Treatment of Monochlorobenzene from Polymers Process through Electrochemical Oxidation.

With the rapid development of the economy and the demands of people's lives, the usage amount of polymer materials is significantly increasing globally. Chlorobenzenes (CBS) are widely used in the industrial, agriculture and chemical industries, particularly as important chemical raw materials during polymers processes. CBS are difficult to remove due to their properties, such as being hydrophobic, volatile and persistent and biotoxic, and they have caused great harm to the ecological environment and human health. Electrochemical oxidation technology for the treatment of refractory pollutants has been widely used due to its high efficiency and easiness of operation. Thus, the electrochemical oxidation system was established for the efficient treatment of monochlorobenzene (MCB) waste gas. The effect of a single factor, such as anode materials, cathode materials, the electrolyte concentration, current density and electrode distance on the removal efficiency (RE) of MCB gas were first studied. The response-surface methodology (RSM) was used to investigate the relationships between different factors' conditions (current density, electrolyte concentration, electrode distance), and a prediction model was established using the Design-Expert 10.0.1 software to optimize the reaction conditions. The results of the one-factor experiments showed that when treating 2.90 g/m3 MCB gas with a 0.40 L/min flow rate, Ti/Ti4O7 as an anode, stainless steel wire mesh as a cathode, 0.15 mol/L NaCl electrolyte, 10.0 mA/cm2 current density and 4.0 cm electrode distance, the average removal efficiency (RE), efficiency capacity (EC) and energy consumption (Esp) were 57.99%, 20.18 g/(m3·h) and 190.2 (kW·h)/kg, respectively. The results of the RSM showed that the effects of the process parameters on the RE of MBC were as follows: current density > electrode distance > electrolyte concentration; the interactions effects on the RE of MBC were in the order of electrolyte concentration and current density > current density and electrode distance > electrolyte concentration and electrode distance; the optimal experimental conditions were as follows: the concentration of electrolyte was 0.149 mol/L, current density was 18.11 mA, electrode distance was 3.804 cm. Under these conditions, the RE achieved 66.43%. The response-surface variance analysis showed that the regression model reached a significant level, and the validation results were in agreement with the predicted results, which proved the feasibility of the model. The model can be applied to treat the CBS waste gas of polymer processes through electrochemical oxidation.

Bioelectrochemical Purification of Biomass Polymer Derived Furfural Wastewater and Its Electric Energy Recovery.

With the increasing environmental pollution caused by waste polymers, the conversion of polymer components in biomass into valuable products is of great significance for waste management and resource recovery. A two-stage microbial fuel cell (MFC) was used to treat furfural wastewater in this study. The maximum output voltage was 240-250 mV and the power generation time in an operation cycle was 286 h. The degradation efficiency of furfural reached 99-100% (furfural concentration at 300-3000 mg/L) and was slightly reduced to 91% at 7000 mg/L. In addition, the BOD/COD ratio of the furfural wastewater increased from 0.31 to 0.48 after MFC processing. The molecular analysis of the anodic bacterial isolates indicated that the phylogenetic bacterial mixture was dominated by five active anaerobic bacteria with a similarity percentage above 99% for each strain: Burkholderia (B. burdella), Clostridium sensu stricto (Cymbidaceae), Klebsiella (Klebsiella), Ethanoligenens (anaerobic genus), and Acidocella (anaerobic genus); the mixture exhibited good properties to carry out bioelectricity generation in the microbial fuel cell. This indicates that the MFC has effectively degraded furfural for pollutant removal and power generation and is a promising clean method to treat furfural pollution in industry wastewater.

Improving Flavonoid Accumulation of Bioreactor-Cultured Adventitious Roots in Oplopanax elatus Using Yeast Extract.

