The objective of this research work is to evaluate the quality of central concrete plant of Al-Rasheed Company by using Six Sigma approach which is a measure of quality that strives for near elimination of defects using the statistical methods to improve outputs that are critical to customers. The fundamental objective of Six Sigma methodology is the implementation of a measurement-based strategy that focuses on process improvement and variation reduction to reach delighting customers, and then suggesting an improvement system to improve the production of concrete in Al-Rasheed State Contracting Construction Company.
A field survey includes two parts (open and close questionnaire) that aimed to get the data and information required f

The use of blended cement in concrete provides economic, energy savings, and ecological benefits, and also provides. Improvement in the properties of materials incorporating blended cements. The major aim of this investigation is to develop blended cement technology using grinded local rocks . The research includes information on constituent materials, manufacturing processes and performance characteristics of blended cements made with replacement (10 and 20) % of grinded local rocks (limestone, quartzite and porcelinite) from cement. The main conclusion of this study was that all types of manufactured blended cement conformed to the specification according to ASTM C595-12 (chemical and physical requirements). The percentage of the compress

Rapid worldwide urbanization and drastic population growth have increased the demand for new road construction, which will cause a substantial amount of natural resources such as aggregates to be consumed. The use of recycled concrete aggregate could be one of the possible ways to offset the aggregate shortage problem and reduce environmental pollution. This paper reports an experimental study of unbound granular material using recycled concrete aggregate for pavement subbase construction. Five percentages of recycled concrete aggregate obtained from two different sources with an originally designed compressive strength of 20–30 MPa as well as 31–40 MPa at three particle size levels, i.e., coarse, fine, and extra fine, were test

This research is carried out to study the effect of the external post-tensioning technique on the flexural capacity of simply supported composite castellated beam experimentally. In this research, seven composite castellated beams having the same dimensions and material properties were cast and tested up to failure by applied two concentrated loads at 700 mm from each end. Two external strands of 12.7 mm diameter were fixed at each side of the web of strengthening beams and located at depth 180 mm from top fiber of the section (dps) at each end of the beam. The strands have been tensioned by using a hydraulic jack with a constant stress of 100 MPa. This research aims to study the effect of the strengthening by different shapes of st

In this research, a novel thin film Si-GO10 and nanopowders Si-GO30 of silica-graphene oxide (GO) composite were prepared via the sol–gel method and deposited on glass substrates using spray pyrolysis. X-ray diffraction (XRD) results showed a relatively strong peak in the graphite layer that corresponds to the (002) plane. Transmission electron microscope (TEM) images showed that SiO₂ nanoparticles were randomly distributed on the surface of GO plates, and the particle size in these nanopowders was below 50 nm. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) analysis demonstrated that silica nanoparticles on the surface of GO plates exhibited almost spherical and rod-like nanoparticle shape, which in tur

Unsaturated polyester was used as a matrix which was filled with different percentages of cobalt ferrite using hand lay-up method. Cobalt ferrite was synthesized using solid state ceramic method with reagent of CoO and Fe2O3. Mechanical properties such tensile strength, Young's modulus and shore D hardness of the composite have been studied. All these properties have increased by 10% with increasing cobalt ferrite contents. Also the thermal properties such thermal conductivity and specific heat capacity are highly increased as the ferrite content increased, while the thermal diffusivity increased by 22 %. On the other hand dielectric strength of composite has been measured which increased by 50% by increasing the cobalt ferrite content.&

In this research, a novel thin film Si-GO10 and nanopowders Si-GO30 of silica-graphene oxide (GO) composite were prepared via the sol–gel method and deposited on glass substrates using spray pyrolysis. X-ray diffraction (XRD) results showed a relatively strong peak in the graphite layer that corresponds to the (002) plane. Transmission electron microscope (TEM) images showed that SiO2 nanoparticles were randomly distributed on the surface of GO plates, and the particle size in these nanopowders was below 50 nm. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) analysis demonstrated that silica nanoparticles on the surface of GO plates exhibited almost spherical and rod-like nanoparticle shape, which in turn confirmed the formation of Si

In the current work various types of epoxy composites were added to concrete to enhance its effectiveness as a gamma- ray shield. Four epoxy samples of (E/clay/B4C) S1, (E/Mag/B4C) S2, (EPIL) S3 and (Ep) S4 were used in a comparative study of gamma radiation attenuation properties of these shields that calculating using Mont Carlo code (MCNP-5). Adopting Win X-com software and Artificial Neural Network (ANN), µ/ρ revealed great compliance with MCNP-5. By applying (µ/ρ) output for gamma at different energies, HVL, TVL and MFP have been also estimated. ANN technique was simulated to estimate (µ/ρ) and dose rates. According to the results, µ/ρ of all epoxy samples scored higher than standard concrete. Both S2 and S3 samples having h

Engineered geopolymer composite (EGC) is a high-performance material with enhanced mechanical and durability capabilities. Ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS) and silica fume (SF) are common binder materials in producing EGC. However, due to the scarcity and high cost of these materials in some countries, sustainable alternatives are needed. This research focused on producing eco-friendly EGC made of cheaper and more common pozzolanic waste materials that are rich in aluminum and silicon. Rice husk ash (RHA), granite waste powder (GWP), and volcanic pumice powder (VPP) were used as partial substitutions (10–50%) of GGBFS in EGC. The effects of these wastes on workability, unit weight, compressive strength, tensile strengt