Search

In this work, novel microbial yeast-decorated zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8/yeast) composites were successfully synthesized by an in situ growth method and applied in the efficient elimination of Eu(III) from a water medium. The adsorption performances and interaction mechanisms of Eu(III) by ZIF-8/yeast were determined by macroscopic experimental tests under diverse water chemistry conditions. The experimental results indicated that the adsorption performance of Eu(III) on ZIF-8/yeast hybrids could reach equilibrium within 15 min, which conformed to the pseudo-second-order kinetic pattern. The maximum adsorption capacity was 1.09 × 10−3 mol g−1, which was higher than that of a series of adsorbents reported in previousliterature. The interaction mechanism between ZIF-8/yeast composites and Eu(III) was primarily revealed by electrostatic attraction, cation exchange and surface complexation. According to the research, the ZIF-8/yeast is considered a preferable adsorbent for the highly efficient purification and elimination of trivalent lanthanides from radioactive wastewater. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To improve the accuracy of an industrial 6-DOF robot, this paper proposes a new calibration method based on a line structured light measurement system. The line structured light measurement system mounted on the end-effector is used as a tool to acquire the three-dimensional coordinate information of the centre of a standard sphere. Hand-eye calibration is used to establish the transformation between the robot and the measurement system. A combined kinematic model that includes both the kinematic parameters of the robot and the initial hand-eye relationship is established by applying the modified Denavit and Hartenberg (MDH) model. An error model is derived based on the principle that the coordinate of the sphere centre is invariant in the base frame of the robot. Consequently, the errors in the kinematic parameters of the robot and the hand-eye relationship can be identified by substituting the measurement results and the original parameters of the robot into the error model. The results of the simulations and experiments show that the accuracy of the robot is significantly improved by implementing the proposed calibration method. The proposed method is effective, simple, time-saving and low-cost and is therefore a suitable candidate for on-site calibration of industrial robots. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Comprehension the extent and rate of U(VI) adsorption on some mineral surfaces are significant to predict their migration and transformation properties in the environmental systems. Herein, iron oxides particles supported reduced graphene oxide composites (MRGO) were successfully synthesized by in-situ chemical precipitation approach. The MRGO composites which illustrated high saturation magnetization could be likely separated using an external magnet. The experimental data illustrated that U(VI) ions could be interacted with MRGO composites through different interaction mechanisms depending on different environmental conditions. The adsorption kinetic results can be well simulated using the pseudo-second-order pattern. The pH-dependent adsorption behavior illustrated an favorable pH value of 7.5 for removal of U(VI) ions using MRGO composites. Furthermore, the adsorption regeneration of MRGO composites in simulated wastewater disposal systems was tested. Based on above mentioned, it was clear that MRGO composites could be potentially used as adsorbent for removal of actual U(VI)-bearing wastewaters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Retraction of 'Sequestration and speciation of Eu(III) on gamma alumina: role of temperature and contact order' by Yawen Cai et al., Environ. Sci.: Processes Impacts, 2015, 17, 1904–1914, https://doi.org/10.1039/C5EM00412H. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extraction of radionuclide contaminants from wastewater systems has recently drawn widespread attention, and then developing a novel and green extracting technology has also become an enormous challenge. Herein, a facile hydrothermal method was employed to fabricate cobalt-incorporated cryptomelane-type manganese oxide molecular sieve (Co-OMS-2) for extraction Eu(III) from wastewater under diverse experimental conditions. All kinds of characterized techniques, such as SEM, TEM, XRD, FTIR, BET, EDS and XPS had verified the qualified synthesis process and splendid structural features of the Co-OMS-2. The maximum adsorption capacity of Co-OMS-2 was 7.62 × 10−4 mol/g for Eu(III) at 298 K, which was superior than primarily traditional materials reported previous literatures. The high adsorption capacity of Eu(III) onto Co-OMS-2 was primarily attributed to high specific surface area and abundant surface functional groups, and the interactions were mainly contributed to strong surface complexation and electrostatic attraction. Under the condition of low pH, the outer-sphere surface complexation and cation exchange were primary mechanisms to Eu(III) adsorption onto Co-OMS-2 