Kamel, S.H., R.F. Al-Jassani and H.A. Al-Shammari. 2022. Effects of Pseudomonas fluorescens, Bacillus thuringiensis tenebrionis Isolates and Biologically Synthesized Silver Nanoparticles on Cellulase Enzyme Activity in Workers' Digestive System of the Termite Microcerotermes diversus Silv. Arab Journal of Plant Protection, 40(4): 315-324. https://doi.org/10.22268/AJPP-40.4.315324 The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of different bacterial isolates of P. fluorescens and B. t. tenebrionis and silver nanoparticles on the activity of the cellulase enzyme in termites' middle digestive system and its role in glucose release by treating cellulose media with bacterial strains and nanoparticles. Ultraviolet spectroscopy results revealed that silver nanoparticles synthesized by P. fluorescens isolated from termites, commercial P. fluorescens, and local B.t. tenrbrionis had the highest absorption at 385, 324, and 324 nm wave length, respectively. Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) revealed that ketons, amines, alkanes, and alcohols were among the groups that contributed to silver ions reduction, capping and stabilizing nanoparticles. The particle diameters were measured using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) and found to be on average 32.43, 63.19, and 57.62 nm. The highest concentration of liberated glucose was recorded after 24 hours, which ranged between 0.453 and 1.285 mg/ml when treated with silver nanoparticles prepared from a commercial isolate of P. fluorescens bacteria and when treated with a bacterial isolate P. fluorescens, respectively. Only when treated with synthesized silver nanoparticles and when treated with commercial P. fluorescens isolates did the lowest concentrations of liberated sugar reached between 0.037 and 0.730 mg/ml after 72 hours, respectively. The high quantity of liberated sugar in the control treatment was constant, reaching 1.70 and 2.33 mg/ml after 24 and 72 hours, respectively. In addition to the variation in cellulase enzyme inhibition rates in termite digestive systems due to the effect of different treatments, it was discovered that the local isolate of B. t. tenrbrionis was better than the rest of the isolates in affecting the enzyme, causing inhibition rates of 71.42%. Furthermore, silver nanoparticles synthesized from a commercial isolate of P. fluorescens outperformed other treatments in inhibiting enzyme activity, with an inhibition rate of 78.57% . Keywords: Pseudomonas fluorescens, Bacillus thuringiensis tenebrionis, silver nanoparticles, Microcerotermes diversus
One of the most severe problems with flexible asphalt pavements is permanent deformation in the form of rutting. Accordingly, the practice of adding fiber elements to asphalt mix to improve performance under dynamic loading has grown significantly in order to prevent rutting distress and ensure a safe and long-lasting road surface. This paper explores the effects of a combination of ceramic fiber (CF), a low-cost, easily available mineral fiber, and thermal insulator fiber reinforced to enhance the Marshall properties and increase the rutting resistance of asphalt mixes at high temperatures. Asphalt mixtures with 0%, 0.75%, 1.5%, and 2.25% CF content were prepared, and Marshall stability and wheel tracking tests were employed to stu
... Show MoreThe removal of COD from wastewater generated by petroleum refinery has been investigated by adopting electrocoagulation (EC) combined with adsorption using activated carbon (AC) derived from avocado seeds. The process variables influencing COD removal were studied: current density (2–10 mA/cm2), pH (4–9), and AC dosage (0.2–1 g/L). Response surface methodology (RSM) based on Box–Behnken design (BBD) was used to construct a mathematical model of the EC/AC process. Results showed that current density has the major effect on the COD removal with a percent of contribution 32.78% followed by pH while AC dosage has not a remarkable effect due to the good characteristics of AC derived from avocado seeds. Increasing current density gives be
... Show MoreThis work deals with the preparation of a zeolite/polymer flat sheet membrane with hierarchical porosity and ion-exchange properties. The performance of the prepared membrane was examined by the removal of chromium ions from simulated wastewater. A NaY zeolite (crystal size of 745.8 nm) was prepared by conventional hydrothermal treatment and fabricated with polyethersulfone (15% PES) in dimethylformamide (DMF) to obtain an ion-exchange ultrafiltration membrane. The permeate flux was enhanced by increasing the zeolite content within the membrane texture indicating increasing the hydrophilicity of the prepared membranes and constructing a hierarchically porous system. A membrane contain
The presence of construction wastes such as clay bricks, glass, wood, plastic, and others in large quantities causes serious environmental problems in the world. Where these wastes can be used to preserve the natural resources used in construction and reduce the impact of this problem on the environment, it also works to reduce the problem of high loads of concrete blocks. Clay bricks aggregate (AB) can be recycled as coarse aggregate and replaced with volumetric proportions of coarse aggregate by ( 5% and 10%), as well as the use of clay brick powder (PB) by replacing its weight of cement (5% and 10%) and reduced in the manufacture of concrete blocks (blocks). Four mixtures will be prepared and tested to learn how to re
... Show MoreBiosorption of cadmium ions from simulated wastewater using rice husk was studied with initial concentration of 25 mg/l. Equilibrium isotherm was studied using Langmuir, Freundlich, BET and Timken models. The results show that the Freundlich isotherm is the best fit model to describe this process with high determination coefficient equals to 0.983. There was a good compliance between the experimental and theoretical results. Highest removal efficiency 97% was obtained at 2.5g of adsorbent, pH 6 and contact time 100 min.
The presence of dyes in wastewater has become a major issue all over the world. The discharge of dyes in the environment is concerned for both toxicological and esthetical reasons. In this study, the removal of dyes from aqueous solution by electrocoagulation using aluminum electrodes as cathode and anode were investigated with the electrocoagulation cell of 1litter. The study included: the impact of various operating parameters on the dyes removal efficiency like pH, NaCl concentration, distance between electrodes, voltage, initial dyes concentration and type of electrodes. The dye (congo red) concentrations were (50, 100, 150, and 200 ppm), stirring speed was 120 rpm at room temperature. pH used was maintained constant
... Show MoreMany studies have been published to address the growing issues in wireless communication systems. Space-Time Block Coding (STBC) is an effective and practical MIMO-OFDM application that can address such issues. It is a powerful tool for increasing wireless performance by coding data symbols and transmitting diversity using several antennas. The most significant challenge is to recover the transmitted signal through a time-varying multipath fading channel and obtain a precise channel estimation to recover the transmitted information symbols. This work considers different pilot patterns for channel estimation and equalization in MIMO-OFDM systems. The pilot patterns fall under two general types: comb and block types, with
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