Sharif Digital Repository

In this paper, the application of an actuator wire made of shape memory alloy (SMA) and externally attached to a cantilever beam is analyzed. To this end, an integrated model that includes the constitutive equations of the SMA, the phase transformation equations from martensite to austenite and vice versa, the heat transfer equation for the SMA that also includes the input energy from an electric source, and the equations of the elastic deformation of the cantilever beam as well as the SMA wire, is presented. The simultaneous solution of the mentioned set of equations can result in the evaluation of the system response to an electrical activation of SMA  

A significant amount of research on self-consolidating concrete (SCC) technology has been devoted to evaluating the suitability of the material for its use in structural applications. However, more research is required to confirm the adequacy of SCC structural members for resisting gravity and seismic loads. This study focuses on the experimental investigation of the seismic performance of interior reinforced concrete beam-column connections with SCC. Four beam-column connection specimens, three with SCC and one with normally vibrated concrete (NC), were designed for this experimental study. Factors such as concrete type (SCC or NC) and axial load ratio (0, 7.5 and 15 % of column section... 

In this study, an accurate analytical solution for Duffing equations with cubic and quintic nonlinearities is obtained using the Homotopy Analysis Method (HAM) and Homotopy Pade technique. Novel and accurate analytical solutions for the frequency and displacement are derived. Comparison between the obtained results and numerical solutions shows that only the first order approximation of the Homotopy Pade technique leads to accurate solution with a maximum relative error less than 0.4%. © 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved  

Dynamic behavior of a laminated composite beam (LCB) supported by a generalized Pasternak-type viscoelastic foundation, subjected to a moving two-degree-of-freedom (DOFs) oscillator with a constant axial velocity is studied. Analytical solution using the Galerkin method is sought and the couplings of the bending-tension, shear-tension, and bending-twist with the Poisson effect are considered. The possible separation of the moving oscillator from LCB during the course of motion is investigated by monitoring the contact force between the oscillator and LCB. The effects of the non-rigid foundation, oscillator parameters, and the load speed on the separation are also studied. It is found that... 

In this paper, free vibration analysis of cross-ply layered composite beams (LCB) with finite length and rectangular cross-section rested on an elastic foundation is investigated by finite element method. Based on the Timoshenko beam theory which includes the shear deformation and rotary inertia, the stiffness and mass matrices of a LCB are obtained using the energy method. Then, the natural frequencies are calculated by employing eigenvalue technique. The obtained results are verified against existing data in the literatures for a LCB with no foundation and uniform cross-section. Good agreements are observed between these cases. In the same way, the natural frequencies of a specific case,... 

The constitutive equation of an Euler-Bernoulli beam under the excitation of moving mass is considered. The dynamics of the uncontrolled system is governed by a linear, self-adjoint partial differential equation. A Dirac-delta function is used to describe the position of the moving mass along the beam and its inertial effects. An approximate formulation to the problem is obtained by limiting the inertial effect of the moving mass merely to the vertical component of acceleration. Having defined a "critical velocity" in terms of the fundamental period and span of the beam, it is shown that for smaller velocities, the approximate and exact approaches to the problem almost coincide. Since, the... 

This paper investigates the static and dynamic characteristics of composite thin-walled beams that are constructed from a single-cell box. The structural model considered herein incorporates a number of nonclassical effects, such as material anisotropy, transverse shear, warping inhibition, nonuniform torsional model and rotary inertia. The governing equations were derived using extended Hamilton's principle and solved using extended Galerkin's method. The effects of fiber orientation on static deflection and natural frequencies are considered and a number of important conclusions are outlined. © 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved  

In this paper the equation of motion and corresponding boundary conditions has been developed for forced bending vibration analysis of a beam with an open edge crack. A uniform Euler-Bernoulli beam and the Hamilton principle have been used in this research. The natural frequencies and the forced response of this beam have been obtained using the new developed model in conjunction with the Galerkin projection method. The crack has been modeled as a continuous disturbance function in displacement filed which could be obtained from fracture mechanics. The results show that the first natural frequency will reduce when the crack depth ratio increases. Also the rate of this reduction depends on... 

This paper presents results of an experimental study to evaluate a new retrofit technique for strengthening shear deficient short concrete beams and columns. In this technique a mortar jacket reinforced with expanded steel meshes is used for retrofitting. Twelve short reinforced concrete specimens, including eight retrofitted ones, were tested. Six specimens were tested under a constant compressive axial force of 15% of column axial load capacity based on original concrete gross section, Ag, and the concrete compressive strength, fc′. Main variables were the spacing of ties in original specimens and the volume fraction of expanded metal in jackets. Original specimens failed before reaching... 

This paper presents the results of an experimental study on retrofitting RC beams using FRP strengthening and RC jacketing. Three-point loadings are applied to twelve strengthened beams and three reference specimens to put the two techniques into perspective. Formation of first cracks, FRP debonding, and onset of concrete crushing are compared and discussed. Load-deflection behavior, failure modes, and crack propagation patterns are studied extensively. The experiments demonstrate that the RC jacketed beams exhibit a flexural failure identical to the reference beams. However, the FRP strengthened beams fail in a relatively small deflection due to the premature FRP debonding. Furthermore, the... 

