Journal of King Abdulaziz University: Meteorology, Environment and Arid Land Agriculture

Analysis of electrocution accidents in complex systems based on four ‎models: HFACS, FTA, AcciMap, and STAMP ‎

Mobasher Alasmari, Professor. Mansour Balkhyour‎, Dr. Radhouane Chakroun‎ — Tue, 18 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This study aims to the examination of four accident causation models namely: human factors and classification system (HFACS), Fault tree analysis (FTA), AcciMAp, and the Systems-Theoretic Accident Model and Processes (STAMP) to study the causation of electrocution accidents and the advantages and drawbacks inherent in every model.

Two objectives of the study are: to determine the most appropriate methods for investigating electrocution accidents within complex systems and to comprehend the features of four methodologies concerning their conceptualization of accident causation.

Methodology: to investigate the causation of electrocution accidents, the study involves a systematic approach that includes a literature review, gathering relevant data, analyzing various factors such as electrical systems, equipment, human behavior, and environmental conditions, identifying hazards and risk factors, and determining the sequence of events leading to the accident.

Conclusion: HFACS and AcciMap are found to be more effective as they both consider the failures and defects at different levels of organization. It is found that establishing clear communication channels among all levels of the organization is a critical aspect of implementing a holistic approach to safety management.

Integrating Fish Farm Effluents with Mineral Fertilization and Their impacts on Growth, Yield, and Fruit Yield Quality of Squash Plants

Abdulrahman M. Almadini — Tue, 18 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

An open field split plot experiment was conducted using a complete randomized block design with 3 replicates at Research and Training Station of KFU, KSA, aiming to evaluate the effects of integrating various irrigation water types (IWT) of fish farm effluents (shrimp (SW), catfish (CatW), carp (CarW), tilapia (TW), and their mixture (MiW)) and normal well water (NW, control) with different rates of applied mineral NPK fertilizer (MF, 0 (control), 25, 50, and 100 kg ha^-1) on growth (plant height, fourth leaf area, and dry leaves weight), yield (fruit no/plant, fruit weight, yield, marketable fruit ratio, and firmness), and yield quality (total soluble solids, total acidity, ascorbic acid, and acid-sugar ratio) traits of squash plants (Cucurbita pepo L., c.v. Agro top). The IWT and MF treatments occupied the main and sub main plots, respectively. Obtained results revealed that there were significant differences between treatments and their interactions. The values of treatments irrigated with fish farm effluents and fertilized with MF were significantly higher than those of controls. The best values were generally under the treatment of MiW and 50 kg ha^-1 MF rate. Such results suggest the reliable use of these effluents as non-conventional irrigation water and their environmental, economic, and social values. Their utilization as irrigation water will intensify surface and underground freshwater sustainability, particularly in water scarce countries, as KSA. Also, their use promotes agricultural production, contributing to food security. Finally, further investigations to evaluate their impact on other plants and on soil health and quality are recommended. Some agricultural extension programs are required to enhance the perception of farmers and end users toward their reliable and efficient use as alternative irrigation water.

Exploring Effective Strategies for the Control of Gray Mold Disease in Tomatoes Caused by Botrytis using Bacterial Bioagents

Mosaddekur Rahman, Najeeb Almasoudi, Kamal Abo-Elyousr, Khaled Asiry — Tue, 18 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Gray mold disease, caused by Botrytis cinerea, is a significant threat to tomato crops, leading to severe yield losses globally. Traditional chemical control methods pose environmental hazards and the potential for pathogen resistance, highlighting the need for sustainable alternatives. This review explores the use of bacterial bioagents as an eco-friendly and effective strategy for controlling gray mold in tomatoes. Key bacterial strains, such as Bacillus, Pseudomonas, and Streptomyces, have demonstrated promising biocontrol properties, including antifungal activity, competition for nutrients, and induction of plant defense mechanisms. The mechanisms through which these bacteria inhibit Botrytis involve the production of secondary metabolites, lytic enzymes, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Field trials and greenhouse studies have shown variable success, depending on environmental conditions, bioagent strain selection, and application methods. Integrated management practices combining bacterial bioagents with cultural and agronomic practices further enhance the efficacy of disease control. The study concludes that bacterial bioagents represent a viable and sustainable approach to managing gray mold in tomatoes, though further research is needed to optimize their use and scalability in commercial agriculture.

