Numerical Assessment of Fibre Inclusion in a Load Transfer Platform for Pile-Supported Embankments over Soft Soil

© 2016 ASCE. This study presents the results of a numerical investigation in the performance of natural fibre reinforced load transfer platform (NFRLTP) for pile supported embankment construction over soft soil. A numerical analysis based on finite element method (FEM) was carried out on an NFRLTP pile-supported embankment in a two-dimensional plane strain condition. The effects of natural fibre inclusion in the load transfer platform on the stress transfer mechanism, generation and dissipation of excess pore water pressure have been analyzed and discussed in detail. The findings indicate that natural fibre reinforced soil as a load transfer platform facilitated the load transfer process from the embankment to piles, while decreases the intensity of load transferred to soft soil, the excess pore water pressure and the overall settlement

Behaviour of Expansive Soils Stabilized with Hydrated Lime and Bagasse Fibres

© 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. Soil stabilization is the most common ground improvement technique adopted to improve problematic soil properties. This investigation exhibits a series of laboratory tests conducted to evaluate the influences of bagasse fibres and hydrated lime addition on the engineering properties and shrink-swell behaviour of stabilised expansive soils. Bagasse fibre is industrial waste by-product left after the crushing of sugar cane for juice extraction that was used in this study as reinforcing component for expansive soil stabilization. The expansive soils used in this investigation were collected from Queensland, Australia. In order to investigate the influences of bagasse fibres on the engineering behaviour of expansive soil, varying proportions of randomly distributed bagasse fibres of 0.5%, 1.0%, and 2.0% were added to expansive soil and hydrated lime-expansive soils mixed with different bagasse fibre proportions were also investigated. Although, an array of experimental tests have been undertaken on untreated and treated expansive soil samples, merely the outcomes of linear shrinkage, unconfined compressive strength (UCS) tests after various curing periods of 3, 7 and 28 days are presented in this paper. Other test results have been identified as follow up research. The findings of this experimental investigation indicate that bagasse fibre reinforcement blended with hydrated lime increased the compressive strength of expansive soil with increase in curing time and additives contents, whereas the linear shrinkage of stabilised expansive soils decreased with increasing hydrated lime and bagasse fibre proportions and curing periods. Based on the reasonable laboratory test results, it can be noted that the expansive soils can be successfully stabilized by combination of hydrated lime and bagasse fibres

An experimental study on engineering behaviour of lime and bagasse fibre reinforced expansive soils

© 2017 19th ICSMGE Secretariat. All rights reserved. This investigation exhibits a series of laboratory tests conducted to evaluate the influences of bagasse fibre and hydrated lime addition on the engineering properties and swelling behaviour of stabilised expansive soils. Bagasse fibre is industrial waste byproduct left after crushing of sugar-cane for juice extraction, used in this study as a reinforcing component for expansive soil stabilisation. The expansive soils used in this investigation were collected from Queensland, Australia. Varying proportions of randomly distributed bagasse fibre of 0.5%, 1.0%, and 2.0% were added to expansive soil and lime-treated expansive soil to investigate the influences of bagasse fibre on the engineering characteristics of stabilised soil. Results of California bearing capacity (CBR), swell potential and one-dimensional consolidation tests after various curing time are presented and discussed in detail. The findings of this experimental investigation indicate that expansive soil reinforcement, blended with bagasse fibre and lime leads to a significant increase in the compressive strength and the bearing capacity of expansive soil. Meanwhile, the swell potential and compressibility of stabilised expansive soils decreased with increasing lime and bagasse fibre contents

Experimental Investigation on the Compaction and Compressible Properties of Expansive Soil Reinforced with Bagasse Fibre and Lime

This paper presents a laboratory investigation into the mechanical characteristics of expansive soil reinforced with randomly distributed bagasse fibre and lime combination. Bagasse fibre, an agricultural waste by-product left after crushing of sugar-cane for juice extraction, was employed in this investigation as a reinforcing component for expansive soil reinforcement. Several series of laboratory experiments including standard compaction and consolidation tests were carried out on untreated soil and soil samples mixed with various contents of bagasse fibre in a wide range from 0% to 2% and a certain amount of 2.5% lime. The experimental results were used to comprehend the effects of adding bagasse fibre on the compaction and compressible properties of fibre reinforced soils with lime stabilisation. The compaction test results indicate that the addition of bagasse fibre, hydrated lime, and their combination decreased the dry density of stabilised soils. Moreover, the obtained results of the consolidation tests reveal that the reinforcement of expansive soil with bagasse fibre improved the pre-consolidation pressure, meanwhile tended to reduce the compression characteristics of the lime stabilised soils as bagasse fibre content increased from 0% to 1%. However, an excessive increase in bagasse fibre content beyond 1% to 2% was found to result in a slight reduction of the compressibility of lime-soil mixtures reinforced with bagasse fibre. The findings of this research provide a deeper insight into promoting applications of an agricultural waste by-product of bagasse fibre as a low-cost and eco-friendly material for treatment of expansive soils and fill materials for sustainable construction development in the field of civil infrastructure foundations

