hossein jafari mansoorian

Workload and job satisfaction are among the most influential factors affecting job performance. Therefore, this study aims to assess the cognitive workload and job satisfaction and their impact on the quality of education faculty members provide.

This study was conducted among 34 faculty members through a census. The NASA-TLX tool was used to assess cognitive workload, and a job satisfaction scale was employed to evaluate job satisfaction. Moreover, the training quality score was considered a criterion for assessing the educational performance of the participants. To determine the role of explanatory variables on the level of mental workload, multiple linear regression was used at a 95% confidence level.

The mean cognitive workload of faculty members was 52.94 ± 24.48. Efficiency and time demand scored the highest and lowest among the subscales of workload, respectively. Job satisfaction was 56.85 ± 27.61, with satisfaction with the department head and colleagues ranking highest and satisfaction with salary being the lowest in job satisfaction. The cognitive workload had a non-significant relationship with job satisfaction (P = 0.08, r = 0.56). However, the relationship between teaching quality and both cognitive workload and job satisfaction was not statistically significant.

No significant relationship was observed between cognitive workload, job satisfaction, and teaching quality scores. However, it is recommended that measures be taken to improve the quality of work life for faculty members to enhance the quality of education they provide.

Waste management as an inevitable byproduct is one of the most critical environmental issues in any society. Its management is essential for preventing environmental pollution. The aim of this research is to examine the management of production waste in the Azadi Sports Complex.

This research is a descriptive, cross-sectional, and empirical study that utilizies questionnaires, field visits, weight analysis, sampling, and determination of the physicochemical characteristics of waste. The questionnaire includes questions about the production rate, source reduction, separation, recycling, collection, storage location, transportation outside the complex, and final disposal of waste.

The amount of waste generated from the Azadi Sports Complex was 449.87±4.83kg/day, with the highest waste production observed from the Wrestling Federation (95.37 kg/day) and the lowest from the Kung Fu Federation (12.75 kg/day) and the clinic (12 kg/day). The results of the physicochemical characteristics indicated that the average moisture content was 47%. Combustible materials accounted for 67% with a high calorific value of 12807 kcal/kg, and the ash content was 42%. The dry and wet wastes were collected daily, mixed together, and stored together in an enclosed area.

The results showed that the waste separation, recycling, and storage practices in the Azadi Sports Complex are unsatisfactory. Additionally, there is no existing program for waste reduction at the source or recycling. Therefore, the establishment of a proper waste management system to mitigate the waste volumes in this complex is necessary.

The threat of antimicrobial resistance is increasing worldwide. Niosomes are a new drug delivery system that increases the antimicrobial potential of antibiotics. Accordingly, this study aimed to evaluate the antibacterial activity of niosomes loaded with curcumin-silver nanoparticles (Cur-AgNPs) and curcumin-copper nanoparticles (Cur-CuNPs). Initially, a unique combination of metal and curcumin nanoparticles was prepared in free and encapsulated forms to investigate the synergistic effects of the two drugs and to evaluate them through a niosomal carrier. Particle size and polydispersity index were measured using dynamic light scattering (DLS), and entrapment efficiency (EE) was measured through indirect centrifugation. The rate of drug release from the loaded niosomes was assessed through in vitro dialysis. Finally, the antibacterial activity of Cur-AgNPs and Cur-CuNPs loaded niosomes on Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa were measured. The curcumin-loaded niosomal formulations and the simultaneous combination of Cur-AgNPs and Cur-CuNPs had an optimum particle size of less than 200 nm and uniform dispersion. These formulations also showed high entrapment efficiencies and slow release for more than 72 hours. A significant increase in antibacterial activity was observed when using curcumin in combination with metal nanoparticles loaded in niosomes, indicating that the concomitant use of metal nanoparticles and curcumin had a synergistic effect in inhibiting bacterial growth.

Visual pollution is one of the important components of the man-made environment in urban spaces. The purpose of this research was to investigate the visual pollution of workshops in Qom city using Expert Choice software and then the occupational ranking was done in terms of visual pollution.

This study was a descriptive-analytic cross-sectional study conducted in 670 trade units associated with 67 urban trade unions. The data collection tools were local visits, database preparation and completion of a questionnaire based on urban-environmental aesthetic criteria. The purpose of this study was to investigate the visual pollution caused by the occupations and workshops of Qom.

