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The volume change behaviour of an unsaturated compacted loess under thermo-hydro-mechanical loads is comprehensively investigated in this experimental research. A new temperature/suction-controlled triaxial apparatus with triple cells was developed. Temperature- and suction-controlled isotropic tests, heating–cooling tests with isotropic net stress and suction control and drying–wetting tests with isotropic net stress and temperature control were conducted on an unsaturated compacted loess from Shaanxi, China. Experimental results show that compressibility indices remain unchanged at various temperatures, but show different variation trends with changes in suction. Both suction hardening and thermal softening were observed. Irreversible volumetric contraction is induced in the compacted loess upon heating–cooling path and becomes more significant at higher isotropic net stresses and higher suctions. Lower over-consolidation ratio prior to heating results in greater irreversible contraction in loess samples. Water-holding capacity of loess samples decreases upon heating, but it is independent of the stress level. The hydraulic hysteresis of samples has no significant change with temperature changes. Slight shrinkage occurs during drying process in loess samples, and collapse can be observed in wetting process. Heating has limited effect on the drying shrinkage of loess samples but induces more distinctive wetting collapse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Loess is usually compacted as building filler in geotechnical engineering construction and the wetting-induced deformation characteristics of compacted loess are closely related to engineering safety. The influence of hydromechanical paths on compacted loess wetting-induced deformation characteristics has been rarely addressed in the literature, especially for compacted sandy loess. In this study, the scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and soil–water retention curve (SWRC) tests are performed to investigate the microstructure and water retention characteristics of compacted sandy loess. Single-oedometer triaxial wetting tests with three complex hydromechanical paths (consolidation-wetting under isotropic stress state, consolidation-loading-wetting-loading and consolidation-unloading-wetting-unloading under deviator stress) are carried out on unsaturated compacted sandy loess. Results indicate that: (1) As the dry density increases, the large inter-aggregate pores inside the compacted sandy loess turned into medium inter-aggregate pores and small inter-aggregate pores; the air entry value increases and the water retention capacity is enhanced. (2) Within a certain range of confining pressure (no more than 400 kPa), the wetting volumetric strain increases with the increase in confining pressure and dry density under isotropic stress condition; the loading paths wetting-induced deformation is greater than unloading paths wetting-induced deformation under deviator stress condition. (3) At a lower stress ratio, compacted sandy loess undergoes significant wetting-induced dilatancy; the wetting-induced deformation under the unloading path appears significant, compared with that under the loading path. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a detailed parametric design method for a round-pin inner-outer compound meshing silent-chain plate structure. A meshing design method for parameter harmonization among a silent chain, a sprocket hob, and an involute sprocket is proposed. To analyze the influence of extended arc parameters on the meshing process and impact, the extended arc parameter extension δ and height HY are considered as variables to formulate the motion-analysis model of the chain-drive system. The results reveal that the extended arc parameters δ and HY have a significant effect on the meshing process and the meshing impact. When δ and HY are optimal, the inner-outer compound meshing process of the chain-drive system can be smoothly realized; furthermore, the meshing impact force is minimal as it is reduced by more than 25 % compared to when only the outer meshing process occurs. Thus, the chain-plate structure is optimized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A temperature-dependent water retention curve (WRC) model is necessary in numerous geotechnical engineering cases such as the disposal and storage of nuclear waste, buried high-voltage cables, heat dissipation embankments and geothermal structures. A series of pioneering models attempting to consider the mechanisms of temperature effect have been proposed. Nevertheless, it should be noted that very limited research can be found in the literature to consider temperature effects on both capillarity and adsorption. Thus, a temperature-dependent WRC model for both adsorption and capillarity is developed in this study. An adsorption equation is first proposed by integrating Kelvin equation, Clausius–Clapeyron equation and the adsorption enthalpy equation. Then, the proposed adsorption equation and an existing capillary equation are incorporated into Peters–Durner–Iden (PDI) model to establish the temperature-dependent WRC model. Sixteen series of non-isothermal WRC data are employed to illustrate the application and performances of the proposed model. The proposed WRC model provides good agreement between the predicted and measured temperature-dependent WRCs. Moreover, the main differences between different types of soils are temperature effects on adsorption. The value of parameter α gradually increases from sandy soils to bentonite, representing an increasingly strong soil–water interaction and increasingly significant temperature effects on adsorption. By comparing with three existing models, the proposed model is found as the most suitable for describing the observed data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The interparticle bonding effect due to water menisci plays an important role in the hydromechanical coupling properties of unsaturated soils. This paper presents an unsaturated hydromechanical coupling model that considers the influence of matric suction, degree of saturation, and microscopic pore structure on the interparticle bonding effect. The enhanced effective stress and bonding variable are selected as