The introduction of concrete damage plasticity material models has significantly improved the accuracy with which the concrete structural elements can be predicted in terms of their structural response. Research into this method's accuracy in analyzing complex concrete forms has been limited. A damage model combined with a plasticity model, based on continuum damage mechanics, is recommended for effectively predicting and simulating concrete behaviour. The damage parameters, such as compressive and tensile damages, can be defined to simulate concrete behavior in a damaged-plasticity model accurately. This research aims to propose an analytical model for assessing concrete compressive damage based on stiffness deterioration. The prop

As one type of heating furnaces, the electric heating furnace (EHF) typically suffers from time delay, non-linearity, time-varying parameters, system uncertainties, and harsh en-vironment of the furnace, which significantly deteriorate the temperature control process of the EHF system. In order to achieve accurate and robust temperature tracking performance, an integration of robust state feedback control (RSFC) and a novel sliding mode-based disturbance observer (SMDO) is proposed in this paper, where modeling errors and external disturbances are lumped as a lumped disturbance. To describe the characteristics of the EHF, by using convection laws, an integrated dynamic model is established and identified as an uncertain nonlinear second ord

Reinforced concrete (RC) beams containing a longitudinal cavity have become an innovative development and advantage for economic purposes of light-weight members without largely affecting their resistance against the applied loads. This type of openings can also be used for maintenance purposes and usage space of communication lines, pipelines, etc. RC beams are primarily loaded in the plane of the members, which are two-dimensional in a plane stress state and the dominant structural behaviours include bending, shear, or combination of both. In the present study, six numerical models of RC beams with and without openings were simulated by using commercial finite element software ANSYS to evaluate the structural behaviours of those b

In this study, nano TiO₂ was prepared with titanium isopropoxide (TTIP) as a resource to titanium oxide. The catalyst was synthesized using phosphotungstic acid (PTA) and, stearyl trimethyl ammonium bromide (STAB) was used as the structure-directing material. Characterization of the product was done by the X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray fluorescent spectroscopy (XRF), nitrogen adsorption/desorption measurements, Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectra, were used to characterize the calcined TiO₂ nanoparticles by STAB and PWA. The TiO₂ nanomaterials were prepared in three crystalline forms (amorphous, anatase, anatase-rutile). The results showed that the

Background and Objectives: Dyspepsia is a disorder characterized by difficulty in digestion and represents a major health concern. Therefore, it is crucial to identify functional dyspepsia linked to Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori). This research aimed to determine the prevalence of H. pylori among patients with dyspepsia and to examine the potential risk factors associated with the infection. Materials and Methods: From August 14th to September 21st, 2024, a total of 105 patients with dyspepsia, who attended the Central Laboratory of Baghdad Medical City Complex (Iraq), were enrolled in this study. Data on nonsteroidal anti-inflam- matory drugs (NSAIDs), smoking, family history, fasting habits and frequent fast food consumption wer

In this study, nano TiO2 was prepared with titanium isopropoxide (TTIP) as a resource to titanium oxide. The catalyst was synthesized using phosphotungstic acid (PTA) and, stearyl trimethyl ammonium bromide (STAB) was used as the structure-directing material. Characterization of the product was done by the X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray fluorescent spectroscopy (XRF), nitrogen adsorption/desorption measurements, Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectra, were used to characterize the calcined TiO2 nanoparticles by STAB and PWA. The TiO2 nanomaterials were prepared in three crystalline forms (amorphous, anatase, anatase-rutile). The results showed that the nanoparticles of anatase TiO2 have good cata

Congenital adrenal hyperplasia is a group of autosomal recessive disorders. The most frequent one is 21-hydroxylase deficiency. Analyzing CYP21A2 gene mutations was so far not reported in Iraq. This work aims to analyze the spectrum and frequency of CYP21A2 mutations among Iraqi CAH patients. Sixty-two children were recruited from the Pediatric Endocrine Consultation Clinic, Children Welfare Teaching Hospital, Baghdad, Iraq, from September 2014 till June 2015. Their ages ranged between one day and 15 years. They presented with salt wasting, simple virilization, or pseudoprecocious puberty. Cytogenetic study was performed for cases with ambiguous genitalia. Molecular analysis of

One hundred forty three of Klebsiellapneumoniae isolates had been collected from some hospitals in Baghdad city. The isolates were taken from different clinical specimens.Antimicrobial susceptibility test was carried out towards fifteen antimicrobial agents by using Vitek2 system with Antimicrobial susceptibility test cards. The results of antibiogram showed that the local isolates were possess highly resistance towards most antimicrobial agents under study. The high resistance wastoAmpicillin while the low resistance was to Imipenem.Two methods were used for detection of Extended Spectrum Beta Lactamases (ESBLs) production; first methods by using of Vitek2 system,thesecondmethods by using of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique to dis