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ISSN 0409-7467

THE second prototype PT2 of the 14-seater multi-role Light Transport Aircraft had its successful maiden flight on 18 April 2007 at 09.05 hours. isthe first indigenous civilian aircraft of the country, being developed by the National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL), Bangalore. The maiden flight of was conducted by Wg. Cdr. R.S. Makker as the Chief Test Pilot, Wg. Cdr. A. Malik as the Co-pilot and Wg. Cdr. M.S. Ramamohan as the Flight-test Engineer, all belonging to Aircraft Systems and Testing Establishment (ASTE) of the Indian Air Force, which has been the flight testing organization for .

SARASSARAS

SARAS

SARAS

The first prototype (PT-1) of had its maiden flight on 29 May 2004 and its formal inaugural flight on 22 August 2004 in the presence of Shri Kapil Sibal, Minister for Science & Technology and Earth Sciences. Till now, 106 flights of PT1 have been conducted successfully, including the ones in the airshows of February 2005 and February 2007.

SARAS

SARASAero India

S A R A S P T 2 makes maiden f l ight

VOL 57 NO 9 15 MAY 2007

Several improvements have been made in design of the second prototype. The most important one among these is the incorporation of two higher power engines PT 6A-67A of 1200 hp each in PT2 in place of PT6A-66 of 850 hp each used in PT1 and new propellers of larger diameter. This is particularly done to meet the stringent climb gradient requirements under one engine failure condition as stipulated by Federal Aviation Regulations 25 (FAR-25) of USA, the certification standard for SARAS.

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R&D Highlights

The higher power engines willalso improve the other performancecharacteristics of SARAS.  Thesupporting stubwing structure andthe engine nacelle were also modifiedto suit the new engine. Improvements have also beenincorporated in flight control systemlayout, flap operating system,avionics and electrical system layoutetc., taking into account the inputsreceived from the flight crew andmaintenance staff.  All theseimprovements have brought PT2much closer to the final productionstandard aircraft.

Parallely, a weight optimizationprogramme has also been taken upfor SARAS, with a target of 500 kgweight reduction, throughoptimization of metallic structures,stringent fabrication control,increased use of composites, etc. An additional prototype will be builtto the final production standard andproved through a combination ofground and flight-testing.  TheFAR-25 standard certification by theDirector General of Civil Aviationis targeted for the end of 2009.

Discussions are progressingwith the Indian Air Force which islikely to be the launch customerfor SARAS for meeting some oftheir transport and trainingrequirements and also with HALfor productionising the aircraft.The aircraft performance will be

demonstrated in PT2 to theIndian Air Force by simulating theall up weight of 7100 kg.  Aftersome further data is gathered,discussions will also take place withthe Ministry of Civil Aviation andvarious operators for utilization ofSARAS in regions like the NorthEast and in other roles like feederaircraft, light cargo aircraft, airambulance, etc.

With the present boom in civil

The SARAS second prototype aircraft VT-XRM with the

new, more powerful engines (PT6A-67A), took off from

the Bangalore Airport at 09. 05 hrs and the flight lasted

about 40 minutes.  The aircraft climbed to an altitude of

about 9000 ft. and reached a maximum speed of nearly

150 knots.  The pilots executed several mild maneuvers

to get a feel of aircraft handling qualities.  The landing

was perfect as indeed were the other phases of flight. 

The flight crew reported that the aircraft handled as

expected and there were no surprises.  The flight

parameters were normal and as expected. Wg. Cdr. R.S.

Makker, Chief Test Pilot, said after the flight that –

“The present SARAS with new enginesappears to be a very potent and powerfulmachine, with al l the aircraft systemsperforming precisely in the first flight itself,only goes on to show the professionalismof the entire TEAM SARAS”.

aviation and the recognized need forair-networking different parts of thecountry including smaller towns,SARAS will have a distinct role toplay in establishing air connectivity,bringing people together and in theoverall economic development of thecountry.  The maiden flight of PT2is thus a very important milestonein that direction and in ultimatelyestablishing a viable civil aircraftindustry in the country.

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R&D Highlights

Diversity oriented Synthesis of Tricyclic Compounds

IN the era of chemical genetics,small molecules are receivingunprecedented attention in

order to understand and eventuallymodulate various biosyntheticpathways. Increased laboratoryautomation has improved theefficiency of screening for bioactivesthereby demanding diversechemical libraries for high-throughput screening. Diversityoriented synthesis is a newlyproposed algorithm which enablessynthesis of diverse molecularscaffolds within the ambit ofcombinatorial chemistry.

Dr Hotha’s group at NationalChemical Laboratory (NCL), Pune,has hypothesized that carbohydratetemplates enable syntheses ofoxygen-rich, chirally homogenous,complex, multi-cyclic and natural

product-like chemical scaffoldsexploiting various complexitygenerating reactions such as Pauson-Khand, Hashmi’s, Metathesis andDiels-Alder reactions. A Lewis acidmediated SN2 addition of alcohols toper O-acetylated glycals is known asthe Ferrier reaction and a Co2(CO)8

promoted 2+2+1 cyclization of analkyne and an alkene is the Pauson-Khand reaction. Hotha and hisgraduate student Tripathi haveachieved a natural product-liketricyclic enone library by performingthe stereoselective Ferrier reactionto obtain α-glycosides, introduceda propargylic moiety for thestereoselective Pauson-Khandreaction to obtain tricyclic enoneswhich was further diversified usingseveral mercaptans by Michael’sthiolate addition on to the enone.

It is pertinent to mention thatthe complexity generating reactionsviz. the Ferrier, Pauson-Khand andthe Michael addition reactions werehighly diastereoselective therebyenabling chirally pure, oxygen-rich,tricyclic derivatives from easilyaccessible glycals. Hotha’s team iscurrently engaged in developingdiversity oriented pathways forchirally pure, oxygen-rich, multi-cyclic and natural product-likelibraries from carbohydratetemplates.

