Multifunctional Inorganic Hollow Fibre Membranes for Chemical Reactions

Over the last few decades, the availability of inorganic membranes which can withstand high temperatures and harsh chemical environments has resulted in a wide range of opportunities for the application of membranes in chemical reactions. In particular, the combination of membrane separation and catalytic reaction in a single operating unit is an attractive way to increase conversions, to achieve better yields and to make more efficient use of natural resources in many reactions. In this work, a highly compact multifunctional Pd and Pd-Ag/alumina hollow fibre membrane reactor (HFMR) have been developed and applied to catalytic chemical reactions. The developed HFMR consists of a thin and defect free Pd-based membrane coated onto the outer surface of an alumina hollow fibre substrate with a unique asymmetric pore structure, i.e. a sponge-like outer layer and a finger-like inner layer where catalyst is deposited. In one study, a Pd-Ag layer was coated onto the outer surface of the substrate followed by deposition of sub-micron sized Pt(0.5wt.%)/γ-alumina catalysts into the finger-like voids of the substrates. This design achieved propane conversion as high as 42 % at the initial stage of the reaction at 723 K and space-time yields (STY) of the HFMR were approximately 60 times higher than that of a fixed bed reactor (FBR). In order to further increase catalytic surface area in the reaction zone, a sol-gel method was used to deposit Pt(1 wt.%)/SBA-15 catalysts into the finger-like voids of a substrate to develop a Pd/alumina HFMR. Benefiting from this novel design, the functionalized alumina hollow fibre substrates with surface area/volume values of up to 1918.4 m2/m3 possess a specific surface area of about 31.8 m2/g for catalysts. It was observed that in comparison with a conventional FBR, greater propene selectivity and propene yield was achieved by using the HFMR for propane dehydrogenation. The generic advantages of the design of these compact HFMR systems can be applied to further applications such as the water-gas shift reaction, which was also carried out in this study

SUSTAINABILITY REPORTING AND FIRM PERFORMANCE: A BI-DIRECTIONAL APPROACH

This study provides an insight into the bi-directional relationship between sustainability reporting and firm performance in quoted Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) in Nigeria. While the population size comprises of all deposit money banks quoted on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, judgmental sampling technique was used in the selection of the sampled banks. Considering the period 2014-2016, the annual report and stand-alone sustainability reports of the selected banks were analyzed through the use of content analysis and coded in order to obtain the sustainability disclosure index. The panel regression technique was used to analyze the data. The empirical findings show that there is a bi-directional relationship between sustainability reporting and firm performance of quoted Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) in Nigeria. This finding confirms the proposition of the legitimacy theory. The study observed that the market price per share of the samples firms had a significant negative influence on sustainability reporting. In addition, the study also out that sustainability reporting had a significant positive influence on revenue generation of the sampled firms

Corporate diversity and corporate social environmental disclosure of listed manufacturing companies in Nigeria

This study examined the impact of corporate diversity on corporate social environmental disclosure of registered manufacturing firms in Nigeria. The study considered both industrial and consumer goods firms, respectively, consisting a total of 37 firms. A total of 17 firms was selected for this study using purposive random sampling spanning the period 2012–2016. While the content analysis technique was engaged to ascertain the extent of corporate social environmental disclosure, the study adopted the following variables (board size, foreign directors, and gender) as measures for corporate diversity. Findings from the study revealed that board size, foreign directors and gender had a significant positive influence on the extent of corporate social environmental disclosure of the selected firms. On the other hand, the presence of an independent director and non-executive director had an insignificant positive influence on corporate social environmental disclosure. Thus, the study recommends that a large and diverse board with experience, expertise and women involvement would enhance mandatory environmental audit and environmental grievance mechanism report, and if necessary, an ecological committee would be established, and also community leader on the board would contribute enormously to the going concern of the business

SUSTAINABILITY REPORTING AND FIRM PERFORMANCE: A BI DIRECTIONAL APPROACH

This study provides an insight into the bi-directional relationship between sustainability reporting and firm performance in quoted Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) in Nigeria. While the population size comprises of all deposit money banks quoted on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, judgmental sampling technique was used in the selection of the sampled banks. Considering the period 2014-2016, the annual report and stand-alone sustainability reports of the selected banks were analyzed through the use of content analysis and coded in order to obtain the sustainability disclosure index. The panel regression technique was used to analyze the data. The empirical findings show that there is a bi-directional relationship between sustainability reporting and firm performance of quoted Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) in Nigeria. This finding confirms the proposition of the legitimacy theory. The study observed that the market price per share of the samples firms had a significant negative influence on sustainability reporting. In addition, the study also out that sustainability reporting had a significant positive influence on revenue generation of the sampled firms

A catalytic hollow fibre membrane reactor for combined steam methane reforming and water gas shift reaction

A catalytic hollow fibre membrane reactor (CHFMR) was developed in this study for combined steam methane reforming (SMR) and water gas shift (WGS) reaction. This is achieved by incorporating a Ni/SBA-15 catalyst into a plurality of micro-channels with open entrance from inner surface of Al2O3 hollow fibres, followed by coating of a 3.3μm Pd membrane on the outer surface of the hollow fibre using an electroless plating method. In addition to systematic characterizations of each reactor component, i.e. Ni/SBA-15 catalyst, micro-structured ceramic hollow fibre and Pd separating layer, the effect of how the reactor was assembled or fabricated on the catalytic performance was evaluated. Electroless plating of the Pd membrane impaired the catalytic performance of the deposited Ni/SBA-15 catalyst. Also, the over-removal of hydrogen from the reaction zone was considered as the main reason for the deactivation of the Ni-based catalyst. Instead of mitigating such deactivation using "compensating" hydrogen, starting the reaction at higher temperatures was found more efficient in improving the reactor performance, due to a better match between hydrogen production (from the reaction) and hydrogen removal (from the Pd membrane). An effective methane conversion of approximately 53%, a CO2 selectivity of 94% and a H2 recovery of 43% can be achieved at 560°C. In order for a more significant "shift" phenomenon, alternative methodology of fabricating the reactor and more coke resistant catalysts are recommended

Microstructured catalytic hollow fiber reactor for methane steam reforming

Microstructured alumina hollow fibers, which contain a plurality of radial microchannels with significant openings on the inner surface, have been fabricated in this study and used to develop an efficient catalytic hollow fiber reactor. Apart from low mass-transfer resistance, a unique structure of this type facilitates the incorporation of Ni-based catalysts, which can be with or without the aged secondary support, SBA-15. In contrast to a fixed bed reactor, the catalytic hollow fiber reactor shows similar methane conversion, with a gas hourly space velocity that is approximately 6.5 times higher, a significantly greater CO2 selectivity, and better productivity rates. These results demonstrate the advantages of dispersing the catalyst inside the microstructured hollow fiber as well as the potential to reduce the required quantity of catalyst

Price mechanism, competition and consumer protection law in Nigeria

Everything has a price. Generally, price is the amount of money charged for a product or service. More specifically, price is the sum of all the values that the Consumer surrenders to acquire the benefit of having a product. Does this benefit meet the Consumer’s expectation? Or could this expectation be  shrouded in the perception where anti-competition (monopoly) is involved? Price is critical to both the Consumer and Producer because price must not only be reasonable and valuable to the Consumer, it must be fair to the Producer, at all times. This paper shall therefore attempt to examine the process of finding the right pricing strategy, otherwise known as price mechanism, against the backdrop of anti-competition and consumer protection law.Keywords: Price, anti-competition, consumer protection, la