Steel-deck composite floor systems are being increasingly used in high-rise building construction, especially in Australia, as they are economical and easy to construct. These composite floor systems use high strength materials to achieve longer spans and are thus slender. As a result, they are vulnerable to vibration induced under service loads. These floors are normally designed using static methods which will not reveal the true behaviour and miss the dynamic amplifications resulting in inappropriate designs, which ultimately cause vibration and discomfort to occupants. At present there is no adequate design guidance to address the vibration in these composite floors, due to a lack of research information, resulting in wasteful post event retrofits. To address this gap in knowledge, a comprehensive research project is presented in this thesis, which investigated the dynamic performance of composite floors under various human induced loads. A popular type of composite floor system was selected for this investigation and subjected to load models representing different human activities. These load models have variable parameters such as load intensity, activity type (contact ratio), activity frequency and damping and are applied as pattern loads to capture the maximum responses in terms of deflections and accelerations. Computer models calibrated against experimental results are used in the analysis to generate the required information. The dynamic responses of deflections and accelerations are compared with the serviceability deflection limits and human comfort levels (of accelerations) to assess these floor types. This thesis also treats the use of visco-elastic (VE) dampers to mitigate excessive vibrations in steel-deck composite floors. VE damper properties have been presented and their performances in reducing the excessive vibrations have been assessed this thesis. The results identified possible occupancies under different loading conditions that can be used in planning, design and evaluation. The findings can also be used to plan retrofitting measures in problematic floor systems.

This thesis is part of a major research project to analyse vibro-acoustic characteristics from variable speed inverter driven induction motors (VSIDIM). The overall projects??? aimed at providing a better understanding of the mechanisms of sound generation from electromagnetic origins and developing a numerical model to predict the sound power emitted from a VSIDIM. The scope of this thesis is to assess experimentally the effect of various controller strategies on the radiated sound power and to develop a finite element method for calculating the electromagnetic force distribution over the stator. Various sources of noise in induction motors and their behaviour with speed and load have been reviewed. Models of the electromagnetic field and vibro-acoustic character have been discussed. An outline of various techniques of reducing noise in induction motors through design of inverters and modifications to the motor structure has been given. Experiments were conducted to assess the effect of controller strategies on the radiated sound power. Three different supplies were tested: a dynamotor which produces an almost sinusoidal supply with very low harmonic content, an inverter with a low switching frequency (less than 1kHz) and an inverter with a high switching frequency (8kHz) and various levels of random modulation. Results indicate that the sound power level of the MSC drive is a lot higher than that of the VSC 2000 drive and the dynamotor drive. The sound power level of the VSC 2000 drive and the dynamotor drive increases almost linearly with motor speed, that for the MSC drive is almost independent of speed. The sound power level of the MSC drive is almost 28dB higher than that of the dynamotor drive at 450rpm and the difference is reduced to 14dB at 1500rpm where the aerodynamic noise becomes more dominant. It has been found that at the rated speed (1500rpm), the sound power level varies by less than 3dB from no load to full load for all three sources. Although increasing the switching frequency increases the cost of the inverters and switching losses, results from the MSC and VSC 2000 drives clearly show that it reduces the radiated sound power by shifting the harmonics into higher and inaudible frequency range. The tonal nature around the switching frequency has been reduced by increasing the levels of random modulation to spread the energy over a wider range of frequencies, although the sound power level has not varied by more than 0.2dB. A finite element model has been developed to calculate the electromagnetic force distribution. The quasi-static solution method has been implemented by stepping the rotor through the time domain using a fine regular mesh in the air gap. The stator currents were experimentally obtained while the rotor currents were obtained using a 4 parameter state space model of the motor. Results of the simulation indicate the influence of stator and rotor slots, saturation and time harmonics in the current. The calculated electromagnetic force distribution has been used in a FEM/BEM acoustic model and SEA acoustic model to predict the radiated sound power which agrees reasonably well with the measured sound, thus validating indirectly the electromagnetic force simulations.

