The climate change is likely to modify the freezing-thawing cycles in soils and surface waters of permafrost-affected and subarctic regions. Yet, the change of solution chemical composition during ice formation and evolution of remaining fluids remain very poorly known. Towards better understanding of dissolved (< 0.45 µm) organic carbon, major and trace elements behavior in permafrost peatland environments, here we performed laboratory freezing of peat leachates, from complete freezing to complete thawing in order to quantify the partitioning of solutes between the aqueous solution and the remaining ice. We hypothesized the existence of two main groups of solutes, behaving conservatively or non-conservatively during freezing depending on their incorporation into the ice or ability to coagulate in the form of insoluble minerals or amorphous materials in the fluid phase. An unexpected result of this work was that, despite sizable degree of element concentration in the remaining fluid and possible coagulation of organic, organo-mineral and inorganic compounds, the freezing and subsequent thawing produced the final concentrations of most solutes which were not drastically different from initial concentrations in starting leachates, prior freezing. This demonstrates high stability of dissolved (< 0.45 µm) OC, Fe, Al and some trace metals to repetitive freezing and thawing of surface waters in permafrost peatlands.

The white wine industry generates a large amount of wastes and composting is an alternative for recycling these residues with agronomic and environmental advantages. With this aim, grape marc and grape stalks were composted in static and turned piles, with 3 and 6 turns, to investigate the effects of pile conditions during composting in order to improve final compost quality. Thermophilic temperatures were attained soon after pile construction, and the highest maximum temperatures were achieved in the turned piles (70.5-71.8 ºC). However, pile moisture content decreased bellow recommended values after day 42 in these piles. The extremely high temperatures and low moisture content in turned piles hampered OM mineralization rates and the amount of potentially mineralizable organic matter (OM0) (391-407 g kg-1), whereas the structure of the static pile provided adequate porosity to increase OM decomposition and OM0 (568 g kg-1). This study shows that composting grape marc with stalks, for a period of 140 days, resulted in stabilized and matured compost (NH4+-N / NO3--N <0.5), with good chemical characteristics for application as soil organic amendment in vineyards, without the need for rewetting or turning the piles, thus reducing the agronomic, and environmental cost of the composting process.

To evaluate the nutrient load due to the grazing of laying hens in outdoor runs, soil characteristics were monitored in three Italian organic farms. For each farm, soil samples were taken from three increasing distances from the hen house and two depths and different chemical parameters were evaluated. The comparison among the results from the different distances shows that N-NO3 and Olsen P are the most affected parameters by hen faeces: both present high values with a statistically significant difference in the area close to the poultry house and for the most superficial layer. Even TKN and TOC show significant differences between the concentrations of the first layer (more concentrated) and those of the second layer (less concentrated). In general, the surface soil layer closest to the chicken house is the portion of the outdoor run most affected by chicken droppings and represents the most critical point in terms of potential environmental impact. Therefore, it is necessary to intensify the management of the outdoor run with tools that can facilitate the grazing of animals and with vegetation that can absorb nutrients by limiting leaching and run-off.

N,N-dimethyl-4-nitroaniline (NNDM4NA, C8H10O2N2), is a superelastic and superplastic charge-transfer molecular crystal with a high molecular dipole moment, µ=7.95 D, which crystal-lizes in the acentric polar point group 2. Highly aligned poly-l-lactic acid (PLLA) polymer micro-fibers with embedded NNDM4NA nanocrystals were fabricated using the electrospinning tech-nique. The composite fibers display an extraordinarily high piezoelectric output response, where for a small stress of 5.0x103 Nm-2, an effective piezoelectric voltage coefficient of geff=3.6 VmN-1 was obtained. The fibers were found to display solid state blue fluorescence with a long (147 ns) life-time decay. Furthermore, the composite fibers exhibit an average increase of 67% on the Young modulus reaching 55 MPa, while the tensile strength reaches 2.8 MPa when compared with solely PLLA fibers. The results show that nanocrystals, from small organic molecules, with elastic and piezoelectric properties form hybrid functional 2-dimensional luminescent array which are me-chanical strong and generate high output voltages making them promising for applications in energy harvesting and as solid-state blue emitters.

The application of organic fertilizers plays a crucial role in achieving carbon sequestration in the agricultural sector. This paper discusses how farmers can more smoothly promote organic fertilizer extension services. An evolutionary game model is developed to describe the conflicting interests of Chinese farmers and local governments in organic fertilizer extension services, and the dynamic evolution of the game players and the influence of parameter adjustment on the strategic choices of both parties is presented. In this paper, the game model and the main results are validated with the help of simulation tools, and a sensitivity analysis of the selected parameters is performed. The results show that (1) the implementation of subsidy policy is less helpful for organic fertilizer extension services; (2) The ideal event probability of the game was found to be positively related to the cost of applying inorganic fertilizers, additional benefits to farmers, political returns to local governments, and penalties for not using organic fertilizers; (3) This is important for improving the performance of local governments, reducing government regulatory costs, improving policy support for organic fertilizer extension services, and reducing the cost of implementing organic fertilizer extension services.

The Mediterranean region offers good weather conditions for outdoor pig production (OPP), which is considered more environmentally friendly than intensive indoor production. However, the continuous input of food and pigs' excreta increases the soil organic matter (SOM) and phosphorus (P), increasing the risk of waterbodies eutrophication. This work aimed at evaluating in OPP areas soil P dynamics and the role of SOM on P sorption and P release. The experiment was done for two years, at an area of 2.8 ha with an animal charge of 9 adults ha-1. Georeferenced soil samples were taken at 0.20 m depth, and a soil P sorption experiment was carried out. At the end of the experiment, for the background value, the levels of SOM increased between 85–376%, and Olsen P values ranged between -82–884%. SOM levels above 2% caused a decrease in the binding energy of P sorption according to the linear model b=-15.541SOM+115.20 (p <0.01) as well as a decrease of the soil P sorption capacity Qmax=-41.272SOM+298.37 (p <0.01). To avoid the accumulation of SOM and P preventing hotspots for waterbodies eutrophication, an adequate animal charge together with soil cultivation for pig grazing can be a cost-effective practice.

Animal studies have shown that developmental exposures to polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE) permanently affect blood/liver balance of lipids. No human study has evaluated associations between in utero exposures to persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and later life lipid metabolism. In this pilot, maternal plasma levels of PBDEs (BDE-47, BDE-99, BDE-100, and BDE-153) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB-138, PCB-153, and PCB-180) were determined at delivery in participants of GESTation and Environment (GESTE) cohort. Total cholesterol (TCh), triglycerides (TG), low and high density lipoproteins (LDL-C and HDL-C), total lipids (TL), and PBDEs were determined in serum of 147 children at ages 6-7. General linear regression was used to estimate the relationship between maternal POPs and child lipid levels with adjustment for potential confounders, and adjustment for childhood POPs. In utero BDE-99 was associated with lower childhood levels of TG (p=0.003), and non-significantly with HDL-C (p=0.06) and TL (p=0.07). Maternal PCB-138 was associated with lower childhood levels of TG (p=0.04), LDL-C (p=0.04), and TL (p=0.02). Our data indicate that in-utero exposures to POPs may be associated with long-lasting decrease in circulating lipids in children, suggesting increased lipid accumulation in the liver, a mechanism involved in NAFLD development, consistent with previously reported animal data.

The organic solar cells (OSCs) have drawn attention in the past decade due to its cynosure in industrial manufacturing because of its promising properties such as low weight, highly flexible and low cost production. However, low η restricts the utilization of OSCs for potential application such as low cost energy harvesting devices. In this paper, OSCs structure based on triple junction tandem scheme is reported with three different absorber materials with the objective to enhance the absorption of photons which in turn improves the η, as well as its correlating performance parameters. The investigated structure gives the higher value of η = 14.33% with Jsc=16.87 (mA/m2), Voc=1.0 (V), and FF=84.97% by utilizing a stack of three different absorber layers with different band energies. The proposed structure is tested under 1.5 (AM) with 1 sun (W/m2). The impact of top, middle and bottom sub cells thickness on η is analyzed with a terse to find the optimum thickness for three sub cells to extract high η. The optimized structure is then tested with different electrode combination and the highest η is recorded with FTO/Ag. Moreover, the influence of upsurge temperature is also demonstrated on the proposed structure and observed that the upsurge temperature has greatly affected the electrical parameters of the device and η decreases from 14.33% to 11.40% when the temperature of the device rises from 300-400 K.

Because the application of antibiotic growth promoters (AGP) causes accelerated adverse effects on the animal diet, the scientific community has taken progressive steps to enhance sustainable animal productivity without using AGP in animal nutrition. Organic acids (OAs) are non-antibiotic feed additives and a promising feeding strategy in the swine and broiler industry. Mechanistically, OAs improve productivity through multiple and diverse pathways: (a) reduction of pathogenic bacteria in the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) by reducing the gut pH; (b) boosting the digestibility of nutrients by facilitating digestive enzyme secretion and increasing feed retention time in the gut system; (c) having a positive impact and preventing meat quality deterioration without leaving any chemical residues. Recent studies have reported the effectiveness of using encapsulated OAs and synergistic mechanisms of OAs combinations in swine and broiler productivity. On the other hand, the synergistic mechanisms of OAs and the optimal combination of OAs in the animal diet are not completely understood, and further intensive scientific explorations are needed. Moreover, the ultimate production parameters are not similar owing to the type of OAs, concentration level, growth phase, health status of animals, hygienic standards, and environmental factors. Thus, those factors need to be considered before implementing OAs in feeding practices. In conclusion, the current review evaluated the basics of OAs, mode of action, novel strategies to enhance utilization, influence on growth performances, nutrient digestibility, quality traits, and meat preservation of swine and broilers and their potential concerns regarding utilization.

The soil has lost organic matter in the past centuries. Adding organic matter to soils is one of the management practices applied to recover the levels of soil carbon of the past. Is it a good practice to reduce global warming? In fact, one of the practices promoted to combat climate change is increasing soil organic matter. However, the addition of organic residues to the soil could facilitate the liberation of CO2 and wastes could also have no positive effects on soil properties. In this sense, what it is important is: a) to know which is the expected effect of the organic matter added to the soil; b) how this application alters the soil processes; c) which are the management practices that should be applied; d) how much is the real amount of carbon sequester by the soil and; e) the balance at short and long period after the application of the organic matter. The adequate strategy should be to favour the increment of biologically stabilized soil organic matter considering medium and long time. However, it is necessary to adapt the strategies to the local environmental conditions.

The study was carried out to determine the influence of organic and inorganic fertilizers on maize yield and soil fertility; to determine economically optimum organic and inorganic fertilizer combinations for maize production. The study was performed in a randomized complete block design consisting of 10 treatments and 3 replications. The treatments were: Control, 100% of R-NP (138 N and 92 P), 100% of vermicompost,100% of conventional compost, 25% R-NP +75% of vermicompost, 50% of R-NP + 50% of vermicompost, 75% of R-NP+25% of from vermicompost, 25% of R-NP +75% of conventional compost, 50% of R-NP+50% of conventional-compost, 75% of R-NP +25% of conventional-compost. All rates of vermicompost and conventional compost were applied based on N equivalence. Results indicate that applications of inorganic fertilizers with a combination of organic source fertilizers were increases maize yield and yield components and improves the nutrient status of the soil. The highest maize grain yield (7494.3 kg ha-1) and above-ground biomass yield (18718.0 kg ha-1) were obtained from the applications of 50% recommended NP fertilizer plus 50% vermicompost which is based on the recommended N equivalent respectively. Similarly, we found that a combination of both inorganic and organic fertilizers application also is the best strategy to improve major soil nutrients, maintain soil fertility. The economic analysis revealed that the highest net benefit of (108,872.0 ETB ha-1) was obtained from the application of 50% recommended NP fertilizer plus 50% vermicompost based on the recommended N equivalence. Yet, the lowest yield and net benefit value were attained from the control or unfertilized plot. Therefore, this study suggests that an appropriate proportion of organic fertilizer with inorganic fertilizer not only for higher yield maize production with an assurance of potential economic returns to the small hold farmers but also improve and maintain the soil fertility and should be adopted with similar soil type and agro-ecologies.

Carbonaceous material (CM) is common in meta-sediments and is generally interpreted to be intimately associated with gold mineralization. For the Bumo deposit in Hainan Province, South China, CM is mainly hosted by greenschist facies- to amphibolite-facies metamophic rocks of the Paleo- to Mesoproterozoic Baoban Group and by auriferous veins and is used as an important gold prospecting indicator. However, the genesis of CM and the relationship with gold mineralization are still not clear. Field work and thin section observation indicates that two types of CM occur, i.e., layered and veinlet. Layered CM, up to meters thick, prevails in the deposit. More importantly, Au-bearing sulfides are commonly distributed along the boundary between the quartz veins and layered CM. In contrast, veinlet CM, co-precipitated with gold and sulfides, has the thickness of micro- to centi- meters, and these thin veins occur in quartz veins and hydrothermally altered rocks. Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) analysis indicates that layered CM has a stringy shape and laminate structure, while veinlet CM occurs as isometric particles. Raman carbonaceous material geothermometer indicates that layered CM with high maturity is formed at elevated temperatures of 400 – 550°C, consistent with X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. In contrast, veinlet CM with low maturity is formed at 200 – 350°C, generally consistent with gold mineralization. In addition, layered CM has δ13C values ranging from -30 to -20%, demonstrating a biogenic origin. Consequently, it is interpreted that layered CM is formed by a pre-ore metamorphic event during Caledonian, and its reducing nature promotes gold precipitation via destabilization of aqueous Au bisulfide complexes or facilitating sulfidation. Veinlet CM is hydrothermal origin, and its precipitation modified the chemical conditions of ore fluids, leading to the destabilization of Au complexes and thus favorable for mineralization.

