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.
Determination of the level of adipokines (obestatin, vaspin, tumor necrosis factor-? and interleukin-6)in hypo-and hyperthyroid patients from Educational Baghdad Hospital in Baghdad City was investigated. Fifty patients with hypothyroidism and Fifty patients with hyperthyroidism were selected. A control group of thirty euthyroid persons was included. Blood was collected by vein puncture and serum was separated and stored at –20C. Adipokines (obestatin, vaspin, tumor necrosis factor-? and interleukin-6) were estimated using ELISA method. The findings show a significant (p<0.05) increase in obestatin level in hypothyroid patients, while there is no significant difference in hyperthyroid patientsas compared with the euthyroid subjects.
... Show MoreThe increasing use of polymeric materials in the daily life, leads to challenges in the processing industry to deliver high performance materials with affordable terms. However, new processing techniques lead to high costs. In order to reduce processing costs it is necessary to understand the non-Newtonian behavior of the polymers in their molten state to be able to simulate the processes before the construction of the plants starts. Here the shear thinning behavior of the viscosity of polymeric melts is essential. Thus, this paper deals with the experimental investigation of the thermo-rheological behavior of the viscosity of one of the most used polymers (Polypropylene) over a wide range of temperatures and shear rates. Furthermo
... Show MoreA band rationing method is applied to calculate the salinity index (SI) and Normalized Multi-Band Drought Index (NMDI) as pre-processing to take Agriculture decision in these areas is presented. To separate the land from other features that exist in the scene, the classical classification method (Maximum likelihood classification) is used by classified the study area to multi classes (Healthy vegetation (HV), Grasslands (GL), Water (W), Urban (U), Bare Soil (BS)). A Landsat 8 satellite image of an area in the south of Iraq are used, where the land cover is classified according to indicator ranges for each (SI) and (NMDI).
The excellent specifications of electrodes coated with lead dioxide material make it of great importance in the industry. So it was suggested this study, which includes electrodeposition of lead dioxide on graphite substrate, knowing that the electrodeposition of lead dioxide on graphite studied earlier in different ways.
In this work the deposition process for lead dioxide conducted using electrolytic solution containing lead nitrate concentration 0.72 M with the addition of some other material to the solution, such as copper nitrate, nickel nitrate, sodium fluoride and cetyl trimethyl ammonium bromide, but only in very small concentrations. As for the operating conditions, the effect of change potential and temperature as well
... Show MoreThis study was initiated to examine the tomato-infecting viruses belonging to the Tobamovirus and Potexvirus genera in Iraq. Field observations and surveys were carried out for three successive cropping seasons (2020/21 to 2022/23) in selected tomato production areas. The purpose was to identify the main viruses associated with tomato epidemics and assess the impact of different tomato cultivars on disease occurrence. A total of 700 tomato leaf samples were collected from seven governorates (Baghdad, Diyala, Babylon, Najaf, Kerbala, Nasiriya, and Basrah) and tested using pathogen-specific immunostrip kits. The survey showed a presence of Tomato brown rugose fruit virus (ToBRFV), Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV), Pepper mild mottle virus (
... Show MoreIn this paper, a mathematical model for the oxidative desulfurization of kerosene had been developed. The mathematical model and simulation process is a very important process due to it provides a better understanding of a real process. The mathematical model in this study was based on experimental results which were taken from literature to calculate the optimal kinetic parameters where simulation and optimization were conducted using gPROMS software. The optimal kinetic parameters were Activation energy 18.63958 kJ/mol, Pre-exponential factor 2201.34 (wt)-0.76636. min-1 and the reaction order 1.76636. These optimal kinetic parameters were used to find the optimal reaction conditions which
... Show MoreThe research presents the reliability. It is defined as the probability of accomplishing any part of the system within a specified time and under the same circumstances. On the theoretical side, the reliability, the reliability function, and the cumulative function of failure are studied within the one-parameter Raleigh distribution. This research aims to discover many factors that are missed the reliability evaluation which causes constant interruptions of the machines in addition to the problems of data. The problem of the research is that there are many methods for estimating the reliability function but no one has suitable qualifications for most of these methods in the data such