Abstract Polypropylene (PP) composites were prepared with calcium lactate (CL) at various loading levels (10 – 40 wt%) by melt mixing then injection molding. The resulting properties of composites were investigated by melt flow index, optical microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, tensile, flexural and impact mechanical tests. The tensile/flexural moduli increase with increasing CL content, while the elongation at break decreases with increasing CL content. The highest tensile/flexural strengths and impact strength were found at 10 wt% CL content. The crystallization of PP initiated at higher temperature as a result of CL addition. The smaller spherulite size with the presence of CL provided the higher tie molecules, thus improving impact strength. The influence of the maleic anhydride grafted polypropylene (MAPP) as coupling agent on the properties of PP containing 10 wt% CL content was examined. The results revealed that the MAPP gave an insignificant improvement in the final properties of the composites. Keywords Biocomposite, Renewable Filler, Calcium Lactate, Polypropylene, Crystallization

Abstract In this paper, we propose two new iterative methods for solving nonlinear equations with one variable without derivative. In convergence theory, the two new iterative methods have second and third order convergence. Some numerical experiments show that the two new derivative free iterative methods outperform the several other existing methods. Keywords Non-linear Equations, Order of Convergence, Derivative Free Method

Abstract A luminescence hybrid material, Bis(8-hydroxyquinoline)cobalt(II) (Co(8hq)2), was incorporated into the mesoporous silica. To study the preparation of mesoporous silica from rice husk and the development of fluorescence efficiency. The mesoporous silica was prepared by swelling-shrinking mechanism which used the sodium silicate from rice husk as the precursor. The hybrid materials were prepared by solid-state reaction at room temperature with two different routes; the first one was the hybrid material processes via the in situ formation of cobalt(II)chloride hexahydrate (CoCl26H2O) as well as 8hq into the mesoporous silica (MCM) mixed ground (MCM_Co(8hq)2) and the another one was step by step ground of the mesoporous silica, cobalt(II)chloride hexahydrate and 8hq (MCMCo(II)_8hq). The hybrid materials were characterized by SEM, XRD, FT-IR, AAS, as well as PL. The FT-IR spectra showed the 8hq characteristic at 820, 786, 784, and 747 cm-1 that all of the FT- IR spectra shifted to higher frequencies of free 8hq (815, 778, and 739 cm-1), confirming the coordination between cobalt(II) cation and 8-hydroxyquinoline. The excellent photoluminescence of MCM_Co(8hq)2 revealed at 484 nm and MCMCo(II)_8hq demonstrated blue-shifted peak at 474 nm in this comparison, indicating that the formation of different nanostructures and/or packing of bis (8-hydroxyquinoline)cobalt(II) were formed into the mesoporous silica. Keywords Hybrid material, Mesoporous silica, Bis(8-hydroxyquinoline)cobalt(II), Rice husk

Abstract Galerkin and collocation approximation techniques are very effective and popular among researchers for numerical approximations of different types of differential, integral and integro-differential equations. Both methods approximate the solution by a finite sum of some known polynomials. In recent years, researchers around the world have been used different combinations of polynomials and collocation points in Galerkin and collocation methods for numerical approximations of different types of integral equations. Also, collocation method have been used more frequently compared to the Galerkin method. In this research, five different polynomials in Galerkin method and five different combinations of polynomials and collocation points in collocation method have been used for numerical approximations of linear FVIE of 2nd kind.It is found that the performances of different polynomials and collocation points in both these methods are consistent. Keywords Fredholm-Volterra integral equations, Galerkin method, collocation method, polynomials.

Abstract In response to cumulative municipal waste problem in Pathumthani, a waste-to-energy electric power plant is selected as waste management approach. This study aims at assessing waste-to-energy power plant potential zones in Pathumthani using Geographic Information System (GIS). GIS data collection depends on all 12 factors considered in this study as follows: the distances from power plant site to communities, to industrial areas, to power lines, to power stations, to waterworks stations, to hospitals, to education institutes, to main water resources, to accessible roads, to railways, to airports and the risk of flooding. After multiple layers of information have been generated as a single map using GIS, the suitable power plant locations are defined on the basis of the ordered weighted averaging (OWA) technique. Color-coded symbology is applied to the maps to differentiate suitable/unsuitable areas for power plant establishment. Considering proportions of suitable areas of each of the seven districts to the total area of the province, the most suitable district is Klong Luang, followed by Nongsua, Lamlukka, Ladlumkaew, Muang Pathumthani, Thanyaburi, and Samkok districts, respectively. This analysis approach should be further developed and applied to other areas. Keywords Waste-to-energy power plant, Location suitability analysis, Pathumthani, GIS

Abstract Silicon is a promising candidate anode material for lithium ion batteries due to its high theoretical specific capacity of 4,200 mAh g-1 and low discharge potential. However, a high irreversible capacity loss due to a solid electrolyte interphase formation on the surface of Si anodes during the 1st cycle limits its practical applications. Prelithiation is considered an attractive method that can be used to compensate for the active lithium losses during the 1st cycle. Surface oxidation to Li2O when the material comes into contact with moisture and oxygen during electrode fabrication is a main obstacle, leading to poor electrochemical stability. In this work the surface stability of prelithiated Si-based nanoparticles was modified via a polymeric nano-coating method. The results demonstrate that coating with 1-fluorooctane is an effective strategy to mitigate irreversible capacity loss and provide electrochemical stability for high performance next generation lithium ion batteries. Keywords Lithium ion batteries, Silicon, Prelithiation

Abstract In developing countries, e-waste battery treatment and management is a severe problem. Most batteries contain heavy metals, but some can contain very toxic heavy metals such as mercury that can be hazardous to the environment. The current investigation aims to evaluate both the acute and chronic effects of the leachates from two cells (named Con O and Maxell) that are commonly used in Vietnam on the micro-crustacean Daphnia magna. The median lethal concentrations at 24h and 48h (LC50) of the D. magna exposed to leachate from Con O cell were 150 and 100 mg/l, respectively. The 24h- and 48h-LC50 values of the Maxell cell to the animals were 100 and 70 mg/l, respectively. Therefore, the toxicity of the leachates from the Maxell battery was more severe than that of Con O based on the 24h- and 48h-LC50 values. Moreover, the life-history traits of the D. magna such as survivorship, maturation or reproduction, were detrimentally impacted including mass mortality, delayed maturation and reproductive inhibition, when the animals exposed to the leachates from both batteries at the concentrations ranged from 1 to 50 mg/l over the period of 2 weeks. Overall, this study could provide useful information on the ecological and environmental risk caused by untreated batteries to the environment, or even contribute to changing a sense of civic responsibility on economically using, recycling, waste management and treatment related to cells. Keywords Negative effects, Battery leachates, Life history traits, Daphnia magna

Abstract PM 2.5 has been an important issue for living in a city due to its negative health impact. PM 2.5 reduction by green facade was studied in this experiment. The steel facade with 3.70 x 2.50 m was installed at the front of the model room which located near the 4 lanes road. Broad leaf and narrow leaf plant as Epipremnum aureum and Chlorophytum comosum were attached to the facade for 2 weeks. The inside and outside air quality of the model room as PM 2.5, temperature, relative humidity were hourly observed. The result showed that the installation of a facade or green facade could significantly reduce PM 2.5 and heat through the model room via shading and plant evapotranspiration. Both Epipremnum aureum and Chlorophytum comosum gave better PM 2.5 reduction than steel facade which corresponding to the leaf area index (LAI) during the experiment. Keywords Façade, PM 2.5, Broad leaf plant, Narrow leaf plant, Green façade

Abstract The plastic medical tray is commonly used for medical device packagings such as the implant or surgical instruments. The tray can be undergone gamma-ray exposure to sterilizing the medical devices inside. The tray keeps medical devices free from micro-living organisms and protects them from contaminated external environments. The plastic sheet is usually used for producing the tray which turns into a final tray shape using thermoforming. During the tray design process, factors such as the dimension of medical devices, ergonomics, and strength, have to be taken into consideration. Computer-Aided Design/Three-dimensional Printing (CAD/3DP) technologies were applied for verification of the tray geometry whereas finite element methods are applied for strength analysis. Three-dimensional (3D) models of the tray, which are referenced from the dimension of medical device, were 3D printed to test ergonomics for operating room (OR) nurses handling. After that, 3D models were evaluated the strength to ensure safety during delivery. From the analysis, the geometry of the tray was appropriate for handling with sufficient strength. The bottom corner of the tray is a critical point since it presents a high-stress magnitude. The load of 54.6 kg-f deforms the tray was less than 0.5-mm, confirming the vertical stack storage. Keywords Plastic Medical Tray, Medical Device, Packaging Design, Packaging Analysis

