Characterization of the fuel properties of ananas comosus leaf for thermal application

In recent years, the demand of energy in Malaysia increases significantly. It is generally accepted that the source of fossil fuel will be depleted in future since it is classify as non-renewable energy. Consequently, Malaysia is a country rich in biomass energy resource that easily can be converted into biomass fuel for thermal applications such as AnanasComosus leaf for clean energy production. This study is aimed to characterizing AnanasComosus leaf of N36 hybrid, selected from between ‘Gandul' (Spanish) and the ‘Smooth Cayenne'.The physical and chemical properties of the AnanasComosus leaf were analyzed using ultimate analysis, proximate analysis and heating value. The thermal decomposition behavior of the fuel was determined through thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). From the result obtained, the parameter of ignition temperature (Tign) 322°C and maximum temperature (Tmax) 367°C, and final temperature (Tf) 810°C were gathered. The total weight of the fuel remaining at Tfwas 14.01% signifying that the conversion of the fuel will result in 85.99% conversion

Managing Psychological Well-Being Among Counselors in Training and Vocational Educational Institutions (TVET)

Counselling services are usually provided by counsellors to specific target groups such as students, parents and the community. However, the psychological wellness aspect is also important especially among counsellors. Therefore, this study examines how counsellors manage psychological well-being in the practice of daily life. A total of eight counsellors currently serving in the Institution of Training and Vocational Education (TVET) were involved in the qualitative study. The data was then analyzed using themed methods. The findings of the study found that TVET counsellors preserved personal well-being through healthy food balance, response skills, timeouts, doing therapy, maintaining relationships with God, and expressing to significant people. Implications for counselling and the direction of the study were also discussed

Guidelines for process safety hazard assessment based on process information

In any new chemical process development and design, process safety is a critical aspect to be considered besides economic and technical feasibility of the manufacture of the product. A lack of proper hazard assessment during the design phase may later result in accidents with disastrous consequences to workers, the public as well as the environment. Many methods have been introduced to qualitatively and quantitatively assess the safety level of processes. Despite the availability of a large amount of methods, a systematic framework that details guidelines for hazard identification, risk assessment, safety measure design, and safe critical decision-making is still missing. To address this issue, the main objective of this study was to propose a systematic framework that outlines comprehensive guidelines for assessing the safety performance of processes based on information from the piping and instrumentation diagram (P&ID). Apart from proposing the framework, appropriate strategies for minimizing safety hazards and risks are also recommended. In addition, the user is assisted in selecting the most appropriate assessment method according to his or her needs and the scope and constraints of the assessment. A case study is presented to illustrate the application of the proposed framework

Guidelines for Process Safety Hazard Assessment Based on Process Information

In any new chemical process development and design, process safety is a critical aspect to be considered besides economic and technical feasibility of the manufacture of the product. A lack of proper hazard assessment during the design phase may later result in accidents with disastrous consequences to workers, the public as well as the environment. Many methods have been introduced to qualitatively and quantitatively assess the safety level of processes. Despite the availability of a large amount of methods, a systematic framework that details guidelines for hazard identification, risk assessment, safety measure design, and safe critical decision-making is still missing. To address this issue, the main objective of this study was to propose a systematic framework that outlines comprehensive guidelines for assessing the safety performance of processes based on information from the piping and instrumentation diagram (P&ID). Apart from proposing the framework, appropriate strategies for minimizing safety hazards and risks are also recommended. In addition, the user is assisted in selecting the most appropriate assessment method according to his or her needs and the scope and constraints of the assessment. A case study is presented to illustrate the application of the proposed framework

Solar-powered aquaponics prototype as sustainable approach for food production

This paper presents the establishment of a solar-powered aquaponics prototype as a sustainable, cost effective and environmentally sound approach for food production. In this study, a prototype bench top aquaponics rig with an integrated 20 W solar panel were fabricated for the cultivation of red Hybrid Tilapia (Oreochromis spp.) and leaf mustard (Brassica juncea). The size of the fish tank is about 29.5L and serves as the base for the setup. Additionally, the hydroponic grower compartment (0.45 m (L) � 0.32 m (W) � 0.13 m (H)) was stacked on top of the fish tank and was filled with LECA media bed for the plant growth. Two important operating parameters were studied. First, the amount of energy produced by the solar panel and the energy consumption by the water pump used in the setup. Secondly, the resultant effects from fish cultivation and plants growth on the water qualities and nitrification effi�ciency of the aquaponics unit. The aquaponics unit was operated for a month and the values of pH, tem�perature, and ammonia level were measured to be within the range of 6.4–7.2, 27.1–31.7 �C, and 1 mg�L�1 , respectively. Survival rate for fish was about 75% with specific growth rate (SGR) of 3.75% per day and food conversion ratio of about 1.15. A slight nutrient deficiency was evident and plants showed a healthy growth with height gain as high as 5 cm was achieved. Despite raining season, our data shows that the energy produced via 20 W solar panel enabled the unit to run at night without depending on local electricity for nearly two hours. Clearly, a larger solar panel is needed for longer operation. Nevertheless, the study has proven the potential of operating a low cost aquaponics setup using renew�able energy for a sustainable food production method

