Background and Objective: Kwale is one of the major cities in the Niger Delta Nigeria, that is a major producer and processor of cassava. This study investigated the waste management practice that is adopted by cassava processors in kwale in the Niger Delta, Nigeria. Materials and Methods: The six quarters dominant in processing cassava were selected for the study. The survey involved the application of a well structured questionnaire which was administered to cassava processors of the selected quarters, which includes 30 male and 30 female respondents. The frequency distribution tables/percentages and descriptive statistical method was used for data analysis. Results: Results from the analysis revealed that the major products of cassava are Garri (50%) and Fufu (50%). It also revealed that cassava peels, cassava sieveates, cassava wastewater and starch content constitute 100% of the wastes produced and the different disposal methods adopted by cassava processors. Results showed that 100% of the respondents are aware of the negative impact of cassava waste on the environment. Conclusion: The findings also showed that the cassava wastes generated can be converted to secondary beneficiary products. The study therefore recommends proper management of cassava wastes.
Page(s): 01-05 Date of Publication: 30 June 2021
DOI : 10.51584/IJRIAS.2021.6601Download PDF
Government financial processes in Nigeria are known to lack credibility mostly because there is centralization, manipulation of accounts and lack of trust between the government officials and the citizens of Nigeria. Attempts to end or at least reduce corrupt government practices have failed miserably mostly because most processes are still manual or use systems that can be manipulated easily. Nigeria has vastly turned to spiritual mentorship, activists and whistle-blowers to curb government financial corrupt practices. However, there have been limited attempts in applying technology to solve this delicate issue. In this study the missing application of technology, that is, the application of block chain which is referred to as the technology of trust will be the in-depth focus, investigating the state-of-the-art of block chain technology, its applications and challenges of using block chain technology and providing suggestions for handling finance of the government to eradicate corruption. The study draws its data from a review of literature on major applications of block chain, data, interviews and annual reports of Nigerian government agencies and bodies. The thesis argues that block chain technology can reduce corrupt government practices and easily track all financial government processes. Thus, government should apply this technology. It also suggests, implementation models and processes. It is also concluded that the implementation of blockchain on government accounts would reduce corruption and make all transactions decentralized, unchangeable, unforgeable and highly trackable.
Page(s): 06-13 Date of Publication: 08 July 2021
DOI : 10.51584/IJRIAS.2021.6602Download PDF
The indigenous eggplants in Nigeria are cultivated for their leaves, fruits, or both, eaten as vegetables or used as traditional medicine. However, solanum aethiopicum L. and solanum macrocarpon L. is the most cultivated and most utilized in Nigeria. The phytochemical constituents, quantitative composition and chromatographic analysis of the two species of garden eggs fruits were studied. The samples obtained were oven-dried at 40°C and the dried matter were successfully soaked in 80% methanol while the resulting crude fraction of S. aethiopicum (13.40 %) and S. macrocarpon (13.00 %) were partitioned with petroleum ether (6.50 %) and ethyl acetate (4.00 %) respectively. The findings from qualitative phytochemical screening showed the presence of alkaloids, steroids, tannins, phenolics, terpenoids, flavanoids, saponins, and glycosides while alkaloid, saponin, and flavonoid were quantified in both species of garden eggs. The results revealed solanum aethiopicum L. contained higher levels of beneficial agents than solanum macrocarpon L. The thin layer chromatographic analysis showed a higher retention factor in S. macrocarpon L. (0.90, 0.98, 0.99, and 0.5) than in S. aethiopicum L. (0.70, 0.40, 0.55, and 0.75) at various ratios of n-hexane and chloroform. The two indigenous eggplants are not only nutritionally and therapeutically valuable but also have the potential of providing precursors for the synthesis of useful drugs.
