Temperature data logger for Industrial Process

One of the challenges in industrial process monitoring is the ability to take accurate measurement of variables. In today’s world where industries are sited remotely due to proximity to raw materials or for the purpose of safety of human habitation, there’s needed to infer measurement of variables and store data for retrieval at convenience or transmitted through telemetry for the purpose of control and automation. This is made possible using data acquisition system. A multi-channel data logging system is crucial and valuable in many Engineering applications especially where the environmental monitoring plays a substantial role. Implementation of a low cost, universal data logger based on the AVR Atmega328 and the DFRobot SD Module is described in this work. Test implementation was performed at the technology center of one of the world’s leading oilfield service companies to demonstrate industrial application. The design and implementation of the portable low-cost data-logger was achieved using few electronic components. The hardware part includes power supply, temperature sensor, SD card, and an Arduino micro-controller which contain the program used in the data logging. The system is ideal for battery operated low power data logging applications. Keywords: Logging, data, Atmega328, Module, Arduino, System. DOI: 10.7176/CEIS/13-3-04 Publication date: July 31st 202

Effect of Monosodium Glutamate Orally Administered to Male Wister Rats on Some Biochemical Parameters

Monosodium glutamate (MSG) of brand name “Ajinomoto” was purchased from Nsukka Market and was administered to wistar rat. Twenty four wistar rats were randomly divided into four groups housed in different cages.  The rats were administered with varying doses (500, 1000 and 1500 mg/kg body weights) of MSG. The effect on some haematological parameters; WBC, PCV, Hb, sodium ion (Na+), potassium ion (K+) blood urea nitrogen (BUN) chloride ion (Cl-) creatinine (Cr2+), and bicarbonate (HCO3-) were investigated. There was an insignificant difference (P > 0.05) in PCV, Hb and WBC levels of the test groups, compared with the control group. The serum electrolyte; creatinine (Cr2+), of the group administered 1500mg/kg body weight of MSG showed significant difference (P<0.05), when compared with control while other serum electrolytes sodium, potassium, urea, carbonate and chloride showed no difference (P>0.05). Keywords: Monosodium glutamate (MSG), “Ajinomoto”, Serum electrolytes, haematological parameter

A STUDY OF THE CAUSES OF NONCOMPLIANCE WITH PUBLIC PROCUREMENT ACT, 2007 AMONG PUBLIC HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS IN SOUTHWEST, NIGERIA

The enormous investment through grants for infrastructures development in Higher Education Institutions (HEI) in Nigeria calls for integrity and accountability in the procurement process. However, questions have been raised as to judicious use of the funds, and it was doubtful if the institutions comply with the due process. This study examined the causes of non-compliance with the Public Procurement Act (2007) in the procurement of building projects in all public HEI in Southwest Nigeria. In all, 44 institutions comprising 17 Universities, 17 Polytechnics, and 10 Colleges of Education were used for the study. The opinions of the institutions’ Procurement Officers on the causes of non-compliance with the Act in their procurement process were sought using a structured questionnaire. The results revealed that non-compliance with the Act was due to inadequate knowledge of the Act, non-employment of qualified and experienced Procurement Officer, insufficient publicity of the Act, and non-existence of corporate governance leading to poor management of procurement record and non-provision of incentive. Conclusively, engagement of Procurement Officers having: the right educational and professional qualifications, understanding of the Act, sufficient cognate working experience, and occupying management position will enhance compliance. Builders and Engineers managed project procurement records better than other professionals. Consequently, in addition to adopting an organizational culture with corporate governance structure that supports engagement of the right and qualified personnel to handle procurement, encourages them to perform at their best and rewards excellence service by giving incentives, and operates within an administrative environment devoid of corruption

Record Keeping Management for Effective Administration of Secondary Schools in Nigeria

The aim of the study was to find out the extent to which management practices in record keeping will affect the effectiveness of secondary schools administration in Nigeria. A descriptive survey design was used and a sample of 255 staff members randomly selected from all 15 schools of the Baptist Mission Schools of the Nigerian Baptist Convention was used for the study. Two hypotheses guided the study. Data were collected using a questionnaire entitled “School Record Keeping Management Practices Questionnaire (SRKMPQ)”. Data were analysed using multiple regressions and t-test statistics. The result of the study revealed management practices in record management had a significant relationship in the effectiveness of secondary schools administration. The management practices variables made significant contribution in the determining effective secondary school administration in Nigeria through record keeping.  Premised on the findings of the study, it was recommended that each school administrator should set out guidance that will encourage appropriate standards for record keeping. Other suggestion included sufficient training and retraining on the importance of the records keeping, the technicalities of managing them and finally adoption of information and commutation technology for school record keeping management. Keywords: Record Keeping, Management, Managerial Practices, Administration, Secondary Schools DOI: 10.7176/JEP/12-1-10 Publication date: January 31st 202

