Archives

Volume 6 Number 6 June 2020

Assessment of the Coliform Bacterial Load of Some Drinking Water Sources in Dutse Metropolis of Jigawa State Nigeria


Authors: Ibrahim Khalil Abubakar ; Mustapha Mohammed Abubakar ; Muhammad M. Abubakar
Pages: 48-52
DOI: doi.org/10.32861/sr.66.48.52
Abstract
Drinking water samples from 5 sachet water companies, 3 boreholes and 2 taps, collected from different locations of Dutse Metropolis of Jigawa State, Nigeria were analysed for coliform bacterial counts using the Membrane Filtration Technique. All the samples contained some amounts of total coliforms, but mostly within permissible levels.  Thirty three percent (33%) of the samples from borehole, 60% from sachet water and 100% from the taps contained faecal coliforms, which indicates contamination. Cultures of the faecal coliforms obtained were morphologically identified using the gram-staining procedure and some series of biochemical tests were carried out in order to identify the organisms. The identified organisms were Escherichia coli (E. coli), Klebsiella sp. and Citrobacter sp. Presence of coliforms above the regulatory set standards indicates contamination and un-safeness of the water for drinking. Presence of organisms such as E. coli, Klebsiella sp. and Citrobacter sp. necessitates improvement in monitoring and water hygiene practices to improve the quality of drinking water in the study area.

Bio Inspired Self-Curing Composite: A Leap into Augmented Enactment


Authors: Sravan Kumar Khuntia ; Himanshu Bana ; Dr Shantanu Bhowmik
Pages: 41-47
DOI: doi.org/10.32861/sr.66.41.47
Abstract
Relentless progress has been made on composite materials, their manufacturing processes and their structural design in past few decades. Nevertheless, the approval of composite materials in all engineering disciplines is constrained due to its susceptibility to various kinds of defects during manufacturing stage viz porosity, foreign body inclusion, incorrect fiber volume, bonding defect, fiber misalignment, ply misalignment, incorrect curing cycle, wavy fiber, ply cracking, delamination, fiber microstructural defects etc. Hence there was a requirement of techniques to somehow overcome these defects during the service life of composites being used in various structures and equipment. This promising field of research has made great progress over the past several years, but many procedural encounters are still to be overcome, and there exists a great need for focused research to address several areas of concern. On the other hand, nature has materials that have curing potential and repair strategies ensuring their survival. Sustained development in the field will produce new curing chemistries that possess greater stability, faster kinetics. Tailor-made placement of curing agents is dynamic research subject at the cutting edge of self-curing. New bio-imitative curing agents are closely connected to vascular networks. The purpose of this technical paper is to sort the methodology in line with ongoing research efforts in composites. A perspective on current and future self-curing approaches using this biomimetic technique is offered.