Search results for: milk yield

Authors: Ibrahim Makram Ibrahim Salib

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Agriculture plays an essential role in providing food for the world's population. It also offers numerous benefits to countries, including non-food products, transportation, and environmental balance. Precision agriculture, which employs advanced tools to monitor variability and manage inputs, can help achieve these benefits. The increasing demand for food security puts pressure on decision-makers to ensure sufficient food production worldwide. To support sustainable agriculture, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) can be utilized to manage farms and increase yields. This paper aims to provide an understanding of UAV usage and its applications in agriculture. The objective is to review the various applications of UAVs in agriculture. Based on a comprehensive review of existing research, it was found that different sensors provide varying analyses for agriculture applications. Therefore, the purpose of the project must be determined before using UAV technology for better data quality and analysis. In conclusion, identifying a suitable sensor and UAV is crucial to gather accurate data and precise analysis when using UAVs in agriculture.

Keywords: agriculture land, agriculture land loss, Kabul city, urban land expansion, urbanization agriculture yield growth, agriculture yield prediction, explorative data analysis, predictive models, regression models drone, precision agriculture, farmer income

Procedia PDF Downloads 75

Authors: T. M. Agbede, A. O. Adekiya

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An experiment was carried out for three consecutive years at Owo, southwest Nigeria. The objective of the investigation was to determine the effect of Cocoa Pod Ash (CPA) and Poultry Manure (PM) applied solely and their combined form, as sources of fertilizers on soil properties, leaf nutrient composition, growth and yield of cocoyam. Three soil amendments: CPA, PM (sole forms), CPA and PM (mixture), were applied at 7.5 t ha-1 with an inorganic fertilizer (NPK 15-15-15) at 400 kg ha-1 as a reference and a natural soil fertility, NSF (control), arranged in a randomized complete block design with three replications. Results showed that soil amendments significantly increased (p = 0.05) corm and cormel weights and growth of cocoyam, soil and leaf N, P, K, Ca and Mg, soil pH and organic carbon (OC) concentrations compared with the NSF (control). The mixture of CPA+PM treatment increased corm and cormel weights, plant height and leaf area of cocoyam by 40, 39, 42, and 48%, respectively, compared with inorganic fertilizer (NPK) and 13, 12, 15 and 7%, respectively, compared with PM alone. Sole or mixed forms of soil amendments showed remarkable improvement in soil physical properties compared with NPK and the NSF (control). The mixture of CPA+PM applied at 7.5 t ha-1 was the most effective treatment in improving cocoyam yield and growth parameters, soil and leaf nutrient composition.

Keywords: Cocoa pod ash, cocoyam, poultry manure, soil and leaf nutrient composition.

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Authors: Amna Shoaib, Sidrah Hanif, Rashid Mehmood

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Current research work was carried out to check influence of farmyard manure (FYM) in Lycopersicon esculentum L. against Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici (FO) in copper polluted soil. Silt-loam soil naturally enriched with 70 ppm of Cu was inoculated with 1 x 106 spore suspensions of FO and incorporated with 0%, 1%, 1.5% or 2% FYM. The multilateral interaction of host-pathogen-metal-organic amendment was assessed in terms of morphology, growth, yield, physiology, biochemistry and metal uptake in tomato plant after 30 and 60 days of sowing. When soil was inoculated with FO, plant growth and biomass were significantly increased during vegetative stage, while declining during flowering stage with substantial increase in productivity over control. Infected plants exhibited late wilting and disease severity was found on 26-50% of plant during reproductive stage. Incorporation of up to 1% FYM suppressed disease severity, improved plant growth and biomass, while it decreased yield. Rest of manure doses was found ineffective in suppressing disease. Content of total chlorophyll, sugar and protein were significantly declined in FO inoculated plants and incorporation of FYM caused significant reduction or no influence on sugar and chlorophyll content, and no pronounced difference among different FYM doses were observed. On the other hand, proline, peroxidase, catalase and nitrate reductase activity were found to be increased in infected plants and incorporation of 1-2% FYM further enhanced the activity of these enzymes. Tomato plant uptake of 30-40% of copper naturally present in the soil and incorporation of 1-2% FYM markedly decreased plant uptake of metal by 15-30%, while increased Cu retention in soil. Present study concludes that lower dose (1%) of FYM could be used to manage disease, increase growth and biomass, while being ineffective for yield and productivity in Cu-polluted soil. Altered physiology/biochemistry of plant in response to any treatment could be served as basis for resistant against pathogen and metal homeostasis in plants.

Keywords: Lycopersicon esculentum, copper, Fusarium wilt, farm yard manure

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Authors: Roihatul Mutiah, Sukardiman, Aty Widyawaruyanti

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Calotropis gigantiea (L.) R. Br (Apocynaceae) commonly called as “Biduri” or “giant milk weed” is a well-known weed to many cultures for treating various disorders. Several studies reported that C.gigantea roots has anticancer activity. The main aim of this research was to isolate and identify an active marker compound of C.gigantea roots for quality control purpose of its extract in the development as anticancer natural product. The isolation methods was bioactivity guided column chromatography, TLC, and HPLC. Evaluated anticancer activity of there substances using MTT assay methods. Identification structure active compound by UV, 1HNMR, 13CNMR, HMBC, HMQC spectral and other references. The result showed that the marker active compound was identical as Calotropin.

Keywords: calotropin, Calotropis gigantea, anticancer, marker active

Procedia PDF Downloads 335

Authors: Haneef Ur Rehman, Afsheen Aman, Abdul Hameed Baloch, Shah Ali Ul Qader

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Pectinase is a heterogeneous group of enzymes that catalyze the hydrolysis of pectin substances and widely has been used in food and textile industries. In current study, pectinase from B. licheniformis KIBGE-IB21 was immobilized within different polymers (calcium alginate beads, polyacrylamide gel and agar-agar matrix) to enhance its catalytic properties. Polyacrylamide gel was found to be most promising one and gave maximum (89%) immobilization yield. While less immobilization yield was observed in case of calcium alginate beads that only retained 46 % activity. The reaction time for maximum pectinolytic activity was increased from 5.0 to 10 minutes after immobilization. The temperature of pectinase for maximum enzyme activity was increased from 45 °C to 50 °C and 55 °C when it was immobilized within agar-agar and calcium alginate beads, respectively. The optimum pH of pectinase didn’t alter when it was immobilized within polyacrylamide gel and calcium alginate beads, but in case of agar-agar it was changed from pH 10 to pH 9.0. Thermal stability of pectinase was improved after immobilization and immobilized pectinase showed higher toleration against different temperatures as compared to free enzyme. It can be concluded that the entrapment is a simple, single step and promising procedure to immobilized pectinase within different synthetic and non-synthetic polymers and enhanced its catalytic properties.

