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Water is the driving force of all nature. This old quote from Leonardo da Vinci reminds us that without water life is simply not possible. As a consequence, water is probably the most important wealth for humanity. In spite of this, drinking water is still polluted by man-made toxicals gathered by waters in soils and the atmosphere. This book presents advanced methods to clean water and air. Chapters also focus on biofuels, greenhouse gases and genetically modified crops.

This book details first the chemistry of hydrogen production from biomass. Solutions to the CO2 issue are given in three chapters, which describe CO2 photo catalytic reduction, CO2 sequestration in terrestrial biomass, and plants as renewable fuels. Further chapters review the selenium cycle in ecosystems, advanced processes to treat water and ecological ways to dye textiles. Society growth during the last century has almost entirely relied on the carbon economy, which is the use of fossil fuels for energy and materials. The carbon economy has provided and will still provide many benefits. However, the increasing use of fossil fuels is partly responsible for the increase of atmospheric CO2 concentrations and in turn, global warming. There is therefore an urgent need for cleaner fuels such as hydrogen, as well as a need for a carbon neutral economy where each emitted CO2 molecule is fast sequestered in plants, algae, soils, sub soils and sediments.

Using renewable fuels and materials, drinking clean water and food, and breathing safe air are major issues for a sustainable world. This book reviews biodiesel production from microalgae, a promising energy source that does not compete with food production. Several advanced techniques to clean polluted waters, such as electrochemistry, ferrites photocatalysis and low-cost filtration are presented. Chapters also show various living organisms used as bioindicators of toxic metals. Decreasing ecotoxicity of pesticides using suitable surfactants is reviewed. The last chapter evidences new pollutants in urban soils, halogenated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.​