Due to the complex inherent structure of lignocellulosic biomass, inefficient hydrolysis and acidification limit fermentative volatile fatty acid (VFA) production from corn cobs. In this study, a rice husk-derived carbon-based solid acid (RH-SO3H) was developed as a green alternative to conventional dilute sulfuric acid for pretreating corn cobs to enhance fermentative VFA production. The solid acid pretreatment resulted in a maximum VFA concentration of 6848.7 mg/L, which was 1.67, 1.60, and 1.19 times that of the control, with hydrothermal and dilute sulfuric acid pretreatment, respectively. The solid acid pretreatment resulted in a maximum VFA concentration of 6848.7 mg/L, which was 1.67, 1.60, and 1.19 times that of the control, with hydrothermal and dilute sulfuric acid pretreatment, respectively. The performance was comparable to or even exceeded that reported for some advanced pretreatment technologies under certain conditions. Acetic acid was the dominant product, accounting for up to 70.4 % of total VFA. Mechanism analysis indicated that the pretreatment effectively promoted corn cobs disintegration and solubilization. Additionally, the sulfate ion concentration in the effluent reduced by more than one order of magnitude compared with dilute acid pretreatment. Microbial analysis revealed that solid acid pretreatment shifted the microbial community toward hydrolysis-acidification, such as Ruminiclostridium, Bacillus, and Oxobacter. This study presents a waste-to-resource strategy that combines biomass-derived solid acids with anaerobic fermentation for efficient, eco-friendly, and cost-effective VFA production from agricultural residues.

Landscape irrigation using reclaimed water is an effective approach to dealing with water resource scarcity, however, the trace amount of antibiotics in reclaimed water have attracted widespread attraction due to the cascading side effects to soil ecosystem. Therefore, in-situ irrigation simulation experiments were conducted to investigate the multidimensional responsive soil ecosystem induced by landscape irrigation with sulfadiazine micro-polluted reclaimed water. The results indicated that the main fate of sulfadiazine was 50.7% biodegradation and 24.2% plant absorption. This accumulation and uptake inhibited the growth characteristics of ryegrass, with root biomass being the most significantly affected and reduced by 28.0%. Moreover, the microbial community structure evolved into microbes with sulfonamide resistance and degradation functions, and the relative abundance of Rhodospirillum, Herminiimonas, Pseudomonas, Chryseosolibacter and Flavobacterium was significantly increased. This enrichment of resistant bacteria and upregulation of the representative integrase intI1 triggered the spread of sulfonamide resistance genes sul1 and sul2, whose expression levels were upregulated by 24.2% and 18.0%, respectively. Meanwhile, the sulfadiazine degradation pathway mediated by the sadABC gene cluster was significantly activated. The accumulation of antibiotics and the spread of resistance inhibited the expression of nitrogen cycle genes, with the expression levels of amoA, amoB, amoC, hao, nxrA and nxrB decreasing by 155.2%. However, the organic nutrients input by reclaimed water accelerated the carbon cycle, and the expression levels of glk, pfk and pyk increased by 61.3%. This study provides multidimensional responsive evaluation perspective for soil ecosystem risk induced by landscape irrigation with sulfadiazine micro-polluted reclaimed water.

To address the long-standing inconsistency in Perfluorooctanoic Acid (PFOA)-related carcinogenic evidence, a stepwise analytical framework was developed that integrated CiteSpace-based global hotspot mapping, organ-specific meta-analysis, and nonlinear restricted cubic spline (RCS) dose-response modeling to move from research landscape identification to quantitative heterogeneity synthesis and internal dose-based risk estimation. Bibliometric results revealed a recent frontier shift from organ-specific cancer risks toward serum PFOA biomonitoring, mixed exposure assessment, and endocrine-disruptive mechanisms, providing the conceptual basis for organ-oriented evaluation. Meta-analysis of 34 datasets across the four organ-specific cancers most associated with PFOA exposure demonstrated a heterogeneous and divergent risk profile, with modest yet measurable cumulative elevations in cancer risk of kidney (odds ratio (OR) = 1.27; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.01-1.59; P = 0.04), borderline statistical significance in breast cancer risk (OR = 1.13; 95% CI: 1.00-1.27; p = 0.04), while liver cancers (OR = 1.02; 95% CI: 0.95-1.09; p = 0.64) and thyroid cancers (OR = 0.90; 95% CI: 0.76-1.05; p = 0.19) were statistically non-significant. The dose-response risk estimation with the RCS model further uncovered distinct nonlinear carcinogenic architectures, as characterized by Odds Ratios varying with serum/plasma PFOA concentration, including cumulative amplification in kidney, borderline statistical accumulation in breast cancers, and adaptive, non-monotonic modulation in liver and thyroid cancers. These findings highlighted organ-specific susceptibility rather than uniform carcinogenicity and advance a biomarker-driven, nonlinear, and prediction-oriented paradigm for global environmental carcinogenic risk assessment, providing mechanistically informed evidence to refine PFAS regulatory prioritization and precision public health decision-making.

