Field test investigation and numerical analysis of ballasted track under moving locomotive

This paper is devoted to investigating of dynamic behavior of a ballasted railway track by field tests and numerical analyses. In this regard, at first in a field test program, two different sections in a ballasted track including concrete and wooden sleepers with good quality are selected and their dynamic vertical deflections are measured due to moving locomotive. In continuation, the numerical model of vehicle track interaction is developed and its results are verified using the measured values in the field tests and the previous research studies. Finally, using the verified model, a series of sensitivity analyses are accomplished on effecting parameters including sleeper type and track modulus. Results indicate that the dynamic behavior of the ballasted track under moving locomotive is linear with concrete sleepers while non-linear with wooden sleepers.     

Displacement measurement of the soil nail walls by using close range photogrammetry and introduction of CPDA method

Displacement measurement of the soil nail walls is a very important task in monitoring tiny movements in excavations to prevent disastrous accidents like wall collapsing. In building construction projects, this is usually done by either micro-geodesy or accurate instrumentation methods. In this research, for the first time, the use of close range photogrammetry in displacement measurement of the soil nail walls has been proposed and experienced. For this, a photogrammetric system was designed, implemented and evaluated. Proposed system with three separate methods for displacement measurement, which one of them was submitted for the first time (CPDA), was implemented. The evaluation results the accuracy of 3 mm is achievable in determining the point coordinates with a precision of 8 mm in displacement measurement of soil nail walls. Due to the efficiency, low cost, high accuracy, high speed of observations along with the simplicity of implementation of close range photogrammetry, it is suggested as a proper alternative to the traditional methods.     

Modeling of precipitation hardening in pre-aged AlMgSi(Cu) alloys

A new analytical method to estimate the evolution of the relative volume fraction of precipitates during artificial aging of pre-aged AlMgSi(Cu) alloys in the underaged regime is introduced. The analytical results demonstrate that the precipitation processes in AlMgSi(Cu) alloys are isokinetic in commercially relevant temperature ranges. The theory of transformations is used to model isothermal and non-isothermal aging kinetics in isokinetic systems where the precipitate nuclei pre-exist at the start of aging and definite precipitate contents are reached at the end of transformation. A simple physically based model is also developed for the prediction of the average size of precipitates during artificial aging of pre-aged alloys, when “growth” is the controlling mechanism of precipitation. The microstructural models are combined with a previously developed yield strength model and the evolution of yield strengths during isothermal and non-isothermal aging of AlMgSi(Cu) alloys, with various pre-aging histories, are modeled. The analytical method and the microstructural and yield strength models are validated using experimental results.     

Effects of the Extraction Phase of Citrus L. Growing in Iran,Loaded in Oil-to-Water Nanocapsules Prepared by the Interfacial Polymerization Method

The Citrus L. genus is a major source of limonene, which includes vitamin C and can be used in food and traditional medicinal plants. The polymerization method has been employed to study the preparation of Citrus nanocapsules by employing the polyesteric triblock copolymer polyethylene glycol–poly butylene adipate–polyethylene glycol in the shell, and olive oil is used as the core. In our current study, a specific amount of polymer, limonene, and olive oil were initially mixed first with acetone and ethanol and then added to water. The solvent was then removed from under vacuum and put in a freeze dryer, resulting in the residual nanocapsules being produced. Our study indicated that the size of the nanocapsules was a function of a variety of factors, such as the concentration of oil, polymer, and plant extract. Finally, we used scanning electron microscopy, particle size analysis report, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, and nuclear magnetic resonance to visualize the nanocapsules.     

Nanoparticle encapsulation by a polymer via in situ polymerization in supercritical conditions

The encapsulation of aluminum nanoparticles by polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) was carried out in supercritical conditions via in situ polymerization. The aluminum particles possessed an average diameter of 43.7 nm. The presence of PVDF on the particles was validated by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). This result was further approved by X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), which showed high intensity peaks of fluorine and carbon on the particles after the encapsulation process, which are associated with the presence of hydrocarbon‐based PVDF. As observed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images, the nanoparticles were uniformly coated by a polymer of a few nanometers in thickness. The results showed that there is a good consistency between the calculated thickness of the polymer coating and the results obtained by TEM. In addition, the effect of polymerization time on the kinetics of the reaction was investigated. Finally, it was found that the thickness of the polymer layer can be controlled by the duration of the encapsulation process. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2012. © 2011 Society of Plastics Engineers     

