Sharif Digital Repository

This study focuses on the spectrochemical estimation of pH and titratable acidity (TA) of apples of Fuji variety at different stages of ripening. A novel approach is proposed for near-infrared (NIR) spectral analysis using hybrid machine learning methods that combine artificial neural networks (ANN) and metaheuristic algorithms. One hundred twenty samples were collected at three ripening stages and spectral data within two bands of NIR were extracted from each sample to predict the acidity properties. Alternatively, the 4 most effective wavelengths were also selected using a hybrid of ANN and the cultural algorithm. The experimental results prove that the models using spectral bands and the... 

The present paper discusses the possibility of adding recycled polymer fibres to high performance concrete (HPC). Fibres used in this study were recovered from discarded car timing belts. To investigate different characteristics of the concrete specimens several destructive and non-destructive tests, such as compressive strength, modulus of rupture, flexural toughness, ultrasonic velocity and electrical resistance tests were carried out. In addition, slump flow tests were conducted on the fresh concrete. Experimental results from the study showed that the use of low percentages (up to 0.5%) of waste fibres improved the modulus of rupture and flexural toughness. Based on ultrasonic and... 

In this paper, a pulsed THz imaging system in normal geometry is presented experimentally and the effect of placing a pinhole in front of a covered sample on image quality has been investigated too. Also, the improvement of image quality by using ray transfer matrix is described theoretically. Finally, by using contour system the results are evaluated and the accuracy of THz imaging system is tested. © 2016 IEEE  

Crack detection by Piezoelectric Wafer Active Sensors (PWAS) is one of the emerging methods of Non-destructive Evaluation (NDE). These sensors can assess the health state of the structure in far filed through the analyzing the high frequency Lamb wave propagation. As PWAS is the essential part of this method, simulation and modeling of these sensors and their interaction with the host structure, strongly affect the accuracy of results. In this study, unlike the previous works, in which some certain areas of the host structure were considered as a sensor and actuator, the direct simulation of electro-mechanical interaction of the PWAS and the host structure is modeled among modeling the PWAS... 

The overall behavior of rammed earth (RE) as a low embodied energy construction method can be enhanced by using stabilizers. Several studies have been performed on cement and lime stabilized RE. However, studies on other additives, especially the sustainable ones, are limited. In this research, the effect of stabilizers including cement, pozzolan, microsilica, fiberglass, guar gum and phase change material (PCM) was evaluated on the performance of RE mixtures. The mixtures were assessed by considering the durability, shrinkage, thermal conductivity, mechanical properties and their sensitivity to the humidity. Then, the correlations were determined between the mechanical properties and the... 

In this paper, we study the backaction effect on the force exerted upon Rayleigh particles in guided structures. We show that the backaction becomes stronger as the group velocity of the guided modes is decreased, which is not unexpected since the fall of group velocity increases the interaction time between the particle and the electromagnetic field. Interestingly, the sign of the group velocity affects the pushing and pulling nature of the exerted electromagnetic force. We specifically investigate the case of a single mode optical waveguide both in the propagating and evanescent regimes, and show that the backaction enables us to enhance the ratio of the potential depth to the trapping... 

A new beam-to-column joint with high rotational as well as shear deformation capacity was devised. This high rotational 'capacity' is required to fulfill the great 'demand' for rotation arising during earthquakes, severe waves and current loads, etc. Due to its ability to contain damage during an overload, it leaves the connected elements intact. This, together with its replaceability can reduce the cost of post-event repair substantially. Its bending as well as shear performance under "monotonie" loading had already been assessed experimentally (OMAE'02-28864, OMAE'03-37292, OMAE'04-51494 & OMAE'05-6736l) and proved well superior to that of conventional joints. In order to study its... 

Over the last few decades, polymer concrete (PC) has been finding use in quick repairing of concrete structures. However, there have been only few studies on the mechanical behavior of PC. The aim of this study is to evaluate the mechanical behavior of PC using destructive and non-destructive tests (NDT). The mixtures were prepared with three different polymer ratios (10%, 12%, and 14%) and two different coarse aggregate sizes (4.75–9.5 mm and 9.5–19 mm). The samples were subsequently tested under three different temperatures (−15 °C, +25 °C, and +65 °C). The Taguchi method and analysis of variance (ANOVA) were used to optimize PC mixes based on the compressive, splitting-tensile, and... 

Design and optimization of centrifugal compressors, based on main blades configuration of impeller have been vastly discussed in open literature, but less researches have addressed splitters. In this research, the impeller of a commercial turbocharger compressor is investigated. Here, profiles of main blades are not changed while the effect of changing the configuration of splitters is studied. An optimization study is performed to find the best configuration using genetic algorithm over a complete operating curve of the compressor. CFD codes with experimental support are used to predict the compressor performance. Quantumetric tests beside destructive analysis of two impellers are... 

