Le recyclage des enrobés bitumineux fabriqués selon un procédé tiède répond aux exigences du développement durable: il limite l'apport de matériaux neufs, permet la gestion des déchets et réduit la consommation d'énergie. Le recyclage des enrobés date des années 70 ; ce qui a changé depuis, c'est la volonté de pérenniser le recyclage à fort taux, définit ici à plus de 25% d'agrégats d'enrobés (AE). Les AE contiennent une part de bitume qui est valorisable pour ses propriétés viscoélastiques de liant hydrocarboné. Il est ainsi recherché une mobilisation de ce liant vieilli dans le processus de recyclage. L'un des problèmes suspectés lors du couplage recyclage/procédé tiède est le phénomène de double enrobage pouvant impacter la rhéologie du nouveau matériau: le liant de l'AE et le liant d'apport ne se mélangeraient pas totalement du fait de l'abaissement des températures de fabrication et formeraient des couches superposées. Ce phénomène serait la cause de dysfonctionnements mécaniques au niveau de l'enrobé. Il se pose donc la question de la qualité de l'enrobage de surfaces granulaires déjà enrobées et du manque de moyens de caractérisation pour l'observation in situ de l'interface. Dans ce travail de thèse, la qualité d'enrobage des agrégats d'enrobés par un liant d'apport a été évaluée à l'échelle microscopique et macroscopique. Au niveau microscopique, il a été proposé d'utiliser un outil de micro-spectroscopie infrarouge pour évaluer in situ la qualité d'interface entre l'AE et le liant d'apport et suivre la répartition spatiale de ces deux composants au sein d'enrobés de laboratoire. Cela a nécessité un important développement expérimental afin de pouvoir appliquer un accessoire d'imagerie infrarouge aux mélanges complexes que sont les formules d'enrobés bitumineux constitués de différentes fractions granulaires et de liant bitumineux. Il a ainsi été possible, grâce à l'identification préalable de traceurs internes, de suivre la remobilisation partielle du liant vieilli de l'AE. En parallèle, au niveau macroscopique, un protocole d'essai a été développé afin d'évaluer la durabilité des enrobés contenant des forts taux d'AE (50%), notamment des enrobés fabriqués selon un procédé tiède. L'essai actuel de fatigue est l'un des essais qui permet le mieux d'évaluer la durée de vie d'une couche de chaussée. Mais cet essai accéléré est biaisé car le bitume des échantillons testés n'a pas eu le temps de vieillir comme c'est le cas sur une vraie chaussée. Dans ce travail, il a donc été proposé d'ajouter une étape de vieillissement du matériau avant les essais de fatigue, d'orniérage, de tenue à l'eau et de module complexe. Il est supposé que le comportement réel du matériau se situerait entre celui du matériau non vieilli et celui du matériau vieilli. Les principaux résultats obtenus montrent qu'un enrobé tiède contenant un taux élevé d'AE présente de bonnes performances mécaniques excepté qu'il a tendance à être plus sensible à la fatigue qu'une même formulation de matériau fabriqué à chaud ou selon un procédé tiède mais sans ajout AE. / The recycling of asphalt mixtures manufactured with a warm process meets the requirements of sustainable development: it limits the use of new materials, allows waste management and reduces energy consumption. The recycling of asphalt mixtures dates from the 70's. What has changed since that is the will to sustain high rate recycling, defined here by more than 25% of Reclaimed Asphalt Pavement (RAP). RAP contains a part of bitumen that is recoverable for its viscoelastic properties of asphalt binder. It is thus desired to mobilize this aged binder in the recycling process. One of the suspected problems when coupling recycling and warm process is the phenomenon of double coating that could affect rheological properties of the new material: the RAP binder and the new binder do not would mix completely due to the reduction of processing temperatures and would form superimposed layers. This phenomenon would cause mechanical dysfunctions in the asphalt mixture. This raises the question of the quality of the coating of granular surfaces, previously coated, and lack of characterization tools for in situ observation of the interface. In this thesis work, the quality of coating of RAP by a new binder has been evaluated at the microscopic and macroscopic scales. At the microscopic level, it has been proposed to use infrared micro-spectroscopy tool to evaluate the quality of interface between the RAP and the new binder and to follow the spatial distribution of these two components within mixtures produced in laboratory. To do that, it has been necessary to carry out an important experimental development in order to apply an infrared imaging accessory to complex mixtures that are the bituminous mixtures made of different granular fractions and bituminous binder. It was then possible, based on previous identification of internal tracers, to follow the partial remobilization of RAP aging binder. In parallel, at the macroscopic level, a testing protocol has been developed to evaluate the durability of high rate recycled asphalt mixtures (50% of RAP), including mixes produced in a warm process. The current fatigue test is one of the tests that best evaluate the lifetime of a pavement layer. But this accelerated test is biased because the bitumen of the mixtures tested did not have time to aged, as occurs in the case on a real road. In this work, it was proposed to add an aging step of the material before fatigue test, rutting test, modulus test and moisture damage test. It is assumed that the real behavior of the material would range between that of the unaged material and that of aged material. The main obtained results show that warm mixture asphalt containing high rate of RAP exhibit good mechanical performance, with a trend to be more susceptible to fatigue than a similar hot mixture or a warm mixture without added RAP.

