Determination Of Aerosol Optical Thickness From Spectral Sky Transmittance.

The objective of this study is to test the feasibility of the proposed technique for retrieving spectral aerosol optical thickness (AOT) from the spectral transmittance measurements. The measurements have been acquired around Penang Island, Malaysia. Ground-based measurements were made with a handheld spectroradiometer. The measured spectral transmittance data were then converted to AOT values 6 spectral bands between 400 and 900 nm. Spectral AOT maps were generated using Kriging interpolation method for the 6 spectral bands. Air quality map was produced using this technique

Remote Sensing Of Turbidity Mapping From Digital Camera Imagery.

A complete set of normal digital camera data and ground-based measurements are used to test an algorithm for retrieval of turbidity distribution in the Prai Estuary, Penang, Malaysia

PM10 Retrieval From Spectroradiometer Measurements.

This study attempts to determine the aerosol optical thickness (AOT) from spectroradiometer data. The spectroradiometer is used to measure the atmospheric transmittances in a wide spectrum over Penang Island, Malaysia

Isolation and identification of phenolic compounds from Eugenia caryophyllus and study on its biological effect against Macrophomina phaseolina

Clove is one of the oldest and most famous spices. Its seeds resemble nails. It is used in medicinal fields, but its fungicidal activity is unknown. The aim of the study was to test the inhibitory activity of phenolic extracts of cloves against the pathogenic fungus Macrophomina phaseolina.    The research was conducted under laboratory conditions to test the inhibitory ability of Eugenia caryophyllus phenolic extracts on the fungus M. phaseolina, which was partially diagnosed on strawberry plants based on Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique, in addition to its morphological and microscopic characteristics. The active compounds present The active compounds (Chlorogenic acid, Qurcetine, Gallic acid, Apigenin, Caffeic acid, Ferulic acid, Kaempferol, Rutin, Catechine) present in the extract of Industrial Methylated Spirit (IMS) separated from cloves were determined using High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). and active compounds of IMS phenols) Qurcetine, Apigenin, Ferulic acid, Kaempferol. (The inhibitory effect of phenols extracted from E. caryophyllus against M. phaseolina was tested. The results showed that the acetone extract and acetone phenols, which were used at concentrations of 10 and 15 mg/ml in PDA medium, had a significant effect on the growth of the fungus by 100%, as these fungi failed to grow. Formation of spores on Peptone dextrose medium (PDA) medium. While the percentage of inhibition of acetone phenols was 25% at a concentration of 5 mg/ml. As for the IMS extract and IMS phenols, it had a significant effect on the growth of the fungus at all concentrations used, but with different inhibition ratios, which increased directly with increasing concentration of the extract.

Idiomatic Knowledge and Attitudes toward Idiom Learning: A Case of Kuwaiti EFL College Students

The study attempts to determine if idiomatic knowledge has an influence on students’ attitudes toward learning English idioms. Primarily, the study seeks to uncover if idiomatic knowledge affects Kuwaiti EFL undergraduate college students’ attitudes toward (1) the importance of idiom learning, (2) the difficulties of idiom learning and (3) learning strategies for idioms. Results showed that students had positive attitudes toward English idiom learning. Significant differences in the results were obtained for students’ knowledge of idioms. Keywords: Idiom learning, EFL students’ attitudes, idiomatic knowledge DOI: 10.7176/JEP/12-27-09 Publication date:September 30th 202

Variation in gas chromatography (GC) analysis in setting up laboratory protocols for waste to energy novel fixed bed reactor setups

Gas Chromatography coupled with Mass Spectrometry (GC/MS) has been applied in various analytical chemistry works. However, to fine tune a system that can serve the purposes of pyrolysis oil identification has proven to be a laborious effort, especially when considering the fact that no standard protocol exists for such analysis. In addition, obtained products were yielded from a newly commissioned unit with a unique and novel design. In this study, a US patent office claimed reactor [SULTAN-1, Pyrolysis Reactor System for the Conversion and Analysis of Organic Solid Waste, Patent application number: 15,487,351] that degrades polyolefinc virgin and waste materials to obtain petroleum refinery and petrochemical feedstock, has been commissioned. The reactor produces three distinct physical states of matter products accumulated as testing specimens, i.e. solids, gaseous and oil. The samples analysed in this work were of the gas and oil produced by pyrolysis of end of life tyre (ELTs) shavings that required to have a special recipe to work with in the laboratory. Various MS cords were utilised and experimental setups to fine tune the process, and special emphasis was given on the gas samples variation in this communication. To reach the desired analysis results with high repeatability, a plethora of experiences of lab personnel and laboratory-based experimental work was accumulated. Laboratory protocols were also setup for this work. These will be detailed along the process execution which yielded a standard laboratory best practice analytical method as part of the State of Kuwait newly initiated Government Initiative project

