The effect of anisotropy on the mechanical properties of artificial rock mass based on laboratory physical modeling

Assessment of strength anisotropy has been one of the most challenging subjects in rock mechanics and civil engineering. The orientation of the discontinuity plane, the aggregate distribution, and the specimen size have a significant influence on the mechanical properties of rock and cementitious materials. This study aims to evaluate the effect of anisotropy on uniaxial compressive strength, elastic constants, and destruction-specific energy using physical modeling. For this purpose, different concrete blocks were produced in which aggregate sizes of 9.5, 12.5, and 19 mm were used. Different cylindrical specimens with diameters of 45, 69, and 94 mm were prepared. A suite of laboratory testing was performed on prepared concrete samples as a function of discontinuity plane angle (α=30°,45°, and 60°), including uniaxial compressive strength and deformability tests. The results obtained have shown that the mechanical properties of cementitious materials have different values concerning the banding plane, aggregate size, and specimen volume. It was shown that the uniaxial compressive strength and tangent modulus of elasticity show the highest values in low discontinuity plane angle than those obtained in the other directions. However, in concrete mixtures with a grain size of 0-19 mm, an increasing-decreasing trend of strength behavior was observed with ascending the orientation of the discontinuity plane from 30° to 60°. The findings presented indicated that with increasing aggregate size, strength properties descend due to the rise in heterogeneities that affect failure modes. Finally, it was revealed that when specimen size increases from 69 to 94 mm in diameter, led to significant rises in the values of compressive strength and elasticity modulus in cementitious materials

World Addiction Medicine Reports : formation of the International Society of Addiction Medicine (ISAM) Global Expert Network (ISAM-GEN) and Its global surveys

Funding: All the infrastructure funding of this initiative is supported by the International Society of Addiction Medicine (ISAM). We will be open to fundraising for specific projects within the platform and future collaboration with external partners.Addiction medicine is a dynamic field that encompasses clinical practice and research in the context of societal, economic, and cultural factors at the local, national, regional, and global levels. This field has evolved profoundly during the past decades in terms of scopes and activities with the contribution of addiction medicine scientists and professionals globally. The dynamic nature of drug addiction at the global level has resulted in a crucial need for developing an international collaborative network of addiction societies, treatment programs and experts to monitor emerging national, regional, and global concerns. This protocol paper presents methodological details of running longitudinal surveys at national, regional, and global levels through the Global Expert Network of the International Society of Addiction Medicine (ISAM-GEN). The initial formation of the network with a recruitment phase and a round of snowball sampling provided 354 experts from 78 countries across the globe. In addition, 43 national/regional addiction societies/associations are also included in the database. The surveys will be developed by global experts in addiction medicine on treatment services, service coverage, co-occurring disorders, treatment standards and barriers, emerging addictions and/or dynamic changes in treatment needs worldwide. Survey participants in categories of (1) addiction societies/associations, (2) addiction treatment programs, (3) addiction experts/clinicians and (4) related stakeholders will respond to these global longitudinal surveys. The results will be analyzed and cross-examined with available data and peer-reviewed for publication.Peer reviewe

World Addiction Medicine Reports: Formation of the International Society of Addiction Medicine (ISAM) Global Expert Network (ISAM- GEN) and Its Global Surveys

Addiction medicine is a dynamic field that encompasses clinical practice and research in the context of societal, economic, and cultural factors at the local, national, regional, and global levels. This field has evolved profoundly during the past decades in terms of scopes and activities with the contribution of addiction medicine scientists and professionals globally. The dynamic nature of drug addiction at the global level has resulted in a crucial need for developing an international collaborative network of addiction societies, treatment programs and experts to monitor emerging concerns at national, regional, and global levels. In this protocol, methodological details of running longitudinal surveys at national, regional, and global levels through the Global Expert Network of the International Society of Addiction Medicine (ISAM-GEN) are presented. The surveys will be developed by global experts in addiction medicine on treatment services, service coverage, comorbidities, treatment standards and barriers, emerging drug addictions and/or dynamic changes in treatment needs across the world. Survey participants in categories of (1) addiction societies/associations, (2) addiction treatment programs, (3) addiction experts/clinicians and (4) related stakeholders will respond to these longitudinal global surveys. The results will be analyzed and cross-examined with available data and peer-reviewed for publication