USING WATER BALANCE TO ASSESS THE GROUNDWATER RECHARGE IN THE AREA BETWEEN RUTBA AND DHABAA, WESTERN OF IRAQ

The study area is located in Al-Rutba city, Al-Anbar Governorate, western Iraq. The metrological data were collected during 1981 – 2016, and used to assess the climatic condition for the study area. The total annual rainfall was 113.3 mm and relative humidity was 47.1%, while the monthly average temperature was 20.1 °C, evaporation was 3074.3 mm, the wind speed was 2.6 m/s with a prevailing direction along the year was NW 29.2%. Data derived from the ratio of wind direction and sunshine duration was 9.2 h/day. The climate of the study area is described as an arid and relatively hot in summer, and cold with low rain in winter. During the 35 years' comparison period, the highest potential evapotranspiration value was 175.82 mm during July and August, while the lowest value was 7.758 mm in January, while the total amount was 970.612 mm. The highest value of the corrected evapotranspiration was 212.74 mm in July and the lowest value was 6.78 mm in January, while the total amount was 1072.021 mm. Water surplus was recorded in the study area was 19.849% of the total rainfall which was equivalent to 113.3 mm. The study area consisted of a thin layer (<0.1 m) of sandy soil, therefore, this thin layer was not considered. A number of key findings are presented which pertain to; the type of rainfall event, wind conditions, and the location. Hence, the value of groundwater recharge was 22.489 mm with a rate of 19.849% which represents the percentage of groundwater recharge from the total rainfall

Application of GIS and Remote Sensing Techniques for Hydromorphometric Analysis of Wadi Al-Mohammadi Basin, Western Iraq

Hydromorphometric analysis as a method is considered one of the most reliable and used methods in solving hydrological problems. Where it is possible to know the volume of runoff and the rest of the elements that enter into the water balance. Geographical Information System and Remote Sensing is the technique that used the hydro-morphometric analysis of the Wadi Al-Mohammadi basin. Wadi Al-Mohammadi, located in the Western Desert, is one of the main valleys that flow into the Euphrates River. It is considered an important basin, because of its many characteristics, including its relatively large area and the amount of water drained through, which is used mainly in watering livestock and agriculture, in addition to industrial purposes such as the production of washed sand, gravel that scattered on both sides of the valley. The hydrological analysis included several steps, which gave the results of the flow accumulation with the highest value in the lower part of the basin. The results represented by form characteristics confirm that the shape of the basin is far from the round shape, which reflects the basin’s characteristics with the regular surface flow in time and relatively low drainages. Wadi Al-Mohammadi basin has reached the 5th order to flow into the Euphrates River. It has two types of drainage patterns, the dendritic pattern, and the parallel pattern. Wadi Al-Mohammadi basin is categorized as extremely low drainage density, very low drainage frequency, very coarse drainage texture, lower infiltration number, and low relief slope. Based on the results, the basin is characterized by an almost flat plateau surface, with a gradual slope homogeneous and good permeable soil conditions, and in other parts influenced by the structural phenomena under the surface, the high permeability of sediments over which streams pass, higher the infiltration and lower runoff

Lung disease recognition methods using audio-based analysis with machine learning

The use of computer-based automated approaches and improvements in lung sound recording techniques have made lung sound-based diagnostics even better and devoid of subjectivity errors. Using a computer to evaluate lung sound features more thoroughly with the use of analyzing changes in lung sound behavior, recording measurements, suppressing the presence of noise contaminations, and graphical representations are all made possible by computer-based lung sound analysis. This paper starts with a discussion of the need for this research area, providing an overview of the field and the motivations behind it. Following that, it details the survey methodology used in this work. It presents a discussion on the elements of sound-based lung disease classification using machine learning algorithms. This includes commonly prior considered datasets, feature extraction techniques, pre-processing methods, artifact removal methods, lung-heart sound separation, deep learning algorithms, and wavelet transform of lung audio signals. The study introduces studies that review lung screening including a summary table of these references and discusses the literature gaps in the existing studies. It is concluded that the use of sound-based machine learning in the classification of respiratory diseases has promising results. While we believe this material will prove valuable to physicians and researchers exploring sound-signal-based machine learning, large-scale investigations remain essential to solidify the findings and foster wider adoption within the medical community

The effect of a novel BYK dispersant for MWCNT on flexural properties of epoxy nanocomposites and hybrid carbon fiber composites

In this study, multi-walled carbon nanotubes modified with and without BYK dispersant were utilized to improve the flexural strength properties of epoxy nanocomposites and hybrid carbon fiber composites. The goal of the addition of BYK dispersants is to reduce the viscosity factor of epoxy resins and prevent the agglomeration phenomenon, which leads to a higher dispersion degree for carbon nanotubes in the resin. Three samples of nanocomposites were prepared utilizing ultrasonication technique at 0.1 wt% of MWCNT, namely MWCNT/epoxy nanocomposites unmodified with BYK and MWCNT/epoxy nanocomposites modified with BYK as well as pure epoxy. The samples have been dispersed and prepared at equal and constant times. The purpose of that is to perform a comparison among these products of nanocomposites. Flexural strength measurements were performed to determine the optimum nanocomposite. The MWCNT/epoxy nanocomposite modified with BYK dispersant was the best type. The flexural strength and modulus for this type were increased by approximately 23% and 52%, respectively.The nanophase resins for these aforementioned nanocomposites were utilized to improve the mechanical properties of carbon fiber composites utilizing hand lay-up technique. Three samples were produced, namely CF/epoxy modified by MWCNT without BYK, CF/epoxy modified by MWCNT with BYK and CF/pure epoxy. Flexural strength measurements were also conducted to estimate the mechanical properties of hybrid fiber composites. The CF/epoxy modified by MWCNT with BYK was the optimum hybrid composite, where the flexural strength and modulus for this type were improved by approximately 27% and 8%, respectively. TEM and SEM were utilized to check the degree of dispersion and exfoliation of nanotubes in the epoxy resin, plus to explain the reasons behind the failure of composites under flexural loads.In conclusion, the addition of BYK dispersants to a mixture of MWCNT and epoxy resin contributes to improving the degree of dispersion and alignment of nanotubes in the matrix. Thus, this leads to an increase in the strength properties of epoxy nanocomposites. The addition of optimized and strengthened nanocomposite with BYK to fiber composites also led to an increase in the flexural strength properties of hybrid carbon fiber composites