Technical Analysis of Collapse in Tunnel Excavation and Suggestion of Preventing Appropriate Applicable Methods (Case Study: Sardasht Dam Second Diversion Tunnel)

In order to either optimal use of water resource of KELAS river basin and electrical energy generation, Sardasht Dam and power plant are designed. Dam water diversion system includes two tunnels with inner diameter of 7 m. Several collapses have occurred in portal of second diversion tunnel (A2) which has created large cavity in tunnel crown. In order to prevent collapse, various ways such as steel sets installation and also grouting to increase strength of surrounded rock mass, are prescribed but none of technics could not to ban caving in. considering this fact that in order to continue tunnelling process, collapse zone should be passed, a solution or solutions must be suggested to overcome consecutive and dangerous collapses problem. In order to decrease tunnelling risks, in this research, using both experience and knowledge obtained from previous proposed executive solution to similar cases and technically analysis of occurred collapse in current diversion tunnel, it has been tried to suggest a new appropriate solution which defeat the problem. Finally, in order to stabilize of tunnel crown, as an effective and applicable solution, constructing retaining crown by means of rock bolts, was introduced

Rzadki przypadek współwystępowania nadczynności przytarczyc i zespołu Turnera - opis przypadku

Przedstawiony przez autorów opis przypadku zawiera ocenę kliniczną, wyniki badań laboratoryjnych, radiologicznych, patomorfologicznych 37-letniej kobiety, u której początkowo rozpoznano osteomalację przebiegu zespołu Turnera i zastosowano suplementację wapnia i witaminy D. Ze względu na szybką progresję Ca we krwi rozszerzono diagnostykę, rozpoznając dodatkowo nadczynność przytarczyc spowodowaną gruczolakiem tego narządu.We present the clinical, laboratory, radiological and pathological findings in the case and review the literature. Our patient, a 37-year-old woman of short stature, was referred because of musculoskeletal pain. After primary evaluation, she underwent treatment with calcium and vitamin D supplement with the diagnosis of osteomalacia in Turner’s syndrome. The rise of serum calcium during medical therapy, which was an unusual finding, attracted the clinician’s attention to another underlying disorder. Further evaluation revealed primary hyperparathyroidism due to an adenoma of the parathyroid gland. Even though this is a rare diagnosis, its presence should be considered in any patient with Turner’s syndrome presenting with severe osteoporosis and a rise in serum calcium during treatment

A study of some biocontrol mechanisms of Beauveria bassiana against Rhizoctonia disease on tomato

Tomato damping-off, caused by Rhizoctonia solani, is one of the most common diseases worldwide. The use of biological control agents to protect plants against pathogens seems to be an appropriate solution. Beauveria bassiana as an endophytic fungus can colonize a wide range of plants in a systemic manner and enhance plant resistance. In this study, the ability of three isolates of B. bassiana to control damping-off of tomato seedlings was examined. The effect of B. bassiana on the induced systemic resistance enzymes such as peroxidases (POX) and phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL) and also the phenolic compounds content in plant resistance was measured. Our results showed that B. bassiana isolates especially TS12 and TS7 resulted in an increase in the activity of POX and PAL enzymes as well as enhanced the contents of phenolic compounds in treated plants. The results of greenhouse studies showed that each of the three isolates were able to successfully control tomato damping-off. However, this ablity was probably due to the stimulation of plant growth by KJ24, but TS12 and TS7 isolates acted through the stimulation of “induced systemic resistance” in plants

The effect of aqueous and ethanolic extract of Iranian propolis on Candida Albicans isolated from the mouth of patients with colorectal malignancy undergone chemotherapy: An in-vitro study

Background: Candidiasis is one of the most common fungal infections in immunosuppressed patients. The condition is usually treated with local and systemic antifungal agents. Given the antifungal properties of propolis, it appears this natural resin material can be effective in treating this infection. The aim of the present in vitro study was to compare the effect of Iranian propolis with those of routine antifungal agents on Candida species isolated from the oral candida lesions of patients with cancer, who had undergone chemotherapy, and a standard strain of Candida albicans. Methods: A total of 23 samples were collected from the oral cavities of patients with colorectal cancer, who had undergone chemotherapy with 5-fu. The fungal species were determined based on the results of culture in C. albicans chromagar medium, formation of the germ tube and formation of vesicles. The MIC of aqueous extract propolis (AEP) and ethanolic extract of propolis (EEP) and amphotericin B (AMP-B), fluconazole (FL) and nystatin (NYS) were compared. Results: A total of 23 oral C. albicans samples were isolated. The MICs of FL and AMP- B were similar and less than those of EEP, AEP and NYS (P<0.001). In addition, the MIC of AEP was higher than EEP (P<0.001). The MIC of AMP- B on the strains isolated from the patients was more than that of the standard strain (P=0.012). Conclusion: The aqueous and ethanolic extracts of Iranian propolis exhibited antifungal activity, with a greater effect of the EEP compared to the AEP. &#160

