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Two functionalized metal–organic frameworks based on azobenzene and azine groups were synthesized and characterized. The ability of these materials as luminescent probes towards quinones was investigated and compared.

The degradation of ofloxacin (OFL) by ultraviolet (UV) radiation in the presence of iodide was studied as an advanced reduction process (ARP), and followed resulting effluents were biodegraded for further mineralisation in the biological treatment. About 100% degradation of OFL was obtained under the selected condition (OFL: Iodide molar ratio of 2:1 and pH 9.0) after 20 min reaction time. In UV/Iodide ARP, the obtained range for reaction rate constant (kobs) and reaction rate (robs) were from 0.311 to 0.039 min−1, and from 15.55 to 7.94 mg/L.min, respectively. The calculation of the energy consumption (using kinetic model) indicated with increasing OFL concentration from 50 to 200 mg L−1, the amount of energy consumption increases from 0.905 to 7.09 kW per cubic metre of treatment (also it was observed increase from 0.91 to 6.29 kW per cubic metre of treatment using IUPAC model). Intermediate (I) products and possible photodegradation pathways of OFL in the UV/Iodide ARP effluent were analysed after 30 min using GC-MS. Investigations showed after 30 min, most of the intermediates were converted to simple linear compounds such as acrylic acid (I6: C3H4O2), formic acid (I9: CH2O2) and acrylaldehyde (I10: C3H4O), that finally mineralised to CO2, H2O, NH4+ and NH3. Modified Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion test (applied to investigation of bacterial inhibition) was reduced from 33 mm (in initial concentration of OFL without treatment) to 9 mm (after 30 min of reaction). The UV/Iodide effluent reduced the COD by 40.9% after 30 min of reaction. When the biological reactor as post-treatment was operated at a concentration of MLSS 1000 mg L−1, the COD removal efficiency reached to 65.28% (121 to 42 mg L−1) within 11 h. However, by increasing the amount of MLSS to 3000 mg L−1, the COD removal efficiency reached to 84.09% (from 176 to 28 mg L−1) and at the 5000 mg L−1 of MLSS, the COD removal efficiency was 91.52% (from 236 to 20 mg L−1). It can be concluded from this study, although, the UV/Iodide ARP was very effective in breaking down OFL molecules, but it is not cost-effective due to the high time and cost of mineralisation. Therefore, application of the biological reactors as a post-treatment method after UV/Iodide ARP, due to cost-effective, environmentally friendly and the ability to degrade the intermediates produced can be useful.

Exposure of infants to chemicals during their development will have major effects on their health. One of the major exposures of infants to chemicals is through their food. The main structure of infant food is milk, which is high in fat. There is a possibility of accumulation of environmental pollution, including benzo (a) pyrene (BaP). In this systematic review, the amount of BaP in infant milk was surveyed for this purpose. The chosen keywords were: benzo (a) pyrene, BaP, Infant formula, dried milk, powdered milk, and baby food. A total of 46 manuscripts were found in the scientific database. After initial screening and quality assessment, 12 articles were selected for extraction of data. By meta-analysis, the total estimate of BaP in baby food was calculated to be 0.078 ± 0.006 μg/kg. Estimation of daily intake (EDI) and Hazard Quotient (HQ) for noncarcinogenic risk and Margin of exposure (MOE) for carcinogenic risk were also calculated for three age groups 0–6 months, 6–12 months, and 1–3 years. HQ was lower than 1 and MOE was more than 10,000 for three age groups. Therefore, there is no potential carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risk for infant health.

Genomic selection (GS) plays an essential role in livestock genetic improvement programs. In dairy cattle, the method is already a recognized tool to estimate the breeding values of young animals and reduce generation intervals. Due to the different breeding structures of beef cattle, the implementation of GS is still a challenge and has been adopted to a much lesser extent than dairy cattle. This study aimed to evaluate genotyping strategies in terms of prediction accuracy as the first step in the implementation of GS in beef while some restrictions were assumed for the availability of phenotypic and genomic information. For this purpose, a multi-breed population of beef cattle was simulated by imitating the practical system of beef cattle genetic evaluation. Four genotyping scenarios were compared to traditional pedigree-based evaluation. Results showed an improvement in prediction accuracy, albeit a limited number of animals being genotyped (i.e., 3% of total animals in genetic evaluation). The comparison of genotyping scenarios revealed that selective genotyping should be on animals from both ancestral and younger generations. In addition, as genetic evaluation in practice covers traits that are expressed in either sex, it is recommended that genotyping covers animals from both sexes.