Dielectric Properties and AC conductivity of (Epoxy / Ion exchange) blend

The dielectric behavior of blend materials epoxy resin- Polyvinyl benzyl dimethyl ethanol ammonium chloride (PBDEAC) (Ion exchange) was analysed as a function of Ion exchange  weight content; temperature and frequency. Blends were prepared by mixing the components and pouring them into suitable moulds. The dielectric parameters have been measured using parallel plate capacitor method in the frequency range from 120 Hz to 2 MHz and in the temperature range from 30 ?C to 110?C. Variations of real (??) and imaginary (?") parts of dielectric constants and loss tangent of material with frequency and temperature have been studied. The experimental results showed that (??) and (?") increased with the addition of Ion exchange filler content. The value of (??) decreased with increasing frequency, which indicates that the major contribution to the polarization comes from orientation polarization. Dielectric loss peaks were also observed in the composite materials at high temperature. The value of (??) increased with increasing temperature, and is due to greater freedom of movement of the dipole molecular chains within the polymer at high temperature. Ac. conductivity and impedance of the composites behaviours as function of frequency and temperature have also been investigated. Keywords: Dielectric properties, epoxy, Ion exchange, ac. conductivity

Mixture of Inverse Weibull and Lognormal Distributions: Properties, Estimation, and Illustration

We discuss the two-component mixture of the inverse Weibull and lognormal distributions (MIWLND) as a lifetime model. First, we discuss the properties of the proposed model including the reliability and hazard functions. Next, we discuss the estimation of model parameters by using the maximum likelihood method (MLEs). We also derive expressions for the elements of the Fisher information matrix. Next, we demonstrate the usefulness of the proposed model by fitting it to a real data set. Finally, we draw some concluding remarks

Interleukin (IL)-17A and IL-17F and asthma in Saudi Arabia: mRNA transcript levels and gene polymorphisms

Asthma is a multifactorial disorder and both genetic and environmental factors contribute to its development. The present study explored cytokines interleukin (IL)-17A and IL17F levels as usable parameters for the diagnosis of asthmatics Saudi patients. Blood samples were collected from 100 asthma patients and 100 matched controls. The transcript mRNA levels in whole blood were determined by real-time reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction. Expression studies showed that levels of IL17A and IL17F were significantly higher in asthma patients compared to controls [IL17A: 1.112 (2.088) vs 0.938 (1.363)]; IL17F: 0.707 (1.33) vs 0.667 (0.590). The mRNA transcripts of IL17A and IL17F were positively and significantly correlated in all subjects examined in this study: controls as well as asthma patients (r = 0.455, P < 0.01 for controls and r = 0.644, P < 0.01 for patients). These findings suggest that asthma is characterized by an elevation of cytokines IL17A and IL17F and the measurement of their expression can be a valuable parameter for the diagnosis of asthma.Keywords: Asthma, interleukin-17F (IL17F), interleukin-17A (IL17A), gene expression, real time-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), Saudi Arabia.African Journal of Biotechnology Vol. 12(23), pp. 3615-362

A Detailed Hydrodynamic Study of the Split-Plate Airlift Reactor by using Non-Invasive Gamma-Ray Techniques

This study focused on detailed investigations of selected local hydrodynamics in split airlift reactor by using an unconventional measurements facility: computed tomography (CT) and radioactive particle tracking (RPT). The local distribution in a cross-sectional manner with its radial\u27s profiles for gas holdup, liquid velocity flow field, shear stresses, and turbulent kinetic energy were studied under various gas velocity 1, 2 and 3 cm/s with various six axial level z = 12, 20, 40, 60, 90 and 112 cm. The distribution in gas–liquid phases in the whole split reactor column, the riser and downcomer sides, including their behavior at the top and bottom sections of the split plate was also described. The outcomes of this study displayed an exemplary gas–liquid phases dispersion approximately in all reactor\u27s zones and had large magnitude over the ring of the sparger as well as upper the split plate. Furthermore, the outcomes pointed out that the distribution of this flow may significantly impacts the performance of the split reactor, which may have essential influence on its performance particularly for microorganisms culturing applications. These outcomes are dependable as benchmark information to validate computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations and other models