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Abstract For many reasons, water from wells and natural springs is still widely used in Morocco. 90 groundwater samples were analyzed to assess the health risks associated with its quality in the Ketama region, including physicochemical analyses such as pH, electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids, bicarbonates, and nitrates using standardized methods, as well as bacteriological analyses covering total coliforms, fecal coliforms, Escherichia coli and fecal streptococci utilizing the membrane filtration method. Assessment of groundwater physicochemical quality showed that 13.41% of samples had nitrate concentrations exceeding the maximum value set by the World Health Organization (45 mg/ L). In comparison, 12.16% of samples were slightly acidic (pH

Abstract In arid and semiarid zones, groundwater is a vital and indispensable natural resource. Indeed, these water resources have become extremely limited due to several factors, including climate change, salinization, and overexploitation. This study covers the hydrochemical characterization of groundwater in the Nekor-Ghiss plain which is located in northern Morocco. To achieve this objective, a set of 79 water samples was analyzed, for various physical and chemical parameters of the samples, including E.C, pH, TDS, HCO3 −, SO4 2−, Ca2+, Mg2+, Na+, K+, PO4 3−, NO3 −, NO2 − and NH4 +. Several methods were used to interpret the hydrochemical data, namely graphical methods, principal component analysis (PCA), hierarchical ascending classification, and ion exchange indices. A detailed geochemical study of groundwater is described to identify the origin of the chemical composition of groundwater. The results show that the samples studied are characterized by very high mineralization (> 1500 mg/l), with the predominance of Na+, Cl− and SO4 2− ions. The interpretation of geochemical signatures of groundwater in the Nekor-Ghiss plain shows sulfate-sodium (Na–SO4) and chloride-sodium (Na–Cl) facies. Natural geochemical processes are responsible for water regulation, while human activities exert a limited influence on this control. Marine intrusion, evaporation, and the ion exchange process largely control the chemistry of the aquifer. Using PCA to confirm controlled water chemistry processes revealed three homogeneous groups. The study contributes to a better understanding of the quality and mineralization of groundwater in the Nekor-Ghiss plain, and it will serve as a reference for other plains with similar characteristics.

Abstract A novel nano bio-fertilizer encapsulation method was developed to crosslink chitosan and alginate with humic acid. These nanocapsules, referred to as (Ch./Alg.HA.NPK) or (Ch./Alg.HA.NPK.PGPRs), were loaded with nanoscale essential agro-nutrients (NPK) and beneficial microorganisms Pseudomonas Fluorescence abbreviated as (P.Fluorescence). Structural and morphological analyses were conducted using FourierTransform Infrared, Thermogravimetric Analysis, Scanning Electron Microscopy, Malvern Zeta NanoSizer, and Zeta potential. Encapsulation efficiency and water retention were also determined compared to control non-crosslinked nanocapsules. The sustained cumulative release of NPK over 30 days was also investigated to 33.2%, 47.8%, and 68.3%, alternatively. The release mechanism, also assessed through the kinetic module of the Korsemeyer- Peppas Mathematical model, demonstrated superior performance compared to non-crosslinked nanocapsules (chitosan/alginate). These results show the potential of the synthesized nanocapsules for environmentally conscious controlled release of NPK and PGPRs, thereby mitigating environmental impact, enhancing plant growth, and reducing reliance on conventional agrochemical fertilizers.

Abstract The development of biobased polymeric materials for wastewater purification has become a demand due to the growing need for water free of hazardous metal ions for safe purposes. The organic components of the OLLW including carbohydrates, phenolics, aromatic acids and others are cost-effective and sustainable choices for this application. This work focuses on a method for turning the organic components of liquid waste from the olive industry (OILW) into a foam-based value-added polymer that has several metal ion binding sites. The process of making the target polymers involved reacting the components of the OILW with hexamethylene diisocyante and 1,4-phnyelene diisocynate to create the polymeric materials LHMIDIC and LPDIC that are in foam forms with urethane linkages, respectively. The adsorption competence of the polymeric foams toward Pb(II) was evaluated as a function of various parameters including adsorbent dose, pH, temperature, initial ion concentration and time. The optimum parameters values that led to a quantitative removal of Pb(II) were identified. The obtained thermodynamic parameters showed that the adsorption by the two foams was spontaneous at room temperature. The isothermal and kinetic values showed that the adsorption by synthesized foams follows a second order kinetic and obeys the Langmuir isothermal model. The foams showed a high tendency for removing multi metal ions present in a real sample of wastewater. The original nature of the starting material used in making the foam, cost and the obtained results showed the potential of using the foam in a large-scale plants of wastewater purification. Graphical Abstract

