Impact of trivalent Yttrium on the structural and optical properties of CaAl2O4: New frontier in supercapacitor positive electrode.

In this work, trivalent Yttrium doped calcium aluminate (CaAl2O4:x% Y3+) were synthesized for the first time. Through Photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy and Commission Internationale de l'Eclairage (CIE), CaAl2O4:0.1 % Y3+ has demonstrated to be a potential high emitting phosphor material amongst other high concentration Y3+ doped samples, emitting a vibrant blue - pink hue where others are emitting a transiting hue from blue to green within a white vertex region. FTIR and UV-Vis have confirmed the prepared material and the presence of Y dopant. The SEM showed insignificant morphological change and the presence of pores, which were quantified using BJH and DFT methods to be micro - and meso-pores. Moreover, CaAl2O4 is also being reported as a positive electrode in supercapacitors for the first time. The analysis shows that it has superior performance within 1 M KOH electrolyte, with a specific capacity of 47.71 mA h g-1 at 1 A g-1 and a maximum power of 39.68 kW kg-1. Trasatti's method showed a surface (138 Fg-1) and diffusion (695 Fg-1) contribution ratio of 17:83 (%) of the total stored energy. It has a capacity retention and columbic efficiency of 100 % at the end of 10 000 cycles, which was achieved via utilization of all micropores reaction sites. The EIS showed a small solution resistance of 0.75 Ω, indicating high ionic conductivity and a phase angle of - 50 ° . Thus, these results show that CaAl2O4 is a potential candidate for photoluminescence and energy storage application.

One size does not fit all: reaching agricultural workers in South Africa with TB services.

BACKGROUND: Despite decreasing incidence of TB in South Africa, people with TB continue to be missed by facility-based case-finding interventions, and agricultural workers suffer disproportionately from limited access to services. We implemented two community-based active case-finding strategies to engage agricultural workers and assessed the cost of these interventions.METHODS: We summarized costs for two interventions - one led by enrolled nurses and one by non-governmental organizations (NGOs) - from April 2017 to December 2019, and calculated cost per person reached by services, screened for TB, identified as having TB and started on TB treatment. We performed Mann-Kendall tests of monotonic trend and conducted a sensitivity analysis of intervention costs.RESULTS: The enrolled nurses-led implementation started 442 people on TB treatment at a cost of US$118 per person, with decreasing trend in costs over the implementation period (P = 0.005). The NGO-led intervention started 160 people on treatment at a cost of US$554 per person, with decreasing trend in costs over the implementation period (P = 0.004).CONCLUSION: Community-based case-finding strategies find TB patients who would be missed by the health system. These strategies should be scaled up to close the missing cases gap in South Africa and to meet UN targets for ending TB.

Examining the cost of community-based tuberculosis treatment in South Africa.

SETTING: While South Africa has improved access to tuberculosis (TB) treatment and care, the 2015 treatment success rate for multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) remains low, at 55%. Community-based TB treatment and care improves patient retention compared to the standard of care alone.OBJECTIVE: To assess the cost of a USAID-funded community-based TB model in Nelson Mandela Bay Health District (NMBHD), Eastern Cape Province, South Africa compared to the national standard of care alone.DESIGN: We estimated the cost of community-based DR-TB treatment and adherence support compared to the standard of care alone.RESULTS: Average overall costs were US$2827 lower per patient on the community-based model than the standard of care alone.CONCLUSION: The per-patient cost of the community-based model is lower than the standard of care alone. Assuming the costs and effects of a community-based model implemented in NMBHD were observed at a larger scale, implementing the model could reduce overall health system costs.

Mobilising Indigenous Resources for Anthropologically Designed HIV-Prevention and Behaviour-Change Interventions in Southern Africa

HIV prevention is often implemented as if African culture were either nonexistent or 4a series of obstacles to overcome in order to achieve an effective; gender-equitable; human rights-based set of interventions. Similarly; traditional or indigenous leaders; such as chiefs and members of royal families; have been largely excluded from HIV/AIDS responses in Africa. This qualitative study used focus group discussions and in-depth interviews with traditional leaders and 'ritual specialists' to better understand cultural patterns and ways of working with; rather than against; culture and traditional leaders in HIV-prevention efforts. The research was carried out in four southern African countries (Botswana; Lesotho; South Africa and Swaziland). The purpose was to discover what aspects of indigenous leadership and cultural resources might be accessed and developed to influence individual behaviour as well as the prevailing community norms; values; sanctions and social controls that are related to sexual behaviour. The indigenous leaders participating in the research largely felt bypassed and marginalised by organised efforts to prevent HIV infections and also believed that HIV-prevention programmes typically confronted; circumvented; criticised or condemned traditional culture. However; indigenous leaders may possess innovative ideas about ways to change individuals' sexual behaviour in general. The participants discussed ways to revive traditional social structures and cultural mechanisms as a means to incorporate HIV-prevention and gender-sensitivity training into existing cultural platforms; such as rites of passage; chiefs' councils and traditional courts