Abstract: The recycling process of Tungsten alloy (Swarf) by
oxidation reduction technique have been investigated. The reduced
powder was pressed under a pressure 20Kg/cm2 and sintered at
1150°C in dry hydrogen atmosphere. The particle size of the recycled
alloy powder was 1-3 μm and the shape was regular at a reduction
temperature 800°C. The chemical composition of the recycled alloy
is the same as the primary Swarf.
Abstract: Mature landfill leachates contain some macromolecular organic substances that are resistant to biological degradation. Recently, Fenton-s oxidation has been investigated for chemical treatment or pre-treatment of mature landfill leachates. The aim of this study was to reduce the recalcitrant organic load still remaining after the complete treatment of a mature landfill leachate by Fenton-s oxidation post-treatment. The effect of various parameters such as H2O2 to Fe2+ molar ratio, dosage of Fe2+ reagent, initial pH, reaction time and initial chemical oxygen demand (COD) strength, that have an important role on the oxidation, was analysed. A molar ratio H2O2/Fe2+ = 3, a Fe2+ dosage of 4 mmol·L-1, pH 3, and a reaction time of 40 min were found to achieve better oxidation performances. At these favorable conditions, COD removal efficiency was 60.9% and 31.1% for initial COD of 93 and 743 mg·L-1 respectively (diluted and non diluted leachate). Fenton-s oxidation also presented good results for color removal. In spite of being extremely difficult to treat this leachate, the above results seem rather encouraging on the application of Fenton-s oxidation.
Abstract: Field experiment was conducted to investigate the combine use of animal manure and inorganic fertilizer on growth and yield performance of vegetable cowpea. The experiment was laid out in a Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with seven treatments. Poultry manure, cattle manure and goat manure were evaluated with recommended level of inorganic fertilizer for vegetable cowpea. The highest crop yield was obtained by the application of poultry manure combined with the recommended level of inorganic fertilizer. The lowest yield was obtained by the application of goat manure only. In addition, the results revealed that the goat manure and cattle manure were inferior to poultry manure as a source of organic manure for vegetable cowpea cultivation. The animal manure combine with chemical fertilizer gave a higher yield when compared to the sole application of animal manure. The soil analysis showed that the nitrogen content and phosphorus content of poultry manure treated plots were higher than other treatments tested. But potassium content was higher in goat manure treated plots. The results further revealed that the poultry manure has a beneficial effect on crop growth and yield compared with other treatments. Therefore, the combined use of poultry manure with inorganic fertilizer application has been recognized as the most suitable way of ensuring high crop yield.
Abstract: We report here structural, mechanical and I-V
characteristics of Zn1-xMxO ceramic samples with various x and M.
It is found that the considered dopants does not influence the wellknown
peaks related to wurtzite structure of ZnO ceramics, while the
shape and size of grains are clearly affected. Average crystalline
diameters, deduced from XRD are between 42 nm and 54 nm, which
are 70 times lower than those obtained from SEM micrographs.
Interestingly, the potential barrier could be formed by adding Cu up
to 0.20, and it is completely deformed by 0.025 Ni additions. The
breakdown field could be enhanced up to 4138 V/cm by 0.025 Cu
additions, followed by a decrease with further increase of Cu . On
the other hand a gradual decrease in VHN is reported for both
dopants and their values are higher in Ni samples as compared to Cu
samples. The electrical conductivity is generally improved by Ni,
while addition of Cu improved it only in the over doped region (≥
0.10). These results are discussed in terms of the difference of
valency and ferromagnetic ordering for both dopants as compared to
undoped sample.
Abstract: In recent times there has been a growing interest in the
development of quasi-two-dimensional niobium pentoxide (Nb2O5)
as a semiconductor for the potential electronic applications such as
capacitors, filtration, dye-sensitised solar cells and gas sensing
platforms. Therefore once the purpose is established, Nb2O5 can be
prepared in a number of nano- and sub-micron-structural
morphologies that include rods, wires, belts and tubes. In this study
films of Nb2O5 were prepared on gold plated silicon substrate using
spin-coating technique and subsequently by mechanical exfoliation.
