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An enormous amount of waste material (sludge) generated from paper and pulp industries is either dumped or incinerated. However, this pulp is an enriched source of macronutrients and can be employed on agricultural land to improve its fertility. The current study was therefore performed to analyze phosphorus (P) and calcium (Ca) by flame photometer, nitrogen (N) by Kjeldahl method, and magnesium (Mg) by back titration from sludge. The application of sludge significantly increases macronutrients in the plants lady finger (Abelmoschus esculentus) and garden mint (Mentha sachalinensis).We applied primary (initial husk treatment) and secondary (after primary treatment) sludge to observe the growth of Abelmoschus esculentus and Mentha sachalinensis. However, primary sludge showed the highest concentration of nutrients, i.e., 96.5% P, 99.6% N, 86% Ca, and 0.008% Mg. The application of paper and pulp waste to the soil indicates that these bio-solids are good for soil fertility, biomass production, and plant growth; however, they are slightly less efficient than synthetic fertilizers. However, the synthetic fertilizers are probable candidates for holding heavy metals, so these bio-solids can be considered a better source for soil fertility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main rule included in IPPC directive (Directive 96/61/EC) obligating installation owners to operate in the sustainable way in order to reduce the impact on the environment. Water resources are limited, therefore many industries, in particular in water-stressed areas, must invest in water-saving programs. In particular, this problem applies to paper plants, which should limit their consumption of fresh water. However, the main environmental consequence in the production of pulp and paper refers not only to the consumption of water resources, but also to the emission of wastewater resulting from the production process. This paper focuses on the concept of sustainable management of water and wastewater. The proposed approach is demonstrated with a case study. The different treatment facilities option has been tested to find the optimal solution to minimalize consumption of fresh water and reduce effluent loads. The optimal water-wastewater configuration was found by testing several configurations. We concluded that striving for a nearly full circulation loop closure is not always justified by sustainable development and should be assessed in an integrated way. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The usage of industrial effluents for agricultural purposes has become common practice both in developing and developed countries. Industrial effluents may add significant amount of nutrients for the nourishment of soil. However, the presence of various pollutants in effluents may deteriorate physicochemical nature of soil. The current study presents the effect of different proportions (0, 20, 40, 60, 80 and 100%) of PBM effluents containing heavy metals on physicochemical properties of soil. These soil samples were analyzed at regular intervals of 30, 60 and 90 days. The findings of the study indicate that lower proportions (20 and 40%) of PBM effluents may be preferred for long- term irrigation. On the other hand, higher proportions (60, 80 and 100%) of PBM effluents may cause adverse effects on physicochemical characteristics of soil within short duration of irrigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phthalate esters are often discharged into the ecosystem by paper and plastic industries during manufacturing processes, contributing to environmental pollution. Di (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) is a plasticizer widely used in the manufacture of plastics that imparts flexibility to polyvinyl chloride resins. This is an endocrine-disrupting compound that could lead to cancer. Filamentous fungi were isolated from mixed pulp waste in a paper recycling facility. Ribosomal DNA internal transcribed spacers sequencing were performed, which allowed for the identification of the fungal species of the isolates as Neurospora sitophila, Fusarium culmorum, Trichoderma atroviride, Hypocrea lixii, and Trichoderma harzianum. Radial growth rate (ur), mycelial biomass, and laccase and esterase activities of the fungal isolates in media containing different concentrations of DEHP (0, 500, 750, 1,000, 1,200, and 1,500 mg/l) were carried out. The highest ur was shown by N. sitophila in the medium added with 1,500 mg of DEHP/l. The largest mycelial biomass was produced by F. culmorum, T. atroviride, H. lixii, and T. harzianum in the medium containing 1,500 mg of DEHP/l. F. culmorum and T. harzianum had higher esterase activity than laccase activity in all the media tested. This study demonstrates that fungi isolated from the recycled paper wastes in a paper industry were capable of utilizing DEHP as the sole carbon source. These fungal isolates can be used for the bioremediation of DEHP-contaminated sites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biochars made from scrap newspaper and book paper (NPBx and BPBx, x represents pyrolysis temperature, °C) were characterized and used to remove methylene blue (MB), cadmium(Cd(II)) and lead (Pb(II)) from water solution. BPBx had higher yield, C content, and ash content and lower Ca content than NPBx made at the same temperature. Calcite and pyrophyllite were main minerals in NPBx and BPBx, respectively. Biochars made at higher temperature had higher pHpzc values (6.9~11.0). The sorption kinetics of the three pollutants fit pseudo-second model well (R2 = 0.991~0.999). NPB300 and NPB450 had the largest Langmuir sorption capacity of about 23 mg g-1 for MB, while BPB600 had the capacity of 19.5 mg g-1. NPB600 had the largest Langmuir sorption capacity of 13.8 mg g-1 for Cd(II) and 451 mg g-1 for Pb(II). Column sorption capacities were 13.2 mg g-1 (NPB300) and 9.46 mg g-1 (NPB450) for MB and 7.39 mg g-1 (NPB600) for Cd(II). De-ashed BPBx had greater sorption capacity for MB than pristine BPBx. Deposition caused by reaction with CaCO3 was the main reason for Pb(II) sorption by NPB600. Scrap newspaper biochars derived at high temperatures were efficient sorbents for the removal of Pb(II). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fungal frequency and diversity were studied in historical, parchment and paper documents using Illumina sequencing. In total, 156 494, 52 451 and 41 615 sequences were obtained from three samples. Documents were colonized by 225 taxa. Glomeromycota, Zygomycota, Ascomycota and Basidiomycota were represented by 1, 8, 131 and 83 taxa, respectively. Fungal communities included plant pathogens, epiphytes or endophytes of a wide range of plants and possibly opportunistic plant pathogens, saprotrophs common in soil, on decaying leaves, needles, wood and on other plant material, human pathogens, animal and nematode pathogens, entomopathogenic taxa, mycoparasites, white and black yeast-like taxa, taxa with antagonistic and medicinal properties, lichenized fungi, food contaminants, common contaminants of indoor, built environments, taxa on herbivore dung, keratin-degrading taxa, xerophilic taxa, and an endangered fungi included in the Red List of Threatened Species. A non-destructive and non-invasive method for quantitative characterization of parchment deterioration, based on spectral measurements, was used for evaluating the scale of damage.The collagen-to-gelatin ratio, estimated from the synchronous fluorescence spectra of the studied samples and of pure collagen and gelatin, was suggested for characterizing parchment condition. Analysis of fluorescence peaks indicated the moderate stage of deterioration of the studied documents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A common solid waste - corrugated-paper packaging boxes - was carbonized at 300, 450, and 600ºC to develop low-cost adsorbents (biochars). The resulting adsorbents were characterized and their adsorption performances were evaluated by the batch sorption of aqueous Pb(II), Zn(II), Cd(II), and methylene blue (MB). The biochar obtained at 600ºC exhibited larger specific surface area, higher mineral contents, and pH of zero point charge (pHPZC). Calcium carbonate, lead carbonate/basic, and zinc carbonate were observed in the metal-sorbed biochars by a power X-ray diffractometer (XRD). The biochar of higher pyrolysis temperature (600ºC) had high sorption capacity of aqueous Pb(II), Zn(II), and Cd(II) with the Langmuir maximum sorption capacity of 458, 146, and 10.7 mg g-1, respectively. The pseudo-second-order model gave a better fit for the kinetic data of Pb(II), Zn(II), Cd(II), and MB onto the biochar (600ºC). Moreover, the electrostatic attraction was the dominant mechanism for adsorption of MB while precipitation could be the main mechanisms for adsorption of Pb(II), Zn(II), and Cd(II). Therefore, carbonization can be an efficient and value-addition method for the recycling of waste corrugated paper packaging boxes and for the low-cost wastewater treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Waste rice straw was converted into activated carbon-supported manganese oxides (MnOx/RSAC) that were first used as a catalyst to improve the performance of ozonation of real paper-making wastewater. The results indicated that catalytic ozonation with the prepared catalyst exhibited a highly efficient performance in advanced treatment of paper-making wastewater, and the corresponding color and COD removal efficiencies were 58.5 and 77.5%, respectively. And the treated wastewater was more biodegradable and less toxic than that in ozone alone. Based on significant inhibition of the radical scavenger and fluorescence test in the catalytic ozonation process, we deduced that the enhancement of catalytic activity was responsible for MnOx/RSAC catalyzing ozone to generate more hydroxyl radicals and the possible reaction pathway was proposed. Thus, MnOx/RSAC catalyzing ozonation could serve as a stable, efficient, and economical process with a potential engineering application for treated refractory wastewater, and the results offered new insights for sustainable use of waste rice straw. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The removal of chemical oxygen demand (COD), lignin and phenol from paper mill effluents was experimentally investigated using an electrode cell consisting of graphite electrode and powder-activated carbon (as working electrode). The effects of electrolyses time, voltage, initial ph, activated carbon (AC), NaCl amount and airflow were selected as parameters. The experimental results show that removal efficiency significantly depends on the applied cell voltage, airflow, time, salt amount and ph. For electrolyses under the conditions of 25.0V cell voltage, 5.0 min, in presence of air 2.0 minL-1, NaCl 5.0gL-1 at low pH and AC 20gL-1, it can be said that the removal of COD, lignin and phenol from the paper mill effluent were almost higher than 90%. The present study proves