JWSS - Journal of Water and Soil Science

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Sorghum grain is an important cereal to be cultivated in tropical and sub-tropical areas. The extension of its cultivation and application in animal and poultry diets may reduce the need for imported corn. In order to determine the nutritive value of sorghum, 36 sorghum grain (SG) varieties and one type of corn were grown at the same location. The grains were analyzed for their nutrient composition. Results from of proximate analyses showed that the ash, crude protein (CP), phosphorous (P) and acid detergent fiber (ADF) contents of SG were 1.72±0.54, 11.6±1.18, 0.34±0.03 and 8.35±3.93, respectively. The ether extract (EE) of SG was lower than Iranian and imported corns. Iranian corn had higher amounts of CP (10.7%), EE (5.9%) and CF (3.3%) than the imported one (7.8, 4.2 and 2.25). Tannin contents of low and high SG varieties were 0.021% and 0.998%, respectively. The apparent and true metabolizable energies (AME and TME) of SG were decreased due to increasing the tannin contents. The values of TME_n (3853, 3771 and 3213 Kcal/kg) showed significant differences (p < 0.05) among low, medium and high tannin sorghum (LTS, MTS and HTS) varieties. However, in comparison with the SG, the corn had higher amounts of TME (3853, 3771 and 3213 VS. 3947 Kcal/kg). LTS had the highest AME (3453 Kcal/kg) among all the grains, while there were no significant differences (P > 0.05) between MTS (3458 Kcal/kg) and the two corn grains (3406 Kcal/kg).

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Bridge abutments are usually located in the floodplain zone of rivers where velocity and shear stress are not uniformly distributed. The influence of channel geometry and lateral momentum transfer in compound flow field on the scouring phenomenon has not been fully investigated and understood yet. The impact of lateral momentum transfer on the local scour at abutments terminating in the floodplain of a compound channel is presented in this paper.

It is shown that, by accounting for lateral momentum transfer at small floodplain/main channel depth ratios (λ_a/H<0.3), estimates of maximum local scour depth are increased by up to 30%. Therefore, ignoring the influence of the lateral momentum transfer, in such circumstances, might result in unrealistic estimation of the scour depth. To draw a more general conclusion, more data are required to assess the influence of different parameters affecting the phenomenon in compound flow conditions.

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Over the past decades, numerous regime formulations, describing channel width, average flow depth and channel slope, have been proposed for gravel-bed rivers. Using the downstream hydraulic geometry measurements from 280 field channels, nine gravel-bed predictive formulations were compared. They are attributed to Bray, Chang, Hey and Thorne, Kellerhals, Neil, Parker and Simons, and Albertson. The comparison showed that the dominant discharge and the median grain size are not sufficient hydraulic variables to predict the channel geometry (width, depth, and especially channel slope). Seeking more complex formulations with the measured parameters, it was not possible to improve the existing formulations significantly without spurious influences of common variables.

 A second database is thus gathered from 19 laboratory-based boundary-layer measurements published in Kironoto and Graf (13) and Song et al. (19). In fact, the boundary-layer theory will respond to a fundamental question: are the existing available variables in literature not sufficient or the methods of their estimations are not appropriate? Based on the present study, the methods of their estimations should be changed. The second database allows proving the usefulness of the Shields parameter for the prediction of average flow depth and channel slope. Hence, using boundary-layer theory for prediction of Shields parameter and stable channel parameters is recommended.

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Side channel spillways have a common usage in conveyance and distribution networks, high dams, water and wastewater treatment plants, and surface drainage networks. A side channel carries spatially varied flow with increasing discharge and their water surface profiles is a main feature in the design process. Usually, the bottom width of the channel is flared in the flow direction and an end sill is also installed at the downstream end to provide a control section and to generate an even water surface profile. In this study, the impact of installing an end sill on the flow characteristics in a non-prismatic side channel is presented. Six distinct longitudinal profiles were clearly observed in each run and the difference between the mid points of the maximum and the minimum profiles of each run was used to evaluate the sill effects on the water surface profile and the energy dissipation. The results indicated that the maximum and the minimum differences are, respectively, equal to critical depth and half of it generated at the channel downstream end. Also, based on an envelope of the data, a method was proposed to determine the maximum potential impact of an end sill that might have on the flow depth, which could also be considered as a guideline in the design process.

