The availability of computers has, in real terms, moved forward the practice of structural engineering. Where it was once enough to have any analysis given a complex configuration, the profession today is much more demanding. How engineers should be more demanding is the subject of this book. In terms of the theory of structures, the importance of geometric nonlinearities is explained by the theorem which states that "In the presence of prestress, geometric nonlinearities are of the same order of magnitude as linear elastic effects in structures. " This theorem implies that in most cases (in all cases of incremental analysis) geometric nonlinearities should be considered. And it is well known that problems of buckling, cable nets, fabric structures, ... REQUIRE the inclusion of geometric nonlinearities. What is offered in the book which follows is a unified approach (for both discrete and continuous systems) to geometric nonlinearities which incidentally does not require a discussion of large strain. What makes this all work is perturbation theory. Let the equations of equilibrium for a system be written as where P represents the applied loads, F represents the member forces or stresses, and N represents the operator which describes system equilibrium.

This monograph presents approaches to characterize inelastic behavior of materials and structures at high temperature. Starting from experimental observations, it discusses basic features of inelastic phenomena including creep, plasticity, relaxation, low cycle and thermal fatigue. The authors formulate constitutive equations to describe the inelastic response for the given states of stress and microstructure. They introduce evolution equations to capture hardening, recovery, softening, ageing and damage processes. Principles of continuum mechanics and thermodynamics are presented to provide a framework for the modeling materials behavior with the aim of structural analysis of high-temperature engineering components.

Modern computational techniques, such as the Finite Element Method, have, since their development several decades ago, successfully exploited continuum theories for numerous applications in science and technology. Although standard continuum methods based upon the Cauchy-Boltzmann continuum are still of great importance and are widely used, it increasingly appears that material properties stemming from microstructural phenomena have to be considered. This is particularly true for inhomogeneous load and deformation states, where lower-scale size effects begin to affect the macroscopic material response; something standard continuum theories fail to account for. Following this idea, it is evident that standard continuum mechanics has to be augmented to capture lower-scale structural and compositional phenomena, and to make this information accessible to macroscopic numerical simulations.

Polyester-Based Biocomposites highlights the performance of polyester-based biocomposites reinforced with various natural fibres extracted from leaf, stem, fruit bunch, grass, wood material. It also addresses the characteristics of polyester-based biocomposites reinforced with rice husk fillers and various nanoparticles. The book explores the widespread applications of fibre-reinforced polymer composites ranging from the aerospace sector, automotive parts, construction and building materials, sports equipment, and household appliances. Investigating the advantages of natural fibres, such as superior damping characteristics, low density, biodegradability, abundant availability at low cost and non-abrasive to tooling, the book discusses what makes them a cost-effective alternative reinforcement material for composites in certain applications. The book serves as a useful reference for researchers, graduate students, and engineers in the field of polymer composites.

This volume contains the proceedings of the 2000 International Congress of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics. The book captures a snapshot view of the state of the art in the field of mechanics and will be invaluable to engineers and scientists from a variety of disciplines.

In this book the author presents the dynamical systems in infinite dimension, especially those generated by dissipative partial differential equations. This book attempts a systematic study of infinite dimensional dynamical systems generated by dissipative evolution partial differential equations arising in mechanics and physics and in other areas of sciences and technology. This second edition has been updated and extended.

In Logomotive Ian Logan's photographs are assembled into chapters and picture essays recalling the great days of lines such as the Santa Fe, the Union Pacific, and the Kansas City Southern. Some of his journeys are presented as travelogues in which he meets the Fat Controller, gets to sound the horn, and wanders into freight yards to see the last generation of streamline locomotives rusting amid the weeds. Animal motifs, Native American allusions, advertising slogans, names of famous trains such as the Super Chief and the Wabash Cannonball provide the subject matter for other picture features.

Machining of Metal Matrix Composites provides the fundamentals and recent advances in the study of machining of metal matrix composites (MMCs). Each chapter is written by an international expert in this important field of research. Machining of Metal Matrix Composites gives the reader information on machining of MMCs with a special emphasis on aluminium matrix composites. Chapter 1 provides the mechanics and modelling of chip formation for traditional machining processes. Chapter 2 is dedicated to surface integrity when machining MMCs. Chapter 3 describes the machinability aspects of MMCs. Chapter 4 contains information on traditional machining processes and Chapter 5 is dedicated to the grinding of MMCs. Chapter 6 describes the dry cutting of MMCs with SiC particulate reinforcement. Finally, Chapter 7 is dedicated to computational methods and optimization in the machining of MMCs. Machining of Metal Matrix Composites can serve as a useful reference for academics, manufacturing and materials researchers, manufacturing and mechanical engineers, and professionals involved with MMC applications. It can also be used to teach modern manufacturing engineering or as a textbook for advanced undergraduate and postgraduate engineering courses in machining, manufacturing or materials.

