On Physical and Mechanical Behavior of Natural Marine Intermediate Deposits

Coastal structures may be built on natural sedimentary intermediate grounds, which mainly consist of silty soils and fine sandy soils. In this study, extensive field and laboratory tests were performed on the natural marine intermediate deposits to demonstrate the difference in behavior between natural marine clayey soils and natural marine intermediate deposits. The natural intermediate deposits have almost the same ratios of natural water content to liquid limit as those of the soft natural marine clays, but the former have much higher in-situ strength and sensitivity than the latter. The research results indicate that grain size distributions of soils affect significantly tip resistance obtained in field cone penetration tests. The mechanical parameters of natural marine intermediate deposits are also significantly affected by sample disturbance due to their high sensitivity and relatively large permeability. Unconfined compression shear tests largely underestimate the strength of natural marine intermediate soils. The triaxial consolidated compression shear tests with simulated in-situ confined pressure give results much better than those of uncomfined compression shear tests.

A Coastal Ocean Model of Semi-Implicit Finite Volume Unstructured Grid

A two-dimensional coastal ocean model based on unstructured C-grid is built, in which the momentum equation is discretized on the faces of each cell, and the continuity equation is discretized on the cell. The model is discretized by semi-implicit finite volume method, in that the free surface is semi-implicit and the bottom friction is implicit, thereby removing stability limitations associated with the surface gravity wave and friction. The remaining terms in the momentum equations are discretized explicitly by integral finite volume method and second-order Adams-Bashforth method. Tidal flow in the polar quadrant with known analytic solution is employed to test the proposed model. Finally, the performance of the present model to simulate tidal flow in a geometrically complex domain is examined by simulation of tidal currents in the Pearl River Estuary.

Equivalent bending stiffness of simply supported preflex beam bridge with variable cross-section

In order to understand mechanical characters and find out a calculating method for preflex beams used in particular bridge engineering projects, two types of simply supported preflex beams with variable crosssection, preflex beam with alterative web depth and preflex beam with aherative steel flange thickness, are dis- cussed on how to achieve the equivalent moment of inertia and Young＇ s modulus. Additionally, methods of cal- culating the equivalent bending stiffness and post-cracking deflection are proposed. Results of the experiments on 6 beams agree well with the theoretical analysis, which proves the correctness of the proposed formulas.

Derivation of Parametric Tropical Cyclone Models for Storm Surge Modeling

In this paper, the parametric tropical cyclone models for storm surge modeling are further developed. Instead of tangential wind speed via cyclostrophic balance and radial wind speed using a simple formulation of defection angle, the analyrical expressions of tangential and radial wind speed distribution are derived from the governing momentum equations based on the general symmetric pressure distribution of Holland and Fujita. The radius of the maximum wind is estimated by tropical cyclone wind structure which is characterized by the radial extent of special wind speed. The shape parameter in the pressure model is estimated by the data of several tropical cyclones that occurred in the East China Sea. Finally, the Fred cyclone （typhoon 199417） is calculated, and comparisons of the measured and calculated air pressures and wind speed are presented.

Rheological Behavior of Basalt Fiber Reinforced Asphalt Mastic

The characters of basalt fiber are analyzed and compared with commonly used fibers. The rheological behaviors of the basalt fiber reinforced asphalt mastic are investigated by the dynamic shear rheological tests and the repeated creep tests. The results show that basalt fiber has excellent reinforced performances, such as high asphalt absorption ratio, low water absorption ratio, high tensile strength, high elastic modulus and high temperature stability. The rutting factor of the fiber reinforced asphalt mastic is higher than the plain asphalt mastic and the reinforced effects are more remarkable under high temperature. The rheological performances of the asphalt mastic demonstrate a good linear relationship between different temperature and loading frequency. The creep stiffness modulus of the asphalt mastic at different loading time can be expressed by power function. Improved Burgers model is used to represent the rheological behaviors of the asphalt mastic with basalt fiber and the model parameters are estimated.

Evolution of aggregate surface texture due to tyre-polishing

Three kinds of aggregates were polished by genuine pneumatic rubber tyres.The initial states of surface texture and dynamic friction coefficient were measured and their developments in polishing process were monitored.The characterizations of height distribution and power spectral density of aggregate surface texture were estimated.The changes of micro-texture were also investigated based on a fractal filtering method with sound theoretical backgrounds of rubber friction on rough surfaces.Global height reduction and differential removal of mineral component are observed in polishing process.It is concluded that the tyre-polishing action plays the critical roles in the micro-scale texture,and the evolution of friction of aggregate is governed by the micro-texture changes due to the differential removal of mineral component.

