Destructive Force Research Articles

A hydrodynamic modelling of wave-activated bodies for wavelet marine regions

Abstract Recently, most wave energy research has targeted sea areas with high power density under extreme wave conditions for deployment. This trend often leads to higher energy costs for wave power plants. However, many marine areas with low power density, characterized by wavelet conditions and less destructive forces than extreme wave conditions, remain underexplored. Therefore, this study aimed to propose a wave-activated body model for sea regions with wavelet conditions. The wave-activated body design process encompassed site selection, parameter determination, geometry design, comparison and performance evaluation using the ANSYS® AQWA model. The results indicated that the proposed device achieved the desired heave motion, with an amplitude range of 1.2 to –2.5 m, validating its potential for deployment in marine regions with wavelet conditions. Notably, while the proposed design is optimized for wavelet conditions, it was found to have potential limitations in extreme wave environments. This observation emphasizes the challenge of formulating a generalized design suitable for both conditions. Consequently, it is pivotal for wave-activated body designs to be customized based on the specific ocean conditions they target, underscoring the need for specialized designs of wave energy converters that consider the unique wave characteristics of their deployment sites.

Biblioclasm :A Sociocultural Study of Knowledge Destruction and Prevention Through Legal Mechanisms

‘Biblioclasm: A Sociocultural Study of Knowledge Destruction and Prevention Through Legal Mechanisms’ explores the complex and multifaceted phenomenon of biblioclasm, the deliberate destruction of books and knowledge repositories, from a sociocultural perspective. This paper explores the causes of biblioclasm, its historical and modern expressions, and the function of legislative safeguards in preserving intellectual variety and cultural heritage. The study explores the sociocultural roots of biblioclasm and considers the different ideological, political, religious, or cultural motivations that people or groups may have for wanting to eliminate information. The study offers insights into the destructive forces that have affected human history by using historical examples like the burning of the Library of Alexandria and contemporary examples like the destruction of cultural artifacts by terrorist organisations. This study also emphasises the value of legislative safeguards in preventing biblioclasm and safeguarding the world's cultural heritage. It examines the efficiency of international treaties and conventions, such as the UNESCO Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict, in averting the loss of knowledge and fostering cultural preservation. The study also looks at how domestic legal systems in particular areas or countries deal with biblioclasm. Keywords - Book Burning, Biblioclam, Iconoclasm, Destruction of Knowledge, Information Censorship, Destruction of Information

РАЗРАБОТКА РЕСУРСОСБЕРЕГАЮЩЕЙ ТЕХНОЛОГИИ И ТЕХНИЧЕСКИХ СРЕДСТВ ДЛЯ ВОЗДЕЛЫВАНИЯ КАРТОФЕЛЯ

A significant proportion of potatoes are cultivated in difficult soil and climatic conditions, which negatively affects the quality of harvested potatoes due to the consequences of contact of tubers with soil lumps. The technology for cultivating potatoes with alternating beds is proposed to increase the efficiency of potato cultivation to stabilize the accumulation of organic matter, decompact the soil and the subsoil horizon. The method includes basic tillage, pre-planting tillage with cutting ridges, planting potatoes in ridges, inter-row cultivation, maintenance soil moisture and density, digging up tubers and marking rows. The method differs in that during subsequent planting next year, the soil is cultivated so that the bottom of the ridges alternates with potato tubers. The research results showed that the greatest influence on the destruction of soil lumps is their moisture content and the speed at which the lumps collide with the beater drum. It has been shown that destruction of up to 80% of soil lumps occurs when falling from a height of 1 - 1.5 m and the destructive force of clay with a moisture content of 17 - 22% under static compression is 0.1-0.2 kN. Ultimately, the technology of growing potatoes with alternating ridges helps control weeds and minimizes the incidence of diseases and pests.

Load Capacity of Screw Anchor Installed in Concrete Substrate Reinforced with Steel Fibers Depending on Fiber Content.

