To develop a lower-cost, excellent performance, and environmentally friendly phe-nol-formaldehyde (PF) resin, soybean meal was used to modify PF resin, and soybean meal-phenol-formaldehyde (SMPF) resins were prepared. Their physicochemical properties and curing performance were investigated, showing that SMPF resins have higher curing tempera-tures than PF resin. The Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) results indicated that the cross-linking reaction occurred between the amino groups of soybean protein and the hy-droxymethyl phenol. Moreover, with the addition of soybean meal, the viscosity of SMPF in-creased while the gel time decreased. It is worth mentioning that SMPF-2 resin has favorable viscosity, short gel time, low curing temperature (135.78 °C), and high water resistance and bonding strength (1.01 MPa). Finally, all the plywoods bonded with SMPF resins have good water resistance and bonding strength, which could meet the Standard (GB/T 17657-2013, type I) for plywood. The optimized SMPF resins showed the potential application to replace part of PF resin in the wood industry.

Novolac phenol-formaldehyde resins have gained extensive commercial utilization across diverse applications due to their exceptional mechanical, thermal, and chemical resistance properties. In this investigation, we successfully synthesized a traditional novolac, and a biobased novolac phenol-formaldehyde resin by partially substituting phenol with a bio-oil obtained from the organic phase resulting from the fast pyrolysis of pinewood biomass. Despite extensive investigations into the curing behavior of novolac resins crosslinked with hexamethylenetetramine (HMTA) through numerous model-fitting cure kinetic studies, a comprehensive model for predicting the crosslinking of bio-based phenol-formaldehyde resins in the presence of HMTA has not yet been studied. The primary objective of this research was to compare and apply several commonly used kinetic models to predict the degree of curing and cure rate of the synthesized resins, using DSC dynamic measurements. Our results demonstrated that the autocatalytic model exhibited excellent fitting for the traditional novolac resin and HMTA mixture, while the Kamal model showed better fitting with the experimental data obtained for the bio-based phenol-formaldehyde resin and HMTA system. In addition, the results evidenced a significant drop in the curing temperature by partially replacing phenol with bio-oil. Additionally, the results revealed a notable reduction in curing temperature when phenol was partially substituted with bio-oil. This substitution not only offers environmental benefits but also promotes energy efficiency and enhances production safety. The data collected in this study is pivotal for our subsequent research endeavors, which aim to develop environmentally sustainable materials optimized for use in 3D printing manufacturing processes.

In this present study, 3-pentadecyl-phenol was selected as a modifier to prepare a foamable phenolic resin with excellent performance, which was successfully prepared by in-situ modification. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and nuclear magnetic resonance (¹H NMR, ¹³C-NMR) were used to test and characterize the molecular structure of the modified resin. The results showed that 3-pentadecyl-phenol successfully modified the molecular structure of phenolic resin with a reduction in resin gel time. The effect of changing the added amount of 3-pentadecyl-phenol on the mechanical properties, microstructure and flame retardancy of the modified foam was investigated. The results showed that when the amount of added 3-pentadecyl-phenol was 15% of the total amount of phenol, this resulted in the best toughness of the modified foam, which could be increased to 300% compared to the bending deflection of the unmodified phenolic foam. The cell structure showed that the modified phenolic foam formed a more regular and dense network structure and the closed cell ratio was high. Furthermore, the compressive strength, bending strength, and limited oxygen index were improved, while the water absorption rate was lowered. However, the foam density could be kept below 40 mg/cm³, which does not affect the load.

