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Stress functions have been used as a complementary tool to support experimental techniques, such as thermoelastic stress analysis (TSA) and digital image correlation (DIC), in an effort to evaluate the complete and separate full-field stresses of loaded structures. The need for such coupling between experimental data and stress functions is due to the fact that experimental techniques offer discrete information of stresses or displacements, e.g. isopachic stresses in the case of TSA, as well as unreliable data near edges. For TSA, additional information is needed to separate stresses, as...

The present work aims to determine the impact performance of two bamboo-based laminated composites [bamboo/poplar laminated composite (BPLC) and bamboo/ glass fiber laminated composite (BGFLC)] using lowvelocity impact tests by a drop tower. In addition, fracture characteristics were evaluated using computed tomography (CT). Results showed that BPLC presented better impact properties in both directions than BGFLC. Three stages are noted in impact load–deflection curves. The load–deflection curve characteristics of two composites are different in different stages. Matrix cracking, fiber-matr...

The mechanisms by which chemical modifications, specifically acetylation, improve the decay resistance of wood are a topic of active research. In the early stages of decay, fungi secrete lowmolecular- weight oxidants or oxidant precursors. These oxidants diffuse through the wet wood cell wall and oxidize cell wall polymers, which enable the decay process to proceed. One hypothesis states that acetylation stops decay by dramatically inhibiting the diffusion of these oxidants through the cell wall (Zeiinka et. al. 2016). Data showing a drastic difference in Fe uptake from solution between...

The use of timber–concrete composite (TCC) bridges in the United States dates back to circa 1925. Two different TCC systems were constructed during this early period. The first system included a longitudinal nail-laminated deck composite with a concrete deck top layer. The second system included sawn timber stringers supporting a concrete deck top layer. Records indicate that most of the TCC highway bridges were constructed between 1930 and 1960. The current U.S. National Bridge Inventory (NBI) database indicates that there may be well over 1,000 of this bridge type still in service. This...

As engineers begin to utilize life-cycle-cost design approaches for timber bridges, there is a necessity for more reliable data about their durability and expected service life. This paper summarizes a comprehensive effort to assess the current condition of more than one hundred timber highway bridge superstructures throughout the United States. This national study was jointly administered by the Forest Products Laboratory and the Federal Highway Administration and relied on data from the National Bridge Inventory database. In-depth inspections were conducted using visual and non-destructiv...

Nanoscale, single-asperity wear of single-crystal silicon carbide (sc- SiC) and nanocrystalline silicon carbide (nc-SiC) is investigated using single-crystal diamond nanoindenter tips and nanocrystalline diamond atomic force microscopy (AFM) tips under dry conditions, and the wear behavior is compared to that of single-crystal silicon with both thin and thick native oxide layers. We discovered a transition in the relative wear resistance of the SiC samples compared to that of Si as a function of contact size. With larger nanoindenter tips (tip radius ≈ 370 nm), the wear resistances of both...

Endoxylanases classified into glycoside hydrolase family 30 subfamily 8 (GH30-8) have been shown to hydrolyze glucuronoxylan with dependence upon the glucuronic acid (GlcA) appendage. In a recent report, the GH30-8 xylanase from Clostridium thermocellum (CtXyn30A) was shown to hydrolyze arabinoxylan which contains no GlcA. Protein structure comparison with the originally characterized GH30-8 enzymes from Bacillus subtilis and Erwinia chrysanthemi provided no insight to hypothesize why the function of CtXyn30A is unique. In this report, we show that CtXyn30A is a GlcA dependent endoxylanase...

Recently, Buchanan County, Iowa, has cooperated with the U.S. Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), USDA Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory (FPL), and Iowa State University’s Bridge Engineering Center (ISU–BEC) to initiate a project involving the construction and monitoring of a glued-laminated (glulam) timber superstructure on geosynthetic reinforced soil (GRS) integrated bridge system (IBS) abutments. The research team from FPL installed sensors in the substructure as well as in the bearings of the girders. In addition, the research team from ISU– BEC installed sensors on the...

A combination of experimental, theoretical and numerical studies is used to investigate the variation of elastic moduli of lignocellulosic (bamboo) fiber cell walls with moisture content (MC). Our Nanoindentation results show that the longitudinal elastic modulus initially increased to a maximum value at about 3% MC and then decreased linearly with increasing MC. In contrast, the transverse moduli decrease linearly with MC. We showed that amorphous materials in cell walls have key roles in the variation of elastic modulus with increasing MC. Elastic modulus of lignin, calculated by...

RATIONALE: Carbon dioxide isotope (Δ13C value) measurements enable quantification of the sources of soil microbial respiration, thus informing ecosystem C dynamics. Tunable diode lasers (TDLs) can precisely measure CO2 isotopes at low cost and high throughput, but are seldom used for small samples (≤5 mL). We developed a TDL method for CO2 mole fraction ([CO2]) and Δ13C analysis of soil microcosms.METHODS: Peaks in infrared absorbance following constant volume sample injection to a carrier were used to independently measure [12CO2] and [13CO2] for subsequent calculation of Δ13C values....