Lipids derived from algal biomass are important constituents of biofuels, nutraceuticals, cosmeceuticals, and animal feed, inter alia. This necessitates the identification and large-scale production of microalgal species that can serve as the biomass based raw material for the above-mentioned categories of bio-products. In this vein, this review sifts through the literature and describes the most promising microalgal species that synthesize lipids and, when subjected to specific conditions, show enhanced lipid production. Currently, Chlorella sp., Cyclotella sp., Neochloris oleoabundans, and Isochrysis galbana are the species with the highest lipid contents. The review mentions and discusses various bioreactor configurations that can be used for large-scale culturing of these microalgae in a comparative aspect. Various configurations of photobioreactors are suitable for high biomass and lipid productivity. Further, prominent strategies of lipid extraction from microalgae have been elaborated, from conventional techniques to the latest ones, comparing and contrasting their advantages and disadvantages. While solvent-based extractions may have their advantages, it would be prudent to explore more eco-friendly techniques for scale-up. Lastly, the review gives a comprehensive account of the biorefinery approach to culturing microalgae, emphasising the assessment of their economic performance using different software and models, such as the techno-economic assessment model. The application of tools such as multi-criteria decision analysis that assess energy technology could enable better optimization. Microalgae have the potential to be used as a renewable source of fuel and feed; therefore, it is incumbent on the scientific community to significantly reduce production costs while ensuring sustainability.

The poultry processing sector in Southwest Nigeria is expanding rapidly, yet systematic evidence on sustainable waste management pathways remains fragmented. Existing studies largely document disposal practices without integrating sustainability frameworks or assessing comparative recovery technologies. This review addresses this gap by synthesizing peer-reviewed evidence on poultry waste streams, current management practices, environmental and public health impacts, and sustainable alternatives within a circular economy perspective. Using a systematic literature review of 15 peer-reviewed studies published between 2014 and 2025, which were obtained from Google Scholar, Scopus, and AJOL databases. The study applies thematic synthesis to identify dominant practices, structural barriers, and enabling conditions for resource recovery. Findings reveal a heavy reliance on open dumping, land application, and low-efficiency composting, driven by weak regulatory enforcement, limited technical capacity, and financial constraints. By comparatively assessing composting, anaerobic digestion, and energy recovery options, this review provides a structured sustainability-oriented synthesis that informs policy prioritization, technology selection, and future research directions for poultry waste management in Southwest Nigeria.

Microalgae are ubiquitous in aquatic ecosystems and play a pivotal role in carbon fixation and cycling. Toxicity of microplastics (MPs) on microalgae in aquatic ecosystems has been widely studied, but their influence on carbon fixation capacity of microalgae remains poorly understood. In this study, the influence of polyethylene (PE) and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) MPs on carbon fixation capacity of Chlorella pyrenoidosa was investigated. During 14-day incubation, the maximum inhibition of carbon fixation was 37.0% and 39.25% for PE and PVC MPs at 50 mg/L, respectively. Moreover, MPs resulted in the decrease of dissolved organic matter (DOM) into water by destroying the algae integrity, while the increase of aromaticity and humification of DOM. The PE and PVC exposure resulted in the reduction of chlorophyll content, and the increase of intercellular oxidative stress, as evidenced by the increased production of stress-related biomarkers. Furthermore, a comprehensive transcriptomes analysis revealed that the differentially expressed genes in GO enrichment analysis were mainly membrane, photosynthetic electron transport chain, chloroplast, etc. KEGG enrichment analysis demonstrated that MPs induced the downregulation of genes involved in chlorophyll metabolism and the Calvin cycle. The findings provide valuable insights into the potential environmental impacts of MPs on aquatic carbon cycles.

