Resistance factors for design of slopes in a homogenous soil layer

Traditionally,the factor of safety(FOS)is widely used to account for uncertainties in the design of slopes within the framework of working stress design.As the uncertainties involved in the design of slopes vary,the same FOS may correspond to the different levels of reliability.In this study,the advanced first order reliability method is used to determine the resistance factors for design of slopes in a homogenous soil layer.It is found that the resistance factors depend on the target reliability index,the height of the slope,and the variability of the soil strength parameters.It is difficult to suggest a unique set of resistance factors for design of slopes.Analytic solutions are developed to determine the resistance factors for design of slopes assuming the random variables are normally distributed.An approximate method based on the concept of equivalent target reliability index is also suggested to determine the resistance factors for design of the slope when the soil strength parameters are lognormally distributed.The method suggested in this paper provides a practical way to perform load and resistance factors design of slopes.

Estimation of load and resistance factors using the thirdmoment method based on the 3P-Iognormal distribution

Load and resistance factors are generally obtained using the first order reliability method(FORM)in which the design point should be determined and derivative-based iterations used.In this article,the thirdmoment reliability index,based on the three-parameter lognormal(3P-lognormal)distribution,is investigated.A simple method based on the third-moment method for estimating load and resistance factors is then proposed,and a simple formula for the target mean resistance is also presented to avoid iterative computations.Unlike the currently used method,the proposed method can be used to determine load and resistance factors,even when the probability density functions(PDFs)of the basic random variables are not available.Moreover,the proposed method does not require the iterative computation of derivatives or any design points.Thus,the method provides a more convenient and effective way to estimate load and resistance factors in practical engineering applications.Numerical examples are presented to demonstrate the advantages of the proposed third moment method for determining load and resistance factors.

Resistance Factor of Caisson-Tip with Internal Fillet for Suction Caissons Penetrating into Clay

This paper presents failure mechanisms of the soil at the caisson-tip with fillet during suction-assisted penetration of suction caissons in undrained clay.Theoretical solutions of resistance factor N_c of the caisson-tip are obtained in terms of the caisson-tip geometry ratio of the flat section of the caisson-tip to the caisson wall thickness m/t and adhesion factorsα_i along inside of caisson wall andα_b at the base of the caisson-tip.It is indicated that the factor N_c increases with the increase of m/t,α_i and a_b.The resistance factors N_c for the rough base(α_b=1)are larger by 0.57than that for the smooth base(α_b=0).Besides,the factors N_c of caisson-tip with flat base(m=t)are larger by 1.14 than that with full internal fillet(m=0).The required suction to penetrate suction caissons with various fillets is obtained in terms of the force equilibrium in vertical direction.The finite element limit analysis and centrifuge model test results are used to verify the rationality of the presented failure mechanisms and theoretical predictions.

Centrifuge experiment on the penetration test for evaluating undrained strength of deep-sea surface soils

Rapid advances in deep-sea mining engineering have created an urgent need for the accurate evaluation of the undrained strength of marine soils,especially surface soils.Significant achievements have been made using full-flow penetration penetrometers to evaluate marine soil strength in the deep penetration;however,a method considering the effect of ambient water on the surface penetration needs to be established urgently.In this study,penetrometers with multiple probes were developed and used to conduct centrifuge experiments on South China Sea soil and kaolin clay.First,the forces on the probes throughout the penetration process were systematically analyzed and quantified.Second,the spatial influence zone was determined by capturing the resistance changes and sample crack development,and the penetration depth for a sample to reach a stable failure mode was given.Third,the vane shear strength was used to invert the penetration resistance factor of the ball and determine the range of the penetration resistance factor values.Furthermore,a methodology to determine the penetration resistance factors for surface marine soils was established.Finally,the effect of the water cavity above various probes in the surface penetration was used to formulate an internal mechanism for variations in the penetration resistance factor.

Effect of pathological myopia on biomechanical properties:a study by ocular response analyzer

AIM: To evaluate the ocular response analyzer(ORA)measurements of patients with pathological myopia in comparison with those of emmetropic control subjects,and to investigate the correlation between these ORA measurements and spherical equivalent(SE).METHODS: Measurements of 53 eyes of 53 subjects with pathological myopia(SE >-6.00 D) were compared with those of 60 eyes of 60 emmetropic controls. Corneal hysteresis(CH), corneal resistance factor(CRF),noncontact tonometer intraocular pressure(IOPg), and corneal-compensated IOP(IOPcc) were obtained for each subject. The refractive error value was determined as SE via a cycloplegic refraction test.RESULTS: The mean age was 54.1±18.9y(ranging from5 to 88) in the pathological myopic group and 56.2±19.0y(ranging from 6 to 89) in the control group. There were no significant differences between the groups concerning age and sex. CH and CRF were significantly lower in the pathological myopic group than in the control group(P <0.001, P =0.005, respectively). IOPcc and IOPg were significantly higher in the pathological myopic group than in the control group(P <0.001, P =0.009,respectively). There were significantly positive correlations between CH and SE(r =0.565, P <0.001) and between CRF and SE(r =0.364, P =0.007). There were significantly negative correlations between IOPcc and SE(r =-0.432, P =0.001) and between IOPg and SE(r =-0.401,P =0.003).CONCLUSION: The present study displayed that pathological myopia affected biomechanical properties measured by ORA. The results of corneal biomechanicalproperties measured by ORA may need to be appreciated by taking refraction into account. Further, pathological myopia might be related with the increased IOP.