Carbonized rice husk and cocopeat as alternative media bed for aquaponic system

The study evaluates the suitability of carbonized rice husk and cocopeat substrates as alternative media bed in aquaponics unit for cultivation of red Nile tilapia and Gynura procumbens. Area occupied by the aquaponics unit is about 4.5 m2 and it was operated under equatorial climate conditions. Various substrates namely lightweight expanded clay aggregate (LECA), cocopeat, carbonized rice husk and a mixture of cocopeat-rice husk at ratio 1:1 were prepared using polybags for growing of the longevity spinach. The resultant effects from fish cultivation and plants growth on the water qualities and nitrification efficiency of the aquaponics unit were reported. The aquaponics unit were operated for twelve weeks and the values of pH, temperature, and dissolved oxygen level were measured to be within the range of 6.4-6.9, 27.7-29oC, and 5.5-7 mg·L-1, respectively. Survival rate for fish was 98% with specific growth rate (SGR) and food conversion ratio (FCR) of 6.9% per day and 1.13, respectively. Nutrient deficiency was not evident and plants showed healthy growth with harvest yield ranging between 3.6 and 3.9 kg·m-2. Results attained signified the suitability of utilizing carbonized rice husk and cocopeat as alternatives media bed compared to commercial media bed such as LECA

A kinetic study of enzymatic hydrolysis of oil palm biomass for fermentable sugar using polyethylene glycol (PEG) immobilized cellulase

In this work, enzymatic hydrolysis by cellulase in a soluble and an immobilized form was studied to convert lignocellulosic oil palm empty fruit bunch (EFB) biomass into fermentable sugars as a feedstock for bioethanol production. The cellulase was covalently immobilized with activated and functionalized polyethylene glycol (PEG) via glutaraldehyde coupling method. As a whole, the immobilized cellulase displayed 50 higher efficiency over free cellulase, in reducing sugar recovery during hydrolysis reactions at pH of 4.8 and temperature of 50°C. From the kinetic study, it showed that Michaelis constant (Km) and limiting velocity (Vmax) of immobilized cellulase were 179.2 mg/ml and 33.5 mg/ml.min respectively, comparable with the value for free cellulose, 171.8 mg/ml and 34.5 mg/ml.min respectively. This result could be attributed to the effect of PEG on the binding cellulase to substrate desorb substrates, and enables free interaction of cellulase to hydrolyse cellulose maximally

The effect of conventional and microwave heating techniques on transesterification of waste cooking oil to biodiesel

This research is focused on the effect of processing parameters such as molar ratio of sample to solvent (1:3 - 1:15), catalyst loading (0.5 - 2.5 wt %), temperature (40 - 80 C) and time of reaction ( 5 - 180 min) on the transesterification yield of waste cooking oil (WCO) in conventional thermal heating and microwave heating technique s . The analysis carried out revealed that the microwave assisted transesterification produced a comparable yield to conventional heating transesterification with ~ 5 times faster in heating up the reaction mixture to a reaction temperature and reduced ~ 90% of the reaction time required . This study concludes that microwave assisted transesterification , which is a green technology, may have great potential in reducing the processing time compared to conventional thermal heating transesterification

Comparison of charantin extract from Momordica charantia using modified supercritical carbon dioxide and soxhlet extraction method

Charantin extract from Momordica charantia fruits for the anti-diabetic compound was proposed via Supercritical Fluid Extraction using carbon dioxide (SC-CO2) as a solvent. This method is a promising alternative technique to a conventional Soxhlet and shaking water bath extraction method. Experiments were conducted to analyze the charantin i) with and without a modifier (ethanol), ii) Soxhlet extraction with four types of solvent (distilled water, ethanol, dichloromethane, and petroleum ether) and iii) shaking water bath with distilled water as a solvent. A purification step was conducted post extraction to remove intrusive components such as chlorophylls and sugar from the analyte in order to quantify charantin extract using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The results show that in 2.5 hours SC-CO2 with ethanol as modifier gives highest charantin yield with 0.7817 mg charantin per gram sample. In contrast, shaking water bath gives the highest charantin yield for a conventional method with 0.712 mg charantin per gram sample during 6 hours of extraction. The result shows that by using SC-CO2 modified with ethanol can be a promising “green” extraction than a conventional method

FAMILY AND CAREER CONFLICTS AMONG WOMEN -A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW

The development of the 21st century is growing very fast and the landscape of job market has changed considerably. One of the most notable trends is the increasing involvement of women in the workforce. Careered women who earn for the family could no longer staying at home most of the time. In the case of married women, they have started to play dual roles as wives who manage their families as well as wives who have careers. This issue has attracted the interest of many researchers to conduct studies related to the conflict of women with a family and career. Therefore, the objective of this study is focusing on looking at the variables and research methodologies related to women-family-career conflict that are often used by researchers from various countries. This study is using the systematic literature review based on the PRISMA concept which includes the inclusion and exclusion criteria process. The articles used in this study are retrieved from two databases, Scopus and Complete Academic Search, where finally a total of 25 articles have been identified, screened and reviewed. The comprehensive variables highlighted from this study are found to be impactful toward the findings of woman family and career conflict issue. Therefore, the discovery of this data is expected to be utilized by researchers to enhance the future women-family-career conflict studies so that more sustainable research in this field could be conducted and benefited the society