Step Load Research Articles

A current reference-enhanced strategy endows the GFC in DC microgrids better dynamic response

The constant voltage strategy (CVS) is more suitable for the small-capacity dc microgrid applications to form the dc bus voltage because it can eliminate the steady voltage deviation. However, its dynamic performance is slowed down by the integrator in the voltage loop and negatively influenced by the load steps. Some advanced methods have been conducted in the literature. However, their principle is to increase the system bandwidth, which is limited because the bandwidth is generally designed about one-tenth of the switching frequency and cannot be increased infinitely. This work pays efforts to increase the gain within the system bandwidth to accelerate the transient response and simultaneously eliminate the influence of the integrator. Therefore, the non-integrator disturbance observer-based (NIDOB) strategy is proposed in this work, and it can feed the load current into the current reference to replace the output of the integrator. Compared to the traditional and non-integrator directly-feedforward (NIDF) strategy, it has a better dynamic performance. Compared to the bandwidth-increased strategy, it does not introduce more noise. The theoretical analysis and experimental results prove its advantages.

Three-dimensional nonlinear stress analysis of functionally graded shells subjected to displacement-dependent loads

The nonlinear geometrically exact (GeX) hybrid-mixed four-node solid-shell element under non-conservative loading, developed in the companion paper, is here extended to the stress analysis of functionally graded material (FGM) shells. The term GeX means that the middle surface is described by analytical functions, including spline functions, and, therefore, the coefficients of the first and second fundamental forms can be taken exactly at element nodes. The FGM solid-shell element formulation is based on the choice of N sampling surfaces (SaS) parallel to the middle surface and located at Chebyshev polynomial nodes within the shell as well as on the outer surfaces, to introduce the displacements of these surfaces as basic unknowns. The use of Lagrange polynomials of degree N–1 in the distributions of displacements, strains, stresses, and elastic coefficients through the thickness of the shell leads to an efficient 3N-parameter shell formulation. To develop the FGM four-node solid-shell element based on the hybrid-mixed method, in which strains and stresses are utilized as primary variables, the Hu-Washizu variational principle is applied. Due to the analytical integration used to evaluate the tangent stiffness matrix, the developed FGM solid-shell element subjected to displacement-dependent loads shows superior performance in the case of coarse meshes and allows the use of only one load step in most of the considered benchmark problems. It has been established that the difference between the second Piola-Kirchhoff and Cauchy stress tensors in non-conservative problems for FGM shells undergoing moderately large strains can be significant.

Nonlinear frequency response function: experimental study on gearbox fault detection under step load

For rotating machinery, excitation signals are difficult to measure, making it impossible to detect fatigue damage using nonlinear frequency response function. The purpose of this study is to propose a fatigue damage detection method for gearboxes under stepped load conditions based on normalized nonlinear output frequency response functions (NOFRFs). That is, using the vibration signals from the gearbox during the step loading to calculate the cross power spectrum, and therefrom estimating the normalized NOFRFs. This method is used to detect gearboxes containing prefabricated damaged gears or bearings. The research result shows that gear and bearing damage can lead to an increase in the index value of normalized NOFRFs. The different type of damage lead to the significant diversification of higher-order normalized NOFRFs, which further demonstrates that the method proposed in this article is not only effective in gearbox damage detection, but also has certain potential in fault classification. Then, experimental research for accumulated fatigue damage of gear was conducted. The results show that the normalized NOFRFs index is a better indicator of fatigue damage than the kurtosis index.

Influence of Walking Over Unexpected Uneven Terrain on Joint Loading for Individuals With Transtibial Amputation.

