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  1. Fulltext Technique for Early Reliability Prediction of Software Components Using Behaviour Models
    Ali A, N A Jawawi D, Adham Isa M, Imran Babar M
    PLoS One, 2016 Sep 26;11(9):e0163346.
    PMID: 27668748 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0163346
    Behaviour models are the most commonly used input for predicting the reliability of a software system at the early design stage. A component behaviour model reveals the structure and behaviour of the component during the execution of system-level functionalities. There are various challenges related to component reliability prediction at the early design stage based on behaviour models. For example, most of the current reliability techniques do not provide fine-grained sequential behaviour models of individual components and fail to consider the loop entry and exit points in the reliability computation. Moreover, some of the current techniques do not tackle the problem of operational data unavailability and the lack of analysis results that can be valuable for software architects at the early design stage. This paper proposes a reliability prediction technique that, pragmatically, synthesizes system behaviour in the form of a state machine, given a set of scenarios and corresponding constraints as input. The state machine is utilized as a base for generating the component-relevant operational data. The state machine is also used as a source for identifying the nodes and edges of a component probabilistic dependency graph (CPDG). Based on the CPDG, a stack-based algorithm is used to compute the reliability. The proposed technique is evaluated by a comparison with existing techniques and the application of sensitivity analysis to a robotic wheelchair system as a case study. The results indicate that the proposed technique is more relevant at the early design stage compared to existing works, and can provide a more realistic and meaningful prediction.
  2. Comparison of the fine-scale genetic structure of three dipterocarp species
    Takeuchi Y, Ichikawa S, Konuma A, Tomaru N, Niiyama K, Lee SL, et al.
    Heredity (Edinb), 2004 Apr;92(4):323-8.
    PMID: 14735142
    We investigated the fine-scale genetic structure of three tropical-rainforest trees, Hopea dryobalanoides, Shorea parvifolia and S. acuminata (Dipterocarpaceae), in Peninsular Malaysia, all of which cooccurred within a 6-ha plot in Pasoh Forest Reserve. A significant genetic structure was found in H. dryobalanoides, weaker (but still significant) genetic structure in S. parvifolia and nonsignificant structure in S. acuminata. Seeds of all three species are wind dispersed, and their flowers are thought to be insect pollinated. The most obvious difference among these species is their height: S. parvifolia and S. acuminata are canopy species, whereas H. dryobalanoides is a subcanopy species. Clear differences were also found among these species in their range of seed dispersal, which depends on the height of the release point; so taller trees disperse their seed more extensively. The estimates of seed dispersal area were consistent with the degree of genetic structure found in the three species. Therefore, tree height probably had a strong influence on the fine-scale genetic structure of the three species.
  3. Spermatogonial Stem Cells Protein Identification in In Vitro Culture from Non-Obstructive Azoospermia Patient
    Abdul Wahab AY, Md Isa ML, Ramli R
    Malays J Med Sci, 2016 May;23(3):40-8.
    PMID: 27418868
    Spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs) are classifiedas a unique adult stem cells that have capability to propagate, differentiate, and transmit genetic information to the next generation. Studies on human SSCs may help resolve male infertility problems, especially in azoospermia patients. Therefore, this study aims to propagate SSCs in-vitro with a presence of growth factor and detect SSC-specific protein cell surface markers.
  4. Fulltext Critical Factors Influencing Decision to Adopt Human Resource Information System (HRIS) in Hospitals
    Alam MG, Masum AK, Beh LS, Hong CS
    PLoS One, 2016;11(8):e0160366.
    PMID: 27494334 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0160366
    The aim of this research is to explore factors influencing the management decisions to adopt human resource information system (HRIS) in the hospital industry of Bangladesh-an emerging developing country. To understand this issue, this paper integrates two prominent adoption theories-Human-Organization-Technology fit (HOT-fit) model and Technology-Organization-Environment (TOE) framework. Thirteen factors under four dimensions were investigated to explore their influence on HRIS adoption decisions in hospitals. Employing non-probability sampling method, a total of 550 copies of structured questionnaires were distributed among HR executives of 92 private hospitals in Bangladesh. Among the respondents, usable questionnaires were 383 that suggesting a valid response rate of 69.63%. We classify the sample into 3 core groups based on the HRIS initial implementation, namely adopters, prospectors, and laggards. The obtained results specify 5 most critical factors i.e. IT infrastructure, top management support, IT capabilities of staff, perceived cost, and competitive pressure. Moreover, the most significant dimension is technological dimension followed by organisational, human, and environmental among the proposed 4 dimensions. Lastly, the study found existence of significant differences in all factors across different adopting groups. The study results also expose constructive proposals to researchers, hospitals, and the government to enhance the likelihood of adopting HRIS. The present study has important implications in understanding HRIS implementation in developing countries.