Abstract Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) using vanillin (Val) as a template molecule were synthesized and evaluated. MIPs were prepared by precipitation polymerization using various types of functional monomers with using ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA) and trimethylolpropane trimethacrylate (TRIM) as cross linkers and polymerization was done at 80°C for 6 h. The binding efficiency of polymers was evaluated including types of monomers, binding time and reusability. Results showed that methacrylic acid was the selective monomer for vanillin and the highest performance of MIPs, which including the binding efficiency and selectivity, was obtained when bound polymer with vanillin for only 2 h and could be reused as least five times. Keywords Vanillin, Molecularly Imprinted Polymer, Selective Material

Abstract Riceberry bran, byproduct from the rice milling process, is one of bioactive compounds sources. In order to increase Riceberry bran value, the purpose of this study was to compare the effect of different Riceberry bran extraction methods, including accelerated solvent extraction (ASE), ultrasonic-assisted extraction (UAE), soxhlet extraction (SE), and maceration method (MC) on bioactive compounds and antioxidant activities. It was found that the Riceberry bran extract from ASE presented the highest total phenolic, total anthocyanin content (55.45 mg GAE/g and 3.06 mg/g) and antioxidant properties including IC50 of DPPH assay (0.109 mg/mL), FRAP value (688.04 mmole Fe(II)/kg) and IC50 of ABTS assay (3.42 mg/mL) among the four methods. These results imply the potential to use the ASE method for extraction of phenolic and anthocyanin compounds from Riceberry bran. Keywords Accelerated Solvent Extraction, Maceration, Riceberry Bran, Soxhlet, Ultrasonic-Assisted Extraction

Abstract Nowadays, the emission of volatile organic compounds (VOC) is giving rise to several health hazards and damage to the environment. Consequently, the nanomaterial development is considerably important for VOC adsorption and sensing. In this work, the adsorptions of toluene on silicon carbide nanosheets doping with transition metal atoms (TM-doped SiCNS) were investigated using the density functional theory method (DFT). The B3LYP/LanL2DZ was employed in all calculations for the geometric, energetic, and electronic properties. In addition, the doping of TM atom at different sites will have different effects on the adsorption behavior of the systems. Calculation results reveal that the adsorption distances and adsorption energies of TM doping on SiCNSs are suitable for toluene adsorption greater than pristine SiCNS. According to the changes of electronic properties of TM-doped SiCNS show highly sensitive to toluene molecule. The results indicate that the introducing of TM doping on SiCNS significantly improve the sensitivity toward toluene molecule. Therefore, the results of our work may be useful in developing and designing new types of storage and sensor materials. Keywords DFT, Silicon Carbide Nanosheet, Toluene, Transition Metals, VOC

Abstract Currently, conducting polymers such as Polypyrrole (PPy), have been extensively interested due to their interesting features of conductivity, low-cost fabrication, and stability under ambient conditions and at high temperature. Herein, polypyrrole was polymerized on the surface of cellulose fibers (CFs) by using a sequence of fiber impregnation in FeCl3 solutions and re-dispersion in a pyrrole solution via in situ chemical polymerization of monomer-pyrrole. The structure, morphology, and thermal properties were investigated. The results revealed the uniformly of PPy on the surface of CFs. Moreover, conductivity of 184×10-4 S·cm−1 was obtained from a composites sheet of CFs:PPy with the PPy of 0.20 ml. Also, the decreasing of dielectric and impedance in CFs:PPy composites sheet can be observed as the increasing of CFs:PPy ratio. Chemical polymerization has been very successful in the production of composite materials of conductivity polymers with CFs. Keywords Polypyrrole, Conductive Composite Materials, In Situ Synthesized

Abstract The purposes of this study are to propose a modified ranked set sampling, which is called stratified unified ranked set sampling (SURSS), for estimating the population mean and compare the efficiency of the empirical mean estimator based on SURSS with their counterparts in simple random sampling (SRS), stratified simple random sampling (SSRS), and stratified ranked set sampling (SRSS) via a simulation. We compare efficiency using criteria mean square error (MSE) and simulate the data from three asymmetric distributions: Exponential (1), Geometric (0.5), and Gamma (1, 2). It is found that the estimator in SURSS provides more efficient than their counterparts in SRS, SSRS, and SRSS for three parent asymmetric distributions with small sample size. For the larger sample size, the proposed estimator in SURSS still provide more efficient than SRS, but it gives more efficient than SSRS and SRSS in some cases. Keywords Simple Random Sampling, Ranked Set Sampling, Unified Ranked Set Sampling, Stratified Unified Ranked Set Sampling

Abstract Nowadays, consumers are increasingly interested in healthy food. This study aimed to increase the nutritional value of crispy rice by using Thai rice which presented important natural ingredients. Five formulations were developed including Thai colored indica rice (Oryza sativa cv. Riceberry), black sticky rice (Oryza sativa cv. Leum Phua), white glutinous rice (Oryza sativa cv. RD6), RD6 soaking in water obtained from Leum Phua sticky rice, and a combination of RD6 and Leum Phua glutinous rice. Water activity, moisture content, crispness, color, total anthocyanin content, and sensory evaluation were analyzed. The results showed that there was no significant difference in crispness and moisture content of products. The lowest free water was observed in both Riceberry and soaked RD6 formulations with water activity below 0.42. Leum Phua and Riceberry recipes had the lowest brightness. Obviously, crispy rice bar from Leum Phua sticky rice had the highest total anthocyanin content, followed by Riceberry rice. According to sensory test, the color score was high in the RD6 and soaked RD6 formulations. During the storage for 2 months, the increase of water activity and lipid peroxidation were observed. However, there was no growth of pathogenic microorganisms. The crispy rice by soaked RD6 formula was acceptable up to 2 months of storage. Therefore, it can be concluded that the RD6 sticky rice soaking with water from black glutinous rice is suitable for commercial production because it can increase the nutritional value for consumers by providing high total anthocyanin content. Keywords Riceberry Rice, Leum Phua Rice, RD6 Rice, Black Glutinous Rice, Anthocyanin

Abstract This paper is applied research to create changes in the community. The objectives of this research were the study of the bio-organic fertilizer production process in Ban-Toey Community Enterprise at Krabueang Yai, Phimai District, Nakhon Ratchasima Province and promoting the community participation in the remediation of saline soil by the alternative technology such as bio-organic fertilizers and nanomaterial. The research methodology of this study was carried out by studying the data sources and information from the community and on-site events or activities Moreover, in-depth interviews, group discussions, observation, questionnaires, demonstrations were also carried out in order to transfer knowledge from the laboratory outcome to the community. The result was found that promotion of community participation for saline soil remediation by alternative technology of bio- organic fertilizers and nanomaterials at Krabueang Yai were operated by share and learn activities, in-depth interviews, group discussion, observation and questionnaires. The demonstrations were also carried out in order to transfer knowledge from the laboratory outcome to the community. After the activities, it was found that the community changes including a deep understanding of the saline soil solutions, production of bio-organic fertilizer, nanotechnology and soil tests. Moreover, Ban-Toey villagers planned to establish soil quality analysis services during the soil adjustment of the field and agricultural area. A cooperative creating was to resolve saline soil problems. In addition, the view of the participants should be changed that nanomaterial could be non- expensive. Participants who were more liberal on new ideas such as nanotechnology can be the better starting point for the solving of saline soil problems and alternatively helping the community to increase agricultural productivity and benefits. Keywords Community Participation, Saline Soil, Alternative Technology, Bio-Organic Fertilizers, Nanomaterial

Abstract Urban expansion with intensive and improper plan of land use can cause water deterioration along the watershed. This study aimed to find optimization of land allocation for sustainable development without water pollution in the Trang watershed, located in Nakhon Si Thammarat and Trang Province, Thailand by using STELLA software. Dissolve oxygen (DO) and biological oxygen demand (BOD) were used as water quality parameter to indicate water deterioration. DO and BOD change over time in the study area was developed by STELLA. Then, they were simulated from scenario with variation in percentage of land use types: forest (Fo), agriculture (Ag), urban (Ur) and industry (In). Results revealed that the correlation between the simulated and observed values of DO and BOD was in good agreement. The simulation of scenarios showed that when percentage of Ur and In were less than 5 or the percentage of Fo and Ag were larger than 95, water will be very clean (DO > 6 mg/L and BOD < 1.5 mg/L). Higher Ur and In, reduction of DO and increasing of BOD were found. Water will be deteriorated (DO < 2 mg/L and BOD > 4 mg/L) when In and Ur were more than 25%. The model developed by STELLA can be used to describe DO and BOD change over time and help in finding optimization of land allocation which does not disturb water quality in Trang watershed. Furthermore, the model can be applied in other watersheds for sustainable land development. Keywords STELLA, Land Use, Optimization, DO, BOD

