The effect of air quality parameters on new COVID-19 cases between two different climatic and geographical regions in Turkey.

Different health management strategies may need to be implemented in different regions to cope with diseases. The current work aims to evaluate the relationship between air quality parameters and the number of new COVID-19 cases in two different geographical locations, namely Western Anatolia and Western Black Sea in Turkey. Principal component analysis (PCA) and regression model were utilized to describe the effect of environmental parameters (air quality and meteorological parameters) on the number of new COVID-19 cases. A big difference in the mean values for all air quality parameters has appeared between the two areas. Two regression models were developed and showed a significant relationship between the number of new cases and the selected environmental parameters. The results showed that wind speed, SO2, CO, NOX, and O3 are not influential variable and does not affect the number of new cases of COVID-19 in the Western Black Sea area, while only wind speed, SO2, CO, NOX, and O3 are influential parameters on the number of new cases in Western Anatolia. Although the environmental parameters behave differently in each region, these results revealed that the relationship between the air quality parameters and the number of new cases is significant.

The Effect of Graphene Oxide and SEBS-g-MAH Compatibilizer on Mechanical and Thermal Properties of Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene/Talc Composite.

In this study, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS)/talc/graphene oxide/SEBS-g-MAH (ABS/Talc/GO/SEBS-g-MAH) and acrylonitrile butadiene styrene/graphene oxide/SEBS-g-MAH (ABS/GO/SEBS-g-MAH) composites were isolated with varying graphene oxide (0.5 to 2.0 phr) as a filler and SEBS-g-MAH as a compatibilizer (4 to 8 phr), with an ABS:talc ratio of 90:10 by percentage. The influences of graphene oxide and SEBS-g-MAH loading in ABS/talc composites were determined on the mechanical and thermal properties of the composites. It was found that the incorporation of talc reduces the stiffness of composites. The analyses of mechanical and thermal properties of composites revealed that the inclusion of graphene oxide as a filler and SEBS-g-MAH as a compatibilizer in the ABS polymer matrix significantly improved the mechanical and thermal properties. ABS/talc was prepared through melt mixing to study the fusion characteristic. The mechanical properties showed an increase of 30%, 15%, and 90% in tensile strength (TS), flexural strength (FS), and flexural modulus (FM), respectively. The impact strength (IS) resulted in comparable properties to ABS, and it was better than the ABS/talc composite due to the influence of talc in the composite that stiffens and reduces the extensibility of plastic. The incorporation of GO and SEBS-g-MA also shows a relatively higher thermal stability in both composites with and without talc. The finding of the present study reveals that the graphene oxide and SEBS-g-MAH could be utilized as a filler and a compatibilizer in ABS/talc composites to enhance the thermo-mechanical stability because of the superior interfacial adhesion between the matrix and filler.

Treatment of rubber wastewater using zinc sulphate as coagulants-data collection on removal efficiency for physicochemical and heavy metal parameters.

This article provides data regarding the performance of zinc sulphate as a coagulant for treating rubber industry wastewater. The effect of four factors on removal efficiency of nine parameters is investigated, namely: pH, mixing speed, dosage of coagulant (zinc sulphate) and retention time. Response surface methodology was used to investigate the effect of selected variables. The data obtained from face centered composite design (FCCD) were analyzed by using analysis of variance (ANOVA) and regression model to find the optimum operating conditions for the selected factors.

Differentiation of ripe and unripe fruit flour using mineral composition data-Statistical assessment.

Data on the mineral composition and content of one heavy metal measured in three different fruit flours prepared from ripe and unripe fruits (pulp and peel) are presented. The mineral composition (sodium (Na), potassium (K), magnesium (Mg), calcium (Ca), zinc (Zn), copper (Cu), iron (Fe) and manganese (Mn)) and content of one heavy metal (lead (Pb)) of the flours were analyzed by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The analysis showed that the data can be used for differentiation between different fruits and stages of ripeness, as revealed by discriminant analysis and cluster analysis. The data provided can be used by researchers and scientists in the differentiation of fruits based on major and minor mineral elements.

Assessment of the chemical hazard awareness of petrol tanker driver: A case study.

