Rutting is one of the major distresses in pavement. The objective of this paper is to develop an improved asphalt binder grading system for Iraq based on the principal of Superpave system, and increasing performance grade of product asphalt binder in Iraq using polymers without raising the viscosity of the binder. Two types of polymers are used, Plastomers, Functionalized Polyethylene (PE) which is developed by asphalt research group in Wisconsin University in the USA, and Elastomers, Styrene Butadiene Styrene (SBS) with and without cross linker. Mastercurve are drown for these modified binders, Rolling thin film aged, to show effects on rheological properties at high temperature for complex modulus (G*) and phase angle (δ). It concluded that 3.5% of Functionalized Polyethylene polymer (PE) is more effective than 4% of Styrene Butadiene Styrene (SBS) to shift up performance grade of local asphalt binder two grades to be PG (76-16). Furthermore, the viscosity of binders increasing about 200% when using 4 % SBS, while no significant effect on viscosity when using 3.5 % of PE, therefore, there is no need to increase temperature of mixing and compaction which may be effect on polymers In addition G*/sinδ is increased by a ratios of 1.6 to 2.96 for 2%, 4% respectively of SBS-based modifier (RTFO aged) and 1.4 to 3 for 2%, 3.5% respectively of PE-based polymers modifier. It can be seen that PE reduce G*.sinδ about 10%, while SBS increase G*.sinδ about 30% and PE reduces the stiffness of asphalt binder about 15 % at low temperature which make PE more effective, there is no significant effects on m-value.
This study involved the treatment of textile wastewater contaminated with direct blue 15 dye (DB15) using a heterogeneous photo-Fenton-like process. Bimetallic iron/copper nanoparticles loaded on bentonite clay were used as heterogeneous catalysts and prepared via liquid-phase reduction method using eucalyptus leaves extract (E-Fe/Cu@BNPs). Characterization methods were applied to resultant particles (NPs), including SEM, BET, and FTIR techniques. The prepared NPs were found with porous and spherical shapes with a specific surface area of particles was 28.589 m2/g. The effect of main parameters on the photo-Fenton-like degradation of DB15 was investigated through batch and continuous fixed-bed systems. In batch mode, pH, H2O2 dosage, DB15 c
... Show MoreThe beet armyworm (BAW), Spodoptera exigua (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) is a highly destructive pest of vegetables and field crops. Management of beet armyworm primarily relies on synthetic pesticides, which is threatening the beneficial community and environment. Most importantly, the BAW developed resistance to synthetic pesticides with making it difficult to manage. Therefore, alternative and environment-friendly pest management tactics are urgently required. The use of pesticidal plant extracts provides an effective way for a sustainable pest management program. To evaluate the use of pesticidal plant extracts against BAW, we selected six plant species (Lantana camara, Aloe vera, Azadirachta indica, Cymbopogon citratus, Nicotiana tabacum ,
... Show MoreLight soaking (LS) is widely employed to optimize CdTe-based solar cells, yet its microscopic origin remains controversial due to the entangled roles of illumination and thermal activation. Here, we establish a decoupled experimental strategy that independently disentangles light exposure and heating, revealing their fundamentally distinct and competing effects on defect dynamics in CdSeTe solar cells. Illumination alone induces a backward drift of acceptors under the light-enhanced built-in field, reducing apparent hole density and suppressing open-circuit voltage. In contrast, thermal activation promotes Cu redistribution toward the front junction and eliminates deep recombination centers, partially restoring device performance. Remarka
... Show MoreHeavy metal (HM) pollution has long been a significant source of environmental deterioration and a problem for the safety of food. Iraqis prefer rice over any other food, and since heavy metals have a direct impact on health, their traces in rice have drawn particular attention. Before cooking rice, it is usual in Iraq to wash and soak it. Some 55 varieties of imported and local rice were sampled from Erbil city markets in 2022 with the aim of determining the concentration of As, Cd, Cr, Ni and Pb before and after soaking. Standard procedure of acid digestions was applied on the raw and soaked samples. The solutions were analyzed using ICPE-9820 Shimadzu. The mean concentrations of As, Cd, Cr, Ni and Pb (in mg/kg) in the rice samples bef
... Show MoreMixed-effects conditional logistic regression is evidently more effective in the study of qualitative differences in longitudinal pollution data as well as their implications on heterogeneous subgroups. This study seeks that conditional logistic regression is a robust evaluation method for environmental studies, thru the analysis of environment pollution as a function of oil production and environmental factors. Consequently, it has been established theoretically that the primary objective of model selection in this research is to identify the candidate model that is optimal for the conditional design. The candidate model should achieve generalizability, goodness-of-fit, parsimony and establish equilibrium between bias and variab
... Show MoreThis paper studies the combination fluid viscous dampers in the outrigger system to add supplementary damping into the structure, which purpose to remove the dependability of the structure to lower variable intrinsic damping. It works by connecting the central core, comprising either shear walls or braced frames, to the outer perimeter columns.
The modal considered is a 36 storey square high rise reinforced concrete building. By constructing a discrete lumped mass model, and using frequency-based response function, two systems of dampers, parallel and series systems are studied. The maximum lateral load at the top of the building is calculated, and this load w
... Show MoreThe research aims to develop the general performance and improve the level of activity of private insurance companies in line with the current progress of the country. Besides, Evaluating financial performance to diagnose weaknesses and strengths in sample research companies and then developing appropriate solutions. The deviation in the financial performance of the research sample was revealed by measuring the various accounts of the company. The research sample included five companies in the private insurance sector listed in the Iraqi Stock Exchange Market, which represent the private insurance sector. The research concluded that the added economic value is a broad concept that goes beyond the traditional performance evaluation process a
... Show MoreBackground: As acetaminophen (APAP) toxicity has become more common in many countries, related cases of poisoning, whether deliberate or unintentional, have been identified as a key contributor to acute liver failure. Aime: To discover if omega-369 fatty acids could protect the liver of male mice from the effects of acetamiophen. Methods: Thirty-five albino male mice were allocated to one of five groups at random. Group 1 served as the "negative control" and received a single intraperitoneal injection (10 ml/kg) of normal saline on the eleventh day of the test following ten days of receiving liquid paraffin orally at a dose of 10 ml/kg. The liquid paraffin was given to group 2 "positive control". Group 3 received Omega 369 (50 mg/kg
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