Urban open spaces have an essential role in business park design. This is because urban spaces not only affect the indoor thermal comfort of the surrounding buildings but also influence the outdoor activities of the users. This paper investigates urban open space design and its influence on outdoor thermal comfort. In this paper, a bioclimatic design tool is presented that has been developed for urban open space design in hot arid climates. This bioclimatic tool can provide guidance to the design of urban space attributes such as urban patterns, geometric parameters, paving materials, and vegetation percentage. The objective of this paper is to enhance the users' sense of outdoor thermal comfort. This will be achieved by applying the bioclimatic design tool that accounts for the effects of space parameters on the microclimate elements. The proposed bioclimatic design tool is evaluated based on two existing business parks in Egypt. The simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed tool.

A brownfield site refers to an abandoned and contaminated industrial land that has different levels of dangerous wastes and pollutants. That is why these sites may have many negative impacts on communities and human health, and their development presents a potential for local communities to upgrade. This paper develops a theoretical model for brownfield’s sustainable urban development. It uses both theoretical findings and already developed examples to extract this theoretical framework. It highlights the success of redevelopment interventions as a result of balanced achievements on all of the sustainability three main axes (environmental, economical, and social). The developed theoretical model is used to analyze the International Park project, a new urban development in Alexandria, Egypt that replaced a brownfield, which was a garbage dump. The analytical study findings assure the close linkage between the three aspects of sustainable development and the necessity of their fulfillment as a guarantee to the success of brownfields redevelopment process. It shows that the absence of one of these aspects during the development process could break the sustainability circle.

Today there is a high need to put a spot light on industrialized building systems, IBS for an effective use in Syria’s priority urban reconstruction phase. The traditional construction methods are project-oriented, and this causes fragmentation and in addition to the low productivity. Therefore, the development of the Syrian construction sector towards adopting IBS process will make changes in the structure and management of the construction process in the reconstruction phase; and this the main aim of the paper, which presented a review for literatures related to industrialized building systems, features of industrial processes, as well as a description of the Syrian construction sector and its features prior the war and now, review some related studies, also the main challenges, strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats towards adopting IBS in Syria. In addition to that, the study presented a proposed roadmap in towards successful implementation of IBS in the phase of Syria's reconstruction. Finally, the conclusion focused on the development of this research, and presented recommendations for future research work. The research findings will benefit both of the stakeholders in Syrian government and private sectors in fulfilling the requirements for heading towards IBS in the reconstruction phase.

Complementary to studies of the cross-sectional behaviour of semi-elliptical hollow columns, investigations are conducted to study their behaviour about their minor axis. Section local and global non-dimensional slenderness values along with aspect ratio are carefully studied to cover a wide range. Two modes of failure of semi-elliptical hollow columns are observed: global and local. Increasing local slenderness can lead to a decrease in the section capacity by up to 100%. The increase in the aspect ratio decreases results by up to 95% in global non-dimensional slenderness of >1.23. Available equations in the Eurocode and Egyptian code for doubly symmetric compression members are used in the comparison with the analytical solution because there are no design equations specially for these columns. Good agreement is observed in the Eurocode for aspect ratios of 1 and 1.5. Egyptian code exhibits a <12% variation in results for these columns with global non-dimensional slenderness of <1.23, but it is found to be conservative for other columns. When the aspect ratio is 2, both codes become inaccurate, especially with compact sections where global non-dimensional slenderness is <1.23. Accordingly, design equations are prepared based on the analytical results where good agreement of results is obtained.

