Détermination des écoulements préférentiels en zone karstique (Tafrata, Maroc), Apport des données satellitaires SAR ERS-1 et Landsat ETM+ et de la prospection géophysique

Malgré le grand nombre de puits et forages d’eau réalisés dans les différentes régions karstiques du Maroc, de nombreux inconnus subsistent encore concernant les critères d’implantation et le coût final des ouvrages. Afin d’optimiser les campagnes de forage à venir, une méthodologie de prospection multicritère a été adoptée dans la région karstique nord‑orientale du Maroc. Elle s’articule selon trois axes, à savoir : 1) détermination des linéaments hydrogéologiques à partir du traitement et interprétation des images satellitaires radar SAR ERS-1 et Landsat ETM+; 2) application de la géophysique électrique par (a) sondages électriques pour la détermination des épaisseurs des niveaux d’altération et de fracturation et par (b) trainées électriques pour la localisation précise de la zone de passage des linéaments hydrogéologiques, et finalement 3) application des techniques de Sondage par Résonance Magnétique (SRM) pour la vérification de la présence d’eau. Les différents résultats de sondages mécaniques réalisés à la suite de cette campagne de prospection montrent un taux de réussite très satisfaisant.In spite of the great number of water wells and drillings carried out in various karstic areas of Morocco, many unknown factors still remain concerning criteria for installing such works and for the final costs. To optimize future drilling campaigns, a multi-criteria method of prospecting was adopted in the karstic area of north-eastern Morocco. It is presented according to three axes: 1) the determination of hydrogeologic lineaments based on the analysis and interpretation of SAR ERS-1 and Landsat ETM+ images; 2) the application of electrical resistivity methods by (a) vertical electric soundings (VES) for the determination of the thicknesses of weathered layers and of fractures, and by (b) electric resistivity profiling for the determination of the exact location of hydrogeological lineament zones; and finally, 3) the application of Magnetic Resonance Sounding (MRS) for the verification of the presence of water. The various results of mechanical drilling carried out following this prospecting campaign show a very satisfactory rate of success

Hygiene Prevention in Clay Based Ceramic Tiles by Using the Phosphate Extracted from the Mines of Morocco and Its Effect on Technical Properties

This study offers a simple solution to manufacture ceramic tiles with good technical and hygienic properties in accordance with the ISO standards by integrating phosphate products into the formulation. For phosphate products, three grades were studied: HG-high grade, MG-medium grade and LG-low grade. It has shown, for ceramic tiles generated by dry pressing process and which contain these additives, that there is both an effect of the concentration and the nature of additive on technical and hygienic properties. Mechanical property was improved when the incorporate component is richer in P2O5. Only the use of HG-high grade and MG-medium grade as an additive at least 15% makes it possible to satisfy the mechanical requirement. The anti-biofilm effect of the natural phosphate (PN) as additives to manufacture ceramic tiles has been proven, it may prevent the bio adhesion and the biofilm formation by a percentage, which can reach up to at 75% for the HG-high grade and MG-medium grade. This solution could interest professionals and all users who care about the state of hygiene of their ceramic materials sensible to the formation of biofilm, like orthopedic implants, swimming pool tile…et

Hygiene Prevention in Clay Based Ceramic Tiles by Using the Phosphate Extracted from the Mines of Morocco and Its Effect on Technical Properties

This study offers a simple solution to manufacture ceramic tiles with good technical and hygienic properties in accordance with the ISO standards by integrating phosphate products into the formulation. For phosphate products, three grades were studied: HG-high grade, MG-medium grade and LG-low grade. It has shown, for ceramic tiles generated by dry pressing process and which contain these additives, that there is both an effect of the concentration and the nature of additive on technical and hygienic properties. Mechanical property was improved when the incorporate component is richer in P2O5. Only the use of HG-high grade and MG-medium grade as an additive at least 15% makes it possible to satisfy the mechanical requirement. The anti-biofilm effect of the natural phosphate (PN) as additives to manufacture ceramic tiles has been proven, it may prevent the bio adhesion and the biofilm formation by a percentage, which can reach up to at 75% for the HG-high grade and MG-medium grade. This solution could interest professionals and all users who care about the state of hygiene of their ceramic materials sensible to the formation of biofilm, like orthopedic implants, swimming pool tile…et

Enhancing Hygiene and Technical Properties of Ceramic Tiles through Moroccan Phosphate Additives

