Sharif Digital Repository

The blade element momentum (BEM) theory is based on the actuator disc (AD) model, which is probably the oldest analytical tool for analysing rotor performance. The BEM codes have very short processing times and high reliability. The problems of the analytical codes are well known to the researchers: the impossibility of describing inside the one-dimensional code the three-dimensional (3D) radial flows along the span-wise direction. In this work, the authors show how the 3D centrifugal pumping affects the BEM calculations of a wind turbine rotor. Actually to ascertain the accuracy of the analytical codes, the results are compared with rotor performance, blade loads and particle image... 

Recently, various approaches have been introduced to estimate the response of offshore structures in different sea states by stepwisely intensifying records. In this article, a more practical approach entitled Modified Endurance Wave Analysis (MEWA) considering the random and probabilistic nature of wave loading and utilizing optimal time duration is introduced. Generation procedure of this approach is described based on two practical wave theories: random and constrained new-wave. In addition, assessment of a simplified model representing a typical fixed offshore platform under extreme wave conditions in the Persian Gulf is performed making use of MEWA. A comparative analysis has been also... 

In this paper a finite volume (FV) numerical method is implemented to solve a Biot consolidation model with discontinuous coefficients. Our studies show that the FV scheme leads to a locally mass conservative approach which removes pressure oscillations especially along the interface between materials with different properties and yields higher accuracy for the flow and mechanics parameters. Then this numerical discretization is utilized to investigate different sequential strategies with various degrees of coupling including: iteratively, explicitly and loosely coupled methods. A comprehensive study is performed on the stability, accuracy and rate of convergence of all of these sequential... 

Using a second receiver antenna close to the main transceiver antenna of inverse synthetic aperture radar (ISAR), it is possible to find 3-D positions of target scattering points. Such system is called bistatic, monopulse, or interferometric ISAR (InISAR). In the conventional model of ISAR, the unknown flying object should have a linear trajectory, and only small deviations from this trajectory can be compensated. Target motions which are highly nonlinear or curvy cannot be used in the conventional model. In this paper, we propose a new model for InISAR to process all collected data from the target, regardless of the form of the flight path. More accuracy is achieved for 3-D positioning of... 

Preloading is a popular technique in ground improvement works on soft compressible soils. Observational methods such as the Asaoka or hyperbolic methods are widely used in practical applications to assess final settlement and the degree of consolidation during preloading. In this paper it is argued that the major cause of inaccuracy in the final settlement predicted by the Asaoka method, especially in the early stages of preloading (short assessment periods), is neglect of the effects of creep in Asaoka's solution. This may also be the cause of the lack of agreement between observational methods and the piezometer method at higher degrees of consolidation. In this paper a method is proposed... 

A large number of offshore platforms of various types have been installed in deep or shallow waters throughout the world. These structures are mainly made of tubular members which are interconnected by using tubular joints. In tubular frames, joints may exhibit considerable flexibility in both elastic and plastic range of response. The resulting flexibility may have marked effects on the overall behavior of offshore platforms.This paper investigates the effects of joint flexibility on local and global behavior of tubular framed structures in linear range of response. A new joint flexibility element is developed on the basis of flexibility matrix and implemented in a finite-element program to... 

In this study, a well-known Computational Fluid Dynamics software, so-called Fire Dynamics Simulator (FDS), has been used to simulate multiple ethanol pool fire scenarios. Influences and reciprocal impacts in terms of dynamics and growth of the pool fires have been investigated. Heat release rates temperature and flame shapes have been monitored as the main outputs of the simulations. Based on the simulation results, it can be concluded that the amounts of mass burning rate, the radiation energy and the pool fire flame height were significantly higher in multiple pool fires, when compared with the theoretical values obtained by the mere summation of single pool fires. Furthermore, the... 

Remote sensing is an effective tool for capturing spatial and temporal variations of water surface temperature (WST) in large lakes. The WST of Urmia Lake in northwestern Iran was examined from 2007 to 2010, using MODIS land surface temperature (LST) products. Spatial and temporal (diurnal, monthly, seasonal and inter-annual) variations of Urmia Lake WST were also investigated. Results indicate that the MODIS-derived WSTs are in a good agreement with the in situ data (R2=0.92 and bias=-0.27). Spatial analysis of WST revealed that there are three thermal zones along the lake: the shallow region in barriers of the causeway, islands and the shoreline; the south part; and the deep north parts.... 

This paper presents a detailed frequency-domain system identification method applied to identify steering dynamics of a coastal patrol vessel using a data analysis software called CIFER. Advanced features such as the Chirp-Z transform and composite window optimization are used to extract high quality frequency responses. An accurate, robust and linear transfer function model is derived for yaw and roll dynamics of the vessel. To evaluate the accuracy of the identified model, time domain responses from a 45-45 zig-zag test are compared with the responses predicted by the identified model. The identified model shows excellent predictive capability and is well suited for simulation and... 

A recent method in the seismic assessment of structures is Endurance Time Analysis (ETA). ETA is a time-history-based dynamic pushover procedure, in which structures are subjected to gradually intensifying acceleration functions called Endurance Time Acceleration Functions (ETAFs), and their performances are evaluated based on the equivalent intensity level that they can endure while satisfying required performance goals. In this paper, the accuracy of the ETA in the seismic assessment of steel moment resisting frames is compared with the Time History Analysis (THA) and Incremental Dynamic Analysis (IDA) methods. For this purpose, a set of mid-rise and high-rise frames were selected as a... 

