Effects of a Fuel-Resistant Modifier on the High-Temperature Characteristics of Asphalt Binders

To effectively evaluate the high-temperature characteristics of a fuel-resistant modified asphalt (FRMA), five different types of asphalt were selected, and a fuel-resistant modifier (FRM) was added to the asphalt to prepare five kinds of FRMA, and the fuel resistance of the 10 above-mentioned asphalt samples was then evaluated. Moreover, the high-temperature performance of different asphalt samples was explored, the influences of the FRM on the penetration, softening point, and rheological indexes of the different asphalt samples were analyzed. A Pearson correlation analysis was conducted on the different high-temperature indexes. Based on the results, compared with the original asphalt, the fuel resistance of the FRMA was improved by about 22% on average; the FRM was able to reduce the penetration, phase angle, and non-recoverable creep compliance of the asphalt; increase the softening point, complex modulus, rutting factors, and creep recovery; and effectively improve the high-temperature performance of the asphalt. However, as the temperature increased, the effect of the FRM on the improvement of the high-temperature performance of the asphalt declined. In addition, compared with the base asphalt, the FRM exerted a more significant effect on the rheological properties of the modified asphalt. According to the Pearson correlation analysis of the high-temperature indexes, apart from penetration, the softening point and rheological indexes featured excellent accuracy and applicability in the evaluation of the high-temperature performance of FRMAs.

REHABILITATION OF THE PAVEMENT OF FOUR ROUNDABOUTS BY MEANS OF THIN CONCRETE REINFORCEMENT ("THIN WHITETOPPING")

This article describes the design and construction of the structural rehabilitation of the bituminous pavement of four roundabouts by means of the arrangement of a 12 cm layer of vibrated concrete with fibres with very close joints (technique known as "thin whitetopping"). The roundabouts, which belong to the N-II National Road as it passes through La Jonquera (Spain), are subject to high levels of heavy vehicle traffic (IMDp > 4,000 heavy vehicles/day). In the project phase, the causes of deterioration of the original road surface were studied, its remaining bearing capacity was characterised and the thickness of concrete to be used was calculated. In the most damaged areas, the bituminous mixture was completely replaced by a lower quality concrete which was adhered to the concrete of the reinforcement by means of metal connectors. In addition, a detailed design of the transitions between the rehabilitated and the existing pavement and the arrangement of the joints was also carried out. Throughout the document, the different tasks carried out for the design and construction of the adopted solution are described in detail and, finally, design and construction recommendations are provided based on the results obtained. Keywords: Concrete, concrete bonding, Concrete with fibres, Reinforcement of pavements with concrete, Fuel resistance, Whitetopping.

ADDITION OF FLY ASH TO THE FIBER COMPOSITE GLASS ON COMPOSITE FUEL RESISTANCE PROPERTIES

The process of making composites into several main stages, namely preparation of tools, cutting of specimens. Then the base (glass) is cleaned and coated with molding wax and PVA. Mix the resin with the addition of variations of fly ash 0%, 10%, 20% and 30%. Next, apply resin and glass fiber to the base (glass) for up to 3 layers then press it. After 12 hours remove the specimen and cut it to size

STUDY OF THE PROPERTIES OF ELASTOMERS BASED ON BUTADIENE NITRILE, ETHYLENE-PROPYLENE RUBBERS AND CHLOROSULPHATED POLYETHYLENE

The properties of elastomers based on a combination of acrylonitrile-butadiene (NBR), ethylene-propylene (EPDM) rubbers and chlorosulfinated polyethylene (CSM) have been studied for the first time, which have been vulcanized by sulfur-free effective systems. The best balance in terms of frost resistance, heat resistance and fuel resistance is demonstrated by rubbers whose formulations are generally dominated by polar CSM and NBR with lower EPDM content (10-20 mas.h). The results of six-month field tests in tropical climate conditions demonstrate high resistance of elastomers to microorganisms. The obtained results stipulate the prospects of application of the created rubbers for operation in different climatic zones.

“Squaring the Circle”—The Disregarded Institutional Theory and the Distorted Practice of Packaging Waste Recycling in Romania

The European Union (EU) remains one of the leading-edge jurisdictions on the planet in legislating and enforcing the circular economy, a token of its forthright environmental awareness. Still, given that the level of economic development across the EU member states is heterogenous, this concern, however generous it may be, looks too beyond “their” means and too ahead of “its” times. What the European policymakers seem to disregard is that top-down institutional constructions, as is the case with the EU’s overambitious environmental legislation, can end up in severe distortions. Imposing/importing an institutionalized arrangement without due preparation may fuel resistance to (even positive) change, as the biases it engenders translate into considerable costs and selective benefits. The present article attempts a novel approach within the literature, where the failure to achieve recycling targets is usually considered the fault of private businesses. Instead, our study explains suboptimal environmental results by the institutionalization of spiraling governmental interventions in markets, meant to make the arbitrarily set recycling/reuse targets artificially viable. Subject to EU rules, Romania’s packaging waste recycling market is a textbook case in revealing this outcome predicted by economic theory, as our statistical data suggest. The conclusion is that it is equally perilous to neglect the calibration of legislative targets according to institutional and economic development as it is to reject environmental claims based on their costs.

Vasyl Mysyk and Mykola Lukash: two interpretations of Robert Burns’s poetry

The paper examines the representation of Burns’s poetical oeuvre in Ukrainian translations by Mykola Lukash (1919–1988) and Vasyl Mysyk (1907–1983), who established the Ukrainian canon of Robert Burns. Their translations are included in school textbooks, radio broadcasts and set to music. These translations confirmed a paradox of co-existence of two equally successful, but quite different interpretations of Burns made through the prism of translators’ ideology, personality, poetic motivations and other constraints. Mysyk’s ambition was to show real Burns in all the variety of his works. He adopted a strategy of a literary studies scholar who paid scrupulous attention to textual detail, be it biographical, historical or figurative. All his translator’s decisions were subdued to his wish for utmost proximity to the original text. In a similar vein, the selection of texts for translation was guided by his desire to introduce Burns’s works into Ukrainian literary context in their integrity and variety, rather than by his personal taste. For Lukash, on the contrary, Burns was not related to a comprehensive translation project. He was one of his favorite poets, and these were Burns’s songs that appealed to Lukash most. Conceptually as well as stylistically Lukash’s translations of Burns are folklore-oriented and folklore inspired. In this way, the translator successfully reproduced the dominant features of Burns’s poetics by emphasizing its folk spirit. On the other hand, Ukrainian folklore poetics employed in Lukash’s translations proved to be a convenient tool to manipulate the text governed by translator’s ideology. Through the prism of folklore style Lukash managed to convey implied political messages to fuel resistance and defiance, which suggests a form of translator’s activism.

Why do psychiatrists doubt the value of early intervention? The power of illusion

Objective: Face validity and the best available evidence strongly support the value of early intervention (EI) for psychotic disorders, and increasingly for other mental illnesses. Yet its value continues to be intensely criticised by some academics and doubted by many psychiatrists. This disconnect is examined through the lens of the ‘clinician’s illusion’. Conclusions: A number of sources fuel resistance to EI; however, the cumulative exposure to persistent and disabling illness that dominates the day-to-day experience of psychiatrists may be a key influence. This experience forms the basis of the clinician’s illusion, a hidden bias health professionals develop as a natural consequence of their clinical experiences, which shapes belief and perception of prognosis, and breeds therapeutic nihilism. This bias has been reinforced by grossly under-resourced systems of mental health care, undermining morale and adding a sense of learned helplessness to our mindset.