Performance of composite foundations with different load transfer platforms and substratum stiffness over silty clay

The semi-rigid pile-supported composite foundation is widely used in highway projects due to its effectiveness in increasing the bearing capacity and stability of foundations.It is crucial to understand the stress distribution across the embankment width and the behaviour of unreinforced foundations.Thus,five centrifuge tests were conducted to examine the bearing and deformation behaviours of NPRS(Non-Connected Piled Raft Systems)and GRPS(GeosyntheticReinforced Pile-Supported systems)with varying substratum stiffness,then a comparative analysis was conducted on embankment settlement,pressures underneath the embankments,and axial forces along the piles.The results indicated that greater substratum stiffness correlates with reduced settlement and deformation at various depths.Deformation occurring 5 meters from the embankment toe includes settlement in NPRS and upward movement in GRPS.The potential sliding surface is primarily located within the embankment in NPRS,whereas it may extend through both the embankment and foundation in GRPS.The pile-soil stress ratio and efficiency in NPRS are higher than in GRPS across the embankment.The axial force borne by end-bearing piles is significantly greater than that by floating piles.As the buried depth increases,the axial force in GRPS initially rises then declines,whereas in NPRS,it remains relatively constant within a certain range before decreasing.This study aids in assessing the applicability of composite foundations in complex railway environments and provides a reference for procedural measures under similar conditions.

Intelligent Power Grid Load Transferring Based on Safe Action-Correction Reinforcement Learning

When a line failure occurs in a power grid, a load transfer is implemented to reconfigure the network by changingthe states of tie-switches and load demands. Computation speed is one of the major performance indicators inpower grid load transfer, as a fast load transfer model can greatly reduce the economic loss of post-fault powergrids. In this study, a reinforcement learning method is developed based on a deep deterministic policy gradient.The tedious training process of the reinforcement learning model can be conducted offline, so the model showssatisfactory performance in real-time operation, indicating that it is suitable for fast load transfer. Consideringthat the reinforcement learning model performs poorly in satisfying safety constraints, a safe action-correctionframework is proposed to modify the learning model. In the framework, the action of load shedding is correctedaccording to sensitivity analysis results under a small discrete increment so as to match the constraints of line flowlimits. The results of case studies indicate that the proposed method is practical for fast and safe power grid loadtransfer.

A hardening load transfer function for rock bolts and its calibration using distributed fiber optic sensing

Confinement of rock bolts by the surrounding rock formation has long been recognized as a positive contributor to the pull-out behavior,yet only a few experimental works and analytical models have been reported,most of which are based on the global rock bolt response evaluated in pull-out tests.This paper presents a laboratory experimental setup aiming to capture the rock formation effect,while using distributed fiber optic sensing to quantify the effect of the confinement and the reinforcement pull-out behavior on a more local level.It is shown that the behavior along the sample itself varies,with certain points exhibiting stress drops with crack formation.Some edge effects related to the kinematic freedom of the grout to dilate are also observed.Regardless,it was found that the mid-level response is quite similar to the average response along the sample.The ability to characterize the variation of the response along the sample is one of the many advantages high-resolution fiber optic sensing allows in such investigations.The paper also offers a plasticity-based hardening load transfer function,representing a"slice"of the anchor.The paper describes in detail the development of the model and the calibration/determination of its parameters.The suggested model captures well the coupled behavior in which the pull-out process leads to an increase in the confining stress due to dilative behavior.

