This book provides a manual for the technical and structural design of systems for supplying decentralised energy in residential buildings. It presents the micro-combined cooling, heating & power systems Stirling engines & renewable energy sources (mCCHP-SE-RES) systems in an accessible manner both for the public at large, and for professionals who conceive, design or commercialise such systems or their components. The high performance levels of these systems are demonstrated within the final chapter by the results of an experiment in which a house is equipped with a mCCHP-SE-RES system. The reader is also familiarized with the conceptual, technical and legal aspects of modern domestic energy systems; the components that constitute these systems; and advanced algorithms for achieving the structural and technical design of such systems. In residential buildings, satisfying demands of durable development has gradually evolved from necessity to obligation and institutionalisation. Consequently a major paradigm change has appeared in the supply of energy to residential buildings, from the centralised production of energy using fossil fuels to the decentralised production of energy using local renewable sources. Furthermore, on the energy system market, energy micro systems which use renewable energy sources are increasingly commercialised. From among these, the mCCHP-SE-RES systems are particularly striking because they offer a high performance and they enhance the relationship between humans and the environment. This book is intended for postgraduate students of electrical engineering, applied mathematicians, and researchers of modelling and control of complex systems or power system technologies.

This book gives an introduction to the working principles of high-intensity discharge (HID) lamps and points out challenges and problems associated with the development and operation of HID lamps. It is the most comprehensive book on gas discharge lamps, on the physical basics and realization. The state-of-the-art in electrode and plasma diagnostics as well as numerical methods used for the understanding of HID lamps are described.

This book focuses on the impacts of the built environment, and how to predict and measure the benefits and consequences of changes taking place to address sustainability in the development and building industries. It draws together the best treatments of these subjects from the Leeds Sustainability Institute's inaugural International Conference on Sustainability, Ecology, Engineering, Design for Society (SEEDS). The focus of discussion is on understanding how buildings and spaces are designed and nurtured to obtain optimal outcomes in energy efficiency and environmental impacts. In addition to examining technical issues such as modeling energy performance, emphasis is placed on the health and well-being of occupants. This holistic approach addresses the interdependence of people with the built and natural environments. The book's contents reflect the interdisciplinary and international collaboration critical to assembly of the knowledge required for positive change.

This book comprises selected proceedings of the Fourth International Conference in Ocean Engineering (ICOE2018), focusing on emerging opportunities and challenges in the field of ocean engineering and offshore structures. It includes state-of-the-art content from leading international experts, making it a valuable resource for researchers and practicing engineers alike.

Huge earthquakes and tsunamis have caused serious damage to important structures such as civil infrastructure elements, buildings and power plants around the globe. To quantitatively evaluate such damage processes and to design effective prevention and mitigation measures, the latest high-performance computational mechanics technologies, which include telascale to petascale computers, can offer powerful tools. The phenomena covered in this book include seismic wave propagation in the crust and soil, seismic response of infrastructure elements such as tunnels considering soil-structure interactions, seismic response of high-rise buildings, seismic response of nuclear power plants, tsunami run-up over coastal towns and tsunami inundation considering fluid-structure interactions. The book provides all necessary information for addressing these phenomena, ranging from the fundamentals of high-performance computing for finite element methods, key algorithms of accurate dynamic structural analysis, fluid flows with free surfaces, and fluid-structure interactions, to practical applications with detailed simulation results. The book will offer essential insights for researchers and engineers working in the field of computational seismic/tsunami engineering.

The weathering of historical buildings and, indeed, of monuments and sculptures of natural stone is a problem that has been encountered for hundreds of years. However a dramatic increase in deterioration in the structure of our built heritage has been observed during the past century. To understand the complex interaction that the stone in a building suffers with its near environment (the building) and the macro environment (the local climate and atmospheric conditions) requires an interdisciplinary approach and the application of many disciplines. Climate change over the next 100 years is likely to have a range of direct and indirect impacts on many natural and physical environments, including the built environment.

The protection of our architectural heritage has both cultural and historical importance, as well as substantial economic and ecological value. Large sums of money are being spent world-wide on measures for the preservation of monuments and historical buildings. The past few decades has seen an unprecedented level of research activity in this area, the result of whichis often difficult to access and are summarized in the new edition of STONE IN ARCHITECTURE.

