Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine an Iranian mathematics lesson through the eyes of Japanese educators, and the critiques of Iranian teachers for raising the quality of teaching. In this paper, the Japanese lesson study process is considered as an approach to raising the quality of teaching. Design/methodology/approach – Qualitative methods including pre-lesson planning, pe…
Abstract: Although certain measurements regarding super-tall buildings constructed using the top-down method have been published, new advances in top-down construction have been developed with the construction of super-tall buildings in China. This paper presents the theory of soil-structure interactions in pile foundations and extends it to the top-down construction method. Based on this theo…
Abstract: The static and dynamic displacements of high-speed railway bridges, which are determined by the load conditions, travel speed, and span, may cause passenger discomfort when they are excessive. In the Korea Railway Bridge Design Specifications, the allowable deflection is based on the train travel speed. It is, however, not sufficient for considering the vibration serviceability. The …
Abstract: Masonry is the most important construction material in Turkey. It has been used for public and residential buildings in the past several thousand years. A great number of well-preserved old masonry structures still exist proving that this form of construction can successfully resist loads and environmental impact. Traditionally, most major buildings were solid walled structures with …
Abstract: Soil-bentonite slurry-trench wall, usually consisting of sandy soil and Na-bentonite, is used extensively as in-situ engineered barriers for contaminant containment. Clayey soil/Ca-bentonite may be considered as an alternative backfill when Na-bentonite is scarce at some sites. Adding trace amount of phosphate dispersant to clayey soil/Ca-bentonite backfills may be advantageous to ma…
Abstract A side orifice created in the side of a channel is a structure for diverting some of the flow from the main channel for different purposes. The prediction of the discharge through this side structure is very important in hydraulic and irrigation engineering. In the present study, three artificial neural network models including feed forward back propagation, radial basis function, and…
Abstract: Curve-section traffic accidents occur due to a mixture of vehicle, human, and road environmental factors. Traffic safety research in curve sections, however, so far has been confined to only investigating the effect of highway geometry factors on traffic accidents. Accordingly, this study suggested curved part safety-level evaluation criteria by complexly considering the hazard-level…
Abstract: In this paper, a Cochlea-inspired Artificial Filter Bank (CAFB) was developed in order to efficiently acquire dynamic response of structure, and it was also evaluated via dynamic response experiments. To sort out signals containing significant modal information from all the dynamic responses of structure, it was made to adopt a Band-pass filter Optimizing Algorithm (BOA) and a Peak- …
Abstract: This study proposes a 3D intelligent object model in highway construction to electronically represent a large amount information in highway projects based on the international standard ISO 10303. Also known as STEP (Standard for the Exchange of Product), ISO 10303 is an open standard, and has been used for data exchange in building projects of the AEC industries. Motivated by the suc…
Abstract: In recent years, Vietnam has many diseases such as measles, HFMD, chicken pox, and so on. Although there are many new hospital projects, the central hospitals of government still usually overload. Besides that, similar to other construction projects, the hospital projects in Vietnam always have lengthy delays. This research analyzed the factors that cause delay the time of hospital p…
Abstract: This study aims to investigate the ability of different least squares adjustment techniques for detecting deformation. A simulated geodetic netwo rk is used for this purpose. The observations are collected using the Total Station instrument in three epochs and different least squares adjustment methods are used to analyze the simulated network. The applied methods are adjustment-bye…
Abstract: A Project Management Information System (PMIS) is a key Information System (IS) tool used for the successful completion of construction projects and the achievement of organizational goals. This study investigated the effects of computer self-efficacy and IS quality (information, system, and service quality) on perceived net benefits of PMIS. The study used the updated DeLone and McL…
Abstract: The ogee-crested spillway is a passage in a dam through which the design flood could be disposed of safely to the downstream. Spillways of improper design or insufficient capacities have caused failures of dams. Therefore, the spillway must be hydraulically and structurally adequate. This paper presents Gene-Expression Programming (GEP) models as an alternative approach to prediction…
