Influence of Sm and Cd co-substitutions on physical,magnetic, Mössbauer,electric, and dielectric properties of Co2X hexagonal ferrites in presence of a hematite phase

X-type samarium-cadmium co-substituted hexaferrite with compositions Ba_2-xSm_xCo₂Cd_yFe_28-yO₄₆ (0.00 ≤ x ≤ 0.08, and 0 ≤ y ≤ 0.4) were prepared at 1340 °C using a simple heat treatment technique. All heated samples were characterized using FTIR, XRD, SEM, VSM, M?ssbauer, and low-frequency dielectric measurements. XRD analysis of prepared samples shows the formation of X as a major phase along with hematite. The M_S value varied from 67.01 Am²/kg to 50.43 Am²/kg; whereas the H_c value changed from 2.95 kA/m to 6.17 kA/m, A high value of M_S (67.01 Am²/kg) is observed in the pure sample, and a very low value of H_c (2.95 kA/m) is observed for x = 0.06, y = 0.3 compositions, but Mr/Ms < 0.5 confirm the multi-domain nature of prepared hexaferrites. Hysteresis loops of all samples are narrow, and confirmed that formed samples belong to magnetically soft. Mössbauer spectra of the three samples (S1, S3, and S5) show the existence of doublets. Significantly low values of coercivity, retentivity, and loss tangent in Sm–Cd substituted samples signified those prepared materials can be used to design electromagnets, transformer cores, electric motors, and maybe a potential candidate for lossless low-frequency applications.     

Flow distribution and mass removal in floating treatment wetlands arranged in series and spanning the channel width

Floating treatment wetlands (FTWs) use plants’ roots for water quality improvement. The plants are supported by a buoyant structure deployed at the water surface. The roots form a porous zone beneath the structure and remove pollutants carried in suspension through filtering, absorption and uptake. This paper used CFD simulation to model FTWs arranged in series and spanning the channel width and to study the effects of root length and spacing between FTWs on flow distribution and mass removal. The root zone was modelled as a porous media, and removal was computed using first-order decay, for which a range of removal constants was tested. Longer roots increased the reactive volume of the root zone, which increased the fraction of pollutant inflow entering the FTWs. Increasing the distance between FTWs allowed greater mixing between water that went through and beneath the upstream FTW. This increased the concentration entering each FTW, which enhanced mass removal per FTW. However, a larger distance between FTWs reduced the number of FTWs in the channel, reducing the reactive volume. In the tradeoff between mixing and reactive volume, the reactive volume was more important, such that total removal in the channel increased with longer roots and more units of FTW (shorter gap distance). However, removing the gap entirely was detrimental, as FTWs in series removed more mass than a continuous FTW of same volume. This study points to two design recommendations for FTWs in series. First, if resources for building FTWs are not limiting, but the channel length is, it is preferable to prioritize higher reactive volume (shorter gap distance) to achieve maximum removal per channel length. Second, if resources for FTWs are limiting, but channel length is not, it is better to place the FTWs with a longer gap distance, preferably along enough to allow mixing over the full depth between FTWs, as this will achieve maximum removal per FTW.     

浅析深孔爆破施工技术与成本控制的关系

以工程实践为基础,对深孔爆破的成本控制与施工方法、技术的关系进行了探讨。在不规则地形的情况下,有必要通过浅孔爆破进行平台的修正和根底的处理,使深孔台阶爆破处于良性循环中。把握好布孔、验孔、根底处理等主要工艺过程以及防止拒爆,是确保爆破安全、提高爆破质量和有效地控制成本的关键。     

Statistical optimization of operating parameters of microbial electrolysis cell treating dairy industry wastewater using quadratic model to enhance energy generation

The performance of Microbial electrolysis cell (MEC) is affected by several operating conditions. Therefore, in the present study, an optimization study was done to determine the working efficiency of MEC in terms of COD (chemical oxygen demand) removal, hydrogen and current generation. Optimization was carried out using a quadratic mathematical model of response surface methodology (RSM). Thirteen sets of experimental runs were performed to optimize the applied voltage and hydraulic retention time (HRT) of single chambered batch fed MEC operated with dairy industry wastewater. The operating conditions (i.e) an applied voltage of 0.8 V and HRT of 2 days that showed a maximum COD removal response was chosen for further studies. The MEC operated at optimized condition (HRT- 2 days and applied voltage- 0.8 V) showed a COD removal efficiency of 95 ± 2%, hydrogen generation of 32 ± 5 mL/L/d, Power density of 152 mW/cm² and current generation of 19 mA. The results of the study implied that RSM, with its high degree of accuracy can be a reliable tool for optimizing the process of wastewater treatment. Also, dairy industry wastewater can be considered to be a potential source to generate hydrogen and energy through MEC at short HRT.     

