Green synthesis of zinc nanoparticles using Ipomoea asarifolia leaves extract and its adsorption properties for the removal of dyes

In this paper, a green method is reported for the synthesis and characterization of zinc nanoparticles using Ipomoea asarifolia leaf extract as reducing and capping agent together with polyethylene glycol (PEG-10000) as stabilizing agent. The biosynthesized zinc nanoparticles were characterized by UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM); and were used as adsorbent for the removal of Bromophenol blue (BPB), and Eriochrome black T (EBT) dyes. Isotherms, kinetics and thermodynamics of the adsorption process were studied with the view to understand the adsorption mechanism. The adsorption isotherms were closely described by Freundlich isotherm model with correlation coefficient (R2) of 0.99. The adsorption kinetics data were well fitted by the pseudo-second-order rate model with high regression coefficient (0.998). The intra particle diffusion of BPB anId EBT on ZnNPs represents the rate-limiting step. The adsorption capacity increases with the increase in temperature (from 298 to 318K) and thermodynamic calculations suggested that the adsorption of the dyes onto ZnNPs is an endothermic process with ΔH values of 10.78kJ/mol for BPB and 14.14 kJ/mol for EBT respectively.Keywords: Adsorption, Bromophenol blue, Eriochrome black T, Ipomoea asarifolia, Zinc nanoparticle

Design and simulation of cross-block structured radar absorbing metamaterial based on carbonyl iron powder composite

This paper reports the design and simulation of a three layered cross-block structured radar absorbing metamaterial (RAMM). The effective electromagnetic parameters of the designed structure are highly dependent on its geometric dimensions, subsequently behaving as a metamaterial. COMSOL Multiphysics simulation software was used to analyze the frequency dependent absorption response of the designed RAMM. The input impedance of multilayered absorber and strong fluctuation theory equations are used to theoretically verify the absorption response of the RAMM. The simulated result showed that the reflectivity of the RAMM is below -10dB from 4.2 – 18.0 GHz frequency band with absorber thickness of 4.2mm. The calculated reflectivity result is in close agreement with the simulated result, thus confirming the validity of the design. The operational bandwidth to thickness ratio of this RAMM was found to be 13.029 making it better than the recently reported one with a value of 9.745 and thus contributing significantly in overcoming the contradicting demand of broadband and thin thickness.Keywords: Bandwidth, COMSOL Multiphysics, Metamaterial, Radar Absorbing Metamaterial, Reflectivit

Phytoremediation of Lead and Chromium using Sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) in Contaminated Soils of IBB University, Lapai, Nigeria

Heavy metals are known to have adverse effect on ecosystem and human health when ingested beyondtolerant limit as such phytoremediation utilizes plants to remediate metal polluted areas. The objectives of this study is to evaluate the potentials of sunflower in phytoremediation of chromium and lead from contaminated soil and to examine the rate of accumulation in roots, stems and leaves of sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.). Results showed that the plant has high concentration of Pb (1.77 mg/kg) at 10 and 12 (WAP) and there was no significant difference in the absorption rate throughoutthe experimental period, while at 2 WAP low concentration of Pb (1.52 mg/kg) was observed. The accumulation rate in the plant parts shows significant difference (p<0.05) at 2 and 6 WAP. The roots recorded the highest accumulation rate of both Pb and Cr 2.04 mg/kg and 1.60 mg/kg respectively, while the leaves recorded the least values 1.12 mg/kg and 0.09 mg/kg of Pb and Cr respectively. From results obtained heavy metal accumulation in sunflower was observed to be in the form leaves<stems<roots. Finally, sunflower has demonstrated to be a good absorber of Pb and Cr. Hence, it can be used in the phytoremediation of heavy metal contaminated soils

Extracting Android Applications Data for Anomaly-based Malware Detection

In order to apply any machine learning algorithm or classifier, it is fundamentally important to first and foremost collect relevant features. This is most important in the field of dynamic analysis approach to anomaly malware detection systems. In this approach, the behaviour patterns of applications while in execution are analysed. The behaviour features that Android as a system allows access permissions to depend on the type of device; either rooted or not. Android is based on the Linux kernel at the bottom layer, all layers on top of the kernel run without privileged mode. Thus, if a behaviour feature vector is created from features of Android (Application Programming Interface) API in unrooted mode, then only system information made available by Android can be used. In this paper, a Device Monitoring system for an unrooted device is developed and used to collect Android application data. The application data is used to build feature vectors that describes the Android application behaviour for Anomaly malware detection. This application is able to collect essential information from Android application such as installed applications and services running within the device before or after the Monitoring application was started, the date/time stamp, calls initiated from the device, calls received by the device, sent short message services (SMSs), SMSs received, and the status of the device as at when the event took place. This information is loggedin a comma separated value (.csv) file format and stored on the SDcard of the device. The .csv file is converted toattribute relation file format (.arff); the format acceptable by WEKA machine learning tool. This.arff file of feature vectors is then used as input to the Classifier in the Android malware detection system

Assessment of natural groundwater recharge in Tudun Wada Local Government Kano State, Nigeria