ReferencesHotha, S. and Tripathi, A.,Tetrahedron Lett. 2005, 46,4555-4558.Hotha, S. and Tripathi, A., J. Comb.Chem. 2005, 7, 968-976.

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R&D Highlights

THE Structural EngineeringResearch Centre (SERC),Chennai, continues to surge

ahead with noteworthy progress inall its sponsored, grant-in-aidcollaborative and in-house researchand development projects,consultancy assignments andtechnical services. Highlights of2005-06 are as follows:

Sponsored ProjectsFour new sponsored research

projects were undertaken during theyear, apart from continuing the workon existing six sponsored projects.The new projects undertaken are:Studies on ratcheting behaviour ofpressurized pipes and elbows;Bimetallic/narrow gap welded pipefracture tests under cyclic bendingload; Analysis, design and evaluationof laced reinforced storage building(IGLOO) including softwaredevelopment and Shaft alignmentcomputer software on Windowsplatform (SACS-WIN).

Grant-in-aid ProjectsSeven new grant-in-aid projects

were taken up which include:Studies on evaluation of durabilityof loaded (Pre-cracked) RCCmembers using fly ash concretesubjected to accelerated corrosionand carbonation; Investigations onthe behaviour of laced reinforcedconcrete members with and withoutsteel fibres; Survivability of plate/shell panel structures/structural

components under impact loads;Experimental investigations onhybrid fiber reinforced concrete;Error estimation and adaptiverefinements for fracture analysis of2-D and 3-D crack problems;Development of distributedmemetic algorithms and theirapplications to multi-criteria designoptimization of laminate compositepanels and Development of Codeand Handbook for design of cold-formed steel members IS:801.

NMITLI and NetworkProjects

SERC is actively participatingin the New Millennium IndianTechnology Leadership Initiative(NMITLI) project on Developmentof a 500 kW, Low Cost HorizontalAxis Wind Turbine, with NAL,Bangalore and Sangeetha Group ofCompanies, as collaborating partners.

The Centre has providedleadership as the nodal laboratoryfor the CSIR Network Project onDesign, Analysis and HealthAssessment of Special Structuresincluding Bridges. Besides, it hasbeen participating in seven othernetwork projects, viz., Mathematicalmodelling and computer simulation;Developing capabilities in advancedmanufacturing technologies;Technology for engineering criticalanalysis; Development of newbuilding construction materials andtechnologies; New and improvedroad technologies; Upgradation of SI

base units, national standards ofmeasurements and apex calibrationfacilities and creation of high qualitynetwork of testing and calibrationlaboratories, and preparation ofcertified reference materials andDevelopment of technology fordisaster prevention andmanagement in Jharia coalfields.

Consultancy AssignmentsNotable among such

assignments include: Fatiguestrength evaluation of compoundlinks and pistons used in automobilechasis , for Wheels India Ltd,Chennai; Mix design for M60 gradehigh performance concrete , forHindustan Construction Co. Ltd,Orissa; Testing of 400kV Double “V”suspension string and 400kV tripletension string with hardware, forBharat Heavy Electricals Ltd,Bangalore; Proof checking the designof 120m guyed tower, for C-WET,Chennai; Fatigue strength evaluationof alumino-thermit welded rail joint,for Oberoi Thermit Pvt. Ltd, UttarPradesh; Condition assessment ofcorrosion affected Head Room areaof conveyor roof structure andconveyor supporting structures, forMadras Fertilizers Ltd, (MFL),Chennai; Condition assessment ofjetty and Intake structures , forNuclear Power Corporation of IndiaLtd, Madras, Atomic Power Station,Kalpakkam; Evaluation ofcharacteristics of refractory cementused as a bonding material in PSLV/

R&D HIGHLIGHTS2005-06

Structural Engineering Research Centre

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experimental and analytical studieson the wind-induced interferenceeffects in prismatic structureshaving different cross sections. Themodal crosswind force spectralcoefficient (MCFSC) has beenevaluated for isolated as well asdifferent interfering orientations.The results obtained have indicatedpossible improvement to therecommendations in relevant codeson Wind Loads for SquareBuildings. The interference factorvaries depending upon the relativeinterfering positions. The study hasbrought out recommendations onsuitable values to be adopted for themean drag coefficient underdifferent geometries/configurationsof prismatic structures vis-à-viswind flow direction, an empiricalrelationship for the modal across-wind force spectrum, including theeffects due to vortex shedding,turbulence intensity, and meanvelocity and fundamental modeshape profiles.

A project on Development ofFatigue Load Spectrum for Designof Structures/Componentssubjected to Dynamic Wind Loadshas been completed leading toseveral recommendations related tofatigue design of wind sensitivestructures/components. In coastalzones, it is recommended toconsider the wind directionreversals during any day (diurnalvariation) for fatigue damageaccumulation due to the low cyclefatigue with large magnitudes ofstress ranges in a structure.

It has been found that thevariation of standard deviation ofwind speed along the height shouldbe included in the calculation of

dynamic response of slender towersand masts using the stochasticspectral approach. Besides, powerand exponential forms of empiricalexpressions have beenrecommended for the evaluation ofaerodynamic admittance function oflattice frame. It is alsorecommended to consider thesecond-order effects of wind speedfluctuations for lattice towers andslender masts with traffic signboards, in the evaluation ofbackground factor used in the gustresponse factor of IS 875 (Part 3)code. A generalized gust responsefactor based bio-modal spectralmethod for the evaluation offractional fatigue damage has beenformulated for practical fatiguedesign of slender metallicstructures.