Simulation and Experimental Design of Load Adaptive Braking System on Two Wheeler

The braking quality is considered the main execution of the adaptive control framework that impacts the vehicle safety and rides solace astoundingly notably the stopping distance.This research work aims to create a pattern and design of an electromechanically adjusted lever that multiplies the applied braking force depending on the inputs given by the sensors to reduce the stopping distance of the vehicle.It is carried out using two main parts of the two-wheeler vehicle:thefirst part deals with the detection of load acting on the vehicle and identifying the required braking force to be applied,and the second part deals with the micro-controller which activates the stepper motor for varying the mechanical leverage ratio from various loads on the vehicle using two actively movable wedges.The electromechanically operated variable braking force system is developed to actuate the braking system based on the load on the motorcycle.The MATLAB simulation and experimental work are carried out for various loading(driver and pillion)conditions on a two-wheeler.The results indicate that the proposed electronically operated braking system is more effective than the conventional braking system for various loads and vehicle speeds.Specifically,the stopping distance of the vehicle is decreased significantly by about 4.9%between the con-ventional braking system and the simulated proposed system.Further,the experi-mental results show that the stopping distance is condensed by about 4.1%.The validation between simulated and experimental results revealed a great deal with the least error percentage of about 0.8%.

The Effects of Fatigue Cracks on Fastener Loads during Cyclic Loading and on the Stresses Used for Crack Growth Analysis in Classical Linear Elastic Fracture Mechanics Approaches

High strength threaded fasteners are widely used in the aircraft industry, and service experience shows that for structures where shear loading of the joints is significant, like skin splices, fuselage joints or spar caps-web attachments, more cracks are initiated and grow from the edges of the fastener holes than from features like fillets radii and corners or from large access holes. The main causes of this cracking are the stress concentrations introduced by the fastener holes and by the threaded fasteners themselves, with the most common damage site being at the edge of the fastener holes. Intuitively, it is easy to visualize that after the crack initiation, during the growth stages, some of the load transferred initially by the fastener at the cracked hole will decrease, and it will be shed to the adjacent fasteners that will carry higher loads than in uncracked condition. Using currently available computer software, the method presented in this paper provides a relatively quick and quantitatively defined solution to account for the effects of crack length on the fastener loads transfer, and on the far field and bypass loads at each fastener adjacent to the crack. At each location, these variations are determined from the 3-dimensional distribution of stresses in the joint, and accounting for secondary bending effects and fastener tilt. Two cases of a typical skins lap splice with eight fasteners in a two rows configuration loaded in tension are presented and discussed, one representative for wing or fuselage skins configurations, and the second case representative for cost effective laboratory testing. Each case presents five cracking scenarios, with the cracks growing from approx. 0.03 inch to either the free edge, next hole or both simultaneously.

Stress response characteristics of BFRP anchors on loess mudstone slope under rainfall conditions

To investigate the stress response characteristics and shear stress transfer mechanism of BFRP(basalt fiber reinforced plastics)anchors under rainfall conditions and to explore the reinforcement effect of BFRP anchors,a comparative indoor physical model test was conducted in this study using loess mudstone slope as a typical case,and multi-attribute response data,such as slope displacement,BFRP anchor strain and axial force,were obtained.Based on the variation law of slope displacement,it can be concluded that the deformation displacement of the slope on the side reinforced by BFRP anchors is smaller than that of slopes reinforced with steel anchors;the bearing capacity of BFRP anchor is given priority in time,and the anchoring effect of BFRP anchor at the top of the slope is given priority,and the axial force value of anchor is characterized by a surface amplification effect in space;the axial force is higher around the anchor head and tends to decay as a negative exponential function as the anchor extends in the direction of the interior of the slope;the shear stress of BFRP anchor and anchorage body are unevenly distributed along the axial direction,with the maximum value occurring in the free section near the slope surface and decreases as the BFRP anchor extends towards the interior of the slope.These results can provide a theoretical basis for the optimal design of BFRP anchors.

Full-scale pullout tests of rock anchors in a limestone quarry focusing on bond failure at the anchor-grout and grout-rock interfaces

