Papers

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This work investigates historical variation and trends in storm climate for the South Portugal region, using data from wave buoy measurements and from modelling, forthe period 1952 to 2009. Several storm parameters (annual number of storms; annual number of days with storms; annualmaximum and mean individual storm duration and annual 99.8th percentile of significant wave height) were used to analyse: (1) historical storminess trends; (2) storm parameter variability and relationships; and (3) historical storminess and its relationship to the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO). No statistically significant linear increase or decreasewas found in any of the storm parameters over the period of interest. The main pattern of storm characteristics and extremewave heights is an oscillatory variability with intensity peaks every 7

The sustainable management of small, intermittent coastal systems is a challenging task due to the strongmorphological dynamics of their inlets, which causes hydrodynamics, morphodynamics and water renewal to behighly variable, at both seasonal and shorter time scales. This strong variability makes these coastal systems verysensitive to pollution events because the consequences of these events may differ significantly depending on thebathymetry at the time they occur. Here, a 3D modeling-based study of the water renewal variability of a smallcoastal system, the Aljezur stream, is presented, targeting 1) the impact of different measured bathymetricconditions, different seasonal forcings and processes included in its water renovation, and 2) the confirmation ofthe small role of light in the decay of fecal coliforms on the stream. The analysis is conducted for 4 distinctscenarios, including two real settings, using a 3D baroclinic model and an associated particle model. Resultsconfirm the major role of bathymetry on the residence times of the Aljezur stream, leading to 100% differences.Wind is shown to have a significant impact on the water renovation, as well as the instant of particle releasewithin the tidal cycle. A low permanence of particles in the upper layer of the water column, defined throughlaboratory experiments using the stream water, confirmed the small importance of light in promoting fecalbacteria decay in this stream.

Referem-se os principais aspetos do desempenho dos elementos e estruturas de madeira que são afetados pelas condições ambientais. Apresentam-se os estudos conduzidos para obter informação relevante sobre as condições de serviço e discutem-se algumas situações paradigmáticas em que o conhecimento dessas condições é determinante para garantir a resistência e a durabilidade das estruturas de madeira.

Timber-concrete composite structures are often used as upgrade solutions for existent timber floors. The timber cross section ismaintained and a concrete layer is poured over the floorboard surface. Floorboards help with loading distribution on the beams. The study presented is based on laboratory tests that used specimens made with a lightweight aggregate concrete (LWAC). The use of this type of concrete, compared with normal weight concrete (NWC), has the advantage of lower dead weights, and might be very important in many cases, namely, when the supporting structure has limited strength. Many design works of timber-concrete composite connections do not takeinto account the timber interlayer, which is known to reduce the load-carrying capacity and the stiffness of the connection. Previousinvestigations of NWC found that the inclusion of the interlayer leads to average reductions of 30% and 50% for the load capacity and slip modulus, respectively. The current investigation with LWAC found that such reductions are up to 10 and 30%, respectively. DOI:10.1061/(ASCE)ST.1943-541X.0000299. © 2011 American Society of Civil Engineers.

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This research provides an overview of the large-scale physical model experiments conducted at the Canal d

Sea level change is an important consequence of climate change due to its impact on society and ecosystems. Analyses of tide-gauge data have indicated that the global sea level has risen during the 20th century and several studies predict that the mean sea level will continue to rise during the 21st century, intensifying coastal hazards worldwide. In Portugal, the Ria de Aveiro is expected to be one of the regions most affected by sea level change. The main aim of this study is to evaluate the potential impacts of the mean sea level change on the hydrodynamics and morphodynamics of the Ria de Aveiro. With this purpose, local mean sea level change was projected for the period 2091

ABSTRACT: Structural Health Monitoring is an emergent powerful diagnostic tool that can be used to identify and to prevent possible failures of the various components that comprise an infrastructure. In the particular case of a suspension bridge, the measurement of the vertical and transversal displacements plays an important role for its safety evaluation. Taking into account the restrictions usually found on these structures, an enhanced solution comprises a non-contact vision-based measurement system with dynamic response, accuracy and amplitude range well suited to the physical phenomenon to measure. The paper describes a methodology to perform the vision system calibration that can be carried out in-situ, while the deck is moving, requiring little effort and a minimum set of information. Specifically, only a set of active targets fixed on the deck and the knowledge about the distances between them is required. Results related to the performance evaluation, obtained by numerical simulation and by real experiments with a reduced structure model, are presented and they show that, even in an environment severely affected by disturbance noise, it is possible to measure the vertical and transversal displacements with a standard accuracy better than 10 mm.