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Docent Dr. Ivan N. Ruskov - Guest Editor, Institute for Nuclear Research and Nuclear Energy of Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia, Bulgaria.

It is a great honor and pleasure for me to be invited as guest editor of this volume of the peer-reviewed BAU Journal of Science and Technology (BAU-JST).

In this journal are published international and interdisciplinary articles containing novel community valuable research, covering many areas of Science and Technology as Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Mathematics, Statistics, and Civil Engineering. The multi-disciplinary nature of the journal makes it unique in advancement and dissemination of scholarly studies in Science and Technology.

As in all previous volumes of the journal, this one presents a number of very interesting scientific articles.

The current issue contains 10 research papers.

Paper # 1 (ID1061) “Investigating the Proper Use of Litani River Basin Based on Water Quality”, is written by Mohamad Diab and Mohamad Soliman.

It is very important research paper on the assessments of the Water Quality in the Litani River Basin (LRB), which is the most important water resource in Lebanon.

Using a combination of Principal Component Analysis method and Water Quality Index method they found that exists a significant improvement of the water quality after passing lake Qaraoun, but, because of the Microbial contamination with Escherichia coli over the limit, the Lower LRB water is ranked “good” for irrigation and “bad” for drinking.

The authors recommended the Stakeholders to take immediately proper actions to resolve the microbiological contamination.

Paper # 2 (ID1070), titled “The Effect Of Salvia Fruticosa Water Extract In Acetic-Acid-Induced Colitis In Mice”, is written by Rim Mrad, Suzana Salhab, Miriam Al-Battal, and Jamilah Borjac.

This article is about their investigations of the protective effects of Salvia fruticosa (SF) against acetic acid-induced colitis in mice and model of human Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD).

The idea is to use SF as an alternative way for curing the uncontrolled chronic IBD, including Ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. IBD was induced with 6% acetic acid and SF was administered via gavage at a dose of 1.5 μg/kg for 2, 4, and 6 days.

Subsequent determination of biochemical markers and histopathological analysis of the colon showed that treatment with Salvia fruticosa caused an enhancement in the colon’s structure and decreased ulcerations and inflammation.

Paper # 3 (ID1071) is a very useful Review of published papers on Mechanical and Durability Properties of Geopolymer Concrete, prepared by Lelian El Khatib, Fadi Al Aridi, Adel ElKordi, and Jamal Khatib.

This topic is very relevant in connection with attempts to reduce carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere, in particular from the production of cement, which is an important main component of concrete, still widely used in construction.

The authors review recently published articles on the production and properties of geopolymers and alkali-activated materials that could replace cement in concrete. These articles explore various properties of materials such as: compressive and flexural strength, modulus of elasticity, ultrasonic pulse velocity, shrinkage, expansion, creep, mass loss, carbonization, sulfation, and corrosion.

Paper # 4 (ID1072) “Normality Testing Methods and the Importance of Skewness and Kurtosis in Statistical Analysis” with authors: Georges Hatem, Joe Zeidan, Mathijs Goossens, Carla Moreira, is an outcome from the collaboration between the researchers from different universities and institutions in Lebanon, France, Portugal and Belgium.

Skewness and kurtosis tests for assessing the comparability of a given distribution from a normal distribution are widely used in statistics, business, and epidemiological data including blood pressure, heights, IQ scores and measurement errors.

This report provides a review assessing the essential methods employed for testing normality and highlighting the importance of Skewness and Kurtosis in Statistics. Some examples of the importance of normality in epidemiological health studies analysis are given.

Paper # 5 (ID1073) is an In-vitro Evaluation of Apical Debris Extrusion of Two Full-rotating Instruments, Hyflex EDM and Race EVO, versus Two Reciprocating Instruments, Reciproc blue and R-motion, by Carla Abi Saad and Roula Abiad.

Forty extracted human mandibular premolar teeth are selected with single canals not affected by fluorosis, resorption, or fracture. Teeth are then randomly divided into four groups (n=10) according to the instrumentation files: R-motion (FKG), Reciproc blue (VDW), Race EVO (FKG) and Hyflex EDM (Colten).

Extruded debris are collected and weighed using an analytical balance. All data collected from the study are statistically analyzed using the statistical package for social science (SPSS). A significant difference is observed between the four experimental groups.

It is concluded that further studies are required to find the best technique and instrument that result in minimal apical debris extrusion, thus reducing the possibility of periapical tissue irritation.

Paper # 6 (ID1076) “Novel Fast Analytical Methods for the Analysis of Fluoxetine in Pure and Pharmaceutical Dosage Form” is a review by Diala Jumblat, Alice Bejjani, Azza A. K. Gazy, and Marwa El Jamal.

Fluoxetine is a type of antidepressant that is often used to treat depression, and sometimes obsessive-compulsive disorder and bulimia.

