Evaluation methods for ceramic suitability of raw clays

Ceramic suitability of kaolinitic-illitic and chloritic-illitic raw clays was assessed by methods involving microstructure investigation and ceramic properties measurements, some reported diagrams and response surface methodology (RSM). Results of the former method showed that all clays are suitable for red stoneware tiles. The stoneware manufacturing is facilitated by the marked reduction of porosity due to the flow of melt, mainly originated from the breakdowns of illite. This result was partially supported by the use of a diagram involving the chemical composition of clays as well as by the RSM results. According to the later method, bricks may be manufactured under restricted firing conditions and stoneware tiles could be prepared at temperatures as low as 950°C

The Determinants of Financial Development: Empirical Evidence from Developed and Developing Countries

Countries which initiate economic development, use in the most cases, the mechanisms and tools of the financial sphere to maximize the chances of success of their financial development process. However, some financial, economic and institutional conditions are compulsory for the success of the whole process. In this context, our empirical analysis using panel data is applied on two samples divided among 15 developed and 23 developing countries over a period from 1997 to 2013.The result obtained show that financial development determinants are mainly related to banking and financial sector and the level of economic and human development for both samples. Whereas, the determinants related to economic stability and the legal and institutional framework have a significant impact on financial development only in the developed countries

Shadow Education:Its nature role and function in British International schools in Hong Kong.

Shadow education is the term frequently used to describe the provision of supplementary education by tutoring agencies, ‘cram schools’ and other private, typically for-profit organisations that assist in the achievement of successful examination results. This thesis will attempt to research the role which ‘shadow education’ plays in modern day Hong Kong. A study undertaken in 1998 revealed that on average 41 per cent of grade 3 students and 39 per cent of grade 6 students were participating in shadow education. This seems to be part of a wider international trend in both developed and developing countries, including the UK. With a system comparable to the British education system, Hong Kong has experienced growth in its shadow education system as well. While a number of studies have examined the economic and policy implications of shadow education, few have undertaken thorough research of the sociological factors that might contribute to its popularity. This study aims to investigate the historical, socio-economic factors that influence the choice of shadow education in Hong Kong. In this way, it followed the precedent set by British researchers Ireson and Rushforth, who conducted a similar study of private tutoring in the UK. In order to understand the policy and social implications of shadow education, the system needs to be placed into a wider socio-political historical, economic and cultural context to reflexively frame both its existence and its acceptance amongst parents, students, education providers, and education policy-makers in Hong Kong. This study has hopefully provided both the context and the impact of shadow education in this particular example, but with wider application once the historical and sociological contexts are understood. This discussion and analysis placing the study’s primary data results from questionnaires, interviews, and focus groups hopefully demonstrates that the historical and social context of Hong Kong plays at least, if not more, of a role in the choice to participate in shadow education as pure economic practicality and functionalism. Shadow education fills a role in education that is social and confidence building, and also ameliorates some of the postcolonial anxieties of parents who grew up in a very different context than they find their children. While social mobility and economic gain clearly play a role in all of these considerations, the role of the shadow education system extends beyond the functionalism it is currently assigned in the literature

Évaluation géostatistique de la stabilité d’une pente : Site de l’Université de Constantine (Nord-Est Algérien)

L¡¦analyse de la stabilite du site etudie (Universite Mentouri ; region de Constantine) montre qu¡¦il est instable ; le coefficient de securite Fs minimum est egal a 0,3685 qui correspond au cercle de glissement le plus profond (x,y) = (629,6 ; 600). A cet effet, le choix de la surface de rupture reste toujours probable. Ce choix qui obeie a un certain nombre de tests peut donner des resultats de calcul de Fs avec une marge d¡¦erreur relative. Des methodes geostatistiques ont ete utilisees pour quantifier la stabilisation de ce talus, et chercher l¡¦erreur d¡¦estimation. Le coefficient de securite Fs, est pris comme variable regionalisee ; le variogramme experimental omnidirectionnel a ete modelise par un schema spherique avec un effet de pipite C0 =0,0264, un palier C= 0,056, et une portee a = 6,57m. Le krigeage ordinaire de Fs, montre que les isovaleurs kriogees, varient de 0,65 a 1,4. La variance moyenne de krigeage est de 0,0529 ; ce qui donne une erreur relative de 42,18% au maximum 95%   correspondant au standard gaussien 2ƒãE. La cartographie des variances de krigeage montre qu¡¦il y a des zones sous ¡V reconnues ; l¡¦erreur est faible pour un coefficient de securite inferieur a 1 (zone instable) ; par ailleurs elle est relativement forte pour Fs superieur a 1 (zone classee stable par le calcul classique de Bishop). Cependant, si la precision dans l¡¦estimation de la stabilite de talus devait etre grande, alors d¡¦autres calculs de ce coefficient sont necessaires. Cette etude de quantification et verification de stabilite de talus reste valable pour l¡¦analyse regionalisee de la stabilite de n¡¦importe quel site qui souffre d¡¦un probleme de glissement.Mots- cles : geotechnique, geostatistique, variogramme experimental, krigeage ordinaire, cartographie

Excimer laser treatment of ZE41 magnesium alloy for corrosion resistance and microhardness improvement

We would like to acknowledge the financial support of the ‘‘Conseil regional de PACA’’ and Protection des Metaux d’Arenc). The authors are grateful to PMA’s engineers Ms. E. Castellan, Ms. A. Gonthier and Mr. F. Miretti for their help and assistance with the salt-spray testsA laser surface melting treatment (LSMT) was performed on a ZE41 Mg-alloy using an excimer KrF laser. The laser-melted layer depth depends on the laser scan speed. The morphology and the microstructure of the laser-melted surface were characterized, thanks to the scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The melted Mg-alloy presented a homogenous distribution of the alloying elements in the magnesium matrix. The laser surface melting treatment increased the microhardness of the ZE41 Mg-alloy and improved its corrosion resistance