Investigating different pier shapes and debris Finteractions in scour patterns is vital for understanding the risks to bridge stability. This study investigates the impact of different shapes of pier and debris interactions on scour patterns using numerical simulations with flow-3D and controlled laboratory experiments. The model setup is rigorously calibrated against a physical flume experiment, incorporating a steady-state flow as the initial condition for sediment transport simulations. The Fractional Area/Volume Obstacle Representation (FAVOR) technique and the renormalized group (RNG) turbulence model enhance the simulation’s precision. The numerical results indicate that pier geometry is a critical factor influencing the scour depth. Among the tested shapes, square piers exhibit the most severe scour, with depths reaching 5.8 cm, while lenticular piers show the least scour, with a maximum depth of 2.5 cm. The study also highlights the role of horseshoe, wake, and shear layer vortices in determining scour locations, with varying impacts across different pier shapes. The Q-criterion study identified debris-induced vortex generation and intensification. The debris amount, thickness, and pier diameter (T/Y) significantly affect the scouring patterns. When dealing with high wedge (HW) debris, square piers have the largest scour depth at T/Y = 0.25, while lenticular piers exhibit a lower scour. When debris is present, the scour depth rises at T/Y = 0.5. Depending on the form of the debris, a significant fluctuation of up to 5 cm was reported. There are difficulties in precisely estimating the scour depth under complicated circumstances because of the disparity between numerical simulations and actual data, which varies from 6% for square piers with a debris relative thickness T/Y = 0.25 to 32% for cylindrical piers with T/Y = 0.5. The study demonstrates that while flow-3D simulations align reasonably well with the experimental data under a low debris impact, discrepancies increase with more complex debris interactions and higher submersion depths, particularly for cylindrical piers. The novelty of this work lies in its comprehensive approach to evaluating the effects of different pier shapes and debris interactions on scour patterns, offering new insights into the effectiveness of flow-3D simulations in predicting the scour patterns under varying conditions.

Bridge structures face a critical threat from localized scour-induced damage, prompting urgent attention to civil infrastructure resilience. Prior research has primarily focused on the influence of pier shapes on scour patterns. However, the exploration of the combined effects of various debris shapes, each possessing distinct properties, on predictive scour depth models around the non-cylindrical pier has hitherto remained less researched. This study explored the complex dynamics governing local scour around bridge piers, focusing on the influence of surface and near-surface debris. This research shed light on changes in scour depth by investigating factors like pier geometries, debris arrangements, and submersion depths. The experiments and analysis revealed the effects of various pier shapes—cylindrical, square, rectangular, oblong, oval, and lenticular—on scour patterns. Different geometries influenced primary scour zones and affected areas, with square piers causing the deepest scour and lenticular ones showing shallower instances. Scour depths typically peaked upstream across geometries, but ogival and lenticular shapes exhibited unique patterns. The research also introduced a formula that integrated debris attributes into predictive scour depth modeling, validated with favorable accuracy. Ultimately, this predictive model advances scour prediction, particularly in debris-laden flows, offering valuable insights for engineering and management practices in understanding real-world scour mechanisms and hydraulic dynamics.

In this article, polymer-modified concrete was studied to present the effect of using additives on its mechanical properties. This will be achieved by employing a high-performance super plasticizing admixture that significantly enhances polymer-modified concrete mechanical capabilities. The study indicates that the polymer styrene-butadiene rubber (used increases concrete mechanical properties by 10% by weight. When the dosage exceeds 10% by weight of cement, the compressive, tensile, and flexural strengths of polymer-modified concrete are diminished. With the addition of a superplasticizer with a ratio of 1.2%, regular polymer-modified concrete compressive strength has increased from 34.3 to 42.9 MPa for a 10% polymer/cement ratio. Additionally, this superplasticizer enhanced the Material's flexural and tensile strength.

Examining scouring around bridge piers is crucial for ensuring water-related infrastructure’s long-term safety and stability. Accurate forecasting models are essential for addressing scour, especially in complex water systems where traditional methods fall short. This study investigates the application of the HEC-RAS 2D sedimentation model, which has recently become available for detailed sediment analysis, to evaluate its effectiveness in predicting scoring around various pier shapes and under different water conditions. This study offers a comprehensive assessment of the model’s predictive capabilities by focusing on variables such as water velocity, shear stress, and riverbed changes. Particular attention was paid to the influence of factors like floating debris and different pier geometries on scour predictions. The results demonstrate that while the HEC-RAS 2D model generally provides accurate predictions for simpler pier shapes—achieving up to 85% precision—it shows varied performance for more complex designs and debris-influenced scenarios. Specifically, the model overpredicted scouring depths by approximately 20% for diamond-shaped piers and underpredicted by 15% for square piers in debris conditions. Elliptical piers, in contrast, experienced significantly less erosion, with scour depths up to 30% shallower compared to other shapes. This study highlights the novel application of the HEC-RAS 2D model in this context and underscores its strengths and limitations. Identified issues include difficulties in modeling water flow and debris-induced bottlenecks. This research points to the improved calibration of sediment movement parameters and the development of advanced computational techniques to enhance scour prediction accuracy in complex environments. This work contributes valuable insights for future research and practical applications in civil engineering, especially where traditional scour mitigation methods, such as apron coverings, are not feasible.

Side friction refers to combined variables indicating the degree of interaction between the activities and the traffic stream. The condition worsens when the transport demand and road-side activities increase, leading to inefficient traffic performance. This study has been focused on evaluating side friction impacts in terms of capacity and speed. Four links divided and undivided streets in Al-Najaf City, Iraq, were selected and on-street parking, pedestrian activities, entry-exit maneuvers, and temporary parking vehicles are considered as side friction elements. The results show about a 47% reduction in speed and about a 49% reduction in the capacity at a very high side friction level. Finally, a speed-predicting model has been developed for predicting the speed under side friction impacts.

This study aims to increase the mechanical properties of the composite material manufactured by the lamination process. In this study, the lamination process will be implemented in two ways, and mechanical properties are compared between the two methods. The first method covers the lamination process under the influence of vacuum pressure only, while in the second method lamination process is achieved by the influence of vacuum pressure and vibrate by shaker device. The results showed that the endurance stress of fatigue increased by 18.18% for the material manufactured by the lamination process under the influence of vibration, while the yield stress and ultimate stress values remained roughly constant for both methods.