Physico-chemical studies of disazo dyes derived from paminophenol On synthetic polymer-fibres

The physico-chemical properties of a series of disazo dyes derived from p-aminophenol on polyester andnylon 6 substrates are described. It was found that the dyes generally have higher affinities for the polyester fibre thanfor the nylon 6 fibre. The values of &#916&#956o, &#916Ho and &#916So in the two dye-fibre systems suggest that the hydrogen bondingmechanism is operative in the dye-fibre binding force

Assessment of Heavy Metal Content of Njere River in Umuakam, Okaiuga Nkwoegwu, Umuahia North L.G.A

Aims: To assess the heavy metal content of water from Njere river in Umuakam Okaiuga Nkwoegwu autonomous community in Umuahia North L.G.A of Abia State. Study Design: Purposive sampling was employed for sample collection. Place and Duration of Study: Department of Chemistry, Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike from June 2009 to December 2009. Methodology: Water samples were collected from upstream, midstream and downstream locations of the Njere river. From each location, water was collected from three different points and combined to form a composite. The total, soluble and exchangeable metal ions were estimated by the use of Atomic absorption spectrophotometer. Results: Total Nickel, cadmium and zinc ion content exceeded the WHO standard in all the locations. Water soluble zinc ion was higher than the standard for all the samples. Exchangeable metal ions exceeded the standard for Ni, Cd, Zn and Pb. Conclusion: The water from the Njere river is not completely safe for domestic and agricultural activities

Challenges to generating political prioritization for adolescent sexual and reproductive health in Kenya: A qualitative study.

BackgroundDespite the high burden of adverse adolescent sexual and reproductive health (SRH) outcomes, it has remained a low political priority in Kenya. We examined factors that have shaped the lack of current political prioritization of adolescent SRH service provision.MethodsWe used the Shiffman and Smith policy framework consisting of four categories-actor power, ideas, political contexts, and issue characteristics-to analyse factors that have shaped political prioritization of adolescent SRH. We undertook semi-structured interviews with 14 members of adolescent SRH networks between February and April 2019 at the national level and conducted thematic analysis of the interviews.FindingsSeveral factors hinder the attainment of political priority for adolescent SRH in Kenya. On actor power, the adolescent SRH community was diverse and united in adoption of international norms and policies, but lacked policy entrepreneurs to provide strong leadership, and policy windows were often missed. Regarding ideas, community members lacked consensus on a cohesive public positioning of the problem. On issue characteristics, the perception of adolescents as lacking political power made politicians reluctant to act on the existing data on the severity of adolescent SRH. There was also a lack of consensus on the nature of interventions to be implemented. Pertaining to political contexts, sectoral funding by donors and government treasury brought about tension within the different government ministries resulting in siloed approaches, lack of coordination and overall inefficiency. However, the SRH community has several strengths that augur well for future political support. These include the diverse multi-sectoral background of its members, commitment to improving adolescent SRH, and the potential to link with other health priorities such as maternal health and HIV/AIDS.ConclusionIn order to increase political attention to adolescent SRH in Kenya, there is an urgent need for policy actors to: 1) create a more cohesive community of advocates across sectors, 2) develop a clearer public positioning of adolescent SRH, 3) agree on a set of precise approaches that will resonate with the political system, and 4) identify and nurture policy entrepreneurs to facilitate the coupling of adolescent SRH with potential solutions when windows of opportunity arise

Myocarditis Secondary to Mesalamine-Induced Cardiotoxicity in a Patient with Ulcerative Colitis

Development of cardiac manifestations in patients diagnosed with inflammatory bowel disease undergoing treatment with mesalamine is a rare. When this occurs, it can be difficult to tease out the primary etiology, as both IBD and mesalamine can cause cardiac manifestations independently of each other. The exact mechanism of mesalamine-induced cardiotoxicity is yet to be determined although several mechanisms have been described. We present the case of a gentleman with nonexertional chest pain in the setting of ulcerative colitis exacerbation believed to have occurred secondary to mesalamine

Weight Loss Corrosion Study of Some Metals in Acid Medium

This research was undertaken to examine the corrosion behavior of some metals in different acid solutions using weight loss technique. The magnitude of corrosion of these metals in 0.5 – 3.0 M of solutions of HCl, H2SO4, and HNO3 was studied for an exposure period of 100 minutes (at 20 minutes interval). Rate of corrosion in metals followed this order: zinc > galvanized iron > copper >, while rate of corrosion in aqueous media followed this order: HNO3 > H2SO4 > HCl. It has been obtained that concentration increase leads to increase in rate of corrosion. Further study on the corrosion kinetics has revealed that the rate of reaction of the metals increases with increase in solution concentration, while the half life decreases with increase in solution concentration

