Influence of joint detail on the flexural/torsional interaction of thin-walled structures

For a structure formed from two thin-walled open members connected at 90°, torsion applied to one member can result in torsion as well as flexure in the second member, with the magnitude and direction of this torsion as well as flexure in the second member being determined by the type of joint used. Conventional structural analysis would normally assume the presence of only flexure in the second member. The results from a finite element study of structures formed from thin-walled channel sections connected by box, mitre and stiffened mitre joints is presented and an explanation for the behaviour of the different joint types is given. It is shown that for the box joint the warping deformation of the loaded member is the dominant factor in determining the magnitude and direction of the twisting of the second member, whilst this is determined for the stiffened mitre joint primarily by the St Venant rotation deformation of the loaded member. For the unstiffened joint it is shown that the warping and St Venant rotation deformation effects tend to cancel each other out.     

Impulse breakdown voltages of triggered multistage vacuum gap

Several sealed-off triggered vacuum gaps are connected in series to improve hold-off voltage. The characteristics of impulse breakdown voltage of these series-connected gaps are investigated experimentally. The sum hold-off voltage of series-connected gaps decreases to a unit hold-off voltage when the maximum value of voltage division ratio across the gaps increases to unity. Self-breakdown probability of the series-connected gaps is always higher than that of a single gap under the same conditions. Hence, stage efficiency of the multistage gap decreases with increasing number of stages. Its value is 90 percent with 2-stage gap and 75 percent with 5-stage gap, respectively, under the same voltage division ratio and the same gap length (2.0 mm) in each stage. Triggered breakdown voltage of 2- or 3- stage gap is several hundred volts when all gaps are triggered simultaneously at the peak of the main impulse wave and a working voltage range is nearly 100 percent in this case. The working voltage range decreases with number of stages. Its value is 45 percent with 3-stage gap and 15 percent with 5-stage gap, respectively, when one triggered gap is fired for switching.     

Thermoelastic solutions for orthotropic and anisotropic composite laminates

Solutions, within the framework of linear uncoupled thermoelasticity, are presented for certain problems of flexure of composite laminates. Benchmark numerical results, useful for the validation or otherwise of approximate laminate models, are tabulated. Finally, these results are used to examine the accuracy of the classical lamination theory based on Kirchhoff's hypothesis.     

Zooplankton population in the river tigris: Effects of samarra impoundment

The influences of the Samarra impoundment on the ecology of the downstream sector of the river Tigris are investigated. Zooplankton were collected monthly from July 1987 to July 1988. It was found that zooplankton were most abundant during high river discharges in March. During the month of low river discharge, September, the zooplankton population was greatly reduced immediately below the barrage and remained so to the last downstream station. Several factors seem to explain such differences. The high discharge from the impoundment was found to be the dominating factor and may flush the small backwaters in which zooplankton were abundant, thus increasing the population in the river. Zooplankton species vary in their ability to sustain populations in the river, variations which are due mainly to species-specific characteristics.     

Effects of molybdenum additions on the structure, depth, and austenite grain size of the case of carburized 0.13% carbon steels

Carbon (0.13%) steel samples containing about 0.48% molybdenum (Mo) singly and in combination with nickel (Ni) were carburized in a natural Titas gas atmosphere at a temperature of 1223 K (950 °C) and at a pressure of about 0.10 MPa (15 psia) for time periods ranging from 1–4 h followed by slow cooling in the furnace. Their microstructure was studied by optical microscopy. The austenite grain size of the case and the case depths were determined. It was found that Mo and Ni alone and in combination decrease the thickness of the cementite network near the surface of the carburized case of the steels. However, Ni is found to be more effective than Mo in decreasing the thickness of cementite network. Both Mo and Ni enhance the formation of Widmanstätten cementite plates at the grain boundary and within the grains near the surface of the carburized steels. However, Ni alone is more effective than Mo in the formation of Widmanstätten cementite plates. In the presence of Ni, Mo is much more effective in the formation of Widmanstätten cementite plates than Mo in absence of Ni. It was also revealed that both Mo and Ni increased the case depth. Ni is more effective than Mo in increasing the case depth. The combined effect of Mo and Ni is much greater than that of either Mo or Ni alone in increasing case depth. Mo as Mo carbide (Mo₂C) particles refined the austenite grain size of the carburized case. Ni in solution was not found to have any effect in restricting grain growth of austenite, but the presence of Ni enhances the austenite grain size refining effect of Mo in the carburized case.     

Capacity planning in job-shop environment

Presented here is a computerized capacity planning system for the IBM Microcomputer family. The system maintains the profile of the job shop in a data base along with data pertinent to various products that can be manufactured in the shop. Projected orders for the planning period are input to the system with their associated quantities and delivery dates. The system uses the forward and backward loading rules in generating capacity loading scenarios. User selects the best course of action which may satisfy delivery dates subject to the limitations of the work centers. Efficiency figures are provided to aid the user in his/her decision.     

Sediment Concentration and Its Prediction by Perceptron Kalman Filtering Procedure

Predictions of the discharge and the associated sediment concentration are very useful ingredients in any water resources reservoir design, planning, maintenance, and operation. Although there are many empirical relationships between the discharge and sediment concentration amounts, they need estimation of model parameters. Generally, parameter estimations are achieved through the regression method (RM), which has several restrictive assumptions. Such models are locally valid and their structures and parameter values are questionable from region to others. This paper proposes a new approach for sediment concentration prediction provided that there are measurements of discharge and sediment concentration. The basis of the methodology is a dynamic transitional model between successive time instances based on two variables, namely, discharge and sediment concentration measurements. The transition matrix elements are estimated from the measurements through a special form of the artificial neural networks as perceptrons. The sediment concentration predictions from discharge measurements are achieved through a perceptron Kalman filtering (PKF) technique. In the meantime, this technique also provides temporal predictions. A certain portion of the measurement sequence is employed for the model parameter estimations through training and the remaining part is used for the model verification. Detailed comparisons between RM and PKF approaches are presented and, finally, it is shown that the latter model works dynamically by simulating the observation scatter diagram in the best possible manner with smaller prediction errors. The application of the methodology is performed for the discharge and sediment concentration measurements obtained from the Mississippi River basin at St. Louis, Missouri. It is found that the PKF methodology has smaller average relative, root-mean-square, and absolute errors than RM. Furthermore, graphical representation, such as the scatter and frequency diagrams, indicated that the PKF approach has superiority over the RM.