Engineering Commons^™

New Type Of Lightweight Aggregate For Use In Structural Concrete, Jamal Khatib, Ali Jahami, Oussama Baalbaki, Adel Elkordi

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

This research studied the utilization of municipal solid waste incineration bottom ash (MSWI-BA) in lightweight coarse aggregate (LWC) production. A special method was followed to prepare the new aggregate to fully replace the normal aggregates (NWA) in concrete. The mechanical properties such as compressive strength, tensile strength, and elasticity modulus were investigated for the LWC concrete. Then, two beams were prepared; one from LWC and the other from NWC. The structural performance of beams made up of lightweight aggregates compared to normal aggregates was investigated. The results showed that this type of aggregates led to a 20% reduction in concrete …

Properties Of Concrete Containing Crushed Limestone As Total Replacement Of Natural Sand And Recycled Engine Oil, Mohammad El Bast M. El Bast, Jamal Khatib, Oussama Baalbaki, Adel Elkordi

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

The rapid growth in the construction industry at the global level has made concrete the most widely used construction material throughout the world. Accordingly, the consumption of natural sand which is one the main raw material constituent of concrete is continuously growing. The demand for river sand is highly increasing due to its scarcity in the market. Manufactured sand produced by crushed rock is being considered as an appropriate alternative to replace river sand in concrete. In recent years, there is a growing interest in the use of crushed sand obtained from limestone quarries in some countries where river sand …

Dynamic Soil-Structure Interaction Analysis: Detecting The Reliability Of Modelling The Piles As A Plate Element For A Multistory Building Resting On Deep Foundation, Zeinab Hussein Zein Z.H.Zein, Lina Jaber L. Jaber, Yehya Temsah Y. Temsah

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

The assessment of seismic responses of buildings in dynamic-soil-pile-structure interaction problems has been one of the main interests among researchers in recent decades. Simulating such problems is usually done by two-dimensional models to overcome the difficulties encountered in 3D models. Commonly, piles were represented by plate elements of infinite length, disregarding the soil flowing between piles. Recently, Plaxis – a finite element software- implemented a new feature known as “the embedded pile row” that allows the definition of piles' out of plane spacing in a 2D model. Many researchers proved its validity in accurately simulating the real 3D pile’s behavior. …

A Novel Probabilistic Framework Of Rc Corroded Structures Under Dynamic Loading, Rawan Mouin Mashmoushy Eng., Wael Slika, Adel Elkordi

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Steel corrosion in reinforced concrete structures can lead to severe deterioration damage under static and seismic loads. In practice, it is essential to mitigate failure risk by quantifying the extent of damage and simulating the structural response of damaged structures. However, numerical modeling of the dynamic behavior of corroded structure is challenging due to high nonlinearity of the problem and its multidisciplinary nature. In addition, corrosion damage exhibits various sources of uncertainty that impede accurate deterministic modeling of the dynamic response of RC structures. Therefore, this study presents a simplified framework, to simulate the non-linear response of corroded structures under …

Technology Of Mobility Hubs In Autopian Futuristic Cities, Mohamad Abdallah M.Abdallah, Marwan Halabi, Hiba Mohsen, Maged Youssef

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Utopias envision perfect societies, however in practice, when imperfect humans attempt perfection they fail miserably. Hence, if Utopia means no place, then Autopia is the alternative place where progress is steadfast and measured by securing a better world for tomorrow. In 2012, the UN issued a report stating that population growth will increase exponentially, reaching up to 9 billion by 2040. The report also states that melted ice due to global warming will eventually cover up to 7% of the world’s land. At this rate, humans will require three times the earth’s land area to keep up with their required …

Optimization Of Supermarket Checkout Counters Using Integrated Greedy Algorithm, Ramzi Fayad, Hadi Abou Chakra

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Supermarkets worldwide are facing a service dilemma whether to increase or decrease their number of counters used at checkouts. A higher number of checkouts will undoubtedly reduce waiting time at checkout, a factor in improving customer satisfaction and service quality but this will come at a cost to the Supermarket. The work conducted in this paper will therefore focus on this tradeoff between improving the customer shopping experience versus the Supermarket Cost and profitability margins. It will do so by using an optimization algorithm that can help find the optimum number of checkouts and utilization of staff resources. The optimization …

Comparative Study Of Nano-Rod And Nano-Sphere Based Localized Surface Plasmon Resonance Refractive Index Biosensors, Mariam M. Moussilli M. M. Moussilli, Abdul Rahman El Falou

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Localized Surface Plasmon Resonance (LSPR) waves generated by the interaction of light with noble metal nanoparticles has been of great interest in recent years due to the high sensitivity of the extinction spectra of these nanoparticles to the medium's surrounding refractive index up to the atomic level.