Risk Factor Profile of Motorcycle Crash Victims in Rural Kenya

Background: Road traffic injuries involving motorcycles are increasing  especially in rural Kenya resulting in both human and economic loss. This study was done to identify the risk factors and the host characteristics associated with motorcycle injury victims in rural setting so as to instituteappropriate interventions for prevention of these incidents.Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study conducted at Kangundo District Hospital between 1st July and 31st December 2011.Results:167 crash victims (136 (81.4%) males, 31 (18.6%) females) were seen. Mean age was 29 years; most victims (94.2%) being aged 16-40  years. Cyclists comprised 61 (36.5%) while 79 (47.3%) were passengers. All cyclists were men; more women were passengers (p, 0.03), while  pedestrians were mostly children below 10 years. Most victims (74.3%) didnot wear helmets while 72.1% did not wear jackets with reflectors. Alcohol use was recorded in 22.8% of cyclists. About 71.9% of cyclists lacked valid driving licenses. Overloading was common, with 74.8% of the cyclists carrying two or more passengers.Conclusion: Poor driving skills, reluctance to use protective gear, alcohol use and overloading of passengers were the main risk factors observed.  Our observations call for more stringent regulations and aggressive road safety campaigns. Injury prevention and safety promotion campaigns should focus more on the risk factors for motorcycle accidents.Key Words: Motorcycles, Crash, Risk factors, Rura

Performance Evaluation of Alaoji Thermal Power Plant

Electricity supply in Nigeria is epileptic and characterized by extensive outages. The new NIPP plants constructed have not improved the power situation in the country. The performance of Alaoji Thermal Power Station being one of the new NIPP plants with an installed capacity of 504.4MW (consisting of 4 X 126.1MW GE frame-9EA gas turbines) was studied. The study evaluated the performance of the plant for the period of January to December, 2016. The key performance indices involved were CF, PUF, LF, and AF. The required data for the analysis were obtained from the plant\u27s operational records and personal interview of the relevant staff. The results of the study are shown in Table 1 – 2 and figures 1 – 7 for running hours, energy generated, load factor, availability factor, shortfall in energy generation and plant use factor respectively. When the obtained values were weighed against the International best practice of 80% (LF), 50 - 70% (PUF) and 95% (AF). Shortfall in energy generation ranged from 1.4% to 90.5%, this is in excess of 5 – 10% average acceptable value. The Average PUF was 20.1%, indicating that the plant was grossly underutilized during the study period. The plant had a capacity factor ranging from 7.1 - 37.5% with an average CF of 20% for the review period. It was evident from the results that the plant performed poorly during the period under review. This was attributed to grid restrictions, insufficient gas supply and unavailability of spare parts for maintenance. It is suggested that the management should address the challenges so as to enhance the performance of the plant

A comparative study on the rate of bone decalcification at varying temperatures, fluid type and fluid concentrations

This study evaluates the rate of bone decalcification at varying temperatures, decalcification fluid and fluid concentrations. A decalcification methodology was adopted using modern household microwave oven to accelerate the decalcification rate of rabbit compact bone sample. Bone biopsy was obtained from a rabbit limb and fixed immediately for 24hrs in 10% formalin. Traditional decalcification was carried out at room temperature (RT) with 5% Jenkins fluid (JK) and 5% Gooding and Stewart (GS) fluid as controls. Microwave oven decalcification with 5% JK and 7% JK, as well as 5% GS and 10% GS served as the tests at 300C, 400C and 500C in microwave oven. Results showed that at 300C, 5%-GS and 10%-GS as well as 5%-JK and 7%-JK presented a decalcifying time of 11hrs:30mins and 10hrs:30mins as well as 15hrs and 13hrs respectively. At 400C, a decalcifying time of 8hrs, 6hrs:30mins, 10hrs:30mins and 12hrs were recorded for the respective concentrations of decalcifying fluid. Also, at 500C, the decalcifying times were 6hrs, 5hrs, and 9hrs:30mins and 8hrs respectively. The observed differences between RT and microwave oven decalcification was significant while the rate between the two decalcifying fluid were not. Our findings further encourage the use of microwave oven for bone decalcification.Key Words: Bone, Decalcification rate, fluid concentration, Temperatur