The sustainability, smooth operation and operational life of rotating machinery significantly rely on the techniques that detect the symptoms of incipient faults. Among the faults in rotating systems, the presence of a crack is one of the most dangerous faults that dramatically decreases the safety and operational life of the rotating systems, thereby leading to catastrophic failure and potential injury to personnel if it is undetected. Although many valuable techniques and models have been developed to identify a crack (or cracks) in stationary and rotating systems, finding an efficient technique (or model) that can identify a unique vibration signature of the cracked rotor is still a great challenge in this field. This is because of the unceasing necessity to develop high performance rotating machines and driving towards significant reduction of the time and cost of maintenance. Most of the crack identification techniques and models in the available literature are based on vibration-based methods. The main idea of the vibration-based method is that the presence of a crack in a rotor induces a change in the mass, damping, and stiffness of the rotor, and consequently detectable changes appear in the modal properties (natural frequencies, modal damping, and mode shapes). Among all these modal properties, the choice of the modal natural frequency change is more attractive as a tool for crack identification. The changes in natural frequencies due to a crack can be conveniently measured from just a few accessible points on the cracked rotor. Furthermore, measuring the natural frequencies does not require expensive measuring instruments, and the natural frequency data is normally less contaminated by experimental noise. However, the change that a crack induces in the natural frequencies is usually very small and can be buried in the ambient noise. Moreover, the natural frequencies are not affected if the crack is located at the nodes of modes or far from the location of inertia force and out-of-unbalance force that the disc generates in the shaft. To overcome these problems (or limitations), therefore, this study is conducted using the idea of the roving mass (roving disc in rotor case). The modal natural frequencies are used for the identification and location of cracks of various severities at different locations in both stationary and rotating shafts. The fundamental idea of the roving disc is that an extra inertia force is traversed along the cracked rotor to significantly excite the dynamics of the rotor near the crack locations. In other words, the location of a crack can be anywhere on the shaft which is contrary to the developed techniques in the available literature in which the location of a crack should be close to the disc. Along with the roving disc idea, three crack identification techniques are developed in this study using the natural frequencies of the cracked and intact shafts. Each of these techniques has its merits and limitations for crack identification. These techniques are implemented using data that are numerically generated by the finite element method based on the Bernoulli-Euler shaft elements and experimentally validated in the laboratory environment. The numerical and experimental results clearly demonstrate the capability of the suggested approach for the identification and location of cracks in stationary and rotating shafts.

Vacuum glazing is a vital development in the move to more energy efficient buildings. In vacuum glazing, an evacuated cavity supresses gaseous conduction and convection to provide high thermal resistance. A high vacuum pressure (less than 0.1 Pa) is required and must be maintained by a hermetic seal around the periphery, currently formed with either indium (i.e. low temperature sealing method) or solder glass (i.e. high temperature sealing method). This thesis reports the results of an experimental and theoretical investigation into the development of new low temperature (less than 200°C) and novel high temperature (up to 450°C) glass edge seals. A new low temperature composite edge seal was developed in which double and triple vacuum glazings each of dimensions 300x300mm were fabricated with measured vacuum pressures of 4.6x10-2Pa and 4.8x10-2Pa achieved respectively. A three dimensional finite element model of the fabricated design of composite edge sealed triple vacuum glazing was developed.

Com base no crescimento exponencial das populações urbanas, a demanda por espaço para habitação tem crescido vertiginosamente. Para atender a estas necessidades, edificações cada vez mais altas e mais esbeltas são projetadas e vãos cada vez maiores são utilizados. Novos materiais são criados e aprimorados para que seja extraído o máximo de desempenho com o menor custo. Deste modo, esta dissertação tem como objetivo o estudo do comportamento e otimização do projeto estrutural de edifícios. Para tal, considera-se ao longo do estudo o projeto de uma edificação de concreto armado com 47 metros de altura e 15 pavimentos, submetida às ações das cargas usuais de projeto atuantes sobre edifícios residenciais, além das cargas de vento. No que tange ao desenvolvimento do modelo computacional são empregadas técnicas usuais de discretização, via método dos elementos finitos, por meio do programa ANSYS. Inicialmente, a resposta estática e dinâmica do modelo estrutural é obtida e comparada com base nos valores limites propostos por normas de projeto. A partir de análises qualitativas e quantitativas desenvolvidas sobre a resposta estrutural do modelo em estudo são utilizadas técnicas de otimização com o objetivo de modificar e aprimorar o desempenho estrutural do edifício analisado. / Based on the exponential growth of urban populations, the demand for space for housing has grown dramatically. To meet these needs, building ever higher and more slender are designed and increasing spans has been used. New materials are created and improved to be extracted maximum performance at the lowest cost. Thus, this research work aims to study the behaviour and optimization of buildings structural design. To do this, it is considered throughout the study the design of a reinforced concrete building with 47 meters high and 15 floors, subjected to the actions of usual design loadings on residential buildings in addition to wind loads. Regarding the development of the computational model, usual mesh refinement techniques are used, based on the finite element method simulations, and implemented in the ANSYS program. Initially, the structural model static and dynamic response is obtained and compared, based on the limiting values proposed by design standards. Based on the developed qualitative and quantitative analyses on the investigated structural model response, optimization techniques are used in order to modify and improve the structural performance of the analysed building.

