Background: Loss of sagittal balance can lead to excessive thoracolumbar (TL) kyphosis, which is a postural impairment characterized by an increase in kyphotic curvature in these two regions of the spine. Excessive TL kyphosis has been shown to adversely affects quality of life and activities of daily living (ADL). Objectives: This study aimed to investigate immediate spinal motion and resultant postural changes after the application of single thoracic extension mobilization. This was compared to the application of two extension mobilizations, one of which was applied to the lumbar region in the second group of patients with excessive TL kyphosis. Design: Quasi-experimental study. Methods: A total of 53 participants (71.6 years, 20 male/33 female) were recruited. All participants had greater than 40° of TL kyphosis, as measured with a single gravity-dependent inclinometer positioned over the T1 spinous process. One group received thoracic extension mobilization only, whereas the other group received both thoracic and lumbar extension mobilization. Results: Both groups demonstrated an improvement (decrease) in the thoracolumbar kyphosis angle. The group that received thoracic mobilization alone demonstrated a 6.46° change (P<0.0001), while the group that received both mobilizations demonstrated a change of 11.96° (P<0.0001). Combined mobilization applied to both the thoracic and lumbar regions resulted in a significantly greater change (reduction) in TL kyphosis (5.50°, P<0.0001). Conclusion: The results demonstrate that the addition of a second mobilization to the lumbar region results in greater active TL extension and reduced TL kyphosis. Clinicians treating patients with excessive kyphotic curvature should be mindful of the contribution of the lumbar region to loss of sagittal balance. The addition of this simple manual mobilization to the lumbar region appears to yield better short-term improvements in patients with overly kyphotic spinal posture.

Our study experimentally evaluates the structural characteristics of a Cone-Shaped Friction Isolator (CFI) as part of research on sliding bearings. With its relatively simple configuration and effective restoring mechanism, the CFI has significant practical implications for structural engineering. We designed the shape and components of the CFI, and its operation and restoring mechanisms were theoretically reviewed. A prototype of the CFI was developed, and structural characteristic experiments were conducted, focusing on design parameters such as the cone’s inclination angle, the friction coefficient of the contact surface, the magnitude of the vertical load applied to the isolator, and the horizontal loading frequency. The experimental results provide valuable insights into the structural characteristics of devices in terms of critical shear force and restoring shear force.

Most reinforced concrete (RC) school buildings constructed in the 1980s have seismic vulnerabilities due to low transverse reinforcement ratios in columns and beam-column joints. In addition, the building structures designed for only gravity loads have the weak-columnstrong- beam (WCSB) system, resulting in low lateral resistance capacity. This study aims to investigate the lateral resistance capacities of a two-story, full-scale school building specimen through cyclic loading tests. Based on the experimental responses, load-displacement hysteresis behavior and story drift-strain relationship were mainly investigated by comparing the responses to code-defined story drift limits. The test specimen experienced stress concentration at the bottom of the first story columns and shear failure at the beam-column joints with strength degradation and bond failure observed at the life safety level specified in the code-defined drift limits for RC moment frames with seismic details. This indicates that the seismically vulnerable school building test specimen does not meet the minimum performance requirements under a 1,400-year return period earthquake, suggesting that seismic retrofitting is necessary.

This paper aims to quantify the retrofit effect of the Bolt Prefabricated Concrete-Filled Tube reinforcement method on non-seismic school reinforced concrete building through static cyclic loading experiments. To achieve the objective, two-story specimens including a non-retrofitted frame(NRF) and a Bolt Prefabricated Concrete-Filled Tube Reinforcement Frame(BCRF) were tested under static cyclic loading, and the lateral resistant capacities were compared in terms of maximum strength, initial stiffness, effective stiffness, and total energy dissipation. In addition, the load-displacement curves were compared to the story drift limit specified in Seismic Performance Evaluation and Retrofit Manual for School Facilities to investigate if the retrofitted frame was satisfied in target performance(life safety). Experimental results showed that BCRF successfully met the target performance, with a 200% increase in maximum strength and a 300% increase in energy dissipation capacity. Additionally, both initial stiffness and effective stiffness improved by more than 30% compared to NRF. Furthermore, BCRF exhibited an effect that delayed the occurrence of bond failure.