Rosmarinus officinalis L. compounds, especially its main polyphenolic compounds, carnosic acid (CA) and rosmarinic acid (RA), influence various facets of cancer biology, making them valuable assets in the ongoing fight against cancer. These two secondary metabolites exhibit formidable antioxidant properties that are a pivotal contributor against the development of cancer. Their antitumor effect has been related to diverse mechanisms. In the case of CA, it has the capacity to induce cell death of cancer cells through the rise in ROS levels within the cells, the inhibition of protein kinase AKT, the activation of autophagy-related genes (ATG) and the disrupt mitochondrial membrane potential. Regarding RA, its antitumor actions encompass apoptosis induction through caspase activation, the inhibition of cell proliferation by interrupting cell cycle progression and epigenetic regulation, antioxidative stress-induced DNA damage, and interference with angiogenesis to curtail tumor growth. To understand the molecular interaction between rosemary compounds (CA and RA) and a protein that is involved in cancer and inflammation, S100A8, we have performed a series of molecular docking analyses using the available three-dimensional structures (PDBID: 1IRJ, 1MR8, and 4GGF). The ligands showed different binding intensities in the active sites with the protein target molecules, except for CA with the 1MR8 protein.

Abstract Background Cellulose polymers with multidentate chelating functionalities that have high efficiency for toxic metal ions present in water were designed, synthesized, and analyzed. The synthesis was carried out by reacting microcrystalline cellulose extracted from the solid waste of the olive industry with tert-Butyl acetoacetate (Cell-AA), produced cellulose with β-ketoester functionality was then reacted with aniline and the amino acid glycine to produce Cell-β-AN and Cell-β-GL, respectively. Results The adsorption efficiency of the three polymers toward Pb(II) and various toxic metal ions present in sewage was evaluated as a function of adsorbent dose, time, temperature, pH value, and initial ion concentration to determine optimum adsorption conditions. The three polymers showed excellent efficiency toward about 20 metal ions present in a sewage sample collected from the sewer. The adsorption process follows the Langmuir adsorption isotherm model with a second-order of adsorption rate, the calculated qe values (2.675, 15.252, 20.856 mg/g) were close to the experimental qe values (2.133, 13.91, 18.786 mg/g) for the three polymers Cell-AA, Cell-β-AG and Cell-β-AN, respectively. Molecular Dynamic (MD) and Monte Carlo (MC) simulations were performed on the three polymers complexed with Pb(II). Conclusion The waste material of the olive industry was used as a precursor for making the target cellulose polymers with β-Amino Ester Pendant Group. The polymer was characterized by SEM, proton NMR, TGA, and FT-IR spectroscopy. The efficacy of adsorption was quantitative for metal ions present in a real sample of wastewater and the efficiency didn’t drop even after 7 cycles of use. The results indicate the existence of strong complexation. The thermodynamic study results showed a spontaneous bonding between of Pb(II) and the polymers pendant groups expressed by the negative value of the Gibbs free energy.

Abstract Background Human and veterinary antibiotics are typically discharged as parent chemicals in urine or feces and are known to be released into the environment via wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). Several research investigations have recently been conducted on the removal and bioremediation of pharmaceutical and personal care products (PPCPs) disposed of in wastewater. Results SiNP-Cu, a chelating matrix, was produced by delaying and slowing 1.5-dimethyl-1H-pyrazole-3-carbaldehyde on silica gel from functionalized with 3-aminopropyltrimethoxysilane. The prepared sorbent material was characterized using several techniques including BET surface area, FT-IR spectroscopy, Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and nitrogen adsorption–desorption isotherm. The pseudo-second-order model provided the best correlation due to the big match between the experimental and theoretical of different adsorption coefficients. The Langmuir and Freundlich adsorption models were used and the study showed a better match with the Freundlich model with a capacity of removal reached up to 420 mg g−1. The removal capacity was dependent on pH and increased by increasing pH. The removal percentage reached 91;5% at pH = 8. The adsorbent demonstrated a high percentage removal of TMP, reaching more than 94% when increased pH. The sample was simply regenerated by soaking it for a few minutes in 1 N HCl and drying it. The sorbent was repeated five times with no discernible decrease in removal capacity. The thermodynamic study also showed endothermic, increasing randomness and not spontaneous. The free energy was 2.71 kJ/mol at 320 K. The findings of the DFT B3LYP/6–31 + g (d, p) local reactivity descriptors revealed that nitrogen atoms and π-electrons of the benzene and pyrimidine rings in the TMP are responsible for the adsorption process with the SiNP surface. The negative values of the adsorption energies obtained by molecular dynamic simulation indicated the spontaneity of the adsorption process. Conclusion The global reactivity indices prove that TMP is stable and it can be removed from wastewater using SiNP surface. The results of the local reactivity indices concluded that the active centers for the adsorption process are the nitrogen atoms and the π-electrons of the pyrimidine and benzene rings. Furthermore, the positive value of the maximum charge transfer number (ΔN) proves that TMP has a great tendency to donate electrons to SiNP surface during the process of adsorption.