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Side weirs as flow diversion devices are widely used in irrigation, land drainage and urban sewage systems. In the present study, the effects of the length and height of inclined side weir crest on discharge coefficient were investigated in prismatic and nonprismatic rectangular channels.. In this study, 675 laboratory tests were conducted. Analysis of experimental tests showed that the discharge coefficient is strongly correlated with uptream Froude number, height of weir to depth ratio at upstream of weir, ratio of water depth on weir to length of weir, and with prismatic factor. Based on experimental results, a model is proposed. The model is capable of estimating the discharge coefficient under subcritical flow conditions. Finally, the data from the proposed model was compared with those obtained by other researchers under different side and bed slopes. There was a good agreement with a relative error of less than ten percent.

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To improve livestock production and to modernize dairy husbandry in Iran, it is essential to disseminate the most recent information on dairy husbandry technologies and management practices through various means among farmers. An understanding of farmers’ communication behaviour is essential in formulating effective communication strategies for livestock development. For the purposes of this study, East Azarbaijan Province was selected. The study will examine how farmers obtain information on dairy husbandry technologies and management practices and how they communicate with agents of technology transfer (extensionists). The major channels and sources used in obtaining information and inter-system communication by farmers are discussed. To study the farmers’ communication behaviour, a sample of 154 farmers from a total of eight villages (four villages from high level plain areas and four villages from low level plain areas) were selected using “Stratified two-stage random sampling” method. Data were gathered by filling out questionnaires that had been tested before. The criteria like frequencies in terms of number and percentage, mean and product moment correlation were calculated. In addition, multiple regression analysis was used for the analysis of the data. According to the findings of this study, most farmers in the two groups (98%) had low information input score. The independent variables such as information output, farmer inter-system communication, farmer-researcher communication, farmer-extensionist communication, education, family education status and availability of input facilities had positive and highly significant relationships (P<0.01) with information input.

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Canning of sausage is one of the methods to extend the shelf life of sausage with lower percentage of additives such as nitrite. This method reduces transport and storgae costs, too. The present stduy was carried out in two stages. The first stage consists of preparing sausages with four different formulations in Isfahan Senobar Factory and producing canned sausage. In the second stage, physicochemical and organoleptic experiments were carried out. Canned (214409) and bottled (No. 10-67) sausages were produced and sterilized in autoclave (absolute pressure=2 atm) to give F value = 4 min. Cans and jars were filled with skinless sausage of 22 calibre and brine (2% and 25^oC) at a sausage/brine ratio of 1:1. Chemical composition such as moisture, fat and protein were measured according to the standard and AOAC methods. Physical experimets including measurement of texture shear strength were performed in sausage and canned sausage over the 3-month storage period. Factorial experiments in completely randomized design was used to investigate and analyze statistical data in this study. The Duncan’s multiple range test was used to compare data averages. Moisture content increased and sausgae texture shear strength decreased in all formulations as a result of sterilization. Moisture content increased in four canned sausage formulations while protein and fat decreased (by the end of the second month of storage). Also, sausage texture shear strength was observed at this time to decrease. In organoleptic evaluations, four canned sausage formulations were not significantly different in flavor, texture, and color (P<0.01).

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The vast pastures and agricultural development plans for dry farming and irrigated farming in Khuzestan Province depend on rain. This requires availability of annual precipitation prediction models to be used in the management decision-making process. In this research, the long-term daily precipitation data from 15 rain gauge stations in the study area were collected for study and a relationship between the early fall season precipitations of 42.5 mm (t_42.5) and the annual precipitation was obtained. The results showed that the relationship was an inverse one such that the later the fall precipitation occurred, the greater the annual precipitation would be. To increase the coefficient of determination in the models, climatic variables such as Persian Gulf sea surface temperature and geographical characteristics (longitude, latitude, altitude, and long term mean annual precipitation) were used. Except for the long term mean annual precipitation and altitude, other variables did not increase the coefficient of determination. The final simple model found is as follows: P_a=184.787-1.891t_42.5+0.855P_m , R²=0.704 where, P_a is the annual precipitation, t_42.5 is the time from beginning of fall season for 42.5 mm of precipitation, and P_m is the long term mean annual precipitation.

