Using complex network metrics to predict the persistence of metapopulations with asymmetric connectivity patterns

Almost all metapopulation modelling assumes that connectivity between patches is only a function of distance, and is therefore symmetric. However, connectivity will not depend only on the distance between the patches, as some paths are easy to traverse, while others are difficult. When colonising organisms interact with the heterogeneous landscape between patches, connectivity patterns will invariably be asymmetric. There have been few attempts to theoretically assess the effects of asymmetric connectivity patterns on the dynamics of metapopulations. In this paper, we use the framework of complex networks to investigate whether metapopulation dynamics can be determined by directly analysing the asymmetric connectivity patterns that link the patches. Our analyses focus on “patch occupancy” metapopulation models, which only consider whether a patch is occupied or not. We propose three easily calculated network metrics: the “asymmetry” and “average path strength” of the connectivity pattern, and the “centrality” of each patch. Together, these metrics can be used to predict the length of time a metapopulation is expected to persist, and the relative contribution of each patch to a metapopulation’s viability. Our results clearly demonstrate the negative effect that asymmetry has on metapopulation persistence. Complex network analyses represent a useful new tool for understanding the dynamics of species existing in fragmented landscapes, particularly those existing in large metapopulations.

Frequency response function based structural damage detection using artificial neural networks

Damage detection in structures has become increasingly important in recent years. While a number of damage detection and localization methods have been proposed, few attempts have been made to explore the structure damage with frequency response functions (FRFs). This paper illustrates the damage identification and condition assessment of a beam structure using a new frequency response functions (FRFs) based damage index and Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs). In practice, usage of all available FRF data as an input to artificial neural networks makes the training and convergence impossible. Therefore one of the data reduction techniques Principal Component Analysis (PCA) is introduced in the algorithm. In the proposed procedure, a large set of FRFs are divided into sub-sets in order to find the damage indices for different frequency points of different damage scenarios. The basic idea of this method is to establish features of damaged structure using FRFs from different measurement points of different sub-sets of intact structure. Then using these features, damage indices of different damage cases of the structure are identified after reconstructing of available FRF data using PCA. The obtained damage indices corresponding to different damage locations and severities are introduced as input variable to developed artificial neural networks. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed method is illustrated and validated by using the finite element modal of a beam structure. The illustrated results show that the PCA based damage index is suitable and effective for structural damage detection and condition assessment of building structures.

Structural Systematics of the Anhydrous 1:1 Proton-Transfer Compounds of 3,5-Dinitrosalicylic Acid with Aniline and Monosubstituted Anilines

The crystal structures of the proton-transfer compounds of 3,5-dinitrosalicylic acid (DNSA) with a series of aniline-type Lewis bases [aniline, 2-hydroxyaniline, 2-methoxyaniline, 3-methoxyaniline, 4-fluoroaniline, 4-chloroaniline and 2-aminoaniline] have been determined and their hydrogen-bonding systems analysed. All are anhydrous 1:1 salts: [(C6H8N)+(C7H3N2O7)-], (1), [(C6H8NO)+(C7H3N2O7)-], (2), [(C7H10NO)+(C7H3N2O7)-], (3), [(C7H10NO)+(C7H3N2O7)-], (4), [(C6H7FN)+(C7H3N2O7)-], (5), [(C6H7ClN)+(C7H3N2O7)-], (6), and [(C6H9N2)+(C7H3N2O7)-], (7) respectively. Crystals of 1 and 6 are triclinic, space group P-1 while the remainder are monoclinic with space group either P21/n (2, 4, 5 and 7) or P21 (3). Unit cell dimensions and contents are: for 1, a = 7.2027(17), b = 7.5699(17), c = 12.9615(16) Å, α = 84.464(14), β = 86.387(15), γ = 75.580(14)o, Z = 2; for 2, a = 7.407(3), b = 6.987(3), c = 27.653(11) Å, β = 94.906(7)o, Z = 4; for 3, a = 8.2816(18), b = 23.151(6), c = 3.9338(10), β = 95.255(19)o, Z = 2; for 4, a = 11.209(2), b = 8.7858(19), c = 15.171(3) Å, β = 93.717(4)o, Z = 4; for 5, a = 26.377(3), b = 10.1602(12), c = 5.1384(10) Å, β = 91.996(13)o, Z = 4; for 6, a = 11.217(3), b = 14.156(5), c = 4.860(3) Å, α = 99.10(4), β = 96.99(4), γ = 76.35(2)o, Z = 2; for 7, a = 12.830(4), b = 8.145(3), c = 14.302(4) Å, β = 102.631(6)o, Z = 4. In all compounds at least one primary linear intermolecular N+-H…O(carboxyl) hydrogen-bonding interaction is present which, together with secondary hydrogen bonding results in the formation of mostly two-dimensional network structures, exceptions being with compounds 4 and 5 (one-dimensional) and compound 6 (three-dimensional). In only two cases [compounds 1 and 4], are weak cation-anion or cation-cation π-π interactions found while weak aromatic C-H…O interactions are insignificant. The study shows that all compounds fit the previously formulated classification scheme for primary and secondary interactive modes for proton-transfer compounds of 3,5-dinitrosalicylic acid but there are some unusual variants.

