Analyzing Related Strategic Behavior Through Strictly Alternating Interactions with Two-Memory Length

Reciprocal altruism can often be modeled through the iterated Prisoner’s Dilemma game in which players take turns in the roles of donor and recipient. Several late studies were based on memory alteration in the repeated Prisoner’s Dilemma game. This prompted us to study this alteration in a strictly alternating iterated Prisoner’s Dilemma game. In our work, we represented the repeated games played by finite states of automata. Also, we supposed that there is relatedness between the players in this game. A relatedness average degree r considered between players, where 0 ≤ r ≤ 1. The effect of noise on the relatedness degree among players can be examined with regard to the behavior of the strategies in their competitions

The impact of waste brick and geo-cement aggregates as sand replacement on the mechanical and durability properties of alkali–activated mortar composites

Data availability: Data will be made available on request.This study explores the potential of waste brick and geo-cement aggregates as substitutes for natural sand in alkali-activated materials (AAMs) for mortar production. With a focus on achieving net-zero construction and mitigating environmental impact, the study replaces Portland Cement (OPC) and virgin aggregates with waste materials and by-products. The investigation evaluates the substitution of sand (up to 100 % by weight) in AAMs with waste brick aggregates (WBA) and waste geo-cement aggregates (WGA) obtained from demolished construction and research lab waste, respectively. The research methodology involves assessing mechanical, durability, and microstructure properties to assess the performance of the developed AAMs with waste aggregates. Notably, AAM composites containing waste brick and geo-cement aggregates surpass natural aggregate composites in terms of mechanical strength, water absorption, freeze-thaw resistance, acid ingress, and chloride attack. The 7-day 50 % waste brick mixture achieved a maximum compressive strength of 61 MPa, while a 70 % waste geo-cement mortar mixture attained a maximum flexural strength of 12 MPa. Combinations, whether comprising waste brick or geo-cement mortar aggregates, demonstrate compressive strengths well over 40 MPa, rendering them suitable for heavy load-bearing structures. The 50 % waste geo-cement mortar mixture stands out with the lowest water absorption rate of 6 % and the least compressive strength loss of 13 % after the freeze-thaw test, with reductions of 6 % and 18 %, respectively, compared to the control. Additionally, 100 % waste brick AAMs exhibit the lowest compressive strength loss after chloride and acid attack tests, with reductions of 13 % and 2.5 %, respectively. When compared to all other mixtures, the 50 % waste brick aggregates mortar mixture obtained the best overall performance. The composites developed in this study affirm their suitability for use in heavy-load structural components, showcasing favourable mechanical and durable properties. These findings underscore the need for additional exploration in this direction to advance sustainable construction practices.10.3030/101029471 - European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement ID: 101029471 (DigiMat project)

Thiosemicarbazone copper complexes as competent catalysts for olefin cyclopropanations

New copper complexes of several thiosemicarbazones have been prepared and characterized. All complexes have been prepared by employing Cu (II) acetate hydrate, but analytical and spectroscopical data for the isolated complexes revealed that in most cases a reduction to copper (I) occurred. Cyclopropanation reactions of several olefins by ethyldiazoacetate (EDA) in the presence of catalytic amounts of the complexes were examined. The reported results showed that all complexes are competent catalysts for the cyclopropanation reaction of unactivated olefins. Cyclopropanes were obtained in high yields (up to 97%, TON up to 18,400) with moderate to excellent diastereoselectivities (up to >99%)

Mechanical and physical characteristics of alkali- activated mortars incorporated with recycled polyvinyl chloride and rubber aggregates

Data availability:The data that support the findings of this study are available from corresponding author Seyed Hamidreza Ghaffar, upon reasonable request.Copyright © 2022 The Authors. One of the ways to achieving net-zero concept in the construction industry is to use alternatives to Portland cement (OPC) and virgin aggregates for concrete manufacturing. Recycled rubber and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) aggregates in conjunction with low-carbon binders can be potentially utilised to substitute natural sand and reduce the negative environmental impacts of OPC. A replacement of natural sand (up to 70% by volume) in alkali-activated materials (AAMs) with recycled rubber and PVC particles derived from tyre waste and insulation coating of electric wires, respectively, was investigated in this study. The performance of developed AAMs was evaluated using a comprehensive testing program including mechanical, physical and microstructure assessments. AAM composites with PVC and rubber particles outperformed natural aggregate composites in terms of thermal resistivity, water absorption, volume permeability voids (VPV), and high-frequency sound insulation. Results showed that 70% PVC mixture achieved the lowest water absorption rate and thermal conductivity with a reduction of 73% and 20%, respectively, compared to the control mixture. A maximum reduction of 34% in VPV was observed in the 70% rubber mixture when compared to the control mixture. In terms of mechanical properties of waste stream aggregates, PVC outperformed rubber. The results showed that 30% replacement of PVC and rubber would produce composites with 7-day compressive strengths of 35 MPa and 25 MPa, respectively, which can be used to produce high-load bearing structures. The Energy-dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDX) was performed to detect chloride leaching from PVC aggregates, where results indicated that no leaching had occurred after more than 90 days of casting. Regarding the carbon emission, the carbon footprint of AAM composites is decreased by using the polymeric fractions in place of sand. The developed composites of this study can be used safely in non-load bearing structural elements with promising physical and mechanical performance.European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement ID: 101029471 (DigiMat project)

