FEM updating allows FEMs to be tuned better to reflect measured data. It can be conducted using two different statistical frameworks: the maximum likelihood approach and Bayesian approaches. This book applies both strategies to the field of structural mechanics, using vibration data. Computational intelligence techniques including: multi-layer perceptron neural networks; particle swarm and GA-based optimization methods; simulated annealing; response surface methods; and expectation maximization algorithms, are proposed to facilitate the updating process. Based on these methods, the most appropriate updated FEM is selected, a problem that traditional FEM updating has not addressed. This is found to incorporate engineering judgment into finite elements through the formulations of prior distributions. Case studies, demonstrating the principles test the viability of the approaches, and. by critically analysing the state of the art in FEM updating, this book identifies new research directions.

Modeling and analysing multibody systems require a comprehensive understanding of the kinematics and dynamics of rigid bodies. In this volume, the relevant fundamental principles are first reviewed in detail and illustrated in conformity with the multibody formalisms that follow. Whatever the kind of system (tree-like structures, closed-loop mechanisms, systems containing flexible beams or involving tire/ground contact, wheel/rail contact, etc), these multibody formalisms have a common feature in the proposed approach, viz, the symbolic generation of most of the ingredients needed to set up the model.
The symbolic approach chosen, specially dedicated to multibody systems, affords various advantages: it leads to a simplification of the theoretical formulation of models, a considerable reduction in the size of generated equations and hence in resulting computing time, and also enhanced portability of the multibody models towards other specific environments. Moreover, the generation of multibody models as symbolic toolboxes proves to be an excellent pedagogical medium in teaching mechanics.

Piezoresistor Design and Applications provides an overview of these MEMS devices and related physics. The text demonstrates how MEMS allows miniaturization and integration of sensing as well as efficient packaging and signal conditioning. This text for engineers working in MEMS design describes the piezoresistive phenomenon and optimization in several applications. Includes detailed discussion of such topics as; coupled models of mechanics, materials and electronic behavior in a variety of common geometric implementations including strain gages, beam bending, and membrane loading. The text concludes with an up-to-date discussion of the need for integrated MEMS design and opportunities to leverage new materials, processes and MEMS technology.

Piezoresistor Design and Applications is an ideal book for design engineers, process engineers and researchers.
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Composites are widely used in marine applications. There is considerable experience of glass reinforced resins in boats and ships but these are usually not highly loaded. However, for new areas such as offshore and ocean energy there is a need for highly loaded structures to survive harsh conditions for 20 years or more. High performance composites are therefore being proposed. This book provides an overview of the state of the art in predicting the long term durability of composite marine structures. The following points are covered: * Modelling water diffusion * Damage induced by water * Accelerated testing * Including durability in design * In-service experience. This is essential reading for all those involved with composites in the marine industry, from initial design and calculation through to manufacture and service exploitation. It also provides information unavailable elsewhere on the mechanisms involved in degradation and how to take account of them. Ensuring long term durability is not only necessary for safety reasons, but will also determine the economic viability of future marine structures.

This monograph presents a graduate-level treatment of partial differential equations (PDEs) for engineers. The book begins with a review of the geometrical interpretation of systems of ODEs, the appearance of PDEs in engineering is motivated by the general form of balance laws in continuum physics. Four chapters are devoted to a detailed treatment of the single first-order PDE, including shock waves and genuinely non-linear models, with applications to traffic design and gas dynamics. The rest of the book deals with second-order equations. In the treatment of hyperbolic equations, geometric arguments are used whenever possible and the analogy with discrete vibrating systems is emphasized. The diffusion and potential equations afford the opportunity of dealing with questions of uniqueness and continuous dependence on the data, the Fourier integral, generalized functions (distributions), Duhamel's principle, Green's functions and Dirichlet and Neumann problems. The target audience primarily comprises graduate students in engineering, but the book may also be beneficial for lecturers, and research experts both in academia in industry.

Created in 1975, "LMT-Cachan" is a joint laboratory "ecole Normale Superieure de Cachan, Pierre & Marie Curie (Paris 6) University" and the French Research Council "CNRS" (Department of Engineering Sciences).

