Antibacterial and antioxidant activity of gold and silver nanoparticles in dextran-polyacrylamide copolymers.

Search for new antimicrobial agents is of great significance due to the issue of antimicrobial resistance, which nowadays has become more important than many diseases. The aim of this study was to evaluate the toxicity and biological effects of a dextran-graft-polyacrylamide (D-PAA) polymer-nanocarrier with/without silver or gold nanoparticles (AgNPs/D-PAA and AuNPs/D-PAA, respectively) to analyze their potential to replace or supplement conventional antibiotic therapy. The toxicity of nanocomplexes against eukaryotic cells was assessed on primary dermal fibroblasts using scratch, micronucleus and proliferation assays. DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazylradical) assay was used to evaluate the antioxidant capacity of D-PAA, AgNPs/D-PAA and AuNPs/D-PAA. DNA cleavage, antimicrobial and biofilm inhibition effects of nanocomplexes were investigated. Nanocomplexes were found to be of moderate toxicity against fibroblasts with no genotoxicity observed. AgNPs/D-PAA reduced motility and proliferation at lower concentrations compared with the other studied nanomaterials. AgNPs/D-PAA and AuNPs/D-PAA showed radical scavenging capacities in a dose-dependent manner. The antimicrobial activity of AgNPs/D-PAA against various bacteria was found to be much higher compared to D-PAA and AuNPs/D-PAA, especially against E. hirae, E. faecalis and S. aureus, respectively. D-PAA, AgNPs/D-PAA and AuNPs/D-PAA showed DNA-cleaving and biofilm inhibitory activity, while AgNPs/D-PAA displayed the highest anti-biofilm activity. AgNPs/D-PAA and AuNPs/D-PAA were characterized by good antimicrobial activity. According to the findings of the study, AgNPs/D-PAA and AuNPs/D-PAA can be evaluated as alternatives for the preparation of new antimicrobial agents, the fight against biofilms, sterilization and disinfection processes. Our findings confirm the versatility of nanosystems based on dextran-polyacrylamide polymers and indicate that AgNPs/D-PAA and AuNPs/D-PAA can be evaluated as alternatives for the preparation of novel antimicrobial agents.

Novel extracellular synthesized silver nanoparticles using thermophilic Anoxybacillus flavithermus and Geobacillus stearothermophilus and their evaluation as nanodrugs.

In this investigation, two new thermophilic bacteria were isolated. The new isolates were characterized by 16S rRNA, biochemical, morphological, and physiological analyzes and the isolates were identified as Geobacillus stearothermophilus strain Gecek20 and thermophilic Anoxybacillus flavithermus strain Gecek19. Various biological activities of extracellular Ag-NPs synthesized from thermophilic G. stearothermophilus strain Gecek20 and thermophilic A. flavithermus strain Gecek19 were evaluated. The produced NPs were analyzed by SEM, SEM-EDX, and XRD analyses. The antioxidant abilities of new synthesized Ag-NPs from thermophilic G. stearothermophilus strain Gecek20 (T1-Ag-NPs) and new synthesized Ag-NPs from thermophilic A. flavithermus strain Gecek19 (T2-Ag-NPs) were studied by DPPH inhibition and metal chelating ability. The highest DPPH and metal chelating abilities of T1-Ag-NPs and T2-Ag-NPs at 200 mg/L concentration were 93.17 and 90.85%, and 75.80 and 83.64%, respectively. The extracellular green synthesized T1-Ag-NPs and T2-AgN-Ps showed DNA nuclease activity at all tested concentrations. Moreover, both new synthesized Ag-NPs had antimicrobial activity against the strains studied, especially on Gram positive bacteria. T1-Ag-NPs and T2-AgNPs also showed powerful Escherichia coli growth inhibition. The highest biofilm inhibition percentages of T1-Ag-NPs and T2-Ag-NPs against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus were 100.0%, respectively, at 500 mg/L.

Treatment of tomato paste wastewater by electrochemical and membrane processes: process optimization and cost calculation.

