A numerical investigation of the impact of turbulence on the feeding rates of Oithona davisae

Individual based numerical simulations of the copepod, Oithona davisae, feeding on motile prey, Oxyrrhis marina, under variable turbulent conditions are performed. These simulations correspond to laboratory observations conducted by Saiz et al. [Saiz, E., Calbet, A., and Broglio, E., 2003. Effects of small-scale turbulence on copepods: the case of Oithona Davisae. Limnol. Oceanogr., 48:1304–1311.].The flow field in the simulation is reconstructed by a kinematic simulation whose characteristic scales are derived from the grid mesh and the dissipation rates of the laboratory experiments. The kinematic simulation provides a simplified model, which while not fully realistic, captures the basic relevant feature of turbulence. A hop and sink swimming behaviour is prescribed for O. davisae, while O. marina moves along helical paths with random changes of directions.Three possible effects are tested: the existence of a time threshold in the duration of the contacts between predator and prey, a progressive reduction of the perceptive distance with increasing turbulence level and an abrupt reduction in feeding of O. davisae when the flow speed, in relation to the copepod position, is higher than a prescribed threshold. This last approach introduces an intermittency in the feeding which depends on the variations of velocity both in space and time within the numerical box.The introduction of the time threshold causes a dome-shaped relationship between the simulated enhancement factor and the dissipation rate, while with the other two effects, a monotonic decrease in the enhancement factor is observed, with values reasonably close to the ones observed in the laboratory experiment. In all the cases, the use of realistic values of biological parameters (e.g. swimming behaviour) reproduces response curves in the range of the observations.     

基于损伤和能量耗散的钢筋混凝土柱抗震性能研究

从PEER数据库中选取7根钢筋混凝土柱在低周反复荷载作用下的试验数据,在分析了不同轴压比和配箍率下各试件的滞回特性、延性指标和割线刚度退化等的基础上,基于钢筋混凝土构件的Park-Ang双参数破坏准则,研究了构件损伤与耗能的关系、轴压比和配箍率对滞回耗能和损伤演化的影响。结果表明,轴压比较小和配箍率较高的试件,滞回曲线较为饱满,具有较好的延性性能;在一定范围内,增大轴压比或配箍率可以提高试件的屈服位移、屈服荷载和峰值荷载;加载前期,试件的损伤主要由位移首次超越引起,累积耗能对试件损伤影响相对较小,随着位移幅值的增大,累积耗能对试件损伤的贡献逐渐加大;配箍率相同的情况下,减小箍筋的间距对改善钢筋混凝土抗震性能有显著作用。     

Nonlinear Model-Based Multivariable Control for Air & Charging System of Diesel Engine with Short and Long Route EGR Valves

The objective of this study is to investigate a nonlinear model-based multivariable (MIMO, Multi Input Multi Output) technique to decouple actuators interaction and to reduce the calibration effort, while increasing control performances, above all in transient conditions, and robustness with respect to model uncertainties and system parameter variations. The presented control technique is based on the development of a nonlinear dynamical physical model of the diesel air and charging system. Feedback Linearization control is then applied to decouple actuators’ interactions and compensate for nonlinearities. A new set of virtual inputs are defined inverting the system differential equations. Relation among the new virtual inputs and the outputs is purely linear and decoupled, meaning that each virtual input affects linearly only one output. Moreover, a linear control block is added to guarantee transient and steady state performances and closed loop robustness. The proposed control approach has been validated through small diesel engine dyno and vehicle activities. Transient test bench maneuvers show that the control is able to coordinate the actuators in order to fulfill the targets and to guarantee similar performances in different operating points. In addition the robustness to environmental changes has been demonstrated by vehicle tests at different ambient conditions.     

On the assessment of vehicle trajectory data accuracy and application to the Next Generation SIMulation (NGSIM) program data

Trajectories drawn in a common reference system by all the vehicles on a road are the ultimate empirical data to investigate traffic dynamics. The vast amount of such data made freely available by the Next Generation SIMulation (NGSIM) program is therefore opening up new horizons in studying traffic flow theory. Yet the quality of trajectory data and its impact on the reliability of related studies was a vastly underestimated problem in the traffic literature even before the availability of NGSIM data. The absence of established methods to assess data accuracy and even of a common understanding of the problem makes it hard to speak of reproducibility of experiments and objective comparison of results, in particular in a research field where the complexity of human behaviour is an intrinsic challenge to the scientific method. Therefore this paper intends to design quantitative methods to inspect trajectory data. To this aim first the structure of the error on point measurements and its propagation on the space travelled are investigated. Analytical evidence of the bias propagated in the vehicle trajectory functions and a related consistency requirement are given. Literature on estimation/filtering techniques is then reviewed in light of this requirement and a number of error statistics suitable to inspect trajectory data are proposed. The designed methodology, involving jerk analysis, consistency analysis and spectral analysis, is then applied to the complete set of NGSIM databases.     

Lateral Tyre Force by a Milliken Test on a Flat Track Roadway Simulator

The lateral tyre force versus slip angle and vertical load is obtained through specific tests on the single tyre or with a theoretical-empirical analysis with physical models. This study is about the possibility to use a third way: Executing a particular handling test, known as Force-Moment test, using a Flat Track Roadway Simulator (the Fiat-Elasis MTS FTRS). The understanding and the project of vehicle handling is strongly based on the knowledge of lateral tyre force response [1, 2, 3, 7].     

Transport and environment interactions: the italian framework

With road traffic in Europe forecast to increase, strategies are needed to keep transportation sector growth within the bounds imposed by a sustainable development. Research is contributing through a large number of projects dealing with transport–environment interactions. This paper reviews international research activities in this field, focusing on technological innovations, air and noise pollution prediction models, and existing tools for socioeconomic evaluation of traffic impacts on the environment. In particular, research projects of the Second Special Project on Transport (PFT2) of the Italian National Research Council (CNR) are outlined.