Laboratory experience in Iraq with cold asphalt concrete mixtures is very limited. The design and use of cold mixed asphalt concrete had no technical requirements. In this study, two asphalt concrete mixtures used for the base course were prepared in the laboratory using conventional cold-mixing techniques to test cold asphalt mixture (CAM) against aging and moisture susceptibility. Cold asphalt mixtures specimens have been prepared in the lab with cutback and emulsion binders, different fillers, and curing times. Based on the Marshal test result, the cutback proportion was selected with the filler, also based on the Marshal test emulsion. The first mixture was medium setting cationic emulsion (MSCE) as a binder, hydrate
... Show MoreA new bio-electrochemical system was proposed for simultaneous removal of organic matters and salinity from actual domestic wastewater and synthetically prepared saline water, respectively. The performance of a three-chambered microbial osmotic fuel cell (MOFC) provided with forward osmosis (FO) membrane and cation exchange membrane (CEM) was evaluated with respect to the chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal from wastewater, electricity generation, and desalination of saline water. The MOFC wasinoculated with activated sludge and fueled with actual domestic wastewater. Results revealed that maximum removal efficiency of COD from wastewater, TDS removal efficiency from saline water, power density, and current density were
... Show MoreExcessive intake of fluoride, mainly through drinking water is a serious health hazard affecting humans worldwide. In this study, the defluoridation capacities of locally available raw waste beef bones have been estimated. Several experimental parameters including contact time, pH, bone dose, fluoride initial concentration, bone grains size, agitation rate, and the effect of co-existence of anions in actual samples of wastewater were studied for fluoride removal from aqueous solutions. Results indicated excellent fluoride removal effeciency up to 99.7% at fluoride initial concentration of 10 mg F/L and 120 min contact time. Maximum fluoride uptake was obtained at neutral pH range 6-7. Fluoride removal kinetic was well described by the ps
... Show MoreA series of laboratory model tests has been carried out to investigate the using of pomegranate sticks mat as reinforcement to increase the bearing capacity of footing on loose sand. The influence of depth and length of pomegranate sticks layer was examined. In the present research single layer of pomegranate sticks reinforcement was used to strengthen the loose sand stratum beneath the strip footing. The dimensions of the used foundation were 4*20 cm. The reinforcement layer has been embedded at depth 2, 4 and 8 cm under surcharge stresses . Reinforcing layer with length of 8 and 16 cm were used. The final model test results indicated that the inclusion of pomegranate sticks reinforcement is very effective in improvement the loading cap
... Show MoreThe best design of subsurface trickle irrigation systems requires knowledge of water and salt distribution patterns around the emitters that match the root extraction and minimize water losses. The transient distribution of water and salt in a two-dimensional homogeneous Iraqi soil domain under subsurface trickle irrigation with different settings of an emitter is investigated numerically using 2D-HYDRUS software. Three types of Iraqi soil were selected. The effect of altering different values of water application rate and initial soil water content was investigated in the developed model. The coefficient of correlation (R2) and the root-mean-square error (RMSE) was used to validate the predicted numerical res
... Show MoreAl-Si alloys which are widely used in engineering applications due to their outstanding properties can be modified for more enhancements in their properties. Current work investigated the ability of these alloys to be modified by casting them through the addition of nanoparticles. So, Multi-wall carbon nanotubes (CNT) and titanium carbide ceramic particles (TIC) with size of (20 nm) were added with different amounts started from (0.5 up to 3%) weight to cast alloy A356 that was considered to be the base metal matrix, then stirred with different speeds of (270, 800, 1500, 2150) rpm at 520 °C for one minute. The results showed change in microstructure’ shape of the casted alloys from the dendritic to spherical gra