Drained peatlands are significant sources of the greenhouse gas (GHG) carbon dioxide. Rewetting is a proven strategy to protect carbon stocks; however, it can lead to increased emissions of the potent GHG methane. The response to rewetting of soil microbiomes as drivers of these processes is poorly understood, as are biotic and abiotic factors that control community composition. We analyzed the pro- and eukaryotic microbiomes of three contrasting pairs of minerotrophic fens subject to decade-long drainage and subsequent rewetting. Also, abiotic soil properties including moisture, dissolved organic matter, methane fluxes and ecosystem respiration rates. The composition of the microbiomes was fen-type-specific, but all rewetted sites showed higher abundance of anaerobic taxa compared to drained sites. Based on multi-variate statistics and network analyses we identified soil moisture as major driver of community composition. Furthermore, salinity drove the separation between coastal and freshwater fen communities. Methanogens were more than tenfold more abundant in rewetted than in drained sites, while their abundance was lowest in the coastal fen, likely due to competition with sulfate reducers. The microbiome compositions were reflected in methane fluxes from the sites. Our results shed light on the factors that structure fen microbiomes via environmental filtering.

Gas sensor arrays, also known as electronic noses, leverage a diverse set of materials to identify the components of complex gas mixtures. Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have emerged as promising materials for electronic noses due to their high-surface areas and chemical as well as structural tunability. Using our recently reported genetic algorithm design approach, we examined a set of 50 MOFs and searched through the over 1.125x1015 unique array combinations to identify optimal arrays for the detection of CO₂ in air. We found that despite individual MOFs having lower selectivity for O2 or N2 relative to CO₂, intelligently selecting the right combinations of MOFs enabled accurate prediction of the concentrations of all components in the mixture (i.e. CO₂, O₂, N₂). We also analyzed the physical properties of the elements in the arrays to develop an intuition for improving array design. Notably, we find that diversity among the surface areas in the MOFs leads to improved sensing. Consistent with the observation, we found that, as one might expect, the best arrays consistently had more structural diversity than the worst arrays.

As Christopher Alexander conceived and defined through his life’s work – The Nature of Order – wholeness is a recursive structure that recurs in space and matter and is reflected in human minds and cognition. Based on the definition of wholeness, a mathematical model of wholeness, together with its topological representation, has been developed, and it is able to address not only why a structure is beautiful, but also how much beauty the structure has. Given the circumstance, this paper is attempted to argue for the wholeness as the scientific foundation of sustainable urban design and planning, with the help of the mathematical model and topological representation. We start by introducing the wholeness as a mathematical structure of physical space that pervasively exists in our surroundings, along with two fundamental laws – scaling law and Tobler’s law – that underlie the 15 properties for characterizing and making living structures. We argue that urban design and planning can be considered to be wholeness-extending processes, guided by two design principles of differentiation and adaptation, to transform a space – in a piecemeal fashion – into a living or more living structure. We further discuss several other urban design theories and how they can be justified by and placed within the theory of wholeness. With the wholeness as the scientific foundation, urban design can turn into a rigorous science with creation of living structures as the primary aim.

Using the sustainable livelihoods analytical framework, adaptability of cattle raising to multiple stressors (e.g. climate change and market conditions) in the dry tropics of Chiapas, Mexico was evaluated. Three case studies located in the Frailesca region of Chiapas were analyzed: (I) peasant cattle raising in a rural village in the Frailesca Valley; (II) peasant cattle raising in a rural village in a natural protected area in the Frailesca Highlands; and (III) holistic cattle raising by farmers with private land ownership in the Frailesca Valley. Adaptability was evaluated using an index on a scale of one to a hundred; average values were: case I = 20.9 ± 1.4; case II = 32.1 ± 1.8; and case III = 63.6 ± 3.5. In order to increase farms adaptability and reduce the vulnerability of cattle raising families, there is a need to modify public policy to take into account the conditions of the most vulnerable farmers (cases I and II). Given the economic, environmental, and social context of Mexico´s dry tropics, establishing ecological or organic cattle raising and silvopastoral systems may reduce the vulnerability of farm families and increase their level of adaptability of their farms to multiple stressors.

Evaluating new, promising organic molecules to make next-generation organic optoelectronic devices necessitates the evaluation of charge carrier transport performance through the semi-conducting medium. In this work, we utilize quantum chemical calculations (QCC) and kinetic Monte Carlo (KMC) simulations to predict the zero-field hole mobilities of ~100 morphologies of the benchmark polymer poly(3-hexylthiophene), with varying simulation volume, structural order, and chain-length polydispersity. Morphologies with monodisperse chains were generated previously using an optimized molecular dynamics force-field and represent a spectrum of nanostructured order. We discover that a combined consideration of backbone clustering and system-wide disorder arising from side-chain conformations are correlated with hole mobility. Furthermore, we show that strongly interconnected thiophene backbones are required for efficient charge transport. This definitively shows the role "tie-chains" play in enabling mobile charges in P3HT. By marrying QCC and KMC over multiple length- and time-scales, we demonstrate that it is now possible to routinely probe the relationship between molecular nanostructure and device performance.

The aim of the study was to determine the maximum safe concentration of calcium and phosphate in neonatal parenteral nutrition (PN) solutions when various combinations of inorganic and organic salts are applied. Twelve PN solutions for neonatal use were aseptically prepared. Increasing concentration of inorganic and organic calcium and phosphate were added to the standard formulas. Each admixture was separately tested according to following conditions; after mixing, 37°C for 24 h, and maximum safe combination of calcium and phosphate were stored at 4°C for 30 days and followed by 24 h at 37°C. Visual inspections against a black and white contrast background, microscopic observation of undiluted PN solutions as well as the membrane filter after filtration of the PN solution, pH evaluation, and spectrophotometry at 600 nm were examined in triplicate. Safe maximum concentration of organic and inorganic calcium and phosphate was proposed individually for each composition of parenteral nutrition solutions. Surprisingly organic calcium with organic phosphate showed precipitation but over the therapeutic range. The protective effect of amino acid was observed and higher concentrations of calcium and phosphate were free of precipitation.

This research was carried out to see the effects of organic farming and determine the yield and some pomological characteristics of apricots in Isparta, Turkey. Isparta province which is located in the west Mediterranean part of Turkey has also gained importance in terms of especially organic apricot production. Two apricot varieties (Hasanbey, Alyanak) were grown with organic farming practices in this study. These two varieties are table types apricot varieties commonly grown in Turkey’s one of the world's major producers. In this research, pomological characteristics as fruit size (fruit height, fruit width, fruit weight, fruit length), fruit firmness, pH, total soluble solid (TSS) content, titrable acidity (TA) and yield values were determined. Total phenolic and antioxidant activity were also determined. Hasanbey cultivar had higher yield value (66.21 kg/tree) than Alyanak (45.71 kg/tree) cultivar. At the same time the total phenolic content of Hasanbey (307.12 mg GAE/100g) variety was determined higher than Alyanak (175.91 mg GAE/100g). Antioxidant activity of Alyanak and Hasanbey were determined as 32.86 mg/ml IC₅₀ and 17.37 mg/ml IC₅₀ respectively. In terms of observed characteristics, Hasanbey cultivar was found to be prominent in Isparta. It can also been recommended for other places similar to Isparta ecological conditions (highland climate).

The biomass fraction of processed municipal and industrial wastes added to soil can maintain, and in some case improve, the soil’s organic fertility. One of the main constraints in the agricultural use of the sewage sludge is its content of heavy metals. In the long term, soil administration of sewage sludge in agriculture could result in a risk of environmental impact. The aim of this research was to evaluate the effects of medium-term fertilization with sewage sludge diversely processed on the soil’s organic carbon content and humification – mineralization soil’s processes and on the physical and mechanical properties of soil. Furthermore, the heavy metals accumulation in soil, in their total and available form, has been investigated. After eight years of administration to soil, the use of sewage sludge as an agricultural soil amendment has contributed to maintaining the soil’s organic fertility. An increase in concentrations of total Ni and Zn was detected in soil. For bioavailable form (DTPA-extractable) this trend was evidenced for all heavy metals analysed. However, the concentrations of total and available heavy metals in the soil did not exceed the legal threshold established by Italian law for unpolluted soils.

A field experiment was conducted for 2 years in Green Tea Laboratory of Saitama Prefectural Agriculture and Forestry Research Center, Iruma, Saitama, Japan from March 2014 to December 2015. Controlled release fertilizers (CRF) or organic fertilizers (ORG) which is the mixture of chicken manure and oil cakewere applied with the amount of 450 kg N ha^-1 yr^-1 in 2014 and 397 kg N ha^-1 yr^-1 in 2015. Nitrous oxide (N₂O) emissionsfrom soil in green tea fields were measured by closed chamber method. The results showed that CRF has significantly lower N₂O compared to ORG. The cumulative N₂O emissions from CRF accounted for 51% of N₂O emissions from ORG fields and 138% of control with no fertilizer treatment. The N₂O flux from the row was higher than that of under the canopy, since fertilizer were applied on the row. However the total emission from the area between the rows was lower than that under the canopy because of the area ratio of row and canopy was 1:5.

Enzymatic degradation of organic pollutants is a new and promising remediation approach. Peroxidases are one of the most commonly used classes of enzymes to degrade organic pollutants. However, it is generally assumed that all peroxidases behave similarly and produce similar degradation products. In this study, we conducted detailed studies of the degradation of a model aromatic pollutant, Sulforhodamine B dye (SRB dye), using two peroxidases—soybean peroxidase (SBP) and chloroperoxidase (CPO). Our results show that these two related enzymes had different optimum conditions (pH, temperature, H₂O₂ concentration...etc.) for efficiently degrading SRB dye. High-performance liquid chromatography and LC-mass spectrometry analyses confirmed that both SBP and CPO transformed the SRB dye into low molecular weight intermediates. While most of the intermediates produced by the two enzymes were the same, the CPO treatment produced at least one different intermediate. Furthermore, toxicological evaluation using lettuce (Lactuca sativa) seeds demonstrated that the SBP-based treatment was able to eliminate the phytotoxicity of SRB dye, but the CPO-based treatment did not. Our results show, for the first time, that while both of these related enzymes can be used to efficiently degrade organic pollutants, they have different optimum reaction conditions and may not be equally efficient in detoxification of organic pollutants.

Crop productivity is directly dependent to soil fertility. High soil organic carbon (SOC) content in soil is vital as it leads to improved soil quality, increased productivity, and stable soil-aggregates. In addition, with the signing of the climate agreement, there is growing interest in carbon sequestration in landscapes. This paper looks at how SOC can be increased so that it not only contributes to reduction of CO₂, but also translates to increased food production thereby enhancing food security. This synergy between mitigation and enhancing food security is even more relevant for mountain landscapes of the Hindu Kush Himalayan (HKH) region where there remains huge potential to increase CO₂ sequestration and simultaneously address food security in the chronic food deficit villages. Soil samples were collected from seven transects each in Bajhang and Mustang and from 4 land use types in each transect. Samples of soils were taken from two depths in each plot; 0-15 cm below the soil surface and 15-30 cm below the soil surface to compare the top soil and subsoil dynamics of the soil nutrients. The lab analysis was performed to assess the soil texture, soil color, soil acidity in 'power of hydrogen' (pH), macro-nutrients as soil fertility. Secondary data was used to analyze the level of food deficit in the villages. The result shows that most of the sample soils from Mustang were clay (82.1%) which is 46 samples out of 56. The pH value of soil from Bajhang ranged from 5.29 to 9.09. The pH value of soil ranged from 5.65 to 8.81 in Mustang. SOC contents of sampled soils from Bajhang ranged from 0.20% to 7.69% with mean amount of 2.47% ± 0.17. SOC contents of sampled soils from Mustang ranged from 0.51% to 8.56% with mean amount of 2.60% ± 0.25. By land use type, forest land had the highest carbon (C) content of 53.61 t ha^-1 in Bajhang whereas in Mustang, agricultural land had the highest C content of 52.02 tons ha-1. Based on these data, we can say that there is potential for increasing SOC through improved soil health and crop production and soil. Sustainable soil management should be practiced for higher productivity. Livestock may also provide farmyard manure, which can be used to fertilize cultivated soils, which increases soil productivity. Increasing productivity would aid in increasing the access and availability of food in these mountain villages.

To substitute of conventional manure and peat with alternatives sourcing from environmental conservation concerns, several promising alternatives has been attracting scientific parties’ interest, recently. However, among them compost perform the best, mostly and support carbon sequestration and mitigation against climate change. The article describes the made locally produced 70% in volume olive pruning branches compost (COMP) performance in two trials as an organic amendment in pepper production and an olive sapling substrate during 2019-2021 organic management in Turkey. The application of COMP to pepper trial conducted using factorial randomised block design with 4 replications and 6 treatments increased total organic matter and soil organic carbon, significantly (p<0.05) as compared to non-used plots in two locations. The olive sapling trial was conducted using a randomised plot design with 4 replications and 4 treatments. After the 12 months of growth, compost had the largest architecture rooted plants significantly different (p<0.05). Fresh volume (cm³) of COMP used saplings were obtained 35% less than 40% peat treatment, significantly (p<0.05) while 6^th month measurement was found as 40%. It is concluded that to enhance circular economy recycling and composting olive pruning branches is lucrative for the country to reduce external input usage in organic horticultural production.

Bayesian nonlinear mixed effects models for data in the form of continuous, repeated measurements from a population, also known as Bayesian hierarchical nonlinear models, are a popular platform for analysis when interest focuses on individual specific characteristics and relevant uncertainty quantification. Due to the limitation of computational power, this framework was relatively dormant until the late 1980s, but in recent years, the statistical research community saw vigorous development of new methodological and computational techniques for these models, the emergence of software, and wide application of the models in numerous industrial and academic fields. This article presents an overview of the formulation, interpretation, and implementation of Bayesian nonlinear mixed effects models and surveys recent advances and applications.

