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- ItemFABRICATION OF SHOE SOLE USING NATURAL RUBBER REINFORCED WITH PYROLYSED WASTE TYRE RESIDUE(2025-04)This study investigates the development of shoe sole composed of natural rubber (NR) reinforced with pyrolysed waste tire residue (PWTR). Ten samples of NR reinforced with PWTR were prepared using a two-roll mill at 65°C, with PWTR filler loadings ranging from 10 to 150 parts per hundred rubber (phr). The physicochemical properties of PWTR, including pH (6.3), moisture content (2.1%), and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectroscopy, were analyzed, revealing significant silicon oxide (40.054%), aluminium oxide (13.351%), and iron (III) oxide (7.1753%) content. Vulcanisation was performed at 130°C and 2.5 MPa for 30 minutes. Mechanical tests assessed tensile strength, modulus, elongation, hardness, wear rate, and coefficient of friction, while adhesive bond strength was evaluated using polyurethane and neoprene adhesives. Results indicated that 20 phr PWTR loading yielded optimal mechanical properties, with a tensile strength of 10.696 MPa and modulus of 872.0 MPa. Hardness increased with filler content, whereas elongation decreased. Wear rate rose from 0.12 mm³/N•m (20 phr) to 0.81 mm³/N•m (80 phr). The presence of silicon and aluminium oxides enhanced filler-rubber interaction, improving dispersion and durability. Beyond 20 phr, agglomeration reduced performance. The coefficient of friction initially increased with PWTR due to surface roughness but declined at higher loadings due to reduced contact area. Neoprene adhesive exhibited superior bonding strength (0.833 MPa) compared to polyurethane (0.5 MPa). The study concludes that 20 phr PWTR loading is optimal for shoe sole production, offering a sustainable approach to waste tyre valorisation. This research contributes to circular economy principles by transforming waste into high-value products, promoting environmental sustainability and efficient resource utilisation.
- ItemIMPROVING THE CAPACITY OF COSMO-SAC IN PREDICTING THE ACTIVITY COEFFICIENT OF IONIC LIQUIDS AT INFINITE DILUTION(2023-05)A new approach for improving the accuracy of infinite dilution activity coefficient (IDAC) of organic solutes in ionic liquids using COSMO-SAC was investigated in this research. The accuracy of Infinite Dilution Activity Coefficient of solutes in ionic liquids determined by the original COSMO-SAC model has been improved by modifying the model and fitting the adjustable parameters with experimental data from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). To carry out the fitting, sigma profile of ionic liquid cations and anions were first created using Dmol3 module in 2017 Accelrys Materials Studio and Sigma Averaging program. The sigma profile of the solutes was obtained from the VT-Database. The exchange energy expression was modified by including segment interaction parameters C1 and C2 to account for the charges on cations and anions, as well as the non-electrostatic contribution Cne to ascertain its effect on the systems. The standard segment surface area, aeff, standard surface area in Staverman– Guggenheim equation, q, standard volume in Staverman–Guggenheim equation, r, segment interaction parameters C1 and C2, and the non-electrostatic contribution, Cne, were fitted to 414 experimental data points using least square curve fitting program in Matlab. The data points were composed of 38 solutes, 10 cations and 11 anions in a temperature range from 288.15 to 395. 95K. The optimal values for the parameters aeff, q, and r in the modified model from this work are 7.649 Å2, 236.61Å2 and 3.111 Å3, respectively. Values for the hydrogen bond interaction coefficient CHB and hydrogen bonding interaction cutoff charge σHB still remain 85580 and 8.4 × 10-3 respectively, as in the original model. The parameters C1, C2 and Cne introduced to the model have been determined to be 3.415 × 10-14, 1.278 and 5.06 × 10-2, respectively. The calculated results agree with the experimental data within the Average Relative Deviation (ARD) deviation of 20.71%. The model from this work performs best for solutes with low polarity. Among the solutes used in this work, the model performed best for Alkynes, with ARD of 5.91%, while the poorest result was recorded for Water with ARD of 98.75%. The ARD of IDAC from 29 data points which were not included in the parameter optimization was computed using the modified model to be 18.07%. In terms of Henry’s law constant calculation for CO2 in ionic liquids, the ARD of COSMO-SAC model from this work is 24.2% for 17 data points, as against that from COSMO-SAC 2010 which is 21.5%. Henry’s law constant for CO2 in 1-butyl-3-methyl-imidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)-amide [BMIM][TF2N] and in 1-ethyl- 3-methyl-imidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)-amide [EMIM][TF2N] was also in good agreement with the experimental values at temperatures below the critical temperature of CO2. The IDAC of benzene in ionic liquid of the type 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium bis[(trifluoromethyl)sulfonyl]imide at 313.15K varied with chain length of the alkyl group as follows: IDACmethyl > IDACethyl > IDACbutyl > IDAChexyl while the IDAC of benzene in 1-ethyl-3- methylimidazolium-anion at 323.15K and 333.15K varied with anion size as follows: IDAC of Benzene: IDACTF2N > IDACEtSO4 > IDACMeSO3
