Search results for: Wild edible plants

Authors: Marc Veillette, Mostafa Chamoumi, Nathalie Faucheux, Michèle Heitz

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Biodiesel is traditionally produced from oleaginous plants. On the other hand, increasing biodiesel production from these raw materials could create problems of food supply. Producing biodiesel from microalgae could help to overcome this difficulty, because microalgae are rich in lipids and do not compete for arable lands. However, no studies had compared vegetable and microalgae oil-based biodiesel in terms of yield, viscosity and heat of combustion. In the present study, commercial canola and microalgae oil were therefore transesterified with methanol under a homogenous alkali catalyst (potassium hydroxide) at 100oC for 1h. The result showed that microalgae-based oil has a higher yield in biodiesel with 89.7% (g biodiesel/g oil) and a lower kinematic viscosity (22oC) of 4.31 mm/s2 than canola oil.

Keywords: Biodiesel, microalgae, canola, alkalitransesterification

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Authors: Janusz Bobulski, Kamila Pasternak

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Despite many years of effort and research, the problem of waste management is still current. There is a lack of fast and effective algorithms for classifying individual waste fractions. Many programs and projects improve statistics on the percentage of waste recycled every year. In these efforts, it is worth using modern Computer Vision techniques supported by artificial intelligence. In the article, we present a method of identifying plastic waste based on the asymmetry analysis of the histogram of the image containing the waste. The method is simple but effective (94%), which allows it to be implemented on devices with low computing power, in particular on microcomputers. Such de-vices will be used both at home and in waste sorting plants.

Keywords: Computer vision, environmental protection, image processing, waste management.

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Authors: Hirbod Varasteh, Hamidreza Gohari Darabkhani

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The global warming and its impact on climate change is one of main challenges for current century. Global warming is mainly due to the emission of greenhouse gases (GHG) and carbon dioxide (CO₂) is known to be the major contributor to the GHG emission profile. Whilst the energy sector is the primary source for CO₂ emission, Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) are believed to be the solution for controlling this emission. Oxyfuel combustion (Oxy-combustion) is one of the major technologies for capturing CO₂ from power plants. For gas turbines, several Oxy-combustion power cycles (Oxyturbine cycles) have been investigated by means of thermodynamic analysis. NetPower cycle is one of the leading oxyturbine power cycles with almost full carbon capture capability from a natural gas fired power plant. In this manuscript, sensitivity analysis of the heat exchanger design in NetPower cycle is completed by means of process modelling. The heat capacity variation and supercritical CO₂ with gaseous admixtures are considered for multi-zone analysis with Aspen Plus software. It is found that the heat exchanger design has a major role to increase the efficiency of NetPower cycle. The pinch-point analysis is done to extract the composite and grand composite curve for the heat exchanger. In this paper, relationship between the cycle efficiency and the minimum approach temperature (∆Tmin) of the heat exchanger has also been evaluated.  Increase in ∆Tmin causes a decrease in the temperature of the recycle flue gases (RFG) and an overall decrease in the required power for the recycled gas compressor. The main challenge in the design of heat exchangers in power plants is a tradeoff between the capital and operational costs. To achieve lower ∆Tmin, larger size of heat exchanger is required. This means a higher capital cost but leading to a better heat recovery and lower operational cost. To achieve this, ∆Tmin is selected from the minimum point in the diagrams of capital and operational costs. This study provides an insight into the NetPower Oxy-combustion cycle’s performance analysis and operational condition based on its heat exchanger design.

Keywords: Carbon capture and storage, oxy-combustion, netpower cycle, oxyturbine power cycles, heat exchanger design, supercritical carbon dioxide, pinch point analysis.

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Authors: S. Kızıltas Demir, A. S. Kipcak, E. Moroydor Derun, N. Tugrul, S. Piskin

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Flue gas desulfurization gypsum (FGD) is a waste material arouse from coal power plants. Hydroxyapatite (HAP) is a biomaterial with porous structure. In this study, FGD gypsum which retrieved from coal power plant in Turkey was characterized and HAP particles which can be used as an adsorbent in wastewater treatment application were synthesized from the FGD gypsum. The raw materials are characterized by using X Ray Diffraction (XRD) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) techniques and produced HAP are characterized by using XRD. As a result, HAP particles were synthesized at the molar ratio of 5:10, 5:15, 5:20, 5:24, at room temperature, in alkaline medium (pH=11) and in 1 hour-reaction time. Among these conditions, 5:20 had the best result.

