Simulação numérica de dutos enterrados, submetidos à perda de apoio e elevação localizada.

Os recentes desastres ocorridos no país, como o rompimento da adutora em Campo Grande e os desastres relacionados às enchentes urbanas, mostram a necessidade de desenvolvimento de pesquisas científicas que auxiliem na compreensão e no dimensionamento das estruturas projetadas para atender a demanda da população. Os métodos analíticos e experimentais mais utilizados possuem algumas limitações de ordem teórica ou prática. Por outro lado, os métodos numéricos, capazes de simular etapas construtivas e envolver materiais com diferentes modelos constitutivos numa mesma análise, buscam atender às necessidades práticas dos projetos de geotecnia e, ao mesmo tempo, complementam os modelos analíticos e experimentais. Nesse trabalho foram realizadas comparações entre resultados obtidos em ensaios experimentais e resultados extraídos do modelo computacional, buscando aumentar a compreensão sobre a interação solo-estrutura em relação à distribuição de tensões mobilizadas e aos deslocamentos e deformações provocados. A simulação numérica foi feita com a utilização do PLAXIS/3D, software de análise geotécnica baseado no método dos elementos finitos. Os ensaios foram confeccionados na Escola de Engenharia de São Carlos/USP por Costa (2005) e envolveram dutos enterrados submetidos à perda de apoio ou elevação localizada. O estudo experimental foi realizado através de modelos físicos compostos por um maciço de areia pura, contendo um tubo repousando sobre um alçapão no centro do vão. Os modelos físicos foram equipados com instrumental capaz de medir as deflexões e as deformações específicas ao longo do duto, além das tensões totais no maciço de solo circundante e na base do equipamento.

Análise das deformações dos aterros que compõem a obra do Arco Metropolitano do Rio de Janeiro.

O presente trabalho tem como objetivo a análise numérica do comportamento dos aterros instrumentados que compõem a obra do Arco Metropolitano do Rio de Janeiro. Os resultados da instrumentação de campo serão retroanalisados, juntamente com dados disponíveis na literatura, buscando-se a definição de parâmetros confiáveis, representativos do comportamento da argila compressível da região em estudo. O Arco Metropolitano do Rio de Janeiro é uma rodovia projetada que servirá como ligação entre as principais rodovias que cortam o município do Rio de Janeiro. Devido a presença de grandes espessuras de solo compressível em alguns trechos da região, cortados pelo traçado da rodovia, instrumentos de monitoramento, como placas de recalque e inclinômetros, foram utilizados para avaliar os deslocamentos verticais e horizontais dos aterros durante o processo construtivo. Para este trabalho foram selecionados trechos de aterros representativos, devido à magnitude dos recalques, qualidade do resultado da instrumentação e diferentes métodos construtivos. A partir da análise dos parâmetros de projeto e dos parâmetros encontrados na literatura, procede-se à simulação numérica do processo construtivo dos aterros selecionados com o programa PLAXIS, de elementos finitos, através de modelagem bidimensional. Os resultados numéricos são confrontados com a instrumentação de campo (placas de recalque e inclinômetros) e com os resultados de previsões teóricas (teoria de adensamento unidimensional). Os resultados comprovaram que a modelagem numérica mostrou-se uma ferramenta adequada para a previsão dos recalques totais, tempos de adensamento e ganho de resistência ao longo do tempo. A retroanálise do comportamento de aterros sobre solos moles permite a reavaliação das premissas de projeto, uma vez que as limitações das teorias de análise e a dificuldade na seleção de parâmetros, muitas vezes acarretam em estimativas de recalque incoerentes com as observações de campo.

Estudo do comportamento estrutural e análise de conforto humano de edifícios de concreto armado.

