Biolubricant was synthesized from Cameroon palm kernel oil (PKO) by double transesterification, producing methyl esters in the first stage which were then transesterified with trimethylolpropane (TMP) to give the PKO ...Biolubricant was synthesized from Cameroon palm kernel oil (PKO) by double transesterification, producing methyl esters in the first stage which were then transesterified with trimethylolpropane (TMP) to give the PKO biolubricant in the presence of a base catalyst obtained from plantain peelings (municipal waste). The yields from both catalysts were significantly similar (48% for the locally produced and 51% for the conventional) showing that the locally produced catalyst could be valorized. The synthesized biolubricant was characterized by measuring its physical and chemical properties. The specific gravity of 1.2, ASTM color of 1.5, cloud point of 0°C, pour point of -9°C, viscosities at 40°C of 509.80 cSt and at 100°C of 30.80 cSt, viscosity index of 120, flash point greater than 210°C and a fire point greater than 220°C were obtained. This synthesized biolubricant was found to be comparable to commercial T-46 petroleum lubricant sample produced industrially from mineral sources. We have therefore used local materials to produce a biolubricant using a cheap base catalyst produced from municipal waste.展开更多
Taking the local chronicles of 18 counties in Hanzhong Prefecture and Xing'an Prefecture in upper reaches of the Hanjiang River Valley in Qing Dynasty, this paper tried to analyze the city map and the impression o...Taking the local chronicles of 18 counties in Hanzhong Prefecture and Xing'an Prefecture in upper reaches of the Hanjiang River Valley in Qing Dynasty, this paper tried to analyze the city map and the impression of ancient people about the traditional cities using the image element concept of Kevin Lynch. From comparing the city maps and text description, it summarized the important cognitive concept of "orientation", so as to better understand the relationship between space and society in traditional cities.展开更多
The developments in the field of construction raise the need for concrete with less weight. This is beneficial for different applications starting from the less load applied to foundations and soil till the reduction ...The developments in the field of construction raise the need for concrete with less weight. This is beneficial for different applications starting from the less load applied to foundations and soil till the reduction of carnage capacity required for lifting precast units. In this paper, the production of light weight concrete from light local weight aggregate is investigated. Three candidate materials are used: crushed fired brick, vermiculite and light exfoliated clay aggregate (LECA). The first is available as the by-product of brick industry and the later two types are produced locally for different applications. Nine concrete mixes were made with same proportions and different aggregate materials. Physical and mechanical properties were measured for concrete in fresh and hardened states. Among these measured ones are unit weight, slump, compressive and tensile strength, and impact resistance. Also, the performance under elevated temperature was measured. Results show that reduction of unit weight up to 45%, of traditional concrete, can be achieved with 50% reduction in compressive strength. This makes it possible to get structural light weight concrete with compressive strength of 130 kg/cm2. Light weight concrete proved also to be more impact and fire resistant. However, as expected, it needs separate calibration curves for non-destructive evaluation. Following this experimental effort, the Artificial Neural Network (ANN) technique was applied for simulating and predicting the physical and mechanical properties of light weight aggregate concrete in fresh and hardened states. The current paper introduced the (ANN) technique to investigate the effect of light local weight aggregate on the performance of the produced light weight concrete. The results of this study showed that the ANN method with less effort was very efficiently capable of simulating the effect of different aggregate materials on the performance of light weight concrete.展开更多
文摘Biolubricant was synthesized from Cameroon palm kernel oil (PKO) by double transesterification, producing methyl esters in the first stage which were then transesterified with trimethylolpropane (TMP) to give the PKO biolubricant in the presence of a base catalyst obtained from plantain peelings (municipal waste). The yields from both catalysts were significantly similar (48% for the locally produced and 51% for the conventional) showing that the locally produced catalyst could be valorized. The synthesized biolubricant was characterized by measuring its physical and chemical properties. The specific gravity of 1.2, ASTM color of 1.5, cloud point of 0°C, pour point of -9°C, viscosities at 40°C of 509.80 cSt and at 100°C of 30.80 cSt, viscosity index of 120, flash point greater than 210°C and a fire point greater than 220°C were obtained. This synthesized biolubricant was found to be comparable to commercial T-46 petroleum lubricant sample produced industrially from mineral sources. We have therefore used local materials to produce a biolubricant using a cheap base catalyst produced from municipal waste.
文摘Taking the local chronicles of 18 counties in Hanzhong Prefecture and Xing'an Prefecture in upper reaches of the Hanjiang River Valley in Qing Dynasty, this paper tried to analyze the city map and the impression of ancient people about the traditional cities using the image element concept of Kevin Lynch. From comparing the city maps and text description, it summarized the important cognitive concept of "orientation", so as to better understand the relationship between space and society in traditional cities.
文摘The developments in the field of construction raise the need for concrete with less weight. This is beneficial for different applications starting from the less load applied to foundations and soil till the reduction of carnage capacity required for lifting precast units. In this paper, the production of light weight concrete from light local weight aggregate is investigated. Three candidate materials are used: crushed fired brick, vermiculite and light exfoliated clay aggregate (LECA). The first is available as the by-product of brick industry and the later two types are produced locally for different applications. Nine concrete mixes were made with same proportions and different aggregate materials. Physical and mechanical properties were measured for concrete in fresh and hardened states. Among these measured ones are unit weight, slump, compressive and tensile strength, and impact resistance. Also, the performance under elevated temperature was measured. Results show that reduction of unit weight up to 45%, of traditional concrete, can be achieved with 50% reduction in compressive strength. This makes it possible to get structural light weight concrete with compressive strength of 130 kg/cm2. Light weight concrete proved also to be more impact and fire resistant. However, as expected, it needs separate calibration curves for non-destructive evaluation. Following this experimental effort, the Artificial Neural Network (ANN) technique was applied for simulating and predicting the physical and mechanical properties of light weight aggregate concrete in fresh and hardened states. The current paper introduced the (ANN) technique to investigate the effect of light local weight aggregate on the performance of the produced light weight concrete. The results of this study showed that the ANN method with less effort was very efficiently capable of simulating the effect of different aggregate materials on the performance of light weight concrete.