Short and long term evaluation of the efficiency of PermaNet® 2.0 bed net against environmental factors and washing using bioassay tests

The aim of the present study was to examine the resistance of PermaNet® 2.0 bed nets against repeated washing and environmental factors by using bioassay tests. After 5, 15 and 21 washings with detergents and by using bioassay tests, the resistance of 40 PermaNet® 2.0 bed nets was compared with that of 40 bed nets conventionally treated with one K-O tablet. To examine the long-term resistance, 31 PermaNet® 2.0 bed nets were also distributed among villagers, and were re-collected to perform bioassay tests after 1, 2 and 5 years. In the first phase of this study, the insecticidal effect of the conventionally-treated nets significantly decreased due to repeated washings (P < 0.001); however, it was not significant regarding PermaNet® 2.0 bed nets (P = 0.92 in continuous exposure and P = 0.12 in mortality tests). In the long-term phase of this study, the time required for knockdown of PermaNet® 2.0 increased over the first 2 years and then decreased. In addition, the mortality rate decreased over the first 2 years and then increased. In conclusion, it seems that the technique used by the manufacturer for impregnation of PermaNet® 2.0 bed nets has an acceptable efficiency in comparison with conventional techniques

Application of Gene Expression Programming in Drought Prediction (Case Study: Tabriz Synoptic Station)

The water body of Urmia Lake in recent years has been faced with a significant reduction in surface area and volume due to various reasons such as successive droughts. Therefore, in this study, the situation of drought was evaluated at the synoptic station of Tabriz as one of the important stations of Urmia Lake basin in different time scales using the standardized precipitation-evapotranspiration index (SPEI) and the gene expression programming (GEP) model. For this purpose, the SPEI index was used for drought monitoring at 1, 3, 6, 12, 24, and 48 months during the 53-year statistical period. The results showed that three long periods of drought related to the years 1961-1963, 1986-1992, and 1997-2009 are available during the statistical period. According to the results, the prediction accuracy is directly related to increasing the scale of SPEI and increased by increasing the scale of SPEI, so that the correlation coefficient in the test stage in the one-month scale (SPEI1) increased from 0.203 to 0.988 at 48-month scale (SPEI48) and the overall accuracy of the model increased from 57.1 in SPEI1 to 94.2 % in SPEI48

Selection of the Best Statistical Index of Nodal Pressure Values for Use in Calibrating the Hydraulic Model of the Water Distribution Network Based on Field Data Processing

Due to the widespread use of computers and measuring equipment in the operation of water distribution networks, a large amount of data is recorded for monitoring and evaluating the performance of water distribution networks and it is used in the modeling and calibration process. The management of these data is very necessary to achieve more accurate models on the one hand and the speed of their processing on the other hand. In this research, the purpose is to process nodal pressure field data to select the best statistical indicators for calibrating the water distribution network model. For this purpose, more than 5500 data collected in 22 stations of Ahar water distribution network and 12 stations of Oshnaviyeh water distribution network have been analyzed. First, by categorizing the data with Sturges experimental method, the probability of the data being placed in the central index categories of average, median, and mode and other categories in different stations in the times of minimum, maximum, and average consumption has been determined, and by summarizing the results, the best central index has been selected. Then, to analyze how the data changes, the minimum and maximum values, the range of variation, and the standard deviation of the data are presented along with the histogram of the categories. The trend of data variations in different stations in the minimum, maximum, and average consumption times shows that there is no specific harmony for data variations, so the maximum or minimum values of the range of variation and the standard deviation of the data are moved spatially in the stations. Also, the process of data allocation to categories shows that in the Ahar water distribution network, most data is allocated to the mode category at about 28.6 percent, followed by other categories at about 26.3 percent. Also, in the Oshnaviyeh water distribution network, the highest allocation is related to other categories with about 30.2 percent, followed by the mode category with 27.2 percent. Considering the multiplicity and dispersion of other categories and the unity of the mode category, the mode category is the best choice for both case studies. In general, by using mode values instead of other central indicators in the calibration of water distribution networks, due to the effectiveness of more field data, more favorable results will be obtained in the construction of the network model