Harnessing Plant Power: A Review of Green-Biosynthesized Silver Nanoparticles for Improving Orange Postharvest Quality and Green Mold Resistance

Zulfiqar Ali — Tue, 18 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

The increasing demand for fresh, organic produce has prompted the exploration of innovative methods to enhance post-harvest quality and combat diseases in fruits, particularly citrus. This review focuses on the green synthesis of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) using plant extracts, which serve as both reducing and stabilizing agents, as a sustainable alternative to traditional chemical fungicides. The nanoparticles are characterized by their size, morphology, and stability using techniques such as UV-Vis spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM). The biogenic AgNPs demonstrated significant antifungal activity against Penicillium digitatum, the causative agent of green mold disease in oranges, effectively prolonging shelf life while maintaining the fruit's visual and nutritional quality. The synthesized nanoparticles exhibited stability and efficacy over extended periods, reducing weight loss and enhancing key quality parameters such as ascorbic acid content and titratable acidity. Despite these promising findings, the underlying mechanisms of AgNPs action and their interactions with pathogens at the molecular level remain inadequately understood. This review highlights the need for further research to elucidate these mechanisms, assess the environmental safety of AgNPs, and explore their potential applications across various crops. Ultimately, this study aims to contribute to sustainable agricultural practices by integrating eco-friendly solutions into post-harvest management strategies.

THE IMPACT OF SEWAGE WATER ON SOME FISH IN ALKHUMRAH AREA, SOUTH OF JEDDAH GOVERNORATE, SAUDI ARABIA.

omar Al enzi, Moustafa Elnaggar, Hassan Felemban — Tue, 18 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Treated sewage is a source of water and soil pollution despite the development of treatment methods, especially the entry of tertiary treatment into use in most purification plants in the Kingdom. This pollution comes as a result of the high levels of salts of all kinds, especially the remnants of heavy metals that negatively affect the environment and many living organisms. In this field, Alkhumrah station complex in the south is considered one of the largest sewage treatment plants in the Kingdom. It produces large quantities of treated water that are disposed of in seawater, and part of it cuts through the Al-Taawun area in Jeddah, causing pollution of some valleys and negatively affecting some living organisms, including tilapia fish that reproduce naturally in these valleys and lakes. In the context of this situation, this study aimed to know the extent of the impact of treated wastewater on the reproduction and growth of Tilapia Fish. This study showed that this water affected the growth and weight of fish during the months of May to October 2023, February and March 2024, as the weight of the fish ranged from 14.8 to 54.7 gm, while the length of the fish ranged from 84.8 mm during June 2023 to 395.3 mm during March 2024. These changes are attributed to the components of the water during these months, which showed a significant increase in all salts and minerals, including an increase in calcium from 23 mg/L in normal water to 90 mg/L in polluted water, while cadmium increased from 24.6 mg/L to 173 mg/L. As for the fish blood level analyses, the study showed an increase in all the criteria indicating infection and damage to some tissues, including white blood cells (WBC), red blood cells (RBC), platelets (PLT), hemoglobin (Hb), neutrophils (NP), and lymphocytes (LP). This increase coincides with an increase in liver enzymes that indicate liver infections, including alanine aminotransferase (ALT), which increased from 20.36 u/L in normal water to 56.08 u/L in polluted water, also for aspartate aminotransferase (AST) the normal water it was 16.98 u/L and increased in the polluted water during Feb to 35.96 u/L and during Mar to 60.96 u/L. As for the alkaline phosphatase (ALP) enzyme, it also increased from 51.2 to 91.2 u/L. Histological sections documented changes and injuries in the liver, gills, and muscles. Various histological changes have been identified, wherein liver cells exhibited an increase in macrophage aggregation within liver tissues, hepatocyte hypertrophy, and intravascular hemolysis within blood vessels, accompanied by cellular degeneration in the aggregated fish from Alkhumrah area.