Keywords: FGD wastes, HAP, gypsum, wastewater.

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Authors: Kazuyoshi Mori

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In this paper, we first show a relationship between two stabilizing controllers, which presents an extended feedback system using two stabilizing controllers. Then, we apply this relationship to the two-stage compensator design. In this paper, we consider singleinput single-output plants. On the other hand, we do not assume the coprime factorizability of the model. Thus, the results of this paper are based on the factorization approach only, so that they can be applied to numerous linear systems.

Keywords: Relationship among Compensators, Two-Stage Compensator Design, Parametrization of Stabilizing Controllers, Factorization Approach

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Authors: Aare Kuusik, E. Loigu, O. Sokk, Argo Kuusik

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This paper describes technological possibilities to enhance methane productionin the anaerobic stabilization of wastewater treatment plant excess sludge. This objective can be achieved by the addition of waste residues: crude glycerol from biodiesel production and residues from fishery. The addition ofglycerol in an amount by weight of 2 – 5% causes enhancement of methane production of about 250 – 400%. At the same time the percentage increase of total solids concentration in the outgoing sludge is ten or more times less. The containment of methane in biogas is higher in case of admixed substrate.

Keywords: Enhancement of methane production, fishery residues, waste glycerol

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Authors: Terna T. Paul, Iloechuba P. Ngozika

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A study was carried out to evaluate the growth and yield performance of Pleurotus ostreatus spawn on different organic substrates in Lafia, Nasarawa State, Nigeria. 50 g each of four different substrates namely; corncobs, rice straw, sugarcane bagasse and sawdust sourced locally from farmlands and processing sites, were amended with 2% calcium carbonate and calcium sulphide and sterilized using three sterilization methods namely; hot water, steam, and lime. Five grams of P. ostreatus spawn were inoculated unto treated substrates, incubated in the dark for 16 days and in light for 19 days at 25 ⁰C for the commencement of pinhead and fruit body formations respectively. Growth and yield parameters such as days to full colonization, days to pinhead formation and days to fruit body formation were recorded. Cap diameter and fresh weight of mature mushrooms were also measured for a total count of four flushes. P. ostreatus spawn grown on sugarcane bagasse recorded the highest mean cap diameter (4.69 cm), highest mean fresh weight (34.68 g), highest biological efficiency (69.37%) and highest production rate (2.83 g per day). Spawn grown on rice straw recorded the least number of days to full substrate colonization (11.00). Spawn grown on corn cobs recorded the least mean number of days to pin head (18.75) and fruiting body formations (20.25). There were no significant differences (P ≤ 0.05) among the evaluated substrates with respect to growth and yield performance of P. ostreatus. Substrates sterilized with hot water supported the highest mean cap diameter (5.64 cm), highest biological efficiency (87.04%) and highest production rate (3.43 g per day) of P. ostreatus. Significant differences (P ≤ 0.05) were observed in cap diameter, fresh weight, biological efficiency and production rates among the evaluated sterilization methods. Hot water sterilization of sugarcane bagasse could be adopted for enhanced yield of oyster mushrooms, especially among indigent farming communities in Nigeria and beyond.

Keywords: Agro wastes, growth, Pleurotus ostreatus, sterilization methods, yield.

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Authors: Adedokun D. A., Ndambuki J. M., Salim R. W.

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Due to urbanization, trees and plants which covered a great land mass of the earth and are an excellent carbon dioxide (CO2) absorber through photosynthesis are being replaced by several concrete based structures. It is therefore important to have these cement based structures absorb the large volume of carbon dioxide which the trees would have removed from the atmosphere during their useful lifespan. Hence the need for these cement based structures to be designed to serve other useful purposes in addition to shelter. This paper reviews the properties of Sodium carbonate and sugar as admixtures in concrete with respect to improving carbon sequestration in concrete.

Keywords: Carbon sequestration, Sodium carbonate, Sugar, concrete, Carbon dioxide.

