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This study was conducted to produce a new biodegradable film from easily available and low-cost raw materials by casting method. Corn starch and date pits powder (DPP) in the proportions of 100:0, 90:10, 80:20, 70:30, and 60:40% (w/w) were used. Physical, mechanical, barrier, morphological and antioxidant properties of the developed films were evaluated. The incorporation of DPP increased the thickness, tensile strength, Young's modulus, phenolic compounds, and antioxidant activity of the films, but decreased their swelling index, water solubility, water vapor permeability and elongation capacity. An increase in DPP content decreased the L* values and increased the a*, b*, and ΔE values of the films. SEM images showed that the addition of DPP up to 30% improved the morphological properties of the films. All the developed films were totally biodegradable. This study revealed the potential use of DPP with corn starch for composite biodegradable films formulation.
Nashi Alqahtani; Tareq Alnemr; Salim Ali. Development of low-cost biodegradable films from corn starch and date palm pits (Phoenix dactylifera). Food Bioscience 2021, 42, 101199 .
AMA StyleNashi Alqahtani, Tareq Alnemr, Salim Ali. Development of low-cost biodegradable films from corn starch and date palm pits (Phoenix dactylifera). Food Bioscience. 2021; 42 ():101199.
Chicago/Turabian StyleNashi Alqahtani; Tareq Alnemr; Salim Ali. 2021. "Development of low-cost biodegradable films from corn starch and date palm pits (Phoenix dactylifera)." Food Bioscience 42, no. : 101199.
Drought is the most severe problem for agricultural production, and the intensity of this problem is increasing in most cultivated areas around the world. Hence improving water productivity is the primary purpose of sustainable agriculture. This study aimed to use cloud IoT solutions to control a modern subsurface irrigation system for improving irrigation management of date palms in arid regions. To achieve this goal, we designed, constructed, and validated the performance of a fully automated controlled subsurface irrigation system (CSIS) to monitor and control the irrigation water amount remotely. The CSIS is based on an autonomous sensors network to instantly collect the climatic parameters and volumetric soil water content in the study area. Therefore, we employed the ThingSpeak cloud platform to host sensor readings, perform algorithmic analysis, instant visualize the live data, create event-based alerts to the user, and send instructions to the IoT devices. The validation of the CSIS proved that automatically irrigating date palm trees controlled by the sensor-based irrigation scheduling (S-BIS) is more efficient than the time-based irrigation scheduling (T-BIS). The S-BIS provided the date palm with the optimum irrigation water amount at the opportune time directly in the functional root zone. Generally, the S-BIS and T-BIS of CSIS reduced the applied irrigation water amount by 64.1% and 61.2%, respectively, compared with traditional surface irrigation (TSI). The total annual amount of applied irrigation water for CSIS with S-BIS method, CSIS with T-BIS method, and TSI was 21.04, 22.76, and 58.71 m3 palm−1, respectively. The water productivity at the CSIS with S-BIS (1.783 kg m−3) and T-BIS (1.44 kg m−3) methods was significantly higher compared to the TSI (0.531 kg m−3). The CSIS with the S-BIS method kept the volumetric water content in the functional root zone next to the field capacity compared to the T-BIS method. The deigned CSIS with the S-BIS method characterized by the positive impact on the irrigation water management and enhancement on fruit yield of the date palm is quite proper for date palm irrigation in the arid regions.
Maged Mohammed; Khaled Riad; Nashi Alqahtani. Efficient IoT-Based Control for a Smart Subsurface Irrigation System to Enhance Irrigation Management of Date Palm. Sensors 2021, 21, 3942 .
AMA StyleMaged Mohammed, Khaled Riad, Nashi Alqahtani. Efficient IoT-Based Control for a Smart Subsurface Irrigation System to Enhance Irrigation Management of Date Palm. Sensors. 2021; 21 (12):3942.
Chicago/Turabian StyleMaged Mohammed; Khaled Riad; Nashi Alqahtani. 2021. "Efficient IoT-Based Control for a Smart Subsurface Irrigation System to Enhance Irrigation Management of Date Palm." Sensors 21, no. 12: 3942.
