Green synthesis of self-assembly, self-healing, and injectable polyelectrolyte complex hydrogels using chitosan, sulphated polysaccharides, hydrolyzed collagen and nanocellulose.

This study introduces a green method for preparing self-assembly hydrogels via polyelectrolyte complex (PEC) coacervation using chitosan, sulphated polysaccharides (chondroitin sulphate or fucoidan), and hydrolyzed collagen, followed by treatments, such as centrifugation, nanocellulose incorporation, algal fucoidan substitution, freezing-thawing, saline solution addition, and dialysis. Chitosan alters the non-gelling characteristics of chondroitin sulphate, fucoidan, and hydrolyzed collagen, initiating quick gelling. This study compared the effects of biopolymer concentrations, pHs, and treatments on hydrogel properties.

Enzymatic digestibility of lignocellulosic wood biomass: Effect of enzyme treatment in supercritical carbon dioxide and biomass pretreatment.

Energy and resource intensive mechanical and chemical pretreatment along with the use of hazardous chemicals are major bottlenecks in widespread lignocellulosic biomass utilization. Herein, the study investigated different pretreatment methods on spruce wood namely supercritical CO (scCO) pretreatment, ultrasound-assisted alkaline pretreatment, and acetosolv pulping-alkaline hydrogen peroxide bleaching, to enhance the enzymatic digestibility of wood using optimized enzyme cocktail. Also, the effect of scCO pretreatment on enzyme cocktail was investigated after optimizing the concentration and temperature of cellulolytic enzymes.

Biodegradation of 1,4-dioxane in a continuous-flow bioelectrochemical reactor by biofilm of Pseudonocardia dioxanivorans CB1190 and microbial community on conductive carriers.

Bioelectrochemical degradation is an environmentally friendly, cost-effective and controllable way of providing electron acceptor to the microorganisms. A two-chamber continuous-flow bioelectrochemical reactor (BER) was developed in this study. The objective was to investigate the potential for enhancing the bioelectrochemical degradation of 1,4-dioxane (DX) by Pseudonocardia dioxanivorans CB1190 (CB1190) and microbial community biofilm on conductive and non-conductive carriers in low potentials (1.

Influence of elevated pressure and pressurized fluids on microenvironment and activity of enzymes.

Enzymes have great potential in bioprocess engineering due to their green and mild reaction conditions. However, there are challenges to their application, such as enzyme extraction and purification costs, enzyme recovery, and long reaction time. Enzymatic reaction rate enhancement and enzyme immobilization have the potential to overcome some of these challenges.

Biodegradation of 1,4-dioxane by a native digestate microbial community under different electron accepting conditions.

The potential of a native digestate microbial community for 1,4-dioxane (DX) biodegradation was evaluated under low dissolved oxygen (DO) concentrations (1-3 mg/L) under different conditions in terms of electron acceptors, co-substrates, co-contaminants and temperature. Complete DX biodegradation (detection limit of 0.01 mg/L) of initial 25 mg/L was achieved in 119 days under low DO concentrations, while complete biodegradation happened faster at 91 and 77 days, respectively in nitrate-amended and aerated conditions.

Delignified porous wood as biofilm support for 1,4-dioxane-degrading bacterial consortium.

Delignified porous wood samples were used as carriers for biofilm formation of a bacterial consortium with the ability to degrade 1,4-dioxane (DX). The delignification treatment of the natural wood resulted in higher porosity, formation of macropores, increase in surface roughness and hydrophilicity of the treated wood pieces. These superior properties of two types of treated carriers (respectively, A and B) compared to the untreated wood resulted in 2.

Nanocrystalline cellulose derived from spruce wood: Influence of process parameters.

The cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) were produced from spruce wood using less hazardous and toxic reagents with understanding of influence of process parameters on CNCs properties. This study employed acetosolv pulping followed by alkaline-peroxide bleaching, eliminating highly reactive chemicals such as Na-chlorites and Na-sulfite for cellulose pulp extraction from spruce wood. Cellulose pulp yield of 41.

Algal Polysaccharides-Based Hydrogels: Extraction, Synthesis, Characterization, and Applications.