This study investigated the treatment of wastewater from tomato paste (TP) production using electrocoagulation (EC) and electrooxidation (EO). The effectiveness of water recovery from the pretreated water was then investigated using the membrane process. For this purpose, the effects of independent control variables, including electrode type (aluminum, iron, graphite, and stainless steel), current density (25-75 A/m2), and electrolysis time (15-120 min) on chemical oxygen demand (COD) and color removal were investigated. The results showed that 81.0% of COD and 100% of the color removal were achieved by EC at a current density of 75 A/m2, a pH of 6.84 and a reaction time of 120 min aluminum electrodes. In comparison, EO with graphite electrodes achieved 55.6% of COD and 100% of the color removal under similar conditions. The operating cost was calculated to be in the range of $0.56-30.62/m3. Overall, the results indicate that EO with graphite electrodes is a promising pretreatment process for the removal of various organics. In the membrane process, NP030, NP010, and NF90 membranes were used at a volume of 250 mL and 5 bar. A significant COD removal rate of 94% was achieved with the membrane. The combination of EC and the membrane process demonstrated the feasibility of water recovery from TP wastewater.

Adsorption study of methylene blue dye using activated carbon prepared from waste palm fiber.

The study investigated the utilization of waste palm fiber as an adsorbent for methylene blue (MB) removal. The waste palm fiber was treated by a series of steps to prepare an activated charcoal adsorbent. The adsorption process of MB on the activated charcoal was modeled using the Box-Behnken design (BBD) in the response surface methodology (RSM). Adsorbent mass, solution pH, temperature, and time were selected as factors, while removal efficiency and adsorption capacity were chosen as responses. Both models were significant with correlation factors of 0.85 and 0.99 for removal efficiency and adsorption capacity, respectively. Optimal conditions for MB removal were achieved at an initial pH of 7, an adsorbent dose of 0.05 g/L, and a contact time of 30 min, resulting in a 99% removal efficiency. The adsorption of MB using the activated charcoal indicates the physical nature of the reaction.

Fabric dyeing wastewater treatment and salt recovery using a pilot scale system consisted of graphite electrodes based on electrooxidation and nanofiltration.

In this study, color removal, suspended solids removal, and salt recovery were investigated from different fabric dyeing wastewaters using a pilot scale treatment system. A pilot scale system was installed in the wastewater outlet area of five different textile companies. Experiments were planned for pollutant removal and salt recovery from wastewater. First, the wastewater was treated by electrooxidation (EO) using graphite electrodes. After a reaction time of 1 h, the wastewater was passed throughout the granular activated carbon (AC) coloumn. The pre-treated wastewater was passed through the membrane (NF) system to recover the salt in the wastewater. Finally, the recovered salt water was used for fabric dyeing. In the pilot scale treatment system (EO + AC + NF), 100% of suspended solids (SS) and an average of 99.37% of color were removed from fabric dyeing wastewaters. At the same time, a high amount of salt water was recovered and reused. Optimum conditions were determined as 4 V current, 1000 A power, wastewater's own pH values and 60 min of reaction time. The energy and operating cost for treatment of 1 m3 of wastewater were determined as 40.0 kWh/m3 and 2.2 US$/m3, respectively. In addition to the prevention of environmental pollution by the treatment of wastewater using the pilot-scale treatment system, the reuse of the recovered water will contribute to the protection of our valuable water resources. In addition, using the NF membrane process after the EO system, it will be possible to recover salt from wastewater with high salt content such as textile wastewater.

Preparation of hydrochar bio-based catalyst for fenton process in dye-containing wastewater treatment.

