139 research outputs found
Development of a manually operated fertilizer broadcaster
No full textA manually operated fertilizer broadcaster was designed, constructed and tested. Design considerations were low initial cost, ease of construction and operation as well as three different application rates (low, medium and high). At average walking speeds of 0.7 and 0.9 m/s, the hand-cranked broadcaster spreads between 4.23 and 18.7 gm-2 for 7 m swath of of urea fertilizer and 6.24 and 28.2 gm-2 for 9 m swath of compound fertilizer respectively
Development of a manually operated fertilizer broadcaster
No full textA manually operated fertilizer broadcaster was designed, constructed and tested. Design considerations were low initial cost, ease of construction and operation as well as three different application rates (low, medium and high). At average walking speeds of 0.7 and 0.9 m/s, the hand-cranked broadcaster spreads between 4.23 and 18.7 gm-2 for 7 m swath of of urea fertilizer and 6.24 and 28.2 gm-2 for 9 m swath of compound fertilizer respectivel
Physical Properties of Guinea Corn Stalk Fibre Reinforced High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) Composite for The Production of Particle Board
No full textMajority of developing nations view the construction/manufacturing sector as being crucial to their economy. The industry produces panels and boards for furniture, ceilings, panelling, and other wood-based manufactured projects, relying solely on forest resources. This heavy dependence strains forests, contributing to deforestation and causing prolonged damage to ecosystems. A major interest in finding substitute raw materials for the manufacture of boards and panels through the utilization of agricultural waste products, is becoming the direction to scholars. In this study, guinea corn stalk fibre reinforced high density polyethylene (HDPE) composite was developed and analysed for the production of Particle Board. The composites were produced through the process of compounding and compression moulding operation. The HDPE was varied from 100 - 50 Wt % at interval of 10 Wt % while the filler was reversed from 10 - 50 Wt % at interval of 10 Wt %. Five different composites samples were formulated using 250 μm fibre size using HDPE as binder and a 100 % HDPE as control sample. The physical (density, thickness swelling and water absorption) properties of the developed composite were evaluated. The density (ranges from 943.9 kg/m³ to 1075.5 kg/m³), thickness swelling (3.13% to 18.75%), and water absorption (0.28% to 2.01%) of all the composites increased with increasing filler loading with highest values obtained at 50 Wt % material loading. All the values are within the minimum requirement stipulated in the European standard EN 312:2010 for general purpose particle boards except for the density which is above the standard. The incorporation of the fillers into the HDPE matrix generally enhanced the physical properties of the matrix. The Guinea Corn Stalk Fibre (GCSF) composite produced with 60 Wt % matrix and 40 Wt % filler is the most suitable for general purpose particle board production as all the physical properties met the required standard stipulated in the European standard EN 312:2010 for general purpose particle board
Zinc-induced oligomerization of zinc α2 glycoprotein reveals multiple fatty acid-binding sites
No full textZinc α2 glycoprotein (ZAG) is an adipokine with a class I MHC protein fold and is associated with obesity and diabetes. Although its intrinsic ligand remains unknown, ZAG binds the dansylated C11 fatty acid 11-(dansylamino)undecanoic acid (DAUDA) in the groove between the α1 and α2 domains. The surface of ZAG has approximately 15 weak zinc-binding sites deemed responsible for precipitation from human plasma. In the present study the functional significance of these metal sites was investigated. Analytical ultracentrifugation (AUC) and CD showed that zinc, but not other divalent metals, causes ZAG to oligomerize in solution. Thus ZAG dimers and trimers were observed in the presence of 1 and 2 mM zinc. Molecular modelling of X-ray scattering curves and sedimentation coefficients indicated a progressive stacking of ZAG monomers, suggesting that the ZAG groove may be occluded in these. Using fluorescence-detected sedimentation velocity, these ZAG-zinc oligomers were again observed in the presence of the fluorescent boron dipyrromethene fatty acid C16-BODIPY (4,4-difluoro-5,7-dimethyl-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indacene-3-hexadecanoic acid). Fluorescence spectroscopy confirmed that ZAG binds C16-BODIPY. ZAG binding to C16-BODIPY, but not to DAUDA, was reduced by increased zinc concentrations. We conclude that the lipid-binding groove in ZAG contains at least two distinct fatty acid-binding sites for DAUDA and C16-BODIPY, similar to the multiple lipid binding seen in the structurally related immune protein CD1c. In addition, because high concentrations of zinc occur in the pancreas, the perturbation of these multiple lipid-binding sites by zinc may be significant in Type 2 diabetes where dysregulation of ZAG and zinc homoeostasis occurs
