Biodiesel can be prepared from various types of vegetable oils or animal fats with the aid of a catalyst.
Calcium oxide (CaO) is one of the prospective heterogeneous catalysts for biodiesel synthesis. Modification
of CaO by impregnation on silica (SiO2) can improve the performance of CaO as catalyst. Egg shells and rice
husks as biomass waste can be used as raw materials for the preparation of the silica modified CaO catalyst.
The present study was directed to synthesize and characterize CaO impregnated SiO2 catalyst from biomass
waste and apply it as catalyst in biodiesel synthesis. The catalyst was synthesized by wet impregnation
method and characterized by x-ray diffraction, x-ray fluorescence, nitrogen adsorption-desorption, and
basicity density. The activity of the catalyst in biodiesel synthesis was assayed at different molar ratios of
palm oil to methanol ranging from 1:6, 1:9, 1:12 and 1:15. The biodiesel composition was determined by gas
chromatography-mass spectroscopy and the properties of the biodiesel were also characterized. The results
showed that the CaO impregnated SiO2 catalyst was successfully synthesized based on confirmation by XRD
and XRF. The catalyst has a surface area, average pore diameter, total pore volume, and basicity density of
19.38 m2
/g, 3.22 nm, 0.0122 cm3
/g, and 3.4 mmol/g, respectively. The catalyst activity assay indicates that
the molar ratio of palm oil to methanol of 1:12 is the optimum condition for biodiesel synthesis. At this
molar ratio, 81.4% biodiesel yield was achieved, and it met the quality standards according to ASTM D
6751.
As major nosocomial pathogens,
In this study, 20
Background: A diverse group of bacteria live in biofilms in the oral cavity. On dental surfaces biofilms form plaque that is potentially involved in caries and periodontal diseases. Periodic studying of plaque microflora and their antimicrobial sensitivity patterns strongly affects the clinical practice in plaque-induced oral diseases. Materials and methods: Dental plaque samples were collected from 22 patients having ages ranged between 33 and 49 years with gingivitis that met the study criteria. Plaque, gingival and gingival bleeding indices (PI, GI, GBI) were measured for each patient. Laboratory procedures included microbiological examination of plaque samples followed by antibiotic sensitivity testing using disc diffusion method were
... Show MoreSalmonellosis in poultry is one of the most significant bacterial infections causing mortality, reduced production, and serious economic losses. This study aimed to study the molecular diversity among Salmonella isolates and investigate the epidemiological spread of these bacteria in broiler and layer chicken flocks in five different farms in Karbala, Iraq, using random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) polymerase chain reaction (PCR). In total, 217 cloac a swabs were collected from the farms, out of which 129 and 88 swabs were taken from broiler and layer chickens. The samples were screened by PCR for S. enterica subsp. enterica using primers specific for the invA gene. Afterward, RAPD-PCR with uniplex or multiplex octamer primers was appli
... Show MoreA total of 13 samples of domestic cat Felis cattus (Linnaeus, 1758 ) and 9 samples of wild cat Felis chaus furax (de Winton, 1898) of the Felidae Family were trapped and examined to detect the hard ticks. The areas of the collection were: Baghdad, Al-Rashidiya, Tharthar, Nahrawan, AL-Mahmoudiya (middle of Iraq) and AL-Haretha (south of Iraq), Mosul (north of Iraq). The results of the current study revealed that four species belong to two genera of hard ticks: Haemaphysalis sp. (Koch, 1844), Rhipicephalus turanicus (Morel, 1969), Rhipicephalus sanguineus (Neumann, 1904) and Rhipicephalus appendiculatus (Santos, 1955). The rates and the density of infestation were discussed. The current study aimed to clarify the infestation differe
... Show MoreBackground: Pumpkin seeds are a valuable source of high-quality protein and can be utilized as functional food ingredients due to their properties, such as solubility, foam formation, and stability. This study aims to produce protein isolate and its enzymatic hydrolysates from local pumpkin seeds to study their properties. Methodology: Preparing defatted pumpkin seeds for protein extraction, followed by the enzymes’ hydrolysis using Trypsin and Pepsin enzymes separately and together in two methods. The determination of amino acids and the degree of hydrolysis was conducted; moreover, protein properties were studied, including solubility, emulsifying activity, stability index, foaming capacity, and stability. Results: A protein sample was
... Show MoreWater is a resource and a crucial aspect of living and surviving. In Iraq, the Tigris River is one of the most critical water sources. The present study aimed to provide an insight analysis of some water quality parameters including the microbial content of drinkable tap water and river water. Ten Water samples (T1- T10) in triplicate were collected from sampling sites -Site I (Tap water) from home water taps, supplied by the Water Filtration Station/ Al Karama Project/ Al-Karkh> 10 from Site II (R1- R10)River water from Tigris River (around or near the Water Filtration Station/ Al Karama Project) every week (from September to half of November 2022), then were immediately placed in sterile bottles and transported to Microbiolo
... Show MoreThe present work reports on the performance of three types of nanofiltration membranes in the removal of highly polluting and toxic lead (Pb2+) and cadmium (Cd2+) from single and binary salt aqueous solutions simulating real wastewaters. The effect of the operating variables (pH (5.5-6.5), types of NF membrane and initial ions concentration (10-250 ppm)) on the separation process and water flux was investigated. It was observed that the rejection efficiency increased with increasing pH of solution and decreasing the initial metal ions concentrations. While the flux decreased with increasing pH of solution and increasing initial metal ions concentrations. The maximum rejection of lead and cadmium ion
... Show MoreA total of sixty raw milk samples were collected from (street vendors and shops) from Baghdad city, Iraq. The samples were inoculated into peptone water and, then, subcultured onto MacConkey agar and Blood agar. Identification of isolates was confirmed by microscopic examination, cultural characteristic, biochemical tests, Vitek (VITEK®2 system), and Biolog GN substrate reactions followed by 16S rRNA and specific genes sequencing. Of 60 raw cow’s milk samples, Providencia spp. were identified only in 4 samples (6.67%) and P. rettgeri was the most common, 2/4 (50%), followed by P. stuartii and P. vermicola, 1/4 (25%). Antimicrobial susceptibility tests were conducted against ten antibiotics by the disc diffusion method. All Provid
... Show MoreConducted the study of the experimental conditions of the interaction of glass the visual Alpmuth containing 15% Mall of zinc with phosphoric acid ????? various degrees of thermal and clip areas prone to interact different way turntable
In this work, the effect of preparing a composite of copper oxide nanoparticles with carbon on some of its optical properties was studied. The composite preparing process was carried out by exploding graphite electrodes in an aqueous suspension of copper oxide. The properties of the plasma which is formed during the explosion were studied using emission spectroscopy in order to determine the most important elements that are present in the media. The electron’s density and their energy, which is the main factor in the composite process, were determined. The particle properties were studied before and after the exploding process. The XRD showed an additional peak in the copper oxides pattern corresponding to the hexagonal graphite struct
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