The results showed that, in terms of total visual pollution, the units of oil changes with a total score of 1, materials and construction materials with 0.988, Smoothies with 0.980, Mechanics with 0.973, ceramic makers with 0.944, Chips and grills with 0.933, mosaics with 0.914, carwash with 0.885, stones cutting with 0.872, carpet with 0.870, trowel and blacksmiths with 0.857, burners with 0.830, battery makers with 0.825, iron manufacturers with 0.872 and manufacturers of general blinds and blinds with 0.753 were inadequate.

In order to reduce the number of visually impaired businesses in the short term, continuous inspections of businesses must be undertaken and, in the long run, by organizing the program, the polluting industries must be transferred out of the city.

Dental caries can lead to loss of tooth tissue, microbial infiltration to the pulp, pain and eventually tooth loss. WHO has set DMFT (Decayed, Missing, and Filled Teeth) index for measuring oral health. The aim of this research was studying the relation between drinking water fluoride concentration and DMFT index in the elementary schools of Sarayan County.
This study was conducted on 420 students in the cities of Saryan, Ayask, and Seh Qaleh in Sarayan County, South Khorasan Province, Iran. Data of DMFT were collected through observation and completion of a questionnaire. Fluoride concentration in well water samples was measured by SPADNS spectrophotometric method.
The average of fluoride concentration in 9 wells of drinking water samples was 0.34 mg/L. The amount of DMFT in 12-year old students was (2.21±0.1) which was higher than that 7-year olds (0.24±0.02). The average value of DMFT index was 1.34±0.08 and 1.29±0.06 for male and female students, respectively. No dental fluorosis was detected among studied students. Analysis showed a significant reverse relation between fluoride concentration and DMFT index (P-Value=0.02).
Fluoride concentration in the water of Sarayan County was less than the minimum acceptable level of 0.5 mg/L. Although, DMFT values of less than 1 are acceptable by WHO, the measured values at Sarayan were higher than 1. Therefore, it is necessary to plan for oral and dental care and pay more attention to the regulations of fluoride in drinking water.

The value of proteins in human health as the main source of amino acids has been proven. In addition to nutritional value, proteins also have biological functions that are expressed by bioactive peptides. Production methods of bioactive peptides affect their function. This article aims to investigate sources and production methods of bioactive peptides effective on human health. 

For gathering information in this review, English articles between 1988 and 2018 containing one of the keywords "bioactive peptides, enzymatic hydrolysis, anti-cancer and anti-hypertensive agents" were searched in PubMed, Scopus, Science Direct and the Islamic World Science Citation Database (ISC). Among 643 papers found, 28 articles related to the subject were selected. 

The articles show that utilizing the enzymatic hydrolysis method for therapeutic applications causes them to be more stable in comparison with fermentation and solvent extraction methods and is safer than the other two methods. Also, the positive health effects of these compounds include reducing the risk of chronic diseases, increasing immune function, reducing cholesterol, antimicrobial activity, as well as antioxidant, anti-clotting, antihypertensive, and anticancer properties.

In recent years, the role of bioactive peptides as therapeutic compounds has been highlighted. Bioactive peptides can play an effective role in human health. Therefore, investment and planning in this area can affect the future health of the country.

Electrocoagulation process with direct and alternative current as inductive by using Fe and Al rods with different arrangements and polarity inverter and the factors related to the efficacy of the process. EC process efficacy was investigated in a batch mode under different conditions. Also the amount of energy and electrode consumption and the amount of sludge produced were determined. The highest efficiency of decreasing total hardness (98.26%) and calcium hardness (87.69%) was obtained by using alternative current with Fe-Al electrode arrangement under optimal conditions (pH of 9, current density of 9 mA/cm2 and reaction time of 12 min). Optimum charge loading was 0.54 F/m3. The maximum energy and electrode were consumed in optimum current density by using direct current, which was 2.47 kwh/m3 and 2.12 kg/m3, respectively. The maximum sludge production was in optimum current density by using alternative current of 0.098 kg/m3 and with the settleability of 0.075 L/g and by using direct current with disposing capacity of 0.063 L/g. This study showed that EC technology by using alternative current and using Fe electrodes can be used as an alternative and new method for decreasing water hardness with high efficiency and low energy consumption.

