Search results for: nutrient removal

Authors: Rajul Dwivedi, Mahesh Patel

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Due to the scarcity of natural resources, common rivers and coastal structures are too expensive to build and maintain. One such method is to use geotextile tube technology to build marine protected structures, such as dams, canals, jetties, free breakwaters, etc. Geotextile tube technology has evolved from other construction technologies and improved into a more efficient solution. The coastal erosion problems have been exacerbated by the development of infrastructure associated with the expansion of urban and industrial activities. Resources and harbours and the removal of sea sand for use in this erosion event will accelerate the erosion of the sea. but in the coastal areas, due to depletion of sand or beach sand

Keywords: geotextile tubes, slurry, dewatering, response surface

Procedia PDF Downloads 124

Authors: G. Henini, Y. Laidani, F. Souahi, A. Labbaci, S. Hanini

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Environmental contamination is a major problem being faced by the society today. Industrial, agricultural, and domestic wastes, due to the rapid development in the technology, are discharged in the several receivers. Generally, this discharge is directed to the nearest water sources such as rivers, lakes, and seas. While the rates of development and waste production are not likely to diminish, efforts to control and dispose of wastes are appropriately rising. Wastewaters from textile industries represent a serious problem all over the world. They contain different types of synthetic dyes which are known to be a major source of environmental pollution in terms of both the volume of dye discharged and the effluent composition. From an environmental point of view, the removal of synthetic dyes is of great concern. Among several chemical and physical methods, adsorption is a promising technique due to the ease of use and low cost compared to other applications in the process of discoloration, especially if the adsorbent is inexpensive and readily available. The focus of the present study was to assess the potentiality of Brahea edulis (BE) for the removal of synthetic dye Yellow bemacid (YB) from aqueous solutions. The results obtained here may transfer to other dyes with a similar chemical structure. Biosorption studies were carried out under various parameters such as mass adsorbent particle, pH, contact time, initial dye concentration, and temperature. The biosorption kinetic data of the material (BE) was tested by the pseudo first-order and the pseudo-second-order kinetic models. Thermodynamic parameters including the Gibbs free energy ΔG, enthalpy ΔH, and entropy ΔS have revealed that the adsorption of YB on the BE is feasible, spontaneous, and endothermic. The equilibrium data were analyzed by using Langmuir, Freundlich, Elovich, and Temkin isotherm models. The experimental results show that the percentage of biosorption increases with an increase in the biosorbent mass (0.25 g: 12 mg/g; 1.5 g: 47.44 mg/g). The maximum biosorption occurred at around pH value of 2 for the YB. The equilibrium uptake was increased with an increase in the initial dye concentration in solution (C_o = 120 mg/l; q = 35.97 mg/g). Biosorption kinetic data were properly fitted with the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The best fit was obtained by the Langmuir model with high correlation coefficient (R² > 0.998) and a maximum monolayer adsorption capacity of 35.97 mg/g for YB.

Keywords: adsorption, Brahea edulis, isotherm, yellow Bemacid

Procedia PDF Downloads 159

Authors: Azizurahman Sakhizadah, Tsugiyuki Masunaga

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The use of sulfur fertilizer by Afghanistan farmers for wheat production has never been practiced, although sulfur deficiency has been expected for wheat production. A field experiment was conducted at Poza e Ishan Research Station Farm, Baghlan province, Afghanistan to examine the effect of sulfur fertilizer on growth and yield components of wheat. The experiment was laid out in randomize complete block design (RCBD), having three replications and eight treatments. The initial soil of experiment was alkaline (pH8.4), with textural class of sandy clay loam, available sulfur (40.8) mg kg-1, and Olsen-P (28.8) mg kg-1. Wheat variety, Kabul 013 was cultivated from November 2015 to June 2016. The recommended doses of nitrogen and Phosphors (Urea and DAP at 250 and 125 kg ha-1) were applied by broadcasting except control plot. Sulfur was applied by foliar spray (K2 SO4) at the rate of 10, 20, and 30 kg ha-1, split at tillering and flowering stages. The results demonstrated that sulfur application positively influenced on growth and yield of wheat crop with combination of nitrogen. Plant did not respond to sole sulfur application. Plant height, spike length, spikelet's number spike-1, were increased and yield g m-2 was also increased by 1.2, 19.1 and 25.1 % for 10, 20 and 30 kg sulfur ha-1 application.