Pull-out strength tests conducted on screw anchors in uncracked concrete substrates of the C25/30 class are presented in this article. The destructive force for anchor-concrete fasting was tested, and in the next step, the average pull-out strengths of screw anchors in concrete substrates with and without the addition of steel fiber were determined. Currently, the pull-out strengths of anchors in fiber-reinforced concrete substrates are defined as for unreinforced concrete substrates. Therefore, pull-out tests were performed for screw anchors in fiber-reinforced concrete substrates. Fiber contents of 10, 20, 30, and 50 kg/m3 were used. An increase in the load capacity of screw anchors in a fiber-reinforced concrete substrate was demonstrated in a pull-out test compared to base samples without fibers. The coefficient related to the actual fastening behavior of a screw anchor in the fiber-reinforced concrete substrate was determined. It was assumed that a coefficient of 13.10 should be adopted. This was the lowest value obtained for the load capacity in this study for screw anchors in a fiber-reinforced concrete substrate.

Non-destructive method for determining the strength of concrete based on immersion and extraction of steel nails

Introduction. The method of concrete strength control based on immersion of a steel dowel into concrete due to the energy of a powder charge has been used since the 60s of the last century. Since the early 2000s, the method has been supplemented by the definition of the dowel pullout force from concrete and the definition of an indirect characteristic in the form of the ratio of the pullout force to the depth of immersion of the dowel.
 
 The object of the present research was a method for determining the strength of concrete based on measuring the depth of immersion and the pulling force of a dowel nail installed in concrete.
 
 Aim: to develop requirements for testing by the proposed method, allowing its use as a non-destructive method for testing the strength of concrete.
 
 Materials and methods. The following research methods are used in this work: analysis of available regulatory documents and technical literature on this issue; collection and analysis of the results of previously conducted research using mathematical statistics methods, development of a research program and assignment of parameters, the value of which must be controlled when performing research; performance of own tests and research; analysis of the obtained results of the performed research using methods of mathematical statistics; analysis of the influence of various factors on the result of research, exclusion of non-influencing factors; development of recommendations for the use of the studied control method.
 
 Results. The limitations for the application of the investigated method and the factors that have the most significant impact on the accuracy of the method are revealed: the power spread of the powder charge, the parameters of the indenter (plugged dowel), the criteria for the quality of the dowel installation; a method for rejecting of low-quality results and processing test results has been developed. The factors that do not have a significant impact on the test results have been identified.
 
 Conclusions. Taking into account the identified limitations, a method has been developed for determining the strength of concrete by the magnitude of the local destruction force of concrete when pulling out a dowel nail immersed in concrete, and proposals have been made for inclusion in the State Standard R "Concretes. Determination of the strength by the depth of immersion of the dowel-nail".

Исследование и разработка пиросостава на основе перхлората аммония для безопасного разрушения искусственных бетонных объектов

The article is dedicated to the research and development of the ammonium-perchlorate-based pyrotechnic composition used for the safe destruction of artificial concrete objects. Ammonium perchlorate has been used as an oxidant of the pyrotechnic composition. Primarily, this is conditioned by the powerfully destructive force of ammonium perchlorate; the application of perchlorate compounds enables obtaining the most energy-efficient compositions. The magnesium powder brand MPF-1 has been used as a fuel and the polyethylene as a fuel and gas-forming agent. The impacts of different amounts of magnesium powder on the properties of combustion of the ammonium-perchlorate-based pyrotechnic composition have been studied. The calculation and experimental data have shown that it is impractical to introduce more than 5 % of magnesium into the composition. Based on the study results, the ammonium-perchlorate-based pyrotechnic composition was elaborated in order to increase the efficiency and safety of blast jobs. The laboratory and landfill tests have confirmed the efficiency and safety of the use of pyrotechnic compositions for the destruction of artificial concrete objects. A concrete block was destroyed without the scattering of fragments and the formation and propagation of a blast airwave. Therefore, ensuring the safety of blast jobs involving pyrotechnic compositions is a first-priority task, which will prevent the generation of harmful and poisonous gases and the brisant action of explosion.

“Ulvetid, stormtid til verden ender”

This article explores how Karl Ove Knausgård, in his ongoing Morning Star-series (2020-), incorporates a planetary perspective on the consequences of the climate crisis. Within his series, he introduces a time where no one dies, prompting reflections on the reasons behind morality and the potentialchallenges to Earth's ecosystem if death were to disappear or if humans lived significantly longer. The narrative adopts an estranged perspective to shed light on tendencies in our current society that may contribute to the climate catastrophe, highlighting mankind's role as a destructive geological force.

