Flexible pavements are subjected to three main distress types: fatigue crack, thermal crack, and permanent deformation. Under severe climate conditions, thermal cracking particularly contributes largely to a considerable scale of premature deterioration of pavement infrastructure worldwide. This challenge is especially relevant for Europe, as weather conditions vary significantly throughout the year. Hydrated lime (HL) has been recognized as an effective additive to improve the mechanical properties of asphalt concrete for pavement applications. Previous research has found that a replacement of conventional limestone dust filler using hydrated lime at 2.5% of the total weight of aggregates generated an optimum improvement in the mechanical properties of the asphalt concrete mixes used for all three purposed layers (i.e., wearing, levelling, and base) at atmospheric temperatures from mild to relatively high. This paper reports on a continuous experimental test for the thermal properties of the optimized hydrated lime-modified mixes. The experiment together with that conducted before provides the required data to characterize the thermomechanical constitutive relations of the optimized hydrated lime-modified mixes. The obtained thermal and mechanical properties thereafter were implemented in a numerical modelling study for a scenario involving pavement exposed to coupled thermal and traffic service conditions. The study has demonstrated that using HL in mineral filler enhances the thermal properties of asphalt concrete, which, however, showed little influence on the local temperature profiles within the pavement structure. The thermal effect is pronounced under the coupled thermomechanical conditions for a pavement exposed to both traffic and climatic impacts. The HL pavement has about 1.5% less deformation, and 39% less stress level under traffic loading only, but the thermal effect increases the maximum total internal tensile stress level by 26% in the HL pavement in winter season. The modelling analysis has shown that the local maximum tensile stress dominates in the surface region of the HL pavement. It will help to reduce the workload of crack repairing and in long term help on saving costs and efforts of maintenance.
Authors in this work design efficient neural networks, which are based on the modified Levenberg - Marquardt (LM) training algorithms to solve non-linear fourth - order three -dimensional partial differential equations in the two kinds in the periodic and in the non-periodic - Periodic. Software reliability growth models are essential tools for monitoring and evaluating the evolution of software reliability. Software defect detection events that occur during testing and operation are often treated as counting processes in many current models. However, when working with large software systems, the error detection process should be viewed as a random process with a continuous state space, since the number of faults found during testin
... Show MoreThis paper studied the behaviour of reinforced reactive powder concrete (RPC) two-way slabs under static load. The experimental program included testing three simply supported slabs of 1000 mm length, 1000 mm width, and 70 mm thickness. Tested specimens were of identical properties except their steel fibers volume ratio (0.5 %, 1 %, and 1.5 %). Static test results revealed that, increasing steel fibers volume ratio from 0.5% to 1% and from 1% to 1.5%, led to an increase in: first crack load by (32.2 % and 52.3 %), ultimate load by (36.1 % and 17.0 %), ultimate deflection by (33.6 % and 3.4 %), absorbed energy by (128 % and 20.2 %), and the ultimate strain by (1.1 % and 6.73 %). The stiffness and ductility of the specimens also increased. A
... Show MoreIn this work, varying compositions of SiO2 micro filler were added
with the Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) and samples have been prepared
using film casting technique. The results have been analyzed and
compared for PVC samples with (1 wt%, 3 wt%, 5 wt% and 10 wt%)
SiO2 micro filler. Mechanical characteristics such as tensile strength,
elongation at break and Young`s modulus were measured for all the
samples, where the tensile strength was increased from 8.39 Mpa for
purified PVC to 16 Mpa for 3% SiO2/PVC composite. Also, thermal
conductivity measurement values illustrated that composite materials
have a good thermal insulation at 10 wt. %, thermal conductivity was
decreased from 0.1684 W/m.
Background: Poly (methylmethacrylate) is the most widely used material in denture fabrication. The characteristics of acrylic resin which support microorganism development can threaten the oral health of denture users. This study was assigned to prepareand incorporate Ag-Zn zeolite powder into heat cured denture base material as antimicrobial material and to investigate its effect on some properties of heat cured acrylic denture base materials. Materials and methods: Sliver –zinc zeolite was prepared by ion exchange method and characterized then incorporated into poly (methylmethacrylate) powder in0.5% by weight. Specimens were constructed and divided into 6 groups according to the using tests; each group was subdivided into 2 groups
... Show MoreThe collected premiums and the compensations paid are among the main variables that have a prominent role in determining the level of financial solvency of insurance companies, as the higher the financial solvency of the insurance company, the more attractive it is to the target audience to acquire the company's insurance services.
Hence the importance of the issue of the solvency of insurance companies, as it is one of the critical matters on which the effectiveness of the insurance company and its continuation in the labor market depend.
In this research, we try to clarify the role of collected premiums and compensations paid in determining the level of operational solvency of t
... Show MoreThis research presents experimental and theoretical investigation of 15 reinforced concrete spliced and nonspliced girder models. Splices of hooked dowels and cast in place joints, with or without strengthening steel plates were used. Post-tensioning had been used to enhance the splice strength for some spliced girders. The ANSYS computer program was used for analyzing the spliced and non-spliced girders. A nonlinear three dimensional element was used to represent all test girders. The experimental results have shown that for a single span girder using steel plate connectors in the splice zone has given a sufficient continuity to resist flexural stresses in this region. The experimental results have shown that the deflection of hooked do
... Show MoreThe annual performance of a hybrid system of a flat plate photovoltaic thermal system and a solar thermal collector (PVT/ST) is numerically analyzed from the energy, exergy, and environmental (CO2 reduction) viewpoints. This system can produce electricity and thermal power simultaneously, with higher thermal power and exergy compared to conventional photovoltaic thermal systems. For this purpose, a 3D transient numerical model is developed for investigating the system's performance in four main steps: (1) investigating the effects of the mass flow rate of the working fluid (20 to 50 kg/h) on the temperature behavior and thermodynamic performance of the system, (2) studying the impacts of using glass covers on the different parts of the s
... Show MoreThe annealing temperature (200–500 °C) effects of optical frequency response on the dielectric functions of sol–gel derived CuCoO
This research aims to measure the productivity of nursing services and recognize the reality of providing such services in some public hospitals in the province of Diyala, as well as identify the most important factors affecting the productivity of nursing services, and developer measure adopted by the researcher (Kien, 2012), which includes seven factors (workforce , management team, stimulation, pressure of working hours (time), material / equipment, supervision, safety), Used the experimental method in the search, one of the private scientific research curriculum depends primarily on the scientific experiment and study of the subject, or a scientific phenomenon, which provides an opportunity to learn the facts
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