Thermal stability and compression strength of rigid polyurethane/kenaf fibre biocomposite foam

Rigid palm oil-based polyurethane/kenaf fibre biocomposite foams were prepared at various amounts of kenaf fibre (i.e. 2.5, 5.0, 7.5, 10.0 and 12.5 pphp). Effects of kenaf fibre (KF) loadings on thermal stabilities and compressive strength were investigated. The peaks detected by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) at 3,310 cm-1 (OH stretching), 1,533 cm-1 (NH bending) and 1,510 cm-1 (CN stretching) had proved the formation of urethane linkages in the system. Results from thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) showed that the thermal stabilities of biocomposite foams were higher than that of control PU foam. Higher KF contents resulted in agglomeration of which reduced the rate of heat transfer throughout the system. The presence of intrahydrogen bonds in agglomerated KF caused more heat needs to break the bonds, thus increasing the thermal stabilities. Consequently, the agglomeration of KF created stress concentration, which reduced the compression strength of the foams with respect to the control PU foam. The presence of intra-hydrogen bonding in PU chains had surpassed the agglomeration effect, thus causing just a small reduction percentage. The foams have potentials to be used in non-load bearing applications such as insulators and wall panels

Processing of Watermelon Rind Dehydrated Candy

Watermelon rind (Citrullus lanatus) dehydrated candy was prepared by using osmotic dehydration process that involves slow impregnation of syrup before drying at 50°C for 8, 14 and 20 hours. From the study, it can be seen that drying time significantly affected the moisture content of the watermelon rind dehydrated candy. The moisture content was significantly decreased with drying time. For colour evaluation, the L* value of watermelon rind dehydrated candy was slightly decreased with drying time while the a* value was slightly increased. Watermelon rind dehydrated candy that dried for 14 hours was the most preferred sample by the panelists as it received the highest score for texture, taste and overall acceptability attributes. So, it can be concluded that 14 hours of drying time is the most appropriate time to dry the candied watermelon rind

Reducing food waste: Strategies for household waste management to minimize the impact of climate change and contribute to Malaysia’s sustainable development

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations estimated, one-third of the food produced worldwide i.e.1.3 billion tons is either lost or wasted throughout the food supply chain from primary production to final consumption. According to The Food Sustainability Index (FSI), the sustainable food system has three pillars namely food loss and food waste, sustainable agriculture and nutritional challenge. Food waste can be classified into food products that are lost during the production phase, unavoidable food waste that lost during the consumption phase and avoidable food waste that could have been eaten but lost during the consumption phase. There are several popular treatment methods of food waste that have been widely applied in developing countries including animal feeding, composting, anaerobic digestion, incineration, and landfills. The common treatment of food waste in developing countries is dumping or landfills. About 95% of food waste ends at landfill sites in which food waste is converted into methane and other greenhouse gasses that affect climate change. Therefore, reducing food waste contributes to abating interlinked sustainability challenges including food waste and food safety, climate change and stress to natural resources. This paper sets out recommendations on how to reduce food waste generation by using six strategies that are food waste separation or composting behavior, eating behavior, cooking behavior, consumer's environmental knowledge of food waste, consumer's environmental awareness and government policy on household food waste management, which can contribute to the nation's goal for sustainable development

Draft genome sequence of lignin-degrading agrobacterium sp. Strain s2, isolated from a decaying oil palm empty fruit bunch

We report the draft genome sequence of Agrobacterium sp. strain S2, isolated from a decaying oil palm empty fruit bunch (OPEFB) in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia, which yields potential genes encoding lignin degradation enzymes. This genome of 9,722,071bp exhibited 58.9% GC content, 10,416 coding genes, and 12 RNAs

Draft genome sequence of the prazosin-degrading bacillus sp. Strain pr5, isolated from a river receiving hospital and urban wastewater in Malaysia

We report the complete genome sequence of Bacillus sp. strain PR5, isolated from a river receiving hospital and urban wastewater in Malaysia, which demonstrated a high capability for degrading prazosin. This genome sequence of 4,525,264 bp exhibited 41.5% GC content, 4,402 coding sequences, and 32 RNAs

Extraction and intensive conversion of lignocellulose from oil palm solid waste into lignin monomer by the combination of physico-chemical and biological treatment

Empty fruit bunches from palm oil production contain lignin, which can be a source of valuable aromatic chemicals such as protocatechuic acid. In this study, empty fruit bunches were utilized in the hydrothermal pretreatment at different temperatures (100–200 °C) to produce liquid fractions containing depolymerized lignin such as single aromatic chemicals. The liquid fractions then underwent microbial processing by a mutant, ∆pcaHG Rhodococcus jostii RHA1 for six days to produce protocatechuic acid. Hydrothermal pretreatment temperature influenced the types of single aromatic chemicals produced and the sum of area of the single aromatic chemicals in both ethyl acetate extracts and TMS derivatives. The single aromatic chemicals obtained at 160 °C, 180 °C, and 200 °C act as precursors to accumulate protocatechuic acid by ∆pcaHG Rhodococcus jostii RHA1 on the third day of incubation. The role of single aromatic chemicals that acted as either precursors or inhibitors of protocatechuic acid was discussed

Phytoestrogen in skin ageing : the case of labisia pumilia

Labisia pumila locally known as Kacip Fatimah is a traditional Malaysian herb that has a wide range of therapeutic value especially in women?s health. Therefore, it is known as the „Queen of Plant? in Malaysia. Labisia pumila has been excessively studied by local researchers and it has been proven scientifically to have the potential of pre and post-natal treatment which involved much in hormonal regulation. Phytoestrogen is a plant estrogen that has been identified to be present in this herb. Phytoestrogen has been identified to have estrogen-like activity. Phytoestrogen has the ability to enhance the proliferation of cells in the epidermis, stimulate collagen synthesis and reduce the degradation of collagen by enzymatic reaction. These characteristics strongly support the huge potential of Labisia pumila in cosmeceutical applications

Whole gene transcriptomic analysis of pcb/ biphenyl degrading rhodococcus jostii rha1

This study gives the first picture of whole RNASequencing analysis of a PCB-degrading microbe, Rhodococcus jostii RHA1. Genes that were highly expressed in biphenyl-grown cells, compared with pyruvate-grown cells, were chosen based on the Reads Per Kilobase Million (RPKM) value and were summarized based on the criteria of RPKM = 100 and fold change =2.0. Consequently, 266 total genes were identified as genes expressed particularly for the degradation of biphenyl. After comparison with previous microarray data that identified highly-expressed genes, based on a fold change =2.0 and p-value £0.05, 62 highly-expressed genes from biphenyl-grown cells were determined from both analytical platforms. As these 62 genes involve known PCB degradation genes, such as bph, etb, and ebd, the genes identified in this study can be considered as essential genes for PCB/biphenyl degradation. In the 62 genes, eleven genes encoding hypothetical proteins were highly expressed in the biphenyl-grown cells. Meanwhile, we identified several highly-expressed unannotated DNA regions on the opposite strand. In order to verify the encoded proteins, two regions were cloned into an expression vector. A protein was successfully obtained from one region at approximately 25 kDa from the unannotated strand. Thus, the genome sequence with transcriptomic analysis gives new insight, considering re-annotation of the genome of R. jostii RHA1, and provides a clearer picture of PCB/biphenyl degradation in this strain