Page(s): 14-19 Date of Publication: 08 July 2021
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Fresh and Freeze-dried samples of the leaf of wonderful Kola (Bulcchozia coriacea) were evaluated for their phytochemicals and antioxidant properties using standard methods. Both fresh and freeze-dried samples were extracted with distilled water, acetone and ethanol respectively. The ethanol and acetone leaf extracts showed tannin, flavonoid, terpenoids, saponins, alkaloids, steriods and phylobatamin with high antioxidant activities compared to the aqueous extract except the Flavonoid and Ferric reducing Antioxidant power (FRAP) that gave good activities in the aqueous and ethanol extracts. The fresh leaf extracts of aqueous, acetone and ethanol extracts contained: Total phenol (3.532 ±0.69, 13.164 ±0.21 and 10.975±0.34mg/g, Ferric Reducing Antioxidant Power (FRAP) (25.712 ±0.83, 6.378±0.40 and 18.850±0.74 mg/g, 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl-hydrazyl (DPPH) (72.939 ±0.57, a 75.736 ±0.38 and 76.266±0.97 % and Fe2+ chelation (23.666 ±0.63, 55.126 ±0.13 and 57.022±0.38 % and Flavonoid (9.269±0.44, 4.792±0.87 and 7.590±0.02 respectively. The Freeze-Dried leaf extracts of aqueous, acetone and ethanol extracts contained; Total phenol (3.774 ±0.76, 4.937 ±0.69 and 14.176±0.46mg/g, Ferric Reducing Antioxidant Power (20.738 ±0.95, 10.984±0.71 and 15.174±0.39 mg/g, 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl-hydrazyl (DPPH) (60.719 ±0.57, 82.627 ±0.15 and 74.971±0.89 % and Fe2+ chelation (22.612 ±0.72, 35.744 ±0.96 and71.278±0.29 % and Flavonoid (6.596±0.24,5.894±0.93 and 11.802±0.39 respectively. The results reveals that ethanol extract of the freeze dried wonderful kola leaf contained appreciable amount of phytochemicals with high antioxidant activity compared to the fresh leaves extracts. This suggests that the use of ethanol was more effective than other solvents for the extraction of phytochemicals from wonderful kola leaves. The leaves can be used as raw material in the chemical and pharmaceutical industry for the production of drugs due to its high antioxidant activity. The finding supports or validates the use of the seeds and leaves in the treatment of many ailments such as cardiovascular diseases as claimed by Traditional healers.
Page(s): 20-25 Date of Publication: 10 July 2021
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The pre-treatments with turmeric powder, extract and their mixture was evaluated in this paper to unriddle their effects on the lipid profile of diabetic rats after daily feeding and administration of the crude aqueous extract of turmeric rhizome powder for three weeks. A significantly (P≤ 0.05) decrease in weight and plasma level of High-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol (HDL-C) were observed in alloxan-induced- diabetic rats in comparison with normal and pretreated groups.There was however a significant increase (P<0.05) in the blood glocuse level, plasma levels of total cholesterol, triglycerides, Low-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol (LDL_C) of alloxan induced- diabetic rats (group B) when compared with normal (group A) and pre-treated groups (group C, D and E).The decrease in plasma triacylglycerol(TG) level, wheight gained and normal blood glucose levels observed in normal rats (group A) and pre-treated alloxan-induced diabetic rats in group E and others (C and D is an indication that turmeric rhizome in diet and as extract does not increase blood triglycerides. This suggests that it is unlikely to pose a health hazard as a high triglyceride level increases the risk of cardiovascular disease.The weight gained with normal blood glucose levels observed in group C, D and E might implies that pretraetment with turmericpowder or extract appears to be protective against pathological effects inflicted on alloxan induced-diabetic rats.
