Modified asphalt is considered one of the alternatives to address the problems of deficiencies in traditional asphalt concrete, as modified asphalt addresses many of the issues that appear on the pavement layers in asphalt concrete, resulting from heavy traffic and vehicles loaded with loads that exceed the design loads and the large fluctuations in the daily and seasonal temperatures of asphalt concrete. The current study examined the role of polyphosphoric acid (PPA) as a modified material for virgin asphalt when it was added in different proportions (1%, 2%, 3%, 4%) of the asphalt weight. The experimental program includes the volumetric characteristics associated with the Marshall test, the physical properties, and the FTIR spectroscopy examination of virgin asphalt and polyphosphoric acid (PPA) modified asphalt. This study showed that mixtures with modified asphalt using polyphosphoric acid (PPA) by 3% achieved the typical Marshall properties at the optimal asphalt content of 4.8%, recording a 10% decrease in the optimum asphalt content for the mixtures made with virgin (unmodified) asphalt, whose proportion was 4.9% is the optimum asphalt content. PPA is available in the local markets and is considered cheaper than polymers. It is also regarded as economical as it reduces the optimum content of asphalt.
The present work utilizes polyacrylic acid beads (PAA) to remove Alizarin yellow R (AYR)] and Alizarin Red S (ARS) from its solution. The isotherms of adsorption were investigated and the factors that impact them, such as temperature, ionic strength effect, shaking effect, and wet PAA. The isotherms of adsorption of (ARS) were found obeys the Freundlich equation. The isotherms of adsorption of (AYR) were found obeys the Langmuir equation. At various temperatures, the adsorption process on (PAA) was investigated. According to our data, there is a positive correlation between the (ARS and AYR) adsorption on the PAA and temperature (Endothermic process). The computation of the thermodynamic functions (ΔH, ΔG, and ΔS) is based on the foregoi
... Show MoreThis study aimed to obtain a local isolation of Aspergillus niger and then studied its ability to produce citric acid from raw materials available locally using solid state fermentation. Six local isolates were collected from different sources including some samples of the damaged fruits such as grapefruit, oranges and sindi. Wheat bran was used as a raw material or as culture medium for the production of citric acid from the collected isolates. The conditions for citric acid production were determined by humidity percentage of 1: 1 (water: culture medium), temperature of 28 C, pH 4 and inoculum dose with 5× 106 spore/ml and for 3 days of incubation. The orange was the best model for citric acid production with a concentration of 12.8 mg/m
... Show MoreFlexure members such as reinforced concrete (RC) simply supported beams subjected to two-point loading were analyzed numerically. The Extended Finite Element Method (XFEM) was employed for the treatment the non-smooth h behaviour such as discontinuities and singularities. This method is a powerful technique used for the analysis of the fracture process and crack propagation in concrete. Concrete is a heterogeneous material that consists of coarse aggregate, cement mortar and air voids distributed in the cement paste. Numerical modeling of concrete comprises a two-scale model, using mesoscale and macroscale numerical models. The effectiveness and validity of the Meso-Scale Approach (MSA) in modeling of the reinforced concrete beams w
... Show MoreThis research is carried out to investigate the externally post-tensioning technique for strengthening RC beams. In this research, four T-section RC beams having the same dimensions and material properties were casted and tested up to failure by applying two mid-third concentrated loads. Three of these beams are strengthened by using external tendons, while the remaining beam is kept without strengthening as a control beam. Two external strands of 12 mm diameter were fixed at each side of the web of the strengthened beams and located at depth of 200 mm from top fiber of the section (dps). So that the depth of strands to overall depth of the section ratio (dps
... Show MoreFour simply supported reinforced concrete (RC) beams were test experimentaly and analyzed using the extended finite element method (XFEM). This method is used to treat the discontinuities resulting from the fracture process and crack propagation in that occur in concrete. The Meso-Scale Approach (MSA) used to model concrete as a heterogenous material consists of a three-phasic material (coarse aggregate, mortar, and air voids in the cement paste). The coarse aggregate that was used in the casting of these beams rounded and crashed aggregate shape with maximum size of 20 mm. The compressive strength used in these beams is equal to 17 MPa and 34 MPa, respectively. These RC beams are designed to fail due to flexure when subjected to lo
... Show MoreThis paper is devoted to investigate the effect of internal curing technique on the properties of self-compacting concrete (SCC). In this study, SCC is produced by using silica fume (SF) as partial replacement by weight of cement with percentage of (5%), sand is partially replaced by volume with saturated fine lightweight aggregate (LWA) which is thermostone chips as internal curing material in three percentages of (5%, 10% and 15%) for SCC, two external curing conditions water and air. The experimental work was divided into three parts: in the first part, the workability tests of fresh SCC were conducted. The second part included conducting compressive strength test and modulus of rupture test at ages of (7, 28 and 90). The third part i
... Show MoreThe main aim of this paper is studied the punching shear and behavior of reinforced concrete slabs exposed to fires, the possibility of punching shear failure occurred as a result of the fires and their inability to withstand the loads. Simulation by finite element analysis is made to predict the type of failure, distribution temperature through the thickness of the slabs, deformation and punching strength. Nonlinear finite element transient thermal-structural analysis at fire conditions are analyzed by ANSYS package. The validity of the modeling is performed for the mechanical and thermal properties of materials from earlier works from literature to decrea
... Show MoreThis study aims to compare the response of reinforced concrete (RC) T-beams strengthened with carbon fibre-reinforced polymer (CFRP) composite with that of non-strengthened control beams when subjected to monotonic two-point loading until failure for flexural once and shear again. The experimental programme tested eight RC T-beams, which included two reference beams without strengthening and six strengthened beams. The eight beams were divided into two main groups according to strengthening (flexural and shear). Experimental analysis was performed to study the effect of the CFRP laminate width in the flexural group and the spacing of CFRP U-wrap sheets in the shear group on the ultimate load capacity, load-strain relationship, and l
... Show More
