Search results for: salt effect

Authors: Weeraya Samnuknit, Apichat Boontawan

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A vacuum fractionation technique was introduced to remove ethanol from fermentation broth. The effect of initial glucose and ethanol concentrations were investigated for specific productivity. The inhibitory ethanol concentration was observed at 100 g/L. In order to increase the fermentation performance, the ethanol product was removed as soon as it is produced. The broth was boiled at 35°C by reducing the pressure to 65 mBar. The ethanol/water vapor was fractionated for up to 90 wt% before leaving the column. Ethanol concentration in the broth was kept lower than 25 g/L, thus minimized the product inhibition effect to the yeast cells. For batch extractive fermentation, a high substrate utilization rate was obtained at 26.6 g/L.h and most of glucose was consumed within 21 h. For repeated-batch extractive fermentation, addition of glucose was carried out up to 9 times and ethanol was produced more than 8-fold higher than batch fermentation.

Keywords: ethanol, extractive fermentation, product inhibition, vacuum fractionation

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Authors: Khamdan Cahyari, Pratikno Hidayat

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Indonesia has produced more than 1.8 million ton pineapple fruit in 2013 of which turned into waste due to industrial processing, deterioration and low qualities. It was estimated that this waste accounted for more than 40 percent of harvested fruits. In addition, pineapple leaves were one of biomass waste from pineapple farming land, which contributed even higher percentages. Most of the waste was only dumped into landfill area without proper pretreatment causing severe environmental problem. This research was meant to valorize the pineapple waste for producing renewable energy source of biogas through mesophilic (30℃) anaerobic digestion process. Especially, it was aimed to investigate effect of substrate concentration of pineapple fruit waste i.e. peel, core as well as effect of microwave pretreatment of pineapple leaves waste. The concentration of substrate was set at value 12, 24 and 36 g VS/liter culture whereas 800-Watt microwave pretreatment conducted at 2 and 5 minutes. It was noticed that optimum biogas production obtained at concentration 24 g VS/l with biogas yield 0.649 liter/g VS (45%v CH4) whereas microwave pretreatment at 2 minutes duration performed better compare to 5 minutes due to shorter exposure of microwave heat. This results suggested that valorization of pineapple waste could be carried out through biogas production at the aforementioned process condition. Application of this method is able to both reduce the environmental problem of the waste and produce renewable energy source of biogas to fulfill local energy demand of pineapple farming areas.

Keywords: pineapple waste, substrate concentration, microwave pretreatment, biogas, anaerobic digestion

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Authors: Najmul Hasan, Shiping Li, Chunli Liu

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The synergy effect of surface modifications using the acid treatment and noble metal (Au) deposition on the efficiency of SnFe2O4 (SFO) nano-octahedron photocatalyst has been investigated. Inorganic acids (H2SO4 and HNO3) were employed to compare the effects of different acids. It has been found that after corrosion treatment using H2SO4 and deposition of Au nanoparticles, SnFe2O4 nano-octahedron (Au-S-SFO) showed significantly enhanced photocatalytic activity under simulated light irradiation. Au-S-SFO was characterized by XRD, XPS, EDS, FTIR, Uv-vis-DRS, SEM, PL, and EIS analysis. The mechanism for CO2 reduction was investigated by scavenger tests. The stability of Au-S-SFO was confirmed by continuously repeated tests followed by XRD analysis. The surface corrosion treatment of SFO octahedron with H2SO4 could produce hydroxyl group (-OH) and sulfonic acid group (-SO3H) as reaction sites. These active sites not only enhanced the Au nanoparticles deposition to the acid treated SFO surface but also acted as the Brønsted acid sites that enhance the water adsorption and provide protons for CTC degradation and CO2 reduction. These effects improved the carrier separation and transfer efficiency. In addition, the photocatalytic efficiency was further enhanced by the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effect of Au nanoparticles deposited on the surface of acid-treated SFO. As a result of the synergy of both acid treatment and SPR effect from the Au NPs, Au-S-SFO exhibited the highest CO2 reduction activity with 2.81, 1.92, and 2.69 times higher evolution rates for CO, CH4, and H2, respectively than that of pure SFO.

Keywords: surface modification, CO2 reduction, Au deposition, Gas-liquid interfacial plasma

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Authors: Hyeondal Jeong, Yoonjung Baek

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This research examines the effects of positive psychological capital (or PsyCap) on employee’s outcomes (satisfaction, commitment, organizational citizenship behavior, innovation behavior and individual creativity). This study conducted a meta-analysis of articles published in the Republic of Korea. As a result, positive psychological capital has a positive effect on the behavior of employees. Heterogeneity was identified among the studies included in the analysis and the context factors were analyzed; the study proposes contextual factors such as team tenure. The moderating effect of team tenure was not statistically significant. The implications were discussed based on the analysis results.

