This comprehensive review explores the potential and versatility of biogenic materials as sustainable and environmentally benign alternatives to conventional adsorbents for the removal of drugs and dyes. Biogenic adsorbents derived from plants, animals, microorganisms, algae and biopolymers have bioactive compounds that interact with functional groups of pollutants, resulting in their binding with the sorbent. These materials can be modified mechanically, thermally and chemically to enhance their adsorption properties. Biogenic hybrid composites, which integrate the characteristics of more than one material, have also been fabricated. Additionally, microorganisms and algae are analyzed for their ability to uptake pollutants. Various influential factors that contribute to the adsorption process are also discussed. The challenge, limitations and future prospects for research are reviewed and bridging gap between large scale application and laboratory scale. This comprehensive review, involves a combination of various biogenic adsorbents, going beyond the existing literature where typically only specific adsorbents are reported. The review also covers the isotherms, kinetics, and desorption studies of biogenic adsorbents, providing an improved framework for their effective use in removing pharmaceuticals and dyes from wastewater.

The energy potential of wood biomass is significantly shaped by its chemical composition. Analyzing the chemical composition of wood biomass and understanding the correlations between these parameters and wood combustibility are essential stages in the selection process of Eucalyptus clones tailored for firewood production and energy generation. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the impact of chemical composition on the direct combustibility of Eucalyptus clones. We examined the structural chemical composition and conducted proximate analysis, including fixed carbon, volatile material, and ash, to investigate the relationship between proximate composition and wood combustibility parameters. Our findings revealed significant correlations between wood chemical composition and combustibility parameters. In particular, lignin content, ethanol-soluble extractives, and xylose demonstrated inverse relationships with the parameters of maximum combustion rate, combustion characteristic index, and ignition index. Conversely, holocellulose content, cold-water-soluble extractives, and glucose exhibited direct correlations with the same combustibility parameters. Furthermore, fixed carbon and volatile matter contents demonstrated direct and inverse correlations, respectively, with ignition temperature. These findings have significant implications for enhancing the efficiency and sustainability of biomass energy production.

Plasma membrane calcium ATPases (PMCA) are key proteins in the maintenance of calcium (Ca2+) homeostasis. Dysregulation of PMCA function is associated with several human pathologies, including neurodegenerative diseases, and, therefore, these proteins are potential drug targets to counteract those diseases. Gold compounds, namely of Au(I), are well-known for their therapeutic use in rheumatoid arthritis and other diseases for centuries. Herein, we report the abil-ity of dichloro(2-pyridinecarboxylate)gold(III) (1), chlorotrimethylphosphinegold(I) (2), 1,3-bis(2,6-diisopropylphenyl)imidazol-2-ylidenegold(I) chloride (3), and chlorotriphenylphosphinegold(I) (4) compounds to interfere with the Ca2+-ATPase activity of pig brain purified PMCA and with membranes from SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cell cultures. The Au(III) compound (1) inhibits PMCA activity with the IC50 value of 4.9 µM, while Au(I) compounds (2, 3, and 4) inhibit the protein activity with IC50 values of 2.8, 21, and 0.9 µM, respectively. Regarding the native substrate MgATP, gold compounds 1 and 4 showed a non-competitive type of inhibition, whereas compounds 2 and 3 showed a mixed type of inhibition. All gold complexes showed cytotoxic effects on human neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cells, although compounds 1 and 3 were more cytotoxic than compounds 2 and 4. In summary, this work shows that both Au (I and III) compounds are high-affinity inhibitors of the Ca2+-ATPase activity in purified PMCA fractions and in membranes from SH-SY5Y human neuroblastoma cells. Additionally, they exert strong cytotoxic effects.

The N-alkylation of 1,3,5-triaza-7-phosphaadamantane (PTA) with ortho-, meta-and para-substituted nitrobenzyl bromide under mild conditions afforded three hydrophilic PTA ammonium salts, which were used to obtain a new set of seven water-soluble copper(I) complexes. The new compounds were fully characterized and their catalytic activity was investigated for the low power microwave assisted one-pot azide–alkyne cycloaddition reaction in homogeneous aqueous medium to obtain disubstituted 1,2,3-triazoles. The most active catalysts were immobilized on activated carbon (AC), multi-walled carbon nanotubes (CNT), as well as surface functionalized AC and CNT, with the most efficient support being the CNT treated with nitric acid and NaOH. In the presence of the immobilized catalyst, several 1,4-disubstituted-1,2,3-triazoles were obtained from the reaction of terminal alkynes, organic halides and sodium azide in moderate yields up to 80%. Furthermore, the catalyzed reaction of terminal alkynes, formaldehyde and sodium azide afforded 2-hydroxymethyl-2H-1,2,3-triazoles in high yields up to 99%. The immobilized catalyst can be recovered and recycled through simple workup steps and reused up to five consecutive cycles without a marked loss in activity. The described catalytic systems proceed with a broad substrate scope, under microwave irradiation in aqueous medium and according to “click rules”.

This paper investigates rate-splitting multiple access (RSMA) networks with multiusers assisted by aerial intelligent reflecting surfaces (AIRS). To improve the sum-rate of the system, the UAV’s trajectory and phase-shift vectors are optimized, in which the mobility scenarios with static and dynamic users are explored. In particular, long short-term memory (LSTM)-based frameworks for predicting the UAV’s trajectory and the phase-shift of the reflecting elements of AIRS are proposed. For more insight, a third model is created by combining information from the static and dynamic scenarios. Furthermore, to improve the transmit beamforming at the BS, an algorithm based on alternating optimization (AO) under the assumptions of imperfect successive interference cancelation (SIC) is presented. Training progress and testing results are provided to demonstrate the efficiency of the proposed models. In addition, numerical simulations are presented to verify the performance gains in terms of sum-rate. The simulation results show that the UAV performs better in trajectory prediction and phase-shift when different investigated scenarios are not combined.