Abstract Bacteria can survive on the surface of the microscopic grooves and cracks and will go unnoticed, hence the presence of pathogenic bacteria on the user interface of microphone possesses a potential risk to vulnerable, immune compromised individuals. The aim of this study was to study the antibiotics patterns of bacteria isolated from microphones used at different churches in Umuahia, Abia State, Nigeria. 100 samples were collected from the mouthpiece and handles of the various microphones from 22 different churches in Umuahia with sterile swab sticks moistened with normal saline. A total of 85 isolates comprising of eight (8) genera were characterized from the samples. These organisms included Staphylococcus sp, Coagulase negative Staphyococcus (CoNS), Streptococcus sp, Micrococcus sp, Bacillus sp, Proteus sp, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas sp. Frequency distribution of the isolates was as follows Staphylococcus sp. (5.88% of total), Coagulase negative Staphylococcus (CoNS) were (11.76%), Streptococcus sp. (9.41%), Micrococcus sp. (1.18%), Bacillus sp. (3.53%), Proteus sp. (17.65%), Escherichia coli (36.47%) and Pseudomonas sp. (14.12%). The sensitivity and resistance testing of the bacteria to different antibiotics showed that all the isolates were 100% sensitive to Peflacine, Ciprofloxacin and Gentamicin. The highest percentage resistance of 42.85% was recorded for Ampicillin while the least percentage resistant of 14.28% was recorded for Ofloxacin, Streptomycin and Cefalexin each. This study showed that microphones can aid in the spread of pathogenic microorganisms between individuals and among groups at large. Keywords Mouthpiece, Microphone, Antibiotics, Sensitivity, Resistance

Abstract Understanding time in fisheries is executed by analyzing data which are picked up from investigated documents to make significant decisions. When data are big enough, time information of objects definitely becomes hard to represent to get knowledge quickly and temporal relationships are more difficult for observing. This article concentrates on introducing Description Logics (DLs) which is extended by rules as an appropriate knowledge representation formalism for managing fishery time. A DL knowledge base for fisheries is installed with relations between areas and creatures, creatures and catchers, catchers and time for catching, time and opened areas, catchers and tools. To build this model, we use Protégé for illustrating an ontology of fisheries through data got from the document of Vietnamese mangrove fisheries. This document is published by the Vietnam Academy of Agricultural Sciences in 2015 with statistics in detail. The research shows the way to represent fishery time by DLs. Keywords Description Logics, Temporal Fishery Representation, DLs for Time

Abstract This paper is on the application of principal component as a data reducing technique on economic variables for the period of 26 years. The source of data was secondary and was collected from the Central Bank of Nigeria Statistical Bulletin. The aim is to use principal component analysis effectively and profitably to reduce the large and massive economic variables (Data) to a smaller number of PCs while retaining as much as possible of the variation in the original variables. The methodology employed Principal Component which are orthogonal in nature from the original Economic Variables. The criterion for selecting the number of Principal Component to be extracted is the KAISER’S CRITERION which was suggested by GUTTMAN and adopted by KAISER. The result of the analysis revealed that the variables BOP, LR, and INFL have low correlation coefficient with other variables. Furthermore, results showed that the large sample size of economic variables have being reduced and the principal components are extracted in which the first Principal Component have the highest number of variables which are positively highly correlated, the second Principal Component loads positively with Crude Oil production, Lending Rate and Inflation Rate while the third Principal Component load positively with Balance of Payment. Keywords Principal Component Analysis, Principal Component, Kaiser’s Criterion, Guttman, Kaiser, Karhunen-Loeve Transform, Proper Orthogonal Decomposition

Abstract This paper built an intelligent computer model to identify Thai herb from a single image using convolutional neural network. Thailand is one of the world herbal sources. We used 2,700 herbal images with their medicinal properties to train the computer model that covered 11 well-known Thai herbs: Siamese Rough-bush, Cumin, Holy Basil, Sweet Basil, Cha Muang, Kaffir-lime Leaf, Siamese Morning-glory, Pandanus Leaf, Mint, Chinese Kale and Chaplu, respectively. The feature extraction framework and model architecture were done by Fast Region Convolution Neural Network (Fast R-CNN) and Visual Geometry Group Network (VGGNet) that produced the recall as higher than 0.75 and the precision as higher than 0.80. Keywords Herb Identification, Leaf Recognition, Convolutional Neural Network, VGGNet, Fast R-CNN

Abstract The objectives of this research were to synthesize a catalyst from TiO2 embedded on a bio-composite film through photocatalysis application to benzene removal in 785 litre of air through photocatalyzed oxidation process in Air Purifier. And found out the best of benzene volatile organic compound removal condition with Box-Benkhen design’s respond surface method. The scope of the study was tested on three polylactic acid biopolymer films with the volume of TiO2 at 5.0, 10.0 and 15.0%w/w formed by molding film method. The morphology of the film was examined by scanning electron microscope. The chemical structure of the film was scanned by X-Ray diffraction. Light absorbance was detected by UV/VIS Spectrophotometer. After SEM testing, it was found that TiO2 on the three films were equally distributed and embedded all over the films. The crystal structure of Titanium dioxide was appeared to be an anatase structure. It was found that the energy gap was from 3.14 to 3.22 eV. The result can be confirmed the decrease of benzene compound after photocatalyzed oxidation process on photoreactor consisted of 785 litre of air. The result was shown that the light intensity at 5.24 mW/cm2 and TiO2 at 10.0%w/w can yield the optimum result at 62.28% of benzene compound decrease with initial intensity at 5±0.5 ppm. The most appropriate conditions to remove benzene volatile organic compound with Box-Benkhen design’s respond surface method were 5.24 mW/cm2 of light intensity, 10.0%w/w of TiO2, and 5±0.5 ppm of benzene initial intensity. With these conditions, the result revealed that the reaction rate was 58.90% at R2 0.82. Therefore, the concluded that the process of benzene volatile organic compound removal can be further developed in the form of equipment as air purifier with optimum condition. Keywords Air purifier, Benzene, Photocatalytic oxidation, Poly lactic acid film, Responsive surface method

Abstract The use of beta-lactams has tremendously increased since the discovery of antibiotics. This has led to the emergence of certain resistant genes such as Extended Spectrum Beta-Lactamase (ESBL) which confer resistance to third generation cephalosporins. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of Extended Spectrum Beta Lactamase (ESBL) genes, Carbapenem resistance genes (blaKPC, blaOXA and IMP) and outer membrane porins genes (OMP-35, OMP-36, and OMP-36N) from different hospitals and laboratories in Ikeja-Lagos, Nigeria. A total of 177 bacterial isolates were collected between May 2017 to July 2017 from patients with urinary tract infections (UTI) and gastroenteritis. They were identified biochemically and investigated for ESBL and Carbapenemase production using phenotypic Double Disk Synergy Test (DDST) and Modified Hodges’ Test respectively. Antibiotics susceptibility profile was also investigated. Multiplex PCR was used to detect the genes responsible for the resistant genes. Out of 177 bacterial isolates, 47 (26.6%) were identified as Klebsiella spp and 17 (36.1%) were ESBL positive and then 5 (29.4%) were positive for carbapenem resistance. Multiplex PCR revealed that 3 (27.3%) possessed both blaCTX-M and blaSHV genes, 6 (54.5%) possessed only blaCTX-M gene while only 2 (18.2%) possessed only blaSHV gene. Also, 13 (76.5%) possessed only blaKPC gene. However, blaTEM as well as IMP, OXA-48, OMP 35, OMP 36 and OMP 36N genes were not detected. This study revealed that antibiotic resistance is on the rise and preventive measures should be put in place by both government and health care providers to curtail this trend. Keywords Extended Spectrum Beta-Lactamase, Urinary Tract Infections, Carbapenemase, Klebsiella spp

