Evaluation of cassava tuber resistance to deformation

Open Access JournalA study was carried out, hardness and resistant ability of cassava tuber was investigated, the study involved the use of laboratory penetrometer and a data lodger. Hand-drilling machine was fitted with a 500mm diameter blade. These devices were powered manually and by application of electricity. Forces were applied by allowing direct cutting of the tubers using rotating sharp blade. The penetrometer was used to test the strength of fresh tuber. The result obtained indicated that cassava tuber hardness increases with the reduction of moisture content. The penetration force of 5.4 Newton at 70% moisture content wet basis was recorded while 9.2 Newton was recorded at 50% moisture content wet basis. The cutting time of 5.3 seconds was recorded for equal size tuber when the moisture was at 70%, at 50%moisture content 9.7 seconds was recorded. The implication is that all process handling of cassava tuber involving cutting must be carried out when the tuber is still tender

Effect of filtrating medium resistance on cassava pulp dewatering

Open Access JournalCassava pulp dewatering by applying pressure on the grated pulp was carried out. Pulp particles were constrained while the liquid was free. The cassava pulp cake was compressed. Experimental equipment was designed to obtain the applied pressure from various devices and the final moisture content of resulting cake was compared. Hydraulic jack press reduced the moisture content of cake to the acceptable level for gari production at a pressure of 69000 N/m2 and to a moisture content of 40%- 45%wet basis, Pulp particles capable of creating resistances within the filtering medium were identified

Upscaling cassava processing machines and products in Liberia

Open Access JournalCassava is produced by more than 80% of farming households and is an important contributor to gross domestic product (GDP) in Liberia. It is therefore important to assess the status of cassava processing into food and other products. A total of one hundred and sixty (160) well-structured questionnaires were used for the collection of information from eight counties, with twenty respondents from each county. It was found out that all the counties lack adequate modern cassava processing machines, with almost all cassava processing operations being done with rudimentary equipment. Gari and wet fufu are common products in Liberian markets, with no high-quality cassava flour (HQCF) or derivatives. Consequently, user and gender friendly processing machines were installed in six established modern cassava processing centres, and new cassava products, such as fufu powder, tapioca, and HQCF with its value-added products (10% bread and pastries), were introduced. This upscaling will enhance the cassava value chain in Liberia with improvement in livelihoods, especially for vulnerable women and unemployed youth

Preventing occupational ailments and disorders associated with cassava mash dewatering techniques

Open Access JournalMethods in use to reduce the cyanide level in cassava were found to be dangerous to the processors. To reduce occupational hazards, cassava processors sometimes wear protective coverings such as hand gloves, overall, mouth/nose hood, eye goggles which are not comfortable. Each of the steps in cassava processing stages exposes workers to various occupationally related ailments and disorders of ergonomic origin. The operators of dewatering tools are at the risks of suffering from different ailments.The traditional processors still depend on the old technique and resources. Workers are often exposed to cyanide and many are scared of the toxic effect of cassava juice. To prevent the occupational related ailment, mash process handling machine was developed and evaluated. The obtained result by use of the machine confirms the operators’ protection. The obtained mash cake was found to meet the stake holders’ requirement of 47-50% moisture content wet bases without human contact

ASSESSING SEVERITY OF POSTURAL LOADING IN FOUR GARI -FRYING METHODS

Posture at work is a source of musculoskeletal load. This is in addition to the external task-induced         load depending on the task, which must be minimized to ease the work. Four working postures com-         mon to gari-frying workers in the southwestern Nigeria namely, sitting beside (SB), sitting in front (SF),        alternating sitting and standing (ASS) and standing (S) were investigated to assess severity of loading         in each posture. Activities of 16 fryers were videotaped and played back for assessment using Rapid         Upper Limb Assessment (RULA) technique. RULA grand score recorded were SB 7.00, S 6.50, SF                                                                                                           0        6.00 and ASS 5.75. Postural angles were also measured giving SB 36, S 50, SF 79, and ASS 50 .         RULA result has been confirmed by postural angle measurement, indicating that ASS has the least        severity   due   to   postural   loading   with the   least   bending/twisting   and   flexion   of the   back   during gari-        frying task. ASS posture, therefore, is recommended for gari frying in southwestern Nigeria

Determination of juice removal difficulty from mash cake in cassava mash dewatering operation