Understanding the tanker driver hazard awareness on chemical exposure is important to ensure that they are fortified with the appropriate information regarding the risk of their occupation. This present study was conducted to determine the awareness of the petrol tanker driver on the chemical exposure during transportation petroleum product. The assessment on hazardous awareness of the petrol tank driver was conducted through questionnaire survey. Wherein, the questionnaire was designed with considering the variables of age of the driver, working experience, working hours in a day and knowledge on chemical hazard presence in the petroleum oil. A reliability test of Cronbach's Alpha was performed to validate the questionnaire and the Chi-Square test was conducted to determine the correlation among the studied variables. The findings of the present study revealed that the drivers who are frequently come into direct contact with petrol cannot identify the spillage had occurred during working. The study identified that there is an urgency to conduct training on safe handling of petroleum oil in order to eliminate the risk of chemical hazards exposure to the tanker driver.

Factorial Design and Optimization of Landfill Leachate Treatment Using Tannin-Based Natural Coagulant.

In this study, tannin-based natural coagulant was used to treat stabilized landfill leachate. Tannin modified with amino group was utilized for the treatment process. Central composite design (CCD) was used to investigate and optimize the effect of tannin dosage and pH on four responses. The treatment efficiency was evaluated based on the removal of four selected (responses) parameters; namely, chemical oxygen demand (COD), color, NH3-N and total suspended solids (TSS). The optimum removal efficiency for COD, TSS, NH3-N and color was obtained using a tannin dosage of 0.73 g at a pH of 6. Moreover, the removal efficiency for selected heavy metals from leachate; namely, iron (Fe2+), zinc (Zn2+), copper (Cu2+), chromium (Cr2+), cadmium (Cd2+), lead (Pb2+), arsenic (As3+), and cobalt (Co2+) was also investigated. The results for removal efficiency for COD, TSS, NH3-N, and color were 53.50%, 60.26%, and 91.39%, respectively. The removal of selected heavy metals from leachate for Fe2+, Zn2+, Cu2+, Cr2+, Cd2+, Pb2+, As3+ and cobalt Co2+ were 89.76%, 94.61%, 94.15%, 89.94%, 17.26%, 93.78%, 86.43% and 84.19%, respectively. The results demonstrate that tannin-based natural coagulant could effectively remove organic compounds and heavy metals from stabilized landfill leachate.

Bio-Optimization of Chemical Parameters and Earthworm Biomass for Efficient Vermicomposting of Different Palm Oil Mill Waste Mixtures.

The present study reports mathematical modelling of palm oil mill effluent and palm-pressed fiber mixtures (0% to 100%) during vermicomposting process. The effects of different mixtures with respect to pH, C:N ratio and earthworms have been optimized using the modelling parameters. The results of analysis of variance have established effect of different mixtures of palm oil mill effluent plus palm press fiber and time, under selected physicochemical responses (pH, C:N ratio and earthworm numbers). Among all mixtures, 60% mixture was achieved optimal growth at pH 7.1 using 16.29 C:N ratio in 15 days of vermicomposting. The relationship between responses, time and different palm oil mill waste mixtures have been summarized in terms of regression models. The obtained results of mathematical modeling suggest that these findings have potential to serve a platform for further studies in terms of kinetic behavior and degradation of the biowastes via vermicomposting.

Data on the absorbance of glucose during the acid hydrolysis of the sugarcane bagasse.

This article presents data relating to the changes in absorbance of glucose during the acid hydrolysis of sugarcane bagasse using sulphuric acid. This dataset also contains the moisture content, volatile matter, and fixed carbon of the sugarcane bagasse. The results of the analysis of variance (ANOVA) and the interaction plots between reaction time, temperature, and ratio are also presented. The data revealed that absorbance of glucose is increasing by increasing the temperature and time. Moreover, the best ratio for the highest absorbance of glucose was achieved at 1:20.

Data on micrometeorological parameters and Energy Fluxes at an intertidal zone of a Tropical Coastal Ocean.

Data on the micrometeorological parameters and Energy Fluxes at an intertidal zone of a Tropical Coastal Ocean was carried out on an installed eddy covariance instruments at a Muka head station in the north-western end of the Pinang Island (5°28'06''N, 100°12'01''E), Peninsula Malaysia. The vast source of the supply of energy and heat to the hydrologic and earth׳s energy cycles principally come from the oceans. The exchange of energies via air-sea interactions is crucial to the understanding of climate variability, energy, and water budget. The turbulent energy fluxes are primary mechanisms through which the ocean releases the heat absorbed from the solar radiations to the environment. The eddy covariance (EC) system is the direct technique of measuring the micrometeorological parameters which allow the measurement of these turbulent fluxes in the time scale of half-hourly basis at 20 Hz over a long period. The data being presented is the comparison of the two-year seasonality patterns of monsoons variability on the measured microclimate variables in the southern South China Sea coastal area.

