Search results for "Structural engineering"
showing 10 items of 1998 documents
Microstructure and rheological response of laboratory-aged SBS-modified bitumens
2019
Polymer additives are widely used to improve the performance of road bitumens including their resistance to hardening during oxidation, although their oxidative inhibitor effect has not been well documented. This study aims to investigate the effect of laboratory-simulated ageing on the microstructure, and rheological properties of Polymer Modified Bitumens (PMBs) prepared with a Styrene-Butadiene-Styrene (SBS) copolymer and sulphur as a cross-linker. The laboratory ageing was conducted through the Rolling Thin Film Oven (RTFO) and the Pressure Aging Vessel (PAV) procedures. The unaged and aged binders were characterised using the Multiple Stress Creep and Recovery (MSCR) test, Gel Permeati…
Performance-based characterization of recycled polymer modified asphalt mixture
2021
Due to the introduction of secondary materials, the asphalt mixtures to be designed and tested in our laboratories are constantly becoming much more complex than traditional asphalt mixtures making difficult to use conventional laboratory procedure and/or predict expected results. This study proposes a comprehensive characterization of asphalt mixture modified with recycled polymer compound by using both wet and dry process proposing adjustments to laboratory mixing and sample compaction procedure. Accordingly, three AC20 Hot Asphalt Mixture (HMA) were designed and their conventional and performance related properties were assessed by looking at a) Indirect Tensile test (ITS) a) moisture da…
Hydrothermal liquefaction of waste biomass in stirred reactors: One step forward to the integral valorization of municipal sludge
2020
Abstract Hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) of municipal sludge (MS) was performed at 350 °C for 30 min (subcritical water) and at 400 °C for 0 min (supercritical water) at fixed kinetic severity (LogR0 = 8.9) in static and stirred batch reactors to study the effect of the flow regime on the energy recovery (ER) of the process and on the quality of the products. With adopted experimental procedures it was possible to reduce to less than 10% the yield of lost organic compounds, termed volatiles (VT), and to collect and quantify a liquid hydrocarbon fraction (HC) separated from the biocrude (BC). The highest value of the HC yield, 25% w/w, was obtained in supercritical conditions. The C content …
Extreme thermophilic (70°C), VFA-fed UASB reactor: performance, temperature response, load potential and comparison with 35 and 55°C UASB reactors
1999
Abstract The paper evaluates the reactor performance, load potential and temperature response of a 70°C, VFAs-fed UASB reactor, seeded with mesophilic granular sludge. Batch experiments were, in addition, conducted to assess the effect of temperature on the achievable residual VFAs in the 70°C effluent. The performance of similarly-fed and seeded 35 and 55°C UASB reactors was also tested. At a short HRT (2–3 h) and a moderate VLR of 12–20 g COD l−1 d−1, the 70°C UASB achieved 66–74% VFAs removal (acetate and butyrate 84–90%, propionate
The effect of partial exfoliation of multilayer silicate filler particles on the elastic properties of a polymer composite
2018
Abstract A method for stepwise calculation the elastic constants of a three-phase composite, including the polymer matrix, the fully exfoliated silicate nanolayers and the platelike silicate particles in the form of multilayer intercalated stacks is considered. A theoretical analysis is carried out by using the Mori–Tanaka theory of an equivalent medium. The influence of degree of exfoliation (the ratio of exfoliated filler content to the total filler content) on the reinforcing efficiency is studied and discussed. A comparative analysis of experimental data of elastic modulus for a rigid polyurethane/montmorillonite composite and prediction results is carried out. It is shown, that with gr…
Progress in polymeric material for hydrogen storage application in middle conditions
2014
Hydrogen sorption using a manganese oxide anchored to PEEK (Poly(ether-ether-keton)) matrix was studied. The functionalization process and the obtained results on hydrogen storage capability of the synthesized polymer are reported. The functionalised polymer was characterised by Scanning Electron Microscopy, Transmission Electron Microscopy, X-ray diffraction and Volumetric Hydrogen sorption measurements. Different synthesis conditions in terms of precursor concentration and reaction time were used and the direct correlation between manganese oxide percentage and hydrogen storage capability was confirmed. In this way different powders were synthesised. It is assumed that the sample with 78 …
Rubberised bitumen manufacturing assisted by rheological measurements
2015
This paper investigates the effect of processing temperature and time on the rheological proper- ties of recycled tyre rubber-modified bitumens (RTR-MBs) produced using two different base binders and an ambient ground crumb rubber modifier (CRM). The production of the RTR- MBs was accomplished by means of a standard Brookfield rotational viscometer together with a modified impeller, dual helical impeller, to allow mixing as well as real-time viscosity measurements of the produced RTR-MBs. The rheological properties of the final RTR-MBs were determined by means of standard dynamic mechanical analysis oscillatory and multiple stress creep recovery testing using a dynamic shear rheometer. The …
Bio-based rigid high-density polyurethane foams as a structural thermal break material
2020
Abstract Sustainable development of building industry implies increasing usage of green materials. With this aim and for the intended application as a structural thermal break material, rigid high-density polyurethane foams have been manufactured using polyols derived from renewable resources - tall oil fatty acids. Thermal conductivity, compressive strength and stiffness of the foams of density ranging from ca. 100 to 680 kg/m3 have been determined. Comparison of the bio-based foams with reference foams derived from petrochemical resources demonstrated similar performance characteristics thus suggesting that bio-based foams can also serve as structural thermal break materials. Analytical m…
Fractional viscoelastic characterization of laminated glass beams under time-varying loading
2021
Abstract Laminated glass is a composite made of elastic glass layers sandwiching thin viscoelastic polymeric interlayers. There are several types of polymers, traditionally modelled as linear viscoelastic materials using a Prony’s series of units in the Maxwell-Wiechert arrangement. We show that one single element with fractional viscoelastic properties (two constitutive parameters that depend on environmental temperature), is sufficient to provide an accurate description of the polymer response under arbitrary time-varying actions. This is a great advantage over the classical viscoelastic characterization, which requires at least 10–15 terms in the Prony’s series, each one characterized by…
Flexural Behavior of Glass Beams with T and I Shape Cross Sections
2017
AbstractGlass beams having T or I cross sections can be obtained as glass panels or laminated glass (LG) panels assembled with polymer adhesives of different types, such as semirigid (silicones, mo...