The use of synthetic dyes in the textile industry pollutes a huge amount of water. Thus, wastewater discharged from many textile companies to the receiving environment without being treated causes serious environmental and human health problems. The development of new techniques has become imperative. In this study, it was aimed to remove anionic dye (RR180) and cationic dye (BR18) by Fenton-like and adsorption process with hydrochars obtained from laurel leaves and watermelon peels. In the comparison of the adsorption and Fenton-like processes used in the dye removal of the produced bio-based materials, the Fenton-like process was selected in order to enhance the highest removal efficiency. The effects of various operating factors such as solution pH, amount of catalysts, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) concentration, and initial dye concentration were evaluated on both dyes removal. The experimental results demonstrated that 99.8% RR180 dye and 98.8% BR18 dye removal efficiency were observed for an initial dye concentration of 100 mg/L with an adsorbent concentration of 1 g/L, H2O2 concentration of 15 µL/L, and optimum pH at the end of 60 min of reaction time. It was observed that an increase in initial dye concentration caused to decrease the dye removal efficiency. The optimum pH for the highest RR180 and BR18 dye removal was 4 and 6, respectively. It was observed that the increase in H2O2 concentration in the solution also decreased the dye removal efficiency. It turned out that catalysts obtained from hydrochars are an effective process for the high removal performance of cationic and anionic dyes.

Optimization of the anaerobic fermentation process for phosphate release using food waste.

Phosphorus (P) problem worries the whole world due to the increasing demand for finite and non-renewable natural phosphate resources and the inadequacy of sustainable phosphate production technologies. In this study, bio-acidification processes using waste sludge and food waste for simultaneous sustainable phosphate release and biogas production were investigated. Response surface methodology (RSM) was used for bio-acidification optimization. High performance was achieved with the addition of 10% FW and a temperature of 45 °C, which provided 5.30 pH and 371 mg/L P release for 10 days. A total of 196 mL of cumulative biogas was produced. Using food waste potentially reduces operating costs, eliminating the need for external chemical additions for pH control. Also, this approach offers benefits such as waste management, recovery of valuable resources, cost reduction, and environmental friendly.

Green synthesis of iron oxide nanoparticles derived from water and methanol extract of Centaurea solstitialis leaves and tested for antimicrobial activity and dye decolorization capability.

In this research, nanoparticles derived from water extract of Centaurea solstitialis leaves were used as green adsorbent in Fenton reaction for Reactive Red 180 (RR180) and Basic Red 18 (BR18) dyes removal. At optimum operating conditions, nanoparticles proved high performance in the tested dyes removal with more than 98% of removal elimination. The free-radical scavenging, DNA nuclease, biofilm inhibition capability, antimicrobial activity, microbial cell viability, and antimicrobial photodynamic therapy activities of the iron oxide nanoparticles (FeO-NPs) derived from water and methanol extract of plant were investigated. Each of the following analysis: SEM-EDX, XRD, and Zeta potential was implemented for the prepared NPs characterization and to describe their morphology, composition and its behavior in an aqueous solution, respectively. It was found that, the DPPH scavenging activities increased when the amount of nanoparticles increased. The highest radical scavenging activity achieved with FeO-NPs derived from water extract of plant as 97.41% at 200 mg/L. The new green synthesized FeO-NPs demonstrated good DNA cleavage activity. FeO-NPs showed good in vitro antimicrobial activities against human pathogens. The results showed that both synthesized FeO-NPs displayed 100% antimicrobial photodynamic therapy activity after LED irradiation. The water extract of FeO-NPs and methanol extract of FeO-NPs also showed a significant biofilm inhibition.

A combined process of chemical precipitation and aerobic membrane bioreactor for treatment of citric acid wastewater.

The wastewater generated from citric acid production has a high organic loading content. The treatment and reuse of citric acid wastewater with high organic loading become extremely important. In this study, the performance of calcium hydroxide (Ca(OH)2) precipitation as a low-cost and environmentally friendly pre-treatment method and aerobic membrane bioreactor (MBR) combined treatment system was investigated for the treatment of citric acid (CA) wastewater. At the first step, optimization parameters such as agitation speed (100, 150, 200 rpm), temperature (30, 50, 70 °C), and reaction time (2, 4, 6 h) for Ca(OH)2 precipitation as a pre-treatment method were investigated using response surface methodology (RSM) to achieve maximum chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal. Experimental sets were designed using Box-Behnken Design. As a result of pre-treatment with Ca(OH)2 precipitation, a COD removal efficiency of 97.3% was obtained. Then, pre-treated CA wastewater was fed continuously to the MBR process for 10 days, which was the second stage of the combined process. As a result of the MBR process, 92.0% COD removal efficiency was obtained for 24 h HRT and 10 days SRT. In total, 99.8% COD removal efficiency was obtained when combined process was used and COD concentration decreased from 52,000-114 mg/L. For the treatment and reuse of wastewater from citric acid production, Ca(OH)2 precipitation and MBR combined treatment systems demonstrated an effective strategy.

