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Various geometric and mechanical conditions for soil–foundation interfaces affect the superstructure and foundation responses against earthquake. As one of these conditions, 2D asymmetry of soil around the embedded rigid foundation is emphasized in the present paper. Accordingly, a reduced-scaled embedded foundation bearing SDOF superstructure is considered under slow lateral cyclic and dynamic shake table tests in design and service levels at 1 g state, and the system response is compared to those of systems containing surface and embedded foundations with symmetric condition. Test results show the asymmetry in the moment–rotation response curve for system with asymmetric soil condition in static state. While for dynamic response, the behavior under harmonic excitation with the design amplitude level is close to one of system with surface foundation. In addition, the foundation moment capacity of nonlinear dynamic response can be estimated properly through theoretical expression for foundation with asymmetric condition. Moreover, the rocking behavior in two-way excitation causes significant loss of superstructure response relative to the foundation in all three cases.

This paper presents the evaluation of the dynamic stiffness coefficient (the stiffness and damping coefficient) of a rigid and massless foundation embedded in a layered elastic half-space. Linear hysteric material damping is introduced in the model using the correspondence principle. Based on the strength of the material approach with one-dimensional wave propagation in cones (cone model), horizontal and vertical dynamic stiffness coefficients were evaluated. To check the accuracy of the model, the dynamic stiffness coefficient of foundations resting on and/or embedded in layered half-space was evaluated using a cone model and validated with published results based on rigorous analysis. A parametric study is also carried out to investigate the influence of shear wave velocity, depth of embedment, and thickness of the top layer on the dynamic response of the foundation embedded in layered half-space. The results of the cone model analyses are presented in terms of stiffness coefficient K(ao) and damping coefficient C(ao) varying with dimensionless frequency (ao) for both horizontal and vertical modes of vibration. The results of the cone model provide physical insight with sufficient generality, making it convenient to use for various foundation vibration problems.

In the present study, the lateral response of systems including the “soil-embedded rocking foundation-SDOF superstructure” system was reported under slow horizontal cyclic loading tested in the 1 g condition. Accordingly, the effects of variation in the foundation embedment depth and superstructure slenderness ratio on the lateral performance of the systems were investigated. Based on the experimental results, the embedded rocking foundations could limit the moment transferred to the superstructure. However, the over-strength was apparent in the nonlinear performance. Moreover, it was evident that for the 1 g modelling, the increase in foundation embedment depth increased the difference between maximum experienced moment and the theoretical ultimate moment capacity attained from the existing theories. In addition, the stiffness ratio of embedded to shallow foundation was explored and compared to the theoretical expressions existing in the literature. Also, by concentrating on the energy dissipation of systems, the contribution of rocking and sliding mechanisms to the foundation lateral response was evaluated. With the increase in the foundation embedment depth, the contribution of sliding mechanism was significantly reduced, especially for the lower slenderness ratios. Finally, the influence of foundation embedment depth on the pinching index of behavioral response was discussed.

Designs allowing the rocking behavior of the foundation during earthquake have been introduced to reduce the seismic load on the superstructure and the ductility demand on the structural column. In addition, several studies have been conducted on rocking foundation based on the slow cyclic and dynamic tests by assuming the structure as a rigid oscillator. However, when structural bending is included, the rocking behaviors of the foundation for the slow cyclic and dynamic tests are different. Therefore, a clear description of each method and how each behavior is different should be investigated by considering structural bending motion. To fill the gap between cyclic and dynamic rocking behaviors, embedded foundation models with various slenderness ratios of the systems were investigated using horizontal slow cyclic tests and dynamic tests in a centrifuge. Test results show that the rocking foundation was affected by structural bending. The overturning moment in the dynamic test determined by the conventional method was different compared with results obtained from the slow cyclic test due to the structural bending motion. Finally, the overturning moment was re-evaluated by considering structural net displacement, and the re-evaluated dynamic overturning moment matched the results from the slow cyclic tests.

Wind turbine (WT) foundations with an embedded steel ring (ESR) are widely used in onshore WTs due to construction convenience. The research group found that WT foundations with damage were often accompanied by blade issues. To investigate the potential correlation between aerodynamic imbalance and fatigue damage of the WT foundation with an ESR, this study focuses on a 2 MW WT with an ESR. It investigates the influence of an error in pitch angle (PAE) on the WT’s foundation load and stress, utilizing one year of SCADA data to analyze the fatigue damage caused by PAE. The main conclusions are as follows: Firstly, the effect of PAE on the amplitude value of load and stress is significantly greater than on the average value of load and stress. Secondly, when the PAE is within the range of −3° to 3°, the foundation fatigue damage incurred over one year is minimal, but once this limit is exceeded, the foundation fatigue damage increases dramatically. Thirdly, the peak value of fatigue damage to the foundation caused by PAE does not necessarily occur in the main wind direction, but in the direction with the highest probability of the occurrence of high wind speeds, and the larger the PAE, the more significant the trend.

Precisely perceiving the geometric and semantic properties of real-world 3D objects is crucial for the continued evolution of augmented reality and robotic applications. To this end, we present Foundation Model Embedded Gaussian Splatting (FMGS), which incorporates vision-language embeddings of foundation models into 3D Gaussian Splatting (GS). The key contribution of this work is an efficient method to reconstruct and represent 3D vision-language models. This is achieved by distilling feature maps generated from image-based foundation models into those rendered from our 3D model. To ensure high-quality rendering and fast training, we introduce a novel scene representation by integrating strengths from both GS and multi-resolution hash encodings (MHE). Our effective training procedure also introduces a pixel alignment loss that makes the rendered feature distance of same semantic entities close, following the pixel-level semantic boundaries. Our results demonstrate remarkable multi-view semantic consistency, facilitating diverse downstream tasks, beating state-of-the-art methods by 10.2 object detection, despite that we are 851 × faster for inference. This research explores the intersection of vision, language, and 3D scene representation, paving the way for enhanced scene understanding in uncontrolled real-world environments. We plan to release the code on the [project page] .

