The bZIP transcription factor MpbZIP9 regulates anthocyanin biosynthesis in Malus 'Pinkspire' fruit.

Malus 'Pinkspire' is regulated by abscisic acid (ABA), which results in a red colour, but the regulatory relationship between ABA and anthocyanin synthesis has not been determined. The key factors affecting the colour change of M. 'Pinkspire' peel were investigated during the periods of significant colour changes during fruit ripening. The results showed that the transcription factor MpbZIP9 associated with ABA was screened by transcriptomic analysis. MpbZIP9 expression was consistent with the trend of structural genes expression for anthocyanin synthesis in the peel during fruit ripening, as well as with changes in the content of ABA, which is a positive regulator. A yeast one-hybrid assay showed that MpbZIP9 can directly bind to the promoter of MpF3'H. Dual luciferase reporter gene assays and GUS staining experiments showed that MpbZIP9 significantly activate MpF3'H expression. In addition, overexpression of the MpbZIP9 significantly enhanced anthocyanin accumulation and the expression of genes involved in anthocyanin synthesis. In contrast, virus-induced silencing of the MpbZIP9 significantly reduced the expression of structural genes involved in anthocyanin synthesis. These results suggest that the MpbZIP9 transcription factor can regulate the synthesis of peel anthocyanin and is a positive regulator that promotes anthocyanin biosynthesis by activating MpF3'H expression.

FeS combined ozonation to remove p-aminobenzenesulfonamide from water: Density functional theory insights into the mechanism.

The applicability and performance of FeS in ozonation process to remove p-aminobenzenesulfonamide (SN) from water was assessed, and the working mechanism of FeS was comprehensively explored by both experimental means and density functional theory (DFT) simulation. FeS combined ozonation achieved 74% of SN removal in 60 min under the optimal condition, which was 37% higher than by ozonation alone, and 12% higher than FeO combined ozonation. Highly active species of •OH, •SO4-, 1O2 and •O2- were detected in the FeS combined ozonation system, the evolution pathway of the involved species was expounded with the aid of DFT calculation. The results revealed that •O2-, H2O2 and SO42- were originally formed via interface reactions on FeS surface, then gradually transformed into •OH, 1O2 and •SO4- through subsequent chain reactions. Moreover, FeS had a lower energy barrier of 0.16 eV than FeO with a value of 0.83 eV for the transformation of ozone to active atomic oxygen. The presented study provided a significant insight into the role of Fe-based materials in ozonation, and was of great importance to guide the route for ozonation process improvement.

Surface mechanism and optimization of catalytic ozonation with CoxFe oxides as catalyst for degradation of sodium p-toluenesulfonate in water.

In this study, the removals of sodium p-toluenesulfonate (NaTSA) by catalytic ozonation with two different cobalt-iron compounds, CoxFe oxides prepared by co-precipitation/calcination (CPO) and CoxFe oxides prepared by direct calcination (DCO), as the catalysts, had a difference of about 12%. It was found that the CPO surface contained active type c water, which was generally adsorbed on the oxygen vacancy. The test of oxygen temperature-programmed desorption (O2-TPD) showed that the surface of CPO was rich in oxygen vacancy. Through the electrochemical oxygen evolution reaction (OER) detection, a pair of Co valence redox peaks were detected from the CV curves, and the results of XPS test showed the replacement of octahedral Co3+ with Fe3 + in the Co3O4 during preparation of CPO. The enriched oxygen vacancy could be used as active sites for ozone adsorption and improve the charge transfer capacity. The number of hydroxyl radicals was detected by electron spin resonance (EPR) and it indicated that CPO contained more hydroxyl radicals, so it had higher effect in catalytic ozonation for organic pollutant degradation. In this paper, the relationship between oxygen vacancy and reactive center in the microstructure of the catalysts was established to discuss their working mechanism. The influence of the initial pH value, catalyst dosage, and ozone concentration on the removal of NaTSA was investigated by response surface design, and the optimal experimental conditions were predicted and verified.

Magnetic cotton textile wastes pyrolyzed by ferric cerium oxide for degradation of p-nitrophenol by catalytic ozonation.