Effect of seawater temperature on the corrosion and cavitation erosion-corrosion resistance of Al10Cr28Co28Ni34 high-entropy alloy coating

The influence of temperature on the corrosion and cavitation erosion-corrosion (CE-C) behavior of Al10Cr28Co28Ni34 high-entropy alloy (HEA) coating in seawater was investigated. Interestingly, the corrosion resistance of the coating progressively diminished with an increase in seawater temperature, but the CE-C resistance demonstrated a trend of initial increase followed by a decrease. At higher seawater temperature, the resistance of the coating surface and the destructive force of the bubbles were respectively enhanced and weakened due to the increase in oxide film thickness, maximum bubble size, and collapse time, together leading to a reduction in the damage degree to the coating.

Defending Democracy Against Populist Neo-Fascist Attacks: The Role and Problems of Public Sphere Theory

In the wake of the recent attacks on democracy by a re-invigorated populist neo-fascism there is a pressing need to articulate a middle ground position in debates between the public sphere paradigm and its critiques. This requires an engagement with tensions between consensus and conflict, rationality and emotion, and the system and the lifeworld. Furthermore, there is also a need to scrutinize the role of hybrid media system in promoting populist neo-fascist discourses and actors, but also assert its normative task to combat it. Whereas conflict and power cannot be eradicated from the political, conflict is also a destructive force which requires a set of agreed upon ethico-political principles in order for a radical democracy to function. It is also argued that emotions need to be part of the democratic fight-back, but it is also suggested that a critical realist disposition combining epistemic relativism with judgmental rationality will be crucial to counter the relativism on steroids practiced by neo-fascist actors. Finally, the hybrid media system needs to be reconnected with the lifeworld, citizen interests and democratic values through a new regulatory framework, and the tradition of public journalism could provide inspiration for a democratic fightback from within the media system.

Sustainability scientists’ critique of neoclassical economics

Abstract Non-technical summary Neoclassical economics (NCE) theory and neoliberal economics practice together form one of the principal driving forces of environmental destruction and social injustice. We critically examine ten key hypotheses that form the foundations of NCE, and four other claims. Each fails to satisfy one or more of the basic requirements of scientific practice. Hence, NCE is fundamentally flawed, is irrational in the common meaning of the word, and should not be used as a guide for government policies. Because NCE is socially constructed, it can be replaced with an interdisciplinary conceptual framework that is compatible with ecological sustainability and social justice. Technical summary Neoclassical economics (NCE) is widely regarded as providing theoretical justification for neoliberal notions such as ‘governments should minimize regulation and spending, and hence leave major socioeconomic and environmental decisions to the market’. A large body of literature finds that NCE is largely responsible for environmental destruction and social inequality. As NCE is claimed to be a science and has appropriated terminology (without the content) from physics, we examine critically its basic hypotheses and four other claims from a viewpoint of natural scientists and an ecological economist, each a sustainability researcher. This paper defines NCE in two ways: as a theoretical structure for economics based on (1) the hypotheses of methodological individualism, methodological instrumentalism and methodological equilibration, and (2) the three hypotheses named above together with seven other common hypotheses of NCE. We find that each hypothesis and claim fails to satisfy one or more basic requirements of scientific practice such as empirical confirmation, underlying credible or empirical assumptions, consistency with Earth system science, and internal consistency. Sensitivity analysis is rare and ability to predict is lacking. Therefore, we recommend that neoclassical microeconomics be reformed and neoclassical macroeconomics be abandoned and replaced with a transdisciplinary field such as social ecological economics. Social media summary Conventional economics, a driver of environmental damage and social inequality, fails examination by sustainability scientists.