The Year 2000 marked the 25th anniversary of LMT. On this occasion, a series of lectures was organized in Cachan in September-October, 2000. This publication contains peer-reviewed proceedings of these lectures and is aimed to present engineers and scientists with an overview of the latest developments in the field of damage mechanics. The formulation of damage models and their identification procedures were discussed for a variety of materials.

A discussion of developments in the measurement and interpretation of advanced laboratory stress-strain testing of geomaterials. It includes a collection of case studies which apply the test results and is based on the activities of the technical committee No 29 of the ISSMGE.

Variational principles have proven to be surprisingly fertile. For example, Fermat used variational methods to demonstrate that light follows the fastest route from one point to another, an idea which came to be a cornerstone of geometrical optics. This book explains variational principles and charts their use throughout modern physics. It examines the analytical mechanics of Lagrange and Hamilton, the basic tools of any physicist. The book also offers simple but rich first impressions of Einstein’s General Relativity, Feynman’s Quantum Mechanics, and more that reveal amazing interconnections between various fields of physics.

This the second volume of five from the 28th IMAC on Structural Dynamics and Renewable Energy, 2010, bringing together 17 chapters on Applications of Non-Linear Dynamics. It presents early findings from experimental and computational investigations on Non-Linear Dynamics including studies on Dynamics of a System of Coupled Oscillators with Geometrically Nonlinear Damping, Assigning the Nonlinear Distortions of a Two-input Single-output System, A Multi-harmonic Approach to Updating Locally Nonlinear Structures, A Block Rocking on a Seesawing Foundation, and Enhanced Order Reduction of Forced Nonlinear Systems Using New Ritz Vectors.

Buried pipes are a highly efficient method of transport. In fact, only open channels are less costly to construct. However, the structural mechanics of buried pipes can be complicated, and imprecisions in the properties of the soil envelope are usually too great to justify lengthy, complicated analyses. Designers and engineers need principles and methods that simplify analysis and maximize their knowledge of the pipe's performance and performance limits.
Structural Mechanics of Buried Pipes minimizes complicated theories, breaks through the imprecisions in the properties of soil, and presents principles that simplify analysis and lead to designs of higher performance and safety.
With knowledge built on experience, experimentation, and sound principles, the authors guide readers through the design and analysis processes. They use examples based on actual buried structures and analyze a variety of pipe-soil interaction problems.
Sound principles, plentiful examples, and a straightforward presentation provide an outstanding framework for hands-on application and an ideal self-study guide.

Mechanics of Biological Systems and Materials represents one of eight volumes of technical papers presented at the Society for Experimental Mechanics Annual Conference & Exposition on Experimental and Applied Mechanics, held at Uncasville, Connecticut, June 13-16, 2011. The full set of proceedings also includes volumes on Dynamic Behavior of Materials, Mechanics of Time-Dependent Materials and Processes in Conventional and Multifunctional Materials, MEMS and Nanotechnology; Optical Measurements, Modeling and, Metrology; Experimental and Applied Mechanics, Thermomechanics and Infra-Red Imaging, and Engineering Applications of Residual Stress.

More than six years ago, several of Rabotnov's close friends and colleagues from the USSR and USA decided to contribute a volume on Plasticity and Failure of Solids in honor of his 70th birthday. The celebration was interrupted unexpectedly by his death on May 13, 1985 at which time another decision was made still to publish the work, but as a memorial volume. As in any field of scientific endeavor, research confronts the scientists with anomalies; our chosen area is no exception. The ways in which failure criteria and plasticity theory are combined can differ widely among the researchers; they will never yield quite the same results. Each of the invited contributors has, therefore, been encouraged to express his views and to expound on his personal opinion. The contributors are free of enumeration from the authority and/or consensus of any scientific society or community. What impedes scientific process is the esoteric tradition of accepting ideas and theories by consensus among members of societies and communities. The absence of such a trend is refreshing; the collaboration between the authors from the USSR and the USA had to be one of the contributing factors. Finally, the editors wish to acknowledge the authors who have made the publication of this volume possible. a. c. Sib S. T. Mileiko AJ. Ishlinsky xi The late Professor Yuriy Nickolaevich Rabotnov (February 24, 1914 - May 13, 1985) xii Scientific biography of the late academician Yu. N.

