Asphalt, this wonderful mixture that all of us deal with it every day. Perhaps the engineers in this domain as one of the solution have placed the modification of technical properties of asphalt on top of their activities for improvement of the features of this wonderful mixture. Modifying the technical properties of bitumen and asphalt has created many study opportunities all around the world. Along with it and in this article at first, with adding carbon nanotube with the amounts of 0.25, 0.50, 1 and 1.5 weight percent of base bitumen, the effect of this additive on mechanical properties of asphalt mixture was studied. In the continuation, the asphalt samples amplified with carbon nanotube for doing the Marshall Test were evaluated and tested. The results indicated that this additive causes to change in the Marshall test parameters such as increase of strength and reduction of flow. On the other hand, the special weight of asphalt mixture has faced with increase and the void space percent of aggregates faced with relative reduction. Also the void space percent of asphalt mixture and the percent of void space filled with bitumen were increased relatively. In the economic study of the effect of carbon nanotube on mixture, it was concluded that with gradual increase of carbon nanotube, the economical advantage of the project is reduced. Finally, with regard to the obtained results and analysis of the effect of this material on the bitumen and asphalt properties, it was concluded that this additive can be used in the regions with warm climate with heavy traffic and in the limited regions.

Self-sensing concrete (ISSC) refers to a structural material that can be monitored without the need for a sensor or remote control. By measuring the electrical resistance of the ISSC, stress, strain, cracks and damage can be monitored in situ. Compared to conventional structural materials that require additional sensors for monitoring or tracking, ISSC has the advantage of: high sensitivity, good mechanical properties, natural compatibility, durability, easy installation and maintenance. The ISSC can be used to monitor structural health, tracking traffic and border and military security. In this paper, we describe the ISSC research advances in terms of its composition, construction methods, sensory signal testing methods, sensory properties, and manufacturing mechanism and structural applications. future challenges in the development and application of ISSCs will also be discussed.

A significant portion of the world's energy consumption is spent on heating and cooling, which will increase the demand for energy efficiency improvements. One of the ways to improve energy consumption in buildings is the thermal design of various building components, including walls, ceilings and floors, in accordance with the requirements and principles set forth in the regulations. The main objective of this research is to provide a comprehensive comparison of all types of building insulations and familiarity with the design principles of their construction based on the requirements of section 19 of the National Building Regulations of Iran. In the present paper, after introducing various insulators, five criteria including density, thermal conductivity coefficient, fire resistance, resistance to sunlight and sound properties of insulators have been investigated and compared. In the end, a case study is conducted to get familiar with the thermal design process for a residential building in Tehran. The results show that a thickness of 5.5 cms for rock wool (regardless of the thermal resistance of other layers of the wall) will fullfill the thermal design requirements.