The traditional activated sludge biofilm system struggles with poor removal performance and long hydraulic retention time (HRT) in treating high ammonia nitrogen (NH4+-N) wastewater. To solve these problems, this study introduced a pure heterotrophic nitrification-aerobic denitrification (HN-AD) biofilm system which HN-AD bacteria were inoculated in the rotating biological contactor (PH-RBC), with free microorganisms discharged after biofilm formation. Under short HRT (12 h), PH-RBC exhibited 29.23 % and 31.03 % higher NH4+-N and total nitrogen (TN) removal than pure activated sludge biofilm RBC (PS-RBC) (the influent NH4+-N was 505 ± 45 mg/L). Flavobacterium and Azoarcus were crucial for nitrogen removal in the PH-RBC. Metabolic analysis revealed that genes CS and IDH3 are crucial for carbon metabolism, with dissimilatory nitrate reduction dominates nitrogen metabolism. Bugbase prediction indicated that decreasing HRT increased the presence of Potentially Pathogenic. This study provides a theoretical basis for using pure biofilm system in high NH4+-N wastewater treatment.

Hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) is an extremely toxic pollutant in aqueous environment. Chemical reduction is the most employed method in decontamination of Cr(VI). However, the chemical reduction was usually conducted in acidic media, resulting in considerable waste of acid reagents and the following neutralizing agents. In this study, kinetics and mechanisms of Cr(VI) reduction by sulfite in alkaline conditions (pH: 7-10) were investigated. It reveals that Cr(VI) reduction follows pseudo-zero-order kinetics, where the rate constants increased markedly with an in situ irradiation of Far-UVC (UV222). Decreasing pH levels slightly favored the reduction. Iodide ion displayed a notable accelerating effect, which not only save the energy input but also minimize the reductant usage. Chloride, sulfate, and carbonate ions exhibit little effect on the reduction, whereas nitrate and nitrite ions, dissolved oxygen as well as Cu(II) suppressed the reduction significantly, implying that hydrated electrons produced by UV222 played the most important role in the reaction. Compared to the UV254/sulfite/iodide process, UV222/sulfite/iodide demonstrates clear advantages in the reduction kinetics and the sulfite utilization efficiency, underscoring its potential for effective Cr(VI) remediation in various environmental settings.

The hypoxic microenvironment within the tumor microenvironment of breast cancer imposes a challenge in overcoming chemotherapy resistance. In this investigation, we designed a novel strategy utilizing a light-controlled cascade targeting nanomedicine specifically tailored for enhanced immune therapy of breast cancer. Albumin nanoparticle was achieved by crosslinking, followed by loading TPZ and Ce6, and subsequent modification to enable selective binding with CD44 hyaluronic acid to form nanomedicine. Encouragingly, it was demonstrated the remarkable ability of the nanomedicine to effectively internalize into cellular entities, thereby inducing apoptosis in 4T1 cells efficiently in vitro when exposed to light irradiation. In vivo assessments showcased the exceptional aptitude of the nanomedicine not only for preferential accumulation within tumor tissues, but also for substantial suppression of tumor growth. Immune mechanisms have shown that nanomedicine treatment promoted the maturation of DCs in vivo, enhanced the proportion of CD8+ T cells in the spleen and tumor, and simultaneously upregulated the ratio of M1 macrophages favorable for anti-tumor effects. These outcomes collectively advance a fresh perspective for the clinical breast cancer therapy.