In this study, toluene and ethylbenzene were degraded in the photocatalytic-proxone process using BiOI@NH2-MIL125(Ti)/Zeolite nanocomposite. The simultaneous presence of ozone and hydrogen peroxide is known as the proxone process. Nanocomposite Synthesis was carried out using the solvothermal method. Inlet airflow, ozone concentrations, H2O2 concentrations, relative humidity, and initial pollutants concentrations were studied. The nanocomposite was successfully synthesized based on FT-IR, BET, XRD, FESEM, EDS element mapping, UV–Vis spectra and TEM analysis. A flow rate of 0.1 L min−1, 0.3 mg min−1 of ozone, 150 ppm of hydrogen peroxide, 45% relative humidity, and 50 ppmv of pollutants were found to be optimal operating conditions. Both pollutants were degraded in excess of 95% under these conditions. For toluene and ethylbenzene, the synergistic of mechanisms effect coefficients were 1.56 and 1.76, respectively. It remained above 95% efficiency 7 times in the hybrid process and had good stability. Photocatalytic-proxone processes were evaluated for stability over 180 min. The remaining ozone levels in the process was insignificant (0.01 mg min−1). The CO2 and CO production in the photocatalytic-proxone process were 58.4, 5.7 ppm for toluene and 53.7, and 5.5 ppm for ethylbenzene respectively. Oxygen gas promoted and nitrogen gas had an inhibitory effect on the effective removal of pollutants. During the pollutants oxidation, various organic intermediates were identified.

Activated effector T cells induce pro-inflammatory responses in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) which then lead to inflammation of the joints. In this report, we demonstrate that polymeric nanoparticles with alpha keto-glutarate (aKG) in their polymer backbone (termed as paKG NPs) modulate T cell responses

Using DFT calculations, the potential of B-doped C60 fullerene is evaluated for electrochemical reduction of nitrogen monoxide. The B-doped C60 exhibits exceptional catalytic activity and high selectivity for reduction of nitrogen monoxide.

For the first time, highly conductive thickly layered two-dimensional titanium carbide (MXene) was applied as a new coating agent for electromembrane-surrounded solid-phase microextraction (SPME) of triadimenol and iprodione as two model analytes. Preparation of the desired coated electrode was carried out using electrophoretic deposition of MXene on the surface of platinum electrode. Characterization of the prepared coated electrode was conducted using scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The coated electrode was located inside a hollow fiber membrane impregnated by 2-nitrophenyl octyl ether as the supported liquid membrane (SLM), while an aqueous solution was injected inside the hollow fiber lumen. Separation and quantification of the analytes were carried out using a gas chromatography instrument equipped with mass spectrometric detection. The effective parameters of the microextraction procedure comprising pHs of sample solution and the acceptor phase, composition of the SLM, extraction time, and the applied voltage were optimized using one-variable at-a-time method. Under the optimal conditions, the calibration curves of the analytes were linear (R 2 > 0.9973) in the range of 0.3–250.0 and 0.5–250.0 ng mL−1 for triadimenol and iprodione, respectively. The limit of detections was determined to be 0.10 and 0.15 ng mL−1 for triadimenol and iprodione, respectively. Repeatability and reproducibility of the method were evaluated by the calculation of intra-day and inter-day relative standard deviations (%). The applicability of the method was evaluated by quantitative analysis of the model analytes in environmental water samples. Relative recoveries in the range of 87.31–102.7% confirmed that the prepared coated electrode can be considered a reliable option in electromembrane-surrounded SPME techniques.