One of the major environmental impacts of energy use is air pollutant emissions such as greenhouse gases. The aim of this study was to investigate the relation between energy consumption in small urban businesses and their air pollution in small urban businesses in the city of Qom in 2015.   In the first step, by referring to Qom chamber of trade, a list of all urban jobs from 67 trade :::union:::s was prepared and then, a total of 223 workshops were selected randomly and visited. Means consumption of electricity and gas were calculated by referring to the related gas and electricity offices in Qom. The amount of pollutants produced from energy consumption was calculated by using the software available at the Abraxas Energy website.   The results showed that the average monthly consumption of 9098.86 kwh and 41669.35 cubic meters of gas in the small businesses of Qom, on average produced 50.995 of carbon dioxide, 78.963 kg of lead compounds, 52.39 kg nitrogen compounds, 8.403 kg carbon monoxide, 5.02 kg volatile organic compounds, 1.996 kg nitrogen oxides, 1.781 kg mercury compounds and less than 1 kg per month particulate matter and SO2.   Any attempt for reducing energy consumption, in addition to its economic benefits, can be a basic measure to reduce environmental pollutants. Implementation of proper management plans for reducing electricity and gas consumption is a major step in this direction.

Background & Aims of the Study: Noise is one of the most important environmental pollutants. It is a global health problem, especially among industrial workers. Since there was little information about noise levels in small workshops in Qom city, this study aimed to evaluate noise in small workshops and compare it with national standards. This was a cross-sectional study. Initially jobs and workshops that were causing noise pollution were identified. Then, noise was measured with a calibrated sound dosimeter, model CASELLA CEL-320, in A-network, in 108 working places. The results were compared with national noise standards. The total number of workers in the workshops were 317 people, and inside the workshops 76.3% of the workers and 66.7% of the workshops were exposed to noise over the standard threshold. Outside the workshops, in 89% noise pollution was higher than the standard city values. Only 11% of noise pollution in the city workshops, had a 1 or less than 1 dB difference with the standard noise threshold. Small workshops cause a significant amount of noise pollution in Qom city. This can affect the workers’ and the public’s health. Noise control procedures such as controlling the source, and direction of noise distribution, as well as setting up workshops in the right location, and far from residential areas is necessary.

This study was performed to measure the potential utilization of agro-waste to generate nanoparticles and evaluate the capability of it’s as a low cost adsorbent for removal of phenol. Adsorption studies for phenol removal by using Aloe vera and Mesquite leaves nanoparticles carried out under various experimental conditions including pH, nano-bioadsorbent dosage, phenol concentration, contact time, temperature and ionic strength in a batch reactor. The adsorption kinetics by pseudo-first order and pseudo-second order models and isotherm technique by Freundlich and Langmuir isotherms models were applied. The results showed that the rate of phenol adsorption increases in both nano-bioadsorbents with an increase of pH up to 7, adsorbent dosage up to 0.08 gL-1, phenol initial concentration up to 32 mgL-1, contact time up to 60 min and raising in temperature. The adsorption data followed the Freundlich isotherm model. The kinetic studies indicated that the adsorption of phenol with nano-bioadsorbents was best described by the pseudo second order kinetics. We found that the nanoparticles prepared from Aloe vera and Mesquite leaves had a high capability in adsorption of phenol, beside the point that they could be accessed at a low cost. These agro-wastes can be used to remove phenol from aqueous environments.

Background & Aims of the Study: The Horizontal roughing filters (HRF) are generally formed with three layers. The size of the course at the beginning of the flow path is large and at the end is small. This kind of layering increases absorption capacity while the solids entering the bed–depth gradually separate because of the decline in the holes’ diameters. This study aimed to examine the efficiency of HRFs in removing total suspended solids (TSS) from effluent of a waste stabilization pond.
This experimental study was conducted in 2013. The pilot project was transferred to the Karaj wastewater treatment plant (waste stabilization pond), Alborz province of Iran. Then, the installation, equipping and start-up of the system began, using an effluent treatment plant. Sampling was done from March to August in 3 rates of 0.5, 1 and 1.5 m/h, which was included simultaneous sampling from inlet and outlet HRF to determine the concentrations of TSS.
The results showed that at filtration rates of 0.5, 1, and 1.5 m/h, the average of TSS removal was equaled to 42.46, 56.65 and 33.22%, respectively. The removal efficiency of TSS at the rate of 1m/h was more than 0.5 and 1.5 m/h rate (p According to the results of this study, the HRF function was approximately adequate in TSS removal and can be a suitable option for improving the quality of stabilization ponds effluent.

