Search

Preface: 6 th International Conference on Green Design and Manufacture 2020 (IConGDM 2020) The 6 th International Conference on Green Design and Manufacture 2020 (IConGDM 2020) is the premier forum for the presentation of new advances and research results in the fields of Engineering Design and Engineering Technology. This conference mainly organized by Green Design and Manufacture (GDM) Research Group, Center of Excellence Geopolymer & Green Technology, Universiti Malaysia Perlis, Malaysia. The conference was successfully organized at Center of Excellence Geopolymer & Green Technology, Universiti Malaysia Perlis, Malaysia on 23 - 24 July 2020. [Extracted from the article]

Platinum nanoparticle electrode modified by iodine monolayer (PtNPs/I) has been designed to simultaneously determination of Pb2+ using square wave voltammetry (SWV), the analyzed the anodic peak current and anodic maximum potential is done. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) demonstrate some fascinating characteristics of the uniform particle distribution, growth and self-assembly of the iodine-modified platinum nanoparticle. The also examined the effect of the concentration of lead and the effect of the scan rate on anodic top parameters. The results show that the anodic current peak increases and that the anodic peak potentials increase in comparison to the clean electrode to a negative value. The have noticed that lead and scan rate increases, anodic peak current increases. As the lead concentration and scan rate increase, the anodic peak potential changes to more positive values. The easily reproducible RSD 5% (n=5) removal peak current for heavy metal ion was shown under ideal conditions. For a pre-concentration time of 120 s, the linear ranges are between 1 to 100µg. L−1. For lead ions, the concentration limit was measured as 0.408 µg. L-1 using the improved analytical process. The transmitter was a lead ion with a 0.215 µA/µM-cm2 range, with a measurement maximum of 0.01 µM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

COVID-19 pandemic emerged as word's major issue. COVID-19 is the greatest test the world has faced since the end of World War II. It comes at the point that none of the countries on earth are ready to face it nevertheless status of the country neither developed nor poor. COVID-19 is a global health crisis killing people and spreading human suffering across region. This outbreak gave significant impact to all sort of sectors including security. There are winners and losers since the 'pandora-virus-box' has opened, the world's focus has changed to securing health and food industry rather than capitalism economic base. The Covid-19 pandemic has the potential to devastate fragile and conflict affected area such as Palestine, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Nigeria, Myanmar, Iraq, Afghanistan and many more. These states facing lots of socio-economy problem and have faltering health systems especially to the refugees. Separatists and freedom fighters halt their movement as they also having very tough-time right now. This paper is qualitative in nature, emphasized the best practice used in minimising security threat by COVID-19 impact, using secondary data from library research. The outcome, understanding the impact and threat of COVID-19 to the world's security was intended to help governments and policy makers to revisit their whole of security related policy and prevent their country from catasthropic made by COVID-19 or any pandemic threat in future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biometric authentication is a recognition of individual according to their unique physiological and behavioural characteristics. Recently, the application of biometric is the most trending in cyber security technology such as fingerprint, facial recognition, and voice recognition. However, these biometrics have their own drawbacks which allow the unauthorized party to cybercrime and the number of cases is also increased. To encounter this kind of problem, the previous researchers proposed brain signal or electroencephalogram (EEG) as biometric trait. EEG is an electrical activity recorded via non-invasive method using electrode placed on the scalps and measured as voltages. EEG is chosen by the researchers as biometric module because EEG hold its own unique characteristics and more robust against the cybercriminals. This paper presents a review of the EEG-based biometric studies and research. The previous research was reviewed based on their signal acquisition, pre-processing, feature extraction and classification. The general knowledge of EEG and the basic operation of biometric authentication also discussed in this paper. The recent studied and research is chosen with various proposed method respect to the better performance rate. In addition, the deep learning in biometric authentication is found to be the popular among the researchers for classification step because more robust and automatically extracted feature within the network. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study presents the results of the 2019 UTM Junior Netball Coaching Program Participant Survey. More precisely, the aim of this survey is to better understand the perceptions and views of junior netballers in SK Taman Kota Kulai, Johor Bahru. To achieve the goals, data was collected through a questionnaire survey conducted with junior netball players and their schools' teacher. The survey questionnaire contained questions on the demographic characteristics of the participants, playing experience and perspectives on the netball coaching program being conducted. This report is divided into three main sections: introduction, data collection and method, results and findings and future works of the research. The results of this study can provide insight into the interest and effect of netball coaching. Introduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of the interactive video based on motion graphic is to spread awareness to the people about the appropriate ways to handle stress. This is because many people face stress in daily life, but they do not know the correct way to manage and handling the stress. An interactive based on motion graphic used as the medium due to easy to understand and able to attract the patient's attention. The model used to develop this product is Alessi and Trollip Model. The model contains 3 phases which are planning, design and development phase. Alpha test is conducted to test the effectiveness of the product and to make sure that the objectives of the project are achieved. The test is conducted by interviewing a multimedia expert, a content expert and 5 users which are students that reside at Kolej Kediaman Tuanku Fauziah (PFi2). The results obtained from conducting this test were positive as the feedback from the users suggests that the information given in this video is relevant and useful thus, help them to manage their stress. In this research, interactive multimedia learning based on motion graphic is effective toward the improvement of people to manage their stress in digital format. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Energy is the main driving force of an economy. Due to which many advancements in renewable energy technology have been witnessed over the decade. However, not all countries have efforts in the same direction and have continued using coal-based technology. These old technologies have a sizable energy wastage in the form of fuel thermal energy (Kinetic Energy). The said wastage can be harnessed by using a specifically designed recovery turbine deployed in the industrial stack. Keeping in mind the same, this research focuses on a mathematical model to develop the best-suited design for the utmost augmentation of the kinetic energy. A Convergent-Divergent nozzle with varying ratios of entry to the throat area (Aent/A*) and exit to the throat area (Ae/A*) were subjected to mathematical formulations. The combinations of Aent/A* and Ae/A* tested were (a)1.489 and 1.256 (b) 1.78 and 1.97 respectively. The results indicate that the combination "b" is a better option owing to the largest velocity augmentation. The maximum velocity at the throat was noted at 3.9 times the inlet velocity, which would result in a larger power output by the turbine positioned there. Post analysis of the Mach number (Ma), it was also concluded that the flow is incompressible, and no shockwaves were seen. The development of such a novel technology would result not only in financial saving for the industries but also reducing the environmental impact due to non-renewable sources of energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work aims to obtain optimum conditions for the preparation of Intsia bijuga based activated carbon (IBAC) for removal of reactive dye namely remazol brilliant violet 5R (RBV5R). The IBAC was synthesize via chemical activation with potassium hydroxide (KOH) as chemical agent and heated using microwave irradiation. Central composite design (CCD) under Response Surface Methodology (RSM) was implemented with three variables to evaluate the effect of power (264-616W), time (4-8 min) and KOH:char ratio (0.5-2) on RBV5R dye percentage removal. Quadratic model was use to interpret the correlation of the parameters towards the response. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) were used to find the significant factor on the experimental design response. After validation, the optimum preparation condition of IBAC were found to be at power of 412 W, time 4.6 min and KOH:char ratio of 0.77. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

: Heavy metals ions are ions which generally occupied most part water sources such river, sea and other water flow channels such as drainage, water pipe. The exist of the ions in drinking water traces have called the attention researchers due to the recent discovery of the ions problem in both human health and aquatic animal such as fish. Fish come and encounter heavy metals ions in the river and ingest it and subsequently this fish eaten by man. The ions will pass to human and attack some human orgains. Finding the reliable solution to detect traces of heavy metals ions in water is a promising approach to eliminate such problems. This research aim is to enhance detection of heavy sensors, for sensor technology industry using the fabricated MTES surface-modified silicon interdigitated electrode to detect arsenic ion in water, The device was fabricated using conventional photolithography process coupled with deep RIE etching. The fabricated devices was modified surface and characterized by Scanning Electron Microscopy, Atomic Force Microscopy and high-power microscopy. The electrical analysis by applying voltage to measure the device response to the surface modification step and subsequently against arsenic ion as it bonded to the device via MPTES, various MTES concentrations distinguished against the bare device and arsenic concentration. Based on current and voltage analysis, concentration-dependent results were obtained, the detection limit for surface modified IDE to the arsenic detection was 20 pM with the linear response behaviour to the concentration, Thus, with this wonderful detection limits, the devices high high-performance characteristic by selectively distinguish arsenic ions against other foreign elements in the water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Industry4WRD readiness assessment (RA) model is one of the Industry 4.0 readiness assessment and maturity models that help manufacturing industry companies to identify gaps and improvement plan to implement the Industry 4.0 concepts. Industry4WRD is also in line with other global implementation initiatives and has the potential to be one of the practical worldwide guidelines and standards for the future of the Industry 4.0 implementation. Since 2015, there are various Industry 4.0 readiness assessment and maturity models were introduced, and Industry4WRD RA model is still a new model released in 2018. This paper discussed the methodology and processes of applying the Industry4WRD RA model to help manufacturing companies identify the current gaps and areas for improvement plan towards Industry 4.0. For implementation purposes, one of the manufacturing small-medium enterprise (SME), was selected to illustrate the methodology and processes for assessing the respective dimensions during a mock-up exercise. The designed rubrics with a description of criteria to facilitate the processes and methods are demonstrated with the computation of the final results, and the Industry 4.0 readiness profile been concluded. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Foamed concrete is a lightweight concrete innovation that utilizes foam materials to be added to concrete mixtures aimed at reducing the concrete's density. This research uses foam percentage of 30%, 40%, 50%, and 60% of the total mixture's volume. The percentage of fly ash substitution by 0%, 10%, 15%, and 20% of the total weight of cement. The purpose of this research is to analyze the effect of foam and fly ash percentage on the properties of foamed concrete. Tests include slump flow, setting time, density, and compressive strength. The maximum value of slump flow test result is on 30V-20FA mixture at 69.50 cm. The result of time setting test shows the fastest initial setting time and final setting time are 275 minutes and 600 minutes on 30V-0FA mixture. Meanwhile, the slowest initial setting time and final setting time are 405 minutes and 790 minutes on 50V-20FA. The lowest density is 901.27 kg/m3 on 60V-20FA mixture meanwhile the highest density value is 1,487.90 kg/m3. The optimum compressive strength value is 8.57 MPa on 30V-10FA mixture with 10% of fly ash percentage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Curing concrete is actually maintaining the moisture content as long as possible in order for concrete to develop its hardening properties during its early stages. However, good curing is rarely to occur and that's due to lack of knowledge by workers at site and shortage of water at the site area. Therefore, to investigate and produce a self-curing concrete that relays on itself in curing without the need of an outer source of water as a curing agent with a similar performance of a normal concrete using external water as a source of curing agent. This paper is investigating the effect of baby diapers as a self-curing agent. The mix design consists of high strength ordinary Portland cement with a grade of 52.5 along with coarse aggregate and washed river sand as a fine aggregate mixed along with silica fume to enhance the strength of concrete side by side with super-plasticizer to improve the workability of concrete, with the addition of baby diapers. Mix proportion has been divided into 4 mix with different proportion of baby diapers acting as the changeable variable while the rest of the components is fixed, the 4 mixes are said to be Control Mix (CM), 1% of baby diapers polymer, 2% of baby diapers polymer, and 3% of baby diapers polymer. In order to have a fair comparison in an equal number of cubes, cylinders, and prisms are molded and distributed equally to be tested under 3 different situations which are curing tank, room temperature, and sun-dry. The results can be concluded that the optimum baby-diapers ratio to be used is 1% and the optimum curing condition is said to be room-temperature as it gave the highest compressive strength and split tensile strength. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pervious concrete is an innovative porous concrete that provides low self-weight. Most pervious concrete is used to decrease runoff and floods. In this research, silica fume was used as a cement substitution material of 10% with water/cement (w/c) ratio of 0.3. There were seven variations of aggregate/cement (a/c): 2.0, 2.5, 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, 4.5, and 5.0. The test methods for aggregate which were slump, porosity, and compressive strength tests had been conducted based on the ASTM C109/C109M (2016) and C127 (2015), while the permeability test was based on the falling head method. The research results showed that the increasing of a/c made the compressive strength and self-weight of pervious concrete decreased, while the permeability and porosity of pervious concrete increased. The maximum of permeability and porosity were 1.61 cm/s and 32.52%, respectively with a/c of 5.0, while the maximum of self-weight and compressive strength were 20.06 kN/m3 and 11.16 MPa, respectively with a/c of 2.0. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Solar vapor generation is emerging as a reliable way to directly transfer solar irradiation to water evaporation. Graphene-based porous photothermal materials are considered as promising absorbers in this system owing to the broadband absorption and excellent photothermal properties. In this paper, a three-dimensional (3D) graphene foam with self-foaming method for solar vapor generation was produced. Abundant porous channels and a hydrophilicity effect are simultaneously achieved by foam formed. The result shows that graphene foam 3.00 wt% at 30 min stirring time can be achieved highest solar water evaporation at 278% compared to foam without GnPs loading at same stirring time. The FESEM detected more porous channels appears at 3.00 wt.% GnPs loading foams. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this study is to develop and evaluate a finite element (FE) model of paediatric mid-thoracic spine. The FE model was developed from a 3D scan of a physical model of human vertebrae for 8-9 years old thoracic spine from T4T8. A geometrical reference from a human CAD model was used as a visual reference to develop a vertebral column. Intervertebral discs, bony endplates and cartilaginous endplates were then added to complete the FE model. The spinal ligaments were modelled as non-linear springs and link elements. The adult scale model of 141% from a paediatric model was used to validate the FE model as information of adult spine was available. The range of motions (ROM) of scaled up FE model were within the range of adult spine hence suggested that the FE model can be used as a guidance to compare with paediatric FE model. Two different boundaries conditions were applied to validate the paediatric FE model. The first condition was to observe the 'geometrical effect' and the second condition was to observe the 'material effect' on the FE model. A pure moment of ±7.5 Nm to represent adult loading was applied for all six DOFs; flexion, extension, lateral bending, and axial rotation to both models under all conditions. The results showed no significant effect for the first condition (geometrical effect) while there is a significant effect for the second condition (material effect) between adult and paediatric FE model. Although, the vertebral body had been simplified, the results showed that it did not significantly affected the ROM, taken into consideration that the FE model developed in this study was with detailed anatomical of a paediatric spine. The range between all 6 DOFs was significantly reduced in this study potentially due to the fact that cortical bone was considered. Hence, suggested that the FE model of paediatric thoracic spine developed in this study can be used for further investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The emergence of dust generated from the process of removal orthopedic cast materials pose a significant potential hazardous to respiratory health among the healthcare workers (HCWs) in the orthopedic casting room. The study was carried out to determine the total dust concentrations in the casting room were exposed to environmental and personnel. The personnel and environmental air sampling were conducted for 6 hours followed the standard method from NIOSH Manual of Analytical Method 0501. Determination of personnel dust exposure were established for selected six HCWs, who are highly risk of dust exposed based on their jobs scope in the casting room. The determination of environmental air sampling was conducted in the casting room for six hours continuously. A set of questionnaires was administered to evaluate the level of knowledge, attitude and practice related to the awareness of occupational safety and health among the 43 HCWs from public hospital in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The result on total dust from the environmental air sampling (casting room) showed mean concentration are 3.402±0.003 mg/m³ and personal air sampling showed the mean concentration are 5.573± 0.040 mg/m³. The mean total concentration obtained were below the standard permissible exposure limit of 15 mg/m³ set by OSHA USA 2005. The result shows the level of knowledge were 96.75%, attitude 83.7% and practical 82.85% among the HCWs. There are significant relationship (p <0.05) level of knowledge with age, job titles and area of workplace. There are significant relationships (p <0.05) level of attitudes with job titles. There are also showed a significant relationship (p <0.05) level of practices with age, job titles and working hour per week. The potential risk of dust exposure to the HCWs in the casting room were manageable because the dust concentration are still low and there are adequate usage of PPE with good functioning exhaust systems in the casting room. Most HCWs have a high level of knowledge, attitude and practical of occupational safety and health. The study showed HCWs in this study are aware of the potential hazard associated with their workplace activities. It is the responsibility of the organization and the HCWs for providing a healthy and safe workplace in accordance with the requirements of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994 (Act 514) and relevant regulations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reported on performance assessment of a field-effect transistor-based biosensor with different widths of the silicon nanowire transducer channel. Silvaco ATLAS device simulation software was used to model the device design with three different channel widths, which are 100, 150, and 200 nm. In this simulation, the bounded target biomolecules during actual detection using the biosensor were represented by several negative interface charge density values applied on the surface of the transducer channel. Increase in accumulation of hole carriers beneath the channel's surface was observed due to the availability of negative interface charges on the surface, hence increased the output drain current. Furthermore, width reduction of the device's channel had allowed more significant change in drain current due to application of different interface charge density values and increased the device's sensitivity. Among the simulated devices, silicon nanowire field-effect transistor-based biosensor with transducer channel width of 100 nm had shown highest sensitivity (-56.45 nA/e−cm2) with lowest interface charge density detection (2.79×1010e/cm-2), which means it enhances the interface charge detection by providing better response and allows lower limit of detection. Therefore, in actual detection, possibility for reaction of the transducer channel to the specific target biomolecule can be increased. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sintering behavior of hydroxide/metakaolin hydroxyapatite alkali-activated material, the resulting volume shrinkage and microstructure analysis are influenced by metakaolin contribution and alkali activator ratio. The alkali-activated material is initially produced by alkaline activation of hydroxyapatite and metakaolin with alkaline activator solution and sintered at from 875°C to 950°C with a dwell time of 2 hours. It has been found that, the optimum volume shrinkage of 41.92% at 900°C sintering temperature for sample activated by 1.0 alkaline activator ratio. As increasing the ratio of alkaline activator ratios up to 1.25, the rough surface with larger pores are obtained on the microstructure surface. The evolution of microstructure on hydroxyapatite/metakaolin alkali-activated material at higher sintering temperatures up to 1250°C, are analyses. Porosity were found as a key role in determining the properties of sintered hydroxyapatite/metakaolin alkali-activated material. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Geopolymer concrete is an innovative construction material that utilized fly ash as one of waste material in coal combustion industry as a replacement for ordinary Portland cement in concrete. However, the plain geopolymer concrete suffers from numerous drawbacks such as brittleness and low durability. This research purpose to increase the brittleness of geopolymer concrete by inclusion hooked steel fiber cured under room temperature, the sample preparation by mixing of fly ash class F, alkaline activator, difference percentage of hooked steel fiber, and lastly by adding fine aggregate (river sand) and coarse aggregate (granite). The result showed the density of steel fiber reinforced geopolymer concrete produced is almost similar to the conventional of steel fiber reinforced OPC concrete. Meanwhile, inclusion of hooked steel fibers significantly enhance the both compressive and flexural strength of geopolymer concrete. The improvement also increase with the addition of hooked steel fibers by volume fraction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nanoporous anodic aluminium oxide (AAO) thin film electrodes were prepared by using a single step anodization method in 0.3 M oxalic acid at 40 V for 1 h. Electrolyte temperature was controlled and maintained at 15 °C by using ice water bath. After anodized, AAO surfaces were etched by using 5% phosphoric acid (H3PO4) solution at 30 °C to remove the AAO top rough surfaces and widening the pores. Effect of different etching duration to the pore widening was investigated at 10, 20 and 30 minutes, respectively. Regularity of the pores arrangements before and after etching were analysed by fast fourier transform (FFT) profile images that were generated from FESEM images. From observation, well ordered nanoporous structures were successfully revealed after top rough surfaces were removed by etching. Pores sizes were also found to be increased with the increasing of etching duration. Further investigations were done by x-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis and fourier transform infra-red spectroscopy (FTIR) to characterize and find out the crystallinity properties and functionalities of AAO thin film electrode surfaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aims to study the morphological properties of fly ash based geopolymer paste as a repair material when applied on ordinary Portland cement (OPC) concrete substrate. The first part of this study investigates the optimal mix design of FA-based geopolymer paste with various NaOH concentrations of 8, 10, 12, and 14 molar in term of morphological analysis, which were used later as a repair material. The second part studies the morphology between the geopolymer repair material and OPC substrate concrete. The results showed that 12M revealed the best where there are no voids, cracks or unreacter fly ash occur on the sample. The results also shows that 12M sample highly irregular with no visible plane fracture surfaces revealed good bonding between geopolymer material and conrete substrate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The waste from construction and demolition works are of large volume and increasing in time. This study was implemented to determine the effect of superplasticizer on the mechanical properties of concrete containing Recycled fine Cement Brick Aggregate (RFCBA). Recycled Fine Cement Brick Aggregate (RFCBA) was produced by crushing such waste cement brick and the particles size of crushed RFCBA was identified. The concrete mixture was formulated by using replacement method where the RFCBA was replaced by percent to the concrete, 0%, 25%, 50%, 75% and 100% without and with 1% superplasticizer with the water cement ratio of 0.5. Two tests were conducted to identify the mechanical properties of concrete names as compressive strength and density. The test results found that the strength properties indicate a good result where 75% replacement of RFCBA with 1% superplasticizer recorded to have the highest strength, higher than control concrete. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main aim of this research project is to develop computer-based modelling of the cell cycle as a cell signaling network. This is done as to obtain analytical results based on computer modelling as opposed to the traditional method by experimental lab works. It is also done as to prove that computer-based modelling could give similar results as proposed by the literature review data. The computer-based modelling is based upon the mathematical models of two types of cell cycles; which are the Goldbeter's minimal cascade model of the mitotic (mitosis) oscillations in fission yeast and Igor Deineko's mitogen dependent G1/S transition in mammalian cell cycle. These two modelling were successfully developed via Simulink® simulation software, a toolbox within MATLAB®. Sensitivities analyses were also done on two main parameters of the fission yeast mitotic cell cycle, which were the constant rate of cyclin synthesis, vi and the maximum rate of cyclin degradation by protease, vd. It was determined that by maintaining one of these parameters and varying the values of the other parameter, it affected the mitotic oscillations for the fission yeast cell cycle. For the sensitivities analyses done, the vi parameter was determined to have a larger effect on the fission yeast mitotic oscillations; as it was the regulator of the mitotic cell cycle (made the progression in the mitotic cell cycle possible). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The demand for coronary artery stents keeps rising every year with a higher quality, lower cost, faster and economical process. Due to its availability relatively low-cost price and adaptability, Polylactic-acid (PLA) has been identified as an ideal material for biodegradable stents. Previously, laser micromachining was widely used for processing coronary stent but this manufacturing process required high investment. Apart from that, this process was unpractical and unfeasible to be machined with certain material and complex design. Alternatively, FDM 3D printing emerges as a system for producing stent and gained attention for its low cost, high reliability, simple operation, flexibility and has shown potential as promising solutions in stents fabrication. Stent length is one of the key aspects in stents manufacturing. In this work, optical microscope is used to measure the stent characterizations while processing parameter optimization was performed by using Response Surface Methodology (RSM). Printing orientation affects the stent length dimensional accuracy. Both XY and ZX are capable to develop PLA stents but XY-orientation is the ideal printing orientation as it provides good dimensional precision for stent characterizations and a lower risk for the structure and geometry to be sagging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The synthetic graphite was produced from oil palm trunk waste at much more lower heating temperature compared to the commercially graphite available in the market, which is produce at the temperature of 2500 °C and above by using inorganic and non-waste sources. However, synthetic