Rutting is mainly referring to pavement permanent deformation, it is a major problem for flexible pavement and it is a complicated process and highly observed along with many segments of asphalt pavement in Iraq. The occurrence of this defect is related to several variables such as elevated temperatures and high wheel loads. Studying effective methods to reduce rutting distress is of great significance for providing a safe and along-life road. The asphalt mixture used to be modified by adding different types of additives. The addition of additives typically excesses stiffness, improves temperature susceptibility, and reduces moisture sensitivity. For this work, steel fibres have been used for modifying asphalt mixture as they incorp
... Show MoreAccurate prediction of river water quality parameters is essential for environmental protection and sustainable agricultural resource management. This study presents a novel framework for estimating potential salinity in river water in arid and semi‐arid regions by integrating a kernel extreme learning machine (KELM) with a boosted salp swarm algorithm based on differential evolution (KELM‐BSSADE). A dataset of 336 samples, including bicarbonate, calcium, pH, total dissolved solids and sodium adsorption ratio, was collected from the Idenak station in Iran and was used for the modelling. Results demonstrated that KELM‐BSSADE outperformed models such as deep random vector funct
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
... Show MoreIn this study, the flexural performance of a new composite beam–slab system filled with concrete material was investigated, where this system was mainly prepared from lightweight cold-formed steel sections of a beam and a deck slab for carrying heavy floor loads as another concept of a conventional composite system with a lower cost impact. For this purpose, seven samples of a profile steel sheet–dry board deck slab (PSSDB/PDS) carried by a steel cold-formed C-purlins beam (CB) were prepared and named “composite CBPDS specimen”, which were tested under a static bending load. Specifically, the effects of the profile steel sheet (PSS) direction (parallel or perpendicular to the span of the specimen) using different C-purlins c
... Show MoreThe present study was performed to spotlight the potential role of soil bacteria in the Al-Rumaila oil field as a bioindicator of heavy metals pollution. For this purpose, nine soil samples were collected from different sites, with 20cm depth, to assess the pollution status depending on the total and available concentrations of heavy metals. The result indicates pollution of the studied soils with the following metals: Cd, Cu, Fe, Zn, and Pb. The mean of total concentration for all studied metals was higher than the allowed maximum limit based on the international limit:(3.394, 3.994, 39.993, 8844.979,150.372, and 103.347 µg/g), respectively. While measuring the total Metal concentration is important in determining the de
... Show MoreRecent phosphorus (P) pollution in the United States, mainly in Maine, has raised some severe concerns over the use of P fertilizer application rates in agriculture. Phosphorus is the second most limiting nutrient after nitrogen and has damaging impacts on crop yield if found to be deficient. Therefore, farmers tend to apply more P than is required to satisfy any P loss after its application at planting. Several important questions were raised in this study to improve P efficiency and reduce its pollution. The objective of this study was to find potential reasons for P pollution in water bodies despite a decrease in potato acreage. Historically, the potato was found to be responsible for P water contamination due to its high P sensitivity a
... Show MoreBackground: The goal of a root canal treatment is three dimensional obturation with a complete seal of the root canal system. The aim of this study was to evaluate and compare the effect of two warm obturation techniques, warm vertical compaction (WVC) and, carrier based obturation technique Gutta Core (GC), versus two cold obturation techniques, cold lateral compaction (CLC) and, single cone (SC) on push-out bond strength of bioceramic sealer (Total Fill) at three different root levels. Materials and Methods: Forty extracted maxillary first molars teeth with a straight round palatal root canal and mature apices were selected for this study. After sectioning the palatal roots to 11 mm from the root apex, the canals were prepared wit
... Show MoreBackground: The goal of a root canal treatment is three dimensional obturation with a complete seal of the root canal system. The aim of this study was to evaluate and compare the effect of two warm obturation techniques, warm vertical compaction (WVC) and, carrier based obturation technique Gutta Core (GC), versus two cold obturation techniques, cold lateral compaction (CLC) and, single cone (SC) on push-out bond strength of bioceramic sealer (Total Fill) at three different root levels. Materials and Methods: Forty extracted maxillary first molars teeth with a straight round palatal root canal and mature apices were selected for this study. After sectioning the palatal roots to 11 mm from the root apex, the canals were
... Show MoreThe traction property is one of the important mechanical properties, especially the rotary parts which are subjected to constant and variable loads There are many methods used to improve this property, and the shoot peening by metal balls is considered the most critical one. the study focuses on this characteristic of steel CK35 used in many engineering applications as the rotating shafts and railway This study shows that the fatigue strength is improved by14% after shoot peening with metal balls. The study includs the rehabilitation of damaged samples as a result of fatigue corrosion. The standard solution adopted was 36% MgCl2 with a 30 days immersion period. These samples has been improved by 6% after it decreased by18% d
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