Polymeric organogel as an effective approach for eradication of heavy metal ions As,Pb, Cd,and Cr from the surface of groundwater through adsorption stratagem

Excess metal pollutant has affected and caused serious havoc in the lives of terrestrial as well as aquatic beings. The core of this work revolves around eradicating highly toxic heavy metal ions from underground water systems using a cost-effective, high removal efficiency polymeric adsorbent capable of adsorbing and removing ionic metals whose backbone is composed of a bio-degradable polymer, polyvinyl alcohol. The obtained adsorbent was characterized using FT-IR, HNMR, and P-XRD. Morphological studies were carried out using SEM. Detection and adsorption of metal ions were performed using SEM–EDX and AAS; wherein the adsorbent was found to remove nearly 80% of arsenic ions, 70.5% and 70.7% for lead and chromium ions while 60.7% for cadmium ions, respectively. Further, the kinetics of adsorption along with intraparticle diffusion studies were also performed to determine the mechanism alongside observing the isothermal influence of the sorbent. The adsorption capacity was seen to be highest in arsenic at around 570.42 mg g⁻¹ thus acting as a potential and effective adsorbent for the removal of heavy metal ions from groundwater.     

Identification of chicken,duck, pigeon and pig meat by species-specific markers of mitochondrial origin

In the present study, PCR based method for meat species identification of chicken, duck, pigeon and pig was achieved by developing species-specific markers. Using mitochondrial sequences species-specific primers were designed and the sizes of them were 256 bp, 292 bp, 401 bp and 835 bp for chicken, duck, pigeon and pig, respectively. The species-specific PCR products were sequenced to confirm the specificity of the product amplified. These markers were subsequently tested for cross amplification by checking them with beef, mutton, chevon, pork, rabbit, chicken, duck, turkey and pigeon meat. DNA markers developed in this study can help identify the species of fresh, cooked and autoclaved meat of chicken, duck and pigeon and fresh and cooked meat of pig. The process of identification is simple, economical and quick as compared to other methods such as RAPD, PCR-RFLP and sequencing method of species identification.     

Metal-binding particles alleviate lead and zinc toxicity during seed germination of metallophyte grass Astrebla lappacea

Combining metal-binding particles and metal-tolerant plants (metallophytes) offers a promising new approach for rehabilitation of heavy metal contaminated sites. Three types of hydrogel metal-binding polymer particles were synthesized and their effects on metal concentrations tested in vitro using metal ion solutions. The most effective of the tested polymers was a micron-sized thiol functional cross-linked acrylamide polymer which reduced the available solution concentrations of Pb(2+) (9.65 mM), Cu(2+) (4mM) and Zn(2+) (10mM) by 86.5%, 75.5% and 63.8%, respectively, and was able to store water up to 608% of its dry mass. This polymer was not toxic to seed germination. In deionised water, it enhanced seed germination, and at otherwise phytotoxic Pb(2+) (9.65 mM) and Zn(2+) (10mM) concentrations, it allowed normal germination and root elongation of the metallophyte grass Astrebla lappacea. We conclude that the polymer has the potential to facilitate restoration of heavy metal contaminated lands by reducing the concentration of metal cations in the soil solution and improving germination rates through reduced toxicity and enhanced plant water relations.     

Isolation and characterization of biosurfactant producing microorganisms from petroleum contaminated soil samples for EOR and bioremediation

Using of biosurfactant producing microorganisms for pipeline cleaning, bioremediation, enhanced oil recovery, etc. is a much soughed approach of petroleum industry. Although, many alternatives are available to serve these purposes, being ecofriendly and economic, microbial application is considered superior than most of the alternatives. This paper presents a comprehensive study on effectiveness of bacterial strain isolated from oil contaminated soil sample of Lakwa oilfield for required purposes. Its temperature sustainability and surfactant production capability was studied. Further characteristics of the produced biosurfactant were assessed through Emulsification Index measurement, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectra, Drop Collapse Test, Contact Angle and Viscosity measurement.     