Individuals with transtibial amputation (TTA) experience asymmetric lower-limb loading which can lead to joint pain and injuries. However, it is unclear how walking over unexpected uneven terrain affects their loading patterns. This study sought to use modeling and simulation to determine how peak joint contact forces and impulses change for individuals with unilateral TTA during an uneven step and subsequent recovery step and how those patterns compare to able-bodied individuals. We expected residual limb loading during the uneven step and intact limb loading during the recovery step would increase relative to flush walking. Further, individuals with TTA would experience larger loading increases compared to able-bodied individuals. Simulations of individuals with TTA showed during the uneven step, changes in joint loading occurred at all joints except the prosthetic ankle relative to flush walking. During the recovery step, intact limb joint loading increased in early stance relative to flush walking. Simulations of able-bodied individuals showed large increases in ankle joint loading for both surface conditions. Overall, increases in early stance knee joint loading were larger for those with TTA compared to able-bodied individuals during both steps. These results suggest that individuals with TTA experience altered joint loading patterns when stepping on uneven terrain. Future work should investigate whether an adapting ankle-foot prosthesis can mitigate these changes to reduce injury risk.

STUDY OF THE STRESS-STRAIN STATE OF A REINFORCED CONCRETE SLAB USING HYDROSTATIC METHOD

The scientific article is devoted to a complex study of the stress-strain state of a monolithic slab, implemented using the author’s method of hydrostatic loading, which involves setting the load by the weight of water and regulating its value by the height of the water column. To implement the given procedure, we used a tank-shaped facility for field tests of structures for vertical short-term and long-term loads. To determine the deflections of the loaded slab system, we installed mechanical deflection gauges of the 6PAO brand under the slab at pre-planned places. The short-term loading of the selected section of the monolithic reinforced concrete slab involved three stages. The first two stages of loading were carried out step by step, with a load step of 1–2 kN/m2 and a time delay until the arrows of the deflection gauges stopped. The maximum load on the slab was 5 kN/m2. The maximum deflection was recorded for point 2 (conventional centre of the tank) and was equal to 1.27 mm. The third stage of slab loading proceeded by analogy with the previous two. The maximum load on the slab was 8 kN/m2. The maximum deflection was recorded for point 2 and equalled 1.57 mm. After completing the stepped loading, the water tank was left on the slab to track vertical deflections for 32 days. The study experimentally established that the displacement of the examined slab in the span and support zones under increased load did not exceed the normative values. We carried out numerical verification using finite-element modelling followed by calculations in a linear and non-linear model. The theoretical and experimental calculation results showed a qualitative and quantitative data match (the difference did not exceed 15–20%). The nature of the change in the deflections remained practically linear and closely correlated with the experimental data (the values of the maximum deflections were equal to 1.16 and 1.57 mm, respectively, which was less than the maximum allowable deflection of 30 mm). Based on the results of the comprehensive study, we have made proposals for further safe operation of the investigated slab system through the use of lightweight floor elements (lighter filling, reduction of screed thickness, and others) to limit the total load on the overlapping to 10 kN/m2 (taking into account dead weight of the slab, load from floor structure and partitions, load from people and various types of construction and other equipment). Keywords: hydrostatic loading, testing, concrete, calculation, deflection, modelling.

Creep strain prediction in power plant material via ANN modelling of nonlinear ultrasonic test results

ABSTRACT Reliable and accurate prediction of the creep life of power plant components is crucial for both economic and safety reasons. Existing prediction models, based on creep test data, can be complex and time-consuming. Nonlinear ultrasonic (NLU) is a widely-accepted non-destructive testing (NDT) technique for evaluating damage progression in crept specimens. The information from NLU measurements alone is insufficient to forecast the life of any component. In real-time applications, intelligent NDT protocols are needed to enable fast and accurate life prediction of such components. A methodology for creep life prediction using artificial neural networks (ANN) has been introduced based on NLU test results of crept P92 steel specimens. The technique involved creep tests of P92 specimens exposed to a temperature of 625⁰C with applied stress ranging from 120MPa to 160MPa, NLU measurements at each step load, and prediction of creep life of the material with a ANN trained with creep strain and NLU test data. The technique involves prediction from previously generated historical data, thus saving both cost and time of conducting continuous experiments. This approach for ANN modeling of NLU data can be considered a reliable, time-saving, and effective technique for assessing creep damage progression in power plant components.