Oplopanax elatus is an endangered medicinal plant, and adventitious root (AR) culture is an effective way to obtain its raw materials. Yeast extract (YE) is a lower-price elicitor and can efficiently promote metabolite synthesis. In this study, the bioreactor-cultured O. elatus ARs were treated with YE in a suspension culture system to investigate the elicitation effect of YE on flavonoid accumulation, serving for further industrial production. Among YE concentrations (25-250 mg/L), 100 mg/L YE was the most suitable for increasing the flavonoid accumulation. The ARs with various ages (35-, 40-, and 45-day-old) responded differently to YE stimulation, where the highest flavonoid accumulation was found when 35-day-old ARs were treated with 100 mg/L YE. After YE treatment, the flavonoid content increased, peaked at 4 days, and then decreased. By comparison, the flavonoid content and antioxidant activities in the YE group were obviously higher than those in the control. Subsequently, the flavonoids of ARs were extracted by flash extraction, where the optimized extraction process was: 63% ethanol, 69 s of extraction time, and a 57 mL/g liquid-material ratio. The findings provide a reference for the further industrial production of flavonoid-enriched O. elatus ARs, and the cultured ARs have potential application for the future production of products.

Overview of Solar Steam Devices from Materials and Structures.

The global shortage of freshwater supply has become an imminent problem. The high energy consumption of traditional desalination technology cannot meet the demand for sustainable energy development. Therefore, exploring new energy sources to obtain pure water has become one of the effective ways to solve the freshwater resource crisis. In recent years, solar steam technology which utilizes solar energy as the sole input source for photothermal conversion has shown to be sustainable, low-cost, and environmentally friendly, providing a viable low-carbon solution for freshwater supply. This review summarizes the latest developments in solar steam generators. The working principle of steam technology and the types of heating systems are described. The photothermal conversion mechanisms of different materials are illustrated. Emphasis is placed on describing strategies to optimize light absorption and improve steam efficiency from material properties to structural design. Finally, challenges in the development of solar steam devices are pointed out, aiming to provide new ideas for the development of solar steam devices and alleviate the shortage of freshwater resources.

Comparative evaluation on the utilization of applied electrical potential in a conductive granule packed biotrickling filter for continuous abatement of xylene: Performance, limitation, and microbial community.

This study investigates the use of electrically conductive granules as packing material in biotrickling filter (BTF) systems as to provide insights on the specific microbial abundance and functions during the treatment of xylene-containing waste gas. In addition, the effect of applied potential on attached biofilm on conductive granules during xylene degradation was briefly investigated. During stable operation period, the conductive granules packed BTF achieved reactor performance of no less than 80% with a maximum EC of 137.7 g/m3 h. Under applied potential of 1V, the BTF system showed deterioration of xylene removal by ranging from 21 to 76%, which also affected the distribution and relative abundance of the major microorganisms such as Xanthobacter, Acidovorax, Rhodococcus, Hydrogenophaga, Arthrobacter, Brevundimonas, Pseudoxanthomonas, Devosia, Shinella, Sphingobium, Dokdonella, Pseudomonas and Bosea. The acclimation of applied potential led to the enrichment of autotrophic bacteria and strains, which are correlated to improved nitrogen cycling. In general, applying electrical potential is feasible to shape the microbiological structure of biofilms to selectively adjust their biochemical functions.

Adventitious root cultures of Oplopanax elatus inhibit LPS-induced inflammation via suppressing MAPK and NF-κB signaling pathways.

Bioreactor-cultured adventitious roots (ARs) of the endangered medicinal plant Oplopanax elatus Nakai is a novel alternative plant material. To utilize ARs in the product production, the present study investigated the anti-inflammatory effect of O. elatus ARs. In the in vivo experiment, lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced acute lung injury disease model was established and several inflammatory indexes were determined. For the LPS-stimulated mice, after pretreatment of AR crude extract (200 mg/kg), cell infiltration in lungs was decreased, the production of proinflammatory mediators, including nitric oxide (NO), tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, and interleukin (IL)-6, and 1ß in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid was evidently reduced, which indicated that O. elatus ARs had an anti-inflammatory effect. In the in vitro experiment, ethyl acetate (EtOAc) fractions (12.5, 25, and 50 µg/mL) were used to treat LPS-induced peritoneal macrophages (PMs) of mice. The production of NO, prostaglandin E2, TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-1ß in LPS-stimulated PMs was obviously inhibited (p < 0.05) after pretreatment with EtOAc fractions, and the expression of the inducible nitric oxide synthase and cyclooxygenase were also suppressed. To clarify the anti-inflammatory mechanism, effects of EtOAc fraction on changes of proteins related to the pathways of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) and nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) were investigated. The phosphorylation of extracellular regulated protein kinases, c-jun n-terminal kinase, and p38 MAPK in LPS-induced PMs was inhibited after pretreatment of EtOAc fractions. In addition, EtOAc fractions enhanced inhibitor of nuclear factor-kappa B-α expression and decreased nuclear translocation of p65 NF-κB. Thus, EtOAc from O. elatus ARs is involved in regulating MAKP and NF-κB signaling pathways to inhibit LPS-induced inflammation.

