m. noroozi

The main objective of this paper is to present an empirical equation for estimating the amount of fluid flow based on the parameters of the aperture and spacing of rock mass discontinuities. For this purpose, the discrete fracture network (DFN) method and three-dimensional numerical method have been used to model rock mass discontinuities and simulate fluid flow, respectively. Using the obtained empirical equation, the water permeability of the rock mass in similar projects can be predicted without performing timeconsuming numerical modeling and only using the geometric parameters of discontinuities.

Accurate simulation of geometrical properties of fractures is an important goal in rock engineering. One of the most capable methods for simulating the random nature of geometrical properties of fractures is Discrete Fracture Network (DFN) random modelling, which presents the heterogeneous nature of fractured rock mass with statistically defined geometrical properties. Up to now, all properties of fractures such as location, shape, orientation, size (persistence), spacing, and opening of joints have been simulated and applied in 3D DFN modelling. In this research, a statistical solution based on Kernel’s non-parametric distribution is used for simulating roughness. Through this method, even those geometric properties of fractures which do not have their own specific distribution functions can be simulated. After simulating the roughness value, the roughness geometry should also be simulated in a way that evokes the roughness value. Therefore, in order to simulate the surface of fractures in this research, the DRS method is applied in 2D and then, developed into 3D. At the end, simulation of discontinuity’s roughness is added as a separate package to DFN-FRAC3D computer program. DFN-FRAC3D computer program, as one of the most capable tools in this field, is able to develop a 3D fracture network block model by using the surveyed data and then simulating geometrical properties of the fracture; thus, by applying the results of this research in this compute software, all geometrical properties of fractures can be simulated. Finally, in order to explain the results of this research, outcomes of DFN-FRAC3D computer program for both with and without applying the roughness property on DFN are compared.

Sorghum is considered as a cereal in the world but in Iran forage sorghum is preferred due to lack of forage. This research was conducted considering the importance of forage sorghum and the conditions of sorghum cultivation under salinity stress in Mazandaran province. The aims of this research were: 1) to investigate the functional response of forage sorghum (variety Speedfeed) to irrigation water salinity and soil salinity, and 2) to quantify the sorghum functional response to salinity during maturation, using several empirical models. Water salinity treatments included well water (control), ratios of 1:4, 2:4, and 3:4 sea water to well water, and pure sea water which were applied in a column study. Salinity-Yield threshold models (Mass and Hoffman, van Genuchten and Hoffman, Dirksen et al., Homaee et al., modified Weibull, bi-exponential and Gompertz( were fitted to the data obtained (relative yield of sorghum at maturation stage vs. electrical conductivity, EC) and the parameters of  models were estimated. The van Genuchten model and the Hoffman and Gompertz model were better than other models in fitting the relative yield data as a function of the EC of the saturated soil extract, due to the lower root mean square errors (RMSE) and Akaike’s information criterion (AIC) in these models (2.84 and –157.34 for the van Genuchten model and 3.11 and –152.53 for the Hoffmann and Gompertz model, respectively). The van Genuchten and Hoffmann model (–205.77, -1.09) and the corrected Weibull model (-213.21 and 0.95) were superior in fitting relative yield data as a function of EC of irrigation water. The salinity tolerance thresholds of sorghum based on fitting relative yield data as a function of EC of saturated soil extract and irrigation water were also estimated to be 3.65 and 2.33 dS m-1, respectively. Also, no significant difference was observed between the relative yield obtained from the models as a function of the EC of saturated soil extract or irrigation water. In other words, the mentioned models are capable to estimate the yield based on the salinity of the irrigation water.