This book presents the physico-technical basis and current state of the technology of boronized layers. Special attention is given to the layer structure and morphology of allocated phases and distributions in a superficial zone of chemical compounds. Two- and multi-component phases of alloys and diffusion processes in a self-organizing mode are discussed. Surface hardening by boronizing increases the life time of mechanical tools. This is important for the mining industry, agriculture, textile and chemical industry. The book is important for thermochemical treatment and surface hardening of metals and alloys.

This concise work provides a general introduction to the design of buildings which must be resistant to the effect of earthquakes. A major part of this design involves the building structure which has a primary role in preventing serious damage or structural collapse. Much of the material presented in this book examines building structures. Due to the recent discovery of vertical components, it examines not only the resistance to lateral forces but also analyses the disastrous influence of vertical components.

The work is written for Practicing Civil, Structural, and Mechanical Engineers, Seismologists and Geoscientists. It serves as a knowledge source for graduate students and their instructors.

Multinary compounds are now used in a wide range of devices, including photovoltaic solar cells, light emitters and detectors, and piezoelectric actuators. Ternary and Multinary Compounds provides an interdisciplinary forum for scientists and engineers working on fundamental and applied aspects of these materials. The volume focuses on optoelectronic properties, electronic band structure, charge carrier transport, optical and magnetic properties, and superconductivity. It includes chapters on the research and development of new techniques and novel materials, such as laser ablation deposition and ferroelectrics.

The theory of thermoelasticity studies the interaction between thermal and mechan ical fields in elastic bodies. This theory is of interest both for the mathematical and technical point of view. Intense interest has been shown recently in this field owing to the great practical importance of dynamical effects in aeronautics, nu clear reactors, and its potential importance in cryogenic applications. This work is concerned mainly with basic problems of the theory of thermoelasticity. Ther moelasticity of polar materials and the theories of thermoelasticity with finite wave speeds are not considered here. The reader interested in these subjects will find a full account in the works of Nowacki [280], Chandrasekharaiah [60] and Ignaczak [195]. Our purpose in this work is to present a systematic treatment of some results established in the theory of thermoelasticity. On the whole, the subject matter is directed towards recent developments. Chapter 1 is concerned mainly with the development of the fundamental equa tions of the theory of thermoelasticity. The kinematics and primitive concepts associated with the basic principles are developed and emphasized only to the ex tent that they are needed in our treatment of the subject. Chapter 2 is devoted to a study of linear thermoelastic deformations for prestressed bodies. We have at tempted to isolate those conceptual and mathematical difficulties which arise over and above those inherent in the problems concerned with unstressed bodies.

Assuming only basic knowledge of mathematics and engineering mechanics, this lucid reference introduces the fundamentals of finite element theory using easy-to-understand terms and simple problems-systematically grounding the practitioner in the basic principles then suggesting applications to more general cases. Furnishes a wealth of practical insights drawn from the extensive experience of a specialist in the field Providing an in-depth overview of the analysis process, Practical Guide to Finite Elements describes the casting of elementary mechanics problems into a simplified form with idealization techniques shows how energy methods are employed to solve engineering problems involving stress, strain, and displacement outlines a process for computer-aided engineering analysis explains how numerical integration is utilized in conjunction with parametric elements demonstrates how a simple FORTRAN software routine computes element stiffness considers the use of loads and boundary conditions in finite element models presents common pitfalls that beginning analysts are likely to encounter addresses the interpretation of finite element analysis results and more Generously illustrated with over 200 detailed drawings to clarify discussions and containing key literature citations for more in-depth study of particular topics, this clearly written resource is an exceptional guide for mechanical, civil, aeronautic, automotive, electrical and electronics, and design engineers; engineering managers; and upper-level undergraduate, graduate, and continuing-education students in these disciplines.

This volume contains the articles presented at the 18th International Meshing Roundtable (IMR) organized, in part, by Sandia National Laboratories and held October 25-28, 2009 in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. The volume presents recent results of mesh generation and adaptation which has applications to finite element simulation. It introduces theoretical and novel ideas with practical potential.

This dictionary represents today the most extensive rock blasting dictionary available and it is therefore a valuable tool and essential for research and writing reports, papers to international journals.

