Search results for: ethanol extracts

Authors: Kgomotso Matobole, Noluzuko Monakali, Hilary Rutto, Tumisang Seodigeng

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On a global scale, there is an alarming generation of food waste. Food waste is generated across the food supply chain. Worldwide urbanization, as well as global economic growth, have contributed to this amount of food waste the environment is receiving. Food waste normally ends on illegal dumping sites when not properly disposed, or disposed to landfills. This results in environmental pollution due to inadequate waste management practices. Food waste is rich in organic matter and highly biodegradable; hence, it can be utilized for the production of bioethanol, a type of biofuel. In so doing, alternative energy will be created, and the volumes of food waste will be reduced in the process. This results in food waste being seen as a precious commodity in energy generation instead of a pollutant. The main aim of the project was to simulate a biorefinery, using a software called CHEMCAD 7.12. The resulting purity of the ethanol from the simulation was 98.9%, with the feed ratio of 1: 2 for food waste and water. This was achieved by integrating necessary unit operations and optimisation of their operating conditions.

Keywords: fermentation, bioethanol, food waste, hydrolysis, simulation, modelling

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Authors: Iryna Atamaniuk, Hannah Boysen, Nils Wieczorek, Natalia Politaeva, Iuliia Bazarnova, Kerstin Kuchta

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Over the last decade due to climate change and a strategy of natural resources preservation, the interest for the aquatic biomass has dramatically increased. Along with mitigation of the environmental pressure and connection of waste streams (including CO₂ and heat emissions), microalgae bioeconomy can supply food, feed, as well as the pharmaceutical and power industry with number of value-added products. Furthermore, in comparison to conventional biomass, microalgae can be cultivated in wide range of conditions without compromising food and feed production, thus addressing issues associated with negative social and the environmental impacts. This paper presents the state-of-the art technology for microalgae bioeconomy from cultivation process to production of valuable components and by-streams. Microalgae Chlorella sorokiniana were cultivated in the pilot-scale innovation concept in Hamburg (Germany) using different systems such as race way pond (5000 L) and flat panel reactors (8 x 180 L). In order to achieve the optimum growth conditions along with suitable cellular composition for the further extraction of the value-added components, process parameters such as light intensity, temperature and pH are continuously being monitored. On the other hand, metabolic needs in nutrients were provided by addition of micro- and macro-nutrients into a medium to ensure autotrophic growth conditions of microalgae. The cultivation was further followed by downstream process and extraction of lipids, proteins and saccharides. Lipids extraction is conducted in repeated-batch semi-automatic mode using hot extraction method according to Randall. As solvents hexane and ethanol are used at different ratio of 9:1 and 1:9, respectively. Depending on cell disruption method along with solvents ratio, the total lipids content showed significant variations between 8.1% and 13.9 %. The highest percentage of extracted biomass was reached with a sample pretreated with microwave digestion using 90% of hexane and 10% of ethanol as solvents. Proteins content in microalgae was determined by two different methods, namely: Total Kejadahl Nitrogen (TKN), which further was converted to protein content, as well as Bradford method using Brilliant Blue G-250 dye. Obtained results, showed a good correlation between both methods with protein content being in the range of 39.8–47.1%. Characterization of neutral and acid saccharides from microalgae was conducted by phenol-sulfuric acid method at two wavelengths of 480 nm and 490 nm. The average concentration of neutral and acid saccharides under the optimal cultivation conditions was 19.5% and 26.1%, respectively. Subsequently, biomass residues are used as substrate for anaerobic digestion on the laboratory-scale. The methane concentration, which was measured on the daily bases, showed some variations for different samples after extraction steps but was in the range between 48% and 55%. CO₂ which is formed during the fermentation process and after the combustion in the Combined Heat and Power unit can potentially be used within the cultivation process as a carbon source for the photoautotrophic synthesis of biomass.

Keywords: bioeconomy, lipids, microalgae, proteins, saccharides

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Authors: C. Virgilio, J. Carlier, P. Campistron, M. Toubal, P. Garnier, L. Broussous, V. Thomy, B. Nongaillard

