Al-Nahrain Journal for Engineering Sciences

Hot mix asphalt placed on "reclaimed asphalt pavement" (RAP) provides technological benefits. Concerning these mixtures at all service temperatures is moisture damage. As a result, the performance of this composition in the face of moisture at all temperatures of service constituted the objective of this investigation. Experimental methods were employed to examine the impact of humidity on the efficacy of different varieties, one of which was the tensile strength ratio (TSR). Within the context of this research, four distinct proportions of RAP (10, 15, 20, 25%) and (30,40,50,60%) were incorporated into the hot asphalt mix (HMA) for the surface and bonding layers, respectively. In order to ascertain the most favorable RAP content for both layers, an investigation of the asphalt composites' hygroscopic resistance and Marshall stability in the face of moisture damage was conducted. For three fillers and both layers, the asphalt mixture without RAP is compared to the mixes with the ideal RAP concentration in terms of ratio (TSR). The tensile strength of the (HMA) without RAP was found to be somewhat lower in the findings than that of the asphalt control mixes that contained reclaimed pavement, where the percentages were found to be slightly higher and yet more than 80%. The findings show that, in general, the performance of these mixes and integrations against moisture damage is high despite the presence of antiquated elements in the hot asphalt mix (HMA) made from RAP, which comprises aggregates and bitumen binder around the aggregate particles. Because it contains this, it can have results with "hot asphalt mixtures" containing RAP for areas with damage without worry, in addition to good natural curbs.

This article provides a general up to date review of the investigation on performances and resistances of plain and fiber containing concrete structures under periodical loadings of long endurance up to fatigue failure. Structures are almost, under the frequent influences of repeated loadings such as vibrations of rotary machines, sea /river waves, wind, earthquakes and moving vehicles. Long term application of cyclic loading leads to continually slow rate degradation of the structure rigidity leading to fatigue damage. In spite of the dominant usage of concrete, worldwide, as a building material, its fatigue behavior is not straight forward. In addition, this lack of comparison is confronted for fiber fortified concrete. The article also presently a survey of the available techniques for monitoring and measurement of fatigue impressions in concrete structures founded both their impact within the treatise domain and the non-destructive inspection. Those technical means are classified into, at least, two designations, specifically, the monitoring of fatigue induced cracking and the detection of fatigue charged damage. Those techniques parameters, evaluate the changes in the mechanical and physical materials properties during the fatigue endurance, are distantly reviewed in concern of the mechanism creating the change, shortcomings, constraints, etc. The merits, dependency, feasibility, disadvantages and limitations of each technique are assessed and compared to make an index to select the appropriated e technique for fatigues fracture or failure inspection of the type fibered or not of structural concrete

This study explores the impact of adding high-density polyethylene (HDPE) and Novolac polymers to gypseous soil from Tikrit City, Iraq, to enhance its geotechnical properties. The soil contained 38% gypsum, and the polymers were added in varying proportions (1%, 3%, 6%). Both polymers improved maximum dry density, optimum moisture content, and reduced collapse potential (Ic). The collapse potential was reduced by 64%, 77.7%, and 83.2% at 1%, 3%, and 6% HDPE content, respectively. The collapse potential was reduced by 82.3%, 74.8%, and 51.9% at 1%, 3%, and 6% Novolac polymer content, respectively. In the dry conditions, the internal friction angle increased by about 22.9% and 5.7% as the HDPE content was increased by 3% and 6% respectively. Adding Novolac polymer also increased the internal friction angle by about 5.7% by the addition of 3% Novolac polymer. In soaked conditions, the best increase in internal friction angle (ϕ) was 30% with the addition of 3% HDPE polymer. the internal friction angle increased by about 26.7% by adding 1% and 3% of Novolac polymer. The study concludes that adding HDPE and Novolac polymers can improve geotechnical properties, but their effect on CBR is complex and depends on the polymer percentage added and soil moisture state.

Kidney renal failure is a life-threatening disease in which one or both kidneys are not functioning normally. The only available treatment other than a kidney transplant is to start on dialysis sessions, whether it is peritoneal or Hemo-dialysis[1].
For some patients, the dialysis procedure is an exhausting and sometimes expensive trip to the specialized dialysis centers since it must be done about three times a week, depending on the physician's decision depending on the glomerular filtration rate of the kidneys[2-4].
Different researchers have made many attempts over the years to replace conventional dialysis machines with more accessible at-home dialysis systems to provide patients with comfortable treatment sessions at the time they want without the need to change their lifestyle to fit the dialysis center's schedule.
A review of the critical methods utilized in the creation and application of a portable dialysis machine that resembles the traditional dialysis center devices was conducted using a number of prior studies (research conducted between 2009 and 2024); the goal of all studies was to create a device that consists of filtering system, detection system to ensure there is no blood leakage and all parameters are within the acceptable limits, alarm system, and dialysate regeneration system, and each method will be described precisely in this review.
As a result, the discussed studies found that using peristaltic pump pumps with a phase difference by half cycle between blood and dialysate will cause a higher urea clearance rate; multiple studies focused on the modification of the dialyzing filter to find that using Polyethene glycol surface-modified silicon nanopore membranes, dual-layer hollow fiber membranes, the use of BRECS cell therapy, carbon activated blocks, all contributed highly in enhancing the dialyzing process providing the patients with highly efficient blood purification session.