Page(s): 26-30 Date of Publication: 13 July 2021
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Airborne magnetic dataset Studies were carried out in parts of South eastern Nigeria. Airborne magnetic data covering the study area was acquired, processed, and interpreted with the aim of determining the depth to basement of for hydrocarbon potential in the study area. Various data enhancement techniques such as reduction to equator, Analytica Signal, First Vertical Derivative (FVD), upward continuation and 3D euler deconvolution were carried out on the magnetic data in order to filter unwanted signals. Analysis such as sediment thickness was evaluated using the Extended Euler Depth solution. Sediment thickness within the southern Benue Trough ranges from 151.1 to 1297.4 m. Afikpo Basin has sediment thickness ranging from 513.9 to >3469.6 m, while Anambra Basin has sediment thickness ranging from 228.4 to >3469.6 m. the thickest sedimentary unit within the Afikpo Basin is geographically located around Bende, Iduma, Ohafia, Okigwe, Abiriba, Uzuakolo and Amaeke, while that of the Anambra Basin is geographically located around Aka Ihobe, Orumba, OwereEzukala, Mbala, Agwu, Isuochi, Akwa, Umuawulu, Ezeagu, Onuba, Agbani and AbawaOgugu. Niger Delta Basin has the high sediment thickness with range of 3469.6 to 6760 m, with the thickest sediment geographically located around Omodema, Abara, Omoecheigbo, Etche, Imogwa, Okoroagu.
Page(s): 31-40 Date of Publication: 14 July 2021
DOI : 10.51584/IJRIAS.2021.6603Download PDF
This work compared the result of the effect of lemongrass granules as a local raw material in the treatment of crude oil polluted soils when it is in a fresh or dry condition. The comparison of the usage in fresh or dry state is aimed at identifying the most effective among the two conditions that will give the best result in biodegradation of petroleum hydrocarbons. The soil samples were obtained with hand soil auger and analyzed in the laboratory using standard methods. Soil sample C represented the soil treated with fresh lemongrass while soil sample E was treated with dry lemongrass. Poultry droppings were added to them as nutrients while the experiment was monitored for 28days. The determined parameters were total petroleum hydrocarbon, pH, total nitrogen and phosphorous and hydrocarbon utilizing bacteria. The results show that the soils samples were Clay soils and total petroleum hydrocarbon decreased by 77% and 24 % for soil sample C and E respectively. The soil pH values were 6.51 and 6.10 for soil sample C and E. Also total nitrogen was 0.11% and 0.355% for soil sample C and E. The concentration of phosphorous in soil sample C and E were 0.24 and 1.26% respectively. The hydrocarbon utilizing bacteria count increased from 3.65×103 cfu/g to 5.41×103 cfu/g in soil sample C but decreased to 2.10×103 cfu/g in soil sample E. Comparison of the two process showed a significant decrease in concentration of total petroleum hydrocarbon using fresh lemongrass granules to dry lemongrass granules. This implies that the use of fresh lemon grass is more effective compared to that of dry lemon grass granules. This is because the use of fresh lemongrass granules enhanced rapid growth of microorganism, therefore a significant result on biodegradation of petroleum hydrocarbon was achieved. This confirmed the use of fresh lemongrass granules as a better method compared to dry lemon grass granules in the treatment of soils contaminated with petroleum hydrocarbons.
Page(s): 41-44 Date of Publication: 14 July 2021
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Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) is a major staple food in sub-Saharan Africa. Its efficient utilization for food is affected by the presence of cyanoglucosides in the tubers. Following the mapping of CYP79D1/D2 genes involved in the cyanoglucosides biosynthesis, the last two decades have witnessed intense research to develop cassava plants with insignificant level of cyanoglucosides via gene silencing. These concerted efforts are yet to produce satisfactory outcomes. However, research has revealed roles of cyanoglucosides in important metabolic pathways in cassava. Therefore, an alternative direction must be sought to conserve the functions of these metabolites while eliminating the compounds from the edible tubers. The endogenous turnover and transport pathways of cyanoglucosides could be interesting areas for future research. It is expected that the upregulation of the genes involved in the turnover pathway would result in increased synthesis of these turnover products, which would subsequently be incorporated into primary metabolism; thereby avoiding the accumulation of cyanoglucosides in the tubers. Similarly, the characterization of glucosinolate transporters in Arabidopsis presents an avenue to study the mechanisms and roles of transporters of defense compounds such as cyanoglucosides in cassava. Research has shown that the metabolic engineering of these compounds are possible by interfering with the expression of transport molecules, and holds the potential for developing plants with reduced accumulation of toxic compounds in the edible tissues or plant parts. The objective of this study was to document recent literature and highlight pathways that involve turning cyanoglucosides into useful intermediates which could be exploited in developing cyanoglucosides-free cassava tubers. .
