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Load and Resistance Factor Design is a set of specifications for the design of steel structures. It is based on a consistent probability of failure and the concept of limit states. The main difference between LRFD and the traditional Allowable Stress Design method is the use of load and resistance factors, which account for the variability of parameters affecting the design. The purpose of this study is to compare both design methods. To do so, a computer program for the design of steel frames according to LRFD criteria is created. Three frame structures are designed using this program, then compared to the same structures designed according to the ASD procedures. The results indicated that LRFD criteria yield a structure similar to that designed according to ASD, with a moderate saving in steel weight. Both methods were found to be similar in terms of complexity and effort to complete calculations. An advantage found in using LRFD was that engineers can develop a better understanding of the behavior of material and structures under the influence of different load conditions. / M.S.

Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, 1981. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ENGINEERING. / Includes bibliographical references. / by David Matthew DeLonga; Ensign, USN. / M.S.

A36 steel is a commonly used material in civil engineering structures where fatigue damage can lead to catastrophic failure. In this research, nonlinear Rayleigh surface waves are used to characterize damage in A36 steel specimens caused by monotonic tension and low cycle fatigue. Fatigue damage produces the increased acoustic nonlinearity that leads to the generation of measurable higher harmonics in an initially monochromatic Rayleigh wave signal. One specimen is subjected to static tension and four specimens are used for low cycle fatigue tests in the tension-tension mode with a constant stress amplitude. The fatigue tests are interrupted at different numbers of cycles for the nonlinear ultrasonic measurements. Tone burst Rayleigh wave signals are generated and detected using a pair of oil coupled wedge transducers. The amplitudes of the first and second harmonic are measured at varying propagation distances to obtain the nonlinearity parameter for a given damage state. The experimental results show an increase of acoustic nonlinearity in the early stages of fatigue life. Furthermore, a close relationship between plastic deformation and the acoustic nonlinearity is found, which indicates that the acoustic nonlinearity is indeed a measure of microplasticity in this material.

The designers of heavy, off-road vehicle suspension systems face unique challenges. The ride comfort versus handling compromise in these vehicles has been frequently investigated using mathematical optimisation. Further challenges exist due to the large variations in vehicle sprung mass. The suspension system must provide adequate isolation from road load inputs throughout its payload operating range. This is imperative if good vehicle structural life is to be ensured. A passive suspension system can only provide optimal isolation at a single payload. The designer of such a suspension system must therefore make a compromise between designing for a fully-laden or unladen payload state. This work deals with suspension optimisation for vehicle structural life. The work mainly addresses two questions: 1) What are the suspension characteristics required to ensure optimal isolation of the vehicle structure from road loads? and 2) If such optimal suspension characteristics can be found, how sensitive are they to changes in vehicle payload? The study aims to answer these questions by examining a Land Rover Defender 110 as case study. An experimentally validated mathematical model of the test vehicle is constructed for the use in sensitivity studies. Mathematical optimisation is performed using the model in order to find the suspension characteristics for optimal structural life of the vehicle under consideration. Sensitivity studies are conducted to determine the robustness of the optimal characteristics and their sensitivity to vehicle payload variation. Recommendations are made for suspension characteristic selection for optimal structural life. AFRIKAANS : Ontwerpers van swaar, veldvoertuig suspensie stelsels staar unieke uitdagings in die gesig. Die ritgemak teenoor hantering kompromie in hierdie voertuie is reeds telkemale ondersoek, ook met wiskundige optimering. Verdere uitdagings bestaan as gevolg van die groot veranderinge in geveerde massa by hierdie voertuie. Die suspensiestelsel moet gepaste isolasie van pad insette oor `n wye reeks van bedryfstoestande lewer. Dit is veral belangrik indien daar verseker wil word dat die voertuig goeie struktuurleeftyd het. `n Passiewe suspensiestelsel kan egter slegs optimale isolasie by `n enkele vragtoestand lewer. Die ontwerper van `n passiewe suspensie stelsel moet dus `n kompromie aangaan tussen ontwerp vir `n vol of leë vragtoestand. Hierdie studie handel oor suspensie optimering vir struktuur leeftyd. Die werk spreek hoofsaaklik twee vraagstukke aan: 1) Watter suspensie karakteristieke word benodig om die voertuig struktuur optimaal van padinsette te isoleer? en 2) Indien sulke optimale karakteristieke gevind kan word, wat is hulle sensitiwiteit vir veranderinge in voertuig vrag? Die studie mik om hierdie vraagstukke aan te spreek deur ondersoeke op `n Land Rover Defender 110 toetsvoertuig. `n Eksperimenteel gevalideerde, wiskundige model van die toetsvoertuig word saamgestel met die oog op sensitiwiteitstudies. Wiskundige optimering word met die model uitgevoer om sodoende die suspensie karakteristieke vir optimale struktuurleeftyd vir die betrokke toetsvoertuig te bepaal. Sensitiwiteitsanalises word gedoen om die robuustheid van die optimale karakteristieke, met betrekking tot veranderinge in voertuig vrag, vas te stel. Aanbevelings word gemaak oor die keuse van suspensie karakteristieke vir optimale struktuur leeftyd. Copyright / Dissertation (MEng)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering / unrestricted

