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A series of laboratory tests were carried out on disturbed soil samples containing different gypsum contents. The soil samples were obtained from al-Jazeera south-west of Iraq. Tests were performed to obtain the physical and mechanical properties of the soil. In addition; permeability-leaching tests were conducted by using oedometer and large-scale Rowe cell apparatus to obtain the variation of the coefficient of permeability, dissolved gypsum and leaching strain with time. All samples were tested under similar conditions, e.g. the hydraulic gradient, vertical stress and leaching period. The soil samples designated N1, N2, and N3 are obtained from depths (0.5-0.75), (1.0-1.25), and (3.25-3.5) m and having gypsum content (31.43), (51.37), and (4.86) percentage respectively. Results of experimental work show that the coefficient of permeability, the percentages of dissolved gypsum and leaching strain measured from the oedometer test are higher than that measured from large-scale Rowe cell test for the same soil sample. The gypseous soil with higher gypsum content exhibited significant amount of leaching strain.

Reactive powder concrete (RPC) can provide enhanced mechanical properties and durability compared to conventional concrete. RPC has been developed in this study using locally available materials. Six types of steel fibers and three curing regimens were considered to examine their effect on the mechanical properties of RPC. Steel fibers were incorporated by 1% and 2% of the total volume of mixtures. Generally, the experimental results showed that 1% steel fibers enhanced the compressive, flexural, and splitting tensile strengths by 23.6%, 65.1%, and 72.7%, respectively, compared to control mixtures (no fibers). On the other hand, the 2% of fibers improved the compressive, flexural, and tensile strengths by 39.2 %, 155.0%, and 191.7%, respectively. The curing regimen, which consisted of 2 days at 60°C and 3 days at 90°C, followed by 21 days of moist curing at 21°C, indicated the ultimate enhancement of the mechanical properties of RPC. Also, hooked fibers appeared to enhance flexural strength and tensile strength compared to other types of fibers.

Baiji city is a vital industrial centre in Iraq since it has the biggest oil refinery. Therefore, Baiji has become an attractive site for strategic construction projects. Dune sand covers about 220 km2 of the area of Baiji city. However, few researches had attempted to study its behaviour. In this study laboratory tests were conducted to determine the shear strength, collapsibility and compressibility of the dune sand at its natural and compacted status. The effect of dry unit weight, moisture content, relative density and soaking on mechanical properties of dune soil was investigated. The results demonstrated that dry and soaked dune specimens tested at their in-situ condition exhibited similar volume changes during shear and identical friction angles. The results of shear tests of both of compacted soaked and unsoaked samples were identical. The collapse potential of dune soil is inversely proportional with the relative density. The minimum axial strain is observed when the samples are compacted to modified effort. The compression index of the compacted specimens is affected by moulding water content, while the rebound index is less sensitive.

Background: Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is an endemic disease in Iraq, for which many therapies had been tried, aiming to induce cure with no or minimal scaring. Rifamycin is an antibacterial agent, with the ability to inhibit bacterial DNA-dependent RNA synthesis and it is effective against extra- and intracellular microorganisms. Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness and safety of intralesional 8.33% Rifamycin infiltration in treatment of cutaneous leishmaniasis. Patients and methods: This is an open controlled therapeutic trial, carried out in the outpatient clinic of Dermatology & Venereology, Al-Yarmouk Teaching Hospital during the period between the first of December 2013 to the end of June 2014. A total of 29 patients have been enrolled in this therapeutic trial, however 4 patients were defaulted and 25 patients have completed the therapeutic trial. Fourteen (56%) were males and 11 (44%) were females, with a male to female ratio 1.27. Their ages ranged from 6 to 60 years, with a mean ± SD of 28.6 ± 14.9 years. The total number of lesions was 56 and the duration of lesions ranged between 4 and 18 weeks with a mean ± SD of 9.9 ± 4.4 weeks. The size of lesions ranged from 0.5 to 6 cm in diameter with a mean ± SD of 2.46 ± 1.17 cm. All patients have been diagnosed through history and clinical examination and the diagnosis was confirmed by skin smear and biopsy. The lesions were divided into two groups; group A treated with intralesional 8.33% Rifamycin infiltration every 2 weeks for a maximum of 5 sessions, while group B was left untreated as a control group. Follow up was every 2 weeks during the treatment period, and for 6 weeks after completing the therapeutic sessions. Results: Twenty five patients with a total of 56 lesions were completed the study period. Twenty one (37%) lesions were ulcerative and 35 (63%) were non ulcerative lesions. Ten (40%) patients had single lesion whereas 15 (60%) patients had multiple lesions. In group A, 38 (92.7%) out of 41 lesions showed a cure with 2–5 sessions with a mean ± SD of 4.9 ± 0.79 sessions, while in the control group no lesion had significantly improved or cured. At the end of the study period, only 8 out of 41 treated lesions have left trivial scars. Most of the lesions showed transient hyperpigmentation at the end of the study, but fortunately, it had disappeared in all cases few weeks later. Conclusion: Rifamycin 8.33% solution given intralesionally in cutaneous leishmaniasis is a highly effective agent with a success rate of 92.7%. For cure, it needs 2–5 local infiltrations given every two weeks. In addition to being effective, it is a safe, and less costly therapeutic option for cutaneous leishmaniasis.

