This study was conducted in order to improve the mechanical properties o f mild steel materials used as bolts and studs in coupling agricultural machinery fo llo wing their frequent failure in service. Heat treat ment at 900 0 C for four hours was done and six specimens of each were then quenched with different media used as the major source of strength enhancement. The universal testing machine (UTM) was utilized for the various mechanical tests. The results of the tests showed positive changes in the strength properties of the mild steel material, in terms of h igh tensile strength, toughness, ductility and hardness. Water quenched specimen has the highest tensile strength (497.76N/ mm 2 ), hardness value (138.27), toughness (168.38) and bending at yield (749.49N/ mm 2 ). It also recorded the lowest ductility of 28.36% when co mpared with ductility values for other quenchants. These desirable qualit ies are needed for durability in service, especially for rugged agricultural operations like tillage. Water proved to be the best quenchant for ach ieving these desirable qualit ies among the quenching media used.

Coffee has been identified as a crop that has the potential to generate foreign earning for local investors but the cost of imported roasting machine is very high thus making it unaffordable for interested agripreneurs. This project detailed the development of coffee roaster using locally available materials thus reducing the cost of processing as well as achieving optimum quality. The roasting capacity of the roaster is 25kg. The roaster consists of a roasting drum, paddles on a speed reduction gear powered by electric motor, frame, cooling fan and cooling unit with control board unit. The roaster attained a temperature of 200°, 250° and 300°C in 5, 7 and 10 minutes respectively.

The increase in demand of coffee in the world as well as high cost of imported coffee roasting machines has made many local fabricators to develop coffee roaster. Unfortunately, the roasted coffee from the machines is not too different from the locally roasted coffee in terms of qualities revealed during sensory and organoleptic tests. This paper presents the development of coffee roaster operational sequence which has a temperature controller, stirring and cooling mechanism embedded into it, which mitigate the effect of poor and irregular heating pattern of most traditional roasting methods. Optimum Coffee roasting temperature is 200°C. However, the roaster can attain a temperature of 400°C.The evaluation of the coffee roaster revealed that the machine attained a steady temperature of 200°C, 250°C and 300°C at 6, 7 and 10 minutes respectively. It was observed that uniform and even roasting was achieved by proper stirring of the coffee bean inside the roaster at the desired temperature which reduced the drudgery, operators’ interference and contamination of the roasted coffee.

This paper described some mechanical properties of aluminum alloy using agro-waste materials such as sawdust, groundnut shell, and eggshell. The sand-casting method was adopted to produce the alloy with 5, 15, 25, and 35% wt. additives. The microstructure of the various samples produced after quenched in water, palm oil, and engine oil was examined while hardness properties were determined. The result obtained shows that hardness values increased with an increase in the addition of sand mold Agro-waste ashes. Samples cast with eggshell ash additive and quenched in water coolant had the highest hardness value of 82.4 at 25% wt. additive when compared with sawdust ash and groundnut shell ash additives. sand-casting enhances the hardness of the specimens and thus, can be used in many engineering applications such as engine blocks and wheels in automotive parts and aerospace components.

Life cycle assessment (LCA) was developed to estimate the environmental impacts of industrial production processes and systems. This paper assessed the environmental impacts associated with the production, storage and disposal of cowpea grains in Ilorin, Kwara state, Nigeria, and proffer ways of improving and reducing some of the environmental impacts associated with the system. Three scenarios were created in the cowpea study; production and storage in an inert atmosphere silo, hermetic storage, and cold shock (freezer) storage respectively. The inventory data obtained from the scenario was analysed using Gabi 8.7 think step 2018 version. From the cradle-to-grave research study and Centre of Environmental Science (CML) methodology used, it was obtained that the Global Warming Potential (GWP) for the three scenarios were 6.7, 6.46, and 8.82 kg CO2-equivalent for inert, hermetic and cold shock respectively. Acidification Potential (AP) values for the three scenarios were: 0.0105, 0.01 and 0.0121kgSO2 equivalent respectively, Eutrophication Potentials (EP), were 1.68, 1.56, and 2.012e-3kg phosphate equivalent respectively. Ozone layer depletion potential (ODP) gave same values each in the scenarios with 9.99e-13kgR11 equivalent, and human toxicology potential (HTP) values for each were 0.181, 0.151 and 0.24kg DCB equivalent respectively. Diesel and petrol fuel used for tillage and post farm operations respectively were major hotspots in the scenarios. Based on the emissions value and characterization factor from each scenario, inert storage and hermetic storage are recommended for environmentally friendly storage over cold shock storage in the cowpea scenario.