Damage Evolution of Ballastless Track Concrete Exposed to Flexural Fatigue Loads:The Application of Ultrasonic Pulse Velocity,Impact-echo and Surface Electrical Resistance Method

In order to clarify the fatigue damage evolution of concrete exposed to flexural fatigue loads,ultrasonic pulse velocity(UPV),impact-echo technology and surface electrical resistance(SR) method were used.Damage variable based on the change of velocity of ultrasonic pulse(Du) and impact elastic wave(Di)were defined according to the classical damage theory.The influences of stress level,loading frequency and concrete strength on damage variable were measured.The experimental results show that Du and Di both present a three-stages trend for concrete exposed to fatigue loads.Since impact elastic wave is more sensitive to the microstructure damage in stage Ⅲ,the critical damage variable,i e,the damage variable before the final fracture of concrete of Di is slightly higher than that of Du.Meanwhile,the evolution of SR of concrete exposed to fatigue loads were analyzed and the relationship between SR and Du,SR and Di of concrete exposed to fatigue loads were established.It is found that the SR of concrete was decreased with the increasing fatigue cycles,indicating that surface electrical resistance method can also be applied to describe the damage of ballastless track concrete exposed to fatigue loads.

Improving tree health assessment accuracy at low temperatures:considering the effect of trunk ice content on electrical resistance and stress wave tomography

Accurate decay detection and health assessment of trees at low temperatures is an important issue for forest management and ecology in cold areas.Low temperature ice formation on tree health assessment is unknown.Because electric resistance tomography and stress wave tomography are two widely used methods for the detection of tree decay,this study investigated the effect of ice content on trunk electrical resistance and stress wave velocity to improve tree health assessment accuracy.Moisture content,trunk electrical resistance and stress wave velocity using time domain reflectometry were carried out on Larix gmelinii and Populus simonii.Ice content is based on moisture content data.The ice content of both species showed a trend of increasing and then decreasing.This was opposite with ambient temperatures.With the decrease of temperatures,daily average ice content increased,but the range narrowed gradually and both electrical resistance and stress wave velocity increased.Both increased rapidly near 0℃,mainly caused by ice formation(phase change and freezing of free water)in live trees.In addition,both are positively correlated with ice content.The results suggest that ice content should be considered for improving the accuracy of tree decay detection and health evaluation using electric resistance tomography and stress wave velocity methods under low temperatures.

Detecting Impact Damage in Carbon Fabric/epoxy-matrix Composites by Ultrasonic F-scan and Electrical Resistance Measurement

The status and the variation of electrical resistance of impacted carbon fiber/epoxy-matrix composites were studied by ultrasonic F-scan and electrical resistance measurement The experimental results shows that impact damage energy threshold value of carbon fabric/epoxy-matrix composites can determine by using ultrasonic F-scan. When the impact energy exceeds the threshold value, damage is generated in composites. Electrical resistance of impacted composites is changed owing to the contact of each carbon fiber unit in composites, which cause a change of the series-parallel in conductors. The veracity of detecting impact damage in composites can be improved in this case.

Comparison between the electrical resistance and the shear strength of brazed cemented carbides

Brazing is a suitable technology to join different materials such as cemented carbides and steel. Even though this technology has been investigated for many years, insufficient joints can occur easily, as the brazing process is very sensitive concerning the handling parameters. Defects such as voids and cracks are hard to detect by commonly used visual inspection methods. Other nondestructive methods such as radiography or ultrasonic testing are usually not economical for the examination of these joints. Studies proved that the electrical resistance has the potential to serve as an effective alternative for the evaluation of brazed joints. In this study, the authors have compared the electrical resistance and the shear strength. For this, cemented carbides were brazed to steel by means of induction heating at an ambient atmosphere. A silver-based filler metal （ BrazeTec 4900 / Ag 449 ） and a flux （ BrazeTec spezial h / FH12） were selected to enable the brazing process. The brazing time and the temperature were varied in order to produce different joint qualities. After brazing, the resistance was measured on each joint with the 4-point probe method to facilitate a high accuracy. The results underline the possibility to use electrical resistance measurements as an effective tool for a quality control of brazed joints.