Graphene oxide–chitosan composites are attracting considerable interest as an eco-friendly adsorbent material for most aquatic environmental pollutants. Today, the focus is on the emerging applications of 2D and 3D graphene functionalized with chitosan to enhance its mechanical properties and adsorption efficiency. Herein, the super adsorbent 3D graphene functionalized with chitosan (3D GF-CS) is synthesized to remove sulfamethazine, (SMZ) as a model aquatic antibiotic pharmaceutical. The synthesized materials were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray photon spectroscopy (XPS), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET), and Raman spectroscopy. After that, adsorption experiments were conducted for SMZ adsorption to find out the optimized adsorption parameters, such as pH, temperature, contact time, initial antibiotic concentration, and adsorbent dosage. The results show the optimal adsorption parameters were as pH of 7, temperature of 25°C, initial antibiotic concentration Ci of 50 ppm. Also, the kinetics, isotherms models, and thermodynamics parameters of SMZ adsorption were studied. The experimental results revealed to be best suited by both the pseudo-second-order kinetic and the Freundlich isotherm model compared with other isotherm models. The thermodynamics parameters demonstrated that the adsorption is exothermic, exhibiting higher adsorption efficiency at lower temperature. In addition, Gibb’s free energy suggested the adsorption to be spontaneous as well as entropy indication of the loss of disorder. Furthermore, the regeneration of 3D GF-CS was utilized in ten consecutive cycles, and the SMZ adsorption capacity did not decline significantly. Additionally, this research studied the adsorption energies and how sulfamethazine adsorbs onto 3D GF-CS was determined by applying the density-functional–based tight binding (DFTB) and Monte Carlo simulations at different adsorption positions. The chemical reactivity (local and global) of the free drug was investigated using the density functional theory (DFT), namely, the B3LYP and PBEPBE functionals with the 6–31+G (d, p) basis set in the gas phase and aqueous solution.

Cyclotriphosphazenes, a variety of inorganic rings together with a curing ingredient, 4,4′-methylene dianiline (MDA), are mainly used to enhance the thermal conductivity and mechanical characteristics of epoxy resin (DGEBA). Three DGEBA@MDA, HGCP@MDA, and thermosets were produced, and their curing behaviors were investigated. Using a molecular dynamics (MD) approach, the impact of cyclotriphosphazene on the characteristics of DGEBA composites is thoroughly explored in this paper. Results indicated that the glass transition temperatures (Tg) of DGEBA containing HGCP had slightly decreased compared to DGEBA. With the addition of HGCP to DGEBA, epoxy resin (DGEBA@HGCP@MDA) has a high thermal conductivity of 0.215284 W/m·K, with an increase of 116.04% more than pure DGEBA (0.185524 W/m·K). Moreover, the DGEBA@HGCP@MDA composite has high mechanical strength with a specific Young’s modulus of 5.4902 GPa. In order to forecast and analyze certain performances directly associated with the microstructure characteristics of the various cross-linked resin systems and their composite materials, an MD simulation approach will be quite valuable.