Surface modification has wide ranging implications in lubrication, microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), colloidal systems and biological membranes. Surface modification plays an important role in stabilizing gold nanoparticles, which have applications in targeted drug delivery and catalysis. A variety of surface modification techniques are used for controlling corrosion and wettability, as well as used extensively to understand the nature of interactions between surfaces. This thesis is mainly focused on understanding the kinetics, film growth and surface modification by long chain molecules physisorbed on a surface. The time evolution of film growth and domain formation of octadecylamine on a mica surface is studied using ex-situ AFM and reflectance FTIR. A novel technique of interface creation is developed to measure the height of the adsorbed film. The results show three distinct regions of film growth mechanism. Region I, corresponds to thin film and the interface height is in the monolayer regime. The transient regime (II) consists of a sharp increase in the film thickness, from 1.5 nm to 25 nm within a time span of 180 s. In the final stage of film growth the film thickness is invariant with time, during which domain coarsening is observed. Domain evolution reveals a non-monotonic variation in the domain size as a function of adsorption time. A three stage mechanism is proposed to explain the domain evolution on the surface. In order to explain the observed film thickness variation, we have developed and tested various models to explain the thin to thick film transition observed in the AFM experiments. A model based on adsorption kinetics is solved to obtain the evolution of the adsorbed film. The model with a two-step adsorption isotherm quantitatively captures the thin to thick film transition observed in the AFM experiments. The statistical thermodynamics of adsorption of long chain molecules on a surface has been studied using a lattice model. The molecules are characterized by backbone chain, either lying parallel or perpendicular to the surface. A square lattice with nearest neighbour interactions and a mean field approximation are used to generate the adsorption isotherms for different molecules as a function of chain length. The molecules change their orientation from a surface parallel to an upright configuration with an increase in chemical potential. A similar transition (with time) in the molecular orientation has been observed in the AFM experiments. The transition between these two orientations is accompanied by an entropy maximum The last part of the thesis is concerned with carbon-carbon interactions. More specifically, we are interested in the interactions between graphite surfaces and their modification in the presence of a lubricant or base oil. Diamond like carbon (DLC) AFM tips and highly oriented pyrolitic graphite (HOPG) have been used for this study. Experiments were carried out by treating HOPG graphite in hexadecane oil at different temperatures. It is observed that pull-off forces on bare graphite are smaller when compared to the treated surface. The magnitude of the pull-off forces increases with the temperature of the hexadecane oil bath. Presence of charged patches responsible for the higher adhesion have been confirmed using surface potential microscopy. Results also confirm the presence of a thin liquid-like hexadecane film at room temperature.