Among various biomaterials employed for bone repair, composites with good biocompatibility and osteogenic ability had received increasing attention from biomedical applications. In this study, we doped selenium (Se) into hydroxyapatite (Se-HA) by the precipitation method, and prepared different amounts of Se-HA-loaded poly (amino acid)/Se-HA (PAA/Se-HA) composites (0, 10 wt%, 20 wt%, 30 wt%) by in-situ melting polycondensation. The physical and chemical properties of PAA/Se-HA composites were characterized by x-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and their mechanical properties. XRD and FT-IR results showed that PAA/Se-HA composites contained characteristic peaks of PAA and Se-HA with amide linkage and HA structures. DSC and TGA results specified the PAA/Se-HA30 composite crystallization, melting, and maximum weight loss temperatures at 203.33 degrees C, 162.54 degrees C, and 468.92 degrees C, respectively, which implied good thermal stability. SEM results showed that Se-HA was uniformly dispersed in PAA. The mechanical properties of PAA/Se-HA30 composites included bending, compressive, and yield strengths at 83.07 +/- 0.57, 106.56 +/- 0.46, and 99.17 +/- 1.11 MPa, respectively. The cellular responses of PAA/Se-HA composites in vitro were studied using bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) by cell counting kit-8 assay, and results showed that PAA/Se-HA30 composites significantly promoted the proliferation of BMSCs at the concentration of 2 mg ml-1. The alkaline phosphatase activity (ALP) and alizarin red staining results showed that the introduction of Se-HA into PAA enhanced ALP activity and formation of calcium nodule. Western blotting and Real-time polymerase chain reaction results showed that the introduction of Se-HA into PAA could promoted the expression of osteogenic-related proteins and mRNA (integrin-binding sialoprotein, osteopontin, runt-related transcription factor 2 and Osterix) in BMSCs. A muscle defect at the back and a bone defect at the femoral condyle of New Zealand white rabbits were introduced for evaluating the enhancement of bone regeneration of PAA and PAA/Se-HA30 composites. The implantation of muscle tissue revealed good biocompatibility of PAA and PAA/Se-HA30 composites. The implantation of bone defect showed that PAA/Se-HA30 composites enhanced bone formation at the defect site (8 weeks), exhibiting good bone conductivity. Therefore, the PAA-based composite was a promising candidate material for bone tissue regeneration.

This work develops a process for CO2 capture by biomass chemical looping combustion coupled with chemical looping hydrogen production to ammonia using Aspen Plus software. By using pine wood biomass and water as feedstock and ammonia as end product, the influence of key parameters on the system performance is explored through a combination of process simulation and sensitivity analysis, and the optimal operating parameters are determined: OC/B=10, fuel reactor (FR) temperature is 850°C, S/B=4, hydrogen reactor (HR) temperature is 600°C, AIR/B=1.6 and NH3 reactor (NR) temperature and pressure are 300 °C and 150 bar, respectively. H2 yield of 7.21% and NH3 yield of 31.5% are obtained, and the H2 yield is increased by 37.3% relative to the biomass direct hydrogen production; the total exergy efficiency for the system is 89.3% at 95% CO2 capture efficiency, and the energy consumption is 58.78kw. In contrast, the exergy efficiency of conventional coal direct hydrogen production is 58% at 90% CO2 capture efficiency. The exergy efficiency of this system is improved by 53.9%.

Developing an inexpensive bifunctional electrocatalyst for overall water splitting is critical for acquiring scalable green hydrogen and thereby realizing carbon neutralization. Herein, an "all-in-one" method is developed for the fabrication of highly N-doped binary FeCo-phosphides (N-FeCoP) with hierarchical superstructure, this delicately designed synthesis route allows the following merits for benefiting water splitting electrocatalysis in alkaline, including high N/defect-doping for mediating the surface property of the as-made N-FeCoP, binary Fe and Co components exhibiting strong coupling interaction, and 3D hierarchical superstructure for shortening diffusion length and thereby improving reaction kinetics. Electrochemical measurements reveal that the N-FeCoP sample exhibits very low overpotentials for initiating the hydrogen and oxygen evolution reactions. Remarkably, overall water splitting can be promoted on N-FeCoP using a commercial primary Zn-MnO2 battery. The developed synthesis strategy may potentially inspire the preparation of other N-doped metal-based nanostructures for broad electrocatalysis.

The simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) technique holds promise for the conversion of lignocellulose to ethanol. However, the optimal fermentation temperature of yeast is lower than the enzymatic hydrolysis temperature of the saccharification process, which leads to the temperature of the actual production process of SSF usually being lower than 38 °C. In this work, two ultraviolet (UV)-induced mutations were performed step by step using Saccharomyces cerevisiae BY4742 as the original strain to enable the yeast to perform well at higher temperatures. Thermotolerant strains obtained through mutagenesis and screening, YUV1-1 and YUV2-2, were utilized for fermentation and SSF at a targeted temperature of 40 °C. They obtained ethanol yields comparable to those at 38 °C in SSF, whereas the ethanol yields of the original strain at 40 °C decreased by about 10% compared to those at 38 °C. This study proves that thermotolerant strains adapted to elevated fermentation and SSF temperatures can be obtained through UV mutagenesis and screening, thereby increasing the stability of the fermentation and SSF processes and lowering the subsequent distillation costs.

A new bacterial strain, Acinetobacter calcoaceticus TY1, was identified in activated sludge. This strain efficiently metabolized nitrogen from ammonium at low temperatures, utilizing NH4+-N, NO3--N, and NO2--N as nitrogen sources. Of these, NH4+-N was superior in terms of both assimilation and heterotrophic nitrification at 8 degrees C. The nitrogen metabolism-associated genes amoA, nirK, and nosZ were identified in TY1. Optimal requirements for growth and nitrogen removal were pH 7, shaking speed of 90 rpm, a C/N ratio of 10, and sodium citrate for the carbon supply. The ability to denitrify at low temperature suggests TY1 ' s potential for wastewater management.

A series of N-doped carbon supported highly-dispersed Fe catalysts are prepared, and their catalytic performances for the direct conversion of methane to CH3OH and HCOOH with by-product CO2 are tested at ambient temperature. The nitrogen doping can greatly improve the metal-support interaction, and anchor the Fe species on the support. The catalytic activity of the catalyst is further enhanced by the modification of hydroxylamine hydrochloride. The optimized 2.5 wt%Fe/NC-HH catalyst shows 475 mu mol/g(cat) for CH3OH and 832 mu mol/g(cat) for HCOOH after 1 h reaction. The effect of the type of nitrogen species on the catalytic performance of the catalyst has been studied in detail. In addition, other transition metals (Ni, Co, Cu and Mn) as active centers have been also studied, and none of them is effective for the conversion of methane. Additionally, it is found that the methane conversion over the prepared catalysts proceed via a radical mechanism.

As an emerging semiconductor different from regular white TiO2, black TiO2 has attracted intensive attention on visible light driven photocatalysis for degrading dyes, but rarely for degradation of antibiotics. In this study, black anatase-TiO2 was demonstrated to be an effective catalyst for tetracycline (TC) visible light photo-degradation. 66.2% removal efficiency of TC was achieved over black TiO2 under visible light illumination, while white TiO2 and N-doped TiO2 exhibited 43.4% and 59.6% removal efficiencies, respectively. Furthermore, only center dot O-2(-) radicals played an important role in TC photodegradation over white TiO2, whereas both center dot O-2(-) and h(+) were responsible for the degradation over black TiO2 and N-doped TiO2. Different from white TiO2 for visible light photocatalytic TC degradation that follows photosensitization, the visible light photodegrataion over black TiO2 is due to photoexcitation.

3D graphene-based materials are promising adsorbents for environmental applications. Furthermore, increasing attention has been paid to the improvement of 3D graphene adsorbents for removing pollutants. In this article, the progress in the modification of 3D graphene materials and their performance for removing pollutants were reviewed. The modification strategies, which were classified as (1) the activation with CO2 (steam and other oxidants) and (2) the surface functionalization with polymers (metals, and metal oxides), were evaluated. The performances of modified 3D graphene materials were assessed for the removal of waste gases (such as CO2), refractory organics, and heavy metals. The challenges and future research directions were discussed for the environmental applications of 3D graphene materials.

