Activated carbon from empty fruit bunch of oil palm and its potential in Bisphenol-A removal

Powdered activated carbon (PAC) based adsorption method is one of the promising techniques in the field of wastewater treatment due to its high efficiency, and less time consumption. Unfortunately, its application in water treatment is rather restricted due to high cost. This study used an abundant and locally available waste product generated from palm oil mill called Empty Fruit Bunch (EFB) as an alternative substituent to produce activated carbon (AC). Alternative use of this waste not only gives economic solution but also reduces environment problems caused by the waste after being disposed of into landfills and left unused. The experimental design for production of EFB-AC was prepared using Design-Expert Software. The EFB-AC was produced inside a tube furnace where the effects of activation temperature, activation time, nitrogen gas flow were investigated. EFB- AC was chemically activated using Potassium Hydroxide (KOH) as activating agent under impregnation ratio of 3:1. The effectiveness of the EFB-AC produced in the removal of Bisphenol A (BPA) was determined. BPA is considered as a typical endocrine disrupting chemical which may influence human living systems. Effects of pH, AC-Dosage and contact time on the removal of BPA were investigated. The optimum conditions for preparing the activated carbon were found at temperature of 850C with activation time of 30 minutes and nitrogen flow gas at 90 mm/min. The results show that at contact time of 48 hours, AC-dosage 1.0 g and at pH 9.0, for EFB-AC gave optimum removal of BPA at 84.9%. For comparative study between EFB-AC and commercial AC, the removal of BPA was found at 84.9% and 96.2% respectively at 48 hours contact time, 1.0 g AC-dosage and at pH 9.0. The EFB-AC was analysed using SEM, EDX and FTIR to study the characterization and microstructure of the AC produced

Modified oil palm industry solid waste as a potential adsorbent for lead removal

As one of the largest oil palm producers in the world, Malaysia also produces the most abundant residues of palm oil known as empty fruit bunch (EFB). Mismanaging of this residue such as being unused and disposed to sanitary landfills will put the environments in danger. Hence, modification and environmental application of EFB for the pollutant removal is a hot research topic in recent trend. This study involves modification of palm oil industrial residues as EFB-activated carbon and further used as an adsorbent for the removal of lead. The physicochemical property of the EFB-activated carbon was assessed using SEM, FTIR and BET. The adsorption conditions i.e., pH, adsorbent dose, and contact time for the effective removal of lead were optimized. The optimum reaction conditions for lead adsorption by the EFB-activated carbon were 10 g/L of adsorbent, pH 1.0 and 15 min as contact time for the effective removal of lead in aqueous solution. The maximum lead concentration that has removed successfully was 92.24 mg/L under the optimum condition. This study may provide solution to manage the EFB residuals generated from palm oil industries and lead contaminated in the aquatic environment

Empagliflozin in Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease

Background The effects of empagliflozin in patients with chronic kidney disease who are at risk for disease progression are not well understood. The EMPA-KIDNEY trial was designed to assess the effects of treatment with empagliflozin in a broad range of such patients. Methods We enrolled patients with chronic kidney disease who had an estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) of at least 20 but less than 45 ml per minute per 1.73 m(2) of body-surface area, or who had an eGFR of at least 45 but less than 90 ml per minute per 1.73 m(2) with a urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio (with albumin measured in milligrams and creatinine measured in grams) of at least 200. Patients were randomly assigned to receive empagliflozin (10 mg once daily) or matching placebo. The primary outcome was a composite of progression of kidney disease (defined as end-stage kidney disease, a sustained decrease in eGFR to < 10 ml per minute per 1.73 m(2), a sustained decrease in eGFR of & GE;40% from baseline, or death from renal causes) or death from cardiovascular causes. Results A total of 6609 patients underwent randomization. During a median of 2.0 years of follow-up, progression of kidney disease or death from cardiovascular causes occurred in 432 of 3304 patients (13.1%) in the empagliflozin group and in 558 of 3305 patients (16.9%) in the placebo group (hazard ratio, 0.72; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.64 to 0.82; P < 0.001). Results were consistent among patients with or without diabetes and across subgroups defined according to eGFR ranges. The rate of hospitalization from any cause was lower in the empagliflozin group than in the placebo group (hazard ratio, 0.86; 95% CI, 0.78 to 0.95; P=0.003), but there were no significant between-group differences with respect to the composite outcome of hospitalization for heart failure or death from cardiovascular causes (which occurred in 4.0% in the empagliflozin group and 4.6% in the placebo group) or death from any cause (in 4.5% and 5.1%, respectively). The rates of serious adverse events were similar in the two groups. Conclusions Among a wide range of patients with chronic kidney disease who were at risk for disease progression, empagliflozin therapy led to a lower risk of progression of kidney disease or death from cardiovascular causes than placebo