The 4th edition of Stone in Architecture: Properties, Durability, is a sophisticated and thorough exploration of stone its properties, performance and conservation in monumental contexts. The current editors, Siegfried Siegesmund and Rolf Snethlage, note the pioneering work of Erhard Winkler who wrote the first edition in 1973 when so little information could be found in the literature on the subject. This new edition, also published by Springer, nearly doubles the size of Winkler s 1994 effort. If you are familiar with the field and need to know little more than this statement, you can put aside this review and go buy the book.

George Wheeler, Department of Scientific Research, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York."

Non destructive testing aimed at monitoring, structural identification and di- nostics is of strategic importance in many branches of civil and mechanical - gineering. This type of tests is widely practiced and directly affects topical issues regarding the design of new buildings and the repair and monitoring of existing ones. The load bearing capacity of a structure can now be evaluated using well established mechanical modelling methods aided by computing facilities of great capability. However, to ensure reliable results, models must be calibrated with - curate information on the characteristics of materials and structural components. To this end, non destructive techniques are a useful tool from several points of view. Particularly, by measuring structural response, they provide guidance on the validation of structural descriptions or of the mathematical models of material behaviour. Diagnostic engineering is a crucial area for the application of non destructive testing methods. Repeated tests over time can indicate the emergence of p- sible damage occurring during the structure's lifetime and provide quantitative estimates of the level of residual safety.

This book presents a study for the determination of environmental load factors for Jacket Platforms in Malaysia and a methodology to determine the life extension of aging platforms. The simplified methods described here could be used for determining not only structural reliability but also safety factors. Its content is particularly interesting to design and maintenance engineers who are working in offshore or onshore industry.

This volume gathers the latest advances, innovations and applications in the field of crack control in concrete, as presented by leading international researchers and engineers at the International RILEM Conference on Early-age and Long-term Cracking in RC Structures (CRC 2021), held in Paris, France on April 9, 2021. It covers early-age and long-term imposed deformations in concrete, analytical formulations for calculating crack widths in concrete, numerical simulations of early-age and long-term restrained behaviour of concrete elements, experimental investigations on cracking, on-site monitoring of imposed deformations and cracking, crack control and repair, and sustainability of design and remediation. The conference demonstrated that a comprehensive approach to this problem requires the design of robust experimental techniques, the development of multiscale models and the evaluation of code-based and other analytical approaches relevant to crack control in concrete. The contributions, which were selected through a rigorous international peer-review process, share exciting ideas that will spur novel research directions and foster new multidisciplinary collaborations.

Monitoring of public and private sites is increasingly becoming a very important and critical issue, especially after the recent flurry of terrorist attacks including the one on the Word Trade Center in September 2001. It is, therefore, imperative that effective multisensor surveillance systems be developed to protect the society from similar attacks in the future. The new generation of surveillance systems to be developed have a specific requirement: they must be able to automatically identify criminal and terrorist activity without sacrificing individual privacy to the extent possible. Privacy laws concerning monitoring and surveillance systems vary from country to country but, in general, they try to protect the privacy of their citizens. Monitoring and visual surveillance has numerous other applications. It can be employed to help invalids or handicapped and to monitor the activities of elderly people. It can be used to monitor large events such as sporting events, as well. Nowadays, monitoring is employ d in several different contexts including transport applications, such as monitoring of railway stations and airports, dangerous environments like nuclear facilities or traffic flows on roads and bridges. The latest generation of surveillance systems mainly rely on hybrid analog-digital, or completely digital video communications and processing methods and take advantage of the greater of flexibility offered by video processing algorithms that are capable focusing a human operator's attention on a set of interesting situations.

This book examines pedestrian shoe-floor slip resistance from an engineering standpoint in order to better understand friction and wear behavior. This analysis includes an extensive investigation into the surface properties of shoes and flow, and the measurement of dynamic friction and other mechanical and physical aspects of shoe-floor tribology. Lastly, the book proposes a measurement concept for the identification and classification of operational floor surfaces under a range of different conditions. Novel techniques and methods are proposed that can improve the reliability of slip resistance assessments. The current state of knowledge is critically examined and discussed from a tribological perspective, including aspects like friction, wear, lubrication and the mechanical behavior of shoes, floors and their wider environment. Further, the book reports on extensive experimental investigations into the topographical characteristics of shoe and floor surfaces and how they affect slip resistance. Slips resulting in pedestrian falls are a major cause of injuries and deaths for all age groups. This important book provides essential insights for researchers, practicing engineers and public safety officials wishing to learn about how the risk of pedestrian slips can be assessed and understood.