Contamination of water with bacteria is one of the main causes of waterborne diseases. The photocatalytic method on the basis of bacterial inactivation seems to be a suitable disinfectant due to the lack of by-products formation. Herein, g-C3N4/Fe3O4/Ag nanocomposite combined with UV-light irradiation was applied for the inactivation two well-known bacteria namely, E. coli and B. subtilis. The nanocomposite was prepared by a hydrothermal method, and subsequently it was characterized by XRD, FT-IR, SEM, EDX and PL analyses. The optimum conditions established for the inactivation of both bacteria were as follows: nanocomposite dosage 3 g/L and bacterial density of 103 CFU/mL. In the meantime, the efficient inactivation of E. coli and B. subtilis took 30 and 150 min, respectively. The results also revealed that inactivation rate dropped with an increase in the bacterial density. It is also pointed out that OH˚ was found out to be the main radical species involved in the inactivation process. Finally, the kinetic results indicated that the inactivation of E. coli and B. subtilis followed the Weibull model. It is concluded that C3N4/Fe3O4/Ag nanocomposite along with UV-light irradiation is highly effective in inactivating E. coli and B. subtilis bacteria in the aqueous solutions.

Herein, the efficient degradation of a highly consumed antibiotic known as metronidazole (MNZ) in aqueous solutions using Co/g-C3N4/Fe3O4 nanocomposite under visible light irradiation was accomplished. Initially, the photocatalyst (Co/g-C3N4/Fe3O4) was synthesized by a simple hydrothermal method and then characterized by several analytical techniques, namely EDS, SEM, XRD, UV–vis DRS, and FTIR. The efficiency of the synthesized photocatalyst with regard to the degradation of the studied antibiotic (MNZ) under visible light irradiation was fully evaluated. The influential operational parameters affecting the efficiency of the degradation process such as pH (2–10), nanocomposite dosage (0.2–1 g/L), MNZ concentration (5–20 mg/L), and irradiation time (0–80 min) were optimized. The results revealed that the maximum degradation efficiency for MNZ was obtained under the following conditions: irradiation time of 60 min, pH = 8, MNZ concentration of 5 mg/L, and photocatalyst dosage of 0.7 g/L. In addition, the degradation of MNZ followed the pseudo-first-order kinetic model. The best rate constant (k) value was determined to be 0.0102 min−1 with the correlation coefficient (R2) of 0.992. According to the results of the quenching tests, it was found out that hydroxyl radicals (OH°) were the main species responsible for the MNZ degradation. Furthermore, the applied photocatalyst (Co/g-C3N4/Fe3O4) exhibited a high level of recovery and stability after five cycles of reuse. Co/g-C3N4/Fe3O4/Vis system exhibited an excellent performance in the treatment of wastewater and real water samples. Finally, it was concluded that the synthesized nanocomposite could be potentially used as a promising and suitable photocatalyst in the degradation of other antibiotics.

This study investigated the recycling of freshly-smoked cigarette butts (FCBs) and unsmoked cigarette filters (UCFs) into a cellulose acetate (CA) membrane. The both samples were prepared by means of a combination of seven cigarette brands, and the phase inversion method was used to recycle each sample into a membrane using N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone. The efficiency of the prepared membranes for the removal of chromium, cadmium, and lead from an aqueous solution in a forward osmosis reactor was investigated. The results showed that the both membranes had a smooth surface and macrovoids. The flux of the prepared membranes from the UCFs and FCBs recycling were 14.8 and 13.2 LMH, respectively. The porosity and reverse salt of the UCFs membrane were 61% and 3.5 gMH, while those for FCBs membrane were 58% and 3.9 gMH. The observed metal removal efficiency of the both membranes was in the range of 85 to 90%. However, increasing the concentration of metals up to five times caused a slight decrease in the removal efficiency (less than 5%).

First-principles calculations based on density functional theory were utilized to evaluate whether an iron atom decorated B

Littered waste is one of the ubiquitous problems in urban environments. In this study, urban environmental pollution was evaluated for the first time using a new developed index. The findings indicated that cigarette butts with an average 58% are the largest share in the composition of littered waste. In addition, the numbers of littered wastes throughout the study area had a spatial variation. According to clean environment index (CEI), the entire study area was found to be in a moderate status. However, 40% of the study areas were classified in a dirty and extremely dirty status. Comparison of the studied urban land-uses showed that residential land use with CEI equal to 3.38 is interpreted in the clean status, while commercial land use with CEI equal to 15.05 can be classified in the dirty status. The application of CEI has a good capability to assess littered waste; this index can be employed to evaluate the pollution of urban sidewalks and other environments such as beaches.

