bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
GIS-Based Method for Finding Optimal Ocean Energy Location: A Case Study of Terengganu State
Authors: Shafiai S H B , Gohari A , Zhou J G , Nohuddin P N E B
Published: March 2020

Ocean energy is one of the most important renewable energy sources and it can highly contribute to the supply of the world’s electricity demands. This paper presents a method of locating the highest potential sources of ocean energy by implementing Geographic Information System (GIS). The aim of this study was to find the optimal wave energy location in the coastal area of Terengganu state in Malaysia. The wave data for the years 2015-2017 have been collected. The GIS was adopted to prepare data for analysis and perform geostatistical analysis. The results showed the exact location of areas in the coastal area of Terengganu in which maximum energy from the ocean can be harvested. The proposed methodology can be applied in other coastal areas.
Screening of catalysts and operating conditions for the high yield production of isosorbide from sorbitol dehydration
Authors: Kamaruzaman M R , Chin S Y
Published: March 2020

Isosorbide (ISB), one of the important sorbitol (SL) anhydrides, can be produced through sequential intra-molecular dehydration of sorbitol derived from renewable biomass resources. Its rigid structure has granted the ISB a wide application in the polymer industries. Conventionally, acidic catalyst in liquid phase was used in the SL dehydration process. This homogeneous catalysed reaction gave low ISB yield and required additional downstream processes for catalyst separation. In the present study, a few types of catalysts were screened for sorbitol dehydration at a mild condition. Amberlyst 36 outperformed the other catalysts and resulted the highest SL anhydride selectivity of 86%. The effects of nitrogen purging and catalyst pre-treatment to the reaction performance were also investigated. The purging system did not significantly affect the SL conversion and selectivity of the desired products. The used of dried Amberlyst 36 exhibited a positive impact by increasing the SL conversion and SL anhydride selectivity to 67% and 98% respectively.
A Review on Green Synthesis of ZnO Nanoparticles Using Coriandrum Sativum Leaf Extract For Degrading Dyes in Textile Wastewater: A Prospect Towards Green Chemistry
Authors: Yashni G , Willy K B , Al-Gheethi A A , Mohamed R M S R , Mohd Salleh S N A , Amir Hashim M K
Published: March 2020

Nanotechnology involves material with nanoscale dimension that range from 0.1 to 100 nm, to make devices, systems and materials with essentially new characteristics and applications due to their large surface area to volume ratio. Zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) are widely known due to its wide band gap and high exciton binding energy. ZnO NPs are normally synthesized by chemical methods which involve the use of hazardous and expensive chemicals, resulting in toxic and environmentally hazardous by-products. Green synthesis of ZnO NPs by plants extract is non-toxic and economic. Therefore, this paper aims to explore the potential of plants extract in the green synthesis of ZnO NPs. Moreover, the capability of Coriandrum sativum leaf extracts to produce ZnO NPs in degrading dyes in textile wastewater is also discussed.
Conversion of CO2 to Methanol via photo catalysis routes over nickel-loaded CdS under visible light irradiation
Authors: Bakar Nur Karimah binti , Abdullah Bawadi bin , Sambudi Nonni Soraya , Kasmiarno Laksmi Dewi
Published: March 2020

The abundance of carbon dioxide gas in the atmosphere raises concerns as it affects the environmental sustainability, human’s wellbeing as well as the nature. The photocatalysis conversion of carbon dioxide produces valuable gas and limits environmental issue in the same time. Therefore, it attracts the attention to synthesize photocatalyst that is active under visible light irradiation since sunlight provides abundant photon energy mostly in visible light range. In this study, CdS as visible light-active photocatalyst is loaded with nickel to improve its performance to convert CO2 to methanol under irradiation of 500 W of Xe lamp as visible light source. The spherical nanoparticles morphology can be observed for synthesized CdS and Ni/CdS by using field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) analysis. The yield of methanol was examined by using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The result shows that the yield can be improved from 11 μmol/g-catalyst to 2348 μmol/g-catalyst by loading of 3wt% of nickel in CdS. The further loading of nickel decreased the yield of methanol.
Temperature control of low density polyethylene (LDPE) tubular reactor using Model Predictive Control (MPC)
Authors: Muhammad D , Ahmad Z , Aziz N
Published: March 2020

Application of advanced process control has become demanding in order to save energy and reduce operating cost, while attaining excellent controllability of the process. This situation can be achieved via better controller action performance compared to conventional control scheme such as PID controller. Model Predictive Control (MPC) has a wide application in the industry due to its ability to handle multivariable control and optimized process performance. In this study, a linear based MPC was implemented to control Low Density Polyethylene (LDPE) tubular reactor temperature. The control of LDPE tubular reactor is challenging due to the complexity of the polymerization process and the nature of the reactor itself. The steady state polymerization reactor model was simulated using Aspen Plus software. The validated steady state reactor model was then exported to Aspen Dynamic software for dynamic simulation. In order to implement online control of the process, the dynamic model was linked with Matlab Simulink environment. The linear model of the process was estimated using State-space model identification technique. Sequential Quadratic programming (SQP) method was adopted by the MPC to calculate the controller action. The performance of MPC was compared to a PID controller. Based on the results, MPC had overcome PID performance in set point tracking and disturbance rejection test despite its low accuracy process model. The linear model low accuracy drawback was compensated by proper tuning of the MPC. In overall, MPC had demonstrated its capability to control the process with optimized control action, which can lead to production cost saving in the long run.
Grignard-type reaction of phenylacetylene with aldehydes was performed by Bimetallic Metal-Organic Frameworks (Ni/Fe-Base) catalyst in water
Authors: Nguyen O T K , Vu H. T. , Tran Q H , Hoang B T , Do S. T.
Published: March 2020