In this paper, magnetic cotton textile wastes pyrolyzed by ferric cerium oxide (FexCey oxide/PC) were synthesized for degradation of p-nitrophenol by catalytic ozonation, and the optimal Fe-Ce ratio was 10:1. Compared to Fe10Ce1 oxide, the Fe10Ce1 oxide/PC not only greatly improved the degradation efficiency of PNP, but also reduced the dosage of catalyst. Through the BET test, the Fe10Ce1 oxide/PC has a high specific surface area to absorb part of the pollutants. VSM test shows that the material is magnetic and easy to recycle. Response surface methodology (RSM) was applied to optimize the experimental condition, and the optimal removal rate was 90% when the initial pH was 9, the catalyst dosage was 0.4 g/L, and the ozone addition was 1.77 L/min (5.9 mg/L). Finally, the mechanism of PNP degradation was explored utilizing inhibitor and ESR free radical detection. The adsorption capacity of the material and electron-absorbing property of PNP jointly determined the high catalytic efficiency with Fe10Ce1 oxide/PC in catalytic ozonation.

Ozonation catalysed by ferrosilicon for the degradation of ibuprofen in water.

The search for optimal catalysts to improve the working efficiency of ozonation has always been an important issue in the research field of advanced oxidation processes. In this study, a novel catalyst, ferrosilicon, was selected as the catalyst in heterogeneous catalytic ozonation to degrade ibuprofen (IBP) in water and treat real pharmaceutical wastewater. During the procedure, 45#ferrosilicon exhibited the best catalytic activity. Under the optimized experimental conditions, the IBP removal reached 75%, which was a great improvement compared to the 37% removal by ozone alone. The 45#-ferrosilicon-catalysed ozonation also achieved 68% TOC removal for real pharmaceutical wastewater, which was 31% higher than that by ozone alone. The degradation pathway of IBP was proposed using GC/MS. The EPR test proved that the main active species in the system were free active radicals •OH, and the measured accumulative •OH amount was 102 µmol. The characterization results show that the nascent metallic oxides, hydroxides, and hydroxyoxides on the ferrosilicon surface facilitated the decomposition of ozone molecules and generation of free active radicals. The removal of target organic contaminants in the water was mainly attributed to the oxidization of these highly active species.

Characterization and Electrochemical Behaviour of Nanoscale Hydrotalcite-Like Compounds toward the Reduction of Nitrate.

In this research, nano Cu/Al-HTLCs, Co/Al-HTLCs and Cu/Co/Al-HTLCs were synthesized, characterized, and tested in electrolytic reduction nitrate. Experimental results showed that Cu/Al-HTLCs were less stable than Co/Al-HTLCs due to the Jahn-Teller effect. However, electrocatalytic activity of copper was superior to that of cobalt; thus, Cu/Co/Al-HTLCs were selected based on their stable crystalline structure and electrochemical activity. The optimized Cu2CoAl-HTLC was highly active in nitrate reduction, with two peaks for nitrate and nitrite reduction, respectively. Ammonia, nitrite and N-containing gases were found to be the final products of constant potential electrolysis at -0.54 and -0.74 V.

Iron foam combined ozonation for enhanced treatment of pharmaceutical wastewater.

In this study, iron foam combined ozonation was employed as an advanced oxidation process to treat the organic contaminants in real pharmaceutical wastewater. It was found that this procedure worked well in a wide range of pH, the existence of iron foam in ozonation system markedly elevated the mineralization level of organic contaminants. Within the reaction time of 120 min, iron foam combined ozonation achieved 53% of DOC removal percentage, which was 21% higher than that of ozone alone. Meanwhile, the biodegradability of the pharmaceutical wastewater was improved, a large part of the organic pollutants containing benzene rings and amino groups were effectively degraded, and a certain amount of phosphate and nitrogen also get removed. In iron foam combined ozonation, zero valent iron played the role as an activator. It was oxidized into iron oxides and oxyhydroxides, the electrons transferring among different valences of iron stimulated the decomposition of ozone and the generation of hydroxyl radicals, which accounted for most of the organic contaminants degradation.

Understanding reactions and pore-forming mechanisms between waste cotton woven and FeCl3 during the synthesis of magnetic activated carbon.

