When the guard honey bees, Apis mellifera L., form a clump at the hive entrance or on the flight board, the oriental hornet, Vespa orientails L., either creeps toward the clump or hovers over it in order to take a bee. Once the hornet creeps, only few bees facing the hornet become alert, rock their heads and antennae, open their wings, and take a posture of defense. The rest of the clump stays listless without any signal of concern. However, the clump stays dense and the defending bees do not detach themselves neither from the rest of the clump nor from each other. For this reason, it is very difficult for the hornet to grab a bee unless the latter makes a “mistake” by detaching herself from other adjacent bees. If the hornet grabs such a bee, the other defending bees will not attack the hornet to free that bee even when the latter is one centimeter from the others. The defending bees can capture the hornet only when the latter grabs one of them which stands very close to the others. The hornet seems very “aware” of such a situation; hence she seldom becomes a captive. On the other hand, hovering over the clump makes it easier for the hornet to grab a bee. The hovering puts all the clump, rather than part of it, on alert. If the hornet is persistent, which is not often the case, then the clump will no longer be dense. The bees will panicly disperse all over the flight board; hence the hornet can find a detached bee and grabs it easily. The hornet also waits on wing in front of the hive to capture an outgoing or incoming flying bee but the latter usually maneuver to escape. Also, foraging bees reduce their activity during main hours of hornet presence. Among the main factors reducing the hornet impact are the continuous chasing of hornets to each other and the non-persistent attempts of the hornets when they attack bee clumps.
The aim of this research is to assess the validity of Detailed Micro-Modeling (DMM) as a numerical model for masonry analysis. To achieve this aim, a set of load-displacement curves obtained based on both numerical simulation and experimental results of clay masonry prisms loaded by a vertical load. The finite element method was implemented in DMM for analysis of the experimental clay masonry prism. The finite element software ABAQUS with implicit solver was used to model and analyze the clay masonry prism subjected to a vertical load. The load-displacement relationship of numerical model was found in good agreement with those drawn from experimental results. Evidence shows that load-displacement curvefound from the finite element m
... Show MoreThis paper presents a study to investigate the behavior of post-tensioned segmental concrete beams that exposed to high-temperature. The experimental program included fabricating and testing twelve simply supported beams that divided into three groups depending on the number of precasting concrete segments. All specimens were prepared with an identical length of 3150 mm and differed in the number of the incorporated segments of the beam (9, 7, or 5 segments). To simulate the genuine fire disasters, nine out of twelve beams were exposed to a high-temperature flame for one hour. Based on the standard fire curve (ASTM – E119), the temperatures of 300◦C (572◦F), 500◦C (932◦F), and 700◦C (1292◦F) were adopted. Consequently,
... Show MoreThe main objective of this paper is to study the behavior of Non-Prismatic Reinforced Concrete (NPRC) beams with and without rectangular openings either when exposed to fire or not. The experimental program involves casting and testing 9 NPRC beams divided into 3 main groups. These groups were categorized according to heating temperature (ambient temperature, 400°C, and 700°C), with each group containing 3 NPRC beams (solid beams and beams with 6 and 8 trapezoidal openings). For beams with similar geometry, increasing the burning temperature results in their deterioration as reflected in their increasing mid-span deflection throughout the fire exposure period and their residual deflection after cooling. Meanwhile, the existing ope
... Show MoreThe main objective of this paper is to study the behavior of Non-Prismatic Reinforced Concrete (NPRC) beams with and without rectangular openings either when exposed to fire or not. The experimental program involves casting and testing 9 NPRC beams divided into 3 main groups. These groups were categorized according to heating temperature (ambient temperature, 400°C, and 700°C), with each group containing 3 NPRC beams (solid beams and beams with 6 and 8 trapezoidal openings). For beams with similar geometry, increasing the burning temperature results in their deterioration as reflected in their increasing mid-span deflection throughout the fire exposure period and their residual deflection after cooling. Meanwhile, the existing ope
... Show MoreThis paper presents a study to investigate the behavior of post-tensioned segmental concrete beams that exposed to high-temperature. The experimental program included fabricating and testing twelve simply supported beams that divided into three groups depending on the number of precasting concrete segments. All specimens were prepared with an identical length of 3150 mm and differed in the number of the incorporated segments of the beam (9, 7, or 5 segments). To simulate the genuine fire disasters, nine out of twelve beams were exposed to a high-temperature flame for one hour. Based on the standard fire curve (ASTM – E119), the temperatures of 300◦C (572◦F), 500◦C (932◦F), and 700◦C (1292◦F) were adopted. Consequently,
... Show MoreThis paper introduces an experimental study on the behavior of confined concrete filled aluminum tubular (CFT) column to improve strength design, ductility and durability of concrete composite structures under concentrically loaded in compression to failure. To achieve this: seven column specimens with same concrete diameter 100mm and without steel reinforcement have been examined through experimental testing, which are used to study the effects of the thickness of the aluminum tube encased concrete ( thickness : 0mm, 2mm, 3mm, 4mm and 5mm with same length of column 450mm), length of column (thickness 5mm and length of column 700mm) and durability (thickness 5mm and length of column 450mm) on the structural behavior of &
... Show MoreConventional concretes are nearly unbendable, and just 0.1 percent of strain potential makes them incredibly brittle and stiff. This absence of bendability is a significant cause of strain failure and has been a guiding force in the production of an elegant substance, bendable concrete, also known as engineered cement composites, abbreviated as ECC. This type of concrete is capable of displaying dramatically increased flexibility. ECC is reinforced with micromechanical polymer fibers. ECC usually uses a 2 percent volume of small, disconnected fibers. Thus, bendable concrete deforms but without breaking any further than conventional concrete. This research aims to involve this type of concrete, bendable concrete, that will give solut
... Show MoreIn this paper, a numerical model for fluid-structure interaction (FSI) analysis is developed for investigating the aeroelastic response of a single wind turbine blade. The Blade Element Momentum (BEM) theory was adopted to calculate the aerodynamic forces considering the effects of wind shear and tower shadow. The wind turbine blade was modeled as a rotating cantilever beam discretized using Finite Element Method (FEM) to analyze the deformation and vibration of the blade. The aeroelastic response of the blade was obtained by coupling these aerodynamic and structural models using a coupled BEM-FEM program written in MATLAB. The governing FSI equations of motion are iteratively calculated at each time step, through exchanging data between
... Show MoreEnvironmental sustainability is described as one that avoids the depletion or deterioration of natural resources, while also allowing for the preservation of long-term environmental quality. By practicing environmental sustainability, we may assist to guarantee that the requirements of today’s population are satisfied without risking the capacity of future generations to meet their own needs in the future. Engineers in the field of concrete production are becoming increasingly interested in sustainable development, which includes the utilization of the locally available materials in addition to using the agricultural and industrial waste in construction industry as one of the possib