In this article, we simulate the extinction spectra of noble metal sphere and rod nanoparticles in order to study the effect of the geometrical shape and size of the nanoparticle on the sensitivity and detection accuracy performance parameters of the extinction spectra. We also simulated the response of the sphere and rod nanoparticle's …

An Improvement Of Cross Entropy Thresholding For Skin Cancer, Nancy Aref Zreika N, A. Zreika, Ali El Zaart, Abdallah Al Shakik

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Image processing procedures in medical diagnosis are used to improve diagnosis accuracy. An example of this is skin cancer detection using the thresholding approach. Thus, research studies involved in identification of inherited mutations predisposing family members to malignant melanoma have been performed in the Cancer Genetics field. Melanoma is one of the deadliest cancers, but could be cured when diagnosed early. A fundamental step in image processing is segmentation that includes thresholding, among others. Thresholding is based on finding the optimal thresholds value that partitions the image into multiple classes to be able to distinguish the objects from the background. …

Unsteady Rotational Motion Of A Micropolar Fluid Inside A Right Circular Cylinder Using State Space Approach, Sarah Ahmad Slayi S.A.Slayi, Emad Ashmawy

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

In this work, the unsteady rotational motion of an incompressible micropolar fluid inside a right circular cylinder is investigated. The classical no-slip and no-spin boundary conditions are proposed. The problem is solved analytically using the state space approach together with Laplace transform technique. The inverse Laplace transform is carried out numerically using a numerical technique based on Fourier series expansion. Numerical results for the flow field functions are represented graphically for different values of the time and micropolarity parameters.

The Assessments Of Internet-Based Technology Use By University Academic Members, Mohammed Alghamdi

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Social networking applications (SNAs), as technologies that rely on internet infrastructure, are widely used as platforms for user interaction, content creation and social communication. However, in recent years, SNAs have been used in the context of teaching and learning, and this aspect, as well as others, has attracted research attention. Limited research has investigated the motivations and barriers to teaching with SNAs in higher education, and so this study sought to examine the purposes, motivations and barriers associated with SNA use in education among academic members at Albaha University, Saudi Arabia. A quantitative research design involving a sample of academic …

Control Of Mr Damper Using Anfis And Pid Controller For Optimum Vehicle Ride Comfort, Mohammad Faisal Yakhni, Mohamad Ali, Mohamed El-Gohary

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Suspension system design is an important challenging duty that facing car manufacturers, so the challenge has become to design the best system in terms of providing ride comfort and handling ability under all driving situations. The goal of this paper is to provide assistance in enhancing the effectiveness of the suspension system. A full car model with eight Degrees Of Freedom (DOF) was developed using MATLAB/Simulink. Validation of the Simulink model was obtained. The model was assumed to travel over a speed hump that has a half sine wave shape and amplitude that changing from 0.01 to 0.2 m. The …

Antibacterial Effect And Phytochemical Analysis Of The Shoot System Of Rubus Canescens Dc. Growing In Lebanon, Omar Assafiri, Hiba Abdallah, Mohammed El-Dakdouki

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

The misuse of antibiotics followed by improved fitness of resistant strains of infectious microorganisms hindered the efficacy of many known antimicrobial agents, and fueled research for the discovery of novel remedies. The current study aims at assessing the antimicrobial activity and understanding the mechanism of action of Rubus canescens DC. growing wild in Lebanon, as well as qualitatively determining its phytochemical profile. The antibacterial activity, MIC, and MBC of the extracts were evaluated by two-fold dilution. Time-kill curves were plotted to assess the bactericidal activity of the R. canescens DC. extracts against the growth of microorganisms, and TEM images were …

Waterpipe: A Global Alarming Problem, Tarek Houri, Bilal Osta, Sara Mobayed, Rayan Farha, Mazher Issa