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The application of solar energy for drying cereals and other agricultural commodities has been increasing lately. This is due to the fact that solar energy is free, renewable, inexhaustible and environmentally friendly. This research is a new approach for employing solar energy as the main energy source for drying purposes. The drying test rig was designed, fabricated and evaluated. The grain solar dryer is an active mixed mode type with a semi-continuous discharge system. The rig consists of six solar air collectors, a heating channel, a drying chamber and an air distributing system. Rough rice was selected as cereal grain to be dried in the dryer to evaluate the system of the drying rig. In this research the effect of mass flow rate and time of crop discharge, on the rate of crop drying were evaluated. The experiment was conducted as a factorial experiment on the basis of a completely randomized design with three replications. The first factor was mass flow rate at three levels of 0.011, 0.0066 and 0.0048 kg/m²s and the second factor was the time of crop discharge at two levels of 15 and 30 min. The dryer capacity, the amount of energy consumed (electrical and solar) during drying process, and the efficiency of collectors were also evaluated. According to Duncan's multiples range test, the effects of mass flow rate of drying air, and the interval time of discharge, were highly significant on the moisture content of discharged rough rice. The maximum efficiency of the collectors was 37.13% and the fraction of energy consumed by heating channel during the drying process, compared with solar energy, was 6-8 percent. The maximum capacity of the dryer was about 132 kg of rough rice from 11 AM to 2 PM reducing the initial moisture content from 27% to 13%. On the whole, the evaluation results indicated that the dryer could reduce the moisture content of the crop to the storage safe moisture content during appropriate time with highenergy efficiency.

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In this study changes in microstructure of casein micelles in raw and pasteurized milk were investigated by SEM and TEM. Milk was pasteurized by L.T.L.T. method (Temperature: 63 ^oC_ Time:30 minute).Samples of raw and pasteurized milk were taken from research pilot plant of The College of Agriculture. Each sample was divided into two parts. One part of each sample was directly prepared for SEM and TEM, whereas the second part were renneted at 2 ^oC and kept at this temperature for 24 h. and then prepared for evaluation by electron microscopes. Results indicated that in native state, particularly in raw milk casein micelles are in spherical shape with smooth surface and in the single form. The samples, which stored in the cold were under the effect of the rennet, encounter of filamentous status that might be due to the changes occurred in kappa-casein following the action of rennet along with partial removal of beta-casein and micellar calcium phosphate. Micrographs of casein micelles in pasteurized milk indicated that thermal condition during pasteurization had influenced on increasing of casein micelles size.

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The vertical pipe intake is an economical structure relative to the other alternatives. VPI usually installed near the water surface and prevents from the coarse sediment entrance to the system. The strong vortex in VPI entrance is a major problem which may reduce the system efficiency. Recognizing the vortex affected parameters, helping engineers to design anti vortex structures. In this study an experimental model is built to study the effect of tangential velocity, flow direction at approach channel outlet on the discharge coefficient of vertical pipe intake. By dimensional analysis it is indicated that the vortex in VPI could be defined by the dimensionless numbers (Reynolds, Weber, Froude, Circulation and Submergence). The relationship between the Froude, Circulation and Submergence numbers are presented. By using this relation one can determine the Submergence number and then calculate the discharge coefficient of vertical pipe intake.

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Suitable stable channel design and optimization of river geometry can reduce cost of projects. The regime theory provides the possibility of empirical and semi-empirical investigations of stable channel design in which erosion and sediment transport are in equilibrium. The objective of this research is an investigation and a comparison of the influence of uniform and non-uniform flows on the prediction of stable channel characteristics. The following empirical and semi-empirical (extremal hypothesis) equations were selected to study the effect of uniform flow: Lacey, Chital, Kondap and Garde, and Chang. Using 24 regime channels in USA, the statistical and graphical approaches were applied to compare and to evaluate the power of prediction of the selected equations. In order to investigate the effect of non-uniform flow structure on the stable channel characteristics, 21 measured velocity profiles in Gamasiab River were applied. Using the boundary-layer theory, shear velocity was computed for each profile. Accordingly, the estimated Shields parameter using the boundary-layer approach is the most effective parameter on the regime channel prediction. Simultaneous application of the non-uniform flow effect and the boundary-layer theory not only remove the risk of spurious correlation but also improve the estimation of stable channel characteristics.