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Wetting efficiency of microstructures or nanostructures patterned on Si wafers is a real challenge in integrated circuits manufacturing. In fact, bad or non-uniform wetting during wet processes limits chemical reactions and can lead to non-complete etching or cleaning inside the patterns and device defectivity. This issue is more and more important with the transistors size shrinkage and concerns mainly high aspect ratio structures. Deep Trench Isolation (DTI) structures enabling pixels’ isolation in imaging devices are subject to this phenomenon. While low-frequency acoustic reflectometry principle is a well-known method for Non Destructive Test applications, we have recently shown that it is also well suited for nanostructures wetting characterization in a higher frequency range. In this paper, we present a high-frequency acoustic reflectometry characterization of DTI wetting through a confrontation of both experimental and modeling results. The acoustic method proposed is based on the evaluation of the reflection of a longitudinal acoustic wave generated by a 100 µm diameter ZnO piezoelectric transducer sputtered on the silicon wafer backside using MEMS technologies. The transducers have been fabricated to work at 5 GHz corresponding to a wavelength of 1.7 µm in silicon. The DTI studied structures, manufactured on the wafer frontside, are crossing trenches of 200 nm wide and 4 µm deep (aspect ratio of 20) etched into a Si wafer frontside. In that case, the acoustic signal reflection occurs at the bottom and at the top of the DTI enabling its characterization by monitoring the electrical reflection coefficient of the transducer. A Finite Difference Time Domain (FDTD) model has been developed to predict the behavior of the emitted wave. The model shows that the separation of the reflected echoes (top and bottom of the DTI) from different acoustic modes is possible at 5 Ghz. A good correspondence between experimental and theoretical signals is observed. The model enables the identification of the different acoustic modes. The evaluation of DTI wetting is then performed by focusing on the first reflected echo obtained through the reflection at Si bottom interface, where wetting efficiency is crucial. The reflection coefficient is measured with different water / ethanol mixtures (tunable surface tension) deposited on the wafer frontside. Two cases are studied: with and without PFTS hydrophobic treatment. In the untreated surface case, acoustic reflection coefficient values with water show that liquid imbibition is partial. In the treated surface case, the acoustic reflection is total with water (no liquid in DTI). The impalement of the liquid occurs for a specific surface tension but it is still partial for pure ethanol. DTI bottom shape and local pattern collapse of the trenches can explain these incomplete wetting phenomena. This high-frequency acoustic method sensitivity coupled with a FDTD propagative model thus enables the local determination of the wetting state of a liquid on real structures. Partial wetting states for non-hydrophobic surfaces or low surface tension liquids are then detectable with this method.

Keywords: wetting, acoustic reflectometry, gigahertz, semiconductor

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Authors: Ruth Catacolí, Hector Garcia

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Colombia Urban Areas shows a decreasing of their air quality, no matter the actions developed by the Government facing the mitigation of pressure factors related with air pollution. Examples of these actions were the fossil fuel quality improvement policies (FFQI). This study evaluated the impact of three FFQI in the air quality of Bogotá during the period 1990 - 2006: The phase-out of lead in the gasoline; the sulfur reduction in diesel oil consumed in Bogotá and the oxygenation of gasoline through the addition of ethanol. The results indicate that only the policy of phase-out of lead in gasoline has been effective, showing dropping of lead oxides concentration in the air. Some stakeholders believe that the FFQI evaluated in the study are environmental policies, but no one of these policies has been supported by an environmental impact assessment that shows specific benefits in air quality. The research includes some fuel policy elements to achieve positive impact on the air quality in the urban centers of Colombia.

Keywords: policy assessment, fuel quality, urban air quality, air quality management

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Authors: Amir Aziz, Martin Tuner, Sebastian Verhelst, Oivind Andersson

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Partially Premixed Combustion (PPC) is a combustion concept which aims to simultaneously achieve high efficiency and low engine-out emissions. Extending the ignition delay to promote the premixing, has been recognized as one of the key factor to achieve PPC. Fuels with high octane number have been proven to be a good candidates to extend the ignition delay. In this work, E85 (85% ethanol) has been used as a PPC fuel. The aim of this work was to investigate a suitable injection strategy for PPC combustion fueled with E85 in a single-cylinder heavy-duty engine. Single and double injection strategy were applied with different injection timing and the ratio between different injection pulses was varied. The performance and emission were investigated at low load. The results show that the double injection strategy should be preferred for PPC fueled with E85 due to low emissions and high efficiency, while keeping the pressure raise rate at very low levels.

Keywords: E85, partially premixed combustion, injection strategy, performance and emission

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Authors: Smita Pallavi, Raj Ratn Pranesh, Sumit Kumar

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Information representation as tables is compact and concise method that eases searching, indexing, and storage requirements. Extracting and cloning tables from parsable documents is easier and widely used; however, industry still faces challenges in detecting and extracting tables from OCR (Optical Character Recognition) documents or images. This paper proposes an algorithm that detects and extracts multiple tables from OCR document. The algorithm uses a combination of image processing techniques, text recognition, and procedural coding to identify distinct tables in the same image and map the text to appropriate the corresponding cell in dataframe, which can be stored as comma-separated values, database, excel, and multiple other usable formats.