Page(s): 45-50 Date of Publication: 14 July 2021
DOI : 10.51584/IJRIAS.2021.6604Download PDF
Technology has prompted diverse thoughts concerning its impact on the spiritual health of university students and it’s urgent that effective measures for better use are identified. This study aimed at examining the impact of technology on the spiritual health of university students. The study was conducted at Africa University; a United Methodist Related Institute located in Mutare Zimbabwe. A qualitative research design and a case study methodology were employed. Data was collected using questionnaires and participant observation, and data coding was employed to analyse collected data. After the presentation and analysis of the findings, the results showed that technology was a very essential instrument for the growth of the spiritual health of university students, it also showed that university students can balance the impact of technology on spiritual health. But it required self-control, personal morality and self-discipline on the side of the university students if it was to produce positive results that could benefit university students spiritually. However, watching of pornographic material proved to be a big hinderance to the spiritual health of university students as they used technology. Technology was also seen as a medium that could foster a faithful relationship between God and Humanity. Technology was understood to have brought salvation closer to humanity, through the abundant spiritual information online, and online platforms like religious websites. In other words, technology could easily lead university students to God’s kingdom if they used it in a proper way especially through sharing religious information. A model for technological use was formulated from the study which was developed based on the idea of technological Sabbath by (Heschel, 1951), the model is the Techno Spiritual Retreat (TSR) and the Awareness, Breathe, Choice and Doing (ABCD) formula.
Page(s): 51-68 Date of Publication: 16 July 2021
DOI : 10.51584/IJRIAS.2021.6605Download PDF
COVID -19 is a pandemic that none worldwide has ever experienced. Its emergence has seen health care workers (HCWs) being in the forefront of responding. Apart from the physiological distress, responding to COVID-19 has taken an emotional and psychological toll on HCWs. This study explored the psychological and emotional experiences of healthcare workers during COVID 19 and provided recommendations that support a psychologically healthy work environment. Thirty participants, non-clinical and clinical, female (n=21;70%) male (n=9; 30%) were involved. Qualitative exploratory research design, a phenomenological approach was used. Nonprobability purposive sampling was used to choose participants. Interviews with open-ended questions were used. A modified version of Colaizzi’s interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) guided data analysis. COPE inventory was used to establish coping strategies. Findings showed that Covid-19 had caused substantial psychological and emotional distress to HCWs. The HCWs reported psychological burden, fear, anxiety, and depressive symptoms. Four thematic conceptualizations of coping mechanisms were identified. The need for timely mental health support and intervention was stressed. The outcome of the study was the establishment of an emotional coping protocol (ECP) that will be used in health care settings to proactively mitigate the negative effects of COVID 19 among HCWs.
Page(s): 69-76 Date of Publication: 16 July 2021
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The urban sector is a critical sector for the coming decades with the growth of the urban population. It is therefore important to guarantee investments, with optimal monitoring of projects. In Cameroon, this activity is the responsibility of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, which has specially set up a web application to monitor these projects. However, this platform remains limited because it does not exploit the spatial component of the projects. In this article we propose a cartographic web platform for the spatialized monitoring of projects in this sector for Cameroon. The implementation of this platform followed the steps of a software development process. The result is a cartographic web application that offers an interactive thematic map for monitoring projects in the urban sector. The base maps available, in particular the OSM map and the Google satellite image, as well as the interactivity offered through cartographic navigation and querying the project layer, provide better visibility on the real progress of projects on the site.