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The sensitivity analysis approach should be regarded as a new means which has recently been proposed for assessing flow of the irrigation networks. This approach uses the flow steady state equations and the physical conditions of irrigation channels to evaluate the response of the system to input perturbations. In this paper, some structural hydraulic sensitivity indicators were developed and utilized in studying the flow of an irrigation channel. For evaluating the efficiency of indicators and proposed analysis method, a real case was simulated by SOBEK model. Using the simulation results and introduced indicators, the flow regulation and distribution process within channel was studied. The results indicated a successful application of sensitivity indicators in evaluating system's potential in relation to alternative operational scenarios. With the calculation of these indicators, a comprehensive information system could be provided and applied in the analysis of the response potential of channel to structural perturbations, estimation of structure setting accuracy, and in the choice of suitable operation frequency there of.

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Annual medics are used for hey production, soil protection, biological fixation of N₂ and green manure. In the present study, the inter and intra specific genetic diversity and relatedness of 4 diploid and two tetraploid (M. rugosa and M. scutellata) annual medics were evaluated using microsatellite markers. PCR analysis was performed on genomic DNA from individual plant and PCR products were detected using standard polyacrylamide sequencing gel. Totally twenty five polymorphic alleles were observed in the studied species. Average intra-specific genetic diversity ranged from zero (0.0) in both M. rugosa and M. scutellata to 0.114 in M. minima species, and the level of genetic diversity was similar in both M. orbicularis and M. truncatula species. Analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) was used to partition the overall genetic diversity into within and among species, and between diploids and tetraploids. The results revealed significant (P<0.05) inter and intra-specific genetic variation. Pairwise comparisons based on Fst indicated significant differences among all of the species. Clustering analysis using UPGMA algorithm based on coancestary coefficient revealed a clear genetic relationship among species. The hypothesis on a common origin of two tetraploid species was supported by UPGMA clustering and phylogenetic analysis. The high level of Genetic diversity in spiny pod species respect to spineless pod species suggested the high importance of species with spiny pods in annual medics evolution. The findings support the usefulness of microsatellite markers for assessing inter and intra specific genetic diversity, differentiation and genetic relationships.

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In order to assess and determine amino acids profile and their availability in different sorghum grain (SG) varieties, three SG varieties including low tannin (0.09% , LTS), medium tannin (0.19%, MTS) and high tannin (0.37%, HTS) were grown at the same location. The grains were analysed for their proximate analyses, tannin and amino acids. True amino acid availability (TAAA) was obtained by Sibbald’s method using ceacectomized single comb leghorn cockerels. The results showed that methionine and cystine were the first and the second limiting amino acids, respectively in LTS and MTS. But in HTS, lysine (0.166%) was the first and methionine (0.176%) was the second limiting amino acid. Methionine content was 0.114% , 0.182% and 0.176% for LTS, MTS and HTS, respectively. Although, crude protein was lower in HTS (10%) than the other SG, but histidine, methionine and isoleucine were higher for HTS in comparison to LTS and MTS. TAAA decreased when tannin content increased and all amino acids had a lower availability in HTS than LTS and MTS (P<0.05). Methionine in HTS and LTS and glutamic acid in MTS had the highest availability. The availability of proline was most affected by tannin, and its availability was 91.55% for LTS, 84.82% for MTS and 22.82% for HTS (P<0.05).

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In vitro regeneration of four cultivars of carnation namely ‘Nelson’, ‘Impulse’, ‘Sagres’ and ‘Spitit’ through somatic embryogenesis was studied. MS culture medium was supplemented with 30 gl^-1 sucrose, 2 mgl^-1 2,4-D and 0.2 mgl^-1 BA and used for embryogenic callus formation. Somatic embryos were formed when embryogenic callus was transferred to MS medium without growth regulators containing 30 g/l^-1 sucrose alone or supplemented with different concentrations of mannitol (15, 30, 60, 90, 120 and 150 gl^-1). No somatic embryo was formed on culture media containing mannitol without sucrose. Number of somatic embryos produced from embryogenic calli significantly increased by adding mannitol to the culture media. Normal embryos formed on culture media containing high concentrations of mannitol (60, 90, 120 and 150 gl^-1) developed normally. About 95% of somatic embryos transferred to the1/2 MS culture medium containing 30 gl^-1 sucrose, germinated into plantlets. Plantlets also continued their growth under greenhouse conditions.

