Sharif Digital Repository

A series of experimental and numerical investigations on two tandem cylinders wake have been studied. The velocity profile and turbulence intensity have been acquired by a single one dimensional Hot Wire anemometer. The two cylinders were mounted in a tandem manner in the horizontal mid plane of the working section. The effect of the upstream cylinder diameter, Reynolds number and the distance between the cylinders on the wake profile and turbulence intensity on the downstream cylinder was investigated, while the Reynolds number ranged between1.5× (10)∧4 ∼ 3×(10)∧4. The upstream cylinder diameter (d) was 10, 20 and 25 mm, while the downstream cylinder diameter (D) was 25 mm, corresponding to... 

In this paper, we focus on a cognitive network scenario, comprised of a WLAN overlaid on a network with time-scheduled primary users. WiMAX is an example of such primary networks. For time-scheduled primary users simple On-Off traffic model with exponential durations is not valid anymore. In this scenario, the cognitive nodes (CNs) hear downlink map (DL-MAP) and thus, know the frequency and time locations of all allocated slots at each frame. Then, cognitive nodes contend with each other in order to transmit their fixed size packets based on IEEE 802.11 MAC protocol. Since the number of empty slots at each frame is variable each packet transmission in cognitive network prolongs a random... 

A simple Dynamic-based Pushover analysis for Plan Asymmetric buildings (DPPA) is proposed with the aim of properly considering the effects of torsional behavior as well as the higher modes in the applied lateral load pattern. According to the proposed method, the peak story drifts obtained from the response spectrum analysis (RSA) can be resolved into their translational and rotational components, and the related equivalent static lateral forces and torsional moments can be calculated. Consequently, for accurate estimation of the maximum drift demands of plan-asymmetric buildings, it is proposed that the drift responses obtained from the RSA for the stiff and flexible edges of the building... 

This paper aims to propose a high-speed and accurate fully-automated method to detect COVID-19 from the patient's chest CT scan images. We introduce a new dataset that contains 48,260 CT scan images from 282 normal persons and 15,589 images from 95 patients with COVID-19 infections. At the first stage, this system runs our proposed image processing algorithm that analyzes the view of the lung to discard those CT images that inside the lung is not properly visible in them. This action helps to reduce the processing time and false detections. At the next stage, we introduce a novel architecture for improving the classification accuracy of convolutional networks on images containing small... 

In this paper, a new sensitivity-based model updating method is presented based on the changes of principal components (PCs) of frequency response function (FRF). Structural damage estimation, identification of damage location and severity, is conducted by an innovative sensitivity relation. The sensitivity relation is derived by incorporating PC analysis (PCA) data obtained from the incomplete measured structural responses in a mathematical formulation and is then solved by the least square method. In order to demonstrate the performance of the proposed method, it is applied to a truss and a frame model. The results prove the ability of the method as a robust damage detection algorithm in... 

In order to evaluate the seismic behavior of confined masonry buildings, based on Iranian seismic code design, a single storey full-scale unreinforced confined brick masonry building has been constructed on the shaking table facility at the Earthquake Engineering Research Center (EERC) of Sharif University of Technology. The 4 by 4 meter model consists of four brick masonry walls confined with reinforced mortar tie-columns and steel bond beams, with a traditional jack-arch roof system. Three of the wall panels contained openings of different sizes and geometries. The model was subjected to the scaled earthquake records of Bam, Tabas and El Centro, as well as a harmonic acceleration with... 

The effect of condensate blockage on the pressure drop near the well bore has been studied. Two types of single well simulations have been conducted and pressure drop due to condensate blockage has been quantified based on variation of gas relative permeabilities in near well bore area. The relationship of condensate banking pressure drop, gas rate and reservoir quality has been presented. It is shown that for a poor reservoir quality, condensate blockage can increase the pressure drop up to 200% of the pressure drop in the tubing  

In this paper, we analyze the saturation throughput of a cognitive WLAN overlaid on a primary OFDMA TDD network (e.g., LTE or WiMAX). In this scenario, after the contention among the secondary nodes, the winner node transmits its data packet in the empty resource blocks (RBs) of downlink and uplink subframes of the primary network. Regarding the OFDMA structure as well as time-scheduled resources in the primary network, the time duration of opportunities for the secondary network does not follow simple exponential on-off pattern. To model the dynamic behavior of opportunities for secondary nodes as well as contentions to exploit the opportunities, we propose an analytical model comprised of... 