Fungi and soil bacteria are vital for organic matter decomposition and biogeochemical cycles, but excessive synthetic fertilizer use contributes to soil degradation and loss of biodiversity. Despite this, about 97% of soil microorganisms are unculturable, making them difficult to study. Metagenomics offers a solution, enabling the direct extraction of DNA from soil to uncover microbial diversity and functions. This study utilized metagenomics to analyze the rhizosphere of 2-year-old Tonda di Giffoni hazelnut saplings treated with synthetic NPK, composted olive pomace, and an innovative fertilizer derived from sulfur-based agro-industrial waste stabilized with bentonite clay. Using 16S rDNA for bacteria and ITS2 for fungi, Illumina sequencing provided insights into microbial responses to different fertilizer treatments. Results highlighted a significant increase in the abundance of beneficial microorganisms such as Thiobacillus, Pseudoxanthomonas, and Thermomyces, especially when organic material was included. Additionally, microbial biodiversity improved with organic inputs, as shown by increased species richness (Chao1) and diversity (Bray-Curtis). These findings emphasize the importance of organic fertilization in enhancing soil microbial health, offering a sustainable approach to improving soil quality and hazelnut productivity.

Microwave plasma-driven nitrogen fixation can occur at atmospheric pressure without greenhouse gas emissions. However, this method still faces the challenge of high energy consumption and low production. Plasma-catalyst combined systems are widely used to increase production and reduce energy consumption in nitrogen fixation. However, the efficacy of current catalysts remains limited. In this paper, the metal-organic framework materials CuBTC and ZIF-8 are combined with the atmospheric microwave plasma for nitrogen fixation. The experimental results show their better catalytic effect than the ordinary catalyst ZSM-5. The maximum nitrogen oxide concentration reaches 33400 ppm, and the lowest energy consumption is 2.05 MJ/mol. Compared to no catalyst, the nitrogen oxide production can be increased by 17.1%, and the energy consumption can be reduced by 14.6%. The transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images of the catalysts reveal obvious differences in the catalyst particle sizes. Notably, catalysts with smaller particle sizes attain higher NOx concentrations compared to their larger counterparts. To the knowledge of the authors, this is the first effort to study the synergistic effects of atmospheric microwave plasma and metal-organic framework materials on nitrogen fixation.

Detection of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) is a rapidly growing research area due to importance of VOCs in environmental pollution, human health assessment, food quality control, and homeland security. Optical sensing materials based on porphyrins are particularly appealing for VOCs detection, owing to availability of porphyrins, their exceptional optical and binding properties, as well as their photo- and chemical stability. As research and technology continue to advance, optical sensors involving these materials are expected to play an increasing role in various applications. This article presents a comprehensive overview of porphyrin-based sensing materials developed for use as optical sensors for VOCs. First, sensing films composed exclusively of porphyrin molecules are discussed followed by materials obtained by grafting or incorporation of porphyrins into organic and inorganic polymer matrices. Considering growing interest to multianalyte analysis with porphyrin-based sensor arrays, special section is devoted to this area.

Biochar (BC) serves a vital function in sequestering carbon, improving nutrient cycles, and boosting overall soil quality. This research investigated how both biochar and nitrogen, derived from both organic and inorganic sources, influence the physical and chemical properties of alkaline soils in semi-arid regions. The study particularly emphasized the effects on nitrogen availability. A field experiment was carried out from 2015 to 2017 using a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with a split-plot arrangement. The study involved applying biochar at various rates (0, 10, 20, and 30 t ha⁻¹) and nitrogen at different levels (0, 90, 120, and 150 kg ha⁻¹) using urea, farmyard manure (FYM), and poultry manure (PM) as nitrogen sources. The application of biochar at the highest rate (30 t ha⁻¹) significantly increased soil organic carbon (SOC), soil organic matter (SOM), and soil moisture content (SMC) by over 120%. Additionally, it led to increases in total soil nitrogen (STN) by 14.16% and mineral nitrogen (SMN) by 9.09%. Conversely, biochar applications at this rate decreased soil bulk density (SBD), pH, and electrical conductivity (EC) by 28.52%, 3.38%, and 2.27%, respectively, compared to the control group. Similarly, applying nitrogen at 150 kg ha⁻¹ using FYM significantly improved SOC, SOM, SMC, and SBD. Using PM as a nitrogen source at the same rate enhanced STN and SMN while lowering soil pH and EC. In conclusion, the study demonstrated that combining biochar at a rate of 30 t ha⁻¹ with nitrogen at 150 t ha⁻¹, derived from either PM or FYM, holds significant promise for enhancing soil fertility and promoting carbon sequestration in alkaline soils within semi-arid environments. These findings underscore the value of integrating BC and organic N sources to enhance agroecosystem sustainability. Thus, the study provides a promising pathway to enhance soil quality, improve crop productivity, and support sustainable agricultural practices in challenging environments.

Demand for livestock products in East Africa is anticipated to triple by 2050. Therefore, sustainable intensification of livestock production systems for increased productivity is necessary in line with minimal negative environmental consequences. An agronomic field experiment was set up at the International Livestock Research Institute in Nairobi, Kenya, and the effects of organic and inorganic soil amendments on greenhouse gas emissions (particularly N2O) from a Humic Nitisol planted with Brachiaria brizantha cv. xaraes were evaluated between October 2018 and August 2019. The treatments comprised mineral NPK fertilizer, Lablab intercrop, FYM, FYM-BC, Bioslurry, and control. Fertilizer treatments were applied at a rate of 45 kg N ha-1 following each harvest. GHG emissions were measured using the static vented chamber technique. Treatment and season significantly influenced daily N2O emissions. The lowest (4.51±3.30 µg N m-2 h-1) and highest (27.16±3.61 µg N m-2 h-1) mean N2O emissions were recorded under NPK and Control treatments during the short rains and dry seasons, respectively. Cumulative N2O emissions and the corresponding yield-scaled emissions were similar across all the treatments but varied significantly (p < 0.001) between the wet and dry seasons. Cumulative N2O emissions were 0.31±1.49, 0.33±1.47, 0.33±1.74, and 0.37±1.74, 0.38±2.3 and 0.42±1.81 Kg N ha-1 under FYM-BC, Lablab, NPK fertilizer, and FYM, Bioslurry and control treatments respectively. The corresponding yield-scaled emissions were also higher during the wet (0.23±1.16 g N kg-1 DM) than in the dry seasons (0.16±0.50 g N kg-1 DM). Higher (-21.86±4.47 mg CH4-Ch-1) CH4 uptake was recorded under the control treatment whereas the lowest (-2.69±17.97 mg CH4-Ch-1) uptake was recorded under Bioslurry (P < 0.01). Treatment and season exhibited individual effects on daily CO2 emissions (P < 0.001), with a significant interaction effect (P < 0.001). The highest (157.5±28.76 mg CO2-C m-2h-1) and lowest (44.33±8.37 mg CO2-C m-2h-1) CO2 emissions were recorded under Control and FYM treatments during the October 2018-January 2019 and January-March 2019 HD. Since the experiment was newly established via ploughing a field which had been used as a permanent pasture during previous years, did not expect considerable yield differences between treatments. Yet, it is interesting to see first effects of fertilizer amendments, pointing to their potential as climate-smart forage intensification strategies. The study established that Manure + biochar is a better strategy for forage soil amendments in mitigating soil N2O emissions.

The growing threat of antibiotic pollution in water systems demands innovative and sustainable remediation strategies. Nanocellulose-based magnetic metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) represent a cutting-edge solution for the adsorption and removal of antibiotics, leveraging their high porosity, magnetic properties, and environmentally friendly nature. This paper provides an in-depth review of recent advancements in nanocellulose-based MOFs, focusing on their synthesis, adsorption mechanisms, and applications in environmental remediation between 2020 and 2024. By summarizing key studies, we highlight their performance in targeting widely used antibiotics such as tetracyclines and fluoroquinolones. The integration of nanocellulose with MOFs not only enhances adsorption capacity but also offers easy recovery, recyclability, and environmental compatibility. This review explores their adsorption mechanisms, practical applications, and future research directions, contributing to the advancement of scalable and sustainable water treatment technologies.

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are being investigated for their potential to develop high-performance supercapacitors due to their porosity and well-defined topologies. This work presents a new hybrid nanocomposite, developed through a solvothermal method, using bimetallic (Fe/Ni) MOF and polyaniline. The morphology and structure of the electrode material were evaluated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Electrochemical performances were evaluated in 6 M KOH using an electrochemical workstation. The specific capacitance of Bimetallic Fe/Ni MOF and Bimetallic Fe/Ni MOF with PANI at 10 mVs-1 are 104 Fg-1 and 90 Fg-1, respectively. The EIS spectra show that the composite has lower series resistance and higher charge transfer resistance compared to pristine Fe/Ni MOF.

Cocoa (Theobroma Cacao, L.) represents an important market that gained relevance and became an esteemed commodity thanks to cocoa powder, chocolate, and other related products. This work has analyzed 59 cocoa powder samples from the European market. Three distinct subgroups were identified: organic or conventional, alkalized or not alkalized, and raw or roasted processing. The impact of the technological process was evaluated on the pH, color, and compositional traits, as content of biogenic amines and salsolinol. The phenolic fraction was also investigated trough both common and emerging methods. Results depict that the influence of the agronomical practices (organic/conventional) did not affect significatively (p&lt;0.05) the composition of cocoa powders; similarly, the roasting process was not discriminative for the compounds traced. On the other hand, the alkalinization process greatly impacted on color, and pH, no matter of cocoa provenience, obtention, or other processes, also resulting reducing the phenolic fraction of treated samples. Principal components analysis confirmed that the alkali process acts on pH, color, and phenolic composition, but not on other bioactives molecules (BAs and salsolinol). All samples resulted safe while alkalized powders have a great reduction in beneficial biocompounds. A novel strategy could be to emphasize non-alkalized powders in the label, to meet the demand for more beneficial products.

Acting as the most abundant and widely distributed volatile secondary metabolites in plants, terpenoids play crucial roles in diverse physiological regulations and metabolic processes. Terpene synthases occupy a decisive proportion in determining the composition and diversity of terpenoids; though their regulatory effects have been extensively investigated across various plant species, limited studies have focused on the upstream transcriptional regulation of terpene synthases. In this study, we unveil linalool as the predominant volatile compound in Freesia hybrida flowers, demonstrating a gradual release pattern during flower blooming. In the context of the transcriptome, a typical MYB transcription factor, FhMYB108, was screened based on digital expression profile correlation analysis and homologous gene comparison. FhMYB108 is capable of regulating the expression of terpene synthase FhTPS1, and both their expression levels exhibit a gradual increase concomitant with flower opening. Moreover, transcriptional regulation and transient expression assays revealed that FhMYB108 exerts a stimulatory effect on the transcription of A. thaliana AtTPS14, while no significant increase in AtTPS14 expression was observed upon stabilization of FhMYB108 in Arabidopsis. Investigate its reason, the highly expressed AtMYC2 in A. thaliana can interact with FhMYB108 to suppress the activation of AtTPS14 by FhMYB108. The present study not only elucidated the regulatory mechanism underlying linalool synthesis, but also discovered the synergistic effect of MYB and bHLH transcription factors in governing the biosynthesis of volatile terpenoids.

The study involved a comparison of the chemical, physical, microbiological, and functional attributes of must extracted from Solaris cultivar grapes cultivated under both conventional and organic farming systems. This study aimed to determine the influence of cultivation methods on various must properties, including the levels of health-promoting polyphenols and health-threatening mycotoxins and pesticide residues. It was observed that the organic grapes hosted a greater diversity and quantity (OTUs) of bacteria and fungi. The predominant bacteria were Sphingomonas (with similar numbers in both crops) and Massilia (more abundant in grapes from the conventional crop). These two bacterial groups collectively accounted, on average, for about 40% of all OTU sequences detected. Lower levels of bacteria of the genera Hymenobacter and Pseudomonas and others colonized the grapes. Among the fungi, Erysiphe and Aureobasidium were dominant, comprising about 50–70% of all detected taxa. Notably, Erysiphe was predominantly found in conventionally grown grapes, while Aureobasidium, Mycosphaerella, and Botryotinia were present in comparable quantities in fruit from both types of crops. No mycotoxins were detected in the must or marc, despite the presence of genes responsible for aflatoxin and ochratoxin biosynthesis in both types of grape juice. The organic must exhibited significantly higher levels of polyphenols and displayed improved antioxidant properties and technological characteristics. Moreover, sulfur and copper used in the protection of the organic plantation passed from the fruit surface into the must. Also, pesticide residues, namely cyprodinil and fludioxonil from conventional cultivation, were detected in the must.

p-Toluenesulfonic acid is commercially available, non-toxic, cheap organic compound with robust stability. p-Toluenesulfonic acid is solid, non-corrosive and a strong organic acid that can be handled easily. Due to this p-toluenesulfonic acid could be the better replacement of other conventional acids like nitric acid, sulfuric acid, perchloric acid and AlCl3 in organic transformations. Moreover, p-toluenesulfonic acid could be used synergistically with other mode of catalysis like transition metal catalysis and photocatalysis. In recent years, the use of this solid organic acid in organic and polymer synthesis has grown tremendously. In this review, we present an overview of p-toluenesulfonic acid promoted various organic reactions with particular emphasis to the more recently reported methods. In some cases, we also detailed the understanding of the reactions by providing the reaction mechanism. Despite these advances, there are still many opportunities for the development of new reactions using PTSA. Industry and academia have become more conscious to adopt sustainable chemical processes using safer reagents and solvents and the use of PTSA in this context is highly significant. This review will inspire researchers for further reaction development employing p-toluenesulfonic acid.

