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The silverleaf whitefly, Bemisia tabaci (Hem.: Aleyrodidae), is a key pest of greenhouse crops. Nymphs and adults feed on plant sap and excrete honeydew, resulting in reduction of yield and quality. This pest has a high potential for developing resistant biotypes against different insecticides. Therefore, it is necessary to study the efficacy of different categories of insecticides against B. tabaci. In this research, efficacy of imidacloprid (0.5 l/ha), thiacloprid + deltamethrin (0.75 l/ha), pyrethrum (4 l/ha) andthiamethoxam + lambda-cyhalothrin (0.3 and 0.4 l/ha) with four replications were studied in a completely randomized block design in Yazd and Bushehr provinces of Iran. Mean (± SE) efficacy of imidacloprid, thiacloprid + deltamethrin, pyrethrum andthiamethoxam + lambda-cyhalothrin (0.3 and 0.4 l/ha) were 73.42 ± 3.41, 89.57 ± 2.86, 90.29 ± 2.79, 68.13 ± 3.37 and 75.62 ± 3.76% against B. tabaci nymphs 7 days after treatment in Yazd, respectively; while in Bushehr, they were 57.30 ± 3.37, 68.45 ± 4.65, 64.17 ± 2.87, 30.0 ± 4.56 and 53.0 ± 3.35%, respectively. Thiacloprid + deltamethrin, pyrethrum and thiamethoxam + lambda-cyhalothrin (at 0.4 l/ha) can be suitable candidates in IPM programs of B. tabaci.

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Research subject: Due to the public's attention on the environmental issues as well as strict environmental regulations, the eco-friendly methods for nanoparticles have received considerable attention in the recent years.
Research approach: In the present study, a mixed oxide nanoparticles containing cerium and zirconium (Ce_x-Zr_1-xO₂) was fabricated the in supercritical water (SCW) medium. The synthesized nanoparticles were characterized by various analyses, including X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM).
Main results: The results of the analyses demonstrated that fine nanoparticles with mean size of 13±3 nm, with high crystallinity, and with appropriate size distribution and surface area were synthesized by SCW. Moreover, an oxygen storage capacity (OSC) as high as 1.25 mmol O₂/g was estimated for Ce_x-Zr_1-xO₂ nanoparticles through temperature programmed reduction in hydrogen (H₂-TPR). According to the obtained results, the Ce_x-Zr_1-xO₂ nanoparticles could be a suitable candidate for catalysts of oxidation processes as well as three-way catalyst for control of automotive exhaust gases.

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Research subject: The rice husk is the coating on a rice grain and a by-product of the rice milling process. In this study, the extraction of amorphous silica from this agricultural residue by thermal as well as acid/thermal treatment method was studied.
Research approach: The process was designed as follows: after burning the paddy in the open field, the obtained ash was washed with acid followed by drying. Finally, the amorphous silica was obtained by placing the prepared powder in an electric furnace (acid/thermal treatment). Also, a sample of silica was produced by eliminating the acid treatment step (thermal treatment). Afterward, the obtained silica powder was employed in a conventional passenger radial tire belt formula instead of commercial precipitated one, and whole the physical-mechanical properties, including rubber-to-wire adhesion force, were studied under normal and aging conditions.
Main results: The results of the XRD demonstrated that the silica produced in both methods were amorphous. The XRF analysis also showed that the purity of amorphous silica were 98.6% and 93.9% for the sample produced by acid/heat treatment and the heat treatment, respectively. The results of the tire test showed that the rubber-to-wire adhesion decreased slightly under normal conditions in the presence of new silica samples, but the same property under the timed conditions for the new silica samples was better than commercial precipitated silica. Other properties of the rubber compound did not change significantly in the presence of new silica grades. As a result, it can be said that rice husk has a potential to produce suitable silica for use in blend of radial tire belt.

