The effect of considering the third dimension in mass concrete members on its cracking behavior is investigated in this study. The investigation includes thermal and structural analyses of mass concrete structures. From thermal analysis, the actual temperature distribution throughout the mass concrete body was obtained due to the generation of heat as a result of cement hydration in addition to the ambient circumstances. This was performed via solving the differential equations of heat conduction and convection using the finite element method. The finite element method was also implemented in the structural analysis adopting the concept of initial strain problem. Drying shrinkage volume changes were calculated using the procedure suggested by ACI Committee 209 and inverted to equivalent temperature differences to be added algebraically to the temperature differences obtained from thermal analysis. Willam-Warnke model with five strength parameters is used in modeling of concrete material in which cracking and crushing behavior of concrete can be included. The ANSYS program was employed in a modified manner to perform the above analyses. A thick concrete slab of 1.5m in thickness and 10m in length was analyzed for different widths 2, 4, 8, and 10m to produce different aspect ratios (B/L) of 0.2, 0.4, 0.8, and 1.0 respectively. The results of the analyses show an increase in cracking tendency of mass concrete member as the aspect ratio of the same member is increased due to the effect of transverse base restraint. Accordingly, such effect cannot be ignored in the analysis of base restrained mass concrete structures subjected to temperature and drying shrinkage volume changes.
Data steganography is a technique used to hide data, secret message, within another data, cover carrier. It is considered as a part of information security. Audio steganography is a type of data steganography, where the secret message is hidden in audio carrier. This paper proposes an efficient audio steganography method that uses LSB technique. The proposed method enhances steganography performance by exploiting all carrier samples and balancing between hiding capacity and distortion ratio. It suggests an adaptive number of hiding bits for each audio sample depending on the secret message size, the cover carrier size, and the signal to noise ratio (SNR). Comparison results show that the proposed method outperforms state of the art methods
... Show MoreData steganography is a technique used to hide data, secret message, within another data, cover carrier. It is considered as a part of information security. Audio steganography is a type of data steganography, where the secret message is hidden in audio carrier. This paper proposes an efficient audio steganography method that uses LSB technique. The proposed method enhances steganography performance by exploiting all carrier samples and balancing between hiding capacity and distortion ratio. It suggests an adaptive number of hiding bits for each audio sample depending on the secret message size, the cover carrier size, and the signal to noise ratio (SNR). Comparison results show that the proposed method outperforms state of the art methods
... Show MoreDue to the broad range uses of chromium for industrial purposes, besides its carcinogenic effect, an efficient, cost effective removal method should be obtained. In this study, cow bones as a cheap raw material were utilized to produce active carbon (CBAC) by physiochemical activation, which was characterized using: SEM to investigate surface morphology and BET to estimate the specific surface area. The best surface area of CBAC was 595.9 m2/gm which was prepared at 600 ᵒC activation temperature and impregnation ratio of 1:1.5. CBAC was used in aqueous chromium ions adsorption. The investigated factors and their ranges are: initial concentration (10-50 mg/L), adsorption time (30-300 min), temperature (20-50
... Show MoreThe presence of residual antibiotics in water results in the development of antibiotics resistant genes. The available wastewater treatment systems are not capable of removing such antibiotics from sewage. Thus, antibiotics need to be removed before the discharge of wastewater. Adsorption is among the promising techniques for the wastewater treatment to aid the removal of a wide range of organic and inorganic pollutants. The present work is a contribution to the search for an economical method for the removal of low concentrations of amoxicillin (AMX) from water by adsorption on water treatment residue, WTR, taken from a local drinking water facility. The chemical composition and the adsorptive characteristics of the material were first
... Show MoreBackground: Manuka honey (MH) is a mono-floral honey derived from the Manuka tree (Leptospermum scoparium). MH is a highly recognized for its non-peroxide antibacterial activities, which are mostly related to its unique methylglyoxal content (MGO) in MH. The beneficial phytochemicals in MH is directly related to their favorable health effects, which include wound healing, anticancer, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory properties. Aims: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of MH on pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-8 and TNF-α) in patients with gingivitis and compare it with chlorhexidine (CHX) and distilled water (DW). Materials and Methods: This study was a randomized, double blinded, and parallel clinical trial. Forty-fiv
... Show MoreSuicidal ideation is one of the most severe mental health issues faced by people all over the world. There are various risk factors involved that can lead to suicide. The most common & critical risk factors among them are depression, anxiety, social isolation and hopelessness. Early detection of these risk factors can help in preventing or reducing the number of suicides. Online social networking platforms like Twitter, Redditt and Facebook are becoming a new way for the people to express themselves freely without worrying about social stigma. This paper presents a methodology and experimentation using social media as a tool to analyse the suicidal ideation in a better way, thus helping in preventing the chances of being the victim o
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With the development of computer architecture and its technologies in recent years, applications like e-commerce, e-government, e-governance and e-finance are widely used, and they act as active research areas. In addition, in order to increase the quality and quantity of the ordinary everyday transactions, it is desired to migrate from the paper-based environment to a digital-based computerized environment. Such migration increases efficiency, saves time, eliminates paperwork, increases safety and reduces the cost in an organization. Digital signatures are playing an essential role in many electronic and automatic based systems and facilitate this migration. The digital signatures are used to provide many services and s
... Show MoreP. aeruginosa is a famous bacterium that causes several diseases and has a high ability to be a multidrug resistant organism that is linked with the formation of biofilm. This study aimed to investigate tssC1 gene role in the resistance of different antibiotics in the presence of biofilm. We constructed biofilm for the isolates under the study and showed the effect of different antibiotics on biofilm formation and maturation. The presence of the gene was detected through achieving PCR reaction. Finally, tssC1 gene variation was determined through sequencing and aligning the sequencing products. The results showed that most of the isolates (80%) formed biofilm that played a role in the resistance of different antibiotics which could
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