Keywords: table extraction, optical character recognition, image processing, text extraction, morphological transformation

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Authors: A. Boveiri Monji, H. Yousefnia, S. Zolghadri, B. Salimi

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The main goal of this paper was to make use of green reagents as a substitute of perilous synthetic reagents and organic solvents for spectrophotometric determination of hafnium(IV). The extracts taken from six different kinds of tree leaves including Acer negundo, Ficus carica, Cerasus avium, Chimonanthus, Salix babylonica and Pinus brutia, were applied as green reagents for the experiments. In 6-M hydrochloric acid, hafnium reacted with the reagent to form a yellow product and showed maximum absorbance at 421 nm. Among tree leaves, Chimonanthus showed satisfactory results with a molar absorptivity value of 0.61 × 10⁴ l mol^-1 cm^-1 and the method was linear in the 0.3-9 µg mL ^-1 concentration range. The detection limit value was 0.064 µg mL^-1. The proposed method was simple, low cost, clean, and selective.

Keywords: hafnium, spectrophotometric determination, synthetic reagents, tree leaves

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Authors: Anuoluwapo O. Adewole

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Fermentation is the conversion of monomeric sugars into ethanol and carbondioxide in the presence of microorganisms under anaerobic conditions. In line with the aim and objective of this research project, which is to investigate into the variables affecting the use of charcoal to delay fermentation in wet beans slurry, some physical and chemical analysis were carried out on the wet beans slurry using a PH meter in which a thermometer is incorporated in it, and a measuring cylinder was used for the foam level test. About 250 grams of the ground beans slurry was divided into two portions for testing. The sample with charcoal was labeled sample 'A' while the second sample without charcoal was labeled sample 'B' subsequently. The experiment lasted for a period of 41.15 hours (i.e., forty-one hours and nine minutes). During the fourth process, both samples could not be tested as the laboratory had been saturated with foul odor and both samples were packed and sealed in polythene bag for disposal in the trash can. It was generally observed that the sample with the charcoal lasted for a longer time before that without charcoal before total spoilage occurred.

Keywords: fermentation, monomeric sugars, beans slurry, charcoal, anaerobic conditions

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Authors: Salam Khalifa, Naveed Ahmed

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We present a new method to reconstruct a temporally coherent 3D animation from single or multi-view RGB-D video data using unbiased feature point sampling. Given RGB-D video data, in form of a 3D point cloud sequence, our method first extracts feature points using both color and depth information. In the subsequent steps, these feature points are used to match two 3D point clouds in consecutive frames independent of their resolution. Our new motion vectors based dynamic alignment method then fully reconstruct a spatio-temporally coherent 3D animation. We perform extensive quantitative validation using novel error functions to analyze the results. We show that despite the limiting factors of temporal and spatial noise associated to RGB-D data, it is possible to extract temporal coherence to faithfully reconstruct a temporally coherent 3D animation from RGB-D video data.

Keywords: 3D video, 3D animation, RGB-D video, temporally coherent 3D animation

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Authors: Kessara Seneesrisakul, Erdogan Gulari, Sumaeth Chavadej

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The complex structure of lignocellulose leads to great difficulties in converting it to fermentable sugars for the ethanol production. The major hydrolysis impediments are the crystallinity of cellulose and the lignin content. To improve the efficiency of enzymatic hydrolysis, microbial pretreatment of corncob was investigated using two bacterial strains of Bacillus subtilis A 002 and Cellulomonas sp. TISTR 784 (expected to break open the crystalline part of cellulose) and lignin-degrading fungus, Phanerochaete sordida SK7 (expected to remove lignin from lignocellulose). The microbial pretreatment was carried out with each strain under its optimum conditions. The pretreated corncob samples were further hydrolyzed to produce reducing glucose with low amounts of commercial cellulase (25 U•g-1 corncob) from Aspergillus niger. The corncob samples were determined for composition change by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and scanning electron microscope (SEM). According to the results, the microbial pretreatment with fungus, P. sordida SK7 was the most effective for enhancing enzymatic hydrolysis, approximately, 40% improvement.

Keywords: corncob, enzymatic hydrolysis, glucose, microbial pretreatment

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Authors: D. Erdenechimeg, T. Bujinlkham, N. Erdenepurev

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The anti-corrosion performance of fatty acid coated mild steel samples is studied. Samples of structural steel coated with collector reagents deposited from surfactant in ethanol solution and overcoated with an epoxy barrier paint. A quantitative corrosion rate was determined by linear polarization resistance method using biopotentiostat/galvanostat 400. Coating morphology was determined by scanning electronic microscopy. A test for hydrophobic surface of steel by surfactant was done. From the samples, the main component or high content iron was determined by chemical method and other metal contents were determined by Inductively Coupled Plasma-Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP-OES) method. Prior to measuring the corrosion rate, mechanical and chemical treatments were performed to prepare the test specimens. Overcoating the metal samples with epoxy barrier paint after exposing them with surfactant the corrosion rate can be inhibited by 34-35 µm/year.