This book provides a comprehensive introduction to and technical description of a unique patented surface-modification technology: plasma surface metallurgy with double-glow discharge plasma process, known as the Xu-Tec process. As such it promotes further attention and interest in scientific research and engineering development in this area, as well as industrial utilization and product commercialization. The Xu-Tec process has opened up a new material engineering field of "Plasma Surface Metallurgy". This surface-modification process can transform many low-grade and low-cost industrial engineering materials into "gold" materials with a high value and high grade or special functions. This improved material can be widely used in industrial production to improve the surface performance and quality of mechanical parts and manufacturing products, and to conserve expensive alloying elements for the benefit of all mankind. "This book will be valuable to those in the general area of surface metallurgy. The substantial description of the Xu-Tec process is very important and should assist in expanding the use of this superior technique. The in-depth explanation of glow discharges and their use in general will also serve as a valuable reference in the field." James E. Thompson, Prof. Fellow of the IEEE Dean of Engineering Emeritus University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, USA November, 2016 "A BREAKTHROUGH IN MAKING METAL TOUGHER". ---- SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY Business Week, July 24, 1989 "NOVEL SURFACE ALLOYING PROCESS" --- THE LEADING EDGE TECHNOLOGY WORDWIDE Materials and Processing Report, Dec. 1987

Gain a Deeper Understanding of Mechanical Fastening: Assemble More Efficient and Competitive Products A good design, quality parts, and properly executed assembly procedures and processes result in well-fastened assemblies. Utilizing a combined knowledge of mechanical assembly engineering and fastening technology, Mechanical Fastening, Joining, and Assembly, Second Edition provides readers with a solid understanding of mechanical fastening, joining, and assembly information. Based on the author's experience in the field, this updated mechanical arts guide and reference chronicles the technical progress since the first edition was published more than a decade ago. Provides Case Studies Showing Real-World Applications for Commonly Used Assemblies The second edition addresses recent trends in the industry, and looks at new fastening technologies used in aerospace, automotive, and other key areas. It explains the fastening function in depth, and describes the types of fastening approaches that can be used effectively. The revised text expands on the presentation and review of fastened components, detailing the assembly, design, manufacturing, and installation of fastener products and procedures. It covers specific joining applications, including vibration, standard, and special materials; details environmental factors; and provides useful reference charts for future use. What's New in the Second Edition: Provides an up-to-date selection of technologies Contains practical approaches to modern fastener technology Reviews engineering fundamentals with a focus on their application in the fastener industry Includes a section on fastener statics Expands on fastener manufacturing processes, most specifically cold heading and roll threading Adds fastener dynamics to draw attention to forces in motion (wind turbine hub turning in strong winds) and fastener strength of materials Extends review of the economics of fastening and provides some tools for engineering economics Examines the difference in static and dynamic strengths Considers fastener materials in this new century, provides some observations about the fastener laboratory, and discusses electrical theory Addresses sustainability, application product management, thermodynamics, energy systems, and new thought maps for application analysis Takes a look at a favorite application, D&D 100, and more Mechanical Fastening, Joining, and Assembly, Second Edition is accessible to novices and experienced technologists and engineers, and covers the latest in fastener technology and assembly training.

This self-tutorial offers a concise yet thorough grounding in the mathematics necessary for successfully applying FEMs to practical problems in science and engineering. The unique approach first summarizes and outlines the finite-element mathematics in general and then, in the second and major part, formulates problem examples that clearly demonstrate the techniques of functional analysis via numerous and diverse exercises. The solutions of the problems are given directly afterwards. Using this approach, the author motivates and encourages the reader to actively acquire the knowledge of finite-element methods instead of passively absorbing the material, as in most standard textbooks. The enlarged English-language edition, based on the original French, also contains a chapter on the approximation steps derived from the description of nature with differential equations and then applied to the specific model to be used. Furthermore, an introduction to tensor calculus using distribution theory offers further insight for readers with different mathematical backgrounds.

