فصلنامه پژوهشهای علوم و فناوری چوب و جنگل
سال بیست و چهارم شماره 4 (زمستان 1396)

presented researches during recent years, showed that using biotechnological base methods, specially using industrial enzymes for processing of waste papers is considered as a suitable approach to improve optical and mechanical properties of recycled papers. In this research deinking of offset printed waste newspapers using lipase enzyme was studied.
In this research enzymatic deinking of the recycled newspapers was investigated using lipase at three-time level as 60, 120 and 180 min, and three level of enzyme use as 3, 6 and 9 U/g O.D pulp at neutral pH value. Washing method was used to remove ink particles.
Comparison of the optical, physical and strength properties of the made handsheets showed that enzymatically deinking could enforce the strength properties (tear and burst strengths) in the related handsheets compared to those of the control sample. In addition, lipase-deinked pulps showed higher brightness and lower yellowness than the control sample. However, opacity of enzymatic treated pulps decreased with prolongation of treatment time compared to the control sample.
It can be generally concluded that enzymatic deinking using lipase is an appropriate method to improve the optical and strength properties of offset printed waste newsprints. It seems that increasing the amount of enzyme treatment in more than 9 units of enzyme per gram of dry pulp had a significant reduction in the opacity content of dry pulp compared to the control sample and Increasing the treatment time will also be effective in this reduction.

Bacterial cellulose nanofiber (BCN) with diameter size of 30 to 60 nm is naturally produced in film form. After purification, a semi-transparent film is prepared with water absorption of 99 folds its dry weight; hence it is classified as super absorbent material. The BCN film is completely bio-based and biodegradable, safe, edible material with high specific surface area, high mechanical and reinforcing properties. Based on these promising characteristics, it found wide variety of applications such as nanocomposite, aerogel and foam, filter, paper making, packaging, medical, biomedical, pharmaceutical, cosmetics, food, textile, agriculture, electronics, magnetics, aerospace, automotive, defence, building, etc. Based on the promising properties and wide variety of application, it is worth to research on removing the drawbacks of BCN film to develop its applications at industrial scale production. One of these important research topics is drying BCN film. Because, drying BCN film has several advantages including film lightening (99 fold), decrease in transportation cost, long term storage, increase in biological deterioration, simpler storage, increase in mechanical properties and developing area of applications. On the other hand, BCN film is super absorbent material because of high amount of available OH-groups and having 3-D network structure, which prepare high capillary forces. Because of these, removing water from this super absorbent nano-biopolymer needs high energy, time and cost compared to drying ordinary micro-scale cellulose fiber film like paper. This motivated us to compare different drying methods including jet drier, vacuum oven and oven to dry BCN film. Bacterial cellulose nanofiber film was prepared from Nano Novin Polymer Co. (Iran). After primary dewatering step, the BCN film was dried using jet drier, vacuum oven and oven at 50 ᵒC. The drying methods were evaluated and compared in regard to dewatering speed, minimum drying time and drying energy. Also, the dried BCN film were compared through physical and mechanical testing. Results showed that the primary dewatering could decrease the water content of BCN film by 50 wt%. The dewatering speed in jet drier was higher than that of vacuum oven and oven. The minimum drying time of jet drier, vacuum oven and oven was 10, 25 and 45 min, respectively. The corresponding values for energy consumption were 0.25, 0.67 and 1.1 KW/h, respectively. The BCN film dried in jet drier had higher wrinkle and less transparency compared to those dried in vacuum oven and oven. The density of dried BCN film in jet drier was slightly higher than those dried in vacuum oven and oven. Also, its tear and burst indexes were less than those of dried in other methods. Generally, jet drier with minimum drying time and less energy consumption could decrease the weight of BCN film 99 fold which can have several advantages to develop the commercialization of BCN film.

