International Journal of Engineering Technology and Sciences

Thermal and morphological properties of polyhydroxyalkanoate/ nanosilver composite

S. Kandasamy — 2023-06-16

Conventional plastic can lead to endless pollution as it took millions of years to be disposed of, hence an alternative to using biodegradable plastic replacing regular everyday plastic has highly participated. Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) have the characteristics of a biodegradable plastic however, it exhibits low heat distortion temperature. The objective of this research is to investigate the effect of nanosilver additions on the thermal properties of the PHA composite and its morphology behavior. Initially,4 wt/v of PHA was dissolved into 30mL dichloromethane at room temperature. After that, the nanosilver particle was added with 10mL dichloromethane and it was ultrasonicated at 10 minutes. Ultrasonicated nanosilver in dichloromethane mixture was mixed with PHA in dichloromethane for 20 minutes using a magnetic stirrer. Then, thin polymeric films with a thickness of 10 µm were obtained by the solution casting method. The obtained films were then carefully dried at room temperature for 24 hours. These steps were repeated with the addition of 0.25 wt% and 0.5wt% nanosilver suspension in dichloromethane to PHA solution. The thermal properties and morphology analysis of PHA/nanosilver composite will be investigated using thermal gravimetric analysis(TGA) and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM). Based on thermal properties, PHA/0.5wt% nanosilver has shown a lower onset temperature compared to the pure PHA. This indicates that PHA/0.5wt% nanosilver has a slower degradation rate and higher thermal stability. In conclusion, nanosilver has greatly improved PHA properties into promising biodegradable plastics.

Conceptual Risk Assessment Conceptual Risk Assessment for New Township Infrastructure Expansion at Kuantan

O.M. Affendy Omardin — 2023-06-16

This paper intends to contribute about the risk assessment on New Township located at Kuantan. Researchers found that, it has a lot of risk that will occur at that area. Researchers found that it have 5 possible risk like disease, flooding, traffic risk, soil erosion and the improper drainage system. Then, researchers will choose the top 3 major risk to do the risk assessment. So, researchers choose traffic risk, soil erosion and the improper drainage system as our major risk in this project. Lastly, researchers also have implement the solution to solve the risk..

The Implementation of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) for Slope Mapping

M.F. Zolkepli — 2023-06-16

This paper discusses the applications of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) for slope mapping and its important parameters including perimeter, area and volume of certain selected areas at Perumahan Taman Gambang Damai in Kuantan Pahang. This study also focused on determining the potential slope hazard based on slope angle. Modern UAV able to take high quality image which essential for the effectiveness and nature of normal mapping output such as Digital Elevation Model (DEM) and Digital Orthophoto. This photo captured by the UAV will later transfer to Agisoft to generate full map of study area. With the help of Global Mapper, the measurement (perimeter, area and volume) of selected study areas can be determined easily and considered as the main interest in this study. In addition, another outcome of this study is, this modern method of mapping helps researchers and engineers to study the possibility of slope hazard based on their respective slope angle (according to slope classes). In conclusion, modern technology of UAV proves to be very effective for mapping in geotechnical engineering. Slope mapping help researchers and engineers to obtain slope measurement within short period of time compare to previous traditional method.

