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.
In this research the specifications of Iraqi drinking bottled water brands are investigated throughout the comparison between local brands, Saudi Arabia and the World Health Organization (WHO) for bottled water standard specifications. These specifications were also compared to that of Iraqi Tap Water standards. To reveal variations in the specifications for Iraqi bottled water, and above mentioned standards some quality control tools are conducted for more than 33% of different bottled water brands (of different origins such as spring, purified,..etc) in Iraq by investigating the selected quality parameters registered on their marketing labels. Results employing Minitab software (ver. 16) to generate X bar,
... Show MoreThis research was aimed to study the efficiency of microfiltration membranes for the treatment of oily wastewater and the factors affecting the performance of the microfiltration membranes experimental work were includes operating the microfiltration process using polypropylene membrane (1 micron) and ceramic membrane (0.5 micron) constructed as candle; two methods of operation were examined: dead end and cross flow. The oil emulsion was prepared using two types of oils: vegetable oil and motor oil (classic oil 20W-50). The operating parameters studied are: feed oil concentration 50 – 800 mg/l, feed flow rate 10 – 40 l/h, and temperature 30 – 50 oC, for dead end and cross flow microfiltration.
It was found that water flux decrea
Nanopesticides are novel plant protection products offering numerous benefits. Because nanoparticles behave differently from dissolved chemicals, the environmental risks of these materials could differ from conventional pesticides. We used soil–earthworm systems to compare the fate and uptake of analytical‐grade bifenthrin to that of bifenthrin in traditional and nanoencapsulated formulations. Apparent sorption coefficients for bifenthrin were up to 3.8 times lower in the nano treatments than in the non‐nano treatments, whereas dissipation half‐lives of the nano treatments were up to 2 times longer. Earthworms in the nano treatments accumulated approximately 50% more b
This Study was conducted out at the Ministry of Agriculture's Poultry Research Station/Animal Resources Department/Agricultural Research Center. To see how body weight (BW) and leptin hormone (LEP) levels in breeder blood affect fertility and hatchability. 140 Iraqi local laying chickens (120 females + 20 males) aged 28 weeks were used in the study. Following the numbering of females, the birds were grown in individual cages and dispersed sequentially on cages. The experiment was divided into three periods, each lasting 28 days, during which the breeder's live body weight was recorded and divided into two categories (greater than 1.5 kg and less than 1.5 kg), and blood samples were collected at the end of each period to determine th
... Show MoreGypseous soil is considered as a problematic soil for embankment construction, however, implementation of emulsified asphalt as a stabilization agent could be a proper solution for enhancing its properties as a subgrade soil. In this work, the sustainability of asphalt stabilized soil has been assessed in terms of its resistance to cyclic (freezing-thawing) and (heating-cooling) processes. Specimens have been prepared at optimum fluid content (moisture and emulsion) and tested under direct shear stresses while subjected to 30 cycles of (freezing-thawing) and (heating-cooling). Both of dry and soaked testing conditions have been implemented. Data have been observed after each 10 cycles, and compared with that of reference mix. It was conclud
... Show MoreThe aim of this research work is to study the effect of stabilizing gypseous soil, which covers
vast areas in the middle, west and south parts of Iraq, using liquid asphalt on its strength properties
to be used as a base course layer replacing the traditional materials of coarse aggregate and broken
stones which are scarce at economical prices and hauling distances.
Gypseous soil brought from Al-Ramadi City, west of Iraq, with gypsum content of 66.65%,
medium curing cutback asphalt (MC-30), and hydrated lime are used in this study.
The conducted tests on untreated and treated gypseous soil with different percentages of medium
curing cutback asphalt (MC-30), water, and lime were: unconfined compression strength, and o
The aim of this research work is to study the effect of stabilizing gypseous soil, which covers vast areas in the middle, west and south parts of Iraq, using liquid asphalt on its strength properties to be used as a base course layer replacing the traditional materials of coarse aggregate and broken stones which are scarce at economical prices and hauling distances. Gypseous soil brought from Al-Ramadi City, west of Iraq, with gypsum content of 66.65%, medium curing cutback asphalt (MC-30), and hydrated lime are used in this study. The conducted tests on untreated and treated gypseous soil with different percentages of medium curing cutback asphalt (MC-30), water, and lime were: unconfined compression strength, and one dimensional confine
... Show MoreThe clayey soils have the capability to swell and shrink with the variation in moisture content. Soil stabilization is a well-known technique, which is implemented to improve the geotechnical properties of soils. The massive quantities of waste materials are resulting from modern industry methods create disposal hazards in addition to environmental problems. The steel industry has a waste that can be used with low strength and weak engineering properties soils. This study is carried out to evaluate the effect of steel slag (SS) as a by-product of the geotechnical properties of clayey soil. A series of laboratory tests were conducted on natural and stabilized soils. SS was added by 0, 2.5, 5, 10, 15, and 20% to the soil.
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