Technical efficacy of laying hen farms in Southern Benin

The performance of national poultry farms has been a central issue in the context of massive imports of poultry products into Benin. Socioeconomic considerations have arisen in order to ensure a better allocation of productive resources. This study aimed to establish the performance level of laying hen farms in Southern Benin. Using the parametric approach, technical efficiency levels were estimated from a stochastic production frontier. We collected data on forty-five poultry farms with surveys conducted between August and September 2016. The analyses showed that the majority of the farms were performing well despite differences in efficiency between them. Human capital, labor, veterinary treatments were the main significant factors in the egg production process. The production function regression revealed that the low production of layers resulted more from technical shortcomings of producers (84%) than from the inefficient allocation of resources (16%). Differences in inefficiency were caused by socioeconomic factors including State support, the educational level, the poultry farmer’s age, his/her skills, and poultry density. In conclusion, the poultry farms surveyed in Benin performed well but were weakened by external factors

DMSO Intercalation in Selected Kaolinites: Influence of the Crystallinity

International audienceThe present study deals with the relation between crystalline order in kaolinites and their ability to intercalate DMSO. Raw clays and kaolinite-DMSO complexes are analyzed using FTIR, XRD powder diffraction and differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric analysis (DSC-TGA). The crystallinity is accessed using the Hinckley index (HI) from the raw clays' XRD patterns and the p 2 factor from their FTIR spectra. The intercalation ratio is evaluated from XRD and compared among the samples. The thermal analyses show a decrease in the dehydroxylation temperature in the DMSO-kaolinite complexes, indicating a decrease in the interlayer cohesion that may be useful to improve the delamination of kaolinite. The analysis of the coherent scattering domain size in the raw and the DMSO-intercalated samples indicates that the ordering is not affected during the DMSO intercalation. From these results, it is deduced that DMSO intercalation is favored by an increased crystallinity, as revealed by the intercalation ratio from XRD and the DSMO release during DSC-TGA analysis

Adsorption of Cu(II) ions by modified horn core: Effect of temperature on adsorbent preparation and extended application in river water

International audienc

Removal of Cu(II) from aqueous solution using a composite made from cocoa cortex and sodium alginate

International audienceThe aim of this work was to prepare a composite material based on cocoa cortex and sodium alginate and test it to remove Cu(II) ions in aqueous solution in batch conditions. The composite was characterized using elemental analysis, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA/DTG), and point of zero charge. The highest amount of adsorbed Cu(II) for the composite was 19.54 mg/g, i.e., 95.32% of an initial concentration of 100 mg/L. Under the same conditions, the cocoa cortex untreated exhibited extremely low adsorption, while when it was treated with hot soda, it adsorbed 13.67 mg/g. Adsorption by the composite reached the equilibrium after 220 min. Kinetic data analysis suggested that the process was governed by adsorption (pseudo-second-order model) and diffusion through macropores and/or mesopores (intra-particle model). The adsorption isotherm that best described the system was Langmuir’s. The maximum adsorption capacity of Cu(II) was 76.92 mg/g. The values of the thermodynamic parameters indicated that the process was spontaneous, with ΔG° values between (− 7.886 and − 9.458 kJ/mol) and endothermic, with ΔH° = 7.728 kJ/mol