the effectiveness of electrochemical treatment for the highly concentrated organic pollutants present in paper mill effluents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Corporate carbon emissions accounting has become a research focus for researchers and government departments. Based on corporate production processes, this study proposes and establishes a comprehensive system for corporate carbon emissions. Taking Stora Enso (Guangxi) Company as an example, this paper provides a thorough analysis of the production and operational status of paper-making companies. The production process is divided into five stages: material preparation, pulping, pulp board production, papermaking, and alkali recycling. Based on these production processes, it proposes and constructs a corporate carbon emissions accounting system from an accounting perspective, which specifically includes accounting objectives, information quality characteristics, accounting recognition, accounting measurement, accounting treatments, and information disclosure. The findings show that the carbon emissions accounting system targeted at production processes can clearly awaken corporate carbon emissions responsibilities, further improve the corporate accounting system, and provide effective technical support for the government to implement environmental regulations and formulate carbon reduction policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban digital autonomy refers to the autonomous innovation capability of cities in the field of digital technology, which directly determines whether cities can achieve high-quality development in the urban digital economy. Using Chinese prefecture-level data from 2009 to 2018, this paper takes the smart city policy as a quasi-natural experiment to analyze the impact of the smart city policy on digital autonomy of cities empirically. The research results show that the smart city policy has significantly improved the digital autonomy of cities, which is 28.25% higher than that of other cities. After a series of robustness tests, such as the placebo test and propensity score matching DID (PSM-DID) test and using different samples, this research conclusion still holds. Heterogeneity shows that the promotion effect of the smart city policy on digital autonomy of cities is greater in eastern regions, cities with higher rank and larger population size. The research of influence mechanism shows that the smart city policy can promote digital autonomy of cities through the effect of digital human capital and digital material capital. Finally, this paper puts forward policy suggestions from the perspectives of developing digital industries, promoting the construction of smart cities, increasing the cultivation of digital talents, and paying attention to fairness and efficiency, so as to promote the digital autonomy of cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past two decades, developing countries have experienced rapid urbanization. It has been accompanied by unusually sharp conflicts between urban and rural areas, posing significant challenges to social stability. China, as the largest developing country, has completed the planning of all its villages during this period. It can provide experience and lessons for other developing countries in rural planning. Based on the CSSCI database, this paper analyzes 643 papers on rural planning in China using bibliometric methods. The results showed that rural transformation and development, rural spatial characteristics and optimization, and rural planning techniques and methods are the three main research topics. China's rural planning research has gone through three stages: 1998-2004, 2005-2012, and 2013-2020. "Rural revitalization," "village planning," "new rural construction," "rural tourism," "urbanization," "urban-rural integration," and "planning" are the frontiers of rural planning research. Research institutions and authors are mainly from universities and cooperate more closely with themselves. Geography and sociology are the disciplinary foundations of rural planning in China. The results provide objective insights into the historical evolution and development direction for planning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Utilizing an extensive dataset pertinent to the low-carbon economy and water resources extracted from 30 provinces across China, encompassing the period from 2004 to 2019, we have structured a synergistic model that explores the integrative interplay between the low-carbon economic framework and the water resource system. To assess the composite synergy effects, we employed Kernel density estimation in conjunction with Markov chain analysis, aiming to elucidate the temporal distribution dynamics and the spatial evolutionary patterns of provincial-level synergism within China's low-carbon economy-water resource nexus. Our findings reveal that, over the span from 2005 to 2019, the synergy effect within China's hybridized low-carbon economy-water resource system predominantly occupied a stage of moderate amalgamation, demonstrating a consistent upward trajectory since 2011. Notably, multilevel differentiation of composite system synergy is evident nationally, with pronounced trends of divergence manifesting in the eastern, western, and northeastern provinces. In contrast, the synergy effect exhibited in the central region is characterized by regional heterogeneity, yet the absolute disparities in synergy levels have diminished over time. Moreover, analysis