Effect of Some Thermal Treatments in the Growth and Development Of Seedlings Carob (Ceratonia siliqua L.), تأثير بعض المعاملات الحرارية في نمو وتطور بادرات الخرنوب Ceratonia siliqua L.

This research was conducted at the Scientific Agricultural Research Center (Lattakia/Syria), during the first half of 2015 In order to increase knowledge about the impact of several thermal treatments on some qualitative and quantitative indicators for the growth of shoot and root system of carob (Ceratonia siliqua L.) seedlings. three places were selected with different temperatures degree. The first (Lab, 25±0.5°C ) the second ( Room growth, 20.66±0.5°C ) the third (Open Field, 17.3±0.5°C ). And a private agricultural vessels (Minirhizotron) were used to follow the growth of seedlings roots. The results showed a superiority of Laboratory treatment at the Room growth and Field treatments in the quantity rates for the growth of root and shoot system and the curves for three treatments specialized of taproot and stem growth\u27s speeds was coincident on each other to a large and generally with somewhat similar paths. In addition to a clear consensus somewhat between the taproot growth and high and low temperature unlike the growth and development of the main stem. The general track of the growth\u27s rate of the taproot and stem is the same for the three treatments and was not affected by the influence of temperature and this leads us to mind genetic characteristics belonging to the type of the carob that isn\u27t affected by the environmental studied factor. نفذ البحث في مركز البحوث العلمية الزراعية في اللاذقية / سورية، خلال النصف الأول من عام 2015م، بهدف زيادة المعرفة حول تأثير عدة معاملات حرارية في بعض المؤشرات الكمية والنوعية لنمو الجهاز الجذري والهوائي لبادرات الخرنوب Ceratonia siliqua L.. تم اختيار 3 أماكن ذات درجات حرارة مختلفة، الأول (المخبرL الحرارة = 25 ± 0.5 ºم )، والثاني ( صالة النمو R الحرارة = 20.66 ± 0.5 ºم )، والثالث ( الحقل المكشوف F الحرارة = 17.3 ± 0.5 ºم)، وتم استخدام أوعية زراعية خاصة (ميني ريزوترونات) لمتابعة نمو جذور بادرات الخرنوب. أظهرت النتائج تفوق معاملة المخبر (L) على معاملتي صالة النمو (R) والحقل (F) في المعدلات الكمية لنمو المجموعين الجذري والهوائي، وكانت المنحنيات الخاصة بقيم سرعات نمو الجذر الرئيس والساق الرئيسة للمعاملات الثلاث متراكبة على بعضها البعض إلى حد كبير وذات مسارات متشابهة عموماً. بالإضافة إلى وجود توافق واضح نوعاً بين نمو الجذر الرئيس وارتفاع وانخفاض الحرارة على عكس نمو وتطور الساق الرئيسة. وكان المسار العام لمعدل نمو الجذر الرئيس والساق الرئيسة هو نفسه للمعاملات الثلاث، ولم يتأثر بتأثير درجة الحرارة، وهذا يقود لاعتبارها صفة وراثية تابعة لنوع الخرنوب ولا تتأثر بالعامل البيئي المدروس

Advancements in cardiac structures segmentation: a comprehensive systematic review of deep learning in CT imaging

BackgroundSegmentation of cardiac structures is an important step in evaluation of the heart on imaging. There has been growing interest in how artificial intelligence (AI) methods—particularly deep learning (DL)—can be used to automate this process. Existing AI approaches to cardiac segmentation have mostly focused on cardiac MRI. This systematic review aimed to appraise the performance and quality of supervised DL tools for the segmentation of cardiac structures on CT.MethodsEmbase and Medline databases were searched to identify related studies from January 1, 2013 to December 4, 2023. Original research studies published in peer-reviewed journals after January 1, 2013 were eligible for inclusion if they presented supervised DL-based tools for the segmentation of cardiac structures and non-coronary great vessels on CT. The data extracted from eligible studies included information about cardiac structure(s) being segmented, study location, DL architectures and reported performance metrics such as the Dice similarity coefficient (DSC). The quality of the included studies was assessed using the Checklist for Artificial Intelligence in Medical Imaging (CLAIM).Results18 studies published after 2020 were included. The DSC scores median achieved for the most commonly segmented structures were left atrium (0.88, IQR 0.83–0.91), left ventricle (0.91, IQR 0.89–0.94), left ventricle myocardium (0.83, IQR 0.82–0.92), right atrium (0.88, IQR 0.83–0.90), right ventricle (0.91, IQR 0.85–0.92), and pulmonary artery (0.92, IQR 0.87–0.93). Compliance of studies with CLAIM was variable. In particular, only 58% of studies showed compliance with dataset description criteria and most of the studies did not test or validate their models on external data (81%).ConclusionSupervised DL has been applied to the segmentation of various cardiac structures on CT. Most showed similar performance as measured by DSC values. Existing studies have been limited by the size and nature of the training datasets, inconsistent descriptions of ground truth annotations and lack of testing in external data or clinical settings.Systematic Review Registration[www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/], PROSPERO [CRD42023431113]