Biomass is the only source of renewable carbon which can be converted to biofuels and added value products. Thermochemical processes such as fast pyrolysis can play an important role for production of biofuels, bio-chemicals and syngases from biorefinery technologies. With regards to this point that sugarcane wildly cultivate in south of Iran and its pith is an abundant resource of biomass from de-pithing process in pulp and paper and medium density fiberboard industries. The aim of this study is the comparison possibility use of bagasse and its pith for bio-oil production in pilot scale fluidized bed reactor and application development of biorefinery for bio-oil production and added-value products.
Material and This research conducted on biofuel production in a pilot-scale reactor operating in a fluidized bed from bagasse and its pith. The components of bagasse are measured by proximate and ultimate analysis. The type and amount of heavy metals were used by applying an elemental analyzer. The thermal degradation characteristics were measured via TGA. Fast pyrolysis were performed at temperature of 470 °C, under screw feeder carrier the biomass in 90 g/h, inside pyrolyzer with nitrogen gas flow rate of 2 L/min.
The elemental analysis indicated that the pith of bagasse contains substantial amounts of extractives and inorganic matter (predominantly Ca, K and Mg). The results of TGA indicated that most of weight losses of bagasse and its pith are among 250 and 350 ˚C which associated with main degradation components (cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin). Under the mentioned conditions, the yields of 53.2%, 35.5% (w/w); 25, 37% (w/w); 21%, 27.5% (w/w) for bio-oil, bio-char, and syngases were obtained from bagasse and pith respectively. The fixed carbon on bagasse was higher than its pith which led to higher energy value, while pith of bagasse contributes the higher bio-char. The heating value of bio-oil from bagasse is 20.6 Mj/kg which higher than pith and most of lignocellulosic materials reported in literatures. The lower oxygen content of bagasse will reduce the cost of upgrading for converting to bio-diesel and other chemicals. The pyrolysis gases components are CO2, CO, CH4, H2 and other hydrocarbons like ethane, propane and ethylene. The carbon dioxide is the dominant gas among them. Bagasse produced more carbon dioxide than pith in fast pyrolysis process.
The pith showed higher thermal stability which result in more bio-char production, because of the higher lignin content of pith in the fast pyrolysis process. The fast pyrolysis bio-oil of bagasse not only showed the possibility renewable energy and chemicals, but also its syngases enable utilize as proper energy resource in industries

Paper made of recycled fibers has less strength compared to virgin fibers due to the multiplicity of recycling. Several solutions have been proposed to solve this problem consist of specialized enzymes application. While the applications of enzymes in the pulp and paper industry is still in the research and development stage, but some of them have pioneered the technology to operate. There are various methods to increase recycled fiber bonding and improves the paper strength. Oxidant enzymes such as cellulase and laccase are one of the methods that could accelerate delignification. Laccase-mediator system has the greatest effect on increasing of paper strength according to previous studies. Common Low molecular weight of mediator such as ABTS or HBT are the best non-phenolic lignin oxidizing that have been used yet. In order to increase the strength of recycled paper the effect of laccase treatment on old corrugated container (OCC) pulp was investigated in this study. OCC pulp was obtained from headbox of recycled paper factory in the north of Iran (Afrang Noor), and then was fractionated by Bauer-McNett classifier. HBT mediator was selected to treatment of OCC pulp by laccase. The pulp was treated by the enzyme in the adjusted conditions including consistency: 2%, pH: 5, reaction time: 2 hours, and reaction temperature: 60 °C in dosing levels of 0.005%, 0.01% , and 0.015 % based on oven-dried weight of pulp. Handsheet making and characteristic measurement carried out by TAPPI test methods and also statistical analysis was conducted using completely randomized design. Fiber classification result showed that fines constitute about 31% of weight of the pulp. There are significant differences at 1% level among the pulp strength properties of OCC which treated with laccase enzyme. Tensile and burst indices significantly were increased compared to the control using 0.005% of laccase. Multiple Duncan test showed that the average of these two indices by using 0.005% and 0.015% laccase (based on O.D. weight of pulp) had no significant difference and placed in the same statistical group. The variation trend of tear index unlike the other indices was observed and concora medium test (CMT) decreased at all levels of the treatments. OCC pulp treated with 0.005% laccase-HBT (based on O.D. weight of pulp) is recommended according to the important role of tensile and burst strength in test liner for packaging industry. Due to decreasing of Concora medium test (CMT) by the enzyme, laccase application is not suitable for making corrugated paper.