Accumulation of PCBs and Infections of Parasitic helminthes in Synodontis filamentosus (Boulenger, 1901) and Tilapia zillii (Gervais, 1848) of Epe Lagoon, Lagos, Nigeria

The study was carried out on 120 Synodontis filamentosus (11 – 26.5cm, 22 - 88g) and 120 Tilapia zillii (15 - 21cm, 67 – 187g) captured from Epe Lagoon, Lagos State, Nigeria. The aim was to comparatively analyze the bioaccumulation of polybiphenyl chlorides (PCBs) and prevalence of parasitic helminthes in S. filamentosus and T. zillii relative to their respective habits. The comparison was done using indices such as bioaccumulation factors, biota-soil accumulation factors, and parasite prevalence. Profiles of PCB accumulation showed that T. zillii followed by their endoparasites accumulated outstanding concentrations, suggesting that T. zillii might be a greater bioaccumulator of PCBs than S. filamentosus. Significant biota-soil accumulation factors observed in the T. zilliii and their endoparasites were accompanied by significant sorption capacities of PCBs into the soil at impacted locations of the lagoon. This implies that T. zillii accumulated significant PCB from the soil and shared with its endoparasites, justifying host-parasite xenobiotic transfer. S. filamentosus had higher levels of parasitic infections than T. zillii, males of both species were more infected than the females. The intestine and liver tissues of S. filamentosus showed greater alterations than the tissues of T. zillii. Findings showed that S. filamentosus is a better bioindicator in histopathological studies while T. zillii is a better bioaccumulator

PROJECT MANAGEMENT A PANACEA TO IMPROVING THE PERFORMANCE OF CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS IN OGUN STATE, NIGERIA

The parameters for measuring the performance of project managers on any construction project are time, cost, quality, health and safety, meeting requirements of the owners and satisfaction of stakeholders. This study was conducted in Ogun state to ascertain the effects of project manager on construction works and project delivery in Nigeria. Both qualitative and quantitative data were obtained. A cross-sectional survey research design was used. A survey of randomly selected samples of 32 professionals, questionnaires was used to collect data from Architects, Civil Engineers, Builders and Quantity Surveyors practicing in the state. The result of the findings shows that effective engagement of project managers on project ensures that project criteria are achieved both at the preliminary and construction stages of projects. It is concluded that there is need to engage the services of project managers in projects for better efficiencies and quality delivery of projects. It is however recommended that project managers should be properly trained and engage in continuous professional development to be abreast with latest project management strategie

Aspidogastrea africanus Infections, comparative assessment of BTEX and heavy metals Bioaccumulation, and histopathological alterations as biomarker response in Chrysichthys nigrodigitatus (Lacépède, 1803) of Lekki Lagoon, Nigeria

The study was carried out on 120 randomly selected fresh specimens of Chrysichthys ni- grodigitatus (males and females of different trophic levels) from Lekki lagoon, Lagos, Nige- ria. The aim was to investigate the heavy metals and endoparasitic infection in the fish. We compared the impacts of both stressors on the liver and intestine of C. nigrodigitatus. Water samples were tested for pH, dissolved oxygen (DO), salinity, electrical conductiv- ity, total dissolved solids using a multiprobe meter. Nitrate, nitrite, phosphorus, ammonia, total suspended solids and colour were measured using VR 50 0 0 spectrophotometer. Alka- linity, acidity, biological oxygen demand (BOD) and chloride were measured via Titrimetry method. Chemical oxygen demand (COD) was measured via a closed reflux titration., and turbidity was measured via a VR 2010. Aspidogastrea africanus was the only parasitic in- fection detected in C. nigrodigitatus; though of low intensity. We also observed low heavy metal levels in the environmental media tested. However, the study showed that the liver and intestinal tissues of C. nigrodigitatus were slightly impacted by the stressors even at low levels. We therefore suspect synergy between Aspidogasrea infection and heavy met- als toxicity. We recommend a further biomonitoring of the aquatic environment in order to ascertain the actual causative factors contributing to tissue injuries in the fish. Findings will help mitigate future aggravation of the tissue toxicity. Low levels of Aspidogastrea in- fection is an early prognostic information against outbreak of the disease in the aquatic environment

Comparative partition coefficients of BTEX and OCPs between host Synodontis clarias and parasite Wenyonia acuminata