composites, while inner-sphere surface complexation was mainly assigned to Eu(III) adsorption onto Co-OMS-2 under the high pH sections. The Co-OMS-2 composite achieved equilibrium in a relatively short time, and this excellent performance was conducive to the treatment of Eu(III) under the extreme emergency conditions. In view of the extraordinary adsorption capacity and recycled reusability, the Co-OMS-2 composites can be as prospective adsorbents adopted for the extraction of Eu(III) in real wastewater management. • Oriented functionalization of Co-OMS-2 was successfully synthesized. • The maximum adsorption capacity of Eu(III) by Co-OMS-2 was 7.62 × 10−4 mol/g. • Co-OMS-2 displayed remarkable stability in the elimination of radionuclides. • The surface complexation and ion exchange were the main interaction mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The speciation, migration and transport of radionuclides in the environment are significantly influenced by their interactions with the natural minerals and humic substances therein. In view of this, the effect of temperature and contact order on the sorption behaviors of trivalent Eu(iii) in the γ-Al2O3/Eu(iii) and γ-Al2O3/HA/Eu(iii) systems was studied using batch experiments and the extended X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy (EXAFS) technique. The endothermic sorption behavior of Eu(iii) in the γ-Al2O3/Eu(iii) systems was induced by the hydrolysis reaction of Eu(iii) in solution and the complexation of Eu(iii) with the γ-Al2O3 surface sites. The endothermic sorption of Eu(iii) in the γ-Al2O3/HA/Eu(iii) systems was attributed to the endothermic binding of HA on γ-Al2O3 and the endothermic complexation between Eu(iii) and HA. EXAFS analysis suggested the formation of type B ternary complexes and their thermodynamic stability improves with rising temperature. The different sorption percentages under various contact orders were closely related to the binding mode of Eu(iii) on the exposed γ-Al2O3 surfaces or the γ-Al2O3/HA colloids. The findings obtained herein are important to evaluate the security of the radioactive waste repository and predict the fate of trivalent actinides (e.g., Am(iii), Cm(iii), Pu(iii), etc.) near the geological repository. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To better understand the application of kaolinite as an adsorbent for the decontamination of Ni(II) from radionuclide contaminated aqueous systems, herein, the sorption behavior of radionuclide Ni(II) on kaolinite as a function of contacting time, pH, coexistent electrolyte ions, adsorbent concentration, fulvic acid and humic acid was investigated using batch technique. At low pH values, ion exchange and/or outer-sphere surface complexation was the main mechanism of Ni(II) sorption on kaolinite, whereas, the sorption of Ni(II) was dominated by inner-sphere surface complexation at high pH values. The presence of different electrolyte ions can enhance or inhibit the sorption of Ni(II) on kaolinite to some extent. The Langmuir and Freundlich models were used to simulate the sorption isotherms of Ni(II) at three different temperatures of 288, 313 and 338 K. The thermodynamic parameters (i.e., Δ S°, Δ H°, and Δ G°) calculated from the temperature-dependent sorption isotherms indicated that the sorption reaction of Ni(II) on kaolinite was endothermic and spontaneous. The findings in this present study demonstrates that the kaolinite can be used as a cost-effective adsorbent for the solidification and pre-concentration of Ni(II) from large volumes of aqueous systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the removal of radionuclide Co(II) from wastewater by Ca-rectorite was studied as a function of various environmental parameters such as contact time, pH, ionic strength, coexisting electrolyte ions, humic substances (HS) and temperature under ambient conditions. The results indicated that the sorption of Co(II) on Ca-rectorite was strongly dependent on pH and ionic strength. The Langmuir and Freundlich models were used to simulate the sorption isotherms of Co(II) at three different temperatures of 298.15, 318.15 and 338.15 K. The thermodynamic parameters ( $$ \Updelta H^{0} ,\,\Updelta S^{0} $$ and $$ \Updelta G^{0} $$) calculated from the temperature-dependent sorption isotherms indicated that the sorption process of Co(II) on Ca-rectorite was spontaneous and endothermic. At low pH, the sorption of Co(II) was dominated by outer-sphere surface complexation and ion exchange with Ca/H on Ca-rectorite surfaces, whereas inner-sphere surface complexation was the main sorption mechanism at high pH. From the experimental results, it is possible to conclude that Ca-rectorite has good potentialities for cost-effective disposal of radiocobalt bearing wastewaters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High background electrolyte and natural organic matter are favorable to migration of hazardous radionuclides in geochemical repository. Herein, Ca–Mg–Al layered double hydroxide coated onto graphene oxide (Ca–Mg–Al LDH/GO) composites were successfully synthesized, characterized