Search

The global problem of water scarcity continues to grow because of population growth and climate change. Membrane distillation (MD) stands out as a progressing technology, demonstrating the potential for integration with operating systems powered by solar energy. Despite the increasing interest in solar-powered MD, existing literature primarily focuses on the technical aspects of the technology. There is a notable lack of comprehensive analyses that explore broader research trends, key contributors, and thematic evolution within this field. This paper addresses this gap by employing bibliometric analysis and machine learning approaches to explore trends in solar membrane desalination based on publications from 2014 to 2023. 991 publications were analyzed from various aspects, such as publications, countries, institutions, and research trends. Hot keywords include “membrane distillation”, “reverse osmosis”, “energy efficiency”, and “evaporation”. China had the highest number of publications and h-index, followed by the United States, and Saudi Arabia. The study clustered the keywords into three themes: membrane distillation, membrane materials, and reverse osmosis. Analysis of the thematic map reveals seven main research topics in solar-powered membrane desalination, classified according to their degree of relevance. Finally, future directions of membrane desalination are highlighted, including exploring economic and environmental aspects.

Pakistan faces social and health issues due to the mismanagement of municipal solid waste (MSW) in urban and rural areas. Unhygienic conditions due to roadside disposal of MSW negatively affect society, aesthetics, economy, and tourism. This study aims to determine the potential of thermal energy-based MSW incineration technology for electricity generation and waste volume reduction in six major cities in Punjab, namely Lahore, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Faisalabad, Gujranwala, and Sialkot. In this study, the heat content was calculated using the modified Dulong's equation for the calorific value (CV). Population, waste generation rate, waste characteristics, moisture content, and local public practices also affect energy potential and were considered in the calculations of electricity generation potential. Furthermore, three different sensitivity analysis trials of the power generation capacity were performed with various waste-to-energy (WtE) plant output efficiencies. The analysis of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from MSW incineration and CO2 reduction was compared with existing local practices. For WtE potential, Lahore has an energy recovery of 552 kWh/ton of MSW. Carbon footprints can be reduced by incinerating waste rather than disposal through pollution-generating local practices, such as open burning. The study results showed that MSW handling in Punjab can be utilized for WtE generation, a potential alternative to fossil fuel combustion for sustainable energy solutions.

This study introduces a new and waste-to-waste treatment approach to isolate cellulose from lignocellulosic biomass. Rejected brine solution from desalination plant was utilized to remove noncellulosic components from the date palm leaves. Free chlorine available in rejected brine solution was responsible for the separation of cellulose from lignocellulosic structure. The proximate analysis revealed that the isolated cellulose exhibited a substantial volatile content of 83.70%, rendering it well-suited to produce bio-oil. Various other analytical techniques including FTIR, chemical composition analysis, proximate and ultimate analysis, X-ray diffraction (XRD), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) were employed to confirm the cellulose enrichment. Cellulose fibers with needle−shaped morphology were obtained. Cellulose fibers were having high thermal stability (Tonset = 250 ○C) and crystallinity index (64.75%) compared to raw waste (Tonset = 226 ○C; 53.58%). In addition, the activation energy (Ea) of both date palm leaves and isolated cellulose were investigated using the Coats−Redfern model−fitting method. The activation energy values obtained were 79.39 kJ/mol for date palm leaves and 103.27 kJ/mol for isolated cellulose. This research shows a completely new process for pretreatment of lignocellulosic wastes to isolate cellulose. This approach helps reduce the waste management cost associated with date palm waste and desalination plants to promote the concept of circular economy. Moreover, enriched cellulose derived from waste palm leaves using desalination brine presents sustainable options for eco−friendly packaging, textiles, biodegradable composites, and enhanced bio-oil production applications.

This study aims to evaluate the microstructure and mechanical behavior of aluminum 2024 and stainless steel 304 dissimilar joints. The gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW) process has been employed to weld base metals by inserting copper-nickel-based (Cu-10%Ni) filler metal. The effects of GTAW parameters such as welding current, welding speed, and gas flow on microstructure and tensile strength have been analyzed through the Taguchi method. Results revealed that tensile strength is primarily influenced by welding current, followed by speed and gas flow rate. The excellent joint strength of 138 MPa has been achieved by using Cu-10%Ni filler metal. The optimal combination of parameters, i.e., welding current of level 2 (80 A), welding speed of level 1 (100 mm/min), and gas flow rate of level 3 (10 l/min), has been obtained through SN ratio optimization. Microstructure and EDS analysis depicted that the weld zone of a high-strength joint contained fine dendrites and CuAl and NiAl solid solutions, while the weld zone of a low-strength joint featured coarse dendrites and brittle FeAl phases.

