Energy and Economic Comparison of Different Fuels in Cement Production

Cement clinkerisation is the major energy-consuming process in cement manufacturing due to the high-temperature requirement. In this paper, energy data including specific energy consumption, forms, and types of energy used at different units of cement manufacturing processes were analyzed and compared for effectiveness, availability, cost, environmental, and health impact. Data from three different cement industries in Nigeria labeled as A, B, and C were used for the analysis in this study. The results of this research work established that coal is the cheapest energy source but environmental issues exonerate it from being the choice energy source. LPFO and Natural gas give better production output while minimizing pollution and health issues. When benchmarked against each other, Factory B was found to be the most energy-efficient in terms of output and cost of production. Although coal is cheaper compared to fuel oil and supposed to contribute a share of fuel used in cement industries, the industries are moving towards the use of alternative and conventional fuels to reduce environmental pollution. It is therefore recommended that deliberate effort to achieve appreciable energy-efficient levels should be the priorities of the cement industries in Nigeria

Development of a Novel Probiotic Yogurt "PENTOYO" with a Fully Sequenced Lactobacillus pentosus KCA1 and its Survival during Storage at 4 °C

Purpose: To determine whether L. pentosus KCA1 can be used to create a new probiotic yogurt and the organism’s duration of survival when stored at 4 °C. Methods: Mother cultures of Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus and L. pentosus KCA1 were prepared and subsequently added to a suspension of pasteurized milk. It was then incubated at 37 °C for 6 h, after which it was removed and placed in a refrigerator at 4 °C. Survival test was determined in MRS agar plate supplemented with 30 µg of tetracycline for the selective enumeration of L. pentosus KCA1 at predetermined intervals over a period of 63 days at 4 °C. Results: pH decreased both in normal yogurt and probiotic yogurt and there was no significant difference (p > 0.05) in the pH of the two preparations. The strain showed higher viability for 49 days, indicating the presence of a sufficient number of viable bacterial cells at 4 °C. There were only 3 log cycle losses in the number of cells surviving from day 1 (5.6 x 109 cfu/ml) to day 49 (5.5 x 106 cfu/ml). Conclusion: This study shows that yogurt has the potential to deliver biotherapeutic benefits associated with probiotic bacteria to consumers adequately