In this study, the initial operation characteristics of a multi-type cooling system with three indoor units using an inverter compressor were investigated experimentally using a calorimeter. The operating characteristics of the cooling system were confirmed under the full load condition of simultaneous operation of three rooms and the partial load condition of individual operation of two or one room under the standard cooling conditions. The capacities of A, B and C are 50, 20, and 30% of the total capacity, respectively. The 3 room combination has 100% capacity, the 2 room combination has 50, 70 and 80% capacity, and the 1 room has 20, 30, and 50% capacity. The compressor condensing and evaporating pressures, the electronic expansion valve openings of indoor units A, B, and C, and the compressor operating frequencies were measured for 10 minutes after the cooling system was started. During the initial operation, the changes in the operating time and opening of the electronic expansion valve varied depending on the indoor unit combination and the operating load, and the relationship between the compressor pressure and the operating frequency was found.

For experimental studies on the production of MR fluid for MR dampers, MR fluid with a viscosity of 506 cP and a density of 2.6 g/cc was produced. In order for MR fluid to have suitable performance for MR dampers, it is important to select surfactants, magnetic particles, base oil, and characteristic additives to obtain high damping force and maintain physical and chemical properties. In order to investigate the redispersibility of MR fluid, viscosity, density, saturation magnetic flux density, dispersibility, and temperature effects were evaluated. A particle size distribution meter and a vibrating magnetometer were used, and a yield stress and redispersion device were developed to obtain the yield stress of the MR fluid. The recovery rate of MR fluid was approximately 97% at 0.2% succinic acid coating and 8% anti-settling agent. And when current is applied, the viscosity increases by more than 90% due to magnetic properties.

일반적으로 전기 패널은 용접이나 앵커링을 통해 기초에 설치된다. 콘크리트 기초-앵커 시스템에서 고려해야 할 열화 요인에 는 콘크리트 기초의 균열이 포함된다. 콘크리트 균열은 전기 패널의 앵커에 영향을 미치는 열화 현상 중 하나로 간주될 수 있다. 또한 독립반 및 열반된 전기 패널의 동적 특성은 상당히 다를 수 있다. 그러나 많은 연구자들이 하나의 전기 캐비닛 시편으로 진동대실험을 수행하였다. 따라서 열반 구성을 고려하여 동적 특성을 평가할 필요가 있다. 본 연구에서는 0.5 mm 및 1.0 mm 균열 폭을 고려하여 콘크리트 기초-앵커 시스템을 설계하였다. 콘크리트 기초-앵커 시스템을 진동대에 고정하고 1∼3개의 열반으로 구성된 단순화된 캐비 닛 모델을 설치하였다. 열반 수와 콘크리트 균열을 매개변수로 고려하여 진동대에 의한 공진주파수 검색 실험을 수행했으며 각 실험편 의 공진 주파수를 비교하였다.

Experimental findings pertaining to the frost resistance of calcium sulfoaluminate (CSA) and amorphous calcium aluminate (ACA) cement-based repair mortars incorporated with anhydrite gypsum are described herein. To prepare the mortars, CSA and/or ACA cements were used as binders, and the water–binder ratio was fixed at 0.57. The compressive and bond strengths, chloride-ion penetration resistance, and scaling resistance of the mortars were measured. Based on the ASTM C666 method, the resistance to both frost action and multi-deterioration of chloride and frost attacks on the mortars were experimentally examined. Calcium aluminate-based binders effectively enhanced the compressive and bond strengths of the mortars owing to the formation of C2AH8 and Ye’elimite hydrates. Furthermore, replacing 25% ACA with OPC yielded excellent resistance to both frost attack and multi-deterioration of chloride and frost attacks. Replacing ACA at an appropriate level as a binder effectively improves the durability of concrete road facilities in winter.

The heat transfer characteristics of double-pipe spiral heat exchanger using aluminum oxide nano-fluid were investigated by three different sizes of curvature size, experimentally. Five concentration of nano-fluid as working fluid were made and tested to analyze the heat transfer characteristics. As results, the heat transfer performance was improved at 0.25% of nano-fluid due to high thermal conductivity, however, as the concentration of nanofluid increased (~2.0%), the heat transfer performance deteriorated due to the increase in thermal resistance caused by the sedimentation of particles in the flow path. In addition, the nano-fluid has a higher pressure drop than water due to its high density and viscosity. The optimal range for heat transfer enhancement of nano-fluid was found to be less than 4.0 LPM in flow rate and 0.25% of nano-fluid concentration in this study.