Hexagonal tungsten oxide (h-WO3) membrane is a novel candidate for dehydration of acetic acid (CH3COOH)/water mixtures owing to its molecular sieving property and acidic resistance. Meanwhile, c-plane orientation is an important factor for h-WO3 membranes because the pores of h-WO3 run along its c-axis. However, so far, high c-plane orientation has not been successful on tubular substrates. Here, the effect of synthesis conditions of h-WO3 membranes on tubular substrates against c-plane orientation and CH3COOH/water separation performance are investigated. The h-WO3 membranes were prepared by hydrothermal synthesis from a precursor sol containing various amounts of sodium tungstate (Na2WO4) in the presence of tubular substrates with seeds embedded on their outside surface. The seeding method and the amount of Na2WO4 in the precursor sol significantly affected both crystal orientation and densification of the membrane. A precursor sol with appropriate amounts of Na2WO4 was essential to simultaneously satisfy high c-plane orientation and densification of the membrane while excess Na2WO4 drastically decreased the degree of c-plane orientation. A highly c-plane oriented h-WO3 membrane was successfully obtained under the optimized condition, which exhibited a maximum separation factor of 40.0 and a water permeance of 1.53 × 10−7 mol·m−2·s−1·Pa−1 in a 90:10 wt % CH3COOH/water mixture. The water permeance approximately doubled compared to the previous report, possibly owing to the significantly higher degree of c-plane orientation. Furthermore, it was found that its separation ability can be maintained while stored in 90:10 wt % CH3COOH/water mixture with pH < 0 for more than 500 h.

The photocatalytic degradation of antibiotics is a very promising technique to solve the pollution issues of antibiotics in water. Furthermore, catalysts play a critical role in the photocatalytic process. This article provides the first comprehensive review on the strategies of tuning catalysts for efficient photodegradation of antibiotics. It is shown that the doping of metals and nonmetals, coupling semiconductors, hydrogenation, ligand-to-metal charge transfer effect, and perovskite structure construction are widely exploited to improve visible light activity. Supporting catalysts on mesoporous materials, morphology (size and shape) modification of catalysts, and deposition of metals on the catalysts are demonstrated as efficient approaches for the enhancement of photodegradation efficiency. The generation pathways for reactive oxygen species overi the catalysts, the influencing factors in the photodegradation, and the assessment methods for catalyst performance are evaluated. Finally, the challenges and future research directions are discussed.

Conventionally, EAB‐type zeolites are crystallized by hydrothermal synthesis for many days under agitational synthesis conditions such as rotation or stirring. In the present study, EAB‐type zeolite is obtained by hydrothermal synthesis within 12 h under static synthesis conditions for the first time. The effects of crystallization temperature, aging of the precursor sol, and addition of seed crystals are investigated. The results reveal that EAB‐type zeolite can be obtained when using a precursor sol with short aging time followed by hydrothermal synthesis in a very narrow temperature range 110 °C−120 °C under static synthesis condition. Addition of seed crystals is found to suppress the formation of SOD‐type zeolite, the primary phase at high hydrothermal synthesis temperatures, while it does not increase the crystallization rate of EAB‐type zeolite. Furthermore, the crystallization behavior at 120 °C is examined by varying the synthesis time. EAB‐type zeolite with invariably twinned plate‐like morphology starts to crystallize between synthesis time of 3 to 6 h at 120 °C under the static synthesis condition.

The utilization of nutrients in sewage sludge partly alleviates the economic and environmental constraints, and the composting process has been proved a cost-efficient and simple approach for the recycling of sewage sludge. During the bio-oxidative process, the thermophilic phase is considered to be the most effective stage for the biodegradation of organic matter in sewage sludge composting systems. However, the maximum temperatures of conventional thermophilic composting systems only reach approximately 55–60 °C because of the activity limitations of thermophiles at higher temperatures. Notably, increasing temperatures can accelerate the humification process and shorten the composting cycle. Therefore, the effect of rising temperature on sewage sludge composting was examined as a specific mechanism. Further, the consequent hyperthermophilic composting (HTC) system created by rising temperatures was reviewed. Moreover, the potential techno-economic advantages and future challenges of HTC systems were discussed. Finally, the microbial communities necessary to ensure the efficiency of HTC systems were analyzed and suitable hyperthermophiles for sludge HTC systems were proposed.