Quantitative Comparative Study on the Performance of a Valve-Controlled Actuator and Electro-Hydrostatic Actuator

The development of the electrification of aircraft has prompted aviation hydraulic systems to shift from traditional centralized valve actuators (CVAs) to electro-hydrostatic actuators (EHAs). In this paper, aiming at the demand for a quantitative comparison of performance between CVAs and EHAs, CVA and EHA prototypes with the same power level and test platform were developed. Then, based on the power flow and dynamic models of the CVA and EHA, simulation and experimental comparative tests were conducted using different load spectrum test conditions and step response test conditions. The comparative test results showed that the efficiency of the EHA was better than that of the CVA, and the dynamic response of the CVA was better than that of the EHA. Finally, a power loss quantification and parameter sensitivity analysis were performed to reveal the impact of different parameters on the different power losses and to provide suggestions for improving the performance of CVAs and EHAs.

Model-based compensation of a concave nonlinear hysteresis in the displacement electro-hydraulic servo system

Abstract Nonlinearity exerts a profound influence on the displacement performance of actuators within electro-hydraulic servo systems, particularly in the context of hysteresis. This article analyses a specific hysteresis responsible for control instability, a consequence of the concave-hysteresis loop, giving rise to a notable peak phenomenon in displacement. The behavior of the concave-hysteresis loop is studied in the step load experiment of a triaxial apparatus. Subsequently, an accurately formulated mathematical model utilizing a mathematical function is derived. Notably, the article introduces an efficacious model-based compensation algorithm that integrates nonlinear iteration and fuzzy control. This strategic approach effectively addresses the issue associated with calculating the inverse model when the sensor is located in a nonlinear, hook-shaped domain. Simulation and experimentation verified the concave-hysteresis loop model and the compensation algorithm. The experiment demonstrated the elimination of peak phenomena and a decrease in sensor error from 3.7 mm to below 0.5 mm.

A hybrid optimization algorithm for improving load frequency control in interconnected power systems

The objective of this study is to develop an algorithm named Modified Artificial Bee Colony and Particle Swarm Optimization (MHABC-PSO) to address load frequency control (LFC) challenges in a two-area interconnected power system. The proposed MHABC-PSO algorithm is designed with two key modifications to enhance global exploration capability and improve convergence speed. Hence, a decision block is introduced in the employed bee (EB) phase incorporating a control parameter “limit” to allow each candidate solution (CS) to explore itself up to the “limit” value and boost local exploration. In addition, an introduction of a novel selection mechanism utilizing heuristic information (η) in EBs phase guides the onlooker bee (OB) phase to select better solutions based on success and failure history, thus promoting exploitation and reducing biased exploration. To address the efficacy of the proposed algorithm at the system level, three different two-area power systems are studied, incorporating various complexities, linearity, and non-linearity such as thermal-hydro, reheat thermal, and thermal-hydro-gas turbine configurations with HVDC link, SSSC, and CES. The algorithm is applied to optimize four objective functions (i.e. ITAE, IAE, ISAE, and ITE). The fitness function maximizes controller gains by utilizing the integral time multiplied absolute error (ITAE). Other objective functions like IAE, ISAE, and ITE are employed for a comprehensive analysis. Evaluation of MHABC-PSO effectiveness is conducted through ITAE values, peak deviations, and settling times of frequency and power deviations in different two-area systems. Results demonstrate that MHABC-PSO settles the system more quickly with zero steady-state error under step load perturbations (SLPs) of 1% and 2%. Comparative analysis with ABC, PSO, SFLA-TLBO, and OHABC-PSO using ITAE index and controller settling times shows the superiority of MHABC-PSO for LFC analysis. In conclusion, the proposed MHABC-PSO algorithm proves to be an efficient and effective solution for LFC, outperforming other algorithms in terms of the specified objective functions and exhibiting rapid convergence and optimal gains for controllers, effectively addressing LFC issues by combining exploration and exploitation techniques.