Terminology is important in the process of development of a science because it is the language for communication between students, teachers, technicians, scientists and practitioners in the field of blasting. This dictionary contains 1,980 terms, 316 symbols, ninety-three acronyms, abbreviations and shortened forms, 221 references, thirty-one figures, thity-two formulas and twenty-eight tables. In this book, not only short definitions of the terms are presented, but also a quantification of some terms is included, and their relationship to other parameters in blasting is highlighted.

All students, teachers, technicians, engineers, scientists and practioners in the field of blasting should get a copy as a desk reference book. If we all use the same symbols for example, the reading of blasting papers is speeded up and facilitated a lot.

The 30th International Geological Congress was held in Beijing, China in August 1997. Leading scientists convened to present their findings and views to the international geological research community. Volume 14 of 26 focuses on structural geology and geomechanics. All articles in the proceedings have been refereed and keynote papers have been included in Volume 1. These proceedings aim to present a view of contemporary geology and should be of interest to researchers in the geological sciences.

This book examines how the state of underground structures can be determined with the assistance of force, deformation and energy. It then analyzes mechanized shield methods, the New Austrian tunneling method (NATM) and conventional methods from this new perspective. The book gathers a wealth of cases reflecting the experiences of practitioners and administrators alike. Based on statistical and engineering studies of these cases, as well as lab and field experiments, it develops a stability assessment approach incorporating a stable equilibrium, which enables engineers to keep the structure and surrounding rocks safe as long as the stable equilibrium and deformation compliance are maintained. The book illustrates the implementation of the method in various tunneling contexts, including soil-rock mixed strata, tunneling beneath operating roads, underwater tunnels, and tunnel pit excavation. It offers a valuable guide for researchers, designers and engineers, especially those who are seeking to understand the underlying principles of underground excavation.

The use of positive muons to simulate protons in solids is a relatively new, but already successful field of research, which exploits the unique properties of the muon. This book is a collection of papers for special issues of the Philosophical Magazine Part B and the Philosophical Magazine Transactions A, together with previously unreleased material presented at a seminar on the subject. The 30 papers here are written by an international team of experts who effectively cover both the theoretical and experimental aspects of the subject.

This book presents the development of an optimization platform for geotechnical engineering, which is one of the key components in smart geotechnics. The book discusses the fundamentals of the optimization algorithm with constitutive models of soils. Helping readers easily understand the optimization algorithm applied in geotechnical engineering, this book first introduces the methodology of the optimization-based parameter identification, and then elaborates the principle of three newly developed efficient optimization algorithms, followed by the ideas of a variety of laboratory tests and formulations of constitutive models. Moving on to the application of optimization methods in geotechnical engineering, this book presents an optimization-based parameter identification platform with a practical and concise interface based on the above theories. The book is intended for undergraduate and graduate-level teaching in soil mechanics and geotechnical engineering and other related engineering specialties. It is also of use to industry practitioners, due to the inclusion of real-world applications, opening the door to advanced courses on both modeling and algorithm development within the industrial engineering and operations research fields.

This book collects 42 peer-reviewed papers presented in the NATO Advanced Research Workshop on Nanostructured Materials by High-Pressure Severe Plastic Deformation, held in Donetsk, Ukraine, September 22-24, 2004.

Recently, it was reported that nanostructured materials processed under high pressure by HPT and ECAP have an extraordinary combination of both high strength and high ductility, which are two desirable, but rarely co-existing properties. These findings indicate that high-pressure is a critical factor that can be employed to process nanostructured materials with superior mechanical, and possibly also physical, properties. It is the objective of this workshop to review our current knowledge, identify issues for future research, and discuss future directions on the processing and properties of nanostructured materials via SPD techniques, with a special emphasis on high-pressure effects.

During the 3-day workshop, about 60 scientists from 12 countries presented 60 papers. Over 20 keynote presentations were given by distinguished scientists in this field. Papers in this book cover areas of high pressure effect on the nanostructure and properties of SPD-processed materials, fundamentals of nanostructured materials, development of high-pressure SPD technologies for commercializations, recent advances of SPD technologies as well as applications and future markets of SPD-processed nanostructured materials