Measurement of dynamicpressure fluctuations on a bridgedeck enables a better understandingof the flow pattern around thebridge deck in terms of flowseparation, etc., and also inevaluation of correlation of pressuresacross the width of the deck. Withthe above objective, a section modelof a typical bridge deck, measuring26 cm in width and 98 cm in lengthhas been fabricated to a model scaleof 1:50. The model was tested undersimulated open terrain conditions,for 0° wind angle and for windspeeds of 9.5 and 11.6 m/s.

Numerical flow simulationstudies have been carried outaround two 2-D square cylinderspositioned in tandem and side-by-side arrangements to study theinterference effect on mean dragand lift coefficients on the interferingbodies.

GSLV launch vehicles, for LiquidPropulsion Systems Centre (LPSC)ISRO, Thiruvananthapuram;Investigation of ring beam of KGS-1Reactor Building by ultrasonicscanning and rebound hammer test,for Nuclear Power Corporation ofIndia Ltd, Karnataka; Investigationof the concrete quality of thechimney of Aurobindo Agro EnergyPrivate Limited at Kalaiyar Koil, forAurobindo Agro Energy Pvt. Ltd,Chennai; Prototype proof testing of80m tower, for Reliance EngineeringAssociates Pvt Ltd, Mumbai; Fieldinspection and analytical studies onthe failure of Keeranur MW tower,Bharath Sanchar Nigam Ltd, TamilNadu; Design of Seismic retrofittingscheme for fly ash storage silo forSuratgarh Thermal Power Station.Stage – III, Unit-V, for BharatHeavy Electricals Ltd, Bangalore;Health assessment of the heavyconcrete walls of Calandria Vault ofreactor Unit-II, KAPS, Gujarat, forNuclear Power Corporation of IndiaLtd, Mumbai; Analysis and designof a new profile for an 8″ dia gaspipeline in service, for Gas Authorityof India Ltd, Jaipur; and Conditionassessment of concrete in the recastupper brackets of Unit-2 of theupper Sindh Hydro Electric Projectat Kangan, for the Jammu & KashmirPower Development Corporation,Srinagar.

Thrust Area R&D Projects

Wind Engineering &Experimentation StructuralDynamics and EarthEngineering

A detailed investigation has beencompleted, involving both

R&D Highlights

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Experimental studies werecarried out on performanceevaluation of fiber optic sensorsinstrumented on a prototypespecimen of beam-column joints andsubjected to static load. Theresponses of the embedded andsurface mounting fiber optic sensorswere monitored and were found tocompare well with that of electricalresistance strain gages and thecomparison was found to be good.

To develop a remote healthmonitoring scheme, a Multi ChannelReal Time Wireless Data AcquisitionSystem has been procured.Experimental studies have beencarried out to explore and evaluatedifferent modes of communicationfor data transfer and applyappropriate technology for remotehealth monitoring scheme. Studieson using ‘pcAnywhere’ software forremote transmission of datahave been carried out. Itsperformance in Local AreaNetwork (LAN), for loggingdata remotely from vibratingwire strain gage data logger hasbeen evaluated and establishedsuccessfully.

Fatigue and Fracture,Experimental Mechanics,Shock & Vibration

Fatigue crack growth andfracture studies wereconducted on pipingcomponents and pressurevessels under mechanical loads,pressure and temperature.Study on crack growthbehaviour of cracked pipesunder cyclic fracture wascontinued. The experimentalresults of five pipes of AISI Type

Boundary layer wind tunnelstudies have been completed onmapping of mean velocities atdifferent grid points behind thenacelle of a wind mill tower.

A parametric study using finiteelement method has been completedby including the flexibility of framedbuildings of 1-storey, 2-storey and 3-storey. The study also covered theeffect of the roof-top tower beingdirectly anchored on the roof slabwith concrete pedestals. Staticdeflections show considerablevariation with respect to thebuilding system. When the sametower is placed on pedestals on asimply supported 10 cm thick RCCslab, the bending mode of the roof-top tower is significantly reducedfrom 1.74 Hz to 0.534 Hz, making itwind sensitive.

Static and dynamic tests werecarried out on 0.4 mm and 1.2 mmdiameter SMA based nickel titaniumalloy wires for evaluating the staticand dynamic characteristics such asultimate tensile strength, frequencydependency and number of cyclesto failure. A passive energydissipation (PED) device using SMAwires as energy dissipation elementswas designed and fabricated. Thedevice level test results revealedthat SMA based PED devices aremore effective in providing energydissipation to reduce the dynamicor seismic deformations.

A new amplifying mechanism(HyDia) has been developed for thedamping amplification of thedamper. This leads to significantimprovement of energy dissipationin the damper as compared toconventional schemes, e.g., toggle-bracing, scissor-jack, etc.

FCG test on a notched rectangularspecimen under bending

Close-up view during testing

R&D Highlights

Close-up view after failure

15 MAY 2007 147

304LN stainless steel material withcircumferential through-wall crack(total crack angle, f, ranging from 66to 68.5°) under cyclic loading wereanalysed with respect to crackgrowth and failure. All the pipeswere tested under constantamplitude cyclic bending, fatiguecrack growth and ductile failurecriterion can be described by usingelastic-plastic fracture mechanicsparameters Jmax and ∆J. Based onthis, crack growth equation wasproposed for stainless steel pipesunder cyclic loading.

Limit load analysis of healthystainless steel (304 LN) elbows wascarried out to study the effect ofinternal pressure on collapse loadunder opening and closing, bendingmoments. The limit load was foundto increase with increasing elbowfactor. With increase in internalpressure, the limit load was foundto increase initially and thendecrease. Parametric studies werealso carried out on defect freeelbows to develop closed formexpressions for collapse load underin-plane opening and closing modeswith internal pressure.