Here, a combined pretreatment oxidation process (O

Introduction: Nitrophenol compounds are toxic compounds found in industrial wastewaters. 2,4-dinitrophenol is the most dangerous compound among phenolic compounds. The aim of this study was to evaluate the removal of 2,4-DNP from wastewater by microwaved dried sludge adsorbent. Materials and Methods: The results of 2,4-DNP removal were discontinuously obtained by the high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) at a wavelength of 360 nm with various effective factors, such as contact time, pH, initial concentration of 2,4-DNP, and microwaved sludge dose. Finally, the results were analyzed using the kinetics and isotherm models. The equilibrium time was obtained 120 min. The maximum removal rate was obtained at pH 7. Results: The findings indicated that the removal efficiency increased by increasing the adsorbent dose and decreasing the 2,4-DNP concentration. It was revealed that the removal of 2,4-DNP by microwaved sludge was 86%. The correlation coefficient value of linear and non-linear regression showed that kinetic studies follow the pseudo-second order model and isotherm studies follow the Freundlich isotherm model. The adsorption method relied entirely on pH and affected the adsorbent area attributes, ionization rate, and Delete percentage. When the pH was high, there was competition for the adsorption sites between hydroxide ions (OH) and 2,4-DNP molecules. At first, the adsorption process was high speed and gradually reached a stable level, because after a while, the adsorption sites become saturated. Conclusion: As the absorbent dose increases, the efficiency of the adsorption process increases, because larger amounts of adsorbent cause higher adsorption places.

It is generally recognized that developing effective methods for selective oxidation of hydrocarbons to generate more useful chemicals is a major challenge for the chemical industry. In the present study, density functional theory calculations are conducted to examine the catalytic partial oxidation of methane (CH

A new porous metal-organic framework, [Co (oba) (bpdh)]center dot(DMF) (TMU-63), containing accessible nitrogen-rich diazahexadiene groups was successfully prepared with the solvothermal assembly of 5-bis(4-pyridyl)-3,4-diaza-2,4-hexadiene (4-bpdh), 4,4'-oxybis(benzoic) acid (oba), and Co(II) ions. The combination of Lewis basic functional groups and porosity leads to high performance in CO2 adsorption and conversion in the cycloaddition reaction of epoxides under solvent-free conditions. To further enhance the catalytic efficiency of TMU-63, we introduced a highly acidic malonamide ligand into the structure via solvent-assisted ligand exchange (SALE) as a postsynthesis method. Incorporating different percentages of N-1,N-3-di(pyridine-4-yl) malonamide linker (4-dpm) into TMU-63 created a new porous structure. Powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD) and NMR spectroscopy confirmed that 4-bpdh was successfully replaced with 4-dpm in the daughter MOF, TMU-63S. The catalytic activity of both MOFs was confirmed by significant amounts of CO2 cycloaddition of epoxides under solvent-free conditions. The catalytic cycloaddition activities were found to be well-correlated with the Lewis base/Bronsted acid distributions of the materials examined in the TMU-63S series, showing that the concurrent presence of both acid and base sites was desirable for high catalytic activity. Furthermore, the heterogeneous catalysts could easily be separated out from the reaction mixtures and reused four times without loss of catalytic activity and with no structural deterioration.

