Spent Lubricating Oil Residues as New Precursors for Carbon

Spent lubricating oil sample (Shell) were reclaimed using some chemical treatments. The raffinate and residues were separated and carbonized in an oxygen-free environment at 950°C using a muffle furnace. The carbonaceous residues were analyzed by EDS for total carbon and oxygen content as well as some wear metals. It was observed that these materials were enriched in carbon and in some cases the values attained 80%. The particle morphological and textural changes was also studied by using Scanning Electron Microscopy. It is inferred from the results that the carbonaceous residues obtained were porous and can be important from the applied point of view for removal of contaminants from industrial effluents. The carbonaceous residues obtained from the residual lubricating oil can be used as source for production of composite carbon because of the dispersed metals in the char matrix i.e., the wear metals like Al, Zn. Si, Ca, Mg, Na etc.     

Material characterization of blended epoxy resins related to fracture toughness

The present study describes the effect of the macromolecular modifications on the fracture toughness of an epoxy system. We synthesized epoxy networks by the reaction of diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A (DGEBA) with methyl-tetrahydro-phthalic anhydride (MTHPA), initiated by a tertiary amine. Several materials were obtained by adding a high molecular weight monomer to one with low molecular weight (both based on DGEBA) at different concentrations. In every case, a stoichiometric amount of MTHPA was employed. The glass transition temperature and the Angell’s fragility index, derived from thermo-viscoelastic properties, were used to characterize the materials. Relationship between these two parameters and the fracture properties, including the fracture toughness and the microscopic roughness of the fracture surfaces observed by atomic force microscope (AFM), was then investigated. We found that there were direct correlations among the glass transition temperature, the fragility, the fracture toughness, and the roughness. This study revealed that both the glass transition temperature and the fragility are effective for characterizing material in relation to the fracture toughness of the blended epoxy resins.     

Renewable energy sources and rationale use of energy development in the countries of GCC: Myth or reality?

The large oil and natural gas resource base and the greater competitiveness of conventional energy supply technologies based on oil and gas is a key energy characteristic in the countries of the GCC. Until today, mostly pilot and research Renewable Energy Sources (RES) and Rational Use of Energy (RUE) activities were conducted. However, these countries seem to be ready to take a more active part in the development of environmental friendly energy technologies. RES are expected to play a greater role in the future based on the rich natural potential of the region. In addition, appropriate efforts to formulate strategic RUE policies are initiated for assuring buildings sustainability and providing guidelines for future architecture. In this context, GCC countries are realizing the inevitability of putting climate change issues on the top of the list of priorities in the process of economic and social development. This paper includes an analytical review of the current RES and RUE development status in the GCC region, giving special emphasis to the business opportunities that the region offers for regional and international companies involved in this market.     

Betel quid chewing elevates human exposure to arsenic, cadmium and lead

Several studies have reported increased skin lesions in betel quid (a mixture of Piper betel leaves, areca nut, tobacco/flavoured tobacco, lime) chewers compared to non-chewers, exposed to arsenic (As) contaminated drinking water in Bangladesh and India. The current study has determined As, cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb) levels of betel quids and its components using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The highest concentrations of As were found in slaked lime (4.56 mg kg(-1)) followed by Piper betel leaves (0.406 mg kg(-1)) and flavoured tobacco (zarda) (0.285 mg kg(-1)), with a mean concentrations of As in betel quids of 0.035 mg kg(-1) (SD 0.02 mg kg(-1)). Mean concentrations of Cd and Pb in ordinary quids were 0.028 (SD 0.07 mg kg(-1)) and 0.423 (SD 1.4 mg kg(-1)), respectively. We estimated that a daily intake of 6 betel quids could contribute 1.2, 1.9 and 8.5% of the provisional maximum tolerable daily intake (PMDTI) for As, Cd and Pb, respectively. Since betel quid chewing is most prevalent among women, our finding raises concern that women chewers - especially pregnant chewers - may be harming their health and that of their unborn babies through increased exposure to a mixture of toxic elements (As, Cd and Pb).     

Soot-carbon influenced distribution of PCDD/Fs in the marine environment of the Grenlandsfjords,Norway

The particle associations of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) were studied in both the water column and the surface sediments of a marine fiord system and were found to poorly obey expectations from the organic matter partitioning (OMP) paradigm. The field observations were instead consistent with the presence of a stronger sorbent subdomain such as pyrogenic soot-carbon (SC) playing an important role in affecting the environmental distribution and fate of PCDD/Fs. Solid-water distribution coefficients (Kd) of PCDD/ Fs actually observed in the water column were several orders of magnitude above predictions from a commonly used OMP model. Even when these elevated Kd values were normalized to the particulate organic carbon (POC) content (i.e., K(OC)), the variability in K(OC) for individual PCDD/ Fs at different fjord locations and seasons of factors 100-1,000 suggested that bulk organic matter was not the governing sorbent domain of the suspended particles. Further, POC-normalized particle concentrations of PCDD/ Fs (C(OC)) in a vertical profile (surface water-bottom water-surface sediment) revealed a strong increasing trend with depth. Factors of about 100 higher Coc for all PCDD/Fs in the sediment than in the surface water could not be explained by higher fugacity in the surrounding deep water nor with C:N or delta13C indexes of selective aging of the bulk organic matter. Instead this was hypothesized to reflect selective preservation of a more recalcitrant and highly sorbing, but minor, subdomain such as soot. The extent of enhanced PCDD/F sorption, above the OMP predictions, was positively correlated with the SC:POC ratio of the suspended particles in surface and deep waters. Finally, the geographical distribution of sedimentary PCDD/F concentrations were better explained by the SC content than by the bulk OC content of the sediment. Altogether, these field-based findings add to recent laboratory-based sorption studies to suggest that we need to consider both amorphous OC partitioning domains and SC particles as carriers of planar aromatic contaminants if we are to explain the environmental distribution and fate of pollutants such as PCDD/Fs.     