Leak-before-break analysis wascarried out for carbon steel shellnozzle junction of steam generatorat cold end with postulated crack atthe highly stressed region to studythe behaviour under cyclic loadingand collapse using FEM.

In the studies on CorrosionFatigue in Steels, in all the threecorrosion fatigue tests using saltspray method, crack initiation lifewas reduced drastically incomparison to similar specimenstested in air; a reduction of about63% was observed.

Steel Structures —Transmission Line Towers andother Skeletal Structures

In a project on AdvancedAnalysis and Design Methods forSteel Frames and ExperimentalInvestigation of Steel FrameConnections, a 7-storey steel buildingplane frame was designed in fourways: (1) manually using IS: 800provisions for representative loadings;(2) using the frame design computerprogram developed under thisproject; (3) using STAAD Pro softwareand working stress approach; and (4)by the advanced analysis program, inorder to compare the variousapproaches of design of the steelbuilding frame.

Structural configuration ofvarious guyed transmission linetowers have been studied based onthe power conductor orientations.Analytical studies on two commonlyused configurations, i.e. V-type andportal type have been carried out forvoltage class of 400 kV and 765 kVtransmissions. The guy wire wasmodeled as link 10 element in ANSYSand as cable element in NE-NASTRAN. However, the lattice mastmembers were modeled as 3D-Beam element in both programs.

Advanced studies haveindicated that nonlinear spectraldynamic analysis may be useful tounderstand the progressive collapseof guyed structural systems whenthey are subjected to severe loadingconditions.

Advanced analysis software forsteel frames has been used todesign a few practical cases ofmulti-storey steel building frames.The software developed is capable

of considering sway as well as non-sway frames including flexibility ofconnections. The plane frame designprogram based on limit state designmethods has been further validatedwith example problems given inAISC-LRFD procedure forindustrial trusses and framedbuildings. Three design proceduresfrom the literature were chosen fordetailed evaluation and then basedon this study a simple designmethod using the revised IS: 800code was evolved.

Various models for poundingand separation distance have beenexplored in depth. Inclusion ofparameters such as participation ofmass and the period of thestructures has been found to benecessary in the numeral model forpounding. The studies have revealedthat the same earthquake excitationcan produce different magnitudes ofpounding force for still and flexiblestructures.

In an investigation involvingcondition assessment and rating ofbridges, the concept of residualforce vectors has been used tospecify and objective function for anoptimization procedure usinggenetic algorithms. In this study,Modal Assurance Criterion (MAC)in conjunction with fractionalchange in frequency has been usedto identify the damage accurately.Also, a simple and efficientprocedure has been developed forcharacterization and localization ofdamage using transfer matrixmethod and vibration characteristics.

A refinement has been proposedto improve the analytical load ratingprocedure as specified by IRS: SP37(1991). A methodology has been

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developed for deriving capacityreduction factors using fuzzymathematics and fuzzy logic.

Instrumentation and responsemeasurements were carried on therailway bridge No. 42 near Tiruttani.Data on shear and axial force, thebending moment and dynamicdisplacement and acceleration atmid span locations, have beenacquired for a number of test cases.Response of the bridge to the testtrain running at different speeds,braking ahead of the bridge, on thebridge, fully loaded goods trainloading, etc., have all been recorded.This is the first ever detailed studyof this kind in India.

For developing ParallelComputing Methodologies forDamage Detection of LargeStructures using Wavelet Theory, amathematical model of the crackedbeam has been derived. The stiffnessmatrix of the cracked beam elementhas been formulated for elementswith rectangular cross section andcoded using the finite element tomodel the crack-like damage inframe structures. A program wasdeveloped in MATLAB for dynamicanalysis of beam to extract the modeshape and natural frequencies.Iterative algorithms, viz. Lanczosmethod, sub-space iteration, forcalculating a few eigen values, andeigen vectors of a Hermitian matrixwere coded. Numerical exampleswith single bay beam structure weretested with the standard program.Tests were carried out to see thechanges in the eigen values andvectors by changing the stiffness ofthe selective element to simulate thedamaged condition in the beamelement.

Towards the development ofstructural system identificationmethodologies using parallelprocessing technique, from recentworks on meta-heuristic algorithmsin various disciplines, it is observedthat the particle swarm optimisation(PSO) algorithm and ant colonyoptimisation (ACO) algorithm areemerging as powerful alternatives tothe well researched algorithms likeevolutionary algorithms andsimulated annealing. Based on thesedetailed analyses, a new formulationfor PSO algorithm has beenproposed which makes the algorithmadaptive by maintaining an excellentbalance between exploitation andexploration. In the proposedalgorithm, the cognitive and socialparameters in PSO, which arecrucial for accuracy as well as fasterconvergence, are automatically setthrough a single new parameterintroduced into the formulation.

Formulation of displacementextrapolation technique to computestress intensity factor (SIF) for 3-Dsurface cracks has been completed.Based on this technique, a program

module has been developed,implemented and integrated withFINEART. In addition, twenty-noded regular and quarter-pointsolid finite elements, which arerequired to model surface cracks,have been also implemented inFINEART program.

A program module based onMVCCI technique for 3-D surfacecrack problems has been developedfor computation of strain energyrelease rate and stress intensityfactor. This module has beenvalidated by conducting fractureanalysis of a plate with a centre cracksubjected to uniaxial tensile stress.

In the analytical cumexperimental work on developingmethodologies for improvedperformance of structures usingPassive and Semi-active dampers,experiments were conducted tomeasure the dynamic response ofthe Magneto Rheological (MR)damper under wide range ofprescribed displacements assinusoidal and triangular waveforms. The force-time relationship,force-velocity relationship, force-

R&D Highlights

GFRPreinforcedslab underflexuralloading

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displacement relationship wereobtained from the experimentalobservations.