In this photocatalytic study, removal of bisphenol-A from aqueous solution was studied using the GF/Fe-TiO2-CQD composite. Due to its health and environmental effects, this compound should be disposed of sources that are mainly industrial wastewater. The phis-chemical properties of the composite were determined by traditional analyzes of EF-SEM, EDX, BET, XRD, FTIR and DRS. In this study, different ratios of CQD in the composite (1.5, 4.5 and 7.5 wt%), pH, and bisphenol-A concentration as variable parameters were investigated. All analyzes, EF-SEM, EDX, BET, XRD, FTIR, show that the GF/Fe-TiO2-CQD composite is well coated on glass fibers (GF) and all the elements in the catalyst are present. On the other hand, DRS analysis showed that CQD reduces the band gap of Fe-TiO2 from 2.96 eV to 2.91 eV, it was 3.10 eV for TiO2. Among different catalysts, GF/Fe-TiO2-CQD4.5wt% has the best performance. The results showed that for GF/Fe-TiO2-CQD4.5wt%, optimum for the process was at pH = 6 in low concentration of bisphenol-A. The first order model for the photocatalytic degradation process were well studied. In addition, GF/Fe-TiO2-CQD4.5wt% showed that it can be used many times with a minimal reduction in performance. As a result, the GF/Fe-TiO2-CQD4.5wt% composite can successfully remove bisphenol-A form in synthetic aqueous solution. However, it is necessary to further studies to applied that for real water source in water and wastewater treatment plants.

Background There has been a sharp rise in the rate of consumption of edible mushrooms all over the world. Although mushrooms are regarded as valuable healthy foodstuff, they can be a source of possibly toxic heavy metals which could adversely affect health. Scope and approach A systematic review and meta-analysis search on the concentration of toxic heavy metals in edible mushrooms was conducted within the period from Jan 1, 1970 to Jun 21, 2020. To finding the relevant articles, we used the scientific databases including PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus. Furthermore, the associated human health risk was assessed by calculating the target hazard quotient (THQ) aided by the Monte Carlo (MCS) model. Key findings and conclusions Of 59 retained articles subjected to the systematic review and meta-analysis, the toxic heavy metals concentrations in the edible mushrooms were ranked in the following order: Fe (204.5716 mg/kg) > Zn (154.6076 mg/kg) > Cu (32.1996 mg/kg) > Mn (25.4007 mg/kg) > Ni (10.4375 mg/kg) > Cr (4.934 mg/kg) > Pb (2.4844 mg/kg) > Cd (1.3925 mg/kg). Furthermore, the concentrations of heavy metals in some parts of edible mushrooms including Cap and Stipe were assessed and the findings revealed that Pb, Cu, Fe, Cd, Cr and Zn are readily accumulated within the Caps in larger amounts, whilst Mn and Ni tend to build up more in the Stipes. Finally, due to the ingestion of heavy metals, the edible mushrooms consumers such as adults and children in some countries could be subjected to significant non-carcinogenic risks.

The contamination of water by organic pollutant viz. 2,4 DNP compound is recognized as most common environmental concern due to their highly toxic nature, worldwide. Adsorption has attracted much attention as a new technique to remove these contaminants from water and wastewater. The purpose of this study was to introduce an inexpensive adsorbent, dried waste sludge, for removal of 2,4 DNP compound. Material & Methods: At first, sludge was dried at temperature 60 °C. Next, CaCl2 was used to improve adsorption capacity. The removal efficiency of 2,4 dinitrophenol were determined by HPLC at wavelength of 360 nm. In addition, the effects of influencing factors including pH, initial pollutant concentration, contact time, and adsorbent dose were examined. The equilibrium binding were described by Langmuir or Freundlich isotherms and kinetic models. Results: The results obtained from adsorption process indicated that was 60 min is the equilibrium time. The optimum pH for adsorption for both adsorbents was found to be 7. The optimum concentration of 2,4-DNP was found to be 10 ppm. The results obtained from the present research showed that the removal of the contaminant using modified sludge sorbent was increased from 40.4% to 77.9% when dosage increased from 0.1 to 1.5 g. Equilibrium adsorption data for 2,4 DNP were fitted by using Langmuir, Freundlich and Freundlich adsorption isotherms model, respectively. Also it has been found that adsorption kinetics can be described according to the Pseudo-second order model. Conclusion: According to results, chemically modified waste sludge showed reasonable adsorption capacity. Therefore, it and can be used as a native alternative to 2,4 DNP compound removal from aqueous environments.