Passive design strategies always aimed at providing thermal comfort through total blocking of the sun during summer and permitting warm sun in the winter. On the other hand total blocking of the sun proved to be a health and mind liability for people living in the cities who spend a big amount of their time inside buildings. In modern urban fabric we need to be able to live with the sun, allow it under control in our living spaces to promote good health and healthy indoor environment. This has to be achieved without allowing the penetration of sunrays to be a thermal liability in the interior, especially in hot-aired climates like Cairo. This research aims at providing guidelines and a tool for architects to design East, West and South facades in Cairo (latitude 30 N) that allows sun-in in favorable morning or afternoon hours while keeping the sun out in high thermal load hours during the day. The concept introduced in this research is useful in the early design phases for the architects to be able to design beneficial sun-in, adequate day lighting at a manageable level of thermal loads.

Cigarette butts are considered a hazardous waste that can be potentially used as a source of energy. In this work, butts were ground to pass 60 mesh screen, dried and subjected to pyrolysis in a thermal analysis apparatus, under nitrogen flow, at four heating rates: 5, 10, 15 and 20 K.min-1. The TG curves showed a substantial loss in mass followed by formation of biochar. The kinetics of char formation were investigated using four methods, namely the Kissinger and FWO methods, as non – model methods, a multiple regression technique that allowed determining the apparent order of reaction, and the Coats - Redfern model method which disclosed the reaction mechanism as being diffusion controlled. The values of activation energies obtained by the different methods were comparable ranging from about 164 to 196 kJ.mol-1. Determination of the calorific values of butts and the produced char yielded values of 17200 kJ.kg-1 and 27450 kJ.kg-1 respectively.

Most publications that are concerned with the crack detection via analyzing Eigen frequencies or deformation modes of wind turbine blades (WTBs) are done in stationary condition. This paper however proposes a novel approach that could study the effect of WTB cracks during rotation at any speed without the need to stop the turbine by using multibody analysis. This approach will reduce the cost of its maintenance substantially, since it will avoid the cost of downtime for wind turbine during crack detection. This approach considers both the increase in stiffness due to rotation (known as centrifugal stiffening effect), and stiffness reduction due to cracks presence in the blade. This study tests the capability of the proposed approach in detection of location and size of cracks in WTB. A finite element model was built for WTB by using MSC/ADAMS. A parametric study is then applied to the WTB model to study the effect of crack size and crack location on the modal parameters of the WTB. Finally, the combined effect of cracks presence and rotational speed on the modal parameters of the WTB during rotation are also investigated.

In view of the high development threshold, poor applicability, and low development efficiency of the current manufacturing workshop virtual monitoring system, an industrial Internet of Things platform is proposed as a data application bus, which consists of the physical layer, twin layer, platform layer, application layer, and network layer. Firstly, the key technologies of workshop 3D virtual monitoring are described, including virtual scene construction, data acquisition and real-time data mapping based on industrial Internet of Things platform. Secondly, in view of the difficulty of data acquisition in the workshop, a twin data acquisition method based on industrial Internet of Things platform is proposed. Finally, taking the seal production workshop as the application object, the 3D virtual monitoring system of the seal production workshop is designed and developed. The results show that the workshop 3D virtual monitoring system has good real-time performance and realizes multi-level and visual monitoring. It has a certain reference value for the development of workshop 3D virtual monitoring system.

Heritage areas around the world represent the diversity and the uniqueness of the world's historical and cultural assets. Globalization led to the distortion of urban identity and homogeneity, so, conserving heritage areas for the sake of the current and the future generations, has been among the highest challenges of this century, especially for developing countries. Despite implementation of urban conservation projects, it became difficult to control the urban changes throughout the urban cycle of heritage areas. This paper aims to provide an innovative, practical, and proactive tool that can help urban designers and conservation professionals, in developing countries, to fulfill the aim of sustaining heritage areas. Based on a profound theoretical analysis, the paper proposed an innovated Urban Heritage Life Monitoring Tool, UHLMT that is scientifically based on the integration between the ‘Life Cycle Assessment Tool’ and the ‘Resilience Cycle Theory’. Furthermore, the paper conducted semi-structured interviews aiming to investigate the expected efficiency of the tool. The findings revealed that the UHLMT is expected to have the ability to positively contribute to the aim of monitoring and controlling the urban changes in heritage areas, thus helping in conserving the Egyptian urban heritage.