Keywords: pectinase, characterization immobilization, polyacrylamide, agar-agar, calcium alginate beads

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Authors: J. Sharon Mano Pappu, Sathyanarayana N. Gummadi

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Growth of Debaryomyces nepalensis on mixed substrates in batch culture follows diauxic pattern of completely utilizing glucose during the first exponential growth phase, followed by an intermediate lag phase and a second exponential growth phase consuming xylose. The present study deals with the development of cybernetic mathematical model for prediction of xylitol production and yield. Production of xylitol from xylose in batch fermentation is investigated in the presence of glucose as the co-substrate. Different ratios of glucose and xylose concentrations are assessed to study the impact of multi substrate on production of xylitol in batch reactors. The parameters in the model equations were estimated from experimental observations using integral method. The model equations were solved simultaneously by numerical technique using MATLAB. The developed cybernetic model of xylose fermentation in the presence of a co-substrate can provide answers about how the ratio of glucose to xylose influences the yield and rate of production of xylitol. This model is expected to accurately predict the growth of microorganism on mixed substrate, duration of intermediate lag phase, consumption of substrate, production of xylitol. The model developed based on cybernetic modelling framework can be helpful to simulate the dynamic competition between the metabolic pathways.

Keywords: co-substrate, cybernetic model, diauxic growth, xylose, xylitol

Procedia PDF Downloads 328

Authors: Reda Abdel-Aziz

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Agricultural activities in Egypt generate annually around 35 million tons of waste. Composting is one of the most promising technologies to turnover waste in a more economical way, for many centuries. Composting has been used as a mean of recycling organic matter back into the soil to improve soil structure and fertility. Field experiments were conducted in two governorates, Giza and Al-Monofia, to find out the effect of compost with different rates of chemical fertilizers on growth and yield of corn (Zea mays L.) during two constitutive seasons of 2012 and 2013. The experiment, laid out in a randomized complete block design (RCBD), was carried out on five farmers’ fields in each governorate. The treatments were: unfertilized control, full dose of NPK (120, 30, and 50 kg/acre, respectively), compost at rate of 20 ton/acre, compost at rate of 10 ton/acre + 25% of chemical fertilizer, compost at rate of 10 ton/acre + 50% of chemical fertilizer and compost at rate of 10 ton/acre + 75% of chemical fertilizer. Results revealed a superiority of the treatment of compost at rate of 10 ton/acre + 50% of NPK that caused significant improvement in growth, yield and nutrient uptakes of corn in the two governorates during the two constitutive seasons. Results showed that agricultural waste could be composted into value added soil amendment to enhance efficiency of chemical fertilizer. Composting of agricultural waste could also reduce the chemical fertilizers potential hazard to the environment.

Keywords: agricultural waste, compost, chemical fertilizers, corn production, environment

Procedia PDF Downloads 318

Authors: Joe Modise, Bamidel Joseph Okoli, Nas Molefe, Imelda Ledwaba

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The present study describes the chemical profile and antioxidant potential of the stem bark of Acacia decurrens. The methanol fraction of A. decurrens stem bark gave the highest yield (20 %), while the hexane fraction had the lowest yield (0.2 %). The GC-MS spectra of the hexane, chloroform and ethyl acetate fractions confirm the presence of fifty two major compounds and the ICP-OES analysis of the stem bark was found to contain Co(0.41), Zn(1.75), Mn(3.69), Ca(8.67), Ni(10.54), Mg(12.98), Cr(24.38), K(47.88), Fe(154.62) ppm; which is an indication of hyper-accumulation capacity. The UV-Visible spectra of showed four absorption maxima for hexane fraction at 665 (0.028), 410 (0.116), 335 (0.278) and 250 (0.007) nm, three for chloroform fraction at 665 (0.028), 335 (0.278) and 250 (0.007) nm , three for ethyl acetate fraction at 665 (0.070), 390 (0.648) and 345 (0.663) nm and three for methanol fraction at 385 (0.508), 310 (0.886) and 295 (0.899) nm respectively. Quantitative phytochemical screening indicated that the alkaloid (0.6-3.3) % and saponins (5.1-8.6) % contents of the various fractions were significantly lower than the tannin (30.9-55.8) mg TAE/g, steroid(13.92-41.2) %, phenol (40.6-65.5) mgGAE/g and flavonoids (210.2 -284.9) mg RUE/g contents. The antioxidant activity of the fractions was analysed by different methods and revealed good to moderate antioxidant potential with different IC50 values viz. (42.2-49.6) mg/mL for ABTS and (37.8-75.0) μg/ml for DPPH respectively, compared to standard antioxidants. Based on obtained results, the A.decurrens stem bark fractions can be a source of safe, sustainable natural antioxidant drug and can be exploited as a source of controlled green-heavy metal cleaner.

Keywords: Acacia decurrens, antioxidant, DPPH, ABTS, hyperaccumulation, Menstruum, ICP-OES, GC-MS, UV/visible