Keywords: sulfur, nitrogen, wheat, foliar

Procedia PDF Downloads 126

Authors: Lukasz Szydlowski, Jiri Ehlich, Igor Goryanin

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We demonstrate a single chamber, 96-well-plated based Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) with printed, electronic components. This invention is aimed at robust selection of electrogenic microbial community under specific conditions, e.g., electrode potential, pH, nutrient concentration, salt concentration that can be altered within the 96 well plate array. This invention enables robust selection of electrogenic microbial community under the homogeneous reactor, with multiple conditions that can be altered to allow comparative analysis. It can be used as a standalone technique or in conjunction with other selective processes, e.g., flow cytometry, microfluidic-based dielectrophoretic trapping. Mobile conductive elements, like carbon paper, carbon sponge, activated charcoal granules, metal mesh, can be inserted inside to increase the anode surface area in order to collect electrogenic microorganisms and to transfer them into new reactors or for other analytical works. An array of 96-well plate allows this device to be operated by automated pipetting stations.

Keywords: bioengineering, electrochemistry, electromicrobiology, microbial fuel cell

Procedia PDF Downloads 126

Authors: Mandana Hoseini

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During last decades, intensive selection for higher growth rate in broiler chickens has accelerated daily body weight gain, which this has changed/increased the trends and amounts of nutrient requirements in the diet. As a result, considerable studies have been focused on the better determination of protein/amino acids requirements in modern broiler diets. One approach to minimize dietary crude protein inclusion levels is substitution of some of the dietary crude protein with synthetic amino acids. In addition, using synthetic forms of limiting essential amino acids in the diet could help better coincidence of dietary protein with ideal protein concept, which this in turn, minimizes nitrogen dissipation and environmental pollution. Threonine is usually considered as the third limiting amino acid in broiler diets. Recent studies have been demonstrated that dietary supplemental threonine would optimize growth performance, immune system, intestinal morphology, as well as oxidative defense in broiler chickens. In this review, threonine metabolism and its effects in relation with different aspects of broiler performance have been discussed.

Keywords: immune system, intestine, performance, requirement, threonine

Procedia PDF Downloads 84

Authors: Saad Mohamed Elsaid, Nabil Anwar, Mahmoud Rushdi

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One of the reasons for the intensive use of pesticides is to protect agricultural crops and orchards from pests or agricultural worms. The period of time that pesticides stay inside the soil is estimated at about (2) to (12) weeks. Perhaps the most important reason that led to groundwater pollution is the easy leakage of these harmful pesticides from the soil into the aquifers. This research aims to find the best ways to use traded activated charcoal with gold nitrate solution; for removing the deadly pesticides from the aqueous solution by adsorption phenomenon. The most used pesticides in Egypt were selected, such as Malathion, Methomyl Abamectin and, Thiamethoxam. Activated charcoal doped with gold ions was prepared by applying chemical and thermal treatments to activated charcoal using gold nitrate solution. Adsorption of studied pesticide onto activated carbon /Au was mainly by chemical adsorption, forming a complex with the gold metal immobilized on activated carbon surfaces. In addition, the gold atom was considered as a catalyst to cracking the pesticide molecule. Gold activated charcoal is a low cost material due to the use of very low concentrations of gold nitrate solution. its notice the great ability of activated charcoal in removing selected pesticides due to the presence of the positive charge of the gold ion, in addition to other active groups such as functional oxygen and lignin cellulose. The presence of pores of different sizes on the surface of activated charcoal is the driving force for the good adsorption efficiency for the removal of the pesticides under study The surface area of the prepared char as well as the active groups, were determined using infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Some factors affecting the ability of activated charcoal were applied in order to reach the highest adsorption capacity of activated charcoal, such as the weight of the charcoal, the concentration of the pesticide solution, the time of the experiment, and the pH. Experiments showed that the maximum limit revealed by the batch adsorption study for the adsorption of selected insecticides was in contact time (80) minutes at pH (7.70). These promising results were confirmed, and by establishing the practical application of the developed system, the effect of various operating factors with equilibrium, kinetic and thermodynamic studies is evident, using the Langmuir application on the effectiveness of the absorbent material with absorption capacities higher than most other adsorbents.