THE INVESTIGATION OF THE METAL DAMAGE AT THE CREEP BY THE METHOD OF ELECTRICAL RESISTANCE MEASURING

In this paper the method of damage measurement of metal structure at the creep is proposed.In contrast to other methods,it allows the measurement of this damage to be carried out in the process of creep test without unloading and cooling of specimens.Experimental damage curves during creep are obtained as a result of test data processing by the suggested method.The analysis of these curves leads to a conclusion that the material damage at repture is monotonically decreasing function of the applied stress.This conclusion is an experimental verification of the theoretical result,obtained earlier.

Quality Evaluation of Diffusion Bonded Joints by Electrical Resistance Measuring and Microscopic Fatigue Testing

Micro-structure related behavior of diffusion bonding joints is a crucial issue in device and reactor fabrication of Micro Chemo Mechanical Systems.However,the previous studies have been focused on the macro mechanical performance of diffusion bonded joint,especially diffusion bonding conditions effects on tensile strength,shearing strength and fatigue strength.The research of interfacial micro-voids and microstructures evolution for failure mechanism has not been carried out for diffusion-bonded joints.An interfacial electrical resistance measuring method is proposed to evaluate the quality of bonded joints and verified by using two-dimensional finite-element simulation.The influences of micro void geometry on increments of resistance are analyzed and the relationship between bonded area fraction and resistance increment is established by theoretical analysis combined with simulated results.Metallographic inspections and micro-hardness testing are conducted near the interface of diffusion bonded joints.For the purpose of identifying the failure mechanisms of the joints,both microscopic tensile and fatigue tests are conducted on the self-developed in-situ microscopic fatigue testing system.Based on the microscopic observations,the mechanism of interfacial failure is addressed.The observation result shows that for 316LSS diffusion-bonded joints,microstructure evolution and effect of micro-voids play a key role in interfacial failure mechanism.Finally,a new life prediction model in terms of the increment of electrical resistance is developed and confirmed by the experimental results.The proposed study is initiated that constituted a primary interfacial failure mechanism on micron scale and provide the life prediction for reliability of components sealed by diffusion bonding.

Electrical Resistance Measurement of Glass Transition and Crystallization Characteristics of Zr-Al-Cu-Ni Metallic Glasses

In this paper, glass transition and thermal stability of the Zr-AI-Cu-Ni metallic glasses were investigated by using electrical resistance measurement (ERM), DSC and X-ray diffraction techniques. The experimental results show that the ERM is capable of detecting the glass transition of the amorphous alloys and can help to distinguish the crystallization products of the Zr-AI-Cu-Ni metallic glasses owing to the difference of the electrical resistivity between the precipitation phases.

In situ electrical resistance and activation energy of solid C_(60) under high pressure

The in situ electrical resistance and transport activation energies of solid C60 fullerene have been measured under high pressure up to 25 GPa in the temperature range of 300-423 K by using a designed diamond anvil cell. In the experiment, four parts of boron-doped diamond films fabricated on one anvil were used as electrical measurement probes and a W-Ta thin film thermocouple which was integrated on the other diamond anvil was used to measure the temperature. The current results indicate that the measured high-pressure resistances are bigger than those reported before at the same pressure and there is no pressure-independent resistance increase before 8 GPa. From the temperature dependence of the resistivity, the C60 behaviors as a semiconductor and the activation energies of the cubic C60 fullerene are 0,49, 0.43, and 0.36 eV at 13, 15, and 19 GPa, respectively.

Evaluation of Impact Damage Tolerance in Carbon Fabric/epoxy-matrix Composites by Electrical Resistance Measurement

Impact damage tolerance is provided in intensity design on composites. The compression intensity of impacted composites requires more than 60% of its original intensity. The influence of impact on compressive intensity and electrical resistance of carbon fabric/epoxy-matrix composites was studied in this paper. The experimental results shows that impact can cause damage in composites, degenerate compressive intensity, and increase resistance. The electrical resistance change rate was used as an evaluation indicator of impact damage tolerance of composites. Impact damage, which results from the applying process of composites, can be identified in time by electrical resistance measurement. So, the safety performance of composites can also be improved.

Effects of electrical resistance on the spontaneous combustion tendency of coal and the interaction matrix concept

There have been several developments in determining the spontaneous combustion liability of coal. Most of the methods of concern have purely been based on the internal properties of the coal itself. The relation between the crossing-point method and the electrical resistance of coal was examined here to outline the spontaneous combustion tendency of coal, The electrical resistance property of coal was looked into as a decision-making parameter of the interaction matrix concept for the final decision on the spontaneous combustion tendency.