To compare The effects of organic and inorganic impregnation on the properties of unmodified, phenol formaldehyde oligomer-modified (PFOMCF), and sodium silicate-modified Chinese fir wood (SSMCF) were compared using samples prepared using the respiratory impregnation method. Impregnation and reinforcement effects and water resistance of PFOMCF and SSMCF were compared and the results was showed that the weight percentage gain, density increase rate, bending strength, and compressive strength of SSMCF were clearly higher than those of PFOMCF and had a lower water absorption rate within 60 h. The impregnation and reinforcement effects and dimensional stability of SSMCF were better than those of PFOMCF. FT-IR, XRD, CONE, and TGA examinations were used to test and analyze the chemical structure, crystalline structure, flame retardancy, and heat resistance of these modified woods. The results indicated that SSMCF possessed more hydrogen bonds than PFOMCF and that Si–O–Si chemical bonding with high bond energy was formed. Meanwhile, the weakened degree of the diffraction peak of SSMCF was much less than that of PFOMCF. These results explained that the mechanical properties and water resistance of SSMCF were better than PFOMCF. Compared with PFOMCF, SSMCF had a lower heat release rate (HRR), peak-HRR, mean-HRR, total heat release, smoke production rate, and total smoke production as well as higher thermal decomposition temperature and residual rate. Inorganic sodium silicate was shown to be a better flame retardant, while SSMCF had good smoke suppression effects, thermal stability, and safety performance in the case of fire.

Air pollution is related to the development of people's livelihood. As one of the main pollutants in the air, formaldehyde affects people's physical and mental health. In order to remove formaldehyde and better protect the health of residents, it is very necessary to develop efficient adsorption materials. In this study, a cellulose composite aerogel Microcrystalline Cellulose/ N-(2- aminoethyl) -3- aminopropyl methyl dimethoxysilane (MCC/APMDS) modified by APMDS was explored. The pore volume and specific surface area of the modified aerogel decreased, the average pore diameter increased, and the adsorption capacity of formaldehyde was stronger. The adsorption experiment shows that the sample prepared under the conditions of APMDS dosage of 6 wt%, reaction time of 4 h and reaction temperature of 90℃ has the largest average pore size (14.56 nm) and the largest formaldehyde adsorption capacity (9.52 mg/g). The excellent adsorption of the composite aerogel is due to high porosity and rich active amino groups on the surface. This study provides valuable information for the preparation of adsorption materials with high formaldehyde adsorption capacity for air purification.

Detection of formaldehyde is very important in terms of life protection, as it can cause serious injury to eyes, skin, mouth and gastrointestinal function if indirectly inhaled and hence researchers are putting effort in developing novel and sensitive device. In this work, we have fabricated an electro-chemical sensor in the form of a field effect transistor (FET) to detect formaldehyde over wide range (10 nM to 1 mM). For this, ZnO nanosheets (NS) were first synthesized by hydrothermal method with in-situ deposition on cleaned SiO₂ coated Si (100) substrate. The synthesized materials were characterized for morphology and purity and surface area (31.718 m²/g). The developed device was tested for formaldehyde detection at room temperature that resulted in a linear response with concentration (96%), sensitivity value of 0.27 mA/M/cm² and a low detection limit of 210 nM, and a high 0.93194 return.

As one of toxic Volatile Organic Pollutant (TVOCs), formaldehyde has a toxic effect on microorganisms, and then inhibits the biochemical process of formaldehyde wastewater treatment. Therefore, the selective degradation of formaldehyde is of great significance to achieve formaldehyde wastewater high-efficiency and low-cost treatment. This study constructed a heterogeneous Fe-ZSM-5/H2O2 Fenton system for selective degradation to target compounds. By bonding Fe3+ onto the surface of ZSM-5 molecular sieve, Fe-ZSM-5 was prepared successfully. XRD, BET and FT-IR spectral studies shown the prepared Fe-ZSM-5 was mainly composed of micropores. The influences of different variables on formaldehyde selective heterogeneous Fenton degradation performance were studied. The 93.72% formaldehyde degradation and the 98.15% selectivity of formaldehyde compared with glucose had demonstrated in the optimized Fenton system after 360 min. Notably, the resultant selective Fenton oxidation system had a wide range of pH suitability from 3.0 to 10.0. Also, the Fe-ZSM-5 was used in 5 consecutive cycles, while the degradation efficiency of formaldehyde did not drop dramatically. Using reactive oxygen species scavengers, hydroxyl radical was the main active substance to degrade formaldehyde. Furthermore, the great degradation performance of this system to high concentration of formaldehyde was acquired, and the degrading efficiency was more than 95%.

