New Challenges to Trajectory Design by the Use of Electric Propulsion and Other New Means of Wandering in the Solar System

The design of spacecraft trajectories is a crucial part of a space mission design. Often the mission goal is tightly related to the spacecraft trajectory. A geostationary orbit is indeed mandatory for a stationary equatorial position. Visiting a solar system planet implies that a proper trajectory is used to bring the spacecraft from Earth to the vicinity of the planet. The first planetary missions were based on conventional trajectories obtained with chemical engine rockets. The manoeuvres could be considered 'impulsive' and clear limitations to the possible missions were set by the energy required to reach certain orbits. The gravity-assist trajectories opened a new way of wandering through the solar system, by exploiting the gravitational field of some planets. The advent of other propulsion techniques, as electric or ion propulsion and solar sail, opened a new dimension to the planetary trajectory, while at the same time posing new challenges. These 'low thrust' propulsion techniques cannot be considered 'impulsive' anymore and require for their study mathematical techniques which are substantially different from before. The optimisation of such trajectories is also a new field of flight dynamics, which involves complex treatments especially in multi-revolution cases as in a lunar transfer trajectory. One advantage of these trajectories is that they allow to explore regions of space where different bodies gravitationally compete with each other. We can exploit therefore these gravitational perturbations to save fuel or reduce time of flight. The SMART-1 spacecraft, first European mission to the Moon, will test for the first time all these techniques. The paper is a summary report on various activities conducted by the project team in these areas.     

RGB-D SLAM在室内高精度三维测图中的应用

高精度三维测图是室内三维制图的重要支撑,基于三维激光雷达扫描技术的三维测图成本高,需要提前布置标靶,在室内复杂环境中易导致数据不完整;基于图像序列的三维重建建模时间长,易受多种因素影响。针对以上问题,本文将RGB-D SLAM技术应用于室内高精度三维测图中。通过将深度相机与SLAM技术相结合,计算相机位姿并恢复三维空间信息,获取室内三维点云模型,并以目标物实际量测为基准评价密集点云精度。试验结果表明,该方法可快速获取精度较高的三维点云模型,成本低且效率高,能够较好地满足应用需求。     

Pile response and free field vibrations due to low strain dynamic loading

This paper presents the results of in situ measurements during dynamic pile testing at a construction site in Louvain-la-Neuve. Main objectives are the investigation of the pile response and the free field vibrations due to low strain dynamic loading on a single cast in situ pile with a 5.5 kg hammer impact on the pile head. Whereas low strain testing is usually performed to assess the integrity of the pile as a structural member, this study focuses on both pile and ground vibrations. The pile head response and ground motions are measured with accelerometers during different blows with the impact hammer. The dynamic characteristics of the soil are determined with a SASW test. Experimental results are compared with predictions obtained with a coupled finite element–boundary element model. The computed pile head and free field response show a good correspondence with the measured response. In addition, the static stiffness of the pile estimated by means of the mobility function shows a very good agreement with the value calculated by an analytical formulation.     

A case study of damages of the Kandla Port and Customs Office tower supported on a mat–pile foundation in liquefied soils under the 2001 Bhuj earthquake

A case study is presented of the interaction between the bending due to laterally spreading forces and axial-load induced settlement on the piled foundations of the Kandla Port and Customs Tower located in Kandla Port, India, during the 2001 Bhuj earthquake. The 22 m tall tower had an eccentric mass at the roof and was supported on a piled-raft foundation that considerably tilted away as was observed in the aftermath of the earthquake. The soil at the site consists of 10 m of clay overlaid by a 12 m deep sandy soil layer. Post-earthquake investigation revealed the following: (a) liquefaction of the deep sandy soil strata below the clay layer; (b) settlement of the ground in the vicinity of the building; (c) lateral spreading of the nearby ground towards the sea front. The foundation of the tower consists of 0.5 m thick concrete mat and 32 piles. The piles are 18 m long and therefore passes through 10 m of clayey soil and rested on liquefiable soils. Conventional analysis of a single pile or a pile group, without considering the raft foundation would predict a severe tilting and/or settlement of the tower eventually leading to a complete collapse. It has been concluded that the foundation mat over the non-liquefied crust shared a considerable amount of load of the superstructure and resisted the complete collapse of the building.     

