The beet armyworm (BAW), Spodoptera exigua (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) is a highly destructive pest of vegetables and field crops. Management of beet armyworm primarily relies on synthetic pesticides, which is threatening the beneficial community and environment. Most importantly, the BAW developed resistance to synthetic pesticides with making it difficult to manage. Therefore, alternative and environment-friendly pest management tactics are urgently required. The use of pesticidal plant extracts provides an effective way for a sustainable pest management program. To evaluate the use of pesticidal plant extracts against BAW, we selected six plant species (Lantana camara, Aloe vera, Azadirachta indica, Cymbopogon citratus, Nicotiana tabacum ,

      A filed experiment was conducted to consider the impacts of bio-fertilizers (Azotobacter chroococcum and Glomus mosseae)  and two levels of chemical fertilization ( 50% and 100% of recommended dose) on proline content and activities of antioxidant enzymes (catalase and peroxidase) in wheat Triticum aestivum L. cultivar IPA 99 under drought conditions (50% and 20% of soil field capacity). Bio-fertilization involved treatment with   A. chroococcum (Azoto) and G. mosseae (AMF), singly or in combination. The experiment was conducted by applying a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with three replications. The results of this stud

Moisture damage is a primary mode of distress occurring in hot mix asphalt (HMA) pavements in Iraq. Because of the loss of bond, or stripping, caused by the presence of moisture between the asphalt and aggregate, which is a problem in some areas and can be severe in some cases, it is requires to evaluate the design asphalt mixture to moisture susceptibility. Many factors such as aggregate characteristics, asphalt characteristics, environment, traffic, construction practices and drainage can contribute to stripping. Asphalt concrete mixes were prepared at their optimum asphalt content by superpave system and then tested to evaluate their engineering properties, which include tensile strength, resilient modulus, and perman

     This study was aimed to investigate the effects of Cuminum cyminum seed aqueous extract on the function and histological structure of rat kidney treated with dibutyl phthalate (DBP). Eighteen albino rats weighing 190-240g and aged 10-12 weeks were used for this study which went on for 28 days. The rats were divided into three groups (each with six animals): 1^st  group: control rats were given food and tap water, 2^nd group was given DBP (420mg/Kg. B.W.)  with tap water and diet, 3^rd group were fed cumin plant orally at a daily dose of (200 mg/kg B.W.) and DBP (420mg/kg. B.W.) was given with drinking water and fed with diet daily. Kidney and liver function parameters were measured and hi

In the recent years, the work in composite industry needed new ecofriendly resources to improve the original properties of current materials. Many researches attempted to find alternative additives to be used with the current systems which provide a new material that is environmentally friendly and has better performance than the synthetic counterparts. This paper presents the study of mechanical characteristics, including bending, impact, tensile and hardness tests, of date palm fiber (DPF)/ epoxy composite. The composite plate was constructed by hand-layup technique. The filler content values (wt %) were 5%, 10%, 15% and 20%. Young's modulus, impact strength and hardness were shown to be increased with increasing fiber content. Tensile

In this paper, the fundamental harmonic of a Nd:YAG laser (Q-switched 1064nm wavelength, 1 Hz repetition rate and 9 ns pulse duration) has been used for the ablation of cadmium samples in air at atmospheric pressure and the generation of the cadmium plasma. The experimentally observed lines of cadmium plasma emission have been used to calculate the plasma parameters such as (electron temperature (TReR), electron density (nReR), Debye length (λRDR) and plasma frequency (ωRpR)). Line pair ratio of neutral species have been used for the electron temperature and electron density measurements. Plasma parameters were studied as a functions of laser pulse energy.