Abstract: Uranium is a toxic radioactive element and is usually found in the environment in hexavalent form. It has become a necessity to remove uranium, which can enter the environment in excessive amounts through nuclear industrial activities, from access waters. Melamine formaldehyde organo clay nano composite foam (MFCNCF) was prepared as a novel adsorbent by hardening with thermal treatment. Structural, crystallographic textural and surface morphological characterization of the prepared adsorbent was made by FTIR and XRD spectroscopic and SEM and HRTEM microscopic techniques. This study aims to investigate the adsorption of U(VI) from aqueous solution by MF organo clay nanocomposite and its dependence on various variables such as initial uranium concentration, adsorption time, adsorbent dosage, initial pH, and temperature. Additionally, adsorption isotherm analysis and adsorption kinetics and thermodynamics were also examined. For this purpose, the batch adsorption experiments were carried out and the equilibrium concentration of U(VI) in the aqueous solution was measured with a UV-Vis spectrophotometer at a wavelength of 433 nm, which corresponds to its maximum absorptivity. The results regarding adsorption kinetics show that 30 min is sufficient to reach adsorption equilibrium and the data show a high fit to the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. Isotherm analysis also revealed a high fit of the data to the Type III isotherm and the Halsey model. Based on this fit, an adsorption mechanism involving two regions (electrostatic and complex formation) was proposed for the current adsorption system. The adsorption isosteric enthalpy and entropy values for the first and second regions are 3.65 and -51.02kJ/mol and 1.77 and -167.28J/mol, respectively. It was found in kmol. Experimental results showed that the prepared nanocomposite foam adsorbent is an effective and potential alternative for the effective removal of U(VI) from aqueous solutions.

A composite flocculant P(AM–DMDAAC) was synthesized by the copolymerization of acrylamide (AM) and dimethyl diallyl ammonium chloride (DMDAAC). Using microwave (MV) assistance with ammonium persulfate as initiator, the synthesis provided short reaction time and better solubility product. Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H NMR and 13C NMR), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and differential thermal analysis-thermo gravimetric analyzer (DTA-TGA) were used to determine the structure and morphology of P(AM–DMDAAC). Parameters affecting the intrinsic viscosity ([η]) of P(AM–DMDAAC), such as microwave time, mass ratio of DMDAAC to AM, initiator ammonium persulfatedosage, sodium benzoate dosage, bath time, reaction temperature and pH value were examined. Results showed that the optimum synthesis conditions were microwave time 1.5 min, m(DMDAAC): m(AM) is 4:16, 0.5 wt‰ initiator, 0.4 wt‰ EDTA, 0.3 wt‰ sodium benzoate, 2 wt‰ urea, 4 h bath time, 4.0h reaction time and pH 2. To study the removal of phenol by P(AM–DMDAAC), the influence of flocculant dose, pH value and the stirring speed were investigated, with optimization providing 99.8 % removal.

Keywords: apoptosis; arbutus unedo L; formaldehyde; hippocampus; oxidative stress