A methodology for optimumdistribution of damping withdampers has been established,which can be effectively usedduring retrofitting of existingbuildings or for performance baseddesign of new ones subjected toearthquake loads.

Safety in Power PlantsA reliability analysis procedure

has been developed by integratinga standard finite element softwarewith Monte Carlo simulation andAFOSM method of reliabilityanalysis, to ascertain the safety ofthe power plant piping components.Using this procedure, reliabilityanalysis of a typical elbowcomponent of a pipeline layout inNuclear Power Plant, designedaccording to the relevant clauses ofASME, and operating at differentconditions indicative of in-serviceconditions, against erosion-corrosion, was carried out.

GFRP rebar under tension test

ConcreteComposites and

Materials

Reinforced ConcreteStructures

In the R&D work onrisk consistent designand risk management ofstructural systems andassemblages, thestochastic modelling ofthe evolution of strainswith loading in areinforced concretebeam using homo-

geneous Gaussian Markov Chain(HGMC) has been studied. Abi-level HGMC model has beenproposed for modelling the strainsat different stages of loading.

Several recommendations havebeen proposed to Bureau of IndianStandards with respect todurability- and serviceability-related provisions in IS 456 for thedesign of reinforced concretestructural elements. Theserecommendations include a revisedclassification of exposure conditionsbased on the major environmentalparameters influencing the different

deterioration mechanisms related todurability of reinforced concrete,separate values of minimum coverthickness for reinforced concreteslabs, explicit specification ofservice life for structures, equationsfor characteristic crackwidth forreinforced concrete flexuralmembers under static and fatigueloading, and procedure fordurability-based service life designof reinforced concrete flexuralmembers.

The addition of fly ash to binderwas found to increase the resistanceof SFAA concretes to acid, sulphateand alkali attacks. Tests were con-ducted to understand the utility ofaddition of steel fibres to the light-weight aggregate concretes contain-ing ‘sintered fly ash aggregate’ (SFAA).In case of SFAA concrete (SFAAC)with fly ash based binder, the increasein compressive strength due to addi-tion of fibres ranged from 1 to 15%.Geopolymeric concretes (GPCs)from industrial wastes such as fly ashand blast furnace slag were devel-oped.

The exposure of GPCs to 10%sulphuric attack was found to haveonly marginal effect even after about100 days of exposure indicating that

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Experimentalset-up for MRdampercalibration

CSIR NEWS150

alkaline catalyst residueis utilized almostcompletely during geo-p o l y m e r i s a t i o nreactions and the GPCis highly acid resistantcompared to FAAconcrete having onlycement as bindersystem.

Towards thedevelopment ofAdvanced Compositesand Techniques forRetrofitting ofReinforces andPrestressed ConcreteStructural Elements,tests were conductedto study the bondbetween the concretesurface and CFRP andGFRP wraps. It wasfound that the averagebond strength was 0.8-1.2 Mpa. Tests werealso conducted to studythe tensilecharacteristics ofCFRP and GFRPcoupons.

The effectiveness ofFRP wrapping as aretrofitting measure was studied onthe reinforced concrete beamcolumn joint specimens, retrofittedwith CFRP, GFRP wraps andmicroconcrete jacketing with lacing.Investigations were carried out tostudy the flexural behaviour ofreinforced concrete slabs using FRPbars. Control RC slabs were alsocast with HSD bars to compare theirperformance with the FRP bars.

A series of concrete and mortarspecimens were cast and tested to

displacement relation ofa frame element ismodified to account formaterial damage underextreme loads. Plastichinges are included atmember ends to modelenergy dissipationunder hystereticresponse. In addition,damage variables havebeen introduced ongeneralized forces basedon the principles ofcontinuum damagemechanics (CDM). Theformulation addressedmethodologies toanalyze RC framessubjected to low cyclefatigue loading ofextreme magnitudedue to earthquakeexcitations.

E x p e r i m e n t a lstudies were carriedout on rebar corrosionin different types andgrades of concrete withdifferent voltages suchas 5, 10, 20 and 30V.Concrete grades ofM40, M60 and M75

with mineral admixtures such as Flyash and GGBS were considered. Forcomparison, OPC concretes of samegrades were also studied. To studythe effect of cover thickness on rebarcorrosion, two cover thicknesses of29.5 mm and 42 m have beenchosen. The studies indicate that theconcrete resistivity is increased withthe higher grade of concrete andfurther enhanced for the concreteswith mineral admixtures.

To study the diffusion

Upper toggle brace mechanism with MR damper fitted toa 3 storey steel moment resistant frame

R&D Highlights

develop a concrete mix designprocedure using the fly ashaggregates (FAAs). Based on the testresults, a Modified BolomeyEquation to estimate thecompressive strength of LightWeight Aggregate Concrete (LWCs)has been developed.

Finite element formulation hasbeen developed based on lumpeddamage mechanics for analysis ofRC framed structural elements. Inthe formulation, the force-

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characteristics ofhigh performanceconcrete withGGBS and fly ash,d i f f u s i o nexperiments weretaken up.A c c e l e r a t e ddiffusion test wasconducted todetermine thechloride iondiffusion on highp e r f o r m a n c econcrete. Thec h l o r i d ec o n c e n t r a t i o nprofile was muchlower and theconcrete withmineral admixtureand lowest for theM75 grade concreteusing fly ash.

Publications &ECF

During theyear, 135 researchpapers werepublished injournals/conferenceproceedings and 86technical reportswere prepared. TheECF (ExternalCash Flow) fromthe contract R&D,g r a n t - i n - a i d ,consultancy, etc.amounted to aroundRs 5.08 crore.

