Resilient polymeric materials such as silicone elastomers are currently used for maxillofacial prostheses construction but the strength of these materials and their clinical performance need to be optimized with the addition of reinforcing fillers. This study investigates the effect of zirconia nanopowder addition on tear strength, tensile strength, elongation at break, Shore A hardness, surface roughness and cytotoxicity of VST-50 maxillofacial silicone. Silicone base was mixed with different amounts (1%, 2% and 3%) of zirconia nanopowder using a vacuum mixer. Silicone without filler was used as control for comparison. Scanning Electron Microscopy and Atomic Force Microscopy were utilized to assess the efficiency of high-shear vacuum mixing as filler dispersion method and the surface topography, respectively. Both SEM and AFM images showed that the zirconia nanopowder were distributed fairly well within the polymer. Statistically, highly significant increase in tear strength, tensile strength and hardness with non-significant decrease in elongation at break and non-significant increase in surface roughness were seen with 1% and 2% groups. Whereas with 3% group, there was significant improvement in tear strength, tensile strength and hardness but there was significant undesirable decrease in elongation and increase in roughness. Cytotoxicity test revealed that the addition of zirconia nanopowder was nontoxic to Rat Embryonic Fibroblast (REF) cells and there was non-significant change in the cell viability of all study groups after 24- and 72-hours incubation periods. In conclusion, the addition of 2% by weight nano zirconia to VST-50 maxillofacial silicone could be beneficial in enhancing its performance.
Based on the results of standard penetration tests (SPTs) conducted in Al-Basrah governorate, this research aims to present thematic maps and equations for estimating the bearing capacity of driven piles having several lengths. The work includes drilling 135 boreholes to a depth of 10 m below the existing ground level and three standard penetration tests (SPT) at depths of 1.5, 6, and 9.5 m were conducted in each borehole. MATLAB software and corrected SPT values were used to determine the bearing capacity of driven piles in Al-Basrah. Several-order interpolation polynomials are suggested to estimate the bearing capacity of driven piles, but the first-order polynomial is considered the most straightforward. Furthermore, the root means squar
... Show MoreThe biomarker significance of three chemokines (CXCL8, CXCL10 and CXCL16) was evaluated in sera of 45 breast cancer (BC) and 28 benign breast lesion (BBL) patients, as well as 20 control women. Clinical stage and tumor expression of estrogen (ER), progesterone (PgR) and human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER-2) receptors were considered in this evaluation. The results demonstrated that CXCL8, CXCL10 and CXCL16 showed a significant increased median in BC and BBL patients compared to control (CXCL8: 47.3 and 25.7 vs. 15.0; CXCL10: 37.6 and 30.7 vs. 13.1; CXCL16; 27.9 and 25.2 vs. 19.2 pg/ml, respectively). The increased levels of CXCL8 and CXCL16 were more pronounced in triple-negative and HER-2 positive p
... Show MoreNanofluid treatment of oil reservoirs is being developed to enhance oil recovery and increase residual trapping capacities of CO2 at the reservoir scale. Recent studies have demonstrated good potential for silica nanoparticles for enhanced oil recovery (EOR) at ambient conditions. Nanofluid composition and exposure time have shown significant effects on the efficiency of EOR. However, there is a serious lack of information regarding the influence of temperature on nanofluid performance; thus the effects of temperature, exposure time and particle size on wettability alteration of oil-wet calcite surface were comprehensively investigated; moreover, the stability of the nanofluids was examined. We found that nanofluid treatment is more efficie
... Show MoreThe preparation, spectroscopic characterisation of complexes derived from the mixed ligands with CdII, ZnII and CoII metal ions with Schiff base, Dithiocarbamates (DTCs) and 8-Hydroxyquinoline are reported. The compounds that prepared have been defined via; chloride content, F.T-IR, UV-Vis 1H-NMR spectroscopy and C.H.N.S, as well as conductance and magnetic susceptibility.All data which collected from such methods specified complexes with 6 coordinates in solution and solid states. The biologicalactivity that is related to all the prepared compounds which were screened for their antimicrobial activitiesagainst (G+ and (G- )). The data that collected from biological activity indicate that complexes will have extra activity against such teste
... Show MoreComplexes from the ligand (2-hydroxy benzaldine)-4-aminoantipyrine with some transition metal ions V(l?),Cr(lll),Fe(lll) and Co(ll) were prepared in the presence of the co-ligand 1,10-phenanthroline in alcoholic medium. These compounds were characterized by the available techniques: FT-IR ,UV-Visible ,magnetic susceptibility, Flame atomic absorption technique as well as elemental analysis and conductivity mesurments .From these spectral studies, a square pyramidal structure proposed for V(IV) complex and an octahedral geometry for Cr(III),Fe(III) and Co(II) complexes. The biological activity of the ligands and their complexes were evaluated by a gar plate diffusion technique against three human pathogenic bacterial strains: Pseudomonas ae
... Show MoreThis study was aimed to investigate the response of two types of ornamental herbaceous plants (Wedelia trilobata and Jacobaea maritima 'Cirrus') to different agricultural environments and the application of potassium silicates to the living walls system LWS (Felt layer system) under the climate conditions of Baghdad city. Each experiment involved the cultivation of a different plant species, and the study duration was from September 15, 2021, to August 1, 2022. A Strip-Plot Design experiment was conducted using two factors: factor M with four levels of substrates (50% peatmoss and perlite (M1), 50% Vermicompost and perlite (M2), 50% Water hyacinth compost and perlite (M3), 50% wheat straw compost and perlite (M4)) and factor S with
... Show MoreThis work introduces the synthesis and the characterization of N-doped TiO2 and Co3O4 thin films prepared via DC reactive magnetron sputtering technique. N-doped TiO2 thin films was deposited on indium-tin oxide (ITO) conducting substrate at different nitrogen ratios, then the Co3O4 thin film was deposited onto the N-doped TiO2 layer to synthesize a double-layer TiO2-N/Co3O4 Photoelectrochromic device. Several techniques were used to characterize the produces which are x-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission-scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and UV–Vis spectroscopy. The Photoelectrochromic device was characterized by UV–Vis spectroscopy and the results show that the double-layer N-dope
... Show More