Open Access JournalCassava processing equipment operators have limited knowledge; this militates against the success recorded in the research so far in cassava mash dewatering. New dewatering schemes to make food processing economical to handle are in progress. Common dewatering processes use a variety of mechanical means such as screw presses and belt presses. Experiments were conducted using three samples of TMS 4(2) 1425 variety while evaluating the difficulty of separating juice from mash cake. Average specific cake resistance (α) of 5×1011 m/kg was obtained confirming that it is moderately easy to dewatering

Comparative study of physicochemical analysis of prosopis africana seeds fermented with different starter cultures

Prosopis africana (African mesquite) is one of the lesser known legume seed crops in Nigeria, which in a fermented state, gives a food condiment. Because of its rich protein content (about 34%), efforts are made to utilize some lesser known legumes to improve the nutritional status of the people. This study was carried out by fermenting Prosopis africana seeds with mono and mixed cultures of bacterial isolates to produce a local condiment called Okpehe. Standard AOAC methods were used to determine the pH, total sugar and crude protein content of the fermented seeds. During the production of Okpehe with mono cultures of bacteria, the pH ranged between 6.80 and 8.92; total sugar between 10.2 and 7.5 mg/g, and crude protein between 34.62 and 41.25%. In the mixed culture inoculated samples, the pH increased from 7.00 to 8.92; total sugar decreased from 9.4 to 7.4 mg/g, while the crude protein increased (35.02 - 44.61%) significantly (p < 0.05) as the fermentation progressed. The highest crude protein content of 44.61% was obtained with the combination of Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus licheniformis, while the lowest protein content referred to the combination of Bacillus megaterium and Bacillus pumilus. The result of this study showed that Prosopis africana seeds could be utilized for the production of Okpehe using mixed cultures of B. subtilis and B. licheniformis, so as to increase the protein intake of the populace

Protective Effect of Vitamin E on Nicotine Induced Reproductive Toxicity in Male Rats

The current study assessed the protective role of vitamin E in alleviating the detrimental effect of nicotine on reproductive functions in male rats. Twenty four male albino rats were divided into four groups of six rats. Control group was treated orally with 1.1 ml/kg body weight normal saline, nicotine treated group received 1.0 mg/kg body weight of nicotine, vitamin E treated group received 100 mg/kg body weight of vitamin E while nicotine plus vitamin E treated group received 1.0 mg/kg body weight of nicotine plus 100 mg/kg body weight of vitamin E. The administration of nicotine and vitamin E were done orally for 40 days. Nicotine caused a  significant reduction (p&lt;0.05) in sperm count, sperm motility, sperm viability and normal sperm cells. It also caused a significant reduction (p&lt;0.05) in serum  testosterone, follicle stimulating hormone and luteinizing hormone levels. There was impairment in testicular histology of rats treated with nicotine. Vitamin E  improved the reduction in sperm characteristics, hormone levels and testicular alterations observed in nicotine treated rats. The study shows that nicotine exerts significant deleterious effects on male reproductive system and the concurrent administration of vitamin E ameliorated these detrimental effects.Keywords: Nicotine, Vitamin E, Sperm toxicity, FSH, LH, Testosteron

The Thermal Analysis of Fuel Fired Crucible Furnace Using Autodesk Inventor Simulation Software

The reasons for failure of locally made furnace in the foundries were as a result of cycles of operating temperatures that they were subjected to, which caused thermal stress and strain on the furnaces. This paper studied the simulation of thermal analysis of Fuel fired Crucible Furnace to predict the effect of thermal stress and strain on it

Genetic Variation for Striga hermonthica Resistance and Yield Among Sorghum Accessions in Nigeria

Striga hermonthica (Delile) Benth., commonly referred to as witch weed, is a major constraint to sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) production in the Northern region of Nigeria because of high yield losses due to infestation. To identify parental lines useful in breeding for S. hermonthica resistant sorghum genotypes adapted to Nigeria, twenty-five sorghum accessions were evaluated in Nigeria across three test environments. Both phenotypic and genetic components influenced the variation observed in the sorghum accessions. The estimates for the genetic coefficient of variation, heritability and genetic advance for the area under Striga number progress curve (ASUNPC), Striga emergence counts, yield and other agronomic traits, obtained in this study revealed that genetic gain for resistance to S. hermonthica could be realized through selection. Based on the performance of the 25 sorghum accessions SRN39, Danyana, Sepon82, and SAMSORG40 were the top four accessions found to be most resistant to S. hermonthica. Assessment of resistance was based on the low Striga emergence counts and the ASUNPC values. These accessions can be used as donor sources of S. hermonthica resistant genes for introgression into cultivars adapted to Nigeria, followed by recombination breeding for pyramiding the different resistance mechanisms