It has been demonstrated that benzene, toluene, and xylene are carcinogens. Its combined effects with other contaminants have the potential to harm several ecosystem components. Since most human benzene exposure takes place inside, it is important to understand how outdoor benzene emissions from traffic and industry affect interior concentrations. However, this area of study has not received enough attention to date. Herein, we examine the outdoor concentrations of benzene, toluene, and xylene (BTX) in a Steelpoort mining area. BTX pollutants were passively sampled on the first seven days of the month, from January to December 2021 using Radiello samplers. The effects of meteorological parameters such as temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, and solar radiation on BTX concentrations were also statistically tested. For all seasons, BTX concentrations were greater in the winter than in the summer with concentrations of 0.69 µg/m3, 2.97 µg/m3 and 0.80 µg/m3 for benzene, toluene and xylene, respectively. In addition, toluene was the most common BTX compound with the highest concentrations when compared to benzene and xylene. Benzene, toluene and xylene, had yearly average concentrations of 0.61 µg/m3, 1.48 µg/m3 and 0.64 µg/m3, respectively. The benzene and xylene concentrations were below international exposure limits (annual, 5 µg/m3 for benzene; weekly, 260 µg/m3 for toluene), as in comparison to the World Health Organization, as well as within South African exceedance limits. Both positive and negative correlations between BTX and meteorological parameters were demonstrated by statistical models. Temperature, wind speed, and relative humidity depicted a weak negative correlation with benzene of 0.003, 0.019 and 0.006, respectively. Toluene showed a positive correlation with wind speed (1.90) and relative humidity (0.041). Overall, the concentration of benzene is of major concern since it is an agent of cancer and it is there in the atmosphere.

Abstract Despite many quality initiatives at the primary health care (PHC) level, little is known about the actual quality of care of patients diagnosed with hypertension in South Africa. The aim of this study was to develop quality indicators for hypertension management at the PHC level to improve the quality of care and patient outcomes. A 2-round RAND/UCLA Appropriateness Method was used to develop clear, appropriate, and feasible evidence-based quality indicators for hypertension. In round one, a 9-point scale was used by an 11-member panel to rate clarity and appropriateness of 102 hypertension quality indicator statements grouped under 9 dimensions of quality hypertension management, using an online MS Excel® spreadsheet. In round two, 9 of the same panellists discussed all indicators and rated their appropriateness and feasibility during a remote online, interactive face-to-face MS Teams® meeting. Statements rated ≥7-9 with agreement were defined as either appropriate or feasible. The panel rated 46 hypertension quality indicator statements ≥7-9 with agreement for the appropriate andfeasible measurement of the management of hypertension: monitoring (n=16), review (n=5), lifestyle advice (n=9), tests (n=7), intermediate outcomes (n=6), referrals (n=2) and practice/facility structures (n=1). No indicator statements were rated both appropriate and feasible for measuring blood pressure levels and treatment. If applied, these indicators would improve monitoring and management of patients with hypertension, patient outcomes, data quality and result in a more efficient use of scarce resources. This study can be replicable for improving care of other non-communicable diseases in South Africa and Africa.

Abstract This study aimed to evaluate the semen characteristics of Bapedi sheep during the autumn breeding season. The study was conducted at four national conservation farms, which are the ARC, Towoomba Research Station, Mara Research Station and Tompi Seleka College and a total of thirty-five mature Bapedi rams (1–7 years) were sampled. All the experimental rams were raised extensively and fed on natural pastures. Following semen collection using an electro-ejaculator, semen colour, volume, pH, concentration, sperm cell motility, membrane integrity, viability, morphology and abnormalities were evaluated. Thereafter SAS version 9.4. was used to analyse the data. Semen characteristics were summarised as frequencies and percentages and the measurable characteristics were expressed as means and standard error (means ± SE). Bapedi sheep had 44% creamy semen, acceptable semen volume (0.9 ml) and pH (7); total motility (90.2 ± 2.4%), intact membrane (85.7 ± 2.4%) and normal morphology (97.7 ± 0.2%). However, sperm cell concentration (0.74 ± 0 X 109 sperm cells/ml) was lower than recommended sperm cell concentration (≥ 2.0 X 109 sperm cells/ml). In conclusion, Bapedi sheep had acceptable semen characteristics, except for sperm cell concentration, which was lower compared to the recommended sperm cell concentration for small stock.

