Sharif Digital Repository

The current study revealed the effectiveness of polypropylene (PP) fibers and cement to enhance the strength of black cotton soil. PP fibers and cement with different concentrations were mixed with black cotton soil. The strength of PP fiber and cement-based soil samples was measured in terms of unconfined compressive strength (UCS) and California Bearing ratio (CBR). Specimens for UCS and CBR tests were prepared at 2%, 4%, 6% and 8% of cement (by dry weight of soil) and seven percentages of polypropylene fibers i.e. 0.0%, 0.1%, 0.2%, 0.3%, 0.4%, 0.5% and 0.6% (by dry weight of soil). Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) analysis confirmed the presence of polypropylene and cement contents in... 

The current study revealed the effectiveness of polypropylene (PP) fibers and cement to enhance the strength of black cotton soil. PP fibers and cement with different concentrations were mixed with black cotton soil. The strength of PP fiber and cement-based soil samples was measured in terms of unconfined compressive strength (UCS) and California Bearing ratio (CBR). Specimens for UCS and CBR tests were prepared at 2%, 4%, 6% and 8% of cement (by dry weight of soil) and seven percentages of polypropylene fibers i.e. 0.0%, 0.1%, 0.2%, 0.3%, 0.4%, 0.5% and 0.6% (by dry weight of soil). Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) analysis confirmed the presence of polypropylene and cement contents in... 

Nonlinear optical (NLO) materials are essential components in modern photonics and optical devices due to their ability to generate new frequencies through the nonlinear interaction with intense light. Synthesizing porphyrin-based NLO materials is complex and challenging, requiring specialized techniques to achieve high purity and yield. Controlling chromophore orientation and optimizing nonlinear optical properties are key difficulties that demand interdisciplinary efforts for practical photonics and optical applications. In the present study by using z-scan technique some of non-linear optical (NLO) parameters includingthird order NLO susceptibility (χ3), and molecular second... 

The principal objective involved in this research is to explore the mechanical behaviour of the binder using different mineral fillers such as stone dust (SD), brick dust (BD) and fly ash Class F (FA). Currently, a large quantity of roads is being constructed under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project. It is a major concern for quality of road to with stand heavy loads. For the investigation of the quality of roads, it is mandatory to evaluate the behaviour of mineral fillers addition in asphalt mastic. Fatigue cracking, thermal cracking and permanent deformation have been found a major common distress in the construction of road networks. In this study, the behaviour of... 

Pr doped spinel nanoferrites having following composition Cu Pr x Fe 2-x O 4 (x = 0, 0.25, 0.50, 0.75, 1.00) were synthesized using sol-gel route. Prosademium (Pr) which is a rare earth metal was doped to tailor the properties of the Cu spinel nanoferrites. Characterization tools such as FTIR, XRD, FESEM and VSM were employed to investigate the phase, absorption bands, structure, microstructure and magnetic properties. FTIR was used to see the absorption bands and force constants of the Pr doped Cu spinel nanoferrites. Crystallite size, lattice parameters, cell volume and micro strains were determined from XRD data. Bulk density, X-ray density and porosity of the Pr doped Cu spinel... 

In the present investigation, design of integrated numerical computing through Levenberg-Marquardt backpropagation neural network (LMBNN) is presented to examine the fluid mechanics problems governing the dynamics of expanding and contracting cylinder for Cross magneto-nanofluid flow (ECCCMNF) model in the presence of time dependent non-uniform magnetic force and permeability of the cylinder. The original system model ECCCMNF in terms of PDEs is converted to nonlinear ODEs by introducing the similarity transformations. Reference dataset of the designed LMBNN methodology is formulated with Adam numerical technique for scenarios of ECCCMNF by variation of thermophoresis temperature ratio... 