Nitrogen-doped graphene has sparked a lot of interest due to its exceptional catalytic activity in a variety of chemical processes. We examine the catalytic ability of a series of nitrogen-containing graphene surfaces for CO oxidation using first-principles computations. The activation of the O2 molecule in these systems is affected by the number and distribution of nitrogen impurities. According to the results, O2 may be readily decomposed to O* species adsorbed on the nearest carbon atoms in the most active nitrogen-doped structures. The oxidation of a second CO is the rate-limiting step of the process due to the strong binding of the remaining O* moiety on the surface. Based on our findings, N-doped graphene can provide excellent metal-free catalytic performance for CO oxidation.

H2 storage and capture are critical components in the development of clean and sustainable hydrogen energy. The current work investigates the H2 adsorption properties and storage on the Al-decorated porphyrin-like small porous C24N24 cluster using density functional theory calculations. Each Al site in the Al6C24N24 cluster can adsorb up to five H2 molecules, with an average adsorption energy of −0.30 eV. The impact of temperature and pressure on the hydrogen storage capacity of Al-decorated C24N24 clusters is also studied. A Kubas type mechanism and electrostatic interactions are found to be essential in the adsorption of H2 molecules on the Al-decorated C24N24. According to our findings, Al6C24N24 has a gravimetric density of 7.1 wt% H2. These findings demonstrate that the Al-decorated C24N24 may be a potential candidate for reversible H2 storage under normal conditions.

The search for novel materials for effective storage and separation of CO2 molecules is a critical issue for eliminating or lowering this harmful greenhouse gas. In this paper, we investigate the potential application of a porphyrin-like porous fullerene (C24N24) as a promising material for CO2 storage and separation using thorough density functional theory calculations. The results show that CO2 is physisorbed on bare C24N24, implying that this material cannot be used for efficient CO2 storage. Coating C24N24 with Ca atoms, on the other hand, can greatly improve the adsorption strength of CO2 molecules due to polarization and charge-transfer effects. Furthermore, the average adsorption energy for each of the maximum 24 absorbed CO2 molecules on the fully decorated Ca6C24N24 fullerene is −0.40 eV, which fulfills the requirement needed for efficient CO2 storage (−0.40 to −0.80 eV). The Ca coated C24N24 fullerene also have a strong potential for CO2 separation from CO2/H2, CO2/CH4, and CO2/N2 mixtures.

The potential of Al- and Ga-doped graphene (Al–Gr/Ga–Gr) to activate the C–H bond of CH4 by N2O to generate methanol is explored using density functional theory calculations. Both surfaces have a higher affinity for capturing N2O than CH4. The oxidation of CH4 starts with the decomposition of N2O into N2 and Oads species, followed by a hydrogen transfer from CH4 to Oads, resulting in CH3 and HOads species. Our results demonstrate that CH3 combining with HOads to yield CH3OH needs only 0.18 eV on Al–Gr, which is 0.11 eV lower than on Ga–Gr. On the other hand, the competing CO oxidation reaction (CO + Oads → CO2) is inhibited over the Ga–Gr because of its greater activation barrier than the CH4 oxidation process. These findings may provide valuable information for fine-tuning the catalytic activity of graphene-based materials in low-temperature partial oxidation of CH4.

Vocabulary knowledge has a significant role in communication. Therefore, a plethora of research has investigated the effect of various factors on the acquisition of L2 vocabulary. This empirical study aimed to examine the predictions of Laufer and Hulstijn’s (2001) involvement load hypothesis (ILH) by considering the impact of task type and involvement index on Iranian EFL learners’ incidental vocabulary learning. The ILH predicts that tasks with the same involvement load should lead to equal vocabulary gains. To this end, forty-five upper-intermediate learners were given one of four different tasks with the same involvement index (i.e., reading comprehension plus dictionary use, cloze-exercise plus dictionary use, inferencing, and sentence writing plus meanings of target words in L1 + L2). Participants’ receptive and productive knowledge of target words were tested immediately after fulfilling the tasks and three weeks later. Mixed-plot ANOVAs were run to compare the performance of the participants on the tasks. The results revealed that, contrary to the theory’s predictions, the performance of the learners on the four tasks was significantly different although the tasks had the same involvement indices. The results suggest that depth of processing and involvement are important factors in vocabulary learning. However, it also seems that the relative importance of the components of involvement might require reconsideration.