The reason this method was employed was to achieve layers of less
than 15nm in thickness. The sintering temperature of the specimen
was 800oC. The morphology and structural characteristics of the
films were analyzed by Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), Raman
Spectroscopy, X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS).
Abstract: Culinary culture differences can cause health
problems for international tourists in Thailand. This paper drew upon
data collected from an international tourist survey conducted in
Bangkok, Thailand during summer of 2012. Summer is the period
that a variety food safety issues and incidents are often publicized in
Thailand. The survey targeted European Union tourists- concerns
toward a variety of food safety issues that they encountered during
their trip in Thailand. A total of 400 respondents were elicited as data
input for t-test, and one way ANOVA test. The findings revealed an
astonishing result that up to 46.5 percent of respondents were sick at
least one time or more in Thailand. However, the majority of
respondents trusted that the Thai hotel and Thai restaurants would
ensure food safety, but they did not trust street vendors to ensure food
safety. The level of food safety concern can be ranked from most
concern to least concern by using the value of mean scores as
follows: 1) artificial coloring, 2) use of preservatives, 3) antibiotics,
4) growth hormones, 5) chemical residues, and 6) bacterial
contamination. The overall mean score for level of concerns was
3.493 with standard deviation of 1.677 which did not indicate a very
high level of concern. In addition, the result for t-test and one way
ANOVA test revealed that there was not much effect from the
demographic differences to level of food safety concerns.
Abstract: Bone growth factors, such as Bone Morphogenic
Protein-2 (BMP-2) have been approved by the FDA to replace grafting for some surgical interventions, but the high dose requirement limits its use in patients. Noggin, an extracellular protein, blocks the effect of BMP-2 by binding to BMP. Preventing
the BMP-2/noggin interaction will help increase the free
concentration of BMP-2 and therefore should enhance its efficacy to
induce bone formation. The work presented here involves
computational design of novel small molecule inhibitory agents of BMP-2/noggin interaction, based on our current understanding of
BMP-2, and its known putative ligands (receptors and antagonists). A
successful acquisition of such an inhibitory agent of BMP-2/noggin interaction would allow clinicians to reduce the dose required of
BMP-2 protein in clinical applications to promote osteogenesis. The
available crystal structures of the BMPs, its receptors, and the binding partner noggin were analyzed to identify the critical residues
involved in their interaction. In presenting this study, LUDI de novo design method was utilized to perform virtual screening of a large
number of compounds from a commercially available library against the binding sites of noggin to identify the lead chemical compounds
that could potentially block BMP-noggin interaction with a high specificity.
Abstract: The aim of this work is to study the possible use of
stone cutting sludge waste in concrete production, which would
reduce both the environmental impact and the production cost .Slurry
sludge was used a source of water in concrete production, which was
obtained from Samara factory/Jordan, The physico-chemical and
mineralogical characterization of the sludge was carried out to
identify the major components and to compare it with the typical
sand used to produce concrete. Samples analysis showed that 96% of
slurry sludge volume is water, so it should be considered as an
important source of water. Results indicated that the use of slurry
sludge as water source in concrete production has insignificant effect
on compression strength, while it has a sharp effect on the slump
values. Using slurry sludge with a percentage of 25% of the total
water content obtained successful concrete samples regarding slump
and compression tests. To clarify slurry sludge, settling process can
be used to remove the suspended solid. A settling period of 30 min.
obtained 99% removal efficiency. The clarified water is suitable for
using in concrete mixes, which reduce water consumption, conserve
water recourses, increase the profit, reduce operation cost and save
the environment. Additionally, the dry sludge could be used in the
mix design instead of the fine materials with sizes < 160 um. This
application could conserve the natural materials and solve the
environmental and economical problem caused by sludge
accumulation.
