Generate Reservoir Depths Mapping by Using Digital Elevation Model: A Case Study of Mosul Dam Lake, Northern Iraq

Not many bathymetric maps are available for many lakes and reservoirs in developing countries. Usually the bathymetric mapping requires investment in expensive equipment and fieldwork, both of which are not accessible in these countries. This work demonstrates the ability to develop bathymetric map of Mosul Lake by using a digital elevation model (DEM). The depths model of the lake was designed through the use of three main stages;a coastline extraction, dataset interpolation and a triangular irregular network model. The normalized difference water index (NDWI) was used for automatic delineation of the lake coastline from satellite images. The ordinary kriging interpolation with a stable model was used to interpolate the water depths dataset. Finally a triangulated irregular network (TIN) model was used to visualize the resulting interpolation model. Calculated values of area and volume of a TIN model during 2011 were compared with values of supposed initial operation of the reservoir. The differences of water volume storage between these stages at 321 m water level was about 0.81 × 109 m3, where the lake lost around 10% of storage value. Also the results of depths lake model show that the change in water storage between March and July 2011 was about 3.08 × 109 m3.

Runoff and Sediment Load from the Right Bank Valleys of Mosul Dam Reservoir

Mosul Dam is a Multipurpose Project on the River Tigris in Iraq with 11.11 billion m3 storage capacity. It is used to store the water for irrigation, hydropower generation, and flood control. As in other dams in the world, this dam also have sedimentation problem. Sediment accumulation in its reservoir can effect the dam operation （pumping station, hydropower plants, and bottom outlets） and it will definitely shorten the life span of the dam. In this study, the SWAT （soil and water assessment tool） under （]IS （Geographical Information System） was applied to simulate the yearly surface rtmoff and sediment load for the main three valleys on the right bank of Mosul Dam Reservoir. The simulation considered for the twenty one years begin from the dam operation in 1988 to 2008. The resultant values of the average annual sediment load are 35.6~ 103, 4.9 ~ 103, and 2.2~ 103 ton, while the average values of sediment concentration are 1.73, 1.65, and 2.73 kg/m3 for the considered valleys one, two and three respectively. This implies that significant sediment load enters the reservoir from these valleys. To minimize the sediment load entering the reservoir, a check dam is to be constructed in suitable sites especially for valley one. The check dam can store the runoff water and trap the sediment load, and then the flow can be released to the reservoir.

Sediment Delivered in the Upper Part of Mosul Using Physical Model

Mosul dam is the biggest hydraulic structure in Iraq located on the River Tigris 60 km northwest of Mosul city. Its storage capacity is 11. 11 × 109 m3 and it had been in operation since 1986. A physical distorted model with movable bed having a vertical scale 1： 100 and a horizontal scale 1：1000 was used to conduct the experiments relating the water level at the reservoir and water discharge upstream the reservoir with the bed load transport rate. The model represents the first 15 km of most northern part of Mosul dam reservoir. The construction of the model was based on bathymetric survey conducted in 2009. Twenty-four experiments were executed using four different discharges （0.5, 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0 L/s） which represent the average discharges in the flood period of River Tigris. At each individual discharge six operations were assumed where the reservoir＇s water level was 305, 307, 309, 310, 312, 315 meters above sea level respectively. In all the experiments conducted, bedload transport was measured in the physical model at section representing the River Tigris 1 km upstream the reservoir. The results showed that the bedload rate was decreasing when the water level within the reservoir was increasing. It was also evident that bedload transport rate dramatically decreased at level 310 meters above sea level onward. This is due to the fact that at this level represent the effect of backwater which was noticeable on the river cross section

