School of Infrastructure Process Engineering and Technology (SIPET)
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School of Infrastructure Process Engineering and Technology (SIPET)
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Item Biogas Production from the Co-digestion of Cow dung and poultry Droppings Using a Plastic Cylindrical Digester(2017-07-13) Simeon, Meshack Imologie; Edache, Julius; Eyeowa, AdegokeThis study was carried out to compare the rate and amount of gas produced from the codigestion of two different substrates of cow dung and poultry droppings under anaerobic conditions. Biogas production from three(3) cylindrical bio-digesters containing cow dung, poultry droppings, and a mixture of cow dung and poultry droppings under an average temperature of 28 oc and a pH of 6.2 was examined. In each case, the feedstock was diluted with an equal volume of water to form a slurry. The digestion took place for 35 days. The biogas produced during this period was collected by the balloon method and subsequently measured and recorded. The results obtained from this study show that the co-digestion of cow dung and poultry droppings yielded a maximum volume of 2.62 cm³, while poultry droppings yielded 2.50 cm³ and cow dung yielded 1.78 cm³. Thus, the co-digestion of the feedstocks gave a better gas production, and the mean biogas yield was found to be significant (P<0.05) compared to each of the single substrates. This study has demonstrated that the co-digestion of cow dung and poultry droppings in a plastic cylinder could be a cheap method for locally producing biogas for domestic purposes. It is, however, recommended that gas production can be enhanced during hot seasons where higher temperature is easily attained.Item Evaluation of the physicochemical and thermal properties of honey samples from different floral locations in Enugu North senatorial zone, Nigeria.(The proceedings 12th CIGR Section, 2018-10-25) Asoiro, Felix; Simeon, Meshack Imologie; Ugochukwu Christian Abada; Chukwuemeka Jude OhagwuThis study was carried out to investigate the physicochemical and thermal properties of natural honey collected from different floral locations in Enugu North senatorial zone. The physicochemical and thermal parameters like moisture content, pH, sucrose, glucose, fructose, acidity, density, thermal conductivity, thermal heat diffusivity, specific heat capacity, viscosity, ash content, colour, and electrical conductivity were analyzed. The results obtained show that the pH values of the samples ranged from 4.7 to 5.7. The maximum and minimum moisture content were 22.5 and 16.59% (wb), respectively, with the sample from Igbo-Etiti having the lowest moisture content. The density value ranged from 820-1250 kg m-3, with honey samples from Igboeze-South recording the highest density. It was also observed that the sucrose content of the samples ranged from 1.037- 1.78g/100g, which is considered good and within the internationally acceptable value for honey. Electrical conductivity values for Igboeze-North, Udenu, Igboeze-South, Igbo-Etiti and Nsukka were 16.5, 6.0, 25.4, 3.5 and 11.4μS/cm, respectively, Fructose values were 34.339, 33.484, 34.515, 39.434 and 33.136 g/100g respectively and glucose contents were 31.361, 30.856, 31.639, 35.224 and 30.621 g/100g respectively It was also observed that honey from Igbo-Etiti is more viscous than all the samples. The honey samples from the different floral locations in Enugu North Senatorial zone were acidic. The colour of the sample is classified as Amber for samples from Igboeze-North, Igboeze-South, and Igbo-Etiti, while that of Udenu is Light Amber and that of Nsukka is Extra White. The thermal properties fell within the internationally acceptable range of values. Thermal heat conductivity ranged from 0.4358-0.4490 Wm-1K-1, specific heat capacity was from 1.3024-1.6355 kJkg-1K-1, and thermal heat diffusivity ranged from 2.4252× 10 -3.8313× 10 m2s-1. Honey is a promising source of food, raw material, and essential minerals. Knowledge of its physicochemical and thermal properties is essential to facilitate its postharvest processing.Item Development and Preliminary Testing of an Electronic Pest Repeller with Automatic Frequency Variation(International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology-Springer, 2013-01-01) Simeon, Meshack Imologie; Mohammed A.S.; Adebayo S. E.This study presents the development and preliminary performance evaluation of an improved electronic pest repeller with automatic frequency variation. The study is aimed at developing a device that is capable of emitting ultrasonic energy of varied frequencies. These frequencies do affect the auditory senses of pests such as rodents, avian, and nocturnal insects by making them uncomfortable in their abode. However, these frequencies do not affect the hearing ability of humans. An Astable Multi-vibrator (AMV), timer NE555, was used to generate the required ultrasonic frequency and automatically varied in five steps by a pulse generating IC (CA3130) and a counter (CD4017). A D-type flip-flop IC (CD4013) was used to obtain a symmetrical output signal, which was amplified in push-pull mode by 2-NPN Transistors (BD-139) and 2-PNP transistors (BD140). Five variable resistors (each 100KΩ) were used to control the