Page(s): 77-80 Date of Publication: 17 July 2021
DOI : 10.51584/IJRIAS.2021.6606Download PDF
This paper presents the Optimization of a microgrid operation under Uncertainty using Model Predictive Controller. Instability in power supply in our society and the country at large has led to the liquidation of many establishments that solely depended on power for their daily activities. This instability in power supply observed in the country can be overcome by optimization of a microgrid operation under uncertainty using model predictive control. This was done in this manner, characterizing the microgrid operation, determining the threats in microgrid operation, designing a model predictive controller rule base that will eradicate the threats in microgrid operation thereby enhancing its operation, training ANN in this rule base for effective eradication of its operational threats thereby enhancing its operational efficiency, designing a Simulink model for optimization of a microgrid operation under uncertainty using model predictive control and validating and justifying the operational efficiency of a microgrid with and without MPC. The stability of the conventional approach occurred at a coordinate of (0.4, 5) through (0.4, 10), while that of using fuzzy controller occurred at a coordinate of (1.109, 5) through (1.109, 5). On the other hand using ANN controller stabilities at coordinates of (1.16, 5) through (1.16, 5) and that when MPC is used stabilizes at a coordinate of (1.223, 5) through (1.223, 5). With these results, it showed that optimization of a microgrid operation under uncertainty using model predictive control (MPC) gave the highest power system stability when compared with the other three like conventional, fuzzy, and Artificial Neural Network (ANN).
Page(s): 81-92 Date of Publication: 19 July 2021
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This work investigated contributory factors to nutritional status among under five children in Ogba-Egbema-Ndoni Local Government Area of Rivers State. Five research questions and hypotheses were formulated to achieve the objectives of the study. The design of the study is descriptive survey research design. The population of the study comprised of all children one to five years (1-5 years) of age and their mothers. A sample size of 400 was used for the study. Multistage sampling procedure was used to select the participants for the study. The instrument for the study was a pre-tested structured questionnaire contributory factors to poor nutritional among under five children with a reliability coefficient of 0.70, was used to collect data. That analysis were carried out using percentage and Chi-square. The results showed that The result showed a significant relationship between mother’s education, socio-economic status, occupation, religion and nutritional status among under five children in Ogba-Egbema-Ndoni Local Government Area of Rivers State (p<0.05). Based on the findings it was concluded that malnutrition among children aged 1-5 years was influenced by socio-economic status, age, religion, educational qualification and occupation were found to influence nutritional status of children aged 1-5 years. It was recommended that Primary health care personnel in health facilities should educate women on the proteinous and highly nutritious foods available to them in their environment particularly the ones which are cheap to enhance the consumption of balance diet even among those with a low wealth index
Page(s): 93-98 Date of Publication: 22 July 2021
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Indigofera tinctoria is a tropical plant that has een used to dye cloth since at least 9000 B C but being a natural dye it has poor to moderate fastness. In this study an attempt was made to extract indigo dye from Indigofera tinctoria leaves and carry out its chemical modification by sulphonation to improve its fastness properties when applied on cotton fabric. Indigo exists as a colourless substance which consists of sugar and indoxyl. Indigo dye was extracted from the leaves using an alkali solution (sodium hydroxide solution of different concentrations 2.0M, 3.0M and 4.0M) and acidified hydrogen peroxide to form indigo, the concentrated blue pigment (powdered form). Highest percentage yield of indigo dye powdered form (4.30%) was obtained from using 2.0M sodium hydroxide solution while 3.0M and 4.0M sodium hydroxide solution yielded 3.61% and 3.39% respectively. The characterization of the extracted dye and the modified dye was carried out using UV-Vis spectroscopy and Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR). Dyeing of cotton fabrics was carried out using the extracted natural dye and the modified dye. Fastness properties was also determined on the dyed fabrics. The result showed that the dyed fabric with modified dye has better fastness properties. Fastness to sun light, fastness to ironing and fastness to washing are 4, 3, and 3 respectively for the modified dye. Dye manufacturing from local plants should be supported using chemical modification procedures to achieve better fastness properties on dyed fabrics.