The performance of pile foundations embedded in the sloping ground has received the least attention. Further, considering piles with batter angles, the investigation is even more limited. In this study, 3D non-linear finite element analyses were conducted to investigate the lateral load-carrying behaviour of vertical and batter (with angles -5°, +5°, -10° and +10°) pile foundations embedded in slope. Firstly, static analyses were performed, and the behaviour of the batter piles was compared with the vertical piles, considering the piles are embedded in a 30° slope of height 5.0 m with medium-stiff clay. It was observed that the capacity of piles reduces when they are installed on sloping ground. Negative batter piles were found to be more effective than the vertical piles in the slope. Next, the performances of the piles were investigated for dynamic lateral loading. It was inferred that the negative batter piles provide better resistance under lateral loading than the vertical and positive batter piles in sloping ground under dynamic loading as well.

This paper aims to investigate the effect of combined end-and-side grouting on the bearing properties of large-diameter rock-socketed bored piles in highly weathered rock layers. Eight full-scale pile load tests were conducted in the highly weathered rock layer to analyze the enhanced mechanism of the combined grouted bored piles. The test data from pile mechanical testing were compared with the recommended values in the current specification and geological survey report. The results demonstrate significant improvement in the side and end resistances of the combined grouted bored piles, resulting in a substantial increase in the bearing capacity and effective settlement control. It was observed that the construction of impact holes for bored piles can cause severe damage to highly weathered rock structures and weaken the mobilization of side and end resistances. Moreover, it was found that the calculation of the enhancement coefficient in the current specification underestimates the practical bearing capacity. The measured enhancement coefficients for the side and end resistance of piles in fully or highly weathered rock layers range from 2.49 to 3.05 and 2.24 to 2.43, respectively, which are more reasonable and feasible for the calculation. The research findings deepen the understanding of the bearing characteristics of large-diameter rock-socketed bored piles with combined grouting and provide valuable case references for the optimal design of large-diameter combined grouted piles for building foundations in Shenzhen, China.HighlightsPost-grouting had the potential to improve super high-building foundation reliability while reducing pile length and cost.The improvement effect and improvement mechanism of combined grouted bored piles embedded in highly rock strata were revealed.The influence of the size effect for large-diameter piles in highly weathered rock was revealed.The construction of impact holes for bored piles can cause severe damage to highly weathered rock structures and weaken the mobilization of side and end resistances.The enhancement coefficients for the side and end resistance of piles in fully or highly weathered rock layers were proposed.

This paper presents an analytical methodology that provides the vibration characteristics of monopile–wheel composite foundation embedded in homogeneous saturated soil, when the top of the foundation is subjected to a harmonic horizontal load. In the proposed frame, the horizontal resistances along the pipe pile due to the vibrations of the outer and inner elastic soil and compressible seawater are considered by using the Biot porous medium theory, plane strain model and radiation wave theory. The closed-form expression of the frictional force caused by the wheel vibration is calculated through the three-dimensional continuum mechanics theory. Based on the Euler beam model, the dynamic governing equations of different pile segments in the composite foundation are simulated as a one-dimensional linear elastic rod. Analytical solutions of dynamic impedances of composite pile in the frequency domain can be derived by virtue of the boundary and continuity conditions. Following the validation of the proposed methodology, the sensitivity of the dynamic response and natural vibration frequency of this innovative foundation to the main geometrical problem parameters is studied. The results show that increasing the wheel radius, wheel thickness and embedded length can improve the dynamic stiffness of the composite foundation, and increase the natural frequency of foundation–soil system simultaneously. Finally, the differences of the dynamic responses between the composite foundation and single pile with the same fabricating cost are discussed in detail, and the corresponding analysis proves the superiority of the composite pile under offshore loading conditions. Meanwhile, the contribution of the friction wheel to the dynamic behavior of composite foundation under different parameters is also investigated.

Summary The foundation of most food production systems underpinning global food security is the careful management of soil resources. Embedded in the concept of soil health is the impact of diverse soil‐borne pests and pathogens, and phytoparasitic nematodes represent a particular challenge. Root‐knot nematodes and cyst nematodes are severe threats to agriculture, accounting for annual yield losses of US$157 billion. The control of soil‐borne phytoparasitic nematodes conventionally relies on the use of chemical nematicides, which can have adverse effects on the environment and human health due to their persistence in soil, plants, and water. Nematode‐resistant plants offer a promising alternative, but genetic resistance is species‐dependent, limited to a few crops, and breeding and deploying resistant cultivars often takes years. Novel approaches for the control of phytoparasitic nematodes are therefore required, those that specifically target these parasites in the ground whilst minimizing the impact on the environment, agricultural ecosystems, and human health. In addition to the development of next‐generation, environmentally safer nematicides, promising biochemical strategies include the combination of RNA interference (RNAi) with nanomaterials that ensure the targeted delivery and controlled release of double‐stranded RNA. Genome sequencing has identified more than 75 genes in root knot and cyst nematodes that have been targeted with RNAi so far. But despite encouraging results, the delivery of dsRNA to nematodes in the soil remains inefficient. In this review article, we describe the state‐of‐the‐art RNAi approaches targeting phytoparasitic nematodes and consider the potential benefits of nanotechnology to improve dsRNA delivery.