The 24th Leeds-Lyon Symposium was held in London from 4th-6th September 1997, where it was hosted by the Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine.

The meeting addressed the topic of "Tribology for Energy Conservation" and attracted a wide range of stimulating papers and speakers. Some 150 delegates from nineteen countries attended and about sixty papers were presented in fifteen sessions. These covered the topics of lubricants, wear, friction reduction, hydrodynamics, elastohydrodynamic lubrication, surface roughness, manufacturing, component life (including condition monitoring), and automotive aspects.

Tribology is emerging from the realm of steam engines and crank-case lubricants and becoming key to vital new technologies such as nanotechnology and MEMS. Wear is an integral part of tribology, and an effective understanding and appreciation of wear is essential in order to achieve the reliable and efficient operation of almost any machine or device. Knowledge in the field has increased considerably over recent years, and continues to expand: this book is intended to stimulate its readers to contribute towards the progress of this fascinating subject that relates to most of the known disciplines in physical science.

"Wear - Materials, Mechanisms and Practice" provides the reader with a unique insight into our current understanding of wear, based on the contributions of numerous internationally acclaimed specialists in the field. Offers a comprehensive review of current knowledge in the field of wear. Discusses latest topics in wear mechanism classification. Includes coverage of a wide variety of materials such as metals, polymers, polymer composites, diamonds, and diamond-like films and ceramics. Discusses the chemo-mechanical linkages that control tribology, providing a more complete treatment of the subject than just the conventional mechanical treatments. Illustrated throughout with carefully compiled diagrams that provide a unique insight into the controlling mechanisms of tribology.

The state of the art research on wear and the mechanisms of wear featured will be of interest to post-graduate students and lecturers in engineering, materials science and chemistry. The practical applications discussed will appeal to practitioners across virtually all sectors of engineeringand industry including electronic, mechanical and electrical, quality and reliability and design.

In the 1970s and the early 1980s there was an enormous volume of research and development into the subject of molybdenum disulphide lubrication, much of which was supported by national governments for the benefit of defence, aviation or space activities. There were already some well-established practical guidelines for deciding when and how to use molybdenum disulphide, but there was still a considerable lack of universally-accepted theoretical understanding of some of the important and fundamental aspects of molybdenum disulphide technology. However, the state of knowledge was growing rapidly.

In the past fifteen years the situation with regard to the technology of molybdenum disulphide lubrication has stabilised in many respects, and a measure of consensus has been reached about some of the mechanisms involved. The use of molybdenum disulphide has become routine in some industries, and there are many well-established and reputable commercial products available. Except in the high-technology field of physical deposition techniques, especially sputtering, the output of new research publications has fallen from perhaps two hundred a year in the 1970s to fewer than ten a year in the 1990s. In spite of this maturing of the subject, it is clear that there are still many aspects in which disagreements persist about the mechanisms involved, and which as a result are unclear or misunderstood among current, and perhaps even more importantly, potential users.
One of the primary objectives of this book is to analyse the various aspects of molybdenum disulphide lubrication technology about which there are still disagreements or controversy, and to attempt to come to firm conclusions about some of the mechanisms involved. In particular, it will place emphasis on the importance and effects of burnishing and film consolidation.

Geotechnical failures, specially the catastrophic ones, are a stimulus to improve current understanding of phenomena and procedures and tools for analysis and prediction.

This unconventional approach to geomechanics is the essence of this book. In general, soil mechanics and geotechnical textbooks describe first the concepts and theoretical developments and then apply them to interpret or solve a particular applications. This book follows a different course. The case (a failure) is first described and then an explanation is sought. This requires a set of steps which can be summarized as follows: Identify the nature of the problem, develop a dedicated and specific formulation of the case, based on established basic concepts. In general, no single existing theory or procedure is available to solve the case at hand, provide a solution within an acceptable degree of complexity, extract the fundamental aspects of the problem and highlight its relevance.

The cases selected have been grouped into three main topics: Landslides, Embankments and Dams and Dynamics of Failures. Cases selected (Vaiont, Aznalcollar, Brattas-St. Moritz) are unique and illustrate a number of relevant and to some extent controversial issues which are of wide interest, without claiming exhaustive treatment of the subject.

The book teaches how to build the necessary models to understand the failures. Well established soil mechanics concepts are the necessary background. But the cases analyzed require in general a step ahead which is specific for the case analyzed. Balance and equilibrium equations are often required as a starting point. They are formulated at different scales, which are selected having in mind the abstract representation of each case.