In this paper, the semi-rigid connections, such as Double-angle Web (DW) connections, which are welded to the beam web and bolted to the column ange, are investigated. This study tries to establish the eect of clearance setback between beam end and column ange and/or web. When the beam rotates, it is desirable to avoid bottom ange of the beam bearing against the column as this can induce large forces on the connection. The usual way of achieving this is to ensure that the connection extends at least a few millimeters beyond the end of beam. For this purpose, several connections are designed and considered based on two dierent shear capacities for the beam. For each connection, two dierent... 

The presented studies have been conducted on the scope and magnitude of damages inflicted by earthquakes over the years. Many RC buildings, designed and constructed in the 1960s and 1970s, have serious structural deficiencies, especially in their beam-column joints. Such deficiencies result from inadequate joint shear strength or confinement of column reinforcement. The joints require elaborate retrofit measures to ensure the performances comparable to those of new designed structures. In this research, a new seismic retrofitting method is presented for beam-column joints based on the two-dimensional enlargement of the joint by using steel plate, angles, and posttensioning rods. The seismic... 

Double-web angle connection is one of the most rudimentary connections in simple structural systems such as braced frame system. It is essentially presumed in conventional designs that double-web angle connection behaves as a hinge connection. However, in braced frames, due to existence of braces in some bays, in specified locations where gusset plates of brace are placed with beam-to-column connection in one joint, this assumption may not be accurate. This is due to the restraining of the beam from rotation by gusset plates that are placed either on the top and bottom of the beam or only on one side. In such cases, the simple beam-to-column connection may be transformed into a semi-hinge or... 

Although many researchers have studied the vibration and buckling behavior of porous materials, the behavior of porous nanobeams is still a needed issue to be studied. This paper is focused on the buckling and nonlinear vibration of functionally graded (FG) porous nanobeam for the first time. Nonlinear Von Kármán strains are put into consideration to study the nonlinear behavior of nanobeam based on the Euler–Bernoulli beam theory. The nonlocal Eringen’s theory is used to study the size effects. The mechanical properties of ceramic and metal are used to model the functionally graded material through thickness, and the boundary conditions are considered as clamped–clamped (CC) and simply... 

Using Hamilton's principle the coupled nonlinear partial differential motion equations of a flying 3D Euler-Bernoulli beam are derived. Stress is treated three dimensionally regardless of in-plane and out-of-plane warpings of cross-section. Tension, compression, twisting, and spatial deflections are nonlinearly coupled to each other. The flying support of the beam has three translational and three rotational degrees of freedom. The beam is made of a linearly elastic isotropic material and is dynamically modeled much more accurately than a nonlinear 3D Euler-Bernoulli beam. The accuracy is caused by two new elastic terms that are lost in the conventional nonlinear 3D Euler-Bernoulli beam... 

A new shear strengthening method involving post-tensioning of the critical shear region of reinforced concrete beams is investigated. Thirty-one experiments were carried out using 24 specimens. Theoretical load-deflection relations are obtained from moment-curvature analysis using fiber cross sections and taking into consideration the effects of different concrete confinements along the beam length. A theoretical shear strength model that includes three shear resisting components in the critical shear region of the strengthened beams is provided. Experimental results from beams with and without shear strengthening are compared with calculated load-deflection relations and predicted shear... 

Early detection of structural damage is an important goal of any structural health monitoring system. Among numerous data analysis techniques, those which are used for online damage detection have received considerable attention recently, although the problem of online detection in continuous structures, for example beams, is quite challenging. In this paper, it is shown how the type, the size and the location of breathing cracks are identified online with the use of the records which are gathered from a continuous beam. For determining the existence of a breathing crack in a beam, its vibrating behavior is simulated. The algorithm of the least square estimation with the use of adaptive... 

This paper presents a novel approach for the analysis of a fourth-order parabolic equation dealing with vibration of beams by using the decomposition method. In this regard, a general approach based on the generalized Fourier series expansion is applied. The obtained analytic solution is simplified in terms of a given set of orthogonal basis functions. The result is compared with the classical modal analysis technique which is widely used in the field of structural dynamics. It is shown that the result of the decomposition method leads to an exact closed-form solution which is equivalent to the result obtained by the modal analysis method. Some examples are given to demonstrate the validity... 

In this paper, a new finite element model for a generally laminated composite beam (LCB) is presented. Natural frequencies of a generally LCB are derived by developing the stiffness and mass matrices considering the effects of axial force, shear and torsional deformations and rotary inertia. This model includes coupling of bending and torsional modes of deformations which is usually present in LCBs due to ply orientation. The model is designed in such away that it can be used for single and double stepped crosssection. Comparing numerical results for simple cases with analytical solutions and literature indicate high accurate and quick response of the model. Copyright © 2006 by ASME  

The vibration of a simply supported beam with rotary springs at either ends is studied. The governing equations of motion are investigated considering the nonlinear effect of stretching. These equations are made non-dimensional and then solved to first order approximation using the two methods of the multiple scales and the mode summation. The first five natural frequencies of the beam for few pairs of the boundary condition parameters are evaluated. A multilayer feed-forward back-propagation artificial neural network is trained using these natural frequencies. The artificial neural network used in this study shows high degree of accuracy for the natural frequency of the beam with general...