Many stone tools were found on a hill south of the Hor Al-Dalmaj which is located in the central part of the alluvial plain of Mesopotamia, between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. The types of rocks from which the studied stone tools were made are not found in the alluvial plain, because it consists of friable sand, silt, and clay. All existing sediments were precipitated in riverine environments such as point bar, over bank, and floodplain sediments. The collected stone tools were described with a magnifying glass (10 x) and a polarized microscope after they were thin sectioned. Microscopic analysis showed that these stone tools are made of sedimentary, volcanic igneous and metamorphic rocks, such as: sandstones, limestones, chert, conglomerate, rhyolite, basalt, mica schist, and quartzite.
The current studied stone tools were used by ancient humans as pestles, querns, scrapers, and knives. The present study showed that these tools were transported from outside the alluvial plain of Mesopotamia. A stone tool at the archaeological site of Al-Dalmaj indicates that there were some trade routes that connected this site with its surrounding; in addition to the economic, and that might occurred cultural exchanges during the Neolithic Period.
This research deals with study of the Petrology and mineralogy of the Rus and Jil Formations at Najif and Al-Muthanna Governorates, Southern Iraq. The Rus Formation consists mainly of evaporites and subordinate carbonates. The evaporites are characterized by nodular structure (compound wispy, wispy, structureless and mosaic structures) with some laminated structure at the studied sections. Compound wispy to wispy structure are the dominant structures. The Jil Formation consists almost entirely of carbonate. The carbonate rocks are dolomitic limestone and dolomite beds, massive, fossiliferous, cavernous sometime friable and bioturbated in its lower part. The Jil Formation contains evaporites as thin beds, sometimes nodular and contains se
... Show MoreThis research deals with study of the Petrology and mineralogy of the Rus and Jil Formations at Najif and Al-Muthanna Governorates, Southern Iraq. The Rus Formation consists mainly of evaporites and subordinate carbonates. The evaporites are characterized by nodular structure (compound wispy, wispy, structureless and mosaic structures) with some laminated structure at the studied sections. Compound wispy to wispy structure are the dominant structures. The Jil Formation consists almost entirely of carbonate. The carbonate rocks are dolomitic limestone and dolomite beds, massive, fossiliferous, cavernous sometime friable and bioturbated in its lower part. The Jil Formation contains evaporites as thin beds, sometimes nodular and contains se
... Show MoreThe CenomanianÐEarly Turonian reservoirs of the Mishrif Formation of the Mesopotamian Basin hold more than one-third of the proven Iraqi oil reserves. Difficulty in predicting the presence of these mostly rudistic reservoir units is mainly due to the complex paleogeography of the Mishrif depositional basin, which has not been helped by numerous previous studies using differing facies schemes over local areas. Here we present a regional microfacies-based study that incorporates earlier data into a comprehensive facies model. This shows that extensive accumulation of rudist banks usually occurred along an exterior shelf margin of the basin along an axis that runs from Hamrin to Badra a
The middle Cenomanian – early Turonian Mishrif Formation, a major carbonate reservoir unit in southern Iraq, was studied using cuttings and core samples and wireline logs (gamma‐ray, density and sonic) from 66 wells at 15 oilfields. Depositional facies ranging from deep marine to tidal flat were recorded. Microfacies interpretations together with wireline log interpretations show that the formation is composed of transgressive and regressive hemicycles. The regressive hemicycles are interpreted to indicate the progradation of rudist lithosomes (highstand systems tract deposits) towards distal basinal locations such as the Kumait, Luhais and Abu Amood oilfield areas. Transgressive hemicycles (transgressive systems tract deposits)
... Show MoreThe study of the geochemical characterization of sandstone rocks contributes to understand the nature of the source rocks, their tectonic setting and the effects of paleoclimate and paleo-weathering. Accordingly, twenty sandstone samples from the red sandstone units of the Gercus Formation were collected from the northeastern limb of Safin Anticline at Shaqlawa Area – Northern Iraq. The studied sandstone samples show depletion in major, trace elements contents, except for CaO, MgO and Ni, Co and Cr respectively, and general depletion in the rare earth elements (REE) contents. Major element geochemistry indicates that the red bed sandstones of the Gercus Formation are of an oceanic island arc (OIA) tectonic setting. On the other
... Show MoreThe archaeological and religious sites play a prominent role in the rest of the other tourist activities as cultural and spiritual needs that can not be dispensed with. Archaeological sites represent cultural origins of the nation. Religious sites represent the state of man's orientation to God in places of worship . The focus was on the city of Babylon because it is an ancient city and tourist because of its characteristics and elements. The importance of the city of Babylon is illustrated by highlighting its archeological and religious status through its geographical distribution. This gives the subject special importance for the purpose of knowing the city's important sites. And come out with a number of results and a set of recommend
... Show MoreMishrif Formation is the most important succession in the southern part of Iraq and has extensive distribution in the Arabian Plate. The present study focuses upon the sequence stratigraphy and development of Mishrif Formation basin in four oil fields within the eastern part of the Mesopotamian Zone are:- Halfaya (Hf-1), Noor (No-1) and Abu Ghirab (AG-3) and Fauqi oil fields (Fq-1).
There are several types of microfacies were distinguished in the succession of the Mishrif Formation. Their characteristic of the grain types and carbonate texture enabled to interpret of five facies associations (depositional environments) were observed in this formation, they are: deep ma
... Show MoreThe foreguts of a total of 515 fish of Chondrostoma regium (Heckel, 1843) (locally: Bala’aot Malloky) were studied. These fish were collected from Tigris River at Salah Al-Deen Province (between Al-Hagag & Yathrib) for 20 months between March and October of the next year. Detritus, plant in origin materials (19.6%, 23.0% & 24.9%); green and blue green algae, mostly Cladophora, Cosmarium and Merismpedia sp. (17.1%, 12.9% & 12.2%) and diatoms, mostly Diatoma, Chanathes, Amphora and Cyulbella sp. (16.9%, 8.8% & 8.2%) were the main food categories taken by these fishes according to occurrence (O%), volumetric methods (V%) and ranking index (R%). Debris (not part of the diet) took 45.3% of the studied fish foreguts by volume. Detritus was also
... Show MoreThe present work included qualitative study of epiphytic algae on dead and living stems, leaves of the aquatic plant Phragmitesaustralis Trin ex Stand, in Tigris River in AL- Jadria Site in Baghdad during Autumn 2014, Winter 2015, Spring 2015, and Summer 2015. The physical and chemical parameters of River’s water were studied (water temperature, pH, electric conductivity, Salinity, TSS, TDS, turbidity, light intensity, dissolve oxygen, BOD5, alkalinity, total hardness, calcium, magnesium and plant nutrient). A total of 142 isolates of epiphytic algae were identified. Diatoms were dominant by 117 isolates followed by Cyanobacteria (13isolates), Chlorophyta (11 isolates) and Rhodophyta (1 isolate), Variations in the isolates number were rec
... Show MoreSingle cell gel electrophoresis (SCGE), also called comet assay, is a rapid and sensitive technique used to analyse DNA Fragmentation Index(DFI). This study aimed to evaluate DNA damage in lymphocytes due to ionizing radiation in workers of Al-Tuwaitha nuclear site, which has been used for nuclear activities and contains a potentially significant amount of radioactive waste.The workers in this site are vulnerable to pollution due to a highly polluted environment of ionizing radiation. Blood samples were collected from 36 workerswho were divided into two groups;8 workers without protection and 28workers with protection, in addition to 30 control subjects.Alkaline comet assay was applied for analysis and the result
... Show More