This study offers a simple solution to manufacture ceramic tiles with good technical and hygienic properties. This solution consists of integrating the phosphate product from Morocco in the industrial formulation of ceramic tiles, to produce materials in compliance with the criterion of the ISO standard. For phosphate products, three grades were studied: HG-high grade, MG-medium grade, and LG-low grade. The results show that for materials containing these additives, there is both an effect of the concentration and type of additive on technical and hygienic properties. The mechanical property is improved when the incorporated component was richer in P2O5. Only the use of HG-high grade and MG-medium grade as an additive at least 15% makes it possible to satisfy the mechanical requirement. The anti-biofilm effect of natural phosphate (PN) as an additive to manufacture ceramic tiles is confirmed, it may prevent bio adhesion and biofilm formation at almost 75% for the HG-high grade and MG-medium grade. This solution could interest professionals and all users who care about the state of hygiene of their ceramic materials sensible to the formation of biofilm, like orthopaedic implants, swimming pool tile…etc

Diagnostic de la Gestion des Effluens Liquides Hospitaliers de la Region de Casablanca-Settat

Les effluents liquides hospitaliers dans la région de Casablanca Settat sont marqués par l’absence de procédures de leur gestion. Ils sont évacués avec des volumes importants dans les réseaux collectifs d’assainissement, sans traitement préalable. Ces rejets contiennent des substances dangereuses chimiques et pathogènes ce qui constitue des menaces sérieuses de pollution et de détérioration de la santé des populations. Ce travail est une étude exploratoire sur les pratiques quis’exercent en matière de gestion des rejets liquides dans les établissements hospitaliers de la région de Casablanca-Settat. La méthodologie s’appuie sur 3 méthodes d’investigation à savoir ; (a) l’enquête par questionnaire auprès des personnels qui président et gèrent directement les effluents liquides hospitaliers via un questionnaire, (b) aussi l’estimation de la quantité des effluents déversés sur la base de la capacité litière fonctionnelle de tous les hôpitaux de la région ; et (c) enfin sur l’analyse systématique et reproductible des articles marocains traitant la problématique des effluents hospitaliers. Parmi lesrésultatssaillants de l’étude furent ;(a) le diagnostic des principales lacunes et dysfonctionnements en termes de gestion des effluents au niveau de la région Casablanca-Settat ; (b) la quantité énorme des effluents liquides hospitaliers déversés sans aucun traitement préalable ;(c) la mauvaise qualité des effluents liquides hospitaliers au Maroc ; (d) Même typologie des effluents liquides tant au niveau national qu’au niveau marocain ; Finalement, quelques recommandations furent formulées pour tracer les perspectives concourant vers une prise en charge durable de ces rejets.Hospital liquid effluents in the Casablanca Settat region are marked by the lack of procedures for their management. They are evacuated with large volumes in collective sanitation networks, without prior treatment. These releases contain chemical and pathogenic hazardous substances which constitutes serious threats of pollution and deterioration of populations. This work investigates practices in the management of liquid waste in hospitals in the Casablanca-Settat region. Our methodology is based on 3 investigation methods namely; (a) the questionnaire survey of personnel who directly manage and manage hospital liquid effluents via a questionnaire; (b) also the estimation of the quantity of effluents discharged on the basis of the functional litter capacity of all hospitals the region ; and (c) finally, the systematic analysis of Moroccan articles dealing with the issue of hospital effluents. Among the outstanding results of this study were: (a) the identification of the main deficiencies in terms of effluent management in the Casablanca-Settat region; (b) the enormous quantity of hospital liquid effluents discharged without any prior treatment, (c) the poor quality of hospital liquid effluents in Morocco; (d) Same typology of liquid effluents at both national and Moroccan levels; Finally, some recommendations wer

Contribution of Gravity Data for Structural Characterization of the Ifni Inlier, Western Anti-Atlas, Morocco: Hydrogeological Implications