In this work, we present a process for converting olive industry solid waste (OISW) into a value-added material with ionic receptors for use in the removal of toxic metal ions from wastewater. This 3D polymer is a promising adsorbent for large-scale application, since it is a low-cost material made from agricultural waste and showed exceptional performance. The synthesis of the network polymer involved the carboxymethylation of OISW and curing of the carboxymethylated OISW at an elevated temperature to promote the formation of ester linkages between OISW’s components. FT-IR, atomic force microscopy, and thermal analysis were performed on the crosslinked product. The adsorption efficiency of the crosslinked carboxymethylated OISW toward Pb(II), Cu(II), and other toxic metal ions present in sewage was evaluated as a function of adsorbent dose, temperature, pH, time, and initial metal ion. The percentage removal of about 20 metal ions present in a sewage sample collected from a sewer plant located in the Palestinian Territories was determined. The adsorption efficiency did not drop even after six cycles of use. The kinetic study showed that the adsorption process follows the Langmuir isotherm model and the second-order adsorption rate. The experimental Qe values of 13.91 and 13.71 mg/g were obtained for Pb(II) and Cu(II) removal, respectively. The thermodynamic results confirm the spontaneous metal bonding to the receptor sites of the crosslinked carboxymethylated OISW.

Water purification from toxic metals was the main objective of this work. A composite in film form was prepared from the biomaterials hydroxyapatite, chitosan and glycerol using the dissolution/recrystallization method. A nanoparticle-based film with a homogenous and smooth surface was produced. The results of total reflectance infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) and thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA/DTA) demonstrated the presence of a substantial physical force between composite components. The composite was tested for its ability to absorb Cd2+ and Zn2+ ions from aqueous solutions. Cd2+ and Zn2+ adsorption mechanisms are fit using the Langmuir model and the pseudo-second-order model. Thermodynamic parameters indicated that Cd2+ and Zn2+ ion adsorption onto the composite surface is spontaneous and preferred at neutral pH and temperatures somewhat higher than room temperature. The adsorption studies showed that the maximum adsorption capacity of the HAp/CTs bio-composite membrane for Cd2+ and Zn2+ ions was in the order of cadmium (120 mg/g) > Zinc (90 mg/g) at an equilibrium time of 20 min and a temperature of 25 °C. The results obtained on the physico-chemical properties of nanocomposite membranes and their sorption capacities offer promising potential for industrial and biological activities.

The expanding amount of remaining drug substances in wastewater adversely affects both the climate and human well-being. In the current investigation, we developed new cellulose acetic acid derivation/zeolite fiber as an effective technique to eliminate erythromycin (ERY) from wastewater. The number of interchangeable sites in the adsorbent structures and the ratio of ERY to the three adsorbents were identified as the main reasons for the reduction in adsorption as the initial ERY concentrations increased. Additionally, for all adsorbents, the pseudo–second-order modeling showed better fitting for the adsorption than the pseudo–first-order modeling. However, the findings obtained in the pseudo–first-order model were still enough for explaining the sorption kinetics of ERY, showing that the surface displayed all chemisorption and physi-sorption adsorption processes by both adsorbents. The R2 for the second order was very close to 1 for the three adsorbents in the case of pseudo–second-order. The adsorption capacity reached 17.76 mg/g. The three adsorbents showed negative values of ΔH, and these values were −6,200, −8,500, and −9600 kJ/mol for zeolite, CA, and ZCA, respectively, and this shows that the adsorption is exothermic. The desorption analysis shows no substantial loss of adsorption site after three trials, indicating higher stability and resilience of the three adsorbents, indicating a strong repeatability of their possible use in adsorption without contaminating the environment. In addition, the chemical attitude and possible donor–acceptor interactions of ERY were assessed by the quantum chemical parameters (QCPs) and NBO analysis performed, at the HF/6-311G** calculations.

Abstract Pesticides and herbicides have been used extensively in agricultural practices to control pests and increase crop yields. Paraquat (PQT2+, 1,1-dimethyl-4,4-dipyridinium chloride) is one of the herbicide that belois classified as bipyridines and is used over the world. The objective of this study is to use ketoenol–pyrazole receptor functionalized silica hybrid as adsorbent for removal PQT2+ from aqueous solution. The adsorbent was synthesized, and characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), Thermal analysis and other techniques. Different experimental parameters such as the effect of the amount of adsorbent, solution pH and temperatures and contact times were studied. Pseudo-order kinetics models were studied, and our data followed a pseudo second order. Experimental data were analyzed for both Langmuir and Freundlich models and the data fitted well with the Langmuir isotherm model. To understand the mechanism of adsorption, thermodynamic parameters like standard enthalpy, standard Gibbs free energy, and standard entropy were studied. The study indicated that the process is spontaneous, exothermic in nature and follow physisorption mechanisms. The novelty of this study showed surface of pyrazol-enol-imine-substituted silica (SiNPz) has the ability to highlight the surface designed for efficient removal of PQT2+, from aqueous solutions more than other studies. The study also showed that ketoenol–pyrazole receptor can be regenerated in five cycles using HNO3 without affecting its adsorption capacity.