Synthesis of PES membranes modified with polyurethane-paraffin wax nanocapsules and performance of bovine serum albumin and humic acid rejection.

Membrane fouling is a serious handicap of membrane-based separation, as it reduces permeation flux and hence increases operational and maintenance expenses. Polyurethane-paraffin wax (PU/PW) nanocapsules were integrated into the polyethersulfone membrane to manufacture a composite membrane with higher antifouling and permeability performance against humic acid (HA) and bovine serum albumin (BSA) foulants. All manufactured membranes were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive spectrometry (SEM-EDS), and contact angle. The contact angle of the pristine polyethersulfone (PES) membrane was measured 73.40 ± 1.32. With the embedding of nanocapsules, the contact angle decreased to 64.55 ± 1.23 for PES/PU/PW 2.0 wt%, and the pure water flux of all composite membranes increased when compared to pristine PES. The pristine PES membrane also has shown the lowest steady-state fluxes at 45.84 and 46.59 L/m2h for BSA and HA, respectively. With the increase of PU/PW nanocapsule ratio from 0.5 to 1.0 wt%, steady-state fluxes increased from 51.96 to 71.61 and from 67.87 to 98.73 L/m2h, respectively, for BSA and HA. The results depicted that BSA and HA rejection efficiencies of PU/PW nanocapsules blended PES membranes increased when compared to pristine PES membranes.

Antifouling and antibacterial performance evaluation of polyethersulfone membranes modified with AZ63 alloy.

Antibacterial membranes have attracted researchers' interest in recent years as a possible approach for dealing with biofouling on the membrane surface. This research aims to see if blending AZ63 Mg alloy into a polyethersulphone (PES) membrane can improve antifouling and separation properties. The composite membranes' pure water flux continued to increase from pristine PES to PES/AZ63 2.00 wt%. The results showed that PES/AZ63 2.00 wt% membrane supplied the highest permeate flux of E. coli. The steady-state fluxes of AZ63 composite membranes were 113.24, 104.38 and 44.79 L/m2h for PES/AZ63 2.00 wt%, 1.00 wt%, and 0.50 wt%, respectively. The enhanced biological activity of AZ63 was studied based on antioxidant activity, DNA cleavage, antimicrobial, anti-biofilm, bacterial viability inhibition and photodynamic antimicrobial therapy studies. The maximum DPPH scavenging activity was determined as 81.25% with AZ63. AZ63 indicated good chemical nuclease activity and also showed moderate antimicrobial activity against studied strains. The highest biofilm inhibition of AZ63 was 83.25% and 71.63% towards P. aeruginosa and S. aureus, respectively. The cell viability inhibition activity of AZ63 was found as 96.34% against E. coli. The photodynamic antimicrobial therapy results displayed that AZ63 demonstrated 100% bacterial inhibition when using E. coli.

Antimicrobial and antioxidant activity of phenolic extracts from walnut (Juglans regia L.) green husk by using pressure-driven membrane process.