This book presents the latest developments in biometrics technologies and reports on new approaches, methods, findings, and technologies developed or being developed by the research community and the industry. The book focuses on introducing fundamental principles and concepts of key enabling technologies for biometric systems applied for both physical and cyber security. The authors disseminate recent research and developing efforts in this area, investigate related trends and challenges, and present case studies and examples such as fingerprint, face, iris, retina, keystroke dynamics, and voice applications . The authors also investigate the advances and future outcomes in research and development in biometric security systems. The book is applicable to students, instructors, researchers, industry practitioners, and related government agencies staff. Each chapter is accompanied by a set of PowerPoint slides for use by instructors.

The volume is devoted to the dynamics of rods, which is a branch of mech- ics of deformable bodies. The main goal of the book is to present systema- cally theoretical fundamentals of the mechanics of rods as well as numerical methods used for practical purposes. Linear and nonlinear equations governing a rod's oscillations are p- sented. Methods of determining eigenvalues and eigenfunctions in conser- tive and non-conservative problems along with numerical methods dealing with forced, parametric, and random oscillations of rods are given. Some - sues of interaction of rods with air (liquid) flows and the dynamics of spa- curved rods containing flows of liquid are considered. The book consists of nine chapters and appendices and may be conv- tionally divided into two parts. That is, Chapters 1 to 6 contain, in the main, theoretical material, whereas Chapters 7 to 9 illustrate the application of the theoretical results to problems of practical interest. Problems for self-study are found in Chapters 3, 5, and 7. The solutions to most of the problems are given in Appendix B. The monograph is addressed to undergraduate and postgraduate students and teaching staff of technical universities. It may also be useful for scientists and mechanical engineers working in a wide range of industries. I wish to express my deep appreciation to my colleagues, Dr. S.A. Voronov and C.B. Danilenko, for their help in preparing the manuscript.

This study presents exploratory work and seeks to identify and evaluate the success and failure factors that could form a guideline for further study and to some extent help professionals to understand some critical aspects that impact project performance concerning construction in India. A total of 55 attributes affecting the performance of construction projects are analysed in terms of their level of influence on four key performance criteria - schedule, cost, quality, and no disputes - using a two-stage questionnaire survey. These attributes are then further analysed, interpreted and evaluated. Based on the critical success factors obtained from the study, a neural network model-based predictive model for project performance has been developed. The performance prediction models have been derived for all four project performance criteria. Further, a hypothesis that 'project success' is influenced by 'success traits' has also been formulated. The hypothesized positive inter-relationships between success traits and project success have been tested using the structural equation modelling technique. Besides supporting the intuition of past researchers in recognizing 'coordination' as a key success factor, this study has revealed that coordination is not an isolated and independent activity, but is a typical management function with an inherent role in all major management activities. Key elements affecting coordination have also been identified and their influence on coordination effort has been studied. Furthermore, the present study has also identified three broad skill groups required of effective project coordinators. The results are validated through case studies of live projects and structured interviews with experts in the field of construction management.

These proceedings include most of the available information on this major seismic event and its consequences. With an estimated moment magnitude of 7.7 and a heavy toll in terms of human and economic losses, it ranks as the largest intermediate-depth earthquake in Europe in the twentieth century. Nevertheless, because of the difficult conditions in the 1940s, the lessons learnt after the Vrancea earthquake were not extensively shared with the international scientific community and thus, this book fills a gap in the literature discussing the knowledge acquired after major disasters. Past experience together with current understanding of the 1940 Vrancea earthquake are presented along with the latest information on Romanian seismicity, seismic hazard and risk assessment, and seismic evaluation and rehabilitation of buildings and structures. Moreover, it includes excerpts from Romanian post-disaster reports and textbooks concerning the earthquake.

Cementitious materials, rocks and fibre-reinforced composites commonly termed as "quasibrittle," need a different fracture mechanics approach to model the crack propagation study because of the presence of significant size of fracture process zone ahead of the crack-tip. Recent studies show that concrete structures manifest three important stages in fracture process: crack initiation, stable crack propagation and unstable fracture or failure. Fracture Mechanics concept can better explain the above various stages including the concepts of ductility, size-effect, strain softening and post-cracking behavior of concrete and concrete structures.

