SBBGR technology for reducing waste sludge production during plastic recycling process: Assessment of potential increase in sludge hazardousness.

Sludge production in the wastewater treatment sector is consistently increasing and represents a critical environmental and economic issue. This study evaluated an unconventional approach for treating wastewater generated from the cleaning of non-hazardous plastic solid waste during the plastic recycling process. The proposed scheme was based on sequencing batch biofilter granular reactor (SBBGR) technology, which was compared with the activated sludge-based treatment currently in operation.

Time to harmonize mitochondrial syndrome nomenclature and classification: A consensus from the North American Mitochondrial Disease Consortium (NAMDC).

Objective: To harmonize terminology in mitochondrial medicine, we propose revised clinical criteria for primary mitochondrial syndromes.

Methods: The North American Mitochondrial Disease Consortium (NAMDC) established a Diagnostic Criteria Committee comprised of members with diverse expertise. It included clinicians, researchers, diagnostic laboratory directors, statisticians, and data managers.

Effects of Weed Control Practices on Plant Diversity in a Homogenous Olive-Dominated Landscape (South-East of Italy).

Olive groves represent an important economic, agro-ecological, and cultural resource in the Mediterranean Basin. Weed management plays a fundamental role in their sustainable management. The aim of this work was to characterize and assess the plant diversity associated with different weed control practices, in a homogeneous olive-dominated landscape in the South-East of Italy.

Treating and reusing wastewater generated by the washing operations in the non-hazardous plastic solid waste recycling process: Advanced method vs. conventional method.

The effectiveness of an advanced treatment of wastewater generated by non-hazardous plastic solid waste (PSW) washing, based on the Sequencing Batch Biofilter Granular Reactor (SBBGR), was assessed in terms of gross parameters, removal efficiencies and sludge production. The proposed treatment was also compared with the conventional treatment, which was based on primary and secondary treatments, using the activated sludge process, performed by Recuperi Pugliesi, a leading company in the plastic recycling industry located in Bari, Italy. The company produces low-density polyethylene (LDPE) regenerated granules from PSW used in agricultural and floricultural greenhouse activities and industrial packaging after a washing stage in the aqueous phase.