Factors governing the pre-concentration of wastewater using forward osmosis for subsequent resource recovery

This study demonstrated a technique using forward osmosis (FO) to pre-concentrate the organic matter in raw wastewater, thereby transforming low strength wastewater into an anaerobically digestible solution. The chemical oxygen demand (COD) of raw wastewater was concentrated up to approximately eightfold at a water recovery of 90%. Thus, even low strength wastewater could be pre-concentrated by FO to the range suitable for biogas production via anaerobic treatment. Excessive salinity accumulation in pre-concentrated wastewater was successfully mitigated by adopting ionic organic draw solutes, namely, sodium acetate, and EDTA-2Na. These two draw solutes are also expected to benefit the digestibility of the pre-concentrated wastewater compared to the commonly used draw solute sodium chloride. Significant membrane fouling was observed when operating at 90% water recovery using raw wastewater. Nevertheless, membrane fouling was reversible and was effectively controlled by optimising the hydrodynamic conditions of the cross-flow FO system

Engineering biocatalytic material for the remediation of pollutants: a comprehensive review

Bioremediation through biotechnological interventions has attracted more attention among researchers in field of environmental pollution control and abatement. Various cutting-edge studies in area of protein engineering and synthetic biology offer a new platform for creation of innovative, advanced biological materials for its beneficial role in environmental pollution mitigation. Biocatalysis especially receives considerable attention as sustainable approach to resource recovery from waste along with elimination of pollutants. This paper focuses on updated developments in engineering of biocatalytic substances which can degrade pollutants of emerging concern. It also explains various classes of biocatalysts, their mechanisms of immobilization, and applications in terms of environmental pollutant remediation. Opportunities and challenges for future research have also been discussed

Predictors of failure of early neurological improvement in early time window following endovascular thrombectomy: a multi-center study

Background and objectiveEndovascular thrombectomy (EVT) has become the gold standard in the treatment of acute stroke patients. However, not all patients respond well to this treatment despite successful attempts. In this study, we aimed to identify variables associated with the failure of improvements following EVT.MethodsWe retrospectively analyzed prospectively collected data of 292 ischemic stroke patients with large vessel occlusion who underwent EVT at three academic stroke centers in China from January 2019 to February 2022. All patients were above 18 years old and had symptoms onset ≤6 h. A decrease of more than 4 points on the National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) after 24 h compared with admission or an NIHSS of 0 or 1 after 24 h was defined as early neurological improvement (ENI), whereas a lack of such improvement in the NIHSS was defined as a failure of early neurological improvement (FENI). A favorable outcome was defined as a modified Rankin scale (mRS) score of 0–2 after 90 days.ResultsA total of 183 patients were included in the final analyses, 126 of whom had FENI, while 57 had ENI. Favorable outcomes occurred in 80.7% of patients in the ENI group, in contrast to only 22.2% in the FENI group (p < 0.001). Mortality was 7.0% in the ENI group in comparison to 42.1% in the FENI group (p < 0.001). The multiple logistic regression model showed that diabetes mellitus [OR (95% CI), 2.985 (1.070–8.324), p = 0.037], pre-stroke mRS [OR (95% CI), 6.221 (1.421–27.248), p = 0.015], last known well to puncture time [OR (95% CI), 1.010 (1.003–1.016), p = 0.002], modified thrombolysis in cerebral infarction = 3 [OR (95% CI), 0.291 (0.122–0.692), p = 0.005], and number of mechanical thrombectomy passes [OR (95% CI), 1.582 (1.087–2.302), p = 0.017] were the predictors of FENI.ConclusionDiabetes mellitus history, pre-stroke mRS, longer last known well-to-puncture time, lack of modified thrombolysis in cerebral infarction = 3, and the number of mechanical thrombectomy passes are the predictors of FENI. Future large-scale studies are required to validate these findings