Dynamic Geotechnical Characterization of San Giuliano Di Puglia Seismic Area

The city of San Giuliano di Puglia (CB), located in the Molise region in Southern Italy, is prone to high seismic risk. For site characterisation of soil deep site investigations have been undertaken. Borings, static and dynamic in situ tests have been performed. Among them Cone Penetration Tests (CPT), Cross-Hole (C-H) Down-Hole (D-H) and Seismic Dilatometer Marchetti Tests (SDMT) have been carried out, with the aim to evaluate the soil profile of shear waves velocity (Vs). Moreover the following laboratory tests were carried out on undisturbed samples: Oedometer tests, undrained Triaxial tests and Resonant Column tests. The available data enabled one to compare the shear waves velocity profile obtained by empirical correlations, Down Hole tests and Seismic Dilatometer Marchetti Tests. The influence of strain level on G-γ and D-γ curves was evaluated by means of laboratory tests. Two expression to allows the complete shear modulus degradation with strain level and the inverse variation of damping ratio with normalized shear modulus respectively were proposed. Finally after evaluating the synthetic accelerograms at the bedrock, the ground response analysis at the surface, in terms of time history and response spectra, has been obtained by two non-linear models GEODIN and EERA

Dynamic Site Characterization by the Seismic Dilatometer Marchetti Test in Central Italy

This paper describes and compares the results of in situ and laboratory investigations performed on two Italian sites: St. Giuliano di Puglia (CB) located in the Molise region and Tito Scalo (PZ) located in the Basilicata Region. The tests were carried out to determine the variation of shear wave velocity with depth and strain level by Seismic Dilatometer Marchetti Test (SDMT), Cone Penetration Test (CPT), Noise Analysis Surface Waves (NASW), Down-Hole (DH) Test and Resonant Column Tests (RCT). Some considerations on shear modulus degradation evaluation by SDMT are proposed. The available data also enabled one to compare the shear modulus profile obtained by empirical correlations based on CPT and NASW or laboratory results with Down Hole Test and Seismic Dilatometer Marchetti Test

Nuclear Fusion Effects Induced in Intense Laser-Generated Plasmas

Deutered polyethylene (CD2)n thin and thick targets were irradiated in high vacuum by infrared laser pulses at 1015W/cm2 intensity. The high laser energy transferred to the polymer generates plasma, expanding in vacuum at supersonic velocity, accelerating hydrogen and carbon ions. Deuterium ions at kinetic energies above 4 MeV have been measured by using ion collectors and SiC detectors in time-of-flight configuration. At these energies the deuterium–deuterium collisions may induce over threshold fusion effects, in agreement with the high D-D cross-section valuesaround 3 MeV energy. At the first instants of the plasma generation, during which high temperature, density and ionacceleration occur, the D-D fusions occur as confirmed by the detection of mono-energetic protonsand neutrons with a kinetic energy of 3.0 MeV and 2.5 MeV, respectively, produced by the nuclear reaction. The number of fusion events depends strongly on the experimental set-up, i.e. on the laser parameters (intensity, wavelength, focal spot dimension), target conditions (thickness, chemical composition, absorption coefficient, presence of secondary targets) and used geometry (incidence angle, laser spot, secondary target positions).A number of D-D fusion events of the order of 106÷7 per laser shot has been measured

Site Response Analysis in the STM-M6 Industrial Area of the City of Catania (Italy)