Experimental Study of RC Beams Strengthened with CFRP Sheets Under Sustaining Loads

Seven reinforced concrete （ RC ） beams strengthened in flexure using carbon fiber reinforced polymer （CFRP） sheets subjected to different sustaining loads were tested. The effects of initial load and load history on the ultimate strength of strengthened RC beams were examined by externally bonded CFRP sheets. The main experimental parameters included different levels of sustaining load at the time of strengthening, and load history. Experimental results show that sustaining load levels at the time of strengthening have important influences on the ultimate strength of strengthened RC beams. If the initial load is the same, the ultimate strength of RC beams strengthened with CFRP sheets is almost the same regardless of load history at the time of strengthening.

Sensitivity analysis method for increasing the passenger demands of parking and riding

Focused on finding out the relationship between passenger demands of P&R and its influencing factors, a nested-logit mode choice model was developed based on the characteristic of different modes and transfer rules. The utility functions were given respectively according to the characteristic of each alternative. Passenger demands of different modes between O-D pairs were obtained by making use of the binary logit model. Then an equilibrium model for different modes was proposed. Under this condition, the approximate relationship between passenger demands of different modes and their characteristic indexes was modeled by the sensitivity analysis method. Shift volume among different modes was achieved by utilizing this model when their characteristic indexes were changed. A case study indicates that the model and algorithm presented in this paper are effective.

A speed-flow relationship model of highway traffic flow

In the view that the generally used speed-flow relationship model is insufficient in the traffic analysis under over-saturated conditions, this paper first establishes the theoretical models of speed flow relationship for each highway class based upon a large number of traffic data collected from the field. Then by analyzing the traffic flow dissipation mechanism under peak hour over-saturated traffic conditions, the speed flow relationship model structures for each highway class are reviewed under different traffic load conditions. Through curve-fitting of large numbers of observed data, functional equations of general speed-flow relationship models for each highway class under any traffic load conditions are established. The practical model parameters for each highway class under different design speeds are also put forward. This model is successful in solving the speed-forecasting problem of the traffic flow under peak hour over-saturated conditions. This provides the theoretical bases for the development of projects related to highway network planning, economic analysis, etc.

Approximate Formulae for Calculating the Deflection on the Surface of Flexible Pavement

Approximate formulae for calculating the deflection on the surface of flexible pavement are presented by regression analysis.A number of results calculated by the approximate formulae show good accuracy in comparison with those by elastic multilayer theory.

Integrated Application of Statistical Method Used in Predicting the Lanes＇ Traffic Volume of Non-detector Intersections

Based on the relationships between the lanes of signal-controlled intersections, we utilize the integration method of cluster analysis and stepwise regression and the integration method of cluster analysis and the principal component analysis method to predict the lanes＇ traffic volume of non-detector isolated controlled intersections. The results are examined by the real-time lanes＇ traffic volume data of the road network of Nanjing City. The problem of the lanes＇ traffic volume prediction of non-detector isolated signal-controlled intersections was resolved which can be widely used in urban traffic flow guidance and urban traffic control in cities.

Design and validation of wireless strain test system for bridge based on the resistance strain sensor

In order to achieve an access to strain sensor data with wireless transmission in bridge engineering structure testing, a wireless strain test system is presented based on the resistance strain sensor of networks. The wireless bridge strain test system composed of master station and substation adopts the wireless method to realize the high accuracy data acquisition between the master station and the substation under a reliable communication protocol. The system has been tested in contrast with the present strain apparatus. Results show that the wireless system is high-reliable, and has many characteristics such as high efficiency, good precision, high stability with low cost, and good flexibility, without using the present communication network.

A Skew Gradient-Based Newton Method for Traffic Assignment with Side Constraints

In this paper we describe how the capacitated user equilibrium can be approximated by sequential uncapacitated models by the use of a penalty function. The efficiency of the method is governed by the algorithmic performance of the uncapacitated model. A skew gradient-based Newton method is used to solve the capacitated user equilibrium within the feasible region of path flows. In the path-flow region, the straight gradient is defined as the derivative of the objective function with respect to the flow of the corresponding path, while the skew gradient is defined for each particular origin destination pair and is characterized by the average cost of all the paths for that pair. Instead of movement of flow toward the shortest path, in the equilibration procedure path flows below the average decrease and path flows above the average increase. The characteristics of the Newton method with the column generation procedure are combined to achieve the efficient determination of the equilibrium point. Numerical experiments demonstrate the excellent performance of the proposed method and highlight its potential applications.