International Journal of Engineering Research in Africa Vol. 57

Abstract: This work investigated the dry sliding wear behaviour of spark plasma sintered (SPSed) Ti-Ni binary alloys produced at varying nickel content with alloy steel ball as the counterface material, at room temperature under varied applied normal loads. Finite element modeling was used to investigate the high-velocity impact response of the sintered alloys due to the dimensional constraint associated with SPSed samples. Microstructural analysis results revealed the presence of intermetallic phases of Ti-Ni with increasing nickel content. The best wear resistance ranging from 0.25 x 10^-3 mm³/Nm to 0.22 x 10^-3 mm³/Nm across all applied loads was obtained in Ti-6Ni alloy. This was attributed to the compaction of the protective triboxide and carbide layers on the surface of the sample. Oxidative and wear by adhesion were observed at low applied normal load while at high loads the prevalent wear mechanism was abrasive with reduced influence of oxidative and adhesive wear. Finite element analysis results also showed that Ti-6Ni alloy possessed the optimum combination of absorbed energy and ductility to reduce the possibility of brittle failure under impact loading. Keywords: Ti-Ni binary alloys; Spark plasma sintering; Dry sliding wear; High-velocity impact; Finite element analysis.

Abstract: The creep response and stress relaxation of X20 CrMoV12-1 steam piping under diverse operating conditions were simulated using finite element analysis (FEA) code, Abaqus alongside fe-safe/Turbolife software. In the study, steady-state creep and creep analysis characterized by 24 hours daily cycle consisting of a total of 6 hours peak, 4 hours transient and 14 hours off-peak period was considered. Modified hyperbolic sine creep model used in the analysis was implemented in Abaqus via a special creep user-subroutine to compute the stress relaxation and creep behaviour, while the useful service life and creep damage was estimated using fe-safe/Turbolife. The optimum creep strain, stress, damage, and worst life were found at the intrados of the piping, with the steady-state analysis having a higher useful creep life and slower creep damage accumulation. Furthermore, slower stress relaxation with faster damage accumulation was observed in the analysis involving cycles. Finally, a good agreement was obtained between the analytical calculated and simulated rates of the piping.

Abstract: This paper presents an effectively numerical approach based on quadrilateral isoperimetric element. Indeed, the Von-Karman’s large deflection theory and the first-order shear deformation theory (FSDT) are also used in the formulation of the element to formulate the geometrically nonlinearity analysis. The nonlinear finite element code has been developed by using Matlab. Therefore, the governing nonlinear equations obtained are solved using Newton–Raphson iterative technique. Finally, the results obtained are compared with those available in the literature and with those obtained by ABAQUS. It has been found that the present approach is accurate and efficient to predict the nonlinear behavior of laminated composite plates under bending loads. Moreover, the effects of the boundary conditions and the stacking sequence on the nonlinear deflection of the plate are treated.

Abstract: Free convective of nanofluid inside dispersive porous medium adjacent to a vertical plate under the effects of the zero mass nanoparticles flux condition and the thermal and solutal dispersions is studied. Buongiorno's model revised is used considering Darcy and non Darcy laminar flows, and isothermal or convective flux outer the wall. Dimensionless governing equations formulated using velocity, temperature, concentration and nanoparticle volume fraction have been solved by finite difference method that implements the 3-stage Lobatto collocation formula. The numerical data obtained with semi or full dispersions cases are compared to predictions made using the non dispersive porous medium. Taking into account the dispersions, the influence of the zero mass nanoparticles flux condition is examined to test the validity of the control active nanoparticle assumption. It is found mainly that the thermal transfers can reach more than 100% in connection with the case where of a semi-dispersion of the porous medium is applied. Realistic condition, i.e. zero mass flux should be addressed for the heat transfer rate rather than the mass transfer rate, discovered markedly different to the active condition. This signifies the importance of considering the zero nanoparticles mass flux and dispersions in the performance characterization of nanofluid flow in porous media.

Abstract: In this paper, we investigate the no-reacting swirling flow by using the numerical simulation based to the unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes approach. The numerical simulation was realized by using a computational fluid dynamics CFD code. The governing equations are solved by using the finite volume method with two classical models of turbulence K-epsilon and Shear Stress K-ω. The objective of this paper is therefore to evaluate the performance of the two models in predicting the recirculation zones in a swirled turbulent flow. The current models are validated by comparing the numerical results of the axial, radial and tangential velocities to the experimental data from literature.