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Authors: Saeed Rezaeian, M. Rezaee Boroon

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Nitrogen accumulates in soils during the process of fertilizer addition to promote the plant growth. When the organic matter decomposes, the form of available nitrogen produced is in the form of nitrate, which is highly mobile. The most significant health effect of nitrate ingestion is methemoglobinemia in infants under six months of age (blue baby syndrome). The mobile nutrients, like nitrate nitrogen, are not stored in the soil as the available forms for the long periods and in large amounts. It depends on the needs for the crops such as vegetables. On the other hand, the vegetables will compete actively for nitrate nitrogen as a mobile nutrient and water. The mobile nutrients must be shared. The fewer the plants, the larger this share is for each plant. Also, this nitrate nitrogen is poisonous for the people who use these vegetables. Nitrate is converted to nitrite by the existing bacteria in the stomach and the Gastro-Intestinal (GI) tract. When nitrite is entered into the blood cells, it converts the hemoglobin to methemoglobin, which causes the anoxemia and cyanosis. The increasing use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers, especially the fertilizers with nitrates compounds, which have been common for the increased production of agricultural crops, has caused the nitrate pollution in the (soil, water, and environment). They have caused a lot of damage to humans and animals. In this research, the nitrate accumulation in different kind of vegetables such as; green pepper, tomatoes, egg plants, watermelon, cucumber, and red pepper were observed in the suburbs of Mashhad, Neisabour, and Sabzevar cities. In some of these cities, the information forms of agronomical practices collected were such as; different vegetable crops fertilizer recommendations, varieties, pesticides, irrigation schedules, etc., which were filled out by some of our colleagues in the research areas mentioned above. Analysis of the samples was sent to the soil and water laboratory in our department in Mashhad. The final results from the chemical analysis of samples showed that the mean levels of nitrates from the samples of the fruit crops in the mentioned cities above were all lower than the critical levels. These fruit crop samples were in the order of: 35.91, 8.47, 24.81, 6.03, 46.43, 2.06 mg/kg dry matter, for the following crops such as; tomato, cucumber, eggplant, watermelon, green pepper, and red pepper. Even though, this study was conducted with limited samples and by considering the mean levels, the use of these crops from the nutritional point of view will not cause the poisoning of humans.

Keywords: Environmental pollution, human health, nitrate accumulations, nitrate fertilizers.

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Authors: J. A. Mayouf, Q. A. Najim, H. S. Al-Bayati

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The concentrations of cadmium and lead in sewage sludge samples were determined by Atomic Absorption Spectrometric Method. Samples of sewage sludge were obtained from three sewage treatment plants localised in Middle Region of Libya (Misrata, Msallata and Tarhünah cities). The results shows that, the mean levels of Cadmium for all regions are ranges from 81 to 123.4 ppm and these values are higher than the limitations for the international standard which are not registered more than 50 ppm (dry weight) in USA, Egypt and the EU countries. While, the lead concentrations are ranged from 8.0 to 189.2 ppm and all values are within the standard limits which graduated between (275–613) ppm.

Keywords: Cadmium, Lead, Sewage, Spectrometry.

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Authors: Tolulope A. Olukunle

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Plastic waste management has emerged as one of the greatest challenges facing developing countries. This paper describes the design of various components of a plastic shredder. This machine is widely used in industries and recycling plants. The introduction of plastic shredder machine will promote reduction of post-consumer plastic waste accumulation and serves as a system for wealth creation and empowerment through conversion of waste into economically viable products. In this design research, a 10 kW electric motor with a rotational speed of 500 rpm was chosen to drive the shredder. A pulley size of 400 mm is mounted on the electric motor at a distance of 1000 mm away from the shredder pulley. The shredder rotational speed is 300 rpm.

Keywords: Design, machine, plastic waste, recycling.

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Authors: Sansanee Sansiribhan, Anusorn Rattanathanaophat, Chirapan Nuengchaknin

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The potential feasibility of a 9.5 MW_e capacity rice straw power plant project in Thailand was studied by evaluating the rice straw resource. The result showed that Thailand had a high rice straw biomass potential at the provincial level, especially, the provinces in the central, northeastern and western Thailand, which could feasibly develop plants. The economic feasibility of project was also investigated. The financial feasibility is also evaluated based on two important factors in the project, i.e., NPV ≥ 0 and IRR ≥ 11%. It was found that the rice straw power plant project at 9.5 MW_e was financially feasible with the cost of fuel in the range of 30.6-47.7 USD/t.

Keywords: Power plant, Project feasibility, Rice straw, Thailand.