Abstract: Ultra-soft soils have high water content, low strength, and high compressibility. Staged preloading has been commonly used in China to improve ultra-soft soils during land reclamation before highways and other structures are constructed. In this study, seven series of one-dimensional consolidation tests were performed on undisturbed, remolded, or reconstituted specimens of three type…
Abstract: This paper seeks to understand the effect of acidic fluids on the compressibility of soil. Three natural soils (namely, Kansai clay, Yurakucho silt, and Oumigawa silt) containing kaolinite were leached with solutions of sulphuric acid for various lengths of time. At the end of each time interval, standard compression (oedometer) tests were performed to study the behavior of soil in a…
Abstract In this study Shortcut Biological Nitrogen Removal (SBNR), Granular Sequencing Batch Reactor (GSBR), and anaerobic ammonium oxidation (Anammox) were comparatively discussed for combined treatment of anaerobic digester effluent. The experiments were carried out through operating pilot and lab scale reactors. These processes have common ground that biologically removes high strength amm…
Abstract: Aluminum Alloy Gusset (AAG) joints widely used in the single-layer latticed shells have a significant application prospect in spatial structures. Unfortunately, studies on the resistance of AAG joints are insufficient, leading to a lack of applicative design methods for this joint system. This paper is devoted to investigate the resistance of AAG joint plates. Firstly, tests on fourt…
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to report on elementary students’ observational drawings,which were produced from two science lesson study cycles. Design/methodology/approach – The authors collaboratively studied student work from two science research lessons. The authors evaluated 50 students’ science notebook entries, paying specific attention to their observational sketches. …
Abstract Blasting excavation disturbance is an important influencing factor related to the initiation and the evolution of the surrounding rock damage zone in deep-buried tunnels. Based on the excavation of auxiliary tunnels in the Jinping II Hydropower Station, the effect of blasting excavation disturbance on the surrounding rock damage zone in deep-buried tunnels is studied by means of in-si…
Abstract: In addition to the global awareness regarding green buildings, there is growing interest in Building Energy Load Calculation (BELC). The BELC process, however, has several potential problems, including the fact that the required data are input manually through subjective engineer choices and, during the BELC process, a designer must wait for feedback from the engineer regarding the B…
Abstract: Due to the presence of solid matter in the flow passing through sewer pipes, determining the minimum velocity that prevents sediment deposition is essential. In this study, the Multilayer Perceptron (MLP) network optimized with three different training algorithms, including variable learning rate (MLP-GDX), resilient back-propagation (MLP-RP) and Levenberg-Marquardt (MLPLM) is studie…
Abstract: The purpose of this study targets overseas gas plant construction projects with the aim of analyzing the probabilistic cost variation range with consideration of the effect of core quantitative risk factors. C-Project, which is expected to be completed by a domestic construction company in country U, was thus selected as the subject of analysis. By interviewing experts through survey…
Abstract: The theory of beam on elastic foundation is a simple and popular analytic approach for computing the response of laterally loaded piles. For a laterally loaded pile with constant subgrade reaction coefficient, an analytical solution can be easily deduced based on the theory of beam on elastic foundation when the load distribution and boundary condition are simple. However, when the …
Abstract: Parshall flumes are commonly used in irrigation systems, storm water systems, and sewer systems in order to measure the flow rate. The dissolved oxygen content in surface waters is a main indicator of the quality of that water for human use as well as use by the aquatic plant and animal life. A higher dissolved oxygen content supplies better water quality. Hydraulic structures can in…
Abstract: To quantitatively evaluate crack width of concrete structures surface, this paper presents a stereovision-based crack width detection method. Compared with the traditional visual inspection with single camera, this approach uses a pair of cameras to capture cracks images for recovering 3D coordinates of crack edge, and does not needs scale attached to concrete surface for converting …