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Research subject:
As a low price biomass, rice husk is able to accumulate a large amount of silica in its texture. The process for extracting this silica is greener than the conventional ones. The present research addresses the effects of the different process parameters on amorphous silica extraction from rice husk through a precipitation method.
Research approach
In the extraction process, first the rice husk was burned in the open air and then turned into white ash in an electric furnace. This ash was converted into sodium silicate solution using NaOH, and finally the silica was precipitated from this solution by sulfuric acid. The effect of solid to solvent ratio, the duration of the alkaline dissolution step as well as the pH and temperature of acid precipitation step have been investigated. Moreover, a special application of the amorphous silica in rubber industry was also investigated.
Main results
The results showed that a low solid to solvent ratio at the alkaline dissolution stage as well as an acidic pH along with a high precipitation temperature are required to obtain the highest production efficiency and to obtain high purity amorphous silica. The purity and chemistry of obtained silica were quite similar to commercial sample in the rubber industry; however, the surface area and pore volume of obtained silica was less than the commercial one. It was also found that prolonging the alkali dissolution step slightly increases the production efficiency. The obtained silica exhibited very close performance to the commercial sample, in the rubber-to-fiber adhesion system (RFS). This indicates the high ability of precipitated silica to be replaced by commercial types, which are mainly produced by more cost-effective and less biocompatible processes.

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The main objective of this study is to examine the relationship between knowledge management (KM) and innovation capability in a holding in Iran. Furthermore, regarding moderating role of strategic orientation, some practical recommendations are proposed to holding and its subsidiaries management focusing on a combination of knowledge management and strategic orientation. The literature review identified four dimensions consisting of socialization, internalization, externalization and combination for KM, three dimensions consisting of administration, process and production for innovativeness concept and three forms consisting of entrepreneurial, technological and customer for strategic orientation concept. Following the positivism philosophy and the survey method, a questionnaire (consisting of 55 questions) was distributed to collect field data. The study population in the first level of analysis (organization) includes all subsidiaries (78), and at the second level of analysis (individual) all employees (about 11,000 people). The random sample was selected using the Cochran; at the organizational level including 65 organizations, and at the individual level including 367 participants. Data normality approved through the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test. Then, the relationships between variables and conceptual models were examined through Pearson correlation and structural equation model. Finally, it was found that the relationship between KM and innovativeness and its dimensions is meaningful in the organizations utilizing entrepreneurial and customer orientation and is meaningless in the organization with technological orientation.

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This experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of barley green fodder produced by hydroponics system on the performance of feedlot calves. In a completely block randomized experiment, 24 cross bred (Holstein×Local) male calves were assigned randomly to one of the two treatments (diets) that were either control (grain barley) or hydroponic barley green fodder (BGF) that was included to provide 22.8 percent of the total diet on dry matter basis. Seed grade barley was grown in a hydroponics chamber system where the growth period was adjusted for 6 days. Body weigh gain was not significantly different between the treatments, but the animals that had received the control diet had higher (P< 0.05) dry matter intake than those fed BGF diet. There was a tendency (P= 0.199) toward differences in feed efficiency due to dietary treatments. From economical point of view, feed cost increased up to 24 percent when the calves were offered BGF, because of the costly production of hydroponics green forage. Although the mass production of fresh fodder was about 4.5 times per kg of barley grain, this was due to water absorption during germination and growth period. Nevertheless, the dry matter obtained was less than the initial barley grain and further dry matter losses were found in the green fodder. These findings suggest that green fodder had no advantage over barley grain in feedlot calves, while it increased the cost of feed.

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Anti-lock braking system (ABS) prevents the wheels from being locked in hard braking conditions and reduces the vehicle stopping distance to the minimum value by regulating the tire longitudinal slip at its optimum value. This paper presents a two-layer controller for ABS of trucks which is adaptable with different road conditions. In the upper layer, a fuzzy controller is designed to calculate the optimum longitudinal slip of each wheel for which the maximum braking force is achieved in different conditions. In the lower layer, a nonlinear controller is analytically designed based on the predictive method to track the optimum wheel slips calculated from the upper layer. In order to increase the robustness of the controller in the presence of system uncertainties, the integral feedback technique is also appended to the predictive method. All simulation studies are conducted using the professional software of Truck Sim to evaluate the performance of the controlled system in a real condition. The results show the effectiveness of the proposed control system in improving the braking performance of trucks in different road conditions.