Procedia PDF Downloads 325

Authors: Tatiana V. Melnikova, Lyudmila P. Polyakova, Alla A. Oudalova

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As a result of environmental pollution, the production of agriculture and foodstuffs inevitably contain residual amounts of Persistent Organic Pollutants (POP). The special attention must be given to organic pollutants, including various organochlorinated pesticides (OCP). Among priorities, OCP is DDT (and its metabolite DDE), alfa-HCH, gamma-HCH (lindane). The control of these substances spends proceeding from requirements of sanitary norms and rules. During too time often is lost sight of that the primary product can pass technological processing (in particular irradiation treatment) as a result of which transformation of physicochemical forms of initial polluting substances is possible. The goal of the present work was to study the OCP radiation degradation at a various gamma-radiation dosimetric characteristics. The problems posed for goal achievement: to evaluate the content of the priority of OCPs in food; study the character the degradation of OCP in model solutions (with micro concentrations commensurate with the real content of their agricultural and food products) depending upon dosimetric characteristics of gamma-radiation. Qualitative and quantitative analysis of OCP in food and model solutions by gas chromatograph Varian 3400 (Varian, Inc. (USA)); chromatography-mass spectrometer Varian Saturn 4D (Varian, Inc. (USA)) was carried out. The solutions of DDT, DDE, alpha- and gamma- isomer HCH (0.01, 0.1, 1 ppm) were irradiated on "Issledovatel" (60Co) and "Luch - 1" (60Co) installations at a dose 10 kGy with a variation of dose rate from 0.0083 up to 2.33 kGy/sec. It was established experimentally that OCP residual concentration in individual samples of food products (fish, milk, cereal crops, meat, butter) are evaluated as 10-1-10-4 mg/kg, the value of which depends on the factor-sensations territory and natural migration processes. The results were used in the preparation of model solutions OCP. The dependence of a degradation extent of OCP from a dose rate gamma-irradiation has complex nature. According to our data at a dose 10 kGy, the degradation extent of OCP at first increase passes through a maximum (over the range 0.23 – 0.43 Gy/sec), and then decrease with the magnification of a dose rate. The character of the dependence of a degradation extent of OCP from a dose rate is kept for various OCP, in polar and nonpolar solvents and does not vary at the change of concentration of the initial substance. Also in work conditions of the maximal radiochemical yield of OCP which were observed at having been certain: influence of gamma radiation with a dose 10 kGy, in a range of doses rate 0.23 – 0.43 Gy/sec; concentration initial OCP 1 ppm; use of solvent - 2-propanol after preliminary removal of oxygen. Based on, that at studying model solutions of OCP has been established that the degradation extent of pesticides and qualitative structure of OCP radiolysis products depend on a dose rate, has been decided to continue researches radiochemical transformations OCP into foodstuffs at various of doses rate.

Keywords: degradation extent, dosimetric characteristics, gamma-radiation, organochlorinated pesticides, persistent organic pollutants

Procedia PDF Downloads 249

Authors: Herviyanti, Gusnidar, M. Harianti

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The objective of this research were: a) using low-rank coal (subbituminous) as main humate material sources because this material will not be anthracite, and cannot using to be an energy sources b) to examine residual effects of humic matter from subbituminous which was combined with P fertilizers to adsorp Al and Fe metal, improving soil fertility, and increasing P fertilizing efficiency and Oxisol productivity. Therefore, optimalization crop productivity of upland rice can be achieved. The experiment was designed using a 3 x 4 factorial with 3 replications in randomly groups design. The 1st factor was 3 ways incubating humate material with P-fertilizer, which are: I1 = Incubation of humate material 1 week, then incubation P-fertilizers 1 week; I2 = Incubation of humate materials and P fertilizers directly into the soil for 2 weeks; and I3 = humate material and P fertilizer mixed for 1 week, then incubation to the soil for 1 week. The 2nd factor was residual effects of humate material and P-fertilizer combination which are 4 doses H1 = 400 ppm (0.8 Mg/ha) + 100% R; H2 = 400 ppm + 75% R; H3 = 800 ppm (1.6 Mg/ha) + 100% R,; and H4 = 800 ppm + 75% R. The 2nd year research results showed that the best treatment was founded residue effect of 800 ppm humate material and 100% R P-fertilizer doses in I3 way incubation that is equal to 6.19 t ha-1 upland rice yield. However, this result is almost the same as residual effects of 800 ppm humate material + 75% R P-fertilizer doses and upland rice yield the 1st year. It was concluded that addition of humate material can given the efficiency of P-fertilizer using up to 25% until the 2nd season planted.

Keywords: humate materials, P-fertilizer, subbituminous, upland rice

Procedia PDF Downloads 392

Authors: C. Nathanailides, S. Anastasiou, P. Logothetis, G. Kanlis

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Production parameters of gilt head sea bream fish farm such as feeding regimes, mortalities, fish densities were used to calculate the economic efficiency of six different aquaculture sites from West Greece. Samples of farmed sea bream were collected and lipid content, microbial load and filleting yield of the samples were used as quality criteria. The results indicate that Lipid content, filleting yield and microbial load of fish originating from different fish farms varied significantly with improved quality exhibited in fish farms which exhibited improved Feed conversion rates and lower mortalities. Changes in feeding management practices such as feed quality and feeding regimes have a significant impact on the financial performance of sea bass farms. Fish farms which exhibited improved feeding conversion rates also exhibited increased profitability. Improvements in the FCR explained about 13.4 % of the difference in profitability of the different aquaculture sites. Lower mortality and higher growth rates were also exhibited by the fish farms which exhibited improved FCR. It is concluded that best feeding management practices resulted in improved product quality and profitability.

Keywords: aquaculture economics, gilt head sea, production fish, feeding management

Procedia PDF Downloads 505

Authors: Alefsi D. Sanchez-Reinoso, Leonardo Lombardini, Hermann Restrepo

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Colombian coffee is recognized worldwide for its mild flavor and aroma. Its cultivation generates a large amount of waste, such as fresh pulp, which leads to environmental, health, and economic problems. Obtaining biochar (BC) by pyrolysis of coffee pulp and its incorporation to the soil can be a complement to the crop mineral nutrition. The objective was to evaluate the effect of the application of BC obtained from coffee pulp on the physiology and agronomic performance of the Castillo variety coffee crop (Coffea arabica L.). The research was developed in field condition experiment, using a three-year-old commercial coffee crop, carried out in Tolima. Four doses of BC (0, 4, 8 and 16 t ha-1) and four levels of chemical fertilization (CF) (0%, 33%, 66% and 100% of the nutritional requirements) were evaluated. Three groups of variables were recorded during the experiment: i) physiological parameters such as Gas exchange, the maximum quantum yield of PSII (Fv/Fm), biomass, and water status were measured; ii) physical and chemical characteristics of the soil in a commercial coffee crop, and iii) physiochemical and sensorial parameters of roasted beans and coffee beverages. The results indicated that a positive effect was found in plants with 8 t ha-1 BC and fertilization levels of 66 and 100%. Also, a positive effect was observed in coffee trees treated with 8 t ha-1 BC and 100%. In addition, the application of 16 t ha-1 BC increased the soil pHand microbial respiration; reduced the apparent density and state of aggregation of the soil compared to 0 t ha-1 BC. Applications of 8 and 16 t ha-1 BC and 66%-100% chemical fertilization registered greater sensitivity to the aromatic compounds of roasted coffee beans in the electronic nose. Amendments of BC between 8 and 16 t ha-1 and CF between 66% and 100% increased the content of total soluble solids (TSS), reduced the pH, and increased the titratable acidity in beverages of roasted coffee beans. In conclusion, 8 t ha-1 BC of the coffee pulp can be an alternative to supplement the nutrition of coffee seedlings and trees. Applications between 8 and 16 t ha-1 BC support coffee soil management strategies and help the use of solid waste. BC as a complement to chemical fertilization showed a positive effect on the aromatic profile obtained for roasted coffee beans and cup quality attributes.