Attenuation Models for Estimation of Vertical Peak Ground Acceleration Based on PSO Algorithm for the North of Iran

Peak ground acceleration (PGA) is a critical parameter in ground-motion investigations, in particular in earthquake-prone areas such as Iran. In the current study, a new method based on particle swarm optimization (PSO) is developed to obtain an efficient attenuation relationship for the vertical PGA component within the northern Iranian plateau. The main purpose of this study is to propose suitable attenuation relationships for calculating the PGA for the Alborz, Tabriz and Kopet Dag faults in the vertical direction. To this aim, the available catalogs of the study area are investigated, and finally about 240 earthquake records (with a moment magnitude of 4.1 to 6.4) are chosen to develop the model. Afterward, the PSO algorithm is used to estimate model parameters, i.e., unknown coefficients of the model (attenuation relationship). Different statistical criteria showed the acceptable performance of the proposed relationships in the estimation of vertical PGA components in comparison to the previously developed relationships for the northern plateau of Iran. Developed attenuation relationships in the current study are independent of shear wave velocity. This issue is the advantage of proposed relationships for utilizing in the situations where there are not sufficient shear wave velocity data

Application of Herbicide in Paddy Fields Inoculated with ‎Azotobacter chroococcum

A field experiment was conducted at Rasht, in 2014, to investigate controlling weeds in native Hashemi cultivar paddy fields by different methods of herbicide applications and inoculated with Azotobacter chroococcum. The factorial experiment based on a randomized complete block design with three replicates was performed. Factors were Azotobacter application with two levels (inoculation with or without Azotobacter chroococcum) and weed management regimes with six levels (pretilachlor plus a supplementary hand weeding, bensulfuron methyl plus a supplementary hand weeding, and pretilachlor + bensulfuron methyl plus a supplementary hand weeding, hand weeding during rice growing period + no herbicide, un-weeded during rice growing period + no herbicide). Results indicated that paddy rice yield was significantly increased by 16% after Azotobacter chroococcum inoculation. Rice paddy yield was significantly reduced in un-weeded plots compared to hand weeded and herbicide treated plots. ANOVA also revealed that there was no interaction effect between Azotobacter chroococcum applications and weed management regimes on paddy and biological yields, indicating that the herbicides had no adverse effect on Azotobacter efficiency in promoting growth and paddy yield of rice. Weed dry weight was reduced by 88, 91, 92, and 94 percentages in weeded plot and plots treated with pretilachlor, bensulfuron methyl, and pretilachlor + bensulfuron methyl, respectively, compared to un-weeded plots. Azotobacter chroococcum inoculation had no significant effect on weed biomass. Overall, the result of this experiment confirmed the feasibility of chemical weed control in paddy fields inoculated with Azotobacter chroococcum

Effect of Omega-3 on Recurrent Aphthous Stomatitis and Improvement Quality of Life

Objective. Recurrent aphthous stomatitis is one of the most common chronic inflammatory diseases in oral mucosa. Beneficial effects of omega-3 supplements on some inflammatory diseases have been proved. The aim of present study was to evaluate the effect of omega-3 supplements in recurrent aphthous stomatitis management and improve oral health-related quality of life. Methods. In this double-blind clinical trial, 40 patients with minor recurrent aphthous stomatitis were randomly divided into case and control groups. The case group received 1000 mg capsules of omega-3, while the control group received placebo capsules for 6 months. The questionnaires of the ulcer severity score and the chronic oral mucosal disease questionnaire were filled by the patients in three steps, at the baseline session, after 3 months, and after 6 months. The data were analyzed by SPSS 22 software through ANOVA, Mann–Whitney, and chi-square tests. P<0.05 was considered as significant. Results. In the omega-3 group, the ulcer severity score showed significant reduction by three-month and six-month follow-ups (P<0.0001, P<0.0001, respectively). The mean score of the chronic oral mucosal disease questionnaire significantly improved by three-month and six-month follow-ups in the omega-3-receiving group. Conclusion. Use of omega-3 oral supplements decreased the severity of aphthous ulcer and improved oral health-related quality of life