Improvement of gaseous bioenergy production from spent coffee grounds Co-digestion with pulp wastewater by physical/chemical pretreatments

Two steps of hydrolysis and anaerobic biogas production processes was investigated in this study. In the first step, subcritical water (SBW) hydrolysis and chemical (acid/alkali) pretreatments were carried out to enhance hydrolysis efficiency by obtaining and analyzing the total volatile fatty acids (TVFA), chemical oxygen demand (COD), and total sugar productions from spent coffee grounds (SCG) hydrolysate. The subcritical water (SBW) hydrolysis under the condition of temperature 150 °C for 30 min can greatly improve the organic matter breakdown and reached the COD concentration of 1010 g/L which was 30% higher than the untreated raw SCG. For chemical pretreatments, it was found that the alkaline hydrolysis of SCG resulted in the greatest total sugar concentration of 181 g/L whereas the operation conditions were 2.0 M NaOH at 60 °C for 1 h. The peak of TVFA concentration 3725 mg/L was found at the acid hydrolysis of SCG with 1.0 M H₂SO₄ acid, 60 °C for 1 h. The optimal biomethane yield of 115 mL/g COD was obtained when 1.0 M H₂SO₄ acid hydrolysate co-digestion with pulp wastewater which increase methane yield production 8 times of raw pulp wastewater. The pretreatment process was confirmed in this study can significant improve the converting of the biowastes to bioenergy efficiency.     

Effects of non-thermal plasma treating wheat kernel on the physicochemical properties of wheat flour and the quality of fresh wet noodles

The effects of non-thermal plasma (NTP) on the physicochemical properties of wheat flour and the quality of fresh wet noodles ( FWN) were investigated. The results showed that NTP effectively decreased the total plate count (TPC), yeast and mould count (YMC) and Bacillus spp. in wheat flour. Wet gluten contents and the stability time reached the maximum when treated for 20 s. The viscosity of starch increased significantly after treatment due to the increased of damaged starch. The contents of secondary structure were altered to some extent, which was because that the ordered network structure of gluten protein broken. Furthermore, compared with the control, texture properties of FWN were enhanced significantly at 20 s, and the darkening rate of FWN was greatly inhibited due to the low polyphenol oxidase (PPO) activity. Consequently, the most suitable treatment was 500 W for 20 s, providing a basis for the application of NTP in flour products.     

Effect of heat moisture treatment on resistant starch content among carbohydrate sources: a meta-analysis

Resistant starch (RS) can be generated through heat moisture treatment (HMT). The HMT was conducted by modifying starch using different ratio of moisture content, high temperature and heating time. A number of studies showed that the effects of HMT on RS contents in cereals, pulses, tubers and fruits were inconsistent. This study aimed to analyse the impact of HMT on RS level in various carbohydrate sources through a meta-analysis approach. Study selection was conducted with the PRISMA method. There were 21 relevant studies and 67 data used for meta-analysis. The database was analysed by using Hedges’ d. The results showed that there was a significant impact of HMT on RS level of cereals, especially wheat. The highest increase in RS levels for various carbohydrate sources in starch was influenced by the interaction of treatment between water content at 15 ≤ x < 25%, heating time at 0.25 < x ≤ 6 h and temperature at 120 ≤ x ≤ 130 °C.     

Kinetic analysis of crystallization of zeolite beta synthesized by direct heating

To quantitatively investigate the initial crystallization of zeolite beta synthesized by direct heating, the extent of the reaction was precisely evaluated by X-ray diffraction measurements and Rietveld structural refinement, and a kinetic analysis of crystallization was performed using the Avrami-Erofe'ev equation. The activation energy for crystallization was lower than that for hydrothermal synthesis. Reaction and synthesis time curves revealed that the initial zeolite beta crystallization consisted of three stages. The first was an induction period with nucleation by the generation of building units and the formation of an initial coordinated structure. The second stage was crystal growth by a diffusion-controlled reaction, and the third stage involved slowing down of crystallization by the limitation of dehydrocondensation. These stages could be analyzed by calculation of the rate constant and Avrami exponent for each stage.