Tensile and Bending Moment Resistances of T-Shaped Joints in Rattan Chairs

Effects of inner fastener type, wrapping pattern and material type, and member material type on ultimate tensile and bending moment resistances of T-shaped joints in rattan chair construction were investigated based on the L9 (34) orthogonal array experimental design. The range analyses indicated that the order of impact on ultimate tensile loads of four factors was inner fastener type > wrapping pattern > member material type > wrapping material type, whereas the order of impact on ultimate bending moment was inner fastener type > wrapping material type > wrapping pattern > member material type. Analysis of variance indicated that inner fastener type affected ultimate tensile and bending moment the most among the four factors with percentages of contribution of 51.19 and 47.06 to tensile and bending moment, respectively. Optimal combinations of factors and their levels that yielded the highest ultimate tensile and bending moment resistances were identified for T-shaped, end-to-side joints in rattan materials

"Women's rights, the European Court and Supranational Constitutionalism"

This analysis examines supranational constitutionalism in the European Union. In particular, the study focuses on the role of the European Court of Justice in the creation of women’s rights. I examine the interaction between the Court and member state governments in legal integration, and also the integral role that women’s advocates – both individual activists and groups – have played in the development of EU social provisions. The findings suggest that this litigation dynamic can have the effect of fueling the integration process by creating new rights that may empower social actors and EU organizations, with the ultimate effect of diminishing member state government control over the scope and direction of EU law. This study focuses specifically on gender equality law, yet provides a general framework for examining the case law in subsequent legal domains, with the purpose of providing a more nuanced understanding of supranational governance and constitutionalism

The Open Method of Co-ordination on Pensions - An Economic Analysis of its Effects on Pension Reforms

This paper analyses the potential effects of the open method of co-ordination on pension reforms in the European Union from an economic point of view. The main results are: (1) For the first time, the Commission formally participates in the input of pension policy-formation of the member states, but without affecting their ultimate decision-making powers. (2) However, the OMC might foster yardstick competition and thus mutual learning from the reform experiences of other member states. (3) In contrast to that, no clear effects on the rent-seeking behaviour of special-interest groups and thus on their influence in shaping pension reforms can be derived.Pension Reform, EU Integration, Regulatory Competition

Finite Element Fracture Prediction For Wood With Knots and Cross Grain

A finite element/fracture mechanics model has been developed to predict the tension behavior of structural wood members containing defects. The computer code Starwx presented here is used in a preliminary investigation of the effect of global cross grain on the strength of structural wood members with knots. The results indicate a more severe stress condition for the member with global cross grain as compared to the straight grain member.A method of strength prediction is presented that, unlike other methods, simulates the progressive fracture/failure process in wood, which leads to the ultimate load-carrying capacity of the member. Program Starwx is employed to predict the failure of a wood member containing a knot and global cross grain in a case for which actual test data are available. The member ultimate strength predicted was within 15% of the strength determined by the test

Survival is the Ultimate End

According to the neo-Aristotelian moral tradition, every living thing has an ultimate end: To flourish as a member of its species. This view of the ultimate end shapes inquiry into what is the ultimate end of human living things. In this paper, I develop an alternative view of the ultimate end of a living thing: The ultimate end is only to survive, not as a member of a species, but as a living thing. There are four steps to my development. First, I criticize the prevailing species-based view of the ultimate end. Second, I argue that other-regarding behavior is not normative for living things; only survival is. Third, I elucidate a new and what I take to be correcting understanding of survival. Fourth, I programmatically develop the idea that inquiry into human well-being and into morality (for human beings) should be understood as aspects of inquiry into human survival

Experimental and analytical assessment of ductility in lightly reinforced concrete members