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Waterpipe popularity has increased significantly in the recent decades to become the major cause of death worldwide. This practice, which is also known as hookah, shisha and Narghile that is based on tobacco burning, increases the percentage of tobacco smokers especially among young people, due to several factors such as the attracting effect of sweetened tobacco, the marketing role and the social acceptance of waterpipe. A literature review was constructed using "Pub med" as a searching tool to confirm by studies the differences in adverse effects between waterpipe and cigarette by analyzing the toxicant’s levels generated from them, evaluating the …

Moringa Oleifera Leaves Aqueous Extract Induce Apoptosis In Ht29 Cell Line, Farah Reda, Jamila Borjac, Julnar Usta

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Moringa oleifera (MO) tree has been recognized for the nutritional and medicinal values, attributing anti-inflammatory, antioxidants, and antidiabetic activities of the alcoholic and/or water extracts to its various parts. Recent research has focused on therapeutic anti-cancerous effects of the water extract of MO leaves (MOE), commonly consumed as hot beverage. In-vitro cytotoxicity on esophageal, lung, and breast cancer cells were reported by MOE. The aim in this study is to investigate the anti-cancerous potential of MOE on the colon carcinoma HT29 cells. MO water extract (MOE) was prepared at concentrations (0.1%-0.5%). MOE anti-proliferative effect on HT29-cells was assessed by measuring …

Photoluminescence Spectroscopic Studies Of Mn2o3/Co3o4-Glucose/Lactose Complexes, Alaa Abdallah, Jamalat Al Boukhari, Rana Najjar

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

As nanoparticles serve as mediators in the electron transfer between biomolecules and a biosensor’s electrode surface, this study is dedicated to investigating Mn2O3 and Co3O4 nanoparticles and their photoluminescence effect that play a critical role in sensing glucose and lactose. The chemical coprecipitation method was adopted for preparing the nanoparticles that were characterized by X-Ray Diffraction, Transmission Electron Microscope, Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy, Energy Dispersive X-ray, UV-vis spectroscopy, and Vibrating Sample Magnetometry. It was found that the obtained Mn2O3 and Co3O4 nanoparticles were successfully prepared, with a crystallite size of 65.91 and 58.00 nm, respectively. The high specific surface area …

Activation Of Fly Ash To Stabilise Lead Contaminated Soils And Solutions, Mabrouk Hassan Arhoma

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

The role of pH on removal of metal contaminated solution was investigated by adding gradually drops of NaOH to lead solutions, the increase of the pH was observed and concentration of lead solution was measured by using ICP. The activated \ pulverised fly ash (PFA) was used as stabilizing material. The leaching behaviour of lead was investigated using 5 grams of the soil thoroughly mixed with 0.1g of the stabilising material in a polypropylene container to which 50ml of either deionised water; the mixture was shaken on a flat bed shaker for 2h, and then filtered using a What man …

Corrosion Of Coated And Uncoated Steel Reinforcement In Concrete, Jana Abou Shakra, Rouba Joumblat, Jamal Khatib, Adel Elkordi

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Corrosion of reinforcing steel is the one of the main causes of deterioration in reinforced concrete structure. During the initial stage of corrosion, the steel volume increases. This creates tensile stresses in the concrete, which can eventually lead to cracking, delamination, and spalling. This potential risk of corrosion in a structure is quite unpredictable. Therefore, this paper examines the influence of accelerated corrosion on the bond between concrete and the coated and uncoated steel bars. The bar coating consisted of epoxy rich in zinc. Six concrete mixes were prepared. Three mixes had cement contents of 300, 400 and 500 Kg/m3 …

Effect Of Using Cathode-Ray Tubes (Crt) Waste Glass On Concrete Properties, Jad Bawab, Jamal Khatib, Ali Jahami, Said Kenai, Adel Elkordi

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Cathode-ray tube (CRT) glass is a hazardous material that should be responsibly managed when disposed. One of the possible options for recycling CRT waste glass is using it as fine aggregates in concrete for its richness in silica. For the aim of evaluating concrete with this material, four mixes with replacement levels of 0%, 10%, 20% and 30% are prepared. Workability, hardened density, ultra-pulse velocity, compressive strength, tensile strength, and static modulus of elasticity were examined. Experimental results showed that the use of CRT improved properties of concrete at certain replacement levels. CRT glass improved the workability of concrete where …

