Assessment for Effective Lecture on Knowledge Retention towards Student Learning with Web-based Educational Tools

This study assessed the effective lecture for knowledge retention towards student learning. The survey involved 42 university students (fourth year in Chemical Engineering and Sustainability Energy Department, UNIMAS) where all of them were tested before and after the class through a 10 questions quiz as assessment. From this quiz assessment, only 50% (21 students) of the students managed to answer at least 7 questions correctly before the lecture was delivered. After delivering lecture, 100% (42 students) of the students managed to answer 10 questions correctly. However, after four weeks, only 90% (38 students) of the students managed to score 10 questions correctly due to short knowledge retention

Assessment for Effective Lecture on Knowledge Retention towards Student Learning with Web-based Educational Tools

This study assessed the effective lecture for knowledge retention towards student learning. The survey involved 42 university students (fourth year in Chemical Engineering and Sustainability Energy Department, UNIMAS) where all of them were tested before and after the class through a 10 questions quiz as assessment. From this quiz assessment, only 50% (21 students) of the students managed to answer at least 7 questions correctly before the lecture was delivered. After delivering lecture, 100% (42 students) of the students managed to answer 10 questions correctly. However, after four weeks, only 90% (38 students) of the students managed to score 10 questions correctly due to short knowledge retention

An efficient intrathecal delivery of small interfering RNA to the spinal cord and peripheral neurons

We have developed a highly effective method for in vivo gene silencing in the spinal cord and dorsal root ganglia (DRG) by a cationic lipid facilitated delivery of synthetic, small interfering RNA (siRNA). A siRNA to the delta opioid receptor (DOR), or a mismatch RNA, was mixed with the transfection reagent, i-Fect™ (vehicle), and delivered as repeated daily bolus doses (0.5 μg to 4 μg) via implanted intrathecal catheter to the lumbar spinal cord of rats. Twenty-four hours after the last injection, rats were tested for antinociception by the DOR selective agonist, [D-Ala(2), Glu(4)]deltorphin II (DELT), or the mu opioid receptor (MOR) selective agonist, [D-Ala(2), N-Me-Phe(4), Gly-ol(5)]enkephalin (DAMGO). Pretreatment with the siRNA, but not the mismatch RNA or vehicle alone, blocked DELT antinociception dose-dependently. The latter was concomitant with a reduction in the spinal immunoreactivity and receptor density of DOR, and in DOR transcripts in the lumbar DRG and spinal dorsal horn. Neither siRNA nor mismatch RNA pretreatment altered spinal immunoreactivity of MOR or antinociception by spinal DAMGO, and had no effect on the baseline thermal nociceptive threshold. The inhibition of function and expression of DOR by siRNA was reversed by 72 hr after the last RNA injection. The uptake of fluorescence-tagged siRNA was detected in both DRG and spinal cord. The low effective dose of siRNA/i-Fect™ complex reflects an efficient delivery of the siRNA to peripheral and spinal neurons, produced no behavioral signs of toxicity. This delivery method may be optimized for other gene targets

Physico-mechanical and morphological properties of rice husk-coconut husk fiber reinforced epoxy composites

In the recent years, many researches focus on “waste to wealth” concept, where agro-waste is converted into various valuable products especially on natural fiber polymeric composites. Selected fibers for this research were rice husk (RH) and coconut husk (CH). This research focused on the property enhancement of RH-CH fiber reinforced epoxy composites and comparison RH reinforced epoxy composites, CH reinforced epoxy composites, and RH-CH reinforced epoxy composites. RH-CH reinforced epoxy composites were well-fabricated by mixing epoxy resin and different ratios of two types natural fibers via compression molding and stir casting methods. All the fabricated RH-CH reinforced epoxy composites were characterized using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Vickers Hardness Test (VHT), and tensile test (TT). FTIR results showed that 10wt% RH-CH reinforced epoxy composites created the strongest covalent bonding between cellulose inside RH-CH fiber and epoxide group compared to RH reinforced epoxy composites and CH reinforced epoxy composites. The combination of RH and CH fiber with the introduction of epoxy resin reduced the hydroxyl groups compared to either RH or CH fiber composites, respectively. This proved that mixture of RH and CH with epoxy matrix improved the properties of pure RH and CH and thus, better composites were fabricated. SEM images of 10wt% RH-CH reinforced epoxy composites showed better dispersion of RH-CH fiber within polymer matrix compared to RH reinforced epoxy composites and CH reinforced epoxy composites under the magnification of 2000. Both RH reinforced epoxy composites and CH reinforced epoxy composites showed porosity within the matrix. VHT showed that 10wt% RH-CH reinforced epoxy composites showed the smallest indentation value compared to RH reinforced epoxy composites and CH reinforced epoxy composites due to the highest interfacial adhesion between matrix and filler, which was proven by the SEM images. Tensile test of 10wt% RH-CH reinforced epoxy composites showed the highest tensile modulus with value of 2.6MPa. RH-CH reinforced epoxy composites showed higher tensile strength and modulus compared to RH and CH reinforced epoxy composites. Overall, it could be concluded that 10wt% RH-CH reinforced epoxy composites performed the best in terms of physical, mechanical, and morphological perspective than RH reinforced epoxy composites and CH reinforced epoxy composites. This proved that RH and CH could be well-introduced as reinforcing filler in epoxy matrix to fabricate better composites for structural application

