Development and Evaluation of the Operational Parameters of a Rotary Oven

Developing an efficient rotary oven that is capable of addressing the issue of long baking duration and uneven heating distribution during baking could aid in encouraging indigenous use of the oven by small and medium scale bakeries in developing countries. This study aimed to develop and evaluate the performance of a rotary oven. Taguchi experimental design was used to investigate the influence of oven temperature (160, 180, 200°C) and oven rack speed (0, 10, 20 rpm) on the physical properties (baking time, mass, surface area, specific volume and density) of bread produced from the rotary oven. The baking capacity and efficiency of the rotary oven were 16 kg h-1 and 94%, respectively. Investigation showed that baking time ranges from 20 to 82 min, bread mass (884 to 925.7 g), surface area (1050 to 1370 cm2 ), specific volume (2.36 to 3.70 cm3 g -1 ) and density (0.25 to 0.39 g cm-3 ), respectively. The optimum baking time (20 min) was achieved at 200°C oven temperature and 10 rpm oven rack speed. The oven could be adopted for both domestic and industrial production of bread and other bakery products. Keywords: Bread, oven temperature, oven rack speed, taguchi, rotary oven

Metal-organic framework for photocatalytic reduction of carbon dioxide

The planet earth is faced with critical challenges that have threatened its continuous existence. Part of these challenges is pollution of the environment and depletion of fossil fuels. The severity of these challenges has led to the inclusion of climate action and clean and affordable energy as part of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Central to the achievement of these are the development of sustainable and renewable technologies for energy production and environmental remediation. Recent research efforts have been directed to the development of alternative strategies to combat the aforementioned challenges. The world is blessed with an abundant and inexhaustible supply of solar energy which can be utilized as alternate source of energy. Taking a cue from nature's photosynthesis led to the evolution of photocatalytic processes for energy applications. Crucial to this is the development of highly efficient materials for chemical transformations utilized for conversion and storage of solar energy. Prominent among recently investigated materials are metal organic frameworks (MOFs) whose catalytic applications have been explored for oxidation, epoxidation, and photocatalysis. Some of their unique properties which have strengthened their consideration as ideal photocatalysts are their extraordinary porosity, large surface areas, exceptional chemical functions and structural diversity, tailorable properties, and structures. All these are responsible for their adjustable ability to harvest light over a broad range, improvement in separation of electron-hole, uniform distribution of catalytic active sites, easy accessibility for catalysis to mention a few. This chapter systematically explores MOF-based photocatalysts used for reduction of CO2. The reduction strategies of MOF-based photocatalysts focusing on reduction of CO2will be addressed. The various products obtained for each of the reduction process will be considered alongside their energy applications. This review also provides future perspective addressing the applications of MOF as photocatalysts

Antioxidant Potential of Zingiber officinale Rhizome and Fagara zanthoxyloides Root Extracts and their Application in Soybean oil During Accelerated Storage

implication of synthetic antioxidants is the reason for the current intensive search for safer natural antioxidants. Hence, the total phenolic content and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity of Fagara zanthoxyloides root and Zingiber officinale rhizome have been comparatively evaluated. Zingiber officinale cold extract (GC) exhibited highest DPPH scavenging activity as well as the highest TPC while the hot extract from Fagara zanthoxyloides root (FH) had more phenolic content than its cold counterpart. Consequently, the anti-oxidative potential of refined soybean oil fortified with GC and FH was investigated at 65˚C (accelerated storage temperature) for a lenght of 24 days. Established indicators such as peroxide, p-anisidine and total oxidation value (TOTOX) were used to monitor the extent of lipid deterioration with butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) as the positive control. Generally, GC was more effective in stabilizing the soybean oil. After 24 days of storage, soybean oil fortified with GC, FH and BHA achieved 68.58%, 57.50% and 67.56% retardation in the formation of primary oxidation products respectively. The lowest TOTOX (146.38) value was also observed in GC supplemented oil, suggesting that GC could be effectively employed as a replacement for BHA in soybean oil preservation. Hence, extracts from Zingiber officinale rhizome and Fagara zanthoxyloides roots can be explored as sources of natural antioxidants for application in the food industry. Keywords: Ginger, Fagara zanthoxyloides, Soybean oil, Antioxidants, Preservation

Novel acid treated biomass: Applications in Cu2+ scavenging, Rhodamine B/Cu2+ binary solution and real textile effluent treatment

A novel adsorbent prepared from the waste of Irvingia gabonensis nut (ADN) was used for scavenging of Cu2+ from aqueous solution. Various adsorption operational parameters were investigated in order to establish the behavior of ADN before further studies. The efficacy of ADN in concurrent removal of rhodamine B (RhB) dye and Cu2+ in a binary solution of RhB/Cu2+ was also investigated. Finally the potency of ADN in the treatment of real textile effluent was ascertained. Optimum adsorption of Cu2+ occurred at pH of 5.5 and high temperature favored Cu2+ removal. Pseudo second order kinetic best described the uptake of Cu2+ onto ADN. Maximum monolayer adsorption capacity was obtained to be 103.09 mg/g. The Dubinin Radushkevich (D-R) isotherm as well as thermodynamic parameter suggests that adsorption of Cu2+ onto ADN was chemical in nature. Percentage removal of Cu2+ in single solution at optimum time was 94.70 % while synergistic effect of RhB moved this to 99.54 % removal in the binary solution. ADN was highly efficient for the removal of dye and other organic pollutants in the real textile effluent with 100 % removal of some organic pollutant

Novel acid treated biomass: Applications in Cu2+ scavenging, Rhodamine B/Cu binary solution and real textile effluent treatment

A novel adsorbent prepared from the waste of Irvingia gabonensis nut (ADN) was used for scavenging of Cu2+ from aqueous solution. Various adsorption operational parameters were investigated in order to establish the behavior of ADN before further studies. The efficacy of ADN in concurrent removal of rhodamine B (RhB) dye and Cu in a binary solution of RhB/Cu2+ was also investigated. Finally the potency of ADN in the treatment of real textile effluent was ascertained. Optimum adsorption of Cu2+ occurred at pH of 5.5 and high temperature favoured Cu removal. Pseudo second order kinetic best described the uptake of Cu2+ onto ADN. Maximum monolayer adsorption capacity was obtained to be 103.09 mg/g. The Dubinin Radushkevich (D-R) isotherm as well as thermodynamic parameter suggests that adsorption of Cu2+ onto ADN was chemical in nature. Percentage removal of Cu2+ in single solution at optimum time was 94.70 % while synergistic effect of RhB moved this to 99.54 % removal in the binary solution. ADN was highly efficient for the removal of dye and other organic pollutants in the real textile effluent with 100 % removal of some organic pollutant