FeCl3 is a valuable iron salt used in the synthesis of magnetic waste cotton woven-based activated carbon. Although it has received extensive research attention, more information is required regarding its interactions with the carbon matrix. This systematic study describes the potential reactions of FeCl3 and waste cotton woven. First, the textural properties of waste cotton woven-based activated carbon synthesized under various conditions were investigated via element analysis, N2 sorption/desorption isotherms, and scanning electron microscopy. Then, the possible reaction mechanisms were deduced through various characterization methods. The results demonstrate that FeCl3 can lower the initial decomposition temperature of WCW to 135 °C and catalyze decarboxylation and decarbonylation at 100-330 °C to elevate the formation of microporous structures. Moreover, FeCl3 can also form Lewis acid sites at 330-700 °C and promote the cross-linking reaction to develop intricate microporous structures and carbonaceous materials with the synergistic effect of Fe3+ and Cl-. FeCl3 could be used as a template-like agent to form mesoporous structures. Meanwhile, it can also act as a magnetizer that Fe3O4 derived from the decomposition of FeCl3 would insert into the carbon matrix and combine with C-Cl to tailor the magnetic controllable activated carbon. Finally, we confirmed that extending the activation time could convert the structure of waste cotton woven-based activated carbon and increase the number of active sites, thereby further improving the catalytic properties of FeCl3 in pore formation.

Ni-Fe layered double hydroxides catalized ozonation of synthetic wastewater containing Bisphenol A and municipal secondary effluent.

Ni-Fe Layered Double Hydroxides (Ni-Fe LDHs) was prepared, characterized and used as catalyst in heterogeneous catalytic ozonation of Bisphenol A (BPA) and other organic compounds in secondary effluent. The characterization and ozonation results revealed that the Ni-Fe LDHs possessing a Ni: Fe ratio of 3:1 had the best crystalline and the highest affinity for ozone. Under the optimized conditions, the final TOC and COD removal achieved was 56% and 68%, respectively. BPA in the secondary effluent could be removed completely by Ni3-Fe LDH catalyzed ozonation. The organic compounds removal was mainly attributed to the oxidation by free active radicals such as hydroxyl radicals (OH). In this research the accumulative ·OH in the reaction system was determined to be 28.2 µmol at the reaction time of 60 min. The free active radicals were mostly generated through the electron transfer among different valences of metals on Ni-Fe LDHs surface, and subsequently diffused into bulk solution to oxidize the target organic compounds there.

Preparation of Sludge-Derived Activated Carbon by Fenton Activation and the Adsorption of Eriochrome Black T.

Sludge-derived activated carbon (SAC) was prepared by Fenton activation and calcination, and used as adsorbent to eliminate Eriochrome Black T (EBT) dye from aqueous media. The characterization results indicated that the produced SAC had a porous structure, high specific surface area, and abundant functional groups on its surface. The adsorption process was affected by pH, adsorbent dosage, time, and temperature. The adsorption capacity increased with temperature, and the highest adsorption capacity reached 178.2 mg·g-1 in 48 h at 318 K and pH 6. The results of the adsorption isotherm, kinetic, and thermodynamic analyses revealed that the adsorption of EBT onto SAC was naturally endothermic and spontaneous, involved both physical and chemical processes, and belonged mostly to the multilayer type of adsorption.

Pilot-scale study on catalytic ozonation of bio-treated dyeing and finishing wastewater using recycled waste iron shavings as a catalyst.

A pilot scale reactor with an effective volume of 2.93 m3 was built in-situ and run in both batch and continuous modes to investigate the removal for organic pollutants in bio-treated dyeing and finishing wastewater by heterogeneous catalytic ozonation under neutral pH with waste iron shavings as a catalyst. Experimental results showed that both running modes were able to reduce the chemical oxygen demand (COD) from 132-148 mg/L to a level below the discharge criteria (<80 mg/L) within 15-30 mins under several conditions. Specifically, significantly organic removal was observed with COD, soluble COD (sCOD) and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) decreased from the initial 165, 93 and 76 mg/L to 54, 28 and 16 mg/L respectively, when treated by 10.2 g-O3/min of ozone dosage at a hydraulic retention time of 30 mins under continuous mode. 80% proteins and 85% polysaccharides were removed with a decrease in their contribution to sCOD from 69% to 43%. Mineralization as well as conversion of high molecular organic compounds was observed through Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometer (GC-MS) & Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometer (LC-MS) analysis, which led to a decrease of inhibitory effect from 29% to 25%, suggesting a reduction in the acute toxicity.

Fabrication of cotton textile waste-based magnetic activated carbon using FeCl3 activation by the Box-Behnken design: optimization and characteristics.

