Objective. This study aimed to evaluate and compare the force degradation of two types of elastomeric chains following different periods of immersion in zinc-containing mouthwashes. Materials and Methods. Four hundred and forty pieces of Elasto-Force and Super Elasto-Force elastomeric chains were divided into two control and eight experimental groups. The pieces were stretched to 25 mm on pins mounted on an acrylic block and stored in distilled water at 37°C. The experimental groups were immersed in four different types of mouthwash for one minute twice a day throughout the test period. Ten continuous thermocycles per day between cold and hot water baths (5–55°C) were carried out. Forces were measured at six-time intervals (initial, 24 hours, 1, 3, 6, and 8 weeks). The mean force was calculated and compared among different elastomeric chains, mouthwashes, and times using the t-test and one-way ANOVA test followed by Tukey’s HSD test. The level of significance was set at 0.05. Results. Both types of elastomeric chains had significant force degradation over time (74–79% at 8 weeks). The Super Elasto-Force generated a higher force level than the Elasto-Force elastomeric chain at all time points. SmartMouth Clinical DDS mouthwash had a significantly lower effect on force degradation than other mouthwashes with no significant difference compared to control groups. Conclusions. Depending on these results: there is no clinically significant difference between both types of elastomeric chains, although Super Elasto-Force delivered a higher force level. The pH of the mouthwashes could play a role in force degradation over time, rather than other ingredients including zinc. The SmartMouth mouthwash had the minimum effect on force degradation of elastomeric chains, followed by Halita, Listerine Total Care Zero, and Breath Rx, respectively.
A comparative study was done on the adsorption of methyl orange dye (MO) using non-activated and activated corn leaves with hydrochloric acid as an adsorbent material. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) were utilized to specify the properties of adsorbent material. The effect of several variables (pH, initial dye concentration, temperature, amount of adsorbent and contact time) on the removal efficiency was studied and the results indicated that the adsorption efficiency increases with the increase in the concentration of dye, adsorbent dosage and contact time, while inversely proportional to the increase in pH and temperature for both the treated and untreated corn leav
... Show MoreDouble-layer micro-perforated panels (MPPs) have been studied extensively as sound absorption systems to increase the absorption performance of single-layer MPPs. However, existing proposed models indicate that there is still room for improvement regarding the frequency bands of absorption for the double-layer MPP. This study presents a double-layer MPP formed with two single MPPs with inhomogeneous perforation backed by multiple cavities of varying depths. The theoretical formulation is developed using the electrical equivalent circuit method to calculate the absorption coefficient under a normal incident sound. The simulation results show that the proposed model can produce absorption coefficient with wider absorption bandwidth compared w
... Show MoreThe need for renewable energy sources is higher than ever due to rising global warming, climate change, and ozone depletion. For refrigeration and air conditioning applications, adsorption refrigeration systems are viable alternatives cooling techniques. This study is a topic and part of the M.Sc. thesis. A field solar-powered ice maker unit was created, studied, tested, and evaluated on the 13th and 30th of May, 2022. Activated carbon and methanol pair was used to set up a refrigeration system in Baghdad (Al Dora). Experimental tests were carried out outdoors to determine the coefficient of performance COP and specific cooling power SCP of the system. The results showed that the lowest temperature
... Show MoreAn electrocoagulation process has been used to eliminate the chemical oxygen demand (COD) from wastewaters discharged from the Al-Muthanna petroleum refinery plant. In this process, a circular aluminum bar was used as a sacrificial anode, and hallow cylinder made from stainless steel was used as a cathode in a tubular batch electrochemical Reactor. Impacts of the operating factors like current density (5-25mAcm-2), NaCl addition at concentrations (0-2g/l), and pH at values (3-11) on the COD removal efficiency were studied.
Results revealed that the increase in current density increases the COD removal efficiency, whereas an increase
Sol-gel derived CuCo-oxide coatings as solar selective surfaces, synthesized onto aluminium substrates at various annealing temperatures, are analysed by correlating their structural, chemical bonding states, and surface morphological topographies. As the annealing progressed, all the coatings displayed a Cu0.56Co2.44O4 (ICSD 78-2175) phase with preferential orientation along (400) reflection plane. Rietveld refinement of X-ray diffraction (XRD) data indicate that residual stress and microstrains developed around the coating surfaces are reduced resulting in mechanically stable thin films. Enhancement of the crystallite size and preferred orientation of the surface were confirmed via XRD, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM),
... Show MoreMesoporous silica (MPS) nanoparticle was prepared as carriers for drug delivery systems by sol–gel method from sodium silicate as inexpensive precursor of silica and Cocamidopropyl betaine (CABP) as template. The silica particles were characterized by SEM, TEM, AFM, XRD, and N2adsorption–desorption isotherms. The results show that the MPS particle in the nanorange (40-80 nm ) with average diameter equal to 62.15 nm has rods particle morphology, specific surface area is 1096.122 m2/g, pore volume 0.900 cm3/g, with average pore diameter 2.902 nm, which can serve as efficient carriers for drugs. The adsorption kinetic of Ciprofloxacin (CIP) drug was studied and the data were analyzed and found to match well with
... Show MoreIn this work, metal oxide nanostructures, mainly copper oxide (CuO), nickel oxide (NiO), titanium dioxide (TiO2), and multilayer structure, were synthesized by the DC reactive magnetron sputtering technique. The effect of deposition time on the spectroscopic characteristics, as well as on the nanoparticle size, was determined. A long deposition time allows more metal atoms sputtered from the target to bond to oxygen atoms and form CuO, NiO, or TiO2 molecules deposited as thin films on glass substrates. The structural characteristics of the final samples showed high structural purity as no other compounds than CuO, NiO, and TiO2 were found in the final samples. Also, the prepared multilayer structures did not show new compounds other than th
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