This study integrated an air flotation and settling (AFS) tank, anaerobic/oxic (A/O) tank, moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) with a constructed wetland (CW) for removing high levels of COD (834–1981 mg/L), BOD5 (302–886 mg/L), TN (102.4–398.2 mg/L) and coliforms (2.1 × 105–4.5 × 105 CFU/100 mL) from the effluent of a biogas digester processing piggery wastewater. The plants Eichhornia crassipes and Ipomoea aquatica were used in the CW to improve the pollutant removal effiency. From April 18 to July 30, 2024, the experiment was conducted, during which the integrated AFS–A/O–CW system achieved removal efficiencies of 74.2 ± 5.9

In order to clarify the reasons for the continuous accumulation of glucocorticoids such as dexamethasone (DEX) in urban rivers, a microcosm simulation system was set up to analyze the natural attenuation behavior, intrinsic decay mechanism, and environmental risks driven by multiple intertwined degradation pathways. The half-life of DEX was 13.6 days even with synergistic degradation from multiple effects of photolysis, biodegradation, and hydrolysis, with degradation rates enhanced by 3.40, 8.88, and 347.76 times compared with individual photolysis (46 d), biodegradation (120 d), or hydrolysis (4715 d). Therefore, the residual DEX was 9.17 % even after 50 days, which explained DEX accumulation in rivers under constant external input conditions. Moreover, this intertwined multi-pathway degradation network that stemmed from the interconversion of intermediates across different pathways increased the toxicity risk due to dissolved organic matter (DOM) driven photolysis. DOM exhibited concentration-dependent dual effects on indirect photolysis in the 5-15 mg C/L range, with the strongest promotion/enhancement at 10 mg C/L. Contributions of reactive species followed 3DOM* > 1O2 > •OH, which induced the accumulation of highly toxic intermediates via the indirect photolysis-dominated pathways. Long-term exposure to DEX and metabolites led to microbial community structure shift toward tolerant genera capable of utilizing DEX, with genera as the hgcI clade, Myroides, and Acinetobacter being dominant on day 25, shifting to C39 and Polynucleobacter by day 50. The results from QSTR model-based ecological risk assessment showed that the risk level increased by 2.67 and 3.23 times after 25 and 50 days. These results elucidated DEX's accumulation and elevated the environmental risks associated with its degradation in natural rivers.

Fe-MXene catalyst featuring Ti/O dual vacancies and multiple active sites was directional designed and synthesized via Molten Salt Self-Assemble, which could realize 96.73% degradation and 77.45% mineralization to 20 mg/L benzotriazole (BTA) within 20 min with amendment of 0.5 g/L Fe-MXene and 15 mg/L O3 at pH 7.0. The degradation rate attained 0.1836 min- 1 with 2.6 times enhancement compared to single O3. This highly efficient degradation was ascribed to synergetic effects from 55.92% hydroxyl radicals (center dot OH), 28.3% superoxide radicals (center dot O2- ), and 9.24% singlet oxygen (1O2). These approximately fivefold center dot OH and threefold center dot O2- active species generation were attributed to superior catalytic activity from Fe-MXene with multivalent redox couples (Fe (II)/Fe (III), Ti (III)/Ti (IV)) and Ti-O double vacancies, which enhanced O3 and electron transport. FeMxene catalyst efficiency maintained over 96% after 5 recycle. This efficient and stable degradation mechanism is mainly driven by Ti-O double vacancies, which accelerated direct adsorption O3 conversion to center dot O2- and indirect chemical generation center dot OH driven by Fe/Ti electron transfer acceleration. This generation of multiple oxidizing active species accelerated three types of ring-opening behaviors for BTA from hydroxy substitution on benzene ring, oxidation ring-opening of triazole ring, and assistive double bond rupture driven by non-radical pathway. This rapid benzene ring-open induced ecotoxicity reduction, while triazole ring degradation triggered ecotoxicity increase. The extensive application of Fe-MXene catalyst demonstrated that the highly efficient and selective characteristics to refractory coal chemical wastewater containing toxic benzene rings and azole rings.

Layered double hydroxides (LDHs) show great promise for peroxymonosulfate (PMS) activation, but are limited by layered agglomeration and metal ion leaching. MgFe-LDH@BC achieved over 99 % degradation efficiency and approximately 70 % dechlorination of trichloroethylene (TCE) within one hour through BC-mediated LDH dispersion immobilization and radical-nonradical synergistic effects. Non-radical mechanisms primarily involve Fe2+/Fe3+ redox cycles promoting Fe (IV)--O generation, alongside C--O and C--C functional groups on biochar facilitating singlet oxygen (1O2) production. Free radicals are primarily generated through the reaction between ferrous iron on MgFe-LDH@BC, H2O, and PMS. The contributions of reactive species were quantified as 19.4 % SO4 center dot-, 16.2 % center dot OH, 14 % O2 center dot-, 23.9 % Fe (IV)--O and 25.1 % 1O2. After five cycles, the activation efficiency remained above 99 %, with a metal leakage rate below 5 %, and no significant negative effects from coexisting humic acids, demonstrating strong environmental resilience. The TCE degradation pathway primarily involves radical-mediated hydrogenation substitution, C--C bond cleavage, and hydrolysis under the attack of reactive species, gradually reducing ecological toxicity. This study provides valuable insights into LDH-based PMS activation and supports the development of remediation strategies for TCE-contaminated groundwater.