Hygrothermal progressive damage in open-hole compression of composite laminates with aligned carbon nanotube interlaminar reinforcement studied by X-ray micro-computed tomography

Hierarchical nanoengineered composite laminates were created with through-thickness-aligned carbon nanotube (A-CNT) reinforcement of unidirectional carbon (micro) fiber/epoxy laminae in their failure-prone interlaminar regions, forming a multiscale “nanostitched” architecture. Motivated by previous mechanical enhancements for similar nanostitched laminates in ambient environments, hygrothermal effects on the 3D strengthening and toughening mechanisms of nanostitched laminates are investigated here for the first time, focusing on standard open-hole compression (OHC) testing of quasi-isotropic laminates. We report that the hygrothermal conditions of −55 °C/DRY and 100 °C/DRY correspond to ultimate strength increases of 2.6% and 5.9%, respectively, for nanostitched laminates over the baseline; and, room temperature/50% relative humidity (RT/50% RH) and 100 °C/wet conditions exhibit no change in ultimate strength, suggesting correlation of positive nanostitch effects with increased polymer brittleness. Subsequently, damage progression in step-wise interrupted OHC loading for selected hygrothermal conditions (RT/50% RH and 100 °C/DRY) was performed in coordination with high-resolution ex situ X-ray micro-computed tomography for various load steps up to 98% of failure load. No clear differences due to nanostitch in the damage progression are found up to 98% of ultimate strength, suggesting that the reinforcement effect is associated with interlaminar strength at ultimate load, and not pre-ultimate damage. This study contributes first insights from high-resolution experimental mapping of nanostitched composite progressive damage subjected to hygrothermal conditions that may guide and inform mechanical enhancement approaches and improved progressive damage models. Future work is suggested to expand the environmental conditions considered, as well as visualize progressive damage nearer to failure to identify nanostitch effects on complex multimodal failure.

Bi-directional misalignment effects on transient tribo-dynamics of offset-halves journal bearings subjected to step loading

This paper focuses on the nonlinear behaviors of offset-halves journal bearings (OHJBs), particularly under dynamic loading and journal misalignment. A new tribo-dynamic model is given to perform transient thermoelastohydrodynamic analysis in the crucial yet understudied domain of this novel structure. Bearing characteristics are compared among bi-directional misalignment, single-direction misalignment as well as alignment. The results demonstrate that the influence of bi-directional misalignment exerts dominance. Moreover, the evolution mechanisms of bi-directional misalignment and step loading on the time-varying stiffness and damping are evaluated. In addition, parametric analyses are done to emphasize key factors in the bearing design, including the horizontal offset and radial clearance, for better transient lubrication performance. This study enriches the structural optimum for dynamically loaded journal bearings.

Mixed FEM for Shells of Revolution Based on Flow Theory and its Modifications

For describing elastoplastic deformation, three versions of constitutive equations are used. The first version employs the governing equations of the flow theory. In the second version, elastic strain increments are defined the same way as in the flow theory, and the plastic strain increments are expressed in terms of stress increments using the condition of their proportionality to the components of the incremental stress deviator tensor. In the third version, the constitutive equations for a load step were obtained without using the hypothesis of separating strains into the elastic and plastic parts. To obtain them, the condition of proportionality of the components of the incremental strain deviator tensor to the components of the incremental stress deviator tensor was applied. The equations are implemented using a hybrid prismatic finite element with a triangular base. A sample calculation shows the advantage of the third version of the constitutive equations.

Poroelastic Characterization and Modeling of Subcutaneous Tissue Under Confined Compression.

