Long-Term Performance Evaluation Of NUdeck In Kearney East Bypass

The Kearney East Bypass bridge is the first project that implements the newly developed precast concrete deck system (known as 2nd generation NUDECK). The new system consists of full-depth full-width precast prestressed concrete deck panels that are 12 ft (3.66 m) long each. The panels have covered shear pockets at 4 ft (1.22 m) spacing on each girder line to host clustered shear connectors that are adjustable in height. Narrow unreinforced transverse joints are used to eliminate the need for deck overlay. Also, deck panels are post-tensioned in the longitudinal direction using a new post-tensioning system that eliminates the need for post- tensioning ducts, strand threading, and grouting operations. The project has twin bridges: a southbound bridge with cast-in-place (CIP) concrete deck, and northbound bridge with the new precast concrete (PC) deck system. The two bridges were completed in the fall of 2015 and opened to traffic in the fall of 2016. Due to the unique features of the new PC deck system, this research project was initiated to monitor short-term performance using live load test and long-term performance under traffic loads to evaluate the system performance. Both CIP concrete deck and PC deck bridges were instrumented and tested during the summer of 2016 to compare the performance of their superstructures. Also, finite element analysis (FEA) was conducted to predict the performance of the new PC deck system. The results of both analytical and experimental investigations indicated that the PC deck system performs as predicted and very comparable to the conventional CIP concrete deck

What controls the reservoir quality of andesitic arc derived volcano clastic sandstone reservoirs: An example from the Mohakatino Formation, Taranaki Basin, New Zealand

The mid-Miocene Mohakatino Formation of the Taranaki Basin, New Zealand, is a submarine fan succession sourced dominantly from an offshore, submarine andesitic arc. It is composed of volcaniclastic sandstones, siltstones and mudstones, characterised by a prominent andesitic detritus. The Mohakatino Formation acts as the reservoir rock for the sub-commercial, tight oil producing Kora Field in the Northern Taranaki Basin, New Zealand. This formed due to a combination of proximal tuffs on the flanks of the Kora Volcano and sector collapse of the eastern flank of the volcano within the Mohakatino Volcanic Centre off the west coast of the North Island, and this mass wasting material was deposited distally along the present day Awakino coastline. The hydrocarbons present in the Kora Field are the product of the thermal maturation of the Late Paleocene Waipawa Formation kerogen, and matured by the residual heat of the Kora volcano. While the Mohakatino Formation does not have significant quantities of hydrocarbons present, the sandstones do have high porosity and permeability with potential that the Mohakatino Formation could have acted as commercially viable reservoir rock in the proximal regions to the Kora volcano. In the medial to distal reaches of the submarine fan systems the reservoir quality for the Mohakatino Formation is of poorer quality and is controlled by sedimentary processes and breakdown of the more volatile and friable components of the andesitic volcaniclastics due to transportation process of the submarine high density turbidity currents. The reservoir quality is preserved in these proximal regions by early stage authigenic clay precipitation from the breakdown of volcanic and hypabyssal rock fragments which prevented quartz overgrowths and later stage pore filling clay formation. Pore filling calcite that forms in shallow marine rocks was prevented from precipitating by the acidic nature of the proximal rocks, preserving the reservoir quality. Furthermore, rapid burial of the proximal Mohakatino Formation by ~2 km over ~2 Ma by the Giant Foresets Formation contributed to sealing the pore network to create a closed system, occluding the porosity, and which allowed for the reactive materials to be broken down and the resulting authigenic minerals to be retained in the rock. While these factors combined preserved some of the reservoir quality, relative to typical clastic sandstone reservoirs the reservoir quality is still low. The proximal deposits are found to have relatively coarser grain sizes due to their increased weight and density causing them to fall out of water column and be deposited first, and together combined to give relatively good primary porosity. The turbidity currents and tuffs at their furthest extent had lost the majority of their energy and coarsest material, and so when they reached what is now the now Awakino Coastline the deposited material was of a relatively fine grainsize and better sorted than that of proximal. These combined features led to reduced primary porosity and therefore a decreased reservoir quality of the distal Mohakatino Formation rocks from their inception, and is therefore a key control on the potential for these rocks to act as a reservoir

Long-Term Performance Evaluation Of NUdeck In Kearney East Bypass

The Kearney East Bypass bridge is the first project that implements the newly developed precast concrete deck system (known as 2nd generation NUDECK). The new system consists of full-depth full-width precast prestressed concrete deck panels that are 12 ft (3.66 m) long each. The panels have covered shear pockets at 4 ft (1.22 m) spacing on each girder line to host clustered shear connectors that are adjustable in height. Narrow unreinforced transverse joints are used to eliminate the need for deck overlay. Also, deck panels are post-tensioned in the longitudinal direction using a new post-tensioning system that eliminates the need for post- tensioning ducts, strand threading, and grouting operations. The project has twin bridges: a southbound bridge with cast-in-place (CIP) concrete deck, and northbound bridge with the new precast concrete (PC) deck system. The two bridges were completed in the fall of 2015 and opened to traffic in the fall of 2016. Due to the unique features of the new PC deck system, this research project was initiated to monitor short-term performance using live load test and long-term performance under traffic loads to evaluate the system performance. Both CIP concrete deck and PC deck bridges were instrumented and tested during the summer of 2016 to compare the performance of their superstructures. Also, finite element analysis (FEA) was conducted to predict the performance of the new PC deck system. The results of both analytical and experimental investigations indicated that the PC deck system performs as predicted and very comparable to the conventional CIP concrete deck