Production of Rare Ginsenosides Rg3 and Rh2 by Endophytic Bacteria from Panax ginseng.

The ginsenosides Rh2 and Rg3 induce tumor cell apoptosis, inhibit tumor cell proliferation, and restrain tumor invasion and metastasis. Despite Rh2 and Rg3 having versatile pharmacological activities, contents of them in natural ginseng are extremely low. To produce ginsenosides Rh2 and Rg3, the saponin-producing capacity of endophytic bacteria isolated from Panax ginseng was investigated. In this work, 81 endophytic bacteria isolates were taken from ginseng roots by tissue separation methods. Among them, strain PDA-2 showed the highest capacity to produce the rare ginsenosides; the concentrations of rare ginsenosides Rg3 and Rh2 reached 62.20 and 18.60 mg/L, respectively. On the basis of phylogenetic analysis, it was found that strain PDA-2 belongs to the genus Agrobacterium and was very close to Agrobacterium rhizogenes.

Recent progress and perspectives in biotrickling filters for VOCs and odorous gases treatment.

Pollution caused by volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and odorous pollutants in the air can produce severe environmental problems. In recent years, the emission control of VOCs and odorous pollutants has become a crucial issue owing to the adverse effect on humans and the environment. For treating these compounds, biotrickling filter (BTF) technology acts as an environment friendly and cost-effective alternative to conventional air pollution control technologies. Besides, low concentration of VOCs and odorous pollutants can also be effectively removed using BTF systems. However, the VOCs and odorants removal performance by BTF may be limited by the hydrophobicity, toxicity, and low bioavailability of these pollutants. To solve these problems, this review summarizes the design, mechanism, and common analytical methods of recent BTF advances. In addition, the operating conditions, mass transfer, packing materials and microorganisms (which are the critical parameters in a BTF system) were evaluated and discussed in view of improving the removal performance of BTFs. Further research on these specific topics, together with the combination of BTF technology with other technologies, should improve the removal performance of BTFs.

Electricity generation and removal performance of a microbial fuel cell using sulfonated poly (ether ether ketone) as proton exchange membrane to treat phenol/acetone wastewater.

The microbial fuel cell (MFC) has emerged as a promising technology for wastewater treatment and energy recovery, but the expensive cost of proton exchange membranes (PEMs) is a problem that need to be solved. In this study, a two-chamber MFC based on our self-made PEM sulfonated poly (ether ether ketone) membrane was set up to treat phenol/acetone wastewater and synchronously generate power. The maximum output voltage was 240-250 mV. Using phenol and acetone as substrates, the power generation time in an operation cycle was 289 h. The MFC exhibited good removal performance, with no phenol or acetone detected, respectively, when the phenol concentration was lower than 50 mg/L and the acetone concentration was lower than 100 mg/L. This study provides a cheap and eco-friendly way to treat phenol/acetone wastewater and generate useful energy by MFC technology.

Enhancement of TCE removal by a static magnetic field in a fungal biotrickling filter.

A fungal biotrickling filter (BTF) was employed to treat trichloroethylene (TCE) gas under different magnetic field intensities (MFIs). When the TCE inlet concentrations were approximately 370, 500-900, and 1000 mg/m3, the removal performances followed the order: MFI 20.0 mT > MFI 60.0 mT > MFI 80.0 mT > MFI 0 mT. In particular, at a TCE inlet concentration of 1000 mg/m3, MFI 20.0 mT was significantly better than MFI 0 mT performance. The corresponding removal efficiencies and maximum elimination capacities were 52.9%, 4854.1 mg/m3 h and 39.4%, 3594.8 mg/m3 h, respectively. BTF was shut down completely for 7 days and rapidly recovered in 6-10 days. High-throughput sequencing indicated that MF significantly affected the fungal community and significantly improved the relative abundance of the phylum Ascomycota, achieving the highest abundance of Ascomycota at MFI 20.0. These results indicated that a lower MFI can efficiently improve TCE removal performance in a fungal BTF.