In this work we performed a review regarding the improvement of microscopical optical imaging assisted by using microspheres, focusing on the most recent technologies. We have been reviewed the utilizing of the superlens and nanojet concepts in order to understand the working principles of microspheres in terms of magnification and resolution improvement. Some researches about the parameters effecting on microsphere imaging technique have been presented including the effect of microsphere’s material and size, the effect of immersion medium, and the plasmonic layer effect. Additionally, some applications that serve from this technique have been illustrated.

Solar panels are constantly evolving, with changes occurring in the materials used, panel shapes, and the method used to attach solar cells to the panels. Solar radiation consists of two components: photovoltaic energy, which is used to generate electricity via photovoltaic panels, and thermal energy, which, on the other hand, can reduce the efficiency of photovoltaic panels. Thermal photovoltaic panels are a recent breakthrough in the industry as they use light to generate energy and heat to reheat cryogenic liquid for a variety of purposes. One subtype that is gaining popularity is hybrid photovoltaic thermal panels, which are designed to enhance heat use by adding a heat storage medium, with phase change materials being a noteworthy example. ​ Despite their numerous benefits, these materials have limited heat conductivity, necessitating substantial research efforts to improve this attribute. However, most research focus solely on enhancing conductivity without applying the findings to PV panels in a comprehensive manner. This study fills this gap by reviewing the phase change materials accessible locally, picking Iraqi wax, researching additions, selecting micro- particles of aluminum oxide (Al2O3), investigating the mixing procedure, and calculating the ideal mixing ratio (6% additive to wax). The combination is then placed to a normal solar panel, resulting in a hybrid photovoltaic panel with a complicated phase transition material reinforced with aluminum oxide.

Searching for an optimal alternative to normal cement concrete (NCC) is an urgent need nowadays in order to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, reduce energy, and reduce waste materials. Therefore, this research aims to examine zero cement concrete (ZCC) slabs under monotonic loads with several paramedic studies including slab thickness (60mm, 80mm, 100 mm), bar spacing (75mm, 150mm, and 225mm), and molarity concentration (6M, 8M, and 10M). The results showed the behavior of reinforced ZCC slabs is similar to or slightly lower than that of normal cement concrete. Increasing slab thickness from 60 mm to 80 mm and 100 mm enhanced the slab stiffness, increased the applied loads, and reduced the vertical mid-span deflection. Decreasing bar spacing by 33.33% and 66.67% relative to 225 mm reduced also the deflection. The energy absorption was increased due to increasing the slab thickness and bar spacing. When the load increased, the slabs eventually failed by a typically visible punching cone (punching shear).

Specimens with the structure of a face-centered cubic were produced using several sets of printing conditions. An experimental testing is conducted to carefully evaluate the microstructural analysis and compressive strength of this structure. The results include the measurement of mechanical properties, such as the peak stress. Fused deposition modeling is employed for the additive manufacturing of experimental specimens made from shape memory polymer thermoplastic polyurethane (MM-3520). We take into account the impact of printing factors on lattice structures, such as layer thickness, printing temperature, and printing speed. Analyzing the microstructure of the printed specimens exhibits that the specimens with highest printing temperature, lowest printing speed and thinner printing layer have better layers adhesion and lower porosities. All the mechanical tests are performed on specimens with the same structure and at a relatively constant density. Among the tested printing parameters, using a layer height of 0.1 mm, a printing temperature of 230 °C, and a printing speed of 20 mm/s yields the highest strength in the specimens. However, specimens printed with a layer height of 0.2 mm, a printing temperature of 220 °C, and a printing speed of 30 mm/s also exhibit good strength, albeit slightly lower than the maximum values. Additionally, when using these specific settings (0.3 mm – 210 °C – 40 mm/s), the mechanical qualities are minimized, yet the stress-strain curves exhibit characteristics similar to elastomers.