This study aimed to remove carbamazepine from aqueous solutions, using functional silica phenylamine (SiBN), which is characterized and showed excellent chemical and thermal stability. Adsorbents based on silica were developed due to their unusually large surface area, homogenous pore structure, and well-modified surface properties, as silica sparked tremendous interest. It was determined to develop a novel silica adsorbent including phenylamine and amide (SiBCON). The adsorbents obtained were analyzed by various spectroscopy devices, including SEM, FT-IR and TGA analysis. The maximum removal rates for carbamazepine were 98.37% and 98.22% for SiBN and SiBCON, respectively, when optimized at room temperature, pH 9.0, initial concentration of 10 mg·L−1 and contact time of 15 min. Theoretical tools are widely used in the prediction of the power of interactions between chemical systems. The computed data showed that new amine modified silica is quite effective in terms of the removal of carbamazepine from aqueous solution. Calculation binding energies and DFT data showed that there is a powerful interaction between amine-modified silica and carbamazepine.

Olive industry solid waste (OISW) is a by-product generated in the process of olive oil extraction. It is a lignocellulosic material consisting of cellulose, hemicelluloses, lignin and other extractives. In this work, a process for hydrolyzing the OISW into its monomers glucose, the precursor of bioethanol was developed. The hydrolysis process involves two stages: in the first stage, the OISW was activated by treating it with a material that opened the cellulose structure and made it more accessible for chemical reagents. Several activating materials were evaluated among them are water, NaOH, Ca(OH)₂ and acetic acid. In the second stage, the OISW was subjected to an enzymatic treatment which hydrolyzed it into sugar. A combination of the two enzymes cellulase (endo-1,4-β-glucanase) and β-glucosidase was used in the hydrolysis. Best hydrolysis results were obtained at enzymes dose of 15.0 mg of cellulase and 20.0 mg/g of β-glucosidase per one gram of OISW at 45 oC and a pH of 4.8. A yield of 85.02% sugar was obtained from the hydrolysis of 10% NaOH pre-treated OISW under a positive pressure of air. Whereas, hydrolysis of cellulose extracted from OISW by the Kraft pulping process and bleached using DEHP beaching sequence produced about 95.30% sugar.

Abstract Background Many chemical elements that present in the human diet are essential for human life at low concentrations but can be toxic at high concentrations and chronic exposure. We aimed to assess the levels of some heavy metals in canned food that are sold in the Palestinian market and compare them with the recommended international limits. Methods A total of sixteen canned food samples were collected. The samples included four different manufactures for each of beans, chickpeas, corn and mushroom. After homogenization and samples treatment, the concentrations were determined using flame atomic absorption spectrometer IcE-3000 SERIES. Results The concentrations were found to be in the range of 0.089–1.17 mg/L for Pb, 0.019–0.32 mg/L for Cd, 2.05–10.6 mg/L for Zn and 0.79–3.97 mg/L for Cu. Cadmium and copper results were higher than the maximum permissible limit (0.006 and 0.9 mg/L, respectively), whereas lead (except for only one sample: marina corn) and zinc levels were within the maximum permissible limits (1 and 11 mg/L, respectively). Conclusions The results necessitate continuous monitoring of Cd and Cu levels and controlling of canning process to obtain food safety. As an important environmental health concern, we recommend future human biomonitoring studies to correlate environmental exposure of these elements to biological markers.

A new Integrated Pest Management program based on the combination of synthetic pesticide with a GRAS (generally recognized as safe)-classified sanitizer for the control of Botrytis cinerea in field conditions was described. The aim behind this research was to determine whether the use of this mixture would enhance the efficiency of pesticides while decreasing the recommended dose. Naturally infected tomato plants, grown in the greenhouse, were treated with two commonly used fungicides SWITCH (Syngenta, Switzerland) and SIGNUM (BASF, Germany) each alone or combined with a commercially available organic sanitizer PERACLEAN®5 (Evonik Industries, Germany). A total of 27 treatments were tested consisting of three concentrations of synthetic fungicide (×1, ×1/2 and ×1/4 of the recommended dose) either applied separately or combined with three concentrations of the tested sanitizer (0.5, 1 and 1.5%). The control efficacy achieved by the fungicides applied alone ranged between 0 and 66.7% while all fungicide-sanitizer mixtures resulted in up to 70% control of grey mould. The treatment that provides the maximum control of B. cinerea was the result mixture of ×1/4 of the recommended concentration of SWITCH (15 g L−1) with 0.5% of PERACLEAN®5. This combination suppressed 85% of grey mold infections while decreasing the usually used amount of this pesticide by 75%, reducing therefore the well known negative impacts of chemical pesticides on environment and consumers health.

