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The process kinetics of an anaerobic digestion process for treating recycled paper mill effluent (RPME) was investigated. A laboratory-scale modified anaerobic hybrid baffled reactor (MAHB) was operated at hydraulic retention times of 1, 3, 5, and 7 days, and the results were analyzed for the kinetic models. A kinetic study was conducted by examining the phase kinetics of the anaerobic digestion process, which were divided into three main stages: hydrolysis kinetics, acetogenesis kinetics, and methane production kinetics. The study demonstrated that hydrolysis was the rate-limiting step. The applied Monod and Contois kinetic models showed satisfactory prediction with μmax values of 1.476 and 0.6796 L day−1, respectively.

Wastewater treatment is a key challenge in the textile industry. The current treatment methods for textile wastewater are insufficient or ineffective for complex dyes generated from the textile industry. This study evaluated the performances of two novel inorganic coagulants with high cationic charges, namely, titanium tetrachloride (TiCl4) and zirconium tetrachloride (ZrCl4). They were utilised to treat textile industry wastewater. Both coagulation processes were performed under the same experimental operational conditions. Turbidity, suspended solids (SS), colour, chemical oxygen demand (COD) and ammonia were measured to assess the efficiencies of the coagulants. Results indicated that ZrCl4 and TiCl4 exhibited high potentials for textile wastewater treatment. ZrCl4 presented high removal efficiency in COD and SS, whereas TiCl4 showed excellent removal in ammonia. Keywords: Textile wastewater, Coagulation, Titanium tetrachloride, Zirconium tetrachloride

In the production of textile fabrics, the unfixed dye that is left in the process wastewater often show a significant influence of pollution, either in any receiving surface water or the extra burden of the pollution load in a receiving sewer. However, besides the unfixed dyes, other pollutants generated in the various stages of textile production have contributed to the strength and variability of the pollutants inherent in the resultant wastewater. Therefore, the present study characterizes a real textile wastewater and investigates the feasibility and success of the combination of persulfate and clinoptilolite in a single reactor to remove the target pollutants viz; chemical oxygen demand (COD) and suspended solids (SS). Results of the study show that the combination is feasible and successful in the treatment of recalcitrant dye wastewater. This is indicated by the removal of COD (74%) and SS (99%). The determinant factors that were observed to effectively influence the treatment process were persulfate dosage (4/1), which was standardized as a persulfate/contaminant ratio (g/g), dosage of clinoptilolite (8g), the initial pH (4) of reaction and reaction time of 30 minutes to remove COD, and 210 minutes for the removal of SS. The residual SS at 3 mg/l is within the acceptable limit of 50 mg/l, while the COD exceeded the standard limit. A biological treatment may thereafter be applied to further remove the residual COD to bring to an acceptable limit.

The creation of very pollute palm oil mill waste water has resulted in semiserious environmental hazards. The reason for the current study is to test the optimal removal of ammonia nitrogen (NH3-N) from palm oil mill waste water by filtration using inexpensive filters media in place of current methods, to remove ammonia nitrogen from palm oil mill effluent. A series of batch and column studies were conducted using a different particle size of limestone (4, 12 and 20 mm) at various filtration rates of 20 ml/min, 60 ml/min and 100 ml/min. An experimental model design was conducted using Central Composite Design (CCD) in Response Surface Methodology (RSM). RSM was used to calculate the outcomes of process variables and their role in reaching ideal conditions. Equilibrium isotherms in this study were evaluated using the Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm. Using statistical analysis, the NH3–N removal model proved to be very significant with very low probability values (0.0001). The column study showed that ideal NH3-N removal was attained using a lower flow rate and smaller sized limestone (LS). The ideal conditions found when using 4 mm limestone and a 20 ml/min flow rate. This resulted in 45.3% removal of NH3–N which was seen in the predicted model, and fit well with the laboratory results (45%). The adsorption isotherm data fit the Langmuir isotherm.

Tin tetrachloride (SnCl4) as a coagulant and rubber seed (Hevea brasiliensis) (RS), and polyacrylamide (PAM) as the coagulant aid were investigated in this work to treat matured and stabilised landfill leachate rich in COD and colour. A standard jar test was conducted at different pH values and dosages of coagulant/coagulant aid. When SnCl4 acted as the primary coagulant, the optimum conditions occurred at pH 8 and 10,000 mg/L dosages, with 97.3% and 81% reductions of colour and COD, respectively. Both RS and PAM were not effective when used alone. When RS was used as the coagulant aid, the dosage of SnCl4 was reduced to 8000 mg/L. The colour reduction was maintained at 97.6%, but the COD removal dropped to 43.1%. In comparison, when PAM was supplemented into 6000 mg/L SnCl4, the reduction in colour was maintained at 97.6%, and the COD removal was almost at par when SnCl4 was used alone. The addition of polymers as the coagulant aid helped in improving the sludge properties with a better settling rate (SSR) and larger flocs size. The decline of the SVI value indicates that less amount of sludge will be disposed of after the treatment. In addition, the rise of settling velocity (SSR) will reduce the size of the settling tank used in coagulation-flocculation treatment. Based on the results, it can be concluded that incorporation of coagulant aid into the treatment reduced the primary coagulant dosage without affecting the removal performances of pollutants.