graphite being used in this study produced from oil palm trunk waste at the heating temperature of 800 °C, 20 ° per minute heating rate with soaking time 2 hours. The synthetic graphite produce from oil palm trunk waste was less dense than commercial graphite about two times. This synthetic graphite produce from oil palm trunk waste will be further exfoliated to produce graphene oxide through modification of Hummers' method. The modification has been done in terms of amount of chemical being used in exfoliation process. The amount of chemical been used is triple up from the normal amount. The Graphene Oxide obtained was further characterized by using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) and Fourier Transform Infra-Red (FTIR). From XRD analysis, the graphene oxide peak was observed from 10 to 11 degrees at 2Θ for sample of graphene oxide from triple amount of chemical being used. From the study of AFM, the single layer of graphene oxide also presents in the sample of the graphene oxide produce from triple parameters. All of the functional groups present in graphene oxide produced from commercial graphite also present in graphene oxide produced from oil palm trunk waste with triple parameter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carotino is a blend of 80% red palm oil and 20% canola oil. Palm oil is very useful in so many ways and one of the usefulness is that palm oil can be converted into biofuel for engine use. Thus, it is important to know the spray characteristics of the blends of carotino and petroleum diesel as it affects so much during the combustion in engine. The physical properties of carotino and petroleum diesel in terms of surface tension, density, kinematic viscosity and specific gravity are different for every blend. In addition, these properties will affect the spray droplet size and droplet size measurement values. Thus, it is important to determine these values so that accurate and precise spray characteristics could be obtained. The main purpose of this study is to determine the spray characteristics of carotino-diesel blends experimentally. The Carotino oil was blended with petroleum diesel for five different blends which are B5, B10, B15, B20, and B25. For the spray cone angle experiment, digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) camera was used to capture the image of the spray at different pressures which are 8 bar, 10 bar and 12 bar for each blends. The images then been analyzed by using Solid-Work software in order to get the values of the cone angle. The results show that the spray cone angle becomes wider as the pressure increase. In terms of blends, it becomes smaller as the blends were increased from B0 to B10, B15, B20, and B25. As for the droplet size measurement, the values of SMD for each blend were calculated using empirical equations from previous case studies. The results show that as pressure increases, the SMD values become smaller but as the blends increases from B0 to B25, the SMD values increase. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The hydrogen gas evolution from the corroding magnesium (Mg) arises not only from the bare Mg surface but also from the Mg(OH)2 oxide layer as well. In fact, the presence of Mg(OH)2 oxide layer also doubled the rate of hydrogen gas evolution. In this work, a conventional hydrogen gas collection using volumetric method has been applied to observe the effect of sodium chloride (NaCl) on hydrogen evolution of Mg. Cathodic polarization and scanning electron microscopic (SEM) tests had been done in the same solution to confirm the observations. These observations demonstrate that, even though the initial surface of Mg had been fully covered by Mg(OH)2 oxide layer, the abundant hydrogen gas still can be released from the corroded surface. In addition, the double increases of hydrogen evolution rate (HER) during free corrosion in 7.0% NaCl can be seen as compared to distilled water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper seeks to pinpoint the important concept to emphasize social entrepreneurship's role in overcoming extant relations of exploring, identifying and solving an environmental problem. It builds on the premise that social entrepreneurship not only gain a profit but also create a social value to solve an environmental problem. The development of social entrepreneurship initiative and building on theory and practice of social entrepreneurship studies, the paper complement the lack of research work relating the social entrepreneurship phenomenon by proposing a conceptual framework, which encompasses the social entrepreneurship initiatives development process, the contextual aspects and social value. The paper then provides a theoretical framework of social entrepreneurship initiatives development. The theoretical framework of social entrepreneurship and relates to environmental sustainability research. Social innovation by a social entrepreneurship to environmental sustainability, each innovation a different take on what might comprise the environmental problem or oppressive potential of social entrepreneurship. As the innovation aspect of social entrepreneurship has attracted increasing attention among social entrepreneurship researchers, the paper formulates a tentative framework for furthering views on the environmental sustainability aspects of social entrepreneurship as a positive phenomenon in attention research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hybridization of filler in polymer composites is one technique of combining different properties of filler for making unique composites. Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) can be used as filler to enhance the mechanical properties of polymer composites. However, CNTs are difficult to disperse in a polymer matrix. The hybridization of CNTs and inorganic fillers can combine their properties and improve the dispersion in polymer composites. This research was focused on the fabrication and characterization of CNTs-dolomite filled with epoxy composites. The CNTs-dolomite hybrid fillers were prepared by physically mixing method and Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) method. The CNTs-dolomite hybrid compound filled epoxy composites with different filler loading were characterized by tensile test, Rockwell hardness test and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The Epoxy/CVD composites showed higher mechanical properties than the Epoxy/PHY composites. This increase was associated with the homogenous dispersion of CNTs-dolomite hybrid compound as observed using SEM. It was demonstrated that the Epoxy/5CVD composites are capable of increasing tensile strength by up to 67 %, and tensile modulus of 28 %, when compared to a pure epoxy composite. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Natural fibre composite (NFC) displays a rapid development in the study and innovation sector due to the increasing benefits of the material compared to other types of fibre such as synthetic fibre composites, which includes low price and low environmental impacts. These composites can be explored through various variables and can be tested through various factors such as fibre interfacial adhesion, fibre orientation and fibre strength. However, this thesis focuses only on the testing on the vertical (90°) and horizontal (0°) of fibre orientation as it is still not well investigated, yet. The main objective of this research is to investigate the performance of mechanical properties of kenaf fibre reinforced epoxy resins for 90° and 0° of fibre orientation and analyse the effect of changing the orientation on the material. For the fabrication of the material, manual preparation method has been used and several mechanical testing has been and alkali treatment of kenaf fibre prior fabrication process. For hardness test, the 90° of fibre orientation produced 31.6% higher of hardness strength than 0° of fibre orientation while for impact test, 90° of fibre orientation resulted 39.5% greater of impact energy than 0° of fibre orientation. 