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Authors: Urszula Wachowska, Anna Daria Stasiulewicz-Paluch, Katarzyna Kucharska

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A three-year field experiment (2010-2012) was conducted to determine the abundance of epiphytic and endophytic filamentous fungi colonizing the grain of winter wheat cv. Bogatka. Wheat spikes were protected with tebuconazole or chitosan at the watery ripe stage. Untreated plants served as control. Tebuconazole exerted an inhibitory effect primarily on F. culmorum and F. graminearum, and its effectiveness was determined by the pressure from pathogens that infected wheat spikes during the growing season. Chitosan did not suppress the growth of Fusarium species and Alternaria alternata.

Keywords: Winter wheat, tebuconazole, chitosan, Fusarium.

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Authors: M. Raciti Castelli, S. De Betta, E. Benini

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A preliminary evaluation of the feasibility of installing small wind turbines on offshore oil and gas extraction platforms is presented. Some aerodynamic considerations are developed in order to determine the best rotor architecture to exploit the wind potential on such installations, assuming that wind conditions over the platforms are similar to those registered on the roofs of urban buildings. Economical considerations about both advantages and disadvantages of the exploitation of wind energy on offshore extraction platforms with respect to conventional offshore wind plants, is also presented. Finally, wind charts of European offshore winds are presented together with a map of the major offshore installations.

Keywords: Extraction platform, offshore wind energy, verticalaxis wind turbine (VAWT).

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Authors: Widi Astuti, Agus Prasetya, Endang Tri Wahyuni, I Made Bendiyasa

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Coal fly ash (CFA) generated by coal-based thermal power plants is mainly composed of quartz, mullite, and unburned carbon. In this study, the effect of unburned carbon on CFA toward its adsorption capacity was investigated. CFA with various carbon content was obtained by refluxing it with sulfuric acid having various concentration at various temperature and reflux time, by heating at 400-800°C, and by sieving into 100-mesh in particle size. To evaluate the effect of unburned carbon on CFA toward its adsorption capacity, adsorption of methyl violet solution with treated CFA was carried out. The research shows that unburned carbon leads to adsorption capacity decrease. The highest adsorption capacity of treated CFA was found 5.73 x 10-4mol.g-1.

Keywords: CFA, carbon, methyl violet, adsorption capacity.

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Authors: Sansanee Sansiribhan, Orrawan Rewthong, Anusorn Rattanathanaophat, Sarun Saensiriphan

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The objective of this work was to study potential of rice straw for power plant in the Central region of Thailand. Provincial power plant capacity was studied. The results showed that provinces central region had potential for small power plants with a capacity of over 10 MW in 13 provinces, 1-10 MW in 6 provinces and less than 1 MW in 3 provinces.

Keywords: Rice straw, Power plant, Central region, Thailand.

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Authors: Hamed Zakikhani, Mohd Khanif Yusop, Amin Soltangheisi

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A hydroponic trial was carried out to investigate the effect of molybdenum (Mo) on uptake of phosphorus (P) in different rice cultivars. The experiment was conducted using a randomized complete-block design, with a split-plot arrangement of treatments and three replications. Four rates of Mo (0, 0.01, 0.1 and 1 mg L⁻¹) and five cultivars (MR219, HASHEMI, MR232, FAJRE and MR253) provided the main and sub-plots, respectively. Interaction of molybdenum×variety was significant on shoot phosphorus uptake (p≤0.01). Highest and lowest shoot phosphorus uptake were seen in Mo₃V₃ (0.6% plant^-1) and Mo₀V₃ (0.14% plant^-1) treatments, respectively. Molybdenum did not have a significant effect on root phosphorus content. According to results, application of molybdenum has a synergistic effect on uptake of phosphorus by rice plants.

Keywords: Molybdenum, Phosphorus, Uptake, rice.