Validation of the English language version of the Violent Ideations Scale (VIS)

This study used a within participant design to evaluate the concurrent validity and test-retest reliability of the Violent Ideations Scale in a general population, English-speaking opportunistic sample. Data from 116 adult participants (M age = 33.7, SD = 11.9, male = 30 [25.9%]) were used to compare scores on the Violent Ideations Scale and Aggression Questionnaire and responses to the Schedule of Imagined Violence. A sub-group of 27 participants (M age = 37.2, SD = 13.6, male = 8 [29.6%]) completed the Violent Ideations Scale on a second occasion, two weeks later. The Violent Ideations Scale was found to correlate significantly with the Aggression Questionnaire subscale and total scores, with the strongest correlations being with physical aggression and total scores. Participants were more likely to be categorised as having experienced a violent ideation based on responses to the Violent Ideation Scale, compared to the Schedule of Imagined Violence, most likely due to the Schedule of Imagined Violence underestimating the prevalence of violent ideation. A significant, strong correlation was found between total Violent Ideations Scale scores at Time 1 and Time 2. Overall, the Violent Ideations Scale was found to have concurrent validity when compared with the Aggression Questionnaire and good test-retest reliability, suggesting that it would be suitable for use with a non-clinical, English-speaking sample

Cardiac sarcoidosis: a comprehensive review

Sarcoidosis is a multisystem granulomatous disease of unknown etiology characterized by noncaseating granulomas in involved organs. Organs involved with sarcoidosis include lymph nodes, skin, lung, central nervous system, and eye. Only 40-50% of patients with cardiac sarcoidosis diagnosed at autopsy have the diagnosis made during their lifetime. Cardiac sarcoidosis can manifest itself as complete heart block, ventricular arrhythmias, congestive heart failure, pericardial effusion, pulmonary hypertension, and ventricular aneurysms. Diagnostic tests such as the electrocardiogram, two-dimensional echocardiography, cardiac magnetic resonance imaging, positron emission tomography scan, radionuclide scan, and endomyocardial biopsy can be helpful in the early detection of cardiac sarcoidosis. Considering the increased risk of sudden death, cardiac sarcoidosis is an indication for early treatment with corticosteroids or other immunosuppressive agents. Other treatments include placement of a pacemaker or implantable defibrillator to prevent sudden death. In refractory cases, cardiac transplantation should be considered

Structure of 1-(3-butynyl)pyridinium p-toluenesulfonate

The 1-(3-butynyl)pyridinium p-toluenesulfonate salt, C9H10N+.CTHTO3S -, contains a C--H...O hydrogen bond between the acetylenic H atom of the cation and a sulfonate O atom of the anion in the solid state [C...O 3.32 (1), H...O 2.49 A, C--H...O 159°]. The X-ray analysis was complicated by disorder in both the cation and anion. A major (85%) and a minor (15%) component of the 1-(3-butynyl)pyridinium cation are present, both occuping the same volume element in the lattice. The methyl H atoms and sulfonate O atoms of the p-toluenesulfonate anion are disordered over two orientations

Testing and improving the effectiveness of trap crops for management of the diamondback moth Plutella xylostella (L.): a laboratory-based study

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to assess white mustard (Sinapis alba L.) as a trap crop for diamondback moth [Plutella xylostella (L.)] on cauliflower [Brassica oleracea (L.) var. Lateman]. Moth behaviour on these plants and the importance of plant age and size in maintaining pest preference for trap crop plants were also investigated. RESULTS: Three times as many eggs were laid on cauliflower plants that were unprotected than on plants protected by a trap crop of white mustard. Moths remained longer on the mustard plants as a result of a doubling in the mean duration of information-providing behaviours. Plant age had little effect on P. xylostella host preference. When plant age was constant, percentage oviposition on mustard was higher when these were larger (93%) than copresented cauliflower plants, compared with when they were smaller (68%). CONCLUSION: Trap cropping with white mustard may reduce the incidence of P. xylostella in cauliflower crops. The pest management benefits of trap crops may be maximised by using trap crop plants that are larger than the main crop plants, although relatively smaller trap crop plants may still be preferred as hosts for P. xylostella per se. Copyright © 2009 Society of Chemical Industr

Television news and the symbolic criminalisation of young people

This is an Author's Accepted Manuscript of an article published in Journalism Studies, 9(1), 75 - 90, 2008, copyright Taylor & Francis, available online at: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/14616700701768105.This essay combines quantitative and qualitative analysis of six UK television news programmes. It seeks to analyse the representation of young people within broadcast news provision at a time when media representations, political discourse and policy making generally appear to be invoking young people as something of a folk devil or a locus for moral panics. The quantitative analysis examines the frequency with which young people appear as main actors across a range of different subjects and analyses the role of young people as news sources. It finds a strong correlation between young people and violent crime. A qualitative analysis of four “special reports” or backgrounders on channel Five's Five News explores the representation of young people in more detail, paying attention to contradictions and tensions in the reports, the role of statistics in crime reporting, the role of victims of crime and the tensions between conflicting news frames.Arts and Humanities Research Counci