Concrete Mix Design Using Simple Equations, Hakim Abdelgader, Ramadan Suleiman, Abdalla Adam, Jamal Khatib

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

The behaviour of concrete, whether fresh or hardened, depends basically on the behaviour of its components and the relationship between them, therefore, obtaining a concrete with certain properties depends fundamentally on the concrete mix design. Concrete mix design generally includes two main steps: 1-Selection of the main components suitable for the concrete (cement, aggregate, water, and additives); 2-Determination of more economical mix ratios to fulfil the workability, strength and efficiency requirements. Currently, there are many international methods locally approved for mix designs. They are all related to each other, they give relatively the same quantities of the mix components and …

Essential Control To Environmental Regulations For Oil And Gas Industry: Spotlight On Drilling Processes In Lebanon, Rami Harkouss

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

At present, environmental legislation bounds the drilling operators in drilling wastes removal. The rapid increasing sensitivity of drilling waste management forced many countries to develop environmental guidelines for their drilling operations. This research studies some sorts of waste produced during upstream petroleum activities, particularly while drilling. After that, many hazards and impacts on the environment are addressed, as well as their principal treatment techniques. This paper gives a modest and theoretical vision over the present environmental standard and waste management design, realized at a universal scale. Studies show that performance fluid management and total fluid management are highly recommended in …

Blind Image Quality Assessment For Face Pose Problem, Cerine Tafran, Mohamad El-Abed, Ziad Osman, Islam Elkabani

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

No-Reference image quality assessment for face images is of high interest since it can be required for biometric systems such as biometric passport applications to increase system performance. This can be achieved by controlling the quality of biometric sample images during enrollment. This paper proposes a novel no-reference image quality assessment method that extracts several image features and uses data mining techniques for detecting the pose variation problem in facial images. Using subsets from three public 2D face databases PUT, ENSIB, and AR, the experimental results recorded a promising accuracy of 97.06% when using the RandomForest Classifier, which outperforms other …

Studies Of Smba2cu3o7-Δ / Znfe2o4 Superconducting Composites, Hadi Basma, Waleed Abdeen, Ayman El-Tahan, El-Maghraby El-Maghraby, Ahmed Khalaf

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

SmBa2Cu3O7-δ /(ZnFe2O4)x superconducting composites with 0.00 ≤ x ≤ 0.20 wt% were prepared by the usual solid-state reaction method. The prepared samples were investigated using X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) at room temperature and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) measurements in the temperature range (100-295 K). It is found that EPR spectra are dominated by an anisotropic Cu2+ EPR pattern. Moreover, the EPR spectral intensity increases as the temperature decrease from room temperature down to 100 K. The number of spins (N) participating in EPR resonance, the activation energy (Ea), the paramagnetic susceptibility (c) and the effective magnetic moment (µeff) are calculated …

Potential Male Contraceptive Effect Of Eriobotrya Japonica Leaves Extract, Alaa Al Moubarak, Manal El Joumaa, Jamilah Borjac

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Nowadays, the stability of population growth is becoming one of the common global social and health problems that could be solved via contraception. Current research in the field of male contraceptives is focusing on the use of oral herbs. Eriobotrya japonica (Loquat) is a medicinal plant that has been commonly valued for its anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antidiabetic, hypocholesteremic, and antitumor properties. The present study aimed to investigate the effects of the oral administration of loquat aqueous leaves extract on the fertility of male Balb/c mice. For this aim, six-eight-weeks old male Balb/c mice (~25g) were orally administered (100 mg/Kg/day) loquat leaves …

Dielectric Properties Of Cu0.5tl0.5ba2ca2cu3o10-Δ Superconductor Added With Nano-Fe2o3, Aly Abou-Aly, Ibrahim Ibrahim, Nayera Mohammed, Mona Rekaby

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

A series of high-temperature superconducting samples of type Cu0.5Tl0.5Ba2Ca2Cu3O10-δ, (Cu0.5Tl0.5)-1223, added with nano-Fe2O3 (0.0- 1.0 wt. %) was prepared by a solid-state reaction technique via short time preparation procedure and under ambient pressure. The prepared samples were characterized using X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) for phase analysis and microstructure examination. The volume fraction results indicated that nano-Fe2O3 addition was significant in enhancing the formation rate of the (Cu0.5Tl0.5)-1223 phase, especially for x ≤ 0.2 wt. % samples. The electrical resistivity of the prepared samples was measured by the conventional four-probe technique from …

