Splines in vibration analysis of non-homogeneous circular plates of quadratic thickness

Mathematical model to account for non-homogeneity of plate material is designed, keeping in mind all the physical aspects, and analyzed by applying quintic spline technique for the first time. This method has been applied earlier for other geometry of plates which shows its utility. Accuracy and versatility of the technique are established by comparing with the well-known existing results. Effect of quadratic thickness variation, an exponential variation of non-homogeneity in the radial direction, and variation in density; for the three different outer edge conditions namely clamped, simply supported and free have been computed using MATLAB for the first three modes of vibration. For all the three edge conditions, normalized transverse displacements for a specific plate have been presented which shows the shiftness of nodal radii with the effect of taperness.

Carbon-coated stainless steel as a bipolar plate material in PEM water electrolyzers

The kinetically sluggish oxygen evolution reaction in proton exchange membrane water electrolyzers (PEMWEs) leads to high potentials of >1.5 V vs RHE at the anode electrode during operation. In contrast, an investigation with an in situ reference electrode indicates a much lower potential at the anode side of the bipolar plate which would allow the use of stainless steel and carbon as the bipolar plate materials. This decoupling is induced by the low conductivity of the circulating deionized water. In single cell electrolyzer tests, we show that carbon-coated 316L (C-316L) stainless steel is suitable as a bipolar plate material in contact with the anode and cathode sides of the PEMWE. The coating remains stable throughout the experiments, i.e., 720 h at the anode and 1000 h at the cathode side. Based on these results we regard carbon-coated stainless steel as a sustainable solution for the large-scale application of PEM water electrolysis since it might replace (Pt-coated) titanium in the bipolar plate.

Study on Optimal Design of a Folding-Type Hatch Cover Considering Material Selection

Most shipyard companies maintain efficiency in all aspects of their business to survive. One of these aspects is ship production costs and their reduction. This study proposes a solution to this problem using an optimization method. A hatch cover composed of plates and stiffeners was selected as a case study. In this study, the mass and material cost of the hatch cover was optimized as an objective function using the Pareto approach with developed optimization methods. Plate thickness t, stiffener shape s, and plate material type m were selected as the design variables in this study along with some constraints. To estimate the optimal plate thickness, an expression of stress equations was Developed using an optimization technique. Furthermore, stiffener shape and plate material type selection were optimized using a genetic algorithm (GA). The results show that the optimization method is effective to decrease the mass and material cost of a hatch cover. Introduction The demand for new shipbuilding has decreased because of the effect of the economic crisis that hit almost every country in the world. Shipyard companies must think innovatively and creatively to survive under the pressure of this crisis by evaluating various studies and improvising new methods to achieve efficiency. One of the studies that has been performed examines the methods to reduce the fabrication cost of ship structures to stay profitable through the optimization of work hours, workflow production systems, and structural design.

Experimental and numerical study of an overlay composite absorber plate material for a solar air heater

The research in this paper is a sequel of an earlier work by the author in which experimental and CFD results were compared for an absorber plate made of iron with and without fins for two flow rates. The research yielded a good comparative result between the experimental and computational process for an optimized flow rate and the effect of the fins. The objective of this paper is to verify the effect of the overlay composite absorber plate material on a solar air heater through experimental and computational fluid dynamics. The experimental setup consists of an absorber plate as an overlay composite of aluminum and copper for enhanced heat transfer. Experiments and CFD analysis were done in three configurations. In configuration one, only the aluminum absorber plate with fins was considered. In configuration two, the overlay composite was considered with copper on the top and aluminum at the bottom as fins, and in configuration three, the overlay composite was considered with aluminum at the top and copper at the bottom as fins. A transient 8 hours CFD analysis was carried out using these configurations. While validating the results it was found that the overlay absorber plate Cu-Al was capable of generating a high outlet temperature Max of 88 °C and capable of generating 83 °C air for 5 hours and had good thermal efficiency when compared to the other materials in the other two configuration. It was found that experimental and computational analysis were in very close agreement, and the margin of error between the experimental and computational processes was less than 8 %.