Page(s): 99-102 Date of Publication: 22 July 2021
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In order to model Nigeria’s inflation rate, this analysis compared univariate linear models to univariate nonlinear models. The data for this analysis was gathered from the Central Bank of Nigeria statistical bulletin on a monthly basis from January 2006 to December 2019. The upward and downward movement in the series revealed by the time plot suggest that the series exhibit a regime-switching pattern: the cycle of expansion and contraction. At lag one, the Augmented Dickey-Fuller test was used to screen for stationary. For univariate linear ARIMA (p d q)) and univariate non-linear MS-AR, seven models were estimated for the linear model and two for the non-linear model. The best model was chosen based on the criterion of least information criterion, AIC (2.006612), SC (2.156581), and the maximum log-likelihood of(-150.5480) for the inflation rate were used to pick MS-AR (1) for the series. In analysing inflation rate data, the MS-AR model proposed by Hamilton outperforms the linear autoregressive models proposed by Box Jenkins. The model was used to predict the series’ values over a one-year cycle (12 months).
Page(s): 103-107 Date of Publication: 23 July 2021
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Environmental contamination emanating from indiscriminate disposal of municipal solid waste is a trending issue in most developing countries of the world today. The aim of this was to evaluate physicochemical, selected heavy metal contents and organic compounds at Nekede and Naze dumpsites. Soil samples were randomly collected at 0 -15cm and 15 – 30cm depths with the aid of a soil auger. Standard analytical methods were used for the determination of physicochemical parameters, AAS was employed for selected heavy metal determination while high Pressure Liquid Chromatography was used to analyze organic compounds. Results showed that at Nekede dumpsite vicinity, pH, TOC and TPH measured ranged as follows: 4.45 – 5.11, 1.50-2.40%, N.D – 0.153 mg/kg respectively, with corresponding lowest and highest values at NKSS2 and NKSSC; NKSS1 and NKSS2; NKSSC and NKSS2, while at the Naze area, comparative values of 4.73 – 5.17, 0.70–1.92% for pH and TOC was obtained. Lowest and highest values were at NZSS2 and NZSSC for pH, NZSSC and NZSS2 for TOC, but TPH was below equipment detection level. At Nekede dump site; the phosphate value varied 44.00 – 90.01mg/kg, Nitrate, 10.80 – 20.00mg/kg and Sulphate, 17.00 – 40.55mg/kg, compared to Naze dump site with Phosphate 33.10 – 46.50mg/kg, Nitrate, 8.30 – 10.70mg/kg and Sulphate, 12.10 – 20.00mg/kg. The exchangeable cations: calcium, sodium, magnesium and potassium varied 40.800 – 44.560mg/kg; 10.500 – 13.018mg/kg; 32.60- 43.640mg/kg and 12.140 –17.380mg/kg for Nekede while in the same vein, Naze recorded 35.16– 37.620mg/kg; 8.72 –12.770mg/kg; 0.660 – 1.940mg/kg and 10.340 – 17.860mg/kg. While Nekede dumpsite vicinity has moresandy soil with a mean value of about 53%, clay formed foremost part of soil structure at the Naze axis with 58.50%. In both sites silt was lowest with about 10.6% and 7% recorded at Nekede and Naze respectively. These dumpsite soils are constitutean environmental risk to local population hence there is exigent need for urgent remediation action plan by the regulatory agencies concerned.
Page(s): 108-114 Date of Publication: 23 July 2021
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The study sought to examine the impact of enterprise risk management on internal controls of non-governmental organisations in Zimbabwe. The study objectives were to establish whether there is a relationship between enterprise risk management and safeguarding assets of NGO’S, to determine whether ERM adoption have an impact on timely preparation of financial statements, to assess whether ERM has an effect on the prevention of fraud in NGO’S and determining whether ERM has an effect on completeness and accuracy of financial reports. Literature on this study focused on the enterprise risk management and the objectives on internal control systems which included safeguarding assets, timely preparation of financial statements, completeness and accuracy of financial reports. Other researches that looked at enterprise risk management were also reviewed. The study used explanatory research design and the study sample size was 132 participants, which included finance officials, risk officers, internal audit, and top management from NGOs in the Midlands province, specifically Gokwe, Chirumhanzu, Zvishavane, Binga, and Mberengwa. The primary data was analyzed using SPSS version 24 and STATA 13. According to the conclusions of the study, there is a strong positive association between enterprise risk management and the safeguarding of NGOs’ assets, and enterprise risk management has an impact on the completeness and accuracy of financial reporting. The study recommended that NGOs should begin implementing controls to guarantee that assets are deployed for their intended objectives and are not prone to misuse or theft; NGOs should also begin preventing and detecting fraud and other unlawful actions as their organizations become more complex; NGOs must begin by making the financial statements thorough and accurate so that the information provided is reliable to all stakeholders, and they must also begin by meeting their legal duties of timely submission of accounts and correct information contained in the financial statements.