Engineering : Chemical / M. Tech. (Chemical Engineering)

O tecido ósseo é um tipo especializado de tecido conjuntivo que desempenha funções essenciais para a sobrevivência do indivíduo, sendo composto predominantemente por osteócitos. Dentre os tecidos mineralizados do corpo, o cemento é um dos menos estudados e compreendidos. A apoptose em células do tecido ósseo têm sido relatada após o uso de Tiazolidinedionas (TZD), uma classe de medicamentos utilizada no tratamento do diabetes melitus tipo 2, representadas pela Rosiglitazona. Assim, os objetivos desse estudo foram: avaliar, in vivo, um protocolo de administração sistêmica da Rosiglitazona em camundongos a fim de estimular a apoptose de osteócitos em maxilares; o efeito da apoptose de osteócitos induzida por Rosiglitazona na formação e progressão de lesões periapicais em camundongos nos períodos experimentais de 7, 21 e 42 dias; e demonstrar a ocorrência de apoptose em cementócitos de camundongos os quais receberam ou não a Rosiglitazona. Foram utilizados camundongos wild type (C57BL/6) com 4 a 5 semanas de idade. No primeiro estudo, a etapa 1 foi realizada para definição de protocolo de administração sistêmica da Rosiglitazona para indução de apoptose em maxilares de camundongos. Os animais (n=24) receberam a Rosiglitazona via oral por 1, 2 ou 3 semanas (gavagem, dose de 10mg/kg) ou não (PBS+10%DMSO). Foram utilizadas as técnicas de TUNEL e DAPI para quantificação de células apoptóticas. Posteriormente, na etapa 2, lesões periapicais foram induzidas nos primeiros molares inferiores de camundongos wild type (C57BL/6) (n=60) após a administração ou não da Rosiglitasona. A câmara pulpar dos dentes foi exposta à microbiota da cavidade bucal pelos períodos de 7, 21 e 42 dias e os grupos foram divididos da seguinte forma: G1) veículo + lesão 7 dias; G2) veículo + lesão 21 dias; G3) veículo + lesão 42 dias; G4) TZD + lesão 7 dias; G5) TZD + lesão 21 dias; G6) TZD + lesão 42 dias. Foram realizadas avaliações em microscopia convencional para análise descritiva das lesões periapicais; microscopia de fluorescência para mensuração das lesões periapicais; histoenzimologia para a atividade da fosfatase ácida resistente ao tartarato (TRAP) e marcação de osteoclastos; absortometria radiológica de dupla energia (DXA) para avaliação da densidade mineral óssea (DMO) em osso longo e análise da expressão gênica de marcadores de osteócitos (Sost, Hyou1 e Dmp1). No segundo estudo, foram utilizadas as técnicas de TUNEL e DAPI para quantificação de cementócitos apoptóticos em dentes de camundongos wild type (n=12) que receberam ou não a Rosiglitazona. Na etapa 1 do primeiro estudo, pôde-se observar que a administração sistêmica da Rosiglitazona por 2 semanas promoveu a apoptose de osteócitos de forma mais expressiva quando comparada ao período de 1 semana, porém sem diferença significativa com o período de 3 semanas (p>0,05). Já na etapa 2, nos grupos os quais receberam a Rosiglitazona, pôde-se observar uma tendência a lesões periapicais maiores, porém sem diferença estatisticamente significante em comparação com animais que não receberam esse medicamento (p>0,05), além de promover, aos 21 dias de progressão da lesão periapical, maior número de osteoclastos e maior expressão dos genes Sost e Hyou1, sem diferença estatisticamente significante para a expressão do gene Dmp1, bem como na DMO dos fêmures. Adicionalmente, no segundo estudo, foi observado que, em camundongos que receberam a Rosiglitazona por 2 semanas, os cortes histológicos corados em TUNEL e DAPI demonstraram maior razão de cementócitos apoptóticos/cementócitos totais comparado ao grupo controle. Após as metodologias empregadas e os parâmetros analisados, pôde-se concluir que o uso sistêmico da Rosiglitazona estimulou a apoptose de osteócitos e cementócitos interferindo na formação e progressão de lesões periapicais em camundongos. / The bone tissue is a specialized type of connective tissue that provides essential functions for the survival of the individual, composed predominantly of osteocytes. Among the mineralized tissues in the body, the cementum is one of the most poorly studied and understood. Apoptosis in the bone tissue have been reported after the use of Thiazolidinediones (TZD), a class of drugs used in the treatment of diabetes mellitus type 2, represented by Rosiglitazone. Thus, the aims of this study were: evaluate, in vivo, a protocol for systemic administration of Rosiglitazone in mice in order to stimulate the apoptosis of osteocytes in jaws; the effect of apoptosis of osteocytes induced by Rosiglitazone in the formation and progression of periapical lesions in mice in the experimental periods of 7, 21 and 42 days; and demonstrate the occurrence of apoptosis in cementocytes of mice which received or not the Rosiglitazone. We used mice wild type (C57BL/6) with 4 to 5 weeks of age. In the first study, the phase 1 was performed for the protocol definition of systemic administration of Rosiglitazone for induction of apoptosis in mice jaws. The animals (n=24) received the Rosiglitazone orally for 1, 2 or 3 weeks (gavage, dose of 10mg/kg) or not (PBS+10%DMSO). We used the techniques of TUNEL and DAPI for quantification of apoptotic cells. Subsequently, in phase 2, periapical lesions were induced in the first lower molars of wild type (C57BL/6) mice (n=60) after the administration or not of Rosiglitasone. The pulp chamber was exposed to the oral microbiota during 7, 21 and 42 days, and the groups were divided as follows: G1) vehicle + periapical lesions 7 days; G2) vehicle + periapical lesions 21 days; (G3) vehicle + periapical lesions 42 days; (G4) TZD + periapical lesions 7 days; G5) TZD + periapical lesions 21 days; (G6) TZD + periapical lesions 42 days. Evaluations were conducted in conventional microscopy for descriptive analysis of periapical lesions; fluorescence microscopy for measurement of periapical lesions; histoenzimology to the activity of acid phosphatase resistant tartrate (TRAP) for osteoclasts measurement; dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) for evaluation of bone mineral density (BMD) in long bone and analysis of gene expression of osteocytes markers (Sost, Hyou1 and Dmp1). In the second study, TUNEL and DAPI techniques were used for the quantification of apoptotic cementocytes in wild type (n = 12) mice that received Rosiglitazone or not. In the phase 1 of the first study it was observed that the systemic administration of Rosiglitazone for 2 weeks showed the apoptosis of osteocytes in a more expressive manner when compared to the period of 1 week with no significant difference with the period of 3 weeks (p>0,05). On phase 2, in the groups which received the Rosiglitazone, it was observed a tendency of larger periapical lesions, but without statistically significant difference compared with animals that did not receive this drug (p>0,05), besides promoting, at 21 days of periapical lesion progression, greater number of osteoclasts and greater expression of genes Sost and Hyou1, and absence of statistically significant differences in the expression of the gene Dmp1 nor in the BMD of the femurs. In addition, in the second study, it was observed that, in mice that received the Rosiglitazone for 2 weeks, sections stained by TUNEL and DAPI showed significantly higher ratio of apoptotic cementocytes/total cementocytes compared to control group. After the methodologies used and the parameters analyzed, it can be concluded that the systemic use of Rosiglitazone stimulated the apoptosis of osteocytes and cementocytes interfering in the formation and progression of periapical lesions in mice.

The utility of dental calculus as a proxy for diet and mouth use is explored for the Middle Holocene Cis-Baikal region of Central Siberia based on two methods: a macroscopic analysis of severity and a microscopic analysis of particles within deposits. The study area was inhabited by two culturally and biologically distinct cultures, the Early Neolithic (EN) Kitoi culture (8,000 to 7,000/6,800 cal B.P.) and the Late Neolithic-Early Bronze Age (LN-EBA) Isakovo-Serovo-Glaskovo (ISG) cultural complex (6,000/5,800 to 4,000 cal B.P.), separated by a period of cultural transition marked by a cessation in formal cemetery use. Data were collected from four cemetery sites, two dating to the EN and two dating to the LN-EBA. Nonparametric testing of calculus severity revealed that, for adult males and juveniles, lakeshore populations displayed greater affinity to each other than to their contemporaneous cultural counterpart populations living along riverine systems in the Angara River Valley. Trends within the EN cemetery Shamanka II contrasted to the other cemetery populations, with noticeably larger deposits in anterior quadrants and significant sexual distinctions. The proportion of protein to carbohydrates consumed is known to influence calculus formation, but both cultural groups lived on a diet based predominately on meat sources so dietary ratios alone do not adequately explain the differences distinguished. A complex multifactorial model involving microregional differences in resources/environment, foraging patterns, individual variation, and dental wear patterns provides at least a partial explanation for the results observed. A wide range of particles were recovered during the microscopic analysis of calculus, albeit in low concentrations. The low starch grain counts were consistent with a diet based predominately on meats but still provide some of the first direct evidence for plant consumption in the Cis-Baikal, including possible plant processing by cooking or grinding based on damage evident on the grains. Other particles recovered may provide evidence of mouth use activities or palaeoenvironmental influences. Together, the two components of this analysis offer strong evidence that dental calculus is a useful tool for reconstructing hunter-gatherer lifeways but also highlight the limitations of conducting this type of research on previously excavated and potentially contaminated material.