Sedimentation Processes and Useful Life of Mosul Dam Reservoir, Iraq

The sedimentation process is the most important problems that affects directly the performance of reservoirs due to the reduction of the storage capacity and possible problems effecting the operation. Thus periodic assessment of the storage capacity and determining sediment deposition patterns is an important issue for operation and management of the reservoirs. In this study, bathymetric survey results and an analytical approach had been used to assess the characteristics of sedimentation and estimate the useful life of Mosul Reservoir. It is located on the Tigris River in the north of Iraq. The water surface area of its reservoir is 380 km2 with a designed storage capacity of 11.11 km3 at a maximum operating level (330 m a.s.l). The dam started operating in 1986. No detailed study was yet carried out to assess its reservoir. The present study indicated that the annual reduction rate in the dead and live storage capacities of the reservoir is 0.786% and 0.276% respectively. The observed results (bathymetric survey) and algebraic formula show approximately that the useful life of Mosul dam reservoir is about 125 years. Furthermore, the stage-storage capacity curves for the future periods (prediction curves) were established using bathymetric survey data.

基于小生境遗传算法的通用涡旋型线优化研究

目前涡旋型线的优化设计多数是在一些参数修改设计的基础上,简化为单目标优化问题,因而不易获得多性能最优的设计方案,涡旋型线形状的设计本质上是一个多目标优化问题,在通用涡旋型线形状优化设计中,根据关于切向角参数的基于曲率半径的Whewell固有方程的通用涡旋型线泛函表征形式,建立了多目标涡旋型线形状优化设计数学模型,应用了基于共享小生境技术的非劣优选遗传算法,给出了通用涡旋型线多目标形状优化设计实例分析。

Climatic variations and benign paroxysmal positional vertigo

Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo(BPPV) is probably the most common diagnosis at vertigo clinics.Seasonal cycles of several human illnesses could be attributed variously to changes in atmospheric or weather conditions.In this retrospective study,patients with BPPV from January 2010 to December 2012 were studied,and their charts were reviewed.Statistical analysis revealed a statistically significant difference in patients’ numbers among different months of the year.Also there is a significant statistical correlation between the numbers of patients with climatic variations especially the temperature.The present paper discusses the possible explanations for these results which confirms the seasonal variations in BPPV,together with a review of literature to view the possible associations with other disorders that causes such seasonality.

Quantitative Comparison of Calcium Hydroxide Removal by EndoActivator, Ultrasonic and ProTaper File Agitation Techniques: An in vitro Study

Calcium hydroxide （CH） dressing residues can compromise endodontic sealing. This study aimed to evaluate the amount of remaining CH in root canals after mechanical removal by four groups of irrigation techniques including needle irrigation only, ProTaper file, EndoActivator, and ultrasonic file. Fifteen extracted single-rooted teeth were collected and used for all four groups. The samples were firstly prepared by ProTaper rotary instruments, and then sectioned longitudinally through the long axis of the root canals, followed by final reassembling by wires. CH was kept in the canals for 7 days setting. The removal procedure began with 5 mL of 2.5% sodium hypochlorite （NaOC1） followed by 1 mL of 17% ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid and a final irrigation with 5 mL of 2.5% NaOC1 solution for all groups. No additional agitation of the irrigant was performed in group 1, while agitation for 20 s be- tween irrigants was done with F2 ProTaper rotary file in group 2, EndoActivator with tip size 25/.04 in group 3 and by an ultrasonic file 25/.02 in group 4. The total activation time was 60 s. The roots were then disassembled and captured by digital camera. The ratio of CH coated surface area to the surface area of the whole canal as well as each third of the canal was calculated. The data were statistically ana- lyzed by one-way ANOVA using post hoc Tukey test. Results showed that none of the four techniques could remove all CH. No significant difference was found between EndoActivator and ultrasonic tech- niques. However, they both removed significantly more CH than ProTaper and needle irrigation （P=0.0001）. In conclusion, the sonic and ultrasonic agitation techniques were more effective in removing intracanal medicaments than the ProTaper rotary file and needle irrigation in all thirds of the canal.