Atualmente, os projetos de edifícios altos necessitam cada vez mais de sistemas estruturais simples, que agilizem sua montagem, reduzindo os custos e promovendo maior flexibilidade de utilização para os espaços construídos. Com essa finalidade, estruturas com poucas vigas vêm sendo muito utilizadas. Entretanto, o sistema estrutural com poucas vigas pode ocasionar dois tipos de problemas, relacionados entre si, a saber: diminuição do sistema de contraventamento da edificação e vibrações excessivas. Portanto, é fundamental, nesses casos, a verificação da estabilidade global da estrutura, utilizando índices de sensibilidade além de outros parâmetros de projeto, como também, o desenvolvimento de um estudo minucioso acerca do conforto humano da edificação. Assim sendo, neste trabalho de pesquisa foram investigados quatro modelos estruturais de edifícios altos de concreto armado, com base no estudo da variação entre o número de pavimentos e a quantidade de vigas existentes em cada modelo, objetivando-se verificar quais os efeitos que tais variações podem vir a gerar sobre a estabilidade global e, bem como, sobre o conforto humano dos sistemas estruturais investigados. A modelagem numérica dos edifícios em estudo foi realizada através do emprego do programa ANSYS e, para tal, foram utilizadas técnicas básicas de discretização, por meio do método dos elementos finitos. As conclusões alcançadas ao longo da investigação versam acerca do estudo da resposta estrutural estática e dinâmica dos edifícios, no que diz respeito as variações dos valores dos parâmetros de instabilidade, dos valores dos deslocamentos e esforços, e, bem como, dos níveis de conforto humano de cada modelo estrutural analisado.

Modelagem Numérica da Construção de Aterro Instrumentado na Baixada Fluminense, Rio de Janeiro.

A complexidade na previsão do comportamento de aterros sobre solos compressíveis representa um desafio para os engenheiros geotécnicos, mesmo os mais experientes. As limitações das teorias de análise e a dificuldade na seleção de parâmetros muitas vezes acarretam em estimativas de recalque incoerentes com a observação de campo. O presente trabalho tem como objetivo reproduzir a seqüência construtiva de extenso aterro, instrumentado, executado na Baixada Fluminense, Rio de Janeiro, para implantação da indústria Rio Polímeros, utilizando o programa PLAXIS. Os parâmetros geotécnicos foram definidos a partir de ensaios oedométricos, tendo sido realizado um estudo prévio sobre a qualidade das amostras. Estes parâmetros foram confrontados com a experiência local, que resume mais de 30 anos de investigações na argila mole da Baixada Fluminense, no Rio de Janeiro. Apesar da distância entre os locais de investigações, não houve diferenças significativas entre os parâmetros geotécnicos. As análises numéricas foram realizadas considerando-se diferentes hipóteses para o coeficiente de permeabilidade, de forma a reproduzir adequadamente as leituras de placa de recalque e poropressão registradas no campo. Este parâmetro teve grande influência na resposta da modelagem numérica, tendo sido obtidos bons resultados com valores de permeabilidade variando em função da profundidade.

Baroclinic waves in an air-filled thermally driven rotating annulus.

In this study an experimental investigation of baroclinic waves in air in a differentially heated rotating annulus is presented. Air has a Prandtl number of 0.707, which falls within a previously unexplored region of parameter space for baroclinic instability. The flow regimes encountered include steady waves, periodic amplitude vacillations, modulated amplitude vacillations, and either monochromatic or mixed wave number weak waves, the latter being characterized by having amplitudes less than 5% of the applied temperature contrast. The distribution of these flow regimes in parameter space are presented in a regime diagram. It was found that the progression of transitions between different regimes is, as predicted by recent numerical modeling results, in the opposite sense to that usually found in experiments with high Prandtl number liquids. No hysteresis in the flow type, with respect to variations in the rotation rate, was found in this investigation.

Novel applications of BEM based Poisson level set approach

Accurate and efficient computation of the distance function d for a given domain is important for many areas of numerical modeling. Partial differential (e.g. HamiltonJacobi type) equation based distance function algorithms have desirable computational efficiency and accuracy. In this study, as an alternative, a Poisson equation based level set (distance function) is considered and solved using the meshless boundary element method (BEM). The application of this for shape topology analysis, including the medial axis for domain decomposition, geometric de-featuring and other aspects of numerical modeling is assessed. © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Guidance of collective cell migration by substrate geometry.