Time-dependent deformation and stress relaxation in soils are important in a variety ofgeotechnical problems where long-term behavior is of concern.Previous studies on soils showed that the magnitude of delayed compression(creep) is controlled by compressibility and soil sensitivity in addition topreconsolidation.In this paper, the time-dependent behavior of gypseous soils is investigated. Thesoils used in this study were brought from three locations at Al-Tar region west of Al-Najaf city in Iraq. These soils had gypsum content of (66%, 44% and 14.8%). Themineralogical and chemical properties of the soils were determined.Two series of tests were performed. In the first, collapsibility characteristics wereinvestigated for a long period (60 days) by conducting single and double oedometertests. In the second series, the effect of relative density on collapse with time wasinvestigated. The samples were compacted to 40%, 50% and 60% relative density andthen tested. The results of collapse tests showed that the relationship between thestrain and logarithm of effective stress has two vertical lines. The first one representsthe collapse settlement taking place within 24 hours, while the second one representsthe long-term collapse. The collapse potential in both single and double oedometertests increases when the gypsum content increases from (14.8%) to (66%) and whenthe initial void ratio increases.The results of double oedometer tests showed that the relationship between thecollapse potential and logarithm of time, for samples loaded to 800 kPa for 60 days,consist of three distinct segments. The first segment is represented by a curve concavedownward in which the compressibility gradually increases. The second segment is astraight line with a higher increase in the strain. The third segment which refers tocreep collapse depends on the gypsum content. Gypseous soil with low gypsumcontent (14.8%) exhibited significant decrease (5.21% at 24 hours to 7.16% at 60 days)in collapse potential with time.

A simple rapid and accurate flow injection inhibitory chemiluminescence method has been developed for the determination of adrenaline hydrochloride based on its inhibition of the chemiluminescence from the luminol ،V potassium hexacyanoferrate (III) system. The linear range of determination is 8.0 „e 10-12 ،V 8.0 „e 10-10 mgl-1 for adrenaline hydrochloride and the detection limit is 4.0 „e 10-9 g ml-1. The method has been applied to determine the content of adrenaline in pharmaceutical preparation with satisfactory results.

ABSTRACT: While more than half the land surface of Iraq consists of deserts covered mainly with sand dunes, little research has taken place to study the characteristics and the behavior of dune soils. This paper directed toward studying the geotechnical properties of dune sands taken from Baiji city (northwest of Iraq). A vast laboratory testing program was carried out to achieve the purpose of this paper. The physical tests, chemical tests, X-ray diffraction analysis, permeability test, compaction characteristics, compressibility and collapsibility tests; and shear strength tests were included in this program. The results indicate that soil of Baiji sand dune exhibits prefer engineering properties according to their state. As such, this soil is considered suitable for use in geotechnical constructions. ABSTRAK: Walaupun lebih separuh daripada bumi Iraq terdiri daripada gurun yang dipenuhi dengan bukit-bukit pasir, tidak banyak penyelidikan dijalankan untuk mengkaji sifat-sifat dan ciri-ciri tanah pasir tersebut. Kertas kerja ini menyelidik sifat geoteknikal bukit pasir yang diambil dari pekan Baiji (di bahagian barat utara Iraq). Program penyelidikan makmal yang menyeluruh telah dijalankan bagi mencapai objektif kajian ini. Ujian fizikal, ujian kimia, analisis belauan sinar-x, ujian kebolehtelapan, ciri pemadatan, faktor ketermampatan, ujian keruntuhan dan ujian kekuatan ricih diambilkira dalam program ini. Keputusan menunjukkan bahawa tanih bukit pasir Baiji mengutamakan ciri kejuruteraan berdasarkan keadaannya. Oleh itu, tanah ini dianggap sesuai untuk kegunaan pembinaan geoteknikal.