Abstract The number of photovoltaic (PV) installation in many countries has increased in the past decades. The advantages of energy from PV consists of reduction of CO2 emission, low maintenance cost, low operation cost, etc. On the other hand, the main problems of this technology consist of: (1) electrical power is relatively fluctuated and (2) the excessive energy from PV generating cannot be stored for any use in another necessary time. One of the solving solution is the integration of the PV systems with battery systems to keep the system stability. Moreover, the reduction of battery price leads the electricity users interest in the installation of battery systems with rooftop PV on their buildings. In the past, a number of works studied on PV systems with integrated batteries as the off-grid systems and evaluated by simulation programs. In this work, the load profiles of buildings in different categories (i.e. households, small offices, and home offices) of residential section are discussed. The characteristics of load profiles in residential buildings installed with a grid-connected rooftop PV system with batteries are analyzed by physical experimentations. It was found that battery systems were significantly affected the load profiles of the residential buildings. Household was found to be the highest proportion (21.68%) of excessive electricity. The ratio of PV met to load (29.15%) was smaller than the ratio of battery charging (50.17%). In addition, the excessive electricity in small office was the lowest proportion (10.39%), while the ratio of PV met to load (57.83%) was higher than the battery charging (31.78%). Keywords Load profile, Residential building, Rooftop PV, Battery system

Abstract Acid digestion is important in solubilizing metal ions in heavy metals determination. A number of procedures exists and the one used is dependent on different factors. This work is aimed at investigating the performance of three different acid digestion procedures (Aqua Regia, 2 M HNO3and HNO3/HClO4) for the extraction of Pb, Cd and Zn in soil sample from an abandoned dumpsite of a lead-acid producing industry in Lalupon, Oyo State. Heavy metals in soil extracts were determined using atomic absorption spectrophotometer. Results revealed that Aqua Regia gave the highest contents level of Pb and Cd, HNO3/HClO4 showed best performance for Zn while 2 M HNO3 had the least performance for the metals considered. Result of 2 M HNO3 was less than the other two and could not represent total metal content of the soil. Without losing focus of the objectives of research, variation in the effectiveness of acid digestion proceduresshould be borne in mind when making a choice. Keywords Digestion procedure, Extractants, Heavy metals, Dumpsite, Soil

Abstract The aim of this work is the screening for searching the novel β–glucosidase enzyme from various parts of Tabebuia argentea; flower, flower bud, shoot, seed shank and seed. The enzyme extracted from the samples by using appropriated buffer. The ammonium sulfate ((NH4)2SO4) salt precipitation in the different salt concentration was used to initial fractionated purification steps. The monitoring of enzyme activity by using hydrolysis reaction of glycosidic bond by using p-nitrophenyl-D-glucopyranoside (pNPG) as an enzyme substrate. The UV-vis spectroscopy used to detect the corresponding p-nitrophenylate product under basic condition at 405 nm. The enzyme activity via pNPG hydrolysis of seeds extract responds toward around 15-fold over the other part extracts of Tabebuia argentea, follow by selected enzyme fraction of seeds extract to subject to optimum temperature study, the temperature for the best enzyme activity is 30-40 °C. The highest enzyme activity fraction will be used for further purification and enzymatic properties test before apply to be a biocatalyst in biological process. Keywords β–glucosidase, Tabebuia aurea, p-nitrophenyl-D-glucopyranoside

Abstract The objective of this research was to (1) study resilience quotient status of diabetic patients at Health Promoting Hospital in Tha Rae subdistrict, Mueang district, Sakhon Nakhon province and to (2) investigate the resilience quotient development of diabetic patients. This research was done in the form of surveys and interview. The sample population includes 238 diabetic patients. The research methodology includes interviews, general information questionnaire, and resilience quotient assessment’s findings from the Department of Resilience quotient . The data of this resilience quotient research findings is analyzed by utilizing quantitative research method which includes percentage, mean and standard deviation. The research findings revealed that the majority of research population or 54.20% falls under the group of healthier (high) resilience quotient than average. Furthermore, the survey showed 87.00% of diabetic patients possess emotional stability, 90.40% of diabetic patients receives emotional support from others and 95% of diabetic patients can handle their daily life problems. Keywords Resilience quotient, Diabetic patients, Promoting resilience quotient program, Diabetic patients’ resilience quotient

Abstract The filter paper utilizing capabilities of Pseudomonas mendocina, Burkholderia pseudomallei, Chryseobacterium luteola, Klebsiella oxytoca and Klebsiella terrigena isolated from the gut of a local termite Coptotermes formosanus were analysed. The aim of this study was to isolate and characterize cellulolytic microbes from the guts of Coptotermes formosanus. The isolates were inoculated into a buffered medium containing minerals and Whatman filter paper as sole source of carbon to observe the ability of these bacteria to digest solid substrate. The ability of the isolates to grow in this medium as well as to digest the filter paper was determined by visual observation after 30 days. Reducing sugar test and gravimetric analysis were also carried out at the end of 30 days. All bacteria cultures showed growth as the medium turned cloudy and the filter paper became macerated. The gravimetric analysis of the residual filter in the liquid medium at the end of 30 days incubation showed that Chryseobacterium luteola had the highest degradation rate of 95%, Pseudomonas mendocina had the degradation rate of 90%, whilst Burkholderia pseudomallei, Klebsiella oxytoca and Klebsiella terrigena had biodegradation rate of 75% each. Reducing sugar test and paper chromatography carried out for glucose production were positive showing their ability to convert cellulose to glucose. The bacterial isolates showed a potential to convert cellulose into reducing sugars which could be readily used in many applications like feed stock for production of valuable organic compounds; for example in simultaneous saccharification and fermentation of cellulose into ethanol. Keywords Biodegradation, Chromatography, Termite gut, Cloudy, Cellulose

Abstract The objective of the present study is to find the optimal conditions for micropropagation of Alternanthera sp. The first experiment aims to find the optimal sterilization of lateral bud meristems for in vitro culture. The results revealed that the best sterilization technique is to clean lateral bud meristem by bending shoot and dipping in 70% ethanol for 1 min. These shoots were then removed and immersed in 3% sodium hypochlorite solution for 10 min. This sterilization technique provides the highest survival percentage of 95% and the best microorganism removal. The second experiment aim to determine the effects of the plant growth regulators benzyladenine (BA) on shoot proliferation. The shoot induction of sterile lateral bud meristems of Alternanthera sp. was then carried out in Murashige and Skoog (MS) media supplemented with benzyladenine (BA) at five different concentrations (0, 1, 2, 3 and 4 mg/l) under 25±2 °C and light condition for 4 weeks. It was found that MS media supplemented with 3 mg/l BA induced the optimal growth and development of shoots. This condition provides the highest root induction and the significant average shoot of 12.88±0.51 shoots/explant (p<0.05). The results from the present study could be the basic information for producing aquatic plants that have economic value and genetic conservation. In additions, it may be useful for biological activity tests or provide the possibility for callus induction for further somatic embryo culture technology. Keywords Alternanthera sp., Micropropagation, Sodium hypochlorite, Benzyladenine

Abstract Fopius vandenboschi (Fullaway) is one of the natural enemies of oriental fruit flies in genus Bactrocera. It is a koinobiont solitary endoparasitoid that parasitizes first and second instars of oriental fruit flies. The advantages of this parasitoid are the ability to parasitize several host species and the length of female longevity. Reproductive biology of F. vandenboschi in this research showed that it produced average 21.0±13.4 offspring per female, equivalent to net reproductive rate of 8.4 female offspring per generation. The sex ratio is equal to 0.6 : 0.4 (♂ : ♀) and the mean generation time of is 22.5 days. These results can be applied for massrearing production of F. vandenboschi for inoculative and inundative release to enhance management populations of Bactrocera fruit fly pest in Thailand. Keywords Fopius vandenboschi (Fullaway), Bactrocera, Reproductive biology, Natural enemies, Mass-rearing

Abstract The diversity of aquatic fauna such as fish, shrimp and crab behind Rockgarden Village in Kleang District, Rayong Province by surveying and collecting samples were in two stations of different habitat types i.e. inside and outide seagrass. The collection sampling of aquatic fauna using small beach embankment carried out 3 times in November 2016, January and March 2017 and three replications in each time. The samples were collected by dragging net with 2 mm mesh size at 1 - 1.2 m of a depth level. The total faunal species comprised 24 species from 20 families, 5 orders and 2 classes as Actinopterygii in fish group with 4 orders i.e. Perciformes (13 families, 17 genera and 16 species), Syngnathiformes (1 family, 1 genera and 1 species), Atheriniformes (1 family, 1 genera and 1 species) and Tetraodontiformes (2 families, 2 genera and 2 species) and Malacostraca in crab and shrimp with 1 order as Decapoda (3 families, 4 genera and 4 species). The 22 species (18 fish species, 3 crab species and 1 shrimp species) were found inside seagrass while 15 species ( 11 fish species, 3 crab species and 1 shrimp species) were found outide seagrass. The fish group was the most abundance and then was the crab and shrimp group. Family of fish which is the most abundance in this area was Siganidae. The diversity index of aquatic fauna was inside seagrass as 1.042 and outside seagrass as 0.188. This survey indicated that the inside seagrass area was more abundant aquatic fauna than the outside seagrass area and was important in habitat, nursery ground and food source of aquatic fauna. Keywords Species diversity, Aquatic fauna, Seagrass, Rockgarden Village

Abstract In this paper, we propose a new mixture Lomax distribution for positive continuous random variable. The new mixture Lomax distribution has two component distributions which are Lomax distribution and length biased Lomax distribution. We have derived and studies in probability properties which include the probability density function, cumulative distribution function, survival function, hazard function, moment about origin, mean, variance, coefficient of skewness and coefficient of kurtosis. Next, we study the estimation parameter of new mixture Lomax distribution by using maximum likelihood estimation. Finally, application of new mixture Lomax distribution is illustrated by real data set which is analyzed using Akaike’s information criterion (AIC). It is shown that the proposed distribution fits much better than some other existing Lomax distributions. Keywords Mixture Lomax distribution, Length biased Lomax distribution.