The development and improvement of methods for the synthesis of environmentally friendly catalysts based on base metals is currently an urgent and promising task of modern catalysis. Catalysts based on nanoscale magnetite and maghemite have fast adsorption-desorption kinetics and high chemical activity. The purpose of this work was to obtain magnetic composites, determine their physicochemical characteristics and verify their activity in the process of liquid-phase oxidation of phenol with oxygen. Magnetic nanocomposites were obtained by chemical co-deposition of salts of ferrous and trivalent iron. The synthesized magnetic composites were studied by X-ray diffractometry, energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence and Mössbauer spectroscopy, IR-Fourier spectroscopy, elemental analysis. To increase the catalytic activity in oxidative processes, the magnetite surfaces were modified using cobalt nitrate salt. Further, CoFe2O4 was stabilized by adding polyethylenimine (PEI) as a surfactant. Preliminary studies of the oxidation of phenol with oxygen, as the most typical environmental pollutant were carried out on the obtained Fe3O4, CuFe2O4, CoFe2O4/PEI catalysts. The spectrum of the reaction product shows the presence of CH in the aromatic ring and double C=C bonds, stretching vibrations of the C=O groups of carbonyl compounds; the band at 3059 cm–1 corresponds to the presence of double C=C bonds, the band at 3424 cm–1 hydroquinone compounds. The band at 1678 cm–1 and the intense band at 1646 cm–1 refer to vibrations of the С=О bonds of the carbonyl group of benzoquinone. Peaks at 1366 cm–1 and 1310 cm–1 can be related to the vibrations of C–H and C–C bonds of the quinone ring. Thus it was demonstrated that produced magnetic composites based on iron oxide are quite effective in the oxidation of phenol with oxygen.

The present protocol described extraction of active polyphenol oxidase and peroxidase from a plant rich in phenolics and chlorophylls in the post-harvest browning syndrome of B. myrtifolia. Initially, general optimisation using conventional enzyme extractions was performed. However, along with membrane-bound proteins, chlorophylls and phenols were also released with Triton X (TTX). With a view to obtaining high enzymatic activity, removal of the released chlorophylls and phenols by formation of TTX-114 micelles in the detergent rich phase after high-temperature induced phase separation was tested.

The highly crystalline ZnAl Layered Double Hydroxides (ZnAl-NO3- LDHs) are utilized for the potential transformation into Mixed Metal oxides (MMO) through thermal decomposition and used further for the photodegradation of phenol to assess the influence of calcination on ZnAl LDHs with enhanced photoactivity. The structure, composition, and morphological evolution of ZnAl-LDHs to ZnO-based MMO nanocomposites, which are composed of ZnO and ZnAl2O4, after calcination at different temperatures (400-600 ºC), are all thoroughly examined in this work. The final ZnO and ZnAl2O4 base nanocomposites showed enhanced photocatalytic activity. The findings demonstrated that calcining ZnAl-LDHs from 400 to 600 °C increased the specific surface area and also enhanced the interlayer spacing of d003 while the transformation of LDHs into ZnO/ZnAl2O4 nanocomposite through calcining the ZnAl-LDH precursor at 600 °C showed significant photocatalytic properties, leading to complete mineralization of phenol under UV irradiation.

The industrial sector plays a crucial role in driving global economic growth by creating employ-ment opportunities, generating local income, and significantly contributing to each country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP). However, the manufacturing industry is responsible for produc-ing a substantial amount of polluting effluents, which can harm the environment and compromise the life quality of future generations if not appropriately treated. Various methods, including physical, chemical, and biological processes, have been employed in the treatment of industrial ef-fluents. Filamentous fungi, in particular, have garnered attention as effective bioremediation agents due to their ability to produce enzymes capable of degrading recalcitrant compounds and adsorb different pollutant molecules. This study aimed to assess the collective body of research on using white and brown rot fungi to remove phenolic compounds from industrial effluents. The research employed a systematic review, incorporating scientometric analysis, with the primary goal of constructing a comprehensive overview of the evolution of this technology over time. The analysis also aimed to scrutinize its geographical distribution and identify gaps and trends within these research inquiries. Data for the study were obtained from the Web of Science (WoS) data-base using specific search terms (("white rot fung*" OR "brown rot fung*") AND (phenol* OR phenoloxidase OR "polyphenol oxidase*") AND (wastewater OR effluent* OR bioremediation)). The time frame considered ranged from 1945 to 2023, resulting in 464 publications. After refine-ment, 109 studies were selected for further analysis, focusing on using filamentous fungi in the bi-oremediation of industrial effluents. The findings revealed that white rot fungi were the most studied in industrial effluent remediation processes, accounting for 96.3% of the studies assessed, followed by brown rot fungi at 2.7%. Filamentous fungi demonstrate significant potential for treating industrial effluents due to their high capacity to degrade phenolic compounds, especially in wastewater from olive mills, paper production industries, and distilleries. Among the investi-gated species, Phanerochaete chrysosporium, Pleurotus ostreatus, Trametes versicolor, and Lentinula edodes have been the most extensively researched for this application. Notably, cultures with free cells (64.15%) stood out compared to cultures with immobilized cells, and cultures with isolated fungi surpassed microbial consortia. Geographically, Italy, Spain, Greece, India, and Brazil emerged as the most prominent countries in publications related to this area during the evaluated period.

