Cover crops (CC) improve soil quality, including soil microbial enzymatic activities and soil chemical parameters. Scientific studies conducted in research centers have shown positive effects of CC on soil enzymatic activities; however, studies conducted in farmer fields are lacking in the literature. The objective of this study was to quantify CC effects on soil microbial enzymatic activities (β-glucosidase, β-glucosaminidase, fluorescein diacetate hydrolase, and dehydrogenase) under a corn (Zea mays L.)–soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.) rotation. The study was conducted in 2016 and 2018 in Chariton County, Missouri, where CC were first established in 2012. All tested soil enzyme levels were significantly different between 2016 and 2018, irrespective of CC and no cover crop (NCC) treatments. In CC treatment, β-glucosaminidase activity was significantly greater at 0–10 cm depth in 2016 and at 10–20 and 20–30 cm in 2018. In contrast, dehydrogenase activity was significantly greater in NCC in 2018. Soil pH and organic matter (OM) content were found to be significantly greater in CC. Overall, CC have mixed effects on soil enzyme activities and positive effects on soil OM compared to NCC. This study highlights the short-term influence of CC and illustrates the high spatial and temporal variability of soil enzymes under farmer-managed fields.
This research was conducted to determine content levels of heavy metal pollution. Samples taken from Ishaqi River bank and adjacent agricultural soils area, in ten sites, distributed along 48 km of the Ishaqi River, north Baghdad. The evaluated metals were Zinc, Copper, Manganese, Iron, Cobalt, Nickel, Chromium, Cadmium, Vanadium and Lead. PH and Electric Conductivity (EC) were measured to evaluate the acidity and (EC). Results showed that most site were contaminated with metals evaluated. Among these metals, Zn, Mn, Fe and Ni were consistently higher in all the samples (both river bank and adjacent soil) followed by PB, CU, V, Cd, Co and Cr. The level concentrations of river bank were almost higher than that of adjacent soil. As will be re
... Show MoreDetergent is one of the pollutants that poses significant threats to ecological systems. Detergents can also dissolve in wastewater and negatively impact the efficiency of wastewater treatment facilities. They are used for a variety of functions, most notably hygiene, and are an integral aspect of human life. This means that there are a variety of routes by which detergent components can reach the environment. In this Study, twenty-three detergent samples from local markets in Baghdad. The aim of this study is to investigate the concentration of heavy metals Cobalt (Co), Chromium (Cr),Lead (Pb),Zinc (Zn), Iron (Fe) and Cadmium (Cd) in some detergents using Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer. The results of the concentration of heavy elemen
... Show MoreTo identify the fungi associated with water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes [Mart.] Solms), an aquatic weed, which presents in Tigris river from Baghdad south ward. Five regions from middle and south of Iraq (Al-Noumanya, Saeid Bin-Jubier, Al-Azizia, Al-Reyfay and Al-Hay) were selected for this study. Twelve fungal species were isolated. Alternaria alternata, Acremonium sp and Cladsporium herbarum, were the most frequently species (91.66 % ,50 % and 25 %) respectively. The fungi Alternaria alternata, Acremonium sp. and Phoma eupyrena were more aggressive to water hyacinth as (91.66%,83,33%, and 75%) in pathogenicity test.
Although many technological improvements are occurring in power production worldwide, power plants in third world countries are still using old technologies that are causing thermal pollution to the water bodies. Power facilities that dump hot water into water bodies are damaging aquatic life. In the study, the impact of the Al Dora thermal power plant on a nearby stretch of Tigris River in Baghdad city was assessed by measuring the temperature of the disposed of hot water in various cross-sections of the selected stretch of Tigris River, including measuring the thermal mixing length. The measurements were conducted in winter, spring, and summer. For field measurements, it was found that the impact of recovery distances
... Show MoreBackground and aim: Pomegranate is a medicinal herb that can promote healing of periodontal tissue through differentiation of mesenchymal cells both in vivo and in vitro. Therefore, this study is to investigate the effect of oral supplementation of Punicagranatum L. peel extract on bone defect in rabbit. Methods: Forty five male rabbits were divided into 3 groups; group 1; baseline group(5 rabbits) left without bone defect. Group 2; study group (20 rabbits) with bone defect model that received daily 1ml of oral supplementation of pomegranate peel extract (PoPx). Group 3; control group (20 rabbits) with bone defect model that received distilled water. Bone defect was done into facial plate of lower right central incisor. Blood biopsies by
... Show MoreThis study included effect of polyherbs mixture treatment of diabetic patients type II for two months. The polyherbs mixture contains Nigella sativa seeds, Boswellia carterri gum, Citrus aurantifolia fruits, Elettaria cardamomum fruits. Also this study included estimation of some biochemical parameters in the serum Diabetes Mellitus (D.M.) patients-type II and knowing the relationship of these parameters with this disease. The parameters are glucose, cholesterol ,High density , Low density lipoproteins( HDL-C, LDL-C) respectively , Triglycerides TG, urea, total protein , albumin , Alkaline phosphatase ALP,Transaminase GOT, GPT enzymes . Take (77) samples of diabetic patients serum type II which included (47) samples for group one: herbs
... Show MoreT-joints are common structures encountered in the assemblage of many industrial applications due to their advantages. However, joining these structures when using Friction Stir Welding (FSW) could be prone to defects that cause severe consequences like loss of strength and fracture. The current paper implements an experimental procedure to assess the effect of geometrical tool shape on void formation in friction stir welded AA 6061-T6 T-joint configuration. Taguchi optimization method was put into service to minimize the number of experiments and fulfil the goal of discovering the optimal FSW parameters that allow the manufacturing of such configurations with high mechanical properties. X-ray radiography and micrograph images were u
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