Novel organometallic catalyst for efficient valorization of lipids extracted from Prunus domestica kernel shell in sustainable fuel production.

This study focuses on converting Plum Kernel Shell (PKS) waste biomass into biodiesel using a novel synthesized heterogeneous catalyst, contributing to the pursuit of renewable fuel from sustainable resources. Plum Kernel Shell (PKS) is waste biomass generated from plum fruit and available abundantly; utilizing it can help in many ways, such as overcoming environmental issues and promoting a circular economy. The precursor for the heterogeneous catalyst is derived from post-oil extraction waste biomass and further modified with metallic oxides (CuO and Mo) due to its acidic nature to enhance its efficacy for biodiesel production. Thorough characterization of the synthesized catalyst was conducted using analytical techniques such as XRD (X-ray diffraction), SEM (Scanning Electron Microscopy), EDS (Energy-Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy), BET (Brunauer-Emmett-Teller), and XPS (X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy) to elucidate its nature and performance. The transesterification process was systematically optimized by varying parameters such as temperature, time, methanol-to-oil ratio, and catalyst loading. The optimized yield of 92.61% of biodiesel resulted under ideal conditions, specifically at 65°C, 150 min, 5 wt% catalyst loading, and an 18:1 M ratio. The biodiesel derived from PKS oil exhibited promising fuel properties encompassing cold flow properties, density, viscosity, cetane number, and flash point, validating its potential as a viable alternative fuel source. Furthermore, the synthesized novel catalyst demonstrated exceptional efficiency, retaining stability over five cycles without significant reduction in biodiesel yield. These findings underscore the viability of PKS biomass as a renewable and sustainable source for both catalyst synthesis and biodiesel production

Effect of calcination time on the physicochemical properties and photocatalytic performance of carbon and nitrogen co-doped TiO2 nanoparticles

The application of highly active nano catalysts in advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) improves the production of non-selective hydroxyl radicals and co-oxidants for complete remediation of polluted water. This study focused on the synthesis and characterisation of a highly active visible light C–N-co-doped TiO2 nano catalyst that we prepared via the sol-gel method and pyrolysed at 350 ◦C for 105 min in an inert atmosphere to prevent combustion of carbon moietie

Molecular and structural characterization of micronized lignocellulose from date-pits by alcoholic fractionations

Six alcoholic fractionated micronized lignocellulose date-pits fibers (i.e. three fractions from the successive residues, i.e. L1, L2 and L3; and three fractions from supernatants, i.e. S1, S2 and S3) were prepared and their compositions, molecular and structural characteristics were measured. Mass average diameters of these fractions varied from 27 to 47 μm. Residue fractions showed integrated compact structure with trenches or pores, while first two supernatants (i.e. S1 and S2) showed lumped particles and S3 showed individual spherical and rod shaped particles. Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) analysis showed that supernatant S1 and S3 contained the highest levels of amorphous fraction, while L1 and L3 contained the lowest level of amorphous fraction (i.e. highest crystallinity). X-ray Diffraction (XRD) analysis also showed the highest crystallinity in the cases of residue layers L1 (i.e. 65 %) and L3 (i.e. 53 %), while supernatants S1 (i.e. 4 %) and S3 (i.e. 27 %) showed the lowest crystallinity. Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectra showed higher absorption intensities in the selected functional groups when supernatant fibers were compared to the residue layers, thus molecular damage was increased in the supernatants. Overall, alcoholic fractionation could produce mainly two types of fibers, one highly crystalline and another one highly amorphous

Enhanced visible light photocatalysis through fast crystallization of zinc oxide nanorods

Hydrothermally grown ZnO nanorods have inherent crystalline defects primarily due to oxygen vacancies that enhance optical absorption in the visible spectrum, opening up possibilities for visible light photocatalysis. Comparison of photocatalytic activity of ZnO nanorods and nanoparticle films on a test contaminant methylene blue with visible light irradiation at 72 kilolux (klx) showed that ZnO nanorods are 12–24% more active than ZnO nanoparticulate films. This can be directly attributed to the increased effective surface area for adsorption of target contaminant molecules. Defects, in the form of interstitials and vacancies, were intentionally created by faster growth of the nanorods by microwave activation. Visible light photocatalytic activity was observed to improve by ≈8% attributed to the availability of more electron deficient sites on the nanorod surfaces. Engineered defect creation in nanostructured photocatalysts could be an attractive solution for visible light photocatalysis

Enhancement in Ion Adsorption Rate and Desalination Efficiency in a Capacitive Deionization Cell through Improved Electric Field Distribution Using Electrodes Composed of Activated Carbon Cloth Coated with Zinc Oxide Nanorods

Electrodes composed of activated carbon cloth (ACC) coated with zinc oxide (ZnO) nanorods are compared with plain ACC electrodes, with respect to their desalination efficiency of a 17 mM NaCl solution at different applied potentials. Polarization of the ZnO nanorods increased the penetration depth and strength of the electric field between the electrodes, leading to an increase in the capacitance and charge efficiency at reduced input charge ratios. Uniform distribution of the electric field lines between two electrodes coated with ZnO nanorods led to faster ion adsorption rates, reduced the electrode saturation time, and increased the average desalination efficiency by ∼45% for all applied potentials. The electrodes were characterized for active surface area, capacitance from cyclic voltammetry, theoretical assessment of surface area utilization, and the magnitude of electric field force acting on an ion of unit charge for each potential

Autopsy of Used Reverse Osmosis Membranes from the Largest Seawater Desalination Plant in Oman