The main lignocellulosic raw material used in the particleboard industry is wood. The production of panel products from agricultural residues is important considering the increasing worldwide wood fiber shortage. Agricultural residues, which are produced with large quantities annually throughout the world, are the main renewable resources. Compared with synthetic fibers such as glass, natural straw fibers have more advantages such as low cost, low density, abundant and wide distribution, recyclability and biodegradability. Rice is the primary food for more than 40% of the worlďs population, with about 596 million tons of rice and 570 million tons of rice straw produced annually in the world. At present, most of these residues are burnt in situ after harvest. The field burning of rice straw and other agriculture residues in wide areas not only results in serious environment issues, but also wastes precious resources. Faced with worldwide shortages of forest resources, environmental pollution and waste of biological resources resulting from field burning of rice straw and other agricultural residues, there has been a revival of interest in using rice straw and other agriculture residues to produce composite panels. This research investigated the use of the rice straw –industrial particle wood with polypropylene powder on the mechanical and physical properties of single layer particleboard.
The variable in this research were the ratio of rice straw to industrial wood particle (at four levels; 0:100, 15:85, 30:70, 45:55) and polypropylene powder (at three levels; 0, 5, 10%). Industrial wood particles from Sanate Choube Shomal Company were used. Urea formaldehyde resin used at 10 percent level of dry weight of raw material as well as ammonium chloride was used as a catalyst at 2 percent level of the dry weight of adhesive. After the mixing process raw material together, mat at temperature of 170°c for 5 minutes under hot press was placed. After making particleboard, physical and mechanical properties of panels analyzed using variance analysis in 5% probability level.
The results showed, increasing polypropylene percent resulted in increasing the bending strength, modulus of elasticity and internal bonding of the boards. The results also indicated that water absorption and thickness swelling after 2 and 24h in water decreased with increased polypropylene percent.
Results showed, there was usability of the rice straw up to 30 percent and polypropylene up to 10 percent for general purpose boards for use in dry conditions.

In order to gain competitive advantage, marketing managers to make decision on topics such as compete in developing market share, developing new products, changing prices, changing product features, and change advertise channels of distribution, have to study the needs, perceptions and behavior of customers.This research was carried out with the aim of investigating the factors affecting the choice of the wooden office furniture from customers using hierarchical analysis method.
By reviewing the research literature, the main factors and components were identified and its conceptual model was based on a combination pattern. By designing the questionnaire including the 5 main- indicators and 45 sub-indicators, Information gathered from 260 buyers of wooden office furniture in the designated areas of Tehran. . The importance degree of criteria and alternatives after getting expert’s opinions and applying analytical hierarchy process are determined. The questionnaire reliability was measured by Cronbach’s alpha test.
The characteristics of "process, quality and design" followed by "economic and after-sales" features had the most impact on the choice of office furniture from customers, as well as the sub-items such as quality of raw materials, foam and wood components, life The product benefits from the purchase price, Delivery time of the product, the internal environment of the product, the size and volume of the product at the time of presentation of technical specifications of the product and the superiority of the wooden office furniture products in comparison with similar products have the highest score.
In the wooden office furniture, the quality and design factors play a significant role in choosing customers unlike the home furniture, in which the most important element is elegance. Also, paying attention to the price and the proportion of sales price with the expected value of a product is one of the most important demands of customers in choosing wooden office furniture. Producers of such products must pay special attention to guarantee the product and its ability to be replaced for obtaining new export markets and consumer choice. From the consumer's point of view, the relatively low importance of the beauty, fashion, and branding of the wooden office furniture can be a sign of particular role of the strength and quality of the product and the weakness of the domestic manufacturers. On the other hand, many consumers are still not aware of the importance of brand role in the various wood industries. Successful branding in the wooden furniture industry will increase the competitiveness of manufactured products in comparison to similar products. It seems that attention to the results of this research can be a very good guide to meet needs of customers and achieving new markets for the export of such products.