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Authors: Nilima D. Gajbhiye

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Sodium nitrate has been used industrially in a number of work fields ranging from agriculture to food industry. Sodium nitrate and nitrite are associated with a higher risk of cancer in human beings. In present study, the effect of sodium nitrate on germinating seeds was studied. Two different sets of ungerminated Vigna radiata seeds were taken. In one set Vigna radiata seeds were soaked in distilled water for 4 hours and they were allowed to germinate in distilled water (Control) and 0.1 to 1% and 10% concentrations of sodium nitrate (NaNo₃). In soaked seed set, on 2^nd day radical developed in control and 0.1 to 1% concentrations of sodium nitrate. Seeds size was enlarged in 1% and 10% concentrations of sodium nitrate. On 3^rd day in 0.1% sodium nitrate length of the radicle was 7.5cm with one leaf let and control sample showed 9cm with one leaflet. On 5^th day in 0.1% sodium nitrate length of the radicle was 10 cm with one leaf let and control sample showed 11.5cm with one leaflet. No radicle developed in 1 and 10% NaNo₃ concentrations. On 10^th day all plants including control were dead. More number of mitotic cells was observed in apical root meristems of control germinating seeds and less mitotic cells were observed in 0.1% NaNo₃ germinating seeds. But cells were elongated in 0.9%NaNo₃ concentration and particles are deposited in the cells and no mitotic cells were observed. In other sets, dry seeds were allowed to germinate in Distilled water (control) and in 0.1 to 1% and 10% concentrations of sodium nitrate. In dry seed set, on 2^nd day radicle developed from control set. In 0.1 to 1% concentrations of sodium nitration seed enlarged in size but but not allowed germination. But in 10% NaNo₃ seeds coat colour was changed from dark green to brown. On 3^rd day the radicle was developed in 0.1% concentration of NaNo₃. No growth of radicle was observed in 0.3 to 10% concentrations of NaNo₃ but plumule was observed in control plant. Seed coat color was changed from dark green to brown in color in 1% and 10% NaNo₃. On 5^th day in control seeds the radicle growth was 11cm and 0.1% NaNo₃ concentration was 1.3 cm. On 10^th day all plants including control were dead. More number of mitotic cells was observed in apical root meristems of control germinating seeds and less mitotic cells were observed in 0.1% NaNo3 germinating seeds. At higher concentrations of NaNo₃ allowed seed germination in soaked seeds but produced radicle decay. In comparison to it, in dry seed set, germination of seeds observed only in 0.1% NaNo₃ concentration. The inhibitory effect of NaNo₃ on seed germination is due to reduction of water imbibition and mitotic activity.

Keywords: Germinating seeds, NaNo3, Vigna radiate, mitotic activity.

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Authors: Marine Shavlakadze

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Hydroponic greenhouses systems (production of the artificial substrate without soil) are becoming popular in the world. Mostly the system is used to grow vegetables and berries. Different countries are taking action to participate in the development of hydroponic technology and solutions such as EU members, Turkey, Australia, New Zealand, Israel, Scandinavian countries, etc. Many vegetables and berries are grown by hydroponics in Europe. As a result of our research, we have obtained material containing manganese and nitrogen. It became possible to produce this fertilizer by means of one-stage thermal processing, using industrial waste containing manganese (ores and sludges) and mineral substance (ammonium nitrate) that exist in Georgia. The received material is usable as a micro-fertilizer with economic efficiency. It became possible to turn practically water-insoluble manganese dioxide substance into the soluble condition from industrial waste in an indirect way. The ability to use the material as a fertilizer is predetermined by its chemical and phase composition, as the amount of the active component of the material in relation to manganese is 30%. At the same time, the active component elements presented non-ballast sustained action compounds. The studies implemented in Poland and in Georgia by us have shown that the manganese-containing micro-fertilizer- Mn(NO₃)₂ can provide the plant with nitrate nitrogen, which is a form that can be used for plants, providing the economy and simplicity of the application of fertilizers. Given the fact that the application of the manganese-containing micro-fertilizers significantly increases the productivity and improves the quality of the big number of agricultural products, it is necessary to mention that it is recommended to introduce the manganese containing fertilizers into the following cultures: sugar beet, corn, potato, vegetables, vine grape, fruit, berries, and other cultures. Also, as a result of the study, it was established that the material obtained is the predominant fertilizer for vegetable cultures in the soil. Based on the positive results of the research, we consider it expedient to conduct research in hydroponic systems, which will enable us to provide plants the required amount of manganese; we also introduce nitrogen in solution and regulate the solution of pH, which is one of the main problems in hydroponic production. The findings of our research will be used in hydroponic greenhouse farms to increase the fertility of vegetable crops and, consequently, to get bountiful and high-quality harvests, which will promote the development of hydroponic greenhouses in Georgia as well as abroad.

Keywords: Hydroponics, micro-fertilizers, manganese ore, chemical amelioration.