Cotton textile waste-based magnetic activated carbon was prepared via simultaneous activation-pyrolysis using FeCl3 as a novel activating agent. The response surface methodology based on the Box-Behnken design method was applied to optimize the preparation parameters and predict the specific surface area of the samples. The optimal activated carbon was obtained at a mass ratio of FeCl3/CTW, activation time and activation temperature of 1.62 : 1, 1 h and 700 °C, respectively. The experimental maximum yield and iodine adsorptive value (32.66% and 714.55 mg g-1) of the resultant carbon were close to that of the predicated response values (34.85% and 783.75 mg g-1), respectively. SEM, N2 adsorption-desorption isotherms, XRD, PPMS, FTIR and pHpzc measurements were conducted to analyze the physicochemical characteristics of the optimal sample. The results showed that the carbon matrix had a high specific surface area of 837.39 m2 g-1 with abundant micropores and acidic surface functional groups, and the saturation magnetization (Ms) was 5.2 emu g-1 due to the formation of Fe3O4. The maximum adsorption of Cr(vi) by the carbon reached 212.77 mg g-1. Furthermore, the addition of FeCl3 lowered the pyrolytic carbonization temperature and inhibited the generation of volatiles in the activation-pyrolysis process. Meanwhile, the formation of Fe2O3 and Fe3O4 derived from FeCl3 was beneficial for the development of vast micropores.

Electrolytic ammonia removal and current efficiency by a vermiculite-packed electrochemical reactor.

The ammonia removal as well as the current efficiency during electrolysis was investigated by using a vermiculite-packed electrochemical reactor under continuous mode. Experimental results showed that adsorption of ammonia by vermiculite and electrolytic desorption of ammonia simultaneously existed in the reactor, leading to 89% removal of initial 30 mg N/L ammonia and current efficiency of 25% under the condition of 2.0 A, 6.0 min hydraulic retention time with 300 mg Cl/L chloride as the catalyst. The ammonia removal capacity had a linear relationship with the products of hydraulic retention time, current and chloride concentration within experimental conditions. The treatment results of secondary effluent indicated that 29.9 mg N/L ammonia can be reduced to 4.6 mg N/L with 72% removal of total nitrogen and a current efficiency of 23%, which was 2% less than synthetic wastewater due to the reducing components in the real wastewater.

Removal of aqueous oxalic acid by heterogeneous catalytic ozonation with MnOx/sewage sludge-derived activated carbon as catalysts.

MnOx/sewage sludge-derived activated carbon (MnOx/SAC) was prepared as catalysts to improve the performance of aqueous oxalic acid degradation by ozonation. The results indicated that MnOx/SAC had excellent catalytic activity in mineralization of oxalic acid during heterogeneous catalytic ozonation process. MnOx/SAC with a manganese load of 30% exhibited the strongest catalytic activity under the condition of solution pH3.5, which enhanced the oxalic acid removal from 10.3% to 92.2% in 60min compared with that treated by ozone alone. Increase of catalyst dosage and aqueous ozone concentration was advantageous for oxalic acid removal from water. On the basis of catalyst characterization analysis and the observation of inhibitory effect induced by higher pH, less catalyst dosage as well as the presence of hydroxyl radical scavenger, it was deduced that the reaction mechanism involved both hydroxyl radicals attack and surface reactions.

A Fracture Analysis of Ti-10Mo-8V-1Fe-3.5Al Alloy Screws during Assembly.

Titanium screws have properties that make them ideal for applications that require both a high strength-to-weight ratio and corrosion resistance, such as fastener applications for aviation and aerospace. The fracture behavior of Ti-10Mo-8V-1Fe-3.5Al (TB3) alloy screws during assembly was explored. Besides visual examination, other experimental techniques used for the investigation are as follows: (1) fracture characteristics and damage morphology via scanning electron microscopy (SEM); (2) chemical constituents via energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and hydrogen concentration testing; (3) metallographic observation; (4) stress durability embrittlement testing; and (5) torsion simulation testing. Results show that the fracture mode of the screws is brittle. There is no obvious relation to hydrogen-induced brittle. The main reason for the fracture of titanium alloy screws is internal defects, around which oxygen content is high, increasing brittleness. The internal defects of screws result from grain boundary cracking caused by hot forging.

Heterogeneous catalytic ozonation of dibutyl phthalate in aqueous solution in the presence of iron-loaded activated carbon.

