Sharif Digital Repository

In this paper, the influence of powder-tool friction on the mechanical properties of the final product is investigated in pressing metal powders. A computational algorithm is presented for simulation of frictional contact in the compaction process of powder. The large deformation finite element (FE) formulation is characterized by the use of penalty approach in which a plasticity theory of friction is incorporated to simulate sliding resistance at the powder-tool interface. The constitutive relations for friction are derived from a Coulomb friction law. A double-surface cap plasticity model is employed together with the nonlinear contact friction behavior in numerical simulation of powder... 

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to present a shape optimization technique for powder forming processes based on the genetic algorithm approach. The genetic algorithm is employed to optimize the geometry of component based on a fixed-length vector of design variables representing the changes in nodal coordinates. The technique is used to obtain the desired optimal compacted component by changing the boundaries of component and verifying the prescribed constraints. Design/methodology/approach - The numerical modeling of powder compaction simulation is applied based on a large deformation formulation, powder plasticity behavior, and frictional contact algorithm. A Lagrangian finite... 

In this paper, the computational aspects of large deformation frictional contact are presented in powder forming processes. The influence of powder-tool friction on the mechanical properties of the final product is investigated in pressing metal powders. A general formulation of continuum model is developed for frictional contact and the computational algorithm is presented for analyzing the phenomena. It is particularly concerned with the numerical modeling of frictional contact between a rigid tool and a deformable material. The finite element approach adopted is characterized by the use of penalty approach in which a plasticity theory of friction is incorporated to simulate sliding... 

A new shear strengthening method involving post-tensioning of the critical shear region of reinforced concrete beams is investigated. Thirty-one experiments were carried out using 24 specimens. Theoretical load-deflection relations are obtained from moment-curvature analysis using fiber cross sections and taking into consideration the effects of different concrete confinements along the beam length. A theoretical shear strength model that includes three shear resisting components in the critical shear region of the strengthened beams is provided. Experimental results from beams with and without shear strengthening are compared with calculated load-deflection relations and predicted shear... 

A damage plastic constitutive model for metals is proposed in this paper. An anisotropic damage tensor and a damage surface are adopted to describe the degradation of the mechanical properties of metals. The model is developed within the thermodynamic framework and creates an anisotropic damage plastic model with the ability to describe the plastic and damage behavior of iron based materials. According to the principle of strain energy equivalence between the undamaged and damaged materials, the linear elastic constitutive equations for the damaged material expressed a stiffness tensor in the damaged configuration. The damaged material is modeled using the constitutive laws of the undamaged... 

This paper deals with the in-plane dynamics of Horizontally Curved Beams (HCBs) supported by a visco-elastic foundation under the excitation induced by a moving mass. What has been included as worthy of detailed exposition is the inevitable contribution of the inertial actions of the mass object into the problem formulation. By taking into account the effect of Coriolis acceleration, centrifugal force and rotary inertia, the governing coupled non-linear differential equations of equilibrium for a simply supported HCB are derived. In the proposed solution, a new system of linear ordinary differential equations is distilled from the governing differential equations of motion, which can be... 

The aim of this paper is to study the influence of the column-to-beam strength ratio on the seismic strengthening of a column with a Fiber-Reinforced Plastic (FRP) wrapping system. FRP wrapped Reinforced Concrete (RC) columns are analyzed to obtain moment-curvature curves using FRP confined concrete characteristics. A pushover analysis of a 2D model was performed on one and three-story moment-resisting frames, with different column-to-beam strength ratios. The results indicate that FRP strengthening is more efficient in frames with a low ratio of column-to-beam strength, due to the type of lateral failure mechanism of the frame. Also, high values of the column-to-beam strength ratio can be... 

This paper presents the behavior of high-strength lightweight concrete columns confined with small size diameter hoop reinforcement. The concrete had a strength of up to 87.2 MPa (12,500 psi). The experimental program consisted of axial load tests on eight column specimens. The cross-sectional shape of the column specimens was elliptical, with dimensions of 152 × 229 mm (6 × 9 in.) and height of 762 mm (30 in.). The only longitudinal reinforcements used were four 4.52 mm (0.178 in.) diameter wires that were tack-welded to the lateral reinforcement to maintain the desired configuration of the lateral reinforcement. The influencing parameters included concrete strength and amount and spacing... 

The compressive strength of mass concrete in dams is obtained from laboratory experiments of various cylindrical specimens with diameters of 150, 250, and 300 mm, and heights of 300, 500, and 450 mm, respectively. These specimens with 37.5, 75, and 150 mm maximum size of aggregate were investigated. The 7- and 90-day compressive strength of concrete was found to be between 20 and 58 MPa depending on the size of the specimens. The results reveal the existence of a significant size effect. Based on test results, relationships between the strength of mass concrete specimens and their size and shape are developed. Finally, results and a discussion are presented regarding compressive strength... 

In the last decades, noticeable experimental and analytical investigations have been carried out on cast-in-place Reinforced Concrete column to Steel beam (RCS) connections, however rarely have been conducted on the precast RCS. In this paper, test results of four half-scale interior precast RCS connections with variable joint configurations are presented. The steel beams were connected to the precast column, using three specimens with extended face bearing plates and one with extended cover plates, embedded in the connection zone. The flanges of beams were strengthened with respect to scaled section, in order to increase the load transfer to the joint. All samples were loaded under reversed... 

