Two novel demountable shear connectors for precast steel-concrete composite bridges are presented. The connectors use high-strength steel bolts, which are fastened to the steel beam with the aid of a special locking configuration that prevents slip of bolts within their holes. Moreover, the connectors promote accelerated construction and overcome typical construction tolerances issues of precast structures. Most importantly, the connectors allow bridge disassembly, and therefore, can address different bridge deterioration scenarios with minimum disturbance to traffic flow, i.e. (1) precast deck panels can be rapidly uplifted and replaced; (2) connectors can be rapidly removed and replaced; and (3) steel beams can be replaced, while precast decks and shear connectors can be reused. A series of push-out tests and a beam test were conducted to assess the behavior of the connectors and quantify the effect of important parameters. The experimental results showed that shear resistance and slip capacity can reach 2.5 and 2.7 times respectively of those of welded shear studs along with superior stiffness and strength against slab uplift. Additionally, shear stiffness of M16 mm LNSC was equal to that of M19 mm welded studs. Identical tests reveal negligible scatter in the shear load – slip displacement behavior. Design equations are proposed to predict the shear resistance with minimum deviations.
Weed control with chemicals is a challenging process that should be performed in a rational way to reduce their negative impact on the surrounding environment. The growth of artificial intelligence algorithms encourages researchers to develop smart spraying robots that detect and spray weeds and distinguish them from the main crop which leads to sustainable use of these chemicals and achieves some of the sustainable development goals. However, few studies are available to comprehensively compare different versions of YOLO algorithm to detect weed. In this research, seven versions of YOLO algorithms were evaluated for their performance to detect and spray four t
Marshlands environment in southern Iraq is unique and is considered a habitat of thousands of migratory birds as shelter and a source of livelihood for thousands of people living there. Its environment is characterized by a fragile ecosystem that requires great care and effort to achieve the greatest possible balance and parallelism of development, which necessarily require careful environmental planning that accurately regulates the resources of the environment and therefore, planned the best way to use them. The idea of research for creating the spatial organization of the development of the human settlements and taking into account the environmental aspect by thinking for the plann
يواجه العراق تحديات مائية خطيرة نتيجة التغيرات المناخية، مثل انخفاض معدلات هطول الأمطار، ارتفاع درجات الحرارة، وزيادة معدلات الجفاف والتصحر، فهذه التحديات تتطلب إستراتيجيات فعالة لإدارة الموارد المائية بشكل مستدام، وهو ما يمكن تحقيقه من خلال تبني التطورات التكنولوجية الحديثة في مجال الحوكمة البيئية ، و يركز هذا البحث على دور التحول الرقمي والتقنيات الذكية في تعزيز كفاءة إدارة المياه، إذ يمكن لتطبيقا
... Show MoreA simple, fast, selective of a new flow injection analysis method coupled with potentiometric detection was used to determine vitamin B1 in pharmaceutical formulations via the prepared new selective membranes. Two electrodes were constructed for the determination of vitamin B1 based on the ion-pair vitamin B1-phosphotungestic acid (B1-PTA) in a poly (vinyl chloride) supported with a plasticized di-butyl phthalate (DBPH) and di-butyl phosphate (DBP). Applications of these ion selective electrodes for the determination of vitamin B1 in the pharmaceutical preparations for batch and flow injection systems were described. The ion selective membrane exhibited a near-Nernstian slope values 56.88 and 58.53 mV / decade, with the linear dy
... Show MoreIn the present study a series of some four-,five-and seven-membered heterocyclic compounds have been synthesized by the reaetion of Schiff bases (1a,b) with chloroacetyl chloride, sodium azide, thioglycolic acid or various anhydrides to give azetidinone (2a,b), tetrazole (3a,b), thiazolidinone (4a,b) and 1,3-oxazepine derivatives (5-8a,b) respectively. Schiff bases (1a,b)were prepared from the reaction of p-toluidine with aromatic aldehydes. All synthesized compounds were characterized by physical properties and spectral data.
Various methods are utilized providing complexity for cryptosystem with the aim to increase the security and avoiding hacker attack. Hybrid cryptosystem is one of these cryptosystems which is used two types of cryptosystems and has many applications in data transmitted. This research, proposed a novel method that used power exponent instead of using the prime number directly and also providing complexity of asymmetric cryptosystems. This method has been applied theoretically in two public systems RSA and EL-Gamal. Power RSA and Power EL-Gamal are modified asymmetric cryptosystems, in which the power number is kept by the sender and the receiver. Moreover, we use group theory to prove that these cryptosystems work properly. Our exten
... Show MoreA new human-based heuristic optimization method, named the Snooker-Based Optimization Algorithm (SBOA), is introduced in this study. The inspiration for this method is drawn from the traits of sales elites—those qualities every salesperson aspires to possess. Typically, salespersons strive to enhance their skills through autonomous learning or by seeking guidance from others. Furthermore, they engage in regular communication with customers to gain approval for their products or services. Building upon this concept, SBOA aims to find the optimal solution within a given search space, traversing all positions to obtain all possible values. To assesses the feasibility and effectiveness of SBOA in comparison to other algorithms, we conducte
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