Keywords: waste water, pesticides pollution, adsorption, activated carbon

Procedia PDF Downloads 53

Authors: Bhupinder Singh, Joy Prakash Misra

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This article provides the information regarding machining of hastelloy-X on wire electro spark machining (WEDM). Experimental investigation has been carried out by varying pulse-on time (TON), pulse-off time (TOFF), peak current (IP) and spark gap voltage (SV). Effect of these parameters is studied on material removal rate (MRR). Experiments are designed as per box-behnken design (BBD) technique of response surface methodology (RSM). Analysis of variance (ANOVA) results indicates that TON, TOFF, IP, SV, TON x IP are significant parameters that influenced the MRR, and it is depicted that value of MRR is more at high discharge energy (HDE) and less at low discharge energy (LDE). Furthermore, miniature impeller and miniature gear (OD≤10MM) is fabricated by WEDM at optimized condition.

Keywords: advanced manufacturing, WEDM, super alloy, gear

Procedia PDF Downloads 210

Authors: Ehsan Ahmadifar, Mohammad Ali Yousefi, Zahra Roohi

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In this study, the effects of different levels of Ergosan (control group (0), 2, 4 and 6 gr Ergosan per Kg diet) as a nutritional supplement were investigated on growth indices and stress in Zebrafish for 3 months. Larvae (4-day-old after hatching) were fed with experimental diet from the beginning of feeding until adult (adolescence) (average weight: 69.3 g, length: 5.1 cm). Different levels of Ergosan had no significant effect on rate survival (P < 0.05). The results showed that diet containing 6 gr Ergosan significantly caused the best FCR in Zebrafish (P < 0.05). By increasing the Ergosan diet, specific growth rate increased. Body weight gain and condition factor had significant differences (P < 0.05) as the highest and the lowest were observed in treatment 3 gr of Ergosan and control, respectively. The results showed that fish fed with experimental diet, had the highest resistance to environmental stresses compared to control, and the test temperature, oxygen, salinity and alkalinity samples containing 6 gr/kg, was significantly more resistance compared to the other treatments (P < 0.05). Overall, to achieve high resistance to environmental stress and increase final biomass using 6 gr/kg Ergosan in diet fish Zebrafish.

Keywords: Ergosan, stress, growth performance, Danio rerio

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Authors: Muhammad Zeeshan, Rabia Nazir, Lubna Tahir

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Low cost filter based on iron doped zeolite (Fe-Z) and pottery clay was developed for an effective and efficient treatment of the drinking water contaminated with microbes. Fe-Z was characterized using powder XRD, SEM and EDX and shown to have average particle size of 49 nm with spongy appearance. The simulated samples of water self-contaminated with six microbes (S. typhi, B. subtilus, E. coli, S. aures, K. pneumoniae, and P. aeruginosa) after treatment with Fe-Z indicated effective removal of all the microbes in less than 30 min. Equally good results were obtained when actual drinking water samples, totally unfit for human consumption, were treated with Fe-Z.

Keywords: iron doped zeolite, biological and chemical treatment, drinking water

Procedia PDF Downloads 426

Authors: R. Majidzadeh Heravi, M. Sankian, H. Kermanshahi, M. R. Nassiri, A. Heravi Moussavi, S. A. Lari, A. R. Varasteh

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The use of probiotics engineered to express specific enzymes has been the subject of considerable attention in poultry industry because of increased nutrient availability and reduced cost of enzyme supplementation. Phytase enzyme is commonly added to poultry feed to improve digestibility and availability of phosphorus from plant sources. To construct a probiotic with potential of phytate degradation, phytase gene (appA) from E. coli was cloned and transformed into two probiotic bacteria Lactobacillus salivarius and Lactococcus lactis. L. salivarous showed plasmid instability, unable to express the gene. The expression of appA gene in L. lactis was analyzed by detecting specific RNA and zymography assay. Phytase enzyme was isolated from cellular extracts of recombinant L. lactis, showing a 46 kDa band upon the SDS-PAGE analysis. Zymogram also confirmed the phytase activity of the 46 kDa band corresponding to the enzyme. An enzyme activity of 4.9U/ml was obtained in cell extracts of L. lactis. The growth of native and recombinant L. lactis was similar in the presence of two concentrations of ox bile.