  5. Fulltext On Topological Indices of Certain Families of Nanostar Dendrimers
    Husin MN, Hasni R, Arif NE, Imran M
    Molecules, 2016 Jun 24;21(7).
    PMID: 27347913 DOI: 10.3390/molecules21070821
    A topological index of graph G is a numerical parameter related to G which characterizes its molecular topology and is usually graph invariant. In the field of quantitative structure-activity (QSAR)/quantitative structure-activity structure-property (QSPR) research, theoretical properties of the chemical compounds and their molecular topological indices such as the Randić connectivity index, atom-bond connectivity (ABC) index and geometric-arithmetic (GA) index are used to predict the bioactivity of different chemical compounds. A dendrimer is an artificially manufactured or synthesized molecule built up from the branched units called monomers. In this paper, the fourth version of ABC index and the fifth version of GA index of certain families of nanostar dendrimers are investigated. We derive the analytical closed formulas for these families of nanostar dendrimers. The obtained results can be of use in molecular data mining, particularly in researching the uniqueness of tested (hyper-branched) molecular graphs.
  6. Fulltext A Robust Speaker Identification System Using the Responses from a Model of the Auditory Periphery
    Islam MA, Jassim WA, Cheok NS, Zilany MS
    PLoS One, 2016;11(7):e0158520.
    PMID: 27392046 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0158520
    Speaker identification under noisy conditions is one of the challenging topics in the field of speech processing applications. Motivated by the fact that the neural responses are robust against noise, this paper proposes a new speaker identification system using 2-D neurograms constructed from the responses of a physiologically-based computational model of the auditory periphery. The responses of auditory-nerve fibers for a wide range of characteristic frequency were simulated to speech signals to construct neurograms. The neurogram coefficients were trained using the well-known Gaussian mixture model-universal background model classification technique to generate an identity model for each speaker. In this study, three text-independent and one text-dependent speaker databases were employed to test the identification performance of the proposed method. Also, the robustness of the proposed method was investigated using speech signals distorted by three types of noise such as the white Gaussian, pink, and street noises with different signal-to-noise ratios. The identification results of the proposed neural-response-based method were compared to the performances of the traditional speaker identification methods using features such as the Mel-frequency cepstral coefficients, Gamma-tone frequency cepstral coefficients and frequency domain linear prediction. Although the classification accuracy achieved by the proposed method was comparable to the performance of those traditional techniques in quiet, the new feature was found to provide lower error rates of classification under noisy environments.
  7. Fulltext Ultrastructural effects on gill tissues induced in red tilapia Oreochromis sp. by a waterborne lead exposure
    Aldoghachi MA, Azirun MS, Yusoff I, Ashraf MA
    Saudi J Biol Sci, 2016 Sep;23(5):634-41.
    PMID: 27579014 DOI: 10.1016/j.sjbs.2015.08.004
    Experiments on hybrid red tilapia Oreochromis sp. were conducted to assess histopathological effects induced in gill tissues of 96 h exposure to waterborne lead (5.5 mg/L). These tissues were investigated by light and scanning electron microscopy. Results showed that structural design of gill tissues was noticeably disrupted. Major symptoms were changes of epithelial cells, fusion in adjacent secondary lamellae, hypertrophy and hyperplasia of chloride cells and coagulate necrosis in pavement cells with disappearance of its microridges. Electron microscopic X-ray microanalysis of fish gills exposed to sublethal lead revealed that lead accumulated on the surface of the gill lamella. This study confirmed that lead exposure incited a difference of histological impairment in fish, supporting environmental watch over aquatic systems when polluted by lead.
  8. Fulltext Kinetics and Mechanism of Cationic Flexible Nanoparticles (CFN) - Catalyzed Piperidinolysis of Anionic Phenyl Salicylate: CFN = TTABr/MX/H2O with MX = NaCl, NaBr; CnH2n+1CO2Na, n = 4, 5, 6 and 7
    Mohd Noh MA, Khalid K, Ariffin A, Khan MN
    J Oleo Sci, 2016;65(9):749-58.
