Low permeability sealing materials based on sewage, digestate and incineration industrial by-products in the final landfill cover system

This study explores repurposing municipal solid waste from the sewage, digestate, and incineration industries as landfill-sealing materials, aligning with circular economy principles. The main materials include digested sewage sludge (DSS), pretreated digested sewage sludge (PDSS), and digestate sludge (DS), with biomass bottom ash (BBA) and Al-anodizing waste (AAW) introduced as additives, complemented by 1.5 wt% water glass to enhance the sealing performance. The research evaluates the characteristics of the various treated and sourced sludges and additives, assessing their influence on water permeability, reaction products and the environmental consequences. Results demonstrate the achievement of low permeability in the sludge-based sealing materials, with optimal performance observed in the specimens prepared with DSS and AAW (k value = 3.78 ×10*-12 m/s). Thermal Pressure Hydrolysis pre-treatment in sewage plants reduces the organic content in PDSS, resulting in aslight increase in permeability. DS-based specimens exhibit higher permeability due to their relatively lower organic content in DS. Gypsum is the primary reaction product attributed to leachable sulphate in BBA and AAW. Water glass addition in BBA-modified specimens promotes silica gel formation, while AAW effectively reduces matrix permeability as an externally added gel-like substance. Additionally, heavy metals (As, Pb and Cr) derived from the by-products are effectively immobilized in the sealing materials owning to the coagulation effect of organic matter in the sludge and sulphates in the products. Overall, this novel approach to landfill sealing materials exhibits promising applications in the Netherlands, offering cost savings and reduced environmental impact by recycling industrial by-products

Measurement of small rotation angle of flange joints by a novel flexure magnifying mechanism

Bolted flange joints are indispensable components in process industries due to the good sealing, assemble and disassemble capacities. Generally, the flange rigidity characterized by the rotation angle is a key index to evaluate the sealing tightness of flange joints. However, the rotation angle of flange is usually too small (less than 1º) to monitor during the assemble and operation stages. Accordingly, a novel flexure magnifying mechanism is designed to measure the small rotation angle of flange joints under internal pressure and external bending moment. The magnification factor and calculation approach of the flexure amplification mechanism are deduced and verified by experimental data and finite element simulation. Results indicate that the proposed measuring apparatus has good performance to monitor the maximum rotation angle. It is of great interest that the measured location of the maximum rotation angle is in good agreement with that in the experiment, and the average error is 7.3%, which is acceptable for practical application. Additionally, the leakage rate at the top of flange joints slowly and almost linearly increases with the increment of external bending moment ascribing to the decrease the gasket stress near the top of flange joints

Kerr-Sen Black Hole as Accelerator for Spinning Particles

It has been proved that arbitrarily high-energy collision between two particles can occur near the horizon of an extremal Kerr black hole as long as the energy $E$ and angular momentum $L$ of one particle satisfies a critical relation, which is called the BSW mechanism. Previous researchers mainly concentrate on geodesic motion of particles. In this paper, we will take spinning particle which won't move along a timelike geodesic into our consideration, hence, another parameter $s$ describing the particle's spin angular momentum was introduced. By employing the Mathisson-Papapetrou-Dixon equation describing the movement of spinning particle, we will explore whether a Kerr-Sen black hole which is slightly different from Kerr black hole can be used to accelerate a spinning particle to arbitrarily high energy. We found that when one of the two colliding particles satisfies a critical relation between the energy $E$ and the total angular momentum $J$, or has a critical spinning angular momentum $s_c$, a divergence of the center-of-mass energy $E_{cm}$ will be obtained.Comment: Latex,17 pages,1 figure,minor revision,accepted by PR

N,N′-Bis(2-quinolylcarbon­yl)hydrazine

The title compound, C20H14N4O2, crystallizes in the ortho­rhom­bic system with a crystallographic twofold axis through the N—N bond. The mol­ecule is non-planar and the dihedral angle between two amide groups is 74.9 (2)°. An intra­molecular N—H⋯N hydrogen bond is present. In the crystal, the mol­ecules are packed in chains running along the c axis through inter­molecular N—H⋯O hydrogen bonds. These chains are further stabilized by inter­molecular C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds and C—H⋯π inter­actions leading to the formation of a three-dimensional network

Structural characterization of inclusion complex of arbutin and hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin

Purpose: To improve the solubility and stability of arbutin and to expand its application by preparing its inclusion complex with hydroxypropyl-β- cyclodextrin (HP-β-CD).Methods: An inclusion complex made of arbutin and hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HP-β-CD) was prepared by freeze-drying method. Various analytical techniques, including ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy (UV), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), x-ray diffractometry (XRD) and thermo-gravimetric/differential scanning calorimetry (TG/DSC), were used to characterize the inclusion complex.Results: UV spectra indicated that no new unsaturated bond was formed in the inclusion complex. Infrared analysis showed that the smaller peaks in the proximity of 1450 - 1600 cm-1 were characteristic of the aromatic nucleus, indicating that the phenyl ring of arbutin was involved in the formation of the inclusion complex. Scanning electron micrographs of the inclusion complex showed that the original morphology of both components disappeared, and some tiny aggregates of amorphous areas of irregular size were present, revealing that the arbutin was dispersed in HP-β-CD. The powder XRD pattern of the inclusion complex was more similar to that of amorphous HP-β-CD and did not exhibit the characteristic peaks of arbutin which suggest that arbutin in HP-β-CD matrix was molecularly dispersed, and existed in an amorphous state. The TG curve of the inclusion complex was a one-step process, partly proving the formation of the complex. Complex formation with HP-β-CD remarkably improved the physical and chemical stabilities of arbutin.Conclusion: Inclusion complex of arbutin with HP-β-CD improves the heat stability of arbutin remarkably. This has a potential for expanding the application of arbutin to pharmaceuticals and food.Keywords: Arbutin, Hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin, Inclusion complex, Physicochemical properties, Stability, Solubilit

Molecular interaction and evolution of jasmonate signaling with transport and detoxification of heavy metals and metalloids in plants

An increase in environmental pollution resulting from toxic heavy metals and metalloids [e.g., cadmium (Cd), arsenic (As), and lead (Pb)] causes serious health risks to humans and animals. Mitigation strategies need to be developed to reduce the accumulation of the toxic elements in plant-derived foods. Natural and genetically-engineered plants with hyper-tolerant and hyper-accumulating capacity of toxic minerals are valuable for phytoremediation. However, the molecular mechanisms of detoxification and accumulation in plants have only been demonstrated in very few plant species such as Arabidopsis and rice. Here, we review the physiological and molecular aspects of jasmonic acid and the jasmonate derivatives (JAs) in response to toxic heavy metals and metalloids. Jasmonates have been identified in, limiting the accumulation and enhancing the tolerance to the toxic elements, by coordinating the ion transport system, the activity of antioxidant enzymes, and the chelating capacity in plants. We also propose the potential involvement of Ca2+ signaling in the stress-induced production of jasmonates. Comparative transcriptomics analyses using the public datasets reveal the key gene families involved in the JA-responsive routes. Furthermore, we show that JAs may function as a fundamental phytohormone that protects plants from heavy metals and metalloids as demonstrated by the evolutionary conservation and diversity of these gene families in a large number of species of the major green plant lineages. Using ATP-Binding Cassette G (ABCG) transporter subfamily of six representative green plant species, we propose that JA transporters in Subgroup 4 of ABCGs may also have roles in heavy metal detoxification. Our paper may provide guidance toward the selection and development of suitable plant and crop species that are tolerant to toxic heavy metals and metalloids