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Abstract Kenya is one of the leading countries in the development and commercialization of clean bioenergy stoves in Sub-Sahara Africa. However, due to a series of interconnected factors, the adoption and sustained use of clean bioenergy stoves remains low in the country. This study synthesizes the current knowledge about clean and efficient bioenergy stoves in Kenya through a comprehensive review that brings together the disparate knowledge about the context, status, adoption and impacts of clean bioenergy stoves in Kenya. We start by outlining the main national policies technological, options and stakeholders involved in the clean bioenergy stove value chain such as government agencies, private companies, research organisations, and the civil society. Despite their different roles and interests, there is a shared expectation among all involved stakeholders that clean bioenergy stoves will curb the negative sustainability impacts of traditional cooking options on energy security/poverty, human health, rural livelihoods, gender equality, and the environment. However, a series of factors affect the adoption and sustained use of clean bioenergy stoves such as market structure, consumer awareness, stove design/performance, and the socioeconomic status and cultural practices of stove users. We develop a conceptual framework that illustrates the interlinkages between these factors of adoption and impacts, and outline their varying degree of importance in Kenya. We finish this review by suggesting six policy and practice domains that need to be targeted by policies and research if an effective transition towards universal clean cooking is to be achieved in Kenya. These include to (a) adopt integrated policy approaches and enhance stakeholder collaboration; (b) raise awareness of the benefits of clean bioenergy cooking options; (c) facilitate access to funding and establish appropriate economic incentives; (d) implement quality assurance mechanisms; (e) facilitate behavioural change among stove users; (f) enhance research, development, and technical capacity.

Rising CO 2 levels may induce nutritional deficits (protein, minerals, and vitamins) in the highest rice-consuming countries.

Due to their high theoretical capacity, transition metal oxide compounds are promising electrode materials for lithium‐ion batteries. However, one drawback is associated with relevant capacity fluctuations during cycling, widely observed in the literature. Such strong capacity variation can result in practical problems when positive and negative electrode materials have to be matched in a full cell. Herein, the study of ZnMn2O4 (ZMO) in a nonconventional electrolyte based on 3‐cyanopropionic acid methyl ester (CPAME) solvent and LiPF6 salt is reported for the first time. Although ZMO in LiPF6/CPAME electrolyte displays a dramatic capacity decay during the first cycles, it shows promising cycling ability and a suppressed capacity fluctuation when vinylene carbonate (VC) is used as an additive to the CPAME‐based electrolyte. To understand the nature of the solid electrolyte interphase (SEI), the electrochemical study is correlated to ex situ X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS).

This study examines the effects of oil supply and global demand shocks on the volatility of commodity prices in the metal and agricultural commodity markets using the SVAR model. The empirical evidence is based on real time daily closing international commodity prices covering the period 2 December 2019 to 1 October 2020. The findings are presented in cumulative impulse responses and variance decompositions. The former is utilized to examine the accumulated influence of structural shocks on the volatility of agricultural and metal commodities whereas the latter reflect the share of variation in the volatility of each commodity arising from each structural shock. Various patterns are provided on how metal and agricultural commodity prices have been influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic. Policy implications are discussed.

The heptic metabolism of acetaldehyde in carbon tetrachloride (CCl4)-intoxicated rats was studied using a non-recirculating haemoglobin-free liver-perfusion system. Acetaldehyde uptake by the liver from acutely CCl4-treated animals (4.16 mmol/kg,i.p.) at 24 hr after the treatment was not significantly altered, whereas that by the liver from chronically CCl4-treated animals (2.08 mmol/kg,i.p., twice a week, for 8-12 weeks) was decreased by approximately 50% when it was determined in the presence of 0.01-5 mM acetaldehyde. In liver from rats chronically intoxicated with CCl4, the following important biochemical changes were observed: (1) The activity of low Km aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) in hepatic mitochondria was decreased by approximately 75%. (2) The basal levels of the lactate/pyruvate (cytosolic [NADH]/[NAD+]) ratio as well as the beta-hydroxybutyrate/acetoacetate (mitochondrial [NADH]/[NAD+]) ratio were elevated by more than 2-fold. (3) Mitochondrial NADH oxidation was also reduced by approximately 35% of the control level. (4) The basal level of hepatic oxygen uptake was attenuated by approximately 50%, and the infusion of acetaldehyde (0.01-5.0 mM) caused a further decrease in the uptake. (5) The rate of ethanol production from acetaldehyde by the catalytic action of alcohol dehydrogenase was found to be unaltered when low concentrations of acetaldehyde (0.01-0.2 mM) were used, whereas a significant suppression of the rate of ethanol production was detected in the presence of high concentrations of acetaldehyde (0.6-5 mM).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Abstract The admittance of a cobalt-doped ZnO crystal/NaOH electrolyte interface has been studied as a function of frequency for various electrode potentials. Analysis of the admittance data gives evidence of a continuum of surface states, the density of which reaches a maximum for an energy 0.30 eV lower than the energy of the conduction-band edge. However, appropriate surface states are involved in the charge transfer processes of carriers photogenerated in the visible, between the Co2+ states and the O 2 OH − level, and can stabilize as a consequence the electrode against photocorrosion.

The ITE Battery Research group has developed a new organic battery activator for new and used lead-acid batteries. The chemical composition of the activators is a mixture of the soluble organic polymer such as polyvinyl alcohol and inorganic salts (metal ions). The detail morphological study are required for the formation of PbSO4 on the electrode. This paper summarizes the effects of the organic activator and metal ions in the activator during the charge and discharge. The chemical redox reactions were carried out for Pb and PbO2 powders with H2O2 in sulfuric acid. It is considered that these reactions give useful information for the electrode processes of lead-acid batteries. The experimental results support the basic concepts for life extension of lead-acid batteries by ITE activator.

Paclitaxel (PTX) is an essential anticancer drug used to treat breast cancer. Because it contains alcohol as a solvent, it is contraindicated in many Japanese breast cancer patients when they are suspected of alcohol intolerance. Aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2) is one of several enzymes that catalyzes dehydrogenation of aldehydes, and plays an important role in ethanol metabolism. Deficiency of this isozyme is believed to be responsible for facial flushing and other unpleasant symptoms following ethanol intake. In this study, we examined the safety of PTX for patients with the ALDH2 GA genotype.We performed ALDH2 genotyping on 25 patients with various cancers who were suspected to be intolerant to alcohol based on an interview using a simple question. Ten patients with the ALDH2 GA genotype, including 5 breast cancer patients, underwent chemotherapy containing PTX up to 100 mg/m2 (range 80-100 mg/m2), and were questioned about 16 alcohol-related symptoms at 11 timepoints to evaluate sensitivity to alcohol.All patients completed the first course of planned chemotherapy with either no or grade 1 alcohol-related symptoms.Our study suggests that PTX up to 100 mg/m2 can be used safely for patients with the ALDH2 GA genotype. To confirm the necessity of a genotyping test for ALDH2, further studies evaluating alcohol sensitivity in response to PTX among patients with the ALDH2 AA genotype are required.