Polyvinyl Alcohol/Silica/Clay Composites: Effect Of Clay On Surface Morphology And Thermo-Mechanical Properties

A simplified route towards the synthesis of polyvinyl alcohol/silica/clay (PVA-SiO2-clay) composites was presented. PVA-SiO2-clay composites were prepared via solution intercalation method. All the composites were characterized by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), adsorption isotherm (BET), X-ray fluorescence (XRF), tensile test and Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA). FTIR spectrum indicated that PVA-SiO2-clay composites especially clay (1.28E) loaded composites had much less transmittance percentage compared to pure PVA and others clay composites. The SEM revealed that the interfacial bonding between PVA-SiO2 and clay (1.28E) was much better than others clay loaded composites which was reflected in adsorption isotherm. The BET result also showed high specific surface area with low diameter of pore size of the composites. The thermal stability of PVA-SiO2-clay (1.28E) composites was the highest and it had higher activation energy due to the strong bonding between the trimethyl stearyl ammonium with both PVA-SiO2. The XRF result showed that clay (1.28E) loaded composites contained significant high percentage of Si which confirmed the presence of Si-O-Si stretching vibration while the high percentage of K proved the clay mineral content in the composite. Clay (1.28E) enhanced the tensile strength and modulus of PVA-SiO2-clay composites among all the composites

Physical, mechanical, morphological and thermal analysis of styrene-co-glycidyl methacrylate / fumed silica / clay nanocomposites

Styrene-co-glycidyl methacrylate-fumed silica-clay (ST-co-GMA-fsi-clay) nanocomposites have been prepared via free radical polymerization in the presence of benzoyl peroxide. The nanocomposites are characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), adsorption isotherm, tensile test, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and moisture absorption. FT-IR shows the Si-O-C peak that represented ST-co-GMA-fsi bonding while Si-O-Si peak shows the bonding of fsi-clay. The surface morphology shows the well dispersion of clay (1.30E) into ST-co-GMA-fsi nanocomposite. 2wt% of ST-co-GMA-fsi-clay (1.30E) nanocomposite has higher specific surface area and average pore volume with less pore size. Incorporation of 2wt% of clay (1.30E) improves the tensile strength and modulus of the nanocomposites as well as higher thermal stability and activation energy. 2wt% of ST-co-GMA-fsi-clay (1.30E) nanocomposite shows the lowest moisture absorption value. © 2017 Penerbit UTM Press. All rights reserved

Physical, Mechanical, and Thermal Analysis of Polylactic Acid/Fumed Silica/Clay (1.28E) Nanocomposites

Polylactic acid/fumed silica/clay (PLA/FS/clay) (1.28E) nanocomposites have been successfully prepared by solution-intercalation film-casting technique. The resultant nanocomposites were characterized by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), tensile test, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and moisture absorption test. The FT-IR spectrum indicated that PLA/FS/clay with 2 wt% hadmuch broader peak compared to 5 wt%, 10 wt%, and 15wt% nanocomposites. Incorporation of clay (1.28E) with 2wt% showed the best compatibility with PLA/FS matrix. PLA/FS/clay (1.28E) nanocomposite with 2wt% of clay loading had higher tensile strength and modulus compared to other nanocomposites. The thermal stability and activation energy of 2wt% of PLA/FS/clay (1.28E) nanocomposite are the highest among all the nanocomposites. The moisture absorbed into PLA/FS/clay (1.28E) nanocomposite was significantly reduced with clay loading of 2 wt%

Fabrication and characterisation of novel algin incorporated bioactive-glass 58S calcium-silicate-based root canal sealer

