This study presents a comprehensive methodology to improve monorail route selection in Kirkuk city, Iraq using a quantitative GIS-based multi-criteria decision analysis. The primary aim of this study is to develop and apply a quantitative, GIS-based multi-criteria decision analysis framework for optimizing and objectively selecting the most suitable monorail route in Kirkuk city, Iraq, by integrating spatial, topographic, accessibility, service coverage, and economic factors in order to support sustainable and cost-effective urban transport planning in a post-conflict context. The research area covers 460.89 km², including an extensive road network of 5,533.27 km and 3,193 points of interest (POI). Four different monorail routes were analysed and evaluated using OpenStreetMap data derived from an analytic hierarchy process, digital elevation models and site suitability analysis. The approach uses weighted graph construction, various shortest path methods, and a wide range of performance metrics, including cost-effectiveness, service coverage, topographic conditions, and accessibility. Route optimization includes terrain suitability (scores from 0.50 to 0.78), elevation profile (288–393m), gradient limitations (maximum score 0.20 to 0.32), and points of interest (POIs) within a service radius of 500 m to 1 km. Based on this, Results shows Route 1 is the ideal choice as it found to be the most economical route (4.15 km, US$214.01 million), had the highest suitability score (0.70), and required the shortest travel time (9.61 minutes). On the contrary, Route 0 had the widest service coverage (31.37 km² service area, 66.1 points of interest within 500 m).

Despite the depleting fossil fuel reserves and growing environmental concerns, the world’s energy consumption is still rising, resulting in the development of unconventional and alternative energy sources. A byproduct from the distillation of crude oil, residual fuel oil (RFO), also known as bunker fuel, finds extensive application in power generation and marine transportation. Because of its high viscosity, high Sulphur content and incomplete combustion, RFO has not gotten much attention in recent fuel research, despite its high energy content and widespread availability. This study examines RFO's physicochemical and thermal properties in contrast with standard fuels such as diesel, biodiesel and high-sulfur fuel oil. In determining RFO's suitability for combustion applications, a comprehensive laboratory investigation was performed, including viscosity, density, calorific value, cetane number, Sulphur content, and auto-ignition temperature tests. Thermal degradation patterns, combustion temperature ranges, and emission properties were also investigated. The results conclude that RFO needs to be pretreated before use, with options like heating or blending. The calorific value of RFO is found to be close to diesel, making it a potential substitute for an alternative fuel, a viable and cheaper option, for stationery and large-scale engines. There are still certain issues related to its use, such as ignition delays, particulate emissions and regulatory compliance. The study suggests that RFO has the potential to be used as fuel, when suitably modified, in areas where getting access to refined fuel is difficult. Future work on the study includes fuel upgrades, engine system modifications & long-term combustion and emission studies to improve its usability and acceptability.

This paper investigates the thermal buckling of laminated composite plates based on a refined plate theory that incorporates four variables, using hyperbolic and polynomial shear strain functions for the first time to analyze thermal buckling of a laminated plate with all edges simply supported. The proposed shear function incorporates the variation of transverse shear stress over the thickness of the plate in a parabolic form and achieves zero traction on the upper and bottom surfaces of the plate without implementing a shear correction factor. Equations of motion are derived according to the principle of virtual displacement. The analytical solution is carried out using Navier’s solution. The numerical results of the orthotropic properties of both cross-ply and angle-ply laminates are calculated by programming a MATLAB code. In the present study, the influence of changing various design parameters, such as aspect ratio (a/b), orthotropic ratio (E1/E2), thickness ratio (a/h), and thermal expansion coefficient ratio (α2/ α1), for symmetric and antisymmetric laminated composite plates is analyzed. The results are evaluated by the assumption of uniform temperature variation through the plate, which exhibits good agreement for both thick and thin plates compared with previous studies.

