure were incorrectly for low carbon steel Q235B welded joints. With aluminum alloy welded joints being used widely, the parameters of the local approach used for aluminum alloy welded joints were obtained and verified on bases of the fatigue tests and finite element analysis.

RSSI Based Localization of Bluetooth Devices for Visually Impaired

Localization for visually impaired people in dynamically changing environments with unexpected hazards and obstacles is a current need. Many techniques have been discussed in the literature with respect to location-based services and techniques used for the positioning of devices. Time difference of arrival (TDOA), time of arrival (TOA) and received signal strength (RSS) have been widely used for the positioning but narrow band signals such as Bluetooth cannot efficiently utilize TDOA or TOA. Received signal strength indicator (RSSI) to measure RSS, has been found to be more reliable. RSSI measurement estimations depend heavily on the environmental interference. RSSI measurement estimations of Bluetooth systems can be improved either by improving the existing methodologies used to implement them or by using fusion techniques that employ Kalman filters to combine more than one RSSI method to improve the results significantly. This paper focuses on improving the existing methodology of measuring RSSI by proposing a new method using trilateration for localization of Bluetooth devices for visually impaired people. To validate the new method, class 2 Bluetooth devices (Blue Giga WT-12) were used with an evaluation board. The software required was developed in National Instruments LabView. The PCB was designed and manufactured as well. Experiments were then conducted, and surface plots of Bluetooth modules were obtained to show the signal interference and other environmental effects. Lastly, the results were discussed, and relevant conclusions were drawn.

Grid-Based Localization Mechanism with Mobile Reference Node in Wireless Sensor Networks

Wireless sensor networks （WSNs） are based on monitoring or managing the sensing area by using the location information with sensor nodes. Most sensor nodes require hardware support or receive packets with location information to estimate their locations, which needs lots of time or costs. In this paper we proposed a localization mechanism using a mobile reference node （MRN） and trilateration in WSNs to reduce the energy consumption and location error. The simulation results demonstrate that the proposed mechanism can obtain more unknown nodes locations by the mobile reference node moving scheme and will decreases the energy consumption and average ocation error.

Adaptive luminance adjustment and neighborhood spreading strength information based view synthesis

View synthesis is an important building block in three dimension（3D） video processing and communications.Based on one or several views,view synthesis creates other views for the purpose of view prediction（for compression） or view rendering（for multiview-display）.The quality of view synthesis depends on how one fills the occlusion area as well as how the pixels are created.Consequently,luminance adjustment and hole filling are two key issues in view synthesis.In this paper,two views are used to produce an arbitrary virtual synthesized view.One view is merged into another view using a local luminance adjustment method,based on local neighborhood region for the calculation of adjustment coefficient.Moreover,a maximum neighborhood spreading strength hole filling method is presented to deal with the micro texture structure when the hole is being filled.For each pixel at the hole boundary,its neighborhood pixels with the maximum spreading strength direction are selected as candidates;and among them,the pixel with the maximum spreading strength is used to fill the hole from boundary to center.If there still exist disocclusion pixels after once scan,the filling process is repeated until all hole pixels are filled.Simulation results show that the proposed method is efficient,robust and achieves high performance in subjection and objection.

A Robust Wi-Fi Fingerprinting Indoor Localization Coping with Access Point Movement

A Wi-Fi fingerprinting localization approach has attracted increasing attention in recent years due to the ubiquity of Access Point( AP). However,typical fingerprinting localization methods fail to resist accidental environmental changes,such as AP movement. In order to address this problem,a robust fingerprinting indoor localization method is initiated. In the offline phase,three attributes of Received Signal Strength Indication( RSSI) —average,standard deviation and AP's response rate—are computed to prepare for the subsequent computation. In this way,the underlying location-relevant information can be captured comprehensively. Then in the online phase, a three-step voting scheme-based decision mechanism is demonstrated, detecting and eliminating the part of AP where the signals measured are severely distorted by AP 's movement. In the following localization step,in order to achieve accuracy and efficiency simultaneously,a novel fingerprinting localization algorithm is applied. Bhattacharyya distance is utilized to measure the RSSI distribution distance,thus realizing the optimization of MAximum Overlapping algorithm( MAO). Finally,experimental results are displayed,which demonstrate the effectiveness of our proposed methods in eliminating outliers and attaining relatively higher localization accuracy.

Strength of Intramolecular Hydrogen Bonds

The concept of resonance-assisted hydrogen bonds(RAHBs)highlights the synergistic interplay between theπ-resonance and hydrogen bonding interactions.This concept has been well-accepted in academia and is widely used in practice.However,it has been argued that the seemingly enhanced intramolecular hydrogen bonding(IMHB)in unsaturated compounds may simply be a result of the constraints imposed by theσ-skeleton framework.Thus,it is crucial to estimate the strength of IMHBs.In this work,we used two approaches to probe the resonance effect and estimate the strength of the IMHBs in the two exemplary cases of the enol forms of acetylacetone and o-hydroxyacetophenone.One approach is the block-localized wavefunction(BLW)method,which is a variant of the ab initio valence bond(VB)theory.Using this approach,it is possible to derive the geometries and energetics with resonance shut down.The other approach is Edmiston’s truncated localized molecular orbital(TLMO)technique,which monitors the energy changes by removing the delocalization tails from localized molecular orbitals.The integrated BLW and TLMO studies confirmed that the hydrogen bonding in these two molecules is indeed enhanced byπ-resonance,and that this enhancement is not a result ofσconstraints.

A Coincered Node Based Localization of Jammers in Wireless Sensor Networks

Jammers can awfully interfere with the wireless communications. The transmission and reception of wireless communication is blocked by the jammer. The intruder will place the jammer in a well topological network area and they can easily track the information. It will help them to block the signal transmission and reception. Now, the intention is to track the position of the jammer where it is fixed. The existing methods rely on the indirect measurements and the boundary node to find the jammer’s position which degrades the accuracy of the localization. To improve the efficiency, this paper proposed an efficient method namely Coincered Node Based Localization of jammers to find the position of the jammer with high level of accuracy. The proposed system uses the direct measurements, which is the jammer signal strength. The effectiveness can also be increased by using the coincered node that will stumble across the true position of the jammer. The proposed work is compared with existing methods. Then the proposed mechanism proves better to find the jammer location. The simulation results estimate that the accuracy of the localization achieves better performance than the existing schemes.