The book presents a basic introduction on the various nonlinear concrete fracture models considering the respective fracture parameters. To this end, a thorough state-of-the-art review on various aspects of the material behavior and development of different concrete fracture models is presented. The development of cohesive crack model for standard test geometries using commonly used softening functions is shown and extensive studies on the behavior of cohesive crack fracture parameters are also carried out. The subsequent chapter contains the extensive study on the double-"K" and double-"G" fracture parameters in which some recent developments on the related fracture parameters are illustrated including introduction of weight function method to Double-"K" Fracture Model and formulization of size-effect behavior of the double-"K" fracture parameters. The application of weight function approach for determining of the "KR"-curve associated with cohesive stress distribution in the fracture process zone is also presented. Available test data are used to validate the new approach. Further, effect of specimen geometry, loading condition, size-effect and softening function on various fracture parameters is investigated. Towards the end, a comparative study between different fracture parameters obtained from various models is presented."

By the beginning of the nineteenth century, over ninety-five percent of all the productive land in Ireland was in the hands of Anglo-Irish landowners. They lived in the 'big houses', some of which still exist today, resplendent within their walled estates. Many others are now only gaunt ruins silhouetted against somber Irish skies, victims of 'the troubles' in the 1920s. There is a continuing fascination with the history of the big house in Ireland. Much of this interest stems from the Anglo-Irish living in places apart, in their estates, often in remote areas of an undeveloped and hostile land. Part of the appeal is in the characters, neither wholly English nor Irish, who made up this landowning class in Ireland. However, another part, largely ignored until this study, is how many of these landowners not only met these challenges but achieved remarkable levels of self-sufficiency. It was their exploitation of technology that hugely bolstered their status and independence and enabled them to lead an exotic lifestyle in Ireland. Although much has been written regarding the social and political history of the Anglo-Irish in Ireland, little research has been conducted into the practical problems of living there. At a time when there were few roads, no railways, and sailing ships were the unreliable connection with England, existence might have been very basic indeed. Charles Carson uncovers and explains in simple terms the technologies employed, to not only make life bearable, but in some case to become a triumph over seemingly impossible odds. An appreciation of this background helps to explain the sense of status and independence that emanates from the big house in Ireland until their demise in the late twentieth century. Interdisciplinary investigative methods were used in this work. These included extensive archival research of estate papers throughout Ireland; fieldwork involving examination and photography of still-extant big house technology; and the use of published fictional and biographical big house material. Much additional insight, and suggestions for further research, resulted from visits to various big house locations. Owners, often descendants of the original families, or managers and ground staff, provided important local knowledge. Climbing amongst stored artefacts in cellars, barns, and subterranean tunnels helped to bring the past alive. Something of the ambiance of these explorations informs this book, thus helping towards an understanding of the fundamental importance of technology in underpinning the status and independence of the big house in Ireland. By examining the range, costs, and changing nature of the technologies employed, this book makes an important contribution to a deeper understanding of life in the big house in Ireland circa 1800 to circa 1930. Brief descriptions, accompanied by drawings or photographs, are employed to explain the operation, limitations, and improvements of many of the installations and techniques. These include water closets, pumps, cisterns, boilers, and firefighting equipment; open fires, hot air stoves, and central heating; walled gardens, hot walls and beds, warm air, steam, and hot water heating of glasshouses; the construction, location, stocking, and use of ice houses and ice; daylight enhancement, candle, oil, gas, and electric lighting; an optical telegraph, a church spire, engine driven equipment on the estate farm as well as mapping of bogs and their reclamation by wooden railways. Technology and the Big House in Ireland, c. 1800-c. 1930 is an important reference source for Irish study groups worldwide.