... Show MoreThe removal of heavy metal ions from wastewater by sorptive flotation using Amberlite IR120 as a resin, and flotation column, was investigated. A combined two-stage process is proposed as an alternative of the heavy metals removal from aqueous solutions. The first stage is the sorption of heavy metals onto Amberlite IR120 followed by dispersed-air flotation. The sorption of metal ions on the resin, depending on contact time, pH, resin dosage, and initial metal concentration was studied in batch method .Various parameters such as pH, air flow rate, and surfactant concentration were investigated in the flotation stage. Sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) and Hexadecyltrimethyl ammonium bromide (HTAB) were used as anionic and cationic surfactant re
... Show MoreGlobal Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) is considered to be one of the most crucial tools for different applications, i.e. transportation, geographic information systems, mobile satellite communications, and others. Without a doubt, the GNSS has been widely employed for different scientific applications, such as land surveying, mapping, and precise monitoring for huge structures, etc. Thus, an intense competitive has appeared between companies which produce geodetic GNSS hardware devices to meet all the requirements of GNSS communities. This study aims to assess the performance of different GNSS receivers to provide reliable positions. In this study, three different receivers, which are produced by different manufactur
... Show MoreNew technologies have risen into popularity causing the Liquid membrane techniques to evolve over other separation techniques due to its high selectivity and recovery, increased fluxes, and reduced investment and operating cost. This work focuses on extracting Methylene Blue (MB), a cationic dye using a simple BLM separation technique from its aqueous phase. It combines extraction and stripping in a single unit operation. The feed phase was an aqueous solution of MB, the solvent chosen was soybean oil for the liquid/organic membrane phase, and tri-octyl amine acted as a carrier. The strip phase was a hydrochloric acid solution for this study. A two-phase equilibrium study was done to choose the correct solvent, carrier,
... Show MoreThe In this experimental study, natural stone powder was utilized to improve a cohesive soil’s compaction and strength properties. According to the significant availability of limestone in the globe, it has been chosen for the purpose of the study, in addition to considering the existing rock industry massive waste. Stone powder was used in percentages of 4, 8, 12, 16% replaced from the soil weight in dry state. Some of cohesive soil’s consistency, shear, and compaction properties were depicted after improvement. The outcomes yielded in significant amendments in the experimented geotechnical properties after stone powder addition considering 60 days curing period. Cohesion and friction angle were notably increased by
... Show MoreGeotechnical engineering like any other engineering field has to develop and cope with new technologies. This article intends to investigate the spatial relationships between soil’s liquid limit (LL), plasticity index (PI) and Liquidity index (LI) for particular zones of Sulaymaniyah City. The main objective is to study the ability to produce digital soil maps for the study area and determine regions of high expansive soil. Inverse Distance Weighting (IDW) interpolation tool within the GIS (Geographic Information System) program was used to produce the maps. Data from 592 boreholes for LL and PI and 245 boreholes for LI were used for this study. Layers were allocated into three depth ranges (1 to 2, 2 to 4 and 4 to 6)
... Show MoreEnergy use is second to staffing in building operating costs. Sustainable technology in the energy sector is based on utilizing renewable sources of energy such as solar, wind, glazing systems, insulation. Other areas of focus include heating, ventilation and air conditioning; novel materials and construction methods; improved sensors and monitoring systems; and advanced simulation tools that can help building designers make more energy efficient choices. The objective of this research is studying the effect of insulations on energy consumption of buildings in Iraq and identifying the amount of energy savings from application th
... Show MoreIn this study, composite materials consisting of Activated Carbon (AC) and Zeolite were prepared for application in the removal of methylene blue and lead from an aqueous solution. The optimum synthesis method involves the use of metakaolinization and zeolitization, in the presence of activated carbon from kaolin, to form Zeolite. First, Kaolin was thermally activated into amorphous kaolin (metakaolinization); then the resultant metakaolin was attacked by alkaline, transforming it into crystalline zeolite (zeolitization). Using nitrogen adsorption and SEM techniques, the examination and characterization of composite materials confirmed the presence of a homogenous distribution of Zeolite throughout the activated carbon.