The geometries, electronic structures, and catalytic properties of BN-codoped fullerenes C59−nBNn (n = 1–3) are studied using first-principles computations. The results showed that BN-codoping can significantly modify the properties of C60 fullerene by breaking local charge neutrality and creating active sites. The codoping of B and N enhances the formation energy of fullerenes, indicating that the synergistic effects of these atoms helps to stabilize the C59−nBNn structures. The stepwise addition of N atoms around the B atom improves catalytic activities of C59−nBNn in N2O reduction. The reduction of N2O over C58BN and C57BN2 begins with its chemisorption on the B–C bond of the fullerene, followed by the concerted interaction of CO with N2O and the release of N2. The resulting OCO intermediate is subsequently transformed into a CO2 molecule, which is weakly adsorbed on the B atom of the fullerene. On the contrary, nitrogen-rich C56BN3 fullerene is found to decompose N2O into N2 and O* species without the requirement for activation energy. The CO molecule then removes the O* species with a low activation barrier. The activation barrier of the N2O reduction on C56BN3 fullerene is just 0.28 eV, which is lower than that of noble metals.

Although different metabolic pathways have been associated with distinct macrophage phenotypes, the field of utilizing metabolites to modulate macrophage phenotype is in a nascent stage. In this report, we developed microparticles based on polymerization of alpha-ketoglutarate (a Krebs cycle metabolite), with or without encapsulation of spermine (a polyamine metabolite), to modulate cell phenotype that are critical for resolution of inflammation. Poly (alpha-ketoglutarate) microparticles encapsulated and released spermine (spermine (encap)paKG MPs) in vitro, which was accelerated in an acidic environment. When delivered to bone marrow-derived-macrophages, spermine (encap)paKG MPs induced a complex phenotypic profile outside of the typical M1/M2 paradigm, with distinct effects in the presence or absence of the pro-inflammatory stimulus lipopolysaccharide. Of particular interest was the increase in expression of CD163, which has been linked to anti-inflammatory responses in sepsis. Therefore, we systemically administered spermine (encap)paKG MPs to two different murine models of sepsis using acute or chronic injection of LPS. Macrophages and neutrophils in the liver and spleen of animals treated with spermine (encap)paKG MPs increased expression of CD163, concomitant with normalizing of glycolysis and oxidative phosphorylation, in both models. Overall, these results show that spermine (encap)paKG MPs modulate macrophage phenotype in vitro and in vivo, with potential applications in inflammation-associated diseases.

Air is the most critical and necessary for life, and air quality significantly impacts people's health. Both indoor and outdoor pollution frequently contain volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Such contaminants provide immediate or long-term health risks to the living system. The present study investigates sorption characteristics of VOCs on hollow nano calcite (CaCO

2,4-dinitrophenol (DNP) is found in small amounts in the effluent of many wastewater treatment plants. The contamination of drinking water with this pollutant, even in trace amounts, causes toxicity, health problems, and unfavorable taste and odor. This study aims to compare the efficiency of non-modified and modified dried sludge adsorbents in removing 2,4 DNP from aqueous solutions. The results of 2,4DNP removal by high-performance liquid chromatography method at the wavelength of 360 nm in a batch mode were obtained by changing the influential factors including contact time, pH, initial concentration of the contaminant, and adsorbent dosage. Eventually, the results were analyzed by kinetic and isotherm models. In this research, the optimal time was obtained as 60 min and pH as seven for all three adsorbents. The results showed that the removal percentage increases by rising adsorbent dosage and reducing contaminant concentration. The correlation coefficient value of linear and non-linear led that in kinetic studies, it follows the pseudo-second order model. In contrast, in isotherm studies, examining linear and non-linear models of isotherms showed that the data for every three types of adsorbents follow the Freundlich model well. The adsorption process is highly dependent on pH and affects the adsorbent surface properties, ionization degree, and removal percentage. At high pH, hydroxide ions (OH) compete with 2,4 DNP molecules for the adsorption sites. The adsorption occurs quickly and gradually reaches a constant value because, over time, the adsorption sites are occupied until reaching a saturated limit. By increasing the adsorbent dosage, the adsorption percentage increased significantly, which is due to the fact that higher amounts of adsorbent cause more adsorption sites.