constitutive variables. The bonding variable is correlated with the ratio between unsaturated void ratio and saturated void ratio. The deformation characteristics of unsaturated soils are described based on the bounding surface plasticity theory. A soil–water characteristic model that considers deformation and hydraulic hysteresis is integrated into the constitutive model to achieve hydromechanical coupling. The proposed model can effectively describe the hydromechanical coupling characteristics and the meniscus bonding force of unsaturated bimodal structure soils; the model parameters can be easily obtained through routine experiments. The experimental results of unsaturated isotropic compression, the wetting/drying cycle, and unsaturated triaxial shear tests are used to validate the capability of the proposed model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The delay effect caused by the switching device is not considered in traditional methods of induction motor flux observation. However, ignoring the delay effect causes the mathematical model of the induction motor flux observation to be inaccurate. In actual work, this disadvantage will affect the flux observation of the induction motor. It will also influence the anti-load performance of the motor and even lead to system instability. Especially at low switching frequencies, switch delay causes input delay. Input delay will result in configuration poles deviating from their expected position in the closed-loop control, affecting the induction motor performance. In this study, the induction motor time-delay model is established to modify the model and solve the above problem. Spectral decomposition theory is used to establish the induction motor flux observer, which configures the unstable poles of the system. The poles that deviate from their expected position are also reconfigured to the desired position, which improves the motor performance and the observing accuracy of the flux chain. Finally, the process of proving the stability of the spectral decomposition flux observer (SDFO) is provided. The reliability of the SDFO is proven through specific simulations and experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an experimental investigation of the soil water retention curve (SWRC) and volume change curve over a large suction range (0–286.7 MPa), and microstructure evolution of Guilin lateritic soil under drying and wetting processes. The scanning electron microscopy results show that the reconstituted and compacted samples have very different microstructures. The soil samples compacted at optimum water content features flocculation of the colloids showing a low degree of particle orientation, while the reconstituted samples prepared from slurry produce dispersed arrangement of particles showing a high degree of particle orientation. The pore size distribution curves of reconstituted and compacted samples show the unimodal and bimodal distributions, leading to S-shaped and double S-shaped SWRCs, respectively. At the same initial density, the soils with a low degree of particle orientation (like compacted samples) exhibit less shrinkage than those with a high degree of particle orientation (like reconstituted samples). The mercury intrusion porosimetry test results show that the drying and wetting processes and initial density clearly affect the macropores of the compacted samples, while the micropores remain almost unchanged. For the reconstituted samples, the drying and wetting processes and initial density primarily affect the micropores. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is an urgent need to understand the characteristics of both precipitation and drought in arid regions of China. Different indexes may provide differing results in terms of the detection and estimation of the temporal and spatial extent of droughts. In this study, the temporal and spatial characteristics of rainfall and drought at 53 meteorological stations from 1960 to 2016 across the Xinjiang region of China were analyzed. Four precipitation-related indexes (precipitation concentration degree (PCD), precipitation concentration period (PCP), standardized precipitation index (SPI), and long-cycle drought–flood abrupt alternation index (LDFAI)) were used to investigate the spatial and temporal patterns of drought and flood. In addition, the Bayesian method and Pettitt test were used as detection tools to identify changing points in precipitation time series. The study indicated the following: (1) a wetting tendency was evident in recent years and was supported by the upward trend in SPI and inter-decadal variation in summer precipitation; (2) the spatial patterns and tendencies of PCD, PCP, and SPI were markedly different in southern and northern Xinjiang; (3) compared with the Pettitt test, use of the Bayesian method provided data closer to the real drought events; (4) it is suggested that multiple indices be used for detecting precipitation and drought characteristics as use of the SPI may lead to other indexes related to flood and drought risks being ignored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the development of a direct tension apparatus and its application to test the tensile strength of unsaturated fine sands. The apparatus consists of two halves of wedge-shaped specimen molds. A criterion is developed for designing the inclination angle of the inner sidewall of the specimen molds as a function of soil–wall interface frictional angle and soil dilatancy angle. Tensile strength of unsaturated fine sands is measured over a range of dry density and water content. Results show that tensile strength generally increases with the increase in dry density. For relatively dense sand, tensile strength follows a non-monotonic double-peak pattern with increasing water content. The first peak occurs in the pendular regime and is attributed to peak occurrence of interparticle stress contributed by pendular water bridges. The second peak occurs in the capillary regime and is attributed to the capillary component of interparticle stress arising from negative pore pressure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a study of the tensile strength of unsaturated soil by a DEM model in a novel uniaxial tensile test device. For validation and comparison, traditional triaxial shear test of