Keywords: corrosion, linear polarization resistance, coating, surfactant

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Authors: Natalia C. E. S. Nascimento, Mercia L. Oliveira, Fernando R. A. Lima, Leonardo T. C. do Nascimento, Marina B. Silveira, Brigida G. A. Schirmer, Andrea V. Ferreira, Carlos Malamut, Juliana B. da Silva

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Tissue hypoxia is a common characteristic of solid tumors leading to decreased sensitivity to radiotherapy and chemotherapy. In the clinical context, tumor hypoxia assessment employing the positron emission tomography (PET) tracer ¹⁸F-fluoromisonidazole ([¹⁸F]FMISO) is helpful for physicians for planning and therapy adjusting. The aim of this work was to implement the synthesis of 18F-FMISO in a TRACERlab® MXFDG module and also to establish the quality control procedure. [¹⁸F]FMISO was synthesized at Centro de Desenvolvimento da Tecnologia Nuclear (CDTN/CNEN/Brazil) using an automated synthesizer (TRACERlab® MXFDG, GE) adapted for the production of [¹⁸F]FMISO. The FMISO chemical standard was purchased from ABX. 18O- enriched water was acquired from Center of Molecular Research. Reagent kits containing eluent solution, acetonitrile, ethanol, 2.0 M HCl solution, buffer solution, water for injections and [¹⁸F]FMISO precursor (dissolved in 2 ml acetonitrile) were purchased from ABX. The [¹⁸F]FMISO samples were purified by Solid Phase Extraction method. The quality requirements of [¹⁸F]FMISO are established in the European Pharmacopeia. According to that reference, quality control of [¹⁸F]FMISO should include appearance, pH, radionuclidic identity and purity, radiochemical identity and purity, chemical purity, residual solvents, bacterial endotoxins, and sterility. The duration of the synthesis process was 53 min, with radiochemical yield of (37.00 ± 0.01) % and the specific activity was more than 70 GBq/µmol. The syntheses were reproducible and showed satisfactory results. In relation to the quality control analysis, the samples were clear and colorless at pH 6.0. The spectrum emission, measured by using a High-Purity Germanium Detector (HPGe), presented a single peak at 511 keV and the half-life, determined by the decay method in an activimeter, was (111.0 ± 0.5) min, indicating no presence of radioactive contaminants, besides the desirable radionuclide (¹⁸F). The samples showed concentration of tetrabutylammonium (TBA) < 50μg/mL, assessed by visual comparison to TBA standard applied in the same thin layer chromatographic plate. Radiochemical purity was determined by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and the results were 100%. Regarding the residual solvents tested, ethanol and acetonitrile presented concentration lower than 10% and 0.04%, respectively. Healthy female mice were injected via lateral tail vein with [¹⁸F]FMISO, microPET imaging studies (15 min) were performed after 2 h post injection (p.i), and the biodistribution was analyzed in five-time points (30, 60, 90, 120 and 180 min) after injection. Subsequently, organs/tissues were assayed for radioactivity with a gamma counter. All parameters of quality control test were in agreement to quality criteria confirming that [¹⁸F]FMISO was suitable for use in non-clinical and clinical trials, following the legal requirements for the production of new radiopharmaceuticals in Brazil.

Keywords: automatic radiosynthesis, hypoxic tumors, pharmacopeia, positron emitters, quality requirements

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Authors: Sunita Makchuchit, Arunporn Itharat

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Prasaprohyai, a Thai traditional medicine preparation listed in the Thai National List of Essential Medicines, is commonly used for treatment of fever and colds. Prasaprohyai preparation consists of 21 different plants, with Kaempferia galanga (50% w/w) as the main ingredient. The objective of this study was to investigate the anti-allergic activity of the crude extract from Prasaprohyai after accelerated stability test procedure. The method of extract used maceration in 95% ethanol and the crude extract was kept under accelerated condition at 40 ± 2 oC and 75 ± 5% relative humidity (RH) for six months. After six months of storage at 40 oC, the crude sample in various storage times (0, 15, 30, 45, 60, 90, 120, 150 and 180 days) were investigated for anti-allergic activity using IgE-sensitized RBL-2H3 cell lines. The results showed that the stability of crude ethanolic extract from Prasaprohyai under accelerated testing had no significant effect of anti-allergic activity when compared with day 0. The results showed that the ethanolic extract could be stored for two years at room temperature without loss of activity.

