FE modeling of concrete beams and columns reinforced with FRP composites

Compression and flexure members such as columns and beams are critical in a structure as its failure could lead to the collapse of the structure. In the present work, numerical analysis of square and circle short columns, and reinforced concrete (RC) beams reinforced withfiber reinforced polymer composites are carried out. This work is divided into two parts. In thefirst part, numerical study of axial behavior of square and circular concrete columns reinforced with Glass Fiber Reinforced Polymer (GFRP) and Basalt Fiber Reinforced Polymer (BFRP)bars and spiral, and Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer (CFRP) wraps is conducted. The results of the first part showed that the axial capacity of the circular RC columns rein-forced with GFRP increases with the increase of the longitudinal reinforcement ratio. In addition, the results of the numerical analysis showed good correlation with the experimental ones. An interaction diagram for BFRP RC columns is also developed with considering various eccentricities. The results of numerical modeling of RC columns strengthened with CFRP wraps revealed that the number and the spacing between the CFRP wraps provide different levels of ductility enhancement to the column. For the cases considered in this study, column with two middle closely spaced CFRP wraps demonstrated the best performance. In the second part of this research,flexural behavior of RC beams reinforced with BFRP, GFRP and CFRP bars is investigated along with validation of the numerical model with the experimental tests. The results resembled the experimental observations that indicate significant effect of the FRP bar diameter and type ont he flexural capacity of the RC beams. It was also shown that Increasing the number of bars while keeping the same reinforcement ratio enhanced the stiffness of the RC beam.     

Coordinated scheduling of customer orders for quick response

The scheduling problem addressed in this paper concerns a manufacturer who produces a variety of product types and operates in a make‐to‐order environment. Each customer order consists of known quantities of the different product types, and must be delivered as a single shipment. Periodically the manufacturer schedules the accumulated and unscheduled customer orders. Instances of this problem occur across industries in manufacturing as well as in service environments. In this paper we show that the problem of minimizing the weighted sum of customer order delivery times is unary NP‐hard. We characterize the optimal schedule, solve several special cases of the problem, derive tight lower bounds, and propose several heuristic solutions. We report the results of a set of computational experiments to evaluate the lower bounding procedures and the heuristics, and to determine optimal solutions. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2005.     

Commitment decisions with partial information updating

In this paper, we extend the results of Ferguson M. Naval Research Logistics 8 . on an end‐product manufacturer's choice of when to commit to an order quantity from its parts supplier. During the supplier's lead‐time, information arrives about end‐product demand. This information reduces some of the forecast uncertainty. While the supplier must choose its production quantity of parts based on the original forecast, the manufacturer can wait to place its order from the supplier after observing the information update. We find that a manufacturer is sometimes better off with a contract requiring an early commitment to its order quantity, before the supplier commits resources. On the other hand, the supplier sometimes prefers a delayed commitment. The preferences depend upon the amount of demand uncertainty resolved by the information as well as which member of the supply chain sets the exchange price. We also show conditions where demand information updating is detrimental to both the manufacturer and the supplier. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2005     

Modeling the operation of multireservoir systems using decomposition and stochastic dynamic programming

Stochastic dynamic programming models are attractive for multireservoir control problems because they allow non‐linear features to be incorporated and changes in hydrological conditions to be modeled as Markov processes. However, with the exception of the simplest cases, these models are computationally intractable because of the high dimension of the state and action spaces involved. This paper proposes a new method of determining an operating policy for a multireservoir control problem that uses stochastic dynamic programming, but is practical for systems with many reservoirs. Decomposition is first used to reduce the problem to a number of independent subproblems. Each subproblem is formulated as a low‐dimensional stochastic dynamic program and solved to determine the operating policy for one of the reservoirs in the system. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2006     

A squared-euclidean distance location-allocation problem

This article is concerned with the analysis of a squared-Euclidean distance location-allocation problem with balanced transportation constraints, where the costs are directly proportional to distances and the amount shipped. The problem is shown to be equivalent to maximizing a convex quadratic function subject to transportation constraints. A branch-and-bound algorithm is developed that utilizes a specialized, tight, linear programming representation to compute strong upper bounds via a Lagrangian relaxation scheme. These bounds are shown to substantially dominate several other upper bounds that are derived using standard techniques as problem size increases. The special structure of the transportation constraints is used to derive a partitioning scheme, and this structure is further exploited to devise suitable logical tests that tighten the bounds implied by the branching restrictions on the transportation flows. The transportation structure is also used to generate additional cut-set inequalities based on a cycle prevention method which preserves a forest graph for any partial solution. Results of the computational experiments, and a discussion on possible extensions, are also presented.     

Evaluation of an integrated supplier-buyer quality-control system

In this article, a quality-control design framework that employs information for the supplier-buyer system is modeled. Significant operational savings may be obtained by using the integrated plans developed under this framework. This is especially true when the cost of a defective is high, and the variable sampling and rework costs are low. Analysis of the interaction of defective, rework, and variable sampling costs reveals that the savings are the result of a shift of control effort from the process-control to the lot-acceptance stage, which is the consequence of tradeoffs involving both stages. The managerial impact of adopting integrated plans is discussed.     

The reporting time problem: Integration of intelligence with verification

This article is a theoretic study of the following problem in verification: Mobile units under control of an agent, whom we call the HIDER, travel on a known transportation network and must at the conclusion of their itinerary report locations at fixed time intervals to a monitoring authority, whom we call the SEEKER. The purpose of this reporting requirement is to verify that illegal units do not infiltrate the network from sources under the control of the HIDER. We assume that the SEEKER has an independent intelligence-gathering capability which gives sightings of both legal and illegal units. The purpose of this article is to quantify the advantage of frequent over infrequent reporting. © 1992 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Waiting times for M/G/1 queues with service-time or delay-dependent server vacations

This article shows how to determine the stationary distribution of the virtual wait in M/G/1 queues with either one-at-a-time or exhaustive server vacations, depending on either service times or accrued workload. For the first type of dependence, each vacation time is a function of the immediately preceding service time or of whether the server finds the system empty after returning from vacation. In this way, it is possible to model situations such as long service times followed by short vacations, and vice versa. For the second type of dependence, the vacation time assigned to an arrival to follow its service is a function of the level of virtual wait reached. By this device, we can model situations in which vacations may be shortened whenever virtual delays have gotten excessive. The method of analysis employs level-crossing theory, and examples are given for various cases of service and vacation-time distributions. A closing discussion relates the new model class to standard M/G/1 queues where the service time is a sum of variables having complex dependencies. © 1992 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

‘The People are Revolting’: An Anatomy of Authoritarian Counterinsurgency

Rather than win hearts and minds, authoritarian counterinsurgency is said to rely heavily on coercion. It has a reputation for effectiveness, if also for its amorality. Still, the research into authoritarian counterinsurgency is surprisingly lacking. By distilling common features from key cases, this article concludes that this approach goes beyond the indiscriminate violence that typically captures the imagination. Like their democratic counterparts but differently, authoritarian regimes also engage in mobilisation, create narratives, and turn military advantage into political gain. The analysis explains how these tasks are undertaken and, by contradistinction, sheds light on more liberal approaches as well.