Soil low-density geochemical mapping of technology-critical elements (TCEs) and its environmental implications: The case of lithium in Portugal.

Increased use of technology-critical elements (TCEs) like lithium (Li), and their socio-environmental impacts, make it an issue of national and global importance. In Portugal, new Li exploration/exploitation projects are a very likely scenario. Thus, it is essential to establish geochemical backgrounds/thresholds for Li in soil, which can have several applications.

A review on fluoride contamination in groundwater and human health implications and its remediation: A sustainable approaches.

Contamination of drinking water due to fluoride (F) is a major concern worldwide. Although fluoride is an essential trace element required for humans, it has severe human health implications if levels exceed 1.5 mg.

An inclusive outlook on the fate and persistence of pesticides in the environment and integrated eco-technologies for their degradation.

Intensive and inefficient exploitation of pesticides through modernized agricultural practices has caused severe pesticide contamination problems to the environment and become a crucial problem over a few decades. Due to their highly toxic and persistent properties, they affect and get accumulated in non-target organisms, including microbes, algae, invertebrates, plants as well as humans, and cause severe issues. Considering pesticide problems as a significant issue, researchers have investigated several approaches to rectify the pesticide contamination problems.

An eco-sustainable approach towards heavy metals remediation by mangroves from the coastal environment: A critical review.

Mangroves provide various ecosystem services, carbon sequestration, biodiversity depository, and livelihoods. They are most abundant in marine and coastal ecosystems and are threatened by toxic contaminants like heavy metals released from various anthropogenic activities. However, they have significant potential to survive in salt-driven environments and accumulate various pollutants.

Application of analytical hierarchical process, multi-influencing factor, and geospatial techniques for groundwater potential zonation in a semi-arid region of western India.

Groundwater resources are alarmingly depleting due to over-exploitation and significant climate changes over time. Therefore, demarcation of groundwater potential zones is essential for addressing the needs of various industries in semi-arid area. Depleting groundwater resources, topography, aquifer features and climatic factors make it necessary to demarcate ground water potential zones in semiarid region of Rajasthan.

Assessment of groundwater geochemistry for drinking and irrigation suitability in Jaunpur district of Uttar Pradesh using GIS-based statistical inference.

The quality of groundwater in the Jaunpur district of Uttar Pradesh is poorly studied despite the fact that it is the only supply of water for both drinking and irrigation and people use it without any pre-treatment. The evaluation of groundwater quality and suitability for drinking and irrigation is presented in this study. Groundwater samples were collected and analysed by standard neutralisation and atomic emission spectrophotometry for major anions (HCO, SO, Cl, F, NO), cations (Ca, Mg, Na, K), and heavy metals (Cd, Mn, Zn, Cu, and Pb).

Corrosion protection performance of silicon-based coatings on carbon steel in NaCl solution: a theoretical and experimental assessment of the effect of plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition pretreatment.

Using a plasma-assisted chemical vapor deposition (PACVD) process, carbon steel samples were coated with an organosilicon layer less than 2.5 microns thick. Ellipsometry, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, contact angle, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) were used to analyze the films.

Appraisal of probabilistic levels of toxic metals and health risk in cultivated and marketed vegetables in urban and peri-urban areas of Delhi, India.

A total of six vegetables (S. tuberosum, D. carota, S.

Utilization of Incense Stick Ash in Hydrometallurgy Methods for Extracting Oxides of Fe, Al, Si, and Ca.

With rapid industrialization, there is an ever-increasing demand for iron oxides, calcium oxides, aluminum oxides, silica, and zeolites as raw materials for various industries, but reserves of such metal oxides are continuously diminishing. Therefore, there is an urgent need to explore new alternatives for such value-added minerals. One such material is incense stick ash (ISA), which is among the most unexplored byproducts from residential and holy places.

Molecular insights into plant-microbe interactions for sustainable remediation of contaminated environment.

The widespread distribution of organic and inorganic pollutants in water resources have increased due to rapid industrialization. Rhizospheric zone-associated bacteria along with endophytic bacteria show a significant role in remediation of various pollutants. Metaomics technologies are gaining an advantage over traditional methods because of their capability to obtain detailed information on exclusive microbial communities in rhizosphere of the plant including the unculturable microorganisms.

Understanding the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on sustainable agri-food system and agroecosystem decarbonization nexus: A review.

The existing finite natural resources have witnessed unsustainable usage in the past few years, especially for food production, with accompanying environmental devastation and ecosystem damage. Regrettably, the global population and consumption demands are increasing ceaselessly, leading to the need for more resources for food production, which could potentially aggravate the sustainability and ecosystem degradation issues, while stimulating drastic climate change. Meanwhile, the unexpected emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic and some implemented measures to combat its spread disrupted agricultural activities and the food supply chain, which also led to a reduction in ecosystem carbonization.

Transformation of hazardous sacred incense sticks ash waste into less toxic product by sequential approach prior to their disposal into the water bodies.

Incense sticks ash is one of the most unexplored by-products generated at religious places and houses obtained after the combustion of incense sticks. Every year, tonnes of incense sticks ash is produced at religious places in India which are disposed of into the rivers and water bodies. The presence of heavy metals and high content of alkali metals challenges a potential threat to the living organism after the disposal in the river.

Appraisal of contamination of heavy metals and health risk in agricultural soil of Jhansi city, India.

The accumulation of heavy metals (HMs) in soil is presently a significant threat to the environment. The Cu, Mn, Zn, Cd, Pb, Ni, and Co concentrations were assessed in the agricultural soil samples. The results of various contamination indices including contamination factor, geo-accumulation indices, and ecological risk indices revealed that Cd is responsible for moderate to high contamination of soil.

