Thermodynamic, Kinetic, and Equilibrium Parameters for the Removal of Lead and Cadmium from Aqueous Solutions with Calcium Alginate Beads

The sorption of cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb) by calcium alginate beads (CAB) from aqueous solutions in batch systems was investigated. The kinetic and thermodynamic parameters, as well as the sorption capacities of CAB in each system at different temperatures, were evaluated. The rate of sorption for both metals was rapid in the first 10 minutes and reached a maximum in 50 minutes. Sorption kinetic data were fitted to Lagergren, pseudo-second-order and Elovich models and it was found that the second-order kinetic model describes these data for the two metals; comparing kinetic parameters for Cd and Pb sorption a higher kinetic rate ( 2 ) for Pb was observed, indicating that the interaction between lead cations and alginate beads was faster than for cadmium. Similarly, isotherm data were fitted to different models reported in literature and it was found that the LangmuirFreundlich (L-F) and Dubinin-Radushkevich (D-R) models describe the isotherms in all cases. CAB sorption capacity for cadmium was 27.4 mg/g and 150.4 mg/g for lead, at 25 ∘ C. Sorption capacities of Cd and Pb increase as temperature rises. According to the thermodynamic parameters, the cadmium and lead adsorption process was spontaneous and endothermic. It was also found that pH has an important effect on the adsorption of these metals by CAB, as more were removed at pH values between 6 and 7

Exploring the Biochemical Methane Potential of Wholesale Market Waste from Jordan and Tunisia for a Future Scale-Up of Anaerobic Digestion in Amman and Sfax

3 Figuras.-- 2 TablasLocal open markets, trading fruits and vegetables, are widespread in Mediterranean countries, such as Tunisia and Jordan, producing large amounts of organic waste. Applying an anaerobic digestion process on this substrate makes it crucial to evaluate the waste mixture composition and seasonal variability properly. In this study, after defining an average composition of the fruit and vegetable waste (FVW) mixture produced in Sfax (Tunisia) and Amman (Jordan) in three seasonal intervals (autumn–winter, spring, and summer), the biochemical methane potential (BMP) of an artificially created FVW mixture was individually determined by three European institutions located in Spain, Italy, and Greece. The average BMP from all three seasons and laboratories was 286 ± 52 NmL CH4 g CODadded−1, close to the theoretical maximum yield of 350 NmL CH4 g CODadded−1, indicating a high biodegradability of the waste. Τhe biochemical methane yields of the spring mixtures were not statistically different across the three labs. The most significant differences among the BMP results were obtained for the autumn/winter and the summer mixtures used in Spain, likely due to the variety or ripeness of fruits and vegetables collected in the local markets. In the other two labs in Italy and Greece, no statistical difference was observed for the BMPs of the three season mixtures within the same lab. Therefore, not a critical difference in the biodegradability of such FVW is expected along the different seasons, indicating that the operation of a full-scale digester over a whole year would constantly benefit from the supplementation of a high biochemical methane potential feedstock. Graphical Abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.]This work was funded by the project entitled “Employing circular economy approach for OFMSW management within the Mediterranean countries – CEOMED” number A_B.4.2_0058, funded under the ENI CBC MED 2014–2020 programmePeer reviewe

Application of electro-Fenton oxidation for the detoxification of olive mill wastewater phenolic compounds.

Olive mill wastewaters are powerful pollutants that are difficult to treat as they contain high concentrations of recalcitrant and toxic polyphenolics of different molecular masses. We report in this paper that pre-treatment of phenolic fractions extracted from olive mill wastewaters as well as a synthetic phenolic mixture by the electro-Fenton method is a highly efficient procedure in which low mass phenolics are polymerised to polyphenolics and removed by precipitation. This decreases the toxicity load by 78% and makes the waste amenable to further anaerobic post-treatment.Journal ArticleResearch Support, Non-U.S. Gov'tinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Antibodies to human myelin proteins and gangliosides in patients with acute neuroparalytic accidents induced by brain-derived rabies vaccine.