Abstract: The production of activated carbon from low or zero cost of agricultural by-products or wastes has received great attention from academics and practitioners due to its economic and environmental benefits. In the production of bamboo furniture, a significant amount of bamboo waste is inevitably generated. Therefore, this research aimed to prepare activated carbons from bamboo furniture waste by chemical (KOH) activation and determine their properties and adsorption capacities for water treatment. The influence of carbonization time on the properties and adsorption capacities of activated carbons was also investigated. The finding showed that the bamboo-derived activated carbons had microporous characteristics. They exhibited high tendency for the reduction of impurities present in effluent water. Their adsorption capacities were comparable to the adsorption capacity of a commercial activated carbon regarding to the reduction in COD, TDS and turbidity of the effluent water.
Abstract: Polyurethane foam (PUF) is formed by a chemical
reaction of polyol and isocyanate. The aim is to understand the
impact of Silicone on synthesizing polyurethane in differentiate
volume of molding. The method used was one step process, which is
simultaneously caried out a blending polyol (petroleum polyol and
soybean polyol), a TDI (2,4):MDI (4,4-) (80:20), a distilled water,
and a silicone. The properties of the material were measured via a
number of parameters, which are polymer density, compressive
strength, and cellular structures. It is found that density of
polyurethane using silicone with volume of molding either 250 ml or
500 ml is lower than without using silicone.
Abstract: The reservoir of Kowsar dam supply water for
different usages such as aquaculture farms , drinking, agricultural and
industrial usages for some provinces in south of Iran. The Kowsar
dam is located next to the city of Dehdashat in Kohgiluye and
Boyerahmad province in southern Iran. There are some towns and
villages on the Kowsar dam watersheds, which Dehdasht and Choram
are the most important and populated twons in this area, which can to
be sources of pollution for water reservoir of the Kowsar dam . This
study was done to determine of water pollution of the Kowsar dam
reservoir which is one of the most important water resources of
Kohkiloye and Boyerahmad and Bushehr provinces in south-west
Iran. In this study , water samples during 12 months were collected to
examine Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) and Dissolved
Oxygen(DO) as a criterion for evaluation of water pollution of the
reservoir. In summary ,the study has shown Maximum, average and
minimum levels of BOD have observed 25.9 ,9.15 and 2.3 mg/L
respectively and statistical parameters of data such as standard
deviation , variance and skewness have calculated 7.88, 62 and 1.54
respectively. Finally the results were compared with Iranian national
standards. Among the analyzed samples, as the maximum value of
BOD (25.9 mg/L) was observed at the May 2010 , was within the
maximum admissible limits by the Iranian standards.
Abstract: Microorganisms isolated from water and soil of
Kazakhstan to identify potential high-effective producers of the
arachidonic acid, exhibiting a wide range of physiological activity
and having practical applications were screened. Based on the results
of two independent tests (the test on the sensitivity of the growth
processes of microorganisms to acetylsalicylic acid - an irreversible
inhibitor of PGH-synthase involved in the metabolism of arachidonic
acid and its derivatives, the test for inhibition of peroxidase activity
of membrane-bounding fraction of PGH - synthase by acetylsalicylic
acid) were selected microbial cultures which are potential highproducer
of arachidonic acid. They are characterized by a stable
strong growth in the laboratory conditions. Identification of
microorganism cultures based on morphological, physiological,
biochemical and molecular genetic characteristics was performed.