and adopted to decontaminate Eu(III) and fulvic acid (FA) under diverse experimental conditions. Diverse concentration gradients and different addition sequences on Eu(III) and FA were also obtained, which revealed different interaction mechanisms. The experimental results displayed that the coexistence of FA and Eu(III) respectively promoted adsorption performance of Eu(III) and FA under the ternary systems. The acquired Ca–Mg–Al LDH/GO composites were adopted to remove Eu(III) and FA, which further illustrated excellent chemo-physical stability and adsorption capacity of 1.12 × 10−3 mol/g and 3.54 × 10−4 mol/g, respectively. The remarkable adsorption performances of Ca–Mg–Al LDH/GO were confirmed through kinetic procedures and depending-temperature isotherms, illustrating that the kinetics processes were simulated using pseudo-second-order pattern, and the adsorption isotherms were splendidly simulated using Langmuir pattern. XPS spectrum analysis revealed that these containing oxygen groups took significant part in the restricting of Eu(III) and FA onto the surfaces of Ca–Mg–Al LDH/GO composites. In view of experimental results, the Ca–Mg–Al LDH/GO composites can be as potential adsorbents with availably recycled reusability for the decontamination of Eu(III) and FA from nuclear fuel partition or nuclear wastewater systems. • Ca–Mg–Al LDH/GO composites were successfully fabricated. • Oxygen-including groups of Ca–Mg–Al LDH/GO played important role in removal of Eu(III) and FA. • The removal mechanism of Eu(III) was controlled via surface complexation. • Ca–Mg–Al LDH/GO composites can be applied to effective disposal of Eu(III) and FA from wastewater. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Objective: With the development of the world economy and the integration of cultures, the Chinese cigar market has shown a significant upward trend. However, high-quality cigar leaves are mostly produced in Dominica, Cuba, Nicaragua and other places. In contrast, Chinese cigar leaves have problems such as insufficient aroma, which has become one of the main factors restricting the development of Chinese cigars. Adding medium to ferment is a traditional method in the cigar industry. At present, it mostly relies on manual experience, and lacks systematic and scientific research. At the same time, the addition of medium fermentation is mainly concentrated in the industrial fermentation process, and has not yet begun to be applied in the agricultural fermentation process. In this study, the medium was added to the agricultural fermentation process for the first time to explore the possibility of the application. The effects of adding cocoa medium to ferment on the chemical composition, sensory quality and surface microbial diversity of eggplant core cigar leaves were investigated.wrapper. Method: With Dexue 7' as the experimental material, the changes of main chemical components of wrapper fermented with water and cocoa medium were determined, and microbial community structure on the surface and relative abundance of cigar leaves at different turning periods were analyzed, and the functional genes were predicted. The results of the study were as follows: 1) The results of sensory evaluation showed that the addition of cocoa medium could highlight the aroma of bean, cocoa and coffee, improve the sweetness and fluency and the combustibility of cigar leaves. 2) The addition of cocoa medium increased the contents of proline and malic acid which were positively correlated with sensory quality, and decreased the contents of citric acid, linoleic acid, basic amino acids and aromatic amino acids which were negatively correlated with sensory quality. 3) The addition of cocoa medium increased the total amount of aroma components in cigar leaves, especially carotenoid degradation products, and changed the structural composition of some aroma substances in wrappercigar leaves. 4) The similarity of species composition between the water-added group and the cocoa-added group was higher, but the dominant microorganisms were more concentrated. Staphylococcus and Arthrobacter maintained a high relative abundance throughout the fermentation process, which may be the key microorganisms in the agricultural fermentation stage. 5) The addition of cocoa medium increased the expression abundance of related functional genes in cigar leaves, accelerated the fermentation process of cigar leaves, and bacteria played a major role in the fermentation process. Conclusion: Adding cocoa medium in the agricultural fermentation stage, the changes of bacterial community and dominant flora on the surface of cigar leaves are the main factors affecting their internal chemical components, and the addition of media has a positive effect on tobacco fermentation., Competing Interests: Authors WH, YH, HA, QZ, ZC, DL, and WC were employed by China Tobacco Sichuan Tobacco Industry Co., Ltd. Authors YL and JW were employed by Sichuan Tobacco Corporation Deyang Branch. The remaining author declares that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Zong, Hu, Huang, An, Zhang, Chai, Lei, Wang, Li and Cai.)