Structural and thermal performance of cold-formed steel stud wall systems under fire conditions

Cold-formed steel stud walls are a major component of Light Steel Framing (LSF) building systems used in commercial, industrial and residential buildings. In the conventional LSF stud wall systems, thin steel studs are protected from fire by placing one or two layers of plasterboard on both sides with or without cavity insulation. However, there is very limited data about the structural and thermal performance of stud wall systems while past research showed contradicting results, for example, about the benefits of cavity insulation. This research was therefore conducted to improve the knowledge and understanding of the structural and thermal performance of cold-formed steel stud wall systems (both load bearing and non-load bearing) under fire conditions and to develop new improved stud wall systems including reliable and simple methods to predict their fire resistance rating. Full scale fire tests of cold-formed steel stud wall systems formed the basis of this research. This research proposed an innovative LSF stud wall system in which a composite panel made of two plasterboards with insulation between them was used to improve the fire rating. Hence fire tests included both conventional steel stud walls with and without the use of cavity insulation and the new composite panel system. A propane fired gas furnace was specially designed and constructed first. The furnace was designed to deliver heat in accordance with the standard time temperature curve as proposed by AS 1530.4 (SA, 2005). A compression loading frame capable of loading the individual studs of a full scale steel stud wall system was also designed and built for the load-bearing tests. Fire tests included comprehensive time-temperature measurements across the thickness and along the length of all the specimens using K type thermocouples. They also included the measurements of load-deformation characteristics of stud walls until failure. The first phase of fire tests included 15 small scale fire tests of gypsum plasterboards, and composite panels using different types of insulating material of varying thickness and density. Fire performance of single and multiple layers of gypsum plasterboards was assessed including the effect of interfaces between adjacent plasterboards on the thermal performance. Effects of insulations such as glass fibre, rock fibre and cellulose fibre were also determined while the tests provided important data relating to the temperature at which the fall off of external plasterboards occurred. In the second phase, nine small scale non-load bearing wall specimens were tested to investigate the thermal performance of conventional and innovative steel stud wall systems. Effects of single and multiple layers of plasterboards with and without vertical joints were investigated. The new composite panels were seen to offer greater thermal protection to the studs in comparison to the conventional panels. In the third phase of fire tests, nine full scale load bearing wall specimens were tested to study the thermal and structural performance of the load bearing wall assemblies. A full scale test was also conducted at ambient temperature. These tests showed that the use of cavity insulation led to inferior fire performance of walls, and provided good explanations and supporting research data to overcome the incorrect industry assumptions about cavity insulation. They demonstrated that the use of insulation externally in a composite panel enhanced the thermal and structural performance of stud walls and increased their fire resistance rating significantly. Hence this research recommends the use of the new composite panel system for cold-formed LSF walls. This research also included steady state tensile tests at ambient and elevated temperatures to address the lack of reliable mechanical properties for high grade cold-formed steels at elevated temperatures. Suitable predictive equations were developed for calculating the yield strength and elastic modulus at elevated temperatures. In summary, this research has developed comprehensive experimental thermal and structural performance data for both the conventional and the proposed non-load bearing and load bearing stud wall systems under fire conditions. Idealized hot flange temperature profiles have been developed for non-insulated, cavity insulated and externally insulated load bearing wall models along with suitable equations for predicting their failure times. A graphical method has also been proposed to predict the failure times (fire rating) of non-load bearing and load bearing walls under different load ratios. The results from this research are useful to both fire researchers and engineers working in this field. Most importantly, this research has significantly improved the knowledge and understanding of cold-formed LSF walls under fire conditions, and developed an innovative LSF wall system with increased fire rating. It has clearly demonstrated the detrimental effects of using cavity insulation, and has paved the way for Australian building industries to develop new wall panels with increased fire rating for commercial applications worldwide.