Hydrogels are three-dimensional crosslinked hydrophilic polymer networks with great potential in drug delivery, tissue engineering, wound dressing, agrochemicals application, food packaging, and cosmetics. However, conventional synthetic polymer hydrogels may be hazardous and have poor biocompatibility and biodegradability. Algal polysaccharides are abundant natural products with biocompatible and biodegradable properties.

Transformation under pressure: Discovery of a novel crystalline form of anthelmintic drug Praziquantel using high-pressure supercritical carbon dioxide.

Supercritical carbon dioxide (CO) has been used as a processing technique to control polymorphism of pharmaceuticals. However, there are fewer reports of novel polymorphs being discovered by supercritical CO processing. As supercritical crystallization methods gain attention for potential in pharmaceutical processing, they may become a critical screening tool for discovery of new polymorphs.

Ternary Phase Diagram Development and Production of Niclosamide-Urea Co-Crystal by Spray Drying.

In this work, a ternary phase diagram was developed for a Niclosamide-urea co-crystal (NCS-UR) in isopropanol (IPA) using a combination of slurry and solvent addition methods. The ternary phase diagram showed that solubility of Niclosamide and urea differed by an order of magnitude in IPA, leading to an incongruently saturating system. Spray drying was explored as a method to generate NCS-UR.

Dataset of breakthrough time for various modified sand materials using Rhodamine-B as an adsorbate.

Removal of synthetic dyes from wastewater generated by the textile industries is important. Rhodamine-B is widely used colorant and is medically proven to lead to tissue borne sarcoma, reproductive and neurotoxicity issues in humans, if still present in the treated drinking water. Herein, this dataset provides information on different forms of sand materials for their effective utilization as an adsorbent material for Rhodamine-B.

Physical and biological removal of Microcystin-LR and other water contaminants in a biofilter using Manganese Dioxide coated sand and Graphene sand composites.

Sand as a filter media is often challenged by the presence of organics in the form of natural organic matter, metal ions, and various micropollutants in the source water. It is mainly due to the presence of limited active adsorption sites and low surface area that governs an ineffective adsorption potential of the sand material. Herein, graphitized sand was synthesized to tackle the above limitations using two sugar solution sources: a) brewery effluent (as a low-cost solution) (GS1) and; b) sucrose solution (GS2).

Agro-industrial residues as a unique support in a sand filter to enhance the bioactivity to remove microcystin-Leucine aRginine and organics.

In the past, the versatility of a biosand filter has been successfully checked to counter suspended solids, metals, dissolved organic carbon (DOC), coliforms and other water quality parameters (WQPs) from the drinking water sources. In this study, cyanotoxin in the form of microcystin-LR (MC-LR) along with above-mentioned WQPs including nitrate, nitrite, and ammonia are analyzed for their removal using agro-residue based biosand filters (ARSFs) for 49 days (7 cycles). Three different agro-residue materials (ARMs) viz.

Potential of biological approaches for cyanotoxin removal from drinking water: A review.

Biological treatment of cyanotoxins has gained much importance in recent decades and holds a promise to work in coordination with various physicochemical treatments. In drinking water treatment plants (DWTPs), effective removal of cyanotoxins with reduced toxicity is a primary concern. Commonly used treatments, such as ozonation, chlorination or activated carbon, undergo significant changes in their operating conditions (mainly dosage) to counter the variation in different environmental parameters, such as pH, temperature, and high cyanotoxin concentration.

Fabrication of nanobiocatalyst using encapsulated laccase onto chitosan-nanobiochar composite.

Laccase is one of the widely used enzymes for biotechnological processes. Immobilization of enzymes is a universally accepted approach to increase their reusability and stability. In this study, laccase enzyme from Trametes versicolor was encapsulated for the first time in a chitosan-nanobiochar matrix.

Anaerobic digestion of thin stillage of corn ethanol plant in a novel anaerobic baffled reactor.

In this study, the performance of a conventional anaerobic baffled reactor (ABR) and a novel configuration of hybrid ABR for the treatment of thin stillage was evaluated. The hybrid ABR achieved the chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal, sulfate removal and methane yield of 97-94%, 94-97% and 294-310 mL CH g COD, respectively at organic loading rate (OLR) of 1-3.5 kg COD m d.