The Sidi Ifni region in southwest Morocco is mainly composed of crystalline rocks with limited groundwater storage capacity. These water resources drain in particular fault zones with high fracture permeability. The main objective of this study is to describe the geological structure of the region to optimize future drilling locations. The gravity data were processed using various techniques, such as total horizontal gradient, tilt derivative, and Euler deconvolution, in conjunction with the interpretation of the geological data, to create a new structural map. This map confirms the presence of many previously identified or inferred faults and identifies significant new faults with their respective trends and depths. Analysis of this map shows that major faults are oriented NNESSW and NE-SW, while minor faults are oriented E-W, NW-SE, and NNW-SSE. The superposition of the hydrogeological data and the structural map reveals that the high groundwater flow values in the boreholes are located in the vicinity of the major faults and talwegs. The structures deduced from the filtering and interpretation of the gravity data suggest that the hydrogeological system of the Ifni Inlier is controlled by its structures. To confirm this impact, a high-resolution electrical resistivity map (7200 Hz) was used, with penetration depths ranging from 84 to 187 m. Negative boreholes, located in high resistivity ranges corresponding to sound basement formations without fault crossings, showed high resistivity values. The positive holes, located in anomalies with low linear resistivity, revealed the impact of fault crossings, which drain water and tend to decrease the resistivity values of the formations. Therefore, these new structural maps will assist in planning future hydrogeological studies in this area

Reliance on deep soil water in the tree species Argania spinosa

In South-western Morocco, water scarcity and high temperature are the main factors determining species survival. Argania spinosa (L.) Skeels is a tree species, endemic to Morocco, which is suffering from ongoing habitat shrinkage. Argan trees play essential local ecological and economic roles: protecting soils from erosion, shading different types of crops, helping maintain soil fertility and, even more importantly, its seeds are used by the local population for oil production, with valuable nutritional, medicinal and cosmetic purposes. The main objective of this study was to identify the sources of water used by this species and to assess the effect of water availability on the photosynthetic rate and stem water potential in two populations: one growing on the coast and a second one 10 km inland. Stem water potential, photosynthetic rate and xylem water isotopic composition (δ18O) were seasonally monitored during 2 years. Trees from both populations showed a similar strategy in the use of the available water sources, which was strongly dependent on deep soil water throughout the year. Nevertheless, during the wet season or under low precipitation a more complex water uptake pattern was found with a mixture of water sources, including precipitation and soil at different depths. No evidence was found of the use of either groundwater or atmospheric water in this species. Despite the similar water-use strategy, the results indicate that Argania trees from the inland population explored deeper layers than coastal ones as suggested by more depleted δ18O values recorded in the inland trees and better photosynthetic performance, hence suggesting that the coastal population of A. spinosa could be subjected to higher stress

Delineation of Groundwater Potential Area using an AHP, Remote Sensing, and GIS Techniques in the Ifni Basin, Western Anti-Atlas, Morocco

An assessment of potential groundwater areas in the Ifni basin, located in the western AntiAtlas range of Morocco, was conducted based on a multicriteria analytical approach that integrated a set of geomorphological and hydroclimatic factors influencing the availability of this resource. This approach involved the use of geographic information systems (GIS) and hierarchical analytical process (AHP) models. Different factors were classified and weighted according to their contribution to and impact on groundwater reserves. Their normalized weights were evaluated using a pairwise comparison matrix. Four classes of potentiality emerged: very high, high, moderate, and low, occupying 15.22%, 20.17%, 30.96%, and 33.65%, respectively, of the basin’s area. A groundwater potential map (GWPA) was validated by comparison with data from 134 existing water points using a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. The AUC was calculated at 80%, indicating the good predictive accuracy of the AHP method. These results will enable water operators to select favorable sites with a high groundwater potential

MULTIPLE BIOMARKER RESPONSE IN THE MUSSEL, PERNA PERNA TO ASSESS THE MARINE QUALITY IN THE BIG CASABLANCA AREA

The aim of this study is to assess the marine environment quality in the Big Casablanca area. A number of biochemical markers were measured in the brown mussel, Perna perna, sampled from four sampling sites characterized by a different degree of contamination and human impacts. As biochemical indices; Catalase (CAT), Glutathione S-transferase (GST), Acetylcholinesterase (AChE), as well as Malondialdehyde (MDA) and Metallothioneine (MT) were evaluated in whole soft tissues of mussels collected from the selected sites. The biomarkers showed statistically significant differences at the polluted sites when compared to the control ones. Our data indicated that CAT and GST activity, MDA and MT concentration in whole mussel bodies, are a higher and significant (p < 0.05) in mussels collected at polluted sites when compared to specimen sampled from control ones. In contrary the response of AChE activity was significantly (p<0.05) inhibited in mussels from polluted sites when compared to control values. The multiple biomarker responses obtained for October 2010 and 2011, clearly demonstrate the potential presence of different contaminants in Site1 and Site2 reflecting the intensity of pollution in these areas