Chemical Variations of Thermally Modified Wild-Grown Bambusa Vulgaris Schrad.Ex J.C. Wendl from Nigeria

Determining the variation of chemical properties of thermally treated Bambusa vulgaris is important to provide the information of the responses of the chemical constituents to the bamboo modification against biodegradation. This research was therefore conducted to determine the chemical properties of thermally modified Bambusa vulgaris. Two hundred and seventy (30 x 2 x 0.5 cm) bamboo strips dimension were thermally modified in a heat-chamber at 100, 110, 120, 130 and 140 °C each, for 10, 20 and 30 minutes, under constant pressure (220 N/m2) in factorial arrangement in completely randomised design with 5 replicates. Unmodified strips served as control. Chemical characteristics (cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin and ash contents) were determined using standard procedures. The mean variation range of the control to 140°C/30 minutes of the thermally modified samples is as follows; the cellulose value ranged from 46.46±0.11% to 42.19±0.18%, hemicellulose from 35.59±0.10% to 31.80±0.01%, lignin from 29.11±0.12% to 26.17±0.13%, ash from 0.92±0.02% to 0.63±0.01%; the study also revealed that there were decrease in each chemical constituent value varies from a lower to a higher temperature and time regime proportionally except in the lignin content. Increase in temperature and time of thermal modification reduced the chemical characteristics of Bambusa vulgaris which resulted to reduction in the level of sugar contents (cellulose) of bamboo which enables it to be less attractive to both fungi and termite attack hence extending the service life of bamboo in use.

Shear strength characteristics of Jerash expansive soil

The results of the direct shear test on Jerash expansive soil show the effect of the initial water content on the cohesion (c) and on the angel of internal friction ( ) [shear strength parameters].it show that, as the initial water increase, the cohesion (c) of Jerash expansive soil also increase up to the shrinkage limit, after that increase of water even small amount, decrease the cohesion of the soil. On the other hand, the results of direct shear test show also that as the water content increase, the angle of internal friction ( )remain unchanged up to shrinkage limit , any increase of water cause a large decrease on the angle of internal friction of Jerash expansive soil.

Factors affecting the swelling pressure for Jerash expansive soil

In this study for factors effecting the swelling pressure of jerash expansive soils were investigated in this study, effect of initial dry density and effect of initial water content on the jerash expansive soil were investigated.It show that as the initial dry density decrease from 1.85 gm/cm3 to1.25 gm/cm3 , the swelling pressure also decrease are from 3.1 to 0.25gm/cm2 also it show that as the initial water content increase from 0%to 15% , the swelling pressure of jerash expansive soil decrease from 2.65 gm/cm2 to 1.35 gm/cm2 .

Evaluation of Compression Behaviors of Marine Clay Reinforced with Waste Shredded Tires

This study evaluates the compression behaviors of a soft marine clay reinforced with waste shredded tire (WST) at different sizes (<0.5 mm, 0.5–2.0 mm, and 2.0–4.0 mm) and contents (15%, 35%, and 50%). Results from compression tests indicate that the compression index (Cc) of WST-reinforced soft clay decreases with increasing WST shred size and content. The swelling index (Cs) increases as the WST shred size and content increase. The difference in compression curves becomes more significant for composite reinforced at large shred size. The void indexes of WST-reinforced Lianyungang clay can be well normalized regardless of WST shred size and content by a regression line. The WST dominates the compression behavior of the WST-clay composite, as the WST would be compressed prior to the clay particles. The results in this study provide an optimum WST content at 50% with shred size of 2.0–4.0 mm for reinforcing the Lianyungang marine clay for achieving higher compressibility, contributing to the input database of machine learning for WST-reinforced soil.

