This study expands the state of the art in studies that assess torsional retrofit of reinforced concrete (RC) multi-cell box girders with carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) strips. The torsional behavior of non-damaged and pre-damaged RC multi-cell box girder specimens externally retrofitted by CFRP strips was investigated through a series of laboratory experiments. It was found that retrofitting the pre-damaged specimens with CFRP strips increased the ultimate torsional capacity by more than 50% as compared to the un-damaged specimens subjected to equivalent retrofitting. This indicated that the retrofit has been less effective for the girder specimen that did not develop distortion beforehand as a result of pre-loading. From

Inherent fluctuations in the availability of energy from renewables, particularly solar, remain a substantial impediment to their widespread deployment worldwide. Employing phase-change materials (PCMs) as media, saving energy for later consumption, offers a promising solution for overcoming the problem. However, the heat conductivities of most PCMs are limited, which severely limits the energy storage potential of these materials. This study suggests employing circular fins with staggered distribution to achieve improved thermal response rates of PCM in a vertical triple-tube heat exchanger involving two opposite flow streams of the heat-transfer fluid (HTF). Since heat diffusion is not the same at various portions of the PCM unit,

Steel-concrete-steel (SCS) structural element solutions are rising due to their advantages over conventional reinforced concrete in terms of cost and strength. The impact of SCS sections with various core materials on the structural performance of composites has not yet been fully explored experimentally, and in this work, both slag and polypropylene fibers were incorporated in producing eco-friendly steel-concrete-steel composite sections. This study examined the ductility, ultimate strength, failure modes, and energy absorption capacities of steel-concrete-steel filled with eco-friendly concrete, enhanced by polypropylene fiber (PPF) to understand its impact on modern structural projects. Eco-friendly concrete was produced by the partial

Background: Speckle tracking echocardiography (STE)-derived mitral annular displacement (MAD) utilizes the speckle tracking technique to measure strain vectors, which provides accurate estimates of left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF).Objectives: To validate the accuracy of mitral annular displacement (MAD), assessed by Speckle Tracking Echocardiography (STE), as a surrogate for determination of left ventricular systolic function in comparison to 2-Dimensions Simpson method in patients with different heart diseases.Methods : This cross-sectional study included patients who referred to outpatient department of Ibn Albitar Center for Cardiac Surgery, Baghdad, Iraq, between October 2012 and April 2013. STE continuously tracked annular

Aromaticity, antiaromaticity and chemical bonding in the ground (S0), first singlet excited (S1) and lowest triplet (T1) electronic states of disulfur dinitride, S2N2, were investigated by analysing the isotropic magnetic shielding, σiso(r), in the space surrounding the molecule for each electronic state. The σiso(r) values were calculated by state-optimized CASSCF/cc-pVTZ wave functions with 22 electrons in 16 orbitals constructed from gauge-including atomic orbitals (GIAOs). The S1 and T1 electronic states were confirmed as 11Au and 13B3u, respectively, through linear response CC3/aug-cc-pVTZ calculations of the vertical excitation energies for eight singlet (S1–S8) and eight triplet (T1–T8) electronic states. The aromaticities of S

The use of medicinal plants in the treatment of harmful impacts of xenobiotics in animals is attracting an increasing attention in recent times. The aim of the current study is to assess the preventive potential of Costus afer aqueous leaves extract (CAAE) in treating metabolic aberrations imposed by crude oil contaminated diet in
Wistar albino rats. Six groups of rats were treated as follows: A = Normal diet; B=Normal diet + 100 mg/kg body weight of CAAE; C =Normal diet + 200 mg/kg body weight of CAAE; D= Crude oil contaminated diet; E= crude oil contaminated diet + 100 mg/kg body weight of CAAE, F = crude oil contaminated diet + 200 mg/kg body weight of CAAE. After thirty days of exposure to the diet and administration of the corres

This research aims to study the target costing and value chain with their complimentary relationship in reducing product costs, meeting the needs of customer, and achieving strategic competitive advantage for manufacturing corporations in response to face international competition, technological development and continuous changing expectations of customers.    No doubt, the target costing and value chain both currently occupy a great deal of the attention of managers and accountants at the manufacturing corporations due to the significance to insure their continuity, growth and development. This significance has been the main motive to examine the role of target costing and value chain in a sample of public corporations of the

Isolation and identification of bacterial isolates were carried out according to the morphology and biochemical characteristics on one hundred and twenty stool specimens collected from children under five years old via using biochemical tests and Api 20E compact system for further confirmation. Bacterial isolates were distributed as (34.48, 20.68, 5.17,0.86) % for Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhi ,Enterobacter aerogenos, Citrobacter freundii and Hafnia alvei respectively and 9.48 % for each Proteus mirabilis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Klebsiella Pneumonia. As well as, 2.58% for both Shigella sonnei and Serratia marcescens. Antibiotic susceptibility test for 116 bacterial isolates was performed towards 20 antibiotics types using disk d

              The research aims to determine the role of green human resource management dimensions of (employment Green, training and development, green, performance evaluation Green, compensation and green bonuses) in the performance leadership of the organization dimensions of (advance planning, efficiency, effectiveness, index pioneering, renovation and modernization), Search of paramount importance because it addresses an important and modern issue in performance leadership, namely green management of human resources, aware of the importance of the subject and expected results of the company under study, an analysis of the data obtained through field visits in