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The beet armyworm (Spodoptera exigua Hübner) is an important pest of many agricultural crops all over the world. Most of the sugar beet growing regions in Iran are infested. In this study, the acute lethal effects of Pyriproxyfen, Spinosad, and Indoxacarb as well as sublethal effects of Pyriproxyfen on the 1^st instar S. exigua were assessed by leaf dip bioassay method. Mortality was recorded 48 hours after treatment. LC₅₀ and LC₉₀ values for Spinosad were 0.096 and 0.252 mg ai l^-1, respectively, and for Indoxacarb, they were 2.510 and 38.828 mg ai l^-1, respectively. The LC₅₀ value for Spinosad was 26 times lower than that of Indoxacarb. Preliminary experiments revealed that Pyriproxyfen did not cause acutely lethal effects on the beet armyworm larvae even following exposure at recommended doses. Pyriproxyfen, however, did show considerable delayed effects against this pest. Significant differences in biological, reproductive, and population growth parameters were found in Pyriproxyfen treated insects in comparison with the control insects. Population growth parameters including net reproduction rate (R₀), gross reproduction rate (GRR), intrinsic rate of population increase (r_m), and finite rate of population increase (λ) were reduced by 14.7-, 6.63-, 2.33-, and 1.09-fold, respectively, following Pyriproxyfen exposure. Additionally, mean generation time (T) and doubling time (DT) of the population were increased by 1.12- and 2.3-fold, respectively. 

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Abstract
Today, the use of plant extracts has been considered as natural preservatives or food additives with antioxidant and antimicrobial properties alone or in combination with edible coatings. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of Eryngium caucasicum extract (0.75%) with combined edible coatings based on xanthan gum (1.5%) and guar (0.5%), an examination were carried out with 5 treatments of uncoated chicken fillets (control) fillets containing xanthan and guar coatings alone or in combination with Eryngium caucasicum extract and 3 replicates per treatment during a 12-day refrigerated storage. The results showed that Eryngium caucasicum extract significantly (p <0.05) improved the antibacterial function of guar coating. However, there was no effect on the antimicrobial efficacy of xanthan coatings. The lowest amount of pH was observed in the fillets containing xanthan and Eryngium caucasicum extract. Also, at the end of the period, the lowest amount of peroxide value and index of thiobarbituric acid was observed in the fillet coated with guar and Eryngium caucasicum extract (p <0.05). On the other hand, the type of edible coating did not have a significant effect on the content of total volatile nitrogen compounds. However, the effect of Eryngium caucasicum extract on improving the effectiveness of guar edible coating was significant in reducing total volatile nitrogen compounds of fillet (p <0.05). In general, the results showed that, given the antioxidant and antimicrobial properties of Eryngium caucasicum extract, it can be combined with edible coatings to increase the shelf life of chicken fillet at refrigerated storage.
Keywords: Xanthan, Eryngium caucasicum, chicken fillet, guar, shelf life

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The orientation of part in the additive manufacturing process is one of the most important factors should be considered in the additive manufacturing process. In the additive manufacturing process, the part orientation factor can significantly affect the part properties such as the surface roughness, strength, the manufacturing time and amount of support materials. The manufacturing time is a key factor that can influence the total production cost. Therefore, to minimize the manufacturing time, the optimum orientation of parts should be determined. In this paper, a new method is introduced to estimate the built time of the parts through the additive manufacturing process. According to the proposed method, a practical equation is extracted to estimate the built time of the parts with related to the number of layers and amount of the support materials. The method is capable to estimate the built time of a part associated to the part orientations. The efficiency of the proposed method is demonstrated through a case study in two different type of orientation, and the computational results are compared with the obtained results from the simulations in MankatiUM V5.3 and Repetier-Host software. The average of proposed method relative error in the first type of orientation in comparison with MankatiUM and Repetier-Host software results are, respectively, 5 and 10 percent and for the second type of orientation are 7 and 8 percent. Moreover, calculation cost of proposed method is 140 and 100 times faster than MankatiUM and Repetier-Host software, respectively.

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Rapid prototyping (Additive manufacturing or 3D printing) is defined as the process that can build 3D physical part from the designed model in CAD software by joining materials directly. In the RP process, the orientation pattern of the part is one of the most important factors that significantly affect the product properties such as the build time, the surface roughness, the mechanical strength, and the amount of support material. The build time and the surface roughness are the more imperative criteria than others that can be considered to find the optimum orientation of parts. In this paper, two algorithms based on analytical and empirical optimization methods are presented to determine optimum part build orientation in order to minimize build time and surface roughness. To implement this method, the user's part is received in standard triangle language (STL) format. Then, using the geometric characteristics and type of part orientation, the build time and the average of surface roughness is calculated. In order to determine the optimum part build orientation, two analytical (NSGA-II method) and experimental (new and developed Taguchi method) optimization methods have been used. After introducing the steps of these two methods, in order to determine optimum part build orientation, the steps of these two proposed algorithms are implemented on a part as a case study and obtained results are compared and discussed.