Background: The study was aimed at comparing the bioaccumulation of BTEX and organochlorine pesticides (OCP) in the intestine of host fish—Synodontis clarias relative to water and in its parasite—Wenyonia acuminata relative to host intestine. The study was carried out in Lekki lagoon, Nigeria, between April and August, 2017. BTEX was analyzed in water, fish, and parasite tissues using the EPA method 8260B Agilent 7890B gas chromatograph coupled to a mass spectrophotometer (GC-MS). Organochlorophosphate (OCP) was analyzed in tested media using Agilent 7890B gas chromatograph coupled to flame ionization detector (FID). Results: High concentrations of most BTEX components such as benzene, toluene, chlorobenzene, ethylbenzene, metaand para-xylene (m + p-xylene), and ortho-xylene (o-xylene) bioaccumulated into the intestinal tissues of S. clarias from the water medium. This is partly attributable to the fact that the S. clarias is a detritus and bottom feeder and to the hydrophilic properties of the components of BTEX. Despite the significant concentrations of benzene, toluene, and chlorobenzene accumulated in the intestine of S. clarias, no intestine-parasite partition coefficient was observed in the W. acuminata, i.e., the chemicals were not accumulated by the intestinal parasite. This is attributable to very low bioaccumulation factors of the chemicals in W. acuminata. W. acuminata exhibited significant bioaccumulation of 4,4- DDT, endosulfan 1, aldrin, and heptachlor, irrespective of their concentrations in the water and intestine of S. clarias. This indicates high affinity for the OCPs in the parasites. Conclusion: Synodontis clarias of Lekki lagoon showed higher vulnerability to the BTEX than the OCPs in the aquatic habitat. This implies that Lekki lagoon was impacted by oil-related anthropogenic activities. Weyonia acuminata exhibited some tendency to alleviate concentrations of the OCPs in S. clarias. It is more imperative to mitigate the activities that release BTEX into the aquatic environmen

Assessment of the contribution of TEX air pollutants from Nigeria’s petroleum refineries to the ambient air quality: Part II

Environmental hazards associated with release of emission from petroleum refineries have caused serious concerns for the host communities. The study focused on the assessment of the contribution of Nigerian refineries to the ambient air quality. Total emission of toluene, ethyl benzene and xylene (TEX) from Nigerian twenty-six (four existing and twenty-two proposed) refineries were estimated using emission factor approach, under no-control measure (worst case scenario) option. Results showed that the four existing refineries emit 2.90 × 1013 tons of toluene, 1.93 × 1013 tons ethyl benzene and 1.06 × 1013 tons per year while the twenty-two proposed refineries have the capacity of releasing annually 9.17 × 1013 tons of toluene, 6.69 × 1013 tons of ethyl benzene and .95 x 1013 tons of xylene. If operated at full capacity, the total estimated TEX emission from the existing refineries stood at 5.89 × 1013 tons/year while the proposed refineries have the potential of adding additional 2.01 × 1014 tons/year. These concentrations were considered as environmental menace that could have adverse health challenge of the residents of the host communities. Some technologically driven measures to control and subsequently reduce TEX emission from these refineries were suggested

A phase 2 trial of consolidation pembrolizumab following concurrent chemoradiation for patients with unresectable stage III non–small cell lung cancer: Hoosier Cancer Research Network LUN 14-179

Background Five-year overall survival (OS) for patients with unresectable stage III non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is poor. Until recently, a standard of care was concurrent chemoradiation alone. Patients with metastatic NSCLC treated with anti–programmed death 1 antibodies have demonstrated improved OS. This trial evaluated pembrolizumab as consolidation therapy after concurrent chemoradiation in patients with unresectable stage III disease. Methods Patients with unresectable stage III NSCLC received concurrent chemoradiation with cisplatin and etoposide, cisplatin and pemetrexed, or carboplatin and paclitaxel and 59.4 to 66.6 Gy of radiation. Patients with nonprogression of disease were enrolled and received pembrolizumab (200 mg intravenously every 3 weeks for up to 12 months). The primary endpoint was the time to metastatic disease or death (TMDD). Secondary endpoints included progression-free survival (PFS) and OS. Results The median follow-up for 93 patients (92 for efficacy) was 32.2 months (range, 1.2-46.6 months). The median TMDD was 30.7 months (95% confidence interval [CI], 18.7 months to not reached), which was significantly longer than the historical control of 12 months (P < .0001). The median PFS was 18.7 months (95% CI, 12.4-33.8 months), and the median OS was 35.8 months (95% CI, 24.2 months to not reached). The 1-, 2-, and 3-year OS estimates were 81.2%, 62.0%, and 48.5%, respectively. Forty patients (43.5%) completed 12 months of treatment (median number of cycles, 13.5). Symptomatic pneumonitis (grade 2 or higher) was noted in 16 patients (17.2%); these cases included 4 grade 3 events (4.3%), 1 grade 4 event (1.1%), and 1 grade 5 event (1.1%). Conclusions Consolidation pembrolizumab after concurrent chemoradiation improves TMDD, PFS, and OS in comparison with historical controls of chemoradiation alone. Rates of grade 3 to 5 pneumonitis were similar to those reported with chemoradiation alone