Carboxymethyl sago pulp/chitosan hydrogel as an immobilization medium for activated sludge for p-nitrophenol biodegradation

In this study, carboxymethyl sago pulp (CMSP) derived from sago waste was successfully crosslinked with ferric ions in the presence of chitosan forming a novel immobilization matrix for p-nitrophenol (PNP)-acclimated activated sludge. On the basis of the shortest biodegradation time of PNP, the optimized operational conditions of immobilization were found to be: 7 w/v% CMSP, 9 g L⁻¹ of activated sludge, 0.1 M ferric ion, and 15 min of crosslinking time. Observable inhibited PNP biodegradation was exhibited by the suspended activated sludge at the initial PNP concentration of 400 mg L⁻¹. In contrast, complete mineralization was achieved by the CMSP/chitosan-immobilized activated sludge (CMSP/Ch-AS) beads. The results revealed the important role of CMSP/Ch hydrogel in protecting activated sludge from the toxicity of PNP. The CMSP/Ch-AS beads could be reused consecutively up to three and two cycles, respectively, for the biodegradation of PNP at 200 and 400 mg L⁻¹, with the attainment of more than 99% of PNP removal at each cycle. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2019 , 136, 47531.     

Study on the influence of three-grid assembly thermal deformation on breakdown times and an ion extraction process

In order to study the influence of three-grid assembly thermal deformation caused by heat accumulation on breakdown times and an ion extraction process,a hot gap test and a breakdown time test are carried out to obtain thermal deformation of the grids when the thruster is in 5 k W operation mode.Meanwhile,the fluid simulation method and particle-in-cell-Monte Carlo collision(PICMCC) method are adopted to simulate the ion extraction process according to the previous test results.The numerical calculation results are verified by the ion thruster performance test.The results show that after about 1.2 h operation,the hot gap between the screen grid and the accelerator grid reduce to 0.25–0.3 mm,while the hot gap between the accelerator grid and the decelerator grid increase from 1 mm to about 1.4 mm when the grids reach thermal equilibrium,and the hot gap is almost unchanged.In addition,the breakdown times experiment shows that 0.26 mm is the minimal safe hot gap for the grid assembly as the breakdown times improves significantly when the gap is smaller than this value.Fluid simulation results show that the plasma density of the screen grid is in the range 6?×10~(17)–6?×?10~(18) m~(13) and displays a parabolic characteristic,while the electron temperature gradually increases along the axial direction.The PIC-MCC results show that the current falling of an ion beam through a single aperture is significant.Meanwhile,the intercepted current of the accelerator grid and the decelerator grid both increase with the change in the hot gap.The ion beam current has optimal perveance status without thermal deformation,and the intercepted current of the accelerator grid and the decelerator grid are 3.65 m A and 6.26 m A,respectively.Furthermore,under the effect of thermal deformation,the ion beam current has over-perveance status,and the intercepted current of the accelerator grid and the decelerator grid are 10.46 m A and 18.24 m A,respectively.Performance test results indicate that the breakdown times increase obviously.The intercepted current of the accelerator grid and the decelerator grid increases to 13 m A and 16.5 m A,respectively,due to the change in the hot gap after 1.5 h operation.The numerical calculation results are well consistent with performance test results,and the error comes mainly from the test uncertainty of the hot gap.     

基于集成构架的智能MCC在钾肥项目中的应用

结合国投新疆罗布泊钾盐有限责任公司年产120万吨钾肥项目,介绍了集成架构理念,智能MCC控制方式,从顶层工作站对底层电机监控的实现.     

HPMC-based granules for prolonged release of phytostrengtheners in agriculture

One of the main aims in agriculture is to guarantee soil wellness, which is a fundamental requirement to produce high-quality crops with high yields. Focused on this aim, periodical administrations of nutrients or phytostrengtheners are often necessary. The most relevant disadvantages of these administrations are the high dosage number required and the low availability of the substance within the soil. For these reasons, a crucial goal to increase the economic and environmental sustainability of the cultivation process is to reduce the dosage number, which can be obtained increasing the active substance availability in the soil. A granular hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) matrix, produced using the wet granulation process, was used to encapsulate a phytostrengthener and to guarantee its controlled release. The granular product was characterized in terms of granules properties and phytostrengtheners leaching within the soil. The results showed good flowability and mechanical properties of the granules as well as the possibility to reduce the product leaching with the phytostrengtheners encapsulation in the HPMC matrices.     

