Eco-friendly materials are increasingly used in civil engineering to support sustainable development. Conventional concrete relies heavily on Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC), the production of which contributes significantly to the carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions. Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag (GGBFS) and fly ash can partially replace OPC, thereby reducing the environmental impact. This study investigates the effect of basalt fiber incorporation on the mechanical properties of geopolymer lightweight concrete. The concrete mixtures consisted of fly ash, slag, pumice aggregate, sand, and an alkaline activator prepared by combining sodium hydroxide and sodium silicate. The mix design included an activator-to-binder ratio of 0.45, sodium hydroxide molarity of 12 M, and a sodium hydroxide to sodium silicate ratio of 1:2.5. Basalt fiber was added at 0.5%, 0.75%, and 1% by volume. All specimens were cured at 80 ºC for 24 h. The mechanical properties evaluated included compressive strength, splitting tensile strength, and flexural strength. The results showed that basalt fiber significantly improved all measured properties. At 28 days, the compressive strength increased by 11.67%, 14.85%, and 17.5%, the splitting tensile strength by 20%, 27.5%, and 38.75%, and the flexural strength by 21.6%, 32.14%, and 42.73%, respectively.
Combining different treatment strategies successively or simultaneously has become recommended to achieve high purification standards for the treated discharged water. The current work focused on combining electrocoagulation, ion-exchange, and ultrasonication treatment approaches for the simultaneous removal of copper, nickel, and zinc ions from water. The removal of the three studied ions was significantly enhanced by increasing the power density (4–10 mA/cm2) and NaCl salt concentration (0.5–1.5 g/L) at a natural solution pH. The simultaneous removal of these metal ions at 4 mA/cm2 and 1 g NaCl/L was highly improved by introducing 1 g/L of mordenite zeolite as an ion-exchanger. A remarkable removal of heavy metals was reported
... Show MoreObjective. This study aimed to evaluate the orthodontic bond strength and enamel-preserving ability of a hydroxyapatite nanoparticles-containingself-etch system following exposure to various ageing methods. Materials and Methods. Hydroxyapatite nanoparticles (nHAp) were incorporated into an orthodontic self-etch primer (SEP, Transbond™ plus) in three different concentrations (5%, 7%, and 9% wt) and tested versus the plain SEP (control) for shear bond strength (SBS), adhesive remnant index (ARI) scores, and enamel damage in range-finding experiments using premolar teeth. The best-performing formulation was further exposed to the following four artificial ageing methods: initial debonding, 24 h water storage, one-month water stora
... Show MoreThe paper is devoted to solve nth order linear delay integro-differential equations of convolution type (DIDE's-CT) using collocation method with the aid of B-spline functions. A new algorithm with the aid of Matlab language is derived to treat numerically three types (retarded, neutral and mixed) of nth order linear DIDE's-CT using B-spline functions and Weddle rule for calculating the required integrals for these equations. Comparison between approximated and exact results has been given in test examples with suitable graphing for every example for solving three types of linear DIDE's-CT of different orders for conciliated the accuracy of the results of the proposed method.
In a hybrid cooling solar thermal systems , a solar collector is used to convert solar energy into heat energy in order to super heat the refrigerant leaving the compressor, and this process helps in the transformation of refrigerant state from gaseous state to the liquid state in upper two-thirds of the condenser instead of the lower two-thirds such as in the traditional air-conditioning systems and this will reduce the energy needed to run the process of cooling .In this research two systems with a capacity of 2 tons each were used, a hybrid air-conditioning system with an evacuated tubes solar collector and a traditional air-conditioning system . The refrigerant of each type was R22.The comparison was in the amou
... Show MoreThis study uses an environmentally friendly and low-cost synthesis method to manufacture zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) by using zinc sulfate. Eucalyptus leaf extract is an effective chelating and capping agent for synthesizing ZnO NPs. The structure, morphology, thermal behavior, chemical composition, and optical properties of ZnO nanoparticles were studied utilizing FT-IR, FE-SEM, EDAX, AFM, and Zeta potential analysis. The FE-SEM pictures confirmed that the ZnO NPs with a size range of (22-37) nm were crystalline and spherical. Two methods were used to prepare ZnO NPs. The first method involved calcining the resulting ZnO NPs, while the second method did not. The prepared ZnO NPs were used as adsorbents for removing acid black 210
... Show MoreBackground: Breast cancer is the commonest type of malignancy worldwide and in Iraq. It is a serious disease that affects the general health and cause systemic changes that affect the physical and chemical properties of saliva leading to adverse effects on oral health. This study was conducted toassess the tumor marker CA15-3 and selected elements in saliva and their relation to oral health status among breast cancer patients compared to control group. Materials and Methods: The total sample consisted of 60 women aged 35-45 years. 30 women were newly diagnosed with breast cancer before taking any treatment and surgery (study group) and 30 women without clinical signs and symptoms of breast cancer as a control group. Dental caries was record
... Show MoreBackground: Nasal obstruction is common in otorhinolaryngology outpatient visitors. The diagnosis of such compliant is by history, clinical examination and diagnostic procedures. Nasal endoscopy and computerized tomography scan are common diagnostic investigations. Nasal obstruction is either anterior or posterior (nasal septal deviations, hypertrophied turbinate pathological cyst, polyps, mass etc), or postnasal obstruction (hypertrophied turbinate, adenoid hypertrophy, nasopharyngeal cyst or nasopharyngeal tumors).
Aim of study: Prospective study to compare endoscopic finding and computerized tomography of nose, paranasal sinuses and postnasal space as diagnostic methods for nasal obstruction and other nose, p
... Show MoreRice is a major staple food for more than two thirds of the world population. Pathogenesis-related proteins-10 (PR10) have a range of 154 to 163 amino acid with molecular weight ~ 17 kDa. They are acidic and generally intracellular and cytosolic proteins accumulate in plants in response to biotic and abiotic stresses. In the present study, a PR10 gene and its corresponding protein were characterized in O. sativa, O. barthii, O. glaberrima, O. glumipatula, O. meridionalis, O. nivara, O. rufipogon and O. punctata. The results revealed a narrow range of variation at both DNA and protein levels in all examined species except O. glumipatula. The latter showed a relatively
... Show MoreThe ability of four local fungal isolates for extracellular laccase production has been tested with five grams 1:1(w/v) humidified sawdust as substrate in mineral salt medium. After 21 day of incubation at 25±1 ? C and using one mycelial plug (5mm), higher level of laccase activity (0.15U/ml) and specific activity (15U/mg) were observed by Pleurotus ostreatus in comparison with other fungal isolates. The results of optimum conditions for laccase production from selected isolate showed that, the maximum laccase activity (0.55U/ml) and specific activity (55U/mg) were obtained at moisture ratio 1:3 (w/v), using 3 mycelial plugs (5 mm), after 15 days incubation period at 25±1 ? C. The results of phenol degradation by crud laccase revealed th
... Show More