ARO-THE SCIENTIFIC JOURNAL OF KOYA UNIVERSITY

Using Multilingual Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers on Medical Corpus for Kurdish Text Classification

Soran S. Badawi — 2023-01-15

Technology has dominated a huge part of human life. Furthermore, technology users use language continuously to express feelings and sentiments about things. The science behind identifying human attitudes toward a particular product, service,or topic is one of the most active fields of research, and it is called sentiment analysis. While the English language is making real progress in sentiment analysis daily, other less-resourced languages, such as Kurdish, still suffer from fundamental issues and challenges in Natural Language Processing (NLP). This paper experimentswith the recently published medical corpus using the classical machine learning method and the latest deep learning tool in NLP and Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers (BERT). We evaluated the findings of both machine learning and deep learning. The outcome indicates that BERT outperforms all the machine learning classifiers by scoring (92%) in accuracy, which is by two points higher than machine learning classifiers.

Cytostatic Effects of Avocado Oil Using Single-cell Gel Electrophoresis (Comet Assay)

Subasini Uthirapathy — 2023-01-15

The goal of this paper is to assess the mutagenicand genotoxic potentials of avocado oil made from the fruit pulp of Persea Americana, a member of the Lauraceae family.Michigan Cancer Foundation-7 (MCF-7) cells are used in the 3-4,5 dimethylthiazol-2yl-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) test to examine the possible antiproliferative and cytostatic qualities of different doses of avocado oil, and MCF-7 cells are used in the comet assay to examine the potential cytostatic effects of avocado oil extracted from the avocado fruit. DNA in human breast cancer cells is partially damaged by avocado oil. However, DNA damage at low, medium, and high levels was discovered in the positive control. Without positive control, the DNA damage level falls in the low, middle, and high ranges. The MTT assay shows that avocado oil exerts a dose-dependent cytostatic impact on human breast cancer MCF-7 cells with an IC50 value of 379.2 μg/mL, which is the IC50 value that causes genotoxicity in the comet assay.

Structural and Optical Properties of Cadmium Sulfide-doped Silver Deposited on Glass and Polymer Substrates by Chemical Spray Pyrolysis

Niaz H. Hamad — 2023-01-15

This process of this paper is carried out using thechemical spraying method to produce homogeneous thin films ofpure cadmium sulfide-doped with silver at different percentagesof 1%, 3%, and 5% on glass and polyimide plastic substrates at300°C. The aim is to study the optical and structural properties of the samples and the effect of the silver doping rate on films producedwith these properties. Due to X-ray diffraction studies, all filmscreated had a hexagonal phase, and it was noticed that they had avery precise structure free of holes or cracks. The obtained crystalsize ranged between 22.74 nm and 55.05 nm for different substrates, and the prominent plane was (002). From the optical properties, all films exhibited transmission higher than 60%, thus showing a lowabsorption, which makes them be used as light-permeable layers in the Solar Cell system. In addition, emission peaks were revealed by photo luminescence spectra examination at wavelengths ranging between (542.94 nm) and (546.02 nm), which led to calculate the energy gap (Eg). of the produced films, ranged between (2.27 eV) and (2.28 eV) for the different substrates.

Effects of Crude Plant Extracts from Five Parts of Melia azedarach on Tribolium confusum

Muzafar K. Omar — 2023-02-10

Tribolium confusum is one of the most common pests of many commodities, especially cereals and their products. These pests are known for being the most destructive insect pests attacking and infesting stored flour and grain in soil, warehouses, grocery stores, and homes. Therefore, this study aims to control these pests with an environmentally friendly, healthier, and cost-effective pesticide instead of the common artificial chemicals to practice the current management of cereal storage pest control in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. For this to be achieved, the toxicity effect of crude plant extracts from five different parts of Melia azedarach in tap water with concentrations of 50%, 60%, 70%, 80%, and 90% at different times (2, 4, 6, 8, and 10 h) against stored-product insect was tested. The toxicity effect of these extracts varied based on the crude plant part extracts, concentrations, and exposure period according to the SAS system investigation on the mortality rate of T. confusum adults (Duncan test). The extracts’ compatibility with treated adults of T. confusum in the clear petri dish was noted. Besides, the number of dead adults was measured by loss of motion.