In this paper, we have trained several deep convolutional networks with introduced training techniques for classifying X-ray images into three classes: normal, pneumonia, and COVID-19, based on two open-source datasets. Our data contains 180 X-ray images that belong to persons infected with COVID-19, and we attempted to apply methods to achieve the best possible results. In this research, we introduce some training techniques that help the network learn better when we have an unbalanced dataset (fewer cases of COVID-19 along with more cases from other classes). We also propose a neural network that is a concatenation of the Xception and ResNet50V2 networks. This network achieved the best... 

Seven half-scale reinforced concrete (RC) columns with supporting beam were experimentally studied under combined axial and lateral cyclic loading. The specimens were categorized in two groups based on reinforcement ratios. Three specimens were strengthened with carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) and glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) sheets. Other specimens were strengthened using a high strength mortar reinforced with textile mesh (textile reinforced concrete (TRC)). Strengthening of specimens were carried out using a vertical layer and a horizontal layer of FRP sheet or two vertical and two horizontal layers of textile meshes for TRC specimens. Since the weight of each layer of... 

The optimal distribution of fluid viscous dampers (FVD) in controlling the seismic response of eccentric, single-storey, moment resisting concrete structures is investigated using the previously defined center of damping constant (CDC). For this purpose, a number of structural models with different one-way stiffness and strength eccentricities are considered. Extensive nonlinear time history analyses are carried out for various arrangements of FVDs. It is shown that the arrangement of FVDs for controlling the torsional behavior due to asymmetry in the concrete structures is very dependent on the intensity of the peak ground acceleration (PGA) and the extent of the structural stiffness and... 

The governing differential equation of motion for an undamped thin rectangular plate with a number of bonded piezoelectric patches on its surface and arbitrary boundary conditions is derived using Hamilton's principle. A moving mass traveling on an arbitrary trajectory acts as an external excitation for the system. The effect of the moving mass inertia is considered using all the out-of-plane translational acceleration components. The method of eigenfunction expansion is used to transform the equation of motion into a number of coupled ordinary differential equations. A classical closed-loop optimal control algorithm is employed to suppress the dynamic response of the system, determining the... 

Thermal conductivity of nanofluids depends on several parameters including temperature, concentration, and size of nanoparticles. Most of the proposed models utilized concentration and temperature as influential factors in their modeling. In this study, group method of data handling (GMDH) artificial neural networks is applied in order to model the dependency of thermal conductivity on the mentioned factors. Firstly, temperature and concentration considered as inputs and a model is represented. Afterwards, the size of nanoparticles is added to the input variables and the results are compared. Based on obtained results, GMDH is an appropriate method to predict thermal conductivity of the... 

A numerical study is carried out on buried steel and high density polyethylene (HDPE) pipelines subjected to oblique-reverse faulting. The components of the oblique-reverse offset along the horizontal and normal directions in the fault plane are determined using well-known empirical equations. The numerical model is validated using the experimental results and detailed finite element model of a 114.3 mm (4==) steel gas pipe subjected to a reverse fault offset up to 0.6 m along the faulting direction. Different parameters such as the pipe material, the burial depth to the pipe diameter ratio (H/D), the pipe diameter to wall thickness ratio (D/t), and the fault–pipe crossing angle are... 

Dynamic deformations of beams and plates under moving objects have extensively been studied in the past. In this work, the dynamic response of geometrically nonlinear rectangular elastic plates subjected to moving mass loading is numerically investigated. A rectangular von Karman plate with various boundary conditions is modeled using specifically developed geometrically nonlinear plate elements. In the available finite element (FE) codes the only way to distinguish between moving masses from moving loads is to model the moving mass as a separate entity. However, these procedures still do not guarantee the inclusion of all inertial effects associated with the moving mass. In a prepared... 

In this paper the performance of light weight K-braced cold formed steel (CFS) shear panels under cyclic loading is experimentally evaluated. It is generally known that the brace-stud connection details has an important effect on the performance of the braced CFS shear panels in terms of lateral stiffness, energy dissipation, and ductility factor. In this study, four full-scale, 2.4 m × 2.4 m, braced CFS shear panels made of C-sections were tested. It was observed that proper modification of the currently utilized braced to stud connections in K-braced, CFS shear panels could enhance their performance considerably by increasing their ultimate shear resistance up to 7 folds. Furthermore,... 

Damage detection of a full-scale nine-story reinforced concrete building is investigated using forced vibration test (FVT). The building was the former Civil and Architecture Department of Tohoku University located in Sendai Japan. Earthquake resistance elements of this building were severely damaged in 1978 Miyagi-Ken Oki earthquake and the building was retrofitted on 2001. FVT was performed on the structure before and after retrofitting with same sensor arrangement. Using data acquired from sensors, system identification was performed using rational fraction polynomial and the damage assessment (detection and location) was done by modal assurance criterion and its derivatives. The results...