This paper presents a simplified Multi-Degree-Of-Freedom (MDOF) model through modification of fish-bone model (or generic frame). Modified Fish-Bone (MFB) model is developed through three enhancements: (i) the moment of inertia for half-beams is reduced slightly to modify the assumption of equal rotation at each story joints, (ii) a number of truss elements are inserted to the fish-bone model to simulate flexural deformation of moment frames due to axial elongation and contraction of columns, and (iii) moment-rotation relationship of representative rotational springs is supposed to be bilinear instead of trilinear in order to consider simultaneous yielding at both ends of the beam in moment... 

This article presents an investigation of multi-mode effect of tall buildings subjected to near-field pulse-like ground motions. Multi-story buildings are modeled as an equivalent continuum structure consisting of a combination of a flexural cantilever beam and a shear cantilever beam. The simplified model is subjected to near-field ground motions and the representative simplified pulses. The maximum interstory drift spectra and its location along the height are calculated on the basis of modal summation approach. So, the method is largely based upon the assumption of linearity of the system. The effects of shear to flexural deformation ratio, structural to input pulse period ratio, and the... 

Influence of length and volumetric percentage of steel fibres on energy absorption of concrete slabs with various concrete strengths is investigated by testing 28 small steel fibre reinforced concrete (SFRC) slabs under flexure. Variables included; fibre length, volumetric percentage of fibres and concrete strength. Test results indicate that generally longer fibres and higher fibre content provide higher energy absorption. The results are compared with a theoretical prediction based on random distribution of fibres. The theoretical method resulted in higher energy absorption than that obtained in experiment. A design method according to allowable deflection is proposed for SFRC slabs within... 

In this study, test results of four precast concrete beam-column connections and one monolithic concrete connection are presented. The tests constituted the second phase of an experimental program on a 2/5-scale model precast connection. The objective of the test program was to design a simple moment-resisting precast connection for regions of high seismicity. The connection transfers bending moment by a combination of lap-splicing and end anchorage of bars. The end portions of precast beams sit on the column bearing area at the beginning of subassemblage construction. The variables examined were the level of axial load on column, spacing of beam stirrups in the connection length region,... 

This paper discusses the sensitivity of softening reinforced concrete frame structures to the changes in input ground motion and investigates the possibility of localizations for this type of structure in static and dynamic analysis. A finite element model is used in which the sections resisting force are calculated using a proposed differential hysteretic model. This model is especially developed for modelling softening behaviour under cyclic loading. To obtain parameters of the differential model the moment-curvature of each section is evaluated using a microplane constitutive law for concrete and bi-linear elasto-plastic law for reinforcements. The capability of the procedure is verified... 

Different types of gas reservoir such as Liquid Natural Gas (LNG) are among the strategic infrastructures, and have great importance for any government or their private owners. To keep the tank and its contents safe during earthquakes especially if the contents are of hazardous or flammable materials; using seismic protection systems such as base isolator can be considered as an effective solution. However, the major deficiency of this system can be the large deformation in the isolation level which may lead to the failure of bearing system. In this paper, as a solution, the efficacy of an optimally designed combined vibration control system, the combined laminated rubber isolator and... 

The purpose of this investigation is to investigate the axial and lateral behavior of low strength concrete confined by glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) wraps. A total of 48 cylindrical samples having 150 mm diameter and 300 mm height were strengthened and examined. The mix designs were provided with four different target strength (5, 10, 15, and 20 MPa). The axial and lateral strain were studied to evaluate the axial strain relation and the lateral strain for axial compression. The results of this investigation present a comparison between the nine models previously reported for normal strength concrete and the lesser-known context of low strength concrete confined by fiber reinforced... 

In this study, the effect of agglomeration and non-uniform dispersion of silica particles on the mechanical and microstructural properties of cement paste incorporating silica fume and nanosilica (NS) with various specific surface areas (SSA) is experimentally investigated. The SSA and replacement percent of silica particles were considered as test variables and four series of mixes were made including one set of mixes for silica fume with a SSA of 20 m2/g and three sets of mixes for three different types of NS with SSA equal to 90, 200 and 380 m2/g. In each series of mix designs three different cement replacement percents of 1.5%, 3% and 5% were applied. The results indicate that as the SSA... 

Fracture process of fiber-reinforced concrete notched beams is investigated here. Polypropylene macrosynthetic fibers are utilized for reinforcing concrete specimens, and a high-strength mix design is used to produce strong bonds between the embossed polypropylene fibers and the cementitious matrix of beams. Considering different locations for the notch, this study focuses on bridging mechanism under different conditions using both experimental and numerical approaches. First mode of fracture occurs due to opening of crack faces. This mode of failure is simulated by imposing symmetric boundary conditions on middle-notched beams. Inducing the notch with an offset from the middle, mixed-mode... 

Dynamic response of large concrete tower structures with passive or active damping is important in terms of performance under dynamic loads. Structural instability mostly arises as a result of losing the energy capacity in the system, which forces the system to act as a mechanism. The purpose of this paper is to present three different finite element models to investigate the linear and nonlinear response of the Tehran telecommunication tower. The tower is ranked the fourth tallest structure in the world and has been under construction since 1997. Using a mathematical model, an efficient method is used to take into account the cracking and crushing of the reinforced concrete material as well...