Accurately identifying the kind and amount of dissolved metal salts in wastewater used in oil refining processes is an iconic feature of ultraviolet and visible absorption spectroscopy. This method relies on the dissolved metal salts\' ability to absorb light at certain wavelengths after reacting with it. The experiments were conducted in a lab setting with a broadband source (200-800 nm) to measure the absorbance of dissolved element salts and precisely identify the lowest concentration up to 2 ppm. A mixture of the mineral salts from oil refining operations was prepared and diluted to different concentrations using a standard solution. This allowed us to study and compare this result with the absorbance behavior of the wastewater from the Al-Dora Refinery. The two results reinforced that we can accurately estimate the detection parameters for the lowest water contamination. These materials are lead nitrate (PbNO3), phenol, calcium carbonate (CaCO3), sodium chloride (NaCl2), sulfide (SO4), and nitrate (NO3). At wavelengths of 340, 404, and 741 nm, the concentrations (10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, and 100) ppm were found, and for the concentration of 10ppm, the absorbance (0.15323, 0.15326, and 0.14685) was found, respectively. The process that has been tested with varying concentrations is considered and simulates the variation in river water concentrations caused by the river\'s water level and flow rate changes by the effect of rain abundance and thawing. It is fast, accurate data analysis, and a lower cost compared with the other chemical analysis and conventional methods.

Face recognition and identification have recently become the most widely employed biometric authentication technologies, especially for access to persons and other security purposes. It represents one of the most significant pattern recognition technologies that uses characteristics included in facial images or videos to detect the identity of individuals. However, most of the traditional facial algorithms have faced limitations in identification and verification accuracy.
As a result, this paper presents a sophisticated system for face identification adopting a novel algorithm of deep learning, namely, You Only Look Once version 8 (YOLOv8). This system can detect the face identity of different individuals with different positions with high accuracy. The YOLOv8 model has been trained for several target face images classified as training and validation images of 1190 and 255, respectively. The experimental results show a significant improvement in face identification accuracy of 99% of mean average precision, which outperforms many state-of-the-art face identification techniques.

In term of sustainable practices, recycling plays a crucial role, particularly in the construction industry where the disposal of old structures generates significant waste. Recycling old concrete not only reduces the need for new natural resources but also eliminate waste accumulation. Numerous research study the behaviors of recycled aggregate concretes, practically focusing on the long term behaviours. A large number of studies have demonstrated that concrete made from recycled aggregate exhibits poorer long-term characteristics in comparison to aggregate from nature concrete. The long-term behaviour can be affected by three factor which is creep, shrinkage and tension stiffening. Greater management of these variables can enhance the RAC's long-term properties. The review will specifically focus on the influence of time dependent parameters i.e., creep, shrinkage, and loss of tension stiffening with time. Furthermore, it will explore the long-term deflection predicted from code used for deflection prediction, considering three codes: ACI, EC2, and the CSA code. The purpose of this paper is to enhance the understanding of long-term deflection of recycled aggregate concrete beam and evaluate the effectiveness of various factors that impact their structural performance.

Recently, three-dimensional models 3DM in the prosthetics field gained popularity, especially in the context of residual limb shape creation resulting from collecting medical images in Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine DICOM format from a magnetic resonance imaging MRI after image processing accurately. In this study, a three-dimensional model of the residual limb for a patient with transtibial amputation was realized with the integration of artificial intelligence and a computer vision approach demonstrating the benefits of AI segmentation tools and artificial algorithms to generate higher accuracy three-dimensional model before prosthetic socket design or in case of comparison the 3D model generated from MRI with another 3D model generated from another technique, where a residual limb of a 23 years old male patient with amputation in the left leg wearing a prosthetic socket liner, and having 62 kg weight, 168 cm height, with high activity level. The patient was scanned using GE Medical Systems, 1,5 Tesla Signa Excite. MRI images in DICOM format were read to retrieve essential metadata such as pixel spacing and slice thickness. These images were processed to obtain a model that reflects the real shape of the residual limb using a specific algorithm, and the 3D model was extracted using AI segmentation tools. The obtained 3D model result with high resolution proves the potential of the artificial intelligence approach with deep learning to reconstruct 3D models concluding that AI has an instrumental role in medical image analysis, particularly in the areas of organ and tissue classification and segmentation., thus generating automatic and repetitive a 3D model.

Due to the Kurdistan regional government-KRG district mission potential towards huge solar energy power generation plant investments by global investors, a genuine study is required to explore the impact of PV-panels installation angles on power generation gain within all seasons duration as the KRG located in four season area which, affect the annual total power gain due to daylight duration effect in each season. The proposed study was conducted within a duration of “513” days utilizing three PV tilt installation angle tests of “ 30⁰, 35⁰, and 40⁰ ” with “ 545 watts single side PV plates” selecting the Erbil district area gaining a crucial role in maximizing energy output for comparison, Results presented a significant variation in power gain due to deviations in annual effective daylight duration effectively mostly a reduction in cold seasons within 25%-37.7% drops compared to the hot season, while the sunset and sunrise duration presented a significant influence of 5%-10% drops in power generated. The season change shows a significant influence of weather variation in each calendar on power gain annually. The installation orientation angle impact presented divergence in production within the cold season only. Process output can potentially unlock a novelty awareness of the investors toward innovative yield project optimization in the area as it will affect the annual power purchasing influence and production divergence with interest.