Effect of Hot Glue Additive on the Rheological Properties of Asphalt Cement and Mixtures Performance

Sheelan A. Ahmed — 2023-02-20

In general, the physical and rheological properties of asphalt binder are directly affecting the resistance of asphalt mix to the permanent deformation (rutting), water damage, and thermal cracking. The degradation in these properties leads to severe distresses that appear in the pavement and, consequently, make the repair and maintenance very expensive. Since the modified-asphalt cement may help to minimize such aforementioned distresses, this research is established for this purpose. It aims to investigate the physical and rheological properties of modified-asphalt cement with silicone, dense silicone rubber, and ethylene propylene diene monomer rubber. Five contents for each type of hot glue are investigated; 0.4, 0.8, 1.2, 1.6, and 2% of the asphalt cement weight. Conventional asphalt cement tests such as penetration, softening point, dynamic viscosity, and ductility tests are conducted to evaluate the hot glue-modified asphalt cement properties. Moreover, the Marshall and indirect tensile strength tests are conducted to examine the effect of hot glue on the performance of the asphalt mixtures at concentrations of 0.8 and 1.6% of the asphalt cement weight. The results show that the hot glue-modified asphalt cement leads to an increase in the hardness and consistency, and a reduction in the temperature susceptibility of asphalt cement. These features lead to better Marshall stability and tensile strength ratio, as compared with the standard asphalt cement mixture.

Simulating Combined Cycle and Gas Turbine Power Plant under Design Condition using Open-Source Software DWSIM

Twana N. Hassan — 2023-02-20

Nowadays, clean and high-power generation is essential matters worldwide. To be improved and optimized, power plants require accurate models that can be introduced to process simulators. There is various commercial software for industrial simulation which is not accessible to everyone. The open-source DWSIM process simulator is the first chemical engineering code that offers many tools for the better study of industrial plants. In this paper, we employ DWSIM software to simulate a combined cycle gas turbine (CCGT) power plant under design conditions for three cases. The generic models are predicted for multistage compressors and compressor maps. In the first case, two models developed in ASPEN HYSYS and GateCycle will be considered. The achieved results by DWSIM are acceptably comparable for thermal efficiency and power generation. The DWSIM result is 3.5% lower than the ASPEN HYSYS for thermal efficiency, and the power generation is completely the same. In the second case, rigorous simulation was carried out using actual field data from the local CCGT power plant. The DWSIM outcomes are very close to the practical data. The power generation of GT and CC is very close; the variety is nearly 0.45%. In the third case, the simulation of CCGT with a cogeneration system is precisely accomplished, and the outcomes of DWSIM are shown in excellent agreement. The DWSIM prediction shows lower values by 0.26%, 4.79%, and 0.72% for the HP turbine, LP turbine, and plant net power, respectively.

Fresh and Mechanical Properties of Concrete Containing Oil-Well Cutting Material

Nabaz S. Hussein — 2023-02-25

Oil-well cutting material (OWCM) is a waste generated during the process of oil-well drilling. Its disposal is costly and harmful to the environment. The chemical makeup for the material implies that it might be used as a partial cement replacement in concrete. It is high in calcium oxide, silica, and aluminum oxide, which are the main oxides found in raw materials used to produce cement. Replacing a part of cement by OWCM in concrete mixtures can directly reduce the quantity of the cement used which leads to decreasing the emission of carbon dioxide and solving the disposal problems for the OWCM as well. This process can be considered as a significant step in producing environmentally friendly concrete. This study focuses on investigating the fresh and mechanical properties of different concrete mixes that have different strength grades, containing different percentages of OWCM as a cement replacement. For this purpose, different concrete mixes containing 10%, 15%, 20%, 25%,30%, 35%, and 40% of OWCM as a cement replacement, besides the control Portland cement for the three different concrete strength grades, were prepared. After performing the slump and flow tests, cube specimens were cast and moist-cured for 3, 28, and 90 days and subjected to compression test, whereas 28-day moist-cured cylinder specimens were subjected to splitting tensile test. The test results have revealed that in spite of small reduction in strength with replacing cement by up to 20% of OWCM, the strength of the concrete remains within the designed strength grade ranges.