Performance load testing and structural adequacy evaluation of road bridge decks

Many ageing road bridges, particularly timber bridges, require urgent improvement due to the demand imposed by the recent version of the Australian bridge loading code, AS 5100. As traffic volume plays a key role in the decision of budget allocations for bridge refurbishment/ replacement, many bridges in low volume traffic network remain in poor condition with axle load and/ or speed restrictions, thus disadvantaging many rural communities. This thesis examines an economical and environmentally sensible option of incorporating disused flat rail wagons (FRW) in the construction of bridges in low volume, high axle load road network. The constructability, economy and structural adequacy of the FRW road bridge is reported in the thesis with particular focus of a demonstration bridge commissioned in regional Queensland. The demonstration bridge comprises of a reinforced concrete slab (RCS) pavement resting on two FRWs with custom designed connection brackets at regular intervals along the span of the bridge. The FRW-RC bridge deck assembly is supported on elastomeric rubber pads resting on the abutment. As this type of bridge replacement technology is new and its structural design is not covered in the design standards, the in-service structural performance of the FRW bridge subjected to the high axle loadings prescribed in AS 5100 is examined through performance load testing. Both the static and the moving load tests are carried out using a fully laden commonly available three-axle tandem truck. The bridge deck is extensively strain gauged and displacement at several key locations is measured using linear variable displacement transducers (LVDTs). A high speed camera is used in the performance test and the digital image data are analysed using proprietary software to capture the locations of the wheel positions on the bridge span accurately. The wheel location is thus synchronised with the displacement and strain time series to infer the structural response of the FRW bridge. Field test data are used to calibrate a grillage model, developed for further analysis of the FRW bridge to various sets of high axle loads stipulated in the bridge design standard. Bridge behaviour predicted by the grillage model has exemplified that the live load stresses of the FRW bridge is significantly lower than the yield strength of steel and the deflections are well below the serviceability limit state set out in AS 5100. Based on the results reported in this thesis, it is concluded that the disused FRWs are competent to resist high axle loading prescribed in AS 5100 and are a viable alternative structural solution of bridge deck in the context of the low volume road networks.

Prediction of structural integrity, robustness and service life using advanced finite element methods

Corrosion is a common phenomenon and critical aspects of steel structural application. It affects the daily design, inspection and maintenance in structural engineering, especially for the heavy and complex industrial applications, where the steel structures are subjected to hash corrosive environments in combination of high working stress condition and often in open field and/or under high temperature production environments. In the paper, it presents the actual engineering application of advanced finite element methods in the predication of the structural integrity and robustness at a designed service life for the furnaces of alumina production, which was operated in the high temperature, corrosive environments and rotating with high working stress condition.

Molecular structural studies of the amorphous mineral pitticite Fe, AsO4, SO4, H2O

Some minerals are colloidal and show no X-ray diffraction patterns. Vibrational spectroscopy offers one of the few methods for the assessment of the structure of these types of mineral. Among this group of minerals is pitticite simply described as Fe, AsO4, SO4, H2O. The objective of this research is to determine the molecular structure of the mineral pitticite using vibrational spectroscopy. Raman microscopy offers a useful method for the analysis of such colloidal minerals. Raman and infrared bands are attributed to the , and water stretching vibrations. The Raman spectrum is dominated by a very intense sharp band at 983 cm−1 assigned to the symmetric stretching mode. A strong Raman band at 1041 cm−1 is observed and is assigned to the antisymmetric stretching mode. Low intensity Raman bands at 757 and 808 cm−1 may be assigned to the antisymmetric and symmetric stretching modes. Raman bands observed at 432 and 465 cm−1 are attributable to the doubly degenerate ν2(SO4)2- bending mode.

