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Photocatalytic oxidation (PCO) could provide energy-efficient purification of water and air. Its efficacy is constrained mainly by limited photocatalytic activity and active surface. To address both, solid foams with hierarchic porous structures spanning multiple length-scales, stabilized by photocatalytic Zn-doped titania nanoparticles (NP) were synthesized and tested. The NP were characterized by SEM, EDS, DLS, XRD, Raman and UV–Vis spectroscopies. Solid foams were stabilized by NP complexes with cationic surfactants. The foam morphology was characterized and photocatalytic activity was demonstrated in water. The present work paves the way for the development of efficient systems for air and water purification in demanding technological sectors, such as aerospace.

The action of propeller-induced jets on the seabed of ports can cause erosion and the deposition of sediment around the port basin, potentially significantly impacting the bottom topography over the medium and long term. If such dynamics are constantly repeated for long periods, a drastic reduction in ships' clearance can result through accretion, or the stability and duration of structures can be threatened through erosion. These sediment-related processes present port management authorities with problems, both in terms of navigational safety and the optimization of management and maintenance activities of the port's bottom and infrastructure. In this study, which is based on integrated numerical modeling, we examine the hydrodynamics and the related bottom sediment erosion and accumulation patterns induced by the action of vessel propellers in the passenger port of Genoa, Italy. The proposed new methodology offers a state-of-the-art science-based tool that can be used to optimize and efficiently plan port management and seabed maintenance.

Here, Fahlberg et al. describe the cellular immune response during acute, resolving or progressive COVID-19 in SARS-CoV-2 infected non-human primates. The study identifies associations of monocytes and macrophage subtypes in lungs with disease outcome, IL-6 and IL-10 ratio in plasma, and viral replication in bronchial brushes.

Soil washing is a remediation technology commonly used to treat soil contaminated by total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPHs) (Seyed Razavi et al., 2012). Nowadays in Italy there are about ten plants, mainly placed in the north of the country. After treatment, coarse materials (i.e. gravel and sand) are cleaned and can be reused, e.g. as aggregate for concrete production; contaminants are concentrated in the filter-pressed sludge containing fine grains (i.e silt and clay), which is usually landfilled. This paper analyses different alternatives for sludge reuse at an industrial scale in Italy; the main normative and technical constraints are presented and discussed. In addition, the preliminary results of a lab-scale experimentation aimed at investigating the treatability of soil washing residues by wet oxidation are presented. The reuse and valorisation of soil washing originated sludge is desirable not only from the economic point of view but also because Italian and European legislation put waste recycling as a priority. Several tens of thousands of tons of sludge are produced and landfilled in Italy every year; they represent materials which could be exploited at industrial scale in place of virgin silt and clay to produce stabilised soil for road construction or bricks in brick works. Sludge reuse for cement production is possible, too, but it is probably more expensive. The use of raw sludge produced in soil washing plants implies a potential risk of environmental contamination therefore the basic condition for sludge recovery and reuse is its decontamination, which can be theoretically obtained by thermal desorption, solvent extraction or chemical oxidation. Wet oxidation tests executed by the authors indicate that such a process is potentially applicable. 98 % removal efficiency of TPHs was obtained in a lab-scale reactor setting temperature, treatment time and initial oxygen pressure to 250 °C, 30 min and 20 atm, respectively. Further tests will be carried out in order to identify the most favourable and cheapest treatment conditions.