Efforts to include people with disabilities in design education are difficult to scale, and dynamics of participation need to be carefully planned to avoid putting unnecessary burdens on users. However, given the scale of emerging AI-enhanced technologies and their potential for creating new vulnerabilities for marginalized populations, new methods for generating empathy and self-reflection in technology design students (as the future creators of such technologies) are needed. We report on a study with Information Systems graduate students where they used a participatory elicitation toolkit to reflect on two cases of end-user privacy perspectives towards AI-enhanced tools in the age of surveillance capitalism: their own when using tools to support learning, and those of older adults using AI-enhanced adaptive assistive technologies (AATs) that help with pointing and typing difficulties. In drawing on the experiences of students with intersectional identities, our exploratory study aimed to incorporate intersectional thinking in privacy elicitation and further understand its role in enabling sustainable, inclusive design practice and education. While aware of the risks to their own privacy and the role of identity and power in shaping experiences of bias, students who used the toolkit were more sanguine about risks faced by AAT users--assuming more data equates to better technology. Our tool proved valuable for eliciting reflection but not empathy.

Single-dose glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP1) therapy increases postprandial plasma IL6 levels in prediabetic, obese humans. GLP1-IL6 interactions underly multiple antidiabetic effects, but these may differ after acute versus chronic therapy. This study examines postprandial effects of GLP1 after chronic therapy. Seven humans (six Black) with prediabetes and obesity completed 6 weeks of exenatide extended release therapy. Then subjects returned for pre- and post-meal measurements of plasma IL6, GLP1, glucagon, and related inflammatory markers. Weight, which was measured before and after therapy, did not change. Plasma IL6 decreased from baseline to postmeal state ( = 0.016), with decreases in free fatty acids (P

Traditional histochemical staining of post-mortem samples often confronts inferior staining quality due to autolysis caused by delayed fixation of cadaver tissue, and such chemical staining procedures covering large tissue areas demand substantial labor, cost and time. Here, we demonstrate virtual staining of autopsy tissue using a trained neural network to rapidly transform autofluorescence images of label-free autopsy tissue sections into brightfield equivalent images, matching hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) stained versions of the same samples. The trained model can effectively accentuate nuclear, cytoplasmic and extracellular features in new autopsy tissue samples that experienced severe autolysis, such as COVID-19 samples never seen before, where the traditional histochemical staining fails to provide consistent staining quality. This virtual autopsy staining technique provides a rapid and resource-efficient solution to generate artifact-free H&E stains despite severe autolysis and cell death, also reducing labor, cost and infrastructure requirements associated with the standard histochemical staining.

The effectiveness of hydrocarbon bioremediation strategies approaches is depending on various issues such as type and volume of pollution, nutrient accessibility in the target ecosystem, time, biodiversity of microorganisms, pollutant bioavailability and many others. In the present research, laboratory studies were carried out on the bioremediation of coastal sediment samples artificially contaminated with weathered crude oil. The efficiency of natural attenuation, bioaugmentation and biostimulation for removal of Total Petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH) were compared in 90 days experiments. Three oil concentrations of 3, 30, 60 g oil/kg soil were studied to investigate the effect of oil concentration on the bioremediation process. The average degradation, in biostimulation tests were 52.11, 58.36 and 43.02% whereas in bioaugmentation tests were 73.89, 73.76 and 58.31% for 3, 30 and 60 g oil respectively. The results indicated that excessive crude oil (more than 30 g/kg in this case) is not suitable for bioremediation presumably duo to inhibitory or toxicity to the microorganisms. By supplementation of acclimatized microorganism as well as nitrogen and phosphorus, a satisfactory amount of biodegradation is reachable in two months.

