In this study, wax worm larvae (Galleria mellonella) were used to examine their ability to degrade and assimilate polyethylene (PE) as an energy source. This idea came from the similarity of wax, that is used as the sole diet for larvae, with PE in composition. Morphology changes, weight loss, FTIR analysis and GC-Mass test were studied to prove the degradation of PE by G. mellonella. The maximum depth of holes on the plastic surface and 16% PE weight loss was due to extensive cutting. The creation of a novel O-H stretching alcohols/phenols group absorbance peak at 3293cm-1 observed in wax worm larvae PE frass samples may be due to the oxidation in their gut. Accordingly, the biodegradation of PE by wax worm larvae is ensured.
In this work, lead oxide nanoparticles were prepared by laser ablation of lead target immersed in deionized water by using pulsed Nd:YAG laser with laser energy 400 mJ/pulse and different laser pulses. The chemical bonding of lead oxide nps was investigated by Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR); surface morphology and optical properties were investigated by Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and UV-Visible spectroscopy respectively, and the size effect of lead oxide nanoparticles was studied on its antibacterial action against two types of bacteria Gram-negitive (Escherichia coli) and Gram-positive (Staphylococcusaurus) by diffusion method. The antibacterial property results show that the antibacterial activity of the Lead oxide NPs was
... Show MoreBiosynthesis of nanoparticles has received considerable attention due to the growing need to develop environmentally benign nanoparticle synthesis processes that do not use toxic chemicals. Therefore, biosynthetic methods employing both biological agents such as bacteria and fungus or plant extracts have emerged as a simple and a viable alternative to chemical synthetic and physical method .It is well known that many microbes produce an organic material either intracellular or extracellular which is playing important role in the remediation of toxic metals through reduction of metal ions and acting as interesting Nano factories. As a result, in the present study Ag NPs were syn
... Show MoreThere has been an increase in demand for nanocomposite, which has resulted in large-scale manufacturers employing high-energy processes and harmful solvents. Because of this, the need for environmentally benign "green" synthesis processes has grown. Other methods for making nanocomposite include using plants and plant products, bacteria, fungi, yeast, and algae. Green synthesis has minimal toxicity and is safe for human health and the environment compared to other processes, making it the ideal option for creating nanocomposite materials. This work reveals an environmentally friendly synthesis method for magnetic nanocomposites. In particular, they were using an aqueous extract of Artemisia to obtain ZnO/Fe3O4
... Show MoreIn this study, the optimum conditions for COD removal from petroleum refinery wastewater by using a combined electrocoagulation- electro-oxidation system were attained by Taguchi method. An orthogonal array experimental design (L18) which is of four controllable parameters including NaCl concentration, C.D. (current density), PH, and time (time of electrolysis) was employed. Chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal percentage was considered as the quality characteristics to be enhanced. Also, the value of turbidity and TDS (total dissolved solid) were estimated. The optimum levels of the studied parameters were determined precisely by implementing S/N analysis and analysis of variance (ANOVA). The optimum conditions were found to be NaCl = 2.5
... Show MoreThe main objective of this work was to adopt an environmentally friendly technology with enhanced results. The technology of magnetic water (MW) treatment system can be used in concrete mixture production instead of potable water (PW) to improve both workability and strength. Two types of concrete were adopted: normal concreter production with two grades 25 and 35 MPa and the self-compacted concrete (SCC) with 35 MPa grade. The concrete mixes containing MW instead of PW results showed that, for 25 MPa grade, an improvement in a compressive strength of 15.1, 14.8, and 10.2% was achieved for 7, 28, and 90 days, respectively. For 35 MPa grade, an improvement of 13.6, 11.5, and
A reversed-phase HPLC method with fluorescence detection for the determination of the aflatoxins B1, B2, G1 and G2 in 42 animal feeds, comprising corn (16), soya bean meal (8), mixed meal (13), sunflower, wheat, canola, palm kernel, copra meals (1 each) was carried out. The samples were first extracted using acetonitrile:water (9:1), and was further cleaned-up using a multifunctional column. Optimum conditions for the extraction and chromatographic separation were investigated. By adopting an isocratic chromatographic system using a mobile phase comprising acetonitrile:methanol:water (8:27:65, v/v/v), the separation of the four aflatoxins was possible within 30 min. Recoveries for aflatoxins B1, B2, G1 and G2 were 98 ± 0.7%, 95 ± 1.0%, 94
... Show MoreDeep learning techniques allow us to achieve image segmentation with excellent accuracy and speed. However, challenges in several image classification areas, including medical imaging and materials science, are usually complicated as these complex models may have difficulty learning significant image features that would allow extension to newer datasets. In this study, an enhancing technique for object detection is proposed based on deep conventional neural networks by combining levelset and standard shape mask. First, a standard shape mask is created through the "probability" shape using the global transformation technique, then the image, the mask, and the probability map are used as the levelset input to apply the image segme
... Show More