The wood and paper factory of Mazandran has been planting poplar species at various initial spacings in order to raw material for pulp and paper production. Initial spacing can affect the value of stem diameter, height, and ultimately the wood quality due to root and crown competition in light, water and food production. In the present study, the effects of initial spacing and axial position on the oven-dry density and biometrical properties of Populus deltoids were examined.
Nine normal poplar trees (Populusdeltoids) were randomly selected in three initial spacings (2×2, 2×3, 3×3 m) from Mazandran wood and paper industries forest. Three samples were taken along axial position from bottom to upward (breast height, 50 and 75% stem height) to determine wood density and fiber biometrical properties (fiber length, fiber diameter and cell wall thickness, slenderness ratio, flexibility coefficient, and runkel ratio).
Results of ANOVA indicated that the initial spacings had significant differences on the density, fiber dimensions, and slenderness ratios and hadn’t on the flexibility coefficient and runkel ratio. The effect of longitudinal position on density and fiber biometry wasn’t significant. Interaction effects between initial spacing and longitudinal position on the wood properties wasn’t significant except in fiber diameter. The highest and lowest of oven-dried density, fiber length, fiber diameter, cell wall thickness and flexibility coefficient were found at initial spacing 2×2 and 2×3, respectively. The average of slenderness ratio and runkel ratio in 2×3 is higher than other initial spacings. There are significantly positive relationships between stem diameter and height grows with density and fiber dimensions in poplar wood.
According to the obtained results, it can be said that planting in lower initial spacing is more suitable than other initial spacings for pulp and paper production.

Crown cover of trees in arid and semi-arid regions is of great importance as the parts of ground under tree canopies are favourable environments for regeneration establishment and survival of other organisms. Therefore, it is essential to be aware of crown cover status of trees and shrubs, monitor their changes and assess their health. Remote sensing data obtained by most of satellites do not make unbiased measurement of crown area of single trees possible as their spatial resolution is not suitable for this purpose. On the other hand, these data are not available at the time researchers need, and if available, they are expensive. Continuous progress in remote sensing results in access of researchers to unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) that imagery taken by this device have not only very high spatial resolution for precise study of biometric characteristics of single trees, but also availability of images at favourable time for researchers. Considering this issue, this study was aimed to evaluate UAV imagery and corresponding digital surface model (DSM) resulted from stereo images to estimate crown area of wild pistachio single trees in Zagros vegetation zone. Moreover, it was also aimed to investigate the impact of spatial resolution of DSM on accuracy and precision of estimating crown area of the trees.
A part of Baneh Research Site with area of 45 ha was selected that was purely cover by wild pistachio. In October 2016, the study area was covered by 1076 aerial images with 3 cm spatial resolution taken by a UAV flown at 70 m above the study area. The images were geo-referenced using 12 ground control points collected by Leica Viva GS15 three-frequency global positioning system. The DSM extracted using bundle adjustment method was then resampled to three different spatial resolutions of 3, 50, and 100 cm. An object-based processing method was proposed in order to automatically extract the crown boundaries from DSM. Number of 100 wild pistachio trees were randomly selected that their spatial position were registered and their crown areas were measured before. The mean crown area obtained by DSM of UAV imagery and the observed mean were compared by paired sample t-test. In addition, three indices of root mean squared error (RMSE), model efficiency (ME), and bias score (BS) were applied to assess the precision of results.
The orhtophoto mosaic of the study area was obtained with RMSE of 8 cm. Among 100 wild pistachio trees randomly selected for this study, 100, 89, and 80 trees were recognized on DSMs with spatial resolution of 3, 50, and 100 cm, respectively. Although there was no significant difference between observed mean crown area of 80 trees (51.3 m2) recognized on all DSMs and mean crown area estimated on DSMs with 3 (42.6 m2), 50 (44.5 m2), and 100 cm (39.2 m2) (α=0.05), but their correlation decreased. Moreover, RMSE increased and ME and BS decreased with decreasing spatial resolution of DSM.
In general, it was concluded that DSM of UAV imagery is an appropriate means to recognize and measure crown area of wild pistachio single trees in the study area that obviously separated tree crowns from their shadow and other objects. Moreover, it was revealed that with decreasing spatial resolution of DSM, data processing became easier and there was no significant difference between observations and measurements but the precision of results decreased.

