Triangulation clay bodies formulation for lapohan traditional pottery

This study investigated traditional local clay in Kampung Selakan, Selakan Island. Traditional lapohan pottery uses the triangulation formula to define the body of the clay. The purpose of this research was to study the effect of gosong (local black sand) on the lapohan's properties as a solution to protect the market from decline as traditional Lapohan pottery is important for the preservation of heirloom heritage requires. In the experiment, 18 formulations used varied the composition of Selakan clay (SC) by introducing gosong (black local sand) from 2% to 18% of the weight percentages studied. The durability, water absorption and shrinkage of the clay body is tested for each sample. The higher gosong content has resulted in higher water absorption, low shrinkage, and stability. Experiment on the production of the firing temperature at 900°C. The effects of heat on the composition of clay were measured quantitatively and the interaction between the mechanical resistance and the components of the lapohan pottery clay body was tested. The result comparison shows that the best composition is obtained by adding gosong which generated pottery products with improved aesthetic workability of clay. A descriptive approach of qualitative analysis, including observation and in-depth interviews for written or visual data collection, will gather the necessary details for the report. The study's findings and significance indicate that traditional development of lapohan pottery in Selakan Island primarily involves awareness and technological usage of clay as a primary material, preparation of clay bodies, and adaptation for potters utilising local natural source

Improving lapohan clay bodies formulation to produce traditional pottery in Pulau Selakan Semporna

This research explores local traditional clay pottery (Lapohan) using triangulation formula for characterization of clay body in plasticity and colour clay body change (Fe2O3). In this research, 21 formulations using plasticity (Lapohan clay) and non-plasticity (Al2(OH)4Si2O5) material were selected and used as control factors in the experiment design at various cone firing temperatures ranged from 792℃ to 1186℃. The effects of the heat on the colour formation were quantitatively measured, and the relationship between the mechanical resistance and the colour components of the Lapohan pottery was analyzed. The color change and proper temperature of the firing sample were evaluated in terms of each sample. The result shows that the higher percentages of non-plasticity or kaolin give reduce redness of red iron content and higher high temperature firing with less plasticity. The relevant information for the study will be gathered from the descriptive method of qualitative research, including observation and in-depth interview for written or visual data collection. The finding of the study shows that traditional pottery production in Pulau Selakan is principally understanding and technical use of clay as a primary material, clay bodies preparation and adjustment for potters using local natural clay

Biofilm inhibition and antimicrobial properties of silver-ion-exchanged zeolite a against vibrio spp marine pathogens

A challenging problem in the aquaculture industry is bacterial disease outbreaks, which result in the global reduction in fish supply and foodborne outbreaks. Biofilms in marine pathogens protect against antimicrobial treatment and host immune defense. Zeolites are minerals of volcanic origin made from crystalline aluminosilicates, which are useful in agriculture and in environmental management. In this study, silver-ion-exchanged zeolite A of four concentrations; 0.25 M (AgZ1), 0.50 M (AgZ2), 1.00 M (AgZ3) and 1.50 M (AgZ4) were investigated for biofilm inhibition and antimicrobial properties against two predominant marine pathogens, V. campbelli and V. parahemolyticus, by employing the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and crystal violet biofilm quantification assays as well as scanning electron microscopy. In the first instance, all zeolite samples AgZ1–AgZ4 showed antimicrobial activity for both pathogens. For V. campbellii, AgZ4 exhibited the highest MIC at 125.00 µg/mL, while for V. parahaemolyticus, the highest MIC was observed for AgZ3 at 62.50 µg/mL. At sublethal concentration, biofilm inhibition of V. campbelli and V. parahemolyticus by AgZ4 was observed at 60.2 and 77.3% inhibition, respectively. Scanning electron microscopy exhibited profound structural alteration of the biofilm matrix by AgZ4. This is the first known study that highlights the potential application of ion-exchanged zeolite A against marine pathogens and their biofilms

The effect of crystallization time and temperature on Hydrothermal Synthesis of Zeolite Nax from Bongawan Kaolin

Hydrothermally synthesised zeolite NaX was produced by using kaolin procured from Kg. Gading, Bongawan. The kaolin was treated using sodium hexametaphosphate and calcined at 800oC to form metakaolin. Treated kaolin and prepared metakaolin were characterized using X-ray Fluorescence (XRF) and X-ray Diffraction (XRD). Reaction mixture was obtained by mixing metakaolin, sodium hydroxide and sodium silicate. The reaction mixture underwent aging for 15 hours before they were crystallized at various crystallization times (0 - 48 hours) and temperatures (80 – 130oC). The effect of crystallization time and temperature was studied using SEM and XRD. Optimum time and temperature for the synthesis was found to be 8 hours at 100 oC, respectively

The role of temperature and time in the synthesis of SnO2/reduced graphene oxide composites via conventional method