different frequencies. Two transducers (tweeters) were employed to produce an efficient sound. The unit was tested with three groups of white foot mice (Peromyscus leucopus) and a female house mouse Mus musculus which all responded positively from a distance of up to fifteen (15) meters from the source. The average designed efficiency was found to be 86.5%. The device can be utilized by both small and large-scale farmers for repelling pests. The performance of the device could be greatly improved with little modifications, for instance, using microcontrollers and ultrasonic sensors to transmit the ultrasonic sound in a special frequency band.Item The Effect of Surfactant Concentration on Crude Oil Removal from Contaminated Soil(Nigerian Research Journal of Engineering and Environmental Sciences (RJEES), 2017) Farrow, T.S.; Ketebu, O.; Eterigho, E.J.The extraction efficiencies of three non-ionic surfactants; Tween 80, Brij 35 and Triton X-100 at different concentrations of 0.1- 0.5% w/v were investigated. It was observed that for the three surfactants examined, the bulk oil removal increased with increasing surfactant concentration. The results of the investigation also revealed that Brij 35 was effective in the removal of aliphatics while low concentration of Tween 80 did not favour the removal of aromatic hydrocarbons. Triton X-100 seems to be the best amongst the surfactants investigated considering its capability for removing both aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons at relatively low concentrations. Concentration of 0.5% w/v for all the surfactants generally produced an appreciable increase in bulk oil removal, aliphatic and aromatic fractions. These results will provide a guideline for evaluating and selecting non-ionic surfactants for the remediation of crude oil contaminated soilItem Study of the Physical Properties and Biodegradability of Potato-Starch Based Plastics(World Congress on Engineering and Computer Science (WCECS 2017) San Francisco, USA, 2017-10-25) Eterigho, Elizabeth J.; Farrow, T. S.; Ejejigbe, Silver E.; Gideon, O. DanielDue to the exceptional growth of environmental menace pollution caused by the disposal of used plastics in the world today, there exist the needs to produce biodegradable plastics from cheap and renewable feed stocks. This research work focuses on the synthesis and characterization of potato starch- based plastics (biodegradable) using polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) as cross linker. PVA was varied in mass ratios of 15, 30, 45 and 80% in the thermoplastic starch (TPS)/PVA blend. Mechanical properties (such as tensile strength, percentage elongation, young modulus) and specific gravity of the blends were studied. The results showed that 80% PVA plastic had the highest tensile strength, elongation and lowest young modulus of 384.47kPa, 347.27%, and 310.10kPa respectively. The specific gravity of the whole blends was 1.2. The elongation at break increases with increasing concentration of PVA, having the least value of 0% and highest value of 481.82% for 15 % and 80 % PVA plastic respectively. In addition, the results obtained showed increase in the values of the properties of the samples with respect to thermal conductivity, acid, base and water resistance with increase in composition of PVA. Biodegradability test was done via soil-burial method and the PVA/TPS blend was noted to be biodegradableItem Assessment of Heavy Metal Contamination on Dumpsite in Kuyi Village, Niger State, Nigeria(International Journal of Research in Chemical, Metallurgical and Civil Engineering. (IJRCMCE), 2016) Iyakwari, Joseph; Agbajelola, D. O.; Farrow, T. S.; Eterigho, Elizabeth JumokeSoil samples collected from the dumpsite located in Kuyi village, Minna, Niger State were analyzed for copper (Cu), iron (Fe2+) and manganese (Mn) using Atomic Absorption Spectrometer. Twenty-one (21) sample points both horizontally and vertically (depth) were studied. The results revealed that Mn had the highest concentration (11.6mg/kg) compared to Cu and Fe2+. However, it was observed that a minimal reduction in concentration of each metal along the surface of the dumpsite occurred. Interestingly, the concentration of Fe at all points was relatively high (5.54mg/kg, 4.67mg/kg, 3.99mg/kg and 3.78mg/kg). Based on the Federal Environmental Protection Agency and Land Disposal Restriction Standard Regulation, this metal could have adverse effect on human health, stream and agricultural activities of villagers around the dumpsite.Item Harnessing Alternative Technology for the Sustainability of Biodiesel Production(Iranica Journal of Energy and Environment, 2016-11-17) Eterigho Elizabeth J.; Farrow, T. S.; Agbajelola, D. O.; Ejejigbe, S. E.; Harvey, A.P.Biofuel, a renewable energy is mainly produced by transesterification of fatty acids either in presence of enzyme or catalysts. The transesterification relies on the use of either strong base or strong acid homogeneous catalysts for effective performance; but, homogeneous catalysts are associated with a variety of technical hurdles that limit their use for biodiesel production. Although there have been recent developments in heterogeneous catalysts for biodiesel production via transesterification; the separation of methyl ester (FAMEs) from crude glycerol