The performance of asphalt pavements is crucial due to heavy traffic loads from civil and industrial developments. Various additives and modifiers are used in flexible roads to improve their resistance to deterioration caused by climatic changes. From this context, modifying the asphalt binder with polymers is popular in asphalt pavement construction. The present research investigates the effect of Polyethylene (PE) polymers in powder form on the characteristics of asphalt mixtures since these polymers are composed of hydrocarbons. It is similar to asphalt binders, making them very effective in enhancing the performance of neat asphalt produced from the oil refinery. To confirm this, two types of PE, High-Density PE (HDPE) and Low-Density PE (LDPE), were blended with neat asphalt binder at different dosages of 0%, 2%, 4%, and 6% by the weight of asphalt binder. The physical tests, including penetration, ductility, softening point, and weight loss on heat, were conducted to examine neat and PE-modified binders' rheological properties, durability, and temperature sensitivity. Marshall stability, stiffness index, tensile strength, and Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) were also employed to assess the performance of PE-modified asphalt mixtures. The findings reveal that incorporating PE into asphalt mixtures significantly improves their mechanical properties, and the most optimal results are achieved when using 6% of both HDPE and LDPE. Specifically, modifying the asphalt binder with the inclusion of 6% HDPE and LDPE presents a remarkable increase in stability of 167.6% and 150.9%, respectively, compared to conventional mixtures. The stiffness index is improved for HDPE and LDPE-modified mixtures, which offers these mixtures superior resistance to permanent deformation. The moisture damage resistance can be enhanced by modification of the asphalt binder with HDPE and LDPE, especially at the inclusion of 6%. SEM images of asphalt pavement demonstrate HDPE's superiority in terms of distribution and dispersion in asphalt binder. In conclusion, the properties of HDPE-modified mixtures are better than those of LDPE-modified and untreated mixtures.
In the 1980s, the French Administration Roads LCPC developed high modulus mixtures (EME) by using hard binder. This type of mixture presented good resistance to moisture damage and improved . mechanical properties for asphalt mixtures including high modulus, good fatigue behaviour and excellent resistance to rutting. In Iraq, this type of mixture has not been used yet. The main objective of this research is to evaluate the performance of high modulus mixtures and comparing them with the conventional mixture, to achieve this objective, asphalt concrete mixes were prepared and then tested to evaluate their engineering properties which include moisture damage, resilient modulus, permanent deformation and fatigue characteristics. These prope
... Show MoreThe Sadi reservoir is one of the largest and most important unconventional tight oil reservoirs in southern Iraq. However, it suffers from low production rates, necessitating many development strategies that require a correct and reliable characterization of reservoir fluid properties. Whilst these properties are originally obtained from laboratory experiments, measurement errors often occur despite rigorous workflows, which negatively affect the calculation of reservoir fluid properties. This study utilizes the fluid thermodynamics characterization program (PVTp) to generate a reliable model for determining the oil properties of Sadi reservoir. A methodology was developed to simulate fluid thermodynamic tests, including Differ
... Show MoreThe preparation and characterization of innovative nanocomposites based on zinc oxide nanorods (ZNR) encapsulated by graphene (Gr) nanosheets and decorated with silver (Ag), and cupper (Cu) nanoparticles (NP) were studied. The prepared nanocomposites (ZNR@Gr/Cu-Ag) were examined by different techniques including Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscope (FESEM), Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Atomic force microscopy (AFM), UV-Vis spectrophotometer and fluorescence spectroscopy. The results showed that the ZNR has been good cover by five layers of graphene and decorated with Ag and Cu NPs with particles size of about 10-15 nm. The ZNR@Gr/Cu-Ag nanocomposites exhibit high absorption behavior in ultraviolet (UV) region of sp
... Show MoreBackground: Type 2 diabetes mellitusand chronic periodontitis hold a close relationship that has been the focus of many researches. Currently there is an appreciation to the role of adipose tissue-derived substances "the adipokines" in immune-inflammatory responses; also, there is an interest in using the simple non-invasive saliva in diagnosing and linking oral and general health problems. The current study aims to determine the periodontal health status in the chronic periodontitis patients with and without poorly or well controlled type 2 diabetes mellitus, measure the salivary levels of two adipokines "leptin and resistin", pH and flow rate and then correlate between these clinical periodontal, biochemical and physical parameters in eac
... Show MoreBarhi dates fruit are one of the most important date palm cultivars which are some of their properties they are mostly eaten and sold at the khalal stage when it has become yellow compared with rutab stage. At this stage the fruit loses its astringency and becomes sweet and best texture, therefore. High moisture content and rapid ripening of Barhi dates shorten their shelf life, as well the Khalal stage lasts for about 4 weeks until the ripening of the fruits begins and transfer to rutab stage. In the present study, Barhi dates packaging in the first by common air - packaging and
second by Modified atmosphere packaging, MAP A (5% O2 + 20% CO2) and MAP B (40%O2+20%CO2) and stored for 30 days at different temperatures 5 and 20 °C, re
The spray quality of two spraying agents with different physical properties was investigated under laboratory conditions to find whether the measurement of deposited drops could be affected by spraying those agents. The first spraying agent Moddus, which is a plant growth regulator, has a surface tension of 28 mN m-1 with almost half the value of the second spraying agent Kelpak (58 mN m-1). A mini boom sprayer containing three flat fan nozzles (XR 11003) was used in the test with three traveling speeds (4.74, 5.42 and 8.13 km. h-1). The test was performed to evaluate the quality of spray drops (spray coverage, spray density and stains diameter) after they were deposited on water sensitive papers (WSP). The results showed a higher ability o
... Show MoreIn this research, a mathematical model of tumor treatment by radiotherapy is studied and a new modification for the model is proposed as well as introducing the check for the suggested modification. Also the stability of the modified model is analyzed in the last section.
Cowpea is a very important legume in Nigeria that is being utilized to Substitute high-cost animal protein for low-income people. The knowledge of some physical properties of various moisture contents is of utmost importance in the design of its handling and processing equipment and machinery, which is the aim of this work, which studied the physical properties of IT99K-573-1-1 (SAMPEA14) variety of Cowpea within 8.77 to 21.58 % db moisture content. The properties studied include Major, Intermediate, and Minor diameters, Sphericity, Surface area, Specific gravity, Volume, Bulk density, 50-tap density, 100-tap density, 1250-tap density, seed mass, Angle of repose, Geometric mean diameter, and Arithmetic mean diameter. The
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In this research, the morphology and mechanical properties of (Epoxy/PVC) blend were investigated. (EP/PVC) blend was prepared by manual mixing of epoxy resin with different weight ratios of (Poly vinyl chloride (PVC) after dissolving it in cyclohexanon). Five sheets of polymer blends in wt% included (0%, 5%, 10%, 15% and 20%) of PVC were prepared at room temperature. Tests were carried out to study some mechanical properties for these blends and compared with the properties of pure epoxy. The morphology of the prepared materials was examined to study the compatibility nature between the two polymers under work. It was found that the best ratio of addition is (20%) of PVC.
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