Climate Change and Future Long-Term Trends of Rainfall at North-East of Iraq

Iraq is facing water shortage problem despite the presence of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. In this research, long rainfall trends up to the year 2099 were studied in Sulaimani city northeast Iraq to give an idea about future prospects. The medium high （A2） and medium low B2 scenarios have been used for purpose of this study as they are more likely than others scenarios, that beside the fact that no climate modeling canter has performed GCM （global climate model） simulations for more than a few emissions scenarios （HadCM3 has only these two scenarios） otherwise pattern scaling can be used for generating different scenarios which entail a huge uncertainty. The results indicate that the average annual rainfall shows a significant downward trend for both A2 and B2 scenarios. In addition, winter projects increase/decrease in the daily rainfall statistics of wet days, the spring season show very slight drop and no change for both scenarios. However, both summer and autumn shows a significant reduction in maximum rainfall value especially in 2080s while the other statistics remain nearly the same. The extremes events are to decrease slightly in 2080s with highest decrease associated with A2 scenario. This is due to the fact that rainfall under scenario A2 is more significant than under scenario B2. The return period of a certain rainfall will increase in the future when a present storm of 20 year could occur once every 43 year in the 2080s. An increase in the frequency of extreme rainfall depends on several factors such as the return period, season of the year, the period considered as well as the emission scenario used.

Talc-Based Concrete for Sealing Borehole Optimized by Using Particle Packing Theory

The paper describes assessment of the performance of cement-poor concretes on the basis of packing theory. The concretes are intended for sealing segments of deep boreholes and have a small amount of cement for minimizing the mutual chemical impact on the contacting clay seals. The composition is examined by application of packing theory with respect to the cement/aggregate ratio and the gradation of the aggregate material which is crushed quartzite for providing high internal friction after maturation, as well as to talc added for fluidity and to the small amount of cement. Low porosity and micro-structural stability must be guaranteed for very long periods of time. The study exemplifies how packing theory assist designers in selecting optimal proportions of the various components. Optimum particle packing implies minimizing the porosity and thereby reducing the amount of cement paste needed to fill the voids between the aggregate particles. The use of talc as inorganic super-plasticizer since ordinary organic additives for reaching high fluidity at casting are undesirable, and since talc reacts with cement and provides high strength in along-term perspective.

Radium and Uranium Concentrations Measurements in Vegetables Samples of Iraq

In the present study twenty-two vegetable samples were collected from Iraqi market. Sealed can technique using CR-39 plastic track detector strippable has been used in order to measure radium and uranium concentrations. Etching was done with 6.25 N NaOH and optical microscope was used with the purpose of counting of alpha particle tracks. The values of effective radium content are found to range from 0.074 Bq/ kg to 0.566 Bq/ kg with the mean value of 0.317 Bq/kg. The values of uranium concentrations are found to range from 0.081 ppm to 0.615 ppm with the mean value of 0.345 ppm. Positive correlation has been observed between radium concentration and uranium concentrations in vegetable samples. Measurements of radium and uranium concentrations in vegetables are important from the health protection point of view, so simple and reliable analytical methods must be available.

Geochemistry and Petrology of Basic Volcanic Rocks of Jabal Al Haruj Al-Aswad, Libya

