Improving safety of runway overrun through the correct numerical evaluation of rutting in Cleared and Graded Areas

Aircraft overrun is potentially very dangerous to human life. Statistics show that overrun is mainly due to human errors causing loss of control in wheel alignment, high approach speed, and long touchdown. To prevent such disastrous consequences, advanced material arresting systems are currently being used in the main international airports for construction of Runway Safety Areas (RSAs). Many predictive models have been developed for controlling overrun events: the early reliable numerical models, on the basis of theoretical streamlined assumptions, were gradually replaced. More rigorous models based on Multibody System (MBS) and Finite Element Method (FEM) theories are nowadays much more preferred. These are characterized by high levels of reliability, even though the large number of data required does not always allow an exhaustive description of the domain of analysis. The paper presents an alternative method for predicting rut depths induced by aircraft overrunning. Such method is based on a numerical streamlined model, integrated with measurements from Light Falling Weight Deflectometer (LFWD), to define, section by section, the mechanical properties of soils in Cleared and Graded Areas (CGAs). The method has been validated through in situ tests, showing its high effectiveness and efficiency

Analytical Models and Artificial Intelligence for Open and Partially Disaggregated Optical Networks

L'abstract è presente nell'allegato / the abstract is in the attachmen

The bright optical companion to the eclipsing millisecond pulsar in NGC 6397

We report the possible optical identification of the companion to the eclipsing millisecond pulsar PSR J1740-5340 in the globular cluster NGC 6397. A bright variable star with an anomalous red colour and optical variability which nicely correlates to the orbital period of the pulsar has been found close to the pulsar position. If confirmed, the optical light curve, reminiscent of tidal distorsions similar to those observed in detached and contact binaries, support the idea that this is the first case of a Roche lobe filling companion to a millisecond pulsar.Comment: 9 pages, 4 embedded figures, submitted to ApJ Letter

Recycling neutron stars to ultra short periods: a statistical analysis of their evolution in the mu-P plane

We investigate the statistical evolution of magnetic neutron stars, recycled in binary systems, simulating synthetic populations. To bracket uncertainties, we consider a soft (FP) and a stiff (PS) equation of state (EoS) for nuclear matter and explore the hypothesis that the magnetic field is confined in the stellar crust. We follow the magneto-rotational evolution within a simple recycling scenario, including the possibility of magnetospheric propeller. We find the presence of a tail in the period distribution of the synthetic populations at periods shorter than 1.558 ms, the minimum detected so far. For the soft EoS the recycling gives rise to a spin distribution which is increasing monotonically toward short periods and a clear ``barrier'' forms at the minimum period for the onset of mass shedding. For the stiff EoS the distribution is flatter displaying a broad maximum about 2-4 ms. The estimated fraction of neutron stars spinning close to their shedding limit over the millisecond pulsar population is found to be significant. Crustal magnetic field decay models predict the existence of massive (M>1.4 M_sun) rapidly spinning neutron stars with very low magnetic moment.Comment: 34 pages, 2 tables, 9 figures, Latex. Accepted (5 Jul 99) for publication in the Astrophysical Journal Supplement

Neutron stars with submillisecond periods: a population of high mass objects?

Fast spinning neutron stars, recycled in low mass binaries, may have accreted a substantial amount of mass. The available relativistic measurements of neutron star masses, all clustering around 1.4 M_sun, however refer mostly to slowly rotating neutron stars which accreted a tiny amount of mass during evolution in a massive binary system. We develop a semi-analytical model for studying the evolution of the spin period P of a magnetic neutron star as a function of the baryonic mass load M_{ac}; evolution is followed down to submillisecond periods and the magnetic field is allowed to decay significantly before the end of recycling. We use different equations of state and include rotational deformation effects, the presence of a strong gravitational field and of a magnetosphere. For the non-magnetic case, comparison with numerical relativistic codes shows the accuracy of our description. The minimum accreted mass requested to spin-up a magnetized 1.35M_sun-neutron star at a few millisecond is 0.05 M_sun, while this value doubles for an unmagnetized neutron star. Below 1 millisecond the request is of at least 0.25 M_sun. There may exist a yet undetected population of massive submillisecond neutron stars. The discovery of a submillisecond neutron star would imply a lower limit for its mass of about 1.7M_sun.Comment: To appear in the Astrophysical Journal, June 199