Keywords: accelerated stability, anti-allergy, prasaprohyai, RBL-2H3 cell lines

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Authors: Desta Gebretekle Shiferaw, Balakrishna Kalluraya

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Pyrazole is an aromatic five-membered heterocycle with two nitrogen and three carbon atoms in its ring structure. According to the literature, pyrazoline, pyrazole, and thiazole-containing moieties are found in various drug structures and are responsible for nearly all pharmacological effects. The pyrazoline linked to pyrazole moiety carbothioamides was synthesized via the reaction of pyrazole-bearing chalcones (3-(5-chloro-3-methyl-¹-phenyl-1H-pyrazol-4-yl)-¹-(substituted aryl) prop-2-ene-¹-one derivatives) with a nucleophile thiosemicarbohyrazide by heating in ethanol using fused sodium acetate as a catalyst. Then the carbothioamide derivatives were converted into the pyrazoline hybrid to pyrazole and thiazole derivatives by condensing with substituted phenacyl bromide in alcohol in a basic medium. Next, the chemical structure of the newly synthesized molecules was confirmed by IR, 1H-NMR, and mass spectral data. Further, they were screened for their in vitro antioxidant activity. Compared to butylated hydroxy anisole (BHA)., the antioxidant data showed that the synthesized compounds had good to moderate activity.

Keywords: pyrazoline-pyrazole carbothioamide derivatives, pyrazoline-pyrazole-thiazole derivatives, spectral studies, antioxidant activity

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Authors: Liza Meutia Sari, Gus Permana Subita, Elza Ibrahim Auerkari

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Background: Many herbs have been discovered to be potential sources of anticancer drugs. Biji Pinang or areca nut (Areca catechu Linn.) has a high content of phenolics and flavonoids, and which is related to antioxidant activity. However, data on its effects on oral squamous cell carcinoma is not available. Objectives: Identification of the cytotoxicity and apoptosis activity in HSC-2 and HSC-3. Methods: The areca nut was extracted by ethanol 96%, MTS assay and apoptosis activity with flow cytometry. Results: The extract of areca nut showed higher toxicity on HSC-3 cell compared to HSC-2. The IC₅₀ of HSC-3 was 164.06 μg/ml vs. 629.50 μg/ml in HSC-2. There was an increase in late apoptosis percentage after 24 and 48 hours in HSC-2. There was a significant increase in early apoptosis percentage after 24 hours and late in 48 hours in HSC-3. Conclusion: The antioxidant activity of the extract of areca nut might be associated with the selective cytotoxicity on HSC-2 and HSC-3. Apoptosis is the major cell death mechanism involved. The areca nut may play an important role in anticancer herb medicine.

Keywords: areca nut, cytotoxicity, apoptosis, oral carcinoma

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Authors: Nestor A. Garcia Fragoso, Tetyana Baydyk, Ernst Kussul

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This article contains information from our investigation in the field of voice recognition. For this purpose, we created a voice database that contains different phrases in two languages, English and Spanish, for men and women. As a classifier, the LIRA (Limited Receptive Area) grayscale neural classifier was selected. The LIRA grayscale neural classifier was developed for image recognition tasks and demonstrated good results. Therefore, we decided to develop a recognition system using this classifier for voice recognition. From a specific set of speakers, we can recognize the speaker’s voice. For this purpose, the system uses spectrograms of the voice signals as input to the system, extracts the characteristics and identifies the speaker. The results are described and analyzed in this article. The classifier can be used for speaker identification in security system or smart buildings for different types of intelligent devices.

Keywords: extreme learning, LIRA neural classifier, speaker identification, voice recognition

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Authors: Uthumporn Utra, Y. N. Shariffa, M. Maizura, A. S. Ruri

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This research is to study the utilization of pumpkin and winter melon as the main substrate for kefir fermentation in the production of pumpkin and winter melon-based fermented drinks. Optimized temperature and time were chosen for fermentation of pumpkin and winter melon. Physicochemical and microbiological evaluations were conducted to the end products: P (fermented pumpkin juice) and K (fermented winter melon juice). Ethanol content was detected at low concentration of 0.9% (v/wt) in P, and 1.0% (v/wt) in K. Level of glucose and fructose increased significantly (p < 0.05) in both fermented drinks when compared to unfermented pumpkin (CP) and winter melon (CK) juices. Total phenolic content in P & K was higher than CP and CK, while %DPPH inhibition of both decreased significantly. Total Lactobacilli counts in P & K were 8.9 and 7.88 log cfu/ml respectively, while acetic acid bacteria counts were 8.62 and 7.57 log cfu/ml respectively, yeast counts were 4.71 and 5 log cfu/ml, and no E.coli was detected in all samples. Sensory evaluation yield comparable properties in P & K. This concluded that pumpkin and winter melon fermented drinks inoculated by water kefir grains could be promising source of nutrients with probiotic potency.