Performance and bacterial diversity of biotrickling filters filled with conductive packing material for the treatment of toluene.

Toluene has high toxicity and mutagenicity, thus, the removal of toluene from air is necessary. In this study, two biotrickling filters (BTFs) were constructed and packed with conductive packing material to treat toluene waste gas. BTF-O exhibited good toluene removal performance even under high toluene inlet concentration, and over 80% of removal efficiency was observed. The elimination capacity reached 120.1 g/m3 h corresponding to an inlet concentration of 2.259 g/m3 under 61.5 s of empty bed retention time. During toluene biodegradation, the output voltage was observed in BTF-O and BTF-E, moreover BTF-E also showed slight power storage capacity. The applied voltage inhibited toluene removal and affected the bacterial community. The predominant bacterial genera in BTF-O were Acidovorax, Rhodococcus, Hydrogenophaga, Brevundimonas, Arthrobacter, Pseudoxanthomonas, Devosia, Gemmobacter, Rhizobium, Dokdonella and Pseudomonas. Genera Xanthobacter and Pelomonas accounted for the main bacterial community in BTF-E.

Effect of static magnetic field on trichloroethylene removal in a biotrickling filter.

A laboratory-scale biotrickling filter combined with a magnetic field (MF-BTF) and a single BTF (S-BTF) were set up to treat trichloroethylene (TCE) gas. The influences of phenol alone and NaAc-phenol as co-substrates and different MF intensities were investigated. At low MF intensity, MF-BTF displayed better performance with 0.20g/L of phenol, 53.6-337.1mg/m3 of TCE, and empty bed residence times of 202.5s. The performances followed the order MF-BTF (60.0mT)>MF-BTF (30.0mT)>S-BTF (0mT)>MF-BTF (130.0mT), and the removal efficiencies (REs) and maximum elimination capacities (ECs) corresponded to: 92.2%-45.5%, 2656.8mg/m3h; 89.8%-37.2%, 2169.1mg/m3h; 89.8%-29.8%, 1967.7mg/m3h; 76.0%-20.8%, 1697.1mg/m3h, respectively. High-throughput sequencing indicated that the bacterial diversity was lower, whereas the relative abundances of Acinetobacter, Chryseobacterium, and Acidovorax were higher in MF-BTF. Results confirmed that a proper MF could improve TCE removal performance in BTF.

Endophytic Bacteria Isolated from Panax ginseng Improves Ginsenoside Accumulation in Adventitious Ginseng Root Culture.

Ginsenoside is the most important secondary metabolite of ginseng. Natural sources of wild ginseng have been overexploited. Although root culture could reduce the length of the growth cycle of ginseng, the number of ginsenosides is fewer and their contents are lower in adventitious roots of ginseng than that in ginseng cultivated in the field. In this study, we investigated the effects of endophytic bacterial elicitors on biomass and ginsenoside production in adventitious roots cultures of Panax ginseng. Endophyte LB 5-3 as an elicitor could increase biomass and ginsenoside accumulation in ginseng adventitious root culture. After 6 days elicitation with a 10.0 mL of strain LB 5-3, the content of total ginsenoside was 2.026 mg g-1 which was four times more than that in unchallenged roots. The combination of methyl jasmonate and strain LB 5-3 had a negative effect on ginseng adventitious root growth and ginsenoside production. The genomic DNA of strain LB 5-3 was sequenced, and was found to be most closely related to Bacillus altitudinis (KX230132.1). The challenged ginseng adventitious root extracts exerted inhibitory effect against the HepG2 cells, which IC50 value was 0.94 mg mL-1.