The current research deals with the use of waste rubber powder with different forms and percentages as a replacement for the fine aggregates in concrete production for the purpose of examining different mechanical and structural properties at an experimental level. The mixed design of common concrete as well as other mixed designs having waste rubber powder were constructed. The amounts of waste rubber were equivalent to 5, 10, and 15% of actual volume of the aggregate. To remove the negative effects on some mechanical properties of the product such as compressive and tensile strength and impact resistance, the synthetic Polyphenylene Sulfide (PPS) fibers known as synthetic complex fibers with 0.75 and 1.5% were added to the concrete having waste rubber powder. The first part of this research examines the effects of the combination of fibers with waste rubber powder on the compressive, tensile, flexural strength, and impact resistance of specimens. Also, in the second part of this research, six concrete slabs were constructed with the structural performance of such concrete in road construction under elastic basement under direct loading. The displacement-load curve of the samples as well as the failure pattern of the samples were observed and analyzed. The result of the experiments on the standard specimen in the first part of this research showed that despite the decrease in compressive strength due to the simultaneous addition of rubber powder compared to the common concrete samples, the tensile, flexural strength, and impact resistance were improved compared to the samples constructed with common concrete. By replacing 15% rubber powder instead of the fine aggregates, the final impact resistance increased up to 48%. Simultaneous addition of 0.75 % fibers and 5% rubber doubled the impact resistance of the concrete. It is worth mentioning that 1.5% addition of fibers to the concrete having 5% rubber power increased final impact resistance up to 5.72 times of that of Ref concrete. The results of the second part of this research showed that the final capacity of fiber-rubber concrete slabs under elastic basement to have favorite flexural behavior as concrete pavement compared to common concrete slab increased up to 50%; meanwhile, the amount of absorbed energy and the strength of combined concrete slabs of rubber wastes and fibers were 3 times higher than those made by common concrete in the reference sample.

Recently, the rising demand for high-quality seafood has created a fresh look at the sustained and adequate aquafeed as a necessity. Considering the potential of microalgae cells, many companies are looking for practical methods to enhance the nutritional content of these microorganisms as valuable aquafeed. In this attempt, Thalassiosira weissflogii isolated from the Caspian Sea and identified with morphology and molecular characteristics. In order to improve lipid content, this strain was cultivated in normal and nitrogen deficiency F/2 medium for 18 and 30 days. The growth indices, total lipid, fatty acids profiles were measured in both cases.Growth of T. weissflogii during nitrogen deficiency conditions was associated with a sharp decline in cell growth and significant rise in lipid production such as polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs). Although the eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) level was reduced by half under nitrogen deficiency condition (8.8 to 3.23 % TFA), the amount of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) escalated during this situation (3.5 to 12.63 % TFA). Results showed that the concept of N-deficiency conditions along with prolonged culturing could improve PUFA n-3 content to provide highly valuable feed for shellfish and shrimp industries.

The production of secondary metabolites varies under the different environmental conditions. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of pH and temperature on the content of antioxidant compounds in a species of microscopic algae. First, the microalgal strain Monoraphidium sp. was cultured under the different temperature and pH treatments. The biochemical assays were then performed on the compounds such as photosynthetic pigments, phenolic compounds, and total flavonoids. The total antioxidant activity was evaluated by FRAP and DPPH methods. The results of this study showed that the microalgae Monoraphidium sp. had the maximum growth and high content of antioxidant compounds at the acidic pH and temperature 28°C. The results indicated that the optimal conditions can be achieved for the high production of antioxidant compounds in microalgae by changing the environmental factors, which can be used in the pharmaceutical, medical, and production of nutritional supplements industries.

The damping vibration characteristics of magneto-electro-viscoelastic (MEV) nanobeam resting on viscoelastic foundation based on nonlocal strain gradient elasticity theory (NSGT) is studied in this article. For this purpose, by considering the effects of Winkler-Pasternak, the viscoelastic medium consists of linear and viscous layers. with respect to the displacement field in accordance with the refined shear deformable beam theory (RSDT) and the Kelvin-Voigt viscoelastic damping model, the governing equations of motion are obtained using Hamilton’s principle based on nonlocal strain gradient theory (NSGT). Using Fourier Series Expansion, The Galerkin’s method adopted to solving differential equations of nanobeam with both of simply supported and clamped boundary conditions. Numerical results are obtained to show the influences of nonlocal parameter, the length scale parameter, slenderness ratio and magneto-electro-mechanical loadings on the vibration behavior of nanobeam for both types of boundary conditions. It is found that by increasing the magnetic potential, the dimensionless frequency can be increased for any value of the damping coefficient and vice versa. Moreover, negative/positive magnetic potential decreases/increases the vibration frequencies of thinner nanobeam. Also, the vibrating frequency decreases and increases with increasing nonlocal parameter and length scale parameter respectively.