Anaerobic digestion is widely considered as an environmentally friendly technology for various organic waste including sewage sludge. Although the implementation of anaerobic digestion as an alternative treatment method for sewage sludge can be seen in many countries, its status in Malaysia is not clear. This study reviewed the current state of sewage sludge treatment in Malaysia and discussed the challenges to promote anaerobic digestion in sewage sludge treatment. Other than the common constraints faced, namely technical, political and economic, the characteristics of sewage sludge in Malaysia are considered to be a factor regarding feasibility. Anaerobic co-digestion is the simultaneous anaerobic digestion of two or more substrates which is a promising possible option to overcome the disadvantages of mono-digestion, and improve the economic viability due to higher methane production. There are a variety of biomasses as co-substrates in Malaysia. However, the anaerobic co-digestion of food waste and sewage sludge might be the most feasible method to overcome such constraints. Adding food waste as co-substrate is suggested as the possible approach to not only improve the process's performance but also help to handle the increasing volume of food waste in Malaysia. This study aims to highlight the potential as well as to provide a starting point for further studies regarding the treatment of sewage sludge using anaerobic digestion in Malaysia.

Wastewater treatment is crucial to prevent environmental pollution [...]

BACKGROUND: Quality in healthcare is a fundamental pillar of health systems performance, leading to improved health outcomes and reduced waste. The World Health Organization recommends that countries establish a national quality policy and strategy (NQPS) to steer the provision of safe and high-performing healthcare services and foster a quality culture. This paper describes the development process and key content of Malaysias new 5-year National Policy for Quality in Healthcare. METHODS: The development process was managed by a technical working group led by the Institute for Health Systems Research in the Ministry of Health. Situational analysis was conducted through a multi-pronged approach, underpinned by a review of the past and present healthcare sectoral and quality plans and guided by the WHO NQPS framework. This approach involved: (i) review of quality-related policy documents, (ii) online surveys of healthcare providers and the public, (iii) key-informant facilitated discussions and (iv) mapping of existing quality improvement initiatives (QIIs). Data gathered from these approaches informed the content of the new policy. Following thematic analysis, the findings were grouped into specific domains, which were then organized into a strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) framework. RESULTS: Ten key areas of concern identified were (i) a people-centred holistic approach, (ii) governance for quality, (iii) resources, (iv) quality culture, (v) stakeholder engagement, (vi) health management information system, (vii) workforce competency, (viii) knowledge exchange, (ix) quality indicators and (x) monitoring and evaluation of quality activities. These led to the formulation of seven strategic priorities  for the planning of improvements aimed at addressing the key areas of concern. The national definition of quality was affirmed. A total of 40 QIIs were mapped and grouped into three broad categories, namely (i) regulatory, (ii) domain-specific QIIs and (iii) Quality Improvement (QI) method. CONCLUSIONS: The National Policy for Quality in Healthcare for Malaysia was developed through a comprehensive situational analysis using a multi-method approach that identified priorities across national, state, institutional and community levels. This evidence-informed approach led to meaningful contextual adaptation of the NQPS framework to shape the strategic direction to advance quality and achieve effective and safe outcomes for all Malaysians.

The aim of this work is to verify the technical feasibility of composting in the case of Marrakech prefecture. On the basis of waste composition and in accordance with the choice of the installation of Marrakech controlled landfill, composting has been considered as the most suitable waste treatment. To ensure the feasibility of composting, physicochemical analyses have been carried out on the fermentable part of waste; analyses on the content of metal elements have also been performed on the fine fraction, since the most important part is located in the same fraction. All parameters determined in the laboratory, have shown that optimal conditions to have good quality compost have been respected. The only restriction identified is the copper content, which should be less than 20 ppm. Generally the low levels of metal element content indicate that the storage and collection conditions of waste have not influenced their quality. On the other hand, the process must be properly controlled and managed, to produce high-quality compost.

This work examined the behavior of a novel zeolite augmented on the electrocoagulation process (ZAEP) using an aluminum electrode in the removal of high-strength concentration ammonia (3471 mg/L) from landfill leachate which was saline (15.36 ppt) in nature. For this, a response surfaces methodology (RSM) through central composite designs (CCD) was used to optimize the capability of the treatment process. Design-Expert software (version 11.0.3) was used to evaluate the influences of significant variables such as zeolite dosage (100−120 g), current density (540−660 A/m2), electrolysis duration (55−65 min), and initial pH (8−10) as well as the percentage removal of ammonia. It is noted that the maximum reduction of ammonia was up to 71%, which estimated the optimum working conditions for the treatment process as follows: zeolite dosage of 105 g/L, the current density of 600 A/m2, electrolysis duration of 60 min, and pH 8.20. Furthermore, the regression model indicated a strong relationship between the predicted values and the actual experimental results with a high R2 of 0.9871. These results provide evidence of the ability of the ZAEP treatment as a viable alternative in removing high-strength landfill leachate of adequate salinity without the use of any supporting electrolyte.