The Al Haruj Intra-continental Volcanic Province is the largest part of the extensive volcanic activity in Libya which is considered to be a typical within plate basalts. The volcano-tectonics evolution of this province, as well as its origin, are still widely disputed. According to K-Ar dating previously studied, the volcanic activity started in the Late Miocene and lasted until at least the Late Pleistocene. The field may still be volcanically active. The mafic rocks of Jabal Al Haruj have been classified into six major phases or groups. These phases have been differentiated using Landsat images together with aerial photographs of different scales as well as field observations. The topographic forms of the earliest phase are highly eroded while the forms of the latest phase are usually fresh and very well preserved as regards primary features. Mafic lavas of this field consist of alkali basalts to olivine tholeiites (transitional basalt) which contain olivine as essential constituent together with clinopyroxene, plagioclase and glass. The basalt exhibits intergranular, intersertal, ophitic and subophitic relations. Amygdaloidal and glomerporphyritic textures are also observed. The basaltic rocks of different ages and from different localities are petrographically rather similar. Phenocrysts of olivine probably the result from slow cooling in crustal magma chambers prior to eruptions, suggesting that magmas ascended slowly through the crust. 109 samples have been carefully collected from various phases, some of these samples have been chosen for major and trace elements analyses, using XRF in order to determine the characteristics of the?mantle source and investigate crustal interaction. The major and trace elements revealed a?slightly significant chemical diversity among the phases and within each phase. The normative classification of most of these rocks shows close agreement with their modal classification. A vague correlation between MgO and most major oxides in the studied samples suggests different degrees of partial melting rather than fractional crystallization. A characteristic feature of the studied volcanic rocks is the relatively constant ratios of certain incompatible trace elements (Nb/Zr, Rb/Zr), which provides strong evidence of a common source. In addition, the rocks display similar patterns of the peaks and troughs;this strongly suggests that they have a common parent and common subsequent processes. The compatible transitional metals Ni (81 - 193 ppm) and Cr contents (238 - 361 ppm) and relatively low Mg# (Mg/(Mg + Fet)) (52 - 62) give an indication that the studied basaltic rocks have slightly to moderately fractionated olivine and/or spinel. The magmatism of this volcanic field seems to be related to reactivation of pre-existing structures during the passive rifting of the Sirt Basin that most likely produced in response to convergence between European and African plates since Jurassic until Holocene times.

The Efect of the Earthed Electrode Size on the Ignition Voltage of Low-Pressure RF Capacitive Discharge in Argon

The effect of the grounded electrode diameter on the ignition voltage using 13.56 MHz in argon gas is studied experimentMly. The results indicate a systematic decrease of the breakdown voltage with increasing electrode area for the same pd value. No multi-valued breakdown voltages are observed. The Paschen minimum is not affected by the electrode diameter as long as the parallel plane approximation is valid. A modified Paschen equation which takes into account indirect discharge via the chamber walls at high pd values gives reasonable fits to the experimental data.

Pressure and Discharge-Voltage Dependence of Self-Sustaining Pulses in Air-Glow Discharge

The details of formation of micro discharges in air-glow discharge plasma are experimentally studied.The number of micro discharges formed per second is strongly related to both pressure and discharge voltage.This number tends to show reflections of the Patchen curve as far as its pressure dependence is concerned.The dischargevoltage dependence indicates that the transition from normal to abnormal glow discharge is not a sudden one,but has its roots during the normal glow stage and is initiated by the micro discharges which can be regarded as the early stage of abnormal glow.

Homotopy Analysis Method for Solving Initial Value Problems of Second Order with Discontinuities

In this paper, the standard homotopy analysis method was applied to initial value problems of the second order with some types of discontinuities, for both linear and nonlinear cases. To show the high accuracy of the solution results compared with the exact solution, a comparison of the numerical results was made applying the standard homotopy analysis method with the iteration of the integral equation and the numerical solution with the Simpson rule. Also, the maximum absolute error, , the maximum relative error, the maximum residual error and the estimated order of convergence were given. The research is meaningful and I recommend it to be published in the journal.

Experimental Investigation of Low Pressure Audio Frequency Discharge in Argon

Experimental data obtained on audio frequency(100–10000 Hz)discharge in argon at four pressures 50,60,70,and 80 mTorr are presented.The data show significant changes of the discharge current waveform with frequency.These changes seem to be associated with the glow discharge profile and colour.An empirical model based on the assumption of a frequency-dependent breakdown voltage is used to describe the experimental data.

Electric Discharge in Pin-Plate Audio Frequency Plasma

Experimental results on some properties of electric discharge initiated by audio frequency voltages in the range of 50–10000 Hz are presented.These results indicate that there are at least two modes of plasma ionic oscillations.A resonance-type behavior is seen when the driving field frequency becomes equal to the plasma ionic frequency.The results for plasma density and plasma temperature for both modes are presented.