Fungi as Indicators of Indoor Air Quality: A Survey of a Building in a University

Azhar Najjar — Tue, 18 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Indoor air quality (IAQ) significantly impacts human health, with fungal contamination being a major concern. At King Abdulaziz University, 160 samples were collected from 40 rooms, including classrooms, staff offices, microbiology laboratories, and toilets. These samples were cultured on Sabouraud dextrose agar and incubated at 28 °C for 7 days. Initial identification based on morphology was followed by internal transcribed spacer (ITS) rDNA analysis, revealing 11 species across eight genera. The most prevalent fungi included Aspergillus niger (183 CFU), Penicillium chrysogenum (139 CFU), and Cladosporium halotolerans (135 CFU), while Curvularia hawaiiensis and A. ustus were rarely isolated (10 and 19 CFU, respectively). Effective mitigation strategies should focus on controlling humidity and ensuring proper ventilation. Continuous monitoring and management are essential for reducing fungal contamination, improving air quality, and safeguarding human health from airborne fungi. This study highlights the need for proactive measures to create healthier indoor environments.

Frequency Analysis of Maximum Daily Rainfall for Flood Risk Management in Jazan Province Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: Excel-Based Model

Mohammed Farran — Tue, 18 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) is one of the most arid countries in the world, rainfall is almost rare except for the southwestern area of KSA, where the Jazan Province is located. The study aims to analyze rainfall distribution to find out the appropriate distribution for the Jazan Province through annual rainfall data for the Jazan Province to provide a database for hydrological studies and flood risk assessment. The data of 25 rainfall stations were used for periods ranging from 19 to 59 years (1960-2018) for the average annual rainfall and the daily maximum. An Excel sheet has been prepared with the distributions used (log-normal, Pearson type III, log-Pearson type III, GEV, and Gumbel) in the analysis (model). Based on the RMSE criterion, the results showed that the GEV distribution is the best probability distribution for 36% of stations. Followed by distributions log-Pearson III, Gumbel type I, log-normal, and Pearson type III with percentages of 32%, 16%, 12%, and 4% of the total studied stations, respectively. The model showed effectiveness in the analysis, as its results were validated by the Hyfran Plus program, it is recommended to use the model.

The Investigation of NASA-POWER Reanalysis Daily Climatic Parameters for Al Madinah Al Munawarah City, Saudi Arabia

Sajjad Hussain, Burhan Niyazi, Amro Elfeki, Milad Masoud — Tue, 18 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Climatic parameters are the main components in meteorological and hydrological studies but their data availability in arid region like Saudi Arabia is a great problem. Remote sensing and reanalysis dataset can fill this gap and overcome this issue. The objective of this study is to evaluate the accuracy of NASA-POWER reanalysis dataset for period of three decades (1982-2012) for Al-Madinah Al-Munawarah. Maximum (T_max), Minimum (T_min), Average (T_avg) temperature, Relative humidity (R_h) and wind speed (W_s) were collected and compared with the observational data. The data was collected from the meteorological station of Al-Madinah Al-Munawarah Airport. The results revealed that the regression (R²) and Pearson correlation coefficient (r) were found highest (0.97, 0.98) for T_max, while lowest (0.36, 0.60) for W_s, respectively. Minimum and average temperature performed very well presenting performance metrices (R² and r) above 0.95. Relative humidity also nicely correlated with observed values having R² and r, 0.76 and 0.87, respectively. The maximum percent bias (PBIAS) was found in Ws indicating an overestimation of 43.32%, while lowest (0.72%) for T_max. Similarly, R_h presented an underestimation of about (-8.62%) while T_avg shows an overestimation of about (8.85%). However, T_min overestimated the data by 17.18%. Mean Absolute Error (MAE) and Root Mean Squared Error (RMSE) was found highest (4.95 ^OC, 6.98^OC) for R_h, while T_max found lowest (1.02^OC, 1.37^OC). The error matrix (MAE, RMSE) for T_min remain normal (3.76^OC, 4.15^OC) and for W_s (2.61 m/s, 3.09 m/s) and T_avg (2.59 ^OC, 2.76 ^OC) it remains low. Overall, NASA-POWER dataset presented a very good relationship with observed data for all variables except W_s. However, this study indicates the potential and importance of this reanalysis dataset based on its performance that can be used for hydrological studies in Al-Madinah region.

