Probabilistic Strength Estimates and Reliability of Damaged Parallel Wire Cables

Cable reliability analysis involves the combined evaluation of cable capacity and cable load in a probabilistic manner. Assessment of cable capacity is only possible through visual inspections of the wires, field sampling, laboratory analysis of the degraded wire populations, and analytical techniques. In addition to a brief presentation of cable mechanics and deterministic models that approximate cable strength, this paper discusses inspection methodologies and statistical methods of estimation of the sizes of the degraded wire populations, and wire properties, leading to cable capacities. These capacities are described by probability distributions. The paper also discusses fundamentals of reliability analysis as they apply to bridge cables. Load criteria of present standard specifications (such as AASHTO or other international codes) are not applicable to long-span suspension bridges. The paper discusses criteria of bridge loading and reliability indices for bridge cables. More work is needed in the evaluation of loading for long-span bridges.     

Experimental and Analytical Behavior of Carbon Fiber-Based Rods as Flexural Reinforcement

This paper presents the results of an experimental and analytical comparison of a study on the flexural behavior of concrete beams reinforced with sandblasted carbon fiber-based composite rods. Twelve beams, including three control beams reinforced with steel, were tested for strength, deformation, and failure characteristics. Analytical comparisons included the generation of the theoretical strength and moment curvature relations. Experimental data from pullout tests indicated that bonding of sandblasted rods is not a major concern. However, excessive deformation in achieving the predicted moment capacity could be a limiting factor in the design of these beams.     

Synthesis and Properties of Photoisomerizable Derivatives of Isosorbide and Their Use in Cholesteric Filters

This paper describes the synthesis of photoisomerizable derivatives of isosorbide. These derivatives contain a stilbene or cinnamate moiety and can therefore be used as photoisomerizable chiral compounds in cholesteric liquid‐crystalline mixtures. The reflection wavelength of cholesteric layers made from these mixtures is increased by UV irradiation due to the fact that the Z‐isomers of these derivatives exhibit a lower helical twisting power than the corresponding E‐isomers. The cinnamate derivatives are very suitable for use in cholesteric color filters that find application in liquid‐crystal displays.     

A Family of Far‐Infrared‐Transmitting Glasses in the Ga–Ge–Te System for Space Applications

Conditions of formation of bulk tellurium chalcogenide glasses, containing 70–80 at % Te associated to Ga and Ge are described. The characteristic temperatures are measured: the glass‐transition temperature, T_g, is situated in the range 140–185 °C and the difference T_x – T_g, where T_x is the onset crystallization temperature, is in the range 76–113 °C. Moreover, the optical transmission window is exceptional, ranging from 1.99 μm in the bandgap up to 28 μm in the phonon region. Developed within the framework of requirements for the Darwin mission (a search for and study of extrasolar planets), feasibility of infrared optical fibers formed from these glasses is studied. Drawing experiments are conducted with the glass Ga₂‐Ge₃Te₁₅, which possesses the maximum T_x – T_g, and a first optical fiber is presented.     

Mixing Center of a Channel

For longitudinally uniform stretches of waterways there is a mixing center for the across-channel location of a steady point source in steady flow, such that complete mixing is achieved as soon as possible and there is no concentration overshoot at either of the two shorelines. A mathematical definition of the mixing center is the zero of the first oscillatory cross-channel diffusion mode. With the shorelines plus four interior data points across the channel, the starting estimate for the mixing center suffices to keep peak shoreline concentrations to within 6% of optimal. For comparison, a source at mid flow gives 18% shoreline concentration overshoot in the test case. Should very high precision be required, the Appendix gives an iterative construction that converges to the first oscillatory diffusion mode.     

Time stepping schemes for coupled displacement and pore pressurē analysis

 The paper investigates the performance of various time stepping schemes for coupled displacement and pore pressure analysis. A number of alternative forms of the automatic time stepping method proposed by Sloan and Abbo (1999a) are also presented. These alternative schemes use different updates for the displacements and pore pressures and also adopt different starting conditions for the iterations. The automatic schemes are compared with an implicit θ-method, as well as an explicit method, through analysis of a variety of problems involving undrained loading, drained loading, and consolidation for Mohr-Coulomb and critical state models. As expected, the numerical results confirm that the explicit scheme is neither accurate nor robust. Although the implicit θ-method is accurate and fast, it fails to give a solution in a number of cases where the time step is large. The automatic schemes are shown to be accurate, fast and generally robust. Two of the automatic schemes proposed never fail to furnish a solution for the cases considered. In addition, all the automatic schemes are able to constrain the time-stepping (temporal integration) error in the displacements and pore pressures to lie near a prescribed tolerance, provided the iteration error tolerance is properly chosen. For complex soil models, it is important that the latter is set sufficiently small in order for the schemes to be able to constrain the time-stepping error to lie within a prescribed tolerance. Dedicated to the memory of Prof. Mike Crisfield, for his cheerfulness and cooperation as a colleague and friend over many years.     

中国光纤通信技术的研究、应用和发展

主要从光纤光缆、光器件与组件、光传输设备与系统、光网络建设等方面论述光纤通信技术在我国的研究、应用发展历程，并对我国光纤通信技术的未来发展进行展望。     

Chemical compositions and optical properties of HfOxNy thin films at different substrate temperatures

High-k HfO_xN_y thin films have been grown by radio frequency (rf) reactive sputtering of metal Hf target in N₂/Ar/O₂ ambient at different substrate temperatures. The chemical compositions of the films have been investigated as a function of substrate temperature by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). XPS measurements showed that nitrogen concentration increases with an increase in substrate temperature. Room-temperature spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE) with photon energy 0.75–6.5 eV was used to investigate the optical properties of the films. SE results demonstrated that refractive index n increases with an increase in substrate temperature. Based on TL parameters which were obtained from the best fit results used in a simulation of the measured spectra, meanwhile, we conclude that the energy band gap (E_g) decreases with an increase in substrate temperature.     

辽河催化裂化澄清油中间馏分热反应研究

采用先加入絮凝剂脱灰，再经减压蒸馏切割420～500℃馏分的方法，将辽河催化裂化澄清油预处理，考察了澄清油、加入絮凝剂脱灰后的澄清油以及脱灰后再减压蒸馏所得的中间馏分这3种原料在热转化过程中中间相的转化历程，并采用偏光显微镜观察热转化产物。结果表明，澄清油预处理效果明显，所得中间馏分具有较低的H／C原子比（nH／nC）和适宜的组成分布，是生产针状焦的理想原料。热转化产物的光学组织结构属于各向异性发达的广域-流线型结构。