Two new Mn(II) and Zn(II) metal-organic compounds of 1,10-phenanthroline and methyl benzoates viz. [Mn(phen)2Cl2]2-ClBzH (1) and [Zn(4-MeBz)2(2-AmPy)2] (2) (where, 4-MeBz = 4-methylbenzoate, 2-AmPy = 2-aminopyridine, phen = 1,10-phenanthroline, 2-ClBzH = 2-chlorobenzoic acid) have been synthesized and characterized using elemental analysis, TGA, spectroscopic (FTIR, electronic) and single crystal X-ray diffraction techniques. Crystal structure analysis of the compounds reveals the presence of various non-covalent interactions which provides stability to the crystal structures. Crystal structure analysis of the compound 1 reveals the formation of supramolecular dimer of 2-ClBzH enclathrated within the hexameric host cavity formed by the neighboring monomeric units. Compound 2 is a mononuclear compound of Zn(II) where flexible binding topologies of 4-CH3Bz is observed with the metal centre. Moreover various non-covalent interactions such as lp(O)-π, lp(Cl)-π, C‒H∙∙∙Cl, π-stacking interactions as well as N‒H∙∙∙O, C‒H∙∙∙O and C‒H∙∙∙π hydrogen bonding interactions are found to be involved in plateauing the molecular self-association of the compounds. The remarkable enclathration of the H-bonded 2-ClBzH dimer into a supramolecular cavity formed by two [Mn(phen)2Cl2] complexes has been further studied theoretically using density functional theory (DFT) calculations, non-covalent interaction (NCI) plot index and quantum theory of atoms in molecules (QTAIM) computational tools. Synergistic effects have been also analysed using molecular electrostatic potential (MEP) surface analysis.

Nanoporous materials, such as Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs), are renowned for their high selectivity as gas adsorbents due to their specific surface area, nanoporosity, and active surface chemistry. A significant challenge for their widespread application is their behavior and reduced gas uptake in wet conditions, attributed to competitive adsorption between gas and water. The current understanding of gas adsorption in wet materials is constrained by studies that utilize only small amounts of powdered porous materials (in the milligram range) within very small reactors (1-5 mL). This leaves a significant gap in knowledge about gas adsorption behaviors in larger reactors and when MOF sample sizes are increased (to the gram scale) for scaling up the process. Additionally, there is a notable dearth of experimental research in situations where MOFs are heavily saturated with water. To address these gaps, this study measures CH4 adsorption in MOFs under conditions of high moisture content, using larger samples of MOFs (in grams) and a large volume reactor. We selected commercially available MOFs, including HKUST-1, ZIF-8, MOF-303, and activated carbon. A high-pressure isotherms (at T = 274.15 K) using volumetric approach were measured to qualitatively compare the moles of gas adsorbed under both dry and wet conditions across different MOFs and weights. Experimental results show that the presence of water led to a decrease in total CH4 mmol adsorption in MOFs, with a more significant decrease observed in hydrophilic MOFs compared to hydrophobic ones. For hydrophilic MOFs, presence of crossover isotherms at crossover pressure provided evidence of water's conversion to hydrate and its positive role in enhancing total gas uptake, which varied among different hydrophilic MOFs. Oversaturated MOFs showed a larger deviation between dry and wet cases at higher pressures. The high-pressure isotherm data confirm the positive role of hydrophilic MOFs in the conversion of water to hydrate in oversaturated MOFs when MOFs sample size is large.

This study represents a significant stride in advancing furan chemistry, presenting the synthesis of high-molecular-weight polyfurfuryl alcohol (PFA) resin (Mw = 118,959 g/mol) from furfuryl alcohol (FA) using a co-catalytic system as against the conventional single-catalytic methods. The resulting PFA resin is fully characterised, and we conclude that it exhibits good shelf life and potential in diverse applications, serving as a standalone moulded material or contributing to composites, coatings, adhesives, and nanostructured carbons.

A very detailed water budget was conducted on Lake Trafford in southern Florida. The inflow was dominated by surface-water influx via five canals (61%) with groundwater influx constituting 12% and direct rainfall 27%. Lake discharge was dominated by sheet-flow (69%) and evapotranspiration (30.5%) with groundwater recharge of the hydraulically connected unconfined aquifer accounting for only 0.5%. Removal of 30 M tons (4.4 x 106 m3) of organic sediment impacted groundwater influx, causing enhanced groundwater flows into the deeper parts of the lake and mixed flows along the banks creating a rather unusual pattern. The large number of groundwater seepage meters used during the investigation led to a very reliable set of measurements with occasional failure of only a few meters. A distinctive relationship was found between the wet season lake stage, heavy rainfall events and pulses of exiting sheet-flow from the lake. Estimation of the evapotranspiration loss using data collected from a weather station on the lake allowed the use of three different models which, when averaged, produced results comparable to Lake Okeechobee (southern Florida). A limitation of the investigation was the inability to directly measure sheet-flow discharges, which had to be estimated as a residual within the calculated water budget.

This study investigated the effects of exogenous gibberellic acid (GA) treatments (elongating cluster + seedless + expanding, T1; seedless + expanding, T2; expanding, T3 and water, CK) on the content of sugars, organic acids, and endogenous hormones and sink strength.Results showed that T2 treatment displayed the highest fructose and glucose levels at 100 days after treatment (DAT), whereas its effect on tartaric acid, malic acid, and citric acid concentrations at 80 and 100 DAT was relatively weak. Under GA3 treatments, both GA3, IAA, and CTK contents increased, whereas ABA contents decreased at 1, 2, 4, 8, and 48 h. Analysis of sugar phloem unloading revealed that T2 treatment exhibited the highest values during softening and ripening stages. Our findings indicate that appropriate GA3 application can positively influence sink strength by regulating sink size and activity, including berry size enlargement, sugar phloem unloading and sugar accumulation in grape sink cells.

The soil organic matter (SOM) content and stability in natural gypsum soils and soils from mining/industrial areas were compared, in terms of their physical, chemical and micromorphological properties, to determine whether the old brownfield soils were acting as carbon (C) sinks, counteracting increasing carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere. The mining/industrial soils were 50–400 years old, so had been left sufficiently long for full self-restoration. Despite having very different origins, both natural and brownfield soils stored similar amounts of SOM, and had similar pH values, calcium carbonate contents and textures. They were also fully covered with similar grass plant communities. The mining/industrial soils exhibited similar microstructures to the gypsum soils and were often quite porous. The most striking difference between them and the natural gypsum soils was that the mining/industrial soils were strongly polluted with zinc, lead and cadmium. The 50-year-old brownfield soils differed from the others in terms of having a lower state of SOM transformation, with a much higher C/N ratio, lower aggregate water resistance index, lower dehydrogenase activity and greater areas of undecomposed or slightly decomposed plant residues. These parameters in the older (150–400 years) brownfield soils were similar to those of the natural soils.

In view of the expected climate changes, a paradigm shift in soil management, through reduced tillage and/or a different use of crop residues, can be a key point in the mitigation of the climate impacts. The transition from a traditional cropping system (i.e., durum wheat in continuous cropping system under conventional tillage and/or straw removal) to those undergoing the conservative practices require to be evaluated in a medium to long time frame to reach an equilibrium and thus to be properly investigated. In this regard, cropping system simulation models are fundamental tools for the in-silico evaluation of the response of crop growth and soil organic matter dynamics to varying cropping scenarios. This paper reports the evaluations on the parameterization and reliability of the ARMOSA crop simulation model calibrated and validated on experimental datasets collected on durum wheat grown in continuous cropping system under several straw and soil management strategies in a Mediterranean environment.

A hybrid organic molecules as ligands and inorganic NCs in this research combines the chemical properties of organic semiconductors with the chemical stability of inor- ganic nanoparticles like PbS. It is possible to improve the ligand exchange and PbS-NCs' distribution by adding Amino phynel anchor group to TIPs-pentacene and Carboxylic anchor group to Tetraphenylporphyrin molecules. By adding anchor groups to one or two sides of these molecules, they would convert the molecules to ecient ligands to obtain superlattice coupled organic-inorganic nanostrcuture semicondcutor layers (COINs). Adding on side group would cap the PbS nanoparticles while adding two an- chor group would play a linker role between two PbS NCs. This morophology enhance- ment paves the way to manipulate the physical properties of the COINs and fabricate solar cells. Singlet ssion phenomena demonstrates pentacene molecule's advantage for high eciency in organic solar cells and its ability to overcome the Schockley-Queisser limit. Ultraviolet photo-emission spectroscopy (UPS) determines the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) and the work function of COINs, while the lowest unoccu- pied molecular orbital (LUMO) of COINs were calculated subsequently by adding both the exciton binding energy and the optical band gap to the measured HOMO energy. The current versus voltage characteristics and impedance spectroscopy were studied for these molecules as well.

With the development of modern industry, the issue of water pollution has garnered increasing attention. Photocatalysis, as a novel green environmental technology that is resource-efficient, environmentally friendly, and highly promising, has found extensive applications in the field of organic pollutant treatment. However, common semiconductor materials exhibit relatively low photocatalytic efficiency in the visible light range or inefficient separation of photogenerated charges, resulting in their limited ability to harness solar energy effectively. Consequently, the development of new photocatalysts has become a pivotal focus in current photocatalysis research to enhance solar energy utilization. This revision provides a brief explanation of the photocatalytic mechanism of the AgIO3/CTF heterojunction photocatalyst. Due to the Localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) effect, Ag nanoparticles demonstrate significant absorption in the visible light region, playing a crucial role in the highly efficient photocatalytic reduction of organic pollutants.

The effects of organic metabolites produced by a sulfate-reducing prokaryote (SRP) in seawater on the anode corrosion process of magnesium alloy were analyzed by open circuit potential, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, polarization curve, and other electrochemical methods, combined with scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. It was found that the product film produced by magnesium alloy anode corrosion was not dense, and the surface of the magnesium anode substrate was exposed during the corrosion process. The corrosion of magnesium anode matrix was accelerated by the simulation of different organic metabolites including mannose, glucuronic acid, and glucose. Thus, the synergistic effect of various metabolites produced by SRP in the corrosion process of magnesium alloy may be considered in future studies.

Simultaneously with the development of industrial society, wastewater with organic pollutants has caused various environmental problems. The most majority of organic pollutants in water and wastewater are persistent, reason which can cause serious problems for human health, animal health, and for the whole environment. Therefore, efficient treatment methods for wastewater with highly concentration of organic compounds are immediately necessary. During the last years, the prescribed and non-prescribed consumption of antibiotics has grown a lot worldwide. Big quantities of antibiotics are discharged into wastewater because their incomplete absorption by living organisms, but at small concentrations present in aquatic environments represents a major risk for the human health and environment protection. The paper presents the main advantages and disadvantages of advanced oxidation processes, but also current state and new perspectives in the field of environment protection. Advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) are often used in the field of treatment of different types of wastewater. AOPs are based on physicochemical processes that create significant structural changes in chemical species, their commercialization at a wide scale may result in cost reductions that are desirable for environmental applications. The majority of antibiotics may be eliminated using physicochemical processes, such as photo-Fenton, photolysis, ozonation, electrooxidation, heterogeneous catalysis, and other bio processes. In comparison to conventional chemical processes, AOPs provide superior oxidation efficiency, ideal operating costs, and zero secondary pollutants.

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POP) such as dichlorodimethyltrichloroethane (DDT) are present and ubiquitous in the environment due to their resilient nature. DDT is a prevalent endocrine disruptor still found in detectable amounts in organisms and the environment even after its use was banned in the 1970s. Studies show that exposure to DDT can cause adverse health effects in humans and animals, impairing fertility and increasing the risk of developing cancer. The aim of this work is to provide a comprehensive overview of the available literature on the effect of DDT and its metabolites on female reproductive tract, leading to infertility and cancer. Medline and Google Scholar were systematically searched to detect all relevant animal and human studies published in the last 20 years (January 2003 to February 2023) in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) statement. In total, 38 studies were included for qualitative synthesis. This systematic search and review indicated that exposure to DDT is associated with female reproductive health decline and that DDT acts as a sufficient carcinogen instigating reproductive cancers.

Metal organic frameworks (MOFs) are used in catalysis due to their high specific surface area and porous structure. The dispersed active sites and limited reaction space render MOFs have the potential for highly selective electrocatalytic CO2 reduction reaction (ECO2RR). Meanwhile, formic acid (HCOOH) is attracting attention as a liquid product with high economic benefits. This review summarizes the MOFs and their derivatives applied for ECO2RR into HCOOH products. The preparation methods of MOFs as electrocatalysts and their unique advantages are discussed. A series of MOFs, and MOFs derivatives obtained by electrochemical reduction or carbonization processes are highlighted, including metal nanomaterials, carbon-based nanocomposites, single-atom catalysts, and bimetallic nanocomposites. Depending on the MOFs building units (metal ions and organic linkers) and the reaction conditions of derivatization, MOFs-based catalysts exhibit rich diversity and controllable modulation of catalytic performance. Finally, the challenges encountered at this stage and the future research directions of MOFs-based catalysts are proposed.

The versatility of metal complexes of corroles raised the interest in the use of these molecules as element of chemical sensors. The tuning of the macrocycle properties by synthetic modification of the different components of the corrole ring, such as functional groups, molecular skeleton, and coordinated metal, allows the creation of a vast library of corrole-based sensors. However, the scarce conductivity of most of aggregates of corroles limits the development of simple conductometric sensors and requires the use of optical or mass transducers that are rather more cumbersome and less prone to be integrated in microelectronics systems. To compensate the scarce conductivity, corroles are often used to functionalize the surface of conductive materials such as graphene oxide, carbon nanotubes, or conductive polymers. Alternatively, they can be incorporated in heterojunction devices where they are interfaced with a conductive material such as a phthalocyanine. Herewith, we introduce two heterojunction sensors made of junctions of lutetium bisphthalocyanine (LuPc2) with either 5,10,15-tris(pentafluorophenyl) corrolato Cu (1) or 5,10,15-tris(4-methoxyphenyl)corrolato Cu (2). Optical spectra show that after forming the heterojunction, corroles maintain their original structure. The conductivity of the devices reveals an energy barrier for interfacial charge transport, which is larger in the 1/LuPc2 device. The different interfacial barriers is also manifested by the opposite response respect to ammonia: with a 1/LuPc2 behaving as a n-type conductor and 2/LuPC2 as a p-type conductor. Furthermore, the sensors show a high sensitivity respect to relative humidity with a reversible and fast response in the range 30-60%.

