<abstract><title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>Bangladesh produces a large amount of corn, pumpkin and carrots every year. To meet its huge energy demand and to lessen dependence on traditional fossil fuel these products are cost effective, renewable and abundant source for bioethanol production. The research was aimed to evaluate Bangladeshi corn, rotten carrot and pumpkin for bioethanol production. About 100 g of substrates was mixed with 300 ml distilled water and blended and sterilized. All the experiment was conducted with a temperature of 35oC, pH 6.0 and 20% sugar concentration. For fermentation, 200 ml yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae CCD) was added to make the total volume 500 ml. Addition of small amount of 1750 unit α-amylase enzyme to the substrate solution was found to enhance the fermentation process quicker. After 6- days of incubation, corn produced 63.00 ml of ethanol with 13.33 % (v/v) purity. Bioethanol production capacity of two different local varieties of pumpkin (red and black color) was assessed. Red pumpkin (Cucurbita maxima L.) produces 53 ml of ethanol with purity 6 %v/v and black color pumpkin produces 40 ml of yield with a low purity 4 %v/v. Carrot (Daucus carota L.) produces 73.67 ml of ethanol with 12.66 % (v/v) purity.</abstract>

Bioethanol Production from Corn, Pumpkin and Carrot of Bangladesh as Renewable Source using Yeast <italic>Saccharomyces cerevisiae</italic>

<abstract><title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>The remediation of organic and inorganic pollutants from the aqueous environment has touched a certain level with the development of research. Environmental pollution is increasing day by day due to industrial activities which cause a negative effect on human health and the ecosystem. Nowadays, heavy metals have a special concern due to its toxicity, persistence and bioaccumulation in nature. Toxic metals like chromium, nickel, arsenic, lead, mercury, cadmium are the main contaminants of water because they are non-biodegradable in nature. Nickel is also a toxic metal, mostly used in industries because of its anticorrosion behaviour. As a consequence nickel is present in the wastage of electroplating, tableware, metal finishing, plastics manufacturing, nickel-cadmium batteries, fertilizers and mining industries and these waste have dangerous impact on the human health and environment and causes the diseases i.e. diarrhea, anemia, hepatitis, kidney damage, gastrointestinal distress, skin dermatitis, and central nervous system dysfunction. In the present review article, several techniques are discussed for the treatment of nickel from the industrial environment. The elimination of nickel from wastewater is not important only for economic purposes but also for environmental safety.</abstract>

Remediation of Nickel ion from wastewater by applying various techniques: a review

<abstract><title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>This research conducted with the fully fresh, ripe and sound tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) was collected then washed, peeled, seeds removed and transferred to the juice extractor. Sugar, preservatives were added to the extracted filtrated juice. Then the juice was heated, cooled and bottled for preservation. Tomato juice was prepared with three different treatments. Among the three treatments T1, T2 and T3 sample were prepared with no preservative, Na-benzoate preservative and potassium meta-bisulphite (KMS) preservative respectively. The organoleptic observation of this tomato juice was studied for 60 days storage period. Chemical analysis and sensory tests were carried out during the 30 days at an interval of 15 days to assess the effect of chemical additives on the shelf life of tomato juice. Negligible Change in chemical constituents except vitamin C was observed in the prepared juice throughout the 30 days storage period. Color was gradually faded and slightly off flavor develops at the end of the storage periods. The treatment T2 secured highest score for color, flavor, taste and overall acceptability and ranked as “Like very much” by a taste testing panel. Tomato juice prepared with no preservative (T1) spoiled after 45 days storage and juice prepared with KMS preservative (T3) spoiled after 60 days storage. Total number of viable bacteria was highest in tomato juice treated with no preservative (T1) and KMS preservative (T3). Tomato juice with Na-benzoate preservative (T2) contained least viable bacteria which was better than T1 and T3 sample. Considering all the parameters, Na-benzoate tends to be better additives than potassium meta-bisulphite (KMS) for preservation of tomato juice.</abstract>

