Applying load to a structural member may result in a bottle-shaped compression field especially when the width of the loading is less than the width of bearing concrete members. At the Building and Construction Department – the University of Technology-Iraq, series tests on fibre reinforced concrete specimens were carried out, subjected to compression forces at the top and bottom of the specimens to produce compression field. The effects of steel fibre content, concrete compressive strength, transverse tension reinforcement, the height of test specimen, and the ratio of the width of loading plate to specimen width were studied by testing a total of tenth normal strength concrete blocks with steel fibre and one normal s

A chemical optical fiber sensor based on surface plasmon resonance (SPR) was developed and implemented using multimode plastic optical fiber. The sensor is used to detect and measure the refractive index and concentration of various chemical materials (Urea, Ammonia, Formaldehyde and Sulfuric acid) as well as to evaluate the performance parameters such as sensitivity, signal to noise ratio, resolution and figure of merit. It  was noticed that the value of the sensitivity of the optical fiber-based SPR sensor, with 60nm and 10 mm long, Aluminum(Al) and Gold (Au) metals film exposed sensing region, was 4.4 μm, while the SNR was 0.20, figure of merit was 20 and resolution 0.00045. In this work a multimode

The silicon carbide/carbon fiber (SiC/CF) hybrid fillers were introduced to improve the electrical and thermal conductivities of the epoxy resin composites. Results of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy revealed that the peaks at 3532 and 2850 cm⁻¹ relate to carboxylic acid O–H stretching and aldehyde C–H stretching appearing deeper with an increased volume fraction of SiC. Scanning electron microscopic image shows a better interface bonding between the fiber and the matrix when the volume fraction of SiC particles are increased. As frequency increases from 10² Hz to 10⁶ Hz, dielectric constants decrease slightly. Dissipation factor (tan δ) values keep low a

Photonic Crystal Fiber (PCF) based on the Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR) effect has been proposed to detect polluted water samples. The sensing characteristics are illustrated using the finite element method. The right hole of the right side of PCF core has been coated with chemically stable gold material to achieve the practical sensing approach. The performance parameter of the proposed sensor is investigated in terms of wavelength sensitivity, amplitude sensitivity, sensor resolution, and linearity of the resonant wavelength with the variation of refractive index of analyte. In the sensing range of 1.33 to 1.3624, maximum sensitivities of 1360.2 nm ∕ RIU and 184 RIU⁻¹ are achieved with the high sensor resolutions of 7

The analysis of rigid pavements is a complex mission for many reasons. First, the loading conditions include the repetition of parts of the applied loads (cyclic loads), which produce fatigue in the pavement materials. Additionally, the climatic conditions reveal an important role in the performance of the pavement since the expansion or contraction induced by temperature differences may significantly change the supporting conditions of the pavement. There is an extra difficulty because the pavement structure is made of completely different materials, such as concrete, steel, and soil, with problems related to their interfaces like contact or friction. Because of the problem's difficulty, the finite element simulation is

Biscuits are a global snack due to their convenience, variety, and durability. Biscuits with nutritious ingredients are in demand as customers become more health conscious. This change led to interest about utilizing agricultural by-products to enhance the nutritional value of widely consumed foods. Mango (Mangifera indica L.), a frequently cultivated tropical fruit, produces vital by-products during its processing, mainly comprising peels and kernels. The by-products, comprising around 35–60% of the mango fruit's weight, are high in bioactive compounds including dietary fiber, polyphenols, carotenoids, and essential fatty acids. Mango peels and kernels, even with their nutritional potential, frequently neglected, resulting in ris

To achieve sustainability, use waste materials to make concrete to use alternative components and reduce the production of Portland cement. Lime cement was used instead of Portland cement, and 15% of the cement's weight was replaced with silica fume. Also used were eco-friendly fibers (copper fiber) made from recycled electrical. This work examines the impact of utilizing sustainable copper fiber with different aspect ratios (l/d) on some mechanical properties of high-strength green concrete. A high-strength cement mixture with a compressive strength of 65 MPa in line with ACI 211.4R was required to complete the assignment. Copper fibers of 1% by volume of concrete were employed in mixes with four different aspect ratios

Abstract: A novel design of Mach Zehnder Interferometer (MZI) in terms of using special type of optical fiber that has double clad with graded distribution of the refractive index that can be easily implemented practically was suggested and simulated in this work. The suggested design is compact, rapid, and is simple to be modified and tested. The simulated design contains a MZI of 1546.74 nm of central wavelength that is constructed using special type of double clad optical fiber that has two different numerical apertures. The first aperture will supply single mode propagation via its core, while the second numerical aperture supports a zigzag wave propagation (multimode) in the first clad region. The interferometer’s

The present work reports the performance of three types of polyethersulfone (PES) membrane in the removal of highly polluting and toxic lead Pb2+ and cadmium Cd2+ ions from a single salt. This study investigated the effect of operating variables, including pH, types of PES membrane, and feed concentration, on the separation process. The transport parameters and mass transfer coefficient (k) of the membranes were estimated using the combined film theory-solution-diffusion (CFSD), combined film theory-Spiegler-Kedem (CFSK), and combined film theory-finely-porous (CFFP) membrane transport models. Various parameters were used to estimate the enrichment factors, concentration polarization modulus, and Péclet number. The pH values signif