... Show MoreWater is the basis of the existence of all kinds of life, so obtaining it with good quality represents a challenge to human existence and development especially in the desert and remote cities because these areas contain small populations and water purification requires great materials and huge amounts of fossil fuels resulting pollution of the environment. Cheap and environmentally friendly desalination methods have been done by using solar distillations. Passive solar stills have low yields, so in this research, the problem is overcome by connecting four heat pipes which are installed on the parabolic concentrator reflector with passive solar still to increase the temperature of hot water to more than 90°C, as a resul
... Show MoreThis research presents a study for precipitating phosphorus (as phosphate ion) from simulated wastewater (5ppm initial concentration of phosphorus) using calcium hydroxide Ca(OH)2 solution. The removal of phosphorus by Ca (OH)2 solution is expected to be very effective since the chemical reaction is of acid-base type but Ca(OH)2 forms complex compound with phosphate ions called. Hydroxyapatite Ca5 (PO4)3OH. hydroxyapatite is slightly soluble in water. This research was directed towards sustainable elements as phosphorus. Kinetics of the dissolution reaction of hydroxyapatite was investigated to find the best factors to recover phosphorus. The effect of con
... Show MoreBored piles settlement behavior under vertical loaded is the main factor that affects the design requirements of single or group of piles in soft soils. The estimation of bored pile settlement is a complicated problem because it depends upon many factors which may include ground conditions, validation of bored pile design method through testing and validation of theoretical or numerical prediction of the settlement value. In this study, a prototype single and bored pile group model of arrangement (1*1, 1*2 and 2*2) for total length to diameter ratios (L/D) is 13.33 and clear spacing three times of diameter, subjected to vertical axial loads. The bored piles model used for the test was 2000
... Show MoreUnlike fault diagnosis approaches based on the direct analysis of current and voltage signals, this paper proposes a diagnosis of induction motor faults through monitoring the variations in motor's parameters when it is subjected to an open circuit or short circuit faults. These parameters include stator and rotor resistances, self-inductances, and mutual inductance. The genetic algorithm and the trust-region method are used for the estimation process. Simulation results confirm the efficiency of both the genetic algorithm and the trust-region method in estimating the motor parameters; however, better performance in terms of estimation time is obtained when the trust-region method is adopted. The results also show the po
... Show MoreThe inhibition of copper corrosion by Naphthylamine (NA), Ethylenediamine (EDA), Tetraethylenepentamine (TEPA), Diethylenetriamine (DETA), and Phenylenediamine (PDA) in 5% HCl have been investigated by weight loss technique at different temperatures. The results were compared with Benzotriazole (BTA), the common inhibitor used for inhibition of copper corrosion in different environments. The BTA film formed on the copper surface obeys Langmuir Adsorption Isotherm. While NA, EDA, TEPA, and DETA appear to obey the Freundlich Adsorption Isotherm. In the other hand, the two-adsorption isotherms were unsuitable to represent the data of PDA. Results also showed that the Kinetic-Thermodynamic Model was suitable to fit the experimental data of t
... Show MoreFlow of water under concrete dams generates uplift pressure under the dam, which may cause the dam to function improperly, in addition to the exit gradient that may cause piping if exceeded a safe value. Cutoff walls usually used to minimize the effect of flow under dams. It is required to
1)minimize the flow quantity to conserve water in the reservoir, it is also required to
2)minimize the uplift pressure under the dam to maintain stability of the dam, and it is required to
3) minimize the exit gradient to prevent quick condition to occur at the toe of the dam where piping may occur and may cause erosion of the soil. Varying the angle of cutoff walls affects its influence on the factors aforementioned that are required to
... Show MoreIn the field of hydraulic power plant, the cavitation is responsible of sever erosion which requires periodic unit shutdowns for inspection and repairs. Al-Mosul hydroelectric power plant is chosen as model in this study. Computer programs are developed by using the velocity gradient method to analyze the flow in the runner blades of the turbine (Francis Turbine) to calculate the available cavitation and compared with the critical cavitation. The erosion of the runner material (erosion rate, weight of lost material and mean depth of erosion) is also calculated to limit the operation hours of the power plant. The presented work shows that the cavitation appears on the underside of the turbine (Francis Turbine) blades in the trailing edge
... Show MoreA key characteristic of diesel engines is predicting the ignition delay period. This work predicts the ignition delay in diesel engines using combinations of ethanol/diesel fuel blend and pure diesel as fuel replacements. It provides an empirical formula for predicting delay periods. A growing interest in alternative fuel blends, representing a substantial shift from the use of traditional diesel fuel, is reported. Modern study is focused on examining these combinations and how they might affect the dynamics of combustion in diesel engines. Experiments were carried out utilizing five different ethanol/diesel fuel blends, including pure diesel, with ethanol percentages varying from 5% to 20% in 5% quantities. Tests we
... Show MoreThe Post-project evaluation in highway construction is crucial but underdeveloped in infrastructure management, especially for Iraqi road project authorities. This comprehensive study combines insights from global schemes in England, Scotland, France, Australia, Norway, and New Zealand to develop a strong post-evaluation framework. This study used criteria from six international schemes, a thematic analysis framework, and open interviews with experts to identify and improve the final list of criteria that could be used in the evaluation process. Five criteria were identified as the final result, which are efficiency (cost, time, and quality), traffic analysis (volume, travel time, and impact), safety (accidents and secur
... Show MorePedestrian detection is well known as one of the most important applications in computer vision. However, reliable pedestrian detection is difficult due to a variety of factors, including changing size of pedestrian characteristics and crowded backgrounds. This study aims to evaluate and compare the pedestrian detection performance of three different types of classifiers: Random-Forest (RF), Convolution-Neural-Network (CNN), and Support-Vector-Machine (SVM). The presented methodology involves using You_Only_Look_Once (YOLOv8) architecture for object segmentation and the Histogram of Oriented Gradients (HOG) for feature extraction. Then, RF, CNN and SVM classifiers are trained and tested using the extracted HOG features.