Detecting the Resistivity Distribution of Carbon Fiber Reinforced Concrete by Electrical Resistance Tomography Method

According to the principle of electrical resistance tomography （ ERT）, the resistivity distribution of the carbon fiber reinforced concrete （CFRC） in the sensing field can be measured by injecting exciting current and measuring the voltage on the sensor electrode arrays installed on the surface of the object. Therefore, measurement of the resistivity distribution of CFRC is divided into first measuring the boundary conditions and then inversely computing the resistivity distribution. To reach this goal, an ERT system was constructed, which is composed of a sensor array unit, a data acquisition unit and an image reconstruction unit. Simulations of static ERT was performed on set-ups with many objects spread in a homogeneous background, and a simulation of dynamic ERT was also done on a rectangular board, the resistivity of which was changed within a small domain of it. Then, the resistivity distribution of a CFRC sample with a circlar hole as the target was detected by the ERT system. Simulation and experimental results show that the reconstructed ERT image reflects the resistivity distribution or the resistivity change of CFRC structure well. Especially, a small change in resistivity can be identified from the reconstructed images in the simulation of dynamic ERT images.

Exploration on electrical resistance tomography in characterizing the slurry spatial distribution in cemented granular materials

This study investigated the application of electrical resistance tomography(ERT)in characterizing the slurry spatial distribution in cemented granular materials(CGMs).For CGM formed by self-flow grouting,the voids in the accumulation are only partially filled and the bond strength is often limited,which results in difficulty in obtaining in situ samples for quality evaluation.Therefore,it is usually infeasible to evaluate the grouting effect or monitor the slurry spatial distribution by a mechanical method.In this research,the process of grouting cement paste into high alumina ceramic beads(HACB)accumulation is reliably monitored with ERT.It shows that ERT results can be used to calculate the cement paste volume in the HACB accumulation,based on calibrating the saturation exponent n in Archie’s law.The results support the feasibility of ERT as an imaging tool in CGM characterization and may provide guidance for engineering applications in the future.

Obtaining 2D Soil Resistance Profiles from the Integration of Electrical Resistivity Data and Standard Penetration Test (SPT) and Light Dynamic Penetrometer (DPL) Resistance Tests—Applications in Mass Movements Studies

In Brazil and various regions globally, the initiation of landslides is frequently associated with rainfall;yet the spatial arrangement of geological structures and stratification considerably influences landslide occurrences. The multifaceted nature of these influences makes the surveillance of mass movements a highly intricate task, requiring an understanding of numerous interdependent variables. Recent years have seen an emergence in scholarly research aimed at integrating geophysical and geotechnical methodologies. The conjoint examination of geophysical and geotechnical data offers an enhanced perspective into subsurface structures. Within this work, a methodology is proposed for the synchronous analysis of electrical resistivity geophysical data and geotechnical data, specifically those extracted from the Light Dynamic Penetrometer (DPL) and Standard Penetration Test (SPT). This study involved a linear fitting process to correlate resistivity with N10/SPT N-values from DPL/SPT soundings, culminating in a 2D profile of N10/SPT N-values predicated on electrical profiles. The findings of this research furnish invaluable insights into slope stability by allowing for a two-dimensional representation of penetration resistance properties. Through the synthesis of geophysical and geotechnical data, this project aims to augment the comprehension of subsurface conditions, with potential implications for refining landslide risk evaluations. This endeavor offers insight into the formulation of more effective and precise slope management protocols and disaster prevention strategies.

MEASUREMENT OF SOLID SLURRY FLOW VIA CORRELATION OF ELECTROMAGNETIC FLOW METER,ELECTRICAL RESISTANCE TOMOGRAPHY AND MECHANISTIC MODELLING

