Title from PDF of title page. / Document formatted into pages; contains 161 pages. / Thesis (M.S.C.E.)--University of South Florida, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references. / Text (Electronic thesis) in PDF format. / ABSTRACT: Driving piles constitute a large portion of the high-capacity foundations used today. They transfer structural loads to deep bearing strata when adequate surficial soils are not available. The mechanisms required to install these piles generally consist of a hammer, hammer lead, a crane, and various support rigging. This study focused on lead sections, specifically, one which was manufactured by Berminghammer Foundation Equipment, Inc. The dimensions and strength of a lead section must be capable of supporting both the pile driving hammer and the longest anticipated pile for a given site. The strength of the section must be capable of withstanding hundreds of tons in compression and bending. If the lead is operated in a batter, (tilted forward, backward, or sideways) the weight of the hammer and pile causes much more bending than the vertical orientation. / ABSTRACT: The cross-section details for these long steel sections vary from design to design but usually incorporate some form of bolt group, pins, and steel alignment dowels. This thesis focuses on the design, modeling, and testing of such a connection. The motivation of the study stems from a company-wide incentive to standardize the connections used to splice the Berminghammer C15-series lead section. In an effort to verify a proposed connection design, Berminghammer Foundation Engineering solicited the University of South Florida to test a full-sized lead section to failure, while monitoring the splice-connection performance. / System requirements: World Wide Web browser and PDF reader. / Mode of access: World Wide Web.

The thesis is focused on remitting lead-acid segments of partial charge mode which simulates the conditions in HEV. The experimental cells were submitted to different pressures on the electrode system. The main aim of the thesis was to minimize the irreversible sulphating of the negative electrodes, which are in the PSoC regime limiting in the overall life of lead-acid accumulators. All cells were submitted to measurement of the negative electrode potentials, resistance of active materials, contact resistance of the grid – the active material and measurements of pressure changes during three PSoC cycles.

Driving piles constitute a large portion of the high-capacity foundations used today. They transfer structural loads to deep bearing strata when adequate surficial soils are not available. The mechanisms required to install these piles generally consist of a hammer, hammer lead, a crane, and various support rigging. This study focused on lead sections, specifically, one which was manufactured by Berminghammer Foundation Equipment, Inc. The dimensions and strength of a lead section must be capable of supporting both the pile driving hammer and the longest anticipated pile for a given site. The strength of the section must be capable of withstanding hundreds of tons in compression and bending. If the lead is operated in a batter, (tilted forward, backward, or sideways) the weight of the hammer and pile causes much more bending than the vertical orientation. The cross-section details for these long steel sections vary from design to design but usually incorporate some form of bolt group, pins, and steel alignment dowels. This thesis focuses on the design, modeling, and testing of such a connection. The motivation of the study stems from a company-wide incentive to standardize the connections used to splice the Berminghammer C15-series lead section. In an effort to verify a proposed connection design, Berminghammer Foundation Engineering solicited the University of South Florida to test a full-sized lead section to failure, while monitoring the splice-connection performance.

Premature loss of capacity, mode of partial charge, additives, negative electrode, lead acid battery, lead-acid battery cycling, hybrid electric vehicle, traction battery, ebonex, titanium dioxide