Effect of surface treatment of jute fibers on the interfacial adhesion in poly(lactic acid)/jute fiber biocomposites

Jute fibers have immense potential to be used as natural fillers in polymeric matrices to prepare biocomposites. In the present study jute fibers were surface treated using two methods: i) alkali (NaOH) and ii) alkali followed by silane (NaOH+Silane) separately. Effects of surface treatments on jute fibers surface were characterized using fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analyses. Further, the effects of surface treatments on jute fibers properties such as crystallinity index, thermal stability, and tensile properties were analyzed by X-ray diffraction method (XRD), thermo gravimetric analysis (TGA), and single fiber tensile test respectively. The effects of surface treatment of jute fibers on interphase adhesion between of poly(lactic acid) (PLA) and jute fibers were analyzed by performing single fiber pull-out test and was examined in terms of interfacial shear strength (IFSS) and critical fiber length.     

Evaluation of Sustainable Cropping Sequences for Ameliorating Saline-Sodic Soil with Amendments and Water Having Different EC to SAR Ratios

A pot experiment was conducted on saline-sodic soil following sorghum-oat and rice-wheat crop rotations and amending with gypsum (G), farm manure (FM), and mulch (M). Water of different qualities viz. electrical conductivity (EC) 0.6 + sodium adsorption ration (SAR) 6, EC 1.0 + SAR 12 and EC 2.0 + SAR 18 was used for irrigation. The results showed that one pore volume (PV) of brackish water with higher EC and SAR ratio may be used beneficially, if proper amendments are applied. For rice and oat crops, the order of effective amendments was G>FM>M>control (C). With sorghum and wheat, the order was FM>G > M > C. Salt removal from soils was the lowest when leaching fraction (LF) was 0.20 and was the highest when LF was 0.32, i.e. a direct positive relationship. This proposes that irrigation water and the salt accumulated in the profile should be measured after short intervals to avoid reoccurrence of salinity.     

玉米野生近缘属-摩擦禾属的研究和利用

摩擦禾属于禾本科玉蜀黍族摩擦禾属,起源于美洲,与玉米、大刍草具有共同祖先,其在玉米的起源与进化过程中可能扮演着重要角色。摩擦禾是一种多年生暖季型丛生C4禾草,常用于优质饲草料生产、控制土壤侵蚀和生物质能源。其作为玉米的近缘属材料,保存有栽培玉米不具有的优质、抗病、抗寒、耐涝、耐盐和多年生等多种优良基因,是拓展玉米遗传基础的重要种质。本文从摩擦禾属的习性和分布、摩擦禾属的分类、摩擦禾属的种间可杂交性、摩擦禾属与玉蜀黍属杂交性、摩擦禾属的优良特性和摩擦禾基因向玉米转移的途径等方面进行综述,为摩擦禾属的研究和利用提供参考。     

Laboratory purification of fenitrothion

A simple method for laboratory purification of fenitrothion technical concentrates for analytical purposes is described. The method is based on the differential rate of alkaline hydrolysis of fenitrothion, its S-methyl isomer and corresponding oxygen analogue. The volatile impurities are removed by counter-current steam distillation.     

Emergence season of Hypoderma lineatum warbles in southern Punjab, Pakistan

The objective of the present study was to observe the seasonal pattern of the life cycle and the warble stage in bovines of Dera Ghazi Khan and Rajan Pur Districts of Southern‐Punjab, Pakistan. The study was conducted from July 2004 to June 2005. The association was studied between various climatic changes and the fly life cycle. The larvae of warble flies were extracted from the backs of naturally infested animals and identified. The adult fly laid eggs in June, and hatched larvae penetrated the skin and followed intensive internal migration to diaphragm, esophageal wall and subcutaneous connective tissue in the month of July. At the start of August they reached the subcutaneous tissue and emergence began. In both species, the maximum warble emergence was found in mid‐December and the lowest in mid‐March and mid‐August. It was concluded that preventive treatment should be adopted before the month of July to avoid carcass depreciation and decreased leather quality.     

