Advances in the fatigue assessment of wire ropes

This paper presents the findings from an in-depth analysis of the (axial) stiffness data recorded during tension–tension fatigue tests on wire ropes, particularly in relation to how changes in stiffness during testing relate to changes in rope strength. A linear relationship between stiffness and strength is shown to exist and a methodology presented for quantifying residual strength with applied cycles. New lower bound fatigue lines for six-strand rope and spiral strand are presented which are based on a 10% loss of strength. These new lines have the advantage of having been established using a common discard criterion for wire ropes.     

Determination of silica sand stiffness

Site investigation and evaluation of properties of soil or rock are important aspects of geotechnical design. Determination of the ground stiffness is one of the important parameters in geotechnical engineering. Since the measurement of shear modulus is very sensitive to soil disturbance, especially for sand, determination of the stiffness of soil in the field is more reliable than in laboratory tests on sampled specimens. Measurement of shear modulus is one of the most common applications of self-boring pressuremeter testing. As an in situ device, the pressuremeter provides a unique method for assessing directly the in situ shear modulus of a soil. This paper describes a laboratory study of silica sand stiffness, which varies with stress level and strain amplitude. The results show that the elastic shear modulus value is mainly dependent on the value of the mean effective stress and relative density.     

Efficient analysis of pile-group effect on seismic stiffness and strength design of buildings

A new efficient method is developed for the analysis of pile-group effects on the seismic stiffness and strength design of buildings with pile foundations. An efficient continuum model consisting of a dynamic Winkler-type soil element and a pile is used to express the dynamic behavior of the structure-pile-soil system with only a small numerical error. The pile-group effect is taken into account through the influence coefficients among piles which are defined for interstory drifts and pile-head bending moments. It is shown that, while the pile-group effect reduces the interstory drift of buildings in general, it may increase the bending moment of piles at the head. This means that the treatment without the pile-group effect results in the conservative design for super-structures and requires a revised member design for piles.     

基于突变理论深埋硬岩隧道的失稳分析

在分析隧道开挖引起围岩扰动和损伤的基础上,运用突变理论探讨了深埋硬岩隧道失稳的机理;基于势能原理,建立了深埋硬岩隧道失稳的尖点突变模型,导出了失稳的力学判据条件。结果表明:深埋硬岩隧道的失稳不仅受岩体特性及所受载荷的影响,而且与围岩中弹性区刚度和塑性区刚度的比值有关;开挖过程中,围岩受扰动和损伤程度越大,岩体完整性系数越小,力学参数指标弱化程度越高,塑性区范围越大,刚度比越小,围岩系统发生失稳的可能性就越大。工程实例分析表明,分析结果与实际经验基本一致;研究成果可为预防隧道失稳、采取合理的施工工艺和支护措施提供参考依据。     

The stiffness degradation and damping ratio evolution of Taipei Silty Clay under cyclic straining

The non-linear behavior of Taipei Silty Clay under cyclic strain loading was investigated through a series of undrained cyclic strain-controlled tests. The Ramberg–Osgood equation was used with our proposed stiffness degradation model to calculate degraded secant moduli. The proposed degradation model is simple in that it has only one more component than Idriss's model, the modulus ratio for the first cycle, which reflects the effects of the previous cyclic strain history and the current level of the cyclic strain amplitude, and can be used to describe softening and hardening behavior under irregular cyclic straining. It was found that the Ramberg–Osgood equation successfully predicts the damping ratio for small to medium strains. However, it overestimates the damping ratio for larger strains, so we suggest it can be corrected with a damping ratio index. In addition, the proposed equation for describing the evolution of the damping ratio provides the means to assess the variation for Taipei Silty Clay in the measured damping ratio with both the number of cycles and the strain amplitude.     

