Sulfur powder utilization and denitrification efficiency in an elemental sulfur-based membrane bioreactor with coagulant addition.

The integration of elemental sulfur-based autotrophic denitrification with membrane bioreactor (MBR) technology offers a cost-effective solution for nitrate removal; however, stable operation demands efficient sulfur utilization and phosphorus management. This study explores sulfur consumption dynamics and the impacts of coagulant injection on denitrification efficiency. Sulfur consumption was closely correlated with nitrate removal rates, highlighting the critical role of stoichiometric sulfur availability for sustained denitrification.

DeepHealthNet: Adolescent Obesity Prediction System Based on a Deep Learning Framework.

The global prevalence of childhood and adolescent obesity is a major concern due to its association with chronic diseases and long-term health risks. Artificial intelligence technology has been identified as a potential solution to accurately predict obesity rates and provide personalized feedback to adolescents. This study highlights the importance of early identification and prevention of obesity-related health issues.

Grouping of unused agricultural by-product biomass for fuel conversion in South Korea through multivariate analysis.

While biomass holds significance as a resource, its abundance in South Korea is limited. Therefore, in this study analyzed the chemical characteristics of agricultural by-products produced and evaluated their fuel potentiality. To achieve this objective, multivariate analysis was utilized to create biomass clusters with diverse feature.

One-dimensional modeling of heterogeneous catalytic chemical looping steam methane reforming in an adiabatic packed bed reactor.

Hydrogen production via chemical looping steam methane reforming (CL-SMR) is among the most promising current technologies. This work presents the development in gPROMS Model Builder 4.1.

Evaluation of Organic and Inorganic Foulant Interaction Using Modified Fouling Models in Constant Flux Dead-End Operation with Microfiltration Membranes.

The goal of this study was to elucidate the interaction of complex feed solutions under modified membrane fouling models for constant flux operation. The polyvinylidene fluoride membrane (PVDF) was tested for three types of solutions containing inorganic foulants (Al, Mn, and Fe), organic foulants, and suspended solids at 0.5 mM Ca ionic strength.

Effects of air blower and pump failures on the performance of AO processes for wastewater treatment.

The unexpected failure of equipment such as pumps and fans in wastewater treatment plants can reduce wastewater treatment efficiency, leading to direct leakage of untreated wastewater into the environment. It is hence important to predict the possible consequences of equipment failure to minimize the leakage of harmful substances. This study examines the impacts of equipment shutdown on the performance and recovery time of a laboratory-scale anaerobic/anoxic/aerobic system with regard to reactor conditions and water quality.

A deep learning-based framework for predicting pork preference.

Meat consumption per capita in South Korea has steadily increased over the last several years and is predicted to continue increasing. Up to 69.5% of Koreans eat pork at least once a week.

A Comprehensive Survey on Security and Privacy for Electronic Health Data.

Recently, the integration of state-of-the-art technologies, such as modern sensors, networks, and cloud computing, has revolutionized the conventional healthcare system. However, security concerns have increasingly been emerging due to the integration of technologies. Therefore, the security and privacy issues associated with e-health data must be properly explored.

Effects of steam pretreatment on fouled membrane in chemical cleaning for flux recovery in drinking water treatment.

This paper shows the possibility of using steam pretreatment to improve the efficiency of membrane recovery chemical cleaning. Before applying chemicals to clean a fouled membrane, steam pretreatment was employed to loosen the structure of the foulant layer and weaken the attachment of those foulants on the membrane. Although longer steam contact times would lead to even better cleaning efficiency, the steam pretreatment duration was limited to less than 2 min to maintain membrane integrity.

Self-Adaptive Framework Based on MAPE Loop for Internet of Things.

The Internet of Things (IoT) connects a wide range of objects and the types of environments in which IoT can be deployed dynamically change. Therefore, these environments can be modified dynamically at runtime considering the emergence of other requirements. Self-adaptive software alters its behavior to satisfy the requirements in a dynamic environment.

Electrospun Nanofiber Membranes Incorporating PDMS-Aerogel Superhydrophobic Coating with Enhanced Flux and Improved Antiwettability in Membrane Distillation.

