Search

This paper focuses on effects of mixed traffic on capacity of two-lane roads. On the basis of field data collected on Indian highways, the present paper makes it clear that capacity reduces if the proportion of slower vehicles increases in the traffic stream. Since such vehicles are responsible for the formation of platoons, their increasing proportion in traffic would accordingly increase the equivalency factor of vehicles, thereby, resulting in variation in capacity. The present study therefore explicates the need of introducing the concept of dynamic passenger car unit and anticipates that this would alleviate the current implication on capacity standards of such roads under mixed traffic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Slope failures associated with large-scale displacements and high strains in geomaterials have often resulted in large loss of life and properties in the Himalayan terrain. These slope failures bear a substantial relation to high-intensity rainfall events [1].One such slope is located at south portal of Rohtang tunnel, numerous slope failures due to the effect of fluctuating water table and rainfall events had already occurred. This paper describes variation in strength reduction factor (SRF) by a two-dimensional finite element based numerical modelling under four dominate strength reduction parameters. A total of one thirty-five analysis has been performed to obtain SRF values considering two sets of parameters. Three type of rocks constituting the slopes are Phyllitic quartzite, Quartzitic phyllite and Migmatite gneiss. Physico-mechanical behaviour of these rocks are investigated as per ISRM and BIS standards. The role of pore water pressure, joint inclination, slope angle and water table within the slope and its effect on failure is discussed in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Indian government implemented 24x7 water supply projects in few selected cities. These projects were implemented either under Public Private Partnership (PPP) or direct funding by government. However, many projects witnessed failure during later stage of project life cycle. The paper aimed to carry out performance evaluation of implementation of continuous water supply projects against the various risks. The case study research methodology was adopted for the study. Initially, various risks in water supply projects were identified through literature review. Two polar cases were selected for the study, one was implemented under Public Private Partnership (PPP) and other was implemented under direct funding from government budget. The cross case analysis of both cases against the identified risks is presented in the paper. The project under PPP mode could not perform well against risks like consumer risk, revenue risk, financial risk and socio political risk. The result showed that both the projects could not achieve the desired success as planned initially still it can be concluded that continuous water supply projects under government funding performed better. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Undergraduate civil engineering education is a professional education which demands its interaction with industry vis-a-vis the society. The present paper first presents a concise description of the history of development of the higher technical education in India mainly to highlight the different salient features in the context of the objective of the paper. It also gives a presentation of the existing scenario of the effective industry-interface system in the undergraduate civil engineering education in South Africa based on author's direct experience in order to emphasize the need and relevance of such a system in the context of the national development in the field of physical infrastructure etc. Finally, the author, in his concluding remark, proposes an industry-interface scheme for adoption and implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The advances in robotics, in the last ten years, have enabled robot technology to solve many practical problems that humans encounter in day-to-day activities. But, even today manual scavenging of the sewage is practiced in urban areas of India, wherein man enter the manholes and clean the scales and clogs in the sewage pipelines manually with virtually no technical equipment. This practice might jeopardize the lives of humans; therefore, a sewage cleaning robot is essential to replace the human intervention. The conventional sewage cleaning robots available are not capable and effective in cleaning a variable diameter pipelines. In order to overcome this issue, an attempt has been is made to design and develop a reconfigurable type sewage cleaning mobile manipulator, which can efficiently clean the scales and clogs formed in the variable diameter sewage pipeline. A conceptual model of the manipulator has been created in solid model using solid works. It will give a clear understanding of the manipulator and its subsystem interactions. A prototype model of the manipulator has been developed based on the design concept and its working environment i. e, various goals that robot has to do after entering the sewage pipe and hence the functional requirements are finalized. It consists of various links and joints. The joints are drive through the various motors which are discussed in the paper. Preliminary investigations are carried out on the developed prototype model and some of the results are discussed in the paper. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Availability of an attribute-based evaluation and selection system for offsite technologies is crucial for the adoption of these technologies in mass housing projects. Due to this gap, adoption of offsite technologies remains low in the Indian construction industry in spite of a huge requirement of 18.78 million housing units to be built by 2022. The traditional ‘sticks and bricks’ approach is not likely to fulfil this demand. Adoption of offsite technologies has to be looked into as an option to deliver the extensive requirement in the area of affordable housing. Rejection of technology by evaluating the first cost alone is not the desired strategy to evaluate these offsite technologies. To evaluate and adopt these offsite technologies in affordable housing segment, a holistic selection framework encompassing a set of attributes is needed. This paper identifies a holistic selection framework with a set of offsite specific attributes alongside a set of standard attributes that are mandatory and desired for the adoption of offsite technologies in the affordable housing. Simple scoring of attributes is utilized in devising the framework. This framework is tested and validated on a case study where offsite technologies are used. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper deals with the study of stoping parameters vis-à-vis rock mass behavior in an underground manganese mine situated in central India. Strain bars are installed at various locations in the mine as part of rock mechanics instrumentation programme to monitor rock mass movement. The effect of change in stope height from 30 to 45 m with varying stope widths up to 20 m is evaluated through empirical approaches and numerical modeling. The instrumentation monitoring data is analyzed and results are corroborated with those from empirical and numerical modeling approaches. It is observed that an increase in stope height from 30 to 45 m do not adversely affect the stability of stope, cross-cuts and haulage roadway at this mine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Subsidence is a time-dependent process and controlled by various factors including methods of mining, depth of extraction, thickness of deposit, and topography, as well as the in-situ properties of the rock mass. Subsurface deformation leading to surface subsidence includes the local lateral and upward displacements of rock above un-mined areas [1] . In this context, MOIL has conducted in-house research investigations of the subsidence phenomenon related to the underground mining of manganese ore at Balaghat mine. The mine has the manganese ore body at an average thickness of 10 m in north and 5 m in south, dipping at an average gradient of 40°-65° in north and 50°-80° in south. The ore body has fairly long strike length 2500 m at the deeper levels around 550 m below the surface. Considering the ore body and the hanging wall characteristics the subsidence phenomenon would be very much comparable to a coal mine situation. Taking this factor into consideration, the prediction of subsidence parameters has been carried out by adopting the well accepted and conventional coal mining subsidence prediction methods that have been developed in the country and are suitable for Indian mining conditions. The computations showed that the parameters of importance are well within the limit for permissible subsidence. The monitoring is done on a continuous basis at quarterly intervals, at two sites above the mine workings at Balaghat Mine. The quarterly monitoring data from Jan 2014 to Dec 2016 clearly suggests that no noticeable movement took place in any of the three orthogonal directions at these places. This is evidence enough that the subsidence at the Balaghat mine surface land is not of any measurable significance. The paper presents the scientific investigations carried out by the MOIL for prediction of subsidence parameters and successful 3-D analysis of subsidence monitoring at Balaghat Mine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tensile strength of rocks is an important parameter in the design of underground structures and for various engineering applications. Lack of literature and rapid development of infrastructure in central region of India calls for a need to characterize the mechanical behaviour of rocks in Deccan trap region which is mainly composed of Basalt. In this paper, characterization of tensile behaviour of Basalt rocks from Deccan trap is done at different loading conditions. Indirect test method namely Brazilian test is used to calculate the static indirect tensile strength at a loading rate of 0.2 kN/s. Tests are performed on different diameters samples and desirable failure modes are recorded. Tensile strength values recorded at slow loading are obtained to be different for specimen having different diameters. However, strength of rock in engineering problems like blasting, mining, rock bursting and breakage are affected by high loading rates. To consider the dynamic loading effect, a modified split Hopkinson pressure bar technique is used. For dynamic tensile experimentation, Brazilian disc specimen are used which are slightly flattened before testing. The flat ended Brazilian discs (FEBD) are placed diametrically in SHPB setup. Dynamic force equilibrium is successfully achieved for the initial stages of fracture propagation till complete failure of sample. The factor for increase in dynamic tensile strength of Deccan Basalt has been evaluated in this work. Scope of further research has been identified for experimentations on soft rocks to determine their dynamic tensile strength characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thermal Power plant (TPP) is biggest source of power in