A Grignard-type reaction of terminal alkyls and aldehydes were grown via alkyl C–H activation under water media catalyzed by a bimetallic Ru–In system. Nevertheless, a mixture homogeneous catalyst was hardly recycled after carrying a reaction. In this research, we wish to show that by utilizing a bimetallic Ni/Fe-BDC catalytic system which was synthesized by the solvothermal method, it was suggested that an aqueous media Lewis acid catalyst is commanded to activate the carbonyl group. A crucial observation of those inspections showed that while the alkynes were changed into a scope of products (approx. 78% of yield), the aldehyde did not take part in the reaction. The feature of products was substantiated by utilizing NMR spectra and GC-MS. The shape of solid catalyst was confirmed by utilizing a variety of modern technologies, consisting of XRD (X-ray diffraction), TEM (Transmission Electron Microscopy), TGA (Thermogravimetric Analysis), FT-IR (Fourier Transform Infrared) and N2 physisorption measurements BET (Brunauer-Emmett-Teller). The Ni/Fe-BDC material might be simply separated from the reaction compound and could be reutilized without a notable drop in catalytic activity.
Photoelectrochemical activity of CuO-CdS heterostructured catalyst for CO2 reduction
Authors: Tarek Mostafa , Rezaul Karim Kaykobad Md. , Sarmin Sumaya , Ong Huei Ruey , Abdullah Hamidah , Cheng Chin Kui , Rahman Khan Md. Maksudur
Published: March 2020

The present study explored the efficiency of a p-n heterostructured hybrid catalyst CuO-CdS to convert CO2 selectively into methanol by photoelectrochemical (PEC) method under concurrent visible light irradiation and a bias potential -0.4 V vs. NHE. The results showed that the inclusion of CdS with CuO significantly enhanced the activity of PEC CO2 reduction to produce methanol by facilitating the separation of photogenerated electron-hole (e−/h+) pairs through the p-n heterostructured architectures. The yield of methanol, the incident photon current efficiency (IPCE) and quantum efficiency (QE) in PEC CO2 reduction were achieved 35.65 μmoleL−1cm−2, 20.24% and 24.11%, respectively. The present work bears a new understanding into the fabrication of high-performable artificial p-n type heterostructured catalyst which is capable to function as a catalyst for photocathode for the reduction of CO2 and remarkable improvement in methanol yield under visible light illumination.
Start-up of simultaneous nitrification, anammox and denitrification-sequential batch reactor (SNAD-SBR) for treating anaerobic palm oil mill (POME) Digester Effluent
Authors: Wong Wee-Shen , Lin Jih-Gaw , Mohamed Kutty Shamsul Rahman , Ho Yeek-Chia
Published: March 2020

Simultaneous Nitrification, Anammox, and Denitrification (SNAD) which was discovered around 2008 has become a promising alternative to conventional nitrogen treatment process. The increasing number of researches on SNAD can be seen lately from lab-scale experiment to full-scale operation around the world. However, due to complexity of mutual relationship between three different bacteria, more researches are needed to be done to have better understanding of SNAD on real-scale application. This study is aimed to examine the performance of SNAD on treating effluent from anaerobic digester of palm oil mill effluent. The study will discuss cultivation of anammox, completion of SNAD process, and the feasibility of SNAD on effluent from anaerobic digester. The result of this study will help in explore further application of SNAD besides treating nitrogen-rich wastewater.
Oxidation of Palm Oil Mill Effluent Using Hydrogen Peroxide and Catalysed by UV Light/Zinc Oxide
Authors: Affam Augustine Chioma , Bin Bistar Abdul Rahman
Published: March 2020

The amount of palm oil mill effluent produced annually in Malaysia has been on the increase increasing and causing degradation of the environment due to poor disposal owing to incomplete treatment. Various studies have been carried out in order to study ways to improve the condition of the wastewater characteristics before discharging into any water body. This study determined the efficacy of photocatalytic treatment method using hydrogen peroxide, zinc oxide and ultraviolet light. A variety of operating conditions were investigated such as the effect of pH, hydrogen peroxide dosage, amount zinc oxide, ultraviolet light irradiation and contact time in order to determine the optimum condition for the treatment method. Kinetics of degradation was also conducted. For UV/H2O2 treatment process, under optimum conditions, it was found that the highest COD and colour removal efficiency was 41.9% and 38.3%, respectively. For UV/ZnO treatment process, under optimum conditions, the highest COD and colour removal efficiency was 37% and 85%, respectively. For UV/H2O2/ZnO treatment process, under optimum conditions, the highest COD and removal efficiency was 60.2% and 91.6%, respectively. This study found pH 11, H2O2/COD molar ratio of 5, 0.4 g of zinc oxide, 200 rpm at 4 h reaction time as the desirable operating condition for removal of COD and colour from the palm oil mill effluent.
Effect of Fe2O3 loading on CuO/CNT photocatalyst for degradation of p-Chloroaniline
Authors: Jalil A A , Shabick M A , Khusnun N F , Hitam C N C
Published: March 2020

