Determination Of Pb(II), Cu(II) And Ni(II) In Water By Direct Measurement Using Uv/Vis Spectrophotometer

Logam berat merupakan unsur logam dengan ketumpatan yang tinggi dan kebanyakannya bersifat toksik pada kepekatan yang rendah. Selain itu, kepekatan logam berat dalam organisma akan semakin meningkat dengan masa disebabkan oleh sifat bioakumulasi daripada logam berat dan tidak dapat diuraikan. Teknik terkini untuk menentukan logam berat dalam air adalah melalui AAS, IC, ICP-AES, ICPMS, XRF dan elektrokimia. Teknik-teknik ini dapat memberi ketepatan yang tinggi dalam pengukuran tetapi memerlukan kos penyelenggaraan yang tinggi dan prosedur penyediaan yang rumit. Dalam penyelidikan ini, analisis kuantitatif terhadap ion Pb2+, Cu2+ dan Ni2+ dalam larutan akueus telah berjaya dijalankan dengan menggunakan UV/VIS spektroskopi tanpa reagen kimia tambahan. Penyelidikan bermula dengan mengenalpasti panjang gelombang yang berkesan untuk penyerapan dan kemudiannya disahkan dengan bilangan sampel yang banyak. Daripada penyelidikan ini, panjang gelombang berkesan untuk penyerapan di dalam julat UV bagi Pb2+ dan Cu2+ adalah daripada 200 nm hingga 230 nm dan Cu2+ dan Ni2+ daripada 600 nm hingga 800 nm. Heavy metal are metallic element with relatively high density and mostly toxic at low concentration. Heavy metal does not degrade and tends to bioaccumulate in organism over time. Current technique to determine heavy metals in water mostly via AAS, IC, ICP-AES, ICP-MS, XRF and electrochemical method,these techniques provide high precision in measurement but required high maintenance cost and complicated preparation. In this research, quantitative analysis of Pb2+, Cu2+ and Ni2+ ions in aqueous solution was carried out successfully using UV/VIS spectroscopy without additional chemical reagent. The research begins with identifying the effective absorption wavelength and was later verified using large amount of samples. From this research, the effective wavelength within UV range for Pb2+ and Cu2+ is roughly from 200 nm to 230 nm and both the Cu2+ and Ni2+ have absorbance from wavelength 600 nm to 800 nm

Additions to the moss flora of Endau Rompin National Park, Johore State, peninsular Malaysia

In a recent survey of the Endau Rompin National Park (ERNP) in Johore State, 81 species and 4 varieties of mosses were documented. This increases the previous count from 62 species and 3 varieties of mosses in ERNP to 111 species and 5 varieties in total. Of these, 30 species are new records for Johore State. Rhaphidostichum bunodicarpum and Trichosteleum stigmosum are two species new to Peninsular Malaysia. Thuidium assimile is a new record for West Malesia. A new combination, Papillidiopsis aquaticum (Dix.) Boon-Chuan Ho & B.C. Tan is proposed. In terms of species composition, the pan-tropical families of Calymperaceae, Fissidentaceae, Leucobryaceae and Sematophyllaceae predominate the moss flora of ERNP

Implementation of mechanical, electrical, and feedback control systems in unmanned aerial vehicles

Thesis (S.B.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, June 2006.Includes bibliographical references (leaf 53).The thesis objective was to design an unmanned aerial vehicle that was capable of stable, autonomous flight. A fixed wing aircraft was chosen to simplify some of the flight characteristics and avoid some of the challenges found in rotary wing machines. Two aircraft were tested: a large and heavy gasoline powered aircraft and a smaller and much lighter electric powered sailplane. An autopilot was implemented into both platforms that would fly the aircraft and allow the measurement of flight vehicle characteristics. A link with the vehicle was created by installing a radio modem that allowed communication between the autopilot and a ground computer. This allowed updates to the controllers PID feedback loops to change flight characteristics and made the recording of flight parameters possible. This would be useful later in the analysis of data. To control the vehicle remotely, a ground computer was used that ran systems monitoring software. It also allowed the programming of flight plans to the autopilot. Combining these systems together proved successful and stable flight was achieved in both aircraft. By using the same autopilot in both vehicles, it was proven that the electronic system could be modular and transplanted between various vehicles.by Derrick Tan.S.B