Dates are subjected to postharvest losses in quality and quantity caused by water loss, fermentation, insect infestation, and microbial spoilage during storage. Cold storage is the main element in the postharvest quality management used for fruit preservation. Although cold storage is used for dates, precision control of the relative humidity (RH) using ultrasonic applications is not used thus far, or it is applied to other fruits on a small scale. Therefore, we designed and constructed an ultrasonic humidifier (DUH) for RH control in the cold storage room (CSR) of dates. The optimum air velocity of 3 m s−1 at the outlets of the DUH ducts produced a mist amount of 6.8 kg h−1 with an average droplet diameter of 4.26 ± 1.43 µm at the applied voltage of 48 V and frequency of 2600 kHz of the transducers. The experimental validation was carried out by comparing a CSR controlled with the DUH with two conventional CSRs. The three tested CSRs were similar in dimensions, cooling system, and amount of stored dates. The time required for cooling 800 kg of dates in the controlled CSR from 25 °C to the target temperature of 5 °C was approximately 48 h. The DUH precisely controlled the RH at the maximum RH set point of 80% in the tested CSR at 5 °C. The controlled RH at 80% has a positive impact on the physicochemical characteristics of the stored dates. It significantly reduced the weight loss of the fruits and preserved fruit mass, moisture content, water activity, firmness, and color parameters. However, no significant effect was observed on fruit dimensions, sphericity, and aspect ratio. The microbial loads of mesophilic aerobic bacteria, molds, and yeasts fell within the acceptable limits in all tested CSRs. Both stored date fruits and artificially infested dates showed no signs of insect activity in the controlled CSR at the temperature of 5 °C and RH of 80%. The DUH proved to be a promising technology for postharvest quality management for dates during cold storage.
Maged Mohammed; Nashi Alqahtani; Hamadttu El-Shafie. Development and Evaluation of an Ultrasonic Humidifier to Control Humidity in a Cold Storage Room for Postharvest Quality Management of Dates. Foods 2021, 10, 949 .
AMA StyleMaged Mohammed, Nashi Alqahtani, Hamadttu El-Shafie. Development and Evaluation of an Ultrasonic Humidifier to Control Humidity in a Cold Storage Room for Postharvest Quality Management of Dates. Foods. 2021; 10 (5):949.
Chicago/Turabian StyleMaged Mohammed; Nashi Alqahtani; Hamadttu El-Shafie. 2021. "Development and Evaluation of an Ultrasonic Humidifier to Control Humidity in a Cold Storage Room for Postharvest Quality Management of Dates." Foods 10, no. 5: 949.
Date palm fruit (Phoenix dactylifera) is reputed to have numerous biological activities, including anticancer properties. To utilize the great fortune of this fruit, the current study aimed to maximize its pharmacological activity. Date palm extract (DPE) of Khalas cultivar was obtained in powder form and then was formulated into nanoemulsion (NE). The optimized DPE-NE was formulated along with its naked counterpart followed by studying their physical and chemical properties. A qualitative assessment of total serum protein associated with the surface of formulations was implemented. Studies for the in vitro release of DPE from developed NE before and after incubation with serum were investigated. Eventually, an MTT assay was conducted. Total phenolic and flavonoid contents were 22.89 ± 0.013 mg GAE/g of dry DPE and 9.90 ± 0.03 mg QE/g of dry DPE, respectively. Homogenous NE formulations were attained with appropriate particle size and viscosity that could be administered intravenously. The optimized PEGylated NE exhibited a proper particle size, PDI, and zeta potential. Total serum protein adsorbed on PEG-NE surface was significantly low. The release of the drug through in vitro study was effectively extended for 24 h. Ultimately; PEGylated NE of DPE attained significant inhibition for cancer cell viability with IC50 values of 18.6 ± 2.4 and 13.5 ± 1.8 µg/mL for MCF-7 and HepG2 cell lines, respectively. PEGylated NE of DPE of Khalas cultivar will open the gate for future adjuvants for cancer therapy.
Hany Khalil; Nashi Alqahtani; Hossam Darrag; Hairul-Islam Ibrahim; Promise Emeka; Lorina Badger-Emeka; Katsuyoshi Matsunami; Tamer Shehata; Heba Elsewedy. Date Palm Extract (Phoenix dactylifera) PEGylated Nanoemulsion: Development, Optimization and Cytotoxicity Evaluation. Plants 2021, 10, 735 .
AMA StyleHany Khalil, Nashi Alqahtani, Hossam Darrag, Hairul-Islam Ibrahim, Promise Emeka, Lorina Badger-Emeka, Katsuyoshi Matsunami, Tamer Shehata, Heba Elsewedy. Date Palm Extract (Phoenix dactylifera) PEGylated Nanoemulsion: Development, Optimization and Cytotoxicity Evaluation. Plants. 2021; 10 (4):735.