Various chapters illustrate also the coupled nature (flow-deformation-temperature) of geotechnical problems and the need to properly address these complexities in some cases. In fact, temperature effects, a subject often neglected in conventional analyses, are necessary to explain some catastrophic landslides (Vaiont). In some of the chapters, specific calculation tools, included in well known and widely available programs (Excel, Maple ) have been used. Details of the ad hoc programs developed have also been included in Appendices to help the readers to follow the details of the calculation.

Finite element methods have not been used. In the landslides analyzed (Vaiont and Brattas-St. Moritz) currently available commercial programs are of limited utility. In the remaining cases the analysis performed provides a sufficient insight and interpretation of field behaviour.

Chapters include also a short description of the changes in the original design and the mitigation measures which could have prevented the failure. Also, a summary section of lessons learned is provided in all chapters. Finally, selected topics and more advanced reading are suggested.

This book is associated with a Master/Doctorate course being offered at the Department of Geotechnical Engineering and Geosciences of UPC, Barcelona. Potential readers therefore include Graduate and Master students, faculty and professionals in the fields of Civil and Geotechnical Engineering."

Python Programming and Numerical Methods: A Guide for Engineers and Scientists introduces programming tools and numerical methods to engineering and science students, with the goal of helping the students to develop good computational problem-solving techniques through the use of numerical methods and the Python programming language. Part One introduces fundamental programming concepts, using simple examples to put new concepts quickly into practice. Part Two covers the fundamentals of algorithms and numerical analysis at a level that allows students to quickly apply results in practical settings.

This book presents the most recent advances in the research and applications of reconfigurable mechanisms and robots. It collects 93 independently reviewed papers presented at the Third ASME/IFToMM International Conference on Reconfigurable Mechanisms and Robots (ReMAR 2015) held in Beijing, China, 20-22 July 2015. The conference papers are organized into seven parts to cover the reconfiguration theory, topology, kinematics and design of reconfigurable mechanisms including reconfigurable parallel mechanisms. The most recent results on reconfigurable robots are presented including their analysis, design, simulation and control. Bio-inspired mechanisms are also explored in the challenging fields of rehabilitation and minimally invasive surgery. This book further addresses deployable mechanisms and origami-inspired mechanisms and showcases a wide range of successful applications of reconfigurable mechanisms and robots. Advances in Reconfigurable Mechanisms and Robots II should be of interest for researchers, engineers and postgraduate students in mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, computer science and mathematics.

This book is a result of the lectures and discussions during the conference "Theory and Practice of Geometric Modeling". The event has been organized by the Wilhelm-Schickard-Institut fiir Informatik, Universitat Tiibingen and took place at the Heinrich-Fabri-Institut in Blaubeuren from October 3 to 7, 1988. The conference brought together leading experts from academic and industrial research institutions, CAD system developers and experien ced users to exchange their ideas and to discuss new concepts and future directions in geometric modeling. The main intention has been to bridge the gap between theoretical results, performance of existing CAD systems and the real problems of users. The contents is structured in five parts: A Algorithmic Aspects B Surface Intersection, Blending, Ray Tracing C Geometric Tools D Different Representation Schemes in Solid Modeling E Product Modeling in High Level Specifications The material presented in this book reflects the current state of the art in geometric modeling and should therefore be of interest not only to university and industry researchers, but also to system developers and practitioners who wish to keep up to date on recent advances and new concepts in this rapidly expanding field. The editors express their sincere appreciation to the contributing authors, and to the members of the program committee, W. Boehm, J. Hoschek, A. Massabo, H. Nowacki, M. Pratt, J. Rossignac, T. Sederberg and W. Tiller, for their close cooperation and their time and effort that made the conference and this book a success.

This book reviews the fundamentals of screw theory concerned with velocity analysis of rigid-bodies, confirmed with detailed and explicit proofs. The author additionally investigates acceleration, jerk, and hyper-jerk analyses of rigid-bodies following the trend of the velocity analysis. With the material provided in this book, readers can extend the theory of screws into the kinematics of optional order of rigid-bodies. Illustrative examples and exercises to reinforce learning are provided. Of particular note, the kinematics of emblematic parallel manipulators, such as the Delta robot as well as the original Gough and Stewart platforms are revisited applying, in addition to the theory of screws, new methods devoted to simplify the corresponding forward-displacement analysis, a challenging task for most parallel manipulators.