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The potential of artificial neural network models for simulating the hydrologic behaviour of catchments is presented in this paper. The main purpose is the modeling of river flow in a multi-gauging station catchment and real time prediction of peak flow downstream. The study area covers the Upper Derwent River catchment located in River Trent basin. The river flow has been predicted (at Whatstandwell gauging station) using upstream measured data. Three types of ANN were used for this application: Multi-layer perceptron, Recurrent and Time lag recurrent neural networks. Data with different lengths (1 month, 6 months and 3 years) have been used, and flow with 3, 6, 9 and 12 hours lead-time has been predicted. In general, although ANN shows a good capability to model river flow and predict downstream discharge by using only upstream flow data, however, the type of ANN as well as the characteristics of the training data was found as very important factors affecting the efficiency of the results.

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The nutritive value of the annual alfalfa (Medicago rigidulla, Medicago polymorpha and Medicago scutellata) species harvested at flowering stage was assessed by chemical composition, in vitro dry matter and nitrogen digestibility, in sacco dry matter and nitrogen degradation (0, 8, 12, 24, 48 and 72 h) and palatability (short-term intake rate, STIR) methods. Mean values of the chemical analysis results (%) for M. rigidulla, M. polymorpha and M. scutellata respectively were as follows: OM 85.1, 86.1 and 86.9 CP 25.1, 23.8 and 15.6 NDF 23.2, 24.8 and 30.0 ADF 18.3, 19.9 and 24.0 ADIN 0.36, 0.11 and 0.22 calcium 1.4, 1.3 and 1.2 phosphorus 0.23, 0.28 and 0.24 potassium 1.5, 1.5 and 1.4. The digestibilities of the DM and OM for M. rigidulla were 0.82 and 0.79 M. polymorpha 0.83.5 and 0.80 M. scutellata 0.75 and 0.69, respectively. The degradabilities of DM and CP at outflow rate of 0.05 for M. rigidulla were 0.72 and 0.55 M. polymorpha 0.71 and 0.57 M. scutellata 0.63 and 0.58, respectively. Finally, the palatabilities (using short-term intake rate method) for M. rigidulla, M. polymorpha and M. scutellata species were 13.6, 12.8 and 11.3 (g DM/min) respectively. According to the methods used, the descending ranking order (high to low) of these species on the basis of their nutritional value was M.rigidulla, M.polymorpha and M.scutellata.

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  It is important to investigate the genetic diversity and evaluate symbiotic effectiveness of the indigenous rhizobial population. It helps understand the responses of indigenous isolates to different rhizobial inoculants. In spite of the importance of bacterial diversity, there are a few scientific reports about it in Iranian soils. Genetic diversity of 150 isolates of Sinorhizobium isolated from Hamadan soils was studied by using PCR / RFLP 16S-23S rDNA technique. The results showed that all isolates clustered in three different groups. Group (I) formed 122 isolates and they were quite similar to Sinorhizobium meliloti from viewpoint of genetic characteristics. Twenty five isolates were clustered in Group (II) and they belonged to Sinorhizobium medicae. Group (III) had two isolates and they were new species and quite different from the other groups. Shannon diversity index was different within eleven different land units (Medium gradient mountains, Level lands, Plateau, Foot slopes, Depressions and Composite land) and there was a correlation between Shannon index and some soil properties. Difference in Similarity index showed that Sinorhizobium groups in each land unit were different.

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In this experiment the response of persimmon fruit, cv. Karaj, to astringency removal by ethanol and the effects of this treatment on some important fruit characteristics were investigated. Fruits were harvested at three different dates and at each date based on the previous results, and then modified treatments were applied. The best ethanol astringency removal treatment in this study was 10 ml of 38% ethanol per kg fruit for 48 hours. The period after ethanol treatments had no effect on the reduction of soluble tannin concentration, although it resulted in the reduction of flesh firmness and increased soluble pectin. Ethanol treatments and also temperature conditions reduced flesh firmness and increased ground color of fruits however, the effect of ethanol treatments was more than temperature conditions. Temperature conditions increased ethylene production, thus reducing the flesh firmness and increasing the ground color index of fruits. Ethanol treatments did not increase the ethylene production, and it seems that its effects on some characteristics are due to ethanol itself or factors other than ethylene.