Keywords: positive psychological capital , satisfaction, commitment, OCB, creativity, meta-analysis

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Authors: Dib Imane, Chettah Wahid, Khedidja Abdelhamid

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The plain of Gadaïne - Ain Yaghout, located in the wilaya of Batna (Eastern Algeria), experiences intensive human activities, particularly in agricultural practices which are accompanied by an increasing use of chemical fertilizers and manure. These activities lead to a degradation of the quality of water resources. In order to protect the quality of groundwater in this plain and formulate effective strategies to mitigate or avoid any contamination of groundwater, a risk assessment using the European method known as “COSTE Action 620” was applied to the mio-. plio-quaternary aquifer of this plain. Risk assessment requires the identification of existing dangers and their potential impact on groundwater by using a system of evaluation and weighting. In addition, it also requires the integration of the hydrogeological factors that influence the movement of contaminants by means of the intrinsic vulnerability maps of groundwater, which were produced according to the modified DRASTIC method. The overall danger on the plain ranges from very low to high. Farms containing stables, houses detached from the public sewer system, and sometimes manure piles were assigned a weighting factor expressing the highest degree of harmfulness; this created a medium to high danger index. Large areas for agricultural practice and grazing are characterized, successively, by low to very low danger. Therefore, the risks present at the study site are classified according to a range from medium to very high-risk intensity. These classes successively represent 3%, 49%, and 0.2% of the surface of the plain. Cultivated land and farms present a high to very high level of risk successively. In addition, with the exception of the salt mine, which presents a very high level of risk, the gas stations and cemeteries, as well as the railway line, represent a high level of risk.

Keywords: semi-arid, quality of water resources, risk assessment, vulnerability, contaminants

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Authors: J. B. Minari, O. B. Oloyede

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Polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMNs) play a crucial role in a variety of infections caused by bacteria, fungi, and parasites. Indeed, the involvement of PMNs in host defence against Plasmodium falciparum is well documented both in vitro and in vivo. Many of the antimalarial drugs such as chloroquine used in the treatment of human malaria significantly reduce the immune response of the host in vitro and in vivo. Myeloperoxidase is the most abundant enzyme found in the polymorphonuclear neutrophil which plays a crucial role in its function. This study was carried out to investigate the effect of chloroquine on the enzyme. In investigating the effects of the drug on myeloperoxidase, the influence of concentration, pH, partition ratio estimation and kinetics of inhibition were studied. This study showed that chloroquine is concentration-dependent inhibitor of myeloperoxidase with an IC50 of 0.03 mM. Partition ratio estimation showed that 40 enzymatic turnover cycles are required for complete inhibition of myeloperoxidase in the presence of chloroquine. The influence of pH on the effect of chloroquine on the enzyme showed significant inhibition of myeloperoxidase at physiological pH. The kinetic inhibition studies showed that chloroquine caused a non-competitive inhibition with an inhibition constant Ki of 0.27mM. The results obtained from this study shows that chloroquine is a potent inhibitor of myeloperoxidase and it is capable of inactivating the enzyme. It is therefore considered that the inhibition of myeloperoxidase in the presence of chloroquine as revealed in this study may partly explain the impairment of polymorphonuclear neutrophil and consequent immunosuppression of the host defence system against secondary infections.

Keywords: myeloperoxidase, chloroquine, inhibition, neutrophil, immune

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Authors: Ka Ho Yau, Jan Frederick Engels, Kwok Kei Lai, Reinhard Renneberg

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Lateral flow test is a prevalent technology in various sectors such as food, pharmacology and biomedical sciences. Colloidal gold (CG) is widely used as the signalling molecule because of the ease of synthesis, bimolecular conjugation and its red colour due to intrinsic SPRE. However, the production of colloidal gold is costly and requires vigorous conditions. The stability of colloidal gold are easily affected by environmental factors such as pH, high salt content etc. Silica nanoparticles are well known for its ease of production and stability over a wide range of solvents. Using reverse micro-emulsion (w/o), silica nanoparticles with different sizes can be produced precisely by controlling the amount of water. By incorporating different water-soluble dyes, a rainbow colour of the silica nanoparticles could be produced. Conjugation with biomolecules such as antibodies can be achieved after surface modification of the silica nanoparticles with organosilane. The optimum amount of the antibodies to be labelled was determined by Bradford Assay. In this work, we have demonstrated the ability of the dye-doped silica nanoparticles as a signalling molecule in lateral flow test, which showed a semi-quantitative measurement of the analyte. The image was further analysed for the LOD=10 ng of the analyte. The working range and the linear range of the test were from 0 to 2.15μg/mL and from 0 to 1.07 μg/mL (R2=0.988) respectively. The performance of the tests was comparable to those using colloidal gold with the advantages of lower cost, enhanced stability and having a wide spectrum of colours. The positives lines can be imaged by naked eye or by using a mobile phone camera for a better quantification. Further research has been carried out in multicolour detection of different biomarkers simultaneously. The preliminary results were promising as there was little cross-reactivity being observed for an optimized system. This approach provides a platform for multicolour detection for a set of biomarkers that enhances the accuracy of diseases diagnostics.