Collective behavior refers to the emergence of complex migration patterns over scales larger than those of the individual elements constituting a system. It plays a pivotal role in biological systems in regulating various processes such as gastrulation, morphogenesis and tissue organization. Here, by combining experimental approaches and numerical modeling, we explore the role of cell density ('crowding'), strength of intercellular adhesion ('cohesion') and boundary conditions imposed by extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins ('constraints') in regulating the emergence of collective behavior within epithelial cell sheets. Our results show that the geometrical confinement of cells into well-defined circles induces a persistent, coordinated and synchronized rotation of cells that depends on cell density. The speed of such rotating large-scale movements slows down as the density increases. Furthermore, such collective rotation behavior depends on the size of the micropatterned circles: we observe a rotating motion of the overall cell population in the same direction for sizes of up to 200 μm. The rotating cells move as a solid body, with a uniform angular velocity. Interestingly, this upper limit leads to length scales that are similar to the natural correlation length observed for unconfined epithelial cell sheets. This behavior is strongly altered in cells that present a downregulation of adherens junctions and in cancerous cell types. We anticipate that our system provides a simple and easy approach to investigate collective cell behavior in a well-controlled and systematic manner.

Transport phenomena in radial flow MOCVD reactor with three concentric vertical inlets

Transport phenomena in radial flow metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) reactor with three concentric vertical inlets are studied by two-dimensional numerical modeling. By varying the parameters such as gas pressure, flow rates combination of multi-inlets, geometric shapes and sizes of reactor and flow distributor, temperatures of susceptor and ceiling, and susceptor rotation, the corresponding velocity, temperature, and concentration fields inside the reactor are obtained; the onset and change of flow recirculation cells under influences of those parameters are determined. It is found that recirculation cells, originated from flow separation near the bend of reactor inlets, are affected mainly by the reactor height and shape, the operating pressure, the flow rates combination of multi-inlets, and the mean temperature between susceptor and ceiling. By increasing the flow rate of mid-inlet and the mean temperature, decreasing the pressure, maintaining the reactor height below certain criteria, and trimming the bends of reactor wall and flow distributor to streamlined shape, the recirculation cells can be minimized so that smooth and rectilinear flow prevails in the susceptor region, which corresponds to smooth and rectilinear isotherms and larger reactant concentration near the susceptor. For the optimized reactor shape, the reactor size can be enlarged to diameter D = 40 cm and height H = 2 cm without flow recirculation. The susceptor rotation over a few hundred rpm around the reactor central axis will induce the recirculation cell near the exit and deflect the streamlines near the susceptor, which is not the case for vertical reactors. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Nanostructure in the p-layer and its impacts on amorphous silicon solar cells

The open circuit voltage (V-oc) of n-i-p type hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) solar cells has been examined by means of experimental and numerical modeling. The i- and p-layer limitations on V-oc are separated and the emphasis is to identify the impact of different kinds of p-layers. Hydrogenated protocrystalline, nanocrystalline and microcrystalline silicon p-layers were prepared and characterized using Raman spectroscopy, high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), optical transmittance and activation energy of dark-conductivity. The n-i-p a-Si:H solar cells incorporated with these p-layers were comparatively investigated, which demonstrated a wide variation of V-oc from 1.042 V to 0.369 V, under identical i- and n-layer conditions. It is found that the nanocrystalline silicon (nc-Si:H) p-layer with a certain nanocrystalline volume fraction leads to a higher V-oc. The optimum p-layer material for n-i-p type a-Si:H solar cells is not found at the onset of the transition between the amorphous to mixed phases, nor is it associated with a microcrystalline material with a large grain size and a high volume fraction of crystalline phase. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Nanostructure in the p-layer and its impacts on amorphous silicon solar cells