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Authors: Tahmine. V. Moghaddam, N. Bigdeli, K. Afshar

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To achieve the desired specifications of gain and phase margins for plants with time-delay that stabilized with FO-PID controller a lead compensator is designed. At first the range of controlled system stability based on stability boundary criteria is determined. Using stability boundary locus method in frequency domain the fractional order controller parameters are tuned and then with drawing bode diagram in frequency domain accessing to desired gain and phase margin are shown. Numerical examples are given to illustrate the shapes of the stabilizing region and to show the design procedure.

Keywords: Fractional controller, Lead compensator, Stabilityregions, Stability boundary locus

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Authors: Yi-Fang Hung, Jinn-Tsyy Lai

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Lycopene, which can be extracted from plants and is very popular for fruit intake, is restricted for healthy food development due to its high price. On the other hand, it will get great safety concerns, especially in the food or cosmetic application, if the raw material of lycopene is produced by chemical synthesis. In this project, we provide a key technology to bridge the limitation as mentioned above. Based on the abundant bioresources of BCRC (Bioresource Collection and Research Center, Taiwan), a promising lycopene output will be anticipated by the introduction of fermentation technology along with industry-related core energy. Our results showed that addition of tween 80(0.2%) and span 20 produced higher amount of lycopene. And piperidine, when was added at 48hr to the cultivation medium, could promote lycopene excretion effectively also.

Keywords: photosynthetic bacteria, lycopene, tween80, Piperidine

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Authors: Pattrarat Teamkao, Paitip Thiravetyan

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The aim of this work was to investigate the potential of soil microorganisms and the burhead plant, as well as the combination of soil microorganisms and plants to remediate monoethylene glycol (MEG), diethylene glycol (DEG), and triethylene glycol (TEG) in synthetic wastewater. The result showed that a system containing both burhead plant and soil microorganisms had the highest efficiency in EGs removal. Around 100% of MEG and DEG and 85% of TEG were removed within 15 days of the experiments. However, the burhead plant had higher removal efficiency than soil microorganisms for MEG and DEG but the same for TEG in the study systems. The removal rate of EGs in the study system related to the molecular weight of the compounds and MEG, the smallest glycol, was removed faster than DEG and TEG by both the burhead plant and soil microorganisms in the study system.

Keywords: Ethylene glycol, burhead plant, soil microorganisms, phytoremediation

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Authors: S. Krustev, V. Angelova, K. Ivanov, P. Zaprjanova

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It is generally accepted that only about ten microelements are vitally important to all plants, and approximately ten more elements are proved to be significant for the development of some species. The main methods for their determination in soils are the atomic spectral techniques - AAS and ICP-OAS. Critical stage to obtain correct results for content of heavy metals and nutrients in the soil is the process of mineralization. A comparative study of the most widely spread methods for soil sample preparation for determination of some trace elements was carried out. Three most commonly used methods for sample preparation were used as follows: ISO11466, EPA Method 3051 and BDS ISO 14869-1. Their capabilities were assessed and their bounds of applicability in determining the levels of the most important microelements in agriculture were defined.

Keywords: Comparative study, mineralization methods, trace elements.

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Authors: Barot Jagruti

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The textile industry plays a major role in the economy of India and on the other side of the coin it is the major source for water pollution. As azo dyes is the largest dye class they are extensively used in many fields such as textile industry, leather tanning industry, paper production, food, color photography, pharmaceuticals and medicine, cosmetic, hair colorings, wood staining, agricultural, biological and chemical research etc. In addition to these, they can have acute and/or chronic effects on organisms depending on their concentration and length of exposure when they discharged as effluent in the environment. The aim of this study was to assess the genotoxic and histotoxic potentials of environmentally relevant concentrations of C. I. Reactive Red 120 (RR 120) on Catla catla, important edible freshwater fingerlings. For this, healthy Catla catla fingerlings were procured from the Government Fish Farm and acclimatized in 100 L capacity and continuously aerated glass aquarium in laboratory for 15 days. According to APHA some physic-chemical parameters were measured and maintained such as temperature, pH, dissolve oxygen, alkalinity, total hardness. Water along with excreta had been changed every 24 hrs. All fingerlings were fed artificial food palates once a day @ body weight. After 15 days fingerlings were grouped in 5 (10 in each) and exposed to various concentrations of RR 120 (Control, 10, 20, 30 and 40 mg.l-1) and samples (peripheral blood and gills, kidney) were collected and analyzed at 96 hrs. All results were compared with the control. Micronuclei (MN), nuclear buds (NB), fragmented-apoptotic (FA) and bi-nucleated (BN) cells in blood smears and in tissues (gills and kidney cells) were observed. Prominent histopathological alterations were noticed in gills such as aneurism, hyperplasia, degenerated central axis, lifting of gill epithelium, curved secondary gill lamellae etc. Similarly kidney showed some detrimental changes like shrunken glomeruli with increased periglomerular space, degenerated renal tubules etc. Both haematological and histopathological changes clearly reveal the toxic potential of RR 120. This work concludes that water pollution assessment can be done by these two biomarkers which provide baseline to the further chromosomal or molecular work.