The goal of this work was to develop polymer-based heterocycle for water purification from toxic pesticides such as difenoconazole. The polymer chosen for this purpose was cellulose nanocrystalline (CNC); two cellulose based heterocycles were prepared by crosslinking with 2,6-pyridine dicarbonyl dichloride (Cell-X), and derivatizing with 2-furan carbonyl chloride (Cell-D). The synthesized cellulose-based heterocycles were characterized by SEM, proton NMR, TGA and FT-IR spectroscopy. To optimize adsorption conditions, the effect of various variable such as time, adsorbent dose, pH, temperature, and difenoconazole initial concentration were evaluated. Results showed that, the maximum difenoconazole removal percentage was about 94.7%, and 96.6% for Cell-X and Cell-D, respectively. Kinetic and thermodynamic studies on the adsorption process showed that the adsorption of difenoconazole by the two polymers is a pseudo-second order and follows the Langmuir isotherm model. The obtained values of ∆G ° and ∆H suggest that the adsorption process is spontaneous at room temperature. The results showed that Cell-X could be a promising adsorbent on a commercial scale for difenoconazole. The several adsorption sites present in Cell-X in addition to the semi crown ether structure explains the high efficiency it has for difenoconazole, and could be used for other toxic pesticides. Monte Carlo (MC) and Molecular Dynamic (MD) simulation were performed on a model of Cell-X and difenoconazole, and the results showed strong interaction.

In this study, cellulose-based derivatives with heterocyclic moieties were synthesized by reacting cellulose with furan-2-carbonyl chloride (Cell-F) and pyridine-2,6-dicarbonyl dichloride (Cell-P). The derivatives were evaluated as adsorbents for the pesticide tetraconazole from aqueous solution. The prepared adsorbents were characterized by SEM, TGA, IR, and H1 NMR instruments. To maximize the adsorption efficiency of tetraconazole, the optimum conditions of contact time, pH, temperature, adsorbent dose, and initial concentration of adsorbate were determined. The highest removal percentage of tetraconazole from water was 98.51% and 95% using Cell-F and Cell-P, respectively. Underivatized nanocellulose was also evaluated as an adsorbent for tetraconazole for comparison purpose, and it showed a removal efficiency of about 91.73%. The best equilibrium adsorption isotherm model of each process was investigated based on the experimental and calculated R2 values of Freundlich and Langmuir models. The adsorption kinetics were also investigated using pseudo-first-order, pseudo-second-order, and intra-particle-diffusion adsorption kinetic models. The Van’t Hoff plot was also studied for each adsorption to determine the changes in adsorption enthalpy (∆H), Gibbs free energy (∆G), and entropy (∆S). The obtained results showed that adsorption by Cell-F and Cell-P follow the Langmuir adsorption isotherm and the mechanism follows the pseudo-second-order kinetic adsorption model. The obtained negative values of the thermodynamic parameter ∆G (−4.693, −4.792, −5.549 kJ) for nanocellulose, Cell-F, and Cell-P, respectively, indicate a spontaneous adsorption process. Cell-F and Cell-P could be promising absorbents on a commercial scale for tetraconazole and other pesticides.

In recent years, concerns have been raised about the occurrence of active raw materials and pharmaceutical ingredients that may be present in water, including wastewater, in the pharmaceutical industry. Wastewater treatment methods are not enough to completely remove active pharmaceuticals and other waste; thus, this study aims to assess the use of a multiwall carbon nanotube after derivatization and magnetization as a new and renewable absorbent for removing ibuprofen from an aqueous medium. The adsorbents were prepared by first oxidizing a multiwall carbon nanotube and then deriving the oxidized product with hydroxyl amine (m-MWCNT–HA), hydrazine (m-MWCNT–HYD), and amino acid (m-MWCNT–CYS). Adsorbents were characterized by Raman spectroscopy, Fourier Transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM and TEM), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller surface area analysis (BET), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM). Batch adsorption studies were conducted to study the effects of pH, temperature, time, and initial concentration of the adsorbate. Adsorption isotherm, kinetics, and thermodynamics studies were also conducted. The results show that the optimal pH for nearly complete removal of Ibu in a short time at room temperature was 4 for three adsorbents. The adsorption followed the Langmuir isotherm model with pseudo-second-order kinetics. The percentage of removal of ibuprofen reached up to 98.4%, 93%, and 61.5% for m-MWCNT–CYS, m-MWCNT–HYD, and m-MWCNT–HA respectively. To the best of our knowledge, the grafted MWCNTs presented in this work comprise the first example in the literature of oxidized MWCNT modified with such functionalities and applied for ibuprofen removal.