Pilot-scale investigation of flowrate and temperature influence on the performance of hollow fiber forward osmosis membrane in osmotic concentration process

Forward osmosis (FO) relying on the osmotic pressure difference across semi-permeable membrane draws permeate by the effect of saline draw solution (DS) turning diluted and leaving the feed solution (FS) concentrated. However, the energy intensive step of DS recovery makes FO a challenging process. The energy benefit of FO emerges when recovery step is obviated and FO is applied as an osmotic concentration (OC) process. OC implementations for volume reduction are still at bench-scale and the investigation at larger scale is among the breakthroughs. In this paper, the performance of hollow fiber (HF) membrane in pilot-scale OC process for reducing volume of feed was investigated. The impact of operating conditions such as flowrates and temperature was evaluated. FS and DS flowrates of 1.35 and 0.35 L.min-1 respectively are optimum conditions with 75% feed recovery and 1.90 LMH water flux. Reverse solute flux increased at higher flowrates. Results indicated the role of high DS flowrate and temperature in improving the performance. DS flowrate of 0.35 L.min-1 at constant FS flow of 1.10 L.min-1 and 27 °C was most suitable for achieving 84.5% feed recovery and 1.82 LMH water flux. Above all, the long-term performance of OC pilot-plant was demonstrated through 48 h of continuous operation where stable flux trend at an average water flux of 1.66 LMH was successfully achieved. Lastly, the permeability coefficients of HF membrane were enhanced at higher temperature

Pilot-scale evaluation of forward osmosis membranes for volume reduction of industrial wastewater

Water treatment is a key aspect for the sustainable management of oil & gas operations. Osmotic concentration (OC) is an advanced water treatment process, adapted from forward osmosis (FO), that does not require water recovery from the draw solution. In this study, two commercial hollow fiber FO membranes [Module 1, cellulose triacetate (CTA) and Module 2, thin film composite (TFC)] were evaluated at pilot scale using actual process water obtained from a gas production facility. The evaluation focused on assessing the membrane productivity, fouling potential and chemical cleaning efficiency while normalizing the performance using a theoretical model that account for the variability of the operating conditions. Performance tests showed that Module 2 has a higher flux compared to Module 1, 9.9 L/m2·h vs 1.7 L/m2·h; and lower specific reverse solute flux (RSF) for most of the ions. Additionally, Module 1 benchmark experiment showed a 13% flux loss attributed to inorganic fouling (calcium phosphate precipitation) while the flux loss in Module 2 was <5% possibly due to enhanced module hydrodynamics and variation in membrane chemistry. Chemical cleaning (citric acid) proved to be successful in restoring the flux for Module 1. From the 8.1 mg/L organic carbon present in the feed, advanced organic characterization revealed that certain group of hydrophilic organics are able to pass through Module 1, but not Module 2, translating to a specific forward organic solute flux of 0.9 mg/L and 0.1 mg/L for Module 1 and 2, respectively. Finally, key sustainable and environmental considerations were presented in support of further development of process implementation. The OC process has strong potential for full-scale installation; however, demonstrating its performance in the field would be the next step necessary for successful implementation of the technology

A Boundary Integral Equation with the Generalized Neumann Kernel for a Certain Class of Mixed Boundary Value Problem

We present a uniquely solvable boundary integral equation with the generalized Neumann kernel for solving two-dimensional Laplace’s equation on multiply connected regions with mixed boundary condition. Two numerical examples are presented to verify the accuracy of the proposed method

Post-traumatic stress disorder among health care providers two years following the Israeli attacks against Gaza Strip in August 2014: Another call for policy intervention

