Site selection for nuclear power plant in Mersing Johor

Nuclear power is considered as energy source option for future power generation in the National New Energy Policy 2010. The first nuclear power plant (NPP) construction is expected to start at 2017, and officially operated in 2025. This paper aims to propose possible candidate site areas for NPP in Mersing District, Johor. The evaluation uses the Atomic Energy Licensing Board (AELB) guideline documents as main reference, supported by regulation documents from International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). 4 safety parameters are used in the assessment – geological characteristic, air dispersion (meteorological) analysis, population data and safety characteristics. This study ranked 4 proposed areas possible candidate site area for NPP in Mersing district

Determination of surface radiation dose-rate in the environment of Kelantan State, Malaysia

Measurements of environmental surface radiation dose rate in Kelantan state, Malaysia was carried out using a portable hand held radiation survey meter and Global Positioning System (GPS). The surface radiation dose rates ranged from 44 to 500 nGy h-1. The measurements were done based on geology and soil types of the area. The mean radiation dose rate was found to be 209 ± 8 nGy h-1. Few areas of relatively enhanced activity were located in Pasir Mas, Tanah Merah and Jeli districts which have external gamma dose rates between 300 to 500 nGy h_1. An Isodose map of the state was produced using ArcGIS10 software version 10.1. To evaluate the radiological hazard due to terrestrial gamma dose, the annual effective dose equivalent (AEDE), the mean population weighted dose rate and cancer risk factor were calculated and found to be relative excess lifetime cancer risks were 1.280 mSv y-1, 18 mSv and 1.04×10-3 respectively

Effect of surface roughness and temperature on the performance of low-temperature vacuum drying with induced nucleation boiling method in dewatering stingless bees honey

The Low-Temperature Vacuum Drying with Induced Nucleation Boiling (LTVD-NB) was developed to dewater honey. However, the effects of surface roughness (SR) and temperature of the LTVD-NB for honey are still unknown. Thus, the objective of this study is to investigate the effect of SR and temperature on dewatering rate and heat transfer performance. The honey sample was heated at 40-50 °C using heater pipes with SR 0.80-11.33 µm at a 5 kPa. It was found that the dewatering rate obtained at the highest SR and temperature was five times higher than the lowest SR and temperature. By increasing the SR from 0.80 to 11.33 µm, the Heat Transfer Coefficient (HTC) increased by 143% as more nucleation sites were present on the surface. Besides, when temperature increased heat flux, bubble frequency and HTC also increased. In conclusion, the dewatering rate increases when SR and temperature increase, which is correlated with nucleation sites and bubble frequency

Evaluation and comparison of the ergonomics, performance and economics of battery-powered and engine-powered palm oil harvesting tools:cantas elektro

The Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) has introduced an engine-powered palm oil harvesting tool called CANTAS that can double the conventional harvesting output. However, there are several issues that are affecting the endurance and comfort of the harvesters. This paper discusses the comparison in the context of ergonomics, performance, and ecconomics of a battery-powered CANTAS called CANTAS Elektro, which could overcome the issues of the engine-powered CANTAS. The prototype was tested in the laboratory and the field to investigate its ergonomic factors. Test results revealed that CANTAS Elektro was more ergonomic than CANTAS as the deflection, configuration, temperature, noise, and vibration levels of the former were 38%, 42%, 59.8%, 12.7%, and 45.8–65.2% less than those of the latter, respectively. The harvesting productivity increased by 26.5% from 5.63 to 7.04 t/day, with an estimated saving of operational cost of RM1013/machine/yr. The take-home pay of workers was increased by 29% from RM81 to RM107/man-day, apart from other fringe benefits. It was proven that the battery-powered machine was more cost-effective than the engine-powered machine, in addition to other advantages such as being carbon emission-free, clean, easy to maintain, less complicated and easy to handle

Mathematical modelling of stingless bee honey dewatering using lowtemperature vacuum drying with induced nucleation bubbling

Low-temperature vacuum drying with induced nucleation boiling (LTVD-NB) was developed to dewater heat-sensitive materials such as stingless bee honey (SBH). However, its performance can be further optimised to achieve an efficient LTVD-NB operation. The objective of this paper is to investigate the most fitting drying model for dewatering SBH and to develop a suitable mathematical drying model that can be used to predict and optimise dewatering SBH using LTVD-NB. Established experimental data was used to develop the mathematical model. The data result showed that the logarithmic model had the best fit for drying SBH using LTVD-NB as compared to other models based on the highest value of R 2 and the lowest Root mean square, RMSE and reduced chi-square, χ 2 values which are 0.999988, 7.87E-05, and 1.41E-08, respectively. The model was further regressed to obtain an optimised mathematical model to better predict an LTVD-NB operation to dewater SBH. In conclusion, an optimised drying model to describe the dewatering process of SBH using the LTVD-NB method was able to be developed based on the multiple regression analysis of the obtained experimental data. Therefore, the drying model can predict the efficiency of this process just by giving the temperature and surface roughness values as input information