Various experimental and theoretical methods have been employed to study the effectiveness of two pyrazoline derivatives namely, 2-(4-(5-(p-tolyl)-4,5-dihydro-1H-pyrazol-3-yl)phenoxy)acetic acid (P1) and 2-(4-(5-(4-nitrophenyl)-4,5-dihydro-1H-pyrazol-3-yl)phenoxy)acetic acid (P2) as corrosion inhibitors for mild steel in 1.0 M HCl at 303 K. The inhibitors show high inhibition efficiency and their adsorption on mild steel surface was found to obey Langmuir adsorption isotherm. Potentiodynamic polarization results revealed that both compounds behaved as mixed-type inhibitors. The results from electrochemical impedance spectroscopy studies reveal an increase in polarization resistance. Density Functional Theory calculations and molecular dynamic simulations were used to give basic insights into the action mode of inhibitors as well as to substantiate the experimental results. The surface morphology of the mild steel surface was examined using Scanning Electron Microscopy and Atomic Force Microscopy.

A computational Petra/Osiris/Molinspiration/DFT(POM/DFT) based model has been developed for the identification of physic-chemical parameters governing the bioactivity of Ruthenium-Staurosporine complexes 2-4 containing an antitumoral-Kinase (TK) pharmacophore sites. The four compounds 1-4 analyzed here were previously screened for their antitumor activity, compounds 2 and 4 are neutral, whereas analogue compound 3 is a monocation with Ruthenium(II) centre. The highest anti- antitumoractivity was obtained for compounds 3 and 4, which exhibited low IC50 values (0.45 and 8 nM, respectively), superior to Staurosporine derivative (pyridocarbazole ligand 1, 150 x 103 nM). The IC50 of 3 (0.45 nM), represents 20,000 fold increased activity as compared to Staurosporine derivative 1. The increase of bioactivity could be attributed to the existence of pi-charge transfer from Metal-Staurosporine to its (COd---NHd+) antitumor phramacophore site.

As the need for water is increasing in Palestine, and the available water resources are barely sufficient to meet the demands of the current quality of life and the economy, air conditioner condensate water could be explored as an alternative water source. The objective of this study is to better understand the potential for recovery of condensate water from air conditioning systems in two Palestinian cities. In addition, this study aims to evaluate this water source in terms of quality and quantity. Generally, it was found that the condensate water has good quality, which conforms to the Palestinian standards for reused water for irrigation, except for turbidity, biological oxygen demand (BOD) and chemical oxygen demand (COD) measurements. Reflecting the heavy metal occurrence in the collected condensate water, no particular risk was recognized for drinking water or reused irrigation standards, except for manganese occurrence of 0.19 mg/L in one sample. From a single unit capacity, high quantities of water were observed of approximately 259 L and 453 L per month in Ramallah and Jericho cities, respectively. These figures should draw the attention of decision and policy makers to put in place strict technical guidelines to be followed for potential reuse of condensate water at the local level.

Yatta is a town located nine kilometers south of Hebron city in the West Bank of Palestine. The town houses over 100,000 people of which 49% are females and has a population that doubles every 15 years. Yatta has been connected to a water network since 1974 serving nearly 85% of its households. The water network is old and inadequate to meet the needs of the population. Water supply made available to the area is limited, estimated at 20 L/capita/day. Residents are thus forced to rely on water vendors who supply water that is 400% more expensive with a lower quality compared to municipal water. Therefore, rainwater harvesting is a common practice in the area, with the majority of households owning at least one cistern. Rainwater harvesting is of great socio-economic importance in areas where water sources are scarce and/or polluted. In this research, the quality of harvested rainwater used for drinking and domestic purposes in Yatta was assessed throughout one year. A total of 100 samples were collected from cisterns with an average capacity of 69 m3, which are adjacent to cement-roof catchment areas of 145 m2 average surface area. Samples were analyzed for a number of parameters including temperature, pH, alkalinity, hardness, turbidity, total dissolved solids, NO3, NH4, chloride and salinity. Results showed that most of the rainwater samples were within World Health Organization (WHO) and Environment Protection Agency (EPA) guidelines for chemical parameters. Microbiological contents such as total Coliforms and faecal Coliforms bacteria were tested. The research also addressed the impact of rainwater harvesting systems on different socio-economic attributes of the local community through a questionnaire that had been filled out before any sample was collected.