Water is important natural resources on earth which cater for all human endeavors. Estimation of groundwater recharge is an essential for efficient groundwater resources management. This research entails the assessment of natural groundwater recharge in Tudun Wada Kano, Nigeria. This study carried out on 2015 attempted to derive an empirical relationship to determine the groundwater recharge from rainfall in Tudun Wada based on seasonal groundwater balance using data from 2002 to 2013. This empirical relationship similar to Chaturvedi formula was derived by fitting the estimated values of rainfall recharge and the corresponding values of rainfall in the monsoon season through the non-linear regression techniques. The variance was found to be 29.50 %, and the recharge of groundwater commences at P = 15.28 inches and the relative errors was found to range from 0.95 to 28.43%.Keywords: groundwater; rainfall; recharge; wet season; water balance; empirical relatio

Coupling BIM and game engine technologies for construction knowledge enhancement

Interactions and collaboration between parties in construction projects are often characterised by misunderstandings and poor information exchange. Game engine technologies, when employed with building information modelling (BIM), can help address these shortcomings. Quite often, the visualisation capabilities of BIM models are not explored fully partly because of their limited interactive capability. While game engines are powerful in visualisation and interactions in the gaming industry, the literature suggests a lack of understanding of the applicability of the same in construction. This study investigates the potential of the use of game engines in construction practice which culminated in a framework that can guide the implementation of the same in enhancing interactive building walkthroughs

Collection of broodstock and juveniles of Macrobrachium vollenhovenii from the wild

A total of 457 broodstock and 143,000 juveniles of Macrobrachium vollenhovenii were collected at Isheri Olofin area and Okunmanya River over a period of time. They were transported live to the shrimp hatchery of NIOMR in Lagos. Live transportation of the broodstock of M.vollenhovenii with body weight ranging from 71.0-264.5g in liter-capacity plastic containers half-filled with water, recorded 98-100% survival rate between 80-110 minutes transportation time. However, live transportation of the juvenile in 50 liters capacity plastic containers without water recorded survival rates ranging from 20-66% while those carried with water and aerated recorded 12.5-93.75%. An air conditioned vehicle was used during the live transportation. Higher mortality rate was recorded for the juvenile than the broodstocks due to large number transported in additoin to the small-size gear used for trapping the jiveniles. The study has developed a simple technology for the collection and transportation of live specimens of broodstock and juveniles of M. vollenhovenii. Efforts will be made to increase survival of the juveniles through the use of larger containers and gears

Global Retinoblastoma Presentation and Analysis by National Income Level

Importance: Early diagnosis of retinoblastoma, the most common intraocular cancer, can save both a child's life and vision. However, anecdotal evidence suggests that many children across the world are diagnosed late. To our knowledge, the clinical presentation of retinoblastoma has never been assessed on a global scale. Objectives: To report the retinoblastoma stage at diagnosis in patients across the world during a single year, to investigate associations between clinical variables and national income level, and to investigate risk factors for advanced disease at diagnosis. Design, Setting, and Participants: A total of 278 retinoblastoma treatment centers were recruited from June 2017 through December 2018 to participate in a cross-sectional analysis of treatment-naive patients with retinoblastoma who were diagnosed in 2017. Main Outcomes and Measures: Age at presentation, proportion of familial history of retinoblastoma, and tumor stage and metastasis. Results: The cohort included 4351 new patients from 153 countries; the median age at diagnosis was 30.5 (interquartile range, 18.3-45.9) months, and 1976 patients (45.4) were female. Most patients (n = 3685 84.7%) were from low-and middle-income countries (LMICs). Globally, the most common indication for referral was leukocoria (n = 2638 62.8%), followed by strabismus (n = 429 10.2%) and proptosis (n = 309 7.4%). Patients from high-income countries (HICs) were diagnosed at a median age of 14.1 months, with 656 of 666 (98.5%) patients having intraocular retinoblastoma and 2 (0.3%) having metastasis. Patients from low-income countries were diagnosed at a median age of 30.5 months, with 256 of 521 (49.1%) having extraocular retinoblastoma and 94 of 498 (18.9%) having metastasis. Lower national income level was associated with older presentation age, higher proportion of locally advanced disease and distant metastasis, and smaller proportion of familial history of retinoblastoma. Advanced disease at diagnosis was more common in LMICs even after adjusting for age (odds ratio for low-income countries vs upper-middle-income countries and HICs, 17.92 95% CI, 12.94-24.80, and for lower-middle-income countries vs upper-middle-income countries and HICs, 5.74 95% CI, 4.30-7.68). Conclusions and Relevance: This study is estimated to have included more than half of all new retinoblastoma cases worldwide in 2017. Children from LMICs, where the main global retinoblastoma burden lies, presented at an older age with more advanced disease and demonstrated a smaller proportion of familial history of retinoblastoma, likely because many do not reach a childbearing age. Given that retinoblastoma is curable, these data are concerning and mandate intervention at national and international levels. Further studies are needed to investigate factors, other than age at presentation, that may be associated with advanced disease in LMICs. © 2020 American Medical Association. All rights reserved