Acute pancreatitis (AP) is a serious condition associated with intestinal barrier disruption or inflammation of the pancreatic tissue. Specific microRNAs are involved in the pathogenesis of AP, during which IL-17-producing CD4 + T helper (Th17) cells accumulate in the pancreas. In this study, significantly increased levels of miR-155 were detected in clinical samples from patients with AP, and overexpression of miR-155 correlated with severe AP (SAP). To identify the effect of miR-155 on T cell differentiation, we isolated CD4 + T lymphocytes and in vitro experiments showed that inhibition of miR-155 significantly reversed the stress-induced increase in the Th17/Treg ratio. The results also showed that miR-155 increased the Th17-mediated inflammatory response by targeting SOCS1. The interaction between miR-155 and the 3 ' -UTR of SOCS1 was confirmed by a dual luciferase reporter assay and RT-PCR. Experimental AP of varying severity was induced in BALB/c mice by caerulein hyperstimulation and miR-155 expression was found to increase with disease progression. Inhibition of miR-155 expression significantly improved the pathology of the pancreas. We also observed downregulation of expression of inflammatory factors, IL-17, SOCS1 and phosphorylated STAT1 after miR-155 inhibition. In summary, miR-155 regulates the Th17/Treg ratio by targeting SOCS1, most probably via direct binding to its 3 ' -UTR region, indicating that this microRNA may be a potential biomarker and/or therapeutic target for AP.

Red cell distribution width (RDW) has been proposed as an early prognosis marker with increased mortality in variety of pathophysiological conditions. We hypothesized that elevated RDW could be used in judging the severity of acute pancreatitis (AP). We retrospectively and prospectively studied 545 and 72 AP patients, who were admitted to the Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital of Tongji University, respectively. Compared with mild acute pancreatitis, significantly higher RDW was observed in patients with moderately severe acute pancreatitis and sever acute pancreatitis (14.03 ± 1.74% vs. 13.23 ± 1.23%, P < 0.000). RDW values were also found positively correlated with the patient's blood urea nitrogen (r = 0.120, P = 0.026), creatinine (r = 0.182, P = 0.000), age (r = 0.099, P = 0.028), and bedside index of severity in acute pancreatitis scoring system (r = 0.147, P = 0.001), and were negatively correlated with the serum albumin (r = -0.244, P = 0.000). The area under the receiver-operating characteristics was as follows-RDW: 0.677 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.619-0.735, P < 0.000); combination of RDW and albumin: 0.693 (95% CI, 0.625-0.761, P < 0.000); and the optimal cutoff value for RDW to predict whether patients with AP should be in intensive care unit (ICU) was 13.55 with a sensitivity of 54.5% and a specificity of 73.6%. In the validation study, AP with RDW ≥ 13.55% had significantly higher ICU admission ratio than those with RDW < 13.55% (44.4% vs. 9.8%, P < 0.000). In conclusion, RDW is positively associated with AP severity, and is likely a useful predictive parameter of AP severity.