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Cornelean cherry is a very perishable fruit that requires proper postharvest management to reduce losses. This study was aimed to increase the postharvest life and marketability of the product using postharvest calcium chloride treatments. The present study was conducted in a factorial experiment based on a completely randomized design with three replications. Factors included 3 immersion calcium chloride treatments (0, 60 and 80 mM), 4 storage times (0, 10, 20 and 30 days) and two cornelean cherry genotypes. Fruit samples were harvested at maturity (more than 90% of red skin) and immersion treatments were applied on them. During and after the experiment, different physicochemical traits of fruits were studied. The results showed that KKP2 genotype had lower mean firmness and sugar content and higher weight loss percentage than Hir genotype. The results showed that the two genotypes did not show significant differences in terms of pH and titratable acidity. Firmness, titratable acid, ascorbic acid, anthocyanin and phenol decreased over time. Among immersion treatments, the highest and lowest firmness, titratable acid and ascorbic acid belonged to 60 mM calcium and control (distilled water), respectively. The difference between 60 and 80 mM calcium chloride treatments was not significant. The lowest fruit weight loss was obtained in 80 mM calcium chloride treatment.

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The Sunn pest, Eurygaster integriceps Puton (Hemiptera: Scutelleridae), is a key pest of wheat in Iran. The nymphs and adults reduce wheat yield quality and quantity by feeding on leaves, stems, and grains. Pesticide application is the main method of Sunn pest control. Precocene, a juvenile hormone inhibitor, exerts cytotoxic effects on corpora allata of insects' species. . In this research, the effect of precocene-I (7-methoxy-2, 2-dimethyl chormene) on Sunn pest egg development and subsequent progenies was evaluated in the laboratory. Concentration range on eggs bioassay was 1, 5, 10, 20, and 50 µg mL^-1. The results of bioassay tests on 2- and 5-day old eggs showed that LC₅₀ values were 15.4 and 15 µg mL^-1, respectively. Therefore, old eggs were more sensitive than young eggs. The effects of LC₃₀ and LC₅₀ of precocene-I on the egg and nymphal mortality were significantly stronger than the control, and the highest mortality rates in the first and third instars were 14.28 and 13.26%, respectively. Also, precocene-I did not affect embryonic period, but increased nymphal period (39.3 days), compared to the control (34.8 days). Morphological changes on nymphs that emerged from treated eggs included large wings and hemelytron. The fifth instars showed deformed scutellum. Also, typically, some old cuticules were not completely separated.

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Cornelian cherry (Cornus mas L) fruit is very perishable and needs proper post-harvest management to reduce waste. This study was performed as a factorial experiment in a completely randomized design with three replications with the aim of increasing postharvest life and maintaining fruit quality of two Cornelian cherry genotypes KKP2 and Hir. Factors included three salicylic acid immersion treatments (0, 1 and 2 mM), four storage times (0, 10, 20 and 30 days) and two Cornelian cherry genotypes. Fruits were harvested at maturity (more than 90% redness of the skin) and healthy and uniform fruits were subjected to immersion treatments and stored for 30 days at 4 ° C. During and at the end of experiment, different physicochemical traits of fruits including soluble solids (TSS), firmness, total phenol, anthocyanin, ascorbic acid, pH and weight loss were examined at 10-day intervals. The results showed that KKP2 genotype had less firmness and TSS and more weight loss than Hir genotype. There was no significant difference between the two genotypes in terms of total acidity. The highest of pH, soluble solids and weight loss were observed in the control or distilled water treatment and salicylic acid treatment prevented the increase of these parameters. The highest levels of ascorbic acid, anthocyanin and firmness were observed in the treatment of 1 mM salicylic acid. The amount of fruit phenol in distilled water treatment was further reduced and the treatments of salicylic acid 1 and 2 mM prevented further reduction of phenol during storage. Salicylic acid treatments can be used as a promising method for increasing the firmness and extending the shelf life of cornelian cherry fruits.