Micropiles are small diameter, cast in – place or grouted piles with steel pipes of (50 to 300 mm) diameters and driven by boring machine. Despite their small wall thickness, high bearing capacity of micropiles provides both axial and pullout resistance.nThis paper is directed to study the behavior of micropiles under static and dynamic loading conditions using the finite element method. The program OpenSees is used in the analysis, it is open – source program, provides information about the software architecture, access to the source code, and the development process. The program is based on the basic commands, which are written in Tcl (pronounced, "tickle"; tool command language). A model for groups of laterally loaded pipe piles in sand was adopted to study the effect of defects on their lateral performance. The geometric arrangement consisted of group series of 2, 4 and 6 equally spaced piles. Eight node brick elements are used to model the pile and the surrounding soil. It was concluded that the deflection of laterally loaded piles decreases when inserting steel micropiles beside the defect pile at two opposite directions. The increase in the group deflection is greater when the defected pile is modeled in the front row.

This paper contains the results of CBR tests that performed on compacted samples of real dune sand (cohesionless sand grains) and pseudo dune sand which is a mixture of sand sized aggregate of clay and silt. The effect of compaction and soaking on the bearing values are included in this research. The results indicated that the compacted real dune sands have high strength and low sensitivity to soaking. The 5 mm penetration of CBR of this soil is higher than that of 2.5 mm. On the other hand, the loss of strength due to soaking can be quite considerable in compacted pseudo dune sands. The CBR values obtained at 2.5 mm and 5 mm penetration are approximately equal in pseudo dune sands.

In order to design structures on soft soils, it is necessary to predict the behavior of the soft soil under imposed structure load. The high excessive settlements of the soft soil can cause many problems for the structures built on the soil like cracking and breakup of pavements, railway, highway embankments, etc... In this work, the finite element method is utilized as a tool for carrying out different analyses of embankments on soft ground with different conditions. The computer program CRISP (CRItical State Program) is developed to suit the problem requirements. CRISP uses the finite element technique and allows predictions to be made of soil deformations using the critical state theory. Eight-node isoparametric quadrilateral element has been added to the program. The program was used to analyze fully coupled (Biot) consolidation of two-dimensional plane strain problems. The finite element predictions of displacements and excess pore water pressures were compared with field measurements. It was concluded that the maximum vertical movement occurs below the centerline of the embankment. The settlement decreases slightly as the toe of the embankment is approached and decreases rapidly as the distance away from the toe increases. Upward movement of the surface far from the toe is observed. The maximum horizontal movement occurs near the top boundary. The rate of horizontal movement at the top of the foundation is greater than at the bottom. This behavior may be due to the flexibility and free movement condition of the vertical boundary in the top half

This paper studies the two-dimensional analysis of the consolidation process for partially saturated soils applied to an earth embankment mainly from the theoretical point of view. The method of finite elements is used to find a numerical solution to describe the behavior of soils during consolidation. Moreover, this study was carried for both, isothermal and non-isothermal cases. The case of two–dimensional, plane strain consolidation is considered, as it is widely needed in the studies of soil mechanics. The parameters studied are displacement in the y–direction, pore water pressure, pore air pressure, and temperature. The embankment was constructed in Basrah - Iraq, where the temperature is usually high at most days of the year. It is believed that it is more realistic to model the embankment as a partially saturated soil rather than a fully saturated soil as was done before. The study reveals that: – - The consolidation process is affected by the degree of saturation. As the paths in the soil that are used by the pore–water and/or the pore–air may transfer from one state (open path) to another state (closed path) and vice versa. - The pore–water and the pore–air pressures are affected by temperature. The pressure increases when the temperature increases (for a constant volume). This is usually the case inside the partially saturated soil. Temperature can affect indirectly the soil skeleton as a result of the change in pore–air and pore–water pressures. - The vertical displacement for partially saturated soil consolidation under self weight loading is noticed to have almost regular settlement. Then, there is an accelerated settlement due to the dissipation of the air and water pressures. After a while (after excess pressures dissipation), there will be a classical consolidation form.

