Phase-change materials (PCMs) have a remarkable potential for use as efficient energy storage means. However, their poor response rates during energy storage and retrieval modes require the use of heat transfer enhancers to combat these limitations. This research marks the first attempt to explore the potential of dimple-shaped fins for the enhancement of PCM thermal response in a shell-and-tube casing. Fin arrays with different dimensions and diverse distribution patterns were designed and studied to assess the effect of modifying the fin geometric parameters and distribution patterns in various spatial zones of the physical domain. The results indicate that increasing the number of dimple fins in the range of 8–32 results in faster heat storage rates by up to 8.7% faster than they would be without the dimple fins. Further improvements of approximately 1.4, 1.2, 1.1, and 1.0% can be obtained by optimizing the position of the first fin section, the spacing between other fin sections, the fin spacing based on the aromatic algorithm, and the use of the staggered fin distribution. The heat storage rate is improved by almost 12% for the best case compared with that of the no-fin case.
Moisture-induced damage is one of the primary causes of premature distress in asphalt pavements, leading to reduced service life and increased maintenance costs. Although nanomaterials have shown potential in enhancing asphalt performance, the underlying composite interaction mechanisms among nanomaterials, asphalt binder, and aggregate phases under moisture exposure are still not fully understood. In addition, comparative evaluations under consistent experimental conditions remain limited. This study investigates the influence of five nanomaterials: nano-silica (NS), nano-alumina (NA), nano-titanium dioxide (NT), nano-zinc oxide (NZ), and carbon nanotubes (CNT) on the physical and mechanical properties of asphalt binders and mixtur
... Show MoreA theoretical and experimental investigation was carried out to study the behavior of a two-phase closed thermosyphon loop (TPCTL) during steady-state operation using different working fluids. Three working fluids were investigated, i.e., distilled water, methanol, and ethanol. The TPCTL was constructed from an evaporator, condenser, and two pipelines (riser and downcomer). The driving force is the difference in pressure between the evaporator and condenser sections and the fluid returns to the heating section by gravity. In this study, the significant parameters used in the experiments were filling ratios (FR%) of 50%, 75%, and 100% and heat-input range at the evaporator section of 215-860.2 W. When the loop reached to
... Show Morehave suffered from deteriorating residential neighborhoods, poor economic, social and urban living conditions of the population and deteriorating the infrastructural and superior services. These problems were the secretions of these cities' rapid urbanization. Based on the principles of sustainable urban planning and in order to achieve adequate opportunities for the lives of the population and provide them with sustainable livelihoods, policies have emerged to upgrade along the lines of community participation and programmes to reform and develop those neighbourhoods, raise their efficiency and make them livable. Thus, the problem of research was identified "The absence of a comprehensive cognitive perception of the most prominent facto
... Show MorePolymers have the ability to extract water after they have been added to the mortar or concrete mixture. They provide the absorbed water during hydration functioning as internal water source. Absorption polymers can absorb up to hundred times of their own weight of pure water.This research deals with the use of water absorption polymer balls in concrete and study the volumetric change of these mixes and compared the results with reference mix (without polymers). Samples were cured both in air and in water for the mixes to compare results which show that samples in air behave for expansion while sample in water acted for shrinkage.
This project presents an enhanced Iraqi vehicle plate identification system, incorporating digital processing technologies and the XOR Auto-Associative Memory advanced associative memory algorithm, towards a fast and efficient performance under diverse conditions of imagery. The system consists of three major stages: identification of the panel area, or localization, using edge transformations and morphological operations; symbol segmentation, or segmentation, based on horizontal and vertical projections for the exact extraction of numbers and letters; and finally, recognition use of XOR operations and a binary distance criterion known as Hamming Distance. The model was tested on 420 images of panels in different scenarios of lighting
... Show MoreSilybum marianum, from which silymarin (SM) is extracted, is a medicinal herb. In the Biopharmaceutics Classification System, it is of the class II type, meaning it is almost completely insoluble in water. It has a number of therapeutic properties, including anti-inflammatory as well as properties that promote wound healing.
This research target is to promote the dissolution and solubility of SM by employing a technique called solid dispersion and then incorporating the formula of solid dispersion into a topical gel that can be used for wound healing.
Solid dispersion is a technique used to enhance solubility and dissolve pharmaceuticals that are not water-soluble. This method is widely used because of its low cos
... Show MoreBackground: A diverse group of bacteria live in biofilms in the oral cavity. On dental surfaces biofilms form plaque that is potentially involved in caries and periodontal diseases. Periodic studying of plaque microflora and their antimicrobial sensitivity patterns strongly affects the clinical practice in plaque-induced oral diseases. Materials and methods: Dental plaque samples were collected from 22 patients having ages ranged between 33 and 49 years with gingivitis that met the study criteria. Plaque, gingival and gingival bleeding indices (PI, GI, GBI) were measured for each patient. Laboratory procedures included microbiological examination of plaque samples followed by antibiotic sensitivity testing using disc diffusion method were
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