This book is devoted to two primary objectives. The first is to present the errors, inadaptability and mistakes arising when the current theory on concrete is applied to explaining practical construction of concrete; the second is to put forward viewpoints in modern concrete science. Taking a number of engineering cases as examples, we experimentally studied and theoretically analyzed the errors, inadaptability, and mistakes when the current theory on concrete is applied to explaining practical construction of concrete. Moreover, we investigated the use of mixing ratios, aggregates, cement, high-performance concrete and fibers, as well as the frost resistance, cracking behavior, durability, dry shrinkage and autogenous healing to address and remedy the shortcomings in today's concrete science, put forward new proposals and make a number of innovative achievements in the field, particularly in modern theory on concrete science. The results and topics which will be of particular interest to engineers and researchers include: corrections to several one-sided, even mistaken views on concrete construction in the field and a new theory that can be adopted to improve the durability of concrete projects, to control and improve the implementation quality of concrete projects and to guide teaching in universities. Wenke Yang is a distinguished senior engineer at China Airport Construction Group Corporation, General Administration of Civil Aviation of China (CAAC).

The First African InterQuadrennial ICF Conference "AIQ-ICF2008" on Damage and Fracture Mechanics - Failure Analysis of Engineering Materials and Structures," Algiers, Algeria, June 1-5, 2008 is the first in the series of InterQuadrennial Conferences on Fracture to be held in the continent of Africa. During the conference, African researchers have shown that they merit a strong reputation in international circles and continue to make substantial contributions to the field of fracture mechanics. As in most countries, the research effort in Africa is und- taken at the industrial, academic, private sector and governmental levels, and covers the whole spectrum of fracture and fatigue. The AIQ-ICF2008 has brought together researchers and engineers to review and discuss advances in the development of methods and approaches on Damage and Fracture Mechanics. By bringing together the leading international experts in the field, AIQ-ICF promotes technology transfer and provides a forum for industry and researchers of the host nation to present their accomplishments and to develop new ideas at the highest level. International Conferences have an important role to play in the technology transfer process, especially in terms of the relationships to be established between the participants and the informal exchange of ideas that this ICF offers.

This book is about the strategic relevance of quantum technologies. It debates the military-specific aspects of this technology. Various chapters of this book cohere around two specific themes. The first theme discusses the global pattern of ongoing civilian and military research on quantum computers, quantum cryptography, quantum communications and quantum internet. The second theme explicitly identifies the relevance of these technologies in the military domain and the possible nature of quantum technology-based weapons. This thread further debates on quantum (arms) race at a global level in general, and in the context of the USA and China, in particular. The book argues that the defence utility of these technologies is increasingly becoming obvious and is likely to change the nature of warfare in the future.

This book provides information on the generation and the effects of hazardous substances that are produced during welding and allied processes. These processes are thermal cutting, thermal spraying, soldering and brazing. The book offers guidance on the determination of hazardous substances and it simplifies assessment of the hazard due to hazardous substances. In addition, the book explains tests in order to understand the concentration and intensity of key hazardous substances. Last but not least, the book suggests several possibilities of avoiding the risk to worker's health as a result of exposing them to these substances.

BUDGETING DESIGN TO COST EVALUATION COST REDUCTION PRE-CONSTRUCTION ACTIVITIES BIDDING / NEGOTIATING GMP CONTRACTS CHANGE ORDER MANAGEMENT IN-HOUSE PROJECT MANAGEMENT CONTROLLED BIDDING POLICY SAMPLE FORMS

The main purpose of this book, Hygrothermal, Building Pathology and Durability, is to provide a collection of recent research works to contribute to the systematization and dissemination of knowledge related to construction pathology, hygrothermal behaviour of buildings, durability and diagnostic techniques and, simultaneously, to show the most recent advances in this domain. It includes a set of new developments in the field of building physics and hygrothermal behaviour, durability approach for historical and old buildings and building pathology vs. durability. The book is divided in several chapters that are a resume of the current state of knowledge for benefit of professional colleagues, scientists, students, practitioners, lecturers and other interested parties to network.

Optimization techniques offer immense potential for the improvement of performance-driven design, since they allow the adoption of an holistic approach. This can lead to great advantages: optimal design solutions can be properly identified only if all criteria are considered at the same time, rather than separately. There are two barriers which obstruct optimization from being applied to building design: a technological barrier (applying the algorithms is not easy and can be quite time-consuming) and a cultural one (architects and engineers are required to change their perspectives as the design process has to be handled in a new way). This book explores these barriers from the perspective of both engineers and architects, and proposes a change in the attitudes of these two "actors": an engineer and an architect develop a dialog which helps them understand each other's perspective; in this way they find how they must both make a step forward.