Synthesis of hydroxyapatite from mussel shells for effective adsorption of aqueous Cd(II).

We report the synthesis of hydroxyapatite (HAP) powder from waste mussel shells (decomposed to CaO) and phosphoric acid at room temperature without pH control. The powder synthesized was utilized for cadmium removal from aqueous solutions using the batch technique. The effects of solution pH, adsorbent dose; initial Cd2+ concentration, contact time, and temperatures were examined. Furthermore, the adsorption process revealed a pseudo-second-order reaction model and the Langmuir isotherm is the best-fit model to predict the experimental data and adsorption capacity was found to be 62.5 mg/g. Thermodynamic analysis revealed that because of the negative values of ΔGo and the positive value of ΔHo, the adsorption process was spontaneous and endothermic. Cadmium immobilization occurs through a two step mechanism: rapid ion exchange followed by partial dissolution of hydroxapatite and precipitation of cadmium containing hydroxyapatite.

The epidemiology of malaria in the Papua New Guinea highlands: 7. Southern Highlands Province

As the last part of a program to survey the extent of malaria transmission in the Papua New Guinea highlands, a series of rapid malaria surveys were conducted in 2003-2004 and 2005 in different parts of Southern Highlands Province. Malaria was found to be highly endemic in Lake Kutubu (prevalence rate (PR): 17-33%), moderate to highly endemic in Erave (PR: 10-31%) and moderately endemic in low-lying parts (< 1500 m) of Poroma and Kagua (PR: 12-17%), but was rare or absent elsewhere. A reported malaria epidemic prior to the 2004 surveys could be confirmed for the Poroma (PR: 26%) but not for the lower Kagua area. In Kutubu/Erave Plasmodium falciparum was the most common cause of infection (42%), followed by P. vivax (39%) and P. malariae (16%). In other areas most infections were due to P. vivax (63%). Most infections were of low density (72% < 500/ microl) and not associated with febrile illness. Overall, malaria was only a significant source of febrile illness when prevalence rates rose above 10%, or in epidemics. However, concurrent parasitaemia led to a significant reduction in haemoglobin (Hb) level (1.2 g/dl, CI95: [1.1-1.4.], p < 0.001) and population mean Hb levels were strongly correlated with overall prevalence of malarial infections (r = -0.79, p < 0.001). Based on the survey results, areas of different malaria epidemiology are delineated and options for control in each area are discussed.