(Cu1-x,Agx)2ZnSnSe4 alloys have been fabricated with different Ag content(x=0, 0.1, and 0.2) successfully from their elements. Thin films of these alloys have been deposited on coring glass substrate at room temperature by thermal evaporation technique under vacuum of 10-5Torr with thickness of 800nm and deposition rate of 0.53 nm/sec. Later, films have been annealed in vacuum at (373, and 473)K, for one hour. The crystal structure of fabricated alloys and as deposited thin films had been examined by XRD analysis, which confirms the formation of tetragonal phase in [112] direction, and no secondary phases are founded. The shifting of main polycrystalline peak (112) to lower Bragg’s angle as compared to Cu2ZnSnSe4 angle refers to incorporation of Ag in the lattice. Annealing films adopt the similar structure, but peaks become sharper and more intensity, and crystallizing increase with increasing annealing temperature. AFM images confirms that all thin CAZTSe films are polycrystalline in nature and demonstrated that the size of grains increases with increasing Ag content and annealing temperature. (Received October 21, 2019; Accepted March 6, 2020) Keywords: Cu2ZnSnSe4 films, Structural properties, Morphological properties, Ag content, Heat treatment
Diabetes mellitus type 2 (T2DM) is a chronic and progressive condition, which affects people all around the world. The risk of complications increases with age if the disease is not managed properly. Diabetic neuropathy is caused by excessive blood glucose and lipid levels, resulting in nerve damage. Apelin is a peptide hormone that is found in different human organs, including the central nervous system and adipose tissue. The aim of this study is to estimate Apelin levels in diabetes type 2 and Diabetic peripheral Neuropathy (DPN) Iraqi patients and show the extent of peripheral nerve damage. The current study included 120 participants: 40 patients with Diabetes Mellitus, 40 patients with Diabetic peripheral Neuropathy, and 40 healthy
... Show MoreA simple and rapid spectrophotometric method for the determination of sulphite SO3-2 is described. The method is based on the rapid reduction of known amount of chromate CrO4-2 in the presence of sulphite in acidic medium of 2N H2SO4. The amount of excess of chromate was measured after it reactions with 1,5-diphenylcarbazide which finally gives a pink-violet, water soluble and stable complex, which exhibit a maximum absorption at 542 nm. Beer's law was obeyed in the concentration range from 0.004-6.0 µg of sulphite in a final volume of 25 ml with a molar absorbtivity of 4.64×104 l.mol-1.cm-1, Sandal's sensitivity index of 0.001724 ?g .cm-2 and relative standard deviation of ±0.55 - ±0.83 depending on the concentration level. The present
... Show MoreSensing insole systems are a promising technology for various applications in healthcare and sports. They can provide valuable information about the foot pressure distribution and gait patterns of different individuals. However, designing and implementing such systems poses several challenges, such as sensor selection, calibration, data processing, and interpretation. This paper proposes a sensing insole system that uses force-sensitive resistors (FSRs) to measure the pressure exerted by the foot on different regions of the insole. This system classifies four types of foot deformities: normal, flat, over-pronation, and excessive supination. The classification stage uses the differential values of pressure points as input for a feedforwar
... Show MoreRemoval of heavy metal ions such as, cadmium ion (Cd 2+) and lead ion (Pb 2+) from aqueous solution onto Eichhornia (water hyacinth) activated carbon (EAC) by physiochemical activation with potassium hydroxide (KOH) and carbon dioxide (CO2) as the activating agents were investigated. The Eichhornia activated carbon was characterized by Brunauer Emmett Teller (BET), Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) techniques. Whereas, the effect of adsorbent dosage, contact time of pH, and metal ion concentration on the adsorption process have been investigated using the batch process t
The Cu(II) was found using a quick and uncomplicated procedure that involved reacting it with a freshly synthesized ligand to create an orange complex that had an absorbance peak of 481.5 nm in an acidic solution. The best conditions for the formation of the complex were studied from the concentration of the ligand, medium, the eff ect of the addition sequence, the eff ect of temperature, and the time of complex formation. The results obtained are scatter plot extending from 0.1–9 ppm and a linear range from 0.1–7 ppm. Relative standard deviation (RSD%) for n = 8 is less than 0.5, recovery % (R%) within acceptable values, correlation coeffi cient (r) equal 0.9986, coeffi cient of determination (r2) equal to 0.9973, and percentage capita
... Show MoreTo accommodate utilities in buildings, different sizes of openings are provided in the web of reinforced concrete deep beams, which cause reductions in the beam strength and stiffness. This paper aims to investigate experimentally and numerically the effectiveness of using carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) strips, as a strengthening technique, to externally strengthen reinforced concrete continuous deep beams (RCCDBs) with large openings. The experimental work included testing three RCCDBs under five-point bending. A reference specimen was prepared without openings to explore the reductions in strength and stiffness after providing large openings. Openings were created symmetrically at the center of spans of the other specimens
... Show MoreEndophytic fungi live inside plants or any part of them without creating any visible pathogenic signs. Endophytic fungi are found within medicinal plants and have shown strong biologic activity, such as anticancer and antioxidant activities, as well as producing extracellular enzymes. In this study, different fungal strains were isolated from the leaves of the medicinal plant Ziziphus spina, including Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus fumigatus, Aspergillus niger, Cladosporium sp., Rhizopus sp., and Mucor sp. Extracellular enzymes have been quantified using agar plate-based methods in which fungi were grown in specified growth media to detect the enzymes produced. The results showed that A. niger has the highest ability to produce amy
... Show MoreThis research presents the possibility of using banana peel (arising from agricultural production waste) as biosorbent for removal of copper from simulated aqueous solution. Batch sorption experiments were performed as a function of pH, sorbent dose, and contact time. The optimal pH value of Copper (II) removal by banana peel was 6. The amount of sorbed metal ions was calculated as 52.632 mg/g. Sorption kinetic data were tested using pseudo-first order, and pseudo-second order models. Kinetic studies showed that the sorption followed a pseudo second order reaction due to the high correlation coefficient and the agreement between the experimental and calculated values of qe. Thermodynamic parameters such as enthalpy change (ΔH
... Show MoreStatic Synchronous Series Compensator (SSSC) is a well known device for effectively regulating the active power flow in a power system. In this paper, the SSSC linearized power flow equations are incorporated into Newton-Raphson algorithm in a MATLAB written program to investigate the control of active poweer flow and the transient stability of a five bus and a thirty bus IEEE test systems, during abnormal conduction (three phase fault near buses). A comparison of the results obtained for the base case without SSSC and with it to investigate the effectiveness of the device on both of the active power flow and the transient stability.