Chemical composition and antioxidant activity of quince fruit pulp collected from different locations

This study was carried out to examine the physicochemical and functional characteristics of quince fruit pulp. The matured quince fruits were collected from different locations of Poonch, AJ&;K, Pakistan. Significant differences (P ? 0.05) were found among fruits collected from these locations. The quince pulp has the following characteristics: pH (3.43), total soluble solids (14.22°Brix), acidity (1.25%), carbohydrate (13.38 g/100 g), reducing sugar (5.15 g/100 g), non-reducing sugar (4.61 g/100 g), moisture (84.27 g/100 g), ash (0.62 g/100 g), fat (0.24 g/100 g), protein (0.49 g/100 g), fiber (1.65 g/100 g), ascorbic acid (15.46 mg/100 g), and total phenolic (68.13 mg gallic acid equivalent/100 g) and antioxidant activity (50.05%). This exploration is the basic direction, which highlights the nutritional characteristics of quince fruit grown in AJ&;K, Pakistan.     

Visual tracking of hands, faces and facial features of multiple persons

This paper presents an integrated approach for tracking hands, faces and specific facial features (eyes, nose, and mouth) in image sequences. For hand and face tracking, we employ a state-of-the-art blob tracker which is specifically trained to track skin-colored regions. In this paper we extend the skin color tracker by proposing an incremental probabilistic classifier, which can be used to maintain and continuously update the belief about the class of each tracked blob, which can be left-hand, right hand or face as well as to associate hand blobs with their corresponding faces. An additional contribution of this paper is related to the employment of a novel method for the detection and tracking of specific facial features within each detected facial blob which consists of an appearance-based detector and a feature-based tracker. The proposed approach is intended to provide input for the analysis of hand gestures and facial expressions that humans utilize while engaged in various conversational states with robots that operate autonomously in public places. It has been integrated into a system which runs in real time on a conventional personal computer which is located on a mobile robot. Experimental results confirm its effectiveness for the specific task at hand.     

Oil palm empty fruit bunch extract and powder as an eco‐friendly corrosion inhibitor for mild steel: A comparison study

A comparison study in terms of inhibition performance between oil palm empty fruit bunch (OPEFB) extract and OPEFB powder against mild steel corrosion in 1 M hydrochloric acid was evaluated using weight loss technique and adsorption isotherms. OPEFB extract and powder were prepared at various concentrations of 0.2%, 0.4%, 0.6%, 0.8%, and 1.0% (v/v) and dosages of 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8, and 1.0 g, respectively. The results showed that OPEFB extract achieved higher inhibition efficiency (IE) at high concentration and short immersion time compared to OPEFB powder. Despite having lower IE, OPEFB powder seemed to have better behavior; 6.6% IE increment at longer immersion time, gradual release of active compounds and stronger adsorption capacity. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and energy‐dispersive X‐ray studies confirmed the presence of active compounds in OPEFB extract and powder that is responsible for inhibition. Thermodynamic study revealed that both OPEFB extract and powder obeyed Langmuir isotherm and worked through physical adsorption. Overall, OPEFB powder is concluded to have better performance as corrosion inhibitor compared with OPEFB extract.     

Determining the effect of trace elements on biohydrogen production from fruit and vegetable wastes

Trace elements are one of the important parameters for dark fermentative H₂ production because they work as co-factors in H₂ formation biochemistry. Lack or excess of trace element and its concentrations could be an important reason for the low yield of H₂ production. In this study, the effects of 11 different trace elements (Fe, Ni, Zn, Co, Cu, Mn, Al, B, Se, Mo and W) were tested at two levels in terms of biohydrogen production from Fruit and Vegetable Wastes (FVW) with Biochemical Hydrogen Potential (BHP) Tests using Plackett-Burman statistical design. 1.1–2.8 times enhancement of biohydrogen production was determined with its addition. The most effective trace elements were found as Zn and Ni. In order to reveal the resident microbial flora, Denaturing Gradient Gel Electrophoresis (DGGE) analysis was carried out on all BHP effluent samples. Results of DGGE analysis, four microbial sequences evaluated as Clostridium sp., Clostridium baratii, Uncultured bacterium, Uncultured Streptococcus sp., and their similarity rates were 99%, 100%, 89%, 98%, respectively.