unsaturated soil are also conducted. In the DEM model, the capillary effects and some other cementation effects are modelled by a bond, whose strength is a function of the moisture content and void ratio in uniaxial tensile tests and also the confining pressure in triaxial tests. To compare the DEM simulations with experiments, the bond strength function is calibrated through a quantity measurable in both laboratory and DEM simulations such as the shear strength in triaxial tests or the uniaxial tensile strength in uniaxial tensile tests. The comparison shows that the proposed model is able to capture the phenomena observed in experiments. Most importantly, through investigation of the grain-scale data such as the motion, force chains and development of fractures, it is possible to explain some macroscopic observations such as the form of shear bands in the sample, the influence of the moisture content on the shear and tensile strength, etc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study presents a rate-independent constitutive model for granular materials which is based on the analysis of discrete element modelling (DEM) results. We examine the elastic and plastic strain rate at any state of shear, and explore how the plastic strain rate and the stress rate are related to some state variables (e.g. stress, void ratio, etc.). The elastic and plastic strain rate are evaluated by assuming that the rate of conservative energy defined in term of elastic strain rate equals the energy rate from work–energy analysis of granular assemblies. The verification of the theoretical work–energy analysis and the acquire of data regarding the mechanical rates at contacts between grains are done through DEM. It is shown that for a representative element volume of granular materials, the external work rate equals the sum of an elastic energy rate and a dissipation rate at contacts. The work rate is either the product of stress and strain rate or the sum of discrete work rate of external forces. Equations regarding the dilatancy, plastic deviatoric strain rate and stress rate are proposed. In the model, a yield surface is not explicitly defined and the deviatoric stress rate is related to not only the elastic deviatoric strain rate, but also a rate of dilatancy. Simulations show that the predictions match both virtual and Toyoura sand satisfactorily in various shear tests within a board range of densities. Additionally, the calibration of parameters is extremely simple. The treatment of cyclic loading condition is also presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a complex, heterogeneous endocrine and metabolic disorder affecting 5% to 10% of reproductive-age women. A high rate of granulosa cell (GC) proliferation contributes to the abnormal folliculogenesis in patients with PCOS. Evidence has proved that dysregulation of microRNAs is involved in the pathogenesis of PCOS. In this study, we investigated the effect of miR-145 on cell proliferation and the underlying mechanism of miR-145 in isolated human GCs from the aspirated follicular fluid in women with PCOS. Our findings showed that miR-145 is downregulated in human GCs from PCOS. The miR-145 mimics suppress cell proliferation and promoted cell apoptosis in human GCs from PCOS. However, miR-145 inhibitor promotes cell proliferation and inhibited cell apoptosis. Moreover, using a dual-luciferase reporter assay, we confirmed that the insulin receptor substrate 1 (IRS1) gene is a direct target of miR-145. The miR-145 mimics inhibited messenger RNA and protein IRS1 expression levels, and silencing of IRS1 by small interfering RNA inhibits human GC proliferation, but IRS1 overexpression abrogates the suppressive effect of miR-145 mimics. Furthermore, miR-145 mimics can inhibit the activation of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38 MAPK) and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK). The IRS1 overexpression abrogates the suppressive effect of miR-145 mimics on MAPK/ERK signaling pathways. Together, miR-145 mimics suppress cell proliferation by targeting and inhibiting IRS1 expression to inhibit MAPK/ERK signaling pathways. Our study further found that high concentrations of insulin decreases the miR-145 expression, upregulates IRS1, and promotes cell proliferation. These observations showed that miR-145 is a novel and promising molecular target for improving the dysfunction of GCs in PCOS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Paclitaxel resistance becomes common in patients with aggressive ovarian cancer and results in recurrence after conventional therapy. Galectin-3 is a multifunctional lectin associated with cell migration, cell proliferation, cell adhesion, and cell-cell interaction in tumor cells. Whether circulating galectin-3 is involved in paclitaxel resistance in ovarian cancer remains unknown. The current study investigated the effect of galectin-3 on toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) signaling and thus paclitaxel resistance. With blood and cancer tissue samples obtained from 102 patients, we identified associations between serum galectin-3 level or TLR4 expression and paclitaxel resistance phenotype. In vitro, treatment with exogenous galectin-3 restored cell survival and migration of SKOV-3 and ES-2 cells was decreased by galectin-3 silencing and paclitaxel treatment. Furthermore, exogenous galectin-3 boosted expression of TLR4, MyD88, and p-p65, as well as interleukin (IL)-6, IL-8, and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) release induced by paclitaxel. Moreover, galectin-3 inhibited the interaction between TLR4 and caveolin-1 (Cav-1) in SKOV-3 and ES-2 cells. In addition, overexpression of Cav-1 dampened the expression of MyD88 and p-p65 stimulated by galectin-3 and enhanced apoptosis in SKOV-3 cells under paclitaxel exposure. In summary, our study elucidated that exogenous galectin-3 might induce paclitaxel resistance through TLR4 signaling activation by inhibiting TLR4-Cav-1 interaction, revealing a novel insight into paclitaxel resistance induction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Solid-fluid interactions in unsaturated expansive clays can be divided into capillarity and adsorption effects based on their physical mechanisms. Most constitutive models for unsaturated soils are proposed on