The analysis of social capital in online social communities

Social networks have proven to be an attractive avenue of investigation for researchers since humans are social creatures. Numerous literature have explored the term “social networks” from different perspectives and in diverse research fields. With the popularity of the Internet, social networking has taken on a new dimension. Online social communities therefore have become an emerging social avenue for people to communicate in today’s information age. People use online social communities to share their interests, maintain friendships, and extend their so-called circle of “friends”. Likewise, social capital, also known as human capital, is an important theory in sociology. Researchers usually utilise social capital theory when they investigate the topic relating to social networks. However, there is little literature that can provide an explicit and strong assertion in that research area due to the complexity of social capital. This thesis therefore focuses on the issue related to providing a better understanding about the relationship between social capital and online social communities. To enhance the value within the scope of this analysis, an online survey was conducted to examine the effects of the dimensions of social capital: relational capital, structural capital, and cognitive capital, determining the intensity of using online social communities. The data were derived from a total of 350 self-selected respondents completing an online survey during the research period. The main results indicate that social capital exists in online social communities under normal circumstances. Finally, this thesis also presents three contributions for both theory and practice in Chapter 5. The main results contribute to the understanding of connectivity in the interrelationships between individual social capital exchange within online social networks. Secondly, social trust was found to have a weak effect in influencing the intensity of individuals using online social communities. Third, the perpetual role of information sharing has an indirect influence on individual users participating in online social communities. This study also benefits online marketing consultants as marketers can not only gain consumer information easier from online social communities but also this understanding assists in designing effective communication within online social communities. The cross-sectional study, the reliability of Internet survey data, and sampling issues are the major three limitations in this research. The thesis provides a new research model and recommends that the mediating effects, privacy paradox, and social trust on online social communities should be further explored in future research.

Structural damage detection using frequency response functions and neural networks

This paper illustrates the damage identification and condition assessment of a three story bookshelf structure using a new frequency response functions (FRFs) based damage index and Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs). A major obstacle of using measured frequency response function data is a large size input variables to ANNs. This problem is overcome by applying a data reduction technique called principal component analysis (PCA). In the proposed procedure, ANNs with their powerful pattern recognition and classification ability were used to extract damage information such as damage locations and severities from measured FRFs. Therefore, simple neural network models are developed, trained by Back Propagation (BP), to associate the FRFs with the damage or undamaged locations and severity of the damage of the structure. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed method is illustrated and validated by using the real data provided by the Los Alamos National Laboratory, USA. The illustrated results show that the PCA based artificial Neural Network method is suitable and effective for damage identification and condition assessment of building structures. In addition, it is clearly demonstrated that the accuracy of proposed damage detection method can also be improved by increasing number of baseline datasets and number of principal components of the baseline dataset.

Structural damage identification with noise polluted Frequency Response Functions (FRFs)

Damage detection in structures has become increasingly important in recent years. While a number of damage detection and localization methods have been proposed, very few attempts have been made to explore the structure damage with noise polluted data which is unavoidable effect in real world. The measurement data are contaminated by noise because of test environment as well as electronic devices and this noise tend to give error results with structural damage identification methods. Therefore it is important to investigate a method which can perform better with noise polluted data. This paper introduces a new damage index using principal component analysis (PCA) for damage detection of building structures being able to accept noise polluted frequency response functions (FRFs) as input. The FRF data are obtained from the function datagen of MATLAB program which is available on the web site of the IASC-ASCE (International Association for Structural Control– American Society of Civil Engineers) Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) Task Group. The proposed method involves a five-stage process: calculation of FRFs, calculation of damage index values using proposed algorithm, development of the artificial neural networks and introducing damage indices as input parameters and damage detection of the structure. This paper briefly describes the methodology and the results obtained in detecting damage in all six cases of the benchmark study with different noise levels. The proposed method is applied to a benchmark problem sponsored by the IASC-ASCE Task Group on Structural Health Monitoring, which was developed in order to facilitate the comparison of various damage identification methods. The illustrated results show that the PCA-based algorithm is effective for structural health monitoring with noise polluted FRFs which is of common occurrence when dealing with industrial structures.

