March 2015
Review of methods for modelling forest fire risk and hazard
Forest fires (wildfires) have become a major concern for several environmental experts. Assessment of fire effects at local scale is increasingly considered a critical aspect of ecosystem functioning, since fire plays a crucial role in vegetation composition, biodiversity, soil erosion and the hydrological cycle. At global scale, fire is the most generalized means of transforming tropical forest in agricultural areas,...
March 2015
Geospatial approach to spatio-temporal pattern of urban growth in Benin City, Nigeria
This study examines the spatio-temporal pattern of urban growth in Benin City, Nigeria for a period of 26 years (1987-2013) using remote sensing data and geographic information systems techniques. It also analysed the factors driving the observed pattern of growth in the city. The results show that Benin City is growing more towards the north, east and south along the major transportation routes. The land use pattern in...
March 2015
Assessing soil erosion risk in the Tillabery landscape, Niger
To combat desertification, it is indispensable to understand soil erosion processes in the Sahel zone. The objective of this study was to develop a simple model that uses soil texture data from the field and Digital Elevation Model parameters to predict soil texture. This study also assesses soil erosion research in the Sahel region, illustrated by a case study from Tillabéry landscape (Niger). The most sensitive...
March 2015
Modeling Jambo wastewater treatment system to predict water re-use options
The harmful nature of chemicals used in the tannery industries and the disposal of wastes from facilities is well documented. In this study, Jambo tannery which is located in Busia District, (Uganda) with a daily processing capacity of 6.6 tonnes of hides and skin utilises 20 m3 of water to produce 17 m3 of wastewater/day. The generated wastewater is treated on site in the wastewater treatment plant whose performance...
March 2015
Diversity, composition and abundance of macroinvertebrates associated with water hyacinth mats in Lake Victoria, Kenya
This study is set to investigate the macroinvertebrate community structure within water hyacinth in the Kenyan waters of Lake Victoria. This is helpful in determining the relationship between water hyacinth and macroinvertebrates. A total of four replicates were taken from 18 sampling stations within the lake using a Ponar grab and a 500 µm scoop net. The samples were washed through a 300 µm sieve and sorted...
March 2015
Heavy metal content in fish and water from River Niger at Agenebode, Edo State, Nigeria
The concentrations of Lead (Pb), Copper (Cu), Cadmium (Cd) and Zinc (Zn) in fish and water from River Niger at Agenebode, Nigeria were determined by atomic absorption spectrometric technique. The mean concentrations of heavy metals in water ranged from 0.00742 mg/L for Pb to 0.239 mg/L for Zn. The summary statistics for heavy metals in fish showed that the mean concentrations of metals ranged from 0.0291 mg/kg for Pb to...
March 2015
Seasonal variation of meteorological factors on air parameters and the impact of gas flaring on air quality of some cities in Niger Delta (Ibeno and its environs)
The impacts of gas flaring on meteorological factors at Ibeno, Eket, Onna, Esit Eket and Umudike - Nigeria were investigated by measuring air quality parameters. The results show that the mean concentration of air parameters value were below Federal Environmental Protection Agency (FEPA) and United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) National air quality standards with exception of carbon monoxide which...
March 2015
Characterization of clays from Tharaka-Nithi County in Kenya for industrial and agricultural applications
Clay samples from Tharaka-Nithi County in Kenya were characterized by hydrometer, X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF), atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS), TGA, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and powder diffraction (XRD) methods. The F-test and t-test were used to interpret the results. The major oxides present were Al2O3, SiO2 and the minor ones were CaO, TiO2, MnO, Fe2O3, K2O, MgO and Na2O. The values of SiO2...
March 2015
Solid medical waste management in Africa
Increased awareness about inadequate management of solid medical waste (SMW) has led to increased independent surveys in African countries and yet published data remain scanty on the subject in Africa as compared to the rest of the world. To evaluate the overall compliance with World Health Organization (WHO)’s ten recommendations on SMW practices in Africa through a literature review, we conducted literature...
March 2015
Characterization of the solar climate in Malawi using NASA’s surface meteorology and solar energy (SSE) model
This paper presents the characterization of global solar radiation (GSR) for Malawi using NASA’s SSE model. The mean monthly daily GSR monthly variation in the three regions of Malawi has been investigated. It has been found that there is a general gradient in GSR in the north-south direction. This gradient correlates well with the variation of the clearness index in the same direction (r = 0.986). It has been...
March 2015
Geochemistry and hydrogeochemical process of groundwater in the Souf valley of Low Septentrional Sahara, Algeria
Ground water is the only hydrous resource exploited in the Souf valley of Algerian Sahara. Several techniques and conventional graphical plots were used to define the geochemistry of the aquifer. Based on the ionic components, hydrochemical facies, the factors controlling groundwater chemistry are assessed and defined. Ground waters are highly saline (total dissolved solids (TDS being 2361-14780 mg/L) and show high...
March 2015
Adsorption studies of phosphate ions on alginate-calcium carbonate composite beads
Alginate-calcium carbonate composite beads was prepared by the sol-gel method and characterized by Fourier transform infra-red spectroscopy (FT-IR) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) instruments. Adsorption potential of phosphate ions have been studied on laboratory scale. The effects of contact time, adsorbent dosage, initial analyte concentration, pH and agitation speed were optimized at 298.15 K (25°C) in a...
March 2015
Thermodynamic parameters for the adsorption of volatile n-alkane hydrocarbons on water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) root biomass: Effect of organic solvent and mineral acid treatment
The use of lignocellulosic fibres as biosorbents has both environmental and economic benefits. They are biodegradable, safe to use and most importantly renewable and less costly than synthetic fibres. The objectives of the present work were to study the performance of lignocellulosic fibres from water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes), a pervasive fresh water aquatic weed widely distributed in the tropics, as a biosorbent...
Advertisement
Advertisement