Rock anchors are a common safety measure for stabilising large-scale infrastructure,such as bridge towers,retaining walls,rock slopes and windmills.There are four principal failure modes for rock anchors:(a)tensile failure of the steel anchor,(b)anchor-grout interface failure,(c)grout-rock interface failure,and(d)rock mass uplift.Field tests were performed in a limestone quarry.These tests were designed to test failure modes B and C through pullout.In the tests of failure mode B,the shear stress on the anchor-grout interface is the largest at the top of the grout column and attenuates towards the distal end for small loads.The shear stress becomes uniformly distributed when the applied load is approximately 50%of the ultimate pullout load.The anchors designed to test failure mode C were installed with an endplate and had a higher toughness than the straight bar anchors.The shear stress on the grout-rock interface is the largest at the endplate and attenuates upward before slip starts along the interface.When the ultimate pullout load is reached,and the grout column starts to slip,the shear stress is approximately constant.The bond shear strength on the anchor-grout interface was approximately 20%of the uniaxial compressive strength of the grout,and the bond strength of the grout-rock interface was around 5%for that of the grout.The grout-rock interface is likely determined by whichever is weaker,the grout or the rock.

Influence of cement-fly ash-gravel pile-supported approach embankment on abutment piles in soft ground

Abutment piles in soft ground may be subjected to both vertical and horizontal soil movements resulting from approach embankment loads. To constrain the soil movements, the soft soil ground beneath the approach embankment is often improved using composite pile foundations, which aim at mitigating the bump induced by high-speed trains passing through the bridge. So far, there is limited literature on exploring the influence of the degree of ground improvement on abutment piles installed in soft soil grounds. In this paper, a series of three-dimensional （3D） centrifuge model tests was performed on an approach embankment over a silty clay deposit improved by cement-fly ash-gravel （CFG） piles combined with geogrid. Emphasis is placed on the effects of ground replacement ratio （m） on the responses of the abutment piles induced by embankment loads. Meanwhile, a numerical study was conducted with varying ground replacement ratio of the pile-reinforced grounds. Results show that the performance of the abutment piles is significantly improved when reinforcing the ground with CFG piles beneath the approach embankment. Interestingly, there is a threshold value of the replacement ratio of around 4.9% above which the effect of CFG pile foundations is limited. This implies that it is essential to optimize the ground improvement for having a cost-effective design while minimizing the risk of the bump at the end of bridge.

Utilizing a novel fiber optic technology to capture the axial responses of fully grouted rock bolts

Rock bolts are one of the primary support systems utilized in underground excavations within the civil and mining engineering industries. Rock bolts support the weakened rock mass adjacent to the opening of an excavation by fastening to the more stable, undisturbed formations further from the excavation. The overall response of such a support element has been determined under varying loading conditions in the laboratory and in situ experiments in the past four decades; however, due to the limitations with conventional monitoring methods of capturing strain, there still exists a gap in knowledge associated with an understanding of the geomechanical responses of rock bolts at the microscale. In this paper, we try to address this current gap in scientific knowledge by utilizing a newly developed distributed optical strain sensing(DOS) technology that provides an exceptional spatial resolution of 0.65 mm to capture the strain along the rock bolt. This DOS technology utilizes Rayleigh optical frequency domain reflectometry(ROFDR) which provides unprecedented insight into various mechanisms associated with axially loaded rebar specimens of different embedment lengths, grouting materials, borehole annulus conditions, and borehole diameters. The embedment length of the specimens was found to be the factor that significantly affected the loading of the rebar. The critical embedment length for the fully grouted rock bolts(FGRBs) was systematically determined to be430 mm. The results herein highlight the effects of the variation of these individual parameters on the geomechanical responses FGRBs.