Abstract: Online sensors in water distribution networks primarily serves two purposes: (1) Assures quality of water delivered to consumers;(2) Early detection of contamination events so as to minimize its consequences. Most of the multi-objective techniques consider thesecond purpose and almost ignore the first purpose. In this study, a sensor placement problem is formulated to cover these two…
Abstract: With developments and innovations in technology, new materials and methods have enabled architects and engineers to plan and construct large-scale facilities. However, these developments may also result in serious problems which include budget overruns, completion delays and distress on the part of the facility owner. To avoid these problems, many types of delivery systems which cont…
Abstract: In this paper, the rotational behavior of asymmetric base-isolated buildings is compared with the similar asymmetric fixed-base buildings. A vast range of lead rubber bearings with different periods is considered to evaluate the effect of the isolation degree on seismic responses of the structures. The simulation results confirm that the base isolators are able to reduce rotation of …
Abstract: Storage dams play a very important role in irrigation especially during lean periods. For proper regulation one should make sure theavailability of water according to needs and requirements. Normally regression techniques are used for the estimation of a reservoirlevel but this study was aimed to account for a non-linear change and variability of natural data by using Gamma Test, for…
This study examined the effectiveness of two cancer prevention interventions in improving balanced diet among French children aged 12–14 years. The educational techniques used were taken from the taxonomy of behaviour change techniques (BCTs; Abraham & Michie, 2008). Allocation to intervention group (intervention versus control) was randomised at the school-level, the ntervention group recei…
Abstract Four donor-acceptor type polymers based on quinoline and biquinoline have been synthesized by Pd catalyzed direct C-H (hetero)arylation reaction. Polymers P1 and P2 are alternate copolymers of thiophene-benzothiadiazolethiophene (TBTT) unit with quinoline and biquinoline unit, respectively. P3 is a random copolymer containing cyclopentadithiophene (CPDT), benzothiadiazole and quinolin…
Abstract : Poly(styrene-alt-maleic anhydride) copolymer and poly(styrene-alt-maleic anhydride)-block-poly(styrene) block copolymer with narrow molecular weight distributions were synthesized by nitroxide mediated radical polymerization (NMP) and the anhydride units were selectively converted to thiophene units. The thiophene decorated poly(styrene-altmaleic anhydride) copolymer was emulsified …
Abstract: The temperature memory effect (TME) in differential scanning calorimeter test of a thermoplastic polyurethane is investigated in two ways: one is termedTME1, in which the material is cooled down for full crystallization during thermal cycling; while the other is termed TME2, in which the material is cooled, but before any crystallization occurs. In the case of single heating stop tem…
Abstract: PET is one of the most important commercial polymer and much effort is being made to modify PET by melt copolymerization with a second glycol or diacid comonomer in a way that yields an amorphous material with a high Tg. In this study, various amounts (0–100 %) of tricyclodecanedimethanol (TCDDM) were used to copolymerize ethylene glycol and terephthalic acid to form a series of c…
Abstract: Ortho-imine functionalized oligophenol was synthesized via enzymatic polymerization of 2-((4- nitrophenylimino)methyl)phenol (NPIMP). Enzymatic polymerization was catalyzed by Horseradish peroxidase (HRP) enzyme and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) oxidizer yielded oligophenol with imine functionality on the side-chain.Effects of various factors including reaction pH, temperature and solvent…
Abstract: This work reports two series of structurally different aromatic polyimides based on 4,4´-diaminodiphenylmethane (DPM) and 4,4´-diaminotriphenylmethane (TPM) and three commercial dianhydrides. All TPM-based polyimides formed membranes due to their high molecular weight (inherent viscosities ~0.93–1.14 dl/g), they exhibited high thermal stability (5 %: 490–544 °C), glass transit…
Abstract: Polyacrylonitrile (PAN) based polymer electrolyte membranes complexedwith Ammoniumhexafluorophosphate (NH4PF6) with different molar concentration are prepared by solution casting method. Increase in the amorphous nature by the addition of Ammonium salt and the formation of polymersalt complex are confirmed by X ray diffraction studies and infrared spectroscopy respectively. The glass…
Abstract: An investigation of the structure and mechanical behavior of melt-spun isotactic polypropylene (iPP) fibers subjected to thermal treatment in an inert atmosphere is described. Two iPP formulations, Basell Pro-fax PH835 and ExxonMobil Achieve 3854, synthesized by the Ziegler-Natta and metallocene catalysts respectively, and spun at take-up velocities of 1000 to 3000 m/min are consider…