Seasonal water level fluctuations in rivers significantly influenced the cross-media migration, transformation, and risk diffusion of antibiotics from the vadose zone into groundwater. This study developed a coupled model integrating machine learning (ML) with HYDRUS-3D and GMS to accurately predict sulfamethazine migration under dynamic water levels. The predictive accuracy (E≥0.98) of this ML-HYDRUS-GMS model was enhanced by accounting for seasonal water level fluctuations and biogeochemical variability. Significant seasonal differences presented with sulfamethazine diffusion in the vadose zone with the migration rate decreased from 0.06 m/d to 0.02 m/d with the transition from wet to dry seasons. After 6 years of infiltration, it reached groundwater, where lateral migration rates, influenced by seasonal flow variations, were 0.12 m/d in the wet season and decreased to 0.07 m/d in the dry season, with a diffusion range extending to 217 m over 100 years. This discrepant continuous filtration of sulfamethazine and the succession of metabolic pathways induced toxicity range to expand by 65.6 m and the risk to increase to warning level. Sulfamethazine underwent oxidative breakdown in aerobic vadose zone conditions, while anaerobic groundwater conditions led to hydrogenation and reduction, increasing its migration distance.

A project was conducted to design and apply a Compact Trickle-Bed Bioreactor (CTBB) to degrade H2S and Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) in the exhaust gas from a sulfur underground-melting mine. Experiments were performed to demonstrate the suitability of the CTBB for this type of application. The tested pilot scale bioreactor was a 1070 dm(3) in which gas and liquid flowed co-currently downward through a bed made of polyethylene rings. The bed was inoculated with a bacterial consortium, including microorganism strains naturally present in the sulfur mine and adapted to the target gaseous pollutants. H2S concentrations in the exhaust gas were 30 -100 mg/m(3), but short-lived increases to higher concentrations > 800 mg/m(3) were also detected. The VOCs concentrations ranged from 1 -30 mg/m(3). Upon inoculation of the bioreactor bed, the mixed bacterial consortium grew rapidly and adapted to the pollutants. The flow rates ranged: for gas phase 7 -30 m(3)/h, 2 -7 m(3)/h for liquid-phase at pH = 7. Pollutant degradation efficiency was above 90 % for H2S and 70 -85 % for VOCs. The results proved a high average gas purification efficiency and reliable bioreactor performance under harsh sulfur mine working conditions despite incidents of temporary efficiency reduction caused by short-lived pollutant overload/shock loads.

Natural biofilms served as significant sinks for Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), as they secreted extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) and altered their community composition to enhance resistance. Nevertheless, there was little information regarding the trophic transfer of PFAS through the biofilm-based food chain, particularly in relation to the biofilm’s response. This study explored the varied responses of photic biofilm to PFAS with different carbon chain lengths and their trophic amplification in grazers (snails). The differentiated physiological and ecological responses of photic biofilm supported a mechanistic interpretation of the kinetic trophic transfer of PFAS in snails. Short-chain PFAS predominantly localized within biofilm matrix, which facilitated the growth of algae and contributed to greater accumulation of these compounds in snails. In contrast, long-chain PFAS were primarily located on the exterior of the biofilm matrix, which decreased in the EPS productivity and biomass to prevent its accumulation in snails through ingestion. The biomagnification of short-chain PFAS from biofilm to snails was observed while the long-chain PFAS were less efficiently transferred to the snails. These findings suggested that the response of photic biofilm to PFAS with different carbon-chain-length exposure exhibited diet-dependent effects on trophic transfer of PFAS in snails.

Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) are biodegradable polymers produced by mixed microbial cultures (MMCs). While the C/N ratio is commonly used to trigger PHA accumulation, this study is not aimed at optimizing PHA production but rather at investigating how different carbon-to-nitrogen (C/N) ratios (5-80), under constant carbon input, influence PHA accumulation and microbial community succession during a 150-day feast-famine enrichment. High C/N ratios (40-80) favored PHA storage, increasing concentrations by 17.8-fold (up to 412.88 mg/L, 24 % CDW), while low C/N ratios (5-20) promoted biomass growth (up to 3.8-fold CDW) but limited PHA content (<10 % CDW). Community analysis revealed that Acinetobacter, Rhizobiaceae, and Sphingomonas dominated under nitrogen-rich conditions, while Pseudomonas thrived at high C/N due to its PHA accumulation capacity and ammonia tolerance. Functional predictions showed that high C/N suppressed amino acid biosynthesis and the TCA cycle, enhancing beta-oxidation and carbon flux toward PHA synthesis. These findings highlight the mechanistic role of C/N ratio in modulating microbial selection and carbon allocation, providing a foundation for refining enrichment strategies with real waste substrates in future studies.