Modeling of 2D Hec-Ras Simulation on Debris Flow Analysis on Morphological Changes of the Omu River, Sigi Regency, Central Sulawesi

Landslide is a natural disaster that shows if the soil structure in the area is unstable, where landslides occurred was in the upper part of the Omu River. When there is heavy rain, landslide material in the form of debris is carried into the river flow increasing the concentration of sediment in the river which causes debris flow. Debris flow has a destructive power that can cause damage to buildings, utilities and can threaten the lives of people in the area. This study aims to NonNewtonian method analysis models in the HEC-RAS (2D) 6.4 software. The findings reveal that debris flow has a significant impact on the morphological stability of the Omu River, stability of the riverbed and bank erosion, which can disrupt the overall river system stability. One effective strategy for mitigating the potential risks of debris flow is the construction of the Sabo Dam on the Omu River. This dam is designed to capture and retain debris sediment, preventing it from being carried downstream. By doing so, it helps to maintain the morphological stability of the Omu River, riverbed, and reduce the impact of destructive debris flow forces.

A modern method for building damage evaluation using deep learning approach - Case study: Flash flooding in Derna, Libya

Year after year, floods become more and more a frequent and destructive force of nature, causing significant infrastructure losses and loss of life. An accurate and rapid assessment is required to determine the degree of contamination. The present study proposes a modern method for building damage assessment using deep learning during the flash flood of Derna, Libya. For this reason, we first exploited SAR satellite data, captured before and after the flood, to accurately determine the flood extent. Next, the footprint of affected buildings within this extent was extracted using a deep learning approach (U-Net model) based on high-resolution satellite imagery (30 cm) from MAXAR. Finally, an additional analysis was carried out using VIIRS VNP46A2 data (500 m spatial resolution) to analyse the night light assessment. The results demonstrate the effectiveness of this method, given that 5877 buildings were submerged by water and 2002 buildings were totally or partially destroyed. Also taking into account the estimated night light, Derna's power supply was reduced by over 90% after the floods. The suggested approach is an effective tool for comprehending the global effects of floods and aiding in relief efforts.

Types and archetypes of carnival political culture

Political carnival is understood as a distorted world in which the three main demons rule – lies, evil and amoralism. They create a perverted view of objective reality. Carnival figures look at the world with tightly closed eyes and do not see what everyone easily contemplates. Political carnival is evaluated as devaluation of political values, as deviation of ruling elite groups, and as a destructive force capable of destroying a political system in crisis. The world of political carnival is a world of absurdity, falsification and hypocrisy. It is a facade brought to political cynicism. Its crooked mirrors reflect the vices of human nature, such as: vanity, corruption, hypocrisy, sanctimony, pride, etc. All these vices are not hidden, but, on the contrary, they are praised and cultivated. It is as an aggressive advertisement of vices that we appreciate the essence of political carnival. It is a world where each keeps the other on the hook of compromise. They easily adopt the psychosis of the other. The madness of one becomes the madness of all. At any moment they can pretend to be anyone. In this sense, the political carnival is an epidemic of amoralism. And this existential threat is something that humanity is constantly confronted with. In the structure of such evil, certain types and archtypes of carnival political culture are constantly reproduced. It is to the analysis of these types that the present study is devoted.

Identification and analysis of evolution characteristics of flash drought based on three-dimensional perspective: A case study in the Jialing River basin

Flash drought is an extreme hydrological event, with a short foreseeable period and high destructive force, and it is difficult to monitor. Flash drought aggravates the risk of extreme disasters and seriously threatens agricultural production and urban water security. To explore the temporal and spatial dimension evolution and identifiable characteristics of flash drought, the present study proposed a comprehensive flash drought intensity (FDI) index to evaluate the severity of flash drought in the Jialing River Basin (JRB) based on the standardized evaporative stress ratio (SESR) method. In addition, the Normalized Area-Time Accumulation (NATA) curve was used to describe the three-dimensional continuous spatiotemporal evolution process of flash drought in the basin. The results showed that flash droughts lasted longer and were more severe in the highly urbanized southern part of the basin. In the past 40 years (1980–2020), the frequency, duration, and severity of flash droughts in the JRB increased. According to the susceptibility to flash drought, the JRB can be divided into four drought centers. Drought Center No. 1 is situated in the mountainous region in the northwest of the basin, exhibiting a high frequency of occurrence but affecting a relatively small area. In contrast, Drought Centers No. 2, 3, and 4 are located within urban areas, showing lower occurrence frequency but affecting a wider geographical expanse. Drought events with different developmental characteristics were compared using the NATA curve. Overall, the FD1 flash drought type, occurring in the early stages of drought, accounted for a significant proportion. Meanwhile, the accumulated area affected by FD3 and FD4 flash drought events in the later stages exceeded that of the FD2 flash drought type. In the later period, FD3 and FD4 flash drought events exhibited stronger growth momentum, thereby increasing the complexity and challenges of drought monitoring. The present study provides a theoretical basis for understanding the process, shape and evolution model of drought development under environmental changes as well as enables an enhanced early warning for flash droughts to improve management of water resources.

