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Water Hyacinth Derived Activated Carbon Electrode Materials for Water Defluoridation Using Capacitive Deionization Technology
(ELSEVIER, 2025) Kalilo, Hassan Johnson; Elisadiki, Joyce; Vegi, Maheswara Rao; Vuai, Said Ali Hamad
Safe water is a vital component of human life that requires purification to reduce the concentration of ionic
pollutants using appropriate water treatment techniques, such as capacitive deionization (CDI) water treatment
technology. The porous activated carbon electrode materials have prepared via the carbonization of water hy-
acinth plants followed by chemical activation using KOH at different temperatures (400-700◦C with an incre-
ment of 100◦C) labeled as CWH-400, WHAC-500, WHAC-600 and WHAC-700 all being activated for 1 h where
CWH represents carbonized water hyacinths and WHAC represents water hyacinths activated carbon. The
activation temperature has a significant effect on the specific surface area of the porous carbon prepared, as it
increases from 464.67 m²/g for CWH-400 to 1020.01 m²/g for WHAC-700. The defluoridation experiments were
done using water samples with initial fluoride concentrations of 4.21, 4.61 and 3.51 mg/L for water samples
from Arusha (A), Manyara (B) and Shinyanga (C) respectively when the 2 V was supplied to the cell with 10 mL/
min flow rate at 3 hours charging time. The defluoridation results were 1.28, 1.37, and 1.15 mg/L for water
samples A, B, and C, respectively. The WHAC-700 electrode was found to possess a capacitance of 501.89 F/g,
exhibiting removal efficiencies of 69.60%, 70.28%, and 67.24% for water samples from Arusha (A), Manyara (B),
and Shinyanga (C), respectively, at a potential of 2 V with a charging time of 3 hours. Therefore, the water
hyacinth plants are suitable precursors for preparing porous activated carbon electrodes to be used in a CDI cell for the defluoridation of any water sample
Comparative Efficacy of Plant Conditioners, Essential Oils Versus Fungicides in Managing Rust and Powdery Mildew Diseases in Winter Wheat
(University of Debrecen, 2025) Msigwa, Christopher Costas.
Modelling the Transmission Dynamics of Banana Xanthomonas Wilt Disease with Control Measures
(2020-03) Joel, Mapinda, John
Banana Xanthomonas Wilt disease (BXW) is a bacterial disease which highly threaten ba nana production in East and Central Africa. It is caused by a bacteria known as Xanthomonas campestris pv. musacearum (Xcm). Mathematical modelling gives an insight on how to best understand the transmission dynamics and control of the disease. The existing mathematical models for the dynamics of BXW disease have not included contaminated soil, community farming education programmes and clearance of Xcm bacteria in the soil. This study formu lated a model which includes contaminated soil. In analysis of the model, the existence and stability of the equilibrium points was checked, calculated the basic reproduction number and carried out sensitivity analysis of some model parameters. We further conducted numerical simulation to validate the results. The numerical simulations showed that the infection rate by contaminated farming tools (βi and βe), the infection rate by contaminated soil (ω2), vertical disease transmission rate (θ), and the shedding rate of Xcm bacteria in the soil (φ) are posi tively sensitive to the basic reproduction number. While, the most negative sensitive parameters are the clearance rate of Xcm bacteria from the soil (µh), removal of infected plants from the farm (r), harvesting (αp), and banana plants disease induced death rate (d). The result also showed that contaminated soil contributes to the transmission and persistence of BXW dis ease. Furthermore, the basic model was modified to include the control measures. Numerical simulations was conducted to examine the impact of the suggested control measures. It was observed that as Participatory community farming education programmes, timely removal of infected banana plants, clearance of Xcm bacteria in the soil and vertical transmission control measures increases it dramatically reduces the number of secondary infections hence greatly contribute to the control of the BXW disease. Therefore, It is recommend that, along with the existing control measures such as sterilization of farming tools, timely removal of the male bud using a forked stick and planting healthy suckers, scientist and technologist should carry out studies to find a way to reduce or avoid vertical disease transmission and increase the Xcm clearance rate in the soil. Furthermore, technology for early detection of infected plants should be brought down to the local farmers at affordable costs. This will help stakeholders to detect and remove the infected plants from the farm in time and hence reduce the number of sec ondary infections. Moreover, Participatory community farming education programmes such as Farmers field schools (FFS) should be emphasized and practised
Assessment of Current Post-Harvest Handling Techniques for Mango and Avocado in Mbeya Region, Tanzania: Challenges and Opportunities for Improvement
(Elsevier, 2025-07-31) Mng’ong’o, Marco E.; Matimbwa, Hadija; Komanya, Absalom; Maro, Lilian; Mshora, Abubakar M.