Effect of chemical preservatives on the shelf life of tomato juice

<abstract><title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>There are more than 522 towns and cities in Bangladesh, which generate thousands of tons of solid waste known as Municipal Solid Waste. Low collection coverage and disposal facilities are responsible for unsatisfactory waste management. The composting technology is a good alternative method for managing MSW. The present study was conducted to assess the quality of the MSW compost produced from the solid wastes of Mymensingh Pourashava. For quality assessment physical, chemical and biological properties of prepared compost namelye bulk density, porosity, water-holding capacity, moisture content, pH, organic matter content, C:N ratio, NPKS content, buffering capacity, soluble salts content, heavy metal content and the presence of harmful organisms in the MSW compost were studied. The results indicated that the MSW compost was matured and stable having pH 7.3 and buffering capacity of the MSW compost were good but the organic matter content and C : N (14.5) ratio were low. The N, P, K and S content of the MSW compost were 0.9, 0.3, 0.4 and 0.45 percent of the total volume. The soluble salts content and heavy metal content of the compost were found to be within the permissible limits. The MSW compost contained no <italic>E. coli</italic> and <italic>Salmonella</italic>. From the results, it can be concluded that, the composting could produce acceptable quality of compost, which can be used as fertilizer or soil amendment.</abstract>

Quality Assessment of Municipal Solid Waste Compost

<abstract><title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>Fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda, J.E. Smith) is a pest with devasting effects on maize. A laboratory biassay was conducted to analyse the phytochemicals and determine the efficacy of M. spicata and R. officinalis extracts on FAW. Treatments were laid out in a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with 3 replications. The factors included solvent [Methanol (Me), dichloromethane (DCM), distilled water (Di)] and the plant species (M. spicata and R. officinalis). Coragen SC 200 (Co) and Distilled water (Di) were the positive and negative controls, respectively. FAW rearing, plant extract preparation and phytochemical screening were done using standard procedure. Data collection and analysis was done using standard procedures. The extract yield was highest for R. officinalis regardless of the solvent used. Me-R. officinalis and Di-M. spicata extracts yielded the highest. Saponins, glycosides, alkaloid, flavonoids and tannins. Flavonoid contents were 7.9036 mg/mL and 6.0073 ± 0.6117 mg/mL in methanolic extract of M. spicata and R. officinalis, respectively. M. spicatha and R. officinalis extracts caused 100% mortality to 3rd instar larvae. Based on the findings, both M. spicata and R. officinalis have several secondary metabolites that confer insecticidal activity of the plants against FAW, hence should be evaluated under field conditions.</abstract>

Phytochemical Analysis and Efficacy Of Rosemary (<italic>Rosmarinus Officinalis</italic>) and Mint (Mentha Spicata) Extracts Against Fall Armyworm (<italic>Spodoptera Frugiperda</italic>) on Baby Corn (<italic>Zea Mays</italic>)

<abstract><title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>This work involved the production and thermal characterization of biomass briquettes produced by blending a major agricultural waste with coal dust. In the work, nine different compositions of coal dust/groundnut husk briquettes were produced using starch as the binder while Ca(OH2) was incorporated as the de-sulphurizing agent. The ash content, volatile matter, fixed carbon, moisture content, compressive strength, ignition time, calorific value, water boiling test and burning rate were carried out to determine the physical, mechanical and thermal properties of the briquettes produced. The results showed that moisture content values are in the range 2.43 - 6.44%, for compressive strength 7.72 - 10.85 N/mm3, for ash content 24.18 - 29.15 %, for calorific value 21714.17 - 25027.18 kJ/kg, for fixed carbon 16.77-53.22 %, for ignition time 22.23-45.20 s, for water boiling test 1.50-4.99 min and burning rate 16.10-28.32 g/min. These are appreciable values for the thermal properties of the bio-briquettes. Therefore, the agro-wastes briquettes are beneficial for heating purposes rather than open incineration of the wastes.</abstract>

Thermal Analyses of Briquette Fuels Produced from Coal Dust and Groundnut Husk

<abstract><title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>The study depicts the production, optimization and characterization of bio-oil from pyrolyzed rice husk using a fabricated fixed bed reactor. The pyrolysis process was conducted with bio-oil response, bio-char response and non-condensable gases response as products. The effect of pyrolysis variables were observed by the production of the bio-oil as the response. Sixty runs of pyrolysis experiments were suggested by Box Benkhen design indicated optimum pyrolysis conditions at particle size of 2.03mm mesh, reaction time of 81.80 mins and temperature of 650oC for rice husk. The maximum bio-oil yield was obtained with 38.39% at optimum condition of the variables. The bio-oil sample obtained had better performance compared with ASTM standard. Such a determination would contribute so immensely to a significant comprehension of the chemical efficiency of the pyrolysis reaction.</abstract>

