Removal of copper ions from aqueous solution by adsorption using LABORATORIES-modified bentonite (organo-bentonite)

Equilibrium, kinetic and thermodynamic aspects of the adsorption of copper ions from an aqueous solution using linear alkylbenzene sulfonate (LABORATORIES) modified bentonite (organo-bentonite) are reported. Modification of bentonite was performed via microwave heating with a concentration of LABORATORIES surfactant equivalent to 1.5 times that of the cation exchange capacity (CEC) of the raw bentonite. Experimental parameters affecting the adsorption process such as pH, contact time and temperature were studied. Several adsorption equations (e.g., Langmuir, Freundlich, Sips and Toth) with temperature dependency were used to correlate the equilibrium data. These models were evaluated based on the theoretical justifications of each isotherm parameter. The Sips model had the best fit for the adsorption of copper ions onto organo-bentonite. For the kinetic data, the pseudo-second order model was superior to the pseudo-first order model. Thermodynamically, the adsorption of copper ions occurs via chemisorption and the process is endothermic (ΔH⁰>0), irreversible (ΔS⁰>0) and nonspontaneous (ΔG⁰>0).     

Design and operation of a modified silica gel column chromatography

Liquid–solid chromatography (LSC) is the oldest of the various liquid chromatography methods. Despite the fact that high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) operation leads to better separation and analysis, classical column chromatography and thin-layer chromatography (TLC) are still widely practiced because of their convenience. In this study, a modified silica gel column chromatography was designed with the objective of reducing the amount of solvent required to achieve the same degree of separation as the classical silica gel column chromatography. The separation of squalene and fatty acid steryl esters (FASEs) from non-polar lipid fraction (NPLF) of soybean oil deodorizer distillate (SODD) was employed as a model system to test the effectiveness of this new design. Modified silica gel column chromatography process is feasible from economic point of view compare to classical silica gel column chromatography because it significantly reduces the amount of solvent and time required to achieve the same degree of separation. By employing modified silica gel column chromatography to obtain the squalene-rich fraction, the mobile phase volume and elution time required as fractions of those needed in classical silica gel column chromatography are 1/73 and 1/18, respectively. To obtain the FASEs-rich fraction, the corresponding mobile phase volume and elution time are 1/221 and 1/23, respectively of those needed in classical silica gel column chromatography.     

Periodic mesoporous silica and organosilica with controlled morphologies as carriers for drug release

In this paper, we report the effects of morphology, wall composition of mesoporous materials and different buffer solutions on drug delivery profiles. Hollow spheres of periodic mesoporous organosilica (PMO) were prepared and used as drug carriers which exhibited higher loading capacity and slower release rate compared to the conventional periodic mesoporous silica (PMS) spheres and solid spheres of PMO. This hollow PMO showed promising properties as a reservoir to encapsulate and store larger quantities of guest molecules within its “empty” core. Moreover, its organic reactive sites allowed stronger interactions to the hydrophobic guest molecules, in contrast to inorganic wall possessed by PMS materials. Antibiotic tetracycline was used as a model drug to study the effect of framework difference between PMO and PMS materials on the loading and release processes. Two kinds of release medium, simulated body fluid (SBF) solution (pH 7.4) and phosphate buffer (PB) solution (pH 1.5) were used in this study, which revealed very different release profiles. A slower delivery rate was observed in SBF solution, attributed to the different ionic interactions between the guest molecule and the host material in the two different pH solutions. Overall, hollow PMO shows the lowest release rate and the highest loading amount compared to the other two materials studied herein. The kinetic study reveals that drug release from host material follows the second order kinetic model better than the first order mass transfer model.     

Optimal maintenance planning and crew allocation for multipurpose batch plants

A mathematical programming approach to optimize process plant performance subject to equipment failure is presented. The optimal production planning and scheduling in multipurpose process plants involves the efficient utilization of assets and resources to produce a number of products so as to satisfy market demands while optimizing a performance criterion. However, the degree of utilization of process plant components, within the time horizon of operation, critically depends on the level of equipment availability. The interactions between production and maintenance planning as well as the necessary links to quantify the strong interactions between them are studied. The preventive maintenance planning and crew allocation problem are used to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach. The overall problem is first formulated as an optimal control problem by integrating an aggregate production planning model with a continuous time Markov chain maintenance model. The resulting problem is then transformed into a mixed-integer linear programming model by using an Euler discretization scheme and appropriate linearizations of bilinear terms. Finally, extensions to include design aspects are also discussed. The applicability of the proposed approach is demonstrated by a number of illustrative examples.     

