Effect of spatial heterogeneity of runoff generation mechanisms on the scaling behavior of event runoff responses in a natural river basin

This paper presents a theoretical investigation of the effects of spatial heterogeneity of runoff generation on the scaling behavior of runoff timing responses. A previous modeling study on the Illinois River Basin in Oklahoma had revealed a systematic spatial trend in the relative dominance of different runoff generation mechanisms,...

Method and instrumentation for detection of rail defects, in particular rail top defects

A method and instrumentation for detection of rail defects, in particular rail top defects, in a railway-track by measuring an axle box acceleration signal of a rail vehicle, wherein a longitudinal axle box acceleration signal is used as a measure to detect the occurrence of said rail defects, in particular rail top defects. The method also...

Relating tensile properties with flexural properties in SHCC

Strain hardening cementitious composites (SHCCs) have seen increasing field applications in past decade, yet existing quality control test methods for tensile properties are sometime difficult to implement. This paper presents a new simple inverse method for quality control of tensile strain capacity by conducting beam flexural test. It is shown...

Modeling Departure Time Choice with Stochastic Networks

Stochastic supply and fluctuating travel demand lead to stochasticity in travel times and travel costs experienced by travelers from time to time within a day and at the same time from day to day. Many studies show that travel time un-reliability has significant impacts on traveler’s choice behavior under uncertainty. Different theories are...

An investigation on the desired properties of friction modifiers for slippery rails

The adhesion level between wheel and rail has been since the beginning of railway a crucial parameter in the design and operation of rail vehicles. In the last decades, many railway organizations have suffered from low adhesion problems as consequence of the increased exploitation of the rail infrastructure. Leaves and water have been widely...

Investigating the lubricity and electrical insulation caused by sanding in dry wheel–rail contacts

The adhesion (or available friction) in the wheel–rail contact is the most important parameter for the braking and traction operation of rail vehicles. Since the beginning of railway transportation, sanding from the locomotive has been a common practice to enhance the wheel–rail adhesion. In recent years, sanding from electrical multiple units ...

Development of engineered cementitious composites with limestone powder and blast furnace slag

Nowadays limestone powder and blast furnace slag (BFS) are widely used in concrete as blended materials in cement. The replacement of Portland cement by limestone powder and BFS can lower the cost and enhance the greenness of concrete, since the production of these two materials needs less energy and causes less CO2 emission than Portland cement...

An innovative treatment concept for future drinking water production: Fluidized ion exchange – ultrafiltration – nanofiltration – granular activated carbon filtration

A new treatment concept for drinking water production from surface water has been investigated on a pilot scale. The treatment concept consists of fluidized ion exchange (FIEX), ultrafiltration (UF), nanofiltration (NF), and granular activated carbon filtration (GAC). The FIEX process removed calcium and other divalent cations; the UF membrane...

Spatial pattern dynamics in aquatic ecosystem modelling

In this thesis, several modelling approaches are explored to represent spatial pattern dynamics of aquatic populations in aquatic ecosystems by the combination of models, knowledge and data in different scales. It is shown that including spatially distributed inputs retrieved from Remote Sensing images, a conventional physically-based Harmful...

Reliability-based Dynamic Network Design with Stochastic Networks

Transportation systems are stochastic and dynamic systems. The road capacities and the travel demand are fluctuating from time to time within a day and at the same time from day to day. For road users, the travel time and travel costs experienced over time and space are stochastic, thus desire reliable travel times and low travel costs by...

Robustness Analysis of Road Networks: A Framework with Combined DTA Models

Network robustness is the ability of a road network functioning properly facing unpredictable and exceptional incidents. A systematical framework with combined dynamic traffic assignment (DTA) models is designed for the analysis of road network robustness. With this framework, network performance considering travelers' (route) choice behavior...

Rolling–Sliding Laboratory Tests of Friction Modifiers in Leaf Contaminated Wheel–Rail Contacts

Leaf-related adhesion problems have been present in many railway networks all over the world in the last few decades. Since the early 1970s many measures have been undertaken in order to mitigate the problem. One of the measures adopted by many railway networks is the use of friction modifiers. However, the low adhesion problem still persists....

Effect of Spatial Variability on Maintenance and Repair Decisions for Concrete Structures

Due to the increasingly number of elder and deteriorating structures, maintenance is becoming a serious and more complex problem in most of the countries. A lot of studies have been carried out in this area for years. However, the fact that a lot of parameters show spatial random variability, which is linked with dependencies on temperature, w/c...

Migrating Pools in Yangtze River

The severity and location of bank erosion and bed scour changes with the variation of water level. At low flows, the main flow thread tends to follow the concave bank. As the discharge increases, the flow tends to cut across the convex bar, to concentrate against concave bank only downstream the bend apex. This change of flow pattern is...