The paper presents the case history of the geotechnical characterization of a seismic site for the re-use of an industrial building for producing solar panels in the industrial area of Catania (Sicily, Italy). To determine the geological profile and the geotechnical characteristics of the soil, the site was well investigated by means of in situ and laboratory tests. The following in situ geotechnical tests were carried out: Borings, SPT, CPT, PLT and dynamic in situ tests. Among them Down-Hole (D-H), Cross-Hole (C-H), SASW and recently Seismic Dilatometer Marchetti Tests (SDMT) have been carried out, with the aim to evaluate the soil profile of shear waves velocity (Vs). Moreover the following laboratory tests were carried out on undisturbed samples retrieved with a 86 mm diameter Shelby sampler: Oedometer tests, Direct shear tests, Resonant Column and Torsional shear tests. Static and dynamic parameters obtained by in situ and laboratory tests were reported and analyzed. Moreover the Sicilian earthquake of December 13, 1990 (ML= 5.4) heavy damaged the site, also due to soil amplification. Using the recordings of this earthquake, to evaluate the input motion at the conventional bedrock, the ground response analysis has been obtained by the 1-D non-linear code EERA at the industrial building site. In particular the study has regarded the evaluation of site effects in terms of acceleration time history at the surface, soil amplification factors, as well as in terms of time history and response spectra

Nuclear Fusion Effects Induced in Intense Laser-Generated Plasmas

Deutered polyethylene (CD2)n thin and thick targets were irradiated in high vacuum by infrared laser pulses at 1015W/cm2 intensity. The high laser energy transferred to the polymer generates plasma, expanding in vacuum at supersonic velocity, accelerating hydrogen and carbon ions. Deuterium ions at kinetic energies above 4 MeV have been measured by using ion collectors and SiC detectors in time-of-flight configuration. At these energies the deuterium–deuterium collisions may induce over threshold fusion effects, in agreement with the high D-D cross-section valuesaround 3 MeV energy. At the first instants of the plasma generation, during which high temperature, density and ionacceleration occur, the D-D fusions occur as confirmed by the detection of mono-energetic protonsand neutrons with a kinetic energy of 3.0 MeV and 2.5 MeV, respectively, produced by the nuclear reaction. The number of fusion events depends strongly on the experimental set-up, i.e. on the laser parameters (intensity, wavelength, focal spot dimension), target conditions (thickness, chemical composition, absorption coefficient, presence of secondary targets) and used geometry (incidence angle, laser spot, secondary target positions).A number of D-D fusion events of the order of 106÷7 per laser shot has been measured

Geotechnical Characterization of a Soft Clay Soil Subjected to a Preloading Embankment

The paper presents the geotechnical characterization of a clay soil subjected to a preloading embankment for the construction of an industrial electronics building in the industrial area (STM M6) of Catania (Sicily, Italy). To determine the geological profile and the geotechnical characteristics of the soil, the site was well investigated by means of in situ and laboratory tests. The following in situ geotechnical tests were carried out: Borings, SPT, CPT, PLT and dynamic in situ tests have been performed. Among them Down-Hole (D-H), Cross-Hole (C-H), SASW and recently Seismic Dilatometer Marchetti Tests (SDMT) have been carried out, with the aim to evaluate the soil profile of shear waves velocity (Vs). Moreover the following laboratory tests were carried out on undisturbed samples retrieved with a 86 mm diameter Shelby sampler: Oedometer tests, Direct shear tests, Triaxial Tests, Resonant Column and Torsional shear tests. Static and dynamic parameters were compared by in situ and laboratory tests. A significantly correspondence between the values of the geotechnical parameters derived from laboratory and in situ tests was observed. The in situ and laboratory geotechnical analysis gives the parameters to evaluate the performance of soil subjected to soil embankment by mathematical modeling

Soil Liquefaction and Risk Analysis From in Situ Tests for the City of Trapani (Italy)

The paper deals with a microzoning criterion based on CPT data to define liquefaction risk of the city of Trapani, Sicily (Italy). Zonation for liquefaction is a fundamental issue to prevent from seismic disasters since, as lessons of past earthquakes teach, liquefaction of sandy soils has been a major cause of damage to buildings. For the evaluation of the seismic risk of the municipal area of Trapani it has been chosen a scenario earthquake which may represent a possible repetition of the 1968 event. For this earthquake a Richter magnitude M= 6.0 and a maximum ground acceleration amax-= 0.30g have been estimated. While new tools and refinements continue to be developed on the subjects of pore pressure build-up due to earthquake shaking and of liquefaction triggering, reliable evaluation methods already exist for liquefaction microzonation purposes. This study focuses on the application of a method for the evaluation of the liquefaction potential to several sites of the city of Trapani, by means of relationships between liquefaction resistance and corrected cone penetration tests (CPT) resistance

