3,549 research outputs found
Dynamic analysis of the train-bridge interaction: an accurate and efficient numerical method
The dynamic behavior of railway bridges carrying high-speed trains can be analyzed with or
without the consideration of the vehicle's own structure. However, due to the amount of
kinetic energy carried at high speeds, the train may interact significantly with the bridge,
especially when resonance occurs. Equally important is the riding comfort and the stability of
the track and train cars, which are usually the most critical limit states in the design of this
type of structures. With the aim of studying this problem a computer code was developed,
being the interaction between the bridge and the train implemented by means of contact
conditions between each train wheel (nodal point) and the structure (point inside a finite
element). The treatment of the interaction between a train wheel and a point on the surface of
a finite element is directly and efficiently implemented by means of an extended stiffness
matrix, which includes stiffness, flexibility and additional terms that stem from the
compatibility equations between the displacements of the vehicle and the bridge. This
methodology was applied to the study of the dynamic behavior of a bowstring arch bridge and
proved to be very accurate and efficien
Development of an efficient finite element model for the dynamic analysis of the train-bridge interaction
The design of high-speed railway bridges comprises a set of demands, from safety
and serviceability aspects, to new types of equipment and construction solutions. In order to perform
an accurate and realistic evaluation of the corresponding dynamic behavior, adequate
analysis tools that take into account the complexity of the train-bridge system are required.
These computational tools must be based on efficient algorithms to allow for the completion of
detailed dynamic analyses in a reasonable amount of time. The classical methods of analysis
may be unsatisfactory in the evaluation of the dynamic effects of the train-bridge system and
fully assessment of the structural safety, track safety and passenger comfort. A direct and versatile
technique for the simulation of the train-bridge interaction was implemented in the FEMIX
code, which is a general purpose finite element computer program. The presented case study is
an application of the proposed formulation, which proved to be very accurate and efficient
A nonlinear vehicle-structure interaction methodology with wheel-rail detachment and reattachment
. A vehicle-structure interaction methodology with a nonlinear contact formulation
based on contact and target elements has been developed. To solve the dynamic equations of
motion, an incremental formulation has been used due to the nonlinear nature of the contact
mechanics, while a procedure based on the Lagrange multiplier method imposes the contact
constraint equations when contact occurs. The system of nonlinear equations is solved by an
efficient block factorization solver that reorders the system matrix and isolates the nonlinear
terms that belong to the contact elements or to other nonlinear elements that may be incorporated
in the model. Such procedure avoids multiple unnecessary factorizations of the linear
terms during each Newton iteration, making the formulation efficient and computationally
attractive. A numerical example has been carried out to validate the accuracy and efficiency
of the present methodology. The obtained results have shown a good agreement with the results
obtained with the commercial finite element software ANSY
Structure of a model salt bridge in solution investigated with 2D-IR spectroscopy
Salt bridges are known to be important for the stability of protein
conformation, but up to now it has been difficult to study their geometry in
solution. Here we characterize the spatial structure of a model salt bridge
between guanidinium (Gdm+) and acetate (Ac-) using two-dimensional vibrational
(2D-IR) spectroscopy. We find that as a result of salt bridging the infrared
response of Gdm+ and Ac- change significantly, and in the 2D-IR spectrum, salt
bridging of the molecules appears as cross peaks. From the 2D-IR spectrum we
determine the relative orientation of the transition-dipole moments of the
vibrational modes involved in the salt bridge, as well as the coupling between
them. In this manner we reconstruct the geometry of the solvated salt bridge
Phase synchronization of coupled bursting neurons and the generalized Kuramoto model
Bursting neurons fire rapid sequences of action potential spikes followed by
a quiescent period. The basic dynamical mechanism of bursting is the slow
currents that modulate a fast spiking activity caused by rapid ionic currents.
