Sharif Digital Repository

The Endurance Time (ET) method is a time history-based dynamic analysis procedure which uses special intensifying acceleration functions for evaluation of the seismic response of structures. One of the potential applications of the ET method is in the three-dimensional analysis of buildings under multidirectional excitations. In this paper, considering horizontal components of excitation, an algorithm for the multi-component analysis of building structures by the ET method is proposed, and results of the ET method for various steel moment frames with 1 to 7 stories are compared with results from time history analysis with real earthquakes. Results show that based on recommendations of... 

In this paper, a semi-supervised graph-based method for estimating 3D body pose from a sequence of silhouettes, is presented. The performance of graph-based methods is highly dependent on the quality of the constructed graph. In the case of the human pose estimation problem, the missing depth information from silhouettes intensifies the occurrence of shortcut edges within the graph. To identify and remove these shortcut edges, we measure the similarity of each pair of connected vertices through the use of sliding temporal windows. Furthermore, by exploiting the relationships between labeled and unlabeled data, the proposed method can estimate the 3D body poses, with a small set of labeled... 

Bismuth and its alloys provide a paradigm to realize three dimensional materials whose low-energy effective theory is given by Dirac equation in 3+1 dimensions. We study the quantum transport properties of three dimensional Dirac materials within the framework of Landauer-Büttiker formalism. Charge carriers in normal metal satisfying the Schrödinger equation, can be split into four-component with appropriate matching conditions at the boundary with the three dimensional Dirac material (3DDM). We calculate the conductance and the Fano factor of an interface separating 3DDM from a normal metal, as well as the conductance through a slab of 3DDM. Under certain circumstances the 3DDM appears... 

Stay and guide vanes (distributor) are essential parts of a turbine. They are used to control the flow rate and to appropriately transfer the flow momentum to the runner. In this work, flow through the distributor is analyzed. For various Boundary Conditions (BC) and different configurations, threedimensional flows in the distributor of a Francis turbine are evaluated and compared with each other. The numerical simulations were carried out using Fluent software and the results were validated with a GAMM Francis turbine, where the geometry and detailed best efficiency measurements were publically available. In these simulations, the flow was assumed to be steady and the effect of turbulence... 

A semi-analytical three-dimensional elasticity solution for rotating functionally graded disks for both of hollow and solid disks is presented. The aim is to generalize an available two-dimensional plane-stress solution to a three-dimensional one. Although for the thin disks problems the two-dimensional solution provides appropriate results, for the thick disks, a three-dimensional elasticity solution should be considered to avoid poor results. It is shown that although the plane-stress solution satisfies all the governing three-dimensional equations of motion and boundary conditions, it fails to give a compatible three-dimensional strain field. A valid three-dimensional solution has been... 

This paper presents a new point-to-face contact algorithm for contacts between two polyhedrons with planar boundaries. A new discrete numerical method called three-dimensional discontinuous deformation analysis (3-D DDA) is used and formulations of normal contact submatrices based on the proposed algorithm are derived. The presented algorithm is a simple and efficient method and it can be easily coded into a computer program. This approach does not need to use an iterative algorithm in each time step to obtain the contact plane, unlike the ‘Common-Plane’ method applied in the existing 3-D DDA. In the present 3-D DDA method, block contact constraints are enforced using the penalty method.... 

Existing sight distance models are applicable only to two-dimensional (2-D) separate horizontal and vertical alignments or simple elements of these separate alignments (vertical curve, horizontal curve). A new model is presented for determining the available sight distance on 3-D combined horizontal and vertical alignments. The model is based on the curved parametric elements that have been used in the finite element method. The elements presented are rectangular (4-node, 6-node, and 8-node elements) and triangular. These elements are used to represent various features of the highway surface and sight obstructions, including tangents (grades), horizontal curves, vertical curves, traveled... 

In this study, a novel pseudo-three-dimensional model is developed to find out both fluid and solid temperature distributions in multi-stream plate fin heat exchangers. In this simulation algorithm, heat exchangers can be in either parallel flow or cross flow configuration. The model considerations include: heat leakage of cap plates and side plates, conduction throughout the solid matrix of the heat exchanger, variable physical properties, and inlet mass flow rate maldistribution. Using the computational code, the effects of different factors such as: the number of layers, mass flow variation, inlet mass flow rate maldistribution, and stacking pattern on the thermal performance of the heat... 