This is the post-print version of the final paper published in Engineering Structures. The published article is available from the link below. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. Copyright @ 2010 Elsevier B.V.This paper is concerned with the ultimate behaviour of lightly reinforced concrete members under extreme loading conditions. Although the consideration given to the assessment of ductility is of general relevance to various applications, it is of particular importance to conditions resembling those occurring during severe building fires. The main purpose of the investigation is to examine the failure of idealised members representing isolated strips within composite floor slabs which become lightly reinforced in a simulated fire situation due to the early loss of the steel deck. An experimental study, focusing on the failure state associated with rupture of the reinforcement in idealised concrete members, is presented. The tests enable direct assessment of the influence of a number of important parameters such as the reinforcement type, properties and ratio on the ultimate response. The results of several tests also facilitate a detailed examination of the distribution of bond stresses along the length. After describing the experimental arrangements and discussing the main test results, the paper introduces a simplified analytical model that can be used to represent the member response up to failure. The model is validated and calibrated through comparisons against the test results as well as more detailed nonlinear finite element simulations. The results and observations from this investigation offer an insight into the key factors that govern the ultimate behaviour. More importantly, the analytical model permits the development of simple expressions which capture the influence of salient parameters such as bond characteristics and reinforcement properties, for predicting the ductility of this type of member. With due consideration of the findings from other complementary experimental and analytical studies on full slab elements under ambient and elevated temperatures, this work represents a proposed basis for developing quantified failure criteria.Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC

Revitalization of Cracked Flexural Members using Retrofitting and Synthetic Wrapping

The modification of the Indonesia earthquake code SNI 2002 to SNI 2012 resulted in a significantly higher performance demand. The basics of these amendments lay in the re-zoning of earthquake maps, and the consideration of the earthquake influence to gravity loads. Members designed based on the SNI 2002 most likely will result in failure under future earthquakes. A reinforcement method based on the ACI 440 provision was conducted on cracked flexural members. The tensile reinforcement of these members has yielded and was neglected in the design. The tensile strains and stresses were further carried by the synthetic wraps applied to the tensile concrete fibers. The shear capacity of the member was enhanced by confinement of the member using the same synthetic wrap. Prior to wrap application, the members were straightened and retrofitted with an epoxy resin injection. The member was tested using a one-point-loading system to simulate a maximum bending moment in combination with maximum shear forces. The load-displacement responses and the ultimate load carrying capacity under monotonic incremental loading were recorded. It was found that this method will provide a solution for revitalization of cracked members in bending, and offer a solution to the design code alterations. © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. Peer-review under responsibility of the organizing committee of SCESCM 2016

Challenging the mathematician’s ‘ultimate substantiator’ role in a low lecture innovation

In this paper we draw on our experiences as member of the International Advisory Board and principal investigator of a research project on undergraduate mathematics teaching and learning to comment on the study of university mathematics as a process of enculturation into new mathematical practices and new ways of constructing and conveying mathematical meaning. We see this enculturation as the adaptation of different ways to act and communicate mathematically. We take a discursive perspective and we treat the changes to the mathematical and pedagogical perspectives of those who act – students and lecturers – as discursive shifts (Sfard, 2008). Our particular focus is on the shifts concerning the ‘ultimate substantiator’ role typically attributed to the lecturer

Results of boron-aluminum thrust structure

Results are presented of testing-to-failure a two member boron-aluminum thrust structure. The structure represented one section of a more complex planar truss and was designed to test the integrity of a diffusion bonded joint. The structure failed at 107 percent of the ultimate design load in the diffusion bond region. Strain gages and displacement transducers were used to measure loads and deflections of the truss. The experimentally derived axial loads, bending moments, and torsion in the various members are presented and compared with predicted values

Effects of steel corrosion to BFRP Strengthened columns under eccentric loading

The experiment consists of twenty-four mid-scale rectangular RC columns (200x200x800mm) strengthening by BFRP sheets and research variables include: BFRP layer (0, 1, and 3 layers); eccentricity (25mm and 75mm); and 4 levels of steel corrosion. The results reveal that SEL (ratio of ultimate load of strengthened member to that of corresponding controlled member) is direct proportion with steel corrosion while SEV (ratio of ultimate vertical displacement of strengthened member to that of corresponding controlled member) is inverse proportion with steel corrosion; SEL slightly increases with the increase of BFRP layer and eccentricity; but SEV decreases noticeably with the increase of BFRP layer and eccentricity. In addition,the interaction between FRP sheets, stirrups, and longitudinal reinforcement in steel degraded BFRP strengthened columns is very strong.However, column design basing on current design manuals and codes as ACI 440.2R and CNR DT 200R1 has not mentioned this affect. Thus, the load capacity prediction of column being strengthened by BFRP sheets should include levels of steel corrosion for reality, reasonable, and integral of the design