India. About 65% of electricity is generated by using thermal power plant. The equipment of TPP runs for 24x7 days through the year. The fault of TPP equipment needs to identify at early stage before the breakdown of system or unit. The maintenance functions of TPP should be optimized carefully by selecting suitable maintenance strategy at least cost. Identification and confirmation of fault in TPP equipment is very important step for decision making. It helps to optimize the maintenance activity. This paper proposes an algorithm for use of co-ordinated condition monitoring approach for identification and confirmation of fault. The objective of this study is to improve the availability and heath of critical equipment of Dahanu Thermal Power Station (DTPS) located in western region of India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

India is fast becoming one of the most lucrative options for manufacturing industry to prosper. This research was carried out to study the current manufacturing strategies implied by India for its growth in the manufacturing sector. An analysis was done on the factors which affect the manufacturing sector in different states across the country. Good infrastructure, compliance to tax & labour laws and meeting the desired environmental standards were some of the factors responsible for better performance of states like Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh.” International Monetary Fund (IMF) raised a concern about the pace of the reforms which are being passed. They pointed out that Indian economy is facing “decelerating pace of reforms”. Recently the long waited GST bill had been passed by the government of India which would enable an easy and a cost cutting flow of goods across different states of the country. It presents a wonderful opportunity for the manufacturing sector to re-establish the logistic sector of the country. A strong infrastructure is an essential ingredient for any manufacturing sector to grow. Keeping that in mind the government of India is investing a lot of funds in building a strong network of roads, rails and transport to foster the growth of the manufacturing sector. As many industrial corridors and road networks rapidly are being formed, this paper focuses on how these networks are catering to the growth of this sector. From this research we found out how new laws especially on land and labour coupled with constant improvement in the infrastructure is aiding India to emerge as the new manufacturing sector hub. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is observed from the past major earthquakes in India, Turkey, China, Nepal and other countries, numerous medium to high rise buildings suffered major damages including life and safety of people. There were devastating effects on life and property in the recent Nepal Earthquake of April 2015. There were also numerous collapses of RC buildings in the Imphal earthquake that hit north east India on 4th January 2016, as most of the buildings could not sustain the forces imposed by demand earthquake. The current seismic design practice stops at demand estimation, analysis and design and consequently cannot guarantee that the design structure meets the objectives set at the start. The required approach should therefore be performance based design. Goa falls in seismic zone III that indicates that Goa has moderate probability for occurrence of earthquakes. Goa forms part of moderate seismic zone in the country, namely, zone III of seismic zoning map of India. Though Goa has not directly witnessed any earthquake, it was affected by tremors from devastating earthquakes from neighboring states; with magnitude 5.0 or more that hitted “Koyna” and “Latur” In Maharashtra in the year 1967 and 1993 respectively; affected the routine life of the people of Goa as many of the residential as well as public structures; infrastructures were damaged severely; although no casualties were taken place. Although the vulnerability is low, towns are more at risk than rural areas due to higher density of population. The present paper highlights the importance of carrying out performance based seismic design for the RC buildings and investigates the seismic performance of 9 storey residential apartment building located in the Panaji city of Goa. The building is designed as per IS 456:2000 and seismic evaluation is carried out using Non linear pushover analysis. The analysis for pushover is carried using ETABS v9 software. The program using VBA is developed for carrying out moment curvature analysis based on stress-strain models for concrete and steel given in IS 456:2000, for modeling plastic hinge properties of beams and columns. The design base shear of the building is compared with the base shear at demand earthquake. Also the global response of the building in terms of capacity curve, hinge location and ductility ratio is studied for predicting the safety of the building at demand earthquake loading. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ever since the Indian Ocean Tsunami in 2004 and a series of disasters that followed in the last decade, triggered the nations around the world to focus on emergency relief operations. A well prepared and coordinated relief operation is required to reduce the vulnerability of the affected and bring back normalcy in the minimum possible time. The present article discusses the relief and recovery operation during the Hudhud cyclone that hit the coast of Bay of Bengal in October, 2014. The paper brings together the information collected through focus groups, personal interviews with personnel involved in the relief operations when the disaster hit the city. The article describes the different activities carried out at the different phases of disaster management process and concluding the different actions taken by the state to reduce the impact of such disasters in the future. Also, key learnings and focus areas are listed for reference in future disasters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coastal erosion is recession of the shoreline and loss of land area due to action of waves, currents and wind. In order to mitigate coastal erosion, submerged reef is one of the alternatives coastal protection measures provided to reduce the wave energy. Site specific coastal protections in the form of alternative cross-sections of submerged reefs have been evolved at the varying tidal range of micro to macro along the Indian Coast. The wave flume tests were conducted to ensure the hydraulic stability of different alternative cross-section of submerged reefs to withstand the design wave conditions. In order to hold the nourished sand, a series of submerged offshore reefs with sand-filled Geo-textile tubes have also been proposed at different sites. The submerged offshore reefs with sand-filled Geo-textile tubes have been provided and are performing well. The design of submerged offshore reefs through wave flume studies for the hydraulic stability and wave transmission has been discussed in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coastal inlets are the openings along the coastline that provide a linkage between the open ocean and the hinterland water bodies. These coastal inlets are varied in nature depending on many influencing parameters such as tide, wind, river flow and waves. Amongst these parameters, the tides are the most regular while waves and freshwater flow are more seasonal. The tidal inlets have to be examined and studied to understand the nearshore coastal processes. The inlet remains stable (i.e. open) as long as the alongshore sediment bypasses the tidal inlet. Classification of coastal systems in a broader view is necessary for the management of tidal inlets. There are several methods to classify tidal inlets based on different perspectives namely geo-morphological, hydrodynamic etc. In the present study, tidal inlet classification is carried out considering the hydrodynamics and morphodynamics along the Andhra Pradesh coast, considering the classification method as in Hayes (1984) and Thuy (2013). The Hayes (1984) classification considers only the tidal range and significant wave height, whereas Thuy (2013) considers discharge due to tide (∼Tidal prism /tide duration) and wave (∼ ). A total of 108 tidal inlets along Andhra Pradesh coast on the east coast of India are classified considering annual mean wave height (Hs) as well as seasonal wave heights. This paper presents the methods used and results of the coastal classification along the central east coast of India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Particle size characterizations of beach sediments along Tamil Nadu coast was carried out in the present study. The main objective of this work is to identify the textural behaviour of beach sediments and how wave energy correlates with grain size distribution. To achieve this goal tri-plot analysis was performed. Grain size characteristics such as central tendency, kurtosis and skewness were estimated using an updated version of the GRADISTAT programme and discussed in this paper. The highest sediment samples having medium sand with unimodal and bimodal characters at all along the coast. The entire coastal area was characterized as well sorted, moderately well sorted and moderately sorted sediment environments. Sediments were identified as fine skewed to coarse skewed with platykurtic, mesokurtic and leptokurtic characters. Grain characteristics varied spatially and temporally along with beach orientation, foreshore slope withwave action and skewness correlates with shoreline changes. In some coastal tract having the negative skewness along the study region, but not very significant. The study depicts that the sedimentary coastal environment were influenced by the relatively medium wave action and some places were observed high wave action. From this study, it was concluded that the beach erosion, accretion, and stability of beaches are controlled by strong hydrodynamic and hydraulic process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Indian healthcare supply chain seems to be diverse depending upon the healthcare facilities and population. The present work entirely focuses on the supply of Iron Folic Acid tabs in state government owned rural healthcare systems. Brief introduction about system dynamic has been given in this paper. A survey has been conducted related to the supply chain of folic acid tabs from state drug stores to patients via women's hospital, community health centre (CHC), primary health centres, and sub centres in District Haridwar, Uttarakhand, India. Modeling and simulation of entire supply chain has been performed using system dynamics technique. Causal loop diagram (CLD) has been constructed which displays the supply chain process at various stages throughout the entire system. The factors such as frequency of patients, and order frequency has been considered while constructing the causal loop diagram. The CLD has been translated into stock-flow diagram (SFD) for the entire supply chain on Stella® platform and simulation has been run for a period of one year (Jan to Dec). It has been noticed that there is a huge shortage (stock out) of folic acid tabs at women's hospital, CHC, PHCs, and