Plasma-modified graphitic CN@Cobalt hydroxide nanowires as a highly efficient electrocatalyst for oxygen evolution reaction.

The key to electrocatalytic water splitting is the discovery of efficient, low-cost electrocatalysts for oxygen evolution reaction (OER). g-CN@Co(OH) + PA/X nanowire materials were prepared by a combined strategy of thermo-hydraulic and DBD plasma modification. The morphological structure of the plasma modification for 60 s was then characterised by SEM and TEM patterns.

Synergistic photocatalytic activity of a combination of carbon nanotubes-graphene-nickel foam nanocomposites enhanced by dielectric barrier discharge plasma technology for water purification.

Degradation activity of plasma catalysis between dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) and carbon nanotubes-graphene-nickel foam (CNTs-G-Ni) has been studied in treatment of dye wastewater. CNTs-G-Ni was prepared through a two-step chemical vapor deposition (CVD) approach. The composite has been characterized by different techniques such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and Raman spectroscopy.

Aconiti Lateralis Preparata Radix Activates the Proliferation of Mouse Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cells and Induces Osteogenic Lineage Differentiation through the Bone Morphogenetic Protein-2/Smad-Dependent Runx2 Pathway.

Mesenchymal stem cells have the capacity for self-renewal and under appropriate stimulation give rise to osteogenic, adipogenic, and chondrogenic lineages. To advance the clinical use of stem cell therapy, such as stem cell transplantation, it is important to find substances that promote endogenous stem cell proliferation and differentiation. We investigated whether medicinal herbs have the potential to promote stem cell proliferation and differentiation, using a cell cycle analysis and differentiation assay.

Removal of dissolved Zn(II) using coal mine drainage sludge: implications for acidic wastewater treatment.

The mechanism for the removal of Zn(II) by using coal mine drainage sludge (CMDS) was investigated by spectroscopic analysis and observations of batch tests using model materials. Zeta potential analysis showed that CMDS(25) (dried at 25 °C) and CMDS(550) (dried at 550 °C) had a much lower isoelectric point of pH (pH(IEP)) than either goethite or calcite, which are the main constituents of CMDS. This indicates that the negatively charged anion (sulfate) was incorporated into the structural networks and adsorbed on the surface of CMDS via outer-sphere complexation.

Altered carbon flow by polyphosphate-accumulating organisms during enhanced biological phosphorus removal.

The effect of carbon source availability during enhanced biological phosphorus removal (EBPR) was evaluated. To assess the EBPR activity of polyphosphate-accumulating organisms (PAOs), PAO-enriched sludge from a laboratory-scale sequencing batch reactor and activated sludge from a full-scale municipal wastewater treatment plant were used, and their EBRP performances were compared. Spiking with acetate (1000 mg/L chemical oxygen demand) during the aerobic phase disrupted the EBPR performance of both types of sludge; however, when the carbon source was removed, still in the aerobic phase, the EBPR performance of both types of sludge was restored.

Hydrous ferric oxide incorporated diatomite for remediation of arsenic contaminated groundwater.

Two reactive media [zerovalent iron (ZVI, Fisher Fe0) and amorphous hydrous ferric oxide (HFO)-incorporated porous, naturally occurring aluminum silicate diatomite [designated as Fe (25%)-diatomite]], were tested for batch kinetic, pH-controlled differential column batch reactors (DCBRs), in small- and large-scale column tests (about 50 and 900 mL of bed volume) with groundwater from a hazardous waste site containing high concentrations of arsenic (both organic and inorganic species), as well as other toxic or carcinogenic volatile and semivolatile organic compounds (VOC/SVOCs). Granular activated carbon (GAC) was also included as a reactive media since a permeable reactive barrier (PRB) at the subject site would need to address the hazardous VOC/SVOC contamination as well as arsenic. The groundwater contained an extremely high arsenic concentration (341 mg L(-1)) and the results of ion chromatography and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (IC-ICP-MS) analysis showed that the dominant arsenic species were arsenite (45.

Removal of arsenite and arsenate using hydrous ferric oxide incorporated into naturally occurring porous diatomite.

In this study, a simplified and effective method was tried to immobilize iron oxide onto a naturally occurring porous diatomite. Experimental resultsfor several physicochemical properties and arsenic edges revealed that iron oxide incorporated into diatomite was amorphous hydrous ferric oxide (HFO). Sorption trends of Fe (25%)-diatomite for both arsenite and arsenate were similar to those of HFO, reported by Dixit and Hering (Environ.

Competition between polyphosphate- and glycogen-accumulating organisms in enhanced-biological-phosphorus-removal systems: effect of temperature and sludge age.

Temperature and sludge age were found to be important factors in determining the outcome of competition between polyphosphate-accumulating organisms (PAOs) and glycogen-accumulating non-polyphosphate organisms (GAOs) and the resultant stability of enhanced-biological-phosphorus removal (EBPR). At 20 degrees C and a 10-day sludge age, PAOs were dominant in an anaerobic/aerobic (A/O) sequencing-batch reactor (SBR), as a result of their higher anaerobic-acetate-uptake rate and aerobic-biomass yield than GAOs. However, at 30 degrees C and a 10-day sludge age, GAOs were able to outcompete PAOs in the A/O SBR because of their higher anaerobic-acetate-uptake rate than PAOs.

Remediation of arsenic-contaminated soils and washing effluents.

Laboratory experiments were conducted to determine the distribution of various arsenic species in tailings and soils. Other specific goal of the tests were to evaluate the extraction efficiency of arsenic using alkaline or acid washing, to determine optimum operational parameters of alkaline washing, and to evaluate the arsenic precipitation of washing effluents by pH adjustment or ferric chloride addition. Alkaline washing using sodium hydroxide was found to be favorable in removing arsenic from tailings or soils having a higher portion of arsenic in the operationally defined crystalline mineral fraction of crystalline oxide and amorphous aluminosilicates.

Phosphate adsorption on aluminum-impregnated mesoporous silicates: surface structure and behavior of adsorbents.

Phosphorus from excess fertilizers and detergents ends up washing into lakes, creeks, and rivers. This overabundance of phosphorus causes excessive aquatic plant and algae growth and depletes the dissolved oxygen supply in the water. In this study, aluminum-impregnated mesoporous adsorbents were tested for their ability to remove phosphate from water.

Mechanisms of arsenate adsorption by highly-ordered nano-structured silicate media impregnated with metal oxides.

The highly ordered mesoporous silica media, SBA-15, was synthesized and incorporated with iron, aluminum, and zinc oxides using an incipientwetness impregnation technique. Adsorption capacities and kinetics of metal-impregnated SBA-15 were compared with activated alumina which is widely used for arsenic removal. Media impregnated with 10% of aluminum by weight (designated to Al10SBA-15) had 1.