Climate change is one of the main issues that humanity is currently facing due to carbon dioxide emissions caused by the use of fossil fuels. Organic Rankine cycles may play an important role in reducing these emissions since they can be operated by using industrial waste heat of renewable energies. The present study presents a comprehensive bibliographic review of organic Rankine cycles. The study not only actualizes previous reviews that mainly focused on basic cycles operating on subcritical or supercritical conditions but also includes the analysis of novel cycles such as two-stage and hybrid cycles and the used fluids. Recuperative and regenerative cycles are more efficient than reheated and basic single-stage cycles. The use of two-stage cycles makes it possible to achieve higher thermal efficiencies and net power outputs of up to 20% and 44%, respectively, compared with those obtained with single-stage cycles. Theoretical studies show that hybrid systems, including Brayton and organic Rankine cycles, are the most efficient; however, they require very high temperatures to operate. Most organic Rankine cycle plants produce net power outputs from 1 kW up to several tens of kW, mainly using microturbines and plate heat exchangers.

The influence of long-term chemical fertilization in paddy soils is based on the interaction between labile carbon and phosphorus fractions and how this influences soil organic carbon (SOC). Four soil depths (0–30 cm) were analyzed in this study. Easily oxidized organic carbon components, such as permanganate oxidized carbon (POXC) and dissolved organic carbon (DOC), and other physicochemical soil factors were evaluated. The correlation and principal component analyses were used to examine the relationship between soil depth and the parameter dataset. The results showed that Fe-P concentrations were greater in the 0–5 cm soil layer. DOC, inorganic phosphate fraction, and other soil physiochemical characteristics interacted more strongly with SOC in the 0–5 cm soil layer, compared to that in the 10–15 cm layer, influencing soil acidity. An increase in DOC in the 0–5 cm soil layer had a considerable effect on lowering SOC, consistent with P positively correlated with POXC, but negatively with SOC and water-soluble carbon (WSC). The changes in SOC could be attributed to the relationship between DOC and inorganic phosphate fractions (as Fe-P) under a specific soil pH condition. An increase in soil DOC could be caused by changes in the P fraction and pH. The DOC:Avai. P ratio could serve as a compromise for the C and P dynamic indicators. The soil depth interval is a critical element that influences these interactions. Agricultural policy and decision-making may be influenced by the P from chemical fertilization practices, considering the yields and environmental effects.

Windthrows in the forestry fund, which have become more frequent due to the increase in extreme weather events, have had and continue to have negative economic and ecological effects, making them a pressing issue in forestry research. Their urgency has been amplified in light of the need to develop sustainable forest management systems. The main objectives of this study are to evaluate the effects of windthrows on some microbiological properties of forest soils and to monitor the evolution of the degraded tree regeneration, 4 years after the event, for three tree species: Norway spruce (Picea abies L.), sessile oak (Quercus petraea), and European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.). The experimental plot used is arranged in dispersed blocks and subdivided plots, with three repetitions, bifactorial, factor A representing the tree species, and factor B the windthrows: in two situations: affected (AW) and not affected by felling (WW). Three representative soil profiles were studied for each tree species, including dehydrogenase activity (DA) and the number of fungi (NF) in the organic horizon at the soil surface. Dehydrogenase activity was determined by the extraction of triphenylformazan, and NF was evaluated using the Plate Count Method (Petri plates) and the Sabouraud Agar culture medium. The values of Current Dehydrogenase Activity (CDA) and Potential Dehydrogenase Activity (PDA) did not show significant statistical differences in relation to the windthrow factor, but were distinctly significant (p &lt; 0.01) for the tree species factor. On the other hand, NF showed statistical significance for both tree species and windthrows factors, at a level of p &lt; 0.01. Correlations were highlighted between the differences in AW and WW of CDA, PDA, and NF with the number of naturally regenerated seedlings (NRS), and the type of soil. The regressions established between NRS and the differences in CDA and PDA, the dependence of the differences in PDA on the differences in NF, and the regression between the differences in NF and the type of soil demonstrate the importance of soil characteristics in the natural regeneration process of the main tree species - Norway spruce, sessile oak, and European beech. Stimulating NRS in AW forests and increasing the volume of terrestrial organic carbon (TOC) biomass is directly dependent on soil fertility, primarily determined by soil organic carbon (SOC), which accumulates in the soil as a result of organic matter, deposited on the surface. Sustainable forest management of AW plots should stimulate the accumulation of SOC, including the partial or total preservation of dead trees, provided that the attack of specific diseases and pests is avoided.

Tomato is considered the most important vegetable crop worldwide. Improving the nutritional value of fruits must be based on sustainable production in terms of varieties and fertilization management. This study aimed to improve the nutritional value (total soluble solids, acidity, lycopene, β-carotene, polyphenols, macro and microelements) of two tomato varieties (‘Cristal’ and ‘Siriana’) under three fertilization types (NPK chemical fertilizer, chicken manure and biological fertilizer with microorganisms) for the greenhouse. Primary metabolism compounds do not vary significantly according to the type of fertilizer used. The results for the antioxidant compounds showed a better effect of biological fertilization compared to chemical fertilizer and control unfertilized. The tomato fruits from the local cultivar (‘Siriana’) are richer in nutritional compounds such as rutin, regardless of the type of fertilization, which denotes a good ability to adapt to crop conditions. Tomato cultivars reacted positively to microbiological fertilization compare to chemical, thus producing nutritious fruits under sustainable management. Tomato fruits were richer in the quality of microelement contents.

Automobile industries worldwide extensively use organic solvents. Yet, limited evidence examined the health and safety in handling these solvents, which can only be assured if workers have appropriate knowledge and demonstrate safe practices. A cross-sectional study was conducted to explore the knowledge and practice among workers who are involved with handling organic solvents in the automobile industry in the largest most urban district in Brunei Darussalam. Qualitative data were sought from open-ended questions; observations and pictorial evidence through still photographs. Quantitative analysis showed that 75% of the workers practice reading labels, 94.1% use fully covered clothes, 82.4% wear gloves and 98.5% practice proper hand washing as well as 98.5% cover container lids. The qualitative analysis illustrated workers have general knowledge of materials containing solvents but did not identify the exact solvents, the harmful effects of the solvents, pathophysiology and harmful effects on specific body systems. Health and safety were practiced albeit not consistent. Health and Safety Authorities in Brunei Darussalam must review and enforce specific policies on use of organic solvents so that they can be practiced consistently and safely in automobile industries. Cooperation and collaboration in adhering to the policies are mandatory to ensure health and safety at work.

The integration of metal nanoparticles and solid carriers can achieve ideal stability, high load and good conductivity. In this work, copper nanoparticles (Cu NPs) were sequentially deposited on a cobalt metal-organic framework (Co-MOF) by bonding with exposed imino groups, followed by a reduction reaction to prepare a new Cu@Co-MOF composite. Cu@Co-MOF acts as a non-enzymatic electrochemical sensor to detect glucose (Glu) in an alkaline medium. The composite working electrode of Cu@Co-MOF/GCE (GCE = glassy carbon electrode) improves the electrocatalytic activity for Glu oxidation. Cu@Co-MOF/GCE shows excellent electrocatalytic performances in Glu concentration ranging 0.005~1.8 mmol∙L⁻¹ (mM): the sensitivities are 282.89 μA∙mM⁻¹∙cm⁻² in 0.005-0.4 mM Glu and 113.15 μA∙mM⁻¹∙cm⁻² in 0.4-1.8 mM Glu respectively with low detection limit of 1.6 μM (S/N = 3) and high selectivity and stability.

Meat-based diets are still the norm and vegans and vegetarians represent only a small minority of the population. A transition respectively behavioural change towards a diet with less meat can only occur with the adoption of a positive attitude towards dietary changes based on reasons and motivations. The main aim of this study is to validate the so-called meat attachment scale (MEAS) for Germany in order to analyse if this construct is a barrier towards a diet with less meat in this country. The findings show that the MEAS can be applied in Germany and a similar structure as reported for Spain and other countries could be found. Furthermore, a correlation analysis demonstrated that food neophobia and MEAS are not correlated with each other. That is, that meat attachment represents an independent and single predictor for trust in food (processing) technologies as e.g. plant-based proteins or cultured meat.

This study investigated the ability of a HYDRUS 1D model for predicting the vertical distribution of potassium iodine (200 ppm) in soil columns after amendment with five different common remediation materials (gypsum, lime, fly ash, charcoal and sawdust) at a rate of 2.5% (w/w), relative to an unamended control soil. Results shows that relative to the unamended soil, iodine leaching was decreased by all amendments but that the magnitude of the decreases varied with the soil amendment applied. Iodine content was highest in the upper layer of the soil columns and decreased progressively with soil depth. The model was evaluated via comparison of the model simulated values with measured values from the soil column studies. The results showed that the HYDRUS 1D model efficiency was near to 1, indicating that the stimulated results were near to the measured values. Therefore, this study showed that iodine leaching through a soil could be ascertained well using a HYDRUS 1D model. The model over predicted iodine leaching, resulting to a weak correspondence between the simulated and the measured results for iodine leaching. This suggests that the HYDRUS-1D model does not explain accurately different organic and inorganic amended soil and the preferential flow that occurs in these columns. This may be due to the fact that Freundlich isotherm, which is part of the transport equations, does not sufficiently describe the mechanism of iodine adsorption onto the soil particles. This study would help to select amendments for an effective management strategy to reduce exogenous iodine losses from agro-ecosystems. This would also improve understanding of iodine transport in soil profile.

Use of antibiotics and other chemicals to combat disease outbreaks have been a bottleneck for the sustainable growth of shrimp industry. Among various replacement proposed, organic acid (OA) and their salts (OS) are commonly used by farmers and feed millers. However, in free forms, their requirement is very high (2-3 kg/MT) as they tend to disassociate before reaching the hindgut. The dosage can be reduced by microencapsulation of the ingredients. In this study, a 63-day trial was conducted to assess the effects of OA and OS (COMP) microencapsulated (ENCAP) with fat (HF), fat + alginate (HA), wax esters – (WE), and HA and WE (HAWE) on performance, digestive enzyme, immune, and resistance to Vibrio parahaemolyticus. A positive control (PC, 200 g/kg fishmeal - FM) and a negative control (NC, 130 g/kg FM) diet were formulated. Eight other diets were formulated supplementing NC diet with microencapsulated OA (OAHF, OAHA, OAWE, OAHAWE) and OS (OSHF, OSHA, OSWE, OSHAWE). Among the ENCAPs, significant difference was observed in serum malondialdehyde (P = 0.026) where HF showed the lowest level (6.4 ±0.3 mmol/L). Significant interactions between COMP and ENCAP were observed in lipid deposition (P = 0.047), serum alkaline phosphatase and acid phosphatase (P < 0.0001), and hepatopancreatic and serum phenol oxidase (P < 0.0001). Despite no differences, 96-h mortality during pathogenic Vibrio parahaemolyticus challenge in all treatment diets (45% - 56%) was lower compared to the NC diets (63%). In conclusion, use of HF microencapsulated OA diets could provide improved performance and disease resistance that could contribute to the reduction of antibiotic use by the shrimp industry.

Although carbon (C) efflux from soils treated with organic wastes was widely covered in temperate and cold regions, still such data is not sufficient from arid and semi-arid regions. Saudi Arabia produces more than 335,000 tons/year of cow manure (CM), this CM either left as raw manure or being composted. The application of high C/N amendments is expected to increase soil organic carbon and reduce CO₂ fluxes. A 90-day incubation experiment was conducted to study CO₂ efflux, organic C microbial biomass C, available NH₄+and NO₃-when added to agricultural soil. Six manure types were added: cow manure, cow manure compost, cow manure biochar, cow manure stripped ammonia at pH 12 with a temperature of 95oC, cow manure stripped ammonia at pH 9 with a temperature of 95oC and control. The application of CM resulted in a considerable increase in soil available nitrogen, CO₂ efflux compared to other treatments. Cow manure biochar showed the lowest CO₂ efflux. Cumulative CO₂ effluxes of cow manure effluents were lower than CM this possibly due to the relatively high C:N ratio of manure effluent. The content of, P, Fe, Cu, Zn and Mn were decreased as incubation time increased. microbial biomass C of cow manure stripped ammonia at pH 12 with a temperature of 95oC were increased at 7 and 60 days illustrating to temperature effect on the decomposing of manure materials.

We report that ethanol, used together with water, plays a crucial role in tuning the structures of a zirconium-based Metal-Organic Framework, the 12-connected MOF-801, and the possible mechanisms of this modulating effect. By employing the cosolvent system of ethanol and water just under room temperature without the presence of a monotopic carboxylic acid as the modulator, MOF-801 in various morphologies of different sizes can be synthesized. The linear correlation between the ethanol/water ratio and the crystal sizes is also demonstrated. The growth mechanism is mainly explained by ethanol’s binding with the metal ion clusters and the Marangoni Flow Effect. Ethanol competes with the linker molecules in coordinating with the Zr metal clusters, a role similar to that of the modulators. The Marangoni Flow Effect, which dominates at a certain solvent ratio, further promotes the 1-D alignment of the MOF-801 crystals.