Keywords: fermented drinks, functional beverage, kefir, pumpkin, winter melon

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Authors: Che-Wei Lee, Bay-Erl Lai

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A new steganographic method via the use of numeric data on public websites with self-authentication capability is proposed. The proposed technique transforms a secret message into partial shares by Shamir’s (k, n)-threshold secret sharing scheme with n = k + 1. The generated k+1 partial shares then are embedded into the selected numeric items in a website as if they are part of the website’s numeric content. Afterward, a receiver links to the website and extracts every k shares among the k+1 ones from the stego-numeric-content to compute k+1 copies of the secret, and the phenomenon of value consistency of the computed k+1 copies is taken as an evidence to determine whether the extracted message is authentic or not, attaining the goal of self-authentication of the extracted secret message. Experimental results and discussions are provided to show the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed method.

Keywords: steganography, data hiding, secret authentication, secret sharing

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Authors: Shashikant Kumar, Chandraraj K.

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Perennial grasses have presented interesting choices in the current demand for renewable and sustainable energy sources to alleviate the load of the global energy problem. The perennial grass Napier grass (Pennisetum purpureum Schumach) is a promising feedstock for the production of cellulosic ethanol. The conversion of biomass into glucose and xylose is a crucial stage in the production of bioethanol, and it necessitates optimal pretreatment. Alkali treatment, among the several pretreatments available, effectively reduces lignin concentration and crystallinity of cellulose. Response surface methodology was used to optimize the alkali pretreatment of Napier grass for maximal reducing sugar production. The combined effects of three independent variables, viz. sodium hydroxide concentration, temperature, and reaction time, were studied. A second-order polynomial equation was used to fit the observed data. Maximum reducing sugar (590.54 mg/g) was obtained under the following conditions: 1.6 % sodium hydroxide, a reaction period of 30 min., and 120˚C. The results showed that Napier grass is a desirable feedstock for bioethanol production.

Keywords: Napier grass, optimization, pretreatment, sodium hydroxide

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Authors: Maryam Amiri, Leyli Mohammad-Khanli

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Cloud computing is becoming increasingly popular and more business applications are moving to cloud. In this regard, services that provide similar functional properties are increasing. So, the ability to select a service with the best non-functional properties, corresponding to the user preference, is necessary for the user. This paper presents an Evaluation Framework of Service Trustworthiness (EFST) that evaluates the trustworthiness of equivalent services without need to additional invocations of them. EFST extracts user preference automatically. Then, it assesses trustworthiness of services in two dimensions of qualitative and quantitative metrics based on the experiences of past usage of services. Finally, EFST determines the overall trustworthiness of services using Fuzzy Inference System (FIS). The results of experiments and simulations show that EFST is able to predict the missing values of Quality of Service (QoS) better than other competing approaches. Also, it propels users to select the most appropriate services.

Keywords: user preference, cloud service, trustworthiness, QoS metrics, prediction

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Authors: Ijaz Ahmed Khan, Zaheen Ullah, Rahamdad, Gul Hassan

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A field experiment was conducted at Agricultural Research Station Ahmad Wala, Karak, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province during rabi season of 2010-011 to study the effect of different weed management practices on weed control in chickpea under field conditions. The results revealed that treatments showed significant influence on weed density, seed yield kg ha-1 and other growth parameters. Significantly lower weed density (98 m-2) was recorded with the application of Isoproturon 500 EW as compared to control plots having 368.3 weeds m-2. Moreover, significantly highest seed yield (1583.3 kg ha-1) was produced in the plots assigned with Isoproturon 500 EW followed by Eucalyptus extract that produce seed yield of 1416.7 kg ha-1. It was concluded from the study that Isoproturon 500 EW is the best option for controlling weeds and increase the seed yield kg ha-1 of chickpea.

Keywords: chickpea, herbicides, weed control, weeds extracts

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Authors: N. Marzban, J. K. Heydarzadeh M. Pourmohammadbagher, M. H. Hatami, A. Samia

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A nano-alumina-zirconia composite catalyst was synthesized by a simple aqueous sol-gel method using AlCl₃.6H₂O and ZrCl₄ as precursors. Thermal decomposition of the precursor and subsequent formation of γ-Al₂O₃ and t-Zr were investigated by thermal analysis. XRD analysis showed that γ-Al₂O₃ and t-ZrO₂ phases were formed at 700 °C. FT-IR analysis also indicated that the phase transition to γ-Al₂O₃ occurred in corroboration with X-ray studies. TEM analysis of the calcined powder revealed that spherical particles were in the range of 8-12 nm. The nano-alumina-zirconia composite particles were mesoporous and uniformly distributed in their crystalline phase. In order to measure the catalytic activity, esterification reaction was carried out. Biodiesel, as a renewable fuel, was formed in a continuous packed column reactor. Free fatty acid (FFA) was esterified with ethanol in a heterogeneous catalytic reactor. It was found that the synthesized γ-Al₂O₃/ZrO₂ composite had the potential to be used as a heterogeneous base catalyst for biodiesel production processes.