Facile preparation of sago starch esters using full factorial design of experiment

A facile solvent‐free method to acetylate sago starch (Metroxylon sagu) is reported. Microwave (100 W) was used as the heating source and the heating time was varied from 2 to 10 min with the temperature of acetylation maintained at 100°C under continuous stirring. Using a 2⁴ full factorial design of experiment, it was found that the degree of substitution (DS) of acetylated sago starch was strongly affected by the ratio of starch to acylating reagents, the ratio of acetic anhydride to acetic acid as the acylating reagents, the concentration of iodine as catalyst and reaction time. The physicochemical characteristics of the acetylated sago starch were assessed based on the FTIR spectra, the XRD spectra, the water absorption index (WAI), and the water solubility index (WSI). SEM was used to study the surface morphology of the acetylated sago starch at different DS.     

Characterization of a flavinogenic mutant of methanol yeast Candida boidinii and its extracellular secretion of riboflavin

A flavinogenic mutant was derived from Candida boidinii by mutagenesis. The mutant was smaller than the wild type, did not grow on a minimal medium, and required l-tryptophan, l-leucine, inositol, and nicotinate for growth. The mutant was defective in the oxidative pentose phosphate pathway, lacking glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase and 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase. The specific activities of the transaldolase and transketolase of the mutant were higher than those of the wild type. These high activities might direct the flux of the carbon source to the nonoxidative pathway with formation of a large amount of pentose phosphates, increasing riboflavin synthesis. Under microaerobic conditions at 25 degrees C, 90 mg/l riboflavin was obtained.     

Adsorption of benzene and toluene from aqueous solutions onto activated carbon and its acid and heat treated forms: influence of surface chemistry on adsorption

The influence of surface chemistry and solution pH on the adsorption of benzene and toluene on activated carbon and its acid and heat treated forms were studied. A commercial coal-based activated carbon F-400 was chosen as carbon parent. The carbon samples were obtained by modification of F-400 by means of chemical treatment with HNO3 and thermal treatment under nitrogen flow. The treatment with nitric acid caused the introduction of a significant number of oxygenated acidic surface groups onto the carbon surface, while the heat treatment increases the basicity of carbon. The pore characteristics were not significantly changed after these modifications. The dispersive interactions are the most important factor in this adsorption process. Activated carbon with low oxygenated acidic surface groups (F-400Tox) has the best adsorption capacity.     

Modified Ponorogo bentonite for the removal of ampicillin from wastewater

The adsorption of ampicillin onto natural and organo-bentonite was studied. Organo-bentonite was obtained by modifying the natural bentonite obtained from Ponorogo, Indonesia, using CTAB surfactant by microwave heating. The temperature dependent form of the Langmuir, Freundlich, Sips and Toth equations was employed to correlate equilibrium data. Based on the evaluation of the physical meaning of fitted isotherm parameters of each model, it is clear that Toth equation can represent the equilibrium data better than other models. The adsorption performance of natural and organo-bentonite for the removal of ampicillin from pharmaceutical company wastewater was also studied. In real wastewater, both adsorbents could not completely remove the ampicillin due to the sorption competition with other substances which also present in the wastewater.     

A facile noncatalytic methyl ester production from waste chicken tallow using single step subcritical methanol: Optimization study

In this modern era, an increase in urbanization causes the escalating trend of fuel demand as well as environmental pollution problems. Various biofuels research with the respect of climate change and emission reduction recently intensifies, particularly in biodiesel. In Indonesia, diesel oil currently in use contains 20% of biodiesel. Utilizing waste‐based resources such as rendered chicken tallow as the feedstock could be the solution to both energy and environmental challenges. However, chicken tallow contains a significant amount of free fatty acid (FFA) which will obstruct the production yield of biodiesel. In this study, catalyst‐free subcritical methanol has been employed to convert waste chicken tallow (WCT) with high FFA into biodiesel. Design of experiment was conducted to study the effect of temperature, time, and the molar ratio of methanol to fats on the purity and recovery of fatty acid methyl esters (FAMEs). Based on the optimization study performed by response surface methodology (RSM), all three independent variables gave a significant effect on the recovery of FAME. From the experimental results, the maximum FAME yield obtained was 98.43 ± 0.22% with the optimum condition as follows: 167°C, 36.8 minutes, and 42.7:1 (methanol/WCT, mol/mol), while the predicted FAME yield obtained using RSM was 97.76%. The methyl ester composition of WCT‐based biodiesel ranges from C13 to C24.