Seismic Analysis of High-Rise Building using Negative Stiffness Device

Abstract: Natural hazard mitigation is one of the most important issues facing civil engineers today. In structural engineering, one of the constant challenges is to find new and better means of protecting existing and new civil structures from the damaging effects of destructive environmental forces, such as wind, waves and earthquakes. Earthquakes are considered the most destructive environmental forces for civil engineering structures. Seismic forces and displacements in existing structures can be effectively reduced in an approach where the structure is intentionally weakened (stiffness and strength are reduced) and damping is added. However, the approach also results in inelastic excursions and permanent deformation of the structural system during a seismic event. A new concept previously proposed by the authors simulates apparent weakening by incorporating a mechanical system that produces true negative stiffness in the structural system. In doing so, inelastic excursions and permanent deformations may be substantially reduced or eliminated. True negative stiffness means that the force must assist motion, not oppose it as in the case of a positive stiffness spring. A passive device capable of exhibiting true negative stiffness, negative stiffness device (NSD), without external power supply is studied in this project work. A pre-compressed spring is used to generate the force to push the structure and a lever-mechanism is adapted to amplify the generated force.

EXPLORING THE EFFECTS OF OIL PRICES ON ROAD FREIGHT IN POLAND AMIDST COVID-19 AND RUSSO-UKRAINIAN WAR

Destructive market forces are multiplying as the world faces the worst global energy crisis in history. The continuing economic downturn and fluctuating oil prices, triggered by OPEC+’s plan to reduce supply, are slowing down global oil demand. In this respect, the situation in the transport services market is changing. Changes in the price of oil are indirectly influencing the formation of wholesale diesel prices; consequently, road freight should also change. However, are these changes correlative and do oil price fluctuations directly affect freight rate changes? This article aims to investigate the correlation between fluctuations in oil prices on world markets and their impact on wholesale diesel prices and, thus, the development of net road freight in Poland. In the study, the authors developed a model called “fuel adjustment,” containing the fluctuations in wholesale diesel prices, which were taken into account in determining the average deviation in the road freight level over the analyzed period. In this way, it became possible to determine the amount of road freight and its fluctuations depending on the development of oil prices on world markets. The results of the study confirm that there is a strong and positive relationship between the analyzed variables. When the prices of crude oil on world markets fall, this should be followed by reductions in diesel prices in individual countries, including Poland. Consequently, the amount of road freight should also have a downward trend. Will this happen?

РЕЗУЛЬТАТЫ ЭКСПЕРИМЕНТАЛЬНО-ПОИСКОВЫХ ИССЛЕДОВАНИЙ ПО ВЛИЯНИЮ МИКРОНИЗАЦИИ НА УСИЛИЕ РАЗРУШЕНИЯ ЗЕРНОВКИ

In conditions of increased productivity of farm animals, it is important to increase the energy efficiency of feed. The micronization of feed grains improves its digestibility, disinfects it, and reduces the amount of antinutrients. One of the criteria for the sufficiency of micronization is the fracture strain of caryopsis. Research to study the influence of micronization modes on the force of destruction of a grain with a wedge-shaped tip was carried out using the example of rye and barley grain. In a series of one-factor experiments, the fracture strain of caryopsis was determined upon the occurrence of various events: the beginning of cracking of the grain and the beginning of burning. The fracture strain at the beginning of cracking for rye grain decreased in the range from 9% to 20%, for barley grain - from 10% to 44%, at the beginning of burning - from 16% to 26% and from 44% to 50%, respectively. Measuring the breaking force of grains that were processed during the average time between the time of cracking and the start of burning showed that increasing the heating time did not lead to a significant decrease in the breaking force. To obtain the least force of grain destruction during micronization, it is necessary to ensure the height of the radiation source above the transporting surface from 10 mm to 15 mm with a processing duration of 33 to 41 s, preventing burning and charring of the grains. The resulting mathematical models adequately describe the change in the fracture force depending on the processing conditions. Processing in the optimal mode leads to a reduction in the force of destruction of the rye grain by 1.8 times from 66 to 37 N, of barley - by 2.3 times from 101 to 44 N.