Keywords: nano alumina-zirconia, composite catalyst, thin film, biodiesel

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Authors: Sello Mokwena, Monyepao Thabang

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In this study, we propose a comprehensive approach to address the challenges in person re-identification models. By combining a centroid tracking algorithm with a Siamese convolutional neural network model, our method excels in detecting, tracking, and capturing robust person features across non-overlapping camera views. The algorithm efficiently identifies individuals in the camera network, while the neural network extracts fine-grained global features for precise cross-image comparisons. The approach's effectiveness is further accentuated by leveraging the camera network topology for guidance. Our empirical analysis on benchmark datasets highlights its competitive performance, particularly evident when background subtraction techniques are selectively applied, underscoring its potential in advancing person re-identification techniques.

Keywords: camera network, convolutional neural network topology, person tracking, person re-identification, siamese

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Authors: Sai Maniveer Adapa, Sai Guptha Perla, Adithya Reddy P.

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Thyroid nodules can often be diagnosed with ultrasound imaging, although differentiating between benign and malignant nodules can be challenging for medical professionals. This work suggests a novel approach to increase the precision of thyroid nodule identification by combining machine learning and deep learning. The new approach first extracts information from the ultrasound pictures using a deep learning method known as a convolutional autoencoder. A support vector machine, a type of machine learning model, is then trained using these features. With an accuracy of 92.52%, the support vector machine can differentiate between benign and malignant nodules. This innovative technique may decrease the need for pointless biopsies and increase the accuracy of thyroid nodule detection.

Keywords: thyroid tumor diagnosis, ultrasound images, deep learning, machine learning, convolutional auto-encoder, support vector machine

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Authors: A. N.Ukwuani, A. K. Abdulfatah

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G. crenata is used locally for the treatment of fractured bones, wound healing and inflammatory conditions. In vitro and in vivo antioxidant activity of hydromethanolic extracts of the leaves of G. crenata were assessed. The phytochemical analysis shows the presence of phenols, flavonoids, saponins, cardiac glycosides and tannins. An in vitro quantitative analysis of phenols, flavonoids and tannins respectively were (164±1.20, 199±0.88 and 88.67±0.88 mg/100g FW). In vivo studies of hydromethanolic extract demonstrated a dose dependent increase in hepatic superoxide dismutase (1.14±0.14, 2.13±0.11, 2.55±0.11 U/mg Protein) with improvement in hepatic glutathione (6.98±0.42, 8.91±0.37, 11.07±0.46 µM/mg Protein) and Catalase (4.47±0.05, 6.24±0.02, 7.17±0.04 U/mg Protein) and Total protein (6.18±0.08, 6.69±0.18, 7.27±0.16 mg/ml) respectively at 100-300mg/kg body weight Grewia crenata leaves when compared to the control and standard drug. It can be concluded from the present findings of that G. crenata leaves possess antioxidant potential.

Keywords: Grewia crenata, antioxidant, hydromethanolic extract, in vivo, in vitro

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Authors: Firdaousse Laincer, Rahima Laribi, Abderazak Tamendjari, Rovellini Venturini

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Phenolic compounds present in olive oil have received much attention in recent years due to their beneficial functional and nutritional effects. Phenolic composition, antibacterial activity of phenolic extracts of olive oil varieties from Algeria were investigated. The analysis of polyphenols was performed by Folin-Ciocalteu and HPLC. As a result, many phenolic compounds were identified and quantified by using HPLC; derivatives of oleuropein and ligstroside, hydroxytyrosol, tyrosol, flavonoids, and lignans reporting unique and characteristic phenolic profile. These phenolic fractions also differentiate the total antibacterial activity. Among the bacteria tested, S. aureus and, to a lesser extent, B. subtilis showed the highest sensitivity; the MIC varied from 0.6 to 1.6 mg•mL-1 and 1.2 to 1.8 mg•mL-1, respectively. The results obtained denote that Algerian olive oils may constitute a good source of healthy compounds, phenolics compounds, in the diet, suggesting that their consumption could be useful in the prevention of diseases.