Chloroaniline and its derivatives are generated from industrial chemical manufacturing processes including agricultural chemical, azo dyes and pigments, pesticides and herbicides. These compounds are found to be toxic and dangerous to aquatic and human life. Hence, their discharge into the environment must be regulated. Photocatalytic degradation is one of a promising method to remove such compounds due to its safety, low energy consumption and high efficiency. In this study, the research focused on the effect of iron oxides (Fe2O3) loading (5-50 wt%) on copper-carbon nanotubes (CuO/CNT) photocatalyst for degradation of p-chloroaniline (PCA) under visible light irradiation. The synthesized catalysts were characterized using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy to analyze its functional groups. Besides Fe2O3 loading, various parameters such as effect of PCA pH solution (3-11), catalyst dosage (0.125- 0.625 g L−1) as well as PCA initial concentration (10-100 mg L−1) were investigated. It was found that the highest degradation (75 %) of 10 mg L−1 PCA was achieved using 0.325 g L−1 10 wt% Fe2O3/50 wt% CuO/CNT at pH 7. Kinetics study showed that the PCA photodegradation followed pseudo first-order Langmuir-Hinshelwood model. It is believed that the Fe2O3/CuO/CNT can be a potential photocatalyst for degrading organics pollutant efficiently.
Effect of iron loading onto mesoporous titania nanoparticles and its photoactivity
Authors: Marfur N A , Jaafar N F , Habibullah N H H M
Published: March 2020

Titania is proven to be one of the best catalysts for various pollutant degradations. However, it can only be activated under UV light. This research was conducted to further enhance the photoactivity of titania under visible light irradiation by doping with iron metal. Different weight loadings of Fe (3, 5, 7 and 10 wt.%) supported on mesoporous titania nanoparticles (MT) were synthesised via a facile in-situ electrochemical method and denoted as 3FMT, 5FMT, 7FMT and 10FMT to degrade 2-chlorophenol (2-CP). These catalysts were characterised by XRD, FTIR and UV-Vis DRS. The photocatalytic activity of 3FMT was the most effective with 98% degradation probably due to its lowest band gap energy. This work showed that the catalyst functioned best with dosage 0.075 g in a solution of pH 5 and a concentration of 10 mg L−1. Therefore, this study showed great enhancement in the photoactivity of the catalysts especially under visible light irradiation by lowering their band gaps.
Restoration of pretreated palm oil mill effluent using TiO2 based photocatalytic system: An optimization study
Authors: Nawaz R , Chong F K , Ho Y C , Isa M H , Lim W H
Published: March 2020

Phenolic compounds found in pretreated palm oil mill effluent (pre-POME) pose severe threat to aquatic ecosystem and human health due to their build-up in the environment and high toxicity. Thus, the removal of phenolic compounds from pre-POME is necessary to preserve environmental quality and protect human health. In this paper, the optimized degradation of phenolic compound, gallic acid (GA) from pre-POME under visible light assisted TiO2 based photocatalysis is reported. TiO2 nanoparticles (NPs) were synthesized by chemical precipitation technique followed by characterization with X-ray diffraction (XRD), diffuse reflectance UV-Vis spectroscopy (DR-UV-Vis) and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM). The effect of process variables such as loading of TiO2 and H2O2 dose on the degradation of GA from pre-POME was investigated and optimized using response surface methodology (RSM) based on central composite design (CCD). Spherical shaped anatase phase TiO2 NPs with size 45.47 nm and band gap (Eg) of 3.16 eV were obtained. The results demonstrated that both variables, TiO2 loading and H2O2 dosage showed positive effect on GA degradation. The highest removal of GA from pre-POME (71.20%), from 44.85 ppm of initial concentration was observed for the optimal TiO2 loading of 0.88 g/L, H2O2 dosage of 8.5 wt% and 2 h reaction under visible light irradiation. The use of H2O2 combined with TiO2 NPs indicated a great potential for the removal of GA, which has been pointed out as the major phenolic compounds in pre-POME.
The study of chromium oxide loading on platinum chromium oxide zirconia catalyst for n-dodecane and 1,4-diisopropylbenzene hydrocracking
Authors: Annuar N H R , Teh L P , Setiabudi H D , Aziz M A A , Salam N M , Jalil A A
Published: March 2020

Hydrocracking reaction is one of the major processes in petroleum refining. To date, the exploration of a suitable catalyst for hydrocracking reaction remains challenging. The presence of Pt loaded on Cr2O3-ZrO2 promotes the catalytic activity and stability of Cr2O3-ZrO2. While, zirconia has an interesting thermal and mechanical properties which make it as a support material. Therefore, in this study, platinum chromium oxide zirconia catalyst (Pt/Cr2O3-ZrO2) with different Cr2O3 loading (1, 4, 8, and 12 wt%) were prepared by impregnation method. The physical and chemical properties will be characterized by the XRD and FTIR analysis whereas catalytic testing will be analyzed by n-dodecane and 1,4-diisoproylbenzene hydrocracking. The XRD results showed that the peak intensity of the tetragonal phase of ZrO2 and bulk crystalline of Cr2O3 increased with the increase in the Cr2O3 loading from 1 to 12 wt%. The FTIR KBr analysis showed the presence of monoclinic and tetragonal phase of ZrO2 and none or only negligible amount of coke formed during the reaction. The 2,6-lutidine adsorbed FTIR analysis showed that six bands located at 1675, 1660, 1650, 1640, 1630 and 1625 cm−1 corresponding to the Bransted acid sites whereas the Lewis acid sites located at 1608, 1603, 1593, 1580, 1565 and 1560 cm−1. For n-dodecane and 1,4-diisoproylbenzene hydrocracking, all catalysts showed 100% conversion except for Pt/12Cr2O3-ZrO2. Hence, the presence of tetragonal phase and Lewis acid sites play an important role for catalytic activity of n-dodecane and 1,4-diisoproylbenzene hydrocracking.
Catalytic transfer hydrogenation of castor oil using glycerolbased reaction
Authors: Amin U S M , Osman N B , Uemura Y , Majid N M
Published: March 2020

