INTRODUCTION In west African and other tropical countries cassava tubers are a source of major staple foods. They are also used in the .manufacture of ethyl alcohol and the production of starch used as a binder in tablet making and as an animal feed, and are being proposed for use as an addition to wheat flour for bread making. Corrosion of mild steel machinery, storage facilities, and agricultural implements used in processing cassava roots has been widely reported by the processing industr...
ABSTRACT Modelling is a very important tool for understanding complex problems. A model plays a fundamental role in the analysis, design and development of complex systems, especially when physical testing and experimentation are not feasible - or not possible at all. Modelling technology holds tremendous promise for reducing costs, improving quality, and shortening the time-to-market for manufactured goods. Unfortunately, this technology still remains largely underutilized by industries toda...
Abstract A survey was conducted to assess the impact of water scarcity in Somntongo, in the lowveld region of Swaziland. The study adopted the use of questionnaire, interview schedules and focused group discussions. Information sought included sources of water, distances between water sources and places of residence, and the effect of water scarcity on the various aspects of human activities. The study revealed that only two rivers and five boreholes were the major sources of water while dist...
Abstract Effects of particle size, composite mix and cold water treatment on the compressive strength of Eremospatha macrocarpa–cement composite. Rattan–cement composites were manufactured using different particle sizes (0.60, 0.85 and 1.18 mm) of untreated Eremospatha macrocarpa cane and those treated in cold water using cement–sand ratio of 1:3 and 10% of rattan based on the cement mass. Specimens were tested for compressive strength after 28 days of curing. Increasing the particle si...
ABSTRACT The efficiency of a greenhouse is influenced by the cleanliness of the glazing material through which heat and light penetrate into the enclosure. The common cleaning method for most greenhouses in developing countries is the use of a ladder to climb onto the roof to clean which is labour intensive, time-consuming, imposes severe loads on the roof that could cause failure and is dangerous to the cleaner. Consequently, many greenhouse roofs are rarely cleaned and the accumulated dirt ...
Abstract A charcoal fired reactor for small-scale production of biochar was successfully designed, fabricated and tested. The method of biochar production offered by this equipment was evaluated by comparing its output with a single barrel method of production. The results obtained during the test indicated that the efficiency of the equipment based on its output per kg of Cocoa pod husk was 79.9%. It has the capacity to produce 18.3 kg of Biochar from Cocoa Husk per day using lbag of local ...
Introduction For several years, Quality Function Deployment (QFD) has been at the leading edge of research and development in many fields (Barnett and Raja, 1995; Chiou and Tong, 2001; Han et al., 2001; Pitman et al., 1996; Pramod et al., 2007; Walker, 2002; Wang, 2007). QFD evolved as a way to incorporate knowledge about the needs and desires of end-user customers into all stages of the design, manufacture, delivery and support of products and services (Einspruch, 1996; Griffin and. Hauser, ...
Abstract: Adsorption refrigeration technology has been intensively investigated in many countries of the world because of its promising potential for competing with conventional vapour compression refrigeration, its relatively low operating cost and its environmental friendliness. The search for a good adsorbent for solar powered refrigeration technology has led to various attempts to manufacture activated carbon of high adsorptive property. In this study coconut shells plus 10% animal bones...
Abstract This paper presents experimental and simulation study of the effects of stress on microstructure and failure morphology of low carbon steel under plane stress conditions. The study has revealed large extension of grains at the point of fracture and, stress and strain looped around the pearlitic faces of the microstructure matrix. The stress and strain distributions in the microstructure have shown that concentration of stress and strain on the pearlite were instrumental to oblique f...
Abstract A pressure perturbation technique based on a simple adaptation of the Weirtheim's first order thermodynamic perturbation theory has been developed and used to formulate a generalized equation of state. The practical equation formulated was applied to pure fluids, binary systems and real samples of Niger Delta Petroleum fluids. Tuning of data is not required. The results show more accurate predictions than the commonly used SRK and PR equations This work provides a theoretical framew...
Abstract Reservoir oil viscosity is important in understanding reservoir flow behaviour, l facilities design and sizing and in the computation of recovery performance, well' productivity and lift requirements. Direct viscosity measurements are expensive or sometimes unavailable hence empirical correlations are often used for predictions. However, several published correlations are either too simplistic or complex for routine operational use and improved methods continue to receive attention....
ABSTRACT Bottom-hole pressures in gas and condensate wells are frequently measured at a great cost and with operational challenges. On the other hand, most analytical estimation procedures either use trial and error or neglect liquid holdup in condensate wells. Using the mechanical energy balance approach, an approximate model was developed to estimate bottom-hole pressure from wellhead pressures in condensate wells without neglecting liquid holdup. The results show that treating gas condensa...
ABSTRACT We report the development of a predictive model based on artificial neural network (ANN) for the estimation of flank and nose wear of uncoated carbide inserts during orthogonal turning of NST (Nigerian steel) 37.2. Turning experiments were conducted at different cutting conditions on a M300 Harrison lathe using Sandvic Coromant uncoated carbide inserts with ISO designations SNMA 120406 using full factorial design. Cutting speed (v), feed rate (f), depth of cut (d), spindle power (...
Abstract Computers have made the greatest impact in the advancement and development of almost all aspect of human endeavour, particularly in the engineering field. In this research, effort is geared towads improving the universal design and final manufacturing of commercial cams in many automotive and other related companies around the world. A software package for the design and profile simulation of plate cams with a possible choice of two followers (Roller and Flat-Face) using eight standa...
ABSTRACT Efforts to reduce energy consuniption in domestic buildings and commercial area have been intensified recently in view ofthe limiting ofrhe growing demand for electricity and the efforts to reduce CO2 . Investigations into energy reduction strategies have been extensive with acrive and rigorous researches carried out successfully in many countries of the world. 4 walk-rhrough energy audit was conducted in the School to determine the peak energy demand of the entire School as well as...