Software development for modeling irregular fine protrusions formed by sputter etching.

Irregular fine protrusions formed on the surface of a mechanical part through biomimetic technology can enhance the part's properties, including tribology, self-cleaning, and light absorption. However, underlying principles for the formation of fine protrusions according to the requirements of their shapes, sizes, and material distributions have not been studied sufficiently. This paper presents the software development for modeling irregular fine protrusions, which is essential for the simulation, experimentation, and analysis of fine protrusions formed by sputter etching.

Combined simultaneous enzymatic saccharification and comminution (SESC) and anaerobic digestion for sustainable biomethane generation from wood lignocellulose and the biochemical characterization of residual sludge solid.

Simultaneous enzymatic saccharification and comminution (SESC) was used for large-scale anaerobic digestion of wood lignocellulose to generate methane and unmodified lignin. During SESC, 10% aqueous mixture of powdered debarked wood from various species was subjected to bead milling with hydrolytic enzymes to generate particles below 1 μm. This slurry was directly used as a cosubstrate for anaerobic digestion in a 500 L stirred-tank reactor.

Simultaneous enzymatic saccharification and comminution for the valorization of lignocellulosic biomass toward natural products.

Background: Large-scale processing of lignocellulosics for glucose production generally relies on high temperature and acidic or alkaline conditions. However, extreme conditions produce chemical contaminants that complicate downstream processing. A method that mainly rely on mechanical and enzymatic reaction completely averts such problem and generates unmodified lignin.

Ab initio O(N) elongation-counterpoise method for BSSE-corrected interaction energy analyses in biosystems.

An Elongation-counterpoise (ELG-CP) method was developed for performing accurate and efficient interaction energy analysis and correcting the basis set superposition error (BSSE) in biosystems. The method was achieved by combining our developed ab initio O(N) elongation method with the conventional counterpoise method proposed for solving the BSSE problem. As a test, the ELG-CP method was applied to the analysis of the DNAs' inter-strands interaction energies with respect to the alkylation-induced base pair mismatch phenomenon that causes a transition from G⋯C to A⋯T.

Practical removal of radioactivity from soil in Fukushima using immobilized photosynthetic bacteria combined with anaerobic digestion and lactic acid fermentation as pre-treatment.

Practical removal of radioactivity from polluted soil in Fukushima, Japan was done using a photosynthetic bacterium, Rhodobacter sphaeroides SSI, immobilized in alginate beads. The beads were put in a mesh bag and soaked in which soil was suspended (5 kg of soil/10 L of tap water). The radioactivity of the broth decreased by 31% after 15 d of aerobic treatment.

Practical removal of radioactivity from sediment mud in a swimming pool in Fukushima, Japan by immobilized photosynthetic bacteria.

About 90% of the radioactive Cs in the sediment mud of a school's swimming pool in Fukushima, Japan was removed by treatment for 3 d using the alginate immobilized photosynthetic bacterium Rhodobcater sphaeroides SSI. Even though batch treatment was carried out 3 times repeatedly, the activity of immobilized cells in removing Cs was maintained at levels of about 84% (second batch) and 78% (third batch). Cs was strongly attached to the sediment mud because, even with HNO(3) treatment at pH of 2.

Effect of enzymatic treatment on sedimentation and flocculation abilities of solid particles in rice washing drainage and its relationship with protein profiles.

In this research, the protein participation that occurs with the flocculation and sedimentation phenomena caused by adding enzymes to solid particles derived from rice washing drainage and the electrostatic properties of the solid particle surfaces was examined. As seen in the results, adding protease to rice washing drainage decreased the protein content, strengthened the negative surface electron charge, and decreased the isoelectric point (IEP) value of the solid particles. In addition, about 25% of the proteins in the rice washing drainage still remained after enzyme treatment.

Bioethanol production from rice washing drainage and rice bran.

Bioethanol production from rice washing drainage and rice bran derived from a rinse-free process of rice manufacturing was established using the combinations of an enzymatic procedure and an ultra-sonic procedure of rice washing drainage for a sample pre-treatment. The maximum ethanol concentration was attained at 6.2% (v/v).

Isolation of a thermotolerant photosynthetic bacterium, Rhodobacter sphaeroides Strain, NAT, and its capacity for oil and chemical oxygen demand removal at high temperatures.

A thermotolerant photosynthetic bacterium NAT identified as Rhodobacter sphaeroides was isolated. When alginate-immobilized cells of strain NAT were used in high-temperature treatment of artificial sewage wastewater containing oil, the chemical oxygen demand (COD) decreased by 80% and 76% of the oil was removed after 96 h of treatment at 55 degrees C. Lipase activity was observed in the culture.

Applications of photosynthetic bacteria for medical fields.

The medical applications of photosynthetic bacteria are summarized. Photosynthetic bacteria can produce various types of physiological active substance such as vitamin B(12), ubiquinone (coenzyme Q10), 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA), porphyrins and RNA. In particular, photosynthetic bacterial ALA was commercially applied to cancer diagnosis and treatment.

Stimulation of porphyrin production by application of an external magnetic field to a photosynthetic bacterium, Rhodobacter sphaeroides.

The effects of an external magnetic field on the production of porphyrin were investigated using Rhodobacter sphaeroides IF012203 under anaerobic-light conditions. Upon application of a 0.13-0.

Biosorption of cadmium ions using a photosynthetic bacterium, Rhodobacter sphaeroides S and a marine photosynthetic bacterium, Rhodovulum sp. and their biosorption kinetics.

We examined the biosorption characteristics of cadmium ions onto a photosynthetic bacterium, Rhodobacter sphaeroides S and a marine photosynthetic bacterium Rhodovulum sp. PS88 in a batch culture system. Both photosynthetic bacteria are capable of cadmium removal with 30 g/l sodium chloride and divalent cations (Mg2+ and Ca2+) in the culture medium.

Effect of the rate of temperature increase on water quality during heating in electromagnetic- and gas-heated pans.

More rapid increases in the pH value and hardness during electromagnetic heating of a pan of water were observed than when the pan was heated by LNG or LPG. The water quality changed universally in several tap water samples across Japan. This quality change was closely correlated with the rate of temperature increase, irrespective of heating by electromagnetic induction, LNG or LPG.

Biosynthesis, biotechnological production and applications of 5-aminolevulinic acid.

Microbial production of 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) by photosynthetic bacteria compared to other bacteria and algae is reviewed. During aerobic-microaerobic cultivation of Rhodobacter sphaeroides mutant strain CR520, control of the redox potential was effective for producing large amounts of extracellular ALA. ALA has been practically applied in agriculture as an herbicide, an insecticide and a growth-promoting factor for plants.