Reflection cracking in asphalt concrete (AC) overlays is a common form of pavement deterioration that occurs when underlying cracks and joints in the pavement structure propagate through an overlay due to thermal and traffic-induced movement, ultimately degrading the pavement’s lifespan and performance. This study aims to determine how alterations in overlay thickness and temperature conditions, the incorporation of chopped fibers, and the use of geotextiles influence the overlay’s capacity to postpone the occurrence of reflection cracking. To achieve the above objective, a total of 36 prism specimens were prepared and tested using an overlay testing machine (OTM). The variables considered in this study were the thickness of the overlay (40, 50, and 60 mm), temperature (20, 30, and 40 °C), mix type (reference mix and mix modified with 10% chopped fibers by weight of asphalt cement), and the inclusion of geotextile fabric at two positions (one-third of the depth from the base and at the bottom). The research outcomes revealed that a decreased temperature and thicker overlay led to a higher resistance to crack initiation and full propagation, as indicated by the values of critical fracture energy (Gc) and crack progression rate (CPR). Furthermore, the study observed the enhanced crack resistance of overlays in the presence of geotextiles, whether at the bottom or one-third of the depth from the bottom, with superior performance of the former. Despite a slight enhancement in certain properties, the incorporation of chopped fibers in the overlays did not substantially improve the overall performance compared to the reference specimens. Overall, the study provides valuable insights into the variables that influence the ability of AC overlays to mitigate reflection cracking. These findings will aid engineers and designers in making informed decisions regarding overlay design and construction.
The large number of failure in electrical power plant leads to the sudden stopping of work. In some cases, the necessary reserve materials are not available for maintenance which leads to interrupt of power generation in the electrical power plant unit. The present study, deals with the determination of availability aspects of generator in unit 5 of Al-Dourra electric power plant. In order to evaluate this generator's availability performance, a wide range of studies have been conducted to gather accurate information at the level of detail considered suitable to achieve the availability analysis aim. The Weibull Distribution is used to perform the reliability analysis via Minitab 17, and Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) by approaching o
... Show MoreIn this paper, fire resistance and residual capacity tests were carried out on encased pultruded glass fiber-reinforced polymer (GFRP) I-beams with high-strength concrete beams. The specimens were loaded concurrently under 25% of the ultimate load and fire exposure (an increase in temperature of 700 °C) for 70 min. Subsequently, the fire-damaged specimens were allowed to cool and then were loaded statically until failure to explore the residual behaviors. The effects of using shear connectors and web stiffeners on the residual behavior were investigated. Finite Element (FE) analysis was developed to simulate the encased pultruded GFRP I-beams under the effect of fire loading. The thermal analyses were performed using the general-pu
... Show MoreDielectric barrier discharges (DBD) can be described as the presence of contact with the discharge of one or more insulating layers located between two cylindrical or flat electrodes connected to an AC/pulse dc power supply. In this work, the properties of the plasma generated by dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) system without and with a glass insulator were studied. The plasma was generated at a constant voltage of 4 kV and fixed distance between the electrodes of 5 mm, and with a variable flow rate of argon gas (0.5, 1, 1.5, 2 and 2.5) L/min. The emission spectra of the DBD plasmas at different flow rates of argon gas have been recorded. Boltzmann plot method was used to calculate the plasma electron temperature (Te), and Stark broadeni
... Show MoreKinematics is the mechanics branch which dealswith the movement of the bodies without taking the force into account. In robots, the forward kinematics and inverse kinematics are important in determining the position and orientation of the end-effector to perform multi-tasks. This paper presented the inverse kinematics analysis for a 5 DOF robotic arm using the robotics toolbox of MATLAB and the Denavit-Hartenberg (D-H) parameters were used to represent the links and joints of the robotic arm. A geometric approach was used in the inverse kinematics solution to determine the joints angles of the robotic arm and the path of the robotic arm was divided into successive lines to accomplish the required tasks of the robotic arm.Therefore, this
... Show MoreArum maculatum is traditionally used for the control of many diseases and illnesses such as kidney pain, liver injury, hemorrhoids. However, the detailed biomedical knowledge about this species is still lacking. This study reports on the bioactive components and the possible mechanisms underlying the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and cytotoxic activity of A. maculatum leaf extract. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was used for phytochemical analysis. Assay of 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide ) (MTT) was used to determine the cytotoxicity in the murine cell line L20B upon exposure to different extract concentrations for 24 h. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to detect pro-in
... Show MoreTo investigate the prevalence of true periodontal chief complaints (CC) and the factors affecting their reporting by patients with periodontal diseases (PD).
This cross‐sectional study was based on retrospective analysis of available periodontal records. Different personal and demographic variables were obtained from these records including CC, age, gender, working status, past medical/dental history, smoking status and diagnosis. In addition, clinical parameters of plaque index, gingival index, probing pocket depth (PPD), and number of missing teeth. Periodontal CC were r
Liquefied petroleum gases (LPG) consist of hydrocarbons obtained by refining crude oil, either from propane or butane or a mixture of the two. There are often other components such as propylene, butylene or other hydrocarbons, but they are not the main component. The study aims to review previous studies dealing with designing an LPG system to deliver gas to residential campuses and buildings. LPG is extracted from natural gas NG by several processes, passing through fractionation towers and then pressuring into CNG storage tanks. Gas contains several problems, including gas leakage through the pipes and leads to fires or explosions in LPG storage and distribution tanks, so safety conditions were taken in the design and implementation. T
... Show MoreThe aim of this work is oriented to increase film cooling effectiveness value through numerical investigations for flow of Mach number not more than 0.3 around vane surface, to find the effects of inclination and compounds angles of round holes in staggered rows on adiabatic film cooling effectiveness of vane suction side. Multi cylindrical film cooling hole cases were studied with pitch ratio P/d =2 and 3, local blowing ratios M=0.382, 0.77 and 1.14, inclination angles a=30° and 45°, compound angles β= 0°, 15°, 30° and 45° and local momentum ratios I= 0.084, 0.34 and 0.756 for better cooling process.
A numerica
... Show More