The synthesis of SnO2/Reduced Graphene Oxide(rGO) composites was carried out using the conventional method to study the effect of temperature and time. Synthesis of graphene oxide (GO) was carried out by oxidation of graphite with potassium permanganate (KMnO4), using Improved Hummer’s Method and further used to synthesise rGO composite via the conventional method. This method incorporated the reduction of GO in the presence of tin (II) chloride (SnCl 2) and ethylene glycol The temperature range used were 50ᵒC to 90ᵒC while time of reaction of 2 and 4 hours.The formation of both GO and rGO were characterized using FTIR, UV-Vis and SEM. The results obtained for GO demonstrated the presence of oxygen-containing groups and the formation of n−π* electron transition energy. The graphitic structural distortion due to the oxidation was visibly confirmedin this study. Formation of rGO were observed by the removal of O-H group, C=O group and C-O-C group from the composite plane structure. The extension of the conjugated system in the reasing electronic transitional energy. The distribution of SnO2 on the rGOsurface also confirmed the stability of the composite formed

Hydrothermal synthesis of hydroxyapatite powders using response surface methodology (RSM)

Hydroxyapatite (HAp)—[Ca10 (PO4)6(OH) 2] has a similar chemical composition to bone material, making it the main mineral supplement in bone-making. Due to its high biocompatibility, hydroxyapatite is widely used in the repair of bone deficiencies and in the production of dental or orthopedic implants. In this research, hydroxyapatite nanopowder was synthesized using a hydrothermal technique. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) were used to investigate the chemical structure and morphology of the synthesized hydroxyapatite powder. X-ray diffraction (XRD) was used to evaluate the phase analysis of HAp nanopowder. In addition, bioactivity HAp assessment was conducted by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) attached with Energy Dispersive X-Ray Spectroscopy (EDX) analysis. Response Surface Methodology (RSM) with central composite design (CCD) was used in order to determine the optimal conditions for yield, size, and crystallinity. Three independent variables (pH, temperature, and hydrothermal treatment time) were investigated. The yield was observed to increase in alkaline conditions; pH showed the greatest influence on the yield, size, and crystallinity of the synthesized hydroxyapatite, based on Analysis of Variance. The results of bioactivity evaluation are showed high bioactivity due to the formation of apatite on the surface of the synthesized nanopowder

Biofilm formation of serotype 19 Streptococcus pneumoniae clinical isolates in relation to clinical isolate source, pH and Fe(III) supplementation

Streptococcus pneumoniae is one the world’s foremost bacterial pathogens that cause massive global mortality and morbidity in young children and immunocompromised adults especially in developing countries. Biofilms have been increasingly recognized as an important prerequisite to disease. Individual S. pneumoniae strains differ markedly in their virulence phenotypes, but genetic heterogeneity has complicated attempts to identify any association between a given clonal lineage and propensity to cause a particular disease type. This study investigated serotype 19 S. pneumoniae from blood and ear isolates for biofilm formation capacity in relation to isolate source, pH and ferric oxide [Fe(III)] supplementation. Viable count and density biofilm assays, microscopy and multi locus sequence typing (MLST) were applied to investigate biofilm formation capacity and genetic diversity of serotype 19 S. pneumoniae from blood and ear isolates. Generally, blood isolates were observed to produce more biofilms at both pH 7.4 and 6.8 compared to the ear isolates. The supplementation of Fe(III) was also found to support biofilm growth. Upon MLST typing of the isolates, marked differences in biofilm formation within the same sequence types (ST) of ST199 and ST177 was observed. This strongly indicated that strains within the same sequence type show differences in biofilm formation capacity. This study showed that despite belonging to the same serotype, serotype 19, S. pneumoniae blood and ear isolates showed high diversity in biofilm formation ability in relation to pH and Fe(III) supplementation. Additionally, pneumococcal isolates from sequence types ST199 and ST177 also gave rise to differences in biofilm formation ability within the same sequence type (ST). The diversity of biofilm formation within serotype 19 seen in this study is significant to further inform of vaccination strategies against pneumococcal infections, in that due to variations in biofilm formation capacity within the same ST. It is possible that within serotype 19 may show variable vaccination or drug treatment responses. This also indicates that the current treatment strategy which employs specific serotype selection as for PCV14 and PCV7 pneumococcal vaccines may not produce the desired therapeutic results

Kenaf cellulose-based poly(amidoxime) ligand for adsorption of rare earth ions

A well-known adsorbent, poly(amidoxime) ligand, was prepared from polyacrylonitrile (PAN) grafted kenaf cellulose, and subsequent characterization was performed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM) and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The adsorption capacities of the prepared ligand for rare earth metals are found to be excellent, with adsorptions of La 3+ , Ce 3+ , Pr 3+ , Gd 3+ and Nd 3+ experimentally determined to be 262, 255, 244, 241 and 233 mg·g −1 , respectively, at pH 6. The experimental values of the adsorption of rare earth metals are well matched with the pseudo-second-order rate equation. The reusability of the adsorbent is examined for seven cycles of sorption/desorption, demonstrating that the proposed adsorbent could be reused for over seven cycles without any significant loss in the original removal capability of the ligand