A comparison of chitosan-silica and sodium starch glycolate as disintegrants for spheronized extruded microcrystalline cellulose pellets

Chitosan-silica coprecipitate (C-S) has recently been proposed as a tablet disintegrant. In this study we compared it with a 1:1 physical mixture of chitosan and silica (C/S) at the same composition as the coprecipitate, and with the widely used commercial disintegrant sodium starch glycolate (SSG), as regards to its behavior in spheronized extruded pellets of microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) containing hydrochlorothiazide as a typical poorly water-soluble drug. In all three cases, possible synergism between the disintegrant (0–5%) and sorbitol (0–50%) was also evaluated. All the formulations examined exhibited appropriate morphology and had satisfactory mechanical and flow properties. Drug release depended mainly on sorbitol content, however C-S accelerated drug release at all sorbitol levels (the fastest release was from 50% sorbitol pellets with C-S, which disintegrated), whereas C/S did not vary drug release from pellets, and SSG depressed drug release, especially from 50% sorbitol pellets.     

Intervertebral Disc Regeneration Injection of a Cell-Loaded Collagen Hydrogel in a Sheep Model

Degenerated intervertebral discs (IVDs) were treated with autologous adipose-derived stem cells (ASC) loaded into an injectable collagen scaffold in a sheep model to investigate the implant’s therapeutic potential regarding the progression of degeneration of previously damaged discs. In this study, 18 merino sheep were subjected to a 3-step minimally invasive injury and treatment model, which consisted of surgically induced disc degeneration, treatment of IVDs with an ASC-loaded collagen hydrogel 6 weeks post-operatively, and assessment of the implant’s influence on degenerative tissue changes after 6 and 12 months of grazing. Autologous ASCs were extracted from subcutaneous adipose tissue and cultivated in vitro. At the end of the experiment, disc heights were determined by µ-CT measurements and morphological tissue changes were histologically examined.Histological investigations show that, after treatment with the ASC-loaded collagen hydrogel implant, degeneration-specific features were observed less frequently. Quantitative studies of the degree of degeneration did not demonstrate a significant influence on potential tissue regeneration with treatment. Regarding disc height analysis, at both 6 and 12 months after treatment with the ASC-loaded collagen hydrogel implant a stabilization of the disc height can be seen. A complete restoration of the intervertebral disc heights however could not be achieved.The reported injection procedure describes in a preclinical model a translational therapeutic approach for degenerative disc diseases based on adipose-derived stem cells in a collagen hydrogel scaffold. Further investigations are planned with the use of a different injectable scaffold material using the same test model.     

Highly stretchable self-sensing actuator based on conductive photothermally-responsive hydrogel

Soft robots built with active soft materials have been increasingly attractive. Despite tremendous efforts in soft sensors and actuators, it remains extremely challenging to construct intelligent soft materials that simultaneously actuate and sense their own motions, resembling living organisms’ neuromuscular behaviors. This work presents a soft robotic strategy that couples actuation and strain-sensing into a single homogeneous material, composed of an interpenetrating double-network of a nanostructured thermo-responsive hydrogel poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAm) and a light-absorbing, electrically conductive polymer polypyrrole (PPy). This design grants the material both photo/thermal-responsiveness and piezoresistive-responsiveness, enabling remotely-triggered actuation and local strain-sensing. This self-sensing actuating soft material demonstrated ultra-high stretchability (210%) and large volume shrinkage (70%) rapidly upon irradiation or heating (13%/°C, 6-time faster than conventional PNIPAAm). The significant deswelling of the hydrogel network induces densification of percolation in the PPy network, leading to a drastic conductivity change upon locomotion with a gauge factor of 1.0. The material demonstrated a variety of precise and remotely-driven photo-responsive locomotion such as signal-tracking, bending, weightlifting, object grasping and transporting, while simultaneously monitoring these motions itself via real-time resistance change. The multifunctional sensory actuatable materials may lead to the next-generation soft robots of higher levels of autonomy and complexity with self-diagnostic feedback control.     

Tuning the thermoresponsive properties of poly(oligo(propylene glycol) methacrylate) hydrogels via gradient copolymerization with 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate

Gamma radiation was used to prepare copolymer hydrogel libraries based on oligo(propylene glycol) methacrylate (OPGMA) and 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA); a complete screening in composition of P(OPGMA/HEMA) copolymers was elaborated from 0% to 100% of OPGMA. Determination of gel fraction was performed as the first step after radiation induced synthesis. Tuning of the volume phase transition temperature (VPTT) of P(OPGMA/HEMA) copolymeric hydrogels was investigated by swelling study. Additional characterization of structure and properties was conducted by FTIR, DSC, and UV-Vis spectroscopy. All results indicate that new P(OPGMA/HEMA) copolymeric hydrogels have wide diversity in thermoresponsive properties which strongly depend on their composition.