Keywords: colorimetric detection, immunosensor, paper-based biosensor, silica

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Authors: Pierre F. Gerard, Frederic F. Leymarie, William Latham

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Architects have developed a series of objective evaluations, using spatial analysis tools such as Isovist, that show how certain spatial qualities are beneficial to specific human activities hosted in the built environments. In return, they can build more adapted environments by tuning those spatial qualities in their design. In parallel, virtual reality technologies have been developed by engineers with the dream of creating a system that immerses users in a new form of spatial experiences. They already have demonstrated a useful range of benefits not only in simulating critical events to assist people in acquiring new skills, but also to enhance memory retention, to name just a few. This paper investigates the effects of two spatial qualities, openness, and complexity, on cognitive performance within immersive virtual environments. Isovist measure is used to design a series of room settings with different levels of each spatial qualities. In an empirical study, each room was then used by every participant to solve a navigational puzzle game and give a rating of their spatial experience. They were then asked to fill in a questionnaire before solving the visual-spatial memory quiz, which addressed how well they remembered the different rooms. Findings suggest that those spatial qualities have an effect on some of the measures, including navigation performance and memory retention. In particular, there is an order effect for the navigation puzzle game. Participants tended to spend a longer time in the complex room settings. Moreover, there is an interaction effect while with more open settings, participants tended to perform better when in a simple setting; however, with more closed settings, participants tended to perform better in a more complex setting. For the visual-spatial memory quiz, participants performed significantly better within the more open rooms. We believe this is a first step in using virtual environments to enhance participant cognitive performances through better use of specific spatial qualities.

Keywords: architecture, navigation, spatial cognition, virtual reality

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Authors: Huma Khan, Faiza Akhtar

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The present study investigates the effects of burnout toward job performance and job satisfaction with the moderating role of hope and self-efficacy. Findings from 310 frontline employees of Pakistani commercial banks (Lahore, Karachi & Islamabad) disclosed burnout has negative significant effects on job performance and job satisfaction. Simple random sampling technique was used to collect data and inferential statistics were applied to analyzed the data. However, results disclosed no moderation effect of hope on burnout, job performance or with job satisfaction. Moreover, Data significantly supported the moderation effect of self-efficacy. Study further shed light on the development of psychological capital. Importance of the implication of the current finding is discussed.

Keywords: burnout, hope, job performance, job satisfaction, psychological capital, self-efficacy

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Authors: Arunima Datta, Prathama Guha Chaudhuri, Ashis Mukhopadhyay

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Background: Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) is one of the newer forms (third wave) therapy. This therapy helps a cancer patient to increase acceptance level about their disease as well as their present situation. Breast cancer patients are known to suffer from depression and mild cognitive impairment; both affect their quality of life. Objectives:The present study had assessed effect of structured ACT intervention on cognitive function and acceptance level among breast cancer patients who were undergoing chemotherapy. Method: Data was collected from 123 breast cancer patients those who were undergoing chemotherapy were willing to undergo psychological treatment, with no history of past psychiatric illness. Their baseline of cognitive function and acceptance levels were assessed using validated tools. The effect of sociodemographic factors and clinical factors on cognitive function was determined at baseline.The participants were randomly divided into two groups: experimental (ACT, 4 sessions over 2 months) and control group. Cognitive function and acceptance level were measured during post intervention on 2months follow-up. Appropriate statistical analyses were performed to determine the effect on cognitive function and acceptance level in two groups. Result: At baseline, the factors that significantly influenced slower speed of task performance were ER PR HER2 status; number of chemo cycle, treatment type (Adjuvant and neo-adjuvant) was related with that. Sociodemographic characteristics did not show any significant difference between slow and fast performance. Per and post intervention analysis showed that ACT intervention resulted in significant difference both in terms of speed of cognitive performance and acceptance level. Conclusion: ACT is an effective therapeutic option for treating mild cognitive impairment and improve acceptance level among breast cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy.

Keywords: acceptance and commitment therapy, breast cancer, quality of life, cognitive function

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Authors: Mohammad Khodaei, Mahmood Meratien, Alireza Valanezhad, Serdar Pazarlioglu, Serdar Salman, Ikuya Watanabe

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Pore size and morphology plays a crucial role on mechanical properties of porous scaffolds. In this research, titanium scaffold was prepared using space holder technique. Sodium chloride and ammonium bicarbonate were utilized as spacer agent separately. The effect of the hardness of spacer on the cell morphology was investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and optical stereo microscopy. Image analyzing software was used to interpret the microscopic images quantitatively. It was shown that sodium chloride, due to its higher hardness, maintain its morphology during cold compaction, and cause better replication in porous scaffolds.