This study aimed to assess the level of posttraumatic stress disorder and to examine the relationship between exposure to war stress and posttraumatic symptoms among health care providers two years following Israeli offensives against Gaza Strip in 2014. Methodology: A cross-sectional design was used for this study. We targeted all nurses and doctors working in three governmental hospitals in the Gaza Strip who worked with victims of the 2014 war, more specifically, those who were working in emergency departments, intensive care units, operating rooms, surgical departments, and burn units. A demographic sheet and Impact Event Scale-Revised were used in this study. The Impact Event Scale-Revised has three sub-scales; intrusion, avoidance, and hyper-arousal. Results: The results showed that 291 (89.3%) out of 2444 participants had scores more than 35 (threshold cut-off point) on Impact Event Scale-Revised. Scores ranged from eight to 80 with a mean of 52.71. Females had higher levels of stress (55.33) than males (50.82) and nurses (52.67) had more stress than physicians (47.38). The most frequent symptoms of trauma subscales was “Intrusion” (mean=19.99), followed by “Avoidance” (mean=17.60), and then “Hyper-arousal” (mean=14.12). Level of trauma symptoms were not affected by place of living, hospital of work, while level of education had impacted level of trauma. Conclusion: The findings showed that health care providers still suffer from severe posttraumatic symptoms two years after exposure to a prolonged war stress. This level of trauma among health care providers warrants intervention programs to reduce stress and trauma among Gaza health care providers after the war.This study aimed to assess the level of posttraumatic stress disorder and to examine the relationship between exposure to war stress and posttraumatic symptoms among health care providers two years following Israeli offensives against Gaza Strip in 2014. Methodology: A cross-sectional design was used for this study. We targeted all nurses and doctors working in three governmental hospitals in the Gaza Strip who worked with victims of the 2014 war, more specifically, those who were working in emergency departments, intensive care units, operating rooms, surgical departments, and burn units. A demographic sheet and Impact Event Scale-Revised were used in this study. The Impact Event Scale-Revised has three sub-scales; intrusion, avoidance, and hyper-arousal. Results: The results showed that 291 (89.3%) out of 2444 participants had scores more than 35 (threshold cut-off point) on Impact Event Scale-Revised. Scores ranged from eight to 80 with a mean of 52.71. Females had higher levels of stress (55.33) than males (50.82) and nurses (52.67) had more stress than physicians (47.38). The most frequent symptoms of trauma subscales was “Intrusion” (mean=19.99), followed by “Avoidance” (mean=17.60), and then “Hyper-arousal” (mean=14.12). Level of trauma symptoms were not affected by place of living, hospital of work, while level of education had impacted level of trauma. Conclusion: The findings showed that health care providers still suffer from severe posttraumatic symptoms two years after exposure to a prolonged war stress. This level of trauma among health care providers warrants intervention programs to reduce stress and trauma among Gaza health care providers after the war

Industrial wastewater volume reduction through osmotic concentration: Membrane module selection and process modeling

Osmotic concentration (OC), a form of forward osmosis (FO) but without draw solution recovery, can be applied for reducing wastewater disposal volumes in the oil & gas industry. Within this industry, wastewater is often disposed of by injection through disposal wells into deep underground reservoirs. By reducing wastewater disposal volumes, the sustainability of the disposal reservoir is improved. In this application of OC, seawater or brine from a desalination plant serves as the draw solution and the diluted seawater is discharged to the sea. This study compared 3 commercial hollow-fiber FO membranes (CTA, TFC, aquaporin proteins) for reducing the volume of low salinity wastewater generated during liquified natural gas (LNG) production. Additionally, a model was developed to predict the performance of commercial full-scale membranes by identifying optimum operating conditions, taking into consideration the trade-off between feed concentration factor and water flux. Bench-scale tests were conducted using synthetic and actual wastewater from an LNG facility to evaluate OC technology performance and validate model predictions.Based on model results with a feed mimicking the salinity of actual wastewater, a 4x concentration factor produced a reasonable compromise between feed recovery and draw solution dilution and was considered the optimum for future tests. At higher concentration factors, the increased dilution of the draw solution negatively impacted flux. In bench tests with real wastewater, the TFC chemistry had a ≈5x higher water flux (9.7 vs. 1.9 L/m2-h) and a ≈3x lower specific reverse solute flux (192 vs. 551 mg/L) compared to the CTA chemistry. However, both membranes showed less than 5% fouling and a specific forward organic solute flux of less than 0.5 mg/L of total organic carbon (TOC). Pilot testing for >50 h showed stable performance, comparable to bench scale data and model predictions

An empirical determination of the whole-life cost of FO-based open-loop wastewater reclamation technologies

Over the past 5–10 years it has become apparent that the significant energy benefit provided by forward osmosis (FO) for desalination arises only when direct recovery of the permeate product from the solution used to transfer the water through the membrane (the draw solution) is obviated. These circumstances occur specifically when wastewater purification is combined with saline water desalination. It has been suggested that, for such an “open loop” system, the FO technology offers a lower-cost water reclamation option than the conventional process based on reverse osmosis (RO). An analysis is presented of the costs incurred by this combined treatment objective. Three process schemes are considered combining the FO or RO technologies with membrane bioreactors (MBRs): MBR-RO, MBR–FO–RO and osmotic MBR (OMBR)-RO. Calculation of the normalised net present value (NPV/permeate flow) proceeded through developing a series of empirical equations based on available individual capital and operating cost data. Cost curves (cost vs. flow capacity) were generated for each option using literature MBR and RO data, making appropriate assumptions regarding the design and operation of the novel FO and OMBR technologies. Calculations revealed the MBR–FO–RO and OMBR-RO schemes to respectively offer a ∼20% and ∼30% NPV benefit over the classical MBR-RO scheme at a permeate flow of 10,000 m3  d−1, provided the respective schemes are applied to high and low salinity wastewaters. Outcomes are highly sensitive to the FO or OMBR flux sustained: the relative NPV benefit (compared to the classical system) of the OMBR-RO scheme declined from 30% to ∼4% on halving the OMBR flux from a value of 6 L m−2. h−1