Minimal models of bursting neurons must include both effects. We considered one
of these models and its relation with a generalized Kuramoto model, thanks to
the definition of a geometrical phase for bursting and a corresponding
frequency. We considered neuronal networks with different connection topologies
and investigated the transition from a non-synchronized to a partially
phase-synchronized state as the coupling strength is varied. The numerically
determined critical coupling strength value for this transition to occur is
compared with theoretical results valid for the generalized Kuramoto model.Comment: 31 pages, 5 figure
Integrability of the Minimal Strain Equations for the Lapse and Shift in 3+1 Numerical Relativity
Brady, Creighton and Thorne have argued that, in numerical relativity
simulations of the inspiral of binary black holes, if one uses lapse and shift
functions satisfying the ``minimal strain equations'' (MSE), then the
coordinates might be kept co-rotating, the metric components would then evolve
on the very slow inspiral timescale, and the computational demands would thus
be far smaller than for more conventional slicing choices. In this paper, we
derive simple, testable criteria for the MSE to be strongly elliptic, thereby
guaranteeing the existence and uniqueness of the solution to the Dirichlet
boundary value problem. We show that these criteria are satisfied in a test-bed
metric for inspiraling binaries, and we argue that they should be satisfied
quite generally for inspiraling binaries. If the local existence and uniqueness
that we have proved holds globally, then, for appropriate boundary values, the
solution of the MSE exhibited by Brady et. al. (which tracks the inspiral and
keeps the metric evolving slowly) will be the unique solution and thus should
be reproduced by (sufficiently accurate and stable) numerical integrations.Comment: 6 pages; RevTeX; submitted to Phys. Rev. D15. Technical issue of the
uniqueness of the solution to the Dirichlet problem clarified. New subsection
on the nature of the boundary dat
Os discursos de licenciandos, professores universitários e secundários contribuindo para a reestruturação curricular de um curso de licenciatura em FĂsica
Este estudo foca-se na reestruturação curricular de um curso de licenciatura em FĂsica de uma universidade pĂşblica. No processo foram analisados, discursos de licenciandos, docentes universitários e professores em exercĂcio procurando-se entender como as demandas desses grupos influenciaram na estrutura curricular resultante. Para interpretar os efeitos de sentidos presentes em documentos e discursos dos sujeitos envolvidos foram adotados referenciais teĂłrico-metodolĂłgicos embasados em teorias crĂticas e na Análise de Discurso de linha francesa. A proposta final situou-se entre as exigĂŞncias legais e a realidade acadĂŞmica. A legislação consultada, os professores em exercĂcio, os licenciandos e os formadores na Universidade, subsidiaram ou sinalizaram o que e como a estrutura curricular do Curso poderia ter ou ser alterada
Pseudo-Anosov flows in toroidal manifolds
We first prove rigidity results for pseudo-Anosov flows in prototypes of
toroidal 3-manifolds: we show that a pseudo-Anosov flow in a Seifert fibered
manifold is up to finite covers topologically equivalent to a geodesic flow and
we show that a pseudo-Anosov flow in a solv manifold is topologically
equivalent to a suspension Anosov flow. Then we study the interaction of a
general pseudo-Anosov flow with possible Seifert fibered pieces in the torus
decomposition: if the fiber is associated with a periodic orbit of the flow, we
show that there is a standard and very simple form for the flow in the piece
using Birkhoff annuli. This form is strongly connected with the topology of the
Seifert piece. We also construct a large new class of examples in many graph
manifolds, which is extremely general and flexible. We construct other new
classes of examples, some of which are generalized pseudo-Anosov flows which
have one prong singularities and which show that the above results in Seifert
fibered and solvable manifolds do not apply to one prong pseudo-Anosov flows.
Finally we also analyse immersed and embedded incompressible tori in optimal
position with respect to a pseudo-Anosov flow.Comment: 44 pages, 4 figures. Version 2. New section 9: questions and
comments. Overall revision, some simplified proofs, more explanation
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