In this study, antioxidant (DPPH and metal chelating), DNA cleavage, biofilm, and antimicrobial properties of extracted phenol from the walnut green husk (WGH) and its different concentrate and permeate samples were evaluated. For maximum phenolic compound extraction from the WGH first, the effects of solvent type (deionized water, methanol, n-hexane, acetone, and ethanol), solvent temperature (25-75 °C), and extraction time (0.5-24 h) were optimized. Then to concentrate phenolic compounds a pressure-driven membrane process was used with four different membrane types. The phenol contents of the concentrate samples were found to be microfiltration (MF) concentrate 4400 mg/L, ultrafiltration (UF) concentrate 4175 mg/L, nanofiltration (NF) concentrate 8155 mg/L, and reverse osmosis (RO) concentrate 8100 mg/L. LC-MSMS was used to determine the quantification of phenolic compounds in permeate and concentrate streams. In addition, all of the concentrate samples with high phenol content showed a high antioxidant activity as 100% with MF concentrate, UF concentrate, NF concentrated and RO concentrated. Likewise, concentrate samples were found to have very high antibiofilm activity as 82.86% for NF concentrate againts S. aureus, 85.80% for NF concentrate against P. aureginosa, 80.95% for RO concentrate against S. aureus, and 83.61% for RO-concentrate against P. aureginosa. When the antimicrobial activity of the extracted phenol from WGH and its different concentrate and permeate samples were evaluated by micro dilution and disk diffusion methods, it was found that the ability of the concentrate samples to inhibit bacterial growth was much higher than permeate ones. In addition, extracted phenol from WGH and its different concentrate and permeate samples showed significant DNA nuclease activity. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13197-022-05588-w.

Catalytic efficiency of raw and hydrolyzed eggshell in the oxidation of crystal violet and dye bathing wastewater by thermally activated peroxide oxidation method.

In this study, hydrochar-based-eggshell was prepared via the subcritical water medium (SCWM) and used as a catalyst in the thermally activated peroxide oxidation (TAPO) approach for crystal violet and dye bathing wastewater degradation. The catalytic activities for the raw eggshell (RES) and hydrochar-based-eggshell (HES) were compared. RES and HES were characterized using a scanning electron microscope (SEM),energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDX), and Fourier transforms infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). The affecting parameters on the degradation process were optimized using response surface methodology (RSM). The effects of temperature (293-333 K), amount of catalyst (5-25 mg/50 mL), the concentration of H2O2 (0-8 mM), and treatment time (10-70 min) on the TAPO method were investigated using central composite design (CCD). For the crystal violet removal, two models were developed. Both models were significant and can be used to describe the design space. Also, the dye bathing wastewater degradation was described by another developed model, which had a high correlation coefficient (R2 = 0.97). In general, catalytic activity for HES was higher than RES. The degradation of crystal violet reached 98.10% when a 20 mg HES catalyst and 6 mM H2O2 at 323 K for 55 min were used. While 97% of the color of dye bathing wastewater was removed in 55 min at 323 K using 25 mg of HES and 4 mM H2O2. This study showed that the hydrolyzed eggshells could be used in the oxidation of crystal violet and dye bathing wastewater by the thermally activated peroxide oxidation method.

Antimicrobial Effects of Nanostructured Rare-Earth-Based Orthovanadates.

The search for novel antimicrobial agents is of huge importance. Nanomaterials can come to the rescue in this case. The aim of this study was to assess the cytotoxicity and antimicrobial effects of rare-earth-based orthovanadate nanoparticles. The cytotoxicity against host cells and antimicrobial activity of LaVO4:Eu3+ and GdVO4:Eu3+ nanoparticles were analyzed. Effects of nanomaterials on fibroblasts were assessed by MTT, neutral red uptake and scratch assays. The antimicrobial effects were evaluated by the micro-dilution method estimating the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of nanoparticles against various strains of microorganisms, DNA cleavage and biofilm inhibition. GdVO4:Eu3+ nanoparticles were found to be less toxic against eukaryotic cells compared with LaVO4:Eu3+. Both nanoparticles exhibited antimicrobial activity and the highest MIC values were 64 mg/L for E. hirae, E. faecalis and S. aureus shown by GdVO4:Eu3+ nanoparticles. Nanoparticles demonstrated good DNA cleavage activity and induction of double-strand breaks in supercoiled plasmid DNA even at the lowest concentrations used. Both nanoparticles showed the biofilm inhibition activity against S. aureus at 500 mg/L and reduced the microbial cell viability. Taken the results of host toxicity and antimicrobial activity studies, it can be assumed that GdVO4:Eu3+ nanoparticles are more promising antibacterial agents compared with LaVO4:Eu3+ nanoparticles.

The effect of pre-treatment methods on membrane flux, COD, and total phenol removal efficiencies for membrane treatment of pistachio wastewater.