Large quantities of pollutants, including organic matter, biodegradable synthetic organics, and heavy metals from industrial effluents, pose a significant threat to sediment quality globally. Bioremediation technologies have proven to be effective in treating sediments contaminated by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, polychlorinated biphenyls, polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans, and heavy metals. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the recent advancements in bioremediation techniques for treating sediments polluted with organic and heavy metals. It also highlights the novel approaches to enhance bioremediation, such as co-metabolism through auxiliary substrates, biosurfactants produced by specific bacteria, genetically engineered microorganisms, and enzyme-based technologies. Besides, to overcome the challenges associated with these novel methods (high costs, technical complexities, ethical barriers), integrated bioremediation strategies (electro-bioremediation, enzymatic reactors, microbial assisted phytoremediation, composting) are discussed for their potential to improve efficiency and sustainability. Finally, the review outlines future research directions in the field of bioremediation technology, emphasizing the integration of hybrid technologies, precision-engineered microbial consortia, risk-governed bioaugmentation, and circular economy frameworks. Addressing the challenges related to cost-effectiveness, ecological safety, and long-term stability in scalable implementation will be critical for advancing these technologies and ensuring their practical application in sediment pollution management.

Though conductive materials can enhance the performance of anaerobic fermentation (AF) for waste activated sludge, challenges such as ineffective heavy metal removal and the unassessed toxicity of both conductive materials and digested sludge hinder its practical application. In this study, a novel composite material, FeM@CS, synthesized from Fe3O4@MOF-808 (FeM) and chitosan (CS), was used with sodium persulfate to generate center dot SO4-, center dot OH, and 1O2, significantly enhancing WAS dissolution and hydrolysis. The surface of the material has enriched a large amount of organic substrates and hydrolytic acidogenic bacteria (such as Macellibacteroides) through electrostatic attraction. Under the establishment of a shorter proton/electron transfer distance in FeM@CS, it promotes inter-bacterial syntrophic metabolism and enzyme activity, thereby increasing the production of volatile fatty acids by 184 %. Additionally, FeM and CS facilitated phosphorus and metal adsorption through electrostatic attraction, ligand exchange, and chelation, reducing the concentrations of highly toxic and lowtoxicity metals in sludge digestate by 70.51 % and 22.72 %, respectively. Moreover, the toxicity of Chlorella sp., Bacillus subtilis and Thauera aminoaromatica decreased by 24.21 %, 40.00 %, and 43.42 %, respectively. Although FeM@CS exhibits some toxicity, its particulate form makes it easy to recover and difficult to release into the ecological environment. Additionally, FeM@CS demonstrates good recyclability and can desorb highpurity phosphorus and metals, which significantly reduces economic costs and makes it more suitable for large-scale applications. This study provides new insights into a low-toxicity, high-benefit, and sustainable largescale AF approach.

Background The development of internal combustion (IC) engines has seen significant advancements, but understanding and modelling their complex dynamics pose challenges. Artificial intelligence (AI) techniques, notably artificial neural networks (ANN) and nature-inspired optimization algorithms like genetic algorithms (GA), offer potential solutions to enhance accuracy and tackle nonlinearities and uncertainties. Despite this potential, effectively leveraging AI in engine development remains a considerable research gap. Methods This review examines the potential benefits of AI in addressing the challenges associated with dynamic systems like engine development, focusing on sustainability and environmental friendliness through methods such as biofuel adoption. Various IC engines, including compression ignition, direct injection, marine, and aircraft engines, along with other power-generating units, were analyzed. Processes such as manufacturing, design, testing, control, and fault detection were scrutinized to identify suitable domains for AI application. Significant Findings The review identifies opportunities for AI in enhancing sustainability and eco-friendliness in engine development, particularly through biofuel utilization. By exploring suitable domains for AI techniques, such as ANN and GA, this paper contributes to the advancement of environmentally conscious engines. Additionally, it offers recommendations for future research to tackle the persistent challenges in engine development, particularly concerning alternate fuels like biofuels.