... Show MoreThis research presents the kinetics of the saponification reaction using mixed fats of olein and stearin [in the ratio (3:1)] with NaOH solution. In this reaction, excess solution of NaOH was used to ensure the reaction being irreversible. Three parameters were varied to show their effects on the reaction rate .They are: percentage excess of NaOH solution (10 % - 100 %) , temperature (100-150)oC , and stirring speed (400-1100) rpm. It was noticed that increasing the percentage excess of NaOH solution enhances the rate of reaction while increasing temperature decreases the reaction rate since it is exothermic reaction. Increasing stirring speed also improves the reaction rate because it is mass transfer controlled .Calcu
... Show MoreThis work investigates the effect of earthquakes on the stability of a collective pile subjected to seismic loads in the soil layer. Plaxis 3D 2020 finite element software modeled pile behavior in dry soils with sloping layers. The results showed a remarkable fluctuation between the earthquakes, where the three earthquakes (Halabja, El Centro, and Kobe) and the acceleration peak in the Kobe earthquake had a time of about 11 seconds. Different settlement results were shown, as different values were recorded for the three types of earthquakes. Settlement ratios were increased by increasing the seismic intensity; hence the maximum settlement was observed with the model under the effect of the Kobe earthquake (0.58 g), where
... Show MoreAl-Chibayish Marsh (CM) is considered as the major part of Central Marshes area of this marsh is 1050 Km². The water quality of these marshes is suffering from salt accumulation due to intensive dam construction, limited supply of water from sources, climate change impacts, and the absence of outlet flow from these marshes, specifically at low flow periods. So, the current research aims to assess and improve these marshes' hydraulic behavior and water quality and define the best location for outlet drains. Field measurements and laboratory tests were conducted for two periods (November 2020 and February 2021) to define the (TDS) concentrations at nine different locations. Samples were also examined for water's phy
... Show MoreJoint diseases, such as osteoarthritis, induce pain and loss of mobility to millions of people around the world. Current clinical methods for the diagnosis of osteoarthritis include X-ray, magnetic resonance imaging, and arthroscopy. These methods may be insensitive to the earliest signs of osteoarthritis. This study investigates a new procedure that was developed and validated numerically for use in the evaluation of cartilage quality. This finite element model of the human articular cartilage could be helpful in providing insight into mechanisms of injury, effects of treatment, and the role of mechanical factors in degenerative
conditions, this three-dimensional finite element model is a useful tool for understanding of the stress d
The designer must find the optimum match between the object's technical and economic needs and the performance and production requirements of the various material options when choosing material for an engineering application. This study proposes an integrated (hybrid) strategy for selecting the optimal material for an engineering design depending on design requirements. The primary objective is to determine the best candidate material for the drone wings based on Ashby's performance indices and then rank the result using a grey relational technique with the entropy weight method. Aluminum alloys, titanium alloys, composites, and wood have been suggested as suitable materials for manufacturing drone wings. The requirement
... Show MoreAl-Rustamiya sewage treatment plant (WWTP) serves the east side of Baghdad city (Rusafa) and is considered one of the largest projects.It consists of three parts (old project F0, first extension F1, and second extension F2) that treat wastewater and the
effluent is discharged into Diyala river and thus into the Tigris River. These plants are designed and constructed with an aim to manage wastewater to reachIraqi effluent standard for BOD5, COD, TSS and chloride concentrations of 40, 100, 60 and 600
mg/L respectively. The data recordedfrom March till December 2011 provided from Al-RustamiyaWWTP, were considered in this study to evaluate the performance of the plant. The results indicated that the strength of the wastewater enterin