Keywords: crop yield, cup quality, mineral nutrition, pyrolysis, soil amendment

Procedia PDF Downloads 111

Authors: Kalandi Charan Pradhan

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In this study, we investigate does weather variation determine temporary labour migration using 210 sample households from six Semi-Arid Tropic (SAT) villages for the period of 2005-2014 in India. The study has made an attempt to examine how households use temporary labour migration as a coping mechanism to minimise the risk rather than maximize the utility of the households. The study employs panel Logit regression model to predict the probability of household having at least one temporary labour migrant. As per as econometrics result, it is found that along with demographic and socioeconomic factors; weather variation plays an important role to determine the decision of migration at household level. In order to capture the weather variation, the study uses mean crop yield deviation over the study periods. Based on the random effect logit regression result, the study found that there is a concave relationship between weather variation and decision of temporary labour migration. This argument supports the theory of New Economics of Labour Migration (NELM), which highlights the decision of labour migration not only maximise the households’ utility but it helps to minimise the risks.

Keywords: temporary migration, socioeconomic factors, weather variation, crop yield, logit estimation

Procedia PDF Downloads 223

Authors: Pınar Karbuz, A. Seyhun Kıpcak, Mehmet B. Piskin, Emek Derun, Nurcan Tugrul

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Pectin is a complex colloidal polysaccharide, found on the cell walls of all young plants such as fruit and vegetables. It acts as a thickening, stabilizing and gelling agent in foods. Pectin was extracted from mandarin and lemon peels using ultrasound and microwave assisted extraction methods to compare with these two different sources and methods of pectin production. In this work, the effect of microwave power (360, 600 W) and irradiation time (1, 2, 3 min) on the yield of extracted pectin from mandarin and lemon peels for microwave assisted extraction (MAE) were investigated. For ultrasound assisted extraction (UAE), parameters were determined as temperature (60, 75 °C) and sonication time (15, 30, 45 min) and hydrochloric acid (HCl) was used as an extracting agent for both extraction methods. The highest yields of extracted pectin from lemon peels were found to be 8.16 % (w/w) for 75 °C, 45 min by UAE and 8.58 % (w/w) for 360 W, 1 min by MAE. Additionally, the highest yields of extracted pectin from mandarin peels were found to be 11.29 % (w/w) for 75 °C, 45 min by UAE and 16.44 % (w/w) for 600 W, 1 min by MAE. The results showed that the use of microwave assisted extraction promoted a better yield when compared to the two extraction methods. On the other hand, according to the results of experiments, mandarin peels contain more pectin than lemon peels when the compared to the pectin product values of two sources. Therefore, these results suggested that MAE could be used as an efficient and rapid method for extraction of pectin and mandarin peels should be preferred as sources of pectin production compared to lemon peels.

Keywords: mandarin peel, lemon peel, pectin, ultrasound, microwave, extraction

Procedia PDF Downloads 234

Authors: J. D. Cabral, E. Murray, P. Turner, E. Hewitt, A. Ali, M. McConnell

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Worldwide demand for organ replacement and tissue regeneration is progressively increasing. Three-dimensional (3D) bioprinting, where a physical construct is produced using computer-aided design, is a promising tool to advance the tissue engineering and regenerative medicine fields. In this paper we describe two different approaches to developing 3D bioprinted constructs for use in tissue regeneration. Bioink development is critical in achieving the 3D biofabrication of functional, regenerative tissues. Hydrogels, cross-linked macromolecules that absorb large amounts of water, have received widespread interest as bioinks due to their relevant soft tissue mechanics, biocompatibility, and tunability. In turn, not only is bioink optimisation crucial, but the creation of vascularized tissues remains a key challenge for the successful fabrication of thicker, more clinically relevant bioengineered tissues. Among the various methodologies, cell-laden hydrogels are regarded as a favorable approach; and when combined with novel core/shell 3D bioprinting technology, an innovative strategy towards creating new vessel-like structures. In this work, we investigate this cell-based approach by using human umbilical endothelial cells (HUVECs) entrapped in a viscoelastic chitosan/dextran (CD)-based core hydrogel, printed simulataneously along with a gelatin methacrylate (GelMA) shell. We have expanded beyond our previously reported FDA approved, commercialised, post-surgical CD hydrogel, Chitogel®, by functionalizing it with cell adhesion and proteolytic peptides in order to promote bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cell (immortalized BMSC cell line, hTERT) and HUVECs growth. The biocompatibility and biodegradability of these cell lines in a 3D bioprinted construct is demonstrated. Our studies show that particular peptide combinations crosslinked within the CD hydrogel was found to increase in vitro growth of BMSCs and HUVECs by more than two-fold. These gels were then used as a core bioink combined with the more mechanically robust, UV irradiated GelMA shell bioink, to create 3D regenerative, vessel-like scaffolds with high print fidelity. As well, microporous MEW scaffolds made from milk proteins blended with PCL were found to show promising bioactivity, exhibiting a significant increase in keratinocyte (HaCaTs) and fibroblast (normal human dermal fibroblasts, NhDFs) cell migration and proliferation when compared to PCL only scaffolds. In conclusion, our studies indicate that a peptide functionalized CD hydrogel bioink reinforced with a GelMA shell is biocompatible, biodegradable, and an appropriate cell delivery vehicle in the creation of regenerative 3D constructs. In addition, a novel 3D printing technique, melt electrowriting (MEW), which allows fabrication of micrometer fibre meshes, was used to 3D print polycaprolactone (PCL) and bioactive milk protein, lactorferrin (LF) and whey protein (WP), blended scaffolds for potential skin regeneration applications. MEW milk protein/PCL scaffolds exhibited high porosity characteristics, low overall biodegradation, and rapid protein release. Human fibroblasts and keratinocyte cells were seeded on to the scaffolds. Scaffolds containing high concentrations of LF and combined proteins (LF+WP) showed improved cell viability over time as compared to PCL only scaffolds. This research highlights two scaffolds made using two different 3D printing techniques using a combination of both natural and synthetic biomaterial components in order to create regenerative constructs as potential chronic wound treatments.

