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.
Porous silicon was prepared by using electrochemical etching process. The structure, electrical, and photoelectrical properties had been performed. Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) observations of porous silicon layers were obtained before and after rapid thermal oxidation process. The rapid thermal oxidation process did not modify the morphology of porous layers. The unique observation was the pore size decreased after oxidation; pore number and shape were conserved. The wall size which separated between pore was increased after oxidation and that effected on charge transport mechanism of PS
The silicon carbide/carbon fiber (SiC/CF) hybrid fillers were introduced to improve the electrical and thermal conductivities of the epoxy resin composites. Results of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy revealed that the peaks at 3532 and 2850 cm−1 relate to carboxylic acid O–H stretching and aldehyde C–H stretching appearing deeper with an increased volume fraction of SiC. Scanning electron microscopic image shows a better interface bonding between the fiber and the matrix when the volume fraction of SiC particles are increased. As frequency increases from 102 Hz to 106 Hz, dielectric constants decrease slightly. Dissipation factor (tan δ) values keep low a
... Show MorePolyaniline (PANI) polymer was successfully prepared by the chemical oxidation method at 0 oC. Polyaniline-nano grapheme (GN) powder nanocomposites were prepared by the addition of GN with different weight ratios (0.1, 1, 5, and 10 g wt. %) during the polymerization of PANI. It was found that the polymerization reaction of poly-aniline was exothermic. The effect of adding nano-graphene powder during polymerization process on the time and temperature of the reaction was studied. The resulting polymer was diagnosed using several methods, including Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and UV-VIS spectrophotometry. The results of FTIR demonstrated a shift to higher wave numbers in the peaks of nanocomposites, due
... Show MoreIn the present work a modification was made on three equations to represent the
experiment data which results for Iraqi petroleum and natural asphalt. The equations
have been developed for estimating the chemical composition and physical properties
of asphalt cement at different temperature and aging time. The standard deviations of
all equations were calculated.
The modified correlation related to the aging time and temperature with penetration
index and durability index of aged petroleum and natural asphalts were developed.
The first equation represents the relationship between the durability index with aging
time and temperature.
loge(DI)=a1+0.0123(2loge T
... Show MorePolycaprolactone is one of the natural biodegradable polymers mainly used in bioplastics production for packaging, usually composed of non-toxic compounds and biodegradable. The aim was to examine the role of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanopowder on the,wettability , thermal and anti-bacterial effect nanocomposites. Pure PCL and PCL-based bio- nanocomposites doped with various ratios of ZnO nanoparticles from 0% to 5wt% were prepared through the arrangement of throwing procedure. The results show that wettability properties in relation to ideal PCL and that they were increasingly hydrophobic from 57º.8 to 69º.53 because add ZnO nanocomposites,the thermal stability between 300 and 400 ° C makes them perfect for the application
... Show MoreThe Silver1Indium1Selenide (AgInSe2) (AIS) thin1films of (3001±20) nm thickness have been1prepared2from the compound alloys2using thermal evaporation2 technique onto the glass2substrate at room temperature, with a deposition rate2(3±0.1) nm2sec-1.
The2structural, optical and electrical3properties have been studied3at different annealing3temperatures (Ta=450, 550 and 650) K.
The amount3or (concentration) of the elements3(Ag, In, Se) in the prepared alloy3was verified using an
... Show MoreBackground: The quality of drinking water is directly related to community health. Therefore, improving the quality of drinking reflects positively on the health situation in general. The studies that deal with the quality of drinking water in the city of Baghdad in terms of chemical or microbial content are very scanty. Objective: The current review highlights the most important studies and research articles that concern the quality of drinking water, both bottled water and tap water, in terms of chemical and biological contamination and chemophysical specifications for drinking water. Abstract: Studies have shown that drinking water in the city of Baghdad, especially tap water, contains certain levels of heavy metals,
... Show MoreThe water quality index was used for the evaluation of the quality of water, as well its impacts on the rotifer abundance, in the Tigris River as it passes through Mishahda City, northern Baghdad. Five sites were selected and samples were collected during October 2019 to September 2020. It was noticed that the index values in most sites have exceeded the upper limits of river waters. The values ranged from 40 (Poor) to 45 (Marginal) in all sites. While, the values were from 42 (Poor) to 65 (Fair) during different seasons. As for drinking usages, the results demonstrated poor or undrinkable (31-40) water in all sites. Meanwhile, the values ranged from 39 (Poor) to 56 (Clear) in regard to seasons. The index values
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