The reuse of treated municipal wastewater is an important source of water for different ,purposes. This study evaluated the efficiency of the electrocoagulation process in removing turbidity,a total suspended solids (TSS), chemical oxygen demand (COD), nitrate, and phosphate from wastewater at the treatment facility in Karaj, Iran.
This experimental study was performed at a pilot scale and in a batch system. A 4-liter tank made from safety glass with 4 plate electrodes made from aluminum was unipolarly connected to a direct current power supply with a parallel arrangement. Wastewater samples were taken from the influent at the Karaj wastewater treatment facility. Rates of turbidity, TSS, COD, nitrate, and phosphate removal under different conditions were determined.
The highest efficiency of COD, TSS, nitrate, turbidity, and phosphate elimination was achieved at a voltage of 30 volts and a reaction time of 30 minutes. The rates were 88.43%, 87.39%, 100%, 80.52%, and 82.69%, respectively.
Based on the results of this study, electrocoagulation is an appropriate method for use in removing nitrate, phosphate, COD, turbidity, and TSS from wastewater.

Smoking is the largest preventable cause of death in the world, killing nearly 6 million people annually. This article is an investigation of measures implemented laws in the Iran to study the proposed strategy of control and reduce tobacco use based on the monitor, protect, offer, warn, enforce and raise (MPOWER) policy.
All laws approved by the Parliament along with the instructions on tobacco control prepared by the Ministry of Health and Medical Education, Ministry of Industry, Mine and Trade were collected and studied. Moreover, practical steps of Ministry of Health and other organizations were examined in this regard.
Findings: Iranian Parliament after the adoption of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) acts to create a comprehensive and systematic program for tobacco control legislation as a first step towards comprehensive national tobacco control and combat. In this law and its implementing guidelines and based on the strategy of MPOWER, specific implement is done to monitor tobacco use and prevention policies, protect people from tobacco smoke, offer help to quit tobacco use, warn about the dangers of tobacco, enforce bans on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship and raise taxes on tobacco. However, the full objectives of the legislation have not achieved yet.
According to Iran’s membership in the FCTC and executive producer of tobacco control laws and regulations, necessary infrastructure is ready for a serious fight with tobacco use. In Iran, in comparison with developed countries, there is a huge gap between ratified laws and performing of laws.

The aim of this research was to study the technical feasibility of recycling waste cooking oils (WCO) produced in Qom to biodiesel.
This cross-sectional study was performed in Qom in the first half of 2013. In this study, 147 domestic, commercial, and industrial sources producing WCO were identified, selected, and asked to collect and deliver the WCO produced by them within a week. The samples obtained from the sources were mixed separately at a ratio of one to one, and finally, a WCO sample was obtained from each source. Then, some characteristics of samples such as chemical profiles were analyzed
and the esterification and transesterification process were used to convert WCO into biodiesel. Finally, some of the technical characteristics of produced biodiesel such as flash point, viscosity, density, moisture, and acidic number were determined and compared with the standard.
In terms of basic properties, domestic WCO had the best quality for conversion to biodiesel. Also, in terms of viscosity, density, acidic number and flash point, biodiesel produced from domestic WCO had more favorable conditions. In terms of the percentage of humidity, biodiesel produced from industrial WCO was the best one.
WCO produced from domestic and commercial sources has the potential to be converted into biodiesel with standard features but WCO produced from industrial sources due to their very poor quality needs more pre-treatment processes.

Furnaces as a major process of manufacturing brick and chalk are considered as one of the major sources of greenhouse gases. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between energy consumption of the furnaces of brick and chalk and environmental pollutant emissions in the city of Qom.
This descriptive study was conducted of year 2012-2015. General information and entrance permit were acquired by the respective unions in the city of Qom. Ten field visits randomly chosen from either chalk and brick manufacturers were conducted. In addition, further information regarding the energy consumptions from electricity and gas companies was obtained. The amount pollutants produced from the energy consumption were calculated by using software that available on the website: http//www.abraxasenergy.com/emissions.
The calculated emission of pollutants such as: carbon dioxide, nitrogen compounds, carbon monoxide, volatile organic compounds, Nitrous oxide, lead, particulates, sulfur dioxide, cadmium, mercury were 1001000, 1296.82, 185.7, 41.68, 16.69, 15.19, 14.42, 4.84, 2.4 and 0.316 kg/month, respectively.
Based on the level of pollutants which was higher than comparable industries, strategies such as: rationing fuel, forming an environmental monitoring committee and more efficient control of combustion and burner’s maintenance and application of air purification techniques for pollutants prior to their release through furnaces’ stack was recommended.