The aim of the present study was to assess the efficacy of All Cosmos Industries (ACI) bio-organic and bio-chemical fertilizers and ACI N-Fixer (N-Bio Booster) on the paddy yields based on the field trial plots at Langkat, Medan, Indonesia. This application of ACI bio-organic fertilizer (NPK 5/5/5) and ACI bio-chemical (NPK 15/15/15) fertilizer and ACI N-Fixer tests were conducted at the paddy farm at Langkat from May-October 2018. This study employed a factorial randomized complete block design which consisted of two factors, namely: Factor I with four types of fertilizers while Factor II consisted of two paddy varieties (Inpari 30 and Inpari 32). Overall, the filled grains in the ACI treatments are significantly (P< 0.05) higher than those in the control treatments that used Normal Chemical Compound NPK. Overall, total weight per meter² (368-617g) in ACI treatments are also significantly (P< 0.05) higher than those (319-371g) in the control treatments. At harvesting time at 105 days after transplanting, significantly higher (P< 0.05) colony counts (13-15 x 10⁶ CFU/mL) (for ACI treatments), than those (8 x 10⁶ CFU/mL) in the controls positively indicated higher total yields of paddy grains per hectare. It was found that the application of ACI bio-organic and bio-chemical fertilizers and ACI N-Fixer can improve paddy yields of the two rice varieties, between 16.4-38.2% (up to 5.75 MT/ha), in the field trial plots at Langkat. These commercial fertilizers play an imperative role in refining the soil fertility and thereby can increase the yield of rice production. Therefore, it is highly recommended that ACI bio-organic and ACI bio-chemical fertilizers and ACI N-Fixer (N-Bio Booster) can be employed to increase the paddy yield in this region.

Currently, the use of sustainable chemistry as an ecological alternative for the generation of products or processes, free of polluting substance has assumed a preponderant role. The aim of this work is propose a bioinspired, facile, at low cost, non-toxic and environmentally friendly alternative to obtaining magnetic nanoparticles whit a majority phase of magnetite (Fe₃O₄). Is important to empathize that the synthesis was based on the chemical reduction through the Cnicus Benedictus extract, whose use as reducing agent has not been reported in the synthesis of iron oxides nanoparticles. In addition, the Cnicus Benedictus is abundant endemic plant in Mexico, with several medicinal properties and a large number of natural antioxidants. The obtained nanoparticles exhibited significant magnetic and antibacterial properties and an enhanced photocatalytic activity. The crystallite size of the Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles (Fe₃O₄ NP’s) was calculated by Williamson-Hall method. The photocatalytic properties of the Fe₃O₄ NP´s were studied by kinetics absorptions models in the Congo red (CR) degradation. Finally the antibacterial effect of the Fe3O4 NP´s were evaluated mediated the Kirby-Bauer method against E. coli and S. aureus bacteria. This route offers a green alternative to obtain Fe3O4 NP´s with remarkable magnetic, photocatalytic and antibacterial properties.

Vigorous early-season growth rate allows crops to compete more effectively against weeds and to conserve soil moisture in arid areas. Many crop species, including common bean, show genetic variation in growth rate between varieties. Despite this, the genetic basis of the early-season growth-related traits has not been well resolved in the species, in part due to historic phenotyping challenges. Using a range of UAV- and ground-based methods, we evaluated early-season growth vigor of two populations. These growth data were then used to find QTLs associated with several growth parameters. Our results suggest that early-season growth rate is the result of complex interactions between several genetic and environmental factors and highlight the need for the high-precision phenotyping provided by UAVs. The QTLs identified in this study are the first in common bean to be identified remotely using UAV technology and will be useful for developing crop varieties that compete with weeds more effectively. Ultimately, this will reduce crop losses and mitigate the need for herbicides and manual labor for weed control.

In this work, magnetic CuFe₂O₄/Ag nanoparticles activated by porous covalent organic frameworks (COF) was fabricated to evaluate the heterogenous reduction of 4-nitrophenol (4-NP). The core-shell CuFe₂O₄/Ag@COF was successfully prepared by polydopamine reduction of silver ions on CuFe₂O₄ nanoparticles, followed by COF layer condensation. With integrating the intrinsic characteristics of the magnetic CuFe₂O₄/Ag core and COF layer, the obtained nanocomposite exhibited features of high specific surface area (464.21 m² g^-1), ordered mesoporous structure, strong environment stability, as well as fast magnetic response. Accordingly, the CuFe₂O₄/Ag@COF catalyst showed good affinity towards 4-NP via π-π stacking interactions and possessed enhanced catalytic activity compared with CuFe₂O₄/Ag and CuFe₂O₄@COF. The pseudo-first-order rate constant of CuFe₂O₄/Ag@COF (0.77 min^-1) is 3 and 5 times higher than CuFe₂O₄/Ag and CuFe₂O₄@COF, respectively. The characteristics of bi-catalytic CuFe₂O₄/Ag and the porous COF shell of CuFe₂O₄/Ag@COF made a contribution to improve the activity of 4-NP reduction. The present work demonstrated a facile strategy to fabricate COF activated nano-catalysts with enhanced performance in the fields of nitrophenolic wastewater treatment.

We present organic, diamagnetic materials based on structurally simple (hetero-) tolane derivatives. They form crystalline thin-film aggregates that are suitable for Faraday rotation (FR) spectroscopy. The resulting new materials are characterized appropriately by common spectroscopic (NMR, UV-Vis), microscopy (POM), and XRD techniques. The spectroscopic studies give extremely high FR activities thus makes these materials promising candidates for future practical applications. Other than a proper explanation, we insist in the complexity of designing efficient FR materials starting off from single molecules.

Although food retailers have embraced organic certified food products as a way to reduce their environmental loading, organic sales only make up a small proportion of total sales worldwide. Most consumers have positive attitudes towards organic food, but attitudes are not reflected in behaviour. This article addresses consumers’ attitude-behaviour gap regarding their purchase organic food and reports on how visualization of personal shopping data may encourage them to buy more organic food. Through the design of the visualization tool, the EcoPanel, and through an empirical study of its use, we provide evidence on the potential of the tool to promote sustainable food shopping practices. Sixty-five users tested the EcoPanel for five months and interviews were made with ten of these. The test users increased their purchase of organic food with 23%. The informants used the EcoPanel to reflect on their shopping behaviour and to increase their organic shopping. We conclude that the visualization of food purchases stimulates critical reflection and the formation of new food shopping practices. This implies that food retailers may increase sales of organic food through using a visualization tool available for their customers. In this way these retailers may decrease their environmental impact.

Global waste generation keeps increasing over the year and requires innovative solutions to minimize their impacts on environmental quality and public health. Predicted 2.2 billion tonnes per year of global municipal waste generation in the year 2025 which 1.6 fold is higher than in 2012. Hence, a strategic plan must be ascertained to overcome the future challenges of MSW locally and globally. Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) coined an initiative to demonstrate a showcase pilot plant for green energy production from MSW. Therefore, the data was obtained from the survey and actual sampling within the UPM compound to estimate the MSW generated and it's potentially used for green energy production. It is estimated that 5.0 – 7.0 tonne per day of MSW generated which about 30 - 35% is an organic fraction. Upon separation, the organic fractions were digested into biogas through anaerobic. At the maximum conversion of organic fraction, about 775 kWh of electricity may able to generate from the waste. In this study, the complete biorefinery setup and utilize organic components from the MSW generated in UPM was proposed that the biogas subsequently will be used to produce green energy in the form of electricity or cooking fuel.

The active debate about the processes governing the organic-rich sediment deposition generally involves the relative roles of elevated primary productivity and enhanced preservation related to anoxia. However, other less spotlighted factors could have a strong impact on such deposits: e.g. residence time into the water column (bathymetry), sedimentation rate, transport behavior of organo-mineral floccules on the sea floor. They are all strongly interrelated and may be obscured in the current conceptual models inspired from most representative modern analogues (i.e. upwelling zones and stratified basins). To improve our comprehension of organic matter distribution and heterogeneities, we conducted a sensitivity analysis on the processes involved in organic matter production and preservation which have been simulated within a 3D stratigraphic forward model. The Lower-Middle Toarcian of the Paris Basin was chosen as a case study as it represents one of the best documented example of marine organic matter accumulation. The relative influence of the critical parameters (bathymetry, diffusive transport, oxygen mixing rate and primary production) on the output parameters (Total Organic Carbon, and oxygen level), determined performing a Global Sensitivity Analysis, shows that, in the context of a shallow epicontinental basin, a moderate primary productivity (> 175 gC.m^-².yr^-1) can led to local anoxia and organic matter accumulation. We argue that, regarding all the processes involved, the presence and distribution of organic-rich intervals is linked as a first-order parameter to the morphology of the basin (e.g. ramp slope, bottom topography). These interpretations are supported by very specific ranges of critical parameters which allowed to obtain output parameter values in accordance with the data. This quantitative approach and its conclusions open new perspectives about the understanding of global distribution and preservation of organic-rich sediments.

In this paper, the modification of two synthetic steps to obtain EMICORON, with respect to the usual protocol, is reported. EMICORON is a benzo[ghi]perylen-diimmide which was synthesized the first time in our laboratory in 2012 and showed to have in-vivo antitumor activities interfering with tumor growth and development by a multi-target mechanism of action. The provided modifications regarded the reaction times and the reaction conditions as well as the work-up procedures and allowed to increase the global yield of the process from 28% to about 40%. Thus, this new procedure may be more suitable in order to get larger amounts of EMICORON for further preclinical studies.

Air pollutants such as volatile organic compounds (VOCs), nitrogen oxides (NOx), sulfur dioxide (SO2), as well as water pollutants including heavy metal, are harmful to human and environment. Effective control and reduction of their pollution is therefore an important topic for today’s scientists. Fly ash (FA) is a type of industrial waste that can cause multiple environmental problems if discharged into the air. On the other hand, because of its high porosity, large specific surface area, and other unique characteristics, the FA can also be used as a low-cost and high efficient adsorbent with some simple modifications. This paper reviews the effects of FA on treatment of the above air and water pollution based on our research experience over many years, including to the current status of global FA utilization, physicochemical properties, principle of adsorption, and the application direction of FA in the future. It focuses on the use of nanocomposite technology to fabricate functional FA fibrous membranes to adsorb VOCs from air, and treat heavy metal wastewater. This present review first describes the fabrication technology of FA nanocomposites and their mechanism of adsorption VOCs from air. Utilization of nanofiber technology to fabricate multi-functional FA emerging composite materials to mitigate air and water pollution has great potential in the future, especially use of pollutant material to control other pollutants.

The quasi-two-dimensional organic charge-transfer salt κ-(BEDT-TTF)₂Cu₂(CN)₃ is one of the prime candidates for a quantum spin-liquid due the strong spin frustration of its anisotropic triangular lattice in combination with its proximity to the Mott transition. Despite intensive investigations of the material's low-temperature properties, several important questions remain to be answered. Particularly puzzling are the 6 K anomaly and the enigmatic effects observed in magnetic fields. Here we report on low-temperature measurements of lattice effects which were shown to be particularly strongly pronounced in this material (R. S. Manna et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 104, 016403 (2010)). A special focus of our study lies on sample-to-sample variations of these effects and their implications on the interpretation of experimental data. By investigating overall nine single crystals from two different batches, we can state that there are considerable differences in the size of the second-order phase transition anomaly around 6 K, varying within a factor of 3. In addition, we find field-induced anomalies giving rise to pronounced features in the sample length for two out of these nine crystals for temperatures T < 9 K. We tentatively assign the latter effects to B-induced magnetic clusters suspected to nucleate around crystal imperfections. These B-induced effects are absent for the crystals where the 6 K anomaly is most strongly pronounced. The large lattice effects observed at 6 K are consistent with proposed pairing instabilities of fermionic excitations breaking the lattice symmetry. The strong sample-to-sample variation in the size of the phase transition anomaly suggests that the conversion of the fermions to bosons at the instability is only partial and to some extent influenced by not yet identified sample-specific parameters.

There is no well-defined threshold for intra-operative blood transfusion (BT) in advanced epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) surgery. We developed a Machine Learning (ML)-driven prediction algorithm to trigger and explain a communication alert for BT based on anticipated peri-operative events irrespective of BT policies. We analysed prospectively collected data from 403 EOC patients who underwent cytoreductive surgery between 2014 and 2019. We calculated the estimated blood volume (EBV) using the formula EBV = weight x 80 and set off 10%EBV as threshold for individual intervention. Based on the known estimated blood loss (EBL) we identified two groups. We employed Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves for performance metrics. The model performance for the above threshold prediction was satisfactory (AUC 0.823, 95% CI 0.76-0.88). The top feature commonly shared between interrogators was operative time (OT). Intra-operative blood loss of at least 10%EBV was associated with OT&gt;250 minutes, primary surgery, serous histology, performance status 0, R2 resection and surgical complexity score &gt;4. Large bowel resection, stoma formation, ileocecal resection/right hemicolectomy, mesenteric resection, bladder and upper abdominal peritonectomy were amongst sub-procedures clearly associated with increased intervention risk. Precise prediction of blood requirements is not possible unless a rough estimate of OT is known in advance.

Acute kidney injury (AKI), especially if recurring represents a risk factor for future chronic kidney disease. In intensive care units, increased intraabdominal pressure is well-recognized as a significant contributor of AKI. However, the importance of transiently increased intra-abdominal pressures procedures is less commonly appreciated during laparoscopic surgery, the use of which has rapidly increased over the last few decades. Unlike the well-known autoregulation of the renal cortical circulation, medulla perfusion is modulated via partially independent regulatory mechanisms and strongly impacted by changes in venous and lymphatic pressures. In our review paper, we will provide a comprehensive overview of this evolving topic, covering a broad range from basic pathophysiology up to and including current clinical relevance. Key regulators of oxidative stress such as ischemia-reperfusion injury, the activation of inflammatory response and humoral changes interacting with procedural pneumoperitoneum formation and AKI risk will be recounted. Moreover, we present an in-depth review of the interaction of pneumoperitoneum formation with general anesthetic agents and animal models of congestive heart failure. A better understanding of the relationship between pneumoperitoneum formation and renal perfusion will support basic and clinical research, leading to improved clinical care and collaboration among specialists.