Investigation on quantitative characteristics of forest such as Stand volume is one of the most important principles in planning and forest management decision. The aim of this study is comparison of various satellites data capability and non-parametric methods for estimating stand volume of forest. The studied area is district 1 Darabkola forest in Mazandaran province in southeast of Sari with 2612 hectares which is located in 74 basin of Sari natural recourses Department. Using systematic-random with 10 R.sample plots with 300m×500m sampling net system were measured150 circular sample plots. The necessary preprocessing and processing include ratio, vegetation index, Principal Component Analysis and texture analyse were done on WorldView-2¡ Pleiades-2 and IRS-LISS III imagery . For modeling in this study be used different regression methods include different variants of k-Nearest Niebuhr, kernel machine support vector and random forest . The results of modeling the stand volume using machine support vector showed that the best kernel in order for worldview- 2,IRS-LISS III and Pleiades-2 satellites was Polynomial,RBFand Polynomial with %RMSE equal to 34/57,49/5 and 43/03.The best variant in k-Nearest Niebuhr in order for said satellites was chebychev,chebychev and City block with %RMSE equal to 41/18,55/09 and 46/97. %RMSE in random forest method in order for said satellites was 31/33,48/91 and 45/68. Results showed random forest was the best model for estimation stand volume and WorldVeiw-2 satellite data has the best result with percent root mean square error and bias of estimation equal to 31.33 and 2.8 percent.Because of more bands and less width of them, WorldView-2 satellite has better outcomes than Pleiades-2 satellite; since if there are more bands and width of them is narrower, information can be saved in different bands and ratio of signal to noise will be increased. Therefore, phenomenon detects better and accuracy of outcomes increases. The results did not show much difference between the non-parametric algorithms in terms of Percent Root Mean Square Error, but a large difference was observed in terms of sensors. Overall results of this study showed sensors and Regression methods used in this study have a relatively high capability in estimation of forest stand volume . The results also show in addition to the spatial resolution of satellites their spectral resolution has a significant impact on raising the accuracy of the forest stand volume modeling results using satellite images .

Today, mankind has reached at this important point, which next generations survival depends on management function of present generation, therefore to protect probability of survival of next and present generations, has accepted sustainable development and management, and itll has no way. In order to achieve this concept to policy making and planning at the international, national and local, and searching optimal way to implement it. To do this, the concept of sustainable management of natural resources and forests has been considered, but unfortunately it is a slow process and requires a motive, that fits with the needs of today and tomorrow. Therefore in this study, technology has investigated as a sustainable development principle and a motivation factor to achieve sustainable management. The aim of this study is to evaluate the capacity and technological requirements in order to achieve sustainable forest management. Technological gaps and advantages for getting sustainable forest management in The Hamadan province studied using "CAPTECH" method. For this purpose, technological criteria and indicators and sustainable forest management principles have used. This research was descriptive survey with target population including forestry sector experts of Natural Resources and watershed management administration and the non-probability purposive sampling. The result of this study showed that sustainable forest management principles based on CAPTECH parameters has 40% advantage and 60% gap. The lowest weighted advantage of technological parameters which is related to systems and practices parameter is 33 percent and the highest weighted advantage of technological parameters which is related to logistics and optimization level is 49%. The greatest advantage of managerial approach criterion is related to organizational culture indicator by 49% and the lowest advantage of this criterion is related to problem-solving index by 35%. Based on the managerial approach indicators, the first principle of sustainable forest management, the policy, planning and institutional framework, has got the greatest advantage that it has won an amount equal to 50% and The advantage of the fifth principle, the agreement of stakeholders to maintain forest ecosystem health and human well-being, has obtained the lowest amount of 38%. Due to the importance of sustainable forest management and the importance of technology and technology management at present era that has been emphasized in Agenda 21, it is important to use technology and its capacities to reach our target, therefore technological gaps and advantages should be determine for optimal planning and policy making.

Today, the use of ecological indicators for understanding ecosystem condition and monitoring and evaluating changes over time, has been common in developed countries. There is well evident that it is lack of information in ecological indices, such as knowledge of the production potential of forest ecosystem biomass and its species. Allometric equations are useful tools estimate the biomass of trees. For this purpose 28 trees of Quercus Persica species were selected randomly (without replacement) in the region MelahShbanan in Khorramabad. Knee diameter, diameter at breast height, crown diameter and height of standing trees were measured and then these trees were cut. In order to determine the ratio of dry weight to fresh weight the different parts of trees such as trunks and branches were separated and weighed, then discs (samples) of different parts of trees were taken and send to the laboratory. With this ratio, the dry weight of the crown, trunk and eventually woody aboveground biomass was calculated. The 28 trees of the study, 26 trees were selected with good distribution. Using Stepwise, linear, Quadratic, power and exponential regression models, allometric equations with a high coefficient of determination (p The results showed that generally between the independent variables, crown diameter with indices of modeling was produced better equations (0/927). Also, the Quadratic regression regression model was better than other regression models. The 28 trees of the study, 26 trees were selected with good distribution. Using Stepwise, linear, Quadratic, power and exponential regression models, allometric equations with a high coefficient of determination (p