Keywords: biomaterials, hydrogels, regenerative medicine, 3D bioprinting

Procedia PDF Downloads 270

Authors: F. Messaoudi, O. Haddad, R. Bouras, S. Kaci

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The development of self-compacting concrete (SCC) marks a huge step towards improved efficiency and working conditions on construction sites and in the precast industry. SCC flows easily into more complex shapes and through reinforcement bars, reduces the manpower required for the placement; no vibration is required to ensure correct compaction of concrete. This concrete contains a high volume of binder which is controlled by their rheological behavior. The paste consists of binders (Portland cement with or without supplementary cementitious materials), water, chemical admixtures and fillers. In this study, two series of tests were performed on self-compacting cement pastes made with marble waste additions as the mineral addition. The first series of this investigation was to determine the flow time of paste using Marsh cone, the second series was to determine the rheological parameters of the same paste namely yield stress and plastic viscosity using the rheometer Haake RheoStress 1. The results of this investigation allowed us to study the evolution of the yield stress, viscosity and the flow time Marsh cone paste as a function of the composition of the paste. A correlation between the results obtained on the flow test Marsh cone and those of the plastic viscosity on the mottled different cement pastes is proposed.

Keywords: adjuvant, rheological parameter, self-compacting cement pastes, waste marble

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Authors: V. Verma, Syed Riyaz-ul-Hassan

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Staphylococcus aureus is one of the most commonly found pathogenic bacteria and is hard to eliminate from the human environment. It is responsible for many nosocomial infections, besides being the main causative agent of food intoxication by virtue of its variety of enterotoxins. Routine detection of S. aureus in food is usually carried out by traditional methods based on morphological and biochemical characterization. These methods are time-consuming and tedious. In addition, misclassifications with automated susceptibility testing systems or commercially available latex agglutination kits have been reported by several workers. Consequently, there is a need for methods to specifically discriminate S. aureus from other staphylococci as quickly as possible. Data on protocols developed using molecular means like PCR technology will be presented for rapid and specific detection of this pathogen in food, clinical and environmental samples, especially milk.

Keywords: food Pathogens, PCR technology, rapid and specific detection, staphylococcus aureus

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Authors: Sesethu G. Njokweni, Marelize Botes, Emile W. H. Van Zyl

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An alternative strategy to the production of bioethanol is by examining the degradability of biomass in a natural system such as the rumen of mammals. This anaerobic microbial community has higher cellulolytic activities than microbial communities from other habitats and degrades cellulose to produce volatile fatty acids (VFA), methane and CO₂. VFAs have the potential to serve as intermediate products for electrochemical conversion to hydrocarbon fuels. In vitro mimicking of this process would be more cost-effective than bioethanol production as it does not require chemical pre-treatment of biomass, a sterile environment or added enzymes. The strategies of the carboxylate platform and the co-cultures of a bovine ruminal microbiota from cannulated cows were combined in order to investigate and optimize the bioconversion of agricultural biomass (apple and grape pomace, citrus pulp, sugarcane bagasse and triticale straw) to high value VFAs as intermediates for biofuel production in a consolidated bioprocess. Optimisation of reactor conditions was investigated using five different ruminal inoculum concentrations; 5,10,15,20 and 25% with fixed pH at 6.8 and temperature at 39 ˚C. The ANKOM 200/220 fiber analyser was used to analyse in vitro neutral detergent fiber (NDF) disappearance of the feedstuffs. Fresh and cryo-frozen (5% DMSO and 50% glycerol for 3 months) rumen cultures were tested for the retainment of fermentation capacity and durability in 72 h fermentations in 125 ml serum vials using a FURO medical solutions 6-valve gas manifold to induce anaerobic conditions. Fermentation of apple pomace, triticale straw, and grape pomace showed no significant difference (P > 0.05) in the effect of 15 and 20 % inoculum concentrations for the total VFA yield. However, high performance liquid chromatographic separation within the two inoculum concentrations showed a significant difference (P < 0.05) in acetic acid yield, with 20% inoculum concentration being the optimum at 4.67 g/l. NDF disappearance of 85% in 96 h and total VFA yield of 11.5 g/l in 72 h (A/P ratio = 2.04) for apple pomace entailed that it was the optimal feedstuff for this process. The NDF disappearance and VFA yield of DMSO (82% NDF disappearance and 10.6 g/l VFA) and glycerol (90% NDF disappearance and 11.6 g/l VFA) stored rumen also showed significantly similar degradability of apple pomace with lack of treatment effect differences compared to a fresh rumen control (P > 0.05). The lack of treatment effects was a positive sign in indicating that there was no difference between the stored samples and the fresh rumen control. Retaining of the fermentation capacity within the preserved cultures suggests that its metabolic characteristics were preserved due to resilience and redundancy of the rumen culture. The amount of degradability and VFA yield within a short span was similar to other carboxylate platforms that have longer run times. This study shows that by virtue of faster rates and high extent of degradability, small scale alternatives to bioethanol such as rumen microbiomes and other natural fermenting microbiomes can be employed to enhance the feasibility of biofuels large-scale implementation.