Myco-remediation: A mechanistic understanding of contaminants alleviation from natural environment and future prospect.

Industrialization and modernization of agricultural systems contaminated lithosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere of the Earth. Sustainable remediation of contamination is essential for environmental sustainability. Myco-remediation is proposed to be a green, economical, and efficient technology over conventional remediation technologies to combat escalating pollution problems at a global scale.

Evaluating the geochemistry of groundwater contamination with iron and manganese and probabilistic human health risk assessment in endemic areas of the world's largest River Island, India.

Iron (Fe) and manganese (Mn) are harmful for human health, if present in a higher concentration, particularly in groundwater. The results of the study revealed that the concentration of Fe and Mn exceeded the WHO guideline for safe drinking water in 88 % and 74 % of groundwater samples, respectively. The non-carcinogenic health risk as assessed through computation of hazard quotient (HQ) due to intake of Fe and Mn contaminated groundwater was found much higher for children and adults.

Monitoring the presence and persistence of SARS-CoV-2 in water-food-environmental compartments: State of the knowledge and research needs.

The recent spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SAR-CoV-2) and the accompanied coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has continued ceaselessly despite the implementations of popular measures, which include social distancing and outdoor face masking as recommended by the World Health Organization. Due to the unstable nature of the virus, leading to the emergence of new variants that are claimed to be more and rapidly transmissible, there is a need for further consideration of the alternative potential pathways of the virus transmissions to provide the needed and effective control measures. This review aims to address this important issue by examining the transmission pathways of SARS-CoV-2 via indirect contacts such as fomites and aerosols, extending to water, food, and other environmental compartments.

Effects of restraining measures due to COVID-19: Pre- and post-lockdown cognitive status and mental health.

The COVID-19 pandemic has prompted all countries to adopt restraining measures to mitigate the spread of the disease. Usually, large-scale disasters tend to be accompanied by significant increases of psychological distress, depression and anxiety. Confinement measures imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic are likely to have similar consequences.

Variations and similarities in structural, chemical, and elemental properties on the ashes derived from the coal due to their combustion in open and controlled manner.

Coal fly ash (CFA) and coal-based incense sticks ash (ISA) have several similarities and differences due to the presence of coal as a common component in both of them. CFA are produced from the combustion of pulverized coal during electricity production in the thermal power plants while ISA are produced from the burning of incense sticks at religious places and at houses. A typical black colored Indian, incense sticks are mainly are comprised of coal powder or potassium nitrate, wood chip, fragrance, binder or binding agent, and bamboo sticks.

Chromium contamination and effect on environmental health and its remediation: A sustainable approaches.

Chromium (Cr) is a trace element critical to human health and well-being. In the last few decades, its contamination, especially hexavalent chromium [Cr(VI)] form in both terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, has amplified as a result of various anthropogenic activities. Chromium pollution is a significant environmental threat, severely impacting our environment and natural resources, especially water and soil.

An experimental investigation on phytoremediation performance of water lettuce (Pistia stratiotes L.) for pollutants removal from paper mill effluent.

The present study describes the phytoremediation performance of water lettuce (Pistia stratiotes L.) for physicochemical pollutants elimination from paper mill effluent (PME). For this, pot (glass aquarium) experiments were conducted using 0% (BWW: borewell water), 25%, 50%, 75%, and 100% treatments of PME under natural day/light regime.

Implementation of the Use of Ethnomedicinal Plants for Curing Diseases in the Indian Himalayas and Its Role in Sustainability of Livelihoods and Socioeconomic Development.

In recent times, the use of traditional herbal medicines in healthcare has declined, particularly amongst the rural population. This implies a risk of losing vital information from previous generations regarding plants and their use in traditional medicine. The objective of this study is to catalog the ways employed by inhabitants of the Garhwal Himalayas as part of their traditional approaches to healthcare.

Removal of Cadmium and Chromium by Mixture of Silver Nanoparticles and Nano-Fibrillated Cellulose Isolated from Waste Peels of Citrus Sinensis.

Nano-fibrillated cellulose (NFC) was extracted by a chemical method involving alkali and acid hydrolysis. The characterisation of the citrus sinensis fruit peel bran and nano-fibrillated cellulose was performed by XRD, FTIR, TEM, and FESEM. XRD confirmed the phase of NFC which showed monoclinic crystal with spherical to rod shape morphology with a size of 44-50 nm.

Associations between Trace Elements and Cognitive Decline: An Exploratory 5-Year Follow-Up Study of an Elderly Cohort.

Trace elements (TE) homeostasis is crucial in normal brain functioning. Although imbalances have the potential to exacerbate events leading neurodegenerative diseases, few studies have directly addressed the eventual relationships between TE levels in the human body and future cognitive status. The present study aimed to assess how different TE body-levels relate to cognitive decline.

Links between Cognitive Status and Trace Element Levels in Hair for an Environmentally Exposed Population: A Case Study in the Surroundings of the Estarreja Industrial Area.

In the present study, trace elements (TE) levels were evaluated in scalp hair along the continuum from healthy subjects (HS) to patients suffering from subjective memory concerns (SMC), and/or mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and those with already installed dementia (DEM) in order to: (i) assess the effects of environmental and lifestyle factors on TE concentrations and (ii) evaluate the analyzed elements as possible diagnostic biomarkers for the disease. The study involved 79 mainly permanent residents, >55 years old, from the city of Estarreja (northern Portugal), a former industrial area. The health status of the participants was assessed by means of a complete socio-demographic questionnaire and through cognitive screening tests, namely the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE).