Investigation on Durability Performance in Early Aged High-Performance Concrete Containing GGBFS and FA

The significance of concrete durability increases since RC (Reinforced Concrete) structures undergo degradation due to aggressive environmental conditions, which affects structural safety and serviceability. Steel corrosion is the major cause for the unexpected failure of RC structures. The main cause for the corrosion initiation is the ingress of chloride ions prevailing in the environment. Hence quantitative evaluation of chloride diffusion becomes very important to obtain a chloride diffusion coefficient and resistance to chloride ion intrusion. In the present investigation, 15 mix proportions with 3 water-to-binder ratios (0.37, 0.42, and 0.47) and 3 replacement ratios (0, 30, and 50%) were prepared for HPC (high-performance concrete) with fly-ash and ground granulated blast furnace slag. Chloride diffusion coefficient was measured under nonstationary condition. In order to evaluate the microstructure characteristics, porosity through MIP was also measured. The results of compressive strength, chloride diffusion, and porosity are compared with electrical charges. This paper deals with the results of the concrete samples exposed for only 2 months, but it is a part of the total test plan for 100 years. From the work, time-dependent diffusion coefficients in HPC and the key parameters for durability design are proposed

Tolerance Sensitivity Analysis and Robust Optimal Design Method of a Surface-Mounted Permanent Magnet Motor by Using a Hybrid Response Surface Method Considering Manufacturing Tolerances

This paper presents a robust optimal design method using a hybrid response surface method (H-RSM) which directly finds an optimal point satisfying a target Z-value or a probability of failure. Through three steps, this paper achieves the goal that is to increase the open-circuit airgap flux (OCAF) in a surface-mounted permanent magnet motor and decrease its variation caused by variations of the airgap lengths including an additional one between permanent magnets and rotor back yoke. First, the OCAF equation is derived from the magnetic equivalent circuit (MEC) considering the additional airgap. Then, the equation is validated by comparing its results with those of the finite element method (FEM) modeled by the slotless stator. Next, the tolerance sensitivity analysis, using the partial derivative of the OCAF equation with respect to the airgap length, is performed to investigate the effects of design variables on the OCAF. It is shown that increasing the magnet thickness is effective for both increasing mean of the OCAF and reducing its variation. Finally, robust optimal design is performed using the H-RSM, in which all data are obtained from the FEM modeled by the slotted stator. The results of the robust optimal design are verified using the FEM

Corrosion Inhibitors for Reinforced Concrete: A Review

The objective of the topic is to review the recent trends in corrosion inhibitors for reinforced concrete and their application in the laboratory and field conditions. Inhibitors are chemical substances which when added to the concrete in small concentrations will inhibit or prolong the time to initiation of corrosion in concrete structures. This chapter focuses on the type of inhibitors used in concrete based upon their mode of action and the way of application. The section deals with anodic, cathodic, mixed inhibitors; performance of admixed inhibitor vs. migrating/surface applied inhibitor and their evaluation studies; and electrochemical injection of corrosion inhibitor (EICI) in concrete and electrochemical chloride extraction techniques has been reviewed

Tensile Behavior and Cracking Pattern of an Ultra-High Performance Mortar Reinforced by Polyethylene Fiber

This paper presents an experimental study of the compressive strength, tensile behavior (including the tensile strength, tensile strain capacity, and toughness), and cracking patterns of an ultra-high performance mortar (UHPM) reinforced by polyethylene (PE) fiber as well as a discussion of the different tensile behaviors of the UHPM according to the types and contents of fibers used. The UHPM reinforced by microsteel fiber of 1.5 vol% and the UHPM reinforced by PE fibers with three different fiber contents were designed and prepared. A series of experiments was undertaken to assess the effect of PE fiber on the properties of the UHPM. The results found a lower strength level, higher tensile strain capacity and toughness, and a larger crack width in the PE fiber-reinforced UHPM compared to microsteel fiber-reinforced UHPM. It was also demonstrated that tensile strain capacity and toughness of 4.05% and 0.454 MPa m/m, respectively, can be attained when using the proposed polyethylene-fiber-reinforced UHPM

Characterization of Electromagnetic Properties for Durability Performance and Saturation in Hardened Cement Mortar