The purpose of this study was to determine antibiofilm effect of combined sonication treatment with organic acid on polystyrene surface and to develop a predictive model for Escherichia coli biofilm inactivation. Polystyrene plates containing E. coli biofilm were exposed to sonication with different inactivation solutions (PBS, lactic acid and acetic acid) at different temperatures (20, 40 and 50oC) and times (2 and 5 minutes). The effects of temperature, time and inactivation solution on E. coli biofilm removal were found to be statistically significant (p

This study evaluates the impact of integrated nutrient management (INM) practices on potato yield and quality in the coastal regions of Bangladesh. Potatoes are a vital crop in Bangladesh, and optimizing nutrient management is crucial for enhancing productivity and ensuring sustainability. The research was conducted in multiple agro-ecological zones in Gopalganj, where field trials were established with three treatment groups: traditional fertilization practices, organic fertilizers, and a combination of organic and inorganic fertilizers (INM). The results demonstrated that INM practices significantly improved potato yield and quality compared to traditional practices. Specifically, the INM group exhibited a 20% increase in yield and enhanced tuber quality, characterized by higher nutrient content and reduced incidence of common diseases. Soil health parameters, including microbial activity, nutrient availability, and organic matter content, were also positively influenced by INM practices. Economic analysis revealed that, despite higher initial costs, INM practices were more cost-effective in the long run due to reduced fertilizer input and improved crop yield. This study highlights the importance of adopting sustainable nutrient management strategies to improve potato production in Bangladesh. The findings underscore the potential of INM practices to enhance food security and support sustainable agricultural development. By integrating organic and inorganic fertilizers, farmers can achieve higher yields, better-quality produce, and maintain soil health, making INM a viable strategy for the future of potato farming in Bangladesh.

Background: Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) is the most common respiratory disease in pre-term and is still associated with increased mortality and morbidity. The great interest lies in iden-tifying early biomarkers that can predict the development of BPD. Objectives: This pilot study explores the potential of e-nose for early identification of BPD risk in premature infants by analyzing volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the exhaled breath con-densate (EBC). Materials and Methods: Fourteen mechanically ventilated very preterm infants were included in the study. Clinical parameters and EBC were collected within the first 24 hours of life. The dis-criminative ability of breath-prints between preterms who did and did not develop BPD was in-vestigated by pattern recognition, machine learning algorithm, and standard statistical methods. Results: We found that e-nose probes can significantly predict the outcome of “no-BPD” vs “BPD”. Specifically, a subset of probes (S18, S24, S14, and S6) were found to be significantly predictive, with an AUC of 0.87, 0.89, 0.82, 0.8 and p=0.019, 0.009, 0.043, 0.047, respectively. Conclusion: The E-nose is an easy-to-use, handheld, non-invasive electronic device that quickly samples breath. Our preliminary study has shown that it has the potential for early prediction of BPD in preterms.

KThe promising possibility of organic photodetector (OPD) is emerging in the field of sensing applications for its tunable absorption range, flexibility, and large-scale fabrication abilities. In this work, we fabricated bulk heterojunction OPD with a device structure of glass/ITO/PEDOT:PSS/ P3HT:PC61BM/Al by spin coating process and characterized the dark and photocurrent at different applied bias conditions for red, green, and blue incident LED light. OPD photocurrent density exhibited up to 2.5–3 orders higher magnitude compared to the dark current density at -1 V bias while it increased up to 3–4 orders at zero bias conditions for red, green, and blue lights showing an increasing trend higher voltage applied in the negative direction. Different OPD inner periphery shapes, OPD to LED distance, and OPD area were also considered to bring the variation in OPD dark and photocurrent, which can affect the on/off ratio of the OPD–LED hybrid system and is a critical phenomenon for any sensing application.

Chitosan is a biodegradable polymer derived from chitin, that is a versatile material for various biological applications for its attractive properties such as biocompatibility, biodegradability, and non-toxicity. Furthermore, chitosan possesses Second Harmonic Generation properties, that are useful for bio-sensing applications. In this work we explored the possibility to exploit chitosan-based nanospheres as SHG-based bio-sensors, and also as carriers of 89Sr radionuclide, an Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient for radiopharmaceutical treatments in cancer therapy. To load opportunely the Sr ion on the nanospheres, we used a fructose-based Metal Organic Framework, of formula [Sr(C6H12O6)2(H2O)2]Cl2·H2O, because the sugar was able to drive the Sr ions on the chitosan matrix. The Sr-loaded chitosan nanospheres were synthetized, characterized, and their SHG response was measured. The results encouraged us to propose the nanospheres for theranostic purposes, i.e. at the same time valuable for both therapy and diagnostic applications.

'Cv 'Doña María' table grape is a high-quality table grape variety included in the Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) of the European Union "The bagged grape of the Vinalopó." The PDO stipulates that grape clusters must be protected with paper bags from inclement weather and insects, which helps enhance the final grape quality. However, 'Doña María' is a variety prone to high shattering in the late stages of ripening on the vine and during postharvest. Inorganic calcium treatments are one of the most commonly used tools to reduce this disorder, but the translocation of this mineral from veraison onward has been questioned. In this study, five applications were performed, from veraison to harvest, using sorbitol-chelated calcium (0.7 % + 1.0 %), Ca(NO3)2 (Ca) at 0.7% and sorbitol at 1%. It was observed that bagged grapes (not wetted with the solutions) only increased the concentration of total and bound calcium when treated with Sorbitol-Ca. This resulted in reduced berry drop during cultivation and postharvest and improved fruit firmness. Additionally, it reduced grape metabolism indicators such as respiration rate, weight loss, malic acid degradation, prevented abscisic acid (ABA) and malondialdehyde (MDA) accumulation, and favored the accumulation of secondary metabolites such as total polyphenols, increased antioxidant activity, and sugar content. The application of sorbitol-chelated calcium is an effective and safe tool that enhances fruit quality and prevents losses due to shattering during postharvest.

The paper examines the evolution and crucial role of energy communities in the context of the transition to renewable energy sources. Such communities are presented as an innovative and resilient response to the challenges posed by climate change. Their importance emerges from their ability to decentralise energy production, increasing local security and reducing dependence on non-renewable energy sources and external suppliers. However, despite the obvious benefits, the contribution highlights several challenges, such as the need for significant upfront investment and the presence of regulatory barriers that may hinder the integration of these solutions into existing energy systems. A detailed bibliometric analysis is used, focusing on specific research areas and using tools to map the most relevant keywords and emerging trends. The results of the bibliometric analysis highlight how energy communities are emerging as key players in the sustainability landscape, capable of addressing and overcoming contemporary environmental challenges. The research reaffirms the transformative potential of energy communities in promoting a more sustainable and resilient future.

Particulate organic carbon (POC) is a pivotal component within the marine carbon cycle, actively involved in diverse biogeochemical processes. This study focuses on Mediterranean as the research region, selecting the most influential factors from 47 potential ones influencing surface POC. Using geographic detector for factor identification, ten primary influencers were identified. Preliminarily optimized random forest (BRF), backpropagation neural network, adaptive boosting, and extreme gradient boosting were utilized to construct POC assessment models. Notably BRF exhibited superior performance in estimating the sea surface POC. Further optimization of RF using the tuneRanger R package resulted in R² of 0.868, mean squared error of 1.119 (mg/m³) ², and mean absolute error of 1.041 (mg/m³). Surface POC concentrations in the Mediterranean for May and June 2017 were estimated. Spatial distribution analysis unveiled higher concentrations in the west, lower in the east, higher in the north, lower in the south, with higher levels near the coast and lower far from the coast. Additionally, the study deliberated on the impact of human activities on surface POC in the Mediterranean. This research contributes a high-precision method for satellite retrieval of surface POC concentrations in the Mediterranean, thereby enriching the understanding of POC dynamics in the area.

Phosphorus (P) concentration in rivers and lakes receives greater attention due to its significance in contributing to eutrophication. This study aimed at profiling phosphorus species in Vembanad lake (Ramsar site) and its adjoining rivers. Four phosphorus fractions (total reactive phosphorus (TRP), total acid hydrolysable phosphorus (TAHP), total organic phosphorus (TOP) and total phosphorus (TP)) were monitored according to premonsoon and postmonsoon seasons. Meenachil river mouth is a hotspot for eutrophication with high values of most of the phosphorus fractions. Among the four fractions TRP, TOP and TP were recorded maximum concentration during the premonsoon and postmonsoon seasons. Each fraction of TRP, TAHP, TOP, and TP had an average concentration of more than 300 µgL-1 P throughout two seasons, which is highly eutrophic. The result reveals that the surface water of Vembanad lake is highly polluted with phosphorus input and it may trigger algal growth and consequent destruction of the biodiversity rich wetland system.

In the Vietnamese Mekong delta, soil quality and crop yield are steadily declining under rice monocultures with three crops per year. The objective of this study was to evaluate the medium-term effects of rotating rice with upland crops and adding organic amendments on rice yield and relate it to soil quality. A field trial with split-plot design including two factors and three replicates was carried out from 2017 to 2020, over the course of nine consecutive cropping seasons. Crop rotations and organic amendments were applied as main-plot and subplot factors, respectively. The rotations were: 1) rice–rice–rice (R–R–R), 2) soybean–rice–rice (So–R–R), and 3) sesame–rice–rice (Se–R–R), while organic amendment treatments included: i) no amendment (NO-AM); ii) compost of rice straw and cow manure (RS+CM), and iii) sugarcane compost (SGC); the composts were applied at a rate of 2.0 t ha-1. The rotation cycle started with the so-called spring–summer (SS), followed by summer–autumn (SA) and ended with the winter–spring (WS) season. Rice yield significantly (P &lt; 0.05) increased by organic amendments after nine growing seasons (2019–2020 WS), with an increment of 5.1% for RS+CM (7.07 ton/ha) and 6.1% for SGC (7.14 ton/ha). Contrary to our expectation, rotations with upland crops did not significantly increase rice yield. Rice yield significantly and positively correlated with an integrated soil quality index SQI (r = 0.86) for the topsoil (0–15 cm), but not for the subsoil (15–30 cm). The increased availability of soil nutrients (Si and marginally also P) and improved soil physical properties probably induced by organic amendments, along with other soil properties under study, cumulatively attributed to enhanced rice yield. Use of a SQI involving several soil quality indicators enables to overall quantify the importance of soil fertility for rice yield versus other factors and it provides an effective means of quantifying the integrated effect of improved management. Moreover, integrating a wide range of soil quality indicators in a SQI ensures its applicability across diverse settings, including different crop rotations and various soil types.

Supramolecular structures with specific applications are a pillar in several areas of science. Thus, from a contemporary point of view, there are several reasons to feel inclined to cover a systematic, or historic critique of the supramolecular concept itself. First, the idea of a supramolecular material seems more secure now than it was decades ago. Second, updating the interacting of MOFs and supramolecular chemical and conversely, supramolecularity to assemble MOFs and to make ef-ficient complex systems in multiple cutting-edge applications. Third, we should here simply confine to a consideration of how workers in this field have tried to correlate the notion of the idea of supramolecular systems linking self-assembly considerations. Thereby, this is clearly an ad-vantage that optimized geometries obtained on the conductive bases described that undoubtedly, some of these systems have substantial applications and create a significant practical interest. The outline of this review encompasses a general introduction to MOFs and supramolecularity, the key unit of the study presented here, followed by a survey of recent advances in supramolecular chemistry in confined space, relationships of MOFs with the supramolecular chemistry, electro-chemical synthesis of MOFs, and switchable MOFs. Finally, some discussion on possible future perspectives of this field is given.

In an attempt to reuse fibrous textile waste and, at the same time, to address dye pollution in textile wastewater, waste cotton-based yarn was utilized as both a cheap and sustainable adsorbent and a precursor for carbon adsorbent production. Cotton and cotton/polyester yarn samples underwent thermal modification through carbonization followed by chemical activation with KOH. Various techniques including nitrogen adsorption-desorption isotherms, scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and surface charge determination were employed to analyze the morphological and surface properties of the cotton-based adsorbents. Adsorption properties were evaluated by testing the removal of selected cationic and anionic dyes from water. The impact of temperature, contact time, initial concentration, and pH of the adsorbate solution on adsorption was investigated, with experimental data analyzed using theoretical models. While carbonization alone did not significantly enhance adsorption properties, activated samples exhibited high efficacy in removing both cationic and anionic dyes from water. Despite the negative influence of the polyester component in the carbon precursor on the efficiency of activated samples in removing methyl orange, results indicated that activated cotton and cotton/polyester yarn could be used to prepare highly efficient adsorbents for the rapid removal of methylene blue from real wastewater samples.

In politics and society, organic farming is widely seen as the ideal way to address the many challenges facing agriculture and food security. In order to examine the extent to which this view is realistic, the impact of organic and conventional farming is compared on the basis of relevant criteria such as land requirements, greenhouse gas emissions, biodiversity, food quality, production and environmental costs, reduced meat consumption, the need for agricultural imports and the global expansion of arable land. Land is considered to be a central factor. Such a comprehensive analysis is necessary to assess the impact of different influencing factors and to provide important suggestions for targeted decision making. Although organic farming has a positive impact on land use in many ways, it quickly reaches its limits. The low yields and high production costs resulting from the limited choice of means of production make organic farming an unsuitable model for the future in a world with limited arable land, a high and growing demand for food, and low incomes for large sections of the population. It can, however, provide significant impetus and contribute important technological knowledge for the further development of agriculture as a whole to meet the complex objectives of sustainability, greenhouse gas mitigation, biodiversity and global food security by incorporating all available technologies. Based on this, a model for responsible, sustainable intensive agriculture is outlined and proposals for an eco-social framework to support this model are put forward.