The study presented here was carried out to obtain the actual solids flow rate by the combination of electrical resistance tomography and electromagnetic flow meter. A new in-situ measurement method based on measurements of the Electromagnetic Flow Meters （EFM） and Electrical Resistance Tomography （ERT） to study the flow rates of individual phases in a vertical flow was proposed. The study was based on laboratory experiments that were carded out with a 50 mm vertical flow rig for a number of sand concentrations and different mixture velocities. A range of sand slurries with median particle size from 212 μm to 355 μm was tested. The solid concentration by volume covered was 5% and 15%, and the corresponding density of 5% was 1078 kg/m^3 and of 15% was 1238 kg/m^3. The flow velocity was between 1.5 m/s and 3.0 m/s. A total of 6 experimental tests were conducted. The equivalent liquid model was adopted to validate in-situ volumetric solids fraction and calculate the slip velocity. The results show that the ERT technique can be used in conjunction with an electromagnetic flow meter as a way of measurement of slurry flow rate in a vertical pipe flow. However it should be emphasized that the EFM results must be treated with reservation when the flow pattern at the EFM mounting position is a non-homogenous flow. The flow rate obtained by the EFM should be corrected considering the slip velocity and the flow pattern.

Effects of sludge characteristics on electrical resistance and energy consumption during electro-dewatering process

The increase of electrical resistance(ER)and energy consumption(EC)during the later stage of dewatering is a major problem hindering the development of electro-dewatering(EDW)technology.As the variations of sludge characteristics are significant during the EDW process,the relationships between sludge characteristics and ER and EC during EDW remain unclear.In this study,the effects of moisture content(MC),thickness,pH,conductivity,zeta potential,temperature,and gas volume on the ER and EC during the EDW process were statistically investigated using correlation and multiple linear regression analyses.Herein,the results showed that the ER of the sludge near the anode was primarily affected by pH,whereas the sludge near the cathode was primarily affected by the MC and conductivity.Further,sludge temperature and conductivity were the most reliable indicators to predict the EC near the anode and cathode,respectively.The results of this study provide theoretical guidance useful for solving the increase of ER and EC during the later stage of the EDW process.

Distribution characteristics of holdups in a multi-stage bubble column using electrical resistance tomography

Based on the principle of chemical reaction engineering, the addition of perforated plates can improve the performance of conventional bubble column and decrease the backmixing behaviors. The distribution characteristics of gas holdup in a multi-stage bubble column embedded with five types of sieve plates and three types of tongue plates were studied using electrical resistance tomography （ERT）. The effects of superficial gas velocity and the geometric design of perforated plates on the gas holdup and its radial distribution above and below the plates of the bubble column were discussed. Experimental results show ERT is suitable as an online monitoring tool to provide useful information on the hydrodynamic param-eters of multi-stage bubble columns. With increasing superficial gas velocity, local gas holdup increases, and gas holdup below the plate increases with decrease of free area （%FA）, hole diameters or angle of tongue plates. ERT technique facilitates noninvasive and nonintrusive visualization of cross-sectional distribution of gas holdup in a bubble column.

Combination of steam-enhanced extraction and electrical resistance heating for efficient remediation of perchloroethylene-contaminated soil:Coupling merits and energy consumption

In situ thermal desorption(ISTD)technology effectively remediates soil contaminated by dense nonaqueous phase liquids(DNAPLs).However,more efforts are required to minimize the energy consumption of ISTD technology.This study developed a laboratory-scale experimental device to explore the coupling merits of two traditional desorption technologies:steam-enhanced extraction(SEE)and electrical resistance heating(ERH).The results showed that injecting high-density steam(>1 g/min)into loam or clay with relatively high moisture content(>13.3%)could fracture the soil matrix and lead to the occurrence of the preferential flow of steam.For ERH alone,the electrical resistance and soil moisture loss were critical factors influencing heating power.When ERH and SEE were combined,preheating soil by ERH could increase soil permeability,effectively alleviating the problem of preferential flow of SEE.Meanwhile,steam injection heated the soil and provided moisture for maintaining soil electrical conductivity,thereby ensuring power stability in the ERH process.Compared with ERH alone(8 V/cm)and SEE alone(1 g/min steam),the energy consumption of combined method in remediating perchloroethylene-contaminated soil was reduced by 39.3%and 52.9%,respectively.These findings indicate that the combined method is more favorable than ERH or SEE alone for remediating DNAPL-contaminated subsurfaces when considering ISTD technology.