Subcutaneous tissue mechanics are important for drug delivery. Yet, even though this material is poroelastic, its mechanical characterization has focused on its hyperelastic response. Moreover, advancement in subcutaneous drug delivery requires effective tissue mimics such as hydrogels for which similar gaps of poroelastic data exist. Porcine subcutaneous samples and gelatin hydrogels were tested under confined compression at physiological conditions and strain rates of 0.01%/s in 5% strain steps with 2600s of stress relaxation between loading steps. Force-time data were used in an inverse finite element approach to obtain material parameters. Tissues and gels were modeled as porous neo-Hookean materials with properties specified via shear modulus, effective solid volume fraction, initial hydraulic permeability, permeability exponent, and normalized viscous relaxation moduli. The constitutive model was implemented into an isogeometric analysis (IGA) framework to study subcutaneous injection. Subcutaneous tissue exhibited an initial spike in stress due to compression of the solid and fluid pressure buildup, with rapid relaxation explained by fluid drainage, and longer time-scale relaxation explained by viscous dissipation. The inferred parameters aligned with the ranges reported in the literature. Hydraulic permeability, the most important parameter for drug delivery, was in the range mm /(N s). With these parameters, IGA simulations showed peak stresses due to a 1-mL injection to reach 48.8 kPa at the site of injection, decaying after drug volume disperses into the tissue. The poro-hyper-viscoelastic neo-Hookean model captures the confined compression response of subcutaneous tissue and gelatin hydrogels. IGA implementation enables predictive simulations of drug delivery.

Continuous multi-column capture of monoclonal antibodies with convective diffusive membrane adsorbers.

Downstream processing is the bottleneck in the continuous manufacturing of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs). To overcome throughput limitations, two different continuous processes with a novel convective diffusive protein A membrane adsorber (MA) were investigated: the rapid cycling parallel multi-column chromatography (RC-PMCC) process and the rapid cycling simulated moving bed (RC-BioSMB) process. First, breakthrough curve experiments were performed to investigate the influence of the flow rate on the mAb dynamic binding capacity and to calculate the duration of the loading steps. In addition, customized control software was developed for an automated MA exchange in case of pressure increase due to membrane fouling to enable robust, uninterrupted, and continuous processing. Both processes were performed for 4 days with 0.61 g L-1 mAb-containing filtrate and process performance, product purity, productivity, and buffer consumption were compared. The mAb was recovered with a yield of approximately 90% and productivities of 1010 g L-1 d-1 (RC-PMCC) and 574 g L-1 d-1 (RC-BioSMB). At the same time, high removal of process-related impurities was achieved with both processes, whereas the buffer consumption was lower for the RC-BioSMB process. Finally, the attainable productivity for perfusion bioreactors of different sizes with suitable MA sizes was calculated to demonstrate the potential to operate both processes on a manufacturing scale with bioreactor volumes of up to 2000 L.

Dynamic transport characteristics and performance response of commercial-size polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell stack: An experimental study

The stability and durability of polymer electrolyte membrane fuel-cell stacks are closely related to their dynamic performance responses and internal transport characteristics, particularly for commercial-size stacks in automotive applications. In this study, the dynamic behaviors of a 10-cell stack (active area: 310 cm2) are investigated under various loading/unloading processes and cathode stoichiometric ratios; additionally, the joint influence of these two factors is analyzed. Voltage hysteresis is observed, and the dominant roles of dynamic oxygen, membrane water, and liquid transport are elucidated. The results indicate that the electro-osmotic effect dominates and results in anode-membrane dehydration as the loading process proceeds (>1.5 A cm−2). A larger airflow velocity enables faster downstream oxygen delivery, causing the oxygen concentration to reduce initially and then increase gradually with time after loading, thus voltage undershoots appear. Voltage hysteresis is enabled during the continuous loading/unloading/loading process owing to the difference in accumulated liquid water drainage ability after step loading and unloading. Although the synergistic loads and cathode stoichiometric ratio variations enable less cell-performance deterioration than that on contrary strategy, the dynamic characteristics are much more unstable and more likely to induce cell-stack failure and durability problems. This study provides insights into the dynamic transport characteristics in a commercial-size fuel cell stack and presents a guidance for control strategy development.