The effect of surgeon-controlled variables on construct stiffness in lateral locked plating of distal femoral fractures

Background Nonunion following treatment of supracondylar femur fractures with lateral locked plates (LLP) has been reported to be as high as 21 %. Implant related and surgeon-controlled variables have been postulated to contribute to nonunion by modulating fracture-fixation construct stiffness. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of surgeon-controlled factors on stiffness when treating supracondylar femur fractures with LLPs: Does plate length affect construct stiffness given the same plate material, fracture working length and type of screws? Does screw type (bicortical locking versus bicortical nonlocking or unicortical locking) and number of screws affect construct stiffness given the same material, fracture working length, and plate length? Does fracture working length affect construct stiffness given the same plate material, length and type of screws? Does plate material (titanium versus stainless steel) affect construct stiffness given the same fracture working length, plate length, type and number of screws? Methods Mechanical study of simulated supracondylar femur fractures treated with LLPs of varying lengths, screw types, fractureworking lenghts, and plate/screw material. Overall construct stiffness was evaluated using an Instron hydraulic testing apparatus. Results Stiffness was 15 % higher comparing 13-hole to the 5-hole plates (995 N/mm849N vs. /mm, p = 0.003). The use of bicortical nonlocking screws decreased overall construct stiffness by 18 % compared to bicortical locking screws (808 N/mm vs. 995 N/mm, p = 0.0001). The type of screw (unicortical locking vs. bicortical locking) and the number of screws in the diaphysis (3 vs. 10) did not appear to significantly influence construct stiffness (p = 0.76, p = 0.24). Similarly, fracture working length (5.4 cm vs. 9.4 cm, p = 0.24), and implant type (titanium vs. stainless steel, p = 0.12) did also not appear to effect stiffness. Discussion Using shorter plates and using bicortical nonlocking screws (vs. bicortical locking screws) reduced overall construct stiffness. Using more screws, using unicortical locking screws, increasing fracture working length and varying plate material (titanium vs. stainless steel) does not appear to significantly alter construct stiffness. Surgeons can adjust plate length and screw types to affect overall fracture-fixation construct stiffness; however, the optimal stiffness to promote healing remains unknown.

About the B-spline wavelet discrete-continual finite element method of the local plate analysis

Introduction. This distinctive paper addresses the local semi-analytical solution to the problem of plate analysis. Isotropic plates featuring the regularity (constancy) of physical and geometric parameters (modulus of elasticity of the plate material, Poisson’s ratio of the plate material, dimensions of the cross section of the plate) along one direction (dimension) are under consideration. This direction is conventionally called the basic direction. Materials and methods. The B-spline wavelet discrete-continual finite element method (DCFEM) is used. The initial operational formulation of the problem was constructed using the theory of distribution and the so-called method of extended domain, proposed by Prof. Alexander B. Zolotov. Results. Some relevant issues of construction of normalized basis functions of the B-spline are considered; the technique of approximation of corresponding vector functions and operators within DCFEM is described. The problem remains continual if analyzed along the basic direction, and its exact analytical solution can be obtained, whereas the finite element approximation is used in combination with a wavelet analysis apparatus in respect of the non-basic direction. As a result, we can obtain a discrete-continual formulation of the problem. Thus, we have a multi-point (in particular, two-point) boundary problem for the first-order system of ordinary differential equations with constant coefficients. A special correct analytical method of solving such problems was developed, described and verified in the numerous papers of the co-authors. In particular, we consider the simplest sample analysis of a plate (rectangular in plan) fixed along the side faces exposed to the influence of the load concentrated in the center of the plate. Conclusions. The solution to the verification problem obtained using the proposed version of wavelet-based DCFEM was in good agreement with the solution obtained using the conventional finite element method (the corresponding solutions were constructed with and without localization; these solutions almost completely coincided, while the advantages of the numerical-analytical approach were quite obvious). It is shown that the use of B-splines of various degrees within wavelet-based DCFEM leads to a significant reduction in the number of unknowns.