The ozonation reaction in a bubble column reactor (BCR) has been widely used in the removal of phenol from wastewater, but the phenol removal efficiency in this type of reactor is limited because of low ozone solubility and reactivity in the system. In the present study, the phenol degradation was enhanced using α-Al2O3 as a packing material and a ZnO nanocatalyst in the BCR. The reactor diameter and height were 8 cm and 180 cm, respectively. The gas distributor was designed to include 52 holes of 0.5-mm diameter. Also, the gas holdup, pressure drop, and bubble size were measured as a function of the superficial gas velocity (i.e., 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, and 3 cm/s). The evaluation of the hydrodynamic parameters provided a deep understanding of the ozonation process to select the optimal operating parameters in the reactor. It was found that the best superficial gas velocity was 2.5 cm/s. A complete (100%) phenol removal was achieved for phenol concentrations of 15, 20, and 25 ppm at reaction times of 80, 90, and 100 min, respectively, using α-Al2O3 packing material and a ZnO nanocatalyst in the BCR. Additionally, the results provided a clear reaction mechanism describing the ozonized BCR. Finally, the applied treatment method can be used efficiently to remove phenol from wastewater at a low cost, with little consumed energy, and a simple operation.

The aims of this work were to examine the new electrode, based on polymer bacteria modified aluminum electrode for simultaneous production of electricity and degradation of phenol. This electrode is based aluminum modified by bacteria inserted in the polymer matrix, developed in situ on the surface. This electrode, designated subsequently by bacteria-polymer-aluminum, Showed stable response and was characterized with voltametric methods, as cyclic voltammetry (CV) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The experimental results revealed that the prepared electrode could be a feasible for degradation of hazardous phenol pollutants. The sensor was successfully applied to the determination of phenol in a real sample with satisfactory results.

Formaldehyde (HCHO) is one of the most important carcinogenic air contaminants. However, the lack of global surface concentration of HCHO monitoring is currently hindering research on outdoor HCHO pollution. Traditional methods are either restricted to small areas or data- demanding for a global scale of research. To alleviate this issue, we adopted neural networks to estimate surface HCHO concentration with confidence intervals in 2019, where HCHO vertical column density data from TROPOMI, in-situ data from HAPs (harmful air pollutants) monitoring network and ATom mission are utilized. Our result shows that the global surface HCHO average concentration is 2.30 μg/m3. Furthermore, in terms of regions, the concentration in Amazon Basin, Northern China, South-east Asia, Bay of Bengal, Central and Western Africa are among the highest. The results from our study provides a first dataset of the global surface HCHO concentration. In addition, the derived confidence interval of surface HCHO concentration adds an extra layer for the confidence to our results. As a pioneer work in adopting confidence interval estimation into AI-driven atmospheric pollutant research and the first global HCHO surface distribution dataset, our paper will pave the way for the rigorous study on global ambient HCHO health risk and economic loss, thus providing a basis for pollutant controlling policies worldwide.