Kindergarten architecture plays an important role in shaping children’s perception and learning. However, many designs still fail to systematically translate educational theories into tangible spatial solutions. This gap highlights the research problem addressed in the present study as the absence of integrated architectural indicators that connect children’s perceptual development, learning styles and philosophical ideas with the design of kindergartens. The aim of the paper is to develop a consistent set of design indicators which could lead to the creation of a captivating learning environment by the architects as well as the educators. In the methodological approach, the study determines six types of learning styles: cognitive, social, sensorimotor, cooperative and play-based learning. It resorts to a literature-based synthesis of theories of perception and learning with focus on the preoperational stage, simultaneously incorporating the philosophical and pedagogical work of the theorists who first began to explore the concepts, namely, Froebel, Montessori, Decroly, McMillan and Dewey. All these theoretical considerations resulted in the development of a set of abstract architectural indicators that have the priority to provide the basis of their practical application to the kindergarten environment. Such indicators were applied to Šmartno Kindergarten to demonstrate how abstract concepts can be translated into architectural practices. The research concluded that subjecting the kindergarten design to the theories of perception and learning promotes the curiosity, creativity and the overall development of children, in addition to supplying the architects or the designers with pragmatic guidelines for early-childhood design.

In this study, the combined effect of fiber orientation and loading frequency on tension–tension fatigue behavior of woven Kevlar/epoxy laminates was examined. Specimens with fiber orientations of 0°, 23°, and 45° were fabricated via hand lay-up and tested according to ASTM D3039 and ASTM D3479 standards. Static tensile tests with ultimate tensile strengths (UTS) of 276.1 MPa (0°), 159.2 MPa (23°), and 185.81 MPa (45°) showed clear orientation dependence. Fatigue stresses were normalized using (σmax/UTS), Fatigue experiments were conducted at stress levels ranging from 55%to 90% of (UTS) and at two loading frequencies, 5 and 15 Hz. and the results were interpreted through normalized S–N curves, Basquin regression fits, ANCOVA, life reduction ratio (LRR), and SEM fractography. Increasing the loading frequency displayed reduced fatigue lives at all orientations. The 0° laminate experienced the most consistent frequency effect, with a mean LRR of 0.446 (95% CI: 0.381–0.511). In contrast, the 23° and 45° laminates showed smaller and more stress-dependent reductions, with mean LRR values of 0.186 (95% CI: 0.060–0.312) and 0.162 (95% CI: 0.041–0.284), respectively. ANCOVA results displayed no statistically significant frequency-induced slope differences (p > 0.05) for any orientation, indicating that the fatigue-life decay rate remained unchanged. However, intercept-level effects were practically large at 0° (partial η² = 0.313) and 23° (partial η² = 0.229), reflecting frequency-dependent reductions in fatigue strength. SEM observations also supported these observations, showing more extensive matrix cracking and fiber pull-out at higher frequency. Overall, woven Kevlar/epoxy laminates demonstrated strong anisotropic fatigue behavior, with fiber orientation serving as the dominant factor and frequency acting as a secondary yet influential parameter.

One of the biggest problems facing the construction sector throughout the globe is financial risks. This is especially true for building projects in Iraq. These hazards often result in project delays and budgetary constraints. The goal of this research is to find the reasons behind financial hazards. A questionnaire was used to discover and extract sub-factors. A probability and effect matrix was also used to provide a quantitative study of these parameters. We also utilized the relative relevance index to rank the hazards. The study's findings revealed that eight factors significantly influenced the project, categorized as high risk: inaccurate cost estimates, delayed client payment processes, clients' financial instability, material price fluctuations, change orders, corruption, strong political opposition, and operations in hazardous areas. This research will help those who work on building projects, such as owners, contractors, engineers, and decision-makers, figure out what causes financial hazards. It will also help them build a useful risk management strategy to lessen the impact of these risks on future construction projects. It also cuts down on time and money lost on projects and makes them better and more long-lasting.

The maximum directional distance function (MDDF) model has been utilized extensively in diverse fields. However, due to practical constraints such as geographical factors, infrastructure limitations, and network scale, the theoretically improved projection paths derived from this model are often infeasible in real‐world applications. To address this limitation, this study proposes an improved MDDF model that can generate more feasible improved projection paths for decision‐making units (DMUs). First, five widely adopted clustering methods are applied to group the DMUs based on their similarities, which effectively reduces the constraints during the improvement process. Second, the efficiency of the clustered groups is collectively evaluated, thus allowing for a preliminary efficiency ranking of the different groups. Then, starting with the least efficient group, an iterative evaluation is performed using the improved MDDF model—a process that combines the intracluster assessments and intercluster optimization strategies to derive the iteratively improved paths for the DMUs. Finally, a comparative analysis is conducted of the proposed iterative improvement model, the traditional MDDF model, and the MDDF model with shadow prices. The results indicate that, in terms of input utilization, the proposed model significantly improves DMU efficiency. The application of the proposed model to the efficiency evaluation of 32 Chinese airlines from 2011 to 2020 demonstrates the model′s ability to generate more practical, improved projection paths and provide better performance outcomes.