Looking for undocumented earthquake effects: a probabilistic analysis of Italian macroseismic data

A methodology to detect local incompleteness of macroseismic intensity data at the local scale is presented. In particular, the probability that undocumented effects actually occurred at a site is determined by considering intensity prediction equations (in their probabilistic form) integrated by observations relative to known events documented at surrounding sites. The outcomes of this analysis can be used to investigate how representative and known the seismic histories of localities are (i.e., the list of documented effects through time). The proposed approach is applied to the Italian area. The analysis shows that, at most of the considered sites, the effects of intensity = 6 should most probably have occurred at least once, but they are not contained in the current version of the Italian macroseismic databases. In a few cases, instead, the lack of data may concern higher intensity levels (i.e., =8). The geographical distribution of potentially lost information reflects the heterogeneity of the seismic activity over the Italian territory

Investigation of mechanical properties of pavement through electromagnetic techniques

Ground-penetrating radar (GPR) is considered as one of the most flexible geophysical tools that can be effectively and efficiently used in many different applications. In the field of pavement engineering, GPR can cover a wide range of uses, spanning from physical to geometrical inspections of pavements. Traditionally, such inferred information are integrated with mechanical measurements from other traditional (e.g. plate bearing test) or non-destructive (e.g. falling weight deflectometer) techniques, thereby resulting, respectively, in time-consuming and low-significant measurements, or in a high use of technological resources. In this regard, the new challenge of retrieving mechanical properties of road pavements and materials from electromagnetic measurements could represent a further step towards a greater saving of economic resources. As far as concerns unpaved and bound layers it is well-known that strength and deformation properties are mostly affected, respectively, by inter-particle friction and cohesion of soil particles and aggregates, and by bitumen adhesion, whose variability is expressed by the Young modulus of elasticity. In that respect, by assuming a relationship between electromagnetic response (e.g. signal amplitudes) and bulk density of materials, a reasonable correlation between mechanical and electric properties of substructure is therefore expected. In such framework, a pulse GPR system with ground-coupled antennae, 600 MHz and 1600 MHz centre frequencies was used over a 4-m×30-m test site composed by a flexible pavement structure. The horizontal sampling resolution amounted to 2.4×10-2 m. A square regular grid mesh of 836 nodes with a 0.40-m spacing between the GPR acquisition tracks was surveyed. Accordingly, a light falling weight deflectometer (LFWD) was used for measuring the elastic modulus of pavement at each node. The setup of such instrument consisted of a 10-kg falling mass and a 100-mm loading plate so that the influence domain of the elasticity measure could be comparable to that of the radar signal. Good agreement were found between high Young modulus values and repaved zones, whereas damaged areas were characterized by lower values of E. Tomographic maps of amplitudes along the z axis were extracted up to a depth of z < 200 mm, consistent with the depth domain of the LFWD, and some values on the nodes were randomly selected and thus related to the corresponding elastic modulus both for calibration and validation of the model. Comparison between predicted and measured elastic modulus showed relatively good results. Percentage errors ranging from -44% and +34% demonstrated an overall underestimate of the model with respect to the real truth. Future research activities could be addressed towards an improvement of the model by calibrating in laboratory environment under controlled conditions, and by using different GPR centre frequencies of investigation. This work benefited from networking activities carried out within the EU funded COST Action TU1208 “Civil Engineering Applications of Ground Penetrating Radar”

GPR-based evaluation of strength properties of unbound pavement material from electrical characteristics