This study describes some epidemiological and patho-physiological aspects of Trypanosoma evansi (causative agent of “surra”) infection in camels (n=255) and Nili Ravi buffaloes (n=233). Clinical ailments like fever, shivering, edema of pads and urticarial swelling were observed in infected animals. Overall prevalence of T. evansi infection in buffaloes was 9.01 and 15.12% based on blood smear examination and PCR, respectively, while in camels, the prevalence was 10.58 and 15.29% based on smear examination and PCR, respectively. Results on epidemiological data did not indicate significant association of different factors of hosts with prevalence of T. evansi. Hematological parameters... 

Recent studies confirm the ability of graphene oxides (GO) for the improvement of cementitious-based soil material properties. The current study aimed to explore the influence of GO and cement on the spectroscopic, thermal, structural, and strength of soil experimentally. The spectroscopic analysis studied by FTIR showed the presence of GO and cementitious contents in the soil sample by detecting the vibration modes of respective components. Thermal (TGA) analysis revealed a slight loss in weight with the increase in temperature up to 1000 °C majorly due to the presence of moisture contents. SEM equipped with an EDX technique was implemented to examine the sample of microstructure containing... 

In recent years, subsidy payment has been made a main challenge for governments due to growth of population and energy price in global markets. Targeted subsidy plan has been implemented in Iran since last year, and this article discusses its effects on costs and revenues of Tehran Electricity Company as one of the major subdivisions of Iran's electricity industry. In the new system, structural changes have been made in electricity tariffs, so it is not possible to predict the future trends in electricity consumption only based on the past consumptions. In order to model the decision making structure in the recent conditions, a system dynamics method is applied. In addition to modeling the... 

This paper focuses on characterization of intervertebral disc behavior upon fatigue stress. It consists in in-vitro experiments to measure intervertebral disc deformation with regard to forces applied to produce fatigues test. In this paper, a system modeling based non-invasive method to assess back pain is proposed which may be used for designing of prediction model to predict the failure of intervertebral disc (IVD) experiencing fatigue loading. An artificial compression fracture was simulated in the lower level of vertebra followed by a poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) bone cement injection. Fatigue loading was applied on the specimens and the load was incrementally increased form 650 N... 

A wide range of techniques are currently used to improve the performance of the anaerobic digestion (AD) process, including co-digestion, inoculation, and addition of various accelerants. In the current study, ruminant intestinal waste inoculum effect on AD of cow manure was investigated. It was hypothesized that methanogens present in intestinal waste will enhance anaerobic digestion, which will result in increased biogas production. Five different cow manure/intestinal waste ratios (1:0, 9:1, 7:3, 1:1, 0:1) on wet weight basis were introduced in AD systems at mesophilic environment (37 °C) to find the best combination of cow manure and intestinal waste. Among tested cow manure/intestinal... 

The productive and straightforward strategy was developed to fabricate graphene based NiFe2O4 doped rare-earth (RE) ions nanocomposites for enhancing the magnetic and structural characteristics of ferrites. RE nanoparticles (NPs) such as Yb3+, Gd3+ and Sm3+ were doped in NiFe2O4 ferrite structure via sol-gel auto-combustion method and hydrothermal method was utilized to fabricate their graphene-based nanocomposites. The weight loss and decomposition of the nanocomposites were determined using temperature-dependent thermo gravimetric analysis (TGA/DTA). The single-phase structure of the NiFe2O4, NiFe2O4/G, Yb doped NiFe2O4/G, Gd doped NiFe2O4/G, and Sm doped NiFe2O4/G nanocomposites was... 

Providing home hemodialysis (HHD) therapy is a complex process that not only requires the use of a complex technology but also involves a diverse group of stakeholders, and each stakeholder has their requirements and may not share a common interest. Bringing them together will require the alignment of their interests. A process management perspective can help to accomplish the alignment of their interests. To align their interests, it is crucial to identify interest groups and understand their interests. The main objective of this paper is to identify the stakeholders and represents their interests as a list of requirements in the HHD process. An extensive literature review has been carried... 

