Engineering characteristics of Egyptian limestone

Purpose. Study of physical properties such as porosity, density and mechanical properties such as compressive strength and tensile strength of Egyptian limestone based on experimental investigations. Methods. In this paper using physical and mechanical properties to evaluate the Egyptian limestone according to the relationship between their properties especially the degree of water saturation. Samples were obtained from six different locations (Helwan, Minia, Assuit, Qena, Sohag, and Aswan). Findings. The strong correlation between porosity and density, and good correlations between uniaxial strength and tensile strength. Carried out results indicated that, small porosity results in greater rock strength and vice versa. Originality. Applying the fitting curve technique to check the best correlation between the different property of limestone to identify the best relationship to apply the prediction to find the limestone property in other location as regards applying conditions. Practical implications. Results carried out that the strong correlation between porosity and density, and good correlations between uniaxial strength and tensile strength as summarize in the outcome of data interpretation. Highest quality stones, in terms of their hydric behavior and mechanical properties, are the index for the suitability of using limestone.Мета. Вивчення фізичних та механічних властивостей вапняку родовищ Єгипту на основі експериментальних досліджень. Методика. Зразки вапняку відбирались з родовищ шести різних провінцій (Helwan, Minia, Assuit, Qena, Sohag, Aswan). Зразки кернів були підготовлені з використанням бурильного станка відповідно до критеріїв стандарту ISRM. Підготовка до випробування зразків керна проводилася перпендикулярно площинам нашарування. Відповідні властивості для виробництва заповнювача були перевірені з точки зору вмісту води, щільності, стійкості до стирання та стійкості до стирання в кінцевому підсумку на вапняковій ділянці, який більше підходить для виготовлення бетону і асфальту. Фізичні властивості (щільність та пористість) і механічні властивості (міцність на стиск, міцність на розрив і коефіцієнт динамічного дроблення) були досліджені за стандартними методиками для дев’яти зразків вапняку кожної з шести провінцій. Результати. Для вапняку родовищ Єгипту експериментально виявлено високу кореляцію між пористістю та щільністю, а також хороші кореляції між міцністю на одновісний стиск і міцністю на розрив, що характеризує інженерні вимоги до його використання у цивільному та промисловому будівництві. Проведені результати показали, що низька пористість призводить до більшої міцності порід і навпаки. Наукова новизна. Полягає у використанні техніки підгонки кривої для перевірки найкращої кореляції між різними властивостями вапняку при встановленні найкращого відношення, застосовуючи цей прогноз для вивчення властивостей вапняку в іншому місці. Практична значимість. Отримані показники фізичних та механічних характеристик вапняку є корисними для визначення можливої області його застосування в цивільному та промисловому будівництві, тощо.Цель. Изучение физических и механических свойств известняка месторождений Египта на основе экспериментальных исследований. Методика. Образцы известняка отбирались с месторождений шести различных провинций (Helwan, Minia, Assuit, Qena, Sohag, Aswan). Образцы кернов были подготовлены с использованием бурильного станка согласно критериям стандарта ISRM. Подготовка к испытанию образцов керна проводилась перпендикулярно плоскостям напластований. Подходящие свойства для производства заполнителя были проверены с точки зрения содержания воды, плотности, устойчивости к истиранию и стойкости к истиранию в конечном итоге на известняковом участке, который больше подходит для изготовления бетона и асфальта. Физические свойства (плотность и пористость) и механические свойства (прочность на сжатие, прочность на разрыв и коэффициент динамического дробления) были исследованы по стандартным методикам для девяти образцов известняка каждой из шести провинций. Результаты. Для известняка месторождений Египта экспериментально обнаружена высокая корреляция между пористостью и плотностью, а также хорошие корреляции между прочностью на одноосное сжатие и прочностью на разрыв, характеризующие инженерные требования к его использованию в гражданском и промышленном строительстве. Проведенные результаты показали, что низкая пористость приводит к большей прочности пород и наоборот. Научная новизна. Заключается в использовании техники подгонки кривой для проверки наилучшей корреляции между различными свойствами известняка при установлении наилучшего отношения, применяя этот прогноз для определения свойств известняка в другом месте. Практическая значимость. Полученные показатели физических и механических характеристик известняка являются полезными для определения возможной области его применения в гражданском и промышленном строительстве и т.д.This research was partially supported by Mining and Petroleum Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering Al-Azhar University, Egypt, that provided machines to finish the research

Study of Optical, Electrical and Photocatalysis Properties of SrMnO3 Synthesized by Solid-State Reaction