Microbial transformation of ginsenosides extracted from Panax ginseng adventitious roots in an airlift bioreactor

Background: Ginsenoside is the most important secondary metabolite in ginseng. Natural sources of wild ginseng have been overexploited. Although root culture can reduce the length of the growth cycle of ginseng, the number of species of ginsenosides is reduced and their contents are lower in the adventitious roots of ginseng than in the roots of ginseng cultivated in the field. Results: In this study, 147 strains of ß-glucosidase-producing microorganisms were isolated from soil. Of these, strain K35 showed excellent activity for converting major ginsenosides into rare ginsenosides, and a NCBI BLAST of its 16S rDNA gene sequence showed that it was most closely related to Penicillium sp. (HQ608083.1). Strain K35 was used to ferment the adventitious root extract, and the fermentation products were analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography. The results showed that the content of the rare ginsenoside CK was 0.253 mg mL-1 under the optimal converting conditions of 9 d of fermentation at pH 7.0 in LL medium, which was significantly higher than that in the adventitious roots of ginseng. Conclusion: These findings may not only solve the problem of low productivity of metabolite in ginseng root culture but may also result in the development of a new valuable method of manufacturing ginsenoside CK.

Microbial conversion of major ginsenosides in ginseng total saponins by Platycodon grandiflorum endophytes.

BACKGROUND: In this study, we screened and identified an endophyte JG09 having strong biocatalytic activity for ginsenosides from Platycodon grandiflorum, converted ginseng total saponins and ginsenoside monomers, determined the source of minor ginsenosides and the transformation pathways, and calculated the maximum production of minor ginsenosides for the conversion of ginsenoside Rb1 to assess the transformation activity of endophyte JG09. METHODS: The transformation of ginseng total saponins and ginsenoside monomers Rb1, Rb2, Rc, Rd, Rg1 into minor ginsenosides F2, C-K and Rh1 using endophyte JG09 isolated by an organizational separation method and Esculin-R2A agar assay, as well as the identification of transformed products via TLC and HPLC, were evaluated. Endophyte JG09 was identified through DNA sequencing and phylogenetic analysis. RESULTS: A total of 32 ß-glucosidase-producing endophytes were screened out among the isolated 69 endophytes from P. grandiflorum. An endophyte bacteria JG09 identified as Luteibacter sp. effectively converted protopanaxadiol-type ginsenosides Rb1, Rb2, Rc, Rd into minor ginsenosides F2 and C-K, and converted protopanaxatriol-type ginsenoside Rg1 into minor ginsenoside Rh1. The transformation pathways of major ginsenosides by endophyte JG09 were as follows: Rb1→Rd→F2→C-K; Rb2→C-O→C-Y→C-K; Rc→C-Mc1→C-Mc→C-K; Rg1→Rh1. The maximum production rate of ginsenosides F2 and C-K reached 94.53% and 66.34%, respectively. CONCLUSION: This is the first report about conversion of major ginsenosides into minor ginsenosides by fermentation with P. grandiflorum endophytes. The results of the study indicate endophyte JG09 would be a potential microbial source for obtaining minor ginsenosides.

Removal of methyl acrylate by ceramic-packed biotrickling filter and their response to bacterial community.

Methyl acrylate is a widely used raw chemical materials and it is toxic in humans. In order to treat the methyl acrylate waste gas, a 3-layer BTF packed with ceramic particles and immobilized with activated sludge was set up. The BTF exhibited excellent removal efficiency that no methyl acrylate could be detected when EBRT was larger than 266s and inlet concentration was lower than 0.19g/m(3). The 1st layer performed the best at fixed inlet concentration of 0.42g/m(3). PCR combined with DGGE was performed to detect the differences in different layers of the BTF. Phylum Proteobacteria (e.g. α-, ß-, γ-, δ-) was predominantly represented in the bacterial community, followed by Actinobacteria and Firmicutes. Desulfovibrio gigas, Variovorax paradoxus, Dokdonella koreensis, Pseudoxanthomonas suwonensis, Azorhizobium caulinodans, Hyphomicrobium denitrificans, Hyphomicrobium sp. and Comamonas testosteroni formed the bacteria community to treat methyl acrylate waste gas in the BTF.

Fermentation of ginseng extracts by Penicillium simplicissimum GS33 and anti-ovarian cancer activity of fermented products.