This article presents, for the first time, a comparative analysis of two different solution methodologies for the numerical investigation of flow and thermal behavior of Casson fluid through a channel having linearly extending lower wall while the upper wall is kept at rest. MHD Casson fluid boundary layer flow is supposed to be steady, laminar, viscous, and incompressible. We have taken into account the mixed convection effects, whereas the usual no slip condition has been imposed on both walls. The Navier–Stokes equations for the proposed model have been converted into nonlinear and coupled system of ordinary differential equations (ODEs) by employing similarity variables, which are then... 

Pure tin oxide nanoparticles ware synthesized via Co-precipitation method. The as-synthesized nanoparticles were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS). X-ray diffraction shows that tetrahedral shaped nanoparticles of crystallite size 47.35nm were prepared successfully. The crystallinity was established due the reduction in distortion ratio and dislocation density. The value of strain showed that the nanoparticles fabricated were of high stability. The direct and indirect optical band gap of as-synthesized SnO2 nanoparticles were determined from the reflectance... 

Multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) with diameter of about 50 nm were synthesized using thermal chemical vapor deposition. We have investigated the influence of Mg doping to the MWCNTs on its hydrogen storage property. TEM micrographs showed that Mg was attached to the MWCNTs and discontinuous arrangement of the carbon walls was recognized in the MWCNTs. According to XPS and BET analyses, the surface functional groups and pore size of the Mg-MWCNTs are increased by interactions between the Mg and the MWCNT's outer walls. The electrochemical discharging curves of the MWCNTs and Mg-doped MWCNTs revealed that the hydrogen storage capacity was 363 and 450 mAhg -1, respectively. Volumetric... 

The effects of HCl, HNO3, H2SO4 and HF acids on the purification and the electrochemical hydrogen storage of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) were studied. The MWCNTs were synthesized on Fe-Ni catalyst by thermal chemical vapor deposition method. The X-ray diffraction and thermal gravimetric analysis results indicated that the MWCNTs purified by HF acid had the highest impurities as compared with the other acids. The N2 adsorption results at 77 K indicated that all the samples were mainly mesoporous and the purified MWCNTs by HF acid had the highest surface area as compared with the other acids. The hydrogen storage capacities of the purified MWCNTs by the following acids were in... 

Ca-doped Ni–Mg–Mn spinel ferrites with compositions of Ni0·5Mg0·3Mn0.2CaxFe2-xO4 (x = 0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5) were prepared via sol-gel auto-ignition technique. TGA/DTA, FTIR, XRD, FESEM, and VSM were employed to evaluate the thermal, spectral, structural, morphological, and magnetic features of Ca-doped Ni–Mg–Mn spinel ferrites. TGA/DTA curves show the weight loss in the sample. This weight loss was attributed to the oxidation and decomposition of the sample contents at a temperature of 500 °C. XRD reveals a single-phase structure of the Ni–Mg–Mn nano ferrites. A single-phase orthorhombic structure was confirmed for Ca-doped Ni–Mg–Mn ferrites. Structural parameters such as lattice... 

Over the past few decades, biological hazards and organic pollution have become major environmental concerns. Photocatalysis has been found to be effective in minimizing the negative impacts of these issues in air and water. Lozenge shape Ag/AgCl/ZnTiO3 photocatalysts were fabricated by a facile two-step synthesis method, including hydrothermal and coprecipitation. The physicochemical characteristics and morphological properties of the structures were comprehensively described taking advantage of a multi-technique approach. The prepared photocatalysts offered excellent nitrophenol mineralization (>90%) after 90 min of visible light irradiation. Based on the spin-trapping ESR technique, •O2̅–... 

Early clinical diagnosis and treatment of disease rely heavily on measuring the many various types of medical information that are scattered throughout the body. Continuous and accurate monitoring of the human body is required in order to identify abnormal medical signals and to locate the factors that contribute to their occurrence in a timely manner. In order to fulfill this requirement, a variety of battery-free and self-powered methods of information collecting have been developed. For the purpose of a health monitoring system, this paper presents smart wearable sensors that are based on triboelectric nanogenerators (TENG) and piezoelectric nanogenerators (PENG), as well as hybrid...