Dates are considered one of the most important foods consumed in Arab countries. Dates are commonly infested with the sawtoothed grain beetle, Oryzaephilus surinamensis. Consequently, the date yield, quantity, and quality (economic value and seed viability) are negatively affected. This study was designed to investigate the effectiveness of air evacuation as eco-friendly and safe control method against adult O. surinamensis. Insects were obtained from the infested date purchased from a private store in sakaka city, Aljouf region, Saudi Arabia. Air evacuation (using a vacuum pump) and food deprivation were applied to O. surinamensis, and insect mortality was observed daily in comparison with the control group (administered both food and air). Application of both air evacuation, and food deprivation, significantly, increased the percentage of daily mortality when compared to control. Percentage accumulative mortality displayed very strong positive correlation with the time course in both cases of air-deprived and food-deprived groups. On the basis of lethal time values, the air evacuation method resulted in a comparable effect of food deprivation. Conclusively, the air-evacuation of the package is a very effective Eco-friendly and safe control method against O. surinamensis.
Bacteriophages have the potential to eliminate both antibiotic-resistant and sensitive bacteria; as a result, they have become a major focus of such research. In contrast to antibiotics, which assault the entire bacterial population without discrimination, bacteriophages have a limited set of characteristics that allow them to target infectious microbes while avoiding friendly species (commensal microbiota). Nevertheless, large groups of naturally occurring bacteriophages that are well-differentiated and selective for the most clinically recognized pathogenic bacterial strains are required. Utilizing genetic engineering techniques that modify the target phage genome to synthesize phages with known characteristics in a brief period o
... Show MoreIn this study predication of crop coefficient (Kc) values through growing season for cucumber plant was conducted. A field experiment was carried out at AL Yusufiyah Township, in the Governorate of Baghdad, (latitude: 33°09' N, longitude: 44°24' E, and altitude: 34 m) in medium loam soil. The plant was cultivated inside the greenhouse under subsurface trickle irrigation system with soil water retention technology (SWRT) during the growing season 2017. Crop coefficient values were guessed from the direct method of measurements of daily crop evapotranspiration, while reference evapotranspiration was obtained from Agricultural Meteorology Project - Station of Baghdad - Abu-Ghraib. The obtained results were showed that crop coeffici
... Show MoreThis research studies the effect of particle packing density on sintering TiO2 microstructure. Sintering experiment was conducted on compacts involving of monodisperse spherical TiO2 particles. The experimental results are modeled using L2-Regression technique in studing the effect of two theoretical values of 55% and 69% of initial packing densities. The mathematical simulation shows that the lower values of density compacts sintered fast to theoretical density and this reflects that particle packing density improved densification rate because of the competing influence of grain growth at higher values of densities.
This paper reports a fiber Bragg grating (FBG) as a biosensor. The FBGs were etched using a chemical agent,namely,hydrofluoric acid (HF). This implies the removal of some part of the cladding layer. Consequently, the evanescent field propagating out of the core will be closer to the environment and become more sensitive to the change in the surrounding. The proposed FBG sensor was utilized to detect toxic heavy metal ions aqueous medium namely, copper ions (Cu2+). Two FBG sensors were etched with 20 and 40 μm diameters and fabricated. The sensors were studied towards Cu2+ with different concentrations using wavelength shift as a result of the interaction between the evanescent field and copper ions. The FBG sensors showed
... Show MoreImproving the ability of asphalt pavement to survive the heavily repeated axle loads and weathering challenges in Iraq has been the subject of research for many years. The critical need for such data in the design and construction of more durable flexible pavement in bridge deck material is paramount. One of new possible steps is the epoxy asphalt concrete, which is classified as a superior asphalt concrete in roads and greatly imparts the level of design and construction. This paper describes a study on 40-50 penetration graded asphalt cement mixed with epoxy to produce asphalt concrete mixtures. The tests carried out are the Marshall properties, permanent deformation, flexural fatigue cracking and moisture damage. Epoxy asphalt mixes perf
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