Keywords: Lactobacillus salivarus, Lactococcuslactis, recombinant, phytase, poultry

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Authors: Sahriye Sonmez, Salih Ulger, Mustafa Kaplan, Mustafa Karhan

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The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of external ALAR application on nutrients contents in leaf and node in ‘on (bearing)’ and ‘off (non-bearing)’ years in Memecik olive trees. For this purpose; 2000 mg L-1 ALAR was externally applied to Memecik olive trees, and leaf and node samples from olive trees were taken during the induction, initiation and differentiation periods in ‘on’ and ‘off’ years. Nutrients contents (N, P, K, Ca, Mg, Fe, Mn, Zn and Cu) in leaf and node samples were determined. The K, Ca, Mg, Fe, Mn, Zn and Cu contents were determined by atomic absorption spectrophotometry, Nitrogen by Kjeldahl procedure, and P by a spectrophotometric method. The results showed that the N, Ca, Mg, Fe, Mn, Zn and Cu contents in ‘on’ year were higher than ‘off’ year while the K contents in ‘on’ year were lower than ‘off ‘ year, but the P content was not different. The N, Ca, Mg, Fe and Mn contents in leaf samples were higher in the node samples except for K while the P, Zn and Cu contents were not different. The N, K, Ca, Fe, Mn, Zn and Cu contents were lowest during the initiation period while the P content was highest in this period. The Mg content was not different in all period.

Keywords: bearing, differentiation period, induction period, initiation period, non bearing, olive

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Authors: Bernard Bladergroen, David Vlotman, Bradley Cerff

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The agricultural sector is one which requires and consumes large amounts of water globally. Commercial wine production, in particular, uses extensive volumes of fresh water and generates significant volumes of wastewater through various processes. The wastewater produced by wineries typically exhibits elevated levels of chemical oxygen demand (COD), total suspended solids (TSS), total dissolved solids (TDS), acidic pH and varying salinity and nutrient contents. This study investigates the performance of a shear-enhanced flotation separation (SEFS) pilot plant as a primary treatment stage during winery wastewater processing by modifying a conventional Dissolved Air Flotation (DAF) system. The SEFS pilot plant achieved a 99% reduction in both turbidity and TSS in comparison to the 97% achieved with the conventional DAF system. The COD was reduced by 66% and 51% for the SEFS and DAF systems, respectively. SEFS shows the advantages of hydrodynamic shear to enhance the coagulation and subsequent flocculation processes with a significant reduction of coagulant and flocculant (36% and 31%, respectively).

Keywords: shear enhanced flotation, suspended solids, primary wastewater treatment, zeta potential

Procedia PDF Downloads 44

Authors: Vivek Rangarajan, Kim G. Clarke

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Bacillus lipopeptides are biosurfactants with wide ranging applications in the medical, food, agricultural, environmental and cosmetic industries. They are produced as a mix of three families, surfactin, iturin and fengycin, each comprising a large number of homologues of varying functionalities. Consequently, the method and degree of purification of the lipopeptide cocktail becomes particularly important if the functionality of the lipopeptide end-product is to be maximized for the specific application. However, downstream processing of Bacillus lipopeptides is particularly challenging due to the subtle variations observed in the different lipopeptide homologues and isoforms. To date, the most frequently used lipopeptide purification operations have been acid precipitation, solvent extraction, membrane ultrafiltration, adsorption and size exclusion. RP-HPLC (reverse phase high pressure liquid chromatography) also has potential for fractionation of the lipopeptide homologues. In the studies presented here, membrane ultrafiltration and RP-HPLC were evaluated for lipopeptide purification to different degrees of purities for maximum functionality. Batch membrane ultrafiltration using 50 kDa polyether sulphone (PES) membranes resulted in lipopeptide recovery of about 68% for surfactin and 82 % for fengycin. The recovery was further improved to 95% by using size-conditioned lipopeptide micelles. The conditioning of lipopeptides with Ca2+ ions resulted in uniformly sized micelles with average size of 96.4 nm and a polydispersity index of 0.18. The size conditioning also facilitated removal of impurities (molecular weight ranging between 2335-3500 Da) through operation of the system under dia-filtration mode, in a way similar to salt removal from protein by dialysis. The resultant purified lipopeptide was devoid of macromolecular impurities and could ideally suit applications in the cosmetic and food industries. Enhanced purification using RP-HPLC was carried out in an analytical C18 column, with the aim to fractionate lipopeptides into their constituent homologues. The column was eluted with mobile phase comprising acetonitrile and water over an acetonitrile gradient, 35% - 80%, over 70 minutes. The gradient elution program resulted in as many as 41 fractions of individual lipopeptide homologues. The efficacy test of these fractions against fungal phytopathogens showed that first 21 fractions, identified to be homologues of iturins and fengycins, displayed maximum antifungal activities, suitable for biocontrol in the agricultural industry. Thus, in the current study, the downstream processing of lipopeptides leading to tailor-made products for selective applications was demonstrated using two major downstream unit operations.