SrMnO3 was prepared by solid-state reaction method to obtain powder then thin films by a thermal evaporation method. XRD diffraction, Optical and electrical properties were investigated. Photocatalysis process was implemented as an interesting application of SrMnO3. XRD diffraction results were used to study the compound structure and to calculate some other parameters such as crystallite size, D, microstrain, e, and dislocation density, d. XRD results revealed that SrMnO3 has a polycrystalline structure such as hexagonal structure for SrMnO3 phase and tetragonal structure for MnO2 phase. The optical energy band for the powder and thin film were equal to 2.28 eV and 2.92 eV respectively, which candidates this compound to be a solar cell transparent window, especially for deposited thin films. The electrical resistivity behaved as semiconductor-like where it decreases with the temperature with electrical activation energy equal 0.960 eV when heating and 0.663 eV when cooling. The result of the Methylene blue absorption showed that the SrMnO3 powder does work very well as a Photocatalyst. The efficiency of the powder of SrMnO3 as a Photocatalyst increases with the illumination time and its best value is about 56% at 120 min

Preparation and Characterization of Silver and Gold Nanoparticles and Study Influence on Physical Properties of PVA/PVP nanocomposites

Gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) and Silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) ware prepared by green synthesis extraction using the Chenopodium murale leaf extract, the obtained (Ag NPs and Au NPs) were investigated by UV/Vis. absorption spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, Zetasizer, XRD. The plant extraction leads to produce nanoparticles of spherical shape with size range from 4 to 22 nm. Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and polyvinyl Pyrolidone (PVP) blend with mixed silver and gold nanoparticles were prepared by casting method. Amorphous feather of doping polymers blend was characterized by X-ray diffraction. Significant changes within the polymer matrix were monitored from infrared spectroscopy which indicates the interaction between polymer blend and mixed nanoparticles. Both indirect and direct optical energy gaps are calculated and discussed

A Study of Adiponectin in Children with Diabetes Mellitus

Objectives: Adiponectin is a hormone produced by adipose tissue. It is secreted exclusively by adipocytes and appears to play a role in the pathophysiology of obesity, diabetes mellitus (DM), and its comorbidities. The aim of this study was to assess adiponectin levels in diabetic children with type 1 DM (T1DM) and type 2 DM (T2DM), and to detect its prognostic role in them. Methods: This study was undertaken from April to July 2011 at Minia University Children’s Hospital, Egypt, and included 314 children aged 2–18 years divided into two patient groups. Group I consisted of 164 pre-diagnosed diabetic patients, further subdivided into Group Ia which included 142 patients with T1DM and Group Ib, 22 patients with T2DM; Group 2 included 150 apparently healthy children as a controls; they were age- and sex-matched to the diseased group. Patients were subjected to a thorough history taking, clinical examination, and laboratory investigations including assessment of HbA1c percentages, fasting C-peptide levels, lipid profiles and fasting serum adiponectin levels. Results: Adiponectin levels did not differ significantly between patients with T1DM and T2DM, but it was significantly higher in diabetic patients than in the controls. In T1DM, adiponectin had positive significant correlations with the duration of the disease and waist circumference, while in T2DM, it had a positive significant correlation with the dose of insulin given and negative significant associations with diastolic blood pressure, cholesterol, and C-peptide levels. Conclusion: The results of the study suggest that adiponectin can play a protective role against the metabolic complications of DM

Study of Optical, Electrical and Photocatalysis Properties of SrMnO3 Synthesized by Solid-State Reaction

SrMnO3 was prepared by solid-state reaction method to obtain powder then thin films by a thermal evaporation method. XRD diffraction, Optical and electrical properties were investigated. Photocatalysis process was implemented as an interesting application of SrMnO3. XRD diffraction results were used to study the compound structure and to calculate some other parameters such as crystallite size, D, microstrain, e, and dislocation density, d. XRD results revealed that SrMnO3 has a polycrystalline structure such as hexagonal structure for SrMnO3 phase and tetragonal structure for MnO2 phase. The optical energy band for the powder and thin film were equal to 2.28 eV and 2.92 eV respectively, which candidates this compound to be a solar cell transparent window, especially for deposited thin films. The electrical resistivity behaved as semiconductor-like where it decreases with the temperature with electrical activation energy equal 0.960 eV when heating and 0.663 eV when cooling. The result of the Methylene blue absorption showed that the SrMnO3 powder does work very well as a Photocatalyst. The efficiency of the powder of SrMnO3 as a Photocatalyst increases with the illumination time and its best value is about 56% at 120 min

Gastrointestinal Helminthic Infections in Egyptian Domestic Camels, Camelus dromedarius, with a Special Reference to Trichostrongylids