Dual promotional effect of CuxO clusters grown with atomic layer deposition on TiO2 for photocatalytic hydrogen production

The promotional effects on photocatalytic hydrogen production of CuxO clusters deposited using atomic layer deposition (ALD) on P25 TiO2 are presented. The structural and surface chemistry study of CuxO/TiO2 samples, along with first principles Density Functional Theory simulations, reveal the strong interaction of ALD deposited CuxO with TiO2, leading to the stabilization of CuxO clusters on the surface; it also demonstrated substantial reduction of Ti4+ to Ti3+ on the surface of CuxO/TiO2 samples after CuxO ALD. The CuxO/TiO2 photocatalysts showed remarkable improvement in hydrogen productivity, with 11 times greater hydrogen production for the optimum sample compared to unmodified P25. With the combination of the hydrogen production data and characterization of CuxO/TiO2 photocatalysts, we inferred that ALD deposited CuxO clusters have a dual promotional effect: increased charge carrier separation and improved light absorption, consistent with known copper promoted TiO2 photocatalysts and generation of a substantial amount of surface Ti3+ which results in self-doping of TiO2 and improves its photo-activity for hydrogen production. The obtained data were also employed to modify the previously proposed expanding photocatalytic area and overlap model to describe the effect of cocatalyst size and weight loading on photocatalyst activity. Comparing the trend of surface Ti3+ content increase and the photocatalytically promoted area, calculated with our model, suggests that the depletion zone formed around the heterojunction of CuxO-TiO2 is the main active area for hydrogen production, and the hydrogen productivity of the photocatalyst depends on the surface coverage by this active area. However, the overlap of these areas initiates the deactivation of the photocatalyst.

Study on Properties of Concrete with Iron Ore Tailing and Glass Waste

The aim of this research is to test the characteristics of concrete by substitute fine aggregate with iron ore tailings and partial glass powder as in the place of cement. Concrete with waste products such as glass powder and iron ore tailings offer technical, economic and environmental advantages. In this experimental investigation, glass powder is replaced with cement by 10%, 20% and 30% and iron ore tailings with fine aggregates by 30% which is the optimum percentage. To study the role of glass powder and iron ore tailings combination in concrete. The properties such compressive strength, flexural strength, tensile strength and also durability parameters likely water absorption investigation for M40 concrete is carried out with different percentages of glass powder by keeping the iron ore tailings percentage constant. At 30% glass powder substitution as cement and sand with IOT increases concrete effectiveness. The concrete with 10% glass powder & 30% iron ore tailings showed a higher strength compared to the conventional mix for 28 days. Concrete mix containing 10% GP and 30% IOT showed higher flexural strength of 5.05 MPa for 28 days. Splitting tensile strength value is also increasing i. e for 10% glass powder and 30% IOT, obtained splitting tensile strength was 4.48 MPa and modulus of elasticity value was has also increased. Water absorption experiment consequences results that water absorption decreases with an increase in GP percentage. The concrete workability tends to decrease when with glass powder content increase. Concrete containing 10% glass powder and 30% IOT showed maximum strength and it is considered as the optimum dosage.

Toxicity Mechanisms of ZnO Nanoparticles in Nanochloropsis Oculata with a Comparative Approach with CuO and Ag Nanoparticles

The purpose of present work was the investigation of different concentrations of zinc oxide nanoparticles on the marine microalga Nannochloropsis oculata and compare the results of this study with previous studies. Dissolution of ZnO NPs in nanopure water was 0.378-3.12 mg/L and the rate solubility decreased with increasing the concentrations of ZnO NPs. ZnO NPs were toxic to this microalga with EC50 of 153/72 mg/L. The toxicity of 200 mg/L ZnO NPs was 59.36% for the cell number, 61.27% for MTT test, and 57.34% for the chlorophyll content. Increase the content of malondialdehyde and hydrogen peroxide in response to increasing the concentration of ZnO NPs was indicated the induction of oxidative stress in N. oculata. The activity of catalase and lactate dehydrogenase increased in the treated cells, while the activity of ascorbate peroxidase was decreased. Concurrently, an increase in the content of carotenoids and phenolic compounds was observed in the treated cells. SEM and TEM analyses confirmed the aggregation of algal cells, damages in cell membrane and atypical changes in morphology of cell wall after NPs treatments. The FTIR results cofirmed the interaction of ZnO NPs with C-H, C-O and C=O groups on the cell surface. All of these changes were indicated the significant toxic impacts of ZnO NPs on the N. oculata cells. Comparison between the results obtained in previous studies with our results showed that the defensive mechanisms of N. oculata probably was not effective against the oxidative stress by >10 mg/L of ZnO NPs, > 5 mg/L of CuO NPs and > 1 mg/L of Ag NPs. Therefore, N. oculata is sensitive to such concentrations of these NPs.