The effective stress method is developed to predict the axial capacity of piles in clay. This method is based on the principle that, at failure, the available shear resistance at the pile soil interface is related to the mean normal effective stress at the pile face and the effective stress friction angle for the soil sliding on the pile material. In this paper, the coupled non-linear finite element method is used to analyze some pile-soil interaction problems. This computer program ( CRISP ) is used for this task. Eight- node isoparametric elements were used for displacements while four- node elements are used for pore pressure. Interface elements are used to simulate the interaction between the pile and the soil. The soil is assumed to follow different models, linear elastic and modified Cam-clay model. A comparison is made between the measured and predicted settlements and excess pore water pressures and good convergence was obtained in which the proposed technique used in this paper, in which the measured excess pore water pressures are considered as initial pore pressures in the computer program ( CRISP ). No load was applied on the pile. The dissipation of excess pore water was studied through carrying out consolidation analysis.

A program of laboratory testing is carried out to study the performance of laterally loaded piles embedded in soil, which contains cavities. The testing apparatus is manufactured for carrying out the tests and a simple technique was used to simulate the cavities. The program of testing consists of five groups: Group One was carried out on pile embedded in soil without cavities. The Second and Third Groups are performed on pile embedded in soil contain single cavity located in front and in touch with pile face for the Second Group and in back and in touch with pile face for the Third one. Group Four is performed on pile with the existence of two cavities located in front and in touch with pile face. Group Five is performed on pile with the existence of three cavities located in front and at a variable distance from pile face. All tests are performed on a free head pile subjected to horizontal load. The results of this study indicate that the number of cavities and their location have a combined effect on the behavior of laterally loaded pile The effect of cavities located in front of the pile is marginal at X/D > 8 where X is the spacing between cavity and pile and D is the diameter of the pile.

This paper studies the non-linear behaviour of a clayey Iraqi soil taken from Baghdad City, using the bounding surface plasticity model under static and dynamic loading. The bounding surface plasticity model needs a group of input parameters. Some of them are determined directly from triaxial and consolidation tests, while the others are evaluated from a parametric study using a computer program named EVAL.A series of advanced laboratory tests was performed after modifying and manufacturing some parts of the triaxial machine that are required for carrying out Ko-consolidtated compression and extension tests. The soil test results are used in a computer program named EVAL to compute the soil properties and input parameters for the Iraqi clayey soil under consideration that are required in the bounding surface plasticity model. After the input parameters became available, one could use them in finite element computer programs for static and dynamic analyses. Two-finite element programs are chosen. The first program, named ACED used for solving coupled problems under static loading. While the second program, named LEARN, is used for solving dynamic problem. The proposed abbreviation of Baghdad silty clay soil is (BBSC)..

The behaviour of batter piles under inclined compressive loads is of considerable importance,yet, not enough information is available in literature on the subject. The tests canied out in this paper were performed on a single inclined pile under various load inclinations in sand. The results indicate that the highest ultimate compressive load for vertical pile occurs at (30) load inclination. At small load inclinations, a positive batter pile has greater ultimate compressive load than that of a negative batter pile. The trend changes at higher Ioad inclinations. The slip surface analysis is recognised to be too complicated to have a definite solution.

the concept of limit equilibrium and enab e only the calculation of the critical height or the minimum factor of safety of a slope. These methods are not usually concerned with the stress distribution within a slope either above or below assumed surfaces of failure. This task can be done through the finite element method. In this paper, this method is used for the analysis of embankments. It was found that a good agreement could be obtained between the simple non-linear elastic-plastic finite element analysis, adopted in this paper, and sophisticated analyses which deal with plastic behavior of soils. This can be done when choosing the appropriate material parameters.