Abstract: The present research work aims to evaluate the feasibility of reusing raw dredged sediments from the Dam of Fergoug (northwestern Algeria) as an alternative material for road construction. These sediments were added to volcanic tuff from the quarry located near the village of Sidi Ali Cherif, in the town of Sig (northwestern Algeria), with contents of 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25% by total weight of tuff. To achieve this goal, sediments were extracted from Fergoug dam and an experimental program was carried out to study the possibility of valorizing these sediments to be used in road construction. The soils were subjected to a series of physical and chemical tests. Their physical properties, including the Atterberg limits, specific gravity, grain size distribution, and organic content were determined according to standard methods. Then, their chemical properties, including pH, elementary chemical composition using the X-ray fluorescence spectrometry and mineralogical composition identified by X-ray diffraction, were obtained by means of standard methods. The first experimental results from the tested formulations demonstrated the feasibility of reusing the valorized dredged sediments in road construction. Afterwards, the modified Proctor and I_CBR tests were carried out, and the results obtained turned out to be quite satisfactory.

Abstract: Concrete containing recycled aggregates have different properties from concrete containing natural aggregates. This work investigates, firstly, the possibility of using recycled refractory bricks (RBA) as coarse aggregate for concrete, and secondly, finds the ideal replacement percentage of natural coarse aggregate (NCA) by RBA. For this, an experimental study was carried out to assess the physical and mechanical properties of concrete produced with the partial and total replacement of NCA by RBA. Two types of RBA from two different sources were used, RBA-1 obtained from the grinding of new refractory bricks and RBA-2 obtained from refractory bricks used in the furnace recovered from the cement plant. For each type of RBA, two concretes with water/cement (w/c) ratios of 0.59 and 0.38 were tested. These concretes were evaluated by density, water porosity, ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) and compressive strength, and compared to those obtained on conventional concretes. The results obtained show that concrete can be manufactured using RBA. Concrete containing 20% ​​RBA shows good quality compared with conventional concrete.

Abstract: The need for porous concrete has become increased due its ability to control surface water, increase the rate of recharging groundwater, and reduce pollution of the ecosystem. Granite is a coarse aggregate that is quite expensive when compared with gravel in Nigeria. Therefore, this research is aimed at optimizing blended granite and gravel in the production of porous concrete. Samples of blended granite-gravel porous concrete of varying mix proportions were produced using cement to aggregate mix ratio of 1:4. The samples were tested for their porosity, workability and compressive strengths. The data collected were analyzed with the aid of Design Expert 10.0. It was observed that the optimal combination for the granite-gravel blended porous concrete is 12% granite, 88% gravel, and a water-cement ratio of 0.66%. This combination gave a porous concrete with a compressive strength of 48.4 N/mm², percentage porosity of 6% and a compacting factor of 0.91. These values when compared to that of the control specimen revealed that the optimal mix gave a porous concrete with higher porosity, higher workability and a better compressive strength.

Abstract: This paper focuses on the characterization of the mechanical behaviour of concrete incorporating different percentages of brick waste aggregates (BWA). Compressive strength, splitting tensile strength and elastic modulus of this material were measured based on standard laboratory tests and its microstructure was characterized based on scanning electron microscope (SEM) observations. A decrease in these properties was observed with the increase of BWA substitution ratio. However, this decrease remains moderate up to a substitution percentage of 30% (about 12% for compressive strength and elastic modulus and 8% for splitting-tensile strength). In addition, an increase in the concrete porosity was observed with the increase of BWA substitution ratio, which can explain the decrease observed in the measured mechanical characteristics. SEM views on concrete incorporating 100% of BWA showed that the interfacial transition zone (ITZ) and the cement paste present a higher porosity when compared to those of the reference concrete made with natural aggregates.Finally, a micromechanical analytical homogenization model predicting the elastic modulus of brick waste concrete (BWC) according to its composition is proposed where BWC is modelled as a three-phase composite. A good agreement was found between analytical predictions and experimental results proving that BWC mechanical characteristics are mainly governed by BWA mechanical properties and their volume fraction within concrete.

Abstract: The effects of corrosion on the reinforced concrete structure due to carbonation affect its operation life. The research work considers a major critical component causing global warming as it studies the links between reinforced concrete deterioration mechanisms and anthropogenic carbon aerosol (black carbon soot) emissions in the atmosphere. Experimental tests were carried out to study the effect of carbonation caused by the emission of black carbon soot on mechanical properties and durability of reinforced concrete. Mass concrete and reinforced concrete prepared with Ordinary Portland cement (OPC) in water/cement ratios ranging from 0.45 to 0.65 were used to produce concrete samples. Compressive strength tests, tensile strength test, and carbonation depth tests were carried out on concrete to determine its level of deterioration following the carbonation effect. The carbonation chamber was prepared with carbon soot of different concentrations to simulate different levels of black carbon soot in the atmosphere. Results showed that concrete compressive strength was not totally affected by carbonation, but there was reduction in the tensile strength of reinforcing steel. The carbonation depth was observed to progress deeper into the concrete with a longer duration of exposure to carbonation agents in the chamber. The result of this study will serve as a guide during concrete installations.