Perennial biofuel and cover crops systems are important for enhancing soil health and can provide numerous soil, agricultural, and environmental benefits. The study objective was to investigate the effects of cover crops and biofuel crops on soil hydraulic properties relative to traditional management for claypan soils. The study site included selected management practices: cover crop (CC) and no cover crop (NC) with corn/soybean rotation, switchgrass (SW), and miscanthus (MI). The CC mixture consisted of cereal rye, hairy vetch, and Austrian winter pea. The research site was located at Bradford Research Center in Missouri, USA, and was implemented on a Mexico silt loam. Intact soil cores (76‐mm diam. by 76‐mm long) were taken from the 0–10, 10–20, 20–30, and 30–40 cm depths with three plot replicates and two sub‐samples per plot replicate per depth. Soil hydraulic properties evaluated for each sample included: saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ksat), water retention, bulk density, and pore size distributions. Results showed with the test of Duncan's least significant differences that treatments of MI (1.18 Mg m−3) and SW (1.21 Mg m−3) had lower values of bulk density averaging across soil depth than CC (1.27 Mg m−3) and NC (1.31 Mg m). Management systems significantly increased Ksat with the biofuel treatments at 0–10 cm compared to NC system. The MI management showed a significant increase in macroporosity and fine mesoporosity as compared to other management systems. Slight changes have occurred in the measured soil physical properties for CC system compared to NC plots. Overall, increasing soil organic matter from more plant roots from long‐term biofuel cropping systems can improve soil water storage and crop productivity.
The solution casting method was used to prepare a polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)/Multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) nanocomposite with Graphene (Gr). Field Effect Scanning Electron Microscope (FESEM) and Fourier Transformer Infrared (FTIR) were used to characterize the surface morphology and optical properties of samples. FESEM images revealed a uniform distribution of graphene within the PVP-MWCNT nanocomposite. The FTIR spectra confirmed the nanocomposite information is successful with apperaring the presence of primary distinct peaks belonging to vibration groups that describe the prepared samples.. Furthermore, found that the DC electrical conductivity of the prepared nanocomposites increases with increasing MWCNT concentratio
... Show MoreIn this study, the acid-alkaline transesterification of refined coconut seed oil (RCOSO) to fatty acid methyl ester was followed by the production of a trimethylolpropane-based thermosensitive biolubricant using potassium hydroxide, and its physicochemical characteristics were evaluated. The American Standard Test for Materials (ASTM) was employed to ascertain the biolubricant's pour point and index of viscosity, which were found to be -4 oC and 283.75, respectively. The opposite connection between lubricant viscosity and temperature was shown by the measured viscosities at varied transesterification to be transformed into biodiesel. Following this, a biolubricant was created by further transesterifiedtemperature. The ester gr
... Show MoreIn recent decades, tremendous success has been achieved in the advancement of chemical admixtures for Portland cement concrete. Most efforts have concentrated on improving the properties of concrete and studying the factors that influence on these properties. Since the compressive strength is considered a valuable property and is invariably a vital element of the structural design, especially high early strength development which can be provide more benefits in concrete production, such as reducing construction time and labor and saving the formwork and energy. As a matter of fact, it is influenced as a most properties of concrete by several factors including water-cement ratio, cement type and curing methods employed.
Because of acce
Hartree-Fock (HF) method relies in the calculations of nonlinear optical properties (NLO) for benzoic acid molecule. Also, another theoretical study is conducted by using the TD-DFT Density Functional Theory through B3LYP/High Base Set 6-311++G (2d,2p) on Gaussian program09. Moreover, an experimental study has been done to obtain the electrons spectrum for benzoic acid with and without ethanol. While the experimental study is done by using UV/VIS. spectrophotometer. Energy gap values of electronic transition between HOMO and LUMO is obtained from theoretical and experimental results. Consequently, the theoretical result for determining the energy gap calculated from EHOMO-LUMO wasvery close to the results of UV / VIS. spectrum. A theoretica
... Show MoreHeterocyclic compounds are employed in many applications, and numerous researchers have created liquid crystals by adding heterocyclic to the structures of these molecules. This work includes the synthesis and characterization of new compounds that contain 5H-thiazolo [4,3-b][1,3,4] thiadiazol united in multiple steps, starting with the synthesis of the aldehyde compound [I] by reaction chloro ethyl acetate with 4-hydroxybenzaldehyde in the presence of ethanol and potassium carbonate, followed by reactions with thiosemicarbazide, mercapto acetic acid in sulphuric acid to produce compound [II] then reflux compound [II] with hydrazine hydrate to product compound [III], after that reaction the later compound with nalkoxybenzaldehyde [IV]n and
... Show MorePolypyrrole/silver (PPy/Ag) nanocomposites was synthesized via a chemical oxidative method. The AFM analysis is performed to study the surface roughness, morphology and size distribution of the PPy particles and PPy-ag nanocomposites. The results indicated that as the concentration of Ag in the nanocomposite increases, the roughness also increases. The size of nanoparticles was also evaluated and found in the range of 15 nm to 125 nm. The PPy/Ag nanocomposites exhibited an effectiveness against Gram-negative Escherichia coli showing an inhibition zone of 4mm and displayed poor efficacy against Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus. Based on given adequate antibacterial characteristics of PPy/Ag nanocomposites, it can be identified as a pro
... Show MoreThin a-:H films were grown successfully by fabrication of designated ingot followed by evaporation onto glass slides. A range of growth conditions, Ge contents, dopant concentration (Al and As), and substrate temperature, were employed. Stoichiometry of the thin films composition was confirmed using standard surface techniques. The structure of all films was amorphous. Film composition and deposition parameters were investigated for their bearing on film electrical and optical properties. More than one transport mechanism is indicated. It was observed that increasing substrate temperature, Ge contents, and dopant concentration lead to a decrease in the optical energy gap of those films. The role of the deposition conditions on value
... Show MoreThis study involves the synthesis of a new class of silicon polymers, designated as P1-P7, derived from dichlorodimethylsilane (DCDMS) in combination with various organic compounds (Schiff bases prepared from different amines and appropriate aldehydes or ketones) [I-V] through condensation polymerization. The structures of all monomers and polymers were characterization by FTIR and 1HNMR spectroscopy (for some polymers). The results of thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetry DSC test show stable thermal behaviour. Polymers with a higher concentration of aromatic rings in their repeating structural units exhibited a higher temperature for weight loss, indicating increased thermal stability. Thermal meas
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