A catalytic transfer hydrogenation of castor oil using glycerol-based is a process of adding hydrogen to the castor oil to produce hydrogenated castor oil with the addition of 10% Pd/C as the catalyst and glycerol as a hydrogen donor. The reaction occurred at the reaction temperature of 178°C for an hour. To prove whether glycerol can be one of the hydrogen donors like limonene that is commonly used, the research started by using pure glycerol as the hydrogen donor and as a control to determine the protocol. A direct heating aparatus connected with a reflux system was used for this experiment. The result from FTIR along with the melting point shows the formation of hydrogenated castor oil from this reaction. The increment in melting point value and the absence of C=C peak (1655.79 cm−1) from FTIR spectrum shows that the catalytic transfer hydrogenation successfully occurred. The melting point of the hydrogenated castor oil is 65°C and the melting point of castor oil is -7°C. Therefore, it was proven that, the glycerol can be used as the hydrogen donor for the castor oil for a catalytic transfer hydrogenation reaction.
Synthesis of anti-corrosion polymers from thiadiazole
Authors: Jassim Ibtisam Kalifa , Mohammed Intisar Yahiya , Salman Sara
Published: March 2020

One of the biggest problems facing many industries particularly oil, is the problem of corrosion, where the metal parts under the influence of the vital factors are eroded during use and storage, therefore, to lift the metal’s ability and to protect it against corrosion, corrosion inhibitors are used. For the first time in this research, polymers which contain sulfur - heterocyclic ring with a thiadiazole base were made. Anti- corrosion polymers were made on two stages, in the first stage, thiadiazole was made from hydrazine hydrate reaction to carbon disulfide, afterwards the first product was reacted with an excess of hydrazine. In the second stage, polymers were prepared by the reaction of the monomer produced from benzaldehyde reaction with [dichloro methane, dichloro ethane or vanillin] and the reactions progress were monitored using thin layer chromatography technique. Prepared compounds were characterized using FT-IR, 1HNMR spectra, TLC, DSC, m.p measurements and weight loss measurement. More than one type of polymers prepared with different concentrations (0.5, 1.0%) was tested as a weight loss inhibitor and the results were very good.
Efficient Removal of Pb(II) from Aqueous Solution using Zinc Oxide/Graphene Oxide Composite
Authors: Ahmad S Z N , Salleh W N W , Yusof N , Yusop M Z M , Hamdan R , Awang N A , Ismail N H , Rosman N , Ibrahim H , Ismail A F
Published: March 2020

Due to the rapid development of industrialization over the years, the enhancement on heavy metals removal technology are becoming more urgent. Graphene oxide (GO) gained attention as adsorbents due to high surface area and high affinity towards heavy metals removal. However, its tendency for agglomeration and difficulty in phase separation urges more researches done to address its drawback. Zinc oxide (ZnO), a versatile nanomaterial, has been discovered to have high affinity towards heavy metals removal, tendency to spread out across GO sheet and ease of handling. Therefore, in this study, zinc oxide/graphene oxide nanocomposites (ZnO/GO) were synthesized as adsorbents for the removal of Pb(II) from aqueous solution. The synthesized composite was characterized using Fourier-transform Infrared Spectrometry (FT-IR), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and X-ray Diffraction (XRD), and had confirmed the chemically bonding of ZnO on GO. From the batch test, the optimum adsorbent dosage and initial pH for Pb(II) adsorption using ZnO/GO were 0.16 g/L and at pH 5, respectively, with the adsorption capacity of Pb(II) at 418.78 mg/g. The most rapid adsorption had occurred in the first 30 minutes, and the equilibrium time was achieved at 160 minutes. Also, Pb(II) adsorption had followed the pseudo-first order kinetic model. Therefore, ZnO/GO is thought to be a newly promising adsorbent in removing Pb(II) ion from the aqueous solution.
Fabrication of PVDF/HMO Mixed Matrix Membrane: Effect of HMO Loading on Oil/Water Separation
Authors: Ismail N. H. , Salleh W. N. W. , Hasbullah H. , Aziz F. , Awang N. A. , Ahmad S. Z. N. , Rosman N. , Ismail A.F.
Published: March 2020

In this research, polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) polymer was mixed with hydrous manganese oxide (HMO) nanoparticles to form a mixed matrix membrane (MMM) with excellent wetting properties to separate oil/water emulsion. Accordingly, the effects of different HMO loading (3, 5, 7 and 10 wt%) on the membrane’s water flux and oil rejection performance were studied. The characteristics of the MMM were demonstrated via scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), as well as water and oil contact angle analysis. The HMO nanoparticles, which has large amounts of hydroxyl (-OH) groups, enhanced the membrane’s hydrophilicity. The fabricated MMM became hydrophilic and underwater oleophobic with the presence of -OH groups on the membrane surface. Specifically, the MMM surface repelled the oil droplets and had high affinity towards the water molecules, thereby demonstrating good oil/water separation performance. PVDF/HMO with 10 wt% of HMO had the highest water flux (402 L/m2.h) and oil rejection rate (93%).
Effect of different pretreatment methods on structural carbohydrates of kenaf fiber
Authors: Mazlan N A , Samad K A , Zulkifli S N , Yussof H W , Saufi S M , Jahim J
Published: March 2020

The application of pretreatment on lignocellulosic biomass is considered as a critical step to alter the recalcitrant structure of biomass especially in bioconversion process. Different pretreatment may result in different modification effects which is important to be rationally evaluated before adoption in order to achieve high yield of end products. Therefore, this study was done to evaluate the effect of different pretreatment methods on kenaf in terms of their chemical and physical properties. Kenaf was subjected to alkaline pretreatment using 4.42% sodium hydroxide operated at 100 °C for 1 hour and acid pretreatment using 0.1% nitric acid which was run at 60 °C for 12 hours. Through characterization study, higher structural carbohydrates were found in alkaline pretreated kenaf compared to acid pretreated kenaf with 73.4% and 70.3% respectively. The SEM, XRD and FTIR analysis showed the significant different of biomass structure before and after pretreatment. From this study, pretreatment process has been verified can improve the biomass compositions to be utilized for chemicals production by disrupt the structure and remove lignin which can be proven by the increasing in structural carbohydrates and decreasing in lignin yield from this characterization study.
Enhancement of CO2 permeation properties of polymeric membrane by incorporating metal organic framework
Authors: Ch’ng C , Yeong Y F , Jusoh N
Published: March 2020

This research work focuses on the fabrication of mixed matrix membranes (MMMs) for the enhancement of CO2 removal from CH4. Zeolitic imidazolate framework (ZIF-8) with a framework of 0.34 nm pore size which favours CO2 adsorption is used as filler in this work. Different loadings of ZIF-8 filler were incorporated into polysulfone (PSf) polymer matrix. From the EDX mapping, the morphology of the ZIF-8/PSf MMMs has shown compatibility between the polymer and filler phases. The MMMs demonstrated an increment of 8°C in glass transition temperature, Tg compared to the pure PSf. Based on the permeation results, MMM loaded with 1 wt% of ZIF-8 showed the highest performance with CO2 and CH4 permeability of 33.12 Barrer and 0.85 Barrer respectively, and CO2/CH4 ideal selectivity of 38.8. The development of this new type of MMM has great potential to be utilized in CO2/CH4 separation process.
Mechanical properties of styrene butadiene rubber toughened graphene reinforced polystyrene
Authors: Ab Ghani N F , Mat Desa M S Z , Yusop M , Bijarimi M , Ramli A , Ali M F
Published: March 2020

In this study, styrene butadiene rubber was used for toughened polystyre/graphene nanoplatelets (PS/GNP) nanocomposites. The objective of this research is to determine the effect of styrene butadiene rubber (SBR) contents on the toughness of PS/GNP nanocomposites. In order to achieve the objectives of the research PS/GNP nanocomposites were prepared with various SBR content styrene butadiene rubber content, while the contents of GNP were fixed at 0.5 wt%. The PS/GNP/SBR nanocomposites were prepared by melt blending technique. Mechanical properties of SBR toughened PS/GNP nanocomposites showed a decrement of toughness and tensile strength with increasing content of SBR. SEM study shows that the rubber dispersed uniformly within the blends with polystyrene nanocomposites. SEM results show that the polystyrene mixed with graphene nanoplatelets (PS/GNP) had the smooth surface compare to samples have toughened with styrene butadiene rubber. The mechanical properties of PS/GNP nanocomposites with contain of 15 wt% of SBR shown the best of toughening effect.
Vermicomposting of palm oil empty fruit bunch (EFB) based fertilizer with various organics additives
Authors: Lew J H , May A K A , Shamsuddin M R , Aqsha  , Lazim A M , Narasimba M M
Published: March 2020

This work aimed at increasing the nutritional content of EFB vermicompost using organic additives at specific initial C:N ratio. Seven batches of composts namely EFB+POME (A) in 1:1 weight ratio; fishmeal (B); bonemeal (C); bunch ash (D) and combinations EFB+POME, FM, BM and BA in different proportion to achieve the initial C:N ratio of 35 (Compost E), 42 (Compost F) and 47 (Compost G) were prepared. Sawdust was added into Compost E, F, G as Carbon regulator. The results indicated that the compost maturation was achieved on day 40 based on stable temperature and pH profiles. The changes in initial to final C:N ratio were at 59.8 to 29 (A), 3.69 to 7.4 (B), 8.13 to 10.8 (C), 42.3 to 23 (D), 35 to 16 (Compost E), 42 to 15 (Compost F) and 47 to 22 (Compost G). Fishmeal and bonemeal could enhance the nitrogen (N) and potassium (P) of compost but it was found that composting them alone resulted in pest problem due to the pungent rotten smell. Compost G with initial C:N of 47 produced final compost of C:N 22, suggesting for suitable organic formulations for a healthy compost C:N value and possibly with enhanced quality as compared to EFB compost alone. Future work will focus on establishing the quality of compost in terms of NPK and other elemental compositions.
Effect of Soil Burial on Mechanical Properties of Bamboo Fiber Reinforced Epoxy Composites
Authors: Chin S C , Tong F S , Doh S I , Lim K S , Gimbun J
Published: March 2020