    PMID: 27581491 DOI: 10.5650/jos.ess16048
    The present study is focused on the effect of the TTABr/MX/H2O-nanoparticles on the rate of piperidinolysis of ionized phenyl salicylate where TTABr represents tetradecyltrimethylammonium bromide and MX = NaCl, NaBr and CnH2n+1CO2Na with n = 4, 5, 6 and 7. Pseudo-first-order rate constant for the piperidinolysis of ionized phenyl salicylate at 35°C and constant concentration [PSa(-)]T = 0.2 mM, [Pip]T = 0.1 M, [NaOH] = 30 mM, [TTABr]T and different [MX] follow an empirical relationship which gives two empirical constant, (X)kcat and K(X/S). The value of relative counterion (X) binding constant, RX(Br) were calculated from the relationship; RX(Br) = (X)kcat/(Br)kcat. The values of RX(Br) for X = C4H9CO2(-), C5H11CO2(-), C6H13CO2(-), and C7H15CO2(-) are increasing with increase in the number of alkyl chain of counterion X.
  9. An alternative data filling approach for prediction of missing data in soft sets (ADFIS)
    Sadiq Khan M, Al-Garadi MA, Wahab AW, Herawan T
    Springerplus, 2016;5(1):1348.
    PMID: 27588241 DOI: 10.1186/s40064-016-2797-x
    Soft set theory is a mathematical approach that provides solution for dealing with uncertain data. As a standard soft set, it can be represented as a Boolean-valued information system, and hence it has been used in hundreds of useful applications. Meanwhile, these applications become worthless if the Boolean information system contains missing data due to error, security or mishandling. Few researches exist that focused on handling partially incomplete soft set and none of them has high accuracy rate in prediction performance of handling missing data. It is shown that the data filling approach for incomplete soft set (DFIS) has the best performance among all previous approaches. However, in reviewing DFIS, accuracy is still its main problem. In this paper, we propose an alternative data filling approach for prediction of missing data in soft sets, namely ADFIS. The novelty of ADFIS is that, unlike the previous approach that used probability, we focus more on reliability of association among parameters in soft set. Experimental results on small, 04 UCI benchmark data and causality workbench lung cancer (LUCAP2) data shows that ADFIS performs better accuracy as compared to DFIS.
  10. Chemical speciation and bioavailability of rare earth elements (REEs) in the ecosystem: a review
    Khan AM, Bakar NKA, Bakar AFA, Ashraf MA
    Environ Sci Pollut Res Int, 2017 Oct;24(29):22764-22789.
    PMID: 27722986 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-016-7427-1
    Rare earths (RE), chemically uniform group of elements due to similar physicochemical behavior, are termed as lanthanides. Natural occurrence depends on the geological circumstances and has been of long interest for geologist as tools for further scientific research into the region of ores, rocks, and oceanic water. The review paper mainly focuses to provide scientific literature about rare earth elements (REEs) with potential environmental and health effects in understanding the research. This is the initial review of RE speciation and bioavailability with current initiative toward development needs and research perceptive. In this paper, we have also discussed mineralogy, extraction, geochemistry, analytical methods of rare earth elements. In this study, REEs with their transformation and vertical distribution in different environments such as fresh and seawater, sediments, soil, weathering, transport, and solubility have been reported with most recent literature along key methods of findings. Speciation and bioavailability have been discussed in detail with special emphasis on soil, plant, and aquatic ecosystems and their impacts on the environment. This review shows that REE gained more importance in last few years due to their detrimental effects on living organisms, so their speciation, bioavailability, and composition are much more important to evaluate their health risks and are discussed thoroughly as well.
  11. New magnetic graphene-based inorganic-organic sol-gel hybrid nanocomposite for simultaneous analysis of polar and non-polar organophosphorus pesticides from water samples using solid-phase extraction
    Rashidi Nodeh H, Wan Ibrahim WA, Kamboh MA, Sanagi MM
    Chemosphere, 2017 Jan;166:21-30.