In Egypt, scare literature explored the coprological examination of domestic camels. Therefore, a total of 626 fecal samples from domestic dromedaries, Camelus dromedaries, permitted to slaughtering in El-Warrak abattoir, Giza were taken. Coproparasitological investigations including sedimentation and floatation techniques, fecal culture and larval identification were done. The overall prevalence of parasitic infections was 41.53%. Fifteen species of helminth eggs/protozoan oocysts were recovered. The prevalence of helminths was 28.11% (176/626) and that of protozoa was 5.59% (35/626). Mixed infections were reported in 7.82% (49/626) of camels. The revealed trematode was Fasciola sp. (1.12%), tapeworms belonged to Anoplocephalids (5.27%), protozoan oocysts were Eimeria cameli, E. dromedarii, E. rajasthani (11.02% for all Eimeria spp.) and Buxtonella sp. (0.32%). The recovered nematodes belonged to Trichuris sp. (1.92%) and trichostrongyles (31.0%). Coproculture of the later revealed the presence of 8 species; Trichostrongylus axei, Tr. colubriformis, Chabertia ovina, Ostertagia ostertagi, Haemonchus sp., Oesophagostomum sp., Bunostomum sp. and Nematodirus sp. Morphometric characteristics of larvae were recorded. Age and seasonal variations revealed significant (P≤0.05) differences among examined camels. Animals aged more than 5 years had the highest infections rate (45.96%; 199/433) and nematodes were the significantly (P≤0.05) predominant. In winter, the highest prevalence (60.67%; 108/178) was recorded. Oppositely, sex had no significant differences. Due to the expected important role played by imported camels in transmitting various parasitic infections, veterinarians and parasitologists are extremely advised to apply further studies on the helminth fauna, particularly gastrointestinal nematodes, of both domestic and imported camels, by the use of traditional and molecular tools

Genetic polymorphism of five genes associated with growth traits in goat

Genetic polymorphism studies in domestic animals aim at evaluating genetic variations within and across breeds mainly for conservation purposes. In this study, polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) was used to detect polymorphisms of five candidate genes in four Egyptian and Saudi goat breeds (Barki, Zaribi, Ardi and Masri), to detect the genotype of GH, IGF1, POUIF1, MSTN and BMP15 genes in the goat breeds and their allele frequencies. Results of GH gene which encloses a Haelll endonuclease restriction site show four unique PCR-RFLP banding patterns (genotypes AA, AB, CC and CD). The frequencies of the A allele in the samples from the goat breeds varied from 0.410 to 0.620. While  IGF-1gene revealed three fragments after digestion with Haelll with genotype AA, AB and BB and the  frequencies of allele A varied from 0.432 to 0.731. Furthermore, PCR-RFLP of POUIF1 gene showed two  fragments after digestion by Pst1 endonuclease with genotype TT and CC and the frequencies of allele T varied from 0.250 to 0.840. The MSTN gene revealed three fragments after digestion with DraI with genotype AA, BB and AB and the frequencies of allele A varied from 0.240 to 0.630. Meanwhile, the BMP15 gene revealed one fragments of 112 bp for AA after digestion with Hinf1 enzyme.Key words: Goats, polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP), GH, IGF-1, POUIF1, MSTN, BMP-15

Novel Polyoxyethylene-Containing Glycolipids Are Synthesized in Corynebacterium matruchotii and Mycobacterium smegmatis Cultured in the Presence of Tween 80

The addition of polyoxyethylene sorbitan monooleate (Tween 80) to a culture of mycobacteria greatly influences cell permeability and sensitivity to antibiotics but very little is known regarding the underlying mechanism. Here we show that Corynebacterium matruchotii (surrogate of mycobacteria) converts Tween 80 to a structural series of polyoxyethylenic acids which are then used to form novel series-2A and series-2B glycolipids. Minor series-3 glycolipids were also synthesized. The polyoxyethylenic acids replaced corynomycolic acids in the cell wall. Correspondingly the trehalose dicorynomycolate content was reduced. MALDI mass spectrometry, MS-MS, 1H-NMR, and 13C-NMR were used to characterize the series-2 glycolipids. Series-2A glycolipid is trehalose 6-C36:2-corynomycolate-6′-polyoxyethylenate and series-2B glycolipid is trehalose 6-C36:2-corynomycolate-6′-furan ring-containing polyoxyethylenate. Mycobacterium smegmatis grown in the presence of Tween 80 also synthesizes series-2 type glycolipids. The synthesis of these novel glycolipids in corynebacteria and mycobacteria should result in gross changes in the cell wall permeability and drug sensitivity