This paper presents the results of parametric analyses of the yielding moment (My) of Bolted Flush Endplate Beam (BFEB) splice connections using Finite Element Modeling (FEM) tools. The connection components were modeled using three-dimensional brick elements, while contact between the endplates was modeled using Coulomb friction. Materials for beam, endplate and bolts were considered to behave non-linearly. Finite element results with three experimental and numerical studies were compared, and all indicated good agreement, which is also briefly reviewed in this paper. Using verified FEM, fairly large parametric studies, based on the practical configuration of BFEB connections, were carried... 

An analytical study using Variational Iteration Method (VIM) is carried out in order to investigate the vibrations of electro-statically actuated double-clamped and simply-supported microbeams. Effects of applied voltage and residual axial load on the nonlinear natural frequency and deflection of the microbeams are studied. It shows that pre-compression in microbeams increases the amplitude of deflections for a specific applied voltage. Also, an increase in pre-tension motivates the microbeam to show more nonlinear behavior in an applied voltage. Predicted results are compared with the experimental data available in the literature and also with numerical results which shows a good agreement.... 

This paper presents an innovative hybrid approach for the estimation of the solar global radiation. New prediction equations were developed for the global radiation using an integrated search method of genetic programming (GP) and simulated annealing (SA), called GP/SA. The solar radiation was formulated in terms of several climatological and meteorological parameters. Comprehensive databases containing monthly data collected for 6 years in two cities of Iran were used to develop GP/SA-based models. Separate models were established for each city. The generalization of the models was verified using a separate testing database. A sensitivity analysis was conducted to investigate the... 

Global Motion Estimation (GME) has many important roles in numerous applications, such as video compression, image stabilization, video-object segmentation, and etc. One well-known GME method is the gradient-based technique. This method uses optimization techniques, like the Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm, to minimize estimation error. Such algorithms require an initial value for the initializing step. In this paper, we propose a simple and reliable GME structure with a new predictor. This structure uses a three-step search and a predictor for the initializing step. It is also incorporated with a fast GME method that uses pixel subsampling. This incorporation reduces the computational... 

Accurate prediction of static and dynamic response of nano structures under external excitations has been one of the interests of scientists in the last decade. Several applications of nano machines make it necessary to analyze their components, such as nano bearing, precisely. In this paper, the static and vibrational behavior of a fullerene as a sensitive part of nano bearing under external forces is simulated by a newly designed spherical super element. This super element is designed in such a way that the user can select as many numbers of nodes as desired, so that it can be implemented in different desired precisions. In this study, a 228-node super element, which is similar to a hollow... 

Accurate estimation of scour depth is needed for economic and safe determination of bridge pier foundation depth. Most design criteria are based on maximum scour depth due to the steady design discharge without flow time limit. In this paper, the results are presented of an experimental investigation on local scouring around a single bridge pier under steady and unsteady flow regimes. For unsteady flow, triangular shape hydrographs with repeatable peaks have been chosen. Results show that both sharp and flat increases to the peak of hydrographs have a negligible effect on scour depth for the same base time. An equation is obtained to compute the scour depth due to a specific triangular... 

The equations of motion for a beam on a flying support for EulerBernoulli and Timoshenko Beam Theories is derived. In modeling and attempting to have an accurate model at high speeds, a stretch variable instead of conventional axial deformation is used. For a planar rotating beam and a spatial rotating beam, equations of motion are lineralized and verified. Finite element and Newmark direct integration methods are employed for numerical simulations  

Structural systems will normally fail as a consequence of a chain of different components failure es. In this paper, fatigue reliability of fixed offshore platforms is investigated by analyzing different failure scenarios. In order to evaluate the occurrence probability of a special scenario, it is divided into a finite number of sub-scenarios. All combinations of time sequences are generated for a given sequence of failures, using a specially developed program. In order to calculate the occurrence probability of each scenario, a massive reliability analysis should be done for each of corresponding sub-scenarios. A large number of sub-scenarios should be analyzed, therefore implementing time... 

Bolted Column Base Plate (BCBP) connections are widely used to connect steel columns to the concrete foundations. This paper conducts a parametric study on the initial stiffness of bolted base plate with Square Hollow Section (SHS) column connection, through an extended 3-D Finite Element Modeling (FEM). Different features of the connection such as material behavior, geometric details, typical contact phenomena and large displacements are also considered in the modeling. A comparison between experimental test and FEM is carried out to illustrate the ability of the numerical method to simulate the connection behavior. An analytical explanation on the initial stiffness of the connection is... 

This paper presents a nonlinear model to illustrate the effect of contact stress in the vibration behavior of mechanical components, especially rotating systems. The problem is considered in the case of the vertical vibration of a sphere on a plate. The Hertzian contact theory is used to obtain the relationship between contact force and the deflection of the mass center of the sphere. Modeling the system by a mass and a nonlinear spring, the vibration equation of the mass center of the sphere is derived. The method of LindstedtPoincar is implemented to solve the equation of motion, and obtain vibration characteristics under a compressive preload. The dependency of frequency on several...