Development of an indigenuous rice thresher in Nigeria
No full textRice threshing in Nigeria remains a problem to the average peasant farmer. The techniques for threshing rice are still the traditional method of hand beating. This method is laborious, time wasting and not economical. Aalso the commonly available rice threshers are the imported ones which are not affordable to amjority of the farmers. In an attempt to address this problem, a rice thresher/cleaner was designed, fabricated and evaluated. Physical properties of Faro 51 rice such as length and breadth of grain, grain/straw ratio and moisture content were studied. The thresher was evaluated in terms of threshing efficiency, cleaning efficiency and percentage grain loss. At an average moisture content of 13.83% (wet basis), and design cylinder speed of 556rpm, test results reveal that the thresher has a threshing and cleaning efficiencies of 98.01 and 99.32% respectively and total percent losses of 4.78%. The thresher has an output capacity of 267.9 kgh-
STUDY ON THE LEVEL OF SULPHATES, PHOSPHATES, AND NITRATES IN WATER AND AQUEOUS SEDIMENTS
No full textAqueous water and sediment samples from six (6) sampling points of lake Chad area were collected and analyzed for sulphates, phosphate and nitrate levels. Determinations were conducted by titrimetry, Brucine and Ammonium molybdo –vandate methods, respectively. The samples were ashed and digested by standard methods before final analysis. Results show variation in concentration of ions with respect to season and location. Higher Sulphate concentration (2620 + 5.65µg/g) was observed in Wulgo (wet season); while highest Phosphate of 1325+8.00) µg/s (dry season); and higher Nitrates of (3151+ 44.75µg/g) was equally observed in Dan Baure in dry season. The variation was statistically significant (P<0.05). Thus, Dan Baure sediments was found to have higher deposition of Phosphate and Nitrate which might be due to high fishing and agricultural activities over long period of time as evident by the high population of fishing and farming in the area
sj-pptx-1-ijs-10.1177_10668969241234321 - Supplemental material for The 1000 Mitoses Project: A Consensus-Based International Collaborative Study on Mitotic Figures Classification
No full textSupplemental material, sj-pptx-1-ijs-10.1177_10668969241234321 for The 1000 Mitoses Project: A Consensus-Based International Collaborative Study on Mitotic Figures Classification by Sherman Lin, Christopher Tran, Ela Bandari, Tommaso Romagnoli, Yueyang Li, Michael Chu, Abinaya S. Amirthakatesan, Adam Dallmann, Andrii Kostiukov, Angel Panizo, Anjelica Hodgson, Anna R. Laury, Antonio Polonia, Ashley E. Stueck, Aswathy A. Menon, Aurélien Morini, Birsen Özamrak, Caroline Cooper, Celestine Marie G. Trinidad, Christian Eisenlöffel, Dauda E. Suleiman, David Suster, David A. Dorward, Eman A. Aljufairi, Fiona Maclean, Gulen Gul, Irene Sansano, Irma E. Erana-Rojas, Isidro Machado, Ivana Kholova, Jayanthi Karunanithi, Jean-Baptiste Gibier, Jefree J. Schulte, Joshua J.X. Li, Jyoti R. Kini, Katrina Collins, Laurence A. Galea, Louis Muller, Luca Cima, Luiz M. Nova-Camacho, Marcus Dabner, Matthew J. Muscara, Matthew G. Hanna, Mehdi Agoumi, Nicholas J. P. Wiebe, Nicola K. Oswald, Nusrat Zahra, Olaleke O. Folaranmi, Oleksandr Kravtsov, Orhan Semerci, Namrata N. Patil, Preethi Muthusamy Sundar, Prem Charles, Priyadarshini Kumaraswamy Rajeswaran, Qi Zhang, Rachael van der Griend, Raghavendra Pillappa, Raul Perret, Raul S. Gonzalez, Robyn C. Reed, Sachin Patil, Xiaoyin “Sara” Jiang, Sumaira Qayoom, Susan Prendeville, Swikrity U. Baskota, Thanh-Truc Tran, Thar-Htet San, Tiia-Maria Kukkonen, Timothy J. Kendall, Toros Taskin, Tristan Rutland, Varsha Manucha, Vincent Cockenpot, Yale Rosen, Yessica P. Rodriguez-Velandia, Zehra Ordulu and Matthew J. Cecchini in International Journal of Surgical Pathology</p
Comparative analyses of locally developed and imported votex rice thresher