Nowadays, natural fiber reinforced composites in structural strengthening and rehabilitation was preferable due to its environmentally friendly, low cost and biodegradable characteristics compared to the synthetic strengthening material, fiber reinforced polymer (FRP). However, limited information is available on natural fiber composite durability when exposed to environmental elements. This paper presents the effect of environmental exposure to the durability of bamboo fiber reinforced epoxy composite. Bamboo fiber reinforced epoxy composite samples were prepared and buried in soil for 20, 40, 60 and 80 days. The composite samples were prepared using 40% fiber volume fractions. The mechanical properties (tensile and flexural) and surface morphology of the samples before and after degradation were investigated. The experimental results show that the mechanical properties deteriorate as the exposure time increases. The tensile and flexural properties of the composites decreased by about 6-19% compared to the fresh sample. The result from this work may be useful to determine the durability of natural fiber composite when exposed to environmental elements.
A review on physical, mechanical, thermal properties and chemical composition of plant fibers
Authors: Bakar N , Chin S C , Siregar J P , Ngien S K
Published: March 2020

In recent years, research on natural fiber composites increased owing to their lightweight, easy availability and improved mechanical characteristics. Natural fiber is also an environmentally friendly material, which produces less pollutant during its production. Therefore, extensive research has been carried out on natural fibers as they constitute an interesting alternative to traditional synthetic fibers, especially for composite materials. This paper presents a comprehensive review on the physical, mechanical and thermal properties as well as chemical composition of natural fibers. Comparison between different natural fibers regarding the aforementioned properties and composition are presented and discussed. This review will provide a useful guide on the performance of natural fibers in natural fiber reinforced composites for other applications such as structural strengthening.
Fabrication of 6FDA-based composite membranes loaded with MIL-125 (Ti) for CO2/CH4 separation
Authors: Suhaimi Nadia Hartini , Yeong Yin Fong , Chew Thiam Leng , Bustam Mohamad Azmi , Jusoh Norwahyu
Published: March 2020

Carbon dioxide (CO2 ) separation is necessary for natural gas purification to enhance the calorific value of methane gas (CH4 ), besides reducing the corrosion risk in pipelines with the presence of water or moisture. This work focuses on the development of new combination of composite membrane materials containing titanium-based metal organic frameworks (MOFs) and 6FDA-based polymer for CO2 and CH4 gases permeation. The composite membranes were successfully fabricated by incorporating 0.5, 1.0, 3.0 and 5.0 wt% of MIL-125 (Ti) fillers into 6FDA-durene polymer by using solvent evaporation method. The resultant fillers and composite membranes were characterized by using different analytical tools including XRD, FESEM and EDX. Then, the permeability test was conducted by using single gas of CO2 and CH4. The results showed that composite membrane loaded with 5wt% of MIL-125(Ti) showed the highest CO2 permeability of 814.9 Barrer, and CO2/CH4 ideal selectivity of 18.1 compared to pure 6FDA-durene membrane with CO2 permeability of 510.3 Barrer and CO2/CH4 ideal selectivity of 8.6. It was found that the incorporation of fillers, MIL-125 (Ti) into 6FDA-durene polymer matrix led to the enhancement of gas permeation performance due to good compatibility between fillers and polymer matrix. Besides, the presence of organic ligand in MIL-125 (Ti) filler has potentially reduced the interfacial voids between the filler and polymer.
Polymer sorbent for mercury removal from aqueous solution
Authors: Azman N A A , Amohd Azoddein A , Ali M F
Published: March 2020

The research study the feasibility of polysulfide sorbent (PSS) by using waste palm cooking oil and low-cost sulphur for mercury removal from aqueous solution. Mercury is known as one of the most hazardous toxic heavy metal that gives harmful to human being and environment. PSS is one of the materials that act as adsorbent to remove heavy metals. Waste palm cooking oil was used to produce PSS thus also can solved waste cooking oil management in Malaysia. The efficiency of PSS was investigated in this study based on the study of effect of initial Hg (II) concentration, contact time, pH and polymer sorbent dosage for removal of Hg (II) ion in aqueous solution. The characterization of surface morphology was examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). From this study, the highest mercury removal was 95.57 % at 120 rpm of agitation speed, 4 hour of contact time, initial Hg (II) ion concentration of 1 mg/L, 2 g of sorbent dosage and pH 6.
Mechanical and thermal properties of binary blends poly lactic acid (PLA) and recycled high-density polyethylene (rHDPE)
Authors: Aishah N , Bijarimi M , Moshiul A K M , Mat Desa M S Z , Norazmi M , Alhadadi W , Hafizah F , Nor M Z M
Published: March 2020

In this work, plastic bottles made of high-density polyethene (HDPE) have been recycled and blended with poly(lactic acid) (PLA). The aim of the work is to prepare a binary blend of PLA and Recycled HDPE (rHDPE) at 90:10 blend ratio by using a twin-screw extruder. The blends were compression moulded and characterized in terms of mechanical and thermal properties. It was found that the rHDPE increased the tensile modulus of the binary blend. Fracture morphology demonstrated that the blend of rHDPE and PLA is immiscible. In terms of thermal property, as measured by Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), the glass transition temperature of the binary blend showed a lower value, whereas the crystallization process was significantly improved.
Bending properties of 3D printed coconut wood-PLA composite
Authors: Kesavarma S , Kong C K , Samykano M , Kadirgama K , Pandey A K
Published: March 2020

Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM) is an additive manufacturing technology that has been utilized in developing numerous components from various material for various application. However, in particular, the properties of PLA embedded with coconut wood are still limited. Coconut wood is well known for its environmentally friendly, biodegradable materials, thermal resistance and corrosion resistance. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to investigate the properties of Coconut wood-PLA at different infill percentage (25%, 50%, 75%) and infill pattern (Rectilinear, honeycomb, grid, concentric and octagram spiral) by using FDM technique. The infill percentage refers to the amount of material in percentage used to print corresponding infill patterns. The specimen is printed according to ASTM D790. After that, the bending test been carried out to investigate the mechanical properties. Two mechanical properties were analyzed which are flexural strength and flexural modulus. After the experiment, the results obtained are then further analyzed by using response surface methodology to determine which parameter gives significant effect to mechanical properties. Mathematical models of the mechanical properties were also introduced using response surface methodology which can be used to predict desired mechanical properties with varying infill percentage and infill pattern. The results show that concentric infill pattern and 75% infill percentage achieved maximum properties in bending testing. The optimum parameters combination is concentric infill pattern with 75% infill percentage. Its optimum mechanical property is 22.666MPa for flexural strength and 0.4823GPa for flexural modulus.
Effect of TiO2 and Al2O3-ethylene glycol-based nanofluids on cutting temperature and surface roughness during turning process of AISI 1018
Authors: Zetty Akhtar A M , Rahman M M , Kadirgama K , Maleque M A
Published: March 2020

This paper presents the effect of TiO2 and Al2O3-ethylene glycol based nanofluids on cutting temperature and surface roughness during turning process of AISI 1018. Minimum quantity lubrication (MQL) method has been recognized in minimizing the usage of cutting fluid, as a step to achieve cleaner environment and sustainable machining. However, the low thermal conductivity of base fluid in minimum quantity lubrication system caused the insufficient removal of heat generated in cutting zone. Addition of nanoparticles to the base fluid was then introduced to enhance the performance of cutting fluids. In this study, the machinability of AISI 1018 (mild steel) was investigated under dry machining and nanofluid minimum quantity lubrication method. Two types of nanofluids (TiO2 and Al2O3 nanofluid) with concentration 0.05, 0.15 and 0.3 wt.% were used in this study. The experiments were conducted on lathe machine, using tungsten carbide as cutting tool. Three cutting speed (350, 550 and 750 m/min), three depth of cut (0.5, 1.0 and 1.5 mm) and fixed minimum quantity lubrication system nozzle pressure (5 bar) were applied throughout turning operation. To determine the relationship between machining parameters and cutting temperature and surface roughness values were measured. Based on results obtained, the cutting temperature of workpieces with usage of nanofluids in MQL system gave lower value compared to dry machining. The surface roughness of machined parts was also improved under NFMQL methods. In conclusion, when the nanofluid-MQL method was employed, the amount of cutting fluid was reduced and machining performance improved.
Statistical analysis on tribology behavior of stainless steel surface in aloe vera blended lubricant
Authors: Amirruddin A K , Kadirgama K , Ramasamy D , Rahman M M
Published: March 2020

Lubricant oil is one of the important oils that is needed for any vehicle and the additive added into the lubricant is required to boost the potential of lubricant to protect engine or any compartment that required lubrication. The presence of lubrication oil is very important in engine which is functioned to protect engine especially during combustion processes and it is needed to cool down the temperature of engine after every process. However, most of the lubricant oils are not very eco-friendly and they can have caused harm to the environment system. Several researches have been carried out recently to find new alternative additives for lubricant oil and it is safer for our environment which is now in danger. One of the alternative additives that have been widely suggested by several researchers is involving plant such as vegetables. An experiment has been carried out to justify the potential of Aloe Vera as a new additive that can replace existence chemical and synthetic additive which is harmful to the environment and costly to produce it. The conclusion of the experiments is the researcher agrees to the suitability of Aloe Vera as a new additive by using simple experiments method. Response surface method was used to design the experiments and finding the relationship between the parameters and responses. It shows that Aloe Vera additives reduce the coefficient of friction.
Degradation of ciprofloxacin antibiotic under visible light by BIVO4 photocatlyst
Authors: Cao V D , Nong L X , Nguyen V H , Tran T V , Vu H T , Hien N K , Do S T
Published: March 2020

In this paper, we have successfully synthesized BiVO4 by co-precipitation method. Results of BiVO4 are synthesized under the support of urea, forming a single-line scheelite structure of BiVO4. The synthesized sample were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, raman and UV-visible diffuse reflectance spectra. In this work, the degradation of Ciprofloxacin (CFX) irradiated under visible light (Lamp LED 60W) by BiVO4. The results of SEM images of BiVO4 show that the crystal structure is granular, nanoparticle size and uneven. The Eg value of BiVO4 is 2,312 Ev. The decrease in CFX concentration at pH=3, concentration of 10 ppm and catalyst dosage of 100 mg is the most optimal condition with photodegradation efficiencies of CFX is 75% after 180 min of irradiation. Material obtained in study can be applied in the decomposition of other antibiotics.
Preliminary study of plant extract on seed germination
Authors: Lim B-C , Lim J-W , Ho Y-C
Published: March 2020

The present study was aimed to evaluate the phytotoxic activity of crude leaf extract from Dilleniaceae family on seed germination of goosegrass (E. indica) under different concentrations, ranging from 0-10 mg/mL. The total phenolic content (TPC) was studied and found to be about 209 mg GAE/g extract. Crude extract was significantly inhibitory towards germination of E.indica seeds. Concentration of 10 mg/mL extract demonstrated high germination inhibition rate at 90 % of goosegrass seeds as compared to the control. The bioassay results illustrated that the extract markedly inhibited the germination of goosegrass seeds which may require further investigation for the potential use in crop protection. Introduction
Physical and Chemical Profile of Essential oil of Vietnamese Ocimum gratissimum L.
Authors: Huong N C , Ngan T T K , Anh T T , Le X T , Lam T D , Cang M H , Huong T T T , Pham N D Y
Published: March 2020