Keywords: bacillus lipopeptides, membrane ultrafiltration, purification, RP-HPLC

Procedia PDF Downloads 191

Authors: Xiaobo Xi, Ruihong Zhang

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At present, the orchard ditching and fertilizing technology has a series of problems, such as easy tree roots damage, high energy consumption and uneven fertilizing. In this paper, a gas explosion subsoiling and fertilizer injection machine was designed, which used high pressure gas to shock soil body and then injected fertilizer. The drill pipe mechanism with pneumatic chipping hammer excitation and hydraulic assistance was designed to drill the soil. The operation of gas and liquid fertilizer supply was controlled by PLC system. The 3D model of the whole machine was established by using SolidWorks software. The machine prototype was produced, and field experiments were carried out. The results showed that soil fractures were created and diffused by gas explosion, and the subsoiling effect radius reached 40 cm under the condition of 0.8 MPa gas pressure and 30 cm drilling depth. What’s more, the work efficiency is 0.048 hm²/h at least. This machine could meet the agronomic requirements of orchard, garden and city greening fertilization, and the tree roots were not easily damaged and the fertilizer evenly distributed, which was conducive to nutrient absorption of root growth.

Keywords: gas explosion subsoiling, fertigation, pneumatic chipping hammer exciting, soil compaction

Procedia PDF Downloads 187

Authors: V. Geza, J. Vencels, G. Zageris, S. Pavlovs

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One of the most perspective methods to produce SoG-Si is refinement via metallurgical route. The most critical part of this route is refinement from boron and phosphorus. Therefore, a new approach could address this problem. We propose an approach of creating surface waves on silicon melt’s surface in order to enlarge its area and accelerate removal of boron via chemical reactions and evaporation of phosphorus. A two dimensional numerical model is created which includes coupling of electromagnetic and fluid dynamic simulations with free surface dynamics. First results show behaviour similar to experimental results from literature.

Keywords: numerical modelling, silicon refinement, surface waves, VOF method

Procedia PDF Downloads 237

Authors: Mohamed Sahli, David Bassir, Thierry Barriere, Xavier Roizard

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Predicting the behaviour of the Ti-6Al-4V alloy during the turning operation was very important in the choice of suitable cutting tools and also in the machining strategies. In this study, a 3D model with thermo-mechanical coupling has been proposed to study the influence of cutting parameters and also lubrication on the performance of cutting tools. The constants of the constitutive Johnson-Cook model of Ti-6Al-4V alloy were identified using inverse analysis based on the parameters of the orthogonal cutting process. Then, numerical simulations of the finishing machining operation were developed and experimentally validated for the cylindrical stock removal stage with the finishing cutting tool.

Keywords: titanium turning, cutting tools, FE simulation, chip

Procedia PDF Downloads 160

Authors: Falodun E. J., Ogbeifun S. O.

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The objectives of this study were to investigate the yield, nutrient concentration, and uptake of fluted pumpkin (Telfairia occidentalis Hook. f.) in response to spacing and fertilizer application. Two fluted pumpkin plant populations (10,000 and 20,000 plants ha⁻¹), D1 and D2, were evaluated at three levels of NPK fertilizer (F₁, 20 t ha⁻¹ poultry manure, F₂, 300 kg ha⁻¹ NPK 15:15:15 and F₃, 10 t ha⁻¹ poultry manure + 150 kg ha⁻¹ NPK 15:15:15) using a factorial arrangement in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. Leaf length, breadth, and the number of leaves were significantly increased at a lower plant population of 10,000 plants ha⁻¹ while herbage yield increased with a higher plant population of 20,000 plants ha⁻¹ using 300 kg ha⁻¹ inorganic NPK 15:15:15 or a combination of 10 t ha⁻¹ poultry manure + 150 kg ha⁻¹ inorganic NPK 15:15:15. Potassium (K) concentration was significantly (p < 0.05) higher at 10,000 plants ha⁻¹ and Iron (Fe) uptake was higher with combine application of organic and inorganic fertilizer (F3). To maximize the good herbage yield of fluted pumpkins, farmers in this locality should adopt a plant population of 20,000 plants ha⁻¹ using 300 kg ha⁻¹ inorganic NPK 15:15:15 (D2F2) or a combination of 10 t ha⁻¹ poultry manure + 150 kg ha⁻¹ inorganic NPK 15:15:15 (D2F3).

