Soil water use and water storage vary by vegetative management practices, and these practices affect land productivity and hydrologic processes. This study investigated the effects of agroforestry buffers (AB), grass buffers (GB), and biofuel crops (BC), relative to row crops (RC) on soil water use for a claypan soil in northern Missouri, USA. The experiment located at the Greenley Memorial Research Center included RC, AB, GB, and BC established in 1991, 1997, 1997, and 2012, respectively. Soil water reflectometer sensors installed at 5‐, 10‐, 20‐, and 40‐cm depths monitored soil water from April to November in 2017 and 2018. Results showed significant differences in weekly volumetric water content (VWC) among treatments for all four soil depths in 2017 and 2018. Treatments of AB, GB, and BC had lower VWC (16, 37, and 18% on 9 June), (31, 35, and 20% on 18 August), and (43, 49, and 35% on 29 September) in 2017 and (46, 70, and 19% on 24 August) and (31, 34, and 17% on 5 October) in 2018, respectively, in the pre‐recharge periods for the 5‐cm depth compared with the RC. In the post‐recharge period, equal or occasionally slightly higher soil water occurred in the buffer and biofuel treatments compared to the RC. During recharge, larger increases in soil water due to better infiltration were observed in the perennial vegetative practices relative to RC. The results showed that these practices could significantly influence soil water use and storage compared to RC management, especially for eroded claypan landscapes.
Generally, direct measurement of soil compression index (Cc) is expensive and time-consuming. To save time and effort, indirect methods to obtain Cc may be an inexpensive option. Usually, the indirect methods are based on a correlation between some easier measuring descriptive variables such as liquid limit, soil density, and natural water content. This study used the ANFIS and regression methods to obtain Cc indirectly. To achieve the aim of this investigation, 177 undisturbed samples were collected from the cohesive soil in Sulaymaniyah Governorate in Iraq. Results of this study indicated that ANFIS models over-performed the Regression method in estimating Cc with R2 of 0.66 and 0.48 for both ANFIS and Regre
... Show MoreThe aim of the research was to prepare Pilates exercises using the barrel ladder apparatus and to identify the effect of Pilates exercises on agility, coordination, and motor sequences of third-year female students in artistic gymnastics. The researcher adopted the experimental method to achieve the objectives of the study and to verify its hypotheses, as it is suitable for the nature and problem of the research. In selecting the research population, the researcher carefully chose the sample using a purposive method, clarifying its elements and constituent units. The research population consisted of third-year female students at the College of Physical Education and Sports Sciences for Women / University of Baghdad, with a total of 20 stud
... Show MoreAnatomical changes in internal tissue of stem and leaf when seed and plant treated with acids to enhance growth and development in maize was studied during the spring seasons of 2019 and 2020. Randomized complete block design was used with three replications. Main plots received foliar nutrition treatments, including ascorbic acid (AA), citric acid (CA), and humic acid (HA) at concentrations of 100 mg L−1, alongside HA at 1 ml L−1, with distilled water as the control. Sub-plots underwent corresponding treatments for seed soaking. Results indicated variations in vascular bundle size among treatments, with foliar CA treatment showing superior results in both years, as well as seed soaking in CA and HA. Interaction effects were observed, n
... Show MoreTitanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2 NPs) are generally used in different types of applications such as the industry of plastics, paper industry, paints, toothpaste, cosmetics, sunscreens, and in various lifestyles, because of the vast range of applications and our daily exposure to these nanoparticles and a lack of information on animal and human health this study was designed to reveal dose and time-dependent effects of TiO2-NPs on the thyroid gland and kidney functions in male rats.
For this study 54, Sprague-Dawley albino adult male rats were classified into three main groups each of 18 rats treated for a particular duration (1,2, and 4) weeks respectively. Each group was subdivided i
... Show MoreThe significant shortage of usable water resources necessitated the creation of safe and non-polluting ways to sterilize water and rehabilitate it for use. The aim of the present study was to examine the ability of using a gliding arc discharge to inactivate bacteria in water. Three types of Bacteria satisfactory were used to pollute water which are Escherichia coli (Gram-negative), Staphylococcus aurous (Gram-positive) and salmonella (Gram-negative). A DC power supply 12V at 100 Hz frequency was employed to produce plasma. pH of water is measured gradually during the plasma treatment process. Contaminated water treated by gliding arc discharge at steadying the gas flow rate (1.5 l/mi
In the current study, a novel approach for separating ethanol-water mixture by microbubble distillation technology was investigated. Traditional distillation processes require large amounts of energy to raise the liquid to its boiling point to effect removal of volatile components. The concept of microbubble distillation by comparison is to heat the gas phase rather than the liquid phase to achieve separation. The removal of ethanol from the thermally sensitive fermentation broths was taken as a case of study. Consequently the results were then compared with those which could be obtained under equilibrium conditions expected in an “ideal” distillation unit. Microbubble distillation has achieved vapour compositions higher than th
... Show MoreThe surface finish of the machining part is the mostly important characteristics of products quality and its indispensable customers’ requirement. Taguchi robust parameters designs for optimizing for surface finish in turning of 7025 AL-Alloy using carbide cutting tool has been utilized in this paper. Three machining variables namely; the machining speeds (1600, 1900, and 2200) rpm, depth of cut (0.25, 0.50, 0.75) mm and the feed rates (0.12, 0.18, 0.24) mm/min utilized in the experiments. The other variables were considered as constants. The mean surface finish was utilized as a measuring of surface quality. The results clarified that increasing the speeds reduce the surface roughness, while it rises with increasing the depths and fee
... Show MoreThis study presents a comprehensive set of laboratory works for the examined soil layers extracted from Baghdad city (specifically from Alkadhimya, Alaitaifiya, and Alhurriya) to illustrate their engineering properties. The researchers have adopted the unified soil classification system for soil classification purposes. Also, the direct shear test was performed for soil samples with various degrees of saturation (0%, 25%, 50%, 75%, and 100%). The test results have shown a significant reduction in cohesion property with higher moisture content within soil samples. Also, a noticeable reduction in angle of internal friction value has occurred with such changes. Furthermore, it has been found that the bearing capacity of unsaturated soi
... Show MoreInfluence of metal nanoparticles synthesized by microorganisms upon soil-borne microscopic fungus Aspergillus terreus K-8 was studied. It was established that the metal nanoparticles synthesized by microorganisms affect the enzymatic activity of the studied culture. Silver nanoparticles lead to a decrease in cellulase activity and completely suppress the amylase activity of the fungus, while copper nanoparticles completely inhibit the activity of both the cellulase complex and amylase. The obtained results imply that the large-scale use of silver and copper nanoparticles may disrupt biological processes in the soil and cause change in the physiological and biochemical state of soil-borne microorganisms as well.