Abstract This article is chromatographic analysis of inks for forensic science. Thin layer chromatographic technique (TLC) is often used in separation of writing inks because it is rapid and requires no sophisticated instrumentation. The repeatability and reproducibility of TLC analyses of inks depend on several factors. However, the critical importance is the use of solvent for the extraction process and for mobile phase. The purpose of the present study is to compare the effectiveness of blue ballpoint pen ink separation by TLC between different solvent extraction and variant mobile phase systems. Thirty blue ballpoint pens commonly used in Thailand were extracted from document then three solvents (ethanol, acetone or dichloromethane) and five solvent systems as mobile phase were used to separate pigment compounds in each sample. The Rf values were calculated for discrimination analysis of all blue pens via two-way ANOVA. The results showed that the most important factor affecting ink classification was solvent extraction. The ethanol was the best solvent for extraction and the optimal mobile phase was n-butanol: ethanol: water (50:15:10 v/v/v) having statistically significant level of 0.05. This mobile phase system could be used to classify all 30 inks into 12 different groups with the discrimination power (DP) of 89.20%. In the future, the qualitative data from TLC plates will more reliable by multivariate statistical techniques can also be applied on effectively interpretation. Keywords Forensic, Ballpoint pen inks, Thin-layer chromatography, Ink analysis

Abstract Many caves in the Philippines are amongst the most popular natural ecotourism sites, even though most of them are poorly regulated and understudied. This study investigates the anthropogenic impacts of unsustainable eco-tourism and exploitation on cave-roosting bats in Sumalsag Cave, Bukidnon, Mindanao Island, Philippines. The species richness of the cave-roosting bat fauna was determined using the standard mist-netting method and capture-mark and release technique. The conservation status was assessed based on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List. Ecological evaluation and assessment of the cave’s speleological characteristics and ecological condition was carried out using the Philippines’ standard cave assessment protocol. After completing 15 net-nights field sampling with a capture effort of 180 net/hours, results revealed a total of six (6) species of cave-roosting bats which belongs to three (3) families. Two Philippine endemic species, Ptenochirus jagori and Ptenochirus minor were documented including Miniopterus schreibersii, a species classified under near threatened category. Evidence of human activities were considered for identifying the indirect and direct threats on the bat fauna. Destroyed speleothems and speleogens, excavations, modifications of the cave’s features as well as graffiti in the cave walls were recorded. This study recommends regulating eco-tourism activities, protecting the endemic and threatened species and promoting natural restoration of the cave by implementing the existing environmental laws. Keywords Threatened species, Chiroptera, Ecotourism, Conservation, Mindanao

Abstract This research is in the sequence of the innovative utilization from a previous study on developing standard food recipes utilising Riceberry rice as the key ingredient under the context of the communities of Uttaradit province, Thailand along with the context of the ASEAN Community. The 10 standard recipes from the previous study were used in real commercialisation that aimed to promote the utilisation of local food raw materials of Uttaradit province, to increase the competitiveness of local products in the ASEAN Community’s market, and to promote commercialisation and tourism. The recipes were tested on sensory acceptance evaluation with 100 tourist samples and nutritional values assessment. The evaluation data were used to indicate the potential of the recipes to meet tourists’ satisfaction, which was eventually used together with the recipes’ nutritional data as the reference for the consideration of and selection for one month of real commercialised trial testing by seven food business entrepreneurs in Uttaradit province. After finishing the commercialised test, the food business entrepreneurs evaluated the appropriateness of the recipes to use for real commercialisation. The result of the average sensory acceptance evaluation scored on all 10 recipes using a 5-point hedonic scale evaluation form indicated that, all 10 recipes were accepted by the tourists and had the potential to be utilised for serving to tourists. The seven food business entrepreneurs selected four out of the 10 recipes for the commercialised test according to the reference data of each recipe provided for their consideration, flexibility, convenience and capability to adopt the recipes. The reasons that the entrepreneurs selected only four recipes were because of their consideration on the available raw materials during the testing period, their capability to cook the food according to the instruction of the recipes, and the conforming of the theme of the recipes to their business theme that mostly sold healthy food. The results of the recipes’ appropriateness for real commercialisation using a Likert-type scale appropriateness evaluation form have shown that the selected recipes were appropriate for use in a real commercialisation situation. Keywords Riceberry Rice, Standard food recipe, Community-context, Commercialisation, ASEAN Community, Tourism promotion

Abstract Lime juice powder was developed with 20% of combined maltodextrin/gum Arabic at a ratio of 4:1. A high shear homogenization was applied to encapsulate phytochemical compounds before spray drying with the purpose of protecting bioactive compounds from thermal degradation. The effect of high shear homogenization on physicochemical properties and antioxidant activity of spray-dried lime powder was studied. The particle size, morphology, moisture content, color, solubility, hygroscopicity, ascorbic acid, total polyphenol and flavonoid contents, and antioxidant activity of the spray-dried powder undergoing the homogenization were compared with those of the non-homogenized powder. The higher yield (30%) was obtained in the homogenized powder compared with the control (28%) with no significant difference. The average particle diameter of the homogenized powder was 0.1-4 micrometers, smaller than 18-26 micrometers of the untreated powder. Morphological study revealed that the powder without homogenization was densely packed compared with the homogenized powder. Moisture content of homogenized powder and that of the particles without homogenization were 3.91% and 5.42%, respectively. Higher solubility and less hygroscopicity values and color after spray drying were observed in reconstituted lime powder with high shear homogenization. Folin-Ciocalteu and aluminum trichloride (AlCl3) assays were used to determine total phenolic and flavonoid compounds, respectively. 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryl hydrazyle-hydrate (DPPH) assay was used to determine total antioxidant activity of the powders. The retention of ascorbic acid and total phenolic contents, and antioxidant activity was significantly better in the homogenized powder, but not the flavonoid contents. The antioxidant activity derived from total phytochemical compounds in the treated powder was preserved by the homogenization before spray drying. This study indicated that the application of high shear homogenization with combined drying agent before spray drying could prevent phytochemical compounds in lime from thermal degradation. Keywords Lime powder, Spray drying, Physicochemical properties, Bioactive retention, Antioxidant activity

Abstract The objectives of this research were to study species checklist, abundance, feeding behavior, status of birds and group of migratory birds in the research area. The data was carried out by field survey of species checklist and abundance of birds which foraged in land-use areas namely salt field areas, aquaculture areas, shrimp pond and cockle pond in Bang Kaew Sub-district, Muang District, Samut Songkhram Province from August 2015 - July 2016. The data were analyzed to find out abundance of birds. The results found that 10 orders, 24 families and 51 bird species were found in salt field areas and aquaculture areas of coastal land. 9 orders, 17 families and 35 bird species were found in salt field. 10 orders, 22 families and 44 bird species were found in shrimp pond. 7 orders, 16 families and 32 bird species were found in cockle pond. According to bird abundance, 6 bird species were in level 5 of bird abundance. It was 11.76 % of all bird species. According to feeding behavior, there were 12 insectivorous birds, 20 piscivorous birds, 12 aquatic, benthic invertebrate feeding birds, 4 granivorous birds, 1 frugivorous bird, 1 carnivorous bird, 1 omnivorous bird and 1 predator bird. According to bird seasonal status, there were 24 resident birds, 7 resident and migratory birds and 20 migratory birds. According to migratory bird group, there were 12 shore birds, 4 terrestrial birds and 3 sea birds. According to IUCN threatened Status, Painted Stork, Eastern Black-tailed Godwit, Red-necked Stint and Eurasian Curlew were near-threatened (NT). So the communities should give their hands to conserve salt field areas and aquaculture areas of coastal land and biodiversity continuously, because the birds are indicators of natural balance and plenty of food in local ecosystem. Keywords Species checklist of birds, Abundance of birds, Coastal land.