Com base no crescimento exponencial das populações urbanas, a demanda por espaço para habitação tem crescido vertiginosamente. Para atender a estas necessidades, edificações cada vez mais altas e mais esbeltas são projetadas e vãos cada vez maiores são utilizados. Novos materiais são criados e aprimorados para que seja extraído o máximo de desempenho com o menor custo. Deste modo, esta dissertação tem como objetivo o estudo do comportamento e otimização do projeto estrutural de edifícios. Para tal, considera-se ao longo do estudo o projeto de uma edificação de concreto armado com 47 metros de altura e 15 pavimentos, submetida às ações das cargas usuais de projeto atuantes sobre edifícios residenciais, além das cargas de vento. No que tange ao desenvolvimento do modelo computacional são empregadas técnicas usuais de discretização, via método dos elementos finitos, por meio do programa ANSYS. Inicialmente, a resposta estática e dinâmica do modelo estrutural é obtida e comparada com base nos valores limites propostos por normas de projeto. A partir de análises qualitativas e quantitativas desenvolvidas sobre a resposta estrutural do modelo em estudo são utilizadas técnicas de otimização com o objetivo de modificar e aprimorar o desempenho estrutural do edifício analisado. / Based on the exponential growth of urban populations, the demand for space for housing has grown dramatically. To meet these needs, building ever higher and more slender are designed and increasing spans has been used. New materials are created and improved to be extracted maximum performance at the lowest cost. Thus, this research work aims to study the behaviour and optimization of buildings structural design. To do this, it is considered throughout the study the design of a reinforced concrete building with 47 meters high and 15 floors, subjected to the actions of usual design loadings on residential buildings in addition to wind loads. Regarding the development of the computational model, usual mesh refinement techniques are used, based on the finite element method simulations, and implemented in the ANSYS program. Initially, the structural model static and dynamic response is obtained and compared, based on the limiting values proposed by design standards. Based on the developed qualitative and quantitative analyses on the investigated structural model response, optimization techniques are used in order to modify and improve the structural performance of the analysed building.

Laser surface treatment of engineering ceramics offers various advantages in comparison with conventional processing techniques and much research has been conducted to develop applications. Even so, there still remains a considerable gap in knowledge that needs to be filled to establish the process. By employing a fibre laser for the first time to process silicon nitride (Si3N4) and zirconia (ZrO2) engineering ceramics, a comparison with the CO2 and a Nd:YAG lasers was conducted to provide fundamental understanding of various aspects of the laser beam-material interaction. Changes in the morphology, microstructure, surface finish, fracture toughness parameter (K1c) were investigated, followed by thermal finite element modelling (FEM) of the laser surface treatment and the phase transformation of the two ceramics, as well as the effects of the fibre laser beam parameter - brightness (radiance). Fibre and CO2 laser surface treatment of both Si3N4 and ZrO2 engineering ceramics was performed by using various processing gases. Changes in the surface roughness, material removal, surface morphology and microstructure were observed. But the effect was particularly more remarkable when applying the reactive gases with both lasers and less significant when using the inert gases. Microcracking was also observed when the reactive gases were applied. This was due to an exothermic reaction produced during the laser-ceramic interaction which would have resulted to an increased surface temperature leading to thermal shocks. Moreover, the composition of the ceramics was modified with both laser irradiated surfaces as the ZrO2 transformed to zirconia carbides (ZrC) and Si3N4 to silicon dioxide (SiO2) respectively. The most appropriate equation identified for the determination of the fracture toughness parameter K1c of the as-received, CO2 and the fibre laser surface treated Si3N4 and ZrO2 was K1c=0.016 (E/Hv) 1/2 (P/c3/2). Surfaces of both ceramics treated with CO2 and the fibre laser irradiation produced an increased K1c under the measured conditions, but with different effects. The CO2 laser surface treatment produced a thicker and softer layer whereas the fibre laser surface treatment increased the hardness by only 4%. This is inconsiderable but a reduction in the crack lengths increased the K1c value under the applied conditions. This was through a possible transformation hardening which occurred within both engineering ceramics. Experimental findings validated the generated thermal FEM of the CO2 and the fibre laser surface treatment and showed good agreement. However, a temperature difference was found between the CO2 and fibre laser surface treatment due to the difference in absorption of the near infra-red (NIR) wavelength of the fibre laser being higher than the mid infra-red (MIR) wavelength of the CO2 laser. This in turn, generated a larger interaction zone on the surface that was not induced further into the bulk, as was the case with the fibre laser irradiation. The MIR wavelength is therefore suitable for Viability and Characterization of the Laser Surface Treatment of Engineering Ceramics 3 the surface processing of mainly oxide ceramics and surface treatments which do not require deep penetration. Phase transformation of the two ceramics occurred at various stages during the fibre laser surface treatment. The ZrO2 was transformed from the monoclinic (M) state to a mixture of tetragonal + cubic (T+C) during fibre laser irradiation and from T+C to T and then a partially liquid (L) phase followed by a possible reverse transformation to the M state during solidification. The Si3N4 transformed to a mixture of α-phase and β-phase (α→ α+β) followed by α+β and fully transforms from α+β → β-phase. What is more, is a comparison of the fibre laser-beam brightness parameter with that of the Nd:YAG laser. In particular, physical and microstructural changes due to the difference in the laser-beam brightness were observed. This research has identified the broader effects of various laser processing conditions, as well as characterization techniques, assessment and identification of a method to determine the K1c and the thermal FEM of laser surface treated engineering ceramics. Also, the contributions of laser-beam brightness as a parameter of laser processing and the influence thereof on the engineering ceramics have been identified from a fundamental viewpoint. The findings of this research can now be adopted to develop ceramic fuel cell joining techniques and applications where laser beam surface modification and characterization of engineering ceramics are necessary.