Abstract: Two types of s i l a n e s , including 3 - glycidoxy propyl trimethoxy silane (GPTMS) and 3- amino propyl triethoxy silane (APTES), were grafted onto polystyrene sulfonic acid-co-maleic acid (PSSA_MA) first, followed by the grafting reaction to the silica surface. The modification of PSSA_MAonto silica was confirmed through FTIR (Fourier transform infrared spectrum), NMR (Nuclear mag…
Abstract: A novel superabsorbent composite based on kappa- Carrageenan (κC) was prepared by graft copolymerization of acrylamide (AAm) onto κC in the presence of bentonite powder using methylenebisacrylamide (MBA) as a crosslinking agent, ammonium persulfate (APS) as an initiator, and sodium carbonate as a pore-forming agent. The swelling behavior in distilled water and in solutions with dif…
Abstract: Dextrin as a biodegradable natural polymer has hydrophilic nature that capable to increase the swelling properties and biodegradability of the synthetic hydrogels. This study describes the synthesis of a poly (acrylic acid-coacryloyl tetrasodium thiacalix[4]arene tetrasulfonate) grafted dextrin superabsorbent hydrogels (ADA) via solution polymerization. The effects of acryloyl tetra…
Abstract: Blending of two or more pure polymers is an effective way to produce composites with tunable properties. In this paper, we report dynamic Monte Carlo simulation results on the crystallization of crystalline/crystalline (A/B) symmetric binary polymer blend, wherein the melting temperature of A-polymer is higher than B-polymer. We study the effect of segregation strength (arises from …
Abstract: Crystallization behavior of conductive composite has a great effect on the formation of conductive network. But very few studies have exposited, specially on the micro level, the evolution of conductive network during the crystallization of matrix. In this study, the conductive network was found to be destroyed by crystallization behavior of isotactic polypropylene (iPP) matrix, and…
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to determine if a blended learning component can aid professional development, improve student ability and be approved at the foreign language level using the lesson study (LS) method at a university in Japan. Design/methodology/approach – This paper introduces the three main theoretical concepts of blended learning, learner autonomy and technology i…
Abstract: In this work, rubber seed oil (RSO) was extracted with cyclohexane at room temperature for 24 h. The yield of RSO was about 40 %. The RSO was purified by using sodium hydroxide to eliminate some free fatty acids. Then the RSO was modified by simultaneous epoxidation and hydroxylation. Hydroxylated RSO (HRSO) had the hydroxylation extents 120 and 230 mgKOH/g with 2 h and 4 h reaction…
Abstract: Novel ion-stimulus-responsive copolymeric hydrogels were synthesized by free radical crosslinking copolymerization from the monomers N,N-dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate (DMAEMA) and 2-Hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) in the presence of a crosslinker, diethyleneglycol dimethacrylate (DEGDMA). The influences of the reaction parameters, the comonomer composition and the ionic strength o…
Abstract: Phenylene-bridged cross-linked poly(alkoxysilane)s produced by the condensation of 1,4-bis(triethoxysilyl) benzene (BTEB) with different lengths of aliphatic diols in proper stoichiometric ratios were successfully prepared. The synthesized phenylene-bridged poly(alkoxysilane)s were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), solid-state 13C and 29Si cross polariz…
Abstract: The microporous membranes of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) and linear- lower-density polyethylene (LLDPE) blend were prepared based on melt-stretching mechanism and the influence of cocrystallization behavior on the structure and properties of stretched microporous membranes was investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), small-…
Abstract: The paper describes the preparation of High Density Polyethylene [HDPE]/Halloysite Nanotube [HNT] nanocomposites by melt compounding HDPE with varying amounts ofHNTs (ranging from 1 to 10%w/w) in the absence and presence of MA-g-HDPE as compatibiliser using corotating twin screw extruder. The effect of HNT loading and compatibiliser amount on morphology and rheological properties was…
Abstract: High-molecular-weight poly(p-arylene sulfide ketone) (PPSK) was prepared by nucleophilic substitution reaction of 4,4’-diflurobenzophenone (DFBP) and sodium sulfide in the compound solvents of diphenyl sulfone (DPS) and 1,3- dimethyl-2-imidazolidinone (DMI) with catalysts under elevated temperature. The inherent viscosity (ηint) of the PPSK synthesized was 0.703 dl/g. PPSK was cha…