Applying of plant and animal diversity as well as natural regeneration are the common methods of assessing the ecological potential of forest stands. The objective of this study was ecological assessment in 20 years old plantations of Chestnut leaved Oak (Quercus castaneifolia C. A. Mey.), Velvet Maple (Acer velutinum Bioss.) and Brutia Pine (Pinus brutia Ten.) in term of quantitative and qualitative characteristics of trees, natural regeneration, plant and soil invertebrates. The study area is located in District 2 of Neka’s lowland forests, east of Mazandaran province. Nine sample plots with 1500 m2 were selected in each plantation. In each sample plot, 3 micro-sample plots, each 49 m2 were selected random-systematically including 27 micro-sample plots for each plantation and overall 81 micro-sample plots in 3 plantations. Study of quantitatively and qualitatively survey of trees (diameter at breast height, height and quality of tree) was performed by a fully inventory in three plantations including 6088 trees. Also all of the plants were recognized in 81 micro-sample plots and their coverage percent were estimated. Diversity indices were calculated by Simpson and Shannon-Wiener indices. Also, richness and evenness were obtained by Margelov and Menhinick indices. Mean analysis of quantitative characteristics was performed by the analysis of one-way variance. Analysis of the quantitative and qualitative characteristics of trees indicated that Brutia Pine plantation with the least density had the highest quantitative and qualitative results followed by Velvet maple and Chestnut leaved oak, respectively. Also the mean number of regeneration per square was higher in the Brutia Pine followed by Velvet maple and Chestnut leaved oak plantation. Shannon-Wiener index indicated that the plant diversity was higher in the Brutia Pine plantation, whereas the lowest Shannon-Wiener index was calculated in the Velvet maple plantation. On the other hand Shannon-wiener and Simpson indeces indicated that the soil invertebrates was higher in the Velvet maple plantation, whereas the least index of Shannon-Wiener and Simpson were calculated in the Chestnut leaved oak plantation. In general, one can conclude that the quantitative and qualitative characteristics as well as plant diversity and natural regeneration in the Brutia Pine plantation are higher than that of other two plantations. We should emphasize that this result might be affected by less density in the Brutia pine plantation, where the trees had more growth space and the forest ground receives more light which advances to higher plant diversity. This research emphasizes the use of conifers compatible species in degraded areas as well as thinning operations in plantations. Otherwise, increasing the growth of trees per unit area can lead to reduce the quantitative and qualitative characteristics of trees as well as plant diversity and natural regeneration.

In forest resource management, decision-making processes, such as qualitative factors, are not logged in mathematical equations so we need to new solutions than algorithmic methods. According to the capabilities of neural networks and recent application of them in forest resources, the purpose of this study was to compare the multi layer perceptron and the radial basis network to predict commercial and cordwood volume, in order to evaluate the performance of different networks to find the best type of network for achieving acceptable and valid results. In this purpose, 367 trees were marked of research and educational forest of kheyroud. Some factors such as diameter at breast height, diameter at stump, stump height, total height, topographic factors (slope, aspect and elevation), species, tree situation and minimum median diameter of last log were selected and then they were measured. They considered as input variables in network. Commercial and cordwood volume determined by traditional renewal volume and then they used as output network. Multi-layer perceptron (MLP) and radial basis function (RBF) were used for modeling. The hyperbolic tangent function and softmax function respectively used for network training in hidden layer of multi layer perceptron and radial basis function networks. As well as, the linear function used for network training in output layer. The data were divided into three sections for modeling: training, validation and test, each of which was 70%, 15% and 15%, respectively. Determination of the number of hidden layers and neurons of each layer was also performed by test and error and continued until the error value reached the minimum. Due to result, R2 value was respectively 0.94, 0.71 for commercial and cordwood volume in multi-layer perceptron network and 0.88, 0.65 for cordwood volume in radial basis function network. Also, RMSE value was respectively 1.297, 0.337 for commercial and cordwood volume in MLP network and 3.72, 0.397 for cordwood volume in RBF network. The result showed that multi-layer perceptron than radial basis network has acceptable accuracy to predict the commercial volume and cordwood volume. The only advantage of the radial basis function than multi-layer perceptron was less time required for training in modeling. Using a network and a model that has a higher accuracy with several variables among existing networks and models is prioritized. Thus, according to this new and powerful technique, the need for identifying a range of potential uses in the forest science community is felt as an alternative tool.