Electromagnetic (EM) properties—dielectric constant and conductivity are changed with porosity and saturation in cement-based materials. In this paper, dielectric constant and conductivity are measured in cement mortar with 5 different mixture conditions considering saturation. For the same mixture proportions, durability tests including porosity, chloride diffusion, air permeability, sorptivity, and water diffusion are performed. Among the continuously measured EM properties within 5–20 GHz of frequency range for different saturation, results under 60% of saturation which shows stable results are selected and averaged as one value. The averaged measurements utilizing results under 60% of saturation are compared with those from durability tests. Through the normalization using the results of W/C 40% which shows best durability performances, changing ratios of durability characteristics are evaluated with normalized dielectric constant and conductivity. The behaviors of EM properties with different saturation and their relationships with durability performances are studied

Facial Image Reconstruction from a Corrupted Image by Support Vector Data Description

This paper proposes a method of automatic facial reconstruction from a facial image partially corrupted by noise or occlusion. There are two key features of this method; the one is the automatic extraction of the correspondences between the corrupted input face and reference face without additional manual tasks; the other is the reconstruction of the complete facial information from corrupted facial information based on these correspondences. In this paper, we propose a non-iterative approach that can match multiple feature points in order to obtain the correspondences between the input image and the reference face. Furthermore, shape and texture of the whole face are reconstructed by SVDD (Support Vector Data Description) from the partial correspondences obtained by matching. The experimental results of facial image reconstructions show that the proposed SVDD-based reconstruction method gives smaller reconstruction errors for a facial image corrupted by Gaussian noise and occlusion than the existing linear projection reconstruction method with a regulation factor. The proposed method also reduces the mean intensity error per pixel by an average of 35 %, especially in the reconstruction of a facial image corrupted by Gaussian noise

REMOTE SENSING OF WAVE DIRECTIONALITY BY TWO-DIMENSIONAL DIRECTIONAL WAVELETS: PART 1. THE DETECTION TOOLS OF DIRECTIONALITY IN SIGNALS

This paper presents the results of a study investigating methods of wave directionality based on wavelet transform. In part 1 of this paper, the theoretical background and characteristics of directional wavelet were discussed. Morlet wavelet and Cauchy wavelet were examined to test their efficiency in detection of directionality in signals. These wavelets were tested on numerical images which were considered to describe the basic characteristics of directionality of ocean waves

Sensitivity Comparison of Open-Circuit Airgap Flux Between Surface-Mounted Permanent Magnet and Spoke-Type Permanent Magnet Machines Considering Manufacturing Tolerances

The study compares the sensitivities of open-circuit airgap flux (OCAF) between a surface-mounted permanent magnet (SPM) machine and a spoke-type PM machine based on variations in airgap length including additional airgaps between permanent magnets and rotor core and between segmented stator cores to achieve high quality electric machines. Analytical equations deduced from magnetic equivalent circuits (MECs) are used to directly compare natural-born characteristics of the OCAF of the two machines. First, the MEC of each machine is modeled by considering two additional airgaps between the PMs and rotor core and between the segmented stator cores. Second, the OCAF equation of each machine is derived from the MEC to analyze the effects of the design variables on the OCAF. Subsequently, the partial derivative equation of the OCAF equation with respect to the airgap length is obtained for sensitivity analysis. A comparison of the equations of the two machines indicates that the spoke-type PM machine exhibits inherently higher sensitivity and average value of the OCAF when compared to that of the SPM machine. Finally, the results are validated via a two-dimensional finite element method (FEM) by considering the variations in airgap lengths

Equivalent Modal Damping of Short-Span Bridges Subjected to Strong Motion

In this paper four different methods are investigated for estimating the equivalent modal damping ratios of a short-span bridge under strong ground motion by considering the energy dissipation at the boundary. The Painter Street Overcrossing (PSO) is investigated because of seismic data availability. Computed responses using the response-spectrum method with the equivalent damping ratios estimates are compared with the recorded responses. The results show that the four methods provide reasonable estimation of equivalent modal damping ratios and that neglecting off-diagonal elements in the damping matrix is the most efficient and practical method. The equivalent damping ratio of the PSO was nearly 25% under an earthquake with peak ground acceleration of 0.55g, which is much higher than the conventional assumption of 5%