Establishment of a National Test Facilityfor Rolling Element Bearings

A S a part of a major Nationalinitiative towards the developmentof Aerospace Quality Rolling

Element Bearings, the NationalAerospace Laboratories, Bangalore, hasestablished a National Test Facility forRolling Element Bearings. Thisfacility has been established inaccordance with the Joint ServiceSpecifications (JSS) prepared by theCentre for Military Airworthiness andCertification (CEMILAC), Bangalore,so that it could act as a CentralizedCertifying Agency for testingindigenously developed aerospace qualitybearings.

This facility has been established witha view to meeting all the different tests aslisted in the JSS, prepared by CEMILAC.The facility comprises a Fatigue Bay fortesting bearings up to 300 mm outerdiameter and speeds up to 25,000 rpm anda 10,000 Class clean room housing all thenecessary metrology equipment. Othertest set-ups that have been established inthe facility, include rigs for estimatingstatic load capacities of rolling elementbearing assemblies and bearingcomponents, frictional coefficients in thebearings, sphericity of the balls, wobblein the bearings, and dimensionalstabilities. Equipment for evaluation ofshear stability, extreme pressure of oil andan atomic absorption spectrophotometerhave also been commissioned. This facilityhas been established under the projectrelated to the development of SyntheticAviation Lubricants (SAL), which isfunded by CHT, CSIR, IOC (R & D),DRDO and HAL. It will act as a nodalagency for testing, indigenously developed

Aerospace Quality Rolling ElementBearings using proven SAL orindigenously developed SAL using provenaerospace quality rolling elementbearings, under real life situations,defined in terms of loads, speeds andtemperatures as experienced in aircraftgas turbines.

Apart from the above, this facility canalso be utilized for testing and certifyingrolling element bearings procured fromsecondary sources for aerospaceapplications.

The facility was inaugurated by ShriM. Natarajan, SA to RM. He expressedthat the facility will be extremely usefultowards the development of aerospacequality rolling element bearings andsynthetic aviation lubricants in thecountry. Dr K. V. Raghavan, Chairman,RAB, DRDO, who was the guest of honour,while reiterating the importance ofdevelopment of aerospace qualitybearings and synthetic aviation lubricantsstated that the NAL facility will be firstof its kind in the country and one of thevery few such facilities in the world. Thefacility details were presented byDr V. Arun Kumar, Scientist, NAL.Dr K. S. Balaraman, Executive Director,Centre for High Technology, was the otherguest of honour. While Dr A. R. Upadhya,Director, NAL, welcomed the gathering,Dr J. J. Isaac, Head, PropulsionDivision, NAL, proposed a vote ofthanks.

Dr M. N. Sathyanarayana, Jt Head,KTMD, Shri Somanarayanan, Scientist,KTMD , organized the programme inco-ordination with Shri V. Munirathnam,Scientist, Propulsion Division, NAL.

Facilities

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Lectures

Prof. Dobson delivers the second Innovation and TechnologyEnterprise Lecture at NCL

PROFESSOR Peter Dobson,Academic Director, OxfordUniversity’s Begbroke

Science Park, delivered the SecondInnovation and TechnologyEnterprise Lecture titled “Thejourney from science to technology”at the National ChemicalLaboratory (NCL), Pune, on 2 April2007. The talk, which was open tothe public, was attended by a largeaudience comprising people fromindustry, academia, and researchinstitutions in Pune, besides therepresentatives of British Council inIndia.

Prof. Dobson, an OxfordNanotechnologist andEntrepreneur, used the forum todescribe the issues surroundingscience-based innovations. He usedthe examples of the companiesfounded by him to highlightchallenges and lessons learnt fortaking laboratory research totechnology and finally to commercialproducts as efficiently as possible.

In his talk, Prof. Dobsonhighlighted the “time gap” betweenemergence of the first scientificpublications / patents on a conceptand eventual commercialisation of aproduct based on the concept – a gapthat needs to be understood andovercome if products based onscientific innovation are tosuccessfully reach the market. Hegave the examples of some of theproducts and companies he has beenassociated with to illustrate the “timegap” and further showed how it couldbe shortened through a clear marketorientation, timely financing and

Prof. Dobson delivering his lecture

partnerships. He advised the audienceto look for market-led solutions ratherthan “push technology” when itcomes to taking scientific ideas tocommercialisation. He opined that oneneeds to cultivate a problem solvingethos and orientation amongstscientists if one wants to focus oncommercially viable technology.Oxonica PLC, one of the earliestnanotechnology companies, wasfounded by Prof. Dobson in 1999.A company which is now listed onthe AIM exchange, and isgenerating substantial revenues ontwo product lines trade namedOptisol and Envirox. Optisol is abroad spectrum UV absorber forpersonal care products – one of theearliest nanotechnology applicationstaken to the market. Optisol UV

absorber is now being sold in 27formulations by 14 companies in ninecountries and incorporated into“Boots Soltan Once” and “TescoFinest” suncare product lines. Theother product Envirox is based oncerium oxide nanoparticles thatsignificantly improves efficiency andenvironmental performance of dieselengines, especially two-stroke dieselengines found in many developingeconomies. Prof. Dobson illustratedhow Oxonica has been able tonarrow the science to product gapsignificantly by bringing in a sharpmarket and solution-focus, buildingbalanced teams and partnerships,striving for early revenue generationand forging strategic alliances to savetime and money. Prof. Dobson thenused the case of his company OxfordBiosensors Ltd that makes a hand-held device based on enzyme-functionalized microelectrodearrays to illustrate how start-upcompanies can be a better way tocommercialize technologies thanlicensing when the technology isdisruptive and not an incrementalimprovement.