It is well known that inter-particle friction and cohesion of soil particles and aggregates deeply affect the strength and deformation properties of soils, exerting critical effects on the bearing capacity of unbound pavement materials. In that respect, considering that strength characteristics of soil are highly dependent on particle interactions, and assuming a relationship between electric properties (e.g. electric permittivity) and bulk density of materials, a good correlation between mechanical and electric characteristics of soil is expected. In this work, Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) techniques are used to investigate this topic. Two GPR equipment with same electronic characteristics and different survey configurations are used. Each radar operates with two ground-coupled antennae at 600 MHz and 1600 MHz central frequencies. Measurements are developed using 4 channels, 2 mono-static and 2 bi-static. The received signal is sampled in the time domain at dt = 7.8125 × 10−2 ns, and in the space domain every 2.4 × 10−2 m. A semi-empirical model is proposed for predicting the resilient modulus of sub-asphalt layers from GPR-derived data. Basically, the method requires to follow two steps. Firstly, laboratory tests are carried out for calibration, with the main focus to provide consistent empirical relationships between physical (e.g. bulk density) and electric properties. The second step is focused on the in-situ validation of results through soil strength measurements retrieved by CBR tests and Light Falling Weight Deflectometer (LFWD). On the basis of traditional empirical equations used for flexible pavement design, the following expression is proposed, where Ei [MPa] is the ith expected resilient modulus of the surveyed soil under the line of scan, hj,i [m] is the i th thickness referred to the j th layer, and αj is a dielectric parameter calibrated as a function of the relative electric permittivity. The experimental setting requires the use of road material, typically employed for subgrade and subbase courses. Different types of soil ranging from group A1 to A4 by AASHTO soil classification system, are analyzed. As regards the laboratory experiments, material is gradually compacted in electrically and hydraulically isolated test boxes. A large metal sheet supports the experimental boxes, so that the transmitted GPR signal is totally reflected. GPR inspections are carried out for any compaction step up to the maximum density value available. Moreover, in-situ tests are carried out on targeted types of soil, with grain size distribution and texture comparable to those analyzed in laboratory environment. The results of this study confirm a promising correlation between the electric permittivities and the strength and deformation properties of the surveyed soils. Laboratory analyses show that the relationship between the relative permittivity and the bulk density is positive: the higher the density of the compacted soil sample, the higher the electric permittivity of the medium. Analogously, in-situ validation presents a good comparison between measured and predicted data. Percentage errors less than 20% demonstrate that a reliable prediction of Young Modulus using this GPR-based approach can be achieved

GPR-based evaluation of strength properties of unbound pavement material from electrical characteristics

It is well known that inter-particle friction and cohesion of soil particles and aggregates deeply affect the strength and deformation properties of soils, exerting critical effects on the bearing capacity of unbound pavement materials. In that respect, considering that strength characteristics of soil are highly dependent on particle interactions, and assuming a relationship between electric properties (e.g. electric permittivity) and bulk density of materials, a good correlation between mechanical and electric characteristics of soil is expected. In this work, Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) techniques are used to investigate this topic. Two GPR equipment with same electronic characteristics and different survey configurations are used. Each radar operates with two ground-coupled antennae at 600 MHz and 1600 MHz central frequencies. Measurements are developed using 4 channels, 2 mono-static and 2 bi-static. The received signal is sampled in the time domain at dt = 7.8125 × 10−2 ns, and in the space domain every 2.4 × 10−2 m. A semi-empirical model is proposed for predicting the resilient modulus of sub-asphalt layers from GPR-derived data. Basically, the method requires to follow two steps. Firstly, laboratory tests are carried out for calibration, with the main focus to provide consistent empirical relationships between physical (e.g. bulk density) and electric properties. The second step is focused on the in-situ validation of results through soil strength measurements retrieved by CBR tests and Light Falling Weight Deflectometer (LFWD). On the basis of traditional empirical equations used for flexible pavement design, the following expression is proposed, where Ei [MPa] is the ith expected resilient modulus of the surveyed soil under the line of scan, hj,i [m] is the i th thickness referred to the j th layer, and αj is a dielectric parameter calibrated as a function of the relative electric permittivity. The experimental setting requires the use of road material, typically employed for subgrade and subbase courses. Different types of soil ranging from group A1 to A4 by AASHTO soil classification system, are analyzed. As regards the laboratory experiments, material is gradually compacted in electrically and hydraulically isolated test boxes. A large metal sheet supports the experimental boxes, so that the transmitted GPR signal is totally reflected. GPR inspections are carried out for any compaction step up to the maximum density value available. Moreover, in-situ tests are carried out on targeted types of soil, with grain size distribution and texture comparable to those analyzed in laboratory environment. The results of this study confirm a promising correlation between the electric permittivities and the strength and deformation properties of the surveyed soils. Laboratory analyses show that the relationship between the relative permittivity and the bulk density is positive: the higher the density of the compacted soil sample, the higher the electric permittivity of the medium. Analogously, in-situ validation presents a good comparison between measured and predicted data. Percentage errors less than 20% demonstrate that a reliable prediction of Young Modulus using this GPR-based approach can be achieved