The present study aims to estimate nitrogen (N) content in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) plant leaves using optimal hyperspectral imaging data by means of computational intelligence [artificial neural networks and the differential evolution algorithm (ANN-DE), partial least squares regression (PLSR), and convolutional neural network (CNN) regression] to detect potential plant stress to nutrients at early stages. First, pots containing control and treated tomato plants were prepared; three treatments (categories or classes) consisted in the application of an overdose of 30%, 60%, and 90% nitrogen fertilizer, called N-30%, N-60%, N-90%, respectively. Tomato plant leaves were then randomly... 

After a significant earthquake, the updated status of the structural elements is usually determined based on a qualitative visual inspection. Although visual inspection provides a prompt assessment of the damaged elements, the output of this subjective method is influenced by the experience and decision of a trained inspector, which may vary from case to case. In this study, an innovative machine learning-based procedure is developed to automate damage state identification of non-ductile reinforced concrete moment frames (RCMFs) utilizing visual indices of crack patterns of the concrete surface. An extensive database including 264 surface crack patterns is constructed corresponding to 61... 

One of the most essential and costly stages in Concrete Face Rockfill Dams (CFRD) construction is to implement the concrete at the upstream face of the dam without joints. As the face concrete is considered as the most integral part to prevent water penetration in CFRDs, it's quality control is of paramount importance. One of the conventional approaches for quality control of the concrete which is used in CFRD is the compressive strength of laboratory samples. The comparison of laboratory and in situ measurements provides information about the accuracy of the obtained results. This research investigates the correlation of concrete compressive strength determined by using different methods in... 

An exact analysis based on the wave function expansion is carried out to study the scattering of a plane harmonic acoustic wave incident at an arbitrary angle upon an arbitrarily thick helically filament-wound (anisotropic) cylindrical shell submerged in and filled with compressible ideal fluids. Using the laminated approximation method, a modal state equation with variable coefficients is set up in terms of appropriate displacement and stress functions and their cylindrical harmonics to present an analytical solution based on the three-dimensional exact equations of anisotropic elasticity. Taylor's expansion theorem is then employed to obtain the solution to the modal state equation,... 

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of applying low replacement ratios (0.75% and 1.50% of the binder weight) of nano-SiO2 particles with different specific surface areas (200 and 380 m2/g) on the properties of high-performance concrete (HPC). Mechanical (compressive and splitting tensile strengths), electrical resistivity, non-destructive (ultrasonic pulse velocity), and microstructural (mercury intrusion porosimetry, X-ray diffraction, and scanning electron microscopy) tests were conducted to investigate the macroscopic and microscopic effects of nano-SiO2 particles on HPC characteristics. The results indicated that the performance of nano-SiO2 particles significantly... 

A three-phase dual active bridge (DAB) converter is designed and constructed as the DC/DC stage of a 50 kW fast charger station. Recently introduced 300A SiC power modules and drivers are utilized in the converter to obtain a high efficiency. Each module has two interconnected switches with anti-parallel diodes resembling a converter leg. It is observed that the driver halts the module operation as a result of protective actions such as over-current, gate under-voltage, or gate overvoltage. In such case the module operates as a leg with two diodes until an external hardware signal resets the driver. The aim of this paper is to provide analysis, simulation and experiments for a three-phase... 

Determining the shape, area, volume, and direction of flaws using ultrasonic imaging of metallic pieces, is a method estimating the severity of their defects. Different methods are used to process ultrasound images. Among these methods are spectral analyses, statistical, mathematical and intelligent methods. Within each of these, there are some advantages as well as limitations. Prony algorithm, which has been used as a parametric method for extracting exponential components of a signal, has several applications in signal modeling, system identification and classification. In this paper, after simulating pieces of oil pipeline, digital Wavelet transform has been used to reduce the noise of... 

An efficient Non-Destructive Evaluation algorithm has been developed in order to extract the required information for pattern recognition of defects in the conductive samples. Using high-Tc gradiometer RF-SQUIDs in unshielded environments and incorporating an automated two dimensional non-magnetic scanning robot, samples with different intentional defects have been tested. We have used a developed noise cancellation approach for the improvement of the effectiveness of the used inverse-problem technique. In this approach we have used a well examined Finite Element Method (FEM) to apply a noise reduction filtering on the obtained raw magnetic image data before incorporating the signal... 

Holding yokes made of investment cast 17-4PH stainless steel were too soft (below 20. HRC). Optical microscopy of the parts showed that there is a high fraction of retained austenite after oil quench due to high amount of molybdenum found in parts as an impurity. Subzero treatment in liquid nitrogen after solution heat treating was used to convert retained austenite to martensite but parts became too brittle and fractured during post-heat treating machining. Double and triple aging at 538 °C (1000 °F) after subzero cooling was done on parts. Detailed fractography and tensile testing along with optical microscopy (OM) investigation proved that repeated aging at 538 °C (1000 °F) led to lower...