In January 2019, the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health and Safety (ANSES) published an opinion on risks related to the presence of hazardous chemicals in infant diapers. ANSES found that health reference values were largely exceeded for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), dioxins (PCCD/Fs) and dioxin-like polychlorobiphenyls (DL-PCBs). The levels of formaldehyde and of some fragrances were also considered potentially unsafe. Therefore, ANSES concluded that actions have to be taken to restrict levels of these contaminants in diapers. Under the exposure scenario deemed the most reliable by ANSES, estimates of cancer risks of the most potent PAHs detected in diapers exceeded 10-3 and hazard quotients for neurobehavioral effects attained values up to 66. Regarding dioxins and DL-PCBs, ANSES derived a hazard quotient of 12 for the risk of decreased sperm count at adult age. The aim of this critical review was to examine whether the exposure and risk assessment conducted by ANSES contained potential flaws that could explain such a high exceedance of health reference values. The review will also put into perspective the exposure from diapers with that from breast milk whose benefits for child’s health are undisputable despite contamination by PAHs, dioxins and DL-PCBS.

This work is aimed at the development of innovative, easy and cheap methods for the stabilization, inertization and valorisation of the organic fraction of municipal solid waste (OFMSW). For the first time, two original processes for transforming the organic waste into an inert, odorless and sanitized material were here proposed. The first one, called dual step, starts with grinding of the OFMSW, by means of an industrial shredder. After being finely ground, the organic waste was exposed to a sterilization process by means of UV/ozone radiations or thermal treatment (stabilization phase) in order to obtain a complete removal of the OFMSW’s bacterial activity. By means of several microbiological analyses, the best sterilization method was chosen. The incorporation in a thermosetting matrix was, then, carried out through mixing the sterilized and finely ground organic waste into a water soluble urea formaldehyde (UF) based resin, with a formaldehyde content less than 1% wt, followed by a thermal treatment for UF-resin crosslinking (inertization phase). An alternative cheaper and easier process, called one step, was also proposed and investigated, by combining the sterilization with the curing thermal process (at higher temperature) of the thermosetting matrix. The preliminary experimental results reported in this paper suggest that both the proposed methods could be considered suitable for the production of high valorized innovative OFMSW-derived panels or bricks, that could find application in several fields, such as building or constructions materials. Finally a brief description of the prototype machinery is reported properly designed for implementing OFMSW stabilization and valorisation processes developed in this research work.

This study examined the use of high dosages of ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) (253.7 nm) to deal with various concentrations of air pollutants, such as formaldehyde (HCHO), total volatile organic compounds (TVOC), under various conditions of humidity. We also estimated the emission of ozone as a secondary pollutant of UVGI as treatment. A number of irradiation methods were applied for various durations in field studies to examine the efficiency of removing HCHO, TVOC, bacteria, and fungi. The removal efficiency of air pollutants (HCHO and bacteria) through long-term exposure to UVGI appears to increase with time. The effects on TVOC and fungi concentration were insignificant in the first week; however, improvements were observed in the second week. No differences were observed among the various irradiation methods in this study regarding the removal of HCHO and TVOC; however significant differences were observed in the removal of bacteria and fungi.

Antioxidant activity is an essential feature required for oxygen-sensitive merchandise and goods, such as food and corresponding packaging as well as materials used in cosmetics and biomedicine. For example, vanillin, one of the most prominent antioxidants, is fabricated from lignin, the second most abundant natural polymer in the world. Antioxidant potential is primarily related to the termination of oxidation propagation reactions through hydrogen transfer. The application of technical lignin as a natural antioxidant has not yet been implemented in the industrial sector, mainly due to the complex heterogeneous structure and polydispersity of lignin. Thus, current research focuses on various isolation and purification strategies to improve the compatibility of lignin material with substrates and enhancing its stabilizing effect. This contribution presents antioxidant capacity studies of various lignins depending on purification degree of the raw material. In detail, the antioxidant potential of lignin-based compounds is studied using the DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) assay. The purification procedure was monitored by thin layer chromatography (TLC) and showed that double-fold selective extraction is the most efficient purification procedure (confirmed by UV-Vis, FTIR, HSQC and 31P NMR spectroscopy, SEC and XRD analysis). Results are discussed regarding the dependency of antioxidant activity on lignin structure and biomass source. Thus, lignins obtained from industrial black liquor are compared with beech wood samples. In addition, the influence of lignin isolation (kraft versus organosolv) is discussed. Values of the antioxidant activity (DPPH inhibition) of kraft lignin fractions were 62-68% while beech and spruce/pine-mixed lignins showed values between 26, 64 and 42%, respectively. TPC values of the different isolated kraft lignin fractions varied between 26-35%, while beech, spruce/pine lignins were 34, 30 and 34%, respectively. Storage decreased the TPC values and increased the DPPH inhibition.