Abstract Roselle is an herbaceous medicinal plant where being native in Asia. The calyx of roselle action as well as its bioactive compounds and natural pigments. In this work, total phenolic, total flavonoid, scavenging capacity and antibacterial activity of roselle aqueous extract were investigated and applied as substrate for wine production. Scavenging capacity of roselle aqueous extracts were increased dependently on dose of total phenolic compound in extract. Roselle wine was produced and evaluated on pH, alcohol (%), total acid (%), total solid (oBrix), total viable count of bacteria and yeast/mold for 10 days of fermentation. pH and total solid were significantly decreased from 0 day of fermentation, while alcohol, total acid and total viable count of bacteria and yeast/mold were significantly increased until the end of process. Roselle aqueous extract at the concentration of 0.5 and 1 mg/ml were inhibited the growth of Escherichia coli, Salmonella sp., Bacillus sp. and Staphylococcus aureus while wine product have no effect on antibacterial activity. Keywords Roselle, Roselle wine, Scavenging capacity and antibacterial activity

Abstract An approximate confidence interval for the ratio of bivariate normal means with a known coefficient of variation is proposed in this paper. This application has the area of bioassay and bioequivalence when a scientist knows the coefficient of variation of a control group. The proposed confidence interval is based on the approximated expectation and variance of the estimator by the Taylor series expansion. A Monte Carlo simulation study was conducted to compare the performance of the proposed confidence interval with the existing confidence interval. The results showed that the simulation is considered confidence interval and the estimated coverage probabilities close to the nominal confidence level for large sample sizes. The estimated coverage probabilities of the existing confidence interval are over estimated for all situations. In addition, the expected lengths of the proposed confidence interval are shorter than those of the existing confidence interval in all circumstances. When the sample size increases, the expected length become shorter. Therefore, our confidence interval presented in this paper performs well in terms of estimated coverage probability and the expected length in considering the simulation results. A comparison of the confidence intervals is also illustrated using an empirical application. Keywords Interval estimation, Central tendency, Standardized measure of dispersion, Coverage probability, Expected length

Abstract A leaf spot disease was observed on Aloe vera plants growing in nurseries and botanical gardens of Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, India. Symptoms were noticed on the tips and the middle part of the leaves in the form of small, circular, dark brown necrotic spots, with an average diameter of 0.6-1.4×0.5- 0.9 cm. Dark brown colonies with granular appearance was consistently isolated from the infected tissue on PDA. Conidia were hyaline, aseptate and rod shaped measuring up to 12.5-20×7.5- 15 µm. Based on the morphological and cultural characteristics, fungus was identified as Polyrostrata indica Prameela and Nita Mathur. Pathogenicity test conducted on healthy Aloe leaves showed typical leaf spot symptoms after fourteen day of infestation. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first record of this pathogen on A. vera in India. Keywords Aloe vera, Leaf spot, Polyrostrata indica, Disease, India

Abstract In this work, the silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) were successfully synthesized using chitosan derived from shrimp shells through a simple and eco-friendly method called the green synthesis. The chitosan not only acted as the reducing agent for Ag+, but also stabilized the AgNPs to protect nanoparticles from aggregation. The as-synthesized colloidal chitosan-AgNPs was yellowish-brown color with a maximum absorption wavelength at approximately 434 nm. The size and shape, and crystal structure of AgNPs were characterized by transmission electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction spectrometry, respectively. The results indicated that the AgNPs was spherical particles with a diameter of 23.5 ± 0.6 nm. The XRD pattern peaked at different diffraction angles corresponding to the (111), (200), (220), and (311) planes indicated that AgNPs had face-centered cubic (fcc) structure. Keywords Green synthesis, Silver nanoparticles, Chitosan, Biopolymer

Abstract The burning of massive amount of fire crackers on the evening(s) of a nation-wide celebrated festival called ‘Diwali’ in India, gives rise to a remarkably high concentration of criteria air pollutants and it is of utmost importance to investigate the impact of such high loads originated during a relatively shorter time span in a mega-city like Delhi where the situation of ambient air quality has already been alarming almost through-out the year. In view of the same, the present study analyzes available concentration data during this festival’s night for five criteria pollutants namely PM10, PM2.5, SO2, NO2, and CO along with NH3 at six key locations of Delhi. Following the analysis, PM10 concentration in Anand Vihar during nighttime of Diwali was reported to be ~8 times higher than the 24-hr values prescribed by National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). On the other hand, the same at IGI airport was recorded lowest even though about 3.5 times that of the guiding standard. PM2.5 concentrations were reported as highest and lowest at R.K. Puram and Civil lines respectively, in both the cases quite exceeding the comparable standard values. Interestingly, remaining criteria pollutants, namely, SO2 NO2 and CO along with NH3 measured in 2015 showed no values in excess of corresponding 24-hrs guidelines, thereby reporting a better scenario compared to previous years. Further, the extensive use of firecrackers during Diwali festival leads to substantial increase in air pollutants necessitating special measures to control. Keywords Fireworks; Diwali; Aerosols; Criteria pollutants; NAAQS

Abstract In this paper, we propose an improvement of the minimum Kolmogorov-Smirnov (K-S) estimator using proportional hazards transform (PH-transform) technique. The data of experiment is 47 fire accidents data of an insurance company in Thailand. This experiment has two operations, the first operation, we minimize K-S statistic value using grid search technique for nine distributions; Rayleigh distribution, gamma distribution, Pareto distribution, log-logistic distribution, logistic distribution, normal distribution, Weibull distribution, log-normal distribution, and exponential distribution and the second operation, we improve K-S statistic using PH-transform. The result appears that PH-transform technique can improve the minimum K-S estimator. The algorithms give better the minimum K-S estimator for seven distributions; Rayleigh distribution, logistic distribution, gamma distribution, Pareto distribution, log-logistic distribution, normal distribution, Weibull distribution, log-normal distribution, and exponential distribution while the minimum K-S estimators of normal distribution and logistic distribution are unchanged. Keywords Minimum K-S estimator, PH-transform technique

Abstract The research focuses on an insurance model controlled by proportional reinsurance in the finite-time surplus process with an equalized interatrial time. We prove the existence of the maximal retention level for independent and identically distributed claim processes under α-regulation, i.e., a model where the insurance company has to manage the probability of insolvency to be at most α. In addition, we illustrate the maximal retention level for exponential claims by applying the bisection technique. Keywords Probability of insolvency, Proportional reinsurance, Maximal retention level

Abstract The purpose of this research was to study the quality of latent fingerprint on different types of screen protective films including screen protector, matte screen protector, anti-fingerprint clear screen protector and anti-fingerprint matte screen protector by using black powder method in developing latent fingerprints. The fingerprints were performed by 10 volunteers whose fingers (right index, right thumb, left index and left thumb) were stubbing at different types of screen protective films and subsequently latent fingerprints were developed by brushing with black powder. Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS) counted the numbers of minutiae points from 320 latent fingerprints. Anti-fingerprint matte screen protective film produced the best quality of latent fingerprint with an average minutiae point 72.65, followed by matte screen protective film, clear screen protective film and anti-fingerprint clear screen protective film with an average minutiae point of 155.2, 135.0 and 72.65 respectively. The quality of latent fingerprints developed between a clear and a matte surface of screen protective films showed a significant difference (sig > 0.05), whereas the coat and the non-coat with anti-fingerprint chemical revealed a non-significant difference (sig < 0.05) in their number of minutiae points. Keywords Screen protective film, Latent fingerprints, Black powder method, Anti-fingerprint coating

Abstract This paper proposes an extend mixture inverse Gaussian (EMIG) distribution which is mixed between the inverse Gaussian distribution and the length biased inverse Gaussian (LBIG) distribution. The Birnbaum-Saunders (BS) distribution and LBIG distribution are presented as special cases of the EMIG distribution. The properties of this distribution are discussed which include the shapes of the probability density functions, distribution functions survival functions and hazard rate functions, mean and variance. The EMIG has two parameters and it is shown that maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) can be obtained by solving equation. An application of the model to a real data set is analyzed using the new distribution, which shows that the EMIG distribution can be used quite effectively in analyzing real data by using Akaike’s information criterion (AIC) statistics and goodness of fit tests. Keywords Mixture Inverse Gaussian Distribution, Length Biased Inverse Gaussian Distribution, Birnbaum-Saunders Distribution