Keywords: Spacer, Titanium Scaffold, Pore Morphology, Space Holder Technique

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Authors: Sun Fan, Wu Xiaoguang, Fang Miaomiao, Wei Chi

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The degree of damage to the support is simulated by finite element software, and its influence on the static and dynamic effects of the bridge structure is analyzed. Four working conditions are selected for the study of bearing damage impact: the bearing is intact (condition 1), the bearing damage coefficient is 0.8 (condition 2), the bearing damage coefficient is 0.6 (condition 3), and the bearing damage coefficient is 0.4 (Working Condition 4). The effect value of the bridge structure under each working condition is calculated, and the simple-supported girder bridge and continuous girder bridge with typical spans are taken as examples to analyze the overall change of the bridge structure after the bearing completely fails.

Keywords: bridge bearing damage, dynamic response, finite element analysis, load conditions

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Authors: Sultana Razia

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The number of children whose social, communication and behavior pattern is affected due to mental and developmental conditions is on the rise. Most of these conditions develop to uncontrollable levels because of ignorance and unaware about their child’s condition. The many myths surrounding mental or developmental conditions are a major cause of families of affected children to develop bitterness and to shy off from seeking appropriate help in time. Several early intervention programs have been put in place, and the number of beneficiaries of these programs is increasing by the day. This research seeks to look into early intervention programs and their effectiveness. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of early therapeutic intervention for the children with autism spectrum disorder. Participants were 140 children with autism spectrum disorder from Autism Corner in a selected rehabilitation center of Bangladesh. This study included children who are at age of 18-month to 36-month and who were taking occupational therapy and speech and language therapy from the autism center. They were primarily screened using M-CHAT; however, children with other physical disability or medical conditions excluded. 3-months interventions of 6 sessions per week are a minimum of 45-minutes long per session, one to one interaction followed by parent-led structured home-based therapy were provided. The results indicated that early intensive therapeutic intervention improve understanding, social skills and sensory skills. It can be concluded that therapeutic early intervention a positive effect on diminishing symptoms of Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Keywords: M-CHAT, ASD, sensory cheeklist, OT

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Authors: Mme Hamani Née Guessas Ghaniya

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The transport is the base of the development of the exchanges and the business, being both a recognized determiner of the economic and social development. The development of the transport is in the center of the big challenges of development of countries, but it is also at the heart of big contradictions, since we integrate the environmental issues which are bound to him, in particular through the questions of energy. Indeed, the energy consumption by the sector of transport is one of bigger concerns, because it is increasing and it has a big impact on our environment. The main consequences are, the atmospheric pollution causing an increase of the greenhouse effect which causes a global warming. These global warming risks to engender a partial cast iron of polar caps so raising the level of seas, flooding the low coastal zones, certain islands and the deltas. Thus, the purpose of this communication is to present the impact of the energy consumption by the sector of transport on the air quality, showing its effect on the health and on the global warming.

Keywords: energy consumption, sector of transport, air quality, atmospheric pollution

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Authors: B. Chetti, W. A. Crosby

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This paper presents a numerical analysis for the dynamic performance of a finite journal bearing lubricated with couple stress fluid taking into account the effect of the deformation of the bearing liner. The modified Reynolds equation has been solved by using finite difference technique. The dynamic characteristics in terms of stiffness coefficients, damping coefficients, critical mass and whirl ratio are evaluated for different values of eccentricity ratio and elastic coefficient for a journal bearing lubricated with a couple stress fluids and a Newtonian fluid. The results show that the dynamic characteristics of journal bearings lubricated with couple stress fluids are improved compared to journal bearings lubricated with Newtonian fluids.

Keywords: journal bearing, elastohydrodynamic, stability, couple stress

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Authors: Béla Kovács, Éva Bódi, Farzaneh Garousi, Szilvia Várallyay, Áron Soós, Xénia Vágó, Dávid Andrási