Industry has a major role in the pollution of water supplies as well as the highest potential for reducing the consumption and implementing water and wastewater management plans. The aim of this study was to identify the best treatment method for the wastewater of Zarand thermal power plant, so that it can be implemented technically and economically and reused with least adverse environmental effects.
In this study, the available data about the current status of the region was collected from the relevant organizations. Then, the status of Zarand thermal power plant in terms of the level of produced energy, production process, the type of chemicals and fuel used, the volume of water consumed and sources of water supply, the quantitative and qualitative estimation of the effluent, and the current status of collecting and discharging it were evaluated and analyzed using descriptive statistical methods.
The results show that water cooling units produced the highest level of wastewater in Zarand thermal power plant. Considering the cost analysis, and the advantages and disadvantages of the wastewater treatment systems, the biological sulphate removal system using activated carbon is recommended for the wastewater treatment of Zarand thermal power plant.
The results show that environmental changes resulted from discharging the wastewater of Zarand thermal power plant into the environment can be prevented by an appropriate management, and the wastewater can be reused in the best way.

Background & Aims of the Study: A feed forward artificial neural network (FFANN) was developed to predict the efficiency of total petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH) removal from a contaminated soil, using soil washing process with Tween 80. The main objective of this study was to assess the performance of developed FFANN model for the estimation of TPH removal.
Several independent repressors including pH, shaking speed, surfactant concentration and contact time were used to describe the removal of TPH as a dependent variable in a FFANN model. 85% of data set observations were used for training the model and remaining 15% were used for model testing, approximately. The performance of the model was compared with linear regression and assessed, using Root of Mean Square Error (RMSE) as goodness-of-fit measure
For the prediction of TPH removal efficiency, a FANN model with a three-hidden-layer structure of 4-3-1 and a learning rate of 0.01 showed the best predictive results. The RMSE and R2 for the training and testing steps of the model were obtained to be 2.596, 0.966, 10.70 and 0.78, respectively.
For about 80% of the TPH removal efficiency can be described by the assessed regressors the developed model. Thus, focusing on the optimization of soil washing process regarding to shaking speed, contact time, surfactant concentration and pH can improve the TPH removal performance from polluted soils. The results of this study could be the basis for the application of FANN for the assessment of soil washing process and the control of petroleum hydrocarbon emission into the environments.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the physical and chemical quality of groundwater in the villages of Qom province during summer 2014, and to compare the results with Iran’s Standard No. 1053.
This research is a descriptive sectional study. During the investigation, one step sampling with the necessary repetitions (if necessary) was performed of each well for evaluation of physical and chemical quality of groundwater in the villages of Qom province. SPSS version 16 and ARCGIS software were employed for data analysis and data zoning respectively.
The average concentration of magnesium, sulfate and ammonia in wells water were higher than standard. The average concentration of fluoride was lower than the standard limit. pH and turbidity in all wells were within the standard limit but sulfate in 33.33%, ammonia in 13.33%, magnesium in 10.66%, sodium in 40%, calcium in 5.33%, nitrate in 17.33%, total dissolved solids (TDS) in 14.66% and electrical conductivity (EC) in 24% of wells were higher than the standard limit, and fluorine in 98.66% of wells was lower than the standard limit. The results of zoning in the villages of Qom province revealed that measured values at most wells were in the maximum amount in central and northeastern areas and minimum amount in southern and western areas.
This study indicated that most of the physicochemical parameters such as fluoride in almost all villages, and sulfates, chloride, magnesium, sodium, calcium, nitrate, TDS and EC in some of the wells did not fall within the permissible limit.