Rapid synthesis of hierarchical ZSM-5 zeolites for the reactions involving larger reactant molecules

In this study, the ZSM-5 zeolites with a high hierarchy factor were synthesized rapidly and tested for the furfural hydroxymethylation (FH) to 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF). The effect of seeding techniques (STs) and templates (both soft (Cetrimonium bromide, CTAB) and hard (bio-sourced secondary template, BSST)) on the final zeolite properties were studied. A significant variation in crystallinity and morphology with the ST and type of seed was observed. The CTAB addition increased the hierarchy factor (H factor) by 3 times, and the implicit seeds decreased the hydrothermal time by 2 times. The zeolite yield, crystallinity, and pore geometry were a strong function of [CTA⁺]/[Na⁺] ratio. Slit and ink bottle-shaped pore morphologies were observed with only seed or seed + BSST and with seed + CTAB, respectively, and both exhibited the bimodal pore size distribution. The zeolites with ink bottle-shaped pores outperformed those with slit pores in the FH and showed the highest selectivity to HMF of 65%, at 34% furfural conversion. The zeolites with high H factor showed catalytic and structural stability up to 5 successive recycle runs.     

In situ development of bio‐based polyurethane‐blend‐epoxy hybrid materials and their nanocomposites with modified graphene oxide via non‐isocyanate route

We developed a series of sunflower oil‐based non‐isocyanate polyurethane (NIPU)‐blend‐epoxy hybrid materials (HNIPUs) and their nanocomposites with amine‐functionalized graphene oxide (AF‐GO). Firstly, carbonated sunflower oil (CSFO) containing five‐membered cyclocarbonate groups was synthesized by the reaction of epoxidized sunflower oil with carbon dioxide (CO₂) at a pressure of 50 bar and temperature of 110 °C. Then, a series of HNIPUs were synthesized using a mixture of CSFO and a commercially available epoxy resin in various amounts (10, 20 and 30 wt% with respect to CSFO) using isophorone diamine as the curing agent. The HNIPU with 30 wt% epoxy showed the best mechanical properties. Finally, nanocomposites of 30 wt% HNIPU‐based composition were prepared with various amounts of AF‐GO (0.3, 0.6 and 1.0 wt%) and were characterized using Fourier transform infrared and ¹H NMR spectroscopies, X‐ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. These results emphasize the potentiality of this environmentally friendly approach for preparing renewable HNIPU and nanocomposite materials of high performances. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry     

Situated Software: Concepts, Motivation, Technology, and the Future

Situated software, a type of opportunistic software, is created by a small subset of users to fulfill a specific purpose. For example, business users have been creating situated software through mashups, which combine data from multiple sources on internal systems or the Internet. Situated software can change the way users access, perceive, and consume information, and can allow users to finally focus on what to do with information, rather than where to find it or how to get to it. However, situated software also has limitations. This article identifies situated software's role, provides examples of its use, traces the Internet's role in its rapid evolution, outlines areas where it is appropriate, describes its limitations, and presents enablers for adopting situated software in an enterprise.     

Heat and mass transfer effects on fluid past an exponentially accelerated vertical plate due to time-fractional MHD-free convection

This article focuses on the study of heat and mass transfer (HMT) fluid flow over an exponentially accelerated vertical plate, which is subjected to an applied magnetic field and viscous dissipation. The research has applications in various manufacturing processes such as wire/fiber drawing, hot rolling, continuous casting, and hot extrusion, where heat transfer to the ambient medium and the hot moving material are of utmost importance. The findings could also be relevant to aerospace engineering applications. The study investigates the time-fractional natural convection phenomenon and utilizes conservation laws to derive the flow guiding equations, which are then made nondimensional. Finite difference discretization is utilized to solve the dimensionless equations implicitly. Then the flow simulation results such as concentration, temperature, and velocity profiles are discussed based on the variation in parameters such as Prandtl number ($Pr$), thermal/mass Grashof number ($\mathit{Gr}/\mathit{Gc}$), Eckert number ($\mathit{Ec}$), magnetic parameter ($M$), time-fractional order ($\lambda$), and Schmidt number $\left(\mathit{Sc}\right)$. Also, the HMT rate is depicted using the Nusselt number and skin friction plots. It is noted that HMT increases when $\mathit{Sc}$ increases and $\lambda$ decreases. The change in time-fractional order affects the velocity profiles adjacent to the wall and is more significant in the case of lower values of the Prandtl number.