The open circuit voltage (V-oc) of n-i-p type hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) solar cells has been examined by means of experimental and numerical modeling. The i- and p-layer limitations on V-oc are separated and the emphasis is to identify the impact of different kinds of p-layers. Hydrogenated protocrystalline, nanocrystalline and microcrystalline silicon p-layers were prepared and characterized using Raman spectroscopy, high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), optical transmittance and activation energy of dark-conductivity. The n-i-p a-Si:H solar cells incorporated with these p-layers were comparatively investigated, which demonstrated a wide variation of V-oc from 1.042 V to 0.369 V, under identical i- and n-layer conditions. It is found that the nanocrystalline silicon (nc-Si:H) p-layer with a certain nanocrystalline volume fraction leads to a higher V-oc. The optimum p-layer material for n-i-p type a-Si:H solar cells is not found at the onset of the transition between the amorphous to mixed phases, nor is it associated with a microcrystalline material with a large grain size and a high volume fraction of crystalline phase. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Guiding mode in elliptical core microstructured polymer optical fiber

A kind of microstructured polymer optical fiber with elliptical core has been fabricated by adopting in-situ chemical polymerization technology and the secondary sleeving draw-stretching technique. Microscope photography demonstrates the clear hole-structure retained in the fiber. Though the holes distortion is visible, initial laser experiment indicates that light can be strongly confined in the elliptical core region, and the mode field is split obviously and presents the multi-mode characteristic. Numerical modeling is carried out for the real fiber with the measured parameters, including the external diameter of 150 pin, the average holes diameter of 3.3 mu m, and the average hole spacing of 6.3 mu m. by using full-vector plane wave method. The guided mode fields of the numerical simulation are consistent with the experiment result. This fiber shows the strong multi-mode and weak birefringence in the visible and near-infrared band, and has possibility for achieving the fiber mode convertors, mode selective couplers and so on.

低功率氩电弧加热发动机的数值模拟

采用可求解可压缩流动与传热的全速度SIMPLE算法, 对低功率氩电弧加热发动机内部的传热与流动进行了数值模拟, 获得了电弧加热发动机内的温度、速度、马赫数及流线分布. 计算结果表明: 电弧加热发动机内最高温度出现在阴极下游附近中心轴线处, 这是因为电弧在阴极表面收缩形成阴极弧点, 从而焦耳热成为该高温区的主要加热机制; 沿着发动机中心轴线, 气体温度和速度开始时随着距阴极距离的增加而迅速增加, 然后在等离子体流向喷管出口的过程中, 气体温度和速度逐渐下降. 此外还详细考察了弧电流变化对电弧加热发动机内部传热与流动特性的影响, 计算获得的发动机流量和比冲与实验结果基本一致.

东中国海浪-流相互作用初步数值模拟

近十年，国内外学者从不同的角度对浪流相互作用进行了研究，但由于问题本身的复杂性，仍然存在很大的探讨空间。特别是在我国，这一领域的研究并不多见，且现有的研究成果多是单向耦合。本文从风应力、底摩擦应力、波致辐射应力三方面入手尝试研究浪流相互作用。利用海浪模式SWAN和海流模式POM构建的浪-流耦合模式，对1994年8月上中旬渤海、黄海、东海区域两次台风过程下的部分海洋要素进行了对比模拟实验。经过初步的研究，得到了一些有价值的认识。结果表明： （1）在台风中心外围的大风区，Donelan公式的计算结果要高于POM原有的计算结果，最大增幅可达30%，拖曳系数高值区的范围也明显增大。 （2）Signell方案给出的底摩擦系数计算结果随时间有明显变化的区域集中在水深50米以浅的海域。 （3）三项应力共同给浪流耦合模式带来的水位变化与三项应力中的任意两项组合带来的水位变化有相似的空间分布型。福州沿岸最大增幅0.25m以上，温州沿岸最大增幅0.3m，长江入海口处最大增幅0.25m左右，仁川沿岸最大增幅则达到0.4m。 （4）耦合后的结果与岸边站点实测水位的对比结果显示，基隆、坎门站的水位在台风经过前后时段更接近于观测值，特别是极值水位处。 （5）流的存在显著的影响有效波高的计算结果。在黄渤海区域，潮流对有效波高的增减在极值处可达0.2m。在台湾岛东北海域黑潮流系附近，流对有效波高的增加最大可达1.8m。 上述结果对近岸风暴潮和海浪的预报具有指示意义。

