Concrete structures are exposed to aggressive environmental conditions that lead to corrosion of the embedded reinforcement and pre-stressing steel. Consequently, the safety of concrete structures may be compromised, and this requires a significant budgets to repair and maintain critical infrastructure. Prediction of structural safety can lead to significant reductions in maintenance costs by maximizing the impact of investments. The aim of this paper is to establish a framework to assess the reliability of existing post-tensioned concrete bridges. A time-dependent reliability analysis of an existing post-tensioned involving the assessment of Ynys-y-Gwas bridge has been presented in this study. The main cause of failure of this bridge was corrosion of tendons, making it a relevant case study to evaluate the effect of corrosion on bridge safety. Uncertainties associated with material properties, geometry, loads and corrosion parameters are taken into account. The probabilistic models of the uncertainties are combined with a non-linear finite element analysis to study the effect of tendons pitting corrosion on the post-tensioned concrete bridge. The limit state function considered is flexural strength. The Monte-Carlo simulation (MCS) method is used to compute the statistical parameters of the resisting bending moment through a MATLAB code running ABAQUS. It was found that the reliability index for the first year of bridge service life is below the minimum value acceptable for structures. The study confirmed that this bridge was a high risk structure due to its design and location. The proposed framework can be used by engineers and researchers as a tool to support decision for segmental post-tensioned (PT) bridges maintenance since they need for a regular inspection due to their risk to corrosion.
One of the important units in Sharq Dijla Water Treatment Plant (WTP) first and second extensions are the alum solution preparation and dosing unit. The existing operation of this unit accomplished manually starting from unloading the powder alum in the preparation basin and ending by controlling the alum dosage addition through the dosing pumps to the flash mix chambers. Because of the modern trend of monitoring and control the automatic operation of WTPs due to the great benefits that could be gain from optimum equipment operation, reducing the operating costs and human errors. This study deals with how to transform the conventional operation to an automatic monitoring and controlling system depending on a Programmable
... Show MoreCR-39 is a solid state nuclear track detector (SSNTD) that has been used in many research areas. In spite of the assumption that the CR-39 detectors are insensitive to beta and gamma rays, irradiation with these rays can have significant effects on the detector properties. In this study, beta and gamma rays mass attenuation coefficients μ/ρ (cm2 g-1) for the CR-39 detector have been measured using NaI(Tl) scintillation spectrometer along with a standard geometrical arrangement in the energy region of (0.546-2.274) MeV beta rays and standard gamma sources having energy 0.356, 0.5697, 0.6617 and 1.063 MeV. The total atomic cross-section (σtot), total electronic cross-section (σT E) and the effective atomic number (Zeff) of gamma rays a
... Show MoreThis investigation integrates experimental and numerical approaches to study a novel solar air heater aimed at achieving an efficient design for a solar collector suitable for drying applications under the meteorological conditions of Iraq. The importance of this investigation stems from the lack of optimal exploitation of solar energy reaching the solar collector, primarily attributable to elevated thermal losses despite numerous designs employed in such solar systems. Consequently, enhancing the thermal performance of solar collectors, particularly those employed in crop drying applications, stands as a crucial focal point for researchers within this domain. Two identical double-pass solar air heaters were designed and constructed for
... Show MoreBipedal robotic mechanisms are unstable due to the unilateral contact passive joint between the sole and the ground. Hierarchical control layers are crucial for creating walking patterns, stabilizing locomotion, and ensuring correct angular trajectories for bipedal joints due to the system’s various degrees of freedom. This work provides a hierarchical control scheme for a bipedal robot that focuses on balance (stabilization) and low-level tracking control while considering flexible joints. The stabilization control method uses the Newton–Euler formulation to establish a mathematical relationship between the zero-moment point (ZMP) and the center of mass (COM), resulting in highly nonlinear and coupled dynamic equations. Adaptiv
... Show MoreExperiments research is done to determine how saturated stiff clayey soil responds to a single impulsive load. Models made of saturated, stiff clay were investigated. To supply the single pulse energy, various falling weights from various heights were tested using the falling weight deflectometer (FWD). Dynamic effects can range from the major failure of a sensitive sensor or system to the apparent destruction of structures. This study examines the response of saturated stiff clay soil to a single impulsive load (vertical displacement at the soil surface below and beside the bearing plates). Such reactions consist of displacements, velocities, and accelerations caused by the impact occurring at the surface depth induced by the impact loads
... Show MoreObjective(s): The study aims at evaluating pregnancy-related health behaviors for pregnant women, and to identify the association between pregnancy-related health behaviors and their demographic characteristics of pregnant woman’s age, education, employment, residential area and monthly income.
Methodology: A descriptive study is carried out for the period from December 14th, 2020 to June 20th, 2021. This study was conducted through a non-probability (convenience) sample of 150 pregnant women attending, Abo Ghareeb primary health care sector in Abo Ghareeb spend. The sample has been collected by using the instrument to gather data and accomplish the study's objectives. A questionnaire is composed of (29) items and it is divided into
Abstract:
Objective: To self-evaluate the effect of SBAR (Situation, Background, Assessment, and Recommendation) educational program on nurse and midwives practices in maternal health report documentation accuracy.
Methods: A quasi- experimental design was carried with the application of pre- post test for nurses and midwives’ knowledge and practices regarding SBAR communication tool. The study was held in Al-Elwia maternity teaching hospital, Al –Karckh maternity hospital and Al-Yarmouk teaching Hospital. purposive sample as it was convenient with inclusion criteria consisted of (84) nurse and midwives. The questionnaire comprised of demographic data, nurses- midwives practices of SBAR using (5) level Likert scale for assessme
We aimed to obtain magnesium/iron (Mg/Fe)-layered double hydroxides (LDHs) nanoparticles-immobilized on waste foundry sand-a byproduct of the metal casting industry. XRD and FT-IR tests were applied to characterize the prepared sorbent. The results revealed that a new peak reflected LDHs nanoparticles. In addition, SEM-EDS mapping confirmed that the coating process was appropriate. Sorption tests for the interaction of this sorbent with an aqueous solution contaminated with Congo red dye revealed the efficacy of this material where the maximum adsorption capacity reached approximately 9127.08 mg/g. The pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order kinetic models helped to describe the sorption measure