Comparison of Single and Group Jet Grouting Columns Capacity Based on Field Load Test and Theoretical Methods

The evaluation of axial capacity of jet grouted soil cement columns in soft soil is a complicated issue because it depends according to the number of factors such as, soil type, influence mixture between soil and grouting materials, nozzle jet energy, jet grouting and water flow rate, rotation and lifting speed. These parameters related to the type of jet grouting methods (single, double and triple system). Most methods of design the bearing capacity of the jet-grouting column based on experience. Therefore, some designer calculates the bearing capacity of the jet grouting column based on jet grout section capacity. In this paper, different theoretical methods have been used to estimate of the jet grouting soil-cement capacity, such as Poulos and Davis, 1980 methods and then their comparison with the pile load test calculations based on the quick pile load test as presented in ASTM-D1143-07.  Therefore, the study describes a prototype test single and group jet grout soil-cement models of arrangement (1*1, 1*2 and 2*2) for total length to diameter ratios (L/D) is 13.33 and clear spacing three times of diameter has been constructed in soft clayey soils in the right bank of the Euphrates River, at Al- Nasiriyah city. As a result, the theoretical method for estimation the bearing capacity gives unfaithful values for the single and group jet grout column compared to the load- settlement calculations obtained from field pile load test data. On the other hand, the Hansen’s 90% and Butler and Hoy’s given closer results to each other and may be considered faithful interpretation methods to compute the bearing capacity of single and group jet grouting columns

Channel modelling for visible light communication systems

Visible Light Communications (VLCs) have been identified as a potential solution for mitigating the looming Radio Frequency (RF) spectrum crisis. Having the ability to provide illumination and communication at the same time, this technology has been considered as one of the most promising communication technologies for future wireless networks. VLCs are a viable candidate for short-range indoor applications with very high data rates. In terms of outdoor applications, Vehicular VLCs (VVLCs) play an important role in vehicular ad hoc networks and Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS). Adopting visible light in vehicular networks offers a great potential to enhance road safety and traffic efficiency towards accident-free driving. For the sake of VLC system design and performance evaluation, it is indispensable to develop accurate, efficient, and flexible channel models, which can fully reflect the characteristics of VLC channels. In this thesis, we first give a comprehensive and up-to-date literature review of the most important indoor Optical Wireless Communications (OWCs) measurement campaigns and channel models, primarily for Wireless Infrared Communications (WIRCs) and VLCs. Consequently, we can identify that an appropriate channel model for VLC systems is currently missing in the literature. This Ph.D. project is therefore devoted to the modelling of VLC channels for both indoor and outdoor communication systems. Second, a new Two-Dimensional (2D) stationary Field of View (FoV) one-ring Regular-Shape Geometry Based Stochastic Model (RS-GBSM) for VLC Single-Input Single-Output (SISO) channels is proposed. The proposed model considers the Line-of-Sight (LoS) and Single-Bounce (SB) components. VLC channel characteristics are analysed based on different positions of the Photodetector (PD) and FoV constraint. Third, we propose a new 2D stationary multiple-bounce RS-GBSM for VLC SISO channels. The proposed model employs a combined two-ring and confocal ellipse model. This model is sufficiently generic and adaptable to a variety of indoor scenarios since the received signal is constructed as the summation of the LoS, SB, Double-Bounce (DB), and Triple-Bounce (TB) rays with different powers. Fourth, a new 2D mobile RS-GBSM for vehicular VLC SISO channels is proposed. The proposed model combines a two-ring model and a confocal ellipse model, and considers SB and DB components in addition to LoS component. Unlike conventional models, the proposed model considers the light that is reflected off moving vehicles around the Transmitter (Tx) and Receiver (Rx), as well as the light that is reflected off the stationary roadside environments. Vehicular VLC channel characteristics are analysed along different distance ranges between 0 and 70 m and different PD heights. Fifth, we propose a novel Three-Dimensional (3D) mobile RS-GBSM for vehicular VLC Multiple-Input Single-Output (MISO) channels. The proposed model combines two-sphere and elliptic-cylinder models. Both the LoS component and SB components, which are reflected off moving vehicles and stationary roadside environments, are considered. The proposed 3D RS-GBSM has the ability to study the impact of the vehicular traffic density on the received power and jointly considers the azimuth and elevation angles by using the von Mises-Fisher (VMF) distribution. In summary, this work proposes new realistic VLC channel models which are useful for the design, test, and performance evaluation of advanced indoor and outdoor VLC systems. Furthermore, it identifies important directions that can be considered in future research, and helps propose new applications that require the development of more realistic channel models before the actual implementation