Super capacitor and SSSC-based coordinated strategy for performance improvement of diverse source interconnected power system

In this work, the dynamical behavior of the dual area thermal-hydro-wind (DATHW) model of the interconnected power system (IPS) is investigated. For analysis, the area-1 of the DATHW system is laid with a disturbance in step load (SLD) of 10%. The investigation is carried out on the DATHW system under the supervision of the fractional order proportional-integral-derivative-filter (FOPIDN) controller optimized with the water cycle algorithm (WCA). However, the dominance of FOPIDN in regulating the DATHW system performance deviations is validated by other regulators. To get the research near practicality, the DATHW system is deliberated with communication time delays (CTDs). The CTDs is the inherit nature of the communication peripherals that are employed in the IPS network for providing the data exchange among various devices. Further, the supplementary control approach of super capacitors (SC) and static synchronous series compensators (SSSC) is adopted with the DATHW system for performance improvement. The supplementary control is implemented by integrating the SC in the control areas and the SSSC with the tie-line. Finally, we conducted the sensitivity test to reveal the efficacy of the suggested controller mechanism in this work.

Morphological characteristics of hysteretic curves of soil-rock mixture under stepped axial cyclic loading

Morphological characteristics of hysteretic curves of soil-rock mixture under stepped axial cyclic loading

Study on the Optimized Matching of VNT and EGR Systems in a Diesel Engine

An experimental investigation of the coupling relationship between the VNT (Variable Nozzle Turbine) and EGR (Exhaust Gas Recirculation) systems was carried out in this study on a four-valve common-rail diesel engine in bench tests, as well as a transient optimization of the VNT and EGR control strategies. It was found that the overall level of NOX and flue gas emissions decreased with decreasing VNT opening. When the opening of the EGR valve was in the range of 5%-10%, the NOX and soot emissions could be reduced simultaneously by decreasing the VNT opening; the response of the intake volume was greatly improved by modifying the coordinated control strategy by boosting the control strategy under the acute load step condition; the NOX emission was significantly reduced by 6% overall, and the soot was reduced by 22.8% and the CO2 emission was improved in the transient-optimized WLTC test cycle. Therefore, by coupling the VNT and EGR systems and optimizing them transiently, emissions of pollutants during rapid engine acceleration can be decreased.

A COMBINED ULTRASONIC PROCEDURE TO EVALUATE DAMAGE IN CONCRETE BEAMS SUBJECTED TO STATIC LOAD

Concrete is utilized in a wide range of civil engineering applications specifically in infrastructure projects. In general, as with any construction material, it may be subjected to deterioration over time because of various reasons such as excessive loading and so on. In this research, two reinforced concrete beams on a large scale (length 2400 mm, depth 350 mm, and width 250 mm) are cast and tested under static load using the ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) technique consisting of three pairs of transducers (54 kHz, 150 kHz, and 250 kHz). During the loading, the signals are sent and captured through the used transducers at selected loading steps. Two new proposed procedures based on signal peaks in time and frequency domains are used to monitor the crack progress induced in concrete beams under concentrated load. The findings of this study revealed the suitability of the proposed two approaches to detect the propagation of cracks to evaluate damage induced in concrete beams.

Experimental study on fundamental frequency and human‐induced vibration characteristics of light steel foam concrete composite floor

SummaryIn order to study the dynamic characteristics and human‐induced vibration response of light steel foamed concrete composite floor (LCSF), the vibration characteristics of 4.2 m × 5 m LCSF model were tested under the condition of opposite side support, and the natural vibration frequency of LCSF was obtained. The orthogonal anisotropic elastic plate and the simulated beam element were used, respectively, to compute the natural vibration frequency of the LCSF, and the estimated findings were compared with those obtained from measurements. The discrepancy between the calculated results and the measured results of the approximate beam element using the natural vibration frequency calculation technique is around 13%, but the error for the plate element using the calculated results and the tested results is about 23%. To examine the floor's vibration response under the factors of step frequency, walking path, pedestrian density, and load distribution, the LCSF underwent a human‐induced vibration test. The test results show that the fundamental frequency of the LCSF specimen is about 11 Hz, which can meet the requirements of the specification. However, the vibration response of the LCSF specimen under different conditions of pedestrian load is significantly different. With the acceleration of step frequency and the increase and concentration of load, the floor's vibration response becomes more visible. In the route test, it is established that LCSF has the attribute of a unidirectional plate. The natural vibration frequency of similar floor slab can be calculated by the method of simulating the natural vibration frequency of beam element. The findings can serve as a guide for LCSF research and implementation.