Due to the adverse effects of lead on human health, especially children, and high consumption of fruit juice in our population, this study was done to determine Lead concentration in the high-consumed commercial fruit juices marketed in Kerman (southeast of Iran).
In a field study on fruit juices marketed in Kerman city, high-consumed fruit juices were determined. Three samples of each available brand for the selected high-consumed fruit juices were selected for analysis (a total of 123 samples). Wet acid digestion method with nitric acid and hydrogen peroxide were used for digestion of the samples. Lead concentration in digested samples was measured by atomic absorption spectrophotometry.
Minimum and maximum lead concentrations were respectively 0.01417 and 0.0834 in grape juice, 0.0125 and 0.0269 in apple juice, 0.0071 and 0.0382 in peach juice and 0.0345 and 0.124 mg/L in orange juice. The highest lead concentration was found in orange juice samples.
Lead concentration in all samples of fruit juices marketed in Kerman was lower than the recommended standard by World Health Organization (WHO) and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Background & Aims of the Study: Spent filter backwash water (SFBW) consists of 1-5% of the total treated water typically and it has a high turbidity. Because of the scarcity of water resources and in order to prevent the environmental contamination, effluent treatment of rapid sand filter backwashing is unavoidable. One of the new technologies for removal of turbidity from the effluent is ElectroCoagulation (EC) processes. This study aimed to examine the efficiency of continuous electrocoagulation in turbidity removal from spent filter backwash water.
This study was non-continuous experiment. A rectangular cube electrocoagulation tank in 24 cm×17 cm×18 cm dimensions from Plexiglas with the volume of 7.35 liter was made. In this tank there were 4 metal plates (electrode) (15× 22× 0.1cm); two electrodes as cathode and anode which were made of aluminum and iron, respectively. All of the tests were done in continuous flow. According to the study criteria (Time, Turbidity and pH), 126 sample got with the turbidity 320, 350, 400 NTU from rapid sand filter backwashing water, so they were tested in current density; 1, 1.4, 1.8, 2, 2.4, 2.8 and 3.2 ampere in 3 selected detention times (10, 20 and 30 min). Each experiment was repeated two times. In this research the space of electrode and pH is fixed at 1.5 cm and 8.2.
In this case the highest turbidity removal for Al electrode from rapid sand filter backwashing occurred in the current density 3.2 ampere, 30 min detention time and 320 NTU turbidity. The percent of removal for Al was 95.12. The highest removal for Fe electrode from rapid sand filter backwashing occur in the current density 3.2 ampere, 30 min detention time and 320 NTU turbidity. The percent of removal for Fe was 87.40.
Regarding to the results of the tests, using electrocoagulation has an appropriate efficiency in turbidity removal.

Water resource management is a strategic issue in Qom city. Water scarcity is one of the most critical concerns of industrial estates. This study aimed to evaluate wastewater management in the Shokuhieh industrial park of Qom province in 2013. This is a descriptive cross-sectional study done by visiting the industrial units in person, completing questionnaires and analyzing the results. The questionnaire had 25 questions, including general information, the status of water supply, treatment and consumption, wastewater production, reuse or discharge of produced wastewater and the status of wastewater treatment and discharge of effluent. The industrial units evaluated were active with over 50 personnel and numbered 44 in total. The water suppliers in the industries included network (70.5%), network and reverse osmosis (RO) (22.5%), network and tanker (2.4%) and tanker (4.6%). 63.63% of the industries had water treatment systems. 19.5% reused wastewater and 31.8% performed pretreatment before discharge of wastewater. The discharge sites of water treatment units’ effluent included the absorption well (17%), greenbelt (18%) and sewer (65%). Discharge sites of sanitary wastewater in 50% of the industries was sewer and in 50%, it was absorption well. The discharge sites of processed wastewater was reuse (2%), sewer (52%) and absorption well (46%). Discharge sites of exiting effluent from pretreatment units in the industrial park, included sewer (85.5%), transport by tanker (7.1%) and absorption well (7.1%). The type of pretreatment process in 35.7% of the industries was chemical and in 64.3%, it was septic tank. The results of this study showed that pre-treatment is not done in most industries and wastewater reuse is performed in few industries. The main method of wastewater disposal in industries was by discharge into the sewer and absorbent well.

Background & Aims of the Study: Accidents in water networks can lead to increase the uncounted water, costs of repair, maintenance, restoration and enter water contaminants to water network. The aim of this study is to survey the accidents of Qom rural water network and choose the right approaches to reduce the number of accidents.
In this cross-sectional study, four sector of Qom province (Markazi, Dastjerd, Kahak and Qahan), were assessed over a period of 8 months (July – January 2010). This study was conducted through questionnaire of Ministry of Energy.
The total number of accidents was 763. The highest number of accidents in the four sectors was related to Markazi sector with 228 accidents. According to the time of the accident, the highest and lowest number of accident was related to September (19.7%) and November (6.8%), respectively. According to the location of the accident on network, the highest and lowest number of accident was related to distribution network (64%) and connections (17.5%) and transmission pipe (18.34%), respectively. According to the type of the accident, the highest and lowest number of accident was related to breaking 47.8%) and gasket failure (1.2%), respectively. Considering with the pipes’ material, the highest and lowest number of accident was related to polyethylene pipes (93%) and steel and cast iron pipes (0.5%, 0.5%), respectively.
Due to the high break rate of Polyethylene pipes, it is recommended to be placed in priority of leak detection and rehabilitation.