Impact of Heat Treatments and Hole Density (p) on the Structural, Electrical, and Superconducting Properties of LnSrBaCu3O6+z (Ln = Eu, Sm, Nd) Compounds

In this study, we thoroughly examined the impact of heat treatments and hole count (p) on the properties of LnSrBaCu3O6+z (Ln = Eu, Sm, Nd) compounds. We focused on preparation, X-ray diffraction with Rietveld refinement, AC susceptibility, DC resistivity measurements, and heat treatment effects. Two heat treatment types were applied: oxygen annealing [O] and argon annealing followed by oxygen annealing [AO]. As the rare earth Ln’s ionic radius increased, certain parameters notably changed. Specifically, c parameter, surface area S, and volume V increased, while critical temperature Tc and holes (p) in the CuO2 plane decreased. The evolution of these parameters with rare earth Ln’s ionic radius in [AO] heat treatment is linear. Regardless of the treatment, the structure is orthorhombic for Ln = Eu, tetragonal for Ln = Nd, orthorhombic for Ln = Sm [AO], and pseudo-tetragonal for Sm [O]. The highest critical temperature is reached with Ln = Eu (Tc [AO] = 87.1 K). Notably, for each sample, Tc [AO] surpasses Tc [O]. Observed data stems from factors including rare earth ionic size, improved cationic and oxygen chain order, holes count p in Cu(2)O2 planes, and in-phase purity of [AO] samples. Our research strives to clearly demonstrate that the density of holes (p) within the copper plane stands as a determinant impacting the structural, electrical, and superconducting properties of these samples. Meanwhile, the other aforementioned parameters contribute to shaping this density (p).

Low Electrical Resistance Properties of Acupoints:Roles of NOergic Signaling Molecules and Neuropeptides in Skin Electrical Conductance

Early studies from several independent laboratories demonstrated that acupoints possess the characteristics of low electrical resistance.New devices are developing to increase the reliability of electrical skin impedance measurements for counteracting the factors including skin dryness,skin thickness,size of the sensing electrode,pressure applied on the electrode,interelectrode distance,room temperature,and humidity.Morphological studies have identified that blood vessels,hair follicles,and nervous components are enhanced in the meridians/acupoints,which represent areas of potentially high neuronal activity.Recent evidence shows that nitric oxide(NO)concentrations are enhanced in skin acupoints/meridians.L-arginine-derived NO synthesis modifies skin norepinephrine(NE)synthesis/release in acupoints/meridians,and NO-NE activations play an important role in mediating the skin conductance responses to electrical stimulation.NOergic signaling molecules interact with gap junction and transient receptor potential vanilloid type-1.Other studies reported that the high conductance at acupoints is a result of the release of the neuropeptides substance P and calcitonin gene-related peptide during neurogenic inflammation in the referred pain area.Pathological body conditions caused considerable changes in skin conductance or impedance at acupoints.Although systematic research with an improved equipment and research design to avoid the influencing factors are requested for a definite answer in this field,the results from anatomical and biochemical studies consistently show that acupoints exist higher levels of nervous components,and NOergic signaling molecules and neuropeptides involved in the skin low resistance at acupoints.The increased interest in the acupoints/meridians has led to an open-minded attitude towards understanding this system,which is fundamental important to establish the valid aspects of scientific basis of Chinese medicine mechanisms and therapies.

Structure,morphology and electrical resistance of W_(x)N thin film synthesized by HFCVD method with various N_(2) contents

Tungsten nitride(W_(x)N)thin films with good crystalline structure,high quality and relatively low resistivity were deposited by hot filament chemical vapor deposition(HFCVD)technique at different mixtures of N2 and Ar gases.Experimental data demonstrate that different N_(2) contents in gas mixture strongly affect microstructure,phase formation,texture morphology and resistivity of the W_(x)N films.According to X-ray diffraction(XRD)patterns,the growth of tungsten nitride films promotes δ-WN phase for lower N_(2) contents in gas mixture.At higher N_(2) contents,a phase transition is observed in the tungsten nitride films.Both hexagonal δ-WN and cubic β-W_(2)N phases coexist,and WN phase approximately disappears with N_(2) contents in the gas mixture increasing.Scanning electron microscope(SEM)images for deposited films at lower N_(2) contents in gas mixture indicate a definite dense columnar nanostructure.The electrical resistivity results exhibit a significant drop for the W_(x)N thin films with N_(2) contents in the mixed gas increasing.The changes in N_(2) content in gas mixture are found to be responsible for variation in the film resistivity values.Thus,the deposited tungsten nitride thin film at higher N_(2) contents in gas mixture has noncolumnar microstructure and lower resistivity,which may be used as a superior diffusion barrier.