Alpine forest gaps can distribute snowfall, solar radiation and rainfall, thus inducing a heterogeneous hydrothermal microenvironment between the inside and outside areas of forest gaps. Additionally, the characteristics of the heterogeneous microenvironment could vary greatly across the gap location properties during winter and the growing season. To determine the response of total phenol loss (TPL) from the litter to alpine forest gap disturbance during decomposition, we conducted a field litterbag experiment within a representative fir (Abies faxoniana Rehd.) forest based on the gap location properties. The TPL and abundances of fungi and bacteria from two typical shrub species (willow, Salix paraplesia Schneid., and bamboo, Fargesia nitida (Mitford) Keng f.) were measured during the following periods over two years: snow formation (SF), snow cover (SC) snow melting (ST), the early growing season (EG) and the later growing season (LG). At the end of the study, we found that the snow cover depth, frequencies of the freeze-thaw cycle and the fungal copy g-1 to bacterial copy g-1 ratio had significant effects on the litter TPL. The abundances of fungi and bacteria decreased from the gap center to the closed canopy during the two SF, SC, ST and LG periods and reversed during the two EG periods. The TPL closely followed the same trend as the microbial abundance during the first year of incubation. In addition, both species had larger TPLs in the gap center during the first winter, first year and entire two years. These findings suggest that alpine forest gap formation accelerates litter TPL and plays a dual role during specific critical periods by distributing abiotic and biotic factors directly and indirectly. In conclusion, reduced snow cover depth and duration during winter warming under current climate change scenarios or as gaps vanish may slow litter TPL in alpine biomes.

Generally, mineral fillers are added to thermoplastic polymers to reduce cost and improve performance. However, properly selected mineral fillers can also improve thermal conductivity and deformation behavior, shrinkage, impact strength, dimensional stability, and molding cycle time in thermoset polymers. This study focused on the preparation and microscopic and spectroscopic characterization of various hybrid composites using pumice as primary filler and gypsum, kaolin and hollow glass sphere as secondary fillers, as well as examining some of their mechanical properties and thermal conductivities. For this, first of all, surface modification of the clay was carried out by intercalation method from solution using raw Montmorillonite, cationic surfactant and long chain hydrocarbon material, and then organo-clay melamine formaldehyde nanocomposite was prepared by in situ synthesis using organo clay and melamine formaldehyde pre-polymer. Finally, non-ionic surfactant, foaming agent and glycerin were added to the prepared nano-composite at approximately 90°C, mixed mechanically and then pumice was added. The processes at this stage were repeated while preparing hybrid composites with pumice and other mineral additives. For curing and molding, the composite was first subjected to microwave irradiation for 5 minutes followed by thermal treatment at 140°C for 60 min. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) spectra and Scanning electron microscope (SEM) and High resolution transmission electron microscope (HRTEM) images were taken for morphological and textural characterization for raw clay (MMT), organo clay (OMMT) and pure polymer with prepared hybrid composites. In addition, some mechanical properties such as bending strength, elasticity modulus and screw holding resistance, as well as thermal conductivity coefficients of the hybrid composites were determined according to the relevant standards and the obtained results were evaluated. Spectroscopic and microscopic analyzes have shown that effective adhesion interactions occur between polymer-clay nanocomposite particles and filler grains, thus resulting in textural arrangements with different properties. Mechanical and thermal conductivity test results showed that melamine formaldehyde-organo-clay nano composite foam and hybrid composite containing hollow glass sphere are highly qualified materials in terms of thermal insulation and mechanical strength.