Geomorphic Indicators of Folds Lateral Growth Using Satellite Images

Varoujan K. Sissakian — 2023-03-23

Visual interpretation of satellite images is a very significant technique to recognize and interpret structural features, which indicate lateral growth of folds, the origin of folds, and dating of folds using the exposure dating method. In this study, Landsat 8 (ESSRI) and Google Earth images are used to recognize structural features at Pira Magroon, Surdash, and Azmar anticlines in the Sulaimaniyah vicinity, Kurdistan Region, north of Iraq. The mentioned anticlines are outstanding geomorphological and structural features in the Sulaimaniyah vicinity. The recognized and interpreted structural features include: en-echelon folding, domes, and Neotectonic indication. All these features are discussed in detail with many images to show the discussed cases, most of the interpreted data and presented figures are never mentioned previously.

Role of Cinnamon Supplementation on Glycemic Markers, Lipid Profile and Weight Status in Patients with Type II Diabetes

Sazan M. Talaat — 2023-01-15

Type II diabetes has been on the rise for the past few decades and the current management plan of diabetes is challenging to individuals in keeping their blood glucose levels within normal limits. There is a constant search of new ways to tackle these challenges. Cinnamon is suggested to have antihyperglycemic and lipid lowering effect and has been proposed to be utilized in type II diabetes. The aim behind this review is to explore the role of cinnamon in improving the glycemic status, lipid profile, and weight status of patients with type II diabetes. PubMed and ScienceDirect databases have been searched for eligible studies conducted until February 2022, the outcomes measured were glycemic markers as primary outcome and lipid profile and weight status as secondary outcomes. A total of ten trials involving 861 patients were included in the study. Five studies have demonstrated reductions in glycemic markers (ranging between −0.56 and −1.9 mmol/L for fasting blood sugar and between −0.21% and −0.93% for glycated hemoglobin) whereas the remaining four did not show any significant reduction. The most improvements in glycemic markers are seen in patients with poorly controlled diabetes and patients with higher body mass index (BMI) values. The majority of the studies did not record improvement in lipid profile. Changes in weight status are only observed in overweight patient category (BMI between 25 and 30). Overall, there is no coherent evidence to decide about antihyperglycemic, lipid lowering, and weight reducing effects of cinnamon in type II diabetes.

A Comprehensive Review on Microstrip Couplers

Abbas Rezaei — 2023-01-15

In this work, several types of microstrip couplers are investigated in terms of structure, performance and design methods. These planar 4-ports passive devices transmit a signal through two different channels. Designers' competition has always been in miniaturizing and improving performance of couplers. Some couplers have been offered with a novel structure, which is a special feature. A high-performance coupler should have high isolation and low losses at both channels. The channels are usually overlapped so that the common port return loss in these channels should be low. Among the couplers, those with balanced amplitude and phase are more popular. The popular mathematical analysis methods are even/odd mode analysis, extracting the information from the ABCD matrix and analyzing the equivalent LC circuit of a simple resonator. According to the phase shift value, couplers are classified as 90º and correct multiples of 90º, where a microstrip 0º coupler can be used as a power divider. Some couplers have filtering and harmonic elimination features that are superior to other couplers. However, few designers paid attention to suppressing the harmonics. If the operating frequency is set in according to the type of application, the coupler becomes particularly valuable.ABCD Matrix

Plant Disease Diagnosing Based on Deep Learning Techniques

Saman M. Omer — 2023-02-02

Agriculture crops are highly significant for the sustenance of human life and act as an essential source for national income development worldwide. Plant diseases and pests are considered one of the most imperative factors influencing food production, quality, and minimize losses in production. Farmers are currently facing difficulty in identifying various plant diseases and pests, which are important to prevent plant diseases effectively in a complicated environment. The recent development of deep learning techniques has found use in the diagnosis of plant diseases and pests, providing a robust tool with highly accurate results. In this context, this paper presents a comprehensive review of the literature that aims to identify the state of the art of the use of convolutional neural networks (CNNs) in the process of diagnosing and identification of plant pest and diseases. In addition, it presents some issues that are facing the models performance, and also indicates gaps that should be addressed in the future. In this regard, we review studies with various methods that addressed plant disease detection, dataset characteristics, the crops, and pathogens. Moreover, it discusses the commonly employed five-step methodology for plant disease recognition, involving data acquisition, preprocessing, segmentation, feature extraction, and classification. It discusses various deep learning architecture-based solutions that have a faster convergence rate of plant disease recognition. From this review, it is possible to understand the innovative trends regarding the use of CNN’s algorithms in the plant diseases diagnosis and to recognize the gaps that need the attention of the research community.