Community evolution in patent networks: technological change and network dynamics

When studying patent data as a way to understand innovation and technological change, the conventional indicators might fall short, and categorizing technologies based on the existing classification systems used by patent authorities could cause inaccuracy and misclassification, as shown in literature. Gao et al. (International Workshop on Complex Networks and their Applications, 2017) have established a method to analyze patent classes of similar technologies as network communities. In this paper, we adopt the stabilized Louvain method for network community detection to improve consistency and stability. Incorporating the overlapping community mapping algorithm, we also develop a new method to identify the central nodes based on the temporal evolution of the network structure and track the changes of communities over time. A case study of Germany’s patent data is used to demonstrate and verify the application of the method and the results. Compared to the non-network metrics and conventional network measures, we offer a heuristic approach with a dynamic view and more stable results

Community evolution in patent networks: technological change and network dynamics

When studying patent data as a way to understand innovation and technological change, the conventional indicators might fall short, and categorizing technologies based on the existing classification systems used by patent authorities could cause inaccuracy and misclassification, as shown in literature. Gao et al. (International Workshop on Complex Networks and their Applications, 2017) have established a method to analyze patent classes of similar technologies as network communities. In this paper, we adopt the stabilized Louvain method for network community detection to improve consistency and stability. Incorporating the overlapping community mapping algorithm, we also develop a new method to identify the central nodes based on the temporal evolution of the network structure and track the changes of communities over time. A case study of Germany’s patent data is used to demonstrate and verify the application of the method and the results. Compared to the non-network metrics and conventional network measures, we offer a heuristic approach with a dynamic view and more stable results

Screening of DUB activity and specificity by MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry

Deubiquitylases (DUBs) are key regulators of the ubiquitin system which cleave ubiquitin moieties from proteins and polyubiquitin chains. Several DUBs have been implicated in various diseases and are attractive drug targets. We have developed a sensitive and fast assay to quantify in vitro DUB enzyme activity using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry. Unlike other current assays, this method uses unmodified substrates, such as diubiquitin topoisomers. By analyzing 42 human DUBs against all diubiquitin topoisomers we provide an extensive characterization of DUB activity and specificity. Our results confirm the high specificity of many members of the OTU and JAMM DUB families and highlight that all USPs tested display low linkage selectivity. We also demonstrate that this assay can be deployed to assess the potency and specificity of DUB inhibitors by profiling 11 compounds against a panel of 32 DUBs

Electrically tunable organic-inorganic hybrid polaritons with monolayer WS2.

Exciton-polaritons are quasiparticles consisting of a linear superposition of photonic and excitonic states, offering potential for nonlinear optical devices. The excitonic component of the polariton provides a finite Coulomb scattering cross section, such that the different types of exciton found in organic materials (Frenkel) and inorganic materials (Wannier-Mott) produce polaritons with different interparticle interaction strength. A hybrid polariton state with distinct excitons provides a potential technological route towards in situ control of nonlinear behaviour. Here we demonstrate a device in which hybrid polaritons are displayed at ambient temperatures, the excitonic component of which is part Frenkel and part Wannier-Mott, and in which the dominant exciton type can be switched with an applied voltage. The device consists of an open microcavity containing both organic dye and a monolayer of the transition metal dichalcogenide WS2. Our findings offer a perspective for electrically controlled nonlinear polariton devices at room temperature

Atomic structures of TDP-43 LCD segments and insights into reversible or pathogenic aggregation.

The normally soluble TAR DNA-binding protein 43 (TDP-43) is found aggregated both in reversible stress granules and in irreversible pathogenic amyloid. In TDP-43, the low-complexity domain (LCD) is believed to be involved in both types of aggregation. To uncover the structural origins of these two modes of β-sheet-rich aggregation, we have determined ten structures of segments of the LCD of human TDP-43. Six of these segments form steric zippers characteristic of the spines of pathogenic amyloid fibrils; four others form LARKS, the labile amyloid-like interactions characteristic of protein hydrogels and proteins found in membraneless organelles, including stress granules. Supporting a hypothetical pathway from reversible to irreversible amyloid aggregation, we found that familial ALS variants of TDP-43 convert LARKS to irreversible aggregates. Our structures suggest how TDP-43 adopts both reversible and irreversible β-sheet aggregates and the role of mutation in the possible transition of reversible to irreversible pathogenic aggregation