Ocimum gratissimum L. essential oil was studied in this research for its physicochemical characteristics and composition. The essential oil extraction performance achieved 0.3-0.45% by hydrodistillation process. The physicochemical properties of the obtained oil were also discovered including specific gravity at 0.9645 g/cm3, acid index at 13.035 mg KOH/g, ester index at 14.745 mg KOH/g, refractive index at 1.526, and optical rotation at +15.6°. Through gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS), it was revealed that the oil is extremely rich in eugenol (59.448 %), trans-ß-Ocimene (10.382 %), β-Cubebene (11.783 %), Caryophyllene (6.966 %) and Copaene (2.479 %). Therefore, optimizing the preservation conditions for the essential oils is suggested as potential pathway to extend the application and enhance the value of Ocimum gratissimum essential oils.
Determination of the phytochemical screening, total polyphenols, flavonoids content, and antioxidant activity of soursop leaves (Annona muricata Linn.)
Authors: Nguyen M T , Nguyen V T , Minh L V , Trieu L H , Cang M H , Bui L B , Le X.T. , Danh V T
Published: March 2020

Annona muricata Linn. (soursop) plant is a medicinal plant that has been utilized in folk medicine for treatment of infectious and inflammatory diseases. This study aimed to determine the phytochemicals content, total phenolic and flavonoid contents and antioxidant activities of A. muricata leaves. Antioxidant activity was performed via 2, 2’-azino-bis(3- ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) (ABTS) and 2,2-diphenyl- 1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging assays. The phytochemical was extracted separately with distilled water and 96% ethanol by maceration. The results show that a wide variety of pharmacologically active compounds such as alkaloids, coumarins, tannins, flavonoids, carbohydrates, phenols, terpenoids, saponins were present in the leaves of A. muricata. The total phenolic and flavonoid content of ethanol extract in A. muricata leave achieved 609.08±5.82 mgGAE/g and 209.52±1.88 mgQE/g, respectively. The antioxidant activity of the ethanol extract of A. muricata was correlated with total phenolic and flavonoid content with values IC50 of 20.75±0.28 μg/ml, 12.84±0.21 μg/ml for DPPH and ABTS scavenging activity, respectively.
Application of anthocyanin natural colors from Butterfly Pea (Clitoria ternatea L.) extracts to cupcake
Authors: Thanh V T , Tran Nhi Y T , Linh N T V , Vy Tran Anh , Truc Tran Thanh
Published: March 2020

In this study, we compared the content of nutritional indicators including lipid, moisture, pH, protein, and ash between original and Butterfly Pea cupcake baked at 170°C for 20 minutes. Moreover, the sensory properties of Butterfly Pea cupcake favorite also are determined. There was an increase in the content of moisture, protein compared with those of the control cupcake, reaching 22.12 ± 1.87 and 3.69 ± 0.51, respectively. In contrast, the level of pH, ash, and lipid witnessed marginal decreases, reaching 7.08 ± 0.54, 1.01 ± 0.21, 12.10 ± 2.77 respectively. Notably, the Butterfly Pea cupcake had anthocyanin content of 2.58 ± 0.06 mg/L, which accounted for 41.82 ± 0.92% retention. The ability to decompose anthocyanin biological compounds is lower than 60%. The slight green color is determined to be influenced by the pH factor in the dough environment.
Effect of baking conditions on the physical properties of bread incorporated with green coffee beans (GCB)
Authors: Ibrahim U K , Rahman N A A , Suzihaque M U H , Hashib S A , Aziz R A A
Published: March 2020

Most of nutrients can be found in normal breads but there is lack of antioxidant rich polyphenolic compounds. Green coffee bean (GCB) is chosen as functional ingredients to be incorporated in the bread as it contains high amount of phenolic acid namely chlorogenic acid which contributed to antimutagenic, anticarcinogenic and antioxidant activities. Therefore, GCB was chosen as natural sources in order to enrich the wheat bread with their phenolic antioxidant’s characteristics. The objective of this study is to investigate the effect of concentration of green coffee bean, baking temperature, and baking time on the physical properties of the incorporated bread. The physical properties such as moisture content, volume, colour, and texture were analysed. The data obtained were statistically analysed using Analysis of Variance (ANOVA). The results show that the incorporation of GCB has a positive influence on the physical properties of the bread especially on moisture content and volume. The factors with the largest effect on the moisture content were the baking temperature and GCB concentrations (p < 0.05). The use of high baking temperature causes higher moisture content and volume of bread after baking. While for bread crust and crumb colour, it was observed that increasing the baking temperature and time resulted in dark crust colour and reduced the colour saturation. For crumb colour, the addition of GCB powder caused a slight decreased in lightness and yellowness, whereas the redness of bread was almost unchanged. Nevertheless, the incorporation of green coffee bean had a little influence on the texture of the bread. High hardness of the bread demonstrated from the high baking temperature and high baking time. From optimization process, it could be concluded that the optimum baking temperature was found at 180°C, baking time of 40 minutes and GCB concentration of 1 wt% in order to get the better quality of the bread. In conclusion, GCB has a great potential as functional ingredient in bread. The addition of GCB does not only affect the antioxidant properties of the bread but also increase the quality of the bread itself.