In this study, the effect of pre-treatment methods was investigated for membrane treatment of pistachio processing wastewater (PPW). Chemical coagulation, electrocoagulation, and electrooxidation processes were tested as the pretreatment methods to understand the effect of pretreatment on membrane performance. Alum (Al2(SO4)3·18H2O), iron (III) chloride (FeCl3·6H2O) and iron(II) sulfate (Fe(SO4)·7H2O) were used as coagulant and anionic polyelectrolyte was used as flocculant. Al-Al and Fe-Fe electrode pairs were used in the electrocoagulation experiments while platinum (Pt), boron doped diamond (BDD), and graphite were used in the electrooxidation experiments. UP150, NF270, and NF90 were used as the membranes. Chemical oxygen demand (COD) and total phenol removal efficiencies from wastewater were determined by considering membrane flux. For chemical coagulation experiments, the highest COD removal efficiency was determined as 44.9% for Al2(SO4)3.18H2O at 1000 mg/L when the wastewater pH value was 8.0. However, the highest total phenol removal efficiencies were obtined as 62.5% at 4000 mg/L for FeCl3.6H2O at pH 8. For electrocoagulation experiments, the highest COD and total phenol removal efficiencies were determined as 63.9% at pH 4.0 and 74.2% at pH 7.0, respectively, for 100 A/m2 current density when aluminum electrode pairs were used. For electrooxidation experiments, the highest COD and total phenol removal efficiencies were determined as 61.2% at pH 4.0 and 83.1% at pH 10, respectively, for 200 A/m2 current density when BDD-Pt electrode pairs were used. Raw PPW and pre-treated PPW with chemical coagulation, electrocoagulation, and electrooxidation processes were progressively further treated with ultrafiltration (UP150) and nanofiltration (NF270, NF90) membranes to improve COD and total phenol removal efficiencies. The results showed that the permeate of NF90 membrane supplied the highest COD (96.0%) and total phenol removal (97.5%) efficiencies for the raw wastewater. However, COD and total phenol removal efficiencies were determined as 98.6% and 100% for electrocoagulation + NF90, 97.9% and 100% for electrooxidation + NF90, 96.6% and 100% for chemical coagulation + NF90, respectively. The steady-state fluxes for NF90 membranes were 2.9, 7.0, and 8.6 L/m2h after chemical coagulation, electrooxidation, and electrocoagulation, respectively. The results depicted that electrocoagulation and electrooxidation were the most suitable pre-treatment methods for water recovery using NF90 membrane.

Evaluation of electro-oxidation and Fenton pretreatments on industrial fruit waste and municipal sewage sludge to enhance biogas production by anaerobic co-digestion.

This study presents the effect of electro-oxidation and Fenton pre-treatment on anaerobic co-digestion (AnCoD) of fruit-juice industrial waste (FJW) and municipal sewage sludge (MSS). Biogas production increased from 767 mL to 857 mL and 918 mL after EO and Fenton pretreatment, respectively. The methane amount increased by 28% and 39% for EO and Fenton processes. The removal efficiencies of soluble COD, carbohydrate, and protein for the conditions with the highest biogas production as a result of the pretreatment process were 48%, 65%, 61% for the Fenton pre-treatment, and 37%, 52%, and 39% for the EO pre-treatment, respectively. Cumulative biogas production efficiency for all pre-treated mixtures was estimated with kinetic models. In addition, an evaluation has been made regarding cost, economic gain, and energy consumption of the pre-treatment processes.

Catalytical efficiency, mechanism and characterization of hydrolysed waste eggshell in the subcritical water oxidation of pistachio processing wastewater.

Sustainable, effective and environmentally friendly methods are needed in wastewater treatment as quality water is necessary for a healthy life. Valorisation of solid food waste is also of great importance. This study examines the effectiveness of hydrolysed waste eggshells (HES), a green catalyst, in pistachio processing wastewater (PPWW) treatment using subcritical water oxidation (SWO). HES was prepared in the subcritical water medium (513 K, 100 bar of N2, 2 h) with a 92.3% yield. 88.8% of COD, 100% of both TPC and color removals of PPWW were achieved. The effects of independent variables such as temperature (363-403 K), treatment time (20-100 min), the concentration of H2O2 (0.25-1.25 M) and amount of catalyst (0-100 mg/100 mL) on the responses were investigated using response surface methodology (RSM). SEM, EDX and XRD were used to investigate the characterization of the waste eggshells. The percentage of Ca in HES increased with the hydrolysis, thus CaO increased the catalysis of hydrogen peroxide to form hydroxyl radicals.

