The reliability and process capability assessment of suspended growth sewage treatment plant in Melaka, Malaysia.

This paper presents the promising method of synchronizing the Six Sigma and reliability analyses at 15 sewage treatment plants (STPs) operating in Melaka, Malaysia. Five different suspended growth treatment technologies in various capacities were investigated. The sequential batch reactor (SBR) and extended aeration activated sludge (EAAS) processes, conventional activated sludge (CAS), aerated lagoon (AL), and oxidation pond (OP) were compared using innovative Niku's treatment reliability and Six Sigma process capability method for biological oxygen demand (BOD5), chemical oxygen demand (COD), total suspended solids (TSS), oil and grease (O&G), and ammoniacal nitrogen (NH3-N) effluent parameters and justified the importance of understanding the lognormal behavior of the effluent parameters in interpreting the performance monitoring results and discharge compliance. The results showed that the SBR and EAAS systems relatively fulfilled the highest performance (>95%) compared to conventional systems to ensure the high quality of effluent discharge. Although the whole system is incapable of removing nutrients efficiently, ranging between 42.31% and 90.48%, may lead to eutrophication issues. Process modification and treatment control should become a critical priority in order to reduce variability, improve stability, and increase the efficiency of nutrient removal. These initiatives promote global sustainable development goals (SDGs) 2030 and the domestic water sector transformation (WST) 2040 by treatment cost reduction, improving environmental sustainability and guaranteeing social and health benefits.

Detection of Zika virus RNA in Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus larvae in Klang Valley, Peninsular Malaysia.

We report the presence of Zika virus RNA in naturally infected field captured Aedes aegypti and Ae. albopictus mosquito larvae in Malaysia from May 2016 to April 2017. Zika virus RNA was detected (n = 30) in the larvae of both Aedes mosquito species. Phylogenetic analysis of the NS5 partial sequence of all positive samples shows that the circulating Zika virus in the field collected larvae are of the Asian lineage.

Reconstruction of Secondary Type Congenital Hallux Varus with Modification of the Farmer Technique for Cover of Skin Defect: Report of Three Cases.

The reconstruction of hallux varus deformity involves the release of contracted medial structure and realignment of the phalange, leaving a significant skin defect which requires cover. Farmer described proximal based rotational skin flap from the first web space to cover the defect. This technique may compromise the circulation to the flap and risk to the lateral digital vessels. We modified his technique to address these issues. We report a successful reconstruction using the Farmer's technique on one patient and a modified technique on three patients. We used the excess skin from the extra digit to cover the medial defect. We found this modified technique of skin cover safe without risk of injuring the neurovascular bundle. There was no recurrence of deformity at last foolow-up. All patients were able to wear normal shoes.

Optimized composition of nanocomposite scaffolds formed from silk fibroin and nano-TiO2 for bone tissue engineering.

Natural silk fibroin (SF) polymer has biomedical and mechanical properties as a biomaterial for bone tissue engineering scaffolds. Freeze-dried porous nanocomposite scaffolds were prepared from silk fibroin and titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles as a bioactive reinforcing agent by a phase separation method. In order to fabricate SF/TiO2 scaffolds, 5, 10, 15 and 20wt% of the TiO2 were added to the SF. The phase structure, functional groups and morphology of the scaffolds were evaluated using X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy techniques, respectively. Porosity of the scaffolds was measured by Archimedes' Principle. In addition, mechanical properties of prepared scaffolds were evaluated by measuring the compressive strength and compressive modulus. The bioactivity property of these scaffolds was examined for 7, 14, 21 and 28days immersion in simulated body fluid (SBF) at 37°C and the in vitro degradation was studied by incubation in phosphate buffered saline (PBS) at 37°C and pH7.4 for up to 30days. Moreover, the scaffolds' biocompatibility was evaluated by seeding and culture of SaOS-2 osteoblast-like cells and assessment of their proliferation with MTT [3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide] assay. Results showed that the prepared scaffolds had directional porosity and the reduction of porosity in composite scaffolds with higher contents of TiO2 nanoparticles resulted to an improvement of the mechanical strength. The macroporous structures with open interconnected and directional pores were successfully obtained without applying any porogen or inorganic solvent. The bioactivity of these scaffolds was confirmed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showing surface crystallization of the apatite layer proportional to the duration of immersion in the SBF and the degradation rate of scaffolds were increased by increasing the TiO2 content. The osteoblast-like cells showed a high attachment and proliferation on these scaffolds and their viability was increased with increasing the SF content. Finally, an optimum composition of SF/TiO2 nanocomposite scaffolds was selected.

The Enhancement Of Driver Seat Comfort For Small Size Car: A Preliminary Study

Seating comfort is one of the important indicators while driving especially for a long hour drive. The objective of this study was to execute a preliminary study of survey and identify the discomfort of body while driving and after driving session by conductinga survey. The questionnaire developed was tested for its reliability. By using Cronbach’s Alpha, this paper’s contribution was found to be significant in which it provides a survey with acceptable test reliability in which the alpha (α) was 0.887. The survey was conducted on 30 students of University Malaysia Pahang (20 male and 10 female) with driving experience and valid driving license. The subjects should have experiences in driving small size car or mini car as well. The results showed that the body area that the drivers felt discomfort while driving and after driving should be known. The findings showed that the discomfort was intense at the neck, upper back, and lumbar while and after driving.

Poly(ε-caprolactone)/nano fluoridated hydroxyapatite scaffolds for bone tissue engineering: in vitro degradation and biocompatibility study.

In this study, biodegradation and biocompatibility of novel poly(ε-caparolactone)/nano fluoridated hydroxyapatite (PCL-FHA) scaffolds were investigated. The FHA nanopowders were prepared via mechanical alloying method and had a chemical composition of Ca(10)(PO(4))(6)OH(2-x )F(x) (where x values were selected equal to 0.5 and 2.0). In order to fabricate PCL-FHA scaffolds, 10, 20, 30 and 40 wt% of the FHA were added to the PCL. The PCL-FHA scaffolds were produced by the solvent casting/particulate leaching using sodium chloride particles (with diameters of 300-500 µm) as the porogen. The phase structure, microstructure and morphology of the scaffolds were evaluated using X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy techniques. Porosity of the scaffolds was measured using the Archimedes' Principle. In vitro degradation of PCL-FHA scaffolds was studied by incubating the samples in phosphate buffered saline at 37°C and pH 7.4 for 30 days. Moreover, biocompatibility was evaluated by MTT assay after seeding and culture of osteoblast-like cells on the scaffolds. Results showed that the osteoblast-like cells attached to and proliferated on PCL-FHA and increasing the porosity of the scaffolds increased the cell viability. Also, degradation rate of scaffolds were increased with increasing the fluorine content in scaffolds composition.

Childhood burns at the Paediatric Institute Kuala Lumpur.

A prospective study of 94 burned children was carried out from January 1993 to October 1994. Scalding was the predominant cause of injury affecting mainly toddlers between 1 and 3 years old. Ninety-six per cent of the injuries occurred at home. There was 1 death following an 81% flame burns. An intense campaign to make parents aware of the hazards is required as almost all the injuries were preventable.