Keywords: Catla catla, genotoxicity, histopathlogicalchanges, RR 120azo dye.

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Authors: Michal Kopcek, Tomas Skulavik, Michal Kebisek, Gabriela Krizanova

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The operation of nuclear power plants involves continuous monitoring of the environment in their area. This monitoring is performed using a complex data acquisition system, which collects status information about the system itself and values of many important physical variables e.g. temperature, humidity, dose rate etc. This paper describes a proposal and optimization of communication that takes place in teledosimetric system between the central control server responsible for the data processing and storing and the decentralized measuring stations, which are measuring the physical variables. Analyzes of ongoing communication were performed and consequently the optimization of the system architecture and communication was done.

Keywords: Communication protocol, transmission optimization, data acquisition.

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Authors: Jie Zhang, Qianyu Guo, Tieyi Zhang, Zhiyong Feng, Xiaohong Li

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The widespread popularity of mobile devices and the development of artificial intelligence (AI) have led to the widespread adoption of deep learning (DL) in Android apps. Compared with traditional Android apps (traditional apps), deep learning based Android apps (DL-based apps) need to use more third-party application programming interfaces (APIs) to complete complex DL inference tasks. However, existing methods (e.g., FlowDroid) for detecting sensitive information leakage in Android apps cannot be directly used to detect DL-based apps as they are difficult to detect third-party APIs. To solve this problem, we design DLtrace, a new static information flow analysis tool that can effectively recognize third-party APIs. With our proposed trace and detection algorithms, DLtrace can also efficiently detect privacy leaks caused by sensitive APIs in DL-based apps. Additionally, we propose two formal definitions to deal with the common polymorphism and anonymous inner-class problems in the Android static analyzer. Using DLtrace, we summarize the non-sequential characteristics of DL inference tasks in DL-based apps and the specific functionalities provided by DL models for such apps. We conduct an empirical assessment with DLtrace on 208 popular DL-based apps in the wild and found that 26.0% of the apps suffered from sensitive information leakage. Furthermore, DLtrace outperformed FlowDroid in detecting and identifying third-party APIs. The experimental results demonstrate that DLtrace expands FlowDroid in understanding DL-based apps and detecting security issues therein.

Keywords: Mobile computing, deep learning apps, sensitive information, static analysis.

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Authors: Michael Russelle S. Alvarez, Noel S. Quiming, Francisco M. Heralde

Abstract:

This study aims to: a) obtain ethanolic (95% EtOH) and aqueous extracts of Selaginella elmeri, Christella dentata, Elatostema sinnatum, Curculigo capitulata, Euphorbia hirta, Murraya koenigii, Alpinia speciosa, Cymbopogon citratus, Eucalyptus globulus, Jatropha curcas, Psidium guajava, Gliricidia sepium, Ixora coccinea and Capsicum frutescens and screen them for larvicidal activities against Aedes aegypti (Linn.) and Aedes albopictus (Skuse) larvae; b) to fractionate the most active extract and determine the most active fraction; c) to determine the larvicidal properties of the most active extract and fraction against by computing their percentage mortality, LC50, and LC90 after 24 and 48 hours of exposure; and d) to determine the nature of the components of the active extracts and fractions using phytochemical screening. Ethanolic (95% EtOH) and aqueous extracts of the selected plants will be screened for potential larvicidal activity against Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus using standard procedures and 1% malathion and a Piper nigrum based ovicide-larvicide by the Department of Science and Technology as positive controls. The results were analyzed using One-Way ANOVA with Tukey’s and Dunnett’s test. The most active extract will be subjected to partial fractionation using normal-phase column chromatography, and the fractions subsequently screened to determine the most active fraction. The most active extract and fraction were subjected to dose-response assay and probit analysis to determine the LC50 and LC90 after 24 and 48 hours of exposure. The active extracts and fractions will be screened for phytochemical content. The ethanolic extracts of C. citratus, E. hirta, I. coccinea, G. sepium, M. koenigii, E globulus, J. curcas and C. frutescens exhibited significant larvicidal activity, with C. frutescens being the most active. After fractionation, the ethyl acetate fraction was found to be the most active. Phytochemical screening of the extracts revealed the presence of alkaloids, tannins, indoles and steroids. A formulation using talcum powder–300 mg fraction per 1 g talcum powder–was made and again tested for larvicidal activity. At 2 g/L, the formulation proved effective in killing all of the test larvae after 24 hours.