Informal areas in developing countries are increasingly expanding, especially in juxtaposed urban centers. This contiguity can affect city’s urban aspects by creating intermediate zones between formal and informal settlements with urban characteristics. These areas help to qualify socio-economic factors of their surroundings, reduce urban poverty, establish informal-formal linkages, and absorb internal migration movement. The research aims to study the intermediate urban areas in Egypt and their role in improving informal area inhabitants’ life to attempt to take small urban centers as a starting point for development shaped. The paper methodology is based on a set of research methods, using an extrapolative theoretical approach to identify the intermediate area definition as a focal point of its surrounding areas within specific participatory cooperation guidelines for the informal area developing processes. Furthermore, the research works on an analytical approach through analyzing a case study, to extract maximum benefits from juxtaposition areas, with the conclusion of significant points for intermediate urban areas development. The paper suggests guidelines for using sustainable intermediate urban area as an effective tool, which can also help minimize informal growth by focusing on multi-dimensional aspects such as socio-economic, administrative, and urban aspects.

As the current health crisis “Covid-19” disrupts how work is performed on construction projects and slowing construction and engineering projects down, causing delay and disruption, therefore builders and project owners are seeking new approaches to enable progress while protecting workers. This study investigates the opportunities of applying remote management on the construction projects by depending on a theoretical approach to discuss the impact of the pandemic on construction, illustrate different mitigation plans, and identify how to apply them. Also, one to one interviews with experts in the field were conducted to help in deciding the risks and benefits of different technologies, with the objective of choosing the most proper technology. Through an analytical approach, the paper analyzes the way technology can enable “social distancing” on worksites and evaluates the most appropriate technology to be implemented on the projects to overcome the challenges that might face construction during this crisis. The analysis shows that integrating innovative technologies, to propose a remote management framework could be the best solution to support remote monitoring of worksites, help organizations track progress remotely, enhance social distancing, support the progress on the sites, avoid project delays while maintain worker safety.

Making full use of the application of Aeolian sand in the steel-concrete composite structure can reduce project costs, save resources, protect the environment, and promote the harmonious development of man and nature. It is necessary to study the seismic behavior and resilience performance of square steel tube columns filled with Aeolian sand concrete. Therefore, in this study, a reversed cyclic load test on a four square steel tube column filled with Aeolian sand concrete was conducted to compare and analyze the failure form, hysteretic behavior, ductility and skeleton curve of each specimen. Then, a three-fold line recovery force model suitable for square steel tube columns filled with Aeolian sand concrete was proposed. Experimental results showed that the setting of the outer square steel tube can improve the brittleness and internal defects of internal concrete, optimize its mechanical properties, and effectively enhance the seismic behavior and post-earthquake recovery performance of specimens. In addition, the proposed theoretical model of the restoring force aligns well with the experimental results, which can be used for the elastic-plastic seismic response analysis of steel–concrete composite structures filled with Aeolian sand.

Kindergarten classes highlight links between thermal comfort and energy consumption. Children spend up to one third of their day in classrooms, which makes class design a key objective to provide an adequate indoor environment and to help improving children’s performance. Usage of mechanical systems for achieving required thermal conditions explore passive design solutions that can save energy as the excess usage of mechanical systems increases urban heat island phenomena. This paper aims to investigate the application of living skin as ecological solution integrated with kindergarten facades to regulate indoor air temperature and reduce consumed energy in space conditioning. Simulation is done by using Design Builder Software for a model (10×10 m2) in two different climatic zones (Alexandria and Aswan) through the following cases (normal case, applying environmental code, applying green roof then applying living wall on each façade) to determine the most effective living wall reducing both indoor air temperature and cooling loads, then investigating the most effective air gap between living wall and class façade. Finally, it was found there is a decrease in the total cooling loads after applying green roof and living walls on certain facades with specific air gaps for kindergarten classes in each climatic zone.

