Organic Matter and Heavy Metals Leachate Effect on Soils of Selected Dumpsites in Selected North Central States of Nigeria

This research was conducted to assess the presence  of some heavy metals Chromium (Cr), Iron (Fe), Copper (Cu), Manganese (Mn), Lead (Pb), Zinc (Zn) and Aluminum (Al) in municipal solid waste dumps. Heavy metals in the soils were determined at varying depths of 0-5cm, 5-15cm and 15-30cm to assess the extent of pollution and the effects of pH and organic matter in the soil. Heavy metals concentrations were analysed using Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer. The results revealed a significant difference (p < 0.05) in the concentrations of heavy metals across varying depth at the dumpsites when compared with control points in the same location. Mn had the highest mean 131.22 ± 25.98 mgkg-1 followed by Fe, which is 69 ± 11.02 mgkg-1 at the dumpsites. Mean concentration of all the Heavy metals investigated at the various dumpsites studied were significantly higher than at the control point and below the maximum standard levels set by FAO and WHO for agricultural soils. Result of particle distribution indicated higher sand content (> 80.0%) and lower clay and silt contents in both dumpsite and control site which implies the ease of movement of dissolved metals in the soil environment. Organic Matter (OM) content at dumpsites was observed to be slightly higher than at the control sites. The data also signifies that as pH decreases and %OM decreases the concentration of these heavy metals decreases down the soil profile. It is, therefore, concluded that accumulation of heavy metals in depth was highly correlated with pH and organic matter content

Cutibacterium (formerly Propionibacterium) acnes clavicular infection.

Cutibacterium (formerly Propionibacterium) acnes13, 16 is a slow growing, gram-positive bacteria that is naturally found in higher concentrations as skin flora on the chest and back, as well as in other areas with greater numbers of hair follicles.25, 37 Most of the reported cases of C. acnes shoulder girdle infection follow arthroplasty surgery,18, 20, 26, 27, 32, 35 which then often requires debridement, administration of intravenous antibiotics, and surgical revision of the implanted device.12, 15, 21, 28-30 In a recent study, 56% of 193 shoulder revisions had a positive culture, 70% of which grew C. acnes.30 Despite the relatively common presumed association of C. acnes humeral osteomyelitis with prosthetic infection, infection of the scapula or clavicle secondary to C. acnes is rare.4, 23, 36 Osteomyelitis of the clavicle involving any organism is also an uncommon event that can arise spontaneously via presumed hematogenous spread, or secondary to open fractures or internal fixation.6, 33 The most commonly found organism in clavicular osteomyelitis is Staphylococcus aureus.9 We here report two cases of clavicular infection secondary to C. acnes that were not associated with implants

Isolasi dan Karakterisasi Senyawa Aktif terhadap Mortalitas Kutu Beras dari Ekstrak Etil Asetat Rimpang Jeringau (Acorus Calammus L.)

Telah dilakukan isolasi dan karakterisasi senyawa aktif terhadap mortalitas pada rimpang jeringau (Acorus calammus. L). Penelitian diawali dengan mengekstrak 450 gram serbuk rimpang jeringau (Acorus calammus. L) dengan pelarut metanol menggunakan teknik maserasi. Ekstrak kental metanol difraksinasi dengan pelarut n-Heksan dan etil asetat. Identifikasi senyawa yang terkandung pada rimpang jeringau dilakukan dengan uji fitokimia pada ekstrak kental dan masing-masing fraksi. Melalui kromatografi kolom, ekstrak kental fraksi etil asetat menghasilkan 308 fraksi kemudian diuji menggunakan KLT. Isolat murni yang positif pada uji terpenoid dianalisis keberadaan gugus fungsinya dengan spektrofotometer IR dan UV-Vis. Pada Spektrofotometer IR menunjukkan gugus fungsi adanya ulur C-H, ulur C=O, ulur C=C aromatik, tekuk O-H, tekuk C-H dan ulur C-O alkohol. Sedangkan untuk UV-Vis menunjukkan pita dengan serapan gelombang maksimum pada 248,60 nm. Maka senyawa yang diduga adalah senyawa terpenoid yang merupakan senyawa aktif mortalitas

Optimization of Process Parameters Influencing Biogas Production from Rumen and municipal waste: Analytical Approach

 Rumen waste with high carbohydrate, protein, and lipid content is considered as a suitable substrate for fermentation for methane gas. In this study, direct substrate and co-digestion of rumen waste (RW) and municipal waste (MW) were used. Samples (fresh cow rumen and food waste) were dried, grinded, and blended with water into a semi-solid to facilitate digestion. Central composite design (CCD) was applied to optimize parameters of co-digestion of RW and MW at a different temperature (29 – 33oC), initial pH values, agitation time (AGT), and carbon-nitrogen ratio (C/N). A comparative analysis was done using RSM in a predictive model of the experimental data obtained in accordance with the CCD. The combined effects of temperature, pH, AGT, and C/N as methane production by fermentation of RW and MW were investigated. Optimization using RSM showed a good fit between the experimental and the predicted data as elucidated by the coefficient of determination with R2 values of 0.9214. Quadratic RSM predicted the maximum yield to be 7764 mL CH4/g volatile solid (VS) at optimal conditions of 31°C; pH 7.05; 6s and C/N ratio 20.33. The maximum methane yield was 8550 mL CH4/g VS, at the optimal conditions for the experimental response obtained. The verification experiment successfully produced 8550 mL CH4/g VS within 30 days of incubation. This experiment indicated that the developed model was successfully and can be used for methane production from animal and municipal waste