The effect of different types of AOPs supported by hydrogen peroxide on the decolorization of methylene blue and viscose fibers dyeing wastewater.

Wastewater from the textile industry containing a high concentration of organic and inorganic chemicals has strong color and residual chemical oxygen demand (COD). Therefore, advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) are very good candidates to treat textile industry wastewater. In this study, we investigated the effect of different types of AOPs supported with hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) for the treatment of viscose fibers dyeing wastewater. Fenton, photo-Fenton, and Fenton-supported subcritical water oxidation (FSWO) processes were chosen as AOPs to compare the treatment efficiency of viscose fibers dyeing wastewater. The effects of solution pH, Fe2+ concentration, and H2O2 concentration on the treatment of viscose fibers dyeing wastewater were tested. The maximum color and COD removal efficiency was obtained corresponding to pH 2.5 for all oxidation methods when methylene blue (MB) dye solution was used. However, the maximum efficiencies were obtained at pH 3.0 for real textile wastewater decolorization. The MB dye removal efficiency was increased to 97.22, 100, and 100% for Fenton, photo-Fenton, and FSWO processes, respectively, when the addition of H2O2 concentration was adjusted to 125 mg/L. However, the maximum color removal efficiencies of viscose fibers dyeing wastewater were obtained 56.94, 61.26, 64.11% for Fenton, photo-Fenton, FSWO processes, respectively. As a result, the FSWO showed maximum color removal efficiencies.

Experimental confirmation of antimicrobial effects of GdYVO4:Eu3+ nanoparticles.

Nanotechnology can be applied to design antibacterial agents to combat antibiotic resistance. The aim of the present study was to assess the antimicrobial effects and cytotoxicity of GdYVO4:Eu3+ nanoparticles (NPs). Biofilm inhibition activity, antimicrobial activity, bacterial viability inhibition and DNA cleavage activity of GdYVO4:Eu3+ NPs were studied. In addition, the impact of GdYVO4:Eu3+ NPs on the mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨM) of host immune cells and, hence, their apoptosis was analyzed by JC-1 staining using flow cytometry. GdYVO4:Eu3+ NPs demonstrated good antimicrobial, cell viability inhibition and DNA cleavage activities. In addition, GdYVO4:Eu3+ NPs showed good biofilm inhibition activity against S. aureus and P. aeruginosa and inhibition percentages were 89.15% and 79.54%, respectively. However, GdYVO4:Eu3+ NPs promoted mitochondrial depolarization and apoptosis of leukocytes at high concentrations. GdYVO4:Eu3+ nanoparticles are promising antibacterial agents. However, more efforts should be exerted to ensure their safety.

Investigation of sesame processing wastewater treatment with combined electrochemical and membrane processes.

This study aims to investigate the treatability of the wastewater generated from the sesame seeds dehulling process by a combination of electrochemical techniques with a membrane filtration system. Chemical oxygen demand (COD) and phenol removal performances were studied for four different cathodes material (iron (Fe), aluminum (Al), platinum (Pt), and boron-doped diamond (BDD)) at different current densities in the electrochemical treatment stage. The maximum removal efficiency was obtained when the BDD electrodes were used. The optimum conditions were 100 A/m2 of current density and 120 min of electrolysis period, where 40% and 85% of COD and phenol removals subsequently were achieved. The generated water from the first stage was passed through two different membrane systems. The membrane systems were microfiltration and ultrafiltration. The uptake performance for microfiltration was 22% and 17% for COD and phenol reduction subsequently. The ultrafiltration performed well and has given an additional removal of 27% and 20% of both COD and phenol reduction, respectively. The final results showed the importance of the studied combined systems and the additional value to the final obtained water quality.