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[Display omitted] • Synthetic red azo dyes are very poplar food additives. • Awareness regarding their toxicity and acceptable daily should be raised. • The role of carbon based, metal oxides and others in sensors is presented. • The efficiency of modified sensors is compared to other traditional methods. • The limits of detection and recoveries in food samples were evaluated. Red dyes as Allura Red (E129), Amaranth (E124), Ponceau 4R (E123), Erythrosine (E127) and Carmoisine (E122), are very popular food additives due to their stability, low cost, and minimal microbial contamination. Despite these advantages, their consumption may result in asthma, hyperactivity, carcinogenic effects, etc depending on the uptake and age. Therefore, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) have managed the permissions of allowed daily intake (ADI) for consumption levels of these dyes to be 0.01–7.0 mg/kg to assure foodstuffs consumer's safety and avoid their adverse effects. Yet, many countries as Japan and USA have prohibited their use in food and drinks to reduce their possible health risks. Based on the above concentration ranges, highly sensitive and selective detection techniques are required, accordingly, the application of electrochemical sensors for the analysis of these dyes in food samples is very promising due to their superior sensitivity and selectivity, low cost and rapid response compared to traditional spectrophotometric or chromatographic methods. Also, they can be miniaturized, portable and require no complicated sampling or preparation procedures, besides being ecofriendly which allows their commercialization for public consumers in fast detection kits. In this review, the role of nanomaterials such as: carbon-based, transition metal oxides, metal organic frameworks, ionic liquids and others in enhancing the detection properties of modified electrochemical sensors for red dyes will be evaluated in terms of the type of nanomaterial applied, tested food samples and their impact on the evaluation of foodstuffs quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present article introduces an innovative solution to improve performance efficiency while shaving the demand during peak hours. The idea focuses on efficient gas turbine and Rankine cycle hybridization for power and hydrogen production based on high-temperature heliostat solar towers. The proposed model is simulated via TRNSYS software to assess the performance transiently and then optimized through the artificial neural network in MATLAB program to minimize the calculation time. The key economic, environmental, and energy indicators are evaluated, compared, and optimized for this. According to the effect of main design parameters, including gas turbine inlet temperature, mass flow rate, and heliostat area, on the system's indicators, there is a conflictive trend among the power productivity, cost, and emission index, signifying the optimization significance. The optimization results show that the net power, efficiency, cost, and CO 2 emissions are 298,300 GJ, 30.7%, 3.6 M$, and 20,760 tonnes under optimal conditions. This working condition is obtained by electing turbine inlet temperature, solar area, and airflow rate of 1087 °C, 91,200 m2, and 68,817, respectively. At this condition, while 71.18% of the yearly primary energy is provided by the sun, biomass meets the rest, showing the importance of renewable combination to achieve the highest independence from the grid. Finally, the system can generate an additional 585 kg/day of hydrogen that could be used in relevant industries. • A novel smart system based on biomass and solar hybridization is introduced. • A new hydrogen production/injection method is applied to improve the efficiency. • An artificial neural network model is added to the optimization to reduce the time. • The proposed smart system can generate an extra hydrogen of 585 kg per day. • The optimization achieves an efficiency of 30.7% and emissions of 20,760 tonnes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study introduces a novel integrated system that combines solar and biomass energy sources to expedite the transition to an environmentally sustainable future and facilitate the share of renewable sources in the energy grid. The concept revolves around generating and utilizing green hydrogen to enhance the quality of combustion byproducts. The primary components of the proposed system include a biomass digester and a proton exchange membrane electrolyzer driven by photovoltaic panels. Integrating a Rankine cycle, thermoelectric generator, and multi-effect desalination devices allows for the simultaneous production of power and drinking water by recovering waste heat from exhaust gases. The proposed system's key indicators are compared with a similar model without hydrogen injection. Additionally, the evaluation/comparison of components' performance within the irreversibility facet is conducted by calculating the exergy destruction rate under optimal conditions. The results demonstrate that injecting additional green hydrogen into the combustion chamber achieves a greater energy efficiency of 11.5%, a reduced cost of 25.2 $/MWh, and a smaller emissions index of 1352 kg/GWh compared to the conventional system. However, because of the high rate of energy destruction in the solar and electrolyzer