Exposure to mercury is an important risk to dentists health. The aim of the present study was to assess the pooled mean mercury level (MML) in the urine, blood, nail, and hair of Iranian dentists (IDs) through the meta-analysis technique. Comprehensive and systematic searches were performed in main local databases including SID, Magiran, Iran medex, and ISC as well as internationally available databases including Embase, PubMed and Scopus for all the relevant studies up to 2018. In order to prevent bias in this study and identify eligible studies, various steps of the study was performed independently by two researchers. Out of 13 studies in the meta-analysis process which included 1499 IDs, the mean of the mercury level in the urine, nail, and blood was estimated to be 6.29 (95% CI: 2.61-9.97, I-square: 62.7%, P: 0.006), 3.54 (95% CI: 2.81-4.28, I-square: 0.0%, P: 0.968), 11.20 (95% CI: 2.28-20.13, I-square: 59.9%, P: 0.082), respectively. The mean mercury level (MML) in the biological samples of IDs was higher than the standard of World Health Organization (WHO). So, in accordance with Article 10 of the European Union Regulations (EUR), in the context of the Minamata Convention (MC) on Dental Amalgam (DA), in order to avoid the dangers of mercury exposure in dentists, it is necessary for Iran and other countries to approve laws and to implement a national plan to reduce mercury levels and replace the appropriate materials.

Two nano amide-functionalized metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) with molecular formula [Co(oba) (bpta)]·(DMF)2 TMU-50 and [Co2(oba)2 (bpfn)]·(DMF)2.5 TMU-51 obtained under ultrasonic method without any surfactants. The only difference between the two selected amide functionalized pillar ligands, N,N′-bis(4-pyridinyl)-terephthalamide (bpta), and N,N′-bis-(4-pyridylformamide)-1,5-naphthalenediamine (bpfn), is related to the naphthyl group, which led to the different luminescence properties of the nano frameworks. In this study, the special ability of the luminescent nano MOFs were investigated to sensitize nitroaromatic compounds. Due to its unique and porous framework, Nano TMU-50 shows a good sensitivity towards nitro phenol by strong fluorescence emission with a detection limit of 2 × 10–3 mM−1. Both nano MOF structures were characterized via many analyses such as powder X-ray diffraction, Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FE-SEM), elemental analysis, and FTIR spectroscopy. Moreover, the effect of a number of important parameters including initial reagent concentrations, power of ultrasound, time on morphology, and size of nano structures were examined. According to the fluorescence titration results, the activated nano-TMU-50 detected NP selectively with a quick response.

Herein, the removal of Hg

This work aimed at developing novel adsorbents to remove arsenic ions in an aqueous solution. To this end, the use of polymeric materials and functionalized nitrogen-doped carbon nanotubes (N-CNT) was considered to adsorb arsenic ions from aqueous solutions. In this regard, the effects of experimental parameters including pH, contact time, initial concentration of metal, and the adsorption temperature were studied. According to experiments, the optimum solution pH for arsenic adsorption at 20 °C was 7. As the contact time increased, the adsorption rate increased and reached equilibrium after 10 minutes. The arsenic adsorption capacity of Polyether Sulfone/N-CNT nanocomposites increased with increasing temperature. The highest adsorption capacity was achieved at 49 °C. The equilibrium data obtained in the initial concentration range of Arsenic and the studied temperature was consistent with the Freundlich isotherm. The adsorption kinetics revealed that the arsenic adsorption followed the Pseudo-First order and Weber Morris equation. The thermodynamic parameters (ΔH, ΔG, and ΔS) indicated that the arsenic adsorption in the temperature range of 332-296 K was spontaneous and endothermic. The adsorption properties of the modified N-doped carbon nanotubes towards arsenic ions were also studied by density functional theory (DFT) calculations.