International audienceAntibody responses to myelin antigens were analysed in 15 patients who developed acute neuroparalytic accidents (ANPA) during post-exposure rabies vaccination using a rabies vaccine prepared on brain tissues and in 30 individuals who were uneventfully vaccinated. High titers (> or = 100) of IgG and IgM antibodies to GM1 or GD1a gangliosides were detected by enzyme linked immunosorbent-assay (ELISA) in plasmas from ANPA patients but not in controls. These data suggest that antibodies to GM1 and GD1a gangliosides may play a pathogenic role in the demyelinating and/or inflammatory processes characteristic of rabies vaccine-induced acute neurologic complications

Enzymatic pre-hydrolysis of organic fraction of municipal solid waste to enhance anaerobic digestion

Enzymatic pretreatment was proposed to enhance the anaerobic digestion of Organic Fraction of Municipal Solid Waste (OFMSW). Enzyme cocktails were produced at laboratory scale from Aspergillus niger fermentation on wheat bran (WB) and OFMSW. The effect of enzyme load, reaction time and agitation speed on OFMSW hydrolysis was determined. Results showed that enzymatic hydrolysis of OFMSW improved organic matter solubilisation. Indeed, pretreatment of OFMSW using WB and OFMSW cocktails resulted respectively in 37.1 and 34.6% change of the soluble chemical oxygen demand and 50 and 40.6% change of the reducing sugars. Anaerobic digestion tests showed that enzyme-treated OFMSW yielded higher biomethane production than raw OFMSW. After hydrolysis by WB and OFMSW cocktails, methane potential of OFMSW increased from 189.2 mL gVS?1 to around 607 and 672 mL gVS?1, respectively. The result confirmed that the use of enzyme cocktails derived from raw waste bioconversion could be a valuable approach to improve biomethane potential of organic wastes. - 2019This study was conducted within the framework of MOBIDOC-Post doc as specified in PASRI program (Agence Nationale de Promotion de la Recherche, ANPR). Financial support was provided by the Tunisian Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research ( CP-CBS/2015-2019 , Tunisia). Appendix AScopu

Dry mesophilic anaerobic co-digestion of vegetable wastes with animal manures using leach bed reactor

Anaerobic digestion is an environmentally sustainable technology for converting a variety of organic solid feedstocks to energy in the form of methane. To improve methane yield, the digestion of more than one waste is commonly applied. This study aimed to investigate the dry anaerobic co-digestion (TS of 20%) of vegetable wastes (VW) and animal manures (cow manure (CM) and poultry manure (PM)) through conducting biochemical methane potential (BMP) assays at different substrate to inoculum (S/I) ratio. Fractionation and fluorescence analyses showed that organic matter of VW was less accessible and less complex compared to that of CM and PM. The highest methane yields of mono-digestion experiments were registered with S/I 0.5. Best results of methane yield were observed by the co-digestion of VW and CM (284�mL/g VS), which was about 2.3-fold higher than that of VW mono-fermentation. This finding was confirmed at a laboratory-scale leach bed reactor. Result showed an increase of biogas yield from 220 to 445�mL/g VS, during mono and co-digestion, respectively. The co-digestion of VW and CM mixture led to the enhancement of both methane yield and digestate quality in comparison to mono-digestion. 2021, Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.This research was supported by ERANETMED project (01 DH 17060) BIOGASMENA: Demonstration of biogas technology for rural communities in the Mena region.Scopu

Exploring the Biochemical Methane Potential of Wholesale Market Waste from Jordan and Tunisia for a Future Scale‑Up of Anaerobic Digestion in Amman and Sfax

Local open markets, trading fruits and vegetables, are widespread in Mediterranean countries, such as Tunisia and Jordan, producing large amounts of organic waste. Applying an anaerobic digestion process on this substrate makes it crucial to evaluate the waste mixture composition and seasonal variability properly. In this study, after defining an average composition of the fruit and vegetable waste (FVW) mixture produced in Sfax (Tunisia) and Amman (Jordan) in three seasonal intervals (autumn–winter, spring, and summer), the biochemical methane potential (BMP) of an artificially created FVW mixture was individually determined by three European institutions located in Spain, Italy, and Greece. The average BMP from all three seasons and laboratories was 286 ± 52 NmL CH4 g CODadded−1, close to the theoretical maximum yield of 350 NmL CH4 g CODadded−1, indicating a high biodegradability of the waste. Τhe biochemical methane yields of the spring mixtures were not statistically different across the three labs. The most significant differences among the BMP results were obtained for the autumn/winter and the summer mixtures used in Spain, likely due to the variety or ripeness of fruits and vegetables collected in the local markets. In the other two labs in Italy and Greece, no statistical difference was observed for the BMPs of the three season mixtures within the same lab. Therefore, not a critical difference in the biodegradability of such FVW is expected along the different seasons, indicating that the operation of a full-scale digester over a whole year would constantly benefit from the supplementation of a high biochemical methane potential feedstock.This work was funded by the project entitled “Employing circular economy approach for OFMSW management within the Mediterranean countries – CEOMED” number A_B.4.2_0058, funded under the ENI CBC MED 2014–2020 programme