In the competitive shoe manufacturing industry, efficient production scheduling often struggles to balance minimizing makespan (MS) and reducing the number of cells, leading to increased complexity. This study introduces a biobjective optimization model to minimize the MS and the number of cells in a cellular manufacturing (CM) system. The model includes three phases: (1) a capacity phase calculates the required number of cells to meet the production demand within a suitable production rate; (2) a scheduling phase calculates the start and finish times for each product within a machine; (3) an optimization phase uses genetic algorithm (GA) for generating a set of optimal solutions considering the workforce distribution and product sequencing. The performance of the developed model was evaluated using a case study discussed in the literature to demonstrate its capabilities and highlight its superiority over similar models. These results showed a significant reduction of 0.4% in MS while maintaining the same number of cells compared to other models. A sensitivity analysis is conducted by varying the crossover and mutation probabilities. The findings indicate that the model achieves the most stable and consistent performance for paired crossover–mutation settings with crossover probabilities between 70% and 90% (corresponding to mutation probabilities between 30% and 10%), resulting in the lowest average MS and the most balanced cell utilization. The capabilities of the developed model provide production managers with reliable insights for identifying the production requirements of the shoe manufacturing company. The algorithm was also benchmarked on 12 published instances using 30 independent runs per instance to assess solution quality and stability.

This study was aimed at examining the effect of sustainable production management practices (SPMPs) on the environmental, social, and economic performances of clothing manufacturing companies in Ethiopia and their competitive advantages. The purposive sampling technique was employed to select clothing manufacturing companies located in Addis Ababa and Hawassa cities, Ethiopia. The sites were selected because of the availability of a relatively larger number of clothing manufacturing companies in industry parks. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data from 274 participants selected purposively. Furthermore, 28 top and middle‐level managers of clothing manufacturers were interviewed, and 18 clothing manufacturing companies were checked through checklists. Covariance‐based structural equation modeling was employed to test hypotheses. The findings indicated that SPMPs have a significant impact on the environmental performance and competitive advantages of the case industry. In addition, environmental performance had a significant impact on competitive advantages. However, SPMPs had an insignificant influence on economic and social performances, and economic and social performances also had an insignificant impact on competitive advantages. The findings provide insights for policymakers and managers of clothing manufacturing companies, indicating the environmental good practices and the social and economic intervention areas to improve the competitiveness of the clothing industry in Ethiopia.

The manufacturing industry increasingly relies on laser metal deposition (LMD) for gear repair and manufacturing. This paper studies the repair process of a gear tooth, starting with the design and milling of a groove that serves as the substrate to rebuild the tooth. The location of this groove is such that the interface between the substrate and the LMD‐manufactured tooth is not on the gear root, which is the region of highest bending stress accumulation. The paper addresses the generation of the parameter‐fitted toolpath sets for reconstructing the damaged tooth starting from the groove. The toolpath generated for building the tooth accounts for the required postmachining by reconstructing an enlarged version of the nominal tooth. This study also evaluates two toolpath strategies for filling the groove, with the second strategy adding tracks on both gear faces. This paper contributes to the research on gear repair by LMD by demonstrating the geometric feasibility for gear teeth reconstruction on a milled groove, considering stress accumulation and postmachining issues. Optical microscopy of cross‐sections of the manufactured samples shows high deposition quality and the absence of lack‐of‐fusion defects. The measured hardness in the reconstructed tooth is 213 HV on average, which is consistent with the literature for AISI 316L but 200 HV lower than the hardness reported in gear repair by LMD with other materials. Geometrically, the built tooth is larger than the nominal, as intended. The results also demonstrate that the second strategy for groove filling is eight times more effective for reducing the material underdeposition on the gear faces.