Zero Liquid Discharge of Ultrahigh-Salinity Brines with Temperature Swing Solvent Extraction.

Zero liquid discharge (ZLD) of hypersaline brines is technically and energetically challenging. This study demonstrates ZLD of ultrahigh-salinity brines using temperature swing solvent extraction (TSSE), a membrane-less and nonevaporative desalination technology. TSSE utilizes a low-polarity solvent to extract water from brine and then releases the water as a product with the application of low-temperature heat. Complete extraction of water from a hypersaline feed, simulated by 5.0 M NaCl solution (≈292 g/L TDS), was achieved using diisopropylamine solvent. Practically all of the salt is precipitated as mineral solid waste and the product water contains <5% of NaCl relative to the hypersaline feed brine. Consistent ZLD performance of high salt removals and product water quality was maintained in three repeated semibatch TSSE cycles, highlighting recyclability of the solvent. The practical applicability of the technique for actual field samples was demonstrated by ZLD of an irrigation drainage water concentrate. This study establishes the potential of TSSE as a more sustainable alternative to current thermal evaporation methods for zero liquid discharge of ultrahigh-salinity brines.

Electrohydrodynamic manipulation of particles adsorbed on the surface of a drop.

In our previous studies we have shown that particles adsorbed on the surface of a drop can be concentrated at its poles or equator by applying a uniform electric field. This happens because even when the applied electric field is uniform the electric field on the surface of the drop is nonuniform, and so particles adsorbed on the surface are subjected to dielectrophoretic (DEP) forces. In this paper, we study the behavior of adsorbed particles at low electric field frequencies when the drop and ambient liquids are weakly conducting dielectric liquids, and model it using a leaky dielectric model. The electrohydrodynamic (EHD) flow which arises because of the accumulation of charge on the surface of the drop can be from pole-to-equator or equator-to-pole depending on the properties of the drop and ambient liquids. The flow however diminishes with increasing frequency and there is a critical frequency at which the drag force on a particle due to the EHD flow becomes equal to the DEP force, and above this critical frequency the DEP force dominates. When the fluid and particles properties are such that the EHD and DEP forces are in the opposite directions, particles can be collected at the poles or the equator, and also can be moved from the poles to the equator, or vice versa, by varying the frequency. Also, it is possible to separate the particles of a binary mixture when the critical frequencies of the two types of particles are different.

Lipoma in the Oral Cavity: A Rare Entity.

Lipoma is a painless soft tissue tumor of mesenchymal origin, which is a well-defined and slow-growing tissue. The occurrence of lipoma is rare in the oral cavity (1-4%); however, the frequency is much higher in the head and neck region. The lipoma is commonly present in the buccal mucosa, lips, tongue, palate, buccal sulcus, and floor of the mouth. Sometimes, the lipoma becomes large enough to cause difficulty in speech and mastication. The main treatment for lipoma is surgical excision.

Periosteal pedicle graft: A novel root coverage approach.

Gingival recession along with reduced width of attached gingiva and inadequate vestibular depth is a very common finding. Many techniques have been adopted in order to treat such defects and obtain predictable root coverage. Several graft procedures are used to obtain the coverage, but they have not been able to deliver predictable and satisfactory results (except connective tissue graft). Some of them also resulted in the secondary surgical site that was very uncomfortable for the patients. There was an intense need for a technique that provides not only good and predictable root coverage, but also reduces the need for secondary surgical site. Hence, this paper describes a single stage technique for increasing the width of attached gingiva and root coverage by using the periosteal pedicle graft.

Clinical and radiographic evaluation of Emdogain as a regenerative material in the treatment of interproximal vertical defects in chronic and aggressive periodontitis patients.

This study evaluated the efficacy of Emdogain enamel matrix proteins as a regenerative material in interproximal vertical defects both clinically and radiographically. Patients aged 18 to 45 years and diagnosed with chronic or aggressive periodontitis were included. Sixteen intrabony defects in eight patients were surgically treated using a split-mouth design. Emdogain placement was done at experimental sites. Since both chronic and aggressive periodontitis patients were included, an attempt was made to interpret results between the two types of cases. Postsurgical measurements at 9 months revealed no significant difference in mean pocket depth reduction, clinical attachment level gain, amount of defect fill, or defect resolution between control and experimental groups. Mean pocket depth reduction and amount of defect fill were significant in both groups. The results were interpreted separately for chronic and aggressive periodontitis cases. This study demonstrated no added advantage of using Emdogain compared to surgical debridement alone. Further long-term and large-sample-size evaluation is required to prove Emdogain's consistent efficacy.

Labial-cervical-vertical groove: A silent killer-Treatment of an intrabony defect due to it with platelet rich fibrin.

A 47-year-old male patient reported to the Department of Periodontology, with a chief complaint of pus discharge from maxillary left central incisors with dull intermittent pain. On clinical examination, a localized gingival inflammation was present with soft edematous tissue with the accumulation of plaque and calculus with #11 and #21. Periodontal examination depicts a periodontal pocket depth of 11 mm on mesial aspect and 8 mm on midbuccal aspect of #21 with no mobility. On radiographic examination, a tear-shaped radiolucency was present with localized bone loss in #21. On careful examination, labial-cervical-vertical groove (LCVG) was found on #21 which was extending into gingival sulcus. This article reports the effectiveness of platelet rich fibrin for the treatment of intrabony defect associated with labial-cervical-vertical groove of #21.

Treatability study of pesticide-based industrial wastewater.

This paper finds out appropriate treatment methods for wastewater of an Organophosphorus viz, chloropyrifos pesticide manufacturing industry. The characterization of wastewater generated during trial production of chloropyrifos was carried out. Based on the characterization of wastewater, various treatability studies were conducted. The most desirable results were obtained with treatment scheme employing acidification, chlorination with NaOCl, suspended growth biological treatment, chemical precipitation for phosphorous removal and activated carbon treatment. Acidification of wastewater helps in by-product recovery as well as reduction in COD upto 36.26%. Chlorination followed by biological treatment was found to be effective to reduce the COD level by 62.06%. To comply with permissible limits prescribed by Effluent Channel Project Ltd.(ECPL)* and Gujarat Pollution Control Board (GPCB) for discharge of industrial effluent into channel, further treatment in the form of chemical precipitation (for phosphorous removal) and granular activated carbon is suggested.