- ItemDEVELOPMENT OF A FOUR-ROW TRACTOR MOUNTED SOYBEAN PLANTER(2023-05)The traditional method of planting soybean in Nigeria does not result in obtaining maximum yield of the crop per unit area. This is due to either incorrect number of plants per stand, interrow spacing or intra-row spacing. This research work is embarked upon to develop a four-row tractor mounted precision soybean planter in order to address these challenges.The planter was designed, fabricated (in the months of June, July, and August, 2021) and evaluated in theDepartment of Agricultural and Bio-Resources Engineering, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria Nigeria, during 2021 raining season. The planter has functional unitsoffour hoppers, four seed metering units, four press wheel, four delivery chutes, four furrow openers, and four soil covering devices. The individual planting units werearranged on the main frame at inter-row spacingof 50 cm as recommended by the agronomic practices of planting soybeans.The developed planter was evaluated both laboratory and on the field in terms of planting speed, seedling emergence, intra-row spacing, seed delivery rate, number of seeds per hole and percentage seed damage. The laboratory calibration test of the planter shows that it can deliver one (1) single seed per hole of soybeans (TGX 1951-3F) variety and 1.4% seed damage. The developed planter was mounted at the three-point linkage of the tractor (EICHER, Model: 5660, 50 hp) rear end; soybean seeds was poured in to the hopper. The tractor was set to 7 km/h, 10 km/h and 15 km/h and at 2 cm and 4 cm depth of planting and operated. A tractor forward speed of 15 km/h at 2 cm depth of planting produced the best combination in terms of seed emergence. The intra-row spacing averages 5.7 cm, and 50 cm inter-row spacing with an estimation of 400,000 plants per hectare. The results obtained from the field showed that the seed delivery rate was 48.2kg/ha, effective field capacity of 1.14 ha/hand field efficiency of 76.6%. These results indicate that the developed planter could plant 1 seed of soybean variety (TGX 1951-3F) per hole, efficient, affordable for optimum soybean plant population per hectare
- ItemASSESSMENT OF WATER AVAILABILITY UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF CLIMATE VARIABILITY IN GORONYO RESERVOIR, SOKOTO STATE, NIGERIA(2021-11)Climatic parameters are exposed to variation due to the atmospheric concentration of greenhouse gases.Hence, it is essential to assess the water availability and demand under the climate variation in Goronyo Reservoir, Sokoto State Nigeria. since the supply of water is one of the significant tasks in water resources management. In this study, estimation of available water, demand, and unmet demand was simulated using Water Evaluation and Planning (WEAP) Software with the opinion of assessing the availability of water for its uses under climate change, TheReservoir is situated in Goronyo Local Government Area, Sokoto State, Northwest Nigeria. The study uses Water Evaluation and Planning (WEAP model) softwareto assess the influences of climate variability on the water availability of the area. This model allows simulation and analysis of various scenarios and water allocations. The water availability, Demand, Supplies, and Unmet were modeled with climatic data and water use rate. The model was satisfactorily calibrated and validated. Simulations were proposed for various climatic situations considering global climate change model (GCM) predictions and the linear trend of the data. Nine (9) selected climate change scenarios of temperature increases (i.e. 0, +0.4, +0.8, +1.2 oC) combined with an increase or decrease in rainfall (0, -10%, +10%) were applied for the study area in the WEAP model software for simulation. The model was used to analyze the linkage between water availability and demand for domestic and irrigation uses. This was projected to the future to analyze what would happen in years to come up to 2070. The demand and unmet were obtained as the output of the model. Results showed that the mean average volume of 737.9 million cubic meters (MCM), the maximum average volume of 824.3 MCM mainly in the wet period ranges from May – October, and the minimum mean average volume of 546.6 MCM mostly in a dried month i.e. April available in the reservoir. The annual total demand for various uses from 2018 to 2070 was obtained to be 7069.4 MCMand the annual average of 133.4 MCM. Meanwhile, the unmet demand was with annual total ranges from 1157.5 MCM to 1199.7 MCM and an annual average of 21.84 MCM to 22.64 MCM. The highest unmet was recorded under Scenario 9 with a 1.2 oC increase in temperature and a10% decrease in precipitation. In Conclusion, it was found that the demand in the area is 6 times higher in years to come i.e. 50 years from now and the deficit is 61% increased.It is recommended that the irrigation system (furrow irrigation system)should be improved to minimized water demand and also extraction from other means such as groundwater could relieve the stress on the available source, the reused of wastewater for other domestic uses such as the washing of lawn and watering of gardening will also help a lot in utilizing limited available resources.
