A simple all optical fiber sensor based on multimode interference (MMI) for chemical liquids sensing was designed and fabricated. A segment of coreless fiber (CF) was spliced between two single mode fibers to buildup single mode-coreless-single mode (SCS) structure. Broadband source and optical signal analyzer were connected to the ends of SCS structure. De-ionized water, acetone, and n-hexane were used to test the performance of the sensor. Two influence factors on the sensitivity namely the length and the diameter of the CF were investigated. The obtained maximum sensitivity was at n-hexane at 340.89 nm/RIU (at a wavelength resolution of the optical spectrum analyzer of 0.02 nm) when the diameter of the CF reduced from 125 μm to 60 μ

Background: Speckle tracking echocardiography (STE)-derived mitral annular displacement (MAD) utilizes the speckle tracking technique to measure strain vectors, which provides accurate estimates of left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF).Objectives: To validate the accuracy of mitral annular displacement (MAD), assessed by Speckle Tracking Echocardiography (STE), as a surrogate for determination of left ventricular systolic function in comparison to 2-Dimensions Simpson method in patients with different heart diseases.Methods : This cross-sectional study included patients who referred to outpatient department of Ibn Albitar Center for Cardiac Surgery, Baghdad, Iraq, between October 2012 and April 2013. STE continuously tracked annular

The present study focused mainly on the analysis of stiffened and unstiffened composite laminated plates subjected to buckling load. Analytical, numerical and experimental analysis for different cases has been considered. The experimental investigation is to manufacture the laminates and to find mechanical properties of glass-polyester such as longitudinal, transverse young modulus, shear modulus. The compressive test was carried to find the critical buckling load of plate. The design parameters of the laminates such as aspect ratio, thickness ratio, boundary conditions and number of stiffeners were investigated using high order shear deformation theory (HOST) and Finite element coded by ANSYS .The main conclusion was the buckling load c

Background: Several infectious lung diseases often develop in patients with Rheumatoid arthritis (RA), especially during immunosuppressive medication, including disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs). The present study aimed to determine the role of respiratory tract bacterial infection in RA activity. Methods: Blood and sputum samples were collected from 31 patients with RA and 12 healthy subjects as control. The bacterial isolates were isolated and identified in collected sputum by biochemical tests and Vitec 2 system. Results: In the present study, thirty-one patients with RA were compared with 12 healthy subjects. Eight patients with RA were not infected with pathogenic bacteria (RA-NIPB) (25.8%). Twenty-three RA patients wer

Surfaces quality is one of the most specified customer requirements for machine parts. The major indication of surfaces quality on machined parts is surface roughness. The research aim is to study the cutting conditions and their effects on the surface roughness. This paper utilizes regression models to predict surface roughness over the machining time for variety of cutting conditions in turning. In the experimental part for turning, different types of materials (Aluminum alloy, Copper alloy, and Gray cast iron) were considered with different cutting speed ( ) and feed rate ( ). A mathematical Model depending on statistical-mathematical method between surface roughness (Rz ) and cutting condition ( , ) were derived, for the three materials

Abstract: Stars whose initial masses are between (0.89 - 8.0) M☉ go through an Asymptotic Giant Branch (AGB) phase at the end of their life. Which have been evolved from the main sequence phase through Asymptotic Giant Branch (AGB). The calculations were done by adopted Synthetic Model showed the following results: 1- Mass loss on the AGB phase consists of two phases for period (P <500) days and for (P>500) days; 2- the mass loss rate exponentially increases with the pulsation periods; 3- The expansion velocity VAGB for our stars are calculated according to the three assumptions; 4- the terminal velocity depends on several factors likes metallicity and luminosity. The calculations indicated that a super wind phase (S.W) developed on the A