Two oilseed rape genotypes (Jiu-Er-13XI and Zheyou-50), differing in seed oil content, were subjected to cadmium (Cd) stress in hydroponic experiment. Genotypic differences were observed in terms of tolerance to Cd exposure. Cd treatment negatively affected both genotypes, but the effects were more devastating in Jiu-Er-13XI (low seed oil content) than in Zheyou-50 (high seed oil content). Jiu-Er-13XI accumulated more reactive oxygen species (ROS), which destroyed chloroplast structure and decreased photosynthetic pigments, than Zheyou-50. Total fatty acids, especially 18:2 and 18:3, severely decreased as suggested by increase in MDA content. Roots and shoots of Jiu-Er-13XI plants accumulated more Cd content, while less amount of tocopherol (Toc) was observed under Cd stress, than Zheyou-50. Conversely, Zheyou-50 was less affected by Cd stress than its counterpart. It accumulated comparatively less amount of Cd in roots and shoots, along with reduced accumulation of malondialdehyde (MDA) and ROS under Cd stress, than Jiu-Er-13XI. Further, the level of Toc, especially α-Tocopherol, was much higher in Zheyou-50 than in Jiu-Er-13XI, which was also supported by high expression of Toc biosynthesis genes in Zheyou-50 during early hours. Toc not only restricted the absorption of Cd by roots and its translocation to shoot but also scavenged the ROS generated during oxidative stresses. The low level of MDA shows that polyunsaturated fatty acids in chloroplast membranes remained intact. In the present study the tolerance of Zheyou-50 to Cd stress, over Jiu-Er-13XI, is attributed to the activities of Toc. This study shows that plants with high seed oil content are tolerant to Cd stress due to high production of Toc.

Cadmium, a high toxicity element, is a potential threat to plant and human health, and a dangerous pollutant in the environment. Uptake and accumulation by crops represent the main entry pathway for potentially health-threatening toxic metals into human and animal food. Crops and other plants take up Cd from the soil or water and may distribute it in their roots and shoots. Soil and/or water are usually contaminated with Cd through natural sources, industrial effluent, and anthropogenic activities. In this review, the sources of Cd contamination, evaluation of the phytotoxic effects on plants, and mode of action of Cd toxicity, were summarized. Plant defensive strategies upon excess Cd are also considered in this review. Cd-induced effects include oxidative stress, disintegration of the photosynthetic apparatus, reduction in gas exchange parameters, nutrient imbalance, and subcellular organelle degradation. In addition, Cd severely impairs biomolecules such as DNA, protein, and lipids. Although plants are sessile in nature, they are equipped with certain mechanisms to cope with unfavorable conditions. These mechanisms include synthesis of metal-helating proteins, expression of enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants, organic acids, and plant root–mycorrhiza association. The built-in system of plant tolerance to Cd can be further enhanced by the application of exogenous organic and inorganic metal sources. This review will broaden the knowledge about the Cd accumulation in plants and the responses to metal exposure, as well as our understanding of metal tolerance and overcoming this serious issue for sustainable agriculture and human health worldwide. Highlights Cd accumulation has harmful effects in an organism. Cd has been listed 7th out of 275 compounds in the priority list of hazardous materials. Cd remains in the soil for 15–1100 years. Plants usually imply certain strategies to overcome Cd toxicity. Plants built-in systems can be enhanced to overwhelmed this problem.

Unlabelled: Current stratification of prognosis in patients with epithelioid sarcoma (ES) is based largely on data reported by individual centers with a limited number of patients. We sought to identify the important prognostic parameters using the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database. We identified 441 patients with ES in the database and extracted information regarding patient demographics and clinical characteristics. Kaplan-Meier, log-rank, and Cox regression were used for analysis. Disease-specific survival declined until 100 months after diagnosis after which survival was unrelated to epithelioid sarcoma. The overall incidence of ES during 2005 was 0.041 per 100,000. The reported incidence has increased since 1973, with an annual percentage change of 5.217%. On multivariate analysis, only age younger than 16 years, local stage of disease, or negative nodes and surgical resection of the tumor predicted better disease-specific survival. We observed no increase in survival by comparing decades of diagnosis since 1986. The SEER database shows only age younger than 16 years, negative nodes, or local stage of disease and operability of primary disease independently predict survival in patients with ES.Level Of Evidence: Level II, prognostic study. See Guidelines for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Development of the new crop cultivars with high yield under low nitrogen (N) input is a fundamental approach to enhance agricultural sustainability, which is dependent on the exploitation of the elite germplasm. In the present study, four barley genotypes (two Tibetan wild and two cultivated), differing in N use efficiency (NUE), were characterized for their physiological and biochemical responses to different N levels. Higher N levels significantly increased the contents of other essential nutrients (P, K, Ca, Fe, Cu and Mn), and the increase was more obvious for the N-efficient genotypes (ZD9 and XZ149). The observation of ultrastructure showed that chloroplast structure was severely damaged under low nitrogen, and the two high N efficient genotypes were relatively less affected. The activities of the five N metabolism related enzymes, i.e., nitrate reductase (NR), glutamine synthetase (GS), nitrite reductase (NiR), glutamate synthase (GOGAT) and glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) all showed the substantial increase with the increased N level in the culture medium. However the increased extent differed among the four genotypes, with the two N efficient genotypes showing more increase in comparison with the other two genotypes with relative N inefficiency (HXRL and XZ56). The current findings showed that a huge difference exists in low N tolerance among barley genotypes, and improvement of some physiological traits (such as enzymes) could be helpful for increasing N utilization efficiency.