    PMID: 27681257 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2016.09.054
    A new graphene-based tetraethoxysilane-methyltrimethoxysilane sol-gel hybrid magnetic nanocomposite (Fe3O4@G-TEOS-MTMOS) was synthesised, characterized and successfully applied in magnetic solid-phase extraction (MSPE) for simultaneous analysis of polar and non-polar organophosphorus pesticides from several water samples. The Fe3O4@G-TEOS-MTMOS nanocomposite was characterized using Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, field emission scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. Separation, determination and quantification were achieved using gas chromatography coupled with micro electron capture detector. Adsorption capacity of the sorbent was calculated using Langmuir equation. MSPE was linear in the range 100-1000 pg mL(-1) for phosphamidon and dimethoate, and 10-100 pg mL(-1) for chlorpyrifos and diazinon, with limit of detection (S/N = 3) of 19.8, 23.7, 1.4 and 2.9 pg mL(-1) for phosphamidon, dimethoate, diazinon and chlorpyrifos, respectively. The LODs obtained is well below the maximum residual level (100 pg mL(-1)) as set by European Union for pesticides in drinking water. Acceptable precision (%RSD) was achieved for intra-day (1.3-8.7%, n = 3) and inter-day (7.6-17.8%, n = 15) analyses. Fe3O4@G-TEOS-MTMOS showed high adsorption capacity (54.4-76.3 mg g(-1)) for the selected OPPs. No pesticide residues were detected in the water samples analysed. Excellent extraction recoveries (83-105%) were obtained for the spiked OPPs from tap, river, lake and sea water samples. The newly synthesised Fe3O4@G-TEOS-MTMOS showed high potential as adsorbent for OPPs analysis.
  12. Important skills for biomedical services: The perspectives of Malaysian employers and employees
    Buntat Y, Saud MS, Mokhtar M, Kamin Y, Feh LS
    Work, 2016 Oct 17;55(2):481-487.
    PMID: 27689600
    Increase in the occurrence of existing diseases, continual emergence of new or exotic diseases and re-emergence of old diseases have placed increasing demands on biomedical services in Malaysia. Biomedical technicians play an important role in operating biomedical instruments. However, there are no clear specifications about characteristics and traits for these semi-professional employees. Employers in a few studies claimed that biomedical graduates are not ready to enter and face challenges in the job market.
  13. Fulltext Identification, production and assessment of two Toxoplasma gondii recombinant proteins for use in a Toxoplasma IgG avidity assay
    Teh AY, Amerizadeh A, Osman S, Yunus MH, Noordin R
    Pathog Glob Health, 2016 Oct-Dec;110(7-8):277-286.
    PMID: 27697019
    The IgG avidity assay is an important tool in the management of suspected toxoplasmosis in pregnant women. This study aimed to produce new Toxoplasma gondii recombinant proteins and to assess their usefulness in an IgG avidity assay. Toxoplasma positive and negative serum samples were used, the former were categorized into low (LGA) and high (HGA) IgG avidity samples. Immunoblots were performed on 30 T. gondii cDNA clones to determine the reactivity and IgG avidity to the expressed proteins. Two of the clones were found to have diagnostic potential and were analyzed further; AG12b encoded T. gondii apical complex lysine methyltransferase (AKMT) protein and AG18 encoded T. gondii forkhead-associated (FHA) domain-containing protein. The His-tagged recombinant proteins, rAG12b and rAG18, were expressed and tested with LGA and HGA samples using an IgG avidity western blot and ELISA. With the IgG avidity western blot, rAG12b identified 86.4% of LGA and 90.9% of HGA samples, whereas rAG18 identified 81.8% of both LGA and HGA samples. With the IgG avidity ELISA, rAG12b identified 86.4% of both LGA and HGA samples, whereas rAG18 identified 77.3% of LGA and 86.4% of HGA serum samples. This study showed that the recombinant antigens were able to differentiate low avidity and high avidity serum samples, suggesting that they are potential candidates for use in the Toxoplasma IgG avidity assay.
  14. The interrater and test-retest reliability of the Home Falls and Accidents Screening Tool (HOME FAST) in Malaysia: Using raters with a range of professional backgrounds
    Romli MH, Mackenzie L, Lovarini M, Tan MP, Clemson L
    J Eval Clin Pract, 2017 Jun;23(3):662-669.
    PMID: 28105771 DOI: 10.1111/jep.12697
    RATIONALE, AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: Falls can be a devastating issue for older people living in the community, including those living in Malaysia. Health professionals and community members have a responsibility to ensure that older people have a safe home environment to reduce the risk of falls. Using a standardised screening tool is beneficial to intervene early with this group. The Home Falls and Accidents Screening Tool (HOME FAST) should be considered for this purpose; however, its use in Malaysia has not been studied. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the interrater and test-retest reliability of the HOME FAST with multiple professionals in the Malaysian context.

    METHODS: A cross-sectional design was used to evaluate interrater reliability where the HOME FAST was used simultaneously in the homes of older people by 2 raters and a prospective design was used to evaluate test-retest reliability with a separate group of older people at different times in their homes. Both studies took place in an urban area of Kuala Lumpur.