Keywords: fertilizers, fluted pumpkin, herbage yield, plant population

Procedia PDF Downloads 160

Authors: Naina Deshmukh

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With the wide production, consumption, and disposal of pesticides in the world, the concerns over their human and environmental health impacts are rapidly growing. Among developing treatment technologies, Ultrasonication, as an emerging and promising technology for the removal of pesticides in the aqueous environment, has attracted the attention of many researchers in recent years. The degradation of acephate in aqueous solutions was investigated under the influence of ultrasound irradiation (20 kHz) in the presence of heterogeneous catalysts titanium dioxide (TiO2) and Zinc oxide (ZnO). The influence of various factors such as amount of catalyst (0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 1.0, 1.25 g/l), initial acephate concentration (100, 200, 300, 400 mg/l), and pH (3, 5, 7, 9, 11) were studied. The optimum catalyst dose was found to be 1 g/l of TiO2 and 1.25 g/l of ZnO for acephate at 100 mg/l, respectively. The maximum percentage degradation of acephate was observed at pH 11 for catalysts TiO2 and ZnO, respectively.

Keywords: ultrasonic degradation, acephate, TiO2, ZnO, heterogeneous catalyst

Procedia PDF Downloads 36

Authors: Mohamed Gar Alalm

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This study aims to investigate various operating conditions that affect the performance of the electro-Fenton process for degradation of pesticides. Stainless steel electrodes were utilized in the electro-Fenton cell due to their relatively low cost. The favored conditions of current intensity, pH, iron loading, and pesticide concentration were deeply discussed. Complete removal of pesticide was attained at the optimum conditions. The degradation kinetics were described by pseudo- first-order pattern. In addition, a response surface model was developed to describe the performance of electro-Fenton process under different operational conditions. The model indicated that the coefficient of determination was (R² = 0.995).

Keywords: electro-Fenton, stainless steel, pesticide, wastewater

Procedia PDF Downloads 129

Authors: Hyunsang Kim, Younghun Kim, Younghee Kim, Sangku Lee

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We investigated ecotoxicity and performed an experiment for removing ZnO nanoparticles in water. Short-term exposure of hatching test using fertilized eggs (O. latipes) showed deformity in 5 ppm of ZnO nanoparticles solution, and in 10ppm ZnO nanoparticles solution delayed hatching was observed. Herein, chemical precipitation method was suggested for removing ZnO nanoparticles in water. The precipitated ZnO nanoparticles showed the form of ZnS after addition of Na2S, and the form of Zn3(PO4)2 for Na2HPO4. The removal efficiency of ZnO nanoparticles in water was closed to 100% for two case. In ecotoxicity evaluation of as-precipitated ZnS and Zn3(PO4)2, they did not cause any acute toxicity for D. magna. It is noted that this precipitation treatment of ZnO is effective to reduce the potential cytotoxicity.

Keywords: ZnO nanopraticles, ZnS, Zn3(PO4)2, ecotoxicity evaluation, chemical precipitation

Procedia PDF Downloads 255

Authors: John O. Jacob, Abdullahi Mann, Olanrewaju I. Adeshina, Mohammed M. Ndamitso

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Strychnos spinosa, Detarium microcarpum, Diospyros mespiliformis, Dialium guineese and Gardenia ternifolia are some of the wild fruits consume in the villages around Minna, Niger State. This investigation was conducted to assess the nutritional potentials of these fruits both for human consumption and for possible application in animal feed formulations. Standard analytical methods were employed in the determination of the various nutritional parameters. The proximate analysis results showed that the moisture contents ranged between (6.17-10.70%); crude fat (2.04-8.85%); crude protein (5.16-6.80%); crude fibre (7.23-19.65%); Ash (3.46-5.56%); carbohydrate (57.77-69.79%); energy value (284.49-407 kcal/mg); Vitamin C (7.2-39.93 mg/100g). The mineral analysis shows that the selected wild fruits could contribute considerable amount of both micro and macro elements to human nutrition potassium, sodium and calcium range between; potassium (343.27-764.71%); sodium (155.04-348.44%); calcium (52.47-101%). The macro element for the fruits pulp were in the order K>Na>Mg>Ca, hence, they could be included in diet to supplement daily nutrient requirement and in animal feed formulations. The domestication of these fruits is also encouraged.

Keywords: mineral, micro-elements, macro-elements, feed suppleme

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Authors: Ravi Kumar, Dhrubajit Barman, Nomi Baruah

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Software Cloning has grown an active area in software engineering research community yielding numerous techniques, various tools and other methods for clone detection and removal. The copying, modifying a block of code is identified as cloning as it is the most basic means of software reuse. Agile Software Development is an approach which is currently being used in various software projects, so that it helps to respond the unpredictability of building software through incremental, iterative, work cadences. Software Cloning has been introduced to Agile Environment and many Agile Software Development approaches are using the concept of Software Cloning. This paper discusses the various Agile Software Development approaches. It also discusses the degree to which the Software Cloning concept is being introduced in the Agile Software Development approaches.