A field study was conducted to assess the effect of tillage systems (TSs) and manure rates (MRs) on sunflower growth and yield at the University of Limpopo Experimental Farm (Syferkuil) which is on sandy loam soils and University of Venda Experimental Farm (UNIVEN) clayey soils, both located in Limpopo Province of South Africa for 2021/2022 and 2022/2023 cropping seasons. The experimental design was a split plot with three replications. The main plot was the tillage treatments: conventional (CON) and in-field rainwater harvesting (IRWH), while the subplots were the manure treatments: viz. poultry and cattle manures at rates of 20 and 35 t ha−10, plus a control (no manure application). The IRWH is a tillage technique that collects rainwater on a 2 m wide runoff strip into the 1 m wide basin where it infiltrates deep into the soil beyond the evaporation zone but is available for crop use. The results revealed that at Syferkuil IRWH had a significant increase (p < 0.05) on grain yield, head diameter, head dry matter and aboveground dry matter yield in both cropping seasons, whereas at UNIVEN, the significant increase was obtained on grain yield, head diameter, aboveground dry matter, plant height and stem girth during both cropping seasons. The effect of manure rate significantly increased with the application rate, with poultry manure at the highest rate of 35 t ha−1 significantly recording high mean values of grain yield, head diameter, head dry matter, aboveground dry matter, plant height and stem girth at both sites during the two cropping seasons. The increase in leaf area index and 100 seed weight by IRWH and manure rate application varied across the growing stages and cropping seasons with no consistent trend. At Syferkuil, TS and MR interaction was significant on head diameter and on aboveground dry matter at flowering stage in the first cropping season, whereas at UNIVEN, it was significant on head diameter in the first cropping season. Therefore, these results suggest that IRWH combined with poultry manure (35 t ha−1) can be adopted to improve sunflower crop yield under similar management and environmental conditions. In the absence of poultry manure, farmers may opt to use cattle manure at a rate of 35 t ha−1 for better improved yield.

Surface coatings play a pivotal role in enhancing the performance of secondary lithium-ion batteries by mitigating undesirable electrolyte activity towards the cathode materials. Metal oxide candidates have been investigated extensively, with α-Al2O3 emerging as a particularly promising coating material owing to its exceptional mechanical and thermal stability alongside low electrical conductivity. Despite the extensive exploration of this application of α-Al2O3, insight into the interplay between the coating layer and the cathode substrate remains incomplete. To address this lack of knowledge, this study employs density functional theory calculations with a Hubbard Hamiltonian and long-range dispersion corrections (DFT+U-D3) to comprehensively investigate the interfacial geometries, stabilities, and electronic properties of α-Al2O3-coated LiMn2O4 (001) and (111) interfaces of varying thicknesses. The individual surfaces were modelled first before constructing the interfaces. We found that the α-Al2O3 (112¯0) and (0001) surfaces match the LiMn2O4 (001) and (111) facets well, exhibiting {1132} and {3121} configurations, respectively, with corresponding misfits of 2.40 and 2.75 %. We calculated the largest adhesion energies of 0.16 and 0.10 eV/Å2 for monolayers with the {1132} and {3121} configurations, respectively, with the stability decreasing as the thickness of the α-Al2O3 layer increases. Further analysis reveals a minor charge accumulation on the substrate, attributed to charge accumulation on the oxygen atoms that participate in the Al-O bond. In contrast, we observed a depletion of charge on the manganese atoms that form the MnO6 units. The vacancy formation energies increase following partial delithiation, prompting minor charge depletion on neighbouring Mn atoms in the form of charge redistribution. The calculated work function increases with respect to the pristine surfaces, indicating that the coated interfaces are less reactive.

AbstractThe rising widespread oil‐impacted wastewater warrants an urgent call for innovative approaches to the handling of oily wastewater. A variety of techniques has been investigated to treat oil‐impacted water, and they are found to be inefficient. Electrospun nanofibers emerge as the viable technique to treat oily wastewater precisely owing to their high specific surface areas and interconnected nanoscale pore structures. In this review, a brief background on the study is provided followed by the environmental pollution by the oily wastewater. Subsequent to that, the polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) modification methods are also presented followed by the physicochemical properties of both the electrospun PVDF blends and the PVDF‐based composites. Furthermore, the performances of the PVDF‐based composites in oil/water separation are described. It is concluded with the future prospects for using PVDF‐based composites for oil/water separation.

The challenge of combining two unbiased estimators is a common occurrence in applied statistics, with significant implications across diverse fields such as manufacturing quality control, medical research, and the social sciences. Despite the widespread relevance of estimating the common population mean μ, this task is not without its challenges. A particularly intricate issue arises when the variations within populations are unknown or possibly unequal. Conventional approaches, like the two-sample t-test, fall short in addressing this problem as they assume equal variances among the two populations. When there exists prior information regarding population variances (σi2,i=1,2), with the consideration that σ12 and σ22 might be equal, a hypothesis test can be conducted: H0:σ12=σ22 versus H1:σ12≠σ22. The initial sample is utilized to test H0, and if we fail to reject H0, we gain confidence in incorporating our prior knowledge (after testing) to estimate the common mean μ. However, if H0 is rejected, indicating unequal population variances, the prior knowledge is discarded. In such cases, a second sample is obtained to compensate for the loss of prior knowledge. The estimation of the common mean μ is then carried out using either the Graybill–Deal estimator (GDE) or the maximum likelihood estimator (MLE). A noteworthy discovery is that the proposed preliminary testimators, denoted as μ^PT1 and μ^PT2, exhibit superior performance compared to the widely used unbiased estimators (GDE and MLE).