前进中的青海省工程地震研究院

青海省工程地震研究院是青海省地震局下属具有独立法人资格的全民所有制科技开发企业,是地震工程、岩土工程和环境地质领域从事科研、生产、人才培养的经济实体,具有建设工程地震安全性评价、桩基检测甲级资质,岩土工程勘察、咨询乙级资质,地质灾害危险性评估丙级资质。经过十余年的发展,从队伍建设、能力建设作业绩等方面,都取得了长足的进步。     

Calibration of a semi-distributed model for conjunctive simulation of surface and groundwater flows / Calage d’un modèle semi-distribué pour la simulation conjointe d’écoulements superficiels et souterrains

Abstract

Abstract A hydrological simulation model was developed for conjunctive representation of surface and groundwater processes. It comprises a conceptual soil moisture accounting module, based on an enhanced version of the Thornthwaite model for the soil moisture reservoir, a Darcian multi-cell groundwater flow module and a module for partitioning water abstractions among water resources. The resulting integrated scheme is highly flexible in the choice of time (i.e. monthly to daily) and space scales (catchment scale, aquifer scale). Model calibration involved successive phases of manual and automatic sessions. For the latter, an innovative optimization method called evolutionary annealing-simplex algorithm is devised. The objective function involves weighted goodness-of-fit criteria for multiple variables with different observation periods, as well as penalty terms for restricting unrealistic water storage trends and deviations from observed intermittency of spring flows. Checks of the unmeasured catchment responses through manually changing parameter bounds guided choosing final parameter sets. The model is applied to the particularly complex Boeoticos Kephisos basin, Greece, where it accurately reproduced the main basin response, i.e. the runoff at its outlet, and also other important components. Emphasis is put on the principle of parsimony which resulted in a computationally effective modelling. This is crucial since the model is to be integrated within a stochastic simulation framework.     

Strategy for consistent model parameter calibration for soft soils using multi-objective optimisation

Constitutive models for soft soils require a large number of parameters to model the complex material response. One set of parameters should capture the soil response for various laboratory & in situ stress paths. This requires a new method to calibrate a consistent set of model parameters using test data from different load paths of classic geomechanical tests. The feasibility of the proposed method is demonstrated with the recently developed CREEP-SCLAY1S model. After a sensitivity analysis that highlights the model parameters for optimisation, an optimisation process for two different configurations is designed. The latter is successfully verified against artificially generated laboratory data.     

Interpretation from large-scale shake table tests on piles undergoing lateral spreading in liquefied soils

Results from a benchmark test on full-scale piles are used to investigate the response of piles to lateral spreading. In the experiment, two single piles, a relatively flexible pile that moves together with the surrounding soil and a relatively stiff pile that does not follow the ground movement have been subjected to large post-liquefaction ground displacement simulating piles in laterally spreading soils. The observed response of the piles is first presented and then the results are used to examine the lateral loads on the pile from a non-liquefied soil at the ground surface and to evaluate the stiffness characteristics of the spreading soils. The measured ultimate lateral pressure from the crust soil on the stiff pile was about 4.5 times the Rankine passive pressure. The back-calculated stiffness of the liquefied soil was found to be in the range between 1/30 and 1/80 of the initial stiffness of the soil showing gradual decrease in the course of lateral spreading.     

Shaking table tests on the lateral response of a pile buried in liquefied sand

This paper presents an experimental study on the lateral resistance of a pile subjected to liquefaction-induced lateral flow. To observe the soil surrounding the pile during liquefaction, it was modeled as a buried cylinder that corresponded to a sectional model of the prototype pile at a certain depth in the subsoil. In order to create a realistic stress condition in the model ground, the model was prepared in a sealed container and the overburden pressure was applied to the ground surface by a rubber pressure bag. The model pile was actuated back and forth through rods attached on each side by an electro-hydraulic actuator.This paper focuses on observing the deformation of the liquefied soil surrounding the pile when a large relative displacement between the pile and the soil is induced. The loading rate effect on the lateral resistance of the pile in the liquefied sand and the influence of the relative density are also investigated.Test results show that a larger resistance is mobilized as the loading rate becomes higher. When the loading rate is higher, the cylinder displacement required for the lateral resistance becomes smaller. It has been also observed that as the relative density of the soil increases, dilatancy of the soil in front of the pile also increases.     

减少动测法确定单桩承载力误差的有关途径

通过比较静载与动力试验(大、小应变)两种方法在确定单桩承载力方面的区别,分析不同测试方法所存在的误差;对减少误差的途径及提高动、静对比效果等问题进行讨论。同时本文还研究了桩基质量对桩、土受力体系的影响及其与承载力的关系等问题,有关结果提高检测水平具有一定意义。