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In agriculture for analysis of elements in different food and food raw materials, moreover environmental samples generally flame atomic absorption spectrometers (FAAS), graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometers (GF-AAS), inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometers (ICP-OES) and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometers (ICP-MS) are routinely applied. An inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (ICP-MS) is capable for analysis of 70-80 elements in multielemental mode, from 1-5 cm3 volume of a sample, moreover the detection limits of elements are in µg/kg-ng/kg (ppb-ppt) concentration range. All the analytical instruments have different physical and chemical interfering effects analysing the above types of samples. The smaller the concentration of an analyte and the larger the concentration of the matrix the larger the interfering effects. Nowadays there is very important to analyse growingly smaller concentrations of elements. From the above analytical instruments generally the inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer is capable of analysing the smallest concentration of elements. The applied ICP-MS instrument has Collision Cell Technology (CCT) also. Using CCT mode certain elements have better (smaller) detection limits with 1-3 magnitudes comparing to a normal ICP-MS analytical method. The CCT mode has better detection limits mainly for analysis of selenium, arsenic, germanium, vanadium and chromium. To elaborate an analytical method for trace elements with an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer the most important interfering effects (problems) were evaluated: 1) Physical interferences; 2) Spectral interferences (elemental and molecular isobaric); 3) Effect of easily ionisable elements; 4) Memory interferences. Analysing food and food raw materials, moreover environmental samples an other (new) interfering effect emerged in ICP-MS, namely the effect of various matrixes having different evaporation and nebulization effectiveness, moreover having different quantity of carbon content of food and food raw materials, moreover environmental samples. In our research work the effect of different water-soluble compounds furthermore the effect of various quantity of carbon content (as sample matrix) were examined on changes of intensity of the applied elements. So finally we could find “opportunities” to decrease or eliminate the error of the analyses of applied elements (Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Ge, As, Se, Mo, Cd, Sn, Sb, Te, Hg, Pb, Bi). To analyse these elements in the above samples, the most appropriate inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer is a quadrupole instrument applying a collision cell technique (CCT). The extent of interfering effect of carbon content depends on the type of compounds. The carbon content significantly affects the measured concentration (intensities) of the above elements, which can be corrected using different internal standards.

Keywords: elements, environmental and food samples, ICP-MS, interference effects

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Authors: Motahar Reza, Rajni Chahal, Neha Sharma

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This article addresses the boundary layer flow and heat transfer of Casson fluid over a nonlinearly permeable stretching surface with chemical reaction in the presence of variable magnetic field. The effect of thermal radiation is considered to control the rate of heat transfer at the surface. Using similarity transformations, the governing partial differential equations of this problem are reduced into a set of non-linear ordinary differential equations which are solved by finite difference method. It is observed that the velocity at fixed point decreases with increasing the nonlinear stretching parameter but the temperature increases with nonlinear stretching parameter.

Keywords: boundary layer flow, nonlinear stretching, Casson fluid, heat transfer, radiation

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Authors: Yusra Pintaningrum, Ilma Fahira Basyir, Sony Hilal Wicaksono, Vito A. Damay

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Background: Coronary artery calcium (CAC) scores play an important role in improving prognostic accuracy and can be selectively used to guide the allocation of statin therapy for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease outcomes and potentially associated with the occurrence of MACE (Major Adverse Cardiovascular Event) and MI (Myocardial Infarction). Objective: This systematic review and meta-analysis aim to analyze the findings of a study about CAC Score and statin treatment effect on MI and MACE risk. Methods: Search for published scientific articles using the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting, Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis) method conducted on PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Medline databases published in the last 20 years on “coronary artery calcium” AND “statin” AND “cardiovascular disease” Further systematic review and meta-analysis using RevMan version 5.4 were performed based on the included published scientific articles. Results: Based on 11 studies included with a total of 1055 participants, we performed a meta-analysis and found that individuals with CAC score > 0 increased risk ratio of MI 8.48 (RR = 9.48: 95% CI: 6.22 – 14.45) times and MACE 2.48 (RR = 3.48: 95% CI: 2.98 – 4.05) times higher than CAC score 0 individual. Statin compared against non-statin treatment showed a statistically insignificant overall effect on the risk of MI (P = 0.81) and MACE (P = 0.89) in an individual with elevated CAC score 1 – 100 (P = 0.65) and > 100 (P = 0.11). Conclusions: This study found that an elevated CAC scores individual has a higher risk of MI and MACE than a non-elevated CAC score individual. There is no significant effect of statin compared against non-statin treatment to reduce MI and MACE in elevated CAC score individuals of 1 – 100 or > 100.

Keywords: coronary artery calcium, statin, cardiovascular disease, myocardial infarction, MACE

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Authors: Iman A. A. Kassem, Ayman A. Farghaly, Zeinab M. Hassan, Farouk R. Melek, Neveen S. Ghaly