Keywords: Larvicidal activity screening, partial purification, dose-response assay, Capsicum frutescens.

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Authors: Eleftheria Tzamali, Panayiota Poirazi, Ioannis G. Tollis, Martin Reczko

Abstract:

Stable bacterial polymorphism on a single limiting resource may appear if between the evolved strains metabolic interactions take place that allow the exchange of essential nutrients [8]. Towards an attempt to predict the possible outcome of longrunning evolution experiments, a network based on the metabolic capabilities of homogeneous populations of every single gene knockout strain (nodes) of the bacterium E. coli is reconstructed. Potential metabolic interactions (edges) are allowed only between strains of different metabolic capabilities. Bacterial communities are determined by finding cliques in this network. Growth of the emerged hypothetical bacterial communities is simulated by extending the metabolic flux balance analysis model of Varma et al [2] to embody heterogeneous cell population growth in a mutual environment. Results from aerobic growth on 10 different carbon sources are presented. The upper bounds of the diversity that can emerge from single-cloned populations of E. coli such as the number of strains that appears to metabolically differ from most strains (highly connected nodes), the maximum clique size as well as the number of all the possible communities are determined. Certain single gene deletions are identified to consistently participate in our hypothetical bacterial communities under most environmental conditions implying a pattern of growth-condition- invariant strains with similar metabolic effects. Moreover, evaluation of all the hypothetical bacterial communities under growth on pyruvate reveals heterogeneous populations that can exhibit superior growth performance when compared to the performance of the homogeneous wild-type population.

Keywords: Bacterial polymorphism, clique identification, dynamic FBA, evolution, metabolic interactions.

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Authors: Abdullah Alotaiq

Abstract:

The transition to low-carbon power generation is essential for mitigating climate change and achieving sustainability. This process, however, entails considerable costs, and understanding the factors influencing these costs is critical. This is necessary to cater to the increasing demand for low-carbon electricity across heating, industry, and transportation sectors. A crucial aspect of this transition is identifying cost-effective and feasible paths for decarbonization, which is integral to global climate mitigation efforts. It is concluded that hybrid solutions, combining different low-carbon technologies, are optimal for minimizing costs and enhancing flexibility. These solutions also address the challenges associated with phasing out existing fossil fuel-based power plants and broadening the spectrum of low-carbon power generation options.

Keywords: Review, power generation, energy transition, decarbonization.

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Authors: Hannu Nurmesniemi, Mikko Mäkelä, Risto Pöykiö, Olli Dahl

Abstract:

Due to the low heavy metal concentrations, the bottom ash from a 32 MW municipal district heating plant was determined to be a potential forest fertilizer as such. However, additional Ca would be needed, because its Ca concentration of 1.9- % (d.w.) was lower than the statutory Finnish minimum limit value of 6.0-% (d.w.) for Ca in forest fertilizer. Due to the elevated As concentration (53.0 mg/kg; d.w.) in the fly ash from the 32 MW municipal district heating plant, and Cr concentration (620 mg/kg; d.w.) in the ash fraction (i.e. mixture of the bottom ash and fly ash) from the 6 MW municipal district heating plant, which exceed the limit values of 30 mg/kg (d.w.) and 300 mg/kg (d.w.) for As and Cr, respectively, these residues are not suitable as forest fertilizers. Although these ash fractions cannot be used as a forest fertilizer as such, they can be used for the landscaping of landfills or in industrial and other areas that are closed to the public. However, an environmental permit is then needed.

Keywords: Ash, fertilizer, peat, forest residue, waste

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