One of the most concerning global environmental issues is the pollution of agricultural soils by heavy metals (HMs), especially cadmium (Cd), which not only affects human health by taking Cd-containing foods but also impacts the quality of rice. The soil's nitrification and denitrification processes, coupled with the release of volatile organic compounds by plants, raise substantial concerns. The understanding of three aspects of paddy soil under conditions of heavy-metal pollution and water management is currently limited. In this review, we summarized recent literature related to the deleterious effects of Cd on both soil processes related to the N cycle and rice quality, particularly aroma, in different water management practices. Under both continuous flooding (CF) and alternate wetting and drying (AWD) conditions, cadmium (Cd) has been observed to reduce both nitrification and denitrification processes. The adverse effects are more pronounced in continuous flooding (CF) compared to alternate wetting and drying (AWD). Similarly, the alteration in rice aroma is more significant in AWD than in CF. The precise modulation of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) by Cd, remains unclear based on the available literature. Nevertheless, HM accumulation is higher in AWD conditions compared to CF, leading to a detrimental impact on volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The literature concluded that AWD practices should be avoided in Cd contaminated fields to decrease accumulation and maintain the quality of rice. In the future, rhizospheric engineering and plant biotechnology can be used to decrease the transport of HMs from the soil to the plant’s edible parts.

Purpose: The study investigates soil pores' impact on carbon dynamics and sequestration processes, examining their physical and chemical characteristics and their mechanisms for carbon sequestration.Research Method: Existing literature and research on soil pores, carbon dynamics, and carbon sequestration are analyzed. The interrelationships between soil pore structure, water movement, microbial activity, root penetration, carbon input, soil aggregation, and gas exchange are examined. Traditional techniques and advanced imaging methods are used to quantify and characterize soil pores.Findings: Soil pores play a critical role in facilitating carbon sequestration through various mechanisms. They affect water movement, microbial activity, root penetration, carbon input, soil aggregation, and gas exchange. Understanding these relationships is crucial for sustainable soil management.Research Limitations: This study relies on existing literature and research, which may have limitations and uncertainties. Further research is needed to address these gaps and enhance understanding.Originality Value: This research enhances the existing knowledge by comprehensively examining the significance of soil pores in carbon dynamics and sequestration. It incorporates both traditional and advanced methods, providing insights for soil management and contributing to climate change mitigation efforts.

Understanding the implications of organic acids in animal diets on physiological markers is critical for developing viable strategies for improving overall health and performance. The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of dietary organic acids inclusion on rabbits’ growth performance and physiological status by determining blood and intestine development indicators. Forty weaned rabbits aged 28-d randomly assigned into 2 groups and fed with standard compound diet (SCD) and SCD + 0.2% organic acids mixture (butyric, propionic, sorbic; OAM). Growth performance was evaluated between 28-77 d of age, physiological status at 77 d of age. OAM’s rabbits final body weight, ADG, DFI, growth rate indicators were higher, but FCR lower compared to SCD (P &lt; 0.05). OAM increased total protein and albumin levels in blood plasma; reduced pH, increased DM, achieved greater viscosity in caecum’s content (P &lt; 0.05). Compared to SCD better gut development observed in OAM, as total intestinal weight was significantly higher (P &lt; 0.05). Acetic and propionic acids concentrations were increased, but butyric reduced in OAM caecum’s content (P &lt; 0.05). OAM had significant effect on the most caecum histomorphometric parameters: increased villus height, crypt depth and their ratio (P &lt; 0.05). According to our results OAM can improve rabbits’ growth performance, nutrient intake, and feed digestibility by significantly improving physiological status.

As for their large surface area and pore volume, three-dimensional covalent organic frameworks (3D COFs) have emerged as competitive porous materials. However, due to the structural dynamic behavior particularly for imine-linked 3D COFs, potentially unlock their potential for gas storage application. Herein, we showed a pre-locked linker strategy introduces breaking dynamic behavior in 3D COFs. A predesigned planar linker based 3,8-diamino-6-phenylphenanthridine (DPP) was prepared to produce non-dynamic 3D JUC-595, as benzylideneamine moiety in DPP locked the linker flexibility and restrict the molecular-bond rotation of the imine linkages. Upon solvent inclusion and release, the PXRD profile of JUC-595 remained intake, while JUC-594 with flexible benzidine linker experienced crystal transformation due to framework contraction-expansion. As a result, the activated JUC-595 achieved higher surface areas (754 m² g-1) than that of JUC-594 (548 m² g-1). Furthermore, improved CO2 and CH4 storages were also seen in JUC-595 compared with JUC-594. Impressively, JUC-595 recorded high normalized H2 storage capacity that surpass other reported high surface area 3D COFs. This works shows important insight on manipulating structural properties of 3D COF to tune the gas storage performance.

Increased CO2 emissions and air pollution impact the environment and human health. In this manner, new functionalized polyaminal-based polymers are synthesized via a one-pot polycondensation reaction of melamine with aldehyde monomers 2-bromo-1-naphthaldehyde and 2-hydroxy-1-naphthaldehyde to yield bromine- hydroxyl- functionalized polymer networks PAN-BrNA and PAN-HNA, respectively. The polyaminals porosity parameters were investigated and applied as an adsorbent for CO2 capture. FTIR, solid-state 13C NMR, and X-ray diffraction verified the PANs structure development. A scanning electron microscope and N2 adsorption-desorption methods were utilized to identify the porous properties of the polymers at 77 K. The Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area of PAN-BrNA and PAN-HNA is (16.6990 m2/g) and (716.7568 m2/g), respectively. At 273 K, PAN-BrNA and PAN-HNA can take CO2 gas up to (4.42786 cm3/g) and (47.55 cm3/g), respectively. The findings show that inserting functional groups has a significant impact on surface area and porosity parameters, as well as CO2 uptake.

Background –The brinjal is of much importance in the warm areas of Far East, being grown extensively in India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, China and the Philippines. It is also popular in Egypt, France, Italy and United States. Preserving soil fertility throughout time by preserving organic matter and soil biological diversity, mechanical intervention, as well as exercise is highly needed in upcoming future. Effect of six different fertilizer, five organic and one synthetic fertilizers listing vermicompost, poultry manure, mustard cake, neem cake, bonemeal and N:P:K study were main concern of this investigation to find out the most suitable fertilizer for the brinjal.Result - the final growth and development through N:P:K @ 1.5%(19:19:19) outperformed all the organic fertilizers but when considering only organic fertilizer performance vermicompost@5 ton/ha was outperforming all the other organic fertilizers. Coming close to it, mustard cake@1.5ton/ha has shown its inheritance in providing nutrients. Use of other organic fertilizers are also effective use of poultry manure can provide nitrogen in higher amount in short time. Higher temperature above 25 degree Celsius cause slow growth, temperature range between 21 to 14 degrees Celsius was found better in terms of growth of flower and fruit formation.Conclusion – our experiment demonstrate specific organic fertilizer use over other fertilizers in terms of brinjal different developemental parameters and there is even comparision between synthetic fertilizer with organic fertilizer readily available in market. Vermicompost showed promising result followed by mustard cake for this specific brinjal genotype in northern plain of Indian subcontinent.

Soil organic matter is an important component that reflects soil fertility and promotes plant growth. The soil of typical Chinese tea plantations was used as the research object in this work, and by combining soil hyperspectral data and image texture characteristics, a quantitative prediction model of soil organic matter based on machine vision and hyperspectral imaging technology was built. Three methods, standard normalized variate (SNV), multisource scattering correction (MSC) and smoothing, were first used to preprocess the spectra. After that, random frog (RF), variable combination population analysis (VCPA) and variable combination population analysis and iterative retained information variable algorithm (VCPA-IRIV) algorithms were used to extract the characteristic bands. Finally, the quantitative prediction model of nonlinear support vector regression (SVR) and linear partial least squares regression (PLSR) for soil organic matter was established by combining nine color features and five texture features of hyperspectral images. The outcomes demonstrate that, in comparison to single spectral data, fusion data may greatly increase the performance of the prediction model, with MSC+VCPA-IRIV+SVR (R2C=0.995, R2P=0.986, RPD=8.155) being the optimal approach combination. This work offers excellent justification for more investigation into nondestructive methods for determining the amount of organic matter in soil.

The resonance spectrum of surface resistance derivative in quasi-two dimensional layered organic conductors has been calculated numerically for the out-of-plane and in-plane magnetic field. Not all but some of the resonances in a given series of transitions are present in the spectra. They are observed at the positions corresponding to the maxima in the surface resistance derivative curve and are in a good agreement with previously calculated magnetic field resonance positions. For tilted magnetic fields, there are more resonances present in the spectrum than in the case of a non-tilted field. Apart from the resonances corresponding to the transitions between the adjacent surface states there also appear resonances involving the transitions between the more distant surface states. This is correlated with the specific topology of Fermi surface of the organic conductors. The presented calculations will allow correct interpretation of the experimental curves for the resonance spectrum, and also to obtain information on the surface properties of these materials for their possible implementation in fabrication of devices based on organic molecular conductors.

Metal-organic framework (MOF) is a porous hybrid material of metal ions connected by organic bridging ligands. The coordination bonds link the metal ions, metal-ion clusters, and organic ligands to create the MOFs, and the materials are a distinctive class of crystalline frameworks. These porous materials possess relatively large surface area, tunable pore sizes, various functionalities, and high thermal stability. Therefore, diverse area of research including electrochemical sensor development utilizes distinctive and engineered MOFs materials. The review critically analyzes the strategy adopted for synthesizing a variety of MOFs materials. The role of these engineered materials in the fabrication of a miniaturized device demonstrates the detection of various emerging water contaminants in an aqueous medium. The studies demonstrated an understanding of the insights of sensor and device development. Moreover, the challenges encountered utilizing the MOFs in the electrochemical sensor development are precisely included, along with future perspectives of these studies.

Agriculture has been experiencing a difficult situation because of limiting factors in its production, Natural biostimulants (NBs) have emerged as a novel alternative. This study reviews NBs produced through Solid-State Fermentation (SSF) from organic waste, focusing on the processes and production methods. The aim is to highlight their potential for improving agricultural productivity and promoting sustainable agriculture. Through a literature review, the effects of NBS on crops were examined, as well as the challenges associated with their production and application. The importance of standardizing production processes, optimizing fermentation conditions, and assessing their effects on different crops is emphasized. Furthermore, future research areas are identified, such as enhancing production efficiency and evaluating the effectiveness of SSF-produced NBS in different agricultural systems. In conclusion, SSF-produced NBS offers a promising alternative for sustainable agriculture, but further research and development are needed to maximize its efficacy and enable large-scale implementation.

In the face of the current energy and environment problems, the full use of biomass resources instead of fossil energy to produce a series of high-value chemicals has great application prospects. 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), which can be synthesized from lignocellulose as raw material, is an important biological platform molecule. Its preparation and catalytic oxidation of subsequent products have important research significance and practical value. In the actual production process, porous organic polymer (POPs) catalysts are highly suitable for biomass catalytic conversion due to its high efficiency, low cost, good designability, and environmentally friendly features. Here, we briefly described the application of various types of POPs (including COFs、PAFs、HCPs、CMPs) in the preparation and catalytic conversion of HMF from lignocellulosic biomass, and analyzed the influence of the structural properties of catalysts for the catalytic performance. Finally, we summarized some challenges that POPs catalysts will face in biomass catalytic conversion, and prospected the important research directions in future. This review would provide valuable references for the efficient conversion of biomass resources into high-value chemicals in practical applications.

Pharmaceutically active compounds (PhACs) enter soil with organic substrates such as manure. Such complex substrates differently affect PhACs’ soil sorption. To elucidate the effects, batch experiments were conducted using five selected chemicals as model constituents. Urea, KH2PO4, acetic acid, phenol and nonadecanoic acid (C:19) altered the sorption strength and/or nonlinearity of sulfadiazine, caffeine and atenolol in a topsoil. The nonlinear Freundlich model best described sorption. Overall, the PhACs’ sorption coefficients increased in the sequence urea&lt;phosphate&lt;phenol&lt;C:19&lt;acetic acid. The sorption nonlinearity also increased in most cases. The effects on sulfadiazine and caffeine were rather similar, but in many cases different from atenolol. Phosphate mobilized sulfadiazine and caffeine and urea mobilized sulfadiazine, which was explained by sorption competition resulting from specific preference of similar sorption sites. Soil sorbed phenol strongly increased the sorption of all three PhACs; phenolic functional groups are preferred sorption sites of PhACs in soil. The large increase in sorption of all PhACs by acetic acid was attributed to a loosening of the soil organic matter and thus the creation of additional sorption sites. The effect of C:19 fatty acid, however, was inconsistent. These results help to better understand the sorption of PhACs in mixtures of soil and manure.

We have detected a large Nernst effect in the CDW state of the multiband organic metal α−(BEDT−TT)2KHg(SCN)4. We find that there exists a significant gradient of charge relaxation processes that can generate a sizeable contribution adding especially to the transverse thermoelectric signal. Apart from the phonon drag, the energy relaxation processes governing the electron-phonon interactions and the momentum relaxation processes governing the charge mobility of the q1D group of carriers have a significant role in observing the large Nernst signal in the CDW state. The emphasised momentum relaxation dynamics in the low field CDW state is a clear indicator of a significant carrier mobility that can lead to the largest Nernst signal in this state. The momentum relaxation is reduced with increasing angle and magnetic field, i.e., in the high field CDW state which is reflected in the smaller Nernst effect amplitude. In this case only the phonon drag and electron-phonon interactions are contributing to the transverse thermoelectric signal. Our findings advance and change the previous observations on the complex properties of this organic metal.