Iron-loaded activated carbon was prepared and used as catalyst in heterogeneous catalytic ozonation of dibutyl phthalate (DBP). The catalytic activity of iron-loaded activated carbon was investigated under various conditions and the mechanisms of DBP removal were deduced. Characterization of catalyst indicated that the iron loaded on activated carbon was mainly in the form of goethite, which reduced its surface area, pore volume and pore diameter. The presence of metals on activated carbon positively contributed to its catalytic activity in ozonation of DBP. Iron loading content of 15% and initial water pH of 8 achieved highest DBP removal among all the tried conditions. Catalyst dosage of 10 mg L(-1) led to approximately 25% of increase in DBP (initial concentration 2 mg L(-1)) removal in 60 min as compared with ozone alone, and when catalyst dosage increased to 100 mg L(-1), the DBP removal was further improved by 46%. Based on a comparison of reaction rates for direct and indirect transformation of DBP, the increased removal of DBP in this study likely occurred via transformation of ozone into hydroxyl radicals on the catalyst surface.

Biodegradation characteristics of naphthalene and benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene, and xylene (BTEX) by bacteria enriched from activated sludge.

Naphthalene and BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene, and xylene) are frequently detected toxic hydrocarbons in contaminated sites, which can easily enter the soil or groundwater system. To test the potential of treating these hydrocarbons in a conventional water resource recovery facility, municipal activated sludge was used as the seed and the bacteria successfully enriched using naphthalene or BTEX as the sole carbon source under aerobic conditions. The pseudo first order kinetic constant for naphthalene degradation by enriched bacteria was 14.053 L h(-1) g(-1). For BTEX degradation, kinetic constants of 0.234, 0.958, 1.212, and 0.455 L h(-1) g(-1)1' were obtained for benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene, and xylene, respectively, which collectively accounted for a total BTEX removal rate constant of 0.550 L h(-1) g(-1) . Through cloning and sequencing, Pseudomonas and Burkholderia were identified as the primary bacteria communities in the naphthalene degradation reactor, whereas for BTEX degradation, Pseudomonas and Acidovorax dominated in the reactor.

Comparison of cell rupturing by ozonation and ultrasonication for algal lipid extraction from Chlorella vulgaris.

Cell disruption is essential for lipid collection from cultivated microalgae. This study examines the performance of ultrasonication (US), conventional bubbling ozonation (CBO), and pressure-assisted ozonation (PAO) as a cell rupturing technique to obtain algal lipid from a freshwater unicellular microalgae Chlorella vulgaris, which was grown in BG11 medium at a temperature of 25 degrees C and illuminated by artificial lighting with light/dark cycle of 12 h/12 h. Changes in total organic carbon, total nitrogen, total phosphorous, and chlorophyll contents in the algae suspension after ozonation and US treatments were measured to evaluate the effectiveness of cell rupture by these techniques. Lipid yields of 21 and 27 g/100 g biomass were obtained using US and PAO, respectively. Lipid yields of about 5 g/100 g biomass were obtained using CBO. In all rupturing treatments, C16 and C18 compounds were found to be predominant accounting for 90% of the fatty acids. Using US for rupturing, fatty acids of C 16:0, C18:1, and C18:2 were predominant, accounting for 76 +/- 4.2% of all the fatty acids. Using CBO and PAO involving ozone, fatty acids of C16:0 and C18:0 were predominant, accounting for 63-94% of the products. The results suggest that saturated fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) products are predominant with oxidative ozonation rupturing while unsaturated FAME products of lower-melting points predominant with physical ultrasonic rupturing means. PAO was an effective cell rupture method for biodiesel production with high lipid yield and more saturated hydrocarbon products.

Electrolytic removal of ammonia from aqueous phase by Pt/Ti anode.

This study investigated the mechanism and kinetic modeling of electrolytic degradation of ammonia with Pt/Ti anode. The results show that ammonia oxidation from direct oxidation or indirect oxidation with hydroxyl radicals was slow but can be observed under pH 9 and high initial ammonia concentration of 1,050 mg N L(-1). Indirect oxidation with HOCl was the mechanism for the chloride-mediated electrolytic removal of ammonia. In this process, pH between 3 and 9 had little effect on the ammonia removal rate, but current density (j) and chloride concentration ([Cl(-)]) showed a linear relationship with ammonia removal rate within the range of 3.8-15.4 mA cm(-2) and 30-300 mg L(-1), respectively. The ammonia removal could be described by a pseudo-zero order kinetics with a mathematic equation of k = 0.0003 × [Cl(-)] × j - 0.076. Treatment of the actual wastewater effluent from a secondary clarifier in a local wastewater treatment plant showed an ammonia removal rate of 0.8 mg N L(-1) h(-1) and energy cost of 14 kJ per mg N ammonia.