and alcohol recovery are still major hindrances. A possible alternative could be the use of solid acid catalysts in thermo-catalytic cracking of triglycerides. Sulphated zirconia catalyst was evaluated for thermo-catalytic cracking of triglycerides at a relatively low temperature (270oC) and atmospheric pressure. The catalyst was found to be active toward cracking vegetable oils to methyl esters. The catalyst at this temperature exhibited different selectivity towards formation of saturated and unsaturated methyl esters. The catalyst yield of methyl esters under these conditions was 58% while 80% of the product being unsaturated. This opens up the possibility of controlling the degree of saturation of the methyl ester product by catalyst choice, to produce more or less saturated fuels for different markets. The range of products from gases to middle distillates and the unique selectivity for saturated and unsaturated esters may be a significant process advantage of this form of catalytic cracking. An important long chain unsaturated alcohol (1- Heptatriacotanol) was also identified. The unsaturated alcohol is known as an industrial chemical.Item Effect of modification on conventional preparation method for Sulphated Zirconia on the production of Fatty Acid Methyl Ester(The Nigerian Society of Chemical Engineers, 2014-11) Eterigho, Elizabeth Jumoke; Farrow, T. S.Sulphated zirconia was synthesized using different volume of sulphating agent in order to optimise its catalytic property: (1) in the first case the "conventional" 15 ml H2SO4 to 1g of Zr(OH)4 for impregnation was used in wet-precipitation method and the catalyst designated 'wp' and (2) same procedure but with modification in volume of acid; 2 ml of H2SO4 was used for 1g of Zr(OH)4, 'mw'. The properties of the uncalcined and calcined catalysts were examined by various techniques: EDX, XPS, XRDP, Py-DRIFTS and BET nitrogen adsorption techniques. The sulphur content in the uncalcined ('mwp' and 'wp') catalysts was the s a m e ; 0.07 mol each whereas the calcined catalysts were 0.07 mol and 0.05 mol for 'mwp' and 'wp' respectively. BET surface area was determined to be 65.0 m2/g for wp and 101m2/g for 'mwp'. The effect of the variation of sulphating ageni on the catalyst activity was investigated in catalytic cracking of triglycerides for fatty acid methyl esters. Sulphated zirconia from the modified conventional method was found to perform better than the conventional wet-precipitated sulphated zirconia. Furthermore, 'mwp' retained approximately 74% of its sulphur content after 3 h reaction whereas 'wp' catalysi lost 100% during the reaction as indicated by SEM-EDX. Interesting the results show variation in characterization and in their selectivity to different types of fatty acid methyl esters under the same reaction conditions. The 'mp' catalysi showed higher catalytic activity for methy! ester yield of 40% as well as higher selectivity for saturated methyl estersItem Evaluation of Catalytic Activity of Synthesized Sulphated Zirconia for Triglyceride Cracking”(8th European Congress of Chemical Engineering. Berlin, Germany, 2011-09-25) Eterigho, Elizabeth Jumoke; Lee, J. G. M.; Harvey, A. PConventional wet-precipitation method was used to synthesis sulphated zirconia using two different molar ratios of sulphating agents. (1) the first was using a molar ratio of 1: 45 of ZrOCl.8H20 impregnated with 1 M H2SO4 (wp) and (2) a molar ratio of 1: 6 was used for the modified conventional wet-precipitation method, (mwp).. The properties of both catalysts were examined by various techniques: EDX, XPS, FTIR, SEM, XRDP, Py-DRIFTS and BET nitrogen adsorption techniques. The variation in the molar ratio of the sulphating agent used during preparation led to sulphated zirconia that exhibited different properties in terms of specific surface areas, acid sites, thermal stability and surface sulphate. Both catalysts were catalytically active for triglycerides cracking for fatty acid methyl esters in a thermocatalytic reaction. The SZI not only exhibited higher conversion of triglycerides but higher FAMEs yield, approximately 50% after 3 h, as compared to SZ2 (39%). Interestingly, SZ1 was selective towards unsaturated esters whereas SZ2 was towards saturated esters.Item Triglyceride cracking for biofuel production using a directly synthesised sulphated zirconia catalyst(Journal of Bioresource Technology, 2011-02-13) Eterigho, Elizabeth Jumoke; Lee, J. G. M.; Harvey, Philip A.In this study, sulphated zirconia was directly synthesised and compared to the conventional wet method of preparation. The surface areas and pore sizes were 169 m2/g, 0.61 lm (directly synthesized) and 65 m2/g, 0.24 lm (conventional method), respectively. Directly synthesized sulphated zirconia was amorphous, whereas conventionally prepared sulphated zirconia is polycrystalline. Their IR spectra were broadly similar, although the area of the 1250 to 950 cmÿ1 band was larger for directly synthesised sulphated zirconia. Not only were conversions greater for directly synthesised sulphated zirconia (63% vs. 42% after 4 h), but it exhibited significantly greater yield for fatty acid methyl esters. The percentage yield (after 1 h) of methyl esters was 43% for the directly synthesised catalyst and 15% for the conventionally synthesised