Keywords: agile environment, refactoring, reuse, software cloning

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Authors: Yonwaba Atyosi, Moses Cho, Abel Ramoelo, Nobuhle Majozi, Cecilia Masemola, Yoliswa Mkhize

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Spectroscopy has been widely used to understand the hyperspectral remote sensing of soils. Accurate and efficient measurement of soil moisture is essential for precision agriculture. The aim of this study was to understand the spectral behavior of soil at different soil water content levels and identify the significant spectral bands for soil moisture content retrieval at field-scale. The study consisted of 60 soil samples from a maize farm, divided into four different treatments representing different moisture levels. Spectral signatures were measured for each sample in laboratory under artificial light using an Analytical Spectral Device (ASD) spectrometer, covering a wavelength range from 350 nm to 2500 nm, with a spectral resolution of 1 nm. The results showed that the absorption features at 1450 nm, 1900 nm, and 2200 nm were particularly sensitive to soil moisture content and exhibited strong correlations with the water content levels. Continuum removal was developed in the R programming language to enhance the absorption features of soil moisture and to precisely understand its spectral behavior at different water content levels. Statistical analysis using partial least squares regression (PLSR) models were performed to quantify the correlation between the spectral bands and soil moisture content. This study provides insights into the spectral behavior of soil at different water content levels and identifies the significant spectral bands for soil moisture content retrieval. The findings highlight the potential of spectroscopy for non-destructive and rapid soil moisture measurement, which can be applied to various fields such as precision agriculture, hydrology, and environmental monitoring. However, it is important to note that the spectral behavior of soil can be influenced by various factors such as soil type, texture, and organic matter content, and caution should be taken when applying the results to other soil systems. The results of this study showed a good agreement between measured and predicted values of Soil Moisture Content with high R2 and low root mean square error (RMSE) values. Model validation using independent data was satisfactory for all the studied soil samples. The results has significant implications for developing high-resolution and precise field-scale soil moisture retrieval models. These models can be used to understand the spatial and temporal variation of soil moisture content in agricultural fields, which is essential for managing irrigation and optimizing crop yield.

Keywords: soil moisture content retrieval, precision agriculture, continuum removal, remote sensing, machine learning, spectroscopy

Procedia PDF Downloads 72

Authors: Himanshu Payal, Sachin Maheshwari, Pushpendra S. Bharti

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Electrical discharge machining (EDM), a non-conventional machining process, finds wide applications for shaping difficult-to-cut alloys. Process modeling of EDM is required to exploit the process to the fullest. Process modeling of EDM is a challenging task owing to involvement of so many electrical and non-electrical parameters. This work is an attempt to model the EDM process using artificial neural network (ANN). Experiments were carried out on die-sinking EDM taking Inconel 825 as work material. ANN modeling has been performed using experimental data. The prediction ability of trained network has been verified experimentally. Results indicate that ANN can predict the values of performance measures of EDM satisfactorily.

Keywords: artificial neural network, EDM, metal removal rate, modeling, surface roughness

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Authors: Lee Derk Huan, Nur Irmawati

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This paper aims to investigate the heat transfer and fluid flow characteristics of nanofluids used in spray cooling systems. The effect of spray height, type of nanofluids and concentration of nanofluids are numerically investigated. Five different nanofluids such as AgH2O, Al2O3, CuO, SiO2 and TiO2 with volume fraction range of 0.5% to 2.5% are used. The results revealed that the heat transfer performance decreases as spray height increases. It is found that TiO2 has the highest transfer coefficient among other nanofluids. In dilute spray conditions, low concentration of nanofluids is observed to be more effective in heat removal in a spray cooling system.

Keywords: numerical investigation, spray cooling, heat transfer, nanofluids

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Authors: A. de Folly d’Auris, R. Bagatin, P. Filtri

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This paper discusses the importance of having a good initial characterization of soil samples when thermal desorption has to be applied to polluted soils for the removal of contaminants. Particular attention has to be devoted on the desorption kinetics of the samples to identify the gases evolved during the heating, and contaminant degradation pathways. In this study, two samples coming from different points of the same contaminated site were considered. The samples are much different from each other. Moreover, the presence of high initial quantity of heavy hydrocarbons strongly affected the performance of thermal desorption, resulting in formation of dangerous intermediates. Analytical techniques such TGA (Thermogravimetric Analysis), DSC (Differential Scanning Calorimetry) and GC-MS (Gas Chromatography-Mass) provided a good support to give correct indication for field application.