Purpose:: To investigate the severity of pancreatitis in lipoprotein lipase (LPL)-deficient hypertriglyceridaemic (HTG) heterozygous mice and to establish an experimental animal model for HTG pancreatitis study., Methods:: LPL-deficient HTG heterozygous mice were rescued by somatic gene transfer and mated with wild-type mice. The plasma amylase, triglyceride, and pathologic changes in the pancreas of the LPL-deficient HTG heterozygous mice were compared with those of wild-type mice to assess the severity of pancreatitis. In addition, acute pancreatitis (AP) was induced by caerulein (50 µg/kg) for further assessment., Results:: The levels of plasma amylase and triglyceride were significantly higher in the LPL-deficient HTG heterozygous mice. According to the pancreatic histopathologic scores, the LPL-deficient HTG heterozygous mice showed more severe pathologic damage than the wild-type mice., Conclusions:: Lipoprotein lipase deficient heterozygous mice developed severe caerulein-induced pancreatitis. In addition, their high triglyceride levels were stable. Therefore, LPL-deficient HTG heterozygous mice are a useful experimental model for studying HTG pancreatitis.

Kaolinite/iron oxide magnetic composites (kaolinite/MCs) were used as adsorbent for the removal of Cd(II) from aqueous solutions. The influences of pH, ionic strength, solid/liquid ratio and temperature on Cd(II) sorption on kaolinite/MCs were evaluated. The results showed that the removal of Cd(II) on kaolinite/MCs was strongly dependent on pH and ionic strength. An optimal kaolinite/MCs concentration mass per volume for removal of Cd(II) from aqueous solutions was 1.4 g L(-1). The Langmuir and Freundlich models were used to simulate sorption isotherms of Cd(II) at three different temperatures of 293, 313 and 333 K. The sorption of Cd(II) on kaolinite/MCs increased with increasing temperature, and thermodynamic parameters (standard entropy change, enthalpy change and Gibbs free energy change) illustrated that this sorption process was spontaneous and endothermic. The sorption behaviors of Cd(II) were mainly dependent on surface properties of kaolinite/MCs and solution chemistry conditions. The sorption capacity of Cd(II) on kaolinite/MCs was lower than that on kaolinite, because iron oxide particles decreased surface charge of kaolinite leading to less sorption capacity. Due to high magnetism, kaolinite/MCs could be easily separated with an external magnetic field. Kaolinite/MCs could therefore be used as potential adsorbent for preconcentration and immobilization of Cd(II) ions from large volumes of aqueous solutions.

In this study, humic acid-coated Fe(3)O(4) magnetic nanoparticles (Fe(3)O(4)@HA MNPs) were synthesized using a chemical coprecipitation method and characterized in detail. The XRD analysis results showed that HA coating did not change the phase of Fe(3)O(4) cores. The TEM image suggested that Fe(3)O(4)@HA MNPs had nearly uniform size without the observation of aggregation. The Fe(3)O(4)@HA MNPs were stable in solution and could be easily separated from aqueous solution using a magnetic separation method. A batch technique was adopted to investigate the removal efficiency of Fe(3)O(4)@HA MNPs toward Eu(III) under various environmental conditions. The kinetic process of Eu(III) sorption on Fe(3)O(4)@HA MNPs reached equilibrium within <30 min. The fast sorption kinetics and high sorption amount were attributed to the plentiful surface sites provided by the surface-coated HA macromolecules. The Fe(3)O(4)@HA MNPs was able to remove ~99% of Eu(III) in aqueous solution at pH 8.5. Except for SO(4)(2-) anions, the coexisting electrolyte ions had no significant competition effects on the removal of Eu(III) by Fe(3)O(4)@HA MNPs. The obvious sorption-desorption hysteresis suggested that the removal of Eu(III) was dominated by inner-sphere surface complexation. The sorption isotherm agreed well with the Langmuir model, having a maximum sorption capacity of 6.95 × 10(-5) mol g(-1). The leaching test showed that the Eu(III)-loaded Fe(3)O(4)@HA colloids were capable to maintain high thermodynamic stability for long aging times. The findings herein suggested that Fe(3)O(4)@HA MNPs could be potentially used as a highly effective material for the enrichment and preconcentration of radionuclide Eu(III) or other trivalent lanthanides/actinides in geological repositories or in nuclear waste management.