To find the best method for characterization of Fluoxetine (Prozac) the researchers used the following instrumental analytical methods for elemental analysis: Ion Beam Analysis (IBA) techniques (shown a precision less than 3% and a very low limit of detection): PIGE - Particle Induced Gamma-ray Emission, PIXE - Proton-Induced X-ray Emission, RBS - Rutherford Backscattering Spectrometry; Kinetic Spectrophotometry Methods (Initial Rates, Fixed Absorbance, Fixed Time – this method was found to be most suitable one to determine Fluoxetine with a correlation coefficient r = 0.9966).

With proposed and used by the authors Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) Method they investigated the drug in a concentration range of 20-100 μg/mL and obtain a regression coefficient r = 0.999.

Because all the assay results exposed satisfactory sensitivity, accuracy and reproducibility, the authors’ conclusion is that all the proposed methods would be useful tools for determining Fluoxetine.

Paper # 7 (ID1078) “Sources of Resonant Vortices in Aero-acoustics Resonance from Tandem Flat Plates”, is written by Atef El Khatib, Ahmad Al Miaari, and Ali Hammoud.

Using modeling and experimental testing for the first time was investigated the flow mechanisms responsible for the generation of double (low- and high-velocity) aero-acoustic resonance response in tandem flat-plate systems.

It is shown that low-velocity resonance vortices are created by normal shedding in the spacing between the plates, while high-velocity resonance vortices are formed by the interaction of vortices that are naturally shed in the gap with the downstream plate.

The authors concluded that, despite intensive research on this topic, much remains to be understood to effectively predict and control the resonance.

Paper # 8 (ID1079) “Production of low-cost self-consolidating concrete (SCC) using manufactured aggregates” is written by Rabab Raydan, Farah Chamseddine, Ali Jahami, Oussama Baalbaki, Jamal Khatib, Adel Elkordi.

In this experimental work is investigated the properties of Self-Consolidating Concrete with Manufactured Aggregates.

The aim is to understand the variability of its mechanical and performance properties when changing the w/c-ratio and the percentage of Coarse Aggregates and Manufactured Sand compared to Natural Sand in order to select the best mixture that satisfies adequate overall characteristics.

It was found that, the use of manufactured rounded aggregates with a percentage of 73% of the total amount of fine aggregates, 2.7% of Polycarboxylate Superplasticizer and about 8% of Silica Fume of the total amount of binders can lead to high-strength concrete with optimal mechanical properties and a noticeable improvement in workability at compared to natural aggregates.

Paper # 9 (ID1080) ”Localized Surface Plasmon Resonance of Copper Nanoparticles Using Finite Element Method” is written by Samaya El Samad and Salem Marhaba.

The aim of this paper is to study the interaction of the electromagnetic waves with plasmonic nanoparticles.

The characteristics of Localized Surface Plasmon Resonance (LSPR) depends on the intrinsic properties of the nanoparticles (size, shape) and dielectric medium. The extinction cross section spectra of Cu nanoparticles are calculated using the Finite Element Method. The simulations have shown that increasing in both the size of the nanoparticles and the dielectric medium leads to a redshift and a broadening of the LSPR spectrum with enhancement of the spectral amplitude.

The authors, conducting LSPR studies of Cu nanospheres of various arrangements, showed that the optical response depends on the order of nanospheres and light polarization.

Paper # 10 (ID1081) presents a thorough and detailed study on ”Effect of a Commonly Used Veterinary Antibiotic on Oxidative Stress and Root Transporters of Edible Legumes and Leafy Crops” by Safaa Nassar and Jamilah Borjac.

The authors of this article investigate the accumulation of antibiotics in soil and plants, which is a growing problem in agriculture, as it poses a serious threat to living organisms in the environment and therefore requires great attention.

To this end, experiments were carried out in greenhouse pots to simulate contamination with a veterinary antibiotic at doses of 150 mg/kg and 4800 mg/kg in virgin soil in which lentils, chickpeas, arugula and watercress were grown, in order to assess the potential toxicity of the antibiotic in plant roots during their growth. Biomarkers of toxicity and activity of antioxidant enzymes were analyzed in the roots of four species. The level of expression of genes for key antioxidant enzymes and four transporters involved in detoxification processes was assessed.

Measurements of antioxidant activity in the roots of four vegetables showed the tolerance of chickpeas and the sensitivity of lentils, arugula and watercress to the antibiotic concentrations used. Gene expression showed chickpea tolerance and arugula sensitivity to the added antibiotic.

The results obtained reveal the toxic effect of antibiotics on lentils, arugula, and cress with chickpea exhibiting higher tolerance to high antibiotic concentrations.

In this volume, inquisitive readers will find a carefully selected set of highly informative, important, and interesting studies covering various fields of Science and Engineering, carried out by scientists from different institutions and countries. Undoubtedly, these articles will be of interest to a wide range of readers. Enjoy reading.