Effect of Food on the Pharmacokinetics of Fluoxetine in Healthy Male Adult Volunteers(Conference Paper )#

Fluoxetine (FX) is an antidepressant drug administered only orally in humans. Despite the wide use of FX, until now, there is only limited literature concerning the pharmacokinetics (PK) of FX and the effect of food on its PK. Thus, the objective of this investigation was to study the PK of FX in Arabic healthy male adult volunteers under fasting and fed conditions. In the fasting study, FX 20 mg capsules (Prozac®, Eli Lilly, Canada) were administered to 41 volunteers after overnight fasting of 12 hours, followed by blood sampling from each volunteer immediately before dosing (zero time) and then at 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 24, 36, 48, 60, 72, 96, 120, and eventually at 144 hours after FX dosing. The fed study was conducted after 90 days wash-out period following the completion of the fasting study. The same subjects who received FX in the fasting study were administered the drug directly after a fatty breakfast (fed study), followed by blood sampling intervals similar to the schedule mentioned above for the fasting study. The current investigation demonstrated no statistical differences in the FX pharmacokinetic parameters Cmax, AUC0–t, AUC0–∞, Kel, T1/2, MRT, Cl/F, and Vd/F after fasting compared to the fed conditions, whereas there was statistically significant elongation in the Tmax values after food intake. Therefore, this study concludes the absence of food effect on the PK of FX (except Tmax) in the Arabic population and confirms the method of administration mentioned in the product information but also concludes high interindividual variation in FX exposure (AUC), which suggest that therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) might be advisable when feasible

Impact of Dynamic Traffic on Vehicle-to-Vehicle Visible Light Communication Systems

In this article we studies the impact of dynamic vehicular traffic density on the signal-to-noise-ratio and the associated bit-error-rate (BER) performance of vehicle-to-vehicle visible light communication (V2V-VLC) systems. The article uses traffic data from the M42 and M6 motorways in the U.K. to investigate the probability of coexistence of other vehicles in the adjacent lanes, which induce interference and act as potential reflectors. The results show that the probability of coexistence of other vehicles in the adjacent lanes is lane-independent and it increases during the rush hours to 90%, while it decays to less than 10% during the off-peak and early morning hours. The intervehicular distance and the BER performance vary widely between different lanes and different periods of the day. The results also show that the BER performance of V2V-VLC system with non-line-of-sight (NLOS) component and with LOS component are comparable at rush hours. However, high BER values are predicted during the off-peak hours for NLOS components of the channel

Study of the effect of agricultural and domestic pollutants on the water quality of the Diyala River in Iraq

This study was conducted to assess the effects of agriculture and domestic pollutant on the quality of the Diyala River. Water samples and fish samples were taken bimonthly at three stations in Diyala River and18 parameters (air and water temperature, TDS, dissolved oxygen, BOD, pH, EC, No2, NO3, total PO4, heavy metals (Cd, Pb, Al) in water and heavy metals (Cd, Pb, Al) in fish sample) were analyzed. The river has a total length of 574 km and a drainage area of which 25% is in Iran and 75% is in Iraq, Results of the study indicated that the Diayla River is more polluted and this is confirmed by Physico-chemical properties, as well as the carp fish was one of the most local fish sensitive to water pollution, especially heavy metals (HMs). The model gave a good idea to assess the water quality of the Diyala River under the effect of dryness and large quantities of pollutants on it