O tecido ósseo é um tipo especializado de tecido conjuntivo que desempenha funções essenciais para a sobrevivência do indivíduo, sendo composto predominantemente por osteócitos. Dentre os tecidos mineralizados do corpo, o cemento é um dos menos estudados e compreendidos. A apoptose em células do tecido ósseo têm sido relatada após o uso de Tiazolidinedionas (TZD), uma classe de medicamentos utilizada no tratamento do diabetes melitus tipo 2, representadas pela Rosiglitazona. Assim, os objetivos desse estudo foram: avaliar, in vivo, um protocolo de administração sistêmica da Rosiglitazona em camundongos a fim de estimular a apoptose de osteócitos em maxilares; o efeito da apoptose de osteócitos induzida por Rosiglitazona na formação e progressão de lesões periapicais em camundongos nos períodos experimentais de 7, 21 e 42 dias; e demonstrar a ocorrência de apoptose em cementócitos de camundongos os quais receberam ou não a Rosiglitazona. Foram utilizados camundongos wild type (C57BL/6) com 4 a 5 semanas de idade. No primeiro estudo, a etapa 1 foi realizada para definição de protocolo de administração sistêmica da Rosiglitazona para indução de apoptose em maxilares de camundongos. Os animais (n=24) receberam a Rosiglitazona via oral por 1, 2 ou 3 semanas (gavagem, dose de 10mg/kg) ou não (PBS+10%DMSO). Foram utilizadas as técnicas de TUNEL e DAPI para quantificação de células apoptóticas. Posteriormente, na etapa 2, lesões periapicais foram induzidas nos primeiros molares inferiores de camundongos wild type (C57BL/6) (n=60) após a administração ou não da Rosiglitasona. A câmara pulpar dos dentes foi exposta à microbiota da cavidade bucal pelos períodos de 7, 21 e 42 dias e os grupos foram divididos da seguinte forma: G1) veículo + lesão 7 dias; G2) veículo + lesão 21 dias; G3) veículo + lesão 42 dias; G4) TZD + lesão 7 dias; G5) TZD + lesão 21 dias; G6) TZD + lesão 42 dias. Foram realizadas avaliações em microscopia convencional para análise descritiva das lesões periapicais; microscopia de fluorescência para mensuração das lesões periapicais; histoenzimologia para a atividade da fosfatase ácida resistente ao tartarato (TRAP) e marcação de osteoclastos; absortometria radiológica de dupla energia (DXA) para avaliação da densidade mineral óssea (DMO) em osso longo e análise da expressão gênica de marcadores de osteócitos (Sost, Hyou1 e Dmp1). No segundo estudo, foram utilizadas as técnicas de TUNEL e DAPI para quantificação de cementócitos apoptóticos em dentes de camundongos wild type (n=12) que receberam ou não a Rosiglitazona. Na etapa 1 do primeiro estudo, pôde-se observar que a administração sistêmica da Rosiglitazona por 2 semanas promoveu a apoptose de osteócitos de forma mais expressiva quando comparada ao período de 1 semana, porém sem diferença significativa com o período de 3 semanas (p>0,05). Já na etapa 2, nos grupos os quais receberam a Rosiglitazona, pôde-se observar uma tendência a lesões periapicais maiores, porém sem diferença estatisticamente significante em comparação com animais que não receberam esse medicamento (p>0,05), além de promover, aos 21 dias de progressão da lesão periapical, maior número de osteoclastos e maior expressão dos genes Sost e Hyou1, sem diferença estatisticamente significante para a expressão do gene Dmp1, bem como na DMO dos fêmures. Adicionalmente, no segundo estudo, foi observado que, em camundongos que receberam a Rosiglitazona por 2 semanas, os cortes histológicos corados em TUNEL e DAPI demonstraram maior razão de cementócitos apoptóticos/cementócitos totais comparado ao grupo controle. Após as metodologias empregadas e os parâmetros analisados, pôde-se concluir que o uso sistêmico da Rosiglitazona estimulou a apoptose de osteócitos e cementócitos interferindo na formação e progressão de lesões periapicais em camundongos. / The bone tissue is a specialized type of connective tissue that provides essential functions for the survival of the individual, composed predominantly of osteocytes. Among the mineralized tissues in the body, the cementum is one of the most poorly studied and understood. Apoptosis in the bone tissue have been reported after the use of Thiazolidinediones (TZD), a class of drugs used in the treatment of diabetes mellitus type 2, represented by Rosiglitazone. Thus, the aims of this study were: evaluate, in vivo, a protocol for systemic administration of Rosiglitazone in mice in order to stimulate the apoptosis of osteocytes in jaws; the effect of apoptosis of osteocytes induced by Rosiglitazone in the formation and progression of periapical lesions in mice in the experimental periods of 7, 21 and 42 days; and demonstrate the occurrence of apoptosis in cementocytes of mice which received or not the Rosiglitazone. We used mice wild type (C57BL/6) with 4 to 5 weeks of age. In