Performance of reliability-based design formats in geotechnical applications

Geotechnical design codes and guidelines are all switching from traditional factor of safety design to modern load and resistance factor design(LRFD)or partial factor design(PFD),in the belief that the latter two bring more flexibility and reliability consistency across various design scenarios,thus produce safe and cost-effective design outcomes.This paper first reviews the LRFD and PFD developed for geotechnical applications.A total of seven methods to calibrate the load and resistance factors are also introduced.The ability of the LRFD and PFD to produce designs with consistent reliability is examined and compared to that of a traditional factor of safety method using two examples of the bearing capacity of strip footings and the global stability of soil nail walls.Results showed that the framework of LRFD offers no apparent advantages over working stress design(WSD)in achieving more consistent reliability for geotechnical structures;the dispersion in design probabilities of failure could be five to seven orders of magnitude difference.The variation will be reduced to three orders if using the PFD.Neither reducing the variability in soil shear strength parameters nor allocating partial resistance factors with respect to soil types would efficiently harmonize the reliability levels when dealing with multiple soil layer conditions.In addition,the uniformity of reliability levels is insensitive to calibrations with or without presetting the load factors.This study provides insights into the LRFD and PFD frameworks currently developed for geotechnical applications.

Effect of fibrin glue on corneal lamellar healing and how it correlates to biomechanical properties: biomechanical wavefront analysis and confocal study

Background:To evaluate,using a rabbit model,the influence of the wound healing process at the flap edge on corneal biomechanics after sutured,glued,and non-augmented microkeratome flaps.Methods:Unilateral 160μm thick laser in situ keratomileusis(LASIK)flaps using a mechanical microkeratome were performed on the corneas of the left eyes of 36 rabbits.Animals were then divided into 3 groups of 12 rabbits each:A:the flaps were glued with human fibrin tissue adhesive(Tisseel);B:the flaps were sutured;and C:the flaps were allowed to heal without the use of sutures or glue(non-augmented).The contralateral eyes served as controls.Reichert ocular response analyzer(ORA)was used to measure corneal hysteresis(CH),corneal resistance factor(CRF),Goldmann-correlated intraocular pressure(IOPg)and cornea-compensated IOP(IOPcc)at 6 weeks and 3 months postoperatively.In vivo confocal microscopy(IVCM)was also used to study the corneal wound healing process in all groups.Results:Both mean CH and mean CRF were significantly higher in sutured and glued groups compared with the non-augmented group at 6 weeks and 3 months postoperatively(P<0.0001).No statistically significant difference in corneal biomechanics was found between controls and groups A and B at any time points.Activated keratocytes were detected at the wound edge and peripheral flap interface in sutured and glued groups.Conclusion:The healing process at the wound edge is critical for optimal corneal integrity.Fibrin glue may serve as a safe and effective substitute to sutures in enhancing the corneal flap edge healing response and in increasing its mechanical strength.

The influence of water disposal method on the property of chemical oil-displacement agent–taking Guan 109-1 area of Dagang oilfield as example

Aiming at the actual demand of Guan 109-1 block in Dagang oilfield,by means of instrumental analysis,chemical analysis,modern physical simulation,viewing polymer viscosity and seepage characteristic as evaluation index,the experimental research on the influence of water disposal method on the property of chemical oil-displacement agent was carried out.Results showed that through adding scaling agent,scale was formed because of the reaction between scaling agent and Ca^2+,Mg^2+ in the flooding water,which could enhance the viscosity of polymer solution.Through comparing the resistance factor and residual resistance factor of polymer solution which was respectively prepared with flooding water,softened water and scale,the resistance factor and residual resistance factor of polymer solution with scale was the largest,that of polymer solution prepared with softened water was second and that of polymer solution prepared with flooding water came last.Furthermore,scaling agent weakened the gelling effect between cross-linking agent Cr^3+ and polymer molecule chains.The earlier the crosslinking agent Cr^3+ was added,the larger the polymer viscosity,resistance factor and residual resistance factor of Cr3t polymer were.