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Lipidium sativum L, an annual herb that grows to 50 cm, is known as an important member of family Brassicaceae. Besides its nutritional value, the seeds were widely used in folk medicine for treatment of cough, asthma, and headache. It was also reported to possess hypocholesterolemic, anti-inflammatory, antidiarrheal, antimicrobial and anticancer activities. In this study, the genoprotective properties of L. sativum seed methanolic extract (LSME) were evaluated in vivo. Three groups of mice were given LSME for five consecutive days at the three dose levels 25, 50 and 100 mg/kg b.wt. The three groups were then injected intraperitoneally with cyclophosphamide at a dose of 20 mg/kg b.wt. to induce DNA damage. A group received only cyclophosphamide (20 mg/kg b.wt.) served as control. LSME significantly inhibited the DNA aberrations in mice caused by cyclophosphamide in a dose-dependent manner in the two groups that received LSME at 50 and 100 mg/kg b.wt. dose levels. The chromosomal aberrations' inhibitory indices were calculated as 18 and 31 in mice bone marrow cells and 27 and 48 in mice spermatocytes, respectively. Phytochemical examination carried out by us revealed that flavonoids were the main chemical constituents of LSME. The major flavonoids kaempferol, kaempferol-3-O-rhamnoside, kaempferol-3-O-glucoside, quercetin, and quercetin-3-O-glucoside were isolated and characterized. It was concluded that the genoprotective effect of LSME might be attributed to the presence of flavonoids which are well-known for their antioxidant properties.

Keywords: cyclophosphamide, flavonoids, genoprotective effect, Lepidium sativum

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Authors: Yatimah Alias, Tilagam Marimuthu, M. R. Mahmoudian, Sharifah Mohamad

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The rapid growth of science and technology in energy and environmental fields has enlightened the substantial importance of the conducting polymer and metal composite materials engineered at nano-scale. In this study, polypyrrole-cobalt composites (PPy-Co Cs) and polypyrrole-nickel oxide composites (PPy-NiO Cs) were prepared by a simple and facile chemical polymerization method with an aqueous solution of pyrrole monomer in the presence of metal salt. These composites then fabricated into non-enzymatic hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and glucose sensor. The morphology and composition of the composites are characterized by the Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscope, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrum and X-ray Powder Diffraction. The obtained results were compared with the pure PPy and metal oxide particles. The structural and morphology properties of synthesized composites are different from those of pure PPy and metal oxide particles, which were attributed to the strong interaction between the PPy and the metal particles. Besides, a favorable micro-environment for the electrochemical oxidation of H2O2 and glucose was achieved on the modified glassy carbon electrode (GCE) coated with PPy-Co Cs and PPy-NiO Cs respectively, resulting in an enhanced amperometric response. Both PPy-Co/GCE and PPy-NiO/GCE give high response towards target analyte at optimum condition of 500 μl pyrrole monomer content. Furthermore, the presence of pyrrole monomer greatly increases the sensitivity of the respective modified electrode. The PPy-Co/GCE could detect H2O2 in a linear range of 20 μM to 80 mM with two linear segments (low and high concentration of H2O2) and the detection limit for both ranges is 2.05 μM and 19.64 μM, respectively. Besides, PPy-NiO/GCE exhibited good electrocatalytic behavior towards glucose oxidation in alkaline medium and could detect glucose in linear ranges of 0.01 mM to 0.50 mM and 1 mM to 20 mM with detection limit of 0.33 and 5.77 μM, respectively. The ease of modifying and the long-term stability of this sensor have made it superior to enzymatic sensors, which must kept in a critical environment.

Keywords: metal oxide, composite, non-enzymatic sensor, polypyrrole

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Authors: K. Akhil, J. Jayakumar, S. Sudheer Khan

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Zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) are extensively used in a wide variety of commercial products including sunscreen, textile and paints. The present study evaluated the effect of surface capping agents including polyethylene glycol (EG), gelatin, polyvinyl alcohol(PVA) and poly vinyl pyrrolidone(PVP) on photocatalytic activity of ZnO NPs. The particles were also tested for its antibacterial and antibiofilm activity against Staphylococcus aureus (MTCC 3160) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (MTCC 1688). Preliminary characterization was done by UV-Visible spectroscopy. Electron microscopic analysis showed that the particles were hexagonal in shape. The hydrodynamic size distribution was analyzed by using dynamic light scattering method and crystalline nature was determined by X-Ray diffraction method.

Keywords: antibacterial, antibiofilm, capping agents, photodegradation, surface coating, zinc oxide nanoparticles

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Authors: Asish O. Mathew, Lewlyn L. R. Rodrigues

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The organizations in the knowledge economy era have recognized the importance of building knowledge assets for sustainable growth and development. In comparison to other industries, Information Technology (IT) enterprises, holds an edge in developing an effective Knowledge Management (KM) program, thanks to their in-house technological abilities. This paper tries to study the various knowledge-based incentive programs and its effect on Knowledge Sharing and Learning in the context of the Indian IT sector. A conceptual model is developed linking KM incentives, knowledge sharing, and learning. A questionnaire study is conducted to collect primary data from the knowledge workers of the IT organizations located in India. The data was analysed using Structural Equation Modeling using Partial Least Square method. The results show a strong influence of knowledge management incentives on knowledge sharing and an indirect influence on learning.