Information on aboveground carbon (AGC) is important for managing forests at local level, land management at regional levels, and carbon emissions reporting at national and international levels; therefore, there is a critical need for low-cost and time-saving approaches for quantifying of AGC. According to this, the estimation of aboveground carbon stock from remotely-sensed data has currently attracted a lot of attention. We assessed the capability of Landsat 8-derived spectral variables for AGC estimates in Zagros coppice oak forests by four non-parametric modeling including: random forest (RF), Cubist, Multivariate adaptive regression spline (MARS) and artificial neural networks (ANNs) The study was carried out in part of Zagros forest, in Kermanshah Province. The values of aboveground carbon (AGC) terrestrial references was determined using field measurement data collected in two sites, Gahvareh (very low degraded (LD) site) and SarfiruzAbad (highly degraded (HD) site). Totally, 124 plots (30×30 meters) surveyed in two studied sites by the systematically-gridded plot design and AGC was calculated by developed species-specific allometric equations for Brant oak trees. For modeling AGC using the remotely-sensed data, we used different Landsat 8 derived variables such as single raw bands, simple band ratios, vegetation indices, principle component analysis and tasseled cap as independent variables and calculated AGC values in plots as dependent variable. The assessment of accuracies of four used non-parametric modeling RF, Cubist, MARS and ANNs and was evaluated by “Leave-one-out” cross validation via criteria such as coefficient of variation (R2), root mean square error (RMSE) and bias. The results showed the accuracy of AGC estimates in LD site was better than HD site. The comparison of used modeling methods revealed that there are not significant difference in performances and accuracies of used non-parametric approaches. In additional, using the total plots from two test sites in one model caused the increase the results for HD site estimates. Results showed R2 and relative RMSE values of approximately 0.7 and 32% cross-validated (combined two studied sites) for modeling AGC using Landsat derived variables, which reveals the high potential of Landsat 8 images and non-parametric modeling methods for quantifying AGC in cost and time saving approach for Zagros forests.

The aim of this study is to compare quantitative and qualitative characteristics of forest structure in managed forest stands (Loveh forestry plan) with unmanaged forest stands (Khandushan forestry plan). The sample plots were collected in a systematic random sampling design in unmanaged and managed forest stands. In each plot, we record species and their diameters, height and grade quality for all trees with a diameter at breast height (D.B.H.) greater than or equal to ≥12.5 cm. Statistical Analysis was used to determine differences in structural characteristics, tree species diversity and regeneration between two forest stands. According to results differences in tree density, basal area and stand volume between managed and unmanaged forest stands was found significantly in 99% probability level. Tree density (ha) in managed stand is more than unmanaged stand whereas basal area and stand volume had a higher value in unmanaged stand. There is no significant differences (p >95%) in tree density, basal area and stand volume based on grade quality in two forest stands, but the number of healthy, 1and 2 grade quality trees in managed stand are more than unmanaged stands. Additionally, in both stands, two Carpinus – Querco and Querco-Carpinus forest types are as the dominant types and two specie European hornbeam (Carpinus betulus L.) and Oak (Quercus castanifolia C.A.Mey) have the highest abundance respectively. The diversity indices of trees in managed stand are greater than natural stand but evenness indices in unmanaged stands are greater than managed stands. The results indicated that natural regeneration of two stands have no significant differences in 95% probability but regeneration in managed stands is more desirable than unmanaged stands. Generally, our findings showed that the managed forest stands had a desirable conditions in terms of quantitative and qualitative characteristics of forests structure, stand composition and diversity for forestry plan management. It seems forestry plan management improve structure, composition and diversity of forest stands.