the first study, the phase 1 was performed for the protocol definition of systemic administration of Rosiglitazone for induction of apoptosis in mice jaws. The animals (n=24) received the Rosiglitazone orally for 1, 2 or 3 weeks (gavage, dose of 10mg/kg) or not (PBS+10%DMSO). We used the techniques of TUNEL and DAPI for quantification of apoptotic cells. Subsequently, in phase 2, periapical lesions were induced in the first lower molars of wild type (C57BL/6) mice (n=60) after the administration or not of Rosiglitasone. The pulp chamber was exposed to the oral microbiota during 7, 21 and 42 days, and the groups were divided as follows: G1) vehicle + periapical lesions 7 days; G2) vehicle + periapical lesions 21 days; (G3) vehicle + periapical lesions 42 days; (G4) TZD + periapical lesions 7 days; G5) TZD + periapical lesions 21 days; (G6) TZD + periapical lesions 42 days. Evaluations were conducted in conventional microscopy for descriptive analysis of periapical lesions; fluorescence microscopy for measurement of periapical lesions; histoenzimology to the activity of acid phosphatase resistant tartrate (TRAP) for osteoclasts measurement; dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) for evaluation of bone mineral density (BMD) in long bone and analysis of gene expression of osteocytes markers (Sost, Hyou1 and Dmp1). In the second study, TUNEL and DAPI techniques were used for the quantification of apoptotic cementocytes in wild type (n = 12) mice that received Rosiglitazone or not. In the phase 1 of the first study it was observed that the systemic administration of Rosiglitazone for 2 weeks showed the apoptosis of osteocytes in a more expressive manner when compared to the period of 1 week with no significant difference with the period of 3 weeks (p>0,05). On phase 2, in the groups which received the Rosiglitazone, it was observed a tendency of larger periapical lesions, but without statistically significant difference compared with animals that did not receive this drug (p>0,05), besides promoting, at 21 days of periapical lesion progression, greater number of osteoclasts and greater expression of genes Sost and Hyou1, and absence of statistically significant differences in the expression of the gene Dmp1 nor in the BMD of the femurs. In addition, in the second study, it was observed that, in mice that received the Rosiglitazone for 2 weeks, sections stained by TUNEL and DAPI showed significantly higher ratio of apoptotic cementocytes/total cementocytes compared to control group. After the methodologies used and the parameters analyzed, it can be concluded that the systemic use of Rosiglitazone stimulated the apoptosis of osteocytes and cementocytes interfering in the formation and progression of periapical lesions in mice.

The electrochemical corrosion behavior of mild steel in apple, grape, mango, orange and the mixture of these juices was investigated in this study. Open circuit potential and weight loss analytical techniques were employed to establish the comparative corrosion rates of this material in the agro media over the interval of five days for a sixty-day immersion period at an ambient temperature. The chemical compositions of both mild steel and the agro media were determined to ascertain corrosion mechanism for the reaction. Polarization behavior of mild steel in the agro media were determined by Tafel extrapolation curves. The analysis showed that cathodic polarization curves were almost identical irrespective of the concentration of the various media while the anodic polarization curves exhibited varying active and passive corrosion behaviour due to passivating oxide films. The analysis of the results further showed that the corrosion rate of the metallic sample decreased with longer immersion periods which could be attributed to a gradual decline in acidity of these media as revealed by the pH results. Hence, the evolution of hydrogen gas and reduction of dissolved oxygen molecules from the reacting system were presumed to be major factors retarding corrosion of the solution involved. Similarly, the presence of suspended particles on the surface of the test steel sample could have also led to the impediment to corrosion rates from the surrounding atmosphere. Microscopic analysis of the corroded mild steel specimens revealed uniform and localized corrosion with Fe2O3 spotted as the main corrosion product. The result obtained from the electrochemical study showed that the corrosion rate of the mild steel sample was highest in the orange medium (1.53mm/yr), followed by grape medium (1.40mm/yr), mixture of these media (0.67mm/yr), mango medium (0.40mm/yr) while the metal corroded least in the apple medium (0.30mm/yr) over the duration of immersion. / Engineering : Chemical / M. Tech. (Chemical Engineering)