Keywords: agricultural wastes, carboxylate platform, rumen microbiome, volatile fatty acids

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Authors: Haiyang Su, Kun Qian

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We developed a novel plasmonic matrix assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (MALDI MS) approach to detect small nutrients and toxin in complex biological emulsion samples. We used silver nanoshells (SiO₂@Ag) with optimized structures as matrices and achieved direct analysis of ~6 nL of human breast milk without any enrichment or separation. We performed identification and quantitation of small nutrients and toxins with limit-of-detection down to 0.4 pmol (for melamine) and reaction time shortened to minutes, superior to the conventional biochemical methods currently in use. Our approach contributed to the near-future application of MALDI MS in a broad field and personalized design of plasmonic materials for real case bio-analysis.

Keywords: plasmonic materials, laser desorption/ionization, mass spectrometry, small nutrients, toxins

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Authors: Rajneesh, Priyanka Singh

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Biomass resources have been one of the main energy sources for mankind since the dawn of civilization. There is a vast scope to convert these energy sources into biogas which is a clean, low carbon technology for efficient management and conversion of fermentable organic wastes into a cheap and versatile fuel and bio/organic manure. Thus, in order to enhance the performance of anaerobic digester, an optimizing analysis of resultant parameters (organic dry matter (oDM) content, methane percentage, and biogas yield) has been done for a plug flow anaerobic digester having mesophilic conditions (20-40°C) with the wet fermentation process. Based on the analysis, correlations for oDM, methane percentage, and biogas yield are derived using multiple regression analysis. A statistical model is developed to correlate the operating variables using the design of experiment approach by selecting central composite design (CCD) of a response surface methodology. Results shown in the paper indicates that as the operating temperature increases the efficiency of digester gets improved provided that the pH and hydraulic retention time (HRT) remains constant. Working in an optimized range of carbon-nitrogen ratio for the plug flow digester, the output parameters show a positive change with the variation of dry matter content (DM).

Keywords: biogas, digester efficiency, design of experiment, plug flow digester

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Authors: Ghulam Abbas Shah, Maqsood Sadiq, Ahsan Yasin

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Massive global plastic production, combined with poor degradation and recycling, leads to significant environmental pollution from microplastics, whose effects on plants in the soil remain understudied. Besides, effective mitigation strategies and their impact on ammonia (NH₃) emissions under varying fertilizer management practices remains sketchy. Therefore, the objectives of the study were (i) to determine the impact of organic fertilizers on the toxicity of microplastics in sorghum and physicochemical characteristics of microplastics-contaminated soil and (ii) to assess the impacts of these fertilizers on NH₃ emissions from this soil. A field experiment was conducted using sorghum as a test crop. Treatments were: (i) Control (C), (ii) Microplastics (MP), (iii) Inorganic fertilizer (IF), (iv) MPIF, (v) Farmyard manure (FM), (vi) MPFM, (vii) Biochar (BC), and (viii) MPBC, arranged in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replicates. Microplastics of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) were applied at a rate of 1.5 tons ha-¹, and all fertilizers were applied at the recommended dose of 90 kg N ha-¹. Soil sampling was done before sowing and after harvesting the sorghum, with samples analyzed for chemical properties and microbial biomass. Crop growth and yield attributes were measured. In a parallel pot experiment, NH₃ emissions were measured using passive flux samplers over 72 hours following the application of treatments similar to those used in the field experiment. Application of MPFM, MPBC and MPIF reduced soil mineral nitrogen by 8, 20 and 38% compared to their sole treatments, respectively. Microbial biomass carbon (MBC) was reduced by 19, 25 and 59% in MPIF, MPBC and MPFM as compared to their sole application, respectively. Similarly, the respective reduction in microbial biomass nitrogen (MBN) was 10, 27 and 66%. The toxicity of microplastics was mitigated by MPFM and MPBC, each with only a 5% reduction in grain yield of sorghum relative to their sole treatments. The differences in nitrogen uptake between BC vs. MPBC, FM vs. MPFM, and IF vs. MPIF were 8, 10, and 12 kg N ha-¹, respectively, indicating that organic fertilizers mitigate microplastic toxicity in the soil. NH₃ emission was reduced by 5, 11 and 20% after application of MPFM, MPBC and MPIF than their sole treatments, respectively. The study concludes that organic fertilizers such as FM and BC can effectively mitigate the toxicity of microplastics in soil, leading to improved crop growth and yield.

Keywords: microplastics, soil characteristics, crop n uptake, biochar, NH₃ emissions

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Authors: Aamina B. Hudaa, Rehana Akhtera, Massarat Hassana, Mir Monisab

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Mutton nuggets produced with the addition of apple pomace at the levels of 0% (Control), 5% (Treatment 1), 10% (Treatment 2), and 15% (Treatment 3) were evaluated for emulsion stability, cooking yield, pH, proximate composition, texture analysis and sensory properties. Apple pomace addition resulted in significantly higher (p ≤ 0.05) emulsion stability and cooking yield of treatments in comparison to control and pH values were significantly higher (p ≤ 0.05) for the control as compared to treatments. Among the treatments, the product with 15% apple pomace had significantly (p ≤ 0.05) highest moisture content, and protein, ash and fat contents were significantly (p ≤ 0.05) higher in control than treatment groups. Crude fiber content of control was found significantly (p ≤ 0.05) lower in comparison to nuggets formulated with 5%, 10% and 15% apple pomace and was found to increase significantly (p ≤ 0.05) with the increasing levels of apple pomace. Hardness of the products significantly (p ≤ 0.05) decreased with addition of apple pomace, whereas springiness, cohesiveness, chewiness and gumminess showed a non-significant (p ≥ 0.05) decrease with the levels of apple pomace. Sensory evaluation showed significant (p ≤ 0.05) reduction in texture, flavour and overall acceptability scores of treatment products; however the scores were in the range of acceptability and T-1 showed better acceptability among apple pomace incorporated treatments.