Experimental Detection of Nonlinear Dynamics Using a Laser Profilometer

This paper investigates a cantilever beam nonlinear dynamic behaviour, on which the nonlinearity is introduced with permanent magnet interactions or with a non-holonomic contact. The experimental time domain responses obtained from non-zero initial conditions are measured using a laser profilometer, conventionally adopted for product shape detections in online industrial applications. The Fourier transform, Continuous Wavelet transform, and Hilbert transform are used to investigate nonlinear phenomena in the frequency content, highlighting advantages and drawbacks of the three methods in catching instantaneous phenomena. Then, a Multi-Phi approach is proposed to describe the time evolution of nonlinear systems by means of a discrete number of linearised systems. Therefore, two linearised models have been developed and tuned to describe the dynamic behaviour of different Euler–Bernoulli cantilever beam configurations. The experimental data of nonlinear systems are compared with the corresponding ones of the linear system to evaluate the effects of introduced nonlinearities on the overall dynamic properties

Near-Infrared, Light-Triggered, On-Demand Antiinflammatories and Antibiotics Release by Graphene Oxide/Elecrospun PCL Patch for Wound Healing

Very recently, significant attention has been focused on the adsorption and cell adhesion properties of graphene oxide (GO), because it is expected to allow high drug loading and controlled drug release, as well as the promotion of cell adhesion and proliferation. This is particularly interesting in the promotion of wound healing, where antibiotics and anti-inflammatories should be locally released for a prolonged time to allow fibroblast proliferation. Here, we designed an implantable patch consisting of poly(caprolactone) electrospun covered with GO, henceforth named GO–PCL, endowed with high ibuprofen (5.85 mg cm−2), ketoprofen (0.86 mg cm−2), and vancomycin (0.95 mg cm−2) loading, used as anti-inflammatory and antibiotic models respectively, and capable of responding to near infrared (NIR)-light stimuli in order to promptly release the payload ondemand beyond three days. Furthermore, we demonstrated the GO is able to promote fibroblast adhesion, a key characteristic to potentially provide wound healing in vivo

TAT decorated siRNA polyplexes for inhalation delivery in anti-asthma therapy

In this work, a novel protonable copolymer was designed to deliver siRNA through the inhalation route, as an innovative formulation for the management of asthma. This polycation was synthesized by derivatization of α,β-poly(N-2-hydroxyethyl)D,L-aspartamide (PHEA) first with 1,2-Bis(3-aminopropylamino)ethane (bAPAE) and then with a proper amount of maleimide terminated poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG-MLB), with the aim to increase the superficial hydrophilicity of the system, allowing the diffusion trough the mucus layer. Once the complexation ability of the copolymer has been evaluated, obtaining nanosized polyplexes, polyplexes were functionalized on the surface with a thiolated TAT peptide, a cell-penetrating peptide (CPP), exploiting a thiol-ene reaction. TAT decorated polyplexes result to be highly cytocompatible and able to retain the siRNA with a suitable complexation weight ratio during the diffusion process through the mucus. Despite polyplexes establish weak bonds with the mucin chains, these can diffuse efficiently through the mucin layer and therefore potentially able to reach the bronchial epithelium. Furthermore, through cellular uptake studies, it was possible to observe how the obtained polyplexes penetrate effectively in the cytoplasm of bronchial epithelial cells, where they can reduce IL-8 gene expression, after LPS exposure. In the end, in order to obtain a formulation administrable as an inhalable dry powder, polyplexes were encapsulated in mannitol-based microparticles, by spray freeze drying, obtaining highly porous particles with proper technological characteristics that make them potentially administrable by inhalation route