Effects of extraction solvent system, time and temperature on total phenolic content of henna (Lawsonia inermis) stems

Henna plant ( Lawsonia inermis ) is an Indian medicinal plant used in traditional medicine for the treatment of various diseases, besides its popularity as a natural dye to colour hand and hair. Research in the recent past has accumulated enormous evidence revealing henna plant to be an excellent source of antioxidants such as total phenolics. In this study, the extraction of total phenolics from henna stems was evaluated using the Folin-Ciocalteu assay. A set of single factor experiments was carried out for identifying the optimum condition of each independent variable affecting total phenolic content (TPC) extraction efficiency of henna stems, namely the solvent type, solvent concentration (v/v, %), extraction time (min) and extraction temperature ( o C). Generally, high extraction yield was obtained using aqueous acetone (about 40%) as solvent and the extraction yield could further be increased using a prolonged time of 270 min and a higher incubation temperature of 55°C. Under these optimized conditions, the experimental maximum yield of TPC of 5554.15 ± 73.04 mg GAE/100 g DW was obtained

Spin force and intrinsic spin Hall effect in spintronics systems

We investigate the spin Hall effect (SHE) in a wide class of spin-orbit coupling systems by using spin force picture. We derive the general relation equation between spin force and spin current and show that the longitudinal force component can induce a spin Hall current, from which we reproduce the spin Hall conductivity obtained previously using Kubo's formula. This simple spin force picture gives a clear and intuitive explanation for SHE

Noisy pre-processing facilitating a photonic realisation of device-independent quantum key distribution

Device-independent quantum key distribution provides security even when the equipment used to communicate over the quantum channel is largely uncharacterized. An experimental demonstration of device-independent quantum key distribution is however challenging. A central obstacle in photonic implementations is that the global detection efficiency, i.e., the probability that the signals sent over the quantum channel are successfully received, must be above a certain threshold. We here propose a method to significantly relax this threshold, while maintaining provable device-independent security. This is achieved with a protocol that adds artificial noise, which cannot be known or controlled by an adversary, to the initial measurement data (the raw key). Focusing on a realistic photonic setup using a source based on spontaneous parametric down conversion, we give explicit bounds on the minimal required global detection efficiency.Comment: 5+16 pages, 4 figure

Fucosylation of LAMP-1 and LAMP-2 by FUT1 correlates with lysosomal positioning and autophagic flux of breast cancer cells.

Alpha1,2-fucosyltransferases, FUT1 and FUT2, which transfer fucoses onto the terminal galactose of N-acetyl-lactosamine via α1,2-linkage have been shown to be highly expressed in various types of cancers. A few studies have shown the involvement of FUT1 substrates in tumor cell proliferation and migration. Lysosome-associated membrane protein 1, LAMP-1, has been reported to carry alpha1,2-fucosylated Lewis Y (LeY) antigens in breast cancer cells, however, the biological functions of LeY on LAMP-1 remain largely unknown. Whether or not its family member, LAMP-2, displays similar modifications and functions as LAMP-1 has not yet been addressed. In this study, we have presented evidence supporting that both LAMP-1 and 2 are substrates for FUT1, but not FUT2. We have also demonstrated the presence of H2 and LeY antigens on LAMP-1 by a targeted nanoLC-MS(3) and the decreased levels of fucosylation on LAMP-2 by MALDI-TOF analysis upon FUT1 knockdown. In addition, we found that the expression of LeY was substantial in less invasive ER+/PR+/HER- breast cancer cells (MCF-7 and T47D) but negligible in highly invasive triple-negative MDA-MB-231 cells, of which LeY levels were correlated with the levels of LeY carried by LAMP-1 and 2. Intriguingly, we also observed a striking change in the subcellular localization of lysosomes upon FUT1 knockdown from peripheral distribution of LAMP-1 and 2 to a preferential perinuclear accumulation. Besides that, knockdown of FUT1 led to an increased rate of autophagic flux along with diminished activity of mammalian target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) and enhanced autophagosome-lysosome fusion. This may be associated with the predominantly perinuclear distribution of lysosomes mediated by FUT1 knockdown as lysosomal positioning has been reported to regulate mTOR activity and autophagy. Taken together, our results suggest that downregulation of FUT1, which leads to the perinuclear localization of LAMP-1 and 2, is correlated with increased rate of autophagic flux by decreasing mTOR signaling and increasing autolysosome formation