In a search for a reliable, inexpensive, and versatile technique for high-throughput kinetic assays of drug metabolism, we elected to rehire an old-school approach based on the determination of formaldehyde (FA) formed in cytochrome P450-dependent demethylation reactions. After evaluating several fluorometric techniques of FA detection, we choose the method based on the Hantzsch reaction with acetoacetanilide as the most sensitive, robust, and adaptable to high-throughput implementation. Here we provide a detailed protocol for the use of our new technique for automatized assays of cytochrome P450-dependent drug demethylations and discuss its applicability for high-throughput scanning of the pathways of drug metabolism in the human liver. To probe our method further, we applied it to re-evaluating the pathways of metabolism of ketamine, a dissociative anesthetic, and potent antidepressant increasingly used in the treatment of alcohol withdrawal syndrome. Probing the kinetic parameters of ketamine demethylation by 11 major cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzymes, we demonstrate that besides CYP2B6 and CYP3A enzymes, which were initially recognized as the primary metabolizers of ketamine, an important role is also played by CYP2C19, and CYP2D6, while the involvement of CYP2C9 suggested in the previous reports deemed insignificant.

Wasted Green tuff powder produced by cutting Towada stone is recycled as environmental cleaning material. The optimum temperature for green tuff powder calcination to reduce the hydroxyl radical produced in hydrogen peroxide decomposition with ultraviolet light (UV) and no light. The green tuff calcined at 800 °C shows the large decomposition rate of hydrogen peroxide with no UV light when measured by using ESR. With UV light, the optimum temperature for calcinating the green tuff powder in order to reduce hydroxyl radical is also 800 °C. Next, the powder calcined at 800 °C is used to produce the tile by compression and heating, and then the formaldehyde adsorption rate was measured. The green tuff powder calcined at 800 °C showed a high adsorption rate, similar to that of the activated carbon. The tiles formed at 40 MPa and heated st 1100 °C were the strongest and also adsorbed formaldehyde. The adsorbed formaldehyde on the green tuff tile and powder might have a possibility to decompose by photocatalytic.

The activity and cyclability of Cu-MOF-74 as catalyst was studied for the ligand-free C-O cross-coupling reaction of 4-nitrobenzaldehyde (NB) with phenol (Ph) to form 4-formyldiphenyl ether (FDE). Cu-MOF-74 is characterized by unsaturated copper sites in a highly porous metal-organic framework. The influence of solvent, reaction temperature, NB/Ph ratio, catalyst concentration and basic agent (type and concentration) were evaluated. High conversions were achieved at 120°C, 5 mol% of catalyst, NB/Ph ratio of 1:2, DMF as solvent and 1 equivalent of K2CO3 base. The activity of Cu-MOF-74 material was higher than other ligand-free copper catalytic systems tested in this study. This catalyst was easily separated and reused in five successive runs, achieving a remarkable performance without significant porous framework degradation. The leaching of copper species in the reaction medium was negligible. The O-arylation between NB and Ph took place only in the presence of Cu-MOF-74 material, being negligible without the solid catalyst.

High-content fluorescence microscopy combines the efficiency of high-throughput techniques with the ability to extract quantitative information from biological systems. The planarian community has developed sensitive and robust assays for whole animals, yet cell based assays, despite their practical aspects, have not been explored to the same extent. Here we describe a modular collection of detailed protocols adapted for fixed planarian cells that enable multiplexed measurements of biomarkers in microwell plates. Methods include the detection of RNA transcripts by RNA fluorescent in situ hybridization combined with tyramide signal amplification using hapten-labeled riboprobes. In addition, immunocytochemical protocols for quantifying proliferating cells by the detection of phosphorylated histone H3 as well as 5-bromo-2'-deoxyuridine incorporation into the nuclear genome are described. The assays are compatible with planarians of virtually any size, as the tissue is disaggregated into a single cell suspension before fixation and staining. By sharing many reagents with established planarian whole mount staining protocols, preparation of samples for high-content microscopy adoption requires little additional investment. Recommendations for successful experimental workflows and common sources of errors are discussed.