The flow through an axisymmetric supersonic mixed-compression air inlet has been simulated numerically to investigate the effects and the necessity of the three-dimensional (3D) modeling in comparison with the axisymmetric one. For this purpose, a supersonic inlet has been simulated numerically via axisymmetric and 3D CFD solvers, using the steady state Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations along with the SST k-ω turbulence model, for a free-stream Mach number of 2.0 and at zero degrees angle of attack. The grid for the 3D cases was a 14.4-degree sector, instead of a 360-degree domain one, with rotational periodic boundary condition for the side boundaries. The results show that both... 

This article proposes modelling, simulation and applied wrench workspace analysis of a 3D cable based robots which are consist of six cables are studies. After modelling, the kinds of workspace are defined then an available static combined workspace for different geometric structures of fixed and moving platform is obtained. This workspace is defined as the situations of reference point of the moving platform (center of mass) which under external forces such as weight and with ignorance of inertial effects, the end effector should be in static equilibrium under conditions that length of all cables must not be exceeded from the maximum value and all of cables must be at tension (they must... 

In this paper some expressions for stresses conjugate to two-point deformation tensors are derived. These expressions are offered in both the component and basis-free forms. Although, the material time rate of a two-point deformation tensor is not an objective quantity, the stress tensor conjugate to it may be determined. The component-form expressions are obtained by using the notion of conjugacy together with the objectivity of the stress power. The component-form expressions are then extended to a unified basis-free form, using a theorem established for this purpose. The specific results are provided for all different cases of distinct and coalescent principal stretches in a... 

Flows generated by density differences are called gravity or density currents which are generic features of many environmental flows. These currents are classified as the conservative and non-conservative flows whether the buoyancy flux is conserved or changed respectively. In this paper, a low Reynolds k-ε turbulence model is used to simulate three dimensional density and turbidity currents. Also, a series of experiments were conducted in a straight channel to study the characteristics of the non-conservative density current. In experiments, Kaolin was used as the suspended material. Comparisons are made between conservative and non-conservative's height, concentration and velocity profiles... 

Density current is a dense fluid, which is continuously released from a source and spreads down a sloping surface inside a lighter, motionless fluid. A low-Reynolds number k-ε model (Launder and Sharma, 1974) has been used to simulate the behavior of 3-D density currents. Density current with a uniform velocity and concentration enters the channel via a sluice gate into a lighter ambient fluid and moves forward down-slope. The model has been verified with the experimental data sets. Although the k-ε Launder and Sharma model is applied here to a conservative density current, it seems the analysis is valid in general for turbidity current laden with fine particles. Copyright © 2006 by ASME  

Improved methods of constructing wells and producing wells are one of the keys to increasing field profitability. In the areas of well construction and well productivity optimization, many of the problems encountered are related to the geomechanics of the reservoir and the overlying layers; these problems include well-bore stability, sand production and hydraulic fracturing. Hydraulic fracturing is a complicated phenomenon in which deformation of the porous medium and fluid leak-off to the surrounding area take place simultaneously. Their interaction, therefore, must not be overlooked. In the past, some experimental researchers performed laboratory investigations on the phenomenon of... 

The connectivity of high conductivity pathways in geological formations depend on the spatial distribution of geological heterogeneities that may appear on various length scales. Appropriate modeling of this is crucial within in hydrology and petroleum systems. The approach taken in this study is to use percolation theory to quantify the connectivity, hydraulic conductivity, and breakthrough time behavior between an injector and a producer within such systems. In particular, a three-dimensional overlapping sandbody model is considered which assumes that the geological formation can be split into either conductive flow units (i. e., good sands) or non-conductive units (i. e., poor sands). The... 

In this paper, considering horizontal components of seismic excitation, an algorithm for the nonlinear multi-component analysis of building structures by the Endurance Time (ET) method is proposed, and results of the ET method for various steel moment frames with one to seven stories are verified by comparing with the results from Nonlinear Time History Analysis with use of two different sets of ground motions. In addition, several parameters such as eccentricities and irregularities in structure, rotational and lateral stiffness, effect of hysteresis type and ductility have been considered for sensitivity analysis on results, obtained by ET method. Results show that on the basis of...