    RESULTS: Professionals from 9 professional backgrounds participated as raters in this study, and a group of 51 community older people were recruited for the interrater reliability study and another group of 30 for the test-retest reliability study. The overall agreement was moderate for interrater reliability and good for test-retest reliability. The HOME FAST was consistently rated by different professionals, and no bias was found among the multiple raters.

    CONCLUSION: The HOME FAST can be used with confidence by a variety of professionals across different settings. The HOME FAST can become a universal tool to screen for home hazards related to falls.

  15. Pancreatoprotective effects of Geniotrigona thoracica stingless bee honey in streptozotocin-nicotinamide-induced male diabetic rats
    Aziz MSA, Giribabu N, Rao PV, Salleh N
    Biomed Pharmacother, 2017 May;89:135-145.
    PMID: 28222394 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2017.02.026
    Stingless bee honey (SLBH) has been claimed to possess multiple health benefits. Its anti-diabetic properties are however unknown. In this study, ability of SLBH from Geniotrigona thoracica stingless bee species in ameliorating pancreatic damage and in maintaining metabolic profiles were investigated in diabetic condition.

    METHODS: SLBH at 1 and 2g/kg/b.w. was given orally to streptozotocin (STZ)-nicotinamide-induced male diabetic rats for 28days. Metabolic parameters (fasting blood glucose-FBG and lipid profiles-LP and serum insulin) were measured by biochemical assays. Distribution and expression level of insulin, oxidative stress marker i.e. catalase, inflammatory markers i.e. IKK-β, TNF-α, IL-1β and apoptosis marker i.e. caspase-9 in the pancreatic islets were identified and quantified respectively by immunohistochemistry. Levels of NF-κβ in pancreas were determined by enzyme-linked immunoassay (ELISA).

    RESULTS: SLBH administration to diabetic male rats prevented increase in FBG, total cholesterols (TC), triglyceride (TG) and low density lipoprotein (LDL) levels. However, high density lipoprotein (HDL) and serum insulin levels in diabetic rats receiving SLBH increased. Additionally, histopathological changes and expression level of oxidative stress, inflammation and apoptosis markers in pancreatic islets of diabetic rats decreased with increased expression level of insulin in the islets. LC-MS analysis revealed the presence of several compounds in SLBH that might be responsible for these effects.

    CONCLUSIONS: SLBH has great potential to be used as agent to protect the pancreas against damage and dysfunction where these could account for its anti-diabetic properties.

  16. Fulltext Quaternary ammonium salt of chitosan: preparation and antimicrobial property for paper
    Liu P, Meng W, Wang S, Sun Y, Ashraf MA
    Open Med (Wars), 2015;10(1):473-478.
    PMID: 28352739 DOI: 10.1515/med-2015-0081
    A series of 2-hydroxypropyltrimethyl ammonium chloride chitosan (HACC) was prepared by the reaction of chitosan with glycidyl trimethyl ammonium chloride. Structure of HACC was characterized by FT IR and 1H NMR spectroscopies, and it was proved that substitution reaction mainly occurs on the N element. Antimicrobial activities of HACC was examined against S. aureus, E. coli, and A. niger. Results indicatd that the inhibitory effects of HACC solutions were varied with HACC concentration, quaternization degrees, pH values, metal ions, and heat treatment. The antimicrobial properties of handsheets prepared from HACC were studied by the inhibition zone method, and the sheets had good antimicrobial properties against S. aureus and E. coli, and low inhibition rate against A. niger.
  17. Fulltext Effects of Phase Separation Behavior on Morphology and Performance of Polycarbonate Membranes
    Idris A, Man Z, Maulud AS, Khan MS
    Membranes (Basel), 2017 Apr 05;7(2).
    PMID: 28379173 DOI: 10.3390/membranes7020021
    The phase separation behavior of bisphenol-A-polycarbonate (PC), dissolved in N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone and dichloromethane solvents in coagulant water, was studied by the cloud point method. The respective cloud point data were determined by titration against water at room temperature and the characteristic binodal curves for the ternary systems were plotted. Further, the physical properties such as viscosity, refractive index, and density of the solution were measured. The critical polymer concentrations were determined from the viscosity measurements. PC/NMP and PC/DCM membranes were fabricated by the dry-wet phase inversion technique and characterized for their morphology, structure, and thermal stability using field emission scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and thermogravimetric analysis, respectively. The membranes' performances were tested for their permeance to CO₂, CH₄, and N₂ gases at 24 ± 0.5 °C with varying feed pressures from 2 to 10 bar. The PC/DCM membranes appeared to be asymmetric dense membrane types with appreciable thermal stability, whereas the PC/NMP membranes were observed to be asymmetric with porous structures exhibiting 4.18% and 9.17% decrease in the initial and maximum degradation temperatures, respectively. The ideal CO₂/N₂ and CO₂/CH₄ selectivities of the PC/NMP membrane decreased with the increase in feed pressures, while for the PC/DCM membrane, the average ideal CO₂/N₂ and CO₂/CH₄ selectivities were found to be 25.1 ± 0.8 and 21.1 ± 0.6, respectively. Therefore, the PC/DCM membranes with dense morphologies are appropriate for gas separation applications.