A total of 58 isolates of ß-glucosidase-producing microorganisms were isolated from soil around the wild ginseng roots under forest using Esculin-R2A agar. Among these isolates, strain GS33 showed a strong ability to convert ginsenosides Rb1, Rb2, Rc, and Rd into F2, Rg3, C-K, and convert ginsenoside Rg1 into Rh1, and F1. Fermented ginseng products can inhibit ES-2 cells growth and the IC50 value was 0.73 mg ml⁻¹. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that the strain GS33 belongs to the genus Penicillium and is most closely related to Penicillium simplicissimum (99 %).

Co-transformation of Panax major ginsenosides Rb1 and Rg1 to minor ginsenosides C-K and F1 by Cladosporium cladosporioides.

Rb1 and Rg1 are the major ginsenosides in protopanaxadiol and protopanaxatriol. Their content in ginsenosides was 23.8 and 17.6%, respectively. A total of 22 isolates of ß-glucosidase producing microorganisms were isolated from the soil of a ginseng field using Esculin-R2A agar. Among these isolates, the strain GH21 showed the strongest activities to convert ginsenoside Rb1 and Rg1 to minor ginsenosides compound-K and F1, respectively. Ginsenosides Rb1 and Rg1 bioconversion rates were 74.2 and 89.3%, respectively. Meanwhile, the results demonstrated that the ginsenoside Rg1 could change the biotransformation pathway of ginsenoside Rb1 by inhibiting the formation of the intermediate metabolite gypenoside-XVII. GH21 was identified as a Cladosporium cladosporioides species based on the internal transcribed spacers (ITS) ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 rRNA gene sequences constructed phylogenetic trees.

Tumebacillus ginsengisoli sp. nov., isolated from soil of a ginseng field.

A gram-reaction-positive, rod-shaped, spore-forming bacterium, designated Gsoil 1105(T), was isolated from soil of a ginseng field in Pocheon Province in South Korea and characterized in order to determine its taxonomic position. Comparative analysis of the 16S rRNA gene sequence showed that the isolate belongs to the order Bacillales, showing the highest level of sequence similarity with respect to Tumebacillus permanentifrigoris Eur1 9.5(T) (94.6 %). The phylogenetic distances from other described species with validly published names within the order Bacillales were greater than 9.0 %. Strain Gsoil 1105(T) had a genomic DNA G+C content of 55.6 mol% and menaquinone 7 (MK-7) as the major respiratory quinone. The major fatty acids were iso-C(15 : 0) and anteiso-C(15 : 0). On the basis of its phenotypic properties and phylogenetic distinctiveness, strain Gsoil 1105(T) represents a novel species of the genus Tumebacillus, for which the name Tumebacillus ginsengisoli sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is Gsoil 1105(T) ( = KCTC 13942(T)  = DSM 18389(T)).

Mucilaginibacter daejeonensis sp. nov., isolated from dried rice straw.

A novel strain, designated Jip 10(T), isolated from dried rice straw, was characterized by a polyphasic approach to clarify its taxonomic position. The isolate was Gram-negative, facultatively aerobic, heterotrophic, non-motile, non-spore-forming and rod-shaped. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that the isolate clustered with the genus Mucilaginibacter in the phylum Bacteroidetes. 16S rRNA gene sequence similarities between strain Jip 10(T) and the type strains of Mucilaginibacter gracilis and Mucilaginibacter paludis were 93.7 and 93.6 %, respectively. The G+C content of the genomic DNA was 48.1 mol%. Chemotaxonomic data [major menaquinone MK-7 and major fatty acids iso-C(15 : 0), iso-C(17 : 0) 3-OH and summed feature 3 (iso-C(15 : 0) 2-OH and/or C(16 : 1)omega7c)] supported the affiliation of strain Jip 10(T) to the genus Mucilaginibacter. However, the results of physiological and biochemical tests allowed phenotypic differentiation of strain Jip 10(T) from other Mucilaginibacter species with validly published names. Therefore, strain Jip 10(T) (=KCTC 12639(T) =LMG 23488(T)) was classified in the genus Mucilaginibacter as the type strain of a novel species, for which the name Mucilaginibacter daejeonensis sp. nov. is proposed.