Hard-grade asphalt binders like AC20-30 typically exhibit excessive stiffness, reduced penetration, and compromised workability, necessitating modification before use in paving applications. This study evaluates the efficacy of regular polyalphaolefin (PAO), a synthetic olefin-based lubricant, as a performance-enhancing modifying agent for such binders. AC20-30 was blended with PAO at dosages ranging from 2 wt.% to 10 wt.%, and the modified binders were characterized via penetration, ductility, softening point, and rotational viscosity measurements, alongside advanced rheological and chemical-morphological analyses. Incorporating PAO in AC20-30 asphalt progressively reduced the binder stiffness and enhanced its flexibility, with all modifie

       In the current worldwide health crisis produced by coronavirus disease (COVID-19), researchers and medical specialists began looking for new ways to tackle the epidemic. According to recent studies, Machine Learning (ML) has been effectively deployed in the health sector. Medical imaging sources (radiography and computed tomography) have aided in the development of artificial intelligence(AI) strategies to tackle the coronavirus outbreak. As a result, a classical machine learning approach for coronavirus detection from      Computerized Tomography (CT) images was developed. In this study, the convolutional neural network (CNN) model for feature extraction and support vector machine (SVM) for the classification of axial

The relationship between government revenues and the fiscal balance represents a central pillar in the analysis of fiscal sustainability. However, its modeling faces a fundamental challenge in the form of structural uncertainty, which is not captured by point estimates in traditional models such as ARDL, as these models assume structural stability that is inconsistent with the nature of rentier economies. The current study aims to develop a fuzzy framework by constructing a Fuzzy Autoregressive Distributed Lag (FARDL) model. This is achieved through integrating the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) approach with fuzzy logic theory, thereby enabling the incorporation of uncertainty into the inherent structure of the economic rela

TWMS Journal of Applied and Engineering Mathematics | Volume: 16 Issue: 9

Random laser gain media is synthesized with different types of dye at the same concentration (1×10^-3 M) as an active material and silicon dioxide NPs (silica SiO₂) as scatter centers through the Sol-Gel technique. The prepared samples are tested with UV–Vis spectroscopy, Fluorescence Spectroscopy, Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM), and Energy Dispersive X-ray Diffraction (EDX). The end result demonstrates that doped dyes with silica nanoparticles at a concentration of 0.0016 mol/ml have lower absorbance and higher fluorescence spectra than pure dyes. FESEM scans revealed that the morphology of nanocrystalline silica is clusters of nano-sized spherical particles in the range (25-67) nm. It is con

            This study tests the effect of a large number of independent variables that control the growth of the total productivity, which amounted to 112 variables, gathered from what is mentioned in the specialized theoretical and applied literature. The data for these variables were taken from global reports of sound international organizations and reliable databases covering the period 1991-2016. The data of the dependent variable, the growth of the total factor productivity, were taken from the database of the world development indicators. The study covered 61 countries for which data were available. The study included three regression models to explain