Exploration of Secondary Deposit to Determine Manganese Ore Body

M.F. Ishak — 2023-06-16

Manganese ore is one of the most critical mineral commodities and irreplaceable in steelmaking. With the high demand for manganese ore, exploration to find manganese ore deposits is essential before large investments in mine development. The purpose of this study is to determine the content of secondary manganese through exploration in Ladang Sungai Terah Gua Musang with an area of 40.5 hectares. The area is located near the Permian -dominated zone which can be observed during plutonic igneous granites in the southwest and in the presence of phyllite, slate and shale with subordinate sandstone and schist. The significant secondary mineral found is manganese oxide or pyrolusite. The exploration method is by excavating the trial pit (TP) and bore hole (BH) drilling. The location of TP and BH are determined from anomalies data and outcrop and boulders presence at site. Results that obtained from the thirteen TP sampling showed that the deepest TPs are excavated at 4.0 meter depth and the shallowest depth was at 3.6 meter depth. The thickest manganese ore was at 0.4 meter for TP 06. The highest-grade manganese was 54.3% at 3.8 meter depth of TP 01 located at north-west from BH1. The BH soil which obtained at 12.0 meter depth with silt clay and the presence of sand gravel. The BH soil was taken and homogenised prior testing in order to get representative result. The XRF analysis shown that the manganese ore was found at 55.90 % and second highest mineral was silica oxide which was 21.74 % followed by aluminium at 14.32 %. The calculation of manganese ore reserves was estimated at 157,545 tonnes of which the lifespan of manganese mining operations was estimated at only 10.375 months. Even the quality was high but it still not reaching the ore body It can be concluded that this area is not economical for commercial production of manganese ore and by pursuing this area will surely contribute to business risks, negatively impacting on potential profitability. Mining revenue calculated from estimated ore reserved in this area is not expected to cover costs such as the exploration working capital, property acquisition costs, mine development costs including development drilling and infrastructure development such as roads, utilities, plant and equipment costs which include mining equipment, mill and processing equipment and building, structure and many more.

Effects of Environmental Waste Plastic Bottle Cover (EWPBC) on Physical and Mechanical Properties of Concrete

John Wasiu — 2023-06-16

The rapid industrialization and urbanization in many countries of the world is leading to great infrastructural development which in turns result to problems like shortage of construction materials and increased productivity of wastes – which has caused environmental issues due to inadequate recycling and disposal facilities. Construction industry is in need of materials which can increase the strength of concrete structures with low cost and less environmental impact. This research is aimed at addressing such issues by investigating the effect of environmental waste plastic bottle cover (EWPBC) on the physical and mechanical properties of concrete. EWPBC samples was collected within the environs and used at different percentage (0%, 12.5%, 25%, 50% and 100%) replacement for coarse aggregate. Physical properties of the materials were investigated and found to be in accordance with relevant specifications. Mechanical properties such as compressive strength and flexural strength tests were also carried out in line with relavant codes of practice. The compressive strenght increases with days of curring and at 12.5% EWPBC, the strength is 4.7% higher than the conventional concrete. The flexural stress is also higher than that of the conventional beam sample at 12.5% EWPBC. The flexural strain is 0.00248-0.0036 and within the specified acceptable limit (0.002-0.0035) for concrete with grade less than or equal to C50/C60. This shows a promising properties at 12.5% EWPBC replacement and also a reduction in cost. It was concluded that EWPBC can be used as substitute for aggregates and also a means of reducing environmental wastes and cost of disposal of such waste.

qPCR Analysis of Quorum Sensing Genes of Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Saiedatul Akmal Mohamed Sedek — 2023-06-16

A well-designed and properly validated primer produces a specific and efficient qPCR assay. The primer’s melting temperature, G-C content, its size, as well as the amplicon’s size are the principal considerations while designing the primer for this study and it was in accordance with the MIQE guidelines. Subsequently, the designed primer was evaluated prior to the analysis to verify its efficiency and precision for the relative quantification of the gene transcription analysis. The validity of a qPCR assay is reliant on three elements; the qPCR efficiency (E) and the R² as well as the slope, that were derived from constructed standard curve. The resulted E for the genes lasI, lasR, rhlI, rhlR and rplS are 92%, 93%, 96%, 92% and 94%, respectively. While the R² and the slope value for these genes are 0.9991 and -3.523 for the lasI, 0.9991 and -3.501 for the lasR, 0.9989 and -3.434 for the rhlI, 0.9999 and -3.535 for the rhlR, and 0.9935 and -3.487 for the rplS. Melt curve analyses carried out post qPCR assay resulted in amplification of a single product. Resulted E, R² and slope for all studied genes fell between the acceptable range, validating the use of designed primer for further analysis in the changes in transcription level of quorum sensing genes in treated Pseudomonas aeruginosa.