Architecture, built environment, construction engineering and environmental geotechnics

Environmental Geotechnics include a wide range of applicative problems, characterized by geo-hydro-chemico-mechanical aspects. For effectively utilizing the principles of soil and rock mechanics accounting for environmental aspects, the engineering analysis of a large spectrum of problems relays on numerical, computer-oriented methods and on non-linear constitutive models. The mini-symposium MS09 will provide a forum for discussing the use of computational methods in conventional and nonconventional area of the Environmental Geotechnics, including for instance architecture and built environment rehabilitation. Here some applications are presented, concerning the use of the experimental investigation and of the finite element modelling for the analysis of some problems relevant to the "Architecture, Built environment and Construction engineering (ABC)" are

Range And Pasture Forage: What's It Worth?

The difference between IASS AUM rates and the results of this study amount to about $1.60 per AUM. Why should there be this magnitude of difference in private lease rates with both samples drawn and administered by IASS

Morphological investigation into starch bionanocomposites via synchrotron radiation and differential scanning calorimetric

We studied a hydrophilic, plasticized bionanocomposite system involving sorbitol plasticizer, amylose biopolymer, and montmorillonite (MMT) for the presence of competitive interactions among them at different moisture content. Synchrotron analysis via small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and thermal analysis using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) were performed to understand crystalline growth and the distribution of crystalline domains within the samples. The SAXS diffraction patterns showed reduced interhelix spacing in the amylose network indicating strong amylose-sorbitol interactions. Depending on the sorbitol and MMT concentration, these interactions also affected the free moisture content and crystalline domains. Domains of around 95 Å and 312 Å were found in the low-moisture-content samples as compared to a single domain of 95 Å in the high-moisture-content samples. DSC measurements confirmed that the MMT increased the onset and the melting temperature of nanocomposites. Moreover, the results showed that the ternary interactions among sorbitol-amylose-MMT supported the crystalline heterogeneity through secondary nucleation