Assessing WRF Model Performance for a Severe Case of Rainfall in Western Saudi Arabia

Ahmad Samman, Abdallah Abdaldym, Mostafa Morsy — Tue, 18 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This study investigates the performance of the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model in simulating a severe weather event, characterized by intense rainfall and thunderstorms, that occurred over western Saudi Arabia on May 8, 2014. During this event, Makkah meteorological station recorded approximately 50 mm of rainfall accompanied by thunderstorms, posing significant forecasting challenges. The model was configured with moderate-resolution settings and various parameterizations to simulate the event, and its results were compared with observed meteorological data. Key model outputs, including precipitation intensity and distribution, were analyzed to assess the model's accuracy and its capability to capture critical atmospheric dynamics associated with heavy rainfall in arid regions. The simulated rainfall in the control experiment depicts is in good agreement with Tropical Rainfall Measurement Mission (TRMM) rainfall estimates in terms of intensity as well as spatio-temporal distribution. The findings highlight the strengths and limitations of the model for severe weather prediction in western Saudi Arabia, providing insights into optimal configurations for forecasting similar events in the future.

Mentha longifolia Essential Oil from AlUla Region, Saudi Arabia: Chemical Composition and Classification

Ebtihaj alnasri, Heba Sindi — Tue, 18 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This study investigated the chemical composition and biological activities of Mentha longifolia (L.) essential oil from the AlUla region using GC-MS analysis, which identified 73 compounds with three predominant chemotypes: Piperitone epoxide (37.96%), 18-Cineole (16.37%), and menthone (10.01%). Total phenolic content analysis using the Folin-Ciocalteu method revealed 240.168 ± 2.1 mg gallic acid/mg/mL, while antioxidant activity showed a DPPH IC₅₀ value of 30.66 µg/ml. antimicrobial assessment using agar well diffusion demonstrated stronger efficacy against Gram-positive compared to Gram-negative bacteria. Principal component analysis and Agglomerative Hierarchical Clustering identified four distinct chemotypes among the samples. Given its significant antimicrobial and antioxidant properties, these findings establish the potential of M. longifolia essential oil from the AlUla region as a natural preservative in food packaging applications. significant antibacterial and antioxidant activities. Therefore, it can be used as a natural preservative in food packaging.

Exogenous lysozyme as an alternative to antibiotics improves growth performance and small intestinal morphology of broiler chickens

Reda Hassan, Reda Ali Hassan , Yahya Zakaria Eid, Mohamed Abdel-Azeem Mohamed — Tue, 18 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

There have been successful attempts to replace antibiotics in broilers with dietary lysozyme (LYZ), but more study is required to ensure its efficacy. We investigated the effects of LYZ and the feed addition avelamycin (AVI) on broiler chickens' immunity, gastrointestinal health, and growth performance. Two hundred and seventy one-day-old broiler chicks (Ross 308) were randomly assigned to three groups, each consisting of six replicates and each consisting of fifteen birds. The standard diet without supplements was applied as control group (I), while chicks in the other groups were provided with 100 mg AVI per kg of diet (AVI, group II), and 90 mg LYZ per kg of diet (LYZ, group III) for five consecutive weeks. Result In comparison to the CON group, the AVI and LYZ groups showed significant (p<0.05) increases in body weight, feed conversion ratio, body weight growth, European production efficiency factor, protein efficiency ratio, and digestibility of crude protein; however, feed intake remained unchanged. IgG and IgM levels in the serum were greater in the lysozyme group than in the AVI and control groups. Comparing the serological haemagglutination inhibition titers of NDV vaccination to the control and AVI groups, the LYZ-treated group showed a substantial increase (p < 0.05). Dietary 90 mg lysozymes dramatically reduced the amount of E. coli and total coliforms in the cecum while increasing Lactobacillus. Comparing the LYZ group to the AVI and control groups, the VH and VH/CD were significantly greater. In conclusion intestinal integrity, fecal bacterial counts, immunological response, and growth performance were all improved by exogenous dietary lysozyme supplementation at a level of 90 mg/kg broiler diet, and these results were on par with avilamycin. Thus, dietary lysozyme could be a safe substitute for avilamycin in the diet of broiler chickens.