No full textThe efforts to discover and make optimal and effective use of locally developed rice thresher as substitute for imported rice threshers form the focus of this paper. A locally developed rice thresher was compared with an imported Votex rice fan from Holland. The study was based on threshing efficiency, cleaning efficiency, total grain losses, grain recovery range, capacity utilization and threshing intensity. Three popular rice varieties, Faro 51, Faro 29 and Faro 21 were used to evaluate the performances of the threshers. The results showed that, the local thresher had 98.01%, 99.32%, 4.78%, 95.22%, 54.67% and 0.029 kWkg-1, as: threshing efficiency, cleaning efficiency, total grain loss, grain recovery range, and capacity utilization and threshing intensity respectively. Whereas the imported votex rice fan thresher had 98%, 95.77%, 8.72%, 91.28%, 76.97% and0.0037 kWkg-1 as threshing efficiency, cleaning efficiency, total grain loss, grain recovery range, capacity utilization and threshing intensity respectively. Thus the local thresher compared favorably with the imported thresher and can be used as substituted thereby conserving Nigeria’s foreign exchange
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Classification of cervical cancer tissues using a novel low cost methodology for effective screening in rural settings
No full textCervical cancer is the second highest killer of women in Sub-Sahara Africa. This is due to unavailability of adequate screening methods and inability to pay where existing methods are available. This work addresses the issue of identifying and classifying cervical cancerous tissues for images taken from a standard camera. A cost effective method is developed for the imaging of cervical cancer in developing countries by analysing images from a standard camera. The image is enhanced using noise reduction and a Canny edge detector algorithm to find the intensity of the edges. Preliminary results obtained from clinical settings and images obtained are analysed by identifying the edges of the tissues of the cervix and classifying them based on the frequency of the edges. The results show above 90% classification accuracy. This shows that image analysis algorithm has the potential to successfully diagnose cervix cancer
Stabilisation of Clay Soil with Lime and Melon Husk Ash for use in Farm Structures
No full textThe rising cost of traditional stabilising agents and the need for economical utilisation of industrial and agricultural waste for beneficial engineering purposes has encouraged an investigation into the stabilization of clay soil with lime and melon husk ash. The chemical composition of the melon husk ash that was used in stabilising clay soil was determined. The clay soil was divided into two parts, one part was used to determine the index properties while the other part was treated at British Standard Light (BSL) compaction energy with 0 %, 2 %, 4 %, 6 % and 8 % melon husk ash by dry weight of the soil and each was admixed with 2 %, 4 %, 6 % and 8 % lime. The stabilised clay soil was cured for 7, 14 and 28 days before the unconfined compressive strength were determined while the coefficients of permeability of the stabilised clay soil were also determined at 28 days of curing. The data obtained from the experiment was subjected to analysis of variance to examine the significance at 5% level. Results showed that the natural clay soil belong to A-7-6 or CH (clay of high plasticity) in the American Association of State Highway Transportation Official (AASHTO) and Unified Soil Classification System (1986). The chemical composition of the ash had aluminum oxide, iron oxide and silicon dioxide values of 18.5%, 2.82% and 51.24% respectively. The unconfined compressive strength and coefficient of permeability of the natural clay soil was determined to be 285 kN/m2 and 1.45 x 10-5 cm/s, respectively. Increase in melon husk ash and lime percent increases the unconfined compressive strength (UCS) of the stabilised clay soil significantly (p < 0.05) and decrease the coefficient of permeability when compared with the natural clay soil. The peak values of unconfined compressive strength for 7, 14 and 28 days of curing are 1200 kN/m2, 1598 kN/m2 and 1695 kN/m2 respectively at 6% MHA and 8% lime content while the lowest value for coefficient of permeability was 0.98 x 10-6 cm/s at 6% MHA and 8% lime. These results indicate that 6% MHA can be used to increase UCS and reduce permeability of the clay soil
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