Lightweight alkali-activated materials and ordinary Portland cement composites using recycled polyvinyl chloride and waste glass aggregates to fully replace natural sand

Data availability: Data will be made available on request.Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Polyvinyl chloride plastic (PVC) and glass waste have proven to be significant environmental concerns considering their restricted reuse and complicated recycling procedures. Glass and PVC waste materials form a substantial portion of total solid wastes that negatively influence the environment. This study aims to fully replace natural sand with recycled PVC and waste glass aggregates in alkali-activated materials (AAMs). A comprehensive testing programme was employed to investigate the effect of 100 % aggregate replacement on the composites’ mechanical performance, water absorption, impact resistance, thermal conductivity, resistance to harsh environments, and microstructural changes. Results revealed that AAMs containing recycled PVC and glass aggregates outperformed their ordinary Portland cement (OPC)-based composite counterparts in terms of mechanical properties, energy absorption, thermal conductivity, and carbon footprint estimation. Although mixtures containing recycled aggregates cannot be deemed for load-bearing applications, these composites exhibited a promising capacity to be used in insulating applications. AAMs containing 100 vol-% PVC aggregates with flexural and compressive strengths of 9 and 11 MPa, respectively, registered the highest energy absorption of about 6 J, three times higher than the AAM control sample, and the lowest thermal conductivity of about 0.5 W/mK, with about 80 % reduction of thermal conductivity compared to the AAM control sample. With the full replacement of PVC and glass aggregates, the most significant decrease in the carbon footprint is achieved for AAM (−352.25 kg CO2-eq) and OPC (−353.94 kg CO2-eq), respectively.DigiMat project, which has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement ID: 101029471

Alkali activated materials with recycled unplasticised polyvinyl chloride aggregates for sand replacement

Data availability: Data will be made available on request.Copyright © The Authors 2023. Incorporating recycled Unplasticised Polyvinyl Chloride (UPVC) aggregates into Alkali Activated Materials (AAMs) presents a promising approach to alleviate the environmental drawbacks associated with conventional recycling methods for UPVC. The distinctive characteristics of UPVC aggregates, as compared to natural sand, pose a challenge in the pursuit of enhancing the mechanical properties of composites. This research aims to achieve net-zero goals and promote circular economy principles by replacing traditional Portland cement (OPC) with low-carbon AAMs and natural aggregates with recycled unplasticised polyvinyl chloride (UPVC) which, accounts for 12% of global plastic production. Coarse and fine UPVC aggregates, measuring 4–6 mm and 0–2 mm, respectively, were incorporated into AAMs. An extensive array of tests was performed to assess their environmental benefits and overall performance enhancements. The results unveiled notable advantages in terms of thermal resistivity and resistance to chloride penetration in the UPVC-infused AAMs. Notably, mixtures containing 100% fine UPVC aggregates exhibited a remarkable 70% reduction in thermal conductivity (0.465 W/mk) when compared to the control. In mechanical assessments, composites containing fine UPVC aggregates surpassed those with coarse UPVC aggregates, showcasing promise for load-bearing applications. Substituting 30% of both fine and coarse UPVC aggregates with sand yielded impressive 7-day compressive strengths of 41 MPa and 35 MPa, respectively. Moreover, the utilisation of energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy confirmed the absence of chloride leaching after three months. The incorporation of UPVC waste aggregates led to a significant reduction in the carbon footprint of the tested AAMs. In conclusion, these composites offer an appealing and sustainable solution for both load-bearing and non-load-bearing structures

On soft b* - continuous functions in soft topological spaces

In this paper, we study some of new types of continuous functions called soft b*−continuous functions and define soft b*−irresolute and discussed their relations with existing soft continuous and other weaker forms of soft continuous functions and some related properties are discussed. Also, we study soft b*−irresolute and soft b*−openmap and b*−closedmap and the relationships between them are discuss. We hope that the findings in this work will help researcher enhance and promote the further study on soft topological spaces to carry out a general framework for their applications in separation axioms, connectedness