- ItemDEVELOPMENT AND PERFORMANCE EVALUATION OF A FOUR ROW ANIMAL DRAWN MAIZE SEED PRECISION PLANTER(2022-01)Crop planting is very essential to increase production by facilitating optimum plant population per area and reduce unnecessary competition among crops. It is accomplished by any of broadcasting, seed drilling, single grain sowing, band planting, cross sowing, furrow sowing or hill sowing. This can be achieved by the use of machineries such as planters and seeders. The low field capacity, inaccurate placement of seed at a required depth and intra - row distance, seed damage due to metering,and high cost of imported planters associated with these planters envisage the need for a locally developed and cost effective multi-row animal drawn maize seed precision planter.This study focused on the design, fabrication and evaluating a four row animal drawn maizeprecision seed planter. The fabrication was done in the Department of Agricultural and Bio-Resources Engineering Workshop, Ahmadu Bello University Zaria.The major components of the planterinclude the four hoppers, four seed metering units, four delivery tubes,four furrow openers with soil covering devices,four soil pressers,four ground wheel (drive mechanism), two guard wheels for marking out during operation and a single connecting bar (frame) on which the four units are attached and aligned. The machine was evaluated in the experimental field of the department during the 2019 rainy season. Three levels of planting speed (0.6, 0.8 and 1m/s) „S‟, three levels of hopper seed quantity (25, 50 and 100%) „W‟ and two levels of planting depth (1.5 and 2.5cm) „D‟ were assessed. The field experiment was designed in a 3×3×2 randomized complete block design (RCBD). The results obtained showed the effects of planting speed, seed quantity and planting depth were significant on the planting performance of the machine. The result also showed that planting with 50 % seed hopper filled at a planting speed of 0.8 m/s and 2.5 cm planting depth recorded highest mean field efficiency of about 87 % which is significantly different from the other results obtained. Highest mean effective field capacity of 0.59 ha/hr for 25 % seed quantity at 1 m/s planting speed with 1.5 and 2.5 cm planting depth, seed rate of 22.3 kg/ha and highest germination count of 100 % with 100 % seed quantity at 0.6 m/s planting speed and 1.5 cm planting depth were recorded. The average draft required to pull the planter was also 0.96kN. Least mean field efficiency of 56 % for 100 % seed quantity at 1 m/s speed and 1.5 cm planting depth. The mean field capacity of 0.28 ha/hr for 100 % seed quantity at 0.6 m/s planting speed with 1.5 cm planting depth. The seed rate of 17 kg/ha for 100 % seed quantity at 1 m/s speed and least germination count of 73 percent with 50 and 100 % seed quantity at 1 m/s planting speed and 1.5 cm planting depth were recorded. A moderate planting speed and high planting depth gives a better field efficiency when the hopper is half full. With high planting speed and low seed hopper quantity, a best effective field capacity could be obtained while planting depth have no effective on the field capacity. Seed rate and high germination count could be obtained with a decreasing planting speed, depth and high seed hopper quantity.The targeted seed spacing could be achieved with moderate planting speed, but increasing planting depth and seed hopper quantity.Finally, the planting speed, planting depth and seed hopper quantity have no significant effect on seed per hill as the average seed drop across all the treatment is one seed. In conclusion, planting at 0.6 and 0.8 m/s, with 50 and 100 % seed hopper capacity and 2.5 cm planting depth result in maximum planting performance.With these combinations, optimum seed spacing, seed depth, germination count, seed rate together with high field efficiency and field capacity could be obtained.