Synthesis Mechanism and Thermal Optimization of an Economical Mesoporous Material Using Silica: Implications for the Effective Removal or Delivery of Ibuprofen.

Mesoporous silica materials (MSMs) were synthesized economically using silica (SiO2) as a precursor via a modified alkaline fusion method. The MSM prepared at 500°C (MSM-500) had the highest surface area, pore size, and volume, and the results of isotherms and the kinetics of ibuprofen (IBP) removal indicated that MSM-500 had the highest sorption capacity and fastest removal speed vs. SBA-15 and zeolite. Compared with commercial granular activated carbon (GAC), MSM-500 had a ~100 times higher sorption rate at neutral pH. IBP uptake by MSM-500 was thermodynamically favorable at room temperature, which was interpreted as indicating relatively weak bonding because the entropy (∆adsS, -0.07 J mol(-1) K(-1)) was much smaller. Five times recycling tests revealed that MSM-500 had 83-87% recovery efficiencies and slower uptake speeds due to slight deformation of the outer pore structure. In the IBP delivery test, MSM-500 drug loading was 41%, higher than the reported value of SBA-15 (31%). The in vitro release of IBP was faster, almost 100%, reaching equilibrium within a few hours, indicating its effective loading and unloading characteristics. A cost analysis study revealed that the MSM was ~10-70 times cheaper than any other mesoporous silica material for the removal or delivery of IBP

Artificial switches induce the bespoke production of functional compounds in marine microalgae Chlorella by neutralizing CO2

Abstract To improve the CO2 tolerance of a marine microalga Chlorella sp. of which the production capacity has been demonstrated industrially, a mutant library was created and a strain hct53 was screened. Compared to the parental strain, hct53 shows a high CO2 capture capacity, while starch biosynthesis is compromised, with increases in health beneficial metabolites and antioxidant capacity. Global gene expression and genome-wide mutation distribution revealed that transcript choreography was concomitant with more active CO2 sequestration, an increase in the lipid synthesis, and a decrease in the starch and protein synthesis. These results suggest that artificial trait improvement via mutagenesis, couple with multiomics analysis, helps discover genetic switches that induce the bespoke conversion of carbon flow from “redundant metabolites” to valuable ones for functional food

TEM images of MSM-500 (A) before and (B) after the fifth adsorption of IBP.

<p>TEM images of MSM-500 (A) before and (B) after the fifth adsorption of IBP.</p

Mechanism of MSM synthesis and IBP adsorption.

<p>Mechanism of MSM synthesis and IBP adsorption.</p

Temperature effect of IBP adsorption onto MSM-500.

<p>Temperature effect of IBP adsorption onto MSM-500.</p

IBP uptake by MSM-500 at several recycles: (A) kinetics, (B) <i>q</i>_<i>eq</i>, (C) <i>K</i>_<i>2</i>, and (D) <i>v</i>_<i>0</i> according to the number of recycles.

<p>IBP uptake by MSM-500 at several recycles: (A) kinetics, (B) <i>q</i>_<i>eq</i>, (C) <i>K</i>_<i>2</i>, and (D) <i>v</i>_<i>0</i> according to the number of recycles.</p

Isotherm parameters obtained by fitting equilibrium data with the Freundlich and Langmuir isotherms for the adsorption of IBP on MSMs.

<p>^a<i>k</i>_F in mg^1–1/n L^1/n g^–1, <i>K</i>_L: Langmuir constant, <i>k</i>_F and <i>n</i>: Freundlich constants, <i>q</i>_max: maximum amount of adsorbate.</p><p>Isotherm parameters obtained by fitting equilibrium data with the Freundlich and Langmuir isotherms for the adsorption of IBP on MSMs.</p

Synthesis Mechanism and Thermal Optimization of an Economical Mesoporous Material Using Silica: Implications for the Effective Removal or Delivery of Ibuprofen - Fig 2

<p>(A) Adsorption isotherms of the MSMs calcined at different temperatures. (B) Kinetics of IBP uptake by MSMs calcined at different temperatures.</p

<i>In vitro</i> release of IBP from MSM-500 at different pH.

<p><i>In vitro</i> release of IBP from MSM-500 at different pH.</p