Postoperative pain management is considered as a part of recovery. Duloxetine (DLX), an anti-depressant medication, is a possible choice for the multimodal anesthetic strategy. We aimed to evaluate the effect of Duloxetine on postoperative hysterectomy pain management in patients who underwent hysterectomy.

In this randomized double-blind clinical trial, 60 patients aged 18-85 years with ASA I and II who were candidates for hysterectomy were randomly assigned to two group of 30 patients taking duloxetine (60 mg capsule) or placebo (starch). Opioid use, postoperative pain due to visual analogue score, vital signs and quality of recovery (Recovery-40 form), vital signs before induction of anesthesia, immediately after surgery, at isoflurane induction and after surgery every 15 minutes were reviewed and compared in two groups.

The amount of opioids in the duloxetine group decreased insignificantly. Postoperative pain in recovery and ward in duloxetine group (2.7±0.99 and 1.8±0.66, respectively) compared to placebo group (4.86±1.51 and 4.86±1.51, respectively) decreased significantly (p= 0.006 in recovery and p= 0.001 in ward). The quality of improvement in recovery (156.22±24.25 in the duloxetine group and 125.48±16.49 in the placebo group) was in favor of the effectiveness of duloxetine (p= 0.001).

In conclusion, DLX is a beneficial drug to be used in multimodal anesthesia strategy especially in improving postoperative pain and quality of recovery in abdominal hysterectomy.

Trustocytrides have received a great deal of attention in recent years for producing a significant amount of omega-3 fatty acids. However, their commercial and sustainable production from microalgae sources faces technical and economic limitations. In this study, the effect of temperature and different carbon and nitrogen sources in YEP calture on the growth and fatty acids profile in a newly isolated strain of Aurantiochytrium sp. SHY has been conducted. Glucose produced more biomass, but galactose was more suitable for lipid formation. Galactose promoted the highest production of fatty acids (36.4%), but the ratio of docosahexaenoic acid to fatty acids was 19.05% which was less than glycerol. With an increased glucose concentration, EPA is considerably higher and DHA is only slightly increased. This is the first study that has been carried out on this new isolate wherein a mixed carbon source was used in the culture media and the results showed the microorganism’s preferences for carbohydrate consumption is in the following pattern: glucose > galactose > fructose> sucrose. The meat extract was the most suitable nitrogen source for biomass development (7 g L-1), but the maximum DHA to fatty acids ratio (25%) was achieved when the microorganism consumed monosodium glutamate as a nitrogen source. The strain produced more biomass at 25°C, and lowering the temperature achieved a higher DHA formation. The results of this study show that if this strain is going to introduce as a good potential candidate for food industries and aquaculture, it needs more study in bioreactor that’s going on.

In the conventional mass balance methods, sampling are carried out to determine the metal content, solid percentage and particle size distribution in the paths (branches) and ultimately the corresponding errors are dispersed. In these methods, there is no information about the amount of feed and the grade (or the metal content) at any moment of time for each mineral processing unit (plant equipment). Thus, in this paper, the quantitative and qualitative values of input feed to each of the operating units in the processing paths were probabilistically investigated using stochastic process theory, and consequently the load distribution in these units was estimated. For this purpose, the processing plant was firstly modeled as a directional and balanced graph. In this graph, each node represents an operating unit and each edge displays a path between two units. The weight of each edge also indicates the passing material weight from the node to another node, which is assigned as a random variable at a specified interval. After modeling the process, the obtained graphical model containing random parameters was analyzed using Markov chain theory. Applying the philosophy outlined in this paper, not only the load distribution, but also the presence probability of each particle or mineral in each of the operational units of the processing plant can be predicted. It is also possible to estimate the tonnage in each unit when the plant is shut down and even the necessary steps are provided to discharge them. In this research, Chadormalu iron ore processing line was modeled using method presented and the results were analyzed and thereafter were reported using probabilistic parameters.

