jbas

Journal of Basic & Applied Sciences

Comparison of Wind Energy Potential for Coastal Locations: Pasni and Gwadar
Pages 211-216
Junaid K. Khan, Muhammad Shoaib, Zaheer Uddin, Imran Ahmad Siddiqui, Asim Aijaz, Afaq Ahmed Siddiqui and Ehtesham Hussain

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.6000/1927-5129.2015.11.30

Published: 05 March 2015

Open Access

Abstract: A comparative study for the wind power density of the two investigated coastal sites viz. Pasni and Gwadar is presented in this paper. Pasni and Gwadar are located along the coast belt of Balochistan in Arabian Sea. Investigations are performed on daily wind speed data recorded at 12:00 UTC, obtained from Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) for a period five years, i.e. from 2003 to 2007. The recorded wind speed data distribution is fitted to the Weibull distribution function described by two fitting parameters i.e. scale (c) and shape (k). The Weibull parameters are numerically calculated using the Method of Moment (MoM). Monthly mean wind speeds for the two stations are predicted and wind power densities are calculated for the two stations. Comparison of the wind power densities of the investigated sites reveals a higher wind energy yield for Pasni as compared to Gwadar. The highest wind power density is predicted for the month of May.

Keywords: Weibull Distribution, Weibull Parameters, Method of Moment, Pasni, Gwadar.

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Journal of Basic & Applied Sciences

Kinetic and Thermodynamic Studies of Antioxidant and Antimicrobial Activities of Essential Oil of Lavendula steochs
Pages 217-222
Erum Zahir, Tahira Saleem, Humaira Siddiqui, Shaista Naz and Syed Muhammad Shahid

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.6000/1927-5129.2015.11.31

Published: 05 March 2015

Open Access

Abstract: Antioxidant, antimicrobial activities of essential oil from plant Lavendula steochs were studies bykinetics and thermodynamic approach. Hydro-distillation was used for the extraction of oil from the flowers of Lavendula steochs. - Antioxidant activity was performed using DPPH method, in which the IC50 showed that essential oil has good antioxidant activity. Antimicrobial activity has been analyzed against Methicillin-resistant Staphlococcus aureus (MRSA) and Vancomycin-resistant Staphlococcus aureus (VRSA) which shows that Lavendula steochs is found to be effective against MRSA andVRSA. Chemical composition of essential oils were measured by GC-MS and FT-IR techniques and the kinetic & thermodynamic parameters were used for the characterization of essential oils.

Keywords: Lavendula steochs, Antioxidant, Antimicrobial, FT-IR, GC-MS.

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Journal of Basic & Applied Sciences

Isolation and Characterization of Hydrocarbon Degrading Bacteria from Petrol Contaminated Soil
Pages 223-231
Talat Yasmeen Mujahid, Abdul Wahab, Safia Hashim Padhiar, Syed Abdus Subhan, Muneera Naz Baloch and Zaid A. Pirzada

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.6000/1927-5129.2015.11.32

Published: 05 March 2015

Open Access

Abstract: Hydrocarbon degrading bacteria were isolated from the petrol contaminated soil of Karachi to determine their biodegradation capabilities of aromatic hydrocarbons such as xylene, phenanthrene, naphthalene, biphenyl and anthracene. Twelve bacterial strains were isolated by culture enrichment technique in Bushnell Hass medium in the presence of petrol. Hydrocarbon degradation capabilities of bacterial strains were assessed by means of enumeration using spread-plate technique. Current study revealed that all of the twelve isolated bacterial strains were able to degrade aromatic hydrocarbons, particularly Pseudomonas sp. SA044, degraded all the tested five aromatic hydrocarbons while Burkholderia sp., Ralstonia sp., Stenotrophomonas sp., Micrococcus sp. and Staphylococcus sp. degraded three or more aromatic hydrocarbons.Naphthalene and phenanthrene were the most degraded aromatic hydrocarbons.

Keywords: Polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), biodegradation, bioremediation, petrol contaminated soil, enumeration, Bushnell Hass (BH) medium.

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Journal of Basic & Applied Sciences

Determination of Chemical Stability of Various Famotidine Dosage Forms by UV –Visible Spectrophotometric Method and Data Analysis by R-GUI Stability Software
Pages 232-239
Sohail Hassan, Erum Zaheer, Iyad Naeem Muhammad, Amir Hassan, Mohsin Ali and Masooda Qadri

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.6000/1927-5129.2015.11.33

Published: 05 March 2015

Open Access

Abstract: H2 receptor antagonists are still the first line of therapy in treating gastro esophageal reflux diseases as well as other ulcers of the upper gastrointestinal tract. Accelerated stability studies of different brands of Famotidine tablets (20mg) and suspension(10mg/5ml),both liquid and dry, were carried out at 40 oC ± 2 oC (Temperature) and 75% R.H. ± 5% R.H. The assay of tablets was conducted by both HPLC and UV/Visible Spectrophotometric methods whereas for suspensions only UV/Visible Spectrophotometric method was used. The tests were conducted at 0, 1, 3 and 6 months as per guidelines of ICH for accelerated studies. The results of physical tests indicated that the dissolution of tablet decreases in all cases with time whereas disintegration of all brands was found within 15 minutes throughout the course of study while the hardness demonstrated to be decline with time. Kinetic treatment to determine rate constants and shelf lives indicated that dry suspension was more stable than liquids while the tablets showed stability for three years which was parallel to their claimed expiry. Among tablets, brand A was the most stable and among suspensions, brand C showed the longest stability. The stability studies were also carried out by using a software R-Gui (version 2.13) and results were compared with manually calculated results.

Keywords: Famotidine, Stability, Software generated shelf life,Formulations,ICH stability guidelines.

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