Effect of pretreatment of biosorbent in biosorption: A comparative study

The textile industry generates large amounts of wastewater with strong BOD/COD and salt load, which are often seen in dark colour. An alternative treatment for this type of wastewater is the biosorption, where it involves a passive uptake of both the organic and inorganic compounds, including dye or its derivatives, using non-growing/living microbial mass. Biosorbent pretreatment, autoclaving techniques and combined with the chemical processes, such as acidification, were discussed. The response surface methodology (RSM) is used for researching and developing the effect of pH, contact time, dosage, and biosorbent size in the biosorption process in synthetic textile wastewater using Bjerkandera adusta. When the pH was 4, and the contact time, biosorbent dosage and biosorbent size were 90 minutes, 3000 mg/L and 0.4 mm, respectively, the optimal removal circumstance was able to be verified, at 53.55%, and 81.3% of colour removals were demonstrated through the experimental procedure. This leads to the high acceptance of the experimental findings and model forecast. In the optimisation of experimental parameters, the quadratic model estimated both R2 and R2adj correlation coefficients quite satisfactorily as 0.988, 0.977, 0.926, and 0.783, respectively. It is more effective to combine the autoclaving technique with chemical processes than adopting just the autoclaving method. The two-sided t-test was used to identify any significant variations in the preparation techniques of biosorbents using p < 0.05. The biosorbent study using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and characterisation of surface functional group using Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy confirms the results obtained

Overview of trends in crude palm oil production and economic impact in Malaysia

Palm oil has become a major edible and economic commodity with applications in various domestic and industrial processes. Malaysia is the second largest producer and exporter of crude palm oil (CPO). The oil palm industry in Malaysia significantly expanded and has become a major economic sector. The global demand of this precious commodity as food and fuel has caused a significant upsurge in production of oil palm. A tremendous increase of CPO production has been witnessed in the Malaysian oil palm industry over a decade now. The CPO production in 2011 was about 11.8 million tonnes but skyrocketed to 19.92 million tonnes in 2017. Beyond the revenue generation from the oil palm industry in Malaysia, there is significant investment in research and development that has resulted in the discovery of more sustainable ways to manage oil palm waste. This overview therefore seeks to evaluate the trend in crude palm oil production in Malaysia and its economic contribution to the nation from 2007-2017. Various indices associated with crude palm oil production such as planted land area, volume of exported CPO, revenue generated from the exported CPO, average annual price of exported CPO, fresh fruit yield and oil extraction rate was discussed. This overview is limited to crude palm oil production within 2007-2017 and seeks to discuss the trend within the context of the timeframe

Iodine Content in Urine Samples among Malays and Aborigines

A study was conducted to compare the urinary iodine concentrations in populations from Pahang, Central Malaysia, with those in the capital city Kuala Lumpur, and to compare those of Malays from villages at Batu Talam, Batu Malim, FELDA Sungai Koyan and Hulu Sungai with neighboring aboriginal settlements at Lanai and Buntu. Two hundred and forty urine samples were collected randomly among the population (male 1 1 1 and female 129). The urinary iodine concentrations, measured by the ashing method, among Malays were as follows: Batu Talam 1.1-7.6 micrograms/dl, Batu Malim 1.4-6.6 micrograms/dl, FELDA Sungai Koyan 0.5-6.9 micrograms/dl and Hulu Sungai 0.6-9.9 micrograms/dl. Among aborigines, the urinary iodine levels were 0.1-2.9 micrograms/dl in Lanai and 1.7-6.5 micrograms/dl in Buntu. There was a significant difference in the levels of urinary iodine with regard to gender, but not regarding age. The aborigines had significantly lower iodine levels than Malays (P &#60; 0.001). This difference was also significant with regard to location. The urinary iodine content in Kuala Lumpur was the highest and that in the aboriginal Lanai village was the lowest. Thus, the study showed that the levels of iodine in the urine were influenced by ethnicity and geographic location.</p

Performance evaluation of POME treatment plants

Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME)'s nutrient composition and its ensuing removal from the wastewater is rarely reported in contrast with organics removal. Thus, the efficiency of several Industrial Effluent Treatment Systems (IETS) in nutrient removal are studied. Many laboratory- and full-scale studies have been constructed to examine the effectiveness of nutrient removal with a single technology. Therefore, this paper observed their efficiency after several unit processes were combined to perform, which generally occurred in the full-scale IETS. Total Nitrogen (T-N), Ammoniacal Nitrogen (A-N), and Total Phosphorus (T-P) were nutrient parameters investigated. IETS-3 with highest nutrient removal efficiency were 92.5% T-N, 94.5% A-N, and 93.5% T-P, which highlighted positive combination of ponding system, anaerobic digesters and extended aeration coupled with fixed packing in activated sludge aeration tank. Removal of biological nutrients need to move forwards with cradle-to-cradle waste management methodologies, which focus on sustainable recovery of essential nutrients via operative technologies

Copper in water, sediment and strombus canarium at south western coast of Peninsular Malaysia