TWO‐STEP ESTIMATION OF A MULTI‐VARIATE LÉVY PROCESS

Based on the concept of a Lévy copula to describe the dependence structure of a multi‐variate Lévy process, we present a new estimation procedure. We consider a parametric model for the marginal Lévy processes as well as for the Lévy copula and estimate the parameters by a two‐step procedure. We first estimate the parameters of the marginal processes and then estimate in a second step only the dependence structure parameter. For infinite Lévy measures, we truncate the small jumps and base our statistical analysis on the large jumps of the model. Prominent example will be a bivariate stable Lévy process, which allows for analytic calculations and, hence, for a comparison of different methods. We prove asymptotic normality of the parameter estimates from the two‐step procedure, and in particular, we derive the Godambe information matrix, whose inverse is the covariance matrix of the normal limit law. A simulation study investigates the loss of efficiency because of the two‐step procedure and the truncation.     

The role of Metal-Matrix Composite development During Friction Stir Welding of Aluminum to Brass in Weld Characteristics

The present research aims to investigate the development of brass reinforced aluminum composites during dissimilar friction stir welding of brass and aluminum. Moreover, to probe the effect of such a metal matrix composite on its bed, the cross-sectional properties of joint area are studied in two aspects of corrosion behavior and hardness distribution. Microstructural investigations through optical and electron microscopy show development of lamellar composites within the top site of the stir zone and aluminum surface. The measured iso-hardness contours indicate that evolved composite structures increase the cross-sectional hardness of aluminum locally. Also, the electrochemical assessment of joint area suggests that Al/Br composite structure plays an accelerative role in deterioration of cross-sectional corrosion resistance of aluminum through obstructing passivation and forming microgalvanic cells, where cathodic brass reinforcements intensify the corrosion of anodic aluminum matrix.     

Hydroxymethyl furfural-modified urea–formaldehyde resin: synthesis and properties

Considering the importance of urea–formaldehyde (UF) resins in the wood industry, this work reports on a new bio-based modification of UF resins. The use of 5-hydroxymethyl furfural (HMF) is motivated by the current concerns about the effects of formaldehyde on human health. UF and urea–HMF–formaldehyde (UHF) resins were synthesized by an alkaline-acid method and characterized by FTIR, thermogravimetric analysis, and differential scanning calorimetry. The UHF, as a newly modified polymeric resin, was thermally characterized, and it was found that its thermo-stability and char yield was improved. In order to investigate the performance of the UHF, the preparation of particleboards with the UHF as adhesive, as well as its film formation ability have been studied. The UHF films formed on wood panels were uniform without any crack. Film formation ability of the UHF resin was improved due to the presence of more hydroxyl groups as well as furan rings of the HMF moieties resulting in more activated groups to be bonded by wood. Furthermore, formaldehyde release of the particleboards bonded by UHF was significantly lower than that of which bonded by the UF resin. Lab particleboards using the UHF resins showed higher modulus of rupture, modulus of elasticity, and internal bond compared to boards with UF resins, as well as lower water absorption and thickness swelling. Based on these results UHF resin can be considered as a possible candidate as adhesive for wood and wood based panels.     

Assessing the effect of oil price on world food prices: Application of principal component analysis

The objective of this paper is to investigate the co-movement of food prices and the macroeconomic index, especially the oil price, by principal component analysis to further understand the influence of the macroeconomic index on food prices. We examined the food prices of seven major products: eggs, meat, milk, oilseeds, rice, sugar and wheat. The macroeconomic variables studied were crude oil prices, consumer price indexes, food production indexes and GDP around the world between 1961 and 2005. We use the Scree test and the proportion of variance method for determining the optimal number of common factors. The correlation coefficient between the extracted principal component and the macroeconomic index varies between 0.87 for the world GDP and 0.36 for the consumer price index. We find the food production index has the greatest influence on the macroeconomic index and that the oil price index has an influence on the food production index. Consequently, crude oil prices have an indirect effect on food prices.