Abstract The D-phenylglycine aminotransferase (D-PhgAT) is a novel enzyme that can be used to synthesize precursors of antibiotics. This research addressed the function of the carboxyl-terminal (C-terminal) of D-PhgAT. Its C-terminal amino acid sequence was compared to other related proteins using bioinformatics tools. The analyzed amino acid sequence was used to produce a genetically modified enzyme having a truncation of the 10 amino acid residues at the C-terminal region. The truncated D-PhgAT was purified and analyzed for catalytic performance. The results revealed that the truncated enzyme had better catalytic performance than the full-length enzyme by 37.49%. This research is a preliminary study for improving the enzymatic performance of D-PhgAT by structure-guided engineering and can be applied in the development of other enzymes. Keywords D-phenylglycine aminotransferase; carboxyl-terminus; catalytic performance; bioinformatics tools

Abstract This paper presents the use of flood frequency analysis integrating with 1D Hydraulic model (HEC- RAS) and Geographic Information System (GIS) to prepare flood hazard maps of different return periods in Ayeyarwady River at Mandalay City in Myanmar. Gumbel’s distribution was used to calculate the flood peak of different return periods, namely, 10 years, 20 years, 50 years, and 100 years. The flood peak from frequency analysis were input into HEC-RAS model to find the corresponding flood level and extents in the study area. The model results were used in integrating with ArcGIS to generate flood plain maps. Flood depths and extents have been identified through flood plain maps. Analysis of 100 years return period flood plain map indicated that 157.88 km2 with the percentage of 17.54% is likely to be inundated. The predicted flood depth ranges varies from greater than 0 to 24 m in the flood plains and on the river. The range between 3 to 5 m were identified in the urban area of Chanayetharzan, Patheingyi, and Amarapua Townships. The highest inundated area was 85 km2 in the Amarapura Township. Keywords Flood Frequency; HEC-RAS; Flood Hazard; Return Period; GIS

Abstract In this project, We refer from the case of signal blocking to commit the remote vehicle crime in the venerable place for crime happen, for example parking lot in public area, department store and sideway street. From experiment of signal blocking by using another remote control; for signal wiretap, in over 5 meters, 10 meters and 15 meters of areas. We found that the Vehicle Brand A Model No. 1 can be blocked by 83.33 percent, while Brand A Model No. 2 can be blocked by 83.33 percent. At the same way, Vehicle Brand B Model No.1 can be blocked by 40 percent, While Brand B Model No.2 can be blocked by 60 percent. Moreover, Vehicle Brand C Model No. 1 can be blocked by 83.33 percent, while Brand C Model No. 2 can be blocked by 83.33 percent. meanwhile, the remote control for general vehicle are used radio waves in period of 315 MHz and 433 MHz of frequency, so the criminal will using colliding waves, from radio wave frequency that we refer to, for jamming and make opportunity for robber the car. Keywords Vehicles Robbery Prevention, Remote Blocking Signals

Abstract The spatial distribution of land cover information and its changes is very valuable for any planning, management and monitoring at local as well as regional scale. In this paper, multi-temporal Landsat TM/ OLI data were used to classify the land cover of the Nakhon Nayok province in Thailand over the period 2004-2015. The supervised classification maximum likelihood method was implemented to assign probability to land the cover classes considered. The random sampling point method was used for field survey and accuracy assessment. The overall accuracy and kappa coefficient in 2015 were found to be 72% and 0.6626 respectively. The results also indicated that important changes concerned mainly urban (308.46 %), water (-50.46%), and agricultural (-12.14%) areas, and least changes forest areas (3.17%). These results also highlighted that over the last 10 years, urban areas have been characterized by the highest expansion, mainly from the conversion of agricultural land. Keywords Remote Sensing, Landsat, Land cover dynamics, change detection

Abstract This work was a data collection of electricity and water supply consumption of the Dean’s Office of the Faculty of Science and Technology, Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University, Thailand. The greenhouse gas emissions from electricity and water supply consumptions were calculated using the up-to-date emission factor from the Thailand Greenhouse Gas Management Organization (TGO) database. In average, the office consumes 1.045 m3/d and 87.9 kWh/d of water and electricity, respectively. This is equal to 68.5 Liter per person (11.25 L/m2) and 4.1 kWh per person (0.6788 kWh /m2) for the daily water supply and electricity consumptions, respectively. The total daily greenhouse gas emission from both electricity and water supply consumption is 59.01 kg-CO2 eq. which is mainly came from the electricity consumption (≈ 98%). The average emission based on people and area are 2.566 kg-CO2 eq per person and 0.422 kg-CO2/m2, respectively. Keywords Resources management, Electricity, Water supply, Green House Gases Emission

Abstract This survey research aimed to find the health effects of computer use on Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University’s personnel. A total of 312 samples were selected out of 1401 population by simple random method. Inferential statistics were used throughout the hypothesis testing and data analysis (percentage, mean and standard deviation). The correlation between risk factors and computer-used behavior were calculated by Pearson correlation and Creamer’s V coefficient (95% CI). The results indicated that the samples spend 6-10 hours of the workday on the computer. In order to create a good working environment, the organization has provided good computing facilities. The overview of computer-used behavior suggests that the personnel have regular good practice, i.e. 5 - 6 times per week. The research result found that the most of personnel have a regular eyestrain, eye fatigue, sore eyes and irritation symptoms at least 5-6 times per week. In addition, the personnel have regular neck, shoulder, back, waist and wrist pain symptoms at least 3-4 times per week. The result indicated that the computer user’s behavior and user’s health status relate to each other, and are in the same way. In conclusion, the academic staff requires the basic computer usage knowledge in order to avoid future health problems. Keywords Health Effects, Health Disorder, Computer-used behavior, Office Syndrome, Computer Syndrome.

Abstract Attitude of residing people towards a protected forest area was evaluated for sustainable use of natural resources and forest conservation in the Phu Kao–PhuPhan Kham National Park in Thailand. Their economic and social conditions were assessed in three villages of Phukao, NongBua Lamphu Province. Data were collected from 348 households (66.5%) heads or the representatives in the villages with the questionnaire. The questionnaire consisted of three parts: (i) general economic and social information (ii) social grouping and participation and (iii) attitude toward participation in conserving natural resources and tourism management in this area. To evaluate their attitude, the collected data were divided into four categories: (i) level 4 equilibrium/nature (ii) level 3 warning (iii) level 2 risk (iv) level 1 crisis for forest conservation in the protected area. Overall, their attitude towards natural resource conservation, the social grouping and the community participation was very low. However, the attitude towards ecotourism is very high. We suggest that forest conservation will be maintained by more progress of ecotourism in this area. Keywords Human Altitude, Natural Resources, Sustainable Management, National park, conservation

Abstract In Sri Lanka, presently used landslide hazard zonation (LHZ) map which was developed by National Building and Research Organization (NBRO) is based entirely on geological, geomorphological and hydrological factors. As development expands into unstable hill slope areas under the pressures of increasing population and urbanization, human activities such as deforestation or excavation of slopes for road cuts and building sites, etc., have become important triggers for landslide occurrence. The present study was undertaken in highly urbanized Kandy Municipal Council (KMC) area in Sri Lanka. Main objective of the study was to validate the existing LHZ map with current active landslides and the improvement of the LHZ map for further use for management purposes. Validation of the existing LHZ map shows lowest percentage of landslide occurrence in the landslides most likely to occur zone and highest in the landslides are to be expected zone. To evaluate this situation building density and transport lines were used. The relationship between building density and landslide occurrence was 97.1% and the relationship between distance from transport lines and landslide occurrence was 88.3% till 50 m. An improved LHZ map was developed including the effect of building density and distance from transport lines using frequency ratio method and improved LHZ map has an accuracy of 98.5%. Keywords Buildings, Hazards, Map, Landslide, Roads

Abstract The relationship between the nitrogen dioxide concentration measured by the Sodium Arsenite method and the Chemiluminescence method, aimed at developing a device for measuring nitrogen dioxide in the atmosphere by means of the Sodium Arsenite method and studying the correlation between the concentration of nitrogen dioxide in the atmosphere which was measured by Sodium Arsenite method and the Chemiluminescense method done by the Pollution Control Department, Thailand. In this research sampling collection of nitrogen dioxide concentration in various conditions by the Sodium Arsenite method was compared with that by the Chemiluminescence method done by the pollution control Department at the Air Quality Measurement Station at the Din Dang district, Bangkok. It was done by one-hour average value totaling of thirty data. The research result found that the sampling collection with the flowing rate of 160 ml/min and the absorption reagent with mixture of 0.2 M sodium hydroxide and 0.015 M sodium arsenite had the highest relationship to the measurement result done by the Pollution Control Department at a statistical significance level of 0.05 with the value of correlation coefficient at 0.658 which had a high relation. Keywords Air pollution sampling, Chemiluminescense, Nitrogen dioxide, Sodium arsenite

Abstract This research aimed to study the status of energy consumption in terms of electric energy consumption and specific energy consumption (SEC) of the Science Center Building, Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University, Bangkok, Thailand. It was found the electric energy consumption in 2012 was 77,818 kWh. The specific energy consumption was 27.91 MJ/m2. It needed to have an energy conservation measure for the electric system for short-term measures. For the longterm, the electric system installation was regularly improved and maintained. Keywords Electric energy consumption, specific energy consumption.