Keywords: Mutton nuggets, apple pomace, textural properties, sensory evaluation

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Authors: Saeed Qaisrani

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The study was conducted to observe carbon and nutrient loss by burning of rice residues on rice-wheat cropping system The rice crop was harvested to conduct the experiment in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with factors and 4 replications with a net plot size of 10 m x 20 m. Rice stubbles were managed by two methods i.e. Incorporation & burning of rice residues. Soil samples were taken to a depth of 30 cm before sowing & after harvesting of wheat. Wheat was sown after harvesting of rice by three practices i.e. Conventional tillage, Minimum tillage and Zero tillage to observe best tillage practices. Laboratory and field experiments were conducted on wheat to assess best tillage practice and residues management method with estimation of carbon losses. Data on the following parameters; establishment count, plant height, spike length, number of grains per spike, biological yield, fat content, carbohydrate content, protein content, and harvest index were recorded to check wheat quality & ensuring food security in the region. Soil physico-chemical analysis i.e. pH, electrical conductivity, organic matter, nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and carbon were done in soil fertility laboratory. Substantial results were found on growth, yield and related parameters of wheat crop. The collected data were examined statistically with economic analysis to estimate the cost-benefit ratio of using different tillage techniques and residue management practices. Obtained results depicted that Zero tillage method have positive impacts on growth, yield and quality of wheat, Moreover, it is cost effective methodology. Similarly, Incorporation is suitable and beneficial method for soil due to more nutrients provision and reduce the need of fertilizers. Burning of rice stubbles has negative impact including air pollution, nutrient loss, microbes died and carbon loss. Recommended the zero tillage technology to reduce carbon losses along with food security in Pakistan.

Keywords: agricultural agronomy, food security, carbon sequestration, rice-wheat cropping system

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Authors: Jane Aleksoski

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The mode of inheritance and heterotic effect were studied in ten F1 crosses obtained by one-way diallel crossing between five parental genotypes: MV-1, P 76/86, Adiyaman, Basma-Djebel, and P 66 9 7. The following quantitative traits were studied: the number of leaves per stalk, length of leaves from the middle belt of the stalk, and yield of green leaf mass per stalk and per hectare. The trial was set up in the experimental field of Scientific Tobacco Institute - Prilep, using a randomized block design with four replications in the period 2018-2019. Traditional cultural practices were applied during the growing season of tobacco in the field. The aim of this work was to study the mode of inheritance of the quantitative traits, to detect heterosis in the F1 generation, and to assess its economic viability. Analysis of variance determined statistically significant differences in traits between parents and their hybrids in the two-year investigation. The most common way of trait inheritance is partial-dominant, then intermediate. The negative heterotic effect on the number of leaves per stalk has P 76/86 x P 66 9 7. The hybrids MV-1 x Adiyaman, P 76/86 x Basma-Djebel, P 76/86 x P 66 9 7, and Basma-Djebel x P 66 9 7 have a positive heterotic effect on the length of the leaves. Oriental hybrids, where one of the parents is variety P 66 9 7, have positive heterosis in the yield of green leaf mass per stalk. The investigation provides very useful guidance for future successive selection activities.

Keywords: dominance, heterosis, inheritance, tobacco.

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Authors: Noor-ul-Ain, Muhammad Thair Khan, Adeela Ajmal, Hamid Mustafa

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Pakistan is an agricultural country and livestock only share 11.8 percent to national GDP during 2015-16. Pakistan is a 3rd largest milk producing country having 41.2, 35.6, 29.4, 68.4 and 1.0 million head cattle, buffalo, sheep, goat and camel, respectively. Modern urbanization and shortage of feed resources for livestock species in a country is an alarming threat. The introduction of new technology and advanced techniques solve this issue. This includes drought feeding, increase production, aid to crop management, balance nutrition and easily storaged of wet feed products. It is therefore clear that silage has important role in animal feed and feeding. Financial model of this study clear the effectiveness of silage. Therefore, it is revealed from this study that silage is a cost-effective option for a profitable dairy farming in Pakistan.

Keywords: feed, silage, dairy, production, Pakistan

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Authors: Hua-Shan Tai, Yu-Ting Zeng

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In modern and industrial society, enormous amounts of sludge from various of industries are constantly produced; currently, most of the sludge are treated by landfill and incineration. However, both treatments are not ideal because of the limited land for landfill and the secondary pollution caused by incineration. Consequently, treating industrial sludge appropriately has become an urgent issue of environmental protection. In order to solve the problem of the massive sludge, this study uses textile sludge which is the major source of waste sludge in Taiwan as raw material for torrefaction treatments. To investigate the feasibility of producing biofuels from textile sludge by torrefaction, the experiments were conducted with temperatures at 150, 200, 250, 300, and 350°C, with heating rates of 15, 20, 25 and 30°C/min, and with residence time of 30 and 60 minutes. The results revealed that the mass yields after torrefaction were approximately in the range of 54.9 to 93.4%. The energy densification ratios were approximately in the range of 0.84 to 1.10, and the energy yields were approximately in the range of 45.9 to 98.3%. The volumetric densities were approximately in the range of 0.78 to 1.14, and the volumetric energy densities were approximately in the range of 0.65 to 1.18. To sum up, the optimum energy yield (98.3%) can be reached with terminal temperature at 150 °C, heating rate of 20°C/min, and residence time of 30 minutes, and the mass yield, energy densification ratio as well as volumetric energy density were 92.2%, 1.07, and 1.15, respectively. These results indicated that the solid products after torrefaction are easy to preserve, which not only enhance the quality of the product, but also achieve the purpose of developing the material into fuel.

Keywords: biofuel, biomass energy, textile sludge, torrefaction

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Authors: Dorith Tavor, Adi Wolfson

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In the past two decades a variety of green solvents have been proposed, including water, ionic liquids, fluorous solvents, and supercritical fluids. However, their implementation in industrial processes is still limited due to their tedious and non-sustainable synthesis, lack of experimental data and familiarity, as well as operational restrictions and high cost. Several years ago we presented, for the first time, the use of glycerol-based solvents as alternative sustainable reaction mediums in both catalytic and non-catalytic organic synthesis. Glycerol is the main by-product from the conversion of oils and fats in oleochemical production. Moreover, in the past decade, its price has substantially decreased due to an increase in supply from the production and use of fatty acid derivatives in the food, cosmetics, and drugs industries and in biofuel synthesis, i.e., biodiesel. The renewable origin, beneficial physicochemical properties and reusability of glycerol-based solvents, enabled improved product yield and selectivity as well as easy product separation and catalyst recycling. Furthermore, their high boiling point and polarity make them perfect candidates for non-conventional heating and mixing techniques such as ultrasound- and microwave-assisted reactions. Finally, in some reactions, such as catalytic transfer-hydrogenation or transesterification, they can also be used simultaneously as both solvent and reactant. In our ongoing efforts to design a viable protocol that will facilitate the acceptance of glycerol and its derivatives as sustainable solvents, pure glycerol and glycerol triacetate (triacetin) as well as various glycerol-triacetin mixtures were tested as sustainable solvents in several representative organic reactions, such as nucleophilic substitution of benzyl chloride to benzyl acetate, Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling of iodobenzene and phenylboronic acid, baker’s yeast reduction of ketones, and transfer hydrogenation of olefins. It was found that reaction performance was affected by the glycerol to triacetin ratio, as the solubility of the substrates in the solvent determined product yield. Thereby, employing optimal glycerol to triacetin ratio resulted in maximum product yield. In addition, using glycerol-based solvents enabled easy and successful separation of the products and recycling of the catalysts.

