Sharif Digital Repository

A cyclic simple shear device was modified for testing coarse-grained soils at unsaturated conditions. A combined methodology of controlling suction for the practical range of coarse-grained soil water retention curves was adopted. Water head control method was used to accurately control suction within capillary and transition zones of such soils. The axis translation technique, on the other hand, was employed as a complementary approach to reach higher suction values within residual zone. In order to evaluate the performance of the new setup, independent cyclic tests were carried out at various initial suctions including all key points and zones along the primary drying path. The analyses of... 

The construction of most geo-structures like earthfill dams, roads, highways, embankments, and airport runways deals with the compaction of unsaturated soils under anisotropic cyclic/dynamic loadings. Many of these partially saturated geo-structures also experience three-dimensional dynamic loadings during service life. This paper presents a new hollow cylinder apparatus developed for the investigation of the cyclic response of unsaturated soils subjected to stress anisotropy. The device is unique as it enables, for the first time, studying the combined effects of stress anisotropy (effects of both parameters α and b) and the degree of saturation on the dynamic properties of unsaturated... 

Determination of soil shear modulus is one of the most controversial topics in unsaturated soil dynamics. Due to the fact that soils have an anisotropic response, the shear strength and stiffness of geological materials are greatly dependent on the principal stress direction and the intermediate principal stress. In this study, the effects of principal stress direction on shear modulus of unsaturated medium-dense sand have been investigated using cyclic hollow cylinder apparatus. Three series of stress-controlled cyclic tests with different fixed principal stress directions were carried out on the sand sample under different values of suction. Results reveal that shear modulus of unsaturated... 

Determination of soil shear modulus is one of the most controversial topics in unsaturated soil dynamics. Due to the fact that soils have an anisotropic response, the shear strength and stiffness of geological materials are greatly dependent on the principal stress direction and the intermediate principal stress. In this study, the effects of principal stress direction on shear modulus of unsaturated medium-dense sand have been investigated using cyclic hollow cylinder apparatus. Three series of stress-controlled cyclic tests with different fixed principal stress directions were carried out on the sand sample under different values of suction. Results reveal that shear modulus of unsaturated... 

The ongoing and rapid growth of atmospheric CO2 levels causes a crucial worldwide concern. Herein, an efficient electrocatalyst has been introduced for electrochemical CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR) to address the stability issue of ZIF-67. The catalyst consists of gold and silver nanostructures electrodeposited on the surface of a cobalt-based metal-organic framework (Au-Ag@ZIF-67). The uniform distribution of the Au-Ag alloy without any agglomeration on ZIF-67 was confirmed through microscopic observations. After 13.3 h of CO2RR, the specific surface area of Au-Ag@ZIF-67 slightly decreased, whereas that of ZIF-67 declined drastically, indicating excellent structural stability of the Au-Ag... 

This review highlights using nanotechnology in increasing the bioavailability of AP (Apigenin) to enhance its therapeutic efficacy in breast cancer treatment. Breast cancer is one of the most leading causes of cancer death in women both in developed and developing countries. According to several epidemiological and clinical trial studies that indicate progestin-stimulated breast cancer in post-menopausal women; it is necessary to determine compounds to suppress or attenuate the tumor-promoting effects of progestins in breast cells. For this purpose, using the natural anti-progestins, including AP compared with the chemical ones could be significantly effective due to the lack of toxicities... 

Hydrogel-based wearable electrochemical biosensors (HWEBs) are emerging biomedical devices that have recently received immense interest. The exceptional properties of HWEBs include excellent biocompatibility with hydrophilic nature, high porosity, tailorable permeability, the capability of reliable and accurate detection of disease biomarkers, suitable device–human interface, facile adjustability, and stimuli responsive to the nanofiller materials. Although the biomimetic three-dimensional hydrogels can immobilize bioreceptors, such as enzymes and aptamers, without any loss in their activities. However, most HWEBs suffer from low mechanical strength and electrical conductivity. Many studies...