Bearing mechanism of a tunnel-type anchorage in a railway suspension bridge

A tunnel-type anchorage(TTA)is one of the main components in suspension bridges:the bearing mechanism is a key problem.Investigating the deformation characteristics,development law,and failure phenomenon of a TTA under load can provide the theoretical basis for a robust design.Utilizing the TTA of the Jinsha River suspension bridge at Lijiang Shangri-La railway as a prototype,a laboratory model test of the TTA was carried out for three different contact conditions between the anchorage body and the surrounding rock.The stress and deformation distribution law of the anchorage body and its surrounding rock were studied,and the ultimate bearing capacity and failure mode of the TTA were analyzed.The test results show that the compressive stress level is highest at the rear part of the anchorage body.Moving away from the rear portion of the body,the stress decays in a negative exponential function.Based on the load transfer curve,the calculation formula for the shear stress on the contact surface between the anchorage body and the surrounding rock was derived,which shows that the distribution of the shear stress along the axial direction of the anchorage body is not uniform.The distance from the maximum value to the loading surface is approximately 1/3 of the length of the anchorage body,and the stress decreases as the distance from the loading surface increases.Furthermore,the contact condition between the anchorage body and surrounding rock has a great influence on the bearing capacity of the TTA.The increase in the anti-skid tooth ridge and radial anchor bolt can improve the cooperative working capacity of the anchorage body and the surrounding rock,which is approximately 50%higher than that of the flat contact condition.The main function of the anchor bolt is to increase the overall rigidity of the TTA.The contact condition between the anchorage body and the surrounding rock will lead to a change in the failure mode of the TTA.With an increase in the degree of contact,the failure mode will change from shear sliding along the interface to trumpet-shaped inverted cone-shaped failure extending into the surrounding rock.

Dynamic Characteristics Analysis with Multi-Directional Coupling in a TBM Mainframe

The cutterhead of a full-face rock tunnel boring machine(TBM)is constantly subjected to varying impact and dynamic loads during tunneling processes,resulting in relatively large vibrations that could easily lead to fatigue cracking of the entire machine and a ect the tunneling performance and efficiency.To explore the dynamic characteristics of the TBM mainframe,a TBM from a water-diversion project is investigated in this research.According to the TBM vibration transmission route,an equivalent dynamic model of the TBM mainframe is established using the lumped-mass method in which the relevant dynamic parameters are solved.Additionally,the dynamic response characteristics of the TBM mainframe are analyzed.The results indicate that the vibration levels in three directions are approximately the same,the multi-directional vibration of the cutterhead is more intense than that of other components,and the vibration and external excitation exhibit identical change trends.A set of vibration field tests is performed to analyze the in situ dynamic responses of the mainframe and verify the correctness of the dynamic model.The theoretical and measured acceleration values of the TBM mainframe have the same magnitude,which proves the validity of the dynamic model and its solution.The aforementioned results provide an important theoretical value and practical significance for the design and assessment of the TBM mainframe.

STUDY ON THE EFFECTS OF BREAKAGE OF SINGLE FIBER ON CREEP BEHAVIOR OF FIBER REINFORCED COMPOSITES

A 3-D micro cell model with multi-fibers has been presented to study the effects of breakage of single fiber on the whole creep behavior of fiber reinforced composites by finite element method (FEM). Before the fiber breakage, the stresses of all fibers are identical. With the creep time increasing, stress in fiber increases but stress in matrix decreases. It is assumed that the fiber breakage occurs when the stress in fiber reaches a critical value. The stress redistribution resulted from the breakage of fiber has been obtained. The influence on the axial stress of the broken fiber is local. The stress in the all fiber sections is not uniform. There is a local stress concentration in the matrix. And this stress concentration in the matrix is more and more serious with the creep deformation. The stress transference of the loading due to the fiber breakage has been studies numerically. It is found that the fibers near to the broken fiber will take over more loading.

A coal rib monitoring study in a room-and-pillar retreat mine

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health(NIOSH)conducted a comprehensive monitoring program in a room-and-pillar mine located in Southern Virginia.The deformation and the stress change in an instrumented pillar were monitored during the progress of pillar retreat mining at two sites of different geological conditions and depths of cover.The main objectives of the monitoring program were to better understand the stress transfer and load shedding on coal pillars and to quantify the rib deformation due to pillar retreat mining;and to examine the effect of rib geology and overburden depth on coal rib performance.The instrumentation at both sites included pull-out tests to measure the anchorage capacity of rib bolts,load cells mounted on rib bolts to monitor the induced loads in the bolts,borehole pressure cells(BPCs)installed at various depths in the study pillar to measure the change in vertical pressure within the pillar,and roof and rib extensometers installed to quantify the vertical displacement of the roof and the horizontal displacement of the rib that would occur during the retreat mining process.The outcome from the monitoring program provides insight into coal pillar rib support optimization at various depths and geological conditions.Also,this study contributes to the NIOSH rib support database in U.S coal mines and provides essential data for rib support design.