Internet usage, internet intensity and international sales performance SME's : a structural model approach

There has been much written about the Internet’s potential to enhance international market growth opportunities for SME’s. However, the literature is vague as to how Internet usage and the application of Internet marketing also known as Internet marketing intensity has an impact on firm international market growth. This paper examines the level and role of the Internet in the international operations of a sample of 218 Australian SMEs with international customers. This study shows evidence of a statistical relationship between Internet usage and Internet marketing intensity, which in turn leads to international market growth, in terms of increased sales from new customers in new countries, new customers in existing countries and from existing customers.

Analysis of conical-cylinder shells fundamental characteristics for structural health diagnostics

This paper describes the formulation for the free vibration of joined conical-cylindrical shells with uniform thickness using the transfer of influence coefficient for identification of structural characteristics. These characteristics are importance for structural health monitoring to develop model. This method was developed based on successive transmission of dynamic influence coefficients, which were defined as the relationships between the displacement and the force vectors at arbitrary nodal circles of the system. The two edges of the shell having arbitrary boundary conditions are supported by several elastic springs with meridional/axial, circumferential, radial and rotational stiffness, respectively. The governing equations of vibration of a conical shell, including a cylindrical shell, are written as a coupled set of first order differential equations by using the transfer matrix of the shell. Once the transfer matrix of a single component has been determined, the entire structure matrix is obtained by the product of each component matrix and the joining matrix. The natural frequencies and the modes of vibration were calculated numerically for joined conical-cylindrical shells. The validity of the present method is demonstrated through simple numerical examples, and through comparison with the results of previous researchers.

A study on the use of acoustic emission technique as a structural health monitoring tool

As civil infrastructures such as bridges age, there is a concern for safety and a need for cost-effective and reliable monitoring tool. Different diagnostic techniques are available nowadays for structural health monitoring (SHM) of bridges. Acoustic emission is one such technique with potential of predicting failure. The phenomenon of rapid release of energy within a material by crack initiation or growth in form of stress waves is known as acoustic emission (AE). AEtechnique involves recording the stress waves bymeans of sensors and subsequent analysis of the recorded signals,which then convey information about the nature of the source. AE can be used as a local SHM technique to monitor specific regions with visible presence of cracks or crack prone areas such as welded regions and joints with bolted connection or as a global technique to monitor the whole structure. Strength of AE technique lies in its ability to detect active crack activity, thus helping in prioritising maintenance work by helping focus on active cracks rather than dormant cracks. In spite of being a promising tool, some challenges do still exist behind the successful application of AE technique. One is the generation of large amount of data during the testing; hence an effective data analysis and management is necessary, especially for long term monitoring uses. Complications also arise as a number of spurious sources can giveAEsignals, therefore, different source discrimination strategies are necessary to identify genuine signals from spurious ones. Another major challenge is the quantification of damage level by appropriate analysis of data. Intensity analysis using severity and historic indices as well as b-value analysis are some important methods and will be discussed and applied for analysis of laboratory experimental data in this paper.

Structural behaviour and design of cold-formed steel wall systems under fire conditions