An Alternative Empirical Formula for Positive Corona Discharge Ⅰ-ⅤCharacteristics in Point-to-Plate Electrode Geometry

Experimental data are presented for a study on the dependence of the I-V character- istics of the corona discharge on pressure and electrode spacing using point-to-plane electrode con- figuration. These experimental data are obtained by a fast, automatic computer data-acquisition system. The data are used to suggest an alternative dimensionally self-consistent empirical equa- tion for the parameterization of the I-V curves. The formula eliminates the need for any prior assumptions concerning the inception voltage, as is customary in this type of work.

Genetic Variation of Isolates of Verticillium dahfiae Kleb Using Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA （RAPD）

An increasing incidence and distribution of Verticillium wilt has occurred in the last few years in newly established olive orchards in Nineveh province, northern Iraq. This spread of the disease may result from use of Verticillium dahliae infected planting material. In this work genetic variation among the isolates of F. dahliae from Iraq and Jordan were analyzed by using Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA （RAPD） marker techniques for the first time in Iraq. The results of using 85 primers showed that 17 primers （Z1, Z19, T13, R10, RI5, RI6, F5, F6, FI0, AI5, AI9, B12, M1, M2, M3, M4 and M5） showed significant results with 30 isolates of I,： dahliae using RAPD and the best results were found with the primers M1, M2, M3, M4 and M5 which exhibited a clear difference between isolates. The genetic similarity between isolates ranged from 5% in the two isolates Alshallalat/2 and Tomato/Alkerak to 88% for Bashaika 1 and 2, while the average genetic variation between all isolates reached 58%.

Impact of electromagnetic radiation exposure during pregnancy on embryonic skeletal development in rats

Objective:To evaluate the teratogenic effect of mobile phone radiation exposure during pregnancy on embryonic skeletal development at the common used mobile phone frequency in our environment.Methods:Sixty female Sprague-Dawley rats were distributed into three experiment groups;control and two exposed groups (1 h/day, 2 h/day exposure groups) (n=20/ each group) and exposed to whole body radiation during gestation period from day 1- day 20. Electromagnetic radiofrequency signal generator was used to generate 1800 MHz GSM-like signals at specific absorption rate value 0.974 W/kg. Animals were exposed during experiment in an especial designed Plexiglas box (60 cm× 40 cm× 30 cm). At the end of exposure duration at day 20 of pregnancy animals were sacrificed and foetuses were removed, washed with normal saline and processed to Alizarin red and Alcian blue stain. Skeleton specimens were examined under a stereo microscope and skeleton's snaps were being carefully captured by built in camera fixed on the stereo microscope.Results:Intrauterine exposure to electromagneticradiation lead to variation in degree of ossification, mineralization, formation of certain parts of the skeleton majorly in head and lesser in other parts. Deformity and absence of formation of certain bones in the head, ribs, and coccygeal vertebrae were recorded in skeleton of foetuses from exposed dams compare to control group.Conclusions:The electromagnetic radiation exposure during pregnancy alter the processes of bone mineralization and the intensity of bone turnover processes, and thus impact embryonic skeleton formation and development directly.

The Role of Sputtering Current on the Optical and Electrical Properties of Si-C Junction

The effect of sputtering current that flow in a carbon rod on the structural and transport properties of Si-C junction is studied. Si-C junction is fabricated by plasma sputtering in Argon gas atmosphere without catalysts with thickness of 20, 40 and 60 nm. Images of the specimen by scanning electron microscope (SEM) and atomic force microscope (AFM) show that the carbon layer is as carbon nanotubes with diameters about 20 - 30 nm. X-ray and Raman spectrums show peak characteristics of the carbon nanotubes, the G and D bands appear for all thicknesses indicating free of defect carbon nanotubes. Two parameters about the thickness of the carbon layer and the sputtering current for different thicknesses and currents were studied. Nanotubes evidence was clear. We noticed that the sputtering current and thickness of layers affect the structure of CNT layer leading to the formation of grains. Increasing plasma current led to decrease grain formation however increasing thickness ends to increase grain size;moreover it led to amorphous structure formation and this was proved through X-ray, Raman spectra and AFM images.