Mango (Mangifera indica) and avocado (Persea americana) are valuable fruits in Tanzania, known for their nutritional and economic importance. However, their perishability leads to significant post-harvest losses, especially for smallholder farmers in Mbeya. The limited knowledge about post-harvest handling identifies a research gap. This study assessed practices and challenges among mango and avocado farmers to improve handling techniques. A survey of 150 smallholder farmers in Kyela and Rungwe districts (August–September 2024) examined harvesting, storage, transportation, and post-harvest challenges. Data analysis revealed that 64 % of farmers use traditional harvesting methods that lead to mechanical damage. While 68.8 % manually hand-harvest, others rely on tree shaking (8.3 %) and sticks or stones (18.8 %), further increasing fruit damage. Storage at ambient temperature (46 %) fails to extend shelf-life, causing rapid quality deterioration. Trans portation by motorcycle (44 %) and head carrying (34 %) exposes fruits to damage. Key challenges included fruit drop (36 %), rotting before harvest (28 %), and insect infestation (24 %). Only 23.4 % of farmers had reliable market access, highlighting a major constraint. Education level influenced challenges, with lower-educated farmers facing more rotting and pest issues. Findings indicate current post-harvest practices are inadequate, leading to major losses. Simple, cost-effective technologies like edible coatings and training on improved har vesting, storage, and transportation are necessary. Investment in affordable cold storage and better transport infrastructure is crucial. This study provides actionable insights for policymakers and stakeholders to enhance mango and avocado value chains in Tanzania
Assessment of Current Post-Harvest Handling Techniques for Mango and Avocado in Mbeya Region, Tanzania: Challenges and Opportunities for Improvement
(Elsevier, 2025-07-31) Mng’ong’o, Marco E.; Matimbwa, Hadija; Komanya, Absalom; Maro, Lilian; Mshora Abubakar M
Mango (Mangifera indica) and avocado (Persea americana) are valuable fruits in Tanzania, known for their nutritional and economic importance. However, their perishability leads to significant post-harvest losses, especially for smallholder farmers in Mbeya. The limited knowledge about post-harvest handling identifies a research gap. This study assessed practices and challenges among mango and avocado farmers to improve handling techniques. A survey of 150 smallholder farmers in Kyela and Rungwe districts (August–September 2024) examined harvesting, storage, transportation, and post-harvest challenges. Data analysis revealed that 64 % of farmers use traditional harvesting methods that lead to mechanical damage. While 68.8 % manually hand-harvest, others rely on tree shaking (8.3 %) and sticks or stones (18.8 %), further increasing fruit damage. Storage at ambient temperature (46 %) fails to extend shelf-life, causing rapid quality deterioration. Trans portation by motorcycle (44 %) and head carrying (34 %) exposes fruits to damage. Key challenges included fruit drop (36 %), rotting before harvest (28 %), and insect infestation (24 %). Only 23.4 % of farmers had reliable market access, highlighting a major constraint. Education level influenced challenges, with lower-educated farmers facing more rotting and pest issues. Findings indicate current post-harvest practices are inadequate, leading to major losses. Simple, cost-effective technologies like edible coatings and training on improved har vesting, storage, and transportation are necessary. Investment in affordable cold storage and better transport infrastructure is crucial. This study provides actionable insights for policymakers and stakeholders to enhance mango and avocado value chains in Tanzania