6% of kenaf fibre composition with 90° of fibre orientation generated the highest stress to breaks while 2% of kenaf fibre composition with 0° of fibre orientation has the lowest stress to fracture. By conducting the SEM tests, it can be seen clearly that 6% of kenaf fibre composition with 90° of fibre orientation has the smallest gap between the fibres and 2% of kenaf fibre composition with 0° of fibre orientation has the largest gap between fibres. Thus, the performance of mechanical of vertical (90°) of fibre orientation produced better performance in mechanical testing compared to horizontal (0°) of fibre orientation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The utilization of calcined clays as pozzolanic materials are in demand by many industries as valuable mineral resource mainly in cement industry including geopolymer concrete. This is due to the content of the SiO2 and Al2SiO3 that are very similar to the Portland Cement. Studies on the pozzolanic properties of concrete incorporation with representative samples of the calcined clays would contribute to the sustainability of concrete production. Not only that, the determination of the specification of acceptance criteria for raw clays and calcined products are also need to be taken into account. This paper presents some research finding about pozzolanic properties of calcined clays (metakaolin, illite, montmorillonite) with focus on the effect of calcination temperature on clay, its compressive strength and the geopolymer concrete itself. Metakaolin is a pozzolanic material and can be obtained by the calcination of kaolinitic clay. It is being used very commonly as pozzolanic material in mortar and concrete, and has exhibited considerable influence in enhancing the mechanical and chemical properties of mortar and concrete. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The performance of solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) is significantly affected by the properties of its components which are electrolyte, electrodes (cathode and anode) and interconnect. Among the components, cathode is considered as the most critical component as high cathode polarization resistance (Rp) contributes to a major loss in SOFC performance. Thus, developing of good materials as cathode has been attempted to cater the problem. The development of cathode materials for SOFCs started with pure electronic conductor. This type of cathode materials provides limited electrochemical reaction sites, resulting in high Rp. Next, mixed ionic-electronic conductor (MIEC) cathode materials have been developed and followed by composite cathode materials. Both types of cathode materials are better than pure electronic conductor as they provide larger electrochemical reaction sites. However, some of them still resulting in high Rp especially at operating temperatures ranging from 400 °C to 800 °C. Then, the current researches are devoted to develop triple-conducting (H+/O2-/e-) oxide (TCO) cathode materials. This type of cathode materials is particularly useful for proton-conducting SOFC application. Therefore, this paper aims to provide a short review on the properties and performance of the TCO cathode materials along with the factors influencing its properties and performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human needs or 'Voice of Customer' (VoC) and its respective requirements would have to be taken into consideration in order to develop usable products. By employing the QFD (Quality Function Deployment) method, the VoC are systematically matched with the product characteristics and it would be able to improve the quality of the product. This paper discusses the use of QFD method in order to develop a system known as the Energy Efficiency Estimation System (EEES). EEES is a system that is used to estimate the energy consumption for consumers who lived in the residential buildings. It can help consumers to estimate their energy consumption, and in the process helping them to manage and ultimately in reducing their energy consumption. The QFD method is used to translate customers need in EEES into product characteristics. The QFD analysis of the EEES development had revealed that Minimum Energy Performance Standards (MEPS), measuring equipment, type of housing, guideline and training were among the highest degree of importance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) was first detected in December 2019 in Wuhan, China and despite drastic measures by the Chinese authority in enforcing a "lockdown" in Wuhan, the virus had since spread to a growing number of countries worldwide - including Malaysia. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak of COVID-19 a pandemic on 11 March 2020. The Malaysian Government announced the restricted activities order known as the Movement Control Order (MCO) nationwide under the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases Act 1988 (Amendment) Regulation 2020 from 18 March 2020 to 31 March 2020. With the pandemic still spreading at an alarming rate, hospitals and healthcare workers were overburdened to cope with the sudden influx of large numbers of COVID-19 patients. It was reported that the healthcare workers were ill-equipped with personal protective equipment (PPE) and ventilators to treat the COVIC-19 patients, thus exposing and putting them at risk of infection or losing their lives. The purpose of this study is to provide an insight into the current situation of the ERP for Healthcare Workers. Fortifying a framework for addressing the six stages of ERP will prepare and protect the healthcare workers in performing their duties systematically and address issues and concerns faced by the healthcare workers on the lack of PPE and medical support for COVID-19 treatment. As there is a lack of studies on the improvement of ERP for hospitals, this proposed framework can lead to further research on strengthening the existing ERP for healthcare workers in public hospitals to counter future influenza outbreaks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Malaysia produces 0.5 tons of palm biodiesel per month, which has great potential to be transformed into valuable fuels for electricity generation by using a micro gas turbine (MGT). The MGT is an alternative power generation unit that is capable to generate the electricity in the range of 10 to above 50 Kilowatt. This unit comprises of automobile turbocharger with a combustion chamber connected in axial between its compressor and turbine. The MGT is able to achieve a maximum approximate temperature value, to 520 517.4°C by using diesel fuel. Next by using B20 Palm Methyl Ester (PME) a maximum approximate temperature is 500499.8°C, B15 Coconut Methyl Ester (CME) at 485.6°C and B30 Jatropha Methyl Ester (JME) at 439.7°C. The reduction percentage of biodiesel temperature at a maximum level compared to diesel was 11.4% for B30 JME, 6.1 % for B15 CME and 3.4 % for B20 PME. Significant aspect here, the knowledge about this reduction rate is established that can be help be help as a new technology in a future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Merbau sawdust derived activated carbon (MAC) was prepared via microwave-assisted chemical activation of potassium hydroxide (KOH) for removal of methylene blue (MB) dyes from an aqueous solution. The influence of operating preparation variables such as radiation power (x1 = 264-616 Watts), radiation time (x2=4-8 minutes), and impregnation ratio (x3=0.5-2.0) on MB removal and MAC yield were optimized using central composite design (CCD) under response surface methodology (RSM). The adequacy of the statistical model between the relationship of the significant factors and responses were successfully indicate (p<0.05) by using analysis of variance (ANOVA), where radiation power and impregnation ratio had significant effects for both responses. The findings exhibit a maximum MB removal of 95.58% with MAC yield of 31.8% at optimum preparation variables: radiation power of 460 Watts, radiation time of 4.0 minutes, and impregnation ratio of 0.94. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Safety device on truck and bus has been developed by many researchers due to it was very urgently needed to improve the vehicle safety and reduce the accident rate. However, the perception analysis was not fully explored in terms of safety device effectiveness. Therefore, this research aims to investigate the community, driver and employer satisfaction after Speed Limiter Integrated Fatigue Analyzer (SLIFA) installed on truck and bus. This research was conducted in two truck and bus companies which are PT Pertamina and PT Pahala Kencana. This research was conducted in Jakarta Province, Indonesia with total of respondent of 60 respondents. All data that compiled from the respondents was analyzed by Statistical Package for the Social Science (SPSS). The result shows that the respondents were consists of 50 male and 10 female that separated by community, driver and employer. All variables were valid and reliable due to correlation value was in range of 0.705 – 0.847, P-value was.000 and reliability data in range of 0.905 – 0.953. It can be concluded that all the formulated question was valid and reliable for this research. In Addition, all variables obtain the t-value of 3.519 – 7.990 with the P value lower than 0.05 which mean that all variable has a significant effect on community, driver and employer satisfaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bio-kerosene combustion implicates harmful effect to the environment because of the emissions produced. The release of gaseous emissions such as oxides of nitrogen (NOX), and carbon monoxide (CO) into the atmosphere creates major environmental problems. These gaseous emissions affect plants, human being and animals. High concentration of emissions brings fatal effects to life form. This research aims to evaluate the combustion performance using Bio-kerosene blends in high swirling flow. A Bio-kerosene fuel burner system with different flat vane radial air swirler with 280 mm inside diameter combustor of 1000 mm length has been investigated. All tests were conducted using various Bio-kerosene blends (commercial diesel-palm oil with ratio of B5-B20) as fuel. A radial flow air swirler with curve blades having 75 mm outlet diameter was inserted at the inlet plane of the combustor to produce swirling flow. Fuel was injected at the back plate of the swirler outlet using central fuel injector with single fuel nozzle pointing axially outwards. The swirler vane angles and equivalence ratios were varied. Tests were carried out using two different air swirlers having swirl number of 0.978 and 1.427 vane angles. The results show that NOX emissions were reduce about 5% at all blends of Bio-kerosene at swirl number 1.427 compared to swirl number 0.978. CO emissions were also reduced by 10% at all blends of Bio-kerosene at swirl number 1.427 compared to swirl number 0.978 at same equivalence ratio respectively. Further investigation could be done using higher blending of Bio-kerosene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Utilization of concrete in construction industry has increased in last decades. Although, concrete has a lot of advantages, it is important to consider its negative impacts on environment. One of that negative impacts is depletion of natural resources. To protect environment and make concrete industry sustainable it is needed to find alternative materials, which can be used in the concrete mixture. Agricultural sector has many wastes which would be proper alternatives in manufacturing sustainable concrete. This study presents experimental test results of a green concrete was made of coconut shell as an alternative for normal coarse aggregate in concrete mixtures for developing a sustainable lightweight aggregate concrete. From several trial mixes using coconut shell lightweight aggregates, it was possible to develop mix proportions for a structural lightweight aggregate concrete with good workability and a 28-dayay compressive strength of 38 MPa and density of 1986 kg/m. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transformation from traditional mass and batch manufacturing into lean manufacturing has helped many organisations to become more successful in their business. However, there are facts and figures that show most manufacturing organisations have failed to sustain this success in the long run. One of the reason is, the lack of effective measurement criteria to assess their progress in lean transformation. The purpose of this article was to develop a valid assessment tool that measures manufacturing organisations' lean transformation sustainability level. An assessment tool in the form of survey questionnaire was developed and tested for content validity using a panel of ten experts. An item content validity index was calculated for each indicator measuring lean transformation sustainability. Items with content validity indexes greater than 0.80 were retained and item with lower content validity index were discarded. The assessment tool has evidence of content validity and will need further test using statistical techniques to determine construct validity and reliability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the comparison between natural frequencies of pure granite and bonded granite-concrete. A granite is formed by natural processes and is naturally containing solid mass of minerals matter. On the other hand, concrete is not naturally formed but is a man-made material containing a mixture of natural granite, water, cement and other aggregates. In this research, the simulation setup and experimental procedure have been carried out for the purpose of finding the natural frequencies for both samples. For the simulation, a 3D shape of the sample has been modelled using SolidWork software based on the real sample before imported into ANSYS software for modal and harmonic response analyses. Whilst, for experimental, the geometry model of the real sample has been constructed in LMS Test Lab software and a rig to mount the sample has been developed before the Experimental Modal Analysis (EMA) is conducted. From the results, the natural frequency for the simulation in ANSYS software is determined at 7200 Hz, while for experimental, the natural frequency is at 7399.14 Hz. The percentage error between experiment and simulation is only 2.691 %, thus, it can be considered acceptable and the bonded granite-concrete can be used for the construction of the physical model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anodic aluminium oxide (AAO) thin film electrodes were synthesized by using a single step anodizing method in 15 °C of 0.3 M oxalic acid at five different anodizing voltage ranging from 20 V to 60 V, respectively. The effect of anodizing voltage to the AAO dimensional properties were about to be investigated. Morphological observations were all done by FESEM where the measurements and calculation were made by using ImageJ and formulas. To ensure that the pore sizes were totally depended on the anodizing voltage, etching process were done at constant duration for all samples. The correlation between all AAO dimensional properties like pores size, interpore distance, wall thickness, pore density, percentage of porosity and nanoporous oxide thickness were presented in a linear graph. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The type of fuel atomizer chosen for this study is the pressure swirl atomizer. This type of atomizer can create a swirling motion imparted to the fuel, leading it under the action of centrifugal force and spreading the fuel in hollow cone after the fuel leaves the orifice. The reason for choosing this type of injector is because it was widely used in gas turbine and liquid propellant rocket. The fuel to be tested is the blends of palm kernel biokerosene and Jet A1 meet some specifications selected for study of the ASTM D1655 standard. The injector was simulated using CFD simulation software, Fluent to predict the behavior of an evaporating fuel spray and also the angle of spray. The Sauter Mean Diameter (SMD) and the spray cone angle are evaluated and compared with the empirical equation result. Besides that the SMD also measured with a laser scattering system to compare with the theoretically method result. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The combustion of the internal combustion engine results in high heat and pressure produce as exhaust gas. The high-temperature exhaust gas will transfer the heat to surrounding via convection, conduction, and radiation. In the combustion chamber, the exhaust valve and its seat will reach high temperatures due to hot gases exit through the engine exhaust port. This high temperature must be reduced to avoid damaging the engine. In this project, the existing material of the valve seat is tested using computational fluid dynamics simulation for heat analysis. Simulation of transient thermal is conducted to study the detailed behavior of heat transfer of the valve and valve seat in the engine. Four copper-based material of the valve seat is selected which is beryllium copper, chromium copper, brass, bronze are simulated. In the simulation, the brass valve seat has the highest heat absorbance rate which averagely 30% higher than cast iron valve seat in terms of temperature differences. Most of the copper-based valve seat can absorb averagely 10% to 30% more heat than cast iron valve seat depends on the material's thermal conductivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Welding process is known as one of the well-known of hazard-expose operations in manufacturing. In every welding method or process, safety is the most important element that need to take care. Safety and health in employment is an area which aims to protect the safety and health of people who are working. This case study is about the welder that killed while his colleagues injured his left hand due to diesel tank explosion during welding. In this accident, the victims were welding on the diesel tank before the tank suddenly explode. Thus, this paper highlight report on hazard identification, and risk control applied in the accident. The aim of this case study is to investigate the work-related accident at welding workshop and the hazards working there. This case study had been conducted by using 3 method which is fishbone diagram, HIRARC table and Pareto chart way of a walk-through observation and the identified risk images were taken. From the experiment result, there are 5 hazards that can be related which is the hazard identification are exposure to fumes and gases, heat, fire and burns, Electric Shock, Bright Light and Noise. In conclusion, the highlight of the hazards and risk tend to make a corrective action on minimizing or eliminating the risk of injuries and to ensure a safe workplace [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an experimental investigation of deep hole drilling using CNC milling machine. This experiment investigates the effect of machining parameters which are spindle speed, feed rate and depth of hole using minimum quantity lubricant on the roundness error. The experiment was designed using design of experiment (DoE) with two level full factorial and four center point. The regression analysis with two factor interaction model is applied for modelling process. Finally, the machining parameters are optimized using moth-flame optimization (MFO) in obtaining the minimum value of roundness error. The minimum value of roundness error for deep hole drilling is 0.0190 mm at the spindle speed is 700 rpm, feed rate is 50 mm/min, depth of hole is 650 mm and minimum quantity lubricant is 40ml/hr. The findings show that the moth-flame optimization (MFO) algorithm manage to estimate the roundness error in deep hole drilling as proven through the analysis and validation process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research analyses the circumstances of hazards from factory activities which evaluate the causes and effects of three main hazards occured in a pipe manufacturing company in Malaysia. Methods of analysis include Ishikawa diagram (Cause to effect diagram), HIRARC analysis summary and Pareto chart as well as solution (prevention) on those hazardous activity included in result and discussion section. Result of the data analysed show that 20% of activity will cause 80% problem inside the factory. In particular, among the activities which cause risk that need to be focused on for improvement are insertion of material, inspecting a cutter product and material transportation is the activity. The report finds that prioritization in safety and healthy workplace for all workers are doable by considering the environment and job scope allocated to further access the situation of hazards that likely to occur. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Musical training has recently gained additional interest in education as increasing neuroscientific research demonstrates its positive effects on brain development. Neuroimaging revealed plastic changes in the brains of adult musicians but it is still unclear to what extent they are the product of intensive music training rather than of other factors, such as preexisting biological markers of musicality. Psychological and neuroscientific research demonstrates that musical training in children is associated with heightening of sound sensitivity as well as enhancement in verbal abilities and general reasoning skills. Studies in the domain of auditory cognitive neuroscience have begun revealing the functional and structural brain plasticity underlying these effects. Furthermore, music is also known to have a powerful emotional impact. Neuroimaging studies have shown that musically induced emotions involve very similar brain regions that are also implicated in non-musical basic emotions. Listening to music requires certain perceptual abilities, including pitch discrimination, auditory memory, and selective attention in order to perceive the temporal and harmonic structure of the music as well as its affective components and engages a distributed network of brain structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Construction of building exposes the workers to the hazards of working at height. Although safety measures have been enforced and taken by the workers, the case about accidents from such workplace are still being reported. In the last 20 years, there have been significant reductions in the number and rate of injury. Nevertheless, construction continues to be one of the high-risk sectors in the world. This research attempted to assess the real case of falling from heights that had happened in Malaysia. The purpose of this case study is to make an evaluation of workplace hazard and safety through a HIRARC analysis. Case 1 was about a worker who fall from formworks structure and pronounced dead at the scene. Case 2 involved another worker who fall through roof opening dead on the same day as sent to hospital. The data was evaluated in form of Hazard Identification, Risk Assessment and Risk Control, Cause and Effect analysis, and Pareto analysis. Failure to manage and apply consistent safe work practise shall result to accidents which could give impact the country's economic development. Experience does not seem to diminish accident occurrence; hazards are often misjudged by workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]