Optimization and Characterization of Bio-oil Produced from Rice Husk Using Surface Response Methodology

<abstract><title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>Polyphosphazenes was synthesized and their self assembly behavior was observed as reported in our previous work [1–5]. A number of experiments were carried out to study the polymerization behavior at various conditions of the polymerization time and temperature. The experimental data were analyzed by graphical and statistical methods and it was found that the polymerization phenomena was controlled by the synthesis time, i.e. <italic>Mw</italic> = <italic>Mo eksts</italic>, where <italic>Mw</italic> is molecular weight of the polymer at time <italic>ts, M</italic>0(=203.24) is pre-exponential factor in the model and <italic>ks</italic> is (=10686) is synthesis rate constant for the polymer.</abstract>

Mathematical Modeling of Polyphosphazenes

<abstract><title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>Metal Nanoparticles show specific physical and chemical properties attributed to its small size and high surface area to volume ratio. These chemical and physical properties using different strategies and conditions enhance its biological application especially in the field of medicine. Earth abundant and cheap cupper metal is the essential element in many processes and has been used as a focus element to synthesize nanoparticles by different methods using new technology, which are being broadly classified as biological methods that includes green synthesis, microorganism etc. and the non-biological synthesis which includes chemical and Physical methods. Thus, the imperative need to synthesize cupper nanomaterial that are economic and efficient is necessary. This review have briefly described the modern methods to synthesize nanoparticles particularly focusing on the non-biological methods of cupper nanoparticles. An overview of current methodologies that are used for cupper nanoparticle mainly chemical reduction using organic and inorganic solvents, Reverse micelle, microemulsion, polyol method and several physical methods such as vapor condensation, photo irradiation and plasma synthesis methods are discussed.</abstract>

An Overview of Strategic Non-Biological Approaches for The Synthesis of Cupper Nanoparticles

<abstract><title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>Microplastic (MP) is currently a subject of discussion in all parts of the world because it has increasingly over the years become the dominant source of pollution in marine ecosystem. Huge number of these Mps emanate from waste management, decommissioning of ships and oil rigs, plastic products in aquaculture and fishery, sewage treatment, consumer products, agricultural production, transportation, offshore oil and gas production and city dust and wears. Microplastic are characteristically non- biodegradable or durable, exhibits buoyancy, travel long distances, complex with toxic chemicals and bioaccumulate being invisible to the human eye. Classification of MPs into primary and secondary based on source and established standard protocols visa-vis the sampling and identification in matrices were critically reviewed. Physicochemical processes for identification of MPs such as pyrolysis-Gas chromatography/Mass spectrometry, FTIR, Raman spectroscopy, SEM-GS and TGA/MS were reviewed. Deleterious chemicals such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), dioxins, phthalates, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and persistent organic chemicals (POCs) associated with MPs and mechanisms of chelation were appraised. Several menace and health hazards such as hepatic inflammation, genetic mutation, increase in reactive oxygen species (ROS) /oxidative stress, tissue necrosis and proliferation of cells linked with MPs were also discussed. Furthermore, green approaches to arresting the menace such as replacing polymer products with biopolymer an eco-friendly alternative, recycling of plastic products, use of paper bags and glass materials and abrogation of consumer products laced with microbeads were advocated.</abstract>

Microplastics: Holistic overview of source, identification, interaction, health and environmental implications and strategies of abatement

<abstract><title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>Nigeria demand for sustainable, affordable and accessible energy is on the rise. Hence, this led to rigorous research to determine affordable processes of using waste materials for production of sustainable energy. In this research pyrolysis was carried out in a fabricated fixed bed pilot-scale reactor using <italic>Gmelina arborea</italic> (sawdust) biomass for the production of bio-oil. The physical, chemical properties and the ultimate analysis of the bio oil produced were determined following standard methods. The physicochemical properties and ultimate analysis obtained were favourable. The highest moisture content of 21 % at 600 °C and least moisture content of 12 % at 900 °C were obtained from <italic>Gmelina arborea</italic>. The elemental results of the products show low sulphur quantity which is of good prospects that <italic>Gmelina arborea</italic> are good materials for bioenergy production without posing danger to the environment. Utilisation of <italic>Gmelina arborea</italic> for bio-oil production as an alternative fuel would shun unfavourable environmental abasement related to the use of conventional fuels.</abstract>

