Separative cancellation for projective modules over exchange rings

A separative ring is one whose finitely generated projective modules satisfy the propertyA⊕A⋟A⊕B⋟B⊕B⇒A⋟B. This condition is shown to provide a key to a number of outstanding cancellation problems for finitely generated projective modules over exchange rings. It is shown that the class of separative exchange rings is very broad, and, notably, closed under extensions of ideals by factor rings. That is, if an exchange ringR has an idealI withI andR/I both separative, thenR is separative. The research of the first and fourth authors was partially supported by a grant from the DGICYT (Spain) and by the Comissionat per Universitats i Recerca de la Generalitat de Catalunya. That of the second author was partially supported by a grant from the NSF (USA). The final version of this paper was prepared while he was visiting the Centre de Recerca Matemàtica, Institut d'Estudis Catalans in Barcelona, and he thanks the CRM for its hospitality.  

Asymptotic stability analysis of Runge-Kutta methods for nonlinear systems of delay differential equations

Summary. We consider systems of delay differential equations (DDEs) of the form with the initial condition . Recently, Torelli [10] introduced a concept of stability for numerical methods applied to dissipative nonlinear systems of DDEs (in some inner product norm), namely RN-stability, which is the straighforward generalization of the wellknown concept of BN-stability of numerical methods with respect to dissipative systems of ODEs. Dissipativity means that the solutions and corresponding to different initial functions and , respectively, satisfy the inequality , and is guaranteed by suitable conditions on the Lipschitz constants of the right-hand side function . A numerical method is said to be RN-stable if it preserves this contractivity property. After showing that, under slightly more stringent hypotheses on the Lipschitz constants and on the delay function , the solutions and are such that , in this paper we prove that RN-stable continuous Runge-Kutta methods preserve also this asymptotic stability property. Received March 29, 1996 / Revised version received August 12, 1996  

A semismooth equation approach to the solution of nonlinear complementarity problems

In this paper we present a new algorithm for the solution of nonlinear complementarity problems. The algorithm is based on a semismooth equation reformulation of the complementarity problem. We exploit the recent extension of Newton's method to semismooth systems of equations and the fact that the natural merit function associated to the equation reformulation is continuously differentiable to develop an algorithm whose global and quadratic convergence properties can be established under very mild assumptions. Other interesting features of the new algorithm are an extreme simplicity along with a low computational burden per iteration. We include numerical tests which show the viability of the approach.  

A nonsmooth inexact Newton method for the solution of large-scale nonlinear complementarity problems

A new algorithm for the solation of large-scale nonlinear complementarity problems is introduced. The algorithm is based on a nonsmooth equation reformulation of the complementarity problem and on an inexact Levenberg-Marquardt-type algorithm for its solution. Under mild assumptions, and requiring only the approximate solution of a linear system at each iteration, the algorithm is shown to be both globally and superlinearly convergent, even on degenerate problems. Numerical results for problems with up to 10 000 variables are presented. Partially supported by Agenzia Spaziale Italiana, Roma, Italy.  

A smoothing method for mathematical programs with equilibrium constraints

Received May 3, 1996 / Revised version received November 19, 1997 Published online January 20, 1999  

Smooth Convex Approximation to the Maximum Eigenvalue Function

In this paper, we consider smooth convex approximations to the maximum eigenvalue function. To make it applicable to a wide class of applications, the study is conducted on the composite function of the maximum eigenvalue function and a linear operator mapping ^m to , the space of n-by-n symmetric matrices. The composite function in turn is the natural objective function of minimizing the maximum eigenvalue function over an affine space in . This leads to a sequence of smooth convex minimization problems governed by a smoothing parameter. As the parameter goes to zero, the original problem is recovered. We then develop a computable Hessian formula of the smooth convex functions, matrix representation of the Hessian, and study the regularity conditions which guarantee the nonsingularity of the Hessian matrices. The study on the well-posedness of the smooth convex function leads to a regularization method which is globally convergent.  

On the asymptotic stability properties of Runge-Kutta methods for delay differential equations

Summary. In this paper asymptotic stability properties of Runge-Kutta (R-K) methods for delay differential equations (DDEs) are considered with respect to the following test equation: where and is a continuous real-valued function. In the last few years, stability properties of R-K methods applied to DDEs have been studied by numerous authors who have considered regions of asymptotic stability for “any positive delay” (and thus independent of the specific value of ). In this work we direct attention at the dependence of stability regions on a fixed delay . In particular, natural Runge-Kutta methods for DDEs are extensively examined. Received April 15, 1996 / Revised version received August 8, 1996  

On semilocal rings

We give several characterizations of semilocal rings and deduce that rationally closed subrings of semisimple artinian rings are semilocal, that artinian modules have semilocal endomorphism rings, and that artinian modules cancel from direct sums. Dedicated to the memory of Pere Menal  

Tensile Characterization of FRP Rods for Reinforced Concrete Structures

The application of FRP rods as an internal or external reinforcement in new or damaged concrete structures is based on the development of design equations that take into account the mechanical properties of FRP material systems.The measurement of mechanical characteristics of FRP requires a special anchoring and protocol, since it is well known that these characteristics depend on the direction and content of fibers. In this study, an effective tensile test method is described for the mechanical characterization of FRP rods. Twelve types of glass and carbon FRP specimens with different sizes and surface characteristics were tested to validate the procedure proposed. In all, 79 tensile tests were performed, and the results obtained are discussed in this paper. Recommendations are given for specimen preparation and test setup in order to facilitate the further investigation and standardization of the FRP rods used in civil engineering.