Mathematical Modelling of Stingless Bee Honey Dewatering using Low-Temperature Vacuum Drying with Induced Nucleation Bubbling

ow-temperature vacuum drying with induced nucleation boiling (LTVD-NB) was developed to dewater heat-sensitive materials such as stingless bee honey (SBH). However, its performance can be further optimised to achieve an efficient LTVD-NB operation. The objective of this paper is to investigate the most fitting drying model for dewatering SBH and to develop a suitable mathematical drying model that can be used to predict and optimise dewatering SBH using LTVD-NB. Established experimental data was used to develop the mathematical model. The data result showed that the logarithmic model had the best fit for drying SBH using LTVD-NB as compared to other models based on the highest value of R 2 and the lowest Root mean square, RMSE and reduced chi-square, χ 2 values which are 0.999988, 7.87E-05, and 1.41E-08, respectively. The model was further regressed to obtain an optimised mathematical model to better predict an LTVD-NB operation to dewater SBH. In conclusion, an optimised drying model to describe the dewatering process of SBH using the LTVD-NB method was able to be developed based on the multiple regression analysis of the obtained experimental data. Therefore, the drying model can predict the efficiency of this process just by giving the temperature and surface roughness values as input information

Multi-angle swirling fluidized bed drying of stingless bees pot-pollen

Pot-pollen is another stingless bee product, a mixture of pollen, honey, and bee enzyme stored in cerumen pots. Pot-pollen is protein rich and have therapeutic properties. However, they contain high moisture rendering them susceptible to microbial and fungi growth which will lead to spoilage without proper storage. Conventional methods to remove moisture includes sun drying, oven drying, and food dehydrators. However, they can be unhygienic, reduce pot-pollen quality, and lengthy drying time. Swirling fluidized bed dryer (SFBD) is a promising alternative as they have rapid drying time without damaging the nutrients. The addition of multi-angle swirling distributor (MASD) has the potential to improve drying performance without additional energy input. The current study aim to investigate the drying performance of swirling fluidized bed dryer with multi-angle distributor. Raw pot-pollen is dried in a lab scale SFBD at 3.0 m/s using single angle and multi-angle swirling distributors, 6767, 6730, and 6745. The results shown that the multi-angle swirling distributors 6730 and 6745 improved the drying performance of SFBD, by 17.1 % and 6.5 %, respectively. The best drying performance is shown by the 6730 distributor. Thus, multi-angle SFBD is able to rapidly dry the heat-sensitive stingless bee pot-pollen and represented significant improvement from single angle SFBD

Natural radioactivity in major rivers of Kelantan state, Malaysia

Assessment of natural radionuclides (238U, 232Th, and 40K) and terrestrial gamma radiation dose rates (TGRD) in major rivers of Kelantan states, Malaysia were conducted. Measurements were carried out using a portable [NaI(TI)] micro roentgen (μR) survey meter and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (ICP-MS) for in situ TGRD and the activity concentrations of 238U, 232Th, and 40K in water samples, respectively. The mean TGRD was found to be 312.98 nGy h-1 and from water samples analyzed, the mean activity concentrations of 238U, 232Th, and 40K was found to be 13.31 mBq L-1, 4.39 mBq L-1 and 1118.72 mBq L-1 which were about 3 times and slightly higher than the world average values of 5 mBq L-1 and 3 mBq L-1 respectively

Performance of Rubberized Concrete-filled Hollow Steel Column under Monotonic and Cyclic Loadings

Concrete-filled hollow steel (CFHS) has become more popular due to its advantages and benefits compared to reinforced concrete. This paper presents the experimental investigation on the performance of rubberized pozzolanic concrete-filled hollow steel column (RuPCFHS) under monotonic and cyclic lateral load in comparison to bare hollow steel column and normal concrete-filled hollow steel column (NCFHS). The test parameters included the type of concrete infill and the level of axial load. Modified rubberized pozzolanic concrete with comparable compressive strength to that of normal concrete was used. Two types of axial load conditions: no axial load and 20% axial load were considered in the testing. The test results indicate that the performance of the columns improved when concrete infill was introduced in the hollow steel. The application of axial loading also increased the capacity of the column specimens. RuPCFHS behaved with comparable performance with NCFHS in both monotonic and cyclic testing. RuPCFHS recorded the highest increment in the energy dissipation capability when 20% axial load was applied to the column when compared to the other specimens. The comparable performance indicated the possibility of RuPC as an infill material of CFHS and RuPCFHS as a structural component