This study introduces a new strategy for the environmentally friendly catalytic degradation of Reactive Red 24 (RR24) dye using sunlight. We developed a cost-effective quaternary nanocomposite by immobilizing a sodium alginate biopolymer over bioengineered Co-Zn-Ce nanoparticles, forming an SA@Co–Zn–Ce nanocomposite (where SA means sodium alginate). This composite also demonstrated an exceptional antioxidant potential of approximately 89%, attributed to the synergistic effect of sodium alginate and green-synthesized Co–Zn–Ce nanoparticles (biosynthesized using Ocimum sanctum leaf extract as a reducing agent). Scanning electron microscopy revealed grain sizes of 28.6 nm for Co–Zn–Ce NPs and 25.59 nm for SA@Co–Zn–Ce nanocomposites (NCs). X-ray diffraction showed particle sizes of 16.87 nm and 15.43 nm, respectively. Co–Zn–Ce NPs exhibited a zeta potential of 1.99 mV, whereas the sodium alginate-anchored Co–Zn–Ce showed −7.99 mV. This indicated the entrapment of negatively charged ions from sodium alginate, altering the surface charge characteristics and enhancing the photocatalytic degradation of RR24. Dynamic light scattering revealed an average particle size of approximately 81 nm for SA@Co–Zn–Ce NCs, with the larger size due to the influence of water molecules in the colloidal solution affecting hydrodynamic diameter measurement. The SA@Co–Zn–Ce NCs exhibited a CO2 adsorption capacity of 3.29 mmol/g at 25 °C and 4.76 mmol/g at 40 °C, indicating temperature-dependent variations in adsorption capabilities. The specific surface area of Co–Zn–Ce oxide NPs, measured using Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) analysis, was found to be 167.346 m2/g, whereas the SA@Co–Zn–Ce oxide nanocomposite showed a surface area of 24.14 m2/g. BJH analysis revealed average pore diameters of 34.60 Å for Co–Zn–Ce oxide NPs and 9.26 Å for SA@Co–Zn–Ce oxide NCs. Although the immobilization of sodium alginate on Co–Zn–Ce oxide NPs did not increase the adsorption sites and porosity of the composite, as evidenced by the N2 adsorption–desorption isotherms, the SA@Co–Zn–Ce oxide NCs still demonstrated a high photocatalytic degradation efficiency of RR24.

In this study, we propose an approach to the synthesis of new biodegradable polymer materials based on renewable raw feedstock (betulin) and derivatives of hydroxycarboxylic acids using a catalyst/catalytic system (γ-Al2O3, γ-Al2O3/TBHP) that is safe for health and the environment. The resulting polymers are linear thermoplastic polymers that undergo collapse upon melting in the presence of atmospheric oxygen. Moreover, these polymers demonstrate non-toxicity towards a range of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. The polycondensation of betulin with butyl lactate is particularly noteworthy.

This study synthesized NiAl-layered double hydroxide (LDH)/Cu-MOF photocatalyst using a simple impregnation method involving NiAl-LDH and Cu-MOF. The successful synthesis was confirmed through Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), zeta potential measurements, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), ultraviolet diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV-DRS), N2 adsorption at −196 °C, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). Photocatalysts based on NiAl-LDH, Cu-MOF, and NiAl-LDH/Cu-MOF were used to remove methyl orange (MO) dye from contaminated water. The impact of various factors, including pH, dye concentration, and photocatalyst amount, on MO degradation efficiency was assessed. FTIR analysis was conducted both before and after dye degradation. The optimal degradation conditions were a photocatalyst dose of 25 mg and a pH of 3. Kinetic studies indicated that the degradation of MO dye onto NiAl-LDH/Cu-MOF followed a pseudo-first-order and an L–H or Langmuir–Hinshelwood model. The value of R2 = 0.94 confirms the validity of pseudo-first-order and Langmuir–Hinshelwood (L–H) kinetic models for the photocatalytic degradation of MO dye. This study highlights the importance of developing novel photocatalysts with improved degradation efficiency to protect the water environment. Antibacterial activity was also performed with antibacterial sensibility testing by disk diffusion to determine minimal inhibitory and bactericidal concentrations. In short, NiAl-LDH/Cu-MOF can be helpful for various biomedical and industrial applications.

Confining active nanoparticles within specific nanoscale spaces is a promising strategy to improve the catalytic activity, selectivity and stability of catalysts. In this study, we present a lattice-matching approach to confine Co particles within ZnO layers (ZnO/Co/ZnO) for CO2 hydrogenation, a critical and challenging reaction in the field of CO2 utilization and energy production. XRD patterns reveal that the lattice mismatch between ZnO and hexagonal wurtzite CoO (w-CoO) is only 0.18%, facilitating the epitaxial growth of w-CoO on the ZnO surface, or vice versa. This minimal mismatch enables the successful confinement of w-CoO within the ZnO interlayers. This advanced methodology can also be adapted to diverse ZnO morphologies, allowing the optimization of the confined catalyst microstructure. Significantly, when Co particles are confined within the interlayer of ZnO, they exhibit excellent catalytic activity, achieving a rate of 15.8 μ molCO2 · g−1 Co · s−1 for CO2 hydrogenation reaction. Moreover, no appreciable deactivation was observed even after 700 h of continuous operation. These results introduce a novel approach for the development of confined catalysts with enhanced activity and long-term stability.