Biosorption of Chromium (III) and Chromium (VI) by Untreated and Pretreated Cassia fistula Biomass from Aqueous Solutions

The present study explained the effect of pretreatments on the biosorption of Cr (III) and Cr (VI) by Cassia fistula biomass from aqueous solutions. For this purpose Cassia fistula biomass was pretreated physically by heating, autoclaving, boiling and chemically with sodium hydroxide, formaldehyde, gluteraldehyde, acetic acid, hydrogen peroxide, commercial laundry detergent, orthophosphoric, sulphuric acid, nitric acid, and hydrochloric acid. The adsorption capacity of biomass for Cr (III) and Cr (VI) was found to be significantly improved by the treatments of gluteraldehyde (95.41 and 96.21 mg/g) and benzene (85.71 and 90.81 mg/g) respectively. The adsorption capacity was found to depend on pH, initial metal concentration, dose, size, kinetics, and temperature. Maximum adsorption of both the Cr (III) and Cr (VI) was observed at pH 5 and 2. When Freundlich and Langmuir isotherms were tested, the latter had a better fit with the experimental data. The kinetic studies showed that the sorption rates could be described better by a second order expression than by a more commonly applied Lagergren equation.     

In vivo anthelmintic activity of Butea monosperma against Trichostrongylid nematodes in sheep

Seeds of Butea monosperma administered as crude powder (CP) at doses of 1, 2 and 3 g/kg to sheep naturally infected with mixed species of gastrointestinal nematodes exhibited a dose and a time-dependent anthelmintic effect. The maximum reduction of 78.4% in eggs per gram of feces (EPG) was recorded on day 10 after treatment with 3 g/kg. Levamisole (7.5 mg/kg), a standard anthelmintic agent, exhibited 99.1% reduction in EPG.     

Direct and indirect anthelmintic effects of condensed tannins in sheep

Anthelmintic activity of condensed tannins (CT) was evaluated both in vitro and in vivo. In vitro tests included egg hatch test and paralysis/mortality assay on adult Haemonchus contortus. In vivo anthelmintic effect was determined by faecal egg count reduction test in lambs. To this end, 18 lambs were divided into three groups (low tannin, high tannin and control). The lambs of low and high tannin groups were fed diets containing 2 and 3% CT while the control group was fed on diets without CT. In vitro trials showed a dose-dependent inhibition of nematode egg hatching; whereas, there was no effect of CT on adult H. contortus. In vivo trials indicated reduction in faecal egg counts in lambs fed diets containing CT. Feed intake and nutrient digestibility of CT-fed sheep was lower and nitrogen balance was higher as compared to control. Maximum weight gain was observed in animals fed diets containing 3% CT. The direct anthelmintic effect of CT, therefore, was evidenced by inhibited egg hatching; whereas, faecal egg counts reduction in sheep was through improved nutrient utilization.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Rhizobium</Emphasis>,<Emphasis Type="Italic"> Bradyrhizobium</Emphasis> and<Emphasis Type="Italic"> Agrobacterium</Emphasis> strains isolated from cultivated legumes

The present study was conducted to isolate and characterize rhizobial strains from root nodules of cultivated legumes, i.e. chickpea, mungbean, pea and siratro. Preliminary characterization of these isolates was done on the basis of plant infectivity test, acetylene reduction assay, C-source utilization, phosphate solubilization, phytohormones and polysaccharide production. The plant infectivity test and acetylene reduction assay showed effective root nodule formation by all the isolates on their respective hosts, except for chickpea isolate Ca-18 that failed to infect its original host. All strains showed homology to a typical Rhizobium strain on the basis of growth pattern, C-source utilization and polysaccharide production. The strain Ca-18 was characterized by its phosphate solubilization and indole acetic acid (IAA) production. The genetic relationship of the six rhizobial strains was carried out by random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) including a reference strain of Bradyrhizobium japonicum TAL-102. Analysis conducted with 60 primers discriminated between the strains of Rhizobium and Bradyrhizobium in two different clusters. One of the primers, OPB-5, yielded a unique RAPD pattern for the six strains and well discriminated the non-nodulating chickpea isolate Ca-18 from all the other nodulating rhizobial strains. Isolate Ca-18 showed the least homology of 15% and 18% with Rhizobium and Bradyrhizobium, respectively, and was probably not a (Brady)rhizobium strain. Partial 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis for MN-S, TAL-102 and Ca-18 strains showed 97% homology between MN-S and TAL-102 strains, supporting the view that they were strains of B. japonicum species. The non-infective isolate Ca-18 was 67% different from the other two strains and probably was an Agrobacterium strain.