Biodegradation of microcystin-LR using acclimatized bacteria isolated from different units of the drinking water treatment plant.

Bacterial community isolated from different units of a Drinking Water Treatment Plant (DWTP) including pre-ozonation unit (POU), the effluent-sludge mixture of the sedimentation unit (ESSU) and top-sand layer water sample from the filtration unit (TSFU) were acclimatized separately in the microcystin-leucine arginine (MC-LR)-rich environment to evaluate MC-LR biodegradation. Maximum biodegradation efficiency of 97.2 ± 8.

Pinewood nanobiochar: A unique carrier for the immobilization of crude laccase by covalent bonding.

Nanotechnology-inspired biocatalytic systems attracted attention for many applications since nanosized supports for enzyme immobilization can improve efficiency-determining factors e.g. enhancing the surface area and loading capacity and reducing the mass transfer resistance.

Removal of pharmaceutical compounds in water and wastewater using fungal oxidoreductase enzymes.

Due to recalcitrance of some pharmaceutically active compounds (PhACs), conventional wastewater treatment is not able to remove them effectively. Therefore, their occurrence in surface water and potential environmental impact has raised serious global concern. Biological transformation of these contaminants using white-rot fungi (WRF) and their oxidoreductase enzymes has been proposed as a low cost and environmentally friendly solution for water treatment.

A novel process for preparation of fatty acid oil mixture in solid form.

The present study describes a novel and scalable process for preparation of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids in solid form. The process involves multiple steps consisting of combining the oil with a metal base in alcohol to form a solution, followed by addition of reaction mixture to acetonitrile (anti-solvent) to form a slurry and further separating the solid through filtration. This process results in formation of a flowable solid with yield of 44-76% depending on the procedure employed.

Immobilized laccase on oxygen functionalized nanobiochars through mineral acids treatment for removal of carbamazepine.

Biocatalytic treatment with oxidoreductase enzymes, especially laccases are an environmentally benign method for biodegradation of pharmaceutical compounds, such as carbamazepine to less harmful compounds. However, enzymes are required to be immobilized on supports to be reusable and maintain their activity. Functionalization of support prior to immobilization of enzyme is highly important because of biomolecule-support interface on enzyme activity and stability.

Enzymatic and acid hydrolysis of Tetraselmis suecica for polysaccharide characterization.

Carbohydrate composition of the marine microalgae, Tetraselmis suecica was characterized following acidic and enzymatic hydrolysis. Monitoring intracellular starch as a function of cultivation time at varying nitrate concentrations showed a maximum cellular starch content of 45% of dry biomass when grown under nitrate depleted conditions. Characterization of the cell wall methanolysates using GC/MS showed that the monosaccharide composition did not change in response to the nitrate concentration and consisted of 54% 3-deoxy-D-manno-oct-2-ulosonic acid (Kdo), 17% 3-deoxy-lyxo-2-heptulosaric acid (Dha), 21% galacturonic acid and 6% galactose.

Derivation and synthesis of renewable surfactants.

This critical review focuses on the origins and preparation of bio-based surfactants, defined here as non-soap, amphiphilic molecules in which the carbon atoms are derived from annually renewable feedstocks. Environmental concerns and market pressures have led to greater relevance of these chemicals in commercial applications in recent years and extensive research has gone into exploring new classes of surfactants. Highlighted here are examples of bio-based surfactants that are produced on an industrial scale and/or are based on abundant starting materials.

Mechanisms of biodegradation of dibenzoate plasticizers.

Biodegradation mechanisms were elucidated for three dibenzoate plasticizers: diethylene glycol dibenzoate (D(EG)DB), dipropylene glycol dibenzoate (D(PG)DB), both of which are commercially available, and 1,6-hexanediol dibenzoate, a potential green plasticizer. Degradation studies were done using Rhodococcus rhodochrous in the presence of pure alkanes as a co-substrate. As expected, the first degradation step for all of these systems was the hydrolysis of one ester bond with the release of benzoic acid and a monoester.