Chicago/Turabian StyleHany Khalil; Nashi Alqahtani; Hossam Darrag; Hairul-Islam Ibrahim; Promise Emeka; Lorina Badger-Emeka; Katsuyoshi Matsunami; Tamer Shehata; Heba Elsewedy. 2021. "Date Palm Extract (Phoenix dactylifera) PEGylated Nanoemulsion: Development, Optimization and Cytotoxicity Evaluation." Plants 10, no. 4: 735.
Understanding the flight characteristics of insect pests is essential for designing effective strategies and programs for their management. In this study, we designed, constructed, and validated the performance of modern flight-testing systems (flight mill and flight tunnel) for studying the flight behavior of red palm weevil (RPW) Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Olivier) under a controlled atmosphere. The flight-testing mill consisted of a flight mill, a testing chamber with an automatically controlled microclimate, and a data logging and processing unit. The data logging and processing unit consisted of a USB digital oscilloscope connected with a laptop. We used MATLAB 2020A to implement a graphical user interface (GUI) for real-time sampling and data processing. The flight-testing tunnel was fitted with a horizontal video camera to photograph the insects during flight. The program of Image-Pro plus V 10.0.8 was used for image processing and numerical data analysis to determine weevil tracking. The mean flight speed of RPW was 82.12 ± 8.5 m/min, and the RPW stopped flying at the temperature of 20 °C. The RPW flight speed in the flight tunnel was slightly higher than that on the flight mill. The angular deceleration was 0.797 rad/s2, and the centripetal force was 0.0203 N when a RPW tethered to the end of the rotating arm. The calculated moment of inertia of the RPW mass and the flight mill’s rotating components was 9.521 × 10−3 N m2. The minimum thrust force needed to rotate the flight mill was 1.98 × 10−3 N. Therefore, the minimum power required to rotate the flight mill with the mean revolution per min of 58.02 rpm was approximately 2.589 × 10−3 W. The designed flight-testing systems and their applied software proved productive and useful tools in unveiling essential flight characteristics of test insects in the laboratory.
Maged Mohammed; Hamadttu El-Shafie; Nashi Alqahtani. Design and Validation of Computerized Flight-Testing Systems with Controlled Atmosphere for Studying Flight Behavior of Red Palm Weevil, Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Olivier). Sensors 2021, 21, 2112 .
AMA StyleMaged Mohammed, Hamadttu El-Shafie, Nashi Alqahtani. Design and Validation of Computerized Flight-Testing Systems with Controlled Atmosphere for Studying Flight Behavior of Red Palm Weevil, Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Olivier). Sensors. 2021; 21 (6):2112.
Chicago/Turabian StyleMaged Mohammed; Hamadttu El-Shafie; Nashi Alqahtani. 2021. "Design and Validation of Computerized Flight-Testing Systems with Controlled Atmosphere for Studying Flight Behavior of Red Palm Weevil, Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Olivier)." Sensors 21, no. 6: 2112.
This study investigated the impact of added white oat flour on structure, and acceptability of goat milk yogurt (GMY) as well as antioxidant activity during in vitro digestion. The four GMY formulations prepared were Y0, Y1, Y2, and Y3 that contain 0, 1, 2, 3 g of oat flour/100 g, respectively. There were significant changes in viable counts, pH, and syneresis values for all GMY during storage. All samples retain viable counts above therapeutic level (106 CFU/g) during storage. Antioxidant activity increased at 7 days and after in vitro digestion. Y2 and Y3 displayed the preferable texture and the highest acceptability by diminishing goaty flavor.
Nashi Khalid Alqahtani; Aliaa Ali Darwish; Reham Kamal El-Menawy; Tareq Morad Alnemr; Esmat Aly. Textural and organoleptic attributes and antioxidant activity of goat milk yoghurt with added oat flour. International Journal of Food Properties 2021, 24, 433 -445.
AMA StyleNashi Khalid Alqahtani, Aliaa Ali Darwish, Reham Kamal El-Menawy, Tareq Morad Alnemr, Esmat Aly. Textural and organoleptic attributes and antioxidant activity of goat milk yoghurt with added oat flour. International Journal of Food Properties. 2021; 24 (1):433-445.
Chicago/Turabian StyleNashi Khalid Alqahtani; Aliaa Ali Darwish; Reham Kamal El-Menawy; Tareq Morad Alnemr; Esmat Aly. 2021. "Textural and organoleptic attributes and antioxidant activity of goat milk yoghurt with added oat flour." International Journal of Food Properties 24, no. 1: 433-445.