Earlier, Dr V. Premnath,Scientist, NCL, welcomed theaudience and briefly mentioned theidea behind organizing theInnovation and TechnologyEnterprise Lecture series. He alsointroduced Prof. Dobson to theaudience. Dr S. Sivaram, Director,NCL, offered a memento to Prof.Dobson. The public lecture wassponsored by the generous support ofthe British Council and the NCLResearch Foundation.

15 MAY 2007 153

A.V. Rama Rao Research FoundationAward Lecture-2007

THE Indian Institute of Chemical Technology(IICT), Hyderabad, in collaboration with A. V.Rama Rao Research Foundation and AVRA

Laboratories Pvt. Ltd,Hyderabad, jointly organized theA. V. Rama Rao Research Foundation Award Lecture on2 April 2007 at the IICT Auditorium.

The lecture was delivered by Dr A. P. Mitra, formerDirector General, CSIR on the topic ‘The Near Space:Milestones, Changes, Challenges’, where he made aninteresting presentation on earth’s near-space,specifically global changes owing to human activities,acid rain, ozone problem and green house gases in India.He highlighted the importance of research in loweratmosphere which is very much needed to understandthe global change process. According to Dr Mitra,developing countries like India should make such effortsin more comprehensive manner. Prof. S.K. Joshi, formerDirector General, CSIR and newly appointed Chairmanof the AVRA Foundation, chaired the programme .

Welcoming a huge gathering of IICT staff members,scientists from sister laboratories, participants from theIndustry and employees of the AVRA laboratories in aglittering function, Dr J. S. Yadav, Director, IICT, whois also the Secretary of the AVRA Foundation, explainedin detail the genesis of the AVRA Foundation and itsaims and objects.

Dr A. P. Mitra, former Director General, CSIR, is deliveringA.V. Rama Rao Research Foundation Award Lecture-2007

Prof. S. E. Hasnaindelivers Fifteenth

S. S. Bhatnagar Lecture -2007

THE Indian Institute of Chemical Techno-logy (IICT), Hyderabad, organized the fif-teenth S.S. Bhatnagar Lecture on 2 April

2007 at its Auditorium. Prof. S. E. Hasnain, VC,University of Hyderabad and former Director,Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics,Hyderabad, delivered the Bhatnagar Lecture on thetopic ‘ War against TB: Is it going to be a long drawnbattle’.

Prof. Hasnain, whose research interests includeunderstanding of the mechanisms of baculovirus verylate gene transcription and apoptosis, andpathogenesis of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, saidthat about 30% population of the Indiansubcontinent was infected with M. tuberculosis, outof which 5-10% end up with the actual TB disease.In view of the disease raising its head again in India,especially amongst the poor and theundernourished, greater attention was desired forcontrol of this disease instead of diverting theGovernment resources and the aids from the nationaland international agencies are diverted towards newhealth hazards like AIDS and SARS, mainlyprevalent in Africa , Europe and South East

Prof. S. E. Hasnain is receiving the memento fromDr S. Varadarajan former Director General, CSIR. Dr J. S. Yadav,

Director, IICT (extreme left) is also seen

Lectures

CSIR NEWS154

Honours & Awards

Asia.Prof. Hasnainwas of the view thatdrug companiesshould not relax intheir fight againstTB lest it shouldraise its head againin India. Newer andcheaper drugsshould beintroduced in themarket.The lecturewas very informativeand was acclaimedby one and all.

Earlier, Dr J. S.Yadav, Director,IICT, welcomed ahuge gathering ofIICT staff members,scientists from sisterlaboratories andparticipants fromthe Industry in aglittering functionand said that S. S.Bhatnagar Lecturewas started by Dr A.V. Rama Rao,former Director,IICT & CMD ofAVRA Labs, in thememory of Dr S. S.Bhatnagar, whowas one of thefounder members &a father figure inCSIR , on theoccasion ofrenaming of RRL,Hyderabad toIndian Institute ofChemical Tech-nology on 1 April1989.

National Mineral Award to Dr Kalachand Sain

DR KalachandS a i n ,Scientist EII

and In-charge of Gas-hydrates Group,National GeophysicalResearch Institute,Hyderabad, has beenhonoured with theNational MineralAward-2005 by theMinistry of Mines,Government of India, inrecognition of hissignificant contributionto the field of EarthSciences. The awardcarries a cash prize,trophy, certificate and citation.

Dr sain has proposed severaltechniques based on comprehensiveinversion algorithms for the explorationof hydrocarbons including the gas-hydrates and crustal dynamics.Prominent among these are (i) solutionto the (a) hidden and (b) velocity inversionproblems of seismic refraction work usingwide-angle seismic data; (ii) newapproach for interpreting first arrivalseismic data; (iii) methods of directly (a)calculating interval velocities (b)estimating depth to any reflector fromwide-angle seismic data; (iv) assessingstructures required by the seismic databased on traveltime tomography; (v)delineating fine-scale structures orstratigraphic horizons of sub-volcanicsediments using 2-D waveform inversion.

Dr Sain has made a commendable jobin (i) investigating gas-hydrates (futurepotential energy resources) along thecontinental margins of India using thestate-of-the-art seismic data processing

and sophisticated full-waveforminversion; (ii) imaging hydrocarbon-prospective Mesozoic sediments in theSaurashtra peninsula and Gondwanasediments in the Mahanadi delta usingthe modern traveltime tomography ofwide-angle seismic data.

He has shed light to understand theprobable causes for the occurrences ofJabalpur (1997) and Bhuj (2001)earthquakes, and evolutionary processesof various geological/tectonic units likethe Narmada-Son lineament, Bengalbasin, Mahanadi delta, southernGranulite terrain, western Dharwarcraton, etc. based on the analysis of wide-angle seismic data.