The amalgamation of motile microbes in nanofluid (NF) is important in upsurging the thermal conductivity of various systems, including micro-fluid devices, chip-shaped micro-devices, and enzyme biosensors. The current scrutiny focuses on the bioconvective flow of magneto-Williamson NFs containing motile microbes through a horizontal circular cylinder placed in a porous medium with nonlinear mixed convection and thermal radiation, heat sink/source, variable fluid properties, activation energy with chemical and microbial reactions, and Brownian motion for both nanoparticles and microbes. The flow analysis has also been considered subject to velocity slips, suction/injection, and heat convective and zero mass flux constraints at the boundary. The governing equations have been converted to a non-dimensional form using similarity variables, and the overlapping grid-based spectral collocation technique has been executed to procure solutions numerically. The graphical interpretation of various pertinent variables in the flow profiles and physical quantities of engineering attentiveness is provided and discussed. The results reveal that NF flow is accelerated by nonlinear thermal convection, velocity slip, magnetic fields, and variable viscosity parameters but decelerated by the Williamson fluid and suction parameters. The inclusion of nonlinear thermal radiation and variable thermal conductivity helps to enhance the fluid temperature and heat transfer rate. The concentration of both nanoparticles and motile microbes is promoted by the incorporation of activation energy in the flow system. The contribution of microbial Brownian motion along with microbial reactions on flow quantities justifies the importance of these features in the dynamics of motile microbes.

Abstract The objective of the study was to determine the effect of different goat manure levels on the growth yield and performance of wild watermelon (Citrullus lanatus subsp.) cultivated in shade houses. Six treatments comprised different goat manure levels, namely, river sand, Hutton soil, and goat manure T0-1:3:0 (control), T1-1:3:1, T2-1:3:2, T3-1:3:3, T4-1:3:4, and T5-1:3:5. Treatments had a highly significant (P ≤ 0.01) effect on dry shoot mass (DSM) (g), fruit weight (FW) (g), and fruit diameter (FD) (mm) of wild watermelon plants. The dry root mass (DRM) (g), vine length (VL) (m), and chlorophyll content (CCL) of wild watermelon plants were not significantly affected by the application of goat manure levels. The goat manure levels in T1-1:31, T2-1:3:2, T3-1:3:3, T4-1:3:4, and T5-1:3:5 reached the cumulative DSM (6.57, 10.12, 9.17, 11.14, and 8.32). In contrast, all the goat manure levels T1-1:31, T2-1:3:2, T3-1:3:3, T4-1:3:4, and T5-1:3:5 reduced FW (183.56, 72.02, 119.05, 171.87, 9.08 g) compared to the control (1:3:0), achieved 212.14 g, while the highest (183.56, 171.87, and 119.05) were at T1-1:31, T4-1:3:4, and T3-1:3:3, respectively. The smallest FM (72.02 and 9.08 cm) was observed at 1:3:2 and 1:3:5 goat manure levels, respectively. Similarly, all the goat manure levels T1-1:31, T2-1:3:2, T3-1:3:3, T4-1:3:4, and T5-1:3:5 reduced FD (61.03, 40.24, 59.76, 69.66, and 14.40 mm) compared to the control (1:3:0), which was achieved at 78.73 mm. In conclusion, T4-1:3:4 performed well in terms of the DSM. Therefore, goat manure at T4-1:3:4 achieved the best growth performance in wild watermelon.

This review extensively discusses current developments in bimetallic nanoparticle–GO and bimetallic nanoparticle–MOF nanocomposites as potential catalysts for HER, along with their different synthesis methodologies, structural characteristics, and catalytic mechanisms. The photoelectrocatalytic performance of these catalysts was also compared based on parameters such as Tafel slope, current density, onset potential, turnover frequency, hydrogen yield, activation energy, stability, and durability. The review shows that the commonly used metal alloys in the bimetallic nanoparticle–GO-based catalysts for HERs include Pt-based alloys (e.g., PtNi, PtCo, PtCu, PtAu, PtSn), Pd-based alloys (e.g., PdAu, PdAg, PdPt) or other combinations, such as AuNi, AuRu, etc., while the most used electrolyte sources are H2SO4 and KOH. For the bimetallic nanoparticle MOF-based catalysts, Pt-based alloys (e.g., PtNi, PtCu), Pd-based alloys (e.g., PdAg, PdCu, PdCr), and Ni-based alloys (e.g., NiMo, NiTi, NiAg, NiCo) took the lead, with KOH being the most frequently used electrolyte source. Lastly, the review addresses challenges and prospects, highlighting opportunities for further optimization and technological integration of the catalysts as promising alternative photo/electrocatalysts for future hydrogen production and storage.