Page(s): 115-121 Date of Publication: 23 July 2021
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The act of sign language dates back to the Stone Age when there was no formally defined language in the world. It is also a means of communicating with these special people (i.e. the deaf and dumb). Research shows that a variety of sign language recognition system is already in place presently. However, there are drawbacks associated with these systems. These drawbacks range from poor quality of training databases, un-robust recognition models and lack of GUI for good visualization of sign language recognition. In this work, an enhanced image processing model for sign language recognition was developed. The system was aimed at helping in the education and interaction with the speech impaired in the learning environment. Object-Oriented Analysis and Design Methodology were adopted in this approach. The system was implemented using MATLAB. The SURF algorithm was used to perform feature extraction on the input images in order to enhance detection of interest points on the images. The results show that using our model, sign language images can be recognized at the rate of 90% accuracy as compared to the existing model with performance accuracy of 62%. This study could be beneficial to speech-impaired individuals in the educational sector, to the academic communities that support speech impaired persons, to special schools for the impaired, to organizations that cater for speech impaired persons and to the research community.
Page(s): 122-131 Date of Publication: 25 July 2021
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The trends in energy researches in recent time toward conversion of agricultural residues into useful products so as to solve the problem of climate change and encourage green energy. Pawpaw seed being one of the agricultural residues usually discarded after consumption of its fruit was investigated to study the biodiesel properties of its oil. Three cultivars (solo, maradol and js 22) of ripe pawpaw seeds were used for the research. The three cultivars were obtained from a retail outlet in Ado Ekiti. The seeds were collected, sun dried for five days and dried in an oven at 60 °C for six hours. The dried seeds were milled and oil was extracted using 30 g of milled seeds using solvent method with the aid of soxhlet extractor. The oil yield, specific gravity, free fatty acid, iodine value, saponification value, peroxide value and refractive index were the parameters investigated for biodiesel properties. The result shows that the oil yield is higher with 28, 23 and 23% for maradol, solo and js 22 respectively, although the values are low as compared to other sources of vegetable oil. The specific gravity, iodine value, saponification value, peroxide value, refractive index and free fatty acid value of the oil from the three cultivars are within the range of values for biodiesel production when compared to other oils used as feedstock for biodiesel. The oil from the three cultivars is therefore recommended for biodiesel production
Page(s): 132-137 Date of Publication: 29 July 2021
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This study investigated incidents trends from January 2018 to December 2020 in selected Oil Gas Companies in Niger Delta that are involved in different construction activities both in offshore and onshore locations, with over 7 million man-hours exposure within the period under review. Although, for the selected companies, there hadn’t been any major property/asset damage, serious disabling injury or a fatal incident, however, there are several pointers to a serious incident, following the current trend. This study was guided by three research objectives and three research questions. The study was conducted using available data (Key performance indicators – KPIs) from the Safety Department of selected companies, recorded from January 2018 up to December 2020. KPIs set for a particular year were presented and reviewed. Incidents recorded for the period were trended and represented in pie-charts and graphs. The study made use of secondary data, the secondary data were derived via computer, printer, papers, hand file/jotters, memory storage devices, pens and mobile phone/ email was used to contact different personnel that were utilized for the research. Findings from the study showed that the hand and finger are the body pats most vulnerable to recordable incidents (30); this was followed by the leg (18), the general body (6), the face (4) and the eye (2). The study recommended that employees should be trained on how to conduct effective risk assessment and job hazard analysis, to be able to discern hazards in the workplace that can pose a risk.