  18. Determination of Relative Counterion Binding Constant to Cationic Micelles
    Khalid K, Noh MAM, Zain SM, Khan MN
    Top Curr Chem (Cham), 2017 Apr;375(2):45.
    PMID: 28357712 DOI: 10.1007/s41061-017-0132-9
    The efficiency of counterion affinity towards ionic micelles is often described in terms of the degree of counterion binding (β X ) to ionic micelles or the conventional ion-exchange constant ([Formula: see text]) or relative binding constant ([Formula: see text]) of X - and Br- counterions. This review describes the use of ionized phenyl salicylate ions, PSa-, as a new probe to determine [Formula: see text] values using a semiempirical spectrophotometric method. The value of [Formula: see text] is found to be comparable to reported values obtained using different probes by the semiempirical kinetic method as well as different physical methods. Application of semiempirical methods for calculation of [Formula: see text] or [Formula: see text] values involves an inherent assumption that these values are independent of the physicochemical characteristics of the probe molecule.
  19. The knowledge, awareness, attitude and motivational analysis of plastic waste and household perspective in Malaysia
    Afroz R, Rahman A, Masud MM, Akhtar R
    Environ Sci Pollut Res Int, 2017 Jan;24(3):2304-2315.
    PMID: 27812970 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-016-7942-0
    The focus of this study is to analyze the level of knowledge, awareness, and attitude toward plastic waste and to distinguish the key drivers that encourage the households in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to participate in "No plastic campaign," This study used the logistic regression model to explain the factors that may affect the willingness to participate (WTP) of households in the campaign. In this study, it is found that 35 % of households are willing to participate in the campaign. The results of the study also indicate that people who are more informed and more convinced of their knowledge have a more positive attitude toward recycling than their counterparts do. Furthermore, this study provides additional evidence of the level and classification of importance of motivating factors for plastic recycling, using the modified average and coefficient of variation of the models. From the analysis, the factor "helps reduce landfill use" is found as the most important factor and the factor of "raising money for charity" is found as the least important factor that motivates households to participate in recycling. The determinations of the study suggest some strategies that could hold implications for government and households to boost them to participate in the campaign "No Plastic Bag."
  20. Preparation, characterization, and dye removal study of activated carbon prepared from palm kernel shell
    García JR, Sedran U, Zaini MAA, Zakaria ZA
    Environ Sci Pollut Res Int, 2018 Feb;25(6):5076-5085.
    PMID: 28391459 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-017-8975-8
    Palm oil mill wastes (palm kernel shell (PKS)) were used to prepare activated carbons, which were tested in the removal of colorants from water. The adsorbents were prepared by 1-h impregnation of PKS with ZnCl2 as the activating agent (PKS:ZnCl2 mass ratios of 1:1 and 2:1), followed by carbonization in autogenous atmosphere at 500 and 550 °C during 1 h. The characterization of the activated carbons included textural properties (porosity), surface chemistry (functional groups), and surface morphology. The dye removal performance of the different activated carbons was investigated by means of the uptake of methylene blue (MB) in solutions with various initial concentrations (25-400 mg/L of MB) at 30 °C, using a 0.05-g carbon/50-mL solution relationship. The sample prepared with 1:1 PKS:ZnCl2 and carbonized at 550 °C showed the highest MB adsorption capacity (maximum uptake at the equilibrium, q max = 225.3 mg MB / g adsorbent), resulting from its elevated specific surface area (BET, 1058 m2/g) and microporosity (micropore surface area, 721 m2/g). The kinetic experiments showed that removals over 90% of the equilibrium adsorptions were achieved after 4-h contact time in all the cases. The study showed that palm oil mill waste biomass could be used in the preparation of adsorbents efficient in the removal of colorants in wastewaters.
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