Bio-Fuel Properties and Elemental Analysis of Bio-Oil Produced from Pyrolysis of Gmelina Arborea

<abstract><title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>This study examined potentially toxic elements (PTEs) from poultry feeds. The presence of PTEs in the environment raises health concern because these elements can be toxic, ubiquitous and cannot be degraded to non-toxic forms by any known method and as a result remain in the environment for decades. This is a potential pathway through which these PTEs could easily enter the food chain. Six PTEs (Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb, Mn, Ni and Zn) were determined from four feed types (starter, grower, finisher and layer) from four manufacturers coded A, B, C and D. The samples were prepared, digested and analysed for PTEs using atomic absorption spectrophotometer. The mean concentrations obtained were in the following ranges: 0.49 – 0.76 mg/kg (Cd); 11.9 – 7.90 mg/kg (Cr); 5.10 - 7.91 mg/kg (Cu); 7.17 - 9.47 mg/kg (Pb); 26.9 - 34.9 mg/kg (Mn); 3.80 - 6.50 mg/kg (Ni) and 27.8 - 38.4 mg/kg (Zn). These results were compared with the maximum acceptable concentration for PTEs in feeds as stipulated by the European Union standard and the concentrations of Pb and Ni exceeded maximum acceptable concentration. When concentrations exceed set standard, it implies risk to human health. Thus, the need for continuous monitoring of feed compositions.</abstract>

Determination of Potentially Toxic Elements from Poultry Feeds in Ebonyi State, Nigeria

<abstract><title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>Plant-mediated synthesis of silver nanoparticles through green chemistry approach has evolved into a new era of research; however, the heterogeneous size and dispersity of silver nanoparticles have limited its applications, such as surface-enhanced Raman scattering, plasmon resonance, and more specifically in the medical field of target drug delivery and therapeutic activity. Here-we investigated the effect of purification and separation modes on the dispersity, size, and morphology of silver nanoparticles, synthesized by plant extract (<italic>Nyctanthes arbor-tristis</italic>). Transmission electron microscopy revealed silver nanoparticles with an average diameter of 13.0 nm when synthesized through ethanol precipitation, which is advantageously smaller. This result suggests that the silver nanoparticles size can be fine-tuned by changing the separation mode during purification from plant extract. Due to uniformity, our obtained nanoparticles can be expected to show higher catalytic activity towards photochemical reactions, drug delivery and antibacterial activity due to the absence of inactive coating layer (capping agent).</abstract>

Improved method for separation of silver nanoparticles synthesized using the Nyctanthes arbor-tristis shrub

<abstract><title style='display:none'>Abstract</title>The present work was aimed at evaluating the adsorption properties of malachite green and congo red dyes by polyacrylonitrile carbon fibre sorbents. The sorbents were activated and oxidized using potassium hydroxide and ammonium persulfate, respectively at mild conditions. Consequently, the sorbents were characterized for surface area, surface functional groups and thermal decomposition. The activated sorbent displayed a 18.8 mg/g (94 %) of malachite green removal at Co = 20 mg/L, while both modified sorbents showed a 17.5 mg/g (87.5 %) removal of congo red at the same concentration. All sorbents showed a rapid equilibrium of malachite green and congo red dyes in water. Also, the sorbents are somewhat tolerable against different solution pH conditions despite a slight change due to possible electrostatic interactions. Thus, the materials could be successfully employed to treat dyes-laden wastewater.</abstract>

Removal of Malachite Green and Congo Red Dyes from Water by Polyacrylonitrile Carbon Fibre Sorbents

Author Guidelines

Acta Chemica Malaysia

Due to rapid advances in scientific research and industrialization, there is more need for an advanced and durable study in chemistry and the chemical engineering field. Acta Chemica...

Due to rapid advances in scientific research and industrialization, there is more need for an advanced and durable study in chemistry and the...