In this article, a novel application of germanium dioxide (GeO2) as a gas sensor is systematically reported. In detail, GeO2 layers were deposited on quartz and n-type Si substrates, as a function of laser pulses, using combined laser ablation and thermal spray coating approaches. The attained layer/s were methodically inspected in term of their morphological, structural, and optical features; specifically, highly crystalline GeO2 structure was obtained for samples prepared using 1500 pulses and above. In the meanwhile, the obtained particle diameters were found to be within the range of 15 to 274 nm, while the estimated optical band gaps exhibited values from 3.85 to 4.0 eV. Simultaneously, the gas sensing behavior demonstrated a well-oriented performance for all devices, however, devices treated with 2500 pulses delivered stable trend with sensitivity value as high as 3 × 10-6. The rise/fall period revealed an adequate outcome (~10 sec. for gas sensors fabricated via pulses of 1000 and above, with respected to the working temperature. The proposed framework delivers a substitute technique towards 2D metal oxide based eco-friendly-gas sensor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article has been retracted: please see Elsevier Policy on Article Withdrawal (https://www.elsevier.com/locate/withdrawalpolicy).This article has been retracted at the request of the Editors in Chief.Unauthorised authorship changes were made to this paper at Revision 1. The original submission had two co-authors. Upon resubmission, one co-author was removed and three new co-authors added. No explanation was given and these changes were not approved by the editor. The corresponding author (only author appearing on all revisions) has not provided a plausible explanation for the authorship change. Such authorship changes breach the policies of the journal and may be evidence of authorship manipulation; as a result, the editors no longer have confidence in this paper and are retracting it.The journal apologises for not having identified the problematic authorship changes during the review process and for any resulting inconvenience.

Abstract: This study aims to test a concrete specimen with replacement partially of 15 % of the coarse aggregate by pieces of tires and volcanic aggregates and reduce 5% of the water/cement ratio by substituting with 4% percentages of styrene butadiene rubber (SBR) and 1% of superplasticizer. The main concrete components (cement: sand: gravel) were used in weight ratios (1:1.5:3) and a water to cement 0.45 was used and it was considered as a reference sample (Mix1). A water to cement ratio 0.40 was depended for the modified mixtures. Samples were cast for testing the compression strength with sizes 150 ×150 ×150 mm for ages 7 and 28 days. the absorption rate, with a size of 100 ×100 ×100 mm at age 28 days. Moreover, 150 ×150×150 mm for depth of penetration test at the age of 28 days. Briefly, the observed results were exhibited that the partial replacement of normal aggregate in concrete with volcanic aggregate affects negatively on the workability, so 4% of the polymer SBR and 1% of the superplasticizer have improved the workability. The improvement in the workability of concrete contributed to reducing the ratio of water to cement required for mixing compared to ordinary concrete, and this in turn led to an improvement in performance of hardened concrete. In addition, the reduction of the permeability level. The results also illustrated that the replacement of the gravel in the modified mixtures (Mix 3 and Mix 2) reduces the weight of hardened concrete by (10-12%) and (7-9%) compared with conventional concrete, respectively, which makes it suitable for use in mediumweight concrete applications. Moreover, it can be concluded that the strength properties of the modified mix with volcanic aggregate improved by 19-20% compared to that of the unmodified concrete. While the modified concrete by cutting tires showed significant deterioration in the concrete's resistance 21% despite the reduction of concrete permeability.

Oxidative stress and inflammation are connected to the development of metabolic disorders, such as diabetes. Diabetic-related oxidative stress is caused by the overproduction of oxidative-free radicals, which have been implicated in the mechanism of inflammation and damage to tissues. Our study aimed to investigate the effects of ubiquinone treatment on serum indicators of oxidative stress (malondialdehyde (MDA)), inflammation (interleukin 6 (IL-6)), vascular homeostasis (nitric oxide (NO)), and myopathy (myoglobin (MB)) in addition to measuring blood components parameters in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. Rats were separated into three groups; negative control group (N), diabetic control group (D), and ubiquinone-treated diabetic group (T). After 21 days, the blood and serum samples were taken to evaluate fasting blood glucose (FBG), MDA, IL-6, NO, MB, and hematological parameters. In hyperglycemic rats, the levels of FBG and serum levels of IL-6, MDA, and MB significantly increased, while NO levels decreased. Hyperglycemic condition significantly lowered the count of WBC (P = 0.0098) but insignificantly decreased values of platelets and RBC. Ubiquinone treatment significantly reduced blood glucose, IL-6, MDA, and MB levels in diabetic rats and raised NO levels. The effects of ubiquinone on WBC (P = 0.648), RBC (P = 0.001), and (P = 0.398) were insignificant, and only minor variations in WBC and platelet levels were observed. Our data support that ubiquinone supplementation could reduce proinflammation, oxidative stress, and myopathy markers and elevate NO levels in diabetic rats. The current study indicates ubiquinone may positively impact diabetic complications; however, additional research is required to determine its therapeutic benefit when added to standard diabetes treatment.