The usage of bioceramic-based root canal sealers has escalated over the years due to their excellent properties. The present study aimed to fabricate a novel algin incorporated bioactive glass 58S calcium-silicate (Bio-G) sealer and characterise its surface microstructure and chemical compositions in comparison to commercially available bioceramic sealers (BioRoot RCS and iRoot SP). Materials and methods: The powder form of experimental Bio-G sealer consisted of synthesised BG 58S particle, calcium silicate, zirconia dioxide, calcium carbonate and alginic acid powder as binder. The liquid composed of 5% calcium chloride solution. Five standardised disc specimens were prepared for each sealer group according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Subsequently, sealer disc-specimens were placed in an incubator at 37 �C, 95% relative humidity for 72 h to allow setting prior to testing under scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and Xray diffraction (XRD). Results: Experimental Bio-G sealer revealed irregular micro-sized particles ranging from 0.5 mm to 105 mmaggregated in clusters comparable to those of BioRoot RCS and iRoot SP. EDS microanalysis showed that Bio-G had high content of oxygen, silicon, and calcium, with the presence of aluminium and chloride similar to BioRoot RCS. Meanwhile, the FTIR and XRD findings suggested that all sealers predominantly contained calcium silicate hydrate, calcium carbonate, and zirconium dioxide, while calcium aluminium silicate oxide was detected in Bio-G. Conclusion: The present novel Bio-G sealer demonstrated desirable particle size distribution and acceptable degree of purity. Future studies are warranted to explore its properties and clinical application

Performance analysis of fabricated bio-filtration system for small-scaled greywater treatment: TSS and turbidity removals

River pollution, which is mainly due to excessive drainage of untreated domestic greywater, has becoming a serious concern in both poor and developing areas like Sarawak in the current years. Realizing the vital role of Sarawak rivers, the need to improve the level of pollution, demand for clean freshwater resources, as well as to save cost on household water supply, the greywater generated daily from every household needs to be pretreated for reuse, otherwise, discharged. This further demands for cost-effective pretreatment technology for domestic and residential use. This research, therefore, analyzes the efficiency of a low-cost biofiltration system which utilizes agricultural wastes, namely rice husk and coconut coir, as biofilter media to improve the quality of greywater effluent samples in terms of total suspended solids (TSS) and turbidity removals. This paper presents the extended results obtained from the previous research work using the same fabricated pre-treatment system, which consists of six main units i.e. wastewater storage tank, water feed tank, pre-sedimentation tank, bio-filter, postsedimentation tank and treated water storage tank. The system is operated for six hours to complete several cycles of treatment. At every one-hour interval, both TSS and turbidity levels of the wastewater samples are recorded and the removal performances are evaluated and analyzed. Positive outcomes are attained from this research study such that the rice husk system is able to reduce the TSS and turbidity levels by 49.06% i.e. from 53.00 mg/L to 27.00 mg/L with an average rate of 4.33 mg/L.hr, as well as 57.79% i.e. from 41.70 FNU to about 17.60 FNU, at a rate of 4.02 FNU/hr respectively. Besides, the coconut coir bio-filtration system achieves TSS removal efficiency of 49.70% i.e. from 65.60 mg/L to 33.00 mg/L at mean rate of 5.43 mg/L.hr, and 63.10% turbidity removal i.e. from 48.40 FNU to 17.86 FNU, at 5.09 FNU/hr respectivel

EFFECTIVENESS OF FOOD WASTE BIO-COMPOSTED FERTILIZERS ON PLANTATIONS

This research studied the production of organic fertilizer from food wastes through composting in view of its easy availability in Malaysia. In methodology, food wastes such as banana peels, Chinese kale and eggshells in different proportions will be stacked up layer by layer in a compost bin prepared with the inclusion of bulking agents such as dry leaves and soil to produce matured compost to supply useful microorganisms to the decomposition process. Results from the application of the biofertilizers produced on the growth of water spinach and green onion plants had revealed the potential of banana peels in supporting the growth of the plants, while for the ones produced from the combinations of eggshells and Chinese kale, nitrogen loss could be observed, thereby suppressing their growth and resulting in a much slower growth rate. Meanwhile, from the statistical analysis conducted, the findings obtained were proven to be significant, indicating the positive influence of fertilizers type on the growth of plants. Hence, it could be concluded that this research would certainly provide an insight to the potential management of organic waste in our country by converting organic wastes from food into biofertilizer