Infections are readily transmitted as a result of bacterial contamination of swimming pools. Therefore, hygiene and preventing the contamination of swimming pools is of particular importance. The objective of this study was to determine the amount of bacterial contamination in indoor pools of Yazd in 2013. In this descriptive and analytical study, all indoor swimming pools of Yazd (12 pools) were evaluated during the spring and summer of 2013, in terms of bacterial contamination. In order to determine contamination, a sterile cotton swab was used for sampling. On average, 45 samples were taken from different surfaces in each pool (shower, dressing room, sauna sitting places, platforms and around the pool). In total, about 540 samples from all pools were tested for bacterial contamination. The results show that from 540 samples, bacterial contamination was observed in about 93 samples (17.22%); and was seen more in showers, edges of the pool and jacuzzis, and the slippers used in swimming pools. The most important isolated bacteria types were E. coli, Actinobacteria, Pseudomonas alcaligenes, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Klebsiella pneumonia. The results indicate the presence of bacterial contamination on the surface of these places. It is recommended that health authorities pay more attention to cleaning and disinfecting surfaces around the pool, showers, dressing rooms etc, to prevent infectious disease transfer as a result of contact with contaminated swimming pool surfaces.

The effective size of the end grain of horizontal roughing filters (HRFs) is larger than 2 mm. This study aimed to examine the efficiency of HRFs in removing nitrate, phosphate, and chemical oxygen demand (COD) from effluent of a wastewater stabilization pond. This experimental study was conducted in 2013. The pilot project was transferred to the Karaj wastewater treatment plant (stabilization pond), and the installation, equipping, and start-up of the system began using an effluent treatment plant. Sampling was done from March to August in 3 rates, 0.5, 1 and 1.5 m/h, and included simultaneous sampling from inlet and outlet filtering to determine the concentrations of nitrate, phosphate, and COD. At filtration rates of 0.5, 1, and 1.5 m/h, the average nitrate removal equaled 25%, 32%, and 34%, respectively, average phosphate removal equaled 29%, 26%, and 28%, respectively, and the average COD removal at filtration rates of 0.5, 1, and 1.5 m/h equaled 62%, 66%, and 68%, respectively. Outlet values of phosphate and nitrate were lower than the standards set by the Environmental Standards Organization (ESO) (P < 0.05). According to the results of this study, the HRF function was approximately adequate in COD removal, but its efficiency in nitrate and phosphate removal was lower.

This study aimed to evaluated trends for iron and manganese concentrations in wells, reservoirs, and water distribution networks in Qom city during the summer of 2012. This was a cross-sectional study. The studied scopes consisted of groundwater (60 wells), reservoirs (10 tanks), and water distribution network (33 points). One sample was taken from each source monthly. Statistical tests used included post hoc tests (Tukey HSD). Finally, the results were compared with drinking water standards. The average concentrations of iron in groundwater, reservoirs, and distribution networks were 0.09, 0.07, and 0.07 mg/l, respectively. The average concentrations of manganese in groundwater, reservoirs, and distribution networks were 0.15, 0.09, and 0.1 mg/l, respectively. The turbidity averages in groundwater, reservoirs, and distribution networks were 0.58, 0.6, and 0.52 NTU, respectively. The average concentrations of free chlorine residual in water reservoirs and distribution networks were 1.74 and 1.06 mg/l, respectively. The pH averages in groundwater, reservoirs, and distribution networks were 7.4, 7.7, and 7.5, respectively. The amounts of iron, manganese, turbidity, free chlorine residual, and pH in the investigated resources had no significant differences (P > 0.05). The amounts of iron, manganese, turbidity, free chlorine residual and pH in groundwater, reservoirs, and water distribution networks of Qom are within permissible limits of national standards and EPA guidelines. Only the amount of manganese was higher than the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) permissible limit.