Activities associated with mining of uranium have generated significant quantities of waste materials containing uranium and other toxic metals. A qualitative and quantitative study was performed to assess the situation of nuclear pollution resulting from waste of drilling and exploration left on the surface layer of soil surrounding the abandoned uranium mine hole located in the southern of Najaf province in Iraq state. To measure the specific activity, twenty five surface soil samples were collected, prepared and analyzed by using gamma- ray spectrometer based on high counting efficiency NaI(Tl) scintillation detector. The results showed that the specific activities in Bq/kg are 37.31 to 1112.47 with mean of 268.16, 0.28 to 18.57 with mean of 6.68 and 132.25 to 678.33 with mean of 277.49 for 238U, 232Th and 40K respectively. Based on these values, radium equivalent activity in Bq/kg and absorbed dose rate one meter above the ground surface nGy/h were calculated and found to be vary 52.72 to 1189.84 and from 25.02 to 553.01. The indoor and outdoor annual effective dose rate in mSv/y ranged from 0.12 to 2.71 and from 0.03 to 0.67 respectively. To evaluate the dangerous of the study area, the external (Hex) and internal (Hin) hazard indexes are calculated and found to be ranged 0.14 to 3.21 and from 0.24 to 6.22. For the purpose of assessing the seriousness of the study area, results were compared with the world wide average. This comparison indicated that the study area is not safe from the radiological protection point view.
The response of floating stone columns of different lengths to diameter ratio (L/D = 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10) ratios exposed to earthquake excitations is well modeled in this paper. Such stone column behavior is essential in the case of lateral displacement under an earthquake through the soft clay soil. ABAQUS software was used to simulate the behavior of stone columns in soft clayey soil using an axisymmetric finite element model. The behavior of stone column material has been modeled with a Drucker-Prager model. The soft soil material was modeled by the Mohr-Coulomb failure criterion assuming an elastic-perfectly plastic behavior. The floating stone columns were subjected to the El Centro earthquake, which had a magnitude of 7.1 an
... Show MoreOne of the most important environmental issues is the responsible effective and economic treatment of drilling waste especially oily waste.
In this research two fungal isolates named Pleurotus ostreatus and Trichoderma harzianum were chosen for the first time to treat biologically the oily drilled cuttings contaminated with diesel which resulted from drilling oil wells use oil based muds (OBMs).
The results showed that the fungi under study utilized the hydrocarbon of contaminated soil as a source of nutrient and growth and that both fungi can be considered hydrocarbon degrading microorganisms. The used biotreatment is cost effective process since most of the materials used in the cultivation and growth of the present fungi were av
The soil acari fauna of Citrus orchards of Baghdad in Jadiriya area was studied in a total
of forty-eight samples. Twenty-two species were recorded during the present study of which
eight species were first records to Iraq. The ordinal composition of the soil acari fauna was
predominantly Mesostigmata.
This fauna represents diverse trophic groups. The most abundant groups were the
predacious and the Microphytophagus, while the less abundant groups were the predacious/
Microphytophagus, Macrophytophagus, and Panaphytophagus. The most abundant and
frequent species were Rhizoglyphus sp. Tyrophagus putrescentiea (Scrank), Pachylaelaps
longisetis Halbt. and Stratiolaelaps miles Berl.
Trickle irrigation is one of the most conservative irrigation techniques since it implies supplying water directly on the soil through emitters. Emitters dissipate energy of water at the end of the trickle irrigation system and provide water at emission points. The area wetted by an emitter depends upon the discharge of emitter, soil texture, initial soil water content, and soil permeability. The objectives of this research were to predict water distribution profiles through different soils for different conditions and quantify the distribution profiles in terms of main characteristics of soil and emitter. The wetting patterns were simulated at the end of each hour for a total time of application of 12 hrs, emitter disch
... Show MoreGypseous soils are distributed in many regions in the world including Iraq, which cover more than (31%) of the surface area of the country. Existence of these soils, always with high gypsum content, caused difficult problems to the buildings and strategic projects due to dissolution and leaching of the gypsum caused by the action of water flow through soil mass. For the study, the gypseous soil was brought from Bahr Al-Najaf, Al-Najaf Governorate which is located in the middle of Iraq. The model pile was embedded in gypseous soil with 42% gypsum content. Compression axial model pile load tests have been carried out for model pile embedded in gypseous soil at initial degree of saturation of (7%) before and after soil satu
... Show MoreIn this study, the response and behavior of machine foundations resting on dry and saturated sand was investigated experimentally. A physical model was manufactured to simulate steady state harmonic load at different operating frequencies. The effect of relative density, depth of embedment, foundation area as well as the imposed harmonic load was investigated. It was found that the amplitude of displacement of the foundation increases with increasing the amplitude of dynamic force and operating frequency meanwhile it decreases with increasing the relative density of sand, degree of saturation, depth of embedment and contact area of footing. The maximum displacement was noticed at 33.34 to 41.67 Hz. The maximum displacement amplitude respons
... Show MoreIn this study, the response and behavior of machine foundations resting on dry and saturated sand was investigated experimentally. A physical model was manufactured to simulate steady state harmonic load at different operating frequencies. The effect of relative density, depth of embedment, foundation area as well as the imposed harmonic load was investigated. It was found that the amplitude of displacement of the foundation increases with increasing the amplitude of dynamic force and operating frequency meanwhile it decreases with increasing the relative density of sand, degree of saturation, depth of embedment and contact area of footing. The maximum displacement was noticed at 33.34 to 41.67 Hz. The maximum displaceme
... Show MoreIraq is located near the northern tip of the Arabian plate, which is advancing northwards relative to the Eurasian plate, and is predictably, a tectonically active country. Seismic activity in Iraq increased significantly during the last decade. So structural and geotechnical engineers have been giving increasing attention to the design of buildings for earthquake resistance. Dynamic properties play a vital role in the design of structures subjected to seismic load. The main objective of this study is to prepare a data base for the dynamic properties of different soils in seismic active zones in Iraq using the results of cross hole and down hole tests. From the data base collected it has been observed that the average ve
... Show MoreThere is currently a significantly larger concentration of toxins in our environment than there was in the past. This is mostly attributable to the expansion of modern industry. This investigation was conducted in order to investigate various haematological and biochemical changes in order to determine the effects of Cd on the liver and kidney. Because of its long biological half-life, it is considered hazardous to human health. The effect of sub-lethal doses (40, 80 and 120 mg\Kg) of Cadmium (Cd) on male mice were evaluated for 4 weeks, and analysis was done to estimate their biochemical parameters and antioxidant enzymes. The results showed that Cd-treated mice had considerably lower packed cell volume, red blood cells, and haemoglobin. W
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