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.
Roller Compacted Concrete (RCC) is a technology characterized mainly by the use of rollers for compaction; this technology achieves significant time and cost savings in the construction of dams and roads. The primary scope of this research is to study the durability and performance of roller compacted concrete that was constructed in the laboratory using roller compactor manufactured in local market. A total of (60) slab specimen of (38×38×10) cm was constructed using the roller device, cured for 28 days, then 180 sawed cubes and 180 beams are obtained from RCC slab. Then, the specimens are subjected to 60 cycles of freezing and thawing, sulfate attack test and wetting and drying. The degree of effect of the type of coarse aggregate (c
... Show MoreThe present research was conducted to synthesis Y-Zeolite by sol-gel technique using MWCNT (multiwalled carbon nanotubes) as crystallization medium to get a narrow range of particle size distribution with small average size compared with ordinary methods. The phase pattern, chemical structure, particle size, and surface area were detected by XRD, FTIR, BET and AFM, respectively. Results shown that the average size of Zeolite with and without using MWCNT were (92.39) nm and (55.17) nm respectively .Particle size range reduced from (150-55) nm to (130-30) nm. The surface area enhanced to be (558) m2/g with slightly large pore volume (0.231) km3/g was obtained. Meanwhile, degree of crystallization decrease
... Show MoreBackground: Rehabilitation of the carious tooth to establish tooth structure integrity required cavity design that show a benign stress distribution. The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of the cavity position on the stress values in the reamining tooth structure restored with amalgam or resin composite. Materials and methods: Seven 2-D models of maxillary first premolar include class I cavity design was prepared, one sound tooth (A) 3 composite (B1, B2, and B3) and 3 amalgam (C1, C2, and C3). In design (BI and C1) the cavity position is in the mid distance between bacc-lingual cusp tip, design (B2 and C2) and (B3 and C3) shifted toward the buccal cusp and the lingual cusp for 0.5 mm respectively. One hundred N vertical
... Show MoreIn general, the importance of cluster analysis is that one can evaluate elements by clustering multiple homogeneous data; the main objective of this analysis is to collect the elements of a single, homogeneous group into different divisions, depending on many variables. This method of analysis is used to reduce data, generate hypotheses and test them, as well as predict and match models. The research aims to evaluate the fuzzy cluster analysis, which is a special case of cluster analysis, as well as to compare the two methods—classical and fuzzy cluster analysis. The research topic has been allocated to the government and private hospitals. The sampling for this research was comprised of 288 patients being treated in 10 hospitals. As t
... Show MoreNewspaper headlines are described as compressed and ambiguous pieces of discourse that represent the bodies of the articles. Their main function is to provide the readers with an informative message they would have no prior idea about. Ifantidou (2009) claims that the function of a headline is to get the readers’ attention rather than providing information because it does not have to represent the whole of the article it refers to. This paper aims at examining this hypothesis in relation to scientific news headlines reported by a number of news agencies. The paper follows Halliday (1967) information structure theory by applying it on ten selected headlines; each two headlines represent one scientific discovery reported by different new
... Show MoreCleaning is one of the services provided by the state and its ad hoc institutions. Every developed country is clean due to the good planning and attention given to the staff of all municipalities and service institutions. Beside, the attention paid to this sector is considered one of the windows to maintain the states’ aesthetics. If janirtos stop disposing of all the discarded wastes, the result will be having big piles of waste, affecting accordingly the health and safety of its citizens and the aesthetics of the areas. The janitors and those responsible for them are tha staff that the state must take care of because of their importance to the state in general and to the province in particular. The importance of the research
... Show MoreVitamin D receptor (VDR) is a nuclear transcription factor that controls gene expression. Its impaired expression was found to be related to different diseases. VDR also acts as a regulator of different pathways including differentiation, inflammation, calcium and phosphate absorption, etc. but there is no sufficient knowledge about the regulation of the gene itself. Therefore, a better understanding of the genetic and epigenetic factors regulating the VDR may facilitate the improvement of strategies for the prevention and treatment of diseases associated with dysregulation of VDR. In the present investigation, a set of databases and methods were used to identify putative functional elements in the VDR locus. Histone modifications, CpG I
... Show MoreIn this study, a Hydroxyapatite (HA) coating was prepared on a titanium implant by an electrochemical deposition process. The titanium pre-treatment by anodizing in 1.65 mol/L sulfuric acid with (10V) at room temperature. The deposition was all conducted at a constant voltage of 6.0 V, for 1 h at room temperature. The coatings thus prepared were characterized with Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and thickness of the coated layer.The electrochemical deposition of HA occurred on the titanium as a cathode. Coated titanium by HA after anodizing revealed a good corrosion protection efficiency even at a temperature ranged (293-323) K in artificial saliva. Activation energy and pre-exponential factor (kinetic parameters) were calcul
... Show MoreBackground: with the advent of new postmaterial in dentistry, it has become important to measure fitness of post restoration along the horizontal plane of the root space.This study aimed to measure and compare, the cement film thickness of conventional zinc phosphate cement in micrometer between the post and root dentin along horizontal plane at different post space regions (coronal, middle and apical) of four types of posts, by using stereomicroscopy. Material and methods: Thirty-two extracted human maxillary canines, mandibular canines and maxillary central incisors (n=32) were instrumented with ProTaper system files (hand use) and obturated with gutta-percha for ProTaper and AH26® root canal sealer. After 24hrs of incubation at 37ºC, p
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