In this paper, a shallow foundation (strip footing), 1 m in width is assumed to be constructed on fully saturated and partially saturated Iraqi soils, and analyzed by finite element method. A procedure is proposed to define the H – modulus function from the soil water characteristic curve which is measured by the filter paper method. Fitting methods are applied through the program (SoilVision). Then, the soil water characteristic curve is converted to relation correlating the void ratio and matric suction. The slope of the latter relation can be used to define the H – modulus function. The finite element programs SIGMA/W and SEEP/W are then used in the analysis. Eight nodded isoparametric quadrilateral elements are used for modeling

This paper presents the results of experimental investigations to predict the bearing capacity of square footing on geogrid-reinforced loose sand by performing model tests. The effects of several parameters were studied in order to study the general behavior of improving the soil by using the geogrid. These parameters include the eccentricity value, depth of first layer of reinforcement, and vertical spacing of reinforcement layers. The results of the experimental work indicated that there was an optimum reinforcement embedment depth at which the bearing capacity was the highest when single-layer reinforcement was used. The increase of (z/B) (vertical spacing of reinforcement layer/width of footing) above 1.5 has no effect on the re

An in-depth experimental study of the matrix effect of antifreeze (ethylene glycol) and water contamination of engine oil through FT-IR spectroscopy. With a comparison of the percent by volume concentration of contaminated fresh 15W-40 engine oil, there appeared to be a noticeable reduction in the O–H stretching signal in the infrared spectrum when ethylene glycol based antifreeze was included as a contaminant. The contaminants of distilled water, a 50/50 mixture of water and commercial ethylene glycol antifreeze, and straight ethylene glycol antifreeze were compared and a signal reduction in the O–H stretch was clearly evident when glycol was present. Doubling the volume of the 50/50 mixture as compared to water alone still res

Light is an important factor that influences the growth and photosynthetic efficiency of microalgae; however, little is known about how light intensity together with the wavelength affect the photosynthetic capacity and growth of marine microalgae. In the present study, the growth of the marine green microalga Dunaliella parva was studied and optimized under different light intensities (25 ~ 70 μmol m^-2 s^-1) and qualities (blue, green, and red) in comparison with white light at 40 μmol m^-2 s^-1 as a control. The growth was monitored by counting the cell number, pigment content, Chl a, Chl b, and carotenoids concentrations. The optimal growth and highest photosyntheti

This study used a continuous photo-Fenton-like method to remediate textile effluent containing azo dyes especially direct blue 15 dye (DB15). A Eucalyptus leaf extract was used to create iron/copper nanoparticles supported on bentonite for use as catalysts (E@B-Fe/Cu-NPs). Two fixed-bed configurations were studied and compared. The first one involved mixing granular bentonite with E@B-Fe/Cu-NPs (GB- E@B-Fe/Cu-NPs), and the other examined the mixing of E@B-Fe/Cu-NPs with glass beads (glass beads-E@B-Fe/Cu-NPs) and filled to the fixed-bed column. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), zeta potential, and atomic forces spectroscopy (AFM) techniques were used to characterize the obtained particles (NPs). The effect of flow rate and DB15 concent

In the present study, the growth and total lipid contents of two oleaginous fungal isolates Aspergillus terreus, Aspergillus fumigatus were compared in different nitrogen and organic carbon sources.  Artificially the fungi were cultured on media consisting of various mono- or di- or polysaccharides and  peptone or yeast extract as elementary sources for carbon and nitrogen, respectively. Media containing sucrose /yeast extract or glucose/ yeast extract were the most effective for lipid production from fungal, during  two weeks  incubation period, the highest biomass of dry weight was (19.6 , 18.8) g / L , (25.8 , 30.5) g /L  and  lipid yield (1, 0.97 )g/L, (0.65, 0.65) g/ L for two isolates Aspergillus terreus