Effectiveness of fungicides with different modes of action against net blotch disease of two-rowed spring barley

Net blotch disease caused by Pyrenophora teres is one of the most damaging fungal diseases of barley crop. This study screened comparatively the effectiveness of eleven fungicide products applied to malting barley (Hordeum vulgare L. conv. distichum Alef.) cultivar ‘Daciana’ in conditions from Transylvania. After fungicide treatment, the net blotch disease index decreased an average of 70.37-78.04% relative to untreated control. Fungicide application ensured an average of 28.66% grain yield increase, 7.51% thousand grains weight increase and 4.36% grain starch content increase relative to untreated control. Top performance was obtained by using products that contained demethylation inhibitors targeting sterol biosynthesis in combination with other active substances with a different mode of action particularly targeting mitochondrial respiration. It is a difficult task to achieve top performance on all dimensions: strict disease suppression, high quantity and quality grain yields. Preventing the occurrence of pathogen resistance to fungicide and minimizing negative effect on crop as well as remanence in the plant, are the main challenges for fungicide use and should receive further attention.

Application of Trichoderma viride and Bacillus subtilis Modulates Antioxidant System in Mustard (Brassica juncea) under Water-deficit Stress

Water-deficit stress is an important concern worldwide that reduces crop yield and quality. Mustard is an important oilseed crop of India which is adversely affected by water-deficit stress in terms of growth and yield. Tolerance to water-deficit stress is correlated with the redox regulatory and antioxidant system. To mitigate negative effect of water-deficit stress, field experiment was conducted at Dholi (Muzaffarpur), Bihar during 2019-20 with an aim to study the effect of microbes on antioxidant systems in mustard grown under water-deficit stress vis-à-vis normal irrigated conditions. Pre-screened contrasting genotypes (tolerant ‘NPJ 214’ and sensitive ‘TM 179’) were sown in the experimental farm using factorial experiment in randomized block design with three replications. The treatments (12) comprised of two factors viz., genotypes (2) and microbial inoculants along with control (3) sown under normal ‘irrigated’ and ‘water-deficit stress’ conditions. Soil inoculation microbes Bacillus subtilis and Trichoderma viride was done 35 days after sowing and was compared with non-inoculated control. Results revealed that the activity of antioxidative enzymes viz., catalase and peroxidase increased under water-deficit stress; the increase was reduced by the application of B. subtilis and T. viride in both tolerant and sensitive genotypes, and more pronounced in the sensitive genotypes. Similar results were recorded with respect to lipid peroxidation and proline content. Increase in concentration of stress-induced metabolites was less in colonized plants of mustard indicating modulation of antioxidant system. The maximum ameliorating effect was observed with application of T. viride which could be an important tool in alleviating the adverse effects of water-deficit stress in mustard.

The effect of a magnetic field on the phenolic composition and virus sanitation of raspberry plants

A magnetic pulse treatment led to an increase in the Raspberry bushy dwarf Idaeovirus-free microplants’ output and their phenolic composition change. The greatest output of the virus-free raspberries microplants (80–82%) was marked after complex treatment with pulsed and rotating magnetic fields with a time-changing frequency from 3.2 to 51 Hz, as well as with a pulsed magnetic field with a frequency from 1 to 10 Hz. The pulsed and rotating magnetic fields’ complex effect resulted in the gallic and salicylic acid content increase by 14 % and 71%, respectively, compared to the untreated variant. The chlorogenic, salicylic and gallic acids’ active synthesis was observed 72 hours after the magnetic treatment with a frequency from 3.2 to 51 Hz. There was a tendency for the amount of the phenolcarbonic acid to decrease 14 days after the magnetic treatment, except for the variant with the pulsed and rotating field treatment.