Groundwater quality is an important issue that must be precisely considered for the efficient environmental management of groundwater resources. The aim of this study is to assess the impact of surface water quality on the nearby shallow groundwater quality of one of the main aquifers in Egypt, the Nile Delta aquifer, in El-Qaluybia Governorate, Egypt. Water samples were collected from canals, drains and irrigation wells distributed within the study area and were analyzed for bacteriological, nutrient and trace elements contamination. A numerical model was developed to simulate study area flow system using Visual MODFLOW software and also to predict the long term effect of surface pollutants on groundwater quality. Groundwater quality assessment indicated contamination from domestic, industrial and agricultural activities. Results indicated that both surface and groundwater are affected by pollution from human and animal sources due to the absence of sewerage treatment systems and the disposal of domestic wastewater in the surrounding agricultural drains. Results also revealed the role of clay cap thickness in hindering contaminants transport. The model results showed that, if current surface water pollution persists, groundwater will not be suitable for future irrigation purposes in the study area and pretreatment will be essential prior its use.

Previous research measuring residential satisfaction assessed its three domains namely housing unit, neighborhood, and social environment. The assessment process used surveys with likert scale, measuring attributes selected by the researchers with no input from the residents. This research aimed to revisit these three domains by trying to extract their attributes from the residents’ point of view. An ethnographic approach was chosen to conduct the study with the residents of a Governmental low-income neighborhood in New Cairo, Egypt. Marginal participant observations over a ten months span along with semi-structured interviews were used for data collection. An extended understanding of existing attributes in previous body of research was reached and emerging attributes were defined and categorized. Also, some of the emerging attributes addressed psychological qualities which conform to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. The social environment appeared to be of great importance to the residents’ satisfaction. Residents expressed a dichotomy of sense of superiority and inferiority for living in a low-income neighborhood. Finally, the region, as a domain, was found to affect the residential environment on the neighborhood scale. The four domains and their attributes form the base by which future research can assess residential satisfaction in similar low-income neighborhoods.

There have been large quantities of used electromechanical and automobile components for remanufacturing in China. Accurate quality evaluation of used components is significant in determining an appropriate remanufacturing scheme. However, due to the different working status before recycling, the quality conditions of each used component are variable, which brings difficulty for remanufacturing scheme formulation. Therefore, we propose a quality grade classification method for remanufacturing components. In this method, the main quality attributes of used components are determined by using a reduction algorithm according to the rough set theory. Then, by the technique for order preference by similarity to an ideal solution method, the close degree between the actual and the ideal quality attribute values is calculated. Subsequently, the quality grade is defined by determining the close degree. Finally, the remanufacturing scheme of the used components is formulated by the quality grades. The case of used WD615 engine cylinder blocks is chosen as the research object to verify the proposed quality grade classification model. This study can help facilitate and guide the quality grading in remanufacturing practice and benefit remanufacturers in terms of sustainability and improvement.

The growing global interest in reducing energy consumption has increased public awareness of raising energy efficiency and using more benign forms of energy. Meanwhile, compact development became a solution for the expected increase in population in cities where 70 percent of the total world population are expected to live by 2050. Despite its great role to enhance sustainability, it can also impact wind behavior and heat removal negatively that will result in increasing energy consumption. This paper studies the relation between urban morphology and wind behavior in compact urban communities to enhance energy efficiency by increasing potentials of generating power from small-scale wind turbines integrated inside cities for more sustainable development. The research is divided into two parts; the first part presents the impact of compact development and wind energy on sustainable urban communities in addition to the role of Computational Fluid Dynamics, CFD in urban microclimate. The second part investigates the impact of wind behavior and speed on both straight and broken streets with different urban blocks heights using ANSYS Fluent software as an application of CFD programs. The paper came out with recommendations related to urban morphology using street form and buildings heights to enhance wind behavior and speed inside compact urban communities.