Customer Churn Analysis Using Binary Logistic Regression Model, Mohammad Abiad, Sorin Ionescu

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

These days, the fundamental target of all organizations is to accomplish a reasonable gainfulness. Organizations are looking to decide the elements, which has direct impact on their benefit and attempt to investigate them so as to pick up favorable circumstances on their rivals. With this solid aggressive market, holding customers turns into the fundamental objective of telecom mobile service providers opposed to drawing in new customers, since the expense of holding a customer is viewed as low contrasted with the expense of pulling in another customer as referenced before by numerous researchers. Thus, Customer Churn Analytics is one of the …

Solvent Effects On The Electronic Absorption Spectra Of Some Analytical Indicators, Mamdouh S. Masoud, Rabah H.A. Mohamed, Hesham M. Kamel, Najat O. M. El-Ziani

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Electronic absorption spectra of selected ligands (Alloxan, Carmine, Naphthol Yellow S, Hematoxylin and Cyanine) were recorded in presence of different solvents (H2O, Ethyl acetate, Ethanol, DMF, Isopropyl alcohol, Amyl alcohol and Butanol) of variable physical properties. The electronic transitions were assigned. The data are analyzed based on the multiple linear regression technique explained from the views of different solvent parameters. Statistical analyses of the effect of solvents on the electronic spectra of the present ligands have been investigated.

Performance Of Concrete Containing Waste Plastic Straw Fibers, Jamal Khatib, Ali Jahami, Oussama Baalbaki, Adel Elkordi, Abed Bakri, Roba Alaina

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Using fibers in concrete applications has become a common practice. This is partly due to improvement in ductility and crack control of concrete. There will be an added advantage if these fibers come from a waste source as it would lead to reduction in environmental pollution and the need for landfill spaces. This paper forms the initial part of a wide range investigation on the use of waste plastic fibers in concrete applications. This study attempts to apply the concept of sustainability and reduces the environmental pollution by producing fibers from waste plastic straws and adding them to plain concrete …

Effect Of Partial Replacement Of Sand By Mswi-Ba On The Properties Of Mortar, Hassan Ghanem, Jamal Khatib, Adel Elkordi

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

Disposal of municipal solid wastes (MSW) has recently become a major problem in Lebanon as finding appropriate landfill is becoming more challenging than ever. Incineration is a technique currently used to reduce the volume of MSW generated. The output of this treatment is a residue well known as Municipal Solid Waste Incineration bottom and fly ash. This study is focused on the mortar containing Municipal Solid Waste Incineration Bottom Ash (MSWI-BA) as partial replacement of sand. For this purpose, mortar specimens were prepared with 25, 50 and 100% (by weight) MSWI-BA to replace the sand. Specimens were cured in water …

Behavior Of Reinforced Concrete Beams Containing Lightweight Aggregate In The Tensile Zone, Jamal Khatib, Ali Jahami, Oussama Baalbaki, Adel Elkordi, Hakim Abdelgader

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

In reinforced concrete design, the concrete in the tensile zone is assumed to be ineffective and increase the dead load of the structural elements. In order to reduce the self-weight, this paper examines the structural behavior of reinforced concrete beams containing lightweight concrete in the tensile region and normal weight concrete in the rest of the beam. The lightweight concrete was made from waste polystyrene. Four reinforced concrete beams were prepared with different depth of lightweight concrete. The control beam B1 consists of normal concrete. In Beams B2, B3 and B4, the depth of lightweight concrete was 25%, 50% and …

Fuzzy Logic Velocity Optimization Of Autonomous Vehicles Based On Road Bump Geometry, Yassine Zein, Mohamad Darwiche

BAU Journal - Science and Technology

In today’s world of fast developing technologies, semi-autonomous vehicles are becoming a common sight and increasing in numbers. Some feature autopilot systems that drive the vehicle without any intervention from the driver in certain situations or warn the driver of dangers ahead. A fully autonomous vehicle is yet to come due to old fashioned road infrastructures that would convey challenging scenarios for it. From speed bumps and traffic lights to road lanes and warning signs, current autopilot systems will have to cope with all. A system that ensures safe crossing of speed bumps when in autopilot mode is discussed in …