Experimental data on the air-sea energy fluxes at the tropical coastal ocean in the southern South China Sea.

Air-sea flux exchanges influence the climate condition and the global carbon-moisture cycle. It is imperative to understand the fundamentals of the natural systems at the tropical coastal ocean and how the transformation takes place over the time. Hence, latent and sensible heat fluxes, microclimate variables, and surface water temperature data were collected using eddy covariance instruments mounted on a platform at a tropical coastal ocean station from November 2015 to October 2017. The research data is to gain the needful knowledge of the energy exchanges in the tropical climatic environment to further improve predictive algorithms or models. Therefore, it is intended that this data report will offer appropriate information for the Monsoonal, and diurnal patterns of latent (LE) and sensible (H) heats and hence, establish the relationship between microclimate variables on the energy fluxes at the peninsular Malaysian tropical coastal ocean.

A methodological approach to the air-sea energy fluxes data collection and analysis at the tropical coastal ocean.

The southern South China coastal oceans within the South East Asian region are much lacking in the perception of the surface energy budget and evaporation over the ocean waters in response to climatic changes. The eddy covariance method was used to measure the energy fluxes, microclimate variables, and surface water temperature from November 2015 to October 2017 at the Straits of Malacca, South China Sea; Pulau Pinang, Malaysia, situated at latitude 5°28'06″N, and longitude 100°12'01″E. This work focused on the methodological approach to the air-sea energy fluxes data collection and analysis. In this regard, the method applied for the direct measurements and analysis of energy fluxes and other meteorological parameters in the site is considered and reported. •The paper summarizes the analysis of energy fluxes, microclimate variables, and surface water temperature data in a tropical coastal ocean station using the eddy covariance method.•The methodological approach illustrates the method of analysis applied in this study which can be compared and used for similar studies in other places.•The reproducible data analysis technique matches similar comparative methods such as Matlab and Python.

Performance of combined persulfate/aluminum sulfate for landfill leachate treatment.

Although landfilling is still the most suitable method for solid waste disposal, generation of large quantity of leachate is still considered as one of the main environmental problem. Efficient treatment of leachate is required prior to final discharge. Persulfate (S2O82-) recently used for leachate oxidation, the oxidation potential of persulfate can be improved by activate and initiate sulfate radical. The current data aimed to evaluate the performance of utilizing Al2SO4 reagent for activation of persulfate to treat landfill leachate. The data on chemical oxygen demand (COD), color, and NH3-H removals at different setting of the persulfate, Al2SO4 dosages, pH, and reaction time were collected using a central composite design (CCD) were measured to identify the optimum operating conditions. A total of 30 experiments were performed, the optimum conditions for S2O82-/Al2SO4 oxidation process was obtained. Quadratic models for chemical oxygen demand (COD), color, and NH3-H removals were significant with p-value < 0.0001. The experimental results were in agreement with the optimum results for COD and NH3-N removal rates to be 67%, 81%, and 48%, respectively). The results obtained in leachate treatment were compared with those from other treatment processes, such as S2O82- only and Al2SO4 only, to evaluate its effectiveness. The combined method (i.e., /S2O82-/Al2SO4) showed higher removal efficiency for COD, color, and NH3-N compared with other studied applications.

Extraction, characterization and application of malva nut gum in water treatment.

In view of green developments in water treatment, plant-based flocculants have become the focus due to their safety, degradation and renewable properties. In addition, cost and energy-saving processes are preferable. In this study, malva nut gum (MNG), a new plant-based flocculant, and its composite with Fe in water treatment using single mode mixing are demonstrated. The result presents a simplified extraction of the MNG process. MNG has a high molecular weight of 2.3 × 105 kDa and a high negative charge of -58.7 mV. From the results, it is a strong anionic flocculant. Moreover, it is observed to have a branch-like surface structure. Therefore, it conforms to the surface of particles well and exhibits good performance in water treatment. In water treatment, the Fe-MNG composite treats water at pH 3.01 and requires a low concentration of Fe and MNG of 0.08 and 0.06 mg/L, respectively, when added to the system. It is concluded that for a single-stage flocculation process, physico-chemical properties such as molecular weight, charge of polymer, surface morphology, pH, concentration of cation and concentration of biopolymeric flocculant affect the flocculating performance.