Synthesis and characterization of new Schiff base metal complexes and their use as catalysts for olefin cyclopropanation

New transition metal complexes of CoII, CuII, NiII and VIVO with the Schiff base, HL, 3-acetylcoumarin-N(4)-phenylthiosemicarbazone have been prepared. Characterization of the HL ligand and its complexes is also reported. Mass spectra and NMR assignments for the ligand, using COSY, NOESY homonuclear and HMQC and HMBC heteronuclear correlation techniques were carried out. Electronic and magnetic moments of the complexes indicate that the geometries of the metal centres are either distorted octahedral, square pyramidal, square planar or tetrahedral. The structures are consistent with the IR, UV-VIS, ESR, as well as conductivity and magnetic moments measurements. Cyclopropanation reactions of unactivated olefins by ethyldiazoacetate (EDA) in the presence of LCuIICl as catalyst proceed with excellent TON (up to 9625)

Synthesis and characterization of some transition metal complexes with a novel Schiff base ligand and their use as catalysts for olefin cyclopropanation

A novel ligand HL (1), N,2-bis(1-(2-oxo-2H-chromen-3-yl)ethylidene)hydrazinecarbothioamide was synthesized through the condensation of 3-acetyl-2H-chromen-2-one and hydrazinecarbothioamide. This ligand was used to prep. new transition metal complexes of Cu(II), Ni(II) and Co(II). Characterization of the HL (1) ligand and its complexes is also reported. Mass spectra and NMR assignments for the ligand, using COSY, NOESY homonuclear and HMQC and HMBC heteronuclear correlation techniques were carried out. Electronic and magnetic moments of the complexes indicate that the geometries of the metal centers are either distorted octahedral, or square planar. The structures are consistent with the IR, UV-vis, ESR, as well as cond. measurements. The catalytic activity of the copper complex, [HLCu2Cl3]Cl.H2O (2), in cyclopropanation reactions of unactivated olefins with ethyldiazoacetate (EDA) was studied. Cyclopropanes were obtained in high yield (up to 97%, TON up to 16,900) with moderate to good diastereoselectivities (50-91%)

Efficient cyclopropanation and intermolecular C-H bond activation via carbene insertion catalysed by thiosemicarbazone Copper complexes

Cyclopropane derivatives are an important family of chemical compounds that plays a prominent role in organic chemistry.1 As a result, great efforts have been made to develop efficient stereoselective methods for the synthesis of cyclopropanes.2 A particularly versatile method is the metal-catalysed cyclopropanation of olefins with diazo compounds, for which several efficient homogeneous catalysts have been developed.3 Among transition metal catalysts for this reaction, copper complexes have attracted increasing interest in the last years, especially due to their high efficiency and to their lower cost when compared to other metal derivatives. A variety of copper(II) and copper(I) sources are known to catalyse the cyclopropanation reaction although copper(I) rather than copper(II) was established as the active catalyst, where diazo compounds were found to reduce Cu(II) salts to Cu(I).4 Nevertheless Cu(I) complexes are challenging to synthesize and isolate due to the intrinsic instability of cuprous compounds: under many conditions disproportionation of Cu(I) to Cu(0) and Cu(II) is thermodynamically favoured. We have recently reported that Schiff bases derived from the condensation of hydrazinecarbothioamide or phenyl thiosemicarbazone with 3-acetyl-2H-chromen-2-one are suitable ligands for the synthesis of copper(II) complexes very active as cyclopropanation catalysts.5 We herein report that Schiff bases derived from the condensation reaction of hydrazinecarbothioamide with substituted salicylaldehydes are suitable ligands for copper and that the derived complexes are competent catalysts for the cyclopropanation of olefins and for the intermolecular C-H bond activation by using ethyldiazoacetate (EDA) as carbene source. Rarely metal complexes can give high selectivities in cyclopropanation reactions together with high turnover number (TON). In this work, different ligands have been synthesized and characterized, by changing the steric and electronic properties of the starting aldehyde employed in the condensation reaction. Their copper complexes have been prepared by employing Cu(II) acetate hydrate, but analytical and spectroscopical data for the isolated complexes revealed that in most cases a reduction to copper (I) occurred. Cyclopropanation reactions of several olefins by ethyldiazoacetate (EDA) in the presence of catalytic amounts of the complexes were examined. The reported results showed that all complexes are competent catalysts for the cyclopropanation reaction of unactivated olefins. Cyclopropanes were obtained in high yields (up to 97 %, TON up to 18,400) with moderate to excellent diastereoselectivities (up to >99%). Moreover, we have tested the catalytic capabilities of this copper-based system toward the activation of cycloalkanes and cyclic ethers and have found moderate-to-good degrees of conversion under very mild conditions