A numerical study on 2-D compressive wave propagation in rock masses with a set of joints along the radial direction normal to the joints

An explosion in a borehole or an accidental explosion in a tunnel will generate a two-dimensional (2-D) compressive wave that travels through the surrounding rock mass. For the problem of 2-D compressive wave propagation in a rock mass with parallel joints in the radial direction normal to the joints, parametric studies on the transmission ratio and the maximum rebound ratio are performed in universal distinct element code. The variation of the transmission ratio with the ratio of joint spacing to wavelength is generalized into a characteristic curve, which can be used as a prediction model for estimating the transmission ratio. The relationship between the maximum rebound ratio and the influence factors is obtained in charts. The charts can be used as a prediction model for estimating the maximum rebound ratio. The proposed prediction models for estimating the transmission ratio and the maximum rebound ratio are applied to a field explosion test, Mandai test in Singapore. The minimum possible values of peak particle velocity (PPV) at the monitoring points are estimated by using the proposed prediction model for estimating the transmission ratio along the radial direction normal to the joints. On the other hand, the maximum possible values of PPV are estimated by using the proposed prediction model for estimating the maximum rebound ratio along the same radial direction. The comparison shows a good agreement between the field-recorded PPVs and the estimated range of PPVs given by the minimum possible PPVs and the maximum possible PPVs at the monitoring points in Mandai test. The good agreement between the estimated and field-recorded values validates the proposed prediction models for estimating peak particle velocity in a rock mass with a set of joints due to application of a compressive wave at the boundary of a tunnel or a borehole.     

Fault and system stiffnesses and stick-slip phenomena

Summary This paper discusses the influence of system stiffness on the dynamic instability of fault surfaces under laboratory conditions for a number of test modes. In conjunction with shear load stiffness, the normal load stiffness, often neglected, is shown to have a considerable effect on the stick-slip process —its presence or absence and its characteristics. Also appropriate stiffnesses are suggested for an earthquake sequence modeled as a growing dislocation.     

Dynamics of ocean cables with local low-tension regions

A general set of 3-D dynamic field equations for a cable segment is derived based on the classical Euler-Kirchhoff theory of an elastica. The model includes flexural stiffness to remove the potential singularity when cable tension vanishes and can be reduced to the equations for a perfectly flexible cable. A hybrid model and a solution scheme by direct integration are then proposed to solve the oceanic cable/body system with a localized low-tension region. Numerical examples demonstrate the capability and validity of the formulation and the numerical algorithm.     

不同围压和流体饱和状态下致密砂岩弹性各向异性特征

为研究致密砂岩声波速度及其各向异性随围压的变化规律以及不同流体饱和状态下的弹性各向异性特征,钻取了不同方向的岩心并在实验室超声波频率下对致密砂岩的声学特性进行了测量,分别给出干燥和饱和水状态下,不同方向样品纵横波速度、刚性系数以及各向异性系数随围压的变化规律,并对实验结果进行了分析讨论.实验结果表明致密砂岩纵横波速度、纵横波速度比以及刚性系数均随围压增加而增加,但其在不同饱和状态下的变化率却截然不同;纵横波速度比、各向异性系数在饱和水状态下变化规律不明显,表明孔隙流体的存在对于岩石物理性质有着非常重要的影响.这方面的实验工作不但对于考察不同流体性质对致密岩石弹性各向异性影响是必要的,而且有助于致密砂岩油水和气层的识别.     

Simulating stiffness degradation and damping in soils via a simple visco-elastic–plastic model

Stiffness degradation and damping represent some of the most well-known aspects of cyclic soil behavior. While standard equivalent linear approaches reproduce these features by (separately) prescribing stiffness reduction and damping curves, in this paper a multiaxial, 3D, viscoelastic – plastic model is developed for the simultaneous simulation of both cyclic curves over a wide cyclic shear strain range.The proposed constitutive relationship is based on two parallel resisting/dissipative mechanisms, purely frictional (elastic–plastic) and viscous. The frictional mechanism is formulated as a bounding surface plasticity model with vanishing elastic domain, including pressure-sensitive failure locus and non-associative plastic flow – which are essential for effective stress analysis. At the same time, the use of the parallel viscous mechanism is shown to be especially beneficial to improve the simulation of the overall dissipative performance.In order to enable model calibration from stiffness degradation ($G/G_{\mathit{max}}$) and damping curves, the constitutive equations are purposely kept as simple as possible with a low number of material parameters. Although the model performance is here explored with reference to pure shear cyclic tests, the 3D, multiaxial formulation is appropriate for general loading conditions.