Abstract: This paper presents the results of preliminary
assessment of water quality along the coastal areas in the vicinity of
Left Bank Outfall Drainage (LBOD) and Tidal Link Drain (TLD) in
Sindh province after the cyclone 2A occurred in 1999. The water
samples were collected from various RDs of Tidal Link Drain and
lakes during September 2001 to April 2002 and were analysed for
salinity, nitrite, phosphate, ammonia, silicate and suspended material
in water. The results of the study showed considerable variations in
water quality depending upon the location along the coast in the
vicinity of LBOD and RDs. The salinity ranged between 4.39–65.25
ppt in Tidal Link Drain samples whereas 2.4–38.05 ppt in samples
collected from lakes. The values of suspended material at various
RDs of Tidal Link Drain ranged between 56.6–2134 ppm and at the
lakes between 68–297 ppm. The data of continuous monitoring at
RD–93 showed the range of PO4 (8.6–25.2 μg/l), SiO3 (554.96–1462
μg/l), NO2 (0.557.2–25.2 μg/l) and NH3 (9.38–23.62 μg/l). The
concentration of nutrients in water samples collected from different
RDs was found in the range of PO4 (10.85 to 11.47 μg/l), SiO3 (1624
to 2635.08 μg/l), NO2 (20.38 to 44.8 μg/l) and NH3 (24.08 to 26.6
μg/l). Sindh coastal areas which situated at the north-western
boundary the Arabian Sea are highly vulnerable to flood damages
due to flash floods during SW monsoon or impact of sea level rise
and storm surges coupled with cyclones passing through Arabian Sea
along Pakistan coast. It is hoped that the obtained data in this study
would act as a database for future investigations and monitoring of
LBOD and Tidal Link Drain coastal waters.
Abstract: The aim of this study was to synthesize the single
walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) and determine their hydrogen
storage capacities. SWCNTs were firstly synthesized by chemical
vapor deposition (CVD) of acetylene (C2H2) on a magnesium oxide
(MgO) powder impregnated with an iron nitrate (Fe(NO3)3·9H2O)
solution. The synthesis parameters were selected as: the synthesis
temperature of 800°C, the iron content in the precursor of 5% and the
synthesis time of 30 min. Purification process of SWCNTs was
fulfilled by microwave digestion at three different temperatures (120,
150 and 200 °C), three different acid concentrations (0.5, 1 and 1.5
M) and for three different time intervals (15, 30 and 60 min). Nitric
acid (HNO3) was used in the removal of the metal catalysts. The
hydrogen storage capacities of the purified materials were measured
using volumetric method at the liquid nitrogen temperature and gas
pressure up to 100 bar. The effects of the purification conditions such
as temperature, time and acid concentration on hydrogen adsorption
were investigated.
Abstract: A self-association model has been used to understand
the concentration dependence of free energy of mixing (GM), heat of
mixing (HM), entropy of mixing (SM), activity (a) and microscopic
structures, such as concentration fluctuation in long wavelength limit
(Scc(0)) and Warren-Cowley short range order parameter ( 1
α )for Cu-
Tl molten alloys at 1573K. A comparative study of surface tension of
the alloys in the liquid state at that temperature has also been carried
out theoretically as function of composition in the light of Butler-s
model, Prasad-s model and quasi-chemical approach. Most of the
computed thermodynamic properties have been found in agreement
with the experimental values. The analysis reveals that the Cu-Tl
molten alloys at 1573K represent a segregating system at all
concentrations with moderate interaction. Surface tensions computed
from different approaches have been found to be comparable to each
other showing increment with the composition of copper.
Abstract: In this study, the conversion of n-pentane to aromatics is investigated on HZSM-5 zeolites modified by Ga ion-exchange and silylation using tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) via chemical liquid deposition (CLD). The effect of SiO2/Al2O3 ratios of HZSM-5 was also studied. Parameters in preparing catalysts i.e. TEOS loading and cycles of deposition were varied to obtain the optimal condition for enhancing p-xylene selectivity. The highest p-xylene selectivity 99.7% was achieved when the amount of TEOS was 20 vol.%.The catalysts were characterized by TPD, TPO, XRF, and BET. Results show that the conversion of n-pentane was influenced remarkably by the SiO2/Al2O3 ratios of HZSM-5. The highest p-xylene selectivity 99.7% was achieved when the amount of TEOS was 20 vol.%. And cycles of deposition greatly improves HZSM-5 shape-selectivity.