PERFORMANCE OF MULTIPLE LINEAR REGRESSION AND AUTOREGRESSIVE INTEGRATED MOVING AVERAGE MODELS IN PREDICTING ANNUAL TEMPERATURES OF OGUN STATE, NIGERIA

The performance of Autoregressive Moving Average and Multiple Linear Regression Models in predicting minimum and maximum temperatures of Ogun State is herein reported. Maximum and Minimum temperatures data covering a period of 29 years (1982 -2009) obtained from the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet), Abeokuta office, Nigeria, were used for the analyses. The data were first processed and aggregated into annual time series. Mann-Kendal non-parametric test and spectral analysis were carried out to detect whether there is trend, seasonal pattern, and either short or long memory in the time series. Mann-Kendal Z-values obtained are –0.47 and –2.03 for minimum and maximum temperatures respectively, indicating no trend, though the plot shows a slight change. The Lo’s R/S Q(N,q) values for minimum and maximum temperatures are 3.67 and 4.43, which are not within the range 0.809 and 1.862, thus signifying presence of long memory. The data was divided into two and the first 20 years data was used for model development, while the remaining was used for validation. Autoregressive Moving Average (ARMA) model of order (5, 3) and Autoregressive (AR) model of order 2 are found best for predicting minimum and maximum temperatures respectively. Multiple Linear Regression (MLR) model with 4 features (moving average, exponential moving average, rate of change and oscillator) were fitted for both temperatures. The ARMA and AR models were found to perform better with Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE) values of -2.89 and -1.37 for minimum and maximum temperatures, compared with the Multiple Linear Regression Models with MAPE values of 141 and 876 respectively. Results of ARMA model can be relied on in generating forecast of temperature of the study area because of their minimal error values. However, it is recommended other climatic elements that were not captured in this paper due to unavailability of information be considered too in order to see which model is best for them. &nbsp

Rust Phase Transformation In The Presence Of Mangrove Tannins.

The transformation of rust in the presence of 5 g L-1 tannins extracted from mangrove barks was studied

Artisanal Inland Water Fishing and Challenges of Livelihood Sustainability in Ibi Local Government Area, Taraba State Nigeria

This study examined challenges of livelihood sustainability from artisanal inland water fishing activities in Ibi LGA, Taraba State, Nigeria. Descriptive survey design was adopted. Purposive sampling was used in selecting 406 respondents from 12 communities in 6 political wards of the LGA. Descriptive statistics was used to analyse 401 questionnaires retrieved. Findings of the study reveal decline in daily fish catch from three baskets 10 years ago to only one basket presently. Also, income from fishing has declined from ₦150,000 ($192) monthly 10 years ago to less than ₦50,000 ($64) presently. Factors responsible for decline in fish catch include rising water level, temperature increase, pollution, climate change, seasonality and unsustainable fishing practices. The unsustainable fishing practices include use of chemicals, small size nets and mosquito nets in fishing. The results reveal that fishermen engaged in non-fishing activities, fish farming and construction of fishing ponds along the floodplain as a way of achieving livelihood sustainability. Challenges of livelihood sustainability include seasonality of fishing activities, decline in fish stocks, use of traditional fishing methods and unsustainable fishing practices among others. The study recommend the need to enforce extant laws on fishery protection,  enlightenment campaign, and government support to fishing cooperatives

The CAST Time Projection Chamber

One of the three X-ray detectors of the CAST experiment searching for solar axions is a Time Projection Chamber (TPC) with a multi-wire proportional counter (MWPC) as a readout structure. Its design has been optimized to provide high sensitivity to the detection of the low intensity X-ray signal expected in the CAST experiment. A low hardware threshold of 0.8 keV is safely set during normal data taking periods, and the overall efficiency for the detection of photons coming from conversion of solar axions is 62 %. Shielding has been installed around the detector, lowering the background level to 4.10 x 10^-5 counts/cm^2/s/keV between 1 and 10 keV. During phase I of the CAST experiment the TPC has provided robust and stable operation, thus contributing with a competitive result to the overall CAST limit on axion-photon coupling and mass.Comment: 19 pages, 11 figures and images, submitted to New Journal of Physic

Magneto-transport study of intra- and intergrain transitions in the magnetic superconductors RuSr2GdCu2O8 and RuSr2(Gd1.5Ce0.5)Cu2O10

A characterization of the magnetic superconductors RuSr2GdCu2O8 [Ru-(1212)] and RuSr2(Gd1.5Ce0.5)Cu2O10 [Ru-(1222)] through resistance measurements as a function of temperature and magnetic field is presented. Two peaks in the derivative of the resistive curves are identified as intra- and intergrain superconducting transitions. Strong intragrain granularity effects are observed, and explained by considering the antiphase boundaries between structural domains of coherently rotated RuO6 octahedra as intragrain Josephson-junctions. A different field dependence of the intragrain transition temperature in these compounds was found. For Ru-(1212) it remains unchanged up to 0.1 T, decreasing for higher fields. In Ru-(1222) it smoothly diminishes with the increase in field even for a value as low as 100 Oe. These results are interpreted as a consequence of a spin-flop transition of the Ru moments. The large separation between the RuO2 layers in Ru-(1222) promotes a weak interlayer coupling, leading the magnetic transition to occur at lower fields. The suppression rate of the intragrain transition temperature is about five times higher for Ru-(1222), a result we relate to an enhancement of the 2D character of the vortex structure. A distinctive difference with conventional cuprates is the sharp increase in amplitude of the intergrain peak in both systems, as the field is raised, which is ascribed to percolation through a fraction of high quality intergrain junctions.Comment: Submitted for Physical Review