The mechanical and material properties of structural steel at elevated temperatures play an important role in structural fire design. The South African 350W and S355 structural steels are common in building structures with S355 slowly replacing the older 350W. The cost and feasibility of full scale fire tests are some of the causes for the lack of experimental data on the behaviour of steel structures when exposed to fire. Therefore excessively conservative design codes based on isolated laboratory experiments are used in practice which leads to increased material costs. Another area of concern with respect to building safety is the reusability of structural steels post fire exposure, which is not effectively addressed within these codes. This study aims to establish greater insight into structural fire design and simulation on which further research can be built. Experimental programs on the temperature dependent behaviour of these steel members loaded axially are conducted and compared with theory and the Eurocode 3 standard [1]. The reusability of steel exposed to fire and after being cooled down is investigated and compared to the findings by Outinen [2]. Further testing on material to determine the relationship between remaining life and hardness degradation after cooling down was conducted. Experimental data from various external studies are used to develop novel computer models using the finite element analysis software, SimXpert [3]. These are verified against the original data and compared to existing design codes. A parametric approach is used with these models to demonstrate the advantages of computer simulations in structural fire design. Different cross sections and slenderness ratios are evaluated for their susceptibility to buckling at elevated temperatures. The results of this study show that as temperature and exposure time increase the integrity of steel members decrease. The current design codes accurately predict the behaviour of isolated specimens but lack data on real situations where the specimen is part of a complex structure. It was found that steel members can be reused if their exposure temperature does not exceed 700°C, after which their strength can reduce to 90%. This temperature dependant behaviour was successfully modelled using basic computer simulations and then demonstrated the ease in which they can be used in place of experimental regimes. The parametric advantages of these simulations were demonstrated by predicting the effects of slenderness ratios and geometry cross sections on the buckling behaviour. / Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2012.

Uma metodologia para simular o crescimento de trincas por fadiga em estruturas pressurizadas de cascas delgadas e enrijecidas é implementada por meio de uma estrutura de software, que consiste em um programa de simulação de fraturamento associado a um programa de análise por elementos finitos. Permite-se que as trajetórias das trincas sejam arbitrárias, sendo calculadas incrementalmente como parte da simulação. As trajetórias são representadas em uma região localizada do modelo, que pode ser remodelada automaticamente a cada incremento de trinca por meio de um algoritmo de geração de malha de elementos de casca quadrilaterais. Duas alternativas de modelagem da região em torno da ponta da trinca são apresentadas: por elementos finitos de casca e por elementos sólidos. A metodologia assume que o crescimento da trinca seja caracterizado por quatro fatores de intensidade de tensão que modelam o comportamento de membrana pela teoria da elasticidade bidimensional, em estado plano de tensões, e o comportamento de placa pela na teoria de Kirchhoff. A resposta da estrutura de casca delgada pressurizada é determinada por meio do programa ADINA (Automatic Dynamic Incremental Nonlinear Analysis), que utiliza um procedimento de análise geometricamente não linear para elementos finitos de casca, formulados pela teoria de Reissner-Mindlin. Um estudo mostra que os fatores de Kirchhoff podem ser correlacionados aos fatores de Reissner-Mindlin por meio de expressões semi-empíricas. Fatores tridimensionais médios de intensidade de tensão são definidos e relacionados aos fatores das teorias da elasticidade bidimensional e de Reissner-Mindlin. Um exemplo de aplicação é apresentado, comparando-se os resultados das três teorias. A validação da metodologia é discutida por meio da simulação do crescimento de trincas por fadiga em um painel de teste em escala real da fuselagem de um Boeing 737. / A methodology for modeling fatigue crack growth in pressurized, stiffened, thin shell structures is implemented within a software framework that consists of a fracture simulation code associated with a finite element analysis code. Crack trajetories are allowed to be arbitrary and are computed incrementally as a part of the simulation. Trajectories are represented in a localized model region that can be remeshed automatically at each crack increment using a quadrilateral element surface meshing algorithm. Two alternatives for meshing the near crack tip region are presented: by shell finite elements and by solid finite elements. The methodology assumes that the crack growth is caracterized by four stress intensity factors that model the membrane behavior using two-dimensional plane stress elasticity and the plate behavior using Kirchhoff plate theory. The structural response of the pressurized thin shell is computed by ADINA (Automatic Dynamic Incremental Nonlinear Analysis) code, using a geometrically non-linear shell fiinite element analysis procedure, formulated by Reissner-Mindlin theory. A study shows that for thin shells the Kirchhoff factors can be related to the Reissner-Mindlin factors by mean of semi-empirical expressions. Three-dimensional average stress intensity factors are defined and related to the factors of the two-dimensional elasticity and the Reissner-Mindlin theories. An application example is presented and the results of the three theories are compared. The metodology validation is discussed by mean of a fatigue crack growth simulation in a full-scale pressurized panel test of a Boeing 737.