He has pr oposed methods of (i)estimating Q-factor, (ii) joint inversion oftraveltime and amplitudes from BSR, (iii)performing AVO attribute analysis witha view to identifying and quantifying theresource potential of gas-hydrates. Hisrecent work on Effective Medium Theoryto understand the microstructure and

Dr Kalachand Sain receiving the National Mineral Award fromUnion Minister of Mines Shri Sisram Ola. Also seen in the picture

Shri Subbarami Reddy, Minister of State for Mines

15 MAY 2007 155

Dr D.C. Goswami honoured for his Children’s Literature

D R D.C. Goswami, Scientist G of the North-East Institute of Science and Technology(NEIST) (erstwhile Regional Research Laboratory),

Jorhat, was invited by the President of India to a reception at theRashtrapati Bhavan on this year’s Republic Day, in recognitionof his eminence as a writer of children’s literature.

A dedicated science writer and communicator in Assamese,Dr Goswami has been writing popular science and science fictionfor children and general readers and has more than 50 books tohis credit. He has also translated sixteen books into Assamese.He has coordinated and edited a series of about 70 translated classics for children. TheChief Editor of a three-volume science encyclopaedia, a translated encyclopaedia forchildren, and a national science popularization award winner, Dr Goswami was one ofthe 50-odd children’s literature whom the President met in an informal interactionprogramme at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Best Poster Award from MRSI

Honours & Awards

DR Anjana Jain and Shri S. KalyanSundaram, Materials ScienceDivision, National Aerospace

laboratories (NAL), Bangalore, along withShri V. Vedha Prakash and Shri H. H. Kumarwere conferred with the Best Poster Awardfor the paper titled ‘Preparation andcharacterization of β-PVDF films’ at the 18thAnnual General Meeting (AGM) of theMaterials Research Society of India (MRSI) held during 12-14 February 2007 at theNational Physical Laboratory (NPL), New Delhi.

hence quantitativeassessment of gas-hydrates ispraiseworthy.

Dr Sain haspublished 48research papers innational andi n t e r n a t i o n a ljournals and 10technical reports.He is a highlymotivated and well-recognized youngscientist with variousdecorations like (i)Young ScientistAward and RamanFellowship by CSIR,(ii) BOYSCASTFellowship andS w a r a n a j a y a n t iAward by the DST,(iii) Krishnan GoldMedal and LifeFellow by the IndianGeophysical Union,(iv) Associate Fellowand Best PaperMedal by the APAkademi of Sciences,(v) Best PaperPresenter Award bythe PETROTECH-2007 at theI n t e r n a t i o n a lConference on Oil &Gas, etc. He is amember of a numberof ScientificSocieties/bodies,T e c h n i c a lCommittees andEditorial Boards ofscientific journals.

In the above news item published in CSIR News 57 (2007) 124, please note that theamount of the research grant for the project awarded to Dr K. Thangaraj, Scientist,Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB), Hyderabad, is Rs 2.5 crore andthat for the project awarded to Dr D. Kar Chowdhuri, Scientist, Industrial ToxicologyResearch Centre (ITRC), Lucknow, is £500,000 and not $ 500,000 as published. Theerror is regretted.

CorrigendumDr K. Thangaraj and Dr D. Kar Chowdhuri bag

UKIERI Major Research Awards

CSIR NEWS156

Dr V.P. Dimri honoured with G.P. Chatterjee Award of ISCA

Dr V.P. Dimri, Director, NGRI, receiving the prestigiousProf. G.P. Chatterjee Award from Dr Manmohan Singh,

Prime Minister of India,

DR Manmohan Singh, PrimeMinister of India, honouredDr V.P. Dimri, Director,National GeophysicalResearch Institute (NGRI),Hyderabad, with G.P.Chatterjee Award during the94th Indian Science Congress(ISC) at Chidambaram. DrDimri received the award forhis achievement in the fieldof geophysics. The IndianScience Congress Associationinstituted this award in 1981to honour every year adistinguished scientist for his/her outstanding contributionrelated to some aspects ofScience and Man.

Dr Dimri was also elected asPresident of the section of EarthSystem Sciences for 95th session ofIndian Science Congress Associationto be held at Visakhapatnam inJanuary 2008.

A Fellow of Indian NationalScience Academy, Dr Dimri is aninternationally known geophysicistfor his pioneering work in the fieldof exploration of oil, mineral andgroundwater and seismology usingmathematical modeling and fractaltheory, which he has summed up inthree books published byinternational publishers. He haspublished 150 scientific andtechnical papers in various nationaland international journals.

Dr Dimri, was elevated to theexalted position of the Director ofNGRI on 17 October 2001 and sincethen NGRI has been surging aheadunder his leadership. The institutehas been awarded ISO 9001:2000certification, and the FICCI award

(2001-02) for outstandingcontributions to S&T. TodayNGRI is ranked No 1laboratory among 38laboratories of CSIR inearning external cash flowand has earned 1/10th of thetotal extrnal cash flow of theCSIR, after holding thesecond position for the lasttwo financial years. Dr Dimriis also an Adjunct Professorat University of Hyderabadand Honorary Professor atDepartment of Geo-physics,Andhra University. He isChairman of ResearchAdvisory Council of Indian

Institute of Geomagnetism, Mumbaiand Member of Research Councilof several earth science institutions.He is National Chairman of Inter-national Union of Geodesy andGeophysics and President of IndianGeophysical Union.

Dr V. KasiraoDR V. Kasirao, Head, Documentation Department;Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI), Chennai,presented a paper titled ‘Electronic KnowledgeOrganisation Management (E-KOM): A tool forLeather Industrial Development’ at the InternationalConference on ‘Information Technology andManagement (ICITM-2007)’ held at Hong KongPolytechnic University, Hong Kong, during 3-5 January2007. He also delivered a lecture on ‘IT Strategies in InformationManagement’ at ICITM-2007.

Honours & Awards

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