Optimizing supercritical carbon dioxide in the inactivation of bacteria in clinical solid waste by using response surface methodology.

Clinical solid waste (CSW) poses a challenge to health care facilities because of the presence of pathogenic microorganisms, leading to concerns in the effective sterilization of the CSW for safe handling and elimination of infectious disease transmission. In the present study, supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO2) was applied to inactivate gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus faecalis, Bacillus subtilis, and gram-negative Escherichia coli in CSW. The effects of SC-CO2 sterilization parameters such as pressure, temperature, and time were investigated and optimized by response surface methodology (RSM). Results showed that the data were adequately fitted into the second-order polynomial model. The linear quadratic terms and interaction between pressure and temperature had significant effects on the inactivation of S. aureus, E. coli, E. faecalis, and B. subtilis in CSW. Optimum conditions for the complete inactivation of bacteria within the experimental range of the studied variables were 20 MPa, 60 °C, and 60 min. The SC-CO2-treated bacterial cells, observed under a scanning electron microscope, showed morphological changes, including cell breakage and dislodged cell walls, which could have caused the inactivation. This espouses the inference that SC-CO2 exerts strong inactivating effects on the bacteria present in CSW, and has the potential to be used in CSW management for the safe handling and recycling-reuse of CSW materials.

Treatment of Terasil Red R and Cibacron Red R wastewater using extracted aluminum from red earth: factorial design.

The ability of aluminum coagulant extracted from red earth to treat Terasil Red R (disperse) and Cibacron Red R (reactive) synthetic dye wastewater was studied. The effects of extractant concentration, soil-to-volume of extractant ratio, and the types of extracting agents (NaOH vs. KCl) on the concentration of aluminum extracted were also investigated. In addition, the efficiency of extracted aluminum was compared with aluminum sulfate, in terms of its capability to reduce the chemical oxygen demand (COD) and to remove synthetic color. Factorial design was applied to determine the effect of selected factors on the amount of aluminum extracted from red earth (i.e., pH, dose of coagulant, type of coagulant on COD reduction, and color removal). It was found that only selected factors exhibited a significant effect on the amount of aluminum extracted from red earth. It was also determined that all factors and their interactions exhibited a significant effect on COD reduction and color removal when applying the extracted aluminum in a standard coagulation process. The results were also compared to aluminum sulfate. Furthermore, NaOH was found to be a better extractant of aluminum in red earth than KCl. Therefore, the best extracting conditions for both extractants were as follows: 2 M NaOH and in a 1:5 (soil/volume of extractant) ratio; 1 M KCl and 1:5 ratio. In treating synthetic dye wastewater, the extracted coagulant showed comparable treatment efficiency to the commercial coagulant. The extracted coagulant was able to reduce the COD of the dispersed dye by 85% and to remove 99% of the color of the dispersed dye, whereas the commercial coagulant reduced 90% of the COD and removed 99% of the color of the dispersed dye. Additionally, the extracted coagulant was able to reduce the COD of the reactive dye by 73% and to remove 99% of the color of the reactive dye. However, the commercial coagulant managed to reduce the COD of the reactive dye by 94% and to remove 96% of the color for the reactive dye.

Assessment of the ribose-induced Maillard reaction as a means of gelatine powder identification and quality control.

The addition of ribose to bovine or porcine gelatine solutions followed by heating at 95 °C yielded brown solutions with different pH, colour (CIE L(*) and b(*)) and absorbance (A(420*) values. These differences were used for gelatine powder identification, differentiation and quality control. Differentiation analysis of the Maillard reaction parameters was conducted using cluster analysis (CA) and confidence intervals (CI). The potential use of the method as a quality control procedure was evaluated by using statistical process control (SPC). CA revealed that the two types of gelatine could be classified into two different groups. CI (95% confidence) revealed that the absorbance and colour values could be used as indicators for differentiation between the two types of gelatine because the intervals between the Maillard reaction parameters of the samples were far apart. The methodology demonstrated good reproducibility because it behaved predictably based on the X¯-S charts generated from the SPC charts.