Abstract Endophytic fungi are present in all plant species investigated, and members of the Xylariaceae are especially common in tropical plants. There is major interest in endophytic fungi, because of their excellent track record concerning the production of novel and often bioactive compounds including the anti-cancer drugs taxol and taxane. Studies in Thailand on endophytes over the past 20 years confirm the high presence of the Xylariaceae in many different Thai plants. Species of Xylaria stand out as the most frequent Xylariaceae isolated; although, Daldinia eschscholtzii has also been commonly isolated. DNA technology and chemical profiling have been shown to be invaluable in the identification of xylariaceous isolates which previously could not be identified to species level or even assigned to genera in many cases. Reference is made to those isolates which produce novel compounds or those exhibiting bioactive properties. Keywords Endophytic fungi, Xylariaceae, Thailand, Novel metabolites.

Abstract The study of phytoplankton and zooplankton in Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University, Samut Songkram Campus by collecting the samples following the seasons: the cool season (December, 2012), the hot season (March, 2013) and the rainy season (June, 2013). The plankton samples were collected from 5 stations by using 70 micrometers mesh size of plankton net and examined the water quality. The results showed that, in total, there are plankton in 48 genera, 77 species which consist of 36 genera, 58 species of the phytoplankton, and 12 genera, 19 species of the zooplankton. The phytoplankton: Class Bacillariophyceae was the dominant group and the most diverse was the genus Chaetoceros (8 species). The zooplankton: Phylum Sarcomastigophora had the most species diversity and most diverse zooplankton was the genus Ceratium (5 species). The cool season was the season when the greatest species diversity of the plankton could be found and the water temperature average was 27.79 ° C. The pH average was 7.82. The dissolved oxygen average was 6.21 mg/l. The salinity average was 24 ppt. These conditions are the appropriate environment for these living aquatic organisms. Keywords Species diversity, Plankton, Samut Songkhram

Abstract This paper reports a preliminary study of the evaluation and forecast of transport-related air pollution dispersion in urban areas with the help of Geographic Information System (GIS) platform and a simulative system with graphical interface. The urban population growth, economic development, energy consumption, growing transportation demand and living standards play major role in pollution exposure in atmosphere. A lot of research has already been done to investigate the functional relationship between air quality and air pollution from transport. This study is an effort to develop a more flexible framework of model to find the exposure of the air pollution in the atmosphere. This review article describes the development of framework of different GIS inputs that help to find the exposure of vehicular pollution in megacity. Keywords Dispersion, Pollution Exposure, GIS Application, Urban Air Quality, Vehicular Emission.

Abstract The objective of this research was to develop animation teaching media on the topic of The Property of the Father to teach for students to understand the concept of sufficiency. The animation was developed to evaluate the performance of a sample of 50 grade 4-5 students at Wat Don Sali School. The results were as the achievement of the students who were taught with the animation was .05 significantly and students had a high level of satisfaction with the animation. Keywords Animation, teaching media, sufficiency

Abstract The present study was carried out with a specific objective to study postharvest spoilage of Lobhiya(Vigna unguiculata) seeds contaminated with Aspergillus flavus. Infected seeds were collected and cultured on potato dextroseagar(PDA) media, at 25±2 °C.Aspergillus flavus isolates were primarily characterized by its morphological and microscopic characteristics. Collected fungal isolates were also screened for their afaltoxigenic nature on preliminary basis and at molecular level.For preliminary screening, 5 mm disc of fungal culture was soaked with few drops of liquid ammonia. Color change from yellow pigment to plum - red with different intensities showed the mycotoxic nature of the fungus. DNA from fungal isolates was isolated and amplified using PCR with aflatoxin specific primers, apa - 2, ver - 1 and omt-1. Amplicons of 1032 bp, 895 bp and 596 bp were obtained in most of the isolates regardless of primer set used which was useful to differentiate between mycotoxic and nontoxic isolates of A.flavus. The isolation of aflatoxigenic strains of A.flavus during post - harvest period of lobhiya seeds raise a serious concern over the quality of seeds and a threat to heath of consumers. It was concluded that Aspergillus flavus is responsible for postharvest spolilage of Lobhiya(Vigna unguiculata). Keywords Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp., post-harvest spoilage, Aspergillus flavus, aflatoxins.

Abstract A presentation of the notion of sustainable development through the eye of a town planner, by elucidating how open space development would change the character of the city and augment towards harmony in the socio-environmental chords of sustainable development. It is an attempt to put forward awareness about the sustainability and environmental risk to ultimately reconcile ecological, social and economic factors of society. It is an attempt to reflect on socio-environmental dimension of the open space planning by addressing urban metamorphosis. Keywords Sustainability, Urban metamorphosis, Environmental risk, Diversity, Open space development, Quality of life, People’s participation

Abstract Though most medical students are from top of the classes, it is no secret that gaining real-life work experience and advancing their careers require years of practical and hand-on experiences. To address the perceived skill and to bridge gaps, a first-hand solution is launched in the form of a prototype being developed that take a unique spin on e-Learning system with interactive content. The tool is tested with domain expert and various levels of medical students and their anonymity. The preliminary result is shown to be satisfactory for more coverage. Keywords e-Learning, Interactive Content, Prototype, Medical Studies, Anonymity

Abstract A trial of the 2,300-2,800 Hz band of frequency in sound waves were made more intense in decibels (dB), similar to a firecracker or firecracker ball was made for use of the local people to dislodge and/or obstruct wild elephants from agricultural areas (pineapple plantations) within Kui Buri District, Prachuap Khiri Khan Province, Thailand. The 3 point source was checked between 10 -50 meters, sound sources to the elephants in distances and loudness are as discussed later; firecracker balls were 151, 142, 138, 128, 119 decibels (dB), firecrackers were 99, 95, 91, 85, 72 dB, and the frequency of the sound waves (2,800 Hz) were 85, 80, 74, 70, 62 dB, respectively. The results can be analyzed through the laboratory and fundamentals of sound wave, anatomy and physiology of mammals, including comparisons to the standard sound intensities of the Acoustical Society of America (ASA). The energy and pressure of firecracker ball is strong and were transferred into some auditory mechanisms and behaviors of wild elephants. As a consequence, the elephant’s auditory mechanism has been affected from the energy and pressure; at least 1 individual of wild elephant had shown sensorineural hearing loss in the case study, their behavior became more aggressive and more easily angered. Keywords Wild Elephant, Conservation, Sound Wave, Kui Buri District, Thailand

Abstract This research is quantitative and qualitative explorative research. The purposes of this research was 1) to study bird species, feeding behavior, abundance and status in study area 2) to study activities in utilization of birds in the study site. The data was obtained by interviewing the owners of fruit gardens and field surveys of bird species, activities of birds in habitat utilization in three kinds of organic fruit gardens namely; lychee garden, coconut garden, and pomelo garden in Bang Nang Li Sub-district, Amphawa District, Samut Songkram Province from October 2012 – September 2013. The result of bird survey in 3 gardens found 31 families and 61 species of birds. 52 bird species were found the most in organic pomelo gardens. In feeding habitats, insectivorous, piscivorous, granivorous, nectrivorous birds and aquatic invertebrate feeding birds were found. Abundance level of birds in organic fruit gardens was at level 5. 23 bird species were frequently found. 43 bird species were found in November because migratory birds came to utilize the study site. According to the status of bird species, 48 resident bird species, 6 resident and 7 migrant bird species were found in organic fruit gardens. The birds’ activities in fruit gardens were feeding and nesting. Keywords Samut Songkram Province, Fruit gardens, Bird diversity.