Keywords: desorption kinetics, hydrocarbons, thermal desorption, thermogravimetric measurements

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Authors: Ifueko Oghogho Ukponmwan, Mike O. Orji

Abstract:

This study investigated the antifungal activity of Bacilluss subtilis in the control of postharvest fungal rot of white yam (Dioscorea spp). Bacillus subtilis was isolated from the soil and fungi (Aspergillus spp, Mucor and yeasts) were isolated from rotten yam. The organisms were paired in yam nutrient agar (YNA) and yam Sabourraud dextrose agar media. In the yam dextrose agar media (YSDA) plates, the Bacillus grew rapidly and established itself and restricted the growth of the fungi organisms, but there was no zone of inhibition. This behaviour of Bacillus on the plates of YSDA was also observed in the yams where the fungi caused rot but the rot was suppressed by the presence of the Bacillus as compared to the degree of rot observed in the control that had only spoilage fungi. The control yam showed greater rot than other yams that contained a combination of Bacillus and fungi. The t-Test analysis showed that the difference in the rot between the treated samples and the control sample is significant and this implies that the presence of Bacillus significantly reduced the growth of fungi in the samples (yams). It was revealed from this study that Bacillus subtilis treatment can be successfully used to preserve white yams in storage. Its fast growth and early establishment in the sample accounts for its antifungal strength.

Keywords: Bacillus subtilis, rot, fungi, yam

Procedia PDF Downloads 163

Authors: Marianne Miguet, Gaël Plantard, Yves Jaeger, Vincent Goetz

Abstract:

The contamination of groundwater is a major concern. A common pollutant, the perchloroethylene, is the target contaminant. Water treatment process as Granular Activated Carbons are very efficient but requires pilot-scale testing to determine the full-scale GAC performance. First, the batch mode was used to get a reliable experimental method to estimate the adsorption capacity of a common volatile compound is settled. The Langmuir model is acceptable to fit the isotherms. Dynamic tests were performed with three columns and different operating conditions. A database of concentration profiles and breakthroughs were obtained. The resolution of the set of differential equations is acceptable to fit the dynamics tests and could be used for a full-scale adsorber.

Keywords: activated carbon, groundwater, perchloroethylene, full-scale

Procedia PDF Downloads 410

Authors: Aleksandra Y. Sazonova, Valentina M. Raeva

Abstract:

The aim of this work was to apply extractive distillation for acetonitrile removal from water solutions, to validate thermodynamic criterion based on excess Gibbs energy to entrainer selection process for acetonitrile – water mixture separation and show its potential efficiency at isothermal conditions as well as at isobaric (conditions of real distillation process), to simulate and analyze an extractive distillation process with chosen entrainers: optimize amount of trays and feeds, entrainer/original mixture and reflux ratios. Equimolar composition of the feed stream was chosen for the process, comparison of the energy consumptions was carried out. Glycerol was suggested as the most energetically and ecologically suitable entrainer.

Keywords: acetonitrile, entrainer, extractive distillation, water

Procedia PDF Downloads 248

Authors: Naina S. Deshmukh, Manik P. Deosarkar

Abstract:

With the wide production, consumption, and disposal of pesticides in the world, the concerns over their human and environmental health impacts are rapidly growing. Among developing treatment technologies, ultrasonication, as an emerging and promising technology for the removal of pesticides in the aqueous environment, has attracted the attention of many researchers in recent years. The degradation of acephate in aqueous solutions was investigated under the influence of ultrasound irradiation (20 kHz) in the presence of heterogeneous catalysts titanium dioxide (TiO2) and Zinc oxide (ZnO). The influence of various factors such as amount of catalyst (0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 1.0, 1.25 g/l), initial acephate concentration (100, 200, 300, 400 mg/l), and pH (3, 5, 7, 9, 11) were studied. The optimum catalyst dose was found to be 1 g/l of TiO2 and 1.25 g/l of ZnO for acephate at 100 mg/l, respectively. The maximum percentage degradation of acephate was observed at pH 11 for catalyst TiO2 and ZnO, respectively.

Keywords: ultrasonic degradation, acephate, TiO2, ZnO, heterogeneous catalyst

Procedia PDF Downloads 80