Keywords: knowledge management, knowledge management incentives, knowledge sharing, learning

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Authors: P. Murugesan, G. Venkateswaran, V. A. Shanmuga Selvan

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Water used for brewing tea plays a major role in the quality of tea. Water with higher hardness gives very dark coloured brew. This study was conducted to determine the effect of water hardness and free residual chlorine on the quality of black tea liquor. Theaflavin (TF) and Thearubigin (TR) levels are lower in comparison with the tea brewed in distilled water. At the same time, there is an increase in High Polymerized Substance (HPS) and Total Liquor Colour (TLC). While water with higher hardness has a negative impact on tea brew, water with high concentration of free residual chlorine did not affect the quality of tea brew.

Keywords: Theaflavin, Thearubigin, high polymerised substance, total liquor colour, hardness, residual chlorine

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Authors: Ramesh Bhat, Ammu Somanath, A. K. Nayanatara

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Background: The increasing prevalence of overweight and obesity is a critical public health problem for women. The negative effect of stress on memory and cognitive functions has been widely explored for decades in numerous research projects using a wide range of methodology. Deterioration of memory and other brain functions are hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease. Estrogen fluctuations and withdrawal have myriad direct effects on the central nervous system that have the potential to influence cognitive functions. Aim: The present study aims to compare the effect of stress on the cognitive functions in overweight/obese women before and after menopause. Material and Methods: A total of 142 female subjects constituting women before menopause between the age group of 18–44 years and women after menopause between the age group of 45–60 years were included in the sample. Participants were categorized into overweight/obese groups based on the body mass index. The Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) the major tool was used for measuring the perception of stress. Based on the stress scale measurement each group was classified into with stress and without stress. Addenbrooke’s cognitive Examination-III was used for measuring the cognitive functions. Results: Premenopausal women with stress showed a significant (P<0.05) decrease in the cognitive parameters such as attention and orientation Fluency, language and visuospatial ability. Memory did not show any significant change in this group. Whereas, in the postmenopausal stressed women all the cognitive functions except fluency showed a significant (P<0.05) decrease after menopause stressed group. Conclusion: Stress is a significant factor on the cognitive functions of obese and overweight women before and after menopause. Practice of Yoga, Encouragement in activities like gardening, embroidery, games and relaxation techniques should be recommended to prevent stress. Insights into the neurobiology before and after menopause can be gained from future studies examining the effect on the HPA axis in relation to cognition and stress.

Keywords: cognition, stress, premenopausal, body mass index

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Authors: Chih-Fong Tsai, Ya-Han Hu

Abstract:

The aim of feature selection (or dimensionality reduction) is to filter out unrepresentative features (or variables) making the classifier perform better than the one without feature selection. Since there are many well-known feature selection algorithms, and different classifiers based on different selection results may perform differently, very few studies consider examining the effect of performing different feature selection algorithms on the classification performances by different classifiers over different types of datasets. In this paper, two widely used algorithms, which are the genetic algorithm (GA) and information gain (IG), are used to perform feature selection. On the other hand, three well-known classifiers are constructed, which are the CART decision tree (DT), multi-layer perceptron (MLP) neural network, and support vector machine (SVM). Based on 14 different types of datasets, the experimental results show that in most cases IG is a better feature selection algorithm than GA. In addition, the combinations of IG with DT and IG with SVM perform best and second best for small and large scale datasets.

Keywords: data mining, feature selection, pattern classification, dimensionality reduction

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Authors: Tanveer Rasool, A. K. Dhiman

Abstract:

The paper reports 2-D numerical study used to investigate the effect of changing working fluids with Prandtl numbers 0.71, 10 and 50 on the flow and convective heat transfer across an equilateral triangular cylinder placed in a horizontal channel with its apex facing the flow. Numerical results have been generated for fixed blockage ratio of 50% and for three Reynolds numbers of 50, 75, and 100 for each Prandtl numbers respectively. The studies show that for above range of Reynolds numbers, the overall drag coefficient is insensitive to the Prandtl number changes while as the heat transfer characteristics change drastically with changing Prandtl number of the working fluid. The results generated are in complete agreement with the previous literature available.

Keywords: Prandtl number, Reynolds number, drag coefficient, flow and isothermal patterns

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Authors: Arife Simsek, Gulfem Bakan

Abstract:

Sediment refers to the accumulation of varying amounts of sediment material in natural waters and the formation of bottom sludge. Sediments are the most important sources of pollutants as well as important future sources and carriers of pollutants. The accumulation of pollutants in sediments can cause serious environmental problems for the surrounding areas. Heavy metals (such as Cr, Cd, Al, Pb, Cu, Al, Zn) disrupt the water quality, affect the useful use of sediment, affect the ecosystem and have a toxic effect on the life of the sediment layer. This effect, which accumulates in the aquatic organisms, can enter the human body with the food chain and affect health seriously. Potential metal toxicity can be determined by comparing acid volatile sulfides (AVS) – simultaneously extracted metal (SEM) ratio in anoxic sediments to determine the effect of metals. Determination of the concentration of SEM and AVS is useful in screening sediments for potential toxicity due to the high metal concentration. In the case of SEM/AVS < 0 (anoxic sediment); in terms of AVS biomass production, its toxicity can be controlled. No toxic effects may be observed when SEM / AVS < 0. SEM / AVS > 0 (in the case of oxic sediment); metals with sensitive fraction such as Cu, As, Ag, Zn are stored. In this study, AVS and SEM measurements of sediment samples collected from five different points in the district of Tekkeköy in Samsun province were performed. The SEM - AVS ratio was greater than 0 in all samples. Therefore, it is necessary to test the toxicity against the risks that may occur in the ecosystem.

Keywords: AVS-SEM, Black Sea, heavy metal, sediment, toxicity

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Authors: Rumaisa Shahid, Saad Aziz Durrani, Shameel Pervez, Ibatsam Khokhar

Abstract:

Food waste is a prevalent issue in Pakistan, with over 40 percent of food discarded annually. Despite their decay, rotting fruits retain residual nutritional value consumed by microorganisms, notably fungi and bacteria. Fungi, preferred for their extracellular enzyme release, are gaining prominence, particularly for pectinase production. This enzyme offers several advantages, including clarifying juices by breaking down pectic compounds. In this study, three Aspergillus flavus isolates derived from decomposed fruits and manure were selected for pectinase production. The primary aim was to isolate fungi from diverse waste sources, identify the isolates and assess their capacity for pectinase production. The identification was done through morphological characteristics with the help of Light microscopy and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). Pectinolytic potential was screened using pectin minimal salt agar (PMSA) medium, comparing clear zone diameters among isolates. Identification relied on morphological characteristics. Optimizing substrate (lemon and orange peel powder) concentrations, pH, temperature, and incubation period aimed to enhance pectinase yield. Spectrophotometry enabled quantitative analysis. The temperature was set at room temperature (28 ºC). The optimal conditions for Aspergillus flavus strain AF1(isolated from mango) included a pH of 5, an incubation period of 120 hours, and substrate concentrations of 3.3% for orange peels and 6.6% for lemon peels. For AF2 and AF3 (both isolated from soil), the ideal pH and incubation period were the same as AF1 i.e. pH 5 and 120 hours. However, their optimized substrate concentrations varied, with AF2 showing maximum activity at 3.3% for orange peels and 6.6% for lemon peels, while AF3 exhibited its peak activity at 6.6% for orange peels and 8.3% for lemon peels. Among the isolates, AF1 demonstrated superior performance under these conditions, comparatively.

Keywords: pectinase, lemon peel, orange peel, aspergillus flavus

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Authors: Ehsan Asgari, Meisam Afazeli, Nezhla Attarchian

Abstract:

Post-earthquake fire is considered as a major threat in seismic areas. After an earthquake, fire is possible in structures. In this research, the effect of post-earthquake fire on steel moment frames with and without fireproofing coating is investigated. For this purpose, finite element method is employed. For the verification of finite element results, the results of an experimental study carried out by previous researchers are used, and the predicted FE results are compared with the test results, and good agreement is observed. After ensuring the accuracy of the predictions of finite element models, the effect of post-earthquake fire on the frames is investigated taking into account the parameters including the presence or absence of fire protection, frame design assumptions, earthquake type and different fire scenario. Ordinary fire and post-earthquake fire effect on the frames is also studied. The plastic hinges induced by earthquake in the structure are determined in the beam to the column connection and in panel zone. These areas should be accurately considered when providing fireproofing coatings. The results of the study show that the occurrence of fire beside corner columns is the most damaging scenario that results in progressive collapse of structure. It was also concluded that the behavior of structure in fire after a strong ground motion is significantly different from that in a normal fire.

Keywords: post earthquake fire, moment frame, finite element simulation, coupled temperature-displacement analysis, fire scenario

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Authors: D. Triana, I. N. Rachmawati, L. Sabri

Abstract:

Maternal breastfeeding self-efficacy is positively associated with increased duration of breastfeeding in different cultures and age groups. This study aims to determine the effect of skin-to-skin contact immediately after the cesarean section on maternal breastfeeding self-efficacy. The research design is Posttest quasi-experimental research design only with control groups involving 52 women with consecutive sampling in Langsa-Aceh. The data collected through breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale-Short Form. The results of Independent t-test showed a significant difference in the mean values of maternal breastfeeding self-efficacy in the intervention group and the control group (59.00 ± 6.54; 49.62 ± 7.78; p= 0.001). Skin to skin contact is proven to affect the maternal breastfeeding self-efficacy after cesarean section significantly.

Keywords: breastfeeding self-efficacy, cesarean section, skin to skin contact, immediately

Procedia PDF Downloads 374