the basis of the capillarity mechanism, ignoring the contributions of the adsorption effect to mechanical and hydraulic behaviors. For expansive clays, however, the adsorption effect which leads to more complex behavioral characteristics than that in low plasticity clays cannot be ignored. In the light of this, a new binary-medium model for unsaturated expansive clays is proposed, involving a consideration of the solid-fluid interactions stemming from the capillary and the adsorption mechanisms at the same time. Firstly, we assume that expansive clay is a mixture of two ideal parts, i.e. the ideal capillarity part and the ideal adsorption part, and then an ideal capillarity model and an ideal adsorption model, each of which is available for the corresponding ideal part, are established. Furthermore, a participation function is used to reflect the degrees of capillarity effect and adsorption effect. Finally, predictions are performed on the results of the consolidation tests and the cyclical controlled-suction tests published in literature. After comparing predicted results with test results, it is illustrated that the established model can quantitatively predict mechanical and hydraulic behaviors in expansive clays. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, based on the porous media theory, the specific expressions of the total stress and the input work of unsaturated expansive soils with double porosity are proposed, and then the energy-conjugate variables are further derived. We make distinctions between the effects of capillary water and adsorbed water on the soil behaviour, as well as between the deformations of micro- and macrostructure. According to the derived input work expression and the work-energy-dissipation relations for an open multiphase thermodynamic system, we establish a thermodynamics-based modelling framework for unsaturated expansive soils with double porosity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the development of modern geotechnical engineering practices such as the construction of high level radioactive waste repositories, exploitation and utilization of geothermal resources, energy-saving buildings and underground storage of CO, research into the influence of temperature on the basic mechanical properties of unsaturated soils has become an important issue internationally. By using the work expression and considering the influence of temperature on the basic properties of unsaturated soils, the average soil skeleton stress, modified suction and temperature were selected as state variables of generalized forces in thermodynamics and the soil skeleton strain, saturation and entropy were chosen as state variables of generalized flows conjugate to the variables of generalized forces. Based on the nonlinear multi-field coupled model and by using existing experimental results, an elastic-plastic constitutive model of unsaturated soils under non-isothermal conditions was developed to analyze the influence of temperature on the deformation properties of unsaturated soils. The model was used to predict and analyze the influence of suction and temperature on the deformation properties of unsaturated soils under isotropic conditions, and was successfully verified using experimental results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The influence of gases on unsaturated soils is discussed in the paper. First, the selection of stress state variables is discussed. It is shown that gas pressure as well as generalized effective stress and modified suction are required to construct a constitutive model of an unsaturated soil. The deformation mechanisms of solid, liquid and gas phases in soils are then investigated. It is realized that the deformation of gas phase interacts with the deformations of the other two phases in soils. Gas laws are used to describe the gas behavior. Similar to the other two phases in soil, the change of gas volume can be divided into an elastic part and a plastic part, and the latter part is then introduced to the soil hardening equation to reflect the impact of the gas on the soil. Then, a simple elasto-plastic model considering the gas effect for isotropic states is developed. Finally, the model predictions are given and compared with existing experimental data. A good agreement between them is found. Comparisons of the predictions between our model and Wheeler's model are also performed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

nonlinear multi-field coupled model for multi-constituent three-phase soils is derived by using the hybrid mixture theory. The balance equations with three levels (constituents, phases and the whole mixture soil) are set up under the assumption that soil is composed of multi-constituent elastic-plastic solid skeleton (which is different from the linearization method) and viscous liquid and ideal gas. With reasonable constitutive assumptions in such restrictive conditions as the principles of determinism, equipresence, material frame-indifference and the compatible principle in continuum mechanics, a theoretical framework of constitutive relations modeling three-phase soil in both non-equilibrium and equilibrium states is established, thus the closed field equations are formed. In the theoretical framework, the concept of effective generalized thermodynamic forces is introduced, and the nonlinear coupling constitutive relations between generalized dissipation forces and generalized flows within the system at nonequilibrium state are also presented. On such a basis, four special coupling relations, i.e., solid thermal elastic-plastic constitutive relation, liquid visco-elastic-plastic constitutive relation, the generalized Fourier's law, and the generalized Darcy's law are put forward. The generalized or nonlinear results mentioned above can degenerate into the linear coupling results given by Bennethum and Singh. Based on a specific dissipation function, the concrete form of generalized Darcy's law is deduced, which may degenerate into the traditional form of Darcy's law by neglecting the influence of skeleton deformation and temperature. Without considering temperature and other coupling effects, the nonlinear coupled model in this paper can degenerate into a soil elastic-plastic constitutive model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]