Rainwater is considered a dependable source for domestic purposes within rural areas in Palestine. Harvested rainwater stored in cisterns is used to leverage deficits from municipal water supplies. Harvested rainwater in areas surrounded with industrial and agricultural activities is usually contaminated with heavy and trace metals. To study the effects of human exposure to heavy and trace metals, 74 harvested rainwater samples of rain-fed cisterns were collected from different localities in the Yatta area of Palestine in the months of January and February of 2016. The water samples were analysed for Ca, Mg, Al, Fe, K, Na, Ag, Li, Co, Ba, Bi, Sr, Ga, V, Rb, Mo, Beand Tl elements utilizing ICP-MS (inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry). The selected trace metals were found within the concentration limits of the acceptable values, in accordance with WHO and Palestinian standards, except for K and Al, which were found above the allowed limits. The potential risks of the selected trace metals on the health of the local residents, as well as the possible sources of such heavy metals, were also studied. The Chronic daily intake (CDI) of each metal and health risk indexes (HRI) were calculated for both adults and children residents. The oral ingestion pathway was studied, including exposure via drinking water. The values for CDI were found in the descending order of: Ca > Mg > Na > K > Sr > Fe > Al > Ba > Li > V > Rb > Ag > Mo > Ga > Co > Bi > TI > Be. The values of HRI were below 1 for most of the selected heavy metals, expect for Li for children, indicating potential health risk. The study also predicted that the local residents have a higher chance of developing cancer in their lifetime, especially children, with respect to the carcinogenic risk (CRing) values for Na, Mg, Al, Ba, K, Ca, Fe and Sr, which were greater than standardized limits (>10−6). The rest of the selected elements were within the acceptable limit in the five different studied locations. Furthermore, univariate, multivariate and statistical analysis depending on one-way ANOVA, inter-metal correlation, cluster analysis (CA) and principal component analysis (PCA) results revealed that geogenic and anthropogenic activities were major sources of drinking water contamination by heavy metals in the Yatta area.

Phytopharmaceuticals play an essential role in medicine, since the need to investigate highly effective and safe drugs for the treatment of diabetes mellitus disease remains a significant challenge for modern medicine. Arbutus unedo L. root has various therapeutic properties, and has been used widely in the traditional medicine as an antidiabetic agent. The current study aimed to isolate the pharmacologically active compound from A. unedo roots using accelerated solvent extraction technology, to determine its chemical structure using different instrumental analytical methods, and also to evaluate the α-glucosidase inhibitory activity. The roots of A. unedo were exhaustively extracted by high-pressure static extraction using the Zippertex® technology (Dionex-ASE, Paris, France), and the extract was mixed with XAD-16 resin to reach quantifiable amounts of active compounds which were identified by high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC), 1H NMR (300 MHz), and 13C NMR. The antidiabetic activity of the isolated compound was evaluated using the α-glucosidase inhibitory assay. The active compound was isolated, and its structure was identified as catechin using instrumental analysis.The results revealed that the isolated compound has potential α-glucosidase inhibitory activity with an IC50 value of 87.55 ± 2.23 μg/mL greater than acarbose. This was used as a positive control, which has an IC50 value of 199.53 ± 1.12 μg/mL. According to the results achieved, the roots of A. unedo were considered the best source of catechin and the Zippertex® technology method of extraction is the best method for isolation of this therapeutic active compound. In addition, the α-glucosidase inhibitory activity results confirmed the traditional use of A. unedo roots as an antidiabetic agent. Future clinical trials and investigations of antidiabetic and other pharmacological effects such as anticancer are required.

The adsorption of chromate on octacalcium phosphate (OCP) was investigated as a function of contact time, surface coverage, and solution pH [...]

In the title compound, C14H16N4, the six-membered hexahydropyrimidine ring adopts a chair conformation. In the crystal, one of the two pyrimidine N atoms engages in N—H...N hydrogen bonding with one of the pyridine N atoms, generating a helical chain running along the c axis. The helical pitch is the length of the c axis.