Effect of Environmental Degradation on the Inhabitants of Obodo Community in Warri South Local Government Area of Delta State, Nigeria

This study examines the effect of environmental degradation on the inhabitants of Obodo community in Warri South Local Government Area of Delta State in the Niger Delta Region (NDR) of Nigeria. The study utilized structured questionnaires that were randomly administered to 105 recipients, of who 80 responded.  These respondents represent a cross-section of the stakeholders (oil industry/company workers, farmers, teachers, transporters as well as public servants). The questionnaire consisted of 20 structured questions grouped into two categories to cover various aspect of oil and gas related environmental pollutions.  Simple percentages and chi-squared test were employed in analyzing the collected data. The study showed that there were significant relationship between environmental degradation and economic hardship within Obodo community in the NDR of Nigeria.  The study recommends that Government and the various oil companies should always take steps to enhance, resuscitate and improve on the environmental related challenges of the communities within the Niger Delta

CLIMATIC CHANGE AND PESTICIDES USAGE: A BRIEF REVIEW OF THEIR IMPLICATIVE RELATIONSHIP

Pesticides are very important for the prevention, mitigation, destruction of pests and diseases for the improvement of agricultural efficiency due to their contributions to agricultural yields and improving the standard of living. Considering the dynamicity and influence of weather in our everyday lives, it is obvious that the effects of pesticides might also be a contributing factor and vice versa. Climate change could have an influence on both pesticides’ usage, as well as the losses of pesticides to the environment. Presently, the issue of climate change is one of the furthermost intellectual challenging issues facing the entire human race. Therefore, we must continue to protect our environment from these unfavorable effects of climate change by extremely dipping the emissions of greenhouse gases especially via the use of chemical substances such as pesticides. In this review study, we will briefly attempt to give an insight and try to bridge the uncertainty surrounding the effects of the use of pesticides and its relationship to climate change effects on the environment

Optoelectronic Properties of Chemically Synthesized Copper Cadmium Sulphide Thin Films

Copper cadmium sulphide (CuCdS) thin film (TFs) is one of the most important ternary semiconductors for the development of various modern optoelectronic devices. In this study CuCdS TFs were deposited on soda-lime glass substrates utilizing chemical bath deposition (CBD) procedure at normal room temperature. The deposited materials were characterized by UV-Vis spectrophotometer and four-point (4-point) probes for its optical and electrical (O&E) properties. The band gap (BG) energy was determined to be 2.36 eV using the absorption spectrum fitting (ASF) method. Optical constants such as refractive index (n), extinction coefficient (k), real (Ɛᵣ) and imaginary (Ɛᵢ) dielectric constants, dielectric loss (tan ϕ), electrical susceptibility (Xc) have been calculated at a wavelength () of 900 nm. The film also demonstrates an optical transmittance of above 75% at wavelength greater than 900 nm. The electrical resistivity and conductivity were estimated to be 2.5 Ω/cm and 0.4 (Ω/cm)-1 respectively. These determined properties confirmed CuCdS TFs as a potential ternary material for various optoelectronic applications

Mean Annual Weather Cycles of some Weather Variables over Warri, Delta State, Nigeria during 2009 to 2018

The importance of analysing the weather cycles of any region cannot be over emphasized considering the dynamic nature of weather and its undesirable impacts on the environment. This study examines the mean annual cyclic behaviour of some weather variables over Warri, Delta State, Nigeria using recent weather data from NiMet for a period of ten years (2009 to 2018). It was observed from the cyclic behaviours from the various weather variables for the ten years period under consideration, that the annual maximum and minimum temperature, vapour pressure and cloud amount cycles follow similar trends, likewise the undulation of the annual soil heat flux cycles. The annual rainfall, wind speed, maximum and minimum relative humidity cycles were found to fluctuate in different patterns. In periods of limited rainfall, relative humidity is at the threshold of ~ 50.0%. A roughly curvilinear fit was noticed between the annual rainfall and relative humidity. While, rainfall appears insensitive to relative humidity changes during the months with lower relative humidity, which tends to be linear during the months with higher relative humidity. Hence, as the rainfall amount increases, there is an increasing tendency towards a curvilinear relationship. The occurrence of the maximum in temperature preceding that of wind speed indicates that the prevalent winds over Warri could be thermally obsessed. The results obtained would assist in providing appropriate panacea to mitigating weather induced environmental hazards, thereby improving agriculture, efficient economic productivity and advance scientific research

Growth and characterization of copper cadmium sulphide thin films

Copper cadmium sulphide thin film was deposited onto glass (soda-lime) substrates using chemical bath deposition (CBD) technique at room temperature. Chemical, optical, structural, and microstructural features were examined via the Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray Diffraction (XRD), UV-Vis Spectroscopy, and High-resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy (HRTEM). FTIR revealed that the associated chemical bond was below the 900 cm-1 marks. The optical band-gap of 2.36 eV was estimated from the absorption analysis. X-ray diffraction measurements reveal that the deposited material is polycrystalline with hexagonal and cubic structures typical of the binary constituents of and thin films. The grain sizes were randomly distributed and ranged between 35 and 60 nm as indicated by the HRTEM