Page(s): 138-144 Date of Publication: 30 July 2021
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Research Background: Antibiotic-resistant strains of Salmonella spp have been a major foodborne pathogen threat to human and amplify significant food safety hazard. The emergence of multiple drug resistance salmonella in foods has necessitated a search for new antimicrobial substance from other sources, including plants. This research aimed to evaluate the phytochemicals and anti-salmonella activity of ethanol and cold-water extracts of bitter leaves (Vernonia amygdalina) extract against S. typhi and S. paratyphi. Experimental approach: Two species of Salmonella were collected from Dalhatu Araf Specialist Hospital, Lafia, Nasarawa State. The plant leaf extracts were screened for their phytochemical component to evaluate the availability of active bio-compounds in the leaves. The leaf extracts were subjected to antimicrobial analysis by disc diffusion method using different concentration of the leaf’s extracts. Results and conclusion: The phytochemical evaluation showed that compounds such as Alkaloids, Cardiac glycosides, Flavonoids, Saponins, Steroids, Tannins, and Glycosides were present in different quantities. The extracts showed antibacterial effect against the bacteria with zone of inhibition ranging between 8.1± 0.14 mm (9.257 mg/mL) to 22.5± 0.24 mm (75 mg/mL) on Salmonella typhi and 7.3± 0.11 mm (9.257 mg/mL) to 23.3± 0.31mm (75 mg/mL) on Salmonella paratyphi. Minimum Inhibitory Concentration was observed at 18.25 mg/mL and 37.5 mg/mL for ethanol and cold-water extracts of V. amygdalina, respectively, in both isolates. However, no significant difference in the extract’s activity against the test isolates at p<0.05 was observed. V. amygdalina cold-water and ethanolic extracts possess phytochemical with inhibitory activities on Salmonella typhi and Salmonella paratyphi. Novelty and scientific contribution: This study showed that V. amygdalina possesses phytochemicals active against Salmonella and should be further explored to extract bioactive ingredient for use in Salmonella drug development and treatment regime.
Page(s): 145-148 Date of Publication: 30 July 2021
DOI : 10.51584/IJRIAS.2021.6607Download PDF
This work is aimed at assessing the Radionuclide concentration in local breed goat from oil producingAreas in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria. The organs collected include goat meat and liver from the local breed goat. The activity concentrations of the naturally occurring radionuclides 40K, 238U and 232Th in the samples were measured by the means of gamma-ray spectrometry using a Sodium Iodide Thallium doped [NaI (TI)] detector. For the radionuclide concentration of 40K for all the animal samples from the study areas, the activity concentration ranges from BDL for liver from local breed goat gotten from Esit Eket to 988.45±62.79 Bq.kg-1 for liver from local breed goat obtained from Uruan. The activity concentration of 238U for all the samples ranges from BDL for local breed goat meat from Ikot Abasi to 569.37±92.74 Bq.kg-1 for liver from local breed goat gotten from Esit Eket. The 232Th activity concentration ranges from BDL in local breed goat meat obtained from Ibeno, Ikot Abasi and Uruan to 350.09±25.34 Bq.kg-1 in liver from local breed goat meat gotten from Esit Eket. The mean radionuclide concentration of 40K, 238U and 232Th for all the goat samples are 366.81±22.88 Bq.Kg-1, 267.81±43.61 Bq.Kg-1 and 64.21±4.63 Bq.Kg-1 respectively. The mean AED for all the local goat samples are all below the recommended world mean value. The mean values of AGDE for all the samples are all above the recommended values. The mean AED for all goat samples are all below the recommended world mean value. The mean values of D and 𝐼𝛾𝑟 for the local breed goat meat are 163.49 nGy.y-1 and 1.98 respectively .The mean of D and 𝐼𝛾𝑟 for liver are 205.62 nGy.y-1 and 2.29 respectively. The mean values of D for both the goat meat samples and the liver samples are greater than the recommended value of 84 nGy.y-1. The mean values of 𝐼𝛾𝑟 is also greater than the recommended world value of 1. People living in areas where the AGDE are higher than the world recommended values should avoid consuming those parts of the local breed goat in other to avoid harmful health effects.
Page(s): 149-154 Date of Publication: 30 July 2021
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