Egypt has suffered several problems for applying the traditional building materials on building envelopes, which results in degradation of building quality and failure to stimulate environmental factors. Accordingly, this paper presents innovative nanomaterials and their effect on envelopes in order to improve the performance, efficiency of building envelopes, and reduce the total energy consumption of new or existing buildings. Furthermore, nanomaterials are considered one of the most promising high-performance materials in construction applications as they possess great features against environmental factors compared to traditional paints. This research also demonstrates high performance in the adaptation and the response of buildings to external factors. The paper also discusses the concept of nanomaterial application on building envelopes in Egypt in order to enhance the knowledge about adaptive envelopes area and innovative technologies. Nanomaterials are capable of saving energy, reducing costs, extending the life span of buildings and reducing maintenance if new technologies are considered to be a crucial factor in the innovative architecture. The innovation in materials will be affected by nanotechnology, which will have an impact on architecture and its concept.

This paper investigates the effect of cross section corner fillet and retrofit on the cross section partially on the behavior of RC short columns with large scale models wrapped with External Carbon Fiber Polymers (CFRP) using finite element software (ANSYS). To study the effect of cross section corner radius, twelve model have first been conducted with various aspect ratios and four corners for each cross-section aspect ratio category with a constant number of carbon fiber layers. The behavior of each aspect ratio in both axial and transverse directions were investigated, and the results demonstrate that corner radius has an important effect on the efficiency of the retrofit cross section significantly. However, the rupture of CFRP appears in the region between the beginning of corner’s curvature and the middle of the curvature. Three finite element model have been built to study the effect of retrofit on the cross section partially around the four corners on the behavior of RC short columns wrapped with external CFRP. The results showed that due to the hoop tension all models failed mainly because of the cutting of the CFRP. Moreover, FRP rupture occurs at the region between the point of start curvature and center point on the curvature line.

This paper examines the financial benefits of rockslide prevention measures at Gebel Mokattam area, where the catastrophic rock failure accident that occurred in (06/09/2008) in Duwaiqa area, Cairo, Egypt. A frequency ratio index (FRI) was achieved based on the rockslide-related geological and climate factors (e.g. slope, aspect, curvature, and precipitation), which highlights the main rockslide conditioning features and the most hazardous and weak sectors in Mokattam area. FRI represents the ratio of the rockslide occurrence probabilities to the non-occurrence probabilities for a given class within a factor. Results showed that slope was the most hazardous factor controlling the rock failure in Mokattam. The rock-side slope was supported by using rock bolts to improve slope stability and consequently preventing the rockslide accidents. Findings will guide geotechnical engineers to choose optimal R.I which meets optimal and effective total costs. The most critical parameters; uniaxial compressive strength (UCS) and geological strength index (GSI) were applied and evaluated in this study, in addition to analyzing their different nine scenarios to reach the optimal total cost of the slope stability which meets the optimal reliability index.

Milk quality can be determined through its fat composition. It is important to know the fat composition in milk to ensure consumption of the right product for health reasons. Spectroscopy can be used to study the fat composition in milk. In this paper, light propagation in milk based on visible and near infrared (NIR) spectra is investigated. Samples comprise skimmed and full milk. Full milk shows higher absorbance at visible (VIS) spectra compared to skimmed milk. The analysis on NIR spectra also shows that full milk has higher absorbance peak than skimmed milk due to higher amount of fat globule. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis is done to study the chemical compounds such as C=C and O-H in milk samples. Through FTIR, the unsaturated fatty acid and water element in the samples were analyzed. Both milk samples show higher water element than carbon. Numerical modeling based on Monte Carlo method is also done to support experimental results. The modeling results show that full milk has a larger photon count compared to skimmed milk. This is attributed to the large fat globule in full milk that has higher absorbance over skimmed milk. Thus, characterization of milk fat based on spectroscopy techniques can monitor milk adulteration issues, which indirectly gives us guidance on healthy dairy intakes.