Keywords: glycerol, green chemistry, sustainability, catalysis

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Authors: Sachin B. Patil, Narendra M. Kanhe

Abstract:

A typical cane molasses based distillery generates 15 L of waste water per liter of alcohol production. Distillery waste with COD of over 1,00,000 mg/l and BOD of over 30,000 mg/l ranks high amongst the pollutants produced by industries both in magnitude and strength. Treatment and safe disposal of this waste is a challenging task since long. The high strength of waste water renders aerobic treatment very expensive and physico-chemical processes have met with little success. Thermophilic anaerobic treatment of distillery waste may provide high degree of treatment and better recovery of biogas. It may prove more feasible in most part of tropical country like India, where temperature is suitable for thermophilic micro-organisms. Researchers have reviled that, at thermophilic conditions due to increased destruction rate of organic matter and pathogens, higher digestion rate can be achieved. Literature review reveals that the variety of anaerobic reactors including anaerobic lagoon, conventional digester, anaerobic filter, two staged fixed film reactors, sludge bed and granular bed reactors have been studied, but little attempts have been made to evaluate the usefulness of thermophilic anaerobic treatment for treating distillery waste. The present study has been carried out, to study feasibility of thermophilic anaerobic digestion to facilitate the design of full scale reactor. A pilot scale anaerobic fixed film fixed bed reactor (AFFFB) of capacity 25m3 was designed, fabricated, installed and commissioned for thermophilic (55-65°C) anaerobic digestion at a constant pH of 6.5-7.5, because these temperature and pH ranges are considered to be optimum for biogas recovery from distillery wastewater. In these conditions, working of the reactor was studied, for different hydraulic retention times (HRT) (0.25days to 12days) and variable organic loading rates (361.46 to 7.96 Kg COD/m3d). The parameters such as flow rate and temperature, various chemical parameters such as pH, chemical oxygen demands (COD), biogas quantity, and biogas composition were regularly monitored. It was observed that, with the increase in OLR, the biogas production was increased, but the specific biogas yield decreased. Similarly, with the increase in HRT, the biogas production got decrease, but the specific biogas yield was increased. This may also be due to the predominant activity of acid producers to methane producers at the higher substrate loading rates. From the present investigation, it can be concluded that for thermophilic conditions the highest COD removal percentage was obtained at an HRT of 08 days, thereafter it tends to decrease from 8 to 12 days HRT. There is a little difference between COD removal efficiency of 8 days HRT (74.03%) and 5 day HRT (78.06%), therefore it would not be feasible to increase the reactor size by 1.5 times for mere 4 percent more efficiency. Hence, 5 days HRT is considered to be optimum, at which the biogas yield was 98 m3/day and specific biogas yield was 0.385 CH4 m3/Kg CODr.

Keywords: spent wash, anaerobic digestion, biomass, biogas

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Authors: P. C. Ihenacho, M. Burby, G. G. Nasr, G. C. Enyi

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Formulation of a low oil-water ratio drilling mud with vegetable oil continuous phase without adversely affecting the mud rheology and stability has been a major challenge. A low oil-water ratio is beneficial in producing low fluid loss which is essential for wellbore stability. This study examined the possibility of 50/50 oil-water ratio invert emulsion drilling mud using a vegetable oil continuous phase. Jatropha oil was used as continuous phase. 12 ml of egg yolk which was separated from the albumen was added as the primary emulsifier additive. The rheological, stability and filtration properties were examined. The plastic viscosity and yield point were found to be 36cp and 17 Ib/100 ft2 respectively. The electrical stability at 48.9ºC was 353v and the 30 minutes fluid loss was 6ml. The results compared favourably with a similar formulation using 70/30 oil - water ratio giving plastic viscosity of 31cp, yield point of 17 Ib/100 ft2, electrical stability value of 480v and 12ml for the 30 minutes fluid loss. This study indicates that with a good mud composition using guided empiricism, 50/50 oil-water ratio invert emulsion drilling mud is feasible with a vegetable oil continuous phase. The choice of egg yolk as emulsifier additive is for compatibility with the vegetable oil and environmental concern. The high water content with no fluid loss additive will also minimise the cost of mud formulation.

Keywords: environmental compatibility, low cost of mud formulation, low fluid loss, wellbore stability

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Authors: Aminah Muchdar, Nuraeni, Eddy

Abstract:

The aims of the research are: (1) to verify the cropsyst plant model of experimental data in the field of soybean plants and (2) to predict planting time and potential yield soybean plant with the use of cropsyst model. This research is divided into several stages: (1) first calibration stage which conducted in the field from June until September 2015.(2) application models stage, where the data obtained from calibration in the field will be included in cropsyst models. The required data models are climate data, ground data/soil data,also crop genetic data. The relationship between the obtained result in field with simulation cropsyst model indicated by Efficiency Index (EF) which the value is 0,939.That is showing that cropsyst model is well used. From the calculation result RRMSE which the value is 1,922%.That is showing that comparative fault prediction results from simulation with result obtained in the field is 1,92%. The conclusion has obtained that the prediction of soybean planting time cropsyst based models that have been made valid for use. and the appropriate planting time for planting soybeans mainly on rain-fed land is at the end of the rainy season, in which the above study first planting time (June 2, 2015) which gives the highest production, because at that time there was still some rain. Tanggamus varieties more resistant to slow planting time cause the percentage decrease in the yield of each decade is lower than the average of all varieties.

Keywords: soybean, Cropsyst, calibration, efficiency Index, RRMSE

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