Deep Learning-Based Fire Detection for Enhanced Safety Systems

Fire detection systems are a critical aspect of modern safety and security systems, playing a pivotal role in safeguarding lives and property against the destructive force of fires. Rapid and accurate identification of fire incidents is essential for timely response and mitigation efforts. Traditional fire detection methods have made substantial advancements, but with the advent of computer vision technologies, the field has witnessed a transformative shift. This paper presents a method for fire detection using deep convolutional neural network (CNN) models. This approach used transfer learning by employing two pre-trained CNN models from the ImageNet dataset: VGG (Visual Geometry Group) and InceptionV3 to extract valuable features from input images. Then, these extracted features serve as input for a machine learning (ML) classifier, namely the Softmax classifier. The Softmax activation function computes the probability distribution to assign accurate class probabilities for discriminating between two types of images: fire and non-fire. Experimental results showed that the proposed method successfully detected fire areas and achieved seamless classification performance compared to other current fire detection methods.

Memory in T. S. Eliot’s The Waste Land

The greatest of the issues in modernism emanates from memory in human beings. It is the first condition for people to realize what they have lost in their life, resulting from World War I. Often known as the manifesto of modernism in the West, T. S. Eliot’s 1922 poem The Wasteland deals with the intellectual, social, political, and quotidian issues of the people, basically resulting from memory. The people begin to value the glory of the past as the epitome in contemporary times, meaning that they have been driven out of paradise now. In other words, memory became a tool to rewrite a new Bible in the twentieth century following the trail of John Milton’s The Paradise Lost (1667). The phantoms of negative memories torment the people in the West: for instance, the people set out in search of Christ or metonymically the Holy Grail. Most importantly, the poetic persona is Tiresias who still remembers both his lives. He searches for the images that best represent the experience of living in the Western world shattered at the hand of the destructive forces. The centers of the civilizations have undergone massive destruction and they have remained unable to reconstruct themselves. Both the poet and the poetic persona go through the pages of the books of the Western and Eastern body of knowledge to identify the remedy for the fragmentation or loss of the binding principles of human society. This study aims to explore how memory is treated in modernist literature to examine the presence of history in making sense of the presence. The Eastern myths remind the Western world of the cure to the existing problems of society. In fact, this paper claims that The Wasteland builds its argument in the treatment of memory as the prime factor in the articulation of the central vision about the West in general and modernism in particular.

Analysis of Shallow Water Equation Based on Tsunami Simulations: Evidence from the Pacific Ocean

Tsunamis, particularly prevalent in the Pacific Ocean's "Ring of Fire" region, present both a scientific intrigue and a societal concern due to their potential for devastation. Central to understanding and predicting these phenomena is the Shallow Water Equations (SWEs), which describe the horizontal motion of water waves. This study delves into the specific behaviors of tsunamis in the Pacific coast, utilizing comprehensive oceanographic and seismological data from the Pacific Oceanographic Institute (POI) spanning two decades. Through the lens of the SWEs, the impacts of bathymetric features and coastal topography on tsunamis are analyzed from the perspective of propagation, wave period, and frequency. Findings highlighted the significant role of solitons or solitary waves and the destructive force they exert, especially in shallow waters. While the SWE-based models have greatly assisted in developing real-time warning systems, reducing fatalities and damages, they also present certain limitations, e.g., assuming a flat seafloor and neglecting factors such as Earth's rotation, vertical fluid motion, and real-world marine conditions like turbulence. The study underscores the need for continuous refinement of these models, emphasizing the integration of observational data with advanced computational methods to enhance tsunami prediction and preparedness.