Selection of design parameters and optimization of operating parameters of soybean oil-based bulk liquid membrane for Cu(II) removal and recovery from aqueous solutions.

The objectives of this work were to select suitable design parameters and optimize the operating parameters of a soybean oil-based bulk liquid membrane (BLM) for Cu(II) removal and recovery from aqueous solutions. The soybean oil-based BLM consists of an aqueous feed phase (Cu(II) source), an organic membrane phase (soybean oil (diluent), di-2-ethylhexylphosphoric acid (D2EHPA) (carrier) and tributylphosphate (phase modifier)) and an aqueous stripping phase (sulfuric acid solution (H(2)SO(4))). Effects of design parameters (stirring condition and stripping/membrane to feed/membrane interface area ratio) of soybean oil-based BLM on the Cu(II) removal and recovery from aqueous solutions were investigated and the suitable parameters were selected for further studies. Optimization of the operating parameters (D2EHPA concentration, H(2)SO(4) concentration, stirring speed, temperature and operating time) of soybean oil-based BLM for maximum percentage (%) recovery of Cu(II) was then conducted using Response Surface Methodology and the optimum parameters were determined. A regression model for % recovery was developed and its adequacy was evaluated. The experimental % recovery obtained under the optimum operating conditions was compared with the predicted one and they were found to agree satisfactorily with each other.

Effect of cooking on physical and sensory properties of fresh yellow alkaline noodles prepared by partial substitution of wheat flour with soy protein isolate and treated with cross-linking agents.

Yellow alkaline noodles (YAN) prepared by partial substitution of wheat flour with soy protein isolate and treated with microbial transglutaminase (MTG) and ribose were investigated during cooking. Cooking caused an increase in lightness but a decrease in redness and yellowness, pH, tensile strength and elasticity values of noodles. The extents of these changes were influenced by formulation and cross-linking treatments. The pH and lightness for YAN-ribose were lowest but the yellowness and redness were the highest whilst the tensile strength and elasticity values remained moderate. For YAN-MTG, the color and pH values were moderate, but tensile strength and elasticity values were the highest. YAN prepared with both cross-linking agents had physical values between YAN-ribose and YAN-MTG. Although certain sensory parameters showed differences in score, the overall acceptability of all 10-min-cooked YAN was similar. It is possible to employ cross-linking agents to improve physical properties of cooked YAN.

Chemical composition and antioxidant properties of candlenut oil extracted by supercritical CO2.

Candlenut oil was extracted using supercritical CO(2) (SC-CO(2)) with an optimization of parameters, by the response surface methodology. The ground candlenut samples were treated in 2 different ways, that is, dried in either a heat oven (sample moisture content of 2.91%) or dried in a vacuum oven (sample moisture content of 1.98%), before extraction. An untreated sample (moisture content of 4.87%) was used as a control. The maximum percentage of oil was extracted from the heat-oven-dried sample (77.27%), followed by the vacuum-oven-dried sample (74.32%), and the untreated sample (70.12%). At an SC-CO(2) pressure of 48.26 Mpa and 60 min of extraction time, the optimal temperatures for extraction were found to be 76.4 °C, 73.9 °C, and 70.6 °C for the untreated, heat-oven-dried, and vacuum-oven-dried samples, respectively. The heat-oven-dried sample contains the highest percentage of linoleic acid, followed by the untreated and vacuum-oven-dried samples. The antiradical activity of candlenut oil corresponded to an IC(50) value of 30.37 mg/mL.

Comparing physicochemical properties of banana pulp and peel flours prepared from green and ripe fruits.

Banana pulp and peel flour prepared from green and ripe Cavendish banana were assessed for physicochemical properties such as pH, total soluble solids (TSS), water holding capacity (WHC) and oil holding capacity (OHC) at 40, 60 and 80°C, colour values L∗, a∗ and b∗, back extrusion force (BEF) and viscosity. Data obtained were analysed by MANOVA, discriminant analysis and cluster analysis. All statistical analyses showed that physicochemical properties of flour prepared from pulp and peel, and green and ripe banana were different from each other. TSS, WHC40, WHC60 and BEF can be used to discriminate between peel and pulp flour, whilst TSS and viscosity can be used to discriminate between flour prepared from green and ripe banana.