Standard crystalline silicon photovoltaic (PV) modules are designed to continuously convert solar energy into electricity for 25 years. However, the continual generation of electricity by the PV modules throughout their designed service life has been a concern. The key challenge has been the untimely fatigue failure of solder interconnections of solar cells in the modules due to accelerated thermo-mechanical degradation. The goal of this research is to provide adequate information for proper design of solar cell solder joint against fatigue failure through the study of cyclic thermo-mechanical stresses and strains in the joint. This is carried-out through finite element analysis (FEA) using ANSYS software to develop the solar cell assembly geometric models followed by simulations. Appropriate material constitutive model for solder alloy is employed to predict number of cycles to failure of solder joint, hence predicting its fatigue life. The results obtained from this study indicate that intermetallic compound thickness (TIMC); solder joint thickness (TSJ) and width (WSJ) have significant impacts on fatigue life of solder joint. The impacts of TIMC and TSJ are such that as the thicknesses increases solder joint fatigue life decreases. Conversely, as solder joint width (WSJ) increases, fatigue life increases. Furthermore, optimization of the joint is carried-out towards thermo-mechanical reliability improvement. Analysis of results shows the design with optimal parameter setting to be: TIMC -2.5μm, TSJ -20μm and WSJ -1000μm. In addition, the optimized model has 16,264 cycles to failure which is 18.82% more than the expected 13,688 cycles to failure of a PV module designed to last for 25 years.

The main objectives of this research were twofold: 1). to develop advanced material characterization techniques for bitumen, mastic and mortar aiming to improve the knowledge of the behavior of asphalt concrete at micro and meso scales, and 2). to develop an efficient macro-mechanical numerical model capable of determining flexible pavement responses to traffic and environmental loads.

The on-line condition monitoring of turbomachinery blades is of utmost importance to ensure the long term health and availability of such machines and as such has been an area of study since the late 1960s. As a result a number of on-line blade vibration measurement techniques are available, each with its own associated advantages and shortcomings. In general, on-blade sensor measurement techniques suffer from sensor lifespan, whereas non-contact techniques usually have measurement bandwidth limitations. One non-contact measurement technique that yields improvements in the area of measurement bandwidth is laser Doppler vibrometry. This thesis presents results and findings from utilizing laser Doppler vibrometry in an Eulerian fashion (i.e. a fixed reference frame) to measure on-line blade vibrations in axial-flow turbomachinery. With this measurement approach, the laser beam is focussed at a fixed point in space and measurements are available for the periods during which each blade sweeps through the beam. The characteristics of the measurement technique are studied analytically with an Euler-Bernoulli cantilever beam and experimental verification is performed. An approach for the numerical simulation of the measurement technique is then presented. Associated with the presented measurement technique are the short periods during which each blade is exposed to the laser beam. This characteristic yields traditional frequency domain signal processing techniques unsuitable for providing useful blade health indicators. To obtain frequency domain information from such short signals, it is necessary to employ non-standard signal processing techniques such as non-harmonic Fourier analysis. Results from experimental testing on a single-blade test rotor at a single rotor speed are presented in the form of phase angle trends obtained with non-harmonic Fourier analysis. Considering the maximum of absolute unwrapped phase angle trends around various reference frequencies, good indicators of blade health deterioration were obtained. These indicators were verified numerically. To extend the application of this condition monitoring approach, measurements were repeated on a five-blade test rotor at four different rotor speeds. Various damage cases were considered as well as different ELDV measurement positions. Using statistical parameters of the abovementioned indicators as well as time domain parameters, it is shown that with this condition monitoring approach, blade damage can successfully be identified and quantified with the aid of artificial neural networks. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering / unrestricted