Bearing capacity and load transfer mechanism of a static drill rooted nodular pile in soft soil areas

The static drill rooted nodular pile is a new type of pile foundation consisting of precast nodular pile and the surrounding cemented soil.This composite pile has a relatively high bearing capacity and the mud pollution will be largely reduced during the construction process by using this type of pile.In order to investigate the bearing capacity and load transfer mechanism of this pile,a group of experiments were conducted to provide a comparison between this new pile and the bored pile.The axial force of a precast nodular pile was also measured by the strain gauges installed on the pile to analyze the distribution of the axial force of the nodular pile and the skin friction supported by the surrounding soil,then 3D models were built by using the ABAQUS finite element program to investigate the load transfer mechanism of this composite pile in detail.By combining the results of field tests and the finite element method,the outcome showed that the bearing capacity of a static drill rooted nodular pile is higher than the bored pile,and that this composite pile will form a double stress dispersion system which will not only confirm the strength of the pile,but also make the skin friction to be fully mobilized.The settlement of this composite pile is mainly controlled by the precast nodular pile;meanwhile,the nodular pile and the surrounding cemented soil can be considered as deformation compatibility during the loading process.The nodes on the nodular pile play an important role during the load transfer process,the shear strength of the interface between the cemented soil and the soil of the static drill rooted pile is larger than that of the bored pile.

The Effect of Non-Contact Conditions in a Splinted Fixed Partial Denture on the Load Sharing Mechanism： A Finite Element Study

A computer-aided design model for a fixed partial denture was constructed and used in a finite element analysis to study the overall load sharing mechanism between the fixed partial denture and oral structures while the denture base rested on the al- veolar ridge. To investigate the consequences of non-contact conditions, three additional models were generated incorporating a uniform clearance of 0.125 mm, 0.25 mm, and 0.5 mm, respectively. A 100 N static load located at the free end of the prosthesis was applied while the distal portion of the jaw was set fixed. The results show that whilst releasing the ridge almost entirely, the presence of the clearance drastically increased the load on the splinting teeth. A pull-out force on the canine tooth of about 44 N was computed, accompanied by a mesio-distal moment of about 500 N.cm. The combination of which was similar to the tooth extraction maneuver performed by the dentist. In contrast, the second premolar was found to bear a push-in force of almost 115 N. The first molar, though barely solicited in the contact condition, became substantially loaded in non-contact conditions, which validates the choice of sacrificing three teeth to support the denture.

Interregional coal flow and its environmental loads transfer in Shanxi Province

For the low price of coal and ineffective environmental management in mining area, China is in the dilemma of the increasing coal demand and the serious environmental issues in mining area. The more coal that is exported from a region, the more heavily it suffers from the environmental impacts of coal export. In this paper, the temporal and spatial process of exporting coal from Shanxi to other provinces of China is traced between 1975 and 2005. The coal net export of Shanxi increased to 370.69 million tonnes in 2005, representing an average annual growth rate of 7.5% from 1975 to 2005. With the increase of the amount of coal export from Shanxi, the Environmental Loads Transfer （ELT） that import provinces input to mining areas of Shanxi are rising. Effective means of internalizing the environmental externality of ELT lie in： 1） setting up a coal sustainable development fund to restore environment of coal mining area; 2） enforcing environment tax, financial transfer payment and transferring advantage technology of pollution reduction to coal export area; and 3） reducing coal regional flow by reducing coal demand from power generation and heating and other industries.