of the synergy degree's rank order status within the composite system indicates a relative stability, punctuated by a 'club convergence' phenomenon. Against the backdrop of global climate change, the interactions between low-carbon economies and water resources have garnered significant attention within the realm of global sustainable development research. Exploring these synergistic relationships offers a potential avenue for identifying effective strategies to manage and harness resources, thereby facilitating economic growth and social advancement while mitigating the pace of global climate change. This paper employs data related to the low-carbon economy and water resources in 30 provinces of China from 2004 to 2019. It constructs a composite system model and an evaluation index system to investigate the synergistic effect between these two factors. The study employs the kernel density estimation method and Markov chain to analyze the distribution dynamics and spatial evolution of the synergy level in the composite system of the low-carbon economy and water resources across each province in China. The results indicate the following: [1] Between 2005 and 2019, the synergy effect of China's low-carbon economy-water resources complex system exhibited a mild level of synergy. Since 2011, the degree of synergy has steadily increased, with the synergy degrees of the low-carbon economy system, water resources system, and their complex systems reaching 0.256, 0.487, and 0.277, respectively, by 2019. [2] The absolute difference in the level of synergy between the low-carbon economy and water resources complex systems in the east, west, and northeast regions demonstrates a significant expansion. However, in the central region, regional differences in the synergy effect exist, although the absolute difference exhibits a narrowing trend. [3] The ranking status of the synergy in the low-carbon economy-water resources composite system is relatively stable, displaying the phenomenon of "club convergence." Nonetheless, when spatial effects are considered, the probability of "rank locking" decreases in the lowcarbon economy-water resources composite system. The findings of this paper contribute to a deeper understanding of the synergistic relationship between China's low-carbon economy and water resources, providing a basis for decision-making aimed at achieving China's sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper takes the collapse along the transmission corridor of The Deep - Cut Gorge Area of Dadu River in Erlangshan - Zheduo Mountain as the research object. The paper researches the characteristics of the development of the collapse disaster and the factors of the disaster. It is based on the remote sensing interpretation and the geological disaster investigation in the area. The results show that a total of 42 collapses were developed in the study area. The main controlling factors for the collapses in the area are topography, slope direction, geological structure, rock formation, annual rainfall, etc. The collapses were mainly developed in the area of rigid or relatively rigid rocks, and the rainfall was measured between 834-965 mm. There were 22 collapses in this area. The influence of the current collapse development along the transmission corridor in the Deep - Cut Gorge area of the Erlang Mountain - Zheduo Mountain Dadu River on the power transmission project is mainly to threaten the stability of the tower and its foundation. The research results provide a theoretical basis for the evaluation and prevention of geological disaster along the power transmission corridor. In addition, the results provide technical guidance for selecting lines, as well as for designing and constructing power transmission projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carbon neutrality is the only way for green low-carbon development. Technological progress is an important starting point for improving energy efficiency. Through scientific and technological innovation, improving energy efficiency is a practical way to achieve the goal of carbon neutralization. Due to the limitation of data and index selection, there is no qualitative analysis of carbon neutrality in this paper. Compared with previous studies, the paper has the following contributions: Firstly, the energy efficiency score of China's provincial level is measured with the DEA method and it is found that the average energy efficiency score of the eastern region is the highest, followed by the western region, and finally the central region. The results also show that the energy efficiency is not in accordance with the economic growth. The regions with higher energy efficiency scores are not always economically developed because of huge energy consumption supporting the economic development. Secondly, the Tobit method is used to study the impact of the reverse technology spillover effect of OFDI on China's energy efficiency. The results show that the spillover effect has a significant positive effect on the improvement of China's energy efficiency, and has a positive impact on the eastern and western regions, but has no significant impact on the western region. Finally, we put forward some policy recommendations to increase energy efficiency to approach carbon neutrality and thus promote green economic development. This paper enriches the content of energy economy, the research method is innovative, and the conclusion is more scientific. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]