Electrospun nanofiber membranes (ENMs) have garnered increasing interest due to their controllable nanofiber structure and high void volume fraction properties in membrane distillation (MD). However, MD technology still faces limitations mainly due to low permeate flux and membrane wetting for feeds containing low surface tension compounds. Perfluorinated superhydrophobic membranes could be an alternative, but it has negative environmental impacts.

Engineering the Re-Entrant Hierarchy and Surface Energy of PDMS-PVDF Membrane for Membrane Distillation Using a Facile and Benign Microsphere Coating.

To consolidate the position of membrane distillation (MD) as an emerging membrane technology that meets global water challenges, it is crucial to develop membranes with ideal material properties. This study reports a facile approach for a polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membrane surface modification that is achieved through the coating of the surface with poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) polymeric microspheres to lower the membrane surface energy. The hierarchical surface of the microspheres was built without any assistance of a nano/microcomposite by combining the rapid evaporation of tetrahydrofuran (THF) and the phase separation from condensed water vapor.

Enhanced vapor transport in membrane distillation via functionalized carbon nanotubes anchored into electrospun nanofibres.

To ascertain membrane distillation (MD) as an emerging desalination technology to meet the global water challenge, development of membranes with ideal material properties is crucial. Functionalized carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were anchored to nanofibres of electrospun membranes. Covalent modification and fluorination of CNTs improved their dispersibility and interfacial interaction with the polymer membrane, resulting in well-aligned CNTs inside crystalline fibres with superhydrophobicity.

High flux and antifouling properties of negatively charged membrane for dyeing wastewater treatment by membrane distillation.

This study investigated the applicability of membrane distillation (MD) to treat dyeing wastewater discharged by the textile industry. Four different dyes containing methylene blue (MB), crystal violet (CV), acid red 18 (AR18), and acid yellow 36 (AY36) were tested. Two types of hydrophobic membranes made of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) and polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) were used.

A mechanistic study of in situ chemical cleaning-in-place for a PTFE flat sheet membrane: fouling mitigation and membrane characterization.

This study aimed at unfolding the role and mechanisms of chemically enhanced cleaning-in-place (CIP) regimes in fouling control of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) made flat sheet (FS) membrane bio-reactors (MBRs). The trans-membrane pressure (TMP) was successfully maintained below 10 kPa using a daily CIP regime consisting of 100 to 600 mg l(-1) of NaOCl and cake layer resistance control was shown to be critical for effective high-flux MBR operation. In contrast, in the control unit without the CIP, the TMP exceeded 35 kPa at a flux of 40 LMH.

A comparative study on per capita waste generation according to a waste collecting system in Korea.

As cities are becoming increasingly aware of problems related to conventional mobile collection systems, automated pipeline-based vacuum collection (AVAC) systems have been introduced in some densely populated urban areas. The reasons are that in addition to cost savings, AVAC systems can be efficient, hygienic, and environmentally friendly. Despite difficulties in making direct comparisons of municipal waste between a conventional mobile collection system and an AVAC system, it is meaningful to measure the quantities in each of these collection methods either in total or on a per capita generation of waste (PCGW, g/(day*capita)) basis.

Influence of microbubble in physical cleaning of MF membrane process for wastewater reuse.

Currently, there is a growing emphasis on wastewater reclamation and reuse all over the world due to restricted water resources. Among a variety of wastewater reuse technologies, the use of microfiltration membranes (MF) is one of the popular processes because it has the ability to successfully eliminate particulates and colloidal matters. However, successful fouling control is not easy because effluents from the activated sludge process still contain small particulates and colloidal matters such as extracellular polymeric substance (EPS) and soluble microbial products (SMP).

An analysis of the effects of osmotic backwashing on the seawater reverse osmosis process.

Fouling control is an important consideration in the design and operation of membrane-based water treatment processes. It has been generally known that chemical cleaning is still the most common method to remove foultants and maintain the performance of reverse osmosis (RO) desalination. Regardless of the chemical membrane cleaning methods applied effectively, however, frequent chemical cleaning can shorten the membrane life.