Application of Noug (Guizotia abyssinica cass.) stalk activated carbon for the removal of lead (II) ions from aqueous solutions

Due to the rise of industries worldwide, huge amounts of pollutants including heavy metals are released into the surroundings. Disposal of effluents containing heavy metals in higher concentrations without proper treatment is common in industries; lead is one of them. This study aims to determine and optimize the efficiency of Noug (Guizotia abyssinica Cass.) stalk porous carbon (NSAC) for the elimination of lead (II) from aqueous solutions. For studying the adsorption characteristics of Noug stalk activated carbon (NSAC) an adsorbate of lead (II) ions was used. The interaction and effect of the following parameters on Pb(II) adsorption were investigated using Design Expert version 7.0 software (central composite design) to determine the optimum adsorption condition: pH, initial concentration of Pb(II) ion, adsorbent dose, and contact time. The optimized condition for the elimination of lead (II) using Noug stalk porous carbon (98.77 %) was achieved at pH [4.87], initial concentration of Pb(II) [84.66 mg/L], adsorbent dose [18.43 g/L], and contact time [2.04 h]. The pseudo-second-order kinetics and the Langmuir isotherm model which had a maximum adsorption capacity of 89.25 mg/g, provided the best-fit models for Pb(II) adsorption, with R2 values of 0.99 and 0.98, respectively. Efficient elimination of Pb(II) from wastewater can be performed through the use of NSAC. Future research should delve more into column adsorption under continuous wastewater flow

Determinants of Trachomatous Inflammation-Follicular Among Children Aged 1 to 9 Years Old in a Rural Area of Gozamn District, Northwestern Ethiopia: A Matched Case-Control Study

Background: Approximately 1.9 million people worldwide are blind or visually impaired due to trachoma, and trachoma remains endemic in 44 countries. Amhara in Ethiopia has the highest burden of trachoma in the world. A key indicator of whether active trachoma requires public health intervention is the incidence of trachomatous inflammation-follicular in children aged 1 to 9 years. However, limited study has been conducted on the determinants in rural communities. This study therefore aimed to fill this gap by identifying determinants in the Gozamn district of northwestern Ethiopia. Methods: A community-based case-control study was carried out between March 15 and April 30, 2021. Five or more follicles on the epitaxial conjunctivae that are larger than 0.5 mm were considered a case. Controls were free of any sign of trachoma. A semi-structured questionnaire and an observational checklist were used to gather the data, and STATA version 14 was used for the analysis. Using a 95% confidence interval, both bivariable and multivariable conditional logistic regression was performed. Results: A total of 726 mothers/caregivers participated in this study, with a participation rate of 98.4%. Children from poor families (mAOR = 4.68; CI: 2.80-6.21), households where the water source is far from home (>30 minutes) (mAOR = 4.91; KI: 1.37-12.56), mean daily water consumption (<20 l/c/d) (mAOR = 4.42; CI:1.71-11.39), face washing frequency less than once a day (mAOR = 10.64; CI: 2.58-18.84), cloth washing frequency once a month or less (mAOR = 9.18; CI: 2.20-18.62), and mothers or caregivers with poor knowledge of active trachoma (mAOR = 3.88; CI: 1.47-10.22) were determinants of trachomatous inflammation-follicular. Conclusions: We conclude that infrequent faces and clothes washing; unavailability of water, children in poor families, and poor knowledge of mothers/caregivers were risk factors. Health education initiatives about active trachoma, its prevention, and control methods focusing on personal hygiene are so required