The purpose of this study is to experimentally analyze the seismic performance of a vertical irregular beam-column specimen reinforced with RBS (Replaceable Steel Brace System), a steel brace system. To evaluate the seismic performance of RBS, three specimens were manufactured and subjected to cycle loading tests. The stiffness ratio of beam-upper column of the non-retrofitted specimen was 1.2, and those of the two retrofitted specimens were 1.2 and 0.84. The stiffness ratio of the beam-lower column of all specimens was 0.36. And the stiffness ratio were used for variable. As a result of the experiment, the specimen retrofitted with RBS showed improved maximum load, effective stiffness and energy dissipation capacity compared to the non-retrofitted specimen with the same beam-upper column stiffness ratio. The specimen with 0.84 beam-upper column stiffness ratio showed improved performance compared to the specimen with 1.2 stiffness ratio.

In this study, the calorimeter was used to experimentally investigate the heating characteristics of the variable A/C system according to changes in loading time and outdoor dry bulb temperature. The heating capacity, COP and compressor discharge temperature were measured while changing the loading time of the compressor. To develop the correlation for compressor discharge temperature, loading time, indoor dry bulb temperature and outdoor dry bulb temperatures were considered as operating variables. As the outdoor temperature and loading time increased, the heating capacity and COP increased. However, the change in COP showed different trends depending on the outdoor temperature. The evaporation temperature according to the loading time is a good estimate of the outdoor temperature. However, as the temperature difference between indoor and outdoor rooms decreases and the loading time increases, the condensation pressure increases significantly, so the condensation temperature increases. The maximum deviation between the correlation and the experimental value for compressor discharge temperature was within approximately 2℃.

This study investigates the thermal expansion characteristics of hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene(HTPB) based solid propellants, focusing on batch-to-batch variability and accelerated aging effects. Coefficient of thermal expansion(CTE) measurements were conducted using thermomechanical analyzer(TMA) on samples from different manufacturing batches and specimens aged at various temperatures for different durations. Results indicate variations in CTE values between batches, highlighting the significance of manufacturing process control. Accelerated aging experiments reveal minimal systematic changes in CTE, suggesting stability of thermal expansion properties under short-term thermal stress. The overall distribution of CTE values shows concentration within a specific range, indicating consistency in thermal expansion characteristics. These findings provide insights into the thermal behavior of HTPB-based solid propellants, contributing to improved missile design and lifecycle prediction models.

In this study, the calorimeter was used to experimentally investigate the cooling characteristics of the variable A/C system according to changes in loading time and outdoor dry bulb temperature. The cooling capacity, COP and compressor discharge temperature were measured while changing the loading time of the compressor. To develop the correlation for compressor discharge temperature, loading time, indoor and outdoor dry bulb temperatures, evaporation and condensation temperatures were considered as operating variables. As the loading time increased, the cooling capacity and COP increased. The cooling capacity increased linearly with the loading time. The COP increased more at low loading times than at high loading times. The change in condensing temperature according to the loading time had a small temperature fluctuation range, and the evaporation temperature decreased linearly. The compressor discharge temperature increased linearly with the loading time and outdoor temperature, and the maximum deviation between the experimental value and the correlation was within about 2℃.

라멘 구조는 건설 분야에서 가장 널리 쓰이는 구조 형식이다. 그러나 최대 부모멘트가 발생하는 우각부에서 적절한 세부 검토 가 필요하다. 따라서 적절한 휨강도 및 휨강성을 보유한 연결구조가 필요하며, 이에 적합하지 않을 경우 우각부 볼트 배치를 회피하여야 한다. 이 연구에서는 휨강도, 휨강성 및 시공안전성 등의 구조적 성을 개선하기 위해 특수한 형식의 우각부 볼트 연결 방식을 제안하였 으며, 기존 및 제안한 볼트 연결 방식이 적용된 강재 라멘 구조에 대한 휨강도실험을 수행하였다. 실험 결과, 제안한 우각부 볼트 연결 방식은 기존 방식에 비해 휨성능이 우수한 것으로 나타났으며, 하부구조 전면에 헌치를 설치할 경우 휨성능이 더욱 증대되는 것으로 나타 났다.

Recently, the floor construction method of buildings is rapidly being replaced by the steel deck construction method of factory products from the past cast-in-place formwork method in order to shorten construction period, reduce labor costs, and improve constructability. In this study, the bending capacity of a newly developed lattice integrated rib-type deck plate that is economical and constructible was evaluated through a simple beam test. As a result of the experiment, the lattice integrated rib-type deck installed by adding rib to the existing flat deck had excellent initial rigidity and maximum load-bearing ability, confirming the feasibility of practical use. In addition, the test specimen in which the tensile rebar is not integrated with the lattice and deck has very low initial stiffness, which is insufficient to support the load at the construction stage, and new details need to be developed to overcome this.