A review of the design of load-carrying exoskeletons

The increasing necessity of load-carrying activities has led to greater human musculoskeletal damage and an increased metabolic cost.With the rise of exoskeleton technology,researchers have begun exploring different approaches to developing wearable robots to augment human load-carrying ability.However,there is a lack of systematic discussion on biomechanics,mechanical designs,and augmentation performance.To achieve this,extensive studies have been reviewed and 108 references are selected mainly from 2013 to 2022 to address the most recent development.Other earlier 20 studies are selected to present the origin of different design principles.In terms of the way to achieve load-carrying augmentation,the exoskeletons reviewed in this paper are sorted by four categories based on the design principles,namely load-suspended backpacks,lower-limb exoskeletons providing joint torques,exoskeletons transferring load to the ground and exoskeletons transferring load between body segments.Specifically,the driving modes of active and passive,the structure of rigid and flexible,the conflict between assistive performance and the mass penalty of the exoskeleton,and the autonomy are discussed in detail in each section to illustrate the advances,challenges,and future trends of exoskeletons designed to carry loads.

Differences in loading patterns between fast walking and jogging at the same speed in male adults

Fast walking and jogging are two common exercises for people to maintain health in daily life.But the differences in loading patterns of fast walking and jogging are still unclear.The purpose of this study was to compare loading patterns in fast walking and jogging at the same speed,and to identify how differences in foot mechanics influence plantar pressure distribution between the two modes of gait.Totally,49 healthy males participated in this study.Data of pressure parameters,including maximum force(MF),peak pressure(PP),contact area(CA),force-time integral(FTI),were recorded by Pedar-X insole plantar pressure measurement system in participants’fast walking and jogging process at 7 km/h.A Load transfer analysis method was used to quantify the plantar load transference from fast walking to jogging.The results showed that MF,PP and CA increased in metatarsal regions and midfoot regions while decreased in toes regions and heel during jogging when compared with fast walking.FTI decreased in all foot regions during jogging compared to fast walking.Under the effects of spring mechanics and the varus of rearfoot during jogging,fast walking and jogging reveal different loading patterns.Compared jogging to fast walking,load transferred as follow:1)in transverse direction,load transferred from lateral foot to medial foot in metatarsal regions and midfoot regions,2)in longitudinal direction,load transferred from toes to the metatarsal,and from heel to the metatarsal and midfoot.These results also provide suggestions for footwear designs.

Dynamic Rollover Prediction of Heavy Vehicles Considering Critical Frequency

Rollover of commercial heavy vehicles can cause enormous economic losses and fatalities.It is easier for such vehicles to rollover if the driver’s steering frequency is close to the critical frequency of the vehicle’s roll motion;however,the critical roll frequency has rarely been investigated.In this study,the second-order transfer function between the steering input and roll angle was developed to calculate the critical frequency of the vehicle’s roll motion.The simulated spectrum and transfer function were then used to dynamically predict the peak lateral load transfer ratio.Laboratory experiments were conducted using a scaled vehicle to verify the critical roll frequency.The results suggest that the peak value of the lateral load transfer ratio during steering can be accurately determined from the driver’s input,and the critical roll frequency has a dominant effect on the dynamic rollover of heavy vehicles.

Thermal-structural analysis of regeneratively-cooled thrust chamber wall in reusable LOX/Methane rocket engines

To predict the thermal and structural responses of the thrust chamber wall under cyclic work,a 3-D fluid-structural coupling computational methodology is developed.The thermal and mechanical loads are determined by a validated 3-D finite volume fluid-thermal coupling computational method.With the specified loads,the nonlinear thermal-structural finite element analysis is applied to obtaining the 3-D thermal and structural responses.The Chaboche nonlinear kinematic hardening model calibrated by experimental data is adopted to predict the cyclic plastic behavior of the inner wall.The methodology is further applied to the thrust chamber of LOX/Methane rocket engines.The results show that both the maximum temperature at hot run phase and the maximum circumferential residual strain of the inner wall appear at the convergent part of the chamber.Structural analysis for multiple work cycles reveals that the failure of the inner wall may be controlled by the low-cycle fatigue when the Chaboche model parameter c3= 0,and the damage caused by the thermal-mechanical ratcheting of the inner wall cannot be ignored when c3〉 0.The results of sensitivity analysis indicate that mechanical loads have a strong influence on the strains in the inner wall.