Contamination of water streams by dyes and heavy metals has become a major problem due to their persistence, accumulation, and toxicity. Therefore, it is essential to eliminate and/or reduce these contaminants before discharge into the natural environment. In recent years, 3D graphene has drawn intense research interests owing to its large surface area, superior charge conductivity, and thermal conductivity properties. Due to their unique surface and structural properties, 3D graphene-based materials (3D GBMs) are regarded as ideal adsorbents for decontamination and show great potential in wastewater or exhaust gas treatment. Here, this minireview summarizes the recent progress on 3D GBMs synthesis and their applications for adsorbing dyes and heavy metals from wastewater based on the structures and properties of 3D GBMs, which provides valuable insights into 3D GBMs' application in the environmental field.

Two-dimensional graphene oxide was modified with mercaptoethylamine and then treated with sodium dithionite to produce a 3D thiol-grafted graphene oxide (TGO) composite, which was investigated for the highly selective recovery of silver ions from water. Scanning electron microscopy, powder X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy were used to characterize the material before and after Ag+ adsorption. Batch adsorption experiments were carried out as a function of the initial Ag+ concentration, agitation time, temperature, and pH. The maximum adsorptive capacity of Ag+ by TGO, obtained from the Langmuir model, which fit the isotherm data well, reached 134.1 mg/g at 25 degrees C and a pH of 5.0. In addition, the adsorption was an endothermic process, and the adsorption kinetics followed the pseudo-second-order model. TGO was highly selective for Ag+; the selectivity factor of Ag+ reached 445 compared to Cu2+ ions and exceeded 1900 compared to Zn2+, Mg2+, Ca2+, Na+, and K+ ions. The adsorption of Ag+ on TGO induced the release of H+, and increased adsorption with increasing pH was observed. The adsorbed Ag+ can be proportionally desorbed using 1% HNO3. The reusability of TGO was confirmed by five cycles of adsorption-desorption-regeneration. The adsorption column studies indicated that TGO was stable in water and can be used as a filtering material for Ag+ recovery. The binding mechanism of Ag+ by TGO was proposed as the coordination of Ag+ with the sulfur atom of the mercapto groups attached to TGO followed by the reduction of Ag+ to Ag-0. (C) 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A novel hierarchical porous 3DFC@CuC2O4 material was synthesized as an excellent electrode material for highly efficient LIBs with large reversible capacities and excellent cycling stability at high C-rate.

As an important greenhouse gas, CO2 attracts much attention due to its increasing emission. The adsorption and conversion of CO2 are effective ways to capture and utilize CO2, respectively. Herein, 3D graphene with surface-microporous structure, which was synthesized directly from CO2, was demonstrated as an efficient adsorbent for CO2 adsorption. The surface-microporous structure possesses advantages in the mass diffusion process and exposure of adsorption sites for CO2, achieving a high adsorption capacity of 2.28 mmol g(-1) at 298 K and 1 bar. The adsorption capacity was further increased to 3.13 mmol g(-1) by KOH activation. Such a great improvement can be attributed to the increased oxygen-functional groups.

Hydrogen-treated ZnO, which is a promising photocatalyst with enhanced visible light absorption, has recently attracted much attention. As an important property, morphology of a nanocrystal can significantly influence its reactivity and catalytic performance, but limited effort has been made to evaluate the morphological effect of ZnO on its reduction. Herein, typical one-dimensional scale-like ZnO (1D ZnO) and three-dimensional flower-like ZnO (3D ZnO) were successfully synthesized and exploited to demonstrate the important role of ZnO morphology in its reduction and photocatalytic dye-degradation. It was found that the hydrogen-treatment of 1D ZnO and 3D ZnO resulted in different changes of color, chemical states, and photocatalytic performance. Hydrogen treated 1D ZnO and 3D ZnO exhibited 120 and 400% increase of photocurrent under visible light irradiation, respectively, indicating that the enhancement is 4 times higher for 3D H-ZnO than for 1D H-ZnO. Furthermore, the hydrogen treatment enhanced the degradation of methylene blue by 500% for 3D ZnO and 130% for 1D ZnO, namely, 3D ZnO achieved 3 times larger enhancement in degradation efficiency than 1D ZnO after H2-treatment.