The Barka desalination plant, commissioned in 2018, is the largest desalination plant in Oman. It has a capacity of 281 MLD with a reverse osmosis (RO) first-pass recovery rate of 46%. As part of the standard operator practice, a membrane autopsy was conducted to determine the cause of reductions in membrane performance. This study investigated fouled membranes (model No. SW30HRLE-440) from two different locations in the membrane rack. Various analytical methods were used to conduct the membrane autopsy. Field-emission scanning electron microscopy/energy-dispersive X-ray (FESEM/EDS) analyses of membrane samples showed major components of inorganic foulants. Moreover, black and salt-like crystals deposited on the membrane surface revealed significant carbon (C) components and oxygen (O), with a small amount of magnesium (Mg), chloride (Cl), sodium (Na), aluminium (Al), and calcium (Ca), respectively. A Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) analysis revealed the presence of long-chain hydrocarbons, carboxylic acids/esters, carbohydrates/polysaccharides, and inorganic foulants. Thermogravimetric analyses (TGA) of the membranes showed a high initial weight loss due to organic and inorganic fouling. X-ray photoelectron (XPS) analyses further confirmed the presence of inorganic and organic foulants on the membrane surfaces. Bacteria identification results showed the presence of Bacillus cereus and Bacillus marisflavi. This paper offers a detailed analysis of the foulants present on the reverse osmosis membrane surface and sub-surface before and after a cleaning process

Antifouling properties of zinc oxide nanorod coatings

<div><p>In laboratory experiments, the antifouling (AF) properties of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanorod coatings were investigated using the marine bacterium <i>Acinetobacter</i> sp. AZ4C, larvae of the bryozoan <i>Bugula neritina</i> and the microalga <i>Tetraselmis</i> sp. ZnO nanorod coatings were fabricated on microscope glass substrata by a simple hydrothermal technique using two different molar concentrations (5 and 10 mM) of zinc precursors. These coatings were tested for 5 h under artificial sunlight (1060 W m⁻² or 530 W m⁻²) and in the dark (no irradiation). In the presence of light, both the ZnO nanorod coatings significantly reduced the density of <i>Acinetobacter</i> sp. AZ4C and <i>Tetraselmis</i> sp. in comparison to the control (microscope glass substratum without a ZnO coating). High mortality and low settlement of <i>B. neritina</i> larvae was observed on ZnO nanorod coatings subjected to light irradiation. In darkness, neither mortality nor enhanced settlement of larvae was observed. Larvae of <i>B. neritina</i> were not affected by Zn²⁺ ions. The AF effect of the ZnO nanorod coatings was thus attributed to the reactive oxygen species (ROS) produced by photocatalysis. It was concluded that ZnO nanorod coatings effectively prevented marine micro and macrofouling in static conditions.</p></div

Synthesis, structure, morphology, magnetism, and magnetocaloric-effect studies of (La1−xPrx)0.7Sr0.3MnO3 nanocrystalline perovskites

Abstract Single-Phase (La1–xPrx)0.7Sr0.3MnO3 (x = 0.0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8, and 1.0) perovskites were synthesized by the sol–gel method followed by sintering at 700 °C for 5 h. Samples with x = 0.0–0.4 are found to crystallize into rhombohedral structure (R-3c space group) while the ones with x = 0.6–1.0 crystallize into orthorhombic structure (Pbnm space group). The average particle size of the samples was in the range of 21–44 nm. All samples exhibit a ferromagnetic to paramagnetic second-order magnetic phase transition at Curie temperature, which is found to decrease linearly with increasing the Pr concentration. The magnetic coercivity was found to be small (~ 10 Oe) for all the samples, at T < TC. The experimental effective paramagnetic moment (µeff) is found to increase with increasing x from 3.99 µB (x = 0.0) to 5.05 µB (x = 1.0). The magnitude of the maximum magnetic entropy change (−ΔSM)max. and the relative cooling power (RCP) for the samples having orthorhombic structure increases as x increases reaching a maximum value of 4.67 J/kg.K and 574 J/kg at ΔµoH = 9 T for x = 1.0. While the ones with the rhombohedral structure have the maximum values of (−ΔSM)max. and RCP of 4.63 J/kg.K and 472 J/kg at ΔµoH = 9 T are for x = 0.2. The large values of (−ΔSM)max. and RCP (at room temperature (RT)) and the wider temperature range of −ΔSM for the sample with x = 0.6 suggests that this compound may be considered as magnetic refrigerant material at RT, and the other compounds can be candidates in the vicinity of RT

CO Oxidation Efficiency and Hysteresis Behavior over Mesoporous Pd/SiO₂ Catalyst

Carbon monoxide (CO) oxidation is considered an important reaction in heterogeneous industrial catalysis and has been extensively studied. Pd supported on SiO2 aerogel catalysts exhibit good catalytic activity toward this reaction owing to their CO bond activation capability and thermal stability. Pd/SiO2 catalysts were investigated using carbon monoxide (CO) oxidation as a model reaction. The catalyst becomes active, and the conversion increases after the temperature reaches the ignition temperature (Tig). A normal hysteresis in carbon monoxide (CO) oxidation has been observed, where the catalysts continue to exhibit high catalytic activity (CO conversion remains at 100%) during the extinction even at temperatures lower than Tig. The catalyst was characterized using BET, TEM, XPS, TGA-DSC, and FTIR. In this work, the influence of pretreatment conditions and stability of the active sites on the catalytic activity and hysteresis is presented. The CO oxidation on the Pd/SiO2 catalyst has been attributed to the dissociative adsorption of molecular oxygen and the activation of the C-O bond, followed by diffusion of adsorbates at Tig to form CO2. Whereas, the hysteresis has been explained by the enhanced stability of the active site caused by thermal effects, pretreatment conditions, Pd-SiO2 support interaction, and PdO formation and decomposition