Abstract: The high temperature degree and uniform
Temperature Distribution (TD) on surface of cookware which contact
with food are effective factors for improving cookware application.
Additionally, the ability of pan material in retaining the heat and nonreactivity
with foods are other significant properties. It is difficult for
single material to meet a wide variety of demands such as superior
thermal and chemical properties. Multi-Layer Plate (MLP) makes
more regular TD. In this study the main objectives are to find the best
structure (single or multi-layer) and materials to provide maximum
temperature degree and uniform TD up side surface of pan. And also
heat retaining of used metals with goal of improving the thermal
quality of pan to economize the energy. To achieve this aim were
employed Finite Element Method (FEM) for analyzing transient
thermal behavior of applied materials. The analysis has been
extended for different metals, we achieved the best temperature
profile and heat retaining in Copper/ Stainless Steel MLP.
Abstract: Sunflower stalks were analysed for chemical
compositions: pentosan 15.84%, holocellulose 70.69%,
alphacellulose 45.74%, glucose 27.10% and xylose 7.69% based on
dry weight of 100-g raw material. The most optimum condition for
steam explosion pretreatment was as follows. Sunflower stalks were
cut into small pieces and soaked in 0.02 M H2SO4 for overnight.
After that, they were steam exploded at 207 C and 21 kg/cm2 for 3
minutes to fractionate cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin. The
resulting hydrolysate, containing hemicellulose, and cellulose pulp
contained xylose sugar at 2.53% and 7.00%, respectively.The pulp
was further subjected to enzymatic saccharification at 50 C, pH 4.8 citrate buffer) with pulp/buffer 6% (w/w)and Celluclast 1.5L/pulp
2.67% (w/w) to obtain single glucose with maximum yield 11.97%.
After fixed-bed fermentation under optimum condition using
conventional yeast mixtures to produce bioethanol, it indicated
maximum ethanol yield of 0.028 g/100 g sunflower stalk.
Abstract: We present a label-free biosensor based on
electrochemical impedance spectroscopy for the detection of proinflammatory
cytokine Tumor Necrosis Factor (TNF-α). Secretion of
TNF-α has been correlated to the onset of various diseases including
rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn-s disease etc. Gold electrodes were
patterned on a silicon substrate and self assembled monolayer of
dithiobis-succinimidyl propionate was used to develop the biosensor
which achieved a detection limit of ~57fM. A linear relationship was
also observed between increasing TNF-α concentrations and chargetransfer
resistance within a dynamic range of 1pg/ml – 1ng/ml.
Abstract: Application of pesticides in the paddy fields has
deleterious effects on non-target organisms including cyanobacteria
which are photosynthesizing and nitrogen fixing micro-organisms
contributing significantly towards soil fertility and crop yield.
Pesticide contamination in the paddy fields has manifested into a
serious global environmental concern. To study the effect of one such
pesticide, three cyanobacterial strains; Anabaena fertilissima,
Aulosira fertilissima and Westiellopsis prolifica were selected for
their stress responses to an Organochlorine insecticide - 6, 7, 8, 9, 10,
10-hexachloro-1, 5, 5a, 6, 9, 9a-hexahydro-6, 9-methano-2, 4, 3-
benzodioxathiepine-3-oxide, with reference to their photosynthesic
pigments-chlorophyll-a and carotenoids as well as accessory
pigments-phycobiliproteins (phycocyanin, allophycocyanin and
phycoerythrin), stress induced biochemical metabolites like
carbohydrates, proteins, amino acids, phenols and enzymes-nitrate
reductase, glutamine synthetase and succinate dehydrogenase. All
the three cyanobacterial strains were adversely affected by the
insecticide doses and inhibition was dose dependent. Reduction in
photosynthetic and accessory pigments, metabolites, nitrogen fixing
and respiratory enzymes of the test organisms were accompanied
with an initial increase in their total protein at lower Organochlorine
doses. On the other hand, increased amount of phenols in all the
insecticide treated concentrations was indicative of stressed activities
of the organisms.