 Children are among the most vulnerable groups in society who are always threatened by the danger of being abused by various people. Mothers are the most important reliable source of information for children. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of two methods of group education and education by multimedia compact disk (CD) on mothers’ knowledge and attitude about child sexual abuse.

 In this clinical trial, 100 mothers of children under 18 who had a medical record at health centers of Isfahan province were selected. Participants were allocated into two groups of group education and education with multimedia CD and trained about the definition, prevalence, diagnosis, prevention and management of child sexual abuse. Data were collected by a researcher-made questionnaire which completed before and after the intervention. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics in SPSS19 software.

 The mean score of knowledge and attitude of mothers about child sexual abuse had a statistically significant increase after the intervention in group education and also in the multimedia CD group compared to before the intervention (p<0.001). No significant difference was observed between two groups in the mean scores of knowledge and attitude of mothers about child sexual abuse after intervention.

 Group education and education with multimedia CD were effective in improving the knowledge and attitude of mothers about child sexual abuse. Therefore, considering the benefits of educating with multimedia CD including its affordability and the possibility of using at any time, it is recommended to be used for mothers’ education programs.

In this study, a native microalgae strain with a high capability of DHA production has been isolated and purified from mangrove shores in the Persian Gulf. Morphological and molecular identification based on 18S rRNA gene showed that the isolated strain belongs to Aurantiochytrium genus. In order to optimize the growth of this strain, various environmental factors were examined, including temperature (15, 20, 25, 30 and 35°C), salinity (10, 30 and 50 g L-1) and different concentrations of nitrogen sources of yeast extract, peptone, meat extract and monosodium glutamate, each of which was tested at the concentration of 10 g L-1. The findings show that the optimal growth conditions occur at temperatures of 25-30 °C, pH equal to 6 and in the presence of meat extract as the nitrogen source. In these conditions, the cellular biomass weight, fatty acids and DHA amounts obtained were 7.34, 2.25 and 0.4 g L-1, respectively. These results imply that the new isolated strain of Aurantiochytrium sp. shy it can be suitable for lipid production.

Due to the nature of the job, the health of nursing staff is always at risk. Nurses who do not have a good mental and physical health will not be able to take good care of patients. The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence of stress, anxiety and depression in the nursing staff in intensive care units of Ali Ebn-e Abitaleb Hospital in Rafsanjan in 2017. This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2017 using a census method on all the nurses (87 nurse) working in the intensive care units (NICU, ICU, CCU) of Ali Ebn-e Abitaleb Hospital in Rafsanjan. Data were collected using a demographic questionnaire (14 items) and the standard DASS-21 questionnaire (21 items) and analyzed using a chi-square test. Regarding the mean and standard deviation of depression scores (10.80 ± 9.60), stress (12.14 ± 8.17) and anxiety (8.90 ± 8.02), the severity of these disorders in nurses was mild, normal and mild, respectively. The severe type of these disorders was observed in 13.8% (12 people), 9.2% (8 people) and 18.4% (16 people) of the nurses, respectively. The rate of depression in ICU nurses was higher than depression in NICU and CCU nurses. A significant statistical difference was found (p = 0.022). Regarding the findings of this study, given the importance of nursing profession and the effect of the prevalence of stress, anxiety and depression of nurses on job performance and quality of service to patients, it is necessary for the nursing managers to increase the mental health of this community, especially nurses working in the ICU.