sub centres because of large delivery time. The present research may assist the government policy makers to take necessary decisions for improving the sustainability of the rural healthcare supply chain by reducing stock out of the medicine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Possession of knowledge is important in industries, but management of knowledge becomes even more important in manufacturing Micro, Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (MSMEs), even as they try to stay ahead in competitive global and domestic markets. Many organizations like ministries/government departments, bilateral & multilateral agencies, academic, research & development institutions, implementing & executing agencies and industrial associations have played a vital role in shaping the knowledge base of Indian manufacturing SMEs. However, it has been observed that there is very little awareness about the activities of these key organizations among SMEs and academia. This paper aims to bridge the gap between knowledge sources and recipients by creating that awareness between the two. This study also explains how effectively MSMEs and academia can mutually enrich exchange of knowledge, opportunities and networks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To gain access to new markets and technology resources, as well as low-cost and multi-currency-based sourcing and offset obligations, major Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) are expanding their footprint in Asia. It is mandatory to have EASA/FAA approvals including Civil Aviation Airworthiness approvals by DGCA, India for organizations engaged in manufacture of an aircraft/ component/ item of equipment or part to export products for commercial aircraft applications. Reyaneh Sayafi, Florence Leblond developed a Production Organization Exposition scheme taking into account EN9100 requirements. The objective was to study requirements of AS/EN9100, EASA, FAA and DGCA (India) to harmonize and prepare a concise Production Organization Exposition (POE) that complies with all requirements. This paper includes development of Production Organization Exposition (POE) manual to incorporate requirements of Quality Management Systems- Requirements for Aviation, Space and Defense Organizations (AS/EN 9100), European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) Part 21 G, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) CFR 14 Part 21 G and DGCA, India Part 21 Subpart G. A detailed comparison of AS/EN 9100, EASA, FAA and DGCA (India) requirements of Production Organization Exposition (POE) is conducted. A cross reference matrix has been prepared. For each important topic, it covers regulations, similarities and differences and then a harmonization which defines a common structure of procedures of Production Organization Exposition (POE) incorporating AS/EN9100, EASA, FAA and DGCA (India) requirements. Efforts in planning stage will ensure stringent requirements are deployed and enable minimum preparation time required to take up approvals from Civil Aviation Authorities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The paper evaluated the potential of granulated blast furnace slag (GBS) to stabilize a soft soil. Soft soil samples were collected from Tatibandh-Atari, rural road of Raipur, Chhattisgarh. This soil was classified as CI-MI as per Indian standard classification system (ISCS). Different amounts of GBS, i.e., 3, 6, 9 and 12% were used to stabilize the soft soil. The performance of GBS stabilized soils was evaluated using physical and strength performance tests namely, plasticity index, specific gravity, free swelling index, compaction, swelling pressure, california bearing ratio (CBR) and unconfined compressive strength (UCS). Based on strength performance tests, optimum amount of GBS was determined as 9%. Moreover, results indicate that inclusion of GBS increases the strength of soft soils, for example, UCS of 9% GBS modified soil was found approximately 28% higher compared to raw soil. Similarly, significant improvement has been observed for unsoaked and soaked CBR value of soils. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Although reinforced concrete structures are designed as per codes/standards but enough care is not always taken during construction process. As a result, the structures start showing signs of distress, some times less than 10 years of service life, requiring early repair and rehabilitation work. In this paper, a case study of 3 no. (G+8) multi-storeyed buildings badly damaged due to corrosion and Bhuj (India) earthquake of 2001, rehabilitated in 2003 has been presented. Repair strategy involved removal of delaminated carbonated concrete cover, application of rust remover, anti-corrosion coating, polymer bond coat, polymer modified mortar, injection of low viscosity epoxy grout to beam-column junctions and cracks, repair of masonry cracks with polymer modified mortar & grouting with SBR modified cement grout and jacketing of columns at the ground floor. Extensive material testing was carried out and specifications for acrylic and SBR polymer modified mortar were selected for durable repairs. Strict quality control and assurance both in material and workmanship was adopted. After nine years of successful rehabilitation and functioning, some signs of distress in the form of cracks and spalls due to rebar corrosion have been noted at some locations, requiring rehabilitation again. Some recommendations/conclusions have been given for durable concrete constructions and rehabilitation work. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]