基于广义正交多项式迭积微分算子的地震波场数值模拟研究

Seismic Numerical Modeling is one of bases of the Exploratory Seismology and Academic Seismology, also is a research field in great demand. Essence of seismic numerical modeling is to assume that structure and parameters of the underground media model are known, simulate the wave-field and calculate the numerical seismic record that should be observed. Seismic numerical modeling is not only a means to know the seismic wave-field in complex inhomogeneous media, but also a test to the application effect by all kinds of methods. There are many seismic numerical modeling methods, each method has its own merits and drawbacks. During the forward modeling, the computation precision and the efficiency are two pivotal questions to evaluate the validity and superiority of the method. The target of my dissertation is to find a new method to possibly improve the computation precision and efficiency, and apply the new forward method to modeling the wave-field in the complex inhomogeneous media. Convolutional Forsyte polynomial differentiator (CFPD) approach developed in this dissertation is robust and efficient, it shares some of the advantages of the high precision of generalized orthogonal polynomial and the high speed of the short operator finite-difference. By adjusting the operator length and optimizing the operator coefficient, the method can involve whole and local information of the wave-field. One of main tasks of the dissertation is to develop a creative, generalized and high precision method. The author introduce convolutional Forsyte polynomial differentiator to calculate the spatial derivative of seismic wave equation, and apply the time staggered grid finite-difference which can better meet the high precision of the convolutional differentiator to substitute the conventional finite-difference to calculate the time derivative of seismic wave equation, then creating a new forward method to modeling the wave-field in complex inhomogeneous media. Comparing with Fourier pseudo-spectral method, Chebyshev pseudo-spectral method, staggered- grid finite difference method and finite element method, convolutional Forsyte polynomial differentiator (CFPD) method has many advantages: 1. Comparing with Fourier pseudo-spectral method. Fourier pseudo-spectral method (FPS) is a local operator, its results have Gibbs effects when the media parameters change, then arose great errors. Therefore, Fourier pseudo-spectral method can not deal with special complex and random heterogeneous media. But convolutional Forsyte polynomial differentiator method can cover global and local information. So for complex inhomogeneous media, CFPD is more efficient. 2. Comparing with staggered-grid high-order finite-difference method, CFPD takes less dots than FD at single wave length, and the number does not increase with the widening of the studying area. 3. Comparing with Chebyshev pseudo-spectral method (CPS). The calculation region of Chebyshev pseudo-spectral method is fixed in , under the condition of unchangeable precision, the augmentation of calculation is unacceptable. Thus Chebyshev pseudo-spectral method is inapplicable to large area. CFPD method is more applicable to large area. 4. Comparing with finite element method (FE), CFPD can use lager grids. The other task of this dissertation is to study 2.5 dimension (2.5D) seismic wave-field. The author reviews the development and present situation of 2.5D problem, expatiates the essentiality of studying the 2.5D problem, apply CFPD method to simulate the seismic wave-field in 2.5D inhomogeneous media. The results indicate that 2.5D numerical modeling is efficient to simulate one of the sections of 3D media, 2.5D calculation is much less time-consuming than 3D calculation, and the wave dispersion of 2.5D modeling is obviously less than that of 3D modeling. Question on applying time staggered-grid convolutional differentiator based on CFPD to modeling 2.5D complex inhomogeneous media was not studied by any geophysicists before, it is a fire-new creation absolutely. The theory and practices prove that the new method can efficiently model the seismic wave-field in complex media. Proposing and developing this new method can provide more choices to study the seismic wave-field modeling, seismic wave migration, seismic inversion, and seismic wave imaging.