Paolo Pierini and Emanuele Baldassarre

Canadian Journal of Urology, Vol.14, No.6, pp. 3726-3726, 2007

Abstract This article has no abstract. More >

C.P. Providakis¹, M.E. Voutetaki

Structural Durability & Health Monitoring, Vol.3, No.4, pp. 211-228, 2007, DOI:10.3970/sdhm.2007.003.211

Abstract Piezoceramic transducers have emerged as new tools for the health monitoring of large-scale structures due to their advantages of active sensing, low cost, quick response, availability in different shapes, and simplicity for implementations. In the present paper, a statistical metamodeling utilization of electro-mechanical (E/M) admittance approach by applying piezoelectric materials to the damage identification is investigated. A response surface metamodel is constructed by empirically fitting a model to a set of design points chosen using a Box-Behnken design of experiment (simulation) technique. This empirical fit allows polynomial models to be produced for relating damage parameter More >

C.P. Providakis¹

Structural Durability & Health Monitoring, Vol.3, No.1, pp. 29-34, 2007, DOI:10.3970/sdhm.2007.003.029

Abstract Actuators are structures that give micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) the ability to interact with their environment rather than just passively sensing it. Recent studies of MEMS thermal micro-actuators have shown that simple in design and production devices can provide deflection of the order of 10 μm at low voltages. Recently, metals and single-crystal silicon materials were included in the range of materials used for thermal actuators since they operate at lower temperatures than the commonly used (poly)silicon devices. These actuators are liable to meet the loads in service, so the corresponding integrity and stability analysis constitutes a… More >

R. Matsumoto¹, N. Miyazaki¹, M. Nakagaki²

The International Conference on Computational & Experimental Engineering and Sciences, Vol.4, No.4, pp. 223-230, 2007, DOI:10.3970/icces.2007.004.223

Abstract The mechanical properties of amorphous metals and metallic glasses are remarkably changed by precipitated crystalline particles. In this paper, the effects of crystal particle size and volume fraction on the flow stress of the metallic glass are evaluated by molecular dynamics simulations. The investigated volume fraction ranges from 0% (metallic glass) to 100% (nanocrystalline metal), and the average particle diameter ranges from 1nm to 12nm. It is revealed that the dispersed particle effects on the flow stress are very small in the entire volume fraction range when the average particle diameter is smaller than 3 More >

H.K. Lee¹, J.W. Ju²

The International Conference on Computational & Experimental Engineering and Sciences, Vol.4, No.2, pp. 123-128, 2007, DOI:10.3970/icces.2007.004.123

Abstract This paper summarizes the results of an analytical study (Lee and Ju, 2006) conducted to develop an approximate micromechanical analytical formulation to accommodate all the possible second-order, ensemble-volume averaged perturbations due to the interactions of randomly located microcracks and inclusions in brittle composites. To account for the three-dimensional effects of interactions among constituents, an approximate solution of a micromechanical framework considering the pairwise microcrack interactions, the pairwise inclusion interactions and the interactions between microcracks and inclusions have been systematically presented. The proposed pairwise interacting micromechanical damage models are compared to illustrate the influence of constituent More >

J. Li¹, Z.H. Xiang¹, M.D. Xue¹

The International Conference on Computational & Experimental Engineering and Sciences, Vol.2, No.1, pp. 7-12, 2007, DOI:10.3970/icces.2007.002.007

Abstract This paper presents a finite element scheme to analyze the buckling behavior of composite shells subjected to thermal and mechanical loads. Firstly, a kind of multi-layered composite shell element with relative degrees-of-freedom is adopted to model laminated composite shells. Then the corresponding temperature element is developed so that the mechanical analysis and the thermal analysis share a common mesh. Moreover, a new criterion of critical heat flux is proposed in stead of the traditional criterion of critical temperature. Finally, the advantage of the proposed scheme is illustrated by calculating the stable region of thermal-mechanical loads More >

Guanbin Song^∗,†,‡, Yang Ju^∗,†,§, Hitoshi Soyama^*, Toshiro Ohashi^¶, Masaaki Sato^¶

Molecular & Cellular Biomechanics, Vol.4, No.4, pp. 201-210, 2007, DOI:10.3970/mcb.2007.004.201

Abstract Mechanical stimulation is critical to both physiological and pathological states of living cells. Although a great deal of research has been done on biological and biochemical regulation of the behavior of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), the influence of biomechanical factors on their behavior is still not fully documented. In this study, we investigated the modulation of mechanical stretch magnitude, frequency, and duration on the human marrow mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) proliferation by an in vitro model system using a mechanical stretch loading apparatus, and optimized the stretch regime for the proliferation of hMSCs.… More >

Judith Su^∗, Ricardo R. Brau^†, Xingyu Jiang^‡, George M. Whitesides^§, Matthew J. Lang^¶, Peter T. C. So^||

Molecular & Cellular Biomechanics, Vol.4, No.2, pp. 105-118, 2007, DOI:10.3970/mcb.2007.004.105

Abstract During migration, asymmetrically polarized cells achieve motion by coordinating the protrusion and retraction of their leading and trailing edges, respectively. Although it is well known that local changes in the dynamics of actin cytoskeleton remodeling drive these processes, neither the cytoskeletal rheological properties of these migrating cells are well quantified nor is it understand how these rheological properties are regulated by underlying molecular processes. In this report, we have used soft lithography to create morphologically polarized cells in order to examine rheological differences between the front and rear zone of an NIH 3T3 cell posed More >

Judith Su^∗, Xingyu Jiang^†, Roy Welsch^‡, George M. Whitesides^§, Peter T. C. So^¶

Molecular & Cellular Biomechanics, Vol.4, No.2, pp. 87-104, 2007, DOI:10.3970/mcb.2007.004.087

Abstract Interactions between the cell and the extracellular matrix regulate a variety of cellular properties and functions, including cellular rheology. In the present study of cellular adhesion, area was controlled by confining NIH 3T3 fibroblast cells to circular micropatterned islands of defined size. The shear moduli of cells adhering to islands of well defined geometry, as measured by magnetic microrheometry, was found to have a significantly lower variance than those of cells allowed to spread on unpatterned surfaces. We observe that the area of cellular adhesion influences shear modulus. Rheological measurements further indicate that cellular shear… More >

Jason W. Triplett^∗, Rita O’Riley^∗, Kristyn Tekulve^∗, Suzanne M. Norvell^∗, Fredrick M. Pavalko^†

Molecular & Cellular Biomechanics, Vol.4, No.1, pp. 13-26, 2007, DOI:10.3970/mcb.2007.004.013

Abstract Maintenance of optimal bone physiology requires the coordinated activity of osteoclasts that resorb old bone and osteoblasts that deposit new bone. Mechanical loading of bone and the resulting movement of interstitial fluid within the spaces surrounding bone cells is thought to play a key role is maintaining optimal bone mass. One way in which fluid movement may promote bone formation is by enhancing osteoblast survival. We have shown previously that application of fluid flow to osteoblasts in vitro confers a protective effect by inhibiting osteoblast apoptosis (Pavalko et al., 2003, J. Cell Physiol., 194: 194-205).… More >