systems, the suggested system has a lower sustainability rating of 0.5. Furthermore, the results demonstrate that the suggested cutting-edge system generates 4591 kW of acceptable electricity and 82.5 kg/s of potable water. Ultimately, it can be discerned that the differences in pinch point and superheat temperatures are crucial design parameters that substantially influence the power cycle and overall system performance. • A novel renewable hybridization based on solar and biomass sources is introduced. • The extra green hydrogen is injected to improve combustion product quality. • The performance of the suggested system is compared with the conventional model. • The system achieves higher efficiency and lower cost of 11% and 25 $/MWh. • Low emission of 1144 kg/GWh with a high freshwater generation of 83 kg/s is attained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, poly(lactic acid) (PLA)/poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) dual-layer membranes filled with 0–3 wt% cellulose nanowhisker (CNWs) were fabricated with aim to remove metal ions from wastewater. An integrated method was employed in the membrane fabrication process by combining water vapor-induced and crystallization-induced phase inversions. The membrane thickness was measured in between 11 and 13 μm, which did not pose significant flux deviation during filtration process. The 3% CNW filled membrane showed prominent and well-laminated two layers structure. Meanwhile, the increase in CNWs from 0 to 3% loadings could improve the membrane porosity (43–74%) but reducing pore size (2.45–0.54 μm). The heat resistance of neat membrane enhanced by 1% CNW but decreased with loadings of 2–3% CNWs due to flaming behavior of sulphated nanocellulose. Membrane with 3% CNW displayed the tensile strength (23.5 MPa), elongation at break (7.1%), and Young's modulus (0.75 GPa) as compared to other samples. For wastewater filtration performance, the continuous operation test showed that 3% CNW filled membrane exhibited the highest removal efficiency for both cobalt and nickel metal ions reaching to 83% and 84%, respectively. We concluded that CNWs filled dual-layer membranes have potential for future development in the removal of heavy metal ions from wastewater streams. • PLA/PBS dual layer membrane incorporated with nanocellulose for metal ions removal • Membrane fabrication process using water vapor-induced phase inversion technique • Nanocellulose acts as pore forming and crystallizing agent in membrane structure. • Great thermal, mechanical, and wettability properties for filtration process. • High filtration performance for water penetration and metal ions adsorption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within the scientific community, there is an increasing demand to apply advanced cell cultivation substrates with increased physiological functionalities for studying spatially defined cellular interactions. Porous polymeric scaffolds are utilized for mimicking an organ-like structure or engineering complex tissues and have become a key element for three-dimensional (3D) cell cultivation in the meantime. As a consequence, efficient 3D scaffold fabrication methods play an important role in modern biotechnology. Here, we present a novel thermoforming procedure for manufacturing porous 3D scaffolds from permeable materials. We address the issue of precise thermoforming of porous polymer foils by using multilayer polymer thermoforming technology. This technology offers a new method for structuring porous polymer foils that are otherwise available for non-porous polymers only. We successfully manufactured 3D scaffolds from solvent casted and phase separated polylactic acid (PLA) foils and investigated their biocompatibility and basic cellular performance. The HepG2 cell culture in PLA scaffold has shown enhanced albumin secretion rate in comparison to a previously reported polycarbonate based scaffold with similar geometry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Encapsulated Salvia officinalis L. powder (SESP) was developed from extract obtained by supercritical fluid extraction (SFE), and it was compared with commercial sage powder of hydro-distillation extract (HESP). The optimised conditions of 30 MPa at 50 °C for laboratory scale SFE extraction were found to generate the highest yield at 40.96 ± 0.84%. The conditions were later applied in the upscaled extraction, which yielded about 30.10 ± 1.33% extract. Large particle size distribution at 118.46 ± 6.63 µm for SESP was notified as compared to 66.80 ± 1.50 µm for HESP. Outcomes of crystallographic analysis demonstrated that abundant metabolites from various groups existed in both powders. About 25 and 43 metabolites were identified by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC–MS) in HESP and SESP, respectively. In HESP, organic acids were found to be the major group identified, while terpenoids were the largest group found in SESP. [Display omitted] • 30 MPa at 50 °C as optimum used for upscaled supercritical fluid extraction process. • Encapsulated powder from SESP show broader particle size distribution than HESP. • Supercritical extraction were found to generate the highest yield at 40.96 ± 0.84%. • HESP and SESP revealed about 25 and 43 metabolites, respectively. • Organic acids & terpenoids as major group identified in HESP and SESP, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]