Cu concentration was determined in water, sediment and soft tissue of deposit feeder Strombus canarium collected from two sites at western coast of Johor Straits, Malaysia. The sites are located at Tanjung Bin and the seagrass bed near Tanjung Kupang. The study found higher concentration in Strombus canarium from seagrass bed than those in Tanjung Bin which were 7.02 and 3.71 μg/g respectively. Smaller concentration in Strombus canarium from Tanjung Bin is due to less Cu accumulation from its surrounding. However, the concentrations were within the permissible limit of Malaysian Food Standard. The concentration of Cu in water at both sites exceeded the Malaysia Marine Water Quality Criteria and Standard for Class E, whereas sediment is classified as moderately polluted based on the proposed quality by Environmental Protection Agency

Potential use of fruit seeds and plant leaves as coagulation agent in water treatment

The treatment of turbid water by coagulation-flocculation was found to be the most common and cost-effective method. Over the years, chemical coagulants have been widely applied to enhance the coagulation process. However, the utilisation of chemical coagulants exhibits several drawbacks, including generation of voluminous sludge and being non-biodegradable as well as toxic compounds to aquatic life. Due to global concerns over the harmful effects, the application of natural coagulants is a promising solution. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate the potential of plant-based natural coagulants to replace chemical coagulants for water treatment. Fruit seeds (Carica papaya, Nephelium mutabile, and Euphoria malaiense seeds) and plant leaves (Pandanus, Centella asiatica, and Cymbopogon citratus leaves) were selected as natural coagulants in this study. A series of jar tests were performed using raw water from a water treatment plant. The effects of pH and coagulant dosage were evaluated based on the turbidity removal and coagulation activity. Of all the examined plants, the Carica papaya seeds appeared to be the best coagulant for water treatment. An optimum dose of 130 mg/L of this coagulant resulted in a 95.5% turbidity removal and 94% coagulation activity, at optimum pH 7.5. Overall, this study reveals the potential use of fruit seeds and plant leaves as coagulation agents in the water treatment process

The Prospect of Biochar by Oil Palm Empty Fruit Bunch (OPEFB) in the Removal of Contaminants Emerging Concern (CECs)

Although pharmaceuticals are detected at low levels, their continued release into the environment might result in significant long-term concentrations and lead to damaging consequences on humans, animals, and the environment. The findings have been analysed that various pharmaceutical components were found in sewage treatment plants, including naproxen sodium. Naproxen sodium has been found in various water sources, such as in groundwater and in drinking water. Utilizing OPEFB as adsorbent in wastewater treatment is a feasible alternative. This study focussed on the adsorption capacity of OPEFB biochar for naproxen removal water. The highest percentage removal (99.7%) of naproxen achieved at 100 ppm concentration with 2.5 g of OPEFB biochar. Meanwhile, the usage of 5.0g of OPEFB biochar showed the highest percentage of the removal of naproxen sodium at 100 ppm concentration after 24 hours was 99.27%. OPEFB is one of the most suitable and have the potential in removing almost all the pollutants in wastewater by undergoing the adsorption process

Soil bio-cementation treatment strategies : state-of-the-art review

Bio-cementation is a new sustainable approach that has gained popularity due to its low energy and carbon dioxide footprint compared with those of existing technologies for geotechnical and geoenvironmental engineering applications. Bio-cementation is a soil improvement technique that involves binding the pore space of soil particles with calcium carbonate minerals by microbially induced carbonate precipitation (MICP) and filling the soil pore space. The purpose of this paper is to present the current state of the art and a comprehensive discussion on the development of bio-cementation for soil improvement/reinforcement. Premixing, injection, immersing and surface percolation are identified as four distinct bio-cementation treatment techniques. Furthermore, scholars have reported employing ureolytic bacteria such as Sporosarcina pasteurii, Bacillus sphaericus and Lysinibacillus sphaericus isolated from corals, limestone caves, soils, waste materials, seawater and other sources to accomplish effective biocementation. Some of the major issues (bacterial cultivation costs and ammonium production) that impede its industrial potential and promising remedial techniques are also discussed. This state-of-the-art review also discusses the benefits and drawbacks of bio-cementation compared with traditional approaches. The significance of enzymeinduced carbonate precipitation as a soil bio-cementation alternative to MICP is also highlighted. Finally, the sustainable procedure, bio-cementation principles and future implications are discussed

Turbid water treatment using deshelled carica papaya seed: Analysis via factorial design

Natural coagulants are proven to be a good alternative to conventional coagulants with the removal of various pollutants and are environmentally friendly. Despite its advantages, the least studies were carried out on local agro-wastes such as papaya seeds as natural coagulants concerning different operational factors. The study analyzes the main and interactions effect between the coagulant dosage, initial turbidity, and pH on deshelled Carica papaya seeds for turbid water treatment. A 2-level factorial design was used to investigate the main and interaction effects of the main operational factors, viz. coagulant dosage (50-200 mg/L), pH (3-7), and initial turbidity (100-500 NTU) on the turbidity removal of the synthetic turbid water. Based on individual performance, the results suggested that initial turbidity and pH are the most significant factors among the investigated operational factors. In combination, all interactions are significant, but the interaction between initial turbidity and pH is most significant, with 97.2% turbidity removal. Upon application of Carica papaya seed as a natural coagulant in water and wastewater treatment, these operating variables and their interactions are best to be considered