Effect of high temperature (HT) on anthocyanin (ANS) accumulation and its relationship with reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation in color rice kernel was investigated by using a black kernel mutant (9311bk) and its wildtype (WT). 9311bk showed strikingly higher ANS content in the kernel than WT. Just like the starch accumulation in rice kernels, ANS accumulation in the 9311bk kernel increased progressively along with kernel development, with the highest level of ANS at kernel maturity. HT exposure evidently decreased ANS accumulation in 9311bk kernel, but it increased ROS and MDA concentrations. The extent of HT-induced decline in kernel starch accumulation was genotype-dependent, which was much larger for WT than 9311bk. Under HT exposure, 9311bk had a relatively lower increase in ROS and MDA contents than its WT. This occurrence was just opposite to the genotype-dependent alteration in the activities of antioxidant enzymes (SOD, CAT and APX) in response to HT exposure, suggesting more efficiently ROS detoxification and relatively stronger heat tolerance for 9311bk than its WT. Hence, the extent of HT-induced declines in grain weight and kernel starch content was much smaller for 9311bk relative to its WT. HT exposure suppressed the transcripts of OsCHS, OsF3’H, OsDFR and OsANS and impaired the ANS biosynthesis in rice kernel, which was strongly responsible for HT-induced decline in the accumulation of ANS, C3G, and P3G in 9311bk kernels. These results could provide valuable information to cope with global warming and achieving high quality for color rice production.

Steam methane reforming (SMR) is a dominant technology for hydrogen production. For the highly energy-efficient operation, robust energy analysis is crucial. In particular, exergy analysis has received the attention of researchers due to its advantage over the conventional energy analysis. In this work, an exergy analysis based on the computational fluid dynamics (CFD)-based method was applied to a monolith microreactor of SMR. Initially, a CFD model of SMR was developed using literature data. Then, the design and operating conditions of the microreactor were optimized based on the developed CFD model to achieve higher conversion efficiency and shorter length. Exergy analysis of the optimized microreactor was performed using the custom field function (CFF) integrated with the CFD environment. The optimized catalytic monolith microreactor of SMR achieved higher conversion efficiency at a smaller consumption of energy, catalyst, and material of construction than the reactor reported in the literature. The exergy analysis algorithm helped in evaluating length-wise profiles of all three types of exergy, namely, physical exergy, chemical exergy, and mixing exergy, in the microreactor.

Abstract Background Previous reports suggest an as yet unidentifiable subset of patients with plasmacytoma will progress to myeloma. The current study sought to establish the risk of developing myeloma and determine the prognostic factors affecting the progression of disease. Methods Patients with plasmacytoma diagnosed between 1973 and 2005 were identified in the SEER database(1164 patients). Patient demographics and clinical characteristics, treatment(s), cause of death, and survival were extracted. Kaplan-Meier, log-rank, and Cox regression were used to analyze prognostic factors. Results The five year survival among patients initially diagnosed with plasmacytoma that later progressed to multiple myeloma and those initially diagnosed with multiple myeloma were almost identical (25% and 23%; respectively). Five year survival for patients with plasmacytoma that did not progress to multiple myeloma was significantly better (72%). Age > 60 years was the only factor that correlated with progression of disease (p = 0.027). Discussion Plasmacytoma consists of two cohorts of patients with different overall survival; those patients that do not progress to systemic disease and those that develop myeloma. Age > 60 years is associated with disease progression. Identifying patients with systemic disease early in the treatment will permit aggressive and novel treatment strategies to be implemented.