In recent times, light gauge steel framed (LSF) structures, such as cold-formed steel wall systems, are increasingly used, but without a full understanding of their fire performance. Traditionally the fire resistance rating of these load-bearing LSF wall systems is based on approximate prescriptive methods developed based on limited fire tests. Very often they are limited to standard wall configurations used by the industry. Increased fire rating is provided simply by adding more plasterboards to these walls. This is not an acceptable situation as it not only inhibits innovation and structural and cost efficiencies but also casts doubt over the fire safety of these wall systems. Hence a detailed fire research study into the performance of LSF wall systems was undertaken using full scale fire tests and extensive numerical studies. A new composite wall panel developed at QUT was also considered in this study, where the insulation was used externally between the plasterboards on both sides of the steel wall frame instead of locating it in the cavity. Three full scale fire tests of LSF wall systems built using the new composite panel system were undertaken at a higher load ratio using a gas furnace designed to deliver heat in accordance with the standard time temperature curve in AS 1530.4 (SA, 2005). Fire tests included the measurements of load-deformation characteristics of LSF walls until failure as well as associated time-temperature measurements across the thickness and along the length of all the specimens. Tests of LSF walls under axial compression load have shown the improvement to their fire performance and fire resistance rating when the new composite panel was used. Hence this research recommends the use of the new composite panel system for cold-formed LSF walls. The numerical study was undertaken using a finite element program ABAQUS. The finite element analyses were conducted under both steady state and transient state conditions using the measured hot and cold flange temperature distributions from the fire tests. The elevated temperature reduction factors for mechanical properties were based on the equations proposed by Dolamune Kankanamge and Mahendran (2011). These finite element models were first validated by comparing their results with experimental test results from this study and Kolarkar (2010). The developed finite element models were able to predict the failure times within 5 minutes. The validated model was then used in a detailed numerical study into the strength of cold-formed thin-walled steel channels used in both the conventional and the new composite panel systems to increase the understanding of their behaviour under nonuniform elevated temperature conditions and to develop fire design rules. The measured time-temperature distributions obtained from the fire tests were used. Since the fire tests showed that the plasterboards provided sufficient lateral restraint until the failure of LSF wall panels, this assumption was also used in the analyses and was further validated by comparison with experimental results. Hence in this study of LSF wall studs, only the flexural buckling about the major axis and local buckling were considered. A new fire design method was proposed using AS/NZS 4600 (SA, 2005), NAS (AISI, 2007) and Eurocode 3 Part 1.3 (ECS, 2006). The importance of considering thermal bowing, magnified thermal bowing and neutral axis shift in the fire design was also investigated. A spread sheet based design tool was developed based on the above design codes to predict the failure load ratio versus time and temperature for varying LSF wall configurations including insulations. Idealised time-temperature profiles were developed based on the measured temperature values of the studs. This was used in a detailed numerical study to fully understand the structural behaviour of LSF wall panels. Appropriate equations were proposed to find the critical temperatures for different composite panels, varying in steel thickness, steel grade and screw spacing for any load ratio. Hence useful and simple design rules were proposed based on the current cold-formed steel structures and fire design standards, and their accuracy and advantages were discussed. The results were also used to validate the fire design rules developed based on AS/NZS 4600 (SA, 2005) and Eurocode Part 1.3 (ECS, 2006). This demonstrated the significant improvements to the design method when compared to the currently used prescriptive design methods for LSF wall systems under fire conditions. In summary, this research has developed comprehensive experimental and numerical thermal and structural performance data for both the conventional and the proposed new load bearing LSF wall systems under standard fire conditions. Finite element models were developed to predict the failure times of LSF walls accurately. Idealized hot flange temperature profiles were developed for non-insulated, cavity and externally insulated load bearing wall systems. Suitable fire design rules and spread sheet based design tools were developed based on the existing standards to predict the ultimate failure load, failure times and failure temperatures of LSF wall studs. Simplified equations were proposed to find the critical temperatures for varying wall panel configurations and load ratios. The results from this research are useful to both structural and fire engineers and researchers. Most importantly, this research has significantly improved the knowledge and understanding of cold-formed LSF loadbearing walls under standard fire conditions.

A further exploration of sensation seeking propensity, reward sensitivity, depression, anxiety, and the risky behaviour of young novice drivers in a structural equation model

Young novice drivers constitute a major public health concern due to the number of crashes in which they are involved, and the resultant injuries and fatalities. Previous research suggests psychological traits (reward sensitivity, sensation seeking propensity), and psychological states (anxiety, depression) influence their risky behaviour. The relationships between gender, anxiety, depression, reward sensitivity, sensation seeking propensity and risky driving are explored. Participants (390 intermediate drivers, 17-25 years) completed two online surveys at a six month interval. Surveys comprised sociodemographics, Brief Sensation Seeking Scale, Kessler’s Psychological Distress Scale, an abridged Sensitivity to Reward Questionnaire, and risky driving behaviour was measured by the Behaviour of Young Novice Drivers Scale. Structural equation modelling revealed anxiety, reward sensitivity and sensation seeking propensity predicted risky driving. Gender was a moderator, with only reward sensitivity predicting risky driving for males. Future interventions which consider the role of rewards, sensation seeking, and mental health may contribute to improved road safety for younger and older road users alike.