Effect of Cd Additive on the Hardness and Tensile Properties of Al-Mg-Si Alloy

The aim of this paper is to study the effect of adding Cd element to aluminum alloy series (6000) on the mechanical properties (hardness & ultimate tensile strength ) which have been studied  .A permanent  mold casting method was used for preparing the specimens of alloys by adding Cd at (0.1,0.3,0.5)% wt . to (Al-Mg-Si ) alloy. Heat treatment homogenous alloy ingots were carried out at (550ºC) for (24 hours) .These heat treatments for all specimens were conducted after cutting the ingots to the required dimensions ,solution heat treatment at (500ºC) for (1 hour) and then quenching in the water at room temperature. Then natural aging was carried out at room temperature for (90 days) ,whilst with in this period the hardness of alloys were measured at subsequent equal interval . The artificial aging for the prepared alloys was carried out, at (160and 180) ºC for an interval ranging between (5 mins. & 35 hours) .The Vickers  hardness and ultimate tensile strength were measured .The hardness and ultimate tensile strength of Cd alloys have relative improvements  by natural aging. Keywords: Cd element, (Al-Mg-Si ) alloy, homogenous, artificial& natural aging

Assessing the compressive performance of PVC coating on steel wire mesh reinforced concrete

AbstractReinforced concrete RC is a versatile and durable building material widely used in construction. This study investigated the impact of PVC-coated steel wire mesh layers on the compressive strength of RC. Seven cube specimens (70 × 70×70 mm) with varying numbers of PVC-coated layers were tested after a 28-day curing period. Results showed that specimens with two layers of PVC coating exhibited the highest ultimate compression stress and breaking force, indicating a significant 38% increase in compressive strength compared to those without PVC coating. The findings suggest that PVC-coated steel wire mesh provides a sustainable and cost-effective method for reinforcing RC structures. By mechanically enhancing these structures, their overall mechanical properties can be improved. This research highlights the potential of PVC-coated steel wire mesh as an effective reinforcement technique, offering practical solutions for strengthening concrete structures