This study expands the state of the art in studies that assess torsional retrofit of reinforced concrete (RC) multi-cell box girders with carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) strips. The torsional behavior of non-damaged and pre-damaged RC multi-cell box girder specimens externally retrofitted by CFRP strips was investigated through a series of laboratory experiments. It was found that retrofitting the pre-damaged specimens with CFRP strips increased the ultimate torsional capacity by more than 50% as compared to the un-damaged specimens subjected to equivalent retrofitting. This indicated that the retrofit has been less effective for the girder specimen that did not develop distortion beforehand as a result of pre-loading. From experimental observations, when the girder specimen was cracked and the transverse steel reinforcement bars started straining, the CFRP strips started to work more effectively and contributed together with the transverse steel reinforcement to resist torsion load. Additionally, Finite Element (FE) simulations were developed using Abaqus to model the torsional behavior of the retrofitted girders, the results of which were validated with the experimental data. With the numerical model, the effect of concrete compressive strength, transverse reinforcement spacing, and CFRP strip spacing were examined. The effectiveness of the CFRP strips in enhancing the torsional strength of the girder was found to increase with increasing the spacing between the transverse reinforcement.
In the lifetime process in some systems, most data cannot belong to one single population. In fact, it can represent several subpopulations. In such a case, the known distribution cannot be used to model data. Instead, a mixture of distribution is used to modulate the data and classify them into several subgroups. The mixture of Rayleigh distribution is best to be used with the lifetime process. This paper aims to infer model parameters by the expectation-maximization (EM) algorithm through the maximum likelihood function. The technique is applied to simulated data by following several scenarios. The accuracy of estimation has been examined by the average mean square error (AMSE) and the average classification success rate (ACSR). T
... Show MoreMature oil reservoirs surrounded with strong edge and bottom water drive aquifers experience pressure depletion and water coning/cresting. This laboratory research investigated the effects of bottom water drive and gas breakthrough on immiscible CO2-Assisted Gravity Drainage (CO2-AGD), focusing on substantial bottom water drive. The CO2-AGD method vertically separates the injected CO2 to formulate a gas cap and Oil. Visual experimental evaluation of CO2-AGD process performance was performed using a Hele-Shaw model. Water-wet sand was used for the experiments. The gas used for injection was pure CO2, and the “oleic” phase was n-decane with a negative spreading coefficient. The aqueous phase was deionized water. To evaluate the feasibilit
... Show MoreFiber optics technology has shown immense applications in the areas of medicine, telecommunication, and imaging. For these particular applications, it requires fibers with precise cleaving. In this paper, we will demonstrate a quick, simple and efficient cleaving method that can result in a high-quality fiber surface that works well for many fiber-optic applications. The smooth tip and good surface quality obtained on the cleaved surface of optical fiber is demonstrated by using a microscope imaging system and was flat surface with a 900 angle for perpendicular cleavages. The precision cleaver provides smooth and high-quality cleaves on single-fiber surfaces as opposed to the ruby scribe pen. The defects that may occur during the cleaving p
... Show More
Osteoporosis is a systemic disease of the skeleton, characterized by low bone mass and alteration in the micro-architecture of the bone tissue that lead to an increase in brittleness with the ensuing predisposition to bone fracture. Global statistics shows that women are more exposed to this disease than men and in particular at menopause. This study was designed to evaluate the use of some bone markers: serum osteocalcin (Ost), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), as bone formation markers, also parathyroid hormone (PTH), calcium and inorganic phosphate level, for the assessment of patients with osteoporosis and to evaluate their role in monitoring of several types of therapeutic interventions (such as bisphosphonates, hormonal replacement thera
... Show MoreHypothyroidism has been associated with disorders of glucose and insulin metabolism..The present study was designed to evaluate the possible change in some hormones (free testosterone, estradiol, prolactin, insulin), glucose and homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) in women with primary hypothyroidism under thyroid hormone replacement therapy .This cross-sectional study was carried on 62 hypothyroid patients׳ women and 22 healthy women as control group at the specialized center for endocrinology and diabetes, AL-Rasafa Directorate of Health Baghdad, with age range(15-60 years), diagnosed as having primary hypothyroidism on thyroxine replacement therapy with duration not less than four months.
... Show More