Keywords: antibacterial activity, olive oil, phenols, HPLC

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Authors: Vijay K. Tomer, Ritu Malik, Satya P. Nehra, Anshu Sharma

Abstract:

Highly ordered mesoporous WO₃-TiO₂ nanohybrids with large intrinsic surface area and highly ordered pore channels were synthesized using mesoporous silica, KIT-6 as hard template using a nanocasting strategy. The nanohybrid samples were characterized by a variety of physico-chemical techniques including X-ray diffraction, Nitrogen adsorption-desorption isotherms, and high resolution transmission electron microscope. The nanohybrids were tested for detection of important indoor Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) including acetone, ethanol, n-butanol, toluene, and xylene. The sensing result illustrates that the nanocomposite sensor was highly responsive towards xylene gas at relatively lower operating temperature. A rapid response and recovery time, highly linear response and excellent stability in the concentration ranges from 1 to 100 ppm was observed for xylene gas. It is believed that the promising results of this study can be utilized in the synthesis of ordered mesoporous nanostructures which can extend its configuration for the development of new age e-nose type sensors with enhanced gas-sensing performance.

Keywords: nanohybrids, response, sensor, VOCs, xylene

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Authors: C. Asha Poorna, N. S. Pradeep

Abstract:

The biological function of lipase is to catalyze the hydrolysis of triacylglycerols to give free fatty acid, diacylglycerols, mono-acylglycerols and glycerol. They constitute the most important group of biocatalysts for biotechnological applications. The aim of the present study was to identify the lipolytic activity of Streptomyces sp. From soil sample collected from the sacred groves of southern Kerala. The culture conditions of the isolate were optimised and the enzyme was purified and characterised. The purification was attempted with acetone precipitation. The isolate observed to have high lipolytic activity and identified to be of Streptomyces strain. The purification was attempted with acetone precipitation. The purified enzyme observed to have an apparent molecular mass of ~60kDa by sodium dodecyl sulphate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). The enzyme showed maximum activity at 60oC and pH-8. The lipase showed tolerance towards different organic solvents like ethanol and methanol that are commonly used in transesterification reactions to displace alcohol from triglycerides contained in renewable resources to yield fatty acid alkyl esters known as biodiesel.

Keywords: lipase, Streptomyces, biodiesel, fatty acid, transesterification

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Authors: Pranporn Kuropakornpong, Srisopa Ruangnoo, Arunporn Itharat

Abstract:

Liver cancer has the highest prevalence rate in the North and Northeast of Thailand. Four Thai medicinal plants such as resin of Ferula asafoetida Regel, latex of Aloe barbadensis Miller leaves, roots of Baliospermum manotanum, and latex of Garcinia hanburyi Hook are used in Thai traditional medicine as cathartic drug and detoxification in liver cancer patients. Thus, this research aimed to evaluate the cytotoxic activity of these plants against hepatocarcinoma (HepG2) and cholangiocarcinoma (KKU-M156) cells by SRB assay. These plants were macerated in 95% ethanol. The results showed that roots of Baliospermum manotanum and latex of Garcinia hanburyi Hook showed the strongest cytotoxicity against HepG2 (IC50 = 3.03+0.91 and 0.62+0.01µg/ml, respectively) and KKU-M156 (IC50 = 0.978+0.663 and 0.006+0.005 µg/ml, respectively). Latex of Garcinia hanburyi Hook also showed high cytotoxicity against normal cell line (IC50=8.86+0.31 µg/ml), and even though its selective values are high, dose of this herb should be limited.

Keywords: cholangiocarcinoma, cytotoxic activity, Garcinia hanburyi Hook, hepatocarcinoma

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Authors: I. F. Ejim, F. L. Kamen

Abstract:

Aims: In this experiment, algae oil extraction with a combination of n-hexane and ethanol was investigated. The effects of extraction solvent concentration, extraction time and temperature on the yield and quality of oil were studied using Response Surface Methodology (RSM). Experimental Design: Optimization of algae oil extraction using Box-Behnken design was used to generate 17 experimental runs in a three-factor-three-level design where oil yield, specific gravity, acid value and saponification value were evaluated as the response. Result: In this result, a minimum oil yield of 17% and maximum of 44% was realized. The optimum values for yield, specific gravity, acid value and saponification value from the overlay plot were 40.79%, 0.8788, 0.5056 mg KOH/g and 180.78 mg KOH/g respectively with desirability of 0.801. The maximum point prediction was yield 40.79% at solvent concentration 66.68 n-hexane, temperature of 40.0°C and extraction time of 4